Tag Archives: zevia

A Healthy Start With #TheNewSweet of Zevia

05/20/2015 R.C. Liley 2 Comments

Zevia has been the only soda in our home for many years. I’ve reviewed their delicious drinks in the past and explained why it being a healthy treat is not the only thing that makes it so special in our home.

Recently, Avery had her first try of #TheNewSweet that is Zevia and now we have a small family of Zevia lovers! She literally reaches for the stuff whenever it’s in sight!

So what is “#TheNewSweet” all about? Here are the details directly from the satisfyingly refreshing soda company itself:

Zevia is s naturally sweetened, zero calorie soda in 15 delicious flavors! They’ve asked me to put a fresh spin on my old routine in honor of Spring! Get in on the fun on twitter.com/zevia & instagram.com/zevialife by tagging them & #TheNewSweet. Head to the gallery to peep the party! Zevia.com/TheNewSweet

Here in Texas, Spring turns into Summer in an instant, which means it gets a little warm. And by “warm” I mean VERY HOT! With Avery running around and keeping active indoors and out, she needs to stay hydrated with plenty of water and energized with nutritious food.

Since she was born, we’ve only given her healthy food I made and she will eat steamed veggies without a fuss……usually (she’s still a toddler!). Carrots are viewed as a treat to her and I’m proud at how well she does when it comes to eating healthy.

Thanks to my wife, she still gets the unbeatable breast milk to drink as well as water. But now, after playing outside and needing a nice treat, I’ve started sharing a Zevia with her. Since Avery just started having liquids other than breast milk and water, we never had a routine to give a “fresh spin” to, instead this is the routine.

So far she’s tried their Grape and Strawberry sodas as well as their brand new Tonic Water. It’s a great way to make a healthy adult beverage or something fun for the kids. Like, for instance, mixing with another flavor like Strawberry because we all know how fun it is to mix things!

At least it is in this house. Avery has been loving this combo lately. Just a 50/50 mix and some ice and you’re good to go.

No one wants to spend too much time inside when it’s nice outside, so I prefer to keep it simple. Of course, on a rainy day, Zevia has plenty of recipes to try on their site.

And it’s not just drinks, you can bake with it for a healthy treat to eat too! I even have a recipe for Cherry Cola Protein Bread I suggest you try. Just make sure you top off everyone’s drinks before using the last can!

From Spring right into Summer, we’ll be keeping healthy and happy with #TheNewSweet of Zevia. So when Avery is giving me “the look”…

…I know it’s time for a healthy treat like Zevia to keep things cool and calm. Judging from her cheeky grin, I’d say it’s working!

Don’t forget to show how you’re enjoying #TheNewSweet of Zevia and share it on Instagram and Twitter using the hashtag! Make sure to check back here soon to read my review of Zevia’s new Tonic Water and a chance to win free Zevia for yourself and your family…..if you want to share! 🙂

Food, Going Healthy, NuttZo, Soft Star Shoes, WIAW

WIAW #8: A Kid’s First Taste of Zevia Soda

04/22/2015 R.C. Liley 4 Comments

Zevia has been the only soda in our home for years now. We still treat it like a…..umm, treat and only have it every now. Even though it’s free from all the nasty stuff in regular and artificially sweetened diet sodas, water is obviously the best choice when it comes to a healthy lifestyle.

The fun-loving, extremely generous folks at Zevia have sent our now 17 month old daughter, Avery, a couple of their shirts. She looks adorable (as always) in the shirts, and she loves playing with the cans.

But I never gave her any to drink until just yesterday. She only has breast milk and water right now, so why not a little naturally sweetened soda for something new? I’m not sure if you can tell, but I think she might be ready to try.

I poured some in her sippy cup and proceeded to take an Instagram video of her first sips. Because, that’s what parents do, right? Capture everything and share across all of social media.

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by RC Liley (@going_dad)

There wasn’t much in there, so she finished that pretty quick and was asking for more.

Guess she likes it. And oh man, she’s had some good burps in the past, but add carbonation and it’s a whole new level of belching from our little girl! #ProudDad

Now, how about a little WIAW action! Thanks as always to the wonderful Jenn from Peas and Crayons, for creating this fun link-up for foodies everywhere!

Head over to Clean Eats Fast Feets to join in on this week’s party!

Breakfast – Homemade Cold Brew Coffee and microwave chocolate bread.

Lunch – Shredded chicken with sweet potato, steamed beets and brussels sprouts along with a couple of green olives.

Dinner – This amazing crock-pot chicken chili I literally made by just throwing in all kinds of herbs and spices we had with black and kidney beans and lots of veggies. My girls loved it and so did I, so that’s a win in my book!

Snack – Sounds weird, but I’ve been enjoying this raw sauerkraut on its own lately and had a few bites of this after dinner. Good tasting and good for the gut!

Have you tried or heard of Zevia Soda? What about your kids?

If not already, would you allow your kids to try a stevia sweetened, junk-free soda like Zevia?

Ever snack on sauerkraut?

Giveaway, Going Reviews

Zevia Soda Review + Giveway and Why it’s Special to Me

06/25/2014 R.C. Liley 10 Comments

Hey there, happy Hump Day! How’s your week going so far?

Doing good here, and now that it’s summer, the Texas weather is wasting no time on turning up the heat! If you’re looking for a way to cool down with a refreshing drink, look no further than Zevia, the zero calorie soda.

Zevia offers 15 flavors of zero calorie deliciousness and anyone is sure to find a favorite or two…..or more! Not only do I love the company for creating a healthy alternative to those unhealthy sugary sodas or dangerous sugar-free sweeteners, but they are helping to spread the word and fight against childhood obesity.

Here’s a video they have on YouTube that gets the message across pretty well!

[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c_40WYH0kWQ&w=560&h=315]

As a major supporter in the fight against obesity and raising awareness of what we are putting in our bodies and feeding our children, I love to see companies that help spread the word. And, now that I’m a parent to the most precious little girl ever (Biased? Nahhhh), I know it’ll be tough trying to teach her about all of the processed food we don’t eat when so many of her peers and parents will have it daily. It will be a struggle, but something I will never back down from or give up on. Thanks to companies like Zevia, the fight will be easier.

Avery’s not ready to drink anything other than mommy’s milk right now, but you can rest assured I’ll happily share a can of Zevia on a hot summer day when that time comes. Who says being healthy is boring? I say it’s only what you make of it, and it is far from boring!

Zevia sent a 6-pack sampler for me to review which included their Cream Soda (yes!), Ginger Ale (double yes!), Ginger Root Beer, Grapefruit Citrus, Grape, and Cherry Cola flavors. I’ve tried these in the past, but not since they’ve “cracked the code” with their next gen sweetening system, SweetSmart.

I was already more than happy with their flavors before, so I had to find out if they could actually get any better. Turns out, they can! Ha ha, get it? Can? Anyone? *Crickets chirping*

Grape – If you like grape soda, you’ll love this one! It’s crisp, bubbly, and not overwhelming. I’m not a huge fan of grape flavored drinks, but if someone offered this to me, I’d happily accept.

Cream Soda – Loved it before, and now I love it even more! Going Mom and I both rank this as one of our favorites! If you’re trying to get off the sugar-laden cream sodas out there, you’ll be surprised to find you’re not sacrificing anything by switching to Zevia’s Cream Soda.

Ginger Ale – I buy this one often, and enjoy it with a little bourbon every now and then. Alone, it’s not a very strong ginger flavor, but it’s light, refreshing, and subtle. Perfect in the Texas heat!

Grapefruit Citrus – Probably my least favorite of the sampler pack, but by no means bad. I actually like the real grapefruit and its slight bitterness, but the slight bitterness in this drink just didn’t do it for me. Like the grape, I’d happily accept if offered to me, but wouldn’t buy this one for myself.

Ginger Root Beer – Ginger + Root Beer = two things I love! Another favorite of ours, and one that I also use with bourbon or a little vodka. This has more of a root beer flavor than anything, but that’s okay with me.

Decisions, decisions.... — Decisions, decisions….

Cherry Cola – Another winner for me! I used to love Cherry Coke back in my “heavy boy” days and was excited when Zevia first released this flavor. It tastes just like a cherry cola should, and is a perfect replacement for the high calorie, liquid sugar alternative.

Something I found a few years ago was a recipe to make cake with Zevia. The instructions were simple; just use a boxed cake mix and follow the instructions using a can of Zevia for the liquid. If it was yellow cake, Cream Soda was the preferred choice, and if it was chocolate cake, Dr. Zevia (like Dr. Pepper) was suggested.

Well, I’m not a fan of using boxed anything, so I skipped that and tried my own recipe with Cherry Cola. The result was a big hit and Zevia even has it on their website now. Check out my Zevia Cherry Cola Protein Bread recipe here and look around at other creative ways to cook with Zevia.

Kelley and I have been enjoying Zevia for several years now, and have enjoyed watching the health-minded company expand as more people caught on to their guilt-free sodas. Zevia is the only soda we’ve had in our home for a long time, and it was always a treat for us to share a can during lunch when we both worked together.

When Kelley was pregnant with Avery, we anxiously counted each passing week of her pregnancy, and it became a weekly tradition to have a celebratory Zevia to cheers with. Every Wednesday, the completion of another week pregnant, I would pack either a can of Cream Soda or Ginger Root Beer Zevia for us to share. For the major milestones, I’d pack 2 full cans for us each to enjoy!

We loved the fact that Zevia was an extremely delicious safe drink to enjoy while Kelley was pregnant, and it will always have a place in our heart when thinking back to those 9 months leading up when we first met Avery.

Now that I’m a stay-at-home parent, we aren’t able to share a Zevia at lunch, but every now and then, I still pack a can for Kelley to enjoy on Wednesday. It makes me happy just picturing the smile on her face as she opens her lunch bag to see a Zevia waiting for her to enjoy.

Another reason to love Zevia is that they have agreed to give 5 lucky readers a 6-pack of their wonderfully refreshing and guilt-free soda. Winners can select the flavor of their choice. All you have to do to enter is complete the Rafflecopter entries below.

A Rafflecopter Giveaway

Make sure to check out Zevia on the following social media sites and look for great deals and coupons that they’re always sharing! Or go to their site and print off a coupon now!

Facebook

Twitter

Instagram

Good luck and happy drinking!