Happymomblogger

Straus Family Creamery – Dairy never tasted so good! Products Worth Reviewing.

I have found a new reason to love dairy. The company responsible for this is Straus Family Creamery. I honestly have to say, I have never tasted milk or ice cream as delicious as the ones that come from Straus Family Creamery. They make a unique type of milk called “Cream Top” milk and it was my first time trying it – I was absolutely smitten! Their cream top milk tastes like real cream – smooth, sweet, and refreshing. In fact, if you let their cream top milk sit for awhile in the fridge, it develops a cream cloud that floats on top of the milk. Of course my curiousity got the better of me and I took a scoop of the cream on the top and let it slide into my mouth. Wow, it was just like tasting freshly-made whipped cream! I’m not sure I can ever go back to regular milk after tasting Straus Family Creamery’s milk.

Straus Family Creamery (http://strausfamilycreamery.com/) is a small dairy farm that makes only organic dairy products. They make a complete line of dairy products including ice-cream, butter, sour cream, and milk, and they are extremely fresh and addicting. I say addicting because their ice-cream are rich and smooth and pack a whole lot of flavor and intensity and their milk and butter are super creamy and gives you a melt-in-the-mouth sensation. I only wish they would come out with more ice-cream flavors soon because we couldn’t stop eating their entire line of organic and natural ice-cream! With ice-cream flavors like Caramel Toffee Crunch, Dutch Chocolate, Rasberry, and Brown Sugar Banana, you get a great range of variety in flavors and textures. And since all of their ice-creams and other products are made with only organic and natural ingredients, you’re doing your body something good as well.

Straus Family Creamery began over 60 years ago as a small, family-owned dairy farm in San Francisco. With their love and passion in environmental and ethical stewardships, they promised to provide the best-tasting and most authentic organic dairy products possible. Their dairy farms are all organically-sustained and their dedication in providing the best dairy products has won them many awards and accolades. It takes a lot of determination as well as patience to own a complete certified organic dairy farm but that didn’t stop the Straus Family in deciding to do so. As traditional farmers, they wanted to provide unique and superb-quality dairy products not only to their customers, but to their own family and friends as well. And I can honestly say that if you were to taste their milk or ice-cream, you’ll fall in love at first taste too.

You can definitely tell the love Straus Family has for their dairy cows and their farmland – it’s evident in the quality of their products. And that theory rings true for almost anything. If you take care of your farm and your animals, they’ll be happier and produce better for you. We love dairy in our house because of the versatility of it but with so many conventional dairy products out on the market, they are indeed inferior to the quality and taste of Straus Family Creamery. Try it for yourself and you’ll know what I mean. Their products can be found at mostly natural grocery stores and their adorable image of their cow on their logo won’t make it hard to find. Their current lineup of products are: Cream-Top Milk, Ice Cream, Yogurt, Butter, Barista Milk (which is specially formulated for coffee drinks), and Sour Cream. And they have traditional flavors such as Plain Yogurt, Maple Yogurt, European Style Butter, as well as Whole Milk, and so forth.

When Straus Family Creamery had sent me some product coupons to pick up my own varieties and flavor, my son and I couldn’t decide which to buy first. Of course, since we love ice cream and milk, we picked up their Cream-Top milk and Dutch Chocolate Ice Cream. Their Cream-Top milk comes in actual glass and it’s fun to pour them like traditional milk used to be kept in. Their Dutch Chocolate Ice Cream was packed with intense cocoa flavor and it was extremely smooth and satisfying. Then we tried their butter, and found it to be quite light and airy and easy to spread as long as you don’t keep it in the fridge for too long. And although their ice-cream comes in pints not quarts, it was almost too easy to polish off the entire carton in one sitting. And as mentioned earlier, I hope one day they’ll come out with more ice cream flavors because their ice-creams are definitely worth stocking up on!

If you’re interested in learning more about Straus Family Dairy and their company and products, head on over to their website: http://strausfamilycreamery.com/. There you will find a ton of information and unique recipes from appetizers to desserts. And supporting smaller, family-runned farms that are also organically-sustained and grown will help not only yourself but the environment as well. And if you’re buying them for your children, organic dairy is the best way to go – no worries about dangerous pesticides or herbicides and all other sorts of junk in their dairy foods.

Disclaimer: The product(s)were sent to the author for review by the manufacturer/PR. All reviews on “Happymomblogger” remain unbiased and unpaid and are the sole decision of the author. The opinions of these product(s) were not influenced in any way, shape, or form. As always, please read the ingredients carefully when trying new products.

Please read the labels and ingredients carefully and follow all manufacturer’s instructions (if any). The products selected for the giveaway were generously donated by the companies/PR to help readers learn more about their products. The winner’s choice in using/consuming these products are entirely up to the winner and will not hold the author and her family liable nor the companies/PR liable. These products are made with non-toxic ingredients but always be safe with what you use and consume.

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April 21, 2012April 23, 2012

suzan2 Comments

Unjunk Your Junk Food – A Book Review

People will often say, “hey, you can snack as long as you snack sensibly”. Yes, but what is “sensibly”? It could have different connotations to different people – some think little amounts of high fructose corn syrup is sensible. Well, certain things can be eaten in moderation but high fructose corn syrup certainly shouldn’t be one of them. In my own opinion, snacking should always be limited but if you are going to snack, then try to snack on foods like fresh fruits, vegetables, unprocessed cheese, yogurt, cereal, and so forth. But sometimes your body and your mind craves for something “junky”. After all, you see countless advertisements on chips, ice cream, cakes, and other similar products and your brain sends signals that make you crave those foods even more. So, in order to start snacking sensibly, you can train your brain to eat, buy, and learn about sensible snacks instead of craving the less healthier versions.

Common sense can pretty much tell you that foods ladened with saturated fat, artificial ingredients, hydrogenated oils, refined sugar, salt additives, and other similar ingredients can harm your body in the long run. Of course avoiding them altogether is a pretty hard feat to accomplish since we don’t always know what is added into foods that we buy in restaurants. However, you do have control over what you buy in grocery stores and what you put in your home. One new book that was recently published helps us define the meaning between healthier snacks and junk snacks. This book, ‘Unjunk Your Junk Food’, was written by the creators and founders of Naturally Savvy (http://www.naturallysavvy.com/), a website and company dedicated to providing people with intelligent knowledge about eating and being healthy. In the book, ‘Unjunk Your Junk Food’, the authors illustrate the difference between healthier snacks and unhealthy snacks. With beautiful images and clear-cut instructions and information, this book is your new go-to bible of healthier junk food eating.

As the author points out, ” Junk food, by its very definition, is not a substitute for a healthy meal, but if you don’t choose wisely, certain ingredients can actually make snacking hazardous to your health.” According to the book, hazardous ingredients are usually ingredients that are artificial, or man made. In the US, many artificial ingredients are used to replace real ingredients to lower cost and increase production. Certain hazardous ingredients such as high fructose corn syrup can actually elevate cholesterol levels in your body, elevate obesity and metabolic syndrome. And it’s highly addictive – most sugars are. The book also notes that reading ingredients and labels is crucial in gaining an upperhand in buying and eating healthier snacks. I was intrigued by the book the minute I received it and had actually anticipated reading it even before it was sold in stores. Each page clearly gives you the “bad” choice and the “good” choice when it comes to snacks and although not every single snack choice is listed in the book, it’s pretty detailed and complete.

As a Naturally Savvy blogger, I was given an advanced reader’s copy of Unjunk Your Junk Food and I was challenged by the authors to unjunk my own kitchen pantry and cupboards. Luckily for me, I had actually cleaned out my pantry and cupboards not too long ago and although I have tried to eat and purchase only foods that are natural and organic, it can get pretty hard and expensive at times. In one section of the book, titled ‘Worst Ingredients Chart’, the authors created a list of ingredients that should be strictly avoided such as BHA which is a toxic preservative, Polysorbate 80 which is an emulsifier, and artifical colors like Yellow 5 and Red 40. Okay, so I was intrigued by Polysorbate 80 because you find them mostly in ice-cream and it’s pretty hard to avoid it unless you’re buying natural and organic ice-cream. But the book specifically warns of the ‘Scary Seven’ which are seven artificial ingredients that you find in a lot of unhealthy snacks and food. The ‘Scary Seven’ are:

HFCS: High-Fructose Corn Syrup (AKA glucose-fructose in Canada);
TRANS-FATS: Anything listed as ‘partially hydrogenated’ or ‘hydrogenated’ (includes vegetable shortening);
MSG: Monosodium glutamate;
ARTIFICIAL FLAVORS: Any artificial flavoring;
ARTIFICIAL COLORS: Any type of artificial dyes;
ARTIFICIAL SWEETENERS: Chemical sweeteners including Aspartame, Splenda(sucralose), Ace-K (Acesulfame Potassium), Saccharine, etc.
PRESERVATIVES: Polysorbate 60, 65 & 80, TBHQ, Sodium Benzoate, BHA, BHT, Sulfur Dioxide (sulfites).

And they truly are scary because how can you possibly avoid them in this day and age? Well, my best advice and also the book’s advice is to read the labels and ingredients of every food you purchase. Be overly conscious of what you buy, especially for your children and for those with health issues. Our bodies are our own after all and if we don’t treat it right we might regret it later on. After I had cleaned out my kitchen pantry and cupboards, I went to our refridgerator and did the same. Of course I had found some unnatural ice-cream that my husband purchased not too long ago and although I’ve been touting the importance of buying natural ice-cream, the unnatural version somehow got smuggled in. But besides the ice-cream, we were pretty good on the natural and healthier snacks in our home. And to be honest with you, I think naturally-made snacks are actually better tasting. So I encourage you to go through your own kitchen pantries, cupboards, and refridgerators to see if you have any hidden dangers in your food. Like I said, it’s pretty hard to avoid, but if you’re diligent on starting and continuing on eating healthy and living a healthy lifestyle, then throw away those bad stuff!

So if you’re looking for a wonderfully-written and extremely-informative book about how to eat and choose healthy foods and snacks, then you have to pick up a copy of ‘Unjunk Your Junk Food’. Currently, the book can be found at Barnes & Noble, Amazon.com, and several other online retailers. It retails around $18.00 which isn’t too expensive when you’re talking about saving your health and the health of your loved ones!

http://www.topmommyblogs.com/blogs/in.php?id=storm

April 20, 2012

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Nature’s Path/EnviroKidz – Products Worth Reviewing and Giveaway

There’s nothing like a really good cereal with fresh, organic milk and a big spoon. My son and I love cereal – in the morning, in the afternoon, and at night. It may sound like a lot of cereal and milk there, but I’m pretty sure we’re not the only ones who loves cereal. But choosing the right kind of cereal is extremely important too. You really don’t want all those commercial types where it’s filled with nothing but refined sugar, artificial ingredients, and a lot of other stuff that just sits in your body. Eating healthy foods like fruits, vegetables, dairy, whole grains, and healthy proteins ensures your children will grow up healthiy and properly. And it instills good eating habits as they get older. When we were on a rampage to find the best-tasting and most nutritious cereals out on the market today, we narrowed it down to a few brands and one of them is Nature’s Path Organic.

Nature’s Path (http://www.naturespath.com/) is one of the leading manufactures of organic, all-natural ready to eat cereals and breakfast foods, but you don’t have to enjoy their food just for breakfast. With their granola bars, granola, and toaster pastries, they are excellent for breakfast and just about any time! As I indicated earlier, we love cereal any time of the day because they are a nutritious and hearty way of enjoying something sweet and healthy. And if you’re watching your sugar content, many of their products are very low in sugar content and contains only organic evaporated cane juice. In fact, Nature’s Path Organics entire line of products are made with certified organic ingredients and whole grains as well as natural ingredients like sea salt, organic molasses, organic cocoa, and the aforementioned organic evaporated cane juice.

Nature’s Path also makes a kids line of cereal and cereal bars called EnviroKidz. We love EnviroKidz because their cereal contain ingredients that kids are used to and enjoy and they are fun to eat as well as incredibly delicious! The current EnviroKidz lineup of products include Gorilla Munch, Panda Puff Cereal, Koala Crisps, Lemur Peanut Choco Drizzle Krispy Rice Bars, Cheetah Berry Crisp Rice Bars, and a few others. And don’t worry, they don’t include any animals in them as the names indicate. They just have adorable photos of those specific animals on the boxes to delight and educate children on some of those endangered species. In fact, you’ll find useful information about the environment and animals on the inside of their EnviroKidz cereals that children can have fun reading up on. We like playing with the fun games and trivia inside the box and it’s something to do while your kids are enjoying their cereal.

Nature’s Path started as a family-owned business and to this day, it is still family-owned and runned. They firmly believe that breakfast food should be delicious as well as nutritious and with kids in the factor, it’s even more important to teach children to stay away from unhealthy breakfast foods. I truly love their company motto, ” Eat Well and Do Good” and it shows in the stewardships of this company. They are socially and environmentally responsible and they use and procure sustainable ingredients when possible. They have also partnered with Organic Gardening on the Gardens for Good Grant to put organic gardens into the communities that need them most and my favorite is that they donate a portion of all their sales of EnviroKidz to environmental causes. At Nature’s Path, they promise to provide the best foods for their customers and their own employees by using only organic ingredients and ingredients that have not been genetically modified. And when you taste some of Nature’s Path and EnviroKidz foods, you’ll know what I mean when they taste absolutely yummy and fulfilling. We always keep some of their products on hand and we run out of them fairly quick too!

Nature’s Path/EnviroKidz had kindly sent me some of their best products to try and review. The products they sent me were: Nature’s Path Chococonut Chewy Granola Bar, Nature’s Path Optimum Blueberry Cinnamon Cereal, EnviroKidz Gorilla Munch, EnviroKidz Peanut Choco Drizzle Crispy Rice Bars, EnviroKidz Panda Peanut Butter Puffs, and Flax Plus Maple Pecan Crunch. We’ve never tried their Flax Plus Maple Pecan Crunch and since I enjoy flax, maple, and pecans, it sounded like a delicious cereal to try – and I was right! The maple flavor was subtle yet lingered nicely and the “crunch” from the pecans and flax definitely gives the cereal depth. Nature’s Path is also generously offering 1 LUCKY reader of Happymomblogger the chance to win the same products that I received.

The prize will be 1 of each: Nature’s Path Chococonut Chewy Granola Bar, Nature’s Path Optimum Blueberry Cinnamon Cereal, EnviroKidz Gorilla Munch, EnviroKidz Peanut Choco Drizzle Crispy Rice Bars, EnviroKidz Panda Peanut Butter Puffs, and Flax Plus Maple Pecan Crunch and they all come in an adorable “suitcase” package.

So how do you win this delicious prize? Read below to find out.

Here’s how to enter in the Nature’s Path/EnviroKidz giveaway:

(Please note, the rules have changed slightly. Please read carefully before entering)

ENTRIES:

#1 entry – “Like” Nature’s Path on Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/naturespath and write on their wall that you are entering the contest at Happymomblogger: http://www.happymomblogger.wordpress.com/. Please put Happymomblogger as the heading.

ADDITIONAL ENTRIES:

#2 entry – Become a follower: http://twitter.com/#!/happymomblogger and “Tweet” me @happymomblogger that you are entering the Nature’s Path giveaway. Become a follower of Nature’s Path: http://twitter.com/#!/NaturesPath and “Tweet” that you are entering the contest at Happymomblogger.

#3 entry – Subscribe to my Blog.

#4 entry – Enter in my other contests.

#5 entry – Vote for me at Top Mommy Blogs using the link provided below.

You can enter by telling me the 5 entries in the LEAVE A COMMENT box. Please be sure to give me your name and email address so that I may contact you if you win. Contest is open to residents of US only. 18 years and older please. Please be sure to provide a physical address and not a P.O. Box. Only 1 contestant per household please. Please allow 4-6 weeks for delivery of prize. Any violation of the rules will deem your entry as disqualified. Happymomblogger is not responsible for lost, stolen, or damaged prizes but will do the best to ensure your prize gets there. In the event the winner can not be contacted within 3 days of email sent then another winner will be chosen. You may win only 1 prize per giveaway period. No purchase necessary to enter. Void where prohibed by law.

Contest Start Date: April 19, 2012

Contest End Date: May 3, 2012 – Congratulations to Lori D. for winning the prize!

Only 1 winner will be chosen at random and I will post the winner’s name on my blog.

GOOD LUCK AND THANK YOU FOR PARTICIPATING!

http://www.topmommyblogs.com/blogs/in.php?id=storm

April 20, 2012May 25, 2012

suzan24 Comments

Happy Baby Happy Family – Products Worth Reviewing and Giveaway

There’s nothing like feeding your baby the best food possible. As parents, and especially first-time parents, we do everything possible to make sure our children have the best food, the best toys, the best of everything possible. We do countless research on how to raise our children properly and safely and it’s a rewarding yet sometimes tiring labor of love. But when it comes to feeding our children the right kinds of food, sometimes we can have conflicting information. Especially as a first-time parent, you’ll hear information from everyone and everywhere – so how do you know what’s right exactly? Well, I always say do your own research first and trust your instincts. When I first discovered Happy Baby Happy Family and their line of organic, all-natural, and wholesome food for children, I was intrigued and excited. Finally a company that makes organic food for babies and young children and absolutely delicious and nutritious too!

HAPPYBABY (http://happybabyfood.com/) makes organic and all-natural food specifically designed for babies and young children. And that means food that are free of dangerous pesticides, chemicals, GMO’s, preservatives, and food coloring. They also add important nutrients such as DHA to help with brain growth and probiotics for digestive health. And most importantly, their food is delicious! My son loves their Happy Melts and Happy Bites and I love the fact that they are made from organic ingredients and do not contain any yucky stuff.

HAPPYBABY was developed by a mom with the idea in mind that all parents need some help in feeding their children nutritious food. We as parents try our best to provide our children with the best food, the best toys, and the safest car seats. But we don’t always have the time to make our own food for our babies and younger kids. And babies and toddlers can not necessarily eat what adults eat because of digestion, allergies, and not enough teeth to chew. And we don’t always have the resources to buy organic ingredients either. That’s why HAPPYBABY is a great choice for babies and toddlers because they do all the work for us.

HAPPYBABY makes organic frozen food, organic snacks, organic cereal, organic yogurt melts, and organic pureed food. Their products contain only natural ingredients so you don’t have to worry about what goes into your kids tummies. Their products are also allergen friendly with complete ingredients disclosure. Their products are also packaged in BPA-free materials so you don’t have to worry about the toxic chemical leaking into the food. Most importantly though, their food is absolutely scrumptious! And they’re easy to prepare and eat. Their frozen bites make excellent complete meals or as a side dish or a snack and I myself even enjoy their yogurt melts. Their yogurt melts have a truly unique sensation and flavor. You really can’t go wrong with HAPPYBABY foods. This company does everything possible to ensure your children will get a nutritious, delicious, and organically-made meal.

I discovered HAPPYBABY and their HAPPYFAMILY line of products awhile ago and because they also practice sustainability methods as well as being socially responsible, that’s a great plus in my book. So if you’re going to buy something that’s as important as a nutritiously-made meal for your kids, then why not also support a company who believes in giving back to our planet and to the world?

HAPPYBABY believes in helping families with the hassle of making their own baby food because sometimes we simply just don’t have the time to make a complete and nutritious meal. With a complete line of products to choose from, you’re sure to find something that your baby and toddler will enjoy. Their prices are also very reasonable and you can find most of their products in Babies R’ Us, Toys R’ Us, Target, and some of your local natural grocery stores and supermarkets. They even offer a newsletter on their site and if you sign up, you’ll get offers for discounts and coupons.

Happy Baby Happy Family had kindly sent me free product coupons to try their HAPPYFAMILY Frozen Bites, their HAPPYMunchies, and HAPPY Tot Plus and my son and I were super excited to try all of them! So we decided to purchase the Salmon Stix HAPPYFAMILY Frozen Bites , the Broccoli, Kale, and Cheddar Cheese Munchies, and their Strawberry, Kiwi, Beet, and Pear Happy Tot Plus. The Salmon Stix Frozen Bites were delightfully mushy yet yielded a cruncy exterior and it is filled with yummy and nutritious ingredients such as Wild Pollock, Organic Butternut Squash, Wild Salmon, Organic Potato, and a few other seasonings to bind the delicious and unique flavor. My son decided to dip his Salmon Stix in some organic ketchup and loved them! The Broccoli, Kale, and Cheddar Cheese Happy Munchies were so light and airy and so fun to eat, even I didn’t want to stop eating them – but okay, they were for my son, so I let him finish the carton on his own. And with wholesome ingredients like Organic Whole Grain Yellow Corn and Organic Cheddar Cheese, as well as Organic Broccoli and Organic Kale, the Munchies were more like a meal rather than a snack. The Strawberry, Kiwi, Beet, and Pear Happy Tot Plus reminded me of a fruit smoothie that wasn’t too heavy and not overly sweet. And if you freeze them, they also make nice frozen treats! All of the 3 products we tried contained important and necessary nutrients and vitamins such as Vitamins A, B, C, D, and E, as well as Magnesium, Calcium, and Iron. And with wild salmon, you’re getting the ultra-important nutrient EPA and DHA found in certain fish that’s crucial for growing brains.

Happy Baby Happy Family would also like to give 1 LUCKY reader of Happymomblogger the chance to win some of their great products. The prize will be 2 FREE product coupons for each HappyFamily Frozen Bites, Happy Munchies, Happy Tot Plus and a Happy Family Recipe guide, a Nutrition Guide, and Happyfamily FAQ pamphlet. So how do you win this wonderful prize? Read below to find out!