Stay-On Mittens: Review

Winter is back once AGAIN and it's time to get everyone's cold winter gear organized.  One piece of outdoor clothing that always seems to cause a little more angst for us than others are the mittens/gloves.  I can't tell you how many times I have come home from the store with what I think will be the perfect pair for my kids but once we get them on they don't fit right, they aren't warm enough, I can't keep them on my little one's hands or they end up being made out of cheap material that quickly tears... 

When I found out about a company called Cozy Tots that makes what they call the "Stay-On Mittens,"  I was very excited to give them a try!  Cozy Tots generously sent us a pair of  their Toddler Mittens to try with my one year old.

First of all, before we even put the mittens on, we fell in love with this company.  Cozy Tots was started by a Mom in Massachusetts who saw a need for warm mittens that would stay on her children's hands (read her story here).  Not only are the products made from fleece Made in Massachusetts, but (this is the best part) Cozy Tots has paired with MoJo Manufacturing in Massachusetts, a company that trains and employs single Moms in the USA to manufacture products giving these women benefits and child care!  Their slogan is "Helping The American Family Get Their MoJo back."  We LOVE, LOVE, LOVE this idea!!!

So, I was already rooting for these mittens and as soon as I actually tried the mittens on my 1 year old, I fell in love with them again!

First great thing about these mittens: they are made from super-soft, stretchy microfleece.  It's not the thin, cheap kind you can sometimes find on kid's clothing, but rather the thick, plush, high-quality kind.

Next great thing: the stay-on mittens cleverly have elastic at the wrist and then more elastic at the end of a longer sleeve.  Believe me they live up to their name...they stay on!

The design was perfect...easy to put on a child's hand because they are pliable and soft but once on they stay put.  The other thing I really appreciated was that the thumb portion of the mitten was appropriately sized for the child.  The pre-school size has a little bigger thumb area and a velcro finger pocket so fingers can come out to eat snacks, etc.  The toddler size has a small thumb pocket perfectly sized for a one year old's tiny hands (see above picture).  And from looking at the website, the infant size are very smartly thumbless.  Seriously, who wants to be trying to get an infants thumb into a mitten.  Bottom line is Cozy Tots has thought of everything in terms of making these mittens functional and easy to use, but oh so cute!

Last but not least because this could be the best part of the whole design, the mittens are ingeniously made with an extra layer of fleece sewn into the fingertips to keep little fingers extra warm.  The entire part of the mitten above the decorative stitching you see in my pictures is double layered.  What a fabulous idea!  On our walk, not only did the stay-on mittens keep my little one's fingers toasty warm but my heavily teething baby also enjoyed biting on the extra layer of fleece too.

The mittens come in cute colors with various contrasting colored stitching, which adds some extra detail.

We give Cozy Tot's Stay-On Mittens two (very warm) thumbs up!  We will most definitely be buying some extra pairs (because some always get lost as winter carries on) and look forward to trying their hats (they are also double layered with fleece).  We think they would make great gifts too.

Thanks Cozy Tots for sharing your fabulous Made in the USA product with us!

Nalgene

Portable water is big business and all the rage!  The environmentally-friendly notion of being able to re-use one container for sipping water during the day instead of purchasing and disposing of multiple plastic bottles each day is an idea we think is great...

That is why we love Nalgene bottles.  We use them, our spouses use them and our kids use them.  They are great to throw in the car so you can sip as you run errands, great to send with your kids to sports practices or school and great to pack with your lunch for work.  Best part is they are Made in the USA (you can read about the history of the company here)!  We also appreciate that they are made with FDA compliant colors and BPA free materials.

  They come in tons of fun colors and styles and we think they would make a great gift this holiday season.  They are affordable and there is something for everyone in their product collections.  Here are some of our favorites:

Please note, there are a few items that Nalgene imports from China: the tops on the on-the-go, on-the-fly and multidrink bottles as well as the stainless steel bottles.

You can find Nalgene bottles at many common retail stores (I bought mine at Target) or shop Nalgene's online store here.  Happy sipping!

Zipfy

Zipfy pronounced zip' fee

Now this looks like FUN!  "This is the easiest, safest, most exhilarating downhill sport ever!" (Zipfy's website) We have had an abundance of holiday toy magazines clogging up our mail lately and the Zipfy sleds keep showing up on the pages.  Clearly they are the hottest luge/sled right now!  And the coolest part is that they are manufactured in New York.  They are lightweight and they claim to be very safe since they are easy to stop and steer.  The Zipfy Classic comes in many incredibly vibrant colors that stand out in the snow.  It is recommended for ages 5 and up, and can hold an adult up to 250 lbs.  Wow, the whole family can enjoy!  Now the question is, who will have more fun: the kids or the adults?

Here are a few examples of the fabulous color choices:

To get your cool Zipfly, click here!  Have an exhilarating time!

32 Degrees Hats

It is downright blustery in the Midwest today.  A wet, windy chill is in the air reminding us that winter is just around the corner...ugh!  That means getting out all the full-blown winter garb...hats, boots, gloves, etc.  All these scattered pieces of clothing will soon take over front and back hallways everywhere. 

Well, here's a little good news to balance the cold weather...we found the cutest hats EVER made by a company called 32 Degrees.   They are soft, cozy and adorable!  The material is high-quality and some of them (including the one I have for my infant daughter) are adjustable in the back.  We love that it is a company started by a mom in her kitchen in Massachusetts and that she continues to be committed to manufacturing in America!  They make hats for kids but also a OSFM (one size fits most) size so adults can join in the fun too. 

Here is the one we bought but in aqua:

Here are some others we love:

You can shop their website here or look for a retailer here

Stay warm out there!!

Supergoop!

My husband and I just got back from the most beautiful vacation in the Turks and Caicos. We had the most wonderful and relaxing time.  Expecting #3 this winter means this will be the last trip like this in a looooong time (better save up that relaxing feeling)!  We were there for a wedding and it really was just a breathtaking island of beauty.  Here is the view from our room.

First thing I wanted to share with you all is that the hotel had Tervis Tumblers in all of the rooms.  Those are made in Florida- how cool is that?  And I wanted to share with you a new product (made in the USA) that I fell in love with while I was on vacation.  Supergoop!  The bride left in our welcome bags a a few packets of Supergoop! Sunscreen Wipes.

They are awesome!  I have never seen sunscreen in a wipe form until now.  They were perfect at the beach when you needed a little extra coverage!  And so easy to apply.  I think this will be a new necessity for my children next summer.  What I also love about this company is that their sunscreen is free of parabens, petrochemicals, fragrances, and phthalates.  They have a variety of products that are all made in the USA (with the exception of one- Save Face Serum). Here are a few of Supergoop!'s awesome products.

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To shop Supergoop! online, click here. To find a retailer near you, click here.

Keep your skin safe!!

Tailgating

College football season is upon us and we love it!  Of course we are partial to one particularly awesome team- The Wisconsin Badgers!

We grew up going to games with our family and tailgating in the parking lot ahead of time.  There is something special about the feeling of fall, brats on a grill, a nice cold beverage and a good football game. One of the essential tailgating items is a cooler!  One of the best coolers on the market are Igloo coolers!  These coolers are top quality and come in every size and color.  We have old ones and new ones- they seem to last forever!  And the best part about Igloo is that they are made in TX- that's right all of their products are American made!  Here are a few coolers we love.

If you would like to find a local retailer that carries Igloo coolers, click here. 

Enjoy a little college football this fall!  We hope your team does well, maybe not as well as the Badgers...