Freshly Picked Moccasin Giveaway!!

*Disclosure: I have received Freshly Picked moccasins to help facilitate my review but all opinions contained herein are 100% my own.

The only thing worse than having a pair of amazing new shoes that you can't wear yet is having a new pair of Freshly Picked baby moccasins for a baby that is STILL.IN.YOUR.BELLY. I just received baby's first new pair of FP moccs and they are literally making me even more crazy (Chris didn't think this could be possible) for the baby to get here and for the moment we get to carry this little bundle home from the hospital in his/her sweet new beautiful Birch moccs.

I know baby moccasins are all the rage right now and that you can probably find some great cheaper or knockoff versions of the original FP baby mocc, but the reason I love and stand by Freshly Picked is because they are handmade in the United States with a lot of love and care, made with genuine and quality leather or suede, they are super stylish and have so many trendy prints and options, & they actually stay on your baby's feet (!) due to the hidden elastic opening. We had the Bubblegum Pink suede, Platinum, & Pin the Flower on the Petal moccs for Blair and I absolutely loved them all so much. An added bonus to these moccs is that that soft soles actually help little ones learn to walk as it helps promote balance.

Thanks to their Shark Tank deal (fast forward to the 32 minute mark to hear Susan's story because it's amazing), and the brand growth, Freshly Picked moccs are now sold at many retail stores and most notable, stocked in the children's shoe department at your local Nordstrom.

I am so excited today to be hosting another Freshly Picked giveaway to a lucky on of YOU!! These moccs are a $60 value, plus free shipping to anywhere in the U.S. They come in baby-toddler sizes 1-10, and now have select colors stocked in a special 'crib' size, one size smaller than a size 1 and perfect to take baby home from the hospital in and keep as a special heirloom :)

How to Enter:

1. Visit Freshly Picked and leave a comment on this post telling me which pair of mocs you would get if you won! Be sure to leave your email on your post so I know how to contact you if you're the lucky winner!

For Additional Entries:
*Please leave a separate comment on this blog post for each additional entry, and be sure to leave your email address on each post so I know how to contact you if you're the lucky winner!

1. Like Freshly Picked on Facebook
2. Share a link to this post on facebook & tell your friends about it! (make sure to copy & paste the URL to this post on your page)
3. Share a link to this post on Twitter & tell your friends about it! (make sure to copy & paste the URL to this post to your Twitter)
3. Follow @FreshlyPicked and @lisab3 on Instagram, post an image of the mocs you want, tagging @lisab3 and include the hashtag #mummascornerFPgiveaway
4. Follow Mumma's Corner (either via google friend connect, bloglovin', or subscribe to posts by email)

Giveaway will run for one week and will officially close at 9:00am cst on August 7, 2016

Good luck!!

Hospital Bag Checklist!

Holy batman I can't believe baby is ALMOST here!! We're in the final 3 week countdown, and most importantly made it to the 37-week mark, making baby full term and chances of complications from a premature birth are behind us. As of Tuesday, I'm 2 cm dilated and baby's head is down. I've been going crazy nesting and organizing and cleaning and just basically being insane around the house, making sure everything is as my crazy hormonal self needs it to be before we bring this baby home. Which is actually a really good thing considering how fat, tired, sick & lazy I've been this entire pregnancy.
Chris deserves some type of honor for loving me through psychowife status the past few weeks and has been home much more lately to help with the kids and around the house. He took them out the other day and I packed our hospital bags (shit's getting real!) and I decided to throw up this checklist in case you need to pack one for yourself, considering myself an expert now.

For Baby:
- Going Home outfit - for me this includes our new Freshly Picked moccasins, as well as comfy clothes that won't bother the umbilical cord stump.
- Cute & comfy baby beanie to keep baby's head warm (love ours from Infanteenie Beenie)
- Nattursutten newborn baby pacifier
- swaddle blankets - they have these and will give you these at the hospital, but I'm packing some of our own organic, unbleached muslin swaddle wraps.

For Mom:
- Insurance card/ID/wallet
- Pre-registration hospital documents (if you didn't do online)
- Cord Blood Kit if storing your baby's cord blood or otherwise donating.
- Pillow and/or blanket. I remember the IV and epidural made me freezing, shaking cold when I was in labor with Blair and it was really comforting and nice to have a soft plush blanket from home to have with me. If you do bring a pillow or blanket, make sure it's nothing you don't mind getting ruined.
- Bathrobe (Love this one from Jessica Simpson I got at Macy's Maternity section - it's stretchy and thin and perfect for nursing, and so, so comfy, and makes you feel a little less gross and a little more sweet and romantic with the soft pink lace shoulder cut outs)
- slippers and/or flip flops
- cell phone and charger
- eyeglasses and contacts
- deodorant
- toothbrush & toothpaste
- hairbrush & elastics
- Going Home outfit - remember you will still look about 6 months pregnant when leaving the hospital, so either pack one of your maternity outfits, a comfy maxi dress, or  yoga pants & a large top
- My dewdrop diffuser and some special oils to diffuse during L&D: Valor and Peace & Calming)
- My labor playlist. I never did this with Landon or Blair, but as I'm really hoping to have a natural pregnancy this time around I'm doing some things a little differently with music and essential oils. My playlist currently consists of some of my favorite Christian songs, because I know I'm gonna need Jesus to get me through this. Currently:
David Crowder, "Here's My Heart"
All Sons & Daughters, "Oh How I Need You"
Kristine DiMarco, "It Is Well"
Switchfoot, "Your Love is a Song"
Lifehouse, "Everything"
Rufus Wainwright, "Hallelujah"
Amanda Cook, "You Make Me Brave"
Michael Smith, "You Won't Let Go"
Francesca Battistelli, "Holy Spirit"
Switchfoot, "Always Yours"

In the past I always over-packed for myself and baby but ultimately the hospital really has everything you truly need - granny panties, pads, breast pump, diapers, pacis, bottles, swaddles, lansinoh, and you really don't need to pack nearly as much as you think.

What'd I miss? What's a must in your hospital bag? I'd love to hear it, leave a comment below!!

Cleaner Water For Your Home!! A New & Much Improved Water Filtered Pitcher, Aquagear

As my nesting & OCD has only been increasing these past couple of weeks, a few things on my "third trimester checklist" is to check our carbon monoxide and fire alarms, and also to get our water re-tested to ensure its drinking quality. So when Aquagear reached out to me about collaborating on a blog post and giveaway, it was such a perfect timing moment and I am so happy I learned about this company, and even more happy to be sharing all this valuable knowledge with others. If you watch the video above, you will see that Aquagear filters out 2,000% more contaminates than Brita filters do, and the most concerning about these if you have (or plan to have) young children in your home is that of lead, mercury, THMs, and fluoride.

• Lead: Exposure to lead, even in very small amounts, has been directly linked to a variety of health problems, especially in children, including: lower IQs, behavioral problems, and kidney and liver disorders. Lead is usually leached into drinking water from corroding faucets and pipes, or runoff. What is scary about lead is that even at dangerous levels, it cannot be tasted or smelt. The Aquagear filter has been proven to remove 97.5% of lead.
• Mercury: The Aquagear also removes 99.6% of Mercury. High exposure to inorganic mercury can result in gastrointestinal damage, damage to the nervous system, and the kidneys.
• Trihalomethanes (THMs): THMS are a serious and seriously understudied group of chemical compounds that have been proven to increase the likelihood of miscarriage. THMs are a byproduct of chlorine, which is used to clean water.
  The EPA allows for some THM in drinking water--about 80 parts per billion (ppb). However, even tap water meeting this regulation has been linked to a significant increase in miscarriage risk. The Aquagear filter removes 99.99% of these trihalomethanes.
• Flouride: Fluorosis is an often permanent condition characterized by discoloration and pitting of the teeth. It can be caused by an overexposure to fluoride in tap water and mostly affects children in their first eight years.This condition is becoming increasingly common in the United States as more and more tap water supplies are becoming fluoridated.
  The Aquagear filter removes over 90% of fluoride.

Although those are the most important contaminates, there are many more -- check out this chart below to see the stark comparison to Brita:

It's a little scary to me how much the Aquagear very clearly beats out your standard and common household Brita, and I would highly recommend getting one for your home, especially if you have young children. You can conveniently purchase it right on Amazon here, as well as replacement filters, here.
Although their pricing is more than Brita, you get a much better, safer product, and for every filter product we send to your door, we provide six months of clean drinking water to someone in need. This makes me so happy, as contaminated drinking water in third world countries is a cause very near and near to our family's hearts, especially Landon's. You can read more about their Partnership with Thirst Relief International here.

Today I am so excited to be hosting a giveaway for a very lucky one of you to win your own Aquagear pitcher & filter (a $69.95 value, plus free shipping to anywhere in the U.S.!)
a Rafflecopter giveaway

Farm Day(s) + Chicken Update

Photos from Randall Oaks Park & Petting Zoo, as well as a chicken coop tour at a few homes in Barrington... We're so excited to get some chicks of our own. Right now our village as well as subdivision specifically disallow the raising and keeping of poultry, but with my lawyering skills and hubby's politician skills, we're working on changing a few things around here 😏 We first need to get a majority vote from our subdivision to want to allow, and then need to petition the village. Currently other villages of Barrington already allow them and think we have a pretty good shot with the newly elected board in our subdivision, and Chris elected as the new VP ;) The kids love having our little 'garden' and get so excited when they notice a new ripe veggie or fruit they can pick for themselves and eat. They truly understand the concept of farm to table and I love teaching it to them. I cannot wait until the day they can go looking for fresh eggs in the morning and I know we are all going to love having some sweet little feathered friends around to join our family.

Summer Lovin'

Totally enjoying our summer and exploring new places and fun activities with L and B before the new baby comes. Definitely starting to feel a little anxious some days at the thought of having a newborn when lately I've been feeling at full capacity with just these two guys, but every day changes and every day will continue to change as we all grow, and I know all I can do is offer my best each day. I'm hopeful that my pregnancy exhaustion will dissipate and so hopeful that having the new baby will not be as exhausting as I've been feeling most days in these last few weeks. The kids are so, so excited for 'their' new baby to come and Landon's been counting down the days until my due date every morning. I know they're going to be completely star struck and over the moon with their new little sibling and their comments and sweet gestures towards my moving, growing belly are already melting my heart. A few pics from our weekend, basking and playing in some gorgeous weather outside.

Our 4th of July