Full of Yummy Goodness! CitrusLane July ’13 Review

Full of fun, yummy, and cute goodies… yep, that’s what we received in our July Citrus Lane! box!

I took advantage of the option to add-an additional item to our box… a Zippered Wet/Dry bag by Bumkins.  We wanted to go for this since our babe has been going to swim lessons and this will be great to take with us to class!

Here’s a look inside Citrus Lane’s July 2013 box :

~ An ‘on-the-go’ by Zoli Travel Snack Dispenser:
This BPA and phthalae free on-the-go dispenser looks like a great item to bring along for baby’s snacks.
Dried food will fair best and with 4 different compartments I will have lots of options for baby! 🙂
Hey! I could even use an empty dispenser to mix up a bit of the included NutureMe baby food powder!

~ A pouch of NuturMe organic dried baby food! :
I already know I love this brand… I get their Organic Quinoa Cereal and add a few dashes of it to baby’s water.
I’ve been wanting to try out their other products and now’s our chance… We received Organic Bananas, Oatmeal, and Sweet Potatoes, which I promptly tucked away in the diaper bag to go with our Zoli on-the-go dispenser!
They even provided a $15 off code for our next order. Yep! I’ll be taking advantage of that!

~ A Melissa & Doug Toy! :
UH!!! We Love Melissa & Doug in our house… and we already have the Wiggling Worm Snake that was included in our box… which basically just made us feel like Super Fantastic parents for keeping on top of great toy options for baby!

~ A travel size set of California Baby Shampoo & Body Wash and Conditioner

~ Ten free Postagram photo postcards!! :
Cute little personalized photo postcards with perforation to punch out the little photo… great to mail to grandparents, aunties and uncles, or Hey! Just send yourself a few photos of your wee one to keep in your wallet!

~ Some Little Buddy Wipes :
These Fresh Cucumber & Tea Tree wipes by me4kidz are “alcohol & sting free antibacterial wipes.”
I’m funny, but I actually like the smell of Tea Tree and I’ve always loved the Cucumber sent… so I bet these smell pretty good! 🙂 Though, I’m going to pass on these since the EWG.org had a bit more info about the active ingredient.

If I were to have purchased all these items on my own I’d have spent about $38 not including shipping & tax and not including the added wet/dry bag, which was $14 and shipped in my box for free.
Whole deal delivered, shipping included, for much less and we got some fun stuff and great coupon codes!

In anticipation of August’s box!!!! Woot!

Receive $10 off your own order here!

It’s Summer, Summer, Summer Time! CitrusLane June’13 Review

Yep! Summer time is upon us! Summer Solstice is around the corner (!) and we got our Fun in the Sun Citrus Lane June box!
Citrus Lane is a local company that delivers monthly, age-appropriate goodie boxes to baby families!

Though I was hoping for some sort of Daddy Related box/items, the goodies we did receive were pretty dang cute!

I even got the option, beforehand, to add a few, separately purchased items to our box… since a box was being shipped out to us anyway, I decided to add Playful Wash, Baby Time by Episencial. Even though I’m currently using Earth Mama, Baby Angel, I wanted to try this new product and it can be a ‘toss in the bag’ and go for our Swim Lessons or visits to the beach.

Here’s a look inside Citrus Lane’s June 2013 box :

~ An Odd Ducks Bath toy by Boon :
Another Win!
Baby loves this… it’s brightly colored and squished down (after all, it is called Squish in the Orange color!)… so he reaches out for it every time he sees it and it’s ‘small’ enough for him to hold onto for a long time! 🙂
Per the Boon website : “Does not retain water, thus preventing interior mold growth.”
BOOM! Another win… because, yuck! I had never thought of that before… and babies LOVE to put all toys in their mouths!

~ Sunny Sunscreen by Episencial :
Awesome! Perfect, safe sunscreen, addition to our diaper bag!
1.5oz Travel Size, CL exlcusive

~ happybaby ‘grains’ organic Brown Rice Pudding :
Wonderful! A sweet, little treat with good for baby grains to have him try out!

~ iPlay Sun Hat
UMMMM! CUTE! 🙂
We put this on him immediately and he just kept wearing it and going about his business (aka : play).  So, it seems, we have a winner with this hat… baby does not even notice it and it will keep in ‘safe’ during fun in the sun time!
Per iPlay website :
“Special UV-protective fabric and wide brim offer excellent sun protection. Ties under chin. Microfiber with wickaway lining.”

If I were to have purchased all these items on my own I’d have spent over $30 (not including the added baby wash), not including shipping & tax.
But it’s delivered, shipping included, for much less and I got introduced to some new products!

Wondering what July’s Box will include!?!  Something celebratory for Independence Day!?! 🙂

Receive $10 off your first order here!

The Cervix Whisperer : “Taste the Rainbow”!

When I shared with hubby that I had found the perfect Childbirth Educator for us and told him her website address… being the amateur comedian that he is, he promptly asked, “Is she going to whisper ‘Taste the Rainbow’ to your cervix!?” HA!

Turns out Patty, The Cervix Whisperer, is sooooo freaking great and funny, that she may actually do just that if you asked her nicely… though she will certainly throw back her head, flip her long signature hair, and laugh an infectious laugh!!

I was referred to Patty by our Birth Doula, Melissa from Stork & Sprout, and when I spoke to her on the phone, I realized she had the perfect mix of experience and hippy that I was looking for! (After all, at the time, she lived in Santa Cruz!)
She has more that 25yrs birth/baby experience and adds her special blend of holistic birthing tools…
aromatherapy, ‘mood’ lighting, yoga balling, even a hair comb!?!?!?

Patty has also, on occasion, offered doula services… though typically she keeps herself busy with Childbirth Classes at Sequoia Hospital and Pre/Post Natal Fitness classes at The Reading Bug! She even takes time to reach out to her new mamas a number of times during postpartum!

If you are looking for a top-notch, approachable, and fun Childbirth Educator… then look no further than The Cervix Whisperer… you will certainly be in good hands!

Yes, this post was short and sweet…
Just like all future mama’s hope their labor will be!

Daddy got a bonus! Baby got some toys! : CitrusLane May’13 Review

Daddy LOVES baby!! And he loves toys (how many guitars does one guy need!?!?), but really, his toy obsession has switched to baby toys (how many toys does one baby need!?!?) .
We knew a bonus was on the horizon… I started looking into the monthly subscription by Citrus Lane, hoping that we’d get fun, development toys… so that Daddy and Baby would be happy little campers!

Yes! Turns out this is a freaking awesome company… age-appropriate goodies (toys, food, etc.) for babies (and sometimes items for mommies too!) delivered right to our front door monthly!
They are a local company and I knew this was something I’d want to support and, Hey, It’s so fun to be surprised with goodies every month!

May 2013 was our first delivery… and my hopes were solidified, this truly is a great service!

Here’s a look inside Citrus Lane’s May 2013 box :

~ A Green Toys Stacker :
Um, yeah, baby loves this toy… I mean, LOVES, this toy!
He immediately reaches for it, when it’s play time ,and will crawl around the room holding onto a nesting piece in each hand!
The Stacker has fun colors, stacks in any configuration, and is safe (no center post), and eco-friendly (recycled and BPA/phthalate free).
Green Toys is, also, a local company… located in San Francisco!

~ “Bear Takes a Trip” Board book :
Cute little book and story… has a little ‘lesson’ for telling time!
These books by Barefoot Books seem pretty popular.

~ Happy Munchies Rice Cakes :
These are indicated for baby’s age… and I did let him try some finger food this week… but he wasn’t completely ready for these. However, this in no way discourages me from trying these, again, in the future.
Firstly, I know they are yummy, because I just had to give them a try… mmm! We had Blueberry/Beet in our box.
Secondly, baby is ‘getting there’ with his solid finger foods… so these will be a great on the go snack, and we got some coupons to buy more!

~ Dish Liquid from Dapple :
We got a Travel Size of this stuff… I’d been curious about this line since I ran across it while pregnant… nice that I’ll be able to give it a try now!

~ Moisture Stick from DeepSteep :
For the Mommy!! It was Mother’s Day this month, after all! 🙂 This stuff is freaking awesome!
Smells yummy, I got Lavender-Chamomile scent, made with coconut oil, beeswax, shea butter, herbs, and other good stuff. It comes in a big twisty tube and can be applied to any skin area as needed.
What I like about it is that, as a mommy, I am constantly washing my hands and holding/feeding/playing with baby. Sometimes I really want some moisture on my hands, but I don’t want my fingers all goopy… well, with this stick, I just have to rub the good stuff over the backs of my hands and go!
I am drooling over the idea of the Brown Sugar-Vanilla  scent.

Soooo… All in All!!! Great Box, Great Service! 🙂
If I were to have purchased all these items on my own I’d have spent close to $35, not including shipping & tax.
But I had it delivered, shipping included, for much less and I got introduced to some new products and received coupons and discount codes!

Hoping June’s Box will include something for Daddy… being Father’s Day that month! Yippy!

Receive $10 your first order here!

The Pregnant Driftwood Belly Dancer! :) PDX to SFO Roadtrippin’

If I’m a stone’s throw to the ocean, you’re gonna be hard-pressed keeping me from going out to greet it! 🙂

Such was the case in Summer ’12, when we finally got to visit my sis and bro-in-law’s cabin on the Northern Oregon Coast!
We wanted to drive home to SFO down the 101 and, luckily, the Beija Flor (Hummingbird) Cabin was available for Dano and I to enjoy a beautiful little respite, with the doggies, before our little addition arrived in Fall. Thanks Sissy & Bro(y)-in-Law! 😉

We arrived later in the evening than expected… so, after a lovely night of GF grilled cheese sandwiches with tomato soup and a Monopoly game that carried on too long, and therefore ended before a ‘true’ winner was declared… we went to sleep, me giddy about the chance to see a new beach the next morning!

Next Morning :
Despite a bit of a cloudy day,
getting a later start (tide would be starting to come back up),
having a wee bit of a ‘hike’ to get to the rocky beach,
two doggies in tow,
AND me being almost 7mths pregnant…
I MADE Dano take me to the beach!! hee hee 😉

Upon stepping foot on any beach, I am consumed by the powerful energy and love of the waves… the feeling I get in my chest, when at the ocean’s side, is simply amazing! So, I try to bring home all that love and energy with me in little treasures I find along the way… treasures that can be made into jewelry.

I’m a Rock and Shell kinda’ girl… though I do like the look of driftwood, I usually feel that’s it’s  ‘too big’ for my design style.
Surprisingly, once I stepped off the trail onto Cove Beach, I spotted a sweet little piece of driftwood…
‘Why not just bring it back to the cabin and see what it can be!?’  is what I told myself as I put it in my pocket… that was the only piece of driftwood that spoke to me on our walk!

Over an absolutely delicious cup of  Tazo Earl Grey and Amy’s GF Shortbread Cookies, I began to create… I wanted to leave a few gifts for the cabin… a few silver-wrapped beach finds! I started by finishing off a beach stone in silver and Swarovski Crystals. Then focused my attention on the driftwood, turning it in my hands, I couldn’t come up with a ‘vision’ for it… so I just set out with my 18Gauge Square Argentium Silver wire and started wrapping and twisting and turning and adding beads… voila’, All Done!

Then… THEN… I saw it!
That beautiful, sole driftwood that spoke to me on our walk… had been transformed… in my mama-to-be hands…
~ into a stunning little Pregnant Belly Dancer!

I was delighted to see this and was antsy for Dano to wake up from his nap, so I could, also, dance around and share!
Sweetly, I held this lovely little piece that I’d created in my hands just as I held the lovely little being in my belly that Dano and I would meet in a few short months!

It was SOOOOOO difficult for me to leave this beauty in the cabin…
Though, I knew this was a perfect home for it…
As the cabin’s caretaker, my sister, had her own little bundle of love, my sweet niece, born just a few months before our own love!

Wow! What a wonderful life! So much beauty and wonderfully, non-random coincidences! 😉

THANKS for Reading!
E’lan
&
Heylani Jewelry

Big City Moms Biggest Baby Shower! WOW… “Soooo Big!”

Already grandmothered in to the NYC & LA baby scenes… Big City Mom’s delivered their  Biggest Baby Shower to San Fransisco (SFO) on April 25th.

Their special brand of baby shower is truly a wonderful and helpful event for parents-to-be and parents with just-borns… AND good info (exhibitors and seminars) for parents with few month olds.

We knew we’d have our 6mth old in tow, so we opted for the Couple Super Pass, this would give us an extra 30mins at the beginning of the event before the larger crowd showed up AND we’d get a Free Britax Baby Carrier!

Really great exhibitors, that I’d been wanting to see in-person, were there!
Strollers, Play-yards, Baby Carriers, Highchairs, Baby Sitting Services, Baby Foods, and more!

Did you know Bugaboo just started an Andy Warhol Collection!? Beautiful!
Our little dude is an OrbitBaby himself (YES! They were there too!)… but seeing that Bugaboo collection in-person was quite tempting!

With Baby at the age to start eating solids, I was given tons of samples and tips from the awesome baby food companies on-hand…
Ella’s Kitchen, Plum Organics, Happy Baby and more.
Though I’ve been making baby food at home, it’s nice to have options for traveling, out & about, or a quick go-to…
I look forward to trying out these samples with baby!
THANK YOU awesome baby-food companies!

One of my favorite parts of the evening was getting to meet Dr. Alan Greene!!
He was on hand to give a seminar about baby feeding… So Interesting!
He loves babies and has learned tons about babies AND good, green food choices for babies!
He and his wife, graciously, let me and my baby sit down with them for a few minutes before his presentation to inquire about a couple things that had been concerning me. So Nice of them!
He’s a wonderfully, engaging speaker and has so much important insight… I highly recommend checking out his website and Facebook page… and attending a lecture if he’s gonna be in your area!!

We had to say Howdy to DaddyScrubs…
’cause the hubs was a DaddyScrub wearin’ papa at the hospital!

I got to say THANKS for a great e-newsletter/blog to RedTricycle! I love them!
They had the cutest Red Flyer Tri in their booth… cute, cute, cute!!

We got to eat yummy catered food! Seriously… yummy catered food! Hmm 😉

Plus, we took away a BIG haul in goodies!
BIG!
“Soooo Big”, as toddlers would say!
Samples, Samples, and Samples, A diaper bag, a nursing cover, a baby/pregnancy organizer, the Free Britax baby carrier, a car baby mirror, a Sage Spoonfuls food-saver cup, teething toys, onesies, lotions and potions, and much more!

Is it obvious yetl!?
The Biggest Baby Shower far exceeded our expectations!
If you have an event near you… we recommend you give it a go!

I’ll leave you with a series of photobooth pics we took of our wee family…  thanks to Pix C Booth!

To grow with Baby! A unique gift for niece-y!

Literally… the minute I heard from my sister that she was having a baby… my Crafty Auntie hat went on!! 🙂

She is the first grandbaby and my first niece from one of my siblings… she is VERY loved!

I had many ideas… and few far-fetched to pull together in time and few ripe for the making!

The first thing I did, when my sis hit 12wks pregnant, was make a ‘start’ from my beautiful Red-Tipped Jade plant.
I took care of this little start as I knew its ultimate life was to be in my niece’s nursury and grow with her!

That was kinda’ the easy part… the difficult part was finding  just the right planter for this precious little bud.
I looked everywhere, in-person and on-line… I found a few good pieces…
then it hit me, one of my sis’s good friends is a potter!

‘Hey!’ I thought… ‘I’ve got to be in touch with her and see what she thinks about making a custom pot for the plant!’
As luck would have it… she was way into the idea!
We collaborated on the colors and theme surrounding the nursury… it turned out lovely!

Check out Sharon’s Pottery at : www.sharongreenwood.com

We decided on a white pot, with an orange interior, and a wee pink heart!
I then purchased a bunch of Fine Point Sharpies in coordinating colors and we had Baby Shower attendees and Family write messages to the little girl on the pot itself!

It was a lovely and fun gift idea! My sister and bro-in-law really enjoyed it!
They wrote their messages to baby directly on the heart itself… I love that!

Stay tuned for the other Cool-As Creative gift I made/gave them! 🙂

Enjoy the pics!