Tuesday, February 21, 2012

Where I've Been


I don't know how many of you noticed that I simply haven't been around the blogging world as much lately... well here is why (this is taken from my own handwritten journal):

Sometimes life seams so hard to juggle things around. It's hard to find a balance in things or to know whether or not something is truly beneficial. I don't want to just be a quitter on my blog, but right now I feel like if I don't quiet it'll pull me away from what's most important in life: My Lord, My husband, my children, and my home. I already feel like I fail miserable at times to keep up with my home. I don't want to be a failure, but I also don't want to be a quitter when things get tough. I also know that I don't want to be known to my children as the mom that was constantly glued to the computer or ipod. I want to be known as industrious and working with my hands. Most of all as a Proverbs 31 woman, a Woman of God! 

"He who pursues righteousness and loyalty Finds life, righteousness, and honor." Proverbs 21:21

"For it is THou who dost bless the righteous man, O Lord, Thou dost surround him with favor as with a shield." Psalms 5:12

From 'Large Family Logistics' book Chapter 13: Life with Littles:

Content Yourself with Healthy Brain Food:

Life with Littles involves a fair amount of physically hard work. It can lack mental stimulation that we, as women, crave. We feel that lack and will look to fill it with something.

My oldest children were little before the days of the Internet, so I didn't have to battle getting caught up in online discussions and the like. If you are looking to online friends for encouragement, tread carefully and wisely. The women of old got in trouble going from house to house gossiping, we don't need to leave our houses to fall into the same sins. And I would suggest using a timer at the computer so you don't fall into the cyber abyss. It's a little scary how fast time flies when you are sitting in front of that screen.

For safer, better mental stimulation, I recommend reading books. Not fiction, but how-to, theology, philosophy, Bible study, and other books that provoke thought. These types of books can be read one chapter at a time and then thought about while doing physical work. How-to books can also promote creative action. Of course, you can find helpful articles on the Internet too, but you have to watch out for the abyss which can sap your time as well as your emotional and spiritual energy.

What you put in comes out. If you sow in your mind things that promote discontent-- argumentative online debates, television sitcoms or irrelevant reality shows, foolish novels, and worldly magazines-- then you will read discontent in your life. This can happen online and offline as well. Examine your heart to see if it is focused on God and serving Him or on yourself. Do not allow yourself to be discontent, but look at all things with thanksgiving and challenge yourself to overcome trials with biblical responses. look at the long physically hard days as the blessing that they are, This is the school of sanctifications. God is growing you." 

"... There are times in life that certain things do not fit in and must be let go for a season."

"Thy word I have hid in my heart, that I might not sin against thee!" Psalm 119:11



I am not saying blogging is wrong or that I am leaving! I am going to take a small brake then come back and be a slower blogger then what I was trying to be! There will still be giveaways and reviews and exciting things like that, but I just need to step back a notch and be a Wife and Mama first and for most! :-)

Any thoughts? Anyone experiencing/ed this? Tips to help me balance things out? 

Reuseit Review and Giveaway


Reuseit is a company with a whole host of wonderful reusable products! They carry Produce bags, snack bags, cloth diapers, lunch boxes, and much more! :-) 

Reuseit sent me a Klean Kanteen Sippy Cup! Our daughter is constantly chewing on everything. Which includes her sippy cups. A sippy cup might last her a month without leaking. Usually she chews through the top sooner then that tho and it's leaking by two weeks. I wanted to find something that was way more durable. I've had this sippy cup for about a month now and it still looks brand new! :-) Also if my daughter did happen to eventually chew up the sippy part, it gets lost, or broken you can purchase the Sippy Cup Adaptor Kit from Reuseit as well and tada you have a brand new sippy cup again! ;-)

The other thing I always hated about the plastic sippy cups was no matter how much you scrubbed them they still smelled as though they had rotten milk in them. *EW* This sippy however comes clean and smells fresh after every wash! 

I've had it leak a few times just a little and it's usually because I haven't put the lid on right. However like any sippy cup it isn't meant to be turned upside down and pounded! ;-)

Buy it: Would you like to purchase your own Klean Kanteen Sippy cup? Check out Reuseit and see what fun colors they come in! ;-)

Win it: One (1) of Mama's Sew Sweet Baby readers will win a $25 Gift Certificate to Reuseit! 

Enter using the Rafflecopter Form below! :-)


Friday, February 10, 2012

Homemade Produce Wash ~Guest Post~



Whether you buy organic or non-organic produce, it is still a good idea to wash your fruits and veggies first. Pesticides are just one reason to wash produce but even if there were no pesticides used, your produce could still get germs and bacteria just from the trip from the farm to your home. Obviously you don’t want to potentially eat pesticides, germs or bacteria so take the tiny effort to wash your produce first.

Now you could go out and buy a produce spray or wash from the store. However, store bought produce washes tend to cost a lot. In fact, they cost a ton when you realize that you don’t need special soaps or chemicals to clean your apples!

You can make your very own produce wash at home with ingredients that you already have in your kitchen! It is incredibly easy and extremely inexpensive to make your own produce wash!

Produce Wash

½ cup vinegar
1 ½ cups water

Mix both ingredients together and store in a spray bottle. When you are ready to wash your produce, simply spray on, rub or scrub depending on the produce and then rinse under running water. For produce that benefits more from a soaking technique such as lettuce or broccoli, just pour the vinegar solution in a bowl and place your produce in the bowl. Swish your produce around a bit and then rinse off under water.

This recipe is a 1:3 ratio of vinegar to water so it’s very easy to make a larger batch if you need to.

As I said, it’s pretty likely that you have vinegar in your home already and you obviously have water. This produce wash is practically free to make and since there are only two ingredients, it’s pretty simple as well. Since you are making it yourself and you actually know the ingredients, you can rest easy knowing that the produce wash that you are spraying on your fruit is completely safe and natural.




Bio: Brittany is a stay at home wife and mother to three children (5 years, 4 years, & 1 year). You can find more about Brittany on her blog The Pistachio Project, where she writes about being green, natural parenting, frugal living and safer products.

Tuesday, January 31, 2012

From Our Heart's to Yours Giveaway

WithOurBest button


 Welcome to From Our Hearts To Yours hosted by Life With Two Boys, With Our Best, and Mama-Nibbles. There are over 100 bloggers participating in this hop, and each blogger has their own prize package of at least $25 worth of Valentine-related items! So after you have entered my giveaway, I encourage you to hop along and see what the other bloggers are giving away too!

Here are our Sponsors:

Gracenotes:



Gracenotes will be giving away an Asian Pear Lip Butter and a Valentines necklace and earrings! 
Value: $13.50



It's A Blessing:



It's a Blessing will be giving away a $15 GC to their Esty shop!


Lilla Rose:



Shannon from Lilla Rose will be giving away a free clip up to $15!


Lily Organics:


Lily Organics will be giving away a Organic Rose Facial Toner!
Value: $19.99




Mountain Rose Herbs:

Mountain Rose Herbs will be giving away some Relaxing Herbal Bath Salts!
Value: $16.50


NaturOli:


And NaturOli will be giving away a Soap Lover's Canister! :-)
Value: $15.50


That's a total Prize Value of $95.49! There will be one (1) winner for this giveaway! :-) Enter using the Rafflecopter form below! Hope you win!

Saturday, January 28, 2012

Green Resolutions Sponsor Spotlight Post ~Luna Pads~


Here is Lunapads Sponsor Spotlight post! :-)




Lunapads is a cloth pad company! Your probably thinking that is nasty... but truly? Which is more nasty? Throwing out a whole package of disposable pads during your cycle or washing them after your cycle?

"Reusable menstrual products are eco-friendly, money-saving, healthy alternatives to disposable pads and tampons. "



"Construction
Pad Base: 2 Layer, 100% organic cotton flannel base topped with an absorbent panel made of 2 layers of organic cotton fleece, and 1 layer of ultra-thin nylon to minimize soaking through. Nickel-free, Silver-plated brass single snap fastening. Click here to see how our pads are constructed.
Liner Insert: 2 layers of 100% cotton fleece.
Performance
A single Pad will get you through an entire day of your cycle; just change your Liner as needed. Liners will last approximately as long (per use) as a comparably-sized disposable pad or tampon. Unlike most disposable pads, Lunapads do not contain any added chemicals, gels, or super absorbent polymers. Given this, Lunapads users need to be mindful of changing the Liner insert as frequently as their flow dictates in order to prevent soaking through the Pad. Frequent changing of the Liners significantly enhances the comfort and performance of the Pad.
Lunapads will last upwards of 5 years with recommended usage and care. Many of our customers report they still own some Lunapads from 10 years ago!"
From Lunapad's Website on wash and care:

"Lunapads can be washed by hand or machine in any temperature with your regular detergent. Pre-soaking or rinsing in cold water prior to washing is recommended (but not always necessary) particularly if the pads are heavily saturated. Please note that if Lunapads are being soaked, soaking water must be changed daily.
We recommend natural cleaning products such as Nellie’s All Natural Laundry Soda for regular cleaning, and Buncha Farmers Stain Remover to perk up stained Lunapads. Heavily stained Pads, Liners or Pantyliners may also benefit from occasional machine wash and dry in hot settings or air drying in direct sunlight.
Please avoid the use of chlorine bleach or fabric softeners to clean Lunapads, as this will decrease the performance of the products and is harmful to the environment."


Here is a helpful video on how to use Luna Pads:




My overall opinion: I found Lunapads not only to be quite comfortable and absorbent, but also pretty! :-) Lunapads are made out of fun feminine colors! :-) I think tho that my favorite part about the Lunapads design is that you have your regular pad and you just put an insert over the top of it! You can then use the same pad for the whole day with just changing out the inserts! :-) What a very clever and unique idea! 

Buy it: Visit the Lunapads website to buy some of your very own pads! 

Win it: would you like your chance to win a Sampler Pack of Lunapads? Visit my Green Resolutions giveaway to enter to win! :-)


Disclaimer: I was provided with a free sample of this product to review, and I was under no obligation to review it if I so chose. Nor was I under any obligation to write a positive review in return for the free product. All opinions are 100% my own and may vary from yours.

Tuesday, January 24, 2012

~Undercover Mama~ Review and Giveaway


Undercover Mama is a company that makes nursing tanks that you put under your shirt so that you can turn any shirt into a nursing shirt! Simply a brilliant idea!! :-) 



"Make Nursing Easier with Undercover Mama
The Undercover Mama is a strapless camisole that attaches right to any nursing bra. Layer it under any shirt, keeping your style without having to invest in a whole new wardrobe of nursing shirts. Essentially, Undercover Mama easily transforms any shirt into a nursing shirt!
With two attachment options included with every shirt, Undercover Mama will work with any nursing bra...and you can continue to use it as an undershirt with your regular, non-nursing bras when you are finished breastfeeding.
Let us help you make nursing comfortable and affordable while keeping you covered and maintaining your style."


I got a Cream Nursing Shirt to try out and I love it! The thing I was a little skeptical about at first was the sizing. I hate to be hugged to tight with a shirt... yes even under my regular shirt. It just makes me feel so uncomfortable. Undercover Mama suggests this:

"SIZE GUIDE -The Undercover should fit snugly. We recommend that you order a size smaller than your regular shirt size. (I.E. Regular shirt size medium, get the Undercover in size small.)"


Usually when I see things like this I ignore them and go with my regular size. But this time I wanted to see how it would fit. I was surprised to find that yes, it fit snugly, but it doesn't give you that tight feeling. It's actually REALLY comfortable! And I even tried it with my pregnant belly! :D The fabric it's made out of makes it soft and comfortable! :-) I found the following to all be true:

"Our undershirts are constructed of quality material and are made to last. Your Undercover won't bunch up, slide around, or ball up after washing.They fit where you need them to while keeping you covered in style. The generous length allows you to tuck it in or go for a layered look."


I'm really looking forward to trying my Undercover Mama shirt when my new Wee one gets here! :-) I think that it will make nursing a whole lot less stressful when out and about! Now I just wish I had one when nursing my daughter! ;-)

Buy it: Visit Undercover Mama to purchase your own Nursing shirt for $24.99

Win it: Would you like a chance to win one! Undercover Mama is going to be giving away one (1) Shirt to one of Mama's Sew Sweet Baby readers! :-) Just fill out the rafflecopter form below to be entered! 


Sunday, January 15, 2012

~Green Resolutions Giveaway Hop~ 6 Winners!!!


Welcome to the Green Resolutions Giveaway Hop, hosted by Happy Mothering, Mama Chocolate and Purposeful Homemaking! In addition to my green giveaway, there are an additional 40 blogs featuring eco-friendly prize packages. After you're done entering my giveaway, please visit the other blogs, which you'll find listed below the Rafflecopter form. Are you excited? 

Here at Mama's Sew Sweet Baby we have a total of $190.41 in prizes that you can win! Wanna see what the loot is?

Here is what you can win:



1st Prize:

A Diaper Cover ($15.25) from Baby Bee Haven!

A Wet Bag ($20.00) from Sweet Bobbins!
Total Prize Value: $35.25



2nd Prize:

Blocks ($27.99) from Green Toys!
Total Prize Value: $27.99



3rd Prize:
$30 Gift Certificate to Glad Rags!
Total Prize Value: $30.00



4th Prize:

4 pack ($6.99) of Skoy Cloth!


Organic Sandwich Bag ($9.50) from SnackTAXI!



Bag of Laundry Detergent ($15.95) from Rockin' Green!
Total Prize Value: $32.44



5th Prize:

A Sampler Pack ($25.78) from Lunapads!
My review here!
Total Value of prize: $25.78



6th Prize:

Panty Liner Sampler Kit ($22.00) and 2 Pack/set of Nursing Pads ($16.95) from Posh Pads!
My review here!
Total Value of prize: $38.95









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