Now you may be familiar with 2 chix from your own experience or from one of my first ever posts here: http://www.mommybknowsbest.com/2-chix/. They are known as a fun line of maternity shirts made mostly for moms, but some for dads too. Well, recently I found out that they not only carry bump-themed gear, but they also carry kids clothing, and it’s just as cute as their other lines.

Of course I had to try them out, especially after I saw that they had this bee shirt:

I am, afterall, MommyB and have a whole bee family on my site. I thought it was appropriate, and the girls loved it, especially Miss A because she goofs around sometimes calling me, “MommyB”.

We also got to try out their “Suh-weet” t-shirt which was a white fabric, and the girls honestly looked adorable in both. The first thing I noticed after I received the shirts was the amazing shirt quality. The fabric was thick and soft too. So many of the kids clothing stores today offer cheap prices but the fabrics are so thin you have to layer so they’re not see-through, or they just don’t hold up. Having two girls, namely Baby C who’ll inevitably end up with hand-me-downs, I have to make sure that their clothes can survive the daily wear-and-tear.

When I saw the fun designs were, “velvety accents”, I must admit I was really skeptical that these t-shirt adornments would soon be ripped off by my washer and dryer. Much to my surprise, {and delight}, the shirts have held up wash after wash. No pilling, the bee and ice cream cone have stayed put, and the shirts have kept their size too.

The shirts are a little pricey for what I would normally buy the girls at $32.00 a shirt, but with the way it holds up and the fun velvet accents as opposed to normal print, I could definitely see this being a decent purchase, especially if it’s going to be handed down to one or more child in the future. Weird to call a shirt, “an investment”, but that is exactly what came to mind.

My one disappointment in 2 Chix Chicklets line: they only make them in size 2T-5 and 2T-6 in organics. I don’t dress the girls identical a lot, but once and a while is cute, {in my opinion}. What’s your opinion? Cute or not???

Check out 2 chix Chicklet line here: http://www.2chix.com/products/toddler__kids_tees/index.asp and don’t forget they also have maternity clothes for moms and fun shirts for dads, not to mention cute onesies for the wee babes too. Check them out on Facebook too: http://www.facebook.com/2chixMaternity

What is your favorite 2 Chix Chicklet shirt design?

As I was looking through their website I found some really cute items and thought they would be great for Miss A. They have fun, quirky styles for girls of all ages. Through my searching I also found out that their sock line, which is probably their most popular item, carries socks for babies age 6 months and up, toddlers, girls, women, and even men! Now DaddyB is pretty conservative with his socks so I’m not sure that he’d wear them, but I know my younger sister who is 14 would LOVE some of their styles. I think their city-scape socks are pretty cool.

Whether you’re looking for fun accessories, sock bundles, or even cute clothes I suggest you check out Little Miss Matched, Miss A LOVES her socks, I think mostly because she can express herself even though she is required to wear a uniform to Preschool, and I love it because I don’t have to worry about matching socks when I’m folding laundry!

How much fun right?!?! If you want to check them out head over to Little Miss Matched’s website: http://www.littlemissmatched.com/ and check out their last minute gift ideas and great shipping choices!!

I was able to try out some Little Miss Matched products in order to give my honest thoughts on their products. I was in no way swayed by the company and all the above words and opinions are my own. Your opinions may vary. 

I must admit being a “girl mom”, I enjoy every second of picking out girly clothes. And I’m glad the girls just go with it, {for now at least}. I know it’s not too far off when the girls will be telling me more what they want to wear and less what I think looks adorable, but while I can dress them, I will.

I recently learned about the online clothing shop Hartstrings, and immediately fell in love with their outfits. If you don’t already know I’m a prude when it comes to my girls especially and I make no apologies, I think little girls should be able to dress their age. Hartstrings clothing is age appropriate, stylish, and high quality.

The price point on the clothes as you can see is much higher than a Children’s Place or Carter’s, however so is the quality and style. If I had to compare Hartstrings to a children’s store I would say the pricing and style come close to Gymboree. Hartstrings, however, has hands down, the best quality children’s clothing I have seen in a while.

You know those flimsy, long sleeved t-shirts that you see and buy at every clothing store? The ones you need to have several layers just to stay warm indoors in? How about the ones that you question whether your child should wear and undershirt because it’s so thin you can see through it? Think of those shirts, and then think of the complete opposite and that is the amazing quality of long sleeved t-shirts you can purchase from Hartstrings.

We not only love the quality AND the cut {not to slim or too long}, but the details of the stitching are great too. The designs they put on their shirts can be very simple or more ornate, I love the range. Also, I can tell from the details, of their clothing{I’m a details gal} that Hartstrings is really proud of the work they put out, and I admire companies like that.No outfit would be complete with just a top right? Hartstrings has it all, for boys and girls of all ages. We chose this fun, black, stretch velvet skirt to go with the top. I knew Miss A had to have it because she LOVES to twirl and I could just tell this would be a GREAT twirling dress.

We love the fabric, it’s soooooo soft! The fit was great and lined up with most brand sizes. Our one problem with the skirt is that because this is a “rich” fabric and has lots of layers, and again Hartstrings is using quality materials, the skirt is actually pretty heavy. I know, it’s weird to hear that, but it’s weird for me to say that too. I haven’t really seen or experienced clothes themselves being heavy until now. It’s not a huge issue, especially with my 95% height and weight daughter, however if you have a little peanut like some of our friends this may be something you want to consider and choose a bottom with one or two layers of fabric instead.

Overall, the look of the outfit was really cute and Miss A loved wearing it to church. Here is a picture of Miss A modeling her Hartstrings wear and Baby C {who is not wearing Hartstrings}:

I recommended Hartstrings to my friends who were looking for great holiday outfits for family photos, dress up or casual clothes, and will be buying more Hartstrings myself because, again I am just in love with the quality of their clothes. You definitely get what you pay for in this case and in my humble, penny pinching opinion it’s totally worth it.

Head on over to Hartstrings’ website to check out their fun clothing lines for boys and girls from baby to size 16 kids: http://www.hartstrings.com, make sure you sign up with your email for 10% off your next purchase. PS – I also noticed that they are regularly adding new pieces to their “sale” section including in-season pieces, which not a lot of places do, so now is a great time to take advantage of the holiday clothes that are on sale.

If you’re interested check out Hartstrings on Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/hartstrings and Twitter: http://twitter.com/hartstringskids and feel free to tell them that MommyB from MommyB Knows Best sent you

I received samples of the product mentioned above in order to perform this honest review by MomSelect. All words and opinions are my own true thoughts about the products, however yours may vary.

Well, now they’re asking moms to try them. I’m a mom, I don’t hate Heelys and secretly thought they would be fun to try out, although DaddyB said I should take out some extra liability and life insurance before attempting to manuver on Heelys.

My first few tries at Heelys were slow going, of course I wanted to make sure I didn’t die seeing that I still need to work on my will, and the girls would probably miss me. But after a few good tries I was rolling around in the kitchen and dining room.

Where will I wear my Heelys? Again because I personally feel that Heelys are appropriate for certain locations I will not wear the wheels in places like grocery stores, church, my daughter’s school. However, when I take the girls to the park I am totally down for using them. Here is a great resource from Heelys for Responsible Skating Guidelines: http://www.heelys.com/media/PDFs/Heelys_Responsible_Skating_Contract_FINAL.pdf

My overall thoughts

• Visually – Heelys look cool. If you are not one to wear normal skater or converse-type shoes then Heelys may not be for you, however if you’re considering wearing Heelys in the first place you probably fit the style. Here are a couple that I really liked (Wave and Dash) and one shot of mine {Sassy, appropriately named if I do say so myself}:

• Comfort- In my opinion, I would totally buy these just as sneakers, they are that comfortable. They fit snug around my feet, which is great for fit and of course for skating safety too. They are easy to get on and off {the shoes themselves, we’ll talk about the wheels in another bullet.}

• Use- Once you learn how to skate and get the hang of it these shoes are fun and great exercise {because you’re lifting up your toes and engaging your leg muscles}, my only wish was that the wheels somehow snapped into the shoe for storage {like I had actually assumed they did before I saw a pair,} however I know that may not be possible with how the shoe is engineered. For me it was a little difficult to snap the wheels into place, but almost impossible for me to snap the wheels out, not for strength but for getting the right leverage and angle to snap them out. My husband got them out a little easier, but even he had to take a few shots at it.

Also, you have to remember you’ll be carrying the wheels with you if you don’t intend to wear them during your entire outing, so plan on bringing a backpack or bag with you so you don’t have to carry them in your hands or pockets. {a tad inconvenient.}

Also, here’s a clip of me showing off the first pair of Heelys I received on one of Charlotte’s local news stations WCNC. Mention is around minute marker 2:14 if you want to skip ahead.

If you have kiddos and you are thinking about buying some for them consider this: Heelys HX2 is great for beginners or young children because it has 2 wheels and acts as a training-wheel system. You can remove one wheel once the child starts to feel more comfortable Heeling. {I wish they made them for adults too.} and……..

Heelys is throwing a Black Friday special!! Between Nov 25-Nov 28, Buy any pair of Heelys, get the second pair for $25. Or buy a Nano, and get a pair of shoes for $25, and get free ground shipping on all orders! Wahoo!! Check them out here: http://www.heelys.com and on Facebook here: http://www.facebook.com/heelys

Would you ever try/buy a pair of Heelys for yourself? How about for your kiddos?

I was provided with a pair of Heelys in order to complete this review. The opinions expressed in the post above are my own based on my personal experiences with Heelys skate shoes, yours may vary.

Cloth diapers enthusiasts will tell you that you need a detergent specifically formulated for cloth diapers that doesn’t contain optical brighteners, phosphates and other chemicals that can increase the likelihood that your diapers may experience odor or stain issues.

I’ve tried several cloth diaper detergents and believe some work better for us than others because of the hard water we have in the South where I live.

I recently tried Ruby Moon Cloth Diaper Detergent for the first time, and overall, it seems to work well.

With the help of my co-tester, my 3 month old daughter, we washed several loads of soiled cloth diapers using Ruby Moon in the summer lemonade scent.

The scent is very strong when you smell it straight out of the bag. Almost too citrusy – reminds me of kitchen cleaner. However, the scent it leaves in your clothing is almost non-existent (a good thing).

The detergent did a fairly good job of removing the urine and waste. I didn’t notice any lingering odors, although staining remained (more than with some cloth detergents I’ve tried) on the cloth inserts that my daughter had a bowel movement in. However, this is very common, especially with exclusively breastfed babies like my daughter.

The simple fix for that is to place the clean, wet diapers or inserts in the sun. The sun is miraculous – it will remove most, if not all, stains. Even if you don’t cloth diaper, try “sunning” any clothing you have with stains.

Ruby Moon Cloth Detergent is all natural and does not contain phosphates, enzymes, optical brighteners, fabric softener or soap, which is good for the diapers/inserts and my baby’s skin.

I also tried Ruby Moon’s Wipe Bits, which I am now in love with. You take the small cube, drop it in hot water and let it melt. Small “chunks” remained and never completely dissolved, but when you swirl it around, you’re left with a silky, luxurious-feeling liquid that you can use as a wipe solution or to simply clean up any mess on you or your child’s skin. Trust me – you’ll want to use them yourself. I don’t like heavy scents or fragrances because they trigger my allergies, but Ruby Moon’s Wipe Bits have a light, refreshing scent of milk, oatmeal and honey.

Overall, I’m quite pleased with the Ruby Moon products and I would purchase them for our cloth diapering needs, particularly the heavenly Wipe Bits.

You can find Ruby Moon online at www.diaperparties.com/andream or on Facebook: Diaper Parties by Andrea or email Andrea at: andream@diaperparties.com

Although products were provided by Diaper Parties by Andrea for this review, the opinions expressed are my own and were not influenced in any way.

After a 10+ years communications career, Jamie K. recently took on her most challenging  job yet – as a full-time CFO (chief family officer). Currently, she lives in Alabama with her husband, an officer in the Air Force, and her toddler son and newborn daughter. 

Luckily, we have a solution. BePe Baby Slippers for ages 6 months through 5 years. These are great. Not only are they cute and available in a wide array of designs and styles, they’re also perfect for skating, floating or trying to be the next Martha Graham. They have just enough traction on the bottom to reduce the amount of spillage that normally happens with four-year-old girls. And even though she doesn’t care about that stuff. I do.

Plus, they keep her toes warm and so far, we’ve had a couple of very cold days here in Charlotte. And when she was wearing these, I didn’t hear one complaint. Imagine how lonely my ears felt. (Not really!)

But I love these slippers. And so does my daughter. And when MommyB asked me to review them for her blog, I jumped at the chance. As you can see, my daughter fits nicely in them. And they’ve become a fun part of her nightly routine.

Luckly for MommyB Knows Best readers, for the next 30 days, you can buy a pair for 20% off using code: mommyb. {It’s not case sensitive.} So make sure you head over to BePe Baby’s website: www.bepebaby.com and choose from the great selection of girls, boys, and unisex slippers.

Becca is the Social Media Marketing Manager for Picaboo. She is also the mother of two kids, a miniature cow and has a joyful husband. When she’s not creating Victorian Photo Books, she can be found eating carrot cake and watching Six Feet Under reruns.

I received a pair of BePe Baby Slippers in order to complete this review. This in no way has impacted my opinions on the company or product. The words in this review are my honest opinions, however yours may vary.

Last year the girls dressed up as Snow White and her, {ahem} poison apple. Baby C was a cute poison apple for sure though. See:

Adorable girlies I loved that they were themed too, and so did everyone at the parties we attended and houses we stopped at. The girls got lots of, “ooooohs” and “ahhhhs” and “Oh my goodness, they’re too cute” ‘s. I loved it. And this year while both of them are somewhat agreeable I decided to pair them up again.

Miss A has agreed, {and actually is excited} to be Toy Story’s own Lil’ Bo Peep, and Baby C will be her sheep. I am still deciding on which sheep costume I want for Baby C, but here is Miss A’s costume from http://www.childcostumes.com and one I think is cute for Baby C too. What do you think?

We were completely satisfied with the quality of the costume. I really like that the costume came with a cute shepherd’s crook to complete the outfit. Once Miss A put the costume on she did not want to take it off, but alas I convinced her. I love that  fact you can layer with long sleeves or take off the pants depending on the weather outside, because sometimes, depending on what area you live in you can’t tell if it will be warm or cool. One thing to think about when purchasing costumes it that this Halloween costume, and most costumes, do not come with shoes, which is not a big deal since we have a couple pairs of plain black shoes that will coordinate nicely. Also a small note our pants ended up being a little long on Miss A but nothing a little rolling won’t help, plus when in doubt I always say go with a bigger costume than smaller because it’s easier to make alterations.

I also love it when whole families dress up in a theme too, I tried to get DaddyB to dress up as DJ Lance Rock from Yo Gabba Gabba a couple of times, but he just wasn’t having it. Maybe in a few years he’ll warm up to the idea.

What themes have you dressed your children or family up as?

Have you seen any really creative costume ideas?

ChildCostumes.com has a wide variety of costumes whether you decide to go with a family theme or not, check their website out here: http://www.childcostumes.com

I received a costume from http://www.childcostumes.com in order to complete this review. My opinions in this post are my own, honest opinions. Yours may vary.

I have used a total of maybe 5 diaper bags since Miss A was born {4 years ago}. And the bags have just gotten bigger and bigger, but not huge, don’t take me the wrong way, I’m not carrying those ENORMOUS Army duffle bags around or anything. Sheesh! But I do have to admit after carrying around this one: Previous semi-big diaper bag I still needed more space, especially for my two girlies.

One of my friend’s Kellee Olmstead sells Thirty-One Gifts and I looked through her catalog trying to find a diaper bag and although they don’t list any bags specifically as diaper bags they have awesome alternatives. I ended up with this cute, black, Cindy Tote:

This great bag not only has a really clean look, but more importantly for my baby item hoarding issue, it has two exterior side pockets that I use for holding sippy cups {or sometimes stashing the poor Goldfish crackers that end up on the floor}, had an interior zipper pocket where I put my keys, and gum so the girls don’t get them, and three interior open pockets that I have random things like hand sanitizer, granola bars, bandaids, and of course crayons in. And even though all the pockets are incredible, I also love the open space of the inside, yes even after I fill up all the pockets I have room for coloring books, an extra change of clothes for baby, diapers/wipes, and so, so much more. One more thing, I also love that this bag comes with two leather-ish straps but that you can also add, and will probably want to add, an extra shoulder strap if you like to put your bag on your stroller and it also makes a nice accent if you choose a fun color to match any professionalization you add.

Luckily, Thirty-One offers bags like these so once I’m done with the diapers I can use this bag to tote my laptop, and other work essentials and still look cute doing it.

If you like the Cindy tote, or want to check out the other cute accessories that Thirty-One carries head over to: http://www.mythirtyone.com/Olmsted/ to check out Kellee’s website and place your order for bags that you can fill with all types of goodies, help you organize your home, or just look cute and fashionable.

Do you carry a small, or large diaper bag/purse? What are your essentials to carry?

I received a Cindy tote in order to write this review. All opinions are my honest opinions and not influenced by any outside sources, cross my heart. I hope that you enjoy reading my reviews and I would love your opinions too!

And even though summer camp gave her a little taste of what school would be like she was still nervous about going to school.

Days leading up to school DaddyB and I talked school up telling her what it would be like, how much fun she would have, and tried to calm her fears.

Yesterday morning when she woke up she was in a great mood, {which at 4 years old sometimes can be a toss up}, she got dressed in her school uniform, but most importantly added her Perfectly Perrywinkle headband to complete the cutest preschool outfit ever. {Sorry for the mobile pic but our main laptop is in the “shop”.}

Aside from being super cute the headband was customized to Miss A’s school colors, red, white, and navy, and at Perfectly Perrywinkle you can request colors to go with your child’s favorite outfit, your family’s favorite sports team, or you can select one of their pre-made headbands listed on their Etsy site.

The headbands are a little pricier than most of Miss A’s other headbands, but for one she can wear to school anytime we’ll be able to get a lot of use out of it, plus they make perfect gifts, *hint, hint!!

Perfectly Perrywinkle’s headbands are for any age, brand new baby girls through sassy moms and can dress up any outfit. The headbands and materials are made with great care and cute fabric and you can really tell. Make sure you check out their Facebook page and feel free to tell them MommyB sent you.

I received super cute samples of Perfectly Perrywinkle headbands for this review, which in no way effect my opinions expressed in this post. All opinions expressed are mine, however yours may vary,

As a person that 1) Does not like to wear shoes, and 2) Does not like things sticking to the bottom of her feet, these house shoes fit the bill—perfectly. Unfortunately for me, my husband has put the kibosh on my wearing my favored footwear past the mail box. His philosophy is that, “House shoes are for the HOUSE.”

The cushioned soles hold up beautifully to the number of miles I can put on just by simply walking about the house. The thong style emphasizes my love of flip-flops and to not feel confined and overheated by a full house shoe.

I’ve looked at other house shoes in the past and regrettably purchased other brands that promised the same comfort that Dearform slippers offer. My frugal side reasoned that the lesser-priced slippers could not be superior to the Dearforms. Lesson learned, however. Those so-called comparable brands would be somewhat satisfactory for a week or so, but alas, in too-short time the cushioned-sole would have broken down, or a strap would have broken, or some other malady forcing me to purchase an alternate pair.

When I was asked to review a pair of Dearforms, I couldn’t send my reply back fast enough. I knew that these were the Cadillacs of bedroom slippers, and it was my turn to take them for a drive. I will be forever grateful for my chance to give my input. Don’t let the price of the slippers fool you. It is worth the extra investment. The life you will get out of them will only cost pennies in comparison to the cost of replacing multiple lesser-quality brands.

Time will take its toll on my review pair of house shoes. And when that sad day comes, I will mourn until my replacement pair comes.

Disclosure: I received no compensation for writing this post other than the review pair of house shoes/ slippers/bedroom shoes. All opinions, while thought to be true, are mine. I Blog with Integrity.

Heather spends her days (and many late nights) trying to meet the demands of life as a wife, mother, and writer. She blogs about nothing in particular at Cool and Hip, I am Not and is occasionally spotted on Twitter @coolandhip.