Wordless Wednesday: Fun with the camera

Yes, the Mommies are still alive. Mommy L has gone back to work after her maternity leave and Mommy J got a fabulous new job! Between work and the babies we are just beat. 

Here is a Mommy J and Honeybee bit of fun for you.

Having Fun With The Camera!

Mommy confession#1

I eat Oreos when my kids aren't looking. When they ask for some I remind them that they already had a treat today and will have to wait until tomorrow. Want an apple?

I COULD probably do it, but I wouldn't want to live without...

I realize this could apply to many things, (Chocolate, and coffee are a few of my choices) but here are a few products that we love for moms and babies.  To add to the awesomeness, all these products are Mom invented!


BabyLegs  Oh how I LOVE these! I wish they came in grown up sizes - not that that has stopped me from using them myself.  Baby legs are like warmers that cover your baby's entire leg.  They are fantastic in place of pants when worn with a onesie, especially for little babies who need to be changed every 5 minutes!  The great thing is that they grow with your child.  Honeybee has been wearing the same several pairs since she was a few weeks old (She's 3 now).   As your child grows they can  continue to wear them as shorter leg warmers or arm warmers. I keep a pair stashed in the car,  and on several occasions when I have miscalculated the weather, have thrown them on MY arms with my tee-shirt.  And everyone though I was just being hip! 

 Hooter Hiders  I think both my children would have starved if not for this! I am certainly a supporter of breastfeeding(or any other way or method you choose to feed your child) but I would hardly call myself a "lactivist".   I do believe that our society should be more amenable to breastfeeding and while I will certainly feed my child wherever and whenever necessary, I'm not the type to whip a boob out and make a display of it. I'm pretty discreet about it. My feeling is if you are offended by me nursing, you are looking to close. Hooter Hiders are these great covers that have a frame like top so that you can see your baby while nursing but not flash everyone in the process.  I hate being gawked at - this solves that problem quite nicely. (Also I found that it helped my babies not get distracted while nursing).

Belly Bandit had heard about post natal belly binding after Honeybee was born.  The idea is that it helps to shrink your belly back into place after your baby is born.  I started wearing one when Honeybee was a few months old, even though they say you should start immediately.  Since I had a c-section, I though it would be best to wait a bit.  I think it actually did work! My stomach got flatter than it had been before I was pregnant.  I've been wearing it again after Monkey was born and since I developed diastasis rectii (a split in the stomach muscles)  It has helped pull things together and serves as some added support. 

LilyPadz These are silicone nursing pads that stick to you and keep everything nice and dry. Being the slightly crunchy mama that I am, I wanted to find an alternative to disposable nursing pads. I tried all kinds of cloth ones, but would end up leaking through them. (I know, I shouldn't complain that I had adequate milk supplies for both children.)  I had my doubts about Lilypadz when I first heard of them.  How could a silicone sticker actually keep me from leaking?   I don't know how they work so well but they do. I've never had a leak using these and they are super comfortable. Not to mention they don't make you look like you have a diaper stuffed  in your shirt.

WubbaNub Pacifiers ok so this is more for baby, but indirectly it is for Mommies.  These adorable pacifiers attached to plush animals that basically hold the pacifier near their mouths. These are great in the car when you can't reach to get the dropped pacifier back in the mouth of your screaming baby. I don't know about you, but I swear that Monkey only screams when I'm driving or in the bathroom.

Monkey with his Wubbanub

You can find all of these great products at Mom 4 Life a great Mommy owned and operated online shop. 


Also, they make the best peppermint lip balm I have EVER used! 

All is Right in the World

Honeybee just came running in the room yelling:

MOMMY, MOMMY!!! GUESS WHAT!!!! GUESS WHAT MOMMY!!!

What?!?! What's wrong!?!?!

I love you. 

I love you sooooooooooooooooooooooooooo much! 

Then grabbed my face and gave me a huge smooch on the forehead. And then Monkey flashed me the biggest smile and laughed. One of those YouTube-baby-tearing-paper type laughs.

All is right in the world right now...

Photo courtesy of stock xchng

You can't get it back.

While Monkey was in his baby lounger seat, being bounced by my foot, I was checking Facebook and twitter and completely distracted by all that modern technology has to offer us today. Our fabulous pediatrician posted a link on Facebook to this post: How To Miss A Childhood.

After reading it I immediately put down the iPad and played with my 3 month old Monkey while Honeybee was still sleeping. When she woke up we made up stories while I made her breakfast. No tv, no iPad, no phone.

Only now that Monkey is napping and Honeybee has decided she wanted to play "all my by self" I resumed typing but put off the original blog post I was writing for today for I think this is a more important message to get out. Please go read it! How To Miss A Childhood.

The ABC's of Me!

It was harder to think of things than I expected! Maybe it's because I'm lacking sleep. Or maybe because my brain is only running at 76%. Anyway here are most of the letters. I'm working on the rest.

A: Always. I will ALWAYS be there for my children through good times and bad. I know that they will make mistakes, but I will be there to help them through life. (But not by being an enabler.)

B: Better. My family has made me a better person and given me a better life. I hope that I'm able to do the same for them.

C: Clowns. I don't like them. They scare the *bleep* out of me! My children will never have a clown at their birthday parties. Thank you Stephen King. Sorry kiddos.

D: Daddy J is an awesome dad. That is all.

E: Exhausted! Mommy J has a 2 month old and a 3 year old and Mommy L has a 5 year old, a 2 year old and a less than a month old baby! Yeah we are definitely both exhausted right now!

F: Fortuitous timing. A few years before Honeybee's arrival I actually thought that I might not want children. (Go teach in a very tough school system with no support if you want the best form of birth control!) had it not been for Honeybee's surprise appearance we probably still wouldn't have children and would be missing out greatly.

G: Gastrointestinal Distress. Being a mommy, I've experienced heartburn and morning sickness that I wouldn't wish on my worst enemies. I have now been peed on, pooped on, and puked on in every conceivable color and texture. Ew.

H: Helicopter parent. Even though I would go to the ends of the earth for my children. I will never be the kind of parent that hovers around my children and not let them learn how to live life for themselves. I'd be doing a great disservice to them by doing everything for them. And if I ever unwittingly do, please shoot out my propellor.

I: I

J: Mommy J. Yup that's me. I'm the oldest (and wisest - heehee) of 4 kids. Mommy L is kid number 2. We have 2 brothers as well.

K: Kitchen. My favorite room in my house and where I spend most of my time. (there were many jokes

L:

M: Me. I am often guilty of putting me last. I need to keep reminding myself that sometimes I need to make sure I am taken care of too.

N: Neurotic - yes that is me. I freely admit it.

O: Organized will never be me no matter how I try.

P: Pout lip- it's my kryptonite. I crumble whenever I see it (babies only- this doesn't work with the hubby).

Q: Quick reflexes. Since Honeybee became mobile my reflexes are ninja quick!

R:

S: Superheroes. Well yes we mommies are superheroes but that's not what I mean here. I love that my husband has shared his childhood love of Batman and other superheroes with our daughter. They watch the old 1960's Batman series (with Adam West) every night and he has passed on his action figures to her which they play with all the time.

T: "That" parent. Yes I am always terrified I am being "that" parent.

U: Up (the Pixar movie) The beginning of this movie gets me teary every time I watch it. If you don't get even the least bit misty eyed when you watch it you must have no soul! I was bawling like a baby when I was pregnant and saw this.


V: Violinist. That was me in my old (pre baby) life. And while I'm no longer a performer, I don't really miss that life. I wouldn't trade being mommy for anything.

W: Why? Fortunately, Honeybee has not picked up this common kid habit. Unfortunately, she has started asking the same question over and over again. Even after I answer it!

X: X- rays. One of the (many) things that have been the cause of my ever growing list of neurosis. Long story. I'll save it for later.

Y:

Z: Zzzzzzzzzzzzzz! huh? Oh sorry I must have dozed off again. Seriously, I need more sleep.

Giveaway for Cloth Diapers

For all you cloth diaperers or those who are curious or want to try, The Bewitchin' Kitchen is hosting a giveaway for a Mabu Baby Eco diapering system!

http://www.thebewitchinkitchen.com/2012/04/mabu-baby-baby-gift-guide.html

Oh Boy, I may have finally lost it.

Dear dude in the poorly suped-up Civic,

1. Your stereo is too loud if it is shaking my whole house while you are stopped at the end of my street.

2. Why the heck are you stopped at the end of my street? This is the suburbs.  No one is going to challenge you to a race here.

3. You are not the Drift King! The fact that you put this on your car is evidence that you almost certainly can't drift nor are you a king of anything.

4. The fact that you would use a c-level series of movies as your life inspiration is sad.

5. Stop pretending you are just hanging out and ask someone for directions. Or better yet go 2 blocks away to the gas station and ask them for directions and stop reverberating my house!

Thank you,

Mommy J

~*~


Dear Mommy J,

You are officially an ornery old geezer. And don't deny that one of your favorite movies is The Fast and the Furious: Tokyo Drift.

Sincerely,

Yourself

~*~


Dear Self,

At least I recognize how bad this movie is!  Which is why I like it.  That and the Hulk Car.

Sincerely,
Mommy J

~*~


Dear Mommy J,

Do you realize you are writing letters to yourself?

Yours truly,

Self

~*~

Dear Self,

Yes, yes I do.

~Mommy J

PS: I need more sleep, or coffee or both.

I Can't! My Arms Will Break!

For the most part, Honeybee is taking the arrival of her little brother well. She loves to hug and kiss him and "help" me take care of him. Although, there are some things that I've noticed she is doing to get my attention away from him such as saying "I can't!" to things she is quite capable of doing or "I don't know." when she knows perfectly well.

Another thing lately has been to want me to feed her. I don't mean nursing her (thank goodness for that!) but to spoon feed her yogurt or hold her cup for her while she drinks.

So the other day, I was working on the computer at the desk with a bottle of water. Honeybee comes over and asks for a sip.
"Sure, go ahead." I say not removing my eyes for the screen.
"No Mommy. Feed me!"
Seeing as so much of my time and attention has been spent on the baby lately, I give in and hold the water bottle up to her mouth. Unfortunately (for me), in order to keep working and hold the water bottle for her I have my arm at a 90 degree angle to my body, with my elbow pulled back behind me. Not the most comfortable position. So every time I think she is done drinking I put my arm back down for a second of relief and she says "More water Mommy!"

I realize I could easily have remedied this pain by stopping what I was doing and giving her my undivided attention, but since I had been neglecting the blog so much  for the months leading up to Monkey's birth I mistaken thought I could multitask.

After about 10 minutes if trying to type with one hand and hold the water bottle behind me. I finally said to Honeybee "Sweetie, I can't hold the water like this, my arm's gonna break."

"Yes?"  She says innocently.  "ok" and she patters away to play with a toy that is suddenly more interesting than me and my water bottle.  I resume two handed typing.

About 5 minutes later she returns and asks for more water. "It's right there, you can just take it." I say, motioning to the table.

 She replies with a bit of terror in her voice: "I can't Mommy! I can't!"
"Yes you can."
" No, Mommy! My arms will break!!

A quick bit of wisdom

It's no secret that I love our pediatrician, but at Honeybee's yearly checkup yesterday, he said something that I think bares repeating. (hmm... It bears or bares? Crap! This will bother me all day- someone help me out.)

Back to the point. It was in response to my neuroticness about trying to be a good parent and doing things right for my children and not putting them in therapy- my words not his. Actually, I had just asked several questions regarding whether her behaviors were normal and about her general development and he responded:

"She has been a child her whole life, you have only been a parent for 3 years. She's the pro at it."

This is so true, my neurosis about parenting stem from being feed contradicting information on what I should be doing and how I should be parenting and how no matter what I do, I am doing it wrong.

But Honeybee knows what she is doing. Being a child is what she has done everyday from the minute she was born. I need to just trust that she is doing that just fine.

Biggest and Fastest Scare of My Life

At dinner tonight Honeybee and I were having a typical toddler food standoff. After discussing eating tactics with her pediatrician i realized that I needed to be firm about her eating better foods. My refusal to let her eat goldfish crackers for dinner led to her refusal to eat a small cube of chicken, 1 piece each of broccoli and cauliflower (which by the way she picked) and a half teaspoon of mashed potatoes.

But the doc said that a skipped meal here and there would not be harmful to her health and being hungry might entice her to eat a vegetable or two so I held my ground: no snacks and no treats if she didn't take a bite of her dinner.

Somehow she managed to convince Daddy J to sit on the floor and eat his dinner at the kids size table with her. Honeybee is trying every trick she knows to try to get me to give her something else to eat and progresses to rolling on the floor. She's talking to Daddy and laughing and then is suddenly quiet.

"What's wrong with her?" Daddy J asks me as he can't see her from where she is. I look over at her as he is nudging he with his foot (he still can't see her) and she is face down on the floor. She doesn't respond to being nudged and in an instant I was stricken with a chest crushing fear. I scoop her up I my arms and she is completely limp! Near panic, I call her name several times and she finally makes a sound somewhere between a groan and a whine and squeezes her eyes tighter. I keep trying to get her to respond to me: "Honey what's wrong? Are you ok?"

Then she opens one eye and gives me a look that I recognize all to well when I wake her too early and she says with sheer annoyance "I'm sleeping!"

I love how kids can fall asleep anywhere.

Happy spring holidays

Happy Easter, Passover or Chocolate Bunny Devouring Day (Or whatever you celebrate this time of year) to all our readers!

We're off to spend some quality time with the Mommies' families.

A Little Mommy Wisdom

We're getting ready to have (extended) family over for Honeybee's 3rd birthday. I've been stressing over cleaning and cooking while being interrupted by a toddler and an infant every few minutes. So I found this article just in time to Bring me back to some sanity and stop trying to be supermom. http://kateelizabethconner.com/motherhood-101-the-first-year/ I recommend it for all moms with little ones.

Send Good Thoughts to Mommy L

Mommy L (and Baby 3!) are recovering and resting up after a long day of Baby 3's arrival! Send her some speedy recovery vibes!   We'll give her a few days off before we crack the blogpost whip...

Just kidding...

Maybe...

Heeheehee...

(Love you Sis!)

Mommy J's a child lock escaping ninja!

So here's you laugh for the day.  At about 4 weeks I finally dared to venture out into the world with 2 kids.  It has been going quite well if I do say so myself!  So the other day, we were at the supermarket and Honeybee is starting to get antsy. We get to the car and she just doesn't want to stay still or in the car at all let alone get in her carseat.     Since I have a cart full of groceries as well as an infant still in the carriage I toss (not literally) Honeybee in the back seat and get Monkey and the groceries loaded in the car. Then I go back around to Honeybee's side to get her in her carseat and realize she is crying.   Dont worry, she wasn't hurt. At least not from anything I did. Let me back up here and give you a big of background info (someday Honeybee will hate me for this). So we've had some "digestive issue" with Honeybee pretty much since I stopped nursing her. So for a little over a year, pooping has often been an ordeal due to somewhat chronic constipation. Anyway, At this point, Honeybee is bracing herself against the carseat and getting more and more upset. The only thing I can do is hug her until she's done.  After about 20 minutes, she's done and finally agrees to let me change her diaper. (potty training her is a whole other story for another blogpost!) So I grab the door handle, pull and nothing happens. Grab keys, press the unlock button several times and try again- and nothing. Then I realize I have child-locked myself in the back seat!    Monkey begins his shriekfest and Honeybee continues to whimper as  I review my options for escape: 1. Climb over both carseats to the other door which is not child-locked. 2. Attempt to attract the attention of the little old lady who has pulled into the parking space next to me and have her open the door for me. 3. Climb into the front seat and open the front door. Option 1 wasn't an option as I would have had to step on Monkey's face to climb over him. I attempted option 2, but I think the little old lady though I was trying to abduct her or something. She just clutched her purse to her and scurried away. Which left me with option 3. While this seems like the easiest option, it really was not.  Honeybee's carseat is in the middle seat, the seat I was in was behind the passenger seat. I removed the headrest And tried to put a leg over the seat. Maybe I was hoping I had lost half my body weight and gained the flexibility of Elastigirl post baby #2.  There was no way I was squeezing through there any other way but in one layer and seeing as I couldn't get a leg up it was going to have to be head first! So (after a brief moment of completely over thinking this entire predicament) I concluded that I would have to climb head first on a diagonal towards the drivers seat so as not to get stuck yet again with my head on the floor of the front passenger seat.  And that's exactly what started to do except I slipped and ended up somersaulting into the drivers seat! Ninja-style! Score: Mommy J- 1, child lock - 0!  

Child Lock Recall!

About 900,000 Push N' Snap Cabinet Locks by Safety 1st are being recalled due to children being able to open them.

You can go here to find out the details and model numbers for those being recalled:

http://www.cpsc.gov/cpscpub/prerel/prhtml12/12136.html

Potty Training - Success or Disaster? Or maybe both!

Hello dear readers! Here is a post that I wrote a while back and apparently forgot to post. Blame it on the preggo brain. Anyway, I'm back to a more clear brain (as much as that is possible for me) and will hopefully get back on track to posting more often. Happy reading!


I have a taken a laid back approach to many things in raising Honeybee. Yes, I can already hear the laughing from people who know me! There are also many things I am quite neurotic about but that is another post for another day. One of the laid back topics is potty training. Honeybee has proven to be a very independent and stubborn girl. She like to accomplish things on her terms. Crawling, walking, talking, eating new foods are all things that have been futile to try to influence her to do.

Potty training has now been added to this list. I had originally tried infant potty training (also known as Elimination Communication). While I was not so good at "reading" Honeybee's cues, I think it did help her to not be afraid of the potty.

Fast forward to this past summer, Everything I had read said that if you start potty training before 29 months, you will likely be potty training that much longer. So when Honeybee was almost 29 months we started really talking about using a potty. We got books and "big girl underwear" and stickers and charts.

And then we sat,

and sat,

and sat.

And nothing.

I tried letting her run around without a diaper on as it was an unusually warm fall this year, but this led to a lot of "Mommy! I Pee!" and mommy mopping the floor again. (Fortunately we have hard floors so cleaning up was easy.)

Then someone decided that she wanted her diapers back. There was no point in fighting her as past experience had proven. I would not win. So I kept asking her if she wanted to use the potty and backing off if she said no. Some days she wanted to wear her underwear but most days she wanted "just diaper".


So to get to the point of this story: we are now at 33 months and Baby 2 is on the way in less than a month so I'd love to NOT have 2 in diapers for too long. Honeybee, fortunately, has now started to like the idea of being a "big girl" and decided that she wants to use the potty. For the last week I've been really trying to "encourage" using the potty. Honeybee has been quite receptive and only refusing about 1 out of 10 times I suggest going. I've made a big deal over the process - get potty seat for the toilet, get step stool, pants, sit, wipe, flush, wash hands - you get the idea. And she has really been all about that list. If I do anything out of order she has corrected me.

Anyway, yesterday we had gone out to by pull ups. I had only one from a sample and she was so excited about these "special pants". I also thought it would be the best thing for when we needed to go out. Of course she pees in the pull up almost as soon as we put it on. So we take it off and put a diaper on so that we can go out. Let me tell you, that did not go over well! She wanted her "Special pants!"

So we finally get out, run our errands and get home. So as I am putting the groceries away and then dealing with some emails, she informs me that she has pooped. "Really, already or do you NEED to use the potty?" (Sometimes she has told me she pooped or peed when in fact she wanted to use the potty.). "Go use potty!" she says, but the smell tells me otherwise.

"Did you poop already?"
"Yes"
"OK. Hold on Sweetie, Mommy needs to finish sending this email."

Famous last words.

So, minutes later, she has disappeared. I find her in the bathroom, sitting on the potty seat with her diaper and pants pulled to her ankles. She has followed all the directions I've been drilling all week! "I AM SO PROUD OF YOU!!" I exclaim!

And then it hits me!

That was a full diaper.

I lift her up and find there is poop all over the potty seat, the toilet, and all the way down her legs as well as still in her diaper and on her pants, leggies and socks!

AWESOME!!!

Just what a 8 month pregnant - weak stomached mommy wants to deal with!

So after cleaning her and the seat off - amazingly without puking - I realize that my knee in my just laundered favorite maternity jeans is kneeling in more poop!

UGH!!!!

But I suppose, on the up side, Honeybee is capable of getting herself set up on the potty herself. Now we just need to work on the order of events!

Do you take your baby to the Movies?

After I had Munchkin some of my mommy friends introduced me to the "baby pictures" at a local cinema. They played grown up movies but kept the sound low and the lights on but dimmed. While the babies are in that non-mobile stage it is a great time out for new mothers. Whenever my little guy fussed I just fed him. It looks like Showcase cinemas are playing the Hunger Games on March 29th and Mirror Mirror on April 5th.  Check out the link to see if there is one near you.


There are several other theaters that show infant friendly movies.  The Hingham Shipyard cinema has Monday Morning Mommy Movies and Capitol Theater in Arlington also has a showing on Mondays and Coolidge Corner has a Friday showing.

If you can't find one near you, or one with times that work for you, going to the first showing of the day often works. Go on a weekday at 11am and chances are you'll either have the theater to yourself or there will be only one or 2 others there. If you do go to a regular show, keep in mind that it could be quite loud, you'll probably want to cover your baby's ear with a blanket or something. I found this to be a good way to see movies that nobody else in my family wanted to see (meaning any Twilight movie) and get some much needed ME time.

Word of caution: as soon as My little ones were mobile, this luxury was over for me. So enjoy it while you can!

Swaddling methods

So just an update and a quick post.

Mommy J had her baby and all are healthy. I will let her give more details when she is ready.

What are your favorite methods of swaddling your baby?

I did the whole hospital receiving blanket thing the last 2 times. This time I was thinking of trying out the woombie. Check it and let me know what you think. Mommy J is interested in the Halo sleep sack swaddle.  I've also heard good things about the aden and anais swaddle blankets  Anyone have any experience with these?

Send good thoughts to Mommy J

We're waiting for Mommy J's c-section to finally happen. It was supposed to have been earlier in the day but due to circumstances beyond her control it keeps getting delayed. Poor thing is going to be at 24 hours without food soon! I'm going to try to bring her some sushi or something as soon as she is no longer pregnant!

Goals 2012 - Part 1

Reasons NOT to Discuss Child Sexual Abuse in 2012

Just a quick one today. I'm working on those goals and a "lighter" post, but I wanted to get this out. 

I came across this article by Jill Starishevsky the other day and I thought it as worthy of passing on to our readers.  With so much in the news about child sexual abuse, I am surprised I don't see more about how to approach discussing this with our children.

In addition, here is a list of things parents can do to keep our kids safe http://www.modernmom.com/article/10-tips-to-keep-children-safe-from-sexual-abuse 

Happy New Year!!

Happy New Year!!

Ok, so I am almost a week late here with  my holiday greetings- (the story of my life).    I know Mommy L and I have been dragging lately, especially on posting.  Ok, so it's mostly me who's dragging! But in my (sad excuse for a) defense, I'm 4 weeks away from having BabyJ #2, I have zero energy, every joint and muscle in my body feels like it is going to break, and BabyJ-2's (Sorry, no cute name yet) Room is still an office as of right now. ( I did however manage to get a crib in there yesterday.)

Excuses aside, We wish all of our readers a happy, healthy and prosperous 2012 (and beyond)!


Now, I am not one for New Year's Resolutions. Why? because I always break them - and very quickly.  I don't think I've made it 'til February with any of them.   This year, however, I have decided to set some goals.  I still haven't completed this list, but then again I figure it will be a work in progress.

So far these goals include getting the house more organized, getting healthier, and being better about posting to Mommies Being Mommies regularly. I'll be getting into these in more detail later on.
.
I seem to do best when I am accountable to someone (don't we all?) so I'll be counting on you dear readers, to smack me back into place  (virtually not physically please!) when I go astray.

Stay tuned...