Little DaVinci mighty vite

*This blog post was created in collaboration with Little DaVinci and MomsMeet. All opinions are 100% my own and this blog post was written from my point of view.

MomsMeet has introduced me to some great suppliments in the past and they're back with a nice alternative for our kids. I know it's a strange time to be writing about lifestyle topics and reviewing things on the blog but I've mentioned before that when I make committments, I most certainly keep them. This is no different. The team over at Little DaVinci sent me a great selection of kids supplements to take a peek at and see if they would be a good fit for my family.

I am always very careful about what I give my kids, even though they're healthy kids, who don't have any known allergies, I always suggest that you take a look at products, do your research on ingredients and ensure that if you question something, check in with your child's doctor. Our doctor's office has a great telehealth and email system so I can easily ask questions without going to the office in person. Make sure to give them a heads up if you want to put your kids on a new supplement.

Mighty Vite  This is possible supplement to replace the gummy multi vitamin that so many of us give our children. This is a "delicious, fruit-punch-flavored multivitamin that packs together critical nutrients to support your child’s health." This supplement is a harder sell for my kids in that it's a powder that you dissolve into food or drink. My kids like a good gummy but this seems like it would be perfect for parents that have issues getting their kids to take anything. This could be easily put into a moring yogurt or smoothie, though I wasn't able to get it to dissolve into water completely, that could be an option too.

Immuni- Z   This is something that I could possibly give my kindergartner (not my three year old) and seems like a good option, especially now when people are accutely aware of keeping our immune systems in tip top shape. If your kids aren't getting all the vitamins and minerals through the food they're eating then the DiVinci Kids Immuni-Z might be a good option for you. "A tasty lemon zinc lozenge that promotes healthy immune system function."

Calm- This was probably the most intriguing to me. My kids are rough at bedtime. I'm sure that a lot of parents have issues getting their kids to settle down. This spray bottle touts "Calm settles the brain, relaxes the body, and leads to a good night’s sleep for your little one"... we plan to try this out this week, though my youngest is too young to try and he's our main wild one but we're hopeful that this may be a natural option in the future!

All in all, DaVinci Kids looks like they have a great selection of vitamins and supplements for the kids in your family and perhaps some specific needs you're looking to help address.

 Save 20% on any purchase on Little DaVinci®’s website at momsmeet.link/davincishop with the promo code MOMBLOG. Offer ends June 3, 2020.

European Extra Virgin Olive Oil, a Staple in the Propah Household

*This post was created in collaboration with Flavor Your Life and MomsMeet. All opinions are 100% my own.

I don't generally post fancy recipes on here because I am a "thrower together" on most occassions... but that said, I do cook a lot and have a healthy pantry packed with lots of good spices and flavors for the dishes that I do make. If someone were to ask me what one of my most used pantry items is, I would most definitely shout from the rooftops "OLIVE OIL"! Seriously, I use it for all sorts of dishes whether I am cooking or I want to add flavor to cold dishes and salads. MomsMeet and Flavor Your Life want you to feel the same way about European extra virgin olive oil.

For this post, I was gifted a 4-pack of delicious European Extra Virgin Olive Oil from Olitalia to use with vegetables, meat, pasta and fish... I was trying to think of a way that I could use this fancy EVOO in a recipe that I hadn't tried before. I would normally use olive oil on my roasted chickens, to sautee potatoes, brown up some garlic... you know what I'm saying. One thing I've never done, even though I absolutely love to eat it, is to make my own homemade hummus. Now that I have, I don't think I will ever go back to store bought. It's amazing. And I know the European Extra Virgin Olive Oil makes all the difference in the very simple recipe. You want to know how simple this recipe is? I can give it to you in my "throw together" way and it's super delicious... ready? Take one 1 (15-ounce) can chickpeas, 1/4 cup fresh lemon juice, 1/4 cup well-stirred tahini, 1 small minced garlic clove,  2 tablespoons european extra-virgin olive oil, plus more for serving, 1/2 teaspoon ground cumin, Salt to taste, 2 to 3 tablespoons water, and blend it all in your food processor or blender. It's really that easy. I just hit the puree button on my blender, then was basically ready to serve. I drizzled some additional olive oil on top, added some paprika, pine nuts and thyme. Voila! I had some hummus. I must try Flavor Your Life's Red Bean Hummus recipe since I am now an official maker of hummus! The quality of the olive oil is important. You want the flavor to add to the dish and compliment the ingredients, not overpower it. It's why I add the cold pressed juice of olives (olive oil)... to my olive and feta mix as well. This tuna stuffed avacodo is next on my list of cold recipes to try!

"Olitalia believes all great cooking revolves around great oil. Olitalia is the #1 brand most used by chefs in Italy and is now available for home cooking in the US. Look for Olitalia at Eataly locations and be sure to follow on Instagram."

If you're not sure where to start, Flavor Your Life has great education on their site, you can learn how to cook with olive oil. It's easier than you think! Flavor Your Life has some awesome recipes to try and experiment with, which is all the fun of cooking, learning what works and what doesn't. I recommend taking a visit to the Flavor Your Life site to learn more about european extra virgin olive oil, how you can seamless introduce it into your cooking in new ways and how it will quickly become one of your pantry staples as well... so versatile and yummy!

Visit Flavor Your Life online, on Facebook and Twitter.

Keurig Up in the Propah House

*This post was brought to you by Keurig and Moms Meet. All opinions are 100% my own.

I was recently gifted the new Keurig® K-Duo Essentials™ Coffee Maker and let's just say that our coffee game is so much stronger (and easier) in this house. I have always wanted a Keurig but we drink enough coffee in the morning that we've always had a full pot of coffee type of coffee maker. But this appliance has really seemed to solve that problem!

We can make a full pot of coffee or on a morning when we're in a hurry, we can pop a K-cup in and be on the go. This has also solved an issue that I have in the afternoon. I might need a pick me up but I never want to make a full pot of coffee and waste a bunch but I can make myself one little cup and get that perk up... what I love is that I can make it strong or lighter just by changing the amount of ounces that I choose to brew. It's really such a perfect little set up. 

It's a great price point too, at just $99, you basically get two coffee makers for one, and it doesn't take up a ton of counter space, really. We're ready to stock up on K-cups, especially reusable ones (to save on trash in the landfills) and keep this caffiene party going. Check out the way you can purchase below and let me know what you think when you snag one of these babies!

Medterra and Me!

*This post was created in collaboration with MedTerra and Moms Meet. All opinions are my own.

If you know me, you know that I am very much a believer in the power of CBD products in various forms. I've been using CBD oil for at least a year now and I definitely notice that it helps mitigate some of my base level anxiety. Because of this, I have recommended that friends and family try CBD because, in my opinion, it is a worthwhile suppliment to give a try, especially if you're like me and don't want to have to take something prescribed for anxiety, insomnia or the like. If you want to read a "what is CBD and what it's used for", this article from Harvard Medical School gives a quick overview that is informative and straight forward. I had never tried a tincture before so I used the MedTerra in my normal routine in place of the CBD oil that I usually use.... and I gotta say, the tincture is GREAT!

I find that this suppliment was just as good if not better at calming my tendencies to feel a bit anxious. I don't know if it's easy to explain my anxiety itself, especially to those that don't suffer from it at any level, but to reduce it to one sentence, I suffer an anxiety attack probably once every two-three years but usually, I am a constant worrier, like too much worry. The tincture strength MedTerra sent me was certainly a good one for me (1000mg) but it also comes in a lower and a higher dosage for those wanting to regulate more.

So now you're interested if it's something that could help you with worry or sleepless nights or maybe even joint pain? The Medterra products pass the test for quality as far as CBD products go. Grown and extracted in the USA, the Medterra quality CBD is fully compliant under the Kentucky Department of Agricultural Industrial Hemp Pilot Program and they are certified by the U.S. Hemp Authority. Their whole-plant, CO2 extraction allows them to draw CBD from the plant material and filter out unnatural substances, maximizing pure CBD concentration. Their CBD products are third-party tested, completely legal, contain 0% THC and so they are able to ship them to all 50 states and most international countries.

If you're looking to try CBD products, make sure you do your research and might even want to consult your physician just to ensure that you're in the right health to try a new suppliment. I asked my doctor and she said that it's not approved by the FDA as it's a suppliment but she didn't see any issues with me giving it a try. You want to take your health seriously and make educated decisions. That said, I do like the Medterra products and if you're looking for something for you or even your pets (yes, pets!) then you can use the discount provided below. Let me know what you think!

Use promo code MomsMeet to save 15% off your first Medterra order by clicking here!

Going with my Gut and Country Life!

*This post was created in collaboration with Country Life and MomsMeet. All opinions are 100% mine and I appreciate your support of Prim and Propah.

When I set about to be healthier in this life (more than just losing weight and all that physical appearance related health business), I have to say that my eyes were opened to a TON of new things that I had never even thought of... for instance, gut health. Now I had to really do some research to see what the heck "fixing your gut" actually meant and did it have any basis in real benefits for me and what I'm looking for and it turns out that it does. So what I learned was that an unbalanced gut may disrupt signals between the gut and brain, causing instability between gut microbiota and the immune system.

Country Life was nice enough to share a collection of their Gut Connection supplements that connect your gut health with issues that matter to you. For the purpose of this review, I started with the Gut Connection Energy Balance and have been taking the supplements each morning with my breakfast. I'll start by just saying that I never thought I had gut issues but I wanted the clean, clear energy and alertness. Gut Connection by Country Life is a whole food fermentate prebiotic that feeds the bacteria in your gut and helps maintain its lining to improve your gut microbiome health. Gut Connection is different because it is probiotic-free, so you can take it alone or with your favorite probiotic, which is great, right?

So I know that some people, my husband included, doesn't think that taking supplements like these will do anything for you, but I have noticed an improvement digestion wise (I'm talking less churning nervous stomach) and have seen an uptick in energy and am sleeping better. As someone who is able to track her anxiety in how her stomach and adjoining systems reacts, tracking this all in the journal that came with my supplements was super helpful (you can download it here). Seeing an improvement in that area is a huge plus for me! I am looking forward to trying some of the other products but am going to continue the journey with the Energy Balance before trying something new, since this seems to be working so far so good! Have you ever tried using something like this? I'd be curious to hear what you think.

You can find Country Life on their site, Facebook, twitter and Instagram!

Desert Essence Haircare

* This post was written in collaboration with Moms Meet and Desert Essence Haircare. All opinions are 100% my own as with every blog post that I write.

I've been afforded the opportunity to try a lot of bath and body products since starting this blog 8 years ago. A lot of them I've loved, some not as much and I have always been honest about my thoughts because when it comes to the products we are putting on our bodies, it's serious business for me. Moms Meet sent me a goodie box from Desert Essence and I was excited to try some haircare products because they aren't always a priority for me to ensure are 100% clean and effective. Desert Essence was founded in 1978 around a simple concept: beauty is natural, and nature is beautiful. By bringing the best of nature’s offerings to personal care regimens everywhere, they strive to strengthen the bonds between our planet and all the beings that call it home. Creating that they do. They believe in being responsible to others, honest, and forward-thinking to create and preserve a better future for us all. <--- Their words not mine... I dig it, Desert Essence, I dig it.

They sent a set of their smoothing shampoo and conditioner, their anti-breakage shampoo and conditioner, their smoothing primer, anti breakage hair mask and samples of all (which I promptly tossed in my gym bag) so I got to do a little testing on my colored strands in hot hot humid heat.

What's in my bath and body products is important to me. This you know about me. I don't want unnecessary chemicals, additives, preservatives and so on, especially because it's becoming easier and easier to find products that are better for us and for our environment. Taking a look at the Dessert Essence products, you'll be pleased to see that there is quite the care and consideration taken into what the team there has been using for years. Their ingredient list is extensive but nothing is foreign. It's all easy to understand so you know what you're putting on your body and your family's body (since I'm the one supplying everything for my household, the responsibility falls on me.) The products themselves, ingredients aside, do the work they are tasked to do. I love the way my hair looks after using the Smoothing shampoo and conditioner but if you have an aversion to the way that tea tree oil smells (it can be a touch strong), it may not be the best option for you. The Anti-breakage is welcomed in my routine as my hair has been colored more times in my life than I can count. I don't wash my hair every day so at less than $8 a bottle, this brand is bringing me value that will last for awhile. Dessert Essence brings in the product at a price point that you can try without feeling guilty if it doesn't work out... but I think it will; they've got a good thing going.

Want to try these products yourself? Get 20% off Anti-Breakage and Smoothing Hair Care Products on desertessence.com with the promo code DELovesMomsMeet

PlusCBD Oil

*This post was created in collaboration with Moms Meet and Plus CBD Oil

Have you ever tried any CBD products? I am not talking about marijuana but rather products with hemp derived CBD oil, created to bring all the benefits of hemp without the psychotoxic effects. I definitely had to do some research to see what CBD oil was all about but was very intrigued by recommendations from homeopathic physicians as well as seeing other influencers talking about their experiences. PlusCBD Oils says that phytocannabinoids like CBD, are plant derivatives that "communicate" with just about every organ system in the body, helping to restore balance and physiologic homeostasis. When I was offered the opportunity to try PlusCBD oil products, I jumped at the chance because I have been wanting to test the waters with various CBD products for anxiety, topical pain relief and the calming properties that I have seen other folks talk about. I received a pretty awesome care package from PlusCBD Oil and had some immediate favorites that for sure. There are multiple different options depending on what your body and lifestyle needs.

Sampling Tips Direct from Moms Meet:

Every person is unique and has a different, ideal dose for them. PlusCBD Oil suggests starting low and slowly titrating up to find the perfect dose for
yourself. Here are some helpful tips on understanding the different formulations:

• For those busy moms who are always on the run, PlusCBD Oil Capsules are the way to go. They contain a convenient 15 mg of CBD per serving and can easily be swallowed.
• The PlusCBD Oil Balm revitalizes skin with a refreshing peppermint scent. The entire jar contains 50 mg of CBD and CBDA.
• PlusCBD Oil Drops can easily be added to your favorite drink or smoothie as a fun and convenient way to get your daily CBD. Each serving contains 3 mg of CBD.
• PlusCBD Oil Extra Strength Spray offers the perfect dose of CBD. It is great for beginners or those new to CBD. With 3 mg of CBD per serving, it offers a refreshing taste with each spritz!
• PlusCBD Oil Softgels are formulated with an extra-virgin olive oil base. With 15mg of CBD per serving this is a great option for those looking for high intensity support.

Like I said, I have tried a variety of products and my clear winner is the Extra strength balm and the pepperment spray. The balm has been a literal lifesaver from sore feet to rubbing on my shoulders after a cupping session left me itching. I felt almost immediate relief and I may just be replacing my all purpose balm for this beauty. As for the peppermint spray, I have been using on my sensitive teeth and gum areas. I recently got a little rough while flossing and my mouth was left very achy. I thought I would try spraying a little CBD oil in my mouth and spreading around. I am not lying when I say that I felt relieft and the nausea that results from my oral sensitivities, also subsided. These are my top recs as I was able to see the immediate results that I could quantify. As for the soft gels and other tablet forms, I would have to really give them a solo chance without any other items in my routine (collagen, multi vitamins etc) to really give a good rundown but I noticed no negative affects from adding them to a day when I didn't use the peppermint oil. I am excited to continue tinkering with my items, bringing them into my life where they will be most impactful. Don'd be afraid to try something from the PlusCBD Oil line. I really do feel like there are ways to mitigate the amount of medications we are taking whether they are for pain, anxiety and the like. We can find things that work in our own individual situation, CBD included.

  Want to try PlusCBD Oil for yourself? Use promo code momsmeet17 to receive 15% off online orders.