Gifts for Everyone: Soda Stream USA :: CLOSED

Do you have a family or family members that have everything and you are stumped. Truly you are at the gift giving conundrum pass of what to give as the perfect gift for someone or for everyone who has everything?

I could bet you they do not have their very own fountain soda system. Seriously.

Who does not just love that fresh mixed taste of a cool refreshing soft drink? Like the one from soda fountains from years of old. The bubbly beverage calling your thirst, quenching your every desire. Yes I am still talking about Soda, Pop, Coke, Pepsi, Sprite, 7-Up, whatever you may call it.

My family is not big soda drinkers anymore, but we love to have a soda every now and again. But the cost effectiveness of buying a whole package makes better economic sense as opposed to the cost of just the single soda  (Yeah do the math). However, the environmental issues also weigh in with all the packaging and waste. Imagine no more useless bottles, cans, and or cases. Imagine fresh, straight from the fountain style soda right in your home. Or better yet, sparkling water. Ever heard of Perrier?

Soda Stream USA would be the best fit for the family who enjoys soft drinks on all levels. From sparkling water, to Red-Bull type drinks, cola and diet cola, and who could forget the family favorite of root beer (and root beer floats!).

Want to know how it works, just watch.

Soda Stream USA from Karie Herring on Vimeo.

Easy peasy right?! So you are wondering what other flavors are there? How hard is it really to make? No electricity? Bottles? Where is the catch?

Nutritional info straight from the website:

As you can see....the Soda Stream sodas have LESS sugar, sodium, caffeine, and calories than commercial sodas, well at least the two flavors listed that are comparable. Speaking of flavors.

FLAVORS:

•  Cola
• Cranberry Raspberry
• Cream Soda
• Fountain Mist
• Ginger Ale
• Lemon Lime
• Orange
• Pete's Choice
• Root Beer
• Tonic

FLAVORS to come:

• Cherry Cola
• Peach Iced Tea
• Lemon Iced Tea
• Lemonade
• Orange Mango
• Grape
• Zero Cola
• Diet Peach Iced Tea
• Diet Lemon Iced Tea
• Diet Lemonade
• Diet Energy Drink 

As you can see by the video....not hard at all to make. Follow the easy peasy instructions and you have yourself some super fountain drinks. Oh the issue of electricity, yeah, none needed since the whole operation is based on the CO2 (carbon dioxide) canister where the CO2 is shot right into the soda bottle. Oh right, and the package comes with a One Litre bottle that is BPA free. The whole system is completely environmentally friendly. The CO2 you ask? Well you buy those from Soda Stream, send them back your old ones to recycle when you order your new ones. Much like printer cartridges.

Are you ready to add one to your kitchen appliances? You are? Or maybe for a loved one who LURVES a nice cool, bubbly fountain drink but hates to keep running to the store for more?

Here is what you are entering to win: Fountain Jet Soda Lover's Start-Up Kit (approx. $100 retail value.) It includes the winner's choice of black/silver, white or red/silver Fountain Jet, CO2 to make over 100 liters of soda, 2 reusable carbonating bottles, a sample pack of flavors, and 3 full-sized flavors of the winner's choice

MANDATORY ENTRY: Check out Soda Stream and tell me the system you would want and your top three flavors, new coming or otherwise. (Be sure to leave your email or make your blogger profile public, no email, no entry, sorry.)

EXTRA ENTRIES:

• Follow my blog or tell me you do
• Follow me on Twitter or tell me you do
• Follow SodaClub and tell me you do
  
• Daily Tweet option "Better than soda in a can giveaway from @SodaClub @KariewithaK http://tiny.cc/cE2g0 "
• Blog about this giveaway in 25-100 words (not that hard.....for 5 extra entries)
• Fan The Fish on Facebook
• Enter one of the other giveaways for an extra entry
  

Don't forget to DOWNLOAD your Copy of the catalog HERE and all the fabulous participants, savings, and giveaways!

 CONTEST ENDS NOVEMBER 23RD @ MIDNIGHT

Best of luck!

*Five Fish always blog ethically and with transparency. Click HERE!

Holiday Gift Guide

You have now entered the twilight zone.....seriously for the next few weeks....be prepared to lose your silly little shopping minds in preparation for the holiday and Christmas season as we....well I, who happens to have a mouse in her pocket, deliver to you the BEST in holiday gift ideas. From the everyday to the not so everyday to the unique to the extraordinary!

Moms, Dads, Kids, everyone in between and gift ideas for the whole family! Enjoy all the great reviews, discounts, and oh did I mention the BOAT LOAD of great giveaways for you to enter! If you want a sneak peek into who will be showcased, click HERE, download your VERY OWN catalog of all the great participants of the gift guide, where to find them and where to buy them!


DOWNLOAD your Copy of the catalog HERE


Big thanks to all of those who participated in The Five Fish Holiday Gift Guide, seriously, you folks ROCK and I love you for your UBER coolness and thanks to you, my faithful readers who will have some really cool ideas to take with you for gift ideas. Enjoy everyone! Thanks again!

Karie, aka Mrs. Fish

Santa Fish is Coming to Town

Can you believe that we are more than three-quarters through 2009?! I know I cannot believe how fast time has flown. I can tell you that we have 75 days until Christmas!

THAT'S IT! ES TODO!

So if you are like me and wait until the VERY last minute to shop, or you finally get the nerve to rouse in the morning before 4am to fight all those lovely Black Friday shoppers, like I did last year. Well you are in luck!

I, Karie, aka Mrs. Fish, am compiling the ultimate gift guide for you! These lovely gifts will be oh so unique that your recipient will be swooning in joy over their one of a kind package. The range is from a total family gift, so one everyone in the family can enjoy, to individual gifts for the "hard to shop for" or "they have everything."

Be ready! The gift giving begins HERE November 1st. What is even better than a guide of wonderful gifts, is the chance to WIN some of these AWESOME gifts! How is that for holiday shopping! You're very own holiday concierge, right here, delivered by moi.

I am still compiling a FABULOUS month of gift giving ideas, reviews, and giveaways, because you can never have enough GREAT ideas for gifts. If you are not participating with The Five Fish Holiday Gift Guide YOU SHOULD BE! Share with us your products, we love to hear about them and give them a good whirl in our house. If you are PR, please use the linky above to submit all requests. I look forward to hearing, sharing, and giving you all a Jolly Good Holiday time!

Last Minute Valentines

For those of you who have procrastinated and are not sure what to give as a gift....I have a solution. My DH HATES and I mean HATES Valentine's but he plays into the whole holiday for me....even though I truly don't care for it. But I love the holiday only because he proposed on this day 9 years ago and not over dessert but in the desert! Yup, in the desert, in front of a jeep, at the base of the Sandia Mountains over looking the twinkling lights of the city. He did this just when I thought that the whole night was over and he was never going to propose. I was wrong.





THERE! I said it.....I was wrong. He will be so pleased. Anyway, off on a tangent, back to the gift idea. FOOD! Yes, food is the best gift when you can't afford to go out and spend a fortune and you can't spend a fortune to get a unique gift so here is the gift idea....ready for it.........

Chocolate covered fruit! Strawberries always come to mind, but hey, oranges are great, blueberries, bananas, just about any dang fruit out there is FABULOUS in chocolate! So here is you pantry list:

Fruit: Strawberries, bananas, anything listed above

Chocolate chips or Hershey Kisses

Toothpicks

Wax paper

Cookie sheet or 13X9 baking pan

1. Pour 6 ounces (3/4 cup) chocolate chips or kisses into a mirowave safe bowl and melt for 1 minute on HIGH. Stir, and reheat if consistency is still chunky.

2. While chocolate is melting, prick all your fruit with toothpicks. This makes dipping and placing a breeze and cleanup is a snap! Line sheet/pan with wax paper.

3. Start dipping fruit and place carefully on sheet/pan.

*If you want to get creative use a couple different chocolates like semi-sweet and white for fancy designs or different flavors like the picture posted below.

4. Place fruit into fridge for 2-4 hours for chilling and setup (overnight preferred) and VOILA! You have now created a loving gift of food for your Honey Bunny without breaking the bank and who doesn't just love chocolate on Valentine's and chocolate covered fruit to boot!

For more last minute foodie ideas that won't break your bank or require an extra trip to the store feel free to email me at karieherring@gmail.com and I would be more than happy to provide some fantastic recipe ideas. Also to see more of my recipes The Greer 5 have been posting some...but I need to start posting them here for all to enjoy! Bet you didn't have any idea I was a chef!