A Little Nursery "Pinspiration" is Always Good For The Soul!

One of my favorite things to do during this pregnancy has been creating various Pinterest boards for my baby girl! I have had so much fun envisioning her Nursery which will be her own space to eventually play, have quiet time, imagine and create things. My vision encompasses soft, subtle colors (grey, pearl, ivory and light pink) along with some dainty touches to tie everything in together. I have to laugh because my mom always jokes with me. She had mentioned that maybe I would want to incorporate some purples or other fun girly colors. I told her I want the baby to have a mature space. She just laughs and says, "Danielle, your giving birth to a baby not a thirty year old!" Lol! Love my mom. I know she is right but I definitely have specific ideas for her room.  

So far my husband has painted the nursery and I chose a beautiful Benjamin Moore color called, "Storm." After painting the room it makes me want to take a paint brush to every room in our apartment! IF ONLY! This color was the first color I saw when doing research via Pinterest and I immediately fell in love. I have also ordered a wall decal with her initials that is monogrammed and in a beautiful gold script. Her furniture gets delivered this tuesday (WOO HOOOOO!!!) and slowly every little detail will come together.

Here are some pictures and samples of the Nursery and what will be going into her room this week! :)

Color: "Storm" made by Benjamin Moore. I would love to see this color in our future house!

Crib: Franklin & Ben

Dresser: Franklin & Ben

Canopy: The Butterfly Canopy from The Land of Nod

These are actually picture shelfs from Ikea. I am taking the idea from this photo and will be hanging them on the walls in order to create an organized book shelf where it will be easy to circulate her books. 

The Nursery furniture from Franklin & Ben was ordered from Nessalee Baby in Manalapan, NJ. They have another location in Livingston, NJ too! I really enjoyed working with them to pick out just the right furniture for her space. Their website makes it really easy to go on and see what exactly you are looking for and their prices vary from affordable to expensive. You really do have enough wiggle room to fulfill your dreams. The two pieces we ordered is considered, "forever furniture." The crib turns into a toddler bed and the dresser is big enough to carry her through some good adolescent years. We also ordered a removable changing area for the top of the dresser as another way to save on space. Check out their website at Nessalee Baby for all the latest and greatest in baby gear!

There are just a couple of more things I really want to add to my baby girl's Nursery. I have been doing some research on gliders but I definitely want something affordable and modern. If anyone has any suggestions on sites where I can find some good ones please comment below to let me know! All suggestions and links are appreciated! Everyone's help is definitely making this transition into motherhood so much more easier for me. As the bookshelf's go up and the decal gets added to the wall I will be sure to post pictures of the final outcome. I am so, so excited!

I hope everyone had a wonderful weekend!

XOXO,

Danielle

Daily Routines, Feelings & Emotions...

Life with Thomas is always interesting. Never a dull moment when it comes to spending time with that sweet boy! Thomas has definitely been going through many stages and has been facing many strong battles with his own self will. Times do get very hard and everyone's patients is tested. You want your child to be able to communicate and understand their own feelings and emotions (happiness, anger, sadness) however, at the small and tender age of two years old it is virtually impossible.

In order to make Thomas understand the different structure and activities that I have set into place for him such as, sitting down for breakfast, eating politely and quietly, not throwing your food onto the floor, etc. I have come up with a simple activity to help him be in control of different scenarios that will hopefully allow him to develop a small understanding of what he goes through on a daily basis. 

Thomas has recently become obsessed with Elmo! He asks for Elmo on a daily basis. It is really cute! So his Grandma sent him an Elmo doll that talks, sings songs, and counts. These days, Elmo is probably the only one that Thomas will listen to HA. I had Thomas take his favorite little buddy and "cook" him breakfast. He had to strap Elmo into his seat. He fed Elmo the makeshift food and even gave Elmo water! After breakfast was all said and done, Thomas took Elmo out of his seat and got his pillow and blanket and tucked Elmo in for a nap! "Shhhhhhhhhh!" Thomas tells me! He then proceeds to give him a kiss and say, "Goodnight." 

While Thomas was busy preparing Elmo his breakfast I stood there to help and watch. I would tell Thomas how good Elmo was being! "Look Thomas, Elmo isn't screaming." "Elmo is eating quietly and its so yummy in his tummy." "Shhhhh, Elmo is going to sleep without crying." Just hoping to set a new pace for Thomas so he recognizes that Elmo goes through the same activities that he does! I also keep saying to Thomas, "Who is turning TWO so soon!" "Who is such a big boy!?" Thomas is!! Just to hype up and reward all of his great behavior. We all are still working on his screaming and levels of frustration. It will take time but it really is only a stage.

What are some activities that you do to help your child understand their own daily routine, feelings and emotions? Feel free to comment below and share your thoughts and ideas with us!

XOXO,

-D

Book Review Tuesday!

YAYYY! I always get so excited when Tuesday rolls around. Keri and I have received so much wonderful and positive feedback about our book reviews. Without further a due here is my favorite book of choice for this week....

This children's book is amazing for so many reasons. The moral behind Pete the Cat's story is, "No matter what you step in, keep walking along and singing your song... because it's all good." I love how Pete the Cat finds a fun way to say don't sweat the small stuff! Throughout the entire book Pete showcases such a positive attitude. The illustrations are fun, colorful and rustic. Pete the Cat undergoes a couple of shoe transformations. Whether he stepped in mud, strawberries or blueberries Pete keeps the same casual face and just keeps strolling all and singing his song. This book teaches children the art of just being able to chill out. Whether that means that mommy won't be able to refill your sippy cup right away, or you spilled something on your new shirt. No worries, it will all be okay.  

I truly do not want to ruin the book for anyone however this story comes with a CD where all the kids are able to sing along with Pete the Cat. This book is perfect for a story time or circle time. I have talked to teachers who have used this book and they all said it was a winner in their eyes. You can find it in your local library minus the fun CD or you can order it offline CD and all! 

I hope you all enjoy it! 

XOXO,

-D

Bringing Your Baby to Sporting Events

Danielle and I were approached by Fanatics, an online retailer where you can get everything and anything sports related - from MLB hats and jerseys to NFL gear, to participate in a series called, "Family Fanatics." I have actually ordered NY Giants and Mets stuff from them many times and was thrilled to be asked. I had planned on writing a blog post about how we take Makenna to sporting events with us, so this was right up my alley. 

The "Family Fanatics" series is about an instance where sports have brought your family together. There are too many instances to count where sports have brought my family together. We are an avid sports loving family. My husband played, and up until recently, coached baseball. We are also season ticket holders for the NY Giants and attend as many Mets games as we can. If we aren't at the games, they are on TV. It's just not limited to those two sports though, my husband will watch any type of sporting event and any team if his aren't playing. 

When I became pregnant with Makenna, I remember my husband making a comment on how we weren't going to be able to go to a lot of games anymore. I said, "Why not? We will just bring her with us!" That is exactly what we have done from the very start. Makenna was exactly a month old when she attended her first Giants game. It was a gorgeous October day! We tailgated and everything. People were amazed she was there with us. The Giants lost the game and Makenna lost all her hair, but we had a blast!

First Giants Game 1 month old 

As Makenna got older we continued to bring her to games with us. We always tailgate, so it can be a LONG day. She is pretty much a pro at attending football games at this point. Now that she is almost 3 and super active, I am a little nervous about bringing her to Giants games. Not because she can't handle going, but because our seats are waaaaay up top and her being up that high freaks me out. She likes to walk around by the seats and talk to everyone. We might have to wait a few years before she can start going with her Daddy again.

One of my favorite pictures of us! 

My husband has passed his love of baseball to Makenna. She asks all the time if we can go watch a baseball game or go see Mr. Met. She doesn't care if it is high school, college or professional baseball. She just loves to go to games. A few months ago we went to watch a county championship HS baseball game. We severely underestimated the amount of people attending and the amount of parking spaces. After driving around and not seeing any spaces we decided to leave. Well, Makenna was NOT having it. She threw such a fit that we actually turned around to go back. Luckily we found a parking spot this time.

Makenna's middle name is Shea, so she was pretty much born a Mets fan. Citi Field, where the Mets play, is like her second home. We also took her to a Yankee playoff game, just because my husband found a good last minute deal on tickets. For someone who is not even 3 years old yet, she has attended more games than most.

Her first Mets game and meeting Mr. Met. They have a love hate relationship :) 

 Lucky kid even got to attend a Mets spring training game in Florida.

I am so glad that we decided from the start to include Makenna in our love of sports. I couldn't imagine leaving her behind every time we wanted to attend a game or deciding to just not go at all. This is something we love to do as a family and it has given me the opportunity of making some of my favorite memories. I can't even imagine all the quality and bonding time we would have missed out on.  

Here are some tips for people wanting to take their small children to sporting events:

1. Pack LOTS of snacks and drinks.
2. A little notepad and crayons helps them stay in their seat when they are getting restless or any little dollar store toy. Even your phone games.
3. If they are getting antsy, take a walk! There are so many kid friendly areas in most sporting venues. 
4. Play I Spy with them. It will help them stay still in their seats for a little bit and they can learn about the stuff around them.   
5. Start young! The younger you take them, the easier it will be. Its like second nature to Makenna.
6. Try to get seats on the end of an aisle. It will be easier than having to ask 20 people to stand and move every time you want to get out. 

I hope this helps anyone who is on the edge about going to a sporting event as a family. When baby #2 comes this september, you can bet she will be right there with us. Makenna has no problem sleeping anytime she needs to, even with 40,000+  fans screaming around her. I swear I think this is why she will sleep through just about anything! If not for any other reason, this is why we need to get baby #2 to a game asap! :)

What are some times sports brought your family closer together? Feel free to share below and make sure you check out Fanatics for all your sporting apparel needs. They have the cutest kid stuff, which is always hard to find! p.s. I am NOT being paid to say that! 

Have a great week!

-K

What all Parents need to know..

This topic has been recently trending across the internet and was brought to my attention from a good friend of mine. I want to speak about Secondary Drowning. Since we are in the Summer Season and pool and beach trips are prevalent in our lives every parent, grandparent, caregiver & friend needs to get educated on this topic.

Secondary Drowning can occur after you have a close call with drowning. This can happen in a pool, ocean or even a bath tub! SCARY! Your child may slip or fall into the pool and begins to drown and they are able to get their head above water and cough it all up. Your child seems to be fine and you go on with your day...

Picture found from Google.

However, ALWAYS pay attention to your child's behavior. They can begin to act extremely fatigued and develop a weird cough. NEVER hesitate to call your pediatrician or rush them to the Emergency Room. 

When Secondary Drowning kicks in a small amount of inhaled fluid can act as an irritant. It causes inflammation and leakage of liquid into the lungs. Sometimes, the body will react by pushing even more liquid into the lungs. It reduces the ability to breathe and the end result is your child will drown in their own body fluids. 

Picture found from Google.

THIS IS THE SCARIEST THING EVER! PLEASE PARENTS, GRANDPARENTS, CAREGIVERS & FRIENDS.. PAY ATTENTION AND SUPERVISE YOUR CHILD IN THE POOL, OCEAN AND EVEN THE BATH TUB!

If you want to read more information about Secondary Drowning, these are the sources I used. Please click the following links below:

1. Secondary Drowning
2. The inspirational Story 

Do you have any safety tips or close call stories with your child? Please share with us your tips on how you handled the situation. Lets help to bring awareness to this topic.

-D