Fluffy Friday: incredibum Wet Bag {giveaway!}

May 18, 2012 By Leave a Comment

As an incredimom, I’ve had the fabulous opportunity to try out all of incredibum’s products!  I’ve reviewed their bamboo cloth diaper, cloth wipes, and this time I received an incredibum wet bag!  When I saw the product name, wet bag, I assumed it would be a small wet bag to carry in the diaper bag for short day trips.  But I pulled it out of the package and saw, what I would normally refer to as a pail liner!  incredibum actually calls it their large wet bag!

It’s advertised as “Large Bag is perfect for vacations, day to day diaper laundry or those fun family trips to the pool. It fits perfectly into an eight gallon pail.” And it does just that!

I use it as our pail liner and it’s one of my favorites.  It’s super thick and durable and has never felt damp on the outside.  It has a drawstring closure which I love for use as a pail liner, but if I was using it as a large wet bag without a lid on top {like on vacation}, I would be afraid that smells would escape rather easily.

I love the fact that it’s reversible and comes in 2 fun colors – it gives your pail a whole new look!

I have to say… I love the incredibum bamboo cloth diaper and I love their cloth wipes, but I think the wet bag has been my favorite product so far!  All of the incredibum products are of the utmost quality and very well worth their small price tags!

Buy It:  You can purchase the Large Wet Bag for only $12.95!!!  This is a great price for a pail liner/wet bag of this quality.  The wet bag comes in 3 choices with 6 different color options.

Win It:  One lucky So Easy Being Green reader is going to win a Large incredibum wet bag of their own!

Don’t miss Jenny’s Fluffy Friday post at According to Jenny!


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Filed Under: cloth diapers, Current Giveaways, fluffy fridays, Green, Review, travel

Our Light Bulbs are Turning Green! #GELighting

May 17, 2012 By Leave a Comment

We were really lucky when we bought our home 3 and a half years ago.  The lady that previously lived here had upgraded a lot of her light bulbs to energy efficient ones.  A few were the “Instant On” bulbs, but most were the light bulbs that took a bit to fully shine.  I didn’t like those so I actually took them out and replaced them with regular, cheap bulbs.  Well, those regular, cheap bulbs kept blowing on me – so I put the energy efficient ones back in {I kept them just in case}!

I hadn’t really thought about it – because I don’t have to buy light bulbs that often – but we’ve never changed any of those bulbs!  They’re going strong at almost 4 years!  So, I decided that it was time to make a change and make all of our light bulbs turn green!

Before the switch, anytime I bought light bulbs, I always bought the GE Reveal.  I liked the crisper light and didn’t mind to pay a bit more for those bulbs.  I had it in my mind, and my husband especially had it in his mind, that it would cost a fortune to replace all of the light bulbs in our house to the GE Energy Smart bulbs.  It might have a few years ago, but it seems that these Energy Smart bulbs have really dropped in price and are extremely affordable – especially when you factor in how long they last AND how much money they’ll save you on your energy bill!

I went around the house checking out all of the light bulbs that I would need to switch over.  I was so happy to discover that only about 1/2 of the light fixtures around the inside AND outside of our house were already Energy Smart bulbs!  I was 1/2 to having all green light bulbs already!  I headed to our local Walmart with my list and a small bag of a couple of light bulbs that weren’t standard size to get what I needed!

Honestly, I was quite overwhelmed when I got to the lighting aisles.  I would really recommend doing a bit of research before you go to the store.  You can check out GELighting.com, which is a great resource that I found after I shopped.  I thought because I had bought Energy Smart bulbs once before, I would easily know what I wanted.  But I think there are a lot more Energy Efficient choices on the market today.

One thing you’ll definitely notice as you’re shopping for green-er bulbs is the price.  It’s definitely dropped over the past few years and you’ll reap more monetary rewards by buying in bulk.  GE wants you to save money on your energy bill AND help the environment… I feel like it’s an encouragement to do a makeover on your light bulbs!  Not only will you see great money savings by buying bulbs in larger packages, but you can also save another $2.00 with this coupon on your GE Energy Smart Purchase at Walmart!

I spent around $130 to switch out the remaining outdated bulbs to GE Energy Smart light bulbs!  I was very happy with that cost and am really excited to see the change in our energy bill.  I’ll have to wait a couple of months to actually see that, but there’s a fun calculator on the GE Lighting website that will estimate your energy savings.  I put in my information and… I’m estimated to save $162.35 annually and $889.60 savings over the life of the bulbs!!!

In addition to switching your light bulbs to more energy efficient ones like the GE Energy Smart bulbs, you can also do little things to help the environment {and your energy bill} like:

  • Turn off your lights when they’re not really necessary.
  • Get motion lights for outside so your lights aren’t on continuously.
  • Use timers if you like lights on before you go to bed – the timers will turn them off and you won’t even know it!

 

I am so excited that all of our light bulbs are green now – and I can’t wait to start seeing more green in our bank account, thanks to lower energy bills!  I’ll be posting again in a month, letting you know if we did see a change in our energy bill or not.  In the meantime, be sure to check out GE on Facebook and Twitter if you’re interested in making your light bulbs green too!

You can see more pictures of my shopping experience with GE Energy Smart Bulbs and more in my Google+ Album!

I am a member of the Collective Bias™ Social Fabric® Community.  This shop has been compensated as part of a social shopper insights study for Collective Bias™. #CBias #SocialFabric

Filed Under: cbias, family, Green, learning, parenting, Review, technology Tagged With: , , , , ,

Summer Splash Spotlight: BeginAgain Bathtub Ball

May 16, 2012 By Leave a Comment

I am so excited to introduce you to BeginAgain… a toy shop full of imaginative toys and fun things for children to enjoy and learn while playing!  When you visit their website, you’ll immediately notice that it’s broken into categories “awish: a – artist, w – writer, i – inventor, s – sportster, h – hero”.  All of the toys and products in the categories fit perfectly!

Welcome to the BeginAgain workshop! This is the place where we tell you all about us. To start, we are an imaginative toy company located in Fort Collins, Colorado.
Created by toymakers David Bowen and Chris Clemmer–two of the co-founders of Sprig Toys–BeginAgain is focused on thoughtful product design and imaginative storytelling for today’s kids. It is our goal to inspire children with stories of invention, adventure, and good old-fashioned fun. BeginAgain toys teach through play and nurture the development of the whole child.

I had a hard time picking a product because there are some really fun ones, but to go along with our Splish Splashing theme in the Summer Splash Giveaway Event, I definitely had no choice when it came to the fun Bathtub Ball – from the hero category!

This durable natural rubber play set is great for play in and out of water. The characters bubble with excitement as they sink in the water. This toy is perfect for the beach, bath, or pool.
Going on vacation, take this set on the go! The bathtub ball has storage built in. The rubber shark tanks doubles as clean up storage!
This toy set is dishwasher safe.

We just went to the aquarium recently and Sophia is obsessed with sharks so I knew she would love it.  This set is so much fun for imaginative play.  I do have to share this little story.  Sophia played with the set as soon as it came in the mail yesterday – she couldn’t wait for her bath.  She was playing in the floor and I heard her say, “Shark you need to eat.  You can eat Barbie.”  OMG!  It was so cute but I then assured her that sharks don’t eat people or Barbies – but too cute, right!?

She had a ton of fun with them all in the bath later that night too.  They all have holes in the bottom that create fun bubbles and help them dry without getting mildew in them.  They all smell strongly of natural rubber, which is actually a good thing {once the smells subsides a bit}.  I love that I can store them all in the ball too!  It’ll be easy to bring it inside and out without much trouble for Splish Splashing anywhere!

Buy It:  You can purchase the Bathtub Ball {with the 2 Sharks, Octopus, and Diver} on the BeginAgain website for $22.00.  Be sure to check out all of their other fun toys and products while you’re there!

Win It:  One lucky So Easy Being Green reader has a chance to win their very own Bathtub Ball in the Summer Splash Prize Package that is live right now!

Filed Under: Green, parenting, Review, toddler

SpilSTOP Sport Caps

May 14, 2012 By Leave a Comment

You may remember a few months ago when I blogged about SpilSTOP for the first time.  If you weren’t hanging around SEBG then – or just a need a refresher about what this awesome product is all about, here you go!

As their website states… you can’t stop bottles from falling over – but you can save money, time from cleaning up spills, and your carpet!  The SpilSTOP caps are genius and so simple that you’ll wonder why you {or I} hadn’t already thought of these caps!

The original SpilSTOP cap was the first in the SpilSTOP line.  It’s a simple plastic cap – comes in a ton of fun colors – and fits on a variety of bottles and drink bottle types.  The caps work with a regular straw and really stop spills even if the bottle falls completely on it’s side.

My only complaint about the original SpilSTOP’s was the fact that it wouldn’t fit everything.  Well, Jeff {the Engineer and Dad behind this product} has already started taking car of this problem!  The new line of SpilSTOP Sport Caps are now available and have opened up a whole ton of other ways to use your SpilSTOP’s!

Regular SpilSTOP caps fit: Standard baby bottles (Evenflo, Playtex, Dr. Brown’s, Gerber, etc.), 8-oz plastic bottles of Pediasure, Ensure, Glucerna, Equate and Parent’s Choice nutrition drinks, Store-brand nutrition drinks (Wal-Mart, Kroger, Meijer, Target)

NEW SpilSTOP Sport caps fit: Many single-serving bottles of Gatorade, Vitamin Water, Sobe Lifewater, Powerade, Boost, Mott’s juices and more

These caps don’t make claim to make your drinks spill-proof – if a bottle of drink lays on it’s side for an extended amount of time, the drink will come out of the straw, BUT I can totally trust Sophia to walk around the house with a SpilSTOP cap on her drink without worrying about stains on our carpet at all!  What a nice relief for this Mama of 2 who worries about everything!

The SpilSTOP Sport Caps would be a perfect addition to your summer drinks as your kids are running around outside and playing fun, outdoor sports!

Buy It:  The new SpilSTOP Sport Caps come in the same colors, along with a new Bright Colors Pack, as the original SpilSTOP’s.  A single SpilSTOP Sport Cap retails for $2.25 or you can get a fun 3 pack for only $5.99!

Don’t forget to save 15% off your order with the code SEBG15 – expires July 15th and is unique to only So Easy Being Green readers!

Win It:  Right now you can win a 3 pack of SpilSTOP Sport Caps in the Summer Splash Giveaway – Stay tuned for another giveaway coming up soon where 2 more lucky readers will have a chance to win a 3 pack of their own!

Filed Under: parenting, Review, toddler

The Healthier Smoothie {giveaway!}

May 13, 2012 By 22 Comments

Sophie loves milkshakes, or she thinks she does.  Her grandparents tend to spoil her with ice cream and milkshakes and just a few sips is enough for her to think she’s gotten a super special treat.

So imagine her surprise when Mommy actually offers her “milkshakes” more often now!  Well, they’re not technically milkshakes but no matter how many times I tell her that they aren’t, she disagrees with me.  Oh well!

Doesn't every kid read the ingredients label on the back? ;)

I’ve been putting our Earth’s Best Organic Sesame Street® Fruit Yogurt Smoothies in the refrigerator and letting her enjoy them as a cool snack when we’ve been playing outside!  She loves them – and I love the fact that she’s getting a super healthy treat to keep her cool and full!  She usually doesn’t eat but about 1/3 – 1/2 of the pouch at one time, so I love that the pouch can be re-sealed and refrigerated for up to 24 hours so she can finish it later!

Organic foods offer countless healthful benefits for children and the world around us. Earth’s Best Organic Sesame Street® Fruit Yogurt Smoothies are a nutritious snack made from organic fruit and real organic yogurt. They are specially formulated to meet the nutritional needs of toddlers and are an excellent source of calcium and antioxidant Vitamins C and D. Each serving provides one full serving of fruit with no refrigeration required.

They come in awesome flavors like Pear Mango, Strawberry Banana, Mixed Berry, Apple Blueberry and Peach Banana. Your kids will love them and they are a better option than a fast-food smoothie when you’re out and about this spring.

Buy It:  You can purchase a 2 pack of the Earth’s Best Organic Sesame Street® Fruit Yogurt Smoothies for $4.22.  They are also available at a variety of Earth’s Best retailers.

Win It:  One lucky So Easy Being Green reader is going to win a Earth’s Best Organic Sesame Street Fruit Yogurt Smoothie Sampler!

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Filed Under: Current Giveaways, Earth's Best Organic, Green, Review, toddler

Savory Summer Sponsor Spotlight: EatSmart

May 11, 2012 By Leave a Comment

Our next Sponsor in the Savory Summer Event coming up in just a few days is a great company called EatSmart!  This company not only carries some of the neatest scales I’ve ever seen – including Bathroom, Luggage, and Kitchen scales!

I chose to receive their EatSmart™ Precision Pro Digital Kitchen Scale.  I’m a bit alarmed that they’ve been spying on me as they sent me this dark red/maroon scale that matches my kitchen perfectly!  How did they know!?

 

 I’ve been trying to eat healthier and lose the last couple of pounds of baby weight – along with a bit of extra that never came off after Sophia and my EatSmart™ Precision Pro Digital Kitchen Scale has helped me so much!  It comes with a great guidebook that makes it easy to see what portion sizes are recommended for certain foods as well as help in counting calories!

  1. Compact Design and Easy Two-Button Operation
  2. Tare Feature; Subtract the weight of any plate or container
  3. 4 Measurement Modes: Grams / Ounces / Kilograms / Pounds
  4. Max Weight: 11 pounds / 5 kilograms
  5. Graduation: .05 oz / 1 gram
  6. 3 minute Auto-Turnoff
  7. Includes 2 AAA batteries

If you are at all interested in losing weight or just eating healthier, I definitely think the EatSmart™ Precision Pro Digital Kitchen Scale will help you reach your goals!  For new mamas, it’s a great way to measure out how much your children are eating too!

Buy It:  You can purchase the EatSmart™ Precision Pro Digital Kitchen Scale, along with their other great products, on the EatSmart website!  This scale retails for $34.95 but is on sale right now for only $25.00!  It comes in 5 great colors to match your kitchen perfectly too!

Win It:  EatSmart is offering one lucky So Easy Being Green reader a chance to win the EatSmart™ Precision Pro Digital Kitchen Scale in the Green Your Kitchen Prize Package in the upcoming Savory Summer Event – that starts on Wednesday, May 16th!

Filed Under: parenting, Review

Savory Summer Sponsor Spotlight: Tommee Tippee

May 11, 2012 By Leave a Comment

Before I became a Mommy Blogger myself, I read lots of other Mommy Blogs {and still do when I get the chance}.  One company that I didn’t really know much about until I started blog hopping was Tommee Tippee.  I had seen their products at Babies R Us when I was Pre-Baby shopping {over 2 years ago!}, but didn’t know much about the company by just browsing.

I am proud to say that I am a firm believer in Tommee Tippee products – and we have a lot around our house.

The newest addition to our collection and cabinets are the explora® Li’l sippee spill proof trainer cups!  Although we haven’t actually got to use them yet {they’re recommended for ages 6 mon+}, it won’t be long!  That statement makes me excited and sad at the same time!

  • Soft Spout – supporting baby’s oral development for first transitions
  • Silicone soft top works without biting
  • Integrated one-piece valve for easy cleaning and no spills or leaks
  • Easy to hold handles for little hands
  • All lids and handles interchangeable with other Li’l Sippees cups and Closer to Nature bottles
  • Hygiene cap

The handles on these cups will make it very easy for Moreaya to grip them when she starts drinking from a cup.  I like the soft spout for smaller users AND they’re dishwasher and microwave safe – can’t get any easier than that for your babies!  This will be the first cup that Moreaya will use!

Buy It:  You can purchase a 2 pack of explora® Li’l sippee spill proof trainer cups on the Babies R Us website or at your local store.  They retail for $7.99.

Win It:  Tommee Tippee is offering one lucky So Easy Being Green reader a chance to win a 2 pack of the explora® Li’l sippee spill proof trainer cupsin theGreen Your Kitchen for Baby Prize Package in the upcoming Savory Summer Event – that starts on Wednesday, May 16th!

Filed Under: baby, Green, parenting, Review

Summer Splash Sponsor Spotlight: The First Years

May 10, 2012 By 1 Comment

Are you loving all these great giveaway events!?  I sure am – they’re tons of fun to participate in and I love bringing you some fabulous products too!

WithOurBest Event Button

I’ll be participating in the Summer Splash Event, which begins this Monday the 14th!  I’m taking a bit of a unique take on Splashing in the Summer and with today’s Sponsor, you’ll see how!

When I was contacted to review The First Years Sure Comfort Newborn to Toddler Tub, I said sure!  I wanted to see the bath tub that was named one of Babble’s 10 best infant bathtubs last year!  Moreaya had outgrown the tub that we were using with her so I had been laying her in our big bath tub on a mat.

This tub is so fun and super practical for our family because it can seriously be used for babies as Newborns all the way up to Toddlers at 25lbs!  It comes with a mesh sling for newborns and I plan on keeping it JUST IN CASE we need it again in the future {far future… like 5 years into the future! ;) }

It also includes a mesh sling with padded headrest providing extra comfort and support to cradle even the littlest ones. The form-fitting netting provides security, making bath time less stressful for both parents and baby! And, it’s machine washable and dryable.

The First Years Sure Comfort™ Newborn to Toddler Tub provides all the security, comfort and convenience parents and growing babies need in a tub. Its deep ergonomic design holds baby better for bathing, and parents will love that it fits both single and double sinks. Plus, the mildew-resistant pads make for a cleaner bath.

Moreaya doesn’t mind this tub at all!  She used to squirm in the other one we had and I just knew it had to be uncomfortable.  This bath tub is padded in all the right places and keeps her in a comfortable position.  And just because it says that toddlers can fit, we had to try it out…

They do!  Sophia is right at 24-25 lbs and she fit into the tub.  It would probably be hard to get her to actually keep the water IN the bathtub, since it’s pretty small and compact, but it could be done.  I think taking this tub along with us when we’re camping would be a great way to get the girls a bath without putting them in community showers!

The way the tub works is one side is the Infant side, with more support at the back and bottom for little ones and the other side is for toddlers who can easily sit up and need more padding for their bottoms.

Buy It:  At under $20, this is definitely the bathtub that I would recommend to friends and family members that are looking for something to bathe their Infant and even Newborn in – especially since it can last for children up to 25lbs!  The First Years Sure Comfort™ Newborn to Toddler Tub is easily available to everyone as it can be found at Walmart, BabiesRUs.com, and select Target stores!

Win It:  One lucky So Easy Being Green reader will have the chance to win their own The First Years Sure Comfort Newborn to Toddler Tub {in their choice of Pink or Blue} in the Summer Splash Event – that starts on Monday, May 14th!


Filed Under: baby, family, parenting, Review, toddler, travel

Savory Summer Sponsor Spotlight: Eco Home Store

May 10, 2012 By Leave a Comment

When I’m looking for great, green products that are available at a reasonable price, I go straight to the Eco Home Store.  They have a wide variety of items in categories ranging from Kitchen to Toys to Cleaning Products and much, much more!

They are a fun company that is totally accessible by their fans and customers, with wonderful Customer Service!  I’m so excited to say that they are involved with the May Buffet Giveaway that is live right now AND will be involved in giving away another set of 2 Snack Coconut Bowls for the upcoming Savory Summer Giveaway that begins next week!

I was recently sent a set of their Bamboo Utensil Set with lots of fun Bamboo Utensils by Bambu!  I fell in love with this set immediately.  I love using wooden spoons and I’ll admit – they’re cheap-o’s!  So when I saw the quality of this set, I knew it was going to be a good one.  The bamboo is super smooth and such a lovely color.  The best feature of ALL of the utensils?  They all have a built-in spoon rest on them!  I love this because I don’t have a Spoon Rest {just another thing to wash} but I am always laying my utensils on the counter top while I’m cooking and I always have to wipe up a mess when I’m done!  No more, though!

Here’s what my utensil set looked like before…

It’s a stainless steel set that was getting quite worn.  We received most of it as a Wedding Present and there are a few stray utensils in there as well.  I used to love the idea of stainless steel until I had it for awhile.  It’s so hard to keep clean and just gets gross!

Now, here’s what my utensil set looks like…

These utensils are so pretty and really brighten up my counter top!  Now – to get rid of those stainless steel canisters!!!

I will say that I don’t put these utensils in the dishwasher because I want them to last as long as possible!  They all look as new as they did when I received them a couple of months ago and I use at least one everyday!  I love that they don’t get yucky looking AND that they don’t scratch my pots and pans and are very easy to clean!

Buy It:  You can find these great Bambu utensils and other awesome Kitchen items at the Eco Home Store website.  The exact set that I received for review is not for sale on their website right now, but you’ll find lots of other fun things for your Kitchen, House, and yourself!

Win It:  Eco Home Store is offering one lucky So Easy Being Green reader a chance to win 2 Mini Coconut Bowls, in Pink, in both the May Buffet Giveaway Prize Package AND the Green Your Kitchen Prize Package in the upcoming Savory Summer Event – that starts on Wednesday, May 16th!

Filed Under: Green, Review

#MayBuffet Sponsor Spotlight: Peter Rabbit Organics

April 30, 2012 By Leave a Comment

Our next sponsor for the Keep Your Baby FULL & GREEN prize package for May Buffet will keep your baby… well, both FULL & GREEN!  Peter Rabbit Organics makes some of the green-est, most organic veggie and fruit pouches on the market.

I love how they describe their products… “You won’t have to read the label – the fruit you see on the front is what’s inside!”  Isn’t this what we all want to see in our food products?  No hidden preservatives, chemicals, etc.  This is especially important when we’re feeding our babies and toddlers!

Our fruit and veg puree pouches are all organic, contain 100% fruit and veg, and never have added sugar or anything artificial.  If you do read the label you’ll see your snacks are high in vitamin C, have between 70 and 85 calories, 0 fat (of course – it’s fruit!) and 1.5-2 grams of fiber. Peter Rabbit Organics don’t require refrigeration before eating and come in BPA-free resealable pouches for easy packing. Plus, the convenient, squeezy pouch (with a no-choke cap) makes it fun and easy for little hands!

Moreaya is just now beginning solids – and I’m actually planning on making her very first green veggie tonight – as she’s been spitting out enjoying cereal for a week now!  So I haven’t been able to give her 1 of the 3 pouches that we received from Peter Rabbit Organics because of food allergy hesitations – you should always introduce new foods to your baby one ingredient/food at a time!  Since all of the pouches include at least 2 combinations of foods, I’ll have to try them separately for her first.

Please Mommy? It looks so tasty!

Mommy says "Not yet".

But it looks SO yummy!

But, the good news is, just because these pouches are pureed food doesn’t mean they are only for babies!  It’s about the consistency of applesauce and I let Sophia try one out {so I could taste test too!} and she really enjoyed the Mango, Banana and Orange as a mid-day snack!  And I can vouch that it really does taste like Mango, Banana and Orange!  Sophia and I are mango-obsessed!

Veggie and Fruit pouches are my favorite way to take food/snacks on the go – and I love that you can screw the lid right back on them and refrigerate for up to 48 hours!  I can’t wait to let Moreaya try all of the other flavors!

Get a head start to the May Buffet Giveaway by liking Peter Rabbit Organics on Facebook and following them on Twitter.

Buy It:  You can find Peter Rabbit Organics Fruit & Veggie pouches at stores near you, including Starbucks and Publix.  They can also be purchased on Target.com and Diapers.com!  Pouches retail for around $1.50 each – price based on bulk pricing on Target and Diapers.com websites.

Win It:  Peter Rabbit Organics is offering one lucky So Easy Being Green reader a chance to win 12 assorted pouches in the May Buffet Giveaway – which begins on May 1st!

Filed Under: baby, Green, parenting, Review, toddler, travel
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