Happy New Year. Yes we are alive and well! Can you believe it? It’s been around 5 months since Celiarose (aka CC) and Crosby were born. I’ve honestly struggled with posting a blog/pics/videos. For some reason, I just couldn’t bring myself to do it which is likely due to “Alien Haze Effect Syndrome”, aka AHES. AHES occurs when your children arrive and your frontal lobe turns into mush. Good news? It doesn’t last forever. Finally, my former brain is slowing coming back, exiting the fog and seeing daylight again. The girls have been really good and are locked into a very solid schedule of feeding, sleeping and awake time. We praise the Baby Jesus every morning for a good nights sleep. Honestly, the past 5 months have been sweetly amazing.
How can we talk about the first 5 months without talking about two key supports like Mother Love (Diana Thornhill) and Constance McComb. Mother Love set all of us off on the right foot for the first three months. We didn’t just learn and grow as dads, we gained a new family member who makes us smile whenever we speak of her. Constance continues on with the solid training of Mother Love and also brings her own nanny style and smarts. We thank you.
What have we learned? Oh so many things! Mostly, “to follow our instincts.” This has been the greatest lesson of all. “They will guide you” has been the most valuable piece of advice ever. I think we place such high expectations on ourselves as new parents that we feel like miserable sucky failures a lot of the time. The two of us have learned to be more forgiving and patient with ourselves, one of the many amazing lessons our little guides continue to teach us.
On a lighter note, we’ve also learned that so many baby products and tips out there just plain stink to high heaven. Ok please. Who designs baby clothes I ask? Buttons, buttons and more buttons? Really? Below are our must haves and tips, hoping it might save some future parents time and energy. Please pass along to any friends or family who are expecting. This is our “go to” list, should we ever have more children. Did I just say that?
Beyond “BabyLand”, we are both doing well. I’ve finished my album, Side Show, and will be releasing late Spring 2015 (more details in another email). Mark is very busy at work moving and shaking it up. We’ve completed our cosmetics line using our patented green Echinacea, Green Envy, which we are farming in Upstate New York. We’ve just signed deals with two major US cosmetics companies. Very exciting stuff!
Once again thanks for all your support along the way. This is an amazing ride that is extra amazing because of you. Finally, here is a little video of our first 5 months that we want to share with ya’ll.
Cooper and Mark’s Must Haves
Halo Sleep Sack Swaddles. The best best best. Yes we swaddle. www.amazon.com
Mommy’s Bliss. Our girls don’t have gas and are much happier. We put it in every bottle. www.Amazon.com
Bristol lavender foaming wash and soothing body balm.
OMG we love this stuff. Veronica and Shari gave this to us and we are addicted. The foam lasts a really long time and is natural and smells amazing. The body balm we use for the tushies (Mark secretly uses it as hand cream..shhhhh!)
Dream Baby Pull Over Bibs. No buttoning or Velcro coming undone. They just slip over the head. Bam. www.Amazon.com
Giggle Better Basic Baby Gowns. Compared to all others, these are our favs. Great quality cotton, easy to get on and off and easy to clean. We want adult versions! http://www.giggle.com/
Samyo Aromatherapy diffuser. Essential oils really make the room smell amazing and add to sleep and general well being.
Edens Garden Essential Oils for diffuser. We really order Four Thieves and Purification. www.Amazon.com
Solly Wraps. THE BEST but a bit of a challenge, at first, to figure out. We Googled a “how to” video and bam! Done! www.sollybaby.com
Car seat by UppaBaby. LOVE and so easy! www.amazon.com
Fisher Price Rainforest Bath Tub. Easy peasy…THE BEST!
Mustela Bathing Product Line. Another really good line we use in addition to Bristol. www.amazon.com
Ikea Sundvik Crib: Cheap and does the trick.
My Baby Sound Spa and Projector. Several sounds, a projector and music. It really helps a lot with drowning out intrusive noise of us clanking around in the kitchen.
Playtex Bottles/Drop Ins. Minimal gas and easy peasy. Our fav! www.Amazon.com
Bottle Warmer. Honestly, our fav way to heat up bottles is with a pan and water. Warmers take too long.
Dekor Diaper Pale. It’s a weird system for the bag, but it works really really well. www.Amazon.com
Burp cloths. Our bestie Ellie Ohiso gave us this tip. Buy cloth diapers and use them as burp clothes. THE BEST and CHEAP!
Summer Infant Touch Screen Color Baby Monitor: Video, Sound, Infrared, Talk back and wireless. LOVE! www.amazon.com
Boudreaux’s Butt Paste: A MUST! Nothing more said.
Tips from our first 5 months
Fireplace. The fireplace is the most fav place for the girls to sit, chill and watch the flames. It completely “Zens” them out.
Nook or no Nook? We decided no nooks. When they fall out they cry and we ended up running back and forth every hour. No Nookies! This also teaches them to self-soothe and not rely on an object for comfort.
Lights out morning and at night. We don’t leave many lights on in the morning or at night. Light stimulates them and impairs sleep. During these times we also keep talking to a minimum.
Music Music Music: We expose them to all genres of music. It became very clear early on that music was crucial to their overall happiness and health. Get Pandora, it’s amazing. Our favorite station for kids music is the Kenny Loggins children’s music station. It’s easy on adult ears as well. And yes, Cooper is now writing a children’s album.
Favorite Parenting Web: www.TheMotherCo.com A MUST!
Prime on Amazon.com: It saves so much time you cannot imagine! Make sure you get Amazon Prime to save on shipping and time. DO IT!
Clothes: Don’t get crazy about clothes. You will find you will end up using the same clothes over and over. If you need, or want, some cool baby clothes for less check out: Target, Baby Gap and Old Navy. They have some really nice things. Whatever you buy, the less buttons the better. Buttons just suck!