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Thank you for all your support!

What NOT to buy for baby showers...

Baby showers bring baby flowers...{well, not always!}...

Before my daughter was born, I had two baby showers and I got TONS of newborn gifts. But have you noticed, that friends and family tend to get you all the cute dresses, coordinating fluffy (uncomfortable) outfits, that can't possibly comfortable on your babies super soft, and delicate skin?

And if you are having a newborn boy...pull over now, because you better watch out for all the button down shirts (with a thousand buttons) and outfits with boats, ducks, and trucks. And jean shorts for infants? Let's ignore the fact that we were supposed to leave jean shorts back in the 80's, and be honest with ourselves, they were not comfortable for our us in the 80's, so they are probably still not comfortable for our babies.

Okay, I admit it, I was THAT gift buyer before I had my daughter, I bought the cutest outfits I could find in the stores, so I could get all the ooo's and ahhh' when my friends opened them. Yes, trying to get the best and cutest gift was me! :) Well, have a child and you will know, that is not what moms need the first months of your newborn life, or possibly EVER!

So listen up...here is what moms DO NOT want as gifts, (my opinion of course):

1.) Newborn or 0-3 clothing especially cute, fancy dressy outfits. Most newborns grow into 6 mo clothing a few weeks after they are born. Or if you have a chunky-monkey little girl like I did, she skipped newborn and wore 6 mo clothing when she got home from the hospital.

2.) NO BUTTONS -Do you really think we can button up 15 of the tiniest buttons made on earth, with spit up on our shirts, breast milk dripping down our stomachs, sup hose so tight we can't bend over, while wearing some kind of white mesh hospital briefs (supposed to be underwear), being under the influence of heavy pain medications, dealing with our skin glued and sutured together, all the while putting ice on our laps? NO, sorry, we cannot! You might ask, what about the cute little snap buttons on the cute little onsies?NOPE...don't buy them, please!

3.) Scratch mittens, or cute little gloves - No...we don't need those either. I know, I know, you might be saying, "but newborns are born with eye-ball scratchers", but chances are, if we find we need them, we will only need a pair or two, and we will try them a couple of times, but quickly will find out that our babies don't like them at all, and news alert...they do not stay on!

4.) Breast milk alcohol testers? - Seriously? Okay, I fell "virgin mom" on this one, because I admit it, I did buy these gifts for fun, for one my friends baby showers. If you haven't heard, these are little test strips (very similar to the test strips you use to test the chlorine in your pools), that you can use to test your breast milk to see if you are going to make your baby drunk or not. The concept is good, I get it...but we know very well, if we drink more than one glass of wine per hour, we have to "pump and dump", and trust me, we may do this ONCE..but most of us know that when we watch liquid gold  going down the drain, we learn our lesson, and stick to the sober mom rules (as much as we can).

5.) Baby books - Let me ask you this...Do you want to exploit your friends' fears of sudden infant-death syndrome, or SIDS? Or how about confusing them on if they should cry it out, or soothe their newborn. And I love that I had to make decisions on "organic" or regular jarred baby food, while my daughter was in utero. And let me not get started on "to vaccinate or not"? I am absolutely not saying that these books are not important...because I was a SIDS scared mom, and I too read all the books out there. I had no blankets, no pillows, one monitor that detected movement, and another monitor to watch my daughter on a video.  Also, trust me, preggo ladies have had plenty of time to read up on delivery, newborn, and all the new mom books during the last couple months leading up to having baby. What else are we going to do in the middle of the night. We spend hours at night, grabbing handfuls of Tums trying to stop the fire in our esophagus', while having severe insomnia, so we have nothing else to do at 2am but ready the baby books. On occasion, we are able to doze off at night, but that is short-lived because of the need to get up to pee.... So yes, these books are great to give to a friend, BUT I ask you this, do I think we need to step in and give this "New Mommy" lessons at a baby shower? Probably not, if you want to share a book, or a mom lesson learned, perhaps those are best to be had on an intimate conversation between mothers. And lets stay away from dumping these stories, and lessons at our showers..

6.) And finally...PLEASE buy something from our registry!!!!! PLEASE! We didn't spend hours and hours in the baby store with our friendly laser gun, zapping things like "breast pads" or "breast milk storage containers", just because we happened to be so fat, swollen, tired, and crippled by heartburn pain we thought shopping for nipple shields would be fun! That is a big fat NO. We hated it! I remember walking in my first baby store, armed with the gun (laser), and walking around in a complete daze at the items that I was told I had to have before my baby was born. I mean, seriously...nipple cream? as if my nipples weren't already 'large and in-charge', now I am going to have bite marks, and they are going to be so raw, I am going to need nipple cream? Do I have to say anymore? So please, if we put nipple cream (or similar) on a registry, will you please just shut up and buy it for us? :) Thank you.

One last note to make: Let me talk about the popular discussion point that shows its ugly head at every baby shower! (at least ones I've been at, and perhaps me as "virgin mom" even asked this a few times):
PLEASE friends and family, let's not ask our mommy-to-be how they plan to give birth to their new bundle of joy. I mean seriously! Do we new mommies actually know what the hell we are about to go through? Do we even know how we are going to deal with the delivery? Do we even know if our baby will cooperate? NOOOOOOOOOO! (Again, I as "virgin mom" fell victim this fun question to ask my friends). I was even asked this question at my showers. I answered so confidently... and with a huge smile on my face..."I plan to give natural birth a try, but open to drugs". Well little did I know what my body was about to endure...and for any of you who have never had a baby, OR for any of you that had the stars align just perfectly, and walked your cute ass (probably skinny and hair/makeup done) into the hospital, said to the doctor, "I think I am in labor", and one hour later, your baby was in your arms with a halo around her/his head....for you lucky moms....guess what? That doesn't happen for the rest of us!

And for some of us, you push for hours and hours, see the baby almost bless us with her presence, but then end up heading into an emergency c-section, and then having severe medical complications afterwards. Okay, maybe I am a little jealous of those moms, and bless them, but fact is, we do not know what our bodies are going to do in the middle of giving birth, so having a birth plan is great, but ladies..and our "virgin mom" friends...please...let's give way to a strict plan, because face it...our baby is in charge, we are NOT. So let's not ask these lovely questions on how we plan to give birth...just wish us the best! :) thank you

Just some friendly advice from one mother to another...and to our friends..

|| Your Desert Momma ||

Must have fashion fix for your jeans!

Jean MUST HAVES for every girls wardrobe! Love them...

I am short, so anyone who is short like me, knows that you have a love/hate relationship with the length in your jeans. Most of the time I will wear tall heels when I wear my jeans out, but every once in a while, I would like to throw on a pair of flip-flops on, but I can't because my jeans would drag on the ground and get frayed. So I have jeans that I wear with heels, and jeans I wear with flip-flops or flats. Well, how great are these fashion finds...

They are called Hem Gems, and they come in 4 different gems.
All you do is fold, clutch, tuck and fasten your gems to the bottom of your jeans, and there you go,  you have the perfect tailored jeans.

Hurry up ladies, grab yourself some Hem Gems...fall is around the corner...time to get ready for "jean season".

Photo: from Hem Gems


|| Your Desert Momma ||

Fun Scottsdale Toddler Classes - some of our fav's...



It's back to school time for our little ones in school.

But what about all the toddlers out there?

Fall classes for the little ones are starting up soon too.

Hurry, register for some fun classes for you and the little ones.



Waterbeads - great sensory activity for our tots! {Pinterest}



  

Scottsdale Parks and Recs



One of my favorite resources for some great classes in Scottsdale,

is through the Scottsdale Parks and Recreation.

You do not even need to be a Scottsdale resident to register.



Where to register and look up classes?:

Go to the Scottsdale Parks and Rec's main website: click here

Then you can start browsing through the activities they offer. Classes are very reasonable $45 and up for several weeks of fun!

Here are some of the classes that we have tried and loved:

Gym-Mania - 6 week class/1 hr/wk 

Moovin and Groovin - 18mo-35mo

Twoosy Doodler (Abrakadoodle) - art class for toddlers...love it.

Some other popular classes they offer include Messy Art for tots, Sportball Jr. for tots, and lots more.

No Account?Call (480)312-7957 Mon-Fri 8am-5pm to get one or email lhildenbrand@scottsdaleaz.gov with your name, address and phone. Please include immediate family members who live at your address and their birthdates if they are under 18 that you plan to register for a program, now or in the future.



Painting a butterfly in Kindermusik!



What about a music class? We love Kindermusik!



There are classes all over the valley: go to their website here, and look up one close to you. You will love them, and so will your toddler!

Click here for a free trial class.

And...I have already mentioned how much I love our new ISR swim class..and I am going to mention it again. It is a must do class, for anyone who wants their child to learn how to respect and survive in the water. Infant Swim Self Rescue Website

Have a fun this fall in your classes!

|| Your Desert Momma ||

National Coffee Month





Pinterest



Did you know that August is National Coffee Month. Yes that is right, coffee month in the middle of hot, sweltering month of August. Do you see something wrong with this picture? Well, lets talk coffee and such then...

One of my new favorite apps these days is my Starbucks Card Mobile...

With Starbucks for iPhone, Starbucks Card Mobile for iPhone and BlackBerry, and Starbucks for Android™, you can check your balance, reload your card with any major credit, view your transactions and conveniently track your Stars is the My Starbucks Rewards program on your BlackBerry, Android and iPhone or iPod Touch! Just scan and go.

Starbucks Card Mobile for iPhone: Click here for App

Starbucks Card Mobile for BlackBerry: Click here for App

Starbucks Card Mobile for Android: Click here for App



And if you want to make some yummy Iced Blended Coffee drink....try this:



Pinterest



Make a batch of coffee, twice as strong as you like it, or cold brew some coffee till nice dark color.

 Pour coffee into ice cube trays and freeze.

Place frozen coffee ice cubes in your blender. Once frozen, add several cubes to blender, and add any flavored syrup, etc if you want. Add half and half (or milk), just to cover the cubes. Then just blend. Adjust the syrup and milk if needed to taste. Yum!

The coffee iced cubes are great, to add to any iced coffee recipe, especially when it's over 100 degrees out there, and the ice melts faster than you can drink it! Cheers!

|| Your Desert Momma ||

Summer is almost over...but drownings never end...

 Before my daughter was born, I was getting advice about what swim lessons I should start her in. Being in a town, where practically every backyard has a pool, swim lessons are a must for our kids.

Early this spring, I started her in toddler group swim classes and she was not a big fan. She cried every class for the entire thirty minutes, it was so sad, and I wasn't convinced she was really learning how to cope and respect the water.

Over the summer, it was very scary for her to be around water. She would always jump in the pool and if I wasn't there, she would sink right down to the bottom. She was not afraid of the water at all, and that was scary for me. I decided to take my friends advice, and signed her up for the ISR-Infant Swim Self Rescue classes. That has been the BEST thing I have ever done, EVER! The best money we have spent on her to date. She is on her second week of lessons, she can know jump off the edge, and swim to steps, all by herself. It's so crazy. I recommend this class to anyone who has children. The class is ten minutes per day, everyday for 6-8 weeks. Our instructor comes to our house, it's very easy and we love it.

Here is a video of her just at two weeks into the six week class. AMAZING.

|| Your Desert Momma ||

A big thank you to my dear friends Carrie and Meredith for pushing me to do this class. Thank you.

Caterpillars...Butterflies...sent from above!



Butterfly coloring page

This is a really fun project to do with your little one to get us through these last few weeks of summer. Witness the wonder of the butterfly life-cycle. It is so much fun to have your little one, watch the caterpillars transition as it grows, changes into a chrysalis, and finally emerges into a beautiful butterfly. It usually takes about 3 weeks to become a butterfly, and you store inside and the release butterfly outside.

To get started:



1. You will need, your larvae, and a mason jar.
2. You can have your little one decorate the mason jar while you wait for the little insect to come.
3. For the lid, you can use a very breathable fabric to allow circulation.

**Order your little future butterfly at Insect Lore: Click on Insect Lore.

Here is also a great video on this experience you can share with your little one:

Caterpillar to Butterfly

Here are some pics from our experience.



Caterpillar in her cocoon.



It hatched!





Hatched, but hasn't opened her wings yet!





Finally...a Beautiful Butterfly!



 

So much fun, we are thinking about doing it again! Hope you are having a great summer.

| Your Desert Momma |

On a personal note: My daughter recently brought her little larvae home from class this summer. We had so much fun checking on it everyday. We stored it in our laundry cabinet, and everyday she would go, "Moma...buga" and go to the laundry to see how the caterpillar changed. Then on June 26th my grandmother suffered a severe stroke, and was unresponsive in the hospital. My family and I, hopped on a plane to be by her side as she prepare to rest in peace. On June 30th, my grandmother became our angel from above and went to heaven. On that same day, my daughter's butterfly hatched at our home. I believe in my heart that my daughter's "GG" to come and say "hello" to her in the way of the butterfly. So now, every time my daughter and I see a butterfly, I know and say, that "GG's" with us.

If you would like to read more on how butterflies connected to my family, during death...you can visit my personal blog http://toggwithlove.wordpress.com/2011/06/30/butterfly/

This was dedicated to my Grandmother and GG, Melba. We will always love you.



Quick break -

I wanted to send a quick note, to let all you loyal fans and family out there..that I have not gone away, rather, I have had a death in the family...and I am planning to start this blog back stronger than ever, in the near future. Recent events, may have shaken me a bit, but will never waiver in my passion. And that passion is what I am doing with you all. I will be talking to you all soon. Keep positive! And to put a quote in for my late Grandmother..."if I could make up a holiday, I would make up a, "Mind your own business" day. :) It might not have anything to do with this blog..but love her quotes, so had to put it. :) Live your dream, forget the rest!
Thank you for all your support,
| Your Desert Child |

Fun 4th of July Jell-O treats!

Need something fun to bring to your 4th of July parties this weekend?

How about a Jell-O shot (or Jell-O snack for kiddos)?

There are several versions of this cute little treat, but here is what I came up with...

Watermelon Shooters

1 pckge of Watermelon Jello-O

1 Cup Boiling water

1 Cup Malibu Rum-Island Melon Liquor

Optional: 1 tsp Organic Blue Agave - (I used Strawberry)

Optional: Chia Seeds (I found mine at local Sprouts Farmers Market)

or you could use choc covered sunflower seeds, or basil seeds, even poppy seeds would work.

4-5 Limes -cut in half, pulp removed

Combine Jell-O mix with boiling water until powder is dissolved. 

Add cold Rum (preferably cold). Add Agave nectar.

Align the lime "cups" close together in a shallow pan, so all the limes hold each other up. Slowly spoon the Jello-O mixture into the cups. (If a little goes into pan, it's okay). Freeze for up to two hours or refrigerate for 4+ hours. Once Jello-O is set, cut the lime halves into quarters. I found it best to do this Jello-O side down, using a serrated knife to cut through the lime. Once all Jello-O limes are quartered, then lightly sprinkle black seeds to make the image of watermelon seeds. Enjoy!

If you would like to make virgin shooters....



Jello Shooters- Fun

Follow instructions on Jell-O package, but pour in hollowed out orange or lemon rinds. Cute! 

Happy "Shooting"!



| Your Desert Momma |

Celebrity Baby Nurseries - Adore!

For the love of baby nurseries...celebrity



Dr. Phil's



Mariah Carey's



 



Neil Patrick Harris



Tiffany Thiessen

And a couple more ideas not from celebrities...but so cute!

Love the princess crowns above the beds!

and nothing better than a white nursery, so fresh and innocent.



Serena and Lilly - Zodiac Art



| Your Desert Momma |

Kids Fourth of July Clothing - Red, White and Cute!

We are one week away from the 4th of July! Time to make sure we are dressed for the occasion!
Well, at least our little ones can be! Here are some of the cutest little RED, WHITE, and BLUE outfits to dress your little patriotic one! Happy Shopping!

GIRLS:

Love u Lots



Out in the desert, we tend to find ourselves in the pools or going to the beach for the 4th, so of course cute swimwear is a must.

I found this cute swimsuit at UrbanKidz

Adorable!



Etsy -WhatKidsLike

Kate Mack - My fav!

 



Blue Stripe Love - Etsy



Etsy-Graceisenough





Etsy-SweetSassyBoutique



BOYS:



Etsy -ChicCoutureBoutique





GapSwimwear



KidsWearhouse

And don't forget about your furry kids:



Etsy

| Your Desert Momma |

Yummy Creamed Corn!

I thought I would share one of my favorite recipes of all times...old fashion creamed corn.

The truth is, we don't eat a lot of canned food. Nothing personal, we just prefer to make things fresh, if we can find the time. 

So, we were craving sweet creamed corn, after all, the corn is in season, and on sale in all the markets right now. I have made this several times now, and I think I got it were I want it. This is a great veggie side for the kiddos, too!

Old Fashion Creamed Corn

8-10 fresh corn cobs
3 tb butter
1 cup diced yellow onion
1/4 C yellow Corn Meal
1 cup cream
1/4 C organic sugar

Peal the husks and remove all strings from the cobs of corn. Then with your knife, run down each cob, removing all the kernels. Then take the back side of the knife and run down each cob, to get as much pulp and juice from the remainder of the cob.
Heat butter and diced onions on medium, till the onions start to sweat (not brown). Add corn and pulp to butter mixture and stir occasionally till the corn gets soft and butter is absorbed. About 5-6 min. Add corn meal, and mix in well for about 2 min. Add cream, and stir well, reduce temperature to low. Add sugar and mix well. Optional - salt/pepper to taste.

This recipe is great for kiddos. But for adults, you can add a sprig of rosemary when you add in the corn, then remove the sprig before serving, and you will have a very yummy rosemary creamed corn. YUM.

Hope you enjoy all your summer picnics and BBQ's.

| Your Desert Momma |

Doorbells and iPhones - Must have items if you have a toddler in your house!

"These are a few of our favorite things...."




Would you want to wake this baby up?



Let's visit this all too familiar scenario...

6am -You wake up at the crack of dawn to your lovely child wide eyes, ready to go.

7am-changed 3 more diapers
8am - fed you kiddos breakfast
8:15am- dodged flying cereal across room.
8:45am- cleaned cereal out of your babies hair
9am-11am - lots of playing, lots more diapers
11:30am - Baby FINALLY goes down for nap - whew!
11:45am- "DING, DONG" - yep...the Postal carrier rings the door bell for a delivery.
11:55am-baby is up crying...repeat 7am-11am again.





Doorbell Guard FACEBOOK



Here is your solution. I love this item and it's one of the things I ask myself, "Why didn't I think of this?". Well, at this point, all that matters, is that someone DID invent this, and here is how you can get your own!







Click on their facebook page, with options to buy!
http://www.facebook.com/doorbellguard

Do you have an iPhone, iPad or iPod touch? AND a toddler?

Here is another favorite thing. Some of you might already read me raving about these on the Desert Child Facebook page, but I thought of them yesterday, and thought I would share again.

Yesterday, I went to the local market with my daughter, and she was insisting on playing with my iPhone. After she accidentally called a couple work colleagues, I pulled out one of my Bubcaps I stashed in the diaper bag, put the cap on the home button, and then phone back to her. ...30 sec later, she gave up on the phone and gave back to me. Yay...it worked! These are a must on my list.

*I purchased mine at Amazon: click here to buy Bubcaps or you could visit the website http://www.bubcap.com/

Hope these fun things make it to your home.

| Your Desert Momma |

 

Daddy, you will always be my king! Happy Father's Day 2011

I love the idea of having the kids wake up early to make breakfast in bed for Daddy on Father's Day.
And you can't go wrong with a BBQ in the backyard!
But this year I was feeling inspired to start something new for Father's Day!

My inspiration, once again, is my daughter and she has a plaque on her wall, it reads,

 That about sums it up for me this holiday weekend!

Daddy and me

One of the things I love most about being a mother, is the new and old traditions we get to embrace in our family. I believe traditions can be the backbone and structure to a family unit, and can stay with a family for years. For this Father's Day, I wanted to make it a special day for my husband and daughter, so I started looking into new traditions to adopt. Here are some traditions that I believe, can create some special memories this Father's Day.

Father's Day Traditions that might inspire you:

Memory Book
How about making a memory photo scrap book, just for Dad? Gather all those great photos of him holding his son/daughter for the first time, or the first time they went into the ocean together, or any other great "daddy and me" pictures. You can make the memory book a "Daddy and Me" book, and keep adding pics every year for Father's Day. This way your Dad can always go to the book and cherish those Dad moments all year long.

Father's Day Annual Photo Shot (this is the one I am starting this year!~ )

Father's Day 2011

I sat down with my daughter, and we colored a Happy Father's Day sign. She had fun putting stickers all over it, and opening all the marker lids and closing them about a dozen times. ha! "Dada" and her climbed up in bed, and held the sign for me, and I took their picture. I bought a little black leather photo book, and the plan is to do this every year and add the pictures to the book. This way we can see how much the kids grow, (and we age) every year. This would be a great gift to give to your child, when they graduate and move to college. sniff, sniff.


King Dad
(just like the quote above) - have the kids make items that represent what a king is to them, and present them to him in the morning so he can wear them all day long. A king sticker/button, a king crown, dress up an old blazer with king-like embellishments...kids will have fun doing the crafts, and you can get good photos, too!

 Dr. Daddy Seuss
"One fish, two fish, red fish, blue fish" - Dr. Suess
Yep, that's right, what kid doesn't love story time, and what better than having Daddy cuddling up on the floor to read a new book. Have the kids go pick out their very own, brand new book, but they are not allowed to read it, but instead write a quick note inside the book, wrap it up, and give it to him in the morning. Then when Dad opens up his new books with the kids, they all can enjoy some "daddy and me" time all day long.

These are just a few fun Father's Day traditions that might inspire you.
Do you have any traditions you would like to share..love to hear them!

| Your Desert Momma |

Father's Day 2011 - ideas for celebrating

Some ideas for Father's Day...

How about making Daddy some homemade pottery?

 I love the places like As You Wish,

where the little ones can make their own creations.

They can pick out their paint colors... 

 and pick out their own pottery...

and paint their little hearts out

You can never go wrong with a homemade card to Daddy!

and don't forget breakfast in bed...

How about some yummy heart shaped pancakes to make for his Father's Day breakfast?

Or even just cut your bananas in little hearts...how cute is that?

Do you have any great Father's Day ideas you have to share!

Have fun with your Daddy's this weekend!

| Your Desert Momma |