Week 2 - January 8 - 14, 2012 {#Mamatography}

Well, I can't believe I've made it to the second week! I seem to always have good intentions when I start this type of thing. Unfortunately, when I miss a day or two, I seem to give up. I know there are other "take a picture a day for a year" memes out there, but I chose this one for a couple of reasons: 1) I love reading Diary of a First Child. 2) The guidelines of Mamatography are very laid back, making it feel less of an obligation and more of a fun experiment. The one thing that really hooked me was this from the Mamatography info post:

"If things happen and you can’t participate for a while, that’s fine – just start up again when you can."

Yay For Clean Dishes!

Day 8 (1/8/12)

Yeah, I was lazy. The only thing I did that was productive all day. Well, I made dinner, too, but it shouldn't count. I just opened a jar of spaghetti sauce, then added a few herbs and the leftover meatloaf from the night before. Oh, and cooked some pasta.

I Wear My Sunglasses at Night

Day 9 (1/9/12)

I saw the moon and just had to take a picture! I love how the clouds give a smoky, mysterious feel to the photo. And the corona is so bright! It was easier to see the line between the moon and the corona circling it with the naked eye than through the lens on my camera. One of these days I'll learn how to take photos that look the same as how I see them.

Mustache Man!

 Day 10 (1/10/12)

When my oldest was little, he called these beans. Well, actually, he still does (and so do I!) Little Guy, who seems to have a different way of looking at everything, has decided that they are not beans. They are most definitely mustaches, instead. Just after this picture was taken, my oldest came up and asked Little Guy what he was doing with the "bean". He got an earful and I don't think he'll be calling them anything but "mustaches" around Little Guy again!!

Zzzz...

Day 11 (1/11/12)

This hasn't happened... ever! He said, "Mama, please be quiet. I need a rest. I'm in a grumpy mood." Once I got over my shock, I began to wonder if he might be getting sick. Nope. Wouldn't it be cool if he was just learning to recognize his  need for sleep AND deciding to follow it?!

"Snot's On!"

Day 12 (1/12/12)

I've taken it upon myself to develop a recipe for a cotton play dough. I want something that is pliable like dough, but fuzzy like cotton balls. This was my first (failed) attempt. I wound up with a pot full of snotty cotton. ICK!

I added a bunch of flour until it was dough-ish, and let the kids have their fun with it.

Day 13 (1/13/12)

Yeah. Completely forgot to take the camera out all day.

Uh-Oh!

Day 14 (1/14/12)

We finally got some snow! This was Little Guy's first snowball fight. As you can see, the mittens are way too big for for him (the site I got them from said they fit ages 2-5. Those things are just a little too small for me to wear!) Anyway, my oldest showed him how to take his hands and push the snow together to pack it into a snowball-like formation. Pretty cool big brother, huh?











So, what did your week look like? If you'd like to join me on this endeavor, just click on the Mamatography button at the top of this post to learn more. I'll be linking this post at Diary of a First Child's Week 2 Mamatography Linky when it's posted on Wednesday (1/18), so if you'd like to see more photos you should head over!

I Don't Do New Year's Resolutions

This time of year, I see tons of posts, news articles, and commercials that all revolve around New Year's Resolutions. I don't play into that one. For me, creating a list of things that I resolve to do to change myself is just a set-up for failure. Yes, there are ways to make it easier, such as creating large goals and then listing small goals that work as stepping stones toward the main thing you want to change. But, with me, if I miss out on a deadline for one of those goals - large or small - I tend to give up.

That doesn't mean that I let January 1st go by just like every other day on the calendar. Instead, I like to think of the new year as a clean slate. Right now, I am working hard to get my home in order. The place is a mess. If you've been reading this blog for a while, you'll know that my husband likes finding stuff that people throw out that is still usable. Now, I have absolutely no problem using others' trash. BUT, when he keeps bringing home stuff that we really have no use for, it's not OK. Every inch of storage space we have is filled with things like extra sheets, sets of flatware, brand new & still wrapped VHS tapes (we don't even have a VCR!), small bookshelves... he even has a crib mattress in a closet - we co-sleep!

He's not the only one with a problem. I save jars, cardboard boxes, plastic containers, etc. These are things that I just know will be useful for crafting, gift-giving, or just plain reusing. But do I really need 10 empty spaghetti sauce jars? Or a stack of the fronts of pasts boxes (they have those little windows and I plan , someday, create picture frames from them)? I managed to clean out about 1/3 of these items over the holiday as packaging for gifts, but that barely touched on what needs to be done.

I want to mark the new year with a little more space in our home. I don't want to have to look for a place to put things that won't cause an avalanche of junk to cascade onto the floor. I also want to be able to clean more effectively. I haven't cleaned the entire kitchen floor in one session since I went into nesting mode when I was pregnant with little guy. I can't right now - I have to move boxes of books and paperwork from point A to point B to clean under them, wait for it to dry, then move them back. By that time, something else needs to be done, like make dinner or put Little Guy down for a nap. So, the next few days are all about purging and scrubbing.

I'm also trying to spend more time with Little Guy. He's been a real nightmare to be around lately. I'm really hoping that some serious one-on-one time in which we work together to complete a project will help get us back in tune with one another. He's also been trying to teach himself how to read, so we need to spend more time reading books with simple words together. I'm not waiting until January 1st to turn over a new parenting leaf, though. Spending quality time with my kid shouldn't be something that I need to have a goal set to motivate me into doing. I do, however, want to start that new calendar with new priorities, especially one that is as important as spending time with my kids.

So, in a year's time, I won't be posting about all of the resolutions that I've failed to keep. I do hope to be posting about the latest adventure that I had with my kids or the most recent piece of uselessness that I managed to donate to charity.



Do you do resolutions? Why or why not?

MY Post About Having a Three-Year-Old

Now, I keep reading posts by moms of three-year-olds that say their kids have suddenly morphed from sweet little toddlers into bratty little princes & princesses who are moody and demanding. Yep. I have to concur with these moms - Little Guy is the same. I've really been questioning whether I'm raising a brat or just a strong-willed and independent little boy. The kid seems to create his own tantrum situations.

"I not listen to YOU!"

 Yesterday, he woke up and demanded cake for breakfast. Now, first of all, I'm not giving him cake first thing in the morning and he knows it. Sugary goodness turns him into a bitter devil. Second, we didn't even have cake - haven't had any since October, in fact. I pointed out that we don't have cake (because the "no, you have to eat something healthy" was just asking for a tantrum), in hopes that he'd see how his request would be impossible to fulfill. Tantrum ensued anyway. And his tantrums are no longer just a toddler kicking and screaming for a few minutes before he's ready for a hug. Uh-uh. Now, they entail long periods of crying about unfairness and how I don't like him anymore. They also have toy-throwing, wall-punching, and all kinds of other lovely behavior. I end up putting him onto the bed and blocking his way off because I just won't put up with that shit. Sometimes he'll go on for an HOUR about something like I got him milk to drink rather than the juice that he telepathically told me he changed his mind about while I was pouring the milk he requested.

I don't know what to do anymore. I have read and read on how others deal with this kind of behavior (Aha! Parenting has some great articles) , but the ideas just repeatedly backfire. He's a smart little one and, while a new approach will work the first time, he sees through it the second time. I'm finally getting him to say his feelings ("I'm very, very ANGRY!!!") so I can mimic them back to show him I understand. But it's not helping - instead of yelling and screaming about the problem, he just yells and screams about his emotions.

My husband isn't helping, either. Due to some physical and mental problems, he's not spending enough time with Little Guy to even be able to understand his speech. When he is around, he gives in to the demands just to avoid the tantrums. This means that Little Guy is "the boss of Daddy" and he sure throws his weight around! When my husband just cannot give in, such as a situation like the cake one or something that is dangerous, he goes from weak-willed Daddy to the guy who's threatening to spank. Especially when Little Guy is hitting (yeah - THAT makes sense!) Then Dad leaves because "I can't deal with this anymore." UGH!

The only thing I can think of doing differently is spending more one-on-one time with him. I thought that we already did a lot of it. But, now that I stand back and evaluate our time together, we don't. We might be in the same room, but we are both doing different things. He'll be playing with his cars while I hit up Facebook for the latest news. Not really quality time.

I have a ton of projects that I want to do with him (check out my Pinterest Kids' Crafts and Recipes boards!) but I really need to get my house in order first. So, I've been working on getting our house cleaned out and organized. I've been asking him to help me, which he eagerly agrees to do. Unfortunately, he will help for only a few minutes - then he's into things he knows he should not be playing with, running into the bathroom and tossing anything he can get his hands on into the toilet, or running into my oldest's room and messing with his stuff (our doors don't close correctly, thanks to shoddy carpentry.) After five or ten minutes of cleaning, we end up throwing in the towel for a little while. It just feels like an uphill battle right now and I'm becoming disheartened and frustrated. I'm going to keep up with this, though, because I'm pretty sure that the novelty of it will wear off and he'll (eventually) be able to focus on our "Important Jobs" that I need his expert help to complete.

This kid is busy. He's smart and can see through plans and, I swear, tries to foil them just for the heck of it. He really wants to be helpful and spend quality time together - it's just that he's still at that self-centered age and wants the best for himself first. And, thanks to Daddy, he thinks that flipping out and throwing a huge tantrum is the way to get those things. I suspect that he leans toward the ADD side due to his inability to do anything for more than a few minutes - even the things he LOVES to do. He's got a great sense of self and takes pride in anything he does - especially when he doesn't need help to do it.

Does anyone have any suggestions for me? I don't do rewards for a good job - I want him to learn to do good things because he will feel good inside, not so he can get a sticker or piece of candy. He is often congratulated when he obviously struggles with something and overcomes it, whether it is getting his pants on by himself or helping me do the dishes without getting down off the chair and running around the kitchen getting into everything. He knows the rules that are unchanging (mainly safety ones) and the rules that can be bent (the "harmony ones" that help us all live together.)  

Outings Can Be Scary When Potty Training! {Giveaway! (12/17) US}

Sponsored by Tomoson.com Little Guy has been learning how to use the potty since the beginning of summer. He's only had a handful of accidents at home since we just let him run around without pants on all day. When he began learning to use the potty, I bought one small package of Pull-Ups (I know... guilty) to use. Those Pull-Ups ran out about a month ago and, even though it's tempting, I will not buy any more. That means that I need to be prepared for accidents while we're away from home. I have a plastic bag with a clean pair of pants, underwear, socks, and shoes in it that I lug around wherever we go. I didn't need to use it until last week's trip to the grocery store.

It seems that my husband shared raisins with Little Guy the night before. Lots of raisins. (How many of you just thought, "Oh no!"?) So, yeah... Now, I should have known something was up when he complained that his tummy hurt as we were walking to the bus stop. He only complains about "owies" when he really has them. We were almost there, so I told him that I'd rub his tummy while we waited for the bus. He seemed fine by the time the bus arrived and I forgot all about his tummy ache.

Well, the inevitable happened -  halfway through shopping, I start to smell something. Little Guy was walking funny. And he was unusually quiet - not running around trying to toss everything he could get his hands on into the cart. I just knew... Our Kroger does not have public restrooms, so I had to find an employee to show us the way to the "secret" bathroom in the back. I went through THREE people who refused to let us use the restroom! I had to make my way to the customer service desk, stand in line, and ask the manager. He started to shake his head, too. I threatened to clean a poopy little boy right there at the desk if he didn't show us to the restroom. That got him moving!

We got to the bathroom just as Little Guy's plastic pants began to leak - JUST in time! I looked around for paper towels that I could wet to clean him up and there weren't any (aren't employees - especially those working around food, supposed to wash their hands?!) There was only half a roll of that one-ply, see-through toilet paper. I started to dig through my bag. Band-aids, no. Camera, no. Crayons, no. Extra hat.... um, no. Then I saw it - I swear it had a heavenly glow surrounding it!

A few days earlier, I received two sample packs of QwikShower disposable washcloths. I tossed one of them into the bag and gave the other to my oldest to try out. I had planned on checking them out when I had a little extra time. I forgot and I am so glad! After undressing my poor little one, I opened up the package. I was expecting that fake lemony smell that wet wipes tend to have, but was surprised that it smelled really good! The wipe was about 10" X 12" and was thick enough that I knew it wasn't going to bleed through as I cleaned him up. I didn't think that just one was going to do the job very well, but it did. By the time we left the bathroom, Little Guy was clean and smelling fresh! (I let hubby deal with the laundry part after we got home!)

I plan on ordering a few more (you can get 10 for only $7) to carry around with us. After that experience, I don't want that feeling of dread at not having anything to clean him up with again! Plus, the scent is one that I know will appeal to my oldest. They'll be nice for him to toss into his bag for track or to use on those rare mornings when he wakes up just in time to get dressed and catch the bus. No one wants a nickname like "Stinky Kid" in high school!

You can buy your own QwikShower wipes at their online store - they will even send you a single-wipe sample for just $1 so you can try it out to see if you like it before buying more. QwikShower also has fundraising and affiliate programs, where they partner with PTA's, athletic booster clubs, and even bloggers. The organization (or blogger) will receive 10% of all proceeds from sales. You can learn more HERE, or contact Harvey via email.

Would you like a chance to win a 6-pack of QwikShower wipes to try out for yourself? Enter in the Rafflecopter form below!

Two More Winners! {Mayesa & Natural House}

Sorry that I keep getting backed up on choosing winners. It's just been one of those weeks... just like last week... and the week before. Ugh! I sure hope things calm down around here soon!

Anyway, I have two new winners to announce! Carole is the winner of the 6-pack of Mayesa Healthy Chocolate Beverages and Amanda H. won the 30-Day Supply of Cleaning Products from Natural House.
They will both be emailed and have 48 hours to get in touch with me before I have to choose new winners.

Congratulations to both

Carole and Amanda!!!

Oh, and don't forget that today is the last chance you will have to enter to WIN your choice of a hardcover children's book: Howard B. Wigglebottom from the We Do Listen Foundation. Please show some support for this great non-profit and enter to win!

And, tomorrow, the giveaway for Algebrator Software will end. I'm telling you - if you have a child who will be learning any kind of higher mathematics in the next few years (or if you're planning on going back to school!), you're going to want to enter. This is not a subscription service - you get to keep the software forever!

Probiotics for Your TOILET?! {And a #Giveaway! (12/2) US}

Sponsored by Tomoson.com

When I heard about Natural House's non-toxic household cleaners, I have to tell you I was intrigued. First, there were the names of their products: Sinky, Flushy, and Trashy. Hmm... weird, but what's in a name, right? Next, I wondered how on earth would probiotics help with cleaning. Well, it only took a few minutes to watch this video to see and understand. The idea seems so simple to me now. Why did no one think of this before?!


Yeah, kind of a "DUH!" moment for me! LOL

So, I gave them a try. Hubby, who is in charge of cleaning the bathroom (hey, I'm the only girl in a house full of guys - ICK!), was handed the package of four Flushy probiotic packets. He doesn't do well with instructions, so I was interested to see what he'd do. Oh, come on! I have to find some form on entertainment, don't I? I don't get out much... Anyway, the bag has instructions that are so easy, even Little Guy could have figured them out - there are pictures and words! Hubby looked at the pictures. LOL! He dropped the packet into the toilet, let it foam for about 15 minutes, then used the brush to scrub the inside of the bowl. He asked me, kind of worried, if he should flush the toilet or not. Um... yeah. While we didn't notice a difference right away, other than a sparkling clean toilet bowl, we did find a NOTICEABLE difference in the morning. Our bathroom no longer had that lingering truck stop bathroom odor anymore. I knew it was the toilet giving it off, but we just couldn't figure out where it was coming from. Must have been under the rim. Those little probiotics went at it and I no longer have to hold my breath when I go in the bathroom! YAY!

I have a huge complaint about dirty dishes in this house. People (Hubby and my oldest, to be exact) have a nasty habit of leaving a bite or two of food in their bowls and on their plates when they put them into the sink. Then, they rinse the dish off (at least they do that!) Well, little bits of cereal, cookie crumbs, and veggies end up getting washed down the drain. Add grease that inevitably ends up in the pipes when I wash pans. We always have had a slow drain and it will clog at least once every week or so. I refuse to pour toxic drain cleaner down there, so I've been hitting the clogs with baking soda and vinegar and following with a boiling water chaser. It works - kinda. Well, after just two weekly uses of Sinky, my drains are fast and we haven't had a clog! Additionally, my kitchen smells better, too. You know how clogged drains have that nasty, lingering odor? Well, I must have just gotten used to it - not a good thing! The steps leading to our apartment land visitors right in the middle of my kitchen. It never occurred to me that they were getting nasty sink odors as a first impression. It didn't until someone mentioned how nice it smelled in our apartment the other day. (Can you say "embarrassed" and "relieved" at the same time?!)

Finally, there's Trashy. He's my oldest's new cleaning friend, since he's the garbage hauler around here. Now, since we try to recycle, reuse, and compost as much as possible, our trash can go many days without needing to be taken out. We've tried using a smaller trashcan, but it leads to people trying to "make baskets" and making huge messes everywhere (that they, then, pretend they didn't notice and leave for Mom to step in at 2am on her way to the bathroom!) We've tried a lid, but that just concentrates the odor until it's released in one big stink cloud all at once when the trashcan is opened. I handed over the spray bottle of Trashy to my son and instructed him to give the can two sprays before he put the bag in, then two more inside the garbage bag. I wanted those little probiotics all over my trash. It worked wonders - no more stinky garbage!I can imagine using this in diaper pails and outdoor trash cans, too. In fact, I may just try it out on the dumpster when the weather gets warm again. When we get just the right breeze in the summertime, I have to close all of the windows or risk passing out from the terrible smell of that dumpster. I'll bet, if I spray the interior of that dumpster once a week, after the garbage truck comes by, I could probably keep that smell in check - nd send lots of little probiotics to the landfill to get working!

Natural House uses all plant-based ingredients that are eco-friendly and biodegradable. I really like knowing that they are working long after I toss my cleaning rags under the sink - an entire week, in fact! How's that for the biggest house-cleaning procrastinator in the world? And, I like to think that I'm doing a little extra long after the sink has been rinsed, the toilet flushed, and the trash has been taken out. Think of the probiotics that are being sent into the sewage system in the water. And what about the ones that are on my trash bag? If you can imagine more than half the households in just the U.S. using Natural House products, those probiotics could even turn around many of our polluted areas! Just by tossing a simple little packet into the sink and toilet once a week and spraying the trash can before putting in a new bag, I know that odors are controlled and those areas of my home are safer for my family (especially that little 3 year-old who loves touching things then sticking his fingers into his mouth!)

If you'd like to try out this revolutionary new cleaning products for yourself, you can purchase them directly through Natural House's Web site or on Amazon (great deal if you've go free shipping!) You could also enter to WIN A ONE-MONTH SUPPLY OF ALL THREE PRODUCTS! Just enter on the Rafflecopter form below!

*I've had problems with the Rafflecopter form loading properly on my homepage. It was suggested that I put in a page break before the form, so that's what I'm trying here. If you don't see the form, PLEASE just click on the title of this post and it should show up for you. If not, leave a comment on this post or get in touch with me on my Contact Me form so I can fix it!

The Worst Laundry Day EVER!

(Photo by missycaulk)

 We've all seen the commercial. An 8-year-old kid, decked out in full body armor, playing full-contact football. He gets the ball and runs it to the end zone for a touchdown... just before a gaggle of other 8-year-olds in the other team's uniform tackle him... in a mud puddle. Next scene: Mom, in her perfectly clean laundry room, sun shining in through the window (where you can see little Johnny passing the football with dad outside). She picks up the uniform, covered in mud and grass stains. She's smiling and shaking her head (Boys will be boys!) She reaches (without looking, I might add) for the one product she knows will clean this mess up with very little work on her part. She merely pours on Super Stain-Lifting Name Brand Gel-Like Magic Stuff on the stains and they disappear in front of our very eyes. (If you're perceptive, you'll see the minuscule writing that mentions how you need to wait 30 minutes and scrub like hell to get these results.) Mom puts the uniform into the washing machine and adds her Super Stain-Lifting Name Brand Detergent, then goes and takes the guys some snacks.

Sometimes I have to ask myself why I don't use those magical products. This past Saturday's cross country meet was at our state park. Because it is "cross country", they didn't use the nicely paved trails for their runs. Nope - someone at the park got out the giant tractor mower and cut paths among the tall grasses for a 5k course. Did they think about the rain and plan the course to go through the thickest, nastiest muddy places? And we're not talking about the average mud. This entire area is boggy wetlands. The mud is stinky and black (some is even green!) It sticks to and sinks into everything. Plus there are burrs of every kind from all of the native wildflowers in the area. There were kids running in toward the finish line carrying a shoe, some even were completely missing one or both shoes! From what I understand, runners were calling one particular stretch of the course "Glue Curve" because they just couldn't run it. My son said that he stopped counting the shoes that were stuck in the mud when he got to 20 - and there were tons more.

One of the tamer muddy areas. The kid in red & white on the left is my oldest. See those shoes? (His teammate in front of him is wearing fluorescent orange shoes!)

THIS is what they're supposed to look like!

After a day of cheering on whatever kid who was running past wearing a "Monroe" jersey, I headed over to where the other parents of out high school cross country team was sitting. The mud really didn't bother me until one mom said, "Oh, no! I'm going to be scrubbing these clothes and shoes for the rest of the night so they'll be ready for the meet on Tuesday!" Uh-oh... I don't use super laundry stuff. I have my homemade stuff - basically washing soda, borax, and a bar of grated up Ivory. Oh, and a scrub brush. I rarely use a washing machine. It costs a dollar per load and is old - the thing uses gallon upon gallon of water and I suspect the landlord has it draining into the sewer-line that goes directly to the river (eventually out to Lake Erie.) So, we've figured out a way to do a full load of laundry using about 7 gallons of water. That is, the "average" load with peed in Little Guy pants, shirts with a little drip of last night's dinner, socks, etc. Muddy cross country clothes, I've found, take a LOT more water.

Sure would have been easier with this stuff! (Photo by Man vyi)

First, rinse the big chunks of mud off of everything. Now, I'm not sure of the coach's reasoning, but he issued a sweat suit to my kid that might fit him when he's 18. The pants are (no kidding) 8 inches too long and about 6 inches too big around the waist. The jacket hangs down almost to his knees. I took the waist of the shorts in because I didn't want my kid having to hold them up as he ran 3 miles. The jersey was also sewn a little so the armpits aren't below his waist. What does this all mean in terms of laundry? My kid, not to be one to waste time, decided not to roll up his pant legs. Nope. He walked around before and after his race with the bottom 8" of those pant legs under his muddy shoes. The mud was part of the weaving of the fabric. The shoes, themselves, are mesh, and had every crevice filled with mud. His shorts and (white!) jersey had stripes of mud going up the back of them.

First time around - the hunks of mud on his back come next time around...

I don't know how many gallons of water I wasted just rinsing the bigger hunks of mud out. Then, I got out the scrub brush and made a mixture of soda and borax for the stains. Man, was I wishing for some of that spray-on gel stuff on the commercial! I scrubbed and scrubbed and scrubbed. I got most of it, but there were some spots that just refused to budge. I began wondering if these were left over from last year's wearer. I did the same with the shoes. Every time I rinsed them to see if I had managed to get all of the mud out, the water kept turning black. Back to it. after a solid hour of scrubbing just 4 articles of clothing and a pair of shoes, I gave in. I was using too much water... I sent my kid down to the store to get some quarters. My friend lent us one of her Super-Duper Stain Release Name Brand Packets of detergent and we tossed all into the washer. They came out kind of clean. At least the places that you really noticed were clean. The legs of the pants have faint dark spots and there are a few spots of mud on the jersey, but good enough for me. The shoes even came clean. Well, at least I know that all of the dirt will be heading back to the wetlands... eventually. Right?

Guess I should be thankful that his entire uniform isn't WHITE!

I Like to Trust My Immune System, BUT... {#Rafflecopter #Giveaway}

Sponsored by Tomoson.com I am a firm believer in "what doesn't kill you only makes you stronger" when it comes to germs. I really think that allowing the body to come into contact with potential illnesses can help the immune system create a barrier to these germs. Think about all of the harmful bacteria and viruses we probably come into contact with everyday and don't get sick from. That's because our immune systems are working full-force to protect us. Honestly think of all the times you didn't wash your hands before popping something into your mouth. How many times have you applied the "five-second rule"? And it's even worse with our kids. We all have to admit that we don't know about 90% of times that they've touched nasty things and then stuck their hands into their mouths. Yet, how often do they really get sick?

Now for the big "BUT"... As many of you know, Little Guy has only received two shots ever. And, while I'm sticking to my guns on this, I don't want to see him get sick, either. There are times when we head somewhere and there are toys for kids to play with. The library, doctor's office, even out health food store all have a nice little collection of toys that kids of all ages and healthiness play with. I have watched with a flipping stomach as one little girl with a nasty cough and green boogers chewed on a block that my son immediately picked up to play with the second she dropped it. Yeah - horrors! Even after I rushed over and washed his hands and the block, I can't be sure he didn't have those hands near his mouth first. And what if I hadn't even noticed what had happened?

Then there's my husband. He has COPD. He's got an artificial heart valve. He has a ton of other little things wrong with him that lead up to a greatly lowered immunity to germs. A simple virus to most people can become pneumonia or something worse for him in the blink of an eye. And, with all of these health-related problems come visits to doctors. he has at least one appointment a week. He goes in, grabs the pen that every other patient has touched to sign in, sits in the same waiting room chairs as everyone else, reads the same magazines... I wonder how many of the patients who were there before him were ill? How many of them actually covered their mouths with the crook of their arms when they coughed or sneezed? And how many just used their hands and then picked up the same Reader's Digest my husband is now holding? Oh, and then he comes home and picks up Little Guy or gets him something to eat, or... Well, you get the picture.

So, with cold and flu season (and all the other little illnesses that float around) coming soon, I feel it's time to do a little more than keep a sharp eye out for snotty toys and sick patients. I received a sample of Prefense to try out and, boy, am I glad. I think my favorite thing about it is that just one applications can last all day - through TEN hand-washings! This means that I can put some on Little Guy's hands before we leave for our adventures and not really have to worry about him touching things and then sticking his fingers in his mouth. I can remind my oldest to use a squirt of the foamy hand sanitizer and he can safely share pencils, hit the bathrooms, and eat lunch without washing his hands (you know he doesn't!) And hubby can just apply the 100% alcohol-free sanitizer as he's getting ready to leave for yet another doctor's appointment. They're all going to keep from picking germs up on their hands throughout the day.

According to the Prefense Web site, the hand sanitizer is non-toxic and perfectly safe for children. Because it is alcohol-free, there are two benefits that you won't see in other hand sanitizer brands: 1) Your skin won't be absorbing large amounts of alcohol repeatedly throughout the day, 2) The silica will actually work to soften your hands and the bonding film that sticks to your skin will hold moisture in.Oh, and Prefense is scented with essential oils, you don't get that nasty "hospital smell" that follows you around all day. Prefense was tested by Iowa State University and its Institute for Physical Research and Technology’s Company Assistance group, which proved that the product's anti-pathogen properties last a full 24 hours.  Additionally, Prefense has been tested against different strains of Staph (including MRSA) and H1N1.

Although I feel that my family's immune systems need to work for themselves, there are times when a little extra defense will go a long way. While we will not use this every day, I can rest easy knowing that I can try to prevent my loved ones from becoming ill when "germ season" is at its peak. 

If you'd like to purchase a bottle of Prefense (and they now have wipes, too!), you can visit their online store HERE. It is available on Amazon.com, too - a great deal if you get free shipping through Prime! And, finally, you can check out Prefense's store locator if you'd prefer to buy it locally.


You can also connect with Prefense on social media sites. Check out Facebook and Twitter and stay up-to-date on deals and even giveaways!

 
 
Now, how would you like to win an 8oz. bottle of Prefense for your own family? That's 640 applications! Just complete the mandatoyr (first) entry in the Rafflecopter form below. If you'd like extra entries, go ahead and complete any of the other entries you'd like. Don't forget to read the important information at the bottom of the entry form!!!

Good luck!



I received one or more of the products mentioned above for free using Tomoson.com. Regardless, I only recommend products or services I use personally and believe will be good for my readers.

Every Cleaning Recipe You'll Ever Need! {#Rafflecopter #GIVEAWAY!}

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 Have you heard of The Peaceful Housewife yet? I met Jenny around March of this year, I think it was during Code Name: Mama's March of Kindness meme. Jenny was blogging about the same things that I was interested in, mainly: greening your home and parenting peacefully. She opened her online store, The Peaceful Housewife, soon after we "met" and I was excited to do a review and gift certificate giveaway with her to spread the word. Her items are wonderful - tons of homemade cleaning products, created with safe and natural ingredients.

Jenny - The Peaceful Housewife

Recently, Jenny published an eBook containing all of her recipes along with cleaning tips. She's included basic laundry detergent and dish soap recipes. Then she added some that I didn't think you could make at home: dishwasher detergent, brass cleaner, and even one for those oh-so-convenient disinfecting wipes! Her tips include how to get stubborn stains from clothes and how to replace chemical-laden carpet shampoo with a non-toxic version.

The book is very easy to read, all of the steps are laid out perfectly. I'd even give it to my husband to make some of these recipes and expect the results to come out perfectly (that's saying a LOT!) I am so thankful to Jenny for sending me this book and I know that, when I shop next, I'll be picking up lots of vinegar, baking soda, and some great-smelling essential oils!




You can buy the book for a mere $3 by heading to her online store. You will also find a ton of great cleaning products for amazingly low prices. For instance, this month's "Scent of the Month" is Apple Jack and Peel and if you'd like to try it, you can buy a 20-load bag of laundry detergent for only $2! I have a bottle of Linen and Room Spray in Lavender Vanilla (there are 12 scents to choose from) that I love. The stuff lasts forever (both the bottle, itself, and the scent) and it only cost me $3.50. Oh, and she even creates a wonderful furniture polish that I feel good about letting Little Guy use for just $5. You just cannot find items like this online or elsewhere for these prices. And, if you choose to buy the eBook, you'd really be saving money by making all of these (and more) yourself!

Would you like a chance to win The Peaceful Housewife: Natural Household Cleaners eBook? Just use the easy Rafflecopter form below (it may take a minute to load.) Open WORLDWIDE!








****By the way - I didn't receive any type of monetary compensation for this review. I did, however. get a really handy eBook - that's it. Everything I've said is in my own words and is my own opinion! OK, now get back to entering the giveaway!

You Want Me to WHAT?! {Day 1 - KY Intimacy Experiment and GIVEAWAY!}

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To all the little kiddies under 18 out there:

This is not a post for you. Please hit the back button, close the page, or anything else that will get you away from this page!

Sincerely,
ME!

Yeah, yeah... I know... It's been a while since I said we were going to start this Intimacy Experiment, hasn't it? Well, I've just been too exhausted to type, OK? No, not all the good lovin', that's not why I'm tired. It's these little exercises that come before the "lovin'" part of the experiment!

You see, they have each of the 10 days of the experiment broken into two different exercises - one for day and one for night (yeah, that's the fun one!) Anyway, the daytime exercises are things that can usually be done by one person and, well, if you're participating in the Intimacy Experiment to get more intimate with your partner, you're going to have to have two people for the nighttime experiments!

So, Day 1's "daytime" experiment had me wondering if I was even going to want to follow through with all 10 days. Here's what they told me to do in the little booklet: CLEAN YOUR ROOM! Really? They must be kidding! I haven't had anyone tell me to clean my room since I was 14 and my mom finally just declared that I "... can live in a pigsty if you want to - I don't care anymore!" Now, I have to say that, after the initial teenage rebellion in me dissipated a little, I read on. Turns out to make a lot of sense to clean things up a little. They cited a study in which both men and women were hooked up to some brain-reading machine (yeah, I'm too lazy to look it up. Hey, I'm tired from cleaning my room!) They were... um, stimulated by their partners to orgasm. Seems that the findings of this study showed that women needed to rid themselves of all the little worries in their heads before they could just relax and enjoy, while the men were able to shut down those parts of their brains just about immediately. LOL - Doesn't take a neurologist to understand that one, does it?!

Pillow from Alexandra Ferguson on Etsy

The book went on to explain that this is why we tend to be able to have more fun in hotel rooms - no pile of laundry, no child-sized peanut butter hand prints on the light switch, no Matchbox cars to tip-toe around or accidentally go skateboarding on... In a hotel room, you don't have all of those little reminders of that never-ending list of things to do. You can make a huge mess, leave the towels on the bathroom floor, spill a little wine on the sheets, etc. without really caring. That's why you pay so much to stay there - they have people come and clean up after you.

So, I cleaned my room. It wasn't the most fun I ever had. But, it had to be done. It's the one room in the house that is 100% neglected because we just sleep there. It's the storage room for laundry, old toys, toys that need to be fixed, craft supplies... you name it. No one goes in there, you know, so I don't worry about how it looks. So, Little Guy and I went to town. Yeah, I had to let him help because he can't be trusted alone for more than 25 seconds (I know this because it takes 30 seconds to re-heat coffee in the microwave and he's always into something just before the "BEEP!") He really enjoyed pulling toys from the bottom of piles and playing avalanche. Yeah. Fun. But we got it looking pretty darn spiffy! We donated, fixed, filed, tossed out, and re-located just about everything. We put fresh sheets and blankets on the bed (after playing parachute with the flat sheet and then jumping on the bed for a while), we dusted, vacuumed, even scrubbed the kiddy hand prints from the walls and dusted the light fixture!

The Day 1 "nighttime" part was ready! After making sure we got the oldest set up to sleep at his friend's house (remember the psychological effect that walking in on us just might have!), and I put Little Guy down to sleep (after a very, very long walk in the evening - I wanted him exhausted!), I made my way to the room. Boy, was I surprised! Hubby had read the book, too, and saw the part about your bedroom being a "love nest." He had taken an old sheet and somehow affixed it to the ceiling so that it completely surrounded the bed. It was so cool! Once inside the enclosed bed, it was as if the world had disappeared! Plus, he has some music playing very quietly, and a patchouli/sandalwood candle (my favorite) burning. OK, now you can say, "Awww!"

Candle from Jen San Candles on Etsy

So, according to the little booklet, our nighttime activity was to simply "Enjoy the spoils of your labor." AKA - christen the newly-cleaned room! We took it slow and really enjoyed ourselves. It seems as if, as time went by, our lovemaking bacame one of those things that we just did as fast as possible. With the kids possibly waking up and interrupting and being just plain exhausted, it made sense. But, even when we had more time, the old habits came back. So, on Day 1, we took our time. We talked, hugged, kissed, and slowly progressed toward the sex part of the evening. It was really great! The music and candle helped and, I have to admit, looking around and NOT seeing all of those things I had to do really made me relax.

The next day, we both felt more loving toward each other, too. We seemed to have remembered that an occasional hug in the middle of the day for absolutely no reason means a lot.

This is the PRIZE!!!

Want Some More Entries?!
For 2 extra entries, tell me if you think that cleaning your room might help your sex life! Please leave the comments on this post and don't forget to leave a way for me to contact you in one of the comments. The first should be your answer to the question, the second should say something like "Entry #2" - I'm not going to make you write it all out again.

You must have done the Mandatory entry on my original giveaway post, HERE, in order to receive the extra entries on this post. I will add these entries to the original entries when I choose a winner.

This is open to US residents. YOU MUST BE 18 OR OVER TO ENTER! Giveaway will end on July 30, 2011, at 11:59 pm EST

*I received no monetary compensation for this giveaway, this blog post, or the blog posts that will follow. I did receive a K-Y Brands Intimacy Experiment package in order to fully participate in the program and tell you about it.

I Can't Believe I'm Doing This!!!

So, just to show everyone what a good great sport I am, I have taken a photo of what's under MY kitchen sink. The Peaceful Housewife is running a giveaway that ends tonight. There is only one way to enter - take a photo of where you store your cleaning supplies and email it to her (jenny at thepeacefulhousewife dot com) for posting on her Facebook page. The prize is a package of assorted, eco-friendly cleaning products from The Peaceful Housewife's online store. There hasn't been a huge response and I think I know why - no one wants their nasty cupboard plastered all over Facebook. So, I'm showing you mine - I didn't clean it out, I didn't move stuff around to make it look orderly, I didn't even wipe the nasty layer of gunk on the shelf off. It will be the nastiest photo up there and everyone can look at it and say, "Well, I guess MY shelf isn't even close to that bad. I guess I don't feel so weird about entering now!" or something like that. My husband now thinks I'm crazy for taking multiple photos of this scary area of our kitchen. My oldest son is hoping that I don't tag him in the photo lest his friends see it and think he's completely un-cool. Little Guy just said, "Cheese!"

Now, before revealing my dirty laundry here, I want you all to know that, yes, I have some pretty bad stuff down there - Scrubbing Bubbles, Windex, Dawn... you get the picture. My husband refuses to let me take it to the hazardous waste day at the store. He is adamant about having spent good money on that junk and there's no reason to toss it. So, it sits there, taunting me, every time I reach down to pull out my big jug of vinegar. I cannot tell you how tempted I am to just pour a little, teeny, tiny bit of the pretty blue Mr. Clean stuff into the bucket of vinegar & water that I use to scrub my kitchen floor - I miss the smell of clean so much... I know I've gone on and on about it, but that's because I really miss it! But, then I look over at Little Guy, who's holding a Skoy cloth and ready to pour water all over the floor and I know I can't have him putting his hands into a bucket with that stuff in it. (((Sigh)))

So, here it is, my entry to The Peaceful Housewife's "Green Your Clean" giveaway:

Geez! You don't have to STARE, do you??? LOL

Well, now that you're done gasping, shaking your head, giggling, and clogging up your friends' and family's inboxes with the horrific scene that is under my kitchen sink, get out your camera. Tidy up a little under YOUR sink and take a picture. Email it to: Jenny at ThePeacefulHousewife dot com and maybe you'll get some really great stuff to clean with!

I Love Spring, But Dread the Cleaning! {GIVEAWAY!}

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Well, here we are. Right on the cusp of Spring-Cleaning Season. It's still in the 30's and 40's here, but as soon as temperatures get into the upper 50's, I have no choice but to throw open the windows and start scrubbing. No, I'm not at all excited about this. I have a hard enough time getting the regular day-to-day cleaning done. With a disabled, bi-polar husband, I really can't plan ahead for him to watch Little Guy. This means that I can either wait until nap time and the middle of the night to ever-so-quietly clean, or I can have a "helper."

My oldest is pretty goof for both cleaning and babysitting. Unfortunately, that teen attitude has struck him recently, so I can only count on about forty-five minutes of either before he's through. A relatively simple job such as sweeping our wooden steps  will start out fine, but you can visibly see when he got tired of the task and started to slip up - half the stairway will look beautiful, while the other half is still full of dust and dirt. And, while plating with his little brother, he's figured out a great way to get out of it when he's had enough. He'll start teasing Little Guy a little at a time until he's hit full-blown tantrum and I have to come calm him down. My oldest quietly slips out of the room... ARGH!

Now, Don't get me wrong - I love having a helper when it comes to simple tasks (you can read about it HERE.) He gets such a great sense of pride out of a job well done. But, it can end up causing gigantic messes that will take me three times as long to clean up when the job is a big one that requires some bit of concentration.I guess I am going to have to do some careful planning this year if I want to get anything done. That includes finding jobs that are easy for him to do while I can work on a more complicated project next to him, making sure each task lasts no longer than his attention span, and using cleaning products that are 100% safe for him to touch and even ingest (he still likes tasting most things he comes into contact with - yuck!)

I think that, as long as I keep my sense of humor about me and remember that any cleaning job can be stopped at any point and left until I can return, everything will work out OK. It's the cleaning supplies that have me concerned. While I have managed to make the switch to safer and more environmentally-friendly supplies, some are still not safe for Little Guy to be working with. Borax, for instance, is a great cleaner for grimy messes. But it has a caustic effect on skin and is poisonous if swallowed. I can do the whole vinegar, baking soda, and water thing. But, that leaves me without that great smell of clean.

So, I think I may turn to Jenny of The Peaceful Housewife for my cleaning supplies this year.You can read my review of her products in my previous post, What's Under YOUR Sink? Her ingredients are safe and she adds some great scents to her products. Additionally, the cost of her products will end up being less than if I made my own!

And, guess what, she's offered one of my readers a $10 gift certificate to her store. Now, let me tell you something - $10 can get you about THREE of her products, so this is a great deal! And, you have another chance to win a nice product package from her, too, if you enter her Green Your Clean Giveaway. So, what do you think? Want to try out a few products from The Peaceful Housewife???

WIN!!!

One $10 Gift Certificate to The Peaceful Housewife's online store. This is a great deal since the majority of the items cost $2-$3. You could get FIVE things for free!!


Mandatory Entry:
Go to The Peaceful Housewife's store and have a look around. Comment with one product and scent that you would like to try most. **Leave you email address in your comment so I can contact you if you win.

Extra Entries:
For each extra entry, leave a separate comment. (If it says +2, leave two comments, etc.)

• +2 entries- Follow The Peaceful Housewife on GFC
• +2 entries - Like The Peaceful Housewife on Facebook
• +2 entries - Follow The Peaceful Housewife on Twitter (leave your Twitter name in comment)
• +2 entries - Subscribe AND CONFIRM to The Peaceful Housewife's emails (upper left sidebar)
• +5 entries - Enter The Peaceful Housewife's "Green Your Clean" giveaway(ends 4/8)
• +5 entries - Make a purchase from The Peaceful Housewife. Just let me know you did so and the First name, Last initial you used to order.
• +1 entries - Follow me on GFC - right sidebar
• +1 entries - Like me on Facebook - or right sidebar
• +1 entries - Follow me on Twitter
• +2 entries - Subscribe (& confirm) to my emails - right sidebar under, Networked Blogs

This giveaway will end on April 15, 2011, at 11:59 PM EDT. Winner will be notified by email and have 48 hours to respond before a new winner is chosen. Winner will be chosen by the Random.org widget I have embedded at the bottom of this page. GOOD LUCK!
**I have not been compensated for this post in any way.

What's Under YOUR Sink? {Review and Link to a Great Giveaway}

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If you had looked under my kitchen sink a couple of years ago, you would have found a lot of the typical household cleaners - Windex, Mr. Clean, Pledge, Bleach, and all those other name-brand cleaners we see in the store, on TV, and in magazines. But, on my road to a greener life for myself and my family, I learned of the great harm these can do to my family and the environment. If you consider that the increase in diseases, such as cancer, began soon after we began using chemicals in everything from food to pesticides to cleaning products, the link is hard to ignore. So, I slowly made the switch.

I got on my computer and Googled "homemade cleaning supplies recipes" and found that there were tons of different ways to go about making my own stuff. I ended up buying a couple of gallons of vinegar, the gigantic box of baking soda, some borax, washing soda, and some Ivory soap. They worked OK for me - my house was clean enough. But I knew there was something missing. I missed the shiny look of a freshly cleaned kitchen floor, streak-free windows, and the smell of a clean house.

OK, this isn't MY mess, but it looked something like this. I used an image from blog.familyvalue.com.

I hated making laundry soap, too. Grating a bar of soap, mixing it with borax and washing soda doesn't sound that complicated, but I could never get the soap grated fine enough. So, I made liquid detergent - an arduous project that included stirring gallons of boiling water into the mixture and and stirring and stirring... FOREVER! Then, I had to pour it into jugs that we plucked out of the trash at a laundromat (should have seen the puzzled faces!) The stuff was clumpy and messy. My clothes, while clean, never had that great smell of "clean", either.

I looked around on the Web for someone, anyone who made cleaning products that were safe and didn't cost an arm an a leg. I found a few laundry soap makers, but they didn't have any scented soaps and their prices were crazy. I gave up and kept making my own stuff. But now, I have a new place to get my cleaning supplies from!

The Peaceful Housewife has just opened her online store! She offers five categories of products: Cleaning Sprays, Scouring Powder, Hand Soap, Room & Linen Spray, and Laundry Detergent. And her prices are completely affordable - even to me! Her products are all made with, "gentle, natural, plant-based cleaners that are free from propellants, enzymes, optical brighteners and trade-secret 'fragrances'." She makes her products from ingredients such as: plant-based surfactent, sodium borate, sodium carbonate,acetic acid, citric acid, and essential oils. You can choose among many different scents for nearly all of her products, including some of my favorites: Lavender Vanilla, Japanese Cherry Blossom, Orange, Birthday Cake, Peppermint, baby Bee Buttermilk, and a whole lot more.

And, right now, The Peaceful Housewife is giving away a package of various cleaners from her online store in her "Green Your Clean" Giveaway!!! So, if you want to try out these great cleaners for yourself, go ahead and try to win a variety of her cleaning sprays, hand soaps, laundry detergent, and MORE! The giveaway ends on April 8th, so head over there right away before the opportunity is gone.

And, while you're there, check out the Natural Parenting Blog Party that she will be hosting April 15 - 30! I'm very excited to meet new bloggers who write and share ideas on the subject of natural parenting.

** I have not been compensated in any way for this review. I just think this is a really great new online store and want to share it with my readers. These are the lowest prices I've seen for products like these and would love if you'd go check them out!

Just Want to Share This

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OK, so I've been having Little Guy help me around the house a lot more since I wrote about him helping me clean the kitchen earlier this month. One of his favorite things to do is vacuum. Since there are always little crumbs all over the floor from his snacking, we have to sweep everyday. He just loves watching the little pieces of crackers and what-not get sucked into the hose.

Well, since he was doing such a great job the other night, I decided to run into the kitchen real quick to fill up my coffee cup and get him some more juice. Then I heard it - BBbrrrrrraaaaappppp!!!!! I literally dropped my coffee mug and flew into the living room. This is what I found:

I'm just glad that my husband uncharacteristically decided to clean those hose attachments the day before! I don't know why he did it - we never clean those things - but it made the shock factor of seeing this when I ran into the room a little less!