Roaming in Rome. Part 3.

Roaming in Rome. Part 3.
There are so many things we did, saw and ate in Rome that don't fit into any kind of category. I shared about how marvelous it was to bring my 10-month-old son to this eternal city, how fascinating everything truly was, especially the second time around, and how ancient this place felt. However, to leave the narrative of this trip at that would be irresponsible of me, because there were so many moments I experienced between my eye and the camera lens that were striking, enriching, elaborate and exceedingly funny. These moments were like the delicious ingredients that so sweetly flavored the whole trip for me. The outlier experiences. Things like, watching my husband dance unabashedly with my son while we waited for our pizza to arrive at the table. Like watching the pigeons primp their filthy feathers atop the statues' heads in the Piazza Navona. The curious water fountains you can drink from throughout the city and the trying on of leather goods and the munching on bruchetta while wandering through the flower district. Watching horse races in the Borghese Park and the fiats line up in a rainbow of cute and the windows open up midday. All of these charming moments were treasures, painting the trip in a truly rosy shade of optimism for me. This is the stuff of life. The little moments that make the big impact. Delicious. Precious. Unsung heroes of traveling tales.

St. Peter's Basilica, in all it's pomp and glory.

My Ergo men. Everett still in his pjs, because, well... he was on vacation too.

Have you ever seen a car evoke such fun?

I love Italians.

I think this horse show was a rather big deal. Too bad I didn't understand any of the commentary.

You can find these water fountains all over the city. People drink straight from them or fill up their water bottles. Even though Rick Steves said the water was okay to drink, I wasn't brave enough.

For this? I was brave enough.

He's delicious.

Rome is ubiquitous with churches like this. They are on every corner of every street, no exaggeration. And when you peek inside, each and every one of them are breathtaking.

If you follow us on instagram, you might remember when I posted about Everett finding his (loud!) voice in this silent church. Oops.

He's made everything about my life better. Except for the ever-present eye circles. But I'll take em.

Flowers wrapped in paper, tied up with strings. Isn't that from the "Favorite Things" song?

Some kind of decadent, lemony-orange-hybrid.

The view the Pope wakes up to. PERSPECTIVE.

Stevie pointed out that all the statues showcase old guys as ripped. Then he paused for a moment, then said, "If I could make a statue of myself, I would want it to look ripped, too."

That's a wrap!

Thanks for letting me share. And thanks for following along on our first international family trip; it was certainly a special one! I hope there will be many many more to come.

But you know what? I learned on this trip that adventure doesn't have to be a plane flight away. Niether does inspiration or creativity. Yes, spending time with my family in Rome certainly made me feel adventurous and inspired, and I have come back to the States full of all kinds of ideas and plans  (with little time to implement everything in my heart). But! Some of the most adventurous parts about this trip were experiencing the everyday moments as a new mom, experiencing all these new things through the eyes of my darling son. It doesn't take seeing the Vatican or drinking the foreign wine to feel extra special or adventurous. But watching Everett discover pizza? Taste gelato? And laugh at the birds preening themselves in the fountains? Well gosh. My heart just comes undone. These things were truly thrilling. Yes, the wine was good, don't get me wrong. IT WAS VERY GOOD. But nothing came close to how much fun it was to push Everett on the park swing, watch him sway to the dinnertime accordion music, and marvel at discovering his voice can echo in a cathedral.

There are adventures around every corner. Even at home. Even where everything is "regular". We just have to shift our focus to look for those moments, pause and revel in them a bit, and celebrate! I'm learning how to do this. I'm not great at it. But being a parent makes you sloooow down, so these moments are a bit easier for me to grasp these days.

You don't have to travel to Rome to pause for a moment. You don't have to travel to Rome for adventure. All it takes is a bit of patience, stepping outside the normal routines of the day, and giving yourself the moment to drink in the deliciousness of life. May there be a bit of dolce vita for us all!

Happening Lately.

Happening Lately.

After a month of almost non-stop travel, we are finally back home! My little family has experienced a lot of adventures since the end of April, and we have had SO MUCH FUN, but we are seriously ready to get back to normal. Babies thrive on routines. Heck, I thrive on a routine. It's back to grocery lists and scheduled naps and, oh yeah, this thing happened while we were gone - SUMMER!!!

I am still in the process of compiling all the photos from our trips to St. Simons Island and Rome (I found a few more Madrid photos and added them to the previous post, in case you're interested in seeing a few more) and I will have those up for you over the next week or so. One trip that I have almost zero photos from is the one from this past week - I was in Florida with my husband's family, where we basically go back in time and pretend that technology doesn't exist. Which was fitting because, this year, none of our technology worked anyway! The service on the beach that we love seemed to be worse than ever, so it wasn't hard to forget about owning a phone or computer. We just relaxed by the ocean and watched our babies eat sand while we ate grapes and sandwiches. I actually read a book. Well, part of a book. Okay, I read two chapters of a book and it was spectacular. I forgot how desperately much I love to read. It's been a long year of very little reading, but now that my baby is getting older, I feel like some of those pastimes will make a comeback in my world. Fingers crossed. Anyway, all that to say that I actually have very few pictures of the family beach trip (except for the few snippets above), because I needed to take a break and check out from my usual over-photographing, and that is quite alright. I got the memories!

I hope you all have some wonderful summer plans on the horizon. Since we stacked all our summer travel at the beginning of the season, come July and August I will probably be itching for another trip! But that's okay. I will just live vicariously through all of your vacation photos :) In the mean time, I hope you have a marvelous Monday and soak in some of this warmth!

Happening Lately.

Happening Lately.
We knew the month of May would be a little crazy. But it usually is for everyone - travel, graduations, birthdays, it always seems like the busiest month of the year. This May is no exception.

We have just gotten back in town after a week-long "work trip" at the beach. Actually, Stevie really did work the entire time, but I got to explore a new locale with Everett and we had such a sweet time together. Everything was slower-paced, both because I had a baby in tow and because the pace of life at St. Simons Island is slooooow. And it was just the absolute best. It gave me permission to relax a bit and get used to having a baby completely on my own in a tiny crowded hotel space - and we made it! More than made it, we totally loved it. More about this lovely trip next week though. I have great pictures and some of my favorite discoveries to share :)

Shopping + Swings Date.
A baby of 9 months is a baby of FUN. I can't believe how full-circle things have become with my little son. In the beginning, the days were long and tiresome. Oh wait. That hasn't changed. But our sleep patterns have improved and I am adoring this season that we are in together. He is a bundle of fun, curious about the world and discovering new things all the time. He has a great compass for humor and he legitimately has me cracking up laughing 10 times a day. I can't imagine what toddler-hood is like, because he is already crawling everywhere and getting into trash cans, eating my shoes, dissembling my purse, the works. But his newest and most favorite discovery is the park swing -  HE LOVES SWINGING. It's a delight! We have started going to the swings everyday, even if its only for 15 minutes. The other fun thing we did this week was shop - he accompanied me in my dress-shopping endeavor to find something for a wedding next week - what a patient gentleman he was. I think we picked a good one. All in all, he is just becoming my little buddy who is along the ride for anything. It's been such a blast.

Everett Got a Passport.
So obviously I dressed him up in a bow tie for his photo. I can't wait to see it - we pick up with completed passport this week. Someone's getting ready for his first international flight! Are we nutso or what?!

Snazzy Atlanta Wedding Heyyyooo.
It's wedding season! We've had the privilege of attending quite a few over the past month, and we are headed to another next week! But this last wedding was a particularly special one, because it was in honor of Stevie's cousin, whom we love, and the celebration was like a family reunion. It didn't hurt that we partied on an Atlanta rooftop whilst enjoying the splendid view, delicious food, and dancing the night away. A baby-free night is a good one, especially when there's a bit of bubbly involved.

Travel!
Coming Up: Stevie's Birthday in MADRID, an international Flight WITH A BABY, and a Wedding in Rome! Ah!

I'm seriously not sure if I am ready for all of this, but I guess it doesn't matter... because these things are coming up! We leave next Friday for our 9-day trip abroad... if you think about it, pray we have an easy time traveling with our baby! I am compiling gear, packing and repacking, making lists, etc. and hoping that it will all come together seamlessly. I won't be blogging along the way, like I did on our last Eurotrip, because I know I will have my hands a lot fuller this time, figuratively and literally! I really want to soak in the experience and focus on my family. So I have some posts pre-written and ready to go during the time that we will be gone. If you'd like to follow along the Euro experience, I will probably be over-posting on my Instagram, and obviously I will do lots of follow-up posts about our travel once we return. I am a bit of a travel glutton... so there will be lots of sharing!

Happy Mothering.
It's Mother's Day this weekend! My first ever! I have no idea what's in store, but I imagine that I will actually get to sleep in... maybe? That would really be something. If you haven't gotten your mama something yet, I put together a little guide a few weeks back. Hopefully it's helpful? Otherwise, enjoy your weekend, all you incredibly hardworking moms!

6 Tips for Road Tripping With a Baby

Tips for Road Tripping With a Baby.
We took a family road trip this week down to St. Simons Island, Georgia. Stevie has a work conference, so Everett and I decided to tag along and enjoy a mini vacation somewhere that we've never been before. We are never ones to turn down a new adventure, especially when there is a beach involved. I'll post more about the trip next week, but I did want to go ahead and share a few things that have worked for road tripping with this little guy. He's only 9 months old, but he is developing into a lovely road trip companion. I'm sure there will come a day where he just won't tolerate sitting in his car seat for so long, but right now, we are able to convince him to ride along with us as we hit some drive-able destinations. I'm not saying he is perfect during the entire trip, but we have found some helpful hacks for coercing him to be a pleasant ride-along car buddy. In light of summertime and everyone's upcoming travels, I thought I would share what has worked for us.

1. Leave at the Crack of Dawn.
I learned this one the hard way. I left at 10am for a 7-hour road trip, and my little babe was awake for most of it. Which meant he was bored, which meant he was LOUD, which meant everyone in the car was exercising their patience. For the next road trip, I decided to leave at 5am, in hopes that he would sleep for a good portion of the trip. And that is indeed what happened. Hallelujah. Here's how the 7-hour trip broke down: I woke up at 4:30am and got myself dressed and ready. The car was already packed the night before. I gently woke him up, changed his diaper, kept him in his pjs and placed him in his car seat. I did all of this in the dark. I was on the road at 5am, and he slept for the first three hours of the drive. At 8am we stopped at a Starbucks, fed Everett in the parking lot, then grabbed a coffee and breakfast sandwich to go. He fell back asleep until about 10:30am or so, and I started handing him toys in the back. One by one. Which brings me to my next point...

2. Pack Toys. A Lot of Toys.
Pack more than you could ever imagine you would need. An obnoxious amount. Once the novelty of riding along in the car gets old, those toys are your lifeline. I purchased this set of toys specifically for roadtripping and it has proven to be a worthy investment. The other thing is, everything can be a toy! A plastic water bottle, toilet paper rolls, Styrofoam cup, plastic sunglasses, you name it! I've started passing the strangest things back there to him, and it amuses him for a bit. My kiddo is a curious soul. Why wouldn't he want to stare soulfully into my hat? Sure.

Gotta stop to feed and change. But these stops are actually kinda fun! LOOK AT MY BABYYYY.

3. Pack Travel Food.
I make Everett's baby food for whenever we eat at home (which is most of the time), but when we travel it's a different story. I admire those ladies who lug around their canisters of homemade blended baby purees - but I just cannot do it. I've tried and it's just too much mess to pack up and take home, to then clean up again later. No thanks. Not for me. I stock up on easy travel food when we hit the road, and Everett LOVES it. I think he feels like it's a special treat :) Our favorites are these by Earth's Best, these by Happy Baby and these by Plum Organics. He is also really loving his appetizers by Happy Baby :) (I've been reading that French parenting book that recommends feeding children in courses, so Everett gets fancy these days with his appetizers).

4. Pack More Clothes/Diapers/Wipes Than You Think You Will Need.
Some weird things have happened on our road trips. Some weird, weird things. Blowouts, showering urine, gassyness that leads to... solidness. I'll leave it at that. But I always pack Everett THREE changes of clothes when we go anywhere. Three. Yes. Three.

5. Budget Extra Travel Time.
The days of blazing down the road, NO STOPS, is over. Man, me and Stevie used to tear up some mileage on road trips. I reminisced about my favorite all-time road trip with him the other day, when we used to drive from before the sun was up until late in the night. Those days. Are over. In the new era, with a baby and gear and breastfeeding breaks and diaper change breaks and YOU NAME IT breaks, we stop often. There's just no way around it. So budgeting extra travel time is a must, especially if you're super type-A and you like to "race" your Googlemaps estimate. Not like my husband does that or anything. Needless to say, we've had to make some expectation adjustments.

Sleeping baby. Makes for a very happy mommy.

6. Enjoy it!
This is so important. I'm continuously learning about how much life has changed with Everett's arrival in my world, and everything is truly, infinitely better with him. It is. Everything is also really truly different. Vacations look different, my idea of rest looks different, and certainly the way I roadtrip is so so different. But he is also so much fun, and I find myself staring at him wondering what I was doing with my life before he came along. Like, why did I wait so long to have him?? Well, actually, I know the answer to that. But still! My baby is the best. So grateful that I can take him along for journeys and adventures!

And bonus tip - Coldplay does wonders for putting a baby to sleep in the car. THAT CHRIS MARTIN. Okay, there it is, folks. All my road trip tricks in a nutshell. For all of you planning to road trip and travel this summer, I hope this helps!

Teething: The 7 Must Haves!

Teething: The 7 Must Haves by oykristen

The 7 Teething Products You Must Have for your Baby!

We have been in teething land up in here. For those of you who aren't familiar with teething, it's pretty much when your child turns into the hulk. They scream. They cry.  They don't sleep. They're inconsolable. And they gnaw, chew and drool on everything in sight. It's fun times people. Fun times. Everett sprouted his two lower teeth with a day of each other, so he was in significant discomfort in the days and weeks leading up to that epic milestone. He's currently working on breaking his top teeth in, and we are once again, in the throws of hulk-land. Poor baby. Poor me. Seriously... poor me.

A few products that have helped us ride out the storm:

1. Hylands Teething Tablets.

When he's teething, I make sure to give these Hyland's Homeopathic Teething Tablets to him as recommended on the bottle. Especially at night! I want him to have all the possible resources to sleep well, and these tend to knock him out. They're all-natural, and I did a bit of research on the ingredients, so I don't feel weird about giving them to him.

2. Hylands Teething Gel.

Along with the teething tablets, I rub this Hyland's Teething Gel on his gums when he's really in pain. I find this product a little bit more challenging to use, because it's hard to actually get the gel onto his gums (and he immediately licks it off, which... is that good??) but I try nonetheless because it seems to help him calm down. After the wiggling, squealing, and licking off of the gel.

3. Amber Teething Necklace.

Yes, my baby son wears a necklace. This Amber Crown Teething Necklace to be exact. And he looks spectacular in it. He might get mistaken for being a girl from time to time, but it doesn't matter to me because that just means he's cute. No seriously, this necklace has been a lifesaver. When he's really in pain, he acts out by being fussy and wriggly and uncontrollable. Within twenty minutes of wearing this necklace, he's back to his happy self, laughing and interacting and playing. Apparently, the stone amber has anti-inflammatory properties which, when worn against the skin, helps to soothe the pain of teething. Yes, sounds hippie-dippy, I know. But sometimes that crazy hippie stuff works!

4. Honest Company Baby Teether.

This Honest Baby Teether is a great chew toy for your little rascal, since it's made of non-toxic silicone and has "handles" made by the shape of the butterfly wings. It's easy for the baby to hold and gnaw on, and I personally like that I can link his little pacifier clip around it and clip it to his clothes. That way we aren't constantly bending over to pick up his teether (which he inevitably drops like 50 times in a 20-minute gnaw session).

5. Munchkin Feeder.

Another great option for the miserable baby is this Munchkin Fresh Food Feeder. It's great because you can put a frozen piece of fruit or even ice into the mesh, click it in the feeder, and the baby can safely gum on it until is dissolves. My only qualm with this is that, depending on what you put in it, things can get messy like, lightning fast. But if you don't mind a sticky (though happy!) baby, then go for it.

6. Chew Toys.

Sophie the Giraffe is obviously the famous little French teething toy that practically every mom-to-be receives at a baby shower. We were no exception, and this has been a great teether for Everett to chew chew chew on. However, I recently found this this similar toy at Target, and it's been the biggest hit! I think because it's got some good ears to chew on.

7. Baby Tylenol.

Okay, I loathe the idea of giving my child drugs. I really really really try to avoid it at all cost. But we had one day where my sweet boy was just out of control by the pain of his teeth-to-be, and I exhausted all the above options. I also did my best to distract him by feeding, playing, rocking, reading, going for a walk outside... nothing worked! I finally gave in and gave him a bit of Infant Tylenol and within about 15 minutes, he had definitely calmed down. And within about 30 minutes he finally fell asleep. He had just cried himself silly and I think this calmed him down enough to where he could finally rest. Like I said, I don't love resorting to drugs, but this is the reason why we have them. I certainly don't want him to be in pain!

Other items I haven't tried (but I've heard good things about!):

Teething Necklace for Mom.

A friend of mine told me her son loved gnawing on this Silicone Teething Necklace. I've also heard good things about this one. It's a cute item that you can wear to match your outfit, but is safe for your child to have in his mouth. I'll admit, there are many times where I will let Everett chew on my chunky statement necklaces because they are relief for him, and when we're in public places (like church!) that activity keeps him contented and quiet. I do sort of get nervous about something breaking off in his mouth though, so this would probably be a good purchase for me to make!

Sterling Silver Teether.

It sounds fancy, because it is. We don't have one of these, but I've heard the silver feels really good on a baby's gums, because of, ya know, IT'S SILVER. Cold metal and whatnot. Some kids are really living, you know what I mean?

Mamas, any other items that have you helped your little one survive the awfulness of teething? Do share!

Happening Lately.

These two. A little reunited party :)

Happening Lately.
Good morning! Happiest of Mondays, to you. My little family just got back in town from what I like to call "the dueling spring breaks" - Stevie was in Istanbul for a wedding this past weekend, so I hopped in the car and headed down to my sister's place in St. Augustine! I am still soooooo jealous that he got to take such an exotic trip without me, but we didn't think it would be a great situation to bring Everett all the way over to Turkey and then not have a babysitter for the wedding. Womp womp. So he spent the weekend batchin' it up and eating Turkish Delights with his buds from business school. I had a blast, playing with my sister and her kids, taking Everett to the pool FOR THE FIRST TIME, and of course enjoying the ocean and the grand town of St. Augustine. We sent each other the silliest photos - me holding Everett in various swim hats, he taking selfies outside of mosques. He's going to share about his whirlwind experience in Istanbul here on the blog later this week, but for now, a few photos of Spring Break with my little man.

Time at my sisters' place includes jogs to the beach, exotic flowers in bloom everywhere, 5 o'clock mojitos, and yes, I'm aware that this isn't real life. But it's real fun.

Top: Everett attacks my sunglasses. Middle: We might have given him his first hair trim. Ah! Bottom: He attacks my sunglasses again. I wizened up and bought a cheapo pair that he can gnaw on to his heart's desire :)

Other Life-ish Things:

*New Site Coming!
I am soooo excited about the work that the lovely Maiedae ladies are doing on my new site. I can't wait to show you! I got a sneak preview of it over the weekend and it's going to be RAD. Much cleaner design, simpler navigation, and more robust user interface. So that YOU can access recipes, travel guides, etc. much easier - woohoo! Yaay for growth! I'll keep you posted on the switchover :)

*Future Travels.
Our fam is gearing up for a handful of travel dates over the next several months. I am most excited about our May trip to Madrid and Rome! If any of you have advice for traveling abroad with a baby, I am all ears! I've been researching and compiling lots of info, and so far this and this have been super helpful. The last time Stevie and I Eurotripped, we did it totally hippie-style, with backpacks as our only luggage and an eternally long list of "must-sees" - I have a feeling this little adventure (with a BABY) will be quite different.

*This Week.
I've got another great "salad"-ish recipe, our experience at The Color Run, and of course, Stevie's Istanbul trip, coming at ya this week. So many fun things to share! Hope your Monday is magnificent!

Feeling Beautiful.

Feeling Beautiful.
I had this moment.

I was putting Everett to bed. I was alone for the evening, with Stevie out of town for work. We had just finished a tumultuous bath time experience. Someone was very, very tired. Okay, two someones were very very tired, but only one of us could rightfully wail about it.

I sat down in Everett's room, in my little second-hand glider chair, nursing him in silence for what seemed like a long time. He slowly calmed down, drifted into a drowsy lull, and finally, oh so finally, fell asleep in my arms.

A sigh of relief. Success. My glass of wine was awaiting.

But his room was so cozy and so warm, I decided to linger for just a moment longer than usual. I was finally on my own time, and I wanted to take in this little bit of quiet bliss. To breathe. I looked around at this little baby haven we had created. I looked at his sweet bedding, already gently worn in by his raucous sleep behavior. I looked at his books, beautiful stories all carefully curated by treasured friends and family. I looked at the pictures on the wall, all items of grand sentiment to me and to Stevie. This was a lovely, sweet space. Something that took time and effort to create. I loved this moment, this moment to enjoy all the pieces of my son's special room.

I stood up carefully, sure not jostle him too much, and lifted his head into my chest. He murmured a few indistinguishable "wah-ma-ra-ma-wa"s and rustled around a bit, eyes closed, finally opening his mouth widely. And then.

Then.

He let out the loudest, milkiest, manliest, most bellowing burp a human baby could possibly summon. I mean loud. Right in my face. I mean like a half an inch from my mouth.

It was a big boy burp. It was like a sumo wrestler burp.

Hooowwwwww did my child just create that noise? I could practically hear an echo! Oh how I wish someone were here to experience this with me! Stevie would have lost it. I was having trouble holding back my laughter, but I didn't want to shake too much and waken him.

I calmly laid my baby boy down in his crib and silently chuckled to myself. What an absolute character I have given birth to. What a riot this boy is. What joy!

As I was witholding the verbal glee, I caught a glance of myself in Everett's bedroom mirror. And for this moment, I felt very very beautiful. Not beautiful because someone told me so, and not beautiful because I was trying to convince myself that I needed to believe it. Just beautiful, in this moment, in this mothering role that has taken me so long to figure out, in this season of life that has stumped me in a thousand ways. But letting all those maniac pressures go, and laughing at my baby son's gigantic burp in his darkly-lit room, I felt this grace of motherhood wash over me so gently, so greatly, and I felt a new kind of beauty. A beauty in the moment and a beauty in myself. I felt a new kind of appreciation for me, for what I have created, fostered, loved, and now, just now, was able to enjoy. It was the kind of beautiful that you don't apologize for. That you don't create some self-deprecating resistance to. It was about time for me to feel beautiful, for my own sake. It's not anyone else's job to convince me of what is mine.

It was a moment of sheer simplicity, yet I felt the impact in the deepest part of my abdomen. Ironically, exactly where my son had occupied for 9 months. I soaked the moment in, smiled to myself, and said a quick prayer of thanks.

As a woman, I shouldn't find these moments so fleeting. I should do a better job of appreciating me and loving me and openly allowing these moments where beauty surprises me with it's easy presence.

What I'm saying is that it shouldn't be a rare occurrence.

And I wanted to take the time to share this little nugget. Because, as women, we can spend a lot of time facilitating our external beauty, but when was the last time you actually, deep down in your bones, felt beautiful? Like, really really relaxed in your own beautiful self? It shouldn't be hard to remember a time like that, but... it's kind of hard, isn't it?

Take a moment for you today. Take as long as you need. Moments are hard to come by, because they are expensive, they cost us time with others and doing other things. But I guarantee that you are worth your own investment. Take your moment and relax really good into it and allow yourself to focus on this truth:

I am so beautiful.
I am lovely and I am strong and I am worthy and I am able.
I don't have to strive for my beauty because I just am.
And my beauty manifests in everything I hold dear.
I am rooted and I am winged, prime for my flight.
I am easily convinced of this truth.
I am because I say I am.

Yes, I am getting a little mushy on you today. But it's really up to you to follow through with the mush. What could it possibly hurt?

Baby Registry Picks: Sleeping + a Giveaway with Lucky Palm Tree!

Baby Registry Picks: Sleeping by oykristen
// 1. Summer Infant Clear Sight Digital Color Video Monitor // 2. HoMedics SS-2000E Sound Machine // 3. Aden & Anais Crib Sheet // 4. Aden & Anais Swaddle Blankets // 5. Lucky Palm Tree Sleepwear // 6. Halo Sleep Sack // 7. Serena & Lily Sausalito Moses Basket //

Registry Picks: Sleeping

Ah, the continuation of baby gear continues. If you are without a child, you must be thinking, "wait, another one of these roundup things? Hasn't she mentioned enough baby stuff already??" I will go ahead and answer your unsaid question: NO. No I haven't mentioned enough baby gear (you can see my "Feeding" gear here and my "Out and About" gear here.) I haven't mentioned enough because babies require a LOT of stuff and I don't care how "minimalist" you think you are - you need the stuff. I have lived in teeeeeeeensy tiny places in my life (Boston and NYC), and I am totally into living minimally. I really am. But my baby? He is NOT. He needs the stuff to be awesome and content. And I need the stuff to be awesome and sane. So... yeah.

Shall we talk about baby sleep? Lets. I have opinions. Here is a good snapshot of products we have come to love since our experimentation with this fragile thing we call infant sleep.

1. Summer Infant Clear Sight Digital Color Video Monitor

I am so grateful to have a video monitor. My child is a maverick when it comes to wailing. I mean it. He often sounds like he's writhing in pain while he's "going to sleep", which sounds awful to you, I know. It sounds awful to me, too. But when I've done everything that I know to do, sometimes you just have to "wait it out" for a bit and let the child take his own journey into dream land. Having a video monitor reeeeeally helps that process. I can watch him, eat some popcorn and see that he's totally fine and just needs some alone time to find his rhythm. Rem cycle. Whatnot. Video monitors allow you to spy. Moving on.  

2. HoMedics SS-2000E Sound Machine 

So, we got this device for a baby shower and sort of forgot to use it. But by the time we transitioned our little man into his own room (around 10 weeks), he was in the heavy throws of his colic-ness and I was reminded of this nifty white noise machine. It definitely helped with his sleep, though I will admit that it didn't "cure" the colic. But this is a fantastic machine because it has several different soothing sounds. I sort of want to steal it out of his room so that I can fall asleep to the murmur of the ocean or the jungle or "mother's heartbeat" (which also sounds a little bit like Darth Vader breathing). But I'm kind of too afraid to take it out of his room. For fear of his middle-of-the-night reawakenings. I can't go back to that, people. Can't even. CAN'T.

3. Aden & Anais Crib Sheet 

My baby has nicer sheets than me. I will leave it at that.

4. Aden & Anais Swaddle Blankets 

Aw, I miss swaddling my little guy. I loved wrapping him up like a little Chipotle burrito in these blankets. These are the best because the muslin really wrapped him tightly in a way that he had some trouble unraveling. He managed to unravel other swaddle blankets, but these? They stumped him. SUCCESS WAS MINE. I ended up purchasing some more of these when he was about 3 weeks old, just because we were going through so many of them. These are so worth the investment! Also, it seemed worthwhile to get the larger size. The ones sold at Target are a tad bit smaller, measuring 44" x 44", whereas most of the versions sold on Amazon are 47" x 47" - and those few inches really make a difference!

5. Lucky Palm Tree Sleepwear 

I was recently introduced to Lucky Palm Tree clothing and I am so hooked. This handmade baby wear is all created out of 100% GOTS organic certified cotton and is printed with non-toxic ink. And the whole organic baby clothing is becoming a big thing, especially for a sleeping baby, because (I had no idea!) how many brands use flame retardants on infant sleepwear! Ew. I can't dress my baby in all-organic all the time (I'm sorry Jessica Alba, I really am), but when he's sleeping, it's nice to know that he isn't breathing in all those gross toxins. And not only is Lucky Palm Tree sleepwear super safe and natural, it is GORGEOUS. Like seriously, seriously a work of babylicious art. The material is thick and supple and the prints are outrageously cute. And guess what - there's a giveaway below! Scroll to the bottom for more pics and details :)

6. Halo Sleep Sack 

We started using this sleep sack the day we stopped swaddling my son. As soon as he learned how to roll over, we couldn't stop him from doing it in his crib. And if I tried to roll him onto his back (because all the pediatricians practically beat you over the head with the "back is best!" jargon), he would wake up and scream. Great job mom. Way to wake a sleeping baby. So we had to stop swaddling him (and stop rolling him onto his back when he preferred sleeping on his belly), and we chose to wrap him in these sleep sacks. They keep him warm and snuggly in a safe way. Of course, now that spring is underway, he probably won't need to sleep in these as much. He's a bit hot-natured. His sweat is cute.

7. Serena & Lily Sausalito Moses Basket 

I really lucked out here. My big sis lent me this Moses basket and it was so so perfect for those first few months that Everett was a tiny tot. We could move it around the house when he was a newborn, so he had a napping spot anywhere that we were. And it's a bigger-sized Moses basket, so we were able to keep him in it for a while, which was a big blessing. A lot of the Moses baskets I checked out were pretty tiny and wouldn't have accommodated him for very long. This one is strong and safe, and as you can see, really really beautiful. Almost like a keepsake AND a baby bed.

And now for that giveaway!

Giveaway!

I am honored to be partnering with Lucky Palm Tree to give away a $50 gift card to their online store! This is such a luxurious, quality baby brand that offers parents the gift of clothing their children in organic, American-made works of art. I mean, take a look at these photos of my little man in this gear. He's drooling and I am a little, too.

Everett is wearing the organic Mustache Bodysuit & Hat, C/O Lucky Palm Tree

Enter Below!

I am stoked to gift one of my lucky-duck readers with the opportunity to dress up their child in these super fancy threads! Enter the giveaway using the Rafflecopter below. And for the next week (until March 25th) Lucky Palm Tree is offering a 20% discount on all "New Arrivals" items to Oy! readers using the code OYKRISTEN. So make sure to visit the Lucky Palm Tree online store and perhaps treat yourself (and your mini-me) to a cheeky little item :)
a Rafflecopter giveaway

Many thanks to Lucky Palm Tree for sponsoring this giveaway for Oy! readers :)