Lucky Day Sweepstakes Event

From March 13-20 we will be participating in the Lucky Day Sweepstakes Event! 

Keep close to find out what we're giving away for you! 

This is another blog hop, and each blog's prize is worth $25+.

So far there are 90 blogs involved, so lots of chances to win! 

Good Luck

:)

Sweetheart Stroll Giveaway Hop

***THIS GIVEAWAY IS NOW CLOSED***

Welcome to the Sweetheart Stroll! This blog hop as 30 bloggers giving away prizes valued at $25+!!!

After you enter our giveaway, please hop on to the other blogs linked to the bottom of the page. The linky is on each page so feel free to enter all of them & good luck to all who enter!!

We are pleased to be taking part in the Sweetheart Stroll Giveaway Hop! After entering our giveaway please be sure to check out the other blogs hosting giveaways for this event at the bottom of the post! The giveaway on this blog is open to US & Canada residents.

The lucky winner from our giveaway will win an Original Booty Cloth Diaper in the color of their choosing.

COLORS INCLUDE:

 *Pink-A-Booty      *Love Booty        *Pun'kin Booty

*'Nana Booty       *Cutie Booty        *Lucky Booty

*Moon Booty      *Royal Booty      *Snow Booty

*Night Night Booty

For those who found our blog through the linky, 

I'll give you a little bit of background about our company & diapers.

ABOUT BOOTY BUNS CLOTH DIAPERS:

 Many babies living in third world countries aren't afforded the same diapering luxuries we have in the US. Their parents don't have to think about whether they will use disposables or not, because they simply cannot afford them {its costs on average $1800-2000 to disposable diaper your baby from birth to potty training}. Instead, parents wrap their little baby's booties in old t-shirts or sheets to catch the solids. Many of them only have a few of these 'shirt diapers' so they are unable to change their baby each time they go potty, and wait until they have a BM before changing them.

At Booty Buns Cloth Diapers, we seek to make the world a better place ONE BOOTY AT A TIME™

; and, that is exactly why for each cloth diaper we sell, we will donate one to a baby in need in one of these third world countries.

Since my husband served a 2 year mission in Bolivia, it is near and dear to his heart; so, Bolivia is the first place we want to make a Diaper Run™ to. We have been speaking with some Mexican orphanages so they will not be far behind Bolivia with our second Diaper Run™.

ABOUT OUR DIAPERS: 

Our patent pending design is a OS{one size} Pocket Diaper, that fits from 3-45 pounds. We are the only OS cloth diaper that can fit this wide range of sizes with just one diaper. Each diaper has 2 elastic gussets sewn into the inner liner & another elastic strip add to the back of the diaper to better contain even the messiest of explosions.

The diapers were designed by a mom who has not only your baby, but your budget in mind. She was frustrated that if she wanted to cloth diaper her baby, she had to buy 2-3 sets to cover all the sizes her baby would be between birth & potty training. She couldn't understand why a diaper was called 'ONE SIZE' if not all babies are 8-10 pounds at birth, or 30-35 pounds when potty training. Her family is on tight budget & couldn't justify buying 2-3 sets of cloth diapers, and knew that there are many other families in the same boat. This is exactly why she designed The Original Booty with the ability to mimic disposable diaper sizing from preemie to potty training pants.


Night Night Booty Sized To Preemie

Royal Booty Sized To Potty Training Pants

She thought it was silly that many OS cloth diapers require multiple inserts for different stages of diapering - newborn needing small inserts and toddlers needing 2 inserts, yet most companies only give you one insert, forcing you to either buy an additional insert or sew them on your own. To put an end to the madness, she decided that it was best to just put 2 inserts in each diaper. So she includes 1 newborn size & 1 large size insert with each diaper, eliminating the need to order them on the side.

While searching for used cloth diapers online, she noticed that many of them contained BM stains. She doesn't like stains; so, she searched for solutions & the internet only offered disposable liners. Her baby had a bad reaction to them so she needed another option. She wanted to have a thin barrier between BM and her diapers, so to protect the diapers from stains & make BMs cleanup easier while also helping babies who may have a sensitivity to microfiber, she created a 100% cotton flannel liner that she sews and includes with each diaper.

Something else she noticed was that while there are many cloth diapers companies that sell cloth wipes, NONE of them give you a wipe with the diapers you buy.  It just didn't make sense to her that you get the diaper but no wipe - its like ordering a PB&J and having to pay extra for the jelly. For this reason, she sews a matching double sided cloth wipe to include with each cloth diaper. Each 7.5" x 7.5" wipe comes with a 100% cotton flannel side & a jersey micro-terry cloth side.

 

She really did her homework in creating these cloth diapers!

 

Being a mom of multiple children with limited time & money, she sought a truly one-size-fits-all & gives all diaper; however, since nobody offers what she wanted and needed, she decided to create it & offer it to other moms & dads who seek to cut the fat in cloth diapering & get everything they need all at once - included with the diapers.

She worked really hard to create a diaper that addresses the top complaints about cloth diapers, while throwing in some things that she feels are necessary while cloth diapering; and, she is please to introduce the world to a whole new generation of cloth diapering! 

Just to review, with each cloth diaper you will receive:

2 inserts {1 newborn & 1 large size}

1 100% cotton flannel liner

1 matching double sided cloth wipe

AND. . .

with each diaper you buy, you are helping make the world a better place

ONE BOOTY AT A TIME™

You can buy the cloth diapers designed with both your baby and your budget in mind here.

Please use this RaffleCopter form to enter our giveaway

GIMP Photo Manipulation Program

Years ago, I told a friend that I wanted  Adobe Photoshop on my computer so I could edit all my pictures & the only thing stopping me was the price. If you've looked into or own it you know it is really expensive, like rent or a mortgage {Las Vegas prices} kind of expensive!!

He brought to my attention that there is a program on the internet that is a FREE DOWNLOAD called GIMP & its supposed to be the poor man's Photoshop.

This is a GNU/Linux screenshot taken from GIMP.org

This is a Windows screenshot taken from GIMP.org

At first I wasn't convinced that a free program could come close to what you can do with Photoshop; and I convinced him that I needed Photoshop, so he installed it for me & I've used it for years. Let me just say I LOVE PHOTOSHOP. But my laptop is having issues with the cord & so I am using another laptop that is DSP ~ desperately seeking Photoshop. I decided to check out GIMP & give it a shot.

Now I don't remember how long it took to download Photoshop since it was like 6 years ago, but it seemed to take a pretty good chunk of time to download GIMP. The laptop I am using now is a mini so it may have less RAM than my other one, but I haven't checked it out. 

Once the program opened I spent a little time checking a few things out & familiarizing myself with it. I was surprised by what I found. The last free program I used was Picasa & well I was less than impressed. GIMP offers a lot of similar functions to the basic Photoshop:

In GIMP you'll find pretty much all the same filters that you find in Photoshop & you'll also find a lot of the same color tools like: 

*color balance       *hue saturation        *colorize        *brightness/contrast   

*threshold             *levels             *curves                *posturize          *desaturate

 GIMP also offers clone, healing & blur tools. The Image tools are the same as Photoshop as are the Layer options. It has a similar setup in the look of the program as Photoshop does so I can see why some people refer to is as 'poor man's Photoshop' and it does minor changes just fine. I think that for the price you can't beat it!!

There are tons of how to's posted for GIMP, just type in "how do I . . .  in GIMP" into Google or Youtube and you can find out how to do anything! 

Check out this tutorial for using selection tools in GIMP {it also teaches you how to build your own website ~ if you;re interested in that!}

 Here you can find out how to select the background of an image before you change it

I found this cool video on Youtube.  All the moves have been super sped up & if you want to learn how to do any thing in it, again just type in 'how do I . . . in GIMP' into Goolge or Youtube.

This video will teach you how to remove unwanted things from your pictures {like pimples & cellulite!}

What to whiten teeth in your photos? Check out this video.

If you'd like to have a virtual weight loss using GIMP check out this video 

~ too bad real life wasn't this easy!!

Enjoy!!!

:)

Ohh, Baby, Baby Giveaway Hop Signups

Ohh, Baby, Baby Giveaway Hop sponsored by The Shopping Duck is taking signups now. This blog hop event will take place from April 1, 2012 to April 15, 2012. Come join the fun!

Get ready because on April 1st you'll see what we're giving away & at the bottom of the post there will be a link with lots of other blogs all hosting giveaways for this event &  

each prize will be valued at $25 or higher!!! 

So far there are 29 blogs involved in this hop & sign-ups are open until March 20th. . .
  stay tuned because this is going to get exciting!

:)

Stylin' With Jodie! Hair Hints for All!

What better way to start the new year than with a new hairstyle! Your hair and your smile are the best accessories you will ever own:) Having said that, I would like you to meet Jodi, she is the best Hair Stylist in Southern Nevada! (okay so that title is not official but it has been awarded to her by "Amy's Craft Bucket.

This is Jodi: (the girl not the boy)

Jodi has cut and styled my hair for years. We moved to Mesquite at the same time and all our kids are the same age. I love her as a friend and I love her as a stylist. AND I L.O.V.E. my current hairstyle. After receiving a billion compliments from strangers on my hair at the Festival of Trees (the Mesquite Christmas Boutique) Since I have nothing to do with the fabulous features of my hair, I figured I would feature the girl who is responsible for it all . My hair would be nothing without her:) This is my hair by the way:

My hair and my hubby:)

So, I would love to do a monthly or bi-monthly feature on Jodi about hair hints and helps and what not and if you have any questions that you want to ask a stylist but never had the opportunity, now is your chance! You can email me (amykaidavis12@yahoo.com) your questions and I will forward them onto Jodi and she can answer them for you right here on my blog!

So without further ado . . . let me introduce to you the fabulous Jodi!

Q: Where did you go to school?
1.I graduated for Hairitage Hair Academy in the Spring of 2000.

Q: How do you stay current on today's styles and trends?
2. I stay current on today’s trends by going to Hair shows (one coming up this weekend!) and taking classes regularly I love to watch T.V. shows that have anything to do with Reality Shows, Popular Movies, and Popular Artists because that is what a lot of people ask for.

Q: What is your favorite thing about doing hair?
3. My favorite thing about doing hair is helping people feel good, there is nothing like when you like your hair. The smiles, when they can't stop touching their hair and when I have clients call or text me that they love their hair or especially when other people repeatedly tell my clients they love their hair. It is so fun to hear them say "Jodi at Valley Curls did it." If you weren't proud of your hair, there is no way you would disclose the information :)

Q: What do you wish all people knew about hair care?
4. Every one's hair is different and it really is up to us as stylists to really explain to our clients what type of hair they have and how to take care of it. Did you know it may not be healthy to wash your hair everyday? For example I have thick wavy hair I wash it usually every three days because it is importnat that your hair oils protect your hair. Washing it more often could cause more damage. If you have thin straight hair, however you probably need to wash it everyday. Everyone’s style needs are absolutely based on their hair types. And your haircuts are based on your face shape and your features 100%.

Q: What is the appropriate amount to tip?
I always say if you love your hair tip appropriately I work for tips so when I go to a restaurant and had a great waitress/waiter I leave a big tip. But really if you are happy with the service provided I say 20% is a great base to go off of if you are a numbers kind of person most of my clients for a $28.00 haircut usually leave a 5.00 tip.

Q: How can people figure out what color or cut will work best on them?
When considering a haircut, the first rule of thumb don’t look at pictures that are no where near what kind of hair you have. If you have thin hair google haircuts for thin hair. If your hair is thick, google thick haircut pictures. Same idea for long and short hair.
The best thing, like I said above is know your face shape. I am sad to admit, that my face is pear shaped and there are things I would love to do with my hair that I can't, like those cute layers around your face. Also I have a small forehead that is terrible for bangs.
During your consult before your hair gets washed these things should be addressed. If you don’t know what face shape you have ask your stylist. If you have certain features you hate (like I have tons :)- we are always hardest on ourselves.) We also have features on our face we love, usually eyes or lips... so you can cut the hair to accentuate the great features and minimize what you don’t like about your face (like my widows peak :)
Hair color is all about your eye color and skin tone!!! Your eyes are amazing things. Have you ever looked at the ring right outside the color of your eyes? I don’t know the technical term, but if the ring around your eye is dark then dark tones most likely will be the best for your hair. The speckles of color throughout your eye are also a great secondary color to watch. Choose colors that compliment your eyes. Think of them like a paint chip to build a color scheme around.
Also it is important to really watch your skin tone. If you have really pretty golden brown skin and naturally dark hair, the browns, chestnuts, richer red tones are where you want to stay. If you can work eye color and skin tone together to create that perfect color it is such a great feeling. To me it feels pretty amazing if I can mix a color and it comes out exactly as you pictured it in your head!!! So gratifying!!!

Q: If someone was to get their haircut or colored and they don't like it what should they do?
Please come back to the stylist who did it especially if it was me and give them the first opportunity to make it right! If it was me I want to do what I can you have to remember you are the boss and if you are not happy then I don’t get paid! No way on earth will I ever or have ever charged a client for something they were not happy with.
(** note from Amy . . . I have had this experience with Jodi. A few years ago, I wanted to go blond and she made me a blond. She did exactly as I asked, the trouble was I wasn't really ready to be a total blond, even though I thought I was. My husband loved it, but I did not. I called Jodi the next day even though I felt kind of dumb doing it and without making me feel the least bit bad about not liking my hair color she had me come back in a she gave me a few low lights that made me feel so much better about the color of my hair-just so you know she practices what she preaches)
I have had many women come to me to “fix” a bad dye job or a cut that they got elsewhere. I feel terrible for those who have paid for a color and haircut and hated what they left with and then choose to go somewhere else to get it fixed. Why do I feel terrible? Because then they pay for a color or cut service again. Who wants to spend double the money?! I will admit, sometimes there is a miscommunication and I have had people not like the service I provided. They didn’t pay me until it was the way they wanted it or they didn’t pay me at all! Thankfully it hasn’t happened but a few times.
Bring Pictures and Communicate!
When you have a consultation with your stylist, bringing pictures of what you want your hair to look like is a great way to help your stylist visualize what your personal style is. Now, if you bring in 3 or four pictures of totally different hairstyles, that sends up a red flag to me that you have no idea what you really want. It is really important to decide what you want before you are sitting in the stylist’s chair, unless you need help figuring out what is best for your face shape.

Communication is key; always. I have had clients who are really shy and give one-word answers with no explanation when I ask them what they would like me to do to their hair. When this happens I feel like I am working blind when I start cutting because I have no idea what kind of hairstyle you want and am left guessing the whole time. Believe me, this happens a lot!

So here are some questions that you should be prepared to answer in order to help your stylist give you the best cut. They are really hard questions, so prepare yourself accordingly:
1.When was the last time you got your hair cut?
2.Did you like your last hair cut?
3.Would you like me to follow the pattern of your last haircut or are you ready for something new?
Hard right? These three questions will make your next hair cut less of a guessing game for your stylist.
Never Feel Awkward!
Also as a personal note... if I know you outside of the salon and you don't like the way I cut your hair it’s totally okay. It doesn’t need to be awkward at all between us because I am your friend and that is way more important than business :) I know how to separate the two and would never feel or be offended. I have been doing this a long time and I pick keeping a great friend rather then sweating the small stuff.

My husband runs a business with his family and if I didn’t know how to separate the two we wouldn’t have any extended family ... totally kidding love my in-laws they are the best! We work great together...all in all I am very passionate about hair, its my stress reliever believe it or not. So gratifying to make someone feel good about themselves. The smile and thank you is enough but that doesn’t pay the bills ... j.k.

-Jodi

***

There you have it folks . . . remember, Jodi will be happy to answer your hair questions whether they be about, hair health, style, pregnancy related topics or upcoming trends! Send your questions to:

amykaidavis12@yahoo.com

Happy Crafting (or hairstyling!)

xoxo, Amy

Oversized Pictures Made Cheap

I absolutely love over-sized pictures on bare walls.

While trying to figure out how exactly Pinterest works, I came across THIS tutorial from Sugar Bee Crafts & now I can't wait to try it out.

The best part is that she said the print only costs $8 for 3 x 4 feet & the backing was $11 {which gives you more than enough for 1 print}


Happy crafting :)

Booty Buns Cloth Diapers

Hey, it's me Shanni, and I am guest blogging at Honey Bear Lane tomorrow since Heidi is on maternity leave.

Check it out, and while you're at it got check out the newly updated Booty Buns Cloth Diaper site, our diapers are now available!

Happy New Year :) -Shanni

Ten Neighbor Gifts Ideas

With winter break in full swing all of my little ones and my hubby are home for the holidays!Before I go on my own little Christmas break from blogging, I wanted to share with you what I posted on my cousin-in-law, Heidi's blog. Just in case you didn't go a lookin' I also included three more ideas that I found via pinterest, so that if you already did visit Honeybear Lane you wouldn't feel like you looked at my blog for nothing!:)

But First . . .

This little Sucker got deleted from the bottom . . . I know, how totally unprofessional to start with number 6!

6. Here Is What You Give: Hot Chocolate Mix
Here Is What You Say: "When Your Hands and Nose Get Cold and You Need A Warm Thing You Can Hold, Look No Farther Than This Jar. It Has Been Filled With Love, By Friends So True, With Sweetness Made Just for You. To Us Your Friendship Is A Gift That Always Gives Our Hearts A Lift! Merry Christmas! "

NOW . . . the new

From splitcoaststampers.com

From love-the-day.com



From room-mom101.blogspot.com

Now, this is what I wrote for Heidi . . . it starts in the middle . . .

Now For The CUTE Stuff! You may have seen something like this already this season, but I really wanted to do a post that featured ideas for Neighbor Gifts this Christmas! So here are 7 ideas and some original short poems that you are free to use! (P.S. I tried to stay low budget- there are so many cute and clever things you can do, but I was trying ideas that were easy on the budget:)

1. Here's What You Give: Wafer cookies:
Here's What You Say: “Wafer” Not, But Let Your Faith Abound In Christ and Let Your Soul Delight In the True Meaning of The Season! Merry Christmas!”

2.Here Is What You Give:Sparkling Cider
Here Is What You Say: Like the Stars That “Sparkle” in the Night, Friends Like You Bring Our Soul Delight. When the “Sparkling” lights come down and no longer on our rooftop found, Friends Like You Bring Lasting Cheer and Make our Hearts “Sparkle” the Rest of the Year! Merry Christmas!

3. Here Is What You Give: Pop Corn

Here Is What You Say: Friends Like You Make the Holiday Season “Pop” With Joy! Or"We "Popped" On Over To Give You This Treat Because We Think You Are Really Neat. At Christmastime You're A Gift Times Ten And We Feel Really Lucky To Call You A Friend."

You could also just wrap a bag of pop corn . . . I just thought it looked cuter in the jar for picture's sake:)

4. Here Is What You Give: A Strand of Christmas Lights

Here Is What You Say: “Shepard's Kept Their Watch By Night and Saw a New Star Burning Bright. Angels Sang and Greetings Gave And Invited All To See the Babe” May The Light Of Christ Fill your Hearts This Holiday Season!

5. Here Is What You Give: A Christmas Star

Here Is What You Say: “Star Light, Star Bright, A Brand New Star I See Tonight, Bathes the World In precious Light and Hails A Baby's Birth Tonight” May the Light of Our Savior Bring You Peace and Joy This Holiday Season!

6. Here's What You Give: Fishy Crackers or Swedish Fish

Okay, this is not an original poem, but Here Is What You Say: "We Fish You A Merry Christmas, We Fish You A Merry Christmas, We Fish You A Merry Christmas and A Happy New Year!"

So, there you have it! I hope you like some of these cute and affordable ideas!

I hope your Christmas is merry and filled with joy!

xoxo, Amy

My Advent Calendar Picks

As usual, I am running a little late . . . the story of my life! The good news is that even if I am late making an advent calendar this year it will be ready for the next. That is the great thing about Christmas, it's an annual thing. I'll let you know which I decide to imitate!

These Beauties come to you from a wide Pinterest search:)

From the Maya Road Blog:

From Martha Stewart:


From The Freckled Nest:

From Kimberly Petersen:

From All Things Simple:

She also has a way cool activity advent on this same post. Every night you choose a simple but meaningful activity from a stack of cards. I'm thinking it will be great for when school gets out!

By Narrating Life:

I would love to see any advent calendar that you love . . . I still need to make one and at this point I am still open to suggestion. Leave a comment and point me in the right direction.:)

Happy Crafting!

xoxo,

Amy

DIY Photo Canvas! What?!

I saw this on pinterest. I for one LOVE the canvas look but I don't really love the price!
This was too good not share! Check it out from the Sassy Pepper! What a great gift!

Happy Crafting!
xoxo, Amy

You Are Invited!

Please, PLEASE Come!

NeighBor Gifts For Christmas!

Hey Blogland, I am so excited to say that I get to do a guest post on Honeybearlane!

The very talented Heidi, is married to my cousin and is absolutely wonderful! She makes and sells the. most.amazing baby quilts. Go check out my guest post on her site and get SEVEN great gift ideas to give to your neighbors/co-workers/teacher gifts etc!


Thank you for your Support:)


xoxo. Amy