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Showing posts with label Recommendations. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Recommendations. Show all posts

Thursday, April 13, 2017

Things I'm Diggin' Part 3

Sharing some of my current favorite things...


My cousin-in-law gifted this to me shortly after Liam was born. Her friend owns the Wisconsin-born company and hand crafts each product in small batches with pure ingredients. I've had this oil for 5 years and it still hasn't run out! It's made with 100% pure rice bran oil, ylang ylang, geranium, lavender, grapefruit, clary sage, fennel, palmarosa and wild orange. It smells amazing and I use it whenever I feel STRESSED or want a little scent on my wrists.



Anyone who knows me well knows that I'm a huge fan of local store Olivu 426. I've tried out MANY of their products and love a lot of them. But this one is my go-to when I just need a pick-me-up. If I'm feeling stressed or tired I spritz this on my face and neck and I get an instant refresh. And it has a pleasant rose water scent. 



I bought this one on a whim on my way to the checkout counter at Ulta one day. I'm a sucker for anything coconut or vanilla. And this one, when I smelled it, took me right to the beach! Some coconut scents smell fake to me, but this one smells just like fresh coconut-milk-out-of-a-coconut. It's not thick like a lotion, it just glides on more like water and leaves a light coconut scent and soft skin.



I'm convinced that EVERY mom, dad, grandparent, daycare teacher and caregiver should own one of these! I found it at a local kitchen store and have loved it since. You just pop the grape or olive or tomato into the hole, push the green stick down and BOOM you have a quartered grape, etc. It's pretty safe too - I let Liam use it with my observation. 



I bought these at a local kitchen store as well and love them. The package comes with four different sizes. I store them in a cupboard above our microwave for easy use. They lie flat and don't warp or curve or stain and they're dishwasher safe. Also important - they're BPA free and FDA approved.



Ceramic Berry Baskets
I'm a ceramic berry basket dork! I love them. Because they're PRETTY and I can display an ordinary thing (fruit) in a pretty way. I got mine as a Christmas gift a couple of years ago and have since gifted them to other people. They can be hard to find at actual stores (although I have seen/bought them at Pier 1, Crate & Barrel and HomeGoods). Online is your best bet.



Fizzy Chill Red wine-in-a-can 
I love a glass of wine or champagne after the kids are in bed. But I do not want to open an entire bottle of champ or wine and let the rest go to waste (I'm not a fan of corking wine or champagne). So these work out perfectly for me! I found this Fizzy Chill Red, which I drink cold. It's a sweeter, fizzy wine that's a nice little treat at the end of the day.




Mini Korbel Brut champagne bottles
I pour myself one of these on occasion too. And no wasted champagne afterwards!




Calling all parents/grandparents: you need to let your kids try these. Completely mess-free coloring, other than a few water drips here and there. Perfect for the CAR, for restaurants, in the church pew, on an airplane. And it keeps them occupied for a while.




My kids love this thing. We've had it a couple of years and we play with it at least once a week. We got this one at Target. A great gift idea as well.




Love, love, love these. They get played with EVERY day in our house by both kids. They're expensive but some things in life are just worth it! My kids will spend a good hour at a time playing with these. The only downside is that they end up everywhere! 




A friend suggested that I use this after I told her I have thousands of emails in my inbox (eek). I signed up and it significantly helped lighten my inbox. This is FREE to use and really easy to sign up. If you're someone that gets lots of emails, I highly suggest you try this out!





I'm a granola snob. I'm picky about the texture and flavor. I've never eaten a granola like this one before and I LOVE it. Chloe loves it too! It's not giant, chunky, hard bites (not a fan) - instead it's these light, crunchy bean crisps that pair so good with the almonds and cranberries and seeds and yum-o maple syrup tossed in with it all. We like to eat it dry as a healthy snack. Heading to my cupboard now....




To see other things I love, click here:





Please let me know what YOUR current faves are in the Comments below!

Friday, January 10, 2014

Our Top Ten Toddler App Picks

Liam is obsessed with playing games on our iPad.

I know there are studies out there that say toddlers shouldn't be playing on iPads or iPhones or other devices, but I am his mom and I make the decisions around here!

He doesn't even use the iPad every day. But if he does use it we have set rules. He gets to use it once per day, and I limit his use to 30 minutes. Matt or I sit with him the entire time and help him with the games. Although, I must say, he doesn't need much help after he's played a certain game once or twice. Nor does he WANT the help! He will actually push my hand away and say "no mama" if I try to help him too much. Either he's turning into a bossy boss or he's just wanting to become more independent. I'm hoping it's the latter :)

It's amazing how quickly kids learn how to use the electronics. I never realized it until I had a kid of my own. Liam knows how to turn the dang iPad on and swipe the bar to get to the menu. Then he swipes through all of the apps until he finds the "Liam's Games" icon and clicks on it. Then he picks out the game he wants to play all on his own -- he remembers which apps are which. Yikes!

Since many of my blog readers have kids and know quite a few of you have iPads or iPhones, I thought I would share Liam's favorites with you (keeping in mind he is almost 2 years old). I know there are a gazillion apps out there and it's sometimes hard to find the right ones for your kiddos. So here are our top 10 picks at the moment. I say "at the moment" because they are always changing.

1) Pepi Tree by Pepi Play
Matt and I both love this game, as does Liam. It is my top pick. It's just SO cute and the music is great. There are six different levels that revolve around a tree, from the treetop to underground. The critters are adorable and the levels are do-able. Recommended for ages 5 and under.

2-5) ABC House, ABC Aquarium, ABC Go and ABC Wildlife by Peapod Labs

All four of these apps are great and keep Liam busy for the entire 1/2 hour sometimes. Kids can click on any letter A-Z and it takes them to pages with words that start with the chosen letter. Then on each word page there's an activity for the kids to do (watch a video, coloring, etc). I think it's a great learning tool. Recommend for ages 5 and under.

6) Puzzle Farm Imagination Adventure by Eggroll Games
This one is really cute. Kids move the puzzle pieces across the screen to complete farm themed puzzles. Once the puzzle is complete kids can click on the farm animals, etc and they make cute noises. Great for toddlers.

7) Grandpa's Workshop by Fairlady Media
This one is pretty cool. The grandpa guides kids through various workshop related activities, such as cutting wood, painting a stool, gluing together a broken garden gnome, etc. And the grandpa is very encouraging, often saying "great job" and "give me a high five." Recommended for ages 2-6.

8) Magical Music Box by Kidoteca
This app plays a variety of songs in the music box style. Kids can turn the handle to play the song as fast or as slow as they want. You can also switch it to automatic, which is great to calm your kid down before nap or bedtime. This one is recommended for  babies and toddlers.


9) Cute Food by SB
Kids pick out a place mate, plate and object to "decorate" with over 200 pieces of fruits and veggies. Very cute, educational and creative. It's a bit advanced for Liam, but he still enjoys moving the fruits and veggies around the page. Recommended for kids of all ages.


10) Cute Baby Flash Cards by United Worx
I really feel this app has helped Liam learn some words! He loves flipping through the cards himself. This is a simple, cute app recommended for ages 6 months-3 years.

Okay - so now I would really like to know, what are YOUR favorite kid apps at the moment! If we all share our favorites with each other how wonderful would that be!