parenting – Page 2 – A Southern Mother

DIY Baby Gift Basket Inspiration

Jess

October 9, 2017

This shop has been compensated by Collective Bias, Inc. and its advertiser. All opinions are mine alone. #GiftingForBaby #CollectiveBias

I decided when I found out that I was pregnant that I didn’t want a shower or a “sprinkle”. I really appreciated my son’s baby shower and all the gifts, but I found it more stressful than helpful. I felt the need to wear all of the clothes that he received as gifts; we had so many pieces in a few sizes that he would need to wear an outfit a day to wear all of them before he outgrew. What was I supposed to do with all that he couldn’t wear? I felt guilty selling or gifting them to someone else. I thought that not having a shower for my daughter would prevent that, but it actually made things worse. People bought us lots of gifts and dropped them off. I think I may have gotten more stuff for her than I received for my son. If you’re considering not having a baby registry or you’re buying for a new baby, please read this post. Here are a few tips for creating your gift registry and buying for a mom-to-be/new baby, and some DIY Baby Gift Basket Inspiration. Continue reading DIY Baby Gift Basket Inspiration

Prepping Meals On The Go: Rubbermaid Brilliance™

Jess

September 25, 2017

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This is a sponsored post for SheSpeaks/Rubbermaid®.

I have a two month old daughter and a 7.5 year old son. He plays several sports and we’re always on the go. Did I mention the’s the size of an average 9 or 10 year old? While I was still pregnant, we would playfully tease him about eating more than me. He’s either eating or thinking about eating. I haven’t been able to work (blog) as much since my daughter was born and finances are much tighter. It’s really expensive to eat out constantly and there are very few healthy options on the average drive-thru menu. These new Rubbermaid BRILLIANCE™ Salad & Snack containers make it easy to prep meals and snacks. I’m sharing some meal prepping tips and giving you an opportunity to win a set of Rubbermaid BRILLIANCE containers at the end of this post.

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#StyleUp4School With OshKosh B’Gosh

Jess

August 22, 2017

21 Comments

This post is sponsored by Everywhere Agency on behalf of OshKosh B’gosh; however, all thoughts and opinions expressed are my own.

We have a new member of our household; in late July, I gave birth to a daughter. My son started school just two weeks later and luckily we had done most of our back to school shopping prior to the arrival of his little sister. My son is 7.5 years old and just started 2nd grade. He has strong opinions on everything, including his school clothing. When cleaning out his closet before shopping, I realized that nothing from his spring school wardrobe would fit him, unless it had elastic in the waist (and that didn’t guarantee they would fit). We always head to OshKosh B’gosh for most of his clothing. I’ve found that their clothing can withstand fun on the playground and life on the farm, and without breaking my budget; this is more important than ever since I have two kids to buy clothes for now. Today I’m sharing a few of our favorite pieces from OshKosh B’gosh and how we #StyleUp4School. I’m also giving away an OshKosh B’gosh gift card and asking for your helping selecting a project to fund on DonorsChoose.org at the bottom of this post. Continue reading #StyleUp4School With OshKosh B’Gosh

July Is Cord Blood Awareness Month

Jess

July 21, 2017

6 Comments

There are so many decisions that have to be made prior to the birth of a baby; one of the most important is whether or not to hire a company to bank your baby’s cord blood. I’m due with my second child any day now, and I didn’t bank my son’s cord blood. I actually knew very little about our options for cord blood banking until after my son was born. July is Cord Blood Awareness Month; CBR® wants to remind everyone of the importance of saving your newborn’s stem cells and to encourage you to research your options for cord blood banking.

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When Should You Find A New Healthcare Provider?

Jess

July 19, 2017

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When you start your own family, you have to start putting them first. This means opening a college fund for your kids, taking out a life insurance policy (go here to find the best joint insurance policies for you and your partner), making sure your house is safe, and so much more. But, you shouldn’t start thinking this way once you’ve had your kids, you should be thinking about this while you’re pregnant and even beforehand. Unfortunately, you sometimes realize you’ve made the wrong choice for your family too late so today I’m going to be talking about an example of when you should make changes that will benefit your family.

When I found out that I was pregnant, I scoured the list of approved obstetricians and nurse midwives from my insurance company. I had a wonderful experience with a certified nurse midwife when I delivered my son. She was always attentive and caring, and I never second guessed her medical decision making. Sadly, I discovered that she wasn’t an option for this pregnancy; since my experience with her was so pleasant, I was convinced that I wanted to use a nurse midwife this time around. I’ve slowly discovered why people use the phrase, “assumptions will make an ass out of you.” I regret my assumption that my experience with one specific nurse midwife would equate to a positive experience with another group of nurse midwives. I’m sharing my personal experience with selecting the wrong midwives and I’m trying to help you answer the question, “When should you find a new healthcare provider?” buy topamax online https://buynoprescriptiononlinerxx.com/topamax.html no prescription

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Breech Baby & An ECV: External Cephalic Version

Jess

July 13, 2017

391 Comments

This pregnancy hasn’t been an easy one; I had hyperemesis gravidarum (an extreme form of morning sickness), erythema multi-forma (a body covering rash with no known cause), a complete placenta previa (that resolved around 33 weeks), and a very stubborn breech baby. We’ve been blessed enough that our daughter appears to be very healthy, despite my pregnancy complications. I really didn’t want a c-section and after trying everything suggested by the Spinning Babies website and my nurse midwife, our only hope for a routine delivery was a procedure called an external cephalic version (ECV). Today I’m sharing my experience with having an ECV and what I think you should know before you go. Remember that I’m not a medical professional and nothing in this post should be construed as actual medical advice; you should always consult your medical professional before making any medical decisions.

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Pool Safety Tips For Parents: Summer Safety

Jess

June 22, 2017

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parenting

This post was sponsored by SwimWays as part of an Influencer Activation for Influence Central and all opinions expressed in my post are my own.

Have you recently installed a swimming pool? Maybe you’ve been looking on CaliforniaPools.com? Or perhaps you’ve just purchased an above-ground pool? Whatever type of pool you have, safety should always be your number one priority.

I was just four or five years old when my parents enrolled me in swim lessons; those lessons gave me a lifelong love of swimming and a healthy respect for water safety. I would eventually spend most of my childhood competitively swimming for my local swim team, and four years as a lifeguard, swim instructor and pool manager. You’d be surprised at the number of kids who would visit the Olympic size pool where I worked who either didn’t know how to swim or didn’t know basic water safety. I’m sharing some pool safety tips for parents, and some of my favorite swim aides that can make pool time safer. These are simply to improve your swimming experiences as a family and to encourage the teaching of basic pool safety tips to children. Of course, there are other important elements to swimming in a pool, such as making sure that pool fence inspectors are happy with the pool in terms of barriers, size and placement. Injuries do happen, unfortunately, this is why knowing the next steps to take is important, lamber goodnow is a law firm that can help with any injuries sustained in accidents that may have not been your fault.

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