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10 Must-Have Products for Baby

3/31/2022

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As a first time mom, I was reading all the blogs, talking to all the experienced moms out there and doing my own research on baby products that I felt like we needed but weren't as 'talked up'. While there are SOOO many products, I have found several that we absolutely cannot live without and wanted to share them with you. I will also share some of the most talked-about products at the end that we love, too!
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For starters, the Calmer Oil from doTERRA is one of my favorites to use on Ella at night before I put her to sleep. The kids blend is heavily diluted so you don't have to worry about applying the oils topically and your baby having a reaction. I apply it to her feet and chest before bed to keep her calm and it seems to help her get to sleep fairly quickly. We hardly ever have to go back in her room after we put her in the crib.
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Double zipper onesies are an item we have come to absolutely OBSESS over. These are great for those night time and out-and-about changes so that you don't have to completely unzip the onesie.

We have tested out SO many bottles from Comotomo to EvenFlo to Dr. Brown's and while those are all great, we prefer the Phillips Avent bottles since we have started Ella on oatmeal. We use the 11oz bottles and they are so easy to clean and use without leaking.

​When we first brought Ella home, she wasn't quite used to the day/night schedule (as most babies aren't) so we spent a lot of nights awake with her and when we were too tired to stand up and rock her or play with her, we used contrast cards to keep her occupied. These also help with developing a strong attention span by focusing on each card. To this day, we still use these during her play time throughout the day.
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Floor time is SO important for your infant and I am so happy that I found a play mat for her to roll around on. This leaf play mat is machine washable, comes in several other colors and is made with GTOS certified organic cotton so you can rest in knowing your mini is rolling around on something safe for their skin.
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Babies nails grow so quickly! I was using clippers for a while but then remembered we had received this electric nail filer and y'all it is a LIFE SAVER!! I couldn't ever find time to clip Ella's nails because it would have to be during her naps and I would always put it on the bottom of my to-do list. With this nail filer, I can shave her nails down in SECONDS while she's fully awake. It doesn't phase her and she actually seems to enjoy it. It comes with different stages of pads (filers) and there are even two for adults so mama can get some use out of it too! I think my favorite thing about it is that it only needs batteries to operate so we can use it while we are traveling.
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Next on the list are Ella's own rags for bathing. I love the fact that she has her own set of washcloths and the ones we have are so soft for her skin. They are the hypoallergenic bamboo baby washcloths  from HIPHOP PANDA.

Lastly, paci clips I feel are somewhat talked about but not very praised. We didn't have a real need for them until recently when we started taking Ella to the church nursery. I wanted to make sure she would come back with her pacifier and that it wouldn't get lost. They are also great for doctor visits and going out to eat as well.
That just about rounds up my list of baby must-haves that aren't so talked up. Now let's go over a few of those 'most-wanted' items, yeah? These are for my fellow moms out there to just make motherhood a little easier.

First, I have to brag about our stroller/carseat travel system. BabyTrend is amazing and I love going for our daily walk. It is SO easy to attach Ella's carseat to the stroller for quick runs to the store and it rides so smoothly.
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Next, baby books are like a tradition, right? But this baby book from Promptly is the sweetest thing. It covers pregnancy and birth all the way to 18 years of age. They have several different designs. It is almost like you're writing a story for your little. I get so excited when I get to record something new that Ella learns.
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While I spend a lot of time wanting those expensive leather diaper bags, this amazon bag we got from our registry is IT! It fits everything we need and more! With over 13k ratings and 5 stars, you can't go wrong. It's way more affordable and is perfect for mom AND dad.

There you have it - my most recommended products for babies (at the moment). I'm sure I'll be back with more as Ella grows so don't forget to subscribe to get my posts directly to your email. I'd love to know what YOU find most beneficial to you and your family so comment below your favorite baby products that way I can try them out!

Shop the full post below (click the image).
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*the links above are affiliate links meaning I make a small commission on your purchases at no extra cost to you.
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BEDTIME ROUTINE | SLEEPING THROUGH THE NIGHT AT TWO MONTHS OLD (IN HER CRIB)

3/12/2022

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"How?" I can't count how many times I have heard that question. Throughout this blog post, I will walk you through everything that I do regarding Ella's sleep. There is no one singular thing that I did/do to make Ella sleep through the night.

What works for my child may not work for yours so take all this information with a grain of salt.

I never followed a specific method of sleep training or any of that. The only thing I really did was implement a bedtime routine EARLY on and watch for tired cues throughout the day.

I never use the crib for naps unless she's already asleep in my arms. Now, this will change when she starts being more mobile and rolling a bit more consistently because I use the Boppy lounger, swing or her playmat for naps. And before you come at me about the Boppy lounger getting re-called, I just want to say, she isn't left unsupervised and she's also older. As a newborn, I would have her use the flat baby lounger to take naps.

I keep her in a bright and noisy place for naps throughout the day. I'm no expert about how babies minds work but when I put her down in her crib at night - it's dark and the only thing she'll here is ocean sounds (thanks Alexa) - then it seems like she knows its bed time.

Her naps range anywhere from 30 minutes to an hour and half. Not very consistent but it's not something I typically care about as much as night time sleep. When we all get enough sleep at night, we are much happier during the day, haha! At night, she started sleeping about 7-8 hours at first and progressed to 10-12 hours. It varies but she's still giving us pretty decent stretches throughout the night.

Watching for tired cues was a little vague to me at first. I didn't know how to determine what Ella's cues were. We started play time around a month old and it helped me determine them fairly quickly. Ella's specific tired cue is, and this may be every baby but maybe not, putting her hands to her eyes like she's rubbing them.

I lay her down when she's awake. That's something I read online and tried. I was floored when she fell right asleep after going with my gut feeling of watching for her tired cue. It may, also, be something you have to try again and again until you figure out what your baby's cue is. The reason you lay them down awake (or half awake) is that when you transfer them to their crib or bassinet, they may feel like they're falling and you'll see that startle reflex that may wake them up and result in getting fussy.

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​Ella's Bedtime Routine

- bath every night (I don't use soap on her every night because it can dry her skin out)
- while she's in her towel, I rub her down with unscented lotion and apply Calmer essential oil from doTERAA on her feet and chest; I also take this time to get any lint or hairs that didn't come out of her toes in the bath
- transfer her to her onesie
- feed her a bottle (they may start to fall asleep the bottle but try your hardest to keep them awake so they will sleep in the crib/bassinet)
- once she's done feeding and I burp her, I swaddle her up - occasionally she'll fall asleep as I wrap her but not always
- as I go into her nursery, I tell Alexa to "play ocean sounds", lay her in her crib and put the Paci in her mouth (if she's still awake)
- about 30 minutes after I lay her down, I check to see if she spit the Paci out (she usually does), I'll move it away from her so she doesn't wake herself up by nudging it

***as I write this blog post, this is the order we follow BUT when she is done with Leap 3, I will put 'bottle' before 'bath time' because I don't want her to associate a bottle WITH bedtime like she has to feed in order to go to bed. Again, I don't know how babies minds work but that's just how I do it.

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I just want to reiterate that I am NO expert and what works for me may or may not work for you. But I hope you got some insight on possibly how to treat your baby's sleep schedule.

Do you follow a specific method? Do you do anything similar to our schedule? Different? Let me know in the comments.

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MY BIRTH STORY + Epidural Experience

2/26/2022

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My entire pregnancy, I wondered how I would go into labor. Would I be in the shower? Sleeping? Driving? Was it even okay that I was driving at 39 weeks pregnant? I don't know.

My doctor had told me that I could try pumping, intimacy and  bouncing on an exercise ball. I had been using my exercise ball through my pregnancy so I was ready to try something different and since I wasn't 'feeling myself' enough to be intimate with my husband, I decided to try pumping.

I didn't break out my electric pump so I just used my haakaa. I used it mid-afternoon on November 9th and went into labor that evening starting around 8:30PM with minor contractions. I hadn't had contractions my entire pregnancy so I knew something was happening. Brandon and I had gotten in bed and tried to get some sleep. He fell asleep instantly but the contractions were coming too often for me to fall out. I started timing them with the app I used throughout my pregnancy. They were mostly within ten minutes apart.

​Around midnight, I had told Brandon that I have been timing my contractions and that we may have to go to the hospital. He just casually started walking around the house getting his clothes on and stuffing his things in his pockets while I was still laying in bed. I debated if I should really go to the hospital or not because I've heard labor could take hours and I would've rather been comfortable at home for as long as I could. We did decide to go  because first, I've never done this before so I didn't know what to expect. Second, my contractions were where they needed to be and third, the hospital was about 30 minutes away.

We got to the hospital around 1AM. They checked me in and the lady behind the counter looked at me and said "you're definitely in labor" because of how flushed I looked. We waited for about 40 minutes until they got me a room.

I got settled and changed into the hospital gown. I was FREEZING! I guess it was partially from the nerves but I had to get several warm blankets and that helped a little but not a ton. My nurses stuck my IV in and while I was waiting for the doctor to come give me the epidural, my IV had started coming out from me moving around.. oops!

My nurses started to switch my IV to my right hand as soon as the doctor came in to give me the epidural. They figured they could knock them out at the same time but as they were both pricking me, my heart rate shot up to 127bpm.

The epidural didn't go in right at first. It felt like the bottom right side of my back was concrete, it was so stiff. Then, voices started sounding robotic and the room started to slow. I never actually passed out but I imagine that's what it would start out like. I slowly started to feel better. My nurses had already secured the IV so we just needed to try the epidural for a second time. It was successful and I immediately felt shivers again from the coolness affect it had on my back.

After about 15 minutes, I couldn't feel any more contractions and my legs were completely numb I couldn't lift them. It felt like was paralyzed from the waist down but it was totally fine since I wasn't in any more pain. Brandon and I just chilled in our room for several hours with the nurses checking on me every so often. I couldn't get comfortable enough to actually sleep but I did get about 10-15 minutes here and there.

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​The nurses checked my cervix when I first arrived and I was 4cm dilated. I hadn't progressed until 10am when I was at 7cm. My doctor had come in and broke my water assisted by my nurse and failed to mention, until they were actually doing it, that I would feel immediate pressure. Sure enough, I had the WORST contraction in my lower right pelvic area that just would not let up. It was the most painful experience that I wouldn't wish on anyone. A doctor had come to give me a dose of something to help with the pain but that lasted all of five minutes except for the fact that it helped to split them up like actual contractions.

11am rolled around and the pain was unbearable. Y'all it hurt so bad that I COULDN'T cry! I tried describing it to my nurse saying it felt like it was burning and freezing at the same time with some intense sharp pain. I felt like I was going to be sick, I was sweating and tempted to yank everything off of me to get in another position but I had no strength. She had told me that it sounds like Ella was face up. I didn't quite know what to do with that information. She just left it at that until she was done at the monitor. She checked me again and I was at 9cm. She had told me the only way I was going to feel better was if I started pushing any time I felt that pain. When she told me that, I did it. No questions asked. I would've done anything to help the pain I was feeling.

After a few pushes, she remembered I had asked for a mirror to watch the birth. I told her it was fine but she sent someone to get one for me. The whole time I was pushing, I just thought I was helping my pain and not actually making progress. However, when they set up the mirror and I could see myself, I realized I WAS making progress. I could see a sliver of Ella's head and I was shocked. My nurse had suggested I wait for my doctor to get to the room before pushing any more but I couldn't help but continuing since that was the only thing that seemed to help the pain. He got there about five minutes later with plenty of time to deliver her. I guess them actually setting me up in the position and seeing the 'tools' down at the foot of the bed made it real and more nerve racking than several minutes ago when I was just pushing to relieve pain.

Delivery took about 45 minutes total but it felt like 15. I felt Ella's head crown and release and then one more push for her body and she was out! Ella Rose Wren, born at 11:47AM on November 10th, 2021.

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​They laid her on my chest and I was so in awe. I couldn't believe that I was now a mom and that this 7lb 13oz baby was mine.

Brandon cut the umbilical cord. There was one more push and some pressure applied to my stomach to release the.. extra stuff.

The nurses cleaned Ella up and left us alone with her for about an hour. It was nice to have some quiet time but we had no idea what we were doing, haha! We just held her and stared at her. I was so tired from staying up for more than 24 hours so I had Brandon put her in the bassinet for me to be able to doze off for a minute. Some nurses came in to push on my stomach some more (this is so everything goes back in place correctly after moving around for baby).

Two hours or so after delivery, my legs felt normal enough to walk on so I cleaned up and wheeled Ella to our recovery room.

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VERB ENERGY BARS + DISCOUNT CODE

7/20/2021

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If you haven't heard of this company, Verb Energy offers bars and drinks to give you that boost of energy without the crazy jitters that you'd get from coffee!
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The bars are 90 calories and contains as much caffeine as a shot of espresso. The best thing is that they are caffeinated with organic green tea so, again, you won't have those uncontrollable jitters! I have really been loving them throughout my pregnancy because, let's be real - I have absolutely NO motivation some days.

Verb has incredible customer service. They handle everything about your future orders via text after you make your first purchase and they are so nice! Verb almost ALWAYS has some sort of deals going on so you hardly ever pay full price when purchasing, too!

Now, I'll be honest, I wasn't IMMEDIATELY turned on when I tried Verb. They have a very distinctive taste so every time you have a Verb bar, you know it's Verb. It's not bad, I just wasn't ready for it - haha! But after I got past that initial taste, I tasted flavor and I was HOOKED!

Let's talk about some of my favorite flavors, yeah?
  • Pumpkin Spice
  • Vanilla Latte
  • Gingersnap
  • Peppermint Mocha
  • Chocolate Chip Banana Bread
  • Chocolate Peanut Butter Cup (newest)
  • Cookie Butter &
  • Coconut Chai​
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The drink mix is their newest creation and it is SO good! I have only tried the Raspberry Lemon flavor but they also have Cherry Lime, Mango Tangerine as well as a Variety Pack!

DISCOUNT CODE

Save $10 when you use my code "MAEGANWREN"

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