PS Mommies Thread!

[TravelingGal]

lili, why would your cuz tell you to shave J''s head? Her hair is perfect already!!!

ella, keep us posted on which Britax you get...I''ll be getting mine in the fall sale, especially if Amelia keeps growing like a weed. And I totally agree about K...she looks like such a classy LADY - like she would never get into any mischief!

Tacori, DD nailed it...Tessa looks like she''s playing innocent, but something is going on in that little head of hers...she is plotting her next drama queen move. LOL.

Burk, love the paci! T''s cheeks are so adorable, they are edible!!! Thanks so much for that reflux info. That''s so awful that T has all of them.

DD, good luck on the natural birth! Not sure if you know, but I am definitely a fan of the idea. Of course, I have to say "idea" because as Jas mentioned, I got totally derailed in my efforts and it was OUT OF MY CONTROL. Therefore I highly recommend that you continue doing what you are doing: working out, researching positive stories through the Internet and through friends/fam, but also knowing that if things don''t go the way you want, that it''s OK. It''s BETTER than OK, in fact, the important thing is your baby makes it out safe and sound. Not sure if you read my birth story, but everything that could go wrong, did. What saved me was a happy attitude and knowing in the end that it''s my daughter''s well being that mattered. That way, it''s much easier to have no regrets and angst if something goes awry...you can focus forward on the care of your baby. I will probably never give birth vaginally now (my area hospitals won''t do a VBAC) and you know what? I am TOTALLY fine with that!!

Jas and MrsS, your boys are strong! Amelia rolled over a few weeks ago, but it was because she was WEAK and not strong. Her arm gave out and she tipped and fell over. Obviously it has not happened since!

 

[divergrrl]

Hi guys! I''m still in Cali, but now I''m in wine country (vs. if I were home it''d be whine country! LOL burk!) and I''m enjoying my leisurely days, but dang, I miss my bunnies! I''m ready to head home & wrestle my kids.


I had so much fun meeting Mara & had wayyyyyy to much to drink that night but it was fun. I don''t get to be footloose and fancy free that much but no kids + not driving = party!! LOL.

Ella: oh K is so pretty...and I''m sorry about your working woes. It really does not make sense to try and pay $ for day care to not come out ahead. If you just break even (factor in commute costs, clothing, lunch, etc.) then you are better off to stay at home. You might have to reassess your financial situation & start budgeting or downsizing to figure out how to make it work.

I''d suggest reading ANYTHING by Dave Ramsey, primarily Total Money Makeover. Tis my bible.

Daycare is expensive here. $1200 a month for one child, and about $2000 for 2. So $24k to $28k a year for a decent daycare center. And the childcare flex spending accounts through work only allow about 5k or 6k a year so its not that big of a discount (better than nothing though).

Here is a calculator that might help you see what your second income would really do. I bet you''d be better off staying home & this might help your dh realize it.

http://mymomstaysathome.blogspot.com/2008/01/stay-at-home-moms-vs-working-moms.html

I made enough in my former life to warrant going back to work, but still...the amount we''d net isn''t that big of a deal like it was before kids. Daycare is EVIL to the pocketbook. So expensive. But, they are caring for our children, so its a worthwhile expense!

Money sucks. Try doing www.thegrocerygame.com to cut your costs. I slashed my grocery bill in half, but i''m religious with it. I went from $800 a month (dipes, formula, dog & cat food, wine, beer, AND all food, toiletries, cleaning supplies) to $400 a month. Its hard, but worth it, and really its only hard the 1st month. Hey, the way I looked at it, its money saved, money in the bank.

I also use Kirkland brand formula from Costco. D does just fine on it as did Jake. $19 for 2 cans! (vs. name brand at $25 a can). My diapers are cheapest from Costco...Huggies.

Burk: Can I take your pic with me to get my hair cut? I''m trying to grow my hair out, but its getting too long & kind of bugging me. I love the length you are at. Its still long but short enough to make styling easy.

I have hair like you & Tacori & Elailla....not curly, not straight, needs a flat iron, air dries FUN-KAYYYYY.

Tgal: I had so much fun meeting Mara...she was worth it! She had lots of nice things to say about you too. I have to admit, Amelia looks less Asian than Bobo''s son or Lili! All beautiful babies though. Your comment made me laugh. If you think the hair fallout is bad...wait till you get the "halo" and I ain''t talking rings sister....I''m talking FUZZ....Good god mine is 2 inches long and RIDICULOUS. I will try to get an amusing pic for you all.

well, I''m going to take my lazy rear down to the gym here at the hotel & do a little run on the treadmill. I''m reading ChiRunning right now & I dreamt about running all night long. LOL. Then I''m going to lounge poolside for a while & read the No Cry Potty training solution.

So mommy.

xoxox

be back after running/lounging!

 

[sasa]

Burk, Tayva is beautiful, look at the cheeks and her beautiful eyes

Tacori, ok, Tessa is just way to cute, look at her expression.

TGal, the collage just crack me up...too adorable...

lili, I agree with TGal, J already got full head of hair.

 

[divergrrl]

Oh wow. I just did that mommy calculator, and if I went back to work, I''d increase my household income by $3500 a YEAR. And that was if I went back at a lesser position (but still good paying) because I don''t think I could handle the stress of my old job, but could take one step down (marketing communications/sales support).

Umm, that''s a net monthly increase of $291. To work 40 hours a week making 55k a year. To commute. To have to get dressed, rushed, and cram a weeks worth of household chores into one weekend. Forget that noise.

I can teach fitness classes (I get paid $30 to $40 a class depending on the club) and I only teach right by my house (no gas issues) and the gyms provide free daycare for instructors. So even at 3 classes a week, that''s $90 a week on the low end..or $360 a month before taxes. For 3 hours of work a week. (the commute is only 5 to 10 minutes top, and I show up early to lift beforehand & get some free time). I mean, shoot, if you are going to be in the gym anyway, why not kill 2 birds with one stone?

So if any of you like to exercise and are comfortable in front of people...teach fitness classes. New instructors make $17 to $23 an hour but larger clubs pay more once you are certified. (ACE only costs $200 to become certified...textbooks are $70. AFAA is good if you want to learn how to teach)

What an eye opener. I thought I made enough to make it worth my while. I guess not.

 

[mrssalvo]

Date: 7/2/2008 3:38:02 PM
Author: divergrrl

I''d suggest reading ANYTHING by Dave Ramsey, primarily Total Money Makeover. Tis my bible.

I don''t know why I didn''t think to suggest Dave Ramsey too. Hubby and I started doing his old fashioned money managing a few years ago and it was lifechanging for us. He''s got a worksheet for mom''s to fill out using their income and then listing expenses including childcare. It really helps to see how much you really are making after you add in food, gas, work clothes. etc. plus, if you want to stay home I''m all for doing whatever it takes to make that happen. I''m a huge coupon cutter, costco shopper too. our motto...it''s not how much you make, but how much you keep.



diver-so glad you got to meet up with mara..i would love to meet all you west coast gals sometime too. oh and I''ve got the hair loss and the fuzz going on

my hair is naturally wavy and I usually air dry with success but right now the fuzz is just out of control. wearing my hair up (which is most days) makes it even worse. total katie holmes action going on. i''m hoping some type of cut and new product will help...

 

[Jas12]

Tgal--LUV, LUV, LUV the collage, are they the cutes babies or what?!!--i want to print it and post it on my fridge to make me smile

Question for you: what do you do in Stroller Strides? We don''t have anything like that in the area and i was wondering how popular/enjoyable it is (maybe a business opportunity in this neck of the woods?) I have my personal training/aerobics instructor cert which is going to waste, teaching this kind of class seems like a lot more fun!

 

[Burk]

Oh the brown onsie club is so cute. I think T is jealous! I may have to pull hers out of storage and put it on without buttoning and take a pic. Don''t want her to feel left out!

Thanks Tacori, dreamer, Jas12,Skippy, Bobo and Tgal for your Tayva compliments! She sure does have kissable cheeks! Funny thing is, she''s had them since birth..and she was soo skinny with this tiny little head and those cheeks!

Diver~Of course you can take the pic. I really like the length. I can ponytail it for working out but it''s short enough that it''s easy to style. So glad you''re having a good trip. Sounds like a blast!

Well, Miss T is finally down for a nap longer than 20 minutes. She has been striking naps the past couple days. Don''t know what her deal is. Need to go clean since she''s down.

 

[snlee]

Date: 7/2/2008 2:48:19 PM
Author: TravelingGal

Date: 7/2/2008 1:43:18 PM
Author: Jas12

Someone must make a collage of all the brown onesies--Tacori, luv tessa''s contribution.

SOLD! Did a quick one. Couldn''t resist. More later after I have my lunch!

How cute! I love it!

Love all of the baby pictures! They are all adorable!

 

[mrssalvo]

oh goodness..i missed the last few posts on page 13....

tgal- LOVE the brown onsie club. it''s so cool to all the little ladies in one pic..

burk- def. get yours out so Tayva can get in the club too...I love her new paci..she''s a cutie...

 

[lili]

Oh goodness, the new pictures are soooo cute

Burk, J wants to join the brown onesie club too.
I may just let her swim in hers then

 

[TravelingGal]

Date: 7/2/2008 4:45:11 PM
Author: Jas12
Tgal--LUV, LUV, LUV the collage, are they the cutes babies or what?!!--i want to print it and post it on my fridge to make me smile

Question for you: what do you do in Stroller Strides? We don''t have anything like that in the area and i was wondering how popular/enjoyable it is (maybe a business opportunity in this neck of the woods?) I have my personal training/aerobics instructor cert which is going to waste, teaching this kind of class seems like a lot more fun!

Jas, funny you should ask this. I just met the gal who runs the SS for my area. She said she had taken classes in another area and found out they didn''t have one here and opened up the franchise. I don''t know how she did it, but I guess it is something you can look into?

In our class, we do a lot of walking and because there are a ton of stairs, we do a lot of climbing too. It''s not much different from a regular workout. They have rubber legs to do arm workouts and legs. We do 10 minutes of abs at the end on mats. The instructor is there often just to watch our babies as we climb stairs or what not. I would think that other locations would be a bit different.

You should check it out!

 

[divergrrl]

Testing if I can upload photos with my new mac without goofing it up!

 

[divergrrl]

hooohoo! Ok, since she''s always smiling like a hyena, here is my serious girl....

 

[Gemma12]

TGal, this is really late but I just wanted to say I''m so sorry for your loss. I''m glad he got to meet Amelia.

The new photos of the babies are just lovely. I miss seeing these on the Preggo thread so have to lurk here to get a fix!

 

[lili]

Burk
Poor Tayva, hope she outgrows the reflux soon.
At least she''s thriving in both the height and weight.

Anyway, I give anything to have a little more hair.
The hair fairy must of skipped me when I was preggo, because my hair was still falling out as pre-preggo.
So there wasn''t much to begin with for PP.
Thin hair may be easier, but it makes every strand so precious.
I cringed every time J pulled at them

 

[lili]

Burk, Tacori, Ella, Diver
J and I are so jealous of your girls'' big gorgeous eyes and lashes!

Burk--
I could just pinch those chubby cheeks on Tayva

Ella--
lil MsK is such -- a little young lady.

Tacori--
that brownie shot of T just made me smile.
she''s got the cutest expresssion.

Diver--
You can still see that smile is about to break loose in that serious face

 

[lili]

Can J be a brownie girl as well?

 

[TravelingGal]

Date: 7/3/2008 1:10:43 AM
Author: lili
Can J be a brownie girl as well?

LOL! How cute!!!! I will work on another (new and improved) collage tomorrow.

Burk, if you want to get a pic of T before then, post it and I will throw in all the brownie girls in!!!

ETA, I find it hilarious that the girls all have the same onesie. Does carters not have a big selection or something?

 

[TravelingGal]

Date: 7/3/2008 12:12:24 AM
Author: Gemma12
TGal, this is really late but I just wanted to say I''m so sorry for your loss. I''m glad he got to meet Amelia.

Thank you Gemma. Your sentiments are much appreciated.

 

[msb700]

its been crazy busy at work AND at home so havent had much time to post, but i just had to come in and say i LLLOOOOVEEE the brown collage!! oh so cuteeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee.....i dont remember who said this, but it would be so neat if all u guys printed this out and put up on ur fridge....i would do it too, but im worried ppl will thank im wacko putting up pictures of kids whose mothers i have never met..hahahah


lili: oh my god! J's hair!!! L O V E it..please please please dont do anything to it!

Driver: as usual, those pics of D are just adorable

Burk: ahhh!!!! T's such a cutie!!! just wanna pinch her cheeks..and those eyes!!

 

[ellaila]

Oh. My. God. Lili, I seriously love your little girl!!! I think I''d have a permanent smile on my face if I were looking at her all day long. She is just too much cuteness!!

TGal, you rock! That brownie collage is awesome! We must add J to it and Tayva too! Oh and Burk, those photos of Tayva with the paci and bumbo ...

Diver and MrsS, thanks for the info on Dave Ramsey - I requested it at my library. I also checked out the Grocery Game and will do that four-week trial. So do you do it for just one store, Diver? And of course, Delaney is gorgeous as ever!

Jas, I went to two SS classes and they were totally different based on the location (same instructor). I didn''t get to go to any outdoor classes (stupid spring weather!) so the rain locations were inside a mall and inside a gym. The mall one was basically powerwalking around the mall and stopping every few minutes to do exercises with resistance bands. It hurt. But it was nothing compared to the second class in the gym!!! That one was just in a small room, and we had to run laps in it, and each corner had a different exercise station so after each set of laps, you''d go to a different station and do that workout. It was a killer!!! You should totally look into doing it!

OK, so even though my babies are just perfect like 99% of the time

they''re doing this thing now where they''re waking up earlier and earlier every day. Used to be like 6:30-7, then 6, then in the 5:00 hour, and now the darlings are waking up at like 4:30. Ummmmm. Gabe will fall back asleep if I put him in the swing but K is wide awake and "singing" until I feed her. So my initial thought is growth spurt -- did you guys (Tacori, Diver, Curly, msb, etc. - those of you with kids young enough to remember this age!) go through this at ~7 months?

By the way, we recently had a Hanna Andersson store open near us, and their clothes are SO cute!!! You should check them out! K has this little dress, and G has this http://www.hannaandersson.com/style.asp?from=SC|8|1|156|5|5||&simg=18894_E58romper (I was afraid it may look silly on him b/c he''s such a manly man, but it''s totally adorable).

OH, and also I got my hair cut yesterday - I''m SO glad I did! It''s cute

A little poofy/sticking up right now b/c I slept on it (I sort of feel like Jadelyn

, but in general I''m really happy with it, and I think I''ll like it even more in a week or two.

 

[Burk]

T wants to join the club!!! She''s "yelling" at her jumperoo so it''s time for a nap. BBL to respond to the other posts!

 

[ellaila]

Awww, I think we''ve all proven that little girls don''t need to live in pink to look adorable and girly!! (Though, truth be told, K does have a lot of pink stuff but most of it is hand-me-downs so it''s not all my fault!)

(BTW, I meant boppy not bumbo when talking about Tayva''s other pics -- I love that boppy cover, it''s so cute!)

 

[curlygirl]

Quick drive by while I try to get my blood pressure down! Everyone looks so cute in their brown onesies!! I don''t have that one for Lily but I have it for the new baby so when she arrives, she''s going to have to join the group!!!!

Hope everyone is doing well. We''re going to my parents'' house for the long weekend so I won''t be around much but I''ll be back with Lily updates soon!

 

[Burk]

mrss~Thanks! I had to get it out and do it....it wasn''t as small as I thought it would be!

lili~J puts a smile on my face. I just cannot get over her hair! So cute. I''d be more than happy to give you some of my hair!

My stylist has to thin it out like crazy so I don''t look like a big poof ball!

diver~Delaney just gets cuter and cuter in her old age!

msb~Thanks! DH and I both have blue eyes so we knew hers would probably be blue, but hers are way darker than either of ours. It''ll be interesting to see if they change.

Ella~Thanks! The boppy cover wasn''t even registered for...my aunt picked it out!

I thought she did good. You must post pics of your new hair cut!! I''m so glad you love it. I felt like a new mommy when I cut mine off!

Interesting mommy story: my husband was out of town on business and he flew home yesterday. I guess when he boarded the plane his seat was next to a woman with two kids. When he sat down the woman said "oh, I was kind of hoping to sit next to a grandma, not a supermodel, so I can breastfeed." Hubby, kind of taken aback says "I have a 5 mo-old daughter and my wife breastfed. No big deal." Well, the lady gets a flight attendant and pretty much asks for my husbands seat to be moved!! So, he moved to the row ahead of them and a "grandma" moved next to the lady with the kids. To top it all of, the older kid kicked hubbies seat the entire trip.

Kinda weird?!?!

 

[Jas12]

Burk--wacky story--. I guess some women just feel more comfortable BFing around other women (if they are strangers) but still, your husband obviously was kind and supportive. I guess he is just so handsome she felt embarassed or something

Diver--sounds like you are having a blast in Cali. I need one of those weekends. When i tell friends about my sleeping issues and explain that i often have a 1/2 glass of wine before bed i get a lof ot ''heck, forget the 1/2 glass, you need a whole bottle"! have a drink,or two or three for me

Thanks for that book/website suggestions for ella. i am bad with the bucks (but getting better) and i need to read something! I am sure a few of us could benefit from some advice.

tgal--you have some new recruits in the brown-onsie club! Cohen wishes he could join, but he''ll admire the beauties in their matching get-ups! Maybe the boys on here own something mathcing?
I ordered some franchise info for SS. I don''t know if it is feasible in a small city, but i am going to look into it. We have a beautiful water front bike path in the city that would be perfect for that type of class.

Re" hair loss--no signs of it happening to me (so far) when am I in the clear? If i escape stretch marks and hair loss i''ll be very pleased (however i would trade them in for consistent sleep in a heart-beat!!)
Speaking of sleep, Co has been all over the map the past few days. Last night he was up at 1:30, 2:30, 5:30 an d 7:30--i only fed him at 2;30 and 5:30 (usual times) i don''t know what was up with the other wake-ups? He wasn''t crying, just fussing a bit and very awake, i re-swaddled and stroked his head and he eventually went back to sleep

 

[Allison D.]

Date: 6/28/2008 3:44:00 PM
Author: TravelingGal

Alj, thanks for the camera tips! I have changed the ISO to high, but it''s so grainy. I''ll try the other tips you posted, which are new to me.

TGal, I agree on the grainy - I''m in the midst of considering a software download called Neat Image that helps to reduce ''noise'' caused by high ISOs in digital cameras.

Another thing I forgot to mention if you prefer (as I do) the lower ISO settings---try bumping up the exposure value.

Set the camera to the Manual Setting (it''s the camera+m symbol); then press the Function/Set button. When the left-hand features bar displays, move it down to the +/- 0. A scale will display along the bottom; you''ll see the camera defaults to 0 in the middle. You can adjust this, moving toward the plus side of the 0 to increase exposure.

This will help the end photo appear lighter and capture what you''re trying to capture in lower light settings without having to change the ISO. When you press the shutter halfway down, the LCD will show what the image will look like after the exposure value adjustment. From there, you can move it up or down to obtain the desired result.

Let me know how this works for you.

 

[msb700]

Date: 7/3/2008 8:29:48 AM
Author: ellaila



OK, so even though my babies are just perfect like 99% of the time

they''re doing this thing now where they''re waking up earlier and earlier every day. Used to be like 6:30-7, then 6, then in the 5:00 hour, and now the darlings are waking up at like 4:30. Ummmmm. Gabe will fall back asleep if I put him in the swing but K is wide awake and ''singing'' until I feed her. So my initial thought is growth spurt -- did you guys (Tacori, Diver, Curly, msb, etc. - those of you with kids young enough to remember this age!) go through this at ~7 months?

Hi Ella: my son''s sleeping habits DID change around that time frame, but it wasn''t due to a growth spurt..mine was more due to various ''milestones''..he started crawling around that time and he started to wake up earlier and earlier (and going to sleep was harder too) coz he just wanted to practice his ''new found'' talent..on top of that, teething started big time around that time frame too and was another factor in the early wake ups...not sure if i was of any help...

(i wouldn''t discount the growth spurt though...do try to give them ''water'' when they wake up and see if they gulp it all down or not...i am not sure if u had dropped the nite time feedings, but i stopped feeding K his nite time feed at 4 months and dropped his 1030 pm feed around 6/7 months..)

 

[TravelingGal]

ok gals, here it is...version 2.0....

 

[Skippy123]

LOVE IT TGal!!!!