I was given this cute little sling backpack for review and I was pleasantly surprised by its comfort and quality. I probably should've added footage of myself wearing it but I'm really self concious and I think you can get a feel for where it should sit on your body by looking at the bag itself.
It's mean to be worn as a roomier, more comfortable version of a fanny pack, so it's holding your necessities such as keys and a wallet and a phone. The shape is like a teardrop with a flat bottom to allow for items to settle and make room.
There's a small slash type pocket with zipper on the front for keys and a larger top zip in the center of the bag for your wallet or whatever you need to carry. You might be able to fit a water bottle and a small wallet inside.
I found the fabric to be very noisy and crinkly but it also appears to be able to resist water and probably perspiration as well.
The zippers feel solid and the pull is nicely shaped for best grip. The seams look solid and I liked how the straps felt like they were curving with my shoulder and not cutting into it. You can wear it on your back or wear it on the front, so it's ideal for riding your bike or walking in crowds where you're concerned about theft. A quality little pack at an affordable price point! http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B06Y3Y1JJC
Could you take a second to view my video and give me a thumbs up? I get views but no feedback. :C
I love Boston Terriers, I think they're the most wonderful dog breed ever and I wish I found Bostons earlier in my decades of owning other bull and terrier breeds. Like the pit bull terrier breed they're derived from, Bostons have a wide variety of body variation and energy levels. Some Bostons are busy bees and reactive, some are mellow and sort of ummmm lazy like mine. All need some sort of mental stimulation and almost all are food motivated so in come the food puzzle toys.
This is what my Boston does for a large portion of the day, as we live in a third story apartment with only a large patio and few sidewalks or safe places that I can walk him and push my toddler in the stroller. We make do with a quick walk in the morning and a longer walk at night and in between we do a lot of fetch and Solaire helps pick up toys off the floor in exchange for a bit of treat. He can easily pick thirty small toys, crayons and trucks off the floor in almost a blink.
He's also overweight, as many Bostons are and as a majority of house dogs in general are. I feed him a raw diet with some table scraps, avoiding carbs, but we do have a toddler who snacks versus eats at the table so there's that issue. Using a food toy like this feeder puzzle by AiKiou helps slow down dogs who inhale their kibble to prevent bloat and possible choking as well as give their stomach time to fill up. Solaire isn't a gobbler but he is interested in using puzzles.
This feeder is fairly simple, just two lightweight plastic pieces with a lid that slides off when you line up the arrows. This makes it easy to clean and fill. It can even go in the dishwasher if you feel the need to sanitize it. I usually but shredded cheese in the feeder for my Boston.
The little Milk Bones are super cute though and I give them to my toddler to scoop and dump with his construction trucks.
Solaire uses both his face and his feet to spin the lid around and reveal the treats in the chambers. Unfortunately the openings are a bit too small for his flat wide muzzle, so he has problems reaching far enough in to pull out the treat. The recommended dog weight is up to forty five pounds on the box, but I think this is designed more for a small long muzzled dog like a Chihuahua, or terrier or Papillon or spaniel, someone who can fit their muzzle in to lick out the treat. You could make it super challenging by dabbing peanut butter in each chamber.
Here's my main issue with the AiKiou feeder: it isn't properly weighted to be used as a spinning top feeder! It feels like a light plastic dog bowl and even with the little feet on the base, it is still easy to flip when the dog gets excited or frustrated and ends up just skating all over the floor. The other brands of puzzles with spinning tops I've tried were much heavier, especially the wooden ones. Otherwise it should just have compartments on both sides to let the food fall out.
If you have a small dog who isn't a big chewer (mine isn't) and can fit its face into smallish squares, you might give this puzzle a try. http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00IRJDPVM
How cute is this sweet little soft bear sitting at attention in his little white chair? Would you believe that this cutie is an effective behavioral tool for positive discipline techniques?
As a parent, you can gift this bear to your child and have them name it then register their bear's special chosen name on the bearonthechair.comand print out an adoption certificate. Place the bear in an area where you kiddo can see it easily and have discussions over appropriate behavior and expectations and include the bear to demonstrate by the two emotions of how the child's actions are matching the discussed behavior plan. Brushed your teeth well without fussing? Big achievement. Pushed your sister's cup off the table because she sassed you? Big disappointment. I would be careful to discuss changing the expression each time to reinforce the action itself, not the value/worth of the child. Everyone does good and not so good actions, those actions individually are not who we are as people.
The plush bear has two velcro mood patches with a smile or a frown that can be used on his shirt. At first glance I thought the concept was to have this smug bear in his chair judging the kids daily behavior, then holding up either a happy or sad sign at the end of the day. Or that he was like that creepy tattletale Elf on the Shelf that gets pulled out every Xmas so kids will behave in exchange for gifts, which really isn't too character building. Instead, this bear is used year round to give immediate feedback on behavior in a multitude of uses by parents and professionals alike. I have adult children and an almost two year old, so one group doesn't developmentally understand his behavior enough to modify it yet and the other well, the adult kids could probably benefit from the Bear too.
If you'd like to read more about Bear on the Chair's positive behavior reinforcement and how it's used, visit this link and get some great ideas from other parents and professionals in the classroom as well as therapists and those in the field of working with kids.
https://www.bearonthechair.com
#bearonthechair
Have you ever used Bear on the Chair? Are you an educator or professional or just a parent looking for positive reinforcement methods for kids in your care? Drop me a comment, I'd like to know your thoughts.
I'm fairly certain that most women have dealt with a varying level of vaginal burning and discharge in their lives. I seem to remember having issues as early as my middle teen years, though I also had debilitating premenstrual cramping that left me vomiting and sweating on the bathroom floor every month. My mom never took me to the doctor over my "female issues", she just bought me Vagisil or whatever antifungal was used for yeast infections in the 1980s.
Needless to say, this is not the 1980s any more (though fashion and music wise I wish it still were). It's time to see beyond the typical reaction of just treating any vaginal discharge and itching or discomfort through that horrid smelling Vagisil cream or inserting a variety of antifungals into our lady parts willy nilly. It's time to consider causes of the vaginal issues and try to lessen their recurrence.
Vaginal burning and discharge can happen for many reasons, many of which are discussed in this helpful article. I've been having some reoccurring burning and discharge along with rashes on my skin which I thought were surely yeast, as it was happening during the end of the summer and tended to flare when I ate too much sugar and processed foods. I treated over the counter with Monistat antifungal cream but my discomfort and burning would start back in a week or so before each period, even after going keto diet seemed to calm my skin otherwise.
Treating Bacterial Vaginosis (BV) with boric acid has been a standard procedure for over a century. I think a lot of BV is mistaken for a vaginal yeast infection and, like I have done, an attempt at clearing it using over the counter antifungals never quite ends the condition for long. You can read a basic protocol for BV as well as its buddy, candida yeast here.
The boric acid is in supplement form and a standard sized capsule. SeroFlora capsules are produced in an FDA approved facility using safety standards, please be aware of such standards when purchasing boric acid suppositories from people packing it themselves. Here's SeroFlora's dosing instructions:
Insert one SEROFlora (1) suppository into the vagina as needed, preferably before bedtime • Mild infection requires one SEROFlora (1) suppository per day for 6-14 days • More acute infection requires one SEROFlora (1) suppository twice a day for 6 days, or longer • If subjected to chronic infections, using one SEROFlora (1) suppository a day during menstruation may help prevent infections. Consult with your physician to determine the appropriate treatment dosage for your situation.
After 7 days of treatment, my vaginal discomfort waned then flared up again, so i'm going to need to have my OB test me for any other diseases or rule out the more aggressive strain of candida or perhaps I need antibiotics along with boric acid. Keep in mind that I'm almost 47, had a baby in the last two years and am prediabetic with a history of what I thought were yeast infections but could be untreated BV, soooo every woman's vaginal discomfort situation is full of variables. I don't have anything distinct about my discharge other than it being copious at times and the dampness causes skin irritation, which also doesn't really fit the profile for BV or yeast.
I'm not going to pretend that my Boston Terrier is obedience trained. He isn't.
What he IS trained to do is be a household companion that I enjoy interacting with and that's really all I ask of him. He has been housebroken since he was five months old without any accidents and that's pretty accomplished for an intact dog raised in a third story apartment who was trained on pee pads and grass sod squares on a patio. He's never marked inside our home or in anyone else's home we've visited (but hey, ya never know).
He is an excellent apartment dog and the ultimate family dog to boot. Boston Terriers are known for their bright, engaging personalities and their patience with kids. My Boston was about ten months old when my son was born and has been the most trustworthy and well adjusted of all the dogs I've had (and I've had A LOT OF DOGS). I used a lot of crating and tethering and force training with my other dogs, with Solaire I decided I would let him show me authentic self and I'd shape those behaviors into something I could live with. Is his excellent demeanor inherited or did allowing him to develop at his own pace and letting him offer behavior produce what he is? I'm not sure but I know I'll never put a shock collar on another dog or make them stay in crates or pop a leash correction ever again and see if I get another outstanding family dog. You can train the method that's right for you, obviously.
Now that we're clear on how AWESOME my Boston is, let me show you this neat dog crack treat holder I was given for review. It came with a fun little flat storing silicone water bowl on a carabiner and a simple clicker device on a coil so you can click and treat your dog's way to success and influence, just like my Solaire.
The treat bag has a lot more features than my previous treat bag HOWEVER it is missing what would give it FIVE STARS: Having a flexible metal rim that allows the bag to stay open or pop shut as needed. I didn't have an issue fumbling with treats while the bag is new and rigid but a lot of use might cause it to be difficult to open with one hand for precise treat timing. I'm sure your dog will forgive your slow fumbling but an open bag would be the only improvement I can see needed.
This bag has so many options to keep it on your bod, from a metal waistband clip to a removable reflective crossbody strap (you can really see the glare from the reflective strip for the dusk training session I guess), plus a thick plastic clip with a very generous removable waistband belt if you wear it that way. I like wearing it crossbody style with the waistband belt to hold the bag in place while I work on getting Solaire to pay attention to me during walks. He doesn't pull but he does love a leisurely sniff walk and I also like to distract him from staring at other dogs and keep him moving just to be safe. He doesn't bark at or act out towards other dogs as long as they don't charge at us aggressively when my toddler is with us, see what I mean about being a great family dog? Having some treats to practice "Look at me, let's go" helps reward his natural inclination to stay with me.
The bag has a flexible mesh pocket on the front for toys or something, I'm not sure why.
There's a zipper compartment behind the mesh pocket where you can stick your phone or keys or whatever. There's a lime green interior to the main bag and you can keep it tucked inside for easy access to treats.
Oh hey, you can pull that lime green bag shut on a drawstring to keep stuff from falling out while traveling or not in use. I'm assuming the bag can be gently washed and air dried as well. All in all well worth the purchase as its sturdy and has a lot of options. There's a tiny zipper pocket with a hole to pull your dog poop bags out of on the back of the bag, under the metal clip. I tie my bags like bows onto my leash handle for easy scooping.
Here's a short video with my dog pretending he doesn't know anything cute and my toddler being himself. Plus a quick overview of the treat bag but mostly the toddler.
I get like NO comments so maybe someone can tell me about their dog, or why they would or wouldn't be interested in this product?
My oldest kid loves to wear beanies and caps so I decided to review this CacheAlaska wool blend beanie. This video is totally chaotic as I was on a deadline to complete the review and things didn't work out so well, as you see.
I couldn't even get a decent pic of anyone wear the cap but be assured that the hat feels great, holds its shape and seems cosy.
I'm in Houston where its been about 80 degrees during the first week of December, so I can't even tell y'all if it holds up to a winter wind. The fleece lining around the inside is nice, keeps the hat on your hair and wicks away sweat.
The cap is the right size for an average adult head for a tight fitting skull cap. I put it on my toddler a few times and it did fit him but he has a ton of curly hair. I would expect this to fit most people pretty well.
The leather patch is attractive and gives an outdoor feel. The leather patch is very trendy right now.
The fleece inner band is super soft with a bit of stretch, keeps the cap smooth at the band over your hair.
There are other styles and colors including the slouchy beanie type. I really like the eggplant purple color and might buy that for myself even though I am NOT into this type of hat. Once it actually gets cold and damp and I'm walking my dog at night, I'll wish I had it.
Quick blog review of a sample bottle of BeLive PREbiotic Fiber Gummies I was given. They are super soft and easy to chew with a natural apple flavor. I know I said PRObiotic gummies in the Youtube videobut there IS a difference is how the pre/pro work in your gut.
"Probiotics are “good” bacteria that help keep your digestive system healthy by controlling growth of harmful bacteria. Prebiotics are carbohydrates that cannot be digested by the human body. They are food for probiotics. ... The common feature of all these foods is fermentation, a process that produces probiotics."
Chicory root is the prebiotic used as food for the good bacteria and it can give some digestive upset if ingested in large amounts, like what happens when you eat those delicious but devilish FiberOne brand snacks. Daily serving is ONE of these gummies with the warning not to eat more than 8 in a 24 hour period. Because digestive upset, trust me.
3.3g carbs and 1.6g fiber so I'd say one a day is keto friendly though the keto diet should have you ingesting a lot of fiber.
Try it for yourself: http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B075STV918
I know the label says Keep Out of Reach of Children but I've given Cedric a few. He was fine. Now, it would be easy to eat the entire jar like candy so there's where the problem starts.
Poop emojis make me super happy. They're so totally silly and what better than a tie-dyed rainbow poop emoji that you can hug, or put it the way of people sitting on your couch so they have to awkwardly move them? "You can sit here but let me move my poop!", so much fun to say at holiday gatherings if your family is stuffy.
The downside of these cute plush mama & baby poop emojis are that the larger one had a shoddy stitch up on the bottom where the stuffing was about to come out. Otherwise they're pretty cute and cheerful as anthropomorphized rainbow shit should be.
Yeah lame. I considered sending the plush back to Amazon but I contacted the seller and they were more than willing to send another pair of poops at no charge. A happy customer is the best customer and most Amazon sellers will bend over backwards NOT to get anything less than 5 stars on their reviews.
This is the only shit my dog gives.
Visions of sugared poops dance in his head. Because dog.
Pillows? Props? Soft serve ice cream and totally wrong about poop emoji?
Once upon a time, before the internet, I used to do things. I would go out and walk my dogs. I would drive around and people watch. Now I do the internet equivalent of those things, being talking about dogs and looking at people in photos.
Enter the need for a soft chair pad for my 46 year old spreading butt, which you'd think would have enough natural padding BUTT it sadly does not. At least not in the places that prevent posterior and lower back pain.
The tragically named Big Hippo chair pad really took a lot of pressure off my tailbone trauma from over a decade ago. WHAT tailbone trauma you ask? Well, pull up a chair with a Big Hippo memory foam pad and I'll talk about my butt injury.
Years ago, like another lifetime ago, I was married to a dude who was really into UFC and MMA in its early years. Pretty certain that was the one thing we had in common thus the "was married to" description. I trained at a Royce Gracie Brazilian Ju Jitsu school, met some Gracies, got choked out by a Gracie (weirdly erotic but that's a story for another audience) AND fractured my coccyx, which is commonly known as the tailbone. The best part was it happened during a women's personal protection training class and I was playing an attacker, hanging onto this guy like a human backpack because he was at least a foot taller and he did the correct move to release me, which was a backward drop and pounded my ass literally into the ground. While both legs were up, exposing my tailbone. Hey, at least I could walk out of there and drive myself home, am I right? Anyway, a week of pain and an awkward visit to the gyno and coccyx fracture was revealed and let's just say there's not much one can do for the injury. Besides tell anyone who will listen all about how you broke your coccyx.
Solaire thinks this story is boring as this emoji and wants me to move on to the Big Hippo chair pad review. Occasionally I'll get a flare up from the traumatized butt bone as the doctor said there would be scar tissue and this pad has taken the place of my very relieved decorative pillow that was under my butt for a year or more.
Unlike my decorative pillow, this chair pad doesn't bunch up or scoot around. There's a bit of grippy backing to keep it in place and the memory foam rebounds quickly, doesn't get misshapen. I do wish the Big Hippo brand was on it somewhere, that name really leaves me with so many questions.
I've owned dogs for the majority of my life. We didn't grow up with dogs, or even a cat, just hamsters and then rabbits. When I was eighteen and out of high school, I worked at a pet store in the mall as the Puppy Manager. There I fell in love with dogs and especially with the first dog our family ever owned, an American Eskimo. That was 1989 and the Extendi-lead was a hot new item. I remember how it cut into my little sister's neck and made a painful scab for weeks, too, when my puppy ran too close as she bent over. I think I had that same leash for maybe a decade, I rarely used it as it just wasn't safe for anything but being alone with your dog in a field on a hike.
My Boston Terrier, Solaire, has been raised on a four to six foot lead. He isn't much of a puller, more of a mosey around and mark everything and sniffer and that's fine with me.
This retractable leash is really bulky and reminds me why I prefer to hold a soft lead slipped over my wrist versus something I have to constantly grip. I just don't see the appeal and it seems like there's a lot of trial and error involved in learning to keep your dog safely controlled.
That said, it's made of all tape, not the rounded rope that tore my sister's neck when it touched her. I still dislike seeing this sort of leash being used anywhere other people have to pass the dog, like sidewalks. The owners usually let the dogs charge ahead of them and seem to have little interest in controlling the dog beyond holding the leash. This sort of behavior made me always dislike these leashes, and I've noticed that the majority with these type of long leashes also do NOT pick up their dog's poop. :C
Look how far he got ahead of me going down the stairs from our apartment! He could have gone further but I stopped him and he waited. He could be down that hallway and around the corner and walking up on a stranger or another dog in a blink! I don't like that!
I did get him to pause and wait at the top of each flight of stairs, and it is nice to let him take his time to stroll and pee without standing over him, especially when he's pooping and he gets to sort of gallop a bit on the long line. I also like how the leash doesn't drag through the grass which is ALWAYS full of poop despite dog bags all over the complex, so I mostly use this lead at night in an area where I don't expect people or other dogs to surprise us. It should be great for the park but not with my toddler as he could get hurt in the leash, like my sister did. Another issue I have is that if the heavy plastic handle is dropped, it might make him panic and run a few feet. I'll stick to my six foot soft leads.
