The Daily: March 29th, 2022

Good afternoon my darlings. Today I am in a much better frame of mind. Things are actually working as they should. Which is nice. Work may be work, but it shouldn’t come with extra road blocks. And while there are no real road blocks today, there is also no sun. It is a cold and dreary looking day outside and I am expecting rain at any moment.

I managed to get a walk in earlier (mostly because rain tends to flood out the walking trail for at least a day or two after the rain passes so I figured I’d get it in while I could. It was a strange walk though. The sky felt very heavy and it felt almost as though something was lurking above me hovering and waiting. I was actually the only one in the park but it felt like I was being watched. I know I wasn’t, because really, there wasn’t anyone there. It was just the sky.

It was the first time though I was happy to end the walk and get back inside. Today’s lunch was another of the Cacao Super Smoothies from Smoothie Box. This time I made it with Almond Milk. It was absolutely delicious, but I fear it may have made it a little too sweet. The almond milk paired with the chocolate and banana made it feel a bit more desert like than I planned. I think I am going to counter balance it with a Chomps Cranberry Habanero Beef Stick as my afternoon snack. It is only 90 calories so it fits well within my afternoon snack range and it is savory enough to counterbalance the sweetness.

I like almond milk but I always forget how sweet it actually is. It isn’t something I notice in cereal or as a dollop in oatmeal. Well actually in Oatmeal I kind of do notice it but it means I add less brown sugar so there it is a plus. I just forget about the sweetness when it is in the smoothies. I think Coconut water or coffee will be my next add in to the Cacao smoothie instead of the almond milk.

Which I know is a little more than you really want to hear about my lunch, so let’s just move on with the day’s makeup shall we?

Today’s look:

Primer: Lorac Light Source 3 in 1 Illuminating Primer

Foundation: Charlotte Tillbury Air Brush Flawless Foundation

Bronzer: Ciate London Bamboo Bronzer

Blush: Illamasqua colour veil gel blusher

Powder: Becca Pink Haze (discontinued)

Eyeshadow: KVD Vegan Beauty Lolita

Mascara: Athr Beauty Big Bang Mascara

Lips: Zoeva Powerful Lip Twist

Today I used the Lorac primer which meant that I did not need a highlight. It is illuminating all on it’s own. For me it needs a matte foundation over it. I ended up using the Charlotte Tillbury, but I think this foundation needs to have a pore filling primer underneath it. i am already starting to see settling into the fine lines around my mouth. Also I did not use the Embryolisse under my makeup today and I can really tell the difference. this foundation feels much drier this afternoon than it has in the past week. That lait-creme as a pre makeup base really makes a difference.

I really like this ciate bronzer. It applies well and blends easily. After fiddling with the Nude Stix I was happy to use something that just works. And of course the more I use the Illamasqua gel blusher the more I like it.

I am still trying to use up the Becca Pink Haze. It did seem a bit more powdery today than usual. I don’t know if that is because it is nearing the end of it’s life or if my skin was just drier than usual. I think it may actually be a combination of both.

I just went for a single shadow which usually means I grab this KVD one, It is a nice color and one that works well for me. The mascara was an issue. I’ve been using it off and on for the past few weeks and it is already starting to feel empty. I think because I use so many layers to achieve the look I want it uses the product up faster. But it really shouldn’t be feeling this empty this fast. I’m going to keep using it, but I think it may not be long for the makeup bag.

And finally I went with the zoeva lip twist. The color is nice and the formula is creamy. The problem is that it is too creamy so it will never hold a point. I have a bit more application control with a traditional bullet lipstick. Despite the nice color, I will be using this up and letting it go.

And that was my makeup look today. It was for the most part quick and easy. I do miss the Embryolisse underneath. This is the final week of me using the moisturizer as my moisturizer for the test and after Friday I am just shifting the rest of the tube over to my makeup drawer as that is where it will do the most good.

But now, it is back to work for me. Have a great Tuesday everyone.

Snack time: Chomps Jalapeno Turkey Stick

I feel like there ought to be a drumroll. Or at least a Renaissance Faire announcement horn. Maybe with a here ye here ye attached. As many of you may know I have been working my way through the Chomps Variety pack. While they do have a choose your own variety pack where you can decide what sticks you want in your variety box, this was the standard eight stick pack. It was sent over by Chomps for me to try.

I know I have said this a number of times, but I love variety packs, especially if it is a product that I can easily lean into one standard flavor. I have a tendency to find one thing that I like and then just reorder it because I know I like it, especially with snacks.

Which can get a little boring.

So variety packs help me personally overcome my own tendency to follow the tried and true and branch out into new flavors. Which is especially important in snacks. I know, some of you are thinking, ‘Mimsy, aren’t you trying to lose weight? Doesn’t snacking sort of add calories?’

I does, but good snacks help instead of hinder. To be honest I have never been a snacky person. The only real snacks in our house when I was growing up were apples, nuts, pretzel sticks and popcorn. Nuts were in ever present bowls that you just took one or two from in passing but never really sat down and ate, pretzels you were allowed to take a handful but no more and then popcorn was mostly for movie night. Usually after school featured an activity so the afterschool snack was usually an apple because if could be eaten moving about.

So snacking was never really a big part of my world.

Portion control at meal times has always been my issue. Incorporating an afternoon snack in my routine helps me keep my dinner portion under control. And here is the fun thing I have found. I don’t have to have a major calorie hot with the afternoon snack, but it does have to be something that feels satisfying and substantial, or it has to feel like a treat.

A square of dark chocolate feels like a decadent treat so I feel like I need to stay on my plan for dinner to make up for it. Snacks like the Chomps sticks feel substantial and I always finish feeling like I definitely ate something that will stick with me.

This Jalapeno Turkey Stick, the last stick to try out in the variety pack, is no different. It has only 60 calories and zero sugar, but it does pack 10 grams of protein. Perhaps it is the protein that makes it feel more substantial. Perhaps it is the snap as I bite thorough the outer casing and into the softer stick within. I do know that it is a satisfying snack that will make me feel comfortable staying with my designated dinner portion size.

But how does it taste? It has a good taste and oddly enough reminds me of thanksgiving. I think it is because for the last few years one of the people who comes to our thanksgiving table always brings jalapeno studded cornbread. This doesn’t taste of cornbread in the slightest (and to be fair her cornbread is really just enough batter to hold the mass of jalapenos together). I think it is the turkey paired with the Jalapeno that sends my brain in that direction.

I think it might be because other than that I have never paired turkey with jalapeno. It is a good combination and I think I might like it a little more than the regular turkey stick. They are both good, but part of the evaluation of the variety pack is to determine which sticks you would want to order a full pack of. To be honest, turkey (in general, not just in stick form) is not my favorite flavor. I really only have it at thanksgiving. I don’t really get it as sandwich meat or any other form throughout the year. I am a huge fan of the jalapeno though, which might explain why I like this better.

For those of you who are on the fence regarding spicy heat. This stick is labeled as medium heat and has jalapeno bits studded through it. (They are the dark spots you can see on the side of the stick. I would say that medium is definitely the right category for this heat level. It is present and you can find it warming on your tongue, but you can still taste all of the flavors as well as the heat. It isn’t blow the roof off hot, but it isn’t barely there either. It is a good medium heat.

Don’t you just love when things are labeled appropriately?

I once had something labeled medium spice that caused my eyeballs to sweat for three days. While I like heat, I don’t like the heat to cover the taste of what I am eating. I want flavor and not just heat. And this Jalapeno Turkey stick from Chomps does give me that. It is a great turkey flavor with a nice jalapeno heat. It also leaves me craving Martha’s jalapeno cornbread dipped in turkey gravy, but that is a personal peril and one that you might nit have. While I am on the fence about the turkey sticks, my babydoll has decided he really likes it so it will probably go on the order list for his side of the snacking stash.

And that my darlings is the last of the Sticks from the Chomps Variety pack. Each stick has been tasted, and quite frankly enjoyed. More than finding snacks I have learned that my taste and my babydoll’s tastes are similar in certain aspects but vary widely in others. There are some sticks, like the cranberry habanero beef sticks that we both like. There are some that I like and he isn’t partial to and some he likes that aren’t my favorite. I think my biggest surprise was tasting the Sea Salt Beef Stick. I would never have purchased it on my own, but I liked it better than the original beef stick, which even prior to this test I purchased from the grocery on a routine basis. Sometimes taking a chance pays off.

And if you are interested in trying out Chomps and any of their assorted flavors, whatever your tastes, they are currently having a sale. From now until August 23rd they are having a back to school sale. the promotion is 20% off sitewide with no code needed. While we did reorder the Cranberry habanero beef stick, we will probably be ordering another pack as they disappeared pretty fast. (My baby doll took a bunch to the office.) There will probably be a sit down tonight to go over the flavors and decide what to reorder now that the tasting is complete. These sticks are filled with only good stuff you can feel good about eating, for me they keep me happy and on track between lunch and dinner. They also make great slip into your back pack snacks for you or anyone going back to school or the office to take along. Neat, easy to eat, filled with goodness and delicious, what more could you want in a snack?

Snacktime: Chomps Sea Salt Beef Stick

As many of you know I have been working my way through the Chomps Variety pack. They sent over the standard variety pack for me to try out, which I really appreciate. I love trying out new flavors in this kind of format so that I can figure out which ones I really want to order in a full box.

Some of the flavors I’ve tried have been spectacular, others weren’t for me. Surprisingly, the ones I wasn’t as in love with turned out to be my babydoll’s favorite. Which doesn’t help with narrowing down the order, but it also means nothing goes to waste.

One of the things that I really like about Chomps is that if you look at their variety pack and think that there are just a couple on the list that you just will not eat, or if you know there are a few that you really like and can’t narrow it down to just one flavor, it isn’t a problem. You can build your own variety pack and choose the flavors that you put into it. There are several flavors but one that was a big hit all around was the Cranberry Habanero Beef stick. So we ordered a box. I was going to take a picture of the package when it came in but my babydoll got to the mail first and by the time I saw it not only was the outer packaging gone but several sticks were gone from the pack. Actually it looked oddly deflated. I think my baby doll took half of the pack to work with him.

But the variety pack I am working my way through has two left in it and today we are going for the Sea Salt Beef Stick. I’ll admit, I thought this was just going to be a bit of a salt bomb. It is slightly saltier than the other beef sticks, but it isn’t ‘salty’. The sea salt just enhances the beef flavor so that it just tastes extra beefy. I think I might actually like this more than the original beef stick. And I liked the original beef stick quite a lot. There is something that is just slightly more unctuous about this one. It has the same 9g of protein, 90 calories and zero sugar as are in the original. It is the same grass fed and finished beef. The same fat content.

Trust me, I checked.

Because the slightly extra salt content seems to have made the Chomps Sea Salt Beef Stick feel as though there is more to it. There isn’t, I compared labels. It is the same good stuff as the others. But it has a little extra umph that I really like. It has the snap to the casing that you would expect and the soft, but not mealy or mushy interior. I think that this is definitely going on my to be reordered list. I think it also replace the original beef stick. I still like the original, but this one just has a little bit more beefiness that I really enjoy. I especially like it because in the store I would have passed it over thinking that I didn’t want salty beef. Again, this is why I really like variety packs. Because sometimes, you just have to try it to find out if you like it or not.

Snacktime: Chomps Jalapeno Beef Stick

This beef stick was part of an eight piece variety pack sent over to me by Chomps for the purpose of review. As I’m sure most of you know at this point, the afternoon snack is an integral part of keeping me on track for my calorie count. While I don’t follow a specific diet plan I basically balance calories and exercise. It is a slow process but when I focus it works well for me. Occasional things like stress eating and special events send me off the rails a bit, but for me I viewed it as creating a sustainable eating pattern for my body rather than going on a diet.

For me, snacks are integral because one small snack eaten around two in the afternoon each day makes me feel satisfied, it makes me feel like I have had some sort of treat, and it keeps me from making my dinner portion just a little bit larger.

Portion size has been the thing I consistently wrestle with.

Snacks help me keep to that portion control.

As long as they are the right snacks. The Chomps sticks fall into the category of ‘the right snacks’ This particular Jalapeno Beef Stick contains 9 g of protein and has only 90 calories. There is also zero sugar and the beef is both grass fed and finished.

For those wondering what the difference is between grass fed and grass finished, I found a really well put explanation on the website for Verde Farms. You can click on the link to read the whole article. I have no association with them, I just like the concise explanation they give, which is…

Simply put, grass-finished beef comes from cattle that ate nothing but grass and forage for their entire lives. Grass-fed, on the other hand, may be used to label meat from cattle that were started on a grass diet but have either received supplemental grain feed or are finished on a fully grain-based diet
Verde Farms

Sometimes it’s best to check definitions. And while this does come from someone who sells beef, the same information is available elsewhere, this was just concise.

One thing I really like with variety packs is that you get to taste a bunch of different types to see which ones you might want to order. It has been interesting actually. Last week I tried the Salt and Pepper Venison which was okay but not my favorite. My babydoll has however declared it his favorite so a box will end up being ordered for his snacks. I think he delighted with the thought of a pack of snacks that he doesn’t have to share.

With this one, I think it is a pack that I am not going to have to share. He took a bite to taste and declared that he still prefered the peppery bite of the Venison Stick. I took a bite and decided not to share the rest of it. I love jalapenos. Right now I have about twelve jalapeno plants in the garden and they are just beginning to produce peppers. Soon I will have jalapenos in the corn muffins, and there will be a loaf of jalapeno cheddar bread (heavier on the jalapenos than the cheddar) on my counter. By the end of the summer both pickled jalapeno slices and candied jalapeno slices will be in my fridge and cupboard.

So I am a fan of the jalapeno.

This strikes just the right balance of beef and pepper. It has distinct pepper bits in the mix, which I really like, and it does had a hit of heat to it as one would expect. But it is not overpowering. It melds with the beef so that it is a beef stick with jalapeno rather than just jalapeno heat with a touch of beef. I found it really well balanced. The meat, while lean, was not too lean so it wasn’t dry. And sometimes if you go too lean when mixing with jalapenos the texture can get a bit mushy. this did not. It had the right snap to the outside and a good texture within. I think of the flavors I have tasted this far, this may actually be my favorite. I have two more in the box to try out, but this is definitely the one to beat. And since my baby doll wasn’t as enthused with this one, it means that when we order, I will have a snack box just for myself.

Build your own Chomps Custom Variety Pack and save 10%

Snacktime: Chomps Salt & Pepper Venison Stick

Each day I try to have a little afternoon snack. It really helps me to feel like I am full between meals and it keeps me on track with my calories. In general I find that if I don’t have an afternoon snack then I tend to overeat at dinner time, or even feel cheated in my portion size.

snacking helps me feel better about the smaller portions.

Recently Chomps sent a package full of goodies for me to try and I have been rotating them into my snack time routine. Currently I am working my way through the variety pack. I am a huge fan of variety packs, especially with a brand that has tastes that are unfamiliar to me. Prior to this I tried the original Beef Sticks from Chomps but none of their variety of flavors. With a variety pack I can try all of the types and decide which ones I really enjoy eating and then repurchase larger packages of those. There are eight sticks in the variety pack, each a different type. And if you look at the standard variety pack and know that some of the flavors aren’t for you, you can always build your own variety pack.

Thus far, I’ve actually really enjoyed all of the ones I’ve tried. I will admit, I was a little nervous when I pulled this stick from the box. I really enjoy venison actually. While we moved around a lot when I was a child at one point we lived in an area where deer had to be hunted just to keep the population in check. My family didn’t hunt but we did have a neighbor who often brought home more than he could eat so we worked out a deal with him so nothing went to waste.

So I have fond memories of the taste of venison. I also have some pretty pore memories. It can very easily go from a lovely game meat to something you want to hide in your napkin and slip to the dog when no one is paying attention.

However the venison part of the Chomps stick wasn’t what concerned me. It was the pepper. I will use black pepper as a seasoning, but I really don’t like the taste of it. When I go for spice, I want the vegital heat of a jalapeno or a serrano rather than black pepper. It has caused some issues at our house as my babydoll’s favorite meal involves steak au poivre (pepper crusted steak) and I always think, why would you do that to a poor defenseless steak when you can baste it with garlic butter instead? It is an ongoing in house issue.

Luckily we don’t have steak all that often so it is mostly a verbal debate. But that is beside the point.

So today was the Salt and Pepper Venison stick from Chomps. I was pleasantly surprised. The pepper is a little too black pepper forward for me, but it doesn’t completely overwhelm the taste of the venison. The venison is well seasoned and the stick has the snap outer edge you would expect with a soft interior. The meat is slightly gamey a you would expect (and I personally like) but it isn’t mealy or stringy.

As with all Chomps products the meat is grass fed and finished. The stick contains zero sugar, 9 grams of protein and is only 90 calories. The stick is filling enough to count as the perfect size for a mid day snack without blowing out my calorie count.

While it was nice, I have to say it is still a little pepper forward for me to really enjoy. So for me I would not personally order a large box of these. Hower, my babydoll had a bite of this Chomps Salt and Pepper Venison Stick and has declared it his favorite thus far. (he has been trying them along with me so I can order snacks for him as well). As I mentioned before he likes pepper a lot more than I do, so this is one we will be ordering for him rather than me. I don’t actually mind that actually. Finding snacks for him that aren’t chips or cookies has been a challenge. He loves his sweet and he loves his salt. Luckily this counts as a ‘salty’ snack and he is thrilled that he will be getting a box all to himself. He grew up with two older brothers both of whom have similar tastes to him so anytime he gets a treat he doesn’t have to share he is thrilled.

So the pepper isn’t for me, but the texture of the meat and the quality of the venison I found quite impressive. If you are interested in trying them out, they have a sale going on for back to school it is 20% and a great way to stock up on good snacks.

Back to Healthy Habits & Back to School

Snacktime: Cranberry and Habanero Beef Stick

It is time. Time to open the Variety Pack of Chomps. Chomps very kindly send this over to me to try out and review and trust me, I am more than happy to do so. I love variety packs. They are a great way to try out a multitude of flavors so that you can decide if you like them enough to buy an entire pack.

Because let’s face it, some flavors sound good until you actually try them and they don’t live up to your expectations. Of course the opposite is also true. Some products that you wouldn’t naturally gravitate towards end up being your favorites once you try them.

The Chomps Variety Pack contains eight different flavors. Three of them I have already tried. Those were the Original Beef, the Italian Style Beef and the Original Turkey sticks. The Links will take you to the full reviews of those. While I reviewed them as the Chomplings Bags they are the same flavors they are just now in regular sized sticks which are about twice as large as the Chomplings.

So today I pulled one of the remaining five flavors from the variety pack and then did a happy dance as the one I was most excited to try out was pulled from the box. Today’s snack was the Cranberry and Habanero Beef Stick. I am a sucker for anything with sweet heat so this looked tailor made for me.

As with all Chomps products the beef sticks are made with grass fed and finished beef and have zero sugar. This stick has 9g of protein and 100 calories. And one stick is one serving. I know that sounds strange to say, but something I have picked up on since instituting my afternoon snack plan has been that you really have to check the serving size before you snack. I have picked up several snacks calculated my caloric intake only to find out after further reading that the protein bar I just consumed was actually two or even three servings.

Build your own Chomps Custom Variety Pack and save 10%

They just got sneaky with the packaging. It kind of drives me a little crazy when companies do that. Luckily Chomps does not. What you see is what you get. One stick is one serving.

But was the Cranberry and Habanero beef stick a treat worth eating? Yes it was. The rating of three flams and Hot as it’s designation had me a bit worried, but then I tried it and it was not as spicy as I thought it was going to be. Don’t get me wrong, it is a bit spicy and it is a heat that lingers. However it is not a heat that overpowers.

I like spicy things but I don’t want heat to be the only thing I taste. I wanted the spice of the habanero but I also wanted the sweet and tart of the cranberry as well as the beefiness of the meat. With this stick I got all three. I could taste everything without the heat overpowering me. The heat did linger after I was done, but it was a pleasant reminder, not a need to go running to the fridge for a glass of milk. I was very impressed with the balance and the taste. The stick had the nice snap that I like, with the soft interior as well. And the 9g of protein will help keep me going through the rest of the day. Overall I am very please with this Chomps Cranberry and Habanero Beef Stick and can’t wait to try the other varieties in the pack.

Snacktime: Chomps Original Turkey Mini Sticks

As I’ve mentioned before including an afternoon snack in my diet helps keep the munchies away as well as preventing me from overeating at dinner. Chomps very kindly sent a package to me containing a variety of their products to try out.

I’ll be honest, I was a little nervous when I saw the Turkey sticks. Turkey sticks have, in the past not been my favorite. I ‘ve found that quite a lot of them are dry or mealy and can often have an unpleasant flavor. Turkey is one of those flavors I tend to be very picky about. I like a few turkey things, but the bulk, I just pass by. Still, I try not to dismiss anything out of hand. I will try just about anything once, even if I refuse to try it again. So I opened the bag of Chomps Chomplings Original Turkey mini Sticks and hoped for the best.

As with the other Chomplings bag, there are six mini sticks in the bag. Each stick contains thirty calories and five grams of protein, which really helps keep me going in the afternoon. I generally find protein is one of the things I crave in the afternoons. Even if it has a lower calorie count, the protein, for me makes a better snack.

As with all Chomps products there are no antibiotics and no added hormones. Only free range turkeys are used and they are fed a vegetarian diet. There are no preservatives, no nitrates or nitrites added and no artificial colors or flavors.

And while all that is good, it is the flavor that is going to keep me eating the sticks. So prepared to try the flavor, I opened one of the sticks and took a bite. It tasted like turkey.

I know, not really a shocking surprise.

But it was very good turkey. It was neither greasy nor dry, had a good turkey flavor and an excellent texture. There are some products I have tried where the texture has put me completely off the product even if the flavor was nice. with this, both were very good and something I will definitely eat again.

I am however very glad they are mini sticks. The first one out of the bag I ate with no real delay and it was delicious all the way down. The second one, on a different day, I took a bite of and then had to set aside while I answered the phone. I was on the phone for about an hour and then I finished my snack. Biting into the stick and leaving it, then coming back gave it a little time to dry out a bit. The flavor and texture were still there, but it was a little on the dry side.

I think because they have such little fat, once you open them and bite in, thus exposing the interior, they can dry out. with the mini sticks it isn’t really an issue as two to three bites and you are through the stick. It was just something I noticed when I let it sit out over an hour. It was still delicious, it’s just something to be aware of if you are snacking at your desk.

Over all I was pleasantly surprised. The turkey is moist with a good flavor. The snap of the stick is there and the interior is soft without being mealy. It is everything I could ask a turkey stick to be and I will certainly be happy reaching into this bag the rest of the week and putting the Chomps Original Turki Mini Stick Chomplings on my repurchase list.

Snack Time: Chomps Italian Style Beef Mini Sticks

All hail solid foods!

Last week I had dental surgery and so have been more or less living off of soups and smoothies for most of this week. The Smoothies from Smoothie Box and the Yes Well Campbell’s Sipping soups have been kind of my standard and my saving grace this week. However, returning to solid foods means a return to my normal meal planning.

And one of the things that has helped me enormously in planning my caloric intake has been establishing an afternoon snack. Most of my physical exercise, whether it is at the gym or hitting the walking trail is in the morning. For the gym I go in the mornings after the early risers have cleared out so that I can take advantage of the lull and if I am going on the walking trail I am going early enough that I can try to beat the worst of the sun.

This means that while I start my exercise fortified with breakfast and replenish at lunch time, around two in the afternoon, I start to get a little peckish. Because of my babydolls work schedule dinner isn’t until 6:30 or 7 at night so I need a little something to tide me over so that I don’t over eat at dinner time.

For those interested, I started out telling myself that I could just get a small snack mid afternoon to tide me over, but I found if i didn’t specifically earmark something then I would over indulge in my snack. which sort of defeat the purpose.

Chomps very kindly sent me a box of various products to try out and review and I have to say the bags of Chomplings are perfect for my snacking plan. There are six mini sticks in the bag and each stick has 4 grams of protein, zero sugar and 40 grams of fat. Last week I worked through part of the Original Beef Mini Sticks and this week I went with the Chomplings Italian Style beef. They are labeled mild, so for those of you who don’t like a lot of spice, this might be the Snack for you.

The Mini stick is, for me just the right size. The meat is good quality beef. It is grass fed and finished, had a vegetarian diet, was raised free range and contains no added hormones, so I feel good eating it and the taste of the beef is really good as well. I know a lot of people have given up meat, for many different reasons obviously, but I have several friends who did so because they disliked the system.

I do clearly eat meat, although I limit my intake. Because I want to eat consciously and because I limit my beef intake I tend to focus on only the good stuff I can feel good about eating. And I feel good about eating this.

The taste of the beef is good and the italian spices are definitely present, but mild, as the label says. You can taste the oregano and a bit of red pepper as well as the other spices. Again they are mild. One thing I was worried about with the mild label was that the spices would be overpowered by salt. Happily that is not the case and you can taste the flavors instead of just having salty beef.

The outside of the stick has the snap that you want in a beef stick and the inside has a soft interior. At the moment, a soft interior is a good thing. I am back to solid foods, but I want to avoid sharp edges for a bit. Some beef sticks can be hard as well as dry. This has the right amount of moisture. It is lean, but not dry and certainly not greasy.

While I like the flavor, I think I would like to see if they have a non-mild version. I like my Italian spices to have a bit more of a red pepper kick to them. Although I have to point out that i will happily eat the mild as well. Now that i am back to eating more or less normally, snack time has returned and this bag of Chomps Chomplings Italian Style mini Beef Sticks is a delicious treat i am happy to see on my snacktime list.

Snack Time: Chomps Chomplings Original Beef Mini Sticks

Chomps just sent a package containing a variety of their delectable treats to try out for the purposes of review and I am simply thrilled. As many of you know, I have been working towards a healthier me. Part of that does include losing weight and getting more active.

The bulk of my workout time, especially in the summer when i am attempting to beat the heat for my outdoor activities, is in the mornings. I split my calories out throughout the day, but because of the heavier morning activity, I generally find that if I don’t have a snack in the afternoon I will over eat at dinner and if I do have a snack it is easier for me to not only not over indulge at dinner time, but not snack at night.

I allow myself one snack per day and If I’ve had my snack between lunch and dinner I don’t feel like snacking at night. And as snacks at night tend to be in conjunction with the television and tend to be mindlessly consumed,. it is much better for me to have that afternoon snack.

I also find I choose better snacks if i eat them in the afternoon. Fruit, cheese, nuts, protein bars and meat snacks are my go to while at night snacking seems to lean towards chips and cookies.

Today’s snack was one of the Chomps Original Beef Mini Sticks. As I generally choose a snack for the week, I will be eating them throughout this week. (At least until Friday anyway). While there were many tempting flavors in the box sent over, I wanted to start with the original so I know what to compare the flavors to.

The first ingredient on the list is Grass Fed and Finished Beef. They are fed a vegetarian diet, raised in a free range environment and there are no antibiotics or added hormones to the beef. There are no preservatives, artificial colors or flavors, no nitrates or nitrites added and there are zero sugars. In addition there is no gluten, nuts, soy, milk, pork or fillers. For me this means that I am simply getting good beef with seasonings.

And you can taste the goodness in the stick. It has a nice snap to the bite and the meat is lean enough not to be greasy but contains enough fat so that the stick does not feel dry. A lot of the time you can very easily get dry feeling meet sticks if too lean a cut is used. Chomps seems to balance this nicely. The salt balance is nice as well. It is not too salty which can also occasionally happen. As salt and fat equal flavor, often times when the meat is lean too much salt is added. This didn’t have that problem.

The texture of the stick itself is also nice. It is not mealy and it it is not too hard. It has the perfect snap to the outside but then is a softer beef stick inside. For me that is how I like my beef sticks.I’m not a huge fan of the hard all the way through sticks and I don’t like too mealy of a texture inside. This was honestly how I like my snacks.

The original beef stick was quite frankly delicious.

I really like the smaller sticks in the Chomplings bag. It means that first off there are enough sticks in one bag to serve as the snack for the week (six sticks per bag). The smaller stick is also just enough of a snack that I feel I’ve gotten enough of a snack without being shorted. It is the perfect snacking size. In addition it contains 4g of protein to get me through the afternoon and there are only 40 calories to each stick. Because of the slight richness to the stick it feels like a treat but the calories won’t blow my daily calorie count. I was very impressed by the original flavor of the Chomps Chomplings Original Beef Mini Sticks and I can’t wait to try out the additional flavors.

Currently the Chomps site has a 25% off discount going on for their Prime Day Deals. If you are interested in stocking up on some quality meat products (they have more than beef) I would recommend checking them out. I certainly enjoyed the Original flavor. Time will tell if the additional flavors measure up to the original.

The Daily: June 21st, 2021

Good afternoon my darlings. I don’t know about you but I had a nice quiet restful weekend and I feel a whole lot better about life as we start the week. I’m still a little stressed about Friday’s surgery but it is very straightforward and at least I don’t have to wait too long. I’m going to try not to think about it too much and hope the days just sort of flick through fast so I can just get it sorted.

As for today, I managed to get in my exercises and then spent a really long time in line to deal with my phone. I am on Sprint which was bought by T-mobile and I had to get a sim card swap because they are now shutting down Sprint cell towers in my area. The swap took about 90 seconds yet the place was busy enough that i was in line for about two hours. In my sweaty sweaty gym clothes. In a building that was over air-conditioned.

I have never been so happy to get home and take a shower before in my life.

However when I did get home I found a box had been sent to me by Chomps with many delicious treats to try and review. I am so grateful to them for sending it over.

For me part of staying on track with my diet and exercise plan involves a small afternoon snack. If I have that snack I can get my workouts in and not be so hungry at dinner time that I overeat.

Sometimes it is a protein bar, sometimes a yogurt and sometimes fruit. I have to admit though I have a weakness for jerky and the like. I think it is because my dad used to make it when i was little. Regardless, the beef sticks are soft enough that I can actually eat it so I will be having one this afternoon and reporting in tomorrow about my snack time treat. I usually pick up one sort of snack and then just eat it for the week so I will probably make it a weekly post. Although next week may be dicey on the food front.

The trick is figuring out which snack to try first.

The Look:

Primer: Milk Makeup Hydro grip Primer

Foundation: Ciate London Extraordinary Foundation

Bronzer: Marc Jacobs Instamarc HI FI Filter

Blush: Julep Pore blurring Blush

Highlighter: Jecca Blac Glow Drops

Powder: ELF HD Loose Translucent Setting Powder

Eyeshadow: lime Crime Prelude Exposed Palette

Mascara: Wet ‘n Wild Big Poppa Mascara

Lips: bareMinerals Gen Nude in Pout

Setting Spray MAC Fix +

This week I am starting to try out the Milk Makeup Hydro Grip Primer. I really enjoy a lot of Milk Makeup Products and you know I have a weakness for primers. This one has been circling on my to try list for a while and I have to say it does not disappoint. I smoothed it on and thought, ‘oh this is just going to be a hydrating primer that’s disappointing.’ And then I tapped my cheek and realized they weren’t joking when they said grip. While it slicks on like a hydrating primer once you give it a second to settle it becomes a bit sticky and really holds the foundation in place.

Today’s foundation is the Ciate London Extra Ordinary Foundation and I really like the coverage and weightless feel to it. It is also the perfect tone for my summer skin. While I will be setting it aside to try out other foundation products, I will be reaching for this one a lot this summer. It feels weightless and I think it looks pretty good on me. It looks even better with the Milk Primer underneath.

One thing that i forgot I had but will be reaching for a lot this summer is the Jecca Black Glow drops in Champagne. It goes really well with my skin tone and it blends out to just a beautiful soft glow instead of a blinding highlight. I have these glow drops in both Champagne and Rose Gold. I remember trying them but I think when I did I tried them on as an all over the face under the foundation face product. which did give a nice somewhat dewy glow, but I’m not a dewy person. As a liquid highlighter in small drops I like them much better.

While those were the highlights for me with today’s makeup i really like the way the rest of it came out. It was kind of a nice and easy everyday look.