(eat) Hands free bottle feeding

I will state the obvious: it is hard to feed more than one at a time. I have been fortunate in that I am often feeding the boys with someone else. (I'll post how we do this at a later time.) But for those who find themselves with fewer hands than babies, bottle propping is an option. [Big ole disclaimer: Everyone has an opinion on bottle propping. I never had to do it, but I understand that it is a necessity for many. Never leave a baby unattended while feeding!]

The cheap and easy way to prop bottles is to seat the baby in their car seat, bouncy seat or on the boppy and roll/scrunch up a wash cloth or receiving blanket under the bottle. I had no luck with this as our boys have always been squirmy. But it works for many. Some bottle holders on the market include:

Milk Maid Baby Bottle Holder (Their images are copyrighted.) Soft and light holder conforms to bottle size and rests on the babies chest.
Baby Bottle Huggers Stuffed animals hold bottle and keep the baby amused.Bottle Genie Baby Bottle Holder Soft and flexible, the holder can adjust to fit any baby size.


The benefit of these bottle holders is that you can use your own bottles and the ones that the babies are used to and comfortable with. If you are willing to try a new bottle, I have heard many a praise for Podee Hands Free Bottles. They do also make a conversion kit so that you can turn your own bottles into hands free bottles, but I was not able to get this to work with Dr. Brown's.


Purchase Podee products

(mom) Car seat measurements

As the boys near their 22lb weight limit for their infant car seat, we're starting to research our car seat options. But we're also in need of a new car, so we're wondering if we need to get another minivan or if there is a car/SUV that will fit 3 convertible/toddler seats.

And thankfully, Car Seat Data provides measurements for all car seats. So I can quickly do the math to rule out cars with a 50" backseat when we need at least 54".

Do you have 3 toddler seats in a non-minivan? Please share any stories or advice!

(clean) Pampers Rewards Program

One thing that I never thought that I would be a brand snob about was diapers. With the number of diapers we go through a day, beggars can't be choosers. But I quickly learned there is a difference from brand to brand. [Big ole disclaimer, every kid is different and some diapers that work for us, won't work for you and vice versa. So this is just my experience.]

For some reason, my boys have wet through to their clothes every time I have used Huggies diapers. So we would end up using twice as many diapers and would end up having to do laundry more frequently. So we pay a little extra and use Pampers. We were loyal Swaddlers fans through their largest size (2-3) and are now onto Cruisers. We tried the Baby Dry diapers as well, but one of the boys would get a huge diaper rash every time we put him in one.

So all this is to say that we're loyal Pampers customers. And unfortunately, I just realized - on the boys 8 month birthday - that they have a rewards program! Go to Pampers and sign up for their Gifts to Grow program. On the inside of Pampers products, you will find a small sticker with a code. Enter the codes and the site will track your rewards earned. The rewards are things like books, Sears portrait coupons and free Shutterfly prints. But at the very least, you should get coupons for more Pampers products.

(mom) Make your own custom onesie

I enjoy fun crafts, and amazingly, here is a one I actually completed! I managed to make these for Father's Day. Now imagine me sitting on the floor ironing, because I was too tired to stand, with my belly that already measured as if I were 44wks pregnant. Amusing, to say the least. These make great gifts for new moms and are great for multiples (put their name on the onesie/T shirt to tell them apart). My original goal was to make these for the boys' birth announcement. I had designed their full name, time of birth, and weight for each, but the thought of putting the custom onesies on each and taking a photo where it was all readable for all three at once was a bit overwhelming.



I can't take credit for the creativity. A blog that I love (that has nothing to do with babies) is ljcfyi - here is her post on how to make these onesies.

What you need:
* Onesies (wash first)
* Scissors
* Iron
* Iron on T-shirt transfer printer paper



Step 1:
* We didn't have a scanner, so I took a digital photo of my husband as a child. In Photoshop, I edited the photo (erasing the background and the writing on his shirt) and added the text (which comes from a sign in his parent's house).
* Or, you can open Word and use fun font styles and colors to make your design.

Step 2:
* Print the image out on the iron on paper. (The paper comes in white or black/dark, so you can best match your onesie.)

Step 3:
* Cut the image out. Know that the lines that you cut will be somewhat visible on the onesie. (This is why the example from ljcfyi is so clever because she hides the outline with a stitch. I didn't have the energy to do this...)

Step 4:
* Iron according to the package directions. And you're done!

(mom) Postpartum Hair loss

I had always heard that all of my hair could fall out after the delivery. That happens to other people, not me. Or so I thought. Four months after the delivery, I noticed that my hair was coming out by the handful. I wish I could say that I was kidding or even exaggerating. My hair started to get so thin on the crown and my widow's peak started to resemble Dracula's.

And now I've found that the worst isn't so much the hair loss, but when it grows back in! I now have inch long wispy bangs. The only tricks I know for helping to hide this fun awkward stage:
* Bangs. My side swept bangs now cover the short wispy bangs on one side. But the only problem with having bangs is that you need to have the time and ability to go back to the salon to have them trimmed often. Things I should have thought of.
* Headbands work wonders, according to a friend
* Hats are always good
* Move your part to cover any bald spots

Here's a great article from Babycenter on postpartum hair loss.

One thing that the article also mentions, that I want to second, is that you will need to be careful that your lost hair doesn't wrap around the baby's fingers and toes. Someone had warned me about this (and again, I figured this could never happen to me). But after one bath, I was putting one of the boys' sleepers on and just randomly checked his toes for my hair - and there was a strand wrapped so tight that it was completely cutting off his circulation! So now I constantly check all of their hands and feet for loose (or tight) hairs.

Please share any other ideas for hiding postpartum hair loss and regrowth. I could use them!

(mom) Free baby classes

I'm all for free baby classes. Every month Babies R Us has in-store events to educate parents. For example, on March 25th at 7pm, Pampers is sponsoring a "Diaper Changing Know-How Seminar". This is a great idea for soon to be Dads who often do not benefit from many of the prenatal classes and books. They recommend registering at your local store, but I would also try calling to register to prevent an extra trip.

If we had a Babies R Us closer by (and if I was more mobile during my pregnancy), I would have taken advantage of these. So I can't vouch for how good they are, but they seem like a great idea.

Look into classes at your local Babies R Us.

Any other suggestions for free baby classes? Share your ideas in the Comments!

(eat) Burp cloths

Apparently all babies spit up. Probably like most moms, I feel like ours do it more than most. We burp them halfway through their bottle feedings and they have settled into a nice little pattern: belch like a fraternity boy and follow up with anywhere from a dribble to a volcano.

While searching for affordable burp cloths, I found a package of about 25 white washcloths for $9.99 at Costco. Recently, Target had a similar deal for a huge bundle of white washcloths. I am so pleased with them because they hold up well in the wash, are soft on the babies' skin and serve multiple purposes. As the boys are now teething, I freeze them for them to suck/chew on (more on that later) and we also have a few washcloths under the swing to stabilize it on our uneven floor. And they were so cheap, I don't worry if I forget one in the doctor's office.

Because we doing all the feedings in our living room, we keep the wash cloths folded up in a basket under our coffee table. So cheap and easy!

(clean) Washing socks

The boys spent their first 5 months in sleepers (no joke) because I apparently have a great dislike of socks. But as winter was in full force, and they were big enough for their cute outfits, I decided to bite the bullet and open the sock drawer. I have since found that socks apparently taste good to the boys. I find them stuffed in their mouths after their naps. This means that we go through multiple pairs throughout the day so that they have a dry pair covering their toes.

So as a result, I'm constantly washing (and losing) socks. I would be lucky if half the socks made it through the wash. So I started collecting all of the dirty socks in a mesh lingerie bag. I keep it in the boys' hamper and fill it with socks throughout the day. It goes in the wash and in the dryer, and keeps the socks together the whole time!

Purchase a lingerie/sock bag

(mom) Bra extenders

So cheap, yet so useful. I was so excited when I stumbled upon bra extenders at Destination Maternity when I was pregnant. My belly wasn't the only part of me that was rapidly expanding. Simply hook them onto the back of your bra to give you a few extra inches of wiggle room. They typically come in a variety of hooks and colors, so you have many options to match your existing bras.

Purchase Bra extenders