Even though we are heading into winter in the United States, you really need to think about sunscreen.  My husband would not listen to me yesterday when I told him to put on sunscreen before the Chicago Bears football game, and guess what?  He came home with a sunburn.  Once there is snow on the ground, it is even easier to get a sunburn even in the middle of winter. You always need to wear sunscreen no matter what the season is.

Now, my husband has a lotion issue.  He cannot stand touch lotion, having it on his skin, or applying it to our children.  No, he is not trying to get out of sunlotioning our children — it just really grosses him out.  That is why when I came across Kinesys I knew we had to try it.  What I found is that this is a winner in our house.  The microspray formula is super easy to apply.  You just spray it on your arm (or whatever body part you are applying it to), and that’s it!  You don’t have to rub it in at all.  However, it was easier for us to apply to our kids faces (since my kids are little) by spraying it on our hands first and then applying it.  It is super awesome for applying to their scalps, because it didn’t make their hair greasy (and I personally think that is the worst sunburn ever, because until that sunburn goes away, it hurt to even comb your hair).  It is free of four important things – oil, alcohol, preservatives, and PABA.  This won’t irritate your skin — even if you have sensitive skin.  It also is water and sweat resistant which is great for kids too!  It is also non-comedogenic (meaning it won’t clog your pores, so you don’t have to worry about acne breakouts).  It also gives you broad spectrum protection against both UVA and UVB rays.

I found that my kids could handle the few seconds it took to apply this.  There was no fighting, because it was so easy to apply.  It was on before they ever even knew it, and it recently won the Parent Tested, Parent Approved Award.  It was also chosen as the #1 spray sunscreen for high efficacy and low hazard ingredients by the watchdog group Environmental Working Group.  The bottles also come in awesome bright colors that make it much easier to find in your house and the kids love.  Make sure you check out Kinesys for your sunscreen needs!

The Leapfrog Word Whammer is a great accompaniment to the LeapFrog Fridge Phonics Magnetic Set. This is the next step up from that (we aren’t quite up to having to worry about the best acne treatment yet, but we are slowly getting there). Instead of just working with single letters, your child starts working with words. The words can only be three letters, so it is truly for beginner reader. There are three settings on it: Letter Hunt, Word Builder & Word Hunt. Letter Hunt allows the them to learn letter names and sounds through fun songs. The Word Builder setting lets them play with letter combinations, and you are able to create over 325 words. The Word Hunt setting allows them to spell three-letter words and then replace letters to make rhyming words. This toy has really gotten Madison interested in reading and spelling. It has really perked her interest up into reading books again. You don’t have to have the LeapFrog Fridge Phonics Magnetic Set to enjoy the Word Whammer either! This toy is definitely on my must buy list.

The Incredible Truth about Motherhood is an awesome book to give to all new mothers. My sister bought me this book when I was pregnant with Madison. This book is all being a mom and how great it is.  It tells a story of how life is once you become a mother, but how you would never give it up for anything. This book is a great book for moms of all ages. I would even consider giving it as a mother’s day present.