Top Five Baby Must Haves

When I was pregnant with Jonah I remember walking into Babies R Us to register and feeling so overwhelmed.  I had no idea what I would need.  I felt like I need to test drive each item with a real live baby before committing with the scanner.  (Of course, Danny had the scanner and he just loved to hear it beep, so who knows what we actually registered for.)  Well, some bright Babies R Us worker must have realized that most first time mommies have this problem.  They have a list of everything you could ever need.  All you have to do is walk down the aisles and scan the items on the list.  Easy enough, right?  Except, for example, the list says "baby lotion" and there are 15,000 different types of lotion.  How was I suppose to know which one would make my babies skin adequately moisturized and which one I could stand to smell for the next year?

I don't have the Ultimate List of Must Haves (Who needs to be told they need a car seat, stroller, or diapers?) but I do have a few items that I would buy five times over!  Here they are!

1. Pack n' Play - We used ours in our bedroom and then moved it into the nursery when the time came.  With Jonah we borrowed a bassinet, but babies get so big so fast and outgrow them before you might want the in a room of their own.  Play n' Plays also provide you with a bed that can be taken to hotel rooms, camping, and when you go visiting and the babe needs to nap.  Ours has a changing table attached and little pockets for holding diapers, cream, etc.  Don't even worry about a crib.  In Benaiah's case, the Pack n' Play also provides a safe place to play while I shower or cook.  No big brothers allowed!  :D

2. Woombie - I had never heard of these until Benaiah.  With Jonah I used a blanket. (Yes, there was only one that would swaddle tight enough to keep him in.)  With Huck and Eli I used the ready made swaddles with Velcro.  Then came Benaiah. . . he loved being swaddled and I loved that it helped him sleep, but by one month he was busting out of the Velcro swaddles.  I was at a loss.  I needed sleep!  Then, from Afghanistan came the woombie.  My knight in shining armor to the rescue again.  The woombie zips up from the top and bottom so you don't have to unwrap to change diapers.  There are no arm holes to fiddle with or snaps to line up in the wee hours of the morning.  My only recommendation would be to get two because they can't be dried.

3. Booster Seat - Once we had the twins we were hard pressed to find room for two highchairs.  I felt like I was always rolling one out of the way just to find another one in my path.  Our solution?  Booster seats with trays.  It was a smooth transition to sitting at the table.  All we had to do was take the tray off and scoot them on up!  The trays make clean up easy and the chairs are totally plastic so there are not any fabric wrinkles for food to get caught in like with the highchair we had.  With Benaiah we started him in a booster from his first day with solids.  No more highchairs in MY way!

4. Sunday School Class Stroller - I know this item doesn't apply to everyone, but if anyone out there is in a situation like ours then I would consider this investment.  A lot of sweet church members at Northlake generously gifted us the funds to purchase this lifesaver.  It seats four.  The back seats recline to allow a baby to ride.  There are slings underneath to carry bags and sun shades.  Ours has gone at least 500 miles!  It is a beast to load in the car but worth it.  We can keep everyone contained and safe.  It allows us to go on walks  - actually walk anywhere - the playground, mall, zoo, etc.  Love it!  On a similar note . . . if you are planning on having children close in age don't even get a single stroller.  Go for the double and save yourself some money in the long run.

5. A Good Camera - They are only little once.  Get a camera that takes the picture when you push the button, not seconds later.  I think this one is pretty self-explanatory.

Now you can go figure out which baby lotion you really want. :D

Christmas Traditions I Love Love Love!

Christmas this year was so different from every Christmas in the past.  I have never stayed home all day on the holiday.  Even when I was young we visited grandparents, but this year we were at good old 55 London ALL DAY . . . and it was SO MUCH FUN!  Then again, how could it not be with my four boys!

Here are some of our holiday traditions that helped us celebrate the season!

Jesse Tree ~

We used Jesse Tree for our nightly family devotions.  The book gives you a song to sing (which Huck loved), a Bible passage and devotion, questions to see if they were listening ;) and a prayer.  The devotions start in Genesis and work their way to the birth of Christ.  However, each story points towards Christ.  Then at the end of each devotion there was a coordinating ornament to hang on their tree.  This turned into a bit of an argument some nights, but nothing hanging the ornament three times couldn't fix. :D

Tree Skirt ~

Okay, so this tradition just makes me smile because I am the mommy.  Each year I have the boys put their hand prints on the tree skirt.  Isn't Benaiah's sweet chubby hand print just adorable?  Oh, how their hands have grown!  How dare they do that!

Making Christmas Last All Day Long ~

I cut out 20 stars and wrote activities on the back of each one.  Then I hung them in a place the boys could reach.  Too bad Benaiah could reach them too!  Some of them were a bit slobbery.  On Christmas we started by turning over number one "Make cinnamon rolls".  The stars lasted all day long.  We sang carols, made snowman pizza, played play dough, made Christmas tree quesadillas, took naps in Christmas pjs, had an indoor snowball fight, and opened presents, of course!  I loved how it made the holiday last all day long!

Happy Birthday Jesus Cake ~

Danny's family made a cake for baby Jesus when he was younger, and he wanted to continue this tradition with our boys.  So, we have made a cake every year and won't stop any time soon.  I had a wonderful kitchen crew who helped stir, decorate, and lick the spoons!  Jonah wanted to know how we were going to get he cake to Jesus ;)  Sweet boy!  He even made us leave a piece for him.

And it was delicious!

It is safe to say we had a wonderful Christmas.  We took down the decorations and the boys almost cried!  I told them that we would have Christmas again next year.  A few days later I told them that it would be a new year in a few days.  Jonah quickly exclaimed, "Then we can have Christmas again!"  Yes, Jonah.  Christmas again . . . in 350 something days :D

Out Of The Mouths . . .

My sweet Eli has started talking and never stops.  Here are a few of his highlights this week!


Eli: Me need a cold rag.  (He meant wet.) Naiah snodered on my book!

Me: What?  What is on your book?

Eli: Snod!




While camping . . .

Danny: What are you going to sleep in tonight?

Eli: My . . . my . . . (still trying to think of the word "sleeping bag") . . . red bed!

Yay for red sleeping bags!