Google+ The Duda Homestead: Summer Baby Loving Blog Hop Giveaway!

Friday, August 9, 2013

Summer Baby Loving Blog Hop Giveaway!

Welcome to my first giveaway post! I'm pretty excited...and even more excited that I have the opportunity to participate in this Blog Hop to celebrate summer! This giveaway is for a set of four stainless steel drinking straws to help you reduce plastic waste and enjoy those refreshing cold summer drinks even more :) 

After reading and entering my giveaway, make sure you check out our hosts: Cloth Diapering Again, The Inquisitive Mom, and Our Piece of Earth and the grand prize giveaway! Not to mention all of the other bloggers who are participating (linky at the bottom of this post). Good luck!
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 Stainless Steel Drinking Straws


(Image from Amazon.com - This photog's camera is getting some TLC)

When I found out I was pregnant, I kicked my coffee habit (only a mug or two a day) right away. Even though I read that 200mg of caffeine a day was perfectly safe, I also read a comment that said "better a headache than heartache" and it really stuck with me. I would have a sip now and then, or a tiny bit in my almond or soy milk just to get that coffee taste when I was missing it. 

Then, after our little E arrived and I recovered from the birth (about 2 or 3 weeks), I really started wanting my coffee back but wasn't sure about drinking it while breastfeeding. I was still being very cautious, but the hot weather was making me miss my iced coffee. So I started making coffee cubes (I used silicone trays I found at Target so I could pour the coffee in hot). The cubes are each around an ounce. I didn't feel too worried about slowly drinking 2oz of coffee as it melted in almond milk (with a little bit of organic sugar). What I did start to feel guilty about was using a plastic, disposable straw everyday. So then I began looking into alternatives. 

The options I found were hard plastic, glass, paper, and stainless steel. The paper straws are adorable and would be super fun for a party but do get soggy if they sit in the drink for a little while. Ew. I'm just not a big fan of plastic and try to avoid it. Now, I love glass, but they were a bit more expensive and even though some say they are unbreakable, I just wasn't sure. What I do like about these is that they are clear so you can truly see if they are clean, but that isn't something I have worried about with the stainless steel straws. In the end, I decided to go with stainless steel based on their price, shape, and material.


What I love about these straws:
  • Eco-Friendly!
  • No BPA (which is in your basic plastic straw from what I understand)
  • They're fun & make me feel nostalgic 
  • They get cold with your drink which is awesome on those really hot days
  • You can use them to sip hot drinks, which you should not do with plastic (I have used the SS ones once for hot tea and the straw got warm but not burning hot - Although I can not be held responsible if you burn yourself, your drink my be hotter than mine and I wouldn't recommend giving it to a child until you know the drink is cool enough).
  • I find them very easy to clean with the included pipe cleaner
Cons (Honestly, I couldn't find any. These are what I have read in other reviews):
  •  You have to clean them (well, duh. But it is easy with a pipe or brush cleaner and hot soapy water. Try to rinse after use or soak in hot soapy water)
  • You can't bite them...duh again. I was a straw biter, too. But that really is a bad habit and these can help you kick it!
  • They don't bend. No, they don't bend more than they already are. I've never found this to be a problem and think they are bent at just the right angle. 
  • They're expensive! Sure, they are more than a pack of plastic straws. But they will pay for themselves, prevent you from sipping BPA, and help the environment. They are less than glass straws and I think very reasonable.  
 Where can I get a set? (This is a self sponsored post so I may recommend a few different vendors)
  • Here is a set of 10 for $18 on Amazon with free shipping if you have Prime
  • Here is a set of 4 for $9, also free shipping with Prime
  • If you don't want a bend and prefer a straight straw (good for those reusable to-go cups!) you can find those here.
  • Enter the giveaway below to win a set of four! (Open us US only)
  • a Rafflecopter giveaway



Summer Baby Loving Blog Hop Giveaway
 
Welcome to the Summer Baby Loving Blog Hop Giveaway, hosted by Cloth Diapering Again, The Inquisitive Mom, and Our Piece of Earth, in celebration of babies and mamas! There are two grand prizes up for grabs, one open to US and Canada, and one open just to the US.
Don't forget to enter the grand prizes!

Summer Baby Loving Grand Prize 1

Go here to enter to win a grand prize!
Each blogger has a prize worth at least $25 on their blog, so hop around on the linky and enter to win some summer baby loving.
Cloth Diapering Again, The Inquisitive Mom, Our Piece of Earth, and Summer Baby Loving Blog Hop Giveaway participating bloggers are not responsible for prize fulfilment.
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28 comments:

  1. Replies
    1. I'm with you on the sweet tea! Love it!

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  2. Strawberry Lemonade!
    jbang0331 at yahoo dot com

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  3. Favorite summer drink is Fresh squeezed lemonade

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  4. Y'all are making me thirsty! Great answers :)

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  5. I've been making iced vanilla chai lattes lately. Yum!

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    Replies
    1. Yum! Would you mind sharing your recipe? I LOVE chai lattes in the winter time!

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  6. I love iced tea, and I'm terrible because I love the Lipton instant stuff with sugar, eek! It just instantly brings back childhood memories of summer for me.

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    1. I slowly switched myself to homemade unsweetened iced tea. I use 6 or 7 Lipton tea bags and steep it in a pot of boiled water, then add it to about half a pitcher of water. I love having it on hand on those hot summer days! But I understand...there's a huge difference when you're used to sweet! I indulge in a Twisted Tea now and then myself :-P

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    2. My hubby loves homemade unsweetened tea. He actually uses Earl Grey, the only person I know who does!

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  7. I love iced tea and iced coffee!

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  8. I love my creamy delight smoothie

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  9. I love smoothies!!! Fresh fruit and chia seeds YUM!

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  10. I love lemonade in the summer

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  11. Iced tea is my favorite summer drink. I keep a pitcher in the fridge all summer.

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  12. A really yummy fruit smoothie!

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  13. My favorite summer drink is raspberry lemonade!

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  14. My favorite summer drink is triple 180

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  15. The Shrinker from the Trim Healthy Mama fanpage!

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Questions, comments, or just want to say "hi"? Please do! I'd love to hear from you! Just one rule: Be nice & keep an open mind <3

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