Green Beaver Certified Organic Products {Review & #Giveaway}

More and more people are turning to natural, green products for their family.  They're staring to realize that the products and chemicals we use on our bodies may not actually be that great for us.  If you haven't already begun to use organic products for your family, or if you already do, here's an introduction to a company that takes being green so seriously they put it in their name.

The Green Beaver company offers wholesome, healthy personal care products that are safe and effective for you, your family, and the environment.  They rely on pure natural ingredients when formulating their products.

Green Beaver is located in Canada and has recently launched in the U.S.  They've partnered with Flora, Inc., and their eco-friendly products should be available in health food stores across the country soon.  The entire line is certified organic by EcoCert, the European Standard for Cosmetics.  Certified organic means:

• Non-toxic, safe
• Environmentally friendly, biodegradable
• High-quality
• Natural
• Synthetic chemical free
• NOT tested on animals

They also have a list of 'Ingredients to Avoid' on their website, aka. ingredients they don't use in their products!  I was sent several of the Green Beaver products for my family to try.  I used the Gluten-Free Body Wash and the Gluten-Free Body Lotion on myself.  The wash was foamy and wasn't over-drying, and the lotion left my skin soft.  The scent of both screamed clean but for me was too over powering... almost "pine sol-y" if you will.

My kids got to try out several products from the Green Beaver Jr. line.  I didn't use much of the Bubble Bath but it got nice and bubbly, tons of fun for the kids.  The kids Shampoo smells sweet like berries, lathers nicely, and is tear-free.  Afterward I used the Conditioning Detangler on my daughter's naturally curly hair to get any kinks out... the result- nice and smooth, without the 'Ouch'!

I think my 3 year olds favorite product was the Green Apple Natural Toothpaste- she loved the taste.  I liked it also, but not because it tastes like green apples.  I like it because it's safe if my daughter accidentally swallows some of it!  It's flouride-free and doesn't contain any harsh foaming agents (SLS or SLES), but yes it does naturally foam up.  This is perfect for toddlers transitioning from the training toothpaste to big kid toothpaste.  They also have Zesty Orange (another kid favorite) and Frosty Mint & Star Anise for the more traditional taste.

BUY IT:  U.S. residents can purchase Green Beaver products from FloraHealth.com, and Canadian residents can purchase directly from GreenBeaver.com, or check with your local health food store.

WIN IT:  1 lucky person is going to win the entire Green Beaver Jr. line!!

(this giveaway is via Flora, Inc. and is for U.S. residents only)

Mandatory Entry:  Tell me which Green Beaver Jr. product you're most excited to win or another product from Flora Health you'd love to try.

Extra Entries for more chances to win (leave a separate comment on this post for each one you do):

•  Like Green Beaver on Facebook
•  Follow Green Beaver on Twitter
•  Follow Flora Health on Twitter
•  Follow my blog via Google Friend Connect
•  Subscribe via Email
•  Like my Facebook page
•  Follow me on Twitter
•  Enter any of my other giveaways +1 for each
•  Post about this giveaway (blog, Facebook, Cafemom, etc.) +5 Entries, leave link
•  Tweet about this giveaway (may be done daily, leave link) may copy and paste the following:

#WIN the entire organic natural Green Beaver Jr. line via @florahealthy and @SusieBHomemaker #Giveaway ends 5/1 http://goo.gl/SMIqr

U.S. ONLY

This contest ends on 5/1/11 at 11:59 pm EST.  Open to U.S. Residents ONLY.  The winner(s) will be drawn via random.org and has 48 hours to respond to winning notification email before another winner is drawn.  Please make sure your email address is visible on your profile or leave with your comment(s).

Disclosure:  I received a product for the purpose of the this review.  No other compensation was received.  All thoughts and opinions shared are 100% my own and yours may differ.

Welcome to the Weekend Wind Down #bloghop #linky

If you've never linked up before, this is one of those really simple blog hops... it's called the Weekend Wind Down because it's meant to be relaxing, no stress!
1)  Link up your Blog
2)  Visit other blogs
3)  Comment, Follow... no pressure

Getting crafty
(not sure why the upload quality isn't that great??)

This photo is linked up with SOOC Saturday

Here's more weekend blog hops:



          

Purex and Poetry #Winners!

The 2 winners of the Purex with Zout giveaway are:
120. janetfaye said...              63. Emillie Rose said...

I like Purex on FB                      I shared on fb

And the winner of the In The Wild children's poetry book is:
33. Alicia C. said...
I'm a GFC follower #2

Congrats to the winners!  And if you weren't a winner this time, check out my other giveaways currently going on.

Prefense Foaming ALL-DAY Hand Sanitizer {Review & #Giveaway}

If you're a parent of little kids, you no doubt have used hand sanitizer... over and over and over!  Because we all know kids like to touch anything and everything and don't pay attention to what may or may not have icky germs all over it.  And though most kids don't like sharing their toys, they have no problem sharing their germs.

But wouldn't it be nice to just apply hand sanitizer once and have it last all day?  Well now you can... Prefense to the rescue!  Seriously, this stuff is amazing... you can read for yourself:

• No alcohol- it's made of all-natural organic ingredients
• Protects for 24 hours or 10 hand washings
• Non-toxic and safe for kids... won't hurt if swallowed
• Silica based so it doesn’t dry out your hands like traditional alcohol sanitizers
• Protects against staph, strep, E.coli, drug resistant MRSA strains, and more

Are you impressed yet... I was!  It doesn't dry out your hands, or your kids, because there's no alcohol in it.  It actually makes them smoother and softer, and it has a nice fresh citrus scent.  Plus if your child eats afterward, or just decides to put their fingers in their mouth, you don't have to worry because it's completely non-toxic and safe.  And the best part, since “one spray lasts all day” a 1.5 oz Prefense Botanicals Hand Sanitizer offers 120 applications, costing only $.08 per day, compared to $1.20 per day with alcohol hand sanitizers.

I mean wow... isn't this what us as moms, and dads, have been waiting for?  We can now put this on our kids hands in the morning and let them play all day knowing that they're actually protected from all the things we can't see but that we know are there.  This is perfect for using right before sending your child off to school!

BUY IT:  Online at Amazon or REI or find it at a local store (the Feed & Seed near me sells it!)

WIN IT:  1 lucky reader is going to win a big 8 oz. bottle (that's 640 applications!)

Mandatory Entry:  Just leave a comment to be entered!

(U.S. residents only)

Extra Entries for more chances to win (leave a separate comment on this post for each one you do):

•  Like Prefense on Facebook
•  Follow Prefense on Twitter
•  Follow my blog via Google Friend Connect
•  Subscribe via Email
•  Like my Facebook page
•  Follow me on Twitter
•  Enter any of my other giveaways +1 for each
•  Post about this giveaway (blog, Facebook, Cafemom, etc.) +5 Entries, leave link
•  Tweet about this giveaway (may be done daily, leave link) may copy and paste the following:

#WIN Foaming Hand Sanitizer that lasts 24 HRS. from @Prefense and @SusieBHomemaker http://goo.gl/iMreD #Giveaway ends 4/26

U.S. ONLY

This contest ends on 4/26/11 at 11:59 pm EST.  Open to U.S. Residents ONLY.  The winner(s) will be drawn via random.org and has 48 hours to respond to winning notification email before another winner is drawn.  Please make sure your email address is visible on your profile or leave with your comment(s).

Disclosure:  I received a product for the purpose of the this review.  No other compensation was received.  All thoughts and opinions shared are 100% my own and yours may differ.

Know Your Options with Fannie Mae

This is a Sponsored post written by me on behalf of Fannie Mae for SocialSpark. All opinions are 100% mine.

For the people and families that have already lost their homes, this information may be coming too late.  But for a lot of people that are still experiencing hardship, this information may be coming at just the right time.  I do believe that the economy is rebounding slowly but there are still a lot of people, even friends I know, that are struggling to pay their mortgage payments or that are already in the process of foreclosure.

Know Your Options by Fannie Mae has lots of information for anyone that is overwhelmed or frustrated with their financial situation and that may be faced with losing their home.  They give you options for staying in your home that you might not have thought of- refinance, repayment plan, forbearance.

And if you can no longer afford to make your payments and need to leave your home, they let you know that foreclosure isn't the only option available.  There are options that let you eliminate or reduce your mortgage debt, repair your credit sooner than if you went through a foreclosure, and you may be eligible for relocation assistance.  You can opt to do a Short Sale- a short sale is the sale of a home for less than the balance remaining on your mortgage.  You can also do a Deed-in-Lieu (DIL)- you transfer the ownership of your property to the owner of your mortgage in exchange for a release from your loan and payments.

In addition, they have a Beware of Scams page to keep you informed and goes over tips and warning signs to look out for.  Their page is packed full of resources to anyone struggling with a financial situation that's making it hard for them to pay their mortgage.  If that's you or someone you know, I encourage you to check out KnowYourOptions.com and educate yourself.