Archive for the 'BABY & KIDS' Category

It’s a Girl! Let the Decorating Begin!

Published on April 22, 2011 in BABY & KIDS and HAYNEEDLE. 0 Comments

I announced a few weeks ago that I am expecting my first baby in early August.  My husband and I were thrilled to find out that a little girl will be joining our household, and that meant I could start planning the nursery.

I immediately started fawning over cribs, dressers, paint colors, and mobiles. I don’t know what it is, but the nursery is the first room I’ve ever planned out.  My husband jokes that the baby room will be our first complete room, sadly I have to agree.  I want a nursery  that will transition from infant to toddler; for the room not to be overly pink; and for the room to include personal touches.

A tip for planning your nursery is to first pick out what your fabrics are going to be and then pick out the paint color and furniture. My mother-in-law is an amazing seamstress and is making our nursery bedding and decor. If it wasn’t for my mother-in-law, I’d be purchasing one of Hayneedle’s baby bedding sets. They have so many great options to choose from.

I went to the local fabric store and found this amazing pattern:

I paired this fabric with green walls and black polka dots. So far I’m loving the color combination.

The next step was to pick out the furniture. We immediately went to Hayneedle’s Nursery section and browsed through all of the crib options.  If you’re planning to match all the furniture in the room, I highly recommend browsing through the Nursery Collections.

We were only in the market for a crib and a changer, so our searched landed us on the Graco Sarah 4 in 1 Convertible Crib Collection in Cherry:

Crib and Changer

We immediately put the crib together so we could see where we wanted it to live and so we could plan the rest of the nursery furniture around the crib.  We still need to pick out our glider, refinish the dresser and shelves, and make the wall art, but here is a view of our nursery in progress:

As we make more progress, we’ll be sure to share the updates, but I want to know what colors are you choosing for your nursery? Share your ideas and comments below!

-Angie

From 2.5 to 3.5 – Oh, Baby!

Published on March 30, 2011 in BABY & KIDS, FURNITURE and HAYNEEDLE. 0 Comments Tags: , .

I have been a quiet contributor to the Hayneedle Blog for sometime now, but I think it is time I come out of the shadows and start sharing a little more with you guys.  First off, my name is Angie, and I’ve worked at Hayneedle for three wonderful years.  A lot has happened in my time at Hayneedle; I got married, got a dog (Lander – so cute – I’ll share pictures later), and now am expecting my first child!

In the past I have written about buying the right baby furniture, decorating the nursery, and other various baby-related topics, but boy has my perspective changed. I have many nieces and nephews and coworkers who have started families, so I thought my research on the topic of preparing for baby was sound. I was confident that I would be the most prepared expectant mother when my husband and I decided to go down the path of starting a family.  Now that I’m experiencing the fun (and stress) of planning for a baby firsthand, I have a humbled perspective of what it takes to get “baby ready.”

As I go through my journey of being an expectant mother, I’ll bring you along for the ride, from deciding which stroller/travel system is best to deciding how to decorate the nursery.  Feel free to offer your opinions and parenting insight, or to ask questions. I look forward to going through this journey with you!

-Angie

Twitter : angiekub

12 Days of Giveaways – Day 3

Published on December 8, 2010 in BABY & KIDS, HAYNEEDLE, HOMEACCESSORIES and SEASONAL & GIFTS. 2 Comments

Congratulations to Addison Kat, yesterday’s giveaway winner. Addison found the Nodor Supawires Bristle Dart Board, posted it on our Facebook page, and hit the bullseye in our random drawing. Way to go, Addison!

Put the French Hens in the coop, it’s time to get to work on Day 3 of 12 Days of Giveaways! Today’s winner not only gets the giveaway item, but gets to call themselves “Head Elf” for the remainder of the holiday season. Families be warned. Go!

Today’s giveaway…

  • Provides a place for both Barbies and Bakugan to rest
  • Has storage, seating, and a safety lid
  • Is exclusive to Hayneedle, but useful to everyone
  • Sports a seasonally-appropriate pecan finish

*Hint*
Even if we didn’t already know the answer, we’d start looking in Gifts For Kids.

Remember, this is what you’re looking for:

You Found It

Submissions will be accepted via Facebook until 11:59 pm tonight. One entry per person. Winners will be announced tomorrow on this blog along with tomorrow’s giveaway. Good luck and happy hunting!

Eco Mom

Published on October 5, 2010 in BABY & KIDS and HAYNEEDLE. 0 Comments Tags: , .

Here at Hayneedle, we have a forest of products to help you take on the task of eco-conscious living. There are a TON of products and strategies to help you minimize your negative impact on the environment and bring up Baby in a better world.

Whether you’ve already embraced the trend or are just beginning to “go green”, check out these tips for becoming an Eco-Mom.

Being an Eco-Mom may sound scary at first, and making the transition may seem overwhelming. You may find yourself thinking, “Do I need solar panels, a hybrid car, what?” Well, fear not – I’m here to tell you to start slow and don’t worry about saving the world on the first day. There are a million easy ways to start going “green,” and every small change you make starts to make a big difference!

One of the easiest – switch to eco-friendly light bulbs. Don’t’ worry, there’s no need to go out and buy all of them at once, simply begin making the switch as your old ones burn out. It takes a while – maybe even a year – but eventually, all the lights in your home will be contributing to the cause. Added bonus – in the long run, these bulbs save you a lot of money. Eco-conscious light bulbs use 80% less electricity and can last up to 9 years.

For the gardening Mom looking to lower the water bill, a rain barrel is an ideal way to conserve. These awesome accessories collect and save hundreds of gallons of water, which you can use on your lawn or garden at absolutely zero cost. I have this rain barrel at my home, and simply wouldn’t live without it! You would be shocked how quickly a rain barrel actually fills up. Just a half-inch of rain falling on a 1,000-square-foot roof yields 300 gallons of water, and that’s just during one rainfall.  Of course, if a rain barrel seems too daunting, just remember to turn your water off when you’re brushing your teeth. Every small change, remember?  It’s easy!

Composting is huge right now. You may recall the large, smelly, backyard heaps of our parent’s time, but the equipment and strategies have changed. Check it out, and don’t be afraid to try something new. I’ve been running one, and I couldn’t tell you how much I love my compost tumbler.

We get asked a lot of questions about worm composting, compost bins, compost tumbler, and electric kitchen composters. There are all kinds of composting, but here is my best advice – be fair to your life. What material do you feel you waste the most? Is it food, yard waste, or something else? What kind of time do you have to commit to composting? Different types of composting accommodate every option and lifestyle, and finding the right one will help you be successful. If you have a lot of kitchen scraps, the Nature Mill Kitchen Composter might be ideal for you.

Now, for the truly Eco-conscious Mom, enter the world of Cloth Diapers.

Cloth diapers? Like my grandma? Not even close – cloth diapers are widely popular right now, way easier than you think, and come with a long list of benefits. Making the switch to cloth diapers will save you money, for sure, but guess what? They’re also better for your baby. Cloth diapers do not contain the chemicals found in disposable diapers and reduce the risks of diaper rash. Trust me – cloth diapers are back and easier than ever. No pins, no leaks, no worries!

Last, but not least, we come to the crib. Your baby spends a lot of time in there – is there possibly a way for a crib to go green? Is there an Eco Crib? Yes! Argington brand cribs are made entirely from sustainable forests. Oh yeah – they’re stylish, too!

Now that’s a lot of green!

Cribs, Car Seat, Strollers OH MY……

Published on September 30, 2010 in BABY & KIDS, FURNITURE and HAYNEEDLE. 0 Comments Tags: , , .

When I was pregnant with my son, I can remember after the shock, tears, and all the many phone call to let everyone knows, one thing started to loom on my mind. And that was a list! The list that you start of ALL the baby items you need. What car seat do we get, what about a crib, will I need a stroller? So you make a list if you where anything like me your list got longer and longer before you even got one item. I can remember spending many sleepless nights worrying if my son going to be happy in the crib I got, or should I get that black crib instead? Now I do know that my son really didn’t care if his car seat was at the top of the leader board, he still hated to be in it. The crib well he liked it for the first ten months the decided he wasn’t going to sleep in a crib anymore.  So when I pregnant this time I had my list but it wasn’t nearly as long until the unthinkable happened the one word no parent every wants to hear…. RECALL!!!! Yep that’s right the first email I got was for my crib, Dear Mrs. Odair we are sorry to inform you that your crib is being recalled, please stop using it and return it the store as soon as possible. Now this was just not any crib, but a $550.00 one that had a built in changing table that I loved. They do not tell you that when it is recalled they will only give you half of the crib worth, so yes that means I only got $225.00 for the crib. In today’s world that is hardly enough to buy a crib let alone a changing table.  Well I have been able to review one of the most beautiful cribs I have seen in a long time from Hayneedle.com, but more about that later! Next email I got was for my car seat, guess what it has been recalled, but this time I was told that we will not be able to get anything in return but 25% off a new car seat. My eyes started tearing up as we have spent the 250.00 already on a new mattress, and diapers for our son. Now that little list I started has gotten somewhat bigger. Here is a little of what is on my list.

1. Car seat

2. Stroller

3. Bedding

4. Diapers

5. Changing table

6. Bottles

7. Bouncing chair

8. Swing

9. High chair

10. Glider or rocker

Now like I said this is just a few items and not the whole list! I know what most are you are thinking isn’t this your second baby? Well yes you’re right, but first off I had a boy first and now I having a girl. There are certain items a girl cannot wear, or use that a boy did. Second we never thought we were getting pregnant so quickly that I gave most of my baby items to my sister in law for her boy! So yes I am like a first time parent again looking at all the reports on what I need to buy. My next big item we will have to get is a car seat, but maybe someone will take pity on us and get one for us at my baby shower. (Hint hint) No really this time around buying for the baby is not about what is the best, but more about what will last longer and of course a little girly. So if I could give any first time parents advice on this it would be make your list check it twice, and ask someone who has gone through this if you really need a wipe warmer, or if it is just some item you may use for a week, then forget about! Also everyone needs to go to the new Hayneedle.com nursery and see that you can get all your baby items in one place.