The Best Thing I've Done So Far

When GiGi was two weeks old, we had a professional photographer come to our home and take our picture.  I love that the pictures where taken in our home and the majority were done in GiGi’s nursery.  I’m totally obsessed with the photos and will do this with all my babies!!  I’m so obsessed I think I might have her picture taken every three months for the first year … she is growing and changing so much and I want to capture her sweet face as much a possible!! 

This is really the BEST thing I’ve done so far and I didn’t read this anywhere and no one told me to do this … I guess I came up with it all on my own.  So, I’m telling you now … if you are pregnant, find you a photographer and book a photo shoot sometime during the first four weeks!!!

Until Next Time,

Happy Gifting 2

One of my girlfriends gave me a package of “Monthly Onsie Stickers” to use every month when I take GiGi’s picture.  They are so cute and make for a great photo opp … and they’re stickers … SO SMART!!!!  This might just be my unique, go-to gift from now on ... and I'll probably include a few plain white onsies in various sizes with my gift.  Check them out at etsy.com.

See other gift ideas here.


Until Next Time,

Co-sleeping = Terrifying

"Since mankind's earliest days, parents and babies have slept together for mutual protection, warmth, and to make nighttime feedings convenient.  It wasn't until the turn of the 20th century that U.S. parents were frightened away from co-sleeping.  They were warned it could spread illness, spoil children, or cause them to suffocate.  So, babies were moved to their own cribs and eventually to their own rooms.  Now as we enter the 21st century, this resistance to co-sleeping is slowly changing ... especially as breast-feeding continues to rise in popularity, nursing mothers are realizing the convenience of having their baby nearby.  However, like so many other primitive customs, co-sleeping doesn't always fit the needs and lifestyles of contemporary parents."  - Harvey Karp, M.D., Happiest Baby on the Block, 2003.

I guess it's safe to stay that I'm a "contemporary" parent because co-sleeping DOES NOT fit into my lifestyle ... it actually scares me to death!  For the first two months of GiGi's life I had the same reoccurring nightmare ... I would wake up in the middle of the night and think I had fallen asleep while nursing her and I would frantically start searching our bed for her!  It was always so terrifying and would take me a minute or two to realize that she was sleeping soundly in her bassinet right next to our bed.  One night, I rolled over and touched my husband's hand and thought it was her and I just about died it scared me so bad!      

To this day, I have not let GiGi even nap in our bed nor have I taken a nap with her ... it is simply too scary to me!  But, if bringing your baby to bed with you feels right then PLEASE follow these 10 steps found on page 225 of The Happiest Baby on the Block by Harvey Karp, M.D.:

Ten Ways to Keep Your Baby Safe in Bed With You

Any parent co-sleeping with their infant must protect him/her in the following ways:

1.  Avoid pillows, toys, or loose bedding that could smother your baby.

2.  Never put your baby to sleep on a waterbed.  (Do they still make waterbeds?!?!?!)

3.  Eliminate spaces between the mattress and the wall, or the mattress and the headboard, where your baby's head might get trapped.

4.  Use a co-sleeper attachment on your bed so your baby can't fall off or get rolled on.

         -I have heard of co-sleepers using this one ... 



The First Years Close and Secure Sleeper

5.  Don't sleep on the sofa with your baby.

6.  Keep your baby swaddled tightly all night long so that he doesn't move into a dangerous position during the night.

7.  Let your baby sleep only on his back.

8.  Give up smoking! Babies are more likely to die of SIDS if their mom is a smoker.

9.  Always go to bed sober.

10.  Don't sleep with your baby if you are very obese.

This is our sleeping arrangement ... I'm happy with her sleeping right next to me!!!!

Until Next Time,

More Ridiculousness

Last week, I mentioned the MTV show "Ridiculousness" ... I hope some of you have searched it out and had a good laugh or two!  

My life is full of ridiculousness when it comes to things we purchased for GiGi and this definitely falls into that category ...

It's a CUSTOM CAR SEAT COVER ... totally ridiculous but totally "preshrunk"!!  There are several sites on Etsy that specialize in this ridiculousness ... mine is from Nollie Covers... don't judge me when you see what I paid for it ... it does fall under the "ridiculousness" category just because we'll only use it for a short amount of time and it's just going to get dirty and eventually look awful ... but what can I say - I LOVE IT!

Until Next Time,

Ridiculousness

There is a new show on MTV ... I know you're thinking, "Who still watches MTV?" but I do! ... anyways, the new show is called Ridiculousness!  The show is hosted by Rob Dyrdek and it is basically an "America's Funniest Home Videos" show for YouTube videos and it is hilarious!  One of my favorite videos was shown the other night ... "Motocross Lady Fail" -

I  think it's one of my favorites because the lady on the dirt bike reminds me of my mother-in-law and the lady in the wheelchair reminds me of my Gran-Gran ... SO FUNNY!!!

Well, aside from hilarious YouTube videos ... there is a lot of ridiculousness when it comes to baby products!  In all actuality, you only need a few simple things but I loaded up on two of everything and was a total sucker for items that would fall into the "ridiculousness" category!  The BabyPlus Prenatal Education System definitely tops my list of ridiculousness but I bought it and wore it religiously twice a day for 20 weeks!!! 

The BabyPlus website provides the following description of their product - "The BabyPlus Prenatal Education System is a series of 16 naturally derived sounds that resemble a mother's heartbeat.  The rhythm of the sounds increases incrementally as the pregnancy progresses.  The BabyPlus sonic pattern introduces your child to a sequential learning process, built upon the natural rhythms of their own environment.  The 'auditory exercise' strengthens learning ability during the developmental period when the advantages will be most significant and enduring for a child.  BabyPlus is the first educational tool designed for prenatal use that has been proven effective.  BabyPlus children have an intellectual, developmental, creative, and emotional advantage from the time they are born.  Your baby can very clearly hear these patterns.  She/he learns to discriminate between the sound coming from the mother and those from BabyPlus.  In other words, learning has begun." 

This is clearly ridiculousness at it's finest!! What was I thinking????

Until Next Time,

Baby Library

While I was pregnant with GiGi I read numerous books, but I found "On Becoming Babywise" -  Garry Ezzo, M.D. & Robert Bucknam and "The Happiest Baby on the Block" - Harvey Karp, M.D. to be the most informative and the ones that I continue to refer back to.  

"Babywise" was great for helping me to establish a healthy sleep pattern for GiGi and it also helped me to stabilize my milk production ... yep, I'm a breastfeeding mamma ... and "Happiest Baby on the Block" was great for providing me with ways to calm a crying baby.  I did not have any experience with babies before having my own so I needed some tools in my toolbox for those nights when she would be crying and I would be at my wits end ... thank goodness for Dr. Karp's "Happiest Baby on the Block"!  

As I was reading this book, I came across a list titled "Ten Ways to Keep Your Baby Safe in Bed With You" ... now, we do not "co-sleep" with GiGi in our bed, it actually TERRIFIES me -- be watching for a post about this terrifying topic -- but I almost threw this book in the trash after reading #9 on the list - "9. Always go to bed sober" ... REALLY!?!?!? ... when I read this I thought it was the most ridiculous thing I had ever read and almost threw this book in the trash  ... I'm glad I didn't because the 5 S's have really come in handy!  

The 5 S's are five things you can do to calm your crying baby: 

1. Swaddling-tight wrapping, 

2. Side/Stomach-laying a baby on her side or stomach, 

3. Shushing-loud white noise, 

4. Swinging-rhythmic, jiggly motion and 

5. Sucking-sucking anything from the breast or finger to a pacifier (pg. 11).  

Numbers 1, 3 and 4 have been the most calming for GiGi ... she actually does not nap or go down at night not tightly wrapped in her Halo Sleepsack Swaddling Blanket.

 

She LOVES it and sleeps so much better and longer when she is swaddled! Dr. Karp discusses each "S" in detail and also provides a wonderfully comprehensive breakdown of colic ... all in all, this is a great book and a wonderful resource for all mommies and daddies-to-be!!!!

Gigi swaddled and in her swing ... double whammy!!  Also note that she's strapped in ... you can never be too careful! :)

GiGi so happy in her Halo Sleepsack Swaddle blanket!

Until Next Time,

Don't forget to enter the Pint-Sized giveaway!

Gigi's Mom

Exciting news to share today!

Half the battle of having a new baby is figuring out what works for your baby.  Some stuff I swear by may not be true for you at all.  Because of the need for another perspective to help you all, I have invited Emily (you may remember her from My Second Husband) to be a co-contributor to Keeping it Simple.  I am so ecstatic to reintroduce her to you!  Emily had a preshrunken baby girl in June.  She laughed when I asked her to contribute saying, "I am the exact opposite of Keeping it Simple and budget shopping." To which I replied, "That is perfect! It will be great to have a fresh perspective from another new mom.  Plus, Keeping it Simple is more about providing useful information in one place and being to the point."

SOOOO...Without further ado, please meet Emily.  She wrote an introductory post for us today.

I found out I was pregnant with "GiGi" on October 14, 2010 and my head immediately started spinning!  My type A, first born personality always has me asking questions in hopes of gaining as much information as possible about any and every situation I am in ... so that I am not caught off guard and essentially always in control.  Pregnancy took this compulsion for information and my need to be in control to a whole new level!!!  I researched products, read books, talked with other mothers, read blogs and websites, attended classes ... if it was available to me, I took advantage of it ... in hopes of being as prepared and informed as possible.  

GiGi is now almost three months old and we could not love her more!!!  I love being her mommy ... and luckily motherhood has come fairly naturally to me ... considering I had no memory of ever changing a diaper before GiGi was born.  I believe that my smooth transition into motherhood is a direct result of all the crazy things I did to prepare for her arrival and I hope to share those things with you every now and then!  So ... cheers to guest blogging and "Keeping it Simple"!!

We are thrilled to have you Emily!  Can't wait to hear more about your adventures with Gigi!  What a great picture of you two!