OH! The Ride of Pregnancy!

Ok sorry for the delay in posting. Friday we had a doctor's appointment, and things went well but happened quite quickly. The doctor explained that I am dilating, but the baby's head has not descended as it should. On top of that fact, she is a large baby. Therefore, he felt if we induce now we could possibly labor and deliver normally. If we waited for our due date, June 3, we would most likely be looking at a C-Section. So we left the office with an appointment for induction at 9am on Wednesday, May 28.

Being the holiday weekend, we went down to the shore to be with my family. Saturday morning I was a different woman. My feet are larger than my husband's and my faithful flip flops that have gotten me by these past two weeks are no longer an option for me. By that evening my back was completely giving out. Sunday I woke up to limited circulation in my legs. They had retained so much water over night it was scary. We went for pedicures and my nail person couldn't even get the foam separators between my toes. Walking was a shear discomfort. Monday morning I woke up in tears. I knew the party was over. You see, I lOVE being pregnant, but my body didn't seem to get my message. I wish I could be pregnant for a few more weeks, but my little frame can't take much more.

We left the beach earlier than expected. I had to get home and do laundry and clean the house. It finally hit me that Wednesday was the day and it was closer than I realized! My mom and sister came to help clean and iron while Jeff assembled the Sweet Peace Swing by Graco. After they left, we cleaned the garage and had dinner. I actually slept for 10 or 11 hours last night.

My feet, hands and legs continue to grow, but now I have no worries. We are all set. The house is done. The dogs have reservations at my parents house for the rest of the week, and now we are at count down. We will be leaving for our doctors appointment at 2. I probably won't post again until this weekend. The next time you hear from me, I will be typing with baby Sophia in my arms.

What a journey. I can't believe I have been blessed with such a healthy pregnancy and baby girl. Our family grows along with our love for God. Keep us in your prayers.

Updates

I will be posting over Memorial Day weekend, but right now I have to get myself and the dogs out of the house because someone is coming to see it.
This weekend's posts will be on Braxton-Hicks Contractions, changing table pads, inducing labor at 39 weeks, and excitement over motherhood.
Please stay tuned!

Daddy's Hospital Bag

Two night's ago, Jeff packed his hospital bag. It was endearing. He has all the technology and reading materials that we are going to need. He has actually thought things out well, and I get excited when I see him thinking like a dad. The next decision he'll have to make is if he wants a daddy diaper bag. I have a great black, white and red bag, so it's not too girly. He can use that one, but there are some cool ones out there for dad's. So we'll see.

In the meantime, you may be packing a diaper bag of your own. There are so many to chose from. On Little Baby Headquarters, we have colorful bags, black and white bags that are easy to wipe clean, and fancy silk bags with matching clutch purses. Best of all these bags are Made in the USA. Right now with outsourcing and the shakey economy, I think it's important to keep our hard earned money at "home".

Enjoy your shopping on Little Baby Headquarters. You'll find the perfect diaper bag.

Wipe Warmer vs Wipe Warmer Update

We only have one wipe warmer left at Little Baby Headquarters.
Those people ordering the DEX Space Saver Wipe Warmer seem to be aware that these vertical standing warmers are almost impossible to find. If you are in need for more space and a better designed wipe warmer be sure to get the last one in stock. We should be getting in a new shipment soon. Thanks for reading and shopping!

38 weeks and counting!

Yesterday I hit the 38 week point in my pregnancy. It was very exciting! Jeff and I continue to complete many items on the TO DO list, and with every CHECK OFF, I hope she is closer to coming. Last night we were talking about the long journey, and we are so excited to start a new type of journey very shortly.

If you have read my first post, you all may know that this pregnancy truly is a miracle. Through our three years of trying we knew we would get pregnant by God's blessing, but we always wanted to have two children, so we filed to adopt a daughter from China. We feel so blessed to have two daughters on the way.

Right now this is where the long journey has taken us. In 2010, somewhere between April and June, we will be matched with an infant girl to become our daughter. Everything is completed and waiting is our only job. God's deliver of her will be wonderful!

In the meantime, we are here in 2008. In two weeks time, or hopefully sooner, our first daughter will be born to us. No paperwork was filed for her, but the years of devout prayer and faith have brought us to this point. We soon shall meet Sophia in all her grace.

In these next two weeks, I'll keep you all updated on our progress. Pregnancy has been so beautiful. Feeling Sophia's slight fetal movements are the highlight of my days. Nurturing her and caring for her has been a priviledge. Listening to her heartbeat every week with Jeff is magical. But, now...now we are ready to do all that and so much more for her out of the womb. Say your prayers that her last 2 weeks are healthy and that her delivery is safe and smooth. In the meantime, I continue to swaddle her in the womb and continue to fold the blankets that will swaddle her in her crib.

Last night we added one step to our pre-baby cleaning process that I didn't mention in my post yesterday. Cleaning household pets and products. Allergens that are held in fabric that your pets rest on should be attacked before baby arrives home.

Research has stated that a baby inherits the possibility to have allergies, and 50% of babies have a chance of developing allergies if one biological parent also has allergies. That number jumps to 75% if both parents have allergies. Hay fever and pet dander allergies are commonly passed on from parent to child.

Keeping a clean house, a clean pet, and clean pet toys and beds will help prevent respiratory and skin problems early on for your child. After washing fabric beds and toys, be sure they are completely dry to prevent mold growth.

Just another tip from a type A mom who loves keeping a clean house:)

Cleaning for Baby's Arrival

As you may be able to tell, I have quite the type A personality. Cleaning is very important to me at all times, but now it is even more important. Jeff and I have been working hard to clean the house but we have been very careful to do every thing thoroughly.

For those of you getting ready to do spring cleaning or pre-baby cleaning, here are some very helpful hints.

1. START WITH CLOTHES CLOSETS: Anything you haven't worn in a year or so, donate. Ask your accountant for a list from Salvation Army. You can get great 2008 tax deductions by bringing your clothes there.

2. DO THE HOUSE CLOSETS: Get your winter coats dry cleaned now, so they are ready on that first winter day. With baby, trips to the dry cleaner will be difficult. Take everything off the floor and mop the closets to clear all dust bunnies.

3. Get all carpets and couches cleaned. Be sure to air out the dampness after shampooing to be sure no mites arrive.

4. Bring all window treatments to the cleaners. You would be so surprised how much dust is held in your beautiful curtains. Dust leads to allergies.

5. HOME OFFICE REDO: Cleaning the home office won't only make you feel more organized, but I bet you'll find money:) You will find coupons to Staples, free offers from credit card companies, receipts for your tax folder and so on. Take time to reorganize your filing cabinets and to create new folders. Create a folder for the new pediatrician, maternity bills, and trust funds or college funds.

6. Get the cars detailed. It is worth the money. Taking the car to the car wash is one thing, but getting it detailed is very necessary. The detailer with not miss one nook or cranny. The odors, spills, stains and dirt will be just a memory. I know the car will be a disaster once baby starts throwing her Cheerios, but it is best to start with a clean pallet. You don't want to put a brand new, clean car seat in a dirty car.

Remember to click on the ad to the right for GET ORGANIZED. You will receive a 15% discount on everything until the end of May.
Have fun spring cleaning!

Simplicity Bassinet

Last night Jeff put together the baby's bassinet. I must admit, I love the one I chose. It's beautiful and extremely functional. It does have a co-sleeper option, but according to my research it's not encouraged.

Before registering, I read up a lot on infant sleeping options before baby was ready for the crib. Here is some interesting information I found.

Be sure to buy a new crib or bassinet. If not buying new, be sure that the crib meets federal standards recently put out. These standards and approved features can be found on www. jpma.org. Many products you buy will also come with a stamp from JPMA and that is important to look for when buying.

Never sleep with baby in bed with you for many reasons. First, adult bedding and mattresses are way too soft. Firm mattresses in bassinets and cribs help fight the possibility of SIDS. Also, over tired parents have been known to roll over on baby. With "baby exhaustion", some people have trouble awakening. Just recently, we heard of this scenerio on Tv and both children died. Lastly, baby can get caught in between the mattress and headboard of an adult bed.

Keep babies warm but not too warm. A light blanket or sleeper zip up outfit is plenty. Toys and comforters can heat up the bassinet or crib. This also leads to dangerous sleeping situations for infants.

The best case scenerio is to have baby sleep in your room until about 6 months of age in a new or regulated crib or bassinet.

Safe sleep is nothing to fool around with, so do your SIDS reasearch and buy carefully.

Happy Mother's Day

To all the aunts, godmothers, mothers, mothers-to-be, foster mothers, step mothers and grandmothers, HAPPY MOTHER'S DAY.

I just want to say that you all deserve to have a perfect day. Our jobs aren't easy and often we are more than one kind of mother, but we always tend to do our jobs very well!

Take this day to appreciate the child or children who came into this world who made you a "mother". Be careful, the day is about connections not just about you. It is because of family friends and relationships that created our job as mom. And it is because of that job that we accepted, that we have this very special day. Spend it in gratitude and gratitude will be yours.

My gift to you. Click on the title of the post or the text link ad to the right. You will receive a 15% DISCOUNT on any order from Get Organized. Click. Shop. Save.

God Bless you Day!

Wipe Warmer vs Wipe Warmer

As you all know, my baby shower was last weekend. I received so many awesome gifts and I couldn't wait to get many of them set up in the nursery. I had registered for the Prince Lionheart Wipe Warmer, but now wish I had shopped online at my own store Little Baby Headquarters. We sell the DEX Space Saver Wipe Warmer. It stands vertically compared to the Prince Lionheart one which stands horizontally.

At first when I ordered the DEX warmers to sell in our store, I thought how it stood wasn't a huge deal, but it really is. We have a beautiful crib and changing table in the nursery, but we are trying to keep the furniture minimal. The mattress on the changing table is the contour three-sided mattress. Therefore, there isn't left over space for diapers, wipe warmers and so forth. When we went to set ours up next to the mattress, there was no room to be had. Jeff immediately asked me why we even registered for that wipe warmer when the one we sell on Little Baby Headquarters is ten times better. For that, I had no answer.

We went back downstairs and started to compare the two products, and I really am amazed how much better the DEX Space Saver Wipe Warmer is designed. The DEX has a low light for changing baby in the middle of the night and it turns off by itself. It has a window up top, so you can see when you are running low on wipes, and it has an easy to open front hatch for adding new wipes, but a pull seal so wipes don't dry out or brown. Many wipe warmers on the market do not have these features. The piece de residence... the DEX stands vertically.

Once again, I am quite proud of the products on Little Baby Headquarters. Please check out our YouTube video on the right for more insight on the Dex Warmer. Then go shopping on Little Baby Headquarters.

What was that?

Sunday was a rough day of contractions. Even my nephew was amazed at how many I was having in an hour, but no pain.
Since I have been like this for so long, I thought nothing of it. That evening, late, Jeff and I were doing the bills. (I have a philosophy that all couples should budget and do monthly bills TOGETHER.) As we were working, contractions were contracting...until. Mama, I got one that hurt so bad. That was it, I fell into crazy mode. Jeff wanted to stop and call the doctor. My type A personality took control of the room. There was no way I was going to the hospital without the bills done. He couldn't believe how insistent I was, but he followed along. Once the bills were complete, we went upstairs to pack "the bag".

Low and behold, as we were choosing Sophia's coming home outfit when all contractions ceased. We both agreed to stay in bed quietly to see what would happen. The next thing we knew, it was 6 in the morning. We had made it. False labor? Gas? Baby Movements? What ever it was, it wasn't labor. The episode did kick us into high mode. We are more focused on getting little business aspects cleaned up, and last minute baby products put together for the big day.

Doctors appointment tomorrow. Hopefully we'll know more.

New Ideas. Go Green!

Again I am on this kick for products that could be unsafe for children. Friday before the open house, I was making Sophia's bed. Her crib set is so beautiful. I couldn't wait to see the bumper set on the gorgeous crib. I unpacked fitted sheets that I received at my shower. The packaging was made in Thailand and the sheets made in China. When I pulled the sheets out, I smelled a faint reminder of the Pottery Barn baskets. It was overwhelming toxic, but it was enough to make me wash and dry them twice.

With all these instances of smells and non-made in the USA products, I have made a business decision. Our wonderful store Little Baby Headquarters already sells great made in the USA products and all the clothing is organic cotton. As new merchandise are listed, I will make it my goal to find the best home grown products for moms, dads, and children.

With this economy, we should be keeping our money "at home" any how. But with the added benefit of the products being made safely for our children, I will dedicate my search to find top-quality, American made items.

Here are a sample of the products on our store Little Baby Headquarters that are
MADE IN USA. Happy shopping.

Open House Weekend!

This weekend we had three open houses; Fri., Sat., Sun. The feedback from our realtors is positive, so we are hoping for good results.

On the other hand, today we went to some open houses and it was discouraging. The houses are three times the price of what we have now, and the quality is horrible. Now this is something we knew would happen , but I thought more would be on the market that was workable. We are not in a rush at all, so that will help us to see a lot and wait for the right house for us. Last year, when we were helping people in real estate foreclosures, we learned that one must be smart and persistent to get what they want. We will have to be smart, patient and persistent to bring the home of our dreams to us.

Getting Ready! Getting Close!

Last night Jeff took me out for a fabulous dinner at David Burke's Fromagerie. Our luck, live music was playing and it was super. Jeff and I always plan date nights, but this one was more special. Upscale restaurant, dressed fancy and terrific food. The only damper were the contractions. For four hours I contracted. Now trust me, it didn't slow down my eating, but it was uncomfortable. We headed straight to bed when we arrived home, but nothing stopped. I was awoken at 3 in the morning with Pain, but after an hour, we were back to sleep. This morning doctor's appointment went really well, but definitely confirmed that I should continue baby prepping. While the LPN was listening to the heartbeat, I had a pretty heavy contraction, and that calmed my nerves because we were able to hear how she reacts during crunch time in the womb. After my exam, I was 1 cm dialated, and she felt everything was going according to schedule. Therefore, I am hoping I won't be in a 30 hour labor. My body seems to be doing all the right things.

Now, time to go upstairs and put the baby's bumper set on the crib. Once that is on, there won't be much more to do in the nursery. We are going to pack the hospital suitcase and enjoy the rest of the ride.

Tonight we are sleeping at my parents' house because we are having an Open House WEEKEND. UGG! I hate the idea, but this is the last time I am having an open house until late summer, early fall. By then, the house will be sold:) Right now, I like the direction of life. God continues to bless our businesses and we continue to try and grow as employers, people and a couple.

Be well today and enjoy the Friday we all waited for.

UPDATE! Pottery Barn Kids

Yesterday I returned the stinky baskets to my local Pottery Barn. They were very helpful and happy to take back online returns. While the sales woman was taking care of the paperwork, I browsed the other baskets in the store. It wasn't the kids store, and interestingly enough the baskets they carried were just as nice. Now, when I returned everything, I did notice that they weren't made in China. I want to correct that thought, but they were made in Indonesia. After about an hour of looking and measuring, I successfully purchased six perfect baskets, but they don't sell liners because they aren't made for clothes. That shouldn't present to be a problem. Overall I am happy with my purchase for Sophia's room, but I did learn an important lesson.

With outsourcing being such a huge movement, parents really need to be aware of where all the products they buy for their children are manufactured. Certain products being made abroad aren't an issue, but educating yourself is very important. More to come about smart buying!