Lunette Cup GIVEAWAY!!(CLOSED winner notified)

More than once, I have raved about these cups and even talked about them in a blog post (HERE). I know most of you are interested in trying them out and others aren't sure what I am even talking about. LOL So, let's get down to business...

What is the Lunette menstrual cup?

The Lunette menstrual cup is a reusable menstrual protection product made in Finland. It is an easy-to-use, safe, and hygienic alternative to pads and tampons. By using the cup, you will help protect the environment, save money, and get peace of mind. 

Just fold, insert like a tampon and it collects blood rather than absorbs it. You empty it rather than change it — a little bit different.

The Lunette menstrual cup is:         

• made of medical-grade silicone in Finland
• latex-free, odorless, and safe
• affordable and environmentally friendly – with proper care it will last for years
• a sanitary and healthy alternative to disposable tampons and pads
• easy-to-use, practical, and comfortable. It needs to be emptied only two to four times a day and can be used overnight
• safe since it is not conducive to dampness, outbreaks of vaginal candidiasis, cystitis or toxic shock syndrome. In fact, TSS has not been linked to the use of menstrual cups
• suitable to be worn during sports and other physical activities
• easy to clean and disinfect between periods by boiling briefly in water or washing with rubbing alcohol
• designed for women of all ages and sizes
• also designed for women who have not yet engaged in sexual intercourse as well as those who use an IUD or contraceptive ring. However, if you are planning on using Lunette together with an IUD, we recommend discussing it with your doctor
• enables you to monitor your flow by providing measuring lines on the inside of the cup (5 ml and 13.5 ml in size 1, 7.5 ml and 15 ml in size 2). The lining of the cup is totally smooth and the tab is flat, making cleaning very easy
• not to be used during post-natal bleeding due to the risk of inflammation
• not disruptive to the natural lubricating ability of the vagina, nor does it dry out the vaginal mucus membrane

Here are the different Lunette sites where you can go to look around and decide on a size and color!!

WEBSITE: http://www.lunette.com/index.php?id=1

FACEBOOK: https://www.facebook.com/Lunettecup

TWITTER: http://twitter.com/#!/lunettecup

TUMBLR: http://lunettecup.tumblr.com/

So, ready to find out about the giveaway? Well, Lunette has kindly decided to share a cup for us to give away to ONE lucky winner. How do you get entered you ask? The MOST important way is to comment here on this blog with your name, e-mail and what size and color cup you would like. The second two entries come from liking The Mom: Informed and Lunette on Facebook. After that, there are optional entries you can earn by following us on Twitter, Tweeting a message about the giveaway or sharing this blog post on Facebook. Once you have performed the task to earn your entries, come back here and click on the giveaway widget below to make it count. You have ONE WEEK from today to enter. Get started and good luck!!!

"Stranger Danger" is the Real Danger

     As Halloween approaches, I am reminded of the lesson I hear all too often given to children that will not benefit from it and that lesson is, "Stranger Danger". This is a line of thought I do NOT agree with as I believe it leads to and instills an unhealthy fear into kids. Should kids fear that someone can do them wrong? Sure, but, the whole "Stranger Danger" goes about it all wrong I believe. I use in "Situation Awareness, Decision, Performance of Action and Tell Someone" No, you don't have to use these words to explain to the kid, LOL. You could call it SAD PATS though. Haha!! I call it this for the adults to better comprehend. 


Situation Awareness: Teach your child to pay attention to the world around him. Notice if someone seems "not quite right" in demeanor, notice unfamiliar cars, notice family acting not right, notice other kids, stay around a group, notice all of their surroundings.


Decision: If someone asks them to do something they are uncomfortable with, they need a plan of escape. They need to know to yell "NO!" and run. They need to know if approached in a store and grabbed, to knock over shelves and knock everything off the racks. They need to know to scream that this isn't their parent. And they need to decide what to do and to not be scared to do it.


Performance of Action: This is where they aren't scared. They have been warned, taught and prepared. They take action and do what is necessary in their already assessed situation. 


Tell Someone: This one should be obvious...once away from the situation, they should find an adult to tell immediately with as much detail as possible. This is where all of the steps they have been taught come together.


The main reason I do NOT like the old approach is that it teaches, in a child's thinking, that ALL strangers are bad, that bad people look a certain way and that no one can ever be trusted. In fact, it can backfire and lead a child to believe that even a Police Officer and the like are bad because they are strangers...which isn't good considering your child may need to talk with them. It also eliminates family and "known" friends from the picture and statistically, family and friends are more likely to be the ones that harm your child. Also, if you are teaching it as "Only strangers are bad and not to be trusted". Then what happens if that stranger manages to talk to your kid a time or two here and there? THAT stranger automatically goes into the "Not a stranger" category in your child's mind making them a prime target for the offender. 


Love this link from the National Center For Missing And Exploited Children : 


http://www.missingkids.com/missingkids/servlet/NewsEventServlet?LanguageCountry=en_US&PageId=2349

Here are a few more links to various posts about "Strangers" and situations and how they deal with them:
http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052702304915104575572642896563902.html
http://www.villageofworth.com/Police/Crime%20Prevention/stranger_danger.htm
http://www.parentsask.com/expert-round-tables/protective-vs-paranoid-stranger-danger-real
http://www.missingkids.com/missingkids/servlet/PageServlet?LanguageCountry=en_US&PageId=3342
http://www.pepper-spray-store.com/relatedinfo/stranger-danger.html


You can join us on the Facebook page for a discussion on this topic.

"I said, NO, I am the boss and you must cower down with a yes ma'am always or risk a spanking."

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EDIT: This is in no way saying to become a permissive parent that never says no and allows your kid free reign in life. I am merely saying that as a parent, it is ok to release the choke hold on the power and allow a tiny bit of wiggle room.
I want you to think about your little ones for a second. If they are under 4, I want you to think about how long ago it was they started speaking in enough words to carry on a conversation. I want you to think long and hard about haw much they truly understand about life, language, custom, sarcasm, and anything else you can understand fully. It's not a lot is it? Think about how much of their own lives and thoughts they are in control of, in some households the answer is NOTHING. That's right, even though these kids are their own person with their own feelings and thoughts, they are allowed to have control over nothing. Not their clothes, not their shoes, not their food, not anything...and parents wonder why a kid throws a tantrum or says, NO! to a demand. Think about it... they have only a very basic grasp of the language around them, very primitive mind and skills and no impulse control to boot. So, when you add up all of that and this "big mean authoritarian" parent that takes all of the control  away from them and doesn't allow them any, you get meltdowns and defiant behavior. Especially if you are of the "I said, NO, I am the boss and you must cower down with a yes ma'am always or risk a spanking." type parent. 


If you are this type of parent, I encourage you to try another more "Peaceful and Gentle" style of parenting for a week or two and see where it leads. Calm down, allow them some control and choices, speak slowly and softly, don't demand, and instead discuss why and how, treat them with respect and as human beings with their own opinion, thoughts and mind...not as a submissive and obedient kid with no rights or thoughts. Stop spanking as the first and ONLY resort for behaviors. If you feel you must use spanking as a discipline, save it for true life and death emergencies, not for normal acts of defiance that are NATURAL for little ones. Start learning ways to speak to your child so that there is never an issue to need to correct. If you commit to understanding your child and getting on their level to speak to them, you will soon see that all of the discipline comes beforehand, not after. There will be almost no need to punish a little kid if you choose the route of honor and respect.


The Authoritarian parenting doesn't teach them discipline and honor and respect, it teaches them that they have to bow down to this parent or risk getting in trouble. They don't learn to respect the parent, but, rather fear and bitterness. This type of parenting also doesn't help them learn to control their anger and tantrums, nor would it encourage a child that small to mind willingly. This type further frustrates and already frustrated kid. they know they have no control or say in their lives and that their parents don't respect them at all and that if you don't like what somebody is doing, throw a fit or hit them and that should work.


I hope if we have someone that makes the switch, they will please write us an e-mail and let us know how it went. Or if you made the switch long ago, we can here from you as well.

themominformed@gmail.com