Nursing Pad Giveaway!

Each month, I am going to post at least 1 giveaway for products promoting natural, healthy, green living.  This month's is nursing pads made by RJC Gift Designs.  The color and design will be a surprise.

Guest Post - Mesothelioma

Seeing the Good in the Bad

My whole life I have always been optimistic, viewing the glass as half full and
seeing the bright side of things. This characteristic has never benefited me more
than when I heard the word most people fear: cancer.

On November 21, 2005, I received my cancer diagnosis of malignant pleural
mesothelioma, at the young age of 36 and just 3.5 months after my one and only
child was born. You never expect that kind of diagnosis, especially not during
what is supposed to be the “prime” of your life, but here was me hearing the
most dreaded words. After the information sank in, I had two choices: to give up
and wallow in my own self-pity or face the illness with strength. Being the
optimist I am, I chose the second option. I stood tall and did what any new
mother would do: fight for her life to see her little girl grow up.

Cancer really is a two-headed monster and majority of people who have
experienced it will agree. It is of course one of the worst possible things that can
happen, but on the other a good thing. My life has changed ultimately for the
better due to it. I chose to see the positives of a terrible situation, perhaps to
eliminate the fear, maybe because I was determined to help other people with
the same diagnosis, or because I wanted to provide hope because that is often
the first thing people lose when becoming diagnosed with mesothelioma. No
matter the reason, I opted to find the good.

I was referred to one of the world’s leading mesothelioma doctors, who had the
ability to provide me with the hope to beat this condition! After being scheduled
to have my tumor removed on Groundhog’s Day 2006, I gave my tumor the
nickname of Punxsutawney Phil. And my family and I renamed the day,
Lungleavin Day since it was the day my lung was removed from my body. Every
year during the first weekend of February, we throw a party to celebrate this
Lungleavin Day. It is a time to celebrate life, honor the victory over fear, and
praising the good that comes from a dreadful situation. It is also a celebration of
hope.

If it weren’t for being diagnosed with this cancer, I would not have met so many
of the great people that I now know. These people are the most remarkable,
strongest, passionate, and tough individuals I have ever had the pleasure to
meet. These people are other mesothelioma fighters who are determined to
increase the knowledge of this condition, which has little awareness besides
commercials on daytime television. I now call all people affected by the disease
including wives, husbands, sons, and daughters, my friend. If it were not for my
very own battle with cancer, I would not know these great people. My life is now
filled with much more purpose and I want to keep up the efforts to provide hope
to those in need of it.

Guest post written by Heather Von St James

Blogmania Starts Tomorrow!

Tomorrow starts off the first of 2 days of Blogmania. There are over 100 blogs involved in this that are giving away things that are worth between $100-$1000. If you have the next 2 days free, you may find some really great giveaways to enter!

One blog that is giving away a great mommy giveaway is Home Grown Families. She is giving away a Peapod Creations organic wrap with matching burp cloth. This is valued at $120! Another great things is that she is offering several ways to enter a day early. Head on over and get a head start on this great giveaway!

5 Lessons Every Kid Should Learn

As parents we know that we have a responsibility to our children to teach them life lessons. There are so many things to teach them and as they grow we see the importance of each and every thing. My son is 2.5 years old and I feel like I am constantly teaching him another lesson. Whether it is preventative or disciplinary, we teach them because we love them.

If you had to make a list of 5 lessons that every kid should learn, which would be your top 5? Here is my list of 5 things that I have found I have already started teaching my little man.

1. Listen to your parents no matter what.
2. Look both ways before crossing the street while holding an adult's hand.
3. Share your things, don't be selfish.
4. Save your money.
5. Say please and thank you.

In the comments below, tell me how old your little one(s) is and what your 5 lessons would be for that age group.

“I wrote this blog post while participating in the TwitterMoms and Nanny McPhee Returns blogging program, making me eligible to get a $50 gift card. For more information on how you can participate, click here.”

EcoMom Giveaway

Here is another great giveaway hosted by Closet of Free Samples for a $15 EcoMom Gift Card. There are so many ways to enter this giveaway so go and check it out! You have until September 1st to get your entries in.

Beat the Heat, Homemade Popsicles

It has been awefully hard to beat the heat around here lately! There are some easy ways to make popsicles that are healthy and delicious for your little ones and yourself for that matter! Today my mom and little guy and I went to Eckert's which is a local orchard that you can pick your own fruits. Right now peaches and blackberries are ripe. We picked a basket of peaches and were then too hot to pick blackberries.

Here is what I did with some of the peaches. First I washed the loose fuzz off the peaches. As you probably now peaches are very fuzzy. It is definitely okay to eat the fuzz but washing off the loose stuff is best. I took about 6 peaches, washed them and cut them into big slices.

The first 3 I blended as is and put the puree into ice trays. This will be a great treat to add to Sprite, lemonade, water or a spritzer. You can even use these puree cubes for homemade baby food. It will stay good in a deep freeze for about 6 months only 3 months in a fridge freezer.

The second 3 I blended up and added a cup of water. If you have yogurt, add 1/2 cup on yogurt and 1/2 cup of water to make it creamier. I then poured this puree into popsicle trays for a delicious frozen treat in a couple days. Mine made 12 popsicles. My little guy won't eat peaches but he may eat a frozen peach popsicle. We'll see!

Do you have any other ideas or recipes for fresh fruit frozen treats. The things I listed can be done with any fresh fruit. Most fresh fruit mixes are delicious too!

Another Great Cloth Diaper Giveaway!

Head on over to Home Grown Families and enter for your chance to win one of these cloth diapers from Green Acre Designs.

There are several ways to enter so do as many as you would like!

Fluff Envy

Are you on Facebook? If so, would you like the chance to win a Knickernappie cloth diaper? All you have to do is visit Fluff Envy's Facebook page and "Like" them. When they have 1500 "Likes" they are going to offer a giveaway! You can then watch their page and when they post details about the giveaway, enter to win.

Want a chance to win Seventh Generation products?

If you would like the chance to win free products from Seventh Generation, be sure to become a Nation Member. Sign up at their website and enter the giveaways that they post on occasion.

Right now they are giving away Disinfectant Spray Cleansers or Wipes if you answer a simple question. Check it out and enter for your chance to win!

Smartipants Giveaway at Mom Most Traveled!

If you are interested in cloth diapering, you may want to head over to Mom Most Traveled and enter her giveaway for Smartipants!

I try to enter every cloth diaper giveaway I can find and have yet to win. Maybe this will be my lucky contest. How about you? Win any cloth diapers or still crossing your fingers?

FREE Advertising Here!

If you look to my right side bar, you will see a box that says Your Ad Here. This is set up by Project Wonderful. All you have to do to get FREE advertising right here on my blog is to set up an account with them (FREE) and bid on my ad space (search for Mommy & Me, Naturally!). If you are first to place a bid, your bid will be FREE. If you are not first, it will be very inexpensive. Try it!

My 1st Giveaway EVER!

In honor of opening my Etsy shop, I would like to offer a set of cloth nursing pads up to one of my readers. The nursing pads you will receive will not be the ones pictures but they will look like these.

These nursing pads are handmade from fleece, cotton and decorative material. The fleece side goes against your skin for absorbency and the design is on the outside. They have a waterproof lining just inside the decorative material that prevents leakage onto your clothing. They can be machine washed in cool/lukewarm water and must be dried flat. DO NOT machine dry them, it will break down the waterproof lining and cause them to leak. If you accidentally dry them once, they should be fine but the lining will break down if they are continually exposed to the dryer.

If you are a breastfeeding mommy, you have or will experience sore nipples from time to time. If this happens to you, place a pair in the freezer after you have washed them. After a few hours, they will work as a wonderful cooling agent for your nipples. They are also great to use this way as a gentle teething pad for your little one. My little guy loved to teeth on frozen cloth and the softness of the fleece and cold were a perfect combination.

It is mandatory for you to be a Google follower of this blog to enter the giveaway. Fill out the form below and you are entered.

Congratulations to Donna who won this giveaway. Thanks to all who entered!

Where have you been?

I know, it has been a while since I have posted anything here. Life has just been so busy! Since I posted last, I have gotten pregnant (4.5 months now) and opened an Etsy shop. I have been extremely busy making products to sell in my shop.

I opened a shop because I have decided to not go back to work when I have this baby. I feel it will be better for my family and I if I focus all my time and energy on my growing family. We know that God will provide though finances may be tough at first.

I am excited to have more time to do house chores, teach my son and watch my soon to come baby grow. Have you had to make the decision between work and stay-at-home mom? What was your conclusion? How is your decision working out for you. I'm sure there are other moms besides me out there wondering. Please share with us!

20% off at BabyGanics

If you are in need of organic cleaning supplies, you may be interested to check out BabyGanics. If you find something you like, be sure to use this code: THANKYOU20 to get 20% off. This code is good from May 24-28th so hurry and order if you are interested!

Pregnancy a Disease????

So apparently Barnes and Noble Bookstore considers pregnancy a disease. Shame on them! They have pregnancy books listed under the disease section of their bookstore. A friend of mine went there today and saw this and was offended as am I. Pregnancy is a blessing and miracle from God and should never, under any circumstances be considered a disease! I have sent them an email expressing my opinion about this. I will follow up with a response from them when I receive it.

Composting, Naturally

Did you ever wish you could do something other than throw away all the fruit and veggie scraps that you get from cooking? I did. I recently heard about composting. I actually saw a commercial for a kitchen composter. It was very expensive but I thought the idea was awesome! I decided to put together a little of what I found while researching the topic.

Easiest Homemade Composter:

• Use a galvanized metal trash can. You will need to drill several holes into it and it will need a tight fitting lid. You will also need to dig a hole in the ground.
• Use a plastic storage container with tight fitting lid. You will need to drill holes in this as well. This can be for indoor or outdoor use. This can also double as a seat!
• Click here for how to make them.

What Can Be Composted:

• Vegetable Scraps
• Grains
• Pasta
• Fruit Rinds
• Fruit Peels
• Breads
• Coffee Grounds & Filters
• Tea Bags
• Egg Shells (only if washed out so no more animal product is in it)
• Paper Towels
• Paper Napkins
• Toilet Paper (not soiled w/ human waste)
• Paper Plates (no animal products on the plate)
• Leaves
• Sticks
• Grass
• Other yard waste

What Cannot Be Composted:

• Any animal products
• Meat
• Fish
• Poultry
• Cheese
• Oily Foods
• Butter

Here are a few resources that I found very helpful:

• California Integrated Waste Management Board
• University of Missouri Extension
• Home Composting

Do you compost at home? What do you use as your compost bin? What have you found to be benefits/negative of home composting? Please share any ideas on the subject that you may have. I hope to start this process soon so any helpful tips would be greatly appreciated!

Yeah, I Won An Award!

Thanks to Ashley at Mommy & Son for giving me this award. This is my first award and I am so happy to receive it!

The Rules:
1. Thank the person who gave you this award.
2. Share 7 things about yourself.
3. Pass the award along to 15 bloggers who you have recently discovered and who you think are fantastic!
4. Contact the bloggers you've picked and let them know about the award.

So, the 7 things about myself are:

1. I am a wife & mommy of 1 and hopefully more.
2. I have a passion to help mothers interested in natural childbirth.
3. I love cats!
4. I love to read and my favorite author is Nicholas Sparks (before all these movies on his books came out).
5. I love to be outside.
6. I plan to open my own Etsy shop very soon.
7. I love to save money!

Here are the 15 blogs that I would like to pass this award along to:

1. Sarah @ Crazy House
2. Tree @ Mother Of Pearl It Is
3. Janet @ Grammy Janet's Place
4. Heather @ I'd Rather Be Changing Diapers
5. HiLesha @ Green & Glam
6. Jenna @ A Mom's Balancing Act
7. Jenny @ I'm a Full-time Mummy
8. Lillian @ The Mini Beach Bird
9. Coupon Clippin' Daddy
10. Marsha @ Taste and See God's Goodness
11. Life is a Sandcastle
12. The Professional Family Manager
13. The Beckers @ Baby in the Big City
14. Leslie @ Live, Love, Laugh With Leslie
15. Chrissy @ Traveling Light

Get FREE Points at Recyclebank

If you recycle, why not earn freebies in the mean time? Have you heard of RecycleBank? If not, check them out here. I have earned several free products such as Kashi Cereal, Seventh Generation Cleaning products, and more.

RecycleBank now also partners with Nature Made. If you are a user of Nature Made, you can earn even more free stuff! Get the details here.

On the Look Out

I am on the look out for Organic, Eco-friendly, natural Supporting blogs or online stores. If you know of one, please send comment below with the link.

If you are the blog or store owner, please also let me know that. If you are not the blog or store owner, I will contact the owner to see if I can add their link to my blog.

Thanks for helping me to collect this awesome information for you and my future readers!

Pregnancy Fun Fact

Have you thought maybe the doctor got your due date wrong or you just aren't sure. There is one fun way to double check your due dates.

Watch for the first day that you feel baby kick. Now, add 5 months to that day and consider that as your due date.

It is very hard to know exactly when you conceive and the doctors only guess at the date. This is another way to check your dates.

Resource: Husband-Coached Childbirth (Fifth Edition): The Bradley Method of Natural Childbirth pg. 170.