Mommy's Favorite Things: February 2012



Tuesday, February 28, 2012

The top reasons why we chose NOT to Circumcise!



I want to start off by saying that this post is 100% meant to be  informational. Every family needs to choose what is right for them. But I think that it needs to be an educated decision. Doing it because you think it's 'normal' is not good enough. You need to do the research on it and make a decision based off that and what's right for your family either emotionally, religiously, or for other personal reasons. But do research first PLEASE!!!

1. Watch This video below (get children out of the room) and you probably won't even need to see my other reasons!
At 3:50 the dr. actually says "Oh he's got himself upset" UH No. You just cut off sensitive skin without anesthetic and you think he's UPSET? He's IN PAIN!

2. Refer to video above. Most doctors don't use ANY form of anesthetic. No local, no nothing! The baby is fully awake and aware of the entire surgery. If a nurse comes in and tells you your baby slept through the whole thing, it's because the baby was in SHOCK! A baby's reaction to severe pain is to sleep.  

3. It isn't medically necessary... Enough said!

4. The foreskin has a TON of nerve endings in it. It makes sexual encounters a lot more pleasurable. Can you imagine being robbed of that? It makes it more pleasurable for women as well because of the gliding motion which helps keep the natural lubrication and prevents chafing.

5. Would you circumcise your little girl? Because that's what some cultures do. Cultures started circumcising boys because they thought it would stop masturbation... It spread like wildfire and everyone started doing it. But would you circumcise your daughter? We have a foreskin too...

6. The rate of circumcision is dramatically dropping. You think it might be normal to circumcise, but in reality it's about 70/30 (70% DON'T Circumcise, this as of 2009)... The west coast is a LOT lower. Nevada is 11% circumcise. Here in MI it is the highest at around 82%. Reason? Because MI is still Medicaid funded. In 1982 California made it so Medicaid didn't cover the procedure anymore. That's why the rate is so low.
In 2006 the rate was 56% circumcise. In 2009 it was 33% circumcise. So what is it now for 2011/2012??? Probably closer to 28% or so!!
http://mgmbill.org/statistics.htm
A boy is just as likely to get made fun of for being circumcised as he is for not.

7. It's not our choice. Just because we're the parents doesn't mean we can choose to mutilate our sons... I look at it this way... If Emerson wants to be circumcised later on, it's easy enough. If we had chosen to circumcise him and he didn't want that he can't get that undone! There are no other cosmetic surgeries that parents are permitted to perform on their children without their child's consent.

8. The Selling of Foreskins is a huge business. They are made into face creams. Is that where you want a body part of your son's to go?

9. Watch the video above again!
10. Watch the video just 1 more time!

Those are our main reasons for not circumcising!
Plus it's just darn easier! No need to keep the gauze and vaseline on it for the first couple days. You also do nothing special to it. Just wipe it off like a finger. No need to EVER pull it back! It will retract on it's own when the child gets older.

They say that not circumcising can cause more UTIs and infections. Um I'm sorry, we get UTIs and we get an antibiotic. Is it really such a big deal to take an antibiotic? Come on now...
Doesn't this face look just as happy as any other baby you've seen?



There's a few more just ludicrous reasons, but I'll skip all those. 
Do your research. Google around and make the decision that is right for your family!


Motherlove Review & Giveaway *CLOSED*



You've seen Motherlove here on my blog last summer when I reviewed their Pregnant Belly Salve. I loved that salve. I used it daily within my pregnancy. I still got some stretchmarks, but just a few and I feel it significantly helped me. I was a LOT bigger with Emerson than with Avery and I gained more than double, so I'm sure I would've gotten a LOT more stretchmarks than if I hadn't used Belly Salve.

This time around I received the More Milk Plus. I have a low supply and I wanted this to pick it back up again.

In the beginning I was pumping 4-6oz at a time, but was only pumping 3 times a day. That was my mistake. I knew my supply would go down, I just didn't think I 'believed' it would you know. 
Well it certainly did. It went down to 1oz at a time. So from 15oz a day to 3oz a day is SIGNIFICANT! 

So I contacted them about their more milk+. They sent it to me and I took my first dose immediately. You take 4 doses a day. Once you're pumping more and are happy with your supply you can stop taking it. 

It worked for me. Instead of getting 1oz the next morning, I got 1.75oz. Instead of 3/4oz at my next session I got 1.25oz. So for it to add .5oz per session was great for me. 
I started pumping more and more and started taking 5 doses a day. 
I was back up to 3oz at a time... Then we all got sick with a cold. Emerson was so clingy and needed to be back in the wrap, so now I'm starting all over again. 

I'm taking it 4 times a day currently and am trying to pump at least 6 times a day. I'm slowly getting back up there. I was at 1oz in the morning and .5oz the rest of the day! Now I'm at about 3/4oz each time. It really stinks to have such low supply. It's almost not even worth it, but then I tell myself that each drop makes a difference, so I keep pumping away!

Price: The More Milk+ is $19.95 for 2oz

Overall: ***** It definitely does it's job!
*Disclaimer* I received an item directly from Motherlove in exchange for a review. I was not paid to try out these products*
A big thank you goes out to Motherlove for allowing me to review this product and for offering a giveaway




Friday, February 24, 2012

Pork Chop Kids Review & Giveaway *CLOSED*



I love unique products. I have always loved leg warmers on Avery, but in the winter then she also needs socks too and it's super hard to get them to coordinate and still look okay. 

So when I came across Pork Chop Kids I knew I had to try them!
I received a pair of the Rainbow Dot Thigh High Socks



Most regular warmers only fit up until about age 5 or so. Avery is short so she can wear them, but what I like is that these come in sizes from 1-2 years to 6-8 years! So they're for big girls too!

They are socks and warmers in one! These are PERFECT for winter under dresses and skirts. Avery loves these and she wears them under her skirts in the winter, but it's easier for her to go to the bathroom because it's one less layer to pull down! AWESOME! 

I can't wait to buy more of these for her. She'll be starting school in September and these will be so cute to coordinate with her outfits. So cute! We got these in the 4-6 year and they fit Avery perfectly! They come almost all the way up to her groin and there's a bit of growing room in the feet, so they'll definitely fit her until she's 6. 

They have LOTS of other colors and prints to choose from as well.

Tons of cute ones. They have some ribbed solid colors and also hearts, stripes, zebra, dots and more!

Price: They are $15 each!! Such a good price! 

Overall: *****
*Disclaimer* I received an item directly from Pork Chop Kids in exchange for a review. I was not paid to try out these products*
A big thank you goes out to Pork Chop Kids for allowing me to review this product and for offering a giveaway

PLEASE CLICK READ MORE BELOW TO SEE GIVEAWAY FORM


Thursday, February 23, 2012

The Diaper Addict Review & Giveaway *CLOSED*



Another wonderful diaper company. I love coming across new ones and meeting new owners of said companies!
This is a handmade diaper company that I'm in love with! It's The Diaper Addict

We received an AI2 diaper in a dinosaur print. She included 3 inserts and a wipe!

Back of wipe. A nice velour
 Smallest Setting
Medium Setting
 Largest Setting
 Inside the diaper with an insert snapped in
 Washing Instructions
 2 prefold inserts. 2 different sizes
 And a velour insert as well
 The velour insert. It's 2 parts and that bottom part snaps to the blue snap!
 Great fit!
Perfect fit actually!

This is an AI2 diaper. It has fleece inside and a hidden layer of PUL so it's waterproof. We received it in the Oh Boy Dinos cotton print! 
She included 2 prefold inserts and a bamboo velour insert as well. So this diaper is good for 3 changes unless the cover gets soiled inside. 

We LOVE this diaper. It's a great fit. Her diapers claim 12/13 pounds-35ish pounds. Emerson was about 11 in this picture. And now he's 11lb 8oz and it still fits him great with no leaks. So I'd say it starts fitting around 10 pounds no problem!

We opted for the square wings with a snap over rise (which has 3 settings). But she also offers a round wing with foldover rise. With a foldover rise you get a bit of a better fit because you just fold it to where you need it! 
And she also offers the same thing in more of a cover without the inside fleece, but you can still snap in inserts and it's still an AI2, but could also be used as a cover with just a prefold!

This diaper I could also use as a cover in my opinion. I could just trifold a prefold in there and it would work great, OR I can use the angel wing fold in there to contain messes. So this could be an all day diaper as long as it doesn't get soiled (although you should let it air out between uses). 

Price: This diaper is $16 without an insert. Her prefold inserts are $1 for newborn, and $1.50 for infant unblached sizes. And her Velour insert is $4.25 for just one piece or 2 pieces (like I received) is $6.75. 

Overall: ***** 
*Disclaimer* I received an item directly from Diaper Addict in exchange for a review. I was not paid to try out these products*
A big thank you goes out to Diaper Addict for allowing me to review this product and for offering a giveaway
PLEASE CLICK READ MORE BELOW TO SEE THE GIVEAWAY FORM


Clavis Books Giveaway *CLOSED*



Children's books are very important. Well all books are important, but they're especially important for infants, toddlers, and children! I love reading to Avery. I feel she's learned a lot of what she knows by my reading to her (and Nick Jr, but that's another post :). She is very smart and there's a lot of good info inside books for that age. 

Clavis books has some wonderful books for toddlers.


Those are just 3 of their wonderful books. They are meant for ages 0-3 and are board book style!

Mommies and Their Babies is Black and White Illustrations and it introduces animal babies and their mothers to young children.

Daddies and Their Babies is the same thing, but with animal fathers! They are both in black and white which is very intriguing to young babies and toddlers. 

The Big Eating Book is: Every creature needs to eat and everyone has their favorite foods. Some are fond of Fruit, some love nuts, milk, grass or flowers. Little Josh enjoys his meal of soup, salad, bread, spaghetti and no less than 3 desserts! It explores the way all sorts of creatures satisfy their hunger and enjoy a wide array of healthy food!

Price: The Mommies and Daddies books won't be available until march 1st and are $9.95 each. Big Eating Book is $12.95

Overall: I think these books sound great and are perfect for that major learning age of about 2-3!

*Disclaimer. I was not compensated to write this post*

PLEASE CLICK READ MORE BELOW TO SEE GIVEAWAY FORM


Emerson



Was 8 weeks old yesterday! Can you all believe it's been 8 weeks? Because I certainly can't. And that means that in 5 days he'll be 2 months old already!! OMGoodness this is flying by!!!

Some pictures!
Finally got his smile on Camera




 He'll for sure be a little Heartbreaker!!!
He does resemble Avery, but he's chubbier and looks more like Jon
Here is Avery at around 2 months. She had torticollis so her head was always tilted to the side
Can't believe he's growing up right before my eyes!!

I thought he was around 12-12.5 pounds (at least our scale said so), but at the Dr. on Monday to make sure he just had a cold he was 11lb 8oz. I think he lost a little weight though because he was only eating about 60% of what he had been before. 
Avery was 10lb 10oz at her 2 month checkup. His checkup is in 1.5 weeks still so I know he'll be over 12 pounds. He's much bigger than she was. 
He's wearing 3-6 month sleepers and 3 month clothes comfortably, but he's ready to go up to 3-6m and 6m pants because of the cloth diapers, but also for the length!

He's a big boy!


Wednesday, February 22, 2012

Glee Gum Review & Giveaway *CLOSED*



I've done a review of the Glee chewing gum before. But this time we received the gummy kit!

 Everything inside. Molding Starch, Pink Sugar, Sour Mix, Gelatin, and seaweed
 Seaweed
 First you soak seaweed in water
 Spread molding starch on a plate
 use objects to do your shapes.
I used a MI magnet, the letters a and e from one of Avery's puzzles and a turtle magnet. I tried a guitar magnet, but it didn't work
 Mix the gelatin powder in some water
 Then add seaweed
 Then you heat up the mixture, remove seaweed and add in the pink sugar
 pour into your molds
 and then place it in the fridge for them to harden (about 10 minutes).
Then you put the sour sugar mix into a ziploc bag and drop in your gummies and give it a good shake!
They all turned out okay! It was fun. Not quite young enough for Avery to do!

Once you use the gelatin for your molds and stick it in the fridge. The leftover gelatin will harden in it's bowl, so you just reheat it in the microwave until it foams again and you're ready to do more. So once these were hardened, I pulled them out of the starch and them smoothed the starch out again and did more prints. Then I reheated the gel and then poured it in and did a second batch. 

That was about all the gel I had. Enough for 2 batches of gummies. 

The gummies didn't really taste all that good, Avery liked them, but they had a funny taste to them. They were still okay tasting though and it is a fun experiment. 

The gum was good that we made last time though. After a few minutes it lost it's flavor, but that's to be expected. 

They also have a chocolate kit! YUM!!

Price: The kits are $13 each! Very reasonable and a great Birthday present for a child! You can also buy premade gum for $10 for 12 boxes! Great price!
They are also sold in some stores. So check it out and see where near you!

Overall: *****

*Disclaimer* I received an item directly from Glee Gum in exchange for a review. I was not paid to try out these products*
A big thank you goes out to Glee Gum for allowing me to review this product and for offering a giveaway
PLEASE CLICK READ MORE BELOW TO SEE GIVEAWAY FORM


CARA B Naturally Review & Giveaway



Natural products are my specialty! By now you all know that I prefer natural as much as possible. Natural can be a bit more expensive but if you find great deals you can make them the same price as their unhealthy counterparts. 

That's why I love CARA B Naturally. They are reasonably priced and so much better for you!
We received a kit in the mail which had one of each of their wonderful products inside!
They came inside a wonderful basket
 Shampoo/Body Wash, Leave in Conditioner, Body Lotion and Hair Mist!
I love the wonderful smell of these products. They are gentle smelling, but yummy! Not overpowering either. 

The Shampoo/Body Wash has a wonderful lather on it and we love using this with Emerson. The Leave in Conditioner is great for Avery, now that her hair is getting thicker she needs a great conditioner product and this is it! The body lotion is nice and moisturizing and the hair mist has been great. 

Right after a bath Emerson's head is all dry and flaky. I spray the hair mist on his little head and then use the comb from the hospital on it to rub it in and within 20 minutes or so, the dry patch is gone! It's right at the peak of his hair in the front and it goes away almost immediately after using the hair mist. I also use the mist on Avery's hair too. It helps to detangle it and yet leaves her hair smelling yummy!

This line was originally created for African American hair, but it has been really great on my kids as well! 

The products have all natural oils in them like Jojoba and the lotion has Shea butter. They are really great products.

Products are Available at CVS and Target

Price: The Lotion and Leave In Conditioner are $13. The Hair mist is $10 and the Shampoo/Wash is $11. BUT right now they are on sale at CVS for Buy One Get One 50% off!!! So for $16 you can buy both the Hair Mist and the Shampoo/Wash

Overall: ***** love these wonderful products!

*Disclaimer* I received an item directly from CARA B in exchange for a review. I was not paid to try out these products*
A big thank you goes out to CARA B for allowing me to review this product and for offering a giveaway


Gorton's Review & Giveaway *CLOSED*



I love receiving Gorton's for review. First of all they love all their bloggers and allow them to do a review and/or giveaway about once every 2-3 months, so that is amazing! I love receiving my kits with free coupons in the mail!

This time they also sent me envelopes for winners for free coupons in them as well. I have to do nothing except write the address on the envelope. They took care of all of it for me which is AWESOME!!!

I received a few free coupons so I could buy some Gorton's Products. I chose the Grilled salmon, the Fish Sticks and the Grilled Tilapia. I LOVE their Tilapia and Salmon and then got the Sticks for Avery!

I also love their Garlic Butter Fillets! That is really good too. 

There are some wonderful recipes you can make with your Gorton's. I usually just make them up along with a starch and vegetable and we eat them plain. 
But you can make recipes like the Grilled Shrimp Tacos
and the Grilled Tilapia Soup
Good stuff!
I love Gorton's and I always look forward to getting my kits in the mail!!

Price: They're usually about $5.99-$7.99 a piece!

Overall: ***** We love Gorton's
*Disclaimer* I received an item directly from Gorton's in exchange for a review. I was not paid to try out these products*
A big thank you goes out to Gorton's for allowing me to review this product and for offering a giveaway