Come on, am I the only one who has ever found a Polly Pocket bikini top in my wine glass?

My friends and I fondly refer to the litter of children’s things which seem to take over our homes as shrapnel. As in, kid shrapnel, and it’s everywhere! Be it the offending Lego that you so often step on with a bare foot in the middle of the night, or the whoopee cushion that just so happened to find itself on the seat of your favorite reading chair, this kid shrapnel can be a dangerous thing.

So the question remains, for all of us parents out there fed up with the kid shrapnel, what to do with all this stuff and how the heck do I organize it? 

Ta-da!  Mabel’s Labels!  I have found, in all my years of trying to organize three kids, no better solution to keeping track of what belongs to what child.  Plus, the labels are adorable, durable and available in a rainbow of colors - each with your child’s name and icon of choice on them (my kids have a skull, a turtle and a princess).  Sure, no label can completely eliminate the kid chaos and shrapnel, but they make organization a breeze, which, in turn, keeps the house a little more shrapnel-free!

Mabel’s Labels are the perfect solution for labeling everything from a skateboard (the first place my 11-year-old put his) to a sippy cup.  No need to worry about them falling off, because they are dishwasher, microwave and kid-proof!

I was so excited when we got our labels in the mail, that I went around labeling everything.  I put labels on books, cups, lunchboxes and even their Gameboys!  The clothing labels are especially handy, since my oldest will be going away (can I hear a hallelujah?) next week for summer camp and now I don’t have to worry about him losing any clothes.  He is just happy to have his skateboard labeled because, you know - skateboard theft is a huge concern of his.

Best part ever?  I am not going to keep all this labely goodness to myself (I know, shocking).  Mabel’s Labels wants to give YOU the chance to win some labels of your own!  All you have to do to enter is leave a comment on this post.  We will be giving away a Mabel’s Labels Camp Pack, which consists of 15 Sticky Labels, 40 Iron-Ons or 50 Tag-Mates (your choice), 8 Shoe Labels and 2 Bag Tags, to one lucky reader on Tuesday, June 24th!  Deadline to enter is 7:00pm (Pacific time) on Monday the 23rd, so don’t forget to leave a comment. 

TIME’S UP!  WINNER WILL BE ANNOUNCED TOMORROW, 6/24 AT 12:00PM.  THANK YOU TO EVERYONE WHO ENTERED!

Carrie Blankenship is the mother of three (four, if you count her goofy puppy).  She writes her way through motherhood at Stop Screaming I’m Driving! She accepts bribes of lattes (especially Starbucks) and offers of free babysitting.  If you’re really lucky, she may even do your laundry.  She can be contacted at carrieb-at-seattlemomblogs-dot-com.

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In 101 Wines, Gary V unveils his 1st list of favorites and recommendations. Gary’s wine picks for 2008 span many prices, regions, grapes, and styles, ensuring that wine novices and sophisticated oenophiles alike will expand their wine horizons while learning more about the drink they love.

I like to call myself a cheap wine connoisseur. I rarely spend more than $10 on a bottle, usually keeping it under $5. I don’t know much about the fancy sniffing and swilling, I just know what I like. GaryV’s book is right up my alley. Real life descriptions and honest evaluations. I cracked up when he said the Montalupa Bianca Viognier (#96) had a taste of “a coiled-up garden hose.” (p 12) Gary preface the book that it is not a wine review. It’s a book about this year’s hot wines.

He is not afraid to review sparkling, pinks, whites and reds in the same book. Snooty and pretentious need not apply for this book. I have been keeping this book in my bag when I go to the store so I can snap up the good stuff. Take some time to get to know GaryV at Wine Library TV. The videos will provide a sampling of the rambunctious, witty style that is GaryV.

I enjoyed this book thoroughly and give it 4.5 stars

You can meet Gary V at Elliot Bay Books on Saturday, June 28th, 2:00 p.m.

We are giving away 2 copies of 101 Wines.

1. Visit Wine Library TV and watch one of GaryV’s broadcasts
2. Leave a comment below including *your e-mail (use the box provided) *the title of a Wine Library TV broadcast you watched
3. Check back here on Saturday, June 14th. Winners will be chosen from the comments here combined with the commenters on mamikaze.com

Astacia’s alias is Mamikaze, a slacker mama with two daring daughters.
You can read about their crazy life at Life On The Run.
You can read her new recipe blog, Mamikaze Recipes.

I’ve been using their cleaning supplies, laundry detergent and hand soap for quite a while now and was excited to find out that they’re coming out with a new line of child/baby care items. You can expect them to be safe, effective and beautiful.

Enter below to win the entire lineup of products (4 baby and 2 kid products) or go buy your own online or at Safeway, Target or Babies R Us. They’re due out later this month.

To enter, leave a comment on this post. And, if you blog green with our sassy Earth Day banner and leave a link to your post, we’ll enter you twice.
Banner Code:

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When I was pregnant with CJ, I obsessed over many things.  How many teeny-tiny washcloths to buy.  Whether to go with the expensive but highly fashionable crib or the cheap but just as functional one.  Whether CJ would turn out to be a GIRL even after the ultrasound led us to believe otherwise… and if so, what would we do with all the little blue onesies!  And, of course, diapers.  What to do about diapers.

As much as I despised the idea of filling my waste basket with petroleum-based nastiness, I also couldn’t bear the thought of rinsing and scrubbing and reusing poopy cloths.  I decided to go with a diaper service, but the baby came, all hell broke loose, and I just never got around to it.

It was the beginning of many failures.

Next time I am going to give gDiapers a try.  They’re free of elemental chlorine, perfumes, plastics, inks and dyes, and latex. Plus they’re much better for the environment because they’re biodegradable. And, honestly, they’re not that much more expensive than huggies. So many of our readers are so happy with their gDiapers, and I love, love, love the idea of a diaper that you can flush.  Seriously, it makes me weak at the knees.

Having not used the gDiapers myself, I did a bit of research to see what other local moms are saying about them.  Here’s what I found;

Our solution has been to use these flushable, biodegradable diapers called gDiapers. While our fragile, ancient plumbing can’t handle flushing the Bungle of Joy’s size Large anymore, we can throw them in the trash knowing they’ll biodegrade. That’s a good feeling. ~Janna, from Happily Even After

So, what’s the final word on gdiapers? We love them. It’s been a few weeks and we’re used to using them. We feel good about it every time we flush them down the toilet. And Baboo loves his new “potty diapers”. ~Isabel, from New To Us and Hola Isabel

While I was still pregnant, I stumbled across a product called gDiapers. gDiapers are basically a cloth/ disposable hybrid diaper. The outside cover (which is super cute mind you!) is cloth, it then has a waterproof liner that holds a flushable (or compostable!!) insert. Mindi and I agreed to try them and I am IN LOVE. ~Lynn, from Family Style Love

But, be warned, almost every review that I’ve read cautioned that these diapers will clog toilets if not flushed correctly.  Don’t say I didn’t tell you!

Today one lucky readers will win a gDiaper starter kit, which includes 2 “little g” pants in gender-neutral colors, 10 plastic-free, flushable refills, a swishstick and a H.U.G (handy user’s guide).

To enter, leave a comment on this post. And, if you blog green with our sassy Earth Day banner and leave a link to your post, we’ll enter you twice.

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Something I never fully realized about having kids until it was too late is how much STUFF they generate.

Legos, Hotwheels, blocks, puzzle pieces, dinosaurs and tiny action figures… there’s such sheer quantity of stuff taking up space and filling up corners, giving me something to step on in my bare feet while walking to the bathroom in the dead of night.

I love Kids Klutter Katchers because it’s a smart solution to the age-old problem of too many toys all over everywhere.  These mesh zippered bags are infinitely flexible, keeping little pieces and toys together and organized and off my floor.  The mesh fabric is flexible, washable, see-throughable and NOT PLASTIC.  What’s not to love?

Check it out:

Before Kids Klutter Katchers

After Kids Klutter Katchers

And, today one lucky readers will win a 15-piece set of Kids Klutter Katcher bags. (US only)

To enter, leave a comment on this post.  Or blog green with our sassy Earth Day banner, and leave a link to your post to be entered twice.

Banner Code:

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