Throwing a Cinco de Mayo Party!

WNCN Today 04.29.14

This weekend it is time to break out your maracas and celebrate Cinco de Mayo in style! So you now what that means, this morning I shared my favorite Cinco de Mayo tips with Page Crawford on WNCN Today, including easy ways to decorate, and a fun way to upcycle your leftover Easter Eggs:

·      DIY Maracas

o   Upcycled Easter Eggs.  What is the first thing that comes to mind when you think Cinco do Mayo?  Plastic Easter Eggs of course!  Well, maybe not, but it should be.  Since Easter has just passed, you likely have a few plastic Easter eggs laying around the house so let’s put them to good use.  Simply fill a plastic egg with small rocks or jelly beans, place it between two plastic spoons and wrap colorful tape (or really any tape at all) around the egg and spoons to create your own maracas.

·      Food and Drink

o   Salsa Bar. You can’t very well have a Cinco de Mayo party without good chips and salsa.  So why not create a salsa bar?  All you need to do is put your salsa base, guacamole, corn & black beans and your other favorite fixings out so that your guests can mix together their favorite salsa.  You can add an additional festive flare to your salsa bar by placing all of the ingredients in margarita glasses, or serving the mixed salsa in margarita glasses.  TIP: Don’t forget to pull out your solid green St. Patrick’s Day serving pieces – they will be perfect for Cinco de Mayo!

o   Dress up Your Drink…Literally. Trade in your boring old koozies for these awesome Fiesta Serapes from CelebrateExpress.com and don’t forget to add a stick on mustache.  I mean really, have you seen a cooler Cinco de Mayo beer?  Since your mustache sticker will sit high on the bottleneck, you can easily put them on your bottles before putting them in the cooler and add the Fiesta Serapes when served.

·      Decoration or Entertainment

o   Piñatas.  A piñata is not just for the kids anymore!  Pick up a small donkey piñata from CelebrateExpress.com to use as a centerpiece on your buffet table or fill it with candy and toys and let your grownup guests relive their youth.  Just make sure you hang the poor donkey out of harms way.  TIP:  If you can find plastic airplane bottle of alcohol they make the perfect grownup piñata surprise.

For all of my tips pick up your own copy of my Tips for the Clueless Chick books and following the Clueless Chick on Facebook and Twitter.

Tune in next week for Teacher Appreciation Day ideas!

Until next time,

Jennifer

aka Chick #1

p.s. Thanks again to CelebrateExpress.com for the awesome props!

A Week of Boppy Giveaways!

Who is excited about a week full of Boppy giveaways?!?!  This Chick sure is :-)  That's right, beginning Monday 4/28/14 we will be giving away some of my favorite Boppy products EVERYDAY through Friday!

In honor of the All About Motherhood Expo in Raleigh, NC on May 3, 2014, Boppy has sent me their most popular products to give to you!!  Added bonus - if you're attending the All About Motherhood Expo in person (admission is FREE) you'll have even more chances to win these and other fabulous Boppy items.

Oh!  Did I mention that I am the keynote speaker at the All About Motherhood Expo?  So you just have to stop by ;-)

Stay tuned for all of the entry details..... I know, the suspense is killing you ;-)

• Monday 4/28:
• Boppy for the Traveling Mama - The Pink Boppy Travel Pillow!  This is the perfect accessory for a Mama on the go.

Enter to WIN: Rafflecopter giveaway 

• Tuesday 4/29:
• Boppy for the 2nd Time Mama - A brand new Pink Polkadot slipcover for your favorite Boppy

Enter to Win on Facebook!

• Wednesday 4/30:
• Boppy for the Favorite Aunt - 2 Boppy Gentle Forest Lovies for the little lovey in your life :-)

Enter to WIN on Facebook!

• Thursday 5/1:
• Boppy for the New Mama - A Boppy Nursing Cover for nursing on the go

Enter to WIN on Facebook

• Friday 5/2:
• Boppy for the Mama-to-be - A Boppy Contoured Pregnancy Wedge to keep your belly comfy when you sleep

Enter to WIN on Facebook

• BONUS:
• A Boppy Changing Pad Cover with Waterproof Liner for those endless diaper changes.

Check back for all of the nitty gritty details and don't forget to register for FREE to visit me in person and pick up another special gift at the All About Motherhood Expo in Raleigh, NC on Saturday May 3, 2014!

And our Week of Boppy Giveaway winners are......

Congratulations everyone!!

Until next time,

Jennifer

aka Chick #1

p.s. A HUGE Clueless Chick thank you to Boppy for all of the wonderful giveaways!!  There's nothing I love more than giving away my favorite products.  Did I mention that I'm still holding onto my 5 year old Boppys? ;-)

1 year and 80,000+ hits later...

How to Travel with a Baby

I don't know about you, but I cannot believe this week marks 1 year since I was in NYC filming a series of Baby Traveling Tips for the Clueless Chick videos for Howcast.com!  Where does the time go??

I still remember that day of filming like it was yesterday.  That was the first time I've had to film for 8 hour straight - I was exhausted by 5pm to say the very least.  I still thank my BFF Brandy at least once a week for going with me, I could not have pulled it off without her!

It is so exciting to see that the videos have had well over 80,000 hits since they were released 9 months ago!!!  You guys ROCK!

My 'baby' has been doing quite well and is still getting a lot of attention.  Just last week Jennifer Schultz, aka Hint Mama, referenced 10 Tips for Eating Out with a Toddler on her fabulous blog.  Thanks Jennifer!

It wasn't long after the videos were released that I got a call from Rick Steves that they were adding Baby Traveling Tips for the Clueless Chick to their travel book library - what an honor from the king of travel himself!!

What an amazingly crazy year it has been :-)

Just in case you haven't seen the videos on YouTube, here are some of my favorites, and the crowd favorites:

5 Tips on Changing a Diaper on a Plane

Tips to Get thru Security with Kids

How to Breastfeed on an Airplane

How to Get Your Baby to Sleep on a Plane

How to Pack a Diaper Bag

Safety Tips for Flying with Baby in Your Lap


Check out my full blog about last year's filming: http://thecluelesschick.blogspot.com/2013/04/howcast-traveling-with-baby-filming.html

My favorite behind the scenes pic

Thanks again for all of your support!  Here's to another fabulous year!!

Until next time,
Jennifer
aka Chick #1

p.s.

Another HUGE Clueless Chick thank you to the companies who provided samples of some of my favorite products for this filming:

• Holly Aiken and her fabulous diaper bags and clutches
• TOMY and their super helpful On-The-Go Booster Seat, BundleMe, Pacifier Pod and Changing Clutch,  GumDrop Bottles, Pacifiers and Sippy Cups
• Little Green Pouches for their baby feeding must haves
• Pouch Pops for their cool pouch must have accessory 
• Pully Palz for a sneak peek at the soon to be available infant carrier must have
• SafetyTats for their ingenious SafetyTats and Anywhere Labels
• iPlay for their must have Shopping Cart Covers, Pocket Raincoat, Disposable Table Toppers, Disposable Changing Pads, Potty Covers and Bibs,Sprout Ware and Baby Care must haves
• Bebe au Lait for their can't live without Hooter Hiders
• Hyland's for their countless baby and toddler homeopathic remedies
• Baby Cubes for the baby food and snack cubes no mom can live without and the new Baby Fresh Feeder
• JL Childress for their super compact Gate Check Bags
• Kushies for their super cute Linki Uni
• Kleynimals for their adorably innovative toy
• Undercover Mama for their new solution to the challenge of nursing in public

Mother’s Day Gift Ideas

WNCN Today 04.22.14

Mother’s Day is right around the corner, which means it’s time for you guys out there to start shopping, or help your kids start shopping!  Don’t worry if you’re completely out of original ideas, this morning on WNCN Today #tipsontues I shared some great new ideas to wow mom with Page Crawford:

·      Memories in the Making

o   Family Photos and a Day of Beauty.  There is nothing a mom loves more than pictures of her children, so why not giver her just that!  Book a mini post-Mother’s Day photo shoot with your favorite photographer, or call mine – Sara Davis Photography.  And don’t forget that mom will want to look her best so throw in a gift certificate to get her hair done at Samuel Cole Salon.  She will be thrilled to have an afternoon of beauty and family photos to last a lifetime! TIP: Book your photographer at least a couple of weeks out to give mom a chance to prepare – surprising her with photo shoot on Mother’s Day is NOT recommended ;-)

·      Fashion and Fun for FREE!

o   Personal Stylist. Does the Mama you’re shopping for love to shop?  Save yourself the time and agony of picking out a new dress, top or necklace for her and get something even better that just a gift certificate.  Our local fab’rik boutiques offer a FREE session with a personal stylist! Just pop into the Cameron Village or Chapel Hill fab’rik boutique and tell them the Clueless Chick sent you – they’ll hook you right up with a gift card (in whatever denomination you’d like to spend) and give you all of the information Mama will need to book an appointment with the personal stylist of her choosing!  Really, with this gift you can’t lose.

·      The Perfect Necklace

o   Love Prints.  Personalized jewelry is all the rage; everyone seems to have monogramed everything!  This personalized jewelry from Love Print Jewelry is even more special that a monogrammed necklace because it is made from a mold of your little one’s thumbprint.  My husband had a Love Print necklace made for me for Mother’s Day with my then 1 and 3 year old sons’ thumb prints and it is one of my most cherished pieces of jewelry.  All you have to do is order a Love Print To Go kit online, use the wax provided to make an imprint of your little one’s thumb, send it back to Love Print Jewelry and within a few weeks your beautiful piece will arrive!  TIP:  You can even get dad a set of thumbprint cufflinks for Father’s Day, or give a set to your hubby-to-be with your thumbprints!

For all of my tips pick up your own copy of my Tips for the Clueless Chick books and following the Clueless Chick on Facebook and Twitter.

Tune in next week for our Cinco de Mayo party!

Until next time,
Jennifer
aka Chick #1

p.s. A HUGE Clueless Chick thank you to Sara Davis Photography, Samuel Cole Salon, fab'rik and Love Prints Jewelry for providing today's props, you guys are the best and always keep me looking good :-)

Easter Crafts for the Uncrafty

WNCN Today 04.15.14

Many of you will be celebrating Easter this weekend with family and friends so I have of course thrown together some of my favorite Easter ideas which I shared with Page Crawford on WNCN Today this morning.  They will make even the uncrafty feel like Martha Stewart this weekend:

·      Simply Adorable Easter Craft

o   Easter Bunny Whiskers.  These adorable and very easy to make Easter Bunny Whiskers will be a hit with kids of all ages at your Easter Brunch.  All you will need to make these adorable crafts are:

§  White pipe cleaners

§  Pink pom poms

§  Popsicle sticks

§  Hot glue gun

Simply cut your pipe cleaners in half, stack 3 on top of each other, fan them out like whiskers and hot glue them in the center to the top of your popsicle stick.  Add an additional dollop of hot glue to the center of your whiskers and place a pink pom pom on top.  You can even write everyone’s name on the popsicle stick for a perfectly festive place card.  TIP: Easter Bunny Whiskers are also a great favor for all of the kids at school, or activity for the kids at your Easter celebration.

·      Fun and Festive Easter Treats

o   Fruit Salad Cups. One of the most fun and festive ways to feed your guests is with adorable personal fruit salad cups.  You can keep your Easter decoration costs low by incorporating beautiful spring colors, like these chevron treat cups from BrithdayExpress.com instead of searching for Easter pieces, which you will only use once a year.  Tip: Shop for spring colored paper goods and decorations that you can reuse at a birthday party or backyard barbeque this spring.

 

o   Easter Egg Krispy Treats. One of the easiest treats we can all make are rice krispy treats, it doesn’t get much easier than melting marshmallows and mixing in rice krispys.  To turn them into the perfect Easter treat add a few drops of food coloring to your marshmallows or use fruity pebbles instead of rice kripys.  Once your krispy treats are mixed, allow them to cool a bit and shape into eggs with plastic bag covered hands.

·      Dapper Accessories for Your Little Ones

o   Bowties and Headbands.  You can dress up any outfit for Easter Sunday with an adorable bow tie or hair bow for your little one. These adorable baby bow ties and headbands are handmade in the USA by Tadpole & Lily, a company started by two friends in Fort Mill, SC.  Honestly, is there anything cuter than a dapper little man or well accessorized little lady?

For all of my tips pick up your own copy of Party Planning Tips for the Clueless Chick books and following the Clueless Chick on Facebook and Twitter.

Tune in next week for help shopping for Mother’s Day.  Guys – this is a must watch segment.

Until next time,

Jennifer

aka Chick #1

p.s. A HUGE Clueless Chick thank you to BirthdayExpress.com and Tadpole & Lily for the beautiful props for today's segment!