Mommy Monday: Baby Gear Selections

My husband and I got serious about our baby registries this weekend. We also decided, seeing as though this babe could join us in as little as eight weeks (ahhhh!!!!) to pick up some essentials. Elephant book ends and jungle rugs are cute, but maybe we should have a car seat in case he arrives early, ya know?!

We went to Pottery Barn Kids, Target and Babies R Us for a variety of price ranges, styles and brands.

The. Process. Was. Overwhelming.

There are no fewer than 50 options for something as simple as diaper wipes. Did we want natural? Organic? Fresh scent? Natural and organic with a fresh scent?! There are baby swings that vibrate. Baby swings that rock. Baby swings with additional toys attached. Or would you like the vibration/swing combo, but pay extra for the attached teething ring? Don't even get me started on how many varieties of nipple pads there are for breastfeeding mothers.  I mean, all I want is to not have milk stains on my bras and shirts, please!

At one point, we both looked at each other in near defeat, my husband pulling out his iPhone to look up product reviews as he saw my eyes tearing up. He consistently performs better under pressure than I do. While he remains rational, I contemplate knocking over displays when there are just simply too many choices (should I use my purse or my fist to mess this $&*! up?) I must make a face as I contemplate my frustrated destruction, because he immediately snaps into logical, rational action right as I get a solid grip on my purse for maximum effect!

Because when you don't know what your nipples will need, the most logical thing is to tear the store to shreds, y'all.

I don't understand why anyone needs SO. MUCH. STUFF. It's a baby! He'll need diapers, something to keep him warm, and consistent access to my chest. Why do people like having their entire homes run over with baby gear?! I'm a minimalist by nature (working on promoting these good habits in my husband...) and am not attached to "stuff." Therefore, our baby registry has 29 items of what we deemed were "essentials, nice-to-haves and wants" on it. Yes, all three categories covered in 29 items.

Like I mentioned, we did get our act together and actually make some purchases in addition to the registry creation. The thing we purchased that I'm really excited about is this car seat/stroller combo (see the car seat here - I couldn't for the life of me find a link to the system we bought. It's the Graco SnugRide Click Connect 35 transport system). It's amazingly light weight (I can pick up the stroller with one finger!) and everything clicks into and out of place. I plan on keeping the stroller in my trunk so I always have it while I run errands, the car seat base in my backseat and simply move baby around in the lightweight carrier. (I know, I know, "plans" are always great. I'll post an update  after he arrives to see if my plans were on par with reality!)

 

Graco ultra lightweight car seat and stroller

Graco has some of the best safety ratings in the industry, so we feel good about making this purchase. After baby boy outgrows the seat (he can use it up to 35 pounds) the stroller will still be functional to cart him around in. In fact, I even sat in it, to my husband's amusement or embarrassment (jury is still out...) and lemmetellya, I'm a bit more than the max weight this system reportedly supports so we'll easily get a few years of use out of this. I really like the fact that we were able to make "two purchases in one" with this system, that the car seat is so versatile it works with other stroller systems (we also picked up a BOB running stroller since we're both-big time outdoor runners - the car seat snaps right into it!), and that we can keep using it as baby boy grows.

Yay to a legitimate, simplified baby purchase!

All three baby transport items: Bob running stroller, Graco lightweight stroller and car set

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High Five for Friday!

Many of my favorite blogs do something called "High Five for Friday" where they recap five of their favorite things that happened during the week. So I'm jumping on the bandwagon, too!

The five greatest moments of the week:
1) Um, hello? I launched this blog! I futzed with the design for a good while, and finally decided that it didn't absolutely need to be perfect before I published the site. Also? I learned how to publish a site!

2) I was able to go shopping with a good friend, who is a teacher on spring break, and started making some headway on our nursery. Not only was it a blast to get out of the house, shop and have lunch with my girlfriend (which, upon quitting my job, was something that I thought I would have a lot more time to do... Not so!) but it's really fun to see my vision come together for our future baby boy!

Close-up of the elephant book ends I purchased for our jungle themed nursery

3) I chopped off FOUR INCHES of hair! I realize guys don't understand the significance of this feat, but ladies, I know you get me. While I love long hair on some people, especially you lovely ladies that have thick hair, I can't pull it off. Mid-length is about the longest I can go before I just have a scraggly, sad pony tail. The results of my stylist's chopping (and curling) skills:

Selfie after my cut and headshot photo's

4) I had my gestational diabetes test and 27 week checkup with my midwives on Wednesday. Upon drinking my "orange drink", baby boy started to straight up BOX my small intestine, so I think he liked it even less than I did! We'll get the test results back soon, but the midwife did manage to make my ENTIRE WEEK. Yeah, the whole thing. As she pulled up my shirt to squeeze that gel stuff  all over my belly for the Doppler machine to get baby's heartbeat, she exclaimed, "You have the cutest pregnant tummy! It's all baby. It's the shape that will go back to your pre-pregnant shape right away! I can tell you work out, you look simply fantastic."

Now, she may very well tell all her patients this to make them feel good, and that's a-ok with me. But she said it to me, and made me feel good about all the workouts I've been keeping up with while preggo and reinforced the results I'm hopeful for after baby, so HIGH FRIGGIN FIVE to her!

5) "Mommy Monday" has been, by far, my most visited/viewed post. That makes me so excited, because it's also my favorite post to write/create and the bulk of my content surrounds mama's and pregnancy, so I'm happy it's popular with y'all, too. Expect a great mommy post on Monday! If you need some entertainment before then, this twitter handle is HILARIOUS.

Happy Weekend readers! I hope you're all enjoying spring (spring has sprung in Dallas, but if you're further north, I hope it's improving for you) and will enjoy some time with your loved ones this weekend. See ya next week when I'm officially in my third trimester!

Interior Design: Sneak Peek!

My husband and I moved just about three weeks ago. We had been in a town home that our re-locator had helped us pick out when we first moved to Dallas; it was in a fantastic location, but was a two bedroom with a very small den. When we found out we were expecting, it was obvious that two bedrooms wouldn't suffice, as my mom quickly pointed out, "Where will grandma stay?!"

So we found a one level, 1950's era (that is straight up historic for Dallas!) rambler in another great neighborhood, close to White Rock Lake.  I mean, take two Minnesotan transplants who also happen to be big outdoor runners, put 'em by a lake, and they're happy campers, so this house was a no-brainer.

The recent move means that in addition to a nursery, I have a whole house to decorate! My husband and I didn't live together before we got engaged, so we both had accumulated all the necessary items a household needs to function, then blended them. We're slowing in the process of getting rid of our "blended singles" household and creating a "couples" household where we make purchases together.

My style is romantic, shabby-chic while his is ultra modern. So. That's interesting.

The nursery is, in fact, our first room where we're starting completely from scratch and buying everything together. We didn't really get a start on anything until I was already about 24 weeks pregnant, so you may notice we haven't made too much progress... But, we're workin' on it.

Ladies and gents, a sneak peek what we have so far:

We know that we're expecting a boy, but since this is our first and we hope to be able to add more to the pack in the future, I wanted to keep things fairly gender-neutral. So I went with a "jungle theme" and am highlighting soft blues, greens and neutrals. I think it's important to have the nursery be a CALMING space, for both baby and frankly for me - those late night feedings are going to need all the zen they can get, amiright - so I would never want bright oranges and blues, or go the hot pink and animal print route... I feel like I get 18% more agitated just THINKING about "those looks" and I don't have a screaming baby who's trying to gnaw off my nipples yet.

Item details:
1) Upper right hand photo: Metallic elephant book ends, in brushed silver and gold. The crib we ordered is a brushed pewter (we also ordered the matching changing table), and these will help highlight the shine throughout the room. The basket will likely function as a laundry hamper for the first few months of his life, and potentially transition to toy storage as he grows.

2) Upper left hand photo: I DIED when I saw this rug and bedding set. In fact, it's why there's a jungle theme in the room! We also ordered the bedding, which is all ready for when the crib arrives.

3) Lower photo: I ordered really a really cute set of four jungle nursery prints, which resemble the animals on the rug and have a dark grey chevron background (which will pop out, yet still have the "calm" effect with the grey-blue color of the wall). I wanted something to bring the green element into the prints, and found these frames. Alternating green and white will bring in some dimensional color, and also tie in the white woodwork found in the room.

Since I feel good about making some progress in the nursery this week, I'm working on a project for the living room and hope to share details soon!

The Thing About Whole Foods

For me, Whole Foods (as in, the grocery store, not the "eating whole food" concept) was extremely hit or miss in the beginning.

Moving to Dallas from the fittest city in America was an adjustment in more than one way. See, I thought Target stores across the country carried natural and organic items as products and ways of life that were ingrained in the store as much as in the culture of the people that store represented. For example, you didn't go to the "natural foods aisle" to find your cereal - you went to the cereal aisle, and found your organic, non corn-derivative sweetener selections there.

Upon my first trip out in Dallas, I learned that this was indeed NOT the case. First, Target's don't have full service grocery stores nationwide. Second, Tom Thumb isn't just a convenience store, it IS a full service grocery store. Ha! Imagine that. Lastly, there was not even one small aisle dedicated to "health(ier) foods" to be found in said Tom Thumb. To avoid gaining ten extra pounds simply from eating the sugar-laden garbage these southern stores were selling, I quickly learned that shopping at Whole Foods was a must in Texas.

My husband's response upon learning that we would now exclusively be shopping at WholePaycheck Foods, "Jeez, this is going to get expensive quickly..." And that was the first and last comment he made. He's such a trooper for indulging me in all my healthy endeavors! 

What I love and hate about Whole Foods is that they don't sell the brands of food items that American's know well. Now, I'm a cold cereal connoisseur, y'all. LOVE ME some cold morning crunch! As such, I've developed my fave and go-to brands. Clearly, none of them could be found at my new shopping locale of choice. So I started to experiment with new brands. This is how I met my new girl, Barbara.

Make no mistake, I suffered through numerous bowls of chewy, flavorless, fiber filled cardboard before I found her. I could be found in my slippers and bathrobe prior to 7am at the kitchen counter, desperately squeezing half a bottle of raw honey over tasteless flakes of *some kind* of whole grain, chasing it down with sips of coffee. Ohhh, the price we pay in attempts to eat healthy! (No, like, really. This stuff is expensive. $6 a box for something that doesn't even taste good? Say whaaa??)

But, lemmetellya, Barbara knows how to make some tasty stuff! It's got a decent amount of protein in it, LOADS of fiber and even bigger loads of whole grains. It doesn't taste like the box it comes in. It also doesn't taste like you just consumed your weight in grams of sugar, nor like you consumed your age in chemicals you can't pronounce. Winner winner chicken dinner!

I know Whole Foods is expensive, and even more so when you're learning your way around the store, selecting new brands to replace the old (and far less healthy - although that's NOT to say that everything in WF is healthy!) brands. It can be extremely frustrating to pay through-the-roof prices for things you end up not even liking. Trust me, making healthier choices IS WORTH IT in the end. And you won't regret picking up a box of the new girl in town, Barbara! Mmmmm, happy eating!

*I couldn't find a product link for this cereal. It can be found at Whole Foods markets in Dallas/North Texas, and I hope it's available for purchase in your area too!

Simplistic Skin Care

For about as long as I can remember, my skin has been more or less a mess. I should correct myself, the skin on my face has been a wreck; my body skin has been fantastic - staying moisturized, holding a great tan and sheen, I could continue but in efforts not to seem overly-pompous, I'll stop there - but my face? Small breakouts all over my forehead, large and inconsistent blemishes on my cheeks, large pores on my nose, and then extremely dry (think globs of skin flaking off!) along my jaw bone.

When I was 25 years old, my sister moved back to Minneapolis (our hometown) from the east coast and we rented a condo together. Now, she was one of those "all organic" types. I'm talking Toms toothpaste, Moroccan oil hair products long before they became trendy, you get the picture. I turned my nose up at all the stuff she used (after mistakenly grabbing said toothpaste early one morning... Wow that stuff has a different taste than neon-dyed and sugar-filled Crest!) and rudely asked her, "Does that stuff even work, you hippie?!" 

Fast forward four years. She's back on the east coast, I'm down in Dallas, and wouldn't you know, I'm pregnant. I had been using an aggressive skin care regimen from a department store, high end brand catering to women with sensitive skin. It was absolutely FULL of chemicals I couldn't pronounce. My skin was acting crazier than ever. I had just finished reading an article on the potential hazards of acne treatments while pregnant.

So what do I do? I gchat my sis' for all natural answers! "Uh, hey! So, what do you use on your breakouts? I mean, wait - do you even get breakouts? Like, ever? Your skin is always flawless..."

"I do!" she replied. First, after all the crap I gave her during the two years we lived together about being a "natural hippy" I'm shocked she even wanted to engage in this conversation, but thankfully she did, and I'm SO THANKFUL that she recommended Burt's Bees Acne Spot Treatment.

This stuff is simply ahh-maze-zing! It took me a few more weeks of pregnancy breakout hell before I gave in and purchased it (you can find it everywhere, from Target to CVS to Whole Foods). Overnight, and I mean overnight y'all, my poor hormonal skin saw significant redness reduction and the breakouts that were there started to dry up. But not like they did when I used "that other brand" of product. No, rather like this product was enabling my skin to repair itself!

If you're pregnant, struggling with problematic skin, have occasional breakouts or just want something on hand for an emergency situation, I could not recommend this more! There's no burning, no irritation, it uses all natural oils, and smells fantastic. Just roll it over your problem area - I do it in the morning after my shower and before bed.

As it would turn out, my "hippie sister" wasn't so cray cray. In fact, she was just years and years ahead of the crowd, paving the way for slow folks like me to finally realize how much better these products 1) are for you, your skin and, you know, the planet and 2) organic and natural products DO work!

*The opinions expressed in this article are fully my own, and I'm in no way being compensated by Burt's Bees either monetarily or via gifted product.

"Mommy Monday"

Something I enjoy as I sip my morning coffee and check out all the blogs I regularly follow is "themed days." Now, when I first hear themed-anything, I think about those dreadful days in high school when you dressed up to show your school spirit. Remember those?! Jeez, I disliked those! And as a cheerleader, I had to not only participate fully in them (bell bottoms for '70's day! Get your tie-dye on!) but I also had to pretend that I loved it. Woof.

Okay, so not like *those* days. But if you would like to get dressed up in the comfort of your own home, protected by the anonymity of your laptop, gon'gititnaw.

Rather, more like a day of the week that has content that is specifically focused in one area. When I thought about creating a theme that appealed to many, it struck me just how many of my friends and family are in the process of expanding their families. I don't mean to get all statistical on you, dear reader, but no fewer than 80 to 85% of folks I know are either TTC, in a various week of their pregnancy, due any minute, or have had a baby in the last year or two. That's a fact, right there. Thus, I arrived at the theme, "Mommy Mondays" to talk about all things mama-related. Fellas, don't run away just yet! I know I'll have some content that will amuse you, too.

The week we found out we were pregnant (and we found out rightwaway) I started taking a weekly belly shot of myself. In the beginning, I tried to push that tummy out as far as it would hang, comparing the currant shot against last week, looking for any signs of a bump! At 27 weeks, no pushing of anything is necessary. In fact, I look back at those first trimester pictures and long, no - YEARN - for the days when I didn't have trouble rolling over in bed or getting my shoes on! Just like I'm confident that, in another ten weeks when I'm full-term, I'll long for these "comfortable remaining days" of  my second trimester.

(Umm, oooookay, quick side note: Whoever said that any part of pregnancy was comfortable for any length time was lying. If you had or are having a great time, consider yourself INSANELY lucky! To all my other mamas, I hear ya, sister. Man-ohhhhhhhh-man, Ihearya!)

So, in celebration of the last week of my second trimester, ladies and gents (although, by this point in my post, let's get real, it's probably just ladies), Ze Bebe Bump! I included one of my early shots for growth reference. Yes, I fully realize I'm publicly posting the fact that I'm 29 years old and wearing Victoria's Secret PINK pants. And I'm publicly going to give that company a HIGH FIVE for creating fitted comfies and yoga pants for tall women. In fact, my mom even wears this brand regularly now. Boom.

(Final note: it's also fun to watch how my nails changed over the seasons! There's a nice vampy-grey, as the six week mark was in mid-October and a light pink, as March is spring in Texas)

6 Week "Bump"

27 Week BUMP