5 Secrets to Giving the Perfect Gift

There's a book out there somewhere all about love languages.  One of those love languages is receiving gifts.  Well, no offense to the love language book, but I think you forgot one:  Giving gifts.
I absolutely love to give gifts.  But not just any gift.  I like to really put some thought behind the things I give people.  For example, one year for Christmas, I gave my sister the beginnings of a scrap book that we could work on together and add more of our memories.  Another year, I made my mom Christmas ornaments out of things like paper plates, pipe cleaners, and old photos of my sisters and me.  It was sentimental and exactly my kind of gift.  
And lets be honest, who doesn't love that moment when your sister opens your gift on her birthday and tears instantly come to her eyes?  To me, that's the best feeling in the world. 
Today I'm going to share 5 secrets to giving the perfect gift (even if you are never that person who brings the emotion to the birthday party. 

1//  Remember that you are giving this gift, not receiving it. 
One of the biggest mistakes people make when shopping for a gift, is they shop for themselves when looking for a gift. When you think "Well I would like to get that..." You're not shopping for your boyfriend or your husband, or your mother-in-law, you're shopping for yourself.  
2//  Shop in the right place. 
If your shopping for your friend who is all about sustainability and "green" business practices, you may want to shop at a place like Uncommon Goods rather than a large franchise.  You're more likely to find that unique gift that your friend can truly appreciate.  
3//  Know what occasion you're shopping for. 
One of the best things about Uncommon Goods, is that they break down their products by occasion.  For example, I'm looking for a gift for Corey's and my first anniversary.  I can go here and find all kind of creative ideas.
4//  Think outside the box.
One of the best ways to do this is to purchase a personalized gift. Why buy newlyweds a blender, when you can get them a personalized piece of art that they can hang in their family home for the rest of their married lives?  This one is my personal favorite.  You can check out more personalized gifts here
5//  Show them that you know them.
Picking up a shot glass in the gift shop for someone who doesn't drink probably wouldn't go over so well.  Really look for that perfect birthday gift.  Something personal like this fillable book could be the best possible gift for someone who is more sentimental that material.  (hint hint Corey ;)
I promise, if you use these 5 tips when you're searching or the perfect gift, you will not fail.  You can thank me later when on Christmas day, mom is crying over the gift you gave her being exactly what she never knew she wanted.  ;)
A few things worth noting:  I like to support businesses where I believe in their mission.  I chose to work with Uncommon Goods because of they cultivate a community of artists and quality products. Buying from a place you truly want to support could make your gift the perfect one all by its self. 
*This post was sponsored by Uncommon Goods. All opinions are my own.*

5 Tips for the Working Mom

On Monday I went back to work.  For those of you who may not know, I work as a manager at a call center.  I am over the training department.  The company I work for is a start up.  That means that we are growing very quickly and constantly.  Things change every day.  That means that I am a workaholic.  The last few months of not worrying about work have been complete heaven, but going back to work has been somewhat refreshing. 
The last week of my maternity leave I did a few things to prepare to head back to work.  I cleaned my house, sent a few emails and started working on my plans for how I'm going to survive being a working mom. So far things are going really well. 
Here's a few tips for making that tough transition to full time mom and full time employee. 

1//  Get your clothes in order One of my biggest worries for going back to work was getting there on time.  To try to ease this worry I took a few steps during my last week of leave.
I washed all my clothes and organized my closet and dresser.   This way when I go to dress myself, I know where my work pants and shirts are at.  No more digging through everything I own and taking 45 minutes just to FIND my clothes that are appropriate for work.
2//  Do parts of your morning routine at night As much as I like to have a shower in the morning, I haven't had a lot of time for them in the AM.  Sometimes I get one in the morning, but I have more time to get us ready.   I also used to make Corey lunch in the morning.  Now I pack most of it at night and save myself about 10 minutes every morning. 
3//  Don't get back in bed. You WILL fall back to sleep.  You WILL be late.  Your make up WILL be all smudged.  And you will not start that day out right. 
 4// Have a back up plan for childcare I use a private baby sitter for childcare.  That being said, she will occasionally need days off.  I've made sure my employer is okay with me working from home if necessary to take care of Clara if the sitter is unable.  I also have a back up for my back up.  Knowing I'm covered when I'm back at work is a huge relief. 
5// Meal plan I am the cook at home. Corey's specialties are microwave dinners, ramen noodles, and frozen pizza.  While there is nothing wrong with that, I don't want him microwaving dinner every night  To keep that from happening, I meal plan.  The hardest part of cooking every night is deciding what to make with the stuff I've got at home, and that causes me a lot of stress.  Having a meal plan saves time and ensures that I have everything I need to make what we're having.  

8 Must-Haves For the New Mom

*This post contains affiliate links.  I use all of the products linked and I swear by them!* When you become a mom, the world changes.  Okay, so maybe the whole world doesn't change, but a lot of things do. 
The other day I had some errands to run.  In order to run those errands I had to feed the baby till she was asleep so I could shower.  I had to dress myself.  I had to dress my baby.  I had to make sure her diaper bag had all the essentials. I had to make Corey lunch and get out the door before 12:30.  
All I wanted to eat for lunch was a teriyaki place near Walmart.  In order to go inside I'd have to take the baby out of the car, lug her inside for all of 6 minutes while I ordered and waited for my food. Then I'd have to lug her out with my food in hand, forgetting about a drink because I just didn't have enough hands for that.  
So I decided to go home and eat a bag of cookies and left over spaghetti instead.  Life as I knew it is over and a new one as begun.  But lucky for me, I've found a few things that make my life a lot easier.    

1// Munchkin Bottle Drying Rack When I was registering for things, I didn't really think I needed a separate drying rack for bottles. When my counter was taken over by bottles and pump parts to where they wouldn't fit on my regular drying rack with the dishes.  I  bought mine last week and it has already made my kitchen cleaner.  

2// Boppy Nursing Pillow I thought this would be a totally overrated mommy novelty.  I was promptly proven wrong.  My Boppy is a complete life saver when it comes to night time feedings or when Clara is feeling fussy and doesn't want me to put her down.  The Boppy gives my arms a rest.  
3// Pack 'n Play These aren't new.  My mom used one when we were growing up, but they've changed a little since I was born. they have bassinets, changing tables, nappers, and the bottom comes up so you don't kill your back reaching in the pick up the baby.  I use mine literally every day during naps and I love it. 

4// Lansinoh Breast Milk Storage Bags This is another thing I didn't buy prior to having Clara.  I didn't know I'd need it.  But it's already been a live saver.  When I want to go out with Corey I can take some milk out of the freezer and my baby can benefit from breast milk without me being there and when I go back to work  we can continue feeding Clara breast milk.  
5// Chicco Bravo Stroller  My stroller rocks.  I got it extremely on sale at Babies 'R' Us and had no idea what to expect, but in the last month, it's got us through 2 grocery trips, multiple walks, the State Fair, and other trips to the outside world for mommy's sanity.  It's easy to fold up and my car seat pops right onto it.  I am so glad this was the stroller I found on sale.    

6// Aquaphor Baby Diaper Rash Cream I got this cream as a sample at my pediatricians office.  I noticed baby girls bum was a little red so I put some of this on.  It was gone literally the next day, so of course I bought more.  That sample system works...
7// Rock 'N' Play The rock and play...rocks.  I love it.  Clara sleeps better in her Rock 'N Play than anywhere else.  We put it in the kitchen while we eat or in the living room when we watch TV.  It has been prefect.  
8// Delta Glider My glider was a gift from Corey's mom.  Best. Gift. Ever. There is nothing like sitting in my glider and staring down at my beautiful baby girl.  And sometimes daddy gets to use it too.  

What to Bring When The Baby is On the Way

**This post contains Affiliate links to quality products that can be purchased on Amazon**

Packing the bag for the hospital is an important part of having a baby.  Some people back up their hospital bags months before their baby is due to arrive.   I, being the picture of preparedness that I am, packed my bags a few days before Clara made her appearance. 

There are tons of things on Pinterest that tell you what you should pack for your (hopefully) short stay at the hospital.  I probably looked at a more than 20 little graphics saying what was essential for each member of the family.  I also talked to my family that had recently had babies at the same hospital, and eventually came up with a few things to stick in our bags. 

First things first:  Baby Clara's Diaper Bag

 From everything I've read, people tend to regret bringing way too many things with them to the hospital.  We figured we would already be overwhelmed with all of the new things that come with being a new parent.  We didn't need a whole mess of things getting in our way.  

Diaper Bag // Swaddles // Nursing Pillow // Nighties

For Corey and I:

When I was thinking about what to pack for the two of us, I started with a huge list.  The more I looked at he list, though, the less I wanted to take all of those things. We live close enough to the hospital that Corey could go home to clean up and change clothes, so what we brought for him was pretty minimal.

Form my stay at the hospital, I ended up really only using  a few of these things in the picture.  It was honestly sort of difficult to do anything but lay in bed.  There were people in and out of the room, we were working on breast feeding (this is a post in and of its self...), signing paper work, and figuring out how to be parents. I swear even eating was a challenge because we were so busy.   

LilyPadz® // Lansinoh Nursing Pads// Always Feminine Wipes // Kleenex Facial Wipes  

My Advice For Packing Your Bags:

1:  Contact the the hospital and see what they provide for you. 

The hospital I delivered in provided me with everything I needed for my recovery to include awesome mesh undies.  They also had diapers, wipes, and receiving blankets. When you know what will be provided, you can make a decision on what additional comforts you want.  

2:  Be aware that dad gets nothing. 

In general, dad is not provided with many comforts.  They'll give him a pillow and a blanket, but you and baby are the patient.  Bring him a change of clothes and something to help him sleep comfortably.

3:  You'll want to have something to wear besides your hospital gown.

I was very grateful to have bought a nice nursing night gown and robe.  We were having a really hard time with breast feeding and it was very helpful to be wearing something nursing friendly.  It was also nice to be able to walk around the halls and not worry about my bum peaking out. 

4:  Don't forget your phone chargers!

You're probably going to take a thousand pictures and you'll have to let everyone know that your baby has arrived.  You don't want to have to worry about your dead phone.  Also, don't leave them in the birthing suit or the maternity floor! They collect a lot of phone chargers. 

Getting My Life Together

When you have a baby on the way, you get very reflective.  Okay, maybe I should speak for myself. 

I've recently gotten very reflective of how I live my life and a few of the things that make it more difficult to lead.  After thinking about it for several hours, I came up with a few idea of how I can get my life together and make things easier for me and for those around me. 

1//  I unsubscribed to 20+ email lists. 

      Every time I looked at my personal email, I was feeling overwhelmed.  There were 500+ emails and they just kept pouring in.  Just looking at the little red notification on my phone was killing me. 

Over the past few weeks I had been non-noncommittally unsubscribing when I ran into offer emails I didn't care to see all the time, but it really wasn't making a dent. Eventually I set up Unroll Me.

 

What I like about Unroll Me:

A//  You can mass unsubscribe to all those emails you don't care for. 

B//   You can add select emails that you still want to receive to your "Roll Up".  Your roll up will    show all the selected emails in one pretty email that is far less overwhelming that 500+ notifications on your email.

2//  Corey and I started a weekly routine

 

      Friday nights, I make a meal plan for the week. 

      Sunday during the day, Corey and I go grocery shopping. 

      Each weeknight (usually with the exception of Fridays) I make dinner.

      I also do the dishes and clean up dinner...This is  my least favorite part of my evenings. 

      Every Wednesday Corey goes out and plays kick ball.  

...and then we start all over again.

What I like about our routine:

A// I don't get overwhelmed with the "what are we going eat tonight" dilemma over and over again.  It does happen on occasion, but it's a lot less frequently. 

B// My kitchen is usually clean when I go to cook the next night, thus keeping me from feeling stressed out around meal time every night. 

C// We save a lot of money!

3//  I made a plan to pay off my debts faster. 

No one likes knowing that they owe money to someone or an organization.  I am no different.  Over the last few weeks I've been looking at what I owe (it's not a ton, but enough to make me want (read "need") a plan) and I've been formulating a plan to get ride of it.  

What I like about planning to demolish my debts:

A// My current stress level has significantly diminished because I'm not constantly thinking about the daunting number.  I have a plan and I'm ready to deal with it. 

B// Corey and I will only be in this lease until next spring.  Knowing that my debts will be getting smaller and smaller every month makes our goals to purchase a  home or a new car or whatever else we need seem much more attainable. 

Preparing for a baby is a lot of work, but it's really helped put a lot of things in perspective for me.  I think I know what matters now, but I expect things to change a lot once my baby comes.  I guess my best bet is to try my best to be prepared.