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Baby Rabies

pregnancy & parenting

  • Start Here
    • About Baby Rabies
    • Baby Registry Top Picks
    • Favorite Pregnancy Apps
  • The Book
  • Pregnancy
    • Birth Stories
    • Perinatal Mood Disorders
  • Parenthood
    • Babies
    • Toddlers
    • School Age Kids
    • Parenting LOLZ
  • Photography
    • Photography

      6 Stunning Photos You Would Never Guess Were…

      February 11, 2019

      Photography

      Simple Tips For Editing Snow Photos On Your…

      December 13, 2018

      Photography

      I Wrote A Photography eBook And This Is…

      December 6, 2018

      Photography

      Creative Lighting Ideas To Help You Take Great…

      November 27, 2018

      Photography

      Learn How To Take And Edit Photos On…

      November 19, 2018

  • Reviews
    • Reviews

      The Answer To Last Minute Holiday Gifting For…

      December 19, 2018

      Reviews

      I Was Never A Barbie Girl Until Now

      October 1, 2018

      Reviews

      Finally! Jeans For My Jean-Averse Kids!

      August 22, 2018

      Reviews

      If Your Kid Loves Dump Trucks & Garbage…

      August 13, 2018

      Reviews

      Nobody Tell My Kids ABC Mouse Is Part…

      September 4, 2017

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Babies

5 Things I Love That I Did With My First Baby
Babies

5 Things I Love That I Did With My First Baby

by Jill February 21, 2019
written by Jill

The other day I heard a first-time mom talking about planning her baby’s first birthday party and all the favors she was hand-making, and I was taken right back to my first baby ‘s first birthday and the alien stuffies I sewed up myself to give the other babies coming to the party.

image of baby's first birthday with parents

I could feel the mom-of-4 in me laugh at mom-of-one me, and then I told her to STFU because  you know what? I love that I did that even though I’d probably never have the time or desire to do it again.

So, in that spirit, I thought I’d share 5 things I’m glad I did with my first baby – no shame- even though I wouldn’t go on to do that again for baby #4 (and sometimes #2 & #3). 

1. Cloth Diapers

I love that I cloth diapered him 100%. I was FULLY committed. He was in cloth diapers nearly his whole diapered life, including nights, potty training, and even when we traveled. I would never be able to commit that fully to cloth diapering the other 3, but damn we saved some crazy money on baby #1 by doing that! And we needed it. Our budget was suuuuuper tight when he was a baby.

2. Made Baby Food

I love that I made all of his baby food. It’s important to note here that back then I didn’t have a job. I had this blog, but it was not a business back then and I had a lot more free time. Making his baby food was fun for me. It’s not something I prioritized as my time became more scarce with the other 3, but I’m glad I got to do it when it was fun and I had time for it. 

3. Weekly Playgroups

I love that I took him to Gymboree classes and playgroups weekly. These activities were less about him and more about me, to be totally honest. They gave me a reason to get dressed and get out of the house regularly, and they introduced me to some incredible women I am still friends with to this day. Regular commitments like this became harder to stick to with each baby after him, but I had a solid base of local mom friends by then, and I knew all the words to the Gymboree bubble song. 

4. Incredible Birthday Parties

I love that I planned him some really incredible birthday parties. We’ve moved away from doing elaborate, themed parties every year, but it was a fun creative outlet for me. I didn’t plan them because I felt like I had to impress anyone. I did it because I enjoyed it. And I’m actually looking forward to doing more for my littles when we get off the road and settled into a community (sans hand-sewn favors). My oldest, though, is pretty much past this stage, and I’m glad I relished it while I could.

5. World Revolved Around My First Baby

I love that our world revolved around him for a couple years. That one-baby life was pretty special, and while I do lament that I wish I had ignored him more, I don’t regret the hours and days he was our only entertainment. I don’t regret the nights we kept him up a little late or the mornings we let him sleep in bed with us. We were much stricter about routines with him than with the other 3 kids. I think that mostly had to do with us needing to feel in control of this wild and new thing called parenthood. I’m most fond of the memories of when we let those routines fall away for a bit. 

BE EXTRA if you want, first-time parents! There is no shame in cherishing this new role and going all out IF YOU WANT TO. 

image of mother with first baby at hospital

Tell me what brought you joy when you had only one baby that you refuse to feel shame about. 

February 21, 2019 13 comments
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The Ultimate Baby Rabies Book Launch Giveaway
BabiesParenthoodTravel

You Could Turn Your Baby Gear Into A Legit Sidehustle

by Jill February 1, 2019
written by Jill

I got an email from a biz called BabyQuip last week. They wanted me to tell you all about how you can use them to rent all the baby stuff you need when you travel so you don’t have to worry about renting things like high chairs and car seats and strollers. They even have packages that include toys and full-size cribs. 

And I think that’s a valuable service for many people. Definitely check them out if you are traveling and would rather rent that stuff than haul it all with you.

I started looking into how the stuff gets to you when you rent it, though, and that’s when I stumbled on what I thought was more exciting to share with you- becoming a BabyQuip Quality Provider, or, as they call them, a QP. 

My links to them are affiliate, but this is how bad I suck at affiliate marketing: I only make money off people who click through to RENT things and not what I’m writing a whole blog post about.

QPs own all their own baby equipment that they then rent out to traveling families through BabyQuip. BQ is a “platform business” similar to what Uber is. You use their platform to service people with stuff you own. The people using you have assurance that you are legit. You are insured through them (billed monthly on a sliding scale based on what you make). And they make it easy to list what you have available to rent on their website.

There is a $100 fee to get started, which covers your first month of insurance and setup & admin expenses. After that you make 80% of your rental and delivery fees and BQ keeps 20%. You get to keep 100% of your tips. People will (hopefully) tip you because you’ll be delivering immaculate baby gear that you lovingly care for and thoroughly clean in between clients, setting up cribs, demonstrating how to fold and unfold strollers and more. In addition, hopefully they will be rating you highly on BQs internal rating system.

They have QPs in many cities, but it doesn’t seem saturated, and many cities still don’t have QPs. So this seems like a really great opportunity for the right people to put some of their gently used baby gear to work! Or even for someone to slowly invest in new baby gear and build a business.

The Ultimate Baby Rabies Book Launch Giveaway

On the FAQ page, in response to “Do I need to buy gear to get started?” BQ replies:

“No. We can get you launched on the BabyQuip (formerly Babierge) platform and open for business before you buy any gear. We recommend (but don’t require) that you purchase one item– a full-size portable wooden crib–because that’s our most requested item and could easily be your first order. It fits in many cars and all vans and SUVs. We’ll tell you how to order a crib later. If you’re close to a baby store, or use Amazon Prime, you can actually purchase gear after you get an order most of the time. That’s how Quality Providers build their inventory. You can also purchase used gear in great condition.”

I’m kind of regretting giving away some of our less abused baby stuff now! If you’ve got some gently used baby gear you could do without, or the means or desire to build up a stash of baby gear, and if you’re looking for a way to bring in some extra money each month, head over and read more about becoming a BabyQuip QP. 

Not an MLM, and this is not sponsored. But if you would like to rent travel gear through BQ, I love if you’d click through my affiliate link.

February 1, 2019 4 comments
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Saying Goodbye To Gymboree But Not Gymbo! Gymboree Play & Music Is NOT CLOSING
BabiesParenthood

Saying Goodbye To Gymboree But Not Gymbo! Gymboree Play & Music Is NOT CLOSING

by Jill January 18, 2019
written by Jill

The first thing I ever bought for my first baby (whom I hadn’t even conceived yet) was a shirt and matching blanket with appliquéd donkeys and cacti on them. I also got the small donkey plush to go with them. Just a year before, Scott and I had donkeys at our wedding. They delivered cold Shiner beers to guests during cocktail hour. We had a thing for donkeys.

I happened upon that sweet donkey set in Gymboree, and it left a lasting impression. What other baby store was selling stuff with donkeys on it amongst the predictable ducks and puppies? None. Nobody. 

Less than a year later I became a mom, and shortly after that I would gladly call myself a Gymboree mom. I bought a lot of clothes for Kendall at Gymboree, especially the first few years- never at full price. I’d wait until they had a great sale and I knew how to work my Gymbucks. I took so much pride in dressing him.

Whatever I saved at Gymboree on clothes I spent at Gymboree Play & Music. From the time Kendall was 3 months old until he was 18 months old, he and I went to Gymboree classes 2-3x a week. We bought the special Gymboree bubbles, and sang all the songs together at home and in the car.

Was Gymboree Play & Music a necessity? No.  As a mom of 4 now, it’s a little laughable to think of taking my 4th to a music and play class 2-3x a week. The only songs we sing with him are Spotify playlist favorites that we sometimes try to censor. 

But back when I just had one, and I was so new to being a mom, so worried about doing the mom thing “right,” and not having a single clue what “right” even looked like, it was a nice outlet for me. It gave me a reason to put on clothes and be somewhere by 10:30 am every few days. It helped me feel more in control of this runaway train called motherhood. 

When I heard that Gymboree is closing all it’s stores and filing bankruptcy, I felt a little sad thinking of all the adorable outfits I found there that became a part of the fabric of our family’s memories and moments. But then I thought, “oh no, not the classes!” That was even sadder to me- all the moms and dads who feel like those classes help them figure out what to do with a baby who just, like, lays there, and all the caregivers who love seeing their babies and toddlers learn new songs and skills week after week- how sad for them.

GREAT NEWS! The classes aren’t going anywhere. This statement from Jenna Tarleton from Ogilvy, on behalf of Gymboree Play & Music just landed in my inbox and I ran here to share:

“While we are sad to see our friends at Gymboree clothing stores going through hard times, we want to make sure you and your readers are aware that Gymboree Play & Music is – and has been since 2016 – a separate company from GymboreeGroup.  In fact, Gymboree Play & Music continues to grow, with plans to open additional locations throughout the country in 2019.”

I’ve been out of the Gymboree loop for a while now. The clothes aren’t what they used to be (probably a big reason the stores are closing), and we have plenty of hand-me-downs to choose from now. So I had no idea they were 2 different companies, and I’m SO HAPPY to hear that I was wrong to assume that Gymboree Play & Music would be closing it’s doors, too. 

If you’d like to take advantage of Gymboree’s big clearance sales, I’d love if you’d click through my affiliate link. Currently everything is 50% off, including sale and clearance, and shipping is free.

January 18, 2019 2 comments
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Saying Goodbye To The Mom I Needed To Be To Raise Babies
BabiesParenthoodToddlers

Saying Goodbye To The Mom I Needed To Be To Raise Babies

by Jill January 1, 2019
written by Jill

My 4th and final baby just turned 2, and beyond being deeply grateful 2019 is a year we get to ring in with him despite visions of a somber midnight countdown while I watched him seize on the side of a highway last week, I am equal parts excited and sad that this will probably be the year I climb out of the baby trench for the first time in over a decade.

2019 will very likely be the year that we stop changing diapers, and stop buying them altogether, and the year I breastfeed a baby for the last time. 

When we return from our year+ RV roadtrip adventure and our big kids go back to a traditional school, our oldest will be in 6th grade- Jr. High… or maybe they will call it middle school, and the other 2 will be in 3rd and kindergarten. I will have just a few years left of one little at home with me during the week, and we will be far more concerned about things like peer pressure and puberty and internet safety than we will be about sleep training and pacifier weaning. 

It feels a little like being pregnant for the first time, and knowing my life is about to transform but not really comprehending how. I don’t know how the next volume of MOTHERHOOD is going to go, but I do know that as I make my way through it, I will grow, and I will become a different person.

Some may tell you that motherhood is all about love and learning and growing and giving yourself in ways you didn’t think you’d be capable of. And all of that is true, I think.

But mostly, for me, motherhood is about changing. And so I guess every 8 or 10 or some increment of years I will molt and I will shake off what motherhood once meant, what it needed to mean when I was in that iteration of parenting.

And I will be scared of the new form I will take, and what it will do to my body and my mind, but I will also be excited because maybe this new form of motherhood gives me better eyes to really see my children’s hearts with.

Maybe this new form of motherhood, while slightly shortening my arms because they are no longer needed to hold all 4 children at once, will give me stronger legs to keep up with them as they race faster and faster toward their teenage  and  adult years.

Maybe this new form of motherhood will harden my heart a little so I can withstand the emotional blows of my no-longer-babies learning how to navigate boundaries with someone they know will love them unconditionally.

And maybe this new form of motherhood will help me take back some of the space I once held for me and only me. 

2019 will be a year of change, a year of transformation, and a year of saying goodbye to the mom I needed to be to raise babies. 

January 1, 2019 8 comments
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Nothing Prepared Me For My 2 Year Old’s Febrile Seizure
BabiesParenthoodToddlers

Nothing Prepared Me For My 2 Year Old’s Febrile Seizure

by Jill December 28, 2018
written by Jill

Trigger warning: This post is about a toddler experiencing a seizure. He is okay, but I’m going to describe some scary things. If that’s too much for you to take in right now, please know I understand and hope you will click away. 

“Mom, the baby is acting… funny.” 

It wasn’t what Leyna said but how she said it that caused concern. We were hauling our RV down the highway, making our way from Charleston, South Carolina to Florida the day after Christmas. It was a long travel day, but Wallace, who just turned two on the 21st (and I hate that I haven’t been able to blog about that yet!) is usually the easiest traveler of the 4. 

He’s still rear-facing, so we rely on Leyna (who will be 8 tomorrow) a lot to give him the things he needs and let us know when he gets fussy. She’s seen him in some moods, you know? And she’s never said he was “acting funny,” especially not with a quizzical tone. 

I reached my hand back and thought I felt him throwing up on himself. He did that in the truck nearly a year ago to the day, and I figured it was a repeat performance. But then I felt him jerk his head forward and back and forward and back. Scott urged me to unbuckle and get eyes on him as he moved across a couple lanes of traffic to find an exit. 

I immediately noticed how rigid Wallace was. It was hard to get him out of the seat because his legs and arms were stuck straight out. He kept lunging forward and back, not making a noise. As I hoisted him over the seat, I saw his eyes rolling back in his head.

It was as horrific as it sounds. We immediately thought he must be choking. Scott grabbed him from me, while also navigating an exit with a 43 foot fifth wheel behind us, laid him on his knee, and began performing the Heimlich.

I… stared at my phone. 

I don’t know what happened. My brain could not figure out how to dial from my iPhone. I think I tried pressing the “keypad” function and it didn’t come up. I can’t remember. I just know that by the time we pulled over on an access road, Scott was shouting, “JILL, WHAT IS HAPPENING? WHAT IS HAPPENING??” While he pounded on our non-responsive toddler’s back over and over with fear in his voice that I have NEVER heard in all the 18 years we’ve been together.

I don’t know if he was asking that in reference to Wallace or in reference to me suddenly finding myself unable to operate my own phone for the simple task of calling 911, but I didn’t waste time asking. As soon as the RV stopped, I jumped out and screamed at the people stopped behind us to help. I feel like I screamed forever until someone finally came out of the car. I’m sure they were super confused as to what was going on, but once they saw Scott appear next to me on the sidewalk with our toddler’s limp body, they ran out with phone in hand. They were already on the line with 911 directing them to our intersection.

At that moment, I turned back to Scott and he said, “He’s breathing. Oh my God. He’s breathing. He opened his eyes. Thank God. He’s going to be okay, Jill.”

He still didn’t look “okay” though. He was totally out of it, not responding, limp. But yes, breathing. 

Scott told me tonight that at that point he breathed a sigh of relief simply because he wasn’t prepared to say goodbye to his baby on the side of a road. That at least the breathing bought us a little more time with him. That “okay” just meant he wasn’t dead. Yet.

We truly thought he was dying.

The fire department arrived first, and fast. Time is hard to mark, but I really think they were there within a minute or two. I walked him down to the intersection to meet them and Scott got back in the truck to pull  the RV into a parking lot nearby. 

Anytime I’m really scared on an airplane, I watch the flight attendants and tell myself I can’t freak out until they do. And this time I watched the calm and collected helpers- the firefighters and the EMTs. They were constantly in communication with me, asking if he’d ever done this before, what his health history was, had he been sick?

Yes. He had a fever the night of his birthday that I thought would turn into an awful flu because Lowell was dealing with it and he had been so sick for a week. Lowell was the one we were worried about. Just two nights before, we debated if we should take him to urgent care because the flu was kicking his ass so hard. 

But Wallace had that one high fever, and then a couple doses of Motrin seemed to set him right. Yeah, he had a runny nose and a cough, but he was full of energy, and his fever never seemed to spike again.

We usually shy away from using fever medication if the fevers aren’t too high and the kids don’t seem bothered by them. That was Wallace. He had a low grade fever off and on from the 21st, and we gave him Motrin mostly at night to help him sleep. By the time the 26th rolled around, it had been 36 hours since we last gave him Motrin and I honestly thought he got lucky and just had a cold, not the flu. Or maybe a mild flu that had passed.

When the EMT explained to me that he was exhibiting classic symptoms of post-seizure, I kinda freaked internally. SEIZURE. That sounds so so scary. Something is wrong with his brain, I thought. She said they wanted to start an IV before they began driving so they could administer meds if he had another one on the way to the hospital. ANOTHER? I couldn’t imagine watching that again.

After about 15 minutes and 3 failed attempts to start a tiny baby IV, she told the driver she felt pretty confident he was going to be ok on the drive there, and that calmed me a lot.  She explained a little to me about febrile seizures, but I kept telling her he hadn’t had a fever in over a day.

In fact, I was just holding him at a rest stop 15 minutes before this all started. He did not feel warm to me at all. 

Here’s the most important thing I learned about febrile seizures- they are brought on by a fever spiking FAST, not necessarily high fevers. So it’s very likely he had a normal temp when I buckled him in the truck and minutes later it began rapidly increasing. 

He was in fleece jammies and fleece lined boots, rear-facing without much air circulation in the back. I do wonder if that played a role. Scott and I are seriously considering turning him forward facing now, and please don’t comment with any kind of car seat evangelism, okay? We know. We will take it all into consideration, knowing that he’s at risk for more seizures in the future.

As we headed to the ER, I asked the EMT “Where are we?” After you’ve been traveling for a year, it’s really easy to lose track of where you are in the country. She told me they picked us up in Pooler, Georgia, and we were on the way to an ER in Savannah.

Pooler, Georgia, thank you. Your people were SO kind to us. By the time the ambulance arrived, there were about 10-15 people waiting with us. Some were checking on me and watching from a distance as the EMTs worked on Wallace, and some were over at the truck, talking to Scott and the kids. 

I found out later in the night that a man had prayed with the kids for Wallace and gave them a $10 bill while he watched them for Scott so he could come talk to me in the ambulance. He asked Scott to please text him an update. A good day in the village, indeed.

The ambulance ride was maybe 15 minutes? I can’t recall, but in that time Wallace went from mostly non-responsive to agitated and awake. I’ve never been so happy to hear him cry. Not even the day of his birth. 

I was able to carry him into the ER and he was totally lucid for all of the nurses to weigh him and check him in, though he didn’t say a word. He cried and was clearly really confused about where he was and how he got there. The rectal temperature check super pissed him off,  but I’m glad our nurse insisted on it. His initial forehead temp reading said 97, but the rectal temp read out 102. 

Is that a thing? Do some kids not get warm foreheads when they are sick? Is that maybe why I didn’t think he had a fever that day?

They did a nose swab to test for the flu, which he also detested and screamed about. Then the Child Life specialist showed up with a goodie bag for him. She asked me at check in what kind of toys he liked, and I told her he was pretty excited about cars and trucks. 

His goodie bag had a soft little teddy bear and a new Hot Wheels. He tossed the teddy bear aside, and his eyes lit up when I pulled the car out. His first coherent word post seizure was “CAR!”

Let me tell you, I will find a way to send all the toy cars to Child Life specialists across this country. Don’t think I’m not emailing my contacts tomorrow at Barbie, owned by Mattel, maker of Hot Wheels. It was MAGIC. That car brought him back to me. I took videos to send to Scott. He told me tonight that those videos of Wallace playing with his car was the first moment he felt like he really was going to be OKAY okay, not just breathing again ok.

So the tests came back, and he was Flu A positive. His 102 fever broke quickly with some Motrin and Tylenol. The doctor told me that basically everyone gets one free pass at having a seizure, especially when they also have a fever and a logical reason for a fever. All signs point to this being a febrile seizure, including the fact that I had febrile seizures as a toddler. 

So we are in watch mode. He got through the first 24 hours without another one, which is a good sign that hopefully it was a random, one-time thing. But he is at risk for more brought on by fever through age 4-5. We will need to be more vigilant about treating his fevers in the future. 

If he has more and they aren’t associated with fevers, then we will do more tests to rule out anything else, like childhood epilepsy. 

The ER doctor (Memorial Health University Medical Center pediatric ER in Savannah, Georgia) said that 6-7% of kids experience febrile seizures. That’s not a large percentage, but it’s certainly enough that it seems to affect more people than you think. Wallace is my 4th baby, and this is the first time something has happened with him that I’ve felt like I had no idea what’s going on.

So I hope by sharing this someone out there may have a frame of reference when this happens to their baby. For as terrifying as it is, it’s actually benign. There are no major complications from febrile seizures, and kids bounce right back from them within an hour usually. 

This is a very insightful Febrile Seizure Fact Sheet by the National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke.

If anything, had I even known enough about them to consider  that’s what was happening, I may not have been standing on the side of an access road in Pooler, Georgia, terrified my 2 year old was dying, wondering if I should go tell my other 3 babies to close their eyes, to not watch him die.

24 hours later, Wallace is back to his Danger Baby ways- bouncing off couches and climbing onto counters. We are vigilant about taking his temperature and are giving him anything and everything he asks for. His dinner was nothing but Rolos and BBQ potato chips and I don’t even care. 

It feels slimy to end this post this way, but we are facing a pricey medical bill for an ambulance ride and ER visit on less than stellar self-employed insurance. If you would like to support us, please consider buying my eBook Picture Play (ShopBabyRabies.com). I’ve extended my Christmas sale. Use code HOLIDAYPIX to save $5 off the $19 price. We also have a gift card option if you’d like to gift it to someone else.

Picture Play will teach you how to use your phone and free & cheap apps to take and edit photos you will love, want to print & frame. Over 700 people have bought it in 4 weeks, and it’s getting rave reviews.  I’m very proud of it, and so grateful it can help us pay off these unforeseen medical costs. 

December 28, 2018 17 comments
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Reminder To Self: Don’t Compare This Baby To The Others
Babies

Reminder To Self: Don’t Compare This Baby To The Others

by Jill September 25, 2018
written by Jill


Our life looks totally different in so many ways with our 4th baby than it did when we just had one.  The obvious difference is we are currently traveling full time, living in an RV as we make our way around the US this year. The less noticeable difference- one that I haven’t shared much about yet, is how different Wallace is from his siblings when it comes to milestones.

I’m excited to team up with Beech-Nut® Naturals™ for this sponsored post to tell you about one way I’m feeding my baby this year with their real food for babies™, inspired by homemade.

He’s developing a bit slower when it comes to speech, but we aren’t super concerned… yet. He’s probably got at least 15 solid words that we can understand, which is slightly above the minimum for hitting that milestone at this age, and he clearly knows exactly what we’re talking about and asking him. We could say, “Go pick up that blue ball under the red basket in the other room,” and he’d do exactly that.

But ask him to repeat something after you? Yeah, he’s not going to. Ask him what a dog says? Nope, not gonna try.

Beyond the slower and more stubborn speech, he’s also much slower to try new foods. My other children were adventurous eaters by this age, but Wallace will pick and nibble and then insist on nursing or drinking whole milk. He probably gets most of his calories from milk still. It’s honestly frustrating some days.

The only real way we can count on him getting some veggies and fruit is with purees, like Beech-Nut Naturals. He will suck them down. He’s been loving jarred purees mixed with steamed brown rice.

We mix that up and entice him to eat as much as he can at his own little table. He loves feeling like a big boy, and sitting at this table seems to trick him into eating more.

When my first was a baby, I made all of his baby food, and I’m glad I got to experience that. But, that’s not been a realistic endeavor for me with Wallace. So from the moment he showed he was ready to try solids, we’ve been stocking our pantry with Beech-Nut Naturals. They are 100% natural, nothing artificial, made with the same ingredients I used when I had time to make homemade baby food. They even have an organic line.

For those wondering, we dabble in baby-lead weaning, but it’s always been an unnecessary source of anxiety for me, and Wallace has never showed interest in it. He would rather eat purees from day one, and he obviously still loves them.

So I’m guilt-free feeding him what he will happily eat, and doing what I can to help him spark some new words, but also reminding myself that comparing him to the other kids isn’t necessary. He’s his own person. And while his language may be taking time to blossom, and his food preferences may be a bit maddening, his physical coordination is super impressive.

He has been scaling anything and everything since he could pull up, and his new favorite perch is atop that table so he can join us at the island.

We call him Danger Baby for a reason, y’all.

Of course, I’ll bring all of this up with his pediatrician. We hope to head back to Texas soon for a couple weeks just so we can get appointments in. Hopefully by then he’ll have a few more words and he’ll be branching out and enjoying some other Beech-Nut Naturals toddler meal hacks- like this sweet potato pasta: 

I would love to hear from you if your baby’s speech developed at a slower pace. I’m not sure what he’s experiencing is technically a speech delay at this point, but I do know if it comes to that there are early intervention resources to help us. Beyond that, though, do you have any tips for encouraging more words from a not quite 2 year old? Or, in your experience, has it been a wait and see situation? I’m kinda expecting he’ll wake up one day and start in on a monologue and surprise us all.

Thanks to Beech-Nut Naturals for sponsoring this, and for being a baby food I have felt good about feeding Wallace from the time he first tasted solids. You can find them in your nearest grocery store for your own babies- just look for the signature honey-pot shaped glass jars with the green lids.

September 25, 2018 19 comments
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One Thing I Wish I Realized With My Firstborn
Babies

One Thing I Wish I Realized With My Firstborn

by Jill August 20, 2018
written by Jill

I would give anything to go back in time to when we were new parents to our firstborn, and to have the confidence and ease we have now with our fourth baby. If I could find a way to package this, I would gift it to every expecting parent. (Along with a copy of my book, of course.)

It’s not that we feel like we have things figured out now. It’s that we know nobody does. We know babies are resilient and bouncy and will do what they will do, and they simply don’t care if you are concerned that others are judging you.

We know babies need happy parents more than they need worried parents.

We know that when the flight of beer comes- in those tiny glass cups

and the toddler sees the row of cheerful drinks, they must be thinking, “Wow! A whole assortment of drinks for me, sized to perfectly fit in my chubby toddler hands. How thoughtful, you guys!”

We can understand the confusion, the anger

and the sadness when they are told, “Um, no. Yeah, no, buddy.”

We can act quickly to empty one water cup into another, and pour the German wheat into the empty water cup. Then quickly and discreetly pour big sister’s orange cream soda into the empty toddler-sized beer glass…

And then give the soda in the toddler-sized beer glass to the toddler

to enjoy

with glee

while we continue to debate if we’d like to purchase the growler of the German wheat or the IPA.

Babies need happy parents more than they need worried parents.

August 20, 2018 4 comments
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They Said My First Baby Would Be The Most Magical- And I Finally Get It
BabiesParenthood

They Said My First Baby Would Be The Most Magical- And I Finally Get It

by Jill July 13, 2018
written by Jill

I worked at a baby gear store (Right Start, RIP) when I was pregnant with Kendall, my first baby. As my belly grew and became more noticeable, customers- the seasoned parents type- would always say something to me that I found so odd.

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July 13, 2018 1 comment
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How To Keep Cloth Diapering Simple
BabiesCloth Diapers

How To Keep Cloth Diapering Simple

by Jill June 27, 2018
written by Jill

It’s been so long since I shared a photo of a fluffy butt here! In the name of simplicity, we took some time off cloth diapering while on the road because figuring out how to live in an RV was learning curve enough. But it’s been nearly 6 months, and we are feeling pretty confident in this new life. Plus? We’re ready to save some $$ to throw toward our Hawaii fund. (Such a shame we can’t drive there!) So Wallace has been back in cloth diapers part time lately. Luckily, we’ve found a way to keep it simple.

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June 27, 2018 3 comments
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How To Get Started With Baby Sign Language
BabiesToddlers

How To Get Started With Baby Sign Language

by Désirée June 2, 2018
written by Désirée

We’ve all had those moments where we’re at a total loss for what our baby or toddler is trying to tell us. They are clearly trying to communicate, but for whatever reason, it’s literally lost in translation.

Cue frustrated baby.

Cue discouraged parents.

But, and I don’t mean to sound like an infomercial, it doesn’t have to be that way. Baby sign language is something you can teach to babies from a very young age and it will not only help with communication breakdowns, but will strengthen your bond, and give your baby’s brain a boost!

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June 2, 2018 1 comment
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