July 2014 - Rave & Review

Huggies Snug & Dry Plus is at Costco now

I participated in a campaign on behalf of Mom Central Consulting for Huggies® Brand. I received product samples to facilitate my review and a promotional item to thank me for participating.

Did you order your Huggies® Snug & Dry Plus Diapers and Huggies Natural Care® Plus Wipes free sample from Costco I posted about earlier this month? If you did, then you are likely as thrilled as I am with the new line and can't wait to order up a box or two from Costco.I've been a huge fans of Huggies Natural Care wipes for both of my kiddos with their tendencies toward sensitive skin, and I was really excited to try the Huggies Natural Care® Plus Wipes these past few weeks for all our little messes. The wipes proved to be as awesome as I was expecting and we are now very big fans of the thick and soft wipes, especially because they don't have added perfumes to cause skin irritation.

Johnson’s shares their Promise To Baby

When I was expecting for the first time, my husband and I were beyond thrilled. We did all the first-time parent stuff like pregnancy journals, maternity pictures, and we busied ourselves getting ready for baby by decorating the nursery and washing all the little clothes.

One day, when we were dreaming of life with baby, my husband admitted that even more than little baby clothes and nursery decor, he was excited about the smell of Johnson's Baby Shampoo. Even though it had been a good 15+ years since I had used Johnson’s Baby products at that point, just the mention of the smell of the shampoo immediately brought me back.

We need your help to give kids a Childlike Summer

I partnered with The Motherhood and ConAgra Foods to help spread the word about a Hunger Free Summer, but all opinions are my own. I know I’ve said it before, but I love summer. The past few weeks have been a blur of playdates, farmer’s markets, library visits, and playing at our local parks. But, even with all this fun we’re having, I never forget how lucky we are.

Lucky because even though money is always a little tight with only one steady income, we never worry about whether we will go hungry. We have a well-stocked fridge and pantry, a small neighborhood co-op of small urban gardens that can provide anything we couldn’t afford otherwise at the grocery store, and we are able to give what we can to those less fortunate.

All kids deserve to have a Childlike Summer in which they don’t worry where the next meal will come from. If we all do our part and give what we can {whether it’s time, energy, money, food donations, or even simply watching this video below}, we really can make a difference for the children in our communities.

Simply view this video to find out more about child hunger this summer. Or, better yet, share the video so your friends can watch/share/like it as well. For each of these actions, the ConAgra Foods Foundation will donate the monetary equivalent of one meal to Feeding America, up to two million meals*.

Disney Planes: Fire and Rescue is in theaters now

On the morning of my son’s third birthday, he came running into our bedroom to wake us up. He wasn’t wondering about cake or parties or even presents, what he really wanted to know was when he could be a fire fighter. When I explained to him that he had to be grown up – not just merely older – to fight fires, his face fell. I felt so bad for the little guy that I promised him that we would get him a fire fighter outfit and make him a fire engine so he could play fire fighter all day long. It’s been 9 months since then and his obsession with fire fighters has only grown, so as soon as I heard about Disney Planes: Fire and Rescue coming to theaters this summer, I knew I had to take him. He already had a deep love for Dusty from the first Disney Planes movie, so I was anticipating he would fall hard for the new film as well.

As it turns out, he loved it even more than I ever imagined. All week long, the kids have been fighting their own pretend fires at home while playing Planes: Fire and Rescue and I couldn’t be happier.

The Snuza Go! baby care aid for total peace of mind

A few years before I had kids, my cousin had a scare that sent them to the hospital only days after bringing home their newborn. I heard my cousin tell the story about how she was holding her baby and felt her stop breathing and I never quite got over it. My little cousin ended up being fine and was diagnosed with sleep apnea that was then treated, but I remember thinking “what if they hadn’t been holding her when she stopped breathing?”

I don’t think there’s anything more frightening than being handed a teeny tiny little baby and sent home with it, knowing that you are solely responsible for keeping that child safe. 24 hours a day. A time in which I would need to sleep, shower, and at some point, work from home. I vividly remember the first few days of parenthood when I would check my daughter’s breathing about 10 million times an hour and would only be able to concentrate on something else for a second if I had verified with 100% accuracy that she was, in fact, still breathing.

The new good2grow drinks are good2go

I received this product for free from the sponsor of the Moms Meet program, May Media Group LLC, who received it directly from the manufacturer. As a Moms Meets blogger, I agreed to use this product and post my opinion on my blog. My opinions do not necessarily reflect the opinions of May Media Group LLC or the manufacturer of the product.Have you seen the new good2grow drinks everywhere recently? I had coupons for them and was looking for weeks without any success, and then out of nowhere they appeared in nearly every grocery store I visit. We’re talking huge displays, full shelves of individual drinks with special character bottle caps, and refill packs in a variety of different flavors.

What we’re playing with: the Keurig Rivo

Okay, so it's not a TOY, exactly, but that doesn't mean we're not playing with it. I mean, seriously, look at this beauty. Don't you want to play with it, too? Yes, that's the Keurig Rivo, a single-serve espresso machine with a milk frother built right in. This is what's known as heaven for us non-coffee types who can't make a good cup of coffee to save our lives.

Laundry room re-do with Blinds.com

When we moved into our house almost 7 years ago, I was so excited to finally have a laundry room. It seemed like a pretty nice upgrade from our “laundry closet” of our rental house and an awesome improvement over our “laundry kitchen” at our past house.

But, then I didn’t quite know what to do with the room once I had it. It was an awkward, L-shaped space that came complete with an ugly Utilitub, a useless wire shelf, and no good place to put the washer and dryer. Thank goodness I found Blinds.com, because it gave me the inspiration I needed to finish the space and create a separate and functional room that is truly fun to enter.

Where we were: the new See’s Candies in Woodinville, WA

This past week we took a break from our crazy busy summer schedules to hang out with some of our local blogging friends at the opening of See's Candies in Woodnville. While they had me at "candy", I was also excited to see behind the scenes, sample some treats, and let the little ones learn how to pack chocolate boxes like a pro.
See's Candies stores feature a candy counter where you can try a sample and create your very own custom mixed box of chocolates and candies. Along with the delicious candies that they are famous for like boxed chocolates, truffles, nuts and chews, lollypops, and sugar free candy, they also have seasonal favorites and new recipes to try.

We've been fans of See's Candies for as long as I remember, introduced to the brand at a very young age by an aunt who couldn't visit Washington without leaving with a sampler or two, but it's only been recently that the kids have fallen in love with the brand. It *may* have something to do with the fact that their Kidgit's Club membership gets them free lollypops.

Mission: Courage for starting school #PlanesToTheRescue

This shop has been compensated by Collective Bias, Inc. (#CollectiveBias) and its advertiser. All opinions are mine alone.
This is a big summer for us because the beginning of fall doesn't just mean my daughter goes back to school. This year, my son starts school as well. That means I've got exactly 2 months to prepare him mentally for the fact that he will soon be a big kid – the kind that has the courage to walk through the school doors without either parent a sibling.

This is happening, whether we’re ready or not.