How to Choose the Right High Chair

Anyone who has ever tried to feed a toddler will recognize the importance of having the right high chair; the wrong choice can leave you with a squirming baby stuck in the seat, food packed into hard-to-reach crevices, and – the ultimate disaster – a baby toppling the whole setup as they try and climb out. From mom to mom, we’re here to help you choose the chair that fits your specific needs by outlining the factors to consider when making your decision.

Style

Who says that stylish ladies have to fall prey to frumpiness and a loss of fabulousness when they have a baby? There are many stylish high chairs out there to fit into any number of décor themes: take the Micuna Ovo, a sleek and sophisticated high chair made from solid beech and leather that’s a tried and tested favorite in Europe but a newcomer to the US. You don’t have to choose between style and practicality, but generally, you do have to pay more to have both. Which leads us onto…

Price and quality

Even if you’re strapped for cash, don’t be tempted to buy the cheapest plastic high chair available in the store. Given that 9.2 million of our kids go into the emergency department to be treated for non-life-threatening injuries every year, we don’t need to add to the risk by purchasing a flimsy model that could crack, fall, or trap little fingers in sub-standard fixtures and fittings. If you can’t afford a quality chair new, get one second hand from a friend or yard sale, and clean well before use.

Practicality and ease

Mothering can easily be a full time job, and it’s becoming increasingly recognized that moms who work professionally at all and have a young child are basically working two jobs. A lot of our time at home seems to be spent cleaning up the messes that our children make, and having a high chair that’s quick and easy to operate as well as clean and maintain makes a big difference. This means no fiddly tray attachment, no tiny crevices, and no absorbent straps that end up as a breeding ground for bacteria.

Versatility

Children grow like weeds – fast and uncontrollably. So if we shell out on a quality high chair, we want it to be able to meet our child’s changing needs as they mature and develop. The best high chairs can be adjusted for use as desks or lower chairs once the child can sit properly to eat at the table, and the tray part can be removed to make a normal seat. Check for this versatility in any new chair you buy to make sure it isn’t outgrown in a matter of months!

Cleaning Products to Avoid if You Have Allergies

Most household cleaning products are harmful to children. According to research done by the University of Minnesota [1], several chemicals found in the home are linked to allergies.

Most household cleaning products are harmful to children. According to research done by the University of Minnesota [1], several chemicals found in the home are linked to allergies. They cause birth defects, cancer, and psychological disorders. The Consumer Protection Safety Commission [2] states that since 1970, asthma cases have increased by 59 percent. Children under 15 years of age have suffered from asthma at a higher rate of 41 percent. The data is alarming to healthcare professionals.

Chemical Ingredients to Avoid Found in Household Cleaning Products:

Formaldehyde

The Agency for Toxic Substance & Disease Registry (ATSDR) [3] states that if exposure to formaldehyde is high, it will irritate the upper respiratory tract including the eyes, ears, nose, and throat when you inhale the chemical. It could lead to nose and throat cancer. It causes skin irritation. If it gets taken orally, it will inflame the gastrointestinal tract. Small cases have reported occupational asthma, but it is rare.

Using products with formaldehyde can increase the concentration levels indoors that could be a potential hazard. Formaldehyde is a type of flammable gas that is colorless at room temperature. According to the ATSDR, consideration of individual factors has to be examined to detect the level of harm the substance will cause. Formaldehyde produces itself naturally by plants, animals, and humans.

You can get exposed to formaldehyde by breathing it in, ingesting it, or by skin contact. You can find it in wood products, automobile exhaust, and cigarette smoke. You can also find it in paints, varnishes, commercial cleaning products, and permanent press fabrics.

When you breathe in the substance, it will only enter your blood at high levels and goes to your respiratory tract. When you ingest it via food or water, it will enter your body through the digestive tract. When you use cleaning liquids with the substance, it will enter your system by way of the skin.

Ammonia

You can become blind, get lung damage or die from excessive exposure to Ammonia. A mild exposure will result in coughing, nose and throat irritation. If you swallow the chemical, your mouth and throat will burn. It will also cause stomach irritation.

Ammonia is poisonous to children under the age of six. It is a colorless gas that has a piercing and suffocating scent. It exists in nature as well as in the human body. It aids the body in making protein and other molecules. You can find it in fertilizer, water purification system, plastics, and explosives. It also exists in pesticides, fabrics, dyes, liquid dish soaps, and other chemicals. Most people get exposed to ammonia by breathing in the fumes.

According to the New York State Department of Health [4], ammonia damages the cells in the body if you breathe, swallow or come into contact with it via the skin. The damages depend on how severe the exposure is. Your eyes, nose, and throat, will burn.

Sodium Lauryl Sulphate (SLS)

According to Dr. Mercola [5], prolonged exposure to SLS can cause damage to the hair, skin, and eyes. It can also cause immunological problems as well as cancer. At a high concentration, SLS can irritate the eyes. It is a foaming agent that you can find in most detergents, soaps, shampoos, toothpaste, and other personal care products.

Dr. Mercola further states that the effect of slathering certain commercial chemicals on your skin is more damaging than eating them. When you eat the chemicals, the saliva and the enzymes contained in your stomach help to break them down and flush them out of your body.

On the other hand, when you come in contact with them via your skin, the chemicals get absorbed directly into your bloodstream. There is nothing to filter out the chemicals, so they find their way to your organs. They will sit and accumulate in your delicate organs for long periods and eventually become toxic.

It is paramount that you protect your skin. It guards the internal organs against harmful infections. It gets rid of waste via perspiration. The skin acts as a barrier to harmful bacteria. It is a haven for friendly bacteria, and it also keeps your body temperature normal. If you expose it to harmful chemicals, it may not function optimally.

Alternative but Healthy Ways to Clean

Even if the product has a claim to be natural, it is still advisable to read the label. You can make your cleaning agents using natural ingredients. To make a glass cleaner, you can mix one tablespoon of vinegar or lemon juice into one quart of water. Spray it on the glass, and use a soft cloth to clean it.

You can make furniture polish by mixing one teaspoonful of lemon juice with one pint of mineral or vegetable oil.

Getting rid of the odor from carpets does not have to involve toxic chemicals. You can sprinkle baking soda on the affected area and let it sit for fifteen minutes. Vacuum the area afterward.

Substitute mothballs with cedar chips, lavender flowers, rosemary, mint, or white peppercorns.

Conclusion

It is annoying enough to have to deal with allergies. Adding to the symptoms will only compound your problems. Instead of using harsh chemicals with formaldehyde, ammonia, and SLS, it is wise to use all-natural ingredients instead. To be sure that the cleaning agents are free of chemicals, you can make them yourself by using natural products that you have in your kitchen. Using natural products can help to reduce asthma cases and other respiratory illnesses.

Further Reading:

1. The Household Toxins Institute, “The Health and Environmental Hazards Hidden in Traditional Household Cleaning Products,” http://www.tc.umn.edu/~ angv0004/HealthHazards.pdf
2. Consumer Protection Safety Commission, “Biological Pollutants in the Home” http://www.cpsc.gov/safety- education/safety-guides/home/ biological-pollutants-in-your- home/
3. Agency for Toxic Substance & Disease Registry, “Public Health Statement for Formaldehyde,” September 2008, http://www.atsdr.cdc.gov/phs/ phs.asp?id=218&tid=39
4. New York State Department of Health, “The Facts about Ammonia,” https://www.health.ny.gov/ environmental/emergency/ chemical_terrorism/ammonia_ general.htm
5. Mercola.com, “Deadly and Dangerous Shampoos, Toothpastes, and Detergents: Could 16,000 Studies Be Wrong about SLS?,” July 13, 2010, http://articles.mercola.com/ sites/articles/archive/2010/ 07/13/sodium-lauryl-sulfate. aspx
6. How to clean your pipe and get rid of drain flies

Get $5 When You Sign Up For #Swagbucks in January!

Now that the holidays are over, a lot of us have gone into savings mode again as we rebuild our bank accounts from all that gift buying! Some of us have already started saving for the 2017 holidays! If you're looking to extend your budget or just say within it, Swagbucks is a great resource for that.

You've probably seen me write about Swagbucks a lot on here. It's a site where you earn points (called SB) for things you're probably doing online already, like searching, watching videos, discovering deals, and taking surveys. Then you take those points and exchange them for gift cards to places like Amazon, Starbucks, Walmart, Target, or PayPal cash.

Here's how you get your bonus:

1. Sign up using this link

2. Earn 300 SB total before 2/1/17. You'll get a $3 (300 SB) bonus for it!

3. If you spend at least $25 through Swagbucks Shop* you'll get another $2 (200 SB) bonus on top of the cash back you'll get from shopping. If you have some shopping to do online, just go to Swagbucks first and visit the store through them. It doesn't cost you anything extra, but you'll get SB points for every dollar you spend (on top of the bonus)!

That's it. It's super easy, and Swagbucks is for real. I use it myself, and I've earned 43,168 SB since I joined, which is $431.68, and I normally get PayPal cash so I can spend it on Younique, things I need for our  homeschool on eBay, and even to pay for my book covers that I get made on Fiverr.com!

*You must receive your shopping SB before March 1st

Snow Much Fun Collector's Bills #Swagbucks

One of my favorite things about using Swagbucks is that I can get rewards for searching the web through their search engine. Every now and then they have "Collector's Bills" worth bonus SB points that you can collect by simply searching the web. Collect them all, and you get an SB Bonus! Once you've collected enough SB, you can redeem them for gift cards to stores like Walmart, Target, and many more! I've been doing this for years and love how it adds up. I use Swagbucks as my search engine and daily I get some sort of bonus.

Here's all the information for this week's Snow Much Fun Collector's Bills:

Search the web through the Swagbucks search starting Monday, January 2nd through Sunday, January 8th, and when you get a search win, you may get a special Collector’s Bill valued at either:

• 5 SB
• 7 SB
• 9 SB
• 11 SB
• 16 SB
• 22 SB

When you get a Collector’s Bill you’ll receive the value of the bill and the bill will be added to your “Collector’s Bills” ledger. Collect all 6 Collector’s Bills and you’ll instantly earn a 20 SB Bonus!

Keep searching til you find them all!

If It Seems Too Good To Be True, It's Probably A Pyramid Scheme

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Every year, thousands of people are caught in unsustainable business structures called pyramid schemes which can lose them hundreds, if not thousands of dollars, and cause immense emotional hardship. While they’re completely illegal, it’s a tricky thing for the government to legislate against and wipe out. The best defense it to be clued up on what pyramid schemes are, and how to avoid them. The risks may sound worthwhile, but they’re cleverly formed to make it impossible to take away profit, or even earn your original expenditure back. They can resemble very closely structures called multilevel marketing programs, which are legal. The best way to be protected yourself against these schemes is to exercise caution, but also understand how pyramid schemes portray themselves to potential targets.

What are multilevel marketing programs?

MLMs are systems whereby their revenue is a direct result of the sales made by representatives. Pyramid schemes, on the other hand, make most of their money from the sign-up fee that their recruits pay, with the products more a machine by which they can seem to legitimize their existence and structure, rather than a ware to be peddled. While multilevel marketing programs are legal all over the USA, they are treated with some skepticism due to their close resemblance to pyramid schemes. To read a case study which looks at the differences between legitimate marketing programs and pyramid scams, click here www.stay-a-stay-at-home-mom.com/jerky-direct-scam.html.

Pyramid schemes require an initial fee

Unlike MLMs, the income of pyramid schemes is based on the upfront costs paid by recruits. These costs can be hundreds or thousands of dollars but come with promises of riches unknown afterwards. If you’re faced with a scheme which seems too good to be true, but that requires a huge upfront fee, it’s wise to be very cautious. There is no way that the company can guarantee your returns.

They require you to recruit family and friends

Pyramid schemes usually promise that you’ll get your initial startup fee back by recruiting new members. This is how the pyramid takes its figurative shape. The goods that you’re required to sell will be items of little to no use, and act more as a token of the transactions rather than a product worth buying or selling, and certainly not one worth investment. This is a tell tale sign of a pyramid scheme if the item seems to have little value, but you’re still required to recruit many people to recoup your costs.

You have to buy a lot up front

Either alongside or instead of the huge upfront costs, pyramid schemes can require you to buy vast amounts of the product up front, for large sums of money, in order to sell on or pass to your new recruits to sell. This is the way they tie you in, as you become the legal owner of these products, whether you can sell them or not. These items could be things which are self-referential to the scheme, such as information booklets, and you’re required to sell them through your own personal franchise.

You are forced to buy things

As with any other criminal organization, there’s a lot to be said for their staff management and customer relations. People that enter into pyramid schemes report being threatened when they asked to leave, and were even made to feel as though they had to buy things they didn’t want or need, just to keep themselves in good standing with the scheme.

Much like many scams, pyramid schemes target vulnerable individuals, and force them to pay out extortionate amounts of money to get nothing in return - it’s not really surprising they’re illegal. If you feel as though an offer you, or a family member, have received is too good to be true, it’s probably is. Pyramid schemes are marketed as fantastic opportunities to get rich, join a community, or get through financially difficult times, but in actuality, they just tie people into debt and long-term problems. If you come across a system which requires a large upfront fee which you can only recoup by signing up family or friends as new members, it’s best to avoid them like the plague. Help other people to avoid them too by reporting any suspicious schemes to Action Fraud. Always be aware and exercise caution when signing up to any new schemes.