I had the opportunity to review vitafusion™ FiberWell™ Fit gummies and learn how convenient they are (a) to take on the go and (b) to ensure you get that extra boost of fiber in your day.
For Christmas Eve, I've given myself a gift:
I finally collected all the random clips
of baby Karsten from 8 months in June
to the present at 14 months.
Watch and be amazed at such accomplishments as
Clapping
Squealing
Rolling
Standing
Peekaboo
Babbling
Speed-crawling
Dart fetching
And many more amazing feats!
In other words, all the totally usual baby stuff!
But it's greatly entertaining me,
and, I hope, the grandparents.
Need a few Christmas-is-almost-here gifts for little ones? Here's a selection of options you crafty wizzes (et al.) can whip up on the quick. Bonus points that they'll be handmade with love (also speed!).
Some require sewing skills, some do not, and some require no crafting abilities whatsoever! Hooray!
Simply click on the title for a link to the full tutorial. (Some of the ones toward the end don't have their own tutorial if they're really easy to figure out!)
All you need are appropriately festive or fashionably forward adult knee socks! You might already have some (I've repurposed ones that had worn through on the sole before), or you can easily find some cheap and bright ones at any clothing store. The sewing is seriously minimal, so you could even do this by hand if needed.
I really, really had to convince myself not to make the title any worse of a pun by spelling it "tail." You're welcome.
I want to talk with you today about my cats — one fat, one skinny — and what that means. I think it's illustrative of what body composition is like for humans as well as felines.
We adopted our kitties from a rescue. They're purported to be Maine Coons (no idea if there's a mix of something else in there), which are a large and hearty American cat breed. They're not genetically sisters and are a year apart in age, but they were raised together, so we adopted them as a bonded pair.
The big one has the broad, strong frame of a typical Maine Coon, but then she's added quite a bit o' bulk to it. Her sister is petite, very small for her breed, and so thin you can feel her spine clearly when you pet her.
I think you can see the size difference. The little, darker one is so fluffy, it's hard to eyeball how skinny she is underneath all the fur. You can see the larger one hanging off the top of the scratcher.
This is the small kitty on the same scratcher, for comparison.
They both get the same food and the same exercise opportunities. I find this fascinating.
There's a current, overwhelming tendency for any talk of overweight to blame the (human) person for being fat. There's an overt messaging that being fat is a moral failing, an inability to curb decadent gluttony or "get off the couch once in awhile." It is so culturally ingrained that most fat people believe this themselves, even if they have personal evidence that it's not true.
I think my cats could help us shed some light on this one.
Awhile back, our family decided to try out Green Kid Crafts, which is a cool subscription box for kids. You get a science & craft kit in the mail every month!
Green Kid Crafts sends your family a box focused on STEM and arts and crafts, full of multiple projects for fun with learning, experimenting, and crafting.
Here I'm giving my unbiased review of the service and showing you what's in a typical box. You can skip to the end for a COUPON CODE to use (perfect gift for the holidays — hint, hint).
Full disclosure here: Green Kid Crafts links are affiliate links. Green Kid Crafts did not sponsor this review in any way, and I paid for my own subscription. I do have a previous advertising relationship with Green Kid Crafts, but that is not current. The end!
First, I'll share my videos if you're a video-watching type. Below those, I'll give a mini written & photographic review if you'd rather have still action.
Here's my video review and unboxing. I give my honest impressions of the service and show you what's in a typical box by going through every project:
A friend posted about it on a Facebook homeschooling group,
and we've been making the monthly trek out to Duvall
for some engineering & technology fun.
One whole year since this little guy entered our lives?
And he's growing and becoming so much more capable every day.
Learning words and signs, practicing standing without support,
brushing his hair (clumsily),
brushing the kitties (by poking them in the eye with the brush),
feeding himself off our plates
and laughing uproariously at our mutual jokes.
Raise your hand if you're sure you ate enough veggies today. How many hands are up?
That few, huh?
I love emphasizing whole, natural foods in my diet — but as a busy homeschooling, work-at-home mama of three, I'm lucky if I've remembered to shower this week, let alone had the wherewithal to ensure I've eaten all the fiber I need each day.
With just two tasty little gummies — chew, delight, swallow — I've added 5 grams of soluble fiber to my day. Done!
Fiber has a prebiotic effect on your gut.* It also, you know, supports regularity*. We all know that's important!
Not only that, but vitafusion™ FiberWell™ Fit includes 6 B vitamins, the kind that help your body metabolize the food you eat to create the energy you need to run your jam-packed life.*
You can easily take vitafusion™ gummy vitamins on the go!
Now, I don't know about you, but I'm rarely without something to do. I'm doing a load of laundry here, taking my sons to the park there, nursing the baby, working on our home business, amusing the cats, helping the kids learn … and, on top of that, I'm trying to fit in five miles of walking each day. I consider it my evolutionary right to walk a whole bunch, plus — well, I just plain love it.
So here's a fabulous bonus about vitafusion™ FiberWell™ Fit: I can take my vitamins on the go! You don't need a glass of water, or to try to swallow some huge horse pill. You just pop two in your mouth, and they're easy-to-chew gummies.
Did I mention, too, that they're delish? I've been limiting added sugars and grains, so I love that they're gluten-free and sugar-free, contain no high fructose corn syrup, and use only natural fruit flavors and colors derived fruits, vegetables and plants. And they're still totally yummy!
That's because vitafusion™ understands that being healthy can also be a whole lot of pleasure, and vitafusion™ is proving it through their philosophy of "healthy fusion." Try it out, and make taking your vitamins a satisfying, enjoyable part of your daily health routine!
Buy it!
You can find vitafusion™ gummy vitamins at club, mass, drug and grocery stores nationwide including Costco, Walmart, Target, and Walgreens. Find more information at www.gummyvites.com.
If you're looking for a brand for your kids, I highly recommend L’il Critters™ as well. My kids love them! L’il Critters™ gummy vitamins have no high fructose corn syrup or synthetic (FD&C) dyes, and they're gluten free.
You can find vitamins, minerals, and other dietary supplements from vitafusion™ and L’il Critters™ to meet your health needs through every stage of life. There are products tailored to meet the specific health needs of children, men, women, pregnant women, and those 50+.
Win It!
To enter for the chance to win a $100 Visa gift card, comment with an answer to this question:
How many servings of vegetables did you eat yesterday?
I received free product and payment for this sponsored post. All opinions are 100% mine.
*These statements have not been evaluated by the Food and Drug Administration. This product is not intended to diagnose, treat, cure, or prevent any disease.
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I want to let you know about a fun, educational, & interactive event going on all weekend:
the Mini Maker Faire!
Mikko and I have gone for several years now to this event created by Make Magazine, but this is the first year it's at Barnes & Noble stores nationwide, making it super easy to get to — and FREE! (Best part!)
So I wanted to share so you get a chance to attend. If you have a mini inventor or scientist or gadgeteer in your house (like our future engineer — I'm calling it!), you'll have a great time.
Here's a little video diary of the joy we had yesterday:
The fun continues Saturday & Sunday at a Barnes & Noble near you, so find the full schedule of presentations and DIY opportunities at your local B&N: http://www.barnesandnoble.com/h/makerfaire
Over the years of helping our little pumpkins enjoy pumpkin-patch excitement, Sam has come up with a few tricks (treats?) for involving little kids in carving a jack o'lantern without losing any fingers in the process.
You could go with just drawn-on pumpkins if you want to make the easiest choice, but if you want to wield a knife and really cut that pumpkin up, here are our best ideas for toddlers, preschoolers, and elementary folk.
You can see the tips in action in our video, and I'll also describe below:
Have you been to Great Wolf Lodge,
the indoor water park-slash-hotel?
We went for the first time this fall
with a homeschooling group
(fabulously discounted!),
and it was a ton o' watery fun,
even for our three non-swimmers.
Here's a splish-splashy video:
I think we had a great (wolfy) time,
but Mikko,
in the spirit of total honesty,
said the place should be named
Ok Raccoon Hotel.
He said they decorated more with raccoons than wolves,
that "lodge" was inaccurate,
and that "great" was perhaps overstating it.
(Did I mention this post isn't sponsored?
Clearly it is not.)
The rest of the family & I think he's just a goof.
Have you been to a Great Wolf Lodge near you,
or do you want to go?
I had a coupon for a free styling fee, so I decided I would be out nothing if I gave it a go. I told my stylist 5 fall tops in XL, please, and then I crossed my fingers and waited.
I posted a little video review & unboxing here, but I will post a written and photographic review below for those of you who prefer not to hear me yammer. Or you can do a little of both.
At any rate, I NEED YOUR HELP! I have a scant three days to decide what to keep and what to send back, so let me know what you think!
Theme: Confessions: No one’s perfect, but sometimes parents (perhaps especially mom bloggers — you know who you are!) can appear perfect to people on the outside. What is your parental confession (crunchy or otherwise)? Come clean in this month’s carnival. Submission deadline: October 6. Carnival posting: October 13.
Deadline: Tuesday, October 6. Fill out the webform (at the link or at the bottom) and email your submission to us by 11:59 p.m. Pacific time: CarNatPar {at} NaturalParentsNetwork.com
Carnival date:Tuesday, October 13. Before you post, we will send you an email with a little blurb in html to paste into your submission that will introduce the carnival. You will publish your post on October 13 and email us the link if you haven't done so already. Once everyone's posts are published on October 13 by noon Eastern time, we will send out a finalized list of all the participants' links to generate lots of link love for your site! We'll include full instructions in the email we send before the posting date.
Yo ho, me hearties! It be that felicitous season known as International Talk Like a Pirate Day, and our crew will sure be lifting a cup o' grog in celebration.
We've put up a video with piratey Mad Libs, including a treasure chest of villainous vocabulary and a wee lesson on the parts o' speech for the cabin boys & girls. It's worth its weight in doubloons.
Ahoy, it's there:
Teach yerself and yer maties to talk like a true swashbuckling buccaneer today!
True to its name, each book is just a buck — so you get 10 incredible ebooks on natural mothering for just $10. My book is normally just about that much on its own, and buying all 10 separately would cost $68, so this is a great opportunity to add to your parenting library for pennies. You get:
True to its name, each book is just a buck — so you get 10 incredible ebooks on natural mothering for just $10. My book is normally just about that much on its own, and buying all 10 separately would cost $68, so this is a great opportunity to add to your parenting library for pennies.
The sale is on for just 72 hours, so be sure to check it out now through my link: Motherhood Bundle sale.
I'm Lauren Wayne, writer and natural parent. I embrace attached parenting with an emphasis toward green living.
Riding the rails with my husband, Crackerdog Sam, and our hobo kids, Mikko Lint Picker (born June 2007), Alrik Irontrousers (born May 2011), and Karsten (born October 2014). Trying every day to parent intentionally and with grace.
You can find vitafusion™ gummy vitamins at club, mass, drug and grocery stores nationwide including Costco, Walmart, Target, and Walgreens. Find more information at www.gummyvites.com.
Here are the submission details for October 2015:
I'm Lauren Wayne, writer and natural parent. I embrace attached parenting with an emphasis toward green living. 
