When I became a mom, my life changed. Of course it did. It wasn’t just my husband and I anymore, we had a little girl who needed us and who we loved with our whole hearts.
But with the new routines and lifestyle changes, one thing that changed was my desire to care about what I was bringing into my home and what foods we were eating.
Before, I would say I ate pretty decently. I used some products that were cleaner ingredients. But it also wasn’t a huge priority for me to look into what I was actually eating or what ingredients were in my cleaners among other things. I figured that even if it wasn’t the best for me, it couldn’t be that bad, right?
However, being a mom opened my eyes and gave me the desire to truly live a healthier life. Not only did I want to feel better and be healthier during my pregnancy and postpartum, I also wanted my daughter and husband to be healthy as well.
And for me, a great starting point was:
- Better food (whole foods, clean ingredients)
- Household cleaning products
- Beauty and hygiene products
Now this was all new to me. I didn’t know where to start and I also didn’t really want to give up my Sour Cream & Cheddar Ruffles or Tide laundry detergent. But I felt convicted and I knew it was the right thing to do. Not only for myself, but more importantly, my daughter.
Before we get too far into this, just remember I am no expert! Just a mom who is trying to make healthier choices and better decisions for her family. I’m still learning so much!
In this blog post, I am going to share how I started implementing new foods and cleaning products into my life without the overwhelm.
There are SO many products out there that say “clean ingredients” or “non-toxic”. Heck, even my Tide Zero laundry detergent says that. I would use one product for a while only to find out that it wasn’t actually good for me and it felt like a losing battle that I had to keep restarting.
Another scary part of getting clean products and organic, healthy food is the price tag. I truly wondered if this would be something that we would be able to afford. Not because we don’t have money, but I still wondered if it was financially going to work. (Spoiler, it doesn’t always have to be expensive!)
Another thing, a lot of these products seem to require a special purchase or a subscription. Which for some reason seems scary to me. I don’t know if I just have commitment issues, but when I see the word “subscribe” I hesitate.
But despite the overwhelm and not knowing where to start (and commitment issues), I decided it was worth it and I needed to start somewhere.
So here are some of the easy changes I have made and some of the swaps I have loved so far!
Food/Eating
Thrive Market
This is not sponsored but I wish it was. I had thought about starting a Thrive Market subscription for a longgg time. A long time. But because of my commitment issues with the word subscription, I didn’t pull the trigger. Finally, I saw an influencer post a discount code and I decided to finally do it.
I have been subscribed to Thrive Market for about 8 months and it has been GREAT. Above, I mentioned the overwhelm with actually finding clean products and food with clean ingredients. Thrive Market takes out the overwhelm and guessing, and only has options that are clean. Meaning, you won’t find anything on Thrive Market that is toxic or has “bad” ingredients.
This was perfect for me because this means I have one place to find everything we need without needing to read labels. (Does anyone actually know what ingredient labels mean?!)
It’s $60 a year for an annual subscription, which breaks down to $5 a month. For some reason that is what made me stop myself for the longest time. But $5 a month is absolutely worth it to me.
The things I enjoy most about Thrive Market are snacks for my daughter (and me obviously), household cleaning products, and pantry items.
With Thrive Market, I have switched out not only all of our snacks, but a lot of our condiments too. They have healthier options for ketchup, ranch, seasonings, and more.
The best part is, everything is discounted. Sure, you can find some of these brands and items at Target, but Thrive almost always has a lower/discounted price.
Some of our favorite food brands/products have been:
- Once Upon a Farm coconut melts — my daughter is obsessed with these
- That’s It bars
- Boulder Canyon chips – We are chip lovers and we can’t deny it. The potato chips are only potatoes, oil, and salt, but taste amazing?!
- Annie’s mac n cheese – my daughter is also obsessed with mac n cheese, and $1.80 for a box is a steal!
- LMNT electrolytes
- Simple Mills
- Thrive Market for condiments
- Applegate chicken nuggets
I have also been exploring and trying out different cleaning and hygiene products. So far I have enjoyed Molly’s Suds, specifically the sink scrub. I am planning to try out some Blueland products too!
I highly recommend Thrive Market if you need a starting place for healthier eating!
Cleaning
Truly Free Laundry Detergent
I just started using this product and I will admit, I was also hesitant to try this. I have been a Tide girly for basically forever. Not only does it work well, but it’s great for sensitive skin. I have sensitive skin and a lot of laundry detergents can make me feel itchy and give me rashes.
I saw so many influencers talking about this product and a lot of them would say, “It’s like Tide, but clean ingredients”, which felt like a message directed to my soul. But still, I didn’t buy it for months even though I thought about it every time I did laundry.
Finally, I gave in. I felt convicted that I was using Tide even though I knew some of the ingredients have been linked to cancer and infertility. And again, it wasn’t because I was worried about myself, but I was thinking about my daughter. It was likely that Tide wouldn’t hurt her or impact her, but what if it did?
I was nervous I was going to waste my money by trying something new. But again, it was worth it if it meant my daughter would be healthier just from a simple switch.
Everyone says it’s like Tide without the toxic ingredients and I have to agree. This laundry detergent has been great so far. Peace of mind, works well, and is good for my sensitive skin.
Truly Free has other cleaning products on their website that I have also heard good things about but haven’t tried. Let me know in the comments if you recommend any of them!
Branch Basics
Okay I will admit, I haven’t actually tried this yet. But I am going to and I already know I am going to love it because everyone loves it.
I am planning to use the Branch Basics concentrate for my all purpose cleaner, glass cleaner, and bathroom cleaner. I may expand and do other things in the future too, but that’s where I want to start.
Branch Basics was also intimidating to me because it’s $55 for a bottle of their concentrate. To me, that is quite expensive. But on their website, they break it down to tell you how much you’re actually getting with each bottle:
- 3 bottles of hand soap
- 3 bottles all-purpose spray
- 3 bottles bathroom cleaner
- 3 bottles glass cleaner
- 1 laundry bottle (64 loads)
When you look at it that way, it’s actually significantly cheaper than buying all these products individually from the store.
Why haven’t I switched yet you may ask? I am waiting until I am running low on my current cleaners before purchasing to avoid waste!
I will be sure to update you all on how I like it when I start using it!
The next products I am on the hunt for are dishwashing soap and dishwasher detergent/tablets. I still use Dawn and Cascade, and haven’t quite found something that I like just yet. I want to try out the Blueland dishwasher tablets from Thrive Market, but they are currently sold out. I have heard the dishwasher tablets from Branch Basics are not great so that is why I am not interested in trying those.
For dishwashing soap, I have tried the Rosey brand from Thrive, but didn’t love it. Maybe I will try Branch Basics for this too!
I would love any suggestions– comment below if you have any!!
Beauty & Hygiene
This is an area I am still working to find the right products for and seems the most intimidating and pricey to me. I am still working to switch all my products and find things I enjoy using. However, I have found a few brands that I have come to trust.
Here are some of the brands I have enjoyed so far:
Dime Beauty
I really enjoy Dime Beauty and their products. I use the 7 Summers perfume every day and it smells amazing! I also use their acne spot treatment and it works great.
I have tried a few other skincare products and enjoyed them, but recently had to make a switch because my hormonal acne was out of control and unfortunately, I wasn’t getting the results I wanted with Dime.
But I do enjoy their body products too and plan to keep buying from them in the future!
Merit Makeup
Merit is a clean skincare brand and I have to say, I have loved everything I have tried from them. My current favorite is the Minimalist concealer stick. It is medium coverage and blends into the skin super well. I use it every single day and it is currently the only concealer or foundation I use!
I also love their lip tint, bronzer stick, and blush. Although I don’t use these every single day, I do reach for them often and plan to repurchase them as I run out!
First Aid Beauty
I’m not sure how clean this brand actually is, but First Aid Beauty is technically a clean brand and is advertised that way at Sephora. I have been using their Ultra Repair Cream as my moisturizer for 7 years. I am not exaggerating or kidding when I say I have used this product every single day and haven’t even thought of buying a different one.
It took me sooo long to find a moisturizer that worked for me and didn’t give me a rash on my face (remember, I’m a sensitive skin girly). Once I found this one, I never stopped using it and probably will never stop using it.
I have purchased some other things from this brand that I have enjoyed as well. You really can’t go wrong with any of their products!
Next, I am wanting to try out Primally Pure for their deodorant and maybe some skincare.
So there you have it, some easy swaps I have made and potentially you could make in your life. These things have been the start of my “healthier” living journey and I am excited to keep finding products that I love for my family.
I would love to hear any recommendations or tips in the comments below! Thanks for reading 🙂
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