Laura Lohr

Not Just an Alliteration

Top 20 Back to School Healthy Snack Ideas

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This post was sponsored by a2 Milk® as part of an Ambassador Program for Influence Central. I received complimentary products to facilitate my review.

I cannot believe we’re already gearing up for another school year! It seems like summer just started! It’s that time to start thinking about doing homework and back to the daily routines. We haven’t even begun to think about getting that list of school supplies ready, but we’re already thinking about healthy ideas for lunches, healthy after school snacks, and after sports snacks. I’m going to share some of my favorite snack ideas for my kiddo. She’s a competitive swimmer and during the school year, we need to really think about great ways to fuel her growing body with good food that can be eaten on the run!

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Allie is enjoying a smoothie made with a 1/2 cup of a2 Milk®, strawberries, blueberries, 1/2 cup of yogurt, 2 teaspoons of vanilla, and lots of ice!

One of our favorites is fruit smoothies. Especially when the weather is warm in Southern California, we LOVE our smoothies before school, after school, or after swim. Her swim coach always recommends a serving of milk or chocolate milk after swim practice. It’s a great way to get a quick protein and help replenish all the calories, nutrients, and it’s fantastic for recovery.

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We previously used soy or almond milk, but we’ve recently discovered that a2 Milk® contains about 6 times the calcium as soy milk and 8 times more protein than almond milk. Additionally, a2 Milk® has more potassium than rice milk beverages. We love that we get all the nutrients for our little athlete and it doesn’t upset our stomachs the way regular milk used to.

a2 Milk®

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We feel good that we’re giving Allie something that provides the best for her. We learned that the A1 protein, found in other milk, is the cause of the stomach upset. That’s why with a2 Milk® we don’t have that experience, because a2 Milk® doesn’t contain the A1 protein. Now, we can enjoy smoothies, glasses of milk or chocolate milk at our leisure. Allie loves her snacks! Chocolate milk and smoothies are her favorites! The a2 Milk® Company™ has teamed up with East Coast and Midwest dairy farmers to expand the a2 herd, which means a2 Milk® will be here to stay for us, here in California! a2 Milk® is only made from a2 cows, which are carefully selected.

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We’re always looking for the least processed snacks that we can put together quickly and can be taken on the go. We try to stick to healthy snacks, as much as possible. Once the school year starts, it seems like everything gets so busy! It’s helpful to prepare what we can in advance, but sometimes, we just need to grab things and quickly through them into a lunch bag! There’s so many great choices that are quick and easy!

Here’s some of our favorite QUICK after school snacks with a2 Milk®:

  • baby carrots, celery, or other veggies with hummus
  • apples
  • trail mix
  • smoothies made with strawberries, blueberries, 2 teaspoons of vanilla, 1/2 cup milk, 1/2 yogurt, ice are one of our very favorites! If you have a thermos, it can keep a smoothie cold for a long time and take it to go!
  • chocolate milk
  • hard boiled eggs (we make a batch on Sunday for the week)
  • peanut butter with crackers or pretzels
  • fruit salad in a mason jar. Take a look on Pinterest for some inspiring ideas!
  • fresh veggie salad in a mason jar. Take a look on Pinterest for some inspiring ideas!
  • tuna salad with crackers, tortilla, or pita
  • lettuce wraps with chicken or salmon
  • assorted raw nuts
  • dried fruit
  • cheese with salami or pepperoni
  • string cheese
  • yogurt—we like to add fresh or frozen berries or freshly cut apples to ours!
  • whole grain cereal
  • oatmeal
  • home cooked soup, such as chicken noodle or vegetable soup
  • peanut butter smeared on some apples

Connect with a2 Milk®:

a2 Milk® website: https://www.a2milk.com/

a2 Milk® Microsite: http://www.trya2milk.com

a2 Milk® Store Locator: https://a2milk.com/find/

a2 Milk® Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/a2milkUSA/

a2 Milk® Twitter: https://twitter.com/a2milk

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Find out facts about Lactose Intolerance: Lactose Intolerance Fact or Fiction

What’s your favorite after school snacks? What would you add to our list?

Life is Good: 40th Birthday

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Last week was my 40th birthday. I turned the big 4-0. I feel like a rebellious teenager, full of dreams and ideas, yet not quite old enough to be responsible for making all these grown-up decisions. How did I get to be 40 so quickly? I had the best time in my 30’s and I don’t mind being 40. The fine lines and wrinkles. All of it, I wear proudly. It’s been an awesome ride and I look forward to another 60 or so years of awesome, no matter how wrinkly I become.

Eric and Laura
I was in tears most of the day, as so much love, birthday wishes and heartfelt words came pouring in by phone, e-mail and Facebook. I felt so loved! I have so much gratitude for the amazing family and friends that I have that embrace me and love me for who I am. I am so incredibly blessed! No matter what, I know where I stand with these incredible people that surround us. What did I do to deserve all the love and friendship? My heart smiles. [Read more…]

How to Make a Bottle Buddy

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When Allie brought home the latest school project I sighed at the prospect.  The task seemed daunting for a second grade project.  She had to choose a U.S. President to report on and create a “bottle buddy” replica of her president she chose.  We had two weeks to complete it. We’ve included the steps we took and the Bottle Buddy instructions to create your very own Bottle Buddy.

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My daughter and her Bottle Buddy.

We were given a gentle suggestion from the teacher to choose a president that was not George Washington, Abraham Lincoln or Barrack Obama.  The teacher was looking to have some variety in the project.  We began searching for a president that would spark our little scholar’s interest and search we did.  I suggested my favorite president—Franklin Delano Roosevelt.  We suggested Richard Nixon, Ronald Reagan, Thomas Jefferson and Ulysses S. Grant.  Mr. Bear’s dad’s name is Grant, so we were really pushing for Grant or FDR.  Nothing seemed to suit her.

Finally, she saw the picture of Grover Cleveland and she was sold.  She loved that he was a big guy and she thought he would suit her needs.  Mr. Bear and I couldn’t think of anything concrete that we knew about Grover Cleveland, so we acquiesced.  Grover Cleveland it is!

On the following library day, Allie came home with her Grover Cleveland biography book and she eagerly began learning all she could, while taking notes.  Who is this kid?  She did a great job retelling all she could about our 22nd and 24th president, which left the bottle buddy.

According to the instructions, a bottle buddy is made out of a plastic bottle and is fashioned to look like the president of one’s choosing.  We knew right away it was going to be a big project.  I headed over to Michaels and got all the supplies to make our fancy guy.

What You’ll Need:

We came home with our loot and I immediately questioned how we were going to do this.  Mr. Bear had some great ideas for the head.  I had no ideas.  They began by fashioning yarn “hair” to the Styrofoam egg “head.”  I don’t know how Mr. Bear did it, but it turned out amazing!

I began trying to figure out how to make clothing out of felt to dress a 2 liter bottle.  To say it was a huge task is an understatement, especially since I really didn’t have an experience with making clothes for a beverage bottle.  Try as I might, I was able to come up with some pretty good ideas.  Allie wanted a hat of course and she got it!  I hand sewed all the felt and even made the hat by hand.  It was a lot of work, but it was a success and she loved working on it.

So, yeah.  Allie’s project became our project.  She did a great job on her project and while my fingers were sore from poking myself with the sewing needle OVER and OVER, it was well-worthwhile!

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This is basically what our kitchen island looked like every night for at least a week.
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Here is what the outfit ended up looking like—well, before we added the final touch of buttons.
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Here is how Mr. Cleveland travelled to school.  Yes, those are plastic shoes in the lower right, from a Halloween pumpkin Mr. Pumpkinhead (a spin-off from Mr. Potatohead).
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My silly little girl giving Mr. President a kiss.  What a goof!

Have you done a bottle buddy project? What bottle buddy personality have you or will you create? Let me know in comments!

Healthy Lunch Ideas for Kids

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Kozzi-healthy-lives-883 X 588I have been asked by quite a few people recently, how I keep my daughter’s lunches nutritious and convenient, without resorting to processed and packaged foods. I have to admit, I was pretty stumped when I first started preparing my daughter’s school lunches. There certainly was a learning curve and it took me nearly two years to get it down to a science.

I have been a stay-at-home mom since the summer before my daughter was born. Mr. Bear and I talked extensively before Allie was eating solid foods that we wanted to give her a great start with her eating habits. When Allie was a year old, I made her baby food from scratch. We worked very diligently to limit or avoid processed foods altogether. I have had to teach myself about nutrition and health in my adult years, by reading anything I could get my hands on. Mr. Bear taught me a lot about creating balanced meals. It was imperative to me that Allie was given the tools to make healthy choices later in life, by hopefully not creating bad habits in the first place—the way I had in my younger years.

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Are We There Yet? Good Times with the #Verizon Samsung Galaxy Tablet

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"Are we there yet?"

“Why can’t we just be THERE?”

“Why does Grandma live so far away?”

"How much further to Grandma’s?"

"How long is an hour?" (It’s two Phineas and Ferb episodes—FYI.)

Sound familiar? Yea. Fun times.

When you are seven years old, sitting in the car for long drives is, in a word, B O R I N G. It is also frustrating to us, as parents to answer the same questions over and over. We love our kiddo, but when she is bored, we are responsible to bring on the entertainment, or suffer the incessant questions. I remember how it felt on long drives. When I was a kid, we drove to Texas from California many times. My dad was not the "Pull-over! I got to pee" sort of accommodator. If you went to the restroom in New Mexico, you were holding it until the Texas State line. I remember it being a pretty boring drive, in some parts and I am assured that I drove my parents crazy with the incessant questions, just as my daughter does on long drives now.

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Mr. Bear and I make a lot of long drives to our parents’ houses. My parents live 2 1/2 hours away and Mr. Bear’s parents live about an hour away, depending on traffic. We make these drives several times a year, usually with our animals in tow. The last couple times we went to visit our parents, we had the Samsung Galaxy 7 inch tablet. To say it is a life-changer, it is an understatement. We put Allie in the backseat with the tablet fully loaded with educational (and not-so-educational) games to help pass the time when we were on the long drive. It sure beat the “Counting Call Boxes” game we tried to get her to play the last drive (she wasn’t falling for it!). We hardly heard a peep from her, in the back seat. Happy kid, happy parents! The drive went by so quickly for all of us.

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It really is amazing to think we ever travelled without one of these!

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Not only does the tablet keep her busy in the car, she really enjoyed using it for homework. It’s so simple to use, she was able to figure out how to find the information she needed for her most recent project on Grover Cleveland. We are very careful with appropriate viewing on the internet and monitor what we can, whenever we can. Of course, as parents, we need to monitor what websites and information kids have access to. We were able to find some helpful tips on setting up the Parental Controls, which helped us manage and create a positive digital experience for Allie. There are so many amazing applications out there that help to assist with homework. I was pleasantly surprised by what I found. It made homework just a little more fun!

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The great part, is that the Samsung Galaxy Tablet is so portable and lightweight.  It fits nicely in the back pocket of Mr Bear’s pants and tucks nicely into my purse.  It is easy for Allie’s little hands to hold.  I was a bit concerned at first that the screen would not be large enough to view videos (Like our Netflix!), however, the screen is just the right size.  We have the 10 inch Samsung Galaxy Tablet and we love it—I didn’t think it was going to be possible to love the smaller screen, nonetheless, it’s perfect!

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The latest trip we took, Mr. Bear and I were able to have a pleasant conversation.  Allie was entertained and time passed by so quickly.  I don’t think we can ever travel without one of these again.  Please, don’t make us!

Disclaimer: I am a Verizon Wireless Ambassador, and I was sent the Samsung Galaxy 2, 7-inch Tablet to review on behalf of Verizon Wireless, for my honest review. Regardless, I only recommend products or services I use personally and believe will be good for my readers. I honestly love the Samsung Galaxy 2, 7-inch Tablet and enjoyed using it.

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