Scrutiny by the Masses

Get an Authentic Taste of Greek Tradition with Olympus Authentic Greek Strained Yogurt

I was provided with samples of Olympus Authentic Greek Strained Yogurt to facilitate my review. No other compensation was provided, and all opinions expressed here are my own.

We eat a lot of yogurt in our house. With eight different sets of taste buds, as well as varying levels of nutritional needs, it can be a stretch to try to find a variety that will please everyone. Greek yogurt is a personal favorite of mine - it's thick, rich consistency and higher levels of protein mean that I will be less likely to be hungry within ten minutes of eating it. One of the problems with many brands of Greek Yogurt sold at the grocery is the high amounts of sugar - and this can be difficult to avoid. Not so with Olympus Authentic Greek Strained Yogurt, which is actually from Greece.

Olympus Dairy International,  the largest organic dairy manufacturer in Greece and one of only five companies worldwide that produce Grade A all-natural yogurt, is importing their authentic strained Greek yogurt to the US. Olympus Greek Strained yogurts also contain a high amount of protein, is available in 0% and low fat options, and many people who have lactose sensitivities find Greek yogurt easier to digest, as it is naturally lower in lactose.

That's all very well and good - but how does it taste?

In a word - delicious. And unlike any other Greek yogurt that I've tried. I was provided with an assortment of flavors, many of which contained real fruit, as opposed to a sugary jelly mixture - and I can honestly say that I enjoyed every flavor I sampled. I was also sent a sample of Feta Cheese as well as Goat cheese, and both products crumpled nicely and had good flavor. My mother termed the Goat Cheese "absolutely delicious" and wondered if I'd find her a local grocery that carries it.

Olympus is committed to always providing an authentic Greek yogurt that gives you a true taste of Greek tradition with every bite. The rich velvety texture is proud to be all-natural, non-GMO and Kosher, offering Plain, Honey, Blueberry, Vanilla, Cherry, Peach, Strawberry and Lemon flavors.

My particular favorite was the Cherry, followed closely by the Vanilla. Would you like to try Olympus Authentic Strained Greek Yogurt for yourself? One lucky winner will be provided with coupons for free cups - to enter, please tell me the flavor you are most interested to try!

U by Kotex Tween Ambassador

I have four daughters.

I also have two sons, but that doesn't have quite the same impact as saying that I have four daughters. Four daughters means four times the drama, four times the make up, four times the clothing and shoes and jewelry -

and four times that I will need to have the period discussion.

Over the course of the next six months as a U by Kotex Tween Ambassador I will be discussing first periods, the reality of dealing with teenage girls, teaching them about their bodies and how to teach them to live their lives without letting a period overwhelm them.

I have, of course, discussed menstruation with my older girls, but the younger girls know very little about it - except to ask, What's a period? - when an older sister moans about cramps or hunts for the heating pad. I've explained it to them, in easy to understand bites of information, but it's a topic I know that I'll need to delve into more in the near future.

Have you had "the talk" with your daughters? Did you do one big talk, or several smaller ones? I have been open with my girls and hope that they feel confident in their ability to ask me anything they wonder about periods, no matter how off the wall it may be. The Kotex site has some great tools such as a calendar with facts about puberty, questions your daughter may ask, ways to start the conversation and more - even if you have already had "the talk", it's a great place to refresh your information. There's also a teenage specific page that can be a great way to open the lines of communication with your daughter.

I remember when my mom gave me a book to read and I dog eared the period specific pages. I was both mortifed and astounded that something like this was going to happen - and I fervently prayed that no boys would ever know. In my house with both male and female children, of course, that's never going to happen.

Are you as open and honest as Aimee Teegarden's mom?

 

“I wrote this review while participating in a Brand Ambassador Campaign by Mom Central Consulting on behalf of U by Kotex Tween and received products to facilitate my post and a promotional item to thank me for taking the time to participate.”

Invisalign Mom Advisory Board - What About Forbidden Foods?

Every time I eat popcorn, I have a flashback to the time(s) that I wore braces. Popcorn was, and still is, a forbidden food to those in traditional braces. So is gum. And caramels, and anything else sticky or sharp or, you know, yummy.

Not so with Invisalign - a fact that had completely skipped my mind until the day I took my kids to a theme park. My daughter wanted to have a caramel dipped apple and it didn't even occur to me that she shouldn't because of her braces. She wanted popcorn, and chewing gum, and none of these foods were off limits to her with her Invisalign - she just took the aligners out and enjoyed her foods. When she was finished, she brushed her teeth and put the aligners back in.

Easy peasy, lemon squeezy. No forbidden foods, nothing off limits - just remove your trays, eat your foods, clean your teeth and go on with life.

Except for the time that she, you know, didn't put the aligners back in - because she'd wrapped them in a napkin and tossed them in the trash with her leftover lunch. She realized while we were hunting for a bathroom so that she could brush her teeth, and all of a sudden, her aligners were just gone.

Poof. We did get them back after digging through the garbage - a job which I do not recommend to anyone. Thank goodness her dad was there.

Invisalign understands how teens can be a bit, shall we say, shortsighted in their personal care and allows for six sets of replacement trays. This can be a great consolation to the mom and dad who are really tired of hunting through the garbage can to find those trays again.

When you are given your trays, you are also given a couple of containers in which you should store your trays when they are out of your mouth. However, if you wear them the recommended amount of time - 22-23 hours a day - they really shouldn't be in the container.

You can't lose the aligners when they are in your mouth.

I am a member of the Invisalign Mom Advisory Board. My daughter will receive complimentary Invisalign treatment, but as always, I'm sharing my own personal thoughts and opinions.

Banana Boat Suncreen Natural Reflect Lotion

I have a history of melanoma. I sport several industrial size scars that decorate my body - I have a good deal of sun damage from years of laying out in my backyard and at the beach, seeking the perfect hint of color. I have been known to fry my skin - but with the thought behind it that fat looks better browned than pale, kinda like bacon.

:)

I'm a fierce advocate of the use of sunblock, but my kids are much less interested in it than I am. I was delighted to be asked to host a Banana Boat® Sunscreen Natural Reflect Lotion 101 Days of Summer Play party! I invited several friends over and we had a great time hanging out in the backyard. We lathered the kids up and set them loose in the backyard, armed with frisbees, jumpropes and sidewalk chalk.They jumped around off the swingset, played airplane and dared each other to jump off the swings at ever increasing heights.

And no one got hurt - that's a rare occasion right there!

That's the best part about outdoor parties and kids - there's virtually no work to be done - kids just seem to do it all themselves. This allows the adults to enjoy themselves as well - virtually a win-win situation in my book.

When the mosquitos got too bad, we went inside - and then jumped right into a game of Twister!

Banana Boat has come out with a new sunscreen , which is a naturally Sourced Mineral Sunscreen Actives that contains Zinc Oxide. It is Oxybenzone and Paraben-Free and gentle on sensitive skin - a plus for my kids who are prone to eczema. With both UVA and UVB Protection, this water resistant (up to 80 minutes) sunblock is dermatologist tested and recommended by The Skin Cancer Foundation.

Visit the Banana Boat® Sun Care Facebook Page throughout the summer to keep the fun in the sun going!  You can download a free 101 Days of Summer Play activity guide on the Banana Boat Facebook Page with even more great ideas for summer fun.  You can also take a pledge to encourage your kids to play outside every day this summer.

I was sent a Banana Boat® 101 Days of Summer Play Outdoor Activity Ideas packet, and here are some of the ideas that we tried at our party - they helped to make for a tremendously fun evening!

o   Ready?  Set?  Go! Update the traditional relay race with challenges to make the game a little more interesting. Start each player off by jumping rope five times before running off to the next step!

o   Basketball with a flying twist! Hang a basket from a tree limb close to the ground and see who can make the most baskets!

o   Hop around! Hopscotch is always a fun and easy way to get active outdoors. Have the kids use their creativity to come up with new rules or a different way to organize the squares!

o   Do the hula. See who can hula the longest around their neck, hips and knees.

o   Popsicle social. Squeeze ripe oranges for fresh orange juice and freeze in popsicle trays. Once they’re ready, enjoy this ice cold treat outside in the warm sun.

o   Freewheeling. Split a group of four or more kids into pairs and create your own wheelbarrow. Have one person get down on all fours while their partner picks them up by their ankles. When everyone is set, race to the finish without falling over!

Would you like to win a Banana Boat kit? One lucky reader will receive one Banana Boat Kit consisting of Banana Boat® Sunscreen Natural Reflect Lotion and Banana Boat branded frisbee.

Banana Boat Giveaway Dates:  June 11 - June 16, 2012 11:59 p.m. EST

How to Enter: Leave me a comment telling me your very favorite outdoor activity!

Giveaway Rules:
Open to all residents of the USA age 18+ to enter. I will select the winner through random.org and notify by email. Winner must respond within 5 days or the prize will be forfeited.

I wrote this review while participating in a blog tour by Mom Central Consulting on behalf of Banana Boat® Sun Care and received a party kit to facilitate my review, party kits to give to my guests, and a promotional item to thank me for taking the time to participate.

Like Her, Like Me - The Breakfast Project

This post is sponsored by the good folks at Got Milk? All content, thoughts, ideas, ponderings and musings are all my own.

I have four daughters. This can mean lots of different things to lots of different people. For certain it means drama, lots of shoes, makeup, clothes everywhere - and drama.

It also means tremendous opportunities to get to know these wonderful people and share with them the things that are really important to me. Developing a good relationship with my girls is one of the most important things that I will ever do as a parent, and it fills me equally with dread and excitement.

My daughters definitely fill the label of "Like Her, Like Me" in many different aspects, that's for sure. We love to read, cook and do Zumba together. I consider my daughters to be good sources of information in all aspects of clothing and make up - although I'm no slouch myself - and we've been known to even make the same choices when we eat out. It's often a little uncanny.

One of the more difficult concepts to get my daughters to understand is the need for good quality foods to fuel their bodies. Nutrition wasn't really a topic that was touched on much when I grew up in the 1970's, other than hearing about the "4-4-3-2" - the daily numbers of fruits, grains, milk and meat.

Thirty years later, we understand a lot more about what our bodies need, and one of the fastest growing areas of nutrition education is that of the teenage girl. At one point in time, common knowledge was that as a girl began puberty, her growth stopped and nutrition just wasn't as important. We now know the danger in this thinking. The foods and drinks that she takes in as a teen can have a lifelong impact on her skeleton and can affect her childbearing years and beyond.

Once, I saw an elderly woman fall. It was a simple fall, and yet, she suffered a compound fracture of the wrist. She was a very small, very tiny woman, who suffered from osteoporosis - and seeing that painful break was enough to convince me that I not only needed to drink my milk but be certain that my girls do the same.

That can be a much more difficult action to enforce, however, especially now that so many teens drink coffee and sugar concoctions and live on junk food. Add in the reality that my older daughters are not breakfast eaters - and, neither am I, let's be honest - and you can begin to see where my struggles lie.

The fine people at the National Milk Mustache “got milk?”® Campaign would like to select three teams that exemplify positive role modeling to appear in their very own Milk Mustache ad. The winners will receive a trip to New York City, for a Milk Mustache ad photo shoot that will grace the pages of Seventeen magazine this fall. Head to TheBreakfastProject.com or follow @milkmustache on Twitter for inspiration, information and more ways to start the day off right with milk at home.

By June 22, 2012, grab a camera, have fun, and, in two minutes or less, show what makes you an awesome team, including tips on how milk at breakfast helps you both start the day off strong. Upload your entries at www.TheBreakfastProject.com. The three winning groups will be featured in an ad as the next Milk Mustache stars!

Here is my video - it was so much fun to create - let me know when you've done yours as I'd love to see it!