Gracen Tested: Stuck On You Labels {& a Giveaway!}

5 / 21 / 135 / 22 / 13

The other day, while washing a giant sink full of plastic cups and containers for what felt like the gazillionth time, I realized our babushka doll Stuck On You labels have been solidly stuck on Gracen’s drink bottles and bento boxes for the better part of a year now. They’ve been used daily, chucked into bags and purses, hauled to sandy beaches, and left in freezing cars overnight. They’ve been stored in the refrigerator for days at a time, soaked in soapy water for hours, and put through the dishwasher several times. Yet somehow, 9 months later, they look exactly as they did when we first applied them. How that’s even possible, I don’t know.

Besides our stick anywhere name labels, we also got these adorable woodland animal-themed iron on clothing labels last summer too. The verdict? They’re just as great as their stick-on counterparts. This little quilted jacket is a favourite of Gracen’s, and thus has been washed countless times over the course of the fall and winter. And despite countless washes, they are still perfectly adhered and looking new.

In addition to being very durable and ridiculously cute, these labels will be so great for when Miss G begins school or preschool (yes, I count on them lasting that long ☺). As a teacher, I see the overflowing lost and found bins at the end of the school year, and though we do try to return as much of it as possible, it’s nearly impossible as most of it is not properly labeled. But if every student had Stuck On You labels adhered onto their clothing items, books, and lunch containers, finding the items’ rightful owners would be no problem at all.

That being said, if you’ve got a munchkin headed off to camp this summer, quickly sticking some Stuck On You labels onto their belongings before dropping them off would probably be extremely helpful. And what would be more special than sending them off with a personalized toiletry kit, backpack, water bottle, or my personal favourite, a camp sleepaway pack?

Stuck On You has generously offered to give FOUR Mama.Papa.Bubba. readers a $50 voucher to purchase the products of their choosing. This contest is open to Canadian and US readers and a winner will be selected at random on Friday, May 31st.

There are multiple ways to enter. Please leave a SEPARATE comment for each. To enter to win a $50 voucher to Stuck On You:

-> Visit the Stuck On You website and tell us one item you love

-> ‘Like’ Stuck On You on Facebook, then come back here and leave a separate comment saying you did so (or previously did)

-> ‘Like’ Mama.Papa.Bubba. on Facebook, then come back here and leave a separate comment saying you did so (or previously did)

-> Follow Mama.Papa.Bubba. on Twitter, then come back here and leave a separate comment saying you did so (or previously did)

-> Follow Mama.Papa.Bubba. on Pinterest, then come back here and leave a separate comment saying you did so (or previously did)

Obviously the more times you enter, the better your chances of winning. ☺ Don’t forget to leave your email address! The winner will be announced on May 31st and contacted via email. Good luck!!

♥

For extra fun, like us on Facebook here and find us on Instagram here.

Stuck On You Winners: Round Two

8 / 27 / 128 / 27 / 12

Sorry for the delay, everyone! Miss G and I have been away on a whirlwind road trip / wedding / Okanagan weekend, but we’re now back in the city and getting back into our regular routine. Here are the winners for round two of our Stuck On You giveaway…

Congrats, ladies! The generous people over at Stuck On You are giving each of you $50 to spend in their online store. I’ll be contacting you both tonight with your promo codes and you can submit your orders as soon as you have them. ☺

♥

Special Delivery

8 / 21 / 128 / 21 / 12

There are few things Gracen loves more than getting mail, even if it’s just flyers and junk. So imagine her excitement when we arrived home to this heavy cardboard tube and I told her it was for her…

Ya, she was beyond thrilled.

She let me hold it just long enough to slice the label that was holding it together, and then carefully went about opening her mystery package, not knowing that it was going to be filled with goodies she (and her Papa) had helped me choose and personalize online.

The first thing she found was this beautiful growth chart, personalized with her first and middle names, and printed with gorgeous babushka dolls. She loved it so much that she was doing a nervous-sounding giggle in between little shrieks and stomps. And I’m so glad she did. Being half Ukranian, I’ve always loved babushka dolls too. My Baba had several in her house while I was growing up and I always thought they were very special. Later, when my Dad went to work in Russia when I was a teenager, he brought me back two of the largest, most beautiful matryoshka dolls I’ve ever seen, and I still have them to this day (note to self: they need to be dug out of safe keeping and displayed in Miss G’s room asap).

Also inside the package were a ton of gorgeous personalized labels. What I hadn’t thought of in advance, unfortunately, was the fact that Grae would think that they were just stickers and immediately want to stick them in her notebook (obviously – com’on Mama!) I explained that these were special stickers… Ones meant for lunch containers, drink bottles, and clothes – not just paper, and she seemed to be semi-okay with that.

I quickly tucked the labels away and asked if she wanted to help me hang her growth chart up – luckily, she was sold. She was a great little measuring tape/pencil-tack passer and in no time, we had her new growth chart hung.

Once hung, it was time to measure her… 86.5 centimetres – meaning that if the whole ‘measure at age 2 and multiply by 2′ theory turns out to be true, she’ll be taller than her 5’ 4” Mama. Yay for that!

Here’s a closer look at Grae’s labels. Aren’t the woodland creatures and the muted colours paired with red adorable? These are iron on clothing labels that are washing machine and dryer safe!

And these little babushka doll ones are stick on name labels that are dishwasher and microwave safe, but can be put on almost anything.

In the next couple of weeks, Grae and I will be putting all of these new goodies to the test and seeing how they hold up when paired with a very busy toddler. We’ll be sure to share our findings with all of you soon!

♥

All items are from Stuck On You.

The Easiest Giveaway Ever

8 / 19 / 128 / 19 / 12

You guys – I have the easiest, most pain-free giveaway ever. Remember how I mentioned that I had four $50 gift cards from the generous people at Stuck on You in my Tips for Staying Organized post? Well as you may know, two of them have already been given away, leaving two more for two new lucky winners. And here’s the best part – this time around, you have to do almost nothing to enter. Nothing. No Facebook page to like, no website to visit, no voting required… Nothing. If you’re a Canadian resident (sorry international readers!) and would like some really cool personalized goodies for your munchkin(s) (or friend’s munchkins), all you have to do is leave a comment saying ‘Enter me’. That’s it!

That being said, todayis the last day of voting for The Organized Mom Awards. I don’t know how the deadline snuck up so quickly, but it did. I could certainly use a few last minute votes, so if you have a second, and feel up to it, my entry can be found here. Be sure to check out the other mamas and their tips too – there are some good ones! Of course, like I mentioned before, neither voting or visiting is required for the giveaway this time around.

Thanks so much to all of you who have already voted! I sincerely appreciate it.

This giveaway is open to Canadian residents only and will end on the evening of Wednesday, August 22nd, 2012. The two lucky winners will be announced on Thursday, August 23rd, 2012. Good luck!

♥

Stuck On You Winners

8 / 14 / 128 / 14 / 12

If you follow the blog, you know that I’m in the running for this year’s Organized Mom Awards. If you haven’t checked out the other awesome moms and their organizational tips yet, you should – and can do so by clicking here. Voting is open until August 19th, so there’s still a few days left!

For those who have already voted for their favourite mamas, here are the results of our first giveaway:

Congrats, ladies! The generous people over at Stuck On You are giving each of you $50 to spend in their online store. I’ll be contacting you both shortly with your promo codes and you can submit your orders as soon as tomorrow!

For everyone else, thanks for participating and keep your eyes peeled – I have two more gift cards to giveaway.

On another note, Mama.Papa.Bubba. now has its own Facebook page. On it I’ll be sharing great finds from around the web – toddler activities, kid-friendly recipeeds, DIY ideas, Pinterest favourites, and awesome blogs – as well as some Mama.Papa.Bubba. favourites, Instagram pics, and family-friendly outings around Vancouver. Join in the fun – you know you want to. ☺

♥

My Tips for Staying Organized & Sane {Plus a Giveaway!}

8 / 4 / 128 / 4 / 12

Last month, I was approached by fellow Lower Mainland mom / Vancouvermom.ca Top 30 Blogger, North Shore Mama, about The Organized Mom Awards. It was my first time hearing about the awards, so I looked them up online and learned that they are an organization that promotes moms sharing tips and ideas that make them feel most organized. What’s not to love, right? A a busy mama, I’m always looking for new tricks to help me stay on top of my many commitments and projects while making the most of my time.

So when North Shore Mama (be sure to check her out – she’s a pretty organized mama herself!) said she’d like to nominate me to be in the running for this year’s Organized Mom Award, I was beyond flattered. What an amazing and inspirational group of ladies to be a part of!

The winner of the awards wins $1000 cash, but in order to be eligible for the grand prize, I need to be one of the top 10 voted for mamas. If you have a moment to spare, please click HERE to read all of the nominees’ stories and tips, then vote for your favourites! (Or click on the button below to go directly to my entry.)

As a heads up, I want you to know that you do have to use your Facebook info to log into the Organized Mom Awards app, which I know some people aren’t too keen on (trust me, I hear ya!) But here’s the good news – in exchange for you visiting and voting for your favourites, I have TWO $50 GIFT CARDS (with 2 more to come) to Stuck On You, a company whose products I’ve been drooling over for months. All you have to do to win 1 of the 2 gift cards is vote for your favourite organized Mama, then come back to this post and leave a comment saying “Voted!“. For an additional entry, leave a separate comment sharing one of the ways you stay organized or maximize your time. The two winners will be chosen at random one week from today, on the evening of Saturday, August 11th. Good luck!

And if free stuff isn’t prize enough for voting, I’m also going to share my top organization tips with you as an added bonus. ☺

As a Kindergarten / Grade One teacher turned stay-at-home mama and Etsy shop owner, being organized has always kept me sane, happy, and on top of all of the things I need/want to get done. It also means happier kids and more time for playing and going on adventures (win-win, right?)

Here are my tips for being an organized mama:

1) Plan Ahead

One night each week, I sit down for about an hour, computer on lap, and loosely plan out the dinners I want to make for the upcoming week (breakfasts and lunches usually come about with staples I always keep on hand and dinner leftovers, so I don’t normally plan those). While I’m at it, a find a couple of cooking/baking projects I’d like to do with my soon-to-be 2 year old little lady, as well as a couple of toddler-friendly activities to do outside of the kitchen. With this meal/activity list, I then make a shopping list of everything I’ll need to pick up on my shopping trip the next day. The meal/activity list goes up on a bulletin board in the kitchen and the shopping list goes in my wallet. I don’t always follow my plans exactly (in fact I seldomly do), but it’s really nice to have some ideas (and the required ingredients/materials) on hand when dinner’s got to be on the table asap or I need a fun activity to do with my little one in a hurry.

2) Jot It Down

Call me old-fashioned in this technological world, but keeping a large family calendar and pen on our fridge keeps me sane. It’s host to play dates, birthdays, events, appointments, library due dates, my hubby’s work schedule, and anything else that is date specific. I also use my Notes app on my phone to jot down quick things while on the go – addresses, Miss G’s milestones, and gift ideas are a few of the things that can be found on my phone, and the best part is that I always have that info with me.

3) Everything Has a Place

In our house, everything having its own spot eliminates having to search for things and makes for smoother exits. As long as things are put away in their places after being used, retrieving them the next time they’re needed is a snap.

4) Clean As You Go

Tidying throughout the day is essential for me. If I’m headed to the washroom, I grab the recently folded towels and take them with me. If I’m headed to the kitchen, I grab the empty sippy cup sitting on the coffee table and put it in the sink. If we’re done with an activity, we put everything away before starting a new one (never too early to start having your little one tidy with you!) The result is a reasonably tidy home at the end of the day, instead of one that looks like a tornado hit it. Then, once your little one’s in bed, you may only have a sink of dishes to do and a floor to sweep rather than having an entire house to clean.

5) Do it Now

As a semi-obsessive list maker, there are few things I find satisfaction in more than crossing a job off a list. But here’s the thing – some tasks take longer to write down than to just do. Rather than adding another item to your {already long} list of to dos, why not just get that quick/easy task out of the way now rather than leaving it for later? Things like taking the trash out, filling the ice cube trays, throwing a load of laundry in, or making a bed probably take just as much time to add to a list as they take to do, not to mention that many of these jobs are little helper-friendly.

6) Think About Tomorrow

Each evening, before I call it a night, I think about our plans for the following day. If we need to be out of the house fairly early, things like packing the diaper bag, laying out needed items, and packing a lunch make the morning much easier. Even if we don’t have big plans for the following morning, having a rough idea of what we’re doing the next day helps me mentally prepare for the day ahead and leads to more time for fun and play and less time for planning/deciding what to do.

♥

Now what are you waiting for?! Go and vote, leave a comment here saying you did, and be in the running to win a $50 gift card for anything from Stuck On You, a company that specializes in the coolest labels and personalized gifts. Remember, if you share your organizational tip in a separate comment, your name is entered TWICE!

Good luck!