Nature’s Basin is a new California-based website that offers organic and for parents who care about organic and natural skin care products since they offer a large range of these and other organic items. My life is filled with so much rubbish as it is, I thought it would be a welcome change to my chemical-laden life, plus a great way to treat my sweet three-month-old to the natural care his body deserves.

I chose the Organic Baby Starter Kit ($12.95). It looked like the perfect solution for my already cramped diaper bag. I couldn’t seem to find anything that was small enough to fit in the bag and didn’t weigh down. It’s hard enough carrying a car seat, but add a bag with all the necessary baby accoutrement, it’s like I’m schelpping a full-grown man.

paper packages

What struck me first was the packaging, nice crisp brown paper with light tissue. I’m really tired of opening up a box of styrofoam pieces to find a product the size of my fist. Very nice touch!

organic baby starter kit

the baby care starter kit

The Organic Baby Care Starter Kit includes the calendula baby cream, lotion, shampoo and body wash, oil and diaper cream–all organic, perfectly sized for easy storage.

calendula

The products are made from calendula. I never knew was calendula was until I found this kit. It sounds almost magical, like a far off castle we need a team of horses, a shaman and an ancient map to reach. Calendula is sort of mystical, actually, being completely safe and non-toxic but containing healing properties. And it smells really fresh, not at all what I was expecting from an organic product. I think I was expecting like the smell when I pass the incense shop downtown and my mouth, nose and throat are filled with the intense smoke. This was so light and pleasant. A sweet but not cloying scent that smelled clean, not like the multitude of products that make my son smell like citrus car air freshener.

calendula

The most perfect part of this product was the seal on each bottle. Each had a tight seal that keeps all the liquids in. I’ve have a huge history of leaky messes in my purses and diaper bags but I didn’t have this concern at all. This alleviated one of my biggest worries as a mom of a four-year-old and a three-month-old: will what I buy becomes a liability for cleanups later?

I was really satisfied with the Baby Care Starter Kit. It provides an array of organic baby care products without the bulk. Not only does it make a nice go-bag for day trips, but it could easily be a sweet gift for expecting parents or anyone who wants to test out some sweet organic sundries.

There’s so much noise out there on the right products to buy, it’s hard to figure out what’s worth the money. One search for “organic baby lotion” yields over 300K results. Nature’s Basin’s website layout provides a quick and simple view into organic and natural alternatives for self-care products for babies and mamas alike. There are explanations as to what organic really is, plus an aesthetician on staff who will answer any beauty care question you have, free of charge!

Speaking of costs, the prices are comparable, and plus there’s a reward program that allows you to redeem $5 for every 100 points earned as well as coupons.

For more information about Nature’s Basin, visit their website!

I received the Baby Care Starter Kit ($12.95) for free in exchange for a review.

This is sponsored content from BlogHer and The Laughing Cow.

The only form of exercise I’ve ever truly loved is swimming. I’m not a fast swimmer. I’m short. My favorite stroke is the freestyle, or as I call it, whatever gets me from one side to the other without calling for the lifeguard mid-lap. It’s perfect for someone like me who hates hearing the elliptical creak as I step on board or feeling my tattered alma mater t-shirt cling to my sweaty body the way exposed skin sticks to a hot vinyl chair. In the water, I am weightless and no one knows that most of this pool is the deep end for my short legs.

A few years ago I became self-conscious about my pasty skin. It’s ironic that I don’t tan well because I hail from the tropical island of Saipan. So instead of risking skin cancer in a tanning bed or shelling out tons of money for spray-on tans, I went the DIY route with a bottle of self-tanning lotion.

I figured that it would give the illusion of being more svelte and plus keep some money in my pocket. I went through the requisite pre-tanning procedures. I shaved, lotioned up and slipped the gloves on. After applying it by myself on my body, I let it dry and was excited to show off my super smart sexy self.

The next day I suited up as I always did and headed toward the pool. No one took any notice as I got in the water so I just swam as usual. When I emerged from the pool and toweled myself dry, I finally received some of the looks I has been hoping for. It was working! As I sauntered off toward the locker room, I could see out of the corner of my eye some more looks follow me until I disappeared behind the door. Get in line, fellas! There’s enough of this orange-tan to go around!

I was floating on these compliments until after I had showered and caught my reflection in the mirror by my locker and understood why I had garnered so many looky-looks: I had missed some spots. Many, many spots.

a dramatic representation of what my tan looked like.

The front of my body looked fine. My face was somewhat browned, but everything on my back looked like someone had spilled sludge on my skin and I hadn’t cleaned it up. My legs were okay, uneven but okay. It was the part of my back the u-shaped curve of the bathing suit didn’t cover that gave the real horror. It was like only parts of my body went to Miami while my back stayed in the Arctic Circle. There were brown handprints on my skin, like I had been given a massage by Charlie Brown’s friend Pig-Pen. You could see the part of my back I couldn’t reach because those spots looked like polar ice caps. There I was, acting like I was hot to trot while my back had become a visual map of global warming.

Since then I have never donned the self-tanning lotion nor have I paid for anyone to do the tanning for me. I’d rather be the pasty white gal swimming away than someone who will make other swimmers leap out of the water.

July’s contest is over! Check out my August post for more chances to win!


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