4th of July Week! - Baby Travel

Hey everyone... sorry I haven't had much posted since last week. I'll try to post a couple this week about some great vacationing tips with baby!

We're out of town this week celebrating the holiday and my birthday! Happy 26th to me?... no, it just means I'm getting older.

Since we're out of town though, I'm lacking options and times to get online and post, however I do have one recommendation for all of the traveling mommies out there.

The First Years makes a line of baby feeding products called 'Take n' Toss'. These things are great! I picked up a pack of bowls and a pack of silverware to take away with us for the week. You can wash and reuse them a few times, or you can recycle them and go! Any that I use in our room I'm washing and reusing but when I go out I just use it and recycle it, or leave it at the restaurant. (I recommend telling the waitress it's recyclable though so they dispose of it correctly.) It has saved so much room when traveling, and moving around for the day. These are a definite must for me now. You can get an entire set of The First Years Take And Toss 28-Piece Travel Set including bowls, silverware, and cups for under $15 at Kohls.

Another recommendation, 'Foogo' by Thermos. It's their line of baby food containers. I pop it in the refrigerator with her yogurt about a half hour before leaving and then stick it in the diaper bag heading out the door. It keeps food cold for hours so I don't have to worry about feeding my little girl things I typically wouldn't. She gets her yogurt and homemade baby food everywhere we go!

Please Spread the Word!

For those of you checking in on the blog... please spread the word! I have some great useful tips, advice, and deals to share with everyone and I'd love to have some more readers like you to share, comment, and give me some ideas of what they would like to see!

Thanks!
Ashley

For the money savvy Mommies

So I posted last week about this new Safeway coupon program that's all online. Here's my verdict after my first use...

MUST USE!

This is incredible. You register online with your Safeway shopping card, and you get special deals just for you that other people may or may not receive, on top of their normal store sales and online coupons.

You flip through each section and click on what you want to purchase, and it has your savings right there. Then it automatically saves it to your grocery list where you can add additional things and print it out to take in the store. You get deals on your most frequently purchased products that you purchase when you scan your Safeway card, and you still get to stack their online coupons on top of it right on to the card so no clipping.

But to save more, you can still clip and stack your paper/internet coupons on top of that to save even more. I came out with Oikos Greek Yogurt for $.30 a container, a FREE carton of eggs, milk for only $1.30, CPK frozen pizzas for $3.30 a piece, Pampers Cruisers for $5 off, and so much more. I wound up with over a weeks worth of food at about $140 and only spent $80 coming out of the store.

Now I'm sure those that REALLY coupon can do much better then me, but for spending 10 minutes on Safeway's site to build my list, and another 10 minutes checking Coupons.com and CouponNetwork, I feel like I really made out, and it's so easy.

If anyone shops at Safeway, I HIGHLY recommend using their new "Just For U" Program!

Pregnancy and Morning Sickness...

Now, it's been almost a year since I've been pregnant, and, probably a year and a half since I've experienced morning sickness... However, I'm catching something now that left me ill today, and a time tested trick to helping nausea when I was pregnant came in use.

For those pregnant mommies or mommy-to-be's... Ginger drops and saltines are amazing! Today I pulled out some of my old ginger hard candies that I had from when I was pregnant and they still work, so it's not just for the pregnant woman!

If you suffer from true morning sickness in the early hours of the day, the best solution I found out, and many others confirmed, was to keep a box of saltines next to your bed and eat a few before you even take a step out of bed. It helps settle your stomach before you get moving and the nauseousness sets in.

When you start feeling sick later in the day, ginger hard candy drops, or chewy gummy candies are amazing. You can usually buy them in baby stores in the mommy care section or specialty stores with holistic vitamins / medicines. I believe I've also seen them in the form of lollipops too. They're great to pop in your purse and use when needed. And as I've tested today, they work for nauseousness in general, not just during pregnancy!

Safeway Deals!

So if anyone has signed up and used Safeway's new "Just For U" couponing program, please comment on this post and let me know what you think.

I'm registering today and I'm going to use it on my weekend shopping trip... but I'm trying to figure out if it's truly going to make couponing easier like they're leading on.

I'll do a follow-up post after figuring out this program and let everyone know what I think!

For the Couture Mommy! The Honest Company

Now this is my big splurge on my baby girl... The Honest Company

This Company was co-founded with Jessica Alba and sells eco-friendly, baby-friendly, recycled products for baby, home, and mommy. Things like diapers, wipes, wash, lotions, detergents, cleaners, etc.

So far I love EVERYTHING that they have. If you go to their website www.honest.com you can order a trial to see how you like it. (If you call in to order the trial you don't have to be set up for their subscription service.) Their diapers are beyond adorable with tons of original prints for girls and boys. I got the trial and loved it so I'm about to order a set of diapers to keep for special occasions when baby girls wears dresses and mommy wants a cute little diaper hanging on her behind.

It's supposed to be a subscription service that can be pricey but is automatically sent to you every month. Although I was informed at their office when setting up my trial that you can call in to order as you want instead of having things sent every month.

Absolutely LOVE it! The diapers are adorable, work great, and all of their cleaners and soaps are so mild and gentle.

I know they sometimes advertise on my blog. If you see the pane you can get an idea of their product at a glance.

Saving Money on Baby Necessities, Pregnancy, and Post Pregnancy!

So I spread through word of mouth any deals I find on Diapers, and Formula. These are going to be 2 of your biggest expenses in the first couple years of life with your little one. Here are some great places to shop and ways to find some deals on Diapers, Wipes, Formula, and many other baby necessities.

Babies R' Us / Toys R' Us

• Although they aren't really a 'deal' or 'steal' store, they most certainly can be every few months.
• Sign up for their free Rewards program and they will send you advertisements for in-store deals that you aren't going to find unless you walk in the store. They run deals like buy 2 boxes of diapers and get a $25 gift card, or buy 3 or 4 boxes of diapers and get one free. They also do this for wipes, formula, and starter foods. This is especially great if you have manufacturer coupons to stack. This is usually where I buy diapers and wipes and when they run a sale like this I'll stock up to get me through to their next sale.
• If you really want to bank on them, register for their credit card. Or just their store charge card if you don't want quite the credit hit. Either way you get a $10 coupon for every $100 you spend, AND you get special sales and deals that you wouldn't get otherwise. The coupons also last for a few months and can be used on anything. This comes in handy when you're first stocking up for baby, and at Christmas time. With the cost of baby supplies, you can easy save yourself $100 - $200 a year with these rewards, and that's not including the money you'll save with coupons.

Amazon Mom

• I've used Amazon Mom before but I prefer physically buying my supplies. I do have family and friends that are religious with Amazon Mom though. You get 10% off diapers all the time, free shipping, and you can use coupons on the site to get even better deals.

Target

• Target doesn't like to stock old products. And by old I mean they could get a shipment Tuesday, and the following week the manufacturer may change the print, number in a package, or packaging itself, and what Target has left over is considered 'old' and clearance. Look for these! They will usually sell them on end aisle caps and you can get the steal of a century. Just a month ago Pampers changed the number of diapers in one of their packages so they were selling the old boxes at over 50% off!
• Target is also great at basic coupons and stacking their coupons with manufacturers for some great deals.

Some other ways to save on Formula and Diapers...

• Register on the manufacturer website for the brands you use. I use Pampers Diapers, Pampers Wipes, and Similac Formula. After registering on their sites you get $5 off Similac coupons as well as FULL SIZE container samples of formula, and $1 and $2 coupons from Pampers. The Similac is especially great because you get these coupons every month and you get a lot of them! I know when I first registered I was getting $20 off every month, and as the baby ages and uses less formula, it slowly dwindles down to 1 $5 off a month of 2. Still... AMAZING savings in the long run. (I also know Gerber does this with their foods and Formula, I'm not sure about Enfamil.)
• Also... ALWAYS snoop around the waiting rooms and offices of your Pediatrician. Almost all of them will have samples of rash cream, baby soap, lotions, and coupons for just about everything.
• AND... Always register with your local baby stores, be it Buy Buy Baby, Babies R' Us, or any other superstores out there. They have introduction packs that give insane coupons for pregnancy, post pregnancy, and newborns. 

Pinterest Love!

Anyone looking for cute ideas, cooking ideas, and money savers that I like... follow me on Pinterest! I'm listed as MommyCanDo under people. I have a lot of great pins to share with everyone!

That's where this wooden toy came from that my baby girl is chewing on! Saw it as a suggestion and it is one amazing toy for kids. Each petal flips and turns, bells in the middle of each petal rattle, and its great on her gums!

I've been MIA! - One Sick Little One with HFM

Sorry for no posts lately kids! I've had one sick little monster and a very hectic few weeks with work... but time to get back on this blog... there is so much to catch up on!


First... Hand Foot Mouth Disease... Really?? My poor little thing isn't even in daycare and hasn't been around any children. Luckily she has a very mild case and is still recuperating now. She finally got that little smile back today which makes mommy feel much better about it!


My advice on this post is regarding her being sick. A VERY good tip that I just picked up on...


As most of us know, any baby around 6 months to 1 year and a half is fascinated with everything you eat and drink. Well mommy's baby girl was not drinking anything! I tried bottles, sippy cups, juice, water, formula, Pedialyte, even putting anything in a glass to drink. I wasn't getting anywhere!


The advice I received was to put whatever it is you want them to drink in a glass with some ice and a straw. Pretend like it's your drink that you're drinking. Then... use the straw by sitting it in the glass and putting your finger on the top to hold in the drink and give it to them. Most babies LOVE sharing Mommy and Daddy's drinks, especially from a straw. This did the trick!! I finally got some fluids in her and she was happy to take them.


Another suggestion that I haven't tried yet is to freeze whatever you want them to drink into a popsicle shape for them to suck on. I feel like they could lose a lot of the fluid that way though so I may try that in another day or so when I'm not so worried about her intake. I'll let everyone know how it goes!!

Blog Giveaway!

Now I know I'm new to the blogging community, but I'd like to try getting my page out there with a gift card giveaway! $25 Visa Gift Card to one blog follower!

Rules:

• Simply start following my blog.
• Next, comment on this post with something you would like to read about or see on the blog.
• Lastly, at the bottom of my blog page, follow the contact me link and shoot me an email with your name so I have your contact information easily accessible to contact you if you win. Your information WILL NOT be used for anything other than this giveaway. 
• Once I reach 50 followers, I will have a neutral friend of mine read through all of the comments to select the person with the most creative post idea. They will win the gift card, and I'll be sure to post on their idea, and others!
• There's no time limit on this. Once we reach 50 comments, we'll select a winner. Good Luck!

And please, remember to check back often to find some more great information and helpful tips!

Best Shopping Sites

Just to spread the word, as I do my late night shopping online. Some of the best shopping sites for baby, mommy, and home are listed below. You can get amazing deals at 30, 40, 50% off and sometimes more. They all update daily, at different times though; and if you check them daily, you can get some amazing brands like Petunia Pickle Bottom, Skip Hop, Baby Bjorn, BOB, Eyes Scream, Polo, My Blankee, etc. Love, Love, LOVE THEM! I did most of my christmas shopping on Zulily and Totsy. Amazing things for even more amazing deals. (I know this sounds like a pitch but it really isn't. I just live by these sites now!)

Zulily
Totsy
8Moms
Baby Steals
Plum District

One Kings Lane
Groupon
Living Social

Happy Shopping :)

Mommy Quick Tip

Every baby has a different preference in pacifier style. However, MAM seems to be popular. If baby is a MAM lover, once they start teething I recommend their AIR pacifier. It's missing the middle of each side so it's almost a frame with a middle and nipple... Greatest idea!

Easy for baby to hold
Helps minimize the rash from drool when teething
AND...
They will teethe on the sides of it

Around my area I've seen them in Babies R' Us, Target, and Safeway. There's 2 in a pack at about $5.99. Little pricey compared to others but a saver when it comes to teething!

Happy 3/4 Birthday to Mommy's Girl!

So, for her 9 months, I decided to make a cake. 3/4 of a cake actually!

I wish I thought of this sooner, so here's a cute photo opportunity for brand new momma's!

Bake a cake for 3, 6, 9, and 12 months. At 3 months only decorate a quarter of the cake, 6 months half a cake, 9 months 3/4 of a cake. Gets lots of pics for and with baby!!

Here's my horrible attempt for 10pm last night. While the cake turned out great with 1/4 cut out, my writing on the cake left nothing to be desired. But I tried!!

Mommy Money Sense!

Here's a simple suggestion from one mommy to all the others out there. I decided to get crafty before my little one was even a thought. I went out and spent $40 on a canning set by Ball.

My family plants an insane garden every year that overflows with fruits and veggies, so one year I took that canning set and made all types of preserves, tomato sauce, spaghetti sauce, zucchini & squash sticks, pie filling, etc. You name it, I made it. Granted this was in small test batches, but it worked amazingly.

Regardless of whether you have your own garden, or buy from your local produce stand or market, most of your fruits and veggies are going to be cheaper in the spring and summer when they are in season.

My recommendation, CAN, CAN CAN! When it comes to feeding babies, big families, big kids, anyone; you can't go wrong with canning up tomatoes, sauces, pie fillings, jams and preserves, anything! It will save so much money in the long run then buying everything pre-made, packaged, and out of season.

This topic comes about because it's on my list of things to do in the next couple of weeks. I'm going to start with preserves. They're so easy to make, and the house always smells amazing after!

Happy Eating! This little monster loves to eat!

Baby Sleep

So my little one decided to pick up on this new habit over the past week. She's decided now that she can crawl, pull herself up, and walk along something she's holding on to, she thinks that she's on a roll and refuses to sleep at night.

Regardless of how tired she is, how red her little eyes her, and how profusely she's rubbing at said eyes, she just absolutely refuses to lay down. Mommy has now resorted to the... comfort her 3 times, now let her cry it out method. This has work to much avail in that she just cries herself to sleep.

On top of that last night, she decided to be brave and let go of the crib railing when she was standing up and ended up falling backward and smacking her little head on the back of the crib.

We have her 9 month appointment on Wednesday next week and I'm going to talk to him then about tactics for sleep. Back when we were kids we cried ourselves through everything! I don't know how my mother did it, because my husband has to be the brave one and keep me from going in the room to pick her up.

I know that this is aside from the topic of my blog, but I figure every bit of parenting stories and advice helps. I'm hoping to have an update in a few days with a solution to this madness that doesn't leave her crying, and mommy wrenching!



MX38EWM2A5QD - Technorati

Easy Baby Meal

So I ran out of time today to get up the big posts I wanted to share... but here's a small tidbit to get through until tomorrow...

Baby protein. Many moms are nrevous about giving pureed chicken to their kids. I great alternative for those that want to make baby food at home:

Pacific Foods Chicken & Wild Rice - It's organic which I prefer, but you can use any pre-made all natural soup. Strain the juices into a seperate bowl, put the soup in a food processor, and add in a little juice as you blend to get a good consistency. Worked amazingly! And I got about a weeks worth of dinner for a $3 container of soup!


Another bonus, it's fast and easy for working mom's, or mom's that just don't have as much time to prepare food... and it's fast, quick, and easy! And baby loves it!!

The Bumbo Chair - Please Use it Right!

I had one of these seats that my daughter loved! When I was using it, before the recent articles, it was always to the manufacturers recommendations, and my baby was never left unattended, nor on a high surface alone. This is the biggest problem is that most people leave their child on a high surface using it, or they leave them in another room unsupervised with it.

PLEASE! IF YOU USE A BUMBO ALWAYS STAY WITH YOUR BABY!

Below is a news article from February about the more frequent incidents involving the bumbo chair.

http://www.usatoday.com/money/industries/retail/story/2012-02-09/bumbo-baby-seats-safety/53032746/1

Again, I neither support nor un-support the use of the bumbo chair. I just ask that those that do use it, use it correctly. And no matter the baby gear you use, do not leave you baby in a room unattended unless he or she is sleeping in their bed.

My Current Top 3 Baby Savers!!

So with 9 months past there's so much to catch up on, but I feel like I have to start with my current 3 best buys for my little punkin. I've made suggestions to friends and family after trying each of them out, and I have to say, it's been an all around 'love it' review!

No specific categories... I'm just going to call it my 'baby savers!' for functionatlity, amount of usage, convenience, and price. And I promise you, these 3 are not my only ones, or my last ones.

1) The Baby Beaba Baby Food Maker
     http://www.beabausa.com/product-babycook.php

• This thing is pricey, I will first admit to. $100 to $150 depending on whether you get a green or purple model. And this doesn't include the load of accessories you can get like rice steamers, freezer containers, seasoning balls, tablewear, carrying case, etc. HOWEVER... you can make sure you get your moneys worth out and then some. I promise that!
• I use this for everything, from making fruits and veggies at stage 1, to simple blending at nearly 9 months, on to steaming rice, and making soups for my little monster to eat. This is only for baby though. I have also used it to make smoothies for myself, salsa for my husband and I, and steaming individual portions of veggies for mommy and daddy meal time.
• VERY easy to clean up. The blade is easy to pop one and off, and it stores so simply into such a small space. (The carrying case is completely worth it for the added money FYI)
• Depending on your food choice, you can make up to a weeks worth of food at one time.
• The best part... it's a steamer and processor in one! One mess, and when you have kids, or you're a working mom, you need the easiest method possible at times!

2) Kolcraft 2 - in - 1 Walker
     http://www.kolcraft.com/baby-products/baby-walkers-activity-centers/kolcraft/step-startertm-2-in-1-walker.html

• This handy little thing is an easy $50, and many times you can catch it on sale at most big name stores for 15 - 20% off. (Babies R' Us is notorious for 20% of walkers every other month!)
• Overall... The fact that it converts from a walker the baby sits in to a walker the baby pushes makes it $25 a use, which is much better than buying individually, and it has adorable little owls to make it cute!
• Beyond easy to assemble and fold back down for storage, lights and sounds activity bar to entertain the little one, and the wheels are made of an soft rubber which makes it easy for them to move in, and won't damage any flooring.
• Why did I choose this? I spent nearly $100 on a jumper for my little one at Christmas time. While she loved it, it wore off kind of fast after a couple of months, and for the price, there isn't much she can do with it now. By all means, if you have one of those bouncing babies that loved the movement the jumper would be great, and I recommend the Animal Krackers Fisher Price Jumparoo, but when you look into money savings, and versatility, not to mention the small space the walker takes up, I would definitely recommend the walker!

3) Manhattan Toys Classic Baby Beads
    http://www.manhattantoy.com/product/296210/210670/_/Classic_Baby_Beads

• These amazing little wooden balls are the greatest kids toy I have ever found! I came across them when I was getting an Easter Basket at Pottery Barn Kids. (They can be ordered through Manhattan Toys, and many other stores if you search online.) They just looked like something fun and I got them on sale for $10. BEST $10 I'VE EVER SPENT!
• My daughter is obsessed with these little things. It's just a group of maybe 10 - 12 painted wooden beads on an elastic band. They roll around, shake around, flip and flop. You can slip them on their ankles, wrists, they love it! They make noise, are bright and colorful. I don't know which element it is that attracts kids to these but they love them. Kids will see her playing with them in the mall, or when someones babysitting, and they take them and run to play for themselves. I started giving them out as gifts since they're so popular in my circle.
• The biggest benefit in my opinion... it's a classic wooden toy. Most kids don't enjoy these types of toys anymore, so when I find out that will still catch their eye, it definitely catches mine!

If you have any great toys, baby gear, accessories, anything you want to share then please send me an email. I'd love to hear what you have or have seen and give it a try! My email is at the bottom of the blog to contact.

Ready... Set... Go!

I have searched site after site looking for those little things to help a mommy out.

Sales
Activites
Cooking
Gear
Everything!

I've managed to combine the efforts of many blogs, sites, reviews, and foremost, my own personal experience with 3 younger siblings, and 8 younger cousins I was raised looking after, and now a baby girl of my own... and I've created this amazing world around my daughter with time tested tricks, oldie but goodie toys, the best of todays baby gear, new ideas, and everything in between!

The one and only purpose of the blog is to share anything I have to help other mommy's out there... and hopefully get some great followers that would love to share along with me!

Now I have a lot to post to start this out as my daughter is now almost 9 months old already... but I'm going to try and get it done in a week, so be sure to check back each day while I'm playing catch-up from the last 9 months!