Allergies...Smallergies

Years ago, my mother was a kindergarten teacher and had a student who was severely allergic to peanuts. Other children couldn't even breathe in the same room as this child if they had just eaten a peanut butter and jelly sandwich for lunch, because it would throw the child into a severe allergic reaction called anaphylactic shock. Peanuts are the number one food allergy in children, and can cause severe symptoms, including death.

I am very lucky to have a healthy girl who still shows no signs of severe allergies, however, I do know a few babies who are allergic to milk, and other things. As a parent, it is easy to control their intake and exposure from home, but when you leave your child in the company of others, they don't know the risks of exposure that could threaten your child's welfare. And while your child may wear a medical ID bracelet with their allergies listed, it does no good if your child is allergic to peanut butter and the caretaker has not checked their bracelet before serving them a snack.

A friend of the family created a line of children's clothing for kids with allergies, to let others know the dangers of exposing them to certain foods or allergens. The line is called Smallergies, and they make a line of t-shirts for children that are cute, but are also in plain site to warn others of their severe allergies. My favorites are the Crab and the Peanut, but the Cow and Fish are cute too!

If your child or a friend has severe food allergies, these might be a great gift for them that is both cute and important, and it helps raise awareness for others like them. Check out their site www.smallergies.com for more information.

Online Baby Sites

Babies are E-X-P-E-N-S-I-V-E.

Not just the hospital bills for the delivery. The diapers. The wipes. The breast pump and the formula. Here are a few of my favorite sites for everything Baby.

As much as I dread driving 30 minutes to the closest Babies 'R Us because they are the only place in town that carries XYZ baby product, I go because it is the ONLY place that carries it ALL. I always have a coupon for something that I need, and they are also good about stacking coupons even on top of their sales. Like Bed Bath and Beyond, you should never go in there without one of their 20% off one item coupons, and I seem to use one EVERY TIME. I also took a bunch of gift cards and loaded the balances onto one of their VIB cards, and saved even more money with their 10% bonus rewards.

I am fairly new to Diapers.com, but they are very comparable to Amazon.com. Easy to use and great to price compare everything. Use the code NATA4684 to get 30% cash back on diapers for three months + 15% off everything else on your first order.  Don't forget you will also get FREE 2-day shipping on your order of $49 or more, or FREE 2-day shipping on your order of $25 or more if you add any item from Soap.com to your cart.

I had registered for the DaVinci Jenny Lind crib at both Babies R Us and Amazon. When my due date was fast approaching, and the only thing missing in the nursery was the crib, both sites showed that the crib suddenly was out of stock. I tried to find something else I loved just as much, but had my heart set on this crib. After a few hours of exhaustive research, I found one at a site called Wayfair, and actually found it cheaper than the other sites, and with free shipping on any order over $69. Their customer service was extremely helpful, and I was pleasantly surprised with the entire experience. They have such a range of products that it is one of my new favorite sites. 

Amazon is my family's go-to site for just about anything. If you are an Amazon Mom or Prime member, then you already know about the free 2 day shipping for Amazon sponsored products. They also offer great discounts and Subscribe and Save options for certain products, so you never run out of diapers or wipes... they are automatically sent to your home when you schedule them. Easy peasy! 

What are your favorite sites for all your baby products?

The Littlest Hostess

She is getting started early on her hostess skills...

Introducing....

After 9.5 months of a really easy and uncomplicated pregnancy, true to self, I went into labor on my due date 6-6-12. But our birth story doesn't start there, but actually 24 hours prior. My in-laws, with whom we live temporarily, each came down with their own ailments. As the clock struck midnight to start my due date, my mother in-law was undergoing an appendectomy and my father-in-law was laid up in bed with a badly sprained ankle. Only two hours later would contractions start, which led to a long 48 hours of multiple trips to the hospital, induced labor, hours of pushing, and an emergency C-section. It was a crazy time for our family... But she is perfect and we feel so blessed everyone is now healthy and happy!

Introducing...... Harper Reina DeVicente

The Final Wall....

In honor of her dute date today, I give you the final wall of the nursery... and Baby D's name - HARPER!

I went to Michaels and picked up some letters spelling her first name, as well as some Martha Stewart acrylic paint in brown and green. I had my husband cut a piece of 2"x4" wood board into 6" sections on which to prop up the special hippo collection.

I painted the letters in the brown and the wood blocksin the green to make them pop on the white shelf.

The hippos on the blocks are from all over the world, and were given to us by our parents when we told them we were collecting hippos for Baby D. There are close ups below... they are made of wood, pottery, and stone.

We can't wait to add to Harper's hippo collection in the many years to come!