31 Things No One Tells You About Becoming A Parent

You’re going to need to know this stuff before you take the plunge.

1. At some point you will accidentally hurt your kid and you’ll feel like the worst parent ever.

Try not to take it so hard. It happens to the best whether they admit it or not.

2. You will know a lot less about this:

“Wait. What happened?”

3. And a whole lot more about this:

4. Your Netflix account will eventually only suggest kids’ shows.

“I am a grown-ass person, Netflix! I don’t want to watch Bubble Guppies!”

5. Your pet will no longer be your top priority.

You: “When did we last feed the dog?” Spouse: “Dog?”

6. You will gain 15 pounds.

Kids love to eat ice cream, and what are you gonna do? Let them eat that tiny, 4-ounce kid’s cup without getting a jumbo for yourself? That would just be rude.

7. The backseat of your car will be nasty.

I don’t care how often you wash your car now. Crushed Cheerios, spilled juice, and a whole lot of other crap are in your car’s future.

8. You will eat 95% of your meals either incredibly fast or with one hand. Or both.

9. You’ll basically become a ninja.

When you need something from the baby’s room late at night you’ll be able to slip in and out without upending a feather.

10. Despite your best efforts, your kids will get their hands on your iPhone.

And this is what your photos will look like afterward.

11. Parenting is harder than you think it’ll be, but you won’t really notice.

Kind of like how lobsters don’t notice the water getting hotter, parents don’t notice how increasingly difficult parenting becomes.

12. You will have to sneak candy like it’s a contraband substance.

If your kid so much as smells chocolate on your breath, you’re screwed.

13. You will laugh more than at any other time in your life.

Kids do and say the funniest stuff ever. It’s pretty awesome.

14. You’ll be awakened at 2 a.m. to fetch a glass of water only to find your kid passed out when you deliver it.

The good news, though, is that the water is now totally yours!

15. You will see your own faults reflected back at you.

It’s sobering when you see your kid imitate your own bad behavior, and it will make you want to be a better person.

16. Folding kid and baby clothes is torture.

A normal-sized pile of laundry will take you three times as long to fold if it’s full of baby stuff.

17. It’s impossible to feel manly when folding said baby clothes.

Aww, look at the big man folding the tiny, widdle clothes.

18. The power of cute is more formidable than you realize.

Right now you’re like, “I’ll never give in to my kid’s whims and desires.” But you have never had a 3-year-old peer up at you and say, “Pwease? PWEASE?”

19. You will find talking to your friends without kids more difficult.

Friend: “I met this gorgeous girl at the club last night and we’ve been texting all day.” You: “I changed a poopy diaper.” Awkward silence.

20. Kids become actual people and not baby blobs way sooner than you think.

By the time your kid is 2, you’ll be having conversations more rewarding than many you have with adults.

21. Something you love will get ruined.

Kids have a knack for breaking, dirtying, or losing your favorite possessions. Don’t get too attached to that deer head, pal.

22. You will turn into your parents.

At some point you will actually find yourself saying, “That’s it! I will turn this car around!” and “Your face is gonna freeze like that!”

23. Very little will embarrass you.

Singing to your crying baby in public? Dropping your kid off at school in a robe? Nope. It’ll take more than that.

24. You won’t be able to watch movies where kids are killed or kidnapped.

When you have a little person in your house who you love more than anything, those movies hit a little too close to home.

25. You won’t want to spend money on yourself because you’ll know every dollar spent on yourself is a dollar you could’ve spent on your family.

This is why parents are famous for wearing outdated jeans.

26. Buying your kid something will make you way more happy than buying yourself something.

27. When your kid is little, every trip out of the house will feel like getting ready to go to the airport.

“Got the wipes?” “Check.” “The diapers, change of clothes, blanket, baby bottle, pacifier?” “Uh, check.”

28. You will love to watch kids’ movies.

This isn’t because the movies are so great (though most are tolerable these days), but because they’re an amazing bonding experience with your kid.

29. You will cram your entire adult life between the time your kid goes down and you go to sleep.

“Quick! Turn on The Walking Dead! Pour the wine! Tell me what you think about Obamacare! Ah, crap. It’s time for bed.”

30. For a while, only you will be able to understand them, so you’ll basically become their interpreter.

Grandma: “What did she say? Moogle woogle boo?” You: “No, she wants me to take her and her cousin to the park over on Smith Street next Tuesday.”

31. And lastly, it’s all worth it.

OK, so this is something people will tell you, but it’s true. Even with all of the maddening things that come along with being a parent, being someone’s mommy or daddy is one of life’s most rewarding experiences.

The Neuroscience of Calming a Baby

New study explains why babies calm down when they are carried.

Every parent and caregiver knows from first hand experience that babies calm down when they are picked up, gently rocked, and carried around the room. New research published in the journal Current Biology on April 18, 2013 shows that this is a universal phenomenon. Infants experience an automatic calming reaction when they are being carried, whether they are mouse pups or human babies.

"From humans to mice, mammalian infants become calm and relaxed when they are carried by their mother," says Kumi Kuroda of the RIKEN Brain Science Institute in Saitama, Japan. Being held in a mother's arms is the safest place for a baby to be, and the mother can have peace of mind knowing her baby is happy, content, and relaxed. The fact that babies are neurobiologically wired to stop crying when carried is a part of our evolutionary biology that helps our species survive.

This study is the first to show that the infant calming response to carrying is a coordinated set of central, motor, and cardiac regulations that is an evolutionarily preserved aspect of mother-infant interactions, the researchers say. It also helps to have a scientific explanation for the frustration many new parents struggle with. . . a calm and relaxed infant will often begin crying immediately when he or she is put down. When my daughter was young, swaddling her seemed to create a compact posture and sense of security that triggered an automatic relaxation response when she was put back down and helped break this cycle.

What triggers this calming response?

Kuroda and colleagues at RIKEN determined that the calming response is mediated by the parasympathetic nervous system and a region of the brain called the cerebellum (Latin: little brain). The researchers found that the calming response was dependent on tactile inputs and proprioception. Proprioception is the ability to sense and understand body movements and keep track of your body's position in space. They also found that the parasympathetic nervous system helped lower heart rate as part of mediating the coordinated response to being carried.

Both human and mouse babies calm down and stop moving immediately after they are carried, and mouse pups stop emitting ultrasonic cries. Mouse pups also adopt the characteristic compact posture, with limbs flexed, seen in other mammals such as cats and lions.

The idea that the familiar calming dynamic was also playing out in mice occurred to Kuroda one day when she was cleaning the cages of her mouse colony in the laboratory. She says, "When I picked the pups up at the back skin very softly and swiftly as mouse mothers did, they immediately stopped moving and became compact. They appeared relaxed, but not totally floppy, and kept the limbs flexed. This calming response in mice appeared similar to me to soothing by maternal carrying in human babies."

The Role of the Cerebellum in Calmness

As an athlete, I have written extensively about the cerebellum and its role in coordinating fine-tuned muscle movements, balance, and proprioception... The cerebellum is always on guard to protect your body from danger and prepare you for 'fight-or-flight' by keeping track of everything going on in your environment. 

Among many other jobs, the cerebellum has a huge responsibility to maintain your safety and physical well being. This takes a lot of brain power and energy. Although the cerebellum is only 10% of brain volume it holds over 50% of your brain's neurons. Neuroscientists are perplexed by everything that the cerebellum does. This study offers one more valuable clue. 

Scientists have known for years that the cerebellum is directly linked to a feedback loop with the vagus nerve which keeps heart rate slow and gives you grace under pressure. As adults, we can calm ourselves by practicing mindfulness and Loving-Kindness Meditation which puts the cerebellum at peace and creates a parasympathetic response of well being. This appears to be the same response that occurs in infants when they are being carried. 

Interestingly, the only time during the day that the cerebellum is allowed to let down it's guard and go offline is during REM sleep when your body is paralyzed to prevent you from acting out your dreams. It makes sense that being picked up and carried would send automatic signals that allow the cerebellum to relax and create healthy vagal tone which would lower heart rates in infants.

Conclusion

The researchers believe that these findings could have broad implications for parenting and contribute to preventing child abuse. “This infant response reduces the maternal burden of carrying and is beneficial for both the mother and the infant," explains Kuroda. She goes on to say, “Such proper understanding of infants would reduce frustration of parents and be beneficial, because unsoothable crying is a major risk factor for child abuse.”

"A scientific understanding of this infant response will save parents from misreading the restart of crying as the intention of the infant to control the parents, as some parenting theories—such as the 'cry it out' type of strategy—suggest," Kuroda says. "Rather, this phenomenon should be interpreted as a natural consequence of the infant sensorimotor systems." If parents understand that properly, perhaps they will be less frustrated by the crying, Kuroda says. And that puts those children at lower risk of abuse.

The authors conclude that, “Although our study was done on mothers, we believe that this is not specific to moms and can be used by any primary caregiver.”

This article can be found here.

What's the Difference Between Limits and Consequences?

This was a MUST share article from Aha! Parenting.

"Dr. Laura, How do you set loving limits, when you do not give consequences? For example, my son's bouncing a soccer ball inside the house. I try to give him a choice: "You remember balls are for bouncing outside. You may take it in front of the house or into the backyard. The choice is yours." Sometimes it works...sometimes he ignores me and continues to bounce the ball...I repeat again, and he does not listen. Should I take the ball away? He did not listen and there should be a consequence, no?"

Mom sees behavior that is against the family rules. She sets a limit, in this case by giving her son a choice of two alternate, acceptable, options. He ignores her. She repeats herself. He ignores her. Shouldn't there be a "consequence"?

Let's take this a step at a time.

1. Your son is bouncing the ball in the house, which he knows is against the family rules. You're worried about the walls getting scuffed. You need to set a limit. 

If you're doing daily preventive maintenance -- connecting with warmth and empathy, spending one on one time -- your child will always be more cooperative. So you can usually just set a clear, kind limit: "Michael! Ball bouncing is for outside. Thank you!" and hold open the door, and he'll comply.

What do I mean by connecting with warmth and empathy? Your basic 24/7 response to him is seeing things from his perspective, with compassion. In other words, what comes out of your mouth sounds mostly like this (in a warm, heart-felt voice):

• "You don't want to stop playing and take a bath. I understand. I bet when you're a grownup, you'll never take a bath, will you?"
• "Sometimes it's really hard to share your parents."
• "You sound really mad!"

2. Do you need to give him a choice? 

Some younger kids feel overwhelmed by choices. But strong-willed kids, even more than the rest of us, react badly when they feel backed into a corner. I would generally recommend giving your child the choice of continuing his activity in an appropriate place, or finding a different activity.

"Michael! No ball playing in the house. You can bounce the ball outside, or you can find another activity."

3. He ignores you. 

Maybe he's not being defiant; he's just really focused on his ball skills and doesn't even hear you. Or maybe you haven't been connecting with him much lately, and this is your red flag that you need to spend some dedicated special time with him daily, starting tonight. Or maybe he knows from past experience that there's a good chance you'll give up and leave him alone. Or maybe he's just a strong-willed kid, who needs to push on a limit 100 times to see if it holds firm. So he ignores you.

Do you repeat yourself? No! 

If you've asked once and not gotten a response, don't just repeat yourself. You don't have your child's attention yet. Instead, you get in his face in a friendly way, so he gets that you mean it. 

So in this case, you walk over to your son and -- hopefully with a smile on your face, but at least with a neutral expression -- you intercept the soccer ball. You hold the ball in one arm, putting the other arm around his shoulder. He looks up at you, aggravated.

4. You connect before you correct.

How do you feel when someone implies that you're wrong? A little bristly? An urgent need to prove you're right, or to fight back? That's not exactly a recipe for cooperation.

You can avoid your child feeling that way by reconnecting. He's much more likely to really hear you, and to care what you want, which means he's more likely to cooperate. You do that by seeing his perspective, even as you set your limit.

"Hey, Buddy...I guess you were so focused on those ball skills that you didn't hear me. Your ball skills are looking good. AND where do we play with balls? Right! Outside!" 

As you speak, you are walking him towards the door. You open it, and as he goes out, you give him the ball, and a smile.

5. Find a win/win solution. Usually, that's the end of incident. You've enforced your limit. If you do this regularly, your son will skip the inside bouncing and head straight outdoors, because who wants their mom interrupting when they're practicing ball skills? 

But maybe you only have a lawn outside and the ball doesn't bounce there. Maybe your son needs a hard surface to bounce the ball. In that case, he will almost certainly keep using your hallway. Time for a win/win solution.

"Hmm...I hear you that the lawn isn't good for bouncing the ball....and bouncing it in the house doesn't work for me because it damages the wall....What can we do?....You think the blacktop at the school would work? Great idea! I can't go with you now, but if you help me chop these veggies, we can go over for half an hour before dinner. Let's work together." 

Notice your child has to delay gratification. That's not easy. But if you're maintaining a positive connection, he'll be a lot more motivated.

6. Should you take the ball away? If your child is using a toy in an unsafe way, and does not respond to your redirection, then of course you take the toy away. "Balls are not for bouncing in the house. I hear you really don't want to go outside, so let's put the ball away and find something you can do in the house. It looks like you need something active to do....Want to jump on the trampoline in the basement? Or throw your stuffed animals over the railing and then rescue them?" Notice this is not a punishment. You are simply redirecting your child's energy. 

7. Teach Your Child to Repair. Let's say you come upon your son bouncing his ball in the hall, and you notice scuff marks on the wall. You say say "Whoa! Look at that wall! We need to clean that up. Sweetie, let's go get the cleaning supplies, and I'll help you. You know we always clean up our own messes." If you do this cheerfully, without blame, from the time your child is little, he will comply. And he will also start taking the ball outside without your intervention, because who wants to clean the walls when they could be outside doing soccer drills?

8. Shouldn't there be a "consequence"? Of course! Look at all the consequences of what happened here! Your son has learned:

• When mom tells me to do something, she means it. There's no point in trying to ignore her.
• Bouncing the ball in the house scuffs the wall and I'm responsible to help clean up the scuff marks...I'd rather just go outside with the ball.
• I make mistakes, but Mom always understands.
• I repair my mistakes and clean up my own messes.
• My mom really cares about what I want. So I care about what she wants.
• If I don't like what Mom tells me to do, she listens and tries to find a good solution for both of us.
• I'm good at finding solutions.
• If I use a toy unsafely, I have to find another activity.
• I don't always get what I want, but I get something better -- a mom who understands.
• Everyone in our family takes our family rules seriously. The most important one is treating each other with respect and kindness.

By contrast, if you had punished him -- which is what parents usually mean by "consequences" -- what would he have learned? 

• She's always yelling and punishing me. Why should I do what she wants?
• When I bounce the ball in the house, she takes it away and punishes me. But not until she's yelling. So I don't have to listen until she yells and takes the ball away. I know just how far to push it before I get a consequence.
• She took my ball. I'm going to annoy my sister. In fact, I'm going to make this afternoon miserable for everyone.
• When she's not here, I'll bounce the ball in the house as much as I want. 
• No, I don't know who made those scuff marks. I'm getting good at lying.
• She can't make me.

The truth is, we can't make another human being do what we want. We can only help them WANT to. Loving guidance and empathic limits help your child WANT to follow your guidance, so those good habits become part of who he is, whether you're there or not. "Consequences" that are designed to punish? Just the opposite.

The difference between loving limits and consequences is that there's no room for punishment in loving limits. If you'd like to learn more you can find this article here.

Rock and Buy Baby launching Summer of 2014!

It's official, for those of you who didn't already know, we're opening up a store online! After business picks up then hopefully a small store front (not sure yet of a location).

The website has been purchased and our name secured!

www.rockandbuybaby.com

We've also got Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, Tumblr, and our email address! Will be working on a logo and page layouts over the next few months while gathering inventory and listing that online as well. Keep following the blog and like/become a fan of our other social media pages. Each one will be having their own giveaways and coupon codes. An example would be a free diaper on Facebook, free wet bag for instagram, or gift card on twitter. I wouldn't want to miss anything!

Big things coming soon... stay posted for more updates. Soft opening estimated for summer 2014.

Cloth Diapering 101: Why Choose Cloth?

We know that new and expecting parents have an overwhelming number of decisions to make when it comes to the well-being of their babies. Choosing whether to use reusable cloth diapers or disposable diapers is just one of the decisions that needs to be made. We understand that the abundance of information on cloth diapering combined with the variety of styles and brands can be confusing and intimidating for an expecting family. We hope that the information provided below will help simplify cloth diapering and enable you to make the best diapering decision for your baby and your family.

Savings

Based on 8,000 diaper changes from birth to potty training you can expect to spend between $2,300 to $2,800 on disposable diapers and wipes. In contrast, cloth diapering your baby can cost as little as a few hundred dollars. Using these figures, you can save up to $2,500 by choosing to use cloth diapers and wipes. Proper care and use will extend the life of your cloth diapers and allow for further savings by using them on additional babies.

The #1 reason customers chose to use cloth diapers was for the financial savings. (Based on Thirsties’ 2012 Customer Survey of 720 cloth diapering families)

Use the Savings Calculator to see how much you can save by using Thirsties cloth diapers.

Healthy for your baby's skin

Disposable diapers contain various toxins such as Tributyltin, Sodium Polyacrylate, Volatile Organic Compounds (VOC’s) and trace amounts of Dioxin. Your baby’s delicate skin functions as a sponge and what we put on it goes in it.

Thirsties uses low impact reactive dyes and processes that are eco-friendly. No heavy metals, toxic substances, or environmentally destructive practices are used in dying our fabrics. All Thirsties products are PVC (vinyl), phthalate, and lead free.

The second most important reason our customers chose to use cloth diapers was because they are healthier against their baby’s delicate skin. (Based on Thirsties’ 2012 Customer Survey of 720 cloth diapering families)

Environmental Impact

Disposable diapers generate sixty times more solid waste and use twenty times more raw materials than reusable diapers. Disposable diapers are the third largest contributor to our landfills and will remain intact for 500 years.

Style

With the available variety of styles, colors, and prints you can customize a diaper stash that fits your baby’s personality and your budget. Thirsties offers over a dozen fun colors and several adorable prints to fashionably compliment your baby’s style.

Convenience

With cloth diapers, there are no late-night trips to the grocery store for more diapers, no emptying your diaper pail into your already full trash bin, no pins and no rubber pants. With sturdy and easy-to-use closures cloth diapers go on your baby just as disposables do but with oodles more cuteness and style.

98% of our customers think that using cloth diapers is easier than they thought or about what they expected. (Based on Thirsties’ 2012 Customer Survey of 720 cloth diapering families)

Fewer blowouts

Cloth diapers contain blowouts far better than disposables. You can sleep soundly knowing you won’t be up during the night changing outfits, bedding, or bathing your baby.

Cloth Diapering 101: What do I need to get started?

The number of diapers to purchase is based upon your budget, your diapering choice, and how often you will be laundering your diapers. The recommendations below are based on the assumption that you will be doing laundry every other day.

How many daily diaper changes should I expect?
Newborn: 10–12 diapers
6–12 months: 8-10 diapers
12–24 months: 6–8 diapers
24+ months: 4-6 diapers

How many diapers will I need in rotation?
Newborn: 20–24 diapers
6–12 months: 16-20 diapers
12–24 months: 12–16 diapers
24+ months: 8-12 diapers

How many covers do I need?
A wrap or cover can be wiped clean and reused several times before requiring a full washing. Most people recommend one wrap for every 3-4 diapers in rotation.

Do I have to purchase new diapers?
NO! You can purchase gently used diapers from maybe stores and online shops! It's definitely worth it to save a few dollars.

What accessories do I need?
I recommend purchasing 2 pail liners, a cloth diaper friendly diaper ointment, 1 wet bag, 3 dozen cloth wipes, 1baby wipe solution mist, cloth diaper friendly detergent (I use TIDE Original Powder in my HE machine), 1 diaper sprayer (optional), and wool dryer balls if using the dryer. If line drying, you may want to purchase a clothes line or a drying rack. I also recommend a 3 pack of snappis if you are using prefolds!

Cloth Diapering 101: Accessories

Inserts
Inserts are used to add absorbency to a diapering system. Inserts can be placed between the diaper and cover or stuffed into the pocket or sleeve.

Diaper Ointment
It is very important to choose a baby ointment that is cloth diaper safe. Many traditional diaper ointments contain petroleum or other ingredients which coat fibers and cause diapers to repel.

Reusable Wipes
Are a great alternative to disposable wipes and can save you up to $500. Pair with a baby wipe solution for the best results.

Baby Wipe Solution
When using reusable wipes you will want to purchase a baby wipe solution to properly cleanse and moisturize your baby’s skin.

Wet Bag
A great accessory for your diaper bag used to either enclose clean or soiled diapers. Wet bags come with a closure system to keep odors from escaping.

Diaper Pail
The use of a diaper pail is necessary to keep odors at bay while storing your baby’s soiled diapers until laundry day. 52 quart garbage pails with a lid are a popular choice but any large container with a closure will work.

Pail Liner
Washable liners are designed to fit your diaper pail and be thrown in the wash with your soiled diapers. Pail liners are waterproof and designed to keep odors sealed within.

Diaper Sprayer
A hose with a nozel that is attached to the plumbing of your toilet and is used to cleanse poop from soiled diapers. Diaper sprayers aren’t typically necessary until your baby begins to eat solids.

Baby Basics. A place to sleep, clothing, and diapers.

When it comes to having a baby, whether it's your first child or not, you can get a little overwhelmed in the search for baby gear. Now we all know baby's need a place to sleep, clothes to wear, and of course diapers. Just these items alone can break the bank if you aren't sure what you really need. Here are some tips. Keep in mind that these are just my opinions and it's because I'm on my second child and have a little bit of experience.

A safe place to sleep

As far as a place to sleep goes, in the first few months (I want to say up to about 6 months or before they sit up unassisted), baby does NOT need a crib. I know every mom pictures herself coming home from the hospital and placing that beautiful newborn into her own crib with a super cute bedding set in her fabulously decorated nursery. Whelp... unless you have an extra room for baby, which many parents do, then image that big ol' crib squeezed in your bedroom (maybe living room). Not the ideal image of that dream nursery but do-able. A little bit more realistic of a choice is getting a bassinet (which holds baby until he/she can start to push up on to the elbows or starts to roll over), or a pack n play. Personally, I have both but prefer putting Kaleb into the pack n play, which I'm currently using as a bassinet, to sleep.

We were given ours from my father in law as a gift. It's the new Lion King 100% washable playard. Yes, you heard that right! The whole thing unzips and can be thrown right into our washing machine. GENIUS! Why didn't they think of this 4 years ago when I had Layla. So many times she's spit up or drooled all over that thing and I'd think to myself, "How am I ever going to clean the top rail, netting, and mattress cover?!" Anyway, it comes with the changing table, has a bassinet that can be lowered to the bottom to become a playpen, and of course a little storage. I'm using my Graco pack n play sheets from Layla's old one on this model even though it's a different brand. They are usually all the same size mattress pad, lucky for me. Best part about this little item is, baby can use it up to 24 months old, or when he/she starts to climb out.

Clothing

Now as far as clothing... YES, we all want baby dressed in the cutest outfits. Really though, if you really think about it, they outgrow clothing the first year of life like you wouldn't believe! Just stop to think about all the sizes you can buy for a baby. No, seriously... they have a lot and they are outgrown any where between 8-12 weeks at a time. Here's the sizing chart for my favorite brand of baby and toddler clothing, Carters.

As you may have noticed, some "well grown" babies are born wearing size 0-3 months right away. Heck both my children were 8 lbs and some change. They wore newborn for like a week and then I could barely snap the bottoms because they were too tall and plump. 

Carters, which just bought out OshKosh B'Gosh makes some really cute clothing and they are the known by other names at other stores. You can find their clothing at Macy's, Babies R Us, Marshall's, TJ Maxx, Ross, and Winners (Canada). In Target the line of clothing is called Just One You by Carters and in Walmart  Child of Mine by Carters. Remember though, baby clothing can be costly. A set of 3 pieces, onesie-pants-jacket can be $15-20. THAT'S JUST ONE OUTFIT! If you've got a messy baby you could go through 3 outfits a day and 2 PJs at night! For a first time mom, I think I'd recommend buying a 3-5 pack of onesies in each of those sizes above (starting at 0-3 months of course!), a couple pants, shorts, and skirts or dresses. As far as coats, jackets, and sweaters go, I'd have two in 6 months and two in 12 months. It's ok if the sleeves are a little long, but really hold up all the sizes together it's the smallest difference in size from a 3 to 6 month or 9 to 12 month! It's insane. Now, what about baby shoes? I knew you'd ask. I have one for each size but really my baby is 3 months old and has only worn shoes twice... until they start walking, what's the point? Most of the time it's just socks that work for us. The good news about that is socks come in size 3-12 months or 12-24 months, so they last a long time!

How can I save money on baby clothing?

Saving money on baby items, especially clothing should be a job for me. I'm good, like really good. I stalk the sites for all those store for sales, coupons, seasonal changes (for buying a year later's size like 18 months on sale!), and of course clearance. However, my favorite store in the world is Once Upon A Child. They buy and sell gently used baby items and clothing. They pay you cash for your outgrown, stain and tear-free clothing and shoes. Since baby's outgrow clothing so fast (my baby at two months was wearing size 3-6 months), you can find A LOT of things that look brand new! I love to go to there stores and get clothing and shoes for my two kids. They sell newborn to kid's size 12. If you're really luck you can get brand new items with the tags still on for $2.00-$5.00. Perfect example, I got Layla Air Jordan's for $8.00 and they retail for over $40.00! I would definitely recommend getting a lot of clothing from them, or maybe some local consignment stores.

DIAPERS!!

When it comes to what kind of diapers, which, brands, and what sizes are needed, new moms can get a little overwhelmed. I'm not for or against cloth vs disposables (well maybe a little one way more than the other). When it comes to you and your family, it's all about money, time, and support. With my daughter she used Pampers (Swaddlers then Cruisers) from birth to potty training. That's when we switched her to Huggies Pull Ups. I tried a pack of Huggies but this is what happened all the time.

This is a diaper explosion.

They happen, there is NO WAY TO AVOID THEM. But just imagine this TIMES TEN when I used Huggies brand. It was down her PJs legs, up her whole back, in her sleeves, and up into her hair! Not so fun at 3 AM when you're trying to change a baby in the dark for a late night quiet feeding. You have to wake them up and bathe them, rinse out poop from the clothing, wake up half the house, and cry a little because you haven't slept since you were in your second trimester. It's ok though, just remember one day their children will repay the favor. Now as far as size, just read the box. It's got the weight range listed on the side. I wouldn't recommend a large Costco size box of size newborn though, but definitely in size one. Speaking of Costco, or BJ's Wholesale... great stores for diapers at formula (if you need it) at a great cost. 

With my second child, however, I started with cloth diapers. Now, I don't want to go too into this but... really ask yourself if you like to throw money away literally? I sure didn't with Layla. Cloth diapering is a great option! Ultimately, you have to decide why one diapering method works better for your family, your child and your wallet. There are pros and cons to each, and whatever your reason for using cloth (saving money over the course of your baby's diapering years, fewer diapers in landfills) or disposables (far less interaction with poo, never worrying about having enough diapers washed and ready to go) -- you shouldn't feel guilty about a choice that works for you.

I will write a blog about cloth diapering in more detail soon, stay posted.