Fresh Garden Salsa

Ingredients

• 3 medium tomatoes, diced
• 1 jalapeno, seeded and diced*
• 4 tbs. fresh cilantro**
• 1 bunch of green onions, chopped
• 1-2 tsp. cumin
• 1-2 tsp. garlic salt
• salt & pepper to taste

*Easily control the amount of heat by adjusting the amount of jalapeno you use in this recipe. If you like spice, leave some of the seeds for more intense heat.

**Personally, I hate cilantro and so does Mykl, so we never include it. But apparently we’re in the minority in the world, so I included it here for all y’all that are crazy and like it

Directions

Could this be any easier? Mix everything up in a bowl. Wolf down a few (or half a bag) of chips to taste test. If there’s anything left over, refrigerate for 1-2 hours before serving so the flavors can meld together more. If you ate it all during the taste test (raises hand), make another batch.

The post Recipe: Fresh Garden Salsa appeared first on Life With Levi.

That’s just asking for a joke, isn’t it? But no, we’re here to cook, not make boob/fruit references.

Pear Sauce with Chia Seeds

Did I mention this recipe is easy? Because it’s totally easy.

Ingredients

• 2-4 large, ripe pears
• 1/4 tsp cardamom
• 1/4 tsp cinnamon
• 1/2 C chia seeds
• 1/2 C water

Directions

Wash the pears, then carefully peel, seed, and cut them into small pieces.

If the pears are nice and ripe, you can cut them into larger pieces (quarters work well). If they’re firmer, chop them up a little more.

Place the pears pieces in a medium pot and add water. Cover with the lid slightly cracked and simmer over medium heat for 8-10 minutes. Stir regularly to ensure the juices from the pears do not bubble over. Add water only if needed to keep the fruit from scalding.

Continue cooking down the pears for another 5-10 minutes or until everything is nice and soft. Add the cardamom, cinnamon, and chia seeds. Stir to mix.

The photos above show the sauce with chunky pears. For a smoother sauce, add slightly more water, simmer longer, and whisk briskly until you get a creamy consistency.

Serve warm.

The post Pear Sauce with Chia Seeds Recipe appeared first on Life With Levi.

That’s where things got interesting. They had the Moto Z set up with various mods for us to check out, including the Projector Mod that was running the movie. I’ve got 3 kids and own 2 businesses. A projector that snaps on & off is totally something I want to learn more about.

But I’ll save the mods stuff for another post. This is an overview of the phone itself, which Verizon was so kind to send me to test out.

Moto Z Basic Specs

• 32 GB storage space (64 GB also available)
• Multiple color choices
• Weighs just 5.75 ounces
• 5.5″ display screen
• 2.98″ wide x 6.14″ tall
• Qualcomm® Snapdragon 820 processor

Moto Z Highlights

The Moto Z Force Droid has a 2nd Generation Moto ShatterShield that is guaranteed not to crack or shatter. ShatterShield is made with military aircraft-grade aluminum and steel, the Moto Z Force Droid also features an advanced water-repellent coating. For those of us that have a bad track record with cell phones (me and the girls have both shattered screens in the past), this screen guarantee is awesome.

My most favorite feature of the Moto Z is the TurboPower. I’ve had the Motorola Droid TURBO in the past, so I’m a bit spoiled when it comes to battery life. It’s kind of amazing how far technology advances in just a couple short years. The Moto Z blows my Galaxy phones out of the water. Not only does it provide up to 29 hours of use without charging, the TurboPower charger takes charging to a new level by giving you up to 15 hours of battery life after just 15 minutes of charging.

15 minutes of charging for 15 hours of battery life? I’m in.

Of course, you don’t want to partially charge your phone all the time, since that can mess up your battery. (I honestly forget what it’s called, but the basic gist is that your battery “remembers” and slowly loses it’s ability to charge to full capacity.) But for occasional use, like when I’ve got a layover between flights and need a quick top-off so I can watch movies on my next flight, it’s a lifesaver.

Plus, it’s got a decent camera. 21MP is nothing to sniff at, especially since the Moto Z includes optical image stabilization and laser autofocus. I’ve found this helps it perform better in low-light situations. If selfies are your thing, the front-facing camera has a 5MP wide-angle lens with extra front flash, so you can get great shots no matter how you’re using it.

Finally, one kinda random thing I really like about it – security is easier. I use the fingerprint recognition on my phones to keep them locked, since I have a bunch of personal and business data I need to keep safe if I ever lose my phone. With my Galaxy S6, I have to make sure my thumb is positioned just right if I want to unlock my phone. Not a big deal most of the time, but when I’m out having a few cocktails singing karaoke with Mr. Grey, it kinda becomes a problem. Because I want to take pics and not futz with my phone, I usually turn the screen lock off.

Let’s think about that for a second. If I’m drinking and fumbling with my phone, that’s probably exactly when I shouldn’t turn my screen lock off. The Moto Z is good for clumsy/tipsy folks like me – you can unlock and wake your phone with your fingerprint in any position. Like I said, it’s kind random, but it’s one of those features I really appreciate because it makes my life easier and helps me not do stupid things like leave my phone unlocked at a bar.

Moto Mods

The Moto Z is the first phone to offer modular accessories that snap on and off with a magnet to turn your phone into a sound system, movie projector, full-on fancy camera, and more. They’re so awesome that I’ve got a whole other post about them.

At first, I thought I’d hate them because it seemed that they’d be easy to break or lose, but nope, they’re awesome and super easy to use and snap on/off without breaking anything (Says the self-labeled clutz.)

They’re so awesome that I’ve got a whole other post about them. You can check it out here:

Final Moto Z Thoughts

If you’re in the market for a new phone, the Moto Z Force Droid is definitely worth checking out. The major selling points for me are:

1. Big Screen
2. Massive Battery Life
3. Great Camera
4. Moto Mods (to make it even more multi-purpose)

The price is comparable to other top-of-the-line phones. I’d definitely choose this over an iPhone any day.

The post Moto Z Force Droid – AKA The Battery That Lasts Forever appeared first on Life With Levi.

Mummy Graham Crackers

Ingredients:

• Graham Cracker Squares (rice crispie treats also work great for this)
• 12 oz pkg white candy melts or white chocolate chips (Wilton melts are what I used)
• Large candy eyes, 2 per square
• Small sandwich baggie
• Kitchen scissors

Directions:

Heat the candy melts (or white chocolate) in the microwave in 30 second increments, stirring until melted. (Melting time will vary based on your microwave’s wattage. My 900 watt microwave took about 2 minutes to get the candy melts to the correct consistency.)

Using a butter knife or similar utensil, add a dab of melted candy to the back of each large candy eye. The candy will act as glue for you to attach your eyes to your graham cracker square.

Scoop the rest of the melted candy into the sandwich baggie and snip the end of the bag diagonally with you kitchen scissors to make a homemade piping bag. Test that the melted candy is a safe temperature to touch – it should still be melted enough to squeeze out, but you don’t want to burn your fingers.

Gently squeeze the melted candy out of the sandwich baggie onto the graham cracker from one side to the other, making each “ribbon” look like scraps of fabric. Continue until the graham cracker is covered.

Repeat for the rest of your graham crackers. Let sit for approximately 30 minutes before serving. This will allow the chocolate to set and cool.

Serve & Enjoy!

The post Easy Halloween Treat: Mummy Graham Crackers appeared first on Life With Levi.

Trisha’s Halloween Thumbprint Spiders Activity

My name is Trisha and I am a creative mom blogger over at MomDot. Jen has very kindly allowed me to write a quick article for all of you and introduce myself! I hope that if this article helps you in any way and you enjoy this type of content, you come over and say hi to my on my blog.

Now lets get started-

While I know some are being negative ninnys about the fall (and yes, cold weather brings that out in me as well), it’s also a wonderful time of the year to get crafting at home. There are so many ideas from fall and holiday decor, to fun and easy kid  , that you can do. And no- you do NOT have to be creative or a crafter, this is what I am here for.

To help you. 

Of all the easy and fun craft ideas you can dive into, one of the most fun days we have had this fall so far was doing thumbprint crafts. You can create endless amounts of things with your thumbprint. Its easy for kids of almost any age (although heed my warning- washable paint, peeps) and can be done on paper plates, card stock, fold cards or canvas. Hand prints, footprints and fingerprints are one of the best ways to get a sensory experience as well as just get down and dirty with your kids. In fact, I have a whole board dedicated to it on pinterest you must check out!

Thumbprint Spiders for Kids

You need

• Washable Paint
• Black Sharpe (or really any color, get creative)
• Googly Eyes
• Paper/Card

First, Charlotte drew out some spider webs! She created lines from all edges of the paper with a Sharpe. Second, she dipped her thumb into paint and imprinted it on the paper. While my daughter used black because she was making Halloween spiders, you can really use any color. Its OK to make rainbow spiders if you want. Let your kids imagination go wild!

The easiest thing at this point is to let your thumbprints dry completely. 

After the paint is dry, simply draw legs in all shapes and sizes. We made ours dangling and holding on from the web. It was actually my husband that encouraged us to make sure some spiders were holding onto the web and I have to admit- those spiders were extra cute.

Then just use a dot of glue and add some googly eyes. The eyes really bring out the spider and give it personality. Last, but not least, you are free to add glitter, sequins, feathers or any other “extra” at this point.

Now that you have the idea of Thumprint art and realize you do not have to be an actual artist to have fun like this, think of the possibilities! We have been experimenting ourselves this fall and have created pumpkins, trees, cats, witches and tons more.

(click here to see how my toddler made this Fall Thankful Tree with Fingerprints) 

I hope this craft has inspired you to start break out the paint and paper this weekend with your littles and if you are interested in learning more about this and other crafts, please feel free to come by and say hi to me! Any friend of Jens is a friend of Trishas.

Happy Crafting!

~Trisha

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