Sleep Warm Safely

When our baby was "new" swaddling at night worked wonders! It kept him all tight and bundled just the way he liked it, and it gave us the peace of mind that he wouldn't get cold. As soon as he figured out the rolling over thing though, swaddling was a habit of the past! He would break out just as soon as we put him in and flip over onto his tummy where he prefers to sleep. The "soft bedding" had to go, but what's a mommy to do when she's concerned that her little shaver will freeze all night? If you want to save on the heating bill this ingenious product is a lifesaver! I call it a "bag" but it's called a sleep sac and who knows what else. All I know is that we use it every night, and I know that my bubby will sleep warmly, and the "blanket" won't come off! For the warmer months we used the Gerber sleep blanket, and now that it's cold we have some that are fleece. I plan on using them up through 24 months when hopefully he'll be about ready for a toddler bed and some real live blankets! You should be able to find these in the blanket section at Babies r Us or Target!

For baby food makers

It's interesting to observe people, don't you think? You've probably noticed that mommies tend to 'fall into' different "types." This is good because we can all learn from each other and get GREAT ideas! There are the mom's who do everything according to the American Association of Pediatrics, and those who make up their own rules. Some mommies are organic all the way and some just break out the hot dogs. :-) Whichever mommy extreme you lean toward or fall between, we all want to be the best mommy our kids need, and the good news is that you are! I personally am not the type that makes all of my baby's food, but I have friends who do and they have great success with it. This tip is for them. A perfect way of storing excess baby food and thereby saving time later is to freeze it in ice-cube trays! Once it's set, you can just dump the cubes all together in a bigger freezer bag and you will have perfect single feeding sized servings whenever you need them! Try it, this is great!

Diaper Changing Desaster

Gone are the dreamy days of diapering where the sweet baby lay content to be changed and the only drama you had to encounter was the occasional “oops.” Now, I believe even an octopus would have trouble. Yep, with the world of mobility comes a very eager explorer and not so cooperative diaper wearer. My son now tries his best to squirm away half clad at any chance he gets. I have discovered some ways to combat this case of the wiggle worms and tears at least long enough to get the dry diaper on and the clothing back in place. Hopefully you will be able to use some of these tips for your own jumping jack.
Get one of those changing pads with raised edges. This will keep the baby from being able to flip quite so fast.
Make the undressing part “fun” When we take the feet out of pants or footsies we blow on the feet and tickle fat thighs.
Use a distracter. I give our baby a wipe to play with or a tube of lotion or even a sock. This usually keeps his hands (and mouth) occupied long enough for me to get the job done. Change up what you give them or it will become ‘old’ and won’t work. NEVER give something dangerous!
Make the redressing just as fun and then have a tickle time away from the changing table to end on a positive note!

Sweetly Sleep (troubleshooting)

Okay, so nothing is perfect all the time. :-) Our baby started "sleeping through the night" at 5 weeks. This (I've been told) is not typical. However we spent the first nearly 4 months of his life traveling. This was not conducive to a schedule, bedtime routine or anything. By the time he was in his 3rd month he was aware enough about what was going on to not want to go to sleep just because he found himself in his bed. We had to work through this whole thing at 4 months. It worked! But since then we've had a few "jags" as I like to call them. Many things can cause this. Traveling is often the culprit because of the mess up in routine, but things like sickness, teething, and "development milestones" can also cause issues in sleep. When he was learning to "pull up" there were a couple nights when our son woke up terrified because he "found" himself standing on the side of his crib and couldn't get down. Ha ha! Kind of funny, but the way to deal with these issues is to go back to the beginning and keep at it. If at all possible when your baby wakes don't pick them up and rock them back to sleep or whatever. Give them kisses and comforting words and place them back in their sleep position and then leave. You may have to go through it for several days again, but they are pretty good about getting back into their routines once it's been established. Keep at it and you'll be so glad you did!

Tip from a Travelin' Mom

This swell travel tip is from Wendy a mommy of a gorgeous little gal!

Hey, one quick tip for traveling! This may not apply to all parents because not everyone travels as much as we do. Being missionaries it has been go go go at times and now that we have a munckin that eats "real food" well, we don't have a microwave in the car! However, this has been rather handy for us! It is a bottle warmer for the car and it is around $10 at Target! It fits bottles and baby food jars (even the homemade food in storage containers!). Hope it helps!

It's a bird... it's a plane....

It's Mighty Mommy!! I have to put in a plug for this great podcast! The Mighty Mommy has 'quick and dirty' tips for mommies. Even better, they are totally practical and did I mention quick? What mommy do you know who has a bunch of time to spend browsing blogs and magazine articles looking for just the right tip to help life run a little smoother with a house full of munchkins? This podcast is a great way to get some creative help on how to run your little kingdom and how to deal with some of the bumps along the way. Not only can you listen to it for FREE! It won't take much of your time. Each segment is short and simple. Here's what you need to do. Go to itunes.com and download it if it's not already on your computer, don't worry it's free too. :-) Next go to the podcast section and then type Mighty Mommy in the search. It's a very popular one so it should be easy to find. You will be able to subscribe to it simply by clicking the "subscribe" button. Next simply add the episodes that look interesting to you. Once it's on your computer you can listen to it straight from there OR put it on your iPod, which every mommy needs, by the way. That way you can take it on the go and get mommy inspiration while working out, pushing the stroller, or mopping! Another cool thing about the Mighty Mommy is that you can write in with your own questions or kid issues and chances are if they haven't already been addressed they will be in a future episode. Happy listening!

Mommy Moments

Mommy Moments is what we live for. Remember to enjoy each day as they are filled with moments worth having.
This is from Jordan, mommy to 2 beautiful boys!

Overheard from the kitchen....

"Here Wool (translates as Will), you want this toy?"
Will's chirpy little voice, "Tank-tou." (His version of thank you.)
"Mommy!" Marc Anthony squeals, "Did Wool say thank you?"
"Yes, I think so," I call from the kitchen.
"Awwww. You welcome, Wool!"
Then: "What a sweet brover!"

Precious.

The other day I was working in the kitchen (yes, again. What can I say? I spend my life there!), when Will came looking for me. He wrapped his fat arms around my leg, rested his cheek against me, and chirped, "Mama. Wuv oo." I love you! Clear as could be! Tears came to my eyes and I picked him up in a tight squeeze. "I love you too, Will."

These days are full and exhausting...and I'm having the time of my life!