Stuff Parents Need

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

The Best Price on Chicken Ever! Zaycon Foods

· by · 1 Comment

Do you eat chicken? It’s the most popular meat in the United States, so unless you are a vegetarian, the odds are REALLY good that you do! What’s the very best price that you can find for chicken in your community? Around here, it’s $1.99/pound, and it happens not all that often (maybe once every 2 months). When I see it at that price, I try to stock up.

Have you ever thought about how long it took for your chicken to go from living and breathing to being in the store ready for purchase? Most of us don’t like to think about that, but it’s a truth that chicken was once alive! The average time it takes for the chicken to be available to you after being killed is 13 days. So if you pick up something that the supermarket just put out that day, it’s probably been dead for about 13 days. Which is kind of gross.

Have you ever had fresh chicken? I have no idea if I have before, but I recently got to prepare some chicken that had been alive just 3 days prior. I was told that I would be able to taste a difference, which I thought was unlikely. But I have to tell you, this chicken was AWESOME! It was juicier and more flavorful!

This chicken I had was not only fresher, but also significantly cheaper than my “rock-bottom” price I look for in the grocery store. It came in around $1.67/pound.

I’m here to tell you the secret to fresher, cheaper chicken. It’s called Zaycon Foods and you have GOT to check them out!

This is the basic idea of  how Zaycon Foods works:

1) COMBINED    
     BUYING
     POWER
2) DIRECT      
     FARM-TO-      
     CONSUMER
3) SOLD BY
     THE CASE
4) SELECT
     PRODUCTS
5) SALES EVENT
     MODEL
We combine the buying power of many families together, enabling us to negotiate huge savings on food purchases for your family
We bring products direct from the farm / processor (or as nearly as direct as possible). The products are as fresh as if you had your own farm, but without all the chores
We sell food products only by the case. No extra costs for handling. And no more empty shelves in your pantry
We sell only what we eat ourselves—high quality, healthy food. Our focus is on a select number of commonly consumed food items such as fresh meats like chicken, beef, turkey, pork and fish
Our unique sales event approach turns traditional food purchasing on its ear. Convenient, quick, organized—about 2 minutes and you never even need to get out of your car

Zaycon Foods is already scheduling events all over the country, so you should definitely log on and see if your nearest city is on their radar. If it isn’t, you can change that! Seriously! Sign up and let them know where you live and where you are willing to go to pick up an order (for example, maybe you live 45 minutes outside of a significantly larger city and you would be willing to go to that city for a pick up). In addition to having special sales on chicken, they also sell other meats such as bacon and ground beef. They are also testing different markets for fresh produce!

In addition to getting yourself signed up, spread the word to your friends. If Zaycon Foods sees that there is a critical mass of people in a city that want to get a great deal, then it will happen! That’s the beauty of a business that has a truck as a store front…it can go ANYWHERE!

We recently got a 40 lb box of chicken. That was 52 chicken breasts. Yes, that IS a lot of chicken. But we had been eating out of our freezer for a few weeks to make room. The next time we order from them, I think we might find another family to split the package with so that someone else can enjoy the great savings, as well. Let me show you what we got!

The chicken comes in a big box, and the chicken is split into 4 packages. So you could even go in with 3 other people and still be able to easily split up a box. There is a little bit of work involved in getting the chicken ready to store, but if you have a pair of kitchen shears, it doesn’t take all that long. You are basically doing the work that the folks in the back of the supermarket do for you and then charge you for. You just need to trim a bit of fat off the chicken and split the breasts. Then you’ll want to put them in storage bags. We opted to put between 5 and 6 breasts in each storage bag.

We found that getting the chicken into these storage bags resulted in the chicken not taking up nearly as much space as it would have if we had left it in the big box. If you have a deep freeze, I think buying from Zaycon Foods is a no-brainer. Even if you don’t (we don’t), I promise you that you can fit 40 lbs of chicken in your freezer and still have room for other stuff.

I’ve had the Zaycon Foods experience, and I can say with confidence that it is one I want to have again! The quality of meat is outstanding, the work required to store the food is not overwhelming, and the price is most definitely right. I really hope we can get the word out in Chattanooga so that the truck will make a stop here in the future!

Does Zaycon Foods come to your neck of the woods? Ever tried it?

Disclosure: I received a complimentary box of chicken in exchange for my honest opinion, which I have provided. This post contains a referral link. I firmly believe in this company and am proud to recommend them for your business!

 

Why S’mores Create the Happiest Campers (GIVEAWAY!!!)

· by · 123 Comments

Would you believe that I have never EVER been camping in all my years on this earth? And would you believe that I don’t feel sad about that, either?! Yeah, I’m not much of an outdoor girl. I think it is because I was raised in a part of the country where mosquitoes thrive and unbelievably large insects roam freely. Also, it’s hot most of the year, and muggy the entire year. So that’s not exactly the kind of conditions that most people dream of when thinking about spending the night outside!

Even so, I do have fond memories of going on hay rides and doing camp fires with my youth group (that’s about as close to camping out as I ever got!). And I can see where getting to do things like camp out in your backyard as a kid would be so much fun. I don’t want Darah to miss out on these kinds of adventures just because they aren’t my cup of tea. I will not discourage her from camping out (maybe her dad will even take her and leave me home!). And I’ll certainly make sure that she knows the most important lesson of all when it comes to camping…

HOW TO MAKE A S’MORE

Because really, everything else is just details, people!

Tim recently made an indoor camp for Darah (ok, really for all of us) to play in. We had the BEST time, and it was all bug-free, thank you very much!

Since I wanted to make sure we covered the essentials of camping right away, I brought out the plate of S’mores supplies. On a whim, I bought the chocolate graham crackers at the store…they totally rock as the S’mores foundation!


My little one wasted NO time sampling the ingredients! While she’s still a bit too young for the full melted S’more experience, she already totally gets that when you put together marshmallows, Hershey’s chocolate and graham crackers, something really magical happens. It certainly brought back fun memories for me, and got me so very excited about all the new memories that await my family on all our future camping trips…even if they all take place in our living room!

I want to encourage you to pop over to Hershey’s Facebook page because they are having a great giveaway! Just capture your favorite S’mores moments and submit your photos for a chance to win S’mores-themed prizes. The grand prize is a Canon Rebel Camera, slate marble outdoor firebowl, $250 SnapFish gift card, roasting skewers and all of the ingredients needed to make S’mores!

Win it!: Thanks to Hershey’s, I’ve got an opportunity for you to make fun memories with your family through your own special camp out! One Stuff Parents Need reader will win a S’mores pack, which contains Hershey’s chocolate, graham crackers and marshmallows. The giveaway will run until September 7th at 11:59pm EST when a winner will be selected via 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 about your experience camping out? Do you love it? Have any tips for someone like me who has never been? Anything relevant to the topic works for me.

Additional entries:

1. Sponsor love:  Like Hershey’s on Facebook

2. Blogger love: Like Stuff Parents Need on Facebook

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

Disclosure: This post is part of my participation in the Hershey’s “Say S’mores” Promotion. All opinions expressed are mine.

Crane Air Purifier Review and GIVEAWAY!!!

· by · 316 Comments

Darah will be back in school in 2 short weeks. In 2 1/2 short weeks, I predict she will get her first case of the crud for the school year. I know, I’m not very optimistic. But if you have kids in school, then you know I speak the truth. When that crud crosses the threshold of Darah’s room, we’ll be ready, though. We are armed with the most fierce secret weapon out there.

And it’s a penguin. air purifier for kids

Crane, the makers of the cutest humidifiers in the history of life (including the pig humidifer, which we own), also has air purifiers specially designed for children’s rooms. Our penguin is named Aaron (since he cleans the air). He may look adorable, but he is a death sentence to germs, dust and dander.

Here are the features of the Crane Personal Air Purifiers:

  • Five level filtration helps remove airborne allergens, bacteria, viruses and germs.
  • Germicidal UV light kills viruses and bacteria to deliver germ-free fresh air.
  • True HEPA filter captures up to 99.97% of airborne dust as well as pollen as small as 0.3 microns from air passing through the filter.
  • HEPA filter also helps reduce smoke, mold spores and pet dander.
  • Active carbon filter captures large particles as well as common household odors caused from tobacco, pets, garbage and cooking by absorbing them in the active carbon filter.
  • Photocatalyst filter works in conjunction with the internal UV light to create advanced oxidation that eliminates airborne odors and neutralizes odors and harmful fumes.
  • Washable particle filter uses a foam filter to help capture larger airborne particles and helps extend the life of the HEPA filter.
  • Three-speed control as a low noise setting for continuous quiet operation
  • Easy-to-change filters
  • Tip-over switch with auto-shut-off function.

In addition to all of these great features, we find that the penguin is great at providing white noise. We have a fan that we run in Darah’s room at night for that purpose, but I think that we can now replace it with the penguin. And the penguin is doing a lot more for the air quality than that fan was!

The filter in the air purifier does need to be replaced, roughly every 2-3 months, just depending on use (we run the purifier overnight as our standard practice). The instructions for replacing them couldn’t be easier, and are located on the inside of the penguin (hooray for not having to go find the instruction manual!).

We are extremely pleased with the Crane Personal Air Purifier. It is a comfort to me to know that Darah’s room has the cleanest air in the house and that when she comes home with all those germs, she only needs to go play in her room to have the airborne ones be eliminated! Love it! Darah’s bathroom also houses the cat litter box, and I have noticed a SIGNIFICANT improvement in the air quality there, as well.

 

Click here to check out a list of national stores where Crane products are sold.

Edit: this giveaway is closed.

Win it!: One lucky Stuff Parents Need reader will win a Crane Personal Air Purifier in your choice of penguin or shark (SRP $79.99)!! The contest will run until September 4th at 11:59pm EST when a winner will be selected via And the Winner Is. 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 which product, specifically, Crane makes that you would love to have in your home.

Additional entries:

1. Sponsor love: Like Crane USA on Facebook

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 blog.

Disclosure: I received a complimentary product for review purposes. The opinions expressed here are strictly my own. This post contains affiliate links. 

Conair You Style, You Lift and You Curl Brushes Review and GIVEAWAY!!!

· by · 221 Comments

Does anyone else out there have a brush thief in their house? I totally do. Darah loves to play with my brush. And when I say play with, I mean take it to random places in the house. I don’t want to talk about how many times I have searched the house in vain only to pull my hair back in a ponytail because brushing it was literally not an option.

But now I have a whole new collection of brushes. Darah can go ahead and run off with one of them. In fact, when she does that, she can just help me decide how I want to style my hair based on which brushes she leaves me with!

Conair has a super cool new line of brushes that are designed to help you create a variety of looks with ease. My very favorite brush is the You  Style. It is a 2-in-1 brush, which really means that it is a brush version of a Transformer. In its open, flat position you can use it for everyday brushes or for blow-drying your hair straight. But you can also push a button on the brush, and the sides collapse into a rounded shape, which is great for adding lift and soft, sexy waves (yes, I said sexy! It can happen, I promise!).

The second brush is called You Lift. T his brush doesn’t collapse, but can help you achieve a straight look without sacrificing volume. Yay! The edges of the barrel are able to get closer to the scalp for extra lift while the flat sides of the brush help straighten the hair. You can also use it like a round brush for smooth waves or curls.

Finally, we have You Curl. This brush is designed to create a very natural looking wave or tousled curl that is narrow at the hairline and wider at the bottom.

Each brush retails for $9.99 and can be found at retailers nationwide. They ,all work great, with just a bit of practice on your end (I got overzealous the first time I used the You Lift and got my hair just a tiny bit stuck…but I only made that mistake once!).

I cannot wait to get my hair cut this week (after 5 1/2 months…there, I admitted it). It is so long and heavy. I will be making most excellent use of these brushes with my new ‘do! Thanks, Conair, for creating such excellent brushes that help folks like me step away from the ponytail and embrace the fabulous hair that they really can have!

Win it!: One lucky Stuff Parents Need reader will win the same Conair brushes featured here! The contest will run until September 4th at 11:59pm EST when a winner will be selected via 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 one other product made by Conair that you already own and love, or that you would like to own!

My answer: I would love to have this makeup mirror. Whenever I stay in a hotel with these, I always do a great job with my makeup because I can be more precise.

Additional entries:

1. Sponsor love: Like Conair on Facebook

2. Blogger love: Follow Stuff Parents Need on Twitter

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

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

Green Toys Fire Truck Review and GIVEAWAY!!!

· by · 311 Comments

When we were expecting Darah, I had many parents warn us that our home was about to become a plastic jungle, at least for the next 10 years. Tim and I REALLY didn’t want to see that happen. We didn’t want our house to be overrun with toys at all (um, yeah, totally FAILED that one), and we also didn’t want plastic junk everywhere made with questionable chemicals and that would easily break and have to be pitched.

 

So it may seem a little strange that I’m featuring a plastic fire trucktoday as an excellent toy of choice for your little. But this isn’t just any old plastic fire truck! It’s from Green Toys, and it is made entirely out of recycled plastic! milk containers! Even the packaging it comes in is made entirely of recycled and recyclable materials. It is the world’s greenest emergency vehicle!

It’s also SO much fun! Darah is a HUGE fan of fire trucks, always on the lookout for them when she takes a ride in the car, and always listening out for their sirens. We live a few blocks away from a big fire station, so she gets to hear those sirens at least once a day, much to her delight. Her Green Toys fire truck rarely even gets put away. It seems to now live in our hallway, which is the best place for “driving.” Her smaller stuffed animals and figurines are also getting extra play time, as they will fit on top of the fire truck, much to Darah’s delight.

I have given the truck a thorough inspection, and I am very impressed with the quality. It really looks as though it was built to endure many hours of play from children who love their toys, but aren’t necessarily the best at taking care of them, yet. I expect that our fire truck will endure quite a bit of rough-housing with Darah, but will still be in fine shape for the next child, or even for Darah’s kids later on. It’s definitely a winner!

Green Toys has an excellent line of eco-friendly toys, all made from recycled materials, and also all free from lights, batteries and other annoying things that play for your child, instead of encouraging imaginative play. The price points for the toys are a bit higher than their non-recycled plastic counterparts from other brands, but these are toys that are built to last generations, instead of having planned obsolescence, so I think they are worth it! The fire truck I reviewed retails for $27.99

Win it!: One lucky Stuff Parents Need reader will win a Green Toys Fire Truck! The contest will run until September 4th at 11:59pm EST when a winner will be selected via 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 one other Green Toys product that would be welcome in your home!

My answer: The school bus!

Additional entries:

1. Sponsor love: Like Green Toys 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 blog.

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

Ebeanstalk: My Thoughts On This Online Shopping Destination for Kids

· by · Leave a Comment

I was recently asked to check out Ebeanstalk.com and see what I thought about this resource for children’s toys that are high quality, educational and fun.

In short, I’m really impressed! Toys are categorized and featured in ways that resonate with me. Recommendations are sorted by age, which I really appreciate. I’m not as keen on the “boy” and “girl” designation for toys, but that’s another post altogether.

You can also get detailed information about exactly why a particular toy is recommended by their experts. This can help you make wise decisions about which toys might be best suited to meet the developing needs of your child. I know I’ve mistakenly bought things for Darah that were too advanced for her in the past, and Ebeanstalk helps you avoid making those mistakes (or the mistake of buying something that works on skills your child may have already mastered!).

We know several tots who will be turning 3 this year, so the list of toys for 3 year olds will be really helpful. I’ve also spent a bit of time reviewing their list of birthday gifts for 2 year olds, since Darah just turned 2. I’m really loving the learn to dress monkey. Darah LOVES practicing putting her clothes on (I found the poor child laying on the ground last week after falling over because she had both legs in one leg hole of her shorts!). This toy would be so great at helping her start to practice buttoning and unbuttoning, which she would certainly love!

Perhaps the thing I liked the very most about Ebeanstalk is their Grow and Learn series. This is an absolutely outstanding gift idea for grandparents, I think. When you purchase one of these series, the child will be sent a developmentally appropriate toy every 3 months for the entire  year. Isn’t that a smart idea?! The prices vary depending on which package you are purchasing. I appreciate that they have different options for each age and each budget. If you don’t check out anything else, definitely give this a glance; I think you’ll be really impressed!

From remote control toys to beloved children’s books, Ebeanstalk.com’s selection of quality toys for children is impressive, indeed. I would feel very confident with my purchases when shopping there!

Disclosure: I received a gift card to Ebeanstalk.com in exchange for my honest opinions, which I have provided. 

My First School Supply List as a Parent

· by · 1 Comment


Well, it came a little bit sooner than I expected, but I received my first school supply list last week. Fortunately, it was not overwhelming. Here’s what I have to bring with Darah on her first day of “school” (a parent’s day out program):

  • Cotton balls (200 count)
  • paper bags (50 count)
  • glue sticks (6 count)
  • crayola crayons (chubby 8 count)
  • pipe cleaners

That’s really not so bad! I actually picked it all up at Walgreens and made good use of some register rewards I had there to cover most of the cost. The only thing I’m missing is pipe cleaners. I’m guessing a trip to Wal-Mart is in my future to get those (unless they are sold at The Dollar Tree? Does anyone know?).

I don’t feel sad or scared about Darah going “back to school” this year, but that’s because she’ll be going to the same place she went to last year, with many of the same children. The teachers will be new, which does make me a little bit nervous, but I am confident that wonderful people will be hired. Darah will also only be away from home for 10 hours each week, which is an amount that I find very helpful as a work-at-home mom. Ask me about next year, though, and I’ll probably start crying…

I always think of late August as the new year. Perhaps it is because that’s when my birthday falls, so it literally is a new year for me, but mostly its because of heading back to school. For 20 years of my life I did start a new year at this time. And then I worked in higher education, so I continued to be immersed in a work environment that had a August-May heartbeat (not that we weren’t busy during the summer, but the vibe was decidedly different).

Even though it isn’t back to school time for me, personally, I actually do have a supply list that I need for the upcoming fall. It is time for me to have some new business cards for the blog! Since I had a blog makeover, my cards need a similar facelift. And with school headed back into session, this is the perfect opportunity for me to connect with other moms who might be interested in Stuff Parents Need. I need to be able to hand them something to take back to their computers or else they will likely forget the name of my site (I know I’ve done that before after hearing about something cool I wanted to check out online). As a bonus, they will also have a way to contact me if they ever want to schedule a play date!

Even if you don’t have your own blog or business, having a personal calling card on hand is a great idea, as it makes exchanging personal information with another parent quick and easy. Tiny Prints has some great templates that you should check out, and they also have an entire section of goodies that are perfect for back-t0-school. One of my personal favorites are their genius allergy cards that you can send along with your child so that teachers can have the information they need on hand about what your child can and cannot eat, and what to do if a reaction occurs. Definitely check out their selection for everything from labels to classroom wall art!

Disclosure: TinyPrints is providing a gift card as a thank you for my post. All thoughts and opinions expressed here are strictly my own.

Helping Kids Feel Excited About Bedtime: Shushybye Review and GIVEAWAY!!!

· by ·

When I was a child I was genuinely excited about when it was time to go to bed. I would always think about what I wanted to dream about that night and then close my eyes good and tight so that I could fall asleep as quickly as possible.

If you want to know the truth, I still do this. Sleep rocks, and I always get a little burst of energy just before bed because I’m so darn happy to be going to sleep.

But here’s the thing: that’s kind of unusual. Especially for a kid. Many kids argue with their parents and have a whole bag of tricks that they use to try to avoid going to bed each night. Darah sometimes doesn’t want to go to sleep, but she takes after her mama in that once she is down, she is usually asleep within 10 minutes.

If that’s NOT the case for your little one, Shushybye products might be of some help! From their site, “SHUSHYBYE is the land way above the clouds – and the land where the resident Shushies live and make dreams for children. Led by Snoozles, Dozie and Zeez, the Shushies place their completed dreams in Dream Boxes that are sent to children via the Shushybye Train driven by Conductor McCloud as they fall asleep. Nothing brings the Shushies more joy than to make the most wondrous dreams for little ones.”

Shushybye has a fun line of products including plush figures, cds and books. They also have a live tour! I will say that the stories and music don’t seem to be about helping your child feel sleepy, which is what I was initially expecting. They are really about helping your child get excited about the dreams that await them at night, and the fun they can have while they are sleeping. The cd is surprisingly upbeat (I was expecting lullabies, and I was totally off base!). This is a different approach to talking about bedtime, as the focus isn’t so much on whether or not the child is sleepy, but rather, what fun they are missing out on if they aren’t sleeping. It’s all about shifting the attitude toward sleep, which is really a much better approach than simply trying to wear your kid out or somehow trick him/her into falling asleep.

I think Shushybye products are ideal for 2 and up, and I would recommend them to anyone whose child thinks bedtime totally stinks.

Win it!: One lucky Stuff Parents Need reader is going to win a Shushybye book and cd! The contest will run until August 23rd at 11:59pm EST when a winner will be selected via 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: Go to the Shusybye website and tell me the character you think your child would like the best!

My answer: Zeez is Darah’s favorite, I think!

Additional entries:

1. Sponsor love: Like Shushybye on Facebook

2. Blogger love: Follow Stuff Parents Need on Twitter

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

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

Tame Those Tangles: The Knot Genie Review and $500 Contest!

· by · 4 Comments

I have vivid memories of having major knots in my hair as a child and spending time in the bathroom crying as my mom worked them out with a comb and a brush. She tried to be gentle, but there was only so much she could do to make the situation painless. It didn’t really help matters that she had a spiral perm put in my hair when I was only 9 and couldn’t really take care of hair that curly by myself. But I digress…

Some kids  have hair just that curly on their own, or even if it isn’t that curly, still seem to be prone to major tangles and knots. Enter The Knot Genie. This is a wonderful de-tangling brush that really does work like magic to de-tangle hair, all without the tears and tantrums that usually accompany those hair brushing sessions. We’ve tried it out, and found it to be really soft and really good and brushing out hair. We aren’t yet at a place where we have tangles, but Darah’s hair does have some curls, and they are no problem for the Knot Genie.

There is a second element to this brush that I really love, too. It is EXCELLENT for any toddler who still has cradle cap. Darah is one of those kids who didn’t lose her cradle cap at a year, or even at 2. We’ve tried countless things to get rid of it, and have had minimal success. But this brush’s bristles are doing the best job of anything so far at massaging her scalp and getting that stuff to come off. Yay!!!

The Knot Genie retails for $19.99 and can be purchased online.

Win it!: If your child needs a Knot Genie, I’ve got a great contest to tell you about today! Check out the Facebook page for Knot Genie, and you’ll see that you can win your own Knot Genie AND a $500 savings bond (woo hoo!) for creating a 1 minute (or less!) video about why your child needs this product. That’s SUPER easy and the payoff could be tremendous. PLUS, the first 50 entrants automatically get a free Knot Genie!

Disclosure: This post is sponsored by The Knot Genie. All opinions expressed here are strictly my own.