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Product Review – Eucalyptus Salve & Essential Oil

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It’s been 3 months of homeophathy for me and ever since I’ve been trying to slowly change our food intake and products that we use.  I’m really happy that I  discovered a new group in facebook – UAE Natural Family Living Network, discussions on natural remedies, healthier food choices and where to buy organic products are a few stuff we talk about.

 

Last Wednesday (Feb 6) LittleMiss C started to have colds, the go to remedy I usually do is to rub Vicks VapoRub on the feet then cover with socks and some on the shirt, but then I learned from the group that Vicks is not for kids under two (unless you have the product Vicks BabyRub) . To read more why parents should avoid using it on kids under two click here. A natural remedy is to use eucalyptus essential oil buy putting a drop on your humidifier or burning eucalyptus essiantial oil to clear up clogged nose.

 

On a trip to Sahara Centre to register my Etisalat SimCard we pass by Neal’s Yard Remedies. Madonna the lovely attendant at the shop welcomed me with a big smile. I asked if they have any Eucalyptus products I can use for the little one’s colds and she suggested Eucalyptus Leon Essential Oil & Eucalyptus Salve.

 

Eucalyptus Salve & Eucalyptus Lemon Essential Oil

Eucalyptus Salve & Eucalyptus Lemon Essential Oil

 

We have been using both products for five days now – putting a drop of the essential oil on the humidifier and on LittleMiss’ bath water, and rubbing eucalyptus salve on her chest feet.

 

My LittleLove’s V & C are sleeping well at night free from clogged nose and we love the smell. The Husband C though is not fond of the smell.

 

Eucalyptus Salve – Dhs 90

“A stimulating, antiseptic and warming rub. Simply rub over the back and chest and enjoy the cleansing vapours.”

 

45g of salve that I think would last me for 1 year since I just need to put a little on the chest and it’s smell last long.

How does it compare to Vicks VapoRub?

Once you rub the vicks it has this strong menthol smell (& feels a bit spicy in your eyes) then it slowly goes away and once the smell is gone you’re back to having clogged nose again.

The Eucalyptus Salve doesn’t have that strong smell and it’s effect last longer

 

Eucalyptus Lemon Essential Oil – Dhs 40

a drop goes a long way 🙂

 

 

List of Neal’s Yard Store in the UAE here

 

*This is not a sponsored post.

 

 

 

 

Liebster Award for me!

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Liebster Award

 

A big THANK YOU to Tarana of Sand in my Toes for giving MyNappytales the Liebster Award.  It’s my turn to bestow  this award to my fellow bloggers.

 

The Liebster Award is given to upcoming bloggers who have less than 200 followers (well some might have more) and is passed along to other bloggers who meet the same criteria. Liebster is German and means beloved.

 

The rules for the Liebster Award are:
1. Each blogger should post 11 random facts about themselves.
2. Answer the questions the tagger has set for you, then create 11 new questions for the bloggers you pass the award to.
3. Choose 11 new bloggers (with less than 200 followers) to pass the award to and link them in your post.
4. Go to their page and tell them about the award.
5. No tag backs.

 

Eleven random facts about me:

1) I’m a Papa’s girl! He spoiled me the first 5 years of my life we were together before he left for heaven. Everyday I pray that my siblings (Bernadette & Carlo) can each have 1 day with him.

2) I like salty food. Filipino condiments like dayok, and ginamos makes me happy.

3) I’m a better baker than a cook.

4) Gossip magazine relaxes me.

5) I like wearing make-up but I don’t have any idea how to do it.

6) I’m a foodie. Exploring different kind of cuisine whether it be on a fancy restaurant or on the street I want to try them. You can never appreciate ones culture if you don’t try the food.

7) I’m the eldest of 3 (mama+papa) and a second to 4 (mama)

8) When I see someone get hurt I feel the pain.

9) I cry a lot but I’m not a drama queen.

10) I turn the tv on not to sit and watch just so I don’t feel alone.

11) I don’t like mismatch utensils.

 

Eleven questions from Tamara:

  1. What was the most spiritual moment of your life?

I joined a retreat called Enneagram which is all about discovering and understanding yourself.

Another one would be when I voluntered for World Youth Day 2005 held at Cologne, Germany.

 

2.  What remains your most outrageous buy?

4 inch stilettos

 

3 .What do you do when the kids are napping?

Surfing the net or watching some movie while doing house chores in between

 

4. What would your dream vacation be?

I’ve always wanted to go on cruise.

 

5.  What film makes you cry the most?

Forrest Gump

 

6. How do you  handle the stress that comes with being a parent?

I cry then take a long shower then eat ice cream with my babies.

 

7. What moment do you most look forward to with your child, everyday?

Story time in bed.

 

8. How do you indulge in some ‘me’ time?

Pedicures, I love having my nails painted and my eldest likes them too. Since I had LittleMiss who is attached to

my hip I don’t have time to them yet.

 

9. Do you like to cook? What’s your signature dish?

Yes. Everyone requests for my Baked Lechon so I think that’s my signature dish.

 

10. What is your happiest childhood memory?

The 5 years I had with my Papa.

 

11. Is there something you secretly wish for everyday?

A magic wand or spell so I can just “swish” my hand and have a clean house 🙂

 

I bestow this award to them below:

Bumps Babies and Beyond

A Reality Bite

The Kitchen of a Chef and a Mommy

Stardust in my Eyes

Kauderwelsch

 

*Some of the bloggers got the award already, I’m not sure if you can get it twice so I have five.

 

My Questions:

1) What’s your one favorite food, that one thing that you just can’t resist to have one bite even if you’re full?

2) What is your karaoke song?

3) What is your ultimate happy thought?

4) Where did spend your summer as a kid?

5) Why did you decide to maintain a blog?

6) Why did you choose that blog name?

7) Where do you want to be right this moment?

8) What’s the meaning of your name?

9) What expensive thing do you want to buy that you don’t really need?

10) A movie line that you can’t forget? and from which movie?

11) Any easy recipe you can share?

 

Have fun!

 

 

Lamb Tagine with Honey and Apricots

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Lamb TagineMy husband C is not fond of lamb meat the strong taste (& lingering taste) turns him off, I have to do extra measures like marinating it in turmeric rinse then cover it with turmeric again and to some extent discarding the first juice extracted when boiling/frying. I however absolutely enjoy eating lamb dish.

I’ve been planning to prepare a tagine dish for us but I want to cook one in an actual tagine, I bought one on sale at Home Centre.

I got this Moroccan Lamb Tagine  from foodnetwork.com site, recipe by Emeril Lagasse – click here.

Tagine The thick gravy was so yummy that I ate leftover sauce the next day for lunch! I made another batch of this using beef shanks and it was still yummy but I still prefer using lamb.

We ate this Lamb Tagine with steamed rice and mix green salad, it was divine! I did made some minor changes from the original recipe doubled the amount of onions, add ginger (I love eating ginger), more broth and the next time I’m making this yummy dish I might add some veggies.

Lamb Tagine with Honey and Apricots

Recipe here from Emeri Lagasse

Ingredients:

1 kg Lamb Chops

1 tsp ground Turmeric

1 tsp ground Ginger

1 tsp Salt

3 tbsp Oil

2 cups Onion, chopped

4 Garlic cloves, minced

1 thumb size Ginger, peeled & sliced

2 cups Beef broth

a handful of Cilantro

1 cup dried Apricots

1/2 cup golden Raisins

2 tbsp Honey

1/2 tsp ground Cinnamon

1 tsp ground Pepper

*1 tbsp ground Turmeric (to wash lamb meat)

Procedure:

Rub lamb meat with 1 tbsp of ground turmeric let sit for 30 minutes then rinse with water, dry each meat with paper towels.

Mix turmeric, ground ginger and salt. Rub mixture to your lamb pieces, set aside while you heat your tagine.

Heat tagine on high, add oil and fry each meat till brown. Remove cooked meat and set aside. Repeat with the remaining lamb.

Saute 1 cup of chopped onions till transparent then add seared lamb making sure to stir in the brown bits that settled in the bottom. Add minced garlic and sliced ginger, simmer for 1 minute. Add 2 cups of beef broth and a handful of cilantro on the side bring to boil, reduce heat to medium low. Cover and cook for 2 hours till meat is tender to your liking.

Remove enough liquid from the meat to soak dried apricots and golden raisins let sit for 2 minutes.

After 2 hours remove cilantro bunch (discard) and meat from the pan, set aside. Simmer remaining liquid then add 1 cup onions, apricots, golden raisins, honey, cinnamon, salt and pepper. Boil liquid till slightly thickened then add back lamb meat cook for another 2 minutes.

Garnish with chopped cilantro. Enjoy!

Visit the original recipe here if you want to pair it with vegetable couscous and yogurt lemon dip.

Ice Age Musical

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Ice Age Live Musical - Burjuman

Ice Age Live Musical – Burjuman

 

Last Friday we surprised V with Ice Age Live Musical Meet & Greet at Burjuman Centre.

 

IceAgeCharacters

 

Ice Age Musical was about 45 minutes long and right after kids get to meet and have a photo taken with the characters.

 

Thank you Burjuman for all fun free shows for our kids. Looking forward to the next one.

 

 

 

Product Review – Merries Diaper

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As a mom you only want the best for your children, looking for the best brand to use that will work for you and the baby is a priority. It has always been a hit and miss when it comes to looking for that perfect disposable diaper that is worth every penny and makes your baby’s bum happy.

 

I was given the opportunity to try out the leading diaper brand in Japan – Merries Diapers.

 

I am using cloth diaper for daytime and disposable for night, and although we are happy with the current brand that we use I am much happier after a week of trying out this magic Merries Diaper!

 

Let me list why:

1) Absorbent – LittleMiss C’s bum feel dry even after using the diaper for almost 9 hours.

2) No stinky smell even if it is full pee.

3) Soft that it’s inside feels like my cloth diapers.

4) Holds its shape. Have you notice that when a diaper is full it’s sagging when the baby stands up. Well Merries doesn’t sag at all that it still looks pretty snug even when full.

5) No leakage. Even if it’s full of pee plus a bomb of poo the diaper didn’t leak at all.

6) Merries has a wetness indicator that tells us parents when it’s time for a nappy change.

 

7) LittleMiss C’s bum is happy since it didn’t develop any rash and even after using it for more than 9 hours no sign of redness at all.

***
Merries can be delivered to your door for free by calling 04-368-5191 at AED140 per pack (same price for all sizes). Also available in the following stores in Dubai: Union Coop supermarket branches in Safa Jumeirah, Al Barsha and Al Wasl, Quick Buy Super Mart Palm Jumeirah. Online at supermart.ae at AED145.00. Also available through importer website with free delivery.
You can also ‘Like’ Diapersbox Facebook Page for deals and competitions to win these premium diapers!

 

 

 

Chloe Isabelle – 6 months

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A month back we entered the world of messy food fun in baby world!

 

Carrot & Potato mash

Her first official food on the table with us was boiled pumpkin, she was not too happy eating it but she did have fun squeezing the mash and putting some on her hair, face, arms and to the floor. It was such a big mess but the little miss sure did have fun.

She can now sit up for more than an hour but I still surround her with pillows since we had an incident of her falling. We also have to say bye bye to her bouncy chair since she’s always leaning forward to grab things.

As of today she is 6 months and 18 days, she manage to move around doing a belly crawl + turning to back & front. She one noisy little miss with all the screaming, moaning and oohing, when this happen V calls her a dinosaur – Chloe-saurus.

I find myself very busy attending to her needs as she seem to be more clingy to me, to the point that she would sometimes demand to see me even when I’m taking a bath! During her nap I spend time with Kuya V as I’ve been a bit impatient with him.