Soft Star Child Merry Jane: Classic Shoes They Can Use

08/01/2016 R.C. Liley Leave a comment

Mary Janes are classic shoes that originated in the early 1900’s from a character of the same name in a popular comic strip Buster Brown. Buster, and his little sister, Mary Jane, both wore the same shoe that became know as the Mary Jane with the help of an obviously successful ad campaign.

Typically made of leather with a strap that goes over the foot and is secured by a buckle, Mary Janes are often considered a formal/semi-formal shoe. In kid terms, this means uncomfortable and not meant for the playground. Determined to turn this classic style into a shoe that’s fun for kids and parents will adore, the elves at Soft Star Shoes created a more comfortable, versatile design of the Mary Janes.

Soft Star sent Avery a pair of their Child Merry Janes giving her the mission to test them out before their release on August 16th. As a seasoned Soft Star fanatic, she readily and happily accepted.

It’s always important to know what kind of tread you’re dealing with, and the Vibram rubber sole checked out for us.

Durability is essential for an active kid, as well as flexibility. Two qualities the Soft Star Merry Jane, like all of their shoes, has.

With a little help from Dad to get them on, I snuck a quick pic of her new test subjects before she could jump up in constant state of motion. You know, a toddler.

Avery kept seated long enough for a side shot of her new kicks.

Then it was time to begin the mission of putting the Merry Janes to the toddler test. After a little begging and playground persuasion, she agreed to 10 seconds of standing still for me to take a picture.

You’d think I would get better at taking her picture by now, but I completely cut off the top half of her body! No worries, the flexible elastic band connecting the buckle to the shoe and grippy Vibram rubber sole made for an easy transition from standing to squatting!

The Merry Janes passed the squat test, an extremely important test, without a hitch. They’re also perfect for practicing much needed balancing skills.

Next, we took them outside for a ~~spin~~ walk/run around the neighborhood to break them in. Alternating from a slow walk to a fast run, Avery had no issues with the shoes slipping off or weighing her down. She had zero complaints on our walk and said she loved her new “Yellow Soft Star rocket shoes!” Not by my request, she decided to test out their puddle jumping abilities.

We haven’t had much rain in Texas lately, but kids have a keen eye for puddles. The passed. But what about their performance ~~in the wild~~ on the playground, where kids can be found roaming free?

Avery quickly confirmed they perform well in a kids’ natural territory by running all over a local playground. It’s hard to get a detailed description from a toddler on how they feel, so I look for visual cues to get a good idea.

Soft Star calls their version of the classics “Merry” since they make feet happy, and judging by the look on Avery’s face, who can argue? Do kids even know how to fake smile?

The testing phase is never really over when it comes to kids and parenting, but the new Soft Star Shoes Merry Janes have quickly become a new favorite for our little girl. Having a buckle instead of just elastic or velcro takes a little longer, but it’s not as bad as I first expected. Avery is able to get the shoes on herself and then have Mommy or Daddy secure the buckle. That elastic band attaching the buckle makes the process much easier!

Parents will love seeing their kids in stylish shoes they’ll wear without putting up a fight, and kids will love cheerfully playing in their new shoes. Although they are geared mostly towards girls, Soft Star’s Custom Child Merry Jane gives you the option to make a good looking, functional shoe for any boy or girl.

Keep both eyes on the calendar for when August 16th rolls around to order your kid a new pair of Soft Star Child Merry Janes. Follow them on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and Pinterest to keep up to date on all of their latest news too.

Soft Star Shoes provided their Child Merry Janes free of charge in exchange for my honest review. All words are my own and I was not compensated in any other way. Get yourself and your kids in a handmade pair of Soft Star Shoes and see why their minimal footwear will make your entire family’s feet happy and healthy!

Food, Going Reviews

Gold Nugget Ghee: A Tasty Source of Health Benefits

07/29/2016 R.C. Liley Leave a comment

Just what is ghee, you ask? It’s made from butter that has been gently heated to remove the milk solids. This makes it a pure fat just like coconut oil with a high smoke point at 482°F. You can use it just like butter, and for those sensitive to butter, ghee seems to not trigger the same intolerance.

Ghee is chock full of fat soluble Vitamins A, D, E, and K. And wouldn’t you know, ghee is pure healthy fat allowing for easy absorption of these health-promoting vitamins. But, like most things, not all ghee is created equally; where it’s sourced is an important part of what makes it healthy. Enter Gold Nugget Ghee, committed to providing people the highest quality ghee on the market.

Daniel Draskinis, the founder of Gold Nugget Ghee and an avid outdoor enthusiast, set out to find something that would provide him sustainable energy for his adventures. From rock climbing to yoga to ultra marathons, performing at his best was vital. Through research and experimentation, Daniel created Gold Nugget Ghee.

GOLD NUGGET GHEE is committed to bringing people the highest quality ghee available on the market. We source butter from small farms in Northern California, which provides a unique rainforest ecosystem that allows cows to happily graze on green grass ALL YEAR long. We are committed to providing nutrient-dense ghee that supports your health, our planet, and environment.

Daniel graciously provided a jar of Gold Nugget Ghee free of charge for me to review. I’ve used coconut oil for cooking plenty of times before, but when I found Gold Nugget, I had to try for myself.

The source of food is essential if we want to give our bodies the best nutrients available, and Gold Nugget is right on target. What about the taste? Glad you asked, we love it! Going Mom and I first tried it in our black coffee since we’ve heard wonderful things about putting butter or ghee in coffee, aka Bulletproof Coffee.

Gold Nugget Ghee and Coffee

A rich, buttery aroma filled the air as steam rose from our hot mugs of upgraded coffee, and our mouths were greeted with a rich, nutty flavor. I could pick up slight notes of caramel as the coffee cooled a bit and it left me craving more. We added about one teaspoon to start, but now we’ll do almost two teaspoons.

Next up was cooking with our Gold Nugget treasure. With a high smoke point, it held up to the high temps of cooking on the stove as well as mixed well with steamed veggies.

ghee, healthy cooking, coffee, vegetables

Avery and and Going Mom gave me their empty plates and buttery kisses in approval. So ghee is good in coffee (I call it coff-ghee because, dad jokes) and savory dishes, but what about something a little sweet? Keeping with healthy, whole foods, I made cinnamon roasted carrots with ghee to put it to the test.

Gold Nugget Ghee with Cinnamon Roasted Carrots

MMMMmmmmmm! Nuff said.

Much like coconut oil, ghee is beneficial both in and outside of your body. It is used to treat burns and rashes, and as a moisturizer for the skin and scalp. What I appreciate about is that it doesn’t need to be refrigerated, which makes it the perfect food to take along when traveling.

Gold Nugget Ghee supports local businesses, holds up to the highest of mindful business practices, and put care into what they create. They also package their product in glass jars as opposed to plastic, so you can reuse the jar over and over again.

My family and I are nothing but pleased with Gold Nugget Ghee. We can feel the health benefits and taste them too! Every time my wife and I have our morning cup of joe, Gold Nugget finds its way into our mug and puts a happy, healthy smile on our face.

You can follow Gold Nugget Ghee on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram to keep up to date on specials and tasty ways to use their delicious food. Be sure to pick up a jar (or two or three) here.

Disclosure: Gold Nugget Ghee provided a jar of their ghee free of charge in exchange for my review. I was not compensated in any other way.

Life, Parenting

Can You Fix Anything With Healing Hugs and Duct Tape?

07/28/2016 R.C. Liley 2 Comments

If you asked me a week ago, I would’ve laughed at the thought, but now I’m a firm believer that healing hugs and duct tape can fix virtually anything; emphasis on virtually. Just ask Grumpy Cat…

Avery gave a tutorial on How to Heal a Dump Truck the other day which included a heavy dosing of hugs and duct tape bandaids. Her patient was a yellow dump truck we’ve seen parked in the spot for almost two weeks. The very back corner of our neighborhood’s new phase in development, aka Phase 3 Construction Site.

duct tape, funny, cute, hugs

Almost every day, we’ll walk through the construction site to see the busy skid-steers (like Bobcats), excavators, cement mixers, ditch diggers, concrete pump trucks, and sometimes, on rare occasions, a big bulldozer!

Looking up at Bulldozer

Bulldozers are a real treat, so we take advantage by performing super scooper squats, naturally.

duct tape, construction site, adventure

And, as long as the coast is clear and it’s not in use, there’s no harm in climbing up to sit in the driver’s sit for a minute. Even Daddy likes to pretend he’s controlling the big machine.

Bulldozer selfie with Daddy

Fortunately, the giant bulldozer was in good shape, so no healing hugs or duct tape bandaids were needed. But, as I was saying before, this seemingly ~~stalled~~ sick yellow dump truck needed our help. We’d go out on our daily walk to give the dump truck hugs and duct tape where he needed it most.

Duct Tape Bandaid Strip for Dump Truck

I managed the duct tape, Avery let me know where to put it.

Dump Truck Light Boo Boo

Together, we did our best at trying to heal the poor old yellow dump truck.

As days passed and still no signs of improvement from our treatment regimen, we feared it was a lost cause. But then, just the other day, Going Mom said she was pretty sure she saw the yellow dump truck drive by our house. With determination and the need to see for ourselves, Avery and I made the trek to see if dump truck really left from his permanent parking spot.

Then, on our way to the site, yellow dump truck drove right by us! He was going back into the Phase 3 Construction Site, so we eagerly followed to track him down to confirm our healing hugs and duct tape did the trick. We found him at a dump truck dump site looking much better. Avery had to sit in her healed patient, so I asked the mostly spanish speaking driver if she could sit in side. He happily agreed to let her in.

Sitting in Yellow Dump Truck

You’ve never seen a kid so happy to sit in an old truck with something that barely passes as a seat. For full pretend driving effect, I had to shut the door. The smiles only increased.

Staring out window of yellow dump truck

Our little girl is quite proud of her healing hug power and duct tape placement skills. Now we’ll be on the lookout for other ailing construction trucks as we wander around the new development. If something as big as a dump truck can be fixed with hugs and duct tape, I am now convinced almost anything can be. Again, note that I said almost…