Mommies With Style

Even newborn babies love to play…or at least love to watch you try to play with them!  And the safest place to lay them to play is usually the floor.  Throwing a blanket on the floor for a baby works just fine, but for something a little more fun and comfy there’s Bestever’s baby mats.  Gianna has spent hours happily rolling around on her Bestever giraffe mat.  That’s why I’m topping off my top ten list of newborn neccessities with Bestever’s baby mats.

Made from snuggly, soft fabric, the Bestever mats are perfect for getting in that extra tummy time.  Of course since the giraffe is so soft and silky, Gianna tries to eat it every time she is on her belly. I learned pretty quickly that the mats are machine washable.  And they wash really well.  After the mat air dries I fluff out the plush fabric and it looks brand new.

The mats are offered in a variety of animals, including monkeys, bears, frogs and cats and are all 31″ long.  Bestever mats can be purchased directly from their site on Amazon.com or Toys ‘R Us for between $40 and $50.  These mats make great shower gifts, but could also be given as birthday gifts.  Toddlers could easily use a Bestever floor mat for watching TV, coloring, or any other floor activity.  And they’re just so darn cute!

A product sample was provided for review on Mommies with Style.

Too tired to give you guys much of a commentary other than the fact that Sarah McLachlan’s still as talented as ever.  I went to many Lilith Fairs back in the day (1997-1999) and it was a little bit sad to see the poor attendance at this latest one.  If Philly’s like any of the other cities on the tour, I imagine that they have to be losing money.

That said, I was in the 6th row with several other local bloggers and we had a wonderful time.  Many thanks to Chevy and the folks at Fleishman Hillard for providing us with tickets!   

And I have to laugh as the last time I went to a Lilith Fair, there certainly weren’t any little kids bouncing in at 6 am to ask me to get up and get them juice.  Definitely can’t have a night out like I used to but it was still worth it!

Sara Bareilles sang "Love Song" and "Gravity"

Court Yard Hounds (the new band with two of the three former Dixie Chicks)

 

Not the best photo but you guys get the gist: All the main stage performers came on for one big finale

Although Gianna wasn’t thrilled with being swaddled as a newborn, it certainly helped us to calm her and get her to sleep on many a night.  Most nights, however, it took several attempts to get the swaddle tight enough since she always managed to wriggle out of it.  Now it doesn’t take an engineering degree to master the folds and tucks of a proper swaddle, but I won’t say that it’s the easiest thing to do either.  WrapADoodle was created to alleviate the hassle of all that wrapping.  And that’s why they are #9 on my list of Newborn Neccessities.

With a WrapADoodle you don’t have to wind any fabric round and round the baby; just simply tuck her in the fabric pocket and tie together the sides for an instant swaddle.  Each WrapADoodle is made to fit babies up to 4 months, though since Gianna is such a peanut she was able to fit well into her 5th month.  Hers is made of the cutest brown cotton flannel covered in colorful animals – the Whales, Fish, Turtles, Giraffes design.  In fact, each WrapADoodle is made with 100% cotton flannel and there are 9 adorable prints from which to choose.  And they wash wonderfully well!

You can also order a matching BurpADoodle burp cloth made of the exact fabric as the WrapADoodle.  BurpADoodles are a great size burp cloth that look a heck of a lot cuter on your shoulder than the white cloth diapers which most of us resort to.  They are sold individually or as a gift set.

WrapADoodles can be ordered directly from their website for $39.99 and make great baby shower gifts.  Mention Mommies with Style when you order and you’ll receive a matching BurpADoodle for free!

Samples of the WrapADoodle and BurpADoodle were provided for review on Mommies with Style.

As I shift from pregnancy mode to new mommy/nursing mode (baby comes August 12), I’m looking around for things that will make my life easier as a nursing mom. Medela sent me a sample of their Nursing Camisole ($34), which is made of a cotton blend. Even at 9 months pregnant, it fits me beautifully, is comfortable, and is will fit me after baby comes (it’s the perfect amount of stretchy!). The nursing access is a drop-cup and it comes in white and black. I like the hip length and the pretty lace trim. I was also pleased that the Nursing Camisole supported my size DD’s – I’ve never found a camisole with a built in bra that could do that before. In the hot July air, I am loving the cotton blend and it just so comfortable to wear!

Another great benefit of Medela’s Nursing Camisole is that it allows moms to pump hands-free with the Medela Freestyle™, which is the breast pump I will be using. The bra shelf part can separate from the outer layer of the camisole, allowing moms to easily attach the Freestyle’s hands-free kit.

Thank you to Medela for providing a product sample for review purposes.

As over 1,500 people gear up for next week’s annual BlogHer Conference — this year’s to be in New York City — in my little neck of the woods I’m starting to pack.

I’m thrilled to be going thanks to a sponsorship from AOL Shopping – where I write a weekly blog and column as a Parenting Expert.

But more on that later.  Today I’m talking about my brand new, shiny and cute HP Mini!  HP was gracious enough to send me their Mini 210 companion PC in Preppy Pink so that I may test it out and use it when I attend BlogHer next week.

Here’s a bit from their press info that tells pretty much all you need to know: “It weighs just 2.9lbs and provides more than 9 hours of battery life.” It’s lightweight and long-lasting – the two most important features in a netbook in my opinion.

Pretty in Pink: My Sony Vaio laptop is the one on top; HP Mini on the bottom

It has a 10.1″ screen, comes with Windows 7 pre-installed and is super-slim.  Oh and the keyboard that looks so tiny?  It’s actually 93% as big as the keyboard you’re used to on your regular laptop.  It only took me a few hours to get used to it.

Of course the Preppy Pink is so perfect for me – because I love pink (it matches my pink Sony Vaio! Oh la la!) and I fancy myself a little preppy too. No doubt about it, I’ll be styling while carrying this product around at Blog Her.

If you see me with my HP Mini, be sure to say hello.  I’ll even let you touch it if you’re nice to me and your hands are clean!

And want one of your own?  Get the HP Mini 210 in Preppy Pink on the HP website for $329.99 with free shipping (for all you guys out there and those of you who don’t like pink, it comes in other colors too!)

Giveaway coming soon: Lastly, come back  to visit Mommies with Style soon for a surprise giveaway before I leave for BlogHer- I have a prize pack to giveaway to one lucky winner that includes an HP Mini  in Preppy Pink along with another fun HP electronic product!

Looking for a great bouncer seat for your babe? Carter’s Cuddle Me Musical Bouncer by Summer Infant ($59.99) has a comfortably round seat for baby and features 4 melodies, 2 nature sounds, a womb sound and soothing vibrations. The soft toy bar includes 3 toys (which are removable). Suitable for newborns (there’s an adjustable newborn head support) and babies up to 25 pounds. The seat removes easily for cleaning too!

I actually preferred the lack of electronic toys on the bouncer and it was a breeze to set up. My newborn arrives in a few weeks and I know he’s going to love this bouncer! I know I will too — hopefully it will soothe the baby enough so I can play with his siblings (or make dinner).

Exclusively at Babies R Us - You can get this bouncer for free if you purchase two items from the Carter Collection.

Thank you to Summer Infant for providing samples for review purposes.

Nuka Maternity graciously sent me two adorable maternity tops to get me through the last few weeks of my pregnancy. The  Flutter Top in heather black ($68) and the Kayla Top ($35), fit me beautifully and make me feel attractive, even at 36 weeks pregnant.

The Flutter Top in Heather Black (pictured to the left) is a soft maternity shirt with  flutter sleeves & gathered hem. It’s got akind of a 80’s style, and is made with eco-friendly fabrication and dye-process.This 50% cotton and 50% modal top looks good on me! It also comes in Tangerine.

Back in May, I attended a local Dine Out For Hunger event. They had a bunch of giveaways and I let my kids buy tickets and put them into the raffles that most interested them.

Nate stuffed almost all of his tickets into the Insect Lore giveaway – five winners being selected to win a Butterfly garden with live caterpillars. He won one of the sets. I  had seen these advertised and around forever but had always shied away from getting one.

I’m one of those squeamish Moms – the type that makes girly screams when a spider runs by. But ya know, with two boys that sometimes doesn’t go over so well and receiving 5 live caterpillars and watching them turn into butterflies over the course of a few weeks – well the coolness of it ended up trumping the gross factor because this entire thing was truly awesome to watch and do with my kids.

So this is what we got – a live butterfly garden. It shipped to us and arrived with a tub of five butterfly larvae (caterpillars) that looked like this picture on the right. Over the course of a week, the caterpillars crawled up to the top and went into their chrysalis. Four of the five went into their chrysalis and ended up hatching a few days later.

The cat loved it. He was fascinated by the butterflies!

The day the the second butterfly emerged, we were headed to the beach for a two week vacation. I hadn’t timed it well so we decided to try and take them with us. I wasn’t sure they would make it but they did.

A week later, we set our butterflies free at the Jersey shore.

My boys and niece set the 4 butterflies free on Long Beach Island, NJ

One of our butterflies didn't want to leave! He hung out for hours.

I can’t tell you all what a cool experience this was for us. You can order your own set by using coupon code buggieswithstyle for 10% off your entire order at the Insect Lore website.

Giveaway: Or win your own! We have 5 sets to giveaway on our site this week.

To enter, leave a comment in this post.

For an additional entry, follow insectlore on Twitter and @mommieswstyle so I know you’ve followed them, to let me know you’ve done so.

Five winners will be selected at random after July 30, 2010.

Starting tomorrow, July 22nd – July 25th, use coupon code DISNEYFAN to receive 20% off your order at the DisneyStore.com.

Congratulations to Elizabeth – our MWS winner of a set of In-Balance sheets from Select Comfort.  Like many of you, she’s got a hubby who snores and kids who think the bed is a Jolly Jump. Here’s to good nights of sleep ahead! In-Balance Sheets are still on sale until mid-August if you want to pick up a set of your own.

Missed the original review? Check it out here. Thanks to all who entered!

NOTE: Please remember that – as mentioned in the original post – if you entered this contest, Select Comfort has collected your email address in order to keep you up-to-date on their latest sales, specials and product releases. You are free to unsubscribe at any time.