Our First Pampers Rewards - Free Gifts for Buying Diapers!

As I mentioned in a previous post, I was way behind when I signed up for Pampers Rewards.. I think our little one was 10 months old when we started (oh all those months of diaper codes I could have used!). Since then I've been entering codes every time I can and saving them up. 

Initially I was going to wait and get one of the big items for Miss M, but the other week I decided to trade some points in and get something small for her.  I saw this Little Bakers Cupcake set from Step 2 and thought it would be great for her to play with when she's using the kitchen helper I was making her.  Redeeming the points was very easy - just log in, choose your reward, check out, and confirm your mailing address.  Done!  

The cupcake set wasn't as rugged as I was hoping for considering it's from Step 2, but it is very, very cute.  The set comes with a tray, six cupcakes, and six interchangeable frosting tops.  Our little one can't quite get them on and off herself yet but she is really enjoying them still. 

And, of course the best part about it was they were free!  I didn't even have to pay shipping, which was amazing (note: some items you do have to pay shipping for).  I'm looking forward to ordering more free gifts.. just have to remember to keep entering my codes!

PS - I just stumbled across an account on Instagram that shares some of the free codes Pampers releases for promotions.  Follow @free_pampers_codes to help boost your point total!  

Want to see what else we got from Pampers Rewards?  Check out my other posts:  

• Our 2nd Pampers Rewards:  Little Tikes Shopping Cart
• Our 3rd Pampers Rewards:  Potty Training Chart
• Our 4th Pampers Rewards:  Melissa and Doug Tool Kit

Please note items available from Pampers Rewards are subject to change.  

Milk Can House Number - Add some country flair to your curb appeal!

My parents-in-law gave us an awesome old milk can and it took me a little while to decide what I could do with it.  After some thought I decided to use it as a country-inspired house number display.  | This post contains affiliate links |

The milk can had already been re-painted at one point and while the green paint and the rust spots definitely gave it a nice patina, I decided to clean it up and repaint it to make it a little cleaner and kid-friendly.  

First step was to clean up all the loose paint.  I used a wire brush, metal scraper, and rough-grit sandpaper to clean it up and make a good base for the new paint.  

Once it was ready I used Rust-Oleum Professional High Performance Protective Enamel in matte black and gave it two coats, letting dry about 24 hours between coats.  For the stencil I made a point to choose a font and size that looked like it belonged there - that maybe the farmer numbered all his milk cans and this was just one in the lineup.  The stencils I used were from the Martha Stewart Monogram Serif Stencil Set, trimming the letters down and taping them together with painters tape.  I had used the "o" previously for another project.. hence why it's brown.  

I used white acrylic paint to stencil it and filled the gaps in the stencil with a small brush after.  I think the milk can came out pretty cute and adds the perfect country touch!

Product Links
|  Martha Stewart Monogram Serif Stencil Set  |

Happy Fourth of July!

Wishing everyone a very safe and happy Fourth - God Bless America! 

We're taking it easy at home today and avoiding the crazy crowds in town, hope you're all enjoying your Fourth with family and friends!  

Nûby Review: Splash n' Catch Bathtime Fishing Set

Today I'm reviewing Nûby's Splash n' Catch Bathtime Fishing Set.  I was so excited to receive this as our little one loves "catching" everything in a net lately.  In fact, one of her favorite things to do is throw the mesh bag for her blocks (which is pretty small) on top of our black lab's back and shriek with delight that she captured her, it's pretty adorable.  | This post contains affiliate links and an honest review of products provided to us by Nûby |

The Splash n' Catch is recommended for ages 18+ months and comes with a fishing net and four colorful sea animals that can be linked together.  It's BPA-free and, according to Nûby also PVC-free, which is very important to us.  Miss M loves catching the animals and taking them in and out of the net.  She's also been playing with this toy out of the tub and has been enjoying putting all kinds of things into the net - small blocks, her snacks, a shoe, etc.  

This toy is great for developing hand-eye coordination and teaching your little one some colors.  The one small flaw of this toy that we found is our little one can't link and unlink the animals together on her own, but maybe with time she will be able to.  

The Splash n' Catch Fishing Set would also be a great toy to bring outside and use in the kiddie pool or water table and I know we'll definitely be bringing it outside this summer.  

Miss M loved putting her other bath toys in the net too (pictured are Nûby's Bath Letters and Numbers).  

- I received this item for review from Nûby but all opinions expressed are my own.  Please see our full Disclosure Policy for more information -   

Nûby's Splash n' Catch Bathtime Fishing Set can be purchased at various retailers including Kohl's and Amazon.  

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Yankee Magazine Instagram Feature

One of my photos is Yankee Magazine's latest #mynewenglandsummer feature on Instagram! 

Skiff Repurose into Sandbox (Hopefully)

This weekend we passed this old skiff on the side of a dirt road with a sign that said "FREE." I immediately thought it could make an amazingly cool sandbox for our daughter! 

We got it home and under closer inspection it is in pretty rough shape. The hull is cracked (not a big deal because we'll be drilling holes in the bottom for drainage), the wood trim around the rim is super-rotten, and there's some exposed rusty screws where one of the oarlocks has broken off. We're hoping we can fix the trim, get the rusty screws out, and get it clean, safe, and repainted - complete with a name.  Then we'll fill it with sand and make a cover to keep the neighborhood cat from conducting his "business" in it. 

So there's still a lot of work ahead!  I'm hoping we can make it work, it would definitely make the coolest sandbox around. 

Local Product Love: Maine Leather Co.

Today I wanted to share about this awesome little leather goods company called Maine Leather Co., based out of Portland, Maine.  It's run by Belle Hilmer, who makes every product with lots of love.  Each item is made of great quality, rich leather and is cut, sewn, and riveted together by hand.  

Maine Leather Co. offers a lot of different items - from wallets, to catch-alls, to bags (their Signature Tote is gorgeous!), and even beer coozies - all will an underlying love for Maine.  

I got one of their catch-alls a little while ago and have been hiding it away it for my husband's birthday, but now that his birthday has gone by I can finally share it with you.  In the past, my husband usually leaves his keys, sunglasses, and wallet in his hat by the door but I really wanted to get him something nicer to corral these things.  His family has a deep history in Maine, his Grandfather was a logger way up in "the county," so having the state of Maine sewn into the tray definitely has personal meaning to him.  

Maine Leather Co.'s products show a great love for their home state - whether it's boldly emblazoned front and center or a subtle rivet with a tiny Maine outline, their state pride is strong.  

The details and craftsmanship are wonderful.  The outline of Maine is sewn into the leather in such a way that there are no knots, even the back looks beautiful!  

Follow Maine Leather Co.  
|  Shop  |  Facebook  |  Instagram  |  Twitter  |

- I received a shop credit towards this product as part of a promotion, but all opinions expressed are my own. -

Nutella Filled Cupcakes

This past weekend we had some friends over and I needed to make a dessert for after dinner.  After looking through the cupboards I realized we had a left over box of vanilla cake mix and vanilla frosting from my husband's birthday.  I wanted to use that up, but needed something to jazz up the boring all-vanilla dessert.  I saw a jar of Nutella and thought filling the cupcakes with that would be an awesome idea!  This "recipe" can be super easy by using a box mix and ready-made frosting like I did, but if you have a great from-scratch recipe for cupcakes and frosting you can definitely use that instead!  

At first I debated whether I should pipe Nutella into already cooked and cooled cupcakes, or put it straight into the batter before baking.  I decided to go with adding the Nutella in before baking and other than it sinking towards the bottom half of the cupcake (some more than others), it worked great!  Putting the Nutella in pre-baking also means a little less clean-up in the end, which is just fine by me.  

Nutella Filled Cupcakes

Prep time 15 mins*  |  Cook time 20 mins*  |  Makes up to 24 cupcakes 
*additional time needed to cool and decorate.  

Ingredients  

• vanilla cake mix

• wet ingredients needed for the cake mix (varies depending on brand, but you usually need eggs, water, vegetable oil)

• vanilla ready-made frosting

• Nutella

• cupcake liners

• sprinkles (optional)

Directions

1. Make cake batter according to package directions and fill muffin tin, lined with cupcake liners, with the batter.

2. Put a heaping teaspooon (or a little more) of Nutella on top of the batter.

3. Bake according to package directions (make sure cupcakes are thoroughly cooked).

4. Cool and decorate.

5. Enjoy!

Now wasn't that easy? :)

Tip: In the past I have used straight Nutella as frosting when I was short. It worked great, but keep in mind it stays very "goopy" and doesn't firm up or get that thin crust like most frostings do.