Reviews by momto4ls

momto4ls says "I wore it out!" about Hitachi 8 cup rice cooker

momto4ls — Sun, 17 May 2009 08:00:33 GMT

This is the easiest rice cooker I have ever used. I cooked rice in it - always to perfection. I cooked millet dishes, and barley dishes - any grain that I wanted. The thing I loved about this one is that it was not programmed for certain types of foods. It would just cook until the water was gone and automatically ring a timer and turn to warmer.

I could leave rice cooking for dinner and run my errands - it would be cooked and warming when I got home. I could throw the liquid of my choice in to boil and then add whatever grain I chose when it was boiling! I hav not found that versatility with my new rice cooker - I miss the Hitachi!

The Hitachi also had a glass lid - it was heavy, but you could see what was happening under that lid. The Hitachi also cooks fairly quickly for a rice cooker. My current one takes more than 2 hours for brown rice! It took about 45 minutes in the Hitachi. One bummer 0 the lid handle was plastic and broke long before the rice cooker was...

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momto4ls says "It was worth every penny!!" about Vita-Mix 5200 Blender

momto4ls — Sun, 17 May 2009 07:24:34 GMT

I had to wait quite a while and save up my pennies to buy a Vitamix and I have not been disappointed!

I use my vitamix every day. It blends until literally smooth. It makes ice cream, nut butters, pancake batter, fruit smoothies that are smooth even after I add flax seed (!), chops hard cheeses that just about killed my food processor, makes soups, grinds grains, does awesome salad dressings without having to chop first, and the pesto - YUM.

My sister went through 6 blenders in less than 2 years until she bought her vitamix. She was burning them out making fruit smoothies - even the smoothie makers! She hasn't had to buy a new blender since she bought her vitamix 4 years ago. My mother swears by hers as well. We ALL love them.

I was unable to use things like frozen peaches in my other blender - they just wouldn't come out smooth. With the vitamix it is a breeze.

The recipe book that comes with the machine is to die for - so many recipes made with whole foods! We don't...

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momto4ls says "We never eat out without Vibragest!" about Nature's Plus Vibragest

momto4ls — Sun, 17 May 2009 07:11:26 GMT

Vibragest was recommended to us by a friend. I am so glad that he did! We have sufferers of asthma, constipation and headaches at our house. We are VERY particular about what we put in our mouths! No refined sugars, no refined flours and no salt.

The only problem is that sometimes mom needs a break from the kitchen! That doesn't happen very often, but when it does we always take vibragest with us. The first thing that I apreciate about Vibragest is that it can be transported and taken easily because it is in capsule form. This makes it easy to send to summer camp with the kids so that they can avoid being miserable when eating healthy is not likely!

I can even give it to my two year old when necessary - just open the capsule and sprinkle it on his food. Everyone at my house takes it if we know a meal is going to be extra heavy for us.

Nature's Plus is a great company because all the products are PLANT based - no worries about animal products! This is nice for vegans,...

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momto4ls says "We buy these by the boatload!" about Huggies Natural Care Baby Wipes

momto4ls — Sun, 17 May 2009 06:49:43 GMT

Huggies wipes are incredibly strong! There are very few times when I am changing a baby diaper that I need to use more than one wipe. I like the quilted affect of the wipes, and the fact that I can keep my hands out of the mess - they are big enough to cover my hands and they don't rip like some of the cheapo brands.

Another absolute plus is that they are unscented. We are a non-frangrance household, and these are wipes that are truly unscented! I have learned that "no fragrance" does not always mean unscented. These are not only unscented, but they do not have alcohol in them either. Another bonus! We are really picky about what touches baby's skin.

If you are only using baby wipes for wiping baby bottoms you are missing the boat! We also use them for washing baby faces and hands as well as big faces and hands when we are "on the road." What a great convenience to not have to carry rinse free sanitizer and all the other "options." Just use the wipes in the baby bag!...

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momto4ls says "They never leak!" about Huggies Natural Fit Diapers

momto4ls — Sun, 17 May 2009 06:35:11 GMT

Huggies have been my favorite with this child. I didn't think I could afford huggies before, but they are great at sending coupons in the mail if you sign up online at their website. I have had to buy very few packages of diapers without coupons! I wait until they are on sale and then I stock up.

Natural fit diapers have elastic around the legs that FITS. I don't know how they do it, but Huggies is the only diaper that my son does not pee out the top! (He sleeps with his little bum in the air and every other diaper leaks horribly!!) And mind you, these are not the new overnight ones - I have never tried those, but their natural fits are great!

The tapes are more like velcro instead of plastic - they will restick again and again. Sometimes if I don't get them on right the first time, after he has played for a while they need to be adjusted - that is not a problem with these fasteners. Also, there is a stretchy elastic around the waist so the fit is right there as well. ...

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momto4ls says "The active baby will love this!" about Fisher Price Sure Grip Jumper

momto4ls — Sat, 09 May 2009 08:19:15 GMT

This sure grip Jumper became one of the baby accessories that we kept long-term. My second son loved it so much that he wore the seat out! We just called Fisher Price and ordered a new cloth seat and replaced it within minutes. The cloth seat can be removed for easy cleaning. The jumper also has a try for small toys or finger foods.

This is the type of jumper that hangs from the door frame...so make sure you have a good place to hang it before you spend the money to get one! We moved and had difficulty finding a good place to put it in our new house...but we managed :-).

The length strap is adjustable, so that you can put tiny babies up to older babies in the seat and have them all touch their toes to the floor at the perfect jumping level. The attaching bar locks once you get it over the door frame. I really appreciated that. The only metal part is the spring for the jump action, and it is way above the baby - out of reach.

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momto4ls says "I use my Cuisinart every day." about Cuisinart Food Processor

momto4ls — Sat, 09 May 2009 07:48:26 GMT

The cuisinart is worth every penny! The slicer and shredder attachments are easily changed. There are many times I use all three of my attachments for one meal. This machine cuts my food preparation in at LEAST half!. We eat two salads a day, and we eat a lot of whole, raw foods.

All of the peices go easily in the top rack in the dishwasher, but usually I am able to just rinse them out and put them back on the base.

The things that I LOVE about the cuisinart is

1. The safety feature that makes it impossible to cut yourself by accidently starting the machine before it is put together properly.

2. The wide AND narrow spout for inserting food. I can pour in a whole can of olives to slice, or a whole chunk of cheese to grate. But then it will take one carrot at a time through the narrow spout. No more having to chop the "ends" of the carrots once you are through - they are all consistently grated or sliced!

3. The large 11 cup bowl. I have a family of 7, and I DO fill...

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momto4ls says "Couldn't do without the In Style Advanced Pump!" about Medela Pump In Style Advanced Backpack

momto4ls — Sat, 09 May 2009 07:28:37 GMT

I used this pump 100% of the time for 18 months. (My baby never went to the breast with any success.) The technology in this pump is amazing!!

The controls are dials with a "memory" function, so that the strength of the pump is the same when you turn it on the next time. The pump starts out for 2 minutes on a "quick" suck function just like a baby - to stimulate a let down reflex as the baby would. It will automatically switch to a long "draw" suction after two minutes, or you can manually change it after you let down.

It is a double pump system so that you can quickly empty both breasts at the time.

The In Style Advanced is designed to be used for less time with a higher milk output. My sister pumped double what she did with her Avent pump in half the time! (she borrowed it in an emergency situation.)

I LOVED the backpack carrying case that it came in. It was sturdy, had places for the "cooler bag" that held the bottle with plastic Ice packs in between. The machine is...

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momto4ls says "I love the Graco Swing!" about Graco Lovin' Hug Baby Swing

momto4ls — Sat, 09 May 2009 07:03:33 GMT

I started having my children in the era of the wind up swing. My sisters and I all had our rides in wind up swings. Wow, what an improvement!

This swing is quiet (without the clicking of winding handle), it can be set at different speeds for different age babies, and I could walk by and turn it off and it would stop gradually once the baby was asleep. That way the baby STAYED asleep.

The chair is a sturdy plastic that can be wiped down, but the cover was removable and machine washable - LOVED that. It had a cute blue pattern that was appropriate for a girl OR a boy. Also loved that, because my babies are were all surprises.

I expected this swing to be a battery hog. I used it all the time and only changed the batteries twice the whole time I used it!

Because of the multiple positions of the chair it was much easier to start using the swing for a younger baby - no need for towels to prop the baby up, because he could recline where it was comfortable for him.

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momto4ls says "The First Years baby monitor is low quality." about The First Years Plug in baby monitor

momto4ls — Sat, 09 May 2009 06:46:09 GMT

The First Years Baby monitor was somewhat of a disappointment for me. We bought it because it had more than one channel and seemed to have a good amount of power. It also has a light system, so that even if you don't have the monitor volume turned up the lights indicate noise in the room where the monitor is being used. It was also the cheapest one on the shelf that had the features we were looking for.

The lights turned out to be a GOOD thing, because this monitor had an immense amount of static that I could not get rid of by changing channels. The parent monitor also easily picked up other "radio signals." I heard phone conversations on the parent monitor - I assume from cordless phones in the neighborhood.

Lesson learned: you get what you pay for. I stopped using this much earlier that I would have if it had been a unit that I enjoyed more. Spend the extra money and get one that works well - but get one with a light indication of noise in case your choice turns out to...

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