Blog Content Theft and Copyrights

As I was checking my stats the other day I noticed that one of the search keywords that directs traffic to my site was 2 Tiny Tyrants.

I decided to Google it and up pops a blog with the exact same name as mine, with only a slight change. I checked to see when the blog was started and it was started about two weeks after mine. Now I am not trying to say that said name was stolen from me. I am aware of the millions of blogs in blogland, and how it is possible to think of an idea only to find it has already been claimed. And I thought I had found a name that was my own. I tried to take all necessary precautions. I Googled my blog title to make sure it was not taken, which it wasn't. I spent almost two weeks trying to think of the perfect, catchy but not to complicated blog title before finally deciding on this one. But even all those precautions and all that effort cannot guarantee that someone won't wind up with the same title as you. And I am not gonna lie, it does irk me a lot a tiny bit. I am really trying to make a name for myself in the big bad world of blogging and as you can see by my lame 10 Followers, it is NOT easy. And now I have to compete with another blog having the same name. It is definitely fury-inducing.

Anyways, there is a point to this rant. All this BS got me thinking about copyrights and trademarks and what steps can be taken to protect my blog content. I am not talking about the title, but the posts, pictures and everything in between. Most bloggers, like me, put a lot of time and effort into their work. Every blog post I write means time spent away from my kids.Plus, I take pride in my work. Everyone has heard the horror stories of people having their blog concept and posts stolen and posted on another website, copied word for word. I can only imagine how frustrating THAT would be. Now I am not going to ramble on in all these technical terms about copyright laws and all that jazz. I am just going to give you a few tips that can help to protect your work. Now, keep in mind, these tips can not guarantee that your work won't be plagiarised or used without your permission, but they can be a very good deterrent and may be able to help in the unfortunate event that your work is stolen.

The first thing we will discuss is copyrights. What is a copyright?

A copyright is a form of protection, often a document, that is offered to authors of personal work, such as a blogger, that proves that said author is the real owner of that work and grants exclusive selling and reproduction  rights to that person. Basically, it gives you exclusive rights to you work and how it is used. To effectively protect your work you should copyright each of your blog posts. However, copyrighting costs money and many beginner bloggers do not have said money. Lucky for you, I found a way to copyright your work for free. I found a great website that copyrights your work, including every additional blog post you publish, for absolutely FREE. They even give you a unique copyright number to use for future reference. It is free and simple and it is what I am now using to protect my work. Simply go to www.myfreecopyright.com to start protecting your work for free.

If you see this DON'T copy it without permission.

What is another way to copyright your work for free?

Well, if you are lucky enough to live in a country that signed the Berne Copyright Convention, then you are already protected for free!! Basically, it is a treaty that states that as soon as you publish an article on your blog it is automatically copyrighted and you own the copyright. And you don't have to provide any fancy scmancy codes on your site or documents either. Although those do come in handy should you wind up in court. It is not necessary to provide any documentation of this copyright law, it can't hurt to state that the content is protected somewhere on your website. This can be something as simple as this:  © Two Tiny Tyrants- 2012. The Berne Convention provides copyright protection to text for up to 50 years after your death and 25 years for photos, although at that point it probably won't really matter that much unless it is worth something substantial. I had a difficult time finding a complete list of all countries that signed the Berne Copyright Convention, the best I could find was the map on the Wiki page highlighting all the countries that are included, which you can view by clicking HERE. However, I do know that the United States and Canada are included under this treaty so if you reside in either you are automatically protected by your own government. This copyright is often used in conjunction with a Creative Common License, which I will explain later. However, if you do not want to include a CC license on top of the copyright protection you can simply add an "All Rights Reserved" and it will look something like this:


© Two Tiny Tyrants-2012 "All Rights Reserved"

If you do come to find out that someone is stealing your work and the blog they are publishing the plagiarised work on is hosted by Blogger or any Google product you can file a DMCA (Digital Millennium Copyright Act) complaint. Please visit this link to file a report: http://www.google.com/dmca.html

If you don't mind people using your work as long as they give you credit (like in the form of a link back to you) then you should consider using a Creative Commons license on your website. A Creative Commons license allows you to grant permissions for others to copy, distribute or somehow make use of your work while still allowing you to retain your copyright.It also ensures that you get credit for your creative work..You can customise this license to fit your personal needs and wishes by answering a few questions regarding your work and what permissions you wish to grant. Then, based on your answers, it will generate a CC license for you. It will even create a widget for you to add to your website stating your chosen permissions (You can view the widget on the top right hand corner of my homepage). This service is also free of charge and you can get one by visiting: www.creativecommons.org.
 

This image on Wiki is an example of the widget.

Not only do you want to protect your written work, but you may also want to prevent people from using pictures of yours without permission. This happens often and I admit that I have been guilty of using an image without permission. Pictures get passed around the Internet so much that it is often difficult to find the original owner. Most people assume the any pictures on the Internet are free for the taking. But there are ways you can prevent unauthorised use of you images.

One of the simplest ways to mark your images as your own is with what is called a "watermark."  A digital watermark is a visible embedded overlay added to an image that is used to identify the original owner and prevent someone from claiming it as their own. A watermark is often in the form of a logo, text or copyright notice. While it cant stop someone from using the photo without your permission, it can make it difficult from them to claim it as their own. Technically, a watermark can be removed, but it requires a lot of time and effort. The idea is that many people who use other peoples images are probably to lazy to go through all that work to alter a pic. If they did have such time and resources then they would most likely simply get a picture that was their own.

You can add a basic watermark to your own images free of charge very easily. I tried it myself and let me assure you that a child could do it. It can be done with just about any photo editing software, such as Photoshop or Paint.net. However, if you don't have access to a photo editing program you can also do it in a few simple steps by using Picnik, which is a FREE photo editing program. You don't even have to register to use Picnik, anyone can use it free of charge and it allows you to upload, edit and save your photos right from the website without downloading or signing up for anything. Awesome, huh? I wasn't exactly sure how to watermark an image so I Googled it to try to find a basic way to do it on Picnik. The best tutorial I could find was on the blog www.bloggingwithamy.com. You can find the step by step video of how to watermark an image (as well as some other basic editing tips) on Picnik by clicking HERE. I tried it out and this is what the end result looks like:

So there we have it!! Those are a few simple and FREE steps that you can take to better protect your online work. Now if you have a business website or a very large website that you have invested a lot of time or money into then I recommend that you take things a step further and actually register for a copyright at an actual copyright office. While all of these are great ways to deter content theft, many of them will not be enough to hold up in court,  god forbid it should come to that. Also, I am not a lawyer and non of this should be interpreted as legal advice. This is simply for informational purposes and is intended to encourage other bloggers to take the necessary steps to protect their original work. For more information on copyright laws and protection please visit the following websites:

 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Berne_Convention_for_the_Protection_of_Literary_and_Artistic_Works

USA:  http://www.copyright.gov/fls/fl100.html

 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Category:Copyright_law_by_country

How to apply for a Copyright in the USA: http://usgovinfo.about.com/c/ht/00/07/How_Apply_For_Copyright0962932962.htm

In Canada: http://www.cipo.ic.gc.ca/eic/site/cipointernet-internetopic.nsf/eng/h_wr00003.html?OpenDocument


http://www.is4profit.com/business-advice/general-advice/copyright-basic-facts.html

***NOTE: Some people seem to think that I am implying that the other blog cannot use that name. That is not the case. As I said in my post, I am aware that it is very possible to come up with a title not knowing that it has already been used. I am not claiming that there has been a copyright infringement and I am not claiming to own the rights to said title. All I am saying is that this situation got me THINKING about copyrights and what I can do to protect my other content on my website. The other blog is totally within their rights to use said name, and while it is a bit annoying when you are trying to make a name for yourself, I would not expect them to change their title either. I hope this clears up the purpose of this post. Thanks***

Best Evening Snack Ever!

This easy treat is just so darn delicious it would be selfish of me not to share it with you.

Although I am TRYING to lose that last ten pounds, I still like to indulge all the time every once in a while. I already know that I should be eating healthy, low fat, high protein snacks that will keep me full longer and prevent unnessecary binging later on...And I try sometimes most of the time to do just that. But...sometimes you just gotta say screw it and just go all out. If you are trying to lose weight, however, then it may be a good idea to save this for a every once and a while treat because the fat content in the cream is pretty high. Not to mention all the sugar were gonna pile on top of it. I just don't want anyone mad at me if they weigh four pounds more after eating this. I will neither confirm or deny that that is a possibility. And trust me on this one, you will want to eat it every day after you try it but you must resist:) You must stay strong. If you can't be strong for me then do it for your midsection. Alright...Let's get this party started!!I present to you my amazing evening snack! And its so simple to prepare a child could do it.

Ingredients:

- Strawberry's (As much as you think you can handle in one sitting)
-Whipping cream (NOT whipped cream, whippING cream, the kind that you get in a small milk carton in the milk section of your grocery store.)
-Granulated  sugar                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                 

Prep Time: 5 minutes

 STEP 1: Wash and then cut whole strawberries into slices, everything except the leaf. Put them in a bowl.

 STEP 2: Pour whipping cream into the bowl on top of the strawberries so that they are about 3/4 of the way covered.

STEP 3: Dump Sprinkle sugar on top of the strawberries and cream.

This is what it should look like:

Now ENJOY!! Oh man, I gotta go make a bowl right now just looking at these pictures. I know that those of you who may be on a diet or who prefer to eat healthy are probably horrified at the obscene amount of sugar and fat in this bowl, but the strawberries are good for you so that makes it okay. Trust me. Now run along and try it! No need to thank me.

Children's Eye Troubles

Ever since my daughter was about a year old people close to her started noticing that she seemed to have some sort of "lazy eye" going on.

I didn't really worry about it too much because her eye would only cross every once in a while and I had remembered my son having the same thing as a baby and he had grown out of it (Or so I thought... But more on that later). I chalked it up to her eye muscles not being strong enough yet. I figured that she would probably grow out of it as her eye muscles strengthened and became more developed. Well, she is now two years old and it has not gotten any better. I hesitate to say that it is worse, because I don't really think it has, just more or less the same. The right eye will kind of point inwards from time to time giving her a bit of a cross eyed/ lazy eye look. It does not stay like that and only does it for a spilt second, but it happens often enough for other family members to notice it and to cause me some worry.

In this pic you would never know she has a turned eye

 My son, Coder, started kindergarten this year and he teacher also asked me if he seemed to have trouble seeing. She asked this because, apparently, during class he would put his nose two inches from the paper when reading sometimes. I wasn't really sure what to make of this news because I draw and practice writing his ABC's with him all the time and have never seen him struggled to see the page. I thought maybe he was just horsing around or something because he does do random things like that sometimes (What kid doesn't?). However, he had been struggling in Kindergarten with his ABC's and reading so I figured it was time to get his eyes checked just to rule that out.

Well, I booked an appointment for him at my optometrist and brought him in for a checkup. After about an hour of pointing out shapes and animals and doing eye tests the optometrist told me that one of his eyes was, in fact, turned in slightly in as well. The good news is that his vision was really good considering having a turned eye. She said it is only slightly turned, not enough to notice just by looking at him. It was only visible when she checked it with her high-tech, eye tester thingy. So, apparently, he hadn't grown out of it as I had thought he did. She scheduled a follow-up appointment with him in a months time during which they are going to put drops in that can help correct it (I am not sure what the drops are exactly but I have to pay 30$ for them...I will find out more info when we go back). If the drops are unsuccessful then he may have to wear glasses for about a year or so. I asked if it would be just for school or reading but she told me that they would most likely have to be worn all the time. I am not really upset about this possibility because for one it is better to try to fix these type of things while children are still young. Plus, I wore glasses in elementary school and I honestly liked them. I loved going to the eye doctor to pick out my glasses and a cool matching glasses case. If he does end up needing them I will be doing the same thing my mother did, which is including him in the entire process of picking out his glasses (after I narrow it down to a few affordable pairs first) and a matching case, show him how to clean them and take care of them and all that jazz.

The machine that confirmed Coders turned eye

 I will admit that I am a bit worried for his appointment though because the drops that they are putting in will make his eyesight extremely blurry for about an hour. I feel that not being able to see anything will scare him and he may think that it is going to stay like that forever regardless of what we tell him, thus causing him to freak out. It can't stay blurry forever, can it? It makes me a tad anxious too... I guess the only thing I can do is be there for him, explain the process and what to expect as well as I can, reassure him that it won't stay that way and just be there for him. Oh, and hope for the best.

As for my daughter, she is supposed to go back the same day as Coder (although I think I may change their appointments for separate days because I don't wanna get stuck with a toddler AND a five year old having meltdowns at the same time.) I already know that she has the same problem with one eye being turned. I am worried because I know hers is much worse, and is way more noticeable day to day, even by other people like family members and close friends. I am preparing myself for the fact that she will more then likely need glasses or some type of intervention to try to correct it. I only hope that nothing else is wrong with her eyes or that it isn't the result of something more serious.

Glasses are specially made for toddlers/babies

 I try to tell myself that stuff like this is common and happens to all kinds of children, but it is still hard as a mother to see anything wrong with your children. I can't help thinking it may have been something I had done that caused it. I mean BOTH of my kids have the same thing wrong with their eyes. Bad eyesight does run in my Hubby's family, however, and I am not quite sure if that could be a factor. I am worried about my daughter needing glasses because she can be so defiant that I just cannot see her keeping them on. I am worried she will have a freak out if we try to make her wear them. But I have to try to not get ahead of myself and always envision the worse.  I will just have to deal with it, if and when the time comes. Good eyesight is very important because it affects so many aspects of your life.   I am just glad that we were able to catch this while they are still young, because these types of things can be more difficult to correct as they get older. Plus, if left untreated these types of conditions often become worse or untreatable.

**QUICK TIP** You can check if your child has a lazy or turned eye at home by sitting them directly in front of you have having them look straight ahead while you shine a pen light straight into their eyes. If the dot of light reflects in the same spot in the center of each pupil then their eyes are straight. However, it if reflects straight in one eye and then slightly to the left or right in the other eye, then that eye is turned and you should bring them to see the eye doctor to have them assessed. This is is a trick that you can use to confirm whether or not your child has a cross eye or lazy eye, but it is NOT meant to replace an actual diagnosis by an optometrist. If you suspect an issue with your child's eye sight you should get them checked by a licensed optometrist as soon as possible.

So that is that latest news with the kiddos. Do any of you mommy's have children or babies that wear eye glasses? Is it difficult to get a toddler to wear them? Has you child ever had an issue such as cross eyes or lazy eyes? Was it corrected? Any info on this subject or personal stories would be greatly appreciated. I just hope that it can be treated while they are young and that it doesn't have a negative impact on their eye sight as they grow older...I will keep you all updated on the situation once I bring them to their next appointment.

OOTD: Mommy and Toddler Edition

As I told you before, being the creeper that I am, I LOVE seeing what other moms and their children wear day to day. 

Soooo...I am going to make my Mommy and Toddler OOTD's a regular feature here on Two Tiny Tyrants. It will be my daughter that is featured for the child outfits, however, from time to time I may feature my sons outfits as well, since many people do not have daughters. It is just so much more fun to dress a little girl, AmIRight? So I will be posting a new OOTD at least once weekly, though probably more if I have nothing worth blogging about. As usual I will include where I purchased each item and prices whenever I can, as well as links to the store websites. Alright? Alright. Here we go with our second OOTD: Mommy and Toddler Edition:)

OOTD: Casual Prep Mommy

Argyle Sweater from Tommy Hilfiger store (64.00$)
Brown Tank (under sweater) from Old Navy (12.50$)
Faded Skinny Jeans from Urban Planet (24.99$)
Winter Boots by ROXY from Winners (59.99$)


*I am sorry for the shitty photo quality and hopefully it is not too hard to see the clothing, I had to use my shitty camera because I forgot my good one at the MIL's and the hall light behind me kind of throws off the colours. Oh and I know I look chunkier then usual in this pick. Blame it on being horribly bloated. Continue on...

OOTD Toddler: Sporty Chic-

Bambi shirt from Disney Store (12.50$)
Grey sweats with "I <3 YOU" graphic from Giant Tiger (14.99$)
Pink with star pattern Basketball shoes from H & M (12.95$)
Pink Butterfly Hair clips from Dollarama (1$ for pack of 9)
Small Blue Striped hair clip (in bangs) from Dollarama (1$ for pack of 12)

Favorite Beauty Products of December 2011

If any of you are familiar with any beauty gurus on YouTube then you know that many of them will post a video of their favorite beauty products for each month.

Well, since I am a total girly girly when it comes to makeup and stuff, I decided it would be fun to share MY faves from December. I, being the creep that I am, love reading about what products others use, especially other moms. One thing I always do every single day (well ALMOST every day), no matter how tired I am or how much I have to get done, is take a shower and do my hair and makeup. When I feel I look my best I have more confidence and I am more productive then if I were to stay in my jammies all day. I feel ready to face the day and handle whatever challenges are thrown my way. Plus, you never know you may run into or what oppertunity will arise. Many people ask me why I bother to get all gussied up if I am going to be in the house with the kids all day. The answer is simple: I don't do it for other people (Well, I don't do it ONLY for other people) I do it for myself. Taking a half hour each morning for myself makes me happier, thus making me a better mommy. Now when I say I get done up, I don't mean that I deck myself out in my best dress with a full face of makeup every day. Some days it is just a dusting of  powder on my T-zone, a swipe of mascara and a dab of lip gloss. But it is always something. And my look is never complete without a spritz of my favorite perfume (which varies month to month). So, today I am going to share with you my favorite products of December, the ones that I cannot live without and use pretty much everyday. I will try to include the product prices when I can. Here we go!


DECEMBER FAVES:

Favorite Foundation-

  My current fave foundation is Maybelline Dream Liquid Mousse in #4 Light-Nude. When it says on the bottle "Airbrush Finish" they really mean it!! It goes on so incredibly soft and smooth and covers EVERYTHING. Plus, it gives a nice matte base, not shiny or oily looking like some other foundations. Retail: 12.99$ at all major drug and department stores.

Favorite Powder-

My fave powder is NYC (New York Colors) Smooth Skin Loose Face Powder in Translucent. I have always preferred loose powder to pressed powder because I find it gives a more natural look, while pressed powder can look cakey. This powder is great for setting your foundation or used alone to control shine. It doesn't add any color to your face so it doesn't throw off the color of your foundation. Plus, it is SUPER cheap!! Retail: 3.99$ at most major drug and dep't stores.


Favorite Blush-

I have two favorite blushes at the moment. The first is Covergirl Instant Cheekbones Contouring Blush in 240-Sophisticated Sable, Retail: 6.99$. I love this trio and frequently use the lightest shade as a highlighter for my cheekbones, brow bones and tear ducts. My second fave, and most often used, blush is Clinique Soft Pressed Powder Blusher in New Clover, Retail: 27.99$. This blush is pretty pricey but it comes in the most adorable pink and white floral compact, along with a mirror and brush. This is my go to blush for day to day. I love it because it shows up as a nice dusty rose color and has no shimmer, which I prefer for daytime.


Favorite Mascara-

I ALWAYS use two mascaras together. Ideally one should be lengthening and the other volumizing, but I just use my two current faves. The result looks like you are wearing falsies, and if you know me you know my lash motto is Go BIG or Go home!! The first is Maybelline The Falsies Volume Express Mascara in Black Drama, Retail: 7.99$. The second is Covergirl Volume Exact Waterproof mascara in 125-Very Black, Retail: 6.99$. I always put the Maybelline first then follow with the waterproof CG one to seal it in and prevent streaks.

Favorite Eyeshadow-

This doesn't really count as an eyeshadow since it is really a pallatte of 12 shades (as well as a mirror, eye liner/brow pencil and brush), but I absolutely could NOT live without it. It is the only eyeshadow(s) I need. It is the E.L.F Beauty Eye Manual Natural Eye Edition in The Natural Look, Retail: 5.99$. It is the perfect nude palette and it makes it easy to go from daytime to an evening look by adding darker shades on top of your daytime look. My most used shades are the third, fourth, eighth and number twelve. It also includes a daytime and smokey eye tutorial on the inside flap. What a great deal!!

                                             

My other fave eyeshadow is Maybelline EyeStudio in Carbon Frost. It is a duo of sparkly black and then this crazy shimmery blue/purple/pink swirl of colors on the other side. Sounds crazy but looks awesome!

Favorite Lip Color-

My favorite lip colors du jour are Covergirl Outlast Double LipShine in shades 285 Coral Shimmer and 215 Rose Quartz, Retail: 12.99$ each. All I'm gonna say about these is they really do last ALL. Freakin. Day. You will need a makeup remover to get them off. I am also loving Covergirl Outlast LipStain in Bit of Blossom, Retail 8.99$. I love how it goes on matte and soaks right into your lips. I don't wear lip color that much but when I do I reach for one of these.

Favorite Lip Gloss-

I am a lip gloss junkie and wear it all day, every day. I just love how it makes my lips look so plump and luscious. Right now the lip gloss I am OBSESSED with is Clinique Superbalm Moisturizing Gloss in Apricot, Retail: 13.99$. It is THE prefect nudish-pink lip gloss and I can't live without it. It goes on so smooth and isn't sticky or gooey. It makes my lips feel sooo kissable!

Favorite Eye Pencil/ Liner(s)-

I have three lip liners in rotation at the moment. The ones that I use most are my L.A Colors Auto Eyeliners in Black, AE661and Navy, AE664. They are the perfect eyeliners, they go on super smooth and dark, you don't have to sharpen them and they are CRAZY cheap. They retail for a measly 1.99$. The other liner I like is CoverGirl Perfect Point Plus Eye Pencil in Starlighting, Retail: 5.99$. Very pretty shimmery silver, love to use on lash lines, includes smudge tool, no sharpening required.

Favorite Nail Polish(s)-

My favorite nail polish shades right now are Nicole BY O.P.I in Respect The World, Retail: 7.99$, which is this awesome turquoise/jade green color that I am wearing in the picture (although it looks more blue on camera). It looks wicked if you put a black Crackle polish over it. (I ran out of mine *tear*) and it dries super fast. My other fave is L.A Colors Color Craze Nail Polish in Live, NP409, which is a cool silver color and retails for just 1.99$.

Favorite Perfume-

My favorite perfume right now is one I got from my sister for Christmas ,called Love Wishes. It is an Eau De Parfum and I have no clue were it was bought or how much it is. I tried Google but came up empty handed. It is such a romantic, girly scent and I LOVE it. I really wish you could smell it because you would fall in love too!! I am pretty sure it is a cheaper brand of perfume but it still smells heavenly.


Favorite Hair Products-

I have super long (to my a$$) and curly hair, so putting some type of product in it is a must. However, my go-to hairstyle is a simple messy bun because it is just too annoying to have it down with kids yanking it and such. Usually I just scrunch it with some gel and a tiny dab of smoothing serum then pile it all on the top of my head, pinning the front back into a little pouf. My fave hair gel right now is Dippity Doo Sport Pro Styling Gel Concentrate. I use a LOT of hair gel in the run of a month so I do NOT want to be spending an arm and leg on it. This gel works great and is just 2$ for a 175ml (5.7 fl oz) tube. I also always use a touch of shine serum to tame all the frizzys that pop up, especially along my hairline. My fave serum right now is Got2B Smooth Operator Smoothing Satin Drops, Retail: 6.99$. It gets rid of flyaways and smells ah-may-zing!!Plus, the bottle has these cute little charms dangling from it:)

Fave Body Wash-

Right now I am LOVING these adorable little body washes I got for Christmas from my Mama. They are by Beauty Insider and have the cutest names such as Berry Flirtini, Blue Lagoon and Lime Margarita. It comes in a box of four different scents, 100ml's each. I absolutely HAVE to find some big bottles of them because they smell delish! I'm not quite sure of the retail price but I am guessing around 10$ for all four.

Fave Feminine Care Product-

I hesitated before including this category because it isn't a beauty product, BUT I just had to show someone because it is just so dang cute. For around 5$ you get a pack with two little boxes like the one pictured. You get one small box of Regular absorbancy and one box of Super absorbancy, each containing ten OB tampons. Now, normally I use tampons with an applicator but this box was so cute and the perfect size to throw in my purse for emergencies. My periods are so effin' random I never know when it's coming until BAM!    Okay,TMI...Sorry.                                               


Favorite Makeup Bag-

I made this category because I absolutely HAVE to show off the adorable makeup bag I got from my Nanny for Christmas. It is by Clinique and is just so cheerful looking with its bright pink, orange and purple blossoms. It is large enough to fit all the makeup I just showed you plus a bit more, but still small enough to throw into my purse. I think it may have actually been a free gift my nanny got with a purchase. Either way I LOVE it!


Since this is a Mom Blog I figured I should include SOMETHING baby/child related, so I am going to share a few of my favorite baby/children's products really quickly.

Favorite Baby Wash:

                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                         I absolutely LOVE Johnson & Johnsons Vanilla Oatmeal Baby Wash, Retail: 6.99$. I use it on both of my kids every bath and it leaves their skin so soft and smells incredible. Seriously, I can't stop sniffing them afterwards, It makes me wanna snuggle them all night. Confession: Sometimes I use it too!!

Favorite Baby Shampoo:

Johnson's Extra Conditioning 2 in 1 Shampoo, Retail: 4.99$ is the ONLY shampoo I use on my kids hair. Both of them have curly hair like me and this makes it smooth and great smelling while being super gentle on their eyes. No More Tears!!

Favorite Diaper Rash Cream:

Desitin Maximum Strength Diaper Rash Cream, Retail: 14.99$ for 454 g tub. This is by far the best and most effective diaper rash cream I have used. I got a huge tub for free with a coupon I had on the recommendation of the pharmacist when my daughter had a gnarly rash and it worked like a charm. It is 40% Zinc Oxide (double the amount of most regular strength creams) and is super thick. It does NOT come off on the diaper, you gotta scrub this shit off.

Favorite Detangler:

Until just a few weeks ago my son had long, super curly hair (It was a big curly, shaggy afro but we cut it short) that I could not get a comb through without using conditioner and a few tears. I grabbed this L'oreal Kids Tangle Tamer Spray in Burst of Sweet Pear scent, Retail 3.99$ and tried it and it works great. I still use it on my daughters hair and sometimes even my own. It smells awesome and you can use it on wet or dry hair.


Well there you have it!! You now know my favorite, can't-live-without items of the past month. So tell me, what products can you not live without? Do you do your hair and makeup every day? What are some of your fave baby products?