Tiny Saints: A Review

Today, I get to share something super sweet, tiny, and fun with you: Tiny Saints! The day we got our little charms in the mail, we immediately put them to good use, figuring out what fun places we could clip them.  All four of us got them: a St. Maximillian Kolbe for Daniel (his confirmation Saint), a St. Joan of Arc for me (my confirmation Saint), a St. Anthony of Padua for Anni (her patron Saint), and a St. Therese of Lisieux for Colette (no St. Colette as of yet, but middle name patron Saints are great, too!)

First of all, aren't they adorable?!  I love the sweet detail, especially the little rose. Colette's went straight onto her favorite purse and has stayed there.  She has proven that the clasp is nice and sturdy, and can withstand many kisses (seriously, many kisses... every time she carries the purse).    

Anni's St. Anthony started on her pocket. Her favorite part is always, "Look, Mom! He's holding baby Jesus!"

Because pants get changed every day (hopefully...), the charm got moved to her favorite purse.  Luckily, it's super easy to move when she wants it somewhere else.

Now, my husband is a pretty low-frills kind of guy, so we went with something he could see often, but wouldn't get in his way.  St. Maximillian got keys duty.

I will say, that while my girls love their Tiny Saints, they may love the little folded card that comes with them even more. Both have been carrying them around as phones, in fact, Colette practices her "Hewwo?" every time she picks one up.  Bonus toy, parents!

Now my little St. Joan of Arc took a little bit of thought.  I don't use my purse much, so putting it on there wasn't too exciting.  She made a stop at the pile of clean dishes I need to put away... 

Why?  Well, it's a lot harder to walk by without doing anything about them when a Saint who went into battle and was martyred before she entered her 20s is staring you down.

In the end; though, she ended up on something I carry with me all the time: my camera bag!  A little extra intercession as I go about my work.

The great thing about these is because of their wee size, they are great for stocking stuffers (I know, I know, but St. Nicholas Day and Christmas come faster every year) or just slipping into a birthday card for something extra.

Plus, something for the little ones to kiss... who doesn't love toddler kisses?

You can find them on their website here: http://shoptinysaints.com/.  Have fun browsing!  I'm pulling for a St. Colette or St. Elizabeth of Hungary next.

Disclaimer: I was provided with four Tiny Saints in exchange for this review.  However, all thoughts on them are my own. 

Radiantly You Review

Today we're going to talk a little Radiantly You.  When the company first starting showing up in my newsfeed, I was a little iffy.  Yes, I like my crunchy, all-natural stuff, but I like it to work, and it takes me awhile to convert from my routine. However, a fellow FOCUS wife, Kjersti, was selling it, and because I trusted her, and was pretty excited by her posts and the fact that everything includes very few, but high quality ingredients, I decided to give it a try.  The first round I bought myself some face wash and moisturizer, as I was just about out of both of my "old" bottles of each.  The first thing I really enjoyed was that they cost me equal or less than my previous kinds (I'm not that picky, so the old ones weren't anything super ritzy either).  I absolutely love the face wash, my friends.  In fact, I'm so behind on getting this review done, that the jar is just about down to it's last swipes, and a new order will need to be made.  So, yes, the fact that I actually liked it enough to get another jar = pretty excellent for me.  I'm not as big of a fan of the moisturizer, mostly because I don't love the smell.  However; I did see that they actually reformulated it and added just a touch of lavender, so I have high hopes for the future.

Next, here's my disclaimer.  I did receive some counter spray and tub scrub in exchange for this review.  I'm going to start with the counter spray, because I think it's my absolute favorite.  Before this, I was using a vinegar and water spray for a lot of my cleaning.  The first time I got it, I cleaned everything I could my hands on with it (bathroom counter, sink, table, everything in the kitchen... you get the idea).  That night, Anni was playing with it in the bathroom and spilled 90% of what was left on the bathroom floor.  Major bummer. On the plus side, there was nothing in it that could hurt her, annnnd our bathroom floor was quite sparkly clean.  

I have just a bit of show and tell on this one.  The main thing I wanted to try this out on was our table.  It gets super crusty (especially where the littles sit) more than three times a day, and my trusty vinegar ended up requiring a lot of elbow grease.  With very little effort, my grungy little table went from:

to:

Good stuff.  It has also been excellent for the drips of waffle batter on our kitchen counters.  After the incident where most of it ended up on the floor, I hopped on the computer to see if we could afford some more.  Yep, only $3.50 for a bottle of the concentrate... and once you have the spray bottle (which they actually just revamped, it looks like), you just pour, add water, and oi-la.  Definitely affordable, especially for the elbow grease it saves me.  And, again, I really like that I don't have to stress about the girls eating off the table (because we all know plates are optional when you're little).  The only downside is there is a shipping fee, so I do try to gather up and make larger orders to disperse the cost a little.

Next was the tub scrub.  I have a couple before and afters for this as well; though, they are a little harder to see with the white tubs.  Suffice to say, our bathtub needed a really good scrub.  Our bath mat had left some weird spots and we definitely had that tub ring (don't judge! these things happen), and, well, it was just looking yucky.  These photos are a little harder to see, with the white on white, but it's there.

 

So much better!  It's an old tub, so there are definitely some spots that may never come out, but this stuff is good, and, again, I love that I don't have to stress so much about the girls taking a bath after I've scrubbed it, or feeling like I have to triple scrub out the more chemical-laden cleaners.

My next foray will be into the world of the shampoo bars.  That; however, requires a bit of a detox from all of the old stuff... so it will have to wait until all the traveling is done this summer!  Oh!  I also saw that they have bug spray... definitely may need to be on my list for next time as well.

To summarize:

No nasty chemicals, it works, it's actually affordable (that one still blows my mind a little after previous adventures in organic cleaners and soaps), and you should probably go check it out yourself and buy some from Kjersti.   

The Vintage Honey: A Review

A little over a month ago, I bought myself a nursing necklace in hopes that it would:

a) keep Miss Colette's little fingers busy so she would stop pinching when nursing or trying to fall asleep in the sling

and

b) Give me a little something extra special/pretty to wear with my very limited post-partum wardrobe. 


This sweet little necklace from The Vintage Honey totally came through!   In fact, my hubby took a quick iPhone snapshot, and the photo got a pretty immediate, happy response (I couldn't even include all the sweet comments, there were so many!):

 

So, when they asked for baby-wearing reviewers, I was all over that one!  (Yes, they did send me the pretty mint colored necklace you see below... but I actually purchased the one above myself and my opinions are all my own!) 

Miss Lettie enjoying my new necklace while she hung out with me in the kitchen.

As far as my hopes for the necklace(s), they were definitely fulfilled!  Lettie seems to like the shape of the necklaces to tug and pinch (rather than my skin, thank goodness).  I really like that the necklaces are adjustable, they tie with a ribbon in the back, so I can easily make it a little longer when she's nursing or awake in the sling and then I like to tie it almost like a choker while she's asleep so it rests in the hollow of my throat and I don't have to worry about her lying on it while she sleeps.  I was a little worried that the ribbon tie would slip undone all the time, but it seems to be the best of both worlds (stays tied, but comes off when I need it to). 

Dancing in the kitchen while our dinner cooked... love this sweetie!

The necklaces have also added a little somethin' to my rather limited wardrobe during these "in-between" months.  I love that both necklaces go with so much, and I get asked about them often (which means people are noticing the necklaces instead of any of the other wardrobe issues I worry about, score)!

Ready to go out for Daniel's birthday!  Well, almost, I had to change that shirt... cream cheese frosting is messy!

On the babywearing side of things: I've mostly worn it with my ring sling since that has slipped into top place for ease (and gorgeousness), but I did use the moby the other day and it still sat in a great spot both for her to play with and then me to keep it out of the way when she was sleeping.

Trekking through the zoo with a very sleepy babe.

I've worn the necklaces just about everywhere: church and lunch with the girls at Daniel's office, fireworks, the zoo, Anni's swim lesson (though not while swimming myself) and dancing in the kitchen. 

Fireworks on the 3rd of July!  Lettie actually was in the sling most of the night, but she stretched out a little before all the craziness began.

At the pool (see, didn't the necklace distract you from the wet hair?!)

Whether or not you're a nursing mama (I mean, aren't they just cute whether or not you have a baby to tug on them?!), check out The Vintage Honey Shop, I think you'll love them!