And I know it works because I tested it out in one of the least fresh rooms in our home, our older girls’ room. Because we have not yet moved any of our kids to the basement our two older girls share a small room upstairs. The close quarters combined with sweaty girls and laundry baskets of played-in clothes make for a rather musty, less-than-fresh smell. I was anxious to see if Ionic Pro’s Therapure 100, their smallest air purification system, would make even the slightest difference.

My girls actually set up the Therapure 100 in their room all on their own. (Mom was taking too long to get around to it I guess.) The Therapure air purification system is actually a three-part cleaning system. First, it removes allergens and pollutants including mold spores, pet hair and dander. Second, it kills bacteria and germs such as viruses and mildew. Third, it removes toxic fumes caused by things like household cleaners, paint and new carpet. Integrated into these three parts is its ability to rid the air of unwanted odors from smoking, cooking and pets (i.e. kids). So did the Therapure 100 “provide clean, crisp, pure air indoors?” According to our noses, it did!

My girls noticed a difference within a couple hours after plugging in the Therapure and we only had it on the low setting. I noticed it the next day when I opened their door and wasn’t knocked out by the typical sweaty-girl smell that greets me most mornings. The air in their room really did feel cleaner, fresher and purer (yes, purer is a word). An added bonus about this system is it has a permanent filter that never needs replacing, only periodic vacuuming. Wish I could say that about our humidifier.

Because the EPA has recently said indoor air may be up to 100 times more polluted than outdoor air, you might want to take a moment and learn more about Ionic Pro’s line of Therapure air purification systems. With the dramatic increase in allergies, asthma and other respiratory illnesses, it’s worth your time…especially if you have your own set of sweaty kids sharing a room! –Emily

We’re inching our way to show #100 and we would love your help! Please send us a quick email with your fave BC moment, show topic, advice or feature and we’ll include it in our upcoming 100th episode!

In this episode Daria talks about Summertime fun with family, Back to School Launches. ** Our Surprise highlight on ultra talented designer Patty Young about her new project ModGreetings.

We also cover Amy Butler’s NEW Eco Green Gift wrap & Tableware. Daria talks about our upcoming website redesign and asks for your input too (email your suggestions to daria@boutiquecafe.com). Podsafe music by Lee Coulter “I Would Love”.

Boutique Café is a proud member of the MommyCast & Friends Family Channel, powered by Podango.

**GIVEAWAY: This just in! Patty Young from ModGreetings is offering a 10 pack of variety cards to one of our lucky listeners. Leave a message in the shownotes to enter and we’ll draw a winner on Aug.8th.

**Please note: currently our hosting server is having an issue and will not play directly in your browser. It will instead download to your desktop when you click to play the file. Sorry for any inconvenience, they are working on the issue. However, you can head over to iTunes, subscribe and watch it there with no troubles. Click here to subscribe in iTunes

If your little girl channels her inner princess 24/7 then she is going to love the treasures hidden among the shelves at My Princess Closet. This site is a princess’ dream with its royal collections of tutus, fairy costumes, sparkle shoes, fabulous hats, blinged-out shirts, enchanted clothing and even princess-y toys. All of this in just one (online) closet!

My Princess Closet sent me the Debbie Dress by Fable & Lore. This beautiful yet delicate white cotton dress is truly fit for any princess (size 2, 4 or 6), but what beautifully embroidered dress wouldn’t be? What makes this little dress suited more for a fairytale than your basic tea party is the magic “woven right into the fabric.” When worn in the sunlight the embroidery along the bottom turns shades of lavender, pink and light green.

Though my little girl is still too small to wear the Debbie Dress that didn’t stop me from taking it outside to watch the magic, and watch it I did…over and over again! It was rather hypnotizing watching it change color and then fade once I brought it indoors. If you want your little princess to be the queen of the next tea party, have her show up in the Debbie Dress by Fable & Lore. (Now if I could just figure out where to find a magical dress like that in my size I could be queen of the next barbecue!)

Some of my other favorite treasures found at My Princess Closet are the Flower Power hat, Princess Ballerina Onezie, Woodland Fairy costume, and the 4 Tier Crochet dress. And when your little girls goes from channeling her inner princess to her inner fish, My Princess Closet even has a great selection of UV swimwear. Their Gifts that Give Back help you give others the royal treatment, and with $5 shipping you can afford to add a tiara or tutu (or two) to your princess’ closet! –Emily

Our long time listeners will all be aware of Geoff Smith, the creative singer/songwriter behind our own Boutique Cafe theme song!

Geoff has released a fantastic new service for iPhone users called Ringtone Feeder and it’s brilliant. Subscribe for a monthly or annual membership and have unique ring tones uploaded directly to your iPhone via a podcast feed. It’s easy, it’s inexpensive, it’s FANTASTIC!

Click on the banner to find out more. Thanks for supporting our great friend Geoff Smith in this ground breaking new venture! >>

Lamas Beauty is a line of earth-friendly beauty products created using certified organic botanicals, herbs and vitamins. They are all vegan and free of parabens, sodium lauryl, laureth sulphates, DEA and TEA and the company never uses animal-derived ingredients or tests their products on animals. With an impressive resume like that I felt Lamas Beauty needed no other introduction.

I was sent the Soy Hydrating Shampoo and Soy Balancing Conditioner, Pumpkin Spice Polish and Lash Masque. Sadly I was not able to test the shampoo and conditioner but I have given the Pumpkin Spice Polish and Lash Masque thorough testing and these products are as impressive as the list of harmful ingredients they don’t include!

Let’s start with the 3-in-1 Instant Facial you’ll find in the Pumpkin Spice Polish. This is by far one of my favorite exfoliating scrubs. The polish includes pumpkin enzymes, natural fruit and nut enzymes to dissolve dead skin cells and pore-clogging debris; apricot grains and micro-spheres to gently removed dead skin cells and polish the skin’s surface; pumpkin oil, soy protein, aloe vera and Vitamin E to leave skin hydrated and protected; coconut oil to dissolve makeup, excess oil and pollutants while leaving the skin’s natural pH intact. All of these fab ingredients make for one effective yet totally yummy facial scrub. (I had to remind myself not to lick my fingers while massaging it onto my face, it smelled that good!) Read the rest of this entry »

I first featured SkirtSports when I reviewed their ToughGirl winter running skirt in January. It was my first taste of just how flattering yet sexy fitness gear could be, even in 20-degree weather and combined with earmuffs and sweat crystals. SkirtSports is continuing to change the way women look at fitness, striving “to give the everyday woman extra attitude and style and add inspiration to their workout.”

If you look at their product line you’ll find it no surprise their gear often sells out mid season, and not just to runners and triathletes but to cyclists, tennis players and fashionistas. Check out the 4th place winner of Live with Regis & Kelly’s High Heel-a-thon. Jill Stamison not only set a world record but did it in heels and SkirtSports’ Footloose running dress in Pink Crush.

And that brings me to my own review of the Footloose running dress and coordinating Shorties. Now, I’m no record setter but that doesn’t mean I don’t get to look like one, and you can’t help but do so in this dress. I received it in Sapphire Blue and have only had one opportunity to wear it so far, but I’m sold! I’ve never worn anything like it and yet it took very little getting used to. It was a heck of a lot more flattering than my typical t-shirt and cut-offs, especially since there’s no waistband for my love handles to roll over (and jiggle as I run…not a pretty sight). I worried it might make me sweat a little more but I shouldn’t have; the lightweight fabric felt great and I rather enjoyed the updraft. <wink>

Speaking of updraft, that brings me SkirtSports’ UnderSkirt collection. Because the Footloose dress is on the sassy side (i.e. short) you’re going to want to wear something underneath (my husband begs to differ, but that’s no surprise). Whether you prefer the panty-style Spankies or the butt-lifting Shorties (their most popular product in this collection–you’ve got to read the product description on this one!), you’ll be covered. SkirtSports has even thought to include pockets for your workout needs such as gels, music or IDs.

Though the Footloose running dress and Shorties are fabulous in and of themselves, what I love even more is their effect on my attitude about exercising. I’m actually entertaining the idea of running outdoors. (Don’t tell my treadmill; its feeling are easily hurt.) SkirtSports is a firm believer that “girls rule; boys drool,” and how could those boys not drool when they spot you at mile 14 in that Mojito Green Footloose dress. –Emily

Over time my interest in the celebrity lifestyle has seriously faded. Where I used to read gym copies of People and Us Weekly from cover to cover, I now find myself only glancing through an issue if it’s highlighting the best and worst beach bodies (sorry, it’s true). When I was sent a copy of Mother Nurture: Life Lessons from the Mothers of America’s Best and Brightest I wondered what I would find in its pages. Would it be Lindsay Lohan’s mom sharing her wisdom on parenting the inner child or Bruce Jenner’s advice on setting reasonable allowance limits for the Kardashian kids, say, $100 a week?

Thankfully, no. This book was a refreshing reprieve from not only People but also the plethora of parenting advice with which we are inundated on a daily basis. Written by fashion designer and entreprenur Stephanie Hirsch, the book started from a mother’s desire to raise her son to be “generous, family-oriented, loving, courageous, and professionally accomplished–maybe [even] turn out like Steven Spielberg.” After a conversation with Spielberg’s mom more interviews with mothers of “America’s best and brightest” soon followed.

I love many things about Mother Nurture, the first being that it offers common-sense advice from mothers who’ve helped raise successful children in a variety of fields, from sports and politics to music and business and everything in between. Though I recognized most of the names I found a few I hadn’t heard of but enjoyed reading nonetheless. Another great things about these “vignettes of maternal instinct at its best” is you can read them in bits and pieces. Each portrait is only a couple pages so you can read two or twenty depending on how long you can hide in the bathroom before the kids find you.

The best thing about Mother Nurture is how down to earth these mothers’ words of wisdom are; I might even be able to implement them in my own parenting “vignette.” I love Terri Augello’s advice to her daughter Alicia Keys: “It’s a fickle world out there. They could love you today. They can hate you tomorrow. So…make sure that you keep your family and friends close around you.” And Linda Armstrong Kelly’s dose of common sense for all moms: “If you shelter your children, you don’t really do them any favors.”

We are all doing our best to raise America’s best and brightest, so why not get some help from those who have some experience doing so. Mother Nurture: Life Lessons from the Mothers of America’s Best and Brightest does a fabulous job uplifting, encouraging and inspiring, something even non-celeb moms need. –Emily

* Giveaway!! HarperCollins is giving away one copy of Mother Nurture! Please leave a comment telling us your favorite parenting words of wisdom and include a valid email address for our drawing. We’ll draw the winner from the comments and contact her via email. Deadline: July 31, 2008 (midnight). The winner will have 24 hours to claim her prize or a new winner will be chosen.

Today is National Vanilla Ice Cream Day and the same day we launched our new designs, so we’re celebrating with a BOGO (buy one get one) sale! Buy any georgie tee and get a second item for 50% off!*

Visit our website to view the new designs, which include our “let’s get smashed!” onesie, “babylicious” and “nesting” maternity tees, and our fabulous new “the apple doesn’t fall far…from the tree” mom & baby set. Choose one of our freshly baked (i.e. “new”) georgie tees or an ol’ favorite like “does this shirt make me look fat?” and get a second tee or other item for half off!*

Don’t wait too long…this scrumptious sale will melt within the week (offer expires July 30th). So grab some pie a la mode and check out our freshly baked styles at georgietees.com. You can also read more details about our calorie-free, fat-free, sugar-free BOGO sale between tasty bites! –Emily

The Knot has a sale on right now! - up to 50% off Wedding Favors and Reception Must-Haves. Definitely worth a look for some great ideas!

Mmmmmm…smell that? It’s the refreshing, invigorating mix of rosemary and mint I’ve enjoyed sniffing for the past couple weeks every time I’ve showered. No, I wasn’t showering in my neighbor’s herb garden (I could do without those fifteen minutes of fame). What I was doing was using Organics by Noah’s Naturals’ Rosemary Mint Travel Kit while on vacation, and its fresh, stimulating smell did a great job reviving me after the 10-hour drive (made by myself with four kids in the car).

Organics by Noah’s Naturals is setting a new standard in organic bath and body care with its line of products, which include organic blends like rosemary mint and coconut vanilla. But they don’t just smell good; these products help cleanse, revive and condition skin and hair with good-for-you formulations. For example, their Rosemary Mint Shampoo has Vitamin B5 (great humectant) and cone flower extract (natural healing properties, while their Coconut Vanilla Lotion has Vitamin A (improves texture, firmness and smoothness) and safflower seed oil (replenishes moisture). All I know is my travel kit (rosemary mint shampoo, conditioner and body wash) left my skin, hair and senses feeling fabulous!

Along with Organics, Noah’s Naturals offers an original line of bath and body products including an impressive lineup for facial care. I was sent their Hand Salve but was only able to test it once. (If it were winter I’d be all over it on a daily basis!) I don’t use a lot of wax-based hand moisturizers because I don’t love the often greasy feel, but Noah’s Naturals’ hand salve, which contains soy wax oil and beeswax, absorbed quickly and even the smallest dollop did a great job with moisturizing my scrubbed-the-house-all-day hands.

Noah’s Naturals is committed to being good for you and good for the environment. Besides only using nutritionally fortified formulas (e.g. pure essential oils, organic plant oils and emollients) and staying away from harsh chemicals (e.g. petroleum, parabens, propylene glycol), the Noah’s Naturals is also a member of One Percent for the Planet. The company donates 1% of their sales to environmental causes worldwide.

You can find Noah’s Naturals online and at select Wal-Mart stores. I’m basically saying you can purchase a high-quality product at an affordable price and donate to a worthy cause all at the same time. I love it when I’ve got a great excuse to shop! –Emily

I originally wrote about Arbonne when I reviewed their fabulous NutriMinC RE9 skin care line. (I am still faithfully using the eye cream–my favorite!) The company’s skin care products were originally developed in Switzerland in 1975 by Petter Mørck and a group of leading biochemists, biologists and herbalists. Like I said in my previous review, I love it when science meets skin care in a successful partnership…all for my benefit! Arbonne’s SeaSource Detox Spa line is no different.

The company’s SeaSource detox products use botanical sea extracts such as spirulina, sea kelp, and sea fennel and combine them with nourishing ingredients like sunflower, safflower, hazel seed, grapeseed, and jojoba oils. You’ll also find vitamins E and F, which help your body regenerate and purify itself. The SeaSource Detox product line includes everything from a 5-in-1 Massage Oil to a Sea Mud Face and Body Mask to a Re-Mineralizing Body Lotion 24H and quite a few products in between.

These luxurious products come with a bit of a luxurious price tag (all the more reason to use the special offer below) but take into account you’re averaging 12 fl oz per bottle. Plus I highly doubt your current exfoliating body wash helps release toxins and increasing microcirculation. I’m most intrigued by the 7-Day Body Cleanse dietary supplement. Also infused with marine botanicals it claims to stimulate, strengthen and support health and beauty from the inside out by flushing out excess fluids. I could definitely use that once a month! Read the rest of this entry »

I’m FINALLY getting in gear and am presently uploading pictures from our visit to International Quilt Market in Portland! I’ve been dying to share them all with you, but it takes a long time to upload that many pics - whew Flickr is laboring away as we speak.

In any case I hope you enjoy, I’ll be adding tons so check back tomorrow and there will likely be more. Don’t forget to subscribe to my flickr feed, or add me as a friend on your own Flickr account. - XO!! Daria

Click on the Badge to see them all:

www.flickr.com Boutique Cafe’s Quilt Market Portland - Spring ‘08 photoset

I jumped at the chance to review Writing Motherhood on Boutique Cafe’s Daily Dish for two reasons: one, I am a mother, and two, I love to write. Both mothering and writing are still a work in progress so I was anxious to read what insights, advice, tools, and guidance Writing Motherhood had to offer me. It had all that to offer with an added kick in the pants to start writing again (not easy to do when a recent manuscript has already been rejected numerous times).

I have not made my way through the entire book, and I’ve learned it’s not the type to be read cover to cover in one sitting. The book is a tool and a guide to help intertwine writing and mothering, teaching readers like me that inspiration can come from the everyday. I usually have a bit of a harder time reading non-fiction books but the author Lisa Garrigues’ wit and writing style (no surprise) had me from page one. Here are a couple passages I’ve starred in my copy so far:
Garrigues’ take on the students (a.k.a. moms) from her first writing class:

My first Writing Mothers arrived feeling physically exhausted and emotionally spent–in some cases ‘brain-dead,’ their imagination and creativity anesthetized by the rigors and routines of daily life. (Sound familiar?)

Her thoughts on taking the first step:

Carl Jung would call it synchronicity. A priest might call it fate; a romantic, serendipity; a skeptic, luck. However you choose to explain this phenomenon, know that one step always leads to athe next. This is how mountains are scaled, deserts are crossed, and whole journeys are made. (Feeling inspired?)

Garrigues, a writer and a mother, takes what seems like an overwhelming task at times and turns it into a welcome journey. An excerpt from WritingMotherhood.com put it perfectly:

Whether you are a new mother or a grandmother, someone who has long aspired to write or someone who has never written before, in Writing Motherhood Lisa Garrigues will show you how to use writing as both a tool for recording your life and a path to understanding your experiences. In just fifteen minutes a day, your Mother’s Notebook will be a keepsake, and your daily writing will keep you sane.

Are you ready to recapture the sanity you thought was lost long ago? Me too. Take a minute to read a little more about the book and Lisa Garrigues. I guarantee it won’t be long before you’re standing in Barnes & Noble picking out the perfect Mother’s Notebook. I’m planning to go tomorrow. –Emily

** Giveaway!!! Simon & Schuster is giving away 10 copies of Writing Motherhood! Please leave a comment with a valid email address for our drawing. We’ll draw the winners from the comments and contact them via email. Deadline: July 25, 2008 (midnight). The winners will have 24 hours to claim their prize or a new winner will be chosen.

* Congratulations to all ten winners of the Writing Motherhood giveaway! Thank you to everyone who took the time to read the review and add a comment. Keep reading the Daily Dish for your chance to participate in more giveaways!

The MommyCast and Friends Family Channel is bursting with great podcast and vidcasts for your online or take-it-anywhere enjoyment. On this weeks new episode of MommyCast, Paige and Gretchen talk with Teen Actress Raven-Symone (star of “That’s So Raven”) for the Disney Channel.

Raven has a new DVD coming out called Raven-Symone Presents. This is a fabulous DVD for Teens and Tweens featuring everything from cooking to crafts, quick tips, fun trips, helping others, etc. coming to a Walmart and Target near you next Tuesday!

To listen in on MommyCasts interview with Raven CLICK HERE

Continuing with our GROUP Fashion Shows we’re thrilled to present Blossom Leigh Boutique with their “Holidays in July” launch on eBay. This launch is truly a cornucopia of festive boutique offerings ranging from Halloween, Thanksgiving and even Christmas!

About the group:
“Blossom Leigh is a unique group of designers with a wide range of talents. We all love to create and value the deep friendship that we have all made in this group. I think the best part of our group is that we are all friends that make group decisions. No one is in “charge”. We all help and support each other to make our group a success.”

**GIVEAWAY!! The ladies of Blossom Leigh Boutique are offering a FANTASTIC prize to go along with their Holiday launch. One of our lucky readers will win a $30 Gift Certificate from BLB group!! To enter simply leave a comment about the fashion show in our comment section below. The winner will be drawn on July 29th!!

Shop for the Holidays right now by searching their auctions on eBay. Thanks to each of the BLB designers for the use of their pictures! **Please allow time for the show to load.

**UPDATE - Winner Announced!! Congratulations to Poster “Corey” who said :
“Wow, what a great idea to incorporate all these holidays into one launch! Halloween, Christmas and Thanksgiving seem to all run on top of each other in the boutique world. I love that they are all in one launch! Way to go girls! Great idea
Oh and I was just looking at that Smores necklace before I came over here. Very CUTE!”

We’ve sent you details of your win! Congratulations!! Thanks to everyone for the amazing response to this giveaway, and for your support of Blossom Leigh Boutique’s fun launch.

Looking for a great solution to keep your kids hydrated in a healthy way this summer? I know personally the woes and struggle it can be to keep your children’s beverages healthy but still drinkable. Bot beverages are a parent’s best buddy, I can’t wait to tote them around for my kids in the heat of our holiday time knowing that they aren’t injesting a ton of sugar.

Bot was created in 2006 by a husband and wife team (Cricket and Brian Allen). As parents of twin daughters, these savvy parents wanted to find a healthy, low sugar drink for their girl, but they weren’t able to find any on the grocery store shelves. That’s when mother invention stepped in, and they decided to create with a tasty and “good for you” drink that will hydrate kids without the sugar high.

I was sent several bottles of the Bot beverages to test with my team of taste testing critics (my kids). Let’s face it, if the kids won’t drink it then no matter how good for them it is it won’t fly. We tried them both chilled and room temperature, the consensus was that everyone preferred the chilled Bot in our family. They come in subtle flavors of Lemon, Orange, Grape and Berry. The kids loved the Orange and Grape the very best. For my husband and I who also took our taste test, I loved the Lemon and he was a big fan of Berry.

Bot really stands out as fortified water with 75% less sugar than juice, but still boasting a lovely flavor to entice your children to drink up. The packaging is outstanding and definitely branded to appeal to kids and parents alike. Finding bot beverages is easy peasey, just visit their website and place your zip code in their handy store locater web page.

I don’t know the exact number of DVDs we have but I do know they take up way too much room in our cold storage. Between A Bug’s Life to Zorro is some prime shelf space I’d rather use for more important things like Girl Scout Thin Mints and Keebler Grasshopper cookies. But how to downsize? MMDesign Studio’s DiscSox are the perfect solution for saving space when it comes to multimedia storage.

DiscSox’s DVD Pro storage sleeves hold 2 DVDs plus the DVD’s graphics and wrap. These thin yet sturdy matte vinyl sleeves (with integrated fabric for extra protection) let you store over 65 DVDs in just 12 inches of space! Their side-loading feature keeps DVDs free of dust, and the aforementioned fabric actually helps clean the disc every time you put it away. My favorite option is the DVD Pro Storage System, which includes 50 DiscSox DVD Pro Sleeves, a DiscSox tray, at least 5 DVD Pro Dividers and 96 movie labels. I wish I could have reviewed this before Father’s Day, as it would have made the perfect Father’s Day gift!

MMDesign’s fabulous multimedia storage products aren’t limited to DVDs. They also offer similar solutions for music, data, game and photo storage. If you’re multimedia storage looks anything like mine (i.e. basket next to the TV, vertical towers of games, shelf after shelf of DVD cases) then DiscSox may be the answer to your space-saving prayers! –Emily

I’m always on the lookout for a great picture book or two to freshen up our current collection, and if you’re on the hunt as well you’ll be excited about today’s review! Blooming-Babies.com, a boutique for “moms and kids of all ages” brings you the First Picture Book series from Usborne Books.

First Picture Books, recommended for ages nine months and up, is a collection of award-winning picture books featuring everything from numbers and letters to fairytales and trucks. But these aren’t your typical, often cartoonish, children’s books. Usborne First Picture Books are larger than your average picture book and filled with wonderful eye-catching and colorful illustrations. We received First Picture Fairytales and First Picture Trucks, and let me tell you, I knew the trucks book by heart after just a couple days. My son had me reading it before every nap and every night. Fortunately I enjoyed the real-life type illustrations as much as he did!

Our 10-month-old is finally old enough to look at books at more than just teething toys and I can’t wait to share First Picture Fairytales with her. It includes eight favorite fairy tales filled with engaging illustrations and its board book construction means even if she needs to teethe the board book will survive. Looking at the other books in the collection I’m finding it hard to decide which book to buy next, First Picture Action Rhymes or First Picture Nature. –Emily

* Promotion! Blooming-Babies.com is offering Daily Dish readers 10% off their order! Simply enter code “DailyDish10″ at checkout. Offer expires August 10, 2008.

Back in August, 2007 we reviewed the popular line of Oh Mama! snack bars. The bars, created by a mother of three with a Masters of Health Science in Health Policy and Management and experience in maternal and child health, are all natural and complement your prenatal vitamins without running the risk of over supplementing. They also include DHA and omega-3 fatty acids. Impressive! Now the same care and attention that goes into Oh Mama!’s snack bars is in Oh Mama!’s latest product, their Ginger Ale Elixir.

This new Elixir is definitely not your typical ginger ale. This sleek and portable drink is specifically designed to help alleviate specific symptoms of morning sickness and soothe the stomach during pregnancy. To do so the drink is infused with nature’s top-three nausea calming ingredients: ginger, lemon and vitamin B6. It’s also fortified with 100% RDA of folic acid. Check the label on your 2-liter of ginger ale. You’ll find carbonated water, citric acid and caramel coloring but no ginger, no lemon, no vitamin B6 and definitely no folic acid. Perhaps the theory that typical ginger ale soothes stomachs is from back when you could actually find ginger in it!

Because I’m done with the morning sickness thing (whew!) I could only test the drink for its taste. I actually enlisted my kids’ help in taste testing as well. After my 8-year-old made sure she wouldn’t “turn pregnant” from drinking the Elixir, we all took a sip…and then took a few more sips. Everyone, including myself, thought it tasted just like ginger ale and one daughter thought it tasted even better. I had to agree with her. Oh Mama! Ginger Ale Elixir with its nausea-calming ingredients and folic acid was a big hit! Perhaps the company should start offering it in a 2-liter size. We could all use some stomach soothing after a stressful day at work or crazy day at home, right?

With its great taste and stomach soothing abilities, Oh Mama! Ginger Ale Elixir is a must-have for expectant moms with morning sickness. You already have a lot to worry about during those first couple trimesters (which carrier to buy, how many onesies you’ll need, just how you’ll survive on 4 hours of sleep)…morning sickness shouldn’t be one of them! –Emily

It may feel like they just got out of class and into summer, but in the world of custom boutique creations NOW is the time to start shopping for Back to School! For your child’s first day back in class we recommend dressing them in something unique and handmade by talented artisans and designers (many of those we feature on Boutique Cafe are WAHMs). Each outfit is truly a labor of love, and leaves your child looking and feeling extra special!

To search a full range of hundreds Back to School offerings, simply click here and stroll through the beautiful listings >>

*This gorgeous creation for BTS is available from seller boutique-jolie-b on eBay for the Anthology Inc. launch. Custom sized 24months - 7 and features 3 pieces full of detail and funk. We’re in love!

If your group is listing Back To School right now, please shoot us an email and let us know. We’d love to feature your launch on Boutique Cafe’s Finds!

SavvyMom.ca is holding their annual “Momprenuer of the Year Awards” this summer open to Canadian momprenuers. At the insistence of several sweet Boutique Cafe members, I have thrown my name into the hat and would love to have your vote for this honor. The first prize is valued at $17,000 worth of cash and prizes to help grow and boost your business, this would be a huge help to Boutique Cafe in continuing to bring more quality content to our listenership and continuing to support other momprenuers get the word out about their businesses.

Thank you so much for taking a moment to cast your vote for Boutique Cafe!! Cast your Ballot here ».

I once bought a wonderful Thai food cookbook hoping to make yummy Thai dishes for my husband but as soon as I learned all the work and preparation that went into creating an authentic Thai dish, I closed the book (and have yet to make a single recipe). Tonight that all changed when I tested one of CurrySimple’s line of gourmet, restaurant-quality Thai sauces.

CurrySimple’s sauces have received rave reviews from a variety of customers and publications alike, and that’s probably because they’re actually prepared in Thailand from scratch using fresh, natural ingredients. The company’s products are so authentic, so yummy they sell to restaurants, caterers and private chefs and package their sauces in smaller sizes so people like me can cook gourmet Thai food at home. And that’s just what I did tonight!

Using CurrySimple’s Yellow Curry Sauce and their Yellow Chicken Curry recipe I created a dish that got its own rave reviews here at home. The recipe was super easy to follow and preparation was a minimum–just some slicing and dicing, sauteing and simmering and about 15 minutes later dinner was ready. I served that yellow chicken curry over brown rice (another favorite) and my husband was in Thai heaven!

Don’t be turned off by CurrySimple’s basic-looking packaging; it is probably the most advanced packaging in your pantry (this stuff is even space-shuttle ready!). Unopened, CurrySimple sauces need no refrigeration or preservatives and have a 1-year shelf life. This is a great lesson in how you definitely can’t judge a Thai sauce by its cover! CurrySimple’s product line includes curry sauces (red, green, yellow and masaman, Thai tea concentrate, Pad Thai sauce, Thai stir fry sauce and Coconut Soup (Tom Kha). I have a few more CurrySimple sauces to “review” and my husband’s mouth is watering in anticipation of more yummy Thai recipes! –Emily

* Promotion! CurrySimple is offering Daily Dish readers $10 off their best-seller, The Best Coconut Curry Combo. Use coupon code “boutique” at checkout. Offer expires July 31, 2008.

In our continuing video coverage of the Spring 2008 International Quilt Market from Portland, Daria interviews fabric and textile designer Joel Dewberry. With his unique blend of Eclectic and Modern styling, he’s inspiring all of us to bring a little touch of both into our lives and homes. Thank you so much Mr. Dewberry, it was such an honor to meet you.

***Not even an issue with our audio could keep us from posting this interview!. We’re sorry for the background noise.

**Boutique Cafe is brought to you by Aveeno Baby from Johnson & Johnson. Thanks Aveeno! Please click on our Aveeno banner to show your support.

There’s a cool new company on the playground and they’re dishing out dinosaurs and other curious creatures with peculiar personality. Meet Playground Partisans, a business with tees for your entire family. Now there’s no excuse for Dad, Mom, Junior and your beloved dog Rover not to get in on the fun!

Being a Mom to four children, I can certainly attest to the draw of anything and everything dinosaur. Playground Partisans offers some of the most adorable and charming dino-rrific characters for your little tot to wear with pride. With character names like: Karl, Hildegard, Horst, Wolfgang and Dorthea you immediately will bond with your favorite new friend. I was especially drawn to Karl, a ferocious and friendly TRex, as well as Hildegard who looked so pretty and precocious riding on her bike.

The shirts are 100% cotton, and are sturdy quality tees. Playground Partisans offers baby sizes from 6-24 months, Toddler sizes from 3t-7t. They also offer matching Karl tees for men and women. If you’d like to see how other dino-lovers are sporting their tees, you can stop by their customer photos page.

Playground Partisans would make a tremendous gift for your family and friends with abounding personality! - Daria

**GIVEAWAY - Playground Partisans is offering an adorable Hildegard tee in yellow size 3 for one of our readers. To enter simply leave a comment and tell us “Who your Favorite Playground Partisans Character is” . Please include a valid email address for our drawing. We’ll draw the winner from the comments and contact her via email. Deadline: July 10, 2008 (midnight). The winner will have 24 hours to claim her prize or a new winner will be chosen. miss this!

If you’re a breastfeeding mom you’ve probably looked at numerous options for covering up while nursing. Most covers, though made out of fun fabrics, are a bit on the bulky side while blankets tend to slip leaving both of you exposed. That is why I love the idea behind MoBoleez, hats specially designed for the breastfeeding mom and baby.

MoBoleez nursing bonnets fit snugly on baby’s head so once it’s on, it stays on. No worries about flyaway blankets or messing with a nursing cover. The oversized floppy brim gives just the right amount of privacy yet lets you “celebrate” breastfeeding. The best part about these hats are the designs. I received the popular Cafe au Lait design and it was so sweet and such a great concept I almost wished I were still nursing!

Each hat comes with a cute graphic on the top of baby’s head, a fun little “YUMMY MUMMY” on the brim, and a sweet little “hi mummy” on the underside. My other favorite designs include Milky Way, Time to Tweet, and their holiday bonnets. ). MoBoleez hats come in pink, blue, green, cream and red so there’s definitely the perfect bonnet design for you and your baby.

MoBoleez are Canadian made and eco-friendly (like you need another reason to buy one!). They are made from all-natural, super soft blend (and I can tell you firsthand these hats are super soft!) of cotton/bamboo (60% cotton, 40% bamboo). The company is also now offering their cream hats in 100% organic cotton knit and their red/green colored hats in a blend of 60% organic cotton and 40% bamboo. Machine washable, a MoBoleez bonnet is the perfect baby gift for any mom looking for a unique, fun way to cover up while breastfeeding. –Emily

** Giveaway! We’re giving away a MoBoleez Cafe au Lait nursing bonnet! Please leave a comment with a valid email address for our drawing. We’ll draw the winner from the comments and contact her via email. Deadline: July 9, 2008 (midnight). The winner will have 24 hours to claim her prize or a new winner will be chosen.

* Promotion! MoBoleez is offering Daily Dish readers 10% off their order. Simply use code “boutiquecafe” at checkout.

* Congratulations to Jennifer B, the winner of the MoBoleez giveaway! Thank you to everyone who took the time to read the review and add a comment. Keep reading the Daily Dish for your chance to participate in more giveaways!