Posts

Quick Summary

Tired of Valentine’s gifts that end up in a drawer? This guide features thoughtful, handmade gift ideas from Central PA that people actually use and appreciate. Skip the generic. Give something with meaning.

Let’s be honest about Valentine’s Day gifts.

The box of chocolates? They’re eating one and leaving the rest to get dusty. The flowers? Beautiful for three days, then you’re both watching them slowly die on the counter. The giant teddy bear? Now it lives on a closet shelf, forever.

Quick Summary

You don’t need a spa day. You don’t need an hour. You need 5 minutes and permission to take them. This guide shows busy Central PA moms how to build tiny self-care moments into the chaos without guilt or complicated routines.

Let me tell you something I wish someone had told me years ago: Taking 5 minutes for yourself isn’t stealing time from your family. It’s investing in the person who holds everything together.

Quick Summary

• Winter stresses your skin: Cold air, dry heat, hot showers, and frequent hand washing compromise your skin’s protective barrier.
• Stressed skin works harder: Every product ingredient requires processing. When skin is already struggling, simpler is better.
• Natural ingredients = less work: Plant oils, butters, and beeswax are things your body recognizes and can use efficiently.
• The test: Can you read the ingredient list without a chemistry degree? Our lotion bars have 4-5 ingredients. That’s it.

Your skin is already having a rough January. Cold air outside. Dry heat inside. Constant hand washing. That tight, uncomfortable feeling that shows up around week two.

Every product has a story. Some start with a business plan. Some start with market research.

Hot Cocoa Bath Soak started with Stacie saying, “What if bath time smelled like hot chocolate?”

That’s it. That’s the origin story.

How It Actually Happened

We were at a craft show (I think it was Central Dauphin Band Boosters, but don’t quote me on that), and Stacie was doing what Stacie does: talking to customers, asking what they wished existed, mentally filing away ideas.

It’s mid-January in Central PA. You know what that means.

Your hands look like they belong to someone 30 years older. Your legs are so dry they’re leaving scratch marks. Your lips cracked the moment you stepped outside. And somewhere in the house, someone is complaining that their skin “feels weird.”

Welcome to winter. Population: all of us.

The Central PA Winter Skin Problem

Here’s what we’re dealing with:

Outside: Cold wind that strips moisture from exposed skin the moment you walk to your car.

It’s January 7th. How are those resolutions holding up?

If you’re like most of us, the grand plans we made on January 1st are already starting to feel… heavy. The gym membership you swore you’d use. The elaborate skincare routine you saw on TikTok. The meditation app that’s been sending you passive-aggressive notifications.

Here’s what I’ve learned after years of making products for Central PA families: the resolutions that stick aren’t the big ones. They’re the tiny ones.

This Is Where It All Started

Hey friends. Stacie here. Can I tell you a secret?

Momma Bears Creations didn’t start as a business idea.

It didn’t start with market research or a business plan or dreams of craft shows.

It started with teacher gifts.

Let me take you back: Maddi was in school. Every year, the same dilemma hit: What do I give her teachers to show I actually appreciate everything they do?

We All Have “That Person”

Hey friends. Stacie here. Let me tell you about my friend.

She’s amazing. Kind, generous, always there when I need her. She’s supported our business from day one, shows up to our craft shows, tells all her friends about us.

She also has EVERYTHING.

Seriously. If she wants something, she buys it. Her house is beautiful and curated. She doesn’t need more decorative objects. She doesn’t want clutter. She’s practical and particular.

The Candle Dilemma (Every Gift-Giver Knows This)

Hey friends! Stacie here. Let me paint you a familiar picture:

The scenario: You need a gift. Teacher appreciation, friend’s birthday, Secret Santa at work, Mother’s Day, “thank you for helping us move” gift. You want something thoughtful, but you’re stuck.

Your thought process: “Maybe… a candle?”

Look, I LOVE candles. I burn them in our Enola house constantly. But here’s the truth: Everyone gives candles. That teacher already has 47 vanilla-scented candles. Your friend has a whole closet shelf of unopened candle gifts.

The Question I Get Asked

By Scott (Papa Bear)

People ask me all the time: “Why did you start Momma Bears Creations?”

And honestly? We almost didn’t.

Not because the products weren’t good. Not because there wasn’t demand. But because Stacie would have been perfectly happy giving everything away for free.

Let me explain.

Stacie’s Heart

My wife, Stacie (Momma Bear), has always made things. Soaps, lotions, balms - all from natural ingredients, all by hand, all from the heart.