The first one we tried out was the Light Pink felt rhododendron which for a headband that has not just one, but two flowers fit nicely on Addie even with her being so petite.  It was soft, fit perfect, and she had absolutely no complaints, although I think I have her slightly trained at this point when it comes to head accessories. Although I think she still hates hats!

It is a nicely crafted headband, and is available in a ton of different colors, which is another up side for headbands.  Most moms, especially those like me… want to collect one in every color!

Next we modeled the Ladybug in white which is probably one of my favorites because it is the only headband that Addie has that isn’t a flower.

How cute is that?  I love the elasticity in the headbands as well because these can grow with her as time goes on.  She isn’t going to out grow them once she hits 6 months old like some of the other headbands I have for her.

Last one we tried out was the Rachel… I love this one as well… although when I hear “The Rachel” I think I will always think of Friends and the Jennifer Aniston haircut that was so popular for years…

I love this picture of Addison although she looks confused to say the least. LOL   I opted for the black because in the upcoming months we are going to have more formal holidays that we are going to be dressing up for and black goes with anything really.  And like the others it is something she can continue to grow into for a while.

The same design comes in several colors as well.  I love the white flower on the black headband as well, it was tough to decide between the two.

Couture Clips also offers a ton of other accessories besides just the soft headbands which I opted to review.   They have actual hard headbands with designs, and different accessories for older children, I love the glitter headbands, and have my eye on some for when Addison gets older and can wear those.

They also have clips, barrettes, hats, Pony O’s and much more including custom orders!

Couture clips soft headbands were provided to me for free to review on Momotics.com

Share/Save

The idea of the shade is genius, because we all know, once a baby falls asleep, we want them to stay sleepling!

The shade is sold for various different strollers, and infant carriers, so no matter what your little one has for a ride, there is a snooze shade to accommodate.  What I really like is the fact that they have them for infant carriers that most of us use to lug our little one around for their first months.

When it comes to new mothers, it is not hard to get them to register or buy all the new age gadgets, but some of us veteran mothers would wonder why the heck we would need something like this… right?

Ever try to drape a blanket or towel over a stroller or car seat to keep your little one asleep?  I know I have and now with two older children in tow, they are the first to try and pull the blanket off and say “HELLO BABY!!!!!”   No joke!

Wouldn’t it just be so much easier to put this over your little one and not worry about the slipping towel, or blanket and just go on your way?   Um, I do think so myself!

Are you a beach lover like I am?  Then you will love the fact that the Snooze Shade is also UPF50+ to protect your little ones skin from the rays of the sun without having to use sun screen which we know is a pretty big nono for new little ones.

And of course the shade is breathable… but I don’t think the shade would actually be on the market if it wasn’t!

This is a favorite of some celebrities also.  Last month I gave away a celebrity basket of baby goodies, and the snooze shade was actually included as a celebrity favorite!

Overall, I would totally recommend this to other mothers, it is one of those products we never would think we need then wonder how we ever lived without it!

The snooze shade was provided to me free of charge from Rachel Florio PR on behalf of Shooze Shade.

Share/Save

The funny story of it all? I got the pillow overnight-ed to me because I was so late in my pregnancy already.  I got it Friday morning… April 29th.  That afternoon I couldn’t wait to get both of the boys to sleep so I could cuddle up with my new pillow and enjoy it a little bit before bed that night. Thank god everyone took naps that day!

I unpacked it and jumped in bed, and loved every minute.  The pillow was just what the doctor ordered, it was a perfect combination of fluff and firm. That turned out to be one of the best naps I had my whole pregnancy, which is is probably a really good thing I did take that nap, because that night, before I got in bed for the night, where I should have used the pillow for the first time… my water broke!  Something I most certainly was not planning for.

Thankfully I was able to try it out before my big belly was gone!

I also wish that I was able to review this and check it out way earlier in my pregnancy, but I am certainly grateful because I am still using the pillow.  I am the kind of person who needs a couple pillows typically to get comfortable in bed, especially one between my legs.   And if you are a sleeper like I am… pregnant or not this pillow is totally for you.

In the past couple weeks though, I have been able to use it nursing also.  It has a nursing option, photoed below.

Now, if your husband is anything like mine, he may try and fight you for the pillow too.   When I was in the end of my pregnancy, my husband had retreated to the couch, because I was huge, we still had a three year old in our bed, and there really wasn’t enough room for all of us.  But now that all the kids have gotten the boot, we fight over this thing!

I seem to be winning for the most part, but on the weekend when he sneaks off for a nap, I am constantly catching him with it. Its ok though, I don’t mind sharing!  Haha!

I highly suggest checking it out, it is worth it!

The Today’s Mom Cozy Comfort Pregnancy Pillow was provided no cost for review from BabyAge.com

Share/Save

I was approached by Charlie Banana’s earlier in the year to review their cloth diapers, and I was certainly excited because still being so new to cloth diapering I really am not familiar with diapers other than AppleCheeks and FuzziBunz so any chance to expand my knowledge, and check out new diapers rocks.

I was provided, free of charge, a couple diapers for my youngest son, and the new baby (once she is here of course) as well as cloth feminine hygiene products, which of course I will be giving a try once Little Miss A makes her exit.

I was excited when I got the goodies in an awesome reusable tote bag, with all kinds of information on the product itself.

One of the first things I love is the fact that they have prints available!  Most larger cloth diaper companies only have color covers, and when I saw prints, I was super excited.  I am planning to purchase the butterfly cover for the baby shortly.

But other positives of the company as a whole includes their dedication to charity, something that really means something to be as a mother, and consumer. They are involved with operation smile, a charity that repairs cleft lip, cleft palate, and other facial disinformation in children.  While 1% of worldwide profits doesn’t sound like a ton of money, it is, and most of these surgeries cost as little as $240 in US dollars!  Crazy huh?

But back to the diapers. Although standard, the CB’s cover comes with two inserts, and the inserts themselves are nice and absorbent. We have been able to use them as overnight diapers without any kind of leaks, which for us is a big deal.  My youngest son is a huge pisser as some would call it, and for a while we had night time leaks while getting the hang of what diapers work for our family, and what don’t work for daytime trips, or overnight coverage.  Huge plus for us!

Another thing I loved was the variety of colors including black. The first time I saw a black cloth diaper was when I was approached by CB’s to review a couple of their diapers.  I had to have one!  I know it sounds silly to be so excited over a simple color of a diaper, but I think when it comes to my cloth stash, I am totally a color snob.

These two diapers we have waiting for Little Miss A currently… I am excited to be cloth diapering from infancy this time around since we started with Ben when he was a toddler.  It is a whole new world and project for me, but certainly exciting.  Another product of CB’s that I am excited about are the re-usable menstrual pads.

Why?  Well besides the fact that plastic pads, and your typical grocery store pads kill my legs and lady parts, and have caused a serious rash in the past, I needed a change!  I haven’t used them yet, but I have tried them on, and I can say not only do they fit perfectly, but the snaps and way they are packaged is genius!

In one package comes three, for a great price ($15.99) and they open up, and work awesome!

During the trying on process, I can tell you… they are as comfy as they look. Very soft, and comfortable compared to the typical pads most of us have been subjected to over the years. CB also markets re-usable breast pads as many of the cloth diaper companies today do. I am really excited to try those out myself also because those things are a must have in our house!

Overall, our experience with Charlie Banana’s I would give two thumbs up!  I will certainly be adding more to our cloth diaper stash over the years, and I am excited to see what the company will be coming out with in the future.

Tune in today on Zulily.com to check out their boutique for diapers, wipes, and re-usable breast pads for up to 40% off of retail prices!  Great deal, but hurry up!  It is only for a limited time!  Till they sell out, or April 10th, at 6am!

Products were provided by Charlie Banana’s free of charge for review

Share/Save

With my older children I didn’t really pump much. Here and there, but my single Medela swing pump really was all I needed. This time around things are different though. Knowing the type of schedule I am keeping, and knowing the type of commitments I have just in the two months after the expected arrival of this baby, I knew it wouldn’t cut it.  On top of that, I killed my breast pump when Benjamin was born, and I was hospitalized for kidney stones before we figured out my breast milk was causing problems for him.

There are so many different pumps on the market, but the only pump that is really considered “Green” and by that I mean, Hygeia recycles breast pumps, and uses materials that are reusable, and recycled.   When the pumps are no longer needed, they also offer a full recycling program which is awesome. Instead of going to a landfill someplace to take up more space, and waste, they can be used again.

Also, Hygeia is WHO code complaint, unlike some of the other companies currently marketing breast pumps. There is a lot of debate about this and I personally try to stay out of it myself because I have had to use formula in the past, but I certainly find myself disgusted by some of the marketing campaigns that violate the WHO code for marketing breast milk substitutes.

Hygeia says on their website:

Hygeia supports the World Health Organization Code (WHO CODE) on the marketing of breast milk substitutes. We are proactively promoting the WHO CODE as we feel that implementation of the CODE will increase breastfeeding durations and have a positive effect on breastfeeding. We further support International effort to improve mother and baby health outcomes and feel that this is best done through consensus decisions such as the World Health Organization. Read more about out in-depth efforts in this one-page sheet.

Why Hygeia supports the WHO CODE (PDF)

Great information, I encourage all of my readers to take the time to check out.

Hygeia has been featured almost everywhere lately, recently I even saw them on the Today Show, and I think it is awesome more mothers are becoming exposed to the great company which is really making a difference to mothers and babies.

But in reality my whole reason for featuring the breast pump before I can actually physically use it, although I may be using it earlier than I expected, depending on the outcome of our ultrasound on Wednesday, is that Earth Day is coming. April 22nd will mark the 41st year we are celebrating Earth Day, and we all know when it comes to pregnancy, parenting, and our children it is sometimes hard to take a minute and see which products really are the most environmentally friendly for us to use.  And even though it takes extra time, we should take these factors into consideration because long after we are gone, our children will be here, and be impacted by the choices we made, positive or negative.

Be sure to check out the clip below from Hygeia on The Today Show, and come back in a couple weeks to check out my full review after having the chance to physically use the pump!

Visit msnbc.com for breaking news, world news, and news about the economy

Follow @HygeiaBaby on Twitter, and Facebook!

Share/Save

I must say, even in the past three years since my oldest son was born, the technology surrounding breastfeeding, and nursing in general has really taken off. I never had a double pump because I didn’t have the need to really pump a ton, but with this baby and the busy nature of life in general lately, a double pump is a must have for successfully breastfeeding. On top of that, I was looking around for a kick ass hands free nursing bra/bustier because of course I just cannot sit and hold a breast pump on for an hour to pump.  Being able to multi-task is a must, especially with two other toddlers!

Enter the Simple Wishes Hands Free Pumping Bra!  The answer to my pumping prayers. Not only is the bra easy to get on, it is amazingly simple to actually hook the pump up to, and get situated. You do not need 14 hands like you would think some fancy contraption would require.

I gave it a test ride a couple weeks ago, of course as soon as it came in the mail I had to open it up and check it out. I am a total dork like that, and it worked out fantastically. Not only that but it is actually very comfortable!  Which when we think about it, or at least in past experience for me, there aren’t tons of nursing stuff (including pumps) that can be labeled as comfortable.

This video highlights many of the amazing features of the Simple Wishes nursing bustier including:

• Different options for sizing, and re-sizing your bustier over time, and depending on the fullness of the breast at the time of pumping to help create a better/tight seal.
• Different wearing options
• Various (4) layers of support while pumping

I would say this is a complete must have for all mothers who have a need to pump, whether it is to just share the experience of feeding with a partner, or going back to work full time.

This week to giveaway to the readers, Simple Wishes has offered not one but two Simple Wishes Hands Free pumping Bustiers!

How can you enter?  Each of the below is ONE entry!

1. Follow Momotics on Twitter, and Facebook

2. Follow Simple Wishes on Twitter, and Facebook

3. Tweet about the giveaway : Win a @SimpleWishes_ Pumping Bra from @BirthBabiesBlog’s Virtual Baby Shower!  http://bit.ly/hbNthu   (ONLY ONE TIME ENTRY)

4. Subscribe to Momotics (scroll down on the left hand sidebar)

Remember to leave a comment for each entry!

Good luck!  I will announce the winners, in this post Sunday of next week before I post the new Virtual Baby Shower Giveaway!

Simple Wishes provided the Hands Free Nursing Bustier free of charge for this review/promotion.

****Edit!*****

And the winners are… Comment #14 & 5!

Congrats to Jenna Z @CorgiPants  and Old School/New School Mom! @OSNSMom!

Share/Save

With my oldest two children, we basically never used the crib at all. It was a glorified changing table, and laundry rack. But this time around, especially after battling with my second son who had no interest in co-sleeping, and would rather sleep in a playpen, or co-sleeper… I wanted to really work on getting her to use a crib once she is a couple months old. The problem I was having was the cribs out there and their styles. Just really didn’t fit what I saw or wanted for the nursery. Then I came across the Babyletto New Haven crib. I was so excited to find a canopy looking crib, but when I found out it was discontinued, I was heart broken.

After working one-on-one with amazing rep’s at Babyletto, I decided on the mercer model. And I couldn’t be more happy! What I love most is the two tone coloring of the crib. I opted for the white and espresso mix. I wanted something light that would go nice for a little girl.

Now for the review on assembly, I will include some comments from my husband.  (I was going to make a small video of it, but I feared for my life once my husband actually started building it… if I came in with a camera, I may not be here right now…)

On the ease of assembly: “It was easy to assemble to a certain extent, I had some issues with the bottom drawer installation.”

On the directions: “The directions were very simple, and easy to understand and follow”

Overall he said it was pretty easy to assemble. Maybe I could have even done it myself?  Although I may have broken a bone trying. I will stick to building bouncers and swings.

And the crib itself goes perfectly with the wall art, and contemporary style we have decided to go with decorating this time around.

I plan on posting more pictures obviously once we have a crib mattress in the crib itself, along with our bedding set, and wonder bumpers up. The nursery is still a real work in progress, and I couldn’t have picked a better crib. I highly suggest any of the babyletto cribs for those who are choosing to use a crib for their little one. Even if you just get the crib as a safe place for peace of mind while you shower, or do chores around the house. My main concern was having someplace I can put the baby where my son’s cant get to her and run her over.

I think another huge perk is the drawer underneath the crib. It not only slides out, but it also gives much needed extra storage room that we don’t have right now. I will be able to put all of our extra blankets, bedding, and whatever else under there and once the rest of the crib bedding is on, it won’t be visible.

Anyone else have a babyletto crib they love?

Be sure to check back next week to the Momotics Virtual Baby Shower when for week #7 we will be reviewing, and giving away a Little Bundle from AppleCheeks cloth diapers!

Disclaimer:  Babyletto provided our crib free of charge for review.

Share/Save

When I was growing up, one of my favorite toys from the 80′s was Alphie. Remember him?  The learning robot everyone had? Well fast forward a couple decades, with children of my own, I was contacted and asked if I would like to review the new modern day Alphie with my toddler. The age range for Alphie is three and up, seeing as Camden is certainly advanced in his vocabulary, and he he will be three in just three months, I thought lets go for it!

When the Fed Ex guy showed up, he was super excited because I had hyped him up for a couple days telling him he was going to get his own Robot. Yes, any almost three year old will kind of go a little nuts with something like that. I wanted to make sure from the get go, he was interested enough as this was the first review I was truly depending on him to basically write for me.

Let me tell you, Alphie has become a huge hit in our house.  Not only is he educational, and has been helping Camden to learn his numbers and colors (He thinks that only certain numbers exist  1, 2, 4, 5, 7, and 9 because those are the numbers of the fire trucks at Daddys fire house) .  He is starting to learn how to count one through ten, not just the numbers of the fire trucks. He is also starting to learn his colors better. For the most part he knows them already, but sometimes gets confused. Alphie has helped him to have minimal confusion in the color department.

Now for his opinion…

Camden Says :

I like my robot, Mommy where is he?
(As he goes off to play with him)

I like his buttons, they are fun to push. Sometimes I like confusing my robot by pressing all the buttons at once.
(Thank you for your expert opinion Camden!)

There you have it people, Alphie is where it is at for the kids!  I would totally suggest him, and heck, in another year, I am probably going to have to buy a second one when Ben is older and they start fighting over the bigger toys, like Robots.

Share/Save

I wanted something that we could use as a household, instead of something that I could only use for one person, or as a gift, so I picked a cute welcome sign we had personalized to our last name, as well as our names, with the kids names, a family gift.

Obviously our sign said Elwood. LOL!  I am a sucker for Canvas. I have canvas paintings, and art work in our house, one of my favorite being my Marilyn Monroe hand painted framed canvas print. When I got our welcome sign in the mail, I was impressed. It is hand crafted, and made of great, and strong materials. I know for sure because my toddler got a hold of it!

The Bio of Dakota’s Personalized Gifts says :

We started in a spare bedroom about 5 years ago more as a part time hobby than a business with The Anniversary Rose making roses for the traditional anniversary gifts (i.e. 1st year paper, 2nd year cotton, 5th year wood etc) cutting rose petals by hand with scissors.  It quickly grew from a part time hobby to a full time business, adding help and equipment to keep up. Then, we started expanding into personalized anniversary gifts.  We started getting many requests from our customers for personalized wedding, Mother’s & Father’s Day and Christmas gifts etc.  That’s when we started Dakota’s Personalized Gifts. Soon the business took over a second bedroom and the garage, the following year it occupying two bedrooms, the garage & a full basement. With no room left to expand we were forced to move into a commercial location in 2009.  We continue to expand with new products and updated equipment all the time which allows us to produce most of the personalized items in house.

It is certainly a company I plan to use for myself in the future!

For a discount to their online store use the following :

code  10-AUG31  offers $10 off $50 purchase
code  15-AUG31  offers $15 off $75 purchase

These coupon codes are scheduled to end on August 31st but if you e-mail them, and let them know you are a reader of Momotics, they will extend the coupon codes within a reasonable amount of time, meaning weeks, not around Christmas time! LOL

Share/Save

It is a sleek looking car, and let me tell you, anything is an upgrade from the 1995 Chevy Blazer I am currently driving around town. (Long story) I absolutely loved basically everything about this car. The technology is unbelievable.  Of course there were a ton of options I did not indulge in for fear I would break them, or break the car.

It was amazingly roomy. With two kids, and all there “accessories” in tow, it certainly made life easy. Most of the time we opted to have the third row of seats down for more trunk room, but on the last full day with the car we made a trip half way across the state with family for outlet shopping. 4 adults, two kids in carseats, a stroller, and a trunk full of bags, and we still had more room.

It also fit ALL the stuff I took back from BlogHer, my kids, and their stuff too… See picture below.

Besides the room, the GPS was a god sent for all the little mini trips we made, even in areas I was familiar with, but may not know the back roads so much. I swear every time we got into the car for more than 10 minutes, I would turn around, and the kids would be out cold.

How cute is that?

Now a couple of my comic experiences with the MKT. Every other Friday, my husband insists on getting his hair cut. I think it is something he is still holding onto from being in the Marines, as well as just having having his hair longer. Since I met him (in 1999) I have never seen him with hair longer than he has now. After his bi-weekly clip, we headed up the Boston Post Road a couple miles, and stopped at another store we needed to pick up some odds and ends from. While he was running into the store (and I stayed with the kids in the car) a young kid driving a brand new Infinity sports car stopped him at the door and asked him what we were driving. He told him it was a Lincoln MKT and the guy started asking him a ton of questions. Of course being the male he is, my husband knew everything about the car, and the kid in the Infinity drove off insisting he must have a new Lincoln now.

I guess I sold one for Ford, your welcome guys!  LOL

We also took a trip to the brand new Sonic Drive In they put in Connecticut. The first in the state! We enjoyed tater tots, and burgers while I FLIPPED out and picked every little crumb up along the way.
Seeing as I am talking about food, we also took our “pimp car” which it was dubbed for the week to one of the new Crumb Cupcakes locations.

Overall, we did a lot, and really enjoyed the car. My toddler has been asking since yesterday afternoon when we came back from dropping it off where the new car went.

Well kiddo, it was awesome to have, and spoil ourselves with for a week, but now it is back to reality!

Thank you again to the Ford Motor Company for the opportunity to borrow the car, check out, and review. It was a great experience for our family, and we loved every minute of the MKT!  If it was in the cards right now, I would be on my way to my local Ford/Lincoln dealership to pick up my very own!

Share/Save