CJ's BUTTer Body Products (are awesome)

I've always had an obsession with lotions and lip balms - just ask my poor mother whom I was constantly asking for money to buy more Lip Smackers.  Because in my young and inexperienced view, if you're going to use them, you really should have one in each flavour/scent, right?  As I've grown up (a bit), had children, and learned more about which ingredients are better for our bodies (or at least, which we would do well to avoid), I've developed different criteria by which I judge the products I use.  This is especially true for products I use on my children's skin.  The skin is the largest organ in (on?) the body, and anything you put on it absorbs into your bloodstream sooner or later.  And so, I try to minimize the number of products I apply to their skin.  This means a product has to be effective (so I don't have to reapply all the time), and free of known harmful chemicals (such as parabens, pthalates, SLS, etc).  CJ's BUTTer is all of these things, and more.

When I committed to cloth diapering full time (instead of part time), one of my first questions was what to do about diaper cream?  I was used to being able to slap on a disposable anytime a bit of redness appeared, and then it wasn't an issue to use an effective zinc based cream.  While I've tried a number of different creams, I had always heard rave reviews about CJ's BUTTer.  So you can imagine how excited I was to be asked to try a number of CJ's products for this review.

I decided to request the sampler of 8 individual BUTTErs, so I could try some different scents, and so I wouldn't end up with a whole tub in a scent I did not love.  As it turns out, that wouldn't have been an issue - the scents were all lovely!  Of the 8 varieties that I tried, my favourites were Lullaby Baby Lotion, My Pixie Pie, and Oatmeal, Milk and Honey.  The EO Carribean Therapy blend was also amazing.  CJ's Original BUTTers  are made with shea butter, olive oil, coconut oil, lanolin, beeswax, cocoa butter, Vitamin E (derived from soy) and gluten-free colloidal oatmeal.   The scented ones are scented either with Essential Oils/Blends, or pthalate-free synthetic fragrances (they disclose on their website which ones are scented using which method, and it's worth mentioning that the synthetic fragrances used do not come with an ingredient list except that they are indicated as being pthalate-free).  The BUTTer goes on so smoothly and is (at room temperature) exactly the right consistency to spread on a squirmy baby's skin - it goes on quickly and evenly.

I've used it to successfully treat mild redness in the diaper area (we've been blessed with few diaper rash issues), but I think one of the best things about CJ's BUTTer is how versatile it is.  I use it on my own knuckles, which for some reason (frequent hand washing associated with cold/flu season, perhaps?) are always dry and cracking, and although they aren't cured yet, they are in much better shape now than they were a month ago.  My son has a dry patch of skin (maybe eczema, but I'm not sure as we've never had it diagnosed) on one of his hands, which I had been treating nightly with various creams and balms, but it wasn't til I started putting CJ's BUTTer on it a couple of times a day that I really noticed an improvement.  I wish I could say it was gone for good, but I suspect I'll have to wait for the warmer weather before that becomes a possibility.  One patch of dry skin it has kept completely in check is my daughter's cheeks.  She has has a cold for a while and along with it, the crusty nose and red cheeks. But every time she sleeps, I put a dab of the BUTTer on her cheeks and under her nose, and over the course of a few days I saw her skin return to its normal baby-soft condition.

I also had the opportunity to try the CJ's BUTTer Lip Balm, which is unbelievably creamy and smooth, and has a long-lasting effect.  And unlike many commercial formulas, if you lick your lips, you're not stuck with some gross fake taste on your tongue.  It just tastes mildly sweet (I have the unscented version).  One last treat in my reviewer sample kit was the CJ's BUTTer Creamy Lotion.  The Creamy Lotion had a refreshing cool and creamy feeling to it, went on smoothly and absorbed quickly, and left a delicious scent (I tried Coconut Lime Dream, Monkey Farts, and Apples & Spice).

I am thrilled to let you know that you can now buy CJ's BUTTer Body Products right here in (OK, near) Halifax, NS - from CJ's All Natural - HRM.  Check out their Facebook page here https://www.facebook.com/pages/CJs-All-Natural-HRM/251573734922333, view the list of scent descriptions here http://tinyurl.com/6mlfzrf, or take a closer look at the product options and price list here http://tinyurl.com/7pmqkss.  Even better, Andrea has generously offered to give away a 4oz tub of CJ's Original BUTTer (winner's choice of Monkey Farts, Warm Vanilla Cake or Apples and Spice scent - retail value of $9.95).  To enter, you must "Like" her Facebook page, and leave a comment ON HER WALL to let her know you're there via Geekmommy Reviews and what scent you would like if you win.  Contest open to NOVA SCOTIA residents only (sorry, out-of-towners), and winners who can't arrange to pick up the BUTTer in HRM will need to pay shipping to their home.  But hurry, contest closes April 22nd.  And hey, if you don't win, you can take advantage of an Earth Day special 10% off sale, good from April 18th - 22nd, by emailing your order to andrea@gettingtonatural.ca and mentioning the sale.

If you've used CJ's products, what is your favourite scent & product?  I personally can't wait to try their Peppermint Lotion, which has peppermint and tea tree oils in it, and is supposed to be great for tired feet AND for an alternative to conventional petroleum based "vapo-rub" type products.

And don't forget to "Like" CJ's All Natural - HRM on Facebook and comment on THEIR wall as I mentioned above for your chance to win a 4oz tub of BUTTer!

Cloth Wipes & Snack Bag from Boutique Little People (via Eco Fab Mama)

Those of you following this blog know that I like to feature Canadian made products and especially those made by small businesses or WAHMs.  Eoc Fab Mama is a lovely online store that brings quality WAHM-made products together and makes them available for sale to lucky customers like us.  They are "dedicated to eco-friendly/family friendly products" and so they sell a lot of items related to cloth diapering, cloth alternatives to disposable items, and handmade soaps/cleaners.

 I've recently had the opportunity to discover and appreciate the generously sized 2 layer flannel wipes lovingly made by Boutique Little People (http://www.ecofabmama.com/catalog/m-boutique-little-people-6-1.html) and available for purchase from Eco Fab Mama (http://www.ecofabmama.com/catalog/baby-wipes-36-1.html). I received a set of 5 wipes, in adorable girly prints, that have stood up well to multiple uses & launderings. As I mentioned, they are a good size (8"x8") and are made of a quality thick flannel that does a fantastic job of cleaning up messes and keeping your hands clean. The wipes are well made, the layers of flannel are equal sized and the colour co-ordinated wide serged edges are properly stitched and finished.  Some other suggested uses for these wipes from the Eco Fab Mama website are:

• Baby Wipes
• Cloth Tissues
• Wash Cloths
• Dish Cloths
• Un-paper Towels
• Napkins

I will often take a clean cloth wipe or two, wet it at home, and put it in a small wetbag to take along in case of hands/faces needing wiping while out and about (such as when I think that a chocolate coated granola bar is a suitable car back-seat snack for a 4 year old...)  Beats having to pull out the Wet Ones with their smelly scents and bitter residue they leave on your fingers!
 

In the envelope I received from Eco Fab Mama, I also found a special treat in the form of a Boutique Little People fold & go sandwich bag (http://www.ecofabmama.com/catalog/sandwich-bags-and-wraps/boutique-little-people-purple-stripes-fold-n-go-sandwich-bag-258.html).  Made of 100% cotton fabric, and available in a bunch of cute patterns, it is a simple solution to the problem of how to package a snack for on-the-go consumption without being left with a bunch of trash when the snack is eaten. While it does not have a waterproof liner or a fastened closure (it folds over, much like a simple sandwich bag does), it certainly does the trick when it comes to holding a bunch of freshly rinsed grapes, a simple sandwich, or some cheese slices & crackers.  I really liked the other suggested uses for these reusable bags on Eco Fab Mama's website:

• Snack Bag
• Toy Pouch
• Tooth Fairy pouch
• Gadget case
• Tub toy holder
• CD Sleeve
• Pen/crayon holder
• Craft holder
• Gift bag
• Halloween Treats
• Wet Bag
• Party Favors

The flannel wipes, snack bags, and many other quality WAHM-made products (such as wool dryer balls, soap, cloth wipes solution, laundry supplies, hats, gloves, and much more) can be browsed and ordered from http://www.ecofabmama.com/.  They ship to Canada and the US, and offer free shipping for orders over $125.

*Disclaimer:  Geekmommy Reviews was given free of charge the product(s) to review in exchange for featuring this product on http://www.geekmommyreviews.com.  Any opinions or statements given above come only from Geekmommy Reviews and were not influenced in any way by the product vendor.

The Laundry Tarts

What's powdery, white, made in Canada, smells delicious, and got the funky smell right out of my daughter's cloth diapers?   It's a magnificent new all-natural laundry detergent from The Laundry Tarts.  With delicious flavours scents such as Key Lime Pie, Black Forest Cake, and Oatmeal Almond, it's hard to believe you're not supposed to just spoon this stuff into a bowl for dessert.  I received two sample bags of The Laundry Tarts detergent from Monkey Doodlez, one Key Lime Pie, one Pina Colada (thank you!).  The first thing I noticed when I opened the shipping envelope was the lovely scent wafting up to meet my nose.  I'm not talking about anything strong or overpowering, rather, it was more of a subtle scent, clean and fresh, but not artificial or perfumey.  That's probably because the entire bag of laundry detergent contains only natural ingredients - there is nothing artificial about it.  The entire product line of detergent, stain remover, and shaker is (to quote their website) "hypoallergenic, 100% vegan and free of phosphates, EDTA, pthalates, parabens, SLS, SLES, nitrates, sulphites and chlorine".  Try saying that five times fast!  The ingredient list is shorter than you could even imagine, consisting mainly of baking soda, soda wash, powdered hydrogen peroxide, and sea salt.  Throw in some rosemary extract, saponified canola & coconut oils, and essential oils (for fragrance), and you've got yourself a bag of detergent.  It's safe for your clothes, your skin, and the environment.

I was at first skeptical about using this detergent with my daughter's cloth diapers.  As you can read in previous posts, I launder her pocket diapers & liners every 3 days, using EcoNuts, cold soak, hot wash, and double cold rinse, then I hang them to dry.  They have always come out clean, but often they smell a little funky.  On occasion, I can chalk this up to FORGETTING to toss in the bag of EcoNuts after the soak cycle (shame on me!), other times I have blamed my timing - I tend to do the soak/wash/rinse before bed, and the 2nd rinse the next morning, before hanging them out.  I figured that leaving them in the washer overnight is what caused them to sometimes pick up a funky smell.  However, it seems I might be wrong about that - after checking on The Laundry Tarts' website to make certain the detergent is safe for cloth diapers (it totally is), I followed the same process (using 3 tablespoons for my old school top loading washer) and found that the entire load of diapers smelled really fresh and clean the next morning when I was hanging them out.  Note that they did NOT smell of fragrance, artificial perfumes, or funk.  They just smelled clean.  After hanging them out to dry, I took them in and thought they looked even whiter than usual, and they were SO FREAKING SOFT - perhaps the sea salt in the detergent helped with that?  I continued to use the diapers on my daughter and there were no unusual effects, rashes, etc, that sometimes happen when switching detergents.  I'm sure she'll be thrilled when she grows up that I used her as a diaper detergent guinea pig.

I also tried using the detergent with a load of dark laundry, to make sure it rinsed clean (it did, even with a very full load of laundry, a cold wash cycle, and only a single rinse).  It even worked on my delicates and hand-wash items.  Which I wash in my machine on the delicate cycle, because honestly, is a mom supposed to have time to hand wash anything??  After washing a load of towels & facecloths with The Laundry Tarts detergent, I did one of those goofy comparisons like they used to do in fabric softener commercials... I stacked up 5 baby facecloths that were previously laundered (probably with EcoNuts), and 5 that were laundered using The Laundry Tarts, and sure enough, the stack laundered with The Laundry Tarts was taller.  I probably should have taken a photo (oops) but didn't think of it.  You'll just have to take my word for it.

Now taller stacks of facecloths are not usually a reason for me to choose one detergent over another.  But I have to say that the ability of The Laundry Tarts to brighten my diaper laundry, rinse out clean, and leave them smelling fresh instead of funky, is enough to make me want to buy a big ol' bag of this stuff. I will probably re-purpose an old measuring cup to work as a scoop for the detergent, because as of right now, it does not come with its own measuring scoop.  They recommend using 2-4 tbsp per load (half that for HE machines) so you do need to be able to get the right amount out of the bag and into your machine.  I just used one of my kitchen tablespoons for testing the samples, but when it becomes a permanent fixture in my laundry room, I would want a dedicated scoop.

If you love the fact that The Laundry Tarts detergent is all-natural, made in Canada, and (most importantly) great at getting your laundry clean, then you should also know that they have generously offered a discount code for15% off all Laundry Tarts products (detergent, samples, stain sticks and shaker bon bons) at www.monkeydoodlez.com and participating retailers.  To take advantage of this offer be sure to enter the code "geekmommy15" (without the quotes) when you are going through the checkout process.  Note that they've indicated that their shipping quotes are not working quite right on the Monkey Doodlez site, so please disregard the shipping quotes from the site and they will provide you with a correct total in an invoice prior to processing payment.  This discount expires in 7 days (so by September 20th!) so hurry if you are interested!  I know I'll be ordering some!

*Disclaimer:  Geekmommy Reviews was given free of charge two small samples of the product(s) to review in exchange for featuring this product on http://www.geekmommyreviews.com.  Any opinions or statements given above come only from Geekmommy Reviews and were not influenced in any way by the product vendor.

Review: Planet Wise Diaper Pail Liners

If you cloth diaper, you know that one of the most important things is having a good diaper pail to store the soiled diapers until wash day.  I have two pails, a small one for my main floor laundry room (for diaper changes that take place in the living room), and a large one in the nursery, for all the rest.  The main floor one is one of those round ones with a lid that you can buy at Sears.  The one in my nursery was a shower gift from my girlfriends and is a really awesome large square one with a lid that you can secure, as well as a replaceable charcoal/carbon filter to keep diaper smells in the diaper pail.  I can pretty easily rinse out the small pail and lid in the laundry tub when it gets dirty, however, the large pail is a bit unwieldy.  Plus, who wants to carry a large pail to the washing machine every three days, wrestle it into position, and take the chance of poopy diapers falling beside the machine instead of into it?  Not to mention what you mamas with front loaders must do!  At least gravity helps with the top loader...

The solution is to have a pail liner.  A pail liner is like a giant wet bag with an elastic or drawstring top, it fits into your pail and over the rim, so that you throw dirty diapers into it.  Then on wash day, you just grab the liner and empty it into the washing machine, then put the liner in the washing machine too.  I have two Planet Wise pail liners so that there's always a clean one available.  They are the perfect size to fit most large diaper pails, and though I haven't' tried it, I think they would also be useful to line a smaller pail, there would just be more bunched up bag fabric at the bottom of the pail in that case.  These liners are made out of the same waterproof PUL material as portable wet bags and the outside layer of many pocket diapers.  It seems to be extra sturdy, not thin or weak at all.  It doesn't wick moisture and seems to be "smell proof" as well.  The elastic is very stretchy and adjusts to a snug fit around the rim of the large diaper pail.  The bag is strong enough to hold 3 days worth of soiled diapers when you carry it to your washer.  I find it does sometimes contain a bit of water after the last spin cycle, because it is waterproof, some of the water that gets in it during wash/rinse, doesn't always escape during the spin cycle.  So I make sure it's the last thing I take out of the washing machine so that I don't spill any water on the diapers that have been spun dry.

The Planet Wise pail liner comes in a ton of different solid colours so you will have no problem finding one or two that match your tastes.  They are not overly expensive at $16.50 retail on their website (and occasionally on sale for less at various online retailers - I think I paid $14.50 each at Bootyful Baby Boutique during one of their sales).  You can read more about Planet Wise products on their website at http://www.planetwiseinc.com/ and browse the pail liner colour selection here: http://www.planetwiseinc.com/Planet_Wise_Diaper_Pail_Liner_38_cat.html.

Review: Eco Nuts Natural Laundry Detergent

In this day and age, people are becoming more and more aware about the chemicals that surround us, and the effects they can & do have on our health and comfort.  Although our family is blessed with good health and no known chemical sensitivities/allergies, I do try to choose products with minimal impact on our health and on the cleanliness of our environment (most of the time...).  I first tried Eco Nuts Natural Laundry Soap last year, when I purchased a couple of boxes on Baby Half Off (http://www.babyhalfoff.com).  I was skeptical about how they would work, given that they are just little shriveled up brown things, but they do work, and they work at least as well as any of the laundry detergents I'd been using before.  They are great for cloth diapers, but I use them for all of our laundry needs.

They go in your wash, 5 nuts to a bag (bags are included in the boxes of nuts), and the bag lasts 5-10 washes, depending on your water & whether you're washing in hot or cold.  I let the bags dry between uses, which seems to make them last longer, and also makes it easier to tell when the nuts are "used up" they get brittle when they are ready to be replaced.  The bag of Eco Nuts Natural Laundry Detergent stays in for the wash & rinse cycle, does not leave any residue on your laundry, and has no fragrance.  The clean clothes have a slight odor of vinegar when wet, but no smell at all once they are dry.  I thought it was kind of strange that you could wash the clothes in cold water, rinse in cold water, leaving the bag of Eco Nuts in for both cycles, and still have the clothes end up clean without residue, but it works great, and the hint of saponin (active "ingredient" of the soap nuts) acts as a fabric softener when you put clothes in the dryer, so they come out extra fluffy.

Once the Eco Nuts are "used up", they are in fact not useless - I haven't tried it yet, but apparently you can make hand soap or natural cleaners from them by soaking them in hot water.  Or, if you're like me, you can put them in the compost.  No mess and no plastic bottles to throw out when you've used them up - Eco Nuts come in simple biodegradable packaging.  Since they are all natural, they are perfectly safe for septic systems too.  Oh - and the price is right - less than $0.10 per load!

I should probably include a link!  Check out Eco Nuts Natural Laundry Detergent and other eco cleaning products here at http://www.econutssoap.com/

EDIT:  A few people have expressed concern because their children have nut allergies, and would they also be allergic to Eco Nuts?  Eco Nuts on their Facebook page answered this way: "Eco Nuts are actually a fruit and not a nut and are used successfully by many people with severe nut allergies. Eco Nuts are in the lychee/horse chestnut/maple family, so if your child has any reactions to any products from those trees, do a patch test, first."

Review: Snuggy Baby Wetbag (Large)

When we cloth diapered my son, we only did it when it was convenient.  Whenever we left the house, we put him in disposable diapers.  Overnight?  Disposables.  Naptime?  You guessed it - disposables.  When we decided to cloth diaper our daughter, I wanted to be able to use them all the time.  I plan to put up a separate set of posts around the cloth diapers we use, so I won't get into those details now.  One of the things that makes cloth diapering outside of the home possible is a good wetbag.  It will allow you to carry home soiled diapers without having them leak or smell or otherwise contaminate your diaper bag or the things in it.  It's washable and reusable, so much better than a plastic bag.

I purchased two Snuggy Baby wetbags from one of the popular baby product deal sites (I can't remember which one, so I'm not going to name any of them here) quite some time ago.  We first used them for my son's swim lessons - the large size bag (14" wide x 17" tall) is the perfect size to hold his swim trunks, a towel, and my flip flops (bare feet on pool deck = ew, gross!).  Now that my daughter is here, I keep one in my diaper bag at all times to hold soiled diapers.

They come in three sizes - the Medium wetbag (12"x11"), the Large wetbag (14"x17"), and the XL hanging diaper pail (22"x28").  On Amazon the "Large" wetbag is named "XL Wet Bag" which is a touch confusing, but not Snuggy Baby's fault, I'm sure!  Just be aware of that if you intend to buy one.

The Snuggy Baby wetbags are made of 2 layers of fabric, cotton print (gorgeous!) on the outside, and white PUL on the inside (waterproof!).  They are sewn in such a way to make them completely waterproof.  The tops are zippered to ensure no messes can escape.  The Large size bags even have a nice 6" handle of sorts that can be snapped around something (doorknob, stroller handle, your wrist) which can be very handy (like when you're using it as a makeshift diaper pail while visiting Grandma).

The wetbags can be put in the wash with your diapers if needed, however I've found that since they are waterproof, a simple rinse of the inside layer, and then turning the bag inside out to dry, is sufficient to keep it clean & odor free.  I did wash the wetbag once and made the mistake of leaving the zipper open and turning it inside out... the pulling and agitating in my washer caused the outside cotton layer to separate from the zipper about 2"...  Thankfully this a) did not affect the bag's useability and b) was super easy to fix with my somewhat OK mending skills.  I would recommend if you are going to wash the bags in your top loading washer, that you do them on a delicate cycle, and not with the soak-wash-rinse-rinse process that the rest of your diapers go through.  I always line dry my wetbags, though the website says you can occasionally put them in the dryer without harming them.

I find the regular price on these wetbags to be quite high (considering you can get some cheap ones for under $10), however, they have a lot of beautiful prints to choose from, the snap-on handle is very convenient, and the size ranges they offer are good to cover just about every need you might have for a wetbag.  Now if you are lucky and can find them on a deal site, good for you!  Buy two!

Review: Envirosax Designer Reusable Bags

I first developed a crush on Envirosax Designer Reusable Bags several years ago, in a store named Faces on a walk down Main Street while visiting Northampton, MA, USA.  I purchased one single bag, one of the now discontinued Planet Green series.  I found myself using it all the time - it was sturdy, folded up to a very compact size, and was strong enough to hold a fair amount of groceries.  One day, I noticed the side seam coming apart (gasp!) so the bag entered the "mending pile".  If any of you have a mending pile and a busy life, you will understand when I say that it sat there for a long time.  And I missed it!  Now, I could have probably gone and stitched the seam up again and continued to use it, but instead, I bought more of the Envirosax bags.  In fact, I went all out and purchased the entire Origami 5 bag pouch.  It was a bit like opening the floodgates - once I bought that set, I couldn't stop.  Thankfully one of my favorite deal sites, http://www.babyhalfoff.com, had a deal one day of 3 packs of Envirosax for a nicely reduced price.  So, I stocked up.  I bought bags for myself, bags for my friends, bags to give as gifts to my family members (they love them now too!)

Why do I love these bags so much?  Let me count the ways...

1. BEAUTY : There is no denying it, there are so many different colours and patterns that just about anyone will be able to find a bag (or bags) they love.  Every time I pull them out of my purse (or these days, my diaper bag) I get compliments from strangers commenting on how attractive the bags are and asking "where did you get those?"
2. STRENGTH: Other than that very first (now discontinued) bag where the stitching on a side seam started to come undone, I have not had any quality problems with the bags.  On the product website it says they can hold up to 44lbs per bag (!!!).  Now I don't think I've ever weighed them but when I fill it up at the grocery store with a bag of milk, a couple of tubs of yogurt, and enough Lean Cuisine meals to last me a week, I am usually more concerned with being able to lift the bag than I am about the bag being strong enough to hold the contents.
3. PORTABILITY: The Envirosax bags are simple to fold up, and hold together with a single snap closure.  Once folded, they are smaller than an iPhone and can easily fit into even the fullest purse/diaper bag.  I carry one or two with me everywhere I go (you never know when you're going to be needing it), and on grocery day I pack all of my bags into a little cosmetic case so that I have them all handy to hold whatever I buy.
4. VERSATILITY: On different occasions, I have used my Envirosax to hold groceries, beach toys, wet swimsuits & towels, potluck contributions, and library books.  They have doubled as wrapping paper, and have even been used as a mini blanket to sit on some damp grass (yes, they kept my bum dry and made sure my white golf skirt didn't get dirty!).
5. AWESOMENESS: In this day and age of environmental awareness, we all know about the impact that plastic bags have on our environment.  While I believe they have their place (carrying raw meat home from the grocery store, for one), I love that I have drastically reduced my family's usage of plastic bags by having Envirosax handy all the time.  They can be washed and dried so that if they get grubby, that's OK!  In fact it's good to regularly wash bags in which you carry food, in case of any leaky packages or wet/muddy produce.   It's recommended to handwash and line-dry the bags, though I always wash mine on my machine's delicate cycle and then line dry, and they seem to be holding up just fine.

In case it isn't obvious from this post, I think you should go out and get some of these bags for yourself if you don't already have any.  They are priced about $9 per bag, or $40 for a set of 5, which seems like a bit of cash, but they are definitely worth it for all the different uses they have and how long they last.  Check out the current selection at http://www.envirosax.ca (Canada) or http://www.envirosax.com (USA)