Sunday Afternoons ~ Review of TWO Sunhats

I didn't think spring let alone summer was ever going to arrive this year. We had snow well into April, then May, and finally, as June came, it felt like we might thaw once again. So, going from worrying about frostbite to worrying about sunburn was what this mama was thinking of the last few weeks!

One of the things that my son inherited from ME was my fair, sensitive skin. He did get a dash of his father, so he turns beige at the end of the summer, rather than my "dark white" -- but he still burns with the best of 'em. So, we need BIG hats.

So, here was my solution. SUNDAY AFTERNOONS! 

[Stock photos from the Summer Afternoons website]:


Kids Play Hat



Chinstrap with Buckle
Air vents for dissipating heat
adjustable band around the head
Whole face protection
Neck protection


Women's Sundancer




Very lightweight
UPF 50+
Super adjustable
Face AND Neck protection
Fun ruffle to feel cute!

So what did we figure out?

We love Sunday Afternoons for EVERY summer afternoon! 

I love the adjustable chin strap (he can play on a windy day without losing his hat) and it's great that the hat is vented for those sweaty, adventurous toddler days! The BEST part about these hats is that they cover the neck and nearly all of the face (depending on how you are holding your head it can be 100% coverage!) 

My long hair can be popped out the back of the Women's Sundancer, making it more comfortable and cooler on summer days! What REALLY adorable is that since my son knows we BOTH have hats like this, when I put his on, he DEMANDS that I wear mine too. So, there's no excuse for me to ever have a sunburned forehead or neck again! 

I love that the Sundancer gives me a bit of a girlish flair, with the ruffled back. I also really am glad we went with the light-colored hats, so that they wouldn't be hot. The hats both have great ventilation, but having a sand-colored hat is better in my mind than a black one on a hot day!

Not only does Sunday Afternoons offer a HUGE selection of men's, women's, and children's sun hats, they also have swim shirts! You can find Sunday Afternoons on Facebook!

***Thank you to Sunday Afternoons for providing us with these two great hats to complete our review. We think Sunday Afternoons hats ROCK. It's true, at least, for our family. We did not receive any other compensation for this post.***

$100 Ella Bella Bum Cloth Diaper GC Giveaway!!

Welcome to the Ella Bella Bum Giveaway

Sponsored by Ella Bella Bum. Organized by Mom to Bed by 8 and co-hosted by Iowa Mom.

At Ella Bella Bum you can find traditional solid pul and printed pul pockets, embellished pockets, scrappy pockets, hand dyed (lwi & swirl) & boutique print pocket fitted diapers, swim diapers, hand dyed wool covers and longies, hand dyed lovies, pillowcases, blankets, lovie teethers, and much more! Each Thursday a new stocking on Hyena Cart can be found of Sam's unique cloth diapers creations.

Now I had the pleasure of working with Sam, to review an Ella Bella Bum diaper. They ROCKED. She has SO many designs, fabrics and styles to choose from that just getting to the checkout is difficult, but the diaper was one of our stash favorites for a VERY long time! Pretty much from the time we got it in the mail to the time we packed up the cloth in favor of trainers and undies (just recently) we loved our EBB dipe! So, make sure to check out my review of Ella Bella Bum diapers for more information, whether you are new to the brand or want more info!


A Message from Sam - Founder of Ella Bella Bum

First and foremost, I’d like to thank you for your interest and for taking the time to learn more about Ella Bella Bum Cloth Diapers. With the help of so many wonderful supporters, Ella Bella Bum has experienced a steady growth over the past 3+ years and I’m so proud to tell you about the businesses humble beginnings and bright future!

About the EBB Team

Sam Campbell is the founder, owner, and creative designer of Ella Bella Bum Inc. Her husband Courtney is very supportive of the business venture and has been a strong driving force behind EBB from the very beginning. Courtney is a trade carpenter and has been instrumental in the building of the production space and selflessly aids wherever needed. Together they have four beautiful children.

The EBB team at present also includes 3 production assistants and 3 local WAHM seamstresses.

*FREE* North American Shipping on all items!

One lucky reader will receive a $100 Ella Bella Bum Gift Certificate!

Giveaway ends June 20th at 11:59pm, open to US and Canada residents, ages 18+. To enter please use the Rafflecopter form below. Good luck.

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Disclosure: I received no compensation for this publication. My opinions are my own and may differ from those of your own. Adventures of Mommyhood is not responsible for sponsor prize shipment. Please contact teri@mompoweredmedia.com with questions or to see your business or blog featured on the next big event!

SoftBums JUNE Calendar Bums fun & GIVEAWAY!!

The time has come for another cloth diaper giveaway!! I'm blogging along with lots of others in anticipation of the June Calendar Bums release from SoftBums!

I LOVE our SoftBums Omni. It's one of the softest inners that we've ever felt. We have Cowies. I LOVE cowies. Peace-a-phants and Panda Bum sound LOVELY too! I'm a sucker for Pandas. I'm also a big supporter of USA/Canada businesses---SoftBums is a Minnesota-based company, owned and operated by a fellow mama! Gotta love it!

What do you think June will bring for the Calendar Bums collection? My prediction? Something citrus. Maybe mango tango? Maybe tulips? I'd LOVE to see a lawn/grass print. Maybe something to do with lakes/water? I feel like it's going to be summery. 

Make sure to mark your calendars, the JUNE calendar bums diaper will be released JUNE 19TH at 10:00 A.M.

Now for the fun part!!! Several blogs are holding giveaways for a June Calendar Bums shell!!! The SoftBums site itself is giving away $100 in Softbums fluff! I'm going to need you to do a few things:

1) Get excited! Tell me what creative ideas you have for what June might be in the big reveal AND/OR what you might like to see in the future!!

2) ENTER the SoftBums giveaway on their website by clicking HERE. PLEASE BE SURE TO USE MY BLOG AS YOUR REFERRAL -- ADVENTURES OF MOMMYHOOD! I really appreciate it! I'm not compensated at all for this post, but I COULD win a $50 GC if all you wonderful folks say I referred you! :)

3) ENTER MY giveaway to win a June Calendar Bums shell!! 

How, you say? Easy:

Fill out this Rafflecopter form, below!

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***I was not compensated in any way for this post. I MAY be eligible to win a referral contest if my rockin' readers help me out! All opinions are my own.***

We got a few fancy chicks!

We are getting mostly laying hens. For the purpose of not only collecting eggs but also raising some very hands-on "pets" alongside my son. But, since I'm a girl and some things are just so tempting, I had to get six "Fancy" chicks. In fact, I named one Fancy. Lets hope it turns out that that one is a SHE...they were six "straight run" birds, which means there is no tried and true sexing and you run the risk of getting a cockerel. But, that's okay with us too. Probably.

Here they are....

The light-feathered one is a "Frizzy Cochin" as is "Fancy," whom you will meet below.

Here is a Featherfoot. Grey and black with just a dash of brown. I'm thinking "Ruby."

Here again is the so far nameless Frizzy Cochin.

And this is Fancy. Here's her one chance [to be a girl] and not let us down! Oh Reba!

And the whole six pack. 

We have (2) Featherfoot chicks, (2) Silkies, and (2) Frizzy Cochins.

Welcome to the farm little feathered friends!

Building The Chicken Coop ~ Our Backyard Farm

If you build it...they will come!!

We started out with the skeleton of an old ice fishing house. I was not pleased. After 5 minutes of trying to tear off the "rotten boards" we realized we were going to be left with a 2"x 4" and some nails. So, we started from scratch.

Now, I must admit, I was responsible for air-nailing the Blandex to the floor supports. Then, my husband tore it up and put on a new floor. It still counts, right?

I DID pick out the colors and paint it though! And I helped with the overall design & layout. But he gets ALL the credit for it actually being a livable structure for chickens! We are likely going to be adding another row of nest boxes, since I decided to get more chickens than we anticipated!

The whole project of building the coop has taken a week. Each night about 2-3 hours, the entire week. It's not done yet. Rest assured, I'm proud of this puppy, I'll be posting the finished product too!

TIP: I bought the cornflower colored paint at a Habitat for Humanity ReStore. It was just $5.00 for nearly a full gallon. It had a splotch on the lid that led me to believe I was purchasing Cerulean, my absolute favorite color, but hey, for $5.00 -- it's still in the blue family, I'm not complaining!

We had the mustard colored paint laying around.

The trap door is in the back and will open up to a caged in area -- they will be able to free range as well, but we wanted a containment system.

The doors were pretty much all we salvaged from the camper that we bought on last years' Mother's Day adventure road-trip. It was neat to re-purpose some of that purchase a year later, nearly to the day!

We had a door that we upcycled. And some tin for the roof. And some plexi-glass for a small window in front. We have cute a bigger 22" x 30" window in the back and are looking for a window to install.

This ladder was also a dumpster-diving treasure. We are all about salvage here! There you can see the two nest boxes. We will be adding more below and maybe even above.

THERE! A sneak peek at what has been taking up our daylight hours lately! 

Well, it's finally here!

Spring sprung late this year. Like REALLY late. And then, I guess you could say it was gone after 2 days. We went from single digits to near 90 degrees overnight, quite literally. Which not only screwed up my seed starting (cold temps, low light, etc.) but also meant my favorite season was 48 hrs long. Boo!

BUT--- One really fun thing is that we are in full swing of our backyard farming chores, prep work, and gardening! So, what better way to make sure I'm busy from sun up to sun down than to add a little Backyard Farming Series to the mix!?

Now, this is very loosely structured. I will be telling you about everything we do for the next month from starting to raise chickens (with our toddler in mind), heirloom gardening, prepping, outdoor fun, container gardening, and more!

We just finished putting a coat of paint on our new coop last night and we go to pick up our chicks next week! My seedlings are in various stages of fighting for survival. Hopefully with the additional sunlight and warm temperatures they'll perk up!

We are really excited to tell you about the adventures of becoming more self-reliant, and please remember we are AVERAGE. We aren't total bumbling greenhorns but we certainly aren't experts, so if WE can do it, so can YOU!

Stay tuned for the adventures as they unfold!

Ducksday Rainsuit ~ Review and Spotlight on Ollie & Stella Outfitters! Oh...and a sweet Giveaway!

 Everyone knows that the transition of seasons (at least here in the northland of the Midwest) means at least a handful of clothing changes per child each day. Recently, I had the good fortune of finding out about Ducksday--a great resource for active kidswear--and, a place to get the goods--Ollie and Stella Children's Outfitters!

We have a "Ducksday Fleece" seen here (photo from the Ollie and Stella website) which was AWESOME for autumn. We have a down snowsuit for our toddler, but for travel on very chilly winter days in the car seat and for the warmer of the cold days, the fleece suit was IDEAL. It fits easily under the straps and buckles of the car seat, which eases a mama's mind while traveling in a snowstorm or when you are "in and out" of the car several times throughout the day for errands. 

This is the exact color (we have it in a size 2T or 92-98) and it fit our son from about 18 months until now--26 months and he's still wearing it comfortably and like will for another year! 

So, when we were able to try a Ducksday Rainsuit, we were beyond thrilled, having found that we LOVE Ducksday kids gear. We decided on the pattern/color "Groovy" suit in a size 3T (or 98 - 104.) One thing I noticed was there is a LOT of growing room between 2T and 3T -- which is totally awesome, we'll be using this suit to the fullest for a long time to come! So, as you'll see, there is quite a bit of room to stretch in the photos---our son is just over 2 and weighs about 30 lbs.

All kids are drawn to puddles. Heck! I'm drawn to puddles! It's part of the fun in this hemisphere of knowing that winter has lost its' grip on us and spring has sprung! The material that the rainsuit is made from is not like a "slicker" -- ya know, the Gorton's Fisherman yellow banana suits? Yeah. Not like that AT ALL. This material breaths, bends, flexes and rolls with all the punches that my son can throw at it! 

The zipper pulls are easy for little fingers to grab, so even our two year-old can maneuver the zippers and pockets of the suit. You can also see the pattern up close here, super fun--great for boys or girls! There are no way for me to illustrate how great the material moves WITH out child, other than many, many photos and the honest words that it rocks! My husband and I went as far as to wish that there were adult sizes for us to enjoy--since this is just better than our combined stash of rain gear! (We consider ourselves rain gear gurus, since we both spent several seasons working in the temperate rainforests of Southeast Alaska and studying in the tropical rainforests of Central America!) We would be first in line for adult Ducksday rainsuits if they ever became available!

Safety is always important, and it never hurts to make your kiddo a little more High Vis' -- they disappear so quickly when exploring outside! So, the folks at Ducksday really made life a little easier by adding these reflective strips strategically around the suit. There are also some great features like taped seams, waterproof zippers, and adjustable cuffs and hood for better weather proofing! These suits are waterproof and windproof but might as well be called "weatherproof" since they are great in snow and sleet and really the whole gamut of conditions that the Midwest has to offer!

Here is my hand, showing you the foot stirrups. It may not be the most flattering photo but I can say these stirrups are wicked cool. Slip them over the little one's foot and never have to worry about exposed skin that gets cold. Because, there won't be any! Unlike other suits and snow pants, the legs cannot get bunched over the boot and leave space for snow or water to get in. These stay tucked down for good! 

Just a small but awesome feature--the zipper cover that is fleece. It never gets cold and though it's mostly to prevent a slight discomfort, attention to detail like this totally brings to light the face that Ducksday suits just keep on rockin'! 

Another great feature that many other suits do not offer--the cinched up waist. It keeps the extra material a little more manageable for the youngster to be able to run and play without a lot of extra fabric getting in the way. 

Here are those Velcro adjusters that I alluded to before. They are found on the cuffs and the hood, making the entire suit fully-customizable to fit kids big and small! The suit is very generously sized, so whether you have a stretching string bean like our kiddo or a little more of a chunky monkey, the suit will fit over their base layers for a fun day outside!

Our spring was late. So, we got a LOT of extra snow play this year. We've seen it all in the last month. The suit held up for it all. I am just smitten over this one piece of outdoor kids gear that makes so many situations Mother Nature serves up so much more enjoyable! Gone are the days (mostly) of several clothing changes! We love our Ducksday Rain Suit! (For added warmth, it pairs wonderfully with the Fleece Suits!) The only thing I just cannot figure out is why they didn't have these like 20 years ago when I was a kid! Completely genius--you just cannot go wrong with this rain suit. 

The folks at Ollie and Stella's have great rain suits. And fleece suits. I can swear to that. You know what I'm really excited to try out sometime soon? Like maybe the few WEEKS of summer that we will get this year? The UV protection gear! We DO get sun up here in the northern climes, just not for very long. BUT, I happen to have some very pale ancestors, and I totally inherited the red hair and freckles and pale skin. And, my son is the spitting image of his mama! 

So, the Ducksday Hats and Rashguards would be really helpful to our family! Great for family vacations no matter what the weather is where you hail from, we'd totally gear up our son in the cool UV protection duds that Ducksday offers! Here is another glimpse (courtesy of the Ollie and Stella's site again) of some of the summer sun protection gear they have for kids! (See the hat and rashguard? They've been added to the wish list that the grandparents request each year!)

So you know what's really awesome for all of YOU!?! You can win a Ducksday rainsuit by entering on the Rafflecopter program below! That rocks, right? We really REALLY love our Ducksday gear, we know you will too! So, even if you don't win, check out Ollie and Stella's to see the full range of great kids gear they offer!

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**Disclosure** Many thanks to Ollie and Stella Outfitters for the ability to review a complimentary Ducksday Rain Suit. We were not compensated in any other way for this post and all opinions are our own.**