Ingrid & Isabel Maternity Musts

I think with every pregnancy you will find one maternity item that you absolutely cannot live without. I cannot remember what that was for my first two pregnancies, but for this one it is without a doubt my Organic Bella Band from Ingrid & Isabel.

“The Bella Band is a seamless knit band you wear at your waistline, over your unbuttoned pre-pregnancy pants, over slightly big maternity pants, or around the waistband of any maternity style that falls down around your hips.

The Bella Band holds your pants up, disguising bulky unfastened closures or excessive fabric creating a smooth belly surface. Now, no one has to know your pants are undone or loose.”

I received one of these a few months ago and I love it. The Bella Band will help you get more use out of your clothes. When I was too big for my regular pants and also too small for my maternity pants, my Bella Band was a life saver. I was able to wear it over my too big maternity pants to hold them in place and keep them from falling down. Now that I am bigger (much bigger) I am still using it almost every day. A lot of my maternity pants are the ones where the waist band sits below your belly. Well those just don’t work well for me and I am constantly pulling my pants up. So again I can use the Bella Band to hold them up and it also gives a little extra support to my belly.

Recently Due Maternity sent me Ingrid & Isabel’s Everyday Cami to try out. I have some maternity tops and dresses that have a v-neck that can be a tad bit low for my taste. So I wanted a good cami to wear under those for a little more coverage up top. This is definitely perfect for that. Down at the other end if you want to keep your growing belly covered at all times (I don’t like for my belly to show at the bottom of shirts) this cami snugly covers your belly. I think it can also be used in a similar way to the Bella Band in certain instances. Mine has enough excess at the bottom that I can pull it down over the waist of pants to help hold them in place. And because it is nice and snug, it gives you some belly support which I like. I am thinking that I may also be using this for sleeping and now that’s its cold here in New England, to layer up and keep warm.

Both the Bella Band and Everyday Cami are available at Due Maternity and I think are must haves for your maternity wardrobe.

Wordless Wednesday: Playroom Mess

I was wondering what my WW post was going to be this week and then I glanced over into our "playroom". I cannot believe I let it get this bad. Where the heck is the floor? I blame my hubby for this, at the end of the day he picks up the boys' toys from around the house and then dumps them in here.

Going Green: Ditch the Bottled Water

I never quite understood why we pay for something we can get for little to no money right from your kitchen tap. It just seems like a complete waste of money to me. According to Ideal Bite, the average cost of tap water is $0.0015 per gallon. In contrast, a 16-oz bottle of water can cost up to $2.00 at the convenience store. Are we really paying more for water than we are gasoline? (Gasoline is $2.67/gallon here). Doesn't this seem ridiculous to anyone else?

Let's forget the whole money aspect for a few minutes, maybe you have the extra money to spend on water. But what about the environmental impact of all those water bottles? Take a look at this:

~ Americans consume more than 2.5 million bottles of water every hour, and only around 15% are recycled. YIKES!

~ Bottled water produces up to 1.5 million tons of plastic waste per year. Again, only a small percentage are actually recycled.

~ 1.5 million barrels of oil are used every year to manufacture disposable plastic water bottles for the U.S. market. That is enough energy to power 250,000 homes or fuel 100,000 cars for a year.

So between the high cost and the environmental impact, doesn't that make you want to at least cut back on your bottled water consumption? If you said yes, then here are some easy things you can do. Get yourself a good reuabale water bottle. I prefer stainless steel ones but if you opt for plastic, at least make sure it is BPA-free and Phthalate free. Once you have your bottle, fill it up at home before you leave the house. It is as simple as that.

Wait, you don't like the taste of tap water? I don't either. We have well water which is OK but I hate the taste of municipal water - it tastes like chlorine. Or maybe you are concerned about what is in the tap water? No problem! We are fortunate that our refrigerator has a PUR water filter that filters the water for both our water and ice. So I just fill up my bottles from the fridge. If you don't have that, there are other filtration items you can buy. Both PUR and Brita make water pitchers with filters that you can keep in your fridge as well as filters you can attach to your kitchen faucet. We used to have both of these before we bought our refrigerator a few years ago. They worked great and the faucet one was really nice because I could also filter water I cooked with. (I miss that). There are even water bottles out there with filters on them.

I've accumulated a small collection of stainless steel bottles over the last 2 years, as you can see in the above picture. I love them all. There are so many out there to choose from. You can check out my EarthLust review that I did earlier this year. For a wide selection of bottles, you can visit reusablebags.com which is where I bought our Klean Kanteen bottles.

And if you are up for it, sign the Take Back The Tap Pledge and commit yourself to reducing your bottled water usage!

Nature Valley Granola Nut Clusters Review & Giveaway

I love to snack, it is one of the downfalls to being home a lot. The trick is finding healthy snacks that aren't loaded with artificial junk. Both my hubby and I have been fans of Nature Valley Granola Bars for some time now. We buy the big box of the Oat's n' Honey one at Costco and that last a while. He likes to pack him in his lunch and if my 4.5 year old wasn't at a "nut free" preschool, I'd probably pack them in his lunch every now and then as well. So I was really excited when I heard that Nature Valley came out with a new Nut Clusters snack.

MyBlogSpark sent me a great Nature Valley Granola Nut Clusters "Snack Pack" prize pack to try out. Included was one pack of each of the varieties of Nut Clusters. The four varieties are: Nut Lovers, Roasted Almond, Roasted Cashew and Honey Roasted Peanut. Nut Clusters are a bite size blend of 100% natural ingredients that include select roasted nuts, whole grain oats and a touch of honey. They are a prefect blend of salty and sweet. The night that my package arrived, I immediately tore into the Nut Lovers one. Oh my goodness they were delicious. The entire package was gone in minutes. I have to confess that no one else in my house even got a chance to sample any of these, I ate them all. Over the next few nights they became my late nigh snack of choice while I was blogging.

All four flavors were very yummy. If I had to pick a favorite it would probably be the Nut Lovers followed closely by the Roasted Cashew. Of course in addition to great taste, its so nice that there are artificial ingredients in here. The Nut Clusters are definitely a snack that I plan on purchasing. In fact for those of you in the North East like me, they are currently on sale at Stop & Shop! And maybe next time, I'll actually let my family taste some. Maybe.

***Giveaway Closed***

Win
One lucky reader will receive their own Nature Valley Granola Nut Clusters "Snack Pack" prize pack! In addition to the four varieties of Nut Clusters, this pack includes a stainless steel water bottle, a sling backpack made from recycled materials, a pair of binoculars and a flashlight.
You must complete this entry first before submitting any extra entries.

Mandatory Entry
This is super easy - just leave me a comment telling me what your favorite elements of nature are! Be sure to leave a valid email address so I can contact you if you win.

Extra Entries
- Follow me on Blogger or subscribe to my RSS feed
- Subscribe via e-mail. Your email must validate or it will not count. Leave email address in comments.
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This giveaway is open to US Residents 18+ only and will end on Monday, October 12th at 11:59pm EST. One winner will be chosen at random using Random.org. Winner has 48 hours to claim his/her prize otherwise a new winner will be picked. You must leave your e-mail address in all of your comment(s) so I can contact you. I will not share your e-mail address with anyone, it will strictly be used to notify you if you win. Good luck!

Please note that the above review is based solely on my experiences with this product. You may have a different experience or result than I did.

Wordless Wednesday

This is what happens when a 2 year old decides to boycott his regular nap in bed.

I Count for My EARTH Campaign

We all know that the children are our future, and they are also the future of our planet. That is why it is so important for us to teach them about the environment and make them aware of what they can do to keep the planet healthy. How exactly can we engage them in this though? I Count For My Earth does just that.

The I Count For My EARTH (ICFME) campaign was founded by mom Lynn Hasselberger in 2006 when she witnessed the wasteful use of disposable water bottles at her son's sports games and school. After launching the campaign at her son's school, Lynn decided to take it step further and share eco-friendly products with everyone. That is when myEARTH360.com was born.

I Count For My Earth is a great way to not only educate children, but parents and schools as well! School's can sign up for free. Once they do, the school will be provided with free campaign materials like script-ready skits for students to use and interact with. ICFME will even provide a parent newsletter to keep everyone in the loop.

Another aspect of this that I love is the optional myEarth360.com program. I don't know about you, but I hate the junk that kids sell for school fundraisers. And my kids aren't even at that point yet! myEarth360.com is a Shop and Share program and instead of selling candy bars you'll be selling eco-friendly products like reusable water bottles. And there are no catalogs or door to door selling to deal with - it is all set up online. You just share the site and your school code with everyone you know and then your school receives 10% of all sales.

myEarth360.com sent me a SKOY cloth to test out so I can see first hand what kind of green products they sell. "The SKOY cloth is a fabulous, absorbent, biodegradable and natural multi-use cloth." I decided that I was going to use this in my kitchen, boy was I impressed! I just wet it, added a drop of my Earth Friendly dish soap and wiped down the table and counters. It did a great job! I even used it to clean out my boys' stainless steel cups and it worked so much easier than a sponge. One of my biggest complaints about sponges is that they take forever to completely dry and wind up smelling awful from bacteria build up. You will not have that problem with the SKOY. It dried so much faster than a sponge and had no smell. Still worried about bacteria? Just throw your wet SKOY in the microwave for a minute and it zaps them away. The SKOY is even washer safe.

So if your kids are in school and you are looking for away to raise their awareness for the environment, I Count For My Earth is the place to go to get started. I think it is great that there is this free tool out there for parents and schools to utilize. My son will start Kindergarten next year and I fully plan on getting involved with our school PTO. I can assure you that this campaign is something I am going to urge them to consider as well as the myEarth360.com Shop and Share program.

My Love/Hate Relationship with Organic Peanut Butter

I absolutely love organic peanut butter. We get ours at Costco (Kirkland brand). It comes in a 2 pack, it is reasonably priced and just super yummy. Peanut butter was one of the first foods I switched to organic since my oldest eats it so much. The best thing about organic peanut butter is of course the ingredients:

Dry Roasted Organic Peanuts
Salt

That is it. Isn't that lovely?

However, I did mention that this is a love/hate relationship and here is why. I hate the stirring. Your regular, non-natural, non-organic peanut butters are made with hydrogenated oils (yuk) and do not separate. But since natural and organic versions are just peanuts and salt, the oil does separate to the top of the jar. Trying to mix that oil back into the peanut butter is the biggest pain in the neck. And arm. And wrist. I've tried shaking it a lot to get things started, even letting a new jar sit upside down for day, but it does nothing. I have seriously wondered if the staff at the Home Depot paint department will let me put a jar in one of their paint stirring machines.

When you open a new jar, there all the oil sits on top and usually right to the very top. I stick my butter knife in and gently try to stir, inevitably spilling the oil all down the side. Stirring is hard as the stuff on the bottom is so thick. I've actually bent a butter knife in the process and it has now become the designated knife for this job. I can never get it mixed 100%, thought it is good enough.

There has got to be a better way though, right? Tell me there is a better way! For fun, I just did a search for "peanut butter stirrer" and lookie what I found: Natural Peanut Butter Hand Mixer!

Is it sad that I am so excited that someone makes this? I think I will be adding this to my Christmas list!

In the meantime, I would love to hear any tips or tricks YOU have for stirring peanut butter. Maybe I am just going about it the wrong way. And if you have tried this mixer, please tell me about it!

Check out the JuiceBoxJungle Widget!

Have you checked out my sidebar lately? I recently added a JuiceBoxJungle widget over there and I think you should take a look. You can send an e-card to a friend right from this blog! Currently displaying on it is a cool new sponsor called Paper Culture. They are a modern, eco-friendly, premium stationary company that will actually address, message and mail your cards for free (through January 1, 2010).

How are they eco-friendly you ask? Their paper is FSC certified as 100% post consumer recycled paper; their paper is Green-e certified and/or Green Seal certified; generated by wind power; elemental chlorine free; and all envelopes and packaging are made from recycled paper. So if you are in need of some birth announcements, invitations, thank you cards, etc. you should go check them out. You can even receive 30% off by using code SAVE30NOW through September 30, 2009.

UPrinting.com Rolled Poster Print Giveaway

I have yet another great giveaway to share with you from the UPrinting Network. I joined their blog network because I really liked that their Online Printing products have eco-friendly options. I know I have mentioned these before, but I think it is important, so here they are again:

~ low-VOC soy and vegetable based inks
~ non-toxic water -based AQ coating options
~ some recycled card stocks
~ they recycle all paper scraps and properly dispose of inks

I was happy to see that their Poster Printing uses soy-based inks as well, that is pretty cool. I'm about to order my business cards from them and plan on getting an 18" x 24" rolled poster as well. I think I will probably get a nice poster of my boys made to display in our house. Or, I have a bunch of pretty cool pictures from New Jersey Devils hockey games so I could make one of those into a poster to hang in my oldest son's bedroom. (His room has a hockey theme). You could also get posters made for your business, blog or your favorite picture from your family trip to Disney World!

***Giveaway Closed***

Giveaway Details
One (1) winner will receive an 18"x24" rolled poster print from UPrinting.com. Free UPS Ground Shipping is included.

Mandatory Entry
Leave me a comment telling me how you will use the Poster Print if you win. You must also leave me a valid email address as the coupon code with instructions will be emailed to you.

Extra Entries
- Follow me on Blogger or subscribe to my RSS feed
- Subscribe via e-mail. Your email must validate or it will not count.
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- Become a fan of Green Mama's Pad on Facebook.
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- Leave a comment on any non-giveaway post and let me know which one.

This giveaway is open to US Residents 18+ only and will end on Tuesday, September 29th at 11:59pm EST. Two winners will be chosen at random using Random.org. Winner has 48 hours to claim his/her prize otherwise a new winner will be picked. You must leave your e-mail address in all of your comment(s) so I can contact you. I will not share your e-mail address with anyone, it will strictly be used to notify you if you win. Good luck!

Wordless Wednesday: Cheeeeeeeeese!

Here is my little ham, L, the camera hog. He loves getting in front of the camera and shouting "cheeeeeeese!" You may also notice the nice bruise on his forehead. This was 4 days after falling and puncturing his head on a stegosaurus and believe me this looks great compared to the night it happened.

Free Sample of Kashi Cereal

If you visit http://www.kashi.com/surprise you can sign up to receive a free sample of Kashi cereal. It is a single serve sample and you can pick one of three cereals to try: Honey Sunshine, Heart to Heart or GoLean Crunch. Or if you are adventurous, select "Surprise Me!" and wait to see which one shows up in your mailbox. I chose the Honey Sunshine because the look of it kind of reminds me of Cap'n Crunch. I can't wait to try it!

Going Green: Curbside Composting

I learned something new the other day, something I had no idea even existed. I was chatting with some friends over at The Mamasphere, when I learned that there are some cities/towns out there that provide residents with curbside composting. In this particular instance it was California, San Francisco and Berkeley specifically. Seriously, I think this is the coolest thing ever and it made me want to pack my bags and move to the West Coast.

A little more information from Earth911.com:

Though many people assume that food scraps and other biodegradable items eventually break down in the garbage dump, in reality, U.S. landfills allow for very little decomposition, says Darby Hoover, a resource specialist for the Natural Resources Defense Council. Landfills are sealed off to prevent contamination, so our banana peels, coffee grounds and egg shells are usually deprived of the oxygen they need to break down—and putting it all in plastic bags doesn’t help.

But, given the right conditions, much of what we throw away could readily be converted into nitrogen-rich compost, which can be used to increase soil quality for gardening and farming. And in fact, there has been a dramatic increase in the amount of organic matter that’s composted instead of landfilled: Nationally, the rate is now 20 percent, up from only 2 percent in 1990, according to the U.S. EPA.

Slowly, it seems more cities are catching on and getting into this. Some other U.S. cities that provide curbside composting are Seattle, WA; Boulder, CO; Austin, TX and Minneapolis-St. Paul, MN.

I've wanted to start a compost for some time now, but the cost of compost bins is just too high for us right now so its been put off. But a curbside composting program would be fantastic and get so many more people to participate. Now in my little rural New England town, we don't have municipal waste pickup. Everything here is private - in fact there are 6 houses on my street and between us we use 3 different garbage companies. So I am not sure how we could get curbside composting here. But its definitely something I plan to look into.

If you happen to have curbside composting in your area, I would love to hear about it!

Remembering September 11

I'm having a hard time putting my thoughts into words today. I've been reading other's stories from that day; where they were, who they lost; and it has made it a very emotional morning. I think we all remember what we were doing 8 years ago when we learned of the attacks.

I was 21 and lived in Westchester, NY (NYC suburbs). I was in school that morning really not too far from the city. There were only a few students in class as the rest had went on a field trip with the instructor to the Metropolitan Museum of Art. Class was nearly over when one of the other student's phone rang and she shouted out about a plane hitting the first tower. At that point, we though it was just an accident. We made our way down to the lounge area to watch it unfold on CNN. My class never did make it to the museum, they were stuck in traffic for hours and eventually were able to turn around and come back.

I made the 30 minute drive home in silence as I listened to a radio station broadcast with literally all the details. I got home and turned on CNN again only to watch the first tower crumble. I was in a state of shock and remember calling my mom at work to tell her what I was watching. Shortly after the 2nd tower went down, I went into work. I worked in a pharmacy and we listened to it all day on the radio. There weren't too many customers that day. My good friend who worked with me called to say she wouldn't be coming in - her aunt was in one of the towers and they could not get a hold of her. Unfortunately, she was one of the victim's and they were never able to recover her body.

That night I was finally able to get a hold of my father, who owned a restaurant in NYC at the time. All the phone circuits were filled that day and it took me forever to get through. He was fine but he and his staff spent most of the day in the basement, not knowing if more attacks were coming and where. Many families in my town lost loved ones that day, so many children lost a parent. But out of that horror, I watched communities and a nation come together to support one another. At work we donated a bunch of supplies for the volunteers who were searching for survivors. First aid kits, toothpaste, anything they needed. My uncle volunteered at ground Zero to help with cleanup - they needed people who could operate heavy machinery.

I can't believe its been 8 years already because it feels like it was yesterday. As hard as it is for me to sit here and type through the tears, it is so important that we never forget what happened that day. So remember to take a few moments today to remember those we lost and those who continue to fight for our freedom. If you have a story to share, I would love to hear it.

The Campaign For Safe Cosmetics

"Lead in lipstick, carcinogens in baby shampoo -- you've heard the rumors, now get the real story behind what's in your cosmetics and what you can do about it. The Campaign for Safe Cosmetics put together this short video to explain what's really going on your body."

Click on the video to watch, or visit www.safecosmetics.org for more information about the Campaign for Safe Cosmetics.

Pirate's Booty Natural Snacks Review & Giveaway!

When it comes to snacks for my boys, I always try to go with all natural options. That means avoiding things with hydrogenated oils, high fructose corn syrup and any other artificial ingredients. About a year ago we tried the Aged White Cheddar Pirate's Booty and have been hooked ever since. My oldest affectionately calls it "Pirate Popcorn".


Pirate's Booty is a product of Robert's American Gourmet Food. All of their snacks are:

* All-natural
* Gluten free
* Trans fat free
* No preservatives
* No artificial sweeteners
* Kosher

"Robert’s American Gourmet Food snack food products are delectably crunchy, all-natural, baked, trans fat, gluten free and possess great subtle flavors that will have you craving more!"

As I mentioned we have been fans of their Aged White Cheddar for some time. My kids devour it and I've been know to eat my fair share as well. Pirate's Booty was kind enough to send me a treasure chest full of sample of each of their flavors. I actually had no idea there were so many other favors available! My oldest was so excited when he saw this treasure test and he couldn't wait to open it up and dig in! You'll notice its not full in my picture since we ate some before I could get my camera out. I plan on using it to store some of their toys now that it is empty.




So what other flavors are there? Besides the Aged White Cheddar they make Veggie, Barbeque, Sea Salt & Vinegar, Bermuda Onion and Caramel. In addition to all of these Pirate's Booty flavors, they have Wisconsin Cheddar Smart Puffs and Original Tings Crunchy Corn Sticks. I have to say that my new favorite are the Smart Puffs. Absolutely delicious! They are similar to your traditional cheese doodle type of snack, but much yummier and minus the bright orange coloring, which can't possibly be natural. I loved the Smart Puffs so much that I went out and bought myself a full size bag right away. (By the way, for those who shop at Stop-n-Shop, the Pirate's Booty and Smart Puffs are on sale, 2 bags for $5).

Not only are all of the snacks great for at home, but they are also perfect for your kids lunch box. With pretty much everyone back in school now, you'll want to make sure you put healthy snacks in there! Our grocery store also happens to sell the snack size bags which is really convenient. But if you want to save some trash, you can pick up a few of the big bags and fill up small reusable containers to put in with the kids lunches.

Shop
I would say that most of the big grocery chains carry these. If you are not sure who caries them in you area, you can check out their store locator or even buy by the case online.

***Giveaway Closed***

Win
One lucky reader will receive their own treasure chest full of Pirate's Booty snacks!

Mandatory Entry
Visit the Pirate's Booty site and then leave me a comment telling me what your favorite flavor is or the one you want to try the most.

Extra Entries
- Follow me on Blogger or subscribe to my RSS feed
- Subscribe via e-mail. Your email must validate or it will not count. Leave email address in comments.
- Blog about this giveaway with a link to this post. Please leave link in comment.
- Add my Green Mama's Pad button to your sidebar or add Green Mama's Pad to your blogroll. Leave your blog link.
- Follow GreenMamasPad on Twitter and and tweet this giveaway. You can tweet once daily. Leave link to tweet in comment.
- Fave me on Technorati and comment with your ID.
- Stumble this post and comment with your ID.
- Become a fan of Green Mama's Pad on Facebook.
- Become a fan of Pirate's Booty on Facebook.
- Leave a comment on any non-giveaway post and let me know which one.

This giveaway is open to US Residents 18+ only and will end on Thursday, September 24th at 11:59pm EST. One winner will be chosen at random using Random.org. Winner has 48 hours to claim his/her prize otherwise a new winner will be picked. You must leave your e-mail address in all of your comment(s) so I can contact you. I will not share your e-mail address with anyone, it will strictly be used to notify you if you win. Good luck!

Please note that the above review is based solely on my experiences with this product. You may have a different experience or result than I did.

Wordless Wednesday: First Day of Soccer

Last Saturday W had his first ever day of soccer. He was a bit shy but I managed to get a few good shots.

Piggy Paint Nail Polish Review & Giveaway

If you are a woman or live with a woman, you surely are familiar with the smell of nail polish. When someone paints their nails, the entire room fills with that smell. Can an odor that strong be safe? No probably not. And how about your traditional nail polish remover - that smells even worse than the polish! Well, Melanie Hurley, founder of Piggy Paint, wasn't too thrilled with these smells either.

"I am a stay-at-home mom with two very fancy little girls, ages 2 and 4, who love to have their fingernails painted. I've always hated the thought of my kiddos putting their hands in their mouths after I painted their nails with traditional kid polishes. Not only did the ingestion of the chemicals worry me, but the smell nearly left me light-headed after painting two sets of fingernails and toenails."

"Piggy Paint is specially formulated from God's natural ingredients and dries to a hard, durable finish. There are no toxic chemicals; it's free of formaldehyde, toluene, phthalates, biphenyl A, ethyl acetate and acetone."

Piggy Paint was kind enough to send me a bottle of their natural nail polish and polish remover to test out. I received a bottle of the Girls Rule color which is a bright shimmery magenta. The first thing I did was use the Piggy Paint nail polish remover to take off the polish already on my toes (which was a different natural brand). As per the instructions you soak a cotton ball or cotton pad then hold it on your nail for 30 seconds to soak in, then rub off the polish. I've had people tell me they can't get natural nail polishes to come off. I will say that they do take a little more elbow grease, but by following these instructions it came off pretty easily. And hey, I burned a few extra calories for my hard work.

I always have nail polish on my toes because it makes my feet look a little nicer.
Piggy Paint recommends doing 2-3 thin coats and then allowing to air dry for 60 seconds. For maximum chip resistance, you can then blow dry your nails for a few minutes. The first thing I loved about both the polish and remover is they are virtually odor free. The only way you smell anything is if you put your nose right up to the open bottle and even then it is very faint. Now I put on only one coat of the Girls Rule nail polish because well, I'm lazy. But it was the perfect amount of color for me. Here are my scary feet all prettied up with Piggy Paint.


Now I don't have any daughters of my own (sigh) but we do have a lot of nieces so this is definitely something I would buy for them. It is safe and natural and even made in the U.S.A! I would definitely recommend these for the little girl in your life. Even Tori Spelling loves Piggy Paint! Check out pictures from her daughter's first birthday party.

Shop
You can purchase all Piggy Paint products directly on their website and receive FREE SHIPPING on all domestic orders over $25. Plus you can save 15% off your order with an exclusive coupon code for Green Mama's Pad readers. Just use the code GREEN15L which expires on October 31, 2009.

***Giveaway Closed***

Giveaway
One lucky reader will win a $15 gift certificate code to use at the Piggy Paint online store.

Mandatory Entry
Visit the Piggy Paint site and then leave me a comment telling me what your favorite Piggy Paint color is and what you would buy if you won the $15 gift certificate. Please leave a valid email address where Piggy Paint can contact you should you win.

Extra Entries
- Follow me on Blogger or subscribe to my RSS feed
- Subscribe via e-mail. Your email must validate or it will not count. Leave email address in comments.
- Blog about this giveaway with a link to this post. Please leave link in comment.
- Add my Green Mama's Pad button to your sidebar or add Green Mama's Pad to your blogroll. Leave your blog link.
- Follow GreenMamasPad and Piggy Paint on Twitter and and tweet this giveaway. You can tweet once daily. Leave link to tweet in comment.
- Fave me on Technorati and comment with your ID.
- Stumble this post and comment with your ID.
- Become a fan of Green Mama's Pad on Facebook.
- Become a fan of Piggy Paint on Facebook.
- Leave a comment on any non-giveaway post and let me know which one.

This giveaway is open to US Residents 18+ only and will end on Tuesday, September 22nd at 11:59pm EST. One winner will be chosen at random using Random.org. Winner has 48 hours to claim his/her prize otherwise a new winner will be picked. You must leave your e-mail address in all of your comment(s) so I can contact you. I will not share your e-mail address with anyone, it will strictly be used to notify you if you win. Good luck!

Please note that the above review is based solely on my experiences with this product. You may have a different experience or result than I did.

BYOK: Bring Your Own Ketchup

That is what I did today and I am pretty sure my mom thought I was nuts. Now I try not to be one of "those" people. At home, I try to give my kids healthy food and avoid ingredients like High Fructose Corn Syrup. In fact I can say that the only thing in my house with HFCS is my husband's crackers. Now when we are out and about or over someone else's house, I don't stress too much on what they are eating since its occasional and they eat pretty good at home. But after a weekend of BBQs and picnics and ketchup loaded with HFCS (and brownies, cupcakes, etc.), I decided to bring my own ketchup when we went to my mom's cookout today. On some level I'm sure she thought it was ridiculous but I know she won't give me a hard time, which is why I did it. She also made homemade whip cream to go with dessert because apparently last time I told her I wouldn't eat (or let the kids eat) the store bought cans of it with all their artificial ingredients. I don't even remember saying it, lol. So thank you grammy for your extra effort and for putting up with my food choices. By the way, home made whip cream is WAY better then the canned stuff. :)

Our $100 Dick's Sporting Goods Shopping Spree

If you don't know, Dick's Sporting Goods is currently having a 50 day Twitter contest where they give away a $100 gift card everyday. (official rules) I believe they are on day 30. I was very fortunate that on Day 1 of this event, I won.

The entry requirement of their Twitter contest is that you tell them what you would buy if you won the $100. I had initially said I would by some sleds. Living`in New England with 3 boys, that would be very useful. After winning, we decided to enroll W in soccer this fall and in his first "Learn to Skate" hockey lessons in the winter. So when the gift card arrived we decided we would use it towards sporting supplies for him.

Now the closest Dick's Sporting Goods to us is about an hour away. So we packed up all the boys into the minivan and made a day of it. My husband was so excited to go there, apparently he loves this store, I just never knew it. He talked about how big it was and how much stuff it has the entire way there.

We first headed to the soccer section, which is huge this time of year. They had a few kids packages where you get a ball, shin guards and and cleats for a reasonable price. We wound up going with the Nike package because the shoes fit better and it was just $39.95. We grabbed some cones and a pair of socks while there too and the headed over to the ice hockey section. For his lessons, W is required to have ice skates, hockey gloves and a full helmet with mask. I figured the mask would be the most expensive item so we grabbed that. It was about $40 as well. We will most likely be getting the rest of his hockey gear at Play It Again Sports - reuse!!!

So here is all of our loot. The grand total being $101 and change. We had a lot of fun too and are so excited for soccer to start this Saturday! Thank you Dick's Sporting Goods!

Wordless Wednesday: Dress Up Time

What do boys dress up in? Well in my house, they dress up as Star Wars characters. I bought this Darth Vader costume for W almost 4 years ago when he was about 8 months old. It was on clearance at Walmart for $5 and included everything - mask, lightsaber, cape and jumpsuit with fiber optic lights. (There are red and green lights on the chest that blink when turned on). So I have been waiting 4 years for it to fit him. I'm pretty sure this will also be his Halloween costume this year. Oh and you should have heard him imitating the famous Darth Vader breathing - hilarious!

Fig Leaf Baby Organic Baby Clothing

I love cute baby and toddler clothes - who doesn't right? So I love them even more when I find clothes that are organic. Fig Leaf Baby offers an adorable line of organic clothing for preemies/newborns and infants/toddlers. A little bit about the company:

"Fig Leaf Baby started with co-founder Jaclyn's casual search for a baby shower gift. Frustrated with the lack of truly unique, high quality products available, she decided to make her own. When the simple contemporary design of her embroidered onesie was the hit of the shower, she knew she was on to something much bigger. After building a team, we conceived an idea - an idea founded on the premise that children's fashion is not only about the children. Rather, the clothing is often a reflection of the parents' own unique style and personality. Combining smart design, creative writing, and high quality materials, Fig Leaf Baby was born!"

You can choose from kimono style dresses and bodysuits or my personal favorite, shirts and bodysuits from the "First Words" line. The 100% Organic Peruvian Pima cotton tops come in either white or in a nice selection of colors that are dyed with organic vegetable dyes. They are then embroidered with cute words and sayings like "Play Dating" and "Early Bird" or "Preemie Donna" for preemies. Of course the outfit would not be complete without a pair of the coordinating pants! I am also happy to see that they have a good amount of options for preemies. My boys were all full-term, but I have small babies so I need preemie clothes in the very beginning.

Fig Leaf Baby was generous enough to send me a 0-3 month bodysuit for my new baby. Baby boy 4 is due just a week before Christmas, so I was given the "Santa Baby" bodysuit.


I seriously cannot wait for him to get here so I can try this on him. The cotton is so incredibly soft and stitching is really well done. My plan is to use this bodysuit for when we take photos for the announcements. I do think I need to get some matching green pants though, it needs to be a complete set! Obviously I couldn't take a picture of him in it yet, but I promise that you can see pictures of him in it on here come December!

Fig Leaf Baby is dedicated to social responsibility. "Aside from ensuring an eco-friendly process and using 100% organic materials, FLB believes that you get back out of life what you put in. We donate a portion of our net proceeds to K.I.D.S. (Kids in Distressed Situations), which provides new clothing to underprivileged children."

Shop!
Fig Leaf Baby is offering Green Mama's Pad readers 15% off on orders placed by December 31, 2009. Use coupon code GMP15. These would make great shower gifts, new baby gifts or holiday gifts!