Caution: Whiney blog about baby ahead!

You know, I remember the good old days when my son was an infant. He hardly cried, he never fussed. He just sat in his chair and absorbed the world through is big chocolately brown eyes. Oh how the world has changed since he has become mobile and has developed communication skills.

My son is still amazing in many degrees: he is terribly brilliant and can mimic Disney movie scenes, he loves (trying) to play the piano, he is a dancoholic and is by far the best human with 10 inch arm hug giver I've ever known. With that being said: he's driving me crazy!

Where my son went from being a sweet little baby he is now a loud momma's boy toddler. He wakes up everyday at 2:30am expecting to be cuddled, he demands his milk at 8am, and then expects to be held every fifteen minutes. Where did this kid come from? What happened to my sweet lil independent baby who I could leave in the stroller for an hour or so (attended of course) while mommy shopped for shoes?

This wasn't in the "You're a Single Mother Now and Everything Will Be Fine" manual. This should be in the "What to Do When Your Child Goes Nuts" book. What's a girl to do?? Maybe a little bit more of this:

Thanks for listening, Happy Saturday.

Make Your Kid's Room City Savvy

Living in an apartment in the city can be not only costly but you are more than likely subjected to limited space for your family. So how can you make a room stand out without spending crazy amounts of money? Here are some tips how to make a modern kids room creatively and without breaking the break.

Use bold colors

This kids room from Freshome is littered with great ideas for modern kids room. They note that colors like sage green, yellow, red, and chocolate brown can be paired with neutrals white, black or tan to give a modern take on kid’s décor. By using gender friendly colors like this mandarin orange paint with accents of pink keeps it girly without going over the top. Typically using large scale furniture can make a space look and feel smaller but if you only use only a few key pieces they will stand out without dominating the space.

Get the look:

• Buy large bookshelves that are multi-functional
• Invest in a sleek comfy chair

Mix old with new

This kids room from Ohdeedoh showcases a blend of old and new, using modern and simple colors by using the pea green and white and loft bed and adding vintage toys and accents.
Smart Deals on Looks the Kids will Love only at Target.com

Get the look:

• Shelving system is available at Ikea or the Shelving Store (use link below for discount!)
Save 25% Off Storewide During The "Back To School" Sale
• You can get a similar paint color at Glidden
• Purchase simple bins for storage at the Container Store
• Get a cool vintage looking lamp like these from Lamp in a Box

Opt for alternatives to picture frames

By using simple furniture with storage and adding accents to the wall you not only increase the height of the wall but you add an element of originality!

Get the look:

• Invest in a crib with storage at bottom or one that turns into a toddler bed.
• Buy cool wall decals. There are some available at Toys R Us that are a great price!

Alicia Keys Is Having a Baby!

It must be in the water because everyone is having babies this year and now we can put Alicia Keys on the pregnancy bandwagon! Keys who is engaged to music producer Swizz Beatz (who always seems to look exhausted) are expecting their first child which is proving to be a very busy year with her being on tour and the couple planning to marry by the end of the year.

Good for her!

Workouts At Home

Now that summer is coming everyone wants to be able to get into shape and to hopefully fit into the prebaby jeans again, but it is challenging when you can't get to (or afford) a gym membership or get someone to watch the baby while you work out for that matter! Well worry no more! With the help of personal trainer Victoria Gray we will learn not only how to workout from home but how to incorporate our babies into the workouts as well!

Here are a few workouts that Victoria suggest that you can use with or without free weights, but what better "free weight" can you have than lifting your baby!

*Disclaimer: The photos are of me and my son (and occasionally Bailey the Beagle so they are in no way beautifully lit, airbrushed prettiness. Additionally some might gain chuckles due to my Something About Mary hair and goofy one year old but the workouts are authentic and effective! I am still aching and pumped days later!

Here was our routine:

 Squat to overhead press with baby 3 sets of 20 reps

Lat pull downs two hands with band attached to door 3x20

 

 

Alternating side lunges with or without baby on hip 3 x 20

 

Alternating side lunges with rotational toe touch 3 x 20

Two leg bridges with baby on hips 2 x 10

While we managed to do the hour session with an overactive baby and an attention grabbing puppy the workouts were definitely affective. Victoria suggest that if you decide not to use the baby and do not have access to over the door bands to use free weights or even cans as a means of resistance to your workout. She also mentioned the following:

• When doing situps make sure to arch your back when going down to the floor to protect your back and spine.
• Make sure your butt is not sticking high in the air when doing push-ups and to be aware that you are pushing your body up as one unit, so no sequence of legs, stomach and shoulders. Just one connected push up of your entire body. 
• To make sure that your shoulders are dropped and you are in a diving position when doing the pull-downs. This will accurately work and tone your back muscles. 
• To keep in the back of your mind what it is that you are going after while you work out. While the repetitions might be tedious the only way you will achieve your goal is if you keep pushing yourself.

If you want to contact Victoria directly you can email her at victoria@vgrayfitness.com or go here to her Facebook for more questions or on baby fitness.


Enjoy!

It's Friday - Time For Laughs!

Sandra Bullock Exploring Single Motherhood

After a month of roller coaster emotions and events, they end with Sandra Bullock announcing that not only does she have a new son, but that she is raising him as a single mother.

As per People, Bullock announced that she is the proud mother of Louis Bardo Bullock, a 3½-month-old boy, born in New Orleans. While Louis has been a part of the family since January, Bullock kept the new quiet and planned to make the announcement after the Oscars. Shortly after the awards show came all of the allegations of Jesse James' many affairs.

In Bullocks interview with People she has made a public announcement that she has filed for divorce from James and is finalizing the paper work to become a single mom.

Funny for 4/21

Funny 4/20

I tip my hat to funny baby jokes such as this .....

Dr. Visit

A woman and a baby come into the doctor's office.

She is taken into an examining room and waits for the doctor.

After arriving there, the doctor examines the baby, and finds him not gaining much weight and asks the woman, "Is he breast fed or on the bottle?"

"Oh...he is breast fed!", replied the woman.

"Well then, strip down to your waist," orders the doctor.

She takes off her top and bra and sits on the examine table.

The doc starts pressing, kneading and pinching both breasts for quite a while in a very detailed and thorough examination.

The doc motions to her to get dressed, then the doctor says, "No wonder this baby is so hungry. You don't have any milk!"

The woman with a wry grin on her face responds, "Well of course I don't, I'm his aunt!"

Mommy By Mistske - my new piece of literature

You know when you have something really good and you always just expect it to be there and then one day, when you least expect it, it's gone? Well that was how I felt about the bookstore in the building that I work at.

The B. Dalton bookstore that has homed my "What's different?" books, the first book I ever bought my son as well as various cookbooks that I plan on using one day was going out of business.

To commemorate the store's closing I thought I'd buy one last book to hold to it's memory. Though the store was almost bare, I was able to find a diamond in the rough.

I am always on the look out for mom books that are inspiring or relatable. The title of the book sold me 50%- Mommy By Mistake and then the other 50 was the inscription. The books is about a self-employed woman who was living her single life to the fullest when she became pregnant out of the blue. Though I am only five chapters in, the book is hitting very close to home so far. From her pregnancy, to wanting to gain friends, to the difficulty of traveling with a baby, the book is hard to put down.

While I love to get lost in my (well...my boyfriend's) Zune on the way to work, I have now dedicated that time to read this book. It must be a gripping novel since I'm nervous about where this is going to lead. Will someone get pregnant again? Will she bump into her son's father and tell him that he has a son? Will she get married? Will someone's baby get hurt? All very plausible...

Now...on to chapter 7. Stay tuned....

iPhone application "Shake Baby"- FAIL!

So I'm sure you fellow moms have heard about this application already, but it still shocks me that someone thought that this was a good, and profitable, idea!



This application for iPhone has crying babies and you shake the iPhone until the baby stopping crying and has two red X's over it's eyes. Apparently this was released on a Monday by Apple themselves but removed by that Wednesday. For shame Apple. Two thumbs down.

Read more here!

Wah Wah- Wee Wee, Study says babies cry with accents?

So according to some scientist, there is a distinct dialect in the sweet cries and whines of baby's which carry a hint of native tongue as soon as their second day of living.

How, you might ask, were they able to come to this conclusion? (Or you might ask yourself like I did "Who has that much free time to interpret baby cries and start a study on them?")According to Current Biology french newborns end their cries with a lilt at the end that is typically heard in French and German babies start their cries intensely and then drop off at the end which is similar to the emphasis German parents put in their sentences.

So either this study shows that babies are able to pick up dialect in the womb and have the capabilities to reciprocate the sounds.....or they are saying that Germans and French are just a bunch of whiny babies.

Read more about this study here!

Getting to know your baby

Welcome to the movies, mom!

Tired of hearing your friends talk about that movie that just came out that you've been wanting to see but your babysitter canceled at the last minute or your kid is now sick which forces you to sit at home and watch Kung Fu Panda on HBO....again??

Well wait no more! We now have the golden opportunity to watch movies as soon as they hit the theater! Baby Pictures lists theaters that are geared towards a parents enjoyment by listing complexes that not only host the movie showings but accommodate us by being stroller friendly, having changing stations and even managing to adjust to lighting and sound so the baby isn't bothered by the sonic boom of Transformers!

Take advantage and take your baby or kids with you to see movies that are out now in a participating theater near you!

Go here for listings of theaters near you!

Yellow Pages Booster Seat

Your kid still can't reach the top of the table yet? Don't spring for that fancy booster seat or high chair (Bloom high chair, anyone?) Instead go with tradition and grab the Yellow Pages! No, not that free one that you've neglected at your front door, the one that's available at Perpetual Kid for $20. This foam formed Yellow Book replica even has a hand-crafted butt-print for your young one to sit comfortably at the table...and with such style!!!

Finally! Porn For Moms!!

Maybe not the porn you were expecting, but it'll definitely get your emotions off with sweet, dreamable quotes that we all wish our boyfriends or husbands would say.

Here are some examples:

"Now, remember, it's my turn to do the midnight feeding, so don't get up!"

"I'll do the dishes."

"I'll take care of the baby, you're working." (A quote from MY boyfriend!)

The Pregnancy Guide Instruction Manual

If you enjoyed the Baby Starter Kit, you will definitely enjoy the Pregnancy Instruction Manual, jam packed full of helpful information from fertilization to birth and is sure to make for a great gift or good for personal use.

You can buy it easily on Amazon for about $14.00!

Baby food recall for possible Botulism

Plum Organics is recalling its apple and carrot flavored baby food for fear of botulism poisoning. The California-based company announced the recall Tuesday morning, saying the product did not meet FDA requirements.

Read more here.

Cute costume....but what the hell is it??

Ok so I've found a reasonable amount of wacky baby costumes while searching for one for my son, and have actually come across some that are..well...friggin adorable! The problem is I don't know what some of them are! Here are a few that I found:

What the?.... It's a?... Uh...Duck-baby-man? Oh the MorningStar mascot!

Finally, a baby starter kit for dummies....that means us...

When you think you've received all the advice you can from doctor's, your parents, and friends...your baby goes and poops something bright orange or better yet not at all for days. Don't forget those special days that you go to pick him up and he has a nice pile of hot surprise waiting for you in his chair. Or now that he's beginning to teeth he chews on everything he gets a hold of... EVERYTHING- such as cords, body parts (yours), shoes and more. (Thanks son for providing such useful examples.)

Now you can free your mind and the rest will follow with this starter kit about babies. The kit contains:

• The Baby Owner’s Manual
• Growth Chart, with stickers for marking baby’s progress
• Diaper Changing Instructional Poster
• Babysitter’s Memo Pad
• Decorative magnet

and more!

If not for yourself, definitely a handy gift for the expecting. Go here for more info and price!