Category: reviews

May 27, 2014

Matcha Green Tea #Giveaway #CAN

I recently had the opportunity to try out Kiss Me Organics Matcha Tea (you can find my full review here) and I was so impressed by the product that I am now offering you the chance to win your own bag of Matcha Tea!

Here are some of the benefits of Matcha Green Tea if you are unfamiliar with this product:

three times the number of antioxidants as regular green tea (due to the fact you are consuming the whole leaf not just brewed into a tea)
boosts the body’s natural immune system
natural energy boost (recommended daily dose is 1/2-1 tsp a day)
naturally increases the body’s metabolism

This was my first time trying Matcha Tea and I was thoroughly impressed not only with the quality and taste but with the product’s ability to hold up to it’s claims. It definitely gave me an energy boost (and I recommend starting of with a 1/4tsp a day to let your body adjust to the product) without the crash that normal energy boosters give (I remember those days in University drinking energy drinks and it was awful!).

Canadian residents you can now enter to win your own bag of Matcha Green Tea Powder (ARV: $40CDN) to discover the benefits of matcha tea for yourself! Enter via the Rafflecopter giveaway below. Good luck!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

May 23, 2014

The Heart’s Pursuit #review

The Heart’s Pursuit written by Robin Lee Hatcher (one of my personal favourite authors!) follows the story of Silver Matlock, a bride that was left at the altar and in financial ruin. She meets Jared Newman, a bounty hunter seeking revenge for his family.

They decide to travel together despite traveling together being bad for Silver’s tarnished reputation and Jared’s secret mission for revenge. But Silver is determined to track down the rogue who had not only left her at the altar but stole the last remnants of her father’s fortune. Jared is in a hurry to hunt down the murderer who destroyed his family but Silver is too distractingly beautiful for comfort.

The two take off over the mountains, past bleak homesteads and raw mining towns, hot on the trail of two villains who took what was not theirs to take. Soon supplies dwindle, secrets emerge and suspicion leaves Silver and Jared at odds when they really need each other the most. To confront an enemy deadlier than desert rattlesnakes and rocky cliffs, Silver and Jared must learn to forgive and trust and face the question they have not dared to voice: What happens next?

I love novels set in the West during this time period – the cowboys, the farm life and the simplicity. Tie this in with the lack of law and a spirited young woman determined to regain what was stolen from her – you have a pretty fantastic book! Silver is an incredibly brave woman who goes against the norm in order to save her family after her fiance stole all their money. She teams up with a bounty hunter (which is completely unheard of!) and they set off to track down this man. I loved how their stories ended up intertwining together and how the story evolved.

You can find more reviews of The Heart’s Pursuit on the Litfuse blog tour here. You can purchase a copy of the book here.

Rating: 4.5/5

Disclosure: I received a digital copy of this book in order to facilitate this review. All opinions expressed are my own.

May 20, 2014

Organic Matcha Green Tea Powder #review

For the past week and a half I have been using Kiss Me Organics Matcha Green Tea Powder. This has been my first exposure to Matcha green tea powder (and actually hearing about it!) so I was really curious to learn more about Matcha and it’s benefits.

Matcha refers to finely milled or powdered green tea. Matcha is made from shade grown tea leaves. After harvesting, the tea leaves are left out flat to dry and will begin to crumble and are referred to as tencha. Tencha is then ground into matcha. Research has found that matcha green tea powder contains three times the number of antioxidants then regular green tea. This is believed to be because the whole leaf is ingested. It also delivers a higher potency of chlorophyll and catechins.

The Kiss Me Organics Organic Matcha (sold exclusively on Amazon) is sold in a 4oz (113g) bag. This brand of Organic Matcha is found to have 137 times the amount of antioxidants as brewed green tea. Antioxidants are important to help boost the body’s natural immunity and system. Organic matcha has also been found to increase the body’s natural metabolism from 8-10% of daily expenditure to 35-43% of daily expenditure and a natural energy boost.

The recommended daily dose is 1/2-1tsp a day that can be added to lattes, smoothies or baking. When you place an order you will actually receive a recipe book full of healthy recipes and tips of adding more matcha to your daily food intake. I found it pretty neat that you can add it in to normal recipes without altering the taste.

I am using my Matcha in my daily smoothies. I found at first that a 1/2 tsp was a bit too much for me as it did give me an energy boost so the next day I dropped it to 1/4 tsp and had the benefits of increased energy (without any side affects). After a week I increased it to 1/2 tsp and have no noticed no side affects. I was very impressed with the taste and quality of the Matcha – once in my smoothie it had no taste, left no after taste and did not alter the appearance of my smoothies. I definitely noticed an increase in energy and metabolism. I had more energy for exercising and at work then normal.

You can find more information on Organic Matcha on the Kiss Me Organics website and read more reviews on Amazon here.

I wanted to share with you my favourite smoothie recipe:

Ingredients:
– 1/2 tsp Organic Matcha
– 1 banana
– 1 cup of sliced frozen strawberries
– 1/2 cup of pineapples
– roughly 3/4 cup of cold water (enough to make the smoothie thinner)

Directions:
1. Combine all ingredients into a blender and blend until desired consistency. Enjoy!

Disclosure: I received the above mentioned product free of charge in order to facilitate this review. All opinions expressed are my own.

May 9, 2014

Backyardigans: Sea Deep in Adventure with #KOBA Entertainment

How many of the parents out there have children that love the Backyardigans? If your children are like mine your hands must be waving right now! So you can just imagine how excited they were to attend the live show; The Backyardigans: Sea Deep in Adventure with a meet and greet!

The Backyardigans: Sea Deep in Adventure follows the story of five friends as they explore clues and discover underwater surprises. The five friends meet up with an Octopus and a pair of dolphins in this adventure packed show.

The show was roughly an hour long with one twenty minute intermission which was perfect for the kids in the audience. The audience ages really ranged from one year old children right up to junior elementary aged children.

The best part of the show for our family was a combination of both the music and dancing. The show really came to life! The music was energetic and fun ranging in style through out the show. The costumes and props were fantastic and brightly coloured that really helped to engage the children and catch their attention. All parts of the show were constantly moving and engaging from props dropping down to the backdrop itself.

The boys fell in love with the cast at the beginning of the show when they were able to meet them backstage. The entire cast and staff were excellent and so upbeat – they were so full of energy that really helped the children get over their shyness. The cast really went the extra mile to make this a special moment for the children that they would not forget!

The Backyardigans Sea Deep in Adventure is definitely a production we would go back to see! Everything was upbeat, fun and entertaining. A definite must see production for families!

May 8, 2014

Mother’s Day books: Family Cookbook #DKCanada

Ensuring that I have healthy, good quality meals on our table every night is extremely important to me – my only problem? Coming up with a good variety of healthy meals that everyone in the family will like! Some days I feel like I am in a cooking rut – what do I cook, what will be the easiest to get into my boys and not to mention what is going to be the quickest to cook (can’t believe I just admitted that to you all!).

DKCanada’s Family Cookbook is the perfect solution for those stuck in the recipe rut. With more then 700 recipes (yes- 700!) this recipe book is full of delicious and nutritious recipes. The recipes are easy to prepare and easy on the budget. The ingredients were simple and easy to find in the pantry. DKCanada’s Family Cookbook includes recipes that are perfect for all taste buds – from the picky eaters all the way to foodies. They even had a section for making your own baby food (so helpful!).

Some of my favourite features of the Family Cookbook includes the variety of the recipes, large photographs to showcase the recipe, easy to read directions (no small print here like I am accustomed to in so many cook books) and helpful tips that follow each section. I found some excellent freezing tips and tricks on seasonal cooking which I can not wait to put to use this summer!

The cookbook is divided into several sections including (but not limited to!) fish, poultry, meat, side dishes, rice, pasta, desserts and baking. There are plenty of recipes in each section to add plenty of variety to your family’s diet. We started off with the chicken stock (photo below) and used it in several of the recipes that are included in the cook book – pretty awesome right?!

Do you know a Mom that is a foodie? Or a Mom who just really loves to cook and try new recipes? Right now DKCanada has a 30% off sale at the Mother’s Day Boutique! You can save on books for your Mom just in time for Mother’s Day.

Disclosure: I received a copy of the above mentioned book free of charge in order to facilitate this review. All opinions expressed are my own.