You are here: Home / Archives for review

Disney Baby Layette Gift Set

January 29, 2012 By 5 Comments

By Christine:

"After a labor of love, we’re proud to announce the birth of DisneyBaby.com".  To celebrate the newest member of the Disney family I was invited to try out a few items from the layette collection.  Included in the gift set were two Disney Cuddly Bodysuits, one Disney Sleep and Play outfit and a Winnie the Pooh soft character rattle. Typically I am not a big fan of babies or young kids wearing clothes with characters or other brands until they’re old enough to pick out what they like.  However, I found the patterns on the Disney Baby items to be very tasteful and unobtrusive.  The Disney characters were included in a more fashionable design in the samples I received and what I saw online.

IMG_0999

The onsies are both cute and cuddly, as the name suggests.  In addition, they are made out of a very soft 100% cotton and are thick enough to wear paired with cotton pants, or under another shirt for added warmth. They wash well and feel even softer after coming out of the dryer.  The head opening is a generous size and fit easily over my  3 1/2 month old’s slightly large head.  What I like most about the Disney Cuddly Bodysuits though is the additional row of snaps.  It is so great to have well made clothes that will last and grow with my daughter, especially since babies grow so fast and I can hardly keep up with rotating her clothes as she grows. I know that these onsies will be in the dresser for several months to come and they will look and feel great.IMG_1001

The Disney Sleep and Play outfit was the same lovely cotton as the bodysuits.  I’m just disappointed that they sent a boy’s pattern, as I have a daughter whose older sister will not hear of her little sister wearing anything remotely boyish.  The Mickey Mouse "Who am I" Sleep and Play will find a new home at Special Delivery, a frequent recipient of items from MomStart.

These items can all be found on DisneyBaby.com along with a whole selection of other baby necessities.

About Christine:

Christine is our in house baby product reviewer. She has two children that are quite adorable, one is 3 1/2 months old and the other is three and in my son’s preschool class. When she’s not taking maternity leave she works at the local children’s hospital.

Filed Under: christine, review Tagged With: , , , , ,

Kirkland’s Mosaic Ruffled Pillows Review & #Giveaway

January 26, 2012 By 121 Comments

By Orshi,

Let me show you my newest favorite touch to our living room. About 4 months ago, we purchased a leather chair to improve the seating arrangements in our family/living room and we chose a nice deep dark brown color. We have rich earthy colors throughout this area and the new chair gave just the right balance to the whole ‘look’ (whatever that may be … I have yet to figure out how to label our style). For this chair being dark, I felt it needed something to counter balance its tone. So here she is: Kirkland’s Mosaic Ruffle Pillow.

clip_image002

This fun and unique pillow gave just the right touch to that brown chair. Now, I am not an interior designer by any means but I know what is pleasing to my eyes. I like richly visual things … just a solid colored pillow would have not done it. Kirkland’s Mosaic Ruffle Pillow has depth, texture, shine but it is still a great neutral look that works in the mixture of things I have collected to decorate our living room with. The design is a spiral ruffle that runs in layers and comes to a point a bit off to the center. While this pillow looks delicate, I must tell you, it has already withstood major pillow fights, tower buildings and jumping …. guaranteed sturdy (tested by three highly active children). Kirkland’s Mosaic Ruffle Pillow comes in four colors: Bronze, Sage, Seafoam, and Taupe.

image

Kirkland’s Home Décor, Gifts and More as a decorating resource is new to me so I perused their website with great enjoyment (www.kirklands.com ). They sell affordable and unique looking furniture, amazing accessories, wall art and yes, the textiles and pillows … just my favorite little touches for an absolutely cozy home. Kirkland’s, founded by Carl Kirkland in 1966, is an extensive home décor merchandiser in over 30 states, almost 300 stores and online. Check them out … I am sure you will find something that you may think you can’t live without. Also follow them on Twitter @Kirklands 

image

Enter to Win:

Kirkland’s Mosaic Ruffled Pillow

USA Only

To Enter:

Leave a comment on this post telling us which of the Kirkland’s Mosaic Ruffle Pillow is your favorite.

I will be verifying entries for this giveaway. Please do not cheat, those entries will be deleted.

Extra Entries:

Use the RaffleCopter

[Read more...]

Filed Under: giveaway, orshi, review Tagged With: , ,

Inside Funky Monkey Snacks with CEO Matt Herzog

January 25, 2012 By 11 Comments

By Ashley

This is a product that once you’re heard of, you can’t forget. Say it out loud: “Funky Monkey!” You can’t help but smile a little when you say the name. The bright yellow package, the silly name, the ALL NATURAL ingredients… it all adds up for one delicious (and super healthy) freeze-dried fruit snack. I’m trying hard to steer my family in a more natural, less processed direction. When I had the chance to review Funky Monkey Snacks I was swinging from the chandelier with joy. (Maybe not ACTUALLY, but great correlation to monkeys, right?) Funky Monkey Snacks have no artificial sweeteners, no added colors, no added flavors, are gluten free, Kosher, and 100% natural. There are 3 servings (according to the FDA) of fruit in every ounce of Funky Monkey Snacks. AWESOME!

Funky Monky Product package

Atticus and I tried out Funky Monkey Snacks and loved it! They have some smooth flavors like Banana-Mon (Banana + Cinnamon) and things that are a little more tart like Mang-OJ (Mango+Orange). My personal favorite is Pink Pineapple (Pineapple+Guava) because it tastes JUST like a juice I had in Hawaii! That’s how fruity these freeze-dried fruit snacks are.

Kid & Funky Monky Product package

For this review, the CEO of Funky Monkey Snacks, Matt Herzog (whose favorite flavor by the way is Carnival Mix), took some time out of his day to talk with me about their great line of snacks. I had such a great conversation with Matt who is thrilled to be working for a “good for you” company. I had no idea how young Funky Monkey Snacks were. According to Matt, there was about a year of getting everything together and then 4 years sending the snacks out to the public. Now Funky Monkey Snacks are available at 1/3 of all Target stores and all Whole Foods and I’ve even seen them at our local Safeway. Funky Monkey Snacks are also available online at drugstore.com, greenpolkadotbox.com, and Amazon. When I asked Matt what plans Funky Monkey had for the future, he said that Funky Monkey plans to keep moving with all fruits and experimenting with new flavors. As a cost conscious mom I also asked him how moms on a budget could afford all natural, organic snacks like Funky Monkey. Matt gave great advice by saying that moms should “shop sales, use lists, don’t go to the store hungry, and sign up for coupons when you can.” He let me know that there is a Funky Monkey Newsletter that includes coupons! Make sure you sign up ASAP! I just signed up for mine and can’t wait to get my coupons.

Samples were received.

About Ashley:

Ashley has a background in teaching Kindergarten and working with children K through 8th grade. She is now a SAHM and active with our local MOMS Club chapter. She writes her own blog at Momicles.

Filed Under: Ashley, review Tagged With: , , , ,

Inside Krispy Kreme Winston-Salem North Carolina

January 23, 2012 By 9 Comments

Taking a tour through Krispy Kreme is not a lite matter, in fact it’s filling and quite sweet!

IMG_7569

This is a picture of the Krispy Kreme headquarters in Winston-Salem North Carolina. Inside there is the beginning of every Krispy Kreme doughnut. They create the beginning of the mix that is distributed world wide, so they have touched every doughnut in a way. The quality of every doughnut is of upmost importance to Krispy Kreme.

IMG_7555

The tour included a little history and that was the best part about Krispy Kreme to me was that it wasn’t just a boring history lesson it was a lesson filled with stories, personal connections with the brand. Like the photo above, this is how they used to cut their doughnuts. They would roll it out on a wood table, cut them with this and then after they were fresh and hot they would store them in a wood box.

IMG_7554

They didn’t know all the things about wood that we know now. Now every doughnut is made form a mix. that mix is created at the headquarters and distributed world wide. In each region of the world taste buds and regulations are different so the recipe is a little different for some of the doughnuts variations. However, the original doughnut is as close to the same as it can possibly be for each region.  They mentioned a green tea doughnut and I want to go to the country that sells that doughnut just to taste it. Krispy Kreme really understands their customers, it’s rooted into their company motto. Of course they care about how many doughnuts they sell but what’s even more important to them is enhancing the lives of others through joy.

Our tour included the store front model. Here they simulate how things are to be positioned and how they should look. Are the doughnuts easy to put together and how do the drinks come together. On day two we even went back there and created our own drinks. I’ll tell you more about that fun later.

IMG_7539

And it included ever so beautiful hair caps and lab coats. Pictured here is my friend Liz (A Nut in a Nutshell) and me.

image

We also saw the doughnut assembly line. They make all the variations of doughnuts on this machine, they run them in shifts. That’s actually something I didn’t realize. I thought every store made only the glaze doughnuts  Plus we had an original doughnut hot off the line. YUM!

IMG_7543

Krispy Kreme prides themselves on their high standards. They don’t accept flour unless it’s up to specifications and they monitor everything with state of the art technology.

IMG_7550

We also had the privilege of seeing the original Krispy Kreme recipe.

IMG_7545

Behind this safe

IMG_7548

Inside this envelope. Ok, that’s as far as he got. He said it was his first time to ever hold the envelope, but no one gets to look at the original Krispy Kreme recipe, it’s TOP SECRET.

 

Travel and expenses were covered by Krispy Kreme.

Filed Under: review, travel Tagged With: , , , , ,

Angie’s Kettle Corn Valentine’s Snack Pack: What’s Not to Love?

January 21, 2012 By 3 Comments

Review By Orshi:

All-natural treat makes classroom parties sweet

I hate to admit it, but I still have candies from last Valentine ’s Day. Having 3 children and 18 students, we were way overstocked after this especially sweet holiday. And then came Halloween and Christmas and that basket that usually has only a few pieces in it is overflowing now. I am not a big fan of candy and I certainly don’t feed it to my children. Eating candy is a special treat in our house and it is hard to control the little sugar loving minds when they know it is around (so as far as I know they are unaware of the location of that basket). I also have a son who is highly allergic to dairy, soy, and nuts – pretty much three ingredients that are in most common candies. You know, the feeling of grabbing a piece of candy out of your child’s hand to possibly save his life … hmm, not a good one. Needless to say, I am very happy to find a healthy and safe alternative to the Valentine sugar rush that will please all three of my children and their little Valentines. Angie’s Kettle Corn Valentine’s Snack Packs are a sweetheart of an all-natural treat, packaged in portable and convenient packs for classmate and friend treat exchange.

clip_image002

Angie’s Kettle Corn is created by Angie Bastian and her husband Dan. At 70 calories per .5-ounce snack-sized bag, Angie’s is a cholesterol-free treat made with whole grain and four simple—and simply irresistible—sweet-and-salty ingredients: popcorn, corn oil, sea salt and sugar. Now how simple is that? My children will love it, I already know.

Exclusively available at Target, the whimsically Valentine-themed snacks pack retails for $5.99 and includes 20 treat-sized bags and customizable message stickers for easy and fun gifting. “With no trans-fats, artificial flavors, preservatives or cholesterol, our snack packs are a naturally delicious treat that Cupids of all ages will love from the inside—out,” said Bastian.

By purchasing Angie’s Kettle Corn you can also be part of a great cause since the growing company’s packaging waste is now being donated to Misfit Acres Inc. in Amboy, Minn., a horse rescue and sanctuary. Misfit Acres sends the waste to Michigan where TerraCycle Inc. “upcycles” it by using every aspect of the waste for a variety of products such as notebook covers, pencil boxes, carry bags, and fencing. Recycling proceeds come back to Misfit Acres and help to defray the expense of caring for the formerly neglected horses.

Visit Angie’s Kettle Corn on Facebook at  or Twitter @AngiesKettle.

About Orshi:

Orshi is a teacher at UCIC where she works daily with children. She shows a great love for children as she has three of her own. She also loves Facebook, gardening and baking. She was born and grew up in Hungary and now lives across the street.

Filed Under: orshi, review Tagged With: , , , , ,

Fight Dry Skin: Lowila Cleansing Bar and Lac-Hydrin Five Moisturizing Lotion

January 20, 2012 By 4 Comments

By Orshi:

I have chronic dry hands and I have soft-hand-envy, too. Let me explain. The chronic part is just what it sounds like: my hands are always dry unless I slather them with hand cream 5 times a day (which I simply just can’t do). About the soft-hand-envy … you know when you shake someone’s hand and you feel their warm silky skin that is like baby skin … oh, I envy that, I envy that a lot. I have tried many tricks to reach that super-soft-hand-state – drenched my hands in hand creams, wrapped them in softening gloves, used special European creams, did mini scrub and spa treatments on them. They have all reached results – some better than others – but they were never to last. When I received the Lowila Cleansing Bar and the LAC-HYDRIN® FIVE Moisturizing Lotion, I knew I will be able to put them to the test.image

Lowila is a soap free, dermatologist, pediatricians and physicians recommended bar to improve various dry, and sensitive skin conditions.

LAC-HYDRIN® FIVE Moisturizing Lotion is a dry skin care for elbows, knees, feet, and hands and even gentle enough for face. It is infused with ammonium hydroxide, fragrance free and absorbs fast. It is non-comedogenic, meaning that it will not clog pores and cause acne.

imageI put the bar of soap into the children’s bathroom and used it during bath time. I usually don’t believe in soap free ‘soaps’ but this one is quite unique. It lathers up very well, has a soft scent and acts just like a regular soap. My youngest son has dry skin due to allergies and his little ‘scales’ need regular moisturizing. I used the LAC-HYDRIN® FIVE Moisturizing Lotion on him after baths and noticed a huge improvement in this skin. First of all, the lotion is not greasy at all, goes on easy, doesn’t feel heavy and soaks into the skin fast. My little guys biggest problem when it comes to ‘buttering’ him (a term he has been using for moisturizing since he could talk) is that the sticky feeling bothers him for a long time. After using LAC-HYDRIN®, he forgets about it in a matter of minutes and his skin is itch free and soft. The only problem with this lotion is that if he has deeper itch marks on his skin, it burns when I put it on … I mean screaming burn – so it should not be used on skin that is very irritated by eczema or possibly imagehas cuts from itching.

As for my dry hands … they are feeling quite soft now. I use LAC-HYDRIN® regularly and I only apply it once a day for lasting results. The lotion goes a long way and there is a lot of magic packed into it. I could make an 8 oz bottle last a long time between my little boy and my hands. Great product!!

Both products can be purchased online from Amazon.com, Drugstore.com or various other websites starting at $14.

Samples Received.

 

About Orshi:

Orshi is a teacher at UCIC where she works daily with children. She shows a great love for children as she has three of her own. She also loves Facebook, gardening and baking. She was born and grew up in Hungary and now lives across the street.

Filed Under: orshi, review Tagged With: , , , , , ,

Teaching Children Civic Responsibility: Boomer and Halley Election Day Book Review

January 18, 2012 By 2 Comments

By Summer:

Elections are in the air. I know you MIGHT already be sick of hearing about Decision 2012, but some of us have budding political science majors who need more information. The dog and cat duo of Boomer and Halley offer you their third book about Election Day. Your child will love learning more about elections and civic responsibility.

clip_image002

This is our first Boomer and Halley story so we were only a little lost on their history and background, but it’s not hard to guess that they were strays taken in by a couple who can care for them properly and have room in their hearts to love this cleaver set of pets. Speaking of responsibility, that is one of the “PAWS” author Mary Jane McKittrick tries to help instill into each story in the Boomer and Halley series.

PAWS are marked with a pawprint and indicate a time to “pause”, get it? Clever little play on words! In Boomer and Halley: Election Day children will learn about honesty, forgiveness, responsibility, and pet care. Each book comes with a bookmark in the beginning which offers questions about each basic life lesson. Such as HONESTY: Why is it important to tell the truth? What happens when the mayor doesn’t tell the truth?

IMG_9945

Boomer and Halley: Election is 49-pages long and designed for children 4-8YO. In addition to the text Boomer and Halley: Election offers a forward for the parents, “Little Lessons. Big Results.” information for parents, a bookmark with life lesson questions, continued education and activities via their website (as noted on the second to last page), and a preview of book four.

IMG_9946

The characters, Boomer and Halley, kept my 5YO son interested, but I wish the book was split into chapters as we couldn’t read the whole book at once. There were noticeable places to stop but younger readers might not get the hint. The illustrations by Bob Ostrom are not colored in, which I think would’ve helped keep my son’s interest longer but your child (if you feel comfortable with it) could color in the illustrations. Overall I think this is a cute little, educational series.

IMG_9947

My Mom Start Review Grade of Boomer and Halley: Election Day (Book 3):

About Summer:

Summer is very active in our Local MOMS Club chapter, she is the mother of two adorable active boys, and is always thinking of ways to help others. She is a friend, a wife, and always busy as all mommies are. She is very active on Facebook, addicted to Geocaching and very interested in organic and green living while cooking up a storm

Filed Under: book review, review, Summer Tagged With: , , , ,

Get Dead Poets Society on Blu-ray Today

January 17, 2012 By 5 Comments

By Summer,

What’s your favorite Robin Williams film? If you’re like me, it’s hard to pick just one! I love Disney’s Aladdin, Goodwill Hunting, Night at the Museum, Mrs. Doubtfire (“It was a drive by fruiting.”) and Dead Poets Society.

clip_image002

Maybe it doesn’t take much to excite me, but I AM excited that Dead Poets Society is coming out in Blu-Ray today (January 17, 2012). I remember watching Dead Poets Society for the first time in high school. It was inspiring! I was talking with some girl friends about re-watching it and we got to talking about teachers in our lives who were like the teacher John Keating (Robin William’s character). This proved to me that Dead Poets Society just resonates with people. There is just something about it; I think it has to do with being young and seizing the day … carpe diem. (You know I can’t get away with posting about Dead Poets Society without the Latin!)

If you’re never seen Dead Poets Society it’s about an all-boys preparatory school in the 1959. Their school, Welton Academy, don’t encourage free thinking and prefers to tell students how to think and want to do in order to be successful in life, which really means get into an Ivy League school and have a “noble” profession such as a doctor or lawyer. Of course this is all shaken up when their new poetry teacher John Keating who prefers to be called Captain starts to help some of the boys in his class begin to love poetry, free thinking and creates a true paradigm shift on their lives. A few of these students revive the lost Dead Poets Society of which John Keating was a member of in his days at Welton as a student. Conflict arises as Keating’s unconventional teaching methods are not accepted by other Welton faculty and students. WARNING: There is a teenage suicide in the movie. (In case this is a sensitive issue for you.) BUT the movie is not gruesome and there is no image of the suicide. SPOILER ALERT: The suicide is blamed on Mr. Keating. The school forces the students to tell about the Dead Poets Society they had created in secret and sign a paper stating they blame Mr. Keating. As Mr. Keating retrieves he final belongs from his classroom while class is in session the Dead Poets Society members and other students who respect Mr. Keating stand on their desks and call out to him, “O Captain, My Captain!” (from its names sake Walt Whitman poem).

Other actors you’ll know from Dead Poets Society include Robert Sean Leonard from TV’s House, Ethan Hawke from notables such as Reality Bites (another one of my favorites) and Training Day, and Kurtwood Smith from TV’s That 70’s Show; though other actors will look very familiar from their varied resumes.

Dead Poets Society, which won writer Tom Schulman an Academy Award for Best Original Screenplay in 1989, is being released for the first time Blu-Ray for only $20 (1-disc). Dead Poets Society is also being released in High Definition Digital Download also for $20 or Standard Definition Digital Download for $14.99. You can get your own Blu-Ray copy, right now, on Amazon for only $14.99. Copies include the movie as well as Special Features — Dead Poets: A Look Back, Raw Takes, Master of Sound: Alan Splet, Cinematography Master Class, Audio Commentary, and the Theatrical Trailer.

My Mom Start Review Grade of Dead Poets Society in Blu-Ray DVD: A+

About Summer:

Summer is very active in our Local MOMS Club chapter, she is the mother of two adorable active boys, and is always thinking of ways to help others. She is a friend, a wife, and always busy as all mommies are. She is very active on Facebook, addicted to Geocaching and very interested in organic and green living while cooking up a storm

Filed Under: Movie review, review, Summer Tagged With: , , , , ,

More Laundry Habits Shout Color Catcher with Oxi

January 14, 2012 By 4 Comments

Thinking about my laundry habits reminds me of my little incident I had with the pull up in the washing machine the other day. OH Sigh! I forgot that when I first saw the one piece of gunk that I thought the Shout color catcher broke on me in the washing machine. Nope, it was the pull up. And boy was it a disaster. But once I cleaned up that mistake everything came out clean.

image

Shout wants to know if my laundry habits have changed at all since I’ve started using the Shout Color Catcher with Oxi in it. Well, no not really. I’ve always been a quick sort kind of person, I don’t sort as much as my husband does. He sorts practically every color into it’s own load and does much smaller loads than I do. I will say though that when using the Shout Color Catcher with Oxi I feel more confident about my loads not bleeding and coming out brightly without much fading. It’s been a while since a product has given me that satisfaction. There was a laundry detergent that I LOVED using because it worked like the Shout Color Catcher with Oxi does but they quit making it. So I’m glad for this new option. I do feel thought that for a balanced review I need to mention that I don’t like the way it smells when I pull it out of the washing machine. My laundry doesn’t smell just the color catcher does. I can’t exactly describe the smell I just don’t like it. image

Currently Shout is offering downloadable Shout coupons on the Shout Facebook page for Shout Free and Color Catcher with Oxi.

“I wrote this review while participating in a campaign by Mom Central Consulting on behalf of Shout and received a product sample to facilitate my review and a promotional item to thank me for taking the time to participate.”

Filed Under: review Tagged With: , , ,

Simplify & Save Time Meal Planning with E-Mealz

January 10, 2012 By 3 Comments

First we shared the recipe using e-Mealz, the Italian Style Chicken Breast Recipe, now we’re going to give you the full review.

Tired of Planning Meals? Let E-Mealz Do the Work!

image

By: Ashley

All of those years I asked my mom, night after night, the agonizing question, “What’s for supper?” We said “supper” but I guess some of you might say “dinner.” Either way, I didn’t realize until I was the mom how annoying and taxing creating week after week of meal plans can be. Last week, I learned about a really cool website called EMealz. If you are the head of a family and in charge of planning every single dinner, this could seriously rock your dinner planning world.

If you sign up for E-Mealz, they will plan your entire week of meals for you and to top if off they will give you a grocery list with everything you need for the week! When I first heard about this, I had my doubts. I was worried that the recipes would be unhealthy, or too expensive, or wouldn’t be very family friendly. I WAS WRONG! E-Mealz has a wide variety of specialized menus that you can choose for your family. They offer menus for everything from “Picky Family” to “Gluten Free” to “On a Budget.” Financial advisor, Dave Ramsey (most famous for his Financial Peace University) even supports E-Mealz saying that it helps solve the problem of the “food, the biggest budget buster of all.”

For this review, I signed up for “Portion Control.” This menu is incredibly family friendly, healthy, and EASY. One of my favorites was the Italian Style Chicken Breasts. Within 30 minutes, I had a healthy dinner on the table that all of us enjoyed. I’d say that’s a success! Some of the other options this week? Firecracker Turkey Chili, Spice Rubbed Chili, and even a Broccoli and Cauliflower Cheese Quiche – such a wide variety!

Interested in trying EMealz? If you hurry, EMealz is offering 10% off of new subscriptions through January 15 with the coupon code “2012.” Even without a coupon code, E-Mealz is a great deal!

Check out the Italian Style Chicken Breasts Recipe.

Disclosure – A product was provided to me free of charge by the manufacturer or representing PR agency for the writing of this review; however, opinions expressed are my own and are NOT influenced by monetary compensation.

About Ashley:

Ashley has a background in teaching Kindergarten and working with children K through 8th grade. She is now a SAHM and active with our local MOMS Club chapter. She writes her own blog at Momicles.

Filed Under: Ashley, review Tagged With: , , , , , ,
« Older Posts
Newer Posts »