Stork Stack-january

Have you heard of a stork stack?

It has to be the cutest concept for mothers-to-be out there.

From Stork Stack:

A sweet friend of mine gifted me a 3 month subscription to Stork Stack for Christmas and my birthday this year. Which means, in January, February, and March I get these sweet little boxes on my doorstep with 5 awesome things for me and baby. 

(They also have "Shower Stacks" which make a great gift for moms-to-be in general or for a baby shower.)

They are like little grab bags for moms!

When I was little, mom and dad would take us to the dollar store and let us pick out one item to take home. Among all the other crazy knick knacks the dollar store had, there were these little brown mystery grab bags. One for a girl and one for a boy. They were stapled shut and you had to buy it before you opened it to see what you got. The best part was opening up my little grab bag every time we went....it meant you got more than one thing for a dollar and it was like Christmas every time wondering what I picked out.

Stork Stack is helping me relive my childhood all over again! 

My January stork stack just arrived....

Isn't their packaging so precious?

January's theme is "Happy, Healthy New Year."

The goods:

Wiggle & Move: baby workout book to encourage interaction between mom and baby and to stimulate the senses. 

Sara Haley's Sweat UNLIMITED. Sara is a new mom herself and her DVDs are award winning. Time to lose this baby weight!

Mommy's Bliss Gripe Water.  We actually just started using Gripe water for gas and it works great! It is made of natural ingredients so has to be stored in the fridge to stay fresh. I'm excited to have more.

RaZbaby RaZberry Teether. So far Lucy's not so sure what to do with this teether but has been chewing on her hands a lot--so I think she could be on her way to teething and this little RaZberry pacifier teether is super cute.   

Instagrad. Stork stack donated $10 to start a 529 Savings Plan for your child. It's an online gifting tool that encourages family and friends to contribute to your child's 529 plan. 

I love our Stork Stack and can't wait to see what February will bring! 

Three month favorites

SwaddleMe wrap. After trying to transition Lucy to the crib from her Rock N' Play, she would squirm herself awake every 10 minutes or so. After about 2 days of putting her back to sleep, oh, about a hundred times, I decided to try swaddling her arms down. (She hated this from day one.) She loves her little SwaddleMe wrap and it puts her to sleep beautifully! She feels snug and cozy and her arms don't flail about since they are gently swaddled down with velcro. Now I just have to transition her out of the swaddle...

Sling. My sister has 4 children and has always sworn by "baby wearing." She got me a couple to try, in hopes that I too, could wear my baby. Finally, by month 3 Lucy was big enough to fit in this cute ruffle pink sling. She loves being toted around in it. Anytime I go shopping or even to lunch, if she gets fussy, I put her in the kangaroo pose and she cuddles right in and falls asleep. It's a lifesaver for going out and about with a baby!! Plus this sling has ruffles and so you look adorable while wearing it!

Bumbo. Lucy is now holding her head up! So now she loves sitting in her bumbo like a little grown up. She has actually started to pull herself up to sitting with help, so the Bumbo is excellent for strengthening those little baby tummy muscles. 

Handsfree Pumping Bra. This thing is a lifesaver at work! I zip it on top of my clothes and set up my pump and have both hands free to check work email, make a phone call, etc. This is a must if you are going to pump at work or on any regular basis. Because, lets be serious, who can hold a pump in each hand, and turn the pump on, and push the "Let Down" button and just sit there idly for 20-30 minutes while pumping. Maybe... if you're an octopus. Otherwise, get the bra! Use your pumping time wisely.

Tummy Time Mirror. Lucy is spending more and more time on her tummy, so for Christmas, we got her this Taggies mirror. She loves to look at herself and drool/talk/smile and bite the little green whale on the tail while doing tummy time. She may or may not have opened this mirror early so she could play with it all December long.

Winter hat. I found this great little reindeer hat on Etsy by AngelinasCrafts4U. It's so soft and adorable and put her in the Christmas spirit and it keeps her little baby head super warm. We have gotten lots of compliments on it--most being "did you make that hat?" I wish I could be so talented! 

Books. Part of our bedtime routine is to rock in our glider while reading a book. She loves to look at the pictures while I read. I am amazed that she pays attention this early on! Our favorite books right now are Little Pea, Little Hoot, and Little Owl.

Tommee Tipee Bottles. I will honestly admit I picked these bottles out on our registry because they are marketed to be "Closer to Nature" and in the shape of mom's breast. Made sense to me. So I registered for them.  And they have worked great for us so far! I have read that a lot of moms have to try a bunch of different bottles before their baby will take them, but we have had success since day one. We introduced a bottle at 3 weeks so the hubby could have a chance to feed her, and we gave her about 1 bottle every week after that and didn't seem to have too much nipple confusion, except for maybe a some stand-up nursing sessions that I have had to do more recently. We love these bottles--and they are in pink!

What can't you and your little ones live without at 3 months?

Happy 2013!

Happy New Year from our family to yours! We wish you love and happiness and lots of luck in 2013. {Don't forget to eat your black-eyed peas and collard greens!}

10 on 10: December

I stumbled across a fun little project. It's called 10 on 10 over at a Little bit of Sunshine.  You take 10 photos (1 every hour) on the tenth of each month.

A little snapshot into my day. Happy 10th everyone!

Good morning!

Lucy's fist ornament

Kicking and a punchin.

Tummy time!

waking up from a nap

dog naps.

The little bean burrito.

Lucy's first stocking and my favorite stocking hangar!

cuddles (probably after a nap).

 supper time.

Its amazing how much of my day has that cute little lady in it. And as soon as next week, my day is going to be so different because I'm headed back to work. Oh how I'll miss that little bean burrito.

nursery.

Crib, Nursery Bedding, Blocks & Pendants made by friends, monitor, curtains: Shabby Chic Target

chalkboard frame, shelves, headbands: handmade

Glider: Consignment, Zinc "L", toy basket

mirror, frames, laundry basket :Home Goods, changing table dresser, baskets

End table, lamp: Home Goods

Song of Solomon 4:1 Behold, you are beautiful, my love, behold, you are beautiful! Your eyes are doves behind your veil. Your hair is like a flock of goats leaping down the slopes of Gilead
.

Month 2 Favorites

Lucy is 2 months old! We can't believe it's already been 2 months. The time really does start to fly by as Lucy gets more squirmy, smiley, and has begun sleeping longer stretches through the night. 

Here are our 2 month favorites that we couldn't have lived without over the past month!

1. Bamboobies: super soft washable nursing pads. These are awesome leak proof nursing pads that stay soft against your skin. Bonus ** if you leave one lying around while nursing you will be less embarrassed by bystandars because they are cute little heart shaped pieces of fabric and not weird circle maxi pad looking things (like disposable nursing pads). My sister has renamed these "hooter hearts."

2. Passy's. As I mentioned in my original post, Lucy wasn't interested in passy's the first month. We kept "plugging" away {har har} and finally found her favorite from the Dollar Tree. She now has a new favorite: MAM Pacifiers. These seem to stay in her mouth better while she's taking her naps than the Dollar Tree passy's do. My advice, try them all until you find the one your baby likes! They are a lifesaver in stores, car rides, during immunizations, and general times of fussiness.

3. Play Gym. This is what we spend most of our awake time during the day on. (And by we I mean Lucy.) She loves to swat at the little dangly toys that play music, and there is a mirror and lots of colors for her to look at when she is on her tummy for tummy time!

4. Undercover Mama Nursing Tank.  This tank top clips onto your nursing bra and can be worn under any normal shirts to create a nursing shirt! Let's be honest, nursing tops are frumpy. And terrible. This tank top turns most of your clothes into nursing clothes without your belly getting exposed while nursing in public! (Any stretchy tank top will work too, you just have to be willing to stretch it out and may not be able to wear it again in your post-nursing future.)

5. Costco Kirkland Diapers. My sis-in-law swears by these diapers. And at $31.99 for 216 diapers at Costco {that's $0.15 each} the price is awesome. Plus they come in bulk, because lets be honest, you go through a ridiculous quantity of diapers every week. They work just as well as Huggies or Pampers, and even have the little yellow line that turns blue when they pee for itty bittys.

6. Nursing cover. Cute and awesome for nursing little ones while you are out and about.

7. Passy clip. This was a sweet gift from one of my husbands cousins and it is absolutely adorable. It's personalized and great for traveling and getting out and about with baby. It forever answers the question, "where's her passy?"

8. Swing. I've heard some babies don't like these. But for us, it is a registry must! When Lucy starts to get sleepy and wants us to snuggle/rock/cuddle her and we are cooking or cleaning or trying to be hands-free, we plunk her in the swing and she loves it. She coos and talks to the little birdies in the mobile as they dance around above her head and we use it just about every day. She's only fallen asleep in it about 2 times; however, I have friends who used it exclusively for getting their little one to sleep.

9. Video Monitor. We are just now trying to get little Lucy to take naps in her crib, so that we can eventually get her to sleep in her crib through the night as well. This monitor is awesome because it has a video with night vision where you can keep an eye and ear on baby while she sleeps. You can also spy on your husband when he is up giving a diaper change too, because the controls are on the handheld device. This pose shown in the monitor above is what we call "Roller Coaster Ride." She makes the most awesome poses with her arms while sleeping-and we love being able to catch them on the monitor.

What items could you not live without at two months with your little one?

"Give thanks to the LORD, for he is good. His love endures forever." Psalm 136:1

Thankful

Happy Thanksgiving from our little indian!  

"Give thanks to the LORD, for he is good; his love endures forever." Psalm 107:1