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Real California Milk Mediterranean Cheeses – Karoun Dairies

Yogurt and Cheese may be some of the oldest foods ever created by humans, predating even the Roman Empire. It has always fascinated me, the skill and art it takes to make cheese. As one of my favorite foods and staples in my home, I love reading the vibrant history of world cheeses as well as trying out different types on various recipes.

I recently had been given the wonderful chance to try a variety of Mediterranean Cheese from Karoun Dairies, a California local Mom & Pop shop who turned their American Dream into a nationwide award-winning distribution.

Karoon Dairies has an enormous collection of various different types of yogurts and and cheese. As one of the most varied types of food in the world, they certainly showcase the multitudes of ways that cheese can be enjoyed from different regions: Mediterranean, Hispanic, Indian, Armenian, Russian or European.

Two of my most favorite cheeses from Karoun Dairies were the Queso Fresco by Queso Del Valle, which is mostly popular with Mexican cuisine and the Goat Farmers Basket Cheese from Karoun. They are more topping style cheeses, but great for summer salads, tacos, bruschetta, crackers or just by themselves.

Queso Fresco on Homestyle Tacos

I also tried the Paneer Cheese by Gopi, a very high protein cheese mainly used in Indian dishes. I sadly don’t have much experience with cooking Indian foods, but I did happen to go to my favorite International Grocery Store and picked up some ready made curry to try it out with! It is a very light, light cheese on its own and I think it would be a wonderful dessert cheese! If topped with Mango Salsa or coupled with Pineapples, it would be an amazing treat.

Yanni Grilling Cheese is really popular. It already has the rich salty flavor that makes the best grilling cheese. You don’t even need to put it on anything! Just pan fry it and enjoy.

Goat Farmers Basket Cheese Bruschetta

What I love about Karoun Dairies is that they have all the varied yogurts and cheeses to make the best Mediterranean dishes and as soon as I can get down some of these Indian meals, I am going to share them with you! It is certainly something new for me and it is exciting for my family who loves worldly dishes and new things.

So keep an eye on our Wednesday Recipes! You will certainly be seeing more of Karoun Dairies cheeses and how to simplify some regional dishes that otherwise seem a bit too complicated for our busy households.

Connect: You can find more information about Karoun Dairies on their Facebook Page and/or @KarounCheese on Twitter.

Purchase: You can find out where to buy any of the Karoun Dairies products on their Store Locator.

Personalized Children’s Books-KD Novelties Review

Blog· Review

Do I have a treat for your little one today! When it come to anything personalized, I am a ALL over it! KD Novelties takes pride in making your children feel special. I’m sure you would agree, when your child see their name on something, their little eye’s light up! As a parent why wouldn’t we want that?

Little One, Little One, What Do You See? is the special book I choose for my daughter. This book is under the Educational Book section. I choose this because she is learning to count, and she absolutely loves animals!

I really enjoy the illustrations of all the animals, and the rhyming is so cute! The look on her face when I first started reading was priceless! She thought it was so cool that it said her name! At the end of the story it includes our names and her brothers, so this makes it even more special!

When a child is excited about something, it makes learning so much fun!

Another great thing I love is the fact this book was only 12.95! WOW! You can’t beat that price!

Other categories that interested us was their Adventure, Disney, and Super Hero’s. They have books for every personality! Which book would you love to get for your child?

So if you’re looking to see that twinkle in your child’s eye, buy them a personalized children book! They become the star of the story, and this build’s love for reading at the same time!

Connect:

You can connect with KD Novelties on Facebook, Pinterest and/or @KDNovelties on Twitter!

Buy It!

You can buy the KD Novelties Personalized Children’s Books for as little as $11.95.

I received a sample product for this review. All opinions are my own and/or my family’s, take it or leave it. Click here to view my whole disclosure policy.

Percy Jackson: Sea of Monsters in Theaters

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~I received a complimentary prize pack for posting. Opinions and stories are my own. Take it or Leave it.~

My teen is a big fan of Rick Riordan’s Percy Jackson series and has been for a long time. I have waited with him for when books were released, put extremely long holds at the library (it is a very popular series) and have currently been waiting to see Percy Jackson: Sea of Monsters with him! He’s really excited, as I am sure many, many people are.

For those of you that haven’t seen the first film “Percy Jackson & the Olympians: The Lightning Thief”, let me catch you up by filling you in.

Percy Jackson seems to be your average 12 year old boy, though he has issues with dyslexia and ADHD. In the first film, Percy finds out that he is a demigod and the son of Poseidon and that he is accused of stealing Zeus’s weapon, his Lightning Bolt. To clear his name he must go through the Underworld to find the lightning bolt and return it to Zeus.

Sea of Monsters continues the story when Percy and his friends must find the Golden Fleece.

Percy Jackson: Sea of Monsters continues the young demigod’s epic journey to fulfill his destiny. To save their world, Percy and his friends must find the fabled and powerfully magic Golden Fleece. Embarking on a treacherous odyssey into the uncharted waters of the Sea of Monsters (known to humans as the Bermuda Triangle), they battle terrifying creatures, an army of zombies, and the ultimate Evil.

Percy Jackson: Sea of Monsters released in theaters on August 7th and this is the big weekend to get out and see it! I really love this series and following it with my teen. It’s original and the actors/actresses are spot on with the characters that Rick Riordan imagined. Although the books are a bit different than the films, it still captures the essence of the world. You can find out information on where it is playing in a theater near you on the Percy Jackson website!

Here are some fun stats to share of two of our favorite characters in the Percy Jackson series, Percy & Annabeth!

Connect: You can connect with Percy Jackson on the Facebook Page and/or @PercyMovies on Twitter. You can also keep up to date on Instagram!

Giveaway Winner: Entry #1688Sandy V.

Brightening up your Home and Life with Soaps To Live By

Blog· Review

Each organic bar soap is handcrafted from natural and organic ingredients like moisturizing coconut oil, sustainable palm oil, pure essential oils, and organic and natural ingredients that nurture your skin and your soul. Each batch is hand poured, hand mixed and hand cut with love right here in the USA.

We are big into sustainability. We use as many organic ingredients as possible and our palm oil is sourced from sustainable sources. Our labels are made from “biostone” and are fully compostable and biodegradable (and since they are made from stone and not trees, our environment is not harmed). We’ve even partnered with Trees for the Future to plant a tree for every soap we sell. Our goal is to plant at least 10,000 trees per year and, with your help, we can do it!

You’ll never find anything artificial in our organic soaps!

I am very happy to bring you this product that was introduced to me last week! Soaps to live by was delivered to my door, and I had no idea what to expect. Every time I see soaps wrapped up and packaged like the picture above, they smell awful. I feel bad saying that, but they look all pretty and then I bring it up to my sniffer and turn my head right away. Why would I want to wash or have something that smells like that in my bathroom?

I have to tell you I was pleasantly surprised when I opened this package! I received the lemongrass sage, the thyme lemon grass, and the patchouli orange! Not only do they smell delicious,but they have inspirational words on them…live, laugh, hope!

Soaps to Live By was created to evoke that feeling of inspiration, excitement and joy. Whether you’re using our handcrafted inspirational soaps in the shower first thing in the morning, when you wash your hands after a long day, or when you walk by your sink and glance at the inspirational word on each bar, each soap was designed as a gift of inspiration throughout your day.

This is my tiny bathroom off of my kitchen, and every time I walk in there I smile. The patchouli orange is my absolute favorite! The orange smell reminds me of the spa at me and my husband’s honeymoon. But I have to say, the mixture of all three smells together is truly amazing!

Soaps to live by have an assortment of bars, which one would you love to try out? I want to get the citrus lavender next!

So if you’re looking for a little uplifting aroma on your body or in you bathroom, please check out Soaps to live by, they have plenty soap bars you can choose from!

Connect:

You can connect with Soaps to live by on Facebook, Pinterest and/or @soapstoliveby on Twitter!

Buy It!

You can buy the Soaps to live by individually or as gift sets starting at $8.00.

I received a sample product for this review. All opinions are my own and/or my family’s, take it or leave it. Click here to view my whole disclosure policy.

Wordsearch Junior Board Game Review

Blog· Review

One of Europe’s best selling toy and game lines that has landed in
America. These interactive games are both interesting and challenging
for all ages and never get old. Adi Golad started Goliath in 1978 with
his passion to bring new toys on the market and today Goliath sells more
than 100 products worldwide.

Nothing really brings my family together like a good old fashion board game. Goliath Games’ newest educational game, Wordsearch Junior is the sequel to the successful Wordsearch! game. The junior version teaches reading, spelling, matching and sportsmanship. With three learning levels, children as young as 4 can join in the fun by matching patterns and can then move up to words with picture clues, while older children can play with word-only clues. Game includes 6 matching pattern puzzles, 6 words-with-picture puzzles and 6 word-only puzzles for years of learning and fun.

Here is the basic set up. The big round blue circle spins to reveal a pattern to find on the board.

Here is what one of the patterns look like.

Whoever finds the pattern first grabs the blue squeaker and squeaks it. That person then gets to place their color markers over the spots. The person with the most of their color when the wheel has been spun and all the patterns for that game are used up wins.

Here is the game board in action.

The really great thing about this game is that it has multiple circles to change up the game based on the player’s ability and to keep the game fresh.

Here are what some of the more advanced boards look like.

Big Sis at 4.5 years old is not yet reading so we stuck to the wheels that had no letters on it. She quickly caught on how to play and she is definitely learning more about patterns and quick thinking. Sure Husband and I might have taken it a little slower than if we were playing by ourselves but we didn’t just let her win. We want her to learn to play and be a good sport. She enjoyed playing and we really cheered her on when she got the pattern first. This is a great game that will grow with her over the years!

Connect:

You can connect with Goliath Games on Facebook and @GoliathGamesUS on twitter.

Buy It:

You can purchase Wordsearch Junior at Barnes and Noble, Lakeshore Learning and Amazon for $24.99.

Giveaway Winner: Entry #77April Y.

I received a sample product for this review. All opinions are my own and/or my family’s, take it or leave it. Click here to view my whole disclosure policy.

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