Travelin' Toddler Gift Guide Day 3: Pediped

Disclosure: I have received a pair of Pediped shoes to faciliate this review.  The opinions are 100% my own and they may differ from that of yours.

No outfit is complete without an awesome pair of shoes, right?!  Nugget doesn't need shoes yet,  but your can't be a stylin' traveler without a whole ensemble.  We have teamed with Pediped to make sure your little ones feet are properly soled for your travels.  Pediped is the next best thing to bare feet with their soft leather soles.  This will allow your baby to feel the floor while they are learning to walk.  Your baby is encouraged to stay in the Originals for as long as possible.

Sizing is super important to the comfort and health of your child's foot. As is the type of shoe that your little one wears.  Don't know your child's size?  Pediped offers several ways to make sure you buy the correct shoes for your child.

So why Pediped? They are very light, which is great for an active baby.  They are breathable because of the way the sole is stiched to the upper shoe.  They also offer an entire line to grow with your child.  They are also very easy to get on and off.

Nugget is trying out the Henry Originals in this post.  They are a great winter boot for him.  I wanted something a little bit thicker than socks but still ideal for his feet to grow and move.  The inside is nice and soft and the outer is study.  It is attached to a very flexible sole.  They have a velcro closure which makes them incredibly easy to get on and off.  Nugget was pretty interested in them since this was the first time he had  real shoes on his foot.  He is not yet walking, but they definitely gave him more traction in his crawl.

Do you need a great new pair of shoes for your little one for the holidays?  Pediped is giving away a pair of your choice to one lucky winner!  Enter below!

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Travelin' Toddler Gift Guide Day 2: Feeding on the go with Elliot Depot, Nuby and Little Green Pouch.

Disclosure: I have received these products in exchange for my honest review. The opinions are 100% my own.

Nugget is still at that age where I can pass off things that he needs as gifts, which is why this is within the gift guide.  Food is fun though, so this would make a great gift for any toddler.  Day 2 of the Travelin' Toddler Gift Guide is a great package of items that will help you feed your baby on the go at almost any stage of life.  This giveaway consists of 4 Little Green Pouches, a Nuby Easy Wipe Bib, Takeya Green Leaf Bento Box and Bento vegetable cutters from Elliot Depot!

Let's start with the Takeya Green Leaf Bento Box and Veggie Cutters.  I never pinned myself as a Bento mom but this may have changed that.  These great little boxes are separated to provide a variety of items for your little ones and can be closed with a snapping lid to keep everything contained while on the go.  Nugget, even though he is only 8 months old, eats a wide variety of food.  This made me really excited to try out the Bento box method of serving food.  I put Nugget up in his high chair while I prepared the fun shapes with the Bento veggie cutters.  

 I prepared two different bentos: one with fresh veggie and mini sandwiches and another with more traditional baby snacks.  Typically I have an issue feeding Nugget while out since we do baby-led-weaning.  With these great little boxes, I can pack it full of fun easy to pick up foods, snap it close and throw it in my diaper bag and be good to go.

You are able to get these Bento boxes and the Bento veggie cutters at Elliot Depot.  If you like their Facebook page and place a order during the month of December, they will send you a FREE Wonder Towel!  Three lucky readers will win a set of the larger Bento Box and Bento cutters!

Although I love to let Nugget feed himself, Dufda prefers to feed him purees.  From the other moms that I know, a lot of them do a mix of purees and baby-led weaing while feeding their little one.  He has taken it upon himself to make fresh baby food at home.  Little Green Pouch has come up with a great product that will make taking your homemade purees on-the-go with you.  

These pouches are reusable, dishwasher safe, refillable and freezable.  You can save a ton of money versus buying baby food pouches in the store and you will use substantially less waste.  

The top of this pouch has a very heavy duty zipper that your baby will not be able to rip open.  Open the zipper, fill with your favorite puree and you have healthy, fresh baby food on the go.

You are able to connect with Little Green Pouch on Facebook and Twitter.  If you would like to purchase your own pouches, head over to their website.  One lucky winner will win their own set of four pouches!

With all this food, we need to keep our messy eaters clean while out and about.  The perfect way to do this is the Easy Clean Bib by Nuby.

These bibs are easy to wipe off or rinse in the sink and dry in a snap.  Do you see that pocket on the bottom?  It is a Baby-Led weaning must have!  Nugget picks up a lot of food that never makes it into his mouth.  That pocket keeps it from falling on his lap.

This bib is perfect to take with you if you aren't able to wash or just keep in your diaper bag because you can reuse it several times.  You can buy the Easy Clean Bibs at JC Penny's and Blain's Farm and Fleet.  You can also enter to win a set of two below! 

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Check out the other Travelin' Toddler Holiday Gift Guide Giveaways here!

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Travelin' Toddler Gift Guide Day 1: Little Pim and Hugg-A-Planet Giveaway

Disclosure: I received this product in exchange for my honest review.  The opinions are 100% my own and may differ from yours.

To kick off the Travelin' Toddler Gift Guide, I thought we should start with a great gift that would prepare your little one for travel anywhere and everywhere.  If you just can't wait for all the giveaways to go live, check out the rest of the gift guide here.  Little Pim Language videos are just what you need to give your child the gift of a second language.  

Children have the ability to pick up multiple languages much easier than that of adults.  In our household, Nugget is spoken to in Arabic during the day by his dad and English at night while I am home.  I am not sure how his language will evolve over time but I want to make every effort to promote his learning of both languages.  With Little Pim, we are able to watch videos that are not only helping Nugget learn but also teaching me the language he will speak with his dad.  The videos are geared around the Entertainment Immersion Method® and are separated into 5 minute segments to keep the attention of young children.  The animation or actors are helping you along the way to make learning the language easier.

You are able to choose to run the DVDs in several ways to help with the learning process.  We started with subtitles and then removed them later as we got more familiar.  What I like about Little Pim, that is different than other language learning programs I have tried is that they teach you relevant phrases.  You won't be learning about elephants jumping over pink cars here.  Where is the banana? There is the banana. Are you hungry? Let's eat a banana.  Very simple, but you are still formulating sentences.

If you are stopping at Toys R' Us on your holiday shopping, which I bet you are, Little Pim Discovery sets are available in store.  The have French, Chinese and Spanish available!

With Little Pim you will be able to learn about 360 words and phrases which gives you a great start on becoming familiar with that language.  Along with the DVDs, you can add in books, flashcards and CDs to keep the learning going where ever you may be.

Paired with the Little Pim Language DVDs is a Hugg-a-Planet Pocket Earth.  These two items would make a great gift for your little traveler.  You can teach them a new language and show them all the countries where that language is spoken.  The Hugg-a-Planet Earth is a soft globe that doubles as an educational toy and a great travel companion.  It has a hidden pocket that will hold anything small you would want in reach while traveling.   It is perfect for a plane ride to keep children occupied during play time and comfy during nap time.  

Nugget at 8 months loves to roll the Earth back and forth because it is light and soft.  Children as young as 2 are able to start learning geography!  Show them where you are traveling and ask them to recall the information.  Keep your Hugg-a-Planet on hand to reference places in the news with your children.  All around it is a great toy and gift for anyone!

Would you like to purchase this gift set?  You can get Little Pim products here.  Use coupon code LPHOLIDAY for 20% the whole website.  Head over to Hugg-a-Planet and use the coupon code NUGGET for 10% off your purchase!

You can also enter to win both below!

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Road Trip Tips from Little Passports!

Tomorrow kicks off the Travelin' Toddler Gift Guide.  So before we get to the gifts, why not start out with some tips from Little Passports (who are in your gift guide!)

Making the best of a road trip with Little Passports Travel Tips

“Are we there yet?” was a term coined by the family road trip! While new technology and toys may have silenced backseat conversations, spending time together in the car can still be a great opportunity for family bonding and learning. Even if you plan on bringing the latest gadget to pass the time, try saving them for the end of your trip when everyone is tired and cranky!

Here are some ideas from Little Passports that are sure to make the time fly by (or at least go by a little faster):

Save your most recent Little Passports delivery from Sam and Sofia for your road trip so your kids to learn and explore during the car ride.

Say goodbye to your trusted GPS! Bring back the memory of car trips as a kid and use a map! The night before your trip bring out an actual map (if you can find one!) to show your intended route to your child. Even better, copy the map and pull out a highlighter so your child can follow along – and let you know when you missed a turn.

Build in time for pit stops – and if time allows, make short stops that incorporate fun activities along the way. Everyone will need a bathroom break and a meal, but if that happens at a place right off the highway and near playground it can be better for everyone! The kids will get fed – and burn off some energy.

Hit up a dollar store before you leave and stock up on small toys and activities to give to your kids along the way. Every hour let your child choose a surprise – a great incentive for good behavior! You can even wrap the toys for an added element of excitement.

Use this link to make your next road trip educational: Little Passports Travel Tips 

Teddy Bear Making with Nugget

Disclosure: I received a Build-a-Bear gift card to facilitate this review.  The opinions are 100% my own.

Who doesn't love a teddy bear?  Stuffed animals are probably Nugget's favorite thing to play with.  I also love them because he can roll around with them and not get hurt.  I am sure, as a little boy, Nugget is going to be into making and building things.  This is why I couldn't wait to take him to make his own teddy bear.

Build-a-Bear is the ultimate toy making experience.  You get to construct your new furry friend from choosing your teddy to taking them home.  Build-a-Bear had lot of different options from a raccoon to a snowman, they even had a German Shepherd.  We stuck with the tried and true teddy bear.

The different animals that you can pick range in price from $10-$25.  You then add additional clothes and accessories from there.  When you choose the animal it is just the shell.  Next you get in line to have your friend stuffed.  This was really fun!  

The employees are Build-a-Bear were great! I watched them interacting with the kids while they were stuffing the bears and they had a whole routine to make the experience special.  Nugget can't stand or step yet, so when the team member asked if Nugget wanted to help push the stuffing into the bear, he decided sitting would be the best way to assist the lady.  After your teddy is stuffed, you grab a heart and (I hope I get this right) kiss it so your bear is loved, rubbed it so your bear is warm, and rubbed it on your tummy so your bear is never hungry.  I am sure I missed something, but it was so cute watching everyone so excited to put their hearts in the bear.

After you are done stuffing your bear, you need to prepare your new friend to get dressed by doing the only logical thing possible...giving teddy a bath.  They have a cute bath station set up with little brushes for the kids.

Next up, we went shopping to dress Nugget's new friend.  They have quite the selection of bear clothes and accessories.  

They even had a wheelchair and crutches if you wanted to make a "Get Well" bear!  In addition to your everyday street clothes, Build-a-Bear had costumes, Steeler's gear, military uniforms, and seasonal holiday wear.  With all the clothes, you are able to add shoes, hats, glasses....and get this...they even have bear boxers!  After you choose the clothes, you go to the Dressing Room to deck out your bear. 

 Now that your bear is all dressed and ready to go...He needs a name! There are several computers set up that allow you to scan the tag on your bear to get started making their birth certificate.  You enter some simple information and pick up your printed certificate at checkout.  Nugget named his teddy Dabdoob, Arabic for teddy bear.

Big or small, Build-a-Bear is a great treat for anyone.  It is way more fun than just going to the store and buying a toy.  The different clothes and accessories create longevity by allowing you to change up the teddy from time to time thus keeping your child's interest.  From their website I learned that they also offer birthday parties for 6 or more kids.  How fun would that be?  Head over to their website to check out all the different teddies they offer and follow them on Facebook, Twitter and Pinterest to stay up on all things Build-a-Bear!

Taming my Wild Octopus - Alphabet Soup Nursing Necklace Review

Nugget is nuts.  There is no ifs, ands, or buts about it, he is high energy and constantly moving.  I love reminiscing of the days I use to be able to swiftly nurse while out.  Nugget would be at the boob and I could eat dinner, play on my phone, or enjoy the scenery.  Those days are done.  If I am not on constant nipple watch, the public will get a great show.  My solution to this?  Nursing Necklaces.  I love these things and have tried several of them out.  Today we are giving the Canadian made Alphabet Soup Busy Beads a shot at taming the octopus.

This is the first set of wooden beads that I have tried.  In addition to the wood, they add in some crocheted beads and different textures within the necklace.  The concept seems so simple but the moment I add a nursing necklace into the mix, Nugget stops what he is doing, latches on, and ferociously plays with the necklaces.  Below is the progression of what I am faced with every time we nurse.  

I'll take it though, better than nipple lash and the end result is a fed baby.  The nursing necklaces I like the best, don't scream baby toy.  This necklace is very neutral and and can be worn as an accessory with or without your baby in tow.

The only downfall I could find with the wooden beads versus the silicone that I am use to is: The label contained a warning for the baby to not use a teething device.  This is pretty hard with an 8 month old who turns everything into a teether.  Like Alphabet Soup on Facebook to see all of their designs!  Head over to their website to get your own Busy Beads!

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.

My Milk Making Toolbag

It has only taken me 8 months, but I have finally found a bag that keeps everything that I need for pumping at work organized, clean and easy to grab.  My pump didn't come with a carrying tote, so I have been on the hunt for one for some time now.  The one I ended up with is perfect!  I chose the Organizing Utility Tote.

This bag as space for everything!  As you can see, inside I can fit my Hygeia Pump, Zizzy Bee Mesh bags for my bottles and lids and the Simple Wishes Hands Free Pumping Bra.  The other pockets hold my milk making herbs, Fenugreek and Blessed Thistle as well as my favorite Detergent - Dapple.  I always make sure I have my Medela Manual Pump on hand with extra membranes in case anything happens to my electric pump.  This bag is spacious and easy to wipe down, making it perfect for all of your pumping gear.  I keep my milk cold in my Munchkin cooler which I have been using since I went back to work and have never had any issues.  

Would you like some tips for pumping at work?  Check out Pump, Pump, Pump it Out!

What tips do you have to make pumping at work easier?