$1 Old Navy Flip Flops - Tomorrow Only!!

Learned from the moneysavingmom.com -

According to the Real Simple blog:

This Saturday only (June 28th), Old Navy's nation wide will be selling their fabulously comfortable and colorful flip flops for $1 each!

Babies R Us, you did me wrong!

I had my car seat properly installed this morning by the Safety Riders. I am so happy I did! My car seat was a tragedy waiting to happen! I won't go into all the little details they taught me - but here are some items I got from Babies R Us that they DO NOT recommend you use - and here is why:

1) This car seat protector is too thick and prevents the car seat from being secured as tightly as possible to the seat. In the event of an accident (key phrase) it could shift, moving the car seat with it.

2) This cute toy holder was going to be our lifesaver on the long trips back and forth to Houston. NOT SO! In a crash, the hard plastic bar and toys could break and smash into him - with him having no way to protect himself. Plus, the handle to the bucket seat would have to be put in the wrong position for him to play with this. Even the soft toys would require me driving around with the handle in the wrong position (read unsafe) - so return we must.

3) These strap covers are so soft on the inside! I was thrilled when we received them! However...using them means the straps will not fit as snuggly as they need to to protect him in a crash. In addition, these could ride up on him, as I'm driving the car, and as a tiny guy, he could roll his head to one side and suffocate! Especially at the beginning when he can't hold his head up. I will be keeping these though and using them in his Maclarean stroller when he is older.

4) This is another super soft luxury item, and what I thought was vital for a newborn. You know what is coming...the inner cushion could shift as I am driving, and especially in a crash, and push his head down, thereby closing his airways and well, you know the rest. Especially at the beginning, which is what the inner ring is designed for, when he can't hold his head up. I could keep this and use it for when he is much much older with the outer ring and can hold his head up.

The recommendations were - instead of #4, use a rolled up receiving blanket on either side of him to secure him in the seat - he doesn't need anything above his head. If I want to use a mirror that attaches to the baby latches in the back - buy the softest, most fabric thing I can find. They don't exactly recommend them, but they are the least 'dangerous' of toys you could install for entertainment on long car rides.

My poor boy! I had to call Phil and confess that I was on the verge of endangering his son! Praise God Ethan hasn't come before today! Seriously! Anyway - I guess I was frustrated because I feel like I trusted Babies R Us to provide things that were safe for my baby - but I've learned that stores are out to make money, and I've got to do my own research to know if it is safe for my baby.

38 weeks

One word: heavy! Ethan has now dropped big time - "lightening" they call it. (He's even lower than when this picture was taken a few days ago.) Whoever came up with that name obviously was not pregnant (a man, perhaps?). Ethan is heavier than ever! Only 1 1/2 weeks left...I hope. Our friends have been great! All these new mommies know that if you keep your schedule a bit busy - you'll have things to look forward to and won't focus so much on the big question, "when will it happen?" I have two baby showers this week, a lunch event, and then dinner with friends Saturday night. Of course, I wouldn't mind if he decided to come, but at least I won't be sitting around watching the clock tick away. Now back to my Madeliene Wickham book!

Amy's Goodness

Amy's soups. mmmmm. One Sunday after church I was craving soup, so we made a quick stop into Whole Foods and stumbled upon Amy's. We chose the Tomato Bisque to go along with grilled cheese sandwiches, a fast and delicious after church lunch. We were blown away by these soups! The ingredient list is simple - as it should be - and we finally found a canned soup that is edible. We have tried everything and had never been satisfied with the taste - they all tasted so fake and processed. Ahhhhh, Amy's. Many satisfying bowls of goodness ahead!

Phil had the Black Bean Vegetarian today for lunch and gave it an overall good score, but said it would have been better with some cheese and sour cream. That's how we eat our black bean/taco soups, so that might be super subjective.

And, I found a variety of these soups at Wal-mart the other day for $2/each, $1 cheaper than at Whole Foods. Score!

Receipt a must

As I've been finishing my final round of returns and organizing Ethan's room - the Babies R Us employees have not failed to remind me that starting in July they will no longer accept returns without a receipt. I asked them to clarify, "not even for store credit?", nope, will not return anything that doesn't have a receipt. Wow. That's huge and could be detrimental to new mommies who inevitably have to return something! So, if you're gift shopping at Babies R Us, do the new mommy a HUGE favor and remember to ask for gift receipts!! It looks like they mean business!

The straw that broke..well, you know the rest

I no longer can run errands by myself. Let me rephrase that, I am NOT going to run errands by myself until Ethan is born. I just ran to Costco for a few things and here's what happened:

I walked up, prepared to FLASH my Costco card, when the check-in lady said,
"When are you due?"
"2 1/2 weeks"
"OH, I can tell."

Geesh. A simple, "Welcome to Costco" would have sufficed. I feel like a sideshow freak, a public spectacle. I waddle like crazy, sweat like crazy in these 100 degree temperatures, and of course look tired any time I have to be on my feet. Give a girl a break! Where are people's manners? I just can't get over the audacity of total strangers. I've been told it doesn't end and can and will worsen as he gets older. Ethan might need to get use to the phrase, "Son, cover your ears for a sec while mama has a chat with this nice lady"....

I have read somewhere a list of comebacks that might hush a few strangers up. Here are my favorites:
When Ethan is crying/throwing a fit and a stranger says, "someone needs a nap", I reply, "yes I do, and I'm looking forward to it."
Or to the same situation if they say, "someone is hungry", I reply, "really you can tell? I mean, I just ate but I could go for some dessert." I would love to have the guts to try some of these total deflection responses. I wonder how they would further respond!

Are we there yet?

I'm 37 1/2 weeks today and ready to go. I finished packing our bags, Ethan's room is extremely tidy, and the rest of the house is continually being cleaned and recleaned. I'm not nervous, just ready to do this! Ethan's kicks have become painful at times as his feet are continually being pushed out of my side, while he simultaneously pushes his little bottom out, OUCH! He must be one long boy. This happens throughout the day and night. Thankfully he has a bit of a sleeping routine, which I have learned, so I know when I can anticipate rest.

I keep telling Ethan if he is so uncomfortable to just come on out so his mommy and daddy can hold him and he'll have more room to kick his feet. That's pretty much what I tell him every day when I become extremely frustrated with his big movements. I think it has passed the point of being sweet and exciting. Now, it's just a bit much. It's kind of scary at times because when he really gets to playing, I can barely continue walking or standing - just so much pressure and energy being exerted and my equilibrium is thrown way off. Not good when I was pushing the cart around the store the other day and couldn't possibly just sit down. I took a nap when I got home to regain some energy! For the last few weeks I have been napping for about 30 min. every day. I'm just so tired by mid day! Going potty 4x a night doesn't help either.

So here we are, me sipping some tea in an attempt to wake up and Ethan sleeping. I only have about 30 min. until he wakes up - and let the kicking begin!

Safe Riders

Just learned about this program this morning. Have you heard of it? (Click on the picture for the website.) I was alarmed by the statistic that 4 out of 5 car seats are NOT installed correctly - even if the instructions were followed to a T. I'm going to one of their free clinics next week to have our car seat properly installed. It will take about 30 min, so they can teach me how to do it myself in the future. Our tax dollars at work for a great cause!

By the poolside

My favorite modern day author is hands down Madeleine Wickham. She also goes by Sophia Kinsella. She is a British writer who has the ability to captivate me page by page. No easy feat, since I usually consider fiction unfulfilling. Every book I have read of hers, I just can't put down. I finished the Shopaholic series, saddened that it had to come to an end. I quickly devoured Remember Me? in one weekend a few months ago. Her books are so light hearted, witty, and full of great character development. You just can't help completely relating to her heroine on some level. Plus, I love the British, and anything that delves more into British culture and especially their humor is worth a go.

She describes her books best, "All my books involve some kind of wish-fulfilment; some kind of escapism--whether it's shopping, or a whirlwind romance, or stepping off the career treadmill--and Remember Me? is maybe the ultimate form of wish-fulfilment. What if you didn't recognize your life... because it had become so perfect?"
So, here is my recommendation for great poolside books. I have requested The Gatecrasher and Cocktails for Three from our library - some reading before Ethan is born, or to keep me up during the late night feedings if he arrives before the books do!

Good morning, AAA

This morning started out promising. We woke up before the alarm, were ready with plenty of time to spare, and as we were making our coffee we realized we were out of creamer. No biggie, we used soy milk and gave it a splash of chocolate syrup and then told each other - think coffee like the hostels in Europe - and quickly drank it. Ok, not too bad a start.

Then, Phil leaves to drive to the park-n-ride to catch the bus, and immediately comes running back in, drops his things and says, "you have a flat tire!!". He looks so panic stricken, until I calmly remind him we have AAA and I'll just give them a call. Relief washed over his face. I think he was about to change my tire and be super late to work. Love my husband, but he can be so forgetful sometimes! :)

So, here I am waiting for AAA to arrive to help this pregnant mama out. We had let our AAA membership expire, and I wasn't concerned until we moved and now make lots of road trips. Also, as I became more pregnant I realized I was becoming afraid of driving in the car by myself - not to mention if I had a little one in the back. Thankfully, AAA had continued to woo us and offered us a deal we couldn't pass up. So, here I am using them for a second time in 3 months.

No worries, at least now I have a legitimate excuse to go to Costco and browse for a bit while I get a new tire. Hmm, guess I should go ahead and install a car base for Ethan's car seat in both of our cars, just in case this sight greets us right before we head to the birthing center. I'll add that to my list!

Even better?

Truthfully, gDiapers can get expensive. And - great news! We spotted them last night for sale at HEB (starter kit and refills)! We've decided to still invest in them as our most disposable option, but I forgot about another more affordable one. Here's the low down on these:

Bio-soft liners

They make using cloth diapers even easier!

Bio-soft liners are flushable diaper liners that make clean-up a breeze – this product is the perfect compromise between convenience and cloth diapers. No more rinsing poopy diapers in the toilet! Bio-soft liners absorb the solid waste - and then you simply discard the soiled liner in the toilet and flush away the mess. They are non-irritating and ever so soft and comfortable against baby's sensitive skin.

Bio-soft liners are made of a non woven material with no binder, and will biodegrade very quickly (within 8 days in a sewage treatment system or 20 days in a septic tank). They are 100% viscose rayon, a cellulosic fibre derived from natural sources, and are made to our specifications in England.

100 sheets per roll. 2 sizes:
Small: 5 x 12 inches
Large: 7.5 x 12 inches

(Please note that the flushing of any biodegradable diaper liner may cause blockage in old or damaged drains and in sensitive septic systems. Please discard pee soaked liners in the garbage and to let the soiled liners soak a few minutes in the toilet before flushing just so that they absorb water and break down a bit before they are released into the system.)

- You can tell I copied the above from their website! -

Rock on! I think I'll double up on these inside of his cloth diapers during the passing of the meconium. I might end up using these liners more often than I realize. Ok, ok, I know, enough about cloth diapering...

gDiapers: a disposable I can live with

I finally found disposables I can live with. We plan on traveling back and forth to Houston, of course, and know that some of our family will unfortunately be less than helpful with cloth diapering. You would think we were actually causing harm to Ethan with our decision! It's just amazing how angry people get when we mention we are not using disposables. It's not like we would force anyone to change his diaper if they didn't want to. Americans, we are so sheltered. Stepping slowly off the soap box now...

Introducing the gDiaper! You start with a cloth, washable cover, snap in a waterproof liner, and then add the flushable, biodegradable disposable portion. You could actually flush the diaper after it is soiled, because it will break down in the wastewater, just like huge wads of toilet paper, but I'm not sure I'm willing to risk clogging an apt. toilet to find out if our toilet could accommodate it. I think I'll just throw them away, knowing they will break down in 50-150 days. Ahhh, not 500 + years, if ever, with regular disposables.

I found 2 small pants on cragislist and will splurge and buy the pack of disposables separately online. I just missed out on an incredible deal on craigslist for everything I would need - darn! But, thankfully someone else's little one grew out of the small pants and as of tomorrow afternoon they are all mine!

I am such a bargain shopper (it's a habit I just can't break) - saving over 50% off the normal price of all of these cloth diapers. If you are curious or have no idea what is needed for cloth diapering, here is what we have for Ethan's diapering and how much we have spent. We not only want to do our best to take care of the earth God created, but also economically had to have an option we can afford. Now, not factoring in the gDiaper refills we will buy over the course of his diaper time (which really will be used very sparingly) here is the breakdown, and yes, steals were found exclusively on craigslist!

12 chinese prefolds (can be used up to 22 lbs.) = $22
10 Green Mountain newborn prefolds, 5 small Bummies Super Whisper Wraps = $15
4 Kissaluvs small fitteds = $20
3 snappies = $3 (no more old school pinning going on here, these are the newest technology)
(the above is all we really need for up to 14 lbs., with me doing a full load every 2 days.)
13 Bum Genius 3.0 all-in-one, one size, and diaper sprayer = $175
(these can be used from 7 lbs. all the way to 35 lbs. - amazing! So, these will supplement him on wash days and night time changes) And when he is over his 10 dirty diapers a day, this is all I will use all day every day.
2 small gDiaper covers = $15
(to buy) one pkg gDiaper refills = $15

So total to cloth diaper Ethan until he is potty trained (statistics show 90% of all cloth diapered babies potty train by age 2 - there's a lot of reasons for this) we have spent $265, with potentially more on the gdiaper refills and next size up gDiaper pant. You can be sure I'll be checking craigslist when that time comes!

Shower #2

Sunday my sisters and mom threw me a very girley family shower at La Madeline. I love my family. All the women are loud, talkative, and love to eat. We were treated to fruit salad, and a sampling of La Madeline desserts, none of which I had ever splurged on before, along with coffee and tea. My favorites ended up being the fruit tart, strawberry napoleon, and this rich chocolate cake (sacher torte). Yes, I had a piece of each! It was refreshing on such a hot afternoon.

My niece Paige was extremely helpful in opening the presents. Seriously, I couldn't have done it without her. She was more than happy to deliver gifts to me, pick up trash from the floor, and hand gifts to her Aunt Kristina. She kept patting my tummy and saying, "here's baby Ethan." Sweet girl.

And, this is one of my favorite pictures. Not that I look that great in it, I mean - sloucher!! This is my great aunt (my grandma's sister) Merlene. I have always been close to all my relatives, her especially. She is so extremely opinionated - I might get that from her a bit. She refuses to go to showers because she says they are boring, but look - she came to mine! This was huge and I had to capture the memory! She made it a point to remind me that she would not do this for just anyone. Love her!

Sunday and Monday night Phil and I organized his gifts, put things away, washed the clothes, and continued to set up his room. I bought some baskets on Monday for his changing table and now am in the process of packing my bag for the birth. I know I am super early, but I've got the time and the energy now. I might attempt to make basket liners, but somehow the sewing machine and my new clumsiness are not cooperating together and I am ending up in tears every time I sit to sew. We'll see.

Feeling extremely loved

This weekend we were blessed with two showers for our little Ethan. The first, a perfectly coordinated couples shower with dear friends from Crossbridge. Gosh, how much we miss everyone! I loved looking around the room and having so many wonderful memories flood my memory. I especially enjoyed seeing Phil smile the entire time as he got to see guys he misses so dearly. Because he works full time, he doesn't have as many opportunities as I have to make new friends here. Watching Phil interact with his friends was huge - and seriously would have been enough of a gift for me!

But, of course, my great friends Steph and Erin coordinated a picture perfect shower. The cupcakes in the picture, decorated just like in a Martha Stewart magazine, were made from scratch by Steph!! Wow! When I first saw them, I admired their beauty and was certain they were bought from some expensive bakery, but later found out they were homemade. Impressive! Everything was going beautifully, until the time came to embarrass ourselves.

Phil and I arrived prior to the shower to be video taped answering parenting questions - of course individually and we couldn't hear each other's answers. Here, our guests anxious await the start of the video - what was the funniest to us was we were asked completely different questions, so hearing each other answer was quite funny and really, gave us stuff to talk about on the way home!

Here we are! We would not be the people we are today without the encouragement and sometimes hard accountability of these friends. We certainly would not be as confident in our ability to raise a child, if we hadn't had the privilege of closely watching these two couples raise their little girls. Maybe their next sweet babies will be boys and I can in some small way return the blessings.

Pregnancy is amazing. Phil and I prayed for a year and a half for a baby and God blessed us with Ethan. And now, with people giving us gifts and praying for us - the blessings just overflow in our hearts. It's hard to take in all the love that is being lavished on us. I am on cloud nine this week as I am overwhelmed with God's and people's love for us.