Original Sprout Review

 

About Original Sprout: 

Original Sprout was founded in 2007 by Inga Tritt. Parents trust "Original Sprouts superior performance & worry-free ingredients. Cancer & early puberty can be linked to hormone disruption, hence no natural or synthetic hormone disrupters such as soy, yam, tea tree, lavender, parabens, titanium dioxide, formaldehyde or nano-particles are used in their formulas. In addition products are free of insect attracting honey or soda fragrances. Each product is made specifically without estrogen disrupting or contaminated ingredients. Certified green & clean fragrances are standard for added health benefits. Always healthy, always beautiful with Original Sprout." Original Sprout is a proud supporter of PETA and is strongly against animal testing or harming animals to create their products. Original Sprout is also very environmentally responsible, they use many measures to cut back on waste and their carbon footprint.Original Sprout has an extensive product line including products like, Shampoo, Conditioners, Lotion, Hair Gel, Hair Balm, Sunblock, Babywash, Cradle Cap Care, Detangler, and other 100%Vegan Body & Haircare products.

                                      Original Sprout sent us three of their products to review. 

The Miracle Detangler, Natural Shampoo, & Scrumptious Baby Cream. 

I now personally only use organic body care items on my daughter due to her sensitive skin. 

Here is why, I noticed when my daughter was about a month old she had dry patches all over the trunk of her body, I tried many store bought lotions, from Johnsons to Lubriderm to Eucerin, nothing seemed to help and most left her greasy.  I was informed by my child's pediatrician that she had eczema, once I received that news I discontinued use of all of those products and began using only Original Sprout Products on her skin and hair. Within a week her dry patches were completely GONE! I came to the conclusion that the harmful chemicals and additives in those store bought lotions and soaps were causing the problems with my baby's skin. I felt awful for not noticing the cause sooner, so many of us assume that because a product is labeled a "baby" item it is automatically safe and pure, this is so very untrue and that is why I am personally grateful for companies like Original Sprout that offer TRUELY SAFE products for our infants and children to use.
Lilly Loves her bathtime and the Original sprout products leave her so soft and smooth. I love the Detangler it helps keep her curls under control for quite some time and smooths down all of her "fly aways". It also has a wonderful scent that everyone really seems to love. I get many compliments about how good she smells!
Original Sprout Products are a wonderful addition to my little ones bathing routine.
You can buy them "HERE"

Fitted diaper, Snappi, and Zookies cover Review!!! And Zookies Cover Giveaway!!!

This Review is going to go a bit differently than most. Instead of doing individual reviews for each product I am going to explain to you all my method of using the Snappi Baby Diaper Fastener on  Hurley's Fitted Diaper from Modified Momma Creations, with a  Zookies Cover. While also giving you my opinion of the products mentioned above. 

Here is a little bit about each of the products.

A Snappi as most of you know is an alternative to using a diaper pin to fasten diapers that do not already have their own closures, such as fitteds, prefolds, and flats. Snappis are made of plastic "teeth" and a soft rubber material that stretches to hold into place by tension between the teeth and rubber. They retail for around $4 each. They come in a variety of colors and two sizes, one for babies and one for toddlers. They are available at several retail locations worldwide.

Hurley's Custom Fitted diaper from Modified Momma Creations. As some of you may already know, Hurley and I have opened up shop on facebook, we call our store Modified Momma Creations we specialize in cloth diapers, tutu's, and other eco friendly or adorable WAHM items. Hurley's Fitted Diapers have a nice sewn in soaker pad and are made from very cute prints that hold up nicely in the wash. Swing by and check out what we have to offer.

 

 Zookies Diaper Cover, By Michele Zook who runs her WAHM shop on Etsy. Zookies sells Diaper covers, reusable bags, cloth wipes, bibs, & burp cloths. Michele kindly sent me a diaper cover in the Woodland Friends print for review. Zookies is also sponsoring a custom cover of choice as a giveaway item along with this review!!! Be sure to go check out her store and buy something cute for your Little One.

My Experience:
Ok, I must admit that the Snappi took some getting used to. I personally use mostly snap closure diapers so using pins or a Snappi is a bit different for me. I have noticed the Snappi works best with a fabric that has a looser thread count so the teeth can dig in better. Hurley's Fitted diaper works nicely with the Snappi. I feel the Snappi leaves more marks on the fabric than my normal pins do.
 For those of you that are unfamiliar a snappi works by hooking the teeth into one side of the diaper, stretching the snappi across and hooking it into the other side, then stretching it down and hooking into the bottom, to secure the diaper in place.
Here are some pics of the Snappi in use.

 Lilly is pretty small so the snappi goes all the way to each of her sides

 Here she is on top of her super cute Woodland Friends Zookies Cover

 Here we are all snapped up and ready to go.

This print is super adorable and the cover works wonderfully. This picture is taken after 10+ washes and being hung to dry. The only wear the cover has is some minor pilling on the brown trim. This is one of my favorite night time diapers because it is roomy for extra stuffing and is quite leak resistant.

Lilly really likes her Zookies cover!!! I think it is less restricting than some other covers I have used, has a nice stretch to it and is made from high quality materials.

Zookies has many many adorable prints to choose from,  I noticed on her Etsy that Michele will even make customs for you with material you send to her! I love that she has very fair prices for a nice quality product.
You can go Buy a Zookies Cover "HERE"

Or Enter to Win one "HERE"

You must be a follow of this blog via Google Friend Connect to enter!!

This giveaway will end on March 7th, 2011 at 9pm CST, unless otherwise stated by Hurley or Nikki of MMR. At that time, the document with no longer accept responses. We will draw a winner via Random.org and then verify all entries. If any entries are found to be false, we will draw a new winner. Winners have 24hrs to respond to our email to claim their prize. Giveaway open to entrants 18 years and older.

 

Abbys Lane, Bumgenius Elemental Artist Series All In One Review. $10 Giftcard Giveaway

 

Abby's Lane Graciously offered us the opportunity to review a Bumgenius Elemental Artist Series All In One from their lovely online store! I chose the "Free Spirit" print to Review. 

Abby's Lane is offering a $10.00 gift card for her store to one of our readers in a giveaway at the end of this review. You can use it toward your purchase at Abby's Lane. I would like to Personally take the time to thank Abby's lane for participating in this wonderful review and giveaway. Abby's lane is a wonderful  "one stop shop" online store. They have a lovely selection of baby items ranging from baby shoes and momma cloth to cloth diapers and baby carriers. Abby's Lane carries a great selection of the well loved brands we are all familiar with. Placing an order with them is a breeze and my item shipped quite promptly.  They offer free US shipping.

When my Bumgenius Elemental Artist Series All In One arrived I was excited to review it because it is the first AIO I have used with "L" in this particular style. I have used AIO's before but this one is by far the easiest (Laundry Wise) As you can see in the picture below the absorbent layer of this AIO is not underneath a layer of fabric and therefore dries much faster than my other AIO diapers. In fact it's dry time is comparable to my pocket diapers!

 

The Bumgenius Elemental Artist Series All in One has all the features we cloth diapering moms and dads adore. A nice fit for many many different sizes of baby, an extra absorbent liner, ease of use for mom's dad's and daycare providers, organic cotton against baby's bottom, fast dry time on laundry day, and extra sturdy construction to hold up to the wear and tear a diaper goes through with frequent wash and wear cycles. "I would like to call this the "Prius" of AIO diapers, It's great for the environment and has all kinds of cool features!" The Bumgenius Elemental Artist Series All in One comes in:

"About the Artist: Chelsea Perry is a multi faceted artist motivated by passion to change the world and inspire others to make a difference. Her creative expressions include songwriting, musical production, and performance. Global vision keeps her traveling around the world, but she’s proud to call St. Louis, Missouri home."

Set to the smallest Setting

 Here are a few shots of "L's" Bumgenius Elemental Artist Series AIO, In the "Free Spirit" print after a some washes & in action!

"L" wears her BG's on the smallest rise, on the second snaps as seen in this picture. She is 13lbs and 25".

Nice snug fit to keep messes in

Leg gussets fit nice and snug but not too tight

Opened up on the smallest setting

 

 

 

 

Bumgenius is known for their awesome cloth diapering products, (I own several of their pocket diapers) this AIO is something special, Definitely worth having in your stash!

You can buy your own Bumgenius Elemental Artist Series All in One at Abby's Lane  and get FREE SHIPPING on US orders!!! 

You can enter to win a $10 gift card to Abby's Lane by clicking "HERE"

You must be a follow of this blog via Google Friend Connect to enter!!

This giveaway will end on February 28th, 2011 at 9pm CST, unless otherwise stated by Hurley or Nikki of MMR. At that time, the document with no longer accept responses. We will draw a winner via Random.org and then verify all entries. If any entries are found to be false, we will draw a new winner. Winners have 24hrs to respond to our email to claim their prize. Giveaway open to entrants 18 years and older.

 

Rockin' Green Review and Giveaway

ROCKin GREEN Kindly Sent both of us some samples to try out their Cloth Diaper & Laundry Detergent.

Nikki's Experience:
I have extremely hard water here on the Island so I asked for Hard Rock samples, I was sent Rage Against The Raspberry, Mighty Mighty Marshmallow, and  Lavender Mint Revival samples. I typically do a quick soak with my diapers before each wash due to my hard water, but sometimes Daddy forgets the routine so I had a few diapers that weren't smelling so fresh after he did some diaper laundry. I made sure those made it into the machine when I "Rocked a Soak!" I followed the directions for soaking on the back of the sample pack with great success. I could literally see the "funk" in the water, I was bummed that my diapers had that much residue and was happy to see it was now off of them!

 Once I was done "Rockin a Soak" I finished washing up the diapers with an extra rinse cycle and hung them out to dry.





We live in a condo, Here's my set up. My inserts get dried in the dryer. I hang all my PUL. I do dry my AIO's in the dryer occasionally when its raining out because they take way to long to dry indoors.




All in all I really enjoyed my Rockin Green experience. My diapers came out very clean and fresh. No funky buildup, or repellent issues at all. I like their light fragrances and their eco friendly formula. I will admit that I do still need to use my oxygen brightener with the Rockin Green if I want my inserts and diapers to stay extra white. Rockin Green provides a nice Eco Friendly product that is great for cloth diapers.

Hurley's Experience:
My experience was much like Nikki's, I too noticed a lot of "funk" in my initial soak of my dipes.
I was sent two samples of Mighty Mighty Marshmallow, and one sample of Motley Clean. The Mighty Mighty Marshmallow was my favorite scent! It was subtle and yet wonderful.
I used RnG as our primary cloth diaper detergent for 2months! We have had little to no issue with cleaning our dipes. Our water is pretty hard where we live so I do have to do the diaper stripping chore every few weeks. Since using the RnG, I've actually only had to strip diapers once in the 2month period! The Hard Rock formula works really well with the hard water here.
I love RnG and will continue to use it as my primary cloth diaper detergent.

Buy It
You can buy your Rockin Green "Here"
or enter to win a 45/90 bag of your choice by entering our easy entry form below!

"Click Here To Enter"

Honey Bee Holistics Review and Giveaway

About Honey Bee Holistics

[From her website HERE]

Honey Bee Holistics was started by Melissa Carr in a very small town called Concrete in the Cascade Mountian Range. Her company grew from the ground up starting in March 2007. Starting with soaps and herbs, she has now grown to produce many items including homeopathic tinctures, household cleaners, clay products and more!

Everything Melissa sells is handmade by her and is made with wild-harvested herbs or herbs that she grows on site. She never uses any chemicals or preservatives! Her goal is to provide you with fresh made Organic health, beauty and household products that are free of  harmful parabens, petroleum derivatives, and chemicals.

Hurley's Experience:

I was so excited when I received my samples for review from Melissa at Honey Bee Holistics. I was really interested how her all natural products would work out. I was sent Organic Calendula Lotion, Baby Bee Organic Diaper Oinment, and Organic Lavender Soap.

To be honest, I was most eager to try the Organic Lavender Soap first. That night, I so tense from a long day, and I was lucky enough to have the hubby watch the baby while I took a shower. The Lavender soap's label read "Helps to ease the pain of muscular aches...", just the sound of that was relaxing!

Following the shower using the Lavender Soap, I was noticeably more relaxed.

The Organic Lavender Soap is even safe for use on children and infants! I used it on my daughter, who just turned a year old, and she was so relaxed after each bath that she took a longer nap than usual.

I liked that the ingredients in this soap were all natural! Its always a relief to be able to use natural products with my family.

The next all natural product we used was the Organic Calendula Lotion. Normally the baby is the first to use it. Living in Alaska, the environment is very dry, leading to very dry skin. My daughter has this problem. We have to use lotion all the time and a lot of the store bought lotions don't absorb very well, or keep her skin moisturized. The Organic Calendula Lotion is a thick creamy lotion containing, again, all natural ingredients, such as: Organic Beeswax, Organic Calendula infused with Almond Oil, Organic Calendula Essential Oil, and Organic Rose Water.

When I use the lotion with "Turtle", as we call my daughter, it takes a little while to rub in but does absorb well. Her skin stays soft and moisturized all night and into the morning. We used the lotion with Turtle twice a day for about 2 weeks. Her dry skin never resurfaced in that time period!

The Baby Bee Diaper Ointment, another wonderful product from Honey Bee Holistics. Turtle is only 12 months old, so she's still in diapers and occasionally we come across some diaper rashes. They are either caused by an adverse reaction to something she ate, or a rash brought on by extended contact with a wet diaper [like overnights]. The Baby Bee Diaper Ointment treats both. The ointment is infused with healing Wild Harvested Comfrey leaf and Chickweed. Then Local Organic Honey is added for its anti-bacterial, skin regenerating properties and Organic Fair Trade Shea Butter & Local Beeswax with Propolis for its protecting action on the skin.

Not only does it treat her rashes but we use it with every diaper change to prevent rashes all together. It is cloth diaper safe, so I have no worrys about damaging her diapers!

All in all, wonderful products from a clearly motivated and hard working WAHM.

Buy It

You can purchase your own Honey Bee Holistics products by visiting her website HERE. Or by visiting her Etsy shop: HERE.

Win It

Melissa is willing to let one of our readers win their very own 1 - 3 oz. Organic Lavender Soap, 1- 3 oz. Organic Calendula Lotion & 1 - 1 oz. Organic Baby Diaper Ointment.

Rules:

Must be 18 yrs or older to enter.

MUST BE A FOLLOWER OF THIS BLOG VIA GOOGLE FRIEND CONNECT. [see right side bar]

Giveaway will be open until February 28th, 2010 at 9:00 pm CST.

You must fill out the form to enter. Comments are appreciated but do not count as entries.

FILL OUT THIS FORM TO ENTER

Mother Earth Natural Products Review

 

About Mother Earth, From Her Website:  

"Mother Earth Natural Products are formulated without preservatives, perfumes, dyes or any synthetic ingredients. They use only the finest organically grown and wildcrafted herbs from their Vancouver Island acreage, based in 100% food grade sunflower and extra virgin olive oils. They feel it is very important to use a Petroleum-Free body care product that protects ourselves, our families and our animals from the danger of petro-chemical absorption.

The line of Mother Earth Products began in 1993 when a young herbalist 'mom to be' realized there was nothing Petroleum-Free on the market for babies' bottoms. Concerned with the danger of absorbing petro-chemicals with the many daily applications of a diaper rash ointment, she invented her own formula using wild plants and herbs from her garden."

 Mother Earth kindly sent me several of her products to test and review, I was sent:

Baby Bottom Better, I use this on L at the first sign of any rash or irritation, I have also applied it to her dry skin at times. It works wonders! She has not had a rash since I began using this product. I also haven't noticed any adverse effects on my precious cloth diapers! Use a liner at your own discretion. It is a very thick & firm salve/balm and goes on lightly a very thin coating works fine, it isn't greasy and has a light herbal scent.

Belly Blossom, I gave this one to my pregnant co-worker. She applies it a couple times each day  She really enjoys the Calendula, Chamomile, and Rose scents and finds the salve very soothing to her itchy baby filled belly. I wish I would have been able to try this while I was expecting L. I'm sure I would have enjoyed it as much as she does.     

                                                                                                            Herbal Healer, This was our life saver when it came to L's eczema. We also really loved this product on our chapped noses during cold season. Just a thin coating of Herbal Healer goes a very long way. My boys have used it on a few scrapes recently as well. I also applied it to a blister I got from some new shoes. This product has many uses and is a new favorite in my home.

Rosemary Respiratory Rub, I can not express how much I love this salve! L had a cold at only 4 months old, we were so worried about her and wanted to do everything we could to make her feel better. I felt safe applying this product to my young baby knowing that the ingredients were so natural and safe. It really helped clear up her breathing and smells much better than other vapor rubs.

I was also sent companion care, We applied it to our dogs "Hot Spots" on her rump, we noticed less scratching and chewing from her but she did try to lick it off.

 Mother Earth provides other natural products for both human and animal use. Check out her page if you are interested in Natural PETROLEUM-FREE free products for your family. I know my family really enjoys Mother Earth products and I hope yours will too!