Baby

Bump Ahead! Earth Mama Angel Baby ~ Giveaway

Published January 18, 2012 | By Julie Kieras

This event is brought you by our exclusive event sponsor: A Mother’s Boutique!

I’m so excited about announcing our pregnancy, I had to start my Bump Ahead Maternity / Baby Event a wee bit early (it’ll really get going in February!).

The past month I’ve been using a great set of products especially for mamas-to-be by Earth Mama Angel Baby – the A Little Something for The Mama-To-Be pampering set.

I’ve enjoyed hearing my readers’ pregnancy experiences from your comments on my pregnancy announcement post… I think we can agree, that first trimester takes it out of most women… it feels good to give yourself a little “extra” pampering when you’re hit with nausea and exhaustion! Since I’ve had both of those pregnancy side-effects, I’ve certainly been enjoying these lovely travel-sized items:

Happy Mama Hand to Toe Wash -a natural Ginger/Lime castile soap that foams up – smells and feels GREAT!
Happy Mama Spray - wipe out those queasy moments with a burst of citrus and ginger – I spray some on every day (and throughout the day!). It’s also recommended for car-sick kids!
Earth Mama Body Butter and Natural Stretch Oil – get your skin ready to grow with baby! Oh boy!
Organic Morning Wellness Tea ease nausea any time of day (and it’s delicious!).

The set comes in a cute purse pack, great for travel. Or, tuck into a baby shower gift so the mama gets a little treat too!

Earth Mama Angel Baby is committed to making products safe for pregnancy and for the entire family! Their products are “100% toxin-free, cruelty-free, vegan, and free from all artificial preservatives, fragrances and dyes.” Earth Mama Angel Baby carries products for pregnancy, post-partum, breastfeeding, baby, family, and gifts, as well as baby loss products. I was especially touched by their care and concern for moms who have lost their babies, understanding that they need special post-partum care as well… sometimes this is forgotten.

BUY IT: Check out the full product line at Earth Mama Angel Baby, and follow them on Facebook and Twitter to keep up with news and sales! Oh, and be sure to check out their Free Stuff page – recipes, articles, printables – even a birth plan!

WIN IT: One lucky reader will win A Little Something for The Mama-To-Be set from Earth Mama Angel Baby! (ARV $19.95).

How have you pampered yourself (or someone you know) when pregnant?

TO ENTER: Leave a topic-related comment on this post to enter! Generic comments like “Enter me” or “I want to win!” do not qualify.

GIVEAWAY RULES: Giveaway ends 11:59 EST on Monday, January 30, 2011. Winner is selected via And The Winner Is and emailed directly; winner must reply within 48 hours of email notification. Good luck! Open US and CANADA. Fulfillment handled by Earth Mama Angel Baby.

DISCLOSURE: I received a product for my use and review. All opinions are honest and 100% my own!

Posted in baby, Giveaways, health, organic, pregnancy | 79 Comments

Bump Ahead!

Published January 16, 2012 | By Julie Kieras

I am VERY happy to announce to the world… #10 on my Stars & Wishes list will be happening this year!

It’s been a long road of visits to doctors, diets, and not-the-most-patient drumming of fingers…but… we are now 12 weeks pregnant! The first trimester is nearly over… it wasn’t as bad as my first pregnancy (which was all-day-sickness weeks 6-15), but I have suffered from frequent migraines, and bouts of severe joint pain. I am hoping these ease up!

We’re due July 29th… our 22 month old doesn’t really get it, but most of the time when I ask if he’s excited to be a big brother, he says “Yes!”

I’ll be sharing pregnancy updates with you… and also a great maternity / new baby event (of course!). So stay tuned for the Bump Ahead Maternity Event (or get a sneak peek at my sponsors by clicking on the Event Button on my nav bar above!)!

Were your pregnancies different each time?

Posted in about me, baby, pregnancy | 32 Comments

Fun with MixBook ~ Giveaway *CLOSED

Published October 15, 2011 | By Julie Kieras

One of my “imaginary motherhood” dreams was to have amazing pictoral chronicles of my son’s life, and smoothly edited DVDs of each moment. Yeah, … then life happened. Photos and video simply take a lot of time to process and organize (and I truly love real-actual scrapbooking, except for the time!). I have folders and folders of digital images. A few times I have used my digital scrapbooking software to make albums. But then I don’t ever print them!

Photo albums are one of those projects for a “rainy day.” Well guess what, consider it pouring outside, because MixBook let me create a beautiful photo album in literally minutes.

I created a Camping Adventures album for our family. After two years of camping with a baby, I felt it truly deserved its own album. I loved that there was already a camping / adventure theme in MixBook, so I chose that – perfect!

First I uploaded photos. Then I let MixBook “auto-populate” my book. This created a nice layout, keeping similar photos together in collage-like pages. I tweaked the book a bit, changing backgrounds, adding pre-designed layouts. I added text and a few more graphics, and my book was done!

Cuteness, right?

I could have spent hours tweaking a million other things, but I felt good about the speedy version! MixBook has sophisticated templates for just about any life occassion or style. If you’re like me, you’ll be so happy the album is done, you won’t want to bother tinkering!

An interesting feature of MixBook is you can collaborate with friends and family to create a book, by uploading images and designing pages together over the Internet. I can’t wait to think of a cool project for that feature!

My MixBook arrived within about a week. It’s a neat, shiny photo album of all last year’s camping adventures! My son and I have fun reading “the camping book” before nap time. It’s a great way to remind him of the fun times we had when he was a baby!

Now I have to get going making a camping book for THIS past summer! I don’t want to get behind again!!

Buy it: Visit MixBook for beautiful photo books for your family! AND if you’re a first time customer, get 20% off with this CODE: AYEARW20

Win it: One lucky reader will get a code for ONE 20-page, 11×8.5 landscape, hardcover photo book with free US Ground shipping (code will expire 11/30/11). (ARV $19.99).

How to enter: Leave a comment for each entry task (1 comment/1 entry – total 3)

Connect with MixBook on Facebook (see button!) or Twitter
Connect with our blog in your favorite way (one entry!): GFC, email, Twitter, or Facebook
Share this giveaway one time on Facebook or Twitter (easy share buttons below!)

GIVEAWAY RULES: Giveaway ends at 11:59, EST, Tuesday, October 25, 2011. A winner will be chosen via And The Winner Is… WP Plugin. I will email the winner and they have 48 hours to respond. Open US/CAN/UK. Must be 18+ to enter/win. Fulfillment handled by MixBook via myself!

DISCLOSURE: I was sent a product sample to facilitate this review. All opinions are honest and 100% my own.

Posted in baby, camping, family, gifts, Giveaways, memories, review

Let’s Eat Bib by Two Sweet Potatoes ~ Giveaway *CLOSED

Published September 13, 2011 | By Julie Kieras

I know I am not the only mom with a baby who ends up covered head to toe in blueberries and bananas after every meal!

I have tried to give my son independence and allow him to learn to feed himself. He’s doing a good job, actually. Still, his enthusiasm for food and exploring the textures, makes for some big clean up jobs! I love how he’ll happily tell me “messy!” when food is all over the place! Yes, messy, indeed!

Which is where the awesome Etsy shop Two Sweet Potatoes comes in! Nikki is such a great crafter! She actually just created this Let’s Eat bib style for her shop recently, because I asked her about larger bib sizes since I loved her drooler bibs!

Two Sweet Potatoes’ Let’s Eat bibs are made from 100% organic cotton, including the appliqué. And look at the designs Nikki can create! So sweet, right! Boy or girl, animal, flower, ribbons… you could really personalize a bib like this! I love her turtle bib the most!

It’s perfect for toddlers who are more active in their eating! I love how it’s full coverage! We love our tan Terry bib by Two Sweet Potatoes, and my husband jokes that our baby looks like Clint Eastwood in a western duster when he wears this! But I LOVE that on a Sunday morning when he’s I his Sunday best, I can have him wear this bib, eat, and when I take the bib off… Voila! He is clean and ready to go to church!

These bibs go easy on / off just like a t-shirt, and is high on the neck, and covers all the way down to the baby’s knees! I think every baby should have one or two of these bibs at least!!

You’ll love working with Nikki - she is a true professional and artist who is always seeking to provide comfortable, yet stylish clothing and accessories for infants and toddlers. She especially loves making organic clothing because “it supports healthy living from the workers producing the raw materials down to the user of the end product.” Her desire to see organic items more available and affordable “inspires me to make organic goodies for infants and toddlers.”

Buy it: You can find these great Two Sweet Potatoes bibs in her Etsy shop for $15.00. And I am sure if you convo Nikki she’ll create a color scheme and design to suit you! You’ll also find fun printed drooler bibs, burp cloths, hats, pants, and tops in her shop… and be looking for her NEW cloth diaper wipes coming in October (don’t worry, I’ll be sharing those with you SOON!).

UPDATE: And the winner is… Deborah S. Congrats!

Win it: Aren’t we lucky? One reader will win a Let’s Eat bib of their own!! Enter below! Winner gets their choice of bibs!

How to enter: Leave a comment for each entry task (1 comment/1 entry – total 4)

Check out Two Sweet Potatoes on Etsy tell me your favorite bib design!!
Connect with Two Sweet Potatoes on Facebook
Connect with our blog in your favorite way (one entry!): GFC, email, Twitter, or Facebook
Share this giveaway one time on Facebook or Twitter (easy share buttons below!)

GIVEAWAY RULES: Giveaway ends at 11:59, EST, Friday, September 23, 2011. A winner will be chosen via And The Winner Is… WP Plugin. I will email the winner and they have 48 hours to respond. Open US. Must be 18+ to enter/win. Fulfillment handled by Two Sweet Potatoes.

DISCLOSURE: I was sent a product sample to facilitate this review. All opinions are honest and 100% my own.