HP Photosmart 6520 e-All-in-One Printer from Staples

August 2, 2013 By Anne

I received a product to review. Opinions are my own.

I have been wanting an e-printer for a while now. My husband did not see why we should spend more money on a new printer when ours worked fine. We have just a regular printer. So when asked to review the HP Photosmart 6520 e-All-in-One Printer from Staples, I was excited! Not only is it an e-printer but you can scan and email right from the printer!

My hubby took it out and got it together for me. This was an very easy process. I started the CD process in both laptops. Again a fairly easy process, just a little time consuming waiting for downloads. The first item to print was a picture of my daughter. The printer wanted to make sure the ink was aligned correctly, so I added the photo paper include and printed this fun picture!

Both laptops were set up and ready to go. The very next day I got to use it in “real life”. I had to sign a medical records release form for a doctor. The office emailed me the form, I then printed the form while I was in the other room!! 🙂 Then filled out the form and scanned it with the printer. I was asked if I wanted to save it to the printer or email it. I opted to email it to myself then forwarded it to the doctors office. I was a little too excited!

The HP Photosmart 6520 e-All-in-One Printer will print, scan or copy. But it really does so much more! There are apps on the printer. Apps! There are many to choose from and you can add more. I chose the Disney app and printed this picture for my daughter to color. The Quick Form app allows you to print a variety of forms. I printed a fun maze for my daughter to do. Did I tell you the screen is touchscreen? It is! There are so many technical details I could give you but I want to just highlight a few. You can always find out more by checking out their website.

The printer has a memory card slot so you can easily just place your camera card and print. I placed my card in to see what would happen. I received three choices – view & print, reprint and upload & share. The upload & share will take you to your Snapfish account. You can print and copy on both sides which I love! No need to turn the paper over. Oh – I can print from my phone too! Awesome!

I know this will come in handy this school year as my son enters 7th grade. He is always having to look up and print articles. I wonder when my daughter will have to print her first work? She starts kindergarten this year, but they are starting them younger and younger. Plus I am going to take a few classes this coming year. I want to finish and get an AA. In what I’m not sure of yet.

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I will never have a regular printer again! I love this printer and all of it’s features! Staples has it on sale for $119.99 which I think is well worth it!

Anne

I'm a mother of 2 who likes to get involved in too much! Besides writing here I started a non-profit, I'm on the PTO board, very active in my community and volunteer in the school. I enjoy music, reading, cooking, traveling and spending time with my family. We just adopted our 3rd cat and love them all!

How Green Are You?

June 18, 2013 By Anne

This Is a partnered post.

I do my best to be eco-friendly. It can be hard sometimes. Like this weekend I had some kids over and I wanted to supply water bottles. We never buy bottled water. Now I could have bought some pitchers and cups but the case of bottled water was only $3.99. So now I have about 2 dozen bottles of water left over, but we do recycle them. We normally just use our own reusable water bottle on a daily basis. You can read all about jars and bottles at eBottles.com. I always look for a bottle that is BPA free.

Bisphenol A (BPA) is a controversial chemical that can be found in the lining of food cans, certain water bottles and more. Some researchers have linked the hormone-mimicking chemical to a host of issues including behavioral and developmental effects in kids. Thermos plays it safe, and has made a commitment to only manufacture products that are BPA-free.

We recycle everything! We are the only house on the street with 4 recycling bins out front. But does that mean we are doing good? A woman at my daughter’s school said she hardly ever has stuff to recycle because she buys smarter. She doesn’t buy items that have excessive materials. This is what I want to do better at. But again, it’s hard for my family. We buy boxed cereal and foods, laundry detergent in bottles, soda in cans and jars of spaghetti sauce.

Composting. We use to compost at our old house. I would love to get a real compost bin that we can just turn. I had one made out of a Rubbermaid tote and my husband had to use a shovel and turn it every week. I noticed when we composted that we had so much less garbage. It was great!

Buying smarter. I also try and buy eco-friendly products such as cleaning products, paper products even skin care. Looking For An Eco-Conscious Skincare? Citrus Clear Is It. I love trying new all natural skin care products. I’ve even made my own cleaning supplies but really, I’m a little lazy and just buy them. As for paper products if I do buy them I look for eco-friendly versions. We never buy napkins anymore. I’ve made my own and we just use and wash. I also bought extra wash cloths for the kitchen to reduce our paper towel usage.

What can you do to improve your greenness?

Anne

Tree Hut: The First Step in #Natural Beauty

May 29, 2013 By Anne

This is a Sponsored post written by me on behalf of Tree Hut for SocialSpark. All opinions are 100% mine.

I love finding new products that are all natural and are reasonable priced. I recently came across Tree Hut Hand and Foot Care Products. They are natural and sold at Wal-Mart, so you know they are no too expensive. The products contain ingredients like Certified Organic Shea Butter, Rose Hip Oil, Peppermint Oil and Argan Oil. Plus they are made in the USA and not tested on animals. They contain no Paraben and no DMDM, which is a preservative.

Tree Hut Hand & Foot Care products are developed to keep hands and feet feeling smooth and healthy. Certified Organic Shea Butter and Natural oils and extracts make skin smooth and soft. There are three products available right now. The Foot Cream, Hand Cream and Foot Scrub. I would love to try Tree Hut foot cream and Foot Scrub. Sounds like a nice mini pedicure.

Foot Cream: • Certified Organic Shea Butter: skin repairing & moisturizing, anti-aging, promotes elasticity • Argan Oil: natural anti-aging properties • Rose Hip Oil: natural anti-aging properties

Non-greasy formula Hand Cream: • Certified Organic Shea Butter: skin repairing & moisturizing, anti-aging, promotes elasticity • Aloe Vera: Nature’s soothing moisturizer

Peppermint Oil: Moisturizes skin Foot Scrub: • Certified Organic Shea Butter: skin repairing & moisturizing, anti-aging, promotes elasticity • Real Sugar: Natural sugar exfoliates skin smooth • Peppermint Oil: Moisturizes skin.

What makes Tree Hut products different from other products available on the market? Well they best one I can think of is they are priced right and easily accessible. A lot of natural products you have to buy on line.

These you can get at your local Wal-Mart for a fraction of the price. Make sure to like Tree Hut on Facebook and Tree Hut on Twitter.

See my first Polyvore collection on Natural Beauty –

Natural Beauty by mommyhastowork featuring flower shirts

Anne

4 Ways to Keep Your Garden Pest-Free Without Using Harsh Chemicals

May 2, 2013 By Anne

 This is a partnered guest post.

Owning a home with a yard, with plenty of room for a garden, is a dream for many Australians searching through house and land packages in Keysborough for the perfect home. After all of the hard work you put into planting your garden, you don’t want to have to battle with animals and insects to keep it beautiful and thriving. However, you probably don’t believe in spraying harsh, potentially dangerous chemicals all over your plants, either, especially considering that the Australian government reported that agricultural pesticides are damaging natural wonders like the Great Barrier Reef. Do your part to keep your land harsh-chemical-free while you protect your plant life from pests.

1. Salt and Flour

Seemingly harmless items you have around the household can give off odours and even kill pests like insects without at all harming your plants. Both flour and salt are very effective and inexpensive household substances you can use to keep pests away. Sprinkle either or both substances around the entire perimeter of your garden.

For an especially effective border, dig a little trench beforehand and fill it to the brim with flour or salt. You can also create little “traps” to kill slugs and other insects via saucers or cups filled with salt that you place throughout the garden. Other household substances that may prove just as effective include beer and coffee grounds.

2. Nylon Nettings

If a tall fence is simply not an option for your garden or little pests are climbing underneath the fencing anyway, cover the plants themselves with nylon nettings. This is especially effective for bushes, trees and vines. Purchase netting large enough to throw over the entire plant and affix it to the ground with stakes or tie it around the bottom of the stalks of the plants to keep it in place. Untie the netting once a week and then affix it down again to allow the plant more space underneath for new growth.

The nylon allows the plants to receive the water, air and sunlight necessary for them to thrive but provides a barrier between the plants and the hungry herbivores who might be attracted to eat them. They might smell the plant, but once they start chewing, they’ll get a mouthful of inorganic substance, which will cause them to leave and look elsewhere for food. Nylon netting is an inexpensive, humane method of getting pests like rabbits and deer to move on.

3. Foil Strips

Not all plants are a good size and shape to make them easily protected with nylon nettings. Insects and herbivore mammals don’t like stepping over or chewing through foil, so use that to your advantage. Wrap a strip of foil about 100 centimetres in length folded in half around the base of each plant. This will keep the insects and small mammals off of the plants. You can also rip the foil into strips and mix it up with the mulch surrounding your garden so animals will have to step on it to get closer to the plants.

Make a scarecrow of sorts out of foil to keep birds away. Wrap an old broom handle with foil and tie a horizontal stick covered in foil to make a perch that the birds may try sitting on, only to dislike the feeling and fly away.

4. Planting Unappealing Plants

Planting unappealing plants in your garden seems counterintuitive; however, it’s not a suggestion to plant unattractive plants by any means — you need to plant flora that’s unappealing to pests, not to you. In fact, a number of plants that you might otherwise welcome into your garden omit odours unappealing to pests, particularly to insects, or otherwise taste foul to them. Surround your garden with a border of pest-repelling plants such as:

Lemongrass
Mint
Yarrow
Citronella
Catnip
Fennel
Basil
Oregano

Many of these plants work great for cooking and can prove a productive addition to your garden if you grow vegetables for recipes.

Using chemical-free protection on your garden is not only better for the environment at large, but it’s safer for your family, your pets and the very plants you’re trying to protect.

About the Author: Sean Hobbes is a contributing writer and landscaper. He recommends calling pest control for gardens only as a last resort, as there are plenty of chemical-free solutions to keeping garden pests at bay.

Anne

Tips for Conserving Water (giveaway)

April 20, 2013 By Anne

I am working with the International Carwash Association to share these tips for conserving water. However, my opinions are entirely my own and I have not been paid to publish positive comments.

April is Earth Month and April 22 is Earth Day. Over the last several years, my family has been making simple changes so we can live a more eco-friendly life. I feel good about teaching my children and love when they turn off the water while brushing their teeth. But that’s not the only way you can conserve water. Here are some more tips! 1. Washing Your Car– I’m not a big car washer, well I was when the car was new. But it is important to keep maintain your vehicles. However, did you know that washing your car at home with a garden hose can use more than 60 gallons of water in as little as five minutes. Not to mention all those chemicals and detergents are going down storm sewers and that ends up polluting our rivers and streams. You can go get a professional car wash and be green all at the same time! Car washes actually use less water than you would at home. WaterSavers professional car washes, for example, use an average of no more than 40 gallons of fresh water per vehicle – less than the average home washing machine, which uses 41 gallons per load, according to the EPA. Professional car washes also responsibly dispose of — and in many cases recycle and re-use — the water runoff. 2. Washing Your Clothes – This seems to be a no brainer for me, I guess my mom just taught me well on this subject. Only wash your clothes when you have a full load. Unfortunately once a week I do not do this. I never seem to have enough whites to make a full load. Make this habit for both your clothes washer and dishwasher, and you can save up to 1,000 gallons of water a month, according to Wateruseitwisely.com. Wash your clothes in cold water. My mom always did this and passed this onto me. Approximately 86 percent of the energy used by washing machines is for heating the water. Washing with cold water eliminates 1,600 pounds of carbon dioxide emissions each year from just one household, according to the Sierra Club. 3. Water in the Bathroom – While brushing your teeth, turn off the water. My children have this one down pack.Bathrooms are water hogs, accounting for about 75 percent of a home’s water usage. In the shower, switch to a low-flow showerhead, which National Geographic says saves 15 gallons of water during a 10-minute shower. I rarely take a bath. Did you know that the average tub takes about 70 gallons to fill, so showers are much more efficient. WaterSavers is a consumer awareness campaign from the International Carwash Association (ICA). WaterSavers is committed to promoting the importance of using eco-friendly car washes that use less fresh water and return clean water back into the environment. WaterSavers gave me this cool gift pack and they have one to give to one Mommy Has to Work reader as well!

Prize Pack Details · Tote Bag · Folding Umbrella · 22 oz. Guzzy Water Bottle (filtering water bottle) · Jelly Stick Non-Slip Grip for Car Dash · 16 oz. ThermalView Insulated Travel Tumbler Check out WaterSavers on Facebook and Twitter for more tips! a Rafflecopter giveaway

I am working with the International Carwash Association to share these tips for conserving water. However, my opinions are entirely my own and I have not been paid to publish positive comments.