A delicious introduction to the school year with Made Good Granola

I visit my local Wegmans frequently now that I am on a healthier diet with my family and am overwhelmed by all the new products I see weekly there. One product I haven't noticed yet are these granola bars/clusters. (I don't think my local Wegmans carries it yet) The boxes are bright and enticing so I knew they just had to be good.

A quick background on the product if you will. Made Good is made organic with vegetables. It's Non GMO, certified vegan, gluten free, kosher parve, made in a peanut tree free facility and has 9g of whole grains per serving.

They have 5 flavors. (Sorry one not pictured here is the Berry one). The Green box is Apple Cinnamon. The Brown box is Chocolate chip. The yellow box is Chocolate Banana. The Pink box is Strawberry.

I decided to conduct a taste test on these four flavors. I had my own two kids rank from their favorite flavors from a 1-4 in the order of the best one first. Their first reactions were good ones. I carefully gauged their faces as they ate it. I think they were surprised that something so healthy could taste so good. (My kids are 11 and 12)

So my 12 year old daughter liked 1. Apple Cinnamon, 2. Chocolate Chip, 3. Strawberry, 4. Chocolate Banana

My 11 year old son liked 1. Chocolate Chip, 2. Apple Cinnamon, 3. Chocolate Banana, 4. Strawberry

I think it was a big win with them as they asked for more after the taste test to bring back to their bedroom to snack on. They will also be taking these to school for lunch time snacking which I think is perfect. I feel good about letting them have this since the sugar content is relatively low and its a good portion size.

Here's the snack bowl in the kitchen. I always put snacks here that they are free to grab as they please. They are in love with Made Good and so am I. Thanks Made Good and Moms Meet for letting me try out these granola bars with my family. I will also be distributing packs to my neighbors that have a bunch of kids in their family and also my own family members from out of town.

Check out Made Good Foods Website: http://www.madegoodfoods.com/us/?set-region=US

Made Good Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/madegoodfoods/

Made Good Twitter: https://twitter.com/madegoodfoods

Made Good Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/MadeGoodFoods/

Super Markers for art, adult coloring books and crafts

I don't use markers often when it comes to adult coloring books but I figured I would give these a try. It's a set of 100 bullet point markers from a company called USArtSupply on Amazon. They usually push out quality products so I already trust them. There is a large variety of colors here that you can't expect from your usual set. Just think of your primary colors and then lighten or darken them. You have a nice gradient of colors here. The pigment on them is beautiful. They are deep and they also dry quickly. I did not have one single ink mark on my skin by the time I was done coloring in the page. They perform well and the price point on them is absolutely acceptable. For $18 you can't go wrong.  I pretty much compared these to Prisma Color markers which I find are at the top ladder of supplies. They performed maybe just a smidge under those. Considering the cost of Prisma Color markers I would say this is total win!  #USArtSupply

You can buy this set of 100 markers here on Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B01HSS5FTW

Pop Manga Coloring Book by Camilla d'Errico

When I saw this beautiful coloring book I knew I just had to have it in my very hands. I have been allured by anime and the Asian culture since I was about 10 years old. (I'm 30 now). I have been coloring through many adult coloring books nowadays but I have never seen anything like this. This book definitely tops all the rest in my opinion.

Each and every photo just tells a wonderful story. My mind kept working as I was coloring my favorite picture in the book. (The golem with the 3 fairies) It took me about 2 hours to complete the picture but in the end it was well worth it. It was just gorgeous to look at and I was happy. Camilla's attention to detail is just spectacular. It has a Korean style to me and it's just adorable. Here's my completed picture.

I highly suggest using color pencils when coloring in any picture as it gives it more depth/detail. I really can't wait to color more pages in. I'd show you more pages but I honestly would hate to ruin the surprise of actually opening the coloring book and going through it for yourself. Enjoy!


You can read more about this coloring book here: http://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/539469/pop-manga-coloring-book-by-camilla-derrico/9780399578472/

It's available at many popular shops such as Amazon,Walmart and Target.  $15.99

Camilla d’Errico is an Italo-Canadian artist who has been making waves in the fine art and comic industries with her manga-influenced style. Ever the prolific artist, Camilla is comic artist/creator and Pop Surrealist painter, while also contributing to the vinyl art toy movement, and expanding her style into fashion, accessories, toys and other merchandise.

Camilla resides in Vancouver, BC, where she paints and draws comics, and more recently has been working with entertainment companies on feature films and videogames. She has distinguished herself through her ability to seamlessly weave comic art and manga with surrealist elements, wrapping it all together with an extensive emotional palette. Thanks to her relentless energy, dedication, and creativity, she has followed her dream of successfully working creatively for a living.

The Social Stigma around Guns

I've honestly never seen a problem with guns or carrying. I just want to give a short piece of my mind when it comes to the issue. Why is self-defense not an issue when it comes to hand to hand combat but the minute a gun is mentioned then it's a big deal. I also want to point out that I don't own a gun myself because I just haven't made the time to go get a permit or buy one. It's a process for sure that I don't want to go through. Is it a simple process compared to getting other things? Sure!

There has been so much tragedy in the USA and all around the world with guns. We aren't hiding the fact that we probably use them the most here in America. We are proud of our guns and we stick to it. Then you have the Rio 2016 Olympic games and the American girl winning that competition. You have all the people who roll their eyes and say of course an American won it. We're all proud of her for winning it just like we're proud of all the TOTAL medals we have won so far. We're a competitive country. We take pride in our sports and games. It's big money to be good at sports in America as well. You can squeeze into great colleges for it. I will see the positives!

There's definitely nothing wrong with guns and if people mistreat or misuse guns then that's on them. We have all kinds of people in the USA mistreating guns all on their own thought process. We even have police officers abusing their power or making dumb split second decisions. It's just how it is and if we start banning guns it doesn't matter. It will always find a way into America. I guess all the bad guys will have access to them only and then what happens when they commit crimes? We won't be armed to defend ourselves. Who will be blamed then?

I will always stick to my guns and support all the healthy minded individuals carrying them. It's been in our country's history for many years. Our military needs them, our policemen need them and our law abiding citizens need them.

By the way, I love all the varying gun models I come across. I love them in all the video games I play. I support it! My wonderful tank top has been provided to me by http://www.guntshirtsforwomen.com/LITTLE-GIRLS-CRY-BIG-GIRLS-CARRY-GUNS-T-SHIRT-GUN-T-SHIRTS-FOR-WOMEN.HTM

Thanks for the love and I hope you , the reader, becomes a little more open minded about defensive carriers. Much love! #GunShirtsForWomen

Cook Korean! A comic book recipe book by Robin Ha

Cooking is something that I am not the best at but I do know a few things. I can make decent meals here and there. I always want to broaden my horizon with new recipes across different cultures. I decided to check out this book called, " Cook Korean! ". I have always been into the Asian culture/cooking. A lot of their recipes seem a bit complex but Robin Ha made it so easy to understand.

Robin breaks everything down for you and what's the best part is she drew these wonderful comics to go along with it all. There are lovely little stories all over the book that gives you a good grasp of living outside of the country. It really pulls you in to be in her position and look at everything from her point of view. Learning to cook Korean couldn't be any easier with the way she teaches you.

So if you are someone who is looking to learn how to cook Asian dishes or more specifically Korean then this book would be perfect! I say Asian because she explains how many different Asian styles of cooking is infused in the Korean cooking in general. Have fun with it and trust me, you will learn so much just by glancing through the book.

Here's a list of the sections in this book:

• Kimchi and Pickles
• Vegetable Side Dishes
• Meat and Poultry
• Seafood
• Soups and Stews
• Porridge
• Noodles and Rice Cakes
• Snacks and Street Foods
• Cocktails and Anju
• Korean Fusion

Here's a sample of what this whimsical book has to offer:

You can find this book on Amazon for purchase here: https://www.amazon.com/Cook-Korean-Comic-Book-Recipes/dp/1607748878/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1470333766&sr=8-1&keywords=cook+korean