Stuff Parents Need

Easing the chaos in the nest, one find at a time.

Easy Craft with Your Kids: Thanksgiving Placemats!

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As you prepare for Thanksgiving, I’ve got a wonderful guest post for you today, courtesy of My Baby Clothes Boutique. This should be a breath of fresh air for all of you, because yours truly doesn’t have a crafty bone in her body! Thank goodness other people do!!
Perfect Place Settings: Easy Thanksgiving Placemats for Children

Thanksgiving craft idea: placemats Do you like to set a beautiful table for your family’s Thanksgiving celebration? Though I am not graced with the creativity or vision to create designer tables, I am blessed with two children who love to make art, so when it comes to table décor, I am usually in pretty good shape.

This holiday, my children’s places will be set with homemade placements that remind them—and me—of all the people for whom they give thanks. Here’s a simple “recipe” for making Thanksgiving placemats:

Materials Needed:

    • Photographs of family members
  • 11” x 14” construction paper in a Fall Color of your choice
  • Scissors
  • Glue
  • Pre-Printed letters or words spelling out “Happy Thanksgiving” or other holiday message.
  • Contact paper or access to a laminating machine

 

Instructions:

    1. Tell your child that he will be making a Thanksgiving placement that represents the family members and loved ones for whom he is grateful. Allow him to select 6-7 photos of people that he wants to include on his placemat. The photos will be laminated, so be sure to give your kids prints you don’t mind parting with or ones of which you can easily print or get doubles.
  • Have your child select construction paper in the color of his choice. If you have access to it, use legal size (11” x 14”) sheets. If not, consider taping together two regular-sized sheets of paper to create an 11” x 14” mat.
  • Allow your child to lay out the photos on the construction paper. You may want to cut the papers into interesting shapes in order to arrange them in visually interesting layouts. Scrapbookers: go wild!
  • Affix the photos with glue to hold them in their desired spots
  • Add your holiday message to a desired spot on the mat.
  • If you have access to a laminating machine, laminate your entire placemat, leaving a ¼” border around all of the sides. If you do not have access to a laminator, contact paper will work fine to cover and seal your child’s placemat, though your creation may enjoy a shorter overall life-span.

 

That’s it! I made these placemats with my daughters when they were both two years old. Now, five and three Thanksgivings later respectively, I still have two adorable placemats that are the crowning glory of my child-friendly table and a keepsake I plan to have around for my grandchildren to eat on someday.

Signe Whitson is a licensed social worker and co-author of The Angry Smile: The Psychology of Passive Aggressive Behavior in Families, Schools, and Workplaces, 2nd, ed. As a mom of two girls she has been able to come up with some creative ways to handle many of the common issues facing parents today. My Baby Clothes Boutique partnered with her to increase her audience and give back to the parenting community. The holidays are upon us, now is the perfect time to find the perfect outfit for you little ones. They carry everything you need from baby dresses, coordinating baby headbands, fashionably warm baby hats and so much more.

Amazing Skincare, Amazing Commitment, Amazing Blog: Therapon

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A few weeks ago, I had the opportunity to attend an incredible event here in Chattanooga, hosted by a skincare company called Therapon.

I had never heard of the company before, but as I started learning about them, I was truly impressed. First and foremost, they take producing the very best skincare products on the market very seriously. From their site, “Our policy is that every Therapon product must outperform any other product in its class and must have its own unique function in the skin restoration process before receiving the Therapon name.”

We had the opportunity to try out their products and I was impressed with the results. We each had facials using the products, and also got our makeup done. I couldn’t help but notice that the ladies who had already had their facials but hadn’t yet had their makeup done really did have a natural glow.

I really appreciated that the company let the products speak for themselves at this event, and didn’t try to make a case for why we should buy them or why we should blog about them (I’m under absolutely no obligation to talk about Therapon!).
What they DID talk about was the nonprofit Operation Smile, and how they have a goal of raising $5 million for that organization over the next 5 years. The founder of Therapon (a doctor) has worked with this organization and even performed some of their operations. He is dedicated to their mission and sees Therapon as a way to not only radically change the quality of skincare available to women, but also make a huge difference in the lives of children all over the world. Rock on, Therapon. A company gets my attention any time they get serious about making a difference. In fact, if anyone decided to make a purchase during the event, 100% of the proceeds went to Operation Smile. Therapon was making it clear that they weren’t out for our money, and I thought that was really cool.

I wanted to recommend to my readers that you subscribe to Therapon’s blog. When you do, you’ll be eligible for their monthly giveaway of $100 in products. Since the blog is still pretty new, the subscriber numbers are kind of low (which means your odds of winning are kind of high!). Also, the content is really good! I’m enjoying their posts, for sure.

Many thanks, Therapon, for supporting female bloggers, providing superior skin health products and for making such a big commitment to Operation Smile.


 

Make Car Trips Easier With Kiddie Kangaroo (GIVEAWAY!!!)

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EDIT: This giveaway has been extended to 12/03!
Car rides with Darah are becoming tricky business. If she is tired when I put her in the car seat, I work REALLY hard to keep her awake. Why? Because it seems that if she sleeps in the car, even if only for a few minutes, that becomes her nap for the day. She wakes up refreshed and ready to go, although she’ll also be a total pill by late afternoon. In my book, everyone loses when she naps in the car.

She also gets bored much more easily now, and gets frustrated when she’s in the back seat by herself for more than just a few minutes. I have tried to keep toys nearby, but they often end up on the seat, just out of reach from her. And then the whining ensues until we reach our destination, or until I get fed up enough to pull over and get her whatever she needs/wants.

Kiddie Kangaroo is a super cool product designed to help out parents and their babies and toddlers who experience similar situations! Check out their Seat Protector with Adjustable Pockets! I love this product for several reasons!

1. The storage pockets are adjustable, just like the name says! This is great because it means that it can hold a book, or securely hold a smaller item like a sippy cup or a lovey. The pockets have a velcro divider that you can take off or quickly install, depending on what you want the pocket to be holding. I love it!

2. The Kiddie Kangaroo seat protector can go in a car seat, stroller, booster seat, or even an infant carrier. I really appreciate versatility in a product like this. We may have a different stroller or car seat with the next baby, but it won’t matter to the Kiddie Kangaroo, as it is designed to fit most any model!

3. The material is super soft and comfy, but also is waterproof, so it is helping to keep your car seat or stroller nice and clean. Darah is particularly fond of turning her sippy cups upside down and tweaking the spouts of them so that the water comes out onto her and everything around her.

4. Kiddie Kangaroo products are the brainchild of a mom. And you know that I love mompreneurs, because they always design products that we REALLY need!

I’m really happy that I’ve got a place right within D’s reach for all her toys, books and snacks. I’ve noticed that she seems to stay much more entertained when we are out and about, as well. I’d call the Kiddie Kangaroo Seat Protector with Adjustable Pockets a big success!

Buy it!: Kiddie Kangaroo has a variety of products to help parents and babies on the go. Check out their selection, and if drives are as harried for you as they used to be for me, pick out something on their site. You’ll be glad you did!

Win it!: One lucky Stuff Parents Need reader will win the Kiddie Kangaroo product of your choice! The contest will run until December 3rd at 11:59pm EST when a winner will be selected using Random.org. The winner will have 48 hours to respond to the winning notification before the prize is forfeited and a new winner is selected. Open to residents of the United States. Limit one entrant per household, please.
Mandatory entry: Tell me a strategy you have (even if it isn’t so successful) for making car seat or stroller time more entertaining for your child! My answer is that we sing Old McDonald in the car. Did you know that on that farm he had a lion? And a peacock? Um, yeah…any animal that makes a noise we sing about…that’s how long the song goes on, sometimes!

Additional entries:
1. Sponsor love: “Like” Kiddie Kangaroo on Facebook
2. Blogger love: “Like” Stuff Parents Need on Facebook

Be sure to check out my other current reviews and giveaways, found on the sidebar of my homepage.

Disclosure: I received a complimentary product for review purposes. The opinions expressed here are strictly my own.

Featuring Norah Jones Review

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I have really great memories of attending the wedding of two of my friends, and dancing in a beautiful ballroom at the reception to the sweet, sultry voice of Ms. Norah Jones. I find her to be the musical equivalent of a bubble bath; listening to her relaxes me and puts me in a good mood.

featuring norah jones album cover Norah has just released a new album, and this one is a little bit different from the norm. The album is called Featuring Norah Jones and it has 18 songs that were recorded between 2001-2010 where she is a featured voice, though not the only voice on the track.

Maybe I’m a bit more old school than I thought, but the two pieces that took my breath away were here duet with Ms. Dolly Parton (SOOOO good, you guys!), and Norah crooning away to Elvis’ Treat Me Like a Fool. I sing (er, croak) that one at the top of my lungs!

This cd has a really impressive variety of artists and music styles. I can’t say that I’m nuts about every single song, but there are MANY that I luuuuvvvee! You know Norah can rock Baby It’s Cold Outside (and she sings it with Willie Nelson!).

Buy it!: Featuring Norah Jones was released on the 16th and is a most excellent holiday gift, or something to put on your wishlist! You can buy it on Amazon for just $9.99 (totally worth it, in my opinion).

Disclosure: I received a complimentary cd for review purposes through a campaign with the One2One Network, and I’m entered to win a gift certificate for my participation. I’m under no obligation to state anything other than my honest opinion!

Protect Your Car Seat: Rover Gear

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So here’s something I didn’t really understanding about having a kid: they can seriously mess up your stuff! And they do not care how much you paid for a particular item. If it looks fun to color on, throw, kick or eat, they are going to go for it, especially while they are really too young to understand that they are doing something wrong. And maybe even after they are old enough to know better…sigh….

So far, I have not had too many casualties in the way of broken/destroyed items, but Darah is young, yet. I’ve had necklaces break, lost several knick knacks, a few glasses, and countless articles of clothing (thank goodness I largely buy her stuff from garage sales or else I’d be sick about that!).

But in a few months, we’ll be turning Darah’s carseat around to face forward. You may be wondering what on earth that has to do with stuff getting destroyed. Everything, my friends. EVERYTHING.

You see, once a kid is facing forward, there is more leg room for kicking. And what is in front of the child who wants to kick for the entire car trip? Ah, yes, a chair. A fabric covered chair. In my case, a LIGHT TAN fabric covered chair. It is just BEGGING for muddy shoe prints, and to be worn down by hours of being kicked and rubbed.

Rover Gear is a very cool company. They have a product that can help with this problem. Check out the Chelsea Car Seat Protector. This protects your car interior from all that damage that your your little angel will be trying to inflict (yes, I know, not necessarily on purpose). Check out the features that make this car seat protector unique and valuable:

  • Adjustable headrest connection tabs to securely fit the top your seat
  • Elasticized band that runs around the bottom of the seat
  • High quality plastic buckle
  • Rip-stop nylon for durability
  • Internal batons at the shoulder to keep the Chelsea in place
  • Unique cut which folds over the side of the car seat, giving added protection

I’m so glad that we’ll be able to protect our car seat from damage. It’s also great to have in the car should we ever be transporting large boxes (we’ve been known to dumpster dive when it is time to move), used furniture or other yard sale treasures or anything else that might be dirty.

Protecting the back of your car seat isn’t really something most people think about until it is too late. Let me help you be a bit more proactive, or prevent any further damage to your vehicles. You probably want to sell it one day, or at least not be embarrassed to drive it, so keep it in the best shape possible!

For you holiday travelers, I also wanted to point out that Rover Gear makes car seat bags and booster seat bags. These will keep your precious (and expensive!) car seats safe and secure while they go through security and get tossed around before, during and after your flights (and believe me, your car seat will DEFINITELY get thrown around. These bags are ideal for keeping your precious cargo in one piece! They’ve even got great stroller storage bags and play yard bags!

Buy it!: The Chelsea Seat Protector is available for $29.99 in black, tan or sage. I definitely think it is worth it, since it is helping extend the life of something worth so much more!

Disclosure: I received a complimentary product for review purposes. The opinions expressed here are strictly my own.

My Holiday Shopping Strategy

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So this year we are on a seriously tight budget, but we have the same number of people that we want to buy gifts for this year. It is going to take some creative work on my part (and I don’t mean crafty, because I was not blessed with that gene AT ALL) to get meaningful gifts for everyone on our list while still keeping our finances in check.

But I do have a few key strategies! Wanna hear ’em? Good!

1. Shopping through “alternative” means

  • This means that I’m checking out places where I haven’t really looked before for something special. I’ve been browsing the local thrift stores for the past few months and found a few things that I think loved ones will like and that were far less than what I would have paid at a retail store. You can even occasionally find items with the tags still attached!
  • I’ve also been scoping out Craigslist. This is an EXCELLENT resource for baby and toddler gear and toys and even household items that folks no longer want/need.
  • Finally, I’ve been using Swap Mamas to trade things I have but no longer need for things someone else doesn’t need. It is really cool, because no money is involved. You just swap! There are all sorts of things on Swap Mamas, but this is also especially good for baby/toddler stuff.

2. Getting brave

  • I’ve been more bold lately about asking online retailers for small discounts, especially if I don’t see an online coupon code available anywhere. I tend to try this out if I’m a new customer or if I’m going to buy several things at one time. The worst they can say is no! Try it out; you may be surprised! And if they do say no, definitely don’t take it personally. They have to earn money so they can buy holiday gifts, too! 🙂

3. Giving something the person truly wants

  • You may be surprised how often people ask for gifts that may require some thought or some time, but very little money. For example, my sister-in-law is asking for favorite recipes. Yes, it will take me a bit of time to gather my favorites for her, but it will be virtually free. And it’s what she wants! I think she’ll like it much more than, say, a cashmere scarf that I could easily find and that would be luxurious, but not as special to her as my favorite recipes.
  • If someone on your list really does want something that is more expensive, see if you can go in with a few (or several) people to help make that gift a reality. If it is what they truly want, they would probably rather have one nice gift from several people combined than several gifts from several people that they didn’t want or need. This really just depends on the person, so you’ll have to judge for yourself whether or not you want to do this.

What about you? What are your key strategies for saving money during the holidays?

Reversible Toddler Belts

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Just this morning I put Darah into a snuggly pair of pink jogging pants. I thought they would be perfect for indoor playtime on this chilly day. The poor kid is, I fear, destined for a lifetime of having to roll her pants up due to being challenged in the height department (just like her dear mama), but thanks to cloth diapers, having pants fit around the waist usually isn’t a problem.

darah wearing a reversible toddler belt from bugalug Except that it sometimes is! These jogging pants seriously floated around her waist. They were HUGE! I couldn’t believe it! Even though they didn’t have belt loops, I still reached for Darah’s new Bugalug Belt to help hold up her pants, and it worked great, though perhaps a belted jogging pant is an odd look (and if this look becomes fashionable, you heard about it here first!).

I also need to start putting belts on Darah’s pants because she is learning how to take off her clothes! Often, when I get her out of her crib after a nap, either her shirt or her pants, and sometimes her diaper, have come off. Sheesh! A belt can help at least keep her pants and her diaper in place.

The Bugalug belt has a special place in my heart for yet another reason: it is reversible! I actually only own one belt, and it is reversible, as well (brown on one side, black on the other). Darah’s is much cuter than mine, but I still appreciate the practical element to it. This child’s closet is bursting with stuff, but the children’s reversible belt by Bugalug will be the only one we need to have! Hooray for “less is more!”

Additionally, this belt is going to go the distance more than most anything else she wears, because it is designed to fit her through age 3! This is in stark contrast to the clothes she wears now, which tend to fit her for 4 months, or maybe 6 months if I’m lucky! You can see in the picture that this belt still has plenty of stretch left in it for a growing girl. Yay!

In addition to the Bugalug belt, we also had the opportunity to try out the button top barrette. I love the look of this little clippie…it’s something a little different! Darah still doesn’t like to keep bows in her hair (my sister thinks she’ll grow out of this once she actually has more hair and can’t really tell that she’s wearing a bow). But she loves to play with the bow! Hopefully we won’t lose it before she is ready to actually wear it, because it is stinkin’ cute!

Bugalug is a Canadian-based and mom-owned company that strives to provide excellent products for children, including non-slip clips, pony loops, adorable cuffs for boys and other great products. They even have some cute belts for moms! I have been really impressed with the quality and durability of the products I tested out (Darah likes to chew on the barrette, but it is still going strong!). I think the fabrics they offer for their products are really cute and the styles will work for girls infant-tween, in my opinion! I’d even wear some of their pony loops, myself! 🙂

Buy it!: Bugalug products are all available online. The button top barrette I talked about is $6.00 and the reversible belt is $18.00. There are so many great gift ideas and stocking stuffer ideas on their site! One of my personal picks is the Rose Swirls Headband. It could get a lot of use around the holidays and Valentine’s Day, but it can also work year-round!

Disclosure: I received complimentary products for review purposes. The opinions expressed here are strictly my own. This post contains affiliate links. 

Father’s Day Gift Idea for Men (A Really Good One!)

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Are you knee deep into your holiday shopping, yet? I am! Are you like me, and you knock all the women off your list pretty quickly, while the gifts for the men stump you, and you find yourself scrambling every year for cool ideas for them? This is a source of frustration for me year after year. Guys are impossible to shop for!

It was a goal of mine to find you at least one super cool gift idea for guys this year, and I did it!!! I want to recommend it all to you now as a great holiday or Father’s Day gift idea!

Wanna know what I think you should buy for most every man on your list this year?

Check out Gear Tie!



So, as you can see by the video, these are amazing reusable twist ties that can literally be used in thousands of ways. Most every guy I know loves to get gifts that are truly useful, and this one certainly is! I think half the fun of Gear Ties is finding new ways to put them to use! The other fun part is all the awesome colors they come in! Love that!
gear tie assortment I purchased 6 different Gear Ties for men on my holiday list this year (I went with 6 inch ties and 24 inch ties). I can’t believe that I’m ahead on shopping for the guys at this point. This has got to be a first for me. Thank you, Gear Tie!

Buy it!: Seriously, this is a PERFECT gift idea for pretty much every guy out there. He’ll have a lot of fun figuring out exactly how he wants to use his Gear Ties! Prices for Gear Ties start at just $4.99 for a 4 pack. These are a great buy for every budget! BONUS: SPN readers can get a 15% discount on their purchase using code HOLIDAY1!

Disclosure: I received a discount on my purchase in exchange for a review post. The opinions expressed here are strictly my own. These products rock!

Ruth’s Brownies: They Are HUGE!!!! (Giveaway!!!)

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A few weeks ago my family unexpectedly lost my uncle. Tim and I scrambled to get in the car and make a whirlwind trip down to my hometown in Alabama for time with my family and the memorial service. It was an exhausting trip, physically and emotionally, but we got through it.

We left right after Tim got out of work on a Monday. A few hours before that time, the mail came to our house, and we had received a package of brownies from Ruth’s Brownie Kitchen. It was seriously one of the only things that brought a smile to my face that day, and I was so grateful for the timing of the package. We were able to bring them with us and snack on them in the car, as well as share them with our family. Chocolate is definitely a comfort food, and I’m so glad I had these on hand at a time when my family really needed comforting. No, I’m not saying that the brownies made everyone magically feel all better, but they were a very pleasant distraction in the midst of a difficult time.

I actually tore into the package as we were pulling out of our driveway, and was shocked when I saw the size of these brownies. They are HUGE! And they weigh a ton! They are super dense like a brick, but thankfully, they are moist and chewy, not hard! 🙂 I took a picture with my iPhone so that you could see just how out of control Ruth’s Brownies really are.

Ruth’s Brownies come in a half dozen or a dozen. Before you start to think that is probably isn’t worth it to just order a half dozen, let me tell you this: I love me some desserts, and I’m not afraid to eat more than my fair share of anything sweet, but there’s no way I could eat more than half of one Ruth’s brownie in one sitting. In fact, Tim and I shared the first brownie, and we only got through half of it before we had to put it away for a while. They are decadent, and should be consumed with caution! If I were serving these to guests, I really and truly would cut them into fourths. Someone could always come back for more, after all, and most people would be full and VERY happy after eating just a portion of one brownie!

Buy it!: If you are looking for the PERFECT dessert for a holiday gathering you are hosting or attending, I want to enthusiastically recommend something special from Ruth’s Brownie Kitchen. In addition to their crazy awesome brownies, they also make gourmet cookies and biscotti! Also, until November 30th, you can get 15% off all purchases of $35.00 or more! Just use code NOV15 at checkout!

Win it!: Ruth’s Brownie Kitchen wants to give one very lucky Stuff Parents Need reader a $25.00 gift certificate to their store! Wow! The contest will run until November 22nd at 11:59pm EST when a winner will be selected using Random.org. The winner will have 48 hours to respond to winning notification before the prize is forfeited and a new winner is selected. Open to residents of the United States. Limit one entrant per household, please.

Mandatory entry: Tell me about your very favorite Thanksgiving dessert! If you have a recipe for it, pass it along so that others can try it out this Thanksgiving!
My favorite recipe is a black cherry jello salad. It comes from my BFFs mom, and it is basically black cherry jello in a mold, along with chunks of cream cheese, walnuts and black cherry halves. Sounds weird, I know, but I live for that stuff!

Additional entries:
1. Sponsor love: “Like” Ruth’s Brownies on Facebook
2. Blogger love: Subscribe to Stuff Parents Need by RSS or email

Be sure to check out my other current giveaways, located on the sidebar of my home page!

[Product review & giveaway disclosure: I received one or more of the products mentioned above for free using Tomoson.com. Regardless, I only recommend products or services I use personally and believe will be good for my readers. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commissions 16 CFR, Part 255“Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.”]