Stuff Parents Need

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

Somersaults Snacks

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Somersaults Snacks

Does anyone out there have a similar struggle with food because you are at home all day? It is SUPER hard for me to stay out of the kitchen, just grazing and snacking all day long! I’ve realized something over time: I am a grazer, plain and simple. I like to eat little bits of food all throughout the day. I don’t think this is really going to change about me anytime soon. It’s just who I am.

But here’s what I have complete control over: the foods that are available for me to eat. I can tell you now that if there are grapes in the fridge I will happily munch on them. If there are double-stuff oreos in the pantry I will happily munch on them. I’m gonna be munchin’, so it is my job to make sure I have the right stuff on hand for all my snack sessions!

And glory be, I have found SUCH an awesome snack. Tim and I are both totally in love and may or may not watch each other like hawks to make sure that the other person doesn’t eat more than their share (not really kidding)! Somersaults are these fantastic little nuggets of awesome! They are packed with sunflower seeds and toasted grains, as well as with flavors that will please most any craving! Here are their current flavor offerings:

  • S.S. Sea Salt
  • Santa Fe Salsa
  • Salty Pepper
  • Chez Cocoa (also known as the snack of my dreams)

somersaults snacks Each serving of somersaults has 1/2 the fat and even more protein than a serving of almonds, which I have always considered to be a powerhouse of a snack. Move over, nuts!

I love Somersaults for so many reasons, but here are just a few:

  • They are perfect for on-the-go snacking
  • They require no prep work (good for those extra lazy moments in life)
  • They actually fill me up with just a few bites
  • They are packed with ingredients that my body really needs, and can easily convert to fuel

My only real complaint is that these aren’t sold anywhere even remotely close to where I live, and I live in a respectably-sized city! Please find your way into Whole Foods, or EarthFare or Food Lion! The silver lining in this cloud is that you can buy direct from their website, though.

Buy it!: Maybe you will have better luck than me. Check their store locator to see if you can find a place near you that stocks them. I promise you, it is a purchase you won’t regret!

Win it!: One lucky Stuff Parents Need reader is about to be doing all kinds of somersaults, because you will be getting an awesome prize pack of Somersaults with every flavor and every size. Woo hoo!!! Hopefully the winner won’t live within driving distance of me, or else there might be a risk of some mail theft. 😉 The contest will run until March 23rd at 11:59pm EST when a winner will be selected using Random.org. The winner will have 48 hours to respond to winning notification before the prize if forfeited and a new winner is selected. Open to residents of the United States. Limit one entrant per household, please.

Mandatory entry: Tell me about a snack you currently turn to when you get the munchies, whether it is good or bad for you!

My answer: if I’m seriously hungry, chips and salsa will fill me up pretty quickly. Having chocolate in the house is very rare, not because I don’t buy it, but because I eat it so quickly.

Additional entries:
1. Sponsor love: “Like” Somersault Snack Co. on Facebook
2. Blogger love: “Like” Stuff Parents Need on Facebook

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

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

Peter Rabbit Organics Fruit and Veggie Pouches

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Peter Rabbit Organic Fruit and Veggie Pouches

Let’s talk about toddler food for a moment. Darah is now eating pretty much anything we are eating, but she still has her own dishes that I would describe as a chunkier version of baby food. Her morning mush is a good example. It typically consists of whole grains (right now she is eating lots of millet), plain yogurt, sugar-free applesauce and blueberries. I am so thankful that she still enjoys this dish, because we pack a whole lot of nutrition into it! She’ll eat this meal pretty much any time of day, which makes it a great go-to snack, as well.

But it isn’t exactly the kind of thing that I can throw in the diaper bag with ease. The things that are easy to take with me are wheat thins (she goes through so many that we buy them at Costco) and string cheese. There are certainly worse things I could be feeding her, but sometimes I feel dissatisfied with these options and wish I had a healthier choice.

peter rabbit And that’s when Peter Rabbit Organics came back on the scene! I reviewed the delicious fruit flavors they offered back in November, and found that they were yummy enough for babies AND grown ups! I’m pleased to report that they now have a line of pouches that have fruit AND vegetables in them. This is great for me to see, as Darah does not always love her veggies. She doesn’t hate them, but her mood seems to dictate whether or not she’ll eat anything green.

The three new pouches from Peter Rabbit Organics have all been tested by Miss Darah, and she ate every last drop of all three of them. Success! The flavors are as follows: Sweet Potato, Corn and Apple; Pea, Spinach and Apple; and Carrot, Squash and Apple.

I tasted them, myself, and I don’t think I would eat them, personally. They weren’t bad, but they did remind me a bit more of baby food than their fruit pouch counterparts. I’m sure that others might disagree with me, and if you are looking for a really easy way to get some veggies in, either for yourself or for your kids, give this a try. I will definitely be buying more of the Pea, Spinach and Apple because I haven’t yet found a way to get Darah to eat spinach other than this, and since it is a super food, I want her to have more of it! Also, I should mention that this is the flavor she ate the fastest. I actually put the squeeze part of the pouch in her mouth, just to see what would happen, and she literally sucked all the food out of it in record time!

Buy it!: The new flavors from Peter Rabbit Organics are available at Amazon.com in packs of 10 for $16.50.

Win it!: One lucky Stuff Parents Need reader will score a 12 pack (2 of each flavor) from Peter Rabbit organics! The contest will run until March 22nd at 11:59pm EST when a winner will be selected using Random.org. The winner will have 48 hours to respond to the winning notification before the prize is forfeited and a new winner is selected. Open to residents of The United States. Limit one entrant per household, please.

Mandatory entry: Tell me how you get your kids to eat their veggies!

My answer: One trick I have to getting Darah to eat squash is to combine it with pears or apples. That seems to work every time!

Additional entries:
1. Sponsor love: Follow Peter Rabbit Organics on Twitter
2. Blogger love: Subscribe to Stuff Parents Need by RSS or email.

Be sure to enter my other current giveaways, found on the sidebar of my home page.
Disclosure: I received complimentary products for review purposes. The opinions expressed here are strictly my own.

Get Off the Ranch with Wholly Guacamole (Big Giveaway! 4 Winners!!)

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Sponsored by Tomoson.com

Growing up, my parents would make guacamole at home on occasion. I thought the way that they made it was the way everyone made it…with MAYONNAISE! It wasn’t until I was grown and married, and made guacamole for my dear husband for the very first time that I learned this practice was quite strange. Now that I’ve been eating guacamole sans-mayo for many years, I really can’t figure out why anyone would have thought that avocados needed any extra help from mayonnaise! Does anyone out there also eat guacamole this way, or was it really just my family???

Ok, so obviously we are talking about guacamole today. There’s pretty much nothing better than some freshly made guacamole. I’ve even been to restaurants where they make it table side because it is just at its best when it is fresh. So when I agreed to review Wholly Guacamole, I was truly nervous that it wasn’t going to be any good. How could pre-made guacamole not be icky???

Well, let me tell you. This is THE BEST guacamole I’ve ever tried. Ever. Did you hear that??? EVER! If it had been served to me at a party, I would have bet money that it had just been made. It just has a clean, pure, and FRESH taste, with just a slight hint of heat. Perfect! When I gave some to Darah (who, by the way, has never been a big avocado fan) she loved it and asked for it at snack time later that day. When Tim got home and tried it, he was also completely blown away, and told me that it was some of the best guacamole he has ever tasted. He feels the desire to get in the kitchen and try to replicate it. I feel the need to just go back to the store and buy some more, as avocados don’t come cheap when they aren’t in season, and I KNOW that Wholly Guacamole got it exactly right!

Wholly products have been named the official guacamole and salsas of The Biggest Loser! This is because they are all-natural and preservative/additive free (I seriously don’t know how this is possible with guacamole, but it is true!). I love that they also offer the guacamole in snack size packets. This can really help with portion control. I found that after I ate one packet with some tortilla chips, I was quite satisfied. If I had just had out the larger packet of guacamole, I likely would have eaten more, not because I was still hungry, but because it was there. So these are terrific options for anyone who is watching their weight or who just struggles to identify when they are no longer hungry (this is a problem I definitely have). Additionally, they make the perfect salad dressing packets. Oh yes, guacamole is a MUCH better option to go on your salad dressings than the ranch dressing you might normally reach for!

I should mention that their salsas also taste extremely fresh. It knocks any jarred salsas I’ve ever bought out of the water!

So after trying several of the products in the Wholly line, I have to say that I’m super impressed and that I’ll be picking them up again in the future. Have you ever tried this brand? Thoughts about it?

Buy it!: Wholly products are pretty much everywhere, but they have a store locator to help you find the nearest location in a snap!

Win it!: Get ready for this, folks! One lucky Stuff Parents Need reader is going to get an AMAZING prize pack from Wholly. The prize packs contains their fabulous original guacamole, two different salsas and two different cheese dips. Start planning your south of the border soiree now! Three other winners will each get a coupon for a free product from Wholly! The contest will run until March 18th at 11:59pm EST when a winner will be selected using Random.org. The winner will have 48 hours to respond to winning notification before the prize is forfeited and a new winner is selected. Open to residents of the United States. Limit one entrant per household, please.

Mandatory entry: Visit GetOffTheRanch.com and tell me something you learned about the difference between good fat (avocados) and bad fat (processed ranch dressing).

Additional entries:
1. Sponsor love: Sign up for the Wholly newsletter (you’ll get coupons!)
2. Blogger love: Subscribe to Stuff Parents Need via RSS or email

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

I received one or more of the products mentioned above for free using Tomoson.com. Regardless, I only recommend products or services I use personally and believe will be good for my readers. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commissions 16 CFR, Part 255 Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising. Tomoson Product review & giveaway

 

Online Cognitive Development Through (FREE) Games: GOGO KOBONGO

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This post is sponsored by the fabulous folks at Kabongo. All opinions expressed are strictly my own.

I’ve just spent the last hour playing online kids games on a very cool website called GOGO KABONGO, and I’ve really had a lot of fun with it!

GOGO KABONGO is a website devoted to helping 4-7 year olds with cognitive development, which is essential for reading. The games on this site are specifically designed to strengthen the following skills in children through interactive play:

  • attention and focus
  • memory skills
  • processing
  • planning
  • visualization
  • comprehension

The site seems to be quite comprehensive, with terrific resources for parents, including a learning skills chart that breaks down which games target which skills so that you can help your child focus attention on those areas where growth might be needed. They also have printable resources to help you continue the learning journey with your kids even after computer time is over. I also appreciated that the philosophy behind their approach is listed so that parents can see that a lot of thought went into the development of these games, and learning really is at the heart of them!

Let me show you a picture of the map of GOGO KABONGO so you can get a sense for what your child will experience there:


Looks pretty awesome, right? It really is! There are 3 main “worlds” to explore. Laughter Lake is completely free (I promise, I spent a lot of time there playing…totally free! No strings!). When I logged in, Galaxy Garden was also listed as free, but just for a limited time. Twister Top can be unlocked for just $4.95 (I believe that is what Galaxy Garden will also cost after its free preview is over). I did notice in their sign up section that if you buy Twister Top now they will also unlock Galaxy Gardens for free, meaning that you would still have access to it after the free preview. You could get access to ALL of the games right now for just $4.95. This is a limited time offer, so do keep that in mind!

Is this worth it? In my opinion, after spending a borderline embarrassing amount of time playing on the site, ABSOLUTELY!!! But don’t just take my word for it. Go to the site and play around in Laughter Lake for a while. If you aren’t impressed (and I’m not sure how you wouldn’t be) then you’ve lost absolutely nothing but a little bit of time. If you have a child between 4-7, I really do think that this will become a favorite online spot for them!

Ear Pain Relief Minus the Doctor’s Visit!

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Today I want to talk about some seriously intense pain that I experienced as an adult, and that many of our little ones experience as babies and toddlers. Check out my video below to hear more about my ear pain and ear pain relief:

The Eardoc is an incredible device to help alleviate ear pain. I’m so glad to have one in my home!

Buy it!: Eardoc is available online for under $50 and includes free shipping. When ear pain strikes, you’ll be so glad you have this.

 

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

Easter Bunny Costume for Toddlers

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Oh. My. Word. I can barely contain my excitement about Easter this year. I can’t believe that it is so late into April! That just gives me all the more time to plan for it, though!

This will really be the first year that Darah will grasp the concept of an egg hunt. SQUEAL!!!! Easter egg hunts in my family are serious. I wish there was a special “serious” font I could use to convey my meaning. The adult children, myself included, still hunt eggs. I honestly had no idea that this was not normal until I got to college. And you know what? Who cares?! We love it! And this is coming from the world’s WORST Easter egg hunter. Just ask my brother. I’m terrible. He is also an egg thief, but that’s a whole other post!

Easter Bunny Costume for Toddlers

Anyway, so back to Darah. For her first true egg hunt, I’m going all out in terms of the outfit. Will it be her Sunday best?! Well, it depends on how you look at it. She’ll be wearing this!
Easter Bunny Costume for Toddlers Oh yes she will! Little Darah is totally rocking the bunny costume! I could die just thinking about the pictures that we will be taking. They will be absolutely priceless. She’s just such a doll, from her floppy ears all the way to her cotton tail. The costume even comes with bunny feet and a carrot!

After I got Darah in her costume, she spent a good amount of time laughing at herself in the mirror. She just could not believe that she had been transformed into a bunny. I’m not so sure that it would have occurred to me to get her a toddler bunny costume for Easter, but now that I have one, I have to tell you, this is an AWESOME idea! The body of the costume will probably be outgrown within 6 months, but the headpiece has a lot of give to it (let’s just say a certain grownup in the house might have tried it on, herself….). It will last for a long time and be such a great element in the dress up bin!

So, where does one find such cuteness? Amazon has a great selection (including the one showcased above). I also really loved this one at Target!

easter bunny costumer toddler

Don’t limit yourself to Halloween for costume shopping. The possibilities are endless!

Free Canvas Offer is Back! Jump On It!

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Canvas People is offering their free 8×10 canvas offer once again! These only come along a few times each year, and you never know when they will happen, so I’ve learned (the hard way) that when they roll around, you need to jump on them before they are gone!

I’ve ordered two canvases with Canvas People and I can tell you that the quality is excellent!

Once again, here’s the deal:
8×10 canvas: FREE
Or you can take $50 off ANY other size canvas, which is great if you want something even bigger!

Shipping is not included. So if you get an 8×10, you’ll pay $14.95. You’ll be extremely hard pressed to find a quality canvas print for that amount anywhere! Their shipping charges are also on par with other convas printing shops online, so it isn’t a situation where they inflated their shipping prices for this promotion (I always try to check for stuff like that!).

What are you waiting for? Go get that gorgeous picture of your little one put on canvas!!!

Disclosure: This post contains affiliate links. I’m also a Canvas People customer, so I speak from experience about how great they are!

Best Dishwasher Detergent That is Eco-Friendly

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Tim and I have been actively searching for the best dishwasher detergent that is eco-friendly and  that works just as well as our old standby, Cascade. We’ve been looking for roughly 3 years, I’d say, and until recently, we just hadn’t found anything. Our homemade detergent was the worst, leaving our dishes coated with a film of some sort. Even though it was “green” I still didn’t want to ingest whatever that was!

We tried two other more commercial “green” detergents, and they just worked ok. We’ve been using those for lack of a better option, but still haven’t felt satisfied with the end result, which is filmy dishes (though less filmy than our DIY stuff). I was actually coming pretty close to just going back to Cascade when I got the opportunity to try Household Traditions Powdered Dishwasher Detergent. As you know, I was a Tropical Traditions skeptic and then turned into a fan, but I still expected this detergent to work as well as our other commercial products, and no better.

best dishwasher detergent I’m tickled pink to tell you that I was wrong. I have finally found the green detergent that can go toe-to-toe with Cascade! Our dishes are clean and sparkling, and I have to tell you, they haven’t looked like that in a long time. It is so refreshing!

This is our new detergent, hands-down. I will be buying more when we run out, which won’t be for a while, because they sell the product in 5 lb jars (hooray for less packaging!). I just can’t say enough great things about this. If you are like me and have been dissatisfied with the end results of your eco-friendly dishwashing detergents, I want to strongly encourage you to try this one. It is exactly what we have been looking for, and I bet you’ll like it, too!

Buy it!: A 5 lb container of Household Traditions Powdered Dishwasher Detergent retails for $32.00, which I know is a bit steep. But Tropical Traditions regularly has sales (yay!). I very recently saw it on sale for $19.99!

Win it!: One lucky Stuff Parents Need reader is going to LOVE the detergent s/he is about to win! 🙂 The contest will run until March 15th at 11:59pm EST when a winner will be selected using Random.org. The winner will have 48 hours to respond to winning notification before the prize is forfeited and a new winner is selected. Open to residents of the United States. Limit one entrant per household, please.

Mandatory entry: Tell me another product at Tropical Traditions that you really want or that you already use!

My answer: Now that I’ve seen how well the dishwashing detergent works, I want to try the laundry detergent!

Additional entries:
1. Sponsor love: “Like” Tropical Traditions on Facebook
2. Blogger love: Follow Stuff Parents Need by Google Friend Connect

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

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

Purex Crystals: Best Fabric Softener on the Market

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So….I have a really funny story for you folks today. It involves top secret product testing, and subsequent hoarding of said product. Take a quick listen:

Here are a few other things that are fantastic and unique about Purex Crystals Softener:

  • This product is 92% natural and is not oil based. It doesn’t coat my clothes, it penetrates deep down!
  • You can use it on your towels! Traditional fabric softeners, which coat the fabric, make towels much less absorbent. But this is a non-issue with Purex. Hooray!

Buy it!: Oh trust me, you are going to want to give this stuff a try. I may or may not have already bought 3 bottles. Just sayin’. You can find it at retailers nationwide, and it comes in 3 fabulous scents: Fresh Spring Waters, Lavender Blossom and Tropical Splash.

Win it!: Two lucky Stuff Parents Need readers are each going to get a coupon for a free bottle of Purex Complete Crystals Softener! Woo hoo! The contest will run until March 13th at 11:59pm EST when a winner will be selected via Random.org. The winner will have 48 hours to respond to the winning notification before the prize is forfeited and a new winner is selected. Open to residents of the United States. Limit one entrant per household, please.

Mandatory entry: Go to the Purex web page and tell me something cool you learned about the Complete Crystals Softener!

Additional entries:
1. Sponsor love: “Like” Purex on Facebook (you’ll get a $1 off coupon…win-win!)
2. Blogger love (you can do this entry once per day! Woo hoo!): Tweet this message on twitter and send me a link to the tweet: Check out Purex Complete Crystals from @tiffanyblogs and win! http://tinyurl.com/4b4kmvo

Rare bonus entry: Follow Stuff Parents Need on Google Friend Connect

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

Disclosure: I am a Purex Insider, which means that I received complimentary products for review in exchange for my honest opinion, which I have given!