In my slow change to being more “green” and earth friendly, one change I’ve been wanting to make for a while has been the switch from plastic sandwich bags to reusable ones. I finally got the chance to try one out when 3greenmoms, creators of Lunchskins, sent me a sandwich bag for review. Not only is it practical and saves plastic from heading to the land fill, but it is so much more stylish!  I love the designs and how every member of the family can have their own color or design. And? The prices aren’t ridiculous either. Especially when you consider that with the price of two boxes of the plastic bags that just go in the trash add up to be the cost of one bag that can be used for years.

The Lunchskins comes in 3 sizes: Snack, Sandwich, and Sub.  They each come in colorful designs and simply fold over the top of securely velcro closed. Savannah has been using hers for the morning often, when she just wants a bag of cereal to munch on and then can be closed up for later. They are dishwasher safe, I just threw mine upside down on the top rack to get it cleaned.  The velcro did curl up a little bit around the edges but that’s pretty typical for velcro in my experience.  I love that it saves us money and environmentally friendly and will definitely be purchasing more so we all can have one for our picnic lunches!  I so wished I had invested in these sooner to have when I was packing my lunches for school.

Lunchskins can be found on their website for more information and ordering.

This post was written as part of a program for Family Review Network and LunchSkins, who provided the product for this review

If you didn’t realize yet, I’ve got another bun in the oven. Even though I’ve been through 3 other pregnancies and generally know what to expect, I find myself devouring all the information I can about pregnancy and baby development.  You would think I would have them memorized by now, right? Well, practically. And in truth, a lot of the typical well known books do get old after a while, with dry medical terms that scare you while they supply their information. They also some times lack real life experience and personality, resembling a boring text book.

Enter the new pregnancy book: The Hot Mom to Be Handbook by Jessica Denay. While this book does not have fetal development each month, instead it focuses on what other pregnancy books lack: real daily life, encouragement, and humor. The book isn’t all about physically looking great while pregnant as the definition of “Hot Mom” but turns inward as well. I absolutely love the opening introduction:  “A Hot Mom is a woman who is confident and empowered. It doesn’t matter what age you are what shape or size; EVERY mom can be a Hot Mom! It’s a choice. An attitude and a way of being. It’s knowing that you are not the best mom unless you are the best YOU.” I love that it focuses on real life daily issues, from choosing a doctor that isn’t a “McDreamy” to protect your marriage, starting a baby blog, finding a maternity bathing suit, the importance of good nutrition, dealing with unwanted advice, having “gadgetitis” for baby things, etc.

Besides the practical and relatable advice provided in a fun way, I love that this book has great quotes, stories from other “Hot Moms”, facts, and check lists interjected through out. She also includes lists with fantastic resources for every type of momma, like ones on a budget or eco-minded, as well as a place to journal and answer questions at the end of each chapter to capture thoughts.  This book truly has it all for any type of mom preparing for a baby, taking into account all types of lifestyles during pregnancy and each woman’s vision of birth and parenting. She even talks about cloth diapering and hypnobirthing!

And best of all, the down to earth humor Jessica interjects in every single sentence and title keeps this book so much fun even in serious topics like “post-party depression.” I could not put this book down and could not stop laugh-out-louding  while reading this book. I would stop often to share a fun fact or funny too-common-in-our-house situation with my husband.  In short: this book is much more fun and practical to read than the typical pregnancy book. It has something for everyone, whether you were waiting for the perfect day to pee on the stick or the positive line shocked you and you aren’t so excited about this new change in life. I love that she deals with so many aspects of life that get washed over in other pregnancy resources, dealing with real feelings or situations and telling it like it is.

This book is definitely a must have for any mom-to-be, whether it’s their first time “baking” in the womb or a seasoned baby baker!

You can find this book on Amazon and more from “Hot Moms” at The Hot Moms Club online.

I wrote this review while participating in a blog tour campaign by Mom Central on behalf of HarperCollins and received a copy of The Hot Mom to Be Handbook to facilitate my review. Mom Central also sent me a gift certificate to thank me for taking the time to participate.