This contest is now closed. The winner is Helena Batt-Vesey. Congrats!

Did you know that it has been estimated that two million dust mites can thrive in an unprotected mattress? Gross, I know. Prevention Magazine has recently named bedding encasements as one of the ways to allergy-proof your home and encourages providing a barrier between you and any allergens that may be housed inside your bed.

I knew I had to try this. As I have stated many times, I am allergic to life itself. I’ve done allergy tests, and I was allergic to every single thing they tested me for. Needless to say, I can be miserable year round.
We had the matress pad and the pillow protector. I noticed a change the first night. I didn’t wake up in the morning coughing like I normally do all winter. I love that these protectors are cloth instead of plastic. The last protector we had on our bed was plastic, and it always made noise and wasn’t as comfortable. When we moved, it got torn, so we haven’t had one since. However, my most favorite feature has to be that it is waterproof! When you have kids, this is very important. Madison may be potty trained, but she still brings her sippy cup into our bed. The waterproofing will be especially nice when we potty train Will, because we will have no worries. I love my protectors. The real test will be in the summer with the pollen, but I am impressed with what it has done with just the dust alone.

Since I know I have readers who have allergies like me, I have arranged a giveaway. The winner will have their choice of an AllerZip Mattress Protector (for individuals with extreme allergies), a Premium Mattress Protector or, if they prefer, a Crib Mattress Protector (readers may want to visit PAB’s site to see which would be best for their allergy situation). Additionally they will also receive a Premium Pillow Protector. If this sounds like something you need in your house (like I did), here’s what to do:

Leave a comment on this post. Check out Protect A Bed and tell me which product you’d like.

Each of these gives you one additional entry:

1. Twitter about this contest. Please leave me your username so I can verify. Or use something like this:

RT @blm03 is giving away Protect A Bed Allergy Products! http://urlbrief.com/c0abab

2. Stumble this post. If you don’t know what Stumble Upon is, please read Lori’s post at Blogging Cents. She explains it extremely well.

3. Add this post to other social media sites like Digg, Kirtsy, Blogging Zoom, Reddit, Propeller, Etc. (1 entry for each social network).

Each of these gives you 5 additional entries,

1. Blog about this on your blog. Please give me the URL, so I can verify.

2. Add this to any forums you belong too. Please give me the URL, so I can verify.

3. Subscribe to this blog using either my email or RSS feed

4. Add my badge to your sidebar:

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For 10 additional entries:

I’ve added a new way to subscribe to this blog. Click on the Mobile Updates in my sidebar and subscribe to my blog that way. Let me know if you’ve done so, and you’ll have ten more entries for this contest!

This contest is for US only and will end at 8:00 pm CST on February 10rd.

If you live in the Chicagoland area, Grants Appliance is a place you want to stop. They have everything from washers and dryers to stoves to dishwashers to mattress and plasma tvs. I am sure they even have plasma tv mounts there! We first started using Grants when we lived in Aurora. They pretty much beat every price around. If they don’t the make and model that you are looking for on their show floor, they will order it for you (we did this with our dishwasher!). In my current house, we bought the washer, dryer, dishwasher, and stove from them. Their delivery guys are great too! If you are looking for brand name items for a great price, Grants is your one stop shop!

This is a local store for me. I don’t think they are a national wide chain. However, if you live in the Chicagoland area, you need to stop at Darvin Furniture for your furniture needs. I am pretty sure that their sales people work on commission. However, you don’t feel them breathing down your neck while you are looking. I have never found a time when I couldn’t find a salesperson to help. The salespeople are extremely knowledgeable and helpful. They carry almost all of the name brands of furniture and mattresses. They also have great financing deals going all the time. The only thing is that you need to put down a third of the purchase price. You can use cash, charge, or even money from your checking account. At this time, we have bought our kitchen table, our living room set, and today, we just bought new mattresses from them. We wouldn’t keep going back if this wasn’t a great store to shop from.