Archives for June 2013

Summer BBQ time with Amy’s!

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Looking for a healthier option for upcoming 4th of July BBQ’s and fast and easy summer time dinners? Amy’s Texas Veggie Burgers and California Veggie Burgers are delicious!  I had the opportunity to try both and they are simple to make, healthier and delicious! The California Veggie Burger is a delicious blend of grains, organic vegetables, mushroom and walnuts. I like that there is no cholesterol and they taste good too. It was actually my favorite of the two. The Texas Veggie Burger is a blend of vegetables and grains and has a mild barbecue flavor. This one also has no cholesterol, and less than 3 grams of fat. You can find them at local stores where Amy’s products are sold.

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If you are looking for a delicious way to end your meal, there are Amy’s Gluten Free Chocolate Brownies! These were a hit with my son! I like that they are made wit natural and organic ingredients and my son loved that they are really tasty! Imagine a yummy deep rich fudgy center and you can imagine what these delicious brownies taste like! They even come un-cut so you can cut them any size that you want! A great dessert for summer time. Maybe topped with vanilla ice cream? Yum!

Self Disclosure: I received these products for review but opinions are my own.

 

Octavia and Her Purple Ink Cloud by Donna and Doreen Rathmell

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Imagine an Octopus that shoots yellow ink clouds!

Octavia Octopus and her sea-animal friends love playing camouflage games to practice how they would hide or protect themselves from a “big, hungry creature” in Octavia and Her Purple Ink Cloud. But Octavia just cannot seem to get her colors right when she tries to shoot her ink cloud. What happens when the big, hungry shark sows up looking for his dinner? My son and I enjoyed finding out what happens in this fun and educational story! Great for ages 4-8 and sold for $6.95 at the Sylvan Dell Publishing website. We also loved the “For Creative Minds” at the end of the book where we learned about fun facts about animal camouflage and protection techniques and information about Octopuses.

Self Disclosure: I received this book for review purposes.

Summer Mom-Must-Haves from St. Ives!

St. Ives Oatmeal & Shea Butter Body LotionMineral Therapy Body LotionBasic CMYK

 

I love Summer but days out in the sun can leave my skin feeling dry! St. Ives has wonderful body lotions and moisturizing body wash. I love the Naturally Soothing Oatmeal & Shea Butter lotion and Moisturizing Body Wash. They provide instant, non-irritating relief for dry, itchy skin for the whole family! My favorite is the Replenishing Mineral Therapy Body Lotion which is great to use after a day at the beach! I love that it is fast absorbing and non-greasy. These products and many more St. Ives products can be found at many local stores such as Target, Vons, Rite Aid and CVS.

Self Disclosure: I received products to review but opinions are my own.

Share Your Dog Photos and Win a Box of Boncora Biscotti Best Chocolate-Dipped Biscotti!

Share your dog’s photo and/or story by July 12th and you’ll automatically entered to win a two-pound box of Chocolate-Dipped Boncora Biscotti. For every entry, Bonnie will donate $1 to her favorite animal rescue charity, Pet’s Lifeline Sonoma.  No purchase necessary to enter or win.

Read more about it here!

Boncora Biscotti sponsored Feature.

Brew over Ice this Summer with Snapple K Cups!

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It’s summer time and that means time for nice cool refreshing Ice Tea! Snapple Ice Tea is a favorite of mine so I was thrilled to find out that they now have Snapple K Cups for the Keurig brewers. I had the opportunity to try the New Peach Iced Tea and just love the delicious peach flavor! It is made with green and black tea leaves and is simply delicious! I love how simple it is to make a nice glass of ice tea! I can honestly say this is my new favorite beverage for the summer!

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We have teamed up with our new friends at Keurig for a Summer giveaway! One winner will win a package of Snapple Lemon Iced tea 12-cup pack! You must be a subscriber to SoCal City Kids to enter! Next, leave us a comment below telling us your favorite summer beverage or treat! Do you want an extra entry? Go to their Facebook page and “like” them. Deadline to enter is June 28th, 2013 at midnight. One winner will win a package (12 cup) of the Snapple Lemon Iced Tea.

Self Disclosure: I received products to facilitate this review and offer a giveaway.

Free Museum On Wheels w/ Ben Franklin program for Summer & early Fall 2013

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In addition to its’ in-house tours for schools and organizations, the International Printing Museum in Carson, California has had an “out reach program” that has traveled to various schools thru out S. California for the past 15 years.
 Recently, the museum received a grant from The Ludwick Foundation to bring its’ outreach program of Benjamin Franklin & his Museum On Wheels to 40 schools in the greater LA area with primary focus on 5th & 8th Graders for Free!  These alternating fun & fact-filled 50 min. programs are available thru this summer and into early October of 2013 and follows state curriculum guidelines.
Thru a 12′ trailer that opens up into a colonial print shop along with Dr. Franklin the students and teachers get to realize that “fonts” have a longer legacy than on their computers and that adventures of inventiveness and ingenuity are a few imaginative steps away from their cell phones.  If you and your school are interested they can find out more by visiting the museum’s web page @ printmuseum.org. under Ludwick Foundation Grant article or call us  310-515-7166 Tues.-Sat.
 
As one of the young attendees remarked at the end of the program, “I was laughing and learning at the same time!”
Photo: Museum curator, Mark Barbour, enlists the aid of a young apprentice during the International Printing Museum’s ” Museum On Wheels” program. Photo Credit: International Printing Museum.

Happy Summer!!

I love this time of year! I love sunny days at the beach and all the fun things to do! Yes! I admit it..love summer vacation and no school! It doesn’t mean we stop learning! There are Summer Reading programs, arts and crafts classes, trips to the Museum and so many other ways to learn and have fun during the summer! Don’t forget to check out our calendar of events and enter our fun Summer giveaways! This week we have teamed up with our friends from popchips and shutterfly!

Happy Summer!  Have fun!

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Keeping Memories with Shutterfly!

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It’s that time of year to be wrapping up the school year! A great way to keep school memories is a Photo Book or Yearbook from Shutterfly ! I had the opportunity to create a 8×8 Yearbook Photo book with  my son and we enjoyed creating and love the final product so much that we plan to do this every school year! This is also a great idea for Senior Year memories or Summer memories! I like that there are so many choices from designing the cover to creating each page!  You can choose from so many styles and personalize it to make it the way you want. It’s also so easy to do and the shipping is so quick! Check out the photo books and yearbooks at Shutterfly!

We have teamed up with our friends at Shutterfly for a End of the School Year Giveaway! You will win an 8×8 photo book to create yourself!  Don’t forget you must be a subscriber to enter! Next, leave us a comment below telling us one of your child’s favorite school year memories! Deadline to enter is June 27th, 2013 at 12 pm. One winner will randomly be selected from all entries.

Self Disclosure: I received compensation by receiving products to facilitate this review/giveaway but opinions are my own.