Here comes baby!!

When it comes to annoucing that our bundle of joy has arrived what better way to do that then with an annoucment made by Polka Dot Bumblebee. Whether you need to annouce the arrival of a boy, a girl, multiples, adoption or birthdays, Polka Dot Bumblebee has what you need with over 500 designs to choose from as well as the option to custom design. I interviewed Veronica on how she got started with her business.

" I started a baby gift business 7 years ago which focused on expectant parents. I loved being part of welcoming a new baby into the world so much. Long before I become a mommy, I knew that I wanted to create a successful home business that
would allow me to be home with my baby, contribute to my family financially and
flex my creative muscles.I set to work on creating my own ultimate dream job,
designing custom photo cards and personalized stationery.When I welcomed my
beautiful baby girl to the world, I was confident that I had built the foundation for a business that would fulfill my two ultimate goals. Never missing a moment or a milestone with my daughter and pursuing my passion - being an entrepreneur. Thousands of designs and happy customers later, I am excited with every new order to work with my clients to create a keepsake "work of heart". My business changes every single day and I'm eagerly looking forward to what is on the
horizon."

What all does Polka Dot Bumblebee have to offer? Photo birth announcements, photo save the dates, photo invitations, cardstock invites and announcements, custom candy bar wrappers, play date cards, ecards and being finished up right now is a personalized stationery line! So how is Polka Dot Bumblebee different from other boutiques?

"My attention to detail, one on one service, hundreds of original designs
and exellent customer service. Above and beyond, my prices set me apart
because they are so affordable."

Here is my favorite design from the new stationary line! I think it matches great with my business, don't you? Check out all the new designs and find your favorite. You won't be disappointed by the colors, the details and the quality! Check out the top 3 sellers: Our photo birth announcements are our best sellers, along with our holiday photo cards and birthday invitations. Our ecards and custom candy bar wrappers are really popular too!

What I found to be so rocking about this mommy owned site was that fact that it is GREEN FRIENDLY!! Just a bit from their site so you know how environmentally friendly this company and product is, just check this out: We use recycled office products and limit packaging materials. In addition, we work with a printer that uses wind powered electricity to generate power. We also participate in a monthly tree planting initiative. We are proud to be a member of the Co2Stats Project that makes our website environmentally friendly. CO2Stats monitors how much electricity is being used to power this site and you as you browse it, and then it "offsets" the emissions by investing in renewable energy projects that help to counteract global warming. We are continually reminded of our favorite Native American proverb, "We do not inherit the earth from our ancestors, we borrow it from our children."

Veronica has been generous enough to offer an awesome giveaway for all our Sweet Pea readers!! Right now you can head over to Polka Dot Bumblebee check out all the many, many rocking designs, come back here and leave a comment (click on the pink comment link below) about your favorite one! A winner will be selected randomly on Wednesday April 9th and notified by email (please leave a valid email address) to win 50 4 x 6 custom photo cards-choose from one of the 500 original designs or create a custom design!

The fun doesn't stop there! You are all offered a great discount with your purchase: 5 free photo cards with an order over 50 and 10 free cards on orders over 100. Offer expires October 1, 2008. Plus check out the Polka Dot Bumblebee Buzz Blog for more contests and updates!

A Bit more about the owner and business: I've been in business 7 + years. What started out as a baby gift service for expectant parents naturally grew into what I'm doing now! Hobbies include:Scrapbooking, photography, preserving memories,reading and anything having to do with my baby bee!

Contest hopping in the blogsphere

CONTESTS, CONTESTS, CONTESTS!!

Are you in the mood for some contest hopping this weekend? There are many great contests going on out there in the wonderful blogsphere. So where should we head to first?



Little Piddles Blog is offering a Free tutu by BeJeweled ($52 value excludes Satin and Lavender Blossom) Contets ends 4/4/08 at 11:59 EST. Stop over to Little Piddle and check it out and get entered today!
Coupon Code: TUTU for 15% off all purchases till 4/13/08



Over at Silpada Designs you can win a pair of Silpada earrings in April. Sterling Silver squares showcase these handcrafted Peridot drop Earrings...on French wires. Retail Value: $26.00. The winner will be chosen on April 10th. In order to enter you must send an email to engelbart2002@yahoo.com.

Children FREE Fun Room

Not only are their contests for mommy to win but we have a fun coloring contest for the kids to enter as well! Coloring Page Contest! 3/25-4/30. Many Blessings' children will judge the pictures to place up online. There will be two winners. Each winner will have their pictures placed online for others to color. Visit the website for more details and to enter!

Check out the Noah's Ark Animal workshop! Your kids will love this place! You can get a FREE $5 Gift Cards to Noah's Ark Animal Workshop! The gift card allows you to save $5 on any ready to stuff animal. The animals are shipped directly to your door with everything needed to stuff and have a great time.There is also a monthly drawing for all Birthday Club kids. It's free to join!

My Thirty-One (www.mythirtyone.com/1818) is having a raffle if someone places an order by Sunday March 30th. They will be entered to win: Medium Chic Purse (12x9x3) Deco dots valued at $23.50! Check out the picture above. Also the March special is if you purchase a bucket bag you can get a wristlet for $1.00. Savings of $11.00!!

Sew Cute is giving away $5 to their website visitors! Simply visit their website & register at http://www.sew-cute.ca/create_account.php - be sure to enter "Sweet Pea Cakes" when asked for a referral. Then check your email to instantly receive $5 in Sew Cute cash!

Home Ec 101 will be launching a Zosephine diaper bag give away on Monday, March 31st. It's a $116 value, so you will want to make sure you head over right away Monday morning to check this out. Entrants will simply need to comment and link back from their blog, if they have one.

If you have a great contest going on at your site or blog, feel free to post a comment with the link so we can all head over and visit! If you would like to be featured in future contest posts email me at sweetpeacakesetc (at) yahoo (dot) com. Thanks! Have a fantastic weekend!! ~Dawn

Wordless Wednesday

The Calm Before the Storm

Tackle it Tuesday- TAXES!

Well my Tackle it Tuesday finds me in the middle of a tackle! Since I started my business, I have been keeping track of client orders, giveaways, discounts, receipts and everything else. Right up until the holiday season! Then as 2008 started I knew I would need to sit down and sort through the receipts, finishing my accounting books, take some inventory, balance accounts and of course prepare my taxes.

Here we are March 25th and I have not finished my taxes. I normally have them done by now and have already received (and spent) my return. So that is what I will be doing today, tomorrow, the next day.... sorting and organzing and finishing up my taxes. I want them mailed before the 16th. I also want to get things organized for 2008. Wish we luck with this tackle! Thanks to the ladies of 5 minutes of moms for keeping me on the ball with my tackles! I will think about posting some pictures of my receipts and paperwork. I don't want anyone to be frightened by the overwhelming stack of paper!!

Good luck with your tackle. If you stop by, leave a comment and say hello so that I may visit your blog as well. Stay awhile and visit some of the contests and reviews going on here.

Have a great day!

Spring is here! Time to dazzle your princess!

Spring time reminds me of warm weather, light rain showers, flowers and sunshine. Time to pull out the dresses, purses and head outside. So, what better way to celebrate Spring then to dress up your little princess in flowers? Check out Munchie Mallow- home of the flower boutique headbands, flower knit hats, adorable clippies, and new sequins headbands. Take a peek at how cute these accessories are:

When I interviewed Jessica, owner of Munchie Mallow, I asked her about getting started with this business and her creative business name.

"Munchie Mallow began when I was trying to find some cute headbands for my daughter... I began creating the boutique flower headbands to coordinate with her outfits. She got compliments on them everywhere we went. A few people mentioned to me that I should start selling them, & the rest is history!



Now if you're probably wondering how we came up with the name Munchie Mallow. Well, it is one of the many nicknames we have for our daughter. We started out calling her Munchkin, & that ended up being shortened to Munchie. One of my favorite treats are marshmallows, & my daughter's little arms & thighs reminded me of the Stay-Puft Marshmallow Man. So we ended up combining the two & calling her Munchie Mallow! Funny, I know! But quite catchy don't you think?"

Both of my daughters have Munchie Mallow hair accessories. Check out how adorable they look in the hats and headbands! They are so easy to put on, match any outfit and make for a hip spring look. If I could get away with wearing one of the knit hats with a jean skirt and tank top, I would!! I LOVE them!

So how is Munchie Mallow so unique? Munchie Mallow specializes in flower hair accessories for little girls. We can guarantee that we have the widest & cutest selection of flower hair accessories out there! Munchie Mallow offers a wonderful variety of flower headbands, hair clippies, hats/beanies, tiara headbands, hand beaded Swarovski Crystal Heart necklaces, boutique graphic design services & more.

My new favorite thing is the sequin headbands. My fav is the Pink Rose Sequin Headband. This would look great on any girl with her cute spring skirts and tops, or a pink tank and jean skirt. Look at all the detail on the headband! It comes in a variety of colors and flowers, such as: Apricot Dahlia Sequin Headband, Sequin Headband- 1 inch, Sequin Headband- 2 inch, White Rose on Blue Sequin Headband, and Yellow Daisy Sequin Headband. I think I will be getting one in every color.

The top 3 sellers at Munchie Mallow (which means get them while their hot and before they are GONE) are:

-Pink Cocoa Knit Hat

-Bright Pink Spider Daisy Headband

-Mother & Daughter Rose Hair Clips

So head over to Munchie Mallow, check out your favorite things, and come back here to leave us a comment about it. Right now, Jessica is offering all our Sweet Pea Readers a 15% discount on your shopping spree. Click here to get the discount: http://munchiemallow.com/?code=Sweet

Current Giveaway with Munchie Mallow:

Munchie Mallow will be giving away one of our flower crochet beanies to three lucky shoppers. All you have to do is purchase a minimum of $15.00 worth of items & we will include a beanie in with your order. Also, be sure to leave a comment when you pay for you item(s), & let us know where you heard about our giveaway.We will choose the beanie for you. Please note that our beanies fit infants from 0-12 months, & may fit up to 18 months, depending on the size of your childs head.

Oh did I mention the shipping over at Munchie Mallow??? Get this- it's a flat rate of $5.95 regardless of how many items you purchase! So shop til you drop and know that you won't pay more that $5.95! And it's FREE with orders over $50. Even more reason to check out this great WAHM.

Munchie Mallow has been in business since July 2006.

A bit about the owner:
My fiance & I have a 2.5 year old daughter together. We are actually trying for baby #2. We also have three dogs & two cats. Some favorite interests: Graphic design, photography, digital scrapbooking, & shopping!

Aloha Friday- my blog

On Island Life this week on Aloha Friday the question is describe your blog in one sentence...

so here we go....

A WAHM mommy, business women giving away freebies, with enriched mommy news!

LOL ok it was a bit harder than I thought. So now it's your turn to go to Aloha Friday and join in the fun. But before you go here is a question to answer here. Make sure to sign Mr. Linky so that you can visit other blogs and make new friends this Friday!!

What are you doing for Easter weekend?

Saturday night we will be dying Easter eggs! Such fun. Last year Lily was only a few months old so she didn't get to really enjoy it! But this year Kaleigh is excited that Lily will be able to help! We will be having brunch at Grandma's this Sunday a long with an Easter Egg Hunt! Then it's off to church, family lunch, and off to Grandpa's for more Easter fun! Here's some pics from last year:

It's in the bag!

Have you ever walked down the street, with your new purse on your arm, excited to show it off? Only to turn the corner and see another lady walking along with the same purse??? I know I like to have unique accessories with my wardrobe, and that's why Mimsi Bags is the place to stop and get your own bag. Mimis Bags offers you the chance to design your perfect bag. Sound intriguing? It is. I had to get more details on these products and the scoop behind it. I asked the creative mind behind the scene, Jennifer, more about her business. "I started Mimsi Bags after I made a few bags for myself, and people were asking where I got them. I was making hot pads and oven mitts at that time, and I found that I enjoyed making bags much more!" So what do you have to offer? "Bags! I make handbags, shoulder bags, tote bags, grocery bags, kids bags, messenger bags... lots and lots of bags. Our bags are custom designed for each customer. You pick the style, fabric, pockets, etc, and we create your perfect bag! "

Check out a few of these cute designs:

"Our bags are custom made when you order them. If we don't have a style that you want, we are happy to help you create a unique bag just how you want it." What better way to shop? So what are the top 3 sellers at Mimsi-Bags? Toshi Grocery Tote, Morgan Handbag, and Charlotte Tote Bag. So what are you waiting for start shopping! Head over and see what is your favorite bag and come back here and leave a comment! Mimsi-Bags have recently added a Featured Bag of the Month to their site- and run contests with that every few months. For April they will be giving away a $25 gift card to one lucky customer to go with their Earth Day promotion of a grocery bag set.

Mimsi Bags has been in business since February 2005.

A bit about the owner:

I have a wonderful husband and 2 beautiful little girls... and a grouchy cat. My girls are a huge inspiration for me! They are the reason that I started a business - so I would have the flexibility to be here for them when they need me. My youngest loves to tell people that when she grows up she will BE Mimsi Bags! My husband is a wonderful support forme - he puts up with me bouncing ideas off of him regularly, and is a huge source of marketing ideas. I love to read! Music is a huge part of my life too- I always have something playing in the background. I love to get outside and enjoy the beauty of God's creation - hiking, camping, and just sitting in the forest or on the beach soaking in the sights, sounds and smells.

Wordless Wednesday

Sisterly Love

Mommy's choice stories

Here are our mommy stories of the week:

Hi, I'm Julinda Stout and this is my journey for a second child. It was the hardest time in my life. My first child came unexpected and we did everything we could to not have number two. I wanted my children spaced at two years apart. When my son was 16 months old we decided to go for it. I went off of the patch only to not concieve. I went to the doctor and asked many questions. I was told not to worry because I am young and had had a successful pregnancy. After two years I demanded to find ou twhat was going on just to be brushed off. I changed doctors and was really pushy to find out why. She suspected PCOS. Polycystic Ovarian syndrome. I was devasted. My husband and I decided that our onlyoption would be to adopt. We tried saving but life happens. My husband broke his ankle and my son was hit by the lawn mower(he is fine, just two scars, but it cost me $12,000). We made a realistic goal of one year. I had just started a wonderful job and wanted to get it under control. I told my husband to toss everything out for a baby. Believe me I never expected to find out that I was pregnant ONE week later. I had been trying for nearly five years. I had a beautiful baby girl only 3 months ago. I know that the worst thing to hear during all of this was It will happen when it is supposed to. I still hate hearing it as we look to having #3. I don't want another 5 year wait. The doctor said that it is possible to have to wait that long again. If you are going through this, know that I do understand and feel for you. It was the worst feeling in the world to know that all I wanted was a baby and somewhere in the world was one being put in a garbage can because the mother didn't want it. Good luck in your journey.

Go To http://www.ascentedlife.scent-team.com/ and enter to win a free candle every single week!

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When my kids were younger, my son had a pot bellied pig for a pet.
Not surprisingly, my kids named him Wilbur. Wilbur was a great pet. The
best you could ask for. He followed them around the yard, he was with
them where ever they went, he even played a game with them. They hid
under our plastic kiddy pool and he found them by flipping over the pool.
One afternoon, I am in the back yard hanging laundry. Not a big feat
or anything unusual. I saw the pig rolling his "pig carrier" around the yard.
My 3 year old daughter was laughing her head off. It was a cute picture.
It was one of the "aaaaaaaaaaaaawwwwwww......." moments. Until I
noticed my son was not with her. I ran in the house to see if he went
inside.I thought this was unlikely because he didn't leave his sister alone.
I was almost frantic by the time I went back outside. I asked my daughter,
"Where is your brother?" All I got was the famous, I don't know.I called for
him and I heard him but he sounded so far away. I called for him again but
I could not figure out where his voice was coming from. I finally figured out it
was the "pig carrier" yelling to me. I ran over and opened the door, which
somehow had gotten latched. I was laughing so hard. Wilbur was playing
"the pool game". No harm done, no one was hurt, except for my stomach
from laughing so hard.

Lori Paup
http://loripaup.scent-team.com/
http://mysticmountain.weebly.com/

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Showing Off Is not Always Bad

My brother once told me that we could find out the truth not only from the bible but also from our environment, the people, the nature around us. I think it's true.This morning, I got a chance to meet an old friend at the park. While we were sitting on a bench, watching our kids playing the sand, she started to tell me to look at her 2-year-old daughter and talked about how wonderful she was, how active she was, how cute was her look, how funny she was, having her bag pack around pretending like going to school, how this and that. And then she showed off her video camera,the latest release from a famous brand and told me how expensive it was and it was the same with her camera digital. Having myself accustomed to not bragging about whatever I have, at first I thought she was pretty boastful because I wouldn't dare to do the same no matter how shiny my belonging is. But I was also intrigued by that and I was wondering how could she was so proud about her daughter that I could see the confidence in my friend's eye. How could she had such a positive view on her while thru my eyes what I usually saw was how timid my son was, his bothering whining, his picky-eatinghabit, and a myriad of other negatives. And I can feel it, when somebody compliment on my son, I always reply yes..., but he's...this negative, not always this positive..and on and on.Well, like I said in the title, showing off is not always bad. Atleast not in this case. I was quite distracted by this thought and would like to give a try to change my view of my family. I'd like to see differently with positive eyeglasses for the things close by,above all is my family.
Thresa Sulistio
http://www.esthersnc.com/

Tackle it Tuesday

So today I decided to tackle my craft room and the dining room which has turned into the sewing room. The past two weeks I have gotten slammed with orders, and had to prepare for a baby fair too. The rooms show the tornado that came through them. So here is the before:

Now who can work under these conditions?? Not me. I finally decided two weeks of running around crazy was enough. It was time to get back to being organized and make the room functional so I can complete the orders for this week. So after hours and I mean hours of sorting ribbon, paper, accessories, fabric, cakes, toppings, and everything else, the room finally came together. I am not fully done with the dining room since I have more cakes to put together and sewing together. But I have to say it is much better than it was. And the craft room looks gooooodddd! What do you think???

A new chic boutique for mother and child

I love shopping online for my little girls. Anytime I come across a fantastic boutique filled with goodies for babies, children and the rest of the family I have to share it! Enter Luca Bleu Boutique. This chic boutique for mother and child is filled with wonderful gifts that are not at all those other boutiques, like: B-buckles which are buckles allowing mom to wear her favorite jeans while pregnant, The Papa Pillow, Adorable outwear for babies and children, and so much more that you need to check out.

I got a chance to interview Rachel, the owner of Luca Bleu. I asked her about the products she has to offer and here is what she had to say, "Luca Bleu truly offers a “handpicked selection” of the finest products available for moms, babies, and children. We offer clothing, accessories, baby essentials, decor, furniture, bedding, and gifts. We try to provide items that other boutiques do not and constantly search trade shows, blogs, magazines, and other avenues to find products before they become well-known. You’ll notice I love color – so most of the clothing, accessories, bedding etc…is full of fun, and whimsicle patterns and color selections."

My favorite things are the leg warmers! I am ordering a pair for my 15 month old daughter to wear along with her onesies and skirts. It is still chilly in Colorado and these will make a great addition to her wardrobe!

Curious on what the top sellers are that are flying off Luca Bleu's shelves? Here are the top 3:

1) Right now the Topless Undershirts from Blush are selling like crazy! They are great for pregnant women and really help to extend the wear of your pre-pregnancy clothing. (They have prevented me from buying maternity shirts too early).

2) Customized Bed Crowns: These are great especially for little girls rooms for over the crib, bed, window, or for a “reading corner” in the room. We offer a wide selection of colors, paint finishes and fabrics to match any nursery or bedroom.

3) Bla-Bla backpacks for kids have been big sellers lately. The monkey and frog have been the most popular!

Next on my list is the cute Monkey backpack for my older daughter, one of the best sellers! I have to get this since she will love it! Isn't it soooo cute?? I can see why it's in the top 3!

I asked Rachel how she got started with this wonderful business. "Over the past year, many of my friends had children and I was always searching for the perfect and “most unique” baby gift. Many of these friends live out of state, so I often times turned to the online boutiques. My main frustration with shopping online was that many of the baby boutique sites were extremely slow and would freeze up in the middle of my purchase. I also usually ended up buying from several sites due to product selections…so I ended up paying way too much for shipping. It’s nice to be able to offer customers a one-stop shop – but still be selective in the items we carry.

The most important reason I started Luca Bleu is because I knew we would be starting a family. Like most moms out there I would love to work from home and raise my children...and Luca Bleu is my way to eventually do this. I also wanted to get all of the nitty gritty business start-up work out of the way before we started trying to get pregnant!"

So what is so unique about this online boutique that makes you want to head over and shop right now, well...

1. WEBSITE: Our website is fast and extremely easy to navigate. Customers won’t wait minutes for pages or images to load – and your screen will not freeze up during the checkout process!
2. PRODUCTS: Luca Bleu offers colorful, unique, and often hand-made items for babies, mothers, and children. We aim to provide customers with items from every product category while still being picky in our product selections.
3. CUSTOMER SERVICE!!! When you are buying anything – especially from a boutique – you should expect only the best customer service. All items are hand-wrapped in beautiful tissue paper with a matching ribbon and hand-written thank you note. I aim to ship out items the same day or very next day after they are ordered and follow up with customers to make sure they love their purchase. We have a flexible return/exchange policy and are really here to serve our customers.
4. PRICES: Things don’t have to be expensive to be great! We offer a wide selection of products in all price ranges – so there is really something for everyone.

I absolutely agree and I will add an update when my products arrive! So here is the exciting news!!! Rachel is offering EVERYONE the chance to win a $25 gift voucher to Luca Bleu! All you have to do is head over to Luca Bleu, take a look around, come back here and leave a comment (click on comment link below in pink) and mention what your favorite product was. All entries will be entered into random.org and a winner will be notified by email. (make sure to add sweetpeacakesetc@yahoo.com to your address book so the email doesn't go to your spam)

Click here to head over!**NOTE contest has been extended. Will end March 31st. Winner will be annouced April 1st. Oh and WAIT- it doesn't end there! Here's what else you get: All customers who sign up for the Luca Bleu mailing list during the month of March will receive a special promo code for FREE SHIPPING all year at Luca Bleu. You can sign up at: http://www.lucableu.com/signup.cfm

Luca Bleu opened its “virtual doors” in October of 2007.

A little about the owner:

My husband and I met in high school and dated for 9 years before getting married in May of 2004. Our first “baby” was our Golden Retriever, Payton. However, we have been blessed with pregnancy and are expecting our first little boy on August 10th of this year! This is the first grandbaby for our parents – so you can imagine the excitement right now.

My husband and I LOVE to be outdoors. Living in Nebraska, we definitely take advantage of every nice day during the Spring, Summer & Fall. We both really enjoy running and have completed one marathon and a few half-marathons. I also enjoy decorating, shopping, reading, but most importantly just spending time with family and friends. This pregnancy has brought our family very close together and we are all so excited to meet our son!