I have been a horrible blogger lately, what with being 5 and a half month pregnant with triplets still thinking I can give classes and run another blog, The Detox Diva, and take care of my family all at the same time without being exhausted.  I have learned to pace myself over the last few days….. I am a work in progress.  I have FINALLY gotten around to naming the winner of our last giveaway.  Sorry for the lateness.

Understanding I am a hormonal mess (which would be an understatement to say the least) I hope you will allow me to vent and express my outrage at a few things I have noticed over the last few days in the region where I currently reside.  The country is of very little consequence because the entire region have, largely, the same attitudes and platitudes.

Sit back, grab a cup of chamomile tea and have a laugh.

Dear Heads of State of the GCC:  (The Gulf, for all those who are just joining us.)

I am writing to inform you that you all pretty much SUCK at keeping your children safe and giving any woman a voice in anything of substance.  Yes, I said it.  I said what millions of women are thinking even if they feel bound and gagged to say anything.

Case in point, a mother who lost her 5 year old daughter when her Saudi husband (a cleric and popular TV “preacher”) brutally raped, tortured, and eventually killed this 5 year old daughter.  According to social workers he  raped her “everywhere” . This is the biologicial father of this precious little girl.  When her rectum was torn open he tried to burn it shut.  Her legs and arms were all broken, her skull was cracked, and she had burn marks from electrical cables all over her body.

WHY did he do it???  He suspected she was no longer a virgin.  Oh yeah, people.  That was his excuse.  And the judge took that as a valid excuse???  Where is the humanity??  A little girl, one of your subjects was raped, tortured, and then slowly died over 10 months!!!

He wasn’t sentenced to death, in case you don’t read your own newspapers.  (Oh wait.  Was it even IN the newspapers??) Instead, the judge you appointed to execute the laws, ordered him to pay “blood money” to the mother of the child and allowed him to go with “time served”.  ( For those  of you following along with this letter……According to the IDIOTIC laws a father cannot be put to death for killing his child and a husband cannot be put to death for killing his wife.  Nice, huh??  All women in this part of the world are considered minors and are put under the “guardianship” of the closest male relative so, basically, women (who, did I mention, are considered to have half a mind here?) are children who need to be controlled  protected controlled.  That gives a man a lot of leeway.)  Does this give the mother any peace?  Does the money bring back the girl whom this mother carried in her womb for 9 months? Does this money give her the grandchildren this little girl would have given her in her old age?  Does this money give her justice against the man who savagely broke her family into pieces and her heart into dust?

Would this punishment have been more real if it had been a 5 year old little boy?  Seriously leaders…..  Would it have been?  This guy gets to give his explanation to why he did it and go sit in the majliss ( a reception hall where men gather…basically a big boy’s club!)  and regain his following.  If this were the US he’d be ostracized by the public if he even made it out of prison where he would probably killed by the general population in prison who generally take men who rape and kill kids and show these offenders exactly what the child experienced.  The guards would probably take a coffee break and let it happen nobody would miss him!

Oh and speaking of Saudis who like to rape kids, did you hear about one of your soldiers raping a 13 year old boy in Las Vegas?  Oh I know what you are probably thinking sitting in your palaces.  He probably wanted it.  He was begging for it. He seduced the poor unsuspecting Saudi with his comely 13 year old boy body.  I bet many of you are salivating at the mere thought of this act. You don’t consider yourselves as pedophiles at all?  I know you don’t consider the boy anything more than an animal because he’s not from your culture.  So yeah, I kind of get, it’s probably acceptable to you as it is more bestiality in your minds than pedophilia.

I would really like to know the name of the Senator you bribe in the great state of Nevada to make this one go away.  If that happens, good luck getting your soldier back because he won’t make it out of the courthouse with his limbs in tact.

Oh and one last thing before I close this letter.  I get that you all have more money than any kind of sense.  I get that you can go to expensive restaurants just like we foreigners but the next time you go to an expensive restaurant at 10:30 at night LEAVE YOUR MAID AT HOME!!!  Let the poor girl get some rest from having to constantly listen to you demanding all kinds of stupid crap and having to put up with your bratty kids who are never taught any kind of respect.  Don’t leave her at the front entrance in her uniform looking like a dog tied up in front of a supermarket in 100 degree heat!  If you can’t leave her at home because heaven forbid you might have to parent your own children, then leave her in the car with the AC on and let her watch TV or listen to the radio.  She doesn’t need to sit there like she wishes the ground would swallow her up in abject humiliation.  You can drop $500 on dinner for you and your family and you couldn’t even buy her a coke??  A plate of rice??

In Complete Disgust,

A Citizen of the World

The Stiletto Files is giving away a Pai Limited Edition Rosehip Set Valued at $48 which harnesses the power of nature’s most powerful multi-tasker, this at-home facial treatment transforms lacklustre skin in 3 simple steps.

Renowned for its regenerative and revitalizing properties, Rosehip’s high concentration of essential Omegas restores even the most sensitive of skin to its natural radiance. Rich in replenishing nutrients, theirRosehip BioRegenerate Face Mask deeply hydrates and conditions the skin to leave it beautifully soft and supple.

Entering is through a simple form.
a Rafflecopter giveaway

I am having so much fun finding new and innovative healthy eco-friendly products for my coming little ones.  Honeydumplings Buckwheat Baby Mats are my newest obsession first for their use of eco-friendly organic buckwheat hulls for the filling which are naturally antibacterial, antifungal, breathable, insulating, and odor-resistant.  Next for the fact  the rustling sound soothes and calms fussy babies.  These types of mats have been used throughout Asia for years.

The buckwheat hulls conform to your baby, cuddling them and moulding to their shape comforts them giving them a protected feeling. Buckwheat hulls are light and interlock allowing air to circulate so they don’t accumulate humidity or heat from the body  which allows baby to stay cool and dry and comfortable.

The buckwheat hulls are housed in a water repellent mat perfect for ‘leaks’, spills and spit ups.  The cover is eco-friendly washable bamboo that is amazingly soft at first touch but when you wash it the cover gets even softer!

As a mother you will love it because it can be used as a sleep positioner, preventing rolling.  It’s great as a massage mat, baby exercises and even tummy time.  Take it with you on holiday as a makeshift bed or use it in cribs and bassinets.  It rolls up tight so it won’t take up much space in luggage.  This, for me, is the ultimate in baby swag because it meets my rigid standards for being natural and eco-friendly yet is ingenious in design and unbelievably versatile and useful, even becoming a mini-duvet for a toddler or a stroller blanket for baby on cold days.

There is nothing like Honeydumplings on the market today and the craftsmanship alone makes it a baby swag must have!  Each baby mat is $139 and from now until January 15th every purchase comes with a free padded bamboo baby hat which wicks away moisture keeping baby’s head dry and comfy.  The removable pad that fits snugly inside the hat acts as a pillow cradling baby’s head helping protect the head from repeated pressure (and possible malformations too!)

 While it will be awhile since I can feed my love of coffee (yes, even holistic nutritionists can appreciate a good latte once in awhile) I have imbibed, a few times this season, on Pumpkin Spice Lattes and Peppermint Mochas alá Starsucks.  I didn’t actually GO to Starbucks as I have an extreme disliking for the way they burn my milk and scorch my coffee where I live and conveniently never have decaf, which I need in order to be able to enjoy coffee at all.  Instead I set out to build a better mouse trap and create my own version of the tasty treat.

Guess what?  I think it tastes even better than Starsucks AND I get all the whipped cream I can eat.  I also get to play around with non-dairy versions which are, as of right now, some of my favorite versions when I can’t get my hands on raw dairy.

This recipe, sorry to tell you, is not low fat because , a)low and non-fat milk tastes like water, b) low and non-fat milk raises insulin levels faster than full fat milk, and c) there is nothing better around this time of the year than whipped cream.

Winter Blues Giveaway Event

 

 

I love blogger opportunities like this one that don’t require a  cash outlay, especially in January when everyone is finding their “after Christmas” equilibrium.  Lisa and Christina, the two wonder women sponsoring the event, are my two favorite bloggers in the world with how great they are at handling giveaways so you can be sure that this opportunity is worth the effort in going to enter!

Below are the all the deets!

Christina from Spilled Milkshake and Spilled Milkshake Designs and Lisa from insignificant at best are extremely excited to announce the very first Winter Blues Giveaway Event!  Sign up for this awesome event is completely FREE for bloggers, all that we ask is that you help to spread the word about the event in order to participate!

The basic theme of the event is to offer our readers cool prizes worth $75 or more, to help them chase away the Winter Blues!  Not to mention they will also have a chance to win a Grand Prize Pack or a Runner Up Prize Pack !

The amazing and generous sponsors for the event are Spilled Milkshake Designs, Maggie Bags, and Pouchee.  Check out 2 lucky entrants will have a chance to win:

Winners Will Receive:

A free Blog Spruce Up from Christina at Spilled Milkshake Designs  ($99 Value) for the Grand Prize and the choice of 4 Social Media Icons or 1 Customized Facebook Tab ($19 Value) for the Runner Up Prize.

One Black Butterfly Bag and Black Keychain from Maggie Bags  ($123 Combined Value) for the Grand Prize (pictured below).

One Tote of Many Colors in Mardi Gras from Maggie Bags ($55 Value) for the Runner Up Prize (pictured below).

BONUS: Maggie Bags will be offering everyone 25% off their Premiere Line until March 1, 2013!

One Cotton Pouchee Purse Organizer, winner’s choice of color fromPouchee ($26 Value) for the Grand Prize (pictured below).

Ultimate purse organizer! Stay organized & fashionable!

Blogger Sign Up

As I stated before to sign up is completely free!  Below is all the information you need:

• The giveaway will run from 1.28.13 at 12:01 a.m. to 2.11.13 at 11:59 p.m. ET
• All bloggers will be required to host a giveaway with a minimum value of $75.  The giveaway should be centered around the idea that it will help “chase the winner’s Winter Blues away”
• Click on this link to fill out the signup form and follow the directions on the form.
• Add your blog to the linky below!
• Join the Winter Blues facebook group!

CLICK HERE TO SIGN UP FOR THE WINTER BLUES GIVEAWAY EVENT!

With the dizzying array of baby skin care products on the market today it is often difficult to weed through all the less than stellar products to find a superstar that uses high quality, natural ingredients without “nasties” such as parabens, Bisphenol A (BPA), sulfates, phtalates, mineral oil, and polyethylene glycol (PEG).  Believe it or not, most of those ingredients are in almost all conventional baby products on the market and these ingredients are, at the very least, skin irritants, and at their worst, endocrine disruptors and carcinogens.

There are many great natural baby products emerging from the darkness and Baby Spa is a shining star among those products.  What stands out when you first discover the products is the fact that they have two stages of formulations.  Stage 1 is for newborns and young infants.  Their formulations are ever so gentle on tender new skin using aloe, calendula and Swiss Ecocert  moisturizing botanicals.  The baby fresh scent is soothing, perfect for keeping baby calm and relaxed.   Stage 2 is for crawlers to toddlers and includes sweet almond oil which is a little richer for skin that has become more sensitized to the world and needs a little more protection at the same time.  The energizing citrus scent helps stimulate baby to encourage them to be active yet calming at the same time.

Their philosophy of merging Old World spa culture traditions such as those from Asia, Europe, and even Native American traditions, with the latest advancements in baby skin care research creates a product that is cutting edge and innovative yet familiar and endearing.

Their line of products from their moisturizing lotion and soothing face cream (which are the two products I was sent to try) to their tearless 3-in-1 shampoo, body washes, diaper creams, and baby massage oils are all 98-100% natural.  {Read about the Benefits of Baby Massage and see how it’s done!)

The Soothing Face Cream is wonderfully nourishing on my babies as their little faces tend to get very chapped from the climate control necessary when living in the middle of a desert.  The Moisturizing Body Lotion makes them smell so good and the scent seemed to settle them quickly after bath.  I can’t wait to try their tearless shampoo and soapless body wash next.

What I really love about this product is the value for the money especially in light of their high quality natural formulas. Their Moisturizing Body Lotion, for example, is $8.99 for 8.4 oz. and a little goes a long way. This makes the  price point one that most parents will find easy to afford, very close to being in line with many conventional products yet healthy, nurturing, and safe!

Baby Spa products get our highest praise!

Where to buy:: BabySpaUSA.com

Yesterday, a tragedy occurred in Connecticut that shook me to the very core of my being.  20 children and six adults senselessly lost their lives at the hand of a 20 year old gunman. Even reading the news leaves us wondering why this has happened and there simply are no answers.  Even if we got those answers, would they be enough to really explain how 20 children between the ages of 5 and 10, a beloved school principal and a selfless school psychologist could lose their lives in any manner much less such a violent one.  All before 9:40 am. There are not words to describe the horror and profound sadness I felt after hearing the news. I simply cannot fathom what could be so very wrong in a 20 year old man’s life that he had to take it out on innocent children and the people that love and protect them all in the sanctity of a school. I am a woman with faith in God and I find myself looking up at the Heavens asking God how He could allow this to happen.  There are simply no answers. This I know.  It is in our nature to look for something or someone to blame.  There is only one person to blame.  Adam Lanza, the young man responsible for the deaths of 26 people, including his own mother, and then himself. Still, as a parent, (and do understand my pregnancy hormones are working way overtime at this point so humor me) I must wonder.  What could be so wrong in a 20 year old’s life that this was his only solution?  Obviously he had some psychotic break.  That would be the most plausible explanation.  Was he abused as a child?  Was he on drugs?  Did he watch violent movies or play violent video games?  Was he mentally ill?  And if so, why were the signs not heeded? Parents, I am here to ask-no, I am here to BEG you, as parents, listen to your children, talk to them, open up to them about your lives and encourage them to open up to you about theirs.  Understand that every image or word that goes into their little brains is imprinted into their memories for future recall so if you think they are too young to understand the images on “Texas Chainsaw Massacre” (or even that magazine you bought to spice up your sex life left carelessly in the bathroom), you might want to rethink your choice of entertainment.  ”Grand Theft Auto” might seem like a fun way to spend a Thursday night with your buddies and it might be cool to watch your 10 year old score higher than your college buddy, but is that the message you really want to send to your child, that killing a policeman, a child, a woman, even as a play activity, is ok on any level? Is that “friend” or distant relative that comes to your house a little too often and plays with your children all he or she appears?  Do you know what your child is exposed to when on play dates, sleep overs, or at birthday parties? Too often, fathers or mothers are not present in their children’s lives.  Either due to death, divorce or a profound disinterest (or even plain ignorance), when a parent is missing whether it be physically or emotionally, that child suffers.  A part of him or her is missing. Abuse, sexual, emotional, or physical, takes its toll on a child on every level of their development so NOW is the time to make sure your child feels connected to you, to his or her surroundings, feels safe, loved, understood and accepted.  Allow them to be children and not little grown ups.  In this world it is not easy to protect the innocence of your children, especially when tragedies like these along with crazy violence, sex, and even horrible language are plastered all over the television and internet and are often made to look “cool”.  It’s not easy but necessary for our children not to have to be adults before their time. Mothers, fathers, be parents to your children today.  Be families full of love and warmth and compassion. Fathers teach your children how to love and honor God in their day to day lives.  Mothers, teach your children to be compassionate and caring.  Parents, be loving to each other so that a lasting positive influence can be made on young eyes, ears, and hearts. I have no idea why this traumatic event happened or if this young man was tormented as a child or just an angry young man but I do know tragedies like this will continue to happen if we don’t wake up to how our children are growing up in this world today and our roles in creating the isolation many children feel. I know many mothers and fathers who are raising their children to be fine additions to the world but we can always be more vigilant.  I think it’s very sad that we have turned into a country where God is no longer encouraged to be part of our daily lives.  Maybe that’s where we have gone wrong as a society.  Whatever it is, it is our roles as parents to create productive happy members of society.  Parents of 20 beautiful children lost that role yesterday.  Several children lost their mothers.  Although we may never know why, we can look at what we can do as parents to try to stop the madness beginning in our own homes.

Even with all the chic maternity looks I see on the stars, sometimes it takes a bit of creative searching to find really wearable looks that don’t make me feel like a clown in the center ring of the circus. When I found Isabella Oliver Maternity I nearly did my happy dance!!  Her clothes are ultra chic and wearable at any stage of your pregnancy and even beyond!!  The bag is from Unbottoned Maternity with it’s really great finds that are the lowest possible prices I have seen anywhere.  I love the rocker chic appeal but most of the clothes are just too “teeny bopper” for my taste.

As I get slightly noticeably bigger (nothing like triplets to make you “show” quicker) the parenting advice starts flowing from well-meaning mothers.  Of course none of these women have a “gaggle” of children, like I am about to have, all under the age of 2, so I don’t hold it against them.  Not long ago one of these well meaning women was telling me how she co-sleeps, wears her baby, etc. etc.  I listened intently (I may have nodded off once or twice) and did not once point out that it is virtually impossible to “wear” more than MAYBE two children at a time.  Oh but the smugness of it all just got me to thinking.  I should ask my vB Mamas what they did (or do) with their babies.

Now please don’t misunderstand me here.  I really believe in what I call “kangaroo” parenting as I think being able to comfort your children when they really need to learn they are safe is the best way to raise a happy child.  But come on!!  I am going to have, literally, a gaggle of children all under the age of 2 at the same time.  Yes, I am going to have a lot of help.  But will there ever come a time when one of my children doesn’t get their needs met RIGHT then???  Odds are really high…. it’s going to happen.   Like 2:1 in favor of a crying baby or three.

As she went on, we got into the discussion of strollers and how barbaric she thinks they are.  How detached the child must feel.  How uninvolved the mother must be with her child’s needs.  It was at that point my eyes rolled all the way to the back of my head.  Really?  Uninvolved?  I believe strongly in intentional parenting and making every single moment with your child a learning experience but there is NO way to do that with a child in a pram??

So ladies…(and my daddies out there too) I am asking you….  baby carriers or strollers?  Or a little of both? And don’t be afraid to defend your position either. I’d love to hear all the angles.  What do you think?  Am I damaging my “litter” if I can’t wear them all?