Wednesday, June 27, 2007

Works for Me Wednesday



Well, fist I was going to post about my wonderful MOONCUP, but Brandy at The Building Brows Beat me to it with her post about the Diva cup which is very similar. Do check it out, though. The Mooncup changed my life!

So, I decided, it's getting hot. I'll post about keeping a frozen jug of water in your ice chest for grocery shopping and picnics. I was beat to the punch by both T with Honey and momrn2 at My Quiet Corner. I do mine a LITTLE bit different though. In one of my brother-in-law's hunting magazines there was an article about frozen jugs. Reading it, I learned that dissolving a half a cup of salt in a gallon jug of water makes the ice colder and last longer. It WILL take longer to freeze (3 days!), but works wonderfully.

I make mine with 1/4 cup of salt in half gallon milk jugs because the size is easier to manage than gallon sized. My husband spent one summer on a job where he had to camp out all week. The jugs stayed frozen until the 4th day, and the food was still cool into the 5th day each week. This was BEFORE they invented those wonderful 5 day ice chests. He had to be careful not to put his Pepsi RIGHT next to the jugs or it would freeze and explode! That's how cold they are. Works for me!

Be sure and go check out Rocks in My Dryer for more WFMW tips!

6 comments:

T with Honey said...

I forgot about adding salt for more cooling power. Thanks for the reminder!

Charity Grace said...

Well...Since you mentioned the moon cup, can I ask a question about that? On the Diva thread you mentioned that the shape is a bit different. In your opinion, would the shape of the Mooncup be better than the Diva? Or is it just preference? Or does it matter? I've wanted to try one of these things for a long time.

Also, do you know if you can use them after childbirth?

I was going to ask you about this a few days ago, but I was a little shy about bringing it up online...But since you brought it up first...LOL :)

I will definitely be using the ice idea too!!!

Arizona Mama said...

CG, I chose the Mooncup because it's not as long as the diva, and my cervix sits rather low. The menstrual cups go just inside, not way up next to your cervix like a tampon or the instead cup. There is also an American made cup, called the Keeper (it might cost a little less), that is the same shape as the Moon cup but is made of rubber. I like the idea of silicon better because it can be boiled and hold up better.

I don't know about after childbirth. I don't think it's recommended that you use any internal product while you are recovering from childbirth. I doubt if I would want to!

Audrey said...

I have a question too. Over the past couple of years I've become much more sensitive during my period. I used to use tampons, but I'm not comfortable using them anymore. How aware of the Moon Cup would you say you are?

Arizona Mama said...

Hi Audrey!
Tampons always irritated me too, and even Super Plus were never reliable for me.

I definitely felt the Mooncup when I first started using it, and had to cut the stem on the bottom completely off, so mine is just smooth and round on the bottom. I think after the first period, though, I didn't even feel it.

When it's full, you can feel it overflow. I have never worn mine without a nice comfy cloth panty liner. I do have to take it out to go #2. Some women don't, but I'm always afraid I'm going to push it out into the toilet.

There is a learning curve. You might not get 0 leakage the first time you use it. You have figure out exactly where the best place to put it is.

I have to empty mine several times a day the first 2 days because I have a pretty heavy flow. After that I can go all day without even thinking about it. This is a big deal for me because I used to just have to stay home for the first two days, and not get too far from a bathroom the rest of the time.

It seems kind of messy and weird at first, but you soon get used to it and even in public it's not a problem to just empty it, wipe it out with TP and reinsert it.

I know Mooncup and Diva cup both have guarantees. I think you get 3 months to try Mooncup and if you don't like it you can get your money back, and you might get a whole year with the Diva. Don't worry, I asked if they resold the ones that came back to them, and they said no. Yuck, can you imagine? LOL

Audrey said...

yeah I think that would damper their sales a bit, don't you? It is one thing to get refurbished cell phones or cameras... but refurb feminine hygiene products?! YEEEE-Uck! ;)

I'll have to give it some thought. It seems so much less wasteful. Thank you (and thank Windy too).