Stuff Parents Need

Easing the chaos in the nest, one find at a time.

Goodbye Detergent: No More Bacteria on Kitchen Sponges

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I like to think that I am regularly bringing you really cool products that help make your life a little easier. That’s my goal! Today is no exception. I’m here to bring some help to all those dishes you have piled up in the kitchen (and if you are a parent and your kitchen is clean, I can only assume that you just don’t use it!). Get ready for a total revolution in the world of kitchen sponges!

bacteria kitchen sponges

goodbye detergent bacteria kitchen sponges There are two very cool products put out by a company called Goodbye Detergent that I want to talk about today. The first is called the Spaghetti Scrub. This is a super cool dish cleaner that is made from corn or peach pits (depending on the particular one you buy). It can be used for several months before it needs to be replaced. Mold and bacteria don’t grow on it (unlike nasty sponges) and it removes most gunk without any soap. If you have grease on your dishes, you need just the tiniest little dab of soap to get the job done. It is SO FREAKIN’ COOL!

The second product we love is the Stainless Steel Kitchen Cleaning Pad. We have fabulous stainless steel cookware, and we love everything about it EXCEPT for its cleaning regimen. They can’t go in the dishwasher, and they require this harsh chemical stuff called Bar Keeper’s Solution in order to keep their shiny luster. The Kitchen Cleaning Pad gets this pots and pans totally clean with no chemicals. It has totally rocked our world, and we’ll be using these for the rest of our days, for sure!

Check out the video, where my husband (the chief dishwasher) shows you both items in action!

We are HUGE fans of Goodbye Detergent products, and I enthusiastically recommend them to anyone who wants to eliminate (or at least severely reduce) the chemicals they use when cleaning dishes, or if you are looking to get rid of your nasty kitchen sponges. They can be purchased at several places online, including Amazon.

Win it!: One lucky Stuff Parents Need reader is going to get a set of Spaghetti Scrubs (one corn, one peach!). The contest will run until July 15th at 7:509pm CST when a winner will be selected using Random.org. The winner will have 48 hours to respond to their email before the prize is forfeited and a new winner is selected. Only one entrant per household, please. Open to residents of the U.S.

Mandatory entry: Tell me one other Goodbye Detergent product not mentioned in this review that you’d also like to try.

Additional entries:
1. “Like” Stuff Parents Need on Facebook
2. “Like” Goodbye Detergent on Facebook
3. Follow Stuff Parents Need on Twitter
4. Subscribe to the Goodbye Detergent blog
5. Subscribe to Stuff Parents Need by RSS, email or Google Friend Connect (only one extra entry, even if you subscribe multiple ways)

Disclosure: I was sent complimentary products in order to facilitate my review. The opinions expressed here are strictly my own. This post may contain affiliate links. 

Do You “Love Loud?” (GIVEAWAY!!!)

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Blog friends, I’m happy to introduce you to a Memphis mom with a mission. Jennifer started her business, Love Loud Designs, because she believes that is is so important for the people in your life to know, without a doubt, in good times and bad, that they are loved. She creates hand-stamped jewelry so that you can proudly display the names of the most precious people in your lives. I just love the idea of loving loud. Jennifer is absolutely right that the people who are your world should never doubt it!

Jennifer sent me a necklace stamped with “Darah.” It is such a treasure, because as you can imagine, I can’t exactly find, “Darah” gear at the mall or even online. My child has an unusual name, so anytime I want to get her name put on something, it will have to be a custom order.

I have to say, I didn’t realize how special this necklace would be to me until I received it. People have commented on the piece, and that’s always an opportunity to talk about my little love. I also think of her throughout the day any time I touch the necklace. I absolutely love it.

Love Loud Designs pieces are sterling silver. Each charm Jennifer makes comes with a ball chain necklace (either 16 or 18 inches in length). Her pieces range from $28-$60, varying by the size of the piece and if you add extra things such as charms or birthstones. Love Loud Designs is set up on Etsy and on Facebook. Jennifer has some examples of items she makes, but if you want to place an order, just send her an email through Etsy or Facebook with what you are looking for, and she’ll be able to quote you a price for your particular needs.

Jennifer has a passion for making jewelry, and she even took a class on metal working so that she could produce pieces of the highest quality for others. She loves being able to offer folks the opportunity to personalize gifts in a way that is original and fun.

Jennifer offers two fonts – lowercase script font and an uppercase gothic font. She also makes leather and beaded bracelets. I love the combination of metal and leather, personally! Basically, Jennifer is a very creative person, and she’d love to work with you to create a one-of-a-kind piece that you or a loved one with cherish. I know I will wear my Darah necklace for years to come!

Also of note: Jennifer is currently being featured on another blog (and it is one of my very favorites!). Check her out on The Makeshift Revolution (and while you are there, subscribe…it’s a blog you will most definitely love!).

Win it!: One lucky Stuff Parents Need reader is going to get the same necklace I received! Your necklace will have the first name of your choice on it (since I suppose you don’t really want a “Darah” necklace!). The contest will run until July 13th at 7:59pm CST when a winner will be selected using Random.org. The winner will have 48 hours to respond to their notification email before the prize is forfeited and a new winner is selected. Limit one entrant per household, please. Open to residents of the United States.

Mandatory entry: Tell me the name (or initials, if you prefer) you want on your necklace (choose wisely, as you will get what you select here!).

Additional entries:
1. Subscribe to the Love Loud Designs blog
2. “Like” Love Loud Designs on Facebook

3. Add Love Loud Designs to your Etsy favorites
4. Follow Stuff Parents Need on Twitter
5. Tweet about this giveaway (once/day allowed)
6. Subscribe to Stuff Parents Need by email, RSS or Google Friend Connect (only one extra entry, even if you subscribe multiple ways).
7. “Like” Stuff Parents Need on Facebook
8. If you are a blogger, add my button to your blog and send me the url so I can see it

Be sure to enter my other giveaways, found on the sidebar of my homepage!

Disclosure: I received a complimentary product for review purposes. The opinions expressed here are strictly my own.

Hand Painted Wooden Letters

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There are SO MANY adorable ways to embellish a child’s room. I spent hours upon hours making plans for Darah’s nursery. I think that process is so much fun, especially for the first one! I can’t imagine that I’ll have the kind of time I had this time to plan the next nursery in a few years.


I have so much gratitude in my heart for all of the crafty/creative/artistic folks out there who produce such beautiful products. I don’t possess any of these gifts. No, really. I’m the polar opposite of crafty when it comes to my skill level with scissors, glue guns, sewing machines, or drawing pads. Thank goodness that there are people who can help a girl like me out when she wants to do something cool or cute in her home!

I want to introduce you to one such company that helps bring magic and fun into a child’s room. Artiwood Letters is an Australian-based company that makes hand painted wooden letters with the coolest characters on them! I recently won a giveaway hosted by The Candid Reviewer, and was able to get DARAH in the precious fairy letters! I absolutely love them. I can’t decide where I want to put them at the moment. I’m thinking about putting them on her door so that they can be seen everytime we go in her room!Artiwood Letters are handpainted with lead-free paints, which makes them totally child-friendly. Each letter has a self-adhesive patch on the back, which makes it easy to stick them to most any surface. I think they offer a great way to give a personalized gift to a child. What is more fun than having your name on your wall, and using letters that are decorated using animals, fairies, dolphins, dinosaurs or koalas! They are also affordable, at $3.95/letter plus $9.50 for shipping worldwide.

Win it!: Artiwood Letters wants to give you the chance to add something wonderful and handmade to your child’s room decor. One of you will win up to 8 letters in your choice of design! The contest will run until July 12th at 7:59pm CST when a winner will be selected using Random.org. The winner will be emailed and will have 48 hours to respond before the prize is forfeited and a new winner is selected. Open to residents worldwide!

Mandatory entry: Tell me the animal used in the alphabet design on the letter that begins your first name (for example: my name is Tiffany, so my entry would be tiger).

Additional entries:
1. Subscribe to Stuff Parents Need by email, RSS or Google Friend Connect (only one extra entry, even if you subscribe multiple ways).
2. “Like” Stuff Parents Need on Facebook
3. Follow Stuff Parents Need on Twitter
4. Follow Artiwood Letters on Twitter
4. If you have a blog, add my button to your site and send me the url so that I can see it

Be sure to check out my other reviews and giveaways (listed under “current giveaways” on the sidebar of my main page)

Is Your Child The Cutest Kid?

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Naturally, I think I have an adorable child…every mom thinks that, right?! I have had people suggest to me that Darah get professional head shots so that she can be in a Baby Gap ad, be the next Gerber baby, or perhaps grace the cover of Parents magazine. I appreciate all the kind words, and sometimes I do wonder if maybe, just maybe, I could get her a few gigs and help fill up that (currently empty) college savings fund for her. But then I think about stage moms and I get grossed out and let the idea go.

But now I’m hearing about this website called The Cute Kid. They have a Cute Kid of the Year Photo Contest. Here’s how it works:

  • You submit a photo of your baby (no charge)
  • By signing up (for free) and submitting a photo, you get a free 8×10 canvas photo. Sweet!
  • A panel of judges (industry professionals) will judge photos. Those that are submitted free of charge don’t have a guarantee of being seen by talent scouts (though they might).
  • For a fee of $19.95, you can enter the contest. There are monthly prizes totaling over $5,000 and a grand prize each year of $25,000. Hello college fund! It is also worth noting that folks who enter the contest get a free subscription to Parents magazine and a free 11 x 14 canvas. I’m thinking that’s a pretty great deal. You get great stuff, and who knows? Your kid might actually be the cutest, in which case you will make some serious cash! 🙂

What I like about this competition is that it doesn’t require you to go anywhere and have your child actively compete against other children or have to “be on” for the judges. You just submit a photo of your beautiful child (and we all have beautiful children), enjoy your magazine and your canvas photo, and anything else is a bonus.

What do you think? Want to give it a try with me?

Disclosure: This post contains affiliate links. The opinions are expressly my own. Yay cute kids and free stuff!

How to Baby Proof with Style

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In the first year of life with a baby, it feels as though you get an entirely new child about every 3 months, at least in terms of all the things that they are able to do! There have been several “game changers” in the last 11 months for Darah, but none of them have been more radical than when she started crawling. We thought that she had us on our toes before, but we had no idea how life was about to change! We had to figure out how to baby proof, and fast.

Once Darah finally got the hang of crawling, she started zooming all over the house. I imagine that she’s checking out all the places that she’s had her eyes on for months. It must be so amazing to FINALLY be able to get to whatever it is you want to see/touch/taste/slobber on.

We had done some baby proofing here and there over the past few months, but only once Darah started crawling did we realize the full extent of our baby-proofing needs. Suddenly, the house has become one huge danger zone, with sharp corners, wobbly objects and off-limits substances EVERYWHERE. It is unbelievable.

how to baby-proof with style

We inherited some baby-proofing products from relatives, but we also needed to get some ourselves. First, let me just say that getting “the good stuff” in the world of baby-proofing isn’t cheap. But you don’t want to go too cheap on the very items that are supposed to keep your baby safe, right? Second, everything related to baby-proofing is U-G-L-Y. It’s all white and plastic. This works for our white buffet table in the dining room, but that’s it. All the other baby-proofing items look awful.

how to baby proof with rhoost edge Fortunately, a company called Rhoost is working on this problem! I had the opportunity to try out the edge, which is a screw and adhesive free way to round out those sharp corner (and believe me, you have no idea how many sharp corners are in your house until you have a little one toddling around!). We find this product to be effective without looking terrible. In fact, we don’t really notice it too much, at all, which is ideal. I really like the fact that it is easy (for adults) to take on and off…this makes it easy to take with you when you are traveling to places that might not be baby-proofed!

how to baby proof with rhoost sling Rhoost also makes a really cool product called the sling, which keeps those cabinet doors shut tight. It comes in black or brown, which will compliment most cabinet colors. Great idea, Rhoost! I definitely want to get a set for our kitchen cabinets.

Buy It!: The Edge retails for $14.99 for a set of 4, and the Sling retails for $9.99 for a set of 4. The prices are fair and the way they look is oh-so-nice. They can be purchased on Amazon.

Win It!: One lucky Stuff Parents Need reader is going to get a 4 pack of the Sling! All right! The contest will run until July 11th at 7:59pm CST when a winner will be drawn using Random.org. The winner will be emailed (be sure to have your email address in your profile or leave it in the comment) and will have 48 hours to respond before the prize is forfeited and a new winner is drawn. Limit one entrant per household, please. Open to residents of the United States.

Mandatory Entry: Tell me one item that needs to be baby-proofed in your home.

Additional entries:
1. Subscribe to my blog via email, RSS or Google friend connect (only one extra entry, even if you subscribe multiple ways).
2. Subscribe to the Rhoost blog
3. Follow me on Twitter
4. Follow Rhoost on Twitter
5. “Like” Stuff Parents Need on Facebook
6. If you have a blog, add my button to your blog roll, and send me a link so that I can see it.

Be sure to check out my other current giveaways (listed on the sidebar of my homepage).

Disclosure: I received a product sample in order to facilitate my review. The opinions expressed here are strictly my own. This post may contain affiliate links at no cost to you. 

Wet Bags: A Cloth Diapering Necessity (GIVEAWAY!!!)

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In our cloth diapering journey, we have discovered that you really need something called a wet bag. A wet bag is like a laundry bag for your cloth diapers. It has a waterproof inner-lining and it zips up to keep those unfortunate odors at bay until it is time to do laundry. Wet bags come in a variety of sizes, from small ones designed to hold 1-2 diapers (great for taking with you when you run errands around town) to a bag that will hold 5-6 diapers, all the way up to large bags that will hold up to 2 days worth of cloth diapers.

wet bag for cloth diapers with dragons on it When I was looking at wet bag options, I knew I wanted to go big first. I got connected with Michelle, the owner of a terrific WAHM (work at home mom) company called Sewing Mom Just Accessories, Etc. (SMJAE). She had some fun prints available on her site, and one, in particular, really caught my eye. Check out this fabulous print with dragons on it! SOOOO cute! Michelle had a small bag advertised with this pattern, but I contacted her to see if she could make a large. She had enough fabric, so we were in business! This goes to show that with Michelle, if you have a special request, just get in touch with her and she’ll let you know if she can do it!

Michelle made the bag in just a few days, and then sent it my way. When it arrived, I was pleased to discover that the fabric had been pre-washed to prevent shrinkage. The bag looked absolutely fantastic. The seams all look tight and professionally done, and the zipper is secure. I have already washed the bag 5 times, and it has held up beautifully. I’ve also loaded it up with diapers, and it has held up against the weight of them just fine.

Right now I am sending this wet bag with Darah to daycare and emptying it out each evening. I will eventually be getting a medium wet bag for daycare, and I’ll be keeping the “dragon bag” (as I call it) at home to hold all the dirty diapers that come back home over a 2 day period (including the diapers we’ll be using on her at home). I think that you can get by with just one wet bag if your child goes to daycare, but it is easier if you have 2 (or even 3…with one for your daytime errands).

We’ve been cloth diapering for a while now, and haven’t had a wet bag. Trust me, it is a big improvement to the entire system to get one! We were just putting the dirty diapers on top of our washing machine in the laundry room, and that definitely made it a stinky place. Keeping your diapers in a wet bag helps reduce the “ick” factor that keeps many people from trying cloth. And I found that the wet bag does a good job of containing the overall odor. I’m not going to sugar-coat it, folks. Dirty diapers smell bad. Just sayin’.

If you are looking for a wet bag, I know from first-hand experience that Michelle offers quality products with cute designs at reasonable prices. Support a WAHM and make a purchase from her. Her small wet bags start at $9.99, and you can email her for prices for larger bags. I am currently obsessing over this wet bag…the print has robots at camp on it. I don’t even have the words to describe how cute this is, folks!

Win It!: Michelle is ready to help one lucky Stuff Parents Need reader get their cloth diapering adventure (or any other adventure with kids!) in check with a small custom wet bag in your choice of prints! The contest will run until July 10th at 7:59pm CST when a winner will be selected using Random.org. The winner will be emailed and will have 48 hours to respond before the prize will be forfeited and a new winner will be selected. Open to residents of the United States. Only one entrant per household, please.

Mandatory Entry: Tell me the fabric you will select if you win, and choose wisely, as the winner will get what they choose for this entry!(you can scroll over each fabric to see its number, and you can just write that down as the choice).

Additional entries:

1. Subscribe to my blog via email, RSS or Google Friend Connect (one extra entry total, even if you subscribe multiple ways)

2. Tell me one other item SMJAE offers that you also like

3. Follow Stuff Parents Need on Twitter

4. “Like” Stuff Parents Need on Facebook

5. If you are a blogger, put my new button on my site and leave me a link so I can see it

6. Tweet about this giveaway (you may tweet once/day, and your entry must include a link to your tweet)

Be sure to check out my other current reviews and giveaways (listed on the sidebar of my home page).

Disclosure: I received no compensation for this post. I paid for this wet bag, but I did receive a discount. The opinions expressed here are strictly my own.

How Do I Find a Babysitter?

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Have you heard about Sittercity? I’m mulling over joining, and I’m curious to hear if anyone who reads this blogs has tried it yet.
Don’t know what it is? Sittercity is America’s largest and most trusted site for matching parents with local babysitters and nannies as well as pet sitters, senior care providers and tutors. Basically, people with sitting experience of various types create profiles where they list their age, experience level, education, expected pay for service, references, a photo and some information about themselves. They also note if a sitter has completed a background check!

You can go to the website and type in your zip code to see who in your area is registered. Being able to contact the people of interest to you does require that you become a member. Membership is $99 annually. You can also pay by the month, but there’s a $35 sign up fee if you go that route, so the annual membership is the deal.

I’m really tempted to give this a try because you can try it out for FREE for 7 days. I think that’s awesome! You never know…you might just find your perfect babysitter during your free trial week! 🙂

Please let me know if you decide to give it a try! I think I might take the leap. Now I just have to think about where Tim and I would go on a date if we hired a sitter!

Also be sure to check out their pay calculator. This is helpful for me, because I REALLY wish I could find an amazing babysitter who liked to be paid with chocolate chip cookies and hugs! Turns out, they need $10/hour MINIMUM in Memphis. Drats.

Disclosure: This post contains affiliate links.

Emeals Meal Planning Service Review

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I’ve talked before on this blog about what a challenge it is to cook at home every day. We are on a fairly tight budget, so eating out often isn’t really an option. But that doesn’t mean that we magically have time to plan our meals out every week and prepare them nightly while also trying to feed Darah and start her nighttime routine. Even though I try to make a menu for the week, I often will leave a crucial ingredient off of the grocery list, which throws everything into a downward spiral and Tim heads out the door to pick up takeout or we just turn to our boxes of cereal. I’ve also run into the problem of planning a pretty decent menu, and getting to the store only to realize that some of my key ingredients are either unavailable or ridiculously expensive (our Kroger is seriously lacking in the produce and cheese departments, as well as the specialty meats).

I wanted to tell you about a really cool online meal planning service that helps remedy every problem but the actual food preparation (sorry, the computer can’t do the cooking for you!). emeals is a menu planning service that plans a week’s worth of dinners for your family. And get this; the meals are based off of what is on sale at your local grocery store, which will save you a nice little bundle each week! Woo hoo!

Just log into emeals, print your recipes and your shopping list. You don’t have to do any planning at all! It even tells you what the price of the items you are buying should be. I really love that feature. I know that if you can plan a menu based on what is on sale at the store that week, you are money ahead. But I have NO TIME to sit down with the flyer and come up with a list of dishes that use all the bargains! emeals does that for you. Brilliant.


I had the opportunity to try out E-Mealz for a month. I loved it, though I would like to see some of the meal options be just a bit healthier. You can check out a sample menu here to get a sense for if E-Mealz offers the types of food your family likes to eat. They actually offer some low-fat menus, so those may have been a better fit for us. I would also suggest that E-Mealz send email reminders to subscribers when the new grocery list is available. With all the chaos in my home, I forgot to check in with E-Mealz twice during the month, which bummed me out. Other than that, though, I think this is an amazing service and I would highly recommend it for folks who need to save money by eating at home, but who are also short on time.

Buy It!: E-MEALZ Easy Meals for Busy and Frugal Families costs as little as $1.25/week. Imagine how much time and money you will save…$1.25/week is a total steal. Also, if you use the code SAVEMONEY at checkout, you can save an additional 10% off your first purchase of a meal plan!

Win It!: One lucky Stuff Parents Need reader will win a three month subscription to emeals. Get ready to get some of your time back! Woo hoo! The contest will run until July 7th at 7:59pm CST when a winner will be selected using Random.org. The winner will be emailed and will have 48 hours to respond before the prize is forfeited and a new winner is selected. Open to residents of the United States.

Mandatory Entry: Tell me which emeals plan you would select if you win!

Additional Entries:
1. Subscribe to Stuff Parents Need by email, RSS or Google Friend Connect (one entry, total, even if you subscribe multiple ways)
2. Follow E-Mealz on Twitter
3. Follow Stuff Parents Need on Twitter
4. “Like” E-Mealz on Facebook
5. “Like” Stuff Parents Need on Facebook
6. Tweet about this giveaway (only one extra entry for this)
7. If you are a blogger, add my button to your blog and leave me a url so I can find it!

Be sure to check out all my other current giveaways on the sidebar of my home page!

Disclosure: I received a complimentary subscription in order to facilitate my review. The opinions expressed here are strictly my own.