Baby Sydney

When Sydney arrived, all the mental preparation and plans we had made went out the window and we went into full survival mode. You forget how hard it is to make logical and smart decisions when you are sleep deprived (and thank goodness we forgot or no one would have more babies)! For a week or two, Avery had a little more candy than usual and got to play on my iPhone, which is not normally an option. She thought that was pretty cool. When she wasn’t taking advantage of her tired parents, she was doting on her sister!

Avery doting on Sydney

While life with two is definitely more challenging, it has also proven to be much more fun. As I lay my head down at night, I can’t help but smile at the many laughs my girls provided throughout the day. Hope I’m still laughing when they are 13 and 16!!

-Mindy

Now I belong to a different kind of gym…the kind with brightly colored soft steps and ramps and scarves and shakers.  That’s right, the only regularly scheduled class I attend is my daughter’s and the running I do is after her!

That doesn’t mean I don’t work out, but when I do, it looks a WHOLE lot different these days…

Most of the time I used to spend working out, is now spent rocking out to toddler tunes, attending story times and play dates, making messes and cleaning up.  I no longer have the luxury of multiple workouts in one day, so I have to be more strategic.

Now Parker and I workout together, we go to mommy & me exercise classes or take advantage of the rolling hills where we live and the invention of jogging strollers!  If the weather’s bad (seemed like every day this winter) we use the stairs in our home for cardio and I use her (plus some free weights) for strength training.  Lifting 20 pounds of baby weight is a nice challenge…add the wriggly instability of that weight and I’ve got a fantastic workout.  I hold her for squats, I chest press her little body and give her kisses with each rep, and bicep curls with a baby are a real challenge!  Why do I do all this?  Because it’s important to me to set an example of active living and it’s always been important to me to move.  I get cranky when I don’t get to exercise!  YES, I’ve had to adjust what exercise looks like for me these days, but I have a toddler.  I’ve had to adjust what a lot of things look like for me these days.  That’s part of motherhood.  The important thing to me is that I don’t abandon exercise entirely because that’s abandoning a part of who I am and what kind of example does that set for my daughter?

-Jolynn Baca Jaekel has been a fitness professional for more than a decade. Her first child, Parker,  just turned a year old this January. Jolynn, her husband Rob, and Parker recently relocated from NYC to Washington D.C.

It was so wonderful to watch her experience something new and REALLY savor each moment.  She was focused on nothing but her new treat and the person who was supplying it.  It made me wonder what my life would be like if I could be so present in each moment instead of always looking ten steps ahead.  What if we all didn’t bring our phones everywhere so we could talk, text, email or manage social media 24/7?  What if instead of taking pictures of our lives and posting about them, we just lived them?  I am just as guilty of this as anyone and I LOVE sharing photos of Parker, so I’m not preaching. I’m simply wondering what if…  I know adults have more responsibilities than infants so we multitask.  I get that our longer lives have given us more experiences to flood our minds with thoughts.  But sitting across from my little girl in her high chair, I wondered what it felt like to be so thrilled with such simple pleasures and if I could be present enough to realize it….and then Parker proudly showed me her stash of cottage cheese in her mouth.  I stopped wondering.  I did take a picture of her though

-Jolynn Baca Jaekel has been a fitness professional for more than a decade. She just had her first child, Parker, with husband Rob last January. She and her family recently relocated from NYC to Washington D.C.

For Halloween last week, we attended a mommy & me yoga class costume party; I made Parker and her little friend matching hair bows for the day, we “marched” in a neighborhood costume parade and the three of us dressed up together to trick or treat at my sister’s. I don’t remember when I had a better Halloween!

Bert, Ernie, and their Rubber Ducky

I’m already working on her Thanksgiving morning family 5k turkey trot outfit! Then comes my personal favorite, Christmas!? Fuggetaboutit!!!

Yes, I have made my husband crazy all year long making sure we properly commemorate each first holiday with pictures and cards and and outfits and gifts, but firsts only happen once and and I want them all to be special for our daughter. I want her to look in her baby book decades from now and see how we celebrated the first year of her life. I want her to feel as loved as I did when I looked last year, seven months pregnant, through the baby book my mom made me.  So I will continue to search for her perfect gift, dress her in the cutest outfit and take her to fun events!

Yup, firsts only happen once and she is mine….I want to enjoy every precious moment.

-Jolynn Baca Jaekel has been a fitness professional for more than a decade. She just had her first child, Parker, with husband Rob last January. She and her family recently relocated from NYC to Washington D.C. 

However, it is clear that quite a bit has changed since the day I was just a wee one.  Tomorrow is my daughter’s 3-month “birthday” and as her “gift” we will be putting her in the crib for the first time.  For the past 3 months she has been less than an arms length away from me in a bassinet so needless to say I think I am more nervous about the transition then she is.  I digress though, so in preparation for moving her to the crib I have heard from countless friends/doctors to take out the bumpers (the very cute bumpers that really tie the room together if you ask me!) so that she does not suffocate.

This is where my mother comes in, and similar to other things that have changed since I was a baby she is confused and surprised that I have to take them out and instead just tells me repeatedly that I had bumpers in my crib as a baby and I survived!  Another piece of advice she is pushing is to have my daughter sleep on her stomach, which I have also been told, is a big no no, but that my mother did with all 3 of her children all the time.  And when I hear these conflicting pieces of advice I hear my mothers voice in my head saying, “it’s amazing you all survived!”  Moving forward I will continue to take the advice of my pediatrician when it comes to my daughter’s safety, however, my mother will continue to be on speed dial for all other matters of motherhood.

-Samantha 

So we figured this would be the perfect time to introduce many of you to The Baby Box Co., the ultimate starter kit for new moms, with a Q&A featuring the company’s founders, Jennifer Clary and Michelle Vick. The Baby Box Co. is launching with a pre-sale today, so if you order anytime between now and October 6th, making sure to enter presalesavings at checkout to get $15 off your purchase plus a FREE surprise bonus gift!

Baby Sawyer

1. How did you come up with the idea for The Baby Box Co., and could you tell us a little bit about the boxes?

JC: Our baby boxes are designed in the 75 year old Finnish tradition of maternity packages gifted by the government to all expectant mothers in Finland to promote the safety and well-being of infants. They contain all the basic new mom must-haves, from diaper rash creams and baby shampoo to onesies and swaddles. The box itself is lined with a securely fitted mattress so that it can be used as a lightweight bassinet or travel crib. This Finnish baby box model for safe infant sleeping and transport was highlighted in the news recently when Will and Kate received one as a gift. The Baby Box Co. is the first company in the world to offer these affordable and extremely helpful starter kit/baby bed combos to consumers outside of Finland.

MV: We’ve essentially recreated these “new baby starter kits,” filling them with all of our favorite brands and can’t-live-without products. It’s been fun putting together the perfect box, full of everything I wish I had received when my daughter was a newborn!

2. What’s the most exciting part of the business for you?

MV: Helping new moms! I remember how terrified I was when I first came home from the hospital. I’d like to help other moms feel a little more prepared, and to help save them from the frustrating, lengthy process of trial and error that I had to go through in order to determine which products and brands were the best (and which were a total waste of money).

JC: Another thing we’re really excited about is our company’s mission to help poverty-stricken mothers across the globe — for every box that is purchased, a portion of the proceeds goes towards sending a box to a new mom who is struggling to make ends meet. We built our “Box a Week” outreach program into The Baby Box Co.’s business model from the very start. It’s a priority for us to know that our company is providing shoppers with the best baby products available while simultaneously making a positive difference for moms in impoverished countries.

3. In honor of Nanny Week here at LLD, would you mind giving us some advice, from your experience, on finding the right nanny?

MV: Before you meet anyone, it’s important to sit down with your family and determine what your priorities are and exactly what you’re looking for. Would you prefer someone young and energetic, or someone who’s older and has tons of experience? Do you want someone who speaks English as her first language, or do you see this as an opportunity for your children to learn a foreign language?

Also, when you start interviewing candidates, don’t let a charming personality distract you from what matters most! Chemistry is important, and you of course want someone who you get along with well, but you’re looking for a new nanny, not a new best friend.

Finally, I can’t underestimate how valuable it is to go through a reputable source like LLD. They’ve performed background checks, spoken with references, and rigorously screened the candidates they send you, so you can rest assured that you’re meeting the cream of the crop!

For more information on The Baby Box Co., check out their website,  follow them on Twitter, and like them on Facebook. 

Welcome home Ashton!

I talked to many moms during my 39 weeks of pregnancy, read the required “What to Expect When You are Expecting,” downloaded every baby app–and still, nothing quite prepares you for the moment when this tiny little bundle is put in your arms. The last two weeks are a blur–little sleep, lots of feedings, many loads of laundry, countless visitors, and truth be told, a few tears here and there. It’s an incredible and overwhelming feeling to all-of-a-sudden look down and see this tiny person, that only a short time ago was living inside of you.

Leaving the hospital!

I am experiencing feelings and emotions I have never felt before–extreme joy coupled with an intense desire to protect her from everything and anything; mixed in with feelings of angst and worry that I wonder if I am doing “it right.” I have adopted the mantra of “one hour at a time,” as that is about as far ahead as I can look and plan right now. As I write this, I am looking over at her as she sleeps peacefully in her rock ‘n’ play, and I am already having a hard time remembering what life was like before she arrived.

-Samantha is a former LLD sitter, event planner, and elementary school teacher. She and her husband live in New York and are first-time parents.

Parker & I are loving the new house

One month ago we moved from New York City to Washington, D.C. and it was the right move for us.  I am sure about this.  Having spent the last 15 years at least four hours away from my nearest relative, I am now three MINUTES away from my baby sister, her husband and their three pugs.  The majority of those 15 years were spent living in a basement apartment and now I have a basement in a town home with a deck big enough to fit patio furniture and a grill (the grill is my husband’s slice of heaven). Just steps away from our front door, our community has a tennis court and a pool where I have taken our daughter nearly every day this summer. Most fitness centers have child care available, there are movie theaters with “cry baby” matinees, wine bars with stroller happy hours, and there are so many strollers coming down the sidewalk that we take turns passing, just about every day Parker and I have a mommy & me activity with one of the many local mom groups or a play date with one of the lovely mom/dot duos we’ve met. I have become a SAHM, (that’s meet up lingo for Stay At Home Mom) and I’m loving it!! Yes, I will eventually have to return to work in some capacity, but for now I have been given the lovely gift of spending each day with my brand new baby girl in our brand new city and I am cherishing every one of them!  Granted, I am the oldest mom around since they start young here and we wait a while in NY, but I’m ok with that. I’m a happy AMA (advanced maternal age) mom!

Sightseeing!

Moving here happened fast and meant leaving friends and my job and giving up the unique energy that can only be found in New York City; but it also meant being closer to family, seizing a fantastic career opportunity for my husband and achieving a quality of life for Parker that can only be found outside of the Big Apple. Yes, I’m sure it was the right move for us.

As I pack for the trip back home to Ohio I am anticipating the worst homecoming. In the past, when I’ve left my husband home alone, there have been some unfortunate surprises upon my return. Once when I went to Chicago he set the kitchen on fire damaging the appliances and turning my white ceiling black. Who cares if he singed his hair? I’m still paying off the appliances.

Going to miss these lil’ ones!

Another time, he threw the grease fire pan out the window into the snow and stained my new patio. He tells me he hasn’t looked at my to do list since I wrote it back in February. It wasn’t really so much a “to do list” more like a “what NOT to do list.” Regardless, it should be interesting when I walk in the door after being away for two months.

Oh how my life will transition when I move back to Ohio from stroller walks with my lil’ granddaughters in New Jersey’s parks to rubber gloves & Lysol.

-Mama Bell