I've recently been asked on my facebook to spill the beans about what some of my favorite natural products are for basic things such as diaper rash cream, soap, etc. So here is a list of things I've thought of off the top of my head. I'll be splitting this into two posts. This one is going to include things that I use on my kids and hopefully tomorrow (or at least soon) I will post about my favorite products for me. Some of these products will overlap so just be warned you might start reading and feel a little "deja vu". You're not going crazy because you most likely already did read about how much I liked that product. It's very possible that I've forgotten something but in my defense, there are a lot of things I love. I'm not going to list all the ingredients and claims for every little thing that these products do, but I will leave you a link so that you can find and do some more research yourself.
I think I've covered everything that was asked and that I can think to cover. If you'd like any opinions on any other categories please, feel free to let me know in the comments. It's taken me three hours and having to stop and start this blog post to finish it so I apologize if I've forgotten something :P
DIAPER RASH CREAM
* Delish Naturals Yum Bum Butter- This is made by a Canadian WAHM and is wonderful. I've used it for diaper rash cream and for cradle cap and it worked for both. I have also loan some to a friend and she claimed it took the itch out of her son's eczema. I assume it worked really well because her son climbed the counter to get the stuff and used the rest of it (which was quite a bit) on himself, so even 2-year-old's like it :) This is cloth diaper friendly. Other places you can purchase this product (in the USA) are ali AND swan and Rockin' Green Soap.
* Dimpleskins Naturals Bum Bum Balm- This is also cloth diaper safe. I received a sample with a purchase over the holiday season and it works really well, just as well as the Delish Naturals stuff. I prefer the Delish Naturals because of their delicious scents but this is a nice alternative. You can also purchase this product on Amazon with free shipping if you have Amazon Prime or Amazon Mom.
*CJ's BUTTer Spritz- This one is cloth diaper safe, also. It also comes in a tub like the two creams above, and I think in a stick? CJ's BUTTer is just general a favorite in the cloth diapering community. My only experience has been with the spritz. I don't love it as much as I do the first two, but it's great for the times that I don't want to get my hands messy or a teething rash has left a tender butt so red that touching it would cause more pain :( Monkey Farts is hands down my favorite part about it. I just love a good fruity booty ;)
*Method Baby Squeaky Green- This is my favorite rash cream that you can get in the store. I usually pick mine up at Babies'R'Us. Some places online claim that it's cloth diaper safe but I noticed repelling in my cloth when I used it, so I save it for when I've got kids in disposables. I'm pretty sure all of their products claim to be 99% natural which is a lot closer than most things you can use on your kids, right? I also really like that this stuff isn't sticky like Desitin and other things. It's nice and smooth.
SOAP/SHAMPOO/BABYWASH
* Squid Balm- You can find my blog post about their products below this one. Their things are not tear-free but are very mild. I use them on my nearly 1yo twins and my 2yo. I've gotten it in their eyes a time or two but a swipe with a dry towel makes it better. Their eyes have never been read or bloodshot afterwards either so irritation is very minimal. The products Squid Balm has includes soap, solid lotion, solid shampoo, solid conditioner and an oil face cleanser. You really can not go wrong with this stuff, I love it all and it's all I use anymore in the shower for me and the kids.
*Method Baby Squeaky Green hair + body wash- This is what I started using for the twins when they were born (before I found Squid Balm). I really like this stuff. It smells nice and is gentle. I use a tummy tub to bathe them in and used to just squirt some of this in the water. That way I didn't have to pull them out to wash them off and instead could just stick my sponge in the water and wash them while they were still immersed.
*Method Baby Bubbly Bath- Conner loves bubble baths but most bubbles are NOT tear free and hurt his eyes. He likes to dump water on his head so just being careful doesn't cut it when it comes to bubbles. The suds up fairly well just by squirting some in the stream of water going into the tub from the faucet.
LOTION
*Squid Balm- Solid lotion bar that is all natural. Go to the link to read all the wonderful stuff about it as I really would just be copying and pasting it anways :) It was originally intended to help relieve eczema for the creator's daughter but works great as just a general lotion.
*Method Baby Squeaky Green Lotion- I really like this lotion also. It's not too thick but still makes my hands feel nice. I really never remember to put lotion on my kids but I keep this by my kitchen sink and use it fairly frequently when I've been washing my hands so much that they're starting to feel dry and chapped.
Sunday, July 10, 2011
Friday, July 8, 2011
My kids have never smelled so delicious.
For those of you who know me (and didn't just stumble upon this blog by mistake) you know I love to tell everyone and their grandmother about anything that I love. Baby-wearing, breastfeeding, co-sleeping, elephant herding, etc. You get the picture. And when I come across a product I love, you'd better watch out because every time I find a use for it in YOUR life, I'm going to tell you exactly why you need to buy it. Right now. While I'm watching you. Go ahead and have your credit card ready... I mean it.
Squid Balm is a company with body care products that will rock your world. They are made by a mother who was looking for products that were safe and didn't irritate her daughter's sensitive skin. Any mother of a child who has allergies and eczema knows how hard it can be to find the right product to use. Look no further. Squid Balm is a real winner.
I've had the pleasure of trying out EVERYTHING that Squid Balm has to offer. So yes, I was given products to test out, but this blog post was my own idea and all the views and opinions expressed in this blog post are mine and mine only. If you agree with me then that is a mere (but awesome) coincidence.
Without making you travel to the website I will tell you that they have solid lotion bars, solid shampoo bars, solid conditioner bars, bath bombs, soap, and oil cleansers (for YOUR FACE!) My absolute favorite is the oil cleanser. I'm not kidding when I tell you my face has never felt this awesome. Never. And it's not making me break out so apparently it's as awesome as I think it is. I'm very self-conscious about my face and to be honest I had pretty much given up on washing it with any sort of cleanser because everything made my face feel dry and damaged. I don't worry about any of that anymore. Don't be a skeptic. Try it and become a believer.
Next, you're probably wondering "What the heck is up with all these "solid" products". Solid bars of products mean that there are not any added preservatives or water. I'd say if foods get to brag about "no added preservatives" then it's probably pretty BA that body care products can do the same. The products you use on your skin can be absorbed, so keeping out anything that might be potentially harmful (or in the very least, unhelpful) sounds like a decent idea. Months ago I came across the company Lush and tried some of their products. I wish I had come across Squid Balm sooner. By far, the Squid Balm products are my favorite. I am in serious lust with the scent of my Lush soap but it left my skin feeling kind of dry after a shower. Enough that I noticed it which says something because I can be fairly unobservant. The Squid Balm soaps have left my skin feeling nice and never a time where I stepped out of the shower feeling the need to douse myself in lotion. And ahh, the lotion. The solid lotion bar is a bit odd to apply. I can't really say that I've masted it's art, but I want to. I keep forgetting about it because I've never been one to apply much lotion but the one leg I managed to get fully covered was the nicest I've ever had one leg feel in my entire life.
I think my most favorite of favorite products has to be the solid conditioner bar. Unfortunately my hair is too short (and the shampoo is already too awesome) for me to need the conditioner. The use of the conditioner in my hair makes it greasy as I am one of those special people the should never use conditioner on their roots... and well... These days my hair is all "root". Or mostly is. So why is it my favorite? Deb (the brains behind Squid Balm) told me her favorite use for the bar is for SHAVING. If I have to admit to hating buying any one thing it would be shaving cream. I never remember to buy it, I'm always running out and I never have time to shave my legs anyways so what's the point? In a pinch I have used lotion, conditioner and body wash to shave my legs. None of those things really cut it. But hey, why not give it a shot? Let me say this, I will never buy anything else to shave with. My legs felt so smooth after shaving that I didn't even need the lotion. They felt so smooth that I made my BFF Laura (who by the way doesn't like hugging, or touching people in general) feel my leg. And I made her feel it in public. (And for those of you wondering, no I didn't die and yes, she thought my leg felt very nice, thank you).
So yes, for myself I love all these products. I love them so much that using them on myself just wasn't enough. I use them on my children. I don't think my kids have ever been so clean. While I've contemplated it, I've managed to keep myself from rolling them in the mud just so I could clean them off ;) These products are NOT tear free. The things that make products tear free are chemicals and that's not something we want added to our natural products. They are, however, mild. And when I say mild it means that yes, I use them on my children, and no, my kids do not like me washing their hair and yes, I've gotten it in their eyes (all three of them). More than on one occasion. All it took to "fix" the problem was to wipe their eyes with a dry towel. Other than being a little pink around the eyes from where I just rubbed them with the towel, there wasn't any irritation. No bloodshot eyes and all screaming had ceased. Actually, only one of my kids screamed and that was Saoirse. Anyone who has met Saoirse, knows she's a drama queen. Sheenagh just started rubbing furiously at her eyes and grunting until I dried her face off.
So there you have it folks. I double dog dare you to go to their website and have a look-see. (That's my hick-talk for "check it out"). I'm most certain you will like what you find. Deb is super wonderful and more than willing to answer any and all questions you may have about the products that she has.
(Tristan these are some of the products coming to you!)
Wednesday, July 6, 2011
The Ugly Truth
I keep thinking I'm going to organize a blog post on breastfeeding. I want to tell everyone how wonderful it is and I want to dispel some of the myths going around about why women can't breastfeed. I want to make sure every woman is fully informed of whatever choice she makes in feeding her baby.
Today I want to look at the ugly side of breastfeeding. I've been inspired by a friend who is frustrated. In her rant I got the feeling that she felt like she would be judged by the breastfeeding mothers (like myself) who make it seem like breastfeeding should be sunshine, rainbows and unicorns that fart glitter. Let me just say there are days that those unicorns wouldn't have saved my sanity. I am openly admitting that there are times I felt incredibly guilty for the way I was feeling about breastfeeding. So instead of telling you all the wonderful things that breastfeeding is, I'm going to tell you all the wonderful things it's not. Because let's be real, no one really believes in those unicorns to begin with.
1. Breastfeeding is not always fun.
Oh, you heard me. Please, englighten me... what is more fun than being held captive on the couch/recliner/rocker/bed by a hungry baby (or in my case, babies)? There were days that I would have answered that question with, "Getting my bikini line waxed", "Having a tooth extracted", or "Poking myself in the eye with a dull needle". It would be a lie if I told you a relished every single minute of those first few weeks of Saoirse and Sheenagh's tiny little lives. I remember they were tiny, floppy, unable to assist in getting themselves latched properly at the breast and I was perpetually trapped in that space between sleep and awake, and ended up with plenty of fumbling and silent swearing on my part. The only thing that saved me from sabotaging the breastfeeding relationship between me and my babies was the simple fact that in order to quit I'd have to be coherent enough to find my way off the couch and into the kitchen to make a bottle. And then later I'd have to find my way back to the kitchen to make sure the bottles were washed. I mean, seriously? I was just lucky I stumbled into the kitchen often enough to feed myself.
2. Breastfeeding is not always easy.
Just ask any mother who has dealt with thrush, mastitis, clogged ducts, breastfeeding mulitples, breastfeeding a high-needs baby, unsupportive husband/partner, unsupportive families, uneducated healthcare professionals who sabotage their breastfeeding relationships, etc. Your only weapon against the hard times is education. Know what to do about these issues. Surround yourself with people who are supportive of your decision to breastfeed, even if that means finding a local chapter of your La Leche League, or an online community of breastfeeding mothers. Having a support system of knowledgable mommies or professionals is a MUST. Otherwise you can fall into literal "booby-traps" that will sabotage breastfeeding for you.
3. Breastfeeding is not always a "no-brainer"
I wish I could tell you that my natural instinct kicked in and I was amazing at breastfeeding because it was what I was created to do. Unfortunately it took a lot of research and trial and error before I figured things out. With Conner I was so afraid of starving him that I let him latch poorly and make my nipples so sore that they bled. I took it as a hard lesson learned and when I had the twins I didn't let them latch poorly. I spent time with them individually until we both figured things out, breaking suction and re-latching until I didn't want to scream from the pain. On a similar note I freaked out a tiny bit inside every time we went to the doctor for well baby appointments and Sheenagh was consistently 2lbs lighter than Saoirse. I had a "paranoid Mommy moment" until I realized they're getting the same milk. They're just individuals growing at different rates and have two different body types.
4. Breastfeeding doesn't work for everyone.
In all honesty there is a very small percentage of women who are unable to produce milk and breastfeed. Many women who say "I couldn't breastfeed" fall into two categories. A) Mother's who didn't like it and wanted an easy out so they didn't have to explain themselves or feel guilty about their decision or B) Mother's who fell into a booby-trap of misinformation that ruined the breastfeeding relationship or pressured them into weaning. There is a story my grandmother likes to tell of my great-grandmother. This was in a time before formula and bottles. My great-grandma knew of a lady who had lost a few babies. They had been incredibly fussy and just unable to survive. Finally my great-grandmother went to visit the woman after she had a baby who was failing to thrive and suggested the woman express some milk. My grandmother told me this woman's milk was green and so foul you couldn't even stand to be in the same room with it. My great-grandmother being the intelligent woman that she is helped her friend concoct a "formula" to feed her baby. The woman then went on to feed I think four babies who grew into adulthood. In other cases women are in the work place and just not able to maintain a breastfeeding relationship. I know of a woman who had to stop because she was unable to pump enough milk to keep up with her baby's needs and her baby was experiencing nipple confusion. She decided to switch to formula and bottles to make her daughter's time at daycare less stressful because she wanted the breast and not a bottle.
The moral of the story is that as a mother who cares about providing the best for your children, you have to educate yourself with knowledge. When it comes to the well-being of your kids ignorance is NOT bliss. Trust your gut and your instincts. If you feel something sounds wrong then get a second opinion, ask a mother you trust or research it yourself. I am incredibly pro-breastfeeding, probably to the point that people would want to label me a lactavist and assume I am judgmental even though that is certainly not the case. If you make an informed decision to breastfeed your child then own it. Don't second guess yourself because the people closest to you don't understand why you just won't give a bottle. And if you feel that feeding your child formula from a bottle is best, then own that too. Don't give excuses or explanations on why you didn't/couldn't breastfeed. A simple "This is what was best for our family" is the only explanation you'd ever need to give. Anyone who who can't accept that answer is nosy and ignorant.
Today I want to look at the ugly side of breastfeeding. I've been inspired by a friend who is frustrated. In her rant I got the feeling that she felt like she would be judged by the breastfeeding mothers (like myself) who make it seem like breastfeeding should be sunshine, rainbows and unicorns that fart glitter. Let me just say there are days that those unicorns wouldn't have saved my sanity. I am openly admitting that there are times I felt incredibly guilty for the way I was feeling about breastfeeding. So instead of telling you all the wonderful things that breastfeeding is, I'm going to tell you all the wonderful things it's not. Because let's be real, no one really believes in those unicorns to begin with.
1. Breastfeeding is not always fun.
Oh, you heard me. Please, englighten me... what is more fun than being held captive on the couch/recliner/rocker/bed by a hungry baby (or in my case, babies)? There were days that I would have answered that question with, "Getting my bikini line waxed", "Having a tooth extracted", or "Poking myself in the eye with a dull needle". It would be a lie if I told you a relished every single minute of those first few weeks of Saoirse and Sheenagh's tiny little lives. I remember they were tiny, floppy, unable to assist in getting themselves latched properly at the breast and I was perpetually trapped in that space between sleep and awake, and ended up with plenty of fumbling and silent swearing on my part. The only thing that saved me from sabotaging the breastfeeding relationship between me and my babies was the simple fact that in order to quit I'd have to be coherent enough to find my way off the couch and into the kitchen to make a bottle. And then later I'd have to find my way back to the kitchen to make sure the bottles were washed. I mean, seriously? I was just lucky I stumbled into the kitchen often enough to feed myself.
2. Breastfeeding is not always easy.
Just ask any mother who has dealt with thrush, mastitis, clogged ducts, breastfeeding mulitples, breastfeeding a high-needs baby, unsupportive husband/partner, unsupportive families, uneducated healthcare professionals who sabotage their breastfeeding relationships, etc. Your only weapon against the hard times is education. Know what to do about these issues. Surround yourself with people who are supportive of your decision to breastfeed, even if that means finding a local chapter of your La Leche League, or an online community of breastfeeding mothers. Having a support system of knowledgable mommies or professionals is a MUST. Otherwise you can fall into literal "booby-traps" that will sabotage breastfeeding for you.
3. Breastfeeding is not always a "no-brainer"
I wish I could tell you that my natural instinct kicked in and I was amazing at breastfeeding because it was what I was created to do. Unfortunately it took a lot of research and trial and error before I figured things out. With Conner I was so afraid of starving him that I let him latch poorly and make my nipples so sore that they bled. I took it as a hard lesson learned and when I had the twins I didn't let them latch poorly. I spent time with them individually until we both figured things out, breaking suction and re-latching until I didn't want to scream from the pain. On a similar note I freaked out a tiny bit inside every time we went to the doctor for well baby appointments and Sheenagh was consistently 2lbs lighter than Saoirse. I had a "paranoid Mommy moment" until I realized they're getting the same milk. They're just individuals growing at different rates and have two different body types.
4. Breastfeeding doesn't work for everyone.
In all honesty there is a very small percentage of women who are unable to produce milk and breastfeed. Many women who say "I couldn't breastfeed" fall into two categories. A) Mother's who didn't like it and wanted an easy out so they didn't have to explain themselves or feel guilty about their decision or B) Mother's who fell into a booby-trap of misinformation that ruined the breastfeeding relationship or pressured them into weaning. There is a story my grandmother likes to tell of my great-grandmother. This was in a time before formula and bottles. My great-grandma knew of a lady who had lost a few babies. They had been incredibly fussy and just unable to survive. Finally my great-grandmother went to visit the woman after she had a baby who was failing to thrive and suggested the woman express some milk. My grandmother told me this woman's milk was green and so foul you couldn't even stand to be in the same room with it. My great-grandmother being the intelligent woman that she is helped her friend concoct a "formula" to feed her baby. The woman then went on to feed I think four babies who grew into adulthood. In other cases women are in the work place and just not able to maintain a breastfeeding relationship. I know of a woman who had to stop because she was unable to pump enough milk to keep up with her baby's needs and her baby was experiencing nipple confusion. She decided to switch to formula and bottles to make her daughter's time at daycare less stressful because she wanted the breast and not a bottle.
The moral of the story is that as a mother who cares about providing the best for your children, you have to educate yourself with knowledge. When it comes to the well-being of your kids ignorance is NOT bliss. Trust your gut and your instincts. If you feel something sounds wrong then get a second opinion, ask a mother you trust or research it yourself. I am incredibly pro-breastfeeding, probably to the point that people would want to label me a lactavist and assume I am judgmental even though that is certainly not the case. If you make an informed decision to breastfeed your child then own it. Don't second guess yourself because the people closest to you don't understand why you just won't give a bottle. And if you feel that feeding your child formula from a bottle is best, then own that too. Don't give excuses or explanations on why you didn't/couldn't breastfeed. A simple "This is what was best for our family" is the only explanation you'd ever need to give. Anyone who who can't accept that answer is nosy and ignorant.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)