Thank You Coffee Gods

Mmm...coffee

My mother in law was nice enough to purchase me some decaf Dunkin Donuts coffee while she was here last week.  I haven't had ground decaf coffee in quite sometime.  I've been relying solely on...instant! Ew, I know!  Anyway to accompany my deliciously rich coffee she brought me some CoffeeMate creamer in 2 distinct and delicious flavors: Carmel Macchiato and Carmel Latte.  I know that I might be over expressing my love for this stuff, but keep in mind I'm a coffee addict of whom, prior to pregnancy, drank coffee like it was my job.  The richer and darker the better.  And a little hint to coffee lovers out there, when making your morning cup of joe always fill your cup with creamer first followed by the coffee.  You can literally see it swirl together as you poor in the dark, rick coffee and turn into a thick creamy, decadent mixture. Mmm so yummy! I'm enjoying a cup as we speak! (2nd cup actually hehe)

I truly cannot wait until post pregnancy when I can enjoy myself some real coffee!  I read somewhere that a nursing mother is allowed up to 12 oz of regular coffee per day and always early in the morning.  So as to remain within the healthy perimeters I doubt I'll have a cup everyday, but I will be enjoying me some real caffeinated coffee! :)  Until then I remain a devoted lover and admirer of coffee and indulge myself in the confines of decaf!

Oh thank you thank you thank you Coffee Gods! :)

Packing the Hospital Bag

I am officially 4 weeks from my due date today.  Apparently I need to get my overnight bad packed.  So I started by "borrowing" my sisters diaper bag.  She said I can keep it, but heck no I'm going to keep it - I'll use it and take good care of it and return it in good condition so she can use it on her future babes (I'm hoping she has at least one more! - GO FOR A BOY!)  Anyway, if it was a regular diaper bag sure, but this thing - HELLO! I don't think so...

Gucci Messenger Diaper Bag 

GG Fabric
www.gucci.com ($890)

This is actually her second Gucci diaper bag, this one she purchased when baby Kaia was born roughly 14 months ago and it honestly looks like its barely been used.  Mostly due to the material.  Its not canvas and to be quite honest with you I don't think its leather either.  This was her original Gucci diaper bag:

Gucci Diaper Bag

Canvas GG material
(www.gucci.com $990)

My 100% honest opinion on this bad is its a POS!  Seriously my sister had it for about a year or so and it was stolen from her car (one downfall of having designer/expensive items) but beyond that the canvas wore quickly and was about to start tearing.  One of my sister's BFFs had the same bad and used it for a couple of years and it was literally destroyed!!! She was practically embarrassed to be carrying it around because it was so tattered and ruined.  With all the heavy things you carry in a diaper bad, its essential (especially when dropping a good amount of money) that it has longevity!  The messenger diaper bag that is not the canvas material I would definitely recommend more so, if you are in the department for high end designer diaper bag!  Whatever floats your boat you know :)

So other than emptying her diaper bag and bringing it home I have packed Maddie's take home outfit!  It is so freaking good.  My sister bought it for her for Christmas, her very first Christmas present ever - so cute!!  It comes with a baby sac take home outfit, cute little matching cap and a blankie:

Serena and Lily
Take Me Home Gift Set - Punch (color)
www.serenaandlily.com ($68)

It came in this adorable little keepsake box so that once she is done using them I can store them away with all her little info for memory sake.  And if anyone knows me I am obsessed with maintaining memories (almost a hoarding disorder, but not really).  I just love pictures, videos, memories and anything that has to do with them.  So I'm super excited to get her into this super cute outfit so I can take tons of pictures of her! Eek! I love this little outfit because its a thick cotton material (nothing flimsy about it) it matches her theme colors of Punch and Aqua Melon :) and lastly because of the super adorable closure tassels at the bottom of the dress - pull and tie to keep her feeties toasty warm!



The only other thing I have packed in the bag so far is her tiny little giraffe blankie cause its so soft and its the tiny one so I can just place is next to her face when she gets into the car seat and it will be soothing (hopefully!).



Over the next couple of days I will try to cram a lot of other things in there like a robe and comfy PJs to relax in at the hospital as well as tons of snacks because if I have heard anything about hospital food, it is nasty and I will most likely be famished after delivery. 

Any other suggestions in terms of what might be good for a overnight hospital bad would be greatly appreciate...this is my first time after all :)

Serena and Lily

It took me a long time to decide what the Maddie's color scheme was going to be, but once I saw the pattern on a certain Serena and Lily nursery bedding I knew right away that's what I liked.

There are a million little girl color schemes out there, mostly containing pink and purple with a combination of whites, browns, greens and other pastels.  And yes I did fall into the realm of pink and something, however I have always, always, always loved the color blue.  Ideally I would have loved her pain color to be blue, because I think its an absolutely gorgeous color, but society is so transfixed on color coordination that they would automatically think she is a boy - and for some reason that would really bother me.  Either way, the nursery bedding that I finally chose was:

Serena and Lily
Nursery Basics: Punch
Aqua/Melon Mosaic Crib Sheet
www.serenaandlily.com

Serena and Lily have so many amazing options and it was really hard to decide among all the choices, but I love, love, love my final choice.  I purchased the fitted sheet, baby bumper(decor only, will be removed once Maddie is using the crib), bed skirt, changing pad cover and 2 additional yards of Aqua/Melon fabric!  I'm planning on making a pillow case for a square pillow to go on her glider as well as possibly a small lamp shade for her nightstand and using any additional fabric that I might have to make the trim for the baskets under her changing table.  I'll be working on these projects over the course of the weekend and hopefully posting pictures of the results, we will see how they turn out! 

In addition to the bedding and the fabric, we hung Maddie's letters to her name (m a d i s o n) on the wall using alternating pink and blue (white polka dotted) ribbon which really turned out well.  Those are hung above where the crib will soon be!

My sister also search high and low for pink/blue accessories for her room and succeeded!!  There are a couple little stores in the area that she and I both would recommend if you are a mother or soon to be  mother and those are

Stephanie's Little Luxuries for Life
Indian School and Goldwater Blvd.
www.shopstephanies.com

 and 

Petite Chateau
Campbell Ave and 40th St.
www.petite-chateau.com

They both carry products that a lot of baby stores don't carry for instance Little Giraffe (the most luxurious feeling blankies)

Honestly some of the softest, baby ready blankies you will ever find.  I know Nordstrom carries these blankies too, but these other stores are so cozy and cute you cannot pass up going there.  Stephanie's is actually where I ordered my Serena and Lily bedding, they have an entire area in the back with fabric swatches from a variety of different companies so you can put together the perfect nursery for your baby or child.  Petite Chateau is not only for babies and children either, its an all home goods type of store, in terms of furniture, clothing for women etc.  You really do need to stop by and take a peek.  And you can always pop by LGO for some delicious Tammie Coe pastries since they are right around the corner.

Homemade Baby Food

Curious if homemade baby food is the route to take when starting Maddie on "solids"...

My sister purchased a Beeba Baby Food Maker a couple months ago when Kaia was already eating solids.  I assume because my sister barely used it and because Kaia is now fully eating solids with no baby food anymore that I will inherit this little device:

Beeba Baby Food Maker
(purchased at Williams-Sonoma $149.95)

I've used this a couple of times to make food for Kaia.  I would use already cooked meats with a portion of vegetables of some kind .  You put all the chosen foods into the processor with a certain amount of water and depending on the density of the food you steam for level 1, 2 or 3 (length of time).  Once it beeps at you, you are ready to hit the process button and all the food gets ground up into a mushy baby food substance.  I think I really like this concept and will hopefully use it often when Maddie starts to eat solids.  The storage containers are convenient too.  You dollop the food into these little compartments snap on the lid and pop in the freezer. 



Beeba Food Storage Containers

(Williams-Sonoma $19.95)

I think it would be doubly convenient if they had the capability of all snapping apart separately so that when you are ready for the defrosting process you can just take one container and move it into the fridge and even serve out of the container.  

There is one device that I found online that has some handy little containers, the Baby Bullet, which I didn't even realize existed until I did an online search.  I am a huge fan of the Magic Bullet and will be adding it to my wish list here shortly, but the Baby Bullet is a convenient little device mimicking the capabilities of the Magic Bullet, but miniaturized.  One big negative in my opinion of the baby food maker is that you have to pre-cook your foods before putting them in the blender.  I don't even think the containers are microwavable (which you wouldn't want to do anyway).  So what's the point of spending the $80+S.H. on this device if it does the same exact thing as its Father the Magic Bullet?  The only thing I really like about this device is the individual containers you can use for storage that are BPA free and good to go in terms of babies.  You can kind of see them in the image to the back under the BPA free logo.  They are purchasable separately, but run $24.95 for the freezer storage and the to-go containers (maybe a better deal than the Beeba freezer containers).

Baby Bullet

from the makers of the "Magic Bullet"

4 easy payments of $19.99

http://www.babybullet.com/

 All in all I'm trying to get my research on and will hopefully be a domestic diva in terms of food preparations for my family in the future.  I will be a workin' mama so its gonna be a lot to juggle, but how difficult is it to throw those foods into the little Beeba push a button then process??  Baby food is so simple.  My sister relied heavily on the Plum Organic baby foods which to tell you the truth were delicious (did i seriously taste it?? shh!!) but devastatingly expensive at $1.19 per serving!!! So if i want to avoid sticker shock, but provide good wholesome food for my little one, then homemade is probably the way to go...once the time comes I will update on progress - until then, enjoy some Champagne Before Breakfast!

Maddie's Nursery

I am a....horrible decision maker.  I very well could be the most indecisive person in the world.  I am currently 4 weeks out from my due date of our first daughter Madison Noelle and just this past weekend picked out, purchased and put together her nursery furniture.  And despite my horrible decision making processes I wanted to share my favorites from her room. 

Pottery Barn Kids was the brand of all her nursery furniture and even though I narrowed down the brand there have so many beautiful options and currently running some very tantalizing specials on their baby furniture that it made my decision even more difficult than before.  However my mother in law was in town and decision needed to be made especially since she was buying the crib for us!  And the winner is:

Sleigh Crib by Pottery Barn Kids
(Antique White Finish)

I love the thought of their Larkin Sleigh crib, but we don't live in a mansion and it would literally dominate her room and in my opinion in a thicker wood looks better in a darker richer color vs. white so we went with the more narrow sleigh crib.  I also fought with myself on the Madison crib, which is oh so fitting considering our daughter's name will be Madison, but in all honesty it just was not as economical as the sleigh.  Originally when commencing the crib search the pricing on the Pottery Barn Kids furniture was a little on the high side, which it still is but (for some reason) just before purchasing most of the cribs went on sale/discount, which I was thrilled to find out!  The sleigh was originally $699 (gasp!) but so conveniently and recently reduced to $499!!  Yay :) On top of that the manager (cute little pixie looking lady) at the Fashion Square Mall location was nice enough to:

1.  give us the 10% registry completion discount even though it was a day before my baby shower
2.  skip the shipping/handling and set up charges through the company Pottery Barn uses
3.  charge us only $20 for UPS delivery from the mall to our home. (set up is apparently a breeze and not worth the $80) 

So although we are 2 weeks from delivery of said crib we are well on our way to making all final decisions!  And a big ol' thank you to my mother in law Lucy for the Sleigh Crib!!

Onward to the changing table!  This was chosen and purchased at the same time as the crib and I could not be happier with my decision. My mom and dad were generous enough to purchase the changing table for us as a gift for baby Maddie.  My parents and fully aware of my inability to make decisions and so I told them to look at whatever changing tables they wanted as long as it was an antique white finish and somewhat matched the crib.  And I am so thankful my parents are diligent about their research (mainly because I'm not) and looked at all the changing table on PBK and compared prices vs. ratings vs. comments and decided that the best bang for your buck was...

The Ultimate Changing Table
(Antique White Finish) 

This was another smart and economical purchase.  Looking at this picture it doesn't really look all that sturdy right?? That's what I was thinking when I searching for changing table online.  However, once we got the product home and built, I could not be happier.  This little gem originally $399 on sale for $299 and on top of that got my 10% registry completion discount the day before my shower!  The pixie manager also brought the product that was in the store out to the delivery bay so we could move it into our car and bring it home same day, no shipping no nothin' :) so pleased!  We did not purchase the baskets though.  My mom and I are making a trip out to world market to get some less expensive options and then we will be making basket liners with the extra fabric that I ordered from Serena and Lily!

To complete the wooden furniture in the room (one of the very few decision I made early on during the registry process) was the nightstand.  It is the matching nightstand to the Sleigh Crib design and just 100% absolutely adorable and perfect.  It was purchased for my by my very generous Aunt and Uncle in Kennett Square, PA and surprisingly landed on my door step almost 2 weeks pre-shower :) it was the first piece of furniture for Maddie's room and currently home to her lamp, Tiffany's pink/bunny porcelain coin bank and a bunch of classic books (which we will read everyday)  Again a big thank you to my Aunt Deanna and Uncle Bruce for this little gem!

Sleigh Side Table

(Antique White Finish)

My all time favorite item in her room thus far....her glider or more so my glider considering I'll be the one spending the midnight hours sitting there feeding her (I truly am looking forward to this).   The glider was a difficult decision because it has to be extremely comfortable, but look the part at the same time.  Gliders are also extremely expensive!! The one we chose running $599 (gasp!)  Some of which look like they are meant for a baby room and cannot be used anywhere else.  Others are disguised under very good looking exteriors hiding their capabilities beneath the sheath and therefore, in my opinion, much more economical because once the baby age is over it can be moved and used in another room :) not just as a rocker/glider but as a real time piece of furniture.  This precious piece was selected from BuyBuyBaby my second store of choice. Extremely comfortable, to the point where I go into her room just to sit in it (while shamefully shedding tears while reading my belly books).  It was purchased by my generous and loving sister Marissa along with a variety of other baby items - so thankful for her :)  This picture was actually take in her nursery and what we will consider the "reading corner"

Ultra Plush Glider

(Courderoy Camel Color)

The matching glider stool was purchased by my adoring husband who went out for the 3rd time that day just to pick it up!  What a guy :) He also had to mention that he spent a good portion of a morning in court (for work) to pay for it! 

So that concludes my furniture selections in her nursery.  I am so overly pleased with all my choices (giggles giddily with self achievement) and selections and am eagerly (and I mean eagerly) anticipating the arrival of our bundle of joy, especially now that her room is almost complete!