ErgoPouch [Updated Review] + Giveaway

If you're new here, I'll update you: I am a mama.  A stay at home mama.  My little craft blog has changed over the last 4 years and instead of only sharing household DIYs, I've grown to add a lot of projects that are perfect for families, busy mamas and kids.  I've also opened my blog up to exploring some of the best baby/kids products out there.  It's a whole new world of products and I love being able to tell you the truth about each one of them (and I especially love being able to GIVE YOU FREE GOODIES because I love you guys and want to give you great stuff)

Today is a special treat, because I am giving away an awesome product, but I'm also giving an UPDATED review of this company that I've reviewed in the past. That means I've had a lot longer to "test it out" and I have a few new things to tell you:

{Disclaimer: I have received free product from ErgoPouch in exchange for an honest review of the product. This post contains a link to my initial review as well as my updated views on the product. Giveaway items are sponsored by ErgoPouch}

First things first, if you aren't familiar with how ErgoPouch "layers" sleepwear works, read about it HERE (it's a really cool system they've created).  Next, if you'd like to read my initial review, check it out *here* (it'll give you all my initial feelings about it and details about all the cool features)



Now.. onto my updated review.

I own both the 0.2 TOG and the 1.0 TOG "warmness" both in long sleeves. I'll talk about both here.

There are a few things I've really grown to LOVE even more as time goes on:

1- The 3-way zipper. I thought this was brilliant before but it is the best thing ever if your kiddo is potty training.  Other one-piece pajamas have to be completely stripped off if your babe needs to potty but ErgoPouch's 3 way zipper allows you to unzip and go- yes, even for little girls!!!

{Yes, she's actually going potty. The zipper is unzipped all the way in the back and as far in the front as you can see in the photo. SO much easier than standard footies!}

2- The different TOG numbers really do matter.  I can feel a physical difference between the 0.2 and the 1.0 TOG pieces that we own.  I love that we have a "warmer" option for those nights where it's a little more chilly.  They also make a 2.5 TOG for those extra cold nights!  And of course, the entire layers collection allows for you to mix and match pieces to perfectly dress your child in any season.

3- They have the most beautiful prints. In my first review I featured the adorable "clouds" fabric but as it's gotten colder outside, we've been using the one that we have in the print called "spring leaves". I found myself just staring at the colors and design on it the other day, it's so beautifully made.  These would not only make quality gifts for someone but are simply beautiful too.

4- The fold over "mitts".  I'll be honest, we have to fold the feet mitts over before putting them on my daughter or she refuses to have them closed off.  However, I love that we have the option for those on especially cold nights when her little feet get cold.  We don't use the hand mitts but especially for younger babies, these would be life savers!  We went on a "doughnut run" the other day in our jammies and since she had the mitts over her feet I didn't make her wear boots in the store (judge me all you will.  She's taking advantage of being able to do this while she can!)

But wait...

There is something I don't like as much as I thought I did before:

- The 3 way zipper.  (huh? I thought you said that was your favorite part you crazy lady...) Yes, I love it for potty training and I *thought* I loved it for diaper changes but it turns out that most nights it's just as easy for me to take the pants all the way off that it is to work around the partial opening from the zippers. This is just my personal experience and maybe since I used to like it I'm just doing something wrong now.

Either way, I wanted to be upfront with y'all on that change in my opinion.

Would I still recommend these?  For sure. These are legit quality jammies (sleepwear) and they are so adaptable to a variety of sizes, temperatures and needs.  And as I said before, they are cuuuute!


Why don't you go ahead and enter to win a pair while you are here? Just follow the prompts on the widget below:


a Rafflecopter giveaway

 

Felt Thankfullness Turkey (no-sew)

*Have a holly, jolly Christmas...* Oh, sorry.  I'm one of those straight-to-Christmas-skip-past-Thanksgiving types.  And I'm married to a man who loves Thanksgiving more than any other holiday.  Out of respect for him, I don't decorate for Christmas before December... but I'll admit, I don't do a lot for Thanksgiving either.  This year I thought I should make a little more effort to celebrate Thanksgiving for my husband but also to use the opportunity to teach my children about being thankful and understanding how blessed they (we) are.

So I came up with this interactive piece of decor that my 4 year old is OBSESSED with.  It's been a definite hit in our home and I bet it will be one in yours too!

Every day we grab a felt feather from the pocket and my son tells me something he is thankful for that day.  Then we write it on the feather and stick it up!  Felt naturally sticks to felt so you can rearrange the feathers every day and re-use this DIY every year (just cut new feathers to write on).  What an adorable reminder of how blessed we are and a fun way to get the kiddos involved!


It's very easy to make and the thing that took the most time was cutting out the letters by hand (which still wasn't very long)  


Here's what you'll need:

- Felt (for the large background piece, purchase "by-the-yard" felt, for the feathers and turkey you can do by-the-yard or the smaller pre-cut sheets)

- Hot Glue Gun

- Scissors

- Googly Eyes

- Sharpie Marker

  


For the turkey, I traced two bowls/containers, one larger than the other, slightly overlapped.  Then I cut it out for his body shape.  Next, just cut a nose and snood (that's what the red dangly thing is called. I just looked it up!) and attach them and two google eyes with hot glue. The turkey itself will not be glued on so that you can pick it up and put feathers under it every day.

For the large piece, just cut a square or rectangle.  Since it is felt you don't need to finish the edges in any way.  I later added a strip across the bottom to hold our extra feathers but if I had thought of this first I could have just made my big piece extra long and folded it up.  Both ways are fine.  If you choose to add a separate piece, hot glue along the 3 edges, leaving the top open.  I also glued two vertical lines to create "pockets" which helps to keep it from sagging open.

Next, cut out your letters and hot glue them on.  MAKE SURE you lay your letters out first (before gluing) or you'll likely run out of room!

Lastly (or whenever you want. Order doesn't really matter a lot) cut out your feathers.  I made 22 feathers to last us up until Thanksgiving day (because after that, it's ALL CHRISTMAS y'all!) but you could also do the entire month of November and cut out 30 feathers instead.

How pretty is that turkey with all those feathers on it?!  I can't wait to see what things my son is "thankful" for.  So far he's come up with:

- "my house"
- "matching outfits" (him and his sister have some matching clothes and so do me and him)
- "applesauce"
- "baby chicks, cows & ducks"
- "my birthday"
- "books"
- "Elizabeth"
- "Highlights Magazine" (which I totally spelled wrong on the feather.  Left out an "H". oops!)

My 4 year old LOVES this and as soon as he wakes up in the morning he runs over and goes "oh, we forgot to do this!"  We've only been awake for 10 minutes but okay buddy.


I love seeing what he comes up with every day.   Some are funny and I wonder where that came from and others are just plain sweet.  Either way, it opens up the conversation about "thankfulness" and helps all of us learn to appreciate all the blessings we really have.

Hidden Message Tote Bag

For those who follow our business page, you might have seen that my mama recently had a knee replacement. During her first week in recovery, we had a physical therapist come to the house (my mom is staying with us). Luckily for us, my mom was able to request the same therapist she had for her other knee replacement a year ago- who we all ADORE. My son especially has taken to her and has even kept a "thank you" card for an ENTIRE YEAR (he was 3 years old) that she wrote him for sharing his mini pumpkins with her.


It's adorable. Since we probably wont be seeing her ever again, we wanted to do something to let her know how special she is to us. On the other hand, a lot of companies don't allow employees to accept gifts from their clients. So here's what we came up with:

Oh there's a little more too it though.. keep reading.


My son loves to sew. He's made a couple pillows but this was hist first bag. I cut everything out an he did all the sewing... up until his little sister came in the room and then they got distracted and started playing (hehe)


We used this tutorial from Crazy Little Projects and made one very special adaptation...

Can you see what we added? Here's what it looks like when turned inside out:

Using a sharpie marker, I wrote "Made by" and let me son write his name in a piece of fabric. You could also use a fabric marker but I've found that Sharpie tends to stay on fabric pretty well on it's own (just ask all the clothing we've accidently drawn on). 


After he wrote his name, I cut the fabric out in a rectangle large enough to hold a standard sized book. We knew that our therapist loved to read so we thought this bag definitely needed a special pocket for her book! The pocket is sewn onto the inside panel of fabric PRIOR to sewing the bag together (that way the backside of the stitching doesn't show through the front of the bag)


Of course, she could also use the bag with the pocket on the outside as well. This bag is reversible!

Since her and my son had a special relationship we thought she would just melt over the added bit of love that we snuck into this bag. This would be great for moms, aunts, grandparents or anyone who would love to see a special note every time they reached inside their bag. I think it would even be great for students and friends to see a special reminder just from you, secretly tucked away.

Who would you make this bag for? And what kind of message would you put inside! I'd love to know so please comment and inspire others to create!

The "Potty Train" Technique

Raise your hand if you are beginning or mid- potty training.  If you just raised your hand, know mama [papa] that I feel you and am sending all good vibes, prayers and magical dust your way.  Let me also go ahead and get this comment out of the way:

You are doing great. Your child is doing the best they can.  Mercy... it seems like it's never going to end and honestly, sometimes it takes a long time.  Let me get real about my kids and our journey so that you can understand that all kids are different and that there is no "perfect magical potty training technique that works for everyone". I feel the need to say this because I felt enormous guilt and failure for a long time after a popular training method that worked for everyone else in our family (cousin in laws) just didn't work for us.  It seemed like it did.  Until it didn't.  Gah that is so frustrating.

The method I'm going to share with you today was the best "technique" we used and it was pretty much just made up. (ha- serendipity!) It wasn't perfect but for us it worked better than the previously mentioned and if this simple technique helps your kiddo go potty then I consider that a success. Why? Because we really need a break every now and then.

[Disclaimer: This post contains affiliate links to products we used while potty training or products that can be used in this process.  Purchasing through these links earns me a small commission at no extra charge to you which helps support my blog.  Thank you.]

My son was fully potty trained by his 2nd birthday (using a popular technique).  A few weeks later we drove several states away with no accidents, he told us when he had to go, held it until we could make a stop, the whole shebang.  We arrive at our destination and things are a little here and there.  Skip ahead and he refuses to go potty and is having accidents left and right.  A year later and we no longer have a potty trained kid.  So I created the "potty train" and things finally clicked for him.  He no longer felt the pressure that the 1st technique created (he's pretty hard on himself anyways, it's in his nature and it stressed him out) and it seemed that he finally was able to go potty on his terms and it made the whole experience much better (for him and his mama!)


It's really quite simple:

Using some cardstock I created a "train" and sticky tacked it to the wall.  It included 3 sections:
1. "Thanks for trying!"
2. "You went PEE in the potty!"
3. "You went POOP in the potty!"

We set a timer on my phone to go off in increments of time that reminded my son to "go try". (They also make these potty watches that the kids can wear. I hear they are awesome!)  The popular technique we used when he was 2 discouraged against having them "go try" but after going through that and then trying this, we found that being AHEAD of the game was what worked best for my son.  Every child is different and you know your child best. EVERY time my son would try, he got a sticker.  He picked out which sticker he wanted and then he added it to his chart that I had hanging on the adjacent wall.

He preferred to put the stickers in a sort of orderly chaos on his chart.  Man I love this kid.  It's amazing how the simple act of picking out a sticker and putting in on a chart can give a child a feeling of control over the situation.  You'd think that the alarm would make him feel forced but it actually took the pressure out of the situation and he even started to ask me to "make the alarm go off" when he felt the urge to potty (hehe).  After the initial 'getting in the groove' with the alarm "tries" I allowed him to refuse an alarm.  What this did was created an opportunity for him to go potty when he may not otherwise be thinking about it but still have control over his body (because we aren't forcing him to try).

[Whoa blurry photo... as always, terrible lighting in my house]

That's the key here. 



So what about the PEE and POOP categories?

Every time he successfully went pee (even just a few drops) he got to pick a prize from the "pee prize box".  For us this was usually a handful of organic gummies , popcorn, or some other small food treat.  My son loves food treats so it worked for him (and we didn't have a million toys lying around) but at times we also did balloons or temporary tattoos.

For the "poop prizes" we picked small toys such as matchbox cars, fun chapstick or small art kits.  I also attached some "passes" to the train that my son could choose instead of the toy...

Our 'passes' were for: a movie, "Mighty Machines" (which are movies but he is obsessed, so seeing the logo made him want to earn it more!), getting to play with beads and getting to play with play dough.  His sister was little at the time so he didn't get to play with beads or play dough much when she was awake.  When he chose this prize, he could play it whenever he wanted. We also limit screen time so a movie is a treat! 

Pick prizes that you know would be a big deal for your kiddo.  Because, I'm going to say it again... you know your kid better than anyone.

...   ...   ...   ...   ...

Ready for my honest update on my kiddos?  And PLEASE listen to me here. Every child is so different and do things at their own rate. My son is now 4.  He goes potty by himself sometimes and sometimes wants mommy to go with him.  He occasionally still hides when he has to poop but if you let him be on his terms, he will follow through as he should.  He holds it at school and holds it with even my husband (his dad) and will only tell me and my mom (most of the time) when he has to potty. BUT GET THIS...

My daughter started potty training herself when she was 1.  She's currently less than 2 years old and although we still diaper her out and about, she tells us when she has to potty at home (and other places) and often runs to the potty by herself and does it all herself.  We don't push her but also don't want to discourage her since she's obviously interested.

Same family, same way of being raised, two very different outcomes.  So mama/papa... if it seems like your kid is never going to "get it", know that you aren't alone.  Give the 'potty train' a try and maybe your kiddo will find some comfort in that.  When it comes down to it though, your kid is going to do it when they want and how they want.  The best we can do is encourage them and for us, this simple train seemed to change the perspective on this potty journey.  It's not a cure all, it wont train your kid in 3 days or less... but it might help and dang it, that's worth a shot.

DIY monogram laurel wreath for under $10

My daughter's nursery is a lovely soft floral theme.  The walls are "peach parfait" (a light pink with some peach undertones) and it is decorated with flowers and signs that have encouraging messages and you guessed it... more florals.


I wanted something to go above her changing station that was large but simple. An eye catching design that didn't take away from the simple beauty of the room.  Then I stumbled upon those lovely laurel wreaths.  Paired with a large monogrammed letter and we have reached perfection.  I'm a frugal shopper and we don't have a lot of extra money for things like home decor so I saught out to make my own.

[I realize that wall doesn't look peach parfait.  As always, terrible lighting in our house for photos!]

I purchased all the greenery and made the vinyl letter all for under $10 (and it was easy too!).  I'll show you how:

[Disclaimer: This post contains affiliate links. Purchasing through these links earns me a small commission at no extra charge to you. These are products you can use in this project 


Materials:
- floral stems from Hobby Lobby (or any craft store with a floral section)
- green floral tape
- adhesive vinyl (this is the brand I like) + cutting machine (or by hand if you can do it!)


Depending on how full/large you want it, you will need between 4-6 stems.  They are often on sale at Hobby Lobby for 50% off but they also have 40% off coupons available for you to use. Regular price (which I didn't pay), mine were $3.99/piece and I used 4 stems.



Step 1:
Trim down the stems. To get a more smooth curve on the laurel (and to make the stems go farther!) cut off all the "branches" at the base. Trust me: Use wire cutters. The stems have a metal base and although it's skinny, you wont be able to do it very easily with regular scissors.

Step 2:
Reattach the "branch" pieces onto the bare part of the stem, switching from left to right to keep it looking 'even'. I used green floral tape because it's a little stretchy and it blends in with the stems.

Set these aside and move onto your vinyl letter for now.

Step 3:
For the vinyl letter, simply cut by hand, or if you have a cutting machine (I love my silhouette cameo) it only takes a moment. I had to split my letter because it was larger than my cutting mat but with transfer paper it was easy to apply!

...and once it's on the wall. Tip: If you pick a curvy font like I did, it allows a little "wiggle room" in sticking it on the wall straight since there's not a definite straight center.



Step 4: 
Attach the large stems together to create an even larger piece (I used 2 for each side of my laurel)

For a non-permanent but sturdy way to attach these stems, buy a package of 3M hooks  and adhere them to your wall, snapping the stems into the 3M tabs.  I actually snapped them into the 3M's before sticking them to the wall to help me figure out where I want them.  Good news?  If you decide it's just a little off, the stems can be snapped out and rearranged (I may or may not have moved mine around after the 3Ms were stuck to the wall 1 or 2 (or 3 or 4) times.

[Here's the 3M pieces- as you can see, they hide themselves pretty well]

Oh, I'm in love...

That's it!
This project is so easy that even I (with zero experience using floral stems) had no problem completing it! Even better? it only costs a few bucks- less than a quick breakfast and coffee! Totally worth it.

Pumpkin Decorating Activity

As is often the case, I try to keep these posts short and sweet and then take 20 photos during the process. Why? Just call me photo-addicted I guess! Aaaaanywho- today I wanted to encourage a little messy play with you and your littles (kids, nieces, nephews, neighbor friend, classroom, etc) or to do yourself!

[Disclaimer: This post contains affiliate links to products I suggest using for this project. If you choose to purchase anything through these links, I earn a small commission at no extra charge to you. This helps me fund future blog posts, so thank you.]

There are so many beautiful pumpkin DIYS out there, from using paper & mod podge, to washi tape, to classic painting in a whole new grownup way:

{source: ReadyCartInstagram}

{source: Pinterest}

{source: Pinterest}

These are all amazing but right now, we like to focus a bit more on the creative process than having the house decorated with perfect pumpkins. (although as a mama, you know I think their pumpkins are perfect too!) 


Here's what you'll need:

- Pumpkins for everyone (we used pie pumpkins for that medium size) You can also buy assorted packages of artificial pumpkins on Amazon if you'd like to keep them forever.

- Paint. Lots of paint. We use acrylic paint like it's going out of style in our house!  I also found that my kids (especially 18 month old) really favored using the scribbles paint writers so that would be a good option for making fine-details or for little ones!

- Other small accessories like beads (those aren't the ones we used but I just found them and OMG animal shapes!), googly eyes, small strips and pieces of fabric and glitter. You may also add ribbon or trim around the stem if you'd like!

- Hot glue gun. (and adult supervision!) The heavier beads wont stick to the paint itself so you'll need to attach them with hot glue and have your littles point to where they want their bead.

Spread everything out on a table (Don't forget to cover with newspaper or magazine pages!) and let the fun begin!  My son had a blast with the glitter and writer pens (this isn't even what his finished pumpkin looked like. It's 3 layers deep!) and my daughter did a little pumpkin decorating and then moved onto decorating the magazine pages instead.

(It still dried in less than 24 hours! I couldn't believe it.) 

(I also love how my son looks like he's doing a magic trick or is a fine culinary chef back there)

It's all about having fun so don't push them any direction and just let them explore the textures and give them the chance to practice their creativity. Today's world seems to struggle with letting kids do that sometimes.

Most importantly, have fun! We aren't trying to win any pinterest competitions here, we're trying to raise confident, capable children #amiright?

Oh... and maybe take off your rings before you start. I didn't even make a pumpkin but I got a lot of paint and glitter on my very special rings.  Oops (don't worry, I got it all off!)

Here's a look at their finished pumpkins. My son made a man (the yellow is his mustache) with glitter hair and my daughter went for the more understated simple design.  If that doesn't describe their personalities, I don't know what does! It's funny how things like that happen.

Can I let you in on a secret? The kids (especially my daughter) are SO PROUD of their pumpkins. Showing them off to everyone and pointing them out every time we walk past.  Trust me... it's definitely worth the mess!

Building a Craft Community

This week's post will be short and sweet but I'd love for y'all to join in the fun with me!  You may have heard me mention before that I run a sort of crafty community page on facebook, a place where anyone can come and get inspired, learn tips and tricks and even share your own projects (and it's a closed group so if you're making something for a facebook friend, you wont ruin the surprise unless they are in the group too!)

It's pretty fun. I've actually been away from it for a little while now during a personal absence from facebook and I miss it like crazy. Since I'm coming back this week, I thought I'd also share it with all you sweets that read my blog so that you can come join the fun too! Although I technically "run" the page, anyone can post their projects in progress, completed projects, or even any questions, comments or input you want from the community. It's not my page, it's our page. Basically our only rules are be kind to each other and no pushy direct sales stuff. Nope.. that wont be tolerated. But if you're making something crafty for your business and you're proud of it, feel free to share. It's all about the DIY.

What are you waiting for? JOIN OUR GROUP NOW. It's fun (and of course free- it's just a facebook group!) and it's all about inspiring others and getting inspired ourselves! We all get to know each other a little along the way too so it's nice to have that community as well ;)

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