What the stomach flu?!

So I was just saying I couldn't wait for cold and flu season to pass and then we woke up this morning to Danika in her bed covered in puke. Ugh! I hate when my kiddos are sick, I feel so bad for them. They both have had colds for a couple weeks and been coughing and had stuffy noses. And now the flu! I'm crossing my fingers that Aiden won't get it too.

So how is it that kids seem to get sick at the worst times? We had our goddaughter's dedication to go to this morning and would feel terrible missing it. Luckily my mom is great and she came over to watch my sick little kiddos while we ran over to the dedication quick. I'm so grateful for grandmas!

Danika only threw up twice and then was feeling tired. She snacked on crackers and drank water and kept them down. Now she's eaten a waffle and toast for dinner and is doing good. She perked right up after her nap so I'm very grateful that it was a quick bout of a stomach bug. Now if we could just get poor Aiden to quit coughing. He coughs so hard and its so deep, it sounds awful! He gets so stuffy too and can't breath. Poor little man is getting very frustrated.

What I can't figure out is how the smell of puke in Danika's hair seems to be so hard to get out. We gave her a bath right away this morning and I scrubbed her hair so good and it still smells! We are gonna go for bath #2 tonight and try and get it out. I think this time I'll use the Sweetsation Therapy orange shampoo because it smells so yummy and seems to work better than the other stuff I used.

I hope tomorrow is less chaotic!

Sunday Sweeps! 2/28/10 Edition

Sorry this is going up so late! We woke up to Danika covered in puke :( So it was a busy morning!

Link up your giveaways so we can all come enter. I like to see what everyone is giving away and this is a great way to share your giveaways. Don't forget to enter my giveaways while you are here and grab my blog button too! Please keep it to family friendly giveaways only :)
Don't forget to enter my giveaways while you are here!

Jeep Trek Easy Travel Playard RV$169.99-ends 3/24

$50 GC to The Spoiled Mama-ends 3/10

Carolina Pad Hot Chocolate Collection-RV$44.44-ends 3/10

Popchips Case of 9 bags-ends 3/10

Cover Your Hair $25 Surprise Box Accessories-ends 3/10

Human Nature: Reach Out Autographed CD-ends 3/10

CARES Kids Fly Safe RV $74.95-ends 3/3

Nowali Moccasins your choice-ends 3/3

Playskool Monty Rex RV $69.99-ends 3/3

Flip Cloth Diaper System-ends 3/3

Katydid Cloth Diaper-ends 3/3

bumGenius One Size Cloth Diaper-ends 3/3

Bummis Polar Bummi Cloth Diaper-ends 3/3

FuzziBunz One Size Cloth Diaper-ends 3/3

Yo Gabba Gabba LIVE Family 4 Pack Tickets-ends 3/5

Looking For Healthy & Delicious Snacks?

I think many moms are looking for healthy food that is also delicious. After having a baby I know that I would like to eat healthier, but I don't want to sacrifice good taste. I received a bunch of great products for review and here are some of my favorites.

The Kashi Heart to Heart Warm Cinnamon cereal was really yummy. It was so good Danika even likes it!

The Kashi Cereal Bars have long been a favorite in our house. I love that they are healthy because they don't taste healthy. They are a great snack for Danika and I during the day and I don't feel guilty giving them to her. She thinks they are a treat! They come in great flavors such as Baked Apple Spice, Strawberry, Blackberry and more!

Okay here is one of my favorite snacks. If I could I would hide these and keep them all for myself haha. These are a perfect snack for the whole family. They are great in lunches and for on the go. Kids love them and they are all natural fruit. The sugar is found naturally in the fruit and isn't added. I am in LOVE, LOVE, LOVE with these! They were gone in no time! Pick some up for you and your family.

The Bear Naked Banana Nut cereal is sooooo yummy. I love the dried bananas in it and the mixture of whole grain flakes and walnuts. It is super good and I'd love to also try their Cranberry Raisin flavor. It is vegetarian friendly and has ingredients that you can actually pronounce.
The Bear Naked Fruit and Nut granola is the perfect thing to put on yogurt. I absolutely love the fruit in it and the texture is great. Danika even ate it plain. She is picky so this is a real statement haha.

The Bear Naked grain-ola bars are soooo good too! I tried the fruit and nut one and my hubby tried the tropical fruit. We both loved them and fought over them.

Healthier foods tend to be a little pricier, but I really think it is worth it. Have you ever heard the saying "you are what you eat"? Well we need to think about what we are putting into our bodies and the extra money is well worth it. I'm not always the healthiest eater, but with delicious options like these it makes it easy to eat healthy even on the go. All of these products are great for on the go and for kids as well. Consider picking some up and removing some of the more unhealthy options from your diet.

Thanks to the companies for the opportunity to review these awesome products!

*Products were provided for review purposes only. I was not compensated for this review.

Save Money On Disposable Diapers With Baby Basics

I've had a lot of cloth diaper reviews lately so here is a disposable diaper review for all of you mamas that use disposables! We primarily use cloth but we do use disposables when traveling and when grandma is babysitting the kids. I hate to spend a lot of money on name brand diapers, but I also hate to put up with cheap, leaking diapers. Well, I'm happy to say that Supervalu stores now have a great Baby Basics line of diapers that perform as well as the pricier name brands, but with the store brand price.

I tried the Baby Basics diapers out on both Aiden and Danika and found that they worked great with no leaks. Baby Basics diapers are priced around $6.99 for a jumbo pack which is a significant savings over name brand diapers.




Baby Basics diapers offer several new features from top to bottom, all designed to make babies and their moms happier. The diaper’s new ultra-absorbent inner core and soft, stretchy leg cuffs help provide better leak protection.

In addition, the new contoured shape and high-stretch side panels allow for greater flexibility as the baby moves. The hypoallergenic inner liner is treated with vitamin E and aloe to protect the baby’s skin, while the extra-soft outer layer is designed to provide additional comfort.

Not only will you save money by switching to Baby Basics but you will also enjoy the convenience of being able to buy your groceries and diapers at the same place. You can buy Baby Basics diapers at all Supervalu stores which include: Acme®, Albertsons®, bigg’s®, Cub Foods®, Farm Fresh®, Hornbacher’s®, Jewel-Osco®, Shaw’s/Star Market™, Shop ‘n Save®, and Shoppers Food & Pharmacy®.

*Diaper were provided to me for purposes of review. I was not paid for this post.

Constipation and Coughing...

My sweet little kiddos are having a tough day. Danika has been super constipated for a couple days and today we had to resort to drastic measures. As a nurse I'm used to having to do things like give suppositories and enemas. It isn't a foreign thing to me, but when I have to do it to my sweet little girl who is screaming and crying for me not to it breaks my heart! Luckily she has now had a couple of bowel movements and I'm hoping when she gets up from her nap that she will be feeling better. Eating a diet full of bananas, rice, applesauce and toast sure doesn't help her constipation! That is also known as the BRAT diet (each letter stands for the corresponding food) and is recommended to help bind things up when people have diarrhea. Well, they also happen to be all of the foods my picky little eater loves. She is also a big milk drinker and not one for juice so pushing the apple juice yesterday wasn't successful either. I have to say though for all of the BRAT foods she eats she doesn't have problems very often.

My little Aiden woke up this morning with a very stuffy nose and a worsening cough. I feel so bad when his nose is stuffed because it is so hard for him to nurse then. He tries so hard to breathe through his nose and gets so frustrated. He coughs so hard it sounds terrible. He got this lovely cold from his sister :) Really how do you keep one kid from catching it from the other? They are brother and sister and share everything including germs. I try my best to keep Danika away from him when she is sick and we've even avoided a few colds passing on to him, but this time we didn't luck out.

I can't wait for Spring and for the end of cold and flu season! How are all of your kiddos doing? I hope they are all well!

Rainbow Brite Is Back!

Do you remember Rainbow Brite from when you were a child? Well she's back! Now your kids can enjoy her too. I received a Rainbow Brite cd for review with games and activities on it. You can print off coloring pages, meet Rainbow Brite and her friends and play matching games. Danika will like this when she is a little older.

You can visit the Rainbow Brite website and meet Rainbow Brite and her friends, play games, download door signs, the theme song and more! Take your girls and head over to the site to have some fun with Rainbow Brite! It is so much fun to share things with your kids that you enjoyed as a child. I really love doing that. Have fun!

Flirty Aprons Discount Code!

The discount code has been extended! You now have until March 4th at midnight to use it!

You may remember my review of Flirty Aprons and how much I loved them. They are great for any size. I wore mine both pregnant and after I delivered and it fit great no matter my size! They are also sooooo adorable! They have aprons for women, men and children. As a special thank you for all of your support they are offering up a 30% off coupon! This is the perfect time to pick up that apron you've been eyeing up. They also make the perfect birthday gift for that hard to buy for person. Simply enter the code 30Coupon at checkout to get 30% off! Expires Sunday March 4th at midnight so hurry and get yours!

Free 8 x 10 Photo at Walgreens Today Only!

Today only (2/25) you can get a free 8 x 10 Photo Print at Walgreens! Head over and pick your picture and at checkout enter code: FREEPHOTO Be sure to choose in store pick up which will make your photo completely FREE!!

Make Traveling With Baby Easier! Jeep Trek Easy Travel Playard Review & Giveaway!

Kolcraft is one of those big companies that has the benefit of continuity of family ownership. They are the makers of must have baby products that help to make our lives and our families lives easier. They have also partnered with some great brand names including Countours, Jeep, Sealy and Sesame Beginnings. The offer great products and are the #1 crib mattress manufacturer.

I was very excited to have the opportunity to review the Jeep Trek Easy Travel Playard. Our playard (from another company) was recalled so we have been in the market for a new one. The Jeep Playard is smaller than a traditional playard, but that is one thing that I like about it. Many playards take up so much room that they are bulky and in the way. We had the Jeep Playard set up in our living room and it didn't take up too much room which was a big bonus. Putting the playard together took a little muscle and I left that to my hubby :)


It comes with a removable changing table for use until your child is 3 mos or more than 15 lbs. Aiden is 2 mos old now so you can get an idea of the size of the changing table. Another thing I really love about its smaller size is that it is the first playard I've owned that actually fits through our bedroom doorways! This is a must for moving from room to room. I hated having to collapse our old playard to move it to another room.

It also includes a removable bassinet also for use up to 3 mos or 15 lbs. Aiden loves the simple toy bar with hanging toys. He is easily overstimulated so the simplicity of the hanging toys keep him happy for quite awhile. The toy bar is also removable and I like that the toys are attached with velcro and can be taken off.

Here is one of my favorite and most unique features! I just love the storage area which you can place your baby's clothes and other items in thus eliminating extra luggage! Isn't that just the coolest? I've never seen anything like it before. It holds a lot and any mom knows that when traveling with a baby you need all the extra storage space you can get. I feel like I have to pack half the house just to leave for a day!

There are also little netted pockets to store your baby's lotions, shampoos, diaper creams or whatever you need. You can also store diapers and wipes in here for easy access. It is also completely usable when the playard is folded up so you can leave all your baby's belongings in here when you travel. Just zip it up and go!

Here is Aiden in the playard without the bassinet in it. You can use the playard with kids that cannot climb out who are less than 35'' tall and weigh less than 30 lbs. I like the open mesh sides which allow airflow. Danika likes them because she can peak in at her baby brother.

The Playard is built very sturdy and is no less than the quality I would expect from the Jeep brand. Taking it down also took a bit of muscle, but I think the more times we use it it will loosen up and be easier to do. It is a very cool and unique way to fold up. There is a handle that you access through the bottom of the playard and pull up. The sides collapse down and it folds up really nicely.

It has a telescoping tow handle that comes out the top. It also has durable Jeep wheels that are sure to keep up with you while on the go.

It also includes a high quality protective cover for when you are traveling. This ensures that everything stays inside and nothing will get lost. Once folded up it is so easy to move around. Not like traditional style playards that are bulky and awkward to carry. It operates much like a suitcase rolling behind you. I love how easy it is to maneuver.

The Jeep Playard retails for $169.99 and you can buy it at retailers nationwide. Online retailers include Target.com, Amazon.com, Walmart.com and many others which you can locate here. You will also want to visit Kolcraft's brand new web site! Go check out their completely redesigned site. They have all of their products there as well as some great new features including a parent center.

Win! One very lucky reader will win a Jeep Trek Easy Travel Playard RV $169.99!!!


This giveaway has ended. Congrats to the winner:
Comment #721
Michelle Murphy

24 Hour Bravado Discount! Hurry!

Bravado is the maker of my favorite nursing bras. In fact they are the maker of the only nursing bra I wear! I absolutely love them. They are offering up an exclusive discount to blog readers for 20% off your entire online order at http://www.bravadodesigns.com/ Use the code SMB-181
at checkout. Hurry it expires Friday (2/26) at midnight!

While you are there be sure to enter their awesome giveway for $450 in Indulgent prizes! I would love to win this one!

A Solution For Baby's That Need To Sleep Upright!!!

As many of you know my baby Aiden has pretty bad acid reflux. He is taking Zantac for it and it seems to help, but he likes to be upright after eating and pretty much all of the time. When babies with acid reflux lay flat the acid comes back up their throat and burns and causes pain. It was a Godsend when I was contacted to review the new Fisher Price Newborn Rock 'n Play Sleeper.

It is the only infant seat that meets industry safety standards for bassinets. This means that you finally have a way to safely allow your baby to sleep with their head elevated. I've heard many stories of moms having their babies sleep in their car seats despite knowing it is unsafe just because they felt they had no other solution. The new Fisher Price Rock 'n Play solves this problem.

When it arrived on my doorstep I was excited to immediately put it together. The instructions said you may need two adults to assemble it, but I was able to easily put it together myself in less than 10 minutes. Mr. Aiden was screaming the whole time and when I put him in it he quit!

It has a great little accessory pocket and comes with a cute little bunny toy. I like to use the accessory pocket at night to store extra pacifiers so they are easy to find in the dark.

Aiden is a big fan of his new Rock 'n Play Sleeper! I just love how snuggled in he is :)

The Rock 'n Play is perfect for both daytime and nighttime use. Aiden sleeps in it next to my bed at night and I like that I can gently rock him to soothe him. During the day we use it as well. He loves to be moving and its perfect to place next to the couch and rock it while we are watching tv or having family time.

I really like that it folds up for easy, space saving storage. It is lightweight and easy to move from room to room. Here is a video that shows how easy it is to use and highlights its features. It is starring me and Aiden hehe :)

All in all I am a huge fan of the new Fisher Price Newborn Rock 'n Play Sleeper. I would highly recommend it! A must have for every mama that has a baby who needs to sleep upright! You can buy the Fisher Price Rock 'n Play Sleeper at retailers nationwide. You can get it for $49.99 on Amazon.com.

*I was provided product for review purposes only from Fisher Price through Mom Select. I was not compensated for this review. My opinions are my own and reflect an honest view of my experience with the product.

Every Mama Deserves To Be Spoiled! Review + Giveaway!

The Spoiled Mama believes that every mama deserves to be spoiled. I couldn't agree more! As moms we often put our family's needs ahead of our own and don't always take the time to spoil ourselves. I was happy to be spoiled by The Spoiled Mama!!

Here is a little bit about where they began straight from the source.

Tamara Johnson, RN, is the founder and CEO of The Sp-OIL-ed Mama. The Spoiled Mama was created in 2005 while Tamara was pregnant with her first child. During her pregnancy she became increasingly frustrated by the available prenatal skincare products available today that often contain harmful chemicals and preservatives, and was then inspired to create products that are not only safer but also Luxurious to help Mamas feel 'Spoiled'. That is how The Spoiled Mama began and which inspired our name: The Sp-oil-ed Mama. Her core principles are still followed and used for everything we create at The Spoiled Mama.

The first thing I noticed when the products arrived was how beautifully they are packaged. They make you feel like you are receiving a special and luxurious gift. It was fun to untie the pretty ribbon and dig into the package. I still have the pretty package displayed in my bathroom because it is too pretty to just toss :)

I stole away some time to do one of my absolute favorite things to do...Take a bath! It is so relaxing and a way to just unwind and soak those sore mama muscles. I used the Mejito Mama Sugar Scrub and was shocked at how silky smooth my skin was after using it. I just kept rubbing it on and feeling the silky smoothness that followed. Eventually I ran out of places to use it haha. I guess I'll have to take another bath :) I have to say this is by far a favorite product of mine! If you only buy one thing I suggest this! A 4oz jar is just $12 so it is affordable to be spoiled too :)

The Cocoa & Shea Tummy Butter was thick and creamy to smooth on my tummy. It promotes collagen and elastin levels to increase cell regeneration. This results in firmer skin with greater elasticity. It is meant to help fade scars and stretch marks and prevent new ones from appearing. They say it also works wonders on C-Section scars so I've been lathering it on! I haven't been using it long enough to notice a difference in my scar so I'll have to keep you posted.


The last product that I've been using is the Fix That Sucker Nipstick. Can you guess what it's for? Fixing up those nursing nipples of course :) Any nursing mama knows how sore they can get. I love the push up applicator. It eliminates the need to get your fingers gooey and thus reduces contamination as well. It glides on smooth and melts on contact. It leaves you feeling soft and spoiled without the icky, gooey mess of other formulas. All ingredients are safe for ingestion too so no need to wipe it off before nursing! It is just $14 so also very affordable!

You can buy all of these amazing products and many more on The Spoiled Mama site. You can also look up retail locations here. You can also visit The Spoiled Mama blog here.

Win! One reader will win a $50 Gift Certificate to The Spoiled Mama!

This giveaway has ended. Congrats to the winner:
Comment #587
Strawberry Kids

Is Your Toddler A Snacker?

Danika is the ultimate snacker. She grazes all day on different foods and never tends to eat a lot at one time. I was and still am to some degree the same way. I would rather eat small meals all day long than have 3 big meals during the day. Apparently Danika inherited this from me. I am always struggling to find healthy and delicious snacks for her to eat. I hate to give her empty calories and want her to be snacking on something that will give her the nutrients and fuel she needs throughout the day.
Gerber has a great line of snacks for called Gerber Graduates. We were sent three of their products for review. Danika's favorite by a long shot was the Cereal Twists. Cereal Twists are made with whole grains and two flavored yogurt fillings. Each cereal bar is individually wrapped for convenient on-the-go snacking and comes in three delicious flavors: Strawberry Blueberry, Banana Peach and Raspberry Vanilla. I love that they are easy to take on the go too. She gobbled all of these up right away.

Gerber Graduates also offers Chewy Granola Bars. Chewy Granola bars are made with whole grain rolled oats and wheat flakes for a unique soft texture that preschoolers love – they’re naturally flavored and provide 10% daily value for 4 vitamins and minerals. They have 6g of whole grains per bar and have no preservatives or artificial flavors. She wasn't a huge fan of these but lately she isn't a fan of any granola bars. She tends to pick out the pieces she likes and leave the rest. I think this is just due to a stage she is passing through.

The last thing we received for review were the Fruit Twists. Fruit Twists are real fruit snacks that are perfect for on the go snacking – best of all they are made with 99% real concentrated fruit and juice and provide ½ of a preschooler serving of fruit per twist as well as 25% of the daily preschooler amount of antioxidant vitamin C. The great thing about these Fruit Twists, is that your child can pull them apart and eat one flavor at a time, or eat them both at once, combining the two flavors. Either way, your child can choose what they like best! They are fun to eat and healthy too, which I love.

You can buy Gerber Graduates at all major retailers. So consider them when looking for a healthy and fun snack to give your kids. Perfect snacks to keep in the car too!

*Products reviewed were provided free of charge. My opinions are my own and are not influenced by receipt of the product.