MadeOn Hard Lotion Review

In this post, I mentioned a few of our favorite bath products from MadeOn Hard Lotion: diaper rash cream, hard lotion bars, and beesilk jr.  I just had to give them their own post and rave about them a bit more!  (Click here to visit MadeOn Lotion.)

diaper rash cream:  This is one of the best rash creams I've come across!  It contains zinc oxide, but not the nasty fishy stink and chemicals that other rash creams have.  A huge plus is that its safe for cloth diapers. I've used it for quite some time now and haven't had any issues with the diapers.  Usually one or two applications of this cream quickly clears up any redness.

hard lotion bar:  This is the first product that I ever bought from MadeOn Hard Lotion.  Lucy gets really red chapped hands in the winter.  We've tried plenty of creams and lotions, and this one works best.  It is nice and thick as it goes on, and really soaks into the skin and just works so well.  I've raved about it to others, and gave some to my mother in law for her sore cracking fingers.  At Christmas, I got each of my girls their own tiny hard lotion bar in a tin.  They like having their own to carry around (and I like that its perfectly safe for them).

beesilk jr:  Esther gets dry bumpy skin on her legs.  Beesilk jr is similar to the hard lotion bars, but easier to coat sensitive baby skin with.  We rub this on her after a bath, and it really helps.  Like the hard lotion, it stays on the skin and absorbs really well.  This is the perfect lotion for babies and little ones.

We were sent diaper rash cream and beesilk jr so that we could share with you just how much we love these products.  I have also purchased these on my own before and truly do enjoy them.  I am also an affiliate for MadeOn Hard Lotion, so clicking through my site to make a purchase helps.  Thanks!  Click here to visit MadeOn Lotion.

Our Favorite Bath Products

When I began changing things in our home to a healthier lifestyle, we focused on food first.  Bath products and things that we put on our skin came a close second.  As I read about and researched the various ingredients in my bath products, I realized how important it was to choose natural, safer products.  We now make it a high priority to read ingredients and make the best choices we can find.  Here is a little peek at some of our current favorites:

shampoo: 

Hugo Naturals Vanilla and Sweet Orange works well and smells great!  (Amazon has a good price.)

conditioner: 

Julia and I both use coconut oil as a leave in conditioner for our curly hair.  The others in the family do not use conditioner.

shaving gel:

I use body wash as shaving gel now.  For years I would get very itchy legs after shaving, lotion afterwards barely even helped.  I was surprised that once I switched to using a non-toxic body wash to shave with, the itchiness was gone.

body wash: 

I love using Earth Mama Angel Baby Happy Mama Hand to Toe Wash.  The kids are finishing up a bottle of California Baby body wash and will switch to Earth Mama Angel Baby Natural Non Scents Hand to Toe Wash.  (California Baby recently changed their product formulation and I'm not a big fan of it anymore.  Earth Mama Angel Baby is all rated zero in the EWG Skin Deep database.)  

We also really like Apple Valley Natural Soap.  It is a nice, non-drying, lotiony feeling soap.

diaper rash cream: 

Rash cream from Hard Lotion is safe for cloth diapers and works wonderfully.  It contains zinc and coats the skin much better than other oily creams we've tried.

lotion: 

Coconut oil is a great all-over lotion, it works well on my legs after shaving.

Hard Lotion bars are the best ever for dry skin.  Lucy gets red, dry hands and uses this.

This whipped body butter is what we use on the girls after bath time.  It has been great for dry winter skin.

I've also been loving Earth Mama Angel Baby natural stretch oil for my pregnant belly.

chapstick:

Badger Vanilla Madagascar lip balm is the best ever!  It is soft and creamy and smells delicious.

toothpaste:

Ross uses Tom's of Maine flouride free.  The girls use Branam xylitol toothpaste, and I have a tube of Miessence toothpaste that I like.

deodorant:

I use Alba Botanica, but don't love it.  Miessence has worked well in the past, I need to get some more.  Ross uses Arm and Hammer unscented because we can't find a good all natural deodorant that is reliable.

make-up:
I usually do not wear any make-up, but when I do its Vapor Organic.

sunscreen: 

We've used Badger sunscreen for several years now and really like it.

hand sanitizer:
I carry Cleanwell's orange vanilla hand sanitizer spray in my diaper bag and love it.

Am I forgetting anything?  Let me know and I'll add it to the list.  What are your favorites?

Moom Organic Hair Removal

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Sorry, this post is not going to contain pictures of my hairy legs. I tried taking one and it didn't turn out so I'll spare you. ;) In the past I've tried all kinds of things to remove unwanted hairs - shaving (of course), waxing (ouch, and yucky chemicals), an epilator (serious. torture. device.), shave minimizing lotion (more chemicals), and hair removal cream (awful stuff). Now that I'm a crunchy granola hippy mom I figured I would have to shave the old fashioned way with a bar of soap since even shaving cream has toxins in it.

Actually, I've been using my body wash as shaving gel and it works great. I used to have insanely itchy legs every time I got out of the shower after shaving but its so much better since switching from shaving cream to body wash. (Tom's of Maine) I was quite surprised.

I was even more surprised to come across Moom Organic Hair Removal Kits. The ingredients are totally natural, organic, and harmless: sugar, water, chamomile, lemon juice, and lavender! Since I hate shaving I decided to give this a try. Moom sent me a kit to try and one to give away. Could this work as well as waxing? With no toxic ingredients?

I had a few minutes to try this while Esther was sleeping in her swing. I had two helpers: "Mom, what are you doing?" "I wish I could do that when I get bigger." Ok, it kind of hurts though. "Oh, you'll probably have to take care of me then." Ok, Julia.

Despite the interruptions, it was easy enough to do. Heat the jar - yes I used the microwave, I couldn't spare any precious moments waiting for water to heat up. Spread the sugar solution on and use the provided cloth strips to quickly remove the sugar and unwanted hairs. I am not a pro yet so I did have to shave afterwards too, but the kit worked wonderfully. The sugar solution comes off easily with warm water, much easier then trying to rub off sticky leftover wax.

I used about half the jar, but wasn't completely thorough, so maybe someone else would use a whole jar? Most importantly, my skin is nice and soft and didn't flare up after using this. I put a generous amount of coconut oil on when I was done and let it soak in. Nice soft summer-shorts-ready legs! I'll definitey be using this again.

Want to give it a try? Leave a comment on this post and let me know one shaving product you've tried that you're ready to ditch. Be sure to leave your email address or have it enabled on your blogger profile. If you follow my blog/ and or are email subscribed, you get extra entries, just leave comments letting me know. (For a total of two possible extra entries.) I'll close this on June 9th at midnight. Thanks for stopping by, be sure to check back soon for more fun summer reviews and giveaways.

*Giveaway now closed.  Congrats Bethany!*

Product Review - Preserve Toothbrushes and Razor

I've been wanting to try out Preserve's toothbrushes and razors for a while now. The company is amazing in what they are doing as far as making products from recycled plastics and even the products themselves are recyclable when you are done with them! Why throw away a toothbrush when you can recycle one?

I received an adult toothbrush, a child's toothbrush, and a razor from Preserve to try out. Its actually taken me a while to put up this post because I have two girls and was searching everywhere for a second child's toothbrush. I wasn't able to find one around here even though some stores carried a few Preserve items. I caved and bought Julia an Elmo toothbrush so I could give Lucy the Preserve one and try it out. After I caved, I finally found the toothbrushes at a health food store (not one I regularly go to). You can check here to find a store near you, but you may find they don't carry the full line of Preserve products.

Preserve collects plastic from yogurt containers and other #5 plastic products, sorts it, cleans it, tests it, and turns it into their products. You can read about the process here and see just how much of an impact this has on saving earth's resources. There is also a great video clip linked from their homepage that shows how they process the plastic. There aren't any recycling drop off points near me, but if you live near a Whole Foods Market, they have bins to collect your #5 plastics.

So, what about the products? The adult toothbrush is nice, the curved handle is a bit different, but works well. It comes in cute colors, and is fairly inexpensive. You can print off a prepaid mailing label and send in your toothbrush when you are done with it! They even sell a subscription where you can select a frequency to have toothbrushes mailed to you (every 2, 3, 4, or 5 months). Did you know that Will Ferrell used a Preserve toothbrush in the movie Stranger Than Fiction? lol

The child's toothbrush is okay. Its cute, but rather plain compared to the other children's toothbrushes out there. I didn't look closely enough because I thought that it came with an animal molded into the handle, but the animal is just on the package. Lucy didn't complain about it, thankfully she still thought a new pink toothbrush was exciting. We will probably purchase more of these, but I'm not sure how long we can go until they remember their spinning Dora toothbrushes and ask for those again.

The razor was too scratchy for my sensitive skin. It works okay for shaving my underarms, but scratched up my legs too much. I generally use a razor that you can buy replacement heads for, so I guess its not quite as important that it be recyclable since I don't throw it away all that often. I like the idea of this product, but it didn't work for me.

Overall I like the company and what they are doing. I would enjoy trying out other products from their line and wouldn't hesitate to choose the Preserve brand when shopping for something new. Like their logo says, there is really "nothing wasted" if you decide to try out a Preserve toothbrush or razor - you can always mail it back to be recycled when you are done with it!

Green Cleaning

Cleaning supplies are not required to have ingredients lists.
There are no regulations on what goes into them!

Just think for a minute about how awful the cleaning aisle at the grocery store smells. I can hardly stand to breathe when I'm in that aisle! I don't want to expose my children to chemicals unnecessarily. Cleaning my home doesn't require some expensive chemical cocktail solution sold in plastic bottles at the grocery store. It really only requires having a few ingredients on hand and a couple spray bottles that you can reuse each time you make more solution. Now that I use homemade green cleaners I'm so much happier about cleaning, I don't have to turn on the bathroom fan and worry that the lingering harsh smells are eating away at my brain.

I don't know why this is such a well kept secret because its so easy and inexpensive. Having a few base ingredients on hand allows you to easily mix up a solution of your favorite cleaning recipe whenever you run out. There are some great recipes here which I typed into a document, printed off and then laminated. I have the laminated one page cleaning list stuck to the inside of my cupboard where I keep the cleaning supplies so that its easy to mix another batch of cleaner when I need to.

If you're just getting started, all you need are a few ingredients and a couple empty spray bottles. You can reuse bottles from commercial cleaners, just be sure to thoroughly wash the bottles and relabel them. I keep on hand:

washing soda (found in the cleaning aisle near the bleach)
baking soda
liquid soap (Dr Bronners, found at the health food store)
vinegar
tea tree oil, lavender oil (these are expensive little bottles, but last forever as you only need a few drops)

I use my all purpose cleaner for just about everything including window washing. For cleaning the sink I sprinkle baking soda on and then wipe it off with a soapy sponge. Tea Tree Oil is naturally antiseptic and antifungal; I sometimes add a few drops to my all purpose cleaner or dilute in water and spray on counters to disinfect. For an air freshener, add a few drops of lavender oil to water and spray lightly. There is a recipe for furniture polish here and I'm working on a dishwasher detergent recipe to share as well.

Go give it a try!  It works for me.

Potty Training Tips

Julia has been asking to "go pee" like her big sister for quite some time now.  She has occasionally even told me when she has to go and has started staying dry at times.  I don't think she's close to being completely potty trained, but we're in the beginning stages.  We don't even need a sticker chart because she's so excited to be like her big sister and loves when Lucy and I clap for her.  I have a few tips and tricks to share with you about potty training:

The Potty Seat.  We recently remodeled our bathroom and in the process found this potty seat.  I saw it here but the one we purchased was found at our local Target.  I think every home with young children should have one of these!  No more messy potty seat being taken off and on the potty and dripping pee drips everywhere.  The smaller seat flips up into the lid when not needed and it also has little locks you can slide over to trap it in the lid in case you had company coming over and didn't want them to get confused or something.  

The Onesie Trick.  A friend shared this with me back when we worked in a daycare together in the potty training room.  If your child is wearing a onesie, unsnap it as usual, and then snap it back together over one shoulder so that it doesn't fall into the potty and get in the way.  Nice.

Cloth Trainers.  Lucy potty trained fairly easily and without many accidents but Julia is not quite as ready.  She wants to try so badly that I purchased her a pair of cloth training pants to use rather than putting her in underwear.  I chose the organic cotton Imse Vimse farm print here.  I had tried some other brands with Lucy and they were just too bulky and didn't work right for her.  These are cute and trim, but have a waterproof layer in them that I think will help.  We haven't used them yet as Julia is not quite ready but I'll let you know how she likes them soon.  

That's all I've got for today.  Have you found any other tips or tricks that work for you?  

Sunscreen and the Cosmetics Database

Around here its almost springtime, the sun is peeking out and slowly warming things up.  Its time for me to purchase some sunscreen to have on hand for the year.  Even though we're not even close to the scorching heat of summer yet, my girls are fair skinned and need protection from the sun even now, especially since they've been inside all winter.  Last year I used Badger sunscreen and was happy with it.  I checked the cosmetics database and read through the top rated sunscreens and also read about Badger sunscreen on their own website.  I was pleased with all the information they have on their website regarding their sunscreen and felt like I was able to make an informed decision.  

If you've never used the cosmetics database, its a wonderful resource!  From a quote on their front page "Due to gaping loopholes in federal law, companies can put virtually any ingredient into personal care products. Even worse, the government does not require pre-market safety tests for any of them."  The Environmental Working Group has created this database of products and ingredients and rated them according to safety.  You can go to their website and search practically any personal care product - makeup, deodorant, shampoo, and more.  Take a moment and look up the products that you use on a regular basis, you may be surprised at how many chemicals you are exposing yourself to.  The great thing is that you can use this database to start making safer choices for your family.  

Over the past year we've switched many of the products we use and I'll be sharing those with you in the coming weeks.  We're currently remodeling our bathroom and my plan is to put only safe, healthy products back in my cupboards once we're done.  I have a fun post in mind regarding this, coming up soon.  

Note: There are a couple great posts here and here on why to limit sunscreen use.  I only use sunscreen when we are going to be outside for a long time (and then I don't reapply it) or in the early spring/ summer because my girls are both fair skinned and need time to adjust to being out in the sun.  Otherwise we just keep the sunscreen with us when we head out for the day and if we've been out too long and start to feel the need we apply a small amount.  

Mineral Makeup (and FREE offer!)

I've been using mineral makeup for over a year now and wouldn't go back!  After learning about all the chemicals that are in makeup, and the fact that there aren't any regulations on what can or can't be in makeup- I switched.  If you want to read more about this, go to ewg.org and type in makeup and read a few of the articles that come up.  Mineral makeup does seem to be the new fad though, so I wouldn't trust just anything out there.  You want to find something with as few ingredients as possible.  I've been using Everyday Minerals and love it.  They have a free sample kit that you can order (you do pay a minimal amount for shipping, but you get a good amount of sample to try) and seem to be reasonably priced.  

I just found out about an offer from Physicians Formula for a rebate on some of their new organic line, thanks to Lindsay.  Click on rebates on the right.  There is an offer for mineral makeup as well as for mascara.  I'm interested in trying the mascara since I've been going without for some time now, due to not finding a natural alternative.  You do have to find the product in a store with a "Try Me Free" label on it.  I've checked two stores and didn't find the mascara labeled but did come across the mineral makeup with the label at Walgreens.  I'm not sure about all the ingredients in it, I don't really know what they all are, but I'm guessing its at least a step in the right direction.  

Stay tuned for more about the health and beauty products we use!  I've totally revamped our bathroom cupboards this past year after finding out about ewg.org and reading about how bad some of the ingredients are in common shampoo, conditioner, etc.  I feel much better about the natural alternatives we've found and now use.