7 Stocking Stuffer Essentials - Fun Stuff Your Kids Actually Need

Stockings are a whole lot of fun, but they can really add up fast if you’re filling them with tons of toys. I like to focus on giving our kids stuff that they need throughout the year. These simple items can be a really fun way to give without going overboard. I find that for our kids, the best part is unwrapping what’s inside, and they are genuinely excited to receive these everyday essentials.

Hope these simple ideas help you fill your family’s stockings while staying on budget. Please share with a fellow parent who could use some Christmas help. Check out my Guide To The Best Teacher’s Gifts Under $30. Let me know if you have any questions or comments below. Happy Stuffing!

- Care

DIY Baby Bum Balm Recipe

If you've ever battled a bad diaper rash with you little one, you know how difficult it can be to clear them up. After having a few with our kids over the years, and not loving any of the creams I bought, I decided to start making my own. This DIY bum balm makes a great thick barrier for sore bottoms and will help clear up even the worst diaper rash. It was adapted from a recipe handed down to me from my aunt, who makes it for her grandkids, and has healed more sore bottoms and cracked hands than I can count. I whipped some up over the weekend to help with Lucy's sore bum and within 12 hours it had worked its magic. It's that good!

This recipe is made up of a few simple ingredients and only takes minutes to make. I buy all my bulk ingredients at Anarres Natural Health right here in Toronto, but most can be found at your local health food store. The only issue making it, is that your handheld blender will be a mess after. Make sure to wipe off as much cream with a paper towel before attempting to wash it with soap and water. 

Ingredients:

• 3 Tbsp Shea Butter
• 2 tsp Zinc Oxide Powder *Please be cautious adding your Zinc Oxide powder, as it is dangerous if inhaled. Putting wet ingredients on top of the powder before mixing helps to decrease the risk. 
• 1 Tbsp Coconut oil 
• 1/2 tsp Calendula Oil
• 1/2 tsp Liquid Vitamin E

*Makes 1 small mason jar of cream

Directions:

Add all ingredients to a small bowl and mix well with immersion blender. You can add more Coconut Oil if you would like to make it slightly runnier, or more Shea Butter if you would like it thicker. Scrape out bowl with spatula and store in a small mason jar or any other small jar with a tight fitting lid.

Apply to Baby’s diaper area when red or irritated, or use regularly as a preventative cream. Please always remember to use a diaper liner for cloth diapers when using any diaper cream with Zinc Oxide. 

Hope this helps your family as much as it has helped ours.

- Care

Happy Earth Day! Ditch the Plastic Wrap & Try Abeego!

Happy Earth Day! On this very special day I want to introduce you to one of my favourite Canadian made, environmentally friendly products. Abeego! *Special Perk Included!

If you're anything like me you feel guilty about the amount of waste your family produces. I'm always trying to reduce the number of garbage bags going out to the curb, but it's tough with the amount of packaging and plastics used these days.

Moving away from plastic wrap and baggies is something I've been meaning to do for ages, but really didn't seem all that easy. So when I found Abeego, a reusable beeswax food wrap, I knew I needed to try it. I'm so happy I did! I am absolutely loving using Abeego and recommend it to everyone I know. 

Why I Love Abeego

• It's reusable! Lasts up to a year if cared for properly.

• It's made from pure beeswax, jojoba oil, and tree resin, infused into a cloth made of hemp and certified organic cotton. All of those ingredients sound much better than plastic to me, and they actually help keep your food alive!

• It keeps cut avocados green for days saving us $$! 

• The insulating & breathable qualities make it perfect for covering dough to rise or when fermenting foods. Calling all bakers!

• It comes in 4 sizes (Small, Medium, Large & Giant) to meet all my food storage needs.

• Great price point. A variety pack including 3 Abeegos (Small, Medium & Large) retails for $18+HST.

• Caring for your Abeego is super easy. Simply wash with cold soapy water (eco-friendly soap), rinse, and dry with a dish cloth or place over a dish rack to dry.

• Canadian Made! Created & manufactured in British Columbia

One trick I found is that you need to use the warmth of your hands to mold Abeego into place and then it stays put. You can't think of it as plastic wrap. It's so much better! 

Here's a little video to show you how Abeego works:

Order Abeego Online & use Promo Code Mommies15 for 15% off!

You won't regret it. It even comes with a Money Back Guarantee!

Hope you enjoy Abeego as much as I do.

- Carolyn 

*Full Disclosure: This is not a sponsored post. Abeego advertises with me at Movies for Mommies Humber Cinema but did not pay for this post. I fell in love with the product so much that I decided to feature it on my blog on Earth Day as a gift back to Abeego. Thanks for helping to make our earth a greener place Abeego!

Back to School AKA Happy Halloween!?!

One day into the school year and Halloween stuff is already lining the shelves at most big stores around the city. Don't panic! The stores like to pretend that Halloween is just around the corner so you stock up on treats (that you inevitably eat in the weeks preceding halloween & then have to replace), but really we still have 8 full weeks to prepare. Totally doable, and yet I know I will blink and it will actually be Halloween. Time flies these days.

I try not to go too overboard with the refined sugary treats with my little ones (3 years & 11 months), but I love to make homemade treats & find great costumes for our whole family to have fun with. This week Benny asked if he could be a Lion for Halloween and it made me realize that I better start thinking about what I need to prepare for this year. We usually have a family costume (DIY) for parties, as well as individual costumes for trick or treating & kid's parties. This year is Benny's first year at nursery school so he's pretty pumped for his own kid's costume party. 

Buying costumes, especially for a whole family, can be down right expensive and when they're only worn once our environment pays the real cost. That's why I'm proud to partner with Eco-Outfitters Online for The 3rd Annual Toronto West Costume Swap! 

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The Details:

1. Drop off your clean, gently-used costumes at Eco Outfitters Office between Sept 2, 2014 & Oct 2, 2014. Be sure to pin your name & email address to your costume so they can confirm your trade in.

2. Return to Eco Outfitters Online on Saturday Oct 4th 10am-6pm and shop for a FREE gently-used costume for your little one. 

*If you don't have a costume to trade in you can still shop the costume swap from 12pm-6pm with a minimum $5 donation to The New Mom Project. 

While looking through our past Halloween pictures I realized that Ben has been a lion several times...maybe time to trade in some lions for a new animal. Can't wait to see what we find!

Trick or Treating 2012 - Roar!

Trick or Treating 2013 - Roar The Sequel!

So grab your gently-used costumes & drop them by Eco Outfitters anytime this month to save money and the environment while still getting your kid an awesome Halloween costume. 

Have any questions? Contact Rebecca at Eco Outfitters Online via email  for more details.