Stuff Parents Need

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

How to Keep Cereal from Getting Soggy: Obol Review

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When we were in college, there were 3 distinct times that I fell completely in love with Tim (all before we started dating, even). One of those times was during dinner at the dining hall freshmen year. We were eating with our usual crew (two married couples came out of that mix, by the way!). It was a rough night as far as the menu options were concerned, so Tim included a bowl of cereal on his tray. When he sat down, I noticed that his cereal didn’t have any milk in it. I mentioned to him that he forgot his milk, and that’s when he pointed to a small glass of milk on his tray. He told me that he purposely didn’t add it so that he could have the cereal later on in the meal without it going soggy.

And I just melted into a puddle. I know, it didn’t take much. I thought he was the smartest person ever to walk the face of the earth, as evidenced by his outwitting of the soggies!

So a few weeks ago I saw a review of this bowl called Obol, and when I saw it, the memories of swooning over Tim that night in college came flooding back to me. “I must seek this treasure for my love!”, I thought to myself (what is with me being so crazy about this guy when it comes to anything cereal-related???).

I contacted Obol, and was sent one for review. You are probably wondering what the heck it is. Check it out!!!

The basic idea is that you keep whatever you want to eat with a liquid (cereal, cookies, goldfish) in the top, and then you can scoop the amount you want down in increments. Tim LOVES it, and reports that he is now enjoying the best cereal experience of his life! 🙂

It really is a fantastic bowl for anyone who likes to keep their cereal crispy.

Is there anything not so great about it? Admittedly, yes. It is a rather large bowl with an unusual shape. That means that it doesn’t easily nest in with other bowls, and you can’t really fit other bowls on top of it, either. Because of this, it takes up quite a bit of space, which is a bummer if your cabinet real estate is precious, as ours is. I’d love to see Obol figure out a way to make the bottom fit in with other bowls a bit better. But other than that, it’s a cereal connoisseur’s dream! I did get word from the company that a smaller version of the bowl is in the works, so that may help with its awkward fit. Yay!

The Obol can be purchased on the Obol website or through Brookstone.com for 19.99!

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

Mezzetta Review and GIVEAWAY (and $25,000 Contest Announcement!)

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It’s hot. H-O-T! And do you agree with me that when the weather is like this that the last thing you want to do is turn on your oven, or really even your stove?! Summer meals in my house incorporate many more fresh ingredients, and we also turn to meal ideas that take little to no cooking.
And that means that we eat a lot of sandwiches over the summer!
We don’t eat sandwiches often during the rest of the year, so it’s fine for us to have a sandwich season in our house. But Even though the “season” just lasts a few months, I can get bored with my sandwich options after just a few weeks. I get stuck in a rut and find myself eating the same boring things over and over again, just because I don’t know what else to do, nor do I have any cool ingredients on hand.
But not anymore! Today I’m featuring some products that really need to go on your next grocery list, because they are probably not things that you think to include, but if you have them, they can revolutionize your sandwiches (promise!).
Mezzetta is a family-owned business that has been operating since 1935 and is based in Napa Valley, and they are the leading producer of glass-packed peppers, olives and specialty foods in the United States! They offer a wide-variety of products that you can read about here.
I’ll pause while you wipe the drool off your mouth…
All better? Ok.

We were sent a few products that are especially useful for taking your sandwich from, “Meh” to “MEZZETTA!!!” 😉 You guys, I had NO idea what a humongous difference a little swipe of pesto on a sandwich would make. It’s a huge game-changer! Or have you ever thought of trying roasted red bell pepper strips on your boring turkey sandwich? Oh yes, it’s not boring, anymore! And don’t even get me started on the power of sundried tomatoes. Oh. my. word. Divine!!!!
These are things I’ve seen before in fancy-pants sandwich shops. Occasionally, I’ll spring the $8 for one of those sandwiches. But why? You can totally make this stuff at home for a fraction of the price! You just need a little help from Mezzetta!

If you are feeling inspired by these sandwich savers, then listen closely: you can turn your culinary wizardry into $25,000! From now through September 5th, you can submit your best jazzed-up sandwich idea and be entered to win! They also have some excellent sandwich ideas from celebrity chefs on the site, so be sure to stop by. Someone is going to win this money….why shouldn’t it be you???
Buy it!: If your local grocer is wise to the deliciousness of Mezzetta, you should be able to find these products on your next trip to the store. But if not, never fear! Mezzetta products are available online! they are worth buying, for sure, and you can even pick up a few extra jars of products as these make excellent hostess gifts to bring along to your next dinner party.
Win it!: One lucky Stuff Parents Need reader is going to win a gift basket from Mezzetta (sponsor’s choice!). The contest will run until July 18th 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: This contest is open to all my email an RSS subscribers! All you have to do is subscribe (or already be subscribed) and tell you me do so in the comments for your first entry.
Additional entries:
1. Sponsor love: Like Mezzetta on Facebook
2. Blogger love: Like Stuff Parents Need on Facebook
Rare bonus entry: Tell me which Mezzetta product you want to try!
Be sure to enter my other current giveaways, found on the sidebar of the page.
Disclosure: I received complimentary products for review purposes. The opinions expressed here are strictly my own.

Does Darah Prefer Boxers or Briefs? (GIVEAWAY!!!)

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I’ve mentioned this a few times in recent posts, but in case you missed it, Darah is officially 100% potty trained (even overnight!). She has been in underwear full time for about 7 weeks now. Overall, it has been AWESOME (said by the person who does most of the cloth diaper laundry!).

But let me tell you about what has NOT been awesome: the search for underwear that fits and that stays put.

Yeah, pretty much that has been a disaster. Darah is on the young end for being potty trained, and she is also on the small end for kids her age. She can still wear 12-18 month clothes. There’s just no such thing as that size underwear, at least not that I could find, and even size 18-24 months is really tough to find.

As a result, most of Darah’s underwear has to be rolled to stay put, and even then it is very big on her, and looks awkward under her fitted pants. There’s just too much material bunched up!

But then I heard about Girl Gotch, which was started by a fabulous mom named Rebecca who ran into similar problems when potty training her daughter in the summer of 2008. Her little one always was pulling and adjusting her underwear because it kept riding up on her. While having a playdate, her daughter had an accident but didn’t have a change of clothes. In a pinch, she borrowed some little boys’ underwear. They worked like magic, providing full coverage and staying put! Light bulb!!!!

So Rebecca designed a line of underwear modeled after those boy styles with the thicker elastic bands, but put a girly spin on it by offering them in bright, bold colors. She also created a line of little boxers for girls (I’d say they are close to boxer-briefs).

You guys. This underwear is SO STINKIN’ CUTE. And perhaps more importantly, it does exactly what it claims! It stays put! And Darah absolutely loves them. The day they came in the mail, she saw them and immediately took off the underwear she had on, right there on the spot, and asked for her, “new yellow underwear, please.” She knew they were going to rock, I guess!

Any time I give her a choice of which pair of underwear she wants to put on, she ALWAYS chooses a Girl Gotch, and since she has both the boxers and briefs, I can tell you that she picks the boxers first! 🙂

Buy it!: Girl Gotch underwear is available online. They are sold in packs of 3 for $15.99. Most size 2T underwear currently falls off Darah, but Girl Gotch 2T fits her perfectly, so that may mean that they run a little bit small. Sizes go from 2-6!

Win it!: One lucky winner will win a 3 pack of Girl Gotch underwear in your choice of briefs or boxers! The contest will run until June 25th at 11:49pm 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 and Canada. Limit one entrant per household, please.

Mandatory entry: Girl Gotch wants to be friends with you on Facebook, so follow them and then come back here and tell me you did!

Additional entries:

1. Sponsor love: Follow Girl Gotch on Twitter

2. Blogger love: Follow Stuff Parents Need on Twitter

 

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.

The Original Coupon Site: MyCoupons.com

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eDo you remember what year you started using the internet? Are you old enough to remember waiting FORTY FOREVERS for the dial-up connection to go through? Was it long-distance when it first became available in your area? It definitely was for us. I remember going to by BFF Leslie’s house to go online and the timer would be set for us by her mom…we would always cheat and re-set it!

So my memories span back to 1993, I think, which is pretty early in the life of the world wide web. Today I’m highlighting a site that has been around almost that long, since 1995. That makes it a real old-timer! It also means that for a site to have survived this long in the extremely competitive online environment, it must be doing something right.

It’s called MyCoupons.com. Ever heard of it? It is the original coupon site designed to help you snag the very best deals while shopping online. They have over 10,000 coupons! Woah!!! Here’s an example, for you. Let’s say that you want to buy some lovely new bedding at a department store you love. MyCoupons.com has a selection of JCPenney coupons, including one that offers free shipping with a $69 or more purchase. That’s just perfect!

Or maybe you are on the lookout for some nice casual clothes for a member of your family. Then you need to check out the American Eagle coupons, and there you’ll find info on how to snag free shipping, as well!

Whatever store you like to shop at, the odds are really good that MyCoupons.com has some deals to share with you. Additionally, MyCoupons.com has a list of discounted gift cards that you can purchase! So just imagine buying a gift card to a store you love for less than full price, and then using that gift card with discount codes you found on MyCoupons.com. You’d really be doing some serious saving!

Finally, I’ve learned that MyCoupons.com also has a selection of exclusive coupons. That means that they have discounts and offers that you CAN’T find at any other site. That means it is always worth a quick check at this site before you hit the purchase button!

Special thanks to MyCoupons.com for sponsoring this post. All opinions expressed here are strictly my own.

Imperfection is the Enemy: Only with Skincare!

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As a mother, I’ve really had to learn to accept imperfection. My house has never once ever looked perfect (and as a mother, I fall even further short of that elusive goal thanks to a lack of time), my wardrobe never looks perfect, and even my writing on this lovely blog is imperfect. I’m totally at peace with that.

But I love the idea behind the skincare company Perfective Ceuticals, which holds that when it comes to skincare, imperfection is the enemy. That doesn’t mean that you have to apply 45 different lotions and potions, you just need to make sure that what you do use has been developed by a specialized team of doctors and biochemists to eradicate the signs of aging to the fullest extent that science is capable of doing.

I tried out the appropriately named Anti-Imperfection Eye Therapy Cream with Growth Factor. First, you should know that the container is SO cool. It reminds me a bit of R2-D2! You twist the top for the pump to come out. I like this feature because it can help ensure that Darah doesn’t come across it and pump out all of mommy’s eye cream (which could totally happen, otherwise). I can just twist the cap so that it is closed!

I’ve been using the product every day for a few weeks, and here are my thoughts:
1. the cream is thick. A little bit goes a long way. Because of its thickness, I personally think it is better suited for night use than for daytime use (it is advertised to work for both). If you can take your time applying your makeup, though, then using this during the day would be fine. But it does need at least 20 minutes to soak in before you put anything else over it.

2. Does it work? Drumroll please……YES! I am at the age where my wrinkles are still fine, though very much existent. I have noticed that they have softened quite a bit after using this product. Woo hoo! This product is also formulated to help battle dark circles and puffiness, so it packs a big punch, so to speak.

3. Price. There’s just no beating around the bush: this cream is not cheap. It retails for $90 and is currently on sale for $72. But I have also learned that eye creams (especially those that work) are not cheap. It’s one of those areas where you kind of have to spend a bit more. My advice is to go cheap on your eyeliner, mascara and lip gloss and put that extra money toward your skincare.

What do you use for battling wrinkles, dark circles and puffiness around your eyes?

Disclosure: I received a complimentary product for review purposes through the Family Review Network. All opinions expressed here are strictly my own.

World’s Best Cat Litter: Lavender Scent! (Big GIVEAWAY!!!)

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Last year I reviewed a product that claimed to be the world’s best of its kind. That’s quite a hefty claim, don’t you think?! In fact, the company was so bold about this claim that they incorporated it into their name: World’s Best Cat Litter. You can read all about my initial review of the product here.

If you are short on time, I’ll give you the scoop (heh heh). The litter works beautifully, the smell is totally captured, and the product is environmentally friendly. It’s a winner, all-around! Now The World’s Best Cat Litter has come out with a lavender scented formula, and we have been giving it a test spin (more specifically, our cat Hattie has been trying it out).It works just as well as the original formula! I will say that the scent was a bit overpowering at first. But the litter box in our house is kept in a very small bathroom, so it doesn’t get a lot of ventilation.I thought the smell calmed down significantly after 24 hours.

I really like that one small bag of litter is designed to last one month (assuming you scoop the litter daily). So far, so good for the amount we’ve used. It looks like we’re going to hit that one month mark!

If you have not yet tried World’s Best Cat Litter, I strongly encourage it. You can find it at most major retailers and I think you’ll be really impressed with how well it captures odors, even for multiple cats!


One thing I wanted to highlight is that World’s Best Cat Litter was kind enough to send me four of their 17 lb bags of cat litter to donate to the local shelter of my choice. What an awesome way for them to have a positive impact on a local nonprofit! Thanks so much!

Win it!: WBCL didn’t forget about you! Oh boy, there are going to be FOUR winners of this giveaway! Two winners will each received a 17 lb bag of scented litter, just like what I reviewed. One winner will get a 17 lb of clumping litter, and 1 winner will get a 17 lob of Multiple Cat clumping litter! Woo hoo! The contest will run until June 22nd 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: Check out the World’s Best Cat Litter difference, and tell me something you learned!

Additional entries:
1. Sponsor love: Like World’s Best Cat Litter 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 a complimentary product for review purposes. The opinions expressed here are strictly my own.

How to Make Yogurt

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Sometime last year, I decided to try my hand at making yogurt. Darah eats yogurt at least once a day, and we were reaching the point where I was thinking about investing in some yogurt stocks (only half kidding…that kid eats a LOT of yogurt). I had heard people online say that making it wasn’t so hard and could help you save money.

That was all I needed to hear; I was in!

I used a crockpot method that involved several steps, and heating the milk at varying temperatures for about 18 hours. It was a long process.

The end result for me? Chunky milk, which is NOT yogurt. It was SOOO disappointing! I didn’t roll my sleeves up and try again. I just quit. One spoiled gallon of milk was enough for me to go back to buying yogurt.

But then I learned about a very cool cool gadget called the Automatic Yogurt Maker. I found it at an awesome online resource that is all about cheese making called the New England Cheesemaking Supply Company. Hang on to your hats, folks….a review of their cheesemaking kit is forthcoming! So exciting!!! I’m not usually a fan of kitchen gadgets that just do one thing, but considering just how much yogurt my family eats, it made sense for us to give it a whirl.

Here’s a video showing you what we did! We had a thermometer (came in our cheesemaking kit) to help us get the temperature just right in the beginning.

I’m very happy to report that the yogurt maker worked beautifully and took about 1/3 of the time as the method I tried before. And it tastes awesome! While we used some store bought yogurt to create a starter this time, we can either save one jar of yogurt that we make to use as the starter for our next batch, or we can use some of the yogurt cultures that the New England Cheesemaking Supply Company sends along with your purchase. We’ll never buy yogurt again! Wow! This product is a winner for us, and if your family eats a lot of yogurt, I highly recommend it! This is a really great way to make organic yogurt for a fraction of what it costs in the stores. The Automatic Yogurt Maker is available for $49.95.

Win it!: Oh my gosh, this is such a fun giveaway! One lucky Stuff Parents Need reader is going to win the Automatic Yogurt Maker, courtesy of the New England Cheesemaking Company! The contest will run until June 21st at 11:59pm EST when a winner will be selected using Random.org. The winner will have 48 hours to respond to 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: The New England Cheesemaking Supply Company is such a cool cheesemaking resource. Poke around the website and tell me something you learned there or something else you’d like to own.

Additional entries:
1. Sponsor love: Join the monthly newsletter for the New England Cheesemaking Supply Company
2. Blogger love: Subscribe to Stuff Parents Need by email or RSS

Be sure to enter my other current 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.

Tea Parties and Rag Dolls: Best Pals Review and GIVEAWAY!!!

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I loved having tea parties with my dolls and stuffed animals as a child. We never actually drank tea (at least not hot tea!) in my house, but tea parties were all the rage. We have photos of me dressed up in my finest (including a miniature mink stole, if you can believe it…) sipping tea with my favorite stuffed friends.

I know it is cliche, but I’ve been really looking forward to having tea parties with Darah. And I’m happy to report that they’ve just started happening! Yay!!!

We’ve been using the Best Pals Tin Tea Set. It comes with service for 4, a serving tray and of course, a tea pot. Everything fits inside a cute carrying case, which makes it easy to take with you on play dates!

Our background music for high tea has been the Best Pals Sing Together cd, and it is delightful! The sound is simple and very singable, and you’ll recognize many of the tracks, such as Sing, Sing a Song, Candy Man, and Anything You Can Do. Kathy and Janet Lennon sing on the album, along with Janet’s three granddaughters!

Kathy and Janet are sisters, and they have been singing together professionally since they were in middle school in the 1950s, but their memories of playing with special dolls made by their Nana goes back even further than that! Inspired by their special dolls, they have created a line of products to encourage creative play in children and to celebrate their own special bond as sisters.

Several different dolls are available at their shop, but the one I am excited to highlight today is Danny. It is unfortunately still not very easy to find a little boy doll. I remember “My Buddy” from the 1980s when I was a child, but I don’t think he’s being made anymore. As Darah has become more interested in dolls, I want to make sure that every single doll she has to look like her. So I was really thrilled to see Danny as an option on this site. Isn’t he precious? He comes with a little lovey of his own and a teddy bear to cuddle. Darah loves to rock him.

I also love that Kathy and Janet have a line of doll clothes, paper dolls and mini dolls. The look of their products is very old-fashioned, but in a very good way! I know Danny will have a special place in Darah’s heart, and the tea parties we will have are going to have a very special place in mine.

Buy it!: The Best Pals dolls are very reasonably priced at $24.95 each. While you are picking out your favorite, be sure to check out all their other offerings!

Win it!: One VERY lucky Stuff Parents Need reader is going to win one Best Pals doll, a Tea Set and a CD! The value of this prize is $75!. The contest will run until June 19th 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 the Best Pals doll you like the best, and choose wisely, as you will get that doll if you win!

Additional entries:
1. Sponsor love: Like Best Pals 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.

Buddy Fruits: Fruit on the Go

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So you’ve likely seen several different types of squeezable baby foods hitting the shelves over the last few years. This dispenser method is a ridiculously HUGE hit with Darah. Yes, she is too old for “baby” food. But let me tell you, if there’s something that is really good for her (like it containing an entire serving of fruit, with no preservatives and no added sugar) and she jumps at the chance to eat it, I have NO problem feeding it to her!

buddy fruits


Buddy Fruits is one of those items. And actually, it isn’t baby food, per se. It’s meant for anyone and everyone who loves fruit and who needs a convenient way to get a serving in while going about their busy days.I’ve tasted their pure blended fruits and they are delicious! I would definitely eat one, myself. They are SO perfect for car trips or to have on hand when you are running errands. They are chock full of only good stuff…fruit!


They also carry pure fruit bites. These are crazy good. They are very sweet, but that sweetness is totally natural, since these don’t have anything other than concentrated fruit juices and a bit of pectin so that they will all stick together. The package has one complete serving of fruit! My only complaint is that the packages are quite small. They make a perfect snack for a youngster, but as an adult, I found myself wanting much more once I’d emptied the package. Perhaps I need to watch my portion control, but I would have easily eaten 2 pouches in one sitting.


Our experience with Buddy Fruits was very positive. These are items I will be purchasing again in the future to have on hand. Darah absolutely loves them and I love knowing that they are so good for her.


Buy it!: Buddy Fruits are available at many different stores all over the country (and they are priced REALLY well on Amazon!). The odds are quite good that you’ll be able to find them! Use their store locator to see where your nearest retailer is!


Win it!: One lucky Stuff Parents Need reader will win a display mix of Fruits and Pouches, just like what I received! The contest will run until June 18th 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 your LEAST favorite fruit!


My answer: If a plum isn’t perfectly ripe, it’s always disappointing to me.


Additional entries:

1. Sponsor love:Like Buddy Fruits on Facebook

2. Blogger love: Like Stuff Parents Need on Facebook


Be sure to check out 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.