Joovy theBabaSling {Review}

July 10, 2014 by Leave a Comment

Remember how I told you there would be an upcoming review from Joovy?  Well, well, well.  Now is the time.  First I have to take you back to the beginning of May…  If you follow us at all on Facebook then you will remember that we were vacationing in WDW at that time.  (Yes, we busted Banjo out of school to hit Disney before the crowds got crazy.)  Joovy sent us theBabaSling before we left on our trip.

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I’ve always liked to do the whole baby wearing thing, so was ecstatic to take it with us on our pre summer vacation.  Plus, theBabaSling is uber chic looking, so I’d be styling.  But then I got to thinking that I wouldn’t use it all that much, because we were after all taking our Joovy Caboose stroller.  Cache would just sleep in the main seat of the stroller, Ruby would sit/stand on the platform, and Banjo would walk.  That was the plan.  And all went according to plan…

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For about half of our first day in the magical world of mouse.

At first all was right in the world.  Baby Cache just road along sleeping, Ruby was more entertained by jumping off of her seat on the “train” and running around before getting back “all aboard”, and Banjo was quite content to walk along with his cousins.  Then EVERYTHING deviated from the plan!

Ruby became a hot mess and didn’t want to ride on the platform any longer.

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She wanted to SLEEP.

Need I remind you that this was our very first day in the most magical kingdom on earth?  And Banjo?  Well, he grew tired of walking.  He grew tired very fast.

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What happened?  Where did we go wrong?  Well, for starters we should have purchased a Joovy Big Caboose Triple stroller before heading Orlando.  That would have been the solution.  However already being in Florida when we made this discovery… We didn’t have that option.  We will definitely know for next time.  But since I had the handy, dandy BabaSling all was right again in the world!

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The hammock style of the sling was perfect for carrying tiny Cache and the  comfort padding… perfect for my bum shoulder.  The shoulder I’ve had surgery on twice and I’m now a candidate for a total shoulder replacement.  What?  I’ve never told you about that before?  Yeah.  Remind me to tell you sometime all about my shoulder problem.  😉

This sling carried Cache all over the parks.

He was able to meet all the characters just like the big kids.

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Can you believe that Stitch actually sports a Dandy Giveaway logo???  😉

TheBabaSling comes in sooooo many beautiful and vibrant colors.

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As you can see from our vacation photos we have it in Scarlet Red.  I can’t tell you how many compliments I received on it while at WDW.  Too many to count.  One stranger just came up to me to say, “That’s a nice looking sling!”  Why, yes.  Yes it is.  🙂

Since Disney I’ve been using the BabaSling all over the place.  Particularly on the 4th of July at the lake.

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It was a long day.  The BabaSling put Cache right to sleep.

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It’s my hero.

*This posting and review are sponsored by Joovy, but all opinions are strictly my own.

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Mooshka Sing Around the Rosie Doll {Giveaway} – CLOSED

June 21, 2014 by

About my Ruby

A couple of years back when I found out that I was having a baby girl I was beyond ecstatic.  Don’t get me wrong.  I love all my children equally.  They each have their own unique qualities  and are so super sweet.  Basically I just love being their mommy!   *grin*   When Ruby came along I just knew that she and I would bond.  She would like all the things that I liked as a child.  She would like unicorn figurines.  She would like the creepy looking dolls that survived my childhood and were saved just for her.  She would like those plastic charm necklaces.  She would like to collect stickers in a sticker book.  She would like to get in shape girl.  Okay are you ready for a shocker?  I was a child of the 80’s.  I know.  You weren’t really able to figure that out already from my childhood likes list.  *wink*  Yes, Ruby was going to be just like me.  Exactly like me.  You know what?  She likes none of those things.  Not. At. All.  She likes music way more than I ever did.  The girl seriously walks around the house singing all day.  She likes super heroes, trains, and building blocks.  Basically anything and everything that her older brother likes.  She likes baby dolls that are so different than the ones of the 80’s.  They aren’t even remotely creepy looking!  Speaking of the dolls that she likes…

Combine her love of music with a cute doll and what do you get???

This adorable doll!

Here’s my Ruby playing ‘Ring around the Rosie’ with her new friend:

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Mooshka sent us her new friend and she has been having too much fun playing.  Banjo has even been joining in on the fun.  There are several “singing” dolls to choose from.  Each one just as cute as the next.  We have Lera and she’s perfect, because she resembles our little girl!

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And… I’m giving away a Lera Mooshka doll to one very lucky winner!

(Enter to win on the Rafflecopter below.)

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*This giveaway is open to US entries only.
*The winner of this giveaway will be drawn no later than the evening of Monday, June 30th and will be emailed.  If the winner does not respond within 48 hours, a new winner will be drawn.
*This posting and giveaway are sponsored by Mooshka, but all opinions are strictly my own.

 

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Little Tikes Garden Chairs {Giveaway} – CLOSED

June 13, 2014 by Leave a Comment

Can you tell that we like to read?

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Yes, we like to read lots.

All winter long and into the early spring we were shut ins around here.  So all of our reading took place indoors.  We didn’t even venture out to the library.  No siree.  Why is that?  First, it was super cold outside.  Second, it was super cold outside.  Third, it was super cold outside.  Okay you get the idea.  It was super cold outside.  Then… Don’t even get me started on the amount of snow that was dumped on us.  Loads and loads.  All winter long.  I thought that it would never end.  We even got a snow storm when I was postpartum in the hospital with Cache.  Oops. I think I must have left that out of Cache’s birth story.   Yes, I know that I forgot to put that part in.  Basically a HUGE snow storm decided to come rolling in the day after he was born and we weren’t sure if we were ever going to get to leave the hospital.  For some reason when it snows in St. Louis the ENTIRE city shuts down.  Does that happen in other cities?  Anyway, back to our love of books… Now that the weather is simply glorious outside (not too hot and not too humid yet) we can take our reading outdoors.

My friends over at Little Tikes sent Banjo and Ruby these adorable garden chairs.

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The chairs are the perfect size for their little tushies and are now their favorite reading spots in the backyard.

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I LOVE that my sweet littles LOVE books.

Now… for the giveaway!!!

The winner of this giveaway is going to

receive TWO garden chairs from Little Tikes

in the colors red and orange!

(Enter on the Rafflecopter below.)

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*This giveaway is open to US entries only.
*The winner of this giveaway will be drawn no later than the evening of Monday, June 23rd and will be emailed.  If the winner does not respond within 48 hours, a new winner will be drawn.
*This posting and giveaway are sponsored by Little Tikes, but all opinions are strictly my own.

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Little Tikes Picnic Table {Giveaway} – CLOSED

June 9, 2014 by Leave a Comment

We finished our patio late in the season last year, so we didn’t really get to enjoy it before it started to snow.

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But this year we were ready for the spring and summer!  In fact we have been dining al fresco for quite a while now.

littletikes6Basically as soon as it stopped snowing.

That’s why when my friends over at Little Tikes  (Yes, I said LITTLE TIKES *squeal*) offered to send us a picnic table for our kiddos I jumped at the chance.  And of course you know what that means…  If I get one then one of YOU gets one, too!  *SQUEAL* from you, right?!

The Easy Storeâ„¢ Picnic Table with Umbrella is amazing.  Seriously dandy.  As soon as it came Banjo had to open the box immediately.  He even starting dragging the pieces from the front entry to the back patio.  Fortunately for me it require no tools to put together.  I’m all about the ease of things like that.  The entire table just snaps together and the instructions were super easy to follow.

Here we are at snack time:

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And then dinner time with cousin H:littletikes

My kids cannot get enough of their new table!

What’s more???  It stores aways really dandily.

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And now… The moment you have all been waiting for…

The GIVEAWAY!!!

The winner of this giveaway is going to receive an…

Easy Storeâ„¢ Picnic Table with Umbrella

from Little Tikes!

And the crowd goes wild!!!

(Enter on the Rafflecopter below.)

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*This giveaway is open to US entries only.
*The winner of this giveaway will be drawn no later than the evening of Monday, June 16th and will be emailed.  If the winner does not respond within 48 hours, a new winner will be drawn.
*This posting and giveaway are sponsored by Little Tikes, but all opinions are strictly my own.
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Djubi {Review}

June 6, 2014 by Leave a Comment

Remember how I posted about those scary bunnies?  How I publicly aired my fears of creepy clowns and the Easter Bunny?  No?  You don’t remember?  I mean seriously.  How could you forget???  I’m still having nightmares about it.  This year the “bunny” brought Banjo the Original Djubi Game. (Thank you, Djubi for sending us this dandy toy for the boy’s Easter basket.) catch6   If you are looking for a fun backyard game then here it is.  This is it.   Good thing I’m posting this just in time for summer, eh? original-djubi-game

Banjo and Ruby both love it.

Here they are showing their Boompa how it’s done:

catch5 catch This is at my parents house.  Don’t they have the coolest setup with that lake behind their house?!  My kids love spending time out there. Djubi is perfect for teaching kids of all ages how to aim and catch.  Adults like it, too! catch2 catch3 The Djubi ball has a band on it that when hooked on the handle and pulled back will then soar through the air for the other player to catch.  Such a unique concept and fun for all ages!

Go HERE for the stores where you can find Djubi!

*This posting and review are sponsored by Djubi, but all opinions are strictly my own.

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Fash’Ems {Review}

May 25, 2014 by Leave a Comment

My girl, Ruby loves her some My Little Pony.  When she talks about them it’s, “My Pony” this and “My Pony” that.  She ALWAYS leaves out the mention of “Little”.  The girl knows what she wants and she knows what’s hers.    I must admit that I cried real tears of nostalgia when I realized that the My Little Pony of today is so very different that the My Little Pony of my past.  I’m talking the My Little Pony of the 80’s.  What happened to those ponies???  It’s a good thing that my girl is in love with these ponies, because it takes away the pains of a childhood lost.  I’ll admit that the look is growing on me…  Probably because Ruby thinks they are sooooo very dandy!

How can I not begin to feel this way when they make her so happy?

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She received an entire fleet of Fash’Ems for this review and she was definitely not disappointed.

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What are Fash’Ems, you ask?  Well, for starters they are squishy.  They aren’t going to break or get scratched up the way a lot of other toys do.  And… They stretch!

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The ponies come in these adorable little capsules in hot pink.  We had an absolute fun time playing hide and seek with them in the backyard!

In addition to My Little Pony there are these characters:

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Doesn’t Hello Kitty look adorable?

Some of the sets even come with crowns and other accessories to dress the characters!

Fun times for my little Ruby!

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This review was sponsored by Tech4Kids, but all opinions are strictly my own.

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KidOFit Shoes {Giveaway} – ENDED

May 17, 2014 by Leave a Comment

In our house we are fanatics about shoes.  Okay so maybe I’m the fanatic and I’ve now bred fanatics.  I’ll level with you on this one.  I have lots and lots of shoes.  Lots. Of. Shoes.  Not surprising… Ruby loves shoes.  Like seriously loves them.  Probably as much as I do.  When she sees a pair that’s new to her collection she squeals, “Shoes!”  When she sees a new pair to my collection she squeals, “Shoes!”  No matter the size she will put them on and walk around in them.  In addition to being fanatics about shoes around here we also like shoes that are good for our souls.  Ahem.  I mean good for our soles.  Like my pun there?  I want my kids to have shoes that are going to be good for their little growing feet, have the perfect fit, last a long time, and be cute in style.  Can I have it all?  With KidOFit I can!

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Recently KidOFit sent these adorable shoes for Ruby:

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 IMG_8336Can you tell that she LOVES them???  Yep.  She wears them Every. Single. Day.

But what do I love about them (besides the cute style)?  I love that there’s a strap at the heel that allows the shoes to be wearable for much longer than most shoes.  Totally adjustable!  I also love that KidOFit has a transparent sole, so you can really see where the kiddo’s toes are.  Truly giving them a perfect fit!  Oh and did I mention the cute, cute, cute style???

Here are just a few other styles that can be found at KidOFit:

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In addition to all of the above… KidOFit shoes are ergonomically crafted, have an anatomical design, and offer barefoot comfort.  Dr. Ron Bar is the framework behind KidOFit and with a PhD in biomedical engineering he is definitely an expert in creating these shoes!  Yes, I have found the perfect pair of kid’s shoes.  Would you like to win a pair of KidOFit???

The winner of this giveaway is a pair of shoes from

KidOFit and it’s winner’s choice of the pair!

(Enter on the Rafflecopter below.)

*This giveaway is open to entries in the US only.
*The winner of this giveaway will be drawn no later than the evening of May 26th and will be emailed.  If the winner does not respond within 48 hours, a new winner will be drawn.
*This posting and giveaway are sponsored by KidOFit, but all opinions are strictly my own.

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One Small Child $50 Gift Certificate {Giveaway} – CLOSED

May 3, 2014 by Leave a Comment

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The little guy is 3-months today.  Wow.  That went by fast!  I still haven’t given you his birth story.  In time.  In time.  🙂   Definitely before he turns one.  Deal?  His birth was a very memorable one (remember only 5 minutes after we got to the hospital), so it will not be forgotten anytime soon.  😉  Tomorrow he will be given a name (for the records of our church) and a blessing.  We kept him home from church for a while, because of cold/flu season.  It’s safe to take him now.  So it’s time to get this boy blessed!  When I was searching around for a little blessing outfit for him I came across One Small Child.  This shop is known for their christening gowns.  It’s no wonder that they have so many different styles to choose from.

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 Each one more gorgeous than the next.

 

Did you know that One Small Child has more than just blessing outfits?  It’s true.  So very true.  One Small Child actually sent us this adorably dandy gift set for our newest arrival:

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Isn’t it adorable???  The older two are certainly having a blasts playing with the new baby.  And Banjo…  Well, he claimed that little blue suitcase for his very own.  It’s the perfect size for him to keep all of his treasures in.

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The winner of this giveaway is going to receive a $50 gift

certificate to spend at One Small Child!

(Enter on the Rafflecopter below.)

*This giveaway is open to entries worldwide!
*The winner of this giveaway will be drawn no later than the evening of May 12th and will be emailed.  If the winner does not respond within 48 hours, a new winner will be drawn.
*This posting and giveaway are sponsored by One Small Child, but all opinions are strictly my own.

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Monkey Face

April 30, 2014 by Leave a Comment

I’m so very glad that it decided to turn chilly around here again.  Not.  Will this winter ever end???  Okay so I just might be exaggerating slightly.  It’s not like it’s snowing outside or anything.  It’s not exactly freezing.  Okay it’s only in the 40’s right now here in St. Louis today.  But that’s cold, right?  It should NEVER be in the 40’s in April.  At least not in the Lou!  Good thing toADORN sent this monkey hat for Banjo.  He has been able to wear it.  In APRIL.

IMG_8966.pngIt’s super cute though, right?

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Here’s to hoping he won’t be wearing it in May.  😉

 

The deals at toADORN are major.  See for yourself.  Shop toADORN’s Featured Deal of the Day!

 

*This posting is part of my affiliation with toAdorn, but all opinions are strictly my own.

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Spring has FINALLY sprung!

April 9, 2014 by Leave a Comment

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I don’t know about where you are, but here in St. Louis the sun is shining.  The flowers are blooming.  The grass is turning a brilliant shade of green.  Yep.  It simply glorious outside.  The spring has finally sprung around here!  I knew this day was coming eventually, but I also knew that the weather wouldn’t just suddenly change over night.  Especially not after what we dealt with for what seemed like eternity.  We had the LONGEST winter ever here!  I’m sure this sentiment resonates with the rest of the country; except of course for places like Florida and California.  Most of the country is highly envious of those types of places.  I’m talking the raging, green-eyed monster.  For St. Louis at least there have been signs of the coming days of honeysuckle and lilacs for quite some time now.  Albeit very slowly, but it has been warming up and the forecast hasn’t been predicting any of those crazy snow storms.  In fact the recent thunderstorms and even tornadoes (scary as those are) in the St. Louis area led me to believe that spring really was on its way.  Yes, I believe it’s FINALLY here!

With the spring weather also comes the need for some spring fashion.  That very need actually sent me to the mall last week, but I returned home with much disappointment.  I only made one measly little purchase.  A somewhat (long sleeved; mind you) spring blouse that definitely won’t carry me into summer.  All of the stores must not have been catching on to the hints of spring, because they only had winter clothing in stock.  Heavy sweaters galore, but nothing for spring.  It’s possibly that they are now stocked for spring this week, but I was at the mall LAST week.  I don’t have time THIS week to go back.

In my desperation to have something that I could fit in (remember I just had a baby 9 weeks ago) for this warmer weather I turned to my old standby.  Online shopping.  I will admit that typically I’m a little hesitant with clothes shopping online.  It’s difficult to often know the sizing or how the item will fit.  Generally I’ll only shop online at stores that I’m familiar with already.  Or ones that my friends have recommended.  So it took A LOT of bravery on my part to place an order on a deal site.  But after this purchase:

photo-90I will be purchasing a lot more off of that deal site!

I’m absolutely in love with this top.  I found it on the Jane deal site for only $19.99!  Isn’t that a steal of a deal?  I’m talking waaaaayyyy dandy.  It has these faux buttons up the back.  Seriously going to be my favorite all spring and summer long!

Jane features boutique clothing items for up to 80% off.  Each deal only lasts a matter of days or until they sell out.  So some of the more popular deals are only be around for a few hours!  Like these two deals:

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GONE.  Totally gone.  I shouldn’t have waited so long to make my decision.

Good thing they still have plenty of these cute maxi skirts!

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Click here…

Don’t miss your chance to get a deal at Jane!

Now… What did you see at Jane that you’ve gotta have?

*I am part of the Jane affiliate program, but I really did purchase the above blue top with my own funds.  All opinions are strictly my own.

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