Monday Morning Giveaway! {Fairhaven Health DreamBelly Butter}

After my pregnancy with Lizzy, I had a lot of stretch marks. Some moms don't seem to mind them, but I can remember looking at my stomach and just being so irritated--I'd faithfully applied all the cocoa butter stretch mark creams...I'd done all the things I was supposed to do, and I still ended up with a stomach full of angry red marks. I remember wondering if my stomach would always look like that--and for the record, it didn't. The stretch marks didn't go away, but they did fade from angry red to a white/silver color that wasn't as noticeable....but it took awhile. I think even at a year out when I was taking before and after photos for Insanity, they were still pretty noticeable, though definitely an improvement.

Anyway, the point is that I'm always a little suspicious when a product claims to "prevent" or "repair" stretch marks. So, when I was contacted by Fairhaven Health about reviewing (and giving away!) their DreamBelly Butter, which was described as a 'natural, nourishing formula to help soothe, protect and heal stretch marks'....I was super skeptical. That said, when I visited the website and saw that in the product description, Fairhaven Health straight-up said that some women are genetically more susceptible to stretch marks than others...I felt like this was a product I could possibly get behind, you know? They didn't make any fanciful claims about how if I used this product I'd never get any stretch marks or that all my existing ones would magically disappear--they were honest. Some women are going to get stretch marks during pregnancy no matter what (I'm one of them, apparently)...and I appreciated their honesty in that. Because I think that even if you are one of those people who are predisposed to stretch marks, there's still a lot of good sense in keeping your skin hydrated and moisturized. Between that and the fact that the product contained no parabens, artificial colors, or preservatives, I was interested. So, I agreed to give the DreamBelly Butter a try, and a few days later, it arrived on my doorstep. 

After using the DreamBelly Butter for a few weeks now, I can tell you a few things: 

• This product is probably not going to prevent stretch marks for someone who is genetically predisposed towards them...but it does help to keep my stomach hydrated, which definitely makes the stretch marks less uncomfortable and also seems to help them look less angry and noticeable. 
• I like that when I'm looking at the ingredient list, I actually recognize nearly all of the ingredients, like beeswax, rose hips, and sunflower seed oil.
• I don't normally enjoy scented lotions (because I'm allergic to everything under the sun and even natural ingredients like lavender can give me hives), this lotion is lightly scented and doesn't bother me at all. But honestly, I'm not sure that I could tell you what the scent is--maybe slightly sweet with a touch of rose?
• I can tell you that the lotion itself is rather thick, and I do feel like I need to wash my hands after applying it on my belly, but that may just be me. I tend to do that sort of thing.
• And lastly, I can also tell you that it's AWESOME for cracked elbows, heels, and just skin in general. I almost wonder if Fairhaven Health does a disservice to itself by marketing this product specifically for pregnant and postpartum moms...because I think it's actually a really great, high-quality product for anyone.

So, by now you guys should know that I don't sugar coat things on this blog just because I'm reviewing them. Book reviews aren't always positive. Neither are product reviews. One thing you'll get from me in terms of any reviews I do on this blog is my straight-up opinion, good or bad. This time, I was initially skeptical of Fairhaven Health's DreamBelly Butter, but ended up being pleasantly surprised. And ultimately, I'd definitely recommend it to a friend...which is why I'm happy to say that the good folks at Fairhaven Health are giving away some DreamBelly Butter to TWO readers!

Here's the fine print: 
-To enter, simply leave a comment on this blog. For the love, please make sure you either have an email address attached to your account, or that you leave it in the comment. If I don't have a way to get in touch with you, I'll have to pick another winner, and that would just suck. 
-You do NOT have to be pregnant in order to win!! As I mentioned before, it's a great product for everyone...but how sweet would it be as part of a care-package for a pregnant or postpartum friend? I promise that no one will assume you're secretly pregnant if you enter this giveaway ;)
-This contest will close Saturday August 25th at 5pm Pacific Time. I'll draw winners sometime over the weekend and contact winners by email. If you're selected, please make sure to get back to me by Monday at noon, or a new winner will be selected!

Good luck, and I hope you guys enjoy this as much as I do! 

Disclosure Statement: I was provided with DreamBelly Butter by Fairhaven Health to try and review. I was not compensated in any other way, and all opinions in the review are my own!