Faith and Family Reviews - Product reviews you can trust!

Back to School with Claratin

Posted by Professor on September 21, 2013
in Uncategorized

“As a member of the Children’s Claritin Mom Crew, I receive product samples and promotional items to share and use as I see fit. No monetary compensation has taken place and any opinions expressed by me are honest and reflect my actual experience.”

I have a son who is an allergy sufferer. He suffers not only from seasonal allergies but dog allergy as well. Claritin has been our lifesaver! Here are some allergy tips to remember during the back to school season!

Back to School Allergy Tips

1. Be sure to have Children’s Claritin, the #1 pediatrician-recommended non-drowsy allergy brand, on hand!

2. Multi-vitamins are building blocks to having a strong immune system. Make taking a multi-vitamin part of your child’s daily routine.

3. Let there be light! Mold doesn’t like sunlight, so try to keep your curtains open during the day. Should be easy during the summer months!

4. Did you know that most pillows trap allergens, dust mites, and bacteria? Monitor the cleanliness of the pillow your child with allergies sleeps on and replace if necessary.

5. Back to school season means lots of laundry for many moms. Be sure to remove laundry from the washing machine promptly. Allowing wet clothes to sit in the washer means mold can quickly grow there.

6. Monitor pollen counts and adjust outdoor before and after school activities accordingly. Dry, windy days can be particularly high in pollen.

7. Showering or bathing at the end of the day as opposed to the morning can be helpful in removing allergens from body surfaces and hair.

8. Stay hydrated! Always send your child to school with a bottle of water. Drinking lots of clear fluids through the day can help get rid of toxins and flush out body.

9. Peak pollen production typically occurs in early morning, so try to plan outside activities at other times of the day.

Also do not forget to vote Play with Children’s Claritin & KaBOOM! www.facebook.com/Claritin

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A Surprise for Lily

Posted by html404 on September 19, 2013
in Books, Family Stuff, Girl Stuff, Kids Stuff, Reviews, Uncategorized

Faith and Family Reviews received the following product in exchange for writing a review. While we consider it a privilege to receive products to review, our reviews are our honest opinion and thoughts of the product.

This review was written by my second oldest, “B”.

A Surprise for Lily is another great book. The fourth in the series written by Mary Ann Kinsinger and Suzanne Woods Fisher. I really like the Lily Lapp books. Lily has grown and matured so much throughout the series. A lot happens in this installment.

Lily’s cousin, Hannah, and her family moves away and her grandpa passes away. I really felt bad about it for Lily because Hannah was her best friend. Lily misses them very much. Lily’s brother, Joseph, finds/gets a dog which he names Dozer, short for Bulldozer. Joseph loves his pup and makes excuses for every naughty puppy thing he does, such as: stealing boots, pulling clothes off the line and digging in the garden. Lily does not quite appreciate Dozer’s talent for getting into mischief. 🙂 I like Dozer, but could understand why Lily found him annoying. He caused Lily and Mrs. Lapp an awful lot of extra work.

The long awaited baby “sister” arrives and turns out to be a new brother, much to Lily’s disappointment. Poor Lily, she waited so long for a sister.

Other news, Danny started going to school with Lily and Joseph, a new family comes to town, the Hershbergers, who have six children (3 boys and 3 girls). One of the boys, Harvey, who is nine and a bit of a trouble maker…..until Lily’s mother helped the new teacher (Teacher Judith) with English classes and outwits him. He suddenly never acts up again. I don’t think I could have treated Harvey the way Mrs. Lapp did. She did an amazing job.

Aaron Yoder still plagues Lily but she, Aaron, and Harvey actually became friends in this book, after the boys helped Lily in two incidents – both involving Dozer, who she learned to appreciate and love. I loved the fact that Harvey, Aaron and Lily became friends, it showed how much Lily had grown up.

Two thumbs up from “B”!

“Available August 2013 at your favorite bookseller from Revell, a division of Baker Publishing Group.”

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Farming is Hazardous

Posted by html404 on September 18, 2013
in Animals, Family Stuff, Farm Stuff, Money & Finances, Safety

This is a featured post.

I have a farmer friend who gets after me each time she comes to our farm. You see, I tend to wear crocs around the farm. Yep, even around our hooved animals who weigh 1200-1500 lbs. Not ideal to say the least but my feet really like to breathe in the summer months and rubber boots or steel toed boots just haven’t seemed necessary or appealing to wear. And no, that’s not my fashion sense speaking, it’s my comfort level doing the talking.

When my friend was here to help with fencing over a month ago a t-post nearly fell on my foot. 🙁 Not a good thing. A couple of years ago while working on another farm I had a t-post go through the bottom of my croc giving me a pretty good cut all because I tried to put the t-post into the ground with my foot, seriously of all things to do, but I did it as an automatic reaction. Farming is hazardous if you are not careful. A lot can go wrong on a farm. Thankfully we do not own any heavy equipment yet, but the large animals pose a risk because you never know what they can or will do. It’s not like we have medical insurance or life insurance that covers accidents, for that matter. We don’t even have a retirement fund come to think of it. It’s not like we view these things as unimportant, we just haven’t had the budget for them in the past five years, not with two lay offs under our belt. However, it is a goal of ours to get these things in place as soon as our income increases to the point of making it possible.

We do have farm insurance, which is helpful and provides some kind of coverage. Nevertheless, it’s a tad bit worrisome at times thinking of all the things that can go wrong when we lack other insurance coverage or funds to cover extra expenses that could occur.

Do you have life insurance? What about medical insurance in light of Obamacare? Are you preparing for retirement?

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Alphie the Squid App Review

Posted by Brande on September 17, 2013
in Downloads, Fun Stuff, Kids Stuff, Products for Dad, Products for Mom, Reviews, Techie Stuff, Technology/Electronics, Uncategorized

Alphie the Squid App Review

Help Alphie the Squid to grow up big and strong on this new app. Guide Alphie through the maze of the ocean floor, along the way you need to watch out for riptides, sharks and other obstacles. Alphie needs eat along the way to help him battle the riptides, there are little fish along the way for Alphie. You earn points by finding treasure and treasure fish!

The animation of this app is vibrant, inviting, & funny and the music is great! This app is addicting for adults, yet very friend for kids. This Alphie helps kids with swiping action as well as learning about fish.

Check out the Alphie Trailer on YouTube!

Alphie is available for iPhone, iPad, iPod, and android products.

Don’t forget to like Alphie on Facebook, Twitter, and Google+.

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Why is Organic Dairy So Important? #FightPesticides

Posted by html404 on September 17, 2013
in All Natural Products, Family Stuff, Farm Stuff, Food and Treats, Health, Health and Nutrition, Home, Organic, Safety, Uncategorized

This post is part of my application to become a Stoneyfield ambassador and I will receive Stoneyfield coupons for my participation. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

Why is Organic Dairy So Important?

I know our family knows why organic dairy is so important but thought I’d share with you our reasons for wanting to eat and drink organic dairy to the point of owning our own cow. As you know, organic anything can be expensive, especially when buying for ten people. A huge reason for our buying a cow is so we could provide fresh milk for our family (and animals because we do share!). You also know from our Mariano’s shop, organic milk is around $7.99 per gallon at Whole Foods and Mariano’s. However, our reason for feeding her organic feed and hay is to be free of harmful pesticides (and GMOs – Genetically Modified Organisms) often used on crops. Now that we have our own pasture and hay, we know without a doubt our milk is organic, free of harmful GMOs. We have been supplementing Miss Moo with certified organic feed because when we brought her home she was underweight and want to fatten her up so she’s a good weight for her age and stage of lactation. We also know exactly what Miss Moo is fed, how she how the milk is handled and how she is cared for. We like knowing where our food comes from, and for our large family that means we are raising our own at this stage of our lives.

Don’t just take my word for it. Research it for yourself.

Resources:

http://www.100daysofrealfood.com/2012/06/07/milk-101-whole-raw-organic-low-fat-etc/

http://www.utne.com/Environment/organic-milk-USDA-amendment.aspx#axzz2f5HSUr2e

http://www.realmilk.com/

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Welch’s Share What’s Good!

Posted by Professor on September 16, 2013
in Articles, Community Issues, Contests, Coupons, Uncategorized

“I participated in a campaign on behalf of Mom Central Consulting for Welch’s. I received a promotional item as a thank you for participating.”

Welch’s believes in the magic of “kitchen table” moments, and has been helping families enjoy them for generations. In the time it takes to drink a glass of juice or share a sandwich, a special moment can happen. That’s why Welch’s just launched a new movement called “Share what’s good™” It’s all about sharing those special moments that occur each day with family, friends and loved ones – whether it’s at home or on the go. At Sharewhatsgood.com you’ll find a variety of great content from fun family ideas to delicious recipes. You can share photos of your every-day moments and see how others are doing the same.

In our family we share every meal at the kitchen table. This allows us to have a bit of quality time just for the family and connect with each other for more than a few minutes each day. It is also a time of reflection and disconnection! By this I mean reflecting on the day/week and disconnecting from technology! Enjoying a meal and good conversation is so important in today’s fast paced technological world. It is so nice to sit down and just chat without a technological device “on”.

I hope that you can enjoy a meal once a day or even once a month with your family to connect! Thinking beyond the traditional family it is also nice to gather with friends to establish a relationship at the table of fellowship and friendship! I know we gather with some church friends and other people in some of the areas that we minister to in our church at least once a month. (We used to do this weekly after church; until we had children then it became too hard). Establishing fellowship with our community is very important to us…in our home this is just an extension of the family!

So whether you sit down daily, weekly, or monthly…and whether it is with immediate, extended, or community family …TAKE THE TIME to relax and enjoy some time to SHARE WHAT IS GOOD! …And make sure to take Welch’s along for the ride!

The “Share what’s good” Photo Contest Details:

As part of the Share what’s good campaign, Welch’s has launched the “Share Your Moments” photo contest! From 9/16 to 10/25 upload a photo of your favorite family moment for a chance to win $5,000! While there is only one grand prize, everyone who enters will get a $1.50 coupon for Welch’s 100% Grape Juice – or $2.00 if you share the news. Visit Sharewhatsgood.com to enter.

Please Visit the following social media sites to learn more about Welch’s

Welch’s Facebook page: www.facebook.com/welchsgrapes

Welch’s on Twitter: @Welchs

Welch’s on Instagram: @Welchs

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Moms.com is Live!

Posted by html404 on September 14, 2013
in Encouragement for Moms, Family Stuff, Miscarriage, Nursing and Breastfeeding, Parenting, Pregnancy and Birth, Pregnancy Loss, Products for Mom, Reviews, Uncategorized

A couple months ago I applied to be a part of a new beta moms forum called Moms.com. I thought it would be fun to be part of a new website for moms as well as earn a little extra money on the side. It has been a lot of fun getting to know the “beta” mom group as we have created content for the site, which is full of topics from trying to conceive to pregnancy, babyhood, toddler, preschooler, big kid to just for mom stuff. In just over a month of working together, I believe we have laughed, empathized and cried together/for one another through sharing our lives and experiences as mothers – from the first day of school memories to reminiscing about our children’s births and so much more. Unlike other mom type sites, Moms.com encourages moms to be themselves and enjoy the daily sharing of our lives without harsh words and criticism for individual parenting choices. All of the mom members so far come from a diverse background and are a variety of ages, yet we have come together to unite as we share our thoughts and experiences about motherhood, as well as encourage each other in the journey of being a mom.

The Site

The site does require you to join if you want to participate in the conversations. Otherwise the site is very much public, not private. Though I just learned they are working on privacy controls, to be released soon, so this is about to change. When you join you will receive an email confirmation with your login information.

The Moms.com site has different sections such as Mom Moments where we can share photos or animated images in a card form with a few words as a description or caption. This section can be used to share photos of family, write an encouraging or humorous note.

The Best of Mom section is a catalog of topics where there are questions broken down and sub-categorized according to the different stages of Motherhood.

The Find Moms search button on the site allows you to follow other moms, look for moms in your geographical location or for moms with children the same age as yours.

Join Now!

Moms.com went live to the public this week and is open to new members. You can join now!

Follow Moms.com on:

Facebook

Twitter

Google+

Hope to see some of you there!

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Robi Comb Review

Posted by Professor on September 12, 2013
in All Natural Products, Health, Parenting, Personal Care Products, Reviews, Uncategorized

Head lice problem? No worries ROBI COMB can help!

Robi Comb is Pesticide FREE, Chemical FREE, Oil Free, and Reusable 100’s of times!

What is Robi Comb?

From the makers of LiceGuard Robi Comb is a patented product that detects and destroys Lice on contact! Simply comb through DRY hair and when the electronic Robi Comb contacts lice, they get zapped and die!

What are the benefits?

Detects Lice – Just comb through dry hair
Destroys Lice on Contact
No Chemicals / Non-Toxic
No Mess, No Gels, No Oils
No Odor or Fragrance
Use Anywhere and Anytime on Dry Hair
Reusable and Economical

Remember that the Robi Comb is Safe and Effective
Parents are becoming wary of using dangerous chemical gels, oils and toxic shampoos that poison lice, because of serious health risks! These treatments use chemicals that are harmful to living things, and may cause harm to your children.

In addition, although lice can build up a resistance to pesticides used in other lice treatments, lice cannot become resistant to the Robi Comb. The Robi Comb works when chemicals shampoos fail.

VERY ECONOMICAL

The Robi Comb is also a very economical way to kill lice fast. Harsh chemical treatments and toxic shampoos cost between $9 – $15 a treatment. Most shampoos suggest between 2-4 treatments per out-break, per person. Compare that to 1 multi-use Robi Comb that can be used over and over, as often as you like. The Robi Comb can be stored and used repeatedly by the entire family!

Our Robi Comb review:

We are very fortunate to have NEVER (knock on wood) experienced a lice outbreak in our house. But let me tell you … if we ever come in contact with the little buggers ROBI COMB would be our first course of action. I am very leery of lice products that leech chemicals directly into the scalp…cannot be good right? The Robi Comb is a great alternative. It is electronic and non-invasive…just comb through the hair and zap the little buggers! Even though I use the word electronic and “zapping” the product does not hurt…at most it just tingles.

I also liked that the teeth of the comb are detachable from the product so it is easily cleaned and sanitized for the next user or future uses. For heavy users or people who like to keep things separate… you can buy replacement teeth and each person in your house could have their own “teeth” that just pops into the unit…if you are so inclined (much cheaper than buying a unit for each family member).

Overall this is a neat product and I am glad that a company has come out with an alternative to the harsh lice treatments that are currently on the market. I also noticed that the product is readily available at the local Walgreens or CVS…so it is SO convenient to get…no ordering online or waiting for shipments…simply go to your local store! Of course the product is available on line to our online shoppers… visit robicomb.com for their whole product line and ordering information!

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Homing Pigeon – Wordless Wednesday

Posted by html404 on September 11, 2013
in Animals, Family Stuff, Farm Stuff, Uncategorized, Wordless Wednesday

A couple weeks ago we had a visitor land on our car. It was a homing pigeon. It has a tag on his leg that one of my daughters looked up and determined it was a racing pigeon from Nebraska. It is very friendly and allows the children to handle it. It has taken up residence with our broilers, which concerns me because it is eating 18% grower feed. What if it gains so much weight it cannot fly? Is that even possible? If it’s too heavy, how will it fly back home to its owner? And why has it decided to “vacation” here? Lots of questions. The children are loving “their” new pet though.

What is a Homing Pigeon?

When I googled homing pigeon images not many of them were the color of “ours”.

According to HomingPigeon.com a homing pigeon is:

Homing Pigeon – Aves Columbiformes Columbidae Columba Livia

Sixteen ounces of muscle and feather, at times on the wing for twelve hours, flying at sustained speeds of 30 to 60 miles per hour.
Why?
To return home where a special relationship exists between man and bird.

Wikipedia states the sport of homing pigeons was established 3000 years ago. The American Racing Pigeon Union says that in the late 1800’s homing pigeons were imported from Europe. More information about American racing pigeons can be found on www.pigeon.org

I don’t claim to be a homing pigeon expert but I hope that wets your appetite to discover more about these charming birds.

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My Husband Lost His Job….Again

Posted by html404 on September 10, 2013
in Business, Family Stuff, Home, Money & Finances, News Worthy, Saving Money

Five and a half years ago my husband came home through our front door at about 9am, which was uncharacteristically early considering he left work at 5:30-6:00AM and usually returned at 3:30-4:00PM. When I asked him what he was doing home so early, he replied, “I was laid off.” It was such a shock. Robert had worked at the store since he was in junior high. We worked for the first owner from 1981-2005. Then when the second owner bought the shop in 2005, Robert at times felt he had less job security. But seriously, we never saw the lay off coming.

Robert was out of work for about 20 months. I cleaned houses for a couple of months and started our virtual assistant business. Then his original boss, whom he had worked for over 20 years called him saying he had a new buyer for the store. You see, the second owner still owed the original owner money so when he went out of business in 2009, the store reverted back to the original owner. Clear as mud, eh?

He’s trying hard not to crack a smile in this photo in case you didn’t notice. 😉

My Husband Lost His Job….Again

We accepted the job because we had high hopes of the store succeeding under new ownership.

This current lay off was better in the fact we knew it was coming. Robert’s job allowed him to see the numbers in the reports he ran and I’d say early in the summer he called it by saying he gave the shop until mid-August. He was a little off in that he had a job until about the end of August, as he was officially done a week and a half ago.

It’s was a topsy, curvy ride waiting for the axe to fall, so to speak. It is a bittersweet end to a job Robert enjoyed. He really liked this last owner and we thought the store would make it but alas, the industry has changed so much with the advent of the internet. Mom and Pop stores cannot compete with their distributors or online competition. Just look at your home town’s main street. If you have empty store fronts like we do, you’ll see what we are living.

We are not sure what God’s plan is in all of this. It is definitely stretching us.

Robert is applying to jobs. I’m working more. I just learned that I have a job as a hostess of a new moms forum, which will help bring in a little extra money. We are trying to get caught up around the farm while Robert is home…but that is a never ending task because there is always something to do!

Have you ever been unemployed or faced a lay off? How did you survive?

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