Meghan Varner

The expression "like a kid at a candy store" comes to mind every time I think back to last weeks GFAF Wellness Event , except instead of just kids it was gluten free individuals who were in a safe zone of gluten free goodness!  There were vendors that covered meals, snacks, beverages, protein shakes and more.  Every table was filled with more goodies, snickysnacks and information.  Below I am going to highlight a few of the tables (10 specifically) that I enjoyed that day, but have also been on mind this week as I continued to enjoy the samples or what I purchased while there! Artisan Tropic So good.  They had plantain and cassava strips that were out of this world.  I loved the cassava sea salt strips and the plantain cinnamon strips.  Additionally they had dried fruit.  For me dried fruit is a hit or a miss.  Well theirs is a hit.  That coconut and the pineapple were beyond delicious.  I am pretty sure I sampled way more than I was ...

At the GFAF Wellness Event I attended last weekend I was stunned by the generosity of all of the vendors with the amount of samples they provided at the table, but also that they put in the bloggers swag bag.  One of the brands that attended the event was NoGii.  If you are a fan of Elisabeth Hasselbeck or just have heard of her, you probably have heard of this brand.  This company provided 5 bars from its Paleo, High Protein and D'Lites lines. After trying the full size samples I think everyone should try out this brand.  If you go to their website you will see that they carry a very diverse variety of bars: High Protein, Super Protein, D'Lites, Paleo, Kids and new is a Protein powder.  I have tried protein, gluten free bars from a variety of companies and some of have been very good, some not so much.  All 5 of the bars form NoGii were good, admittedly some were better than the others (as in they tasted like dessert), but they were all good. ...

General Information Genre: Fiction, Thriller, Suspense Publisher: Gallery Books Published Date: January 27, 2015 Book Summary (per Amazon) It is a secret the Chinese government has been keeping for forty years. They have proven the existence of dragons—a landmark discovery no one could ever believe is real, and a scientific revelation that will amaze the world. Now the Chinese are ready to unveil their astonishing findings within the greatest zoo ever constructed. A small group of VIPs and journalists has been brought to the zoo deep within China to see these fabulous creatures for the first time. Among them is Dr. Cassandra Jane “CJ” Cameron, a writer for National Geographic  and an expert on reptiles. The visitors are assured by their Chinese hosts that they will be struck with wonder at these beasts, that the dragons are perfectly safe, and that nothing can go wrong. Of course it can’t… My Thoughts Simply put..I loved every page of this book.  The begin...

Did you know that Aldi's had released a line of Gluten Free products?  I did not until recently.  I have tried 2 items from the line with my own cooking and one I was lucky enough to try at last Saturday's GFAF Wellness Event !!  This post is about one of the one's I cooked on my own and my entire family loved!  Here is a link to the entire product line~  Aldi LiveGfree I was not sure what I would think about this since I had previously tried two different pizza mixes (gf) with various success.  However, I love pizza so I was ready to give the good ol college try and boy was I beyond glad I did. The instructions were very easy to follow.  I did get nervous at first because my dough did not stick together the way I thought the instructions meant for it to, but once cooked it was perfect!  All I had to add was some oil (I used coconut), egg, water and use a fork to pierce dough before cooking.  Very nice ingredient list for me (the ...

General Information Genre: Romance Publisher: Self Published Date: March 16, 2015 Book Summary (Per Goodreads) American heiress Amelia Hathaway needs to start anew.  Her husband cheated on her, and when everything she wanted in life slipped through her fingers, she fell apart. When she did, she took another heart wrenching hit as she lost the respect of her children.  When her ex took her family from California to live in the small town of Magdalene in Maine, Amelia decided it was time to sort herself out. In order to do that and win her children back, she moves to Cliff Blue, an architectural masterpiece on the rocky coast of Magdalene.  Her boxes aren’t even unpacked when she meets Mickey Donovan, a man who lives across the street, a man so beautiful Amelia takes one look at Mickey and knows she wants everything from him.  The problem is, she finds out swiftly that he’s friendly, he’s kind, but he doesn’t want everything back.  Amelia ...

I hope everyone has had a great week and enjoying what, at least in North Carolina, is some gorgeous weather.  I wrote just a quick recap earlier this week about the Gluten & Allergen Free Wellness Event from this past Saturday, but said I would go into more depth throughout the next few days/weeks.  So today I wanted to touch on the Presentations. To begin with, wow, the diverse topics were such that I think everyone probably would have been able to find something of interest.  To view all of the presenters please check out Charlotte NC Gluten & Allergen Free Wellness Event site .  This year I was intrigued by many of the presentation topics, but in my endeavor to see all the vendors I chose three to attend.  The three I attended were: 1) Jenna Drew who spoke about "Natural Solutions for Digestive Wellness with Essential Oils." I absolutely loved this presentation.  It was engaging, entertaining and very relatable. ...

General Information: Genre: Romance Publisher:Amazon Digital Services Published Date: November 3, 2014 Book Summary (Per Goodreads) Samantha Connelly has been on the run since she was seven years old. Forced into Witness Protection after her father saw something he shouldn’t has caused her to learn to blend in. She’s moved, changed her name, and her appearance more times than she can count over the last nineteen years all along wondering if it will ever end. Her handler, Kevin, along with her parents have assured her that it won’t be forever, but as the years tick by she’s slowly given up hope that she’ll ever be normal. Now at 26, Sam has moved to Chicago and is working at the Rusty Nail as a bartender calling herself Mallory. Her father passed away two years before leaving her to finish what he started…put away the ‘bad guys’. Living on the run in hiding has been harder than she ever imagined, and finding love has always been out of the question. Who would want to be w...

What a weekend and what a lovely experience!  I can truthfully say that I learned, tasted, experienced and enjoyed more than I had even anticipated.  I had a good time when I attended two years ago, but this time was even more fun, had grown tremendously and covered so many areas of living a healthy lifestyle.  Over the next few days and weeks I will be reviewing some of the products I received as a blogger and that I obtained through stopping and talking to the fantastic vendors.  Truly, I was blown away by how generous the vendors and Nikki, the host & planner extraordinaire were with the samples and products. The view before everyone arrived!  I was never able to see all the tables in one view after this shot:) **So for a quick recap** Saturday morning I woke up super early and excited to start my day to Charlotte for this event.  I was able to arrive a little early since I was blogging about the event and boy was I glad...so many things t...

General Information Genre: Mystery/Thriller Publisher: Mandevilla Press Publish Date:   October 1, 2014 Book Summary (per NetGalley) An American Himalayan climber stumbles on a shipment of backpack nuclear weapons headed into Tibet for explosion in China. Pursued by spy agencies and other killers across Asia, North Africa, Europe and the United States, he is captured then rescued by a beautiful young woman with whom he forms a deadly liaison. They escape, are caught and escape again, death always at their heels. A terrifying portrayal of a relentless manhunt, Tibetan Cross is also a deep inquiry into geopolitics and covert action, the dangers of nuclear war, the nature of fear, and the painful process of love . My Thoughts This book should be made into a movie...like now.  The entire time I read this book I was picturing the stunts, emotions, political intrigue, etc. played out on the big screen.  It would be phenomenal.  From start to fini...

If you saw my earlier blog post you know that a great event is coming up in Charlotte, NC this Saturday!  And hint hint you can still get free tickets (read to the bottom to see how)!!  It is this weekend from 10am-4pm and has a plethora of different vendors and sponsors regarding gluten and allergy information, tips and food!  PS~ But what I wanted to mainly  share in this post are some of the great tips and information that has been posted on the  Facebook event page to help everyone enjoy this event to the fullest extent possible! This may just be my favorite tip to date!!  I had not thought about it, but I will most definitely be utilizing this tip:) Additionally, the Gluten & Allergen Free Wellness Event has been in the local news with a segment that you can see here !  The show a great display of some of the vendors that will be there this weekend. So excited to see it all, learn more and try out some sam...

Happy St. Patrick's Day!!   And in the spirit here is a little Irish Blessing for y'all!

General Information Genre: Suspense, Romance and Futuristic Publisher:  Putnam Adult Published Date: February 10, 2015  Book Summary (Per the author's page) Eve Dallas has solved a lot of high-profile murders for the NYPSD and gotten a lot of media. She–and her billionaire husband–are getting accustomed to being objects of attention, of gossip, of speculation. But now Eve has become the object of one person’s obsession. Someone who finds her extraordinary, and thinks about her every hour of every day. Who believes the two of them have a special relationship. Who would kill for her–again and again. With a murderer reading meanings into her every move, handling this case will be a delicate–and dangerous–psychological dance. And Eve knows that underneath the worship and admiration, a terrible threat lies in wait. Because the beautiful lieutenant is not at all grateful for these bloody offerings from her “true and loyal friend.” And in time, idols always fa...

 Over the last year or so I have been finding out, in not so fun ways, how sensitive I am to different foods.  But one good or rather great thing that has come from that has been in the introduction to so many new, healthy and delicious items!Vega One is one such item.  When I kept getting sick from anything I ate everyone kept suggesting smoothies, protein shakes, etc.  However many of them kept getting me sick or were the epitome of nasty in taste.  I was at the Whole Foods an hour from me (why can't we have more of them in NC???) and saw this one sample of Vega One.  I asked the employees, researched on my phone while I was there and then bought it.  It was a French Vanilla powder and blew my mind! Since then I have bought the large container of the French Vanilla and the Chocolate and am loving them!  Either plain with water, with cashew or almond milk, with peanut butter and or banana, with pb2, etc. the possibilities are endless.  Wh...