Girls Night Out...

Enough said. :)

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!

Baby Ready?!

Baby D will be here in a matter of days, and I have been slacking a bit on normal blog activities to prepare for her arrival. While all the books and websites tell you to relax, get plenty of rest, and enjoy these last moments until your newborn arrives, I am lucky to have friends who really help put things in realistic perspective for me. I was passed along the article You're So Not Almost Ready For A Baby, Even If You Think You Are by Tracy Moore as a guide to what I should be doing these last couple of days. Be sure to check out the excerpt below, and the full article here. 

not Baby D, and I am praying she doesn't look like this too often!

I ... would come with the following drills/regimen for the entire year prior to conception...:

• Practice wrestling a large, slippery fish three times a week.
• Wake up every two hours at night, punch yourself in the face, walk around for 28 minutes pleading in jibberish. Go back to "sleep." Repeat.
• Socialize with friends in 18-second increments.
• Practice asking for the check, boxing up your food and exiting a restaurant in under sixty seconds — two bites into the meal.
• Watch 38% of any film or television show; never see the ending or resolution.
• Read the same three paragraphs of a novel once every two weeks; fall asleep.
• Shower every three to five days, but only for two minutes.
• Hire a makeup artist to make you up to look 10 years older. Look at yourself in the mirror, then laugh, cry, laugh, cry, laugh, cry. Do not go get a drink.
• Pack two additional bags of random stuff to carry with you every time you leave the house.
• Stand around a tennis court and catch fly balls with one hand for two hours a day while also preparing a peanut butter sandwich.
• Practice wrestling aforementioned large, slippery fish, then dress it in seasonally appropriate outfit, including hat and/or jacket. Then go back, remove all clothing, and apply sunscreen. Re-dress fish.
• Memorize The Cat in the Hat, then repeat every evening between 7 p.m. and 8 p.m.
• Make 24 hours of baby-crying audio; hit play the moment you take a phone call, fire up your computer, or begin speaking any sentences to another human that contain important or useful information.
• Imagine a mental written list of your responsibilities for each day, tear it in half, burn one piece, take a (literal) [poop] on the other one.  

So basically, we are in for the shock of our lives. If I disappear for two weeks (or more) you'll know that I have not mastered the above tasks/daily care for Baby D. Do you have any good last minute tips for this momma to be?  

Nursery Reveal

I think I am 99.9% done with the nursery for Baby D, and have had multiple requests for photos. Since we are still living with the in-laws until we find a house of our own, we took over a small bedroom with no closet, but lots of natural light for Baby D's nursery. Even though Baby D is a girl, I kept things neutral using furniture and accents we already owned in green, turquoise and brown tones. Someday, when we buy a new house, her new nursery will be completely different, but I am really happy with the way things turned out for now.

Here is the nursery from the doorway:

Changing table, using an antique chest topped with a changing pad and necessities:

A closer view. The changing table pad is covered with a Cocalo cover, and we secured it to the back of the chest as directed with two screws. I picked up the green bin at Target (similar here) to hold the necessities for diaper changing- wipes, Butt Paste, and anti-bacterial gel. It matches other large bins we have for storage. And check out the cute mushroom night light that gives off the perfect glow for nighttime feedings and changings.

Inside the chest I have the top drawers organized with one with a linen caddy for more necessities...

And one full of diapers.

The second drawer is  for sleep sacks, swaddle blankets, changing pad covers, and miscellaneous items.

The crib (I will have better shots later once I add a little better decoration) is the DaVinci Jenny Lind crib in white. I love the vintage feel and look of it! The bed skirt was a hard find from eBay. It is the since discontinued Dwell Studio for Target skirt in blue, which matched the turquoise in the rug perfectly. I bought it new. The green chevron bins are also from Target and match the small bin on the changing table. I got one as part of a baby gift, and picked up another for more storage. One holds towels, soap and toys for bath time, and the other holds miscellaneous items like the Bumbo tray and grocery cart covers. I made the chalk board tags using ribbon, Chalk Board ConTact paper, and wooden hippos from Michaels (seen here on the diaper cake, but since these are in a scrapbook, I bought more). Luckily, because the crib mattress is up high for a newborn, there is plenty of storage underneath for extra boxes of diapers and wipes too!

Across the room from the changing table is a dresser, which you saw a preview of here.  The lamp was in our old guest room and was originally from HomeGoods for $35. You will also see the monitor mounted on the top of the dresser. It needs to be turned a bit, since we moved the crib, but with the height of the mirror, it sits at a perfect vantage point to the crib.

On all three sides of the room are great shelves above the windows. Over the crib, we have my parenting baby books, along with nursery rhymes and a few accessories. I love my brass piggy bank hanging out with the Barnyard Animals finger puppets, not to mention the hippo rocking toy and purple "wedding fund" piggy bank. 

The other window is a bit dark, but has some fantastic books, dolls, and a vintage Snoopy pull toy that I love! In case you didn't pick up on it, the room has three walls of windows, but I only showed two shelves. The third one, over the rocker and changing table, actually has letters of Baby D's name and her collection of hippos. You'll have to wait until she is born for the big reveal!

The rocking chair actually belonged to my husband's great great grandmother, and I love how it matches so perfectly! I just hope Baby D doesn't spit up all over it!!!

In the corner we have some more of my favorite books on an antique round table, with a photo of us and Maybee (our furry child). Also is a piggy bank (the "fashion fund") and a plush hippo. I am also in love with the 3 Sprouts hippo bin that holds all her toys and plush animals. It is so cute!!

Above the table is a piece of canvas art that was found and given to me by my friend Amy. She saw something similar on my Pinterest board, and it is just perfect in the corner of the room!

 The room already had a twin bed in it, which I think is perfect for those fussy late nights where momma will need to be close. I used linens and pillows I had from our last guest room that matched the rug. I picked up the hamper from Target and attached another hippo chalk board tag on it.

Lastly, on the dresser is a framed paper cutout hippo that my mother made (amazing!), one of my favorite childhood books in its first year of print (gifted from my grandmother), a mosaic catch all dish, and a brass whale we found at an antique market. 

There are just a few details left I want to do to make it 100% complete:
-Find some artwork for over the twin bed
-Find a cute pillow for the crib (which I will take out when she sleeps so we don't give her any suffocation hazards - more on SIDS here)
-Frame some vintage photos of our parents and grandparents when they were children for the room

And another safety note.... all of the shades are adjusted so that Baby D cannot get caught in any of the pull strings. As a newborn, she won't be able to reach them anyway, but I took precautions just in case. There is a lot of natural light into this room, but if you pull the shades all the way down, it does give a bit of darkness for her daytime naps. At night, it is very dark and peaceful.

Other than buying the crib and bedding, I think we did pretty well on making a nice nursery room out of things we already owned. It is pretty serene and accommodating, and we have really maximized the use of space. Thanks for visiting!!!

Getting Organized

I have a bit of OCD when it comes to clothes and organization. My closet is color coordinated, and my underwear drawer has dividers and things folded. This may change once the baby is born, or it may just get worse... we will see! In an effort to keep things organized in Baby D's room, I picked up a few things at Bed Bath and Beyond this weekend to help keep the drawers organized with her clothes and accessories. If you thought I was kidding before when I said she will be best dressed, check out the collection she already has going.

Socks, pacifiers, hair clips, pacifier clips, and sunnies:

I purchased the clear/green drawer divider on clearance at TJMaxx for $5. I like that the green bottom is rubber, so that these little accessories don't roll all around the drawer.

On the other side, I used a vintage teal chalice to hold her headband collection, and used the remaining space for her hats (a must in sunny Florida!) and her cute summer sandals and shoes. 

At Bed Bath and Beyond, I purchased some spring loaded drawer dividers for two drawers to separate her clothes. I have them grouped by daytime (onesies, tops and legging sets), night time (sleep sacks and pjs) and dresses for each age group. The photo below is actually her big girl drawer with two dividers, as the clothes to the left are 6 months (with the exception of her 3-6 month old Gator gear, ready for football season this fall!), the middle section is for 6-9 months, and the right is 9-12 month old clothes. With the clothes divided, it not only allows me to know what section she really fits into, but will be easier for dad too to know what to dress her in if I am not around.

In another drawer, its more of a miscellaneous mix of baby items. Most of these will come and go in the next few months, but I needed a place to stick them for now in some sort of organized space. I purchased the clear Real Simple 6 Piece Organizer Set to keep things in their place.  I love how these thin clear boxes hold everything, fit nicely in the drawer, and can be moved around later as we change out the contents of the drawer.

Since the room is small, the more organized I can keep it, the better! Stay tuned for the finishing touches and more organization solutions.

Baby Shower Aftermath

Just as I thought I was getting the nursery near to completion, we were given a wonderful surprise baby shower from the colleagues at my husband's office, and this was the aftermath. Actually, this is the organized photo, but you wouldn't know it.

We have been so overwhelmed with our friends, family, and co-worker's generosity these past couple of months... and our baby girl is going to be so lucky to have all these wonderful people in her life. We cannot thank every one enough!!!   

And in other baby news, as I'm sure you will see plenty in more updates later, we have followed a tradition started by my mother-in-law. When she had each of her five kids, she picked an animal for them to collect. My husband Logan collected lions, and for Baby D, we chose hippos. We liked how they were an animal that are often found with lions and gators (what UF grad doesn't have a collection of gators?!), and that they are pretty darn cute too. Has anyone seen the pigmy hippos at Tampa's Lowry Park Zoo or Harry the Hippo?! We have started a hippo collection for Baby D, and love that for our surprise shower, they made a diaper cake with lots of hippos!!! It is too precious!

Check back soon (I promise, it will be done this weekend!) for our finished nursery and more cute hippo details.

Cute Baby Shower Favors

I still owe baby shower updates, but wanted to show you two quick baby shower favors. The first is not one from my baby shower, but from one of a family friend who is having a boy:

They took a Styrofoam cup and cut it and hot glued the sides over like a shoe. Next they added a brown and white bow and some blue tissue paper, and then filled the shoe with candy. How cute and simple is that?! I love it!

The other idea was a really cute from one of my showers, especially since it was more about the mom-to-be than the baby! Bourdeaux colored OPI nail polish and a cute saying for my stylish baby-to-be:

From fingerpaints to nail polish... Bottles to Bourdeaux... There's no doubt Baby D will always be the most stylish kid we know!

One of my favorite favors ever!

Have you come across some cute baby shower favors recently? If so, be sure to share!