Uses for Lansinoh lanolin...

If you're a breast feeding mom, or have ever nursed your baby, then you probably have heard of or used Lansinoh lanolin ointment. It's a think vaseline type cream that you apply to your sore nipples when breastfeeding. It was a life saver for me when I started nursing my first baby, but did not need it for my second or third baby.

I was cleaning out my baby items the other day and came across a new tube of it that I had bought before having Mia. It doesn't expire and I hate to just throw things away so I researched what lanolin is used for. I was shocked at how many different things I could use it for! I am excited to try some of them!

The first and best use I found for it was to put it on cracked or chapped skin! Two of our kids have really dry spots on their faces that crack, dry up and get really sore. I cannot wait to try it on their dry spots and see if it helps!

Here are a few different uses I found... so, if you have any lanolin laying around, give one of these ideas a try!


1. Be used as lip balm.

2. Treat diaper rash.

3. Help heal minor cuts, burns and skin abrasions.

4. Soothe itchy stretch marks.

5. Replenish the lanolin in wool diaper covers and wool nursing pads.

6. Heal cracked, dry winter cuticles or wind- and cold-chapped cheeks.

7. Treat eczema.

8. Un-stick a stuck zipper.

9. Remove a too-tight ring from fingers swollen from pregnancy.

10. Moisturize dry and itchy skin on elbows, knees and heels.

11. Some sailors use lanolin to create a slippery surface on their propellers and stern gear to which barnacles cannot adhere. The water-repellent properties make it valuable as a lubricant grease where corrosion would otherwise be a problem.

12. Lanolin is often used by baseball players to soften and break in their baseball gloves (shaving cream that contains lanolin is popularly used for this).

13. Anhydrous lanolin is also used as a lubricant for brass instrument tuning slides.


14. Lanolin can also be restored to woolen garments to make them waterproof, such as for cloth diaper covers.

(I found all of this info at wikipedia.org and blisstree.com.)

Uh oh!

I'm in trouble! Big trouble! My son Jack, who is 8 months old, is starting to pull himself up onto toys, furniture and people. Just last night Tom came into the bedroom to tell me that Jack had pulled himself up onto the kid's wooden table and was standing by himself! I was excited and sad all at the same time!

 I have a few friends with children the same age and they are much more advanced than Jack, but I am in NO hurry for him to be walking! He is trouble enough already! He really is a good boy, but I don't need the added hassle of chasing him around everywhere! 

Here he is pulling himself up on his driving car and seems pretty pleased with himself!

In this picture he was actually growling, grunting and giggling all at the same time! He is ALL boy! :0)

Look out Bailee and Mia... Jack will be chasing you in no time!!!!

A few tidbits from my day...

Hello everyone! Long time, no blog! :0)  


I love the holidays, but I get so out of my normal routine! I've basically ignored all of my blogs, my Facebook friends, and I've only answered important e-mails. I've done minimal housework and spent all of my energy and time focusing on my family and friends. That's what the holidays are all about anyways, right? 


Tom also has had some time off from work, so I haven't kept up on my normal daily things, but we have spent all of my time "being" a family. Not just getting through the daily grind, but actually sitting down and doing things together. It's been WONDERFUL! 


I'm hoping to get back to my normal blogging and other household duties when he goes back to work, but for now I am enjoying our fun family time! (I have so much I want to blog about, but I'm not sure where to start!)


For now, here are a few photos I've snapped today...


All three kids were sitting on their little couch watching a baby einstein movie. Mia was so happy to "snuggle" with Jack!

This was the view from the back! Bailee's arm was around Jack and Mia was rubbing his head! SOOOOO Sweet!!!

We stayed in our jammies all day because there was a blizzard outside! Maine was in a "state of emergency" but we were in a "state of laziness!" I could certainly use more days like this!

Bath time was fun tonight. Jack was fascinated with the water I was pouring out of a cup. He kept trying to grab at it and would then giggle! It's the simple things!

I hope everyone is enjoying their "after Christmas" week. I know I am glad that the craziness of Christmas parties is over. We can now try to get back to normal life around here! :0)

My simple Christmas decorations

Inspired by my friend Sue & her blog, I decided to share some of my favorite Christmas decorations that are around our house. They are simple and humble, but they are special to me! Here are a few photos from inside my house...

A fresh bouquet of red and white flowers always brighten up a room and look Christmasy! 

 I have fresh boughs and berries in a simple white vase. I found this simple snowman stake at WalMart for $1.

 More fresh flowers with candy canes in my long wooden bowl.

I collect miniature nativities and have them ALL over the house! I love nativities and wish I could keep them up all year long! These figurines are about an inch tall each.

 I love snowmen because you don't have to take them down until February or March!

 Another nativity that is in our entry way (one of my favorites!)

Our tree is full of special ornaments. I don't like to put an ornament on our tree unless it has "meaning" to us! The stockings are also hung on the window, not a fireplace, but that works for us! :0)

 And, one more nativity!

The front door!

Our decorations are simple but kid friendly and have lots of meaning to us! Feel free to share your ideas too!!

Easy and cheap neighbor Christmas gifts!

Earlier this year I was searching for easy and cheap Christmas gifts for those people in our lives that are special to us. The people you love, and want to give a small gift to, but if you don't have a lot of money then it can be hard to think of something fun! For me, those people include, neighbors, close friends, our "mail lady," and our children's Sunday School teachers.

I wanted something that wouldn't take much energy, much money, but would be fun and memorable. I googled some different ideas and came up with this...

It doesn't look fancy, but I fell in LOVE with the saying attached to it!

"Christmas is Jolly,

Christmas is Sweet.

I'm too stressed out, 

So make your own treat!"

I've also included this fun book with cute stories and sayings about Christmas! 

I was excited that the dollar store had packs of 4 wooden spoons for $1 and I watched for sales on brownies at our grocery store all fall. I used coupons on some to make the money spending even less. With some "online clearance" shopping I was able to find these Christmas books for $.25 a piece! Yes, $.25!!! So total, I spent about $28 to make 20 of these gifts!

Some of you reading this might be getting one of these gifts, so I'm sorry if I've ruined the surprise, but I couldn't help but share this idea with others!

Christmas traditions!

I absolutely love the Christmas season! There is so much to be thankful for and to celebrate! And I enjoy starting and continuing traditions that our family enjoys! Here are a few traditions that I LOVE!

1. Putting up the Christmas tree! I love the ornaments, the lights, the smell, and the wrapped presents underneath! There is something so romantic about sitting in front of a beautiful tree and snuggling with your hunny!

2. Making Christmas chocolates and goodies. Every year since my husband and I have been dating he has helped me make peanut butter balls for Christmas gifts. This year will be no different, we just need to find a quiet evening together!

3. Christmas Eve we always spend at my Memere and Pepere's house. We have dinner, open presents and then go home to our first present of the year. Everyone gets to open one present Christmas Eve night and it's always new Christmas jammies to wear to bed!

4. Reading the Christmas story from the Bible Christmas Eve night before bed! It's the most important thing to focus on and it makes a great bedtime story that night!

5. Christmas morning (at my house growing up) started in Mom and Dad's bed opening our stockings. It gave us the chance to sit as a family, open our stockings, and Mom and Dad didn't have to get out of bed at 6:30!! Tom and I hope to continue this with our kids!

6. No breakfast until AFTER presents! We always had a big breakfast, but we didn't have to sit and eat until after we opened our gifts! Tom's Dad always made pancakes, so I think he should have to always do that too! ;0)

Since our family is young I hope to make new traditions as the years go on and continue celebrating the old ones we love! Do you have any traditions that your family celebrates? I would love to hear your family stories!!

Here are a few photos from our family Christmas last year... :0) I was pregnant with Jack and the girls have grown soooo much!

Wordless Wednesday

I had the privilege of photographing my 15 day old nephew this past week! Here are a few of my favorites!!

To book a photo session or to see more of my work, visit... 

nicoleleephotographymaine.blogspot.com

The stockings were hung...

Our son Jack will be 8 months old this week and we've suddenly realized that he is NOT a baby any more!!! He is crawling everywhere and is into EVERYTHING! (While I am typing this he is trying to eat the tree!) I love him and watching him grow, but I am very sad that we no longer have babies in the house. Yes, technically he is still a baby, but now that he is moving around he doesn't sit and cuddle like he used to!

We're pretty sure (about 99% convinced) that we don't want to have anymore children, but just tonight Tom said, "Are you sure you don't want to add another stocking to our collection?" It took me a minute to figure out what he meant by that, and then I realized what he was saying! My first response was, "NO!" But it does make you think about the possibilities! I just think we're both realizing that our babies are growing up WAY too fast!

So... the stockings were hung by the chimney window with care, and no there won't be any more to add there! (Does that answer your question Tom!) :0)

Bath Time joy!

Bath time is one of the craziest, most hectic, and chaotic times in our home! It's always filled with splashing water, kids crying because there is soap in their eyes and/or naked babies running around! YET, it is also one of my favorite times of our day! The kids love bathing together and playing in the water. They often times don't want to get out!

I love it that they are all still young enough to bathe together! I hope to keep it that way until I point out the obvious.......

 that they are bathing in Jack's pee!!!

Basement Overhaul!

We've been living in our house now for 15 months and it seems like every time we move things get left in boxes. (I'm sure anyone who has moved can relate!) Things that don't get used very often, things you forget about, or things you don't like, get left in a pile in the basement and never cleaned up! That had happened to our basement and I was tired of the mess. We had things "organized" in piles and in moving boxes, but I couldn't get to anything easily. It was driving me crazy!

Sooooo.... Tom came up with a design for some storage shelves! I am a organization freak, so I was thrilled! I love storing things in large rubbermaid totes, so we made the shelves the correct dimensions for those bins and it's wonderful! Here are a few before and after shots...

Because we had to clear out the wall that the shelves were going on, Tom piled, yes PILED, everything together! This is the mess I had to organize when the shelves were finished...

Here are the shelves done, but empty...

And here is the finished product! All of my labeled storage bins are so easy to get to now!

Tom also added on a work bench so he would have space for his junk, I mean, tools!

 I do a lot of canning, so for right now all of my canning jars, supplies and canned foods are on this shelf, but eventually Tom will build me another similar shelf for all of it!

 We used the girl's old carpet from their bedroom for the floor and turned the previously messy area into an extra play space for the kids!

Thanks Tom! I am so happy with my new shelves! :0) 

Oatmeal Play for Toddlers!

There are two requirements for the following activity.... patience & a vacuum cleaner!!!

I was cleaning out my cupboards today and came across a canister of oatmeal that I had no idea was in there! I looked at the date and, well, lets just say that it was expired! :0) I have no idea how long it was in there, so I was about to throw it out when I stopped. (I hate to just throw things out, so I was determined to come up with something to do with it!) I thought, the girls would have fun with this, but do I want to bother?

Well, I decided to let them make the mess! When they woke up from their naps I had trays of oatmeal on the table for them. I knew it would appeal to Mia, my two-year-old-digger, but I wanted to make it look special for Bailee too, so I sprinkled sparkly beads in to appeal to my three-year-old-princess. It worked! They couldn't wait to get their hands in it!

I had two rules..... "don't put it in your mouth," and "keep it in the tray!" They broke both rules, but had tooooooons of fun!

It started with the oatmeal mixed with sparkly beads and measuring spoons. Then after about 10 minutes I added a bowl to the play. Then about 20 minutes later I let them sprinkle REAL cinnamon into their oatmeal to make it smell good! Bailee was so excited because she was "cooking" foods and couldn't believe that I would let her use my real spices! (What fun to watch them explore and use their imaginations!) Since they were "cooking" so much we chose some pretend kitchen toys and foods to add to the fun.

It is amazing how differently the two girls played with the same materials...

Bailee was very intent on making things and doing pretend play with the oatmeal. She was very focused on using the spoons and bowl to "cook" and "mix up foods." She even planted a garden. The beads were her seeds and the oatmeal was her dirt. At one point she was burying her "treasure" (the shiny beads) and then she would dig to find them!

Mia on the other hand didn't use her utensils very much, but preferred using her hands! She wanted to feel the mess all over her! She moved piles of oatmeal from one end of the tray to the other, filled her bowl and dumped it out many times, and just simply was happy to "dig in the dirt!" She insisted that it was dirt, not oatmeal! :0)

Either way, they were very content and focused on their play. I thought this would last for 20 minutes, but instead I peeled them away from the table crying 2 HOURS later!!!!!! What a great find... expired oatmeal made for a VERY peaceful yet messy afternoon! :0)