Back At School - Products Round-Up

We're two weeks in to the new school year and Freddy has caught his first bug.  Poor little man is riddled with cold.  My Back To School wall chart from Boots has hints and tips for keeping little ones well and recommends the Boots Cold and Flu Defence Spray as a good way of reducing the severity and duration of a cold.  It might prove a good investment!  You can find the FREE chart online here.  It has some great advice (including a little gem of wisdom from yours truly regarding keeping little ones well hydrated!)

Boots also sent me some handy items for my medicine cabinet.  This has come in handy as we have had a cut knee to deal with already after Freddy fell off a scooter.  A First Aid Kit is definitely a must-have when you have children!  The Boots Complete First Aid Kit has a great selection of bandages, wipes, plasters, dressings, tape etc. so you can deal with everyday accidents from grazes to burns to sprains.  The first aid booklet is very useful and everything is contained in a handy zip up case. (rrp £19.99)

At the moment, a clean school uniform stays looking smart on Freddy for approximately 30 seconds.  We have seen paint splodges, school lunch spills and dirty knees already.  Dr. Beckmann have helped save the day thanks to their Stain Survival Kit that I was sent to try. It can help keep the kids' uniforms clean by treating stains caused by felt tips, pens, crayons, yogurt, fruit juice, carrot, egg, ink and a whole host of other common stains using three of their specific stain removers. (rrp £3.99)  I'll be trying out the in-wash Stain Remover and Hygiene White next week (rrp £1.99 and £2.25 for 5 sachet packs) as Kizzy is off on a residential, activity trip on Wednesday where she is guaranteed to get covered in mud.  That is one load of laundry I am not looking forward to!  You can take a look at their product range, information and testimonials online.

www.dr-beckmann.co.uk

I went to the Tots 100 Blog Summit at the weekend and took part in the Cow & Gate #fruityfun blindfold taste test, trying homemade fruit purees against their new 100% Fruit pouches.  I was first to take the challenge and tried the apple purees.  My favourite one was surprisingly the Cow & Gate pouch.  It had a far fruitier taste than the homemade puree which was quite bland by comparison.  Later on I tried the Banana and Strawberry puree and again found the Cow & Gate pouch far fruitier and fresher tasting.  Maybe it is because the ingredients used by Cow and Gate is baby grade, especially sourced fruits which are of the highest quality.  Nothing is added apart from a little extra vitamin C. I picked up a few freebies from the Cow & Gate stand and will definitely be looking out for these instore.

I love the convenience of the pouches and although they are marketed for babies, my older kids still love slurping them straight from the pack.  They are excellent for lunchboxes and Freddy will be more likely to eat and enjoy a fruit pouch than he would a whole apple (which can be tricky for a 4 year old with baby teeth and the lure of a playground calling). Anything that makes packed lunches easier for him to eat get a thumbs up from me.

Sistema Lunchboxes have proven to be a godsend so far this term.  The compartments keep food separate and safe and minimize the need to pack things up into plastic food bags which is good for the environment and for my pocket.  The drinks bottle doesn't leak and is a good size.  As it's refillable we are again saving money and as we're not buying individual cartons and bottles we are being eco-friendly.  I went a bit mad before term began buying loads of Sistema stuff for all three of my school and college kids.  But I'm so glad I did as it is proving to be more cost effective long term.  The Quad lunchbox is on sale for just £2 at my local Asda so I may have bought a couple more for spares!

Spring Cleaning the Natural & Clean Way

Natural & Clean are cleaning specialists who offer a wide range of innovative and environmentally friendly travel, pet and household cleaning products, to make our homes fresh, clean and odour free.

With Spring Cleaning season fast approaching, and with us about to put our house on the market, I was very pleased to be sent a selection of these products to test out.  The company ethos is to create, distribute and sell the finest quality cleaning products that respect the Earth.  The products do not contain any animal based products and are not tested on animals.  Made without harsh chemicals, they are also kind to those of us who live in the house being cleaned, which is really important when you have children.

The Natural & Clean range includes carpet and upholstery cleaning products.  I was particularly pleased to receive these as our beige stairway and hall carpet is looking slightly worse for wear and would benefit from a good clean.

The Dry Carpet Cleaner is a really innovative product.  Millions of tiny sponge like granules absorb dirt when agitated into the carpet.  The pack comes with a brush to work it into the pile.  The granules absorb dirt from the carpet fibres and change colour.  They can then be simply vacuumed away.  It is very easy to use and leaves the carpet smelling fresh and looking cleaner.  Knowing there is nothing unnatural in the product is very reassuring with a toddler in the house.  The cleaner looks a lot like damp sand, which goes to work straight away.  After about 10 minutes you can hoover it up.  The carpet definitely looks better for the treatment and looks less aged.  It currently costs £5.19 for a 500g pouch.

The Spot Remover Spray targets tough spots and spills directly.  Made with high quality natural ingredients means it is free from solvents, bleach or phosphates.  To use, you spray onto an absorbent cloth and rub over the spill.  It is even suitable on wool.  The  discolouration is lifted from the carpet.  It is an effective and safe way to tackle stains.  I tried it on a muddy print on my stair carpet and it lifted a lot of the discolouration very quickly and easily.  I'll be targeting more of my carpet with this later, and hopefully make it look much cleaner for any prospective buyers!  There are also Spot Remover Wipes for extra convenience. They are effective on coffee, tea, food grease, pet accidents, soft drinks etc and can be used on most fabrics. With messy kids, these are a must have!  The wipes foam up when you use them, but quickly dry to a powder meaning there is no sticky residue.  Each wipe goes a long way so one would tackle a spill effectively.  Both the spray and 25 pack of wipes each cost £3.43.

The Bin Deodoriser is a powerful formulation which attacks the cause of unwanted odours, neutralising and removing them.  You simply spray it onto offending areas such as the kitchen bin, wheelie bins, cat litter trays, nappy bins or waste disposal units.  You can also spray the internal surfaces of bins after each bag change to keep them smelling fresh.  Powerful active microbes neutralise the pong instantly.  I was really impressed by this product.  It didn't mask the stink with an artificial fragrance, it made the smell disappear.  It is safe for pets and people so you don't have to worry about harsh chemicals in your home.  It is just £3.39 for a 300ml trigger spray bottle.  It is perfect for freshening up every bin in the house.  I wish I'd had this when Fred was still in nappies because they made the bin reek! 

All the products have performed really effectively.  The packaging has good information and clear instructions for each product's use.  I love that they are environmentally friendly, not tested on animals and safe.  I was impressed to find a brand that does not compromise on its company ethos or the quality of its products!  I'd recommend taking a look online for the full range of pet, baby, travel and household cleaning products.

You can purchase directly from the Natural and Clean website and orders over £50 are free.

*I received samples to test but no compensation was received.*

Elias Super Wipes...First Aid for Clothes

Ever since I received my pack of Elias Super Wipes to review, I've been waiting to have a spill on my clothes in order to test them out!   Finally today the moment I had been waiting for arrived!  A sizeable splodge of chocolate ice cream found its way onto my top.  Without wasting a moment I was there with an Elias Super Wipe in my hand.  The wipe was a really good size and really moist.  I set to work rubbing over my brown stain with a circular motion and was amazed to see it immediately lighten.  It really was disappearing before my eyes!  It says on the packet to allow 10 minutes for the best result. It really did effectively deal with my mishap, and my top went into the laundry to emerge as good as new. Chocolate ice cream was the ultimate test, that stuff stains anything it touches, but thanks to Elias, my top lives to be worn another day!

Elias Super Wipes are handy wipes which remove food stains from clothes and deal with unexpected spills.  It's like First Aid for your clothes!  Perfect for popping in your handbag when out and about.  No more dabbing at dribbled dinner mess with napkins or washing off wine spills in the Ladies' then contorting yourself to get dried under the hand drier!  The value of Elias Super Wipes with children is huge...my messy little puppy is constantly covered in his meals.  Next time some spaghetti sauce goes down his front I'll be ready thanks to Elias.

The wipes can be used on a wide range of fabrics but not if they say "do not bleach" on their care label.  They are effective on food and drink stains when dealt with immediately.  Elias Super Wipes are not for personal hygiene use and are not edible.  So exercise caution around little ones.

Priced at £2.49 for a pack of 5 (plus 99p p&p) from Elias, they can save you money on professional cleaning costs or form replacing stained garments.  If you live in London they are available to purchase at Elias Cleaners stores.  They will be stocked in major UK retailers in the near future!

Check out this video for further information on Elias Super Wipes.

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