Pregnancy Must Haves!!!!

I know WAY too many people that are pregnant right now and I like to help as much as I can with things that I loved...and hated...while I was pregnant with Aiden.

I was nauseous for the COMPLETE first trimester of my pregnancy and the smell of cooking food made me sick to my stomach. So everything I ate was cold...well just about. I LOVED spinach salads with grilled chicken breast, mushrooms, green onions, tomato's, cucumbers and croutons!!!! OMGoodness I am getting hungry just typing that!!!! I also ate a lot of peanut butter toast. There are TONS of good proteins in peanut butter and I was told that one of the reasons that you may be nauseous in the first place is because you are hungry and your blood sugar is getting low. I always had almonds, pistachios, and peanut butter crackers in my car for snacks and drank LOTS OF CHAMOMILE TEA!!!!!

One thing that was a MUST HAVE for me was my Leachco All Nighter Pillow!!!!! Now let me just say that if you DO NOT have a king size bed your significant other will not be able to sleep with you and the pillow. Even with the king size bed it will be a struggle. But you will sleep like a baby!!!! This pillow wraps completely around you and between your legs. So it has tummy support and back support (I normally sleep on my back so I HAD to have something preventing me from doing that). Like I said earlier...this pillow is not something small and compact but it SAVED me from any extra back discomfort at night. And if I had to travel anywhere via car for an overnight trip this pillow went with me!!!! I could not sleep at night without it!!!! I also could not sleep without my heating pad!!!! I got mine from Walgreen's for $15.99 and it has an automatic shut off so you don't have to worry about any fire hazards.

One thing that I splurged (kinda) on, around month 4, was a GREAT pair of essential jeans. I am a jeans kind of girl and just could NOT wear my non maternity jeans anymore...and believe me I tried. So one day while I was in Mimi Maternity and tried on a pair of jeans that had the Secret Fit Belly!!!!!! Oh My Goodness...it was like heaven!!!! My tummy felt so GREAT and I don't think that I took the pants off. I do believe that I wore them out of the store. They were about $118 but I DEFINITELY got my wear out of them because I wore them ALL THE TIME!!! If you go to Destination Maternity you can see that they have the secret fit jeans from $35-$250...so there is something for every one's budget. Another piece of clothing that was a staple during my pregnancy were my VS Boyfriend Pink Pants!!!!! I think I had 6 pair and they were SOOOOO comfortable to just wear around the house, to the grocery store, nail salon (for that required pedicure), or ANYWHERE else!!!!

I believe that I may have talked about this in a previous post but my feet were swollen a lot while I was pregnant. Normally I would wear 4 inch heels to work and out for dinner or something. But I became the flats queen while I was pregnant. And since most of my pregnancy occurred in the warmer months of the year, flip flops were my best friends!!! But not just ANY flip flops...but Croc Flip flops!!!! It was like walking on air!!! I wore them EVERYWHERE...and with ANYTHING...I didn't care if it matched or not!!! Now they have a lot to choose from when it comes to the Croc flip flops, but when I was pregnant they really just had the Athens line. I will be getting a new pair this spring in one of the more fashionable lines...lol. I already did a post about the fabulous Croc Mammoth's that I wear in the winter (got these during the pregnancy as well)...thanks Natalia!!!!!!

Those are the MAIN items that got me through my pregnancy comfortably and I would not be able to do it again without those items...lol.

SHE IS HERE!!!!!

I am happy to announce to the WORLD that Naomi Grace Jackson arrived yesterday at 3:09pm!!!! She weighed 7lbs 7oz and is 20.5 inches long!!! She is just as cute and juicy as she wants to be and I cant wait to get my lips on those cheeks!!!! Mommy and baby are doing great and will go home in a few days!!!!


Look at that face!!!!! Oh boy...Joe is gonna be in trouble when she grows up...lol.

Toddler Dental Care

So I was on Facebook last week and one of my friends asked for some advice on how to get her toddler to allow her to brush is teeth. Hmmm....of course all the mommy's started chiming in with advice and it was pretty much all the same.

My very good friend Natalia's son is 6 months older than Aiden...and when we were in Minnesota back in April she would ask him is he wanted to brush his teeth...he would say "brush the teeth" and she would give him a toothbrush and he would begin to brush his teeth!!! HOW CUTE IS THAT!!!!...he has to be the cutest little chunk ever!!!!! So when I got home I vowed to get Aiden to like brushing his teeth...at that time he was about 7 months old so I was cleaning his teeth with a rag. But I went out and got him a tooth brush and started giving it to him when I brushed my teeth in the morning and would tell him to "brush his teeth". Of course he tried to mock what I was doing...it was super cute. So we did this every morning...now when we tell him to brush his teeth he gets VERY excited...takes his toothbrush and goes to town!!! (of course we go after him and brush a little better)

Dentists and Pediatricians say that you should start brushing as soon as the first tooth come in...which makes sense if you think about it...lol. We used one of those thinggys that you put on your finger when Aiden was that young (he was 5 months when his two bottom teeth came in). Also one thing that you can use, that Aiden loves, is the Orajel Tooth & Gum cleanser. It is fluoride free and that is important because even though fluoride prevents cavities, your toddler will be exposed to it in various forms (in your water, juices, formula, etc) and too much will cause fluorosis which is white spots on the teeth.

The goal is to make brushing fun!!!! Play a game...brush your teeth when your baby brushes his/her teeth, or make it a bath time activity. If your baby still fights with you about brushing the teeth...use a wash rag...they tend to like to suck on them anyway!!!!

Hope this was informative. If you have any topics that you want me to cover send me an email allthingbaby@gmail.com.!!!!

In his crib!!!!!

Ever since the day Aiden was born he has slept with me...in bed with me. EVEN IN THE HOSPITAL!!! And I loved every day of it!!!! He has never slept through the night and there are a few things that I assumed contributed to that. First of all...he was sleeping with me so when I moved I am sure I was disturbing his sleep. And second, my family has a history of sleep disorders. I have insomnia and my sister has narcolepsy. So when we went to the Pediatrician last time I expressed my concern and asked what her recommendation was...of course she recommended a sleep study. Hmmmm...I had one done about 6 years ago and I was not too excited about putting Aiden through that AND even if they do find that he has sleep issues they can not treat him so what is the point?

Since that appointment Paul (Aiden's father) and I have been (well more him than me because i like sleeping with Aiden...lol) very focused on getting him transitioned to his crib. And guess what!!!! HE NOW SLEEPS IN HIS CRIB!!!! He has in the past 2 months only slept through the night twice. Normally he wakes around 1 and 5am, one of goes in there...soothes him...and he goes back to sleep. But he ALWAYS wakes up between 7:30 and 8am...regardless of what time he goes to sleep...lol.

I cant say that he is any better or worse now that he sleeps in his crib...and I also cant say that I sleep any better now that he is in his crib. But it is something that had to be done.

People will always give you advice that you don't necessarily ask for and the advice that I got often (even from those without children...and that is a no no in my book) is that I should NOT LET AIDEN SLEEP WITH ME...because it will be hard to get him out of my bed. Well, I can honestly say that I do not regret for one second having Aiden sleep with me. And if I had to do it over again I would...in a heart beat.

This is YOUR experience with YOUR baby...so handle that experience as YOU feel is right for YOU and YOUR baby!!!!

Until next time...

Back from Bama...

This past weekend Aiden and I hit the road to go and get Mommy to be Kimmy fully prepared for the upcoming arrival of Baby Naomi Grace. It has been WELL over a year since I got ready for a baby and I did everything gradually...so I had no idea how tiring it would be!!!! I was seeing pink...literally....lol. It was loads of fun though. Little girl stuff is so cute and great!!!! I love it...makes me want a little girl!!!!!

I had to assemble the co sleeper (I have NO CLUE why I didn't get one of those but I WILL have one for the next baby), assemble swing, assemble bouncer, assemble and demonstrate snap and go, install car seat, and go to babies r us and Target (both twice...lol) to make sure she had everything she needed for the arrival and next 3 months. Kim washed all of her clothes up to 3 months and sterilized all bottles/nipples. I also had to stay on here about ordering her FAB diaper bag!!!! It was well worth the trip. I love spending time with Kimmy...Joe (her fiance) is HILARIOUS...and it makes me feel wonderful to be able to help a friend.

Baby Naomi is a lucky little girl!!!! She has two doting parents anxiously awaiting her arrival. Aiden was such a trooper. He was trying to help me put everything together!!!! And he didn't want to miss a thing...he barely took a nap on Saturday!!!!

Speaking of Aiden...he is a walking professional now!!!! And he is now saying get down when he wants to get down and Granna (which is my mother). He is a ball of energy with this most infectious laugh ever.. I am a lucky Mommy. I just posted pictures of bath time today to go to his blog (click here) to see the pictures!!!!