Slowing Down to Enjoy the Season

I've been forced slow down the last few days.  Not for myself, but I've had two very sick children!  Baby boy has had a virus that had his fever spiking to 103 and Little Missy had the virus also, plus then she got pink eye just to make things more interesting!  Luckily everyone seems to be on the up-swing, but the one thing that this did was to make me slow down and pay attention to my family.  We've  been shut-ins for a few days, but we have made the most of it...staying in PJs until after lunch, finishing up on our decorating, reading Christmas stories, watching fun holiday movies, and just enjoying family time.  Yes, in the back of my mind I was counting down the shopping days and trying to figure out what is left to be done, but after a busy season with the business (yea!), it was nice to slow down.

Step 2: Made in the USA! Lifestyle Party Time Kitchen Review

My daughter has a Step 2 Lifestyle Kitchen that she received several years ago for Christmas, and it has remained one of her favorite toys…and one of ours as well!  The Step2® Company is headquartered in Streetsboro, Ohio, and is the largest American manufacturer of preschool and toddler toys and the world's largest rotational molder of plastics.  I wanted to point out that the majority of Step 2’s products are made in the USA, and many are available in your local box store and toy stores.  However, some of the accessories that Step 2 provides with their larger items, such as kitchens and tool benches, are imported, but they are very clear about that on their website and packaging.  For example, the Step 2 Kitchen my daughter has is made in the USA, but the kitchen accessories were not.  Even though they could technically label it “Made in the USA” according to the FTC, it is refreshing to know that Step 2 believes that they have a responsibility to clearly communicate where their products are made.   In addition to the Step 2 Kitchen we purchased, we also bought a matching table and chairs set, and a picnic table for outside.  We have been extremely pleased with the quality and durability of the products.  The have lasted well through my daughter’s use, and will continue to be a part of our family playtime as my son begins to enjoy them.  Step 2 products can be purchased on their website, or at local retailers such as Target and Toys R Us. 

Santa Bear Giveaway Winner!

Congratulations "Beckee", comment #96!  You have won the Santa Bear from Stuffington Bear Factory!  Look for my email!

Thank you all for visiting our blog and entering our contest!  I hope you will come back again soon!

Stuffington Bear Factory Giveaway Ends Tonight!

Just a reminder that the Stuffington Bear Factory Giveaway for the Santa Teddy Bear, in your choice of Santa Claus or Mrs. Claus outfit, ends tonight at 11:59 EST!  Enter by commenting on the Giveaway Post.  Thanks for visiting!

Tree by Kerri Lee Giveaway Winner!

Our winner of the Baby Musicbox Block in turquoise is....."Tori" comment #58!  Look for my email!

Thank you all for entering!  Be sure to check out our other giveaway ending tomorrow:  Santa Teddy Bear by Stuffington Bear Factory!

Reminder: Tree by Kerri Lee MusicBox Block Giveaway Ends Tomorrow!

Just a remider about the beautiful handcrafted vintage-style musical blocks available in our Giveaway!  A perfect little keepsake gift for a baby nursery or expectant mommy.  Ends tomorrow, so leave your comment on the giveaway post to enter!

Stuffington Bear Review & Giveaway

Meet Stuffington Bear…he is cute, soft, cuddly, he will be your best friend and guess what? He is MADE IN THE USA! Stuffington Bear Factory is a USA toy manufacturer of teddy bears, stuffed animals and accessories located in Phoenix, Arizona. They have been creating unique American-made stuffed animal gifts since 1959! Stuffington Bear Factory’s creations are high quality and unique, and are designed to be a lasting friend. Stuffington Bear Factory is one of the few stuffed animal manufacturers with production based in the United States. They are proud of their Made in the USA status. Stuffington’s stuffed animals handmade and are 100% Made in the USA, including the materials.

Stuffington has such a variety of animals it would be difficult to list them all. They have the traditional teddy bears in numerous colors, shapes and sizes. My favorite is the Friendly Bear…his arms are stretched wide for a big hug and cuddle! Friendly bear comes in many colors, including golden, white, pink and blue. Of course there are tons of other bears, so everyone can find one that suits their personality. Stuffington also offers various other animals, such as cats, dogs, cows, monkeys, penguins, frogs…to name a few! And most animals can fit into their stuffed animal clothing line, perfect for hours of fun dress-up play.

Stuffington generously provided a bear for us to review; their newest member of the family, Sweetie Bear, in her special Mrs. Santa dress! The oldest of my product testers swiped her away before I even had a chance to snap any pictures. Once I managed to get my hands on the bear, I found it to be soft and cuddly, and so precious in her red and white dress. No wonder my daughter wants to snuggle with her on these cold nights! Of course to me, the softness is great. But the quality is most important. The bear is proof that Stuffington Bear Factory has a focus on quality and safety, and knowing that these bears are handmade from scratch using American-made materials gives me that extra peace of mind.


BUY IT: You can find a variety of Stuffington Bear’s wonderful friends on our All-American Baby retail website!


WIN IT: Stuffington Bear has offered to give away another of their special Santa Sweetie Bears to a lucky follower! The winner can choose between the Mrs. Claus dress or Santa Claus suit for their bear.

1. Mandatory Entry: please visit our website (http://www.all-americanbaby.net/) and return with a comment on one item that you LOVE!


Additional Entries (must complete mandatory entry first):


2. "Liking" All-American Baby on Facebook


3. “Liking” Stuffington Bear Factory on Facebook


4. Follow us on GFC


5. Subscribe via email or RSS (one entry each)


6. Add your networked blog


7. Grab our Holiday Button and post it on your blog or website for TWO entries (leave the link in your comment)


8. Blog about this giveaway with a link back to All-American Baby Blog, and leave the URL to your blog post in the comment for TWO additional entries.


Be sure to leave an additional comment for each entry to get credit! And please leave a way to contact you! Comments without contact information will be disqualified. Contest winner will be drawn using Random.org. Winner has 24 hours to respond or another winner will be drawn (this is a time sensitive prize, so winner will need to respond ASAP). Contest ends December 15, 2010 at 11:59 p.m. EST.

Please note that all comments are moderated, so your comment will not appear until it has been approved.

Disclosure: This blog is used to promote American-made children's products, and our retail website All-American Baby. Many of the products reviewed here are available for purchase from our online store, http://www.all-americanbaby.net/. I am always on the look-out for only the best products to offer to parents looking for American-made items. I will only promote high quality, safe products that are made in the USA, whether in my store or in my blog. Stuffington Bear Factory is providing the gift for the winner of this giveaway, and provided a bear for me to review. All views and opinions with regard to the products or manufacturer itself are my own and were not influenced, nor reviewed, by the manufacturer prior to posting. Offer Valid US only!

If Motherhood was a paying job....I'd be fired!

Since this blog mostly promotes my business I don't often vent here.  But I'm sure others are feeling the same stress this time of year!  Well, yesterday I forgot to send my child's library book back to school.  So she had to watch all the other kids check out a book and didn't get one (keep in mind we are talking about 4 year olds).  And we were late for preschool today.  Again.  Okay, so I know it is just preschool, but isn't this supposed to help set a precedent and teach our children the importance of school so that they are off on the right foot?  Oh well.  Then, I was the last parent to send in that 5 feet of ribbon the teacher asked for (several times), and guess what I sent?  Old purple ribbon that had been in my craft box for about 5 years.  Hopefully they didn't mean Christmas ribbon.  Oh, and I sent my toddler to his MMO class with a teeny tiny fever.  Yes, I am now that parent.  When I was a teacher, it drove me crazy when parent sent their sick kid to school.   I mean, don't they care that the child (might) be sick?  Don't they notice?  Well, the shoe is on the other foot now.  He was acting normal, and if he had a fever it was very low...rules say anything over 100 degrees to keep them home.  (BTW, he had a fun time and was fine...just for the record).  But I felt guilty the whole time! 

Let's see, what else?  I forgot to RSVP to a birthday party and the mom had to chase me down in the hall to find out that we can't come.  I didn't reply to an email about my daughter's playdate, so that mom had to call to make sure I remembered.  I didn't get my niece a birthday gift and her birthday was Monday. We only have the lights on the tree and nothing else done.  Any Christmas shopping that can be done online is finished, otherwise I haven't started.  And that is just in the last 24 hours!  So, all of this doesn't seem that bad, but I was thinking that if I messed up this many times at a job, as small as the mistakes are, I would most likely be filing for unemployment! 

Luckily my current employer can be placated with a big sippy cup of milk and a snuggle.  And the other CEO I work for just wants someone to sit down and read Christmas stories with her and color pictures.  So, to make it up to my bosses, maybe tonight I will make some yummy (slice and bake) cookies and watch Rudolph.  Hmmm, maybe I'm not so bad at this job after all!

Tree by Kerri Lee - Have a Handmade Christmas Review & Giveaway! {CLOSED}

I have been familiar with the handmade, timeless baby gifts and room accessories from Tree by Kerri Lee for several years. These beautiful products are vintage-inspired yet modern for today's parents and children. Kerri always strives to design products that are original, with artful details and innovative features.

Talented, hard-working artisans make these 'good baby goods' in a century-old general store building, just two hours from New York City. Why “Tree”? According to Kerri, it’s a nod to her products, many of which are made from wood, always responsibly harvested. It also brings to mind fun, happy activities enjoyed as children, like climbing trees and swinging on a tree swing. And as Janice May Udry says in her 1956 Caldecott award-winning children's book A Tree is Nice:

"Trees are very nice. They fill up the sky. They go beside the rivers and down the valleys. They live up on the hills. Trees make the woods. They make everything beautiful... "

You will find beautiful vintage inspired music and jewelry boxes, personalized baby gifts, and whimsical toys such as brightly painted baby blocks to stuffed “Puffs”! In addition, Tree by Kerri Lee has a variety of vintage-style room décor, including wall frames, growth charts and more.

My favorite of Tree by Kerri Lee’s products is the beautiful handmade, hand-painted wind up music boxes. When we first brought these items into our retail store, my daughter oohed and ahhed over it, as only a little girl can do. The sweet tinkling melody produced when you wind the knob is a sound from music boxes of my childhood. The words printed on the back make a fun family moment as we match the words to the song. Of course, my daughter now has one of her own in her room, a birthday gift that she requested. Although she is almost 5 now, she still turns the knob on a daily basis.

In addition to the hand-painted music boxes, Tree by Kerri Lee also has the smaller but equally darling Musicbox Blocks. These cute little boxes are handcrafted with sweet simple images embroidered on wool felt and trimmed with cotton. The song name is embroidered on one side, and the music plays by winding a key. This is such sweet addition to any nursery décor!


BUY IT: Tree by Kerri Lee’s Musicbox Blocks can be found on our retail website All-American Baby, and additional products can be found on the Tree by Kerri Lee website.


WIN IT: One of our lucky followers will win their very own Musicbox Block in Turquoise, generously provided by Tree by Kerri Lee.

1. Mandatory Entry: please visit our All-American Baby website and/or Tree by Kerri Lee and return with a comment on something that you LOVE!


Additional Entries (must complete mandatory entry first):

2. "Liking" us on Facebook

3. Follow us on GFC

4. Subscribe via email or RSS (one entry each)

5. Add your networked blog

6. Grab our Holiday Button and post it on your blog or website for TWO entries (leave the link in your comment and leave 2 comments)

7. Blog about this giveaway with a link back to All-American Baby Blog, and leave the URL to your blog post in the comment for TWO additional entries.


Be sure to leave an additional comment for each entry to get credit! And please leave a way to contact you! Comments without contact information or commenters who do not include the mandatory entry will be disqualified. Contest winner will be drawn using Random.org. Winner has 48 hours to respond or another winner will be drawn. Contest ends December 13, 2010 at 11:59 p.m. EST.


Please note that all comments are moderated, so your comment will not appear until it has been approved.


Disclosure: This blog is used to promote American-made children's products, and our retail website All-American Baby. Many of the products reviewed here are available for purchase from our online store, http://www.all-americanbaby.net/. I am always on the look-out for only the best products to offer to parents looking for American-made items. I will only promote high quality, safe products that are made in the USA, whether in my store or in my blog. Tree by Kerri Lee is providing the gift for the winner of this giveaway. All views and opinions with regard to the products or manufacturer itself are my own and were not influenced, nor reviewed, by the manufacturer prior to posting. Offer Valid US only!

Custom Made for Kids Winner!

Congratulations to Comment #56  - "LoveCubed".  Look for my email!

Disappointed that you didn't win?  You can still order The First Adventures of Incredible You to have in time for Christmas!  Visit our All-American Baby website to order!  Thank you to everyone who participated!  Please check back for our next giveaways coming tomorrow...We will be having multiple giveaways running this week!  

Thanks for visiting!

Reminder: Custom Made for Kids Book Giveaway - Ends Monday!

Custom Made for Kids personalizes a beautifully illustrated hardcover book for your child...as if the book was written for them!  Our giveaway for a personalized storybook ends Monday, be sure to Enter on our Giveaway Post!

Little Twig - A Safe and Natural Bath Time Alternative - and Made in the USA!

I am always on the lookout for natural skin and hair products that are made in the USA.  I was excited to find that Little Twig has products that provide families with a safe and natural bath time alternative to the many chemical-filled bath products that are on shelves. Little Twig’s priority is to ensure that each of their products are safe and mild for newborn skin as well as the entire family. They use ingredients that are mild and effective, like Aloe and Vitamin E.   I love that Little Twig’s bath and body care products are made in USA, but equally as important, they are made from organic and natural ingredients and are pediatrician tested.  For those of you who have done your research on bath and skin care ingredients, they are paraben free and SLS free, pH balanced, hypoallergenic, have no synthetic fragrances, are phthalate free, have no artificial colors, are not tested on animals and are packaged in PET #1 recyclable bottles. 

Little Twig offers bath care, bubble bath, and body care products that are made in the USA (including diaper cream!).  I was sent samples of the Little Twig Baby Wash in Lavender-Lemon Tea Tree and in Extra Mild Unscented.  The Lemon Tea Tree smelled light and lemony, just like it sounds!  And the unscented still has a wonderful light natural fragrance from the ingredients that I enjoyed.  The baby wash bubbled up just fine for us, which is sometimes a drawback with some of the more natural products, but we had plenty of suds to work with.  The body milk was smoothing for the baby, and I used some for myself, too!  I will be switching over to Little Twig, since I find their prices are not as high as some of the all-natural, organic competition. An 8.5 oz bottle of their Happy Tangerine Baby Wash retails for $9.99.  Right now you can save on shipping from the Little Twig website! Free shipping offer for the month of December by using the code FRSHDEC. 

Friday Hops - Dec 3!

Out to meet new people and find great new blogs to follow?  Join me on these Friday Hops!

Welcome to my new and old hopping friends!  I hope you will check our our Customized Children's Book Giveaway...The First Adventures of Incredible You, a beautiful custom printed, illustrated hardcover book with your child's personal information, as if the book was written especially for them! 

See you around the blogsphere!

Made in the USA goes Mainstream!

I saw the following article on MSN.com this morning when I turned on my computer:


American-made Toys and Games on MSN.com

 I was so excited to see the mainstream media finally paying attention to the importance of buying American-made toys!  And really it is not as hard as some people think to find Made in the USA.  You might have to give up some of the plastic, blinking light toys that talk, maybe even some of the television and movie characters, but in return you will get high-quality, SAFE and EDUCATIONAL toys.  Isn't that a pretty good trade?   I was happy to see some of the brands that we carry mentioned...Holgate and TAG toys to name a few, but there are so many more! Check out our All-American Holiday Gift Guide for even more Made in the USA toy ideas, and of course our website All-American Baby!

Sweeters Pal Giveaway Winner!

Congratulations to comment # 25 Kimberley!  Kimberley won the Hand-Knit Personalized Sweater Pal. 

Thank you to everyone who participated! We already have our next giveaway going...ANOTHER personalized item!  And be sure to check back regularly as we still have more reviews and giveaways to come for our All-American Holiday Event & Gift Guide!

Wordless Wednesday - Santa's Little Helper

My little guy has been helping get orders ready to go out!  He could be an advertisement for USPS!

Seriously, none of these are for me???

Tuesday Hops!

Follow Me Back Tuesday is another day of the week that you can gain more followers and find other great blogs to follow on a weekly basis. Follow Me Back Tuesday is hosted by Survey Junkie, Little Yaya's, and Boobies, Babies & A Blog.

My Holiday Memories with Shutterfly

I love Shutterfly!  I have used it and loved it since before my first child was born almost 5 years ago, so when I had the opportunity to blog about Shutterfly and share my experiences, I was happy to do it!  Shutterfly is easy to use and a wonderful place to store and print those precious family memories.  I have gone to Shutterfly for so many occasions:  photo books, birth announcements, birthday invitations, thank you cards, calendars, photo gifts, and of course picture prints.  Every year at this time, I start examining every picture I am taking…will this one be cute enough for my Shutterfly Christmas cards?  Can I use this one in my personalized calendar?  Part of the joy of using Shutterfly is that you can be so creative with so little effort…and it looks so good! 

Shutterfly has so much more than just holiday cards.  One thing I am known for within my family is the family calendar I do every year as a gift for family members.  I compile pictures from my kids and also from my sister’s children and dump them into Shutterfly’s calendar program.  I do spend some time arranging the photos, but not nearly as much time as it looks like it took!  I love it because I can have several projects going at once, for different family members.  When complete, I can have them shipped directly to the recipient with a gift note…done!  And it is a very personal gift for each person.  Of course, I have to order one for myself as well! 

This year I am excited about our Christmas cards.  I can’t always decide which design to use, so sometimes I experiment with different options.  I am often torn between traditional colors and funky mod holiday designs.  In the past, I have gravitated toward the flat holiday photo cards, but this year I am excited to try the folded stationery cards!

With Love Chartreuse Christmas 5x7 folded card

Make a statement with Shutterfly Christmas photo cards.

View the entire collection of cards.

Since I am a procrastinator, it is good to know that even though it is first week of December (can you believe it?), I still have plenty of time to get those cards, calendars and gifts finished.  They have a handy shipping chart that tells you exactly when you need to place your order to have your various products or gifts shipped in time for the holidays.   If I am really pressed for time, I can have Shutterfly address my cards and mail them directly!  Check that off the to-do list!  Wahoo!  Thank you, Shutterfly!

This week Shutterfly has some AMAZING discount offers on photo books, holiday cards, calendars and more!  Plus free shippiing on orders of $25 or more (code: SHIP25).

Custom Made for Kids Books – Giveaway! {CLOSED}

Custom Made for Kids has a unique personalized book that would make a perfect gift for the children on your list!  Reading is such a wonderful family activity, and this book, The First Adventures of Incredible You, makes your child the star! This award winning book was developed by two Moms and has bright, whimsical illustrations and rhyming text that seamlessly includes your child’s personal information. With a little background from you about the people and places that are special to your child, the book is off on a wonderful personalized adventure.

The First Adventures of Incredible You follows your child from the day they arrive on Earth through a variety of first adventures in life. In addition to just a name and birthdate, you can include special details about a favorite sports team, a neighborhood street, a nearby park, favorite foods and vacations, a nearby zoo, siblings or friends, Grandparents and even a pet! The First Adventures of Incredible You truly seems like it is written especially for your child. The front of the book includes a dedication page so your child will always remember who gave them this unique gift. The amazing personal aspect of this book, along with the beautiful illustrations, will make it a treasured keepsake for many years.

BUY IT: The First Adventures of Incredible You is available for purchase on our All-American Baby retail website for $39.95. Gift certificates are available if you prefer to have the gift recipient fill out the personalized information.  Allow 8-10 days for delivery of your book. 

WIN IT: Thanks to Custom Made for Kids, we can offer a lucky All-American Baby follower a personalized copy of The First Adventures of Incredible You!

 1. Mandatory Entry: please visit our website (http://www.all-americanbaby.net/) and return with a comment on one item that you LOVE!

Additional Entries (must complete mandatory entry first):
2. "Liking" All-American Baby on Facebook
3. “Liking” Custom Made for Kids on Facebook
4. Follow us on GFC
5. Subscribe via email or RSS (one entry each)
6. Add your networked blog
7. Grab our Holiday Button and post it on your blog or website for TWO entries (leave the link in your comment and leave 2 comments)

8. Blog about this giveaway with a link back to All-American Baby Blog, and leave the URL to your blog post in the comment for TWO additional entries.


Be sure to leave an additional comment for each entry to get credit! And please leave a way to contact you! Comments without contact information or commenters who do not include the mandatory entry will be disqualified. Contest winner will be drawn using Random.org. Winner has 48 hours to respond or another winner will be drawn (this is a time sensitive prize, so winner will need to respond ASAP). Contest ends December 6, 2010 at 11:59 p.m. EST.


Please note that all comments are moderated, so your comment will not appear until it has been approved.


Disclosure: This blog is used to promote American-made children's products, and our retail website All-American Baby. Many of the products reviewed here are available for purchase from our online store, http://www.all-americanbaby.net/. I am always on the look-out for only the best products to offer to parents looking for American-made items. I will only promote high quality, safe products that are made in the USA, whether in my store or in my blog. Custom Made for Kids is providing the gift for the winner of this giveaway. All views and opinions with regard to the products or manufacturer itself are my own and were not influenced, nor reviewed, by the manufacturer prior to posting. Offer Valid US only!

Work at Home Helper Blog Carnival: An All-American Work at Home Mom

When my first child was born, my husband and I made the tough decision for me to stay home with the baby. It was what I had always wanted, but cutting our income in half was going to be an adjustment. I had just finished my Master’s degree in education, and that, paired with my National Board Certification gave me two additional salary bonuses that I would only benefit from for a few months if I left. I was at the top of my professional game, but I had been teaching other people’s children for 14 years, and as an “older” mom and after years of infertility, I was ready to spend some time enjoying my newborn. The first year was wonderful but tough, as it is on all first-time parents! We were so lucky to have an “easy” baby, although I don’t think we realized it at the time (it wasn’t until our son was born that we realized how good we had it with our daughter). One of the things going on at that time was all of the recalls for the lead-tainted Chinese products. I was very committed to buying high-quality safe products for my daughter, and I really preferred to buy American-made, but it was so hard to find at the time! The Made in the USA products were out there, it was just a challenge to pull everything I needed together. I figured that other parents must be feeling the same way, and I wished there was one place I could find everything! That is when the idea for All-American Baby was born, and my husband and I began the planning process for our very own business!

It has been a wonderful adventure, but certainly one with a lot of challenges, and both successes and failures along the way. At one point we had our own retail space, but the amount of extra time and effort was not worth it. The online store was growing much faster and sales were stronger, so we backed down on the retail location to focus on the website. The biggest challenge for me has been striking the balance between work and home, since work is at home! I have to made sure I schedule time away from work…having my work at home makes it harder to get away from it. And honestly, being in retail, especially children’s retail, does make the holiday season that much more hectic. But having the flexibility to be at home with my children every day (even if part of that time I am “trying” to work) is so worth it. I get to enjoy the everyday joys of raising my children. I am able to set my own schedule and can be completely flexible when things come up, such as a sick child, or just a beautiful afternoon when we want to get outside for a picnic! My advice to any parents beginning the “work at home” adventure is to be prepared to work hard to strike the balance that is right for you. It is not as easy as it seems!

This post is part of the blog carnival "Share Your Work at Home Success Story" at the Work at Home Helper.

Sunday Blog Hops!

Hi!  It is time to hop around the blogsphere again!  Everyone has been busy with the holiday, family and shopping, but I love Sundays for relaxing a little before the week begins.  I am looking forward to meeting some new friends and finding some new blogs! 

Welcome to my friends from the blog hops.  I hope you will stay awhile!  I also have a GIVEAWAY ending tonight...a Hand-Knit Personalized Sweater Pal!  Hope you will check it out and enter!