My son’s fourth birthday is fast approaching, and when I went to the grocery store to look for birthday party provisions I was completely grossed out at what was being passed off as “treats” for special occasions. Next to Halloween birthdays carry the biggest potential to serve up the most artificial colors, artificial flavors and genetically modified all-around junky “stuff.”

With so much for parents to concern themselves with these days, I try not to worry myself or others too much about what kids are exposed to during special occasions and various celebrations. BUT – of course the “BUT” – the special occasions are becoming increasingly less “occasional” as my son gets older.

If you are like me, striving (key word) to feed the family a mostly organic and natural menu to limit your kids’ exposure to the other nasty things out there, you might find yourself a little uneasy as the next birthday invitation rolls in.

What I want to know: Why is the junky food, bad-plastic party favor and lead-based paint jumpy seemingly all there is to work with when you begin the preparations? I set out on a mission to do a better birthday party full of fun, flavor and all kinds of fancy party zing without having to compromise natural and organic home-baked goodness.

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What has a chewy center, crunchy shell and packs in 2 grams of protein in each bite? CLIF SHOT ROKS™—the latest addition to the CLIF SHOT family. CLIF SHOT ROKS make it easy to get your protein intake just right. With 2 grams of protein in each bite (that’s 20 grams of protein in each packet!), you're bound to get what you need, when you need it. Better yet, the crunchy outer shell keeps ROKS from melting while you're out and about. Recover post activity with all natural ingredients. ROKS comes in three flavors: chocolate, peanut butter and chocolate chip…

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The simple art of wine tasting ain’t so simple. There are all sorts of nuisances to get familiar with; think cork taints and oxidation, olfactory characteristics and other esters. Don’t forget the tasting arena—yup; the different parts of the tongue that pick up on different tastes within each wine. There’s something for everyone. Floral, spicy, fruity. Whatever aroma suites you, you’ll get a chance to give it a swig at the newly opened tasting room at the Clif Family Winery & Farm. The tasting room is now open for seated, private tastings, by appointment. Gather up to ten of your…

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We’ve been keeping a secret in our back pocket for a while now. We’re tired of keeping our lips sealed so we’re spilling the beans. But before we share our surprise, let’s play a little game of would you rather. Here goes: If you were stuck in the desert for five days, would you rather have a stash of some delightful vittles, like say a CLIF Bar or some delicious water? It’s a tough one. So maybe an extra detail would sway you. Instead of just ordinary water, you could have a supply of CLIF Quench™. Huh? Yup, you heard…

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…but keep the old (and by old, we mean vintage). That's how the saying goes Sign up for friends of Clif Farm for quarterly shipments of wines and olive oil from the Clif Family Winery and Farm. When you become a friend of Clif Farm, you’ll also get special discounts, complimentary tastings at our new St. Helena tasting room, invites to special events and a few special surprises here and there (maybe even a CLIF Bar or two). Now, instead of taking a trip to the farm every quarter, the farm comes to you. Get the finer details and sign…

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