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More Dairy Free Probiotic Options

Mar 2

Posted by Shari B. in Adventures in Home Gardening, Product Review | 6 Comments

Hi blog buds!

Longtime readers of FitFeat may know that I am big on consuming probiotics, especially for maintaining a healthy immune system.  I wrote about some of my favorite non-dairy sources of beneficial flora a while back.  Now I have two more to add to the list.

The first is coconut water kefir by inner-?co™.  I picked up the tropical flavor and it is absolutely delicious! I wanted to drink the whole bottle as if it were a kombucha tea, but alas the serving size is only a tablespoon.  SO GOOD!

When you consider the cost of a good quality refrigerated probiotic pill often costing about $30 per 30-serving bottle, this coconut water kefir is a steal at about $11.00 for a 30-serving bottle.  Their website has a lot of fun information too, if you want to learn more about kefir.

The next option is a cultured vegetable mix called “Vegi-Delite”.  I recently made a couple of batches of homemade sauerkraut, but they aren’t fully fermented yet so in the meantime I thought I’d pick these up.  (If you want to eat sauerkraut for its live-food fermented benefits, you need to find a version that is UNPASTEURIZED.  Once it has been heated in the pasteurization process, all that good bacteria is dead.  So the canned version you see on the store shelf next to canned corn is not the one you want.)  However, this raw and unpasteurized product is alive, kicking and located in the refrigerated section.

I must admit that this particular blend of beets, cabbage and carrots is definitely an acquired taste, at least for me.  I have to eat it with a meal and sneak bites of it in between other flavors to ‘hide’ it while I get used to it.

It sure is a pretty color though!  :D

Have you tried either of these products before?  What are your thoughts?  What’s your favorite source for beneficial bacteria?

– Shari B. =)

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Review: OrangeTheory Fitness

Jan 4

Posted by Shari B. in Keeping Fit, Product Review | 2 Comments

Hi blog buds!

How is 2012 starting off for you?  I still can’t believe it’s January already. It feels like it was just yesterday that Cory and I were at the Haunted Forest for Halloween!

On the workout front, the year is off to a great start and my “no slacker tracker” is all filled in so far!  I’ve kicked up the intensity for the start of this year as I need to build back some of my missing fitness.  I let some of it get away last year (in both strength and cardiovascular endurance ability) so I’m currently splitting out the body parts in a more traditional bodybuilding fashion, rather than a full body Tabata workout as I’d done a lot of last year.  I plan to continue this for the first quarter and assess my progress.  It looks like this for now:

  • Chest/Shoulders/Biceps
  • Cardio (some intervals, some steady state)
  • Legs
  • Back/Triceps/Core
  • Cardio Legs (hi rep routine w/ lots of lunges, squats and light plyometrics)

I’ll fill in the other days with yoga/hiking/walking/social-cizing, whatever feels fun in the moment.

And maybe some more classes like this:  last week, I had the fun opportunity to workout at a new OrangeTheory Fitness location that will be opening for business next week.   I was invited to attend one of their free mock classes prior to their Grand Opening and I was excited to do something different (and truth be told, have someone tell ME what exercises to do for a change).  It’s a group fitness session that incorporates cardio intervals and circuit training.

It was a really fun workout and the hour flew by.  They provide you with a heart rate monitor and your heart rate is posted on big screen monitors, along with all of your fellow exercisers’ heart rates.  We started out on cardio equipment to warm-up:  half on rowers, half on treadmills.  Then the rowing group moved to the gym where were did giant sets of exercises.  For example, 10 reps each of weighted squats, then dumbbell rows, then chest presses, then lunges, then back extensions and repeat a few times.  We went through three different giant sets along those lines, and it gets your heart pumping.  Next thing you know, 30 minutes has flown by and it’s time to trade with the peeps on the treadmill.  The instructor then led us through a running interval session (or power walking at an incline if you prefer) for the remainder of the class.  Then we cooled down and did a quick round of stretches.  The energy was great and the staff was really friendly and supportive. They also had a lot of fun fitness toys, like BOSU balls and TRX suspension trainers.

If you have one in your area and you are looking to switch things up, give it a try!  I haven’t found any info yet on what the cost is for membership or whether they offer drop-ins.  I’ll update this post when I get that info.

Have you been to an OrangeTheory class?  Or do you have one nearby but haven’t yet tried it?

Have a GREAT day friends!

– Shari B. =)

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Caramel Pecan Godiva Coffee Pudding

Oct 11

Posted by Shari B. in Product Review, Recipes | 6 Comments

Hi friends!

Hope that you had a delightful weekend.  (For some of you maybe even a LONG weekend for the holiday!)  It was a busy one here – I had a working weekend for the most part.  And Saturday we woke up to a little snowstorm at our house!  First snow of the season.  I considered taking a picture of it, but I actually just wanted to ignore the fact that summer is over and pretend that I’m still here:

When I went out for exercise Sunday morning, my little weather buddy (Oscar) told me it was time to bundle up!

So I pulled out my down-filled running jacket, the hat, and the mittens!

Fortunately I had a little treat waiting to warm me up on the chilly weekend.  Back before vacation, I received a SUPER fun gift in the mail.  As a Foodbuzz Featured Publisher, every so often I get a chance to opt-in to the Tastemaker program to try a new product and post about it.  When I heard about the Godiva Coffee opportunity, I jumped at the chance to participate.  One, because you know I L-O-V-E coffee!  But two, because I also love visiting our local Godiva Chocolatier Store in Park Meadows.

I was excited to receive TWO full bags of the Godiva fall-inspired coffees in the mail.

So I’ve been enjoying some really delicious morning cups of coffee lately!  But rather than bore you with a latte recipe, I thought it would be fun to make it into something different to share with you.

How about a light, protein rich dessert?

Caramel Pecan Coffee-Infused Pudding

1/3 cup pre-brewed GODIVA Caramel Pecan Bark coffee

12 oz package of silken tofu (the vacuum packed shelved kind, such as Mori-Nu Organic)

3 tablespoons agave nectar (or 3+ tbsp. maple syrup)

½ teaspoon vanilla extract (more or less to taste)

Dash of sea salt

Dash of cinnamon

Combine all ingredients in food processor and process until smooth and all ingredients are incorporated.  Taste and adjust any flavors to your own liking (such as more/less sea salt, more/less vanilla).

Divide evenly into 4 fancy wine glasses or ramekins.  (Or you could serve them in tartlet crusts.)  Let them chill in the refrigerator for at least 30 minutes in order to thicken prior to serving.

Garnish ideas:

Chopped pecans with a touch of agave drizzle and a couple of dried cranberries.  Festive!

If you’re not a coffee drinker, chances are you’ll still enjoy this.  The caramel pecan bark flavoring from the coffee is what you’ll notice most in this dessert rather than the ‘coffee’ flavor itself.

Have a FABULOUS day, blog buds!

– Shari B. =)

 

 

 

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Have You Seen This Yet?

Aug 25

Posted by Shari B. in Keeping Fit, Product Review | 2 Comments

I made a quick trip into a local health food store last night to grab a few items and I came across something that made me do a double take and then made my eyes bug out of my head!  In a good way! ;)

GT Dave’s is making Kombucha with CHIA SEEDS in it now!  Is that crazy fun or what???

Take a look:

I picked up the grape flavor to try (they also had a cherry flavor in stock).

It tastes GREAT!  I loved it!  It still has that zippy, tangy flavor of my beloved fizzy “booch” but this definitely makes me slow down and savor it a little more because I have to chew the seeds a bit.  Those who are a leary of “texture” in their food/drink might find it takes some getting used to … but if you see it in the stores, pick one up and give it a try!  You can’t help but grin when you have something as fun and funky as this in your glass!  :)

Kombucha drinkers – have you seen this in your stores yet?  If you tried it, what do you think? 

– Shari B. =)

 

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Broccomole

May 5

Posted by Shari B. in Product Review, Recipes | 4 Comments

Hi blog buds!

A while back, as a part of the Foodbuzz Tastemaker program, I received some free samples of Tostitos Dip Creation mixes to try.  Of course, being the guacamole lover that I am, I decided to start with this packet:

And seeing how it’s Cinco de Mayo, I figured today would be a good day to share this particular creation.

Instead of using avocados as the directions stated, I thought it would be fun to try another green food.  You know I’m always looking for ways to boost my intake of green veggies.

How about trying it with a whole head of broccoli?

Truth be told, I was a little alarmed at the level of sodium in the dry mix so I figured that broccoli would not only keep the calories in check it would also provide a good amount of potassium to balance out some of the sodium.  If you were to use the entire packet, the sodium would be 1920 mg.  That’s a lot.  So I decided to use only half the packet and see how it would taste.

I steamed one head of broccoli florets for about 5 minutes, until they were bright green and fork tender, transferred them to my Blendtec with 1/2 packet of the guacamole mix and puréed.

Place into your favorite dip bowl and garnish:

Cover and place in refrigerator for a bit until the “Broccomole” chills out a bit.

Then enjoy with your favorite tortilla chips!

This was a really tasty snack and would be a great way to get those non-veggie loving friends or family members to boost their green veg intake as well.

One note:  you will want to eat this on the same day you make it.  Leaving it in the refrigerator overnight causes the broccoli flavor to get really strong. :)

You could also try this with green peas, green beans or edamame.

Happy Cinco de Mayo, friends!

– Shari B. =)

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A Lightning Fast Snack to Keep the Chip Binge at Bay

May 23

Posted by Shari B. in Product Review, Recipes | 8 Comments

Hey there blog buds!

Have you seen this new “cheese” anywhere?  I just discovered it recently and had to share it with you.  It’s called “We Can’t Say It’s Cheese” by Wayfare. So far I’ve only tried the cheddar-style spread and I’m in love!

It is completely dairy free and there is no casein snuck into it either.  The main ingredient is OATMEAL!!!

I’ve been using it in wraps and on crackers mostly.  Here is my new favorite low-cal snack that has a nice little kick to it for when you feel the need to shove your face into a bag of salty chips.  ;) (Don’t do it!  Step away from the chips!)

Take one Wasa Cracker (I use Light Rye)

Smear with 1 tbsp (or less) “We Can’t Say It’s Cheese” and then sprinkle with some Mrs Dash Salt Free Fiesta Lime seasoning.

Nibble away!

One cracker snack is:

  • 60 calories
  • 8.5g carbs
  • 2g protein
  • 2g fiber
  • 2.5g fat

You could have 3 of them and still come in at only 180 calories.  This is one of my new favorites for when I’m craving something a little savory or salty.  Or when I just walk in the door from work and want something RIGHT NOW that will hold me over until dinner is ready.  The healthy fat and the fiber will fill you up in a jiffy.  (I make a similar snack using Tofutti ‘Better Than Cream Cheese’ spread and Mrs. Dash Tomato Basil seasoning too…. also very tasty!)

The Wayfare website talks about how they started their line of products because they were bothered by the fact that so many non-dairy products also included a lot of fake stuff.  And they didn’t want fake stuff in their food!  (Me either!)  So next time you are at the health food store, keep an eye out and give this brand a try.  Let me know what you think if you try it!

The more we purchase and support products that don’t have garbage (additives, chemicals, artificial sweeteners, carcinogens) in them, then more companies will hop on the bandwagon and continue to develop great things for us to use, making healthy eating even easier!

Hope you are having an amazing day!  Make it great!

– Shari B. =)

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Product Review: Pop Culture Probiotic Oatmeal & Bars

May 1

Posted by Shari B. in Product Review | 4 Comments

Good morning blog buds!

Ahhhh, it’s the weekend.  We just completed a 40-minute morning workout, ate breakfast and are now headed to the off-leash dog park to let our crazy beasts get their exercise on too!  It’s a balmy 36 degrees out (where’s the HEAT??) and it’s supposed to rain later so we’re hoping to beat the sprinkles!

You may recall a while back that in response to a post I’d done on my favorite dairy-free probiotics, Pop Culture sent me some of their probiotic products to try.

The box contained:

  • Strawberries and Crème Oatmeal
  • Maple Brown Sugar Oatmeal
  • Yogurt Fruit & Nut Bars
  • Chocolate Chip Granola Bars

(For those of you who avoid dairy, you will want to note that the only one of the products listed above that does NOT contain some milk (or milk derivative) was the Maple Brown Sugar Oatmeal.)

MSP tried the Maple Brown Sugar Oatmeal, which he said he liked.  He thought it wasn’t very sweet (he’s also used to full-on Quaker Maple & Brown Sugar instant packets which have more than twice the sugar and more than twice the sodium.)

I tried the Strawberries and Crème oatmeal (made with water). And I thought it was nicely sweetened.  After a few bites, I chose to add some almond milk to it to thin it out a bit and the almond milk further enhanced the flavor.

The oatmeal flavors are each 140 calories and 5 grams of protein and 5 grams of fiber.  Strawberry has only 3g of sugar, while Maple has 6.

The serving size was just right for me and filled me up nicely for about 3 hours.

As for the bars, Pop Culture was kind enough to send a box so we each had a couple of opportunities to sample both flavors.   MSP’s favorite was Chocolate Chip (he doesn’t really like anything with dried fruit bits in it. )  I thought both flavors were great.  Yogurt Fruit flavor is 90 calories, 4 grams protein, 4 grams fiber, 7 grams sugar.  Chocolate chip has 110 calories, 6 grams protein, less than 1 g fiber and 4 grams sugar.

Pop Culture’s products contain a specific probiotic called GanadenBC³º®, which contains an outer shell to keep the probiotic intact in the dry product.  I’ll leave the scientific info at their website, so feel free to click HERE to find out more.

My personal opinion is that all of the products tasted great. And I appreciate that they don’t use artificial sweeteners.

However, the only one that would fit into MY chosen style of nutrition (yes, I bent my eating rules to try these products out) is the Maple Brown Sugar Oatmeal because it doesn’t contain the cow’s dairy or soy protein isolates.  And a big part of why I look for alternative probiotic sources (that aren’t yogurt) is because I prefer to not consume cow’s dairy.

My husband doesn’t avoid diary or soy isolates (and wouldn’t seek out regular yogurt unless it was hidden in something) so these products would be great options for him to boost his probiotic intake.  I also think the oatmeal products would be good items for kids to replace the high sugar, high sodium (not to mention high chemical) breakfast options that they often gravitate toward.

Thank you to the generous folks over at Pop Culture for allowing me the opportunity to sample their products!

– Shari B. =)

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Eggspensive

Apr 16

Posted by Shari B. in Product Review | 7 Comments

Hi friends!  Happy Friday!

Oh and happy day it is.  Vacation is SO close now I can almost smell it!  :) (Actually I think Cindy’s been sending me scratch-n-sniff stickers of seaside air…)  ;) I am SO excited to meet her and go for our run!  It’s been in the works for so long, I can’t believe it’s finally almost here!

Random observation:  So I  log in this morning to WordPress to start this post and just since yesterday I already have 12 spam comments.  Thank goodness for the Akismet plug-in.  I am always shocked at the amount of spam that comes through the blog.  Do you bloggers get that?  I can’t even imagine what it must be like for someone who has a lot more traffic than I do.

Another (not-so-random) observation:  My calves are BEAT!  They have been working very hard this week, in the final week of the Spring Slimdown.

They feel like they should look like this:

(image source)

Maybe someday!  ;)

I ran 4.5 miles yesterday with my friend Sue at a local reservoir in the foothills.  One word:  HILLS!  I sound like a broken record on this blog – I’m forever looking for flat trails on which to run, but they are hard to come by when you live a mile above sea level!

***

I found the best eggs at Whole Foods last weekend and finally tried them for the first time yesterday.  These are the most “eggspensive” eggs I’ve ever purchased.  I hope my mom isn’t reading this post or she’ll think I’m crazy.  (Hi mom!)  I know that sometimes generic eggs are on sale for like 88 cents a dozen.  But because I don’t want to think that the poor hen who laid my eggs was shoved in a cage to live ONLY for laying this egg, pumped full of who-knows-what kind of antibiotics and meds, and had her beak seared off to keep her from pecking the hen smashed right next to her, I am willing to spend a lot more for eggs.  (These were $5.99.)

Enter VITAL FARMS.

Their package says “Antibiotic Free, Hand Collected, Free Range, Grass Eating, Pasture Raised” and organic.  I hope it’s true because this is really the only way I can feel good about eating eggs any more.  :)   Notice the little newsletter that came in the package:  “Vital Farms News”.

I will say what I know to be true is that they TASTE AMAZING!  They really did have ‘darker richer yolks’ and the flavor was just better.

Three delicious eggs, scrambled for my dinner last night with a side of Ezekial toast. They were DEFINITELY worth the extra money, both in taste and in their kindness to their hens.

If you’re new to the blog since November, check out my post about why I eat the WHOLE egg:  Are You Yolking?

***

Well blog buds, if I want to get a workout in before I have to go to work, I better get crackin’.  Today is the LAST day of the Spring Slimdown (wahoo!) so I’ll get the last few days’ worth of food pics & my final weigh-in posted hopefully tonight after work!

Enjoy your Friday and I’ll see you back here soon!  Make it a FANTASTIC day!

– Shari B. =)

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Yays and Nays

Feb 16

Posted by Shari B. in Product Review | 9 Comments

Good morning friends!

It’s a great Tuesday morning – the sun is shining and the sky is blue!  Chilly, but pretty to look at while tucked inside my toasty home office!  Yesterday, I was able to get my dogs out for about 3 miles which they REALLY appreciated.  They just don’t get out much when it’s cold outside!  And of course, one of them came home bloody.  As I’ve mentioned before, I’m getting closer and closer to not wanting to let them outside the confines of our yard because one of them always gets hurt!  :) If you started reading the blog after October, we had quite the fun time with Riley poking her eye on a bush during a hike.

This time it was Rascal.  He’s fine though, can’t you tell?  Happy as can be, snoozin’ in the sunshine!  (He takes after me in his love for sunshine!)

So today I want to share a few YAYS and NAYS with you.  As in “found this new food that I love – YAY!”

A big YAY for a new (to me) flavor of Amy’s Organic Soups.  This one is the Southwestern Black Bean Chili.  It’s the first time I’ve tried it and I am in LOVE.  I don’t know that I will ever take a bunch of time to make homemade vegetarian chili again when this one is so delicious.

In the bowl with some nutritional yeast on it:

The sodium is a bit high, but most soups that taste good have a higher sodium content.  The plus is that the sodium comes from organic sea salt, so I’m not terribly concerned.  I have crazy low blood pressure so I don’t spend a lot of time worrying about my personal sodium intake unless I’m trying to make weight for something.  ;)

***

Unfortunately in the same line of products, I’m giving a NAY to her No Chicken Noodle.  This should almost be called onion soup, as the onion flavor is incredibly overpowering.  This one won’t make back into my pantry again.  Unless I’m suffering from a really bad flu or cold and in desperate need of a vegetarian ‘chicken’ noodle soup.  If you love onions, you may love this.

***

I found a new corn chip to which I think I am addicted.  The name of the company?  Food Should Taste Good.  Hmm what a concept!  These chips have amazing flavors (Cinnamon, Lime, Buffalo, CHOCOLATE even!)  So far I have tried Olive, Sweet Potato and Lime.  All three were AMAZING!

They also have a great website that tells what dips go great with which flavors of chips, and they have a lot of recipes too!  The only downside to this amazing chip is that they taste SO good, I had a tough time keeping my mitts out of the bag.  So I will have to purchase them for special occasions until I can control myself around them!  I think I will try the chocolate next.  I’m so curious what a chocolate corn chip tastes like!  :)

***

The last item on today’s list is a big fat NAY.  I had very high hopes for this item, as I’d read about the founders and read good things about the products.  It was Gardein’s Santa Fe Good Stuff. I don’t know if it’s that I’m so far removed from wanting to eat chicken that the TEXTURE threw me off or what.

I plated it up nicely:

But I just couldn’t finish it.  I took about two small bites and just couldn’t hack it and it had to be tossed.  Probably just as well that I didn’t care for this, because I don’t like to eat a lot of processed products made from soy anyway.  But I’d thought maybe it would be a good thing to throw in my lunchbox when I’m in a huge hurry.  Nope, this one’s not for me.

***

I’d love to hear from you if you have a favorite healthy (and maybe vegetarian) product to share. You all know I love my LARABARS and my SUNSHINE ‘burgers’ (made from sunflower seeds.)  Not to mention Ezekial sprouted grain products (bread, pita, cereal, English muffins!)   What are some of yours?

Have a terrific Tuesday!  And don’t leave me hanging on Flex-It Friday:  Abs!  Pics are due to shari at fitfeat dot com by Thursday evening! Yes, it’s a tough time of year to uncover our WINTER ABS but then we can do a SUMMER version to compare our progress too!  Think of it as good motivation!

– Shari B. =)

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A note about items/books/food I review here on the site: To date, I do not receive any compensation from the companies who make any of the products I review on this blog.  (And if I could get companies to send me FREE stuff to review and/or giveaway that’d be GREAT but so far, not having a lot of luck with that!)  I just want to reiterate that I mention products that I purchase and that I try on my own.  If I love them I want to let you know.  If they are terrible, I want to let you know that too.  If I love them and I find that they are available on Amazon, then I might add them to the FitFeat Favorites store.  Items purchased directly from the FitFeat store can result in a small commission.

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Review: Physique 57

Feb 12

Posted by Shari B. in Product Review | 12 Comments

Yes, I’ve been talking about this forever and now it’s finally been long enough that I feel I can fairly review the Physique 57 DVD.  They currently offer 3 DVDs.  The one I have is the “Classic 57 Minute Full Body Workout”.

First let me share what I like about this workout.

  • It accomplishes a lot in 57 minutes: an efficient use of time including warm-up and cool-down with stretching here and there throughout.
  • It uses muscles you might not hit with traditional strength training: a big part of why this DVD held my interest for as long as it has.  The first time I tried to do “The Pretzel” I realized a definite imbalance between the strength on my left side vs. right side. This move looks so simple and yet I found it to be incredibly difficult.  Here’s a quick video of Tanya instructing this move.

  • It’s well-organized into segments: You get a fast upper body workout right at the start, move on to thighs, then glutes, then core.  So if you feel one day like you want to give your upper body a rest, you can skip over that and go right into thighs.  Personally, I find that I don’t like to work core every day or every other day, so I would often do the upper and lower portion and then add the core segment once or twice during the week.

***

Next I’ll share the few things I didn’t like as much:

  • Typical cheesy ‘fitness DVD’ moments: they actually use the line “you got a license for those guns?” in the video.  That alone was enough to make me want to hit mute.  Also a lot of “uh-huhs” and sing-songy “Cell-u-lite, Bye-Bye”.  Yowza.
  • Form: as a personal trainer we get it beaten into our brains that knees should never go beyond the toes (if you were to draw a line straight up from the toes).  There are a lot of ballet-style squatting movements that have your heels together and your knees way past your toes.  I’m fine with this if you’ve never had knee problems but would be a little worried otherwise.  You also heard me complain a few times in January about my toes hurting from being ON them so much in this workout.
  • Big promises: The instructor says during the DVD that this workout WILL change your body, and quickly.  I have to be honest and say I don’t SEE a difference.  While I know I’ve strengthened some core and stabilizer muscles, this workout alone won’t change your shape so don’t order it for that reason.  I know Kelly Ripa credits this program to her fit figure, but you know she is also eating right and she runs.  If you’ve never lifted a weight or performed a squat in your life, yes you may see a difference.  But first and foremost if you want to change your physique, you have to eat well to do it AND exercise.

***

Conclusion:  I would definitely recommend incorporating Physique 57 into your routine.  I think it is a quality workout with a strong focus on muscular endurance and some focus on muscular strength (like pushups and dips).  I’d still recommend some heavier strength days and cardio to supplement this program.  The upper body portion of the DVD uses dumbbells which allows progression to harder (heavier) movements, but you don’t get that option for the legs.

Whenever I’d take a few days away from the DVD to do something else, I always looked forward to the next workout (the sign of a good video to me!)  It’s definitely fun and challenging.  If it’s a program you’ve been thinking about trying, go for it! It’s worth $24.95.

– Shari B. =)

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