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Gift Guide for Second Time Moms

Several weeks ago, I was spoiled with a baby shower for baby #2. I wasn’t expecting a second shower, but my mom and sister sweetly put one together for me since this baby is a different gender AND came 6 years after my first (many things have expired or have been pruned from the attic). To double up on the surprise, the ladies at work also threw me a surprise baby shower. I was thrilled! I didn’t have a registry made at all since these were surprises, which got me to thinking about how to buy for a second-time mom who may not have a registry.

After the first baby, moms typically have all the big stuff they need and know exactly what is necessary and what is superfluous. I hung onto all my furniture like our baby swing, bassinet, pack and play, crib and other big ticket items. Toys are probably already an issue in every momma’s house, so it may not be advisable to go that route either. So, this gift-buying business could be tricky in some cases. However, from what I’ve been gifted and brainstormed, I’ve come up with some great solutions in case you ever find yourself buying for a seasoned mommy.

Aside from cash (always a winner), here are some great gift ideas for the second or third+ time mom:

1. Updated car seat. Depending on how many years are between children and how safety standards have changed, it may be wise to get a new car seat. Make sure you know which kind mom wants by asking or checking her registry first. This is typically a pretty personal choice. My mom offered to purchase our car seat as her gift to us, she just had us pick it out and she paid for it. Score!

2. Baby book. By baby book, I mean some way to record all the baby news and milestones in a non-complex way. I did this for a friend the DIY way. I made her one book with the supplies to write her daughter a letter every year until she’s 18. The other was a milestone capture book. There are great school year baby books too that record all the major details of each school grade, with a folder to stash the most memorable projects. These are amazing gifts and are needed for each individual child. And of course, a fresh new scrapbook is something many moms can really appreciate. Here’s the one I was given (already stuffed with some memorabilia from the party):

I also really love this gift from my co-workers.
It has a slot for pictures for each month of baby’s first year.

3. Updated extras. New bottle nipples, bibs, crib sheets and burp cloths are great gifts for any baby. Baby #1 may have “soiled” all of hers or these items may have just plain worn out between pregnancies. Fresh ones are sometimes necessary, and really, you can’t have too many burp cloths.

4. Breastfeeding supplies. If you know what momma uses or has requested, this is a great option. Nursing pads, milk storage bags, and other similar supplies are always in demand.

5. Photo gift card. Popular sites like Shutterfly and Snapfish offer gift cards for prints and photo gifts. Pictures will still be a huge part of baby #2’s life.

6. Similar to the above, paying for an infant photo session is an excellent choice. Every child will have her own set of baby pictures, so this gift is very practical.

7. Handmade gifts: sewn quilts, hand-knit baby blankets, cross-stitched artwork, painted pictures and other personal gifts are some of the most treasured gifts a woman could ever have. I think handmade gifts are the best, no matter what occasion. We still have a hand-knit blanket and sweater set that Hubster’s aunt made for Peanut that we plan to reuse with Baby Girl and then keep forever. Peanut also has a beautiful quilt from his late great-grandma that will also be kept forever.

8. Etsy gift card: even if you don’t have a creative bone in your body, someone on this website does! And chances are mom already has her eye on special baby items. I know I do! Photo props, headbands, clothes, blankets, nursery prints and everything you can think of is on Etsy, with a personal handmade touch. Even better, if you can get a hold of mom’s Wishlist, you can buy right from there.

9. When in doubt, buy diapers and wipes. I would suggest buying size 2 and up. Babies are typically out of size 1 so quickly, it doesn’t pay to have more than a handful. I would be one perfectly happy momma if everyone showed up at my shower with diapers!

10. Freezer meals. This is another winner! Bringing family dinners or stocking her freezer with quick crockpot meals will save her sanity once baby arrives. You may want to check about dietary restrictions and allergies beforehand though so nobody gets sick and the food doesn’t go to waste.

11. Birthstone jewelry. Having family birthstones set into a bracelet, ring or necklace is beyond thoughtful. This may be tricky though with due dates that straddle the month mark. The birth month could change if baby decides to come earlier or later than anticipated. You could go with a family charm bracelet and offer to bring that last charm after baby arrives. Here’s a birthstone bracelet from when Peanut was born. It was part of a necklace/earring/bracelet set. We’ll have to come up with a clever way to add Baby Girl’s own stone to the mix.

12. Mommy relaxation. Massages and spa kits for mom are amazing gifts no matter which number of child she’s on, especially for the momma who has everything. Pamper her. You may even find her some luxurious slippers for the delivery room, a beautiful nursing scarf or a meditation CD (hypnobirthing anyone?). This type of gift will never go unwanted.

13. Free babysitting services. Sometimes the old “redeem this coupon…” trick is just what mom always wanted. Offering date night gift cards on top of that makes you a bona fide hero. It’s tricky to leave the house when there’s a new baby, so taking all the logistical details out of it for mom is very thoughtful.

14. New Clothes. If baby #2 is the same gender as baby #1, mom might already have a pile of clothes saved up. However, it’s always nice for younger kids to have a few of their own clothes instead of only hand-me-downs. If I were buying, I would go with clothing in larger sizes, maybe 6-12 months and up since babies absolutely fly through the smaller clothes.

15. Hand/footprint kit: This is another item that is special to each child. Find a clay or ink kit so mom can record the teeniness of those precious little appendages before they’re only memories.

16. Engraved treasures: We have an engraved Noah’s Ark piggy bank for Peanut that I’m sure he’ll keep forever. There are some really amazing baby gifts that you can pick out from places like Things Remembered. One memorable gift at a baby shower I went to was an engraved blue pin that the baby could wear for her baptism and later at her wedding (something old, something blue). Ah-mazing!

17. Write her a story: There are some amazing websites, such as Blurb, that if you have some artistic talent, would make crazy cool gifts. Writing and illustrating your very own story for the child, and then having it professionally printed, is such a neat idea. A lady at work wrote a story for each of her grandchildren one Christmas and had them printed, and I’m still so smitten with this idea.

18. Baby prayer book/cross: By far one of my favorite gifts was this beautiful prayer card set. The purpose is to pray over your child as they’re sleeping. I just find this idea so touching. My mom also purchased Baby Girl her own cross for her bedroom. Peanut has one too, over his door. And Hubster and I were given a hand-carved cross from his pastor as a wedding gift. These are truly treasures and great reminders about what truly matters.

19. Savings Bonds: My mom has always done this for several of my cousins on their birthdays. One of these cousins in particular lives far away and the family is very financially secure (i.e. already has everything/hard to buy for), so this gift is both really practical and really beneficial down the road for the child. I love this idea and plan to steal the idea next time I need a gift like that.

I hope this list helps you the next time you’re invited to a shower for moms that already have kids. It may also help you form a registry if you’re a second-time mom being spoiled with a baby shower you weren’t expecting. I love finding ways to give meaningfully to people that I love, so I’m always trying to keep these sort of ideas in the back of my head. Happy hunting!

I’ll leave you with a few peeks from my baby shower. Perfect weather. Perfect company.

Baby To-Do List

This week, I enter my third trimester, and with that, the to-do list has been weighing more heavily on my mind. I guess it’s true what they say about your second-born. We have been quite lax this time around. No baby magazine subscriptions, no intense Google searches (except for my heart palpitations), no rush to completely baby-proof every nook of our home. I’m even having a hard time getting interested in baby literature this time around. Certainly some things have changed in the last six years, but most of the baby guidelines are much the same. I’m excited–certainly! Just a little more lax. But, that to-do list is creeping up on me:

  1. Decide on a name. I’m already through the “K” baby names and have found absolutely nothing I’m happy with. Once we settle on a name, don’t ask what it is though. It’s our only secret:)
  2. Prepare and freeze extra meals for when the baby comes. Now’s the time to start clipping recipes that I can double or triple and freeze. Any good resources?
  3. Pick out a new car seat. Our old one is obviously expired by now, but I’m hoping to find one that’s compatible with our still-useful travel system stroller.
  4. Make a list of what to pack in my hospital bag. Then, eventually, pack it.
  5. Sew a baby bunting thing. I have a lot of sewing projects on my Pinterest board, but this is the only one that I’m hell-bent on finishing.
  6. Find furniture for Peanut. Poor boy has had a girl’s vanity dresser for far too long. We want to get him a new wardrobe and desk instead of the girly dresser and changing table-turned-bookshelf. Scouring Craiglist every day.
  7. Along with that, we really need to get a move on Baby Girl’s room soon. What was once our office will now be her nest. We need to get the old furniture out and move the new furniture in. It hurts thinking about it.
  8. Choose a new pediatrician. Our insurance has changed since news of our Baby Girl hit. Peanut and Baby Girl will both need new care.
  9. Journal for the baby. I kept a journal before Peanut was born about what I was thinking about, what was happening, current baby news, and how I felt about him. I remember all the news about BPA in polycarb bottles was just coming out and I’ve got a clip about that in there, along with our choice to use glass bottles. I want to do the same for Baby Girl. I think I only have one entry so far. Must. Get. On. That.
  10. Choose an easy scrapbook format and some simple embellishments for the baby. I don’t want to cheat my second-born of what I created for the first-born. I know I have to stay right on top of it or it will never happen, so purchasing the whole set-up now will save this project.
  11. Purge Peanut’s baby clothes. I no longer need any boy clothes. This is going to be so hard to do, parting with those little bitty outfits that bring back memories. However, we’re having a family rummage sale soon and it would be the perfect opportunity to clear the attic. Plus, I have friends and family with boys younger than Peanut that might enjoy some of our spoils.
  12. Figure out the whole breast pump thing with my insurance company.
  13. Film a prenatal workout video or 4. I likely won’t have anymore children, so I know right now is the ideal time to film a prenatal workout video. I really want to do this because there’s not a whole lot out there. It’s not just a “should do.” I’ve been jotting momma-friendly moves and hope to get something together really soon. Before I lose my baby belly in three months.
  14. Do some kind of maternity photo shoot.
  15. Pick up a few more baby girl clothes. This–and the car seat and diapers–are about the only things we need for baby #2. All the big stuff has just been patiently waiting for a new recipient in our attic for the past 6 years.
  16. Clean out the chest freezer. Gots to make some room for all the extra milk.

Oh geez. Just looking at this list is making me sleepy. Haha. I could literally nap just about anywhere right now. In fact, I’ve been known to steal away on my lunch break for a quick nap. Luckily, nothing will crumble if I don’t get to all of these things–or most of them really. I’m enjoying this time to take things a whole lot slower than my normal Type-A turbo pace, so I’m not as intensely focused on all of that right now. Just making it through a work day and dinner is enough for me. Ideally though, it would be nice to tackle most of them, or at least get a start on most of them. Baby steps (pun totally intended)!

Ticker Update

I am beyond thrilled to announce that my ticker is in fighting shape. Being a devoted runner and soon-to-be second time momma, I am very reassured by this. My echocardiogram came back completely normal. My pulse was a bit high, but that’s pretty normal for pregnancy. The Holter monitor caught in the 6,000 range!!!!! of PVC’s, or skipped heartbeats, over the 48 hr period I wore it (3,000-something per day). However, no arrhythmia was detected.

My cardiologist said that they have patients with PVC’s in the 20-30,000 range, which is when they start having some concern. On a scale of 1 to 10, my benign “problem” ranks around a 1. However, she did offer a small dose of a beta blocker that’s safe for pregnancy. With her guidance though, I am not going to take them, at least not yet. I have them on standby in case the PVC’s really do become bothersome. Since the meds are not really medically necessary, they’re really only for my comfort, I’d rather wait this thing out and just tolerate it than medicate it.

My blood pressure this time was well back in the normal range–and actually a bit low for a preggo at 110/70. I was starting to worry that pre-eclampsia was sneaking up on me, but I think the higher readings were just because of nerves. Thank goodness. We pregnant ladies sure do worry a lot, don’t we?

It’s kind of neat to understand how my heart is working. I do get lightheaded once in awhile (though it’s a pregnancy-related symptom, not a heart problem-related one). The nurse practitioner explained that my heart is working fast right now, and she used a sponge analogy. If you were to squeeze a sponge long and hard, you’d get more water out of it. If you squeeze it fast and incompletely, not as much water will drain. That’s how the heart is working during pregnancy. It’s not as efficient at getting all that extra blood where it needs to go. Hence, the lightheadedness at times and the PVC’s. Beta blockers help smooth out that heartbeat, so the beats are good and hearty.

Well, I’m just so thankful that that’s out of the way and I’m doing fine. It was a few emotional days being hooked up to wires and waiting for those test results. Now that I know nothing is wrong, I’m not as anxious about or attuned to all the PVC’s I’ve been having. It has made a huge difference just knowing that I’m going to be fine.

Weekend Family Fitness

Our state park system recently offered a free weekend open house where we could partake in their many amenities at will. We chose High Cliff since it was the closest to home. We started with a long trail hike at a pretty slow walking/waddling pace. We actually chose the horse-riding trail for something different, since we’ve frequented the other trails many times before. Plus, we got to meet a few special visitors of the equine variety that way. Horsey kisses? Yes, please. The day was beautiful, bright and bug-less and the trail a healthy 3 miles long. The handsome fellow below was one happy camper, can you tell?

We counted butterflies, listened for cricket chirps and scoped out the wildflowers.

After our long hike, we recouped with some water and snacks and headed to the very tall viewing tower the park provides. Someone had to stay behind with the dog, and I allowed that person to be me. I left those ten flights of stairs to my guys and their non-squished lungs. 
Behind the viewing tower is a long railing bordering some steep drop-offs. There’s a secret spot though that a handful of people found behind one of the fence posts. There’s a stone staircase and a series of pathways through neat rock outcroppings and caves. We climbed those fence posts and took the little side trip that happened to also be pretty picturesque.

Find the steps behind the secret railing. Secret hideouts are my favorite!

What you are witnessing are my only prenatal photos so far.
One lone autumn leaf that survived the deep freeze.

Happy boys!
Our day was so perfect. We finished with dinner and more play time. You’d think Peanut would be exhausted, but he never wears out. All day of playing and hiking followed by more heavy play and he probably could’ve kept going. No naps, no time outs. I, on the other hand, feel like napping after simply thinking about this hike again. Haha. I’m still trying to stay as active as my body will allow me to. Sometimes that’s a 6 mile bike ride, a 3 mile hike or a 2 minute stretch session. I’m just letting my body guide me and enjoying my capabilities even in my pregnant state, and I’m enjoying the relaxed nature of it all. No counting reps, no tallying up miles, no tracking calories. I’m hoping to carry some of this relaxed, carefree, exercising-but-not-trying-to, bring-the-whole-family energy into my post-natal fitness approach. I enjoy being hardcore when I’m not pregnant, but there should always be space for serendipity.

State of the Baby Address

I haven’t been saying much about my pregnancy other than making the announcement, but it’s so true what they say about each pregnancy being entirely different. This one has left me with a lot more worry and has felt like an entirely different experience than the first uneventful one. From morning sickness to anxiety flare-ups to weird heart behaviors to health scares, I’ve been trying to navigate waters that feel completely foreign to me.

First, we had a false positive reading for Down’s Syndrome which sent our world into a bit of a spin of waiting, testing, waiting some more. Everything came out “normal,” but the experience was kind of excruciating and full of questions. We just wanted to know what we had to prepare for and wrap our minds around it, but admittedly there were lots of tears and doubt.

In the last month, I’ve developed some pretty frequent heart palpitations. I had them during my last pregnancy, but they were very different. With Peanut, they only showed up around month 8 during exercise and exertion. They were pretty infrequent. This time, they happen all day, every day, whether I’m sitting in my chair or out hiking. I, of course, reported them to my baby doctor right away.

My OB was not too worried about them. She said they were pretty common in pregnancy considering the extra blood volume a pregnant woman has in her body. She said I could either monitor it for any changes, see my general practitioner about it, or she could refer me to a cardiologist. I chose the cardiologist because I just don’t want to mess around with my heart. And with my anxiety, I have a hard time with worst-case scenario thinking. I just want to be extra cautious and know for sure that everything is fine.

This past Friday, I saw the cardiologist. He told me not to worry about it, but that we were going to be extra cautious and a little more aggressive with testing since I’m pregnant. I appreciate the gesture! My blood pressure was reading pretty high that day, so I was suffering from nervous energy wondering if it was a sign of pre-eclampsia. However, my BP was back in the normal range at Monday’s appointment, so I’m hoping it was just a fluke because I was nervous.

So Monday, I got fitted for my electrodes. Cool, huh? How bionic-womanlike of me. I’m wearing a Holter monitor for 48 hours to detect any abnormalities. Then on Thursday I’m scheduled for an echo-cardiogram, an ultrasound of the heart. As frightening as heart conditions sound and these tests seem (I’ve never had to see so many doctors in my life!), I’m trying to stay positive and take everything in stride. After all, both my OB and cardiologist said everything is likely to be benign.

Despite these “setbacks,” everything is going relatively fine. I feel much better, but I still have no interest in cooking or any type of food prep and my energy wanes big time during the day. Peanut wants me to play the instant I get home from work, and it’s hard to deny him that. My pleading eyes just can’t convey to him the complete exhaustion I feel at the end of the day. I try to give him what I can, but many days are “lets watch a movie together” days. When I’m feeling truly energetic, I can muster a 6 mile bike ride with the family, but that’s only happened once, so…

Well, there are only about 3 months left until we meet our baby girl and I’m hoping things become a whole lot more uneventful really soon. Keep me in your thoughts and prayers, would ya? I appreciate every one I can get.

Baby Confessional

I have a little confession to make. I bought three vintage girl outfits at the thrift store long before we decided to add another member to our family. I have kept them tucked neatly away in the very back of my son’s long closet. I figured if our dreams of a little girl never came true, I could certainly find some satisfaction in selling pretty vintage baby girl outfits online. I seemed to find them quite easily anyhow.

The gentle textures and dainty details made my heart smile. Whether it was my child or another’s child inside those layers, I would still be gratified by having found the baby clothes. Their sweetness was tangible just by existing in my home.

A few weeks ago, we learned that we are indeed having a girl!!!! I am of course beyond happy for this baby’s health, no matter which gender, but I almost feel like me and this baby girl were just somehow meant to be. Although I am entering a whole new world of girl-dom, I am embracing the job of momma with all the things that come with little girls. We will have the sweetest balance in our family. I can already imagine the secrets with my girl and the fun dynamics that will make our family unique.

Now these adorable little outfits are being accompanied by even more little girly outfits, mostly from thrift and consignment shops and rummage sales. At some point, I’ll have to purge all the teeny boy clothes that I’ve been hoarding “just in case” for five years. It will be so difficult to let go of those favorite little boy clothes. I might keep some, but most will find good homes with friends and family.

It’s funny all the emotions baby clothes can evoke. From the mysterious clothes that haven’t had occupants yet to the teeny stored clothes that harbor precious memories of a child that is already 50 times the size of his beginnings. I can’t wait to see the face of the little girl that will be filling out the wrinkles in these clothes. We’re halfway there!

News to Share

Photo: This week we have some better news to share. John Collins and I are expecting baby #2, due in September.

Our little family of three is expecting a new little visitor to this Earth in about 6 months. We couldn’t be any more thrilled to be adding to our family, our family story, our traditions, our memories, our hearts.

It took us a full 5 years to be at a point where we felt semi-ready (you’re never fully ready, right?) to go through babyhood again. On the other hand, the older and more self-managed Peanut gets, the harder it seems to be starting over with a fully-reliant infant. It’s so easy to do most things with a well-disciplined 5-year-old. With a baby, I know it will be a monumental task just to go across town. And potty training again? Oy. But really, in the big picture of “family,” those things mean nothing. When it comes to everything from day-to-day life to celebrating Christmases at home to taking family vacations, all of our lives will be enriched by the incorporation of our new family member.

Peanut is beyond excited about “his” new baby. He’s already taking ownership with his big brother status. He kisses my belly and gives the baby hugs all the time and I can already see his little heart making room for this new sibling of his. He wants the baby to sleep in his room and he says he’ll take care of everything. His well-meaning words are enough to warm a mother’s heart. We know that having a sibling will be good for him.

We got to see the baby last week at our first OB appointment. Doc couldn’t find the heartbeat, which is normal this early in pregnancy, so they did a quick scan. The baby was moving around so much that it was no wonder the doc couldn’t nail down a heartbeat. In the ultrasound, we could actually see the heartbeat, not just hear it. At just 1.5 inches, it’s amazing how human-like this tiny little bean already is! I keep those pictures with me at all times. When I start to feel defeated by sickness, I just peek at the pictures and reflect on what this is all for.

It hasn’t all been pretty pink and blue roses though. For one, I’ve been pretty darn sick. In fact, last week, I was so sick to the point of tears. I know I don’t have it as bad as some women, but still, feeling like you have the flu or an awful hangover all day every day for days on end does begin to wear a person down, even a person with a pretty high threshold for pain/discomfort.

With the morning all day sickness and fatigue, I haven’t been very active. Pregnancy is a time where you must listen to your body. Mine is saying rest and I’m more than willing to listen. I’ve really been taking this time to sloooow down. For the most part, I’ve put my ambitious to-do lists away in favor of just the must-get-dones like paying bills and even doing dishes. My eating habits have been much different than they were pre-pregnancy. Simple carbs are sometimes the only things I can keep down, and I’m not ashamed that there have been Pop-Tarts and granola bars involved.

In the midst of the pregnancy news, we’ve also taken some hard hits in our family recently. After one little trip to the ER, my dad learned he had cancer and in a whirlwind of activity had tons of tests and surgery all within one week. He’s starting chemo today, and I still don’t think this diagnosis has quite sunk in for any of us. If you’d like to follow along with his story or show your support, check out our fundraising page.

At the same time, my grandma was navigating her way through the end stages of cancer. With our religious family background and strong faith, her passing was more peaceful than I would ever have imagined. She’s in heaven with grandpa, there’s no doubt in my mind, and what’s better than that? We got to say our goodbyes, which is a blessing in itself. I just melted under the last long hug she gave me, the “I love you’s” and the sweetest, most precious prayer in my ear for me and the baby.

I think it’s safe to say that I am pretty much off-the-hook for being MIA. So much is happening and all my energies have been focused on family in various ways with little room for anything, let alone a blog post here and there. I’m pretty sure my lack of posting even affected my application to be a FitFluential Ambassador, but I shall just try again next time they open applications up.

I will be back to posting again soon, though probably not as predictably. I’ve got some projects and posts up my sleeve already. I’ve been itching to get at the sewing machine. I have a whole Pinterest board dedicated to Baby Fever that I have been keeping secret for months. Now, I’m finally pulling up my sleeves and ready to start sourcing some fabric. I can’t wait to share what I’m up to on here. And if I get really ambitious and start feeling better, I may even post a prenatal workout or two, who knows?

Eat Like a Kid

In one of my college writing classes, we read a narrative by Terry Tempest Williams about a boy sitting next to his mother peeling potatoes. The narrative was only one paragraph yet so exquisitely written. We were instructed to write our own narrative involving a poignant food memory. I still have mine:

My mother taught me how to eat grapefruit in our living room one balmy summer evening. She instructed me to cut the large fruit in half between the two ends so there were perfect triangular pockets to scoop from. She even let me use a special spoon with a serrated edge to scrape out the fleshy pulp. She laughed at my persistent efforts, swiping a blush across her brightening face, even though her stomach was always tied with anxiety from the pervasive stress of piling bills. She handed me sugar to sprinkle over the half I held in my sticky, dripping hand. Her face was beaming as I took a spoonful of the bitter fruit, sweetened to enjoyment by a simple touch of sugar. 

Coming across this again inspired me to start thinking about the way we approach food in our homes and how eating like a kid could really be healthy.

1. Make your best memories revolve around healthy food. Wouldn’t it be great if our kids had predispositions to eat berries because the family always went berry picking in the summer? Or cucumbers because they nurtured them from seed? Or veggie skewers because that’s what you always served at family picnics? Or spinach because that’s what turned their “Zombie” smoothies green? I’m so glad my memory revolved around a grapefruit and not a Snickers Bar. I admit, we occasionally ate Oreos by the row, but if you can make an equally poignant memory revolve around healthy food instead of junk food, then by all means try it!

2. Turn away your head when you’re full. Something happens between our first bites of food around 6 months of age and adulthood. We stop taking cues from our bodies somewhere along the way. Feeding an 8-month-old is easy. You just feed them until they turn away their heads. As we get older, we fight those natural signals and stuff ourselves until we’re uncomfortable. Stop eating when you feel sufficiently full or when you know you’ve eaten enough.

3. Make food fun. Did your mom ever plant “trees” (broccoli) on a hill (of mashed potatoes) for you? Did your dad ever drive your spoon around like it was a train headed for the depot (your mouth)? Food was fun when you were a kid. I encourage you to make food fun again! Make it a point to try a new food or healthy recipe each week. Toy around with the colors, textures, spices, pairings and presentation. Cut fruit out with cookie cutters. Lick the spoon. Become familiar with the playground. Food should not be your enemy, it should be your plaything.

4. Don’t think about food while you’re playing. When you’re not eating, don’t obsess or worry about food. You’ve never seen a child in the throes of a playground wondering if dinner will come soon enough. Let yourself get carried away with non-food activities. Believe me, when you’re busy with an involved project, you won’t be thinking about the Girl Scout cookies calling you from the cupboard. Don’t allow thoughts about food to control you. You get to control your thoughts!

5. Eat slow. Your toddler isn’t allowed to leave the table until he’s cleared his plates, and that usually comes about a half-hour after everyone else is finished. We may practice better manners as we get older, but we surely forget how to eat as mindfully as a child. Slow down. Taste, I mean really taste, every bite. Chew it. Put your fork down. Look away from that screen. And take a cue from Junior.

Making Up Some Play Ground

How ironic is it that sometimes I have to look up how to play? Isn’t that just an intrinsic pleasure that we’re all supposed to know how to take part in? But once you become a parent, it’s difficult to feign interest in certain things again like dollies, fake tools and tiny racecars. I’ve always loved making forts and playing with building blocks, but thinking about new activities stumps me sometimes. Isn’t that just wrong, that we lose that sense of playfulness in our adulthood? And that we can actually lose our pleasure for it?

I took the kiddos, my son and nephew, to the library recently and found a book that lists 200 activities for children. As I perused the pages, my sense of wonder was aroused. How could I have forgotten sidewalk chalk and skipping rope (for purposes other than cardio benefits) and beachcombing and flower pressing?Remember those parachute things in gym class? Everyone holds a piece, fans it in the air, then lifts it up and sits under it? I want that excitement again!

A few nights earlier, one of our copies of Scooby Doo did the “babysitting” (you know we have to do this once in awhile) while I occupied myself with dishes and other menial tasks of adulthood. I was pondering adulthood, particularly parenthood, and how the extracurricular could become curricular again. How could it be that I needed to research this? I also had to look up the lyrics to some of those old musical favorites like Hush Little Baby. What the heck comes after that diamond ring momma was gonna buy anyway? I remember mom telling us about how dad used to sing us to sleep by Silent Night because that was the only song he could think of. And sometimes I’m at a loss too. After hearing myself sing Twinkle Twinkle for the 820th time, I need me some new material.
I started with fingerplays. I printed off a pattern for felt finger puppets and found a book with fingerplays in it. Since I vowed to train my brain to toddler level activity, I now find myself devising little children’s story plots and painting primary-colored illustrations in my head.

Here’s a little fingerplay you can enjoy with your baby or toddler. It’s a touchy-feely game that keeps them guessing, plays with rhythm and rhyme, introduces them to a few body parts and types of touch. Completely hands-on, no material required. Just wiggle your fingers in front of them and do what the lyrics say:

These 10 fingers they tap tap tap. These 10 fingers they snap snap snap. These 10 fingers they clap clap clap. These 10 fingers they fold in your lap.


These 10 fingers they squeeze squeeze squeeze. These 10 fingers they tease, tease, tease. These 10 fingers they tap your knees. These 10 fingers they freeze!


These 10 fingers they tickle your toes. These 10 fingers they open and close. These 10 fingers they touch your nose. These 10 fingers they put on your clothes.

DIY Baby Milestone Book

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Two of my dearest friends recently brought brand new additions into their homes. For their baby showers, I designed two little books for each of them. One was a baby milestone book and the other was a letter-a-year book. I think it’s much too difficult to keep up with baby milestones in a big scrapbook or other complicated way, especially with the culture shock that a new baby adds to daily life. To make it easy for them, I made one page for each month, printed with journal lines for a quick jot. Even the most harried mommies amongst us can handle that, right? That is, if we remember…

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The back of the book had a few pages to reminisce about other things, such as “Our Favorite Lullabies” and “Our Family Tree.” I also included a little envelope for the first lock of hair.

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The second book was designed with one pocket for each of the child’s birthdays through age 18. And each pocket was furnished with one sheet of writing paper. The idea is to write a quick note to your child on each birthday about what the past year meant to you and to let your heart out. Then, when they’re old enough to appreciate it, you can share the stack of letters with them. I do this every year for my son, and I thought I would share this wonderful tradition with my good friends and blog readers.

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For each, I bought a stack of baby-themed cardstock from Hobby Lobby. I punched a hole in the corner of each sheet and strung them through a binder clip. The stamped words throughout were made from a small set of letter stampers. I embellished the pages with a few baby-themed stickers and other ephemera, but I wanted to keep it fairly simple. I just can’t wait to see what the ladies do with them!