Ella’s Kitchen Giveaway

Once we moved and were in driving distance (when I say “driving distance” I mean the trip takes under 6 hours) of our families, we were in hog heaven. After living in the country Republic of Texas, Hawaii and Florida for the past decade, we were thrilled to be back amongst our people in the Mid-West. I can’t lie though, I was kind of hesitant to take on the task of driving in the car for 5 1/2 hours by myself with a 1 year old. But for the sake of proximity and family, I bit the bullet. I threw a bunch of toys, earplugs, snacks and gas in the car and headed out.

It was during one of many solo car trips with our Little Guy that I discovered the deliriously amazing Ella’s Kitchen baby & kid food. Calling this stuff baby food doesn’t do it justice…it’s more like baby trickery, with combos like Spinach, Apples and Rutabega or Carrots, Apples and Parsnips! How’s that for banging out some nutrition while your child is blissfully unaware? I can totally tell that the people at Ella’s Kitchen are parents because they have packaged their food in a pouch with a twist cap on the top. Your child can happily suck the life out of the pouch, get super good nutrients, fill their tummies AND stay entertained with the novelty of it all! Genius!

I bought a bunch of these bad-boys, and during our trip would toss them back at Lil Man sporadically for his entertaining & dining pleasure. Of course I ate sampled some as well (just to make sure the quality was up to par- and it was).

So let’s go over the ingredients in these pouches shall we?

Broccoli-Pears-Peas :   the ingredients are Organic Broccoli, Organic Pears & Organic Peas!!! (there’s not even water in there!)

Butternut Squash-Carrots-Apples-Prunes: the ingredients are Organic Butternut Squash, Organic Carrots, Organic Apples and Organic Prunes and Organic Lemon Juice (no water!!!)

Okay. You get the picture.

They are easy to find as well- just head to your local Tar-jay (Target) to stock up.

Now that you are envisioning your quiet, peaceful, organic fruits & veggie filled car ride, trip to the mall, or dinner time at home, here’s the great news- we are giving one  AMAZING winner a Sample BOX of Ella’s Kitchen (this includes 12 yummy flavas)!!

Here’s how to enter: (leave one comment for each)

1. Tell us the funkiest baby food combos you’ve tried with your little one (or would try). (Mandatory)

2. Sign up for our newsletter! If you already are receiving our {scoop} then suggest our Facebook page to 5 of your friends!

3. Share this giveaway on facebook *use the button below*

4. Tweet about this giveaway-  “Win a sample BOX of  @ellaskitchen organic baby food  from @yourbabybooty. Enter to win http://yourbabybooty.com/?p=3798 #babyfood #giveaway”

This giveaway closes at 9pm on Friday June 3rd. Winner will be announced on our FACEBOOK page on Saturday June 4th. This giveaway is open to US residents only (sorry!). Winner has 48 hours to email us (giveaways@yourbabybooty.com)  with their address, if they don’t,  then we’ll pick another winner. By entering to win this giveaway, you agree to provide us with feedback about the product- we’re all about helping out the mamas!!

Prenatal Vitamins {giveaway}

If you are already pregnant, you’re probably taking pre-natal vitamins. But those of you who aren’t pregnant but are of child bearing age might not know that taking prenatals is a good idea. Vitamins like folic acid (which is a naturally occuring B vitamin) help prevent neural tube defects (this is the part of the baby that develops into the brain and spinal cord). The folic acid really only works in the first few weeks of conception (most of the time, before women even know they’re pregnant), hence the reason taking prenatals when you are of child bearing age is a good idea. Of course make sure to consult with your healthcare provider.

Since you’re going to be popping some prenatal vities anyway, how about if for every bottle you purchase, one bottle was donated to a woman in need? That’s pretty sweet if you ask me. Build Nutrition is a vitamin company whose mission is to do just that: one for one. 

 According to Build Nutrition:

• 190 million children worldwide suffer from poor vision as a result of vitamin A deficiency
• 30 million babies are born undernourished each year
• 56 million pregnant women suffer from anemia, which can lead to complications during pregnancy and birth
• 18 million lives are impaired annually due to iodine deficiency

How cool is that you can help make a difference while ensuring you’re getting the necessary nutrients too?

And now for some super duper great news:  Build Nutrition is giving a way a 2 month supply of pre-natal vitamins to THREE lucky mamas-t0-be!!

You have 6 entries possible!! :  (Make sure to leave us a comment for each one separately)

1. Leave us a comment telling us what you’re looking forward to the most about being pregnant (or are enjoying the most about being pregnant). *required

2.  Subscribe to our newsletter. (We won’t spam you, & there are some fabulous discounts just for you mamas)

3. Tweet about this giveaway: “Win a 2-month supply of prenatal vitamins http://yourbabybooty.com/?p=3640 @buildnutrition  #giveaways #pregnancy”

4. Be our friend on Facebook & Twitter

5. Follow Build Nutrition on Facebook.

6. Share this page with your Facebook friends and get another entry!! (click the share on facebook icon below)

The details- This giveaway ends on Saturday, April 30th at 9pm EST. Entries will be verified. A winner will be selected using random.org and will be announced HERE on our blog on Sunday, May 1st.  Winner must respond by email (giveaways@yourbabybooty.com) in 48 hours in order to claim their prize! Winner must live in the continental United States or Canada. By entering to win, winner agrees to provide feedback on the product, to Your Baby Booty, after using the giveaway product (we’re all about helping other new mamas).

Green Beauty

Spring has sprung (for most people) and it’s time to expose your unshaven white legs, arms and gnarly feet to the glorious sun! Before you go to the park in your sandals and send people running for their sunglasses, why not treat yourself to some non-toxic goodness?? Keeki™ Pure and Simple has JUST what you need: non-toxic, organic & gluten-free nail polish and lip balm! Green beauty may not have been important to you before, but being pregnant can make us aware that it really and truly is important to watch what products we put on our bodies (even when we’re not with-child). Keeki™ Pure and Simple products are USDA organic certified, meaning that they are legit (and 95% of their ingredients are in fact, organic). You will not find a single paraben or phthalate in their products, instead you’ll find things like beeswax,  coconut oil & sweet almond oil. (yum, sounds good enough to eat). Their lip balms and lip shimmers are fabulous. Your lips will thank you a million times after you slather them. They don’t leave your lips feeling waxy (huge bonus) but moist and supple and soo, soo kissable.

Ingredients in nail polishes typically include formaldehyde, toluene, acetone, phthalates, and FD&C colors. The risks associated with these chemicals include everything from birth defects to hormone disruption to increased cancer risks – that’s on top of the damage they do to the environment. Keeki’s™ nail polish is water based (with no pesky, chemical agents to bond the polish to your delightful nails) so follow the application instructions carefully so that your polish won’t peel off or dissolve when in contact with water.

Free your feet from the confines of socks and shoes and get to paintin’, and know that you’re using fabulous products, created by mothers just like you who want to make sure we ditch those nasty toxins & treat ourselves right (and our babies too).

How about winning an Spring Gift Set of Keeki™ Pure and Simple? One lucky mama will win: 1 Keeki™ Non-Toxic Nail Polish Remover, 1 Keeki™ Non-Toxic Base, 1 Keeki™ Non-Toxic Top Coat, and 1 Keeki™ Non-Toxic Raspberry Sorbet Nail Polish.

Here’s How to Enter our Green Beauty Giveaway: (Make sure to leave us a comment for each one separately)

1. Go to the Keeki™ website and tell us what color  nail polish you’re diggin’ and when the last time you had a pedicure was:)

2.  Subscribe to our newsletter. (We won’t spam you, & there are some fabulous discounts just for you mamas)

3. Tweet about this giveaway: “Win non-toxic nail polish & goodies http://yourbabybooty.com/?p=3581 @keekipuresimple  #giveaways”

4. Be our friend on Facebook & Twitter

5. Follow Keeki™ on Facebook.

The details- This giveaway ends on Tuesday, April 19th at 9pm EST. Entries will be verified. A winner will be selected using random.org and will be announced on our FACEBOOK PAGE on Wednesday, April 20th.  Winner must respond by email (giveaways@yourbabybooty.com) in 48 hours in order to claim their prize! Winner must live in the continental United States or Canada. By entering to win, winner agrees to provide feedback on the product, to Your Baby Booty, after using the giveaway product (we’re all about helping other new mamas).

Happy St. Patrick’s day!

There are times when you have a newborn and you need to do things like load the dishwasher, throw in a load of laundry, get your mail from the mailbox, or have your hands free to pay bills. For new mamas the answer is the baby carrier. Now there are lots of different types of baby carriers but the Sleepy Wrap is a great one especially for a snuggliscious newborn. The Sleepy Wrap was actually created by a world traveling mama who was searching for a comfortable and functional baby carrier. She found an amazing material that was functional yet soft and had elasticity to it.

If you’re going to be getting in and out of your car, running errands, for example this one isn’t ideal, since it takes some time to put on and take off (at least until you get the hang of it). It’s fabulous though for any other scenarios. Baby will feel warm and safe against your chest and hearing your heartbeat will probably lull your baby off to sleep– hence the name “Sleepy Wrap.”

Lots of people who own the Sleepy Wrap and other competitor’s versions say that they really like the Sleepy Wrap because it’s a heavier, higher quality knit and super soft. It has elasticity to it so that it won’t sag.

Nap Inc. -makers of the Sleepy Wrap- make a Classic (available in a wide variety of colors) and Organic  (available in three colors) Sleepy Wrap.  Find out if Luck is on your side today and register to win!!

Here’s what you do: (Make sure to leave us a comment for each one separately)

1. Go to the Sleepy Wrap website and tell us what color you like and tell us what you’ll do with your hands-free status!

2.  Subscribe for our newsletter. (there are some fabulous discounts just for you mamas)

4. Follow us on Twitter and if you already do, {thank you very much}

The details- This giveaway ends on Thursday, March 24th at 9pm EST. Entries will be verified. A winner will be selected using random.org and will be announced on our FACEBOOK PAGE on Friday, March 25th..  Winner must respond by email (giveaways@yourbabybooty.com) in 48 hours in order to claim their prize! Winner must live in the continental United States. By entering to win, winner agrees to provide feedback on the product, to Your Baby Booty, after using the giveaway product (we’re all about helping other new mamas). Feedback from the winner will be posted under the product on YourBabyBooty.com. Good luck!

One of the (many) perks to living in Western Michigan is having wonderful organizations, boutiques and businesses which are all about supporting expectant mamas. Baby Beloved is one of them. Baby Beloved offers breastfeeding support, pumps and supplies, cute baby stuff, friendly staff,  & lactation consultants (who do in-home visits)- roll it all up together and you have an amazing burrito of support and encouragement for new mamas as they venture into the world of breastfeeding. They also host lots of amazing classes like Infant Massage and Choosing a College Plan- and have free services like bra fittings by certified fitters, and complimentary weight checks- it’s super awesome.

A super duper important thing to know is that they rent and sell breast pumps. They sell them (on average) for $90 CHEAPER than anywhere else!! (Unfortunately they do not sell them online at this time). So if you’re in Western Michigan, stop by and get your pump!

Now that those of you outside Western Michigan, are green with envy, just know that places like this may also exist in your town. How do you go about finding this amazing support? Google or Bing “breastfeeding support groups” and your city name. Visit some baby boutiques in your town and see if they offer any free classes or support groups at their store and lastly, talk to all your friends who have gone before you on this pregnancy journey. They probably know of some great resources.

Baby Beloved has donated one Vulli Sophie Giraffe to giveaway to one of you lucky mamas! If you’re not famil with Sophie, read up on her here.

Thursday night at 9:00pm we are going on Twitter to chat about breastfeeding. Bring your questions and/or your helpful breastfeeding hints AND you could win a Sophie!

Join our Conversation Thursday at 9:00pm on Twitter & Win:

1. Sign up for a Twitter account. It will literally take you a couple minutes to get set up.

2. Follow us on Twitter and also follow Baby Beloved.

3. Log on to Twitter Thursday (that’s tomorrow) at 9:00pm-using a website like TweetChat to follow the conversation is super helpful and really makes it all make sense.

3. Use the hashtag #breastfeedingsupport for all your tweets (see “TweetChat” above).

3. We will chat for a few minutes about breastfeeding (there will be a lactation consultant on hand to answer questions) , and we’ll give away the Sophie!

Ya with us??  If you have any questions, leave them below. See you Thursday Night on Twitter at 9:00pm!

The Halo Innovation SleepSack Wearable Blanket is a MUST for your baby registry. You simply need to have one. Period. The reason? These wearable blankets keep your little, squirmy, bundle of joy safe and sound while in their bed. They’re even proven to reduce SIDS and will go miles and miles in reassuring you that your bambino is neither too hot nor too cold during the night. The mind behind these SleepSacks is a father who lost his first child to SIDS. Ever since, he has continued creating a wonderful line of safe sleeping wearable blankets while educating families on safe sleeping practices. A portion of every sale is donated to charities in the fight against SIDS. That’s pretty sweet. (Another bonus is that Halo Innovation SleepSacks are now available at Target!)

Halo Innovations SleepSack is giving away one of their fabulous wearable blankets! How about a “woohoo!” We’re mixin’ things up today with our giveaway, so pay close attention.

To win this fabulous blanket, go to the Halo Innovation website and peruse their wearable blankets, pick the one that you love. Then, at 9:00pm eastern time TONIGHT (Thursday) go to our Facebook page. When we say “go” comment as many times as you want, telling us which blanket you love. (you can copy and paste the same comment). Comment #32 will win.

It’s that easy!  So to recap:

1. go here and pick out your fave wearable blanket.

2. at 9:00pm EST go to our facebook page and wait for the “go”

3. leave as many comments as you want telling us which blankie you love (copy and paste is perfectly acceptable).

4. if you’re #32, you win.

See you tonight!

And the new mama that will be receiving the gift of a happy, sleepy baby is….

REBEKAH!!! Entry #8.

Please email giveaways@yourbabybooty.com to claim your Miracle. High fives to all who entered. We have another giveaway coming soon and we’re going to mix it up a bit with how we do it, so stay tuned:) Happy Thursday everyone.

All new mamas could use a miracle now and then. Besides the obvious “shower” or “eating a meal without interruption”, there’s the other big player, sleep,  and the lulling of cranky pants babies off to LaLa Land. Miracle Blanket is a swaddle blanket like no other. This blanket (created by a desperate, sleep deprived dad of three) makes it super easy for any parent or caregiver to wrap up that baby snug as a burrito- with its armflaps (that keep baby’s arms snug), its foot pocket and the wonderful,generous sized, soft material to wrap your baby. (You can see a demonstration here.) Unlike other swaddle blankets, even the most talented Houdini Baby won’t escape this swaddle.  Research shows that lots of fussiness is eliminated by classic swaddling and gentle abdominal pressure. The way that the Miracle Blanket is designed actually includes these very same features,  hence the “miracle.”

Though it seems counter intuitive to swaddle your babe (don’t they need to stretch and move??), you’ll be amazed to see the calming effects that it has on babies. Skeptical? Check this. Newborns have pretty much zero control over their flailing arms and legs and often jolt themselves awake by their flailing pieces. Swaddling makes babies feel safe and secure (remember they were in a womb for 10 months and it was pretty cozy in there). Plus, babies won’t accidentally scratch themselves with their dragon lady nails and having them swaddled while nursing or feeding makes it a lot easier since they won’t be so squirmy- both extra wonderful perks of swaddling. So are you convinced that swaddling is a must for your baby and your sanity too?

Miracle Blanket is giving away one super soft yellow with aqua trim Miracle Blanket to one of you mamas!!

Here’s what you do: (Make sure to leave us a comment for each one separately)

1. Go to Facebook and like Miracle Blanket.

2.  While you’re on Facebook go ahead and like us too – if you’re already our fan then suggest our site to 5 friends by hitting the “suggest to friends” button under our logo on the left side of our fb page.

3. Have you signed up for our newsletter yet? (there are some fabulous discounts just for you mamas each week)

4. Follow us on Twitter and if you already do, {thank you very much}

5.  Tweet this: “New parents need sleep? Win a @miracleblanket from @yourbabybooty enter to win http://yourbabybooty.com/?p=3271 #giveaway”

The details- This giveaway ends on Wednesday, February 16th at 9pm EST. Entries will be verified. A winner will be selected using random.org and will be announced here on Thursday, February 17th.  Winner must respond by email (giveaways@yourbabybooty.com) in 48 hours in order to claim their prize! Winner must live in the continental United States. By entering to win, winner agrees to provide feedback on the product, to Your Baby Booty, after using the giveaway product (we’re all about helping other new mamas). Feedback from the winner will be posted under the product on YourBabyBooty.com. Good luck!

Drumroll please…. GINA get ready to rock! You’re the winner for our sweet giveaway:) Please email giveaways@yourbabybooty.com to claim your prize (and let us know which formula and scent you’d like). Stay tuned for more fun to come:)

Okay rock star mamas, have you heard of Rockin’ Green Cloth Diaper & Laundry Detergent? This company has single-handedly put the “Rock’n'Roll” back into laundry detergent (and you didn’t even think that was possible). We know. This here detergent is stellar and will knock the ammonia and poo out of your stinkiest of dipes or other laundry. There are three different formulas to suit your various needs: soft rock, this formula is for peeps with soft water or if you or your babes tend more towards the “sensitive” side of things. Classic rock is the formula that started this whole party in the first place, it’s for those with “middle of the road water” and a good place to start if you’re unsure where you are in the water table. Hard rock is for those of you who struggle to get things clean with your really hard water, this will literally knock your dirty socks right off. If you still need back up for some super ugly funkiness, you can also get their funk rock , they also refer to it as their “ammonia bouncer.”  As if this party with your dirty cloth diapers isn’t fun enough, you can also choose from cool scents such as “Bare Naked Babies” “Smashing Watermelons” and “Lavendar Mint Revival”.  All of their formulas wash out  without leaving any soapy residue–no hangovers here. Your dipes will be verry, verry clean.  And have we mentioned that the “Green” in Rockin’ Green is because they use no dyes, no enzymes, it’s phosphate free, Vegan, bio-degradable and all their scents are 100% natural?  So you can Rock out with your bad selves while doing laundry and feel great about it.

So one rock star of a mama will receive a bag of Rockin’ Green Cloth Diaper and Laundry Detergent. {Woot woot.} You can even pick the scent and the formula. {fist pump}

Here’s what you do: (Make sure to leave us a comment for each one separately)

1. Go to Rockin’ Green’s website and tell us which formula or scent rocks your world.

2. Sign up for our newsletter (there are some fabulous discounts just for you mamas each week)

3. Swing by Facebook (cause we know you love it there) and “like” us and if you’ve already done that, suggest our site to 5 friends by hitting the “suggest to friends” button under our logo on the left hand side of the page.

4. Follow us on Twitter and if you already do, thank you very much, tweet this giveaway to the Twitter world.

The details- This giveaway ends on Superbowl Sunday, February 6th at 9pm EST. Entries will be verified. A winner will be selected using random.org and will be announced here on Monday, February 7th.  Winner must respond by email (giveaways@yourbabybooty.com) in 48 hours in order to claim their prize! Winner must live in the continental United States. By entering to win, winner agrees to provide feedback on the product, to Your Baby Booty, after using the giveaway product (we’re all about helping other new mamas). Feedback from the winner will be posted under the product on YourBabyBooty.com. Good luck!