want, need, have to have

these are all so gorgeous....
I need to marry west elm because I'm in love with everything on their website!
I'll just take one of everything please.

west elm

etsy love

hey y'all, my sister-in-law just opened up her etsy shop!

stocked with adorable must-have for the little babes in your life. 

These make great shower gifts for the mamas-to-be or great items to just buy yourself.
She's adding new items all the time and of course accepting custom orders as well.

check out from this town

photos via

This NonSlip change mat is definitely one of my favourites...
very useful, washable, soft on baby and this print gah! so good and gender neutral!

etsy love

so I died and went to coat heaven.

these coats are.... I MEAN! honestly. 

just stop because I need deeper pockets and gahhh! I'm in LOVE.

Can you even handle it? Well done littlegoodall

check out this etsy shop for even more adorable creations.

baby love

 a little gift giving idea for those little ladies in your life...

check out this etsy shop. I've ordered a couple of dolls from this shop in the past, 

for birthday gifts etc and the owner/designer Secelie is such a doll to deal with.

Recently I ask her for a custom listing of 2 large dolls and 4 smaller mini dolls. 

With some back and forth (her attention to detail is great!) she sent me these photos last night!

The cutest right? 

I can't wait to spread the joy this holiday with these adorable dollies.

 these yellow/grey mixes are so unbelievably sweet! 

Check out Heart Felts for your custom creation 

or choose from her wide selection of ready to ship dolls. 

bogs

A few weeks ago as I was surfing the web looking for minimalist footwear
suitable for Canadian winters, I came across these...
BOGS

knowing that I will be hauling three little ones around this winter, I wanted something practical, comfortable but that still has some style. I couldn't be happier with the summit so far, made from super-soft, 100% waterproof fabric with plush lining for extra warmth, it features 2mm of Neo-TechTM insulation, a dual-density, contoured EVA insole with DuraFresh anti-odor protection and molded rubber outsole. Thy are machine-washable and rated for temperatures up to 14°F/-10°! 
I originally opted for the black mix but it was unavailable in my size so I went with the red and am so glad I did, although I'm contemplating ordering the black too...

I also picked up these baby bogs for Oliver and Georgie. I wanted something easy on and off, warm and waterproof. Georgie has tiny feet so these are a great fit. She's still getting used to wearing socks and  boots although she really prefers to be bare foot or wear her favourite pink shoes. 

so if you are in the market for fall/winter footwear,
I highly recommend you check out BOGS.

artifact uprising

I love making photo books, it's a great gift idea and a perfect way to publish your precious moments. Oliver has really taken a liking to the ones I've made thus far, so if you have little ones I suggest making an extra book for them to look through without worrying about bent pages, rips or sticky fingers. It's a great tool for them to learn about familiar faces that maybe you don't get to see as often as you want to. 

You've probably heard about Shutterfly, Blurb or the host of other companies offering photo books

but if you haven't already check out artifact uprising

 

They offer both soft and hard cover books in several sizes, 

as well as instagram friendly books and other photo related products...

the difference is in the process, artifact uprising only uses 100 % recycled pages, learn more here

I've yet to make a book with them but they are certainly on my to do list!

want, need, have to have

yes please! the dutch bakfiet- a super versatile ride. 

Check out this mom, without a car she gets all SIX of her kids around Portland with her bicycle!

gadgets

want, need or have to have

How awesome is the talk dock?

 Acting as a dock, charging station, and receiver all in one, the Talk Dock lets you charge your phone, talk to mom, and finish your crossword all at once.

I'm leaning towards the green....

want, need, have to have

want, need, have to have....

looking for a great gift for the apple lover in your life? 

say hello to koostik

hand crafted from wood and sourced from suppliers with sustainable practices,

the clever design acts as an acoustic amplifier for apple products.

  

now which one to choose?

 

deal of the day

I'm a very thrifty shopper,
I love clothes and I LOVE me some deals.

Picked up these sweet gems last week, both for less than $25 bucks!
And now that summer has actually arrived,
I might get some use of them.

 

home-spiration

after leaving my house this morning  which looked like a bomb went off inside, 

the handy work of  my two little ones tearing through, ripping, dumping and throwing everything insight. I'm dreaming of living in a different space with a lot less mess and little more of this...

1. \\ 2. \\ 3. \\ 4. \\ 5. \\ 6.

mama style

1/. \\ 2/. \\ 3/. \\ 4/. \\ 5/. \\

colour therapy

A little blast of colour goodiness on this beautiful day!
Finally some great spring (feels like summer) weather.

1/. \\  2/. \\ 3/. \\ 4/. \\ 5/.

Favourites- Mama of Two Edition

It's been awhile since I did a favourites post.

You can read past favourites here, here, here and also here.

And most of those items are still tops in my book.
So here's a look a couple of things that I can't live without lately
(ok I probably could.... but wouldn't want to!)

1. Norwex- I am pretty much in LOVE with all things norwex.
no chemicals, re-usable cleaning cloths = good for your health, good for the environment
These enviro cloths are unbelievable and antibacterial! Add a little water and bust through toddler grime in seconds, without breaking a sweat! Finish up with the window/glass cloth for a streak free shine. You will love not having to go through a bi-gillion rolls of paper towel or using a bunch of different cleaners. While the cloth isn't cheap, it pays for itself in a month (maybe even a week) by the time you add up what you would have spent on the harsh stuff.

So far I have purchased the dryer balls (awesome) no more dryer sheets,
enviro and window cloth (2 sets- one for bathroom and one for rest of the house)
kitchen cloth (pkg of 3)

Next on my wish list is the mop, dust mitt, tea towels, and bath towel

2. Arbonne- Ok so I've had Arbonne on my list before but my addiction has gone to epic portions.
I should really just link to their website and leave it at that. I have purchased almost their whole catalogue!  The products are amazing, my skin has never been better. One product I couldn't live without is the RE9 Corrective Eye Creme. I had black landing strips under my eyes for the first year of Oliver's life. I looked tired and a hot mess. Since using this creme I no longer have these horrible bags under my eyes.... EVEN though I can assure you that I am not getting more sleep with Georgie.
Hands down a Mama must have!
I do recommend the whole RE9 line but it isn't cheap,
in my opinion if you are looking to purchase one thing it would be this.
(if you are suffering from "Baby Bags" as I was)

Grab a Herbal Tea and draw a bath with SeaSource Purifying Soak
... it's an amazing and much needed 20- 30 minutes of relaxation to end my day (or week).
you'll feel like a new woman afterwards.



I could really go on and on about Arbonne products, I use their shampoo & conditioner, makeup,
baby products, etc, etc. I really haven't used a product from them I didn't like love!

(** note these aren't sponsored posts, I simply like sharing products I use and love!**)

Thrifting THRILLS

I scored these sweet little treasures this week....

Boy or Girl, I got a little something for either.

There are actually 2 quilts here.... obviously for Twins but I scooped up both,

perfect gender neutral bedding with pizzazz! Cost $6.00 squeeeeaaaaal.

So today is a pretty exciting day for our family,

my younger sister is moving into her first house and my older sister is "patiently" awaiting the arrival of her first child... my nephew who is due TODAY so come on little baby. Start making moves, although I haven't talked to her today so maybe she's in labour as I write this?

Happy Friday!

July Obsession

So while I still enjoy the Kashi soft baked bars from time to time,

I haven't been gobbling them up like its my job anymore. I tend to do this though,

get totally obsessed with something and then I over use it (or eat it) and get sick of it.

Lately, I've been pounding back Fuze beverages like crazy.

Well just one a day but one EVERYDAY!

My favourite and pretty much the only kind I drink is

Banana Colada.... soooo yummy!

But the grocery store I go to doesn't carry the whole line- so in fairness I've only tried like 4 kinds

One non-food or beverage related product I've been crushing hard on is my new bag from

 Le Mode Accessories. It's swoon worthy. Especially for a mama like me.... look Ma no hands!

A Roaming  She Is Backpack....

I have the cognac colour but the dark green is pretty delicious too.

And it comes in handy when you are carrying a child and

about 50 million other things everywhere you go.

Rockin' Green

is Rockin' my world.

The last couple of weeks I have noticed that Oliver's diapers and covers weren't coming out as clean as they once had been. The covers were stinky after one diaper change (which was never the case before) I have been using Arm and Hammer perfume and dye free detergent or president's choice free nature since day one but something's changed.

I think it's the combination of detergent build up and Oliver's new potent toddler pee. (it really stinks!)

So I went to my trusty online cloth diaper shop and ordered these two little bags of heaven.

http://rockingreensoap.com/

Bag #1 is FUNK ROCK ammonia bouncer -$18.00 for the bag, worth every penny. I put all the cloth inserts in a 30 min soak (in hot water) before I washed them with this..

Bag #2 is Rockin Green Soft Rock bare naked (unscented) $20/bag does 45 loads with a top loader and 90 loads with a front loader. Awesome for cloth diapers and regular laundry. 

I couldn't believe the difference. The diapers came out cleaner and whiter than ever! I could totally feel the difference, eight months of use, "regular" ole detergent and diaper ointment (not that I use much- I have only bought 1 tube of burt's bees in a year) had really taken it's toll. I didn't soak the covers like I did with the diaper inserts but I did add a bit of the Funk Rock to a pre-rinse cycle to bounce the funk on those as well.

My new laundry style plan of attack- is to add a little of the Funk Rock to each cold water pre-rinse (as per the directions) and then wash in hot using the Soft Rock (although I might try a scented one next time!) with a double cold water rinse.

I am even washing Oliver's clothes with it. I have the sweatiest kid alive, seriously it's crazy how much he sweats! His pores are constantly open and very sensitive, he gets little rashes and bumps all the time. Especially on his neck so washing his clothes and sheets with this natural detergent really helps those break outs.

To read about the cloth diapers we use click here and here

****Rockin Green Soap Canada will be offering 15% when they get 2000 fans on facebook*******

Nifty Thrifty

It has been ages since I have been thrifting so last week since I was at work and have an hour lunch to kill I decided to do some. It feels really weird to shop sans Oliver, I feel like I still need to rush that he could start fussing at any moment and that I am forgetting something because I am not lugging around a bunch of crap! Anyhoo back to the shopping... it was a successful trip.

I picked up these sweet items for super cheap (which is the name of the game I guess!)

I have always been a thrifty shopper. I never spend a lot of money on clothes....

well not on any single item.

But yesterday my mom and I went back to the bridal shop and I said YES to the dress!

(I haven't even seen that show before but it's a very catchy title)

Wedding dress is officially checked off the list and definitely at a price I can live with $360 dollas

(including 13% tax) but the downside is it's a few sizes too big and will need some a lot of alterations, which will likely boost the final price up to 500 +. Still good and I love it ....so yay!

Next on the list is shoes and accessories,

I'm not going with a veil but am scouring ETSY for the perfect headpiece instead.

I guess I best get cracking on the invites too

or I 'll be all dolled up in my dress with nobody to see me in it!

Naturally Organic?

I watched this segment on Marketplace- Canada's Consumer Watchdog the other day and was stunned! I know that some  a lot of companies have jumped on the ECO bandwagon using clever marketing to portraying natural or organic products and in truth are not. But I was shocked to see some of the products on the top ten list of Marletplace's lousy labels! Seventh Generation chlorine free diaper- they actually dye their diaper a beige- brown colour to look more earthy.... whaaaaat? seriously!  and Huggies "Natural" baby wipes actually has a chemical in them that is on  Health Canada's Hot List ie list of dangerous chemicals to avoid!
Check out the link below to watch the programme....
http://www.cbc.ca/marketplace/2011/lousylabels/
Time to read those labels, I know I will be taking a closer look at what I am buying. Especially the products claiming to be organic since they tend to be a lot more $$$$. Yikes what a sham!

Here's a little somethin' that's not a sham and totally organic!

It was all very cute until he peed on the floor! He has been loving his naked self these days and it's very fine line between just enough and too much naked time heehee.