First Photo Shoot

Okay, so there really isn’t much to share here except the cuteness of my child. Now I know every mom thinks their baby is the cutest thing in the world, and I’m no exception. I will say that I am already so proud of my little girl in so many ways. She brings such happiness to so many people and it’s incredible to see! Here’s a few pictures from her first photo shoot, I hope they make you smile too! I’m one happy BabyPlus momma!

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Her First Moments

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The first hour of your child’s life is a blur, yet the world also seems to completely stop in its tracks. I’ll never forget the first moments of my daughter’s life. I remember just being grateful to be done pushing, but also seeing Avalyn for the first time was unreal. I immediately looked and her and then looked at my husband. He was so proud and his eyes were filled with joyful tears. It was the best moment of my life (next to marrying him, of course).

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The hospital I delivered at, Community North in Indianapolis, requires an hour of skin-to-skin time, which was a huge blessing. After holding her, they cleaned her up and weighed her very quickly, then brought her over. Since I decided to nurse, they had be feed her within the first half hour of her life. And, she latched on right away. Never having done it before, I didn’t really know what I was doing, but my little bundle of joy led the way. The doctor and nurses couldn’t get over how quickly she latched on and how alert she was right at birth. I attribute this to BabyPlus. While I missed the last two lessons because Avalyn was 23 days early, I know that BabyPlus helped to make her the wonderful baby she is.

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Not only was she alert and latching right away, the doctor was also impressed with her next control and strength at her one week appointment! She was already hitting milestones much earlier than many babies that are a few weeks older than her. Since she was so early, they told me that she could have a few minor delays, but on the contrary, she was already ahead. I love BabyPlus and would recommend it to all of my friends. She is a great eater, great sleeper, super laid back and a very happy BabyPlus baby!

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She’S Here!

This post is long over due. 11 weeks to be exact. But, I took the last two months off of blogging so I could spend time with my wonderfully, perfectly made daughter! Her arrival was a huge surprise to us all and I’m excited to finally share her birth story with all of you.

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I had gone to my 36 week check-up on Thursday morning on September 4. They did an ultrasound to ensure she was not still breach like she had been at my 20 week appointment. I remember being so excited to go into that ultrasound to get a glimpse of this little peanut that was taking up more and more room in my ever expanding belly. Well, we went in for the ultrasound and the tech told us everything looked great, but she couldn’t get a single picture because she was so tightly squeezed in there. We did see a tiny peak of her huge cheeks, which was satisfying enough. She was healthy and cozy in there, so that’s all we cared about.

Next, I went to see my DR for the 36 week check. We talked about hospital plans and everything that goes along with that. She told me she wasn’t going to check me since I was only 36 weeks along and that I had quite a bit of time (basically, that baby wasn’t going anywhere). So, my husband and I left for work and went about our days like we still had 4 weeks left. I should have known something was up though. There were little signs throughout the entire week that I noticed, but just shrugged off. For instance, I was sick and I never get sick. Also, I had a ton of work that I had to get done before maternity leave and I finished my biggest project way early (or so I thought) so that way I could have 4 weeks to train people on my team to do my job while I was away.

Anyway, we headed home from work that Thursday, hung out with some friends and then got into bed around 12:30 a.m. As usual, I got up around 2:30 a.m. to pee. This had become my typical routine over the past few months. So, I staggered out of bed, went to the bathroom and staggered back into bed. Right as I got into bed, I heard and felt a weird pop that I had never experienced before. Then, water started coming out in large quantities. I knew my water had broken, but I didn’t want to admit it for some reason. I actually contemplated just going back to bed. However, the steady stream of fluid didn’t allow for that. So, I Googled “what to do when water breaks” because I had completely blanked on everything I learned in my birthing class. After 20 minutes of that, and more fluid, I finally decided to wake my husband up. I gently shook him for about 5 minutes until he finally woke up and muttered the words, “Babe, I don’t want to make you panic, but I think my water broke.” He had the exact reaction I thought he would. He shot out of bed and said, “Ok, let’s do this. What do we do? Are you ok? Do you need anything?” I said, “I’m fine, but I don’t remember what we are supposed to do.” After deliberating for a few minutes, we decided to call the DR.

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I then called the hospital to let them know my water broke and they told that they would have my DR call me back, but to also get to the hospital as soon as I could. My favorite part of the story (besides having Avalyn comes in now). My DR called me back within 5 minutes and when her weary, tired voice called, she said, “Are you just testing to see if my number works?” It made me laugh out loud and I gave her kudos for joking when I woke her up out of a dead sleep at 2:30 in the morning. She asked how I was and I filled her in. Then she told me she’d meet me at the hospital in an hour. So, it was time!

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What Can Help Education Today?

A recent Gallup Poll estimates 53% of Americans are dissatisfied with the quality of education their children receive. For the first time in history America’s younger generation is less well educated than their parents. Most parents are frustrated and often at a loss about how to truly help their children thrive and learn. Our lives are busier than ever before and there is little time for parents to focus on learning. The sad truth is only 69% of high school students graduate.

What researchers know now that they might not have understood decades ago is that the earliest stimulation of a child is what matters most in the long term. That means simple measures parents can take like playing classical music in the nursery and interacting with baby as often and as much as possible truly matter. Reading to a toddler is free and it’s stimulating. It just takes a few minutes a day! An even better way to provide an enriched environment for your baby is to start when she’s still in the womb. Products like The BabyPlus Prenatal Education System® do a wonderful job of making the most of those ever important developmental months inside the womb. Any environmentally stimulating activity we can offer as parents in the first five years can potentially change the entire course of a child’s life.

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Every Pregnancy Brings Cool New Gear!

It has been years now since my last baby was born and although I know that the “stuff” is not the important part of having a baby, I have to admit that each baby shower brings about a tinge of jealousy.  It seems that the cycle of new products on the market is just about 9 months.  So with 8 years behind me I decided to search out the 5 new gadgets that I would want if I were having a baby now. But I am not- Happy Shopping to the rest of you!

1. 4moms® mamRoo® Plush Infant Bouncer- Moves 5 different ways, with speed and sound settings and a mobile.

http://www.4moms.com/mamaroo

Sometimes it is hard to know what will soothe a baby.  With all these options hopefully one will work. 

2. Chicco NextFit® Zip Convertible Car Seat- It has a Zip & Wash™ seat pad making it easy to clean.

http://www.chiccousa.com/gear/car-seats/nextfit-zip-palisade.aspx

A car seat with a cover that is easy to remove and clean? Genius!

3. Formula Pro® by babybrezza- Looks like a coffee maker, but mixes and dispenses formula.

http://www.babybrezza.com/store.php/formula-pro/

This just looks cool.  I didn’t use a lot of formula, but this might have made bottles more fun. 

4. Kindee™ Breastmilk Collection, Storage and Feeding System

https://www.kiinde.com/

I love these!  I think this would take away a few extra steps that I had to do back in the day.

5. Nest Baby Bassinet by Phil&Teds®

http://philandteds.com/us/Buy/sleep/nest-baby-bassinet?buybutton#.VF0WCE0tA5t

Easy to travel with.  Now baby can sleep almost anywhere and not just in their infant carrier. 

You don’t need all of the products out there to parent and love and patience are the most important ingredients, but these items might make things a little easier.

Happy Parenting!

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