Fourth of July

This was Emma's second 4th of July but last year she was so little that she didn't really know what was going on. Gosh, a lot changes in a year!
My parents always have people over to their house and have lots of food and a TON of big, reservation fireworks. We didn't go over there last year because Emma was only 5 months old and I was in the midst of transitioning her from her Amby bed to her own crib and I was (actually still am) really strict about her sleep schedule. Since they don't start setting the fireworks off until after dark, if we had stayed that would mean we wouldn't get home until long after Emma's bedtime.
I'm still a nap/sleep Nazi and was super nervous about letting her stay up late and watch fireworks, but my husband seemed to think it was fine so we stayed. I had actually told my mom that we would only come over for a little bit and leave before firework time. I'm really glad we did stay, though because Emma was just so cute about it.
My husband laid her on his chest and they snuggled under a blanket while she laughed, clapped and signed "more". I was worried that keeping her up late would throw off her whole schedule, but it didn't and she's just fine. In my defense, though, most of the reason I'm so strict about her schedule is because I worked really hard to set it up almost from the day we brought Emma home from the hospital. She was such an easy baby, sleeping 8 hours at night from the time she was 6 weeks old, and now is an easy toddler. She's easy going, mellow and predictably (unless she's sick or teething) sleeps 10-12 hours at night and 1-3 hours during the day for her nap. I attribute that to keeping her on a schedule, not wavering unless absolutely necessary. Oh my, I almost forgot....this post is about the fourth of July, not sleeping schedules, anyway...
With all that said, we had a great time at my parent's house, eating and watching fireworks. It was all worth it to see Emma having so much fun.
She hasn't stopped talking about it since. When we ask her about the fireworks, she says: "pshhhh" and waves her arms around. Then she covers her ears (my husband was covering her ears during the show). See what I mean here:

Awesome Homemaking event at HappilyDomestic!

Here's an event definitely worth checking out! My bloggy friend, Beth, who runs the blog HappilyDomestic, is having a "Joys of Homemaking" event to celebrate her one year blogiversary on July 17th. She's got some great prizes lined up and promises to teach us moms and homemakers some useful skills. I know I could definitely use some cool products to make life at home easier, how about you? Check it out!

Toddler Tuesday: Water fun!

It's summer time, and I'm really excited because Emma's at a really fun age and we'll be able to a lot more activities this year. Last summer was nice, she was 4-6 months old and didn't mind being toted around, but this year she actually plays! And I love finding fun activities to entertain her. Here she is playing in the pool with her little boyfriend!

Smartipants Diaper Review and Giveaway!

Even before I was pregnant I began thinking about using cloth diapers. But thinking was really all I did for a while, after all between 2 baby showers and a huge diaper cake, we didn't end up having to buy diapers for a couple months because we had so many disposables. And I must say, my husband was not nearly as excited as I was about switching to cloth and would insist that if I wanted to use cloth, I was on my own. Nevertheless, I was determined.

 So I admit that I didn't start using cloth until Emma was 6 months old and even then I could only afford to buy a few covers, which I used with prefolds that I found at a thrift store while secretly dreaming of a big, fluffy stash of pocket diapers and AIO's.  Cloth diapering does require a larger upfront investment than disposables, and that can be really scary. Once I got over it, though, it was totally worth it!! The first pocket diapers I ever bought were a 3 pack of Smartipants, I never looked back, I was hooked.  At that time Smartipants were relatively new on the market and lots of moms were raving about them, including one of my good friends (who lovingly pushed me into and reminded me of my desire to use cloth diapers).  I checked out their website and loved what I saw, especially the price ($14.95 per diaper or $39.95 per 3 pack), so I ordered a girl color 3 pack right away. You can read my post about it here.

These diapers really stand up to wear. When I first started using them, and for about 3 months, they were pretty much my whole stash because I didn't really care for prefolds and covers, so I was washing every day! I've been using the 3 original diapers for about 10 months now and they still function perfectly and look awesome.
Here is the same pink Smartipants diaper on Emma at about 8 months old:

and currently, at 16 months old. She's about 25 pounds and still on the second snap setting, so they will most likely still fit when we start potty training. That makes them a great investment!

 


I can say with 100% honesty that the only regret I have regarding cloth diapering is that I didn't start sooner. And Smartipants are the perfect diaper for a first timer! They are so easy to use and wash, they're onesize (which means they'll fit a baby from birth to potty training), easily adjustable and the insert comes out on it's own in the wash (my favorite feature!).  Even my husband had to admit that it wasn't as bad as he thought it would be.
Smartipants feature:

• Leak guard technology, a unique "smart sleeve" that keeps the insert in place and keeps moisture from seeping out of the diaper
• a super-thirsty microfiber insert that agitates out of the diaper on it's own in the wash
• a waterproof outer layer=no cover required!
• soft, microfleece lining that wicks moisture away from baby's skin and cleans up so easily!
• gentle elastic along the legs and waist, helping to contain even the messiest of "business" (and they have definitely been put to the test on Emma)
• snap closure and one-size adjustment
• a really neat wrap up and store feature which allows you to wrap up the soiled diaper, fold the wings in and snap 'em together. This is so handy for when you're out and forgot the wetbag. Just wrap it up, snap it and toss it in the diaper bag.

Soon after my initial experience with Smartipants, I bought more and they now make up about a third of my stash, I just love them, they are the perfect daytime diaper! I think every parent should be using Smartipants, so one of my lucky readers is going to win a Smartipants onesize diaper in the color of his/her choice!!


How to enter
Each action counts as one entry unless otherwise stated.  Leave a separate comment for each entry and please include your email address. You must complete the mandatory entry before you are eligible for any other entries.


**Mandatory Entry**
Visit Smartipants, then come back here and tell me which color you would choose if you won. Please leave your email address in your comment or make sure it's visible on your website/blog so I can contact you!


Extra Entries

• Follow me publicly through google friend connect-counts as 3 entries! Leave 3 separate comments.
• Subscribe to my blog through email
• Grab my button and tell me where it is posted
• Blog about this giveaway, link back to my site and leave me the URL

This giveaway will end Friday, July 16, 2010. Winner will be drawn by an online random number generator and will be notified by email.  Winner must respond to my email within 48 hours or a new winner will be drawn.  This giveaway is open to US residents ONLY. Must be 18 years old or older to win.


Good luck!!

Friday blog hop!

I love blog hops! They are such a great way to "meet" new people. I've learned so much from blogging. The community of mom bloggers is so welcoming and friendly, there really is a place for everyone! I'm currently in the process of becoming a reviewer and beginning to host giveaways. Please consider following me and/or subscribing, the more followers I get, the better giveaways I can do! Oh yeah, and grab my button, too. My husband worked real hard on it.

Her first boo-boo

Emma tripped and fell on the pavement the other day and suffered her first bloody, scraped knee. :( Guess what? She didn't even cry! Just got up and kept going, she's a girl on a mission! I didn't even know she had actually drawn blood until quite a bit later because she didn't complain at all. My daughter is so brave!

Look at her, looking like a big girl, having a snack on the deck. She REALLY looks like her dad in this picture.

Wordless Wednesday: Beautiful!

That's MY daughter!!