Rearranging Dirt

Before I get started on today's product, check out the adorable costume entries on the Keeping it Simple facebook page.  Thank you to those who entered!  You really out did yourselves!  Please vote for your favorites by "liking" the individual photo.  You can vote for more the one if your heart desires!

Alright, back to Rearranging Dirt...My cheerleading squad used to have car washes for fundraising purposes.  My parents would come to be supportive, but my mom always said we would make her car dirtier than it was when she got there.  By the end of the day, the towels we were using were black with dirt...instead of washing cars we were basically rearranging dirt.  

So, I am not a germ freak, but when my food falls off my plate at a restaurant onto the table, I won't eat it.  It might as well have fallen onto the floor.  When I see the dish rags they used to "clean" my table, I picture the towels we used on the cars.  They basically rearrange the food and germ residue on the table from the people before us.  ICK!

We don't go out to eat nearly as often now that we have L, but we still try to make Sunday dinners with my side of the family.  This suddenly became harder when L began sitting up and didn't want to stay in her car seat anymore...to the high chair she went.    The high chair gives her more freedom and almost everything on the table is within her reach.  So, we try and plan our day so she eats at the restaurant to keep her entertained during the meal.  Just recently, we started ordering off the menu for her.  This proposes a problem!  Where do I put the food?  A plate would go flying to the floor, food and all.  Obviously, I won't put it on the "rearranged dirt" table.  I said last Sunday, "There has to be some sort of product out there for this." 

Well, yes there is!  I FOUND A FEW!

Summer Infant Tiny Diner

The Summer Infant Dining mat rolls up easily, latches on to the table, and is reusable.  However, if you do not want to deal with cleaning it every time, there are some disposable versions.

For you environmentally friendly moms, some of them are biodegradable.

Any other tips out there for dining out?

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,

Stay Out of the Mom Zone

My friends have an ongoing joke about which one of us is going to get the mom-do first.  You know, the first one who decides to go for convenience over looks when you become a mom.  The first to chop their hair off like a boy.  The first to decide that it is too much trouble to have to style your hair every day.  It becomes a slippery slope...the "mom" cut, "the "mom" jeans, the "mom" wardrobe.  I am going to try my best to stay out of the "Mom Zone."

However, staying on top of trends is a daily struggle.  As you working moms know, you have a TON of new found time at home after baby bedtime.  It used to be your grocery store and boutique/mall time, but now you can't leave the house.  Online shopping has become my new best friend.  I have started ordering tons of things every time I see an online coupon from my favorite stores.  I usually end up returning 90% of it, but it is slowly filling the void in my closet where maternity clothes took over.  A second struggle I face when trying to keep up with the latest fashion is adding in the new guilt I feel buying something for myself instead of buying something for L.

So, I do not fancy myself a fashionista, but I am an excellent bargain hunter.  If I see something I like, I can almost always find a cheaper replica or the same product on a discount website.  I hope to relieve your new found guilt and lack of shopping time with a new series, "Stay Out of The Mom Zone."  Please email me looks you see and love, but want to find a cheaper version.

For example, I am in the market for some new boots and saw a picture of Kourtney Kardashian wearing these bad boys...

Since I need both brown and black boots this year, I thought I could kill two boots with one Kardashian.  Upon further research I found out she was wearing $2,000 Chanel boots...EEK! 

However, I found LOTS of similar two toned boots I love...

These range from $99-$715...they are listed from highest to lowest...

1.  Calvin Klein

2.  Stuart Weitzman

3.  Juicy Couture

4.  Hunter Boot

5.  Etienne Aigner

6.  Ciao Bella Tori

7.  Ciao Bella Tabby

I ordered #6 and LOVED them, but they were too tall...for you long-legged gals, try them out...they are SUPER comfortable! 

Which one is your favorite?

I always struggle with boots because I have the weeniest calves and ankles you have ever seen.  Too bad the teeny weeny part doesn't travel up to my thighs...They are normal size...Just picture a V-shape and that is my leg silhouette.  It is hot, I know, so don't be jeal.  Anyways, I JUST found out that Nordstroms has an option to search for a "narrow" shaft boot.  I will keep you posted on what I end up with. 

Email me your bargain shopping needs.  I am happy to be at your service.

Sunny's Notes

A professor in college told me a philosophy on how most college students think.  He said, "Most students decide at the beginning of each semester the formula...how to put in the least amount of work and time to get a grade that they are comfortable with whether it be an A, B, or C."  So true! 

Students are experts at shortcuts to get to their goals.  One of the most well known shortcuts out there is Cliff's Notes.   A prego friend of mine began reading Baby Wise and became overwhelmed.  She found out there and is a Cliff's Notes version of Baby Wise written by Sunny and sent it to me...I have named them Sunny's Notes.

Read her summary below.  (I have this available as a PDF as well...Email me if you would like me to send it to you)  Please note her disclaimer at the top.  I am not sure what all the "Contact Mom" stuff is about...must be the class?  I LOVE the fact that Sunny constantly tells you it is OK if your cycle is not perfect every time.  In my opinion, the book makes you think everything HAS to be perfect each time and that is not practical. 

(A quick couple of comments after reviewing these notes that I disagree with, but this is just my opinion...First, her suggestion to pump as early on as 1-2 weeks may be too soon.  Second, after 6 weeks, L hardly ever took a two hour nap.  To this day, we usually get anywhere from 1-1.5 hours)

The following is a summary of the principles I learned while taking the “Along the Infant Way” class. This is NOT intended to replace reading the book or taking the class. All opinions are my own, and have not been approved or endorsed by anyone associated with GFI. I am not a contact mom, only a mom who has sat through the classes and implemented the principles with my own child. I made these notes only to remind myself of the principles when I have more kids. I share this with you only to be helpful, not as an expert. –Sunny,

Ages are APPROXIMATE.

Use the principles found in the books to help you identify the “signs” in your baby’s day which indicate that it is time to transition to the next phase, or modify your routine.

Feed, Wake, Sleep…Feed, Wake, Sleep….Feed, Wake, Sleep

Every moment of your new baby’s life will fall into one of these categories…Feed,Wake, Sleep. Initially, baby will sleep a lot, but wake time will gradually increase. Because your goal is to keep the baby awake to take a full feeding, the feeding is wakeful and stimulating for the baby. It is therefore difficult to separate feed time from wake time. Here I will list “total wake” which will include the meal,

burping, plus any left-over wake for diaper changing, baths, playing, etc…

The Ezzo’s material often gets confused with “cry it out” theories from other books. This is not a correct association! If you use the PDF principles correctly, your baby should not have extended periods of crying unless there is another problem (like colic). If you have a lot of crying during either “normal cry periods” or “not-normal cry periods”, call a Contact Mom because there is likely a very easy solution. With my first child, I spoke with a Contact Mom on three different occasions about my baby’s crying... All three times she recommended an adjustment to my schedule which fixed the problem within 24 hours!!!

0 - 2 weeks

Feed=30-45 min

Total Wake (Including the meal) = 45 min

Sleep=about 2 hrs – 2hrs 15min

Your primary goal is to get the baby to take a full feeding every time. Sounds easy, but the baby will be very sleepy, which makes it quite difficult. See book for recommendations on how to keep the baby awake. Limit wake time during this period to just feeding time, which will likely take about 45 min.  Excessive wake time will result in an over-stimulated baby (which leads to disrupted napping).

Feed every 2.5-3 hours (and not less than 2hrs), except for one longer stretch at night. Wake the baby every 3 hours, except after the late night feeding (somewhere around 9-11 pm) you can just let the baby sleep until she wakes up, but do not let her sleep longer than 5 hours. Initially, the feeding times will likely vary significantly from day to day. By that I mean that one day you may feed at 3, 6, 9, 12, 3, 6, 9, but if the baby sleeps 5 hours, your next feeding will be at 2 am, so the second day will be 5, 8, 11, 2, 5, 8, 11, and 5 hours later is 4 am......so every day looks different. (Around 6 weeks is when the times on your schedule become extremely consistent.) The important thing for a newborn is to focus on getting full feedings every time, and TRY to have 2.5-3 hours elapse between feedings. As soon as one feed, wake, sleep cycle is finished, you plan for the next one. Don’t plan all of the baby’s feedings for the rest of the day, because Murphy's Law will quickly come for a visit. No matter what time your morning started, you always schedule the next feeding time from the previous feeding time. Ex: if your first feed of the today started at 8am, plan for the next one to be 11am. If a cycle isn’t “perfect”, don’t beat yourself up, just try again next cycle – beginning with the feeding.

Sometimes baby will wake up too early, and you can rock them back to sleep so that they get an appropriate amount of time elapsed between feedings so that they are hungry enough to take a full feeding. Remember that your primary goal in this phase is a FULL FEEDING. Let all caretakers know your "goal time" to get the next feeding, and instruct them that if the baby wakes, they rock, sing, swing....whatever they can do to keep the baby asleep until you reach the 2.5-3hr time. However, if the baby is fussy and will not go back to sleep, feed the baby. (Always feed a hungry baby.) The last feeding may not have been successful (for reasons such as if baby fell asleep during the meal, baby couldn’t get latched on, etc…). If this becomes common (the baby can’t make it at least 2.5 hours) contact a lactation consultant or Contact Mom, because there may be a problem with your milk supply.

A suggestion to help Mom get rested: pump 15 minutes before your last feeding (10 pm for example) and then go straight to bed. Let daddy or grandma give the 10 pm bottle, and then they go to bed around 11 pm or so when they lay baby down. Then, Mom can wake up with the baby (around 3 am), and she was able to get 5 solid hours of sleep since Mom did not have to do the late night feeding. Daddy sleeps through the 3 am feeding, so he is rested and ready to help at 6 am, because he got 7 hours of sleep. Every night won't be ideal, but at least this way you both get some shut-eye

Here is a sample day for newborn (0-2 weeks)

6 am-wake, feed 15 minutes on L side, burp 5 minutes, feed 15 minutes on R side, burp 5 minutes,

change diaper 5 minutes...(basically this process take 45 minutes, even if baby only nurses for 30

minutes.)

6:45 am-9 am---sleep

9 am-feed like above, only starting on R side

9:45-noon---sleep

12 noon-feed

12:45-3---sleep

3 pm--feed

3:45-6--sleep

6 pm--feed

6:45-9--sleep

8:45--Mom pumps, then goes to bed

9pm-Dad gives bottle

9:45-Dad and baby go to sleep

2 am-Mom wakes up with baby and feed

2:45-back to bed

5 am- wake up with baby and feed

5:45-back to bed

8 am—1st feed of the new day.

Dad has been asleep since 10pm (10 hours). You slept from 9-2 and 3-5 and 6-8 (9 hours). My point is that even if you don't sleep that long, you can work it to where you both get “decent” sleep at night. Also, I recommend you nap during the day if you are tired or have a bad night, but you likely won't need to after the first week or two, once your baby is consistently going approx 3hrs between meals, and consistently taking 2+hr naps. If nursing, I do recommend that you get up with the baby at night, because you are still establishing your milk supply, and shouldn't miss a feeding (but it is fine to pump 15-30 minutes before a feeding then miss the actual feeding).

3 - 4 weeks

Feed= 30-35 min

Total Wake (Including the meal) = 45-55 min

Sleep=about 2 hrs – 2hrs 15min

2.5-3 hour cycle should be stable, and closer to 3hrs most meals, but each day may look different. Baby goes to bed awake and falls asleep on her own. Shouldn’t be much crying, but there may be a few minutes at “normal cry times.” Set your baby up for success with falling asleep….don’t over-stimulate the baby with exposure to TV, lots of light, over-stimulating toys or activities, large crowd of people. If you find that your baby is crying a bunch, cut back wake time by 5 minutes next cycle. (Contact your Contact Mom if you need help determining if you need to lessen your waketime.) You may rock baby and get baby sleepy, but lay her down awake.

5 - 6 weeks

Feed= 30-35 minutes

Total Wake (Including the meal) = 55-60 minutes

Sleep=about 2 hours

Stable 3 hour routine (6, 9, 12, 3, 6, 9, 12). Begin each day at the same time by waking the baby for the 1^st meal of the day, and each day’s schedule should start to look the same (which is nice, because you can plan ahead and know what the baby will need at a specific time.) Baby should nap well for 2 hours. Nap time should remain at 2 hours each nap until the baby is 18+ months old, but the number of naps will decrease as the time between meals is extended. Establish the first feeding of the morning, and keep this consistent. As the baby starts to sleep better through the night, gradually drop nighttime feedings.

To determine your desired waketime, decide what time you would like your baby to go to bed during his childhood… then add 12hrs. For example, if you’d like your child to go to bed at 7pm, then a 7am waketime would be appropriate for your family.

*Rule of Thumb: Time between nighttime/morning meals (Nighttime sleep) may extend to 6 hours at 6 weeks, 7 hours at 7 weeks, 8 hours at 8 weeks, and so on until 12 hours at 12 weeks – which should last until they begin school. Ex: Baby may eat dinner at 7pm, and then be down for the night by 8pm, and then wake at 7am for breakfast. This would be 12hrs between meals – or 11hrs of nighttime sleep.

Typically, parents do not need to push the baby for more nighttime sleep. A baby whose day routine (eat/wake/sleep) is well-adjusted will naturally fall into the above nighttime sleeping patterns. Don’t worry if your baby doesn’t fall into this exactly – just use it as a guideline to know if you’re “on-track”. Your baby may be a week or so behind this, which is fine.

Around 12 weeks

Same 3-hour routine, but no nighttime feedings (Ex: 6am, 9am, 12 noon, 3pm, 6pm). A 6th feeding can be added to the day if Mom’s milk supply needs it by waking baby once more in the late evening, feeding, and then returning to bed (Ex from above would include on more quick feed at 9 or 10pm.) Since baby will be going 12hrs between dinner and breakfast, Mom can also choose to pump once in the evening before bed to store up breast milk.

Around 16 weeks

Feed/Wake=1.5 hours

Sleep= 2 hours

3.5-hour routine. You are starting to extend baby’s wake time, which causes fewer naps and fewer feeding times. (Ex of feed times: 6am, 9:30am, 1pm, 4:30pm, 6pm—feeding right before bed to “top off”—no nap between 430 and 6 feedings).

Around 20 weeks

Feed/Wake=2 hours

Sleep=2 hours

Transition from 3.5 - 4-hour routine. (Ex of feed times: 6, 10, 2, 6). Three 2-hour naps. Be careful extending wake times. If your baby’s naps or waketimes start to suffer, go back to the 3.5 hour routine and wait another week or more before trying again. My 2nd baby didn’t transition to a 4-hour routine until she was over 6 months old.

6 months

Same 4-hour routine, but decrease 3rd nap to cat nap of 35-50 minutes (one sleep-cycle.)

8 months

Drop cat nap (only two 2-hour naps).

Follow “Extended Day” routine in the book to line 3 meals up with family meal times.

12 months

Drop bedtime feeding. 3 daily meals line up with family meal times.

Between 18-22 months

Drop morning nap. One 3-hour nap (after lunch) until age 4+.

Lastly, remember that God chose YOU to be your child’s parent…..not me, not your Contact Mom, and not the Ezzo’s – or any other parenting expert. Use your God-given discernment to provide the best care for your baby. These guidelines have worked for many, many parents. But, even the BEST “Babywise” parents vary from the routine from time to time. So don’t fret, the principles are designed as a guide, not a rule book. And HAVE FUN with your baby!--Sunny

Pump-a-thon 3

Let me begin with my usual warning...if nursing at all weirds you out, do not continue you reading.

In Pump-a-thon 1, we discussed Pumping Supplies.

In Pump-a-thon 2, we discussed the two different Medela electric pumps.

Today, we will discuss a good strategy for pumping at work.  This is where the commitment part of your "marathon" kicks in.  I will not sugar coat this...pumping was exhausting and took a lot of time.  It was definitely my least favorite thing about having a baby, but I hung in there and eventually was on autopilot.

#1  Mental Preparation...Prepare yourself for awkward moments/conversations.  Unfortunately, my office building does not have a designated pumping/nursing room, so I was forced to use the bathroom stall.  Many, many times I had to converse with complete strangers about pumping whenever I was washing all the parts at the bathroom sink.  Women will no doubt ask what that noise is coming from the other stall.  A random man in the hallway once said to me with a wink wink, "We have a bag like that at home." (I was carrying what I thought was the discreet Medela black pump bag) REALLY!!!!  Do you want to stand in the middle of the hall and discuss pumping with me!?!?  I flashed him an awkward smile and rushed into the bathroom.  It might be a good idea to carry a different bag in case you run into a new father who thinks he is "in on it." 

#2 Supplies...Each morning in my bag I would pack my...

Medela pump with electric cord and two Medela bottles

(I would usually have the battery charged from the night before, but always have the cord with you just in case)

A Dish Towel

(Yes, you must wash and dry every pump part and bottle every time you use it)

Dish Soap 

(I used mild dish soap, but Palmolive makes the above baby liquid soap)

Travel Size Container for Dish Soap

(Not necessary, but helped lighten my load each day)

A large container with mL or ounce markers on the side

(Explanation below)

#3 Scheduling...The Medela pump comes with 4 bottles and a cooler that you could potentially use for storing at the office.  I thought keeping up with all of those bottles everyday seemed a little much.  Plus, I could only imagine the awkward questions I might get about "what is in the cooler?" by people at work looking in the refrigerator.

There are two thing I need to explain before I continue...

• I read that breast milk can stay good any where between 6-10 hours at room temperature (Ask your doctor for their recommendations on this)  
• You are not supposed to mix breast milk at different temperatures (Again, refer to your doctor on their recommendations)  

Because of these two things, I decided to use the large measurable container with a pour spout.  I would dump it all in the same container each pump and leave it in my (not so discreet) bag at room temperature at my desk throughout the day.  I got home before the 7-hour mark and could refrigerate it as soon as I walked through the door.  My sitter would use the container the next day to avoid using the freezer supply.  The measurement markers were clutch!  She knew exactly how much to dethaw in the morning based on how much was in the container.

My average pumping schedule went something like this:

5:30am wake up and immediately pump
10:00am second pumping session
2:30pm  third pumping session
4:45 pm placed large container in the fridge and steamed clean all pump parts with Medela Steam bag
6:30pm fourth pumping session
10:00pm fifth pumping session

Definitely don't use this schedule strictly...every one and every baby is different.  When I went back to work, I had to solely pump because L preferred the bottle.  It would have been wonderful if the last two sessions could have been nursing and not pumping, but I did not have that luxury.  I wish you luck!

I hope this helps and please pipe in if you used a different approach.  My schedule was totally exhausting...any suggestions on how to schedule differently?

New Stage of Life

I have officially entered the germ stage of life.  L's cold has traveled through this house quicker than you can say nose sucker.  This week I have cold remedies on the brain, so guess what today's topic is?

Monday after work we had quite the task trying to get L to go to sleep.  Every time we would put her in the crib she would scream bloody murder!  The harder she cried the worse the congestion got.  I talked to our nurse, scoured the Internet for suggestions, and called my parents for tips.  I gathered a list of things to try when you are in this situation.  I am not sure which one finally worked for us, but one of them finally did!

1)  Ask your doctor which decongestant they recommend.  Our nurse suggested a few weeks ago to use Baby Benadryl (Walgreen's brand) for congestion.

2) Baby Benadryl did not do the trick when we tried it on Sunday.  We tried the nurse's second recommendation, Baby Zyrtec (Walgreen's brand).  That helped a little bit.

3) My theory is with a sick baby, Babywise flies out the window.  I broke the no rocking rule.  We all want our mommies when we are sick.  I still call mine when I am sick!  So, we rocked and rocked and rocked.  She finally fell asleep, but would wake again when we tried to put her in the crib.

4) Putting her in the car seat in the crib so she was on an incline when she slept...worked for 30 minutes and then she was screaming again.

5) Weirdly, she normally likes the NoseFrida and laughs when I do it, but this was no ordinary runny nose.  We had to FORCE the NoseFrida upon her.  She did not want anything near her nose.

6) Rubbed Vicks BabyRub on her chest while steaming up the bathroom

7) My parents suggested Pediacare Fever Reducer Infants Drops because her throat/head might by sore

8) Let her chew on Sophie in my lap in case her teeth were also bothering her.  It did calm her down.

9) Placed the pack n play mattress on an angle in her crib for her to sleep on.

Somewhere between 5-9 we had some luck and she finally fell asleep for the night.  All of these worked for a mom out there somewhere, so definitely try them out when you are at a loss with a sick baby. Good idea to have the medicines ready to go in your cabinet...we made a couple 10pm trips to Walgreens this week.

Another suggestion a friend told me yesterday was to put a pillow or something underneath the mattress to prop it up on one side...same idea as #4 and #9 by letting them sleep at an incline.

What else have you tried?

Rain Drops on Roses and Whiskers on Kittens

Before I start this post, a friend told me I need to give my husband a nick name instead of always calling him "my husband."  From now on, he will be Special K.  Hope he likes it!

L had her 9 month appointment yesterday. I found out some things that had me stuck on the verse of "My Favorite Things" that says, "When the dog bites, when the bees (or shots) sting."  Things I learned that I am not terribly excited about...

1. Shots for L are harder to watch every appointment!  Along with pap smears and waxing, why have they not invented a better alternative!  
2. L has to get a flu shot between now and her one year appointment...add another shot to the list...poor girl!
3. L will get four shots at her year appointment plus a SECOND flu shot.  Happy 1st Birthday!
4. It is recommended Special K and I have to get a flu shot (He may be finding this news out while reading this post because I haven't had the chance to tell him yet and I know he never misses a post...wink, wink)
5. The law now states that L will be in a rear facing car sear until she is 2.  (Inserting registry tip here:  The investment of the rear facing mirror just got more valuable.  Definitely register for one mirror per car in your family.  It is great to be able to glance in the back seat to see what she is up to.  For instance, on the way home from the doctor, L had been very quiet in the back seat.  I glance in the rear view mirror and see she has taken her band-aid off and was chewing on it.  First of all, choking hazard.  Second of all, gross.   I reached back and pulled it out of her hands.  Crisis averted in about 15 seconds thanks to my handy mirror!)  I was really looking forward to turning her around in the car, so was disappointed when I learned it would be a year longer than I thought.

After hearing all of this, I needed to channel some Julie Andrews to help me think of some of my favorite things.

I needed more than raindrops on roses and whiskers on kittens to take me out of negative town.  Julie pulled through for me!  I remembered something that made me happy! I enrolled L into a music class at TCU that starts today.  They offer them through their extended education classes.  I hear they are wonderful and it will be nice for L to be around other kids.  She has been cooped up in the house all summer with this heat.  She lights up every time she hears music and every time she sees another baby, so she will love every second of the class.  L can get her "Doe, Rae, Me" on!  I will let you know how it goes.  I thought her first day of college would come much later, but, TCU, here we come! 

Danzo Baby

Thanks to Bradley, the Making Diapers Trendy contributor, for emailing me the Danzo Baby website!  She came across it and thought of Keeping it Simple.  They make the cutest, most functional diaper bags I have seen.  They average around $200-$300, so may be more than you are looking for, but I had to share.  You could easily get them monogrammed too!  Check out this awesome selection...

On top of the cute designs, you can customize the interior pockets!  You get 25 different pocket labels with your bag that you can change out to fit your needs (for example wipes, diapers, and ointments, etc...).  The inside labels serve as a checklist before you head out of the house!  Here is a peek at the inside of one of the bags...

Unfortunately for me, they are not currently sold in Texas stores.  Check out their locations to see if there is a store near you that sells these bags.  You can but them online through their website or on Amazon.

Which is your favorite?

Flying My Freak Flag

Today I am flying my freak flag for you all...

My cat had a sex change operation.  It is true.  From the moment I got Simon, I knew he wanted to be a girl.  I kid!

Before you go off and call the crazy bus on me, let me explain.  Yes, my cat had a sex change operation.  No, he didn’t “want” to be a girl.  He had horrendous health problems as a kitten and the vet recommended this surgery to help ease his chronic blocked bladder that would ultimately kill him if it was not corrected.  A cut here, a snip there, and Simon was officially Simone.

Around the time he became a she, I was shopping for a cat carrier.  I was choosing between the only two options on the shelf…

                      

I contemplated for a little while and decided since my cat was a girl now, I could buy the pink one.  I excitedly purchased it, loaded it in the car, drove home and showed it to my husband.  Oops!  He was NOT amused!  We had a bit of a disagreement that went something like this:

He said, “Our cat will not be a cross dresser.  Simone’s chromosomes are still male.  The pink carrier is just taking this whole thing too far.”  (Although I was getting a bit frustrated with his attitude about this, I thought it was pretty cute he was trying to hang on to Simone’s manhood)

I said, “Really?!?!  The actual amputation of the penis wasn’t taking it too far?”

He moved on with his argument, “I have to carry the carrier too and I don’t want it to be pink.”

Aha!  The real reason he was upset was surfacing!  Good thing this conversation happened.  Years later, when we were discussing the stroller for L, I recognized the fact he didn’t want to be strolling around town with a pink stroller.  I respected that and we went with a gender-neutral stroller. 

The color was the least of our worries when purchasing a stroller.  It is a BIG decision!  You really need to evaluate your lifestyle to figure out which one is best for you.  I will share with you what we did as an option, but I am not forcing it upon you.  Staying with my theme “Keeping it Simple,” we decided not to do a big travel system. 

We registered for the Bob jogging stroller and have been really pleased with it! 

It maneuvers smoothly and folds up in one easy step.  However, it is pretty heavy and bulky.  To solve this problem, we also got the Snap n Go for me to run quick errands and for air travel.  If you decide to get a Snap N' Go, make sure that the car seat you decide on fits into it.

I HIGHLY recommend both products.  We have been pleased with them and haven’t felt like we missed out by not having a travel system.

Other moms out here…what do you suggest? 

Can you improve a classic?

Someone emailed a request to post my fave off-registry gifts L received.  I am more than happy to share and hopefully give you some unique, baby shower gift ideas. 

I still love all the books I grew up reading...The Very Hungry Caterpillar and Are You My Mother to name a couple.  I would consider these books classics since they have stood the test of time, but can you improve a classic?  This is not always easy and you could easily offend your original audience.  Just look at Saved by the Bell: The New Class.  They were never going to be as cool as the original gang!  Trying to replace Screech with Weasel, come on!

The powers that be have managed, however, to do a GREAT job improving these popular children's books.  They enhanced the reading experience without changing the storyline and pictures.  They now sell them complete with a stuffed animal character from the book.  I long for the day when L is cuddled up in my lap hugging her Caterpillar begging for me to read the The Very Hungry Caterpillar to her.

 The Goodnight Moon Gift Set comes as a prepackaged gift set for $11.55

Are you My Mother comes as a prepackaged gift set for $16.95

The Very Hungry Caterpillar and Plush Toy comes as a prepackaged gift set for $11.55.

You could give one of these individually or even buy all three of them as a gift basket for a total of only $40.  I think the perceived value is way higher than that! 

Another way they have improved on The Very Hungry Caterpillar, the Pop-Up Book...How much fun!  My sister gave me one and I love it! 

I applaud all of these improvements on these classics.  Anything that can improve the reading experience for your child is a plus in my book (no pun intended)!

Also, please see this great post by my friend, KK, at Small Town Lovin on creating a reading space for your child.

Deep Thoughts...

Deep thoughts is one of my favorite old school Saturday Night Live skits...making fun of people that try to sound deep and really have no depth.  Sometimes the deepest thoughts run through my head and I always think..."Deep Thoughts by Jack Handy."

Here is an example of one:

"The first thing was, I learned to forgive myself. Then, I told myself, "Go ahead and do whatever you want, it's okay by me." 

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Anyways, I had one of these moments that the Deep Thoughts of SNL make fun of the other day. I had two days of constant craziness...L was teething and cranky, wardrobe malfunctions, electricity went out in the 100 degree heat, etc...I had a moment in my head about how I am stretched too thin and my busy schedule doesn't allow me to be my best at anything.  I thought, "Would this be a good blog post?  My crazy, busy life...woe is me!" 

Then, I stopped for a second and thought about other blogs I have read with similar posts that make me think, "Really?  You life is so busy and crazy that you had time to sit down and write a blog post about it?" 

I quickly came back to reality and realized how dramatic my initial thought was in the heat of the moment.  I just wanted to let you know I am so glad I saved you from a long, droning post about my crazy life that is no different than any of yours :) 

CHEERS to all of us busy ladies out there!  Multi-tasking is what we do best!

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Braveheart

Everyone told me that during labor I would be so tired/in so much pain that I wouldn't feel embarrassed.  FALSE!  In the back of my head I was thinking "this is mortifying" the entire time.  And to the faceless lady in the room who yelled out "Come on, momma" during my final pushes like we were at a high school pep rally, not cool!  If I could have felt my legs at that moment, I would have gotten up and clocked her. 

This next part will seem totally random, but I PROMISE I have a point...

My husband is obsessed with the movie Braveheart.  We watch on it on all vacations with my in-laws.  He sometimes wakes up in the morning feeling pretty awesome because he dreamt he was William Wallace the night before (painted face and all).  We joked (well, I joked and THINK he was joking) if L would have been a boy, her name would be William Wallace.  In his head if you have a Scottish accent, you are instantly awesome. 

Well, having already experienced all of the awkwardness that goes into the childbirth experience, we were dreading the lactation consultant coming in to basically feel me up.  Low and behold, she had a Scottish accent!  To my husband, it didn't matter how many times she said, "gotta make sure the baby is gettin' the groceries" as she was squeezing my boob, she had achieved William Wallace status the second she opened her mouth.  During a very long speech about nursing, she informed us we needed to track all feedings, wet diapers, and "poopie" diapers on a sheet of paper.  This is a task typically assigned to the dad in the hospital since mom is still moving slow.  Here is a picture of our log to give you an idea.

 

Doesn't really seem like the best system, does it?  I recently learned about a new app, Baby Connect, created just for this purpose.

At a price of $4.99, I think it is well worth it!  I would have loved to known about this last November.  If you are expecting, go ahead and download it on your baby's daddy's phone to be one step ahead before heading to the hospital.  Be sure to forward this on to him!  You can synchronize it to other phones as well  when mom is feeling more up to the tracking task.

In the words of Braveheart, FREEEEDOM!!!!   This app will give you the freedom from keeping manual logs that leave you more confused than not.

***Keeping it Simple sidenote***Someone recently asked me about the Itzbeen (around $20).

It sounds like basically the same idea as the app, but all the timers seem complicated to me and a bit unnecessary.  I like the app better because it is not an additional electronic to carry around along with your baby monitor and phone, it is cheaper, and I have heard it is very simple to use.  Feel free to pipe in if you have used either and have a strong opinion.

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