Holiday Gift Guide: 1-2-3- Just Play With Me Child Development Tool Box Set Review & Giveaway from Milestones & Miracles

                           

                                         
As a new mom I constantly fretted that my children weren’t getting the appropriate stimulation to learn and develop like they should. I was always wondering, “Am I showing them enough contrast?” “Am I playing the right music?” “Did we do enough tummy time?” and so on… I also made the mistake (and sometimes still do) of comparing my children’s abilities to that of their peers. I would scour the internet to find out exactly what my child should be able to do at what age. But honestly, I was lost. I was a new mom and I had no idea what to expect from these new little humans. 

I just gave birth to my second set of twins, who are now 9 weeks old, and thankfully I know a little bit more about what to expect. However, our newest twins were almost full term, as opposed to our older twins who were 5 weeks premature and thus developed slower. So will these new little ladies be ahead in their development? What should I be looking for? Where can I get answers? 

                                

Thankfully I recently came across a great tool for parents everywhere that will help us to know just exactly what a child should be able to do and at what age. No more guessing game. It is called JustPlay with Me from a company called Milestones & Miracles. The brilliant thing about this tool is that it not only helps you to understand the milestones that your child should be hitting, but it also gives you fun play ideas that will help you to help your child achieve these milestones! 

Daddy teaching us about sorting

 I trust the content of 1-2-3 Just Play with Me because  the company that created it, Milestones & Miracles is a company for moms founded by moms who also happen to be a licensed physical therapist (Nicole Sergent) and a licensed speech-language pathologist (Lacy Morise). These ladies have put a lot of time, research and effort into making this complete package. In it you will find numbered, (thankfully, because whose child won’t dump this box) sturdy cards that suggest ways for you to “play with purpose” with your child; helping them to learn and advance while also building bonds with them.

Daddy teaching us about colors & shapes

There currently is nothing like this on the market that pairs development with play and I am thrilled to have it! I currently am using the cards for 0-3 months for my newborns and the 19-24 month cards for my toddlers and I love it. The 1-2-3 Just Play with Me system is so easy; I just pull out a card from the box that corresponds with my child’s age and I put it somewhere I will see it often, like the refrigerator, and I reference it throughout the day. And I must admit, one of the best selling features about this parenting tool is that it is easy and way less overwhelming than the huge child development books; it is convenient and quick! I don’t have to find countless hours and quiet time to read a long book! I mean, really, what parent of small children has that luxury?! 

Pointing to and labeling body parts

As a mother of 2 sets of twins who were born prematurely, thus having some delayed development issues, I highly recommend this product because it has helped me to understand where my child should ideally be developmentally. The cards are color coded to differentiate between 5 areas of development: cognitive, fine motor, speech and language, social emotional, and gross motor. It also helps me to identify where their development may be lacking and helps me to feel empowered as my child’s advocate when speaking to their pediatrician. So don’t hesitate! You can buy yours today for the reasonable price of $42.00 at www. milestonesandmiracles.com, amazon, ebay, Pro-Ed (a leading national therapy catalog, and at 10 other retailers which can be found under the tab “retailers” on the company’s website.  You can also purchase a convenient Ebook version of 1-2-3 Just Play with Me which can be read on any device! The Ebook can be purchased via Amazon,iTunes, and Barnes and Noble. 

Be sure to follow Milestones & Miracles on Facebook, Twitter, YouTube and Pinterest for helpful information, ideas and updates. One lucky reader will win their very own box set of 1-2-3 Just Play with Me! Just in time for Christmas, this will make a great gift to yourself or to anyone you know with children! Enter below to win! Good luck! 

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Stretch Marks From Twins Pregnancies: Instanatural Stretch Mark & Scar Cream Review

Stretch marks? Oh, you must mean my tiger stripes! You know, the battle scars that I earned carrying two twin pregnancies less than a year apart…but seriously. Stretch marks are no fun. I sadly have had some since I was about 10 years old, from when my body decided to turn into a woman overnight. Yay. But at least those have faded.

Now, I have the ugly/angry purplish-blue stretch marks from this last twin pregnancy crisscrossing my body. Thus, I will try anything that claims to heal them. I recently received some products from Instanatural, including a Stretch Mark & Scar Cream, aimed at prevention and reduction. The list of active ingredients include: 15% Vitamin C, Cocoa Butter, Rosehip Oil, Mango Butter, Grape Seed Oil, and Evening Primrose Oil. This company does not test on animals, is USA made, and has great reviews on Amazon so I was pumped to try it.

The product is nicely packaged and it smells so very good! Also, it is in a nice almost hands free pump, meaning you just need the heel of your palm. This is so convenient with lotions because your hands get all slimy and it’s annoying to have to pick up and squeeze a tube with slippery hands. So I used this cream twice a day (per the bottle’s instructions) for 30 days. After about a week I felt like I started to see a lightening in the color of my stretch marks. At the end of the 30 days I definitely noticed that the stretch marks weren’t as dark. In fact, one of my worst marks is a relatively small one that is deep. It is like a crater in my skin. However, after using the Instanatural cream the crater is almost completely filled in. Instead of feeling like a groove in my skin, it is almost smooth and level with my skin.

My deep stretch mark on my hip. BEFORE on the LEFT, AFTER on the RIGHT

My left leg. BEFORE on the LEFT, AFTER on the Right

I was surprised at the results that I actually saw with this product. I tried the It Works stretch mark cream for $65 and it was a bust; I saw no visible results. This Instanatural cream gives me hope for the future of my body! You can get yours from Amazon right now for the sale price of $23.47! Instanatural is so confident in their product that they offer a Lifetime Money Back Guarantee, no matter where you buy their product. If you're not satisfied, simply contact them and get a full refund. That is an amazing deal! Plus, you can sign up on their website for their Insta Club and receive 15% off of your orders. Make sure you check them out of Facebook and Twitter to stay up to date on new products and deals! 

I received one or more of the products mentioned above for free using Tomoson.com. Regardless, I only recommend products or services I use personally and believe will be good for my readers.

Holiday Gift Guide: Whispers & Words Wall Art

I recently gave birth to my second set of twins in 19 months, they were two girls. This means that I now have 3 daughters and 1 son…so my house is full of girly things. Girly paint colors, girly toys, girly décor, etc. So I was very excited when my friend Carrie at Whispers & Words said she could create a piece of specialty artwork for my son!

I immediately knew what I wanted it to say, “Let him sleep, for when he wakes he will move mountains.” I have always loved this quote. I believe that God has a purpose and a plan for every child; and I believe that my kids will be world changers. I also believe in speaking life over my children and into their lives. So I am very thrilled to put these words above my son’s head. So they will sort of be "spoken" over him even when I am not around.

Here is the custom piece that Carrie just created for us, isn’t it great!?

NOTE: I had to cover up my child's name to protect his privacy.
The actual piece does not have those squares across it.

Whispers and Words is such an adorable Etsy store. The shop and its creations are owned and created by Carrie Mansfield, who also runs a blog under the same title. According to her blog, “… Carrie Mansfield [is a] self-proclaimed lover of travel, cuddly babies, international cuisine, the sound of the rain and the smell of the ocean.  When Carrie is not writing out her thoughts on Whispers & Words, she spends most of her free time working as a social worker, spending time with family and friends and coming up with alterations to favorite recipes in the kitchen.” Doesn’t she just sound so interesting and crafty? Here is a snippet from her blog about why she creates this art, “My hope is that this art never becomes trivial to me or to my buyers. My hope is that, like in our home, these pieces would speak encouragement, hope and light into the places they reside. And above all, as with everything, I hope that this shop is a reflection of my even greater dream…to honor and glorify God with my heart, my mind, my speech and the work of my hands.”

I visited the Whispers and Words Etsy shop and found some lovely handcrafted creations. What I really love is that everything has a personal touch; it isn’t copy and paste work. If you scroll past the available pieces you will see a link to request a custom order. Yep, that was for me! When I spoke to Carrie about creating three custom pieces for my twin girls new nursery she was very helpful! She asked what I wanted but also made suggestions to me, which I appreciated! Carrie has kept in touch with me throughout her process and allowed me to give input, and the work was done quickly.

I actually got to ask the artist about her process; I mean whoever gets to ask the artist this? And this is what she said, “…the beauty of the designs is that the process can change from piece to piece. As someone with an artistic bent, I've found over the years that I really hate doing the same thing over and over. With Whispers and Words I have the consistency of a concept (canvas designs that feature words and sayings that are meaningful to the buyer) along with the freedom to create images to go along with those words... I am inspired by scripture, music and quotes that evoke further inspiration or contemplation. Once I find the quote or lyric, an image or several images usually come to mind. I then look for photographs or other artwork of those images and then get to work on creating my own. I do most of the process freehand and use a number of other art tools to tweak and manipulate until it is as close to what is in my mind as it can be. As for custom pieces, I try to collect as much information as I can from the buyer to get them what they are looking for…Often people come to me for custom work because they have a beautiful image in mind but they just don't know how it could ever become tangible…”

                                 

You can purchase your Whispers and Words art through their Etsy site. You can also contact the artist and stay current on exciting news, giveaways and pieces via their Facebook page and Blog. But one lucky winner will receive a $40 credit to use towards the item of their choice! Enter below to win!

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Abortion. The "A" Word.

Abortion. This is a subject that is near and dear to my heart. It is a subject that is almost always a topic of much controversy. Pro life? Pro choice? When does life begin? Does the father get a say? To be clear, I am pro life. I believe that life begins the moment an egg meets with sperm. I believe that every life deserves a chance; yes, even in the case of rape or incest. Francine Rivers wrote a book called the Atonement Child. You should read it. It will break your heart, unveil your eyes, and change your view on unwanted pregnancies…life changing. Some of you may find the following post to be graphic and/or bold...well good. I want my blog to not only offer great reviews and giveaways, but to also offer my heart. And to address real issues; even the ones many people try to ignore. 

The world recently followed the court hearing of Dr. Kermit Gosnell who was on trial for murdering infants after they were born (as well as performing countless abortions, many of them terribly late term) by cutting their spinal cords after they were delivered and whimpering.  The accounts from his staff, former clients, and what was found in his office is heinous. This man kept aborted fetuses in bags and water bottles in the staff refrigerator and had filthy equipment and blood stained furniture…and this is only one abortionist that was caught. This type of thing is done every day but it isn’t exposed like this case.

I would like to share with you my friend Erin’s story. She has had multiple abortions and has lived quite a life. She is honestly one of the most beautiful, brave, strong, humble, loving women I know. She has found such amazing freedom, forgiveness and healing from God through this wonderful Retreat called Deeper Still. Erin is actually now the director of a chapter of Deeper Still in Lancaster, PA. Please take a moment and read her story. If you have had an abortion, know someone who has, or are pregnant and considering one, please, read this and see if Deeper Still is right for you. Regardless, this is an amazing account of one woman’s journey to healing.

Erin’s Story:

While I was not raised in a Christian home, I had gone to church enough with my Grandmother to know I didn’t want to go to Hell and to recognize the more popular Bible stories when I heard them. I even asked Jesus into my heart when I was 7, but didn’t fully know what that meant for many years.

I was molested several times as a child and was exposed to drugs, drinking, and soft pornography at a very young age by babysitters and friends’ older siblings. I think all of this opened me up to be susceptible to all those things once I became a teenager.

My mom started going to church when I was about 12 and I tried to fit in there, but it was hard and I already had so much shame and guilt from the things that happened to me when I was younger, I never really felt connected. It didn’t take long for me to find the “wrong” crowd in high school, I just seemed to fit in better with them and even though I was smart, I in no way wanted to be considered a nerd or worse, a Christian, so I denied all of the things that would put me into those categories.

Smoking pot and having sex became a regular thing by the time I was 15. At 16 I discovered I was pregnant, I knew right away I did not want a child, so even though just a few years before that I read a book which described in detail what abortion was and swore I would never do that, I looked up abortion in the Yellow Pages and called the closest clinic to me. I didn’t go through with it that time, I gave that child, my son, up for adoption, but only because I had no money and no one to pay for the abortion. But within the next 2 years, I had my first 2 abortions. The first one was just because I knew I still didn’t want a child and I now had a job, so I didn’t need to rely on anyone, I could take care of myself. The second abortion was within a year of the first. I had closed down so much and was still so full of guilt and shame that after I was raped by my boyfriend’s step-father, I knew I had no other choice and I wasn’t going to be like those other women who had abortions and regretted it. I was fine, I could take care of myself and besides, I had no other choice, right?

Fast forward a few years; I had another son I gave up for adoption, because I clearly heard God (didn’t realize it was Him at the time) tell me not to abort him, because that was the plan. I got married to a very abusive, in every way, heroin addict, and even became an addict myself for 2 years;  I was in and out of jail during that time and when I found out I was pregnant with my daughter, I knew I needed to change my life, even though I had no idea how to do that. I did leave my husband after a particularly violent night when my daughter was almost 1, realizing I would be raising my daughter to think this was a normal life and this is the kind of man she would ultimately seek after.

Fast forward a few more years; I went from relationship to relationship, never finding what I was really seeking after. I had a miscarriage and thought I deserved it after all that I had done. I also figured God would not let me have any more children because I had aborted 2 already, which was ok with me, I didn’t really want any more anyway (this was all subconscious, I wouldn’t realize I felt that way for many years). Then, I ended up moving to St. Croix where I once again fell into drinking heavily and cocaine use. I would have my third abortion while I was there. I was actually mad at God for allowing me to get pregnant; didn’t He know who I was?

After coming back from there, I met my current husband in a bar and we were only together a few months, when I found out I was pregnant. Again, I was so angry at God for allowing this to happen. I told my husband I would take care of it, and he shouldn’t worry about it, but to my surprise, he actually objected to the abortion! While I ultimately told him “Well, it’s my body, so it’s my choice.” we did end up getting married and having the baby, my second daughter.

In the next several years, he went to rehab and we both gave our lives to the Lord. During that time I did receive healing through prayer counseling in regards to my abortions and a lot of other things from my past. So, when the opportunity came up for me to go to a Deeper Still retreat, I really didn’t think I needed it, but wanted to be obedient to God, who told me to go, so I went. I am so grateful that I did. My life has not been the same since. Not only did I receive a deeper healing in this area, I also have been able to watch my destiny unfold and have started a chapter of Deeper Still in my area. When I look back on my life I realize the enemy has known all along I would be a great threat to him, no wonder he tried so hard to destroy me, but God really does take ashes and turn them into beauty! My life is a testimony to that.

Holiday Gift Guide- Mia Adora 3D Fiber Eyelash Kit

Have you ever tried to use false eyelashes? They are such a pain! I cannot draw a straight line to save my life, so can you imagine me trying to get a perfect line of glue out of a tiny tube, along my eyelash line? It is insane and near impossible! So I was a little leery when I heard of “3D fiber lashes.” I figured it would be the same old mess and trouble. However, they aren’t. They are actually quite simple to use.

I just got a kit from Mia Adora called 3D Fiber Lash Set. It is so simple, just 2 tubes of product, and 3 easy steps. Two awesome things about this product; it is easy to use, and it is smudge and waterproof. Need I say more? Yes? Okay, well, even I could figure this product out without a video tutorial! Haha! However, just in case, they do offer a free bonus ebook along with purchase that explains in detail how to apply these lashes and gives little tips as well as great pointers on how to get flawless eyebrows too.

Just a little user tip; do one eye at a time. You need to apply the fiber lashes while the gel is still wet, and if you try to do both at the same time, the gel dries before you get the fiber lashes brushed on. So do one eye at a time and you will usually succeed. My eyelashes definitely looked more plump and dark than with normal mascara. I was personally worried that I would have little flakes falling onto my cheeks all day, but I was pleased to find that I was flake free until the end of the night.

                      Mascara/Before 3D Fiber Lashes

After/With 3D Fiber Lashes

Over all I am pleased with this product and would recommend it. The lashes are made of natural ingredients that are paraben and toxin free, they aren’t tested on animals, and they use eco-friendly packaging. Could you ask for more? Well, you don’t have to ask because ONE lucky reader will win their very own 3D Fiber Lash Kit from Mia Adora, retail valued at $59.99!

 In the meantime, you can purchase a kit as a holiday gift for yourself or a loved one from Amazon today! But hurry, because they are having BLOWOUT sale where you can get your 3D Fiber Lash Kit for just $29.95! Enter to win below:

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Today I Failed As a Mother

Today, I was a failure. At least I felt like I was. I have this dream, this aspiration, to be a kind-hearted, soft-spoken, gentle woman and mother. You know, like Michelle Duggar. That woman never raises her voice (on TV) and her children just obey her and play nice together as if they are angels. Why doesn’t that work for me?! On days like today I just feel like such a horrible person. I am short tempered and irritable and quick to respond in anger; sadly, to my children and husband.

She is not happy

I just have such a lofty ideal of what kind of mother I should be, and I keep falling so short. I have two sets of twins, under the age of 2, yes. So people constantly exclaim to me, “I just don’t know how you do it!” Well, the truth is, some days I don’t “do it.” Some days I am just barely scraping by. I have this strange feeling that I have to smile and seem as if parenting 4 babies is a breeze, that I have “this” all under control. But I don’t.

Ahh, the chaos

Don’t get me wrong. Some days do seem like a breeze. And I really do have wonderful children. God has blessed us with some amazing kids. But on days where 3 of them are teething, and I have changed 9 diapers by 12:00 noon, 6 of which were big poopies, and someone is always crying…on those days, like today, I feel defeated. I speak harshly to my children, and then I feel terrible; sometimes I cry.

He wont stop climbing in there and getting stuck!
And then crying about it!

And sometimes I remember God, and pray, asking for His help and strength. Why is He an afterthought? Why do I try to do this parenting thing without Him as my pilot, my guide? It seems that only when I am on my knees in frustration and/or self-loathing that I turn to Him. But do you know what? When I do turn to Him, my despair lifts and I can smile again and speak sweetly. Maybe someday I will get things right and start my day off with God rather than simply ending it with him. Hmmm….

1-2-3 Just Play With Me Winner!

Congratulations Darlene! You are the winner of this awesome Child Development Tool in Ebook! 

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