My fellow weight watcher and one of my BFFs told me about Quest Protein Bars last year, and I’ve been hooked ever since. It hits all the marks for me. High protein (over 20 grams), high fiber, and very low in carbs. And, a little trick Debbie shared with me is to heat it up in the microwave for about 10 seconds, and eat with a spoon.  If you close your eyes, you almost think it’s a cinnamon roll.

I am really hooked on the Cinnamon Roll, but recently tried the Banana Nut and they were also yummy.

In addition to Cinnamon Roll and Banana Nut, here are the other flavors:

• Double Chocolate Chunk
• White Chocolate Raspberry
• Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough
• Chocolate Brownie
• Vanilla Almond Crunch
• Peanut Butter Supreme
• Apple Pie
• Mixed Berry Bliss
• PB&J
• Chocolate Peanut Butter
• Coconut Cashew
• Strawberry Cheesecake
• Lemon Cream Pie

And coming soon is Cookies and Cream! There’s no way you can’t find something on that list you would enjoy.

Love is in the air, and I have a great app to frame all your mushy gushy photos.

Take a photo, or use one from your photo library.

Add a frame. Bada-bing, you have a romantical love frame. Can it get any easier?

When it’s cold and dreary, I go for comfort foods. Nothing is better when you are sick, or just sick of winter, than having a nice bowl of chicken noodle soup! Here is an easy recipe to make in your crock pot, and so much more delish than any can of soup.

Crock Pot Chicken Noodle Soup (food.com)

• 8 cups water or 8 cups canned chicken broth
• 1 cup carrot, cut into ¼ inch slices
• 1 cup celery, cut into ¼ inch slices
• 1 cup onion, chopped
• 1 garlic clove, minced
• 2 bay leaves
• ½ teaspoon dried thyme
• 4 teaspoons salt (to taste)
• ½ teaspoon fresh ground black pepper, to taste
• 1 (3 ½ lb.) roasting chickens
• 3 cups wide egg noodles, uncooked

In 4 ½ to 6-quart slow-cooker bowl, combine water, carrots, celery, onion, garlic, bay leaves, thyme, 4 t salt, ½ t pepper.

Place whole chicken on top of vegetables.

Cover slow cooker with lid and cook as manufacturer directs on low setting 8 to 10 hours or on high 4-5 hours.

Transfer chicken to cutting board. Discard bay leaves. Add noodles to slow-cooker; cover with lid and cook (on low or high) 20 minutes.

While noodles cook, remove and discard skin, fat and bones from chicken; shred meat.

Skim fat from soup and discard. Return chicken to soup to serve.

My friend Patti swears by this exfoliating soap. Patti says everyone comments on how younger her hands look since she started using it. And she has sent me pictures of her hands and I must admit they look fabulous. It’s not just for hands of course, but I think only you see how soft and creamy the rest of your skin is.

The Fresh Seaberry Exfoliating Soap is available at Sephora or directly from Fresh.com. I am a huge Fresh fan, and have many of their products, although I do not have the soap. Yet. Because Patti goes on and on about it, and has wanted me to blog about it for quite some time, I plan to purchase next time I am at Sephora. But in these drying winter months, I felt I should share Patti’s favorite beauty product with you so that your skin too can become soft and lovely and young looking!

The bar is $16.50, which seems awfully expensive for a bar of soap. Patti requested it from everyone for Christmas so I think she’s stocked up for the year!

From Fresh:

Fresh Seaberry Exfoliating Soap gently buffs away dry skin while cleansing the body to soften and smooth the skin, revealing a radiant glow. The nourishing formula is fortified with seaberry oil, rich in omegas 3, 6, 7&9, and is triple-milled to last longer. It produces a rich, non-drying lather for a luxurious cleansing experience.

Seaberry oil, also known as seabuckthorn oil, is powerful antioxidant rich in omegas 3, 6, 7 & 9 that restores and softens the skin.

Natural exfoliants of cranberry, bamboo, and bitter orange gently buff away dry skin.