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Receiving Blanket from Living Fresh: Postpartum Must-Have

Disclosure: This post was created in partnership with MommyCon and Living Fresh, but all thoughts and opinions are my own. #MyLivingFresh

 

As a postpartum doula I get a lot of questions about what I would recommend they have when their newborn arrives. There are so many great products and services on the market, it can be hard to determine what you may actually need when that sweet baby comes home. I always recommend a handful of things, including a good quality receiving blanket. Now, I do not recommend any receiving blanket, but I recommend Living Fresh’s Baby Receiving Blanket.

A receiving blanket is one item that is used from the day your baby is newborn through their toddler years and even longer. A receiving blanket becomes a comfort item for your child. It is the thing they are swaddled in as a newborn, lay across as they play on the floor, held while they are feeding, dragged around as they begin to walk, the item they take to daycare or Grandma’s house, and so on. Having a good quality receiving blanket, that is going to last, is a must!

Living Fresh Baby Receiving Blanket is just that. This super soft blanket is made from the purest of natural fibers. It is woven using botanical eucalyptus fibers. There are no toxins, chemicals, or dyes.

The receiving blanket measures 36 inches by 36 inches, which is the perfect size to swaddle. I regularly preach the 5 S’s from The Happiest Baby on the Block to my clients. The first and most important “S”? Swaddling. Another reason why a good quality receiving blanket is a must when you come home with your newborn. Looking to purchase a great baby shower gift? Purchase this receiving blanket + The Happiest Baby on the Block for them (include a free printable of the 5 S’s too!)

About Living Fresh 

You may be familiar and have used Living Fresh bedding yourself! If you have slept in a hotel recently, the bedding you have slept in is probably from Living Fresh. They pride themselves in providing soft and luxurious bedding. Due to the fibers from Eucalyptus trees, their sheets literally cool you as you sleep. Their bedding also becomes softer every time you wash.

They offer bedding, bath, sleepwear, and much more.

Follow them on Instagram and Facebook to stay up to date with their products.

WEAR Conference 2016

I am so excited to help spread the word of this year’s first babywearing, WEAR conference held by MommyCon!

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I have attended MommyCon a few times and I know the WEAR conference will NOT disappoint! This 3-day conference will be held in Chicago, over Memorial Day weekend. It will be full of speakers, seminars, over 30 exhibitors, classes, and much more! ALL related to babywearing!

Friday, May 27th – Sunday, May 29th

 

Some fun things you can look forward to attending are:

  • Babywearing Yoga presented by KIND
  • Babywearing Belly Dance
  • The Babywearing Lounge – where you can touch and try-on lots of carriers!
  • Using Wraps, Ring Slings, and Exploring American Babywearing Subculture from a Man’s Perspective
  • Wrapping 101
  • An introduction to the Mei Tai
  • And so much more!

Check out the entire WEAR schedule here!

Whether you are new to babywearing or a novice, there will be something for everyone!

Prices

Singe Day Pass – $40 

3-Day Pass – $100

Ultimate Educator Package – $500

There are rooms available at the Westin Michigan Avenue hotel, at a discounted rate. When booking your room, make sure to mention WEAR! Find more details here!

All children under the age of 16 years are FREE to attend with a paid adult.

If you are interested in attending make sure to use discount code: Midwest16 at checkout to receive $5 off your ticket price!

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MommyCon Chicago 2016

MommyCon has kicked off their tour across America and will be in Chicago March 4th – 5th! I was able to attend the MommyCon Chicago two years ago, while I was pregnant with Amelia. I had a blast and learned so much.

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The great thing about MommyCon is you can attend a conference every year, or go more then once a year, and you still learn so much at each event. No conference is exactly the same. Each MommyCon may differ by speakers, vendors and exhibits.

The Friday before the main event, are the VIP sessions! Check out this years VIP sessions at MommyCon Chicago! For additional cost you can attend once of these sessions and receive a majorly awesome swag 🙂 Last year, I attended the Cotton Babies session and met Jenn Labit!

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This year, MommyCon Chicago is adding something new! They are offering Little Make + Play Camp! This is the perfect option if you are wanting to attend the conference and have children ages 3 years and older.

82B1F8F5-DA66-5452-1D8960765866E764You can sign your kiddos up for a whole day full of sessions which include:

  • Hand and finger puppets
  • shadow puppets
  • paper beads & tassel play
  • making things that fly, and more!

Other activities include: 

  • Large-scale building
  • Stories with dancing, singing & yoga
  • Gross motor art and movement activities
  • Quiet corner available
  • Snack central

You can pay $15 per session (if you pick and choose) OR you can purchase a whole day pass for $50. Sounds like an awesome deal! Check out the entire details here!

I am so bummed I am not able to make this year’s Chicago MommyCon! I would love to sign Monte up to check this out! Hopefully, if everything goes well this year, they will offer it at their other MommyCon conferences next year!

 

Don’t forget you can use Midwest16 to receive $5 off! 

MommyCon 2016

I am so honor to be a MommyCon Sisterhood Blogger, again!

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I have been to this amazing conference two years in a row and truly believe this is the best conference for expecting mothers, new mothers, or moms with toddlers! AND it’s not just for moms! Spouses can learn so much too! The focus of MommyCon is to focus on natural parenting methods. Whether it be babywearing, cloth diapering, breastfeeding, or car seat safety there is a topic you can learn more about.

There are five main components to a MommyCon Conference:

  1. VIP events are hosted the Friday before most of the MommyCon Conferences. For an additional amount of money (amounts vary) you can attend a smaller, more intimate seminar to learn more about a company or topic. You will also receive another awesome swag bag! 🙂 Check out when I attended the VIP event with Jenn Labit from Cottonbabies last year!
  2. The swag bag. This is just one of the many ways you can receive amazing freebies! There have been blankets, cloth diapers, full size samples, and so much more. A swag bag is included with every MommyCon ticket!
  3. There are awesome seminars to attend through out the day that may include Cloth Diapering 101 with Jenn Labit (love her!), Babywearing 101 with Beco and Ergobaby, The In’s and Out’s of Natural Birthing, and more. Each conference location differ with seminars and guest speakers!
  4. The shopping is fun! Throughout the day, there are booths set-up that may include cloth diapers, babywearing carriers and accessories, bottles, clothes, games and toys, breastfeeding support, breast pumps, car seats, and much, much more. A lot of the booths giveaway freebies and it’s a great place to touch, ask questions, and test out products before you buy!
  5. At the end of the day is a massive giveaway to all attendees for the conference! EVERYTHING and EVERYONE is free game! You could win an entire car seat travel system, crib, breast pump, gift certificates, and so much more. It is so much fun!

You have several chance to attend a conference AND maybe you can attend two 🙂 Check out the dates and locations below! Check out specific details about each event here!

  • MommyCon Atlanta: Saturday, February 6th
  • MommyCon Chicago: Saturday, March 5th
  • MommyCon Seattle: Saturday, April 2nd
  • MommyCon Austin: Saturday, June 25th
  • MommyCon DC: Saturday, July 23rd
  • MommyCon Orange County: Saturday, August 20th
  • MommyCon Orlando: Saturday, September 3rd
  • MommyCon San Jose: Saturday, October 29th

This year there are two additional conferences that focus on infant feeding and babywearing! You will NOT want to miss these either!

  • WEAR: Babywearing Conference in Chicago: May 27th – 29th
  • MILK: An Infant Feeding Conference in Orange County: Nov 11th – Nov 12th

If you are planning to attend, make sure you use the discount code Midwest16 to receive $5 off your ticket for any conference!

If purchasing tickets make sure to use my code for $5 off!

Keep your eyes open! I will be giving away tickets to the MommyCon Chicago conference very soon! 🙂

The Honest Toddler & Signed Book Giveaway!

One individual I was very excited to see at MommyCon Minneapolis was Bunmi Laditan aka The Honest Toddler. I had been following her on Facebook, Twitter and had subscribed to her hilarious blog. She was even more funny in person!

The Honest Toddler does NOT hold anything back. She lays it out just as it is. It is amazing how many things she describes and explains hit so close to home. It seriously is a relief knowing that you are not the only parent out there dealing with all the things, with a toddler. As she explains, toddlers are entirely another species!

The Honest Toddler just recently published a book called Toddlers are A**holes. “Toddler a**holery is a normal part of human development—not unlike puberty, except this stage involves throwing food on the floor and taking swings at people who pay your way in life.”

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I just finished reading the book and loved it. I will give you a heads up … yes, you can relate to a LOT, but some of the things may be taken to an extreme. I have no doubt in my mind though, that there are parents out there that deal with these extremes! Honestly, any and every parent who has a toddler or has graduated out of the toddler stage (lucky you) can and will relate to this book!

I was able to get my hands on two signed books and am giving one away! All you need to do is …

  1. Comment below one crazy thing your toddler has done!
  2. Like” Midwest Mom & Wife on Facebook

I am really excited to hear all your crazy toddler stories 🙂 I will announce a winner Saturday, May 23rd! Let the craziness begin …

Five Reasons to Love Cottonbabies

While at MommyCon Minneapolis I learned a lot about the company Cottonbabies. I was familiar with the company, knew they sold some awesome cloth diapers, but learned that they are so much more! Not only do they sell amazing diapers, but they strive to help people less fortunate, support mothers, honest, and owner Jen Labit is amazing! Let me break down some awesome reasons to love and support this amazing company.

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1. Jen Labit is a working mother and wife. When I attended her VIP session at MommyCon, I learned that she may own and run a very successful cloth diapering company, but she is a mother and wife first. She has the same struggles to “fit it all in” as we do. She is a very inspirational woman and believes that mothers should have the “permission to dream”.

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2. Jen Labit supports working mothers. Not only does she support them, she allows the mothers who work for her, to bring their children to work. She recently wrote a blog post, that explains how important it was for her to have her babies with her, when trying to grow and make Cottonbabies successful and how they make it work now.

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3. Cottonbabies gives back to the community through Share the Love. I learned about this amazing program while at MommyCon! Share the Love is a National Cloth Diaper Bank. People are able to donate any cloth diapers, they no longer use to Share the Love. Hosts from all around the country, volunteer and help distribute the cloth diapers to families who are in need. Think about it … families who have little ones in disposable diapers and who are struggling, could save so much if they no longer had to buy disposable diapers all the time! Yes, it is an investment to start cloth diapering, but Share the Love is here to help those families do it! I was so inspired by this program, I am now a Share the Love Host for Central Iowa families! Keep your eyes and ears open for more details 🙂

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4. They offer several types of cloth diapers. Cottonbabies has created four different brands including: Bumgenius, Flip System, Econobum and Hemp Babies. By offering four different brands, there is surely something you will find and fall in love with. It’s important to have options and when it comes to cloth diapering there are a LOT of options and systems out there. It’s important to find what works best for you and your family. I just recently fell in love with the Flip System!

5. The Genius Series is freaking adorable 🙂 I want and need all of these! I love how Cottonbabies got unique and created some fun diapers representing some genius people in history! Geniuses that are represented include: Albert Einstein, Nelle Harper Lee, Louis Armstrong, Alicia Boole Stott, Osa Johnson, Matin Johnson, Ada Lovelace, Wangari Maathai, Steve Irwin, Jules Verne, Lewis Carroll, Audrey Hepburn, Charlie Chaplin, Marie Tharp, and Dr. E. Lee Spence.

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Make sure you are following Cottonbabies and Jen Labit on Facebook!

 

 

MommyCon Minneapolis Re-Cap

I went to MommyCon Minneapolis a little over a week ago and had so much fun! I am so excited to share some awesome things I learned, new products I saw, and some amazing people I met. To give you an idea of what is to come, here is a little re-cap …

1. VIP Session with Jennifer Labit from Cottonbabies! She is an amazing mother and business woman! I learned so much from her AND because of her, I am now a Share the Love host! More details to come 🙂

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2. Babyganics AWESOME products and I have a bunch to test out, share my thoughts and GIVEAWAY!

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3. The Great Cloth Diaper Change was an awesome experience!

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4. I learned lots about the Diva Cup, from who else? Dirty Diaper Laundry’s Kim Rosas.divacup

5. I met The Honest Toddler!! Bummi Laditan is hilarious! I am excited to read her new book and give away a signed copy by her!

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6. I listened to TheBabyGuyNYC talk about strollers and carseats AND Amelia got her picture taken with him.

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I had so much fun meeting awesome people, learning about new baby products, and so much more. Please keep your eyes open for my reviews and some great giveaways coming your way!

MommyCon Minneapolis: Schedule 2015

The MommyCon Minneapolis schedule has been announced and I am so excited! It’ s about a month away and I will be traveling to Minneapolis to see and hear some awesome speakers and great exhibitors.

Check out what is on the agenda this year:

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  • Cloth Diapering 101 with Cotton Babies
  • Partnering with Your Pediatrician
  • Comedy Hour with the Honest Toddler
  • Carseat Safety with the BabyGuyNYC
  • Why Does My Child Need Chiropractic Care?
  • Becoming a Babywearing Educator
  • Potty Training 1 of 99
  • Boobs & Bottles: Epic Milk with The Leaky Boob
  • And MORE!

Click here for complete details of what you can expect in each seminar.

Here is a complete list of exhibitors:

All Things Diapers
Aden and Anais
Ameda
Applecheeks
Babies R Us
Baby Care Area with BabyComfyCare
Baby Guy Area with The Baby Guy NYC
Beco and Ergobaby Babywearing Lounge
Banjorganics
Britain
Bundle Organics
bumGenius at the Mommycon Shoppe
BWI Table
Chompy Chic
Cloth Diaper Resource Center
Combi
Crane
Diffusing Mamas
Evenflo Feeding
Eylas
Grovia
Halo
Happy Family
Heartland Parenting
Innobaby
Lullaby Earth
Marsupial Mamas
Moby
MommyCon Shoppe
Motherlove
New Kingdom Pediatrics
Nunamoochie
Rhoost
Smart Bottoms
Soft Bums
Sloomb at the MommyCon Shoppe
SuckleBuckle
Tekhni Wovens at the MommyCon Shoppe

Some of the above exhibitors will have exclusive merchandise in the MommyCon shoppe at the event.

There are also MommyCon event elements which include:

  • BabyGuy Gear Area
  • Babyganics Clean Play Zone
  • Cloth Diaper Resource Center
  • Little Dippers Creative Station
  • Lullaby Earth Sleep Consultation Area
  • Baby Care Area with Baby Comfy Care

There is so much to do and see!! AND do not forget about the Great Cloth Diaper Change! If you have not registered yet, pre-register here. There is no additional cost, but there will be some additional swag bag options coming soon!

To make your life a bit easier and organized, you can plan out what seminars you want to see and when. MommyCon has created this Event Planner, you can print and take along with you!

If you have not purchased tickets yet, make sure to use my code to receive $5 off your ticket! I cannot wait to see you at MommyCon Minneapolis!

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BabyGuyNYC: MommyCon 2015

MommyCon 2015 Must See & Do!-8

If you have not seen yet … I am giving away two FREE tickets to MommyCon Minneapolis which is being held on April 18th!

Giveaway!-2Link to blog post, to enter!

One of the rules to this giveaway is for you to comment, what you are looking forward to the most. A lot of you are looking forward to seeing BabyGuyNYC!

I was lucky to see him last year, at MommyCon Chicago and LOVED him! He is so funny and knows sooooo much.

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Those of you who do not know or have never heard of Jamie Grayson aka BabyGuyNYC, let me tell you the top 3 reasons why you should be looking forward to seeing him!

  1. He is funny and entertaining! He has a BFA in Acting and a Minor in English. Before he began his gig as “baby guru” , he acted in theaters, and traveled on a cruise ship.
  2. He knows everything baby! From strollers to breast pumps. He started off as a product demonstrator at Buy Buy Baby in New York City. After awhile, he began doing his own research about every known baby product and was even recommending to Buy Buy Baby what to sell. He also did personal shops, with expecting parents and was booked 2-4 months in advance! Everyone wanted to know what The Baby Guy had to recommend.
  3. Not only has he worked at Buy Buy Baby he has also worked at RealBirth in New York City. He worked with doulas and lactation consultants. This allowed him to give more knowledge and insight beyond the products. He is knowledgable about childbirth and the parenting process.

The Baby Guy has been featured and can be found pretty much anywhere in the baby world including:

  • “Gear Guy” for Strollertraffic.com
  • New York Times
  • Fit Pregnancy
  • American Baby
  • The LA Times
  • The Seattle Times
  • Babble
  • Cool Mom Picks
  • OH Baby Magazine
  • Drool Baby Expo
  • MommyCon (yay!)
  • Brooklyn Baby Expo
  • Big City Moms
  • And MORE!

You can follow The Baby Guy on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram!

He also sends out a newsletter, which you can sign up for here!

Make sure to check out the Baby Guy Gear Guide for more information about him, events, products, and more!

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MommyCon Minneapolis Tickets Giveaway

Let’s have another giveaway!!! 🙂

I will be giving away 2 FREE tickets to 2 separate winners to MommyCon Minneapolis!

MommyCon Minneapolis is Saturday, April 18th.

Here are some blog posts, I have already posted with some great information about what you can expect!

MommyCon Minneapolis 2015 – What is MommyCon?
MommyCon Chicago 2015 – Chicago Schedule announced!
Cloth Diapering Resource Center
Great Cloth Diaper Change: MommyCon Minneapolis

Update: MommyCon Minneapolis has changed venue! It is now being held at the Marriott City Center. Check out here for information on booking a discounted room.

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I will announce a winner on Saturday, February 28th!