Back-to-School Must-Haves: Pottery Barn Kids' Stainless Nesting Trio

Jumping from one child in grade school to having three has been quite a transition for me.  It was so much easier when I only had one set of homework to check, just one lunch to pack, one set of emergency forms to fill out, and one outfit for picture day to pick out.  I could go on all day.  Really.

One of the things that I am dealing with now that I did not have a problem with when my oldest was in kindergarten is that the twins sometimes get their morning snacks mixed up with their lunchtime snacks.  It is important that they keep them straight because their classrooms need to be peanut-free, where the cafeteria does not.  This is where our Stainless Nesting Trio from Pottery Barn Kids comes in.

My husband and I try to use the 3-1/2" diameter stainless steel containers for the twins' morning snacks as often as we can.  That way, they do not have to try to remember which snack they are supposed to eat in the classroom. For the days when the twins receive a packaged snack, such as a mini bag of pretzels, we put a small sticker on the bag so they can easily identify it as their morning snack.

This trio is leak proof, so we are able to pack much more than just dry snacks in them.  These containers are BPA, lead, and phthalate-free.  I have used a medium size (4" diameter) container for my oldest son for years.  This year for back-to-school, Pottery Barn Kids sent the Nesting Trio for our daughter in pink, which  may be a PBK exclusive.  I have not seen these containers in the pink, blue, green, or turquoise anywhere else.  I ended up buying another set for her twin brother because I love them so much.  The large size container has a 4-3/4" diameter and is perfect for larger items, like peanut butter graham crackers or a bunch of grapes.


The PBK Stainless Nesting Trio sells for $29 and currently ships free!  Visit PotteryBarnKids.com for more information about this item and to see what other items are on their free shipping list.


Thank you to Pottery Barn Kids for providing a complimentary product sample for us to base this review upon.

Lighting Up the Night with Pottery Barn Kids Halloween Luminaries

Since we live in a townhouse community, we need to abide by some strict rules about decorating the outside of our home.  We are allowed to put up outdoor lights for the holidays, but aside from hanging or placing potted plants at our front and back steps, that is about all we are allowed to do.  That is why, in addition to hanging something on our doors, I have been focusing on window decorations the past few years, whether they be decorations to sit on our windowsills, to hang from the curtain rod, or to cling to the glass panes.  That way our home can look festive from the outside without breaking any of the community guidelines.

This year, we have one of the Pottery Barn Kids Halloween Luminaries in three of our first floor windows.  I chose the Pumpkin, because every home needs a Jack-o-Lantern on Halloween, and the Skeleton because I thought my children would think he was spooky, but in a fun way.  I have a thing for owls, so I also chose the Owl Luminary, which I found to be adorable.  If you can believe it, of the 3 luminaries, my children thought the was the creepiest.

(Click any photo to enlarge)

These luminaries are made of paper maché and then hand painted with touches of glitter added here and there.  They are said to be water-resistant, so you could place them outdoors for a few hours Halloween night.

Of the 3 luminaries, the Skeleton fit best on our windowsill.  The back of the Owl protruded a little bit, but the  back of the Pumpkin overhung the edge of the sill by a few inches.  Still, as long as they were not disturbed, all the luminaries stayed put just fine.

Since these luminaries were not meant to use with real candles, I tried using electronic tealights inside them.  The battery-operated tealights I had did not seem bright enough, so we ended up placing a mini flashlight in each luminary.  The flashlights did a great job illuminating the insides enough so that there was light showing through all the openings, even the ones on the front of the owl's body.  You could also try other types of flameless lights, such as glow sticks.

I am very pleased with how these PBK Luminaries look in our windows.  They are large enough so that they can still be seen even though our first floor windows are slightly high off the ground.  I also find them to be festive and fun for the children without giving the false impression that we run a daycare or a nursery school in our home, as some window decorations sometimes do.

To view the full line of Pottery Barn Kids Halloween Luminaries, visit PotteryBarnKids.com.  You can also look for them in your local Pottery Barn Kids store, but quantities and selection will vary by location.


Thank you to Pottery Barn Kids for providing complimentary product samples for us to base this review upon.