DIY Wednesday: Cinnamon Pear & Applesauce

            It's time for another foodie DIY Wednesday! I am so glad we made our daughter's baby food when she was younger (besides obvious reasons) because we would have never discovered how delicious homemade applesauce and pearsauce are! What's the big deal? Trust me. The homemade kind is SO much tastier! Plus, no artificial preservatives and all that junk.

What You'll Need:
-apples and pears (Or one or the other. You're not actually mixing these together, unless you want to.)
-cinnamon (optional, but personally I think it makes these that much yummier)
-knife
-apple corer (also optional)
-baking sheet
-cooking oil (I use sunflower)
-food processor

Music to Get Kids Moving!

            It's no secret that obesity is a problem in the U.S. for adults and children alike. With the ever advancing technology we have access to and children wanting to play on devices like iPads at a younger and younger age, we can sometimes forget how important it is for children to be getting enough physical activity!
            Getting your kids active doesn't have to be a chore. Most children like music, so take advantage of it! The next time you're stuck inside because of crummy weather and the kids are getting restless, turn on some of these songs below to get them up, dancing, and moving around!

 

Yes, it's the old Six Flags theme song. You know it's catchy. ;)

I know. It's annoyingly catchy. 

I'm sure you've all seen the videos of babies dancing to this song. I guess our daughter is not a Beyonce fan. 

I don't know about kids, but this song always makes me want to dance, so that's saying something. :)

What kinds of music do your little ones like? Do they strictly listen to kids music or do you let/make them listen to what you like?

Royal Fluff One Size Pocket Diaper Giveaway

Welcome to the Royal Fluff One-Size Pocket Diaper Giveaway 

Sponsored by Royal Fluff and hosted by The Parenting Patch. 

 For more information about Royal Fluff diapers, check out The Parenting Patch's Royal Fluff One-Size Pocket Diaper Review. One lucky reader of The Parenting Patch and Mixed Bag Mama will win one (1) one-size pocket diaper from Royal Fluff in choice of boy, girl, or gender-neutral. To enter for your chance to win the Royal Fluff One-Size Pocket Diaper Giveaway, simply use the following Rafflecopter form. Good luck!

  a Rafflecopter giveaway

The Royal Fluff One-Size Pocket Diaper Giveaway is open to legal residents of the United States of America. The Royal Fluff One-Size Pocket Diaper Giveaway ends at midnight CST on March 26, 2014. One winner will be chosen at random via Rafflecopter. The winner will be sent an email and will have forty-eight hours to respond. If no response is received within forty-eight hours, another winner will be chosen. The Parenting Patch and Mixed Bag Mama are not responsible for prize fulfillment.

Think Spring $25 Burpee GC Giveaway

Welcome to the Think Spring $25 Burpee Gift Card Giveaway

 Sponsored by Social News Daily and hosted by The Parenting Patch. 

One lucky reader of The Parenting Patch, Social News Daily, and Mixed Bag Mama will win one (1) $25 Burpee or Amazon gift card (winner's choice). To enter for your chance to win the Think Spring $25 Burpee Gift Card Giveaway, simply use the following Rafflecopter form. Good luck!

 a Rafflecopter giveaway

 The Think Spring $25 Burpee Gift Card Giveaway is open worldwide. An international winner will receive $25 via PayPal in lieu of the specified prize. The Think Spring $25 Burpee Gift Card Giveaway ends at midnight CST on March 25, 2014. One winner will be chosen at random via Rafflecopter. The winner will be sent an email and will have forty-eight hours to respond. If no response is received within forty-eight hours, another winner will be chosen. The Parenting Patch and Mixed Bag Mama are not responsible for prize fulfillment. Burpee is not affiliated with the Think Spring $25 Burpee Gift Card Giveaway.

"Baby-Led Breastfeeding" Book Review

            Hey folks! I have an interesting new book to share with you today. It may not seem like it since I hardly ever talk about it on here, but I am a big supporter of breastfeeding. Just because my breastfeeding days weren't a success doesn't mean I don't wish for other mothers to have better "luck" than I did!
            I thought I had done my research on breastfeeding while I was pregnant with my daughter. However, in hindsight, I focused too much attention on different nursing positions and not much else. To be honest, I have learned SO many more important things about breastfeeding from other mom bloggers since I have started blogging. I also learned some new things from Baby-Led Breastfeeding as well!
            I absolutely recommend this book for new moms (and maybe moms who haven't breastfed for awhile or had troubles the first time as well). Although it may seem kind of obvious to most, the authors have aimed to help mothers trust in their baby's instincts when it comes to breastfeeding and let them "lead the way". Unless babies are born earlier than around 35 weeks and/or have major health concerns, they will naturally know how to breastfeed without being "forced" to the breast if you just give them the chance!
            Here are some of the main aspects of this book I liked or points I found particularly interesting:

Primm n' Proper Baby Upcycled Hybrid Fitted Diaper Giveaway

   

Outer: Upcycled cotton T-shirt w/SNAPS
Hidden: 100% Polyester Fleece
Inner: Upcycled cotton sweatshirt 
Soaker: Long snake soaker - 3 layers of Upcycled cotton sweatshirt, folded providing 6 layers
*Hybrid Fitteds come with a perfect booster
*Fits most babies from 8-9 lbs on up to 35lbs (knit outer)

To see babies in PNPBaby Diapers, please click HERE.

Please remember that Fitted Diapers are *not* waterproof and will require a cover (wool, PUL, etc.) to be waterproof. Many people find though that my fitteds are suitable for 'coverless' use around the house. This will vary based on the wetting of the baby.

Enter your Chance to win this Upcycled Hybrid Fitted Diaper Sponsored By PNPBbaby! Hosted By AllNaturalMom101. Giveaway Starts March 11th-April 1st. Open to US & CAN Residents. 
Good Luck!
a Rafflecopter giveaway 
Disclosure: This Blog and all other promoting bloggers have not been compensated in any form for this publication, nor are they responsible for the fulfillment of the prize. Please contact Kaitlyn at Allnaturalmom101@gmail.com  if you have any questions, comments or concerns. Thank you

Tea Party-Making Memories

            You may remember from a few weeks ago I got inspiration for a couple of posts from a writing prompt on the Blogging Mamas blog hop-Making Memories. Well, this is the second post! The only reason for spacing them out so far apart is that I've been on a roll for post ideas and already had a bunch scheduled. lol
            Unless you're new around here, you should probably know by now that while I am all for teaching your kids how to play on their own (because who can't use a bit of sanity in parenthood?), it's also important to find at least a little time in the day to play with your children one on one. Trust me: Even though I only have one kid for now, at the end of more days than not (and more than I would like to admit) I find myself "mentally kicking myself" for not taking more time out of the day to play with her. (To be somewhat fair, there are times when I try to play with her and she doesn't want me to. lol Talk about little Miss Independent!) They are only little once, and yet I keep taking advantage of it, it seems.
             With that being said, I do greatly enjoy the times that Myka and I do play together for an extended period of time. Of course we don't exactly have a say in what we do and don't remember later on in life, and maybe I'm just weird, but do any of you other parents have those moments with your children where you feel like a memory is in the making? I had one of those the other day with my daughter.
            At first I thought it was just because I was trying to come up with a blog post about making memories with your children, like I mentioned at the beginning of this post. But, in hindsight, it was so much more than that, and I can't really describe it to where it makes sense! lol The best way to put it is that it was one of those "little moments" that will somehow be stuck in your memory until the end of time.

"Sometimes Just One is Just Right" Children's Book Review

Disclaimer: I received a digital copy of this book through Netgalley.com to facilitate this review. All opinions are my own.

            Hey folks! I have an excellent little book to share with you today, especially if you happen to be the parent of an only child!
            Since I grew up as an only child myself, I can speak from personal experience that sometimes it can be totally lame. However, it does have its advantages as well. Sometimes Just One Is Just Right is a great book to help show only children the pros and cons of being such and that it's ok to feel one way or the other about it at times.
            The story is about a boy who is an only child who sometimes finds himself wishing he had brothers and sisters like his cousin Nico, but at other times is grateful that he is the only child. For example, he sometimes wishes he had siblings because you always have someone to play with that way. At other times he's glad he is the only one because he doesn't have to fight over the tv remote with anyone and gets it all to himself.
            Like I said, as an only child (even if I am 27 years old now), I absolutely loved this book and wish I would have been able to read it when I was younger! I always wanted my mom to have another kid and oftentimes, even to this day, didn't see many positive things in being an only child. Even some of the scenarios mentioned in the book I never really thought of as being a positive thing before.
            Bottomline: The author does an excellent job to point out the positive and negative sides of being an only child in ways that children can understand. This is a must-read for any only child!

Personalized Children's Books from KD Novelties Review

Disclosure: I got this product as part of an advertorial.

            Hey folks! I have an awesome children's book review for you today from KD Novelties! They specialize in personalized children's gifts, such as books, dvds, music, and more. We recently had the opportunity to review one of their personalized children's books, which was great because Myka and I both love books so much!
            KD Novelties has a wide selection of books to choose from to personalize with categories ranging from Disney and Sesame Street to holiday and religious. Since Myka is still not terribly into storybooks yet and potty training days will be upon us before we know it, I decided to go with a potty training book. It's not an actual guide on how to potty train your child, so don't be confused like my husband was. ;) It is simply a book to help children understand it better and make it less stressful.

Fun with Pom-Pom Balls (BLT)

            Hey folks! We may not have winters all that bad here in Arkansas, but I'm still ready for spring! I've already started doing some revamping of Myka's "Learning Corner" to spruce it up for spring.
            I'm not sure I'm going to do a full blown sensory box for spring, but we have a plethora of pom-pom balls. They're a fun, cheap toy (at least Myka seems to think so ;)  ) so I had to get those out at least! If you've been around for awhile, you know that I like taking random, well, trash and reusing it for other things. I've been stockpiling tp rolls just waiting on an idea to come to me on how to use them and so far this is the second thing I've come up with. (You'll see the first idea in an Easter craft coming up in a few weeks.)
            I thought it would be more fun for Myka to use the tp tubes to scoop up the balls with, stuff the balls into the tubes, etc. so I threw a few in there. I made a couple holes in one of them so she could stuff different sized balls into them. (Side note: I can't wait to get my hole punch to make my crafting life so much easier!)