Review and Giveaway: Old El Paso Frozen Dinners

I have a busy life.  It's one of those busy lives where people look at me and ask "What do you do all day?" because it doesn't seem like since I work at home I'd be busy, but I am.  When it comes to food, I like things I can cook quickly and that are tasty.

I recently received the opportunity to review Old El Paso Frozen Dinners from My Blog Spark.  "Frozen" is currently one of my favorite words when it comes to dinner.  That often means it's quick to fix!

I received a coupon for any Old El Paso frozen dinner, a chip and dip bowl serving platter, and a $10 pre-paid Visa so I could buy anything else I needed for my Mexican meal.  I picked up the chicken fajita meal.  It has enough for three fajitas for two people.  I liked the though of the peppers, onions, and chicken already being in there and taking 10-13 minutes to cook!

After about 13 minutes it looked liked this:

And finally I put it in some tortillas and added a little sour cream:

It was quick, easy and delicious.  I will certainly be buying this again.  I love fajitas but don't always have the time to chop everything to fix them for dinner that evening, so this will solve that problem.  I believe my store sells these for about $6 so and that is so much cheaper than eating out!  They were tasty, just enough spice for me but not too spicy for those who like mild Mexican food, and they certainly hit the spot!

Be sure and check out the  Old El Paso website and the Old El Paso on Facebook

FTC disclaimer:  I received a coupon for a free Old El Paso Frozen Dinner, chip and dip tray, and $10 pre-paid Visa to allow me to make a Mexican meal for review.  All opinions are my own and I only endorse products I personally have enjoyed and I think my readers should know about them.

On to the giveaway:

 a Rafflecopter giveaway

Apps to Help With Shopping on Black Friday and Cyber Monday

FTC disclosure:  I am a member of the U.S. Cellular Better Moments Blogger Brigade.  This is a sponsored post.

U.S. Cellular offers a FREE PRINTABLE Parent Child agreement to help you discuss safety of the Internet, cell phone usage, limits, and courtesy with your teen or tween.  You don't even need to be a U.S. Cellular customer to access this, although I have been for 10 years and highly recommend them. 

The holidays are coming!  That means Black Friday and Cyber Monday are closer than you think!  A few years ago on Black Friday I saved over 90% of the original price on the items I bought with a lot of time and effort.  I'm glad, though, that this year I have a phone that will help with my shopping so I can save time as I save money that way I can put lots of gifts under the tree without going over my budget.

Coming Home for Christmas DVD Review and Giveaway Ends 11/22

I love Christmas movies and Christmas specials.  I could watch them all year long.  I had nearly a dozen videotapes years ago filled with Christmas shows I'd taped off TV.  Everything from the classics to things that no one had ever heard of but me!

To me, to make something a perfect Christmas movie there needs to be humor, sentimentality, love of family, and maybe even a touch of romance sprinkled in.   Based on this, the new movie "Coming Home For Christmas" is a hit!   I really enjoyed it because it's got a bit of a twist on the traditional Christmas movie.  Kate wants her family to spend Christmas in the house she grew up in -- but there's a slight problem -- it has been sold and someone else lives there.  As with most Christmas movies, the story line was a bit predictable (but would it be a good Christmas movie if it wasn't?  So, of course it's going to be predictable because Christmas movies must be happy and heart-warming.)  I really enjoyed this movie, and I know it will be a classic around here.

Want to buy it?  You can do so at Walmart.  You can even order it HERE and have it sent to you directly or to your local Walmart for pick-up.  It even includes a limited edition Norman Rockwell print inside the DVD case.

You can watch the trailer here:



Wal-Mart has graciously given an extra copy of this DVD to be given to one of the readers of The Radar Report.  Just enter on the Rafflecopter form below.

Giveaway ends November 22nd.  Open only to the USA and Canada.  Must be 18 or older to enter.


a Rafflecopter giveaway


Disclosure of Material Connection:  I received one or more of the products or services mentioned above for free in hope that I would mention it on my blog.  Regardless, I only recommend products or services I use personally and believe will be good for my readers.   I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commissions 16 CFR, Part 255: "Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising"

Book Review: At the Heart of the Gospel

FTC disclaimer:  I received a copy of this book from the publisher in exchange for a fair and honest review.  All opinions are my own.  This post contains affiliate links.

At the Heart of the Gospel: Reclaiming the Body for the New Evangelization

In  At the Heart of the Gospel, author Christopher West takes deep theology and makes it accessible to those of us who aren’t scholars!  I appreciate his writing style as he explains things thoroughly without talking down to the readers.  He has dedicated himself to studying Pope John Paul II’s writing “Theology of The Body” and in this book, West explains how that work relates to the New Evangelization. 

I’ve heard in my own theology classes in college about the Gnostics who believed the body was bad and spiritual things were good.  One of the things that West points out in this book is if we believe that, then what is life without the body?  It is death.   This reminded me of the many times in college that I’d be in a “feminar” (a seminar for girls) and we’d be told beauty isn’t important, it’s only what is inside that counts.  I realize that not everyone is a model, but beauty is in the eye of the beholder, and ask most men, and they would tell you their wife is beautiful.   We can survive in a world without beauty, but that’s often what it is, survival and not thriving. 

One chapter I especially enjoyed was “The Narrow Gate Between Idolatry and Iconoclasm”.  We can make anything into an idol be it beauty, food, other things that relate to our physical bodies, or something more abstract such as a hobby, or even veneration of saints.  But do we need to go so far as to do away with things rather than keep them in check?  Most likely not.  If you have ever tried to lose a few pounds, to do it in a healthy manner, you still have to eat.  So to have a healthy relationship with anything, it must be in moderation. 

I also very much appreciated West tackling the tough topic of “The Great Analogy of Spousal Love”.  Have you ever read through the Song of Solomon?  That is an erotic book of the Bible!  The high school I graduated from decided they were going to read through the Bible, one chapter a day, and being super conservative, I wondered what they would do when they came to that book if they continued that plan!  Like Pope Benedict XVI said “The Prophets describe God’s passion for his people using boldly erotic images.”  (page 103)

I enjoyed this book, not as much as a previous book by the same author, but it’s still a good, solid book that makes Pope John Paul II’s Theology of the Body not only accessible but practical.   I highly recommend this book.

FTC disclaimer:  I received a free copy of this book from the publisher in exchange for a fair and honest review.  I only recommend books I enjoy.

You can purchase this book here: