Review: Avishi Organics Intensive Baby Balm for eczema

Avishi OrganicsWell, Winter Storm Gorgon has passed through our area. We only got a few inches of snow, but oh boy! did it shut this area down. Hubby and I both still worked, and Little J still went to day care, but it was treacherous getting there.

To give you an idea, in a 7 hour period yesterday morning, our local police responded to nearly 150 accidents. The roads were very icy, and people were still driving fast. The snow has stopped, but the temperature will continue to fall over the next couple of days. There’s one thing that the cold, dry weather always brings to our home- eczema.

Growing up in Canada, I often had terribly dry skin on my hands in the winter to the point that they’d crack and peel, but I never had eczema. It took me a while to recognize it on my son. Actually, I think my MIL first pointed it out, when I mentioned he had a really dry patch of skin that wouldn’t go away. This was last winter. It’s one spot in particular above his knee, and has reappeared this year. It goes away in the spring and reappears in the fall once the cold weather returns.

Little J’s eczema doesn’t disappear during the winter, but if I treat it consistently, the skin will at least stay only a little dry. It’s not bad enough then to bother Little J. One time last winter it did get out of control, and his skin cracked and peeled and almost seemed to blister?? It was the first time I’d dealt with something like that, and I was a little horrified.

The last few weeks I’ve been using an Intensive Baby Balm that Avishi Organics sent me to review. When it first arrived, I thought it was just for diaper rash, but then I read a testimonial on their website where a mother said she used it with success on her child’s eczema. So I started to use the balm for that instead, and it works! As I’ve mentioned, the balm (like every product I’ve tried) doesn’t completely get rid of his dry skin, but with regular use, the Intensive Baby Balm helps it get better (the dry patch is soooo close to being completely gone) and the balm definitely keeps the skin from getting worse. The balm does so without chemicals, fragrances, colors, parabens, and sulfates.

You can see the red patchy spot on his leg. This is when I started to use the Avishi Organics Intensive Baby Balm.
Avishi Organics
This is after 2 weeks of application, 3 or 4 times a day. I think it looks better!

I also like that it’s a stick, because I do get tired of having to wash my hands after applying lotions and creams. Yes, frequent hand washing is good when it’s flu season, but it also dries my skin out! Because it’s a stick, I also let Little J apply it himself while I supervise. As a busy 2 1/2 year old, he loves to do things himself.
Avishi Organics Avishi Organics has all the ingredients of their balm listed on their website. Ingredients include coconut oil, neem oil, plantain, organic beeswax, and vitamin E.

Overall, I’m pleased with this product. In fact, this reminds me to go put some on my son’s leg… Okay, I’m back and just took a photo, so you can see what his eczema spot looks like tonight (that’s the “after” photo that I stuck up above). A little goes a long way with this product, so I’m pretty sure this balm will last us all winter…probably two winters.

If you or your little one suffers from dry skin, I recommend you give this a try. And, of course, you can always use this as a diaper rash cream! Visit Avishi Organics to learn more.

Note: I received a free tube of Intensive Baby Balm from Avishi Organics. The opinions reflected above are my own and may differ from others.

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Review: New menu at Bonefish Grill #HelloNewMenu

I was sent a free gift card to eat at Bonefish Grill with Hubby and Little J this past Saturday. You may remember my previous review of Bonefish Grill at their Virginia Beach location. While living in Florida, I ate at Bonefish Grill a few times a year, and always enjoyed the food and my experience. That VA Beach location didn’t live up to my expectations, so I wasn’t sure what to expect this time around.

Today is our first day in our new home (woohoo!) in Maryland, but prior to that we were staying with friends a couple towns away. The Bonefish Grill location we reviewed is in the Waugh Chapel Towne Centre in Gambrills, MD.

Review of the new menu at Bonefish Grill- My Life: A Work in Progress

I’m just going to apologize right now for the photos. Part of the ambience at Bonefish Grill is dim lighting, which isn’t conducive to great photography…especially with my iPhone.

The new menu includes a Rib-Eye Steak, Bang Bang Shrimp Flatbread, Cold Snap Fresh Ceviche, Watermelon Salad, and more.

Review of the new menu at Bonefish Grill- My Life: A Work in Progress
Your meal always comes with fresh bread and pesto for dipping.

I always order the regular Bang Bang Shrimp as an appetizer and did so before I realized there’s now flatbread version! Oh well…next time.

 Review of the new menu at Bonefish Grill- My Life: A Work in Progress
Not one of the new menu items, but the Bang Bang Shrimp is a classic favorite!

Hubby was really considering the new Shrimp Pad Thai Bowl, but ended up ordering the new Ahi Tuna Steak instead. The steak was a wood-grilled yellowfin tuna. It included little bowls of all their signature sauce choices: the new Lime Tomato Garlic, Warm Mango Salsa, Herb Pesto, Pan Asian, and Lemon Butter. He chose the new Herbed Couscous as his side.

Review of the new menu at Bonefish Grill- My Life: A Work in Progress
Ahi tuna steak with herbed couscous and veggies on the side. The two sauces shown here are Lime Tomato Garlic and Lemon Butter.
Review of the new menu at Bonefish Grill- My Life: A Work in Progress
More sauces for the tuna steak- warm mango salsa, herb pesto, and Pan-Asian

I almost went with the new Lobster Grilled Cheese (how amazing does that sound?!), but instead ordered the Spicy Tuna Bowl. I’m a sucker for sushi. My bowl included sushi-grade, sesame-seared rare tuna; avocado; sweet chile sauce; jasmine rice; and passion fruit salsa.

Review of the new menu at Bonefish Grill- My Life: A Work in Progress
Spicy tuna bowl

For Little J, we ordered his fail-safe restaurant dish: chicken tenders and french fries. Bonefish has a great multi-page menu with coloring pages for kids to draw on, as well as crayons to do so. Also, the table cloth is made of paper, so Little J loves to go to town drawing all over it.

When we eat out, we usually skip dessert, but this time we couldn’t resist the new S’mores Flatbread- creamy chocolate, toasted marshmallows, with sliced almonds, and sprinkled with graham cracker crumbs. Looks delish, doesn’t it?

Review of the new menu at Bonefish Grill- My Life: A Work in Progress
S’mores flatbread

Thoughts on the new menu:

I was much more impressed this time around. I really enjoyed my Spicy Tuna Bowl. Between the sweet chili sauce and passion fruit salsa, it had a lot of flavor. Hubby loved his Ahi Tuna Steak, and so did I (obviously, I had to test his out too, right?). The tuna steak is worth going back for, in my opinion! Hubby liked his tuna steak dipped in the Pan Asian sauce, but I preferred the Herb Pesto. I’ve already mentioned the other new menu items that we were considering, and I would definitely like to try those down the road (date night, maybe). The S’mores Flatbread was delicious and a big enough serving to share. All in all…my faith in Bonefish Grill has been restored.

To see the full new Bonefish Grill menu, as well as locations visit their website at www.bonefishgrill.com. And don’t worry; if you’re not a seafood fan, there are beef, chicken, and all-veggie options.

Have you eaten at Bonefish Grill? What dish would you like to try off the new menu?

Note: I received a free gift card to visit Bonefish Grill and try out their new menu. I was not otherwise compensated for this post.

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Giveaway: Blooming Bath for babies 8/10-24 (US only)

Are you expecting in 2014? Did you just have your little bundle of joy? Know someone who’s pregnant or trying to conceive? Then this event is for you! Alex of Mommy’s Obsessions is expecting her second son this October and has created an event that is perfect for expectant mothers. Mommy’s Little Miracle is a Pregnancy, Newborn/Early Infancy, and Postpartum event that will be featuring everything from maternity clothing to newborn essentials, to postpartum products you must have. We highly recommend that you bookmark the open giveaway page by clicking on the image below then adding it to your bookmarks bar. Over the next three weeks you will have the chance to enter to win some amazing prizes from items for YOU and things for your little one!
 

Today Mommy’s Little Miracle is featuring a company that is revolutionizing the way we bathe our babies – Blooming Bath!

I haven’t tried the Blooming Bath, but I’ve wanted to since I heard about it a couple of years ago! My SIL gave us her sons’ baby bath, so there was no need to buy one.   🙁   I like how comfy the Blooming Bath looks, and that it fits into many styles of sinks. No bending over the tub! -Elisebet

 

About Blooming Bath

(As from their website)

“Eric Devericks was a professional cartoonist. Brian Pond designed golf putters. David Morelock loved to surf. And Tom Morris was a proud geek. The four friends couldn’t have been more different. But they all had one thing in common: They were dads — and they prided themselves on being good ones. Change a diaper? No sweat. Soothe a screaming newborn? Right away. Pull a splinter? Kiss a boo-boo? Laugh at really bad knock-knock jokes? Of course. But there was another thing they had in common — experience with a chore that really shouldn’t be a chore. “When your baby’s so soapy and slippery and squirmy and when you’re trying to bend over a tub or keep them in place in the sink — frankly, it just takes a lot of the enjoyment out of a moment that should be such a great time,” Morelock said. Together, the four fathers co-founded the new company. And after more than a year of hard work, they rolled out their first product: Blooming Bath. The flower-shaped bath pillow conforms to the shape of any sink — and keeps those little wiggle worms right where they belong. It’s durable, easy to clean and unbelievably adorable.”

 

Photo Credits: Blooming Bath
From Alex at Mommy’s Obsessions:

One item for Baby #2 that has been on my list since before we conceived, was a Blooming Bath. When I first learned of the Blooming Bath I immediately fell in love with it. Not only is it adorable, but it looked so much more comfortable for baby than those stiff plastic bath tubs! When I finally saw it in stores, my love only deepened and I knew that this was a must have baby product for when we had our second little one.

Aside from the bath being the plushest that I have seen yet, I really love the fact that rather than letting it sit out and air dry, you simply throw it into your dryer after the baby is done using it! I remember from Little Misters bath tub that anytime water wouldn’t completely drain from it, it would mildew and I just thought it was the grossest thing. With the Blooming Bath, there’s no need to worry!

To Purchase: Visit Blooming Bath and grab the color bath you would love for your little one! Blooming Bath also carries bath products!

To Win: Mommy’s Obsessions and Blooming Bath want to give one lucky winner a Blooming Bath in their choice of color!

 

The Giveaway will close late on the evening of August 24th. The winner will be chosen at random through  Giveaway Tools. The winner will be announced both on Giveaway Tools form as well as notified by email and announced on Mommy’s Obsessions Facebook. Winner must respond within 48 hours of receiving their winner’s email otherwise they will forfeit their prize and a new winner will be chosen. The winner will have their prize sent to them by Blooming Bath. Mommy’s Obsessions and other participating bloggers are not responsible for prize shipment. Must be 18 years and older. Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, and Google are in no way affiliated with this giveaway. No Purchase Necessary. Void where prohibited by law. US Only. For any questions contact Mommy’s Obsessions. Mommys Obsessions did receive compensation or product in exchange for the promotion of this event. This blog did not receive compensation for the promotion of this event. 
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