hidden in my heart review and giveaway

i love handmade. 

more than that? i love QUALITY handmade. and i LOVE finding unique, beautiful , funky things. they make great gifts and are the perfect way to say "i'm thinking about you".  

december and january were big months for us-we had lots of birthdays and, of course, there was christmas....

so i needed some great gifts for some sweet little babies.

enter, 

hidden in my heart dolls. 

kiley, the creator of hidden in my heart dolls, makes the cutest, most well made dolls i have ever seen. and bella had to have one. i ordered one for bella and one for each of my nieces. i was able to personalize each doll to look like  the girls, with little piggies and bangs. 

bella loves her bella baby, which is what we call her doll. she carries her around by the arm, hugs her, kisses her, and most recently tries to put socks on her. it's entertaining at the very least. 

bella loves her bella baby. just like her momma. 

kiley is a stay at home mom, who hand makes all of the dolls and accessories. she just started making extra fun things for the dolls too, like cloth diapers, and dresses, and hair bows! oh my!

  why does she call the "hidden in my heart" dolls? 

this is bella's message on her doll.

and now? you are so lucky. because kiley is giving away one doll to a lucky reader!! enter now for your chance to win this doll

her heart message says:

entering is easy! 

mandatory entry:

*leave a comment with your e-mail address telling me why you love handmade! 

extra entries:

*follow my blog (+1 entry)

*"like" hidden in my heart dolls on facebook (+1 entry)

*"like" me on facebook (+1 entry)

*tweet about this giveaway linking it back here. be sure to leave your 

twitter handle in the comment. (+1 entry)

*share my blog on facebook (+1 entry)

be sure to leave your e-mail address in at least one of the comments, so i know who to contact, and each entry must be a separate comment. 

giveaway will end 11 february at 12 noon est 

and the winner is.......

CAEDMEN! 

you have been contacted. please, e-mail me back within 24 hours and we will get you your smartipants diaper! 

thanks to everyone for entering!

i have no coherent thoughts, and we are going out of town tomorrow, so i have mucho cleaning to do. like, overhaul. gah. hopefully when i come back, i will have something worth reading. 

hope everyone has an awesome weekend.

and yes. i am aware that it's only thursday.

the battle of the sippies: round 1: flip tops

tommee tippee explora lil sippy flip top vs. nuby no spill mega flip it

tommee tippee

leakproof: 7

durability: 9

ease of use: 3 

pro's

\very durable. double wall insulated, so it keeps milk cold for longer, whih is great on long outings.

con's

the flip top (bella can't open it herself), difficulty drinking (almost impossible after taking it apart to clean, it has to be put back just perfectly), not see through, the straw leaks when the water get's caught in the valve

nuby

leakproof: 8

durability: 4

ease of use:10

pro's

 bella can open it, see through, the straw is very easy to use, valve keeps food from going back in the sippy, 

con's

 plastic is weak (broke after being dropped from the high chair), water gets caught in the valve and when you open it it splashes

and the winner is..........

 this was a close race, but i think i am declaring the nuby the winner. bella can barely drink out of the tommee tippee, and really, that's the point, right? 

inspired by finn review

last week, bella cut 4 teeth. this week? she has 2 more. it's like her teeth all were hanging out one day and decided to rain hate upon my head. i feel bad for bella. that must be some pretty terrible pain. i also feel bad for my sanity, because it is taking a serious beating. 

our nights around here have gotten pretty rough. i choose to not give bella much in the way of drugs. we have some motrin on hand, but we have had the same bottle for a year. and it might have about 3 doses missing. 

but when bella was first teething, i found out about baltic amber and it's effects on pain. when i heard of the baltic amber teething necklaces, i thought they were just something else for bella to chew on. 

first of all? you don't chew on them. baltic amber works by being absorbed into the skin. it helps soothe pain naturally. you can read a little more about it here. 

then i stumbled across inspired by finn. they specialize in necklaces for children and adults made from baltic amber and hazelwood. their "teething necklaces" are much more than an accessory.

 when bella is in the throes of teething pain, i put on her necklace (and sometimes just because it's so cute) and she seems to be soothed all day.

 today? she was a fuss butt. whiny and clingy. right now? she is very cheerily chasing the dogs around the house and playing peekaboo with her baby. with her necklace on. 

the girl is not only stylin', but she seems to be pain free. 

right now, inspired by finn is offering a 25% off code to my readers. just enter JN25 at checkout. it will be good for the next 2 weeks, so pass it around! and it's not just for babies. they have necklaces, bracelets and anklets for kids and adults too. 

go to inspired by finn, check out all their beautiful stuff, and if you get something, make sure you let me know! you will not be disappointed! 

*i bought bella's necklace and chose to review it on my own*

my wipes have style review. and a little treat.....

i am doing my first ever product review on my blog.

::crowd cheers::

it's no secret that when i find something awesome, i like to talk about it. a lot. take my kid for instance. i found her one day, she is awesome and i talk about her all the time. hmmm....bad example. but when i find something that is really praise worthy or unique, i like to share the info with everyone i meet.

i saw these wipes cases offered in a giveaway (that i lost, by the way), and just had to have one. so i put in my order. it got here today and i could NOT be more excited to share!

pretty, huh!?

i knew it was in the mail, and it has probably been sitting in my mailbox for a day or 2 because i don't check my mail often enough. all told, it arrived in 5 days, as of today, which means really it got here in 4 or less since today is sunday. so first plus, super quick turn around!

the packaging was so cute, i almost didn't want to open it, but the good stuff is INSIDE the wrapping, so i opened it and immediately filled it with wipes.

it's a basic wipes travel container, so it fits the usual amount, only now i carry my wipes in style.

heater has TONS of different designs here.

these are handmade and would make a GREAT gift for mother's day, a birthday or for a baby shower. they come in 2 sizes-travel and full size and also are sold in matching sets.

the patterns are cute and fun and cover a broad range. they even have cute prints for boys!

and there is an option for a diaper strap on the back that makes quick grab-n-go diaper changes easy.

all in all, i think this was a totally "worth it" purchase, and i can't wait to start showing it off, er...using it.

and you? you are so lucky. because heather has offered you a deal you cannot refuse! $3 off any regular priced item! pick out your favorite case and e-mail her with your order at heather{at}stylewipes{dot}net

she will send you an invoice

use coupon code "anotherdayinparadise" at checkout for $3 off!! that's $7 for a travel case and $17 for a big one.

have fun shopping!

and don't forget to visit style wipes on facebook to see what's new and coming up!

*the opinions of this review are my own and were in no way influenced by the maker of this product. i purchased this item on my own and was not compensated in any way.