Blogging from A to Z Challenge - A

Today kicks off the Blogging from A to Z Challenge. I participated last year and had a blast. I hope you enjoy blogging through the alphabet with me during the month of April.

From additives in our food to harsh chemicals in beauty and cleaning products, consumers are getting tired of what they don't want to ingest, put on their bodies or clean their houses with. As a mom, I have to admit stories about pink slime and possible side effects to food additives like aspartame have made me a more careful shopper. While walking down the produce aisle, the sometimes too perfect color of fruits and vegetables has moved me toward a decision to plant a garden for the first time in years. I've switched from regular bar soap to goat's milk soap. Last week, I picked up botanical disinfecting wipes. I'm even looking at better products for our cats.

It's time for my family to have more all natural products. They're worth it.

Visit some of the other blogs participating in this challenge.

April 2011 A to Z Blogging Challenge

What is the A to Z Challenge? It’s blogging a letter of the alphabet every day the month of April (with Sundays off for good behavior.) It began April 1st, with the letter A and ends April 30th, with the letter Z. You can click here to see who else is participating in this challenge.

Today's post is for the letter:

I'm a little late with my post today, but I hope you'll still stop by and check it out. Today we're going to talk about goats, or more specifically, goat soaps.

Back in January, Pricilla, the spokesGoat for Happy Goats Soap, was kind enough to send me a free sample that looked like this:

I have to admit I wasn't sure what to expect. I had only bought soap in a store before, so this was going to be a new experience for me. These soaps are made with ingredients like shea butter, cocoa butter, Olive oil and apricot kernel oil, which is then combined with goat's milk. I was impressed, especially because I have sensitive skin and this soap didn't leave me itching or running for Benadryl. You can read my full review here.

It was a sad moment when the last of my sample bar was gone, so I went to their Etsy site at http://www.etsy.com/shop/happygoatsoap and ordered more. I picked up cat shaped one and a dog one, both in the Bing Cherry scent. These were gifts for my girls, who kept trying to steal my sample bar.

Then I picked up an unscented shaving bar for myself. Shaving always leaves my skin feeling very dry, but the oils in this soap leave my skin feeling much softer. I then apply lotion to help lock in the moisture.

I can't see us ever going back to store bought soap again.

Have you tried goat's soap before? What about other soaps made from natural products?

Winners of a Free Bar of Happy Goats Soap!

Our congratulations go out to:

Tayet

Farrah

and noteasytobegreen, all winners of a free bar of Happy Goats Soap.

I'll be contacting the winners in the morning. They will have 72 hours to respond with mailing information. If I don't hear from them within that time frame, I will select a new winner/winners.

Thanks to all who participated.

Product Review and Giveaway: Happy Goats Soap

Happy Goats Soap is made from rich ingredients like: shea butter, cocoa butter, Olive oil and apricot kernel oil. These ingredients are blended together with goats' milk to create unique soaps you are sure to love. They come in a variety of shapes with a nice fragrance that isn't overpowering for those with allergies--like me. These soaps are made in small batches using the cold process method.

What I liked best about the soap I received is it left my skin feeling soft and smooth. I suffer from extremely dry skin in winter, which isn't helped along by the long baths I take each night while I read. Last night I washed up first and soaked for about an hour. When I climbed out, my skin will still nice and soft. I have to admit to being very impressed. I usually use a soap for sensitive sky, but Happy Goats Soap has got that beat 100 times over.

While browsing the Happy Goats Soap website, I discovered this neat Favor Soap. While the regular bars are 3 to 4 ounces, these Favor Soaps are 1.5 ounces, the perfect size for weddings, showers, and parties. Additional lead time is necessary to order these, but they will be well worth it to have such a unique and useful gift for your guests.

I've saved the best for last. Pricilla, the famous spokesgoat for Happy Goats Soap is allowing me to give away three bars of soap to my readers. That means we'll be choosing three separate winners and those lucky people will receive a FREE bar of Happy Goats Soap.

I received this free sample from Happy Goats Soap in exchange for my honest review. I did not receive any monetary compensation.

Here are the details on how you can enter for a chance to win!

1) You must be a follower of Book Tours and More to win. Leave a separate comment for each entry.

2) Visit the Happy Goats Soap website and leave a comment here telling us what your favorite soap is. Be sure to leave a valid email address so we can contact you if you win!

3) One additional entry if you like Broken Teepee on Facebook, which is a blog run by Pricilla's owner, Patty.

4) One additional entry if you follow Patty/Broken Teepee on Twitter.

5) Three additional entries if you blog about this contest. Leave a link to your post here.

6) You must reside in the U.S. or Canada to be eligible to win.


Deadline for entries is 11:59 PM Eastern on Sunday, February 6, 2011. Winner will be selected out of all entrants who followed the rules governing this contest. Winner will have 72 hours after being contacted to email me their mailing address. If I have not heard from the winner within that time frame, I will select a new winner. Product will be shipped directly from Happy Goats Soap in Montana. Book Tours and More is not responsible for lost or damaged goods. Only those who follow the guidelines governing this contest are eligible to win.