It is so funny that when we become parents, the things that we find so fascinating are so much different than before.  Take for instance my day today.  I was so thrilled and proud because my 4 month old daughter rolled over for the first time.  She has been so close the last few times I had her on the floor and tonight she finally did it.  It is just amazing to watch something so unique and beautiful grow before your very eyes.  This brings me to my product pick for this time.  It is a book that takes you through the different stages of development of your child.  It is called “What To Expect The First Year”.  I’m sure alot of you know its counterpart “What To Expect When You’re Expecting”.  Both of these provide some great reading and lots of information.  Check it out under the shopping page. 

My feature topic this time is all about breastfeeding.  Please find my picks for great products related to this subject under the shopping section.  Most doctors and healthcare professionals believe that breast is best when it comes to feeding your baby.  While not everyone is able to breastfeed, if you can, it is beneficial to at least attempt it.  But, my suggestion is to at least wait until you know if you will even have breast milk come in before buying a good breastpump, as some of the better ones can get costly.  My pick is the Medela Pump in Style Original (this is the one I purchased 2 years ago and still works great).  There are other variations to this style of pump, such as the Pump in Style Advanced.  There are slight variations among the styles, you just have to decide if the little “extras” (maybe an extra accessory, different style of carrying case, or one more button or mode) are worth the jump in price difference.  I personally am satisfied with what I have and did not feel it was worth the extra money for such slight differences.  All in all, the Medela line of products are a great buy, even if they are a little more than what you might want to spend.  I am a firm believer in “you get what you pay for”, and I did, which is wonderful.   

While I like to live in the present, I am also the type to plan for the future…especially now that it involves the future of my children.  I think I am like most parents when I say that I would love nothing more than to see my kids go off to college and become successful at whatever they choose to do.  But, let’s face it, college ( a good one!) is not exactly cheap.  And, every little bit towards college would help right?  So I invite you to check out Upromise.  Upromise is a free service, and by adding your credit, debit or grocery card means that you can begin saving money for college every time you shop at participating retailers.  When you dine out at any of over 8,000 participating restaurants, you can earn up to 8% of your bill in college savings rewards!  Sign up today and start saving…it’s never to early. 

Congratulations to the Giants for the well deserved win in SuperBowl XLII!  A good football game is one of my favorite ways to spend a family day on Sundays. While I am usually a Steelers fan, you can’t help but love those Manning brothers.  Whatever will I do with my time now that the season is over?  I guess all of the reality shows will keep me wanting more.  Until next season NFL fans! 

The nice thing about decorating a nursery is there are so many adorable themes and sets to choose from - and some universal in the fact that you can use them for a boy or girl, and you can often interchange accessories between sets. I wish I would have seen this more girly version when I was shopping, however new products come out and replace others often.  Anyway, I bought the bedding from one theme and then just intermixed the accessories from others.  But, when decorating the nursery, consider this (as I have recently experienced):  Think twice about putting a cute border up - or at least where you put it.  We chose a custom natural color chair rail for the wall and right above that we placed a nice border; and of course the crib is against the wall.  My daughter must be really intrigued by this because in recent months she has decided to “pick” at it. I thought, no problem, I will just fix the surface tears and it will look as good as new.  Too late!  Now she has decided to just plain “rip” the border off.  Now, I think I am just going to remove it since replacing it would just result in the same outcome.  I guess this gives me a little excuse to redecorate!

I was so wrapped up in the fact that my oldest daughter is now occupying her own seat on the airplane that I forgot to mention a few things about traveling with an infant.  Our pediatrician made some recommendations.  First of all, it is best to wait until after 8 weeks of age, the reason for this is you want to wait until they have at least their first series of shots (because out in big public places like an airport they are susceptible to many illnesses).  The next thing that was recommended is that at take off and landing, you want the baby to either be sucking on a pacifier or to be drinking (either from a bottle or nursing).  This helps their little ears with the change in pressure - just like we as adults would chew on a piece of gum or something to make our ears “pop”.  The American Academy of Pediatrics gives a great list of travel tips when traveling with children of different ages.

Well, we are about to embark on our first cross-country plane ride with two kids.  It was pretty easy with just one child when she could just sit in our lap.  Now that our oldest is turning 2, she is required to occupy her own seat.  And, did you know that children 2 and over who are still in a car seat do not have to be in a car seat on the airplane?  You just buckle them in .  I never knew that until recently.  It might be better this way since she might feel less confined and will have a little “wiggle” room.  I am glad that at least we will now have our own row of seats.  There is nothing like having lap children and being cramped in the seat with total strangers and bumping elbows.  Our youngest will be 4 months old soon and will just sit on our lap.  The only downside to our whole trip is the length of the flight.  Can you say portable DVD player, coloring books and lots of snacks? 

Hello and welcome.  If you are priveleged to be the proud parent of one or more children or are parents -to-be, then I invite you to listen in and look around.  I for one know there are many uncertainties that come along with having a baby, not to mention children in general.  I hope I can provide some insight on where to find this or how to deal with that and how does this work.  There is just so much to know and learn but unfortunately, kids don’t come with an owner’s manual and alot of what we experience is trial and error.  Having a good network of friends and family to help out and share stories with is always a good thing.