REVIEW: Magic Washing Balls

I switched our cleaning supplies in our house to a natural methods - like vinegar, baking soda and Borax -  a few years ago. I have a tendency towards psoriasis and when I come in contact with bleach, my skin goes crazy. So I've used "free" detergents for laundry for years now.

So I was interested to try out the MagicEra Washing Ball. Well, interested and a bit skeptical. But I used it on a few loads of the tinies' laundry and it did work very well - every thing came out clean and soft.

The Magic Washing Ball is considered environmentally friendly as well as budget friendly - in fact, according to the company, comparing to other chemical detergents, washing balls can save up to 90% of laundry budget; these washing balls are good up to 1000 loads. (If the laundry is somewhat heavy, the balls can be used with one spoon of baking soda.) 


You can pick them up for $29.99 at London Drugs and a few other retailers.

If you're interested in more information about it, here is the website.


Disclosure: I was not compensated for my review. I was sent the product for free to review but my opinions are my own.

CLOSED //GIVEAWAY: Healthy Families BC and a $250 Gift Card to Lululemon

Contest is now closed. Thanks everyone for entering!
The winner is:

Glogirl said...

We enjoy walking outside and enjoying all the sights, sounds and smells of summer!

August 19, 2011 5:26 PM 

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A day at the spray park with my older tinies and one of my little nieces.

Given how long it took for summer to arrive here in the Lower Mainland, we have jumped in, cannon ball style straight into the deep end of summer fun. Every day, we are outside and when its time to go in for bedtime, my inner voice is echoing the tinies moans of "awwwww, Mum? Already?" and then once they're sleeping, I'm on our back deck, exhausted, counting new freckles. 


We spend our days swimming usually. My five year old learned how to swim this summer and the sight of her in her goggles - well, it just makes me shout with laughter. 

My nearly-three-year-old is absolutely fearless in the water and flings himself in, belly flop, coming up sputtering and laughing. And Evelynn is usually along for the ride. 


This has been my favourite summer so far because the tinies are really able to run and play and swim. The pool is the best baby sitter I ever met in my life because they jump in with their life jackets on and swim until they are wrinkled and even then, they'd stay in forever if I let them. 


And then there is the summer garden suppers! I despise cooking in the heat and so we end up eating a lot of garden suppers, sandwiches of cucumbers and tomato with a bit of cream cheese, carrots, grilled corn on the cob. We have been making blueberry and peach crisps lately as well and oh, gracious, summer just shows off on those days.


There is a new resource called Healthy Families BC  that the province of BC has launched to help families eat healthy and live well. This online community which is hosted on the Healthy Families website, blog, Twitter (@healthyfamilybc) and Facebook Page looks to help BC citizens make the informed and positive lifestyle choices. Healthy Families BC offers everything from healthy recipes to dietitians blogging.

GIVEAWAY!

To celebrate Healthy Families BC and help you get moving, I have a $250 Lululemon gift card to give away!

Open to Canadian mailing addresses. 

Just leave a comment on this post telling me what your family does to keep active during the summer. 

That's it! If you want to Tweet it or Facebook the link or otherwise share it for this giveaway, that's great - just leave another comment telling me that you did so and you'll get another entry.

Contest closes 26 August at midnight. I'll draw a winner using Random.org.

Good luck!

GIVEAWAY: "The Help" Movie Prize Pack

CONTEST CLOSED! Thanks to everyone for participating!


Winner is:

Elizabeth said...

I read The Help twice last year and bought it to read again-loved it! I hope the movie is half as good.

August 4, 2011 7:38 PM 


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One of my favourite books this past year was "The Help." I know it's not every one's cup of tea but I truly loved it. I missed the characters when it was over, felt sad when it slid down the return chute at the library  and then promptly bought it just to read it over again.


I'm headed to the advance screening tonight with my sister. The movie opens on August 10th.

If you do go to see the movie next week, you can tweet your thoughts using the hashtag: #TheHelpMovie #Canada

-Watch THE HELP trailer: http://youtu.be/KJiBqBB413c

-Watch THE HELP behind the scenes featurette: http://youtu.be/he9IB5g4yxw

-Watch THE HELP Mary J Blige featurette:  http://youtu.be/J5fGmnT_d84

GIVEAWAY!

To celebrate the release, I have a movie prize pack to give away. 

The prize pack includes:

·         THE HELP hand held novelty fan

·         THE HELP nail file

·         THE HELP bookmark

Open to Canadian and USA mailing addresses. Just leave a comment on this post telling me the last movie you saw (and liked). Thats it! If you want to Tweet it or Facebook the link for this giveaway out, that's great - just leave another comment telling me that you did so and you'll get another entry.

Contest closes 15 August at midnight. I'll draw a winner using Random.org.

Good luck!

Organically Grown

When Evelynn was born, the kind folks at Organically Grown sent us a baby gift of an organic onesie for her.

Here it is:

People, I am in love.

It's incredibly soft and fits like a dream. Is that set not absolutely adorable? I want one for every age as she grows out of them. *sigh*

The company itself is very inspiring, the kind of place that you want to support. (Here's their About Us page.) They have great items for everyone in your family - and yes, I am covering this in particular for Joe. It's also more affordable than most other organic clothiers I've seen.

If you've got a baby to buy for - or a kid - or a blogger - give them a holler.

Hidden Valley Ranch

Brian has a patch at our community garden for growing vegetables. He enjoys the work quite a lot and it's been a lot of fun for the tinies as well as a great learning experience. I quite like to make sure that the tinies are eating vegetables, especially after our Whole Food Challenge, so this was a great way to do it.

I don't know if anyone else has noticed but kids love to dip. So we always are making dips of some sort for the raw veggies like buzzing up hummus in the food processor. I was sent a large box of Ranch dressing from Hidden Valley Ranch and it was a BIG HIT here, especially with Joe. Joe adores "dipping" and now calls the Hidden Valley Ranch "the Vegetable Dip." We gave away a few of the bottles to friends and family and everyone was absolutely thrilled.

And then I found their website which has a ton of recipes available.

If you have lots of veggies around or are wanting to get your own tinies to try them, you could always give this a go. It works for our crew.

*No money was exchanged for this review. I was sent the products for review but all opinions are my own.

Treehouse: Natural, non-toxic and gentle bath time products

I was recently sent some samples for Nature Clean's new line of natural, non-toxic and gentle bath time products for children called Treehouse. And yes, they feature the characters from Treehouse like the Backyardigans and Franklin as well as Max and Ruby.

We've all been thrilled with them. Nature Clean is a Canadian company and this line is thankfully sulphate, paraben and phthalates-free.

We tried out the 2-in-1 Shampoo in Berry Blast. Annie in particular loved this one as she's learning how to wash her own hair and so it was a great experience for her.

Toothpaste for kids (100% natural) - this one was fluoride free and uses natural fruit flavouring. I like it because it does give the tinies something fun like Franklin on the outside while everything on the inside is natural.

Natural Wipes - These are alcohol and chlorine free. They are safe and gentle for Evelynn and Joseph - much better than any of the other ones I've tried to be honest. I'll be buying them from now on.

If you spot them at your local shops, give them a try!


*No money was exchanged for this review. I was sent the products for free but all opinions are my own.

GIVEAWAY: "Jesus, My Father, The CIA and Me" (Updated with winner!)

Giveaway now closed! 

Winner is 

Norse, Jesica, and Boden said...

Wow, how lame am I that I can't think of a memoir I've read. Maybe this book will be my first! Here's hoping.

July 14, 2011 7:59 PM 

Thanks everyone!

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Reviewing: Jesus, My Father, The CIA and Me: A Memoir ... of Sorts by Ian Morgan Cron.

Publishers Summary:
An entertaining, touching memoir of life with an alcoholic father who secretly works for the CIA, a dark pilgrimage through the valley of depression and addiction, and finding a faith to redeem, and a strength to forgive. At the age of sixteen, Ian Morgan Cron was told that his stockbroker father actually worked for the CIA. The story of this world-rocking discovery is the stepping-off point into a fascinating exploration of one mans alternately heartbreaking and humorous journey to faith and spiritual growth. Born into a family of privilege and power, Ians life is populated with colorful people and stories including the account of an alcoholic father who takes his family on a wild roller-coaster ride through wealth and poverty and back again. Includes tales of a nearly blind English nanny who teaches him what love means, a famous New York radio personality who saves his life, a simple carpenter who leads him to faith in Jesus, and his own personal journey from addiction to twenty-three years of sobriety. Believers and seekers alike will be moved by how Ian uncovers and honors what is sacred in his story, how he discovers God in the struggle to find redemption, and how the mysterious movement and presence of God is woven throughout the adventure of his life.


My Review:
Excellent, excellent book. I like to read memoirs quite a bit but this is one of my favourites so far. It's funny, sad and universal in its longings. The book is beautiful but last three or four chapters in particular tell such a gorgeous, God-breathed story of redemption that it takes it from being a good book to being a great book. I liked Ian and his voice is crisp and funny, self-deprecating and full of pathos without being sappy. He writes without a lot of sentimentality but with tremendous feeling - a hard line to walk. 


And the writing - the writing is fantastic. Even the most mundane things are infused with a different view: for instance, he describes feeling suffocated as "having a dry-cleaner bag over his mouth" and it just locks into your mind and you get it. He does that throughout the book. He's relatable and yet a fresh writer. And the story is beautiful and sad.


Verdict:
Highly recommend.

Read an excerpt here.

GIVEAWAY!
I have one copy to giveaway!

Open to Canadian and USA mailing addresses. Just leave a comment on this post telling me the last memoir you read (and liked). Thats it! If you want to Tweet it or Facebook the link for this giveaway out, that's great - just leave another comment telling me that you did so and you'll get another entry.

Contest closes July 20 at midnight. I'll draw a winner using Random.org.

Good luck!