Normally, I like to have the product sitting in front of me as I write the review. Unfortunately, that isn’t possible this time. I barely had an opportunity to check out the new Febreze To Go before my husband confiscated it.    He especially likes the new “To Go” size.  It makes it easy to toss in the bag he takes with him to the Fire House every shift, so it is always on hand if needed.  We have a pup, plus a couple of cats that come inside from time to time, so we are big fans of Febreze. The new “To Go” size is perfect to toss in your purse, diaper bag, gym bag, locker, etc.  Take it with you. 

Thanks Febreze for another great product (or at least a new packaging for an already great product!). 

On a side note, has anyone checked out the new Mr. Clean with Febreze? I stocked up on Mr. Clean awhile back during a great sale at the grocery store, but it’ll be time to buy it again soon & I’m curious about the combination of these 2 products. I already love the smell of Mr. Clean, so the addition of the Febreze technology could only be a plus right?

What about the new Febreze Laundry Odor Eliminator? I was checking out the Febreze website and just saw that! First I’ve heard about it.

Have you tried any of these products? Febreze To Go? Mr. Clean with Febreze? Febreze Laundry Odor Eliminator?  Would love to hear comments if you’ve tried  these products.  J

We have had a lot of fun playing with the blocks… stacking, lining them up, talking about the letters, numbers, and animals.  They are well made - very solid without being heavy and is made from a renewable wood source.  This set comes with six blocks and is suggested for ages 1 and up.  The best part? They are not made in China. Gotta love that.

Interested in picking up a set for your child? You can purchase the Holgate Baby Blocks from NMC Toys for $16.99.  be sure to check out Shake The Salt’s 2008 Holiday Gift Guide (it will be published the last week of this month) to find out how you can win an prize from NMC!

 
We love Boca Beth!  My two year old loves for us to put it on and dance around to it.  It is very upbeat and fun! He is not yet repeating any of it (heck, I’m excited enough at the English I get from him right now, LOL!), but as much as he enjoys it, he will start picking some of it up and won’t even realize he is learning.  Boca Beth scores big at our house!

These are the CDs we checked out:

My First Songs In Spanish

1. Boca Beth Theme Song 2. Hello Friend 3. I Like To Count 4. I See Colors 5. I Am Hungry 6. Greeting Song 7. Kiss Is A Beso 8. The Animal Song 9. There Are Ten Toys 10. How Are You? 11. Where Is My…? 12. I Know The Days Of The Week 13. Please, Thank You, You’re Welcome 14. Hello And Goodbye 15. Boca Beth Theme Song

Sing Praise For Children

Limited Edition 7 song CD from The Boca Beth Program

Join Boca Beth and a lovely choir of young children singing songs about Jesus and faith. With titles such as “Sing Praise Now,” “Jesus Always Sees You,” “My Life With God” and others children will delight in how easy it is to sing about God in English and Spanish. Two bonus silly songs - “La cucaracha” and “El chocolate” - add to this terrific line up of bilingual fun for children.

What is awesome about these CDs is that not only can English-speaking children learn Spanish, but Spanish-speaking children can also learn English!

Did ya know? It is National Hispanic Heritage Month!

National Hispanic Heritage Month has been celebrated for 39 years on September 17, 2007. Enacted into law on that day in 1968, Public Law 90-498 set aside a week to honor our Spanish-speaking citizens. When the 100th Congress enacted Public Law 100-402, the celebration period increased to 31 days, from September 15, 2007 to October 15.  

The initiative for National Hispanic Heritage Month is an acknowledgement of the over 44.3 million Americans of Hispanic origin, over 15% of our population. The 31 day observation period honors the Independence Day for many Latin American countries including El Salvador, Costa Rica, Nicaragua, Guatemala, and Honduras which celebrate September 15 as their Independence Day. September 16th is Mexico’s Independence Day, September 18th for Chile, September 21st for Belize and El Dia de la Raza (Columbus Day) is October 12th.

THIS CONTEST IS NOW CLOSED.
Look up Shake The Salt WINNERS

 

 In appreciation of National Hispanic Heritage Month {and because Boca Beth wants your child to have fun learning!} Boca Beth is offering one Shake The Salt reader the following prize package:

 

 

The Boca Beth Grande Bag!

 

My First Songs in Spanish CD, More Boca Beth CD, Mi casa DVD, Music Video Collection:  Volume 1 DVD, BOCA the puppet, Our 44-page coloring / activity book, and A brightly colored egg shaker … All waiting inside of your very own Boca Beth machine washable cotton bag

 

 

 

To Enter:

1. Visit Boca Beth then comment about your favorite product

2. For an extra entry, blog about this giveaway & leave a second comment with the link.
3. Deadline to enter: October 24, 2008 @ 11:59 PM EST.

4. Shipping within U.S. only.

THIS CONTEST IS NOW CLOSED.
Look up Shake The Salt WINNERS

 Boca Beth: What Time Is It?
~ From the YouTube Boca Beth Channel ~

It is obviously no secret to y’all that I have a special place in my heart for mom businesses and especially mom inventions.  I am thrilled that I have the opportunity that I do to give a little test run to some of these products.  I love the ideas and ingenuity.  I love to check out a product and just have that oh yeah moment. 

I had that moment with the Lil Rinser.  What a fantastic product for bath time!  The Lil Rinser allows you to rinse your child’s hair without water streaming into their face or ears.  As moms, we each have our special tricks for alleviating discomfort wherever & however possible. The Lil Rinser helps make your life a little easier by helping you in that quest. 

A little disclaimer: I had an especially difficult time reviewing this product.  It turns out my son actually likes the water cascading down his face. Who knew? When trying to put the Lil Rinser on him, he’d wedge his fingers between the seal and his head, thereby defeating the purpose. He also refuses to wear a hat of any type, so I’m sure it is related to that. (Except when he takes Daddy’s hat and wears it for fun – which lasts all of about 25 seconds before he’s back to not liking hats). 

Despite the uncooperative child in attempting to review this product (lol), I actually really like it.  As long as your child doesn’t have issues with wearing hats or such, like mine, this could be just the bath time helper you’ve been looking for.

BUY IT: Visit the Lil Rinser website for more information & to purchase.

Dry skin? Cracked skin? Problem skin?  If you are having these issues with your hands, you may want to check out Gloves In A Bottle.  Gloves In A Bottle has a unique formula that that keeps the “bad stuff” (irritants robbing skin of natural oils) from seeping into the layers of skin and keeps the “good stuff” (skin’s natural moisture and oils) from escaping by creating a barrier of protection. 

I have noticed a big difference when I use Gloves In A Bottle regularly – my hands feel a lot smoother and the dryness is gone.  Gloves In A Bottle is hypoallergenic, fragrance and colorant free, and recommended by hundreds of American Dermatologists.  It is suggested to reapply every four hours for continued protection. 

FREE SAMPLES: Send in a SASE to get a sample of Gloves In A Bottle.

BUY IT: Locate a store near you or purchase online.

Cars. Vroom. Vroom.  Remember those words? Ah, yes, the mantra in my home. All cars, all the time. My little boy gets it honest, oh so very honest!  (One day I’ll do a search of those words on my blog, but for now I am too scared to know how many posts will have those words! LOL!) 

You’d think that I see enough toy cars throughout a day that the sight of another would just make me yawn.  Oh, no.  Not these.  These are cool.  Very cool.

Automoblox sent over the A9 Compact and C9R Sportscar models and all three of us had a blast checking them out.  Each vehicle is mostly wood and has interlocking pieces that can be mixed and matched with others for endless imaginative possibilities.  Each car has a unique 17 character Vehicle Identification Number.  You can also register your Automoblox car to become a member of the Automoblox Members Club which has some pretty cool benefits. 

The learning skills the Automoblox vehicles, created in collaboration with a child psychologist, help to develop include: creative problem solving, gross & fine motor skills, and visio-spatial processing.  

Oh, and they look pretty cool sitting on a dresser or shelf when not in play. 

BUY IT: Visit the Automoblox online store or locate a store near you.

From a mom of boys, the ultimate product that helps moms of boys have less icky cleanup to do is here and ready for you!!

Quick side note: My mother-in-law once told me how her little boy – now my sweet hubby – would put bugs in his pockets, so be warned… as wonderful as this product is, it will not completely remove all of the ickiness boys bring about, lol, but trust me… if there are boys in your household, you will WANT this product.

Introducing Flippee: the toilet shield.  Oh yes.  Moms everywhere will rejoice over this simple, yet ingenious little product. This fantastic item has suction cups to attach to the commode and has a handle to easily flip it up to enact “the shield”.  When it is in the down position, you’ll hardly even notice it is there. Check out the video and product details for more info.  Thanks, Flippee! I love products that are solutions!!

BUY IT: Get this MUST HAVE product for moms of boys only at Flippee.com.

The Joy Of Pregnancy, The Complete, Candid, and Reassuring Companion For Parents-To-Be, by Tori Kropp, R.N. is an easy read, full of practical information.  The Joy Of Pregnancy takes you step by step, from becoming pregnant, through each month of the pregnancy, to life with a brand new baby. 

Each chapter is full of features that help you navigate this important journey: important info highlighted in a softly colored boxes, Ask Tori, R.N. (questions she has received over the year along with her answers), Dad’s Corner (great infor for the expectant father for each step of the journey), Tori’s Tips, and more.  The use of color and boxes really breaks up the great expanse of information so that it is not monotonous and it is easy to locate just the info you are looking for.

About Tori Kropp, R.N.:

 

Tori Kropp, R.N. has attended the births of thousands of babies. At Califormia Pacific Medical Center and elsewhere. She is founder and director of Pillowtalk, a child-birth edication program in Marin County and San Francisco, and founder of Stork Site, a pregnancy-and-parenting website. She lives with her family in Marin County.

If you are expecting, I would recommend picking up a copy of Tori Kropp’s The Joy Of Pregnancy.  I don’t think you will find a more easily digested, practical resource for your pregnancy.

Raising The Bar is the newest television series from Steven Bochco and TNT.  It is courtroom drama meets daytime soap opera.  It brings together an interesting mix of actors: Mark-Paul Gosselaar (NYPD Blue and Saved By The Bell), Jane Kaczmarek (Malcolm In The Middle), Gloria Reuben (E.R.), J. August Richards (Conviction), as well as other talented actors. It took a bit for me to look beyond the roles I was accustomed to them being in (with the exception of J. August Richards).

 Meet Kellerman, a public defender passionate about the clients he believes in, yet quite confrontational… Trudy Kessler, a quirky Judge easily swayed by her law clerk Charlie Sagansky and Sagansky, who has his eye on his own judgeship, has a little secret, just a few of the characters in this sure to be a hit television series. 

There is as much happening on screen in the personal lives of the characters as there is in the courtroom, so don’t expect this to be your typical legal drama. 

I wasn’t as impressed with the pilot as I felt I should have been, mostly due to the seemingly never-ending confrontations between Judge Kessler and Counselor Kellerman. Things did pick up for the second and third episodes, and this may very well be another show added to my Tivo list.

Series premieres September 1, 2008 10 EST / 9 C

I am excited about a group of products I’ve come across in my quest to become more organized!  Buttoned Up sent me the following products (and let me tell you I had fun digging into them!): Life.doc, Babysitter.pad, BabyPack.pad, KidPack.pad, and Shopping.pad.

In the words of Buttoned Up:

The Life.doc is designed to help you get your most important information truly Buttoned Up.

The Life.doc is a nice thick notebook, organized into 8 tabbed sections (forms in each section are color coded to match the respective tab), including Emergency Plan, Family Basics, Dollars & Sense, plus 5 others.  Also included is a CD-Rom of all the forms, so you can type directly on the forms and print out if you prefer that over handwriting – just be sure the form is in the printer to print on).

When there is a there is a threat of a hurricane, a medical emergency that arises, or another an unforeseen event that occurs, it is important that you are prepared.  Life.doc will take a little while for you to fill out, most of that time gathering information, but once you have it all filled out, it may very well prove to be your new best friend. 

What is your emergency plan? Who is your husband’s HR & 401k contacts?  What surgeries & immunizations have each member of your family had?  Who are all your insurance contacts?  What accounts do you have?  Where is the location of your wills, military papers, and numerous other legal docs?  How quickly can you locate the number for your electric company, painter, home warranty company?  Life.doc houses all of this information (and oh so very much more) so that everything you need to know is right at your fingertips. 

If you have ever wished you could truly organize all of life’s important and vital information, this is the product for you. 

Buttoned Up has a lot of other great organization products including their line of tablets.  I love the four they sent me.  The Shopping.pad is a great errand tool as it has room for your grocery list, plus a list for three other stops. 

KidPack.pad is a must have back to school item. Are you listening moms? This checklist lists just about everything your child may possibly need to take to school, so you can run down the list and check things off as they go in the backpack, including stuff for the school day (not that any moms reading this have had to frantically run a permission slip or homework to their child’s school), for after school sports (including game day), and extracurricular activities.  There is a small box where you can check off a cute comment for your kidlet like “be good”, “I love you” and others. Most important, especially when the info may vary, is pick up time and by who. 

The BabyPack.pad is similar to the KidPack, but is for a diaper bag.  There is a basic diaper bag list, a notes section, a list of items you may need when you are “on the go” (think baby gear & misc), for when baby isn’t feeling so good, and a list for the Mommy bag (water, light snacks, etc because in the rush of getting baby together we tend to forget our needs). 

Finally, the Babysitter.pad – includes parents’ contact info, instructions (detailed for you to fill in or check off), emergency info and a section for notes.

BUY IT: Buttoned Up products can be found at Target, Amazon.com and the Organize.com.