Momma T and Family

Tuesday, May 29, 2012

Wordless Wednesday: Pool Time! {w/ Linky}

Baby E loved hanging in the pool this weekend while we were at my sister-in-law's for a BBQ!

The Joyful Giraffe {Review}

I'm always looking for a great deal on cloth diapers and cloth diapering accessories and recently discovered a lovely online shop called The Joyful Giraffe which features those things and so much more!

Before I tell you more about the shop, here is a little bio from Kate, The owner of The Joyful Giraffe:

I'm a wife to a great husband and a mom to 2 cloth diapered kiddos (ages 1 & 3 yrs). I grew up in Massachusetts, met my husband on a missions trip in Mexico and I now live with my family in Illinois. Before children, I taught at the high school and community college levels. My son was born in 2009 and then began my cloth diapering journey. We started using cloth to save money and the more I used them and learned about them, the more it became a hobby and quite possibly a fluff addiction!

Summer is almost here and what is a better way to celebrate then with a swim diaper giveaway from The Joyful Giraffe, hosted by Momma T and Baby E. Three (3) winners will have their choice of size and print from either a Gabby's swim diaper (pullup style) or Bummis Swimmi (with velcro).

Make sure to check out The Joyful Giraffe shop review here on my blog and visit The Joyful Giraffe shop which features new and gently used cloth diapers, cloth diaper accessories and more!

Enter to win one of the swim diapers using the Rafflecopter below. This giveaway open to US and Canadian Residents 18 and older, ends June 11th at 12am, EST.

Flats and Handwashing Challenge: Day 6

Today is Day 6 of the Second Annual Flats and Handwashing Challenge hosted by Dirty Diaper Laundry. I will be using flat cloth diapers for a whole week. You can read about the challenge and why I'm doing it in my Day 1 post.

I went to the grocery store yesterday and E was is a cover with a pad folded flat laid into a diaper cover. I put her in the shopping cart and started looking for what I needed. All of a sudden I notice poop on the cart seat. In my head I'm thinking "Oh my GOD!" E had a poo explosion! The poop escaped her diaper and was all over the cart seat. I turned red with embarrassment and quickly placed the items in my cart on a random shelf and speed walked right out the door. The worst part, I had NO wipes! I did have some paper towels so I wiped of the cart, laid and old sweater over her car seat and strapped her in.

For those of you not familiar with itti bitti, They are an Australian company that was established in late 2005 by founder and mom, Sue McLachlan. itti bitti was named after Sue's "itty bitty" daughter who is also the inspiration for her designs. itti bitti launched in the US in March of 2011 and their line consists of their amazing diapers, change mats, wet bags, wipes, nursing pads and more!

I was very excited when I learned that itti bitti also made changing mats and I looked forward to trying one! The change mat I had prior to the itti bitti Change Mat fell apart after multiple uses and was a plastic material and that wasn't very comfortable for Baby E to lay on.

Flats and Handwashing Challenge: Day 5

Today is Day 5 of the Second Annual Flats and Handwashing Challenge hosted by Dirty Diaper Laundry. I will be using flat cloth diapers for a whole week. You can read about the challenge and why I'm doing it in my Day 1 post.

Thursday went well considering I ran out of covers because they were all still drying from the previous day. Because i had no covers to use, I doubled up flats and worked with different folds. For example, I did a pad fold and layed it into a jo fold which worked out very well and can be seen below.

Potty Time- You Can Do It Pack {Review & #Giveaway}

If you follow my blog, you might know that we've used EC (Elimination Communication) in the past with Baby E and although we haven't been consistent, we've been working on potty training.

About a week ago we received the Potty Time- You Can Do it potty training pack. If you are a fan of Signing Time then this is totally for you because Potty Time comes from the makers of Signing time!

Flats and Handwashing Challenge: Day 4

Today is Day 4 of the Second Annual Flats and Handwashing Challenge hosted by Dirty Diaper Laundry. I will be using flat cloth diapers for a whole week. You can read about the challenge and why I'm doing it in my Day 1 post.

Wednesday went great! We actually went out and about for the first time while E was in flats. We visited my mom and while there, I changed her into a clean flat. Afterwards we went to Walmart and then home.

It was around 3pm when we got home so E went down for her late afternoon nap while I ironed the flats from the night before on my toilet seat since my ironing board is broken =/

We are mainly using the pad fold and the jo fold. I LOVE the jo fold!!

Flats and Handwashing Challenge: Day 3

Today is Day 3 of the Second Annual Flats and Handwashing Challenge hosted by Dirty Diaper Laundry. You can read about the challenge and why I'm doing it in my Day 1 post.

Yesterday went much better then the day before and there were fewer diapers that needed to be washed. Last night I washed about 4 flats, 3 receiving blankets and 2 covers. I hand washed the covers in my sink while I did the flats in the tub.

Wordless Wednesday: Cookie Monster {w/ Linky}

No, Not that Cookie Monster, just my little cookie monster. Someone *cough, my husband, cough* left the cookies a little to close to the play pen and this is the result:

Flats and Handwashing Challenge: Day 2

Today is Day 2 of the Second Annual Flats and Handwashing Challenge hosted by Dirty Diaper Laundry. You can read about the challenge and why I'm doing it in my Day 1 post.

It was a ROUGH first day. I'm still trying to figure out which flat folds work for us. My kite fold was a giant fail, my origami fold is pretty sloppy and My prefold fold is ok. I had no idea that there were so many ways to fold a flat diaper! They all have there pros and cons.

My fail fold

Flats and Handwashing Challenge: Day 1

If you noticed, I've had the little button above posted on the side of my blog for a few weeks now. This is because I am taking part in the Second Annual Flats and Handwashing Challenge hosted by Dirty Diaper Laundry.

For 7 days I will be using only flat cloth diapers and handwashing them in an effort to prove that cloth diapering can be affordable and accessible to all. You can learn more about the rules and why this challenge was started by visiting the announcement post. This year there are over 450 participants from all over the world!

This is my first time participating in the challenge and also my first time using flats, ever! I purchased flats specifically for this event and will be blogging about my experience each day for those interested in reading about my journey.

Welcome to the Extreme Amazon Giveaway! Momma T and Baby E has joined up with other awesome blogs to give away a $100 Amazon Gift Card to one lucky reader! You can choose to do as many entries as you’d like, but the more you do the better your chances of winning.

Giveaway ends June 3rd at 11:59 PM EST. Good luck!

New Clip “Fergus Shares a Legend” from Disney/Pixar's "Brave"!

Check out this new clip “Fergus Shares a Legend” from the upcoming Disney/Pixar film Brave!

One of my favorite things to indulge in is dried fruit. For those of you who didn't know, dried fruits are high in antioxidants, fiber and are also a good source of vitamins and minerals. They make a great snack for at home or on the go!

Bella Viva Orchards is located in California and offers gourmet fresh and dried fruit, nuts and chocolate which they produce and sell at their farmer's market stands located in northern California, select restaurants and on their website. Bella Viva is family owned and named for the Martino family's daughters, Vivian and Belle and means "beautiful long life" in Italian.

I recently received California's Fruit & Nuts (3lbs) from Bella Viva Orchards. It features 2 trays, one packed with sun dried apricots, white nectarines, pears, peaches and moyer plums and the other tray with roasted almonds and pistachios which are lightly salted.

The CookieCoo Dancing Star app lets kids play along with their favorite traditional children’s songs, like “Hokey Pokey,” while watching a whimsical 3D cookie character dance and sing with the music. CookieCoo Dancing Star is a perfect combination of fun and learning—it’s a game parents can feel good about letting their kids play, because they’ll be learning and practicing important concepts while they enjoy themselves.

Wordless Wednesday: Cousins {w/ Linky}

PMD Personal Microderm Review

I've always have had issues with my skin, particularly with acne and have had terrible break outs since my teens. My acne has caused a lot of facial scarring which is mostly camouflaged by my freckles but when I look in the mirror, I know it's there.

You wouldn't believe how excited I was to have the opportunity to use the PMD Personal Microdem! For those of you not familiar with Microdermabrasion, it's an non-invasive exfoliation technique that removes dead skin cells from the outermost layer of your skin.

The PMD Personal Microderm allows you to perform professional quality microdermabrasion treatments in the comfort of your own home and at a fraction of the cost. PMD is for all different skin types and ideal for people who have fine lines, wrinkles, age spots, acne, skin discolorations, and other imperfections.

Happy Mother's Day from Momma T and Baby E!!

Saturday, May 12, 2012

Carry Me Please Babywearing #Giveaway Event!

Welcome to the Carry Me Please giveaway! Babywearing can be a wonderful time for both mom (or dad) and baby! For some it is a necessity for others it is just a way of life. For what ever reason you wear your little one, you should be able to do it in style!

Tailor Made Momma has put together and amazing giveaway and is offering up the winner choice of an Ergo or Pikkolo baby carrier!

This giveaway is open to the US and Canada and will end on May 26th!

Don't forget to come back and get your daily entries in!

Wordless Wednesday: Greenable Woodbridge Museum of the Future in #NJ {w/ Linky}

I learned about mama cloth a few months back and since then, I've been interested in trying it. For the last month or so, I've been using reusable cotton menstrual pads from Lunapads. I'm normally not a pad type of person but started using them after E was born. I pretty much alternate between pads and tampons but haven't used tampons since reading this on the Lunapads blog.

Carry Me Please Babywearing Event Blogger Sign-ups!

This event will run run from May 12-May 26! Prize will be winner choice of an Ergo and Pikkolo baby carrier!

This will be a FREE event! The only requirement is that you post about the sign-ups and then you post about the event when it goes live!

Here are a few tips from Ms. Ricky Eisen, Founder and President of Events and Celebrations by Between the Bread, on how to throw a superhero party worthy of The Avengers!

Susan Brown's Baby Natural Skin Care

Baby E has pretty sensitive skin which can get very dry. Because she has such sensitive skin, I want to use the best products for her. Since she was born, we have gone through dozens of products to find something that would work for her skin type.

About Susan Brown's Baby:

"Our pure and gentle luxury products are the result of years of research by my family. My father, a chemist of over 30 years, has been producing naturally hydrating cosmetic ingredients for some of the best-known skin care companies in the world such as Estée Lauder®, Chanel®, Clinique®, L’Oreal®, and Neutrogena®.

As some of you know, I mainly cloth diaper but also use elimination communication at home. I'll usually sit E on the potty when she seems like she has to go and also sit her on randomly just so she gets used to the idea of being on it. During that time, I'll sing a "potty" song to her or read her a book.

Bookadoo's Potty Hero is a personalized book for your little potty trainee. The 20 page hardcover book can be personalized for a boy or girl and features the child's picture, name and a personal message from you! It's brightly illustrated and also showcases pictures of fun animals. Appropriate for children 2 and older, Potty Hero makes a wonderful gift for your toddler that is in the process of or beginning to potty train. The book is an excellent potty training tool and a great way to get your little one motivated!

Finding New Friends Blog Hop!

Welcome back to week 57 of Finding New Friends Weekend Blog Hop hosted by Shelly from My Saving Game, Sam from Have Sippy Will Travel and Jeannette from The Adventures of J-Man and MillerBug! Thank you all for helping make this hop so successful! We love you tons! Now what are you waiting for? Let's get to hopping! We are finding some fabulous blogs through this hop and having a great time getting to know so many of you! So thank you for linking up again this week to those of you who are hop veterans and welcome to those who are new! Let's continue to make new bloggy friends and increase our traffic! We do have a few simple rules for you - nothing too tough though. So here we go!

Wordless Wednesday: Munchkins {w/ Linky}

Dawgs Shoes {Review & #Giveaway}

When looking for new shoes, I always look for ones that are comfortable yet versatile. I also take in consideration color and patterns and try to stick with colors that will go with my wardrobe.

I had heard about Dawgs and decided to check out their website. They have a large selection of shoes for men, women, and children which include various styles. I was immediately drawn to Dawgs Women's Spirit shoes. My first thought was that they looked very feminine and kind of sporty. When I received them in the mail, I couldn't wait to try them on!