My Model Reviewer

As a Mommy reviewer, I don't work alone;) Besides the fabulous and super motivating ladies at SIMPLE... my kiddos are my best partners and I couldn't review products without them:)

Recently I go to review a clothing line called French Toast:) I received a couple of items for Chris (to help with his lacking wardrobe)! These pants are the "super kid" pants.... they have doubled knees (for wear), adjustable waist AND an extra hem that can be let out.... perfect for this age when they seen to grown an inch every season;)

But to really "complete" the review I needed him to WEAR the clothes to get some decent pictures;)
I honestly dreaded having to go through the "photo shoot" process...

but to my delight Chris was the model model:)
He loved skipping his nap to help me out and he really got into the part.

























He enjoyed the one-on-one attention!!

Does he not look soooo grown here  :(

And he liked the clothes.. he's picked them out twice to wear to church... and that is amazing for my usually shirtless, wind pants little boy:)

Yes, he can be a tough cookie sometimes... but I was super thankful for our fun time together! A time that could have been very stressful was instead super fun;)

Gotta love my little reviewers;)

And to see the final pictures... head over to the review on SIMPLE:) Oh, and sign up for the giveaway :)

More Wordless Wednesday at  NapTime MomTog, 5 Minutes for Mom,  Mama to 4 Blessings, Go Graham Go

and any other linkys I find !!!

We Cloth.... sometimes :/

I haven't mentioned cloth diapering much....

 

It's not because we don't cloth....

I am glad that by using cloth... we are throwing less away and being a little eco-friendly. We also like that we are saving ourselves a few dollars each month by not using only disposables.

But I'm only a part-timer!!

We cloth at home during our "normal" weeks... days when we're at home doing our normal tasks! Not out running errands since I'm often out-numbered and just the thought of dealing with 4 kids and a messy cloth diaper overwhelms me;)

So I don't talk about it much...

I'm still kind of "new" at it! And I'd hate to leave you with the impression that I know what I'm doing or have a diapering/cleaning routine going.

But isn't Nate cute in his cloth (and his ridiculous outfit) ???

If you want to start cloth diapering and want to know about more brands of cloth... check out SIMPLE's Cloth Diaper Week!!! There are currently 11 giveaways for different brands and a review with each!!! It's amazing all that is available! Makes me want to add to my collection!

Out and About- Just the 5 of us!!

So today I got OUT.....

I really wasn't feeling any "cabin fever" but with the 2nd day of rain and some busy kiddos "LIBRARY READING TIME" sounded like a dream come true;) LOL!! We did miss at least one session and our library books had been read and re-read... so it was time!!


I have to admit I was a little worried. The kids usually do very well during library reading time but this time I was REALLY, REALLY outnumbered, plus not feeling 100% yet (I'm just over 2 weeks postpartum and dealing with some cold/allergies???)!!



The kids did SOOOO well:) I was soo pleased. They even were very well-mannered while choosing books and checking out which was such a blessing;) I wore Nate in the ring sling during our library visit since I didn't feel up to dragging in the stroller or attempting to carry the baby carrier. He slept the whole time!



Since they did so well at the library we picked up lunch and then met a bunch of other moms for lunch. We usually eat at the restuarant which gets too busy and hectic... so Andrea volunteered her church's fellowship hall and then the kids migrated to the nursery/toy rooms;) It was more relaxed.... um, very LOUD though;) That's what we get for having 14 kids 5 and under together!!!



While the kids played, Andrea helped me figure out the BECO carrier. I was given one to review from babysnazz.com for SIMPLE. And I have worn Chris and Lydia (toddlers) in Andrea's BECO. But this was the first time I tried to wear Nate (an infant). When I finally got him in and snug...


it was great:) I'm actually looking forward to grocery shopping... it's going to be soo nice with the BECO:)

Did I mention Nate slept through all the noise, playing and trying to get him in the BECO?? Nate slept the ENTIRE trip... from the house, library, drive thru, lunch, playtime, BECO fitting and then car ride home. He woke only when his siblings left the van for naptime... I guess the van got tooo quiet... LOL!!

So our outing - just the 5 of us - went well. I did nap!! And hoping to get into bed early tonight!

Nate's First Week

Coming home from the hospital!


Lots and lots of sleep.... especially during the DAY!! LOL!!


Looking at the time... wondering when my next meal is;) I"m a great nurser!!


And I love smiling when people are talking sweet to me.


My siblings love my little toes;)











I have been outside a few times... yes, even took a snooze while Christopher made mud cakes:)


And I had my debut over on SIMPLE.... check me out! And there is a giveaway to go with my cute little face... ooops, I mean the ring sling my mom got to try out:)

Lotsa Giveaways

SIMPLE has a lot of giveaways going on:) Check them out!!

• The Verde Bag - Ends Oct 14th
• Timeline Placemat - Ends Oct 16th
• Green Works Laundry Detergent - Ends Oct 16th
• Snow White DVD - Ends Oct 18th
• Halo SleepSack - Ends Oct 19th
• BOBA Baby Carrier (from SleepyWrap) - Ends Oct 19th
• $75 GC to Zutano - Itzy Bitzy (children's clothes) - Ends Oct 19th
• Lysol Gift Pack - Ends Oct 26th

Hooked on Reusable

I had a great set of cloth napkins to review from Love of Earth ( a great Etsy Mom shop)!! The napkins were there ready for us to use, but I was worried the cloth napkins were going to be more of a hassel to use. Finally, I ran out of paper and forgot to purchase more.

So we made the switch and haven't looked back:) All of us like using the cloth sooo much better than paper. I love that I'm not throwing away 15+ paper napkins a day!! In fact the kids will either reuse a pretty clean cloth napkin OR not use one at all!! I MIGHT have 6 to wash per day and they aren't any dirty after the meal either:)

I got to post my review of LOVE for Earth on SIMPLE. Brian saw me working on the review and said, "You know, I'd actually be disappointed if we switched back to paper." WOW!!! Poor guy, first I had him eating quiche, now he's drinking soymilk and using cloth napkins....LOL!!

The other switch that was easy to make was to start using Reusable Produce Bags!! Oh, I LOVE these bags!! They are soo easy to have tucked into my shopping bag ready to go. They are soo much nicer to have in the fridge... they are prettier, let the produce breathe and they keep everything together! Not to mention that they are helping me be less wasteful!!

Kara at Love for Earth also has other GREAT reusable products, like lunch bags and puppy training pads. SIMPLE is hosting an AWESOME giveaway for a $40 gift certificate to Love for Earth, only two more days to enter, this giveaway ends Saturday night!!

**Photos for this post are from Love for Earth!

Other Hooked On Friday fun can be found at Hooked On Houses:)

Leap Frog Giveaway on SIMPLE!!

We love LeapFrog in this house!! We are FANS!!!

When Anna was small we purchased a LeapPad.... she was too small when we purchased it but they are still using it!! Let's just say that it is well-loved!! They LOVE the interactive games and stories.

After my friend CarolAnn told me about the LeapFrog Letter Factory video.... I was hooked. We purchased the whole set and I've learned TONS about phonics.... enough to help Anna with her reading.... it was a HUGE help since the program she was using to read leftout the phonics rules!!

Anyway, we were able to review LeapFrog's Tag Reader System through SIMPLE!! Ohhhh, it's soo great! Here is her and Caleb reading together!!

And we're hosting a giveaway of a Tag Reader until March 27th on SIMPLE!! Very cool!!

Andrea found these coupons for a TAg and books.... it's $10 off a system and $4 off a book!! And can be used at your local Walmart or other LeapFrog retailer.

There are other cool SIMPLE giveaways was well....

Very cute Wind Chimes - Ends March 17th

Bumbleride Indie Twin Stroller ($659) - Ends March 30th

Have a great weekend spending time together with your family!!

My New Switchflops

This morning I posted over at SIMPLE....

I got the opportunity to review the new heel style of SwitchFlops!! I LOVE these sandals!! They are soo cute!! I like the little heel... I was definitely needing some more feminine shoes!

I also have a pair of basic flipflops from Switchflops for over a year now!! They are really comfortable!

I did a little bargain hunting and found a couple of online boutiques that also sell these shoes and they had some good deals going on... like buy a pair of shoes and get a free strap... pretty cool!!

Can you tell my Picasa still isn't working....LOL!!

SIMPLy busy:)

I've really enjoyed being apart of SIMPLE... it's a fun "job"! I get to contact companies and try out some products that I think my kids will like:) Recently I've been able to try out some products I LIKE... he hee!!

A couple of weeks ago I reviewed a pedometer from Walk4Life!!! I have really enjoyed tracking my steps daily. I saw clearly that I NEED to work out daily in order to get the recommended 10,000 steps...

I can proudly say that I did it yesterday!! I got 10,100+ steps!! And today I'm almost there, too:)

This week I am getting together another review... to be posted on Saturday AM!! It's from a company called SwitchFlops... so cool and CUTE!!

Check out SIMPLE when you can!!! Since I'm one of the SIMPLE Moms, I can't enter the giveaways... but YOU can:) We've got a giveaway right now for a CUTE wristlet from Borsa Bella and some Organic lotions from Natures Paradise:)

Mei Tai for Anna

I'm over at SIMPLE again today...

I was able to review the cutest item:) It's a doll mei tai/diaper bag set for Anna!!

She has brought that diaper bag EVERYWHERE!!! In fact as I'm writing this, our set is hanging out in the Lost&Found at our local Walmart.... she carried it in and left it on a table at the Customer Service desk:) We will be retrieving it VERY, VERY soon and that is not soon enough for Anna:)

OK, Back to SIMPLE!! Amy from AMY MAY's MEI TAIs is giving one set away on SIMPLE... HERE!!


Very cute for any little girl who loves babies:) And they are very affordable at less than $15, plus Amy is a SAHM... like some of us:)

What I'm up to this Morning:)

I'm checking out my post on SIMPLE.....

I had the chance to review an Icky Bag... AKA a really cute wet bag to tuck into your diaper bag to bring home wet and dirty clothing:) There are many different uses but for us, the Icky Bag will be a big help with potty training (again and still)!!

We are also hosting a giveaway!! We are giving away one of these cute Icky Bags.... HERE!!

Simple Giveaways

There are a couple really cute giveaways going on at Simple.......

You can win a Mod Mum Sling!!

Or.....win a set of Glamorous Girls clips (found at Etsy).

Anyone can win these items by following the directions for each giveaway. Even those who don't have kids.... the sling or hair clip set would make great gifts. Man, I wish I could sign up... eh ehehe!!

My Fancy Princess Giveaway at Simple

Well we have another cute giveaway going on at Simple. It's for all those who have a Princess at home.... we have TWO!!! Anyway, My Fancy Princess is giving away a Sugar Plum Fairy Dress, it's actually a musical outfit:) One of of the other moms reviewed the outfit with her daughter and it was a hit (check out her photos).

Check out Simple to get on the list :)

Baby Scholars giveaway at Simple

There is another fun giveaway at Simple!! This review and giveaway are for a company called Baby Scholars that have fun learning toys..... like the featured crayon apron and chalkboard. If you have little ones you should read it :)





Another reason to check out Simple is because this company is offering a $100 of their products to the winner of the giveaway at Simple!! So check in out and sign up :)

Cute Train Giveaway for those Mommy Bloggers

Here is one of the cute giveaways that are at simple.

A giveaway this week is a cute wooden pull-along train......I don't know about you...but my Christopher loves puzzles and trains. And Lydia (being a new walker) is just starting to pull stuff behind her....she's already GREAT at pushing strollers. Here's the company that is offering the giveaway but you have to check it our yourself and sign-up at simple.