Turkey. Pie. and Thanks.

Happy Turkey Day everyone!

I can't believe that its thanksgiving again...where did the last twelve months go? Its been a full year with many things to be thankful for. Our first full year as a family of four with our new little girl...which at some points I never thought we would have another baby in our lives, which I am extra thankful for. My first baby started kindergarten and is the best big sister I couldn't ask for it to be better. For my dearest friends - a moms salvation - getting through another manic monday only to find them with a glass of wine waiting for me at the end of the week. And for my hubby who is an awesome daddy and super supportive in this journey of being a business owner. And of course thank you to all of our great customers...we wouldn't be here without you!
Cheers!

Holiday Photo Cards. Get Creative.

minibook holiday card from minted.com

I never "got" holiday photo cards until I had my own family. Now its something that I love to do and thanks to four years of art school I feel obligated to create my own cards...but you don't have to! So I've searched the web for some new & different sites to order your cards from this year. Here are a few of my favorites [in my humble, creative opinion].

Unique cards and invites, for the holidays or any special occasion, check out minted.com - they're super creative Minibook Holiday Card [pictured above] might be a bit pricy at $3.44 each, but they'll be sure to wow your friends & family!

I originally fell in love with tinyprints.com for their birth announcements! But i also love their clean, simple holiday card designs too. Pick from flat or folded. And they're printed on high quality matte cardstock...a detail that I love!

Looking for more than just a holiday card? Check out polkadotdesign.com - they not only have cards & invites, but gift bags & partywear! Check out their Hanukkah & New Year designs and my favorite Pet Photo Announcements - after all, our first baby girl was Penny our chocolate lab.

Are you hosting a holiday party? Check out this new online invite site pingg.com - their invites are clean & simple and even have a print option. I've used them twice this year...they don't have all the bells & whistles that evite.com has, but sometimes you just don't need it! Its kinda like evite.com meets twitter!

It might not even be thanksgiving yet, but its never too late to get started with your holiday cards. Every year my goal is to have them written out & stamped just waiting for the first of December to send them out - like I said, its a goal, never a reality!!

"What are we doing tomorrow, mommy?"

Or next tuesday, saturday? I get this question a million times a day and its usually followed by "Can I have a friend come over?" SO to help keep some peace in our house, I came up with a weekly magnet board. Since she's only 5 a basic wipe-off board was not a solution for us, even though she can recgonize many words...especially the names of her friends...I did not want her lack of reading ability to get in the way of my "great" idea for peace.

Off to the craft store for ABC stickers and 'sheets' of magnet - they come in 4x6" and then to the office supply for a MAGNETIC wipe-off board. Ok, here's where my OCD creative-ness, four years of art school and 10 years of being a graphic designer come in. On the computer I created labels - which would become the magnets, just stick 'em to the magnet sheet & cut - one for everything in our life that we do & for everyone that we see often...grandma & papa, mimi, uncle roger, the cousins, her friends, dance class, gymnastics, even a "special day" for the fun things that come up during the year like going to the zoo - I found pictures for everything/everyone and then wrote out the word too...to help with "reading". Then school started and there were more magnets to be made...gym day, library day, no school - google art saved my day for getting images for things like these.

The idea is: every sunday we "fill-in" her calendar for the week. What's going on at school. Who is coming over. Whose house we're going to. Now, she can check HERSELF if tomorrow is gym day, whose coming over to play on wednesday or what we're doing on saturday.

Yes, this has really helped control the number of times I hear "what are we doing tomorrow" because now my answer is easy & simple "Go look on your calendar!" I think it puts whats going on in our lives more in her control. She's definatly the type of personality that needs to know whats going to be happening next.

Maternity Monday - Going into Labor On a Full Moon

[ok...so its tuesday...but it counts because tonight there's a full moon!]

As we all know, there are so many ol'wives tales when it comes to pregnancy. I think mostly because the whole journey of pregnancy is such an unknown...I can't even imagine what it would've been like without all the medical knowledge we have nowadays. I think these ol'wives tales were a way that women could give themselves - and each other - some comfort during this time in their lives. I for one am a perfect example why ol'wives tales are just that - tales. Because if they were medically true, I would be the mom to TWO little boys...not girls!

But with that being said, this is one ol'wives tale that I truly believe in - not only because my first baby was born on a full moon [and many of my girlfriends] but my mom was a NICU nurse and during the full moon (unfortunatly) they would be at their busiest. So this theory has to have some merit.

The theory is: the moon has a gravitational pull that effects the water in the oceans and even in our bodies, therefore it may also effects our amniotic fluid in much the same way. Your water "breaking" is your amniotic sac bursting under pressure, this is usually caused by the pressure of your contractions [think of squeezing a water balloon until it bursts]. During a full moon, the same thing can occur to the amniotic sac due to the effects the full moon is having on the fluids in your body. This is when you water may break without any of those fun contractions - exactly what happend in my case!

Have you read the book "The Red Tent" by Anita Diamant? From thousands of years ago it talks about women and how their cycles are related to the lunar cycles. With the onset of every full moon the women would prepare to spend 3 days in the red tent [if only we could still be practicing this tradition today].

So to all you pregnant women out there. See how tonight goes with the full moon.

Storytime - How to Enourage THEM to read.

Do you remember starting to read in kindergarten? Nope, me neither...and I'm sure my mom did not come from kindergarten round-up with a list of "site" words. We also received in our packets some info from the National Institute for Literacy with some tips on encouraging your new reader to read.

Help them understand what they're reading with questions like:
"tell me about the story"
"who did what? why?"
"how did it end"
"what did you think of the book"
"is this story real or made up?'

Get them excited about reading.
Take turns reading their favorite book.
Let your children see you reading.
Go to the library together.
Let them write notes to grandma or cousins & send them in the mail.

First Juice. Have You Seen This?

Another great find that I can't take credit for, it all goes to a girlfriend.

Half the sugar. Organic. Nothing artificial. Purple carrots. Yummy flavors like banana, peach, blueberry & apple.

The girls love it (personally its not so yummy, but I'm not the one drinking it!). I've found it at Whole Foods & some of the Krogers too! You gotta try it!

Calmoseptine - the Best Diaper Rash Cream Ever!

So as I'm writing this, it seems like a simplistic topic to blog about. Butt...if you have ever been in the position of being a mom of a little one with the reddest of red little fanny...it seems like a miracle cream.

A bit ago, Ruby was suffering from a horrid diaper rash - you know the kind that hurts you just looking at it. As a mom on my second baby this was the first time I had to go though this (happy to say) so I entered this "stage" with no previous experience. I tried the basic white creams, even mixed them with Neosporin. It didn't get worse but it didn't get better.

Over a yummy lunch with girlfriends (who are also moms of little ones) our conversation lead us to diaper rashes. One mom recommended the Calmoseptine lotion. I've said it before & I'll say it again, I'm not shy to ask or take mom advice when I'm in a pickle. So off I went to the drug store to buy this pretty pink butt cream - it does not need a prescription but it is behind the pharmacy counter. Within a couple of days, everything was clearing up.

I do know that everything works different for everyone & I'm not a dr. so don't send me hate letters if this pink butt cream is not so magical for your little one's tushie. But if in the future you are stuck with a little red fanny give it a try.

What to do When You're Child Has a Tooth Knocked Out?

Good question! I was perusing through a little pamphlet from Crest and ran across this question, "What if my child has a tooth knocked out"? I thought, good question...I hope I never have to find out! But then I thought that I would share this with all of you, because I found it rather interesting & important. Heaven forbid you're child is minus one adult tooth their whole life because you didn't know how to "save" it properly.

If a permanent tooth is knocked out, pick it up by the crown - that is the chewing end of the tooth. You can rinse it with water but do not scrub or dry it. This part seems crazy to me...but...carefully push the tooth back into the socket & hold in place. If this is not possible, have your child hold the tooth in their check (of course without swallowing it). OR...this seems like the best solution to me...place it in a glass of water with a pinch of salt. But see a dentist within 60 minutes!

I hope that none of us have to use this information. But its one of those good things to store in the back of your mind for JIC.

HullaBaloo's Newest Fan ~ Welcome to the World Baby Carson

If you've been in shopping within the past nine months, you most likely have seen Dana working at the store sporting her own baby belly!

Its been a long last few weeks - as many of you can relate to - but today I'm so excited to introduce everyone to baby Carson! Born yesterday on July 10th, weighing in at 6lbs 10oz and 20.5 inches long - we're both excited that he's a little peanut and will be able to wear Zutano's Itzy Bitzy for a little while! Both mom & baby are doing great and are resting in the hospital for a few days before they go home to be with big sister Avery & dad.

Congratulations Dana! Enjoy these precious few months, they go by so fast & although they're the most exhausting, they're the most precious. We can't wait to meet him!

Kid Friendly Sparklers...Of Course its a Craft!

Ok. So I hate to admit it, but I'm not usually the mom who cuts craft ideas out of parenting magazines, take a trip to Micheals for supplies and then actually sit down & do a craft with the kids. I wish I was that mom more often. Not sure why I'm not. I love crafty creative things - I went to art school after all - and my daughter loves doing them. But somehow the mountain of laundry & list of un-answered emails calls my name louder (or Maybe its the guilt of what to do with the craft once its done!)

But this week, I was that mom! In our little city the 4th of July is a full weekend of celebration. Mary's favorite holiday right behind the gift giving ones of Christmas & her birthday..."red white & blue day" as we call it in our house! So when I saw this super cute craft for "kid friendly" sparklers, I thought Mary would not only love to wave these at the parade, but would love making them!! During a playdate with her favorite little girl friend, we made our own sparklers! It was easy for my 4 1/2 year old & not as messy as one would think with glitter & glue...I give it an A+.

1. take 5 or 6 pipe cleaners & cut them in half for one sparkler

2. dip each end in glue, then in glitter; lay to dry

3. gather the stems together, taking one to twist in the middle of the other. bend & flare out the "arms" to resemble fireworks

we glued our's onto thin wooden dowels so they could be "waved" in the air.

Hope everyone has a wonderful (& safe) 4th of July!

advice from moms. to moms. on baby #2.

If you've been in the store on a wednesday or friday, you may have met Dana and may have noticed that she is growing the newest addition to HullaBaloo...a little baby boy...and is due in a couple weeks!

So in her honor and to all my other friends, family & customers who are busy growing baby #2 I am passing on to you some invaluable advise that moms have given me. I have used all these tips...I'm not too proud to take advice...and truly believe that they have helped eliminate any "adjustment issues" for big sister Mary.

* when I'm holding the baby, I try not use that as an excuse as to why I can't help Mary with something at that moment. An example - when she asks for a cup of juice, instead of saying "you have to wait I'm holding/feeding the baby now" I'll say "daddy would love to get you some juice" or "I'll do it in just 2 minutes". The hope is that she won't resent the baby for taking up my time but rather its just mom asking her to wait a minute...again.

* if Ruby is fussing & I'm in the middle of something else - which is almost always - I'll make a point to say something like "just a minute, I'm putting Mary's shoes on" or my favorite "I'll be right there Ruby, mommy is going potty". It just puts a little bug in Mary's ear that yes, I do things for you first & that the baby doesn't always come first. Make little things up if you have to just to let it be heard.

* I also give Mary warnings as much as possible with things like "Ruby is getting ready to eat, do you want me to get you a snack...cup of juice...before I feed her, because I won't be able to while I'm feeding her". Then if she asks for something while I'm busy with the baby, I can respond with "I asked if you needed anything and you said no, so now you need to wait until I'm done". This helps her learn to take responsibility for the decisions that she makes.

* I always, always, always let Mary hold/kiss/hug/snuggle Ruby whenever she feels the need. No matter who is holding her or what we're doing at that moment, even if it's grandma...sisters trump grandmas or aunts or any company!!! We've also set up rules for holding the baby. She must sit "criss-cross applesauce" because it helps support the baby up front. We've had serious conversations about the baby's wobbly head, that you must always hold their head. And about the soft spot, that you must never press on the top of their head. We also have her do most of the holding on our bed. The surface area is large and soft if she were to accidently drop the baby, she wouldn't be falling to the floor.

So girls thanks for all your advice! Mary has adjust wonderfully to being a big sister! I don't think that she could possibly love her one bit more than she always does!! And good luck to all you moms out there...as always its a learning curve...but of course well worth it!

Celebrate the Blessing of Being a Mom!!!

This day is for us. A day to remember how blessed we are that we get the opportunity to be a mom. Something that is so easily forgotten while we're wiping snotty noses, cooking mac & cheese for the 3rd time this week, convincing our kids that brushing teeth is a fun game or as we step on yet another lego, polly pocket or transformer piece.

This is also the day to say "thank you" to all the other mothers in our lives. Now that we're moms we know the lives they've lived & that it was not always bubble baths & chocolate bon bons!!

This is also a day for me to say "thank you" to all my fablous customers. Because if it was not for all of you moms, there would not be a home for HullaBaloo! I love hearing your stories & sharing your lives. I love seeing you stop in for a BellaBand in your first trimester, stopping in to buy something in pink...or blue after your "big" ultrasound, coming back for "just one more shirt that will cover my belly" in your third trimester and seeing those little squishy newborns when you just needed someplace to go to get out of the house.

I wish everyone a fun (and peaceful) Mother's Day!!

Organic frozen babyfood from Happy Baby.

Its pretty obvious what stage of motherhood I'm with the items & topics that I chat about on here - and this one is no different. What you may not know, is that I'm a bit of a babyfood snob. I use organic fruits & veggies, steam 'em, puree 'em & viola babyfood. This past year a girlfriend in Chicago introduced me to Happy Baby food...its just like the little frozen cubes of pureed goodness I make myself...but in cute little square cubes!! And I happened to stumble upon them at Hiller's Market (on their website they're also listed as carrying them at Whole Foods). Besides the basic Yes Peas & Thank You Carrots...which are super smooth I might add...they also carry "sorta chunky" meals like Baby Dahl which is
organic red lentils, potatoes & carrots with cinnamon and coriander. Or Mama Grain with organic bananas, quinoa & black beans (both with added DHA algal oil) - which I can't wait to try! I will still continue to whip up most of my food myself, but there is a box of Happy Baby frozen cubes in our freezer right now (although 3/4 gone!) and probably always will be.

Oh! almost forgot to mention...I saw on their website that they have organic baby cereals too...so excited to try them out!!

A New "Healthy" Lunch Idea for Kids.

Wow...the power of advertising worked for me on this one! Have you seen the ads in the magazines for Bagel Bites? The ad compares the nutritional value between the average PB&J to Bagel Bites. Would you ever imagine that they are healthier?? A PB&J packs about 379 calories and 18g fat - where the Bagel Bites are 210 calories, 7g fat, 7g protein & 0g trans fat. Well, you'll be sure that I'll be serving these at our next lunch playgroup! Yummo!

New Year's Mom-olutions.

Welcome 2009! Its crazy to look back at everything that happened this past year & image what more could possibly happen in '09!?! I'm not usually a big resolution person...I know I won't keep them anyway so what's the point. But this year is different. Not only do I need to have my resolutions as a business women for the store, but as a mom I need to have mom-olutions...and stick to them...for no other reason but to keep my sanity!! To keep true to myself and to add a little peer pressure. I'm once again putting my mom-olutions out there!
1. declutter. to make room for new clutter. on my to-do list is auctions on ebay, postings on craigslist & saturdays at mom2mom sales
2. finish projects. yes, that includes all you little sewing projects sitting in my closet & those "that would be cute/easy to do" craft projects too
3. organize the memories. I don't want to use the word "scrapbook". I've always wanted to start digital scrapbooking...to make little "diaries" of the girls' lives...like all their "first" moments, so that I will always remember where & when.
4. exercise & eat healthier. blah blah blah. I know, boring. BUT this year I have baby weight on top of baby weight, so I'm buying a new swim suit now from (love their suits!) with a goal to wear it with pride on opening day of the pool.

And like we all need more on our plate. Here are a few mom-olutions from Cookie Magazine. (If they weren't such darn good ones, I wouldn't add them!)
1. hug your husband once a day for no reason.
2. once a month, eat a pint of your favorite ice cream guilt free.
3. push your boundaries. go up to a mom you don't know & start a conversation, try a new recipe even if you know your kids won't like it, or take a class just for fun like pottery, photography or dance.

"Mom, Is There Really a Santa??"

On the eve of Christmas Eve, I thought this would be a fitting topic...also inspired by an article in Parenting magazine. This question is right up there with "mommy how does the baby come out" that I got this summer. Our family has 10 & 13 year old cousins, so this is how we handle the truth about Santa. First of all, when it comes to the tough questions my mom believes in the old motto, answer their question with a question like "what do you think" or "why, what have you heard", to get a gage on their knowledge. Then, really only answer their question not giving away anymore info than necessary. Once the truth comes out, we explain that we haven't really been lying all these years. That we believe in the story of St. Nick and we think that keeping that story alive and keeping the spirit of Christmas alive is a great and special thing. We then welcome them into our 'we know club' to make them feel special. THEN we scare them with the fact that if they are responsible for spoiling the truth for any other child, they will not get anything for Christmas...now that they know that mom & dad can control what they can & can't get...we figure a little fear goes a long way!

Hopefully we're a few years away from hearing this dreaded question...until then - we believe! From our family to yours, we wish everyone a magical holiday season...CHEERS!

Moms can't call in sick!

So there are very few times that I miss life before the girls. One of those times is now, when I am sick. Because there is no "calling in" to lay in bed all day. Its still up & at 'em as usual. AND even IF I were to have daddy stay home from work so that I could get some rest...I would hear the little voice of a 4 year-old in the sweetest, most caring voice say "mommy, has a cold she needs to rest" 3 inches from my bed which of course would be interrupting my "rest". But it would make me smile & remember that is why I love being a mom!

So all you moms, raise your capfull of Vicks DayQuil & make a toast to the cold season...CHEERS!