Goals for 2018

Every New Year, there's an inspiring urge to finally accomplish all that you've been meaning to do.  As someone who tends to get caught up in the everyday, I love this motivation to see the big picture and write down what I'd like to accomplish the coming year.  

First, lets look back at all the great things that 2017 brought! 

The biggest blessing of 2017 was definitely adding to our family with the birth of our second daughter at the end of the summer.  The pregnancy and new baby stage kept me pretty busy throughout the whole year, and so Birch Landing Home took a bit of a backseat for 2017.  Nevertheless, highlights for BLH this year have included being quoted in Parenting New Hampshire Magazine and adding another wholesale account to our roster.  I also got the opportunity to work with some of my favorite international brands including L.L. Bean, Nûby, and Safety 1st as well as many wonderful New England-based companies including Hills & Trails, Woodboogah, and Cobalt Sky Studio.  

Goals for 2018

I have a lot of professional and personal things I'd like to accomplish or improve for 2018 - here are some of them:  

Grow Birch Landing Home More

This past year, Birch Landing Home was put on the back burner while I focused on family.  Family always comes first, but this year I want to get back into the working groove and grow BLH more.  I have some great ideas for new products to add to the Etsy Shop and DIY projects to share on the blog.  I'd also love to do more work with both international brands and New England-based buisnesses. 
(I also have an incredibly exciting collaboration lined up for the spring that I can't wait to share with you all!)  

Get Back into Running

While I ran throughout my first pregnancy, this time around I just couldn't so I stopped running and haven't gotten back into it since.  I don't know if another Half is on the books for this year with the new baby, but I'd love to at least get back into a regular running routine and do a few fun 5Ks.  

Clean House

Going through the house and systematically purging everything in the beginning of the year is something I really look forward to.  It's so refreshing to go through everything and donate or sell whatever you haven't been using for the past year.  Now that we have two kids the amount of "stuff" has exploded and I'm looking forward to getting it under control.  

Make More Time for Family and Friends

We've been so busy with work and our own family we haven't had the chance to visit enough with family and close friends this past year.  We're way overdue to visit some great friends and you can never spend enough time with your family.  This is an important priority for us in the new year.  

Get Up Early

Getting up early before the rest of the house really helps me get a jump on my day.  This was something that had been part of my routine but has fallen by the wayside over the last few months.  There's just something so motivating about getting up before everyone else, enjoying a cup of coffee in the peace and quiet, planning out your day, and getting a jump start on your to-do list.  Days when I get up early are so much more productive and let me focus more on the kids and other important tasks the rest of the day.  

Get Outside More

I'm really looking forward to more hiking and camping trips with family and friends this year.  There have been a couple of hikes that have been on our "to-do list" forever and it's high time we finally do them!  There's nothing better than getting outside to recharge. 

Explore New England! 

One of our favorite things to do as a family is day trips and weekend trips around New England to explore all the great things this area has to offer.  Usually we do a couple trips every year and this year I'd love to do even more if we can - especially in Maine and Vermont.  I'd also like to share our knowledge and put together more New England Travel Guides for the blog.  

What are some of your goals for the New Year? 

Photo from Free Nature Stock

New England Humidifier

I shared this photo on my Instagram Stories earlier and got so many comments I figured it was worth explaining!  Here in New England during winter, things get sooo dry indoors with the freezing cold temps outside and heat cranking inside - as a result your skin and throat really suffer, feeling constantly dry and scratchy.  | This post contains affiliate links |

One solution is to get a humidifier to put some moisture back into the dry air. In fact we do have a cool mist humidifier upstairs that we run at night when it's particularly dry or we're sick, but otherwise you can't beat the price and efficiency of an old fashioned "New England Humidifier" - a.k.a. a pot of water on the wood stove or radiator.

It works by simply adding moisture into the air by letting the water evaporate.  It's most efficient when you put the pot of water on the heat source so it evaporates a bit quicker, but if you don't have a stove or radiator you can also leave the pot by a heating vent or just in the room with you.  If you do leave the pot on your stove or radiator, just make sure it doesn't go dry (you want to take it off when you leave the house too) otherwise you might end up with a scorched pot!  

Disclaimer:  Use this tip at your own risk.  

50% Off Old Inventory!

Way back when I first opened my Etsy shop, I mostly made jewelry.  Since then I've transitioned the shop to home decor items but still have quite a bit of jewelry inventory hanging around.  
With Christmas right around the corner, I thought it would fun to list some of these items at a huge discount to make a little more room in the studio.  In our CLEARANCE section you can find these items listed for 50% off - perfect for last minute stocking stuffers!  

*All sales are final and purchases made by 12/15 should arrive in time for Christmas, however I am unable to guarantee delivery date.  Jewelry items may have some slight tarnishing.  

Safety 1st Premium Baby Care Kit

Having a newborn means there's a lot of little essentials you're going to need - and even though this is our second baby, things like new combs, thermometer, and teether are always needed.  Safety 1st was kind enough to send us their Precious Memories Premium Baby Care Set for our newest addition to the family and I wanted to share with you all the wonderful things that are included. 
| This post contains an honest review of products provided to us from Safety 1st.  This post also contains affiliate links. | 

First of all I just wanted to point out what a great value the Premium Baby Care Kit is! It includes all the items seen below - including a fox wash mitt, booger sucker, cradle cap brush, thermometer, toothbrush, comb, brush, teether, nail clippers, and photo cards. Whew. And it's all boxed up neatly in a sturdy wooden box that can easily be reused as handy storage in the nursery. All-in-all it's a $75 value but retails for less than half of that on Amazon! This would make the perfect affordable and easy baby shower gift for a friend or coworker (or for yourself!).

The kit also comes with these really sweetly illustrated "First Cards" by Milestone Baby.  These are perfect for documenting those special firsts with your baby.  I also love that there's a little spot to record the date as well so the cards can be kept and tucked away in your memory box after.  

We've been using these items for a few weeks now and our favorites so far have definitely been the cute fox washing mitt (which our four-year-old has claimed as hers) as well as the cradle cap brush which we use religiously with each bath for our baby.  I just love how the brush really scrubs off the the flaky skin without being too tough on your baby's sensitive scalp!  It really does a wonderful job.  

- I received this item for review from Safety 1st/Milestone Baby but all opinions expressed are my own.  Please read our full Disclosure Policy for more information - 

Safety 1st's Premium Baby Care Kit can be found at various retailers including Amazon and Babies 'R Us.
Don't forget to follow @Safety_1st and @Milestonebaby on Instagram to see their latest products!

Small Business Saturday Sale!

In honor of Small Business Saturday, we’re offering 15% off in our Etsy Shop with the coupon code “PLAID15" through Monday!  

Quantities are very limited so please shop early.  Thanks so much for all your support and for shopping small this season.  

Use PLAID15 for 15% off our entire Etsy Shop.  Coupon Code Expires 11/27/17 at Midnight EST.  

Etsy Shop Back Open!

Our Etsy shop is back open for business after my Maternity Leave! 

Quantities in the shop will be very limited this season since we're still so busy with our newest addition to the family.  Please shop early and check back often as I'll be restocking the listings as I am able.  

(And don't forget so sign up for our Newsletter for an exclusive Coupon Code!)  Thank you so much again for all your patience and support!  

DIY Teacup or Dish Bird Feeder

You might remember a previous post where I reused a repaired coffee mug as an herb planter in the kitchen.  Well this year I decided to transform that mug one more time into a little bird feeder for a focal point in the flower garden.  

Supplies & How-to:   

The supply list really couldn't be more simple - all you need is a mug, bowl, or plate, a wooden dowel, a rubber cap, and some super glue!  That's it!  

I had my husband paint the wooden dowel with a couple coats of white outdoor paint first (normally I would have painted it, but the outdoor paint isn't recommended to be used by pregnant women).  I wanted it painted to give a bit more of a finished look and to help make sure the dowel lasts longer outdoors.  

Then with a little bit of Super Glue, I attached the rubber cap to the bottom of the ceramic mug.

By having the mug be removable from the dowel, you can easily pound the dowel sturdily into the ground with a small mallet or hammer then add the feeder once the dowel is in place.  It also makes it easy to clean out the feeder regularly.  

Since we've had bears frequent our neighborhood lately, I will just be filling the mug with water for now for birds and butterflies to drink from.  Once the bears go into hibernation again I will be able to safely fill it with bird seed for our feathered friends.  

Overall I'm happy with how this simple project came out - it adds the perfect touch to our flower bed!  

Amazon Prime Day Sales Start Tonight!

Amazon Prime Day deals start tonight at 9PM! I'll be sharing some of my favorite deals here over on Facebook so stay tuned!  Prime Day is a great time to get ahead on Christmas and birthday shopping and to finally get that something special for yourself too.  

Not a Prime Member? Sign up for a FREE 30-day trial HERE (affiliate link) and take advantage of all the sales over the next two days.