Get Ready With Us | Unicorn Birthday Party

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(Stay tuned for the actual UNICORN BIRTHDAY PARTY event)

We can’t believe our baby is having her first birthday already! Get ready with us in this episode as we record the days leading up to the big event:

Baby Dakota was blessed enough to have two parties this year, since family is spread far and wide. See her Princess party:

Thank you all for all the kind words and encouragement through the years. We are so lucky to have our YouTube community!! 🌈

Get Ready With Us

00:00:00 Intro
00:00:26 Food-safe glitter spray explosion – whoops
00:00:32 Unicorn pool noodles plus Target Dollar Spot unicorn masks for obstacle course
00:00:34 Target (and everywhere) is PACKED with unicorn products right now!
00:00:52 Hanging large decorations days before the party
00:01:03 Clorox wipes for everything – my household is sick four days before the party!
00:01:58 All the menial tasks I don’t film because BORING
00:02:41 Incoco real nail polish strip application
00:04:00 Autumn Leaves PRE-K unit activity “leaf blowing” with balloon pump
00:04:26 Making a cupcake birthday cake with Amazon pan
00:06:15 Cleaning, vacuuming, polishing, scrubbing…the usual 😉
00:08:52 Thank goodness for Ginmic Toys Dinosaur Mat for occupying my children while I cleaned and filmed!
00:09:00 Cute unicorn napkins from Target (matching plates not pictured)
00:09:17 My wife needs to be in all the vlogs!!!! I miss her!
00:09:20 These farm fresh eggs look fake (but they aren’t! See me play chicken farmer in the video link below)
00:10:13 Command strips plus streamers plus wooden dowel make a delightful photo backdrop – I pre-made the streamer/dowel and saran wrapped it until the day of the event
00:10:10 I have the best wife in the entire world (surprising me with coffee since I was up until two A.M. editing vlogs)

Products in this video which are available on Amazon have been linked in our Amazon storefront – we earn a small commission through items purchased directly through affiliate links. Thank you!

amazon.com/shop/mommaamommab

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Ginmic Toys | Amazon Review

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Ginmic Toys offered our family a complementary play mat and dinosaurs in exchange for our honest review. In a nutshell, here are our pros and cons list (click play on the video above to watch the full video and see Canyon’s delight in unboxing this product, which came in a very exciting dinosaur box):

Pros:

  • Packaged in a cardboard box with a very eye catching dinosaur scene – just add a ribbon and tag for a beautiful gift wrap alternative.
  • Smaller items were packaged as sets, making it easy to discern different parts and pieces: the palm trees came in their own cellophane bag, as did the small dinosaurs (or ‘baby dinos’ as Canyon says).
  • The felt mat was thicker than the cheaper felt you often see at the craft or dollar stores. The image was printed crisply, with a high resolution and large enough for my two kids to share.
  • Additional scenery pieces made it easier to expand play ideas. We pretended the palm trees were ‘salads’ for the herbivores, and the carnivores got big hunks of meat (ahem, brown boulders and rocks). 
  • It provides hours and hours of fun. We are not always sure what makes a product a “hit” or a “miss” in my toddler’s world, but this one he consistently asks for. So, that’s a win!

COULD USE IMPROVEMENT:

  • Two of the large dinosaur figurines did not stand independently, and one my wife was able to bend a little to make it work. Could be potentially frustrating for some kids if all but one or two stand. 
  • The toggles/drawstrings on the storage bag could present a hazard – supervision suggested by this mama (as well as by the manufacturer).

My two year old didn’t seem to notice the wobbly dinos, but seemed delighted with the mini set and the travel bag, as well as matching the dinos to the images on the mat and learning each name/classification.

As supervision is almost always required or at least strongly recommended for all kids products, that doesn’t necessarily fall into the “cons” category, but I had to point out the two long drawstrings.  

I recommend this play mat for kids around 3 years old, and it is marked for ages 3+ so it seems like GINMIC is on point with that. Or else I am. Or, we are on the same page, anyway!

Pinterest provides DIY felt play mat ideas, available for free online. If you aren’t willing or in a position to invest the resources toward a DIY, save yourself time and frustration and order this play mat from Amazon. It’s also available on Prime!

Click the link below to purchase it directly from our Amazon shop (a storefront where we earn a small commission for each item purchased directly through our associate links – thank you!):

www.amazon.com/shop/mommaamommab

FCC: This post is sponsored

Date Night Makeup – Interrupted (…by kids and no real date planned, anyway!) | BOBBI BROWN Vitamin Enriched Face Base Review

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I decided to do a date night makeup look at around 7 in the morning…

Why? Because why not?

…So when the children woke up at eight o’clock, after I had most of my face done and two curls in my hair, we had breakfast and played with a new sensory basket while I felt extra fancy and enjoyed a hot coffee. Thought I’d share because there’s something about watching makeup tutorials that is fascinating.

I had fun editing the footage – even though it’s not a completed look and it took me more time to edit these vlogs than it did to get ready and feed my children and go to the grocery store.

It was uploaded in two parts (thanks YouTube app) but I’ve posted both parts at the same time so make sure to click through if you want to see the final look!

Thanks as always for being part of our world. We love our online community!

Drop a comment if you want to know more about any of the products used 🙂

Mama B

FTC: The embedded videos feature sponsored products

Radio Flyer Celebrates 100 Years

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We were so honored to collaborate with Radio Flyer for a family photo post. Not only is it a timeless toy that my wife and I both enjoyed as children, but the company actually reached out to us with interest, not mentioning the fact that we were a ‘different’ or non-mainstream family.

The company looks at us as a family. Period.

We shot a behind-the-scenes video showcasing our fun day at the park trying out the new 5-in-1 trike they just added to their current fleet (available now at Walmart and at Walmart.com).

The Radio Flyer website also has some entertaining free media – Canyon and I loved watching their short animated film “Taking Flight“.

Watch our honest assembly and trial of the new trike by Radio Flyer – then let us know in the comments section your favorite feature!

Thank you Radio Flyer for the 5-in-1 trike in exchanged for our honest review.

THANK YOU THANK YOU for helping normalize same-sex couples and their families, as well.

True Radio Flyer fans for life!

Love, Mama B

Morning Motivation Pt. 2 | Get Coffee With Me

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Continued from part one: MORNING MOTIVATION | Wake Up With Me

In this episode we wrap up our last vlog and start a new day – join me on a coffee date with the coolest kids I know! 😉

Of course we worked for our keep today – a lot of off screen chores that you don’t want to see for the 10th time, as well as working on some editing during nap times. Today was a GOOD DAY.

00:00:03 Amazon delivery, what could it be? 😉

00:00:29 Elderberry syrup delivery from Gaia Papaya

00:00:35 Unboxing the Emart 8.5 x 10 ft Photo Backdrop Stand

00:00:46 Example of 54″ by 108″ table cover on backdrop stand

00:00:57 New green screen?

00:01:40 Radio Flyer delivery from our collaborators

00:02:06 Buckle up for safety

00:03:06 Cute montage of my child enjoying his first ever HOT COCOA from a cafe

00:03:27 Last chance for Ask Us Anything questions! Leave yours in the comments

00:04:19 The part where we get demonetized by YouTube for some silly background music at Starbucks. Get with it, YouTube…

00:04:38 That’s a big sandwich for a little guy

00:06:32 COCOA and PSL cheers! (I always regret the one PSL I get each year)

00:08:56 Stains everywhere and more wardrobe changes (peroxide + dawn)

00:10:02 Chocolate or poop?

== SUBSCRIBE and turn on notifications! == Stay positive and good things will happen. xxoo

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Amy’s Hearing Loss | YouTube + Closed Captions

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So, in a perfect world my children would always eat their veggies, road grime would slide off my freshly waxed minivan, and closed captions would make an iota of sense.

In a not-perfect-but-getting-there world, my children would always nap at the same time and I would be able to upload closed captioning to all of our videos to make it more user friendly.

I wish video platforms and the FCC would work better to make subtitles work a little better for those among us who need them, but for now it is up to video creators to upload their own video file transcripts, which is a pain (even though YouTube does the work of auto-syncing which is a wonderful feature, don’t get me wrong)!

In my household, the captions are always turned on – because that’s how my wife prefers it. So we thought. We both aren’t sure when the “prefers it” turned into “needs it.”

We didn’t realize that she was starting the first slow signs of hearing loss, because we were not even thirty years old when we met; it just wasn’t on our radar. I didn’t notice that when the captions were off, she couldn’t really hear what was going on, just politely watched and assumed that I couldn’t hear either. We began to have disagreements about things that were and were not said. Things that were heard or not heard.

After it became apparent she was truly having difficulty hearing me, and when I felt like I was shouting when talking to other people after spending a day with my wife, did I suggest she mention it to our primary doctor.

After a few quick tests she was referred to an audiologist and is now the proud-ish owner of her first pair of hearing aids, at 34 years old.

I ignore the captions for the most part. They rarely make sense to me, and often cover up translations that are built into the video file itself. If a cast member is speaking in another language and it has a raw translation at the bottom, Closed Captioning ‘helpfully’ covers that with a giant “INAUDIBLE” or “VIBRANT MUSIC PLAYS IN BACKGROUND”. Gee, thanks.

Now that I am more aware of how some people really do depend on these closed captions, I am trying to take steps to update our videos, and will try to post as many translations as I can.

Here’s an example of what that looks like on the back end:

So, a bit of leg work but I think it’s worth it!

Do you use close captions? Do you know someone who depends on them, or is frustrated by the poor quality? Sound off in the comments!

Morning Motivational – Yeah? Nah?

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Youtubers have been doing popular Monday Motivational videos – so I filmed my morning, too!

I like to try to prepare all my lists in my planner and go through things each Sunday evening.

Monday always starts early so I have time to tackle some small side project – today it’s cleaning and sanitizing my makeup bins and assembling products for Amazon review videos.

Join me!

00:00:00 – If I don’t shower first thing, I don’t shower…
00:00:07 – Clean wet hair pinned up and yoga clothes on (set out previous eve)
00:00:12 Cleaning any clutter I didn’t clear last night and disassembling a balloon stand which I was product testing/filming for another video
00:00:26 DIY room spray (vodka + essential oils)
00:00:31 Yoga / Stretching for half hour
00:00:42 Cleaning my gross bedroom mirror (because kids)
00:00:45 Today’s motivation: CLEAN / SANITIZE MY MAKEUP *My brushes and blenders have their own cleaning routine so I just organized these today
00:02:25 I almost give away some of our Unicorn Party secrets – Stay tuned!
00:03:41 This is postpartum hair loss
00:03:45 How I get my kid to STAY IN BED in the morning
00:05:27 Good morning, Canyon James (another bloody nose, poor fella)
00:05:46 Making pancakes because HOT BREAKFASTS!
00:06:59 That’s one buttery pancake
00:07:24 Getting dinner protein thawing first thing in the morning
00:07:19 Weekly sweep of kids rooms – vacuum / sheets / sanitize / air freshen
00:07:26 Daily Tot School / PreK worksheet
07:30:00 If you watch nothing else, watch this epic PINTEREST BABY RECIPE FAIL
09:16:00 Someone’s always getting hurt around here
10:15:00 Going to Library Story Hour at NCRL
11:19:00 HAPPY NATIONAL BURGER DAY
13:54:00 I need to get Amy the biggest baddest wife award for killing this black widow (sorry spider lovers)

PART TWO: COMING SOON!

Pre-K Apples Unit | Organizing Tot School Materials

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I get questions all the time about how I organize and come up with tot school themes and ideas. The truth is, a lot of work goes into it but it doesn’t have to be all hard work.

I have fun creating Pinterest boards by theme; when I have extra cash in my PreSchool fund, I think of what I can buy that will be the cheapest. Maybe I don’t even use it for a year!

Think:

  • Dollar Store items
  • Discounts and coupons
  • End of season “super sales”
  • Bulk

At the beginning of each month, I go through each file folder and small plastic storage tubs containing each month. These bins and folders are marked with pre-chosen themes. So, pre-choosing your themes is half the battle! (I suggest doing it all at once and putting it on a Google Doc or some other cloud storage or internet app). Then, select the appropriate amount of tubs.

For items that I think I will use but don’t want to fit in some gigantic tub, I simply print out the activity or write it on an index card and throw it into the bin! Pool noodles, outdoor toys, sports equpiment, etc.

For small items (even fast food toys that somehow fit a theme, if I can sneak them aside they will help drive a concept home later and entertain, instead of simply occupy them for five seconds).

Stacking red flour-filled balloon “apples” – Tutorial in video below!

To get a quick idea of how I organize, watch the intro of this week’s video (first sixty seconds). The rest of the video shows some of our apples activities – and diving into our first book: Ten Apples Up On Top by Dr. Seuss.

You can now find MommaAMommaB’s favorite products on Amazon Storefront!*

*I do get a small compensation from products purchased directly through our Amazon Storefront links. We only post products we personally own and recommend!

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