Our Entry in the AlexandAlexa Fruit Carving Contest

Noah and I had the opportunity to participate in the  AlexandAlexa Fruit carving contest. The prize is £250 AlexandAlexa gift card. Here is my entry:

This was so much fun. I am not much of a carver but it was fun to try! Noah decided he wanted us to do a traditional jack-o-lantern face. He did the carving himself with a butter knife.  I think it turned out great for being made by a seven year old.  His name is Eyeballs and Brains.

Selling Clothes with Music Magpie

When I found out I was pregnant with Noah, I was so excited to shop for baby clothes. My mom told me to get mostly three to six month sizes. Newborn clothes are really cute but they only something the baby can wear a few times. I wanted to get clothes that he could wear a lot. Of course they were kind of big on him, but not for too long. I also bought some 0-3 months sleepers.  He was a good sized baby for being born three weeks early. He was 7 pounds 12 ounces. He was a big baby, his pediatrician called him a line backer because he was so solid. He was wearing 24 months clothes at 10 months old.  He went through his clothes like crazy. He only was able to wear some things like twice. Most of his clothes were in great shape after he grew out of them.  Noah has a ton of clothes; I can’t imagine some of my friends who have three or more children.  Even people with different gendered children, would have a ton of clothes. Throwing them away would be a waste of money and clothes.  Why not sell them to someone who can use them?

You could always have a garage sale, but not everyone has the opportunity or space to do it. It is also extremely time consuming, you have to sit outside for many hours and hope that you get customers.  I think a great idea to sell used kids clothes is online. There is a site called Music Magpie that you can sell clothes for cash.  Music Magpie also buys adult clothing.  My sister is a Marine wife and she goes to the Marine Ball every year and she buys a new dress. She only wears it once and then it sits in her closet. I think that she has a serious shopping addiction.  They also buy all kinds of things.  I really like that with Magic Magpie it is really easy to list your products. It isn’t a long process. You can list them and go on with your day, and not have to spend a whole day out in the heat trying to sell the clothes.  It is also free! You also can ship to Music Magpie for free. It would be crazy not to try this out.

 

Do you sell your clothes after you are done with them?

Shop Now with Kiddie Wow

Noah is really growing up. He seems to have had another growth spurt, which means he will need more clothes.  He has always been bigger than the average child. His pediatrician called him a linebacker when he was a baby.  It can be challenging to find cute clothes for him that fit well.  I am not really big on character clothing, and neither is he. He is very persnickety about what he wears.  He prefers clothing with sea life and planes over any cartoon character any day. Unfortunately, a lot of the clothes you find in stores have those characters on them. Forget about finding cute jammies, they all have characters on them.  He also likes to wear plaid button up shirts. I think they are a classic kid’s look.  He has been wearing them since he was a baby; they are great for when you are going to church or somewhere nice. 

I found about Kiddie Wow today. They have a lot of cute kid’s clothes.  I really like the shirt in blue depths. It would be great to have when we go out to dinner.  They also have a really cute sun hat that he could wear when we go on walks or go fishing.  Sun protection is a must in sunny Florida.  I have a lot of friends that are expecting, so I also looked at the baby clothes. They have so many cute items too.  When Noah was a baby, he spent most of the time in sleepers, so those are my favorite baby gifts to buy.  I love that you can also buy accessories and even whole outfits.  I will definitely keep an eye out on their amazing weekly deals and price drops too.  This mama loves a great deal, especially when it seems like I just bought Noah new clothes. He is going to be so tall when he is an adult.

What kinds of clothes do your children like to wear? I look forward to reading your comments.

Cookie's Kids Solves Your School Uniform Problems

When I registered Noah for Kindergarten, I found out that he has to wear a school uniform.  Wearing a uniform is no big deal because a lot of schools have switched to it for different reasons. When I was in school it was a huge deal if your school had a uniform policy, mine never did. I started looking for polo shirts and shorts because after all we do live in Florida and it isn’t that cold here.  When I started shopping I had no idea that it would turn in to a quest. I went to seven stores to find bits and pieces of uniforms. I wanted to have five complete uniforms so I wouldn’t have to laundry in the middle of the week unless I absolutely had to.  I went to all the children’s stores, department stores, and big box stores and they were pretty much wiped clean.  We live in a huge school district and while not all the schools require a uniform a lot of them are.  We even had family members and went out of state and looked there. We were finally able to find enough shirts and some shorts for Noah. It was definitely a stressful experience for me because I didn’t want him to get in trouble for being out of dress code. I thought about calling the school and asking but I figured they would either offer to give me old uniforms, which someone else could really need or send me to a store I had already been to. It wasn’t their job to find me uniforms. My poor friends had to listen to me whine about the uniform situation.  I was lost and his size was really hard to find. They either had small stuff or like 10/12 sizes.  I didn’t want to get him white polo shirts because he would mess them up like the first week.  He does have art class and he has come home with paint on him. 

  

I was so relieved to have the clothes crisis solved and then about a month ago I noticed his powdered blue polo shirts were starting to look worn. The school year is half over and well, he is six and his shirts were definitely starting to need replaced. They weren’t ragged or full of holes but I dreaded starting this process again.  I had kind of been looking thinking they might have some in his size later in the year, I guess those other kindergarten parents are in need of new uniforms too. Then something happened, I learned about Cookie’s Kids.  If only I had known about Cookie’s Kids in August there would have been no stress.  Cookie’s Kids specializes in school uniforms and other kid’s clothing. They have any style you could want. They have many different brands, big brand names.  They also have long sleeve polo shirts, which was something I really wanted for Noah on the cooler days.  Cookie’s Kids also has a bunch of different colors. 

Here is the story behind Cookie's Kids:

In 1972, a young man named Cookie and his brother Marvin went into business together. They rented a 1600 square foot store in Jamaica, Queens, fixed it up, bought inventory and Summer and Fall, and opened a day after Thanksgiving with a full stock of holiday toys. The toys were a success and they put the extra money toward buying children's clothing for the next season. When that did well,they bought more clothing. The business was on it's way. As, he brothers Cookie, Marvin and Sonny, who had come in as a third partner in the business, began to open new stores in new locations, inventory expanded. Besides the latest fashions, our customers wanted shoes, toys, backpacks and accessories and we were prepared to deliver. By the late 1990's there were six superstores throughout the NYC area, and though they previously had different names, by that time they were all named Cookie's Kids. Also in the late '90s came an important addition to Cookie's Kids' inventory: school uniforms. It was the steady success in uniform sales that paved the way for founding CookiesKids.com in 2007, which originally sold uniforms and soon after the entire Cookie's Kids Inventory. 

I was amazed at the prices. I love a good bargain and their clothes are so inexpensive. They don’t have the department store mark up. I was so impressed with ordering. It was really easy to find what I wanted.  I didn’t have any trouble checking out and it was a breeze. The shipping is only $5.95. I hate when I am shopping online and the shipping is the same price or more than what I am ordering.  I am sure you are wondering what I ordered.  I ordered 2 powder blue polo shirts, 1 long sleeve navy polo shirt and 1 long sleeve powder blue polo shirt. I got all of that including shipping for 29 dollars. They have great sale prices too. If you sign up for the newsletter, you can learn about the sales and special coupon codes. Right now you could possibly win an iPad by just receiving their emails. I will continue to use Cookie's Kids to purchase uniforms  for the rest of Noah's elementary school days. 

Take it from me; check out Cookie’s Kids for all your uniform needs. Bookmark it. You have enough stress with your child starting school; their uniforms should be a breeze and with Cookie’s Kids relax and breathe and save all your tears for the first day of school. Cookie’s Kids have 7 stores in the NYC area in Bronx, Brooklyn and Jamaica as well as online.

Please check out my Google + Story for more photos

I am a member of the Collective Bias™ Social Fabric® Community.  This shop has been compensated as part of a social shopper insights study for Collective Bias™ and CookiesKids.com #CBias #SocialFabric All thoughts and opinions are my own.

Lil Bit'z Clothing Review

I had the opportunity to receive some clothes for Noah from Bit’z Kids which is a really cute kid’s clothing boutique in New York City. Bit'z Kids sells Japanese children's clothes. As someone who has only been to NYC once a long time, ago I am happy to share with you that you can also order their clothes online, if you can’t make it to their store. If you live in the area you can sign up for emails and learn about the sales they have.

We received the SouthHampton Motors tee and the Sweat Lib Denim Shorts. Noah loves the shirt; it is probably his most favorite shirt at the moment. It is really cute. One the back of it, it says The Old Truck is My Friend, which describes Noah’s love for trucks. He really likes the shorts as well. They are comfortable for him. Those who know me know I am all about comfort. They are comfortable but they also look really cute on him.



The clothes are well made and are soft. Noah wore them all around Animal Kingdom when we were in Orlando. I was told by a few people that they really liked his clothes. When they asked me where I had got them I said Bit’z Kids! I explained that you can order them online. I wonder if they ordered anything. If you are looking for adorable, well made kids clothes please check out Bit’z Kids in store or online.

Thanks to Bit’z Kids for sending me the complimentary two items that I mentioned in my review for Noah to try out.

Hopscotch Tees Review

Have you ever seen those signs that tell you when something was established? I remember my old neighbors had one by their front door with their last name and the year the parents got married. I will always remember that sign. How about a shirt for your child that has the same idea? Hopscotch Tees decided to make a line of adorable children’s shirts with really cute designs and sayings that you can get for your child or your grandchild with their name and city or neighborhood and the year that they were born. They have shirts for both boys and girls even adults too. The shirts are available in long sleeve and short sleeve.


I got Noah a long sleeve shirt that has fishing lures on it that says Noah’s Tackle Shop. Tying the best lures in the city we live in since 2006. The shirt was wrapped up beautifully in a box with really nice ribbon. There was also a lollipop in the package. It is little personal touches like that, that bring a smile to my face. The shirt is soft and looks really cute on Mr. Noah. This would be a great Valentine’s Day gift or a birthday present for the little one in your life. They have lots of really cute shirts. I had a hard time picking which one to get. I decided on the fishing lures shirt because Noah loves fish. I can see him going fishing when he gets older. The day we received the shirt Noah started using the ribbon as a crane. He turns strings and ribbons and whatever he can find in to cranes. It’s really cute. He is so proud of his new shirt and he loves wearing it. He looks absolutely adorable in it too.

For more information and to order a Hopscotch Tee for your little one please visit the website.

Thank you to Hopscotch Tees for sending Noah a t-shirt for reviewing purposes.