Review of TOASTEA travel infuser

July 20, 2017Elizabeth Brooks Leave a comment

I am in love with my new infuser cup from Adagio Teas. I received this product for an honest review. This cup really does the trick! I was amazed at how long the cup kept my drink hot — hours! I loved how I could add the tea to the basket, close it up, and head off to work! Easy peasy!

Description from the website: Enjoy more tea on the go with our new 17oz travel infuser. Its double-walled stainless steel construction will keep your tea quite hot (or cool, if you prefer) for hours. Spring-loaded lid opens easily with just one hand, allowing drivers to keep the other safely on the steering wheel. Sliding easy-click lid-lock prevents accidental openings. Fits most car cup holders. To use: fill three-quarters of the way with water (water line below the removable stainless steel infuser) and place leaves inside the infuser basket. Flip the unit upside-down for a thorough, flavorful infusion. Once infused, flip right-side up to separate spent leaves from water and prevent your tea from turning bitter. Travel far and wide with quality freshly-brewed tea! Please note: This tumbler is exceptionally well-insulated, with a vacuum-tight seal. It will keep your tea very hot, sometimes for several hours. Please sip carefully to avoid burning your mouth! In addition, be sure to open the cap away from your face when tea has been steeping, to avoid any escaping pressurized steam.

Adagio teas also has a wide variety of teas to choose from. I picked the Jasmine Phoenix Pearls to try out. Let me tell you what, this tea is heavenly!

Website Description: Jasmine Phoenix Pearls are perfumy, hand-rolled jewels of tea from Fuding, in Fujian province, China. Any fan of jasmine tea should try this specially crafted wonder. When added to hot water, Jasmine Phoenix Pearls majestically unfurl, releasing their delicate scent and flavor. Also known as ‘Jasmine Dragon Pearls’, their liquor is sweet and almost sugary. Very soft, airy mouthfeel. The delicate quality of the flavor is due in part to the leaves used to produce this tea: two tender, tiny new leaves and one plump unopened leaf bud. Younger leaves will yield softer flavor.

I encourage you to check out Adagio Teas website — and take a look at what they have to offer!

Fit Box June 2017 Unboxing

July 8, 2017Elizabeth Brooks Leave a comment

This post contains affiliate links. If you shop from my blog, I may be compensated for clicks or purchases that you make.

I don’t know about you, but I can always use a bit of extra motivation when it comes to eating healthier (especially snacks); and there are so many products on the market. Fit Snack Box Provides a monthly subscription experience of healthy conscious foods, innovative snacks, and fitness tips to support your active lifestyle. I really love the wide variety of products you get to discover every month. Trying and finding new “healthy” snacks that my children actually like is a challenge – but having them delivered to your door in a box has made it fun for my children. It also gave me new ideas for work and school snacks.

Sisters Anita and Rose Muniz are the duo behind Fit Snack. They realized that taking the leap to live a healthier life is not always easy. The grocery store is lined with high sugar, over processed foods, not everyone has access to Sprouts or Whole Foods and it’s really hard to know what new healthy snacks you will like without tasting them. The Fit Snack duo decided that they would curate an assorted box every month and on top of that, include at home workouts and bonuses like free music downloads.

Each Fit Snack Box comes with 7-10 full-size and deluxe sample items, plus free workout and recipe cards. This is a $32+ in guaranteed value.

When selecting products to include in the box, they use the Fit Snack “Perfect 10″. Put simply, they look for snacks that fall into one or more of these categories: Nutrient Dense (high in protein, complex carbs, low sugar index), Consciously Made (GMO free, organic production, sustainably farmed), and Diversified Energy (gluten free, clean eating, paleo, raw).

Fit Snack offers several different subscription plans including 1-month, 3-month, 6-month, and annual subscription options. Monthly box prices start at $15.00 (+ $5 S/H) and provide double that value within each box.

This box is a great monthly reminder to eat healthy, and best of all — it’s delivered right to your door. Try it out yourself and order your own!

This is what I received in my box this month.

Ellyndale Naturals Southwestern Barbeque Q Cup

This was my favorite in the box. It’s made with a mix of organic quinoa, black beans, organic sweet corn, red bell peppers, and mesquite BBQ seasonings. Just add water, pop in the microwave for 60 seconds, let sit for 5 minutes, and enjoy. I think I will buy more and bring it to work!

Amsety Bars in Dark Chocolate

Amsety Bar is the first nutrition bar to help support liver health. It’s made with organic, non-GMO ingredients and contains no refined sugar, sodium, or gluten. It’s also dairy-free and vegan-friendly. Two dark chocolate flavored bars were included. I loved eating these for breakfast. 🙂

Fawen Drinkable Soup

A ready-to-drink soup made with gently cooked whole, organic vegetables and blended smooth with coconut milk. One bottle contains more than a full serving of vegetables with no added sweeteners or artificial preservatives. It’s gluten-free, non-GMO, and vegan-friendly. I tried a different flavor in last month’s box… I really didn’t care for this flavor.

Nutiva Organic Hazelnut Spread in Classic

Organic hazelnut spread made with all natural, non-GMO ingredients. This contains 40% less sugar than the leading brand and is both vegan-friendly and gluten free. Thanks to the inclusion of flaxseed and chia seeds, the spread also has 450mg of plant-based omega-3 per serving. This was so yummy… even my loved it!

Swish 4 Energy Mouth Rinse

This unique mouth rinse freshens your breath, enhances alertness, cools your mouth, and helps you maintain endurance all in one 30-second swish. I loved the taste!

Rise Buddy Rice Snacks

A healthier alternative to regular potato chips, these Rise Buddy snacks are made with brown rice and are baked, not fried. They’re also gluten-free and contain no trans fats. I liked this flavor, and do did the girls!

MR Supps Whey Isolate

I received 2 packets of vanilla flavored whey isolate protein powder in this box. Each packet contains a whopping 24 grams of protein. I love adding these to my breakfast smoothies.

Click here to order your FitSnack Box

Find FitSnack on Instagram, Facebook, and Twitter

Create your own virtual aquarium with virtual pets – product review

July 5, 2017Elizabeth Brooks Leave a comment

Disclaimer: Pai Technology provided us with products to review. This is not a sponsored post and our views are always our own.

We got to the pleasure of reviewing a really fun product, called Ocean Pets. Ocean Pets pairs augmented reality with creativity to turn every space into your own virtual aquarium. Use the special putty and ocean templates to create our own ocean pets. Then, scan your Ocean Pet creations, and see them come to life. Care for your Ocean Pets and learn facts about the ocean and its inhabitants.

Ocean Pets comes in a nicely designed compact box with 8 silicon fish-shaped molds (numbered 1-8 to scan into the app), a crafting tool, and brightly colored air drying clay!

The air drying clay comes sealed to prevent drying out. Once opened and in use, the lovely plastic containers close nice and tight to keep the clay from drying out. When you run out of the clay provided in the kit, you can top-up the pots with more air drying clay. We found more and the dollar store 🙂

Create

My children had so much fun making colorful sea creatures out of the clay. I really loved that the clay wasn’t messy or sticky. Air drying clay is a fantastic medium for children to play with. My girls really enjoyed blending the colors, and making marbled effects with the clay. They also decided to let their sea creatures dry out, and played with their new fish that way.

Review of Ocean Pets – create your own virtual aquarium #oceanpets

A post shared by Elizabeth Brooks (@lizard_brooks) on Jul 9, 2017 at 7:52am PDT

Scan and Explore

Once you’ve completed the fish you need to scan it into the app. Go to the app, select the number that matches your mold and scan your fish. We found holding the device at an angle works really well.

Once scanned, kids can name and care for their pets as they build out their unique underwater aquarium, all while learning facts about the ocean and its inhabitants. The more your child takes care of their ocean pet, the more special game features will be unlocked. They can also take photos or record 10-second videos of their fish swimming in the aquarium. There’s also voice recording capabilities built into the app. Once they are happy with their aquarium, kids can use it as a picture frame or take a selfie with them in the fish tank!

We think Ocean Pets is a brilliant craft kit and app for kids from ages 3+ and up. Pai Technology has done a great job with the AR (augmented reality) technology

Gelli & Slime Baff Review

June 26, 2017Elizabeth Brooks Leave a comment

We were recently given the opportunity to try some products from Zimpli Kids. The girls loved every product that we tried! We are in love with this company!

The first product we tried was a Gelli Baff. It was the girls favorite! You add powder to your bath, and it creates a thick pink goo. It reminded me of small water beads, and gave the water a jello type texture. It wasn’t as slippery as the slime, which I will talk about next, and was thicker.

Gelli baff, review on blog

A post shared by Elizabeth Brooks (@lizard_brooks) on Jun 26, 2017 at 4:43pm PDT

When the kids are done taking their bath, you add a “dissolver” power, and the goo turns back into water, and drains away easily.

The slime baff was the next product we tried. You add powder to the water… and it turns it into a slimey, gooey, oozy bath. It was thinner than the gelli (tip: use less water for thicker slime). It reminded me of snot… and I kept thinking of a hit TV show from my childhood in which the contestants where “SLIMED.” My girls liked it, but not as much as the Gelli. They enjoyed “sliming” their toys and the shower wall.

Slime baff, review on blog

A post shared by Elizabeth Brooks (@lizard_brooks) on Jun 26, 2017 at 4:43pm PDT

When the kids are done with their bath, the slime safely drains away, and cleanup is easy.

We also got to try a new product called, SnoBall Battle Pack. The girls really had fun with the snow. You simply add water to power, and it creates snow to be enjoyed all year long.

Snoball battle pack, review on blog

A post shared by Elizabeth Brooks (@lizard_brooks) on Jun 26, 2017 at 4:42pm PDT

We had a snowball fight in our back yard! The girls were full of giggles, and really had a blast!

Thank you so much Zimpli Kids for letting us try your products, we had a blast!

Summer Fun with Parragon Books – Giveaway

May 31, 2017Elizabeth Brooks 4 Comments

I think it is so important to offer your kids a variety of activities to do in the summer. I know it is so easy for my girls to get locked into the TV or their tablets all day – so I love having a variety of activities for them to do, especially those that encourage learning and creativity.

This is why we love Parragon Books, we have found so many fun activity books to do this summer! Here are a few of our favorites.

Know Your Knots Kit

by Parragon Books

Book Description: This ‘Know Your Knots’ set is great for anyone who wants to learn the most practical knots and their uses. There are multi-purpose knots, life support knots, and boating knots included so whether you sail, climb, camp, or just want to tie a bundle together this set can show you the way and give you invaluable knot knowledge for every situation. Including knots, bindings, loops, bends, shortenings, hitches, knot lore, alternative names, knot uses, and expert tips. Need a secure knot? Check this out and find the knot to fix it. The contemporary box contains a handy book on the art of tying knots with step-by-step diagrams and clear instructions, alongside two practice ropes to take you through the stages of tying each knot. The 6.5 ft. ropes come in two diameters: one 1/8 in. and one 1/4 in., so that you can try the knots on a rope suitable to your needs. Compare your handiwork to the final knot photo in the book and become a knot-tying pro in no time.

My Review: This book was a little too old for my kids, but I sure had fun playing with it! I had no idea there were so many types of knots. This is definitely going on our shelf for the future. What a great learning tool!

You can find Know Your Knots Kit by on Amazon, and other bookstores.

Smiley, Crazy, Happy Emoticon Sticker Activity

by Parragon Books

Book Description

Have fun with emoticons and feelings in this 2000 sticker book! Tell stories by translating emoticons into words, design your own smileys, and much more! Plus, it’s full of entertaining activities like mazes, memory games, and quizzes, with an answer key in the back.

My Review:

My girls really love emoticons, so they found this book to be fun. They loved all the stickers and activities that were in this book. There were so many stickers that they used them to decorate their piggy banks. Who doesn’t love smiley faces!

You can find Smiley, Crazy, Happy Emoticon Sticker Activity on Amazon, and other bookstores.

Justice League Magical Story

by Parragon Books

Book Description

The alien conqueror Starro has returned to enslave planet Earth and all its people. It’s time to call on the Justice League! Can the World’s Greatest Super Heroes stop the evil starfish before its too late? Enjoy a classic Justice League adventure with a magical storybook with an embossed tin cover image.

My Review:

My daughter Allie is really into super heroes, so she fell in love with this book. The colors are so vibrant and beautiful. She would spend hours looking and looking at this book. I really loved the cover of this book — very durable.

You can find Justice League Magical Story on Amazon, and other bookstores.

4000 Stickers Under the Sea

by Parragon Books

Book Description

Discover a whole world of adventure under the sea, including playful dolphins, a mysterious shipwreck and a colorful coral reef. This fun activity book will spark children’s imaginations as they complete the scenes and solve the puzzles. Includes activities like join the dots, coloring in, and spot the difference… plus 4000 awesome stickers to choose from!

My Review:

Wow!! – this book has so many stickers! My girls love animals, so this was a thumbs up from the beginning. They had fun doing the activities, but it was the beautiful stickers that they loved the most! This definitely is a fun summer activity book!

You can find 4000 Stickers Under the Sea on Amazon and other bookstores.

Professor Murphy’s Marble Mania

by Parragon Books

Book Description

Flicking, bowling, knuckling down – whats your best marble move? Find out with the Professor Murphys Marble Mania box set. With over 15 classic marble games to build, play and score, as well as a Marble Mania game book and 25 colorful, glass marbles. Includes: 25 Marbles, Extreme Pinball, Monster Maze, Awesome Arch Board, & 16 page illustrated book.

My Review:

My girls really love marbles, so when they opened the box they were very excited to start playing this game. This is such a fun activity to do indoors when it is too hot to play outside.

You can find Professor Murphy’s Marble Mania on Amazon, and other bookstores.

Disney Moana Choose Your Destiny

by Parragon Books

Book Description

Meet Moana and her friends, and join them for some magical ocean adventures! Design a new necklace for Moana, help Maui find his magical fishhook, color in Pua and Heihei, plus much, much more!

My Review:

My daughters love Moana, so they really loved this book! There are pages and pages of activities and stickers to go along with it. Hours and hours of fun!

You can find Disney Moana Choose Your Destiny on Amazon, and other bookstores.

Disney Moana Born to Voyage

by Parragon Books

Book Description

Set sail with Moana on an amazing ocean adventure! Find the heart of Te Fiti, count the seashells, spot the matching Maui, and much, much more in this oceanic activity book. Also includes six awesome character pencil toppers.

My Review:

This was another wonderful Moana activity book. The girls had a blast playing with this book. It comes with stickers, and fun character pencil toppers. My girls really loved the popout pencil toppers — it made coloring so much fun!

You can find Disney Moana Born to Voyage by Parragon Books on Amazon, and other bookstores.

Doodle and Draw Spots, Stripes and Squiggles

by Parragon Books

Book Description

Finish the patterns, squiggles, and shapes to create amazingly imaginative doodles. Inventive prompts and artistic page starters will inspire your child to doodle, create, enjoy. Start Little, Learn BIG!!!

My Review:

This book was the girls all time favorite! My 4 and 5 year old daughters love this book. ere are so many pages to color, with fun prompts to bring out their creativity. As a mom I really love that it encouraged them to try new things. Below is an example of one of the pages.

You can find Doodle and Draw Spots, Stripes and Squiggles on Amazon, and other bookstores.

This was my girls all time favorite book, so Parragon was awesome enough to offer a giveaway! 🙂

CLICK HERE TO ENTER THE GIVEAWAY

Follow Parragon on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, Tumblr, and YouTube

To learn more about Parragon Books click HERE

Disclosure: I received product (s) for free, in exchange for my honest review. I only recommend products I’ve used personally, and believe will be a good fit for consumers.

This post contains affiliate links.

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Zoobooks – Fun Animal Magazines for Kids + Zoobooks Giveaway!!

May 31, 2017Elizabeth Brooks 1 Comment

*This is a sponsored conversation written in partnership with Zoobooks. I received complimentary and/or promotional items to facilitate my post. Opinions are 100% my own.

My children love animals, and love receiving things mail .. so these magazine subscriptions are amazing! My girls love them!

The ZooBooks publish 4 magazines for kids!

Zoobooks (ages 6-12)…
Is full of amazing photos and illustrations. It’s won many awards through the years for its kid-friendly writing and art. Each issue focuses on one animal, helping kids explore the animal’s habitat, social habit, and more!

Zootles (ages 3-6), just like Zoobooks, but for preschoolers. Full of age-appropriate writing and engaging photos/art. Plus, tons of family activities ideas.

Zoobies (ages 0-3) is full of animal fun for little ones! And Zoobies is written and sized right to be shared with infants and toddlers.

Zoodinos is brand new! (ages 5+) Dinosaurs come to life in the new title from Zoobooks. Simple, interactive text encourages discussion and active learning.

These publications are produced by Wildlife Education, Ltd., a company established in 1980. We’re celebrating our 37th birthday this year!

Our website is www.zoobooks.com

My kindergartner Allie, loves reading Zootles with me! We love having the one on one time together. There is large print, activities, and it includes phonics/early reading skills that make it ideal for my preschooler/kindergartner! She also loves dinosaurs and enjoyed the Zoodinos magazines.

Buy It

You can purchase Zookbooks subscriptions from their website

Stay Connected:

Follow zoobooks_magazine on Instagram

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Win It

I have 4 great Zoobooks prizes to give away!

1 subscription to Zoobies
1 subscription to Zootles
1 subscription to Zoobooks
1 subscription to Zoodinos

To win please FOLLOW ME ON FACEBOOK and comment on this post there.

CONTEST ends 7/31, winners announced 8/1. You have 24 hours to respond or new winners will be chosen.

May 2017 Fit Snack Box Unboxing

May 30, 2017Elizabeth Brooks 2 Comments

This post contains affiliate links. If you shop from my blog, I may be compensated for clicks or purchases that you make.

Sisters Anita and Rose Muniz are the duo behind Fit Snack. They realized that taking the leap to live a healthier life is not always easy. The grocery store is lined with high sugar, over processed foods, not everyone has access to Sprouts or Whole Foods and it’s really hard to know what new healthy snacks you will like without tasting them. The Fit Snack duo decided that they would curate an assorted box every month and on top of that, include at home workouts and bonuses like free music downloads.

Each Fit Snack Box comes with 7-10 full-size and deluxe sample items, plus free workout and recipe cards. This is a $32+ in guaranteed value.

This box is a great monthly reminder to eat healthy, and best of all — it’s delivered right to your door. Try it out yourself and order your own!

This is what I received in my box this month.

Rise Buddy Chips: is the “new chip” off the old block. They taste just like the couch potato chip, but are Gluten Free, Trans-fat free, and best of all made from “whole grain” brown rice. That means families can snack smart.

They have a nice crunchy texture that the kids loved.

Fawen Drinkable Soup: is a delicious boost of plant-based superfood to fuel an active lifestyle, anytime, anywhere! Organic, hydrating, and clean – drink Fawen daily to fuel the things you love!

This was an easy lunch to take to work.

Foods Alive: Food to nourish your body, mind & soul… Foods Alive is a family owned company dedicated to creating the healthiest foods. Just like you, we care deeply about the food we put in our bodies, so we only use the highest quality Organic, Began, Kosher, & Gluten Free ingredients in the foods we make. Everything we create here at Foods Alive is of the deepest integrity, from our family to yours.

If you like lemon, you will like these crackers.

Peanut Butter & Co: Mighty Night Powdered PB. 90% Less Fat. 5g-6g of Protein. Great for smoothies, oatmeal, and baking!

We ate ours on top of icecream, not healthy .. but delicious.

Purely Inspired: Nutrition you want, taste you crave. Purely inspired Organic Protein provides a 20g of protein, 7g of fiber, only 2 grams of sugar and nothing artificial. It’s delicious choice you can feel good about.

I loved taking these to work as a snack!

Bite Fuel Protein Granola: Bite Fuel Blue Mango Protein Granola Trail Mix is a tasty snack with 10 grams of grass fed whey protein.

This was by far my favorite! 🙂

Click here to order your FitSnack Box

Find FitSnack on Instagram, Facebook, and Twitter

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Product Reviews

Review of TOASTEA travel infuser

Fit Box June 2017 Unboxing

Fawen Drinkable Soup