Wonderland

We were told we were to get a lot of snow and the weather men were right (this time!). Blizzard conditions yesterday, close to a foot of snow, and snow packed roads today meant that instead of heading to my midwife appointment and getting a little shopping done (so hoping to find a rocking chair at the thrift shop!) we have been drinking hot cocoa, making almond bark pretzels, and stocking up at the library on Christmas books and Christmas movies.

Winter has began officially today, which also means that it is the shortest day of the year. Every day from here on out will see a smidgen more light at the end of the day.

With just one weekend before Christmas I imagine everyone is scrambling to finish last minute projects. My goal this weekend is to make sugar cookie cutouts with the kids and finish cleaning up the house as we are hosting Christmas Eve at our house.  

I still need to come up with some yummy appetizers to serve on Christmas Eve. Any ideas?

I hope that you all have a relaxing weekend and enjoy it with your family. Let the magic of the season surround you!

 

Brain Splat

*Goodness, only one week until Christmas! Gifts are wrapped, cards sent. Still working on baking but we seem to be eating more than we are saving. Uh-oh, wonder how sparse our gift plates will be.

*The kids are loving the documentary that I picked up at the library titled "Babies". With a baby coming soon they are into babies everything lately. I didn't realize that the show would showcase the African women so "bare"...if you catch my drift. We did lots of fast forwarding of that yesterday.Then today the kids asked to watch it again and I let them watch it in the entirety. It's a way of life in Africa for some tribes to go shirtless, it's not a sexual thing, and I am fairly open to the body when it's shown in a natural way. I remember seeing pictures of women giving birth when I was young. What would you do...allow your children to watch that or not? Why or why not?

*A big snow system is on it's way - looks like we will be having a white Christmas after all! The kids can't wait for it to arrive.

*I am so thankful that our car insurance covers glass. The whole back window in our car was shattered (we aren't sure how as hubby came out of work to find it that). A $900 repair turned into just a $100 deductible for our insurance. Whew!

*Are you getting tired of my subscription box posts? I have more reviews if you aren't bored of them.

 

P&G eStore Stocking Stuffers

Did you realize that there is a P & G store online, where you can shop from the comfort of your own home? Either did I!

While I typically use natural and eco-friendly detergent there are times when convenience comes into play more than anything else. Tide Pods (in yummy Ocean Mist scent!) make washing your laundry so much easier when you are on the go (no bulky containers to haul around, no worries about leaks) or when your hubby or children are helping with the laundry - it's already pre-measured for you and easy to just toss in the machine along with your dirty clothing. Not only do the pods clean your clothing with detergent but they also include a stain remover and a brightener as well.

Now your laundry as well as your shopping can be done in record time, when you buy Tide Pods (or any of the other great P & G products!) online. The site will also alert you to any rebates for items (and how to send in for them!) and you are also able to use the P & G ecoupons by applying them directly from your  shopping cart! There are also several special offers on the website that you won't find in stores.

Not only do you get free shipping on all orders over $25 but you also get free samples with every order and all first time orders from a new customer get 15% off with code   A9Z-MN5-KY3-ISA

Wisdom Meets Passion by Dan Miller and Jared Angaza

I really wanted to like this book, and thought I would judging by the other reviews I had read. Unfortunately, I couldn't even finish it.

Wisdom Meets Passion by Dan Miller and Jared Angaza (father and son) is supposed to be about how to reach your life and career goals. The main focus would be a good one except for the fact that the book seemed so jumbled. Every chapter seemed almost like a repeat of the previous one. Jared's writings all seemed to focus on Africa and was completely irrelevant to what we experience here in America. Dan plugs his website throughout the book, making it more like an infomercial than a self-help book.

I did like the quotes throughout the book. I enjoy Dan's thoughts on education and how life experience trumps learned facts. I didn't come away from this book in awe or with ideas to change my lifestyle, instead I was just glad to close the book and be done with it. The true meat of the book got lost within the repeated dialogue and cross reference to Dan's website.

Disclaimer: This book was given to me by Thomas Nelson Publishers through the Book Sneeze Blogger program in exchange for an honest review. 
 

Citrus Lane

I hope that you aren't all getting tired of my subscription box posts. I know it can be fun to see "surprise boxes" even if you have no intention of ordering them. If you are, I promise, a regular post will be up this weekend too!

I received my December Citrus Lane box today. The theme this month is "A few of our favorite things". This is a subscription box for infants through toddlers. They specialize what is in your box based on your child's age so boxes do differ from one another (I know that toddlers received an adorable "green" airplane toy in their box this month).

Each box is $25 but there are often codes or deals out there to get it cheaper. I used a Groupon code a few months ago to get my three month subscription.

The infant box for December included:

*Pearhead Baby Hanging Keepsake ($14.95) So cute!

*Chewbeads Skinny Charles Bangles ($19.50) At first I wasn't real excited about these, but then remembered that when my babies reach a certain age I am unable to wear jewelry because they pull and try to chew on them. These will be perfect - cute bracelets that are chewable!

*Tiny Love Eli Elephant ($6.99) Pull the string and make the elephant move. Baby will love this (and the boys have been playing with it all morning!)

*Mommy's Bliss Gripe Water ($12.99) Great for teething and colic. Will be keeping this in a safe place for when baby needs it!

*Popcorn Fleur de Se Caramel Corn ($1.99) - This is the treat for mom. Looks yummy, I'll share with hubby when we are watching a movie together.

*$15 Ecomom gift certificate. I LOVE Ecomom and should be able to get something free with this!

Total value of the box is $69.42! I was very happy with my box this month!! If you are interested in joining you can buy a month, three month, six month, or 12 month subscription. Your box will be based on your baby's age/gender. Use this link and the code  SRINGFUN for 10% off your order or GIFT10 to get $10 off a 3 month subscription. This would make a great present for an expecting mom, baby shower gift, etc.

Disclaimer: This is not a sponsored review, I am just sharing what I love. Referral links are included.

Must Have Box

Have you heard about the PopSugar Must Have subscription boxes? They are a bit of a splurge at $35 a month but the contents are valued at over $100. The December box is my first box ever but I just had to subscribe after reading reviews on the November and October boxes. They were seriously the bomb.

The December box isn't "as great" as the previous two but I have a sneaking suspicion that is because they also sold a "luxury box" this month for $100 and that all the best is in there (no, I did not purchase that box). I was still very happy with this box. To me it's neat because these are items that I would never buy for myself but will most definitely use. I'm introduced to new brands that I wouldn't run across in my little town otherwise.

*Bodum Bistro Mugs, set of two, $30. I'd never pay $30 for two mugs but these look pretty cool. They are mouth-blown by artisans. I see myself using these a lot in the future!

*Tea Forte' Sampler Box, $15. Smells wonderful! Would be great for a gift but I'm going to gift it to myself and drink it from a Bodum Bistro Mug. :)

*Jaboneria Marianella Soap, $14. Smells so yummy and promises to do wonders for your skin. It will be a hard decision of whether I should keep it for myself or gift it this Christmas!

*Pinch Provisions Minimergency Kit, $13. This is a genius idea and will be tucked into the bottom of my purse for any mishaps when away from home. Includes things such as stain remover, safety pins, deodorant wipes, and much more

*Bogdon's Peppermint Poles, $3.99. We already tore into these and they are delicious. Seriously delicious! I could eat the whole box myself but we will dole these out sparingly to make them last.

*Goswype, $1.99. A microfiber cloth which removes dirt, oil, grime, and 98% of germs from your cellphone. Handy to have in our purse.

*Rent the Runway $30 gift card. An interesting concept...rent a cocktail dress, gown, etc.and mail back when finished! This is the only item I won't use from the box (first one to e-mail me at babys_mama1 "at" yahoo . com gets the code!)

Total of the box is $77.98, or if you include the $30 gift certificate it's $107.98. Not a bad deal for $35! This is a box that I will continue to subscribe to as all the past boxes have looked like such fun.

Want to try it yourself? Sign up here and also use the code REFERFRIENDS for $5 off your first box. The boxes sell out fast and I believe that the January boxes may already be sold out, so be sure to reserve your February box!

Disclaimer: This is not a sponsored post. I'm sharing something that I love. Referral links are included.
 

Cleaning Up

As I've mentioned before, I've been doing a lot of my Christmas shopping online. It's wonderful to be able to shop at home and have the goods delivered directly to me.

A few months ago I was introduced to The Honest Company by a friend. I signed up for some samples to see if it was my thing and I really liked what I tried. These are safe natural cleaners, baby products, and health and beauty products. It's least expensive to "buy by the bundle". You can also sign up for the subscription service which means a box will be sent monthly (or however often you want, you can go to your account to set up shipment dates).

There is a baby bundle which includes natural diapers and wipes and then there are household bundles which include everything from cleaners to laundry detergent to lotions and bath soap. A lot of people want to use more natural, eco-friendly products but since they aren't readily available in most stores it becomes a hassle to purchase them. This is so easy - free shipping and auto-ship if you choose. My favorite part is that you can manage everything in your account page online (change shipments, skip a month or two, etc.) but best of all, the household bundle can be changed monthly if you choose. There are so many products to choose from and you can select which 5 you would like in your bundle (and choose more items at a discount if you choose). One month you may need toilet bowl cleaner and the next you may substitute that with body lotion.

This month I chose laundry detergent, dishwashing detergent (really want to try their dishwasher packs but they seem to sell out quickly), face and body lotion, dish soap, stain remover, and added a three pack of lip balm (which will be included in the kid's stockings). I added the sixth item to get free shipping.

If this sounds like something up your alley or just something you'd like to try, use this link to get $10 off your first order! By doing so you could get everything in the photo above for just under $31! For healthy, eco-friendly products! 

Disclaimer: This is not a sponsored post, The Honest Compay has no clue who I am. I just happen to really like the products and wanted to share. There are referral links in the post.