Daycare

 

So Since October of last year I have been out of a job. Which worked out okay since I was pregnant with Noah. And up until then I had not had to put Aiden in any kind of daycare because of the flexibility I had with my previous job.

Well last week I was BLESSED with a new AMAZING job…which made me realize that BOTH boys would have to go into day care. I knew that Aiden would be going into school soon but had put it off because the school I was interested in required that he be potty trained…and we are not quite there yet. But the realization that Noah would not be in my care until he was 2 like Aiden just broke my little heart.

Paul and I both agreed that in home child care would be preferable. And after PULENTY of research and a failed visit…we found a woman that we liked!!!! And today was their first day!!!! I am so proud of myself…I didn’t cry and I only called once!!!

The fact that Aiden  was SUPER excited to go today made it easier on me…lol. And when he got home he was STILL excited!!! Which makes me very happy. Noah of course cried for about half of the day but then warmed up to her and enjoyed the rest of the day…whew.

So this the beginning of a new journey of us. Keep us in our prayers!!!

UPDATE TIME!!!!

I know I know...I have been MIA since Noah was born! Well no one told me that having 2 boys 20 months apart was gonna be such HARD WORK!!!! I have slacked off in updating ALL of the blogs. So I am here to say that tonight I will be posting some wonderful pics of my now 2 year old SUPER big brother Aiden and my most adorable 6 month old little brown bear Noah!!!! So check back tomorrow to get the low down on this journey I have been on!!!!


Signed

Exhausted Mommy

Door Knob Covers!!!!!

Today (for the second time since he was born), Aiden has scared 10 years off my life. This time Paul got to be scared with me (last time he was running an errand). Recently Aiden learned how to open doors using a traditional door knob. He LOVES going to his PaPa’s (Paul’s Dad) house and his Lubby’s(Paul’s Mom) house because they have the door handles that open all the doors. He has been able to open those for about a year…lol. We also realized recently that he knows how to unlock doors as well…and he is so durn tall that he can unlock the top lock on the front door!!!

On a daily basis he goes outside to walk our dog with his Daddy-Dad(what he now calls Paul…lol)…no big deal right? So this afternoon he decided to take him out on his own. I was upstairs putting the baby to sleep for his nap and Paul was going to get the water out of the car. We both thought Aiden was with the other parent…that always is a bad recipe.  So Paul comes upstairs, after I hear doors open and close about 5 times, and asks me if Aiden was with me. OH HELLLLLL NO!!!! Good thing the baby was sleep because I put him in the swing and ran out the house. My strategy was to find the dog because he was going to hear me calling and come running before Aiden would hear me. And I assumed that Aiden would be with him. THANK GOD I WAS RIGHT!!!! I only had to call out once and a man asked me if I was looking for a little boy and pointed down the street. And sure enough Aiden was following behind park. But he was ALL THE WAY DOWN THE STREET. He was crying and happy to see Mommy!!! And boy was I happy to see him!!!!

So what did I do as soon as I got in the house I told Paul…we HAVE to get door knob covers. We have a 3 story townhouse so we only need them for the 3 doors downstairs. So let the research begin. I went to Babies R Us first because I assumed they would have more than one brand, but I was wrong. They only carried the Safety 1st Twist & Grip Knob Covers that had HORRIBLE reviews everywhere I looked. The most common reviews were that the material was flimsy and that the child would figure out pretty quickly that if they put their fingers thru the holes they could grip the door knob. Then I went to Amazon.com because they have everything. So next up I looked at the Mommy’s Helper Door Knob Safety Knob Covers and those reviews were a little better but the most common review stated that they were made of flimsy material and easy to break with pressure.

So I tried one more brand…American Red Cross Door Knob Covers. I mean you want a product that will prevent the CHILD from getting out and not the ADULT….lol. All of the reviews stated that after trying 4-5 different brands this was the one that worked!!! So I ordered those puppies!!! I mean you get 3 for $3.59 (free shipping and no tax!!), and I am willing to loose that little bit of money to get a WHOLE lot of piece of mind. Aiden is a VERY smart child and I am sure that he will figure out how to get around the door knob locks but at the same time he could also get mad at this little obstacle and forget about trying to go outside. Or get distracted by one of his trucks or trains while trying to get around the cover…lol. We can all hope huh?

 

So be on the look out for my update to this entry on how they work. I got free second day shipping and they shipped out about an hour and a half after I placed the order!!!! How about them apples….I will have them in the mail box on Monday afternoon!!!!

Child Seat Belt for Airplanes!!!!!!!!!!

So I was at the doctors office today to get my IUD (that will come in another post) and decided to read the Parenting magazine to see if they had any fun summer ideas for me to do with Aiden.  There is a page in there where they have a bunch of different ads for products that Mommy’s would love and I came across something that DEFINITELY caught my eye!!!

Aiden will be 2 on the 29th of August and we will be taking his last flight before I have to buy him a plane ticket the weekend of his birthday. When I researched what will be the protocol after he turns 2 the airline website listed that I will have to bring a car seat on board. WHAT!!! I mean I did purchase the Sunshine Kids Radian 65 that IS FAA approved but I don’t want to lug that sucker thru the airport in addition to Aiden, probably Noah and all the goodies that keep our flight friendly for the res of the passengers. I have NEVER seen a child with a car seat on the plane so I assume that this is not a policy that has a strict enforcement. Then I thought, well the seat belt on the airplane can NOT be safe for children…I mean seriously.

So next month I will be purchasing…drum roll please…a CARES (Child Aviation Restraint System) for Aiden!!! It is a belt buckle device specially designed for children 22-44lbs!!!! And it is the ONLY harness type child aviation safety restraint ever certified by the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA).

             

              

I can’t tell you how excited I am to find something like this. It will make flying with both boys a MUCH easier process. I mean Aiden is normally ALL OVER the place so I know he is NOT going to sit in his own seat if he can unhook the regular seat belt…which has been able to do since he was 17 months old.  But with this he won’t be able to get loose!!!! It is essentially a car seat without the big ole car seat!!!! Here is some exact wording from their web site:

Each year more and more young children fly. But until CARES came along, what was missing was a convenient, hassle-free way to keep young flyers safe. Here’s what makes CARES such an invaluable travel solution: 

• CARES is the first and only harness type Aviation Child Safety Device to be certified by the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) as an alternative to a car seat.
• CARES is an elegantly designed belt-and-buckle device that works in conjunction with the regular airplane seat belt and provides young travelers the same level of safety as a car seat.
• CARES weighs just one pound and fits into a 6" stuff sack! It is easily portable, simple to install, adjustable to every size airplane seat, and usable on any seat in the airplane, except in the emergency exit rows.
• Need your car seat on the other end of the trip? Just check it through as luggage – and carry CARES on board in your pocket!

CARES is manufactured exclusively by AmSafe Aviation, the foremost manufacturer of aviation seatbelts and pilot restraints in the world. (Turn over your airplane seat belt buckle. Chances are it says AmSafe.) CARES is made of the same industrial-strength webbing as your own seat belt and is engineered to the highest aviation-safety standards.

I mean how cool is that!!!! It does cost a little bit more than I would like ($74.95) but it will be well worth it!!!! It even comes with a little bag to carry it in that will fit easily into your diaper bag so not toting a big car seat anymore!!!! (Insert Happy Mommy Dance!!!!!)

Happy Flying!!!

DEALS!!!! (***Updated***)

I have been meaning to do a post about places online that I love for deals on baby and kids stuff!!! Of course I am a SERIOUS fan of Old Navy and BabyGap and get emails regularly about their sales...I suggest all Mommy's out there to sign up for e-mail alerts to their favorite places to shop for their little ones. You get heads up on deals before everyone else!!!! You can also go in the store and ask them when they put new items on sale so you can get that cute outfit you have had your eye on!!!

So there are two web sites that have daily deals. And they have some GREAT deals. Just a couple days ago one site had 6 pair (3 for boys and 3 for girls) of See Kai Run Shoes on sale for 55% off!!!! They have sales on everything from cloth diapers to diaper bags to stainless steel water bottles to clothing!!!

So visit Baby Half Off and Baby Steals. If you are on FB or Twitter be sure to follow them so you get the item of the day first!!!!

UPDATE!!!!

I have also added Kid Steals and Baby Cheap Skate to my list of Mommy faves!!!! Kid Steals are deals for toddler and kids. And Baby Cheap Skate is coupons, coupon codes and special deals for babies, toddlers and kids!!!!

Noah's Newborn Shoot

As I posted a few weeks ago we did a newborn shoot with the wonderful Paul Wendl at his studio. Paul and I have been waiting to be able to see the wonderful pics and we FINALLY got the proofs last week. And needless to say we were MORE than satisfied!!!! You can visit Noah's blog to see the pictures. But I thought that I would share with you the first and only (so far) family picture of ours.

Hot Chicks, Hot Food Picks!!!

LET THE MOVEMENT BEGIN!!!!! I am an AVID FB poster...and normally my posts have something to do about food. I have a Line Sister that lives in Chicago that shares my love of all things YUMMY!! People tell us all the time that we should have a show on my FAVORITE channel...The Food Network. And we have decided that we agree!!!! So we have created a page on Facebook. You can link to it on the left of my blog...feel free to click the like bottom at the top of the Hot Chicks page. You will get regular food reviews (on spots that we go to in our home cities as well as when we travel), recipes, restaurant deals, videos of spots we visit, etc. You can even post your own reviews or recommend places for us to visit!!!!

We are super excited. You can also follow us on twitter @ChiLantaFoodies!!! Tell your friends...and tell your friends to tell their friends. Maybe if we get enough followers on FB and twitter The Food Network will take our tape seriously once we send it in...lol.

You can visit Cherish's blog at http://therealcherish.blogspot.com/ where she talks about fashion, food, traveling, among other things!!!