At the beginning of the process I broke down and bought a Vitamix $300 but well worth it. It blends my protein shakes and smoothies smooth and is quieter than the regular blender and Nutribullet. But it is pricey.

Me too!

I love the fact that they are made in the USA

whoa, I thought we had high prices here in Anchorage!  I have used my Nutri-bullet since surgery, but mine came with 3 blade/caps.  One of them is made specifically for ice crushing and it really does a pretty good job..not slush but def crushes ice pretty well, unless it's in a huge chunk.  I don't see any markings to say which one is it, but I wonder if you can order the ice-crushing blade?  The blades are considerably higher than the normal one, and I have yet to use the flat-blade.  

Also...with the vitamix. When you order, if you mention the Name "Victoria Boutenko" they take a percentage off the cost of the machine.