Eco-friendly skin care without phthlates: K6 Skin Care

I'm super excited to tell you all about how I solved my conundrum when it comes to finding eco-friendly skin care without phthalates and toxins! I have been searching for a skin care line that does not contain phthalates, parabens, SLS, artificial colors, chemical fillers, etc., but also keeps my (aging) skin moisturized and blemish-free.

I'm sad to say that all the handmade products or kitchen recipes that I've tried in the past have been terrible for my skin. They have left my skin too dry, too oily, or caused me to break out. I've tried washing with oil, washing with honey, moisturizing with coconut oil, toning with hydrogen peroxide...all of it has been a terrible failure.

The products I've found that work best are, shall we say, usually less than ideal in their ingredients. I've been doing the best I could by at least buying from companies like The Body Shop and Whole Foods who have good fair trade and ethical practices and "probably" don't contain phthalates, but I've let a few other standards slip just to have nice skin.

Recently I met the wife of one of my husbands' coworkers who is a local naturopath. It is all I can do not to ask her 100 questions about that at the dinner parties we have attended! In fact, she has graciously offered to write a guest post for us soon to tell us all about naturopath practice and I can't wait! Aside from that fascinating fact (or perhaps because of it), she has also formulated her very own skin care line. I'll quote her here to explain why:

Early in my practice, I relied on "recipes" [for my clients skin care needs] I developed while working with herbs. I made recommendations to clients that had them in their kitchens throwing together various ingredients to make their own lotions and cleansers. Human error abounded, and the results were less than satisfactory

(sounds like my failed efforts!)

And here is my favorite part and, in my opinion, why K6 products work as well and BETTER than their non-green, non-natural conventional counterparts:

...As an ND, I am dedicated to practicing natural healing modalities, but I am not afraid to use technology safely where it will enhance the action of a natural element. I use this philosophy in every facet of my practice, and it permeates my skin care line as well.

This is a very good point. I don't think it's wrong to use technology to assist natural ingredients. The problem with a lot of the natural products I had been trying was the lack of preservatives, meaning that the containers became breeding grounds for bacteria. Sharon gave me a detailed ingredients sheet for each of the 3 products in the K6 line which explains, line by line, what each ingredient is and it's function in the product (including preservatives and why they were chosen). 

And did you catch that? Only 3 products in the line! Here they are:

Clean

For, um, cleaning. The best feature of this cleanser is that it also removes eye makeup! Yep, no more purchasing an additional product to clean your eyes. I find that it works best to rub a small amount on the closed eye, rinse, and then wash the entire face as usual.

Reveal

A powerful enzyme peel that leaves skin refreshed, not raw. It's extremely gentle but you'll also be amazed to see the amount of dead skin cells it removes (if you are fascinated by peeling things...this might be fun for you!). Never once made my skin raw or irritated. It is actually gentle enough to use on rosacea without exacerbating the condition.

Preserve

Anti-aging moisturizer that is extremely luxurious - you don't need much! Slows the breakdown of collagen, invigorates the production of more collagen, and inhibits the production of melanin.

Ever since I started using the K6 skin care line, I have actually felt guilty for not yet telling my readers about how much I love this skin care system. I wanted to be impartial because -- full disclosure -- they are also an advertiser on my blog. But I also do not advertise anything on this blog that I have not tried for myself or do not believe in. If I had tried this line and it hadn't worked, I wouldn't be writing this post.

A note on cost: you need very little of each of these products. For Clean, probably the size of a pencil eraser for eyes and the size of a dime for the whole face. For Reveal, you only use it once a day and maybe not even every day, I probably use about a quarter size squeeze for my entire face. For Preserve, less than dime size. So you can imagine how long each product will last. I'll probably buy Clean most frequently.

So, there you have it. It's what I am using right now, and I think I'll probably be using it for quite some time in the future. I hope that K6 helps you as much as it helps me. And remember, if you do choose to try the product line, you are supporting this blog!

Handmade fair trade empowering women: Amani ya Juu

You might not want to get out of bed early enough to work out today, but what if you had to get out of bed to carry water from a well to your house before you go to work in the morning or you wouldn't have water for bathing and cooking all day? Here is what a day is like for Esther in Liberia:

Esther, a 39-year-old mother and grandmother, wakes up at 5:30am each morning. “I carry the bucket to the pump. If you cannot carry the bucket soon, you will not get water!” she shares with wide eyes that giving the impression that this lady has had to deal with a dry pump on more than one occasion, and doesn’t plan on letting it happen again.

Esther prepares food for her family and sends her children off to school. Then, she sometimes goes to the market to buy food for her family or her bucket. She runs a micro business from her head---she sells pepper, spices, candies, ground pea candy (peanut brittle), and other treats out of a plastic bucket she carries all over the community.

At [work], Esther cuts cloth or learns to sew. She has only been at Amani for about a month but already feels intense community amongst her coworkers. “We are here together, friendly...if I am not here, I am missing these people,” she says, looking about the room.

After work, Esther often goes to night school, where she is currently completing 9th grade. Her favorite part about school is reading “They got some good stories in it!” she says of her school books, then rattles off the plot of a story she is reading this week about some farmers with a car---“their own car!”---she exclaims.

Esther works during the day at Amani ya Juu (“peace from above” in Swahili). Amani is a sewing and training program for marginalized women based in East Africa. Women from many African nations and cultures are learning to work together through faith in God who provides a higher peace that transcends cultural and ethnic differences. Amani is committed to holistic development. Women gain experience in purchasing, bookkeeping, stitching, quality control, management, and design. As new women enter the program they are mentored in quality workmanship. Emphasis is placed on ethical business practices and harmonious relationships with people of different backgrounds. Amani’s wide selection of high-quality handbags, home and kitchen décor, jewelry, and children’s items are made out of local African materials. The sale of products sold by volunteers and in Amani shops enables each woman to earn consistent income.

I learned about Amani ya Juu from a blog reader here in Dallas -- what a small world! She knew about my heart for empowering women to succeed through hard work and based on an inner peace. When she contacted me, I took a look at the Amani site and there is a little collage of my favorite products from Amani:

Clockwise, starting with the grey bag:

Safari On The Go Bag - $72
Ruffled Glove and Spoon Set - $28
Stuffed Zebra - $10
Kikoy Elephant Mobile - $44
Monrovia Wristlet - $18

I hope these cute products will appeal to you, but most of all that you will consider supporting the ladies of Amani ya Juu with your purchases. I've had a chance to sample one of the Amani cosmetic bags, and I can attest that it is very well-made. The ladies of Amani put care and love into their work.

To help spread the word, I'd like to give away a small cosmetic bag made by Sandra in Uganda:

Please help me spread the word about Amani ya Juu by entering the giveaway, tweeting about Amani and their mission, and following them on Facebook.
a Rafflecopter giveaway

Low Toxin, more eco-friendly hair color

Obviously, I dye my hair. No one is born with pink hair.

You might be thinking: what about the chemicals in hair dye? Is there a toxin free way to bleach and dye hair? The answer is: there is no chemical free way to bleach or dye your hair but there are ways to reduce your exposure to specific toxins and hair color systems that are more eco-friendly.

Henna - An ancient form of hair coloring based on the henna plant, henna is moisturizing and provides some pigment upon one application. You can re-apply over and over to build the shade up. Henna can lighten a few shades, but not much. Pure henna is almost always some form of red. I have found henna-based dyes in bright colors like pink, blue, and purple but I've also read that since the henna plant leaves obviously do not grow in those colors, those products are really mostly chemical dyes like any other chemical dye. The metallic components added to henna to produce these unusual colors can also react with traditional hair dyes, so be very careful mixing henna with other forms of dyeing or bleaching.

Highlighting - In general, highlighting with any type of product exposes your body to less direct contact with the dye because it doesn't sit on your scalp like all-over haircolor would -- it is typically applied with foils. At least, it doesn't cover all of your scalp when it does touch at the roots. Be aware of what bleaching agents are used in highlighting formula you use. My stylist did some research on ammonia in bleaching and found that some of the low-fume ammonia dyes contained just as much ammonia (or more) than the stronger-smelling ammonias, they were just more difficult to detect by smell. He prefers to use a low-ammonia version of bleaching rather than conventional ammonia disguised with extra chemicals to hide the smell.

Botanical and lower-toxin brands of professional color - The two main brands I found are Aveda and Pravana. Both are professional salon color systems and have a large spectrum of colors, traditional (browns, blondes, gingers) and alternative (pink, purple, blue, green, etc.). While these brands do utilize chemicals that are found in traditional color systems, they make a point to avoid phthalates, formaldehyde, and parabens. Both brands specifically avoid the use of petrochemicals or animal ingredients and do not do animal testing. Most of their product packaging is recycled and/or biodegradable.

What I have on my hair in the pictures you'll find on Instagram and Twitter is the Pravana VIVIDS for the pink, and their low-ammonia bleaching system for the base blonde. Did I have to bleach the crap out of my scalp for that light blonde? Yes, yes I did. Is that probably great for my hair? Probably not. At my last appointment, my stylist did a deep conditioning treatment and I do a weekly coconut oil treatment. I'll have to post more on that later. Overall, I am happy with my choice and plan to keep it up for as long as possible. I expect that 6 months is probably the longest I can do this before my hair becomes damaged.

Do you dye your hair? If so, have you tried lower-toxin alternatives or henna? What have been your results?


NOTE: I was not compensated in any way for the mention of these product lines, information is based on my own research and I pay for my pink hair out of my own pocket!

A relaxing day with cheese

Since going dairy-free with my son almost 4 months ago, there is one thing that I miss a lot: CHEESE.
There was a time in my life when I could not imagine living without cheese. I used to buy fancy cheese and just eat it with crackers, all day long. Oh, glorious cheese.

So when some of us Dallas Moms Blog contributors were invited by Cabot to sample some cheese recipes and relax with a little yoga at Central Market, I said YES, PLEASE!

Check out the amazing food they served us:





Since we met in the Central Market Cooking School space, we each got to make our own cheese-inspired snacks. My favorite was these little strawberry bunnies sitting on top of cheese. My kids loved them!





Then we took a little time for yoga...

Thanks to Valerie of Charmed Valerie for taking the pictures of me and Cassidy Phan, fellow Dallas Moms Blog contributor, doing our yoga moves!

We were also given some Cabot cheeses to take home as well as a cutting board and two mini cheese cleavers. And flowers from Central Market!

It was a great time of mingling and relaxing, reminding us all that being healthy doesn't have to be a huge effort. In the spirit of simplicity and health, I'm including a simple recipe from Cabot for a "Munch Bowl", which is actually a great snack to put in a reusable snack bag and take with you for a quick lift any time of the day:

Munch Bowl

Ingredients:
1/3 cup red or green grapes
1/2 ounce Cabot Mild Lactose-Free Cheddar or Monterey Jack, cubed*
Heaping tablespoon roasted almonds

Directions:
Combine in small bowl or take "to go" in a reusable snack bag.

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For more pictures of the event, check out Regan Jones' Google+ album of the Dallas #CabotRNR Event!

Wine n cheese with "the girls", if you know what I mean

I had the opportunity this week to spend an evening at the fabulous Hotel ZaZa in uptown Dallas with a few fellow contributors to Dallas Moms Blog. The suite was decorated with old school Hollywood pinup photos, dark paint, leopard couches, and luxe touches. While we were there, we had wine and cheese and other snacks that I don't get to see much of in my house full of dairy-intolerant toddlers.

Other things that we just don't see a lot of in our house...

...Wacoal's line of bras and lingerie!

Yep, we were there for what was, in my case, a much need bra fitting!

I knew I was overdue for this fitting. Heather from CottonBabies wrote a great post about why we need to stop and take time to get refitted after having children, and just this past fall, Amber wrote about her fitting in NYC while attending BlogHer. After breastfeeding two babies in 3 years, I had very little idea what size I actually am anymore, and honestly I was a bit afraid to find out. This is why they gave us wine.

When I got back into the fitting room, the super hip New York bra fitting expert took one look at me and declared me a 30 band size. This was not a surprise, since I typically get 28 or 30 when I measure myself (at which point I give up). If you are familiar with ladies' undergarment shopping, you will recognize this as an extremely difficult band size to find. You cannot, for instance, just go to Target or even Victoria's Secret. Most brands don't go below 32.

Here's where I learned something, though: did you know that the cup size alters a bit for smaller band sizes? For example, a D cup for a 30 band size is smaller than a D cup for a 40 band size. Makes sense, proportionately. This news made me super excited, because I turned out to be a "larger" size than I thought I would be. All is not lost!

Fortunately, Wacoal bras come in band sizes from 28-46 and cup sizes from AA to HH. Their b.tempt'd line has some super cute styles, with a slightly smaller size range. Both lines are conveniently available at Macy's, Dillards, Nordstrom, and Neiman Marcus.

And now, I will leave you with some compelling facts from Wacoal's Bra Expert, Liz Smith:

Bra Facts

• 8 out of 10 women wear the wrong sized bra 
• A woman should be fitted once a year 
• If you gain 5 – 7 lbs, your bra size will change 
• It only takes 15 minutes to be fitted for a bra 
• Most women wear their bras 1 – 1 ½ inches too big in the band and 1 cup size too small
• The average woman has 27 bras in her lingerie draw and wears the same 2 bras repeatedly 
• A bra should be worn once and then washed to extend her life
• After washing and wearing a bra 100 times she needs to be replaced

Well, if that doesn't make you want to go out and get fitted, I don't know what does...
Good luck and good fitting to you!


NOTE: I was given a free fitting and bra from Wacoal at this event, but I was not obligated in any way to write about them or my experience. Opinions are my own. I just felt like you really hadn't had enough TMI posts from me lately. You're welcome.

Green find: Squooshi reusable food pouches

When I saw my friend Calley post pictures of a new reusable baby food pouch on Instagram a few months ago, I practically heard angels sing! As you may or may not be aware, at least one of my children is an extremely picky eater and a) will not eat fast food or restaurant food, and b) has trouble eating his veggies. Not saying who it is. Our solution for the last 3 years has been to buy the disposable baby food pouches and carry them along whenever we go out to eat so that he has some kind of nutrition other than rolls or rice (the only other things he'll sporadically eat while out). It's also a good way to sneak in some extra quinoa protein or amaranth grain. I would wait for the pouches to go on sale at $1 apiece and buy them in bulk. I always have a stash in my pantry.

I'm sure you know where this is going...oh, the guilt over throwing away plastic pouches with big plastic lids that are never, ever going to biodegrade! I would throw them away and cringe, thinking "I am sorry, earth!". But even though I'd tried a silicone version of a reusable pouch (HORRIBLE), I could not find an alternative.

Then...Squooshi!

I am totally in love with these adorable reusable food puree pouches! What is even better is that they come in completely plastic-free packaging:

There are four adorable characters in The Animal Series and two sizes: 4 oz. and 6 oz.

Of course, the #1 question is: do they leak?
I have been using them for about 2 weeks and my answer is NO! I even put (goat) yogurt into them for our car trip over Thanksgiving and no leaking at all. The bottom is sealed by a VERY STRONG ziplock-type zipper. The trick is to make sure that you swipe away any puree from the zipping mechanism before closing. This tip is included in the insert that comes with the Squooshi pouches.

What did my kids think?

They both give Squooshi a thumbs-up!

One more item to address: yes, Squooshi pouches are made of plastic. However, at this time there is no plastic-free alternative to the not-so-disposable pouches and in my opinion these are the BEST as far as functionality for reusable options. The plastic used in these pouches is BPA-free, phthalate-free, PVC-free, and lead-free. In addition, since you will always hand-wash these pouches, they will not be exposed to the high dishwasher temperatures that could facilitate plastic chemical leaching.

For an additional viewpoint on Squooshi, surf on over to my friend Nancy's blog, Surviving and Thriving on Pennies.

If you're ready to let go of the "disposables" and take a step toward environmentally friendly nutritious snacking on the go, you can head on over to the Squooshi store and pick up some cute stocking stuffers!

NOTE: I was given the four pouches show for free in exchange for this honest review. All opinions are my own.

Sinus rinsing for seasonal allergies

A lot of people ask me about natural remedies for seasonal allergies, and one of my main responses is always: prevention through regular sinus rinsing. Of course, my favorite method is the neti pot, but if you have mental barriers to using the neti pot, a spray sinus cleanse is a good alternative.

Why sinus rinsing?
The key to preventing allergic reactions in the body is to stop the allergens from accumulating and incubating in your respiratory system in the first place. I might not be explaining this perfectly since I'm not a doctor, but here goes: allergens such as pollen, dust, or pet dander enter through your nose and mouth and are caught in the tiny hairs in your sinus passages. They hang out there, irritating your body. Your body launches "attacks" on these foreign bodies by manufacturing mucus, causing your eyes to itch and water, and a variety of other reactions meant to help your body rid itself of something it doesn't like.

To minimize these cleansing reactions, it is important to keep your sinus passages cleaned out as much as possible. A great way to do this is regular saline rinsing. Rinsing is the practice of sending a sterile  solution (most frequently salt-and-water) through the sinus cavities and back out, taking the irritants with the saline as it exits. The solution must be sterile so that you are not introducing additional irritants or bacteria via the rinse.

The options for rinsing
My option of choice is, of course, the neti pot. I have already written a post that covers how to use a neti pot, but the main advantages of neti pot, for me, are:

• inexpensive (I make my own solution)
• portable (I bring the empty pot and salt with me on airplanes in my carry-on)
• reusable (the neti pot itself can be reused indefinitely)

Disadvantages include:

• water used in the neti pot must be boiled (this is time consuming but I keep a carafe of pre-boiled water next to my bathroom sink)
• learning to use the neti pot takes a while (if you are doing it correctly the neti pot should not hurt)

If you find the neti pot difficult to use, another good option is a prepackaged saline nasal spray*. I actually use saline sprays such as Little Noses for my children since they are too little for the neti pot. However, many companies also make adult versions of a saline spray. With most sprays, you are moisturizing your sinuses, but aren't necessarily washing the irritants out. You're just making them wetter. If you follow a typical saline spray mist by vigorous nose blowing (which is what I have my kids do), it is a big help, but a better option would be to use an irrigation system that has a special nozzle creating a targeted stream (see illustration, right). The nozzle increases the force of the saline so that it shoots right back out of your nose, very much like a neti pot.

Advantages of using a prepackaged irrigation system include:

• Ease of use (ready to go out of the package)
• Solution is always sterile (provided you do not share containers to prevent cross contamination)

Disadvantages include:

• non-reusable
• difficulty in disposing of or recycling the container, creates a lot of waste
• more expensive

The things that makes me cringe about a saline spray option is that the end-of-life options for the materials are very bad. The entire container uses a lot of plastic, which can't be recycled. The canister itself utilizes compressed air of some kind, so technically you should not dispose of it in residential trash due to the danger of explosion from puncture in the trash compacting process. I guess your best bet would be to try and locate a facility that disposes of compressed air containers like hair spray, spray paint, and other similar products.

With that caveat, there is definitely a sinus rinse option that can help you this allergy season! If that's not enough, check back with me later and I'll have some essential oil solutions for seasonal allergies.


*NOTE: I was given a specific pre-packaged irrigation system for review for this post but the company was comfortable highlighting the disadvantages outlined. At their request, I have removed the name of their product from this post.  If you would like my recommendation on a pre-packaged irrigation system, please see the Amazon widget in the right column of the blog.

Cloth diaper Thurs: BumGenius Freetime

After receiving a number of free cloth diapers at BlogHer 2011, I started a feature on the blog called "Cloth Diaper Thursdays" where I review cloth diapers that I have tried recently or talk more about my cloth diapering journey. For more cloth diapering posts, make sure you check out my contributing posts to CottonBabies blog as well.

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I have to admit that BumGenius is really my go-to brand for cloth diapers (and, disclaimer, I write for their blog). For the first year of my son's life, our stash was exclusively BumGenius. We started out with what used to be called the BumGenius Organic All-In-One, which looked like this:

My main problem with this diaper was the drying time. I loved that there was no need to stuff inserts like pocket diapers but, due to the thickness of the organic cotton, it sometimes took up to 2 days for these diapers to fully line dry in humid North Texas weather! I could dry them in the dryer but that would shorten the life of the waterproofing PUL in the diaper. I found that I could reduce drying time somewhat by detaching one side of the Organic AIO, but eventually even that was cumbersome and I ended up selling all my Organic AIO's on DiaperSwappers.com.

Recently, BumGenius took the Organic AIO off the market and has replaced it with the BumGenius Freetime. Same concept -- an AIO diaper with no pocket-stuffing required, but this time the drying time is significantly reduced due to new materials, and now the inserts are "semi-attached", meaning they are each only attached on one end only:

I love this diaper! The drying time is still more than the BumGenius 4.0 pocket diaper, but not much. Fit is the same, and it does great with both poop and pee. I've also added hemp or cotton doublers underneath the inserts for additional absorbency.

Pros:

• No pocket stuffing
• Great BumGenius fit (one-size diaper that sizes in the rise with snaps)
• Double inserts provide a lot of absorbency
• Reduced drying time
• Super cute colors and patterns!

Cons:

• Longer drying time than a pocket cover & insert

And one more note -- right now CottonBabies is running a Buy 5, Get 1 Free sale on the Freetime diapers. So if you're looking to set up your stash for a new baby (or a 2nd baby!), I'd highly recommend stocking up now!

Rating: 5 out of 5

*NOTE: I received the BumGenius Freetime diaper free from Cottonbabies as a writer for their blog. All opinions are my own. Also, I don't receive any commission or affiliate fees if you buy from Cottonbabies :-(

Eco-friendly kids paint: Earth Paint

As soon as Little Sir was old enough to attend Mother's Day Out, he fell in love with painting. I had been afraid to introduce paints at home due to the mess, but he just LOVED painting so much, even at a year old, that I really wanted to let him paint at home. However, every time I went to the craft store I was crippled by the choices and worried about the ingredients of the paint. Particularly when Little Lady came along and started to show interest in painting too (again, thanks to Mother's Day Out!), I was worried that she would put the paints in her mouth and I didn't trust the safety of craft store paints.

Then I discovered Earth Paints!

 Ya'll, this stuff is so amazing! It's made from, well, the EARTH! As in, dirt and clay are used to form the pigments for these colors. It is actually a milk-based paint, which is common for eco-friendly kids paints. The problem with most homemade or eco-friendly paints is that their colors are typically very light (think pastel) and watery. Not Earth Paint! Check out the colors of the paints I mixed...


I say that I mixed them because they actually come in powder form. You can add as little or as much water as you need to make them thicker or thinner. If you do want a watercolor-type experience, you can do that. But you can also go for the more tempura paint type pigment.

For the purpose of our first trial of Earth Paints, Little Sir had found a paper towel cardboard tube and was requesting that he be allowed to paint it. If these had been your typical milk paints, the pigment wouldn't have shown up at all on the dark cardboard. No problem with the Earth Paint!




And, of course, Little Lady wanted to get involved and made quite a masterpiece herself...





You can see from the photos how nice and bold the colors are!

Now, you might be asking yourself, "Why on earth can't I just use conventional kids' paint? Jenny, you are super paranoid!". And it's true, I am more conscientious than your average consumer, so I asked Leah, creator of Earth Paints, what kinds of things we should be avoiding when it comes to paints. She sent me some great information.

Petroleum derivatives? Fungicides? Bactericides? Unfortunately, just because a label says nontoxic doesn’t mean it’s earth friendly or human friendly...
...After doing extensive research I was shocked to find that many commercial kids paints contain biocides which include formaldehyde and are used to extend the paints shelf life and preserve the ingredients. I also learned that conventional paints may contain hundreds of different chemicals, many of which contain carcinogens or neurotoxins. Even "Low VOC" or "nontoxic" paint may contain fungicides and bactericides that not only cause headaches and dizziness when inhaled but can contribute (little by little) to greenhouse gases.

Leah goes on to describe how some major kids' paint brand companies would not disclose their ingredients even when asked directly. Scary! So she created Earth Paints as a high quality, safe alternative.

I have to say, I am in love with Earth Paints. When the samples I was given run out, I will be heading over to www.NaturalEarthPaint.com to order more Earth Paint!

I hope you'll give it a try, too - if you do, please feel free to share photos of your kids enjoying Earth Paint on my Facebook page!

*DISCLOSURE: I was given free samples of Earth Paint for review. All opinions expressed are my own, and my kids'!

Cloth Diaper Thurs: Applecheeks

Last year after receiving a number of free cloth diapers at BlogHer 2011, I started a feature on the blog called "Cloth Diaper Thursdays" where I review cloth diapers that I have tried recently or talk more about my cloth diapering journey. For more cloth diapering posts, make sure you check out my contributing posts to CottonBabies blog as well.

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I received the Applecheeks 2-size envelope cover and insert in Size 2 from Beth from Me as a Mommy while at BlogHer 2012 this year, and am just now getting around to writing a review! I'd heard a lot about this brand, which is made by a small company in Canada. The envelope diaper works just like a pocket, with the pocket opening in the middle instead of at the front or back (see picture, above).

First impression: the Applecheeks diaper is so plush and soft! The leg elastic is significantly gentler than other diapers I have tried as well. Not sure how this will wear in the long term, would it make the leg openings looser?

One major difference between this diaper and the other diapers I've tried: the pocket opening being in the middle. I didn't think much about it until Little Lady pooped in the diaper. As you might know, I am a HUGE fan of my diaper sprayer. When I went to spray the poop, the location of the opening caused me to be spraying poop INTO the pocket half the time. I was a little taken aback by this and asked Amy Appleton, founder of Applecheeks, what they recommend to resolve this issue.

Here's some more info about the Applecheeks diaper and poop spraying from Amy:

We strongly recommend using our fantastic flushable liners with the AppleCheeks envelope cover. Not only is this less messy than a sprayer but it also ensures the diapers does not sit totally saturated until wash day. If you feel you must use a sprayer, be sure to hold the diaper from the FRONT of the cover so that the overlap is such that the cover will remain closed. If you hold it from the back it will indeed just open right up.

Make sense? In my case, this means I just need to make sure I always use a liner with the Applecheeks diaper because I was unable to figure out how to spray effectively to avoid spraying poop back into the diaper.

In summary:

Pros:
Very soft!
Gentle leg elastic
Well made, high quality diaper
Snaps - always love snaps!
Insert is very thick & absorbent
You could use any brand insert in the pocket, versatile

Cons:
The pocket opening being in the middle (only for me - not everyone will see this as a disadvantage)
Cost of flushable liners add to the cost of the diaper

Regarding the "cons", you can also make your own liners out of old t-shirts, old kitchen towels, etc., spray the poop off and wash with your diapers, which completely eliminates the cost and waste factor associated with flushable liners. I have made some reusable liners of my own out of an old jersey material pillowcase and they work great.

Overall, I will still be putting this diaper in regular rotation and it looks super cute on Little Lady's little bum!

Rating: 4 out of 5

Giveaway: Reusable SoftCup for tilted ladies

This giveaway is closed, thank you for entering!

Let me warn you, this post is about menstrual supplies!

Still with me? As you might remember from my previous TMI posts about finding products that keep me safe from Toxic Shock Syndrome* during my period, a major obstacle for me is my tilted cervix which makes menstrual cups like the DivaCup impossible. But I have sooo wanted to get in on the reusable cup action despite my tilted cervix. How awesome would it be not to have to worry about carrying supplies around during Happy Fun Week? Instead, you just dump the contents of the cup, wipe it out, put it back in and go - for up to 12 hours!

Well, now I can! Softcup, which has made disposable menstrual cups for years, now makes a Reusable Softcup! I am so excited about this because Softcup has been the only cup I can use with my particular anatomy. Take a look at the Softcup shape:

Note how the "cup" part of SoftCup is made of thin membrane

The Softcup is made of a thin flexible material in the cup, almost like plastic wrap, as opposed to the traditional menstrual cup shape, which is inflexible:

A traditional reusable menstrual cup shape
photo By menstruationstasse.net

As you can imagine, the traditional cone shape doesn't work well at a 45 degree angle (which is how it sits on my cervix).

The Softcup, however, works great for a tilted cervix!

About a month ago I took 3 days of Pilates instructor training. As I am sure you are aware, Pilates/Yoga pants are not the kind of pants you can hide a pad under. I had to wear specific undergarments to avoid pantyline, if you know what I mean. And forget about pockets for going to the bathroom! I had no pockets in which to put a tampon, and we were all in one big room with our belongings in cubbies right out in the open, so no running to my purse to grab something and crossing the room again with a tampon in hand (there were men training with us as well).

Softcup was a lifesaver in this situation! I just went to the facilities, dumped out the Softcup, and put it back in. Easy.

Right now, the reusable Softcup can only be purchased online through Softcup.com or at local Fred Meyer stores (we don't have these stores in North Texas, unfortunately). If you'd like to see reusable Softcup locally, please talk to your local drug store and grocers!

This giveaway is closed, thank you for entering!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

 * Read more about Toxic Shock Syndrom at You ARE Loved, a nonprofit dedicated to spreading TSS awareness and prevention.

NOTE: I was given a few free reusable Softcups and a little bag to keep them in, in exchange for this review. I promptly bought more with my own money. All opinions are my own.

#clothdiapers: GoGreen Champ vs BumGenius elastic replacement

It's not even Thursday and I'm talking cloth diapers! I had to post because I have some interesting info for cloth diaper pros: last night I found one major differences between my favorite cloth diapers, the GoGreen Champ and the BumGenius 4.0 One-Size. As you may or may not remember, I've been cloth diapering now for a little over 2 years, and during the last year I've had two babies in cloth diapers simultaneously. This is, of course, quite a beating on the diapers - the PUL, the hook and loop, and the elastic. Fortunately, both these brands of diapers have held up great as far as PUL. I have had to replace all the hook and loop on the BumGenius (which were fully 2 years old or more), but it really wasn't too difficult - just time-consuming.

Minor differences first: for a while, the GoGreen Champ was one of my favorite diapers because a) they have double leg gussets, and b) they were my first diapers with snaps. Now that I've started acquiring some BumGenius snaps, though, I find that the BG snaps are actually less intimidating to childcare/daycare/relatives than the typical cloth diaper snaps because there are only 2 snaps instead of 3, and they are placed in a location on the diaper that is similar to hook and loop placement (and therefore, similar to disposables). That's definitely a score in favor of the BumGenius - snaps last longer than hook and loop and I can bring them to childcare/Mother's Day Out. However, the two diaper brands were still on pretty much equal footing until last night.

BumGenius 4.0,
elastic easily accessible

Here is what swung the pendulum for me: GoGreen Champ diapers have the leg elastic literally sewn into the leg. As in, you cannot replace the leg elastic because there is stitching through the elastic, inside the casing. This is kind of a game changer for anyone who plans to use the diapers for more than 2 years. After 2 years, elastic on pretty much any cloth diaper loses it's elasticity and the legs of your diapers will start to gape and therefore leak. When BumGenius released the 4.0 diaper, they made the leg elastic easily accessible without having to even open a seam. You just snip the old and sew on the new. I've done several replacements on BG 4.0's and it's a breeze! FuzziBunz are even easier, if you're interested.

I did manage to sew new elastic over top of the old elastic on the GoGreen Champ, but it's a messy job and isn't seamless in any sense of the word. It yielded some bumpiness that I don't love. You also have to cut through the PUL casing around the legs, which is going to cause some leakage and eventually will render the diapers unusable. This was a temporary solution for me and I would not recommend it. What most people would have to do is probably actually throw out a GoGreen Champ diaper when the leg elastic goes, or sell the used diaper to someone who wants to try and go through the trouble of adding new elastic.

The inner double leg gussets on the GoGreen Champ, while nice for containing poop, are another replacement issue. You can't replace the leg gusset elastic either without damaging the PUL. Now that I've rigged a temporary replacement of the leg elastic, the inner leg gusset is much more saggy than the legs. All kinds of weirdness in fit now, and the leg gussets are rendered pretty much useless.

In conclusion, I used to recommend GoGreen Champ on equal, or sometimes better, footing than the BumGenius 4.0 but now I definitely won't.

Have you found some way to replace the leg elastic on your GoGreen Champ? If so, I'd love to hear about it and be able to retract this post! It's a great diaper otherwise.


NOTE: Obviously, I did not receive any free product in exchange for the mention of these brands and diapers. As you know, I do write for the CottonBabies blog, which I choose to do because I love and believe in their products.

Shaklee Get Clean Household Giveaway

This giveaway is now closed, congratulations to Lisa H, who is our winner!

Welcome to the Summer Celebration Giveaway Hop, hosted by Happy Mothering and Organic Mama through the Green Moms Network! As part of this fabulous event, a group of bloggers is each offering an eco-friendly giveaway worth $25 or more on their blogs!
After you finish entering my giveaway, be sure to visit the other participating blogs, which are listed below the Rafflecopter form. Good luck everyone!
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Now for a great product I can't wait to tell you about!

I've heard about Shaklee products for years, how green the company is, how they sell directly through their biggest fans rather than in stores, and most importantly: how well the products work. Recently, my friend Jessica from Healthy Life, Happy Life contacted me to let me know that she had signed on to be a Shaklee distributor and educator. Her goal is also to become a resource for people like you and I on topics such as green cleaning and living more healthfully. She is available on the Healthy Life, Healthy Life Facebook page and via her blog Healthy Life, Happy Life.

Jessica sent me Shaklee Basic H2 Organic Super Cleaning Concentrate to sample.
Basic H2: This little 16 oz bottle creates an unbelievable 48 gallons of super-safe, really powerful, all purpose cleaner. We challenge you to use it up any time soon to clean everything from spilled milk, to bug guts on the window, to splattered spaghetti sauce.

This tiny sample made an entire bottle of Basic H!

I used Basic H all day, every day! My worst problem is always our horrible white (white?! really, whoever-built-this-kitchen?! WHY?) stovetop. Which also does not work half the time, but that is another blog post.

Get this: I DID NOT HAVE TO SCRUB AT ALL! I just sprayed it on, waited about 5 minutes, and wiped off with a microfiber cloth. That. Is. Amazing. I usually have to bust out the baking soda in combination with my homemade all purpose cleaner.

Even better, Basic H is extremely cost effective because it is concentrated. Check out this chart Jessica sent me:

And, of course, I would NOT recommend bringing the toxins from any of these other brands into your home. Every product from Shaklee meets their standards of Always Safe, Always Works, Always Green! 

Today I'm excited to be giving away the following:

• 16 oz. bottle of Basic H2 Organic Super Cleaning Concentrate
• 9 oz. Scour Off Heavy Duty Paste (you can even clean your oven with it!)
• 3 pack of spray bottles (for mixing your Basic H concentrate)

Make sure you've given me your email address, either in the comments or via Rafflecopter.

Good luck, and if you don't win, don't forget you can still buy these fabulous products online from Jessica at Healthy Life, Happy Life!

a Rafflecopter giveaway
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Now it's time to win MORE prizes from eco-friendly bloggers! Visit them here:

7 Quick Takes Friday #42

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I've got a great deal to remind you about, a random product that I love, and a new idea to share, so if you don't mind, I'd like to do that in today's post instead of doing separate posts later.

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A few months back, I did a post about Food On The Table meal planning system which includes an online app and an iPhone app. Just wanted to let you know that the Premium plan is still FREE if you use the code "SUMMERFREE" to sign up!

--- 3---

I really, really want to tell you all about this new type of Pilates I have discovered recently using LaGree fitness machines. Is anyone familiar with it? These machines allow you to pretty much work every single muscle in your entire body in a low-impact 50 minute session. Apparently I am the last to know about this, but it gives such a great workout. I did a class on Tuesday and I am still sore today. It is also SUPER EXPENSIVE. But, I am considering becoming an instructor. Am I crazy? I thought it might be a good way to work out and earn extra money. I really encourage you to check out the link to the machines and watch some of the videos. I am not getting paid to talk about this. I just value your feedback and wanted to share my discovery. Tell me if I am crazy to consider being an instructor??

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I have one more random product mention that I'm not getting paid to promote but I just have to tell you about:

This clock has totally saved our mornings - Little Sir was getting up and coming into our room every morning at 5:30am-6:30am to crawl in bed and play with our iPhones or iPad or just bounce around being crazy. Gah! Now that we have this magical clock, we tell him "do not come into Mommy and Daddy's room until the clock is green" and he WAITS! It is amazing. We set it for 7am. He is actually sleeping past 7am some days because he wakes up at 6:30am, can't leave the room, and falls back asleep! I love this clock.

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Little Sir is still potty learning but this week he started self-initiating! He TELLS me when he has to pee! He is still pooping in his undies, though :-( If you would love to hear all the sordid details of our potty learning journey, you can read my potty post on CottonBabies blog.

--- 6 ---

It's June already, but even more exciting - 4th of July is coming up! One of our very favorite things to do in this area is attend the Addison Kaboom Town fireworks display. I will be talking a lot more about this in the next month or so, but I just wanted to let all my local folks know so you can put it on your calendars - July 3rd!

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I will be updating about my garden tomorrow, so check it out!



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Well that's all for this week, be sure to visit Conversion Diary for links to more 7 Quick Takes Fridays.