Baby Must Have's

I am often asked by new expectant mothers if I have any tips or suggestions for them as they start on their parenting journey.  I am always flattered by this question and willing to offer any advice I can… with an asterisk.

As all parents know, there is no right or wrong answer to most parenting questions.  Parenting is made up of continual trial and error.  What works for one child may not work for another.  I am reminded of that little nugget of wisdom almost daily.  Anytime I think I have this parenting thing down, my kids throw me a curve ball.  Just this weekend Emmie decided to fill her little pink tea cups with toilet water – TOILET WATER!  That was new… and oh what a joy!

For me, I did have consistent luck with the following baby items that I do recommend to new parents. 

Pampers Swaddlers
I love these diapers.  They are super soft and that just always made me feel better about putting them on a tiny baby.

Gowns with little mitten thingies
When I had my first son I had no idea that he would remain curled in a little ball for weeks, constantly trying to scratch the Hell out of his own face! This either was not in any baby book I had read, or I had missed a chapter.  Gowns with the little flap over mitten things were the best! Easy access to changing his diapers, no need to try and get those scrunched up tiny legs into pants, didn’t irritate the umbilical cord, and he couldn’t scratch himself – perfect!

Johnson & Johnson’s Washcloths with Head to Toe Baby Wash
Babies are slippery when wet!  These handy, disposable, pre-soaped, wash clothes made bath time slightly less terrifying for mom.  You can pretty much give the entire bath one-handed thanks to these nifty little cloths. 

Daddy's Brown Bag Lunch Art (highlights from the first half of kindergarten)

When I was a kid my mom used to draw little pictures on my lunch.  I was determined to continue this tradition for my own kids someday so as soon as Joey started kindergarten I started doodling.  Jeff took over for me one day and I was blown away by the artwork he created.  This was no sketched happy face!

After that day this tradition has become Daddy's special project.  Each night Jeff draws and colors very cool artwork on Joey's lunch.  Of course, Logan and Emmie felt left out so now they too receive a "lunch" for the ride to preschool (consisting of crackers and an apple juice box).

Joey loves to see what his lunch looks like each morning and he can't wait to bring these works of art to school to show his classmates.  When I realized how much effort was going into a bag that would be tossed the next day, I started taking pictures of them.  These are the ones I could grab a photo of in the mornings before school.

Jeff is definitely in the running for Dad of the Year with this tradition!