W.o.G. Wednesday: Ecclesiastes 3:9-14

Today has been a crazy day and I probably have 8 more hours to go before I can call it a day! In between baby C vomiting five (5!) times (and counting), I've been talking with my mom, dad, sister, and J about my grandpa.

You may remember me mentioning him a long time ago. Back in April they found that he had a large astrocytoma brain tumor. It was subsequently operated on and he commenced with chemo and radiation shortly thereafter. Everything was going really well with the typical side-affects of fatigue taking their toll on him. Then he took a very bad turn for the worse.

My mom flew down to Florida to be with my grandma when my grandpa was taken to the emergency room in an ambulance. Neither grandparents are doing well at all and we would covet your prayers right now.

I realize as I type this that many many people suffer worse fates to their family members and loved ones. I know of many bloggers who have sick little babies or babies that they have lost and my heart grieves for them. In light of their trials, I feel like our trial is a standard-run-of-the-mill-who-cares kind of story.

BUT God hears every prayer and knows the burdens of our heart! Nothing to Him is trivial and He, the creator of human beings, cares deeply for EACH one.

I really don't know why I picked this passage but here it is, anyway. Maybe a little weird but I liked it..in light of the legacy my grandpa will (one day) leave behind as an amazing Christian father, husband, and leader...

Ecclesiastes 3:9-14

⁹ What does the worker gain from his toil? ¹⁰ I have seen the burden God has laid on men. ¹¹ He has made everything beautiful in its time. He has also set eternity in the hearts of men; yet they cannot fathom what God has done from beginning to end. ¹² I know that there is nothing better for men than to be happy and do good while they live. ¹³ That everyone may eat and drink, and find satisfaction in all his toil—this is the gift of God. ¹⁴ I know that everything God does will endure forever; nothing can be added to it and nothing taken from it. God does it so that men will revere him.

I love you Grandma and Grandpa and am praying for you!!!

Tutorial Tuesday: Traveling with kids...the sane way

Well...you may remember from yesterday's post that I thought I left my camera in my purse at the church...well. Found the purse, Lost the camera. I know it is in my house somewhere I just have no idea where it is. Ugh. I really need to start putting honing devices on everything that i value (including baby C? nahhh)

Here is the last time I remember seeing my camera...in the twin's photo...in our rental van:

Anyway, that means that all my photos from our trip to Kansas are stuck on my camera which is stuck...somewhere. So, we're going to make do with pictures from the twin. Thanks sis!

As you may also remember, we traveled from Atlanta to Kansas City to Wichita to Columbia (MO) to Atlanta. In 4 days. With two babies, two grandparents, and 3 parents (sadly, the twin's hubby, Mt.Man was stuck at home working). Woohoo.

I thought we were seasoned travelers after all the roadtrips we'd taken in the past with Baby C. Needless to say, we learned a lot this trip. Here are our top tips...but I'd LOVE to hear your tips, too! Please let me know what works best for you!

1. If you're driving for a long time, make sure you switch drivers, stay caffeinated (case 1: find a Starbucks anywhere--here we are driving into a Starbucks at a hospital; case 2: free Mocha Monday's at McDonalds). Switching drivers also allows the kiddos to see a different face and change things up for them. They'll appreciate the change, too!

2. Bring lots of toys and food/snacks. Here is Cousin R reading one of the books the twin checked out at the library pre-trip. And a glorious photo of me helping Baby C and Cousin R eat string cheese.

3. Don't be afraid to make a lot of stops. Pre-kids J and I were used to traveling and ONLY stopping for gas. Now we take breaks so that the kiddos can stretch their legs. Also don't be afraid to explore what might be at your rest stop--here we found a cool Eagle on a Ball with a Fish (Cousin R's explanation of the strange statue)

4. Speaking of stops, make sure you stop for dinner. We usually would eat in the car but now we stop for meals. C loved eating at one local fast food chain (we brought enough food to last the trip! don't worry! no fast food for her...though J did try to sneak a bite of chocolate ice cream smoothie shake)

5. Enjoy what you are driving through--you may enjoy blowing through cities to get to the final destination. But don't forget to look at where you are right at the moment...like right next to the St. Louis Arch (again, thanks twin for these photos!)

6. Pray for sleep! Not for the driver but for the babies!

Okay...what are your tried-and-true travel trips?

I ❤ Faces: Week 28: Feet (!)

Oh my! I can't believe it is already week 28 at I ❤ Faces! Craziness, i tell ya...but I also cannot believe that "Baby" C will be 1-year old in less than 3 weeks (sniff sniff, bring me a tissue or ten!)

So, I was a little sad to realize tonight that I left my purse at church this afternoon...and it had my camera in it...with pictures still on it for this week's theme. {Clearly I have also lost my mind as I didn't realize I left my purse there until 8 hours later.} Yeesh.

Regardless, that left me with my iPhoto library. I spent a good hour looking through photos from multiple years ago. Finally, i hit upon my "5 year anniversary" photo album and found a few good shots where you could actually see feet shoes (i hope shoes count! Down in the dirty south you have to be careful going barefoot--ringworm is rampant!).

This picture is a very cropped version of a photo of J traversing a bridge on our way down to Tallulah Gorge. Six days after this picture, Baby C was born. Ahh, those were the days. J and I had a SPECTACULAR time enjoying our last few days as a family of two and are so grateful to have the memories we made (and pictures we took) on our Babymoon/Anniversary trip.

Anyway, feet...here is my entry. PLEASE consider clicking on it so you can see it in a larger format--it looks MUCH better that way!

As always, head on over to I ❤ Faces for more fabulous feet photos (that was a weird sentence to write--feet photos? hmmm. I can't help but think Tanner P would be happy...)

8 things...tagged again!

My sweet friend from my counselor years at Eagle Lake Camp tagged me last week and I'm finally getting around to thanking her! Thank you, Heidi! These are fun and make me think more about my life and "about me" (hence the label for this post!). Heidi quite possibly has the sweetest little boy I've (never) laid eyes on. I hope I can meet Finn soon! Check out her blog here...

Eight things I look forward to...

1. Date night on Thursdays
2. Watching Baby C grow up (but I also kind of dread this...!)
   
3. Hearing Baby C start talking...I'd love to know what is in her sweet little head!
4. Meeting my Savior face to face
5. (hopefully) hearing my children profess a faith in Jesus Christ. I pray for this daily for Baby C and for all our unborn children!
6. My 50th wedding anniversary
7. Lots more kiddos
8. J and I plan on hiking the Appalachian Trail once the kids are out of the house...I really look forward to that!
   

Eight things I did yesterday...

1. Ran a half marathon...with a baby jogger!
   
2. Welcomed my father-in-law and his lovely wife, Jen, back to Atlanta
3. Watched Pierce Pettis live in concert at our fave music venue, Eddie's Attic
4. Walked Churchill on a leash (our cat, not the former prime minister)
5. Ate lots and lots to recoup from #1
6. Had a small cup of REAL (non-decaf) coffee for the first time in two + months!
7. Thought about blogging on my "personal" blog, {life with} Cutie Face
8. Thought better about it...soooo much to catch up on that sometimes its better left undone (ahh, procrastination at its best!)
   

Eight things I wish I could do...

1. Craft like my sister
2. Have patience when it comes to sewing
3. Have the guts to go skydiving or something equally as scary
4. Say "yes" to mountain biking so I can finally compete in an adventure road race with my brother-in-law (affectionately dubbed "Mountain Man" by said sister)
   
5. Love deeper
6. Love freer
   
7. Love unconditionally
8. Share my faith more openly to real-life people
   

8 Shows I Watch:

1. Okay, i admit it, the only show I regularly watch is a horrible horrible show...the Bachelorette. There. I said it.
2. Sports
3. Sports
4. Sports
5. Sports
6. Sports
7. Sports
8. did I mention...Sports?

And now...I'm going to tag my first 8 (public) followers who have blogs:

1. Kelly from Hamilton Happenings
2. Mandy from Never a Dull Moment
3. Sledge from Sledge on the Edge
4. Kaycee from Fit for a Child
5. Allison from The Nealon Family (sorry this blog is private!)
6. Amanda from The Family Loop
   
7. Rachel from His Treasured Possession
8. Sandy (I call her "Mrs. Nathan") from Bridal Buzz

Feel free to play if you were tagged! But seriously no worries if not!

Winner: Rockin' Green Detergent!

OOOOOPS! Totally forgot to draw a winner yesterday!

So, without further ado...this week's Fab Friday Giveaway winner is #42...

Hally!

Hally is a neat cloth diapering mom who started a global cloth diaper journey. Click on her name to check out what I'm talking about!

Congratulations, Hally. You have 48 hours to respond to my email!

Super Saturday Steals...

{okay, yes, it is Sunday but at least its here!}

Starbucks

I was on Facebook today in, oh, the first time in FORever (I can't believe how much I miss out on everyone's lives when i don't go on there!) Not only do I miss my friend's updates, I also miss out on some great vendor deals...like Starbucks' free pastry on Tuesday! You have to print out a coupon and purchase a beverage but, hey, why not try a "free" (with purchase) pastry? This offer is good for Tuesday only from 4:00 AM-10:30 AM.

Target

Am I the last person to learn about their deals of the day? I finally opened up one of my emails (it goes to my "junk/signup" email account) and found that they have daily deals AND free shipping. I've only seen today's deals but I hope that writing about it will remind me to visit again and see if there are any cute kids stuff (or me stuff or home stuff or....yeahhh...)

Amazon

Okay, i'm sure most of you know about this--Amazon has over 500 free songs on their website! I always forget to check out what they're giving away but I was on their site today and found a few classic "Golden Voices" songs, a couple of Christian songs and some great acapella Patriotic songs...all for free! I think i just spent 2 hours checking out music...feel free to do the same by checking it out for yourself here

Cloth Diapers!!!

This post would not be a post without some cloth diaper giveaways! My two fave cloth diaper sites are, of course, sponsoring two GREAT cloth diaper giveaways!

The Cloth Diaper Whisperer

My go-to source for real-time cloth diaper tips is giving away a three-pack of SmartiPants diapers. Neat stuff! Affordable, cute colors, and snaps (Baby C has taken to tearing off her aplix and throwing her diaper over the crib. Fun. Snaps are now my heroes.) Click here (or on the picture) to enter!

The Cloth Diaper Blog

The Cloth Diaper blog is giving away an AMAZINGLY GREAT package--one GroBaby diaper, a box of their new detergent, Tiny Bubbles, and a Wet Bag! Oh my! i hope someone i "know' wins!!! Enter now!!!

***As always...these deals are things I've found and want to share with you--they only reflect my opinion and findings! Feel free to share some good deals you've found on the web!***

Introducing...Featured Follower!

My business-minded husband, J, thinks that I should hold a big party and giveaway for reaching 250 followers. I think that is a fun idea...and hope to do it if i ever get my act together....BUT I think it is important to note that I'm not on the hunt for people to follow me just to be a number!

So, I decided to honor all 244 of you, one at a time (which could take years but you get the picture), by featuring one of you each week as a "Featured Follower". You can grab this button and use it on your site or email me for a direct code that would link back to the post I wrote about you. Fun stuff (i hope)!

Because I'm a rules-oriented person who likes to play fair, I didn't know how to go about picking my first featured follower. I decided to limit the people who could be featured to those of you who 1) follow publicly and 2) have a public blog (because you want people to come visit you, too!). That leaves 209 who follow publicly.

...and, since you know how much I love my Random.com Integer finder, I typed in that number and it spit out lucky number 100 (and I said you weren't a number...!)...Sweet Cuddle Cakes!

Sweet Cuddle Cakes is a vibrant blog full of awesome baby and nursery ideas. With 302 (scratch that--i just joined!) 303 followers she is waaaaay cooler than me (because, of course, coolness is determined by blog followers! and, yes, i jest)

I think I spent an hour on her blog just drooling staring at everything she posts about. Sweet Cuddle Cakes hails from Northern Virginia and has her own very creative Etsy Store named, what else...SweetCuddleCakes!

Look at this adorable "Berry Sweet" onesie bouquet she is selling!

and my sweet tooth is totally craving this ADORABLE cotton-candy "flower" bouquet:



Maybe we'll convince her to sponsor a giveaway on Monkeys on the Bed! :) hint hint...

Speaking of giveaways, her blog is sponsored by Henry Wetson Kids which is currently hosting one of their giveaways (bonus find!). Make sure you head on over to her blog and check that giveaway out!

***I hope you liked this first Featured Follower post. Let me know in the comments with a yay or a nay...I read them all and really take them to heart so don't be shy!***

Fab Friday Giveaway: A Little Bit Tipsy

Okay...I know...another crazy Etsy jewelry store name! But, once again, this jewelry store is full of fun and funk!

This week, we're featuring Cathy from A Little Bit Tipsy

First, lets get to know a little bit more about Cathy. She has been dabbling in some form of art for many years. As you can tell by perusing her store, she is very creative--making necklaces, jewelry, and ceramic paintings!

A Little Bit Tipsy stared by selling jewelry and lots of it. You can still find lots of wonderful jewelry pieces in the store.

However, after taking painting lessons, Cathy learned that she loved to paint in a very loose and bright colored way. She owns a giant kiln and has crafted ceramics for customers and friends for nearly 8 years. All this practice paid off--Cathy recently started selling her ceramics on Etsy and they are incredibly fun!

Besides her newest ceramic designs, Cathy creates china for brides and even did a fabulous set of Christmas china for a bride a few years ago. She LOVES to get to know her customers and find out what they really like and want in her products and then makes them custom-ordered. So, if you don't absolutely love something you see, Cathy is up for the challenge of creating something just for you!

Cathy recently moved to a new workplace--a huge in-house studio with paintings in one corner, glass in another, ceramics in several places, etc..she even calls herself Miss ADD when someone looks in her studio!

She hopes to start combining her love of ceramics with her love of jewelry making--Cathy just picked up 25 pounds of clay to make handpainted and fired beads too (can you believe how much energy and creativity she has!?!).

Lets take a peek at some of Cathy's products found in A Little Bit Tipsy:

These earrings would be perfect for a formal night, wedding, or bridesmaid gift!



Her necklaces are so fun and colorful! This one caught my eye with its sea-themed colors:



I'm sorry this image is so blurry but I had to include it--i LOVE this knob pull and would totally use it in a nursery!



Sadly,my err, Baby C's nursery is black and white polka dots. I LOVE black and white polka dots so, of course, I'd LOVE this platter + dip bowl!

Love it? Want it? Buy It!

What are you waiting for? Head on over to A Little Bit Tipsy today!

YAY! DISCOUNT! For this week only, Cathy is extending a 10% discount to Monkeys on the Bed! readers. Please mention "monkeysonthebed" in your notes to seller and she can reimburse you at checkout. Offer expires on July 25.

Love it? Want to WIN it?

Cathy is generously giving away a $20 gift certificate to her A Little Bit Tipsy Etsy store. You can choose an item in the shop or have a custom item made just for you!

How?

Mandatory first entry: Visit A Little Bit Tipsy and let me know your favorite item OR an item you'd like custom made (get creative! think jewelry, ceramics, etc.!)

Extra entries: (please leave me an extra comment for each valid entry)

• "Heart" or "Favorite" A Little Bit Tipsy etsy store (1 entry)
• Tweet this giveaway. (One entry/day) Please tweet:

Win a $20 gift certificate to the Fab Etsy Store "A Little Bit Tipsy" from @monkeysonthebed http://tinyurl.com/ladfzs

• Buy something from A Little Bit Tipsy (please tell me what you bought--5 entries!). Don't forget the 10% discount!!!
  
• Follow me or subscribe to my RSS feed (one entry for one or both)
• Add my button to your blog (one entry, come back and tell me where it is!)
  

The fine print:

This giveaway is open to the residents of the USA and Canada, aged 18 and older. The giveaway will end sometime on Saturday, July 25th. You must leave the mandatory comment before receiving extra entries. You must leave a way for me to contact you with each entry! I will draw a winner via a Random Integer Generator and announce the winner on this blog and email the winner as well. If the winner does not reply to me within 48 hours, I will draw a second winner. I reserve the right to delete your entry if you do not follow the rules listed above.

More detergent goodness!

While you all are busy racking up the entries to my Rockin' Green Detergent giveaway (ends Saturday!) from GAD Baby, make sure you check out another cloth-diaper-maker-turned-detergent-maker:

GroBaby is one of my new favorite diapers. Seriously, these diapers rock--you may remember me mentioning them in a prior post but that one didn't do it justice! The more I use them the more I fall in love with them (and, I'm so thrilled that one of my friends plunged head-first into the cloth diaper world by buying their huge cloth diapering kit from Kelly's Closet! Yay Julia!). They are absorbent (more so than my BumGenius dipes which have started leaking at night), trim, cute, and revolutionary!

Speaking of revolutionary, the makers behind GroBaby recently came out with their new detergent, made exclusively for cloth diapers (but, like the Rockin' Green, can be used for any load of laundry!). It is called Tiny Bubbles (cute name!)

...click on the box to read more about it....

or just read the 411 on Tiny Bubbles detergent here:

Dye & Fragrance Free

Completely Biodegradable

Completely Phosphate-Free

No Optical Brighteners or Fillers

Gentle for Sensitive Skin

Low Residue Formula

Ultra-Concentrated

Low Cost-Per-Wash

Recyclable

Safe to use with all cloth diapers brands. Not tested on animals. No animal by products.

60 Loads - Front Load Washer

$0.22 per Load

If you want to try a sample load, they are currently running a sample giveaway! Click here to find out more! (what could be better?!?!)

Thankful Thursday: Week 12

Woohoo! I have one teeny tiny bar of internet service and I have to be in my bedroom to use it but YAY! i can finally blog again! I know you missed it, right...? :-o

Before I delve into the topic of this post, what do you all say about me catching up with my I Heart Faces and Tutorial Tuesday posts? Or would you rather I don't double post and just wait til next week? I would LOVE to read your opinions!

Okay! Here we go with Thankful Thursday!

This week I am thankful...

1. ...to have a very valid excuse to not be online. Having no internet for virtually seven (7!) days was, at first frustrating and then I quickly realized how much more time I had on my hands to spend it with Baby C and family!
   


2. ...to finally have Internet access again. Yes, I realize in light of #1 that #2 might be slightly ironic but I really missed reading your blogs and tweets. I have really come to value the relationships I've made online and I've missed you all!



3. ...for a VERY safe, largely uneventful (albeit loooong) car trip from Atlanta to the Heartlands (Kansas) and back. See Tuesday's post for more details (but keep in mind i was blogging from my phone!). Clearly, the string cheese and board books were huge hits...





4. ...for quality family time with my Grandma (the reason for the trip--her 80th birthday!) and family--we got to visit with nearly all my cousins on my dad's side (but we missed you, Steph, Matt, and Jocelyn!)





5. ....for fun memories made in Kansas with all of Baby C's second cousins--all of the great-grands were there for the 80th birthday party and it was a riot!(sorry, not the best picture but...)





6. ...for all 15 people who have used my gDiaper code! Yay! Thanks everyone! I don't think I'll make the top for a free trip to Portland (bummer!) but I'm so happy and thankful for everyone who used my code! If you are wondering what I'm talking about...



7. ...for my brother-in-law, Noah, who's birthday is TODAY! Happy birthday, Noah! Baby C wanted to celebrate:
   

What are you thankful for this week?

W.o.G. Wednesday:

Well, I really think God is teaching me how to slowly wean myself off the Internet--He just shuts it down altogether, leaving me with time to spend exclusively with Baby C and in His Word. Since my absence, I've already lost three followers--something that would have majorly bummed me out before...even though I knew it shouldn't!

Anyway, with all that said, my internet was back up for an hour today and gone again by the time i got back from lunch with a wonderful gal from church (thanks, Christina!). So, my ever-gracious twin volunteered to guest blog about her fave verse from the Bible. Thanks sis!

------------------

twin writing now: Favorite verse of the Bible?? Identifying that and nailing it down to just one passage is a daunting task...my Bible has more underlined verses than non-inked-under ones, but whenever I think of my favorite book, Isaiah comes to mind. I love dwelling on how God has redeemed His people throughout time and space and how He continues to and will always redeem those given unto His hand. I love reading about how the nation of Israel is so much like the Church today and its individual members. And I am always amazed at passages that reflect images and provide references of Christ to the ancient believers in Old Testament times. It is for these reasons that I am drawn to the book of Isaiah, full of history, stories of an obstinate yet wondrously saved people, and Messianic prophesies. An often quoted chapter brightens my day and yet convicts me at the same time whenever I come across it... When I taught Bible to middle school students, one of the memory verses I had them learn was Isaiah 40: 28-31. And while I adore its truths, I am particularly taken by several other of the famous chapter's verses.

the opening:
Comfort, comfort my people,
says your God.
Speak tenderly to Jerusalem, and proclaim to her that
her hard service has been completed, that her sin has been paid for, that she has received from the LORD's hand double for all her sins.

I love reminders that our loving God has wiped out our debt entirely!

verses 4 and 5:
Every valley shall be raised up,
every mountain and hill made low;
the rough ground shall become level,
the rugged places a plain.

And the glory of the LORD will be revealed,
and all mankind together will see it.
For the mouth of the LORD has spoken.

It is hard not to be a fan of Handel's Messiah, and his brilliant chorus related to these verses is one of my favorites, as it gloriously speaks of the work that God will do to renew his creation and reveal beyond our wildest imaginations His majesty.

verses 6b-8:

All men are like grass,
and all their glory is like the flowers of the field.

The grass withers and the flowers fall,
because the breath of the LORD blows on them.
Surely the people are grass.

The grass withers and the flowers fall,
but the word of our God stands forever.

There is nothing like a jolting reminder of our impermanence and God's infinite power and plan.

verse 9:
lift up your voice with a shout,
lift it up, do not be afraid;
say to the towns of Judah,
"Here is your God!"

Another song from Handel's Messiah proclaims this verse and I am struck by how much our Lord and his works ought to be on our minds and our hearts and rung out loudly from our lips. Nothing is like Him--why do I hold back from that sharing that proclamation?

verse 11:
He tends his flock like a shepherd:
He gathers the lambs in his arms
and carries them close to his heart;
he gently leads those that have young.

A very comforting passage for mothers!

verses 21-26:
Do you not know?
Have you not heard?
Has it not been told you from the beginning?
Have you not understood since the earth was founded?

He sits enthroned above the circle of the earth,
and its people are like grasshoppers.
He stretches out the heavens like a canopy,
and spreads them out like a tent to live in.

He brings princes to naught
and reduces the rulers of this world to nothing.

No sooner are they planted,
no sooner are they sown,
no sooner do they take root in the ground,
than he blows on them and they wither,
and a whirlwind sweeps them away like chaff.

"To whom will you compare me?
Or who is my equal?" says the Holy One.

Lift your eyes and look to the heavens:
Who created all these?
He who brings out the starry host one by one,
and calls them each by name.
Because of his great power and mighty strength,
not one of them is missing.

This life and its fleeting, flying, fading glory is worthless--it is hopelessly fruitless to put our trust in anything but a God who will never change and who created and maintains the whole world and has always known and always will know the days and hours of its inhabitants...there is nothing like recognizing how big God is, how small we are and yet, miraculously, how much he cares for us.

Gee, Toto...

...We aren't in Kansas anymore!

Thursday: 13-hour trip from Atlanta to Kansas City, KS

Sunday: 3-hour drive to Wichita + 5-hour trip to Columbia, MO

Monday: 12-hour drive home to the ATL

TWO (2) teething babes

1 rented minivan

Lots of stops

No sleep

Safety the entire journey

Babies who were mostly happy (!)

One grandma who was thrilled to have us surprise her on her 80th birthday!

Lots of family bonding and reunion and picture time!

Memories we'll cherish!!

Sadly, Internet access was severly limited and, upon arriving home, we found we have NO Internet! So, here I am typing this no-frills, no-thrills, pictureless post in HTML code on my husband's iPhone! I hope to catchup with an "I Heart Faces" post and "Tutorial Tuesday" post soon...envisioning myself at the library computer!

*Sorry, also, for not reading/commenting on your blogs or responding to your emails! Hopefully we'll be up and running again soon!

Winner! MewMew Shoppe!

Yay for another great giveaway turnout! Strangely, MewMew Shoppe had exactly the same number of entries as Whimsy Couture: 159! Crazy!

It would have been even crazier if the random number generator picked #44 again but it did come close--#14 was the winner...

Which means, this week's winner is...

Amy @ Living Locurto

Congratulations, Amy!

As always, thanks to the very generous Sheena for being a part of Fab Friday Giveaways and thanks to all of YOU for participating in them!

CLOSED: Fab Friday Giveaway: Rockin' Green Detergent

{Woohoo! We made it to Kansas City after a 14-hour car ride with two babies. Joyous.}

{Without further ado, here is this week's giveaway!}

I'll admit it, I joined Twitter to get an extra entry for all The Cloth Diaper Whisperer giveaways. But, then I stuck around and found some other fun moms and twitterers.

One of them is Kim behind the outrageously fun-colored diapers, GAD (Green Acre Designs) Baby. When I first "met" her, I found Kim to be funny and creative and about to open a brand new business--all-natural (cloth diaper) detergent.

I say "cloth diaper" in parenthesis because this detergent is for ANYONE who wants a more natural alternative to name-brand, run of the mill, detergent you can find anywhere. And pretty much everyone has to do their laundry...and pretty much everyone loves a greener-alternative to everyday household cleaning items...and pretty much everyone loves yummy scents!

So...who is this detergent for? Say it with me: "EVERYONE"!

Okay, now that we know everyone can use and has use for it, let's find out more about it!

Kim said that Rockin' Green was born out of necessity. Her kids' skin are incredibly sensitive to just about everything she bought, eventually causing her to start making homemade soaps and lotions. On top of her children's skin sensitivities, Kim found that the hard water in her area made it "hard" to get her clothes truly clean.

So Kim set out to find a better way. Six months later, she now knows more about chemistry than I ever learned in college and has gone through several rounds of testing to bring Rockin' Green to her customers.

It's a cloth diaper safe formula, that won't cause repelling and works great on battling stinkies. And best of all, you don't have to do a bunch of rinses. It rinses clean with just one rinse which saves you time and money. And, how is this for WAHM-Cool? Each and every batch is made in my kitchen with love! I bet her house smells delicious!

Rockin' Green comes in 2 rockin' formulas and tons of sweet fragrances, which is music to anyone's ears.

• Soft Rock: A mellow tune that is great for the sensitive little ones in your life.

• Classic Rock: This is the sound that started it all. Our original formula is great for diapers and regular clothes. So use it on everything!

I was a lucky tester for the Classic Rock detergent. Kim sent me a sample size of detergent and I used it five times--three times on my cloth diapers and twice on regular clothes. How did it work? Super well! I thought that it got my clothes and diapers just as clean, if not cleaner, than other detergents and it smelled incredible! Baby C is usually pretty sensitive to soaps, lotions, and detergents but she had no sensitivity issues with this detergent! I'd definitely recommend this detergent to everyone. And, if you aren't so sure, consider just buying a sample pack--you can't go wrong with a $3 investment.

Want it right now?
Buy it!

Buy a sample packet for only $3! What deal! Or jump in head first and buy a 45-load package for only $9. I actually think that the packets last longer than Kim says, especially if you have a front loader HE washer! You can buy your detergent here.

Want to try your luck?
Win it!

Kim is giving one lucky winner a 45-load package of detergent in the winner's choice of scent and "soft" or "classic".

How?

Mandatory first entry: Please tell me how many loads of laundry you do a week and what fragrance you'd would want to try if you won! (you can find a list of fragrances here)

Extra entries: (please leave me an extra comment for each valid entry)

• Follow Kim on the GADBaby blog (one entry)
• Follow Kim on Twitter @gadbaby or @rockingreensoap (one entry for following one twitter account, two entries for following both)
• Become a fan of GAD Baby and Rockin' Green on Facebook (one entry)
• Tweet this giveaway. (One entry/day) Please tweet:

Win a 45-load package of @rockingreensoap detergent from @monkeysonthebed http://tinyurl.com/lyzquh

• Follow me or subscribe to my RSS feed (one entry for one or both)
  

The fine print:

This giveaway is open to the residents of the USA and Canada, aged 18 and older. The giveaway will end sometime on Saturday, July 18th. You must leave the mandatory comment before receiving extra entries. You must leave a way for me to contact you with each entry! I will draw a winner via a Random Integer Generator and announce the winner on this blog and email the winner as well. If the winner does not reply to me within 48 hours, I will draw a second winner. I reserve the right to delete your entry if you do not follow the rules listed above.

Thankful Thursday: Week 11

Ahh! we're running out the door trying to drive all the way to Kansas today! So, here is my lightening-fast Thankful Thursday for this week:

1. Bank of America--no, this is not a promo for them! I decided to check my spam folder, found a Bank of America email, and learned that last weekend was their first-weekend-of-the-month Museums on Us! We took Baby C to the zoo for the first time! It was so fun! We'll definitely be back next month!
   
   
   
2. Denise from Whimsy Couture--She sent Baby C the most adorable romper bubble. SO fun and summery!
   
   
   
3. Larabar--J and I (and even baby C!) are HUGE fans of Larabar products. I entered a Father's Day giveaway on their blog and won a box of 16 bars! Talk about AWESOME!
   
   
   
4. Good doctor reports all around--Esther Grace is thriving (remember, she was born exactly 3 months early!) and my grandpa is almost through with his chemo and radiation!
   
   
   
5. My Grandma! She turns EIGHTY 8-0 80 on tomorrow!
   
   
   
6. J got to spend a lot of time at home this week! Baby C and I LOVED having him around!
7. Coit upholstery cleaners--Finally! someone to clean out that cat urine Churchill left on my mom's silk drapes!

What are YOU thankful for this week?