Femmecup

Photos from the Femmecup website

This is my first momma product review of the week I would like to say that it is a menstrual product so that readers are aware before hand.



I would like to give a Big thanks to Kate at Femmecup for sending me this cup to review.

http://www.femmecup.com/thecup.html

Photo is from the Femmecup website
I forgot to take some before i cut the stem off

First the cups stats Femmecup is worn internally to collect menstrual fluid rather than absorb it like a tampon does. There has never been linked with  TSS like tampons have. Its made of FDA aproved medical grade silicone.

50mm in length

45mm at its widest point.

Its stem is 15mm long and trimmed for comfort.

It holds 30ml

Price is about 23.00 USD which is great considering its completely reusable and should last you years and years. you can buy them hear http://www.femmecup.com/paypal/paypal.html 



Customer service is wonderful they were very helpful and friendly. Question response time through email was typically same day. Shipping was great my cup came in a little over a week. My Femmecup came in a big bubble envlope  so it was well padded. It included the box, a fold out pamplet with directions for use and cleaning, the worlds cutest cotten Poutch to store it in that was shaped like a pair of panties which im totally in love with, and there was a pen which is now in my purse cues its a great pink color and everyone ask me about it. The directions are clear and easy to understand has some pictures on how to fold and insert it. and some directions on how to cut the stem if you need to.

Picture of the storage poutch
from the femmecup website

The Femmecup is a one size cup so I didnt have to guess what size i needed. the stem is solid and i think fairly stiff.  I did have to trim the stem because it was just way too long for me and was uncomfortable when sitting.  It was very easy to trim and cut nice ans smooth and is now completely comfortable.  It's made of a clear FDA aproved medical grade silicone. I have been told that like a lot of silicones it can stain over time but so far It shows no sign of staining.

Insertions was very comfortableIts a soft flexable silicone. The rim of the cup is a bit firmer than the body of the cup but that helps it to pop open easily. I use a punch down fold which means i basically just push one side of the cup in so it folds a little and slide it in. I find it to be simple and quick to insert and remove. The Femmecup has grip ridges onthe bottom part of the cup as well as on the stem they are sort of a spiral design which is very grippy and i did not have any trouble with my fingers slipping on the cup or stem. To remove the cup you gently pinch the bottom which breaks the suction and allows the cup to slide down and out. I found the cup to be no more uncomfortable to remove or insert than a tampon or a diaphgram. I had no problems with leaks and It can be used up to 12 hours. 

Cleaning your cup is simple warm water and a little bit of a mild soap id recomend a fragrence free to avoide any irritations and rinse it well. If you are in a public bathroom you can simply just empty the cup in the toilit and reinsert it. Some women like to wipe them out with some toilit paper or you can get menstrual cup clensing cloths online.  It has small suction release holes around the top they are easy to clean and i did not have any problems with them getting yuckie. If they did happen to get a little yuckie you just fill your cup with water put your hand on top of the cup and squeese the bottom a little and the water will push out anything that might be stuck. Some cup users boil there cups for a couple minutes at the end of a cycle.

The positive things about the Femmecup

•  Its reusuable
•  It saves you a lot of money over a just a few cycles. 
•  Its made of safe FDA approved medical grade silicone
• Can be worn up to 12 hours
• Can be worn while swimming hiking and just about anything else you can think of.
• Fits in your purse and you just need the one cup
• No chimicals

The Only down side I could find about the

• Femmecup is that its a one size cup and might not fit all women though I think with being able to trim the stem it will fit most women
• The stem of the cup is a bit stiff.
• It cant be woren during intercourse
• It only comes in clear sorry ladys no funkie colors yet.

I Hope you enjoyed the review and will give a Menstrual cup a try. It is truly the best way I have ever found to Make your monthly cycle simple.

gDiapers

I am a cloth diapering momma and I decided to blog about one of the hybrid diapers on our shelf. gDiapers are a three part hybrid diaper you can either use the disposable insert in them or you can put a cloth insert inside.

gDiapers come in Five sizes Tiny gPants are for new Born's 6 to 10 lbs, small gPants are for baby's 8-14lbs, medium gPants are for baby's 13-28lbs, large gpants are for baby's 26-36lbs, and the newest gPants size XL are for baby 34+ lbs

Part one of the g diaper system is the covers.  The covers come in a slection of cute colors and a few prints. Garden Party, Gflutter, goddess pink, game day, g camper,glacier blue, good morning sunshine, great orange, guppy green, grateful red, giddy up brown, and galley blue are there new colors and prints which you can see at  http://www.gdiapers.com/shop-diapers/little-gpants. We how ever have some of the older prints and colors.

Left medium gPant, Middle M/L snap in liner, Right biodegradable gRefills

The g diaper covers are unique they have a cute g on the bum and they have a snap in liner that you can pop out if it becomes soiled and replace with a new snap in liner. Another unique quality is that the covers also close on baby's back instead of the front which is great if you have little helping hands that like to take there diapers off.  Our covers have held up well over the last two years there colors are still Bright and don't seem get pilly as they are a Cotton type fabric ours are in a decent size rotation so they could show more wear if they were in a small rotation.

Part two are the Gsnap in-liners are a snap in liner that uses special tiny flat snaps so that you can remove the liner if it becomes soiled and reuse the cover. I love this idea how ever the liners tended to wear out on us after about 6 months or so. they lasted longer for us if we did not put them in the dryer. You can get replacement gsnap-in liners for about $20.00 for a box of 6. on the g diaper web site http://www.gdiapers.com/shop-diapers/accessories

Part three is the biodegradable  gRefills which is what we used when going to town because i didn't like hauling a stinky diaper around.  They are a flush able biodegradable insert that you put in the snap in liner and take out when its soiled. When baby soils the liner you take it out of the snap in liner tear off one side shake it into the potty swish it around with the handy dandy swish stick tell it breaks apart and then flush it away. they run for $14.49 for a pack of 32 medium/large biodegradable gRefills on the g diaper website http://www.gdiapers.com/shop-diapers/gcloth-and-grefills 

You can also use a gCloth insert. which is a washable cloth insert that you wash after its been soiled and reused after its washed and dried.  I cant say much about the gCloth inserts because we have never had the opportunity to try them. We did how ever use a regular cloth insert and it wonderfully. You can get gCloth inserts at the g diaper website they run about $29.99 for a 6 pack.

gDiapers are a great hybrid diapering system that work well for most baby's. We did have a few weeks where we were in between sizes and we just couldn't get a good fit and had leak trouble but you can have that problem with any diapering system you buy. I would definitely recommend gDiapers for moms looking to try out cloth diapering or like us wanting a disposable system that we could use on the go.

I hope you enjoyed this review on gDiapers

Crayola Dry-Erase Activity Center

My First Review of the week is the Crayola Dry-Erase Activity Center ages 4+ years. It retails for $15.00 at walmart.Ours is the Blue one called Zany Play we chose it over the yellow one just because I like Blue. Hear are a couple photos one of it in action with my two year old and the other is just an over all photo that I did because what good momma doesn't try out the toy first and i wanted to draw something on it too.

 


 It includes:
1dry erase board
4 crayola Dry erase markers
8 zany activities
16 clings
1 eraser
1 clear cover sheet.

The dry erase board its self has a hard clear plastic top that you write on. It has an opening on one side that lets you slip different activity sheets under it so that they can be reused. You slip the activity sheet in the clear cover sheet and slid it in the activity center. The quality of the board seems fairly tough but i wouldn't recommend stomping on it or throwing it as the clear write on part would scratch. It has a place at the top to hold four dry erase markers and the little eraser that comes with it.

The Activity sheets are fun games and simple enough for my 4 year old to do. You can also go to the crayola website and they offer two sections with more printable activity sheets for free so that's a big plus in my book since my little ones get board doing the same ones over and over. You could also use any 8.5x 11 page that you can find. I love this because I can use most any pre-k work book pages over and over again so its saving me lots of money. I included the links to the crayola site and there printable pages.

http://www.crayola.com/free-coloring-pages/dry-erase-activity-center/

http://www.crayola.com/free-coloring-pages/zany-dry-erase-coloring-pages/

Now for the Crayola dry-erase Markers they are the only part of the product I am slightly disappointed in. They color nice and are bright but like the Crayola dry-erase crayons they are difficult to erase from the board. We prefer the expo brand dry-erase markers as they erase easier for my four and two year old. Also be aware that my daughter got the markers on her skirt and we can NOT get it to come out. So be aware of that potential problem.

the Eraser is a tad small for my two year old but it erases well and has a great storage spot at the top so it doesn't get lost in the bottom of our school and art tub.

Over all I would definitely recommend the Crayola Dry-Erase Activity center to other moms looking for a great reusable on the go toy for there pre-k or toddlers even my older nieces love it. this one Gets a Thumbs Up in our book.

I hope you enjoyed my review if you have any questions please feel free to ask.!