Lucky Clover St. Patrick’s Event Sponsor Spotlight: Rockin' Green #luckyclover

Rockin’ Green is an award-winning manufacturer of eco-friendly cleaning products designed to make cleaning easier and greener. Most well-known for their clean-rinsing laundry detergent formulated for use on all fabrics and especially useful on cloth diapers, Rockin’ Green produces detergents for hard, soft and normal water conditions (known as Hard, Soft and Classic Rock varieties). --taken from website

Rockin' Green is an awesome company that not only creates eco-freindly detergent that is perfect to use on your cloth diapers, but they also have created Femme Rock, which just the thing for your laundry routine if you are using cloth pads (aka mama cloth)! Femme Rock is a scent free, enzyme based detergent that works hard to get out stains and leave your cloth pads looking like new. Femme Rock is good for you and the planet too, since it is phosphate and SLS (Sodium Laureth Sulfates) free. 

Rockin' Green sent me a 16oz. bag of Femme Rock to try out on my cloth pads. I normally use cloth diaper detergent on my cloth pads and was interested to see if I would notice a difference if I switched to a detergent that was specially formulated for cloth menstrual pads. The first thing I did was to "Rock a Soak" on my cloth pads. I  filled the bottom 1/4th of my tub with super hot water, about 2TBS of Femme Rock and added my cloth pads. I let them soak for about 3-4 hours and was so surprised to see that the water was cloudy and that it had pulled some funk out! (eeewwww! gross, I know!) Then drained the tub and put them in my washing machine and rinsed, rinsed, rinsed. When they were dry, they looked so fresh and clean! I did have a few stains and some of them were completely gone and on two, there was still some slight staining, but it was definitely lessened! Wow! I am so happy with how well it cleaned my cloth pads! 

I only use 1TBS per load on my HE machine, so a 16oz. bag will last me a really long time! If you use mama cloth, Femme Rock is definitely a great detergent to use to keep your cloth pads clean. At $11.95, I see it as an  investment that will help to keep my cloth pads clean and fresh for as long as possible! Plus, it is a good detergent for the earth, safe for me and it rocks!

Rockin' Green is one of the sponsors for the Lucky Clover St. Patrick's Event (happening March 17-23) and they have generously offered one lucky mama a bag of Femme Rock!

This prize is up for grabs on my blog during the Lucky Clover St. Patrick's Event! Be sure to come back to my blog between March 17-23 to enter for a chance to WIN this awesome prize!

 

You can connect with Rockin' Green on Facebook, Twitter , their Blog page and you can shop through their website!

Interested in earning an extra entry into the the Lucky Clover St. Patrick's Event when it starts? Visit Rockin' Green and leave me a comment below telling me a product that you love from their website!  You can claim your extra entry in the Lucky Clover St. Patrick's Event Rafflecopter form.

Lucky Clover St. Patrick’s Event Sponsor Spotlight:BuyGreen.com #luckyclover

"Our mission at BuyGreen is to become your most trusted source for green products, offering the widest variety of quality products, the best information for consumers, and the most enjoyable shopping experience." --taken from the website

 

BuyGreen.com is a wonderful company that is dedicated to being a truly "green" business that not only has high standards when it comes to their products, but they also look to reduce waste, conserve energy and minimize the use of resources. Their website was created in response to a need that they saw. They wanted to help others be able to easily shop for eco-friendly products without spending hours researching and hunting through multiple websites. BuyGreen.com wanted to make earth-friendly products easy to find and at the same time, help to provide their customers to have a better understanding of items that are truly better for the planet and their families.

"We believe that the power to make change rests with the individual consumer.  The products you buy every day make a difference.  Eco-friendly products are healthier for you and better for the planet.  In addition, when a large group of consumers choose to "buy green", the market will respond with greater variety, more innovation and lower prices for green products and services." --taken from the website  

 

BuyGreen.com sent me the Bamboo Reusable Water Bottle with the flip top lid. It is a very stylish water bottle and I just love using it! The water bottle is made of a glass bottle that is encased in a bamboo sleeve and capped on the top and bottom with BPA free plastic. I've never had a glass water bottle before and I just love that with glass you truly don't have to worry about any chemicals. The bamboo sleeve is awesome- it is sleek, it keeps your ice water nicely insulated (keeping the bottle from getting "sweaty") and I just love that it is made with bamboo (a highly renewable resource!). 

 

 

 

 

 

BuyGreen.com also send me one of their reusable totes! It's perfect to take to the farmer's market!

 

It is easy to keep clean too. You simply unscrew the top, disassemble the bottle and wash the glass and plastic. Once dry, you re-assemble and it is ready to use! The only thing is that you shouldn't wash or submerge the bamboo sleeve in water, since it could potentially warp the bamboo. But it is easy enough to wipe clean!

 

 

 

The bamboo water bottle fits perfectly in my purse and it is super convenient to take along. I have taken it with me whenever I leave the house and I even fill it with water to drink from throughout the day when I am home. Little man also loves the water bottle! He is fascinated with the flip top! He loves to pop it up and then click it closed, then pop it up and click it closed, and then... (you get the idea). He loves to slurp water from it and can polish off the entire bottle of water!

 Overall, I love the Bamboo Reusable Water Bottle, it is so nice to have a reusable water bottle (no more plastic bottles in our house!), all of the components are well made, I love using glass and bamboo and I love how unique it looks! BuyGreen.com is a wonderful site to shop from whether you are looking for eco-friendly items for yourself, your home, your little ones or really any aspect of your life! If you are looking for "green" products that you can feel good about purchasing, I highly recommend BuyGreen.com as the place to shop!

BuyGreen.com is one of the sponsors for the Lucky Clover St. Patrick's Event (happening March 17-23) and they have generously offered one lucky mama a Bamboo Water Bottle of their own!

This prize is up for grabs on my blog during the Lucky Clover St. Patrick's Event! Be sure to come back to my blog between March 17-23 to enter for a chance to WIN this awesome prize!

 

You can connect with BuyGreen.com on Facebook, Twitter , their Google+ page and you can shop through their website!

Interested in earning an extra entry into the the Lucky Clover St. Patrick's Event when it starts? Visit BuyGreen.com and leave me a comment below telling me a product that you love from their website!  You can claim your extra entry in the Lucky Clover St. Patrick's Event Rafflecopter form.

 

Cloth Diaper Myths {Guest Post}

Mention cloth diapers to someone on the street and odds are good that you will hear one of the following: Cloth diapers are gross, they smell, they cost too much, I don’t have enough time to cloth diaper, they are unsafe with all those pins!

However some of those are no longer true in this day and age and some of them were never true! Let’s look at these cloth diaper myths and see what is really true of cloth diapers.

Myth: You have to use pins.

Truth: Cloth diapers have come quite a long way since your grandmother used them! Yes, you can still use the old fashion prefolds and you can even use pins if you truly want to but now you can use a handy device called a snappi to hold prefolds in place. There are also the modern diapers that with the exception of being made out of cloth are just as simple to use as disposables.

Myth: It’s too much work.

Truth: Putting a cloth diaper on your baby can be just as easy as putting on a disposable. Just get a new cloth diaper and velcro or snap it on. Now if you are talking about the laundry aspect then yes, you will have to do a tiny bit more laundry. However, it’s just not that big of a deal.Washing diapers is easy and the best part is you do not even need to fold them.Another thing to think about is that with disposable diapers you tend to get“blow outs” where you end up having to wash all of baby’s clothes and usually the baby. Talk about a hassle! Cloth diapers generally do not have “blow outs”and thus no emergency washing of clothes or babies.

Myth: It’s too expensive to cloth diaper.

Truth: Cloth diapers seem like they cost more when you first look into them. You’ll see one cloth diaper costing about $17 and think I could buy a whole pack of diapers for that cost! However, it’s when you add things for the long run that you see how cheap cloth diapers are! Here’s a little math for you: many disposables are about $.23 each. You might go through 6-10diapers a day and if (big if) your baby potty trains by 2 years old, you will have spent between $1,007 - $1,679. Now cloth diapers cost an average of $17(there are even cheaper ways but let’s go with the average modern cloth diaper cost). Generally, you want at least 24 diapers so if you buy 24 cloth diapers you will have spent $408. Cloth diapers will last you from newborn to potty training for one child and then go on to diaper the next baby, which actually makes them even cheaper. There’s also the fact that you can sell your cloth diapers when you are done using them. What about the water and electricity?Washing your own diapers costs about $400 for 2.5 – 3 years. Tack that price onto the cost of buying cloth diapers and you are looking at $808. Hmm, $808 for cloth or at least $1,000 for disposables.

Myth: Cloth diapers smell.

Truth: Perhaps if you stored your diapers in a bucket full of water they would smell but honestly that is not recommended any more and nobody does it that way. Instead you just store the dirty diapers in a diaper pail or wet bag. You can choose to keep the diapers in a sealed container or an open one. Some find that keeping it open allows the air to circulate and thus dissipates the odor. Others prefer keeping things closed to keep the smell in. Either way,you won’t walk into baby’s room and get knocked off your feet. When I used disposables, you could smell them the moment you walked into the house. With cloth you don’t notice any smell, even if you are standing right next to the dirty diapers!

Myth: They are dirty and gross.

Truth: Honestly, if you’ve ever changed a disposable diaper then you know that changing any diaper can be dirty work. You do have to deal with poop a bit more with cloth diapers but that doesn’t mean you have to get dirty! All you have to do is dump the poop in the toilet. Some use the dunk and swish method, which admittedly can get a little dirty for some. However for those who really want nothing to do with poop then all they need do is buy a diaper sprayer. This handy device is basically a tiny shower head that attaches to your toilet. Removing poop is as simple as holding the diaper by the end and spraying everything into the toilet. Your hands can stay perfectly clean.

There are a lot of myths when it comes to cloth diapers.Don’t give into the myths; they just aren’t true! Do a little research and give cloth diapers a chance!

Brittany is a stay at home wife and mother to three children (5 years, 4 years, & 1 year). You can find more about Brittany on her blog The Pistachio Project, where she writes about being green, natural parenting, frugal living and safer products.

Lucky Clover St. Patrick’s Event Sponsor Spotlight:Lunette Cup #luckyclover

*Just as a little note: this is a post about "that time of the month" and feminine care products!*

I have been using cloth pads for quite awhile now, and I love them! Shortly after I started cloth diapering little man, I started reading about ways to have a greener period. I figured that since I was already washing diapers, I might as well wash cloth pads! I am so happy that I switched! Although I love cloth pads, I have a very heavy flow for the first few days and have to use tampons with my cloth pads! I had heard rumors of this things called a menstrual cup... but, I am pretty squeamish! At first I thought, there's no way I could ever use one! Then, the more I thought about it, the more I pondered my great disdain for tampons...the more the idea grew on me. I started thinking, well, I have had a baby, I can do this!

I started looking into menstrual cups and came across Lunette. My first thought was that I loved the colors! They made me feel happy! I also love that using a menstrual cup is an eco-friendly alternative to pads and tampons. Then as I read more about Lunette cups, I was just blown away by the amount of truly helpful information on their website! I actually think that the information they offer is helpful for any woman or anyone with a daughter! I feel that Lunette offers a wonderful menstrual cup that is a "greener", easy-to-use, safe, and a clean alternative to pads and tampons.


Lunette cups are made in Finland and are made of soft, medical-grade silicone that is hygienic and naturally discourages bacterial growth. Lunette cups are better for your body too, since menstrual cups doesn't absorb moisture like a tampon does. Instead, the cup collects your menstrual flow, leaving your bodies natural moisture where it should be! Lunette menstrual cups are also a great, eco-friendly choice for that time of the month. Not only is it a one-time purchase (which saves $), but you also don't have to deal with cardboard, cotton, plastic, wrappers or applicators that just get thrown away (so there is zero waste with Lunette!). If you are interesting in reading some more reasons why you should use a menstrual cup, the Lunette website is a wealth of information!

The Lunette cup is easy to use and care for as well. You can wear it for up to 12 hours (depending on how heavy your flow is)! When you are ready, you simply remove, empty the cup, wash it, fold and re-use. I love that it can be worn for so long- it is perfect for overnight! The Lunette cup comes in two sizes and Lunette offers a wonderful Sizing Guide to help you figure out which one is right for you. Size 1 is for women with light to moderate flow, younger women or women who have never had intercourse. Size 2 (the one I chose) is recommended for women who have a normal or heavier flow and those who have given birth.

I received the Lunette Diana which is the green Lunette cup! (Lucky me! I thought that the green was so perfectly fitting for this event!)

Now, the first time (or first couple of times) you use the Lunette cup, you may find that there is a bit of a learning curve. There are plenty of tips and tricks on the Lunette website to help you learn how to use the cup and some of the different folding techniques. I found these to be very helpful when I was using my Lunette cup! Honestly, I was very apprehensive the first time I went to use the Lunette cup. It took me quite some time before I felt brave enough to use it. I was amazed that something so small could make me feel so awkward! But, in the end, I did conquer my fear!

It took me a bit to figure everything out and feel like I had a good, secure fit. But once I did, I was amazed! It was awesome! I seriously thought, "where have you been all my life!" I wish that I hadn't waited so long to try a menstrual cup. It was such a relief to not have to go back to the bathroom every hour at the beginning of my period or wake up in the morning, realizing that my pad hadn't quite held up through the night. (I am a very, very sounds sleeper) I love that I don't have to rush to the store for tampons because my period started early and caught me off guard. (Yes, previously, I had to wear tampons and a cloth pad when my period started! It was that heavy!) I hated tampons and I love that I don't need to buy them anymore. I love that I am helping to keep trash out of landfills. More importantly, I love that I am doing this for me. I feel healthier using it, I feel that I have learned something new about my body and that I have control over making my period more pleasant and easier to manage- whether I am trying to get a good night sleep or chasing after little man!

Lunette is one of the sponsors for the Lucky Clover St. Patrick's Event (happening March 17-23) and they have generously offered one lucky mama a Lunette cup of their own!

This prize is up for grabs on my blog during the Lucky Clover St. Patrick's Event! Be sure to come back to my blog between March 17-23 to enter for a chance to WIN this awesome prize!

 

You can connect with Lunette on Facebook, Twitter , the Lunette Blog and you can shop through their website!

Interested in earning an extra entry into the the Lucky Clover St. Patrick's Event when it starts? Visit Lunette and leave me a comment below telling me something you learned!  When the Lucky Clover St. Patrick's Event giveaway starts, you can claim your extra entry in the Rafflecopter form.

Lucky Clover St. Patrick’s Event Sponsor Spotlight: Hazelaid #luckyclover

Hazelaid as a company was born after the owners discovered the healing properties of hazelwood and how it could help their third child with eczema. They opened their online store to help others and it soon grew to offer multiple items that had helped their family and their sensitive skin. Hazelaid offers many wonderful natural, organic and handmade items, including hazelwood necklaces, baltic amber necklaces, soap nuts and more. 

 

I was very excited to be able to do a review of Hazelaid and their hazelwood necklaces. Little man has been suffering from eczema on his arms and cheeks for quite awhile now and I have been looking for something that could help him long term! Changing to an eco-friendly detergent has helped keep the eczema at bay, but he still gets big, red bumps and patchy skin on his arms and his cheeks can get sooo bad! His cheeks sometimes look scaly and he often gets bright, red rashes across those cute cheekies! Poor little man!

So what is hazelwood and how does it work? The necklaces are made with pieces of wood from the hazelwood tree and their usage can be traced all the way back to the Native Americans! If you suffer from issues such as eczema, digestion problems, migraines, acid reflux, heart burn, nausea, arthritis and/or skin problems, then hazelwood may be just the thing you need to help alleviate those symptoms! Hazelwood is an alkaline wood and works to naturally absorb and neutralize the body's acidity through contact with the skin. This is a wonderful natural remedy that can help to alleviate your symptoms.

I received a discount code to use towards 3 products of my choice and picked out a hazelwood necklace for little man, myself and a hazel-amber necklace for hubby! I chose the children's 13.5" Green Peridot necklace for little man, the adult 20" Pink Rhodonite necklace for myself and hubby chose the adult 20" Dark Amber hazel-amber necklace for himself.

 

So, what did we think?

Little man: "Necklace! Michael's necklace!" (this is what he says when I put it on)

When this necklace arrived, we swapped out his baltic amber for the hazelwood. It sits nicely around his neck and is a great length, while still giving him room to grow into it. Little man has been wearing it for a couple of weeks now and I have noticed the most drastic improvement in the eczema on his arms. The redness has almost completely gone away and the bumps have gotten so much better! Hubby even commented on how much better his arms were looking. You can no longer see the tiny bumps on his arm, although, you can still feel that the skin is a little rougher where they were. There are three bigger bumps that are there no longer red and scabby - they just continue to improve! The redness and scaly skin on his cheeks seems to be getting better also. He hasn't broken out with severe, inflamed cheeks, although he does get the occasional flare up, it is noticeably milder. 

Hubby and I: We both really like our necklaces. Hubby was hesitant about wearing a necklace at first, but I think he looks great wearing it and he wears it every day! The length is perfect for him and he enjoys the benefits of the baltic amber and hazelwood together. I think that it has aided in his neck pain. We are also seeing a chiropractor right now, so I am sure that that is contributing to how much better his neck feels, but still, he has had a less achy neck overall. Hubby also occasionally suffers from heartburn...but so far no heartburn! The main reason that I wanted a hazelwood necklace for was skin problems. Blech. I still break out! While breakouts haven't become a thing of the past yet, I have noticed that my breakouts are healing more quickly. Overall, hubby and I both really enjoy the necklaces and look forward to discovering other benefits from hazelwood. 

Overall, we all enjoy wearing our necklaces. They are well-made, high-quality pieces that have held up marvelously to little man occasionally tugging on his necklace. I think that they are benefiting us all and I love that it is a natural way to help relieve ailments! One thing that I love is that the hazelwood necklaces can get wet! It is nice to be able to leave it on little man or myself in the bath and shower. (FYI- the baltic-hazelwood shouldn't be worn in the shower, since shampoo or conditioner can be bad for the baltic amber) I would definitely recommend a hazelwood necklace if you are looking for a natural remedy to any issues like: eczema, digestion problems, migraines, acid reflux, heart burn, nausea, arthritis and/or skin problems!

Hazelaid is one of the sponsors for the Lucky Clover St. Patrick's Event (happening March 17-23) and they have generously offered one winner a $25 gift certificate to their website!

This prize is up for grabs on my blog during the Lucky Clover St. Patrick's Event! Be sure to come back to my blog between March 17-23 to enter for a chance to WIN this awesome prize!

 

You can connect with Hazelaid on Facebook, Twitter, the Hazelaid Review Blog and you can shop through their website! Find something you love? Hazelaid has offered all of my readers the code: little10 to use for 10% your purchase!

Interested in earning an extra entry into the the Lucky Clover St. Patrick's Event when it starts? Visit Hazelaid and leave me a comment below telling me a product that your love from their website!  When the Lucky Clover St. Patrick's Event giveaway starts, you can claim your extra entry in the Rafflecopter form.

Lucky Clover St. Patrick’s Event Sponsor Spotlight: Hazelnut Kids #luckyclover

'Give your child's imagination a gift'.

Hazelnut Kids is a wonderful online shop that seeks to provide parents with a place to shop for toys and products that will foster children's imagination. This is the place to shop if you are looking for natural, earth-friendly, wooden and organic cotton toys for your little ones.

"Hazelnut Kids was created in order to give parents a beautiful, easy-to-navigate website where they can find natural toys for their children, and where they would know that all of the toys offered were created by companies that follow the strictest safety standards." --taken from website

I was thrilled when I got the opportunity to do a review and had shared some ideas of items that I thought little man might enjoy. I was sent a very thoughtful surprise package! Hazelnut Kids sent me some items from Sarah's Silks and they are just perfect! I couldn't have chosen better myself! I was sent the Reversible Cape in Red and Royal Blue, the Reversible Crown in Royal Blue and Red and the Soft Sword in Blue!

I have really been wanting to get some dress up/pretend play clothes for little man. I think that he has an amazing imagination and I think that having some dress-up clothes will be a great way to help it continue to blossom.    

I love the play silks! The cape is so flow-y and it really "swishes" behind little man nicely! It drapes nicely and moves with him - it's perfect for a king, a superhero or even to drape over a clubhouse doorway! The crown is so cute and I love how it sits over little man's ears! The sword is by far little man's favorite part of this ensemble (of course it is...he's such a boy!) and he just has a blast swishing it back and forth, using it as a saw and running with it in his hand! I absolutely love that the cape and crown are reversible, because some days, little man wants to wear blue and some days he feels like red! 

I love Hazelnut Kids and their selection is just amazing! They carry some wonderful brands, like Hape, Plan Toys, Haba and Eco-Kids! When you shop at Hazelnut kids, you will find a wonderful selection of safe, green, wooden and organic toys. It is so nice that you don't have to worry or stress when you are shopping for natural and "green" toys for your little ones! You can truly find some quality, earth-friendly toys at Hazelnut Kids!

Another reason that I love Hazelnut Kids is that they give back! When you choose to buy from Hazelnut Kids, you are helping to support the future of our children and our planet. How? Hazelnut Kids donates 1% of their sales to land conservancies! They want future generations to always be able to have places in nature to explore, learn about, and enjoy. Also, for every item purchased, they have one tree planted through Trees for the Future! 

Hazelnut Kids is one of the sponsors for the Lucky Clover St. Patrick's Event (happening March 17-23) and they have generously offered one winner a $50 gift certificate to their website!

This prize is up for grabs on my blog during the Lucky Clover St. Patrick's Event! Be sure to come back to my blog between March 17-23 to enter for a chance to WIN this awesome prize!

 

You can connect with Hazelnut Kids on Facebook and you can shop through their website!

Interested in earning an extra entry into the the Lucky Clover St. Patrick's Event when it starts? Visit Hazelnut Kids and leave me a comment below telling me a product that your love from their website!  When the Lucky Clover St. Patrick's Event giveaway starts, you can claim your extra entry in the Rafflecopter form.

Winner of the Tea Collection Giveaway!

Congratulations to Courtney, the winner of the Tea Collection $100 Gift Card Giveaway!

Thank you to everyone who entered and a big thank you to Tea Collection for this wonderful review and giveaway opportunity!

Winner of the GroVia My Choice Trainer!

Congratulations to Amy, the winner of the GroVia My Choice Trainer Giveaway from Jack Be Natural! 

Thank you to everyone who entered and a big thank you to Jack Be Natural for the wonderful review and giveaway opportunity!

Wordless Wednesday: Visiting the Fishies

We're visiting my family on the Monterey Bay this week and we love to take little man to the Monterey Bay Aquarium when we are here! I went as I was growing up and we've been taking little man since he was about a year! It's so much fun to see how he has gotten more interactive with the exhibits and you can tell that he really sees the fish more now and enjoys watching them!

jumping on the wave mat!

sitting in a penguin egg!

Happy Wednesday!