tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11585022872594949682024-03-10T04:21:21.220-04:00Baby from aboveSimplyChic Mommahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01651364127425786116noreply@blogger.comBlogger128125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1158502287259494968.post-18657714684486305332021-09-27T13:58:00.003-04:002021-09-27T14:09:42.590-04:00Bubble Egg Austin Review<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjx1MIHts0e_G4QZeBe0AypfKWDkL3BTaq7Vhn52IRjg-jOuVjosHFxoFePw270TtvPcdrybhki0G_fRpVZsQsBbxTGyf3PBT6JCESZkqGp52IDqzwVvsNDv0MeLuY1P2EQOJcONSRZThnB/s2048/PXL_20210926_215358968.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="1536" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjx1MIHts0e_G4QZeBe0AypfKWDkL3BTaq7Vhn52IRjg-jOuVjosHFxoFePw270TtvPcdrybhki0G_fRpVZsQsBbxTGyf3PBT6JCESZkqGp52IDqzwVvsNDv0MeLuY1P2EQOJcONSRZThnB/w480-h640/PXL_20210926_215358968.jpg" width="480" /></a></div><br /><div><br /></div><div><br /></div>We were super excited to try out bubble waffles from <a href="https://www.bubbleeggcompany.com/">Bubble Egg</a>. Although a lot of other boba places also sell bubble waffles I was especially interested in trying it from Bubble Egg. They claim to use the original Hong Hong recipe for egg waffles so I was hoping for a more authentic experience. A bubble waffle is a exactly what it sounds like, a special egg waffle made in a bubble shaped iron. Like any other waffle they can be both sweet or savory and can be customized with a variety fillings and toppings.<div><br /><div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiTKn0i7tQ60sdb1dJza6_aXB5OPP68tM8YyrHyZll-AckQw6hCY3lvsnRFMYAyXCvrhylWhVLJC5QrasWLOIk49G0UQlP6lhZi7AMb8pWD5SX6OmM4T359K6xsIKyx3y_4fYnCWEXx32Ef//" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img data-original-height="551" data-original-width="550" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiTKn0i7tQ60sdb1dJza6_aXB5OPP68tM8YyrHyZll-AckQw6hCY3lvsnRFMYAyXCvrhylWhVLJC5QrasWLOIk49G0UQlP6lhZi7AMb8pWD5SX6OmM4T359K6xsIKyx3y_4fYnCWEXx32Ef/w640-h640/image.png" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><i>Photo from Bubble Egg website<br /><br /></i></td></tr></tbody></table></div><div>Since we were in the area we tried the Austin location which is right by the University of Texas campus. That obviously means you need to figure out paid street parking if you go Monday through Saturday. We went on a Sunday so street parking was free. </div><div><br /></div><div>When we walked in, there were only a few people ahead of us but it took a really long time before it was our turn to order. I noticed that they only had 3 waffle irons so I decided to only order 3 waffles to speed things up. By the time I got to the front though, I realized that only two waffle irons were actually working. So that was a big part of why everything was so slow. Although they have boba and other items on the menu, most people coming in were ordering waffles so its seemed strange that they would only have two working waffle irons. They also only had two people on that shift.</div><div><br /></div><div>When it was finally our turn, I ordered two original base waffles with vanilla ice cream and fresh strawberries but I was told they had run out of vanilla ice cream. That seemed bizarre to me. They don't make their own icecream, instead they have signs on the wall that they use hershey icecream so it was odd that they couldn't keep a basic vanilla in stock. They were also out of many other regular icecream flavors on their menu, so I chose the <a href="https://www.hersheyicecream.com/products/hand-dipped/premium/llamalicious.html">llamalicious </a>flavor which wasn't even on the menu.<br /></div><div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div></div><div>My husband wanted to try the organic matcha waffle but surprise surprise they were out of that. He went with the original waffle with peanut filling, mango sorbet topping and bananas. </div><div><br /></div><div>We waited a really long time after placing our order because they were still making orders for the people ahead of us. While we waited I couldn't help noticing how extremely messy the waffle irons were. I understand they have to really fill the iron to get the bubble shape but the amount of batter that drips out is crazy and then the fact that they just leave it there to build up like that was really off-putting</div><div><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjrj1IF3X71d9IDzjhHP5H2IZVGkt1Euov96MxXdN89CvnsVJH62KcGq5VENtv8fQU4cWNvQ5VC4eZKIkOASM1eNPYyhJOYcyCFeFbh9Ml1mngi3LWJPy9VL_pwbMaU8ItXu2ugYyAdKGNe/s2048/PXL_20210926_214129702.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="1767" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjrj1IF3X71d9IDzjhHP5H2IZVGkt1Euov96MxXdN89CvnsVJH62KcGq5VENtv8fQU4cWNvQ5VC4eZKIkOASM1eNPYyhJOYcyCFeFbh9Ml1mngi3LWJPy9VL_pwbMaU8ItXu2ugYyAdKGNe/w552-h640/PXL_20210926_214129702.jpg" width="552" /></a></div><br /><div><br /></div><div>Our orders came out one by one so by the time we had the 3rd waffle the first was getting very soggy. There was a pink whipped topping added to all three waffles that I really couldn't understand because we hadn't asked for anything whipped. It had an extremely strong artificial mint flavor and it overpowered all the other flavors. So all we could taste and smell was mint. Based on how long it took to make, I didn't want to ask for the orders to be remade so we left.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgUwOPzsYWjjAv98Ov1oaPmp9Gi6O9zVUnPmOGtU-PRaeP0jxN7SR8KGDtyomy8gt98tiUlVx_6qxDPsrfwq3kFyJQuy1MrIg8HH1yhbq0rH0kAeBzdBQVQaSuvw6KM8SkOkGjsGuKTULaG/s2048/PXL_20210926_215125518.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="1845" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgUwOPzsYWjjAv98Ov1oaPmp9Gi6O9zVUnPmOGtU-PRaeP0jxN7SR8KGDtyomy8gt98tiUlVx_6qxDPsrfwq3kFyJQuy1MrIg8HH1yhbq0rH0kAeBzdBQVQaSuvw6KM8SkOkGjsGuKTULaG/w576-h640/PXL_20210926_215125518.jpg" width="576" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiDlgtALRCe1bUSJZrbJ9tQgjDzi6OIGFIycn4ZfsKDFCpDIMcgujZd4k_dZRH3oDLwpW5mqtseyMAPbzuo47V5iSOnqXXQJytC8WhUKV4oHIbD0f5TVbaNnHfxUqFn_BQClPThfgBb-H2q/s2048/PXL_20210926_215326792.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="1917" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiDlgtALRCe1bUSJZrbJ9tQgjDzi6OIGFIycn4ZfsKDFCpDIMcgujZd4k_dZRH3oDLwpW5mqtseyMAPbzuo47V5iSOnqXXQJytC8WhUKV4oHIbD0f5TVbaNnHfxUqFn_BQClPThfgBb-H2q/w600-h640/PXL_20210926_215326792.jpg" width="600" /></a></div><br /><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div>I went back to their website to look at their menu to figure out what the pink whip was but didn't see anything like that on the menu.</div><div><br /></div><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiLuew3wGvLaUDCWeTmvHUaSYJA2jiJEcAvlkDGDYxWUuH9F_osMEo50X5A5Y-14xU9gvsWrr9a_80GyP8vB51-K9qFyWfirfq0FWih5NaTLKG2tnKIRFBWRi5u3xba0jf1S23oM3RLBv3R//" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img data-original-height="299" data-original-width="681" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiLuew3wGvLaUDCWeTmvHUaSYJA2jiJEcAvlkDGDYxWUuH9F_osMEo50X5A5Y-14xU9gvsWrr9a_80GyP8vB51-K9qFyWfirfq0FWih5NaTLKG2tnKIRFBWRi5u3xba0jf1S23oM3RLBv3R/s16000/image.png" /></a></div><div><br /></div><div>The waffle itself has a nice chewy texture to it and I believe would be really nice without that pink mint whip. They give very little of the fresh fruit toppings compared to the photos, and also very little icecream and use that pink whip to fill it up. Each waffle with ice cream and topping works out to be about $8 before tax and tip and just doesn't seem worth it for what we got.</div><div><br /></div><div>My nine year old is a budding food critic and loves rating food places. She rated this place 5/10 and I thought that was pretty generous all things considered. The overall experience was very disappointing, from the long wait time, messed up orders, poor customer service and limited availability of basic menu items I wasn't too impressed. This place has a lot of potential and a few simple tweaks could really improve the customer experience. Based on my overall experience there I would rate it 1/5. Foodstagram worthiness rating would be 3/5. Foodstargram worthiness is basically how instagrammable a food experience is. Factors like how pretty the food is and the availability of photo backdrops are all considered. They did have a fun photo wall but due to the long waits, that area was mostly crowded and hard to get a decent shot at a good angle.</div><div><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEij_50Qu2QUMP0VKd6KkKTQdOUwOAy3QgD569j5CltuCXQJivzKClrkmOtbkEXOh2JQX8kkzC_E4RU5c8cmxK3yYualvg5SqX1SoHhoNaLVr3F-RLaJX4R6okwnd2mvxC9mhv4C4T_u4ABy/s2048/PXL_20210926_214325284.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1960" data-original-width="2048" height="612" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEij_50Qu2QUMP0VKd6KkKTQdOUwOAy3QgD569j5CltuCXQJivzKClrkmOtbkEXOh2JQX8kkzC_E4RU5c8cmxK3yYualvg5SqX1SoHhoNaLVr3F-RLaJX4R6okwnd2mvxC9mhv4C4T_u4ABy/w640-h612/PXL_20210926_214325284.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><div></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgR1uj2sk8n7ekcuYcpRnmo3wcT6wFruJtK8nm0LAAnzKJlvFbPMad_ysQW4ZW_yy8Z2RX08Kwg_k7RdD9PYQ2BJmql2hXTKr4Io0aK8G7ZCRUUuf2kg4yof-7ieTN7gAESjWimcGrd_gu4/s320/1631408316999653-0.png" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="83" data-original-width="320" height="83" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgR1uj2sk8n7ekcuYcpRnmo3wcT6wFruJtK8nm0LAAnzKJlvFbPMad_ysQW4ZW_yy8Z2RX08Kwg_k7RdD9PYQ2BJmql2hXTKr4Io0aK8G7ZCRUUuf2kg4yof-7ieTN7gAESjWimcGrd_gu4/s0/1631408316999653-0.png" width="320" /></a></div><br /><div><br /></div>SimplyChic Mommahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01651364127425786116noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1158502287259494968.post-56144739427372341882021-09-17T16:53:00.002-04:002021-09-17T16:53:43.792-04:00Olive & June Mani System Review<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhnjaHDT9mimgvElTRWSH2DwJ2qtgPPirEhlJtQ5Gh76PBUAVAgDbPTd6Ns0Jb71uGsoPk4NqW9iLuKc1BVZLDZHcvhcUpok043vd4hyjZ9o1lbcVlsu62G-LLt9KwRVDhTlLQP-R2WJn_0/s2048/PXL_20210509_205453216.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="2040" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhnjaHDT9mimgvElTRWSH2DwJ2qtgPPirEhlJtQ5Gh76PBUAVAgDbPTd6Ns0Jb71uGsoPk4NqW9iLuKc1BVZLDZHcvhcUpok043vd4hyjZ9o1lbcVlsu62G-LLt9KwRVDhTlLQP-R2WJn_0/w638-h640/PXL_20210509_205453216.jpg" width="638" /></a></div><br /><div><br /></div><div><br /></div>As a mother of three, one of the main things that is always on short supply is my time. So whenever I come across something that promises to save me time I feel compelled to try it out. I really bought into the idea of Olive & June during the pandemic because it promised to deliver a professional manicure experience in the comfort of your own home. This would save both time and money compared to having to drive to a nail salon.<div><br /></div><div>The ads for Olive and June were particularly attractive to me because of the poppy that was regularly featured. The poppy is a tool that pops on the top of the nail brush to make it easier to control when using your non dominant hand. </div><div><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjugAtp8CZ8jbmT6TIN0sw_YrC5a6WQv6Q58QxZlTB6QczuyuesAjwIsCxVZSDfHGRF1c8ylHQwo5LhrypA9XB4CuTOJK6GT2M60VEcUVrP_wWzHy_EWokJTpjvDBwsEd7oNDP0w6tz5AyU/s720/OJ_Polish_0301194890_R1_720x_3e199ce5-6a3f-4ad3-9a42-2093a9f976d9_720x.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="720" data-original-width="720" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjugAtp8CZ8jbmT6TIN0sw_YrC5a6WQv6Q58QxZlTB6QczuyuesAjwIsCxVZSDfHGRF1c8ylHQwo5LhrypA9XB4CuTOJK6GT2M60VEcUVrP_wWzHy_EWokJTpjvDBwsEd7oNDP0w6tz5AyU/w640-h640/OJ_Polish_0301194890_R1_720x_3e199ce5-6a3f-4ad3-9a42-2093a9f976d9_720x.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><br /><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div>After reading through a bunch of reviews and checking out their site. I decided to try out their mani system that includes all the items shown below. I also added on their dry drops that promise to dry your polish in 80 seconds! What could be better?</div><div><br /></div><div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEizDRf_GEQ4uw8QIjIhnt8pHiUtivXxQB7eTOqSwpGZpcI9EXm4ofd5MP0QWFhbHSwWpklXUFAvTJx2tCTi3WeJm6qC2RpMqThPnWDGsdEE14-Mx_7Hu-e08bkQ8hUbO9bITmmYjQA9D1hw/s1212/Screenshot+2021-09-17+140719.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="555" data-original-width="1212" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEizDRf_GEQ4uw8QIjIhnt8pHiUtivXxQB7eTOqSwpGZpcI9EXm4ofd5MP0QWFhbHSwWpklXUFAvTJx2tCTi3WeJm6qC2RpMqThPnWDGsdEE14-Mx_7Hu-e08bkQ8hUbO9bITmmYjQA9D1hw/s16000/Screenshot+2021-09-17+140719.jpg" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div><br />The mani set can either include one nail color or six, and of course I chose six. I thought it was a bit odd that all the colors that were available at that time were named with what seemed to be random letter abbreviations as shown below. </div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi933HzZwbnnRY7FNEkpk3Nbp6RmbS66qsXt_29687Zu2oKHl7kYKRQ9_iTi0msiQRaosLdtypmxcvMhhSy6RCbAEDhzu_gBpO2TaxCpgqfy_1Y3zgemiaPNlSFZE6UpZmUsU8FAiUPQIZk//" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img data-original-height="201" data-original-width="801" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi933HzZwbnnRY7FNEkpk3Nbp6RmbS66qsXt_29687Zu2oKHl7kYKRQ9_iTi0msiQRaosLdtypmxcvMhhSy6RCbAEDhzu_gBpO2TaxCpgqfy_1Y3zgemiaPNlSFZE6UpZmUsU8FAiUPQIZk/s16000/image.png" /></a><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div>When my package arrived I was super excited to finally have a kit that would give me salon quality nails at home! I also really loved all the tutorials on their page geared towards improving your overall nail health. The packaging was very cute and pretty.</div><div><br /></div><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjJuGf0K783kDGdOwsMhUspIfNdQvBS9k7WyvBSiCLCZmalHmKJP-Iok1ezCmqoIWCvJ-ikjj_yV1NBl4bADtWNX6yCr2K6GNY0oEdZ2vA5BrhllFb3YtaRN5Qtul63RmKK-rDY-ZjAzDnp/s2048/PXL_20210417_055134613.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1836" data-original-width="2048" height="574" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjJuGf0K783kDGdOwsMhUspIfNdQvBS9k7WyvBSiCLCZmalHmKJP-Iok1ezCmqoIWCvJ-ikjj_yV1NBl4bADtWNX6yCr2K6GNY0oEdZ2vA5BrhllFb3YtaRN5Qtul63RmKK-rDY-ZjAzDnp/w640-h574/PXL_20210417_055134613.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><div><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh4fjfPQpJV4KNKQxSrPxfqqMKekph93qxHdob7FQr2OzmMK-RXECBQBAic7hAnCecPQwX4C2sNkmhggWObkj4dH-mojCQXpulm1JT67wjFx7OPUXCK8h94ntz39V1O8BE_isfyU8nS6qGa/s2048/PXL_20210417_055111154.MP+%25282%2529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1290" data-original-width="2048" height="404" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh4fjfPQpJV4KNKQxSrPxfqqMKekph93qxHdob7FQr2OzmMK-RXECBQBAic7hAnCecPQwX4C2sNkmhggWObkj4dH-mojCQXpulm1JT67wjFx7OPUXCK8h94ntz39V1O8BE_isfyU8nS6qGa/w640-h404/PXL_20210417_055111154.MP+%25282%2529.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiycbftRV5icK2U5-2VIZqTkzJlAziW5YwxjO94aEZRS6mUs5pHB7cRVrbWShUjiXH44u_GQ3OWNpzrjkBxm33E5yA2_Y-0NQIiWISTN8CCa7A88KrU2szCpCjOM8m9Uu7okqglfMg9ogm7/s2048/PXL_20210417_055157480.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="1343" height="752" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiycbftRV5icK2U5-2VIZqTkzJlAziW5YwxjO94aEZRS6mUs5pHB7cRVrbWShUjiXH44u_GQ3OWNpzrjkBxm33E5yA2_Y-0NQIiWISTN8CCa7A88KrU2szCpCjOM8m9Uu7okqglfMg9ogm7/w494-h752/PXL_20210417_055157480.jpg" width="494" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><i>Nail Colors Top to Bottom, Left to right<br />MG, OBVI,OMG<br />LD, WKF, CN</i></td></tr></tbody></table><br /></div></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div>I really liked the look of the nail colors in person and went ahead to watch the tutorial videos. I followed all the steps religiously, prepping my nails as if they were headed into surgery and then began to apply the color. I immediately realized that the poppy tool I had looked forward to using so much was actually very hard to use. Firstly because unlike most nail polish brushes that are round, Olive & June brushes are flat, so the poppy needs to be perfectly aligned with the flat edge to work properly. Their iinstructions tell you to find the flat edge and then mark it with a marker, but I promise that it was still very tricky to get right . Once I had the poppy on correctly it was actually a lot harder to use because it is so big and bulky, I ultimately gave up using it half way. It can also get stuck on the lid and was difficult to remove.<div><br /><div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEixclFLV8kszzqT9DpFcLiTohav3DQOyVRjZkUlCfJocU_WNxOSYZr-vGrlNSlULGG0uHZomPm0wCuGj3EU2b7jEyRbVhad_u_4fseCl2od83t9yV3dLZFkfDanks0d5FQ_o4tWUMR7W2ii//" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img data-original-height="410" data-original-width="363" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEixclFLV8kszzqT9DpFcLiTohav3DQOyVRjZkUlCfJocU_WNxOSYZr-vGrlNSlULGG0uHZomPm0wCuGj3EU2b7jEyRbVhad_u_4fseCl2od83t9yV3dLZFkfDanks0d5FQ_o4tWUMR7W2ii/s16000/image.png" /></a></div><br /><br /></div><div>Their website said to wait 5 to 10 minutes between coats, so I did just that; literally using a timer. It ocurred to me that a 10 minute wait between coats was a really long time especially with little children underfoot. That would mean for 3 coats of color plus a topcoat it would take 30 minutes of waiting, not including paint and prep time?</div><div><br /></div><div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjsgLUMQVE1zpqeARF6EL7xwC7T8FwfXwhGoTnDZ6L6zviUPlE0Eb2Ex-xs6RWjpmCCpf7oT_pqlQiwMVwe3D3Hyx_Fa01djah6JCKGqfDrMmcocrL6lN27adb5_HVSF-uOHG-dzDjHqRyW//" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img data-original-height="114" data-original-width="651" height="112" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjsgLUMQVE1zpqeARF6EL7xwC7T8FwfXwhGoTnDZ6L6zviUPlE0Eb2Ex-xs6RWjpmCCpf7oT_pqlQiwMVwe3D3Hyx_Fa01djah6JCKGqfDrMmcocrL6lN27adb5_HVSF-uOHG-dzDjHqRyW/w640-h112/image.png" width="640" /></a></div><div><br /></div>I started to wonder about the promised 80 second dry time from the expensive dry drops that I had added to my order but discovered that can only be used on the final top coat. </div><div><br /></div><div>I noticed that even after the 1st coat had 10 minutes of drying, once I applied the second coat, tiny bubbles immediately appeared which was super frustrating because even drug store nail polish doesn't bubble up like that. Once I had the final top coat I was happy I could finally use the dry drops. I'm not sure what I expected from it, but I wasn't expecting the oily mess that occured. It's difficut to control how many drops come out and it drenches your fingers in oil. Although it was supposed to dry fully in 80 seconds, it took hours to dry and was still tacky to touch and smudging hours later.</div><div><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiN4PY0jV2dX4NXjJVDcqqSdAQkkVY9EEu2xSi6byoOb7FDSfs7Q-A7R9qmmcRJJcII1XWb-tDljQKYLJZN20HCMaT-TxzpDIiiT2PT-RX78vVNKHOEXT7Cb1TFZn-ddoTzg3S9SbyV8CWI/s2048/PXL_20210509_204758388.PORTRAIT.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="1784" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiN4PY0jV2dX4NXjJVDcqqSdAQkkVY9EEu2xSi6byoOb7FDSfs7Q-A7R9qmmcRJJcII1XWb-tDljQKYLJZN20HCMaT-TxzpDIiiT2PT-RX78vVNKHOEXT7Cb1TFZn-ddoTzg3S9SbyV8CWI/w558-h640/PXL_20210509_204758388.PORTRAIT.jpg" width="558" /></a></div><br /><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div>I repeated the process on my toes with a different color and had the exact same experience with the bubbles after the second coat and nail polish never fully drying even hours later. By the very next day chunks of color had chipped off both my fingers and toes and I decided to just remove all of it. I went to look at reviews and social media comments to see if it was just user error on my part but saw so many comments that echoed my experience. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg6KBBxfD7Am3eL7mjSi9RDUIsBqdLj88hEoxCTgeL6y0Xuwpus23czFAhyphenhyphen5zLU0UIx-cDgKMzEtCuiT0v9JjfvIBsQzkxbbFuS12k06bDL02HfouOUIFdkvT7efVmDIhmSDIHKMvqqw6Re/s2048/Screenshot_20210511-160725.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1469" data-original-width="2048" height="460" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg6KBBxfD7Am3eL7mjSi9RDUIsBqdLj88hEoxCTgeL6y0Xuwpus23czFAhyphenhyphen5zLU0UIx-cDgKMzEtCuiT0v9JjfvIBsQzkxbbFuS12k06bDL02HfouOUIFdkvT7efVmDIhmSDIHKMvqqw6Re/w640-h460/Screenshot_20210511-160725.png" width="640" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgRCFcTruQYoibsmaO_sEy5Uf_nF2L4610OtIS72cFqfcijva8-_SME03QrOUz7dmcoanKvDeBhKap1HS3UUPhDkZXMFjyw2-zF_9JMh_HX4njeel6Dcx337MgYWzpetaXnYquN62FB9Oeq//" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img data-original-height="706" data-original-width="1120" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgRCFcTruQYoibsmaO_sEy5Uf_nF2L4610OtIS72cFqfcijva8-_SME03QrOUz7dmcoanKvDeBhKap1HS3UUPhDkZXMFjyw2-zF_9JMh_HX4njeel6Dcx337MgYWzpetaXnYquN62FB9Oeq/s16000/image.png" /></a></div><br /><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhL98ai4kujeim-y78DrjLN6bPT7Qn-zBtqHNyO7Lga6lmdDQvBbpZypl5OExW66w0l9j_TM-pAa7dPOmUBgQGpuGVt7dL1DOfBwGInCmq4zBpraFvfEPQ4iCQVzN56OGqyFaMAFTDZoA89//" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img data-original-height="508" data-original-width="1166" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhL98ai4kujeim-y78DrjLN6bPT7Qn-zBtqHNyO7Lga6lmdDQvBbpZypl5OExW66w0l9j_TM-pAa7dPOmUBgQGpuGVt7dL1DOfBwGInCmq4zBpraFvfEPQ4iCQVzN56OGqyFaMAFTDZoA89/s16000/image.png" /></a></div><br /><br /><div>Overall I really wanted to love Olive & June but would not recommend them at all; aside from the cute storage box even basic things like the nail clipper and nail file seemed low quality and didn't match the price point. Their mani kit requires way too many steps and products for a poor end result. I ended up going back to my trusty nail color <a href="https://www.sallyhansen.com/en-us/nail-color/nail-color/insta-dri?cid=usa_search_google_sally%20hansen%20insta%20dri_exact&gclid=CjwKCAjw-ZCKBhBkEiwAM4qfF9vQSCw3HJL9P1rrki-b0V0aIeoua6HYhrTxd4AYowZPe6_4ph9VVRoC8pIQAvD_BwE">Sally Hansen Insta Dri</a> that actually dries really fast and goes on super smooth and haven't looked back since.</div><div><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjTrcUov1IFbpXInB4xXcafQKQnkf7VdxPgEK0vw7ZWnikdmsf45zzmXalMQlhX9SQNjOYiXA30qkUYSSXhpFWmxTp6_ubROJJwz1AW-OQELAqRO2NYG9NNEnZOj8IF4bF_A6LSKT9qAWMh/s700/k667_k667q1__1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="700" data-original-width="700" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjTrcUov1IFbpXInB4xXcafQKQnkf7VdxPgEK0vw7ZWnikdmsf45zzmXalMQlhX9SQNjOYiXA30qkUYSSXhpFWmxTp6_ubROJJwz1AW-OQELAqRO2NYG9NNEnZOj8IF4bF_A6LSKT9qAWMh/s16000/k667_k667q1__1.jpg" /></a></div><br /><div><br /><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgR1uj2sk8n7ekcuYcpRnmo3wcT6wFruJtK8nm0LAAnzKJlvFbPMad_ysQW4ZW_yy8Z2RX08Kwg_k7RdD9PYQ2BJmql2hXTKr4Io0aK8G7ZCRUUuf2kg4yof-7ieTN7gAESjWimcGrd_gu4/s320/1631408316999653-0.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="83" data-original-width="320" height="83" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgR1uj2sk8n7ekcuYcpRnmo3wcT6wFruJtK8nm0LAAnzKJlvFbPMad_ysQW4ZW_yy8Z2RX08Kwg_k7RdD9PYQ2BJmql2hXTKr4Io0aK8G7ZCRUUuf2kg4yof-7ieTN7gAESjWimcGrd_gu4/s0/1631408316999653-0.png" width="320" /></a></div><br /><div><br /><br /></div></div>SimplyChic Mommahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01651364127425786116noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1158502287259494968.post-22492474121486043642021-09-14T18:26:00.002-04:002021-09-23T15:38:26.971-04:00Bannor Toys are a safety hazardI first heard about Bannor Toys a couple years ago on Instagram when they collaborated with another baby brand I follow. I instantly fell in love with Bannor because everything about the company aligned perfectly with all my tastes. They seemed like such a sweet little small business making delightfully adorable "heirloom quality" wooden toys. What was there not to like? I patiently stalked their page and even participated in many of their giveaways and finally went ahead and placed an order when they ran a promotion for black Friday<div><br></div><div>I ordered their <i>rattle and roll suv baby rattle</i> and personalized it with my son's birth stats and also received a free baby teether. When they finally arrived the items looked adorable and I was super happy with them.</div><div><br></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhFhVzGk2qWmniSWqcuVNqHoBZxNUD9rBMzcrpGkrAHNYKxQJIdPcvSWOMw3-bKNA-_Rb0r0V2npjtk1e8ZS9bKTtkhPDIAya3OOThZ6H13yD0JYHbp_9NgxvdqIsH4aQNVDsb53QSbfAgP/s2048/IMG_7567_LI.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1365" data-original-width="2048" height="426" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhFhVzGk2qWmniSWqcuVNqHoBZxNUD9rBMzcrpGkrAHNYKxQJIdPcvSWOMw3-bKNA-_Rb0r0V2npjtk1e8ZS9bKTtkhPDIAya3OOThZ6H13yD0JYHbp_9NgxvdqIsH4aQNVDsb53QSbfAgP/w640-h426/IMG_7567_LI.jpg" width="640"></a></div><br><div><br></div><div><br></div><div>However due to the weight and shape of the rattle my son couldn't really hold or play with it til he was closer to 6 months old. I noticed right away that it was quite a flawed design for a baby rattle, it would only rattle if you shook it in a very specific direction. My son played with it occasionally but it couldn't keep his interest for very long. But because I loved it so much I kept offering it to him hoping he would grow to like it but he barely used it. One day right after offering it to him, the front wheels came apart suddenly with no warning. I was thankfully sitting with him when it happened. The wheels themselves are choking hazards but the dowel that holds the wheels together is especially dangerous and can cause all sorts of injuries. </div><div><br></div><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi2WC4pvqoqXBxh_j0DfsoWdRWGR7cSYc8eaVLEykm6-LoJl-pwswZNNjxoF5uM7Z4taMZtZbtHcs6RrPyvLS7PXBtPA04KVrweuMJspOBaGqJnVeC4q0cZeZ2tIu1W5-7AM3D16pQxXCcn/s2048/IMG_20190609_213214_LI.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="1536" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi2WC4pvqoqXBxh_j0DfsoWdRWGR7cSYc8eaVLEykm6-LoJl-pwswZNNjxoF5uM7Z4taMZtZbtHcs6RrPyvLS7PXBtPA04KVrweuMJspOBaGqJnVeC4q0cZeZ2tIu1W5-7AM3D16pQxXCcn/w480-h640/IMG_20190609_213214_LI.jpg" width="480"></a></div><div><br></div><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgdcdZ-tZZRNmHW9J38-OeTS-hR4lDrtFATmdo4pkFlWuK08KrUF51d9Z3X2UEwUcBmUYQyR9Yvlzn49xbzfFRWl1GspYf5DmZ5CScsKcCI7OUYY7rMYwnH6JGZLzyuwvFT5jP_6K60Rj3H/s2048/IMG_20190609_213203.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="1536" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgdcdZ-tZZRNmHW9J38-OeTS-hR4lDrtFATmdo4pkFlWuK08KrUF51d9Z3X2UEwUcBmUYQyR9Yvlzn49xbzfFRWl1GspYf5DmZ5CScsKcCI7OUYY7rMYwnH6JGZLzyuwvFT5jP_6K60Rj3H/w480-h640/IMG_20190609_213203.jpg" width="480"></a></div><div><br></div><div>I was genuinely surprised that a brand new wood toy that had barely been played with would fall apart that easily. In my experience wood toys were usually the most durable and were virtually indestructible. I thought it could screw back together but it seemed to have originally been very lightly glued so it was only a matter of time before the rest of it would come apart too. I reached out to them expecting them to offer a heartfelt apology and try to make things right. Instead they sent me the response below</div><div><br></div><div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiEiWMySDt0ABI6gXOcAs7PfZ2BroO-jaW5xlVqbICaXBtyFHZ0V2nbRNC5gVkiF9FPdmPUo2hr8Q4Ld8DiscH7PGrn7uwjuUtH2mj1CoxZ6Nro_qWjU1UmLZDfBcwHANOJjgcgUDEvezo2/s1600/1631652997312599-0.png" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;">
<img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiEiWMySDt0ABI6gXOcAs7PfZ2BroO-jaW5xlVqbICaXBtyFHZ0V2nbRNC5gVkiF9FPdmPUo2hr8Q4Ld8DiscH7PGrn7uwjuUtH2mj1CoxZ6Nro_qWjU1UmLZDfBcwHANOJjgcgUDEvezo2/s1600/1631652997312599-0.png" width="400">
</a>
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br></div><br><div><br></div><div>Their first instinct was to mention that all the vehicles are for age 3+? Even though it was clearly listed as a baby rattle in the infant section of their website? And they had my son's birth stats engraved on it? And since when do 3 year olds play with rattles anyway? I went back to look at my order details and it specifically said baby rattle.</div></div><div><br></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi07ODTkVgxXb7gAbNLsyDRQOMYxY946yQ3wVakVOFl2SExWgUDjGeWd3MzEFxdj979fKE17nZfdS7wZADP4iebB5A3OwJ7JpXqriOJgVoPzmzu5XuIjfVBb8U0Y4JXQ7Yzhc1xPSXRc6EN/s1459/Baby+rattle+order+details+%25281%2529.JPG" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="463" data-original-width="1459" height="204" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi07ODTkVgxXb7gAbNLsyDRQOMYxY946yQ3wVakVOFl2SExWgUDjGeWd3MzEFxdj979fKE17nZfdS7wZADP4iebB5A3OwJ7JpXqriOJgVoPzmzu5XuIjfVBb8U0Y4JXQ7Yzhc1xPSXRc6EN/w640-h204/Baby+rattle+order+details+%25281%2529.JPG" width="640"></a></div><div><br></div>I also went back to review their instagram page and saw several images on their page with young babies clearly under the age of three with the exact same rattle!<br><div><br></div><div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjCnYMm9zLtpU2xfUL0uBCMsrs6RuqZMpNvjoAw8T1Jy3cXG9i3vtO_GfkLfJUIF60NxUNYcunl4oNp5uIYpw6bEAW8PHuSo4VNJ-f29QhxPekdOpUo82Xcgh_DoqV4idk8r4v2HTdrmJx1/s1600/1631655983538644-0.png" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;">
<img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjCnYMm9zLtpU2xfUL0uBCMsrs6RuqZMpNvjoAw8T1Jy3cXG9i3vtO_GfkLfJUIF60NxUNYcunl4oNp5uIYpw6bEAW8PHuSo4VNJ-f29QhxPekdOpUo82Xcgh_DoqV4idk8r4v2HTdrmJx1/w420-h640/1631655983538644-0.png" width="420">
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</div><br></div><div>I was disgusted by their response and just couldn't wrap my mind around how casually they mentioned the wheels being a choking hazard but still comfortably market the rattles to infants. I went ahead and sent the email anyway and I got an even ruder response by email telling me to send the rattle back to them at my expense and they would repair it and send it back. Again they stressed the point that it was only safe for children over 3 years old. As if that somehow made it okay for the toy to fall apart like that. The wooden dowel was still just as dangerous to a 3 year old anyway. So I told them since I clearly ordered it for an infant I would like a refund. And of course they said no to that. Their warm and fuzzy instagram persona was all a facade because in reality they were just another profit focused business. They were more than happy to endanger children over profits. The bottom line is their products are severely overpriced, low quality and hazardous, they don't stand behind their own marketing and they have no integrity whatsoever. I made a point to report this to the <a href="http://saferproducts.gov">saferproducts.gov</a> to warn other parents out there. Bannor had a choice to respond to that safety report but chose not to. </div><div><br></div><div>For me this was a major learning experience in social media businesses and grasping the idea that all those perfectly curated small businesses could look cute and seem to have great reviews but could potentially be pushing unsafe products. As a society we have to carefully balance supporting small businesses while also holding them accountable. The idea that a small business should be blindly supported regardless can actually be really harmful. We also need to focus a whole lot more on the proven quality of toys over their aesthetic.</div><div><br></div><div>I wish you safe shopping!</div><div><br></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgR1uj2sk8n7ekcuYcpRnmo3wcT6wFruJtK8nm0LAAnzKJlvFbPMad_ysQW4ZW_yy8Z2RX08Kwg_k7RdD9PYQ2BJmql2hXTKr4Io0aK8G7ZCRUUuf2kg4yof-7ieTN7gAESjWimcGrd_gu4/s320/1631408316999653-0.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="83" data-original-width="320" height="83" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgR1uj2sk8n7ekcuYcpRnmo3wcT6wFruJtK8nm0LAAnzKJlvFbPMad_ysQW4ZW_yy8Z2RX08Kwg_k7RdD9PYQ2BJmql2hXTKr4Io0aK8G7ZCRUUuf2kg4yof-7ieTN7gAESjWimcGrd_gu4/s0/1631408316999653-0.png" width="320"></a></div><br><div><br></div>SimplyChic Mommahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01651364127425786116noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1158502287259494968.post-10750894631187591242021-09-11T20:58:00.000-04:002021-09-11T21:28:48.440-04:00Is Snack Crate worth it?<div><div class="separator"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjC0yxJ1Oa3jo3sNGkuO8E9Um8ClBSnnB_z1G7_w8NGV6tBGqcLORNfDFJTBEs0jXFobPwWZSnR3JAZiKNEYUc1sF7zzBB7HfMxoaCX39oQA8ZGo3OgDWtgX7U00E4iC-XdW77trbsOrIJU/s2048/PXL_20210301_192637885.jpg"><img border="0" data-original-height="1370" data-original-width="2048" height="428" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjC0yxJ1Oa3jo3sNGkuO8E9Um8ClBSnnB_z1G7_w8NGV6tBGqcLORNfDFJTBEs0jXFobPwWZSnR3JAZiKNEYUc1sF7zzBB7HfMxoaCX39oQA8ZGo3OgDWtgX7U00E4iC-XdW77trbsOrIJU/w640-h428/PXL_20210301_192637885.jpg" width="640"></a></div><br></div>After months of being relentlessly bombarded with ads, I finally decided to give snack crate a try. I'm usually really good about not buying products off social media but I started to seriously consider it after a momma friend mentioned how much her children really looked forward to learning about a new country each month and of course trying out all the new snacks! So when I found a 50% off coupon for the first month I knew I had to go for it.<div><br></div><div>Snack Crate is a monthly subscription service international snack box. Each month's box is stocked with snacks from a different country. The box also includes interesting details about each snack and about the featured country. I loved the idea right away because what better way to combat pandemic cabin fever? </div><div><br></div><div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgTJIE3eWGNM_i14OupKaOFH9mYQUnSvwVIF4D1f7WOtsS3geOl5YTzVzfvX_HRBB93Inq84tvyW3p1Yn4ryrqWMS9gAqV9cnSrB0xcxImSFpFvJ2bXCuntgfIrD4Kp4QYnLVPmdQVZ3XAh//" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img data-original-height="610" data-original-width="520" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgTJIE3eWGNM_i14OupKaOFH9mYQUnSvwVIF4D1f7WOtsS3geOl5YTzVzfvX_HRBB93Inq84tvyW3p1Yn4ryrqWMS9gAqV9cnSrB0xcxImSFpFvJ2bXCuntgfIrD4Kp4QYnLVPmdQVZ3XAh/s16000/image.png"></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">I told my little ones all about it and even let them watch a few unboxing videos on youtube so they were pretty excited about it and couldn't wait for us to receive our first box. The first box was from Germany and arrived very quickly.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjSyPcldNS30vFEBrlhFRkJhW0hZlxzVz0qLISqMHFhN8YdGHeDfIurON63NNEizpfMucSfnwy_nka_1c3q_kQtUiSN8iwFjfrsR3jFqaT5AeqVyWBx0IHZUDCrb86Tt5QJi_TxCA6zX-11/s2048/PXL_20210301_221245480.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="1965" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjSyPcldNS30vFEBrlhFRkJhW0hZlxzVz0qLISqMHFhN8YdGHeDfIurON63NNEizpfMucSfnwy_nka_1c3q_kQtUiSN8iwFjfrsR3jFqaT5AeqVyWBx0IHZUDCrb86Tt5QJi_TxCA6zX-11/w614-h640/PXL_20210301_221245480.jpg" width="614"></a></div><br><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEifrWI7ypWuUEQ0lQHC94yq-iCg9bCfUEertPG-NkLG17RbsQ8-Rq5sJPX40x8YvZLM5aItymlIY8m08qXUFzdB_NtBeNTs4sKODdrFEJhNaKlUDuW6F3GTZf-j_fQMcy1WlHnzJo_1g6mN/s2048/PXL_20210301_221735241.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="1817" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEifrWI7ypWuUEQ0lQHC94yq-iCg9bCfUEertPG-NkLG17RbsQ8-Rq5sJPX40x8YvZLM5aItymlIY8m08qXUFzdB_NtBeNTs4sKODdrFEJhNaKlUDuW6F3GTZf-j_fQMcy1WlHnzJo_1g6mN/w568-h640/PXL_20210301_221735241.jpg" width="568"></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><i>Snack Box from Germany</i></td></tr></tbody></table><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">Everything in the Germany box was really delicious and we all had a great time trying things. The disappointing thing about the Germany box and all the boxes in general is that each box tends to have a lot of similar things. So for Germany there were so many bags of different types of sour gummy candy. My children aren't allowed to eat gummy candy and I usually try to avoid it as well so we ended up with a lot of things left over that no one could eat.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">The boxes that followed all had a similar trend of having some really great items to try out but also being repetitive. For instance our second box from Sweden had a ton of chocolate and not as many savory snacks. It still ended up being my favorite box because of all the delicious chocolate!</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br></div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjobotDGUTgBrB9t3B0wkc-Qzbcexxv-BT7pe0emVEKG3u7oq-pUi6f4VuCrddUWnro307iG4Patu8moVawmquaZ1AaGccGFLEzklF8la_gYrMzRkO9G2X5_stAXNJ_v-KJBAfO7dEhpiDv/s2048/PXL_20210404_200238866.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="1536" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjobotDGUTgBrB9t3B0wkc-Qzbcexxv-BT7pe0emVEKG3u7oq-pUi6f4VuCrddUWnro307iG4Patu8moVawmquaZ1AaGccGFLEzklF8la_gYrMzRkO9G2X5_stAXNJ_v-KJBAfO7dEhpiDv/w519-h640/PXL_20210404_200238866.jpg" width="519"></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><i>Snack Box from Sweden</i></td></tr></tbody></table><br><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">The Ukraine box stood out for having some really great cookies and unexpected flavors.</div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhzh2C3ulh_BrFXe5bD7-TlcsouHvRlzewILjxRyUKrKT8uUSPB0LXY6iqUGiFFwdn3e4YBDcXlJNbpzDVPz0BMQnAcXdDMwX_DRko-ALFZwzUf5Wgk_fe8IqBy3b3vk9hmVB1kPwTjtp2t/s2048/PXL_20210424_195519243.MP.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="1536" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhzh2C3ulh_BrFXe5bD7-TlcsouHvRlzewILjxRyUKrKT8uUSPB0LXY6iqUGiFFwdn3e4YBDcXlJNbpzDVPz0BMQnAcXdDMwX_DRko-ALFZwzUf5Wgk_fe8IqBy3b3vk9hmVB1kPwTjtp2t/w480-h640/PXL_20210424_195519243.MP.jpg" width="480"></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><i>Snack Box from Ukraine</i></td></tr></tbody></table><br><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhTJnAmlqRRbZKzNc66ZCl-r8AwKPfUOKgWaJpn6Rrd8Lr0pzi8mEKc0VzrHK2sIv7CehlvKj3LZqmGvhXHYG_jbI9RXl2uRI6mBbBIe88HHj_9WpRLvvUF6ehyphenhyphenZOv0Yirq8KomV4zZxWB-/s2048/PXL_20210424_195857118.MP.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1664" data-original-width="2048" height="520" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhTJnAmlqRRbZKzNc66ZCl-r8AwKPfUOKgWaJpn6Rrd8Lr0pzi8mEKc0VzrHK2sIv7CehlvKj3LZqmGvhXHYG_jbI9RXl2uRI6mBbBIe88HHj_9WpRLvvUF6ehyphenhyphenZOv0Yirq8KomV4zZxWB-/w640-h520/PXL_20210424_195857118.MP.jpg" width="640"></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><i>Snack Box from Ukraine</i></td></tr></tbody></table><br>One of the more unusual boxes was from Thailand. Nearly everything in the box was an overpowering spicy shelled seafood flavor. Since we normally don't eat shelled seafood, we didn't really have much that we could try from that box.<br><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh_LAoIQyJ9TKRliQldV6PyubA6EvMLfUzU-9q3x16njRxP_yRD5Cv2JmH6EO52VO6QcmFt7I-tezuadSlk43_65Bz_tGLWYXDBjOOwtGflc6bQZ8rkZOHGRPeXthlEPdo2uJ8WsAtgD3JG/s2048/PXL_20210528_214221196.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="1536" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh_LAoIQyJ9TKRliQldV6PyubA6EvMLfUzU-9q3x16njRxP_yRD5Cv2JmH6EO52VO6QcmFt7I-tezuadSlk43_65Bz_tGLWYXDBjOOwtGflc6bQZ8rkZOHGRPeXthlEPdo2uJ8WsAtgD3JG/w480-h640/PXL_20210528_214221196.jpg" width="480"></a></div><br><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgoqnzrU2cL5CjnpP1_ePFPeK63kE2kqZy04Eyjsj94RmWcex6Y_eKoYpOfZ4DiPxHu2W9aHfXzHIhvtPWK6v6FXDkZPlHIjB4_60ERWqhMqT2eELsA9ZtASM9XQ5q6BL88GpWx61S3Pa95/s2048/PXL_20210528_214422434.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="1836" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgoqnzrU2cL5CjnpP1_ePFPeK63kE2kqZy04Eyjsj94RmWcex6Y_eKoYpOfZ4DiPxHu2W9aHfXzHIhvtPWK6v6FXDkZPlHIjB4_60ERWqhMqT2eELsA9ZtASM9XQ5q6BL88GpWx61S3Pa95/w574-h640/PXL_20210528_214422434.jpg" width="574"></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><i>Snack Box from Thailand</i></td></tr></tbody></table><br><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjcynVV8pLH4EzAhxcYoY__99CCekEp64pvwNTOehiu71RgKy6KYTMUksk_qldQelS1AexXOPz8wG1vqavPl7v3yL1pN1Jotu1_ceZCpMsGyDe18LKdMgrWCUVsQ1O9XdeEDpryMc8A2f-0/s2048/PXL_20210528_234336312.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1438" data-original-width="2048" height="450" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjcynVV8pLH4EzAhxcYoY__99CCekEp64pvwNTOehiu71RgKy6KYTMUksk_qldQelS1AexXOPz8wG1vqavPl7v3yL1pN1Jotu1_ceZCpMsGyDe18LKdMgrWCUVsQ1O9XdeEDpryMc8A2f-0/w640-h450/PXL_20210528_234336312.jpg" width="640"></a></div><div><br></div>The fun thing about the boxes was seeing name brands we recognized in totally new flavors. <br><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh7bPtEVJ7VmmYeTrHDg2AE-NaQAMlsX3RNl-eGRnrFtHSyBU5yi7CryY-sflP5hrkVMRGkMZFTK3JRnoQHLQXAo11EEgEve15YYUknM-p1ybP28CHgrDpscqwXUk4hnGOp4fex4VA-NTSP/s2048/PXL_20210621_191058104.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="1536" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh7bPtEVJ7VmmYeTrHDg2AE-NaQAMlsX3RNl-eGRnrFtHSyBU5yi7CryY-sflP5hrkVMRGkMZFTK3JRnoQHLQXAo11EEgEve15YYUknM-p1ybP28CHgrDpscqwXUk4hnGOp4fex4VA-NTSP/w480-h640/PXL_20210621_191058104.jpg" width="480"></a></div><br><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhqOXoihACttZxlDweRxyc33lnFUkSw5ENq9iWiJvvMgVKHmeViiumaZcPqniX5VMzuDp7x3ovMwB7nSn5mAL4F8PICElaVqYqc78Xx_ynqAeX8aOPWoQtPZ3-t4MA5AtjkRT-iwNplRwL3/s2048/PXL_20210621_191110596.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="1645" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhqOXoihACttZxlDweRxyc33lnFUkSw5ENq9iWiJvvMgVKHmeViiumaZcPqniX5VMzuDp7x3ovMwB7nSn5mAL4F8PICElaVqYqc78Xx_ynqAeX8aOPWoQtPZ3-t4MA5AtjkRT-iwNplRwL3/w514-h640/PXL_20210621_191110596.jpg" width="514"></a></div><br></div><div><br></div><div>Aside from their monthly subscription, snack crate also offers separate speciality boxes and I decided to give the Cadbury crate a try. This box is full of British and Canadian classics.</div><div><br></div><div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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</div><br><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br></div>Overall, after several months of trying it out I still have very mixed feelings about snack crate. On one hand it's so fun to get a surprise delivery of random snacks, especially now during all the pandemic travel restrictions. On the other hand the boxes are all very hit or miss. It would be better if you could have more control over which countries you got to try and what items you didn't want. Unless you have someone else to share it with, it can be quite wasteful because there are always things left over that no one wants to try and some boxes have way too much of the same thing. In general, each box seemed to have way more sweet things than savory which makes it seem less of a snack crate and more of a candy crate. In the summer an icepack is included with the crate but many of the items still arrive melted beyond recognition which takes away from the experience a little. I also noticed that every single box had a variety of wafers; so we started to get a little tired of those. I would say it's at least worth trying out for a few months when there is a promotion running. You are always free to cancel whenever or skip a month if you need a break.</div><div><br></div><div>Happy snacking!</div><div><br></div><div><br><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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</div><br></div><br><br></div>SimplyChic Mommahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01651364127425786116noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1158502287259494968.post-38119707963139277982021-09-06T15:58:00.008-04:002021-09-06T23:35:42.898-04:00IKEA TARVA Hack - Navy & Brass dresser with paintable wall paper<p> In all our years of being married, we've never had a dresser in our master bedroom because we could never find the perfect one. My heart was set on a navy and brass horizontal dresser but all the ones I found were too tall, too narrow, too blue, too office-ish... you get the point. I considered buying a used dresser and repainting it but then I stumbled across a post by <a href="https://champagnechaos.com/ikea-dresser-hack/">Champagne Chaos</a> updating her IKEA Tarva and decided to try it out. Although I'm not a big IKEA fan I was really drawn to the simplicity of this dresser and how it only took a few basic additions to transform the entire look of the dresser. I also preferred this option because the dresser is sold with untreated wood that is ready to paint so I wouldn't have to spend time stripping paint or sanding it first. I followed along with her steps but changed certain things along the way to better suit my taste. I started out with the list of materials below</p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh1rkhG0m0P89XW3FxbVwbUm7vQUYt7VbHOYx956lGN88HiTk90h-kJGjgSLcOVWcWTky5_GuDZ9dzLCMzJRc6-ILJdeynlh3c6ia5qeMvOwx9uxRHqjzi39OZ8BNlFcDCosNqW0AMiz_57/s4032/PXL_20210906_190849508.PORTRAIT.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3024" data-original-width="4032" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh1rkhG0m0P89XW3FxbVwbUm7vQUYt7VbHOYx956lGN88HiTk90h-kJGjgSLcOVWcWTky5_GuDZ9dzLCMzJRc6-ILJdeynlh3c6ia5qeMvOwx9uxRHqjzi39OZ8BNlFcDCosNqW0AMiz_57/w640-h480/PXL_20210906_190849508.PORTRAIT.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><br /></td></tr></tbody></table><p></p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjNwZ1tM9zxMuYnoRDB0dbrvEPs7ofK4-8frXivlmPvdbp0u9rIN9Kq5vGFpQnBM02I2wZ6WMdVJFvd61z20DTnBiB8k01I3lMFpB8ktPkte3iFczNHiAmG1GUOTHTUMxgmL1X4hOnR5ajm/s900/tarva-6-drawer-chest-pine__0857784_pe628892_s5.webp" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="900" data-original-width="900" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjNwZ1tM9zxMuYnoRDB0dbrvEPs7ofK4-8frXivlmPvdbp0u9rIN9Kq5vGFpQnBM02I2wZ6WMdVJFvd61z20DTnBiB8k01I3lMFpB8ktPkte3iFczNHiAmG1GUOTHTUMxgmL1X4hOnR5ajm/w640-h640/tarva-6-drawer-chest-pine__0857784_pe628892_s5.webp" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><i>Before</i></td></tr></tbody></table><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><ol style="text-align: left;"><li><i><a href="https://www.ikea.com/us/en/p/tarva-6-drawer-chest-pine-80360705/">IKEA Tarva dresser (untreated pine)</a></i></li><li><i><a href="https://www.homedepot.com/p/Graham-Brown-White-Vinyl-Non-Pasted-Paintable-Wallpaper-Roll-Covers-56-Sq-Ft-12011/204705507">Graham & Brown Paintable wallpaper</a></i></li><li><i><a href="https://www.homedepot.com/p/Woodgrain-Millwork-WM-887-3-8-in-x-1-1-4-in-Solid-Pine-Door-and-Window-Stop-Moulding-10000822/100321441">Pine stop</a></i></li><li><i><a href="https://www.etsy.com/listing/656250144/large-dresser-pull-handles-drawer?ga_order=most_relevant&ga_search_type=all&ga_view_type=gallery&ga_search_query=antique+brass+drawer+pulls&ref=sr_gallery-1-1&pro=1">Brass pulls</a></i></li><li>Wallpaper adhesive</li><li>Wire brads</li><li><a href="https://www.homedepot.com/p/BEHR-PREMIUM-PLUS-1-gal-M500-7-Very-Navy-Eggshell-Enamel-Low-Odor-Interior-Paint-Primer-230001/205279611?source=shoppingads&locale=en-US&mtc=Shopping-B-F_D24-G-D24-024_015_INT_PAINT-Multi-NA-Feed-LIA-NA-NA-FY21_Interior_LIA_Q3_Pro_Control&cm_mmc=Shopping-B-F_D24-G-D24-024_015_INT_PAINT-Multi-NA-Feed-LIA-NA-NA-FY21_Interior_LIA_Q3_Pro_Control-71700000075826928-58700006496910120-92700058691144929&gclid=Cj0KCQjw-NaJBhDsARIsAAja6dPaO0J6Jm_t0m0FM4EAJfFaeRNvX7sB1XMkZT5yVFoBeb1vx89j7xUaAq3lEALw_wcB&gclsrc=aw.ds">Behr Eggshell interior paint (Very Navy)</a></li><li><a href="https://www.homedepot.com/p/8-Piece-Shed-Resistant-White-Woven-Paint-Tray-Kit-RS-808/202985038">Paint roller & tray set</a></li></ol><p></p><p style="text-align: left;">We assembled all our materials as shown below. We used a miter box and saw to get the exact 45 degree angle on each cut of pine stop. Some sandpapering was still required to get the edges to sit flush against each other. Because the pine stop has one rounded edge, it's important to keep the rounded edges on the outside.</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjxjW6qMzTiahfMaHfJ1MO_RgK__La9flH1Of8b_yKdf4LvZdqEFME442smEht3-JIZodnYR67cb3T_A96dLDS9dYioeVvoJIenJFtYI5AqHp-dQA44-UHMYT0a5w_6rMVZpd8z_wh7YIuP/s2048/PXL_20210804_154748689.PORTRAIT.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1536" data-original-width="2048" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjxjW6qMzTiahfMaHfJ1MO_RgK__La9flH1Of8b_yKdf4LvZdqEFME442smEht3-JIZodnYR67cb3T_A96dLDS9dYioeVvoJIenJFtYI5AqHp-dQA44-UHMYT0a5w_6rMVZpd8z_wh7YIuP/w640-h480/PXL_20210804_154748689.PORTRAIT.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><br /><p style="text-align: left;">The next step was cutting and sticking the wallpaper to the front of the drawers.</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgBOCCSNHtUBj2Pn2Zw1pL7OZdSSntTBr0t7_vcpB8GKGdAXzC3_izIO6Bo9DOjSc2wW7sF3pKf_FTNRAi8znySzlo1v_9EeA1zWuKrp44PH8bBwtXrHkD4XLvqZi-l3IzoQixgplDfQ9eu/s2048/PXL_20210814_195519829.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1434" data-original-width="2048" height="448" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgBOCCSNHtUBj2Pn2Zw1pL7OZdSSntTBr0t7_vcpB8GKGdAXzC3_izIO6Bo9DOjSc2wW7sF3pKf_FTNRAi8znySzlo1v_9EeA1zWuKrp44PH8bBwtXrHkD4XLvqZi-l3IzoQixgplDfQ9eu/w640-h448/PXL_20210814_195519829.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhXV6wqURQ6Zil3qkMsOZCL0wRyvKslRamXVdlaJso4IsHVdX977WkR9oWse6fhYkA5bhlSljZsJOQ8HoSqbA1gp8MWbOLWQ1qKkUdkT6ugEmkn3Y_4Q1c28uETFtPiZww49LZqxZDdBSkv/s2048/PXL_20210814_203755025.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="1571" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhXV6wqURQ6Zil3qkMsOZCL0wRyvKslRamXVdlaJso4IsHVdX977WkR9oWse6fhYkA5bhlSljZsJOQ8HoSqbA1gp8MWbOLWQ1qKkUdkT6ugEmkn3Y_4Q1c28uETFtPiZww49LZqxZDdBSkv/w490-h640/PXL_20210814_203755025.jpg" width="490" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; 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margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="1629" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiiCuQoHUFdSv9bwdHl89ZIQcwg4lLynRb8YbQmlHBRRYQerStFeKUTuTgigBs5fdCEyVda5v5EflEJU7Fga1m-hCdpLhOuQvSXQe-dclZ2TOJAuwPG2usuAoI_Us4DvK0tOH01CWEtk2wF/w510-h640/PXL_20210814_210013014.jpg" width="510" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg9BtrNZVc4bUh7lHVgCqjftir-lgX6juOIMRJFQ15cQfvg3ED_Hj5J6leBILS58_w2A5FICnvkP6DrjWiXpu3uvILSNapaZ9sryyZz15xsEisojXpcPDXvMPUh1Wi_nGXDV0ZAgEV6ZL0h/s2048/PXL_20210814_210618689.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1536" data-original-width="2048" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg9BtrNZVc4bUh7lHVgCqjftir-lgX6juOIMRJFQ15cQfvg3ED_Hj5J6leBILS58_w2A5FICnvkP6DrjWiXpu3uvILSNapaZ9sryyZz15xsEisojXpcPDXvMPUh1Wi_nGXDV0ZAgEV6ZL0h/w640-h480/PXL_20210814_210618689.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg2Q6wQMSJ1ksvVX5yMw4d7drsBXMEtESvVlL5RHGouIK_HcKII6KSmYQTN1Y2iJ-TajzpFlBohFhSA1otVwK2Pwx_7EM-F1FZ6_g0H4SO6dM8ZYsfKfRBEdMwXYFG6_hGquwN-UT9jhOUV/s2048/PXL_20210814_213835344.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="1646" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg2Q6wQMSJ1ksvVX5yMw4d7drsBXMEtESvVlL5RHGouIK_HcKII6KSmYQTN1Y2iJ-TajzpFlBohFhSA1otVwK2Pwx_7EM-F1FZ6_g0H4SO6dM8ZYsfKfRBEdMwXYFG6_hGquwN-UT9jhOUV/w514-h640/PXL_20210814_213835344.jpg" width="514" /></a></div><br /><p style="text-align: left;">Once the wallpaper was firmly attached to the front of each drawer, the next step was to frame it with pine stop using wire brads.</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjhuaTOcOG0UmlzNYl0wfWg5ymD0welBf1RJ5J42xKK9YWtPr0eJSG9pmM7geOJPDuKQmNiJfCBxN3hYImxhdUBk9D0xk85yuyqnCb4q5zlHd6pHjACJLVhjO4HAa5S_kMOCqXzo4KR3NwW/s2048/PXL_20210821_012250259.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1536" data-original-width="2048" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjhuaTOcOG0UmlzNYl0wfWg5ymD0welBf1RJ5J42xKK9YWtPr0eJSG9pmM7geOJPDuKQmNiJfCBxN3hYImxhdUBk9D0xk85yuyqnCb4q5zlHd6pHjACJLVhjO4HAa5S_kMOCqXzo4KR3NwW/w640-h480/PXL_20210821_012250259.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj2s90ftxDyeVbCa2N0sMmzRfH5ZXPyYNwsaeERnou0G4636GBWsIMruSCnHBQoOCeTADjeGwK8f4nHKsmNTRiNiM7gyJGVKL13vY9ifOI-C5J0DnyWKihSk1qhoblylGxWLh3-sQdBlFrH/s2048/PXL_20210821_033348993.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="1536" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj2s90ftxDyeVbCa2N0sMmzRfH5ZXPyYNwsaeERnou0G4636GBWsIMruSCnHBQoOCeTADjeGwK8f4nHKsmNTRiNiM7gyJGVKL13vY9ifOI-C5J0DnyWKihSk1qhoblylGxWLh3-sQdBlFrH/w480-h640/PXL_20210821_033348993.jpg" width="480" /></a></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div>Then we assembled the dresser.<div><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgouLk8V-xuPmEcgP6XSatynzNdPb-pa49NWBpe4PefCvSZecLNz6_GqkYXk_ZKU0pD-5wBRKzGJoGp0d36ygwYTG27XAeqxMGcwb9Z8v7o3sG9AeNIe_ExIHKHeBIGMMKDyQJoqnS6DqtF/s2048/PXL_20210823_032147680.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1536" data-original-width="2048" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgouLk8V-xuPmEcgP6XSatynzNdPb-pa49NWBpe4PefCvSZecLNz6_GqkYXk_ZKU0pD-5wBRKzGJoGp0d36ygwYTG27XAeqxMGcwb9Z8v7o3sG9AeNIe_ExIHKHeBIGMMKDyQJoqnS6DqtF/w640-h480/PXL_20210823_032147680.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><br /><div><br /><p style="text-align: left;">We chose to assemble it before painting to be sure we had all the parts and that everything fit together properly. Once it was fully assembled we took it outside, took the drawers out, and got to work on the paint. I used rollers for the first and second coat and then used a 1.5" brush and 1" foam to touch up the edges afterwards.</p><p style="text-align: left;"><a href="https://www.homedepot.com/p/BEHR-PREMIUM-PLUS-1-gal-M500-7-Very-Navy-Eggshell-Enamel-Low-Odor-Interior-Paint-Primer-230001/205279611?source=shoppingads&locale=en-US&mtc=Shopping-B-F_D24-G-D24-024_015_INT_PAINT-Multi-NA-Feed-LIA-NA-NA-FY21_Interior_LIA_Q3_Pro_Control&cm_mmc=Shopping-B-F_D24-G-D24-024_015_INT_PAINT-Multi-NA-Feed-LIA-NA-NA-FY21_Interior_LIA_Q3_Pro_Control-71700000075826928-58700006496910120-92700058691144929&gclid=Cj0KCQjw-NaJBhDsARIsAAja6dPaO0J6Jm_t0m0FM4EAJfFaeRNvX7sB1XMkZT5yVFoBeb1vx89j7xUaAq3lEALw_wcB&gclsrc=aw.ds#overlay">Behr premium plus paint & primer</a> is such an excellent paint to work with, it gives really great coverage with one coat and dries so quickly! Although there are so many nice shades of navy paint, I really liked the <i>Very Navy</i> color best and decided to go with that. The color will look slightly different depending on the surface and finish but in eggshell it is a true navy with a hint of steel.</p><p style="text-align: left;"><br /></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj2TlQd4dT4cpRaTHGfHE4imH022ojpMi2iIi-oKEo0KGs5KoA2KCCm7qPyuGWwaAR-_sGYk3L0mQOCMSql7X1WAvTeGz8a3sgnCsHnJ-nbf4Mg__qtgvOTNmvYV3vdeGmbAs5eILKkZNSt/s595/Screenshot+2021-09-06+113010.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="595" data-original-width="588" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj2TlQd4dT4cpRaTHGfHE4imH022ojpMi2iIi-oKEo0KGs5KoA2KCCm7qPyuGWwaAR-_sGYk3L0mQOCMSql7X1WAvTeGz8a3sgnCsHnJ-nbf4Mg__qtgvOTNmvYV3vdeGmbAs5eILKkZNSt/s16000/Screenshot+2021-09-06+113010.jpg" /></a></div><br /><p style="text-align: left;">I chose to use it in an eggshell finish instead of matte because I know for a fact that our little ones would be rubbing their fingers all over it in no time, and egg shell can resist finger prints and scuffs a lot better than matte.</p><p style="text-align: left;">If you are new to painting, Home Depot has a quick guide to the different finishes to help you choose</p><p style="text-align: left;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgKlaN7_wgx2n2M_niXoQBEJbKkGp_f66y3jieJW6bqLUUf5pHZEu0vmQZ0FQrmqAy-0nhX9NQhjl0g_wwzpdTgp113uJU3kchxT4rq9XHnSsNPghjmoWSJS6Q8jGGrFKo_rhLmNdr0lJvN/s957/Screenshot+2021-09-06+114100.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="559" data-original-width="957" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgKlaN7_wgx2n2M_niXoQBEJbKkGp_f66y3jieJW6bqLUUf5pHZEu0vmQZ0FQrmqAy-0nhX9NQhjl0g_wwzpdTgp113uJU3kchxT4rq9XHnSsNPghjmoWSJS6Q8jGGrFKo_rhLmNdr0lJvN/s16000/Screenshot+2021-09-06+114100.jpg" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><br />I started out by painting the edges with a touch up roller, then upgraded to the 4" and 9" rollers as I got to the bigger areas. I only covered areas that would be visible from the outside.<p></p><p style="text-align: left;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhgGJj-_k9_HienCF3WfJmjxNEh3yHK5jVUGG4PjTMxe5vh1EdO9IlGn58gWraaiSXZ-feCacAL3aOtSkZbUTeMTeGyNNEdaFsIw00-Guj506HITcbqH8nsRXMAVaG-DyNcbzMeNSyWPZrO/s2048/PXL_20210905_171047734.MP.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1403" data-original-width="2048" height="438" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhgGJj-_k9_HienCF3WfJmjxNEh3yHK5jVUGG4PjTMxe5vh1EdO9IlGn58gWraaiSXZ-feCacAL3aOtSkZbUTeMTeGyNNEdaFsIw00-Guj506HITcbqH8nsRXMAVaG-DyNcbzMeNSyWPZrO/w640-h438/PXL_20210905_171047734.MP.jpg" width="640" /></a></p><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjgTXv0ZwB-j3pVDpq-BIlX4ZkwU_9pOUcsus9b6u9zSI3pC8D7V27DdO4uK3JanBk6kYDVfQ9TYYfHmfvbCqgJfVT3YyKVdMF8JdG38v6n9CbDaHP9AhzSphDXmN0sel9uZ7_ot_eWDCFZ/s2048/PXL_20210905_171819018.MP.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; 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margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1139" data-original-width="2761" height="264" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEheg5gvenFQXg43govwl4kDho6VvLhqRF8Gzye2aNWXppJ47TCcm1gsAmdUONilg8qzFyclnlVWL0dONVAg0htlLWfFrVypXEQuV0YPUu4Ik_NJytPe9rC4-CQ7vz8ZFyeXXjDPX2eEUGmg/w640-h264/PXL_20210905_184320835.MP.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj17ai6XmH-cejWbjrdLlk9iSsKv8KDeWGbPF4Vl25j4Gsu9BQ2703e4m-H101t8zLRgqtCaOD3V1-327_Rb_BBcyqOrAhnWVANGqekzwLgYaG4n7CuX0INJ3ZoM7N9cEpAx1nrFmzNsBXY/s2048/PXL_20210906_140531358.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="1536" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj17ai6XmH-cejWbjrdLlk9iSsKv8KDeWGbPF4Vl25j4Gsu9BQ2703e4m-H101t8zLRgqtCaOD3V1-327_Rb_BBcyqOrAhnWVANGqekzwLgYaG4n7CuX0INJ3ZoM7N9cEpAx1nrFmzNsBXY/w480-h640/PXL_20210906_140531358.jpg" width="480" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiy-pNOjEgYNVV3hEssvvnHEehk0MWqPFDcONjClmOPh5hPu4RfDyetgH2P5wJBu8wOCXHU3rWoCVWQzKU4-53_mCrTqg2e03N11Hvp9JgXlJWefHmhP7feGBHpP4XKuZ775hLdraMFKnjF/s2048/PXL_20210906_140403744.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1259" data-original-width="2048" height="394" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiy-pNOjEgYNVV3hEssvvnHEehk0MWqPFDcONjClmOPh5hPu4RfDyetgH2P5wJBu8wOCXHU3rWoCVWQzKU4-53_mCrTqg2e03N11Hvp9JgXlJWefHmhP7feGBHpP4XKuZ775hLdraMFKnjF/w640-h394/PXL_20210906_140403744.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div>Once it was fully dried, we added the brass door pulls and declared it mission accomplished! </div><div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgu3nsRZmOq_w29dKrw2A7Kb1P8wFbqoRkBVljtWxWg5I6dQ7vwWB8V1p8snbs5E-krLXhk0XZoUihBH_p1QmHwbjqqL_K_QylNElyZ6VytEt51w3P3owsTtGbRRLoGpRmc1h2G-HHbVBfG/s2016/IMG-20210906-WA0009.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1512" data-original-width="2016" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgu3nsRZmOq_w29dKrw2A7Kb1P8wFbqoRkBVljtWxWg5I6dQ7vwWB8V1p8snbs5E-krLXhk0XZoUihBH_p1QmHwbjqqL_K_QylNElyZ6VytEt51w3P3owsTtGbRRLoGpRmc1h2G-HHbVBfG/w640-h480/IMG-20210906-WA0009.jpg" width="640" /></a></div></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgZJsMV1Un-A7LV-wcUHdkQsc-rx8G_5CFaHVvXeks-duNRo-ZPcoOc-uzDSBoxXzceynjaRXEXmAmW0TEDwvMcVaA12fikySmTipf-2CswVgRa-8y0n96wPCYDD1Kfke_wgLhYbOd5Q7o8/s4032/PXL_20210906_190933548.PORTRAIT_2.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgZJsMV1Un-A7LV-wcUHdkQsc-rx8G_5CFaHVvXeks-duNRo-ZPcoOc-uzDSBoxXzceynjaRXEXmAmW0TEDwvMcVaA12fikySmTipf-2CswVgRa-8y0n96wPCYDD1Kfke_wgLhYbOd5Q7o8/w480-h640/PXL_20210906_190933548.PORTRAIT_2.jpg" width="480" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhu5y9OCeBhl10JUokBUbMzstt6J7jxQNsW8JjP-eFIeKBpIdgWjwjllbvwMztn8IpEeGyettwoHLXHjp9WbuNeZgoEI91yhAqXS1wPzvFr8jVXlnZQ-YUYp12wrd_oCqMXV8JKG_-ynN0m/s4032/PXL_20210906_190849508.PORTRAIT.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3024" data-original-width="4032" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhu5y9OCeBhl10JUokBUbMzstt6J7jxQNsW8JjP-eFIeKBpIdgWjwjllbvwMztn8IpEeGyettwoHLXHjp9WbuNeZgoEI91yhAqXS1wPzvFr8jVXlnZQ-YUYp12wrd_oCqMXV8JKG_-ynN0m/w640-h480/PXL_20210906_190849508.PORTRAIT.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgetfNPDc27wxdws8Idsj1BO8GouZWUdpznK0nWb65ILFm_4GUP3lfUogbWlA0Gro5jRfMNo-bRFf9YG9i5iazY8h2-L1lcRp-Z8dLuFR3wmMn3UfVhUQqo5ZgNaSx28Oy06-w7t4EUyZ0P/s3948/PXL_20210906_190805638.PORTRAIT_2.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2961" data-original-width="3948" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgetfNPDc27wxdws8Idsj1BO8GouZWUdpznK0nWb65ILFm_4GUP3lfUogbWlA0Gro5jRfMNo-bRFf9YG9i5iazY8h2-L1lcRp-Z8dLuFR3wmMn3UfVhUQqo5ZgNaSx28Oy06-w7t4EUyZ0P/w640-h480/PXL_20210906_190805638.PORTRAIT_2.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><p style="text-align: left;">While I really liked the look that <a href="https://champagnechaos.com/ikea-dresser-hack/">Champagne Chaos</a> had gone for combining the leather pulls with copper piping, I wanted a much more minimalist effect for our room. In fact, I usually prefer my cabinets and drawers to have no handles at all. But in this case I specifically wanted the navy/brass combo to tie in with other design elements in our room so I was happy to find sleek antique cabinet pulls that fit my vision. The final step was to anchor the cabinet to the wall ( which you absolutely must do with IKEA furniture)</p><p style="text-align: left;">Overall it was a time consuming project but we worked on gradually on the weekends and it was so much fun seeing it come together!</p><p style="text-align: left;"><br /></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh1v4z_8akDTDhwKuJ9vpmZuwT2COCzEin7U5mtpvVhL96wbrTUITMf3k2SinPWmJKQxLdxhXlYA0A3BQJRm09roV8p_ccojjDQ4PhS31ag9947bD6xCWkYatjBczlYQpImsM8Vzm_WS3va/s993/SUNNY+%25281%2529.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="258" data-original-width="993" height="83" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh1v4z_8akDTDhwKuJ9vpmZuwT2COCzEin7U5mtpvVhL96wbrTUITMf3k2SinPWmJKQxLdxhXlYA0A3BQJRm09roV8p_ccojjDQ4PhS31ag9947bD6xCWkYatjBczlYQpImsM8Vzm_WS3va/s320/SUNNY+%25281%2529.jpg" width="320" /></a></div></div><br />SimplyChic Mommahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01651364127425786116noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1158502287259494968.post-41234564051020018282020-10-18T12:29:00.001-04:002020-10-18T12:29:25.697-04:00Ninja Foodi 2- basket air fryer review<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiC3P9CZC6-8RNWbNFecoadOa5dLkIVeUQ55_63r8Eqy1Pf0WGQYJjMcfgxJsnTxAicuoN9ln3v5BoQHQFIvPeTgNHGVksa0oisV2BIl9FUELoeHss-A3MXivfHKc71bVQdrjXy5Ba27Mtb/s4032/PXL_20201017_002417781.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiC3P9CZC6-8RNWbNFecoadOa5dLkIVeUQ55_63r8Eqy1Pf0WGQYJjMcfgxJsnTxAicuoN9ln3v5BoQHQFIvPeTgNHGVksa0oisV2BIl9FUELoeHss-A3MXivfHKc71bVQdrjXy5Ba27Mtb/w480-h640/PXL_20201017_002417781.jpg" width="480" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">For the past few years, I've gone back and forth over whether an air fryer would be a good addition to our kitchen. Most of the reviews I had seen were a bit mixed on whether an air fryer could really achieve the same taste and texture as deep fat frying.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">Thanks to the covid lockdown we have been eating many more meals at home than we usually would and I finally gave in and ordered the <a href="https://www.ninjakitchen.com/exclusive-offer/DZ201WBKT/ninja-foodi-6-in-1-8-qt-2-basket-air-fryer-with-dualzone-technology/" target="_blank">Ninja Foodi 2-Basket Air Fryer.</a> I chose this specific fryer for a few reasons. Firstly I already have some experience with the Ninja brand and I've been really happy with the quality so far. Secondly the dual basket fryer seemed to be the best bang for my buck. With a family of five, I like being able to make bigger batches at a time and most air fryers seemed too small to do that. The Ninja has a combined capacity of 8qts so it can fit a lot more at a time. Having separate compartments makes is easy to cook two different things at the same time or just use one compartment for faster cooking when a smaller batch is needed. Best of all it does more than just air fry, it can also roast, broil, bake, dehydrate and reheat.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">Below I'll share a few of the items I have tried in my air fryer so far</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><ul style="text-align: left;"><li>Air fryer ripe plantains</li><li>Air fryer hot dogs</li><li>Air fryer frozen fries</li></ul></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">The first thing I noticed when I took it out of the box is that it's pretty big and takes up a good amount of counter space. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi91BWglf7EKcWcMJ8MFhacdkPBYFKZ2ZVRk65cHoShcD6Y7RfBsIDQbHOZv__H3IHwX9RjzsbO8AyFyaL3ZE3OCyZt8rPz_DLjGPzsBOvTBOl77spQBi1hZLWtZAYxQ0VBcYZWLBlaqcMb/s616/6421833ld.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="616" data-original-width="550" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi91BWglf7EKcWcMJ8MFhacdkPBYFKZ2ZVRk65cHoShcD6Y7RfBsIDQbHOZv__H3IHwX9RjzsbO8AyFyaL3ZE3OCyZt8rPz_DLjGPzsBOvTBOl77spQBi1hZLWtZAYxQ0VBcYZWLBlaqcMb/s16000/6421833ld.jpg" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">I quickly flipped through the instructions and menu book in the box to get an idea of cook times. Then I decided to go ahead and take it for a test run.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">I had a bunch of ripe plantains that I would usually deep fry. I cut them up into small pieces, tossed them in a few tablespoons of oil and split them between the two baskets. I wasn't sure of the exact cook temperature and time for plantains but followed the guidelines for fries which suggested 400F for about 25 minutes.</div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgMZhU-u0Usg_7S1WYLamfwXWvcRTGPIbZ9XVBCyXxfGxIDo-2ef38o1qfkAsMsvVaMdK2xOLx3elhkAAzCx-m_AyhN8AMZYZhMPQSASdkQoWfu1yU4xlhXdKdA_w0DzJpkq4qK280Oi8ek/s4032/PXL_20201015_000048566.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgMZhU-u0Usg_7S1WYLamfwXWvcRTGPIbZ9XVBCyXxfGxIDo-2ef38o1qfkAsMsvVaMdK2xOLx3elhkAAzCx-m_AyhN8AMZYZhMPQSASdkQoWfu1yU4xlhXdKdA_w0DzJpkq4qK280Oi8ek/w480-h640/PXL_20201015_000048566.jpg" width="480" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div>The instructions recommend pausing it a few times during cooking to shake the basket for more even cooking. The problem with ripe plantains though is that you can't really shake them apart. They become quite soft and sticky as they cook. I used a silicone spatula to flip them as best as I could. On their website Ninja also sells a rack accessory that might help the hot air circulate better and would be good for dehydrating. <p></p><p><br /></p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiYNt6_YCbnLS8wx4cqbs0aOtyP8KSl1pF0BekCOXQTGZxLEZfi-YefLzQxoNEBJvV9sqJqgUqkPJNiBFDjC7Atlu5BrdVgymm0caRxd9B81NPjyYN7nsU824djkvy0iQwvzhfbbgbIk-xW/s510/Capture.JPG" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="324" data-original-width="510" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiYNt6_YCbnLS8wx4cqbs0aOtyP8KSl1pF0BekCOXQTGZxLEZfi-YefLzQxoNEBJvV9sqJqgUqkPJNiBFDjC7Atlu5BrdVgymm0caRxd9B81NPjyYN7nsU824djkvy0iQwvzhfbbgbIk-xW/s16000/Capture.JPG" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">It took about 30 minutes to cook because I kept opening it up to check on it. Also because the plantains were very ripe and stuck to each other quite a bit. It occurred to me that while crispier foods like fries could cook fine in a full basket the soft plantains needed more space </div><p><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjTlBqlRb8c9573p_RhMfkZDb8vbecvK3j0LanxFKpAx0nVUb6Z_du6Ngat-NydvAgh4Lrjoi1mWA1sKDLW55WxKK36bGPk8uH6nI4WnTlQRlO-kTcTjHZm6XjsugA4HEjWLfWhcjCBLvOa/s4032/PXL_20201015_003509852.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjTlBqlRb8c9573p_RhMfkZDb8vbecvK3j0LanxFKpAx0nVUb6Z_du6Ngat-NydvAgh4Lrjoi1mWA1sKDLW55WxKK36bGPk8uH6nI4WnTlQRlO-kTcTjHZm6XjsugA4HEjWLfWhcjCBLvOa/w480-h640/PXL_20201015_003509852.jpg" width="480" /></a></p><p><br /></p><p>I decided the next day to try cutting the plantains up a little differently and put less in the basket at a time. I had much faster and better results.</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi1Yv4lP8_FZc5FIZJLRnYBSlzhUCD_MVGhuXHMxkaTY-Qx45DC2TpDUsYNgvt8Vo2d9sztdGwtjCten3_InKW_VIrU3djeXB9aMVVEwJn9-Zcd6JjXSr2oF7P0e6Zwja2-bUVI5jym5pvt/s4032/PXL_20201017_000449451.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi1Yv4lP8_FZc5FIZJLRnYBSlzhUCD_MVGhuXHMxkaTY-Qx45DC2TpDUsYNgvt8Vo2d9sztdGwtjCten3_InKW_VIrU3djeXB9aMVVEwJn9-Zcd6JjXSr2oF7P0e6Zwja2-bUVI5jym5pvt/w480-h640/PXL_20201017_000449451.jpg" width="480" /></a></div><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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</div><br /><p></p><p>Ultimately the second round of plantains cooked up very nicely and it was such an improved user experienced compared to the mess of deep fat frying. In terms of taste, I would say the air fried plantains tasted very similar to deep fried but also tasted a bit like roasted plantains. There is a definite difference in texture but its still a win win situation. The air fryer significantly cuts down on the oil used, is a much healthier option and a lot less messy as well. My little ones love fried plantains and were just as happy with the air fried version.</p><p>The air fryer has now become my go to appliance, it cooks basically anything and has replaced my oven for certain recipes. I used to cook hot dog franks in the oven but, why heat up the whole oven for just a small tray of hot dogs when I can easily use the air fryer instead. These cooked up in 10 minutes at 390F</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgs23ahWUkbiLGw0JudjDziqM48EdIUFAbsJ0EmAaqGh7tcXdEArO9_4SCWfFX4DgR1v2MXq-YR8u4j9jo0WamFRZ50yBVCpBLEwxqTyMTGFAmmhDyGqsO-EXLIlmPTDUo5TuNhc_4pto-z/s4032/PXL_20201015_235918303.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgs23ahWUkbiLGw0JudjDziqM48EdIUFAbsJ0EmAaqGh7tcXdEArO9_4SCWfFX4DgR1v2MXq-YR8u4j9jo0WamFRZ50yBVCpBLEwxqTyMTGFAmmhDyGqsO-EXLIlmPTDUo5TuNhc_4pto-z/w480-h640/PXL_20201015_235918303.jpg" width="480" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhf9KCD49_FA5oXnUe1E3sE42tzxVvYrwTffY3s7y9HOxxw7xnsj6mwXPD5BMoSC_UHiJ1ii8IF_8V4LzKBN1rnLr6PfK2c7Bn6NKKFOUX0VTOZc3UK_OBIfT9BYDZpqDR8jXZ-0klGhdZs/s4032/PXL_20201016_004020856.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhf9KCD49_FA5oXnUe1E3sE42tzxVvYrwTffY3s7y9HOxxw7xnsj6mwXPD5BMoSC_UHiJ1ii8IF_8V4LzKBN1rnLr6PfK2c7Bn6NKKFOUX0VTOZc3UK_OBIfT9BYDZpqDR8jXZ-0klGhdZs/w480-h640/PXL_20201016_004020856.jpg" width="480" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">Like most kids, my little ones love fries and I alternate between using frozen fries and fresh cut potatoes depending on how much time I have to prep. I usually cook these on a cookie sheet in the oven but it can take a while to get crispy. I also have deep fried them but thats just so messy and oily. I decided to try them in the air fryer and was pleasantly surprised. They were the easiest to cook in the air fryer because they don't stick to each other. The basket can be filled up with fries and they will still cook properly as long as you pause the fryer every so often to shake the basket.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjcJnS4j0rXq95SwSXAmmOLua4U3N_7uv4AYbroa5YGiqlCF6CldZXAuYp7vyFwbmDcBiqLXWbl_DiheJLkvsG75UHXXaoK1GV1paoQShBgMoRuCSZ9ArGK-hWHzlNY_Ih7whXVS4eqsAM2/s4032/PXL_20201017_180820346.PORTRAIT.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjcJnS4j0rXq95SwSXAmmOLua4U3N_7uv4AYbroa5YGiqlCF6CldZXAuYp7vyFwbmDcBiqLXWbl_DiheJLkvsG75UHXXaoK1GV1paoQShBgMoRuCSZ9ArGK-hWHzlNY_Ih7whXVS4eqsAM2/w480-h640/PXL_20201017_180820346.PORTRAIT.jpg" width="480" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-woFrL-x7IGo/X4xnFSZh5QI/AAAAAAAATlU/laYMdqW8xh84sF6qMKZ_yqfZVevJv3asQCPcBGAsYHg/s4032/PXL_20201017_183610544.PORTRAIT-01.COVER.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="640" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-woFrL-x7IGo/X4xnFSZh5QI/AAAAAAAATlU/laYMdqW8xh84sF6qMKZ_yqfZVevJv3asQCPcBGAsYHg/w480-h640/PXL_20201017_183610544.PORTRAIT-01.COVER.jpg" width="480" /></a></div><br /><p>My 4 year old definitely commented that the fries "tasted too much like potatoes" which was his way of saying they tasted like the crispy oven roasted potatoes I usually make. So once again its clear that when it comes to taste and texture the air fryer is similar to roasting.</p><p>The air fryer is very easy to clean, each basket contains a crisper plate that can be removed for cleaning. Both parts are dishwasher safe. The main unit gets wiped down with a damp cloth</p><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhCaTcX_qG7y98Pox0sX7YdL7giQh2v7OsLeeha9-Yd3L-gOpwJAKrizGBG_1TfUpSmEOXetvgoke4vJI-wQWkzKS52jjTv0kvxl_XdYlRpI2_Jpqic347nI6kkw-50N1bi3ByrZ6asdFp_/s4032/PXL_20201015_155534246.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhCaTcX_qG7y98Pox0sX7YdL7giQh2v7OsLeeha9-Yd3L-gOpwJAKrizGBG_1TfUpSmEOXetvgoke4vJI-wQWkzKS52jjTv0kvxl_XdYlRpI2_Jpqic347nI6kkw-50N1bi3ByrZ6asdFp_/w480-h640/PXL_20201015_155534246.jpg" width="480" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div>Overall I'm glad I finally took the plunge to try our air frying. I think the term "air fry" is a bit of a gimmick but I still really like this air fryer. Air fryers are marketed on the premise that they can fry your food exactly the same way as a fryer can with minimal to no oil. In reality the air fryer cooks the food by circulating really hot air in a manner that is quite similar to a convection oven. It follows logically that food cooked by hot air won't be exactly the same as food cooked in hot oil. However it is a good halfway point between fried and oven cooked food and the baskets allow the food to cook much faster and more evenly than an oven. With regards to this specific model, I wish the multi layer rack was included in the box or at least available for purchase, it is currently out of stock on their site. The other thing that surprised me was how loud it can be. When its turned on it sounds like the vent fan above the stove. Finally I wish there was a way to check on the cooking food without having to pause the fryer each time.<div><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh1v4z_8akDTDhwKuJ9vpmZuwT2COCzEin7U5mtpvVhL96wbrTUITMf3k2SinPWmJKQxLdxhXlYA0A3BQJRm09roV8p_ccojjDQ4PhS31ag9947bD6xCWkYatjBczlYQpImsM8Vzm_WS3va/s993/SUNNY+%25281%2529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="258" data-original-width="993" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh1v4z_8akDTDhwKuJ9vpmZuwT2COCzEin7U5mtpvVhL96wbrTUITMf3k2SinPWmJKQxLdxhXlYA0A3BQJRm09roV8p_ccojjDQ4PhS31ag9947bD6xCWkYatjBczlYQpImsM8Vzm_WS3va/s320/SUNNY+%25281%2529.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br /><div><br /><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><br /></div>SimplyChic Mommahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01651364127425786116noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1158502287259494968.post-1559072007908088962020-10-16T16:46:00.001-04:002020-10-17T12:24:21.921-04:00Three time c-section mama<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhOTJTV0SenWXj0lTyEe-5wExR0OuqggBnKPvBvPYg_BqcnsHG8yhuWc0TDBeHUZaw2VELbjSP2kAqQKLst__dtB5934UNQHUDgUEw0yVqOSsYOVs7DZap47B4GSciSUAodAfYa7xqMfE30/s2988/20181003_105207%257E2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2723" data-original-width="2988" height="584" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhOTJTV0SenWXj0lTyEe-5wExR0OuqggBnKPvBvPYg_BqcnsHG8yhuWc0TDBeHUZaw2VELbjSP2kAqQKLst__dtB5934UNQHUDgUEw0yVqOSsYOVs7DZap47B4GSciSUAodAfYa7xqMfE30/w640-h584/20181003_105207%257E2.jpg" title="Hospital Candy bar" width="640"></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><i>A sweet little gift from the hospital</i></td></tr></tbody></table><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br><br></div><div dir="ltr">
With my daughter. my plans to have a natural med-free birth vanished into thin air, and after a failed induction, <a href="https://babyfromabove.blogspot.com/2012/12/my-birth-story-part-1.html">she was born via c-section</a>. A few years later I had a <a href="https://babyfromabove.blogspot.com/2016/11/a-family-centered-c-section.html">repeat c-section</a> with my son and the <a href="https://babyfromabove.blogspot.com/2016/11/recovering-from-repeat-c-section_7.html">recovery</a> was much harder than the first time. When we found out we had a third baby on the way, once the initial excitement calmed down, the reality dawned on me that I would have to have yet another c-section. {Insert dramatic dread and anxiety} My doctor confirmed that with two prior c-sections under my belt (pun intended) attempting a vbac would be a lot riskier than repeating the c-section. My heart sank so low because each c-section was somewhat awful and the idea of going through it again was daunting to say the least.</div>
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Once again I reassured myself that having a scheduled date was at least good for planning purposes and there would be no surprises since I had been through it twice before. As usual I was wrong.</div>
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The c-section was scheduled for first thing in the morning and just like previously I was asked to fast for 8 hours prior. We arrived at the labor & delivery ward in high spirits, happy but anxious and praying all would go well. I was given a surgical gown to wear and the pre-op process was all set to begin. The first step is placing a hep-lock which is the needle and IV line that stays in your arm throughout the hospital stay. Once that line is placed a blood sample is sent to the lab; surgery cannot begin until the results of the blood work come back from the lab.</div>
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Unfortunately for me, we got stuck on this very first step. For some reason none of the nurses in the ward could find a workable vein in either of my arms. Not even with the aid of their vein finder machine. I was poked and prodded but no luck. When the anesthesiologist came over to discuss the spinal block I was about to receive, the nurses asked him if he could try to find a vein. After examining my arms like I was a treasure map, he reluctantly concluded that he had no choice but to place the needle inside my wrist. I was unpleasantly surprised by this. The veins inside the wrist are so thin I had never heard of a hep-lock being placed there. That also meant I would be unable to move my wrist on that arm which would make breastfeeding and holding my baby nearly impossible. At this point we had lost so much time and were falling behind schedule and there were several surgeries scheduled after me so I really couldn't protest much.</div>
<div dir="ltr"><br></div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiZo-GD4nOwojZ0zPOzRgY8k4gKcEY5mD2KH_CpDoTYUtTLtfj_GpviEpXJF2IyU3rDGFHWZOfHw_JoEEO912e3GYo0WZfGQAeCwzo-NsFR4pvJw7qXgfgvXUR6DU-LFN6q4rwZOSJaeNPS/s640/tmp7ff0116_thumb222.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="414" data-original-width="640" height="259" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiZo-GD4nOwojZ0zPOzRgY8k4gKcEY5mD2KH_CpDoTYUtTLtfj_GpviEpXJF2IyU3rDGFHWZOfHw_JoEEO912e3GYo0WZfGQAeCwzo-NsFR4pvJw7qXgfgvXUR6DU-LFN6q4rwZOSJaeNPS/w400-h259/tmp7ff0116_thumb222.png" width="400"></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><i>Heparin lock</i></td></tr></tbody></table><div dir="ltr"><br><br></div><div dir="ltr">
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While all this was going on I was being asked a billion questions about my medical history, previous births and the upcoming surgery. It quickly becomes overwhelming with so many people giving different sets of instructions at the same time. When we finally got the hep-lock in and they sent my blood sample to the lab I started to feel much better. </div><div dir="ltr"><br></div><div dir="ltr">We were almost ready to go, just waiting on my doctor to stop by and talk to me first. The nurses surprised me by casually bringing me a weird little plastic cup with a mystery liquid. </div><div dir="ltr"><br></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi_53XA1NRa7jIRNmeLq6q30WbIsnqnw31BIFt52UkugsUULmmRULFBJI8aZxJ8q-9E69Oy6-n9MudV3RbF8Oy4RleRENBALhU9CkZqdiaz7H0vi160U_IPjlf2it4OZ7utXxzKIaAxaYS0/s1024/Sodium-Citrate-Citric-Acid-860x1024.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1024" data-original-width="860" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi_53XA1NRa7jIRNmeLq6q30WbIsnqnw31BIFt52UkugsUULmmRULFBJI8aZxJ8q-9E69Oy6-n9MudV3RbF8Oy4RleRENBALhU9CkZqdiaz7H0vi160U_IPjlf2it4OZ7utXxzKIaAxaYS0/w538-h640/Sodium-Citrate-Citric-Acid-860x1024.jpg" width="538"></a></div><br><div dir="ltr"><br></div><div dir="ltr"><br></div><div dir="ltr">I was told to drink it quickly. I was a bit confused. Did they not know I was going in to surgery and shouldn't eat or drink anything prior? In both previous c-sections I was never given any medication by mouth. They told me this drink was to neutralize stomach acids and help with nausea and I absolutely had to drink it. I later found out that this drink is called Bicitra and it doesn't actually help the nausea but it does neutralize stomach acids so that in the event that you do throw up and breathe any of it into your lungs it will be a lot less harmful. I shrugged my shoulders and decided to just drink it quickly to keep things moving. The level of grossness of this drink is beyond any earthly description! I thought I could just chug the whole thing in one mouthful but was so stunned by how exceptionally disgusting it was. Nothing I've ever tasted in life compares to that. Ever. Yuck. It was salty, sour and bitter all at once. I wish I had been warned about it but honestly it wouldn't have made a difference. </div><div dir="ltr"><br></div><div dir="ltr">
After an eternity my doctor finally stopped by right when my blood work came back from the lab and we were a go! Things fell back into familiar territory. I had to briefly say bye to my husband as I was walked into the operating room for my spinal. A lot of people assume that the spinal is the same as an epidural but they are actually quite different. An epidural is given in a vaginal birth to block pain, however you still retain feeling in your legs and lower body to be able to push the baby out. A spinal is given in a c-section and results in you not being able to feel your legs at all. The only thing they have in common is they are both placed with a large needle into your lower back.</div><div dir="ltr"><br></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjR-okAIrhChyphenhyphenSCdsGzyQY-X32FXtnzPaxCjVI5v-WE8aYmZ5AECzciZjnjkdrZRtwL4ZgCD5QAxu9gc-BiArZybgDAQl-eHywXV7hFAs_tBOKV-Vg9jpE4axeR0UHSrUIfd-tN6pRcUOyS/s800/97370928_111711240540352_7738713146705051648_n.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="531" data-original-width="800" height="425" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjR-okAIrhChyphenhyphenSCdsGzyQY-X32FXtnzPaxCjVI5v-WE8aYmZ5AECzciZjnjkdrZRtwL4ZgCD5QAxu9gc-BiArZybgDAQl-eHywXV7hFAs_tBOKV-Vg9jpE4axeR0UHSrUIfd-tN6pRcUOyS/w640-h425/97370928_111711240540352_7738713146705051648_n.jpg" width="640"></a></div><br><div dir="ltr"><br></div><div dir="ltr"><br></div><div dir="ltr">
This time around the spinal was done differently, it seemed to take a lot longer and was much more painful. Another difference was they placed a protective sticker over my back before beginning which wasn't done in prior c-sections. Once the spinal was placed I was told to lie down quickly and then everything started to happen really quickly.</div><div dir="ltr"><br>
This time my doctor told me I could have my choice of music playing so I closed my eyes and tried to focus on the music, but I couldn't help hearing them counting out the number sponges, scalpels and other surgical tools. The disgusting drink actually worked well because my stomach felt a lot more settled than in previous births. I still did feel hot, dizzy and generally disoriented at first and I had to mentally remind myself to remain calm. I assume that they don't you to fall asleep because every time I closed my eyese someone would come talk to me and ask me questions to keep my eyes open. </div><div dir="ltr"><br>
My husband was finally brought in and then all the staff in the room introduced themselves to us which was an unusual surprise. It added a nice personal touch but honestly I was a bit too anxious to even care about their names. Once they began the surgery I once again could only feel the pressure of them working on me but no pain. It's tricky to describe but you cannot distinguish what's happening and can't tell precisely when they cut into you.</div><div dir="ltr"><br>
After what felt like just a few seconds they announced that they were about to get my son out and would drop the blue drapes so we could see him immediately and watch them clamp the cord. My first thought was "wow already?" And then the next minute he was born with a loud cry! They quickly held him up so we could see his sweet little self through the clear drapes. My husband and I were both in awe, the assisting anesthesiologist had to remind him to take pictures because he was literally frozen with the camera in his hand. After being briefly checked our baby was placed on my chest! And then for first time I witnessed a real life breast crawl. My minute old baby was holding his head and neck up independently and was turning his head from side to side with his mouth open "searching" my chest for something to suck on. I was amazed! I've seen videos of a breast crawl but never believed them to be authentic till I experienced it myself.</div><div dir="ltr"><br>
The breast crawl is based on the theory that a newborn can "find" food by themselves if placed on their mothers belly or chest. They can essentially drag themselves towards their mothers breast and latch on. I never believed this to be true especially not for a brand new baby but my son did it! He was super alert and bright eyed and melted our hearts immediately! </div><div dir="ltr"><br></div>
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Following the surgery, the medication wore off much faster than previous surgeries and I was itchy immediately! I began asking for benadryl right away but as usual it took a few hours for them to even bring me the pill and it didn't really do anything to help the itching. The nurses that took me to my room also noted that the dressing around the incision needed to be changed right away, some how it hadn't been done properly and needed to be replaced. It wasn't fun.</div><div dir="ltr"><br>
Later that night the nurses discovered that my left hand was obscenely swollen. It turned out the hep lock needle that was placed behind my wrist had become infiltrated. This simply means that the needle had ruptured the vein so all the fluids and meds that was supposed to running in my veins was leaking into my hand. It took several nurses including the charge nurse to be able to place the IV line in a new location, this time in my elbow which is an equally terrible place to put an IV line. By the end of the night I had band-aids and needle marks all over my arms from all the attempts to place the hep lock.</div><div dir="ltr"><br></div><div dir="ltr">During this entire episode of needle poking, my husband went home to bring my mom, and two older children. They were very excited to meet their little brother. My two year old was a bit hesitant and couldn't quite grasp that the baby in my belly was actually real now! Although I was itchy, hungry and achy my heart was so full. Having my three children together for the first time was such a heart bursting moment ❤️</div><div dir="ltr"><br></div><div dir="ltr"><br></div>
SimplyChic Mommahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01651364127425786116noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1158502287259494968.post-11161443481773380142020-10-16T01:35:00.002-04:002021-07-14T13:29:54.097-04:00Homemade Flour Tortillas<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg3tFlx36584PZ1TsoptHN8NmsUczTy0lTqii4JuomZpF64QFa6tGMS7TPBYyGn51IUg1K7TKKz5hPN17BJS8Kt7K3-3oa0LK2E2E6KpZmDnHkxi9Z-AIKSxoUb4xqhxYRRp2hUNTVHsSOY/s4032/PXL_20201007_000240621.PORTRAIT-01.COVER.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg3tFlx36584PZ1TsoptHN8NmsUczTy0lTqii4JuomZpF64QFa6tGMS7TPBYyGn51IUg1K7TKKz5hPN17BJS8Kt7K3-3oa0LK2E2E6KpZmDnHkxi9Z-AIKSxoUb4xqhxYRRp2hUNTVHsSOY/w480-h640/PXL_20201007_000240621.PORTRAIT-01.COVER.jpg" width="480" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><p>We used to live in the north east and our Mexican/texmex diet mainly consisted of eating at three chain restaurants; Baja Fresh, Moe's and of course Chipotle. When I occasionally made taco dishes at home I relied heavily on pre-packed tortillas off the shelf from brands like Old El Paso. Once we moved to the south that all changed quite drastically. I'm honestly surprised that I ever enjoyed the Mexican food I had prior to moving here. We are now surrounded by so many authentic and fresh taco spots that our palates have upgraded and there's no going back. I've totally turned into a taco snob and can't fathom the thought of eating the Old El Paso tacos I used to love.</p><p>Tacos are now in regular rotation on our weekly menu and only freshly made tortillas will do. Our local grocer makes fresh tortillas daily that we sometimes buy in a pinch. But nothing tastes quite as good as the ones we make ourselves at home.</p><p>I've tried a few different recipes that I found online but ultimately really love <a href="https://www.cookingclassy.com/homemade-flour-tortillas/">this particular one</a>. It's pretty simple, and uses just five basic ingredients that you already probably have in your pantry. There are definitely fancier options out there that use bread flour and richer fats like butter for improved texture and taste, but honestly this simple recipe is the best crossroads of taste, health and budget. The five ingredients are;</p><p></p><ul style="text-align: left;"><li style="text-align: center;"><i>2 cups All purpose flour</i></li><li style="text-align: center;"><i>1/2 tsp baking powder (not baking soda)</i></li><li style="text-align: center;"><i>1/2 tsp salt</i></li><li style="text-align: center;"><i>1/4 vegetable oil</i></li><li style="text-align: center;"><i>3/4 cup warm water</i></li></ul><p></p><p>The main thing to keep in mind when making tortillas is that for best results the dough needs to be left to rest for about an hour. You technically could skip that if you were in a hurry but it will affect the taste and texture a bit.</p><p>The dough can be made in a mixer or by hand. I first combined the dry ingredients and then used the dough blades on my ninja blender to mix all the five ingredients together. It's such an awesome blender and the dough is ready in minutes. </p><p><br /></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhBSh8QiCqB82yVe2USMH2f1AVoiCoD7c2ztwHuI2DkIh5ly9zbhphpxujRD2XSRNLph8dLs0py30nFFdDwsuVtx9S9Fzy_5dXFJN3utqLGbGX75h4FdsEuzYylBF09C-QTrGTXdKIjaPLx/s4032/PXL_20201006_222935612.PORTRAIT-01.COVER.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhBSh8QiCqB82yVe2USMH2f1AVoiCoD7c2ztwHuI2DkIh5ly9zbhphpxujRD2XSRNLph8dLs0py30nFFdDwsuVtx9S9Fzy_5dXFJN3utqLGbGX75h4FdsEuzYylBF09C-QTrGTXdKIjaPLx/w480-h640/PXL_20201006_222935612.PORTRAIT-01.COVER.jpg" width="480" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><iframe allowfullscreen='allowfullscreen' webkitallowfullscreen='webkitallowfullscreen' mozallowfullscreen='mozallowfullscreen' width='320' height='266' src='https://www.blogger.com/video.g?token=AD6v5dy6NarO25FbutCMruGSlyuEp5H_nij6_mO_2u90T16oAj0-cOIHqqztUqQaKBuiIMzJ3wA5TFxjmWNJ81Ef8Q' class='b-hbp-video b-uploaded' frameborder='0'></iframe></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="text-align: left;">Then I place the whole lump of dough in an oil rubbed stainless bowl and cover it for an hour. </span></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgzF1LkDiHD1BABo6bKTeCtPKwjik0Dl2afQNmBxuml5ZSCUzYpQMpXmIzdq7H6dj_PuNe1tAmRU2ASAcDJcdo852Z4JRbVfblc02ZponEvA4xs-JyZc38p9WEWylzw3eon8AI5xK9wKY0C/s4032/PXL_20201006_223606207.PORTRAIT.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgzF1LkDiHD1BABo6bKTeCtPKwjik0Dl2afQNmBxuml5ZSCUzYpQMpXmIzdq7H6dj_PuNe1tAmRU2ASAcDJcdo852Z4JRbVfblc02ZponEvA4xs-JyZc38p9WEWylzw3eon8AI5xK9wKY0C/w480-h640/PXL_20201006_223606207.PORTRAIT.jpg" width="480" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjnAjNRdmG0N6nWwVk-_8EXNRhP0JcgFwBuX4vYbXCJ2iZZUNNT0hwiVssCUDSqvO2t1higRR_udpu3GlUNpmFl53G8ChQnzvVX9mzAUZtp-YuD-GuhrPxq16KRoWHXg7oZxHMH2y1YYJPz/s4032/PXL_20201006_235051692.PORTRAIT.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjnAjNRdmG0N6nWwVk-_8EXNRhP0JcgFwBuX4vYbXCJ2iZZUNNT0hwiVssCUDSqvO2t1higRR_udpu3GlUNpmFl53G8ChQnzvVX9mzAUZtp-YuD-GuhrPxq16KRoWHXg7oZxHMH2y1YYJPz/w480-h640/PXL_20201006_235051692.PORTRAIT.jpg" width="480" /></a></div><div><br /></div>Once the hour is up I split it into ten equal sized balls. The easiest way to do this is to first cut the dough in half and then further split each half into five balls.<div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi12Xq6b_APXH96yzPhQBHTAcL9TOhFf0qv7wJx5quhnsjAR5fRR8_Fu-KuVJtoVDEpOqGZg91j7YPQ9ZsGktamjLzc6fG96MsbDibgc84WUQHsjop2eTQ194eBWGXspM9XlZxqKd17ni3f/s4032/PXL_20201006_235320413.PORTRAIT.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi12Xq6b_APXH96yzPhQBHTAcL9TOhFf0qv7wJx5quhnsjAR5fRR8_Fu-KuVJtoVDEpOqGZg91j7YPQ9ZsGktamjLzc6fG96MsbDibgc84WUQHsjop2eTQ194eBWGXspM9XlZxqKd17ni3f/w480-h640/PXL_20201006_235320413.PORTRAIT.jpg" width="480" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhE9ux_1FaR0GfyMRgSvG7BJqschD5rBcwYpo_pjm5F4IQEQGGT8cJh67lV6lpfo8ufO8RKgg7pVrsUxmQBFb0cvZEgi_-iml0z2mBDIr4wWcG3nGICjEoC88Jv6YXrN788t6e22fYG-D0b/s4032/PXL_20201006_235326710.PORTRAIT.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhE9ux_1FaR0GfyMRgSvG7BJqschD5rBcwYpo_pjm5F4IQEQGGT8cJh67lV6lpfo8ufO8RKgg7pVrsUxmQBFb0cvZEgi_-iml0z2mBDIr4wWcG3nGICjEoC88Jv6YXrN788t6e22fYG-D0b/w480-h640/PXL_20201006_235326710.PORTRAIT.jpg" width="480" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div>Next I roll out each ball on a floured board until it's about the size I'm aiming for. Which is about 6 to 7 inches. I generally try to keep it in a circular shape so I alternate the direction of the rolling pin.<div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi1av_LdvCaU-Oyy0CNFvZBsnCO22T6f8H6_2VoEKG6jMVc0JcsK8p54EHC1QqK6df7prcwReeZd-4RcrSQjySid8gWTc2idCRAdFiV5NrAw-5-F4Cisg0dLARS546_mxXRe7fQY4r61dae/s4032/PXL_20201006_235510066.PORTRAIT-01.COVER.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi1av_LdvCaU-Oyy0CNFvZBsnCO22T6f8H6_2VoEKG6jMVc0JcsK8p54EHC1QqK6df7prcwReeZd-4RcrSQjySid8gWTc2idCRAdFiV5NrAw-5-F4Cisg0dLARS546_mxXRe7fQY4r61dae/w480-h640/PXL_20201006_235510066.PORTRAIT-01.COVER.jpg" width="480" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><p>I then place them on my preheated cast iron griddle and cook each side till it starts to bubble and slightly brown. You could easily cook these in any frying pan if you don't have a griddle. I prefer to use a griddle because the heat is more even and I can fit at least three tortillas at a time!</p><p><br /></p><p><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgyCNDN79pcWpFQbzI-bBUunNTHUrtLiR3XxQwBlNfVJNJumP3WEs7kv_jRM0qr9xQ1TQZ4Dalq_hGZ4Z3jlJlWCjCDYHbZiptlVHiSG-DYNK1zfHTwr4855WymtGnV25-B7C1IlmRrwcle/s2048/PXL_20201006_235401959.PORTRAIT.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="1536" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgyCNDN79pcWpFQbzI-bBUunNTHUrtLiR3XxQwBlNfVJNJumP3WEs7kv_jRM0qr9xQ1TQZ4Dalq_hGZ4Z3jlJlWCjCDYHbZiptlVHiSG-DYNK1zfHTwr4855WymtGnV25-B7C1IlmRrwcle/w480-h640/PXL_20201006_235401959.PORTRAIT.jpg" width="480" /></a></p><p>The leftover tortillas can be saved in an airtight container in the fridge and can be warmed up in a toaster oven the next day.</p><p><br /></p><p>*Pro tips*</p><p>Make the dough and set it to rest then get to work on preparing all the other taco fillings. This way as soon as the tortillas are cooked the fillings are ready to go and the fresh tacos can be served right away.</p><p>Taco holders are a worthy investment. It is so much easier to organize a plate with taco holders! My favorites so far are these <a href="https://www.amazon.com/STAINLESS-STEEL-TACO-HOLDERS-BROCHURE/dp/B07FXVT96J/ref=sr_1_2_sspa?dchild=1&keywords=oh+ovation+taco+holder&qid=1626282124&s=home-garden&sr=1-2-spons&psc=1&spLa=ZW5jcnlwdGVkUXVhbGlmaWVyPUFKUEcwTTVUU0hZWlQmZW5jcnlwdGVkSWQ9QTA0MTU5NzEyU1Q4MDlNNTZBOVdBJmVuY3J5cHRlZEFkSWQ9QTAzODQ2NjYyTjZMNEQ5MTVNNVVJJndpZGdldE5hbWU9c3BfYXRmJmFjdGlvbj1jbGlja1JlZGlyZWN0JmRvTm90TG9nQ2xpY2s9dHJ1ZQ==">stainless holders</a> that are easy to clean but also durable.</p><p><br /></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgWxOAd3cYvVv4WToHgI7HScMeJ59p-9nslPOfkNNcrhwgogmhCgwMJcQjxbOA2qufHvl21zdKgOQMQNtyeIMISe-su0mihZn4bWZq3LKs_8h8JZCs3jR5ho2WT_ySJr3OC3sGCyjjO4Pfz/s4032/PXL_20201007_002236307.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgWxOAd3cYvVv4WToHgI7HScMeJ59p-9nslPOfkNNcrhwgogmhCgwMJcQjxbOA2qufHvl21zdKgOQMQNtyeIMISe-su0mihZn4bWZq3LKs_8h8JZCs3jR5ho2WT_ySJr3OC3sGCyjjO4Pfz/w480-h640/PXL_20201007_002236307.jpg" width="480" /></a></div><br /><p><br /></p><p>Happy eating!</p><p><br /></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh1v4z_8akDTDhwKuJ9vpmZuwT2COCzEin7U5mtpvVhL96wbrTUITMf3k2SinPWmJKQxLdxhXlYA0A3BQJRm09roV8p_ccojjDQ4PhS31ag9947bD6xCWkYatjBczlYQpImsM8Vzm_WS3va/s993/SUNNY+%25281%2529.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="258" data-original-width="993" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh1v4z_8akDTDhwKuJ9vpmZuwT2COCzEin7U5mtpvVhL96wbrTUITMf3k2SinPWmJKQxLdxhXlYA0A3BQJRm09roV8p_ccojjDQ4PhS31ag9947bD6xCWkYatjBczlYQpImsM8Vzm_WS3va/s320/SUNNY+%25281%2529.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br /><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p></div></div>SimplyChic Mommahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01651364127425786116noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1158502287259494968.post-79584074883085978342020-09-29T23:08:00.003-04:002021-09-15T20:51:39.906-04:002020 Baby Trends<div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://www.etsy.com/listing/609966747/pastel-colored-rainbow-tapestry" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;" target="_blank"><img border="0" data-original-height="697" data-original-width="564" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiVCHwlMJdB7x_W5KSjxEoIDwzTj72_az7Si4L8frrnZMcOONOmceGrrPZBrMbs6U2VG1xhmDwRQOf14d12EyjhiVGQpbBqh3nqjxBQgZiLv8-ZlHLoiFRnK1lHsDbF7RD_N8Dxeev7w3R4/s16000/5fda37443c4b08456ee70a33467cdf0f.jpg" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div></div></div>My blogging journey started many years ago over at <a href="simplistichic.blogspot.com">Down The Aisle</a>. Back then I was a freelance bridal fashion writer for The Examiner and I followed wedding trends as if my life depended on it. These days baby and home trends are more up my alley and thanks to the rise of pinterest and instagram, keeping up with trends has never been easier. The downside of having an easy way to keep up with trends is that everyone is following along too. My social media feed tends to get super saturated with so many posts that are nearly identical to each other. And the initial beauty of that trend quickly becomes monotonous. I like knowing what's trending mainly so I can stay clear of anything too popular. I try to cling to my own creative originality but also allow myself to be inspired by any cool ideas I stumble upon. I put together a list of current trends I've been seeing in the baby world for anyone who is interested in jumping on the trend wagon or avoiding it completely.<br />
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All floral everything - </b> Floral baby clothes, wallpaper, swaddles, baby carriers, the 70s came back around in a big way! I really like certain prints, but there is definitely such a thing as too much of a good thing.<div><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="846" data-original-width="564" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg9QfAu2ipK_USsBu4O1Nzmq2qbp-QPfikqNloV2AfCz-hIsMI1KafvsstvQdyfGR6jpUU_c0L5rFYxpkP_4gGi1s3VA6Q4HpJrAabZskK3W0MXa38O-hPamNMbP3mw3jC5yWdXJfVjO7Ih/s16000/1bc7ed1c5e03355f8e9e65f39202e5c0.jpg" /></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEirBOqgXGVZvbPsHMaT_OYArljVpS_NDoZvp9TCudOSAAQRuFYrYRU3YZjONR_Uz4hCvQgu1DozH16WDv49RF9ZK7ZzZm92_iq1GUYFfDX72lRYAyLIDUtmIcBlLPqFuqT1IYOSONoq9BXS/s563/18b64fa5e7c6ea6f35cfe6b6a349093a.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="563" data-original-width="450" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEirBOqgXGVZvbPsHMaT_OYArljVpS_NDoZvp9TCudOSAAQRuFYrYRU3YZjONR_Uz4hCvQgu1DozH16WDv49RF9ZK7ZzZm92_iq1GUYFfDX72lRYAyLIDUtmIcBlLPqFuqT1IYOSONoq9BXS/s16000/18b64fa5e7c6ea6f35cfe6b6a349093a.jpg" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhUBa8Fj9xddcDkFPkia49PtZLNqg65Cr8n19rwjcx7iPhRCvzs8jfrYCmbnZC76vWAwTE9ZIOzQQ2D4xpUloJ4koBdZm6M3CgWD6n1NnqgKbvrm6ZF5jSlH23fBTpLfvVolv27txhfR7Lc/s564/810379105dbfc374e2e21a104a179fee.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="564" data-original-width="564" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhUBa8Fj9xddcDkFPkia49PtZLNqg65Cr8n19rwjcx7iPhRCvzs8jfrYCmbnZC76vWAwTE9ZIOzQQ2D4xpUloJ4koBdZm6M3CgWD6n1NnqgKbvrm6ZF5jSlH23fBTpLfvVolv27txhfR7Lc/s16000/810379105dbfc374e2e21a104a179fee.jpg" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgoWPnh1ZsMpgqkU8VOur_0FD1qe4sr3ZHXqFh9_YYd0XB7YBDm5v-VooQpVooDykmai9Hawu8_VqwddeSEPVU29KL191qj0cSUJEKB3INUA9pvaXUGhdnuQP6J5LoDJ-yVtQdPHKoUAN5C/s752/b148527ee1cae9bd805265193e29670d.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="752" data-original-width="564" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgoWPnh1ZsMpgqkU8VOur_0FD1qe4sr3ZHXqFh9_YYd0XB7YBDm5v-VooQpVooDykmai9Hawu8_VqwddeSEPVU29KL191qj0cSUJEKB3INUA9pvaXUGhdnuQP6J5LoDJ-yVtQdPHKoUAN5C/s16000/b148527ee1cae9bd805265193e29670d.jpg" /></a></div><br /><div><br />
<br /><b>Felt Letter boards -</b> These are everywhere!!!!! Did I use enough exclamation marks there? Felt letter boards are now super popular and are available in a variety of different shapes, sizes & letters. I think we have entire instagram pages dedicated to letter boards. I must admit that each time I see a photo with a letter board, I feel obliged to read what it says so I guess they do serve their intended purpose? What I do like about them is they are so multifunctional they can be used as décor or a photo prop with cute sayings, milestone markers or birth stats.</div><div><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhG_g1SLzA6uL0droja1OdQeRpoxsbsBa5FM2V5JBsi7Mc_J3waZyduvmD124a6iAby7FhAROenx2nC-_FBhqZzeQiJOxQdBZXz8gdFK8hXR52ygDezqdfy38KbHeipzvHfZvks3vsA52Fs/s564/3a7e05c8b43ce1f5ecf13068e86a96cf.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="525" data-original-width="564" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhG_g1SLzA6uL0droja1OdQeRpoxsbsBa5FM2V5JBsi7Mc_J3waZyduvmD124a6iAby7FhAROenx2nC-_FBhqZzeQiJOxQdBZXz8gdFK8hXR52ygDezqdfy38KbHeipzvHfZvks3vsA52Fs/s16000/3a7e05c8b43ce1f5ecf13068e86a96cf.jpg" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhcD3TWccydOwca8fMQEVYgyRQPmtFebtgAd8pkqqJL0hNP-ua5rYxG7t85hkoy9FRwqQeKy1wlfdkeredcHyom5rjLo3M1CdMQL5DUHKZx-L_gU4nXSG6yBVOyrMAd7cPugyIeu1rSgsnY/s564/77f2aa80a6fbcf4f3de2372994afb9fc.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="564" data-original-width="564" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhcD3TWccydOwca8fMQEVYgyRQPmtFebtgAd8pkqqJL0hNP-ua5rYxG7t85hkoy9FRwqQeKy1wlfdkeredcHyom5rjLo3M1CdMQL5DUHKZx-L_gU4nXSG6yBVOyrMAd7cPugyIeu1rSgsnY/s16000/77f2aa80a6fbcf4f3de2372994afb9fc.jpg" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiM7Y7lFW-Smi_S1xZJfuKifEjmLl8p8A6sWNZXwuDBCityaW4ngEDbhVkT-K1Uy7BxJjQVry2a4igYIJIApjSu8Z6TVt2Qx232bASqZDim0gPR0LZlIzOryDenc7j-hEpwtz2lmLApcrkR/s563/454bb7bef375052eb72bee394c4c4f33.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="559" data-original-width="563" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiM7Y7lFW-Smi_S1xZJfuKifEjmLl8p8A6sWNZXwuDBCityaW4ngEDbhVkT-K1Uy7BxJjQVry2a4igYIJIApjSu8Z6TVt2Qx232bASqZDim0gPR0LZlIzOryDenc7j-hEpwtz2lmLApcrkR/s16000/454bb7bef375052eb72bee394c4c4f33.jpg" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjwcEY_rz6BMm_G6hib2aD-IZfLb83Okd6GK4AiV7mJq0DsqTP5Pgc8fF3VxJMMjq0ekYzslrQ30qXJY8_8Aeod5usA5QaxyRQu5DQ3CCdmWZBA8RV7Df4VwvR8VEmoJU_sa3AgnE3QGn6x/s563/9987bb7eb7efe6c3d0bede8725e95092.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="485" data-original-width="563" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjwcEY_rz6BMm_G6hib2aD-IZfLb83Okd6GK4AiV7mJq0DsqTP5Pgc8fF3VxJMMjq0ekYzslrQ30qXJY8_8Aeod5usA5QaxyRQu5DQ3CCdmWZBA8RV7Df4VwvR8VEmoJU_sa3AgnE3QGn6x/s16000/9987bb7eb7efe6c3d0bede8725e95092.jpg" /></a></div><br /><div><br />
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Wood -</b> Wood toys, rattles, teethers, and ornaments. The rustic look is definitely big now. I personally love wood in all its forms, and have incorporated it into most aspects of my home decor. Over the years we have compiled quite a collection of toys and they are clearly not all made equal. The wood toys have lastest the longest and allow them to have the most imaginative play time. There's simply no such thing as too much wood. The biggest reservation I have, is that some of the "instagram worthy" wood toys and teethers are being made by local companies that are taking advantage of people's desire to support small businesses. A lot of the toys are just not made to the quality and standards you would expect. I had a really horrible experience with <a href="https://babyfromabove.blogspot.com/2021/09/bannor-toys-are-safety-hazard.html">Bannor toys</a> and will post about it soon. All I can say for now is don't buy anything from them and be really careful buying from newer companies that are trendy but don't have a proven record of safety. So many purchases these days seem motivated by how cute the product will look in an instagram post. But when it comes to our little ones, their saftey has to be the main factor.</div><div><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhBcSqbKZcDNecTLI_sHHyY_kEiQOiV_gj2PUzzvbojQfACTD-ZK7t53MP2CpVG607o_lZHs8Bjyv6_WxhkliFQDxlyYif85B0mGaSsAM72m6_1bUimO0RA2j5xcOH9YtJmsYRffdjCUID5/s564/1e0d3e1d243ca813ae81059e097fdc27.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="498" data-original-width="564" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhBcSqbKZcDNecTLI_sHHyY_kEiQOiV_gj2PUzzvbojQfACTD-ZK7t53MP2CpVG607o_lZHs8Bjyv6_WxhkliFQDxlyYif85B0mGaSsAM72m6_1bUimO0RA2j5xcOH9YtJmsYRffdjCUID5/s16000/1e0d3e1d243ca813ae81059e097fdc27.jpg" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEieOO5m5DfRORA2FKDHuMv700cz2fFk87yrBuYHVa6bCHdPAYgmwIZB0wU1aklFXQcWDHFH_ifpBKH4HN9Lc8PNvspf-h3aeILpWIBnECwIcdyntIbpe29q_65DslIcK_-zYBZ8XpCLNgH_/s564/5c132c7eeb491cc03c6a37d2391c898c.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="564" data-original-width="564" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEieOO5m5DfRORA2FKDHuMv700cz2fFk87yrBuYHVa6bCHdPAYgmwIZB0wU1aklFXQcWDHFH_ifpBKH4HN9Lc8PNvspf-h3aeILpWIBnECwIcdyntIbpe29q_65DslIcK_-zYBZ8XpCLNgH_/s16000/5c132c7eeb491cc03c6a37d2391c898c.jpg" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh4EeN3U5F_EDYjomHsyBuvN6Qt-0UJCL2GPCBprAQ7MMRmKMezPILNm2dCKfzsQcuCoVjllh06Ld5_bxAde_ptFMN5kgT4UwKetI5PWVl-5hPt_6EfXZSty4C27XVFPKiLcLCqSrWW9LyZ/s705/914ca021844d2e6b07beea88a4b3aa73.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="705" data-original-width="564" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh4EeN3U5F_EDYjomHsyBuvN6Qt-0UJCL2GPCBprAQ7MMRmKMezPILNm2dCKfzsQcuCoVjllh06Ld5_bxAde_ptFMN5kgT4UwKetI5PWVl-5hPt_6EfXZSty4C27XVFPKiLcLCqSrWW9LyZ/s16000/914ca021844d2e6b07beea88a4b3aa73.jpg" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; 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<br /><b>Rose Gold - </b>While we are on the subject of rose gold lets go ahead and include regular gold, flamingo pink, dusty pink, and all the other light pinks as well? It seems like all the modern mommies jumped on a big conference call and decided this was the color of the decade {giggle}. I think when done tastefully gold, rose gold and pink accents can be super pretty, but sometimes it can be a little too pretty for my taste. </div><div><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhw6hRgfh4QSDUeQUhWTuiV64z4OE6P1PKlKqKk1QGj_A0WrB21-thTlFCSZjMCPWQ8oVs5pC83PLPaL1HZDdtr0y7xbl1Nmii7FnoZmPdonjC2MpdVCQ8K5vXv0xggFaUsHnZLaEPJUuBj/s500/552162e04b8bbdef20ca63a737b9eae6.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="500" data-original-width="500" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhw6hRgfh4QSDUeQUhWTuiV64z4OE6P1PKlKqKk1QGj_A0WrB21-thTlFCSZjMCPWQ8oVs5pC83PLPaL1HZDdtr0y7xbl1Nmii7FnoZmPdonjC2MpdVCQ8K5vXv0xggFaUsHnZLaEPJUuBj/s16000/552162e04b8bbdef20ca63a737b9eae6.jpg" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjhyyun9_y4zes3imnndj-2HnkXyOjCKN1cvI_nc6mBeudgce1c45cmbC6Zr2siEJOP3nOwnELeJnLJh_wTKfMGvqO5Ec0E3E1rlYQ6-NxeJjMNANleylH-DPR16YVMYDnrwxgxvdLbmypB/s902/ebb5df55a1a772f0a899e1af821e101a.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="902" data-original-width="564" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjhyyun9_y4zes3imnndj-2HnkXyOjCKN1cvI_nc6mBeudgce1c45cmbC6Zr2siEJOP3nOwnELeJnLJh_wTKfMGvqO5Ec0E3E1rlYQ6-NxeJjMNANleylH-DPR16YVMYDnrwxgxvdLbmypB/s16000/ebb5df55a1a772f0a899e1af821e101a.jpg" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjwYnTR7YoJxm8ribkxJNzzecjI9FuilK2H69y8u-75-jWQ98YIoHuEUXDCpa0JU-zsZp_M5XDTJwe43-n5V9vMUqzKIy-SmaqB_TstmmqvdiiPBFzp003x_WRnNiYBI0lwGN9-PN-apYXk/s558/ecc87a290640c7afae9ecfc04c53c1ae.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="492" data-original-width="558" height="384" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjwYnTR7YoJxm8ribkxJNzzecjI9FuilK2H69y8u-75-jWQ98YIoHuEUXDCpa0JU-zsZp_M5XDTJwe43-n5V9vMUqzKIy-SmaqB_TstmmqvdiiPBFzp003x_WRnNiYBI0lwGN9-PN-apYXk/w436-h384/ecc87a290640c7afae9ecfc04c53c1ae.jpg" width="436" /></a></div><br /><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi0QFzbMnodWWgefUiOZ3Dx8GtuAvL2BMWjuQCd-tDeZfyo8cnRKY3pjZkD6d0mmAbzWIW7IrZ1sRpW5BMuNzFiHTTk65ed2emGWhmiXQA4sglrWjLqrH4aBzyc7AmLyRbZdOzJYL4FlRqe/s565/0d74b16b8fe7e7b92039b663a1c59eba.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="565" data-original-width="564" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi0QFzbMnodWWgefUiOZ3Dx8GtuAvL2BMWjuQCd-tDeZfyo8cnRKY3pjZkD6d0mmAbzWIW7IrZ1sRpW5BMuNzFiHTTk65ed2emGWhmiXQA4sglrWjLqrH4aBzyc7AmLyRbZdOzJYL4FlRqe/s16000/0d74b16b8fe7e7b92039b663a1c59eba.jpg" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj6b1ZdnI_8m0Mv_QhgfMDLgis57RIMZKDdrQS5ZMYr1Tysqz-LRXuBi5uLFXKoVP0OAsC3ga7-Y5meup30M2sUctiMGIZ869OWI0WRdp-esqhhOc-1kdjOtns10D7ikSKKJ_Arqwz48AJE/s751/1c5a476ccbcc060ae9f47874b0d1c0ca.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="751" data-original-width="563" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj6b1ZdnI_8m0Mv_QhgfMDLgis57RIMZKDdrQS5ZMYr1Tysqz-LRXuBi5uLFXKoVP0OAsC3ga7-Y5meup30M2sUctiMGIZ869OWI0WRdp-esqhhOc-1kdjOtns10D7ikSKKJ_Arqwz48AJE/s16000/1c5a476ccbcc060ae9f47874b0d1c0ca.jpg" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div><br />
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Mylar balloons</b> - I have to say this is one of the trends that seems to keep gaining more popularity each year and goes hand in hand with the rose gold point above. Every event seems to have rose gold mylar balloons incorporated into the décor in some way. I do understand their appeal because they are big, shiny and an easy way to spell out cute phrases but I can honestly say I would be okay if I never saw another mylar balloon again. To be fair, I've never been a fan balloons, at least not since elementary school. I'm not even a fan of the "stylishly" decorated balloon arches that seem to be the pillar of all events these days so I clearly can't be objective about any type of balloon.</div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjBR6dKAnvcCsPd6vStjO4a5E2qWVrPx3fWbFkM-l2FDeOBbYJs9n43SFiMcCw6mEoIrz7cj1fVEeOt-kEkxqsg9xNTXSncctxpfE0z9NPz7KUPp4yaI4zBoT7m-04z_7r-r2smdYpLjgJk/s752/0cd27004527d109d0e921e583f22e3c8.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="752" data-original-width="564" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjBR6dKAnvcCsPd6vStjO4a5E2qWVrPx3fWbFkM-l2FDeOBbYJs9n43SFiMcCw6mEoIrz7cj1fVEeOt-kEkxqsg9xNTXSncctxpfE0z9NPz7KUPp4yaI4zBoT7m-04z_7r-r2smdYpLjgJk/s16000/0cd27004527d109d0e921e583f22e3c8.jpg" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhWSu5GC8LzWP7mgASUc-46Y8nYuGyHREpswjBvGqu7aufprNxulvcPBDsO7Q2xlLhBNhFpUYwvL1UIII6OVpzg5BiHFXvXxSNR1U2-YM8vGe3w8EsbXCpAJBZBOujORo94kDMGCvZ434un/s846/589f5da3d942a24c79faae87217908fd.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="846" data-original-width="564" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhWSu5GC8LzWP7mgASUc-46Y8nYuGyHREpswjBvGqu7aufprNxulvcPBDsO7Q2xlLhBNhFpUYwvL1UIII6OVpzg5BiHFXvXxSNR1U2-YM8vGe3w8EsbXCpAJBZBOujORo94kDMGCvZ434un/s16000/589f5da3d942a24c79faae87217908fd.jpg" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjKjd5aniYhXm1uCGsbPtCuh9g6ysnmQkby4NHqcL32aYMVMNYBWUA47ADqerjqyfdStA8ZiSGrKhrAIHU4y6q4yA_pI-tvrN4KUBdFIQzXaeVoSJVyPYKn9xgm8cSefOmPAZu606wfoGlT/s601/33172d08eefca44eb9190a421f02640b.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="601" data-original-width="563" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjKjd5aniYhXm1uCGsbPtCuh9g6ysnmQkby4NHqcL32aYMVMNYBWUA47ADqerjqyfdStA8ZiSGrKhrAIHU4y6q4yA_pI-tvrN4KUBdFIQzXaeVoSJVyPYKn9xgm8cSefOmPAZu606wfoGlT/s16000/33172d08eefca44eb9190a421f02640b.jpg" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjBWtAg2bcPi8r8OD59dLf9RpgiGm-tXHppZcBw_toEbilmD5-4PNYGupGujhRDTT40hzhSiNggWQA1OQnxapgYOUb79rTL7LfKZnow3GdbyOlKdu0wBjec4tVBdEZoO74eWwjd1ahnSZbl/s564/d70fa95ef07724d55fcfe1e8153c06c4.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="564" data-original-width="564" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjBWtAg2bcPi8r8OD59dLf9RpgiGm-tXHppZcBw_toEbilmD5-4PNYGupGujhRDTT40hzhSiNggWQA1OQnxapgYOUb79rTL7LfKZnow3GdbyOlKdu0wBjec4tVBdEZoO74eWwjd1ahnSZbl/s16000/d70fa95ef07724d55fcfe1e8153c06c4.jpg" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgwjHU0SUBNeo31-V7TP6Yb0GJuryXRGTZBVinhVxoICjAKZD-DAIhEUaDpoeLDbhfLL8mX2jzsanjPCCtQ_LpgMSUk9CzMgd6fvhF-FH4hvWKxqJsFMt3llSXdyWbxYhD3t26OLQZdyymz/s691/e19ac69787d74eecd43105c8bf3dc7bc.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="691" data-original-width="563" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgwjHU0SUBNeo31-V7TP6Yb0GJuryXRGTZBVinhVxoICjAKZD-DAIhEUaDpoeLDbhfLL8mX2jzsanjPCCtQ_LpgMSUk9CzMgd6fvhF-FH4hvWKxqJsFMt3llSXdyWbxYhD3t26OLQZdyymz/s16000/e19ac69787d74eecd43105c8bf3dc7bc.jpg" /></a></div><br /><div><br /></div><div>
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Monthly baby photos</b>- These come in so many shapes and sizes. I have to say I am fully on board with these. I think non parents might find them to be blah, or pointless but as a parent there is no greater joy than watching your baby transform from a helpless newborn through their first 12 months of life. Babies change so much in their first year, so it's really nice to look back at monthly photos. I truly enjoy seeing all the original ideas that moms come up with for their monthly photos. I think I've seen it all at this point; fruits, veggies, pizza, printed blankets, stickers, cards, wood plaques... its a fun trend and I hope it keeps going!<br />
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<br /></div></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://www.instagram.com/p/Bt6RETvhj18/" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="600" data-original-width="660" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgOWW0AMBjATh2xeJWDhWI7i5qWry3Gf2klUgiEIU73XS2WciB47P7ucM2xQRGp71T6OFtUP6OLXfPp1ioGTU5PqlKTg7EDNBzOD4FPaQsNmgZjlvj0Gvb5pwNtSUIHyNeinHZ8FVR_cppK/s16000/Monthly-baby-photo-ideas_Dani-Leigh-Photography.jpg" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiBFCsGsNQSYJgmVWS6Trm_QfdtpA_L4N7e1gpvfOYnysw0rzUSnLApJ_Z6cJGM6kPXihErZFPeUikdEP84gYvrPhlZtWDGS_YM6ek3Z-6OySTAjMm4jDR9OUpWfeFociySriU0hqgmLU-b/s908/c44c217d7b6b4ae89d111a7cdd5a339f.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="908" data-original-width="458" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiBFCsGsNQSYJgmVWS6Trm_QfdtpA_L4N7e1gpvfOYnysw0rzUSnLApJ_Z6cJGM6kPXihErZFPeUikdEP84gYvrPhlZtWDGS_YM6ek3Z-6OySTAjMm4jDR9OUpWfeFociySriU0hqgmLU-b/s16000/c44c217d7b6b4ae89d111a7cdd5a339f.jpg" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiz7hYVfKToM12CL-ULmfZqYcjfM5BOw3xv0zj25lGXgmjJmPqpAr10dWUMLeXR6V9NGJr0vR7km6yuuy_YoXgTFmyoH8GCyT7W6KJ4-OYZzKgo1Yp4wc-trXFvt9We-Go73A_W6egLh1p3/s564/857b13ca2fd129340d85c8a0bf8e7c3d.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="564" data-original-width="564" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiz7hYVfKToM12CL-ULmfZqYcjfM5BOw3xv0zj25lGXgmjJmPqpAr10dWUMLeXR6V9NGJr0vR7km6yuuy_YoXgTFmyoH8GCyT7W6KJ4-OYZzKgo1Yp4wc-trXFvt9We-Go73A_W6egLh1p3/s16000/857b13ca2fd129340d85c8a0bf8e7c3d.jpg" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><b>Neutrals -</b> This goes in hand with the rustic trend and wood items mentioned above where people are shifting from traditional bright colors to neutral creams and browns or going all out to black and white. These neutral nurseries can translate into some breathtakingly beautiful photos, but I have to say a lot of nurseries can also look super adult and almost clinical sometimes. While I like the neutral look, it also feels a bit sad to me when all the clothing, decor and toys are so lacking in color.</div><div><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh1QsJTSQhyphenhyphen0VEaCpLTiw1XQtbj1soXqLS1cdkP2jPLbczopH2B_kQuiduxtSMWC3BopnUWgHIa0Cnw9rc2gxDKkfGXJ-pLyVssn2c2sZN_nOr4LLAoDXunx-H6ykBCT4TkID0kN4HZFhLB/s705/7b28ea7fea2abde74578559c1d88ba72.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="705" data-original-width="564" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh1QsJTSQhyphenhyphen0VEaCpLTiw1XQtbj1soXqLS1cdkP2jPLbczopH2B_kQuiduxtSMWC3BopnUWgHIa0Cnw9rc2gxDKkfGXJ-pLyVssn2c2sZN_nOr4LLAoDXunx-H6ykBCT4TkID0kN4HZFhLB/s16000/7b28ea7fea2abde74578559c1d88ba72.jpg" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjSVWdZz4tQEQyotpFgX2RbeatBxV-XXRDRBN2CuRwjIO78jiuUYdTNcLQRax91ipNIutETLWz5p2cW8oU_YhjBvOTSY6Vqqf41rbgC-oo7Ge7XFpCfIk8fZHMyXfCe0zRSuoZECleyGag8/s677/7fe148b7ba552e1cdd2c42a8d33d2e99.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="677" data-original-width="519" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjSVWdZz4tQEQyotpFgX2RbeatBxV-XXRDRBN2CuRwjIO78jiuUYdTNcLQRax91ipNIutETLWz5p2cW8oU_YhjBvOTSY6Vqqf41rbgC-oo7Ge7XFpCfIk8fZHMyXfCe0zRSuoZECleyGag8/s16000/7fe148b7ba552e1cdd2c42a8d33d2e99.jpg" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhHZUSM_Q-5ERgpQqYfuK09n3si4ZJ1N8IGeA_YP1pHbfZcLjG6rVrKWAwFSv1KG_253nFnu4lsdrCE-R7d-9aKG75L9S7HUC7-cW8ljy_AkVYmwtUlFlgoZTcrT1RAeQJxGyPHTZzmbG4J/s910/18d18aec7a04e3dc56b356ad3d60dda5.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="910" data-original-width="563" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhHZUSM_Q-5ERgpQqYfuK09n3si4ZJ1N8IGeA_YP1pHbfZcLjG6rVrKWAwFSv1KG_253nFnu4lsdrCE-R7d-9aKG75L9S7HUC7-cW8ljy_AkVYmwtUlFlgoZTcrT1RAeQJxGyPHTZzmbG4J/s16000/18d18aec7a04e3dc56b356ad3d60dda5.jpg" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhPuEV5T_4j1ZrJAofq0npXDDZDKeETfSxftqgs-7kisJNJHwQCJw8ntd4QKbCO_vEmiCb8fTv2mQq7o_XD0dDwlF3XFsj91yybwcTOteGVpLVRLCzkwom9fZMONnHACuFWUVlWH1CyEUwS/s846/55f712745b757c01804cb7e542beaefa.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="846" data-original-width="564" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhPuEV5T_4j1ZrJAofq0npXDDZDKeETfSxftqgs-7kisJNJHwQCJw8ntd4QKbCO_vEmiCb8fTv2mQq7o_XD0dDwlF3XFsj91yybwcTOteGVpLVRLCzkwom9fZMONnHACuFWUVlWH1CyEUwS/s16000/55f712745b757c01804cb7e542beaefa.jpg" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj9pKcbVUYMLUyoRO2pq6GvBM5l5sIS034wXgbpQuh_vXrwuFchZ5Fvh9ur_wvH_s4FE2hCHEODYSIDIg3H1mAzKTvFS6UwNTHcIIEt3jR7CifEVyPxrR-ZEeAF8WtNPuS3wnQf38RK_1ew/s692/6830a3475cab53fb60e24e2188d39dfd.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="692" data-original-width="563" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj9pKcbVUYMLUyoRO2pq6GvBM5l5sIS034wXgbpQuh_vXrwuFchZ5Fvh9ur_wvH_s4FE2hCHEODYSIDIg3H1mAzKTvFS6UwNTHcIIEt3jR7CifEVyPxrR-ZEeAF8WtNPuS3wnQf38RK_1ew/s16000/6830a3475cab53fb60e24e2188d39dfd.jpg" /></a></div><br /><div><br /></div><div><div><br /></div><div><b>Turbans, turbans, and more turbans -</b> Did I say turbans yet? Let me start by saying that while these turbans can be super cute this is a bit of sore area for me. With my West African heritage I grew up seeing my mom, aunts and grandmothers all regularly wearing a variety of head scarfs as part of our culture. Some were protective headscarves worn at bedtime or around the home, others were iconic fashion statements reserved for fancy events like weddings. I also distinctly remember that the only people that wore head coverings of that nature were immigrants primarily from Africa, Asia & the Middle East. There was constant ridicule that came along with these head covers, and an endless flow of xenophobic comments that people would make about immigrants wearing turbans. So it leaves a really weird taste in my mouth to suddenly see these turbans become a super commercialized trend. As far as I can tell there is clearly an element of cultural appropriation going on here. I have no problem with people borrowing aspects of another's culture, in fact I highly welcome that. But no, you can't borrow from a culture that you simultaneously also look down on. Most importantly it is necessary to recognize that turbans have a cultural and religious significance, so there is a time and place for them to be meaningfully worn. Similar to how a graduation gown and cap is symbolic and how different styles of gowns are worn depending on whether it is a bachelors, masters, doctorate, etc, in the same way the turbans have meaning too. So to just randomly pick a style without understanding what it might represent is like the old trend where people got Chinese tattoos that turned out to not even be real words. As you might have guessed I'm in a bit of a hurry for this trend to pass on.</div></div><div><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjG03aWjrNeBK8KQrTUVEkt6PcyDsDc2IxlujuHiNAT18Hg1nKakEeZHKeH8CynLjpMAy1fegfA4_H8C-rPTpGrSIlxGY5HnDsmwGNRP5liK1F1dy4-ReVbG7mL-DSlVPjFPqdlTpkBHWXn/s564/596e3248c945098193da968317183bf3.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="532" data-original-width="564" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjG03aWjrNeBK8KQrTUVEkt6PcyDsDc2IxlujuHiNAT18Hg1nKakEeZHKeH8CynLjpMAy1fegfA4_H8C-rPTpGrSIlxGY5HnDsmwGNRP5liK1F1dy4-ReVbG7mL-DSlVPjFPqdlTpkBHWXn/s16000/596e3248c945098193da968317183bf3.jpg" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhvGKsWb5xE3twbmbIQzY6fcK-IETxPD_aciDL6s6i41GjOP0gk7GmLCdGOcUn7GrQIJRKq4FVMvKEOaLnRGSHULywuj4cSlKlFeJ8qIA4z8MLO2Ae1lkA3mlHn8nwkXfTTNiEoB7afcco5/s1128/a1cdb7c5c397d841b61740ee35f8f6df.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1128" data-original-width="564" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhvGKsWb5xE3twbmbIQzY6fcK-IETxPD_aciDL6s6i41GjOP0gk7GmLCdGOcUn7GrQIJRKq4FVMvKEOaLnRGSHULywuj4cSlKlFeJ8qIA4z8MLO2Ae1lkA3mlHn8nwkXfTTNiEoB7afcco5/s16000/a1cdb7c5c397d841b61740ee35f8f6df.jpg" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjIEj5pEpzneGO8yYrRpTDI7MCF9enr5zdUUpyZRzLUw-MP_YRSycii0orMHAOwbOBUKaGghu6nFVRovpb0x2fiWmMaSK6Z6KYfihsjXJBDVGQZlBvNJlbHbItYDGJ_Mjc97PWH4hXTSuOU/s846/c39ad8b59bce7a5506f45c7e2a5d09f6.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="846" data-original-width="564" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjIEj5pEpzneGO8yYrRpTDI7MCF9enr5zdUUpyZRzLUw-MP_YRSycii0orMHAOwbOBUKaGghu6nFVRovpb0x2fiWmMaSK6Z6KYfihsjXJBDVGQZlBvNJlbHbItYDGJ_Mjc97PWH4hXTSuOU/s16000/c39ad8b59bce7a5506f45c7e2a5d09f6.jpg" /></a></div><br /><div><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhLeYcQvnec2U0J-7dOJdz3jwertc0F00B6opSCmGo4L0qBhsPlQd17iko6dKsxhSi6yNz1T3gz43YVoWBhBhpWK5fGelXiifDC52UXd2zUcdz853TkslWNb4jiy8MuMh14cfm83lEKvy76/s564/f929a443d9e4d063231cb9802af5a76b.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="564" data-original-width="564" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhLeYcQvnec2U0J-7dOJdz3jwertc0F00B6opSCmGo4L0qBhsPlQd17iko6dKsxhSi6yNz1T3gz43YVoWBhBhpWK5fGelXiifDC52UXd2zUcdz853TkslWNb4jiy8MuMh14cfm83lEKvy76/s16000/f929a443d9e4d063231cb9802af5a76b.jpg" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><br /><div><b>Clouds & rainbows</b> and other sky themed accents. I must confess I find most of these to be super adorable especially all the cloud pillows. I think they are cute but not too cute, and can be pretty versatile.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjYQ8KFIaHqaAcXAl3KA4qpVHHKbyzGjCpNO6IfGBvh36fg2QbL4jXXK-xZSazJR5-P7easAf5unP4ZQK501YJTLUEOi3GHVlbGyZk2NuZeChJg-wFcAAdzQDnWTB4zaVOI_GQMHMbAraNO/s564/47bcaa19c462a562b6c9f90a8aa74573.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="564" data-original-width="564" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjYQ8KFIaHqaAcXAl3KA4qpVHHKbyzGjCpNO6IfGBvh36fg2QbL4jXXK-xZSazJR5-P7easAf5unP4ZQK501YJTLUEOi3GHVlbGyZk2NuZeChJg-wFcAAdzQDnWTB4zaVOI_GQMHMbAraNO/s16000/47bcaa19c462a562b6c9f90a8aa74573.jpg" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhdGWzolndTkl4qqPhmISANomig8-NjHLa_dyGXKcwjN5Q9zFCF1IPtW5HTcqAsgkK28O-c-x-Z8vkO4Ds38AL7pBrgAmK2NzxZy93fDNmNZ2qUNqnOwOseIHYz4Podlvjt95gid3F4tqxR/s564/43081bcab79bee6ff980cd211b70a38c.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="564" data-original-width="564" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhdGWzolndTkl4qqPhmISANomig8-NjHLa_dyGXKcwjN5Q9zFCF1IPtW5HTcqAsgkK28O-c-x-Z8vkO4Ds38AL7pBrgAmK2NzxZy93fDNmNZ2qUNqnOwOseIHYz4Podlvjt95gid3F4tqxR/s16000/43081bcab79bee6ff980cd211b70a38c.jpg" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj3s6f6oq2J-Lb2TW8Sbf1JCVrxVkWacrGPM7KcQGqZMug0FTuZDNNiwFWX-CUYOO4TDfixgKUkWqfMjjrXs45mIfKWr5FmqLtk5g886R5nRskgfk_5FGduQfsebz4_2FonA3R7FGQEAgXZ/s902/a315ac5269071569f9217a551450465b.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="902" data-original-width="564" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj3s6f6oq2J-Lb2TW8Sbf1JCVrxVkWacrGPM7KcQGqZMug0FTuZDNNiwFWX-CUYOO4TDfixgKUkWqfMjjrXs45mIfKWr5FmqLtk5g886R5nRskgfk_5FGduQfsebz4_2FonA3R7FGQEAgXZ/s16000/a315ac5269071569f9217a551450465b.jpg" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh2qy8de-LuorENhA-RbTs_6KQDGhLIxHG1XlYNQhIRpKv6feIQ70s0Emm3VDZRFtnV1TpHK057mGyChEvPH8_83DveogNfUs5H5RYi_bhtvsVIjaQl53LSDt6ZJqorRTzcY_wuvKuqEtBZ/s564/caa1e8f6274fe43f3144d61fa60d75b7.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="564" data-original-width="564" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh2qy8de-LuorENhA-RbTs_6KQDGhLIxHG1XlYNQhIRpKv6feIQ70s0Emm3VDZRFtnV1TpHK057mGyChEvPH8_83DveogNfUs5H5RYi_bhtvsVIjaQl53LSDt6ZJqorRTzcY_wuvKuqEtBZ/s16000/caa1e8f6274fe43f3144d61fa60d75b7.jpg" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgl_T5ecmADLBn0gbjm0vUOaEHxAQdkz5jQHLC6lPK9Edfa3bAotPOv0psJqpoMUmRunIWabTk0iT7p1d-djwIDZMzMThUAY9CMO4YMeFQpBrloJPB0qvBalIgfYMappQBrFAQ0A3k-HvXz/s741/e0c0a8c5c0ab2882345595dd85851903.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="741" data-original-width="563" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgl_T5ecmADLBn0gbjm0vUOaEHxAQdkz5jQHLC6lPK9Edfa3bAotPOv0psJqpoMUmRunIWabTk0iT7p1d-djwIDZMzMThUAY9CMO4YMeFQpBrloJPB0qvBalIgfYMappQBrFAQ0A3k-HvXz/s16000/e0c0a8c5c0ab2882345595dd85851903.jpg" /></a></div><br /><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div> <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEio-YRItVYuQQLlohtr_JANYA4zi7UecXw6ep8tM7QApL9ZX8FiQB0sZwciMnJaj9NaUzJ2pdma5yTwkFBSSt3KsPfYQpvMcxiBZvH1ZGkqx6quRLek23DreA9UK4DQYhVkg2qdL8zZqFvx/s564/037a8a0c79c42daa4ca1461dd2888b04.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="564" data-original-width="564" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEio-YRItVYuQQLlohtr_JANYA4zi7UecXw6ep8tM7QApL9ZX8FiQB0sZwciMnJaj9NaUzJ2pdma5yTwkFBSSt3KsPfYQpvMcxiBZvH1ZGkqx6quRLek23DreA9UK4DQYhVkg2qdL8zZqFvx/s16000/037a8a0c79c42daa4ca1461dd2888b04.jpg" /></a></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><b>Tents, Teepees & Canopies </b>- It seems no child's room is complete without at least one of these. My children absolutely love tents and can play in their tent for hours. My daughter first received a small pop-up princess tent as a birthday gift and when that broke I looked into other options. While I liked the look of the teepee, I also know that these have Native American origins and to me it just felt like something too sacred to turn into a play theme for my kids, so instead I got them a regular indoor/outdoor camping tent that they love. It is better than a teepee because it is larger and spacious with multiple entry points and a vented roof. I also really love the look of some of the canopies shown below although I doubt they are safe to have around the crib of an infant once they can pull themselves up. I believe once they child gets to that age the canopy would need to be removed to avoid becoming a suffocation/entanglement hazard</div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjv61TXjd0jZ8Vcot919gskElf-hxhP7XUwKvxlKMybN2SK6O2FU9EQsEb2jdbbLg0tNac0PkrfbNl3_ZMTjWPs_R509mximW5qUGxQCZvbru3a8smID4q6QXIXtQamlT18E42vPB9MWp5D/s920/ikat-playhouse.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="920" data-original-width="920" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjv61TXjd0jZ8Vcot919gskElf-hxhP7XUwKvxlKMybN2SK6O2FU9EQsEb2jdbbLg0tNac0PkrfbNl3_ZMTjWPs_R509mximW5qUGxQCZvbru3a8smID4q6QXIXtQamlT18E42vPB9MWp5D/w640-h640/ikat-playhouse.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgebK9EODT0QPnC-d58p-W0KXlxmbIeD74wLbVmqOVJdlhaA5xz_tZondUk1dWSa31fcrRn6BvL0Zs9hXQhDl4lO3ybQLd9MjdtO114cx_LFziv5XuhQCKDcC9hmHTCaIYkk-lTkDvyCLyx/s600/kids-concept-play-house-tent-off-white-873595_600x.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="600" data-original-width="600" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgebK9EODT0QPnC-d58p-W0KXlxmbIeD74wLbVmqOVJdlhaA5xz_tZondUk1dWSa31fcrRn6BvL0Zs9hXQhDl4lO3ybQLd9MjdtO114cx_LFziv5XuhQCKDcC9hmHTCaIYkk-lTkDvyCLyx/s16000/kids-concept-play-house-tent-off-white-873595_600x.jpg" /></a></div><br /><div><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgJs-Iv0lkmWURvy7vgaTTnXm0OPumlNpGRSWzvjUvKGvqX7cKKArrkDIdVQxU9PlqbZfKTclychkBUqEZFU4KazbnCBqZeZjlWtlrDqlGQcA4F316QbLn7a9amPftX1S1idM-4esxJCSNA/s692/7c5370a319a330bd8f9bc020e4b48712.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="692" data-original-width="563" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgJs-Iv0lkmWURvy7vgaTTnXm0OPumlNpGRSWzvjUvKGvqX7cKKArrkDIdVQxU9PlqbZfKTclychkBUqEZFU4KazbnCBqZeZjlWtlrDqlGQcA4F316QbLn7a9amPftX1S1idM-4esxJCSNA/s16000/7c5370a319a330bd8f9bc020e4b48712.jpg" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; 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margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="400" data-original-width="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgs2CgyNXBNjE8p0dwVhMnkmtXHS6VoyQmRRj6DMOAZCNQ8cSSw2nMHOFQ4XkbHf9rPCVOypPXjYvCuBeEFVT7SzS6U7OwFWuadCJKmlpi8VZeGzypY3eV2pF0IaRcg_uwJOnD9ss0qXdhL/s16000/5895674ae41536b1b1a7ccae8a9f628c.jpg" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg_v52-qsx_c73hr06rkEOqFNc3MJD5DMzM1qjp-tf_6Jepsj1QPxab-m554lEfaLu3ELoQESFYvqX8x46rRNWKkWKYO2mr5FH6tVHOn1MDnQ4p4QhW6QcGple0jCnIdQzAgPDIgUIjc3Jr/s1002/a018d1c5ca4dd9a9102ebf972ba424ee.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1002" data-original-width="564" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg_v52-qsx_c73hr06rkEOqFNc3MJD5DMzM1qjp-tf_6Jepsj1QPxab-m554lEfaLu3ELoQESFYvqX8x46rRNWKkWKYO2mr5FH6tVHOn1MDnQ4p4QhW6QcGple0jCnIdQzAgPDIgUIjc3Jr/s16000/a018d1c5ca4dd9a9102ebf972ba424ee.jpg" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhxoB2dAtUsDbERbPW-iTIjo4htLLUeN2qMcFM0FbYLt0a4OiTP4bEPWIJL74KwF6qdJgDwh-ufN8mcAluD67z0m-ZicatwZWA0TlawL-AJc8pqDEvg4Skd9r16lYeXcZFA_XBU2VL6z-P9/s325/fe01c0a42f23313b0a3d127feed3e8d7.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="325" data-original-width="325" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhxoB2dAtUsDbERbPW-iTIjo4htLLUeN2qMcFM0FbYLt0a4OiTP4bEPWIJL74KwF6qdJgDwh-ufN8mcAluD67z0m-ZicatwZWA0TlawL-AJc8pqDEvg4Skd9r16lYeXcZFA_XBU2VL6z-P9/s16000/fe01c0a42f23313b0a3d127feed3e8d7.jpg" /></a></div><br /><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div>Alright folks, that sums up my baby trends list!</div><div><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh1v4z_8akDTDhwKuJ9vpmZuwT2COCzEin7U5mtpvVhL96wbrTUITMf3k2SinPWmJKQxLdxhXlYA0A3BQJRm09roV8p_ccojjDQ4PhS31ag9947bD6xCWkYatjBczlYQpImsM8Vzm_WS3va/s993/SUNNY+%25281%2529.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="258" data-original-width="993" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh1v4z_8akDTDhwKuJ9vpmZuwT2COCzEin7U5mtpvVhL96wbrTUITMf3k2SinPWmJKQxLdxhXlYA0A3BQJRm09roV8p_ccojjDQ4PhS31ag9947bD6xCWkYatjBczlYQpImsM8Vzm_WS3va/s320/SUNNY+%25281%2529.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br /><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div>SimplyChic Mommahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01651364127425786116noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1158502287259494968.post-71972165494672356052019-01-30T13:34:00.001-05:002019-01-30T13:34:12.556-05:00Pumpin' Pal ReviewIt's no small secret that I hate pumping, so imagine the sadness in my heart when I had to finally accept that my littlest baby was on a permanent nursing strike. We tried every trick in the book with the help of my lactation consultant but he simply refused to nurse once we got home from the hospital. Every nursing session was essentially him wailing at the top of his lungs and getting super mad. And that's basically how I became an exclusive pumper. It is so much extra work! I spent my maternity leave literally tied to my pump, pumping every few hours around the clock for his every meal. And of course all that pumping means lots of bottles to wash! I was pretty certain I would give up after a few weeks, but I'm surprised to say that he turns 4 months old in a few days and we are still going strong with it! It has gotten much better now since I have an established supply and I can go for longer stretches at night without worrying too much. The best part about pumping around the clock is you can quickly build up a good freezer stash!<br />
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As you can imagine, constant pumping can cause a lot of discomfort, I tried using olive oil in my flanges which does help a bit, but I still go through cycles of pain, irritation and discomfort from all the friction of the pump. My medela pump came with two flange sizes the 24mm and 27mm. None of them seemed right for me. The 24mm was super painful to use but the 27mm also seemed to be sucking in too much breast tissue. I think I need a size that is somewhere in between the two but for the mean time that doesn't exist.<br />
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While randomly browsing mom memes on instagram I came across a comment about an innovative new pumping product called Pumpin' Pal. I sprinted over to their <a href="https://pumpinpal.com/">website</a> to check them out.<br />
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Pumpin' Pal sells angled breast pump flanges that aim to make the pumping experience more comfortable and efficient. They are different from regular flanges because they are tilted to allow you to sit more upright when you pump rather than having to lean forward. The upward angle of these flanges is very similar to the <a href="https://haakaausa.com/products/haakaa-silicone-breast-pump-with-suction-base-5-oz-1pk-1?variant=27408158017">Haakaa</a> pump.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj3Gv0CjprcTTdlw2oGy772y17_jY1u7UuxnseobGtBkcBRL5LFIVEz2vVPoSq711hk9KG2RecVgXEDfYAGjaym9gA2ll7ZOybWTRcG-rThTV4rbJEIz84797zCNBy9UacR3KRlFoQ5ZjQY/s1600/haakaa-pump-w_obase_2048x.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="722" data-original-width="722" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj3Gv0CjprcTTdlw2oGy772y17_jY1u7UuxnseobGtBkcBRL5LFIVEz2vVPoSq711hk9KG2RecVgXEDfYAGjaym9gA2ll7ZOybWTRcG-rThTV4rbJEIz84797zCNBy9UacR3KRlFoQ5ZjQY/s320/haakaa-pump-w_obase_2048x.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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Additionally the small and extra small sizes are made from a soft silicone that is much more comfortable on the skin, again similar to the Haakaa. The other sizes are hard plastic. Best of all, the flanges are sold in sets of three different sizes so you can try them out and find the perfect fit for you. The good thing about having more than one size is you might need different sizes at different points in the day depending on your pumping schedule. I knew right away that I had to try them out. I took the <a href="https://pumpinpal.com/help/">sizing quiz</a> on their site to figure out which set was right for me and went ahead and ordered a medium set from amazon. The medium set includes small, medium and large flanges.<br />
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To make the sizes easier to identify they each come in different colors. When mine arrived I quickly washed and sterilized them and set them out to dry.<br />
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For the first time ever I was actually excited about my next pumping session. To be honest I may have set myself up for failure with these because I tried them for the first time in the middle of the night. I started with the medium even though the instructions tell you to start with the largest size in the set. The medium flange was just okay to use but I felt uncomfortable holding it while pumping because of the angle. I tried both an upward and downward angle but just could not get it to feel right. I assumed the issue was the size, so I later tried the small and large sizes. The small size comes with connector pieces so it can tightly fit into the pump. I struggled to get the connector piece out after pumping but during pumping I couldn't seem to get the small flange to stay in place. Overall I quickly got frustrated with these flanges and gave up because my baby was crying throughout all this.<br />
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However when I called them to process my return I was very impressed with the level of customer service I received. These people genuinely get it! They understand that pumping can be frustrating and that it is a process to get things right. They were willing to help troubleshoot, and work through all the issues that I was facing. They were also willing to allow me to return the product by going through their website even though I bought it on amazon. Overall all my frustration disappeared after interacting them, what a difference good customer service makes! Considering it costs under $40 for all three flanges I decided to hold on to them. I went back and looked at all the positive reviews and realized I must be one of the small minority that this brand didn't work for. So I washed the flanges and sterilized them with the plan of sending them to my sister-in-law to try them out. However I have been looking at them in the box for a few days and I just might give them another try! Stay tuned.<br />
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<br />SimplyChic Mommahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01651364127425786116noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1158502287259494968.post-65587249256570490552019-01-24T20:05:00.000-05:002019-01-24T20:05:03.411-05:00My Amazon Welcome Box!I'll start by saying I'm not a big fan of registries and showers, in fact I got through my wedding and two babies without ever having a single registry. I have nothing against anyone else having a registry but it's just not for me. I personally feel weird making a list of things I want and then sharing that list and basically telling people what to buy me. However with my third pregnancy I started paying closer attention to all the registry perks out there. I realized I had been seriously missing out on great deals that come with setting up a registry! I found out that I could set up the registry, keep the list private and still get all the perks! It ended up being a really awesome way to organize all my baby needs and keep track of everything.<br />
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I started out with an Amazon Baby registry. It was the most logical place to start, considering amazon is usually my first stop for everything. Their registry comes with three main benefits;<br />
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<i>Amazon Welcome Box </i></div>
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<i>Amazon Completion Discount</i></div>
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<i>Amazon Baby bucks</i></div>
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To qualify for the welcome box you have to set up your registry and have a minimum purchase of $10 shipped from the registry. This means the item has to be added to your cart from the registry. Once you do that, a welcome box worth up to $35 gets shipped out to you. The boxes are not the same each time so you never know what might be in yours but I had super low expectations of mine. I was fully expecting a bunch of low quality mini samples that would be quite useless but was pleasantly surprised when the box arrived on my doorstep. </div>
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When I opened up the box I was really glad to see a good variety of high quality brands and full size items that I could actually make good use of!</div>
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The items inside my welcome box were as follows<br />
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<i>-Avent Nursing pads, 2pack</i><br />
<i>-Dr Brown's Options Bottle & Happy Paci</i><br />
<i>-Simple Joys by Carters white onesie, 3-6m</i><br />
<i>-Moon & Back organic cotton printed onesie, 3-6m</i><br />
<i>-Amazing Baby Muslin Swaddle, 46in x 46in</i><br />
<i>-Seventh Generation Diapers, 2 pack, size 1</i><br />
<i>-Mama Bear Diapers, 2 pack. size 1</i><br />
<i>-Huggies Natural Care Wipes, pack of 56</i><br />
<i>-Honest shampoo + body wash and lotion set 22ml </i><br />
<i>-Johnson's body wash</i><br />
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Receiving all these items for free was pretty darn cool! Overall aside from the Johnson's body wash that <a href="https://babyfromabove.blogspot.com/2012/12/why-ill-never-use-johnsons-baby-products.html">I tossed out</a>, I was pretty impressed with everything else! The best part was getting to try out new brands. The Moon And Back organic onesie is so incredibly adorable and soft! The muslin blanket was a nice change for me since I have a stash of Aden & Anais blankets, it was nice to try out a different brand.<br />
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The other two perks of the amazon registry are the completion discount and their baby bucks. There is a lot of confusion about these two so I'll try to make it as straightforward as possible. The completion discount is basically 15% off two orders from your registry any time in the 60 days leading up to your due date. Prime members get the full 15% off, whilst all other members get 10% off. The good thing about the discount is that it can be used <b>twice</b> on an <i><b><u>entire</u></b> </i>cart of things as long as they are added to the cart from the registry and are eligible for the discount.<br />
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A wide range of items are eligible for this discount; nearly everything for babies and children is eligible and surprisingly some non baby items. These include big ticket nursery furniture as well as toys for older children. To maximize your savings it's best to have a list of all the items you need and add them all to the cart from the registry and buy them all in one order. Then based on how you feel about the items once you receive them you can add up anything else you need into a second order and use the discount code one final time. Some people have mistakenly thought the discount code only covers two items but its actually two orders no matter how many items you add to each order as long as the total for both orders is under <i><b>$2,000</b></i>. I used this discount to get bigger items like our halo bassinet, a glider & ottoman set as well as birthday toys for my older kids. Overall I saved a lot of money using this completion discount!<br />
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Finally the last perk of an amazon baby registry is Baby Bucks. This perk is only for prime members. Once you have spent $1,000 in items added to the cart from your registry, you will receive $100 in baby bucks that can be used on diapering items. Items like diapers, wipes, diaper pail refills, rash creams and even cloth diapers. Surprisingly there are some travel items on this list such as travel systems and car seats.<br />
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Overall I can say creating an amazon baby registry was super helpful for me. It served as a good checklist and helped me stay organized, but best of all I saved a decent amount of money too!<br />
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SimplyChic Mommahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01651364127425786116noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1158502287259494968.post-47639386254022551102019-01-16T13:26:00.000-05:002019-01-16T14:03:55.797-05:00Toy Storage Solutions<div dir="ltr">
Every mom has the same dilemma; too many toys and not enough space to store them! Despite our best intentions to be minimal on what toys we bought our kids they quickly built up over years. Especially with generous grandparents, aunts and uncles constantly showering them with goodies. </div>
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In choosing storage options for my two oldest kiddos I was focused on finding something functional with a simple design that fit in with the decor in their respective rooms. I also wanted something they could reach by themselves so they could put their own toys away. Finally I wanted one big piece for each room that would fit the majority of their toys and books. </div>
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When my oldest was a toddler I used <a href="https://babyfromabove.blogspot.com/2013/05/a-library-in-making.html">IKEA picture ledges</a> to store her books but we quickly ran out of room and so I ditched the ledges and was on the look out for a better solution. I ended up finding two perfect pieces for both of their rooms. </div>
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1] <b><u>IKEA Kallax Series</u></b></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEinDUC-cxXiGo-s-HPRH9V1Bwdod6Gciu8yaflCoTCfNMrcCab3PbDC5yuRbeMYHyZJpusl_n7QEF_m_OXvGYsVNR1y6g8bZ1Eykkj3foRaecq2w6-k0fPfW94QsFK33uIJs50n7fR-R2Se/s1600/KALLAX_Shelf_unit_SEO.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="350" data-original-width="520" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEinDUC-cxXiGo-s-HPRH9V1Bwdod6Gciu8yaflCoTCfNMrcCab3PbDC5yuRbeMYHyZJpusl_n7QEF_m_OXvGYsVNR1y6g8bZ1Eykkj3foRaecq2w6-k0fPfW94QsFK33uIJs50n7fR-R2Se/s1600/KALLAX_Shelf_unit_SEO.jpg"></a></div>
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I chose a shelf from the Kallax series for my daughters room. She was 5 at the time and it seemed like the perfect fit for her. This shelf comes in various sizes but we chose to go with the 8 square option in high gloss white as shown above. I'm not a big IKEA fan but every now and then I do find some decent pieces there. This is absolutely one of them. The kallax series of shelving units are awesome! They are a set of neutral, versatile pieces that can work in any space. I typically try to avoid pieces that are overly popular but the good thing about the Kallax is that although everyone seems to have one these days, it can still look unique based on how you accessorize it. IKEA stocks a variety of doors, inserts, bins and baskets that can be used in their kallax shelves or you can find your own inserts elsewhere.</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi6OMWkBEXFYT04GkV6Fdc99DXAzgjVO6dTJVa8O_K5U2BlGZXY6M_hL_7MRuOE-T2kMs0uK9Lg0QDRNvDFyWguhK0HyNAz2_e-P4m6zVLUNsBYPTijKhDXc0lz4zmAMdtcjc5eaCQtKidB/s1600/Capturekx.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="254" data-original-width="1108" height="146" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi6OMWkBEXFYT04GkV6Fdc99DXAzgjVO6dTJVa8O_K5U2BlGZXY6M_hL_7MRuOE-T2kMs0uK9Lg0QDRNvDFyWguhK0HyNAz2_e-P4m6zVLUNsBYPTijKhDXc0lz4zmAMdtcjc5eaCQtKidB/s640/Capturekx.JPG" width="640"></a></div>
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I love that even when my kids are older I can flip this piece vertically and use it somewhere else in the house. Anchoring it to wall was the first crucial step to ensuring it was secure. Then I added 4 storage bins to the bottom shelves for toys and kept the top shelf open for books and larger items. Best of all the top of the unit serves as a third level of storage. It is extremely spacious and solid and can fit a good amount of books and toys. The one downside with having open shelves instead of doors is that it can get super messy very quickly with kids constantly playing with things, but at this point I fully embrace the mess that my kids create! The photos below show the Kallax set up on her room when we first got it and then again a few months later.</div>
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The price is really good for the quality and it has held up really well so far. Other stores like Wal-Mart and Target carry similar cubed shelves but are not as sturdy nor do they look as good as the kallax.</div>
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2] <b><u>Totes Tidy Toy Organizer by B. Spaces</u></b></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjj8xHxFTUEv-h9xsQHV-ScCrOyPjgcjNgysu9d14OQTs95H8g4ixDLJFkImJVVEC2t2VElxCPQKThwlnCFifOmI_OxqPj6R3AM8e7rhbDJmgEnN0YgPBzlCouc15sr1c_UGOHEXs3vCn3V/s1600/71L5EAvfX6L._SL1500_.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1500" data-original-width="1500" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjj8xHxFTUEv-h9xsQHV-ScCrOyPjgcjNgysu9d14OQTs95H8g4ixDLJFkImJVVEC2t2VElxCPQKThwlnCFifOmI_OxqPj6R3AM8e7rhbDJmgEnN0YgPBzlCouc15sr1c_UGOHEXs3vCn3V/s640/71L5EAvfX6L._SL1500_.jpg" width="640"></a></div>
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We decided to get this toy organizer for my son's room, he was about 18 months old at the time and it seemed like the ideal solution for all this little board books, stuffed animals and toys. Unlike the Kallax, this isn't an actual shelf but rather a wood dowel rack with 10 stackable storage bins. These bins can be rearranged to suit your needs and fit on the rack at an angle to make it super easy to get things in and out. It also makes it more functional as it is easier to find things at a glance.</div>
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I was able to put this together fairly quickly and I really liked its how easy it was to assemble and yet it's surprisingly sturdy once completed. <span id="goog_1980195397"></span><a href="https://www.blogger.com/"></a><span id="goog_1980195398"></span></div>
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It definitely is a child specific item and is more suited for the toddler phase based on the size and height of the rack. The storage capacity is much smaller than the Kallax but it also takes up a lot less space. My 2 year old loves that he can reach all his things and can put his toys away without assistance. Overall we are happy with it so far!</div>
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Another toy storage idea I've had my eye on for a while is the stuffed animal "zoo". There are many variations of this on etsy as well as many DIY tutorials on pinterest. I've gone back and forth on whether I wanted to build one or not and the jury is still out on that!</div>
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I've also seen a lot of wood crates re-purposed as toy storage bins. I love working with wood so making one of these might be in the near future!</div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><i>Pinterest</i></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgOGxuMe6yH_pRzNCRX-X0bal3HQ2hizYVPl09_vB9aSvskmMZt8peHjVaZMJamm5Bwf_zA9GFZBrHVFC07F98RJOJMx_R7_Ona6IqRsmMsCRIxWEfdE0y-dlX0I7NgcntpRMhOCMRS-mkR/s1600/il_570xN.990562228_q35c.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="570" data-original-width="570" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgOGxuMe6yH_pRzNCRX-X0bal3HQ2hizYVPl09_vB9aSvskmMZt8peHjVaZMJamm5Bwf_zA9GFZBrHVFC07F98RJOJMx_R7_Ona6IqRsmMsCRIxWEfdE0y-dlX0I7NgcntpRMhOCMRS-mkR/s1600/il_570xN.990562228_q35c.jpg"></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><i><a href="https://www.etsy.com/listing/399663639/rustic-large-wooden-storage-crate-rustic?gpla=1&gao=1&&utm_source=google&utm_medium=cpc&utm_campaign=shopping_us_ts1-b-home_and_living-storage_and_organization-boxes_and_bins-other&utm_custom1=d54d88ac-71aa-4108-959d-4832586f0942&utm_content=go_920092455_47587617802_218669641815_pla-307130480624_c__399663639&gclid=EAIaIQobChMIhMmJnfDy3wIVEdbACh3bBAnAEAQYBCABEgJ4W_D_BwE">Source</a></i></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgtetuQl-NNPGnSi818ut2uwHW0wApHdqrIQv0lYm_KtYNPTcB8NWJXliBtwKL8JVr7I-6U6214ghXWFY4lUhpRFxC3wEAcdB8yAx8xxzEalqSaP0gaAC93Tu6Kkcet4YwAsPTcnPuSZ_HJ/s1600/il_570xN.1718364192_5il2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="760" data-original-width="570" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgtetuQl-NNPGnSi818ut2uwHW0wApHdqrIQv0lYm_KtYNPTcB8NWJXliBtwKL8JVr7I-6U6214ghXWFY4lUhpRFxC3wEAcdB8yAx8xxzEalqSaP0gaAC93Tu6Kkcet4YwAsPTcnPuSZ_HJ/s1600/il_570xN.1718364192_5il2.jpg"></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://www.etsy.com/listing/576402316/toy-crate-rustic-crate-toy-storage?gpla=1&gao=1&&utm_source=google&utm_medium=cpc&utm_campaign=shopping_us_a-home_and_living-storage_and_organization-toy_storage&utm_custom1=d54d88ac-71aa-4108-959d-4832586f0942&utm_content=go_270948755_21143298515_69017133995_pla-106556259875_c__576402316&gclid=EAIaIQobChMIhMmJnfDy3wIVEdbACh3bBAnAEAQYAyABEgK00fD_BwE" style="font-style: italic;">Etsy</a><br><br><br><br><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span style="font-size: small;">I'll be sure to come back and post an update once I make up my mind!</span></div>
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SimplyChic Mommahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01651364127425786116noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1158502287259494968.post-66287611699133592552019-01-07T22:42:00.000-05:002019-01-16T18:46:19.018-05:00DIY candy buffet<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjhAmF8hapotWv8xOJ4D8EO5VzMUXKbym405bVYpxfAH5pDfLKJ_QIJM-rn9f4vzQ_mEjkreIZzurhZKTnkwJOz3Y459y2HKQZGHIP0gMxgnAmVmFSySK6Pf83qxDYSs4OVjOmpSAtCBFgZ/s1600/IMG_7902+%25282%2529.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="897" data-original-width="1600" height="358" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjhAmF8hapotWv8xOJ4D8EO5VzMUXKbym405bVYpxfAH5pDfLKJ_QIJM-rn9f4vzQ_mEjkreIZzurhZKTnkwJOz3Y459y2HKQZGHIP0gMxgnAmVmFSySK6Pf83qxDYSs4OVjOmpSAtCBFgZ/s640/IMG_7902+%25282%2529.JPG" width="640" /></a></div>
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For our son's baby dedication, we decided to set up a simple candy buffet for our friends and loved ones to enjoy. Although not everyone has a sweet tooth I was certain I could put together the right combination of candy & desserts to appeal to everyone. Candy buffets became a really popular trend back when I was still in the wedding planning stage and at first I wasn't a big fan of them, but because they are so versatile they can be customized to suite to all sorts of events. I thought it would be the perfect treat for his baby dedication because much of the prep can be done in advance and the actual set up and take down can be done fairly quickly!<br />
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The trickiest component of the candy buffet is the bulk candy and the display containers. These two things form the base of the buffet, with other filler items added in for good measure that are easier to obtain. For our candy buffet we used the following items<br />
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<i>Bulk Candy (details below)</i></div>
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<i>Candy jars & trays</i></div>
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<i>Ceramic letter dishes</i></div>
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<i>Scoops</i></div>
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<i>Tent cards</i></div>
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<i>Cupcakes</i></div>
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<i>Cupcake stand</i></div>
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<i>Cupcake toppers</i></div>
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<i>Mini donuts</i></div>
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<i>Hershey bars</i></div>
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<i>Hershey kisses</i></div>
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<i>Chinese take-out boxes 8oz, 16oz</i></div>
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Getting the right amount of candy is key, you don't want to run out mid-event but also don't want to have so much left over either. I wanted to go for an all white look with silver accents and decided to order the bulk candy from <a href="https://www.candywarehouse.com/">CandyWarehouse</a>. They have the best combination of quality, taste and price and they will ship our orders with cold packs if it contains candy that can melt. I had heard nothing but good things about them and was not disappointed. Their candy is seriously addictive! They sell complete buffet kits that include everything you would need such as jars, table covers, candy bags and scoops. They also offer small kits that contain a mix of candy by color or you can just build your own kit with only what you want. </div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEilF9IIej-x23u6FE52YqLTMXnIM2h_ZYhy2sWW8r4arrrdDhn1TSsUnHwpku0Y-sXFwWTp0LXtawPHRjKw1LVr_iEpLF3-c5ZTEtz_RUaW7-kWjPl7Klj57TSYlvIOr5onTmTFIkz_Ptjv/s1600/white-candy-buffet-131250-im.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="600" data-original-width="600" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEilF9IIej-x23u6FE52YqLTMXnIM2h_ZYhy2sWW8r4arrrdDhn1TSsUnHwpku0Y-sXFwWTp0LXtawPHRjKw1LVr_iEpLF3-c5ZTEtz_RUaW7-kWjPl7Klj57TSYlvIOr5onTmTFIkz_Ptjv/s640/white-candy-buffet-131250-im.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg01jg-iTQZORfyHpqZhDyZ6_BuRZI8QOTTjw-J_OnE9RwlZsfg-gMmCFwh9Z56wvXpEyYjR2wQHdmqoEsQSSt2GxwhmOjDzl3gsbthFjn_CuT8Nl5OjS6yV1BGhWyZTd5t0YuIQFYbJmRo/s1600/white-candy-buffet-assortment-129203-im3.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="600" data-original-width="600" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg01jg-iTQZORfyHpqZhDyZ6_BuRZI8QOTTjw-J_OnE9RwlZsfg-gMmCFwh9Z56wvXpEyYjR2wQHdmqoEsQSSt2GxwhmOjDzl3gsbthFjn_CuT8Nl5OjS6yV1BGhWyZTd5t0YuIQFYbJmRo/s640/white-candy-buffet-assortment-129203-im3.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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Ultimately I wasn't in love with their containers or bags so I decided to go with a smaller 'candy only' kit and add in some extras. To appeal to more people I wanted to have a good range of flavors as well as variety in the type of candy. I ended up going with the following in various shades of white; </div>
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<i>2lbs gumballs</i></div>
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<i> 60 pcs lollipops</i></div>
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<i>2.75lbs butter mint creams</i></div>
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<i>3lbs vanilla salt water taffy</i></div>
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<i> 5lbs chewy sour balls, </i></div>
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<i>5lbs hard candy balls</i></div>
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<i>16 pcs old fashioned ribbon candy. </i></div>
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In all it was about 25lbs of candy! Some issues I ran into with Candy Warehouse is that if you buy candy by color you are really limited by flavor too. Most of their white candy is either vanilla, mint or pineapple/pina colada flavor. Not everyone is a fan of pineapple so that's a bit annoying. Additionally they will substitute one type of candy for another without notifying you, so I ordered the swirl ripple lollipops shown above but instead received round sphere shaped pops which don't really have the same look at all. </div>
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The good news is the candy is well packaged and protected and arrived quickly and in good condition. Everything was sealed well and intact except the ribbon candy which is pretty delicate and had some broken pieces. This is how it looked when I opened the box. </div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgDWXKaKiP8ZMJnQ51MQq8bBIIdakM8oARO0PbPRh4N-RFnG9FxicS1g-wCRcS4F4pirygnzbZKIqRgSsFzKIok7mY6UjiMECUlJQobV-mC_O4UXjy9U5y4ccn4ixuy6iIFd699IiDC3THT/s1600/20181210_165708+%25282%2529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="940" data-original-width="1600" height="374" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgDWXKaKiP8ZMJnQ51MQq8bBIIdakM8oARO0PbPRh4N-RFnG9FxicS1g-wCRcS4F4pirygnzbZKIqRgSsFzKIok7mY6UjiMECUlJQobV-mC_O4UXjy9U5y4ccn4ixuy6iIFd699IiDC3THT/s640/20181210_165708+%25282%2529.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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To keep it fresh I left everything sealed until the day of our event when we set up the candy table. Thankfully it all tasted awesome, and I'm currently trying very hard to avoid eating all the leftovers!<br />
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Several other places also sell bulk candy by color such as Oriental Trading and Party City. I nearly ordered from Oriental Trading because I liked the look of their all white kit, but theirs seemed more expensive and their reviews were more mixed. Party City bulk candy is definitely more expensive with less variety but it's a good back up option if you need some on short notice since you can just run into the store to grab some packs.</div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhJJ0RuaXzF2JAwjEsARksZOBkwsomGUMAwa5IoA__zpUb7CrFPR6c28HvlpWOSjjNrZlmvSbK39yCC3gQQNheJrV6C9wsR-VkzXnVViz4xvvIAaSg70Ea1W8I53bkyyXHQ8NIpFTyB3Hrw/s1600/Oriental+Trading.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="583" data-original-width="627" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhJJ0RuaXzF2JAwjEsARksZOBkwsomGUMAwa5IoA__zpUb7CrFPR6c28HvlpWOSjjNrZlmvSbK39yCC3gQQNheJrV6C9wsR-VkzXnVViz4xvvIAaSg70Ea1W8I53bkyyXHQ8NIpFTyB3Hrw/s1600/Oriental+Trading.JPG" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><i>All white kit from Oriental Trading</i></td></tr>
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Once I had the decided on the bulk candy, I needed to get jars and containers to display them. Ideally glass apothecary jars have a nice elegant look as shown below. Additionally glass preserves flavor better and the lids help keep it fresh. </div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEguYSq5UzixIUK9m_4zcP3Ba2QTNvG332LjtH7ay6L9PL0IHIrMhXgYrE-ySZ9jkIcLBbVEIimP3cIVGKpYkZZnCDWmUqSODsIsJm3O7nxJMo7gN2WIvwr2mWwj3wtlJmTFCpYB56Ex2UI3/s1600/glass-candy-jars-decorative-1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="381" data-original-width="590" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEguYSq5UzixIUK9m_4zcP3Ba2QTNvG332LjtH7ay6L9PL0IHIrMhXgYrE-ySZ9jkIcLBbVEIimP3cIVGKpYkZZnCDWmUqSODsIsJm3O7nxJMo7gN2WIvwr2mWwj3wtlJmTFCpYB56Ex2UI3/s1600/glass-candy-jars-decorative-1.jpg" /></a></div>
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I also considered using over sized mason jars and cookie jars since I'd be more likely to reuse those, but in the end I decided to go with open plastic jars instead. They were the cheaper option and I wouldn't have to worry about them breaking in transit. Additionally I felt the lids would just be a nuisance since it already takes two hands to fill up a box with candy. I went to party city to check out their candy jars and they had a surprisingly good selection. I chose a variety of heights and widths that made sense for the candy I had purchased and would create a nice look together. If the jars are all the same height and size it's harder to arrange them on the table and still be able to see everything. Typically the taller narrower jars are in the back or at the sides with the shorter wider jars in the front and center. </div>
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I got the assorted jars below from the <a href="https://www.partycity.com/candy-containers?prefn1=productType&prefv1=Serveware#product-grid">candy container section</a> of party city. They are a combination of rhinestone trifle jars and pedestal jars. The mini scoops shown below are 5.5inches long and come in sets of 12 on amazon. They are the perfect size for scooping candy in the take out boxes.</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhJxIhgkmrddWEWEWyQu4RHNbE54CYjmyaAQPMoyElWUAHz1klhtwDzXNR41C1RQBWKMJzZujqK-2o9D78kgZwhpjLmInGgvOs_K-uh1AWE2RWcZ3FtaLzgD-9fxF8ezId79jugQUnXmZ_W/s1600/20190107_150031+%25282%2529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="861" data-original-width="1600" height="344" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhJxIhgkmrddWEWEWyQu4RHNbE54CYjmyaAQPMoyElWUAHz1klhtwDzXNR41C1RQBWKMJzZujqK-2o9D78kgZwhpjLmInGgvOs_K-uh1AWE2RWcZ3FtaLzgD-9fxF8ezId79jugQUnXmZ_W/s640/20190107_150031+%25282%2529.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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The one thing about having a color themed candy buffet is that it can be confusing for the guests to know which candy is which, so I had to label them somehow. I could have attached labels to the jars but decided to use table tent cards instead and wrote on them by hand.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiU41qEau-E5PES35tYD35KRfQXasfwfqrwtEo0adJ2l4W6vOkdFj4mwfXUD7N8uPzZVtKofFzOXlANe5CLCeaKI9gl0GhyfoOsBWE8cT7jOeTZWJatPBkHqs8vK4ftojl4mNO_ptD2oH0N/s1600/20190107_153700+%25282%2529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1501" data-original-width="1600" height="600" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiU41qEau-E5PES35tYD35KRfQXasfwfqrwtEo0adJ2l4W6vOkdFj4mwfXUD7N8uPzZVtKofFzOXlANe5CLCeaKI9gl0GhyfoOsBWE8cT7jOeTZWJatPBkHqs8vK4ftojl4mNO_ptD2oH0N/s640/20190107_153700+%25282%2529.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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I really liked the symmetry of the 7 jars I had purchased in that photo above and was reluctant to add anything else to the table that would throw off that symmetry. However I know that not everyone likes fruity or minty candy, and I feel no candy buffet is complete without some chocolate! I considered all white m&ms but decided to play it safe with wrapped chocolate instead, so I went for hershey kisses and hershey bars. </div>
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I displayed the kisses in ceramic letter dishes spelling out his name.</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhMb7HB4LcCRhqycUvCLLefAAnmo-AgPtbJBexxaZCXDk2xVXFlH9swvOBhTQ8YgPFK3u8K20Tuf79fPmaDlkiddvdb0WSu6NziJUKOB1rdWPly48Hhf6cmmvy33vb_qbe8XJMH0Kq-vHGq/s1600/IMG_7892+%25282%2529.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1096" data-original-width="792" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhMb7HB4LcCRhqycUvCLLefAAnmo-AgPtbJBexxaZCXDk2xVXFlH9swvOBhTQ8YgPFK3u8K20Tuf79fPmaDlkiddvdb0WSu6NziJUKOB1rdWPly48Hhf6cmmvy33vb_qbe8XJMH0Kq-vHGq/s640/IMG_7892+%25282%2529.JPG" width="462" /></a></div>
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Ceramic letter dishes are the cutest thing and best of all they are multi-functional and can be used to display small items like nuts and sweets but can also be used for non-food items like coins and rings or can be propped up as decor anywhere in the home. </div>
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I could have printed the candy wrappers myself but found a good deal online that included inner foil packs. So I assembled them using a glue stick to first seal the inner foil pack and then the wrap around label. The embarrassing thing is that the date on all of these were all wrong and said 2018 instead of 2019 🙈 For some reason it was only after the event when my mom was looking at the pictures that she pointed it out to me. Oh well, diy blunders happen sometimes! </div>
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Now that I had all the candy figured out, I added two baked items; buttercream frosted cupcakes as a centerpiece and powdered mini cake donuts. At this point I had more than enough to cater to everyone! I added silver cross toppers to the cupcakes and declared it mission accomplished! Some other fun options I could have added instead of donuts would have been white chocolate covered pretzels, yogurt covered raisins, jordan almonds, and popcorn!</div>
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Overall it was a fun diy project and my kids were so thrilled to see it all come together!</div>
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SimplyChic Mommahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01651364127425786116noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1158502287259494968.post-86850542159195565732018-12-11T15:36:00.000-05:002018-12-15T12:07:07.833-05:00Want~Need~Wear~Read<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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Christmas is such a mixed bag of emotions for me! I always describe it as a pagan celebration, dressed up as a christian holiday in disguise as a secular event. I grew up in a traditional christian home and I knew that Jesus wasn't born on Christmas day. I also knew that santa was fictional, and that the christmas tree had nothing to do with the birth of Christ. My goal as a parent is for my children to grow up with the same knowledge. Having said that, we still have stockings, and presents under the tree. I often feel conflicted about having a tree at all, but I found that avoiding the season all together is basically impossible and I'd rather use it as a teaching tool. Some things we absolutely do not do, is lie to them about who the gifts are from or bring in the creepy looking <a href="https://babyfromabove.blogspot.com/2012/12/the-elf-on-shelf.html">elf on the shelf</a>. With all the christmas spirit going around, it is so easy for christmas to be all about gifts, and for kids to become increasingly more demanding and ungrateful no matter how much they get. We have realized our kids have more than enough toys and really do not need many more. For this reason this year we decided to jump on board the popular <i>Want-Need-Wear-Read</i> trend. It is just as simple as it sounds, each child receives;<br />
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<i>Something they want</i></div>
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<i>Something they need </i></div>
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<i>Something to wear</i></div>
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<i>Something to read</i></div>
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<span style="text-align: left;">I love this idea because it translates in them really only getting one true gift and all the other three things are useful, practical and educational items that they would be getting whether it was christmas or not. It also limits the gifts to only 4 things, (not including stocking stuffers)</span></div>
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To manage expectations, we started talking to them about this way in advance, my daughter was initially confused about why she would only get one thing she wanted, but as is common with kids she has quickly warmed up to the idea and is currently super excited to find out what 4 things she will receive. She loves reading and is especially interested to know what her "<i>something to read</i>" will be. Their excitement is so infectious and I can't wait to see their faces as their open up their presents!<br />
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Happy Holiday Season 🎄<br />
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<br />SimplyChic Mommahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01651364127425786116noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1158502287259494968.post-21758109067223364862018-11-21T18:33:00.000-05:002018-11-21T18:33:35.595-05:00Apple roasted brussel sprouts<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;">
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We are in the final countdown to thanksgiving! And what better time to share a quick and easy recipe for one of my all time favorite side dishes! Not sure why but I always despised brussel sprouts. As far as I could tell they seemed to be the disgusting little nephew of cabbage. But some how by the time I got to college I was in love with them and would get so excited to see them on the menu when eating out. There are several ways to cook them but I prefer roasting because it retains all the flavor and goodness, and gets them nice and crispy. While I was pregnant I craved them constantly and would make batches of these to snack on. I especially love roasting them with apples for a sweet caramelized twist on a classic.<br />
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Best of all the it only takes a few ingredients;<br />
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<i>32oz Fresh brussel sprouts, </i></div>
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<i>2 to 3 Fuji apples, chopped</i></div>
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<i>Olive Oil</i></div>
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<i>Salt & Pepper</i></div>
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<span style="text-align: start;">I combine all the ingredients and roast in the oven at 425 degrees for about 30 minutes, or until it's as brown as I want it and then its ready to be gobbled down. Everyone in my household loves this dish so its been officially added to the rotation!</span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi3ibJE52jtOBO7pIxnda0d4vHaW0_1nMWiHaRb3iPiTmgwP9Gg3ZHOwRbqVUd6-TvAcMs3dIPaDqIov405YyFVZN5WppVxWZ2Vz46IxlbNUPiuSFwjfjUcqJJv2I_N88bppKt76YOCmnfB/s1600/20180821_202039.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="900" data-original-width="1600" height="360" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi3ibJE52jtOBO7pIxnda0d4vHaW0_1nMWiHaRb3iPiTmgwP9Gg3ZHOwRbqVUd6-TvAcMs3dIPaDqIov405YyFVZN5WppVxWZ2Vz46IxlbNUPiuSFwjfjUcqJJv2I_N88bppKt76YOCmnfB/s640/20180821_202039.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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Happy Thanksgiving!</div>
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SimplyChic Mommahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01651364127425786116noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1158502287259494968.post-61850653516956469342018-11-20T16:51:00.000-05:002018-11-20T16:51:53.033-05:00Solly baby wrap!<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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I posted previously about <a href="https://babyfromabove.blogspot.com/2012/10/baby-gear-baby-carriers.html">baby carriers</a> and my favorite at the time was the Ergobaby Sport carrier. I still really like the ergobaby but only without the newborn insert, which means I can only use it with a baby who is at least 5 months old.. As a mom of three I really needed to be able to wear my baby right away and have my hands free to get other things done. After looking around at all the soft wraps on the market I decided to try Sollybaby. I have to say I was really skeptical about it initially but I am gradually loving it more each day. Below is a detailed review of my experience using the Sollybaby wrap.</div>
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<b><u>Pros:</u></b></div>
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<i><b><u>Quality</u></b></i><b>:</b> At first glance the solly wrap is nearly identical to other wraps out there like the boba and moby wrap, however there are definite differences in quality. The solly wrap is one long strip of Lenzing modal fabric, while most other wraps are made of a cotton blend. Lenzing modal is a super soft, super strong, luxurious eco-friendly fabric; the perfect combination for cradling a precious newborn baby! Additionally the solly wrap has a built in storage pouch to make it easy to fold up and carry on the go; it fits easily into any diaper bag. The dyes used on the wraps as well as all their packaging are environmentally conscious and locally made so I can feel like a decent human being by supporting this product.</div>
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<b><u><i>Comfort</i></u></b>: Wearing my baby in the solly wrap is so much more comfortable than the other structured carriers I have used. There are no rings, buckles, or straps to cut into your back or shoulders. The wrap is very lightweight and the baby's weight is evenly distributed. Best of all this wrap allows my baby to be held in a natural sitting position rather than the dreaded crotch dangling of the baby bjorn style carriers.</div>
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<b><i><u>Product Support</u></i></b>: Solly baby is a fairly new business that started in 2011 and is still run with that small business feel. They offer free consultations if you have issues figuring out how to use the wrap properly, as well as being super responsive to questions, comments and concerns. Their social media presence is warm and inviting with a constant stream of inspirational posts for new mamas with lots of giveaways, and encouraging messages. They recently did a tutorial and pampering tour with Nordstrom and gave away free swaddles to each mom!</div>
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<b><u><i>Colors & Prints:</i></u></b> I simply love the range of options available, the current collection features the sweetest colors and prints, I wish I could have them all! But instead I have two neutral wraps; one in black and the other in marengo (smokey heathered grey). My reasoning for choosing neutral colors is to be able to wear them with any outfit and not worry about it clashing. With the upcoming sales I have my eye on a few other colors like cerulean, creamy gingham, and custard.</div>
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<b><u>Cons</u></b></div>
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<b><u><i>Care</i></u></b>:This is one of my biggest issues with this wrap. Due to the soft fabric, it has be washed with special instructions which is just a major hassle to a busy mom. The instructions require that this wrap should not be washed with any clothing that has snaps, buttons or zippers to avoid holes being poked in the fabric. Seriously? Snaps are the basic ingredient of baby clothing.Additionally I have two other kiddos! Requiring me to regularly run a separate delicate laundry cycle and sort out all the buttons and zippered items is just so bizarre to me! </div>
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<b><u><i>Head & Neck Support</i></u></b>: As soon as I put my newborn baby in this wrap he gets into what I call the "push-up" position and holds his head and neck up away from chest so he can look at my face. Sollybaby claims this counts as tummy time and is perfectly normal.</div>
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The only problem with this theory is that because the stretchy nature of the fabric after some time of this "tummy time" my son is able to pull his head back even further to the point that his head and neck are way too far back. This means I have to keep trying to support his head and bring his head back to rest on my chest. In fact if you look up the sollybaby hashtag on instagram you see many moms with their hand supporting their baby's head in the wrap which to me defeats the purpose a bit. Once he falls asleep however, I can tuck his head into one of the shoulder straps which offers full support, but for now he won't let me do that while he is awake. Even when his head is tucked in for support I need to keep checking that his airway is clear because his face can get smushed against the other shoulder strap. Overall for the newborn stage this wrap just doesn't offer the 100% handsfree experience that you can get with a more structured carrier.</div>
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<b><u><i>Learning Curve</i></u></b>: Structured baby carriers are "easy" to use because there isn't much of a learning curve, you just match up the buckles and straps and are good to go. Since the solly is just a long strip of fabric there is a steeper learning curve to really figure it out. Very subtle changes in the way you go through each step of tying the wrap can result in the wrap being too high, too tight, too loose etc... Its great that they offer the free consults that I mentioned above to help you get it figured out, however the consults are by video and only at fixed times. I simply didn't have the patience or time to wait for a consult so I relied on their video tutorials to get it right. </div>
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<b><u><i>Availability</i></u></b>: Currently these wraps are only available on the <a href="https://sollybaby.com/">solly baby website</a> with $5.95 standard shipping fees and at least a week and half wait! Needless to say in this day and age that doesn't feel quite right! I'm an amazon girl and I need things to be available on amazon with free two-day shipping! </div>
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<b><u><i>Price</i></u></b>: The solly baby retails at $65 per wrap which is on the higher end of the spectrum for soft wraps. Additionally their wraps are all the same price regardless of color or print whilst other brands offer basic solid colors for a lower price than the prints which makes sense to me. The good news is they offer 15% off your next purchase if you leave a review that includes a photo and with black friday around the corner they have a big sale coming up!</div>
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<b><u><i>Giveaway spamming</i></u></b>: While I love how frequently they have giveaways, they seem to always require you to tag your friends in separate comments under a post. With each comment counting as a separate entry. This requires you to either have many mom friends who have infants young enough to use solly products, or you have to just spam people who have no interest or use in the product. I understand that from a marketing perspective the idea of tagging people to a post directs traffic to their page but if I kept getting tagged in something I didnt need, I would just start to ignore that person and be annoyed. I prefer they have more giveaways that don't involve spamming your friends to win. Rant over. Maybe I'm slightly bitter I haven't won anything yet!</div>
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Overall I love using this wrap, I use it daily to go out for walks, as well as to get things done around the house especially when my two older kiddos get home from school and we are racing through dinnenr and bedtime routines. If you are on the fence about trying this I say go for it!</div>
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SimplyChic Mommahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01651364127425786116noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1158502287259494968.post-31631012264524086852018-10-14T09:16:00.000-04:002018-10-14T09:33:46.615-04:00Medela Sonata Breast Pump Review <div dir="ltr">
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Deciding on a breast pump this time around was agonizing. In the past I had used the Lansinoh double affinity pump, the spectra 2 and also the evenflo pump. This time my insurance only offered Medela pumps which I had avoided in the past due to the open system of the older models. This time I was torn between two of the newer options available that do feature a closed system; the Freestyle and Sonata.</div>
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The freestyle is a super small pump that you can clip to your waistband, so you can pump hands free and still be able to move around. The small size makes it perfect for pumping at work since its super lightweight.<br />
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While I really liked the size and portability of the freestyle, I ultimately decided to try the Sonata because it boasted a lot of new features that I wanted to try out. I started using the Sonata pump this month and these are my thoughts so far. <br />
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<i><b><u>Pros</u></b></i><br />
<b>Closed system</b> - As I mentioned, some of the medela pumps have an open system so there is no physical barrier between the milk and the tubes. This means milk and condensation can get in the tubes which is less than ideal to say the least. The Sonata pump is completely redesigned with a completely closed system.<br />
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<b>Bluetooth</b> - This pump has bluetooth capabilities and can be synced to the medela app. This allows all your pumping history to be synced too. This is great because you can see when you last pumped as well as the length of the pumping session etc. You can also log feeding sessions which can be surprisingly hard to remember in the crazy newborn stage. The awesome thing is the pump has built in memory to store information on each pumping session and then it syncs to your phone whenever you turn the bluetooth on. The only thing you need to enter manually is the amount pumped.<br />
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<b>Rechargeable Battery</b> - This pump has a built-in rechargeable battery so you are not forced to pump near a power supply or worry about needing a car adapter if you ever need to pump on the go.<br />
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<b>Pump rhythms</b> - Most pumps have one pump rhythm that starts in the let down phase and then switches to the expression phase after two minutes. For many pumps you can only adjust the suction strength. This pump has two different rhythms. To be honest I can't tell the difference between the two but definitely seem to get better output with second rhythm. As far as I can tell the difference must be very subtle.<br />
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<b>Volume</b> - This pump is average, it isn't the loudest pump I have used but not the most quiet either. It is definitely not as quiet as the spectra s2 but overall its not bad.</div>
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<i><b><u>Cons</u></b></i></div>
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<b>Pump parts</b> -<br />
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I was excited to see medela ditch their old membrane pieces and embrace a brand new design. The older membrane pieces are awful in my opinion because they are so tiny and just hard to keep track of when washing. You can very easily pour these down the sink if you hand wash your pump in a bowl. I also found it hard to separate the old membrane pieces. </div>
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The sonata pump membrane is a substantial improvement in size and sturdiness <i>but</i> the overall design is worse than previous models. </div>
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Most importantly the way the bottle screws into the pump piece is bizarre. It isn't a true screw on piece but rather a combo between a screw and snap. A normal screw top bottle is closed by turning the lid piece clockwise, the more you turn it the tighter it gets. With this pump as you tighten the bottle's connection to the pump it snaps apart.<br />
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So like goldilocks you need to tighten it just the right amount. To make matters worse, while pumping if you don't hold the bottle just right or if anything bumps into the bottle it snaps apart from the connector causing spills. Spilling freshly pumped milk is a gut wrenchingly horrible feeling! So maybe medela should focus on parts that fit securely enough to keep the milk inside the bottle! This is the biggest problem with the pump.</div>
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The membrane can sometimes kick milk back into the flange which causes the flange to fill up with milk and stop pumping correctly. To fix this you have to break the suction by taking the flange off the breast and reattaching. Once again this is something you can't do or won't even realize if you use a pumping bra; making this new pump seem highly unreliable.<br />
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Additionally aside from the flange piece, none of the pump parts from older medela pumps work with the sonata; not even the tubes. I don't see why they couldn't find a way to make the old tubes fit the new model. It's frustrating because I get medela pumping sets during each birth from the hospital lactation team but can't use most of the parts with this new pump. For the meantime you can't purchase replacement tubing by itself you need to buy a whole new set of all the parts for $53 to get another set of tubes.<br />
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Thankfully they do sell an 8 piece replacement kit with the membrane and connecting pieces for $25<br />
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For me that replacement kit was basically enough to create a whole new set since the original pump included 4 bottles and you only need 2 bottles per set. I also already had an extra set of flanges from the hospital. Hopefully by the time I need replacement tubes they will be available as a stand-alone item. </div>
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One thing I will say is I have seen a lot of complaints about how many parts this pump has. The number of parts doesn't bother me at all. However the size of the parts is an issue. The parts are big and clunky and feel like a major step back. This causes a lot of milk to get trapped between the parts and basically get wasted. I think most closed system pumps have about the same number of parts but their parts are significantly smaller and make more sense.</div>
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<b>Strange touch screen</b> - </div>
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The whole design of the pump is weird, with an awkwardly placed handle, topped off with an odd touch screen display that is illuminated. I had read and watched many reviews before deciding on this pump and each time someone mentioned how difficult it was to read the display I just rolled my eyes and thought it wasn't a relevant point. After actually using the pump I take back that thought. Aside from the power button there are no other buttons on this pump, everything is controlled from the touch screen display and it is very difficult to read unless you are in a completely dark room. Even then the numbers are so weirdly displayed its hard to understand what you are looking out, or how long you have been pumping based on the timer. The best way to describe it is the numbers seem to bleed into each other so in the above photo I had been pumping for 8 minutes and 14 seconds, but the 1 looks like a 3 and the 4 looks like a 9. Considering the technology available today this screen is really disappointing.<br />
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<b>Pump output</b>. This pump is marketed as being in someway similar to the medela hospital grade pumps. That is simply not true. The highest suction strength on this is probably a medium on other pumps I have used. In order to get a good amount of milk with this pump you really need to incorporate correct pumping techniques such as adjusting the hold of the pump to be able to massage during pumping; which you can't do if you use a pumping bra. To be able to massage while you pump you would need to hold the flange like a wine glass, but then the bottle is vulnerable to snapping apart from the connector piece.</div>
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<b>Sound</b> - This pump has unnecessary chimes and sounds, thankfully there is an option to mute it but it just doesn't seem like a useful feature to begin with</div>
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<b>Size</b> - This pump is a bit chunky to carry around. The round shape reminds me of the spectra s2, but I do like the cute little carry bag that's included in the box as well as the cooler bag and ice pack. I do wish this pump came with the option of a backpack instead like other medela pumps. </div>
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Overall this pump seems a heavily overrated to me especially at the retail price of $350. Thankfully insurance covered the full cost. (Thank you obamacare) I would rate it 2.5 stars at best and don't recommend buying this if you have to pay out of pocket for it. I think the concept has the potential to be a 5 star pump with a few tweaks and updates from medela.<br />
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SimplyChic Mommahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01651364127425786116noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1158502287259494968.post-56145507620301320702018-10-12T14:53:00.000-04:002018-10-12T14:53:25.402-04:00The Rule of Three!!!<br />
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Our family just grew by one! What an exciting time it has been for us. I created this blog as a first time mom of one and now all these years later I am an experienced mother of three! With all that experience, I'm still in awe at the wonder of pregnancy, birth and the newborn experience. There is simply nothing like it. It isn't any less amazing the second or third time around. We are so in love with our newest addition and can't wait to share more about our adventures with him.</div>
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SimplyChic Mommahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01651364127425786116noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1158502287259494968.post-36878384722140626062018-09-24T13:55:00.000-04:002018-10-08T12:59:16.748-04:00Washi tape birthday letters<div dir="ltr">
It's that time of year again! My precious son just turned two! As is our tradition, we had to do birthday photos and I decided to try a different type of prop! Wood letters have been my go to choice over the years, because I am obsessed with wood! And painting wood is so easy and satisfying! I've also played with textures and tried<a href="https://babyfromabove.blogspot.com/2016/04/tissue-paper-birthday-number.html"> tissue paper flower numbers</a> and a fabric covered numbers but this time I wanted to try something different. I decided to go with washi tape decorated paper mache letters</div>
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The world of washi tape is so magical and fun there are so many color, size and finish options. I picked up a mixed pack of earthy toned tapes from Joann's and decided to mix and match them for a more fun effect.The beauty of working with washi tape is that it is sticky but not too sticky, so you can re-position it multiple times. The downside is that on certain surfaces the tape needs a bit of glue to stay down flat. There is no right or wrong way to apply the tape, whichever way you do it it creates a slightly different pattern and effect.</div>
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For the first two letters I mixed and matched a couple of different patterns but used one solid color for the letter O.<br />
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As far as DIY projects go, I would say this was one of the more straightforward things I have tried. The best part of this project is my little ones "helping me" by covering everything they could lay their little hands on with washi tape!<br />
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SimplyChic Mommahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01651364127425786116noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1158502287259494968.post-83398163234465338552018-07-31T13:27:00.000-04:002018-08-10T19:35:47.746-04:00Slowcooker overnight steelcut oats<div dir="ltr">
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I'm not exactly sure how I survived my whole life without a crockpot because it's such a game changer! After years of debating if I really needed it, I finally gave in and bought a basic one last year and I'm already in love! One of our family favorites is steel cut oatmeal cooked overnight. This means its ready to eat right when we wake up, even my 22 month old can't get enough it. This recipe checks off everything on my list; it's filling, it's healthy and it's easy to make!<br />
I've played around with lots of different ingredients and flavors but ultimately settled on the ingredients below. Keep in mind you do need to have steel cut oats for this. They are hard grains and almost like broken rice. Any other version of instant oatmeal wont work, not even the old fashioned oatmeal. <br />
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<i>2 cups steel cut oats </i></div>
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<i><i>5 tablespoons flax seed</i></i></div>
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<i><i>5 tablespoons tricolor quinoa</i></i></div>
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<i><i>5 tablespoons wheatgerm</i></i></div>
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<i><i>5 tablespoons maple syrup</i></i></div>
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<i>3 cups of water</i></div>
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<i>3 cups of almond milk</i></div>
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<i>2 tsp cinnamon</i></div>
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<i>2 tsp vanilla extract</i></div>
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<i>1 tsp nutmeg</i></div>
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<i>1/2 tsp salt</i></div>
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<i>Old fashioned oats to thicken if necessary.</i></div>
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I simply dump all the ingredients except the wheat germ and syrup into the crockpot. I'll usually add a few extra cups of milk to reduce how much the sides get scorched.<br />
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This is where the old fashioned instant oatmeal comes into play; in the morning if the oatmeal is too runny I add a little bit of old fashioned oats to it and turn it to low setting which gets it to the consistency we like. If I had a more advanced crockpot with a timer I could set it to a delayed start or choose the option to switch to warm after a certain number of hours and I wouldn't need to play with the thickness in the morning. But alas I went the cheapie route and bought such a basic crockpot that I literally can only set it to low, high or warm.</div>
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I also add in the wheat germ and maple syrup in the morning and it smells delicious. The best part is you can save the left overs in the fridge and reheat it throughout the week and it still tastes good as new. </div>
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SimplyChic Mommahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01651364127425786116noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1158502287259494968.post-38042403761398006592018-06-10T10:01:00.000-04:002018-06-10T10:01:18.883-04:00Sugar Cookie Cream Cheese Mini Apple Pies!<br />
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For my daughter's 6th birthday I made mini pies in lieu of cake and favors.I wanted to still keep them fun for the little ones so I decided to use sugar cookie in stead of traditional pie crust. As usual I scoured the internet looking for something similar and didn't find any exactly like what I wanted, so I blended a few different recipes that I found. I especially like a <a href="https://www.bettycrocker.com/recipes/sugar-cookie-apple-cheesecake-pie/25ae4d44-4a04-4675-9359-9fc3da9f204c">better crocker recipe</a> that incorporated cream cheese in the filling. This is what I came up with!<br />
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The birthday was early sunday morning, and I wanted the pies to the as fresh as possible so I had to make these saturday night. With such a short time frame to make all these mini pies, I decided to take every shortcut in the book 😂<br />
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This is the list of ingredients and materials I used;<br />
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<i>Betty Crocker Dry Sugar Cookie dough </i></div>
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<i>Pillsbury refrigerated cookie dough</i></div>
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<i>Lucky Leaf Apple Pie Filling</i></div>
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<i>HEB Cream Cheese</i></div>
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<i>Flour</i></div>
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<i>Sugar</i></div>
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<i>Crisco</i></div>
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<i>Cinnamon</i></div>
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<i>Nutmeg</i></div>
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<i>Vanilla</i></div>
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<i>5" foil pie tins</i></div>
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<i>6"x6"x3" bakery boxes</i></div>
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<i>Bakers Twine</i></div>
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<i>Shredded paper filler</i></div>
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We started by creating a whipped mixture of cream cheese, sugar, flour,cinnamon, nutmeg and vanilla. Next we made a crumbly mixture to top the pies with. We made this with the dry cookie dough by combining dry cookie dough with crisco.<br />
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Once we had the filling and topping mixtures completed. We started laying out all our tins in an assembly line. We put a small amount of refrigerated cookie dough into each tin to form the base of the pie. Mini pies are tricky because the tins are quite small but also delicate so they can easily get bent out of shape! Once we had dough in each tin, we put a scoop of the cream cheese filling in each pie, followed by a generous helping of apple filling. Finally we topped it off with the crumble.<br />
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We baked these for about 40 minutes, probably a little longer than they needed. Some of them got a bit too crisp on the bottom but it was hard to tell if they cooking properly inside. Once they looked golden brown on top, I took them out and cut into one for a taste test. They were super yummy!<br />
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We left them out to cool and then assembled them in the boxes ready for the party!<br />
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SimplyChic Mommahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01651364127425786116noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1158502287259494968.post-3083649132309666712018-04-26T01:12:00.000-04:002018-04-26T01:12:22.920-04:00A build-a-bear birthday!<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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I'm not entirely sure how this is possible but I have a six year old! My daughter turned six last this month and we celebrated over the weekend with a party at build-a-bear workshop. </span><div dir="auto" style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12.8px;">
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When it comes to party places, there are literally an endless supply of options! Even the most unlikely places offer party packages for little ones so narrowing that choice down to one can be tough. In the past few years we have been to an unbelievable amount of jumping, bouncing and bowling parties with a few house parties sprinkled in for good measure! I decided to try something a little different especially since her last party was a jumping party. Once I realized our local build-a-bear offered VIP private parties I was sold! As with all party options there are always pros and cons and I'll share my experience below.</div>
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<b><u>Pros</u></b></div>
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Firstly and most importantly if you are a Costco member you might be able to get an awesome deal at build-a-bear. This is because Costco frequently runs promotions on build-a-bear gift cards with as much as 30% savings. Build-a-bear accepts these gift cards as payment for their party packages so you can walk away with a great deal! </div>
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The way the party is set up, each child gets a stuffed animal of their choice to take home. This means the favor is built into the party so that's one less thing to worry about. Of course if you are a DIY addict like myself and you thrive on making your own favors then you may or may not consider that to be a benefit. One thing about the stuffed toys as favors is that they are more likely to actually be used and enjoyed for years to come compared to favor bags or other tokens that have a drastically shorter life span. </div>
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The VIP party is great because it grants you access to the store at a time when it would normally be closed. Its pretty cool having the entire store to yourself, the kids had a blast with their private shopping experience.</div>
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If you have ever been to a build-a-bear workshop then you probably know the process of involves choosing a 'furry friend', giving them a name, adding a sound and then bringing them to life by putting a heart inside them before adding the stuffing. Birthday parties are extra sweet because each person gets two hearts and they all make a wish on the second heart and all those hearts go inside the birthday girls bear! Such a sweet moment. My daughter loves the fact that her bear has all those extra hearts inside with all her friends good wishes.</div>
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<b><u>Cons</u></b></div>
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As much as we loved our build-a-bear experience there are some downsides to keep in mind. I nearly didn't book a party with them because of some of these but I'm so glad I planned around them because it all worked out well. </div>
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Firstly most Build-a-bear workshops are located in malls and do not have party rooms. This means the party takes place in store, which can be chaotic if there are other shoppers basically crashing through your party. The good thing is most stores offer the VIP option so you can plan the party at a time before or after regular business hours. </div>
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As a result of the lack of party rooms there is no place to eat or cut a cake; this essentially requires you to plan an "after party" somewhere else in the mall or close by, for food and drinks. After looking online to see what other parents did for their "after party" I decided it was simpler to just head upstairs to the food court and enjoy the irresistible Hot Dog on a stick! I printed out a menu and took orders during the party so we could have the food hot and ready right on time. Everything on their menu is delicious!!</div>
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Having to split the party between two places makes it tricky to incorporate a cake since transporting it can be a hassle and slicing and serving it can get messy. I thought about just giving each child a cupcake to take home but then decided to try mini pies instead. The pies were a huge hit and I'll be posting about it soon.</div>
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One final point is that the bear options and accessories that each child gets all depend on the party package you choose. There is a big difference between the lowest and highest packages. The base package allows each child to choose between a very limited number of bears and then they get a t-shirt to go with it. The highest package allows them to select any bear in the store, add a sound, choose one clothing item, a pair of shoes and a backpack. The children had the most fun choosing outfits and shoes so I would definitely recommend a higher package combined with a smaller group of children. </div>
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SimplyChic Mommahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01651364127425786116noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1158502287259494968.post-40173623197709206752017-09-17T14:30:00.001-04:002017-09-17T14:30:42.379-04:00Giant Cupcake - Take Three!<div>
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My son turned one last week!🎂 How is that even possible?! It's such a cliche to say this but his first year just flew by! Balancing an insanely hectic work schedule with wife and mommy duties has been intense as always, but I make sure to make time for the things that matter!<br />
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I couldn't decide what kind of cake to bake for his birthday, and I thought why not do the giant cupcake again? I mean I already had the cake pan and I had baked it twice already so it seemed like a no-brainer. Of course if you remember from my previous two attempts, the giant cupcake is such an anxiety inducing feat to pull off, I wondered if I would be able to get it right again. For a moment I considered ordering a cake from some of the many delicious bakeries around but then what would be the fun in that!</div>
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With my 5 year old daughter as my trusted little helper, we assembled everything we needed and set to work on the cake. I pulled up my old blog post of the <a href="http://babyfromabove.blogspot.com/search?q=giant+cupcake">minnie mouse giant cupcake</a> I made for my daughters 2nd birthday and followed those instructions to a tee. I am always so thankful for this blog!<br />
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As with my previous attempts, things did go wrong. I somehow managed to overfill the cake pan even thought I put exactly right amount of batter in the both sides of the pan. So it dribbled over my brand new oven! I had to leave it in a lot longer to make it bake all the way through, so the edges were crispy to say the least! Thankfully the crunchiest parts got trimmed off, so it all worked out.<br />
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This time I used baking pam spray instead of the crisco &flour combo and the cake fell out of the pan beautifully! 🙌🏾 We left the cake to cool and got to work on the edible cupcake wrapper. Everyone who saw the pictures of the cake assumed the cupcake was in a silicone wrapper. I'm not sure why I never thought of that option, I could have potentially saved myself a ton of work last time but that would be too easy. Its so much more fun when the entire cake is edible! The last time I attempted this, it took a few failed attempts before I finally got it right. This time I knew exactly what to do so it was pretty straight forward. I melted down the candy melts and applied a thick layer to the inside of the pan. Allowed it to set in the freezer and then repeated that with another thick layer and left it over night in the freezer.<br />
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The next morning we assembled all the parts. First by trimming and frosting all sides of the bottom of the cake to get it to fit inside the cupcake wrapper shell. This is the most nerve wracking part because the shell could just crack into pieces if not properly made. Once that was done the rest was pretty straight forward. I added the top of the cake and frosted it. I clearly need better frosting skills, I tried to use a whipped frosting which kept melting right off the cake and looking goopy so I scraped it off with a knife to give it a more 'cinnamon swirl' look and then we added his birthday candle and brought my son out to see it!<br />
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I have to say, he was altogether supremely unimpressed with the cake, he loved the candle but couldn't possibly have cared any less about the cake. But it was still totally worth it! My daughter and I had a blast working on it together and he will get to look at the pictures one day and realize how much his first birthday meant to all of us!<br />
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SimplyChic Mommahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01651364127425786116noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1158502287259494968.post-2290106866435189422017-04-09T20:16:00.002-04:002017-09-11T13:30:46.940-04:00We started solids (AGAIN)!When baby J turned 6 months old we had already started to assemble all our baby food making gear. We kept all the gear from last time such as the <a href="https://www.amazon.com/Mumi-Bubi-Starter-Freezer-Storage/dp/B004A9ZF3Y/ref=sr_1_2_a_it?ie=UTF8&qid=1491783253&sr=8-2&keywords=mumi+bubi">mumi & bubi trays</a>, <a href="https://www.amazon.com/NUK-Mash-Serve-Making-Homemade/dp/B006Z6E8AG/ref=sr_1_1_a_it?ie=UTF8&qid=1491781533&sr=8-1&keywords=nuk+mash+and+serve+bowl">the mash & serve bowl </a>and of course my trusted blender. But instead of the ball canning 4oz jars we used last time, I decided to try the plastic food jars by <a href="https://www.amazon.com/Sage-Spoonfuls-Batch-Storage-Ounce/dp/B00NGXNWD0/ref=sr_1_1_a_it?ie=UTF8&qid=1491780883&sr=8-1&keywords=baby%2Bfood%2Bjars&th=1">sage spoonfuls</a><br />
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These are supposed to be a better option because they have measurement markings on the back and since they are made out of plastic you don't have to worry about them cracking from the wear and tear of being frozen and heated up. After using these for the past few weeks I can say they are satisfactory but nothing special. They don't seem to have a fully airtight seal especially in the freezer. I wouldn't buy these again or recommend them, but I'll make the best of them since I already have them. I would rather use the mumi & bubi food trays for freezing. </div>
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I also decided to switch things up a bit and not offer my son his first foods in the same order as I did with my daughter. I have to say that my blog has become such a good source of information for me 😁, I am constantly so thankful that younger me somehow had the time and dedication to post such detailed information about everything<span style="text-align: center;">😂</span>!<br />
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We decided to start with pureed carrots which he loved, followed by smashed peas and mashed avocado. All three were super easy to make, the carrots were cooked in water til soft and then pureed in a blender with breastmilk.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><i>Pureed carrots in Sage Spoonfuls jars</i></td></tr>
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When it came time to offer peas I decided not to blend it but instead go back to using my <a href="https://www.amazon.com/NUK-Mash-Serve-Making-Homemade/dp/B006Z6E8AG/ref=sr_1_1_a_it?ie=UTF8&qid=1491781533&sr=8-1&keywords=nuk+mash+and+serve+bowl">NUK mash and serve bowl</a> the good thing about that bowl is it preserves some texture and is perfect for mashing small portions that would simply disappear under the blades of a blender. I cooked them in a small amount of water until they were as soft as peas can get.<br />
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The avocados were by far the fastest and easiest because there was no cooking involved, I just put a few slices in the mashing bowl and had a quick batch of basic guac ready in seconds. He gobbled it all up!! I guess so far avocado is his clear favorite.<br />
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I'm constantly asked how I find the time to make all this baby food and I genuinely have no special answer to that question. I'm passionate about the food my kids eat and I think of introducing solid foods as such a fun adventure to embark on, I couldn't imagine doing it any other way.<br />
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<br />SimplyChic Mommahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01651364127425786116noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1158502287259494968.post-40605374769904002752016-11-30T15:48:00.000-05:002016-11-30T15:49:21.695-05:00A quick fix for cradle cap<strong><span style="color: #999999;">Cradle Cap:</span></strong><br />
/krādl kap/<br />
<em>A newborn scalp condition causing dry flaking and/or thick crusting of skin.</em><br />
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My daughter didn't get cradle cap so I didn't even know what it was until my son developed it. He had excessively dry skin all over which cleared up quickly except in his eyebrows and on his scalp. I noticed he had a thick layer of crusty skin on his scalp that looked like a terrible case of dandruff. Initially I thought I could get rid of it with wash cloth and Cetaphil baby shampoo but it turned out that shampoo was causing more harm than good. I'll post more about that in detail later.<br />
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I looked online and saw recommendations to try coconut oil and a brush but I guess the brush I used was the wrong kind so it didn't help much. It would lift some of the flakes off his scalp but the problem still persisted. His pediatrician told me not to worry about it because it resolves itself, but he has thick curly hair and so the flakes were basically trapped on his head. She told me to use mineral oil (baby oil) with a brush. But I still didn't have much luck getting rid of it.<br />
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In doing additional research online and speaking to fellow blogging moms I finally got some great advice that was able to eliminate his cradle cap within a few days. The advice was to combine two awesome products;<br />
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<a href="https://www.amazon.com/Mustela-Foam-Shampoo-Newborns-fl-oz/dp/B00D4OH20K/ref=sr_1_1_a_it?ie=UTF8&qid=1480537177&sr=8-1&keywords=mustela+infant+shampoo">1. Mustela Foam Shampoo For Infants</a><br />
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This foaming shampoo is awesome and I'll continue to use it even though his cradle cap is gone now. It has great cleansing power without being too soapy and rinses out quickly. Using it on its own without the brush wont eliminate cradle cap though. Trust me, I tried <strong><span style="color: #666666;">😂😂</span></strong>.<br />
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<a href="https://www.amazon.com/Bean-Clean-Cradle-Scalp-Massaging/dp/B010C5D8WY/ref=sr_1_3_a_it?ie=UTF8&qid=1480537237&sr=8-3&keywords=cradle%2Bcap%2Bbrush&th=1">2. Bean B Clean Cradle Cap Scalp Massaging brush</a><br />
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Unlike a regular hair brush, this brush has thick rubbery bristles that gently lift flakes off the scalp and away from the hair. The brush comes with the below instructions on how to properly use it. Its also important to take it apart after each use so it can dry properly<br />
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After using this brush just twice, the cradle cap had totally disappeared! Thanks to the awesome moms who recommended it to me. <br />
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SimplyChic Mommahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01651364127425786116noreply@blogger.com2