Nifty Thrifty Giveaway!!

March's Nifty Thrifty Giveaway!

The prize for this month's giveaway is a gift box with:

-Custom baby kicks (boy or girl - you pick size)

-Super Silly Hand Puppet

-A Bedtime Book

-Distract-A-Baby Bracelet

-Personalized Special Surprise Gift for Mom

Here are the rules/how to qualify for my Nifty Thrifty Giveaway!

How to qualify:

To be entered into the giveaway you have to publicly follow my blog (if you choose to privately follow I wont know who you are and can't assign you a number) This giveaway is for mothers with a baby between the ages of 0-18 months. Dad's can apply too but the "Special Gift for Mom" will kind of suck if you're a man. Must have a valid e-mail address.

How it works:

Each person will be assigned a number at random. I'll write the numbers on a piece of paper and toss them in a gerber formula can. You must be a follower by 12pm EST, March 13th, 2011. On March 14th, Bear will stick his sticky hand in and the number that sticks to his hand when he pulls it out will be the winner!! I will post the person's name or screen name (whichever is visible to me) on March 14th, 2011. That person must comment on the blog (this verifies that it's really the right person)saying "I'm the winner!" and email me, hmpeterson@maine.rr.com by March 20th, 2011. In the subject line please put "Giveaway winner" with your screen name/real name. In the email I will need your shipping name and address, what size shoe your baby wear, and if you would like boy or girl baby kicks. For the "Personalized Surprise Gift for Mom" you will need to tell me a little about your style (what colors you like, favorite outfit, anything about you!)

This is very simple - please be honest and only follow under one name.

Thanks everyone! I wish you luck!

Love,

PlusPeace

The Big Kid Tub

So I have graduated Bear to the big boy tub - the regular tub - a few weeks ago and thought I'd post about it. I was pretty scared putting him in there with all that room for something to go wrong in there but I've found it is WAY easier than filling up that stupid little mini tub he was in before and way less messy than trying o give him a bath in the sink!

Safety - Some of these are DUH!

-Only fill the tub up to your baby's belly button.

-Never walk away from your baby when they are in the tub.

-Baby should be sitting up on his own for long periods before going in the big tub

-Keep one hand on your baby

Things to do - bath time should be fun by this age.

-Throw in some floating toys. Rubber duckies, foam alphabet letters, the donuts of the donut stacker, etc..

-Mr. Bubble. Bear LOVES bubble baths! He tries to eat the bubbles, grab the bubbles, I put them on my face and make silly faces, its just fun. I buy the cheap store brand not Mr Bubble. It is recommended to not give bubble baths every day because it can dry out your little ones skin.

-Some babies hate when you wash the hair and then pour water over their head. Start making happy noises when you do it, like, "ooohhhh the water fall is coming....swoosh!" It sounds cheasy but if you make it sound fun your baby will associate it with fun.

-Tummy time in the tub. After you wash and rinse baby and when you choose not to do a bubble bath, put one hand under his armpits and lay him on his tummy in the tub while holding his chest out of the water. Let him kick and splash! **Do not let your baby's head go under water...this is NOT ok.

Overall bath-time is a fun bonding experience. After bath lotion, pj and lay down with your baby for a bedtime story and a bottle. Creating a nice soothing time before bed when he can hear your voice is reassuring.

Love,

PlusPeace

Don't forget giveaway coming in March!! To qualify follow my blog publicly!

Finger Foods

I was getting concerned because Bear has shown almost no interest in eating spoonfuls of solids anymore so I did some research. For any of you with babies between 8-11 months, this is what I found:

"With her independence growing, she may also begin to show preferences for certain foods and refuse to be spoon fed . Take heart - this stage of baby feeding, while quite challenging, will soon pass."

Well thats reassuring! The site suggests letting your baby be the guide during this period. Let him eat when and what he wants and play when he wants. This can be frustrating, especially if you're both on a schedule but it will pass. After reading some of all this information and observing my son I came to the conclusion he is a lot happier with finger foods than a bowl of moosh. If your baby seems to like finger foods and self feeding as well, try some of these foods:

• Avocado - Get a very ripe one, run a knife around the whole avocado and break in two. Pull out the pit and use the knife to slice a grid in the "meat". Bring over to baby's tray, turn the avocado face down and push the skin with our thumbs. If the fruit is ripe the cubes will fall out onto the tray. Break apart any pieces that may be too big.
• Blueberries - I buy Wyman's Frozen Blueberries. They are nice and small and, unlike fresh blueberries, when they are thawed they are nice and squishy. I would not give fresh blueberries unless you halve them first.
• Red Grapes - Peel (yes time consuming) a few grapes and cut them into quarters. If you don't feel like peeling just cut the grapes in half and put in one of those mesh teething bags/rings.
• Any vegetable thats been steamed or baked until mushy. Just cut it up into soft chunks instead of mashing with a fork. Some suggested veggies, eggplant, carrots, zucchini, chick peas, sweet potatoes, etc. *make sure they are soft all the way through so they can me mashed up with baby's gums.
• Cheerios, puffs, animal crackers, graham crackers...

For those babies still willing to eat from a spoon try these yummy things:

• Baby yogurt and purees/canned peaches
• Ricotta cheese, pureed/cooked spinach and pureed/canned pears
• Avocado mushed with fork, cottage cheese
• Oatmeal with squished banana
• Pureed sweet potato with a pinch of cinnamon (1 tbs) mixed with enough breast milk or formula to be like a smoothy. Put in a bottle with cut nipple or cup.

That's all for now!

Goodnight,

PlusPeace

teeth, Teeth, TEETH!!

For many of us it's teeth time! It's hard for momma to get sleep when baby is cuttin' teeth! I haven't mastered teething pain relief at night yet (besides Tylenol) but during the day I've come up with a few things that seem to help!

-Brushing teeth! Before any teeth are showing they make a "gum brush" it's made of silicone and slides onto your finger. That works great for before teeth have actually poked through. If you attempt this after teeth have come through there is a 105% chance you will be bit. Once teeth come through try using an infant tooth brush. They have soft bristles and Bear loves it!

-Slice up pear, apple, mango, starfruit, etc pretty much any fruit that is not citrus works great. Put them in freezer baggies labelled by what they are and freeze. When baby is cranky because of hurting teeth pt one in a mesh teething ring. If you don't have a mesh teething ring wrap one or two in a gerber cloth diaper and make a rubberband tight so no pieces get through. Helps numb the gums and tastes yummy!

-I don't know what companies make these but I have a John Deere Baby brand teether. It looks like an ear of corn. The yellow corn is silicone and vibrates when he bites it. It makes him drool up a storm but he loves that thing!

Avoid letting your baby gnaw on furniture, painted toys and paper of any kind. The finishes, paints and inks may contain toxins linked to autism.

As soon as I find the miracle cure for teething at night I will let you know ASAP! If any of you know...please comment, message or facebook me!

GiveAway will be in MARCH-I'll announce official prize March 1st, in order to qualify please click the "follow this blog" on the side!

Love,

PlusPeace

Free Stuff!

I am dancing around the idea of having a giveaway on my blog! It would be simple, all my followers would be numbered and a number would be chosen at random. I was thinking the prize would be:

-Numbered Custom Baby Onesie featuring one of five of the monsters who steals baby's stuff (Shoe Beast, Nipple Gnome, Paci Nabber, Sock Monster and Toy Thief)

-A Distract-A-Baby Bracelet

-Something special for mom

Feel free to leave feedback on how you feel about this and these items. If there is anything I blogged about that you'd like to see as a prize please let me know!

Love,

PlusPeace

Distracted Baby!

I was sitting in church and Bear was climbing all over me, wiggling and talking back at the speaker. I make sure I bring quiet toys for him to play with but he just throws them on the floor and I have to constantly pick them up. Mommy nursing necklaces are mighty pricey so I was thinking of Mommy bracelets instead.

I got big glass beads in all kinds of colors or shapes. Wood works too but I would get unfinished/unpainted so there is no chance of flaking/peeling/lead. Make sure they are not painted glass, if you go with glass, they have to be colored glass beads. Get the heavy duty stretchy string.

Measure your string so it goes twice around your wrist plus 2 inches.

Step 1: Make a "V" with the string by putting one bead in the middle and holding both ends.

Step 2: For the next bead, put BOTH ends through the hole.

Step 3: String all the beads on doubled string, leaving enough extra to tie off.

Step 4: Connect the ends of your bracelet by putting one of the loose ends though the opp

osite looped end and tie with the other loose end. Make sure the knot is tight. I usually make 4 knots.

Sorry if that was confusing...just send me a message if you need help!

Bracelet should be easy to slide on but not too easy to pull off. Only let baby play with it when it is ON you. I have not had mine break and he pulls really hard but before you use it pull it with a little muscle to make sure yours is made correctly.

Once you get the hang of it you can make a bunch of them-stick to larger beads in different shapes and wear a few at a time to entertain your little one for part of a lengthy period of time.

Love,

PlusPeace

Valentines!

I know this post is a little last minute but these are cute and I have to share.

You will need:

Red Crayola non-toxic finger paint

A shirt you don't care too much about (one for you, one for baby)

Damp washcloth

3x5 white card stock

5x7 red, pink or Valentine's festive card stock

Paper plate

Newspaper

Double sided tape

First you'l want everything ready. Lay out newspaper on a table or tile kitchen floor. Put about a tablespoon on the red paint on the paper plate. Put your art shirt on and your baby's too. put baby in your lap and dip his palm in the red paint, still holding his hand direct it to the paper. I would keep my hand on his just in case the hand heads to mouth...yes it's non toxic but he wont be happy with the taste! Decorate the white paper with hand prints and baby smudges OR you can take a large piece of white card stock and let baby make a big mess on it and cut it to size later. If you are daring let baby use both hands and make a big mess. They love smooshy stuff so it's kinda funny to watch. When you're done, or you've had enough fun for one day, wipe baby's hands with wet cloth, peel off dirty shirt and place baby directly into sink or tub for a good washing.

Now you have a bunch of cards with red paint wiped all over them. Let them dry, then use double sided tape to tape them to the pretty card stock of your choice and write happy valentine's day on the front and a cute message from baby on the back.

Here are Bear's cards...

Love,

PlusPeace

Fruityy

First, I want to share a friend's blog. Her daughter has been struggling with seizures and they desperately need some prayers going their way. Her little angel is my son's age and my heart really goes out to her and her family. To read Kinley's story and for updates on how she is doing http://www.caringbridge.org/visit/kinleywilliamson?ref=nl

Today I want to share 5 things do to with a Dole Fruit in Fruit Juice cup! They are tasty and there are coupons in the paper all the time!

1. Pour the juice from the cup into a sippy. 1 part juice 1 part water.

2. Puree the fruit (stick blender or food processor works best) and give to LO for lunch.

3. Put a maraschino cherry in the bottom of a popsicle mold, add dole fruit cup (chunks and all) until 3/4 of the way full. Add cranberry juice or grenadine until full and freeze.

4. Puree one peach or pear cup, and mix with one cup (chunks and juice) in a saucepan. Heat until bubbly, let simmer for 3 minutes and pour over french toast or vanilla icecream...yummm

When you wash out the cups they are also fun for baby to play with!

Love,

PlusPeace

Berry Yummy!

I haven't forgotten you guys!! Baby's first Valentine's Day is coming up in just one week and cookies, cards and other fun projects are going to start appearing all around you and your kids this week.

I'm not a huge fan of food dyes personally-especially when it comes to feeding my son! Today we made cookies, actually I made cookies and Bear sat on the floor playing with mixing bowls. It was a regular sugar cookie recipe and my frosting:

1/2 cup confectioners sugar

3 tbs. water

1 heaping tbs. frozen berry mix

Thaw the berries on the counter or in the microwave until smooshy (I use the Dole or Hannaford brand) Put berry mush, sugar and water in food processor or blender. Blend until smooth. Some berry skins are OK they just don't puree.

After making your heart shaped cookies let them cool and spread the purple frosting in a thin layer with a spoon. The frosting will harden so it wont be messy when the kiddos eat them (besides crumbs) I love this recipe because it gives a nice flavor to the frosting too..very tasty!

I also use this same "berry coloring" concept in homemade whipped cream, heart shaped pancakes, vanilla frappes, puree for baby food (usually sweet enough as is) and pretty much anything sweet that needs some holiday pizzaz!

To keep your baby busy while you're cooking let him watch or play with cooking pots on the floor. I would avoid trying to HOLD your baby on your hip while you cook near a hot surface. Also showing your baby that it's ok not to be held during chores will be useful later on when your child is 1.5 or 2 and wants to be held while you cook...now thats a sore hip!

I have an idea for holiday cards baby can make with you but I want to test it before I post. So HOPEFULLY all will go well with that =]

Love,

PlusPeace