Inspired by Finn Amber Necklace Review

Watching your child is pain is NOT. FUN. And when your child starts growing teeth, you feel like you are growing them right along with him. So when you hear about a device that might possibly ease the pain naturally, and then you find an online store that loves to collaborate with bloggers...

Then you buy an amber teething necklace from Inspired by Finn.


The Store

Look at that beautiful nursing necklace!

Inspired by Finn is an online store that specializes in Baltic amber and Hazelwood jewelry. Baltic amber is a traditional European pain reliever, and Hazelwood is thought to help ailments of an acidic nature (acid reflux, ulcers, skin problems). I first ran across Inspired by Finn in November. I was so impressed by their selection and their in-depth knowledge about amber, that two months later, when I had some questions about amber jewelry, I searched high and low to find this site again! Even if you're not in the market for teething help right now, you should check them out anyways for a very informational read about the benefits of amber. They also sell amber jewelry for adults, including special pieces to help deal with knee or back pain, and a risk-free trial for those suffering from arthritis or carpal tunnel!

It was quite easy to purchase the necklace online. Each necklace is offered in a variety of lengths (and I recommend getting one a couple inches longer than you think your baby needs, because those fat rolls will swallow up the necklace! :-P). It took about a week from placing the order to having it arrive on my doorstep. That may have been because this was a special-order review, because I've seen other reports of necklaces arriving within 48 hours after ordering. The shipping is a flat rate of $1.95, which is very reasonable!

So the store is great, but how is the necklace working?


The Necklace

I chose a semi-polished necklace in Lemonade. According to Inspired by Finn, the lighter the amber is, the more healing succinic acid it contains; and let me tell you, after a month of teething woes, I wanted the strongest they had to offer! It came with a little tag stating that this particular necklace was handmade in Lithuania on November 5, 2010. The necklace attaches with an interesting plastic screw clasp that is embedded in an amber bead, so that the only thing touching the wearer is amber all around. The beads are all separated by individual knots, so that if the necklace ever does break, you won't have beads all over the floor. Whoever invented these must have been a parent! :-D

Adam can ALWAYS get Baby D to smile! I'm so jealous!

I didn't really notice any difference until the third day after putting it on Baby D. Ever since then, he has been considerably less cranky! He still has pain, but I can tell that it's significantly diminished. His mood is overall better, and he's not tugging on his ears as much. Another really interesting side-effect: every day since Baby D came home from the hospital, he gets a couple episodes of waking from his naps, wailing and crying to break your heart. I don't know if he has bad dreams or what the deal is, but it freaks me out. After he started wearing the necklace, though, his episodes have greatly decreased! That right there is worth getting the necklace!



So, to recap:

For us, this wasn't the end-all end to teething pain, but it definitely helps. I just found out from my mom that I had teething pain for TWO (!!!!!) months before cutting my first teeth, so if Baby D did indeed inherent my horrible teething genes, then this was definitely a good investment. And I'm so glad I got it, if only to cut out those weird naptime wailing episodes! It's a nice, drug-free way to help out the little guy.

If you ever decide to buy amber jewelry, I definitely recommend Inspired by Finn for a few reasons:

-Quality of merchandise
-Variety. They offer all sorts of shades and finishes and sizes for every age!
-Knowledge and experience

Mmmm, I just want to eat those little cheeks!

*Full disclosure: I received a 50% discount off my necklace of choice from Inspired By Finn in exchange for writing a review on this blog. The opinions and experiences expressed on this review are completely my own, and I was not compensated to tell you how awesome the necklace was. :-P

Pot Pie Review: Marie Callender

Okay, it is time to get off my blogging butt and write something on here! Here's a little post I wrote last week, when pot pie was heavy on the brain. I wanted to put pictures on here and such, but it seems that the only time I am inspired to blog is at work (shhhhh, don't tell!). So, I finally gave up on the pictures and decided to post as-is. Enjoy!

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Lately, I have been on a huge pot pie kick. Evidently, Baby D needs a good amount of artery-clogging country food in his/her diet. I've been having one almost every day for lunch, so I thought, What the heck! This might be good blogging material! So, without further ado, let's take a look at the one I'm eating today!

Note: all pot pies are microwaved and eaten with a side of cottage cheese.



Marie Calender's Chicken Pot Pie

Crust: AMAZINGLY browned on top, exceptionally gummy down below. Somehow, the box is manufactured so that you get a beautiful, oven-browned crust when you heat the pot pie inside. It was great!

Filling: Generous chunks of chicken, good veggies. This pot pie had a very unique onion flavor, and it was very strong! I'm still trying to decide if I liked that or not.

Gravy: I will not lie, I was kind of scared when I first cut into the pie. The gravy is nuclear yellow, a shade not known to nature. It was also a tad bland.

Microwave Performance: Hot on the outside, cold on the inside. Perhaps I should have heated it up longer.


Overall: Let me level with you: I was raised on the cheapie 50-cent pot pies, so that is the taste that I am accustomed to. Marie Calender's is more of a gourmet dish, so that kind of threw me off. I would probably only ever eat this pie for the crust, which is the best I've ever had on a microwave pot pie. Unfortunately, even though I can have Marie Calender's for free at the place I'm house-sitting right now, I probably won't eat it again.

My rating: 3 (out of 5)

Full disclosure: Marie Calendar did not bribe, coerce, hire, or in any other way make me do this review. Opinions are cheap, and mine is no exception.