Strawlution winner!

First, another story about the straw's awesome powers, and my kid's random tastebuds.

I went to Jamba Juice yesterday and, because I rarely think things through to the end when making an impulse decision, I chose the new berries and beet fruit and veggies smoothie (there's two other flavors as well).
Yeah, Foodie Baby's in a new shirt and I got a berries and beet smoothie.
I thought for sure that it was going to be stained, but since I didn't notice how deeply red the smoothie was until I was picking it up and Foodie Baby was escaping out the front door, I had no choice.
Luckily, I had a spare lidded cup with a Strawlution straw in it, so I just dumped some of the smoothie in my cup and prayed.
Foodie Baby didn't get a drop on him and he drank two cups!
I on the other hand, took a sip, decided the lady was silly for suggesting it tasted like pomegranate (if pomegranates had a definite beet taste) and declared Foodie Baby more adventurous than me for the time being.

back to business...

The winner of the Strawlution giveaway is Lara!
And I loved her silly straw idea...
My dream silly straw would be a dolphin one with a butterfly on the nose of the dolphin. :)
Of course, I also loved the monkey with googly eyes (because that makes everything rock!) and the cute puppy (who doesn't love a puppy) and the backhoe (that would work really good for a root beer float, I would think!)
Someone get the patents going!

Remember, if you're local, a pack of ten is at Kissui for $7, and they have multiple colors! Perfect for shoving in an Easter basket (what kid doesn't get excited over straws!)

Thank you everyone who entered!

Review and Giveaway- Straw-lution

Foodie Baby

I love to pull out my straws from cups with my teeth. I get bored easily, I guess.
Mommy found a way around it, darn it.

Mommy

Back in the early days of this blog, I Googled my way around the Internet looking for items that would be of interest to anyone that read this blog (namely, things that would make dining out or mealtime at all easier).
One of the more interesting ones I came across was a straw.
A straw, you say?
I'm sure here is where people are imagining some kind of super silly straw that somehow turns into a spork and makes the food organic and devoured with relish.
I wish.
I found the Straw-lution online and immediately though "Hey, that's cool." I bookmarked it and continued with my hectic life until I finally came across a physical package of the straws at Kissui in Redlands and bought a pack of yellow ones.

I LOVE them.
They are made to be used with packages that are drinkable and come with a plastic or foil top (that can be punched through- think Capri Suns).

They are the same size as the straws that came with Foodie Baby's take-and-toss cups (that I now usually bring to restaurants so he has a guaranteed sturdy drinking cup).

Actually, they are slightly wider- I have to shove the straw through the hole from underneath, and push aside the little teeth that are in the inside.

That can be hard, especially when you have a chewer like Foodie Baby, who likes to chew on things and makes flat ends on straws, making me have to bend it back into a circle to stick in.

One I had to do that a few times to already cracked a little on one end.

To the left is what it looks like in a cup- this is one from Chevy's (an experience I have yet to write about).

The straws are made of thick plastic, and the little things that keep it from going back through a lid are sturdy.
Foodie Baby has picked up his little take and toss cup by his teeth and the lid nor the straw has not come off.

I have tried a variety of options for using the Straw-lution (some are mentioned on the bag), including a yogurt cup.

For the yogurt cup, Foodie Baby ended up making the hole bigger, which made it harder for him to keep the straw still,but it still stayed in the cup.

(See the chewed straw?)
Another aside- this was soy yogurt. Foodie Baby chugged it.

The applesauce was a bigger challenge for Foodie Baby. The regular-sized applesauce cup with a lid was a little harder to poke a hole with, but made it through neatly. The straw, however, was too long to go straight in, so it had to sit at a sharp angle.

Which could be fine unless you're like Foodie Baby and notice how much applesauce is still in the cup you he hasn't gotten yet and gets upset.

To the left is what it looked like afterwards. Foodie Baby was satisfied with the result.

The website says that the straws are BPA-free, so don't worry that the package doesn't.

They come on four colors, yellow, pink, blue and green.

At Kissui they are $6.99 for ten, and I've only pulled three from the packaging so far (one to stay in diaper bag, one is in the utensil caddy after being washed (dishwasher safe!) and one has already gone missing in action.

So there you have it! A proven way to make dining out easier. Restaurant cup? Throw a straw in it. Pack a pudding as a treat? Got a straw for you.

Packing a work lunch? Grab your kid's straw.

Drink a pudding cup as you do errands! (OK, I'm not going to promote driving and eating. Even though I have been known to do it.)

Ready to try some? Run down to Kissui, check out the website and make sure to post a comment telling what YOU thought of Straw-lution!

GIVEAWAY!

I have a pick of the yellow Straw-lution straws to give away!

To enter- (please post a comment for each entry)

-Leave a comment describing your dream silly straw (mine would be a unicorn!)
-Like Foodie Baby on Facebook or say you already have

-Follow Foodie Baby on Google or say you already have

Contest ends Thursday, April 14 at midnight and the winner will be announced April 15.

Disclaimer- I purchased both the reviewed product and the giveaway.