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eco.kid Organics for Kids

Posted by 278Wife on December 18, 2012
in All Natural Products, Kids Stuff, Organic, Personal Care Products, Reviews

The company, eco.kid, is a company dedicated to making healthier choices for our children and our environment. Their products contain no synthetics, no silicone, no sulphate, no artificial preservatives, no artificial fragrances, and no artificial colouring. They have an entire line of products for children’s hair, skin, and body. The products are most suitable for kids ages 3-12. I was able to review five of their products, in which I was extremely impressed.

Prevent and Prevent Sensitive Daily Shampoo

Prevent and Prevent Sensitive are shampoos that contain a botanical complex of Australian essential oils opposed to sulphate detergents. The goal of these shampoos is to make the hair unattractive to head lice, which is a common problem in children ages 3-12. I found both to be very gentle on my son’s scalp. Both shampoos were easy to lather and easy to rinse out. They had a citrus like odor, and left the hair shiny and soft.

Daily Tonic Leave-In Conditioner

Daily Tonic is a leave-in conditioner enriched with organic moisturizers and ultramarine biopolymers that assist in detangling hair while adding strength and shine. I had a friend of the family try this on her 6 year old daughter’s very curly hair. She raved and raved about how amazing the product help detangle her hair. She was amazed, too, at how shiny her daughter’s hair was even the next day. Daily Tonic has a very light plant-like odor to it, and a little goes a long way.

TLC Hypo-Allergenic Hair and Body Wash

TLC hypo-allergenic hair and body wash is a gentle, “no tears,” formula for extra sensitive skin. This was by far my favorite product. It can be used on both the scalp and the body. My 3 year old son is very active, so switching back and forth between a shampoo and body wash is not the ideal situation. I loved that I could use this on his entire body and not worry if it should happen to get in his eyes. My son has sensitive skin, and TLC was so gentle on his skin. It lathered nicely, and rinsed away easily. It left his skin very soft and smooth. I liked that I only needed to use a small amount of it, too.

Outback Jack Aussie Outdoor Spray

The final product I received from eco.kid was their Outback Jack aussie outdoor spray, also called Bug-a-Bug. This is an organically certified hypo-allergenic insect repellent spray. It soothes the skin and at the same time repels insects. It is a very light feeling spray that smells more like lotion than a bug repellent. It would be a great product for any family that spends lots of time in the outdoors, or even just going to the playground or beach.

Finding quality organically made products for children is a very arduous task. It makes it that much more difficult when your child has sensitive skin. Eco.kid products do it all. Their products contain all pure plant essences and certified organics and many of their products are designed for sensitive skin. These would definitely make great stocking stuffers.

For more information or see the other products they offer, visit their website.

www.ecokidUSA.com

We will be hosting a giveaway a week from Friday so be sure to come back and enter!

Faith and Family Reviews received the following product in exchange for writing a review. While we consider it a privilege to receive free products to review, our reviews are our honest opinion and thoughts of the product.

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Christmas Entertaining Ideas

Posted by html404 on December 13, 2012
in Family Stuff, Food and Treats, Health, Health and Nutrition, Holidays, Organic, Recipes, Reviews

With the Christmas season upon us so is Christmas entertaining. In the past few years we haven’t done as much entertaining, mostly because I cannot seem to keep my house as clean as I once did before I worked from home – I’m home working, but not always cleaning – and let’s just say we have a long way to go in that department.

We try to eat healthy and serve healthy food during the holidays, but we don’t try to force our eating habits on others. We like kefir and yogurt, but not everyone does. However, for those of you who do have family and friends who are adventurous and will try anything you serve on the nutritional spectrum, we have some Christmas entertaining ideas and recipes just for you, compliments of Redwood Hill Farm and Green Valley Organics.

Christmas Entertaining Ideas

We love mixing fresh (or frozen) fruit with our yogurt/kefir products. The following recipes do just that and we appreciate all the nutritional value and information Redwood Hill Farm has shared right along with them.

Brainy Blueberry Smoothie
Makes one Smoothie (approx. 10 oz.)

Need a little brain boost Don’t get blue; enjoy a healthy helping of blueberries, known for their phytochemical prowess and antioxidants, both thought to improve cognitive function. Combine with walnuts for their essential fatty acids and our easy-to-digest Redwood Hill Farm Plain Goat Milk Kefir or lactose free Green Valley Organics Plain Kefir for a thoughtful drink that will have you pondering (and answering) the meaning of life in no time.

1/2 cup Redwood Hill Farm Plain Kefir or Green Valley Organics Plain Kefir
1/2 cup fresh or frozen blueberries
1/2 cup unsweetened blueberry, pomegranate, or orange juice
1/2 medium fresh or frozen banana
2 TBPS. walnuts (about 6 halves)
1/2 cup ice cubes, adjust to reach desired consistency

Place all ingredients in blender and blend until smooth.

Bigger Boost: Add a teaspoon of lecithin per serving, a natural source of choline required by the body to support nervous system health, brain function, and heart and liver health.

Per serving: 256 cal; 8g protein; 10g total fat (1g sat. fat); 39g carb; 5mg chol; 47mg sod.; 5g fiber; 26g sugar*

Go-Go Greens Smoothie
Makes one Smoothie (approx. 10 oz.)

Has your get up and go, got up and gone? Juice up your day with nourishing greens, bursting with energy to spare. We added a kiss of apple and a handful of strawberries for sweetness and recommend including a frozen banana for an extra creamy texture. Our Redwood Farm Plain Kefir or Green Valley Organics Plain Kefir pack a punch of protein and are the only kefirs available with Flourish R – a proprietary blend of 10 live active probiotic cultures. Make enough to share as a family and friends will be green with envy of your renewed vim and vigor.

1 cup (about 1 handful) leafy greens (chard, spinach or kale with ribs removed)
1/2 cup Redwood Hill Farm Plain Kefir or Green Valley Organics Plain Kefir
1/2 cup fresh or frozen strawberries (about 5 whole berries)
1/2 cup unsweetened apple juice or cider
1/2 medium frozen banana
1/2 cup ice cubes (adjust to reach desired consistency)

Place all ingredients in blender and blend until smooth.

Bigger Boost: Add a tablespoon of chia seeds for a boost of fiber, omega 3s, and calcium. Add a scoop of lactose-free whey protein isolate powder for added protein.

Per Serving: 182 cal; 6g protein; 2g total fat (1g sat fat); 36g carb; 5mg chol; 64mg sod; 4g fiber; 1g sugars*

Pumpkin Pie in the Sky Smoothie

Makes one smoothie (approx. 10 oz.)

Our favorite smoothie tastes like pumpkin pie in a glass – without the guilt of buttery pastry and whipped cream. Its cinnamon goodness is just that: a boost that’s anti-inflammatory and getting kudos for lessening the effects of carbohydrates on blood sugar levels. Our Redwood Hill Farm Plain Kefir or Green Valley Organics Plain Kefir adds just the right amount of creamy indulgence with the benefit of belly-friendly bacteria for easy digestibility.

1/2 cup Redwood Hill Farm Plain Kefir or Green Valley Organics Plain Kefir
1/2 cup unsweetened apple juice or cider
1/4 cup unsweetened pumpkin puree (not pumpkin pie filling)
1/2 medium fresh or frozen banana or 2 pitted dates
1/4 cup pumpkin seeds
2 TBSP. sweetener of choice (we like maple syrup)
1/2 tsp. to 1 tsp. cinnamon (to taste)
1/2 tsp. pure vanilla extract
1/2 tsp. pumpkin pie spice (optional)
1/2 cup ice cubes (adjust to reach desired consistency)

Place all ingredients in blender and blend until smooth.

Top it Off: Add a couple of tablespoons of cinnamon granola (and a bit of candied ginger) to the top, grab a spoon, close your eyes and you’ll swear you’re enjoying Thanksgiving pumpkin pie.

Per Serving: 295g cal; 8g protein; 5g total fat (2g sat. fat); 54g carb; 5mg chol; 124mg sod.; 5g fiber; 32g sugars*

*Nutritionals calculated using Green Valley Organics Plain Kefir

Enjoy and let me know if you try these recipes! For more recipes from Redwood Hill Farm visit http://redwoodhill.com/recipes

Faith and Family Reviews received product coupons in exchange for this feature.

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Benefits of Shelf Safe Milk

Posted by html404 on December 12, 2012
in Food and Treats, Organic, Travel

Do you remember Y2K? Do you remember people stock piling food and supplies in the event of a major power outage or shortage of food? I have no idea how the Y2K thing escalated to such proportions but it did. In some circles it was somewhat of a minor panic. And if I remember correctly I think we even stocked up on a few necessary items but nothing out of control like some folks are rumored to have done. Dry milk was one of those items since milk is not something that is easy to store or stock up on unless you have lots of refrigeration space. That’s when shelf safe milk comes in handy.

What is Shelf Safe Milk?

Think of the power outages that have occurred during hurricanes or strong rain storms. Last year when we first moved in we experienced a number of power failures during thunder and lightening storms. We were always concerned about losing the food in our freezer and refrigerator. Granted the issue was probably due to neighboring trees over hanging on the power lines, which they have since trimmed, but still it would have been nice to have stock piled shelf safe milk then.

As noted in the video above, shelf safe milk is milk that has been ultra pasteurized, processed and packaged in a container that needs no refrigeration, at least until it is opened, and is actually found on the shelf of your grocery store. Who would have thought, right?

It comes in several different brands, including Organic Valley. We have been to an Organic Valley farm and know the farmer through our regional farmer’s group.

The Benefits of Shelf Safe Milk

There are benefits of shelf safe milk. Here are a few I come up with:

No fear of it souring before you open it. (It does need to be refrigerated upon opening)
Easy to travel containers.
The containers do not disintegrate in the cooler – bonus!
A great way to have milk anywhere and anytime.
Much easier way to stock up on milk and requires less refrigerator space.

To learn more and to stay up to date about Milk Unleashed follow their Twitter and Facebook pages. To find out where to buy shelf safe milk visit: http://milkunleashed.com/where-to-buy/10-where-to-buy.html

“This blog post is part of a paid SocialMoms and Milk Unleashed blogging program. The opinions and ideas expressed here are my own. To read more posts on this topic, click here.”

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Grow with the Grain ~ National Bread Month

Posted by Professor on November 10, 2012
in All Natural Products, Family Stuff, Health, Health and Nutrition, News Worthy, Organic, Uncategorized

November is National Bread Month!

National Bread Month is a great way to remember to put whole grains in your diet.

We try to eat as many whole grains as possible… from bread, to pasta, to cereals. How do you incorporate whole grains into your lifestyle?

Here are a few things to remember:

Bread and grain foods provide many essential nutrients our bodies need to stay healthy and help fight diseases such as heart disease, diabetes, some cancers and birth defects.

Whole grains are a good source of fiber and complex carbohydrates – and are naturally low in fat.
Enriched grains are also a good source of complex carbohydrates and are one of the major sources for iron and folic acid in our diets.

A big key to maximizing your health and energy is taking a look at your diet – including how you “fill your plate.”

The Dietary Guidelines for Americans recommend eating six one ounce servings of grain foods each day.
Grain-based foods like bread, buns, bagels, tortillas and crackers are not only healthy, they’re convenient and affordable.

About White Bread/Enriched Grains:

White bread – whether it be sliced or as rolls and buns – is enriched, meaning that B vitamins including thiamin, and riboflavin have been added back in approximately double the amount of whole grains and niacin has been added back in its original amount.

Folic acid is fortified to over twice the amount found in whole grains.

Enriched grains are the primary source of folic acid in Americans’ diets and, according to the CDC , have been credited with a 36 percent reduction in birth defects since the FDA mandated fortification of enriched grains in 1998.

Enriched grains are also a major source of iron in the diets of most Americans and are a good source of complex carbohydrates.

About Whole Grains:

Whole grains are a good source of complex carbohydrates, numerous vitamins and minerals, and are naturally low in fat.

Whole grains are a good source of fiber and other important nutrients, such as selenium, potassium and magnesium.

Whole grains may lower risk of heart disease, some cancers and diabetes as well as other disorders, such as hemorrhoids, irritable bowel syndrome and diverticular disease.

This year marks the 250th anniversary of the sandwich! There are many reasons to love sandwiches:

Sandwiches are one of the easiest, most versatile and convenient ways to make a healthy meal for individuals or families.
Bread is the most important ingredient in making a healthy and delicious sandwich; it is the foundation of a great meal any time of day.
The complex carbohydrates in bread and other grain-based foods provide lasting energy the human body needs on a daily basis.

The sadwich shown above is the Avacado BLT…the recipe can be found here http://www.gowiththegrain.org/recipes/recipe.php?recipe_id=1144&featured_order=1

My children LOVE their sandwichs…favorites include Ham, Peanut Butter and Jelly, and Grilled Cheese. Although Peanut Butter and Jelly is the GO TO favorite hands down for lunches!

Do you send your kids to school with sandwiches? What’s a go-to sandwich for you to include in their lunch bags?

I recently discovered Celebrity Chef Bryan Voltaggio who has created some delicious recipe creations. They range from traditional to interesting. Definitely worth a look see! You can check them out here: http://bit.ly/t9woak.

Chef Bryan is definatley a sandwhich innovator to learn more about his history please visit this link: http://bit.ly/REO3uL

For more information on National Bread Month and Whole grains PLEASE visit http://gowiththegrain.org/
“I wrote this review while participating in a blog tour for Mom Central Consulting on behalf of the Grain Foods Foundation. I received a promotional item to thank me for taking the time to participate.”

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Enter Mike the Gardener’s Sweepstakes #Giveaway

Posted by html404 on October 16, 2012
in Contests, Eco Friendly Products, Family Stuff, Farm Stuff, Food and Treats, Health and Garden Tuesday, Organic

I wrote about Mike the Gardener in the Spring and his great deal for a year worth of seeds. Well, I was just on Facebook and Mike the Gardener is having a sweepstakes to Win 5 Years worth of Vegetable Seeds! Go now and sign up!

Editor’s Note: I signed up too!

Happy Health and Garden Tuesday!

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4 Ways to Use Coupons and Get a Discount

Posted by html404 on October 1, 2012
in Coupons, Deals, Organic, Saving Money

I know it isn’t Thrifty Thursday, but I bet we all could talk shopping, discounts, deals and coupons for a l-o-n-g time!

Here are 5 ways to use coupons and get a discount:

1. Use coupons on sales items.

I really enjoy shopping, but I like it even more when I can shop and save money. It’s even better if I can use coupons and get a discount on sale items! I remember when a couple of new stores opened up they offered Grand Opening sales, plus store coupons and then I had manufacturers coupons on top of that….and if I remember correctly I received $100 worth of groceries for $25. That’s a sweet memory. I know couponers do this on a regular basis.

2. Use coupons and you store’s discount or preferred card.

Walgreens and CVS are popular stores people use to save money like my little story above, but I have never been able to do it. Then again, I don’t shop at CVS because there are no stores close to us and we only buy certain products at Walgreens. I think it’s rare to find coupons of products we actually want to buy – No pharmaceuticals, no chemicals and organic as we are really trying to eat healthier and live a healthier lifestyle.

I have only come across a couple coupon sites geared specifically towards organic products, but know that niche is slowly growing. It’s been a while since I did a Google search for organic coupon sites…time to do it again as I have a growing collection of organic, natural product coupons that I want to use up on our next grocery shopping trip.

Since we buy in bulk whether at Costco (which does take some coupons) and at a natural foods co-op, we cannot usually use coupons because we are getting bulk pricing. Nevertheless we can shop the monthly sales which helps us save more money.

3. Shop on days when a store is offering to double manufacture’s coupons. I am not sure how many stores are still doing this so check with your store first.

4. In-store coupons and manufacturer’s coupons usually can be used together, whether the in-store coupon is on an individual product or off your total order.

So how do you use coupons to save money? Please share as we all want to know!

This is a paid post. Thoughts and opinions are my own.

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Egglicious!

Posted by html404 on September 19, 2012
in Animals, Business, Farm Stuff, Organic

Yippee! Doing the happy dance! We got our very first farm fresh egg from one of our hens today – thus the title of this post…..egglicious! Our hens are officially 22 weeks old this week. We’ve been waiting and waiting. I was starting to get worried so I did a Google search and found a chicken forum (yes there are chicken forums too!) and some people had to wait up to 30 weeks for their first egg! To be honest that made my heart sag at the thought! That’s why this is a happy occasion!

In regards to our first egg, our oldest son asked if he could eat it! Always thinking about food that one. I wonder if he remembered to eat it? He didn’t and he’s too late because our third daughter Oms named the egg and wants to keep it …slight problem(s) with that idea, but she’s cute for coming up with it. Think she named it Hammy.

Just so you know this is a very good sized egg for the first one…

Some pullet eggs can be very small and I’m sure we’ll have our share of them. I don’t know if any of you care, but I am sure we’ll be comparing sizes and trying to figure out which hens are laying the best eggs. For those will be the ones we’ll want to hatch out new chicks from! Hoping to start that in December once we figure out which hens are the broodiest (if that’s even a word), as the broodier the better they will be at hatching out eggs. If you aren’t sure what broody means, it’s simply how well a hen likes sitting on her nest of eggs.

Now, if only the other 30 hens would get “cracking”….heehee pun intended….and give us an egg, we’d be in business. Literally, because we should get about an egg a day from them, which of course may vary now that there’s less daylight. That means about 17 dozen eggs a week! Our girls want to have an egg business and I want an egg business so we will be working on rounding up not only eggs but customers too!

“I’m so excited and I just can’t hide it…” Name that song? And isn’t that an 80’s song all of you Momdotters/Brandcation attendees?

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Canning and Freezing Veggies – The Labor of Love

Posted by Brande on September 13, 2012
in All Natural Products, Family Stuff, Farm Stuff, Food and Treats, Fun Stuff, Gardening, Health and Nutrition, Home, Organic, Seasonal Stuff

Well, I did it! I accomplished canning and freezing veggies! My first canning season in the new place with most of my own veggies! The other veggies that we didn’t grow I bought from a local stand. The kitchen heats up awful fast in the middle of August, but it will be so nice in those cold months to make my family meals with vegetables from our own garden! Here’s what I canned: pickles, crushed tomatoes, 3 pickled beans, pickled grape tomatoes, salsa, BBQ sauce, pickled hot peppers, white peaches, and bruschetta! In all that makes exactly 50 jars of wonderfulness!

I also blanched and froze bags of corn, cut peppers, whole red peppers, peas, beans, cucumbers, and zucchini!

I looked up most of the recipes on the internet with a few out of an old Ball Canning Book I found. I received and email from Grit Magazine awhile ago with the “Ultimate Guide to Food Preservation”, that would have been VERY handy a few weeks back! There is a wealth of information on their site, including sweepstakes! Go and check them out!

~ Brande

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Fluffy Fourth of July Gnome’s Naturals Giveaway!

Posted by html404 on June 26, 2012
in Baby Products, Giveaways, Organic

The Fourth of July is only a week a way, can you believe it? Have you ever heard this about corn, “Knee high by the Fourth of July?” Well, the corn behind our house is over six feet tall, it’s growing just fine. Enough about farming, right? On to the giveaway….

We are helping promote the Fluffy Fourth of July Gnome’s Naturals Giveaway. Sponsored by Gnome’s Naturals and hosted by Life With Levi!

Whether you’re just starting out using cloth diapers or already a fluffy pro, this giveaway prize offers something for everyone.

One lucky winner will receive the ULTIMATE cloth diaper stash starter pack, valued at over $415!!!

This amazing prize prize pack includes:

THREE ones & twos All In One Diapers
ONE AppleCheeks Bamboo Little Bundle
ONE AppleCheeks Microterry Little Bundle
TWO Tots Bots Easy Fit or Tini Fit Diapers
TWO Rumparooz G2 Pocket Diapers or Little Joey Newborn All In Ones
ONE Bummis Beautiful BASIC Kit
SIX Organic Cotton Prefold Diapers
ONE Bummis Super Snap Wrap
ONE Bummis Super Lite Wrap
TWO Snappis
ONE AppleCheeks Storage Sac Pail Liner
ONE M Monkey Foot Designs Wet Bag for when you’re on the go.
ONE KalmSkin Travel Size Cloth Diaper Safe Rash Stick
ONE Bag of Rockin’ Green Laundry Detergent
ONE Clean Cheeks Wipes Concentrate
ONE 6 Pack of AppleCheeks Cloth Wipes
ONE Mini Shower Diaper Sprayer
ONE Pack of AppleCheeks Flushable Diaper Liners

That’s all the diapers AND accessories you need for 18 diaper changes!!

Gnome’s Naturals is a cloth diaper and natural parenting store owned & operated by Lori Whitlock. As a mom of a toddler, Lori is always searching for great natural products for herself and her family. When she finds products that she loves, she sticks with them. Lori created Gnome’s Naturals to share those products with you. As a cloth diaper blogger, Lori has tried almost every cloth diaper on the market and strives to carry only the best of the best.

In addition to some well known brands that Lori loves, Gnome’s Naturals also carries work at home mom (WAHM) made items in the store. Make sure you check out the WAHM Spotlight section for products that are handmade by moms in North America. Lori is a huge proponent of moms supporting moms and she hopes that by retailing some mom-made items, she can help support them financially as well.

If you’re new to cloth diapering, Gnome’s Naturals offers several different cloth diaper trial packages. Beyond cloth diapers, Gnome’s Naturals also carries a great selection of baby carriers, baltic amber teething necklaces, breastfeeding products, and more.

Ready To Win?

Just enter using the easy Rafflecopter form below.
All entries are optional – be sure to come back often to complete the daily entries, since the more entries you have, the more chances you have to win!

Giveaway open to residents of the US & Canada. Contest ends Friday, July 6th.

a Rafflecopter giveaway

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Annie’s Homegrown – Bernie’s Summer Road Trip!

Posted by Brande on June 14, 2012
in All Natural Products, Animals, Contests, Family Stuff, Food and Treats, Free Stuff, Fun Stuff, Organic, Parenting

Annie’s Homegrown wants your pictures with Bernie the Bunny! They will choose 1 winner each week to win a road trip snack pack. If you one of the early entries you could get a Bernie decal! The contest ends July 31st – Don’t Forget to download Bernie!