Hoodsbee: the hoodie that’s a friend

We received product in exchange for this post, but all opinions are my own.

Getting coats and jackets on isn’t always easy with little ones, but with a Hoodsbee, I’m sure it’ll be much easier! Hoodsbee is a hoodie that transforms into a plush friend! 

This unique patented technology allows your little one to carry their travel plush buddy, put it on when it is cold, fold it back up into a plush and use it as a head pillow for when they are tired. It's as easy as 1,2,3! Fold, roll and snap! Now, not only do you have a pillow and a travel companion, but you also have a nicely wrapped up hoodie that is easy to store or travel with.

We received Anchor the Shark and it’s already a hit with Charlie! He was so excited to put it on, and hated when I had to take it off to show him how it rolled up into a cool shark!

Buck Denver Asks... What's In The Bible Vol. 10

We received product in exchange for this post, but all opinions are my own. Affiliate links are included.

As you already know, we're big VeggieTales fans. The creator of VeggieTales, Phil Vischer and a bunch of hilarious new friends explain the entire Bible to your kids in this groundbreaking fast-paced and fun-filled DVD series: Buck Denver Asks... What's in The Bible. Volume 10: Jesus is the Good News includes two 25 minute episodes: God’s Perfect Timing - Buck Denver and crew learn about the 400 years between the Old and New Testaments and how Jesus arrives at just the perfect time & The Messiah Has Come! - Learn about the life and ministry of Jesus-how He died for us and rose again to launch the kingdom of God in the world and in us!

Get a $10 Credit to Educents

This post contains affiliate links.

Have you heard of Educents? If you haven’t, you need to check them out ASAP!

Right now, if you become a new member, you get a $10 credit in Edubucks! This credit can be put toward your purchase of anything and everything! (no minimums or catches)

 

Educents is a daily deal marketplace for educators! Find brand new educational products discounted up to 100%!

I believe every family should have access to affordable educational resources. On Educents, you might find study guides, ebooks, educational software, learning tools and toys, and so much more!

Be sure to get your $10 credit and snag a great deal! Let me know what you get!

16 Perfect Crafts for Fall

I don’t know about you, but where we are in Maryland, it definitely feels like Fall this week! Since we love doing crafts, I wanted to share some of the awesome crafts we found that are perfect for Fall.

Thankful Tree Tutorial – One Creative Mommy

Patchwork Pumpkins – The Nerd’s Wife

Paper Plate Scarecrow – The Neighborhood Moms

Easy Tissue Paper Pumpkin – Mom’s Messy Miracles

Rainy Day at Fun Warehouse

While we were on vacation in Surfside Beach, we (of course) had a rainy day. If it were just Tom and I, that would be a welcomed inside day of movies and naps. To anyone with little ones, it’s a small panic attack.

After our breakfast and some lounge time, we headed to Fun Warehouse. During the week, they don’t open until 12, which kind of bummed me out.

The first thing we decided to do was play in the soft play area and the inflatables.

Parents! Vote Now to Help Kids Have More Fun – One Playspace at a Time

As a member of the Children’s Claritin Mom Crew, I receive product samples and promotional items to share and use as I see fit. No monetary compensation has taken place and any opinions expressed by me are honest and reflect my actual experience.

As parents, we spend a lot of time discovering creative ways to nurture our children’s curiosity. Luckily, being outdoors provides the perfect landscape, fueling young imaginations and creating endless possibilities for exploration, discovery and creativity. Children’s Claritin hopes to inspire parents to create innovative play spaces in their backyards, and communities.

Children’s Claritin also believes in the benefits of outdoor activity for children, and wants to help children get the most out of every day! They’re teaming up with KaBOOM!, a national non-profit, to help bring innovative playspaces to communities in need and you can help! By voting, you can help them pick the four community organizations that will receive Imagination Playground™. What’s Imagination Playground™? See imagination at play – watch last year’s winner enjoying Imagination Playground™. 

 

Road Trip Activities & Tips for Little Ones

Tomorrow morning we’ll be driving to Surfside Beach in South Carolina for our family vacation! From our house, it’s about a 9 hour drive straight through. With the boys, we expect it to take about 12 due to stops. For a 3 year old and a 10 month old, that’s a really long and boring drive. For the parents, it’s not much better. We’ll have the dvd player with us, but want other ways of keeping the boys happy along the way.

Lego KidsFest in Richmond Oct 3-5

I received free tickets for my family to attend.

Charlie loves playing with LEGOs. Did you know that’s actually not the correct thing to say? LEGO is the name brand. Kids (and adults) play with LEGO bricks not Legos. Learn something new every day, right? Charlie builds “inventions” with his LEGO bricks, but we wish someone would make an invention that would make them hurt less when we step on them! You know the pain I’m talking about!

Children around the world spend five billion hours a year playing with LEGO bricks! LEGO KidsFest is a hands-on, educational, all-ages LEGO extravaganza features millions of LEGO bricks, not to mention lots of construction zones, dozens of life-sized LEGO models and displays, LEGO Friends, LEGO Chima, LEGO Star Wars, live LEGO Master Builders, and so much more covering three acres of space.

If you want to go, be sure to buy your tickets early because the events keep selling out! You can also enter to win a pair of tickets below!

Back to School Lunches: PB&J Banana Dogs

This post contains affiliate links.

We don’t have to deal with packing lunches for school yet, but this year I’ll be picking Charlie up from Preschool just in time to get home for lunch. Whether you’re packing lunches for the kids to take to school or just looking for a quick and easy lunch to make at home, I think you’ll enjoy this recipe from eMeals.

eMeals delivers weekly meal plans right to your inbox! They even include a shopping list to make it a breeze getting ready for the week ahead!

Hungry for Happiness Coming to Philly 8/14

Did you know that 1 in 5 kids in America suffers from hunger?

Kids should never have to worry about being hungry, especially during the summer. Summer is meant to be full of fun and play! The Hungry for Happiness mobile tour will visit Philadelphia this week to help raise awareness about the issue of childhood hunger and increase participation in free summer meals sites for kids located in the area.

Kids need to eat year-round, but only 18.7 percent of children in Pennsylvania who rely on free or reduced-price school lunches currently participate in a summer meal program. The Arby’s Foundation, the charitable arm of Arby’s Restaurant Group, Inc., in partnership with Share Our Strength’s No Kid Hungry^® campaign, is committed to helping kids get the food they need.

This summer, families can find free Summer Meals for kids in their community by texting FOOD to 877-877.

Frozen Sweet Treats for After School

This post contains affiliate links.

For some areas, like my sister in Kentucky, school is already back in session! We still have quite a bit of summer and those sticky hot days left, even after school goes back.

Thanks to eMeals, I’m sharing a popsicle treat with you today that will be an awesome surprise for the kiddos when they get home from school!

If you sign up for eMeals now, you can save 20% with discount code SCHOOL and you’ll receive a FREE Back to School Recipes Download with purchase of an eMeals subscription. Here’s a peek at the quality of recipes you’ll receive.

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Organic Coconut Blueberry Popsicle

Little Headbangers Photo Contest

Show your kid's inner rock star for a chance to win a Jammy Jams music prize pack. Jammy Jams is a fun, modern twist on lullabies for parents who want to create memories with their little ones while teaching them a bit about our own style.

Consign with Just Between Friends

I will be receiving a gift certificate to shop the sale and share with you all about Just Between Friends, but my love of consignment shopping and selling is all my own.

Driving around on a weekend right now, you see plenty of yard sales. I tried going to a few this past weekend and failed miserably. Like anyone that has children, we have a ton of things that are outgrown or simply not used anymore. I’d love to plan our own yard sale, but it’s really too much work for what I get out of it. That’s why I was so excited to find out about Just Between Friends of Middletown/Dover. They have seasonal sales where everyone can buy and sell gently used children’s items and maternity clothes.

Middletown Fall 2014 Sale (FREE PASS)
September 6th & 7th
Louis Redding Middle School
201 New Street, Middletown DE 19709
Consignor drop off is Sept 5th 6-9pm

Dover Fall 2014 Sale (FREE PASS)
October 11th & 12th
Polytech High School
823 Walnut Shade Rd. Dover, DE 19901
Consignor drop off is Oct 10th 6-9pm

Win Your Back to School List & Help Teachers

Thanks to Great Clips for sponsoring this post, but my love for supporting teachers is all my own.

I can’t believe it’s already time to start Back to School shopping! For us, Charlie is starting pre-school this year. I’m honestly not sure if we have to do any back to school shopping for him or not yet, but I’m sure we’ll find out at our meeting next month.

I do remember shopping when I was younger and we had to have all the Lisa Frank supplies. Remember them? Then as we got into high school, we were required to have that really expensive calculator. You know which one I’m talking about. I remember my father used his Dremel tool to etch my name into the back. If you lost that thing, big trouble!

Parents have to spend a lot of money getting their kids all the gear they need (and some they just want) for back to school. Great Clips is giving you the chance to win your back to school checklist! To enter, just upload a picture of your school supplies list to the #GREATLIST contest for your chance to win your entire list! There’s a new winner every day and prizes are shipped right to your front door. For complete details, please visit the #GREATLIST contest page.

If you win, not only will you save money by receiving your back to school supplies for free, but you won’t have to drag the kids out to the crowds for back to school shopping!

Children’s Day at Cecil County Fair

Monday is Children’s Day at the Cecil County Fair. Last year, Charlie landed his cute self in the paper while digging for pretend bugs in a garden. This year seemed to be a bit more crowded, but it’s still so much nicer to go during the day before it really gets packed for the evening. The rides and carnival games aren’t open during this time. I know some people see this as a bad thing, but I love it. The 4-H groups, churches, and other organizations have activities just for children that are FREE! If the games and rides were open, the kids would be begging to do them. And trust me, they’re far from free.

So… after that wordy intro, here’s Wordless Wednesday! And don’t mind my grossness- it’s the County Fair, which means walking around in 90 degree weather, in the dirt and mud, sweating, petting animals, still sweating, and petting more animals- but I wouldn’t miss it!

Lots and Lots of Fire Trucks

This post contains affiliate links.

Like most children, Charlie is completely in awe of fire trucks. This Lots and Lots of Fire Trucks set is perfect for him because he can see all the real action while staying inside the house!

I was rather impressed with the book that comes with this set. The book is aimed at older children and parents in my opinion, but I really do think it’s great. The book includes facts, history information, recipes, pictures, safety tips and so much more. The audio CD that comes with the set is perfect to entertain the little ones in the car.

Give Baby a Fresh Start with Purex & One Step Ahead

Purex has just launched another great sweepstakes! This time it’s with One Step Ahead!

One grand prize winner will receive a gift certificate valued at $1,000 from One Step Ahead®, a year’s supply of Purex® Baby Detergent, and a year’s supply of Purex® Crystals™ for Baby.

This is really an awesome sweepstakes and everyone should go enter now!

Buy and Sell Gently-Worn Clothing By the Lot at Loteda.com

I received a promotional gift certificate for sharing this information. All opinions are my own.

Loteda is a new marketplace where parents can buy and sell gently-worn children's clothing - by the lot. Loteda is the only site designed solely for buying an entire season's worth of clothes - in one transaction. Available in sizes newborn to 5.

How it works:

20% off your total purchase! Use code: SAVE20. Expires 8/31/2014

Summer Clearance Blowout at The Children’s Place

This post contains affiliate links.

As far as retail goes, summer is pretty much over. For most of us though, kids will be wearing shorts and tees for a few more months. Here’s your chance to get a great deal on summer clothes from The Children’s Place! Tees, tanks, and more starting at $1.99 before the 25% coupon!

The Children's Place has 25% Off everything including clearance when you use code PROMO3 at checkout. Shipping is free today only!

Keeping Kids Safe With DreamBaby

I was sent product to facilitate this review. All opinions are my own. DreamBaby has also supplied one for giveaway!

When you have kids (of any age), you want to keep them safe. DreamBaby makes some wonderful products to help us with that.

I was sent the Royal Converta 3-in-1 Play-Yard and Wide Barrier Gate after seeing that we have two little ones. We have small gates at the top and bottom of our stairs and one dividing our kitchen from the dining room.

Warning: My house is a hot mess and this is a real post. I can’t show you real pictures of how we’re actually using the Royal Converta if I clean up my house and stage everything. I’m not one of those moms that keeps a neat house. It’s just not in me. Add a toddler and a baby, it just gets worse.