FREE Snapfish Photo Book

Snapfish.com is offering The Oprah Winfrey Show viewers (and Baby Blog Addict readers now too) a free 8" x 11" custom-cover photo book! This would make a great Christmas gift for your spouse, your baby, the grandparents or yourself.


All you need to do is create a Snapfish.com account now or log in to your existing account to receive this special offer. This offer is only good for one standard 20-page 8" x 11" custom-cover photo book per household. Coupon dispersal ends at 11:59 p.m. PST Friday, November 14, 2008. Free photo book must be redeemed by 11:59 p.m. PST Sunday, November 16, 2008. Offer does not include customary shipping and handling changes or additional pages. Offer applies only to mail-order delivery to U.S. customers.

**UPDATE: I just received an email saying that they've extended the deadline to create the book. It's now 11/22, instead of 11/16.

Who Knew? Shock and Awe Threes

By Jennifer
BabyBlogAddict.com

Who Knew that the terrible threes could be worse than the terrible twos. Our son just turned three last month and something happened. We felt pretty lucky to never really experience the "terrible twos." He had melt downs, but no real tantrums where he would throw himself on the floor and kick and scream.

Well that all changed in the past month. No one warned us before hand about the upcoming "Terrible Threes" or as one friend put it, "The Shock and Awe Threes."

Who Knew that this was coming? Well, now you know, so you can be prepared...unlike us.

Previous Posts:
:: Who Knew? Guck in Bath Toys
:: Who Knew? Toddlers Can Tell Time
:: Who Knew? Vertically Challenged Moms
:: Who Knew? Different Size Nipples

Ask a Toddler: Toddler Santa

The Best Places to Raise Kids

Businessweek has released its second annual rankings of the best places to raise your kids. This year, they went state by state and selected towns with at least 50,000 residents and a median family income between $40,000 and $100,000.

The list was then narrowed down using the following weighted criteria: school performance; number of schools; household expenditures; crime rates; air quality; job growth; family income; museums, parks, theaters, and other amenities; and diversity. School performance and safety were weighted most heavily, but strong weight was also given to amenities and affordability.

Click here to see A-I on the list. Click here for the entire list (scroll down to the pictures).

Website Spotlight: Peek-A-Boo Paperie

We'd like to introduce the newest BBA advertiser, Peek-a-boo Paperie. The idea was born when the owner, Jill, set out to design a birth announcement for her niece that really reflected her little personality. Her niece was introduced to family and friends as being "Born to Rock." In the process of creating her announcement, Jill discovered a passion for designing cards that are fun, whimsical and really speak to the animated nature of babies.

Peek-a-boo Paperie is also the first birth announcement site where parents can literally drag photos of their babies onto the announcement and resize/rotate the photos online. This way parents can see how their photos will appear in the announcement as well as pick and choose which photos they want to use.

Giveaway: 3 Prizes from Spunky Sprout Tunique Marquise & More

:: THIS GIVEAWAY HAS ENDED. CLICK HERE TO SEE IF WE HAVE A CURRENT GIVEAWAY.
Spunky Sprout is a one-stop-shop for a modern child's lifestyle, so we're excited to offer you an opportunity to win three items from their online store.

Check out what you can win. We're giving away these three items to three different winners!

• Tunique Marquise ($110) - Just like the one Halle Berry wore when she was pregnant!
  


• Nappy Rash Ointment ($17)
  


• Koeka Binkie Bib with Pocket ($14)
  

Baby Blog Addict readers also get 10% off any purchase until Dec. 24th 2008. Just use the code: babyblog10.

Here's how to enter the giveaway:

1. Go to Spunky Sprout and search through their great products for your favorite.

2. Come back to this post on BBA and leave a comment letting us know which Spunky Sprout item is your favorite.

3. Make sure we have your contact info (email or blog address) in your blogger profile or comment itself, so we can contact you if you win. Only one entry per person per giveaway.

This contest runs: Sunday, 11/9 - Sunday, 11/16 at 7:00 PM ET. We'll select three random winners then post their names here on BBA after the contest ends.

Winner: Trendy Hat from Pearl and Pauper

Congrats to Chris (comment #1...yes, can you believe that random.org chose #1?!) She is the winner of our giveaway of a trendy hat of her choice from Pearl and Pauper.

Everyone else can still enjoy 10% off your Pearl and Pauper order using the coupon code: babyblogaddict.

Week in Review

:: Unique Pregnancy Ticker
:: Kid'Sleep Clock
:: Website Spotlight: Daddy Diaper Changing Toolbox
:: Giveaway: Trendy Hat from Pearl and Pauper
:: Popsqually + Co's Holiday Giveaway
:: Costume Contest Winners
:: Halloween Costume Contest Slideshow
:: Diaper Cake Winner
:: Pregnancy Weight Gain, Big Babies Linked
:: Celeb Baby Name Theft
:: Ask a Todder: Hiring a Toddler

Unique Pregnancy Ticker from I am Pregnant

This pregnancy ticker from I am Pregnant shows a white puzzle to start with. Every 4 days of your pregnancy a piece of the puzzle is taken away You can choose from their selection of pictures or even use your own photo (maybe an ultrasound picture) for the ticker. Just upload it in the right column.

For more tickers that we've featured here on BBA, click here.

Kid'Sleep Clock

Here's a follow up to our Who Knew: Toddlers Can Tell Time post a couple of months ago. Now, kids don't even have to know their numbers. Check out the Kid'Sleep Clock...only problem is that it's only available in Europe right now. I wonder if something like this exists in the U.S.?

Website Spotlight: Daddy Diaper Changing Toolbox

Another new BBA advertiser is Daddy Diaper Changing Toolbox. Check out their ad in the right sidebar.

Not only is today's Dad willing to help with late night feedings and diaper changes, he is willing to be a part of the celebration to welcome the arrival of your bundle of joy!

Chris Hartsfield went to his first couples baby shower in October of 2007. At the shower, he was blown away by all the gifts given for the baby and mom, but nothing for dad other than his favorite beer in the fridge.
Although Chris was happy to be a part of the shower, he wished that there had been something more to acknowledge and celebrate fatherhood. This inspired Chris to design the Daddy Diaper Changing Toolbox, the box that changed it all. Chris wanted to provide Dads with a chuckle as well as arm them with everything they would need for their very first diaper change, and he did this with practicality in mind. All of the comic extras in the toolbox are actually useable. For example: a functional toolbox and tongs for the grill. Chris put his ideas into action and collaborated with Julie Etzkorn to start Fun Stuff 4 Babies.

Mark your calendars! On November 12th, we'll start a contest to give away a Daddy Diaper Changing Toolbox.

Giveaway: Trendy Hat from Pearl and Pauper

:: THIS CONTEST HAS ENDED. CLICK HERE TO SEE IF WE HAVE A CURRENT GIVEAWAY.

Pearl and Pauper has some adorable hats for boys, girls and moms too! I know some of you will go crazy over these...yes, that includes you Bridget ;). We are so excited to be giving away one of these great hats (winner's choice) from Pearl and Pauper this week.

Plus, Pearl and Pauper is offering 10% off for anyone who orders using the coupon code: babyblogaddict.


Here's how to enter:

1. Go to Pearl and Pauper to check out their adorable selection of trendy hats and accessories.

2. Come back to this post on BBA and leave a comment letting us know which item is your favorite. Make sure we have your contact info (email or blog address) in your blogger profile or comment itself, so we can contact you if you win. Only one entry per person per giveaway. Must have a U.S. mailing address.

3. We'll select a random winner on random.org, then post the winner here on BBA after the contest ends.

This contest runs: Tuesday, 11/4 - Sunday, 11/9/08 at 7:00 PM ET.

More about Pearl and Pauper:

Pearl and Pauper is a company born out of complete love and adoration for accessories. The founder has always loved to accessorize. Because of this, she decided that she would share her love of beautiful things, and provide a way for everyone else to have what she loves to wear most.

They handmake all of their items and the turn around time is usually about 5-10 days, definitely reasonable when it comes to handmade items!

Popsqually + Co.'s Holiday Giveaway

Popsqually + Co. is giving away a Holiday Stationery Set including (12) personalized notecards, (20) address labels, (20) personalized gift labels and (10) folded personalized tags! Enter on Popsqually's blog. Here's a direct link to the giveaway. Winner will be announced Nov. 11.

BBA readers can get 10% off their purchase with the code BBAHoliday10. Thanks, Mandy!

Halloween Costume Contest Winners!!!

We're excited to announce BBA's 2nd Annual Halloween Costume Contest Winners. You all made it so hard to choose. All the costumes were great, but we felt that these three really caught our attention.

Baby Betty as a Cabbage Patch Kid

Betty's Mom said...My husband and I decided to have our baby be a Cabbage Patch Kid for her first Halloween because everybody says she looks like one. We built the box out of wood and painted it by hand, it is 1.75 scale of an original Cabbage Patch Kid box. The birth certificate is an official Cabbage Patch birth certificate specially ordered with our baby’s real name and birth date...and yes that is her real hair. She is 6 months old. We had a lot of fun creating this fun costume and our baby loved it too.

Gracie as a Sushi Roll

Gracie's mom said...My daughter is Asian and I just HAD to make her a sushi roll.....look at her candy bag....I took a fabric tote and printed "Kikko-GiGi Soy Sauce" (GiGi is her nickname)...It is something she can use and smile about when she thinks about the Halloween when she went as "The Gracie Roll"!!!

Caroline as Amelia Earhart in her red Lockheed Vega

Amy said...Caroline is 8 months old and loves being pulled around in her plane!

PRIZES:

:: Baby Betty and Gracie each win a custom blurb book from blurb.com (each is valued at $29.95).

:: Caroline wins a diaper clutch from JackaroosBoutique.com.

Thanks to everyone who entered! Check out the slideshow in the post below to see just how stiff the competition was. We can't wait to do it again next year.

We are showing off the winners on Tip Junkie's Talk to Me Tuesday: Halloween Show & Tell. Check out her Mr. Linky for more Halloween ideas to get you thinking about next year.

2nd Annual Halloween Costume Contest Entries

Find out who won in the post above, but check out all the great entrants in this slideshow. Thanks to everyone who entered!

Record # of Entries...Did You Win the Diaper Cake?

If you are Daintry, then you did! Congratulations to Daintry (comment #119) who was the winner of the 3-Tier Diaper Cake from DiaperCakewalk. Thanks to the 270 entrants (a record here on BBA) and to Diaper Cakewalk for the awesome giveaway.

Daintry's entry said, "The Blossom baby one is adorable!! Thanks for the chance to win!" Be on the lookout for an email from us so DiaperCakewalk can send you your prize.

Pregnancy Weight Gain, Big Babies Linked

Gaining 40 pounds or more during pregnancy nearly doubles the risk of having a baby who weighs nine pounds or more, in turn increasing the health risks to mother and baby, according to a new study.

Celeb Baby Name Theft

Eva Mendes isn't happy with fellow actress and close friend Salma Hayek for stealing her favorite baby name. Mendes was reportedly stunned when she discovered the 42-year-old actress had called her daughter Valentina Paloma, who she welcomed into the world in September 2007.

Stay Tuned...

Thanks to everyone who entered our 2nd Annual Halloween Costume Contest. We received so many great pictures of your Halloween cuties in cute and very creative costumes! Click here to see some of the competition.

We'll post the winners tomorrow, along with a slideshow of all the entrants. Stay tuned...

Ask a Toddler: Hiring a Toddler