Yoga (with your kids!)

May I start by saying I wasn't really in to Yoga before I got my yoga cards I can use with my kids. I find it hard to remember all the names and how to do the poses so they are very helpful. Plus, I can do it at my own pase.

I also found I made a lot of excuses like, "I don't have a comfy mat to use so my back doesn't hurt", or " I don't have time" or "My kids always bug me".

Now I solved all my excuses!

1--Get a good Yoga Mat that's right for YOI!
Heres a little Yoga Mat 101 article that's great for helping you find the perfect mat.
I also recently did a review on a Yoga Mat you can check out as well. Review Here

2--Find a routine or tool that works for you. I like to use my yoga cards and turn on soothing music. You may do better using a video. I suck at following videos so the cards are great for me because I can go as slow or fast as I want and do different poses each time. Just find what works for you.

The cards I use:
I got the Yoga Pretzels card deck from barefoot books

These cards are fantastic! My girls beg me to play " exercise".

Each card has its name and shows on the back the steps to do that position.

It has colored cards with different catagories. It has a card that explains what order you should use them in. Such as breathing first, then stretching,etc and ending with a relaxing "time in".

I let my kids pick a card (or 2) from each category and go for it!

You can also just search " Yoga Pretzels" and find them.

You can usually check out yoga DVDs at your local library. Or buy them cheap online or at Walmart. Or hit craigslist or garage sales.

3--For me personally I feel if my kids aren't involved I do relax better, but on the other hand I still get a good work out with them and usually we end up dancing crazy at the end and I love to see them getting into working out and staying fit. If you have a baby you can place them in front of you with a few toys or for the running toddler you could do some back rolls and air plane with them. You could also make a "bridge" and let them run underneath. Who said you can't have a little fun!:)

4--Don't ever put yourself down! No one is perfect at everything their first try! And I dont always have time to get out my mat and do yoga! With practice those impossible moves will become much easier to do. If yoga isn't your thing you can try these simple things with your kids:
Go for a walk (or adventure), hiking, bike ride, or just crank the music and go crazy dancing with your kids! Exercising CAN be both fun and include your kids! We don't always have the time or access to a gym or pricey exercise equipment (or the space!). Yoga is inexpensive and the mat takes up very little space so it works well for me. Plus, I can easily still do it while pregnant.

5. Have fun! 

Youphoria Yoga Mat Review

So I gave the Youphoria Yoga Mat a good test run and I have to say I'm liking it a lot! I'm no Yoga expert, I'm just an everyday mom who does yoga to relax and to have a exercise I can do with my kids!

I compared the Youphoria mat to a mat I've had about 2 years.

 I've never really been a fan of my current mat. Its thick, but its more of a foam thick so really you still feel the floor through it. It also doesn't have much traction. It never has. Its quite cheaply made and it cost about the same as the Youphoria mat.

Its also shorter than the Youphoria Yoga mat which I always found annoying. And that's saying something sense I'm very short (5'4").

As you can see the Youphoria mat is slimmer in appearance, but I found it to almost feel thicker. Prob because its a tight weave instead of just a foam,soft weave. It has excellent traction! I was surprised!

 And I couldn't believe how much longer it was! I had plenty of room to stretch with room to spare.

 It was just all around great quality. I found the logos to be kind of cute. They weren't in the way either.

 It also came with a carrying strap. And again I was impressed because my current one has a very short handle part. This one I could put over my shoulder or cross body and be great. Needless to say, my kids will be using the pink one from now on! This ones all mine!:) Speaking of yoga with your kids check out my blog post about doing yoga with your kids here

The customer service is outstanding, the shipping was fast,and the quality was awesome. 

5 stars from me!!

*****

So, jealous yet?

Can't wait to get your own?! Click on the link below to order your own.

Here's the description for the mat which is on the above listing.

"Youphoria Yoga Yoga Mats |

Size: 24" x 72" Thickness: 1/4" (6mm)

| TOP RATED MATERIAL |

Youphoria Yoga's top-grade, high density memory foam helps you stabilize your hands and feet during yoga poses or workouts but offers much needed joint relief without losing balance.

| ULTIMATE GRIP |

The proprietary grip circles on the bottom of the mat keep it from sliding, even on the smoothest of surfaces. The top-side is built with a unique blend of grip, stability, and comfort, so your hands and feet won't slide.

| ECO FRIENDLY |

Youphoria Yoga's high density memory foam material is SGS Approved and free from Phthalates. Meaning it is free of harmful chemicals and toxins making it safe for the environment and most importantly, YOU!

| ODOR FREE |

Do you hate the smell of new yoga mats?! Our Youphoria Yoga Mat is not manufactured with any harsh chemicals meaning it shows up odor free and ready to use. You should concentrate on your practice or workout, not the smell of your new mat!

World Class Customer Service:

Each one of our customers is given a yoga specialist who will help answer questions, provide yoga towel care instructions, and make sure you are 100% satisfied! Customer satisfaction is our #1 goal!

| 100% Satisfaction Guarantee |"

They are also running a 50% off for the first 500 customers right now (see details in their listing)

They also have a $10 off when you buy the yoga towel with the mat.

I thought this yoga towel was cool too. I'm guessing its for hot yoga? I'm no yoga expert but seems cool!


I received one or more of the products mentioned above for free using Tomoson.com. Regardless, I only recommend products or services I use personally and believe will be good for my readers.

Pumpkin Spice Cookies +Chocolate Chips

Pumpkin Spice Cookies

(+Chocolate Chips)

This is one of the easiest cookie recipes! Its an easy recipe to do with your kids because there's no extra messy things like eggs,butter,vanilla,etc. If you want to teach them about measuring this isn't a good recipe because all you do is dump it all in. 

Only 2 ingredients
 (3 if you add chocolate chips!) 

So don't blink or you'll miss it!

Ingredients:

1 box of Spice Cake Mix

One (15oz) Can of Pumpkin 

AND

(Optional Deliciousness)

1/2 a bag of Chocolate Chips of choice

(or less)

Preheat oven to 350°F

Mix cake mix and pumpkin together. 

(Optional) Fold in Choc. Chips

Spray cookie sheets

Fill it with dollips of yummy goodness.

(Note: They don't really get bigger or smaller so how they look when you put the dough on the tray is how they look when you take them out of the oven. Only cooked of course)

Bake for 10-15 mins

Let cool and eat all of them yourself before anyone smells them!;) (he he).

These are one of my favorite cookies. I prob ate 10 just writing this post (oops). They are light, fluffy, moist and every bite reminds me of a crisp autumn day.:) And they are low in calories so no guilt! In fact, I was thinking about throwing in some sweet potatoes puree to see what happens. I've seen ones with raisens, nuts, sunflower seeds, peanut butter chips, etc. 

And it doesn't have any eggs in it so feel free to eat half the dough before it makes it to the tray;)

Just a note: Spice Cake mix is hard to find in the Spring/Summer. It usually shows up around this time of year and clearances out by mid winter (if not sooner). Much like the Pumpkin Pie puree its more "seasonal". So I stock up when it goes on sale so when I get the craving I have the ingredients available.

Enjoy!

Book Review--Terry Treetop

I had a chance to review this cute little book
Terry Treetop: Finds New Friends

This book was an e-book so I was able to instantly read it to my kids!
Its a cute little book about a little boy who loves to climb trees so his dad builds him a treehouse, but he has no one to share it with. So he goes on a journey to find friends. Everyone seems to be busy with their own talents. And at the end he's able to use his own unique talent to help and makes many friends in the process.

My kids liked the treehouse and all the animals in it. Their words exactly:) One of my kids was throwing a fit and once I started reading she sat up and listened intently.

What I learned from this book is everyone has their own unique talents and we each can bring something unique to this life. It also shows that you could have everything, but everything can be very lonely without friends and family to share it with.
You could work this book in with your preschool or school age child's schooling and share an important lesson at the same time.

5 stars from me!
*****
Click on the picture below to purchase it yourself!

Here's another cute book by the same author! Its currently free so get it quick!


I received one or more of the products mentioned above for free using Tomoson.com. Regardless, I only recommend products or services I use personally and believe will be good for my readers.

Children N' Us Stroller Organizer Review

Children N' Us Stroller Organizer REVIEW

This was such a perfect product to review because I'm working on a couple posts about staying organized with kids, and one for Christmas gifts for everyone in the family so this was perfect!

6 Things I Loved about this organizer:

1--How verstile it is!

Its not only great for your stroller its great for on your bike or on the back of the seat in your car. It worked great on many different stroller styles as well.

2--The sturdiness of it. It is made to last but still be light

3--How easy and convienant it was to use.

Just fill, clip and go. It freed up the floor in my car, left my hands free while riding my bike (or more space in the bike trailer), or left your hands free when pushing a stroller without a basket under it. And everything was right at my fingertips instead of having to dig under the stroller on the ground!

4--How much it held!

Diapers, wipes,water bottles, bottles, my phone, and room to spare! Like a convienant, compact, travel, go to diaper bag! It has a zipper pocket inside for smaller things, 2 elestic pockets on the inside plus 2 pockets on the outside (with & without Velcro closure) and all the space in between with a magnetic closure. I could have fit more too!This is my new favorite bag!

5--The price! $18.99 plus free shipping with Prime! That's cheaper than most hand bags or diaper bags!

6--Super fast shipping and great customer service!

I think the only I would change is maybe to add a detachable strap so I can just take it off and take it in somewhere, but it is a stroller organizer so its fine that it doesn't have one.

Overall,

Five Stars from me!

*****

Click on the link before to check it out for yourself!

I received one or more of the products mentioned above for free using Tomoson.com. Regardless, I only recommend products or services I use personally and believe will be good for my readers.

Leaf Pressing

 Fall leaf pressing

This is easy and fun. Here's the How to-
Step 1-Gather your materials:
*Leaves (Any shape or color. Make sure they are flat and use ones that aren't too dry and crunchy or they will crumble.)
*Wax Paper
*Old broken crayons (optional)
*Hot, dry iron
*ironing board with towel on it to protect it from getting covered in crayon. Might be smart to put a hand towel on top your project as well to protect your iron but if you're careful you'll prob be fine.

Step 2--Arrange leaves on desired piece of wax paper. Make sure there's either enough room to fold it in half or have a identical piece ready for the top. You can cute the waxpaper into a shape previous to arranging leaves or arrange the leaves into a shape then cut after ironing. You can also plug in your iron and make sure its NOT set on steam (it needs to be dry) at this point.

Step 3--Optional--Use a butter knife or scissors to carefully shave pieces of crayon on top or below the leaves making sure the shavings are at least 1/2-1 inch away from the edge so when melted they don't ooz out the sides. This adds a little more color and seems to make things stick together a little better.

Step 4--Fold the wax paper (or place 2nd piece on top) and iron until everything is melted and sticking together.

That easy! Cut into any shape you want. Bookmarks, hearts, whatever!

May I also add that you can do this project with just the crayon shavings too!

Education add in:
Add a little education by teaching them which leaves come from which trees and asking them which is their favorite and why. Check out a few books from the library about leaves, trees, and fall.

REVIEW--Cassani Fogless Shower Mirror

Cassani Fogless Shower Mirror REVIEW!

So I have been searching for a good gift for the men in my life for Christmas, and was conveniently given the opportunity to try out a Fogless Shower Mirror!

Let me just say I'm very impressed with this shower mirror. The quality is excellent, installing was easy, customer service is amazing and shipping was super fast!

Here is the basic info about the product:

Included With The Cassani Fogless Shower Mirror:

1 Stainless Steel Mirror Wall Mount

1 Stainless Steel Shaving Razor Wall Mount

1 Shatter-Proof Fogless Shower Mirror

Here is the Amazon link to this particular brand I used:

The one I got-- Cassani Fogless Shower Mirror $14.99 (Free Shipping with Amazon Prime)

It has a brand new design that seems to be a very smart move to me. I like the oval shape (looks "classy" and is more to the shape of a face), and the metal look of the hanger for the mirror and razor is very sleek and nice looking! All around the quality seems to be excellent.

It was so simple to install.

1.Before installing make sure that you will be placing it in a place in your shower that will allow it to work the best. Away from the direct stream of the water, and away from areas that may have outside air blowing on it. In our shower we have doors and it's a very large shower so this wasn't too hard to find:) Take the mirror in for a test run to see where it will work best for you and at what height you will want to place it at. I placed mine high enough that my 6ft dad could use it and my 5ft 8in husband could use it too.

2.Wipe area where you will be sticking the hooks with rubbing alcohol

3.Make sure area is completely dry with a dry towel

4. Stick hooks where desired.

5. Company recommends you wait 3 hours before handing your mirror or razor on the hooks just so you know the hooks stuck properly. I found they stuck pretty darn good right away!

The Shipping was super fast, customer service was excellent and I am very excited to have my husband and father test it out! 

And may I add that this is not just for men! I have already used it to wash my face and check for any blemishes I need to take care of. It's also great if you like to brush your teeth in the shower:) 

OH! And you can simply take it off the hook and let your kiddo look at themselves in the mirror while you are washing them! It's very lightweight and doesn't have any sharp edges. 

I liked that the razor hook was separate from the mirror one so I could put the razor wherever I wanted (higher or whatever). Some of the ones I saw had it attached to it where kids might be able to reach it. (ouch!) Remember we're all about creating a Kid Friendly World while still being able to do normal adult things (like shave and stay sane!)

Now, if you don't want it to be stuck to your shower wall forever (if your renting or whatever), simply run to your local Dollar Tree or Walmart and pick up some cheap suction hooks (not as sturdy or nice looking but it would do the job! And they are only $1-$3)

*You should also make sure you only clean it with warm water and wipe with a towel/cloth (like you would your favorite glasses!). Otherwise the coating that makes it fogless will come off (like the coating on your favorite glasses!)*

Here are a couple of others one amazon that I thought were similar (but personally, I thought mine was way better quality and better design!)

Here's a list of others. Some were nearly $40!! (what!? That's crazy!:O) and I didn't like how giant and unpractical some of them were! And again, the razor hook was at the bottom where my kids could reach or they just had cheap hooks. 

OTHER Shower Mirrors

The New design and Fogless Technology is super cool and the company is top rated on Amazon for good reason! 

5 stars from me! 

***** 

Highly recommend this product to anyone looking for a great gift for the guy in their life!

I received one or more of the products mentioned above for free using Tomoson.com. Regardless, I only recommend products or services I use personally and believe will be good for my readers.

Come on over & like my new FB page!

I have a brand new look! And a new Facebook Page!! Go check it out so you can stay up to date with all the new giveaways, news, and posts!

https://www.facebook.com/kidfriendlyworld

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ETSY SHOP!!

Hey, heres the link to my sister in-laws awesome Etsy shop which has the amazing jewelry i create in my spare time! Check it out!
https://www.etsy.com/shop/HomespunAesthetic