Holiday stuff Posts

10 Things I Had Forgotten About Having a Newborn

The kids meeting Kaia for the first time at the hospital 3/31/13

So I casually forgot to mention that I had a baby.

I have been on self-imposed hiatus because I needed to focus on my business and step back from doing things that were tremendous time suckers! I do love to write and share my random thoughts with you, though… and having a newborn (Miss Kaia Jordyn – born 3/31/13) is just perfect inspiration for blogging.

Each day, I am faced with something that reminds me how much I forgot in the three years since having a newborn. Here are my current Top 10:

1. My baby smells amazing and only bathes once every 3-4 days. I bathe daily and smell like a mixture of Eau de Spit Up, sour breastmilk, poop and some other unrecognizable scent that I’m praying only I can detect.

2. At first, babies sleep like 22 hours a day. Then 18. Then 14… and so on. If you’re lucky, this goes on for blissful weeks on end. Yet it’s always this grandiose surprise when one day you’re feeding the baby and then you are wondering why the hell she won’t fall asleep immediately and she looks at you like WTF are you doing with the lights off, rocking and shushing me? Let’s party!

3. The 5 S’s from Dr. Harvey Karp’s The Happiest Baby on the Block still work to calm the crying – and the Miracle Blanket is truly a miracle. You may disagree, but if you’re trying to calm your baby and nothing will work, humor me and try doing these 5 things simultaneously (that’s the key word):

Swaddling: Tight swaddling provides the continuous touching and support your baby is used to experiencing within the womb. I use the Miracle Blanket.
Side/Stomach position: The infant is placed on their left side to assist in digestion, or on their stomach to provide reassuring support. “But never use the stomach position for putting your baby to sleep,” cautions Karp. Sudden Infant Death Syndrome (SIDS) is linked to stomach-down sleep positions.
Shushing sounds: These imitate the continual whooshing sound made by the blood flowing through arteries near the womb.
Swinging: Newborns are used to the swinging motions within their mother’s womb, so entering the gravity driven world of the outside is like a sailor adapting to land after nine months at sea. “It’s disorienting and unnatural,” says Karp. Rocking, car rides, and other swinging movements all can help.
Sucking: “Sucking has its effects deep within the nervous system,” notes Karp, “and triggers the calming reflex and releases natural chemicals within the brain.”

4. The baby makes terrifying sounds like she’s dying. The grunts and choking noises have me rushing to her like she has a pinecone lodged in her throat. Of course it’s all normal, but every time she chokes on her spit up, I’m sure she will need medical intervention. Then when she’s quiet, I worry that she actually DID choke and I did nothing about it.

5. The “EEEE ER EEEE ER” sound of the breast pump and how I immediately transform from human to cow.

6. The ability to simultaneously smile and fart is cute when it’s the baby and not your husband.

7. Newborn babies are very squishy, curled up and alien-looking and this stage does not last long. They do this eye blinking thing, “O” face and tongue thrust that is so very cute. They are the best cuddlers EVER! These days are fleeting. Since she is not my first or even my second but my very last baby, every milestone hit is both a celebration and a goodbye. The newborn-sized clothes have made way for 0-3 and we just graduated from N diapers to Size 1. Sob.

8. YAY – the baby just fell asleep! You now have a nice stretch of time to unload the dishwasher and watch an episode of The Office. You gently put her down in some amazingly comfy apparatus so you can eat dinner. Wrong, moron! Why did you put her down? You can’t put a baby down. And you can’t eat dinner. Just so dumb of you. Now you have a 45 minute torturous road ahead before she’s asleep again and you will be eating dinner leaning sideways with one hand like you should have done in the first place.

9. The black hole called Morning. I get up in the middle of the night and then again at 6:30 with the kids and somehow get them out the door for school. Then some weird spell is cast over me and I turn around and see that the clock says 11:45 am and I realize that I have been sucked into the black hole yet again.

10. How amazing it is to stare at this beautiful life you created who depends on you for everything – and how happy you are to oblige. How it makes you feel both invincible and helpless… all-knowing yet not having the answers… flawed, stretch-marked and imperfect yet somehow more beautiful than you’ve felt in a long time.

Happy Mother’s Day to all of you Moms and soon-to-be Moms out there!

A special thank you to my husband for being the most amazing Daddy that three kids could ever wish to have. I am constantly in awe of how lucky we are. You are a Daddy with many hats – protector, coach, playmate and entertainer. Thank you for how present you are in our children’s lives.

Posted by Dani in Babies, Holiday stuff, Parenting and tagged with 5 S's, babies, Mother's Day, things i forgot about having a newborn

Happy New Year! Remember to enjoy the MOMENTS…

Posted by Dani in Holiday stuff

Happy Hanukkah To Those Who Celebrate!

Posted by Dani in Holiday stuff

Happy Independence Day!

Posted by Dani in Holiday stuff

The Gifts of Motherhood

Dear Family,

Thank you so much for your beautiful gifts.

Ry – I loved the foam teapot thingy that you couldn’t wait for me to open when you brought it home Friday from school.

It’s a little hot for tea and I look slightly drunk in the photo, but I’ll let it slide. It’s the thought that counts and I really, truly love this crap. I can’t wait for handmade pottery bowls, cotton ball stuffed pillows and wooden bird feeders. Seriously.

Lex - I love your beautiful artwork. I can tell when you think of me, you think of bright, cheery colors, lots of love and a feeling of security. How sweet and thoughtful of you! Ryan said it’s “Scribble Scrabble” and you did it in two seconds. I’ll pretend I didn’t hear him.

Cory – I adore my store-bought gifts but my favorite was the one you didn’t buy. When you took the kids to Ryan’s 9am soccer game and let me sleep until 11. Then you came home exhausted and complaining that it was horrible and that Lexi cried the whole time, you tried everything and hardly got to see Ryan play. I love when this happens. Not because you had a sucky morning but because you got another glimpse into why I sometimes shout ”I’m DONE” when you walk through the door at night. Or why there is alcohol in my adult sippy cup.

You also made a mean BBQ. Your little helpers were very cute.

As much as I didn’t lift a finger today, I did get a nice surprise that reminded me that tomorrow is Monday, and my free ride is coming to an end. Over the past two months, Lexi developed an interesting habit that helps prepare her for a visit to the potty. This is how I found her 40 minutes after she was tucked in:

Look, Ma! Everything is out of the crib! I’m hilarious, no?

We didn’t have any clean zip-up pajamas that she could wear backwards to stop her from stripping (her awesome new-ish habit), so we taped her diaper tabs instead. Obviously, it didn’t hinder her at all and she succeeded in winning a trip to the potty – her favorite place to visit.

Of course she had to grab her sunglasses along the way. When walking across the hall to the potty, you must always look your best.

Oh, these faces. I love them. Kids, I am sooooooooo lucky to be your Mommy. You fill my life with joy, laughter and a mile of crazy.

Thank you for today and every day!

Love, Me

Posted by Dani in Holiday stuff, Parenting and tagged with Homemade Mother's Day gifts, Mother's Day 2012, potty training 2 year old, toddler takes off diaper in crib

Leaping, Sleeping, Gymming, Pinning and Stripping…

Happy Leap Day!

I love random, nonsensical reasons to celebrate anything. Something that only happens once every four years is a good excuse for a worldwide party, no? I’m hoping to run into Leap Day William and trade my tears for candy. I could really use a Twix. Bonus points to 30 Rock for starting a trend if people show up at work in yellow and blue. Let me know, K?

LEAP!

Speaking of my love for chocolate, I joined a new gym a couple of weeks ago and it’s life-changing. First of all, I had to write up a financial proposal for Cory to prove that joining a gym - even though we have thousands of dollars in gym equipment in our house – would make sense. (To make it work, I decided to cancel one of Lexi’s expensive weekly classes since she already has three, put some money from my business into it and cut out my Zulily spending. Easy.) I’ve had my eye on this place ever since they opened and a salesperson called-slash-stalked me weekly but it didn’t make sense considering we had a home gym. Fast-forward a year and I’m searching, begging, grasping for some “me-time”, a good go-to place on weekends when there aren’t any Birthday parties and a new source of motivation to get fit. Enter Gym Heaven.

I’ve seen many failed attempts at indoor play spaces that cater to Moms who need some alone time where there is a cafe, some gym equipment and a hair salon. This is different. This isn’t mainly a playspace with some adult stuff thrown in. This is first and foremost a gym. But what makes it more than a gym is that it’s built for the family. The imposing building welcomes me with open arms, takes my children and gives me the gift of time. Unlike my previous gym when I lived in Queens, the child care center is more than a room with a TV. It has a dozen computers pre-loaded with age-appropriate games for children. Climbing equipment. A basketball court. The ability to go outside in the warmer months. A toddler room with parachute and bubble time. A friendly and courteous staff that doesn’t page you at your child’s first whimper but does everything they can to distract and entertain said child so that you can complete your yoga class in peace.

You never have to wait for a machine. There are classes to fit your every interest. A cafe that serves mostly natural and healthful foods as part of an expansive menu. Two indoor pools. Two outdoor pools. Basketball courts. A rock climbing center. A spa and salon. Sauna. Steam. A family changing room. Roomy lockers. Things to do. Things to buy. Things that make your kids actually WANT you to go to the gym. And it’s open 24 hours a day! Cory and I recently spent a Friday night working out, then got the kids for dinner at the cafe and then went swimming together. You can spend forever in this place. It is exactly what this Mommy-who-doesn’t-have-a-nanny-or-babysitter needs to breathe a mental sigh of relief. Lifetime Fitness, if you’re reading this, I would like to star in your next commercial. Your facility is a win-win for my family and so far worth every penny.

LEAP!

My daughter has taken to stripping. The other night after Cory put her to bed, she stripped off her zip-up one-piece Dora pajamas, peed on her mattress and called Cory in to show him her diaper in one hand and her pajamas in the other. It was hard for him to be mad at that cute little naked girl who looked so proud but after changing the sheets and putting her back to bed, she gave an encore performance for me! After changing the sheets again, I put her in two-piece pajamas. For some reason, she’s not a fan of taking those off. I silently prayed she wouldn’t do a threepeat because I was down to one clean sheet.

LEAP!

I joined Pinterest, the online pinboard where people share theme-based images with others such a recipes, products, craft ideas and anything else visually appealing that would make up an All-Star Web Scrapbook of sorts. Someone suggested I get in on the frenzy because it would be good for business. So far, it has proven to be yet another way for me to waste valuable time. It’s amazing how many times I turn on the computer with the intent to do one thing, and I end up lost in the internet abyss, eons away from where I wanted to be. Ever go onto the computer to look up supplies for your business but your homepage is CNN.com where you see the latest headlines and after reading a few articles, the recommended stories at the bottom take you to Site B and you somehow end up on People.com reading about the latest divorce when your phone dings and it’s Facebook – forcing you to look at a status update and when you finish you see a friend posting about their cat finishing the NY Marathon and you end up “liking” ridiculous stuff that you don’t even care about?

Damn you, social media!

LEAP!

Ryan gets what I call “crazy eyes” when he’s overtired. Either he’s still not recovered from our Florida trip or he’s been eating way too much sugar. He gets a good amount of sleep but by 4pm each day, he’s throwing himself on the floor, spewing crazy nonsense and generally looking like a possessed demon. Aside from the crazy eyes, I can tell he’s done when he goes World War 3 over the dumbest thing. The other day we had a playdate where Ryan was able to participate in his friend’s soccer class. To get to this class, you have to take an elevator to the building’s Lower Level. Ryan wanted to press the elevator button on the way down but didn’t get to it first. When it came time to go return to the parking lot, he was upset when someone else got to the button before him again. He refused to say goodbye to his friend and then burst into tears in the car. His chief complaint? The button was square and he had never and will never see a button like that again. NEVER! When I say the crying turned to sobbing and then wailing, it was like someone had died. I didn’t know how to stop it. Even Lexi was trying to hold his hand and kept repeating, “Okay…okay…” He wouldn’t let go of the ridiculous elevator button scene. He begged me to turn the car around and go back so he could touch it. He was choking on his loud, uncontrollable sobs. I said to him I have never seen him so tired and upset over something like this. It’s a FREAKING SQUARE ELEVATOR BUTTON for G-d’s sake! Who cares?!?!? Apparently, Ryan cared. Waaaaayyyyy too much. Suddenly I suggested something he hadn’t done in two years – take a freaking nap! He balked at the idea – “napping is boring – I can’t see when I nap!” and “napping is for babies” – but ten minutes later I turn around and the impossible happened…

On that note, I think I’ll get some shut-eye as well. Enjoy your Leap Day, all!

Posted by Dani in Holiday stuff, Randomness that doesn't fit into a category and tagged with 30 Rock, gym heaven, Leap Day, Leap Day William, Lifetime Fitness, my daughter is a stripper, People.com, Pinterest, social media

Postcards from Florida

Got back a couple of days ago from Miami. Cory has a conference down there every year at this time and I’ve been going with him and the kid(s) since 2008. The weather was amazing and I got to do lots of outdoor activities with the kids – zoo, beach, pool, museums… you name it. My in-laws also came down during the week, which was great. Since this has been our yearly getaway without having any other real vacation over the past few years, my expectations are always higher than they should be. Like for some reason I think the kids will sleep late, sit on a lounge chair while I tan, behave beautifully at restaurants when it’s way past their bedtime and sit quietly in the car awaiting our destination. Obviously these expectations were not met. Anyhow, it was great to feel the sun on our skin, to run around and get sweaty and feel the sand under our feet. At the end of the day we were truly exhausted and glad to hit the cool, freshly laundered sheets. It was great to wear summer clothing, frequent frozen yogurt shops up and down US1, apply tropical-smelling sunblock and drive our rented SUV with the windows down.

Since it’s hard for me to be eternally joyful and positive, I just had a few complaints, which I saved on the Notepad section of my iPhone as postcards from Florida. No biggie. Just in case you missed my whining, these are the 4 postcards I wanted to share with you, my lovely readers:

1. To the lovely, hospitable host company – do you think the conference could be moved from Valentine’s Week to Presidents’ Week aka February break? I mean, I pull my kid out of school when he’s usually there all day long for a week of fun in the sun with Mommy and then you expect me to entertain him for ANOTHER whole week on top of that? I know I signed up for this parenting thing, but school is what some of us look to when our entertainment value expires. Looking towards the future, if you could coordinate your conference to coincide with this school break, I’d be eternally grateful.

2. To Mother Nature, the equator and global warming – the 82 degree sunny weather was amazing but how come Floridians (and some other lucky people across the globe) get it and I don’t? I know it can’t be helped, but I feel like these people are generally happier, healthier and more fit because they are forced to show more skin all year long. I actually shouldn’t piss you off – it has been the mildest winter I can remember up North so thanks for that. But is there some kind of metric for warmer weather climate people being happier? For our February break, I get to choose between two open play places, bowling or going to someone’s house and they get to choose between the beach, the pool, waterskiing, parasailing, being insanely happy, being amazingly happy, being deliriously happy. Ugh.

3. To the super choppy, turbulent air on the descent back to NY – if you could have waited just 10 seconds, Ryan would have made it to the bathroom in time. Because you decided to shake our plane so thoroughly as he was halfway down the aisle with Cory, the ‘male half’ of my family had to sit alone in the back of the plane for the final 30 minutes of our flight while towards the middle, my daughter threw everything on the floor in protest of being harnessed for so long, cried repeatedly to get UP UP UP, begged me to change the movie, change it back, give her food and whatever else had me praying back a panic attack (I am not a good flier). I was later told Ryan was forced to pee in his pants because the “fasten seatbelt light” was on. Poor, wet kid. He wanted to be held when we got off the plane and none of us wanted to touch the soggy dude.

4. To today’s children (or just my own) – when I was little, we used to DRIVE to Florida from Philly and all I got for entertainment were those signs that told me how many miles until South of the Border. Yeah, I’m sure I asked “how much longer” amid whines of ”I’m bored” but I survived the long trip with music, activity books, I Spy, The License Plate Game and – gasp! – talking to my parents. So when your freaking iPod Touch runs out of batteries and you shriek as though someone is holding you by your feet off a cliff, just know that it’s a 20 minute ride to the flipping ZOO and YOU’LL LIVE!!

Those few things aside, I am grateful that I had the chance to enjoy the weather that you lucky Floridian %^&*(*$%& get to enjoy daily and it’s good to be back, if only because four of us in one hotel room is not sustainable for more than 8 days. Plus, only 6 more days until Ryan goes back to school. Not that I’m counting.

Posted by Dani in Blah blah blah, complaints, etc., Holiday stuff and tagged with February break, plane travel with kids, trip to Florida

Happy Valentine’s Day to all….

Posted by Dani in Holiday stuff

Happy Hanukkah to all who observe…

Posted by Dani in Holiday stuff

Playing Mom’s 2nd Annual Holiday Toy Guide

Ready for some holiday shopping?

Wait, you already spent Thanksgiving night sleeping in a tent to get a great deal at Target on Black Friday?

I’m too late and you’re already done?

Yikes.

Okay, well for those of you who know that the deals only get better as it gets closer to the holidays, I’m ready with some great suggestions for toys for kids ages 0-9. I give you Black Friday shoppers a lot of credit for braving those crazy lines and people. I totally understand the desire to get the hot toys before the sell out and to get those family and workplace gifts out of the way so you can avoid the December Dash. That being said, I’ve spent the last few weeks scouring some of the top toy store and internet sites, coupled with reviews from toy experts, parents and most importantly - the kiddos themselves! The lovely people at Toys ‘R Us and Target along with online retailer Amazon.com assured me that the merchandise that flew off the shelves over the past week will continue to be restocked daily so (for the most part) don’t fret!

I’m a fan of classic children’s movies and especially fond of books, but for the sake of brevity here, I’m going to stick with toys (no video games, either). But please, while you’re at your favorite store or shopping online – don’t forget to grab a few books (nothing like a book to stimulate a child’s ever-growing imagination) and maybe a movie or two!

And if you are fortunate enough that you can give, please consider donating toys to children in need. Nothing demonstrates the spirit of the holidays (and teaches children about compassion) more than the act of giving.

So without further ado, here are my choices for Top 10 Toys for Girls and Boys in 3 age categories (there is category overlap as children have different levels of fun with toys regardless of the recommended age range). Some of these are new and trendy picks for 2011. Enjoy and feel free to weigh in with your own reviews or add some to the list!

(Note: Some links are to specific retailers – this is in no way an endorsement for the lowest prices available, as they change daily.)

Top 10 Toys – 0-3 Years

Top 10 Toys – 3-6 Years

Top 10 Toys – 6-9 Years

If you haven’t found what you’re looking for in the lists above, you may want to look at the list below for additional ideas… (There are thousands of great classic toys that aren’t on these lists – if you want even more ideas, feel free to shoot me an e-mail. I have lots of fun thinking of toys that will make great gifts!)

Cloud B Twilight Turtle/Ladybug
Power Wheels or Fisher Price ride-ons
Train sets and train table
Melissa and Doug puzzles, cutting food, arts and crafts, magnetic dress-up, standard unit blocks, See and Spell and more
Fisher Price Laugh and Learn Learning Home
Sit n Spin
My Keepon
Kidkraft wooden toys – dollhouses, firehouses, kitchens and more
Shopping cart, play food and kitchen
Baseball, T-Ball, football, basketball, soccer and other sports equipment
Lego
Easel and arts & crafts
Magic Set
Angry Birds Plush with Sound
Bikes, skates and scooters
Dolls and playsets
Perplexus
Action figures – Transformers, Super Heroes, etc.
Baby dolls, strollers and doll furniture
Cooking set
Marble run
My Little Pony Friendship Is Magic
Talking Planetarium
Vanity
Colorforms
LiteBrite
Leapfrog’s LeapPad/Leapster/Scribble and Write/Tag Reader/Text and Learn and more
Step 2 Up and Down Roller Coaster
Fisher Price Brilliant Basics Baby’s First Blocks
Learn & Groove Musical Table
Piano/keyboard/guitar/drums and other instruments
Cash register
Doctor’s kit
Monster High
Nerf
Teaching time clock
Styling head
Rocking horse
Fashion studio/car studio with lightbox
Puppet Theatre
Karaoke machine
Radio Flyer wagons
Stomp rockets
Snap n Style
Cardboard playhouse
Telescope
Snap Circuits SC-300
School set/responsibility chart
Playskool Alphie
Lite Sprites
Bananagrams, Blokus, Qwirkle, Bop It, Chutes and Ladders, Spot It, Scrabble Flash and other board games
Plasmacar
Digital camera – Kid Tough See Yourself camera
Fridge Phonics/Fridge DJ
Tunnels and tents
Imaginext playsets
Train sets, cars, buses, planes and things that go
Easy Bake Oven
Talking USA Map/geography puzzles
Science kits
Zillionz Savings Goal ATM
Musical Pass the Pickle
R/C Cars and Trucks
Soccer Guys/Baseball Guys, etc.
Polly Pockets
Art table
Dress up clothes and accessories
Tea set
Shrinky Dinks
Lacing toys
Make your own jewelry sets
Pillow Pets/Happy Nappers
Laptop
Purse/wallet
Sticker books
Toolbench and tools/construction set
Zoobles
Vtech Mobigo
Play Doh, Moon Dough
Animal Planet
Eduscience

HAPPY SHOPPING, EVERYONE!

Posted by Dani in Buy This!, Holiday stuff, Lists and tagged with 2011 Holiday Toy Guide, Crayola Glow, Fijit, Lalaloopsy, LeapPad Explorer, LEGO, Let's Rock Elmo, Ninjago, Top Toys of 2011, VTech Innotab, Wall Tracks

Holiday stuff Posts

10 Things I Had Forgotten About Having a Newborn

Happy New Year! Remember to enjoy the MOMENTS…

Happy Hanukkah To Those Who Celebrate!

Happy Independence Day!

The Gifts of Motherhood

Postcards from Florida

Happy Valentine’s Day to all….

Happy Hanukkah to all who observe…

Playing Mom’s 2nd Annual Holiday Toy Guide

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