Spark of Amber Review and Giveaway!

Hey there! If you are a mom (or dad) of a teething child you probably have heard of amber teething necklaces. Spark of Amber kindly provided one for us to try out and I'm excited to share our experience with you! If you haven't heard of Amber necklaces let me allow Spark of Amber to tell you a little bit about them. 
Spark of Amber:

Baltic Amber is a fossilized resin. Europeans greatly prize this beautiful stone for its claimed 100% natural anti-inflammatory, pain relieving, and calming properties. The healing oils of the Baltic Amber are said to relieve teething pain, tame baby’s irritability and relieve inflammation in the throat, ear, and stomach. 

The necklace I received can be found here. It is a great length and fits both our 7 month old and our 2 year old. The pieces are nice and smooth and has not irritated their skin, which is something I was a bit worried about because both our children have very sensitive skin.  Safety! As parent's we're always thinking about our kid's safety right? When I received our necklace I was very glad to see that it is knotted between each and every bead, which means if for some reason it breaks they won't be all over the floor as a choking hazard. If it broke, only one bead would come loose - at the place where the string broke.

They are cute! My daughter has not really had an experience with jewelry yet so I wasn't sure if she would tug at it or be annoyed with it on. I was surprised when she didn't even seem to notice it was on. It's a cute fashion accessory for her even without regard to the beads doing their job. I was even more worried that my 7 month old would tug at it and was a tad worried he'd yank it off and break it. It's long enough on him that I can slip it under his shirt (which is actually ideal so the beads contact more of his skin) and he forgets all about it. 
I wasn't sure how a yellow necklace would look on a boy but I think it works! For the most part though he has been wearing it under his shirt to give more contact with the skin (except for the pictures) so if that is a concern for you wearing it under the shirt makes it virtually unseen. 

So does it work? Well Wes hasn't really been teething this week (or maybe he has and the necklace has helped??) so it's hard to say. I was quite skeptical but I had a headache the other day and decided to put the necklace in my fist to see if it helped and my headache went away pretty quickly. Placebo affect? Maybe, but it can't hurt so next time I get a headache I'll be trying it again! 

** These necklaces are not intended to be chewed on and they are not intended to be worn while sleeping for safety reasons**
Wes had just woken up from a nap and was still a little sleepy when I was taking pictures :)

Giveaway time! Spark of Amber is giving away a teething necklace to one of my readers. Use the widget below to enter. 
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TV Mount Winner!

The random winner chosen by the Rafflecopter widget is:
Laura Ramsey Ari

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SANUS TV Mount (Giveaway!)

When Norah first started crawling and eventually walking, my biggest concern was her getting into a cabinet that wasn't locked or getting to the dog food if it wasn't put up. It hadn't even occurred to me that a piece of our furniture could fall on her and hurt her (or worse). I was ignorant to the fact that kids die from that sort of thing... until I read this blog post. I don't even have words to explain how scary that blog post is to me. If you skipped over the link without reading it go back and read it.  Recently I read about a boy in Kansas who died when a TV fell on him (news article here). Before having kids I certainly didn't see TV's as a source of danger for a child! 

I was recently contacted by SANUS and here is what they have to say about mounting TV's as a means to protect children:   "Bringing this risk to the forefront, SANUS, the leading designer and manufacturer of flat panel TV wall mounts, has partnered with Safe Kids Worldwide.  By educating consumers on the risk of unsecured flat panel TV’s, SANUS and Safe Kids Worldwide offer safe solutions for families across the nation by reducing TV tip-over related injuries and fatalities.

A 2011 US Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) report on flat panel TV safety revealed:

·         A child is killed every three weeks from an unsecured TV

·         Every 45 minutes a child visits an emergency room due to a TV tip-over related injury

·         Between 2000 and 2011, 215 fatalities have resulted from TV tip-over

·         An estimated 17,000 people each year, the majority of which are children, are treated for injuries from TV tip-overs

·         Reported cases have increased almost 25% from 2006  to 2010, and over the last 10 years, injuries have increased by 31%"

The really exciting part is that they are offering a reader a flat panel SANUS TV Vuepoint Mount F180 for free! So if you have a TV in your home that you have not mounted yet, here is your chance to enter for a free mount! If you are interested in purchasing one of the mounts you can do so here.

This giveaway is super easy! Everyone gets and entry just for reading this post. There are a few opportunities for extra entries thrown in of course. 

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*Disclaimer: Giveaway winner must be 18 years or older and be a resident of the US. All thoughts and opinions are my own. SANUS is not financially compensating me for this post. SANUS is providing me with a mount for review upon receiving the item. 

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Moby MLB Wrap Review and Giveaway!

*You can enter to win your own MLB Moby Wrap (team of your choice, 19 teams currently available and I believe there are more being added soon!) at the bottom of this post.
Like I said before, when I heard that Moby was coming out with an MLB line I was so excited! I immediately had my eye on one. My husband doesn't have a problem using our orange Moby wrap that we have but I knew he'd love to be seen carrying around our little boy that is due in February in a Cubs wrap. 

Moby shipped my wrap on a Friday and I got it on the mail on a Monday, talk about fast shipping. It came so efficiently packaged too that it fit very nicely in our mailbox. It's amazing how tightly they can get it wrapped.

If you are new to my blog you may not know that we have a 15 month old who is 18lbs and I am almost 20 weeks pregnant with our second (a little boy due in early Feb.). While our daughter does walk, we find it easy to wear her verses using her stroller when we are going to be around a lot of people such as farmers markets, festivals and the like - then of course on hikes it makes a lot more sense to wear her. 
So how does the husband feel about it? We have another Moby wrap but we got in the habit of using a backpack type carrier for whatever reason. After Matt, my husband wore Norah around in this wrap for awhile he said that this is much more comfortable than another carrier we have. Plus he gets to show his team spirit :) A lot of guys might think that wraps are just for women to wear, but he said that having the Cubs logo on it makes it perfect for him :)
Here is the fit on Matt from the back:

Um Dad, get me in that thing!

*We always leave a hand on our daughter while being worn just for added security, but Matt stayed hands free for the pictures and felt she was very secure the whole time. 
How do I feel about it? Well I already knew that I liked Moby Wraps. I love how secure they feel and how comfortable the fit is. While it does take a small bit of time to get it put on, I've found that if I put it on at home and wear it in the car and just put her in it when we get where we are going. That solves the problem of it touching the dirty parking lot. My only wish was that I could get it so that I could take her in and out without having to rewrap it. I'm sure those that are more talented than me are able to do so :) I just can't get her out without it getting loose. As far as the MLB line goes, when I hold it next to my other Moby it doesn't feel quite as soft, but to be fair, I haven't washed it yet (we were too excited to try it out!) so I'm sure it will be softer after we wash it. It is soft though don't get me wrong! It's just more t-shirt like prior to washing it. The Cubs logo is soft and doesn't interfere with the wrapping at all. It's the perfect size and I don't feel like the logo will be fading or peeling off so I'm not scared of the logo getting damaged.  Wearing Norah during a work day at our church

Both my husband and I will be using this wrap, so I definitely recommend it for both men and women. If you are already a lover of Moby you will recognize the same quality and comfort as your other carriers. If you are new to Moby you'll love how comfortable it is! It's so much better on my back than just carrying her around, especially now that she is getting heavier. 
Want to win your very own MLB Moby Wrap? Of course you do! Even if you are not expecting or do not have a young child I'm guessing that you know someone that would love this! It's super easy to enter to win one! No crazy voting or posting to bug your friends. Simply use the Rafflecopter widget below (very easy to use!) to enter. You have the chance for 4 entries a person. "Liking" Moby and this blog's facebook pages get you into the giveaway and posting a comment here gets you an extra entry as well as tweeting about it (You do NOT have to comment or tweet to enter, it just gets you extra chances).  a Rafflecopter giveaway *I was in no way financially compensated for my review. All thoughts and opinions are my own. I was in no way compensated for a positive review. An MLB wrap was provided to me for this review. 

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MG Bowtique (Giveaway and 10% off for everyone!)

*Giveaway posted at the bottom of this entry. One winner will win a free bow (up to a $5 value) and everyone who enters the giveaway and mentions my blog when ordering will get 10% off your order or $5 or more! (shipping additional) I will be giving the winner's info to MG Bowtique and the two of you will go from there.


Okay so I have to admit something. I'm a bit of a girly girl. I've gotten pretty lazy about being girly myself, but I love all things girly... you know the pink and sparkles. So knowing this, it shouldn't come as a surprise to hear that I like putting bows in Norah's hair (well she is still working on trying to get some hair so I guess I should say on her head). In fact, Norah has been wearing MG bows since before she was born :)

I actually know the person who runs MG Bowtique and have seen her work from the very beginning and it's been so fun so see how many new creative things she has done. I mean she makes ribbon turn into sunflowers, how fun is that?? She doesn't just do bows for babies/toddlers but also for older kids and also adults. She even does some for dogs :)

She does have a Facebook page which you can find HERE. She showcases her work there, but then she does fun things like sometimes on Friday she will do "Freebie Friday" where the first person to comment gets the pictured bow for free. I love watching out for those :) She also has an Etsy page.

Here are a few bows posted on her page that I love and want to share with you:
This is the next type I want to order (for both myself and Norah)

Great summer one!

Okay here are the details on the giveaway. As usual it is open to US residents who are at least 18 years old. The giveaway is for a free bow from MG Bowtique valued up to $5 (If you are wanting a bow that is more than $5 I believe she will give you a $5 credit towards your order). Also as I said before, anyone that enters the giveaway and mentions my blog will get 10% off their order through July 20th (in stock ribbon only please and shipping additional).

Here you go, you know what to do :) Don't forget that when the winner is chosen at random I will check to make sure you have done the action you said you done for the entry (such as liking a FB page). Sadly I have had people lie and say they have done an action when they have not.
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Fish Clip Review and Giveaway

A few days ago I got these cute clips in the mail! How adorable are they?? They are not only simple to use but I have to admit I have sat for several minutes just opening and closing them :) They make a fun clicking sound as they close, I can't help it! The top fins pull back to tighten the clip and you press the side fin to open it back up.

There is a magnet on the back which makes it so easy to just toss them on the fridge - no digging through a messy kitchen drawer to find one.

While these are super cute, they are actually really great at doing what they were made to do - keeping things fresh. So far I have used them on bread and on cereal bags. I HATE those annoying twist ties on bread. I never untwist it the right way and I end up tightening it even more. This worked great on our bread.

Fish Clip is giving away a 3 pack to two of my readers! Each 3 pack is valued at $6.99. It is super simple to enter. Simply use the RaffleCopter widget below to "like" their facebook page and there are several options for extra entries. You must actually do the action for the entry to count - if you try to cheat the system by saying you've already done the action and you are chosen as the winner and you haven't actually done it, another winner will be drawn. Sadly I have had this happen.

Must be a U.S. resident over 18 to win. Prizes will be shipped July 10th.

The winners have been selected and will be/have been emailed.

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BabyLegs Review & Giveaway

I'm so excited that my BabyLegs giveaway is finally here! First though I have a review on the product so you can see just what it is that I am giving away.
           I received 3 pairs of leggings and 1 pair of knee high socks. They are so adorable! My favorite is Taffy pattern leg warmer which is usually priced at $12 but right now they are $10. Also if you go to their website there is a code that allows you to get buy one get one free on their clearance items (SunBogo is the code). The socks/leggings came in an envelope and included a cute little postcard.  All of the products seem to be of good quality.

          One of the first things I noticed when digging into them was how easy the leggings were to take out of the packaging. Okay, okay, I know that might sound really silly! But really I hate either pulling apart the little plastic things that hook clothing items together (or if I'm not being as lazy grabbing scissors for them). They are in the packaging in a way that you just pull the back of the packaging open and both leggings are free. The same was not true for the socks, but based on the different design of them I don't think it would be possible to not use the little plastic connector (I'm sure it has a name! lol)           One reason I was really excited to review this product is because we can't keep socks on Norah, she pulls them right off. For some reason she hasn't even attempted to pull either the socks or the leg gins off which is great! 

           There are two other pluses for me for these BabyLeggings. Norah is not walking yet and does a lot of crawling around on our non-carpeted floors. This means she always has scrapes and bruises all over her legs at any given time. So far when she is wearing the leggings it has really helped protect her little legs. The leggings also make diaper changes easier than when she is wearing pants. Half the battle at our diaper changes is getting her pants off and then back on her.            I do have to say I don't think they are PERFECT. The tops of the leggings are the same size as the bottoms and my daughters ankles are not the same size of her thighs, and she doesn't even have that chunky of thighs. I'm sure the tops will eventually stretch out to fit her thighs as she grows but until then they are just a tad tight on her - and she is only at the year mark. I'm excited for her to grow into them though because Norah is on the short end (26 inches) so they were just a tad long on her, but that's fine because like I said she will grow into them.            My only other issue would be that I let her crawl around our deck a little bit in them and the material did "ball up" a little bit - but this is to be expected and I wouldn't really consider it a design flaw, just something to consider when they are still crawling and have them on.            Overall I would certainly recommend them. They have loads of cute patterns in both boy and girl colors. 
Ratings: (1=Not so great - 5= Awesome) Cute Factor: 5 Quality: 4 Customer Service: N/A Affordability: 4 (5 with the Bogo though!) Practicality: 4

Okay now on to the giveaway! BabyLegs is going to be providing one of my readers $50 worth of BabyLegs products! I'm really excited to be able to offer this to you guys! Just a few disclaimers - You must be at least 18 years old and BabyLegs can only ship to US addresses. You have the option to get a few entries and if you come back daily and tweet about it you will get an extra vote each day. 
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