Baby Shower Party Ideas

Do you have any ideas of how amazing the internet is?   I'm in the middle of planning a Minnie Mouse party for my youngest, another birthday party and baby shower for my oldest.  The summer is always the busiest in our family with quite a few parties.  Since hubby is in Kuwait, his birthday will have to be in a box so that's another planning session!

While blog hopping, I've found so many cute ideas so I thought I would share them as well as keep them in my "memory bank" as I proceed as I'm finding way too many I love.


This is from Jenna Eat Drink Pretty:

Monster truck party from Posh Tot Events.

Who can resist ladybugs?  This one is from The Celebration Shoppe:

One of the hardest things I find when planning a party is the back drop.  I always hate not being able to find the perfect backing.  Celebration Shoppe also has posted about this

Back to where I started:  Pink and Brown Polka Dots is the theme I'm looking for the baby shower inspired by The Celebration Shoppe.

• Chocolate & Raspberry Napoleon Heart from Martha Stewart
• Centerpiece from The Knot
• Pink Lemondade from Southern Living
• Candy bar from Pretty Chicky

Another great find at The Celebration Shoppe are printables!  You buy the template and print as many as you like.  Cute tip she listed too on the toothpick appearance for a raised look:  use the foam stickers you get at a craft store!  

She's really making the idea of the baby shower sound even easier with an all in one package of invitations, thank you notes and printables.  I'm really liking this theme too:

Have a party?  Check out The Celebration Shoppe here.

For the girls' Minnie Mouse party, I'm following what Heavenly Blooms Floral Design did for her daughter:

 

Too Adorable!

Father's Day Gift Idea: Tie Cakes

Need a new spin on a tie gift this Father's Day?  I can honestly say that out of the .... years of my life, I have only given ONE tie for Father's Day.  Ties are nice and are given to many fathers but for a new spin, check out Matt's dedication to the classic tie in a edible way here.

 

I love cakes and wished I could make such creations as Matt has in his post.  If you want to try something different, try a tie cake!

More about Matt:

Matt loves ties and his site, www.tiepedia.com is devoted to ties, cool facts and fun posts for crafts and more!

Strider Sports No Peddle PREbike Review & Giveaway Coming Soon!

If you read my earlier post on how to teach your little one to ride a bike without training wheels, you know a little about Strider Sports already.  If you haven't read it, it's GREAT information on how to get them ready to ride and you can click here to find out.   As soon as the weather settles down, I plan to take the wheels off my seven year old's bike to get her used to balancing.  

  

Next week, we get to start the actual review of the Strider Sports PREbike and I will be providing updates on their progress with learning how to ride without the training wheels.


I look forward to the challenge for the first time as before I started communicating with Strider Sports, the task was more than daunting hence the reason my seven year old still doesn't know how to ride.  I can honestly state that Strider Sports is totally committed in the arena of customer service.


If you want to get a jump start, click here to learn more!

How to Make a Huggies Diaper Cake with Glue Dots Adhesives

My oldest is pregnant with her first baby due 10/10/10 (cool isn't it?)!   For part of her gift, I'm making a Huggies Diaper Cake and I'll provide the instructional here.  I just started to make it ahead of time for this post so I'm missing some of the gifts but you will get the idea if you decide to make one yourself.


Step 1:
Take one Huggies diaper and roll up as shown in the picture below.  Start with the open end, roll and secure with a rubber band.

Step 2:

Take seven more Huggies diapers and add to the first diaper as shown below. 

Step 3:

The first layer is finished and now for the middle layer, roll 16 Huggies diapers and secure with another rubber band as shown below. 

Step 4:

With a larger rubber band, it's time to make the bottom or base of the Huggies Diaper Cake.  Take 45~ Huggies Diapers and roll up as you did in the other steps.  Secure with the large rubber band and your base is finished.  


Step 5:
You can either make your own base to sit the entire cake on from sturdy cardboard or purchase a cake base from a party or craft store.  This will provide stability to the weight of the cake pending how much extra you add.

Step 6:
In each layer, you can add Huggies coupons as an extra surprise or leave as is.  Use dowel rods or other like material to secure all three layers together. This is a step that professional cake makers use to secure their layered cakes.

Step 7:
Once your layers are secure, you can take out some of the Huggies Diapers from the top and replace with toys, other Huggies products or whatever you want.

Step 8:  

Add ribbon or whatever you want to make it more special.  You can take long swaddle blankets, fold in lengths and use it to wrap around the layers to hide the rubber bands.  I used Glue Dots Adhesives to secure my ribbons in place, the pinwheel and the extras items that I added.  They worked amazingly well. I'm sold on both Huggies and Glue Dots!


Step 9:

Purchase cellophane wrap from a craft or party store to secure it together and you can wrap a rattle or other toys to the top.

Here are some of my other projects I created with Glue Dots in preparation for my daughters' birthday parties in July.


I used Glue Dots to hold the ribbon on the vases, the feather boa on the front, the Minnie ears on the lolliop along with her bow.  I also used Glue Dots when adding the bow to the ball on the second picture and to keep the boa fastened.  I used flamingo picks to attach the circles using Glue Dots.

Want to learn more about Glue Dots?  Check out the Facebook page here or to be a part of this DIY project with TwitterMoms and Glue Dots, click here.





I wrote this blog post while participating in the TwitterMoms and Glue Dots blogging contest to be eligible to receive a $30 gift card. For more information on how you can participate, click here

The Day in the Life of My Huggies Little Mover

As I’ve mentioned before, I’m partnering with Huggies to become a Little Movers Ambassador and will be writing several blog posts are on their behalf. Since I started the partnership, I’ve thought a lot about my children starting at 22 (expecting herself now) down to my baby and have found that there isn't much difference in a little mover.  Some are more active than others, some are more adventurous and some are just a breeze.  No matter which type there are, one thing is the same and that is the need to have a diaper that can last longer than the little marathon movers!


I was curious as to what all a day in my life entailed with my Huggies Little Mover so I decided to write it down:


7 am - charged out of bed with a full diaper but dry clothing! Triumph again!  Now with a new Huggies Little Movers armed, she's set and dangerous to begin our mission of renovating the house (i.e. destroying it), trying out new textures and colors (i.e spilling drinks and food on clothes) and playing diplomacy or not (i.e. fighting with siblings).

Noon - lunch time and she's already broke free of her diaper twice as she loves to try to change her own diapers and that of her babies and stuffed animals.  I think we've watched one episode of Max and Ruby, counted 1, 2, 3, 6, 8, 9 and had a contest to see who's fingers can get the brightest color of orange from eating Cheetos with her sister instead of eating their sandwiches and carrots.

2 pm - post nap and rearing to go ..again.  A new diaper and she's fit to recreate everything that happened starting at 7 am with some extra fights, messes and tantrums.  I can't remember the last time I napped.  Every time I try to nap, it's like my head is connected to a mystery world that makes the door bell or phone ring.

4 pm - I've already put in 10,000 steps towards my fitness program with the chasing around, cleaning up, and breaking up fist fights (okay, not really fist fights but man they can fight)!  If only they bottled up that energy!  I decided if I really wanted to get in shape, all I need to do is follow around my little tot for two days and I'd have it made!  Time to make dinner or do I dare?  Calling for pizza delivery is a much better idea even though not healthier.

7 pm - post dinner and bath time!  I will admit that sometimes with all the busy times, I may not change her as much as I should but one thing for certain, Huggies accepts the mission and succeeds!

8 pm - bed time ...shew all this 'remembering' has made me exhausted..time for bed!  


It reminded me how Huggies beat my little one at Disney and lasted longer!

So, all in all, I left out a lot!  How does your little one keep you moving?  I know one thing for sure, I have been able to count on the Huggies line of products to keep my little ones dry and leak proof!

Huggies recently approached me and asked me to be a brand ambassador for their Little Movers diapers, and as part of the partnership I will be writing several blog posts on behalf of the brand. 

Upcoming CSN Stores Product Review & Giveaway

I love to shop as everyone in my house knows (thankfully hubby is in Kuwait so he doesn't know if I am or not although he did find my blog so he might be reading and if he is, just kidding ... wink wink).  When I shop, I shop online and offline and tend to gravitate more to online shops just because I'm so busy with having young children and a grand baby on the way.  I had the pleasure to work with CSN Stores in the past and not only enjoy the customer service but I love how their network of stores are set up and provide such a vast array of products.  Their network seems to continue to grow in a one stop shop for all and I'm loving it.  From bathroom vanities to baby products to furniture to fashion and so much more, I enjoy shopping and checking out all they have to offer.

We are a military family and with being of such, we move every three years.  We went from Hawaii to Georgia and it appears our next stop is the Lonestar state which is no big deal for him since he's originally from there.  Since we have to move again, we need to sell our house and one of the opportunities is to review a new kitchen faucet.  This great Victorian Goose Neck Kitchen Faucet with Porcelain Lever Handles and Plastic Side Spray is not only elegant but will look amazing in my kitchen.

    

I bet you didn't know CSN Stores had so much to offer did you?  Guess what?  It gets even better as not only will I provide a review on this great product but there will also be a giveaway!  You'll have to check back to see what the giveaway will be!

Funny Things Kids Say

My almost three year old looked at me and said "you have boobies."  She then looked down at herself and said "my boobies are gone."


Yesterday, I was looking at my wedding pictures and she said to her sister, "oh Mommy is a princess!"

I remember another time with my oldest many, many year's ago when she was in elementary school telling her teachers that I was Secretary of the State.  In actuality, I was a secretary for the state of Indiana.


I decided that my mind isn't as sharp as it was so I need to start writing these things down as they are too cute to forget!

Etsy Treasure Chest: BonitaBellita Yellow Flower Hairband 6/25

With summer comes great fashion accessories we can wear and love!  Having hair accessories can be fun and playful and why should the little one's have all the fun?  Etsy Treasure Chest is hosting this great giveaway of a BonitaBellita Yellow Flower Hairband.

  

If you want to know what inspires BonitaBellita and her beautiful creations or to enter this giveaway, click here.

Hurry to enter as the giveaway ends 6/25 and this would be perfect for summertime!

Strider Sports: Teaching Your Little One to Ride Without Training Wheels

I just experienced amazing customer service from a company that I had never heard of until a couple of week's ago.  My oldest is old enough that I don't recall how she learned how to ride a bike and I suppose that is bad but between working and being younger at the time, you tend to forget some things.  Now I have a seven year old who is itching to learn how to ride a bike coupled with a two year old who thinks she's 10 and has to be just like her sister.  So how do you teach a child how to ride a bike? 

Do you let them have at it and just wipe the tears away and clean the wounds or do you push them along and keep guiding them to learn how to peddle and balance?  Those are at least the two methods I grew up with and remember countless scrapes and band-aids along the way.  Not now thanks to the wonderful Strider Sports, International company.  I will disclose ahead of time that I will be providing a post on a product review but I felt compelled to share this tip on how to teach your little one to ride to be a series in more post with the summer months approaching as well as updates on their progress.  My participation in no means has influenced this post and it was completely my own decision to post because I'm so excited to try it and share with others who are in the same situation since I do know many of my readers have small children.


Here is the tip from Strider:

1. Remove the pedals and the training wheels.  
2. Set the seat at a height where the child can touch with both feet flat on the ground.
3. Have the child ‘strider’ it around for a couple days.  As soon as the child is able to glide with her feet off the ground and balance, it's time for step 4.
4. Put the pedals back on and raise the seat back up.  

Basically the training wheels focused on pedaling and following those first three steps allows the child to focus on balance.  Once she learned how to balance, it's put together and combined, it will allow the child to ride!


I love this tip and can't wait to try it out!  Stay tuned for more information, updates and a product review and giveaway for Strider's No Pedal PREbike!

I ensured she was ready to advance to step 1 by having her peddle.  As some of you know, sometimes peddling isn't a natural instinct and they have to learn which way to peddle.  I didn't raise her seat yet as once I remove the peddles and training wheels, it will be perfect height.  I'm so inspired by Strider Sport's help to teach her and her sister on how to ride without training wheels.

Build-A-Bear: New Zoorrific Collection , Chance to Win Sweepstakes & $10 Off

Build-A-Bear has so many great things going on right now and my kids love them!  I won a $25 Build-A-Bear gift card and I can't wait to turn it over to my little ones to make their own special animal.  The limited edition Zoorific animals are so cute and timely with family vacations including trips to the zoo.  Here are a few:

  

Enter also to win a trip to Orlando from now until June 30 by clicking here.  

Another great thing I like about Build-A-Bear is their dedication to the military.   Each branch of the military is represented and since Father's Day is coming, what a cute gift it would make especially for those deployed like my husband.  We have been purchasing Build-A-Bear animals for quite awhile and to date, everyone is in great shape and no tears or holes.  I love the quality and the choices available and especially favor the Hello Kitty ones that I will be getting for my expecting daughter once she learns the gender.

Get $10 OFF orders $40 or more at Build-A-Bear Workshop® use coupon code BABW10 at check out Click here!