Dylan is loving all his new Johnson and Johnson products!

Dylan is our second baby and when I was pregnant with him my mom debated if it was appropriate for him to have his own baby shower. I know everyone has their own opinions on this but in the end the decision was made to have a "diaper shower" where the gifts (if given) were diapers and consumables. Personally I think every baby and every mom deserves a party be it a full blown shower or even just a afternoon get together. Pregnancy can be awfully taxing and especially in those last two months mom's are feeling a little defeated at times... even more so if your a mom like me who already has a very active two year old at home. I know my shower really helped make me feel special when I really felt more like a slow moving hippo with arthritis. heh.

One of my favorite gifts from my shower were all the great Johnson and Johnson products we received. Actually thanks to Mom Central we got a big package of Johnson and Johnson baby products including some of our favorites like the one necessity every mom needs.. Johnson and Johnson's baby lotion and Johnson and Johnson baby shampoo. Both of which are not only great for baby but are fabulous for mom as let me tell you if you spend four days in the hospital like I just did, after my c-section, your skin gets pretty dry. I was rubbing both Dylan and myself down several times a day as both of us started to look like dried up alligators. Something is just so comforting about that smell as well. The last two nights I didn't sleep at all thanks to all the nurses in and out of my room, but I did get some quality snuggle time with my favorite little peanut who smelled so wonderful I barely wanted to give him back to the nursery staff when it was time for him to see his doctors in the morning.

Tonight Connor got his first bath at home and we used the classic Johnsons and Johnsons Bedtime Bath and let me tell you this kid LOVES his sponge baths. I've never met a baby who enjoyed having his hair washed as much as this one.

So regardless if your looking to buy for your own baby or if your looking for the perfect shower gift. Johnson and Johnson products are a perfect choice. Actually any mom would really enjoy getting a little gift basket full of baby bath and body products. Johnson and Johnson makes some of the most trusted brands including Desitin which has to be one of the most popular diaper rash creams I've heard of (I actually got three tubes for my real shower). Consider even making a little bath time caddy which is perfect for that first sponge bath. I made one tonight for Dylan and it has a bottle of Bedtime Bath, Head to Toe Body Wash, Baby Lotion, a pacifier, several clean diapers, a small package of wipes, several clean wash cloths, a brush, and my aunt's favorite hair cream.

"I wrote this review while participating in a blog tour campaign by Mom Central on behalf of Johnson and Johnson’s and received samples of Johnson’s Baby products to facilitate my review."

The best bath toy ever invented, as far as Connor's concerned!

Connor takes baths almost to the point that its an obsession. One bad diaper, one accident, just the sound of running water, pretty much any excuse sends him running to the bathroom begging, pleading, doing anything in his little power to wrangle someone into turning on the water for him. Just forget taking a shower in this house without having an unexpected guest as he will get undressed and climb in unannounced and believe me this kid is not shy. I guess I shouldn't complain as he could be one of those boys who refuses to take baths and needs to be held down to be scrubbed. He actually does a superb job of bathing himself even down to his hair. His ears are really the only parts he needs help with. Don't worry if your showering with him he will kindly remind you as to which parts you've forgotten to bathe as well.

The problem with this whole scenario is the fact that he prefers showers to baths but if he does take a bath he will try anything he can to get you to keep the water running. All of this while I listen to talk radio and hear about world water shortages and my son wants to keep the water running just so he can make pretend coffee and run my water bill sky high. I'm honestly not even sure where the "coffee" bit came from as well I don't drink coffee but I suspect that's something he learned from his Maw Maw.

We've finally found a solution that keeps him happy without wasting water and it even comes with its own cups for whatever your little ones want to pretend. The YooKiddoo - Flow N Fill Spout was on the top of our list of toys to obtain the moment we saw the press release before it was even out on the market. It's actually a fairly simple bath toy, a spout attached to a little motor that pumps water from the bath out the top and comes with its own set of bath cups that rest in a cradle that can be moved back and forth. It runs off of batteries and I have to say they last a remarkably long time even with Connor using the toy several times a day and occasionally forgetting to turn it off when he is done. You turn the YooKiddoo - Flow N Fill Spout on by just pressing the face on the front, Connor figured this out in less than 30 seconds and its easy enough that even very little ones could easily accomplish it.

The best feature about this bath toy is how wide spread the age range of children who would really appreciate it. It can easily run in just an few inches of water and it's safe and attractive to infants as young as 9 months (pretty much the moment they can sit up in the bath they will be able to play with this one) though even younger babies may enjoy the sound of running water in their bath and the bright colors as a distraction while you bath them. Connor nearing 3 years old and already declaring some toys too "babyish" shows no signs of loosing interest in his YooKiddoo - Flow N Fill Spout in fact our only regret is we didn't have it two years ago. It's been a bathing station for his boats and rubber duckies, a pretend coffee maker, and I've even caught him using it to rinse his hair off after we soap it up. Another small bonus if you use bubbles in your bath like we do on occasion it also helps keep the bubbles refreshed in the tub as it keeps the water circulating.

I have a feeling we will wear out our YooKiddoo - Flow N Fill Spout long before we ever outgrow it around here and I'm fairly positive we paid off its $16.99 price tag the first month we had it just in saving on our water bill. You can pick up your own at the International Plaything's website.

I'm fairly sure my own mom bathed me this way.

I think the very first thing I registered for when I started my baby registry for Connor was Johnson and Johnson's bedtime bath. I've always had issues sleeping and I lost even more sleep worrying about if Connor would inherit my insomnia issues and between the two of us we'd both end up becoming zombies doomed to never sleep a wink. Johnson's Bedtime Bath has actually been one of my secrets to relaxing and falling asleep, as an adult, so I was already convinced that it would work with babies. Well lucky for me Connor did not only not inherit my lack of sleep issues, but he has slept pretty much through the night from day one. Only waking up occasionally if he is hungry, needs a diaper change, or rarely in the case of a bad dream. Hopefully he enjoys his father's sound almost unfair ability to fall asleep by just closing his eyes and the ability to sleep through practically an earthquake. heh. I only hope for my sake when it comes to school that he is a bit easier to wake up than his father.

What Connor does love is bath time and "bath" was one of his first few words. So when we got a chance to try out Johnson and Johnson's new foaming bath and bubble bath in honor of the Johnson and Johnson 50th Anniversary we jumped in with a splash. Actually, when the box arrived Connor asked me what it was as he always does and I said "bubble bath" and I swore he would have chewed that box open like a dog if I didn't hurry up and open it for him. When I tell you that Connor loves baths, you have no idea, the kid will stay in the bath tub till the water is so cold he starts to turn blue if your not careful. The new Johnson and Johnson Foaming Bath Wash is PERFECT it comes in a small pump top bottle that is actually easy enough that Connor can pump his own soap out and seeing as its foaming it's actually pretty thrifty on how much comes out at once. It looks like a huge amount as it foams up in your hand so Connor thinks he is getting a ton of soap, though I know he's not, and he loves rubbing the "bubbles" all over.

Speaking of bubbles we always put a little bit of soap in the bath before we start so the water is a little bubbly on top when Connor gets in. I'm always a bit concerned though as his skin gets so dry that I'm always worried that bubble bath will dry him out even more. Needless to say we love the new Johnson and Johnson bubble bash and wash and it does not irritate his skin or leave him feeling dry. It's lightly scented so he smells pretty yummy after his bath as well. You can find a $1 off coupon for the new bubble bath on the Johnson and Johnson Baby Channel!

Visit the new Johnson and Johnson Baby Channel to see see videos and learn more about their products! Thanks Mom Central for letting us know!

Something red for valentines day!

I've been a big advocate for Boon products from the beginning. Actually ironically enough one of my very first reviews of last year was the Boon Frog Pod which is still an household staple here. It along with several other boon products including our Boon Modware and Boon Snack Ball are high on the list of items we could not imagine our life without.

So when the new Boon Bug Pod came out I was beyond exciting. Not only does this new bath toy organizer introduce some new style into Boon's very modern look but some new colors as well! The Boon Bug Pod is very similar to the Boon Frog Pod in function but its most obvious difference is in the looks and profile of the Bug Pod. If you have always wanted a Frog Pod but were concerned that it may be too big for your bath space you may really appreciate the fact that the Bug Pod though it has the same features and stores the same amount of toys its quite a bit more narrow than the Frog Pod so it fits neater in smaller spaces. Though this may not seem like much but if your like me and have a small bathroom or have storage shelves in your bath its not nearly so overwhelming to the space.

The best part about the Bug Pod is just the fact that its one of those products that functions exactly how its supposed to and it fills a real need when it comes to children's toys and bath products. My Frog Pod has been in my bathroom for almost a year at this point only using suction cups to hold it up. In that year its withstood countless showers, Connor's abuses, being cleaned over and over with mildew cleaners as my bathroom does not get enough ventilation so I must spray everything for mildew more often than I would like... and still in that entire year it has only come down once. Partially it was my fault as I left cleaner to sit and it got behind one of the suction cups and let the whole thing slide down. Easy enough I just let the wall dry nice again and cleaned all the suction cups and put it back up and almost four months later there have been no more occurrences. Any other time we have used suction cups in the bathroom its a total battle keeping them stuck to the wall. Though both the Frog Pod and the Bug Pod both come with both suction cups and sticky tape and even the ability to screw them into the wall why put holes in the wall if the suction cups work?

Though I have to say the new bright red ladybug shaped Boon Bug Pod may just be the most attractive Boon design yet. The bright red and its attractive almost feminine slim design is really quite pretty and though its perfect for both a boy and a girl it certainly yields itself to a girls bathroom more than a frog does.

You can buy your own Boon Bug Pod at the Boon website! I HIGHLY recommend them!

Is Connor floating?

Connor has a new trick, heh, and I wish I could share it with you guys but I fear it would get me in some big trouble so I'll just tell you about it.

Since Connor was born he has been a water baby, pretty much from the moment I figured out that he hated his baby bath tub and started bathing him either with me or by himself his favorite time a day is when I say the "B" word. It's actually pretty cute if you even mistakenly say "bath" in a sentence he will take off running towards the bathroom attempting to rip his clothes off as he goes. It's really cute until you accidentally mention it while your at a friend's house and before you know it I have a half naked baby running around the house.

I'm always looking for cool ways to improve our bath time but most importantly the biggest concern I have had lately is with Connor possibly bonking his head on the faucet. He has been getting really excited with his toys lately at bath time and I am constantly concerned that he will hurt himself regardless if I'm watching or not and I knew it was time that we had to get a faucet cover. I've had my eye on the Boon Flo from the moment I discovered how amazing Boon products are. Its most importantly a faucet cover that will protect little heads from hurting themselves on the faucet itself but it does so much more!

There is nothing needed to attach the Flo to your faucet, all you have to do is squeeze the opposite end together and it opens like a clasp and just fits onto the faucet. Once in place you can turn on the water and the Flo directs the water into a flat waterfall which Connor finds irreistable to play with, its also the perfect spout of water to rinse hair with! Connor's favorite part though is the fact that you can put a small amount of bubble bath or body wash inside the Flo and with a touch of a button you can dispense bubble bath into the water starting a cascade of bubbley water direction into the bath tub.

I heard from a few reviews that the Flo was a bit loose fitting on the water spout and to be totally honest with you guys I assure you that was not at all the case with us. Its works perfectly fits well and really the only complaint I would have would be that I wish it would hold more bubble bath and that it would dispense it slowly without having to push the button as I'd really love to be able to just put some soap in the Flo and fill up the bath tub using it as well and have an instant bubble bath!

The Boon Flo is available for purchase direction on the Boon website!

I absolutely love Boon products and I would love to share some of them with you. I have a Boon Fluid to give away to one lucky reader!

To enter :

• Leave a comment on this post. Check out Boon's products and tell me which one looks cool to you and why!
• Make sure there is a way for me to contact you - if your email address is not on your profile or you are not a blogger you may leave it in your comment or email it to me directly (angelaandconnor at gmail dot com) We have had to disqualify a lot of potential winners as of late as many people do not have emails available in their profiles or leave anonymous posts without any way to contact you.
• Please US entries only.
• To get extra credit :
  • For an extra entry :
  • Bloggers - Blog about this contest and leave me the link on your comment, or add me to your sidebar and let me know its there.
  • Non Bloggers (or bloggers) subscribe to my mailing list/RSS feed and earn another entry!
  • One extra credit per person. Please post your extra credit in a separate post.
  • This contest will end Dec 30th at midnight!

I've got some new friends you really must meet!

I've been pretty busy the last month testing out a big care package that Circle of Friends sent over for Connor. I'm usually pretty excited to try out new baby bath products but this particular line of bath products has had me on my toes as its just about all I can do to keep myself from stealing them for myself.

The first set of products we tried out were the Little Doc's line. Connor has struggled with childhood Eczema since he was born and up till very recently he was having some really bad outbreaks on his ankles and elbows. It had even started creeping up his legs and I started getting worried. I've struggled with Eczema off and on my entire life though most of my outbreaks are usually on my arms and since my csection with Connor I have new outbreaks on my stomach which I find odd. We have been using the Little Doc's line anytime there is even a hint of an outbreak and its really great as it does not irritate or make the flair ups worst. It's also really great if your having really itchy dry skin as it really does calm itches. I swear by the cooling spray lotion as it really was my only relief during my last outbreak on my stomach which has to be the itchiest place for me to get an outbreak at least. Connor seems to enjoy it as well as he will pull at his socks when he is having an outbreak as they irritate his ankles and it seems if I sprayed him down really good and let it dry before I put his socks or shoes on he will go about his day like nothing is up.

Circle of Friends offers a host of other bath and skin products as well all of which smell amazing, so good in fact that you will find yourself wanting to taste them but believe me I don't recommend it. Connor did try a good taste of the Buddy Bar Strawberry Soap and from the look on his face I'd say it doesn't taste the way it smells. heh. It does however in fact smell like something you would love to eat and it leaves your kids smelling quite tasty. I am absolutely in love with the Strawberry Buddy Bar and the Shampoos smell wonderful as well, I have to admit I've used them myself on several occasions.

I have to say though the one product that I have to almost forcibly keep myself from using as we'd have to buy a new tube once a week is the Tanner's Tasty Paste. Being a girl who swears that anything other than mint flavored toothpaste is gross I was a bit apprehensive about trying the Vanilla flavored tooth paste. I decided before I put in Connor's mouth I would try it myself and I had to think twice if I wanted to share it with him as its amazing. It smells and tastes like vanilla ice cream and you'll find yourself wondering if your actually even cleaning your teeth. I can honestly thank that toothpaste for training Connor to brush his own teeth as though he is only 18 months old he will stand in the bathroom and brush his teeth like a big boy just to get some of the Tanner's Tasty Paste. I have to actually pick him up and carry him out of the bathroom when we are done as he would stand there all night waiting for more.

While your over there if you have some older kids on your shopping list or are just looking for something unusual. The Ouchies - Teen-Ages band aids are printed band aids that everyone in the family will flip over.. even your sixteen year old purple haired punked out trolls that live in the basement (ok I only say this as I was one...) wont be able to resist them. In fact you may find that they disappear a little sooner than you'd expect as they may just find a reason to use them. Oops... I scratched myself with this crayon, I guess I need a Ouchies.... um no I didn't do that.. heh or did I?

You really must head on over to Circle of Friends and check out the whole line of products.

Circle of Friends is giving away one reader their own Circle of Friends gift to try out. One lucky reader will walk away with the Silly Sac Fish Gift Set of their own!

To enter :

• Leave a comment on this post. Tell us which Circle of Friends product you'd most like to try!
  
• Make sure there is a way for me to contact you - if your email address is not on your profile or you are not a blogger you may leave it in your comment or email it to me directly (angelaandconnor at gmail dot com) We have had to disqualify a lot of potential winners as of late as many people do not have emails available in their profiles or leave anonymous posts without any way to contact you.
• Please US entries only.
• To get extra credit :
• For an extra entry :
• Bloggers - Blog about this contest and leave me the link on your comment, or add me to your sidebar and let me know its there.
• Non Bloggers (or bloggers) subscribe to my mailing list/RSS feed and earn another entry!
• One extra credit per person. Please post your extra credit in a separate post.
• This contest will end Nov 30th at midnight!

Connor's favorite thing in the world - water.

I've mentioned several times that my child would rather bathe than eat any day, and any toy involving water gets him excited. So I am always on the lookout for amazing new water related toys.

Spin Master has two new toys that would make excellent additions to your Christmas shopping list especially for those on your list who like Connor love water.

I'm sure most of you are at least mildly familiar with the Aquadoodle brand. Up till recently I had heard the name often but never had the opportunity to try out an Aquadoodle toy. The Aquadoodle Draw and Doodle is a large mat that lays on the floor which children can draw on. The big surprise for me is the fact that you literally draw on the Aquadoodle with water! The Aquadoodle Draw and Doodle comes with a pen that you fill with plain tap water and it works much like a felt tipped marker as you draw on the mat it releases just enough water to make your drawings on the mat. Connor has just gotten into drawing and our biggest issue has been his attempts to eat and/or draw on himself with the markers. At least with the Aquadoodle if he draws on his face, clothes, or the carpet its just water and he is none the wiser. The mat itself has some step by step directions on how to draw simple drawings all along the edges of the mat which is great for beginners to have something to practice. I can easily see the mat being as fun for a 3 year old as it is a six year old and you can just pack it up in your bag and take it with you anywhere you need a distraction. I only wish it came with two pens so we could both draw at the same time. You can be pretty excited about the fact that there are no pens or paper to buy and the mat and pen can be used over and over and over... and water last I checked was still free!

The toy from Spin Master that I am most excited about, however, is the Bath Blizzard. I had purchased a "bath bubble maker" in another brand for Connor's first birthday. It made it through about two baths before I had to permanently retire it as water got into the bubble maker and it would only make about six bubbles before I had to rescue it out of the tub and Connor got incredibly frustrated. The Bath Blizzard doesn't make single bubbles but instead makes "foam" which cascades out of the machine for an instant bubble bath. Connor loves bubble baths but I have a hard time keeping the bubbles going normally as I usually don't make his water very deep to keep him from slipping so if we do use any bubble bath the bubbles are gone within a few minutes. With the Bath Blizzard not only does it produce a large amount of bubbles that are endlessly fun to play with, hey even I like to use it, but the bubbles can actually be used as soap as well! I was a bit concerned that you would have to buy the Kid Klean Bubbles to use the Bath Blizzard as nothing would be worst than to have to explain to Connor we cannot use his bubble maker tonight as Mommy ran out of bubbles. Between my school schedule and his dad's new night shift running to the store is more of a challenge these days. Thankfully if you run out of bubbles you have two options. You can add bubble bath to the bath tub and use the bubble maker to stir up the water creating bubbles which also works really well if you've used up all the bubbles during a bath and just want to refresh what you have. Or if you have a high quality bubble bath you can use that in replacement of the Kid Klean bubbles which worked fairly well for us as well. I think the Kid Klean bubbles actually work a tad big better but its good to know we have other options in a pinch when needed.

Not that Connor needed any extra encouragement to take a bath but its certainly a new distraction especially on those days we are fighting a bad diaper rash and he has to take extra baths to calm his hiney. I have to admit I kinda like it too as nothing is better than a bubble bath after a really stressful day and I've had my share of them lately.

The Kid Klean Bath Blizzard and the Aquadoodle Draw and Doodle are available from several major retailers as well as on Amazon! If your looking for a great deal on the Aquadoodle visit buyaquadoodle.com! The Kid Klean Bath Blizzard is available directly as well at an amazing price!

Is that drums I hear coming from the bathroom?

The only problem is he loves to stay in the bathtub to the point the water turns cold and finding quality bath toys has been a real issue. Many bath toys don't make it a long time around here as many mom's know that toys that hold water inside them at all sadly eventually grow mold and it seems no matter how often you clean them once they've molded once they always seem to be a problem after that.

So I've been on the lookout for some cool toys for the bath that would keep Connor's attention, make use of all that time he spends in the bath tub, and be easy to clean and dry so that evil mold problem would not be an issue. When I came across the Water Drums over at Alex Toys I knew Connor would be excited.

Outside the bath tub if you beat on the drums they make a dull sound, not saying you can't play with them outside the bath tub they just don't make a "drum" sound but the moment you float them on some water and hit them they make a really nice drumming sound if you use the drum sticks or even if you use your bare hands its really quite cool. Connor loves to beat on them for awhile then turn them over and float them upside down as a little boat for his other toys.

For Mom you will find that they are the easiest to clean bath toy you will ever own and are widely appealing to younger toddlers and even older children as they go from just being a noise maker to an actual musical instrument depending on the age level. I have to admit I find them pretty entertaining myself!

Water Drums are available as far of the Tub Tunes set at Alex Toys!

All natural goodness!

If your anything like me you are always worried about the chemicals going into your child's body and finding new organic products to make your life a little more chemical free is always fun.

I'm in love with lavender bath products for Connor and myself. I've used lavender products so often with him that when he is having a super cranky night all I have to do is spray some lavender room spray in his room and it usually settles him down. I've even reverted to wearing a lavender based perfume as I know it calms my own nerves as well and with my current schedule at school I'm always keyed up. I honestly think I get as much pleasure giving him a bath in lavender baby wash as he does as its just sort of become our routine.

With that said its just sometimes hard to find a good organic lavender body wash that's great smelling and affordable for everyday use. Sum-bo-shine offers a lavender and aloe baby wash and lotion that smells amazing, is great on Connor's eczema and at about $11-12 a bottle its very affordable in the organic market. All of Sum-Bo-Shine's products are 100% organic, natural, nothing artificial, and completely vegan other than the diaper rash cream which has beeswax.

Speaking of the Diaper Rash Cream I'm in love with that cream for daily use. Connor is a rash magnet and I put cream on him regardless of if he has a rash or not as the moment I let it go he ends up with a horrible rash. The Sum-bo-shine Diaper Rash cream is unlike any other cream we have used, its actually very thin and not pasty at all, and it has just a tiny bit of tea tree oil which gives it a great almost cooling affect (not to mention that tea tree oil is fabulous for dealing with itchy skin). Though Its a bit too runny for me to consider it a great overnight cream its wonderful as a preventative cream and works great as a daily cream. It does not include any zinc oxide which I love in a daily cream but I'd be the first to admit we still use a zinc oxide cream when Connor's rashes get bad enough, as much as I'd love to avoid doing so its a fact of life for us.

If your a a baby oil fan, you will love Sum-bo-shine's baby oil. Mixed with a bit of chamomile and rosemary it smells amazing. I was half tempted to rub it all over my own body! heh. Baby oil is a great moisturizer and we used alot of it when Connor was younger as a cradle cap preventive. I can happily say we made it totally through the infant stage with no cradle cap thanks to just a little bit of baby oil every day.

Sum-bo-shine's products are available directly from their website. I highly recommend the baby wash and diaper rash cream but all of them are equally awesome!

I have a little gift bag of Sum-bo-shine products to share with one of my readers!

To enter :

• Leave a comment on this post. Check out Sum-bo-shine and tell me what product you'd like to try the most and what appeals to you about their products!
  
• Make sure there is a way for me to contact you - if your email address is not on your profile or you are not a blogger you may leave it in your comment or email it to me directly (angelaandconnor at gmail dot com) We have had to disqualify a lot of potential winners as of late as many people do not have emails available in their profiles or leave anonymous posts without any way to contact you.
• Please US entries only.
• To get extra credit :
• For an extra entry :
• Bloggers - Blog about this contest and leave me the link on your comment, or add me to your sidebar and let me know its there.
• Non Bloggers (or bloggers) subscribe to my mailing list/RSS feed and earn another entry!
• One extra credit per person. Please post your extra credit in a separate post.
• This contest will end August 31th at midnight!

Who knew farm babies smell so delicious?

Something about Sweet Grass Farm's Farm Baby line reminds me of my grandmother. The beautiful little vintage label, the amazingly wonderful smell, I keep having flashbacks of sitting on my grandmother's dressing chair smelling all wonderful old fashioned powders and lotions she had. She always was under the impression that no matter what, you should always smell good.

Well smelling good is sometimes a bit of a challenge if your a boy, I have yet to figure out exactly what it is but why do boys always end up SO filthy? Seriously Connor can just sit here in the house, the clean house, and end up looking like and smelling like he has been rolling around in a cattle barn. I'm not sure how he does it, but I'm convinced that boys are magnetized towards dirt in any form. Well at least I know that bath time is always around the corner and thank goodness he is washable.

Farm Baby products run heavy on the lavender which leaves a lasting smell and is great for sleepy cranky babies. Did you know that lavender is a natural anti-fungal and anti-bacterial? Honesty, I never knew that until I saw it on the Sweet Grass Farm site! No wonder they grow those amazing acres and acres of lavender in France!

At under $8 a bottle for most of the Farm Baby line its one of the most affordable luxury baby products we have seen!

Farm Baby is available directly from Sweet Grass Farm.

Organic skincare that really works!

Whenever possible I try my hardest not to put products that contain unnecessarily chemicals in or on my child. Though sometimes I find that a hard task. VedaPURE is a line of organic body products which are most unusual as they were designed by a pediatrician! I still find it so rare to associate organic and doctor in the same sentence but its slowly happening.

The VedaBABY line was exactly the sort of thing I have been looking for! Connor suffers from eczema and very sensitive skin and sadly it keeps getting worse and worse, I fear soon we may be forced to go to a specialist but in the meantime I try to keep it under control and with a boy that is always into everything keeping his skin properly hydrated is always an issue. The VedaBaby Soothe is truely wonderful as it keeps Connor moisturized all day without having to reapply it several times and it seems to keep his eczema under check. I really need to invest in some of the Vedababy Calm as I have a feeling that would be excellent for flair ups.

Though the VedaBABY Butt Plus is not completely organic (as it contains Zinc Oxide) but its amazing stuff. Connor's skin is so touchy that if he even has one bad poop during the day within minutes his butt looks like someone rubbed sandpaper all over it. Its really hard to find a product that is not all chemicals that really goes on thick and protects. The VedaBABY Butt Plus not only is super thick but it really calms Connor's hiney down when he has a bad rash. I have to admit I put it on his ankles too under his socks if he is wearing shoes and it does a great job of protecting Connor's eczema spots from irritation.

One of my favorite things is the fact that the VedaBABY containers are so pretty. I do not mind one bit seeing them sitting out on Connor's dresser! If you are used to non organic baby products I think you will be blown away on how amazing they smell, even the diaper rash cream smells fresh.

I really want to try out the VedaMAMA and VedaRX lines!

VedaPURE products are available directly on their website!

A little lovin for the Mommies!

I've fallen in love with the products over at Thymes. We did a review of Thyme's Sweetleaf Baby collection not long ago, and I've been hooked ever sense.

As I mentioned before you can't help to notice how gorgeous the packaging is on all of the Thymes products, but the real treat is in just how luxurious their bath products truely are. I've been using the Red Cherrie body scrub for the last two weeks, three times a week and my skin feels amazing. Though I used to use body scrub often, I just found that so many of the brands didn't hold up to my expectations. Some of which ended up being more like a bath gel than a scrub as they always seemed to thin. The Red Cherrie scrub is nice and thick and is especially pleasant when I have had a particularly rough day and feel a bit grimy.

I know, I really honestly dislike cleaning, but the cleaning products over at Thymes makes the job much more pleasurable. I've been using their all purpose cleaner for a few weeks now and I love it. Its nicely scented but not overwhelming and it actually does a great job cleaning off the mess Connor leaves all over my dining room table.. even if I do forget to clean it up one night and end up waiting till the morning. Connor eats at the table with us and he has been known to make a royal mess. I also found it does a really great job of getting that greasy film off my glass top stove.

If your over at Thymes check out their cool sink caddy's that come witch every sink set thats sold. They are stainless steel and they look super sharp sitting in your kitchen or bathroom. All of my house guests end up asking where I got my soap caddy from.

As stressed as I've been lately with this eye thing I really am thinking about purchasing a bottle of their perfume. The Green Tea Cologne sounds like it would be just the thing to help me relax.

Thymes sent me a bottle of the Red Cherrie body lotion and a bath salts to give away to one lucky reader!

To enter :

• Leave a comment on this post. Head on over to Thymes and tell me what product from any of their lines is your favorite (other than the ones I mentioned above)!
  
• No "i want to win" stuff without a little effort (and I do mean little!)
• Make sure there is a way for me to contact you - if your email address is not on your profile or you are not a blogger you may leave it in your comment or email it to me directly (angelaandconnor at gmail dot com) We have had to disqualify a lot of potential winners as of late as many people do not have emails available in their profiles or leave anonymous posts without any way to contact you.
• Please US entries only.
• To get extra credit :
• For an extra entry :
• Bloggers - Blog about this contest and leave me the link on your comment, or add me to your sidebar and let me know its there.
• Non Bloggers (or bloggers) subscribe to my mailing list/RSS feed and earn another entry!
• One extra credit per person. Please post your extra credit in a separate post.
• This contest will end July 5th at midnight!

My little boy smells like heaven....

I first encountered Thymes bath products when I lived in Minneapolis, there is a local garden chain there that sells Thymes products (if your in Minneapolis Bachman's has a large selection of Thymes products though I can't honestly tell you if they have the baby products). I was busy looking for new plants for my vegetable garden when I kept smelling this amazing fragrance... It turns out it was an open sample of Thymes lotion. That was many years ago, and when I found out that Thymes offered baby products I had to check them out.

Sweatleaf Baby is Thymes signature baby line, and the smell is amazing and unlike anything else I have experienced in baby products. A mix of rose, jasmine, sandlewood and amber, it reminds me a bit of my grandmother's rose oils and the amber candles I burn around christmas time. You really must smell it if you get a chance its delicate and not overwhelming but it certainly leaves a lasting impression. I was a bit concerned with the use of sandlewood if it would irritate Connor's Eczema, but I am happy to report the body wash and lotion leave him feeling soft and smelling good enough to eat. I have to admit now that Connor is more toddler than baby at the end of the day he is not always smelling minty fresh and its nice to curl up beside a wonderfully smelling baby even if he wont be one much longer.

The Sweetleaf Body Wash and Lotion are wonderful but if you can only afford to add one product to your baby care inventory at the moment go with the Sweetleaf Blanket Wash, especially if you have a boy thats into everything it leaves those sometimes surprisingly yucky baby items smelling fabulous, you will be tempted to use it on your own clothes.

If you have never heard of Thymes they are a fabulous company, I heard a lot about them when I lived in Minneapolis though until now never got a chance to try their products. Their products are packaged as beautifully as they smell!! If your looking for a great baby shower gift skip the wrapping paper and just group the Sweatleaf Baby products in a cute container. Thymes products are NOT tested on animals.

Truly the only downside at all to the Sweatleaf Baby collection is the price. For moms on a budget you may baulk a little at the $16 a bottle price tag, but you truely can use a tiny dab can do a great deal more than you would imagine. If you have a child with especially sensitive skin believe me its worth the extra money.

Sweatleaf Baby is available on the Thymes storefront, you may also use the store locater to find a store near you that sells Thymes products!

I have a whole bottle of Sweatleaf Baby Massage Oil (great for adults too!) and a sample of the baby lotion to give away to one lucky reader!

To enter :

• Leave a comment on this post. Check out the Thymes web page and tell us which of their products most interests you (other than the Sweetleaf Collection!).
  
• Make sure there is a way for me to contact you - if your email address is not on your profile or you are not a blogger you may leave it in your comment or email it to me directly (angelaandconnor at gmail dot com) We have had to disqualify a lot of potential winners as of late as many people do not have emails available in their profiles or leave anonymous posts without any way to contact you.
• Please US entries only.
• To get extra credit :
• For an extra entry :
• Bloggers - Blog about this contest and leave me the link on your comment, or add me to your sidebar and let me know its there.
• Non Bloggers (or bloggers) subscribe to my mailing list/RSS feed and earn another entry!
• One extra credit per person. Please post your extra credit in a separate post.
• This contest will end May 31st at midnight!

Birthday Bash - Icebreaker! Huggies CleanTeam: Dirty Kids vs. Bath Time

Lets get this party started!!!! If you haven't already go ahead and sign up (read the rules) for Connor's First Birthday Party Blog Bash! Once thats done your ready to start entering all the party games we will be having all week!

M80 is sponsoring this giveaway, I'll leave the rest of this post up to Ethan over at the M80 Parents Blog.

Connor’s 1st birthday blog party icebreaker:
What is the best/funniest story you’ve ever heard about a child being a) insanely dirty or b) a handful at bath time?

There’s no minimum length; you might only need one sentence. And the incident doesn’t even need to have happened to you…we just want to hear a lot of stories!

1. Post the story and your contact info below in the comments
2. BONUS: post your story on your blog with the title “Huggies CleanTeam: Dirty Kids vs. Bath Time” to introduce yourself to new readers and become eligible for extra CleanTeam prizing. Just post a link to your story in the comments!
   

Angela will choose a winner for the title of “Best Dirty Story 2008” by April 26. The grand prize is the full line of Huggies CleanTeam products (which we’ve learned have some great applications for adults as well!). Blogger entrants will also receive bonus CleanTeam products of their choice.

Even more importantly, you’ll have an excuse to share your story at the party.



And don’t forget to check in with the M80 Parents Blog; a blog about parenting blogs!

The Huggies CleanTeam knows how hard it is to get kids clean. That’s why they’ve created a full line of cleaning products for toddlers: hand soap, shampoo, flushable moist wipes, cleansing cloths, washcloths, and bath wash, and detangler.

Make sure you've read the rules and joined the Birthday Bash to enter this contest! We will be taking entries until April 27th.

Huggies Clean Team to the Rescue...

I had the worst experience this morning when it comes to messy babies.. which is ironic as I was planning on doing this review today.

I was in the kitchen making Connor's breakfast half asleep when Connor's dad comes around the corner and says "Um I think Connor went poop..." and of course my response is "Did you check?".. and all he says is "No.. I don't need to.. just go look" and of course he is off to leave me to the disaster that is about to happen.

Connor in the meantime is happily crawling across the living room floor.. just as happy as a clam smiling and cooing and up to his usual 6am nonsense (how can one person be so freakin happy that early in the morning) and I look down and there is a huge brown stain on his back. Needless to say after a couple of choice words I head into the bedroom to change him and his clothes. What I found was enough runny poop that you would have thought six babies made the mess not one... (mind you I had just changed him not even 15 minutes before hand with a poopy diaper) the poop debacle not only filled up his diaper to monumental proportions but it also extended up his back and all the way to his hairline and into the base of his hair. Serious.. I am not joking. It took everything I had to take the clothes off of him without choking and I have a strong stomach.

It was so bad I ended up having to do an emergency diaper removal from the house as this diaper was NOT suitable for the diaper pail. We had our Huggies Cleanteam moist wipes by the crib so I ended up just flushing them in the toilet (yay for flushables!) I really love the flushable wipes for traveling too as if you have a mess and your in a friend or family member's bathroom its great to just flush them away. Not to mention they are great for adults too as sometimes we have our own messes that need to be flushed. *cough*

So I stripped him down naked, covered with poop, and threw him in the bath tub.. and I'm seriously telling you it took me almost getting out a scrub brush to get that poop off of him. Once I did get most of the "mess" off it was time to soap him off and get the smell off.. I soaped and soaped and soaped with my regular baby wash and still he stunk. Then I remembered I had laid out the Huggies Cleanteam samples in the bathroom closet so I would try them out. I ended up using the Sammy The Snake Extra Conditioning Shampoo on his entire body and hair which has the best blue melon scent, I just LOVE it, and he came out smelling better than ever.


Needless to say when it was all said and done I felt as if I should take another shower myself, but instead ended up cleaning up with the Huggies Cleanteam handsoap. If you guys have not seen its COOL dispenser you have got to check it out. Every time you use the pump Henry Hippo lights up and blinks so your kids (or yourself) know how long they "should" be washing your hands. It was a great reminder as I know that even I can cut it short especially when your spending most of your day running after a wild monkey named Connor!

Head on over to Huggies Cleanteam and check them out yourself. I really highly recommend the Sammy Snake Shampoo (you will want to use it yourself it smells so great) I really have to get some of Billy Buffalo body wash to go with it! Also head on over to M80s Parents Blog to hear more about Huggies Cleanteam!

Can I snuggle with your towel?

I am really starting to appreciate products made with Bamboo fibers. Who knew they were so soft and luxurious!

We have a new favorite towel at bath time and I'd really like to steal it for myself its so soft. The Bamboo Baby Hooded Towel by Bamboosa is surprisingly super soft and its really cut down our drying time as its the most absorbent towel we have ever used. The Bamboo Baby Towel is heavier than Connor's cotton towels and its a bit shiny. I tend to hang my towels over his door to let them dry after we are done bathing and several of our house guests have walked past and stopped dead in their tracks and turned around to see what exactly that towel was made of. No one can believe them when I tell them its actually made of bamboo fibers and its not cotton. I think everyone just assumes (including myself before I had one of my own) that Bamboo would be scratchy. Instead its more the softest thickest towel you can imagine.

Another really unique feature that still perplexes me is the fact that we have the blue hooded towel and I was really paranoid since the color is so rich that the blanket would fade onto my laundry. I can tell you I have washed it at least six times in warm water and in cold and it has not even offered to bleed. You know your truely a mom when a fabrics lack of dye bleeding really gets you going in the morning. Ok this is a partial throwback to my days as a seamstress too.

Bamboosa also offers a line of soap that you must try.. We got the Bamboobaby Soap Bar with our towel and my entire bathroom smells wonderful right now. The moment I opened our box I couldn't help to notice just how wonderful everything smelt after being shipped with that soap. I assure you it is as amazing to use in the bath as the way it smells as well. The aloe and olive oil they use in their soap even tames my itchy super dry skin, and having super sensitive skin myself I can tell you it did not leave me itching later either as some soaps do.

Don't worry mom's if you fall in love with your babies Bamboosa products they do make a line of women and men's clothing in the same great fabrics. I am really tempted to order one of the sleep slips but If its anywhere as soft as the towel is you may not get me out of it.

Hop on over to Bamboosa and check them out yourself. I have a BambooBaby Soap Bar Gift Set to give away to one lucky reader. (your bathroom can smell like mine! yum)

To enter :

• Leave a comment on this post. Go check out Bamboosa and look all of their products. Come back here and let us know which product is your favorite!!
  
• No "i want to win" stuff without a little effort (and I do mean little!)
• Make sure there is a way for me to contact you - if your email address is not on your profile or you are not a blogger you may leave it in your comment or email it to me directly (angelaandconnor at gmail dot com) We have had to disqualify a lot of potential winners as of late as many people do not have emails available in their profiles or leave anonymous posts without any way to contact you.
• Please US entries only.
• To get extra credit :
• For an extra entry :
• Bloggers - Blog about this contest and leave me the link on your comment, or add me to your sidebar and let me know its there.
• Non Bloggers (or bloggers) subscribe to my mailing list/RSS feed and earn another entry!
• One extra credit per person. Please post your extra credit in a separate post.
• This contest will end March 27th at midnight!

Dr Bobby, no more itchy!

Sadly Connor inherited my super dry skin and if thats not bad enough he got my sensitivity as well. Though my allergic reactions seem to be "random" at times my poor little man suffers from awful dry skin around his ankles and legs, face, and sometimes his arms. Though I love the "smell" of traditional baby soaps sometimes, especially on those dry cold days, its just too much for both of us.

So, after a lot of searching we found Dr Bobby! Dr Bobby skin care is really made by a real pediatric dermatologist who makes an awesome line of kids bath products that are safe for babies and kids and wont flare up those troublesome eczema spots. I thought we would really miss that "baby" product smell.. but to be honest not itching is far superior than that short lived baby shampoo smell.

Finally I'm not scared to wash my hands as often as I like as well, as I know I wont end up feeling like sandpaper by the end of the day!!

Want some Dr Bobby of your very own? Go on over and check them out and get some of your own!!

Win it!

I have one 9oz bottle of Foaming Hand Wash to give away to one lucky reader!!


To enter :

• Leave a comment on this post. Go check out Dr Bobby and look through their offerings. Come back here and tell me which product you'd most like to have!!
  
• No "i want to win" stuff without a little effort (and I do mean little!)
• Make sure there is a way for me to contact you - if your email address is not on your profile or you are not a blogger you may leave it in your comment or email it to me directly (angelaandconnor at gmail dot com) We have had to disqualify a lot of potential winners as of late as many people do not have emails available in their profiles or leave anonymous posts without any way to contact you.
• Please US entries only.
• To get extra credit :
• For an extra entry :
• Bloggers - Blog about this contest and leave me the link on your comment, or add me to your sidebar and let me know its there.
• Non Bloggers (or bloggers) subscribe to my mailing list/RSS feed and earn another entry!
• One extra credit per person. Please post your extra credit in a separate post.
• This contest will end March 12th at midnight!