Off To Boot Camp

This morning Rosebud and I are off to Baby Boot Camp. I have been on maternity leave for 7 weeks now and I want to take advantage of this freedom and flexibility and do some things I won't be able to do after September. Although the baby weight came off right away I am ready to get toned, my goal is to be better than I was before the baby! I had already decided I would start the 30 Day Shred this week but when I saw the ad for Baby Boot Camp at the mall (and the first class is free) I couldn't resist. I will start 30 Day Shred tomorrow and I'm sure I'll hate every minute of it - I've heard it's brutal! Anyway, I have lots of pics to share from our weekend, Rosebud had a very busy social calendar and I had lots of fun dressing her up. More on that later ...

Tiny Dancer

Cookie Brownie Bars

Cookie Brownie Bars (otherwise known as heaven in the shape of a square) are another one of those goodies that someone brought to us when Rosebud was born. As soon as we started eating these Uncommon Husband declared it was his new favorite dessert and I had to get the recipe. So I made them last week and will likely be making them again this weekend (we can't let our stash get low!)

Cookie Brownie Bars

Ingredients:
3 tubes of chocolate chip cookie dough (Tollhouse or Pillsbury)
1 can of Eagle Brand milk
12 oz package of chocolate chips (not minis)
1 teaspoon of vanilla

Directions:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees
Grease 9X12 (something close to that) pan
Spread 1 and 3/4 tubes of cookie dough on bottom of pan
Melt chocolate chips and Eagle Brand milk on the stove; after melted add the vanilla
Let the chocolate mixture cool slightly and then spread on top of cookie dough
Crumble the remaining of the cookie dough on top of the chocolate
Bake at 350 for about 40 minutes. Keep an eye on them so the edges/top doesn't get too dark.

We refrigerate these and they are even better. They taste like cookie dough that way but much more delicious with the extras!

Pregnancy Must-Haves

Since earlier this week I posted about newborn essentials I figured I'd post my pregnancy favs for anyone who is interested. For everyone else, I apologize if you are dying of boredom on the baby theme right now ... I'm sure we'll be back to some non-baby blogging soon but until I'm out of the baby bubble but for now, this is what I've got.


Bella Band - hands down the best thing I bought while I was pregnant. This $25 thing made it possible to wear almost all of my regular pants up until 9 months. I was lucky to be pretty small throughout my pregnancy but I've heard from people who got really big that this was still a big hit both during and after pregnancy.




Tums Quick Dissolve - best invention ever. I used these like crazy and although they are more expensive than regular Tums, it's worth it not to have to chew them up if you're taking them 3 times a day. Thank God the heartburn is gone!






The Belly Book - my sister bought this for me and looking back through it now, it's a great way to remember all of the details of the pregnancy through both pictures and journaling.


Squish pillows - Everyone told me to get a body pillow, which I did and I loved, but squish pillows were something I also could not live without. These are small and easily mold to whatever you need them for - behind your back for lumbar support, under your tummy to make side sleeping more comfortable, they are even coming in quite handy for breastfeeding to prop my arm on. Love these!


Mini notebook - for for your purse to keep track of all of the lists you'll be making. Grocery lists, thank yous to write, things to do, you'll need a list of all of the lists (only if you're severely type A like me)


Good friends and a wonderful husband - no explanation necessary


What were/are your pregnancy must haves?

In Case We Forget

In case we forget what Rosebud is, we can always check her pajamas ...

She looks annoyed because I woke her up with all of the clicking of the camera, she better get used to it :)

Why the need to put "baby" in big letters on baby clothes? We have a few articles of clothing like this and it seems a little bit odd to me. Do I need to start wearing a shirt that says "adult" on it?

Hurricane Betty

Did you know that aside from being my grandmother, Betty is a disaster preparedness expert? When it rains in Africa, Betty calls me. We live in Florida and any bad weather in Africa could potentially turn into a tropical disturbance, which could possibly hit Florida, therefore creating a need to launch into Defcon 5 and implement our evacuation plan. The most recent storms out in the Atlantic have already prompted several calls from her, because what's a hurricane plan if you don't talk about it every. single. day. She asks me every single time the topic of a hurricane comes up what our evacuation plan is. We have only told her a million times but I guess she likes the reassurance. I know it's because she doesn't have a whole lot of other things to worry about but it gets a little but tedious. I find my evil side coming out when my irritation peaks and I say things like "We're just going to stay and ride it out regardless." Knowing that this will only cause her to imagine us buried under a pile of rubble, starving, dehydrated, and surrounded by looters. It's lots of fun.

Believe me, Uncommon Husband and I have earned our halos when it comes to dealing with Betty and hurricanes. A few years ago when we had several back to back storms, Uncommon Husband went to Betty's and she had him move all of her furniture upstairs by himself, (even the oriental rugs) because she lives on the water and was worried about flooding. If Hurricane Charley would have actually hit here, her roof would have been blown off and everything would probably have been destroyed anyway. After that, he packed up Betty and my then 99 year old great grandmother and brought them to our house where we spent the weekend watching the weather channel and discussing how Betty was going to fling herself into the closet if it got really bad. That was a weekend to remember (or forget, depending on how you look at it!). Thankfully our house is no longer #1 on the list for evacuations, she has found someone even further inland so we are safe for now. For now I just have to wait for my daily storm update to find out when I need to get out the emergency supplies. Let the storms begin!

Newborn Must-Haves

Since this blog has been temporarily hijacked by all things related to babies, I thought I'd write a post about the things that have been lifesavers in these first few weeks of Rosebud's life. I know many of you already have children but if you know someone who is pregnant, any of these items would make fabulous gifts.

Aden & Anais swaddle blankets are a must-have! A friend recommended these to me and we literally use them every day. These soft muslin blankets are big enough to get the perfect swaddle, but not bulky. I also feel like the fabric is perfect because it's breathable and doesn't let my little snugglebug get too hot. I had to get the "boy colors" because there was only one set left at the store that sells them locally, however, I'm not into the concept that everything has to be pink so I like the variety. They are a little pricey but seriously worth every penny.

The Happiest Baby on the Block- The most genius book/dvd ever. We watched the dvd on day 3 and I wish we would have done it earlier. After we watched it I felt like someone had thrown us a life raft. If you are having a baby, you MUST see this!

Mylicon- Thank the lord I read another blog that recommended having this on hand. I'm really not into "medicine" but these drops are totally safe and they are like magic - she stops crying instantly when she's having tummy pains and we use these.

The Sleep Sheep - once you watch the Happiest Baby dvd, you'll want a sleep sheep. The ocean waves noise soothes Rosebud and I personally love sleeping with it on myself. It is helpful not to have to keep "shushing" ourselves, we just turn this thing on and everyone sleeps in heavenly peace.

The Baby Papasan Infant Seat is also a genius lifesaving invention. We gave two of these to our friends who had twins last year. She gave one of them back to me when her boys outgrew them and thank God she did. This is probably not something I would have registered for since the bouncy seat seems like the same thing, but holy mother is this thing good! We found out in the first week that Rosebud would sleep soundly in this because it is so snuggly. I love this chair ... (you can't see much of the chair in this pic but it's another excuse to show off my beautiful baby)

Bebe Au Lait nursing cover - I originally registered for a cover from Target but it didn't have enough fabric and you couldn't see the baby. I ordered this one from their website and it's sooo much better. Definitely worth the money. My sister loves to make jokes about this thing though - the company that makes Bebe Au Lait also makes the same thing under the label "Hooter Hiders" (obviously not targeted at my demographic - not a ladylike name!), mine happens to have a Hooter Hider label, much to my chagrin.

These are my newborn essentials, I know it's different for everyone but these are the things I have loved! I think I'll also post pregnancy essentials this week while it's still fresh in my memory. What were your newborn essentials?

Hoarding Mentality

On this blog I have already confessed my obsession with overstocking my cabinets with things such as shampoo and paper towels but my hoarding mentality has gone to a new level now that I have entered the strange new world of motherhood. So far, I have been to the grocery store twice without the baby and both times I have gotten home and realized I bought some pretty random stuff. Prior to last month, I planned my menus for the week every Sunday, made my list and then bought and prepped things for the week. Now that life is less predictable, I find myself at the grocery store feeling like I better stock up because I might never get to go again. Of course this is ridiculous and although I recognize this irrational fear, I can't stop myself from stocking up on strange things like rice and bar-b-q sauce. I cleaned out my pantry the week before Rosebud was born and everything looked neat and organized - now it's bursting with things like 6 boxes of cereal and 4 bottles of marinade. It's hard to find things when it's so full - I have to stop!

Breaking Out of the Baby Bubble

I got out of the house on Thursday night for a few hours. It felt wonderful! I've been to the grocery store and Target a few times sans baby but not anywhere for more than an hour. I left baby girl with a bottle and her daddy, and went to a social event with some friends (last year it was a fashion safari). When I walked in I almost didn't know what to think, it literally felt like I'd been in a baby bubble for a month! Even though I've seen friends when they've come over, I haven't done anything "normal" in so long. My life has a new normal now, it's fabulous and I wouldn't trade it for anything - but it's definitely different! Rosebud cried the whole time I was gone I was gone so that made me sad but it wasn't really because I was gone, she just had a really fussy night (but I still felt terribly guilty when I got home). The good thing is that although my life is totally different now, I'm still me.

The event was at Saks so we decided to accessorize a bit ...

While You Were Sleeping

While you were sleeping ...


I was admiring how absolutely perfect and beautiful you are.

A few things I've learned

A few things I've learned over the past 4 weeks ...

Old people have lots of opinions on parenting and they are not afraid to express those opinions. I am learning to ignore these comments

I currently have 3 speeds - dead asleep (I fall into a deep sleep as soon as I lay down), one handed speed (holding a baby hinders the ability to get things done) and warp speed - if someone is holding her, or she's asleep, I hit my other tasks like a tornado.

Efficiency and prioritizing is key. I thought I was efficient before I had a baby but now I can get a whole morning's worth of chores done in less than 45 minutes.

If I want to eat, I better do it fast. Inevitably, as soon as I get my food the baby always starts crying or wakes up. Therefore, I find myself eating like a Marine.

There is nothing better than holding your baby!

Just to clarify

I've had every intention of blogging since Wednesday but there's a little person demanding my attention and when she's sleeping I am doing a mad dash to get as many things done as possible (or I'm sleeping). I do have a new motto - "Sleep is for the weak" lol - makes me feel better about the lack of sleep I'm getting.

I feel like I need to clarify something though. On the blog, I've been referring to the baby as "Rosebud" - we're not actually calling her that in real life, it's just a nickname for the internetz. There are a lot of creepy creepers on the internet and I wanted to have a nickname for her since I don't even blog under my own name. A few people have mentioned that they like our nickname for her and I realized people think it's what we're calling her. It's cute but we're definitely calling her by her given name. Rosebud is just her screen name. Isn't she adorable?!?

Thank heaven for friends who cook

The people who have cooked for us in the last few weeks are my favorite people in the world. Aside from my mother and sister who made lots of delicious dinners and made sure we didn't die of malnourishment during these last few weeks, a few of my friends have really come through with some fabulous treats! I have taken dinner to friends with new babies before but I never truly understood how much it makes a difference until it was my turn. It seems like a simple thing when you're home all day but it's all about having an extended period of *uninterrupted* time - that just doesn't happen. A few people have brought dinner but those people who have brought cookies or desserts are just as fabulous. I am a total dessert person and I've found a wonderful benefit of breastfeeding - I seem to be burning major calories because I am back to my pre-baby weight/size and I can snack and eat dessert every day! It's going to be hard to break those habits but hopefully going back to work will make it easier.

The cookies we had made as favors for Rosebud's first visitors were adorable.



Another fabulous friend brought this delicious treat ...


I made these Chess Squares from a recipe from a friend who also brought dinner last week. With dinner, she brought these brownie bars that were amazing - I got the recipe for those as well and I'll post the recipe and photo next week when I make them again.

Chess Squares

1 Box Yellow Cake Mix
1 Stick Butter (melted)
3 Eggs
1 8-ounce Package Cream Cheese
1 Box Powdered Sugar

Mix cake mix, butter (melted), and 1 egg. Spread in bottom of 9 x 13 inch pan (I usually spray with Pam). Mix cream cheese, 2 eggs, and powdered sugar. Pour on top. Bake at 350 for 30 minutes. Reduce heat (to approximately 200) and cook until center is firm.

All this talk about food has made me hungry - I'm off to get a snack ;)

All by myself

Well, all of my family left this weekend so we are on our own. I'm not really all by myself, uncommon husband is here (and he is wonderful) but I liked the drama of that blog title. My mom was here for the first week and a half after Rosebud was born and my sister has been here for more than 2 weeks.



My brother and his wife also came to visit this past weekend. (aren't they really, really ridiculously good looking? - that's a zoolander reference in case you were wondering)

I can't even explain how wonderful it has been to be surrounded by so much love and support during this time in our lives. I feel like my mom literally saved our sanity after those first two nights at home. We were beyond exhausted and really had no idea what we were doing, I think we were sleeping for maybe 10 minutes at a time throughout the night. After our 2nd sleepless night at home my mom offered to stay and help us, and it felt like God smiled down on us. It wasn't that she did anything all that different, she just showed us that every little noise didn't mean something was wrong. She helped at night and allowed uncommon husband to get some sleep and that made a world of difference. He lost 12 pounds in the 5 days after Rosebud was born - talk about a crash diet! My sister also was a lifesaver, every time I turned around things were clean and taken care of - laundry, cleaning, groceries. It was also incredible to have someone to help with the baby all of the time. I honestly didn't realize how great it was until today when I've been alone all day! I am learning to get things done with one hand. We won't be alone for long, my in-laws are coming this weekend but for this week it's just the two of us. I think we'll be just fine ...

I've got blog posts bouncing around in my head like a pinball machine but I'm finding my computer time is very limited - we'll see what we actually end up with this week!