Beltway Bambinos

(re) discover Washington DC through the eyes of your children

Cancel the sitter: Hair and makeup at your doorstep

Time is money. As a stay-at-home mom, splurging to get a pedicure means having to pay a babysitter. Same goes for getting my hair cut or colored. It’s frustrating to have to double-pay — and the price tag can make it hard to justify such outings. Thanks to a friend who recommended I check out a local company for Beltway Bambinos readers, I found a solution! StyleMeBar provides on-demand and at-your-leisure professional hair and make-up services in the DC Metropolitan Area. And yes…right at your house. Services include: blowout, make-up, haircuts for children and adults, hair coloring and more. You conveniently make an appointment using their app and a stylist will come to your home or business and make you look amazing.

I had the pleasure of working with Shari. I was originally scheduled to get a blowout and my son was going to get a haircut. Well, my son had other plans, he got the stomach flu and we were forced to cancel date night and put off an extremely overdue haircut. Shari was understanding and flexible and we quickly rescheduled for an evening I had plans to celebrate my husbands birthday.

Shari communicated with me a few days before my appointment to verify we were still on and see if I had any questions as well as the day of. She arrived a few minutes early in a StyleMeBar shirt and badge with all of her gear in tow. She quickly setup on my dining room table and didn’t even blink an eye as she pushed Legos aside and stepped over baby dolls. We talked about what I’d like her to do and she got right to work.

I’m used to my hair drying naturally after taking 15 minutes to shower and look somewhat presentable for the day before rushing to pack lunchboxes, get breakfast ready and out the door on time. I wanted to make sure I wouldn’t look like I stepped out of a Glamour Shots shoot when Shari was finished. She suggested soft curls and a natural makeup look. Perfect!

An hour later I looked like I had just walked out of my hair salon but didn’t feel rushed to get home to relieve a babysitter. I loved the way Shari did my hair and make-up and also loved that I could sit in the comfort of my home while one child napped and the other watched a movie.

This is the perfect service for new parents who can’t leave the house, stay-at-home parents and even giving a gift certificate for a new parents to pamper themselves. Because who doesn’t love a good blow dry or getting their makeup done to go out to dinner?!

StyleMeBar can be found on Instagram, Facebook,  Twitter, their Blog and make sure to download their App on Apple or Android for accessible access to booking and managing an appointment.

Pley works like Netflix for children’s toys (not just LEGOS)

We’re all familiar with the original Netflix model; select DVDs to be delivered to your house, watch them, mail them back; repeat. You get the value out of the video and then return…sound like something you might need for the toys overtaking your living space? Pley is your answer —  working just like Netflix but for toys. And if you have already heard of Pley and even tried it by renting LEGOS, know they have extended their model and now rent over 500 toys.

Some details: The company cleans and sanitizes each toy after every use using eco-friendly and kid-friendly solutions. They use commercial grade high temperature washers to clean the toys thoroughly inside and out. If your child is interested in keeping a particular set, they offer the option to buy it. They don’t charge for missing pieces or normal wear and understand that little pieces can get missing. Toys were picked to withstand less delicate hands.

When you sign up, you can create a pleylist that includes all your favorite toys selected by age and theme. Before each toy ships, you can pick the one you would like to receive next. Renting with Pley allows customers to save an average $800/year on all these great toys.

Get started and Rent the coolest toys

They have 2 subscription offers:
$9.99/month allows you to get 1 toy per month
$19.99/month allows you to get unlimited toys per month

Just a few popular brands they carry:
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Rent Disney Frozen LEGO® Sets

Little Loving Hands – Kids Crafts For a Cause

Do your kids love to make crafts? Do they get excited to receive mail? Are you teaching them the importance of caring for others and giving back to those in need? If so, we found a really awesome product: Little Loving Hands. Every month, the people at Little Loving Hands send a new craft, with all the materials and inspiration for kids to create, learn, and donate to a different worthy cause direct to your doorstep. We love this!

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If this sounds as fun to you as it did to us, here’s a chance to try it at a discount.

Use code bambinos to receive a 5% discount when you sign up.

You can purchase a single box, a reoccurring monthly subscription or choose a 6 or 12 month subscription. Have fun while making memories with your child creating meaningful art that will put a smile on someones face. Your child will come to appreciate others and become excited to create things knowing it’s for someone who will really appreciate it.

Little Loving Hands’ mission is to provide a fun and educational method for parents and caretakers to engage children in learning about the importance of being kind and giving back to others. Within each kit, they provide the materials for the craft project as well as the documents and other fun items to reinforce what the children are working on and how they are helping others. More in the video below…

To see inspiring pictures, stories and additional information check out Little Loving Hands Facebook page.

logo design courtesy of New Leaf Design