Britax Advocate--please?

The Mom Buzz is holding a giveaway for a Britax Advocate Car Seat.  Lincoln is currently still in an infant bucket style seat, but he is going to eventually grow out of it and need to move-on to a bigger (and expensive) car seat.  So, I would love to win this to save us a little money!  Britax is a highly rated brand and has top safety features.  Sign us up!

You can enter by clicking here.

If you want to take a look at all the great features Britax offers, you can check out this Youtube video for more details.

And now, crossing my fingers in hopes that we win!

Winners: baby leg-warmers!

So, there were some great odds for those of you who entered my little baby leg-warmers giveaway! 11 entries with 2 prizes being given away! Not bad odds at all!

Since there were only 11 entries, I figured I can count them myself and didn't bother resetting the numbered comments. I'm not sure what happened to the numbers anyway--they went away when I changed the comment box to a pop-up window instead of being below the post. Anyway...

The TWO lucky winners are.....

Congratulations to (well, what do you know....the numbers are back.  Who knows where they went, but they are back now...):

Yay, Kat and Katie!  You can each take your pick from my stash below.  Let me know your top 2 choices, just in case you both request the same pair =]  I will e-mail you!

Oh, and Katie had a great question about how to prevent the chocolate chips from sinking in the banana bread--the trick is to use MINI chocolate chips.  They are super tiny and will float in the batter instead of sinking to the bottom.

Have a great day!

Tutorial Tuesday: Baby leg-warmers

Hello--it is Tutorial Tuesday!  First off--I want to thank my friend over at monkey's on the bed for being so kind and adding my blog to the tutorial button above.  I love making these tutorials and am so excited to be a part of it!

Today, in honor of Lincoln getting ready to crawl, we are making baby leg-warmers.  Perfect for protecting those knees from carpet burn (they are also really great for quick diaper changes!).

Step 1:  Select a pair of knee high socks.  One of the hardest parts of the process is finding knee highs that aren't super girly (obviously not a problem if you have a girl...).  Solid colors  are generally a good bet, and when it is Halloween, you can find skull and bat prints....

Step 2:  Cut the tube part of the sock off just above the heel (see pic 1 below)

Step 3:  Cut off the heel and toe (see pic 2 below).  Discard the heel and toe pieces.

You should now have a tube and a small rectangle piece cut from the foot of the sock (see pic 3)
Step 4:  Cut off one side of the small rectangle, about one fingers width.  You should now be able to unfold the piece flat. (see pic 1 below)

Step 5:  Fold the flat piece you made so right sides are together and sew the open side closed using a straight stitch.   (why did you cut it if you are just going to sew it back together, you ask?  Good question.  Because this is going to be the cuff of the leg warmer, it needs to be a bit smaller than the width of the tube part of the sock--so we had to remove that finger width piece to make it smaller.) (see pic 2)

Step 6:  Fold down top of rectangle piece to form a cuff.  Line up the edges so they are even. (see pic 1 below)

Step 7:  Feed bottom of tube into the newly created cuff.  Right sides of everything should be out.  (see pic 2 below)

Step 8:  Line up all 3 layers at the bottom (the tube and the 2 layers from the cuff).  You can pin if you like.  I found pinning to be more frustrating than not pinning, so I don't pin. (see pic 3 below)

Step 9:  Stitch the 3 layers together using a straight stitch and 1/4-1/2" seam allowance.  Go slow and make sure you are catching all 3 layers!! (see pics 1-2 below)

Step 10:  Double check to make sure you caught all 3 layers--if you didn't, go back and fix it.  If you miss any layers, there will be a gap when you fold down the cuff. (see pic 3 below)

Step 11:  If you have a serger, here would be a great opportunity to put it to use.  We want to finish the edges so the don't fray and unravel.  I don't have a serger, so what I do is go once around with the overlock stitch on my machine, then do one more time around with the zigzag stitch.  When finished, the edges will look like the pic on the left above.  I have never had a problem with unraveling.

Step 12:  Roll down the cuff and you're done!  See how easy?  Baby leg-warmers on the cheap. 

 Lincoln showing off his leg warmers--look at him threatening to crawl.  So close!!!

Yay, made it to my block!  So happy my knees aren't rug burned =]

So, if you made it this far, I have a treat for you!  I got a little carried away buying knee high socks during a sale last fall, and have way more than Lincoln will use.  So, I would love to give 2 of you readers a pair of homemade baby leg-warmers!  Your choice from my stash below:

I have been tiring a bit lately with having so many entry methods for online giveaways, so I am going back to basics here.  To enter this giveaway, just leave me ONE comment below--I'd love to hear what you are currently working on creating!  What's in your sewing machine, or on your needles, or on your sketch pad, or in your oven, etc.  If you aren't currently creating anything, just let me know what you'd like to create!  Let's inspire each other!

So, just to be clear, the above method is the only entry method for this giveaway.  Nice and simple!  Just a comment!  I will draw the winners on Friday, June 12, 2009 at 9:00 am, CST.

Enjoy!  And have a wonderful Tuesday!  

PS:  Don't forget to check out these other awesome tutorials today:

Natural Cleaners at monkeys on the bed

Artisan Bread in 5 minutes a day at Sailing the Hudson

AppleCheeks winner!

I am so excited to share with you the winner of the AppleCheeks diaper set! This part is always my favorite--off to Random.org to generate a winner out of 213 entries! Wow!

So, Random.org selected the following commentor:



And that would be....


Congratulations, Jill! Your e-mail will be arriving shortly!

Thanks to everyone for entering! I hope everyone enjoyed learning about AppleCheeks--and if you want some more chances to win, there are a few more giveaways still running out there. Those I know about are at Your Mama Reviews (ends 5/29), The Mom Buzz (ends 6/2), Our Life Upstate (ends 6/4), and Two of a Kind, Working on a Full House (ends 6/8).

Have a fun Tuesday!

Giveaway: AppleCheeks Diapers

As you know (if you read my previous post...), today is Lincoln's 5th month birthday!  I thought this would be the perfect day to announce another giveaway opportunity for one of you lucky readers.  What's on the plate?  AppleCheeks diapers!

AppleCheeks are a new type of cloth diapering system out of Montreal, Quebec, Canada.  Creators Ilana Grostern and Amy Appleton Venu sent Lincoln and I a diaper, 2 inserts, and booster to review a few weeks ago, and we have been using it in our rotation ever since! 

 

How it works

AppleCheeks diapers are unique in that they can be used either as a pocket diaper with an insert stuffed inside, or as a cover with the insert folded and laid on top.  The opening for the pocket is "envelope" style--instead of opening at the back end of the diaper, AppleCheeks open across the middle, creating an extra wide opening that is super easy to stuff.  While I was impressed with the ease of stuffing, I admit I was dreading the first "messy" (you know what I mean) diaper because I did not want to have to touch said "mess" to remove the insert for washing.  So, when said "mess" did occur, I decided the best course of action was to run a little experiment.  I left the insert inside, tossed it in the diaper pail, and when wash day came around, tossed the whole set into the washer.  Lo and behold, the insert washed itself out!  No touching involved at all!!  This is a HUGE plus for me.  I hate having to touch soggy inserts, so if I can just let the machine take care of that for me, BONUS!  I did search the website to see if this was the recommended way to manage the insert removal, and couldn't find any validation there so I asked Ilana via e-mail.  Sure enough, that is what they were designed to do!  That is GREAT engineering, if you ask me!

The Details

AppleCheeks is a 2-size diaper system.  Size 1 fits babies 7-20lbs.  Lincoln was sent a size 2, which is designed to fit babies 18-40 lbs.  Although Lincoln is only (ha!  only...) 16.9 lbs, we went with size 2 so that he'd be able to wear it longer.  It actually fits him great.  The diaper can be adjusted in size via a series of snaps, so we just set it at the smallest size and were good to go.

There are 10 gorgeous colors to choose from--we went with the Cherry Tomato, but it was a close call between that and St. Lucia...In addition to

our Cherry Tomato cover, we were sent 1 Hemp insert, 1 Bamboo insert, and 1 Bamboo booster to review.  The inserts themselves are flat and to use them, you tri-fold them (like a prefold--or, in non-diaper terms, like a letter).  The first way we tried these was using the Bamboo insert laid inside the cover.  I was skeptical that we'd be able to reuse the cover, thinking that the pee would soak through the insert and onto the fleece lining, but I was wrong!  When I went to change Lincoln, the only thing that was wet 

was the insert.  So, tossed that in the pail and went

on to experiment #2--the hemp insert stuffed in the pocket, with the bamboo booster laid on top.  I love how soft the bamboo is, and how absorbent the hemp is, so I figured that was a perfect combo.  Worked great!

The Website

The AppleCheeks website has some very helpful video tutorials for how to use the diapers.  In addition, there is a very extensive FAQ section, detailed care instructions, a contact form if support is needed, and a toll-free contact number.  I have e-mailed Ilana several times and always received a prompt response, so I can see that customer service is a priority!

Favorite Features

Not having to remove the insert for washing, the flat inserts (quick dry time), and the super softness of the bamboo!

Would I change anything?

This is the tough part--there are so many GREAT things about these diapers, how to come up with something to improve upon?  One thing I would love to see is a greater variety of color selection.  The colors available are beautiful, but maybe a bit limited.  

Note:  I know the color of the diaper I have is called Cherry Tomato--but, check out the incredible match to the red Hibiscus from our yard in the picture above.  They almost blend together, the colors were so identical!

What can you win?

Ilana and Amy at AppleCheeks have generously offered to give one lucky reader of Our Lincoln Log an envelope cover in the color of your choosing, plus 2 inserts and 1 booster (you pick the fabric!).   All you have to do to enter is follow the rules below:

Mandatory Entry Method:

Take a peek at the AppleCheeks website--locate their FAQ section and come back here and tell me one thing you learned about AppleCheeks diapers!

(This method must be completed for any subsequent entries to count)

BE SURE to leave your e-mail address so I can contact you, or have your profile set to public so I can find your e-mail--either way will work!

Bonus Entries:

You can earn additional entries by completing any or all of the following.  Please leave a seperate comment for each entry!:

1.  Follow @AppleCheekDipe on Twitter and tweet this giveaway!  Be sure to link to your tweet. (1 extra entry)

2.  Become a fan of AppleCheeks on Facebook and let me know that you did (or if you already were!).  Please leave your Facebook name so I can find you! (1 extra entry)

3.  Sign up to receive the AppleCheeks e-mail newsletter (on their website) and let me know that you did. (1 extra entry)

4.  Follow my blog (see right hand column of blog...), or if you already do, let me know!  (1 extra entry)

You can also do either one of the following:

5.  For bloggers:  blog about this giveaway!  Leave a link back to this post and to AppleCheeks website. Leave the permalink to your post in the comments!  (3 extra entries)

OR

6.  For non-bloggers:  send an e-mail telling at least 3 other people about this giveaway!  Include a link to this post and to AppleCheeks website in your e-mail, and be sure to CC me! (ourlincolnlog AT gmail DOT com).  Let me know you did so in the comments!  (3 extra entries)

AND, bonus daily entry method!

You can earn one extra entry PER DAY by coming back here and telling me one additional tidbit about AppleCheeks diapers~this can be anything from an answer from the FAQ, to their history about how they came to be, to your favorite color of diaper.  Please include the words "daily bonus entry" in your comment =]

❀ This giveaway is now closed!!  Thanks to everyone for entering.  I will post the winner later today! ❀

The fine print:  This contest will close on Tuesday, May 26th, 2009 at 9:00 AM.  Comments will close at that time and a winner will be chosen via Random.org.  Winner will be announced here and contacted via e-mail within 24 hours of contest closing.  Winner will have 72 hours to reply.  If winner does not reply within that time frame, a new winner will be chosen.  This giveaway is open to US and Canadian shipping addresses.  Please refer to all rules and policies here.

Want to win a Skitter?

I haven't shared a giveaway for awhile, but I really want to win one of these for Lincoln (who am I kidding....I totally plan to ride it around myself, too....).  This is a Skitter by SkitterToys.  You move it by moving the steering wheel back and forth, thus propelling the Skitter forward.  So much fun!  You can enter to win this awesome toy as part of the Gear Up For Summer Block Party (more info here).  The Skitter giveaway can be found at The Ohana Mama's blog.  Check it out!

Mother's Day Giveaway

Kelly's Closet is having an awesome Mother's Day Giveaway--they are giving away $170 worth of diapers and diaper accessories!  This is me crossing my fingers!!  If you want to join in the fun, you can enter here.  Entries close at 6 pm on May 13th.

What the lucky mom wins:

1-bumgenius One size Diaper in FLEECE 
1-FuzziBunz One Size Diaper
1-Haute One Size Diaper
1-Rumparooz G2 One Size Diaper with 6-r Soaker 
1-Wahmies One Size Diaper 
1-Happy Heiny's One Size Diaper 
1-Planet Wise Hanging Wet/Dry Bag
1-Planet Wise Wet Bag Small
1-Thirsties Fab Wipes 6pk
1-Earth Mama Monthly Comfort Tea Bags

Winner! snackTaxi set

The last of the Earth Week giveaways...I admit, this makes me a little sad!  I have really enjoyed hosting these and am having so much fun drawing the winners.  And now, the moment of truth.  Who will win the snackTaxi set??  Off to see...

#47, come on down!  That would be:

Congrats, Danetta!  I will send you an e-mail shortly!

Woohoo, this is so much fun!  I am sad this is my last giveaway to draw a winner for (for now).  I do have another review and giveaway in the works for next week, though, for a new cloth diaper company called AppleCheeks.  In the meantime, I am working on a new tutorial for tomorrow (hmm, apparently today is Tuesday...maybe I can make it by the end of today, but no promises...) about how to make a drawstring bag, so please check back!

Congrats again to all the winners!

Winner! Boppy pillow and organic slip cover!

Ok, today I'm getting all fancy on you.  Going to take a screen shot of the random.org generator. So, bear with me while I remember how to do that....

Think I've got it, now let's see if I can get it to show up here...and...success!!!

Now for screen shot number 2...who is lucky commenter #59?

Congratulations, Morgan!  I am going to send you an e-mail shortly!

By the way, I would like to point out that I love how easy it is to upload and edit pictures quickly on our new MacBook.  This post probably took me all of 5 minutes to write, screen captures and edits and all.  Yay for MacBooks!

Winner! 3 FuzziBunz cloth diapers...

I have been super excited about pulling the winner for this.  I thought about waiting until this evening, but just couldn't stand it any longer.  So, here we go!!

The winner is.........

(pause while I go generate a number between 1 and 314....)

#286!

(pause while I go see whose comment that is...) 

**remember that the numbers on the comments reset after 200--so even though the number by the winner's name says 86, she is really on the second page of comments, making her #286**

Congratulations, Erica!  I'll be e-mailing you soon!

Don't forget about my other 2 giveaways...the Boppy pillow and snackTaxi winners will be pulled tomorrow, so make sure you are entered!!

Happy Earth Day and final Earth Week Giveaway!

Happy Earth Day, everyone!  We are full swing into our day without turning on the lights (after one minor brain lapse this morning where I turned on the pantry light to find some breakfast...).  I have to run to the grocery store in a little bit, and considered walking there with Lincoln in the Beco, but thought better of it when I realized I'd have to haul not just the red peppers and butter that I need home, but also the 12 pack of soda we are getting to take to a friends house tonight for dinner.  So, that idea vetoed, I instead set to work getting my reusable produce bags ready to use for the red peppers--it was actually much easier than I thought to make them out of net bags my mom had saved from buying clementines.  I will post how I did it next week!

I have one last giveaway to bring you for Earth Week!  This one is actually for everyone--whether you have kids or not.  About a month ago, I started doing some research for reusable sandwich bags.  Lucas takes his lunch everyday to work (ok, not everyday, but most...), and we were almost out of sandwich baggies.  Instead of buying a new box, I decided we should switch to something more permanent instead of throwing away baggies everyday.  I finally discovered the snackTaxi!

What exactly is a snackTaxi?  Well, they are your new replacement for all those plastic sandwich bags you have thrown away over the years! When I think back to my years in grade school and high school (cue hazy fadeout memory), I hate to think about how many plastic baggies I tossed into the trash.  I was one of those kids who always brought a lunch (unless it was french toast sticks day...for some reason, I loved me some french toast sticks).  So, lets say minus the 4 or so french toast stick lunch days I bought a year, that would be 183 remaining brought from home lunches, with an average of 3 plastic baggies per lunch (sandwich, chips/crackers, and fruit or a cookie)... so that is 549 per year.  Multiply that by 12 and you get: 6588!  Ugg.  I knew it was going to be a big number, but I am shocked it is that big.  And keep in mind that doesn't include any baggies used on weekends, to store leftover food etc. That is just my lunch trash. 

So, I am sad I didn't discover snackTaxis sooner, but am so happy I did now!  snackTaxis are a family owned and operated business out of Plainfield, MA.  All snackTaxis are made by local sewers in their home based workshop!  Erin Kelly-Dill (owner) states on the snackTaxi website that she is committed to keeping snackTaxis a local business and will never outsource the labor.  
They are available in 2 sizes:  The sandwich size (above) is a very generous 7.5" wide by 6" high.  As you can see in the picture, your sandwich will have plenty of room and won't be smushed.

The snack size (above) is 6" wide and 4.5" high.  It holds a great amount of food, liked the bunch of grapes above, or the 1/2 a packet of Ritz crackers that Lucas takes for lunch.

snackTaxi also makes reusable lunch sacks to tote your snackTaxis in. And they are super easy to clean, since you can either hand wash them or toss them in the machine to wash and dry.  The outside print is made from 100% cotton and the inside, waterproof lining is a nylon with polyurethane coating.  The nylon they use is free of heavy metals, phthalates, PBBs, and PBDEs. When Lucas first started using them, he mentioned that he found a slight plastic-y taste on the crackers he had carried.  I mentioned this to Jill (my contact from snackTaxi) and she recommended that they be washed first before use.  When I asked Lucas if he had washed it before he took the crackers, he admitted he hadn't. After washing them, he has not experienced the plastic-y taste again, so most likely it just something from being shipped or being closed up for awhile.  So, please wash them before use =]

About the shipping--they came in a mailer made out of recycled materials and the invoice was printed front and back on recycled paper.  How great is that??

Now, to the wonderful giveway!  Jill has offered to give one reader of Our Lincoln Log a set of snackTaxis (one sandwich size and one snack size) in the pattern of your choice! (subject to availability). 

Entry Rules

(note:  if you blog, please make sure your profile is set to public with your e-mail visible so that I can contact you if you are the winner.  If you don't blog, you can still enter by leaving your e-mail address in your comments!)

Mandatory Entry:  please visit the snackTaxi website and let me know which colors/patterns you would choose if you won the snackTaxi set!  

This step much be completed or all other entries will be deleted.

Extra Entries:

1.  Tweet this giveaway and leave a link to your tweet (1 extra entry).

2.  Follow or subscribe to the RSS feed and leave a comment stating that you do (1 extra entry)

3.  If you enter today, get a bonus entry for Earth Day!  Leave a post before 11:59 p.m. on 4/22/2009 stating "Bonus Earth Day entry".  (1 extra entry).

4.  List a location where you could purchase snackTaxis in person--if there isn't a place near you, just list one that is close or located somewhere where you like to visit =] (1 extra entry)

The fine print:  This contest will close on Tuesday, May 5th, 2009 at 9:00 AM.  Comments will close at that time and a winner will be chosen via Random.org.  Winner will be announced here and contacted via e-mail within 24 hours of contest closing.  Winner will have 72 hours to reply.  If winner does not reply within that time frame, a new winner will be chosen.  This giveaway is open to US shipping addresses only.  Please refer to all rules and policies here.

This giveaway is now closed!  Please check back later for the winner!

Earth Week Giveaways, continued!

This blog entry is by far the most popular of all my blog entries...even 2 years later (I had 65 hits on this entry in January 2012 alone...). I am sorry if you found this via google search for FuzziBunz giveaways only to find out this one ended 2 years ago! But, welcome to my blog anyway! Feel free to stick around and explore, since you've made it this far already :)

Earth Week Challenge update for day 2:  we are doing AWESOME on this minimal lighting thing! We went on another evening walk before dinner.  I cleaned up the kitchen tonight without using paper towels--used a cloth instead.  Kept the chargers unplugged.  How are your challenges going?

I am glad so many people have had a chance to enter the FuzziBunz giveaway!  I am so happy to be able to provide the chance for one of you to either try cloth diapers for the first time, or add to your current stash, courtesy of FuzziBunz. 

I am also pleased to be able to share with you another giveaway, this time from The Boppy® Company.  (for some reason, I almost always type "Bobby" instead of "Boppy"...my apologies in advance if I miss one throughout the post.  I'm not sure how this keeps happening because the "b" and the "p" keys aren't even typed by the same hand, so why does my brain keep doing that? I'm open to your thoughts on why, if you've got them...)

Moving on...

As soon as I became visibly pregnant with Lincoln, I started receiving TONS of advice from people about pregnancy, birth, babies, nursing, products....etc.  The "Boppy®" name was dropped more than a few names.  At the beginning, I feigned like I knew what they where talking about.  "Oh, the Boppy®.  Of course I'm registered for the Boppy®.  Psh.  It's practically the first thing on my list."  Meanwhile, I kept a mental note in my head to look up what in the world people were talking about once they had left--I admit, I had a picture in my head of a balloon for some unreasonable reason.  

The Boppy®, it turns out, is not a balloon.  Surprise!  What it is, though, is a c-shaped pillow designed for aiding moms (or dads ) in nursing or bottle feeding baby.  It can also be used as a support for baby during tummy time or to help baby sit up while playing.

To use as a feeding aid, the Boppy® wraps around mom's (or dad's) waist.  Baby lays on top of the pillow and is supported at a comfortable height while feeding.

  

I received a Boppy® Bare Naked® pillow (meaning an uncovered pillow--hence the "naked") and an organic slipcover as a gift before Lincoln was born.  When he was first born and was so tiny, I did use the Boppy® to help raise him up when nursing him because I was so exhausted it was hard for me to hold him up there for that long (he was a marathon nurser at the beginning--we're talking 45 minutes to an hour every 2 hours).  Now that he is bigger and doesn't need to be propped up as much (and is much more efficient at eating), I don't really rely on the Boppy® for nursing purposes, but I do like to use it to help Lincoln sit up when we play, especially in the morning when we are just waking up.  He also does like to use it for tummy-time.  He isn't tummy-times #1 fan (I'd place him more along the lines of fan #3489, but who's counting?), so being up higher on the Boppy® seems to help him tolerate tummy-time for a little bit longer. And, not really a recommended Boppy® pillow use, but they also make great neck supports for parents when watching TV or reading in bed. The Boppy® Bare Naked® pillow is meant to be covered with a Boppy® slipcover that can be removed and easily washed should baby happen to spit up on it (as if that would ever happen--ha!).

The Boppy® Company also makes some other great looking products, such as the newborn lounger pillow, play gyms, bouncers, tummy play pads (this looks great, actually), and more. For moms-to-be, they also make a line of pregnancy pillows that is awesome.  I had the Total Body Pillow, and I am forever indebted to it for helping me get any sleep at all during months 6-9 of the pregnancy!

In honor of Earth Week, one lucky Our Lincoln Log reader will win an organic Boppy® slipcover and a Boppy® Bare Naked® pillow from The Boppy® Company!

Entry Rules

(note:  if you blog, please make sure your profile is set to public with your e-mail visible so that I can contact you if you are the winner.  If you don't blog, you can still enter by leaving your e-mail address in your comments!)

Mandatory Entry:  Please visit The Boppy Company website and let me know one other product you might like to try, and what your favorite slip cover would be.

This step MUST be completed or all other entries will be deleted!

Extra Entries (please leave a separate comment for each entry so they will each be counted!):

1. Write your own blog post about your own experience with Boppy® products and/or about this giveaway. Please include a link back to this post and a link to the Boppy website.  Leave the link to your blog post in the comments (5 extra entries).

2.  Follow @lincolnlog on twitter and tweet this giveaway--leave a link to your tweet in the comments. (1 extra entry)

3.  Become a follower of this blog (please do so publicly so that I can verify!) (1 extra entry)

4.  Subscribe to my RSS feed (link on the top of the right hand column) and let me know you did in the comments (1 extra entry).

5.  Find my earth day challenge post and leave a comment about what you plan to do for Earth Day (or week) this year.  (1 extra entry).

The fine print:  This contest will close on Tuesday, May 5th, 2009 at 9:00 AM.  Comments will close at that time and a winner will be chosen via Random.org.  Winner will be announced here and contacted via e-mail within 24 hours of contest closing.  Winner will have 72 hours to reply.  If winner does not reply within that time frame, a new winner will be chosen.  This giveaway is open to US shipping addresses only.  Please refer to all rules and policies here.

This giveaway is now closed!  Please check back later for the winner!

Earth Week Giveaways!

So, our Earth Week Challenge is off and running!  A brief update:  we did great with keeping the lights off, took an hour long walk around the neighborhood lake yesterday afternoon, this morning, Lucas used our new reusable sandwich bags to pack his lunch for work, we used cloth napkins with dinner last night, and took quick showers.  Where I failed?  Came out this morning to find my cell phone charger still plugged in.  So, overall, we did pretty good for day one!  

And now, onto the giveaway!

A few days ago, I posted about the recent FuzziBunz giveaway I was so lucky to have won...

Because I was so excited about them, I wanted a way to share my excitement and "pay it forward" to all of you who come here and read my blog =]  I contacted Tereson at FuzziBunz, and she has graciously offered up 3 more FuzziBunz cloth diapers to one lucky reader of Our Lincoln Log!  I thought it appropriate to kickoff this giveaway in connection with Earth Week!

(note:  not those 3.  Those are mine (ok, Lincoln's), and I am keeping them!)

FuzziBunz cloth diapers were invented by Tereson Dupuy when her son was 4 months old (which, coincidentally, is how old Lincoln is as of yesterday...awwww).  They are the original pocket diaper!  I am a big fan of the pocket design; because you remove the insert to wash and dry, this allows you to be able to get the insert cleaner and helps the diaper to dry faster because the parts are separate.  

Above, you can see the pocket opening in a FuzziBunz diaper.  You stuff the pocket with an insert (FuzziBunz come with microterry inserts, or you can also use prefolds, microterry towels, hemp or bamboo inserts...really, there are lots of choices!) then remove the insert from the diaper and place both in the diaper pail/wet bag after changing the baby.  Another benefit of the pocket style (that Lincoln takes advantage of daily...) is the ability to add extra inserts to increase absorbency at night.  We double up the inserts at night and Lincoln is good to go until morning!  

FuzziBunz come in 2 varieties:  Perfect Size and One Size.  Above, Lincoln is wearing a Perfect Size FuzziBunz in size small.  According to the FuzziBunz website, most babies will wear a Perfect Size small from 0-6 months, and a Perfect Size medium from 6-36 months.  This is great, because you can get away with buying only 2 sizes of diapers for the entire time your child is in diapers, should you prefer the sized diapers!  Of course, each baby is different, so should you need more or different sizes, the Perfect Size FuzziBunz also come in XS, Petite, and XL.  

FuzziBunz are also available in the One Size variety pictured above.  I went into details about these in my review here.

There are 20 gorgeous colors/patterns listed on the FuzziBunz website.  Lincoln has diapers in red, sage, white, aqua, royal blue, turquoise, and butter.  I have to admit, my personal favorite is the aqua, but I do love the red as well!  The new daisy print is awesome, but Lucas wouldn't let me get away with putting Lincoln in a flower print diaper.  If our next child is a girl, though, you better believe she is getting daisy print diapers!  

Now that you are all marveling over how cute my son is how cute and easy cloth diapers can be, I am so happy to be able to give you the chance to win your own set of THREE FuzziBunz diapers in YOUR CHOICE of size and color (subject to availability) courtesy of Tereson of FuzziBunz!  And how exactly can you win these, I am sure you are asking?

Entry Rules

(note:  if you blog, please make sure your profile is set to public with your e-mail visible so that I can contact you if you are the winner.  If you don't blog, you can still enter by leaving your e-mail address in your comments!)

Mandatory Entry:  Please visit the FuzziBunz website and answer TWO of the following questions in your first comment:  Besides diapers, what other products does FuzziBunz offer? Which color FuzziBunz do you like the best?  Where can you purchase FuzziBunz?

This step MUST be completed or all other entries will be deleted!

Extra Entries (please leave a separate comment for each entry so they will each be counted!):

1. Write your own blog post about your own experience with FuzziBunz and/or about this giveaway.  Please include a link back to this post and a link to the FuzziBunz website.  Leave the link to your blog post in the comments (5 extra entries).

2.  Follow @FuzziBunz on twitter and tweet this giveaway--leave a link to your tweet in the comments. (1 extra entry)

3.  Become a follower of this blog (please do so publicly so that I can verify!) (1 extra entry)

4.  Subscribe to my RSS feed (link on the top of the right hand column) and let me know you did in the comments (1 extra entry).

Bonus Extra Entries!

On Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays for the duration of this giveaway, I am going to post extra tasks you can complete to earn bonus entires into the giveaway!  I will put a link to this giveaway on the top of the blog so that it is easy to find when you come back to check for more bonus entries.  The bonus entry must be completed on the day it is posted to count.  Since today is Monday, the first bonus entry starts today! 

1.  Bonus entry for 4/20/2009:  Find the link on my blog for the current featured blog.  Visit her blog and leave her a comment!  As your entry, please come back here and let me know you did so and on which post so I can find it =]  This option will be available until 11:59 p.m. CST

This option is now closed.

2.  Bonus Entry for 4/22/2009:  Happy Earth Day!  To take advantage of the bonus entry today, just leave a comment stating "Earth Day bonus entry."  Have a wonderful (and green!) day! This option will be available until 11:59 p.m. CST tonight. 

This option is now closed.

3.  Bonus Entry for 4/24/2009:  Today is Friday!  What are you most looking forward to this weekend?  I am excited about an ice cream social we are going to on Sunday with the mom's group I'm a part of.  How about you?  For your bonus entry, just let me know in  comment--please include the words "bonus entry" too.  This option will be available 11:59 p.m. CST on Sunday. 

This option is now closed.

4.  Bonus Entry for 4/27/2009:  For today's bonus entry, I have a question.  If you already cloth diaper, do you travel with your cloth or do you switch to disposables for the trip?  If you don't use cloth yet, what do you think you would do?  We took ours with us to visit my family in Omaha a few weeks ago, but if we were going somewhere that we needed to stay in a hotel, I'm not sure I would bring them...what about you?  Leave your answer in the comments--and please include the words "bonus entry."  This option will be available until 11:59 p.m. CST on Tuesday.

This option is now closed.

5.  Bonus Entry for 4/29/2009:  So, this Friday is May Day!  When I was little, this always meant we made May baskets at school to leave on a peers desk when they weren't looking (ok, not every year, but I remember doing that at least once, anyway...and one time a friend left a May basket on my front porch at my house).  The point being, I have heard of May Day.  My husband thinks I made it up.  So, as the bonus for today, please leave me a note in the comments telling me if you have heard of May Day or not--if so, do you celebrate it?  I know this holiday is celebrated differently by different cultures, so I'm sure there are many different ways to celebrate besides May baskets!  This option will be available until 11:59 p.m. CST on Thursday.

This option is now closed.

6.  Bonus entry for 5/01/2009:  Happy May Day!  Consider this my May basket to you.  No question today, just type a comment saying May Day Bonus entry!  This option will be available until 9:00 a.m. CST on Monday, when the contest closes.  Good luck!!

This option is now closed.

This giveaway is now closed!  Check back later for the winner!

The fine print:  This contest will close on Monday, May 4th, 2009 at 9:00 AM.  Comments will close at that time and a winner will be chosen via Random.org.  Winner will be announced here and contacted via e-mail within 24 hours of contest closing.  Winner will have 72 hours to reply.  If winner does not reply within that time frame, a new winner will be chosen.  This giveaway is open to US shipping addresses only.  Please refer to all rules and policies here.

Good luck!! And, I just heard back from The Boppy Company and will have a great, earth friendly Boppy product to giveaway tomorrow!

Just found out about another FuzziBunz giveaway going on--check out MonkeyToes Reviews & Giveaways for another review and chance to win!

Win A Bumbleride Indie Twin Stroller!

3 Kids and Us is currently hosting The Ultimate Stroller Giveaway.  The prize is an incredible Bumbleride Indie Twin Stroller in your choice of colors!  That stroller is worth $659, which is an amount I would never be able to afford for a stroller, so I am taking advantage of this chance to win one!  Amazingly, for a double stroller, this thing is only 29" wide and 34 lbs.  It comes with a jogging strap should you choose to want to jog while pushing 2 babies (um, sure...sounds easy...). 

The tires on the Bumbleride are inflatable, so the ride should be much smoother than the hard plastic tires on standard strollers.  The seats accommodate 7 different brands of infant car seats, and also recline to a flat position for naps.   There are many other great features that come standard that you can read about on the Bumbleride website.  

To enter this contest, visit 3 Kids and Us between April 1st-30th.  There are 13 ways to get entries, so make sure to read through them all.   The giveaway link is also located under events on my sidebar.