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Boudin SF Spring Salad Collection Sizzles

March 30, 2015 by Laura Lohr 2 Comments

I love a good salad. This time of year, I’d rather have salad with a refreshing glass of iced tea than spend hours in the kitchen. I love a good refreshing salad that tickles my taste buds, especially if I’m not the one doing the chopping of the veggies! Wednesday, I was invited for a taste of the Boudin SF spring salad collection with a few local San Diego bloggers, at the Balboa Mesa location in San Diego. There are three new spring salads being offered by Boudin SF and they are sure to satisfy! The best part? Each of these generous portions of salad heaven come in under $10.00.

LemonyCouscousBright

My favorite salad was, without a doubt, the Lemony Couscous ($9.59). It had so many delicious textures and tastes that were perfect combinations. It is a vegetarian option, which is great! At the same time, you can add some of their tasty grilled chicken to it as well. It has: Israeli Couscous, garbanzo beans, diced cucumbers, grape tomatoes, Kalamata olives, roasted red bell pepper, feta cheese, drizzled with creamy lemon dressing. (435 cal, excludes dressing). Oh, Lemony Couscous! You could really split this salad with someone and be satisfied. All of the salads come with Boudin’s famous bread. You had me at lemon dressing!

 

BanhMiBright

My second favorite was the Chicken Banh Mi (9.59 ). If you’ve never tried all the amazing things that Banh Mi has to offer, it is time to give this salad a try! The first time I tried Banh Mi, was a sandwich from a food truck in Downtown San Diego and it was love, for sure! This salad made me fall in love all over again! The Boudin SF Banh Mi salad contains sesame oil Mixed greens, Soba noodles, all natural diced chicken, fresh cilantro, cucumber, red bell pepper, pickled carrots, red onion, and jalapeño peppers tossed in sesame ginger vinaigrette. (463 cal, excludes dressing). Soba noodles with jalapeño? Yes, please!

ChickenKaleCaesarBright

I really like the Chicken Kale Salad ($8.59)! While it didn’t top my list, it still is quite a contender! Kale is all the rage right now with foodies everywhere. There are those that love it and those that don’t think they do, will be completely won over with this salad! It has amazing flavor! The flavors balance each other very well. The kale has an almost sweet flavor and has just the right pizzazz! The salad contains: Chiffonade Tuscan kale and romaine lettuce, all natural diced chicken, grated Parmesan cheese, creamy Caesar dressing, topped with sourdough garlic crisps. (309 cal, excludes sourdough crisps and dressing).

BoudinTurtleBright

I love what the good folks at Boudin SF do. They have been a favorite of mine since I worked at a major department store at the Fashion Valley Mall in San Diego, when I was a graduate student. I loved to have lunch at Boudin on my lunch break. I love that they source local and organic ingredients at all their locations, whenever possible. They like to reward their guests’ loyalty and offer a loyalty program that offers perks and rewards.

ThreeSaladsBright

 

The three fantastic salads are available in stores throughout California, from March 25th through June 2015. For a Boudin SF location nearest you, consult their website. You can also contact the good people at Boudin SF on Twitter @boudinbakery or on Facebook.

CrabBright

KeepCalmhBright

 

 

Filed Under: Boudin SF, Reviews Tagged With: Bahn Mi Salad, Boudin SF, Chicken Kale Salad, Lemony Couscous Salad, Review, Spring Salads

Disney’s Cinderella Movie Review

March 18, 2015 by Laura Lohr 3 Comments

 

CinderellaTitleWe were recently invited to a screening of Disney’s Cinderella before the movie came out. I’m not sure who was more excited about it, me or the kiddo. I had been itching to go see the movie since I first heard whispers that Cinderella would be coming out. I have to say, we weren’t disappointed.

I had some concerns about the characters. Would I love them? Would the prince be charming? Would they I fall in love with this Cinderella story the way I fell in love with the original animated version when I was a child? I hadn’t heard of Lily James, who played Cinderella and I couldn’t imagine the lovely Cate Blanchett being wretched enough to be an evil stepmother. Would I like it? Would THE MICE, my favorite characters of the Cinderella animated movie have a spot in this one? Would there be a fairy Godmother?

CinderellaPoster

Yes, I loved them. Yes, the prince was charming! Yes, I fell in love with this Cinderella story all over again! Cate Blanchett made a perfectly evil stepmother. Lily James was a wonderful Cinderella! There was a fairy Godmother! There was magic! My favorite Gus Gus mouse was in the movie. All was right with the world!

CinderellaDress
THE dress! Guaranteed to make any prince fall in love!

This Disney Cinderella provided a background story that made you fall in love with the Cinderella character. We learn more about Cinderella’s parents and how the stepmother and stepsisters come to have power over her.  On Cinderella’s mother’s deathbed, she gives Cinderella her best advice:

Have courage and be kind.

It was a beautifully done movie and the message really resonated with me. Despite the cruelty of her jealous and greedy stepmother and stepsisters, Cinderella treats them with kindness—even when kindness doesn’t seem like the appropriate or natural response. Cinderella remains kind and takes courage from her mother’s dying words. It is this courage and kindness that eventually wins over the prince. There’s always room for more kindness in the world.

CinderellaPrince
A precious moment in the film, where Cinderella and the prince sneak away from the ball.

 

I really am a sucker for a good fairy tale and as in the animated version, it is your traditional tale of good vs. evil. We were cheering for Cinderella, while hoping for justice against the nasty stepmother and stepsisters. Would Cinderella be recognized at the ball?Have courage, Cinderella!

EvilStepMotherSisters
The evil stepmother (Middle-Cate Blanchett) and Cinderella’s evil stepsisters, Drisella (Left-Sophie McShera) and Anastasia (Right-Holliday Grainger), doing their best to attract the prince’s attention.

While the fairy Godmother was a small part of the entire film, I love what Disney did to make the scenes with Cinderella’s quirky fairy Godmother magical! Of course, the coachmen, the horses, the coach, the dress, the GLASS SLIPPERS, all had a magical element that made it all fit with the traditional fairy tale, but with some very classic Disney twists.

CinderellaGlassSlippers
The glass slippers!

We loved, loved the Cinderella movie. It had all the traditional Disney Cinderella elements we’ve come to love and a little bit more!

Cinderella

Opens in Theaters March 13, 2015

What was really super cute, was the Frozen Fever feature that played before the Disney Cinderella movie. If you love Olaf, Queen Elsa, and Princess Anna as much as we do, you’ll love Frozen Fever. We laughed and laughed. It was really cute. That Olaf!

Here’s the trailer for Frozen Fever:

Are you planning to see Cinderella? Who will you see it with?

Filed Under: Disney, Reviews Tagged With: Cinderella, Disney, Disney Frozen, Entertainment, Frozen Fever, Movies, Review

That’s Smart Baby! Smart Baby Monitor from Verizon Wireless

November 19, 2013 by Laura Lohr Leave a Comment

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My brand new nephew at Halloween this year. He is just perfect!

When Verizon Wireless offered to let me and my family try out the Withings Smart Baby Monitor, I couldn’t resist!  My brother is in the military and is often out to sea.  With this new, beautiful baby, it makes it tough.  We all want to see him grow and watch his milestones.  He changes each time I see him.  The technology of the baby monitor has changed significantly since Allie Kat was a baby.  We couldn’t share our monitor with friends and family the way it can be done today!
When Allie Kat was a baby, we hadn’t considered the possibility of needing a baby monitor. Fortunately, my mom’s amazing best friend had considered this possibility and gave us one when Allie was born. It was before the days of video monitor popularity because video monitors were not yet affordable. We used the monitor all the time and we were so thankful to have it!  It was nice to work out in the yard while Allie was napping and still be able to monitor her.

The monitor allows you to log in to the Withings application on your Droid or Apple product and monitor your child remotely.  What an ingenious idea!  The monitor can be viewed from either a cell phone or tablet/Ipad, which is great!  This is fabulous for anyone that has to be far away from their children.

This little jewel box is the monitor!
This little jewel box is the monitor!

 

The monitor plays lullabies, has a night light,  detects a change in room temperature, lets you speak to your baby and is perfect for a nightstand. All of the features can be controlled right on the monitor or remotely, using your desired Android/Apple device.  You can designate more than one user, so Daddy who is out of town and Grandma who is out of town can both see what is going on with Junior.  How cool is that?  All the times that Mr. Bear had to be out of town, he could have logged on and seen our little princess fast asleep.  I wish this was available when we were brand new parents!

The Withings nightlight.  Various colors available.
The Withings nightlight. Various colors available.

 

It has been so much fun to have a new baby in the family and I just love to snuggle this little guy!  I had an opportunity to babysit for a couple of hours.  He is such an easy, content little guy and I am so happy for my brother and his family!  I am hoping to babysit again soon.

Isn't he perfect?
Isn’t he perfect?

 

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GJG9DqRqs0]

Disclaimer:  I was given the Withings Smart Baby Monitor on loan by Verizon Wireless for my honest review.  All opinions expressed are mine.  I was not compensated for this review.

Filed Under: Reviews, Technology, Verizon Wireless Tagged With: Baby Jax, Review, Verizon Wireless, Withings Baby Monitor

Touch and Go Book Review #BHBC

February 7, 2013 by Laura Lohr Leave a Comment

I read a lot of non-fiction books. I prefer them mostly, as I am always looking for ways to improve myself and find myself perusing the self-help, nutrition, health and fitness sections. Occasionally, I will choose a fiction book that friends recommend, however, for the most part, I read non-fiction. I like to push myself out of my comfort zone sometimes and when I had the opportunity to read Touch and Go, New York Times best selling author of suspense, Lisa Gardner, I was excited to see what she had in store for me. I had not read any of Lisa Gardner’s previous books and was not familiar with her writing style. I wasn’t disappointed.

The story opens with details about the Denbe family—a beautiful, picture perfect family that, by all appearances had it all. Within the first few pages, nevertheless, Libby Denbe narrates the story and I quickly learned that nothing is what it seems. Libby and Justin Denbe arrive home after a date night to be surprised in the foyer by kidnappers and nothing would be the same again.

I enjoyed reading the book. I love Lisa Gardner’s writing style, her plot and character development and her surprise ending. I have to admit, I began having my suspicions of the “surprise ending” chapters before the story wrapped, although Gardner did have some other surprises in store for me. Gardner has an ability to paint vivid pictures and I found myself having a lot of difficulty putting the book down. There were a few nights when I could not sleep because I wanted to find out what would happen next. Before I knew it, I would get out of bed and come down stairs for a cup of hot tea and to take a massage on my chair with my book. If you are interested in massage chairs then go to https://reviewsfield.com/best-massage-chairs.

I have already been browsing Amazon books for Lisa Gardner’s previous novels. I have to admit that I think I might be hooked. There is good reason for Gardner’s frequent appearances on New York Times Best Seller List.

Disclaimer: This is a paid review for BlogHer Book Club but the opinions expressed are my own. I was compensated for my review, and received a copy of Touch and Go HOWEVER, I only recommend products and/or services I personally believe in.

Filed Under: BlogHer, BlogHer Book Club, Books, Reviews Tagged With: Author, BlogHer Book Club, BlogHer Book Review, Books, Fiction, Lisa Gardner, New York Times Best Seller, Review, Reviews, Suspense, Touch and Go by Lisa Gardner

30 Bloggers, 30 Recipes, 30 Days, 30 Little Calories #silkalmond

February 1, 2013 by Laura Lohr Leave a Comment

Silk 30 Bloggers 30 Recipes

Silk 30 Bloggers 30 Recipes

Growing up, we drank so much milk, we really should have had our own milking cow. I remember as a kid, having an enormous glass of milk with dinner, milk with cereal and often, a glass of milk when I got home from school. By the time I reached college, however, I stopped drinking so much milk because it seemed like every single time I had a tall glass of milk, I would have horrendous repercussions (from stomach aches to a gassy gut—oh, the joy!) Even the occasional dairy creamer in my coffee has caused me some discomfort.

Over the years, I have tried many dairy substitutes, including soy milk. After doing some research, I began to steer away from soy milk in favor of almond milk.

Enter Silk Almond Milk.

I have been purchasing almond milk since I first discovered it from a health conscious friend a few years ago and discovered I could have my “dairy” without suffering the ill effects of cow’s milk. I love to add a dash of chocolate or vanilla almond milk to my morning coffee, or use plain almond milk to cook and bake with. I have replaced the cow’s milk in my smoothies with almond milk. Scrambled eggs? Morning cereal? No problem. I like the

Recently, Silk Pure Almond Milk enlisted the help of 30 health and fitness bloggers to share their favorite Silk recipes on Facebook. The result is absolutely and deliciously wonderful! I love, love smoothies and am always looking for more recipes. There is a Chocolate Covered Cherry Smoothie, a Key Lime Pie Smoothie, or a Strawberry Rhubarb Pie Smoothie, a Long and Lean Smoothie to name a few. The Vegan Almondmilk Broccoli & Sage Risotto is on my list of things to try next. Deliciousness! Go ye to the Facebook page and see the yummy recipes for yourself!

Silk Almond Milk is only 30 calories per serving.

Join the conversation on Twitter: #SilkAlmond

You can check out all the recipes on the Silk Facebook Page and find the recipes here https://www.facebook.com/SilkUS/app_574751085884802.

Check out the Silk Almond Milk website: http://silk.com/

Silk Almond Milk

Disclaimer: FitFluential LLC compensated me for this Campaign. All opinions are my own. Regardless, I only recommend products or services I use personally and believe will be good for my readers. I honestly love Silk Almond Milk and it can always be found in our fridge.

Filed Under: Health, Reviews, Silk, Weight Loss Tagged With: #SilkAlmond, Almond Milk, FitFluential, Good for You, Healthy, Healthy Living, Recipes, Review, Reviews, Silk, Smoothies

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About Laura:

Wife, mom, runner, geek, lifestyle blogger, fitness badass, world traveler, social media lover. San Diego transplant, living in Temecula's wine country.

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