My baby can’t leave the house and I’m going nuts: what low-key games do you play with your infant?
My son spent most of his first four months of life in a hospital. Because he is so recently post-transplant, he can’t be in most public spaces without either a wee baby-sized face mask or without being in his stroller under a rain cover to block out airborne germs. We’ve played the same five games over and over — what else can we do to keep one another entertained?
This handcrafted heirloom Star Wars bassinet is perfect for your snoozing Padawan
Rebel Belle Wedding clients Dorian and Lynn are super deluxe Star Wars fans — the pair had a dinosaur/Star Wars-themed wedding that featured a real-life Millennium Falcon cake. Now they’re at it again, and this time they’ve got a baby on the way.
Adopting the son I helped to conceive: how second-parent adoption reframes parenthood
The second-parent adoption has been an ongoing reminder that I need to reframe my ideas of motherhood for myself. Through this entire journey of conception to adoption I have been tested on my ability to bring myself out of melancholy thoughts and into recognition of everything I have to be grateful for. Just because I have always identified as a mother in one way, doesn’t mean I cannot be as much of a mother in different way.
A happy yellow, green, blue and teal nursery with DIY touches and hand-me-down toys
We wanted a bright and cheerful room for our child’s nursery, and it definitely needed to be fit for a boy or girl. Instead of building the room around a theme we built it around color, and as you’ll see there’s DEFINITELY a lot of it in there!
I got over my fear of using The Crib
Last night, my four-and-a-half-month-old daughter slept in her crib for the first time. This was huge — not because co-sleeping isn’t working for us, and not because I even think that it’s so important that she can sleep in her crib. This was huge because it reminded me how making decisions as a parent works for me.
I feel like Attachment Parenting is detrimental to MY health: how do you define your boundaries?
I had read and read how “happy” attachment parenting babies were. Because they had confidence due to their needs being met, they were “good” babies. They didn’t cry if they were being breastfed on demand. The breast cures all! All articles had photos of smiling moms and babies that made parenting look so easy. I wish I would have come across one article that told the truth: “This isn’t going to be easy.”
What are your favorite baby books and toys that include dads?
So many baby and toddler books and toys seem mama-centric — from the “Nothing’s Okay until Mommy comes home!” genre of books (Are You My Mother?, etc.) to puzzles or toys depicting only mother animals with their babies — where are the DAD-themed books and toys?
Mini cribs transform your small space into something your kid can snooze in
Looking for something your baby can safely sleep in that also won’t take up a ton of space? GO FOR THE MINI CRIB! We’re long-time fans and so is Karen.