We’ve been delighted by Oral-B’s Stages toothbrushes for babies since the time my first-born was tiny.  Two more babies down the road, and six years later, we’re still delighted by their Stages toothbrushes which are perfect for tiny mouths and teeth, and are tickled by some of their latest products.

The Oral-B Stage 1 toothbrush for children between the 4 and 24 months  is really one of the main reasons we love Oral-B for children’s tooth care.  The chubby, padded, wide head, the soft bristles and easy to hold handle are all winners around here.  My 20 month old LOVES her toothbrush, she likes to chew on it actually. It’s hard to convince her to let go!

When it’s time to brush teeth she can’t wait to get her baby tooth gum and cleanser gel into her mouth!  It’s fluoride free, made with xylitol, and so much easier to find than the expensive, health-food store brands.  I was totally excited to discover Oral-B made this product, I don’t know how I’ve missed it!  Normally we purchase an expensive xylitol gel that is hard to find, but we’re totally sold on this safe and natural baby teeth cleanser!

For older children, there’s the sparkly, red, princess-inspired fluoride based toothpaste from Oral B.  We actually don’t use fluoride toothpastes on our children, but our girls were begging to use this!  My baby actually broke into it and was trying to, ahem, consume it.  I’m thinking it’s pretty tasty, and you can’t go wrong with the princess theme!

And, is it possible to have too much fun with a toothbrush?  Well, the answer is yes!  Especially if it’s an electric Disney Princess Toothbrush!  It is HARD to get these brushes away from my kids.  For the three-and-up crowd, these brushes feature a rotating round part up front with stationary bristles at the back, delivering a kid-sized dose of electric toothbrushing motion – not too much, like an overpowering adult brush packs in.  (Oral-B makes awesome adult electric toothbrushes, we’ve used them for years.)

I really wish Oral-B made these rechargeable and with replaceable heads though, because I’ve found my little darlings using their toothbrushes to scrub the floor, the furniture, their toys, and yes – their teeth too!  These are a bit hit for princess lovers (like mine)!

Oral-B even has a floss that they recommend for children because of it’s smooth sliding action and minty fresh flavor.  Now I’m not a floss expert, but this does slide nice and smoothly and the children and I both love a good, minty flavored floss.

Now, even if you don’t have girly-girls like mine, Oral-B has masculine lines of products, Power-Ranger toothbrushes, Pirates of the Caribbean, Cars and Toy Story toothpaste – you get the picture.  They’ve also got you covered with manual toothbrushes for all of children’s tooth-developmental stages.  Shaped appropriately for your child’s mouth from baby on up to their tweens, and I’m certainly liking that!

Our family loves probiotics, and we’re always on the lookout for new, palatable, and effective products that we can get into our children.    DanActive from Danone is a sweet, convenient way to quickly ingest 10 billion L. casei Defensis^® friendly bacteria in each bottle.

Created by Danone to boost immunity and the bodies natural defenses, these tiny (93 ml) bottles are very tasty.  One bottle per day, and these little ‘good guys’ are off to work helping you fight off the effects of poor nutrition, bad weather, stress, etc.

Corn free families should be aware that corn is used as a thickener in this product.

You can read more at Danone’s website.

I wrote this in conjunction with BzzAgent (they sent a coupon for some Danactive, but the product specified was no longer available once I made it to the store.)  I did have a chance to consume one bottle however, and it was quite tasty.

This is a Mama Buzz review. The product was provided by: Ultimate Cloth America for this review.

The Ultimate Cloth is the first cloth to receive a new patent in 25 years – made of MiraFiber (I have NO idea what this is!), I wasn’t sure what to expect when I signed up to review one.  You can find more information about the cloth itself here. I pulled it out of it’s envelope, and it was flat, like a super-tough paper towel, but less textured (seemingly).  This little cloth that seemed so innocous is a real workhorse though!

Designed for chemical-free cleaning, and laboratory tested to remove 96% of bacteria (NO, it isn’t a micro-fiber or Norwex like product), you just add water, wring, and wipe with it damp.  It’s amazing, it pulls dirt, oil, everything into it.  I cleaned my laptop (delicate screen included), television screen (full of fingerprints), bedroom mirror – fingerprints again, my printer, and one of my living room windows (let’s just say…ugh).The results are awesome.  I spent $30 for a fancy ‘cleaning kit’ when I bought my iMac a couple of years ago with a fancy no-drop spray, and two microfiber cleaning cloths so I wouldn’t scratch the screen.  And you know what an Ultimate cloth costs? $6.00.  That kills me!  You can use these ANYWHERE, you just rinse them out or wash them, and they are good to go again with a reported life span of 5 years.

I’m most amazed by the windows – moms if you have sticky tape residue on your windows from painting children’s artwork/craft projects up…just a little light pressure from the cloth and the tape residue comes right off!  It won’t go through the top layer of the tape – the plastic part, but if it’s already been peeled off once and left a bunch of gum – this will do it!  With no apparent abrasion to the cloth either, just balled up sticky residue that is easily picked off.  No more razor blades or expensive solvents!  Just wanter and this cloth!

I have done a LOT of cleaning in my day – my mother owned a professional cleaning company and I worked with her and my father, and I’ve never seen anything like this before.  We used to use a ‘cleaning’ cloth and polish up with a dry, clean cloth because most traditional cloths just push the dirty water around, it’s hard to clean and ’sop’ up in one pass.  But you can actually SEE the cloth picking up the dirt – it immediately transfers from the dirty surface to the cloth leaving a lint-free, streak free, CLEAN surface behind using only water.  Because it folds flat you can sneak it into tricky spots, use the corner alone, and refold to provide 8 different cleaning surfaces.

This is one of the ’stickiest’ products I’ve seen in years, it’s going to spread like wildfire through word of mouth alone, and is completely new.  Thankfully there are discounts available for bulk orders here.  I’m going to have to buy more!

Even better, there is supposed to be away you can get your hands on one for free – I don’t have the details yet, but if you follow Ultimate Cloth on Twitter or Facebook you can be amongst the first to find out how you can try one yourself at no charge.

CONTEST CLOSED

Thanks to everyone who entered!  Congratulations to ky2here who is looking forward to buying a branch raft boat from Naturalpod.com!  Please

Upon first glance tree blocks seem rather unimpressive.  Open a sack of various pieces of tree trunk and branches, dump it in front of an adult and expect mystified expressions.  Open the same sack in front of a child, and watch the imaginative play begin!  When our bag of Tree Branch Blocks (the small set with 14 pieces) from Naturalpod.com arrived, my children dumped the bag and started building.

“I’m going to make a castle!” were the first words out of my three-year-old’s mouth, and my three girls set to work building castles, towers, tractors, ramps, cars, and so much more.  With only organic, flowing forms to work with, and no clear ‘interlocking’ mechanisms for the Branch Blocks, my children’s imaginations ran wild.  They built with abandon, in many free-form imaginative constructs, delighting in the joy of exploration.

Made from kiln-dried alder with an all natural finish, these one-of-a-kind sets of branch blocks have recently received an inclusion as one of 2009’s top 10 Eco-Toys.  No need to worry about pthalates or other concerns from imported plastics etc.  even baby can put these in her mouth with no parental concern needed.  They even come with their own, natural fabric storage sack!

Tree blocks are growing in popularity, and if you haven’t tried them with your own children yet, now’s the time.  It only takes  a few minutes to see the unlimited potential that simple, natural playthings hold, and the resulting joy that comes from play.  My only caveat would be to buy a large set to avoid arguments amongst your children!

Natural Pod also offers an excellent array of naturally-inspired products for children and their families, from clothing to playsilks, art supplies, dolls, and much more!

CONTEST DETAILS:

Thanks to Naturalpod.com I have a $25.00 gift certificate for their online store to give away to a blessed winner in the U.S. or Canada!  To enter, visit Naturalpod.com online and let me know what you’d most like to spend the gift certificate on.

For additional entries:

1. Subscribe to this blog for updates – see the left hand sidebar. Leave an additional comment letting me know you’ve subscribed (or if you already subscribe).

2. Write a post on your blog promoting and linking to this contest. Leave an additional comment with a link to your post.

3. Add the Quiverfull Family button (see the code box in the right hand sidebar under BUTTON UP!) to your blog’s sidebar, or let me know if you already have the button displayed. Leave an additional comment with a link to your post.

4. Digg, Stumble, Tweet, Facebook or otherwise share this post on a social networking site. Leave an additional comment indicating how you shared this post.

5. Follow me on Twitter or let me know if you are an existing follower.

Each additional step taken counts for 1 additional entry. A total of 6 entries are available if you complete all of these steps. Please leave a separate comment for each entry!

The contest will close at 12 a.m. MST on Wednesday, November 18th, 2009. One (1) winner will be randomly drawn for the $25.00 Natural Pod gift certificate on Thursday, November 19th, 2009 and notified by email. Please fill your email address in the comment form when you are completing your comment so that I can contact you. The winners must respond with a mailing address within 72 hours of my email, or new winners will be chosen. This contest is open to those living in the US/Canada.

I look forward to seeing God bless a reader with this gift certificate!

Shortly after my third child Sarah was born, I had the chance to review the Sleepy Wrap baby carrier.  I fell in love, hard and fast – the Sleepy Wrap is without a doubt the most comfortable and easy to use carrier for babies up to a year old on the market (of the carriers I have here at home at least!)  The Sleepy Wrap also carries older children as my photos of my then two and five-year-old’s demonstrates, but it’s not the most supportive carrier for older kids.  I also would never feel confident enough to execute a back carry in one due to it’s stretchy fabric.

Naturally I was incredibly thrilled to have the opportunity to review Nap Inc.’s latest child carrier!  The Boba is a soft-structured carrier (think Ergo) designed to be used for children ages 1 to 4 (15 – 45 lbs.) for front and back carries, and my two youngest are now 16 months and 3.5 – perfect timing!  As an Ergo owner my first thoughts were – how does the Boba differ from an Ergo?  Well, to be honest there are quite a few points of differentiation, most good, some not-so-good.  There are also some similarities and challenges that seem to present themselves with any structured carrier.

Before we dig in, I want to let you know that there are lots of pretty pictures on the Boba website itself, I’m not going to use them in my review though, I have plenty of pictures of my own kids enjoying being carried!  Feel free to head on over if you’d like to see some ‘professional’ looking snaps!

So, first off, the Boba is an organic cotton carrier, made in Boulder, Colarado by mountaineering professionals – very neat!  I received the Walnut to review; there are six earthy shades to choose from.  You can find a complete list of the major features here.  The first things I noticed were the nicely contoured padded shoulder straps, the handy ‘hide-em’ elastics to roll up the excess webbing from the shoulder straps and waist strap (very nice touch!), and the heavy duty safety-buckle.

Loading both of my children in the front facing position was very simple, but I did need some help fastening the chest-strap across my back (I have limited mobility in my right arm), so I need some help there.  I played with the foot-straps some before realizing that my baby’s legs are just too short for them to work at the moment, but they are very adjustable with a neat sliding feature that let’s you move them around the bottom of the carrier.  Adjusting for circumference is tricker, as they velcro up inside of the padded waist area, which is securely fastened when you have a child in the carrier and are trying to adjust the straps.  The front carry with Sarah is blissful, it’s the snuggliest, worry-free front carry ever!  She’s in the perfect position to kiss, and the extra fabric on the sides and top really gives it a cocoon-like feel.  She slept for hours in the Boba the first time she rode in it.

Now, the shoulder straps were hard for me to get snug enough, so I called in my husband, but this isn’t unique to the Boba, I always have a hard time with this design of tightening fixture on soft-structure carriers.  Once adjusted though, between the shoulder and chest straps you can get a good custom-fit for your child.  It does take a few minutes to adjust the carrier back and forth for different children.

Now, my 3.5 year old IS tall enough to get use out of the foot-straps!  Looking at this picture I think they could be a wee bit tighter, but they’re pretty good here.  Designed to be used with shoes, the straps function almost as a stirrup, and are designed to lift the leg to a healthy, 90degree angle from hip to thigh and thigh to calf.  You can read more about it here.  I think it’s a pretty neat idea, and you can tell that the posture is definitely better with the strap as opposed to without when you compare the photos.  If she gets excited and tries to ’stand’ in the stirrups, the velcro lets loose and needs to be done up again, and she did say they were a bit ‘itchy’ – some of the velcro must have brushed her leg (something to note if your youngster has sensory-integration issues).  Again the front carry is very supportive and incredibly comfy, I could carry her for hours like this!  She likes it too .

Now, for the back carry, I actually got Sarah in without help on my first try by following the instructions!  The extra fabric on the panel really makes a difference here.  With other soft-structured carriers I often felt like my baby was leaning away from me because I couldn’t feel her upper body against my back.  With the Boba that problem is no longer there!  With some careful adjustments I can get my little girl hugged up nice and comfy….see?  I REALLY like this…sure helps when I’m doing dishes!

Now with Rosie, you can see her shirt through the gap between the carrier and me – that’s just because she’s bigger (and the camera angle), she’s still nice and tight up against me as you can see.  It also looks as though I should have slid the foot straps around the unique bottom rail to be closer to the front, that would have brought her legs into a slightly better position.

Now, with her being heavier I did notice that the unpadded webbing that makes up the front portion of the Boba (where you fasten the safety buckle) carries more weight and did dig into my abdomen some.  That’s likely due to my squishy mommy belly, but it wasn’t entirely comfortable.  Some other carriers feature a flat band of fabric that goes underneath this section of webbing to distribute the weight without so much digging, but the Boba doesn’t. Thankfully, I don’t use a carrier with her often, as I’m the only carrier wearer in the family, so I usually take Sarah.  If Rosie tuckers out her Dad uses his arms .

The Boba also doesn’t have a sleeping baby head flap, but in truth, I’ve rarely been able to fasten those by myself with a baby in the carrier, and often it woke mine up.  With the extra fabric providing upper-back support, Sarah just tucked herself in closer when she fell asleep in the front carry, so I haven’t missed it yet.

With both the back and front carries high, snug, and secure, the Boba is a great carrier for moms who want to wear their babies through the winter with a baby-wearing coat.  Once you get your adjustments made you’re ready to go, there won’t be any budging.

Parents shopping for a first soft-structured baby carrier should STRONGLY consider the Boba due to the extra fabric in the panel ALONE.  The added feeling of security is so sweet, snuggly, and above all reassuring!

If you have any questions, please let me know and I’ll do my best to answer them for you from a first-hand users perspective.

Thanks to Nap Inc. I have a coupon code to share with you all!  You can buy the Boba online here for $99.00 plus shipping. If you use coupon code “QuiverfullFamily” until November 11th, US purchasers will receive free shipping, and Canadian orders will receive a $3.99 discount (every little bit helps!)  Enjoy these precious times of baby-wearing with your little ones – my too tall six-year-old so misses those special times with mommy already.

With colder weather already driving us inside (we’ve had snow and below freezing temperatures for over a week now), Febreze’s Home Collection adds a touch of elegance and warmth to the environment we’ll be spending so much time in over the long winter to come.  Febreze’s new line adds a touch of class to their widespread fame in the ‘freshness’ business.  Because – let’s be honest – I know I can trust their NoticeABLES to freshen up the house in a hurry, but they are somewhat clunky looking and require a plug-in (we don’t have many of those!)  Each item in the Home Collection stands alone without the need for external power, and adds a certain panache that goes beyond most air fresheners.

In the past I’ve been less than impressed by the performance of Febreze’s scented candles, but their new hybrid soy-blend candle is more powerfully scented, and incredibly attractive.  Soy tends to carry scent oils extraordinarily well, and this is proven again in this blend.  The base can be used to protect counters from the heat of the candle, and once extinguished can be used as a ‘cap’ to keep in the scent.  As always, it’s packaged in an attractive glass candle holder – this one square in shape.  The Cranberry Pear I received to try is a rich purpley red (one of my favourite colours), and smells of rich, ripe fruits – a great scent for fall.

When the Green Tea and Citrus Scented Reed Diffuser arrived I was so excited to try it out.  We’ve all seen those cute arrangements of reeds in stores, so I popped open the bottle of fragrance oil and popped in my reeds…all ten of them.  May Irecommend that you not take my approach and instead exercise caution with your own diffuser set?  I was quickly overwhelmed with the lovely (though very strong) odor emanating from my ten reeds, I cut back drastically, but had to close up the bottle completely as my body was ‘overdosed’ on the fragrance and I could taste it in my mouth for a few days.  I’m about ready to start experimenting again, but please do start slowly – the photograph shows quite a few reeds in the jar – that many scented my whole home!  Try one or two, and build up from there; if you have a small room that should cover it nicely.  Advertising as lasting up to 60 days, I can certainly see why!  This oil packs a powerful punch!

The biggest hit in our home (my young daughters loved this!) is the Flameless Luminaire with scented shades.  We received the Pomegranate Mango set, and it was ready to go.  The lighted base comes with included batteries, all you need to do is open the shade, set it on the base, and it lights up with a flickering light that shines through the scented shade for four hours at one time.  If you’d like it to stop sooner, just take the shade off of the wooden base, if you’d like to restart it, just pick up the shade, and put it back on the base for another four hours of warm, fragrant light.  The scent does emanate from the shade whether or not the light is in operation, but it does look very lovely when turned on when placed on a side table or bookshelf (no plug-in required!).  Limited edition scents that change with the seasons will be available for the Luminaire base to keep fresh scents moving through your home year round.

If you live in Canada don’t forget to stop by Save.ca and take a peek at the coupons for Febreze products to be found there.  On the general coupon site you can find a coupon for $5.00 off the Flamess Luminaire, and here in Alberta there are currently coupons for $2.00 off the new Home Collection reed diffuser and soy-blend candle, and other deals on Febreze, so check it out!  Don’t forget to enjoy your family during this time of in-drawing as the weather starts to cool down.

CONTEST CLOSED!

Thanks for your patience ladies, I know I’m overdue on this draw!  Our three winners are:

Melissa N.

Heather C.

and

memoriesmama (Darcy)

Congratulations ladies!  Please get back to my email within 72 hours, so I don’t have to pick new winners!  I pray that this unique product will help you get your kids (and house) whipped into shape – in a fun way of course .

Thanks to all who entered, don’t forget to check back soon for more great contests!

Professional organizer Leslie Jacobs is the creator of the patented Les Mess organizing card game for children (and parents) ages seven and up. Designed to help families establish organizational habits in an engaging way, Les Mess is a fun, game based system that offers up a random assortment of tasks.  Some are days off, relaxation-oriented, and others are deep-down organizing, planning, or chores.  Some last for 15 minutes and range upwards to a day or even a week.

Packed in a colorful, integral box, these large format cards beckoned to my six-year-old daughter from the time they entered our home.  “Oh Mommy – what are those?” she asked.  “A cleaning game?  Can we try it?”  After much begging on her part (I’m NOT making this up) we cracked into the deck, shuffled, and got ready to clean.

The first card we drew was a ‘Fun for the Day’ card.  “Your T.V. is broken today!  What fun activities can you do?”  Unsatisfied, my daughter demanded we draw another card.  This time we picked “30 – 60 Minutes.  Organize your toys.  Get rid of anything you don’t like or haven’t played with in a while.  Give it to charity.”  We decided upon a prize (nature study time with Mom, various suggestions are provided with the game) and we were off!

After briefly explaining the concept of giving the toys to a charity, my children enthusiastically put toys away, dug through them in search of ones they could give away, and presented me with a tiny, but admirable pile considering their ages.  Even my three-year-old got in on the action.  I was impressed, my children are NOT normally so excited to tackle housework! With a 100% guarantee I think that Jacobs has come to expect results like these.

Parental involvement and teaching are certainly involved in the process, making the game a family affair.  This technique is particularly useful for children whose love language is ‘quality time’, like my oldest daughter.  When approached with a light heart, and a fun-filled attitude, Les Mess will definitely making cleaning and organizing more fun for the entire family!

Les Mess is available from LesMess.com for $14.95 including shipping within the U.S.

Thanks to game creatrix Leslie Jacobs, I have the opportunity to give away three (3) copies of the Less Mess organizing card game to three (3) separate winners from the U.S. or Canada!

So, how can you win?

CONTEST DETAILS:

To enter visit Les Mess and let me know which cleaning and organizing tasks you need the most help motivating your children to perform.

For additional entries:

1. Subscribe to this blog for updates – see the left hand sidebar. Leave an additional comment letting me know you’ve subscribed (or if you already subscribe).

2. Write a post on your blog promoting and linking to this contest. Leave an additional comment with a link to your post.

3. Add the Quiverfull Family button (see the code box in the right hand sidebar under BUTTON UP!) to your blog’s sidebar, or let me know if you already have the button displayed. Leave an additional comment with a link to your post.

4. Digg, Stumble, Tweet, Facebook or otherwise share this post on a social networking site. Leave an additional comment indicating how you shared this post.

5. Follow me on Twitter or let me know if you are an existing follower.

Each additional step taken counts for 1 additional entry. A total of 6 entries are available if you complete all of these steps. Please leave a separate comment for each entry!

The contest will close at 12 a.m. MST on Wednesday, September 30th, 2009. Three (3) winners will be randomly drawn for Les Mess on Thursday, October 01st, 2009 and notified by email. Please fill your email address in the comment form when you are completing your comment so that I can contact you. The winners must respond with a mailing address within 72 hours of my email, or new winners will be chosen. This contest is open to those living in the US and Canada.

I look forward to seeing God bless three (3) readers with this wonderful card game! Thanks for entering.

CONTEST CLOSED!

Thanks to everyone who entered!  Our winner for the complete Betty Crocker prize pack is Barbara Wright, who is looking forward to trying the brownie mix!  And our winner for the two coupons for free mixes is April, who wants to dig into some chocolate chip cookies!

Congratulations ladies!  These are such good mixes!  Please check again for more contests in the near future!

So many people in my family eat gluten-free.  My mother, two of my sisters, my grandfather, and my six-year-old daughter.  Oh what bliss it was to try out Betty Crocker’s new gluten-free baking mixes!  I’m always the first to admit that I’m not a domestic genius (is that you laughing mom?) and trying to figure out the foreign world of gluten-free baking can be intimidating at the best of times!

Betty Crocker makes it SO easy to whip up a scrumptious cake, batch of cookies, pan of brownies in no time – and the results are always delicious, the texture moist – never crumbly.  We tried the yellow cake mix here at home, and even though my timer didn’t go off, and the cake baked a bit too long, it was still one of the very best gluten-free cakes we’d ever had.  Well, after that I had to share with my family!  True, we did eat the cookies all by ourselves, but the brownies and chocolate cake mix came with us to the city to share all around.

Now, I have to tell you that my mother and younger sister are excellent bakers.  They make scrumptious gluten-free cakes and Ioften enlist their efforts for my daughter’s birthday.  Even they were blown away by the quality of Betty Crocker’s new offerings.  Trust me – we aren’t a mix-oriented family, but if you’re eating gluten-free you can’t miss out on these.  They are terrific, I have no complaints whatsoever.  Great natural flavour, easy to make, fabulous end results.

Ah wait, I do have a complaint, and so does the rest of my family!  Betty Crocker’s new GF mixes aren’t available in Canada!  Though they’re made in an entirely gluten-free facility here in Canada, the product isn’t available here on the shelf.  Please Betty Crocker, please send your baking mix goodness here to Canada!  My entire family told me to share our plea with you….PLEASE!

Ahem.  If you live in the United States, count yourselves blessed!  We might have to make a special trip down south just to pick up some boxes of mix!

Even better, if you live in the U.S. you can enter my contest for a Betty Crocker “Sweet Moments” prize pack that includes all four (4) samples of the dessert mixes, two (2) Free coupons for any of the varieties, a grocery tote bag, magnetic grocery list and pen to make shopping easier!  This is the same sample package that I received from MyBlogSpark to review – thanks very much!

One blessed winner will receive the prize pack, and another will receive two coupons for a free box of gluten-free baking mix of their choice!

AND, even more exciting!  If you live in the U.S. you can call 1-800-446-1898 to request a free coupon for one of the new gluten free mixes and to also receive information about General Mills´ growing set of gluten free products.  These mixes must certainly be the best new baking product of 2009 hands-down.

So, how can you win?

CONTEST DETAILS:

To enter visit Betty Crocker Gluten Free Baking Mixes and let me know which mix you’d most like to try!  If you have any favourite recipes for gluten free baked treats, feel free to share them here as well!

For additional entries:

1. Subscribe to this blog for updates – see the left hand sidebar. Leave an additional comment letting me know you’ve subscribed (or if you already subscribe).

2. Write a post on your blog promoting and linking to this contest. Leave an additional comment with a link to your post.

3. Add the Quiverfull Family button (see the code box in the right hand sidebar under BUTTON UP!) to your blog’s sidebar, or let me know if you already have the button displayed. Leave an additional comment with a link to your post.

4. Digg, Stumble, Tweet, Facebook or otherwise share this post on a social networking site. Leave an additional comment indicating how you shared this post.

5. Follow me on Twitter or let me know if you are an existing follower.

Each additional step taken counts for 1 additional entry. A total of 6 entries are available if you complete all of these steps. Please leave a separate comment for each entry!

The contest will close at 12 a.m. MST on Wednesday, September 23rd, 2009. One winner will be randomly drawn for the Betty Crocker Prize Pack on Thursday, September 24th, 2009 and notified by email. Please fill your email address in the comment form when you are completing your comment so that I can contact you. The winners must respond with a mailing address within 72 hours of my email, or new winners will be chosen. This contest is open to those living in the US.

I look forward to seeing God bless a reader with these wonderful mixes! Thanks for entering.

I just received my Fall 2009 issue of TEACH Magazine, and was reminded to write my review for the Summer issue which focused upon purity.  In truth, I have been slowly savoring this thoughtful issue for months – it’s obvious that much prayer and careful contemplation has gone into this magazine for daughter’s of God who are busy building His kingdom through their roles as wives, mothers, homeschoolers, and homemakers (often in that order!)

If you aren’t a current subscriber to Teach you might be surprised.  This periodical lacks the full-colour, crammed full, glossy, advertisement laden pages of other homeschooling mags.  In fact, it is mostly filled with heartfelt, thoughtful articles, poetry, essays on spiritual development, and updates from the family of ediatrix Lorrie Flem.

The formal theme title is “Purity: In the “Purest Sense of the Word”, and focuses not only on the simpler issues of modesty, but on the deeper issues of cleansing from sin, emotional purity, and filling our hearts with the word of God so that we can think His thoughts after Him – surely the highest degree of purity!  Contributors young and old, from teens to grandma’s shared their hearts and the wisdom that the Lord has graced them with – wisdom that readers such as myself can in turn learn from.

It can be tempting (for me) to slip into religious bondage that focuses more upon external purity than upon the purity of the heart and soul.  God’s desires to turn us from dross into gold in the most secret, hidden places of the heart is so much more important to him than our external appearance – however modest that may be.  Please note that I’m not devaluing modesty – we certainly seek to dress in a way that doesn’t lead others into temptation – but I really appreciated the hearts of the TEACH contributors to draw out the fact that purity is much more than what we wear.

Some of the inclusions that I found the most helpful in the summer issue (ah, summer is almost gone) were Marilyn Boyer’s article about using the word of God through the book of Proverbs as a tool in lighting the path towards spiritual purity, and an anonymous free-form poem “A Portrait of Christ”.  I’ve been aware of the emphasis on teaching Proverbs in the homeschooling community, but it never really ‘clicked’ for me until I read Marilyn’s article.

Now that my Fall copy of the magazine is here I’m so excited to dig in and read the gems that the Lord has led Lorrie and her team of writers to bring to the table in this new issue.

Even though September has just begun, the weather here in Alberta hasn’t been so hot all year!  The sun, the humidity, the heat, they all bring to mind exotic, warmer locales I’ve never visited.  If you’re somewhat like me (not well travelled), you can stille xperience the exotic through Febreze’s Destinations Collection.  The names alone are enough to fire the imagination – Hawaian Aloha, Brazilian Carnaval, and Moroccan Bazaar, not to mention the aromas!

My daughter was completely captivated by the Moroccan Bazaar Noticeables we received.  When it wasn’t plugged in I would often find her carrying the refill around the house and sniffing it!  Something about the warm, spicy combination of ginger and nutmeg really won her over and she kept remarking how much she loved it.  Keep in mind that this child is six-years-old, not exactly the age for critical scent evaluations, but she absolutely adores this aroma.  Thankfully, it’s also available in an Air Effects spray bottle for quick spritzes of freshness throughout the home.

Hawaiian Aloha is a fruity, fresh, citrusy aroma, this scent is available across the Febreze productlines.  We tried out the Air Effects spray bottle, mmm, the Noticeables plug in air freshener, and the candle.  I’m not sure if my children are a bit unusual, or if these scents are really great, but I had to retrieve this one from my three-year-old many times as she packed it around the house sniffing it.  We all have our favourites!  Good thing there are so many aromas to choose from.

Another fruity scent in the exotics line is Brazilian Carnaval.  Available in the Air Effects Spray and the odor-absorbing candle, the deep, rich, berry colour combined with a lush, fruit aroma that revolves around a core of acai berries (I’ve never smelled one, so I’ll have to take their word for it!)  I like to spread the candles around the house – not only do they look great in their glass cups, but they also smell great, providing just a hint of aroma even when unlit.

I have to admit though, my absolute favourite from the latest shipment of Febreze products for me was the  Morning Walk/Cleansing Rain  Noticeable I received.  This is a classic Febreze scent that I’ve never tried before, and I’m so glad I had the chance to.  As corny as it might sound, it reminds me a favourite deodorant I wore in high school.  Crisp, fresh, and free from any cloying floral overtones – this all purpose scent is one I reach for again and again!

For my Canadian readers, you can find the Canadian version of the Destinations Collection here. Canadians can also find some great coupons for savings on Febreze products at Save.ca.  Just select your province and you’ll find coupons for $3.00 off the Noticeables, and $1.50 off the candles!