Moms

This post on how to improve indoor air quality has been brought to you by Filtrete. I am a Filtrete Ambassador. All opinions are mine and mine alone. When most people hear the words “air pollution”, they think of big businesses and car emissions and how they impact the quality of the air outside.  Air pollution isn’t all about outdoor air quality. There are ways that you can improve indoor air quality as well.  Their are indoor sources of contaminants that reduce the quality of the air in your home.   Just a few of these indoor sources are your pets, dust, or chemicals from fragrances or cleaners.  People with asthma, children, or the elderly are especially sensitive to indoor air quality.  Since both Sarah and I have asthma, learning how to improve indoor air quality is important to me. Improve Indoor Air Quality Here are six simple ways that you can improve indoor air quality in your home. Vacuum – Regularly removing pet hair, dust and contaminants that have been tracked in from outside will help improve indoor air quality.  Make sure that the vacuum you choose has a HEPA filter to catch as many of these pollutants as possible. Second hand smoke – Encourage people to smoke outside your home. Since second hand smoke is a huge trigger for many asthmatics, we don’t allow smoking inside our home. Natural fragrances – When choosing air fresheners and cleaners, choose products with natural fragrances instead of chemical fragrances. Brush your pets regularly – Brushing your pet regularly to remove loose hair will help keep it off the floor and the furniture. Houseplants – Houseplants like ferns, spider plants and aloe vera can help remove chemical pollutants. Change your filter – Change your furnace filter regularly to make sure it is removing airborne dust, allergens, bacteria and viruses. We have a forced hot air furnace that we use along with our wood stove. We use the Filtrete Odor Reduction Filter in our furnace.  It helps create a healthy home by capturing things in the air to improve indoor air quality.  The Odor Reduction Filter has a unique 2 sided design.  One side captures the large airborne particles and the second side removes household odors.  Unlike air fresheners, it doesn’t release volatile organic compounds into the air.  Filtrete Filters also help maintain airflow in heating and cooling systems, which may help prevent stress on the system and reduce the amount of energy needed to reach desired indoor air temperatures.  It actually removes the odors instead of masking them with a perfume smell. I definitely notice an improvement in the air quality when I use it. Old filter Each filter lasts up to three months for odor removal and particle capture.  The suggested retail price for one Filtrete Odor Reduction Filter is $15.99.  You can purchase them from stores including Lowes, Target, Walmart, and Costco.  Many local hardware stores carry it as well. New Filter To help you address indoor air quality, Filtrete Brand has partnered with Mike Holmes, renowned HGTV contractor, on the Filtrete Healthy Home Remodel Contest.  One grand prize winner, selected by Mike Holmes, will receive $30,000 worth of home inspections, repairs, and renovations by a Holmes Group approved contractor.  Four first prize winners will be awarded $5,000 cash to put towards home repairs. To enter through June 30, 2013: Visit Facebook.com/Filtrete and “like” the page. Explain in 1,000 words or less why your home deserves a healthier home remodel. Submit up to two photos to support your essay. For more details, see the official rules. Connect with Filtrete on Twitter. Register to receive seasonal e-newsletters featuring special offers, filter change reminders, better home living tips and more by visiting www.Filtrete.com. This post on how to improve indoor quality has been brought to you by Filtrete. I am a Filtrete Ambassador. All opinions are mine and mine alone.

I left the keys in the ignition of Dave’s car in the start position yesterday, apparently. I don’t remember doing this, but it was an easy way to add some adventure to our morning today. We got to search for his keys AND find a dead battery! Like a treasure hunt, but without the fun. That’s not what I even really wanted to tell you, though. It’s what I had to tell you, because when I do stupid things, it makes me feel better to laugh about them and Dave’s not laughing, yet. He’s jump starting the car from the lawn tractor. Anyway, this is what I wanted to tell you. Thanks to a generous gift and gentle encouragement from a beautiful friend, I’m giving cloth diapering a try. Doesn’t Jackson look dapper in his diaper? My mom used cloth diapers when I was a baby, and it wasn’t until after Lucy came that I really understood that it was something people still did. I thought it was an “olden days” sort of thing, like making all your own bread. Sure, it’s fun to make your own bread, but it’s not convenient to do every day. It may not even save you money. But so far, cloth diapering seems sort of simple. I keep wondering if there’s some key element I’m missing. I’ve seen so many articles and videos about it and was even invited to a cloth diaper party once to “try and figure it all out!” Of course, I didn’t really read those articles or watch the videos and I didn’t go to that party, but the knowledge of their existence was enough to place a shroud of mystery over the whole thing. Plus, I don’t know many people who do it, but some that don’t have suggested that it’s complicated and time-consuming. My experience so far is that it’s less work than when Lucy started wearing underwear, but still had a lot of accidents. I’m going to try it a while before I decide to invest in the next size diaper. I’d love to hear about your diapering experiences. Do you use disposables or cloth or a combination of the two? What brands do you use? And what about baby wipes? Can you believe it took me until child number four to ask these questions?

Thanks to Dermatology Consultants for this week’s Tackle it Tuesday post. Everyone knows it’s impossible to keep active families out of the sun. Yet sun exposure can cause wrinkles, sun spots and worst of all, skin cancer. The doctors at Dermatology Consultants, one of the oldest and largest dermatology practices in the Twin Cities, offer these helpful tips for keeping you and your family safe from the sun’s potentially harmful UV rays. Keep sunscreen somewhere handy in your home so it’s easy to remember. Choose a broad-spectrum sunscreen of at least SPF 30 or higher and one that carries the AAD or Skin Cancer Foundation seal of approval. Make sure you’re applying the proper amount of sunscreen, about a shot glass for the whole body, 15-20 minutes before you go outside. Reapply sunscreen every 2-3 hours. Smartphone apps like n?vus have reminders that sound an alarm when it’s time to reapply. Remember to apply sunscreen on your ears and the back of your arms and legs, especially if you’re a runner or golfer. These are areas where we often see signs of sun damage. Many clothing lines like Coolibar offer sun-protective clothing and UV protection swimwear. A stylish hat with a wide brim is always a good idea. Don’t believe the myth of the “base tan” as protection against the sun. If you’d like a healthy glow use a self-tanner. One of our favorites is Fake Bake but there are many options available. Be most cautious when the sun is strongest, between 10 am and 4pm every day. Schedule your annual skin check with a dermatologist now and watch for any changing moles and lesions on your body. About Dermatology Consultants, P.A. – Dermatology Consultants, P.A. was founded in 1949 as one of the first practices devoted to dermatologic medicine in the Twin Cities. Today, Dermatology Consultants provides a full spectrum of services including general skin care for adults and children, skin cancer surgery and reconstruction, and cosmetic dermatology. Dermatology Consultants has four Twin Cities’ locations in Eagan, Saint Paul, Vadnais Heights and Woodbury. For more information, please visit us at DermatologyConsultants.com or find us on Facebookor Twitter Calling All Tacklers! We’re looking for YOU – guest bloggers to post about your own tackles right here. If you are interested in showing off your tackles (we all need some tips and ideas!) then contact us . Thanks for your inspiring tackles!! Mom Bloggers — what are you tackling this week? Link up your Tackle it Tuesday post… Tell us what you’re up to with all your other tackles… housework and otherwise… add your link to your tackle in the Linky below! We are Tackling Our To-Do Lists Together and making housework bloggable — Each week on Tuesday, we are posting before and after pictures of a project or trouble area that we tackled this week. Find out more about how Tackle It Tuesday began. The project can be little or big – whatever you want. Basically, Tackle It Tuesday is about giving ourselves incentive, deadlines and satisfaction in tackling all our tasks — whether household or otherwise. If you tackled a project this week, just add a comment and add your link below. Tackle it Tuesday is managed by Jennifer. You can find Jennifer blogging at Jen’s Journey and tweeting at @jennifer_sikora.

The van is locked and loaded, and we are hitting the road for a few days of highway togetherness! I plan on blogging a lot of our travels this week, so stay tuned for our journey to deep in the heart of Texas! I’m sharing some of my top road trip survival tips over on Land O’Moms today, and how we keep our sanity when we’re strapped and trapped!  Find out our go-to road munchies, ideas for creativity, and favorite entertainment distractions by clicking over to read more!  I’m curious how YOU survive long road trips with your family…what audiobooks, iPad apps, DVDs, games, and other roadside entertainment saves your sanity?

The competitions just keep rolling in here at Slummy single mummy! Today, following our recent review of the LEGO Wear range at www.miniwardrobe.com, I am able to give you the chance to win a Giokit of your choice. Giokit is a new idea in children’s wear, where each piece becomes a creative opportunity. The kits contain everything that kids need to colour, decorate and customize their own t-shirt. Pretty cool, huh? After a 40° wash, all the colours and decorations disappear and the t-shirt will be ready for another new art session. Hours of fun for those kids who prefer to draw on a wall/random object rather than paper. I quite wish they did them in grown up sizes, that way you could just buy the one t-shirt and draw a different design on it every day to look like you have a whole wardrobe full of t-shirts. That’s how it works, right? There are different designs, with some long-sleeve and short-sleeve styles. If your child prefers colouring in, then this Noah’s ark tee is a good choice: But if they’d prefer to be let loose to draw whatever they want, this photo frame design is perfect for them to draw a very flattering portrait of you, or a picture of a poo, or whatever they find hilarious. You can earn up to four entries through my fancy pants Rafflecopter thingummy below and the competition will close on June 18th. Good luck! a Rafflecopter giveaway The post COMPETITION – win a colour in t-shirt set with MiniWardobe appeared first on Slummy single mummy.

Water parks…never a bad idea, especially when you get there as soon as the pools open! I’ve got summer on the brain (now if only my white legs will get in the spirit of things and tan already!) My latest post for the Wishing Well Blog for the Monroe Carrell Jr. Children’s Hospital is live and it’s all about creative activities for keeping tweens busy (and bored free!) Screen time is an easy cop out but the summer childhood memories I remember most fondly don’t involve any kind of video game or TV show. What are some of your favorite summer activities for tweens? Go check out 10 Fun Summer Activities for Tweens and let me know if you have additional ideas. I’m all for banishing the “MOM, I’m boreds!”

This is the simplest salad ever and with a tangy lemon vinaigrette it’s perfect when you want fresh, clean flavors. To make it a main course salad I like add some warm grilled shrimp. Per serving you just need 2 handfuls of baby spinach. I always take the stalks off, but that’s up to you. Make sure you wash it to get out any grit and toss away the wilted bits. Spin it dry. Blanch one handful of frozen peas in boiling water and leave in the water to cool—if you have fresh peas even better. Toss the spinach and peas together and dress with the lemon vinaigrette then sprinkle with crumbled feta cheese. Yumm! Lemon Vinaigrette – Serves 4 2 Tbs 5 Tbs 1 Tbs 1/2 Tbs 1/2 Tbs Fresh Lemon Juice Olive Oil Rice Wine Vinegar Salt Ground Black Pepper Put all the ingredients into a screw top jar and shake well.

Today I am feeling Not Very Well and I don’t like it. I don’t like it because I know that I am really not very ill at all, but still I can’t help complaining and making little moany noises to myself. When it comes to other members of the family being ill, I am just about the least sympathetic person you have ever met – I just can’t be doing with it. When I am ill though, I put on this annoyingly feeble voice and make a sad face that irritates even me, and I can’t even see it. “Put I am pooooorrrrlllllyyyy,” I will say, sounding like a whiney three year old.  Gross. I can see that other people have about as much sympathy for me as you have for a toddler who cries for forty minutes because they get a stone in their shoe, but still I just can’t help sticking out my bottom lip and talking in an unnecessarily hoarse voice. “But I have a sore throat!” I say, coughing a little bit. Pull yourself together woman! I shout at myself inside my head before frowning a bit and having a little lie down on the sofa. And now I must go, for I am too ill to type much longer and must rest my weary fingers. The post On being ill appeared first on Slummy single mummy.

Before I hip Beyonce to the second baby game, I need my second baby, my little Lila, to know this one true thing: she was wanted, made from love and the product of lots of plotting and planning and... [[ This is a content summary only. Visit my website for full links, other content, and more! ]]

On Friday, I chaperoned a bunch of 8th graders on a field trip. Middle schools from all over Florida participate in an event called Gradventure, where the 8th graders get to go to Universal Studios/Islands of Adventure here in Orlando and stay until midnight. The parks are closed to outside guests for the duration so the kids pretty much have the place to themselves. It’s a really fun night! CONTINUE READING HERE!