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If Only Healthy Snacks Smelled as Good as Bacon…. #SmartSnack

“Life expectancy would grow by leaps and bounds if green vegetables smelled as good as bacon.” – Doug Larson… Do you struggle to get your kids to eat healthy snacks? We do pretty well in my house – but when they’re bombarded by commercials for sugary treats, fat-loaded snacks, or toy-filled fast food meals – it can be a bit rough. But, as smart mommas, we always have a few tricks in our toolbelts, right? Whether it’s sneaky – err, I mean creative – ways to get kids to eat more veggies, frozen meals that are high on convenience but still low on fat and yucky additives, or new ways to make whole grain sandwiches more fun – I’m always hunting for the best new ideas and products to keep us eating great, while still staying on a budget, and keeping it all low prep.

Shopping for healthy snacks for kids [Read more…]

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3 Creative Ways to Make Sandwiches More Fun

November is National Bread Month!Did you know that over 60% of Americans eat a sandwich at least once a week? Yep, it’s true. So this month, renew your passion for truly good bread – not only is it National Bread Month, it’s also the 250th anniversary of the sandwich!

Ok, I admit it. On first glance, that doesn’t sound like the most exciting month out there to celebrate. I mean, we just got over the massively promoted Breast Cancer Awareness month, where everything in your life is turned pink – it seems hard to build a ton of hype about bread, right? Wrong! Bread is a total must-have at most holiday meals, is a pretty big staple in most of our diets, and is super healthy if you’re buying the right kinds. And if you’re like our family, sandwiches make up a big  part of your weekly meal plan- so to make sure things don’t get boring, check out these 3 tips on making your sandwiches more fun, to celebrate National Bread Month…

Heart shaped sandwich - creative lunch ideas for kids [Read more…]

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How to choose a wine like you choose music on Pandora…

How do you find the best wine? You could read reviews, but who says that those critics writing the reviews have the same taste as you do? They might hate a wine, give it a terrible rating – but it might end up being your absolute favorite. My friends and I all have very different tastes in wine… When we went on a wine tour last winter, at almost every stop we all had totally, crazily different opinions on which ones rocked, and which ones we did not want to try again. And I’m sure I’m not the only one who finds phrases like, “smooth finish,” or “hints of plum,” to not really be all that helpful, right? So, how do you find not just the BEST wine – but the best wine for YOU?

How to choose the best wine at the store [Read more…]

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DEO Perfume Candy on Kelly & Michael this Morning

Everything’s coming up roses…. Ok, you guys know that I’m all about finding and sharing new “Smart Solutions for Busy Moms,” right? Well, in addition to clever ideas to help simplify your busy mom life, I also like to share super fun new products I come across too. And today, I have an amazingly unique new goody for you – Check out DEO Perfume Candy. Sound crazy? Keep reading to learn what it’s all about, my taste-test, and how you can get some totally free…

DEO - perfume candy, deodorant candy, kelly and michael show [Read more…]

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Share Family Traditions – Join Our Little Chefs Cook-Along!

We’re part of The Little Chefs Project series on The Motherhood – and I would love to have you guys join us for our live Cook-Along event! Abby and I helped create the new Chef Boyardee eCookbook – which was an absolute blast. I mean, what kid doesn’t love Chef Boyardee, right? And now they’ve put together a collection of recipes featuring your favorites like Beefaroni, Mini Raviolis, or Spaghetti and Meatballs. They make it easy to create simple dinners that the whole family is going to love – check it out!!

The Little Chefs - cooking with kidsThis is Abby and I in the kitchen – She turned two in late July, and is becoming such a great little helper. We get to learn measurements as we fill up the cups and empty them out again. We talk about the colors of the different ingredients. We stir, we taste, we giggle, and we usually make a pretty darn big mess. But I absolutely adore it.

cooking in the kitchen with kids - Chef BoyardeeTo celebrate the launch of the eCookbook {get it here: The Little Chefs Project: A Collection of Kid-Friendly Tips, Tricks and Recipes for Fun in the Kitchen. We’re in the last chapter – Family Traditions!} These pictures above are from our photo shoot for the book, when Abby and I baked cookies together from one of my grandma’s recipes. About 10 years ago, one of my aunts put together a big cookbook filled with family recipes, and gave all us girls a copy. It’s one of my favorite gifts, ever. I love being able to make all of my childhood favorites – and so glad that they put them all together like this, so that I can share them with Abby too.

Make new Family Traditions with Chef Boyardee!!

The Little Chefs Project series consists of live chats called Cook-Alongs taking place every Thursday at 2 p.m. ET until November 15, and each Cook-Along covers a different topic around cooking with kids. Family Traditions is the final Cook-Along in the series and addresses how you can carry on existing family traditions (such as baking for the holidays) or create your own new traditions with your kids.

  • What: A virtual Cook-Along called Family Traditions, part of The Little Chefs Project series on The Motherhood.
  • When: Thursday, November 15, at 2 p.m. ET.  It will last 30 minutes.
  • Where: The Motherhood – here is the link to the page where the class will be held: http://bit.ly/R1ekBM

About the class: More than 85 years ago, Chef Hector Boiardi migrated to the United States and began sharing his delicious meals made with real quality ingredients – a tradition which is carried on today. For any holiday or occasion, or simply for the everyday, traditions are important to your family history. Whether you’re looking to pass your age-old family meal traditions to the next generation or create new ones, these moms have advice and stories to share.

To participate, just click the link above, log into The Motherhood using your member ID (if you don’t have one, it’s easy and free to sign up), and chat away in the text-based comments. We’ll also have a video feed running during the half-hour Cook-Along, so you’re welcome to show up simply to watch if you’d like! You’ll get to meet some of the other families from our chapter, and watch my recipe video too!

The Cook-Along is sponsored by Chef Boyardee, and it is hosted by The Motherhood.  You can visit Chef Boyardee online at http://www.chefboyardee.com/ or on Facebook at http://www.facebook.com/chefboyardee.

I’ll be there with several other bloggers to co-host the class, and I hope you’ll join us!  The fabulous people who will be co-hosting with me are:

Hope to see you at the Cook Along!! Feel free to use the social buttons below or at the top of the post to share this event with your friends too!

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Skip Fast Food for Kids – Get Real Food Fast! – #KFHealthyKids

“Kids’ meals these days… a lot of them are downright scary and often loaded with all sorts of artificial ingredients.” – Matt Cohen… I’ve told you guys many times over the past couple of years about my lifestyle change after I became pregnant – It suddenly became super important to me to finally make those changes I’d been thinking about making for years, those changes towards a cleaner and greener lifestyle. I wanted to give this little bean in my belly have the absolute best possible chance at growing into a healthy baby, and I knew that everything that went in, on, or around me would affect her. Then, as she grew into a toddler, and I started feeding her the snacks and kids meals that are marketed to little ones her age – I realized that we needed to find some better options to keep up those standards that I’d had when she was a baby….

comparing kids mealsI’d been hearing a ton of buzz about these new Kidsfresh frozen kids meals. But there’s always some new kids product that supposed to be healthier and better and more amazing than the others – so I don’t always pay much attention to most of these so-called “healthy kids meals.” But this new product did have some substance behind it:

  • These were meals that started with an idea from a real dad who wanted to give his own kids better options. The meals were developed in partnership with a pediatric nutritionist. And they’ve already been sold out of their NYC concept store to rave reviews.
  • Most kid meals are stuffed with stuff like this – “Isolated Soy Protein,” “High Fructose Corn Syrup,” “Meatballs with Caramel Color Added,” “Monosodium Glutamate.” But you won’t find that stuff in these Kidfresh meals. You know why? Because the American Academy of Pediatrics has linked yucky additives and artificial stuff with potentially serious health problems.
  • Even their packaging is good for you – No BPA, Phthalates, or other gross chemical stuff.

Love it all, right? And when you compare them to the other kids meals in the store – it’s clear just by glancing at them that these are a better option. {See more of my kids meal comparison in our shopping trip album on Google+.} I hate that most kids meals in stores, fast food, or even nice restaurants are almost always choices like greasy pizza, kinda-sorta-chicken nuggets, all stuffed with fat and sugar. Like these ones at Safeway – but look at them compared to the Kidsfresh meals, stuffed with hidden veggies, and NOT containing junk food or sweets. Thank you Kidfresh!!

Kidsfresh meals - healthy kids mealsBut admit it moms – it doesn’t really matter what WE want them to eat. It matters what they WILL eat without a fight. We can do our best to encourage them to eat healthy meals packed with whole grains, fruits, and healthy veggies – but if they refuse and throw a fit, it’s a losing battle. So I was SUPER excited when I handed a few of these to Abby, to see which one she wanted – and she hugged them all to her and said, “MINE! Mine deeeener momma!” So I said, “Heck, sure, we’ll get one of each!”

Kidfresh frozen healthy kids meals at SafewayWe got ’em home, and I was eager to have Abby try them, and see if they passed her picky toddler taste test. I mean, they sounded good – with names like Rainbow Rice + ChickenWagon Wheels Mac + CheeseSpaghetti Loops Bolognese, and Muy Cheesy Quesadillas. Since kiddos don’t eat enough veggies, each meal has sneaky pureed veggies included. And they’re flash frozen to preserve nutrients. Even better? They’re super crazy-easy to prepare – one to two minutes in the microwave, and they’re done. I’m starting to fall in love….

taste test - Toddler versus healthy mealsThis afternoon we were in a huge hurry to get out and run some errands – the craft store to stock up on more of the clearance I saw yesterday and decided I needed more of {they had Halloween at 80-90% off!!}, the bank, drop the dog off for a grooming, and another doctor appointment for miss Abby. Since I was running behind getting us out the door – I grabbed one of these new meals – ONE minute in the microwave for these Quesodillas, and we were out the door. It was time for that all-important taste test….

She looked at it.

She poked at it.

She licked her fingers for a taste of it…..

Toddler loves safeway kidsfresh frozen kids meals in the carAnd BAM!!! She loved ’em!! Score one for mom, and for healthy eating habits. She CHOWED DOWN on these. I wish I’d caught video of her after tasting it. She said, “Mmm, mmm, MMMM – Momma, this is SOOO good. No share.” In toddler speak, this is about as good as it gets. Our little dog Deuce {remember, I had to drop him at the groomers?} was in the back seat with her. And she usually shares everything with him. So this was a pretty big deal for her to not share with her best buddy. Seriously. So – we’ve got a new family favorite. I totally recommend checking out your local Safeway for them too.

Learn more today, and switch from fast food – to real food fast!!

  • Visit the Kidfresh Facebook Page to print a $1 off coupon.
  • Follow Kidfresh on Facebook and Twitter for product and promotion updates.

{Disclaimer: 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 Kidfresh #CBias #SocialFabric #KFHealthyKids.}


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Tastefully Simple “Cozy Comfort” Gift Bag – #Giveaway

Welcome to the Tastefully Simple with Gina Giveaway!! I’ve partnered with some amazing sponsors, and a few other super awesome bloggers to bring you a great prize – Enter to win a Tastefully Simple “Cozy Comfort” Gift Bag! This giveaway is brought to you by Tastefully Simple with Gina and Chant3llo’s Blog.

[Read more…]

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