RookieMoms Blog

The fine folks at WhatToExpect.com are offering a free guide called the “What to Expect: Guide to a Healthy Home”. I can’t speak to the quality of the guide having just ordered mine right this minute, but I thought I’d pass along the offer.

Can’t beat the price and *supposedly* you can opt out of additional marketing from Clorox…order yours today.

Now officially a second-time mom, Heather called me at 6.45 this morning to report that she was at the hospital, “kickin’ it with her epidural” at 9 cm. Her OB would be there in a few minutes. Ninety minutes later, she called me to say she had a son, Milo Theodore, who was one-hour old.

This photo of Heather (and Milo) and Holden was taken on Saturday.

If you want to send her a message, use heather @ rookiemoms.com. If you want to send her something in the mail, send me a message at whitney @ rookiemoms.com and I will provide her address.

The whole Rookie Moms family is very excited about Holden’s baby brother. Julian already told me that Holden would hold the baby and then it would be Julian’s turn.

I am packing for the hospital to go have my second baby and I *wish* I had not already donated my stupid Christmas socks. They would have been perfect:

• Red. For obvious reasons.
• Snuggly warm.
• Non-skid. Also for obvious reasons.
• Reindeer pattern. I care much much less if anything happens to them than if I had these little beauties from Paul Frank.

So, let my lesson be your lesson!

These Kalas tumblers from Ikea for kids are the best when you’re looking to move away from the omnipresent sippy cup.

They’re a great size for little hands (toddler hands 20-ish months), not breakable, dishwasher-safe, and they come in a six-pack of different colors for about $1.50. What’s not to love?!

When my fancy wireless mouse batteries died on me today, I charged ‘em and hopped into the car to make yet another run to Target for “necessities”. When I nestled my large self into the driver’s seat, I noticed a newspaper ad for the movie, Because I said so, and decided to take a detour instead. Please people, nobody wants to see that with me… I have paid childcare in the morning… I used to be spontaneous…I spend enough time at Target… it was a stroke of divine inspiration.

I got to the theater, bought myself a bargain matinee ticket for $8.25 (WTF?!!) and settled in for my solo movie with popcorn, M&Ms and root beer as my 38-weeks pregnant lunch. The movie itself did not make me laugh, but the preview for this movie had me laughing my a$s off and texting my husband at work.

So, have a look at this trailer and let me know who’s in for opening weekend?

Bornlearning.org sounds like a great initiative. These fine folks seem to be really celebrating some of the batty things I already do with Holden and that just makes me feel good as a mom. I discovered these short films on Thingamababy and you just have to watch them for yourself.

When I passed it along to my husband, I said something like “if you ever find yourself wondering why your son seems so smart and your wife so dumb, watch these videos.”

While my mom and I did have a successful shopping trip this weekend, I must confess that I become irate as soon as I start interacting with the sales people at Mimi Maternity. But that’s a rant for another day.

Let’s stay positive, people. Positively pregnant. If that’s possible.

What I have trouble finding is normal-looking clothes that will fit my pregnant body. I don’t want to wear a floral shirt with a tie around the back everyday from now until July. Enter Bellydancematernity.com - an online maternity store with cute! maternity clothes! See, a brown hoodie. That’s what I’m talking about.

Also, I’m missing my ability to wear graphic tees, and no thank you, I don’t want one that has some saying about bellies or angels. How about this striped tee with the graffiti-style heart? Yes, thank you.

And, yes, there is a sale section. Not a true bargain basement sale, as nothing seems to be below $34, however, these are not Target duds, and will likely fit much better. (Don’t get me started on Target maternity. I have actually cried because I was stuck in itchy maternity pants at work and could not stop itching.)

Keep up the good work, Belly Dance, and we’ll come back for your baby clothes department in a few months. The sale items, of course.

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This is a paid review of bellydancematernity.com. RookieMoms will occasionally post such reviews if we believe they are helpful to our readers, and we will always be honest. That’s what a review is, after all.

Time Magazine has created a little blogosphere hullaballoo of late with this article about hipster parents and the babies who love them.

Our site attempts to find a balance between being a good parent and remembering/reclaiming yourself as a fun person, but since my writing partner is the hipper of the two of us, I have no illusions about myself.

Asha wrote about a year ago about the cool moms and the notso-cool moms in The Blogging Mom Clique; anyone can join and I think she nailed it. We’re just trying to figure it all out as we go.

I woke up last night thinking about Socrates… well, not exactly him, but the quote “An unexamined life is not worth living” — and it totally makes sense to me that for some people — single, fun, world-traveling, concert-going hipsters — that find themselves as parents later in life, there’s not really much of a road map. Our own parents were generally much younger when they went through this. And who’s to say if our key-party, drinking-during-pregnancy, plaid-wearing parents wouldn’t have been so publicly self-reflective if they had blog software at their disposal?!

All that being said, I better get back to adding the Eels to my birth mix on my itunes… last time the delivery nurses really liked my mix and I have a rep to uphold.

We recently met Jeff Zwelling, a new dad whose newborn son was in the hospital for several weeks of his first three months of life. He kept a blog documenting his experience at Stanford’s Lucille Packard Children’s Hospital. The Lesson’s About Pediatric Hospitals For Parents is one of the most valuable posts I’ve read in a long time.

Thanks for sharing your wisdom, Jeff.

Calling all active babies and the parents that love to photograph ‘em! Lands’ End is celebrating their newly launched Baby collection, with a Most Memorable Moments Baby Contest . This months theme, “On The Move!,” encourages parents to submit photographs of their babies on the go.

From their first time down a slide to playing in the snow, babies are active - just like parents. The winner, chosen by customer ratings, receives a $250 gift card and will be featured on the Lands’ End website.

Each month, the contest will feature a new theme, giving every baby a chance to win at landsend.com/baby.