I confess, I'm addicted to Amazon.  Actually, I should say I am addicted to online shopping.  Rarely do I step into a grocery store to do anything other than deposit checks at the local branch bank (and I usually do that sitting at my table with my phone and my bank app).  I hate grocery shopping, especially with two small children.  I also do my best to feed my family the best food I can find, and that usually means avoiding the foods traps of the grocery store.  I shop on Amazon, I shop on Azure Standard, and I shop with a local organic produce delivery company called Door to Door Organics.  I also buy meat from a local farm and raw dairy from a different local farm.

Groceries notwithstanding, I buy almost everything for my house on Amazon.  I intend to detail these purchases on this blog with descriptions as to how my family uses them.  This may mean recipes for foods I buy or pictures of my dogs ripping apart a toy in the yard.  Who knows how this will go?

So I guess I can get started with the last order I placed with Amazon.  Here is what I bought.

Ball Dissolvable Labels - (Set Of 60) - I am on my second box of these labels.  I use them to label left-overs I put in the freezer, jars of fermenting foods, and dehydrated foods.  I also had some sort of idea of using them to label containers or storage boxes of some sort containing my kid's toys and clothes.  I am always thinking of ways to de-clutter the absolutely mind-boggling array of toys, puzzles, and games that have taken over my house, but so far nothing has really worked.  I like that these labels dissolve without leaving any sticky residue, but I'm not so sure how they would actually hold up organizing kid's stuff.

Jack N' Jill Natural Toothpaste, Blackcurrant, 1.76oz (Pack of 2) - I have bought most of the flavors of this toothpaste.  It doesn't contain any fluoride or SLS and it's organic.  My kids really like all the flavors they have tried, but I have to say that they all kind of taste the same to me.  I don't actually use them, but I have sampled.  It's not cheap, and the tubes are small, but they really don't use very much of it at a time.  It must work pretty well, because both of my kids had dentist appointments today and neither had any problems or cavities (we are also on well and septic so no fluoride in our water either).  I usually just click on every combination of two tubes that Amazon offers to see which combo is the cheapest at the moment and get that one.  Like I said, I can't really tell the difference and the kids like them all.

Redmond Earthpaste Natural Toothpastec 4 PACK!! (Lemon, Wintergreen, Cinnamon, Peppermint) - I am not as familiar with this toothpaste, I have bought it before but it was years ago.  There is some current controversy about the lead contained in the clay, but since the kids don't eat it and neither do we, I'm not concerned.  My husband is convinced that the last time we used non-fluoride toothpaste for an extended period of time it caused cavities.  I don't buy it, but he wanted to switch to Sensodyne because of his sensitive teeth so we have been using up sample tubes we've collected over the years.  I have also been using Peelu, which I like.  We'll see how it goes, he's not happy but he's also not willing to go out and buy it himself so he's stuck.  At least with this combo pack he shouldn't get bored with any one flavor.  We have started with the cinnamon and I like it.  My teeth feel clean, but oddly it leaves no lingering cinnamon flavor.  It doesn't burn my tongue at all like some cinnamon flavors can, so it's not strong at all.

Medium Soft Padded Digital SLR Camera Travel Case/Bag with Clip-on Detachable and Adjustable Strap for Sony Cyber-shot RX10, H400, H300, HX400V, HX300, HX200V, H200, HX100V, DSC-HX50V, HX30V, HX20V, HX10V, RX100, RX100M II, H90 - I bought this to protect the camera I got for Christmas.  I finally decided my old Sony (which was state-of-the-art when I bought it in 2005) just wasn't going to cut it.  My phone actually has more pixels that this camera had).  I asked for a new one for Christmas and my in-laws got me exactly the one I wanted.  So far I have hardly used it because it is pretty big and unwieldy, but maybe that's because I can't carry it properly.  It also needs to be protected since my kids have already managed to lose the lens cap.  So I like the bag, but it is very tall.  My camera fits nicely inside and the zip pockets on the side are great, but the camera doesn't seem like it's going to be held very securely since the zipper cover is domed and quite high.  I think I could probably fit some of my essentials like my license and my phone in the case so maybe I could leave my purse in the car and just take the case into places like the zoo and museums.  I guess I'll just have to try it out and see how it goes.  It is definitely too big to fit in the diaper bag though.

Pleasant Hearth - 3/4" Premium Solid Steel Fireplace Grates - Lifetime Warranty, Black, 30-Inch - I bought this to replace the old one we tossed after cleaning out the fireplace after the winter.  A comment I read (I always read the comments) stated that the grate should have three inches of clearance all around.  So I figured that my thirty-six inch wide fireplace should have a thirty-inch grate.  This one had great reviews and everyone said that it was holding up well without melting.  Since I found that Amazon has started charging tax, I have been trying to buy from prime-eligible third-party sellers whenever possible.  I saw that this was available for ten dollars cheaper through Amazon warehouse deals so I grabbed that one instead.  When it arrived last week I thought the box felt suspiciously light.  I opened it up and measured the grate and it wasn't even 30 inches.  It didn't look quite right either, so I double-checked what I ordered.  Sure enough, not only wasn't it the correct size, it wasn't even the same brand.  Here is what I ordered.

What I received was this one Landmann USA 85275 Wide Bar Fireplace Grate, 27-Inch.

Very rarely have I received an incorrect item, or one that just didn't work, so I was really quite upset.  I actually had to talk to a real person to arrange the return since it was a warehouse deal, but I did finally get it sent back.  I just received notice that the refund was processed, so now I just need to order it again.  I guess this time I'll just go ahead and spend the full amount and buy the other one.  I'll update then I decide to get it.

So that was my last order.  I am also working on placing my Azure Standard order for the month.  The cut-off is tomorrow evening, so maybe I'll review those items as well.  My mother-in-law is coming into town tomorrow, so maybe I'll have a bit of time sit down and type then.