Making a Baby Basket ... and Finding the Right Baby Wash

I have been working for sometime now to put together a Baby Basket  together for a gift. This person is very picky what they use, so what their baby is going to use must be perfect. I pretty much had gotten down to getting the basket filled and looking great. I was really impressed with what I had found and picked out. Then it hit me ... I had not put any Bath Products in. A day of shopping in a big box store told me that I was not going to find what I needed there ... Organic and Natural.

So, a long extensive search on Amazon brought me to Era-Organics. One of the things that first jumped out about this product for me was ... it is made right here in the USA and it is certified USDA Certified Organic. A lot of products will try and pass themselves of as Organic, but few can truly back it up. With Era you know exactly what you are getting because all their ingredients are written right there on their bottle. And other big bonus with me ... is it is cruelty free.

Because this basket is going to my niece I decided I would take out just  little to test it. After all, I needed to make sure it is safe right?! I love how there is no odor. With babies you just don't need perfumes .. .they smell good on their own. The wash is a wonderful right thickness that does not require much to give you  great mount of bubbles in your water or  nice lathering on your wash cloth. I was truly amazed after trying it just how much softer my skin felt. The ochmomile tea, coconut oil, hemp oil, raw honey and the sea salts made my skin feel soft and refreshed.

I can truly say I would buy this product and use it for myself and for my child. It is  great product for all ages ... not just babies.

I give this product a FIVE STAR RATING!!!

I received this item complimentary for testing and providing my unbiased opinion; which I have given to assist other buyers in making informed buying decisions. I received no other compensation. I am disclosing this in agreement with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255: Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising. I am no way affiliated with this company.

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B019EHRJJY/ref=oh_aui_search_detailpage?ie=UTF8&psc=1

Whip It ... Whisk It ... A REVIEW ITEM

I love to cook... bake ... and experiment. I love to be in the kitchen most days. I am not sure if that comes from being in the kitchen growing up or being in the Restaurant Business most of my life. I guess one lead to the other. I use t say all the time if I am stressed I either dye my hair, drink wine or bake up a storm in the kitchen. As long as you aren't doing all three at the same time all are good stress relievers ... at least for me.

I also really like Kitchen Gadgets. I wish we had a huge kitchen and a lot of money. Oh, the toys I would have. I mean seriously have you seen some of the cool new things you can have in your kitchen these days? A refrigerator with a built in camera so if you are at the store and don;t know if you have something! I am not really sure I would use this to often, but it is super cool.

Today though, I am reviewing a pretty basic item. The good old whisk. I bet more then half of people today have never even used one. Yes, I have a hand mixer and a Kitchen Aid. There are times though when a good old fashion whisk can not be beat (lol ... get it?)

I was so excited when ONME asked me to review this three piece  Stainless Steel Kitchen Whisk set. In this set you will get three different sized whisks ... 8 in 10 in and 12 in. I love that these whisks are strong enough to do the job, but the handles are light and have a good feel about them. So many, I have bought are heavy and once you have been whipping, beating whisking for awhile your hand gets tired. Since they are Stainless Steel they are guaranteed not to rust. They are dishwasher safe ... I do not have a dishwasher myself so I have not tested this method though. The different sizes allow you to do many things from beating a egg to whipping up a incredible batch of Banana Bread (recipe coming). I also like that they have a hook on the end of them for hanging ... this makes it easy to keep them close at hand and readily available.

I do highly suggest this STAINLESS STEEL BALLOON WHISK set. I know I am loving mine and these would make for a great House Warming Gift.

 RATING: FIVE STARS

You can purchase your own set here:

https://smile.amazon.com/gp/product/B01CHB9QQI/ref=oh_aui_search_detailpage?ie=UTF8&psc=1


Stay tuned for a awesome Banana Bread recipe ... with a twist!

COZYPHONES ... A REVIEW

This is a typical day in our house ... plugged-in and zoned out!

What you did not see prior is me trying t get Miss Penny to put on a set of head phones or some ear buds so I did not have to ear her game going. Mommy wanted some peace and Miss Penny wanted some game time. However she did not feel like having something on her head on this particular day.

When a child has Processing, Sensory Disorders and ADHD all at the same time it can be a real battle to get them to want to have things on their heads, bodies, etc. If you are not familiar with this condition or do not have it is just not easy to describe. Miss Penny has tried to describe it for me and says it is like it is not her own body and if things touch her at times everything hurts at times. It really has to be awful.

When I saw these headsets by COZYPHONES my immediate ration was they were cute! However, Rachele the Momma behind these headsets knows they are so much more then that. They give kids they ability to wear headsets in comfort and not fight with something bulky and cumbersome on their head. It is something designed just for them. They are fun and soft with a ultra thin speaker built inside. They are compatible with  all your favorite devices like Apple iPhone, iPad, iPod, Android, Samsung Galaxy, Blackberry, Nokia, LG, HTC, Google Nexus, Lenovo, Asus, Sony, Dell, Toshiba, HP, MP3, MP4 and other audio devices. The sound is incredible and your kids will thoroughly enjoy being able to be connected in comfort!

 COZYPHONES get a FIVE STAR RATING FROM US:

Rachele was kind enough to send us a pair to test out and we THANK her very much for this ... she did not ask us to write a review in return for this, but we want other parents and grandparents to know about these so they can order some for their children that might suffer from things like Miss Penny! Even if you do not have any issues like this ... they are super cool and fashionable and I highly suggest them!

You can order them at the following two places:

http://www.cozyphones.com/products/ids-headphones-super-comfortable-and-soft-fleece-headbands-

perfect-for-travel-and-home-from-cozyphones-green-froggy?variant=9428071557

https://www.facebook.com/CozyPhone/

Military Chronograph Stopwatch ... A Review

My husband loves watches more then some woman love shoes! The major problem with this is he has caviar taste in watches and we have Bologna budget ... lol!

When I ran across this watch by Binger I knew I wanted to gt it for him. I was so hoping it would look was good when it came as it did in the pictures. It really does look like a expensive from the Amazon review.

When it arrived I must say I was blown away! i am not usually that surprised when I get a item, but this item really took me by surprise. And I must apologize because I have taken literally fifty pictures and I can not get one good picture ... so I am really sorry. I hope my review will justify the greatness of this watch.

Let's start with the fact it is a Military Chronograph Stopwatch with large Luminous Numerals. The face is trimmed in silver and is a nice large size.  It is glass scratch resistant and water proof. My husband has not tested this factor as it is not the type watch he would swim or shower in, but there is a guarantee on this. There are three Sub-Dials ... A Minute ... A Second ... and a Date Display. All are very easy to set and run very accurately. The band is a rich alligator and made to be worn and you can tell it is going to hold up.

The watch itself comes in a very nice Jewelers Box and comes wrapped on a pillow setting. It is a perfect gift giving box. Fathers Day is coming up and this would be a perfect Fathers Day gift.

I know my husband did not know how much this watch cost and thought it was a high end watch ... so do yourself a favor and don't tell them!

I would highly recommend this watch to any watch collector!

RATING: Five Stars

This can be found at :

 http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B01DU1XUCK?psc=1&redirect=true&ref_=od_aui_detailpages00&pldnSite=1

A Cool New Children's Author ... Two New Children's Books For Your Shelf

(Penny and her Grammy)

I grew up in a family of readers ... my husband grew up in a family of readers. We though for sure we would raise a daughter that we would love to read. However, reading in our house with her is going down that different path. Penny is eight, but reads on a Kindergarten level. With Neurofibromatosis there are so may struggles in life, but some of the biggest come in the early years with school. Reading is worse then having teeth pulled for our daughter. She enjoys being read to and Audio Books, but you say it is time to read to her and you would like I wanted to pull teeth out of her mouth.

It is really hard to find books as well that she will sit through . I know what type of books she should be reading at her age however sadly we are not there at this time. What is really great though is when you find a book that your daughter loves and connects with. I recently came across the first book by, Dominic Lodato by accident.

MUSTARD MAYHEM is on of those books that you find yourself reading without your child just because it is that darn cute!  It also just so happens that are family loves condiments and mustard is one of my little girls favorites. This book is only available in hard cover right now, but the hard copy is so worth it. The pictures are so bright and cheerful. The characters just seem to jump off the pages at you. Personally, I want to hug the little brother. Anyway, I do not want to give the whole story away, but it is a about a older brother that loves his hot dogs. Of coarse her has to have them with mustard on them, but when he goes to get he mustard it is gone. What follows is big brother going around asking his whole family if they have seen his mustard. No one has ... but right after little brother walks into the scene and that is where the fun begins! 

I love this book as it is just so cute ... maybe part of it is because I was the little sister

Night after night of this book I knew I had to get Mr. Lodato's second book. Now, while we are NOT having another baby in this house ...  my daughter has had to get use to me babysitting two younger ones. I say babysitting, but it is no longer that these two have captured me and my husband's heart and them along with their parent's are a part of our family. However, she has been use to being the one and only in this family so she has never had to relate to a sibling or things that go along with having a sibiling. But still the same I wanted the book ...

I THINK MY LITTLE BROTHER IS AN ALIEN is about a big brother that is pretty sure the little brother his parents brought home from the hospital has to be a Alien. Again, the pictures are brilliant and so colorful. The book is so funny and I am sure a lot of children can relate to having a little "alien" brought home from the hospital.

These books are so super cute ... don't miss out on this great author! Dominic Lodato is truly a fantastic writer and I hope he is busy writing some more books!

You can find both of these books on Amazon and two of his other books here:

http://smile.amazon.com/s/ref=dp_byline_sr_book_1?ie=UTF8&text=Dominic+Lodato&search-alias=books&field-author=Dominic+Lodato&sort=relevancerank

RATING: Five Stars



I received this product on a promotional discount for my honest review and they are 100% my own opinions. I received no compensation for this review and I am not required to give a positive review. I am also not associated with the seller in any way.



 

CHALKTASTIC MARKERS ... A REVIEW and a DISAPOINTING CUSOMER SERVICE REPLY!

This is the definition I could find on the word POROUS:

Simple Definition of porous

• : having small holes that allow air or liquid to pass through
• : easy to pass or get through

Source: Merriam-Webster's Learner's Dictionary

I was pretty sure I knew what it meant, but I thought I better double check after I wrote I review of a AMAZON product and got a not so nice follow up COMMENT from a Company in response to the RATING I left.

When you leave REVIEWS of products regardless of rather you leave them as a REVIEWER or as a CUSTOMER if you leave a less then perfect review you are always subject to the backlash from a company I guess. However, as a former Internet Business person myself and a Restaurant Owner myself I guess I myself would handle situations differently. It saddened me greatly to read the Customer Response to my Review Follow Up. I had to think before I decided to do a Blog Post on this ...

I was given the opportunity to REVIEW a product called: Fantastic ChalkTastic White Chalk Markers.Here is what they advertise as being able to be used on:

• VIBRANT WHITE COLOR - ChalkTastic Bright White Liquid chalk markers use a high-quality, super-concentrated liquid chalk that provides bright, vibrant colors each and every time. These eye-catching color give you the ultimate in creative expression! Great for Menu Boards, Bistro Boards, Black Dry Erase board, LED Board, Window markers, Car Windows, Kids art, School work, Marking dates on food Containers
• AMAZING VERSATILITY GREAT ERASABLE MARKERS FOR KIDS - ChalkTastic White chalk Pens are Non Toxic and Odorless and will out last ANY other White Chalk Pens with there huge capacity. The White Glass marker Pens allow you to turn any ordinary NON-POROUS surface - including chalk labels, mirrors, storefront windows, Black Dry Erase board, metal and more - into your very own canvas!

I DID read this part VERY closely ... 

The White Glass marker Pens allow you to turn any ordinary NON-POROUS surface - including chalk labels, mirrors, storefront windows, Black Dry Erase board, metal and more - into your very own canvas!

I am a home school parent and we have a hug NON-POROUS Chalk Board in our home school room. We also have several NON-POROUS mini chalk boards we use. We have been using them for four years now with various chalks and other brands of chalk markers and never had any issues.  As always though I test products like this on my mini boards first. It is just a given as well as directed by companies usually. 

I did this with the CHALKTASTIC MARKERS and I am so glad I did as it was a complete FAILURE! The chalk paint did not come off. I tired to wipe it of with water and it did not come off. I even tried to let it soak with a wet paper towel on it for while and it did not come off. 

The CHALKTASTIC MARKERS are nice markers. They write well... they flow nice. The write on windows nice and they do come off of windows and mirrors nice. But as far as coming off of CHALK BOARDS that are POROUS ... at least mine that I know are in fact porous they failed. 

RATING: 2 STARS ... I gave them this because on some  surfaces it did work.

I appreciate being allowed to review this product and I do not want another product sent out or to be compensated in any other way. However PRO GRADE as a company I do feel there is a better way to follow up.

Pro Grade Products says:

Hi, we are very sorry to hear that you have experienced some problems with your chalkboard. The chalk markers, just like all other chalk markers are designed to be used on any non porous surface and we have tried to make this as clear as possible on both the product listing and product packaging but also understand that this can sometimes get missed. Unfortunately with chalkboards some are porous and some are non porous which is why we always advise on testing on a small area first.

We pride ourselves on providing both great products and excellent customer service and respond promptly to any emails or messages received. We have double checked all email messages and have not received any messages from yourself so we can only assume that for some reason your email didn't reach us. 

Really this is Good Customer Service?

*Pictures will be added ... having some camera issues:<

MyTinyHeroes Super Hero Costumes... A Review

Super Hero's do not have to come in any special size ... at least not in our house!!! When you walk in our house you never know what you may find. You know what? I am more then ok with that! When I was growing up I don't ever remember  our house being a mess ... or really that loud ... BORING!

It for sure was not ... https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oXA6CLTDekw

In our house there is pretty much always a mess .. .and it is always quite loud!

Anyway back to the CUTEST Little Super Hero's ...

 

These costumes are made by a fairly new company called MyTinySuperHeroes. Boy, have they done it right. They currently have seventeen costumes to choose from. 

The costumes are well sewn and made from high quality fabric. I can sew ... somewhat so I have bought my fair share of fabric. The silk on these capes is unbelievable. It is  soft, shiny and silky. I don't see it fraying easily as so many silks that are used on costumes do when kids snag them. The felt is high quality felt that the pieces are made to. They are not attached by glue, but carefully sewn on with great detail. 

Each costume comes with a reversible cape that can be worn on the side to match the costume with the emblem. Or it can be worn on a plain colored matching solid colored side. The cape is made with kids safety in mind. It has a Velcro closure, but a very wide neck. I can not even get it wrapped around my neck.

There is of coarse a Super Hero Belt that has the emblem of the chosen Super Hero. A Super Hero needs Power Cuffs right? They are adorable and Velcro on with again the emblem of the chosen Super Hero. The mask is my favorite part! It fits with a elastic strap, but kid friendly and totally safe. There is so much detail in the masks!

Shh .. .don't tell Grandma, but these costumes are way better then what she can whip up. Better then what this Momma can whip up to!

You simply can not beat the price of $21.99.

These are great for playing dress-up, Halloween or even if you are doing a theatrical play perhaps.

RATING: FIVE STARS


You can find MyTinySuperHero Costumes here :

http://www.amazon.com/s/ref=w_bl_sl_s_ap_web_7141123011?ie=UTF8&node=7141123011&field-brandtextbin=MyTinyHeroes

These rather scary looking Darth Vader is eight years old and still loves dress up and as you can see  fits her just perfect! In fact ... shhhh I have tried on all the costumes too and I can wear them!