If you read my blog, then you know how much I adore my grandfather. He has made such a huge impact on my everyday character, and who I am in general. Without him as a role model, I don’t think I would have the joie de vie attitude mixed with I don’t care what people say or think about me…. I’m just happy. It is his love for family and survival that has molded my disposition and  sunny outlook on life.

Recently my grandfather had a doctor’s appointment for no reason other then he goes to the Dr. every few months because he’ll be 90 years old soon and we have to keep a close eye on our favorite guy. As usual the doctor gave him shining results and said he is healthy as can be. Lucky me! The only thing the Dr. did say is he should slow down and hold back a little on his sugar intake. What? Right before Easter? He didn’t say he couldn’t have sugar, he just said it shouldn’t be so often. Well here’s the thing, my beautiful old grandpa just loves a tall glass of juice in the morning, and I can’t deprive him of that.

The other day I was at Walmart and found a juice in the frozen section made by Old Orchard. What caught my attention was the fact that it read clear as day “No sugar added.” That already was better than the sugar loaded juice my grandpa drinks in the morning. I reached for a can of Old Orchard to investigate it further, and to my delight it has  no artificial flavors and no preservatives. Each 8-oz glass equals two servings of fruit and contains 120% of the daily recommended value of Vitamin C. Thumbs up! Plus it ONLY cost $1.47 at Walmart– say what? And my grandfather gets to still have his juice in the morning…. Love it! I brought a few plastic cans of juice home and put them to the test. We found a winner. Grandpa liked the natural sweetness from the juice and I liked serving him something his Dr. wouldn’t frown upon. I love my Grandpa, god bless his soon to be 90 year old soul. The whole family will raise a glass with him.

I woke up to some great news this morning. Walmart released a statement letting the world know that they will now carry a new awesome organic line called Wild Oats in their stores. Can you believe the world’s largest retailer is bringing an organic line to the people at a 25% cheaper price point (compared to other organic lines?)  I love it. This just means more people will be able to eat organic, or people who wanted to eat organic in the past but couldn’t afford it might be able to now. Heck, this organic line may even reach a new demographic of people who had never even considered eating organic, and might go that route now, teaching the country to eat better and live better. This is seriously a beautiful thing and makes me so proud to see my beloved Walmart taking steps everyday to make the organic world more readily available to people.

• Wild Oats Marketplace Organic™, which adheres to USDA guidelines for organic certification and includes everything from canned vegetables to a full range of spices such as paprika, curry powder and ground cinnamon.
• Walmart will carry a broad variety of Wild Oats Marketplace Organic™ categories – from salsa and pasta sauce to quinoa and chicken broth.

I am headed to Walmart now to buy Wild Oats Marketplace Organic™ products and put them to good use. Seeing that round  USDA seal for organic certification is pure joy.

Last week I was having dinner with a group of girlfriends. We were sitting around chatting, exchanging our newest finds around town and updating each other on what’s going on in our lives.  One of my friends said that she had recently started taking “biotin” per instruction from her hairstylist. I asked “Why? What does it do?”  She said it helps with hair thickening, skin, and stronger nails. I liked what I heard and thought I should start taking it too.

A few days later I discovered this cool new tool that Walmart.com is providing called Vitaselect, it’s this quick online survey you can take and based on your answers it will help you choose a vitamin, mineral or other supplement to fit your concerns. Awesome right? Of course, I took the survey right away, and in addition to recommending a daily vitamin, it recommended biotin and cinnamon capsules. I rushed over to Walmart and found everything I needed, and started my new regimen right then.  I can’t wait for my hair and skin to start looking better, then I’ll report back to the girls. Take the survey and forget the guess work…. Vitaselect will do it for you.

Looks like this spring break I will be home. Finally a long awaited rest en mi casa. I have been traveling and running around like a mad woman lately. Even though it may sound like a let down to some people, I just fantasize about staying home with my fiance and our son and maybe inviting some friends over for a nice dinner.

Okay so here’s the skinny… I decided to stop fantasizing about it and start planning my little staycation at home instead. I hopped in the car and headed over to Walmart. With no particular plan in mind, just as a way to rummage through the store and see what I could find. I walked aimlessly through the aisles and found myself in the craft area. There on a hook was a variety of wreath skeletons empty and begging to be filled with something. I remembered these cool wreaths I had seen a while back made of vegetables and thought “I have that white fence that needs some color to welcome in spring.” Before I knew it a wreath skeleton was in my cart and I had made my way to the produce section of the store to see what leafy beauty I could fill it with. I found little bunches of radishes and they were certainly priced right for my project. I grabbed 10 bunches and rushed to the cashier, so I could get home and start my project. Taking me one step closer to my staycation and making the place feel more like spring with a simple veggie wreath. Now all I have to do is pick up the phone and invite some friends over for dinner.

Items needed for radish wreath:

• 8 inch wreath
• 10 to 15  – radish bunches
• thin floral wire (26 gauge)
• Scissors

Directions:

1. Start by spreading out your radishes in clusters.
2. Then cut 6 inch pieces of wire and wrap them around the radish clusters where they are gathered by a rubber band.
3. Carefully place the radishes onto the wreath with the radishes pointing toward the center and the leaves pointing toward the outer ring of the wreath.
4. Then on the other side of the wreath twist the wire to tie it to the wreath. 
5. Continue until the entire wreath is filled with radishes.
6. Hang and enjoy for a few days.  

I am proud to say I work for Walmart.  They do so many things for our nation that no one talks about.  Here are a few things that Walmart does: They are working to become supplied 100% by Renewable Energy, which means generating their own energy at stores and facilities, reducing gas emissions and making their private fleet of trucks more efficient.  They are also are in partnership with the national fish and wildlife foundation and together they created “Acres For America.”  This is a commitment by Walmart to purchase and preserve 1 acre of wildlife habitat in the U.S. for every acre of land they develop on.  Fighting Hunger In The U.S.  Walmart is committed  to getting the best, healthiest, and most affordable food to as many people as possible.  They are using their size and scale to help support and strengthen local farmers and their communities, produce more food with fewer resources and less waste, and sustainably source key agricultural products.

Recently I was having a conversation with a highly influential food writer, and she brought up a wonderful point to me that brought all things into perspective being a girl who thinks in terms of food.  She said (I’m paraphrasing),  “It’s easy for people to take a piss on Walmart, they are the world’s largest retailer making them an easy target.  I give them all props and credit for bringing organic foods into their produce section.  The little bit of organic foods they have brought in is going to make a huge difference to our nation’s view to eating better and in turn help the farmers and the economy.  They are taking a huge step forward by introducing healthier options to the American diet.” I loved her for saying this.

Now I am even more proud to stand with Walmart and announce to the world their latest commitment to create and keep jobs in America. Walmart is investing $250 billion in products that will support American jobs over the next 10 years. Creating and keeping jobs in America, they are helping to rebuild local and national economies. Work is a beautiful thing. 

All of these facts are amazing and make me proud to join the Walmart Moms for a better tomorrow.

We all watched the Disney classic “The Jungle Book” growing up, and sang the song “bare necessities” without ever realizing what we were even singing. Looking back at this great animated film and listening to the treasured soundtrack, I am excited for the Diamond Edition release of the film February 11th! For the first time ever on Blu-ray with glorious digital high definition, Disney’s Jumpin’ Jungle Classic has never looked so lush or sounded so good! Making it a must-have for the family classic collection!

I started to think about the #BareNecessities and wondered what my “bare necessities” are in the kitchen? Then I decided to give away a “Bare Necessities” Cooking Kit to coincide with the release of THE JUNGLE BOOK! One lucky winner will win all that is pictured below, along with a Diamond Edition of The Jungle Book! Enter for a chance to win below!

Disclaimer: This is a sponsored post for Whole Foods Market Long Beach.

It’s absolutely NO secret that I am a serious cheese lover. If you read my blog religiously or even follow halfheartedly then you know. Come on people…. my logo is a little mouse…. that’s because I love cheese. I’m getting ahead of myself, let me start where I received an email from one of my contacts over at Whole Foods Market asking if I would be interested in giving away a $50.oo dollar gift card to WFM on my blog to one of my readers. Of course I said yes…. Who doesn’t love Whole Foods?

It’s funny, cuz the second I think of Whole Foods Market, I think of their cheese selection.   The mountains of formage that pile neatly in the corner of the store. It’s like a little hide away where one can run and drool. I also instantly think of making cheese platters for holiday parties or parties in front of the TV or maybe Santa needs a cheese plate instead of cookies this year. Today while I was at Whole Foods buying some cheese to make a party platter, I ran across a new little sign that read “Grab N Go Cheese $5.00 or less!” Can you believe? I bought a few chunks of cheese from the bargain basket, but then with all the savings I did splurged on nuts and olives. I’ll go over some tips for cheese making in a minute, but what I really want to share is this awesome event that is taking place on Monday Dec. 16th from 6p.m. to 8p.m. at Whole Foods Market in Long Beach. It’s called the Dressing Rehearsal….  It’s a free in-store holiday tasting event with chef demos, sampling of delicious holiday dishes and special holiday offerings. Pssst… here are the features of the event, don’t say I never shared anything with you:

• Beer & Wine – Holiday favorites, pairings and sampling
• Holiday Cheese Board – How to create
• Premier Party Dips sampling
• Coffee and seasonal treats
• Alternative Holiday Dishes

It’s super exciting, and a great place to pick up a few tips! Not to mention snack on some yummy munchies.   Here’s the address:

6550 E. Pacific Coast Highway, Long Beach, California 90803

Here are some tips for BYOBrie: Start with your favorite brie like Isigny Sainte-Mère French Brie (exclusive to Whole Foods Market) and then grab pre-portioned toppers to mix and match, like dried cranberries or apricots, candied pecans, marcona almonds, honey, fig jam and more to suit a variety of palates. I sometimes add a bowl of olives. Or wrap the whole thing in pastry and add some jam to it, then pop it in the oven.

Would you like to enter for a  chance toWIN a $50.00 gift card to Whole Foods Market? 

Up to 4 chances to win:

1. Please tell me in a comment below what appetizer you serve for a holiday party. 

2. Subscribe to Presley’s Pantry You Tube Channel, by clicking here.

3. Follow Whole Foods Market Long Beach on Twitter, by clicking here.

4. Tweet “Enter for a chance to win a $50.00 gift card to Whole Foods Market! Via @PresleysPantry https://presleyspantry.com/2013/12/13/how-to-make-a-cheese-plate/ #‎AD @WholeFoodsLBC ”

Leave a message below with each action you took, so I can keep track! Good Luck!

Open to U.S. Residents only. No PO Boxes, please. Must be 18 years or older to enter. Contest ends December 18th, 2013 at 9:00 PM, PST and one (1) winner will be randomly chosen from all entries through random.org, and contacted by email. The winner will have 24 hours to respond with a mailing address, or the next winner up will be chosen. Good Luck!