Stuff Parents Need

Easing the chaos in the nest, one find at a time.

My Favorite Drink on Earth Just Got Better!! #LightIcedCoffee

· by · 5 Comments

Have you ever fallen so madly in love with a new product that you threw a party for it?

Oh…just me? Well, I did throw a little get together in February 2011 to celebrate an at-home beverage revolution: iced coffee in a carton.

GLORY BE!!!! International Delight introduced this convenient product last year and I have been loyally purchasing it from the time I took my first sip. I’ve talked it up with my friends, bought it for family members, and just been an all-around product evangelist for it because I adore it so very much. It is sweet and creamy (just how I like my coffee) and is completely effortless. No need to brew a hot pot of coffee and then wait around for it to cool down (or water it down with ice cubes).

And perhaps most importantly, there’s no temptation to swing by a coffee shop and fork over anywhere from $2.50-$4.00 (depending on how much iced coffee you want!) for a cup. And you guys, I live RIGHT ACROSS THE STREET from one of the best coffee shops in Chattanooga. But I haven’t been over there in forever!

#LightIcedCoffee 1

I’m going to be updating the widget that’s on the sidebar of my page to show how I save $2.50 every time I reach for International Delight Iced Coffee and skip the McDonald’s ice coffee that often tempts me because it is also very sweet and creamy (and SO loaded with calories!). So far I’ve saved $5.00 just by enjoying this product twice. And I have about 70% of the product left. Did I mention that a carton costs $3.98 at my local Walmart? Pretty easy to do the math and see that this makes so much sense to purchase, financially!

So yeah, International Delight Iced Coffee is a near-permanent fixture in my refrigerator. And as you can tell, I adore it.

But my waistline is not quite as big of a fan. You see, this coffee comes already sweetened and with plenty of cream included so that you really and truly don’t have to do a thing other than pour and enjoy. But as is often the case, things like this taste so good because they don’t skimp on the “yummy” (and by that I mean calorie-rich) ingredients.

Until now!!!!

#LightIcedCoffee 2

I’m SO excited to share with you that International Delight Iced Coffee now comes in a lighter version, and it is just as delicious as the original version, but contains 1/3 fewer calories. Yes! Yes! Yes!

I find my International Delight Iced Coffee at Walmart in the dairy section. I usually pick some up while I’m getting organic milk for Darah. I do admit that even though I’ve been buying this product steadily for almost a year, I did feel a twinge of guilt every time I purchased it because of the calories. Now I’ll be leaving all that guilt behind and enjoying my low-sugar coffee with reduced calories. And seriously, the taste is every bit as scrumptious. Don’t you love when a company figures out how to shave off those calories and keep the great taste there? Way to go, International Delight!

#LightIcedCoffee

I enjoy using this product in a few different ways. Of course, pouring a glass for myself straight from the carton is a favorite option. I especially like doing that in the mid-afternoon when I have an energy slump and need a little boost to get me through the next few hours before dinner.

#LightIcedCoffee 4

I also will use my ID coffee to add to iced coffee I make for myself in my hot & cold beverage maker or in my coffee pot. If I’m really trying to watch my calories, I’ll add International Delight Light Iced Coffee to black coffee as a sugar and creamer substitute. It makes for a stronger cup of coffee, in addition to one that’s even lighter on calories. This is my favorite way to use the product first thing in the morning when the priority for me is getting a good jolt of caffeine so that I can function!

Interested in giving this product a try? It will certainly help any iced coffee drinker save money, but I’d like to help you save even more. You can fill out a simple registration form and snag a coupon for it! Woo hoo! You will be able to purchase this starting January 21st at your nearest Walmart.

Can I also suggest that you follow International Delight on Twitter and Facebook? You can keep up with the latest on this great product and stay in the loop about any new special promotions (like new coupons or great giveaways just for fans and followers!).

Do any of you already use and enjoy this product? Are you SOOOO excited that a lower-calorie version is being released??? I’d love to hear if anyone out there is raising a glass in celebration!

I am a member of the Collective Bias®  Social Fabric® Community.  This shop has been compensated as part of a social shopper insights study for Collective Bias®  and WhiteWave #CBias #SocialFabric. All thoughts and opinions expressed here are strictly my own.

Hosting an #IcedCoffee Party with Ease: International Delight to the Rescue!

· by · 6 Comments

As I have mentioned before on my blog, Tim and I are being intentional this year about planting some roots in our new hometown. We are making a conscious effort to make some new friends. Part of that process includes inviting people over to your house to hang out.

I’ll be the first to tell you that this can be a daunting idea, especially if your house tends to be messy, like ours does. Who has the energy to spend cleaning everything up so that you won’t be embarrassed to have folks over? I’m very ashamed to admit how many times I have NOT invited people over to my house for that very reason. What a missed opportunity!

This year, I refuse to let a messy house be an excuse. Cluttered or not, I’m inviting people over! I thought one of the best ways to get the most bang for my buck would be to invite several people over at once. I’d only have to clean once but I’d get to spend time with several folks, that way! Also, hosting several people at once allows you to be a connector, and introduce your friends to each other. I think most people are open to the idea of meeting new potential friends, and are grateful when opportunities arise to meet others in comfortable settings.

So I decided to invite a handful of women over who I know and who have toddlers. Tim agreed to keep an eye on all the kiddos so that the moms could actually have conversations with each other, and our littles got the chance to play and have fun. I decided to make the event an iced coffee party, and as part of the event, I showcased a brand new product from International Delight that I’m absolutely bonkers over. Introducing International Delight Iced Coffee!

You can pick up these cartons, ready to drink, in the refrigerated section of your grocery store. Mine was located next to the chocolate milk. To see my entire shopping trip for the party, click here!

Preparing for the party was really quite easy. I wanted to give the party a Valentine’s theme, but in a way that is manageable for me (as I am NOT crafty). So I picked up some fun Valentine’s Day confetti, heart shaped straws for the coffee, and some large conversation hearts for decoration. I also made use of some candles I already owned and some coffee beans to come up with a cute decor item on the cheap!

Aren’t coffee beans a really cute and appropriate way to decorate for such an event? I didn’t come up with the idea myself, but have seen it before on a blog (no idea where or when). Thanks goodness that there are creative people out there to give me ideas!

I then put together a few food options for the event. Since it was being held from 9:30-11am, there was no need to go too overboard on food. Sara Lee helped me out by making the strawberry shortcake for me, and I also put together a fruit and cheese tray (SO much cheaper to put together yourself, I promise!).

The real star of the show, though (as well as the biggest time saver!) was the International Delight Iced Coffee. Yes, you can make your own iced coffee at home, but it takes a really long time, because you have to brew it and then get it nice and chilled. And then you need to purchase or make your own additional syrups for flavor and also some sort of milk or cream. Or you can just pick up one of these cartons and you are ready to go! At my store, these retail for just under $4, and they serve 8. That’s a smokin’ hot deal as compared to running by McDonald’s for a quick iced coffee! And in this instance, I really loved that I had nothing to brew and chill in advance. It was SO easy!

I really enjoyed introducing some of the great women I have met here in Chattanooga to each other, and it was so nice to just eat something yummy, sip on something delicious and have a nice chat. One of my guests wasn’t really an iced coffee drinker, but she did remark that she thought the product was clever and a great idea for all the iced coffee fans out there. Another guest commented that she would absolutely be buying this product because she LOVES iced coffee, and International Delight takes all the work out of making it at home for yourself. Another guest stated that she liked it, but that she wished that there was a bit more information available about the ingredients (what is “coffee extract” that is listed high up on the ingredients list? It’s a good question!).

As for me, I would like to know more about the caffeine content. Since I’m expecting, I need to really watch my intake, and this stuff is so yummy that I could easily over do it! I will also say that this product is quite sweet. I think it most easily compares to the iced coffees available at McDonald’s. It comes in 3 flavors: original, mocha and vanilla. I found the original to be the least sweet, and it is my personal preference to combine that flavor with either mocha or vanilla to get something that isn’t quite as sweet as the flavored varieties on their own.

Will this product find a forever home in my house? YES! Will I be making us of it during future visits with friends? Absolutely. Having iced coffee ready to go in my fridge just makes it that much harder to come up with an excuse for  not having people over. And that’s a very good thing, indeed!

If you want to keep up with the latest news on this fabulous new product, follow International Delight on Twitter and Facebook!

Disclosure: This shop has been compensated as part of a social shopper insights study for Collective Bias. All thoughts and opinions expressed here are strictly my own.