Congratulations to our winner, commenter #2 – Melanie!

It’s the digital age and if you don’t own a digital camera, well, your excuse better be that you’re a photographer and you still love going into the dark room.

With the price of digital cameras coming down all of the time, you probably do have one.  If you’re anything like me, you take zillions of pictures and they sit on your computer’s hard drive, a disc or an external drive, collecting electronic dust. (Huh?)

A project has been on my mind for a while to compile a bunch of my photos from over the years and set them out for all to see, especially me, the one who took them!  Unfortunately, a broken digital frame isn’t helping much.

I will soon be able to proudly display my beautiful photos of my girls, scenery, etc. on this ideal digital photo frame.  When the friends and family come over and catch a glimpse of my photos, I can easily print them out with Epson’s PictureMate.

Don’t you think your mother would love to be able to do the same?

Well, here is your chance to treat her or yourself orrrrr….husbands, boyfriends, partners, brothers, daughters, sons (are ya pickin’ up what I’m puttin’ down here?) – treat that lovely lady otherwise known as a “mama” to this fabulous compact photo printer and attached digital photo frame.

You can enter to win Epson’s PictureMate Show (pictured above, MSRP $299.99) right here, right now.

I will choose a winner from the comment section of this post (using Random.org’s number generator) on Thursday, May 6th.  You have until midnight PST (you must be located in the continental US) to enter.  Wouldn’t this make an excellent Mother’s Day surprise?!

Here are all of the ways you can enter (pay close attention so you can maximize your chances at winning).

You can do any or all of these things.  That means, you have 1, 2, 3 chances to enter:

Entry chance option 1:

You can leave a comment on this post letting us know how you’re planning to spend your Mother’s Day.  Would you surprise the mama in your life with this printer/frame?  We’d love to know!

Entry chance option 2:

Tweet about this giveaway.  Then, come back here and leave a comment with the link to your Tweet and your Twitter username.  I’ll make this part easy, you can copy and paste the following text for your Tweet (it fits, I checked):

I’m trying to win an @EpsonAmerica photo printer-digital frame for my mom (or myself) @parentsphere : http://bit.ly/c7t87M

Entry chance option 3:

Follow Epson on Twitter.  Come back and leave a comment letting us know you and Epson are Twitter buddies.

*If you plan on taking advantage of all three chances to win, make sure each of your comments are separate.  Don’t post all of your chances in one comment. (Defeats the purpose of having three chances to win, right?)

You can do everything at once or maybe, s p r e a d out your chances a bit and stop back three different days for each of the above entry chances.  ‘Sup to you.  I’m just sayin’

Good luck!

I’ll be back next week to talk about (and show) how I’m using my Epson PictureMate Show.

In case you weren’t aware, there’s a product out there called Wonder Bumpers from a company named Go Mama Go Designs.

This is not your typical crib bumper.  Wonder Bumpers are individual, padded pieces of material that attach to each rung of the crib.  They can be purchased in sets of 24 or 38 (MSRP $99-$159) or a 2 pack for around $10.

Seems like a safe option (as opposed to a traditional bumper pad) and there are many designs to choose from.

I was able to take a first-hand look and feel of the Wonder Bumpers and was pretty impressed with the quality.

I haven’t used them on our crib, as I don’t have a full set but if you have used them, I would love to hear your thoughts!

Now, since this is our second child in four years, we have *most* of our list checked off.  This includes a crib mattress.  However, if this baby was our first child and knowing what we know now about the benefits of organic materials, we would highly consider purchasing an organic mattress and bedding.  In fact, we just purchased our own organic bed and it’s been quite lovely so far.

London-based company, The Natural Mat Company is one that you can feel confident turning to when making the decision on a mattress and bedding to purchase for your new little sprout (or even the older sprout).  Pictured above is the Coco Mat (filling), which we received a sample of.  We are able to look at and feel the Organic Coir center of the mattress and the Lambswool, which is wrapped around the coir (anti-dust mite).  Then, there is the pure cotton mattress cover.  The cover has a naturally soft feel and I imagine if I were laying on this mattress, I would be in heaven.

This particular crib mattress runs in the mid $300′s, depending on where you choose to purchase it.  It, along with many of the other Natural Mat mattresses can be found at select retail locations around the US and at online retailers.

You can also shop at Goore’s online store and enter code psnm to receive a 10% discount on any Natural Mat order.

If you’re not in the market for a new crib mattress, like us, at least be sure to check out Natural Mat’s bedding.  I will most likely purchase their mattress protector and sheet set for our current mattress.  Do yourself a favor and if you live near one of the retail locations, stop by and feel the mattresses for yourself.  There is an obvious difference.

With a three year old who is becoming more aware of her surroundings and not a big fan of her pitch-black room at night, GloMate has quickly become a favorite.

GloMate is made from BPA-free plastic and uses LED lighting, which is heat-free.  It is rechargeable and will illuminate for up to eight hours after charging.  There are several colors that you can choose from, by pressing a small button on the bottom and there is also an option to cycle through all of the colors.

Yeah, we definitely dig the TykeLight GloMate and highly recommend it.

You can get GloMate from Amazon.com:

I don’t know about you, but I wouldn’t mind being seen at the pool hanging out with these guys.  These are the most fashionable, trendy ducks I have ever laid eyes on and there are more where they came from.

At Designroom, you will find a slew of BUD luxury ducks. They are phthalate free and US and CE approved. You’re crazy if you think these are just fun for the kids…surprise someone with a luxury duck for their birthday or give one as a house-warming gift. Luxury ducks are $6.99 a pop.

I’m also digging this sweet swim ring in Daydream by BUD.   I’ll be rockin’ this swim ring in the north woods in a few weeks.

I may have to splurge and get the matching BUD beach ball. It would be fun hitting this 36″ inflatable ball around in the lake.

I could talk and talk about the BUD products by Designroom but I really don’t want to delay you from heading over to their website and browsing around the rest of the cool products there.

Check out all of the fab new summertime products while you’re there.

My daughter is two and a half and loves to be where all of the action is. Cue The Learning Tower. I couldn’t ask for a more sturdy, multi-use stool in our home for her age. We have our Learning Tower up against our breakfast bar/kitchen island. She climbs up to have breakfast in the morning, among other things like playing with play dough or “bathing” her toys in the sink. It’s a Godsend, I’ll tell you. Instead of her milling around under us, she props herself up in her “tower” (as she calls it) and watches/interacts from our level.

Some of the fantastic features of this piece of furniture are the adjustable (no tools needed) notches to raise and lower the floor, depending upon your child’s height/age. The Learning Tower is available in three different stains; dark cherry, ebony and soft white. It is also available in a natural finish (lead-free).

An added plus is the Playhouse Kit. We’ve put on some pretty fabulous puppet shows using the roof and curtains. The Playhouse Kit is sold separately.

If you need to know anything else about The Learning Tower, head over to the manufacturer’s website, little Partners. There you can view the numerous awards that have been given and find a list of retailers.

*The Learning Tower is available for the lowest price ($179.99) at Kiddin’ Around. You can also purchase it together with the Playhouse Kit there.

Rosenberry Rooms has an insanely large collection of, well, everything.  From stylish nursery room themes, bedding, to adorable footstools and step stools (because I’m in the market for one), wall art and so on and so on.  All right up my boutique-loving alley.

They also have a gift registry. If you’re tired of the boring, same old, same old baby shower registry items, consider registering at Rosenberry Rooms or tell your expectant friends/family about this incredible boutique. What a fun and refreshing way for your guest to shop for you! I kind of want to set one up, just because.

I don’t think they’re kidding when they say they have the largest selection of designer diaper bags.  They have a very fine collection of diaper bags that will have everyone drooling and asking where you bought that fabulous bag! It might only take something as simple as a fashionable diaper bag to get me thinking “baby” again.

This is the Baby Pink Corduroy Laminated Buckle Diaper Bag by Kalencom.  I really like this bag, ladies.  It’s easy to keep clean, there is a removable, insulated bottle bag, removable diaper pouch and a changing pad.

The inside of this bag is a gorgeous chocolate brown color.  Also, there is P-L-E-N-T-Y of room. The bag retails for about $70 and is available at Rosenberry Rooms for purchase.  This would make a fab gift for a mom-to-be!

I know that all you parents are going to teach your little ones about financial responsibility because we all know that there is nothing cooler than saving money. If so, your kid needs a piggy bank and what better place to get an awesome designer piggy bank than from Blue Eye Boy.

Is any of your furniture or even your stereo accessories made of white plastic? Then why would you want your iPod speakers to be? Enter the beautiful new Vers 2x iPod speakers that are enclosed in a cherry veneer cabinet. The dual port design provides deep bass and is powered by two 3″ 15 watt speakers. Other features include a killer 14 function remote control with 25’ range and a stereo input so that you can hook your new Zune up as well. Perfect for blasting Dan Zanes or the new Radiohead album throughout your house.

One item in particular that we fell in love with from her shop is this Bella Tunno Play Smock in the “Hot Stuff” style. If your toddler is as energetic and creative as mine, this is a must-have. I have been searching for a smock like this for the majority of the summer. Something waterproof and big enough to cover her entire front-side, yet not constricting. The Bella Tunno Play Smock is just that. The fact that it is super fashionable is a plus too.

The Polkadot Platypus has such a large variety of maternity, kids and baby items to pick from, it’s hard to tear yourself away to finish that tuna melt you were just in the middle of making (seriously).

Take a look at some of the unique gifts that you can purchase from the shop, all for under $25!