Monday Meet and Greet- Tales from the Nursery

A big thank you to Darcy, from Tales from the Nursery, for sharing with us this week. Let's learn a little more about her...

Your Name: Darcy

Where do you blog? Tales From the Nursery http://www.darcyandbrian.com

How did you decide on what to name your blog? I started this blog while I was pregnant and working on the nursery.  I figured I'd be spending a lot of time there!

Tell us 5 of your favorite things, and 5 of your least favorite things...

5 Things I Love:

My family

Reese's Peanutbutter cups

Metal music

Tattoos

Gadgets

5 Things I Hate:

Clowns

Feet

Lemons

Being interrupted

Unsolicited parenting advice by strangers

When and why did you start blogging?

I started blogging back in ummm 2000? 2001? I wrote about daily college life with a few others.  I've had a few different blogs since then.  I maintained a successful gaming blog for a few years.  It's always been a fun hobby and outlet for me! 

What do you blog about?  At TFTN I blog about being a first time mom.  I talk about breastfeeding, cloth diapers, products and I love giveaway events!

What does your family think of your blog? Do they read it?  My hubby supports it (he's my developer) and a few family members read it.  Sometimes they don't like the personal stuff so much.

When do you find the time to blog? Late at night while everyone else is sleeping, usually!  During naps I try to do bloggy chores if possible.  Off and on throughout the day I tend to email, Twitter, and Facebook via my phone.  I sometimes am able to blog a bit from it too.

What is your favorite blog post ever?I think one of my favorite personal posts is about my constant struggle with my self-image. Learning to Love Me http://www.darcyandbrian.com/2011/05/23/learning-to-love-me-my-constant-struggle-with-self-image/

What is the best advice or knowledge that you have found? Be true to yourself, disclose! and give credit where credit is due.

What advice would you give a new blogger? Read other blogs.  Don't just follow but actually read them and comment on them.  You'll learn a lot and they'll inspire you too.

What widget or feature could you not live without? My husband :)

Where can we find you?

Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/talesfromthenursery

Twitter: http://www.twitter.com/Syrana

Sunday Funny- Pessimists

Do you have a Happy Napper?

Ever been watching TV and hear a song that comes along... maybe even one that perks your kids' interest. Well, one day that is exactly what happened at our house. 

"They are happy, Happy Nappers, and they love to play with you..."  the kids' ears perk up, they come out to the living room... and they WANT. 

I have to admit, Happy Nappers are awfully cute! 

We were thrilled to receive the Castle to Dragon Happy Napper for review.

This is all one piece... the door unzips to allow the dragon to come out and play (after his nap, of course). Do you see the little "doorbell" button there on the right? If you ring it the dragon inside gives a few grumbles, as if waking up. Then, once it is nap time again, you unzip the back of the dragon, turn the plush toy inside out, and  send dragon to bed. 

Our four year old, Gabriel, LOVED this Happy Napper. He carried it everywhere he went for a couple weeks after receiving it. He slept with it, took it in the car, everywhere. 

He loved the doorbell... but, he loved it so much the batteries died (or he disconnected the wires). And here is one thing that I didn't like... there is no way to change the batteries. The battery case also floats around in the plush toy, and since you are frequently moving the stuffing, it seems like it would be very easy to disconnect the wires.  We aren't sure if it was a wire disconnect, or if the batteries died, but either way, Gabriel lost a lot of interest in the Happy Napper when he couldn't "wake the dragon up".  So now the Happy Napper sits on his bed, or in the closet.

I DO think this is a fun toy, and a great way to make nap time a lot more fun. I hope that future Happy Napper will have a way to change the batteries and a more secure battery case/wiring so that these toys can last longer. 

Happy Nappers can be purchased online at www.happynapper.com , but I have also seen them in some big box stores. (My local K-Mart carries them). 

Happy Nappers are recommended for children age 3 and up. They are made of 100% polyester and made in China.

Mild by Nature- Madre Labs

"To create truly innovative and unique formulations of the highest quality, assisting our health-minded customers in supporting the well-being of their babies by offering finished products that WE OURSELVES would use.

At Madre Labs, we strive to use only the finest natural ingredients deemed acceptable by our discriminating customers, as well as our peers in the natural products industry."
Do you like the best possible product to be used on your baby? I know I want to know that there aren't chemicals that will harm my child while I try to keep my child clean. Mild by Nature has an entire line of bath products just for your baby.

Mild by Nature features the No no-no's label. What does that mean?

"No sulfates, parabens, dyes, animal ingredients and animal testing."

""NO No-No's" is our trademarked logo, signifying that we have cross-referenced multiple documents/databases while searching for acceptable ingredients for our products, which are considered gentle, biodegradable and “green”, and have received good safety ratings.

We worked with our formulators and chemists to ensure that we used only the finest ingredients listed on two "2010 Acceptable Lists" for Personal Care (Baby), which were developed by two well-respected organizations in our industry. Also, we referenced an industry-recognized online cosmetic ingredient safety database to further fine-tune our Innovative Baby Care Formulations."

We received the entire line of products for review. I love the idea behind this line of products. After using them, I can say there isn't anything that I found extraordinary during use, but the products all did their job and left my baby feeling clean.... and me with a sense of security. 

My favorite product out of the line was the Everyday Lotion. It is thick, and really helps dry patches. 

 A big plus, is that all these products are made in the U.S.A. with Eco-Friendly packaging which is recyclable. The bottle also says 100% WindEnergy, so I am assuming that is how the plant is powered (which is pretty neat if I do say so myself)!

Use Coupon Code WOW123 to get $5 off your first order, if you are a first-time iHerb customer!

Bryton Pick- Reusable Floss/Pick!

When was the last time you've gone to eat and had that uncomfortable pressure of something stuck between your teeth? For me, it happens every time I eat hotwings. Never fails! 

Well, Byton Pick has come along to save the day!

This reusable pick can help you floss out those pesky trapped pieces of food. 

We received two Bryton Picks for review. I can say, I didn't expect them to be metal. From the images, I had thought they were plastic...but they are not. Each end has very thin metal pieces that are what you slide between your teeth. 

For the most part, the Bryton Pick worked well. However, in areas that I had dental work done between the teeth, the Bryton Pick was unable to get between the teeth like regular floss was able to. 

I do love that the Bryton Pick is reusable for up to 30 days. I also like that it comes in a little pack you can carry it in as well. 

Go check out the Bryton Pick... do you think you would use one?

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.