Sleep deprivations saved by small miracles

Whenever I travel my son always has a hard time with his schedule. I didn’t experience this with my daughter Emma. She slept well no matter when, where, or what she was sleeping on. It was BLISS!! But not Henry, when we leave town he doesn’t sleep well at all. Which means no one in the room does either. Usually I am on the road with business so sleep deprivation can be critical. I am making decision that will affect us greatly.
At the ABC show Henry was 4 months old. My mom, dad and I went a few days early for meetings. By the time Shad got there I was a CRAZY woman, no sleep, emotional, not thinking clearly….You know you have all been there. Having Shad and Emma with me put me at ease but didn’t get me any more shut eye.
While at the market one day Shad brought a new swaddle blanket up to me, the Miracle Blanket. I had seen the booth year after year and honestly didn’t think we needed another blanket (not to mention it was pricy) Shad got a sample and said lets just try it tonight with Henry and see what happens. (He is good at getting samples)
As the saying goes seeing is believing and in this case sleeping is believing. Henry slept 5 hours the first night, 7 hours the second night and at least 9 hours every night after. (Unless we had an ear infection) It TRULY was a MIRACLE. In fact I carried the blanket with me every where. I hardly even washed it because I was so afraid I would need it for a nap.
Of course I went back and placed an order for all 3 stores and have since reordered and reordered.
This blanket is sanity. We are big believers in swaddling and had been swaddling Henry he was just to strong and could wiggle his way out. But not with this blanket, in fact I thought I was going to have to swaddle him until he was 18. I could just picture him coming in from a date and asking to be swaddled before bed. He did eventually out grow his need to be tightly wrapped but not until he was almost 7 months old. THANK GOODNESS FOR THE MIRACLE BLANKET!!!!

Check out this video on their website. You will see what I mean!!
http://www.miracleblanket.com/

Step One:Lay the blanket on a flat surface with the foot pouch at the bottom and lay baby between armflaps with tops of shoulders slightly above top of blanket.

Step Two:Fold the armflaps over the outside of your baby's arms and tuck them snugly under her back on each side. IMPORTANT: You should lift the baby's bottom to be sure the armflaps are flat and snug under baby's back.

Step Three:Pull the footpocket up over the feet. NOTE: Some babies' feet may not reach the foot pocket yet. This is okay: It will be there for them as they grow.

Step Four:Fold the right side of the blanket over your baby's belly and tuck it under the left arm pit (her right). This flap should wrap all the way under the baby's back.

Step Five:Wrap the left side of the blanket over the top of her belly and all the way around her until you run out of blanket. This is where it is important to pull the blanket snug. THE BLANKET MUST BE PULLED SNUG.
IMPORTANT: BE SURE THE TOP OF THE BLANKET IS SLIGHTLY BELOW THE TOPS OF THE SHOULDERS.

Important for newborns and smaller babies:After wrapping the arms (Step 2), fold the bottom of the foot pocket up so the feet touch the bottom of the wrap. This will create a more perfect, custom swaddle. Follow steps 4-5.
To further enhance effectiveness, try the following:
After wrapping your baby, cradle her on your forearm facing down or forward.
Gently rock or jiggle your baby while making long "Shushing" sounds in her ear.
If your baby likes a pacifier, definitely use it
Important Tips:
If your baby seems too warm, dress her in a diaper and The Amazing Miracle Blanket only.
The room temperature where your baby sleeps should be comfortable for a lightly dressed adult (67-72°F).
As your baby grows, the blanket may seem loose around her legs. This is perfectly okay. This will allow for proper movement and development of her hip and knee joints.
It is best to wrap your baby very snugly. It's normal for her to fuss when first wrapped - especially the first few times. But don't worry, after a week or two most babies begin to relax at the mere sight of the blanket.
Be sure that the blanket is NOT touching your baby's cheeks. This may trigger her "Rooting Response" and may wake her. If the blanket is touching her cheeks, you have wrapped her too low in the blanket. You must be sure the top of the blanket is slightly below the tops of her shoulders.
It is very important to tuck the arm flaps securely and flat under your baby's back as the flaps keep your baby from working her arms free and waking herself. This also keeps your baby's arms in the most effective position - at her sides.
Many babies prefer to have their feet free. In step two you may position your baby with her feet on top of the foot pouch to see if your baby prefers to be wrapped this way.

Put some Windex/Honey Guy on it!

Have you ever seen the movie my Big Fat Greek Wedding? (the clip is 9min 22 second in) There is the part where the dad says put some Windex on it. TOO FUNNY!!! Well, in my family we say put some honey guy on it. Honey Guy or Water Blocker as it is now called has been around for a long time. This cream is a miracle cream it cures everything.

Waterblocker is a hand-made, waterproof, natural beeswax skin cream for the whole body. It stops dry, cracked hands by protecting the natural oil in the skin from being removed by constant washing or by other antagonists such as paper, cardboard and fabrics. Great for rough, cracked heals, runners use to prevent blistering and hot spots. Use on face as a moisturizer and to preserve the natural oil in your face. Long lasting - one application lasts most users all day!! It is safe for children - use on diaper rash and to prevent rash from occurring. Use as safe, natural deodorant for underarm and feet. Bacteria that cause odor can't grow in beeswax!! It also stops itch, burn and sting. Use on insect bites, poison ivy, rashes, burns, etc. to stop the itch, burn and sting. Use on skin conditions that exhibit itch, burn or sting or are dry and scaly or red. Use on pet's hot spots to stop itching and scratching and promote rapid healing!! No scent, non-greasy, long lasting.

Yesterday my husband was complaining about some mosquito bites that he has. Actually they are really bad. I had to sneak into the babies room to get the Honey guy for him. Then this morning my daughter was putting on her shoes for school and noticed a red spot. Of course that then qualifies for an automatic booboo. "mom I need the Honey Guy and a bandaide"

Now the reason everyone calls for Honey Guy is no Coincidence. The stuff works. Fire ant bites don't hurt or itch, Mosquito bites finally get relieve and if you have a burn and you put the Honey Guy on right away it wont blister.

Burns are serious business. My sister and I both burned ourselves on the heating element in the oven and on our curling irons. I am not going to tell you that the Honey Guy kept it from hurting because for the first day it really hurt but the next day there were no blisters and just a mark left. No PAIN!

So get your self some Honey Guy/Water Blocker cream. You wont regret it.

One last note. It is great for curing those booboos you can't even see....At least Emma says it does.

Loads of Hope

This is such an easy way to help. If we all just did a little bit we could make a HUGE difference in the world. Loads of Hope doesn't cost you anything. Just buy the Tide with the yellow cap. Tide will do the rest. Make a difference and teach your children to do the same!

Innobaby Packin Smart

No more baggies and messy crumbs all in the bottom of my Diaper Bag. Now we have a solution that is perfect. Here is my sweet Henry with his Packin Smart by Innobaby. We just love this thing. It stays in my diaper bag all the time. There are 5 compartments to store snacks in and each one can be handed to the child individually. There is also a separate lid for each individual section that allows it to become a serving bowl that is spill "resistant"

So you can hand your baby one at a time and they can get the snacks out themselves. Henry is still a little to young to do this but Emma loves to use these for her snacks also. We call this our baby buffet. Each cup holds 1/3 cup of dry snacks.

Dish Washer SAFE....YIPEE!!!

There are also several colors to choose from: Pink, Blue, Red, Orange, White, Yellow, and Lime. You can buy a 5, 3, or 1 stack.

There is also a new product called a Stack and Seal. You can use this one for Veggies or Fruits. It will hold dry or liquid foods and can be heated up in the microwave.

One more great thing. When the kids are done you can store candy, spices, paperclips, office supplies, etc. I love a multipurpose product.

One for One

Yesterday Emma's school went Bare Foot all day

Here is the story from KFDX
Christ Academy Students Go Barefoot for a Good Cause Thursday, Apr 16, 2009 @05:13pm CST We've all heard of walking barefoot on the beach... But what about going barefoot at school? Students at Christ Academy spent the day without shoes. It's part of a national movement called "One Day Without Shoes." The idea is to raise awareness for people in third world countries who cannot afford to buy shoes. “It will make us not take shoes for granted,” said Christi Robertson (eighth-grader), “because we have so many, and we can learn to be more grateful for the little things." "We're so privileged here that we have so many pairs of shoes, that sometimes we do take it for granted,” said Maci Baker (seventh-grader). The school also wanted to promote an online shoe store called TOMS -- which donates one pair of shoes to a third world country for every pair purchased from them. For more information, click here .

So if you or your kiddo's is needing a new pair of shoes. check this out and help a good cause. Not to mention they are cute too!

Million Dollar Idea...or is it?

As I stated in the previous post, I literally get 3-5 emails/calls each week about new products that someone would like to show us. This is an effective way to market but there are a couple of other options for you out there. Go into your local boutiques, you might even travel to the nearest metroplex to get a wider opinion. You are always more likely to get a response in person. Ask to see the buyer and then talk to them about your product. See if they have any suggestions, do they think it is viable, is there something already out there that fills this need. Hopefully you will find someone who has just a couple of minutes to give you. Get your product to several mommy blogers. They are incredibly influential! They are after all your market.

Next go to a trade show as a observer. It maybe tricky getting in but talk to the registration personnel and see where that will get you. Walk around and look at the products and booths so that when you have a booth of your own you know what you want and what you don't want. The ABC Show is the BEST and Biggest market to attend. But you have to realize there is 1,000,000 square feet for the buyers to cover. Do something to get there attention without being super pushy. Offer a SHOW SPECIAL! I cannot stress how important that is. I don't write orders at show that don't have a special. Come prepared with order forms. Seems like a no brainer but honestly there are a ton of people that set up a booth and I guess don't expect to write order or give copies. Collect potential buyers cards and send them information (including the mommy blogs that have reviewed your product) after the show is over.

One more tip. There are several buying groups for independent specialty stores. NINFRA is the one that we are a part of. Find out who the executive director is and get in contact with them. See if they will do a new product release to their membership. Make sure there is a special specific to that group. For example: All NINFRA members get free shipping.

I hope these tips help you. There are lost of mom's/dad/grandma's etc that have great idea's that fill a nintch no one else has. GOOD LUCK!!!

PS. Could someone invent the next Beanie Baby and come by my store first!

Play and Learn Baby Spoon

I was so excited to get this sample in yesterday. This is a new spoon by Baby Human. I saw this booth at our trade show in September and I honestly just walked right past it. However I received a phone call from the inventor and she asked how she could get this product in my store. I gave her my email address (as I do everyone who wants to show me new product) I must say her email was the best product introduction email I have ever received. I get no less than 4 a week of these and I don't really read them very often. This one was so different. The email very briefly described the product and then listed several mommy blogs that had reviewed it. Well that hit the money for me. Each blog was better than the next! Mommy's love this spoon. So I requested a sample to take home to Henry

Well last night Henry really got a kick out of playing with this spoon. He can grasp it very easily and loved chewing on it and the mouth guard kept him from choking himself. That is a real problem with giving a baby or a toddler an adult spoon. If your baby already likes the RazBerry this is another great teething option.

Although Henry is predominately right handed (already he in only 9 months) because of it's unique design he could pick it up with either hand. Later that evening Shad and I let him try to feed himself some pudding. Boy was that a mess. Now remember he is still an BABY. He was able to get the food and spoon into his mouth but it wasn't pretty. He just isn't ready yet. But here is a link to a mommy blog that has a video of an older baby using it. This totally sold me. http://www.newbaby.com/Baby_Baby+Products_Play+and+Learn+Baby+Spoon+Review

This product is BPA, Phthalate, and lead free.

Make A Wish and Look Good Doing It

My mother and I are advisors for our local chapter of Chi Omega. The national philanthropy for Chi Omega is the Make A Wish Foundation. Make A Wish is a foundation that grants wishes for terminally ill children. Our chapter has spent several years raising money to grant wishes. Our most recent events were a Fun Run/Walk and an Alumni Brunch and Silent Auction. Our Chapter was also asked to give a send off party for a little girl whose wish to take her family to Disney world was being granted. Of course we were so excited and honored to be a part of this. My mom helped organize a great event. There was face painting, crafts, temporary tattoos, nail art, a jump house, and yummy snacks.
Before the girls arrived at the party we had a hummer limo pick them up and take them to get their hair done and then drive them to StorkLand where they were able to pick out their special outfit and have glitter eye shadow applied. Don't they look GREAT!

In the middle of the party Cinderella made a surprise appearance to invite the girls to come to Disney. What a magical party!

Good Friends Always Bring a Smile!

It is always nice to see friends. Amy and her mother Donna have been friends of my family for years. Way before Amy and I were even born. Amy drives in from Waco to visit and come shopping. I feel so privileged that we are on her list of to-do's when she comes to town. Her beautiful daughter is riding in a Chicco KeyFit carseat/Trevi Stroller. Truly one of my favorites. The Trevi is a "glorified umbrella" stroller. If is very light weight and folds up really small! As a mommy of three I know the value of compact and light weight as well as versatile. If you are in the market for a travel system go "kick the tires" on this one before you purchase. Amy absolutely loves it. She called me before this little beauty was born and we discussed several different products-bottles, strollers, etc...

Amy's sweet baby is also wearing a Baby bobo bib. These company makes bib's, burps, and blankets that are unbelievable. Not to mention the owner is my best friend. -BoBo you know I love your stuff-There are a ton of paters to choose from and mix and match. A portion of the proceeds from every purchase goes directly to international adoption. I carry these in all 3 stores and they are a customer favorite. The prices are GREAT! and you can't beat the quality. Everything is handmade.