Carefree Fresh Start Blog Tour

The lovely folks at Mom Central invited me to be part of the Carefree Ultra Protection Liners blog tour, and I was glad to do it because, well, I’m a woman, I wear pantiliners, and I certainly do have an opinion. But first, I wanted to tell you about a cool giveaway being sponsored by Carefree called the Fresh Start Fund.

The Carefree Fresh Start Fund is aimed at helping women make a fresh start in their lives – including starting a new relationship, changing jobs or even losing a few pounds. The top three finalists with the best plans for a fresh start will receive $10,000, $5,000 and $3,000 respectively. The winners also will receive a personal consultation from Ariane de Bonvoisin, change expert and founder of First30Days.com, as well as a three-day/two-night trip to New York City, where they will be honored at the Carefree Fresh Start celebration event, hosted in partnership with Step Up Women’s Network. Seven additional finalists will receive $1,000 to help begin making their fresh start. All in all—a pretty sweet collection of prizes, wouldn’t you say? But, you have to act quickly! The deadline for submissions is July 10, 2009 (P.S., that’s today). Go to the Carefree Web site to apply for funding to make your own fresh start. Go now. Go.

Isn’t making a fresh start in life one of the most uplifting feelings? It’s exciting, scary, invigorating, draining, and empowering—all in one little package. I think the fresh starts that stand out most for me were those I made pursuing my education. By my senior year in high school, I knew that I wanted to have the chance to live somewhere else, even if it was just for the time I was in school. I had a taste of living away the previous summer, and I really liked it. I also knew that I was tired of the cliques and nonsense of high school life (with a few very notable exceptions). I chose to leave the comforts of home and head off to the middle of Indiana where I knew NO ONE. Not a soul. Now, at 18, that’s a bit intimidating. But, it is also the makings of a clean slate. I could be the person I wanted to be, not the shy, geeky, awkward girl that I had become in high school. I took that ball and ran with it, and I am so glad I had that chance. People talk about their “coming of age” and I really do think that spending those years out in the middle of corn fields gave me the chance to make a fresh start in how I defined myself, who I would be as an adult, and how I would approach the world. Did I perfect it during my undergrad years? Heck no. In fact, I know I’m still working on it 20 years later. But I was able to lay the foundation for who I have become, and I am quite pleased with the results.

Ok, guys? Men, I mean? I’m going to talk a little about Carefree, so if talking about lady products makes you squeamish, you’re going to want to stop reading about now.

Ok, gals—I have to tell you about the Ultra Protection Liners. First, I have to say that I love the fact that they are individually wrapped. Totally portable. (Although why is it that no matter how far you push them down in your purse they are right at the top when you open it around other people?) Anyway, I have a bit of a messy purse problem, so wrapping is good. I also noticed on the package that they claim to provide the protection of a pad with the comfort and thinness of a liner. Really? That thin? Cool. In the last couple of weeks while I have given the samples a test run, I have been plagued with a tenacious cough. So, I drink a lot to stop coughing, and then my bladder fills, and then I cough and…well…these suckers are really absorbent! They have that type of compound that transforms into a gelatinous form when wet. So, the liner gets thicker as it absorbs, but it really holds its water (so to speak). I was surprised and impressed. In fact, now that I am at the end of my sample I really need to hit the store because, well, that persistent cough is NOT gone. {ahem}

In the interest of full disclosure, I received a sample box of Carefree Ultra Protection Liners on which to base my review as well as a $20 gift donation certificate to GlobalGiving.com, where I can choose a community-based project to support. I have perused the site and can’t quite decide, but when I do, I’ll let you know and perhaps you can help to make the giving a little bigger.