Tropical Traditions Dish Liquid: Review and Giveaway

*This is a coconut based product*


Bubbles

I know, I know.  It's silly, bubbles are NOT a sign that my dishes (or anything else) are getting clean.  But the truth is, when I was dishes, I like to see bubbles.  I BELIEVE my dishes are getting cleaner when I see the "evidence" of bubbles that stick around for a little while.

Green

I like products that are green.  Not so much the color green, but free from added strange chemicals that may or may not harm my family as they are exposed to them over days, weeks, years, etc.  I like the color green too.  Mostly, I like learning ways to help keep our beautiful world healthy as my children (and hopefully someday grandchildren) are growing up.  I also want my kids to live with the expectation that they will do what they can to protect their world and continue to make it a safer place.

Smells

I don't like products that stink.  Who does?  I'm very particular about the smells that I bring into my house.  I don't tend to be big on flowery smells - but I'm not entirely opposed to them either.  I do like sweet smells, and natural smells.  I'm a very sensory person - the way things smell is definitely important to me.

Function

Why bring a product into my home that has no function, or does not function well?  The truth is - we do plenty of that.. silly kid's meal trinkets, stickers, flyers... I'm working on getting rid of those things that have no function or don't function well.  These things make clutter in my house and life and I don't like it.  Products that work well are important to me, there is no reason to spend my money on things that are going to last for short amounts of time, or not work in the way I expect!

DISH LIQUID

Right, that's what I told you in my title that I was going to post about.  Dish liquid.  What do "Bubbles, Green, Smells, and Function" have to do with dish washing liquid?  

Tropical Traditions (trusted retailer of so many amazing green household products) has a fantastic dish liquid that meets all of these categories.  Now.. it says on the bottle that it's "low sudsing".  I find that although it is low sudsing, the bubbles last for the entire time I am washing dishes.

I've also discovered that it works better on my dishes than some of the high priced, name brand dish soaps that you can find on your grocery shelves.  I add just a teaspoon of soap to my water as I run it and have enough bubbles to wash a whole meal's worth of dishes.  

The smell is light, much like many of my children's bubbles (I don't think I'd use these to make bubbles for my children though - I like them too much for my dishes.. my children can use the grocery store stuff).

Information from the Tropical Traditions Website:

Household Traditions Dish Liquid is free of:

• Fragrances
• Dyes
• Petroleum Solvents
• Respiratory and Skin irritants

Household Traditions Dish Liquid is an effective and concentrated dish soap developed by and for people with allergies, asthma and Multiple Chemical Sensitivities.* Household Traditions Dish Liquid is a coconut-based product—it contains nature’s versatile, renewable harvest. With coconut’s natural moisturizing qualities, washing dishes is even soothing to your hands. Household Traditions Dish Liquid is safe for you but tough on dirty, greasy dishes. It breaks down safely and rapidly making it safer for the environment. It is also low sudsing, making it ideal for camping or other outdoor uses. Household Traditions Dish Liquid is free of fragrances, phosphates, petroleum solvents, chlorine, dyes and other common triggers for respiratory or skin irritations.

Ingredients: Deionized water, coconut and sugar-based cleansing and sudsing agents, plant-based surfactants, emulsifiers.

Tropical Traditions Dish Liquid is top of the line.  It is also on SALE right now!  Check out their current prices!

This stuff lasts a long time and is well worth the cost of buying it right away.

Tropical Traditions has offered to send one of my readers a bottle of dish liquid to try for themselves!

Tropical Traditions Powdered Laundry Detergent: Review & Giveaway

If you've been around a while, you know that I love natural products for my family.  I frequently make my own laundry soaps so I know that they are safe for my family.

Over the last couple of weeks I have had the opportunity to test Tropical Traditions Powdered Laundry Detergent.  I tend to be skeptical about stain removal & odors - neither was a problem with the Tropical Traditions Detergent.

Not only do I love the gentle way it cleans my clothes, I love how long it seems to last.  1 container lasts about 40 washes (80 with a front loading washer)!  The 5lb container will last me for nearly 2 months!

Natural, non-toxic detergent for $30 seems like a great deal - but it gets better!  Right now it is on sale for $16.99!  Almost half price.

I absolutely recommend trying Tropical Traditions Powdered Laundry Detergent with your family!

Try before you buy - you have a chance to win Powdered Laundry Detergent from Tropical Traditions right here!

WIN IT:

This contest is open to residents of the US only.  It will close on Friday, July 29.  Please read below for ways to enter.  I have received a product free for trial and review.

HOW TO ENTER:

You may use ANY or ALL of the following methods to enter.  Leave a comment for each entry you complete.  Please leave your email address in each comment.

MANDATORY: Subscribe to the Tropical Traditions newsletter.

1) Check out the Tropical Traditions website.  Tell me another product you are interested in.

2) "Like" Tropical Traditions on Facebook.

3) Follow Crum's This N That via Google Friend Connect (upper right hand column of the page).

4) Subscribe to Crum's This N That email newsfeed (upper right corner for the page).

Motherlove Herbal Company: Review & Giveaway

I'm about to tell you about a company that knocks my socks off.  I was first introduced to Motherlove Herbal Company on a blog.  I won a jar of Diaper Rash & Thrush Salve.  This meets a need in our house.  You see, I'm diabetic and when I'm breastfeeding, my babies really struggle with thrush and we tend to pass it back and forth.  I am not currently breastfeeding, but I do still have a little guy in cloth diapers, and I will be breastfeeding in the near future.  We have recently had some difficulties with rashes.  Crackers doesn't get them often, but when he does they are terrible and hard to treat.  In fact, I have not found another diaper rash treatment that would clear it up.  Believe it or not, this salve is all-natural and has a zero toxin rating - with 96% organic ingredients.

I recently had the opportunity to test Motherlove's Green Salve.  This stuff is amazing.  It's great for taking the itch out of bug bites, poison ivy, and other skin irritations.  It is NOT recommended for diaper rash.  I took this with me for a picnic on Memorial Day and had the opportunity to share it with another adult who had an irritating insect bite.  She used it and commented about how quickly it seemed to take the sting out.  I have also used it on closed wounds on Monkey's Arm - he had fallen and scraped up his arm, now he has a little scarring, this soothed him and seemed to reduce the scarring.  Green Salve is not suggested for use on open wounds.  I love this stuff!  It is also non toxic and has 100% organic ingredients.

Have you ever had a dry itchy belly while pregnant?  Have you ever gotten stretch marks?  Pregnant Belly Salve helps alleviate some of those annoying pregnancy symptoms.  I've tried it for a couple of weeks now.  It's hard to for me to tell whether it's working to minimize stretch marks - other than I know that my belly is getting bigger, and so far I don't see any new marks.  I do know that Pregnant Belly Salve has helped me a lot with the itchy dry skin.  I usually use it twice a day and it feels so nice to put on my belly!  It does not feel super oily or greasy.  This is also made of all-natural ingredients and has a zero toxin rating.

My husband's impression?  He was stunned by the quick reaction that Crackers had to the Diaper Rash & Thrush Salve.  He likes the smells of the natural salves.  Mr. Crum is impressed by the organic bee wax used in the salves as he is a beekeeper and knows how very difficult it is to get an organic rating on any bee product.

Motherlove is an amazing company that values the health of its customers as well as the environment.  You can read about their practices under the tab labeled "Company".

BUY IT:

To find a Motherlove supplier near you, check their website!  I discovered that we have 2 suppliers about 41 miles away from our house - in a town we pass through somewhat regularly - THAT is super exciting to me.

You can also order Motherlove products on the company website.

WIN IT:

One of my readers will win their choice of a Motherlove product!  (A fantastic prize if you ask me).  This contest is for residents of the US only and will end on June 24.

HOW TO ENTER:

To enter in this contest you may do any or all of the following things.  Each task is 1 entry.  Please leave a comment in the form below for each entry you complete.  Remember to leave your email address in each comment so I can contact you if you win.

1) Go to the Motherlove Herbal Company website and tell me which product you think you would like to win.  (If you do win you can change your mind about what you would like).

2) "Like" Motherlove Herbal Company on Facebook.  It is polite to thank them for the giveaway.

3) "Follow" Motherlove Herbal Company on Twitter.

4) "Follow" Crum's This N That via Google Friend Connect (right hand column).

5) "Like" Crum's This N That on Facebook.

6) "Follow" me on Twitter.

Cradlejoy - Shop Review & Discount Code

Friends, I recently learned about cradlejoy.com, it is a fantastic online store that features great products for green, natural living!  They focus on products for mama and baby and have a wide variety of products from skin care, to diapers, to vitamins, and more.  This is a GREAT shop for all moms to go to for baby needs.  I would love to have some of their featured products for my next baby!  Take a look at a few of these great products:

Oh so sweet baby set!

Mambino Organics

We chose to get a Thirsties Duo Diaper Wrap and some Fuzzibunz inserts:

Blackbird is one of my favorite prints right now!

I LOVED the service I received from Cradlejoy.com!  When I had a question about the products or the gift codes, there was someone right there waiting to answer me.  Yep, They've got help waiting to talk with you on live chat!  How great is that?

There's even more - They run specials all the time!  Click HERE to see the current specials at Cradlejoy.

The products that I ordered came quickly and were in excellent condition.  I even got a few samples of other products to try, what a great surprise!  There was a small mix-up with paperwork, but that in no way effected my order, and I have been assured that they have fixed the problem.

I will definitely choose to shop Cradlejoy again!

Now, for the promised discount code... Be aware this has a limited use - it can only be used by 50 of my readers.  For 15% off of your Cradlejoy order, enter the code CRUMREADER at checkout.  Please come back here and let me know what you ordered.  I would love to hear that you have had the same wonderful shopping experience that I had.

Disclaimer: I was provided a gift code in exchange for promoting Cradlejoy.  All opinions are my own.  This in no way effects my opinions of the Cradlejoy shopping services.