Monday, April 30, 2012

May Buffet Giveaway Hop: 5/1 - 5/15! Win Wean Green Glass Cubes from MightyNest! $29 RV (US)



Welcome to May Buffet coordinated by ShePromotes!

This event will take place from May 1st at 12:01am EST through May 15th at 11:59pm EST.

It's May! And for many of us that means the start of grilling and cookout season. Good food is great all year round, but there is just something about the warm weather that says bring on the steaks! I am sure you like to check out recipes shared by your favorite bloggers, so we thought we'd share some yummy prizes with you! Each blog listed below on the linky has a prize valued at $25+ for each winner - ALL FOOD RELATED! This means goodies to eat and items to help you fix, mix, cook, and serve delicious dishes. So let the May Buffet begin!


 Courtesy of my awesome sponsor, MightyNest.com, one winner will receive a 2-pack of Glass Snack Cubes (7 oz) and a 2-pack of Glass Sandwich Cubes (16.5 oz) by Wean Green! (Prize colors may vary, RV $29) Perfect for storing snacks and leftovers in a healthier way!

They come is Raspberry, Orange, Green and Blue! Be sure to read my review of MightyNest and Wean Green HERE. Extra entries are given in the Rafflecopter form for commenting on my review post!

Want to Win?

Mother’s Day Cloth Diaper Giveaway Hop: 5/1 - 5/12! Win 2 Cloth Diapers! $45+ Value (US/CAN) #ClothDiaperHop



Mother's Day is almost here and we're celebrating 
with our love for cloth diapers!

Welcome to the Mother's Day Cloth Diaper Giveaway Hop hosted by Daily Mothering! Nearly 100 blogs have linked up to bring you dozens and dozens of exciting cloth diaper giveaways. Enter my giveaway below and then hop to the other blogs listed at the bottom of this post to enter their fluffy giveaways too! Each blog has a cloth diaper prize valued at $15 or more, and many blogs have prize packs worth over $100. And, don't forget to enter the GRAND PRIZE giveaway at Daily Mothering for your chance to win this amazing $1300 Cloth Diaper Prize Pack



Here's my giveaway!! One winner will receive... 

(Winner can choose the color and the type of closure)
 From BabyKicks: BabyKicks Basic Pocket Diaper is a budget friendly, remarkably trim, one size pocket diaper designed to fit approximately 7-40lbs. It is available in a variety of colors with both snap and Velcro closures. The BabyKicks Basic Pocket Diaper features a soft microfleece inner lining that will help keep baby dry and a super absorbent one size insert made with 2 layers of fast absorbing microfiber and 2 layers of thirsty hemp terry. The snap version doubles up as a training pant for even more money savings and the Velcro version is completely Daddy and daycare friendly. Go natural by laying the insert hemp side up inside the shell, no stuffing required!

AND....



The Sprout Change StayDry Super Saver Starter Kit includes 1 reversible, One-Size Shell and 3 StayDry Super Saver Inserts! Reuse the cover and this kit is good for 3 changes! 

From The Willow Store: Sprout Change is unlike any other diaper on the market. It is a truly innovative, patent-pending, reversible one-size diaper system. Our system is the easiest, most convenient reusable diaper available, that also happens to give you the best fit and ultra-trim absorbency, it's premium without the price, and made in the USA. We didn't compromise, so you don't have to. Sprout Change is one-size, a custom fit, Easy, and fits your lifestyle and your budget!

Enter to Win!

Just fill out the Rafflecopter form below to enter! Then check out the linky below the form and hop through all the participating blogs and enter their giveaways too!

{Coming Soon} Carry Me Please - Baby Wearing Event! FREE Blogger Event!

Tailor Made Momma is hosting the Carry Me Please Baby Wearing Event from May 12-26! This is a FREE blogger event, and is a great way to connect with new readers and also offer an awesome prize! Someone is going to receive their choice of an Ergo and Pikkolo baby carrier! Just head over HERE for more information and to sign up today!

 

{Sponsor Spotlight & Review} MightyNest & Wean Green!




I'm a big fan of online shopping in my pajamas late at night. I don't have to leave the house, descriptions of the products are all right there, and everything you could imagine is now available all online. However, too many shops take on brands and products just to increase their inventory and selection, not because they genuinely trust the product and know it's safe for your family. And I could literally do research for hours if I had that kind of time. That's why I like MightyNest.

MightyNest was co-founded by Kristen Conn who wanted to make homes healthier for our families. As a mom, she realized that every decision we make impacts our children and others, and that many of the products she was using were in fact filled with toxic chemicals. After years of research, MightyNest was born to empower and encourage people to make small changes to better the lives of themselves and their families. Every product available at MightyNest has been fully researched so you can rest assured that you are buying safe, healthy products for your home. As a busy mom, I can't spend all day researching everything I want to in order to provide the healthiest possible home for my family. However, with MightyNest products have been narrowed down to only those that are in line with my own natural, safer preferences so I'm so excited that I found MightyNest! All of the products they sell are free from known toxic ingredients such as BPA, PVC, Phthalates, Lead, Melamine, Formaldehyde, Flame retardants, Parabens and lots more. None of those belong in any products on the market today!

MightyNest is thrilled to participate in the May Buffet Giveaway Hop starting tomorrow and they sent me a 2-pack of Wean Green Glasslock Glass Square Snack Cubes (7 oz) for review.

These Glass Snack Cubes are a great little size for storing, freezing, and even serving snacks too. Use for snacks, small amounts of leftovers and even homemade baby food. There are also a few different sizes available from MightyNest for your specific needs including the smaller square cubes, bowls, and sandwich cubes.

I have many reasons to love these snack cubes. First of all they are made of tempered glass, which is nonporous and impermeable for food. Years ago when plastic containers were "in", I always managed to stain them with acidic foods like tomato sauce all the time and it irked me to no end. Well, with glass that won't happen and thankfully I learned that a few years ago and have very little plastic in my kitchen left. These are scratch, stain, and odor resistant. Being a glass product also means their is no risk of leaching potentially harmful chemicals like BPA, PVC or Phthalates. Glass is also safest for warming food in the microwave (without the lid of course). I also love the rounded edges of the glass cubes which help prevent chipping that can happen on occasion with any glass.

The lids are made of plastic, but it never technically has to even come into contact with food anyway. These are the best lids I have ever used, and even my toddler can get it off without spilling the contents! Just snap the lid on and off on each of the 4 sides without prying and much effort at all! The lid is also airtight and even watertight because of the silicone seal under the lid, so food is fresh and lasts longer than storing food in other containers out there. The one feature that I wish Wean Green would implement is a way for the lid and bottom of another container to fit together when stacked. They sort of shimmy around when stacked at the moment.

Overall I'm very excited to have found a square glass container like these and will definitely be adding more to my "collection" over time. I have a few glass containers of another brand that are oddly shaped and leave me with a lot of empty space in my cupboard. The colors are also darling and makes it that much more fun! These fit great in the bottom of my purse for a quick snack for Buddy too. We've been putting several food items in our cubes like crackers, raisins, and cheese cubes so far. We do have an Omega juicer that makes amazing strawberry banana "ice cream" (it's just fruit!), that I'm going to try and freeze individually in these so Buddy can have a quick treat on warm summer days. They're the perfect serving size for a little one, but also the perfect portion for mom too!

I'm impressed with Wean Green and can definitely see why MightyNest has approved them for their store. With that said, you can rest assured that MightyNest only carries high quality products that are healthy for you and your family. Check them out today!

Price: 2-pack of Wean Green Glasslock Glass Square Snack Cubes (7 oz) - $10.95
 
Buy It: Check out MightyNest.com for Wean Green products and lots more!

Want to win? Come back to my blog from 5/1 - 5/15 during the May Buffet Giveaway Hop for your chance to win a 2-pack of Glass Snack Cubes (7 oz) and a 2-pack of Glass Sandwich Cubes (16.5 oz) by Wean Green, courtesy of MightyNest!
 
Disclosure: I received the above mentioned product(s) to facilitate this review for free. No other compensation was received. This is my completely honest opinion above and may be different from yours. This promotion is in no way sponsored, endorsed or administered by, or associated with, Facebook.

{Coming Soon} Summer Celebration Giveaway Hop - FREE Blogger Event!

Summer Celebration

Yep! It's another green themed event, but this time it's to celebrate summer! Happy Mothering, Eco-Crazy Mom and Organic Mama are excited to bring you the Summer Celebration Giveaway Hop, which will run from June 21-29, 2012. The hosts are accepting blogger sign-ups right now! Click here for more information and to sign up!

If you have a green, organic, natural, or eco-friendly product and would like to sponsor a prize on my blog for this event, please contact me at thereynoldsmom@gmail.com

 

Sunday, April 29, 2012

Kindle Fire Giveaway! Ends 5/14


Welcome to the Kindle Fire Giveaway! Techy Tribe, Mom to Bed by 8, the Iowa-Mom and Bella Savvy have teamed to to giveaway a Kindle Fire to one lucky reader! This is a perfect gadget gift for anyone on your list including mom! No matter if your are a social media junkie, book lover or even a ole' fashioned web surfer, this is one product you want to win. Special thank you to the wonderful bloggers who made this possible including our co-hosts: Giveaway Bandit, Mommy's Memorandum and eReading on the Cheap.


Movies, apps, games, music, reading & more, plus Amazon's revolutionary, cloud-accelerated web browser! More about the Kindle Fire:
  • Over 20 million movies, TV shows, songs, magazines, and books
  • Thousands of popular apps and games, including Netflix, Hulu Plus, Pandora, and more
  • Ultra-fast web browsing - Amazon Silk
  • Free cloud storage for all your Amazon content
  • Vibrant color touchscreen with extra-wide viewing angle - same as an iPad
  • Fast, powerful dual-core processor
  • Favorite children's books, graphic novels, and magazines in rich color
  • Amazon Prime Members enjoy unlimited, instant streaming on thousands of popular movies and TV shows.
  • Amazon Prime Members choose from over a hundred thousand books to borrow for free.

This giveaway starts on April 30 at 12:01AM EST and ends May 14 at 11:59PM EST. Open to the US and Canada only; must be 18 years of age or older to enter.

Who is ready for some techy summer fun? Enter to win a Kindle Fire below on the rafflecopter form below!

Saturday, April 28, 2012

Winners Announcement!!

 
The winners of the ZeroWater Pitcher giveaway are...

Rafflecopter Entry #335, Christine J.!
Rafflecopter Entry #361, Joseph L.!
 
 
Congratulations! You have both been contacted by email!


 

Aden + Anais : Burpy Bibs Review & Giveaway! Ends 5/9



Aden + Anais was started out of a desire for large, muslin swaddle blankets like the founder grew up knowing and loving in Australia. Most swaddle blankets found here in the U.S. at the time were too small, made of material that was too thick, or just not very cute! And so Aden + Anais was born and has become a well-known and loved brand for new mothers, celebrities, and bloggers everywhere. They have a full collection of beautiful swaddles, sleeping bags, bibs, burp cloths, blankets and a lots more for your precious bundle. My sister-in-law has been using the Aden + Anais Swaddle Wraps I reviewed last year since my niece was born and they are her absolute favorite blankets for everything!

This time around I had the pleasure of reviewing the aden + anais Burpy Bibs. These were actually just voted as the Most Absorbent Infant Bib by the 2012 Cribsie Awards

Check it out. These have four absorbent layers of 100% breathable cotton muslin, colorful piping, and original prints that even coordinate with other products from Aden + Anais. Not only that, but these are made from the same muslin as their blankets that gets softer with each wash, and is delicate enough to wipe babies face too. If you check out the entire Burpy Bib collection, you'll probably have a hard time deciding on what adorable print to choose! Either way, you'll end up with a high quality, multi-use product that is certainly a must-have for any new mom.


My little precious niece was the recipient of these handy dandy new Burpy Bibs. At 5 1/2 months old, you can see it definitely swallowed her alive a bit, but the neck was perfectly sized. It even fit my 3 year old's neck too. Anyway, my solution was to actually just fold under each side to create a more traditional looking bib. It definitely worked well for the short time she wore it and she'll grow into them eventually anyway. I love how soft these are, and the unique texture of the muslin in such a nice change from basic cotton all the time. Although these don't have a waterproof backing, the four layers of muslin are more than enough to keep droolers dry and messy eaters' clothes clean!

Many bibs out there today are not great for droolers. They flap up and to the side too easily, and tend to get in the way of your playing baby. These, however, stay pretty much in the same spot due to their unique crescent shape. The snap at the back is also harder to undo for little ones who always take their bibs off (like mine did!). Speaking of shape, these also serve as a handy burp cloth over your shoulder. The curved shape helps it stay in place on the slope of your neck and shoulder so it won't slide off, and it plenty long in the back and front for those extra lovely burpies. I used prefolds as my burp cloths and I swore by those...but these are brilliant!

See? Love them as a burp cloth! Stylish, cute, and totally functional in more ways than one. That's why I love Aden + Anais!

Price: 2-pack Burpy Bibs - $22 
 
Buy It: Check out AdenAndAnais.com to buy yours today!
 
Win It!
One winner will receive a 2-pack of Burpy Bibs!

Wednesday, April 25, 2012

The Belly Blanket from Belly Armor {Review}



You're pregnant. You're exposed to radiation all day long from your computer, cell phone, and other electronic devices because of your job, hobby, or whatever you do. You want to be informed and take extra precautions to be on the safe side for the sake of your baby and yourself. What do you do? Well, I'm excited to share about Belly Armor. Belly Armor products shield everyday radiation with 99.9% effectiveness, which by limiting your radiation exposure provides you with a practical way to protect you and your unborn baby to the fullest extent possible.

 With me being the all-natural preferring girl that I am with foods and chemicals in health and beauty products, I'm not going to completely ignore the radiation issue. I can't say with absolutely certainty that radiation has no long-term effects so having a way to protect myself from some of it is great. For all you skeptics out there, check out the large amount of radiation information Belly Armor has on their site. These products have been independently tested for efficacy so there is no reason for anyone to say they don't work!

Belly Armor products use a specially made material called RadiaShield in their products. RadiaShield is equivalent to 1/4 inch sheet of aluminum in protection against radiation. The RadiaShield material shields by neutralizing incoming electromagnetic waves of non-ionizing radiation (laptops, cell phones, microwaves, televisions etc), canceling out the ambient radiation and therefore greatly reducing your exposure.

Check out the Belly Blanket Organic that Belly Armor was so generous to send me. This light-weight blanket measures 30 x 35 inches and is made from 100% pre-shrunk Organic Cotton and RadiaShield lining. The tan and cream striped Organic Cotton is very soft and a comfortable resting place for your hands during any point of relaxation during use. The gray RadiaShield lining on the underside is very thin and similar in texture to nylon. Just position the blanket between yourself and the source of radiation to use.

Belly Armor has three products: the Belly Blanket, Belly Tee, and Belly Band. What I like about the Belly Blanket is that you don't have to be pregnant to use and it can just be thrown on your lap at any time without having to physically wear it. One of the main reasons I'm so interested in Belly Armor products is because as a blogger I do obviously end up in front of a laptop quite a bit. No, I'm not pregnant right now, but Hubby and I are going through infertility issues and I can't help but wonder if there is a connection to my heavy laptop usage, radiation and my reproductive system. Call me crazy, but sometimes my lower abdomen feels weird for hours, sometimes the next day if I'm stuck on my laptop for an extended period of time, regardless of how far the laptop actually is away from my body. With the use of the Belly Blanket and limiting my time on the laptop, I'm hoping to reduce my radiation exposure and avoid that funny feeling I get sometimes. Belly Armor has this to say about potential health hazards of radiation:

"The past 25 years of research has evidenced several potential health hazards during pregnancy from radiation, including birth defects and genetic disruptions, miscarriages, autism, childhood leukemia, and cancer.  Because scientists have shown that cell growth and DNA replication are disrupted by radiation, pregnancy and early childhood represent the highest risk for exposure."

Great. So the 4 miscarriages I've had could be linked to radiation. Hmmm, that's a lovely thought. I know that doesn't necessarily mean that's why I've experienced those losses, but at this point I'd like to increase my chances of a healthy pregnancy if at all possible. The idea of all this radiation scares me to a great extent, and a product that claims to reduce the amount of radiation I'm exposed to has my undivided attention. Do I believe it works? Absolutely. Check out the pic I took of my phone's signal before and after covering it with the Belly Blanket.

It was so neat to see that the Belly Blanket actually interfered with my iPhone's signal. You know what else? My husband was sitting a few feet away from me and I had him call my phone while it was covered with the Belly Blanket and the phone actually still had one bar. Guess what? My phone didn't ring! It didn't even show up as a missed call or anything! If that isn't enough proof for you that radiation exposure is being reduced with the use of Belly Armor products, I don't know how else to convince you that it's a product worth having. Even if it doesn't work at all (although unlikely), it does no harm to take the extra precaution to protect yourself and unborn baby from unnecessary radiation. New technology is rapidly developing in our world today, which brings more exposure to radiation. I feel that possible long-term effects on our body just simply aren't known at this point. I'd rather pull out the safe card and not wait to find out. Besides, just feeling peace of mind is enough to calm my nerves or those of a pregnant mama.
 
Connect with Belly Armor on Facebook and Twitter!

Price: Belly Blanket Organic - $79

Buy It: Order now at BellyArmor.com or find a retailer near you!



Disclosure: I received the above mentioned product to facilitate this review. No other compensation was received. This is my completely honest opinion above and may be different from yours. This promotion is in no way sponsored, endorsed or administered by, or associated with, Facebook.

Tuesday, April 24, 2012

TODAY ONLY! FREE $10 off $10 Code, FREE Shipping (or only $2.22!) & 2 FREE Samples at Vitacost! Organic Food, Burt's Bees, gDiapers, Kashi, Clif Bars & More!


They're at it again! TODAY is the best day to use your $10 off $10 code at Vitacost!! Why??? Because today ONLY, shipping is FREE on orders over $24 (which means just $14+ after your code is applied), or just $2.24 for orders less than that. That means you can get $10 in FREE goodies & 2 samples for as low as $2.22 SHIPPED! (Shipping is normally $4.99, or free over $49)

At Vitacost.com, you can buy discounted vitamins, organic and natural groceries, baby toys and accessories, natural household cleaners, toiletries, beauty and other health products. Vitacost sells top brand products at a wholesale discount cost so you're saving 33% - 75% on every product! Don't pay retail, shop at Vitacost!




GO HERE to sign up for your $10 credit! 
 Your unique code should be emailed to you within minutes. If your code doesn't show up, you can also log on to vitacostrewards.com to get your code too.

(((Don't forget, you can also add 2 FREE samples per order too!)))

Here are some HOT deal examples with your FREE $10 credit & $2.24 shipping 
(Keep in mind they have over 30,000 products! Chances are they have your favorites brands!)

Buy 1 - $10 code + $2.24 shipping = $2.24 SHIPPED!
Buy 1 - $10 code + $2.24 shipping = $2.24 SHIPPED!

(Other varieties available like Chocolate Brownie, Peanut Butter, Blueberry and Honey Graham)
Buy 3 boxes - $10 code + $2.24 shipping = $4.90 SHIPPED!
 
Buy 3 bags - $10 code + $2.24 shipping = $3.01 SHIPPED!

Buy 4 - $10 code + $2.24 shipping = $2.24 SHIPPED!

Buy 1 - $10 code + $2.24 shipping = $5.99 SHIPPED!


Check out my previous scenario posts HERE and HERE for more ideas and hot finds from Vitacost!

 

Monday, April 23, 2012

Winners Announcement!!



The winner of the SwaddleDesigns giveaway is...

Rafflecopter Entry #253, Heather K!


The winner of the If You Care Gift Pack from the Honor The Earth Giveaway Hop giveaway is...

Rafflecopter Entry #813, Louise C!


 
Congratulations! You have both been contacted by email!

 

Sunday, April 22, 2012

Educational Software from Lakeshore Learning Materials: Review & Giveaway! Ends 5/2

Lakeshore Learning Materials is an awesome place to find award-winning educational products of all kids for your children. They have been family-operated for three generations, and continue to be fully dedicated to the needs of their customers in the way of education.  I have a local Lakeshore Learning store near me and am always amazed at the vast array of high quality products to choose from. They have every thing you could possibly imagine that involves learning. Whether you homeschool or not, the resources available will help your children in the various subjects of education. They also carry over 100 educational software titles for preschool-, kindergarten- and elementary-age children, and I'll be focusing on one of those titles today.

I received the Letter of the Day Activities - Instant Download to review. This program highlights each of the 26 letters in interactive ways and is geared for ages 4-6 (pre-k through 1st grade). I chose this program because it focuses on each letter, and works on sounds, letter recognition, letter-sound correspondence, and letter formation. Even though Buddy is only 3, this program is definitely in his range of abilities at this point. He's amazing with computers, knows all his letters and the majority of his sounds too. So, if you're child is younger than the recommended age for this program and has those skills, this should be age appropriate for them also. Besides, any time I have the opportunity to teach my son something in a new way, I'm all for it! Here's what the website says about this program:

"From fun-filled letter chants to tracing demonstrations, our interactive activity program lets students explore the whole alphabet—from every angle! Simply select a letter from the drop-down menu at the top of the screen...then touch any area of the interactive chart to explore the letter in depth. Students can practice writing each letter with the fun-to-use pencil tool, identify initial sounds in cute “hanging” picture frames, focus on correct letter formation with the animated tracing demonstrations—even read right along with lively, narrated chants that reinforce letter sounds!"

In this program, cach letter has one, single page with interactive activities to do. It's nice that Buddy won't be clicking around to other pages and get totally sidetracked like other similar programs out there. My favorite part of each letter page is the Let's Chant area in the middle. A chant of the poem that focuses heavily on the specified letter can be played audibly as much as the user wants. This really reinforces the letter's sound and makes for a fun activity overall.

The Tracing Demonstration is great for showing how to trace each upper and lower case letter. You can click to have the demonstration played over and over. However, you can't actually take the "pencil" and trace it over these letters to practice. Instead, you use the "pencil" and "eraser" from the Practice Writing area to write out letters on the lined "paper". It's not the best practice your child can get since they're using a mouse to write, but I think this improves coordination and precision with the mouse in general. Just learning how to use the computer is a skill that every child should know from a young age since technology only seems to be getting more complicated as we go.

Also for each letter there are four areas that resemble hanging picture frames that have a question mark and the words "click here" for you to click (a popup then comes up and you'll see what is shown above). You are supposed to choose which of the three pictures start with the specified letter. One thing I wish this program would actually do is also audibly ask for you to click on the picture that starts with the sound you're currently on, and also say the sound too. Since it doesn't, and just has the question written there, my 3-year-old certainly isn't going to know what it's asking. Each picture does have the word written out with it, but I feel like there's a disconnect and if Buddy were by himself, would have no idea what he's supposed to do. And I'm sure if you're having your child even use this program, they don't know how to read! This means I can't leave him to play with this program to learn independently without me for more than a few minutes. Once you click on a picture, you hear the word. Once you select the correct picture and then click on "enter", it says "Good Job!". After all these four areas of sound matching are complete, I wish you could continue to click on each picture and have it repeat the word again. But they don't, and that part of the specified letter's activities is over unless you press "reset" for that letter and wish to start again. 

Buddy is a computer whiz at his age already, but because he can't read yet, this program isn't as helpful as it could be but does help somewhat in reaching that eventual goal of reading. Although I still like this program and Buddy seems to enjoy it, hopefully a future release of this software program will take into account my feedback and continue to improve on it.

Price: Letter of the Day Activities - $19.95 (You can also order the physical CD-ROM for the same price, but if you don't want to wait, the instant download is a super fast option!)

Buy It: Check out all the educational software and more at LakeshoreLearning.com!

Win It!
One winner will receive a free software download of their choice from Lakeshore Learning!!
(must be a single software selection with an instant download option)