The Bear & The Bug Vinyl Growth Chart Review & Giveaway

When you're pregnant, everyone is always telling you "don't blink, they'll be in high school before you know it". Until your child starts to grow, you have absolutely no idea how accurate that statement is. Thankfully us mommies are able to track our child's growth with an adorable custom growth chart from The Bear & the Bug!

*I received a complimentary growth chart for review in exchange for my honest thoughts and opinions*

My sweet baby boy will be two in just four short months. TWO! How on earth did this happen to me? Just the thought brings tears to my eyes, yet I am excited at the same time. Shortly after Baby A turns two we will be making a large transition from his crib, to his big boy bed, and with this big change comes a change in his bedroom decor as well. Baby A loves Mickey Mouse more than he loves anything else (except maybe mommy!) so I've decide we're going to do a Mickey Mouse theme in his big boy bedroom. I can picture how I want it to look like - plain blue bedding, Mickey Mouse throw blanket, pillow, lamp, wall decor. I also really wanted a growth chart, so when The Bear & The Bug contacted me, I was ecstatic. 

The Bear & The Bug graciously offered for me to send them an idea of what I would like for my growth chart and of course I immediately asked for a Mickey Mouse design. Due to copyrights, they were unable to do an actual Mickey Mouse (with the face and what not) but were willing to create something that embodied the Mickey Mouse Club House theme and that we would love. When they had created the growth chart, they sent it to me for "approval" and I was blown away by it! I was expecting it to look good and have some sort of Mickey Mouse essence, but I had absolutely no idea how fantastic it would turn out. The growth chart was bright, vibrant, well designed, and modern, yet still embodied the Mickey Mouse theme that I was hoping for. They even customized it with Baby A's name!  

Video Chat, Text, AND Send Photos with OkHello!

Are you an iPhone user? Love video chatting with your friends and family, sending texts, and sending photos? Me too. My family and I always Facetiming but the problem with Facetiming is that you have to be within your wireless network to do so! What if my wireless goes out?! Thankfully I was just introduced to an amazing new app, OkHello, and I'm about to introduce you to it now! Trust me, you'll thank me later.

Photo Credits: OkHello

*I have been monetarily compensated for the review and promotion of this application. All thoughts and opinions are my own*

OkHello is a new app for iPhones that makes group video chat fun, fast, and spontaneous. Why waste time trying to schedule FaceTime chats or Skype calls when you can turn a simple chat message into a video chat? 

OkHello is a completely free app allows you to start "rooms" with multiple family members or friends to easily create a shared space for you to share photos, videos, text chats, and then easily turn your conversations into video chats! You can even video chat with more than one person at a time! OkHello is secure and safe for families and creates a more comfortable environment than social media websites. It's also much easier to use than FaceTime, Skype, and other various social media networks!

Photo Credits: OkHello

Lets Get Clean Dishes with Cascade #MyPlatinum! #Sponsored

“I participated in a campaign on behalf of Mom Central Consulting for Cascade. I received a product sample to facilitate my review and a promotional item as a thank you for participating.”

I know that most of us don't really love doing chores, but I hate them. One chore that I seem to do on a daily basis is unload the dishwasher. I'm not joking, we literally run our dish washer every day or if I'm lucky, every other day. I honestly have no idea how a family of two adults and one toddler can go through so many dishes in a day, and I hand wash a lot too! Right now we are renters and the appliances in the house we are renting have been here probably since the house was built, however many years ago. The dishwasher still works and has a lot of life left in it, but it really isn't the best dishwasher that I have ever encountered. One issue I have is that I have to make sure that I pre-rinse my dishes, actually scratch that, I practically have to wash my dishes prior to putting them in the dishwasher in order to ensure that my dishes are sparkling when I take them out. For as long as I can remember, we've always used Cascade, whether it be liquid or powder soap, the Cascade brand has always done well for us. For about two months Mr. Hunky and I actually decided to stop using store bought dishwasher detergent and start making our own, but we quickly changed our minds again and decided to go back to store bought, and started purchasing Cascade again. Growing accustomed to my ritual of emptying the dishwasher only to put dishes back in that didn't get fully cleaned, I jumped on the opportunity to apply for a Cascade Campaign through Mom Central Consulting and I was ecstatic when I was accepted as a blogger. I was promptly sent a sample of the Cascade Platinum  dishwasher detergent and couldn't wait to try it out. 

Cascade Platinum achieves a clean so powerful it helps keep the dishwasher sparkling while delivering a variety of dish care benefits. 

Doc McStuffins Giveaway!

*This is a giveaway brought to you by the members of the Thrifty Nifty Mommy Blogger Network. No monetary compensation was provided.*

Lets face it, if you're little one is a fan of Disney Junior, even if they don't regularly watch Doc McStuffins, you've probably caught yourself singing or humming the theme song once or twice. Doc McStuffins is an adorable kids show that teaches your little one about caring, sharing, nurturing, and much more. I'm very excited to bring you guys this amazing giveaway today! - Alex

Doc McStuffins: The Doc Is In CD is coming to a store near you on Tuesday! The soundtrack is currently available for pre-order at Amazon.com . 

Doc McStuffins: The Doctor Is In soundtrack track listing:

1.    “Doc McStuffins Theme Song”

2.    “Time for Your Check Up”

3.    “Everyone Gets Hurt Sometimes”

4.    “I Feel Better”

5.    “A Lambie Like You”

6.    “Nobody Wants a Broken Toy”

7.    “Wash Your Hands”

8.    “Do What the Doctor Says”

9.    “When You Need a Friend”

10.  “Made in the Shade”

11.  “Water Water”

12.  “Eat Good Food”

13.  “Take Care”

14.  “You’re Gonna Grow”

15.  “Because You’re You”

16.  “Loud Loud Louie”

17.  “Bop, Bop, Bop”

18.  “Look Great in Glasses”

19.  “Be Good to Your Tummy”

20.  “Let’s Play Outside”

21.  “Brush Your Teeth”

22.  “Get Your Sleep On”

23.  “Dinosaur Stomp”

24.  “Stars Stars”

25.  “Everybody in the Pool”

26.  “Close Your Eyes”

DIY Party Balloon Wreath

As you know I love me some wreaths! I saw this one at Michael's recently and they wanted $90.00 for a 12 inch wreath! FORGET THAT! I made this one for about $25.00 and it is 16 inches and just wonderful for my sons upcoming birthday party! I did peak at the one at Michael's to see how they did it and I changed mine a bit to make it super easy!

What you need:

12-16 inch Styrofoam wreath

Roll of birthday streamer

250 stick pints

250 balloons in the colors of your choice

Ribbon to hang wreath

Multi-color pipe cleaners

Tips and Tricks for Traveling with Your Little One

Traveling with little ones can be an extremely stressful situation. I hate flying but flying tends to be the quickest way to get from point A to point B when you're traveling long distances. I moved from my childhood home in Northern California to Southern Arizona last summer so going to home see my family these days always includes a plane ride. I've flown home twice since our move, once when Baby A was 15 months old and again just a couple of weeks ago (Baby A is now 20 months). My first time traveling with Baby A was a disaster. Okay maybe not a disaster but it certainly wasn't the most fun I've had in a span of 5 hours. Thankfully I learned from my mistakes and the second time flying with my little man was a lot easier. Below are some tips and tricks that I've learned from traveling with my toddler.


Do's & Don'ts
DO travel on an aircraft with open seating. This will make your life a lot easier if the flight isn't full, you'll be able to utilize that open seat next to you for your little one's car seat, when you're searching your diaper bag for something, or even to put your toddler in after take off!
DON'T 'go in' expecting that the plane will not be full. If you're bringing your child's car seat always bring a gate check bag just in case!

DO pack the essentials for your flight with baby. Snacks, toys, books, movies, etc. Anything to keep them distracted and having fun!
DON'T overpack! Bring one bag, your diaper bag. Consolidate your belongings and make sure to only pack the essentials!

Ellison's Organics Review & Giveaway

Photo Credits: Ellison's Organics

Hosted by More Than Mommy& Co-Hosted by Mommy’s Craft Obsession

Review by More Than Mommy. *Mommys Craft Obsession received no compensation for hosting this giveaway*

After a long hard day of being ‘Mommy’ to three little ones, sometimes I just need to relax and remember that I am MORE than ‘Mommy.’ For me, grabbing a book and reading in the tub is the perfect way to unwind, although it doesn’t happen nearly as often as I would like.

When I am able to get away and relax, I like to do all that I can to make it really count. Recently, I found a great shop on Etsy called Ellison’s Organics. They specialize in organic beauty products, including an Organic Rose Petal Milk Bath that I was sent to try out. They also have specialty soaps for kids, salves, lip balms, bath salts, and lots more.  It’s all natural and organic!