The Costco Files: My Best Finds for Moms

You know you're a mom when....

Costco happens.

Let's face it. Before you have offspring there really is no reason to have a membership to the worlds greatest mom-hive. I swear this place is constantly swarming with moms of all types, racing through the store to fill their carts with plentiful amounts of everything from fruits to wine to sleepers to diapers. Even when you show up right before the store opens. There are lines to get in! I have been to this store at every imaginable hour and never once have I seen it close to "empty". You know how you can find those sweet spot hours at your favorite shopping stores where no one else seems to be there? Never. Never, ever, ever, does this happen at Costco.

But why would it? This place is a magnet for people with kids. Their prices are unbeatable and oh my God have you tried their pizza?!? Let's be honest, you know most people (including myself) plan their eating schedule that day around getting to mow down on a heavenly piece of Costco pizza. Bonus points for when you don't have to have a child in tow. 

A mom friend of mine once said something along the lines of: you know you're a mom when your favorite outing of the week without your kid is a peaceful trip to Costco. Where you can wander the aisles in peace, not having to worry about entertaining your child. And she was so right. 

I've seen a lot of "What to Buy at Costco lists" out there, and I love reading them because I'm always looking for new buys there. However, I'm kind of a creature of habit. So I definitely find myself sticking with some of these trusty standbys. I thought I'd share my favorites to help any newbie Costco-goers (aka; new mommies) navigate the great aisles of this amazing store.

-Kirkland formula (for before one year). This had a major impact on helping our budget. So much cheaper than the name brand. Same ingredients too! So don't you worry all you over-protective-first-time-mommies.

-Kerrygold Irish Butter. Organic, grass-fed cows. Pure butter at a great price. 

-Organic strawberries. OMG their strawberries. Adly and I go through these in a matter of days. They are in season right now and beyond amazing. But I've personally enjoyed them all year. Never had a moldy batch, which is not something I can say for the smaller batches I buy at local grocers. 

-Belvita Breakfast Bars. I was introduced to these by another mommy. They are a great, nut free on-the-go snack for both of us. Love these. 

-Bananas. Organic again, and at an incredible price and taste.

-Kirkland Applesauce Squeeze Pouches. At about 18 months, I gave in to the ease of buying pouches. They still weird me out, so I check every one by giving it a little squeeze before giving it to Adly. I still argue that making them is better, but for now I just don't have the drive to make them. 

-Wholly Guacomole! These are sold in little individual serve packets and great for snacks. I haven't bought these yet only because I wasn't sure if we'd go through them all in a timely manner. However, I think my guac-loving child is definitely ready for them, so we will be picking them up next time we go. 

-Annie's Organic Macaroni and Cheese. Costco is making a big push to provide more organic products at a great price. Annie's recently switched their Mac and cheese boxes to all organic at Costco. I've since started buying these there. I actually prefer making my own Mac and cheese, but these are great for the times in between. 

-Condiments. We buy all of our staple condiments here like ketchup, mustard, Franks red hot, etc. All three of us are dip lovers so we tend to make use of these things pretty quick. 

-Huggies diapers. There are no doubts about it. Diapers here are so much cheaper! I prefer the Huggies because we are used to them. I hear Kirkland are just as good.

-Huggies Natural Care Wipes. I haven't been able to switch to Kirkland wipes simply because Adly has such sensitive skin, and Huggies wipes have always been good to her. However, I hear they're just as good and are sold at a better price. 

-Toilet Paper & Paper Towel. The Kirkland brand of both are staples in our house. To me, there is no argument that it is a great deal. I buy these items at most, 4 times a year now. That to me is so worth it. 

-Laundry Detergent. Our last big jug of detergent lasted us almost a year. And most of their brands are the "free and clear" types which are great for my sensitive skinned child and newborn. 

-Carter Jammies. You cannot beat the price of sleeper fleece footie jammies for $7.99. I stock up on these for the winter time. They also have the great 4-piece cotton jammie sets for around $9.99. Another great deal. 

This is our usual list. Sometimes I get a little crazy and stray out from the norm to try something new beyond our regular items. But that depends on how wild I'm feeling that day. 

What other items do you love from Costco?

Big News....

Yep. It is official. I spent enough time in a few bottles of wine in Napa to decide that why yes, being pregnant and having a newborn was so fun I'm up for it all over again!! Let's do this thing!

As it so happens, Adam and I are apparently extremely fertile. He so much as looks at me and BAM! There's a baby in there. We decided to start "trying" in February because it would mean the birth of our second child would happen at the end of Adam's golf season. 

While it lands in the middle of my school year, we decided Adam being home was more important. Well, I had the main influence over that. Baby number one was extremely hard on me mentally and physically. Hard to imagine now that she's almost two and so good. SEE??!! This is why people do it again. They forget. They forget everything. Anyways, on top of that, Adam was gone 90% of every day. Throw in the fact most of our family lives far away and a dose of PPD that caused me to want no help whatsoever created a big storm of a hell I hope never happens again. I wrote about all of it when I was coming out of it and I hope one day I can find the strength to share about it all. 

But that's besides the point. Let's get to the fact that we started trying in February and by the end of February some funky spotting was going on so on a whim I took a pregnancy test. I mean, there was no way I was pregnant....right?

Sure enough, that little test showed up a nice faint positive. This was quite different from Adly's three tests in a row that turned a bright blue positive immediately. I called the doctors office to find out the chances of a false positive test. The regular nurse wasn't in, so I spent an hour on the phone with the hospital, trying to convince them I didn't need to come in and that I wasn't having a miscarriage. I mean, I spent two weeks heavily bleeding with Adly, hence why we didn't know until around 8 weeks. Plus, I was so early this time I didn't think there was major cause for concern. I went in the next week for blood tests and sure enough, I was pregnant at about 4 weeks along. 

Knowing you're pregnant so early suuuuuucks. I felt like crap for most of it and had nothing fun like a hangover to blame for it. Then there's the constant, incessant worry. I would much rather live blissfully unaware until the end of the rocky first trimester and then be all like "Oh! I'm pregnant! And I only have 28 more weeks to go! Lovely!" I started to feel amazing again around 9 weeks after feeling pretty crappy, which of course in the twisted world of pregnancy is never a good sign. At 11 weeks I was a nervous wreck as we went in for our next ultrasound. As soon as we saw inside, that little baby was a kicking and a punching, which put my mind at ease....for a week.

Then we went to Mexico and I felt soooo good, I just couldn't believe I was still pregnant. So by the time I made it to my 13 week checkup, I was convinced something had happened. I mean I didn't feel pregnant in any way. I could've easily been drinking my way though Mexico, dancing the night away (until 10pm because oh my God I cannot stay awake!!)  Sure enough, she found that little heartbeat be-bopping away immediately. It's just another reminder that this time is no different. We pregnant ladies are all CRAZY, no matter how many times you've stepped into the ring. 

Now comes the waiting game of finding out the sex. This is our last and final child and I want to know more than ever. With Adly, I had a feeling of her being a girl from the moment we found out. It was just this weird feeling. This time, I'm not having a strong feeling either way. Some days I feel it's a boy, some days I feel it's a girl. However the other day, I came home from work and Adly was feeling quite snuggly. She leaned up against my stomach, rubbing it saying "Mama got a baby in her belly. Adly be gentle." These sayings are all normal. Then she whips out "mama got a brudder in her belly."

I'm sorry, WHAT!?!?

Never before have any of us mentioned her possibly having a brother. If anything, I'd expect her to say sister since we always call her a big sister. So either my child is a creepy psychic or its just by chance. But I swear if it turns out to be a boy, I'll be watching her from now on out of one eye. Always.

Being a second time preggo mom with a toddler is very different. I can tell poor baby number two is definitely going to get the shaft in pregnancy. I'm sorry in advance child. I'm exhausted most of the time and I have a toddler who likes to "work" on my keyboard as I do, so blogging about it seems to be extra difficult. And the nursery. Or as we call it, the guest bedroom, will remain that. Baby number 2 will be getting the crib from Adly. The one with beaver chew marks all over the railing (apparently we don't feed her enough). And the same changing table and rocking chair. As far as decorating, I'm not nearly as concerned as I was with baby #1 now that I know they'll spend most of their time pooping, peeing, and spitting up all over any decorating I do get done. And the belly pictures...I keep thinking about starting them but that takes work. And I'm kind of burnt out from working my day job and then my mommy job by 7pm. Heaven forbid Adly actually help me take pictures. I mean, what gives?! Hopefully I can get on board with those sooner than later.

After getting through 3-4 weeks of feeling terrible, eating only cereal and toast, and all kinds of nighttime yucky nausea, I've been feeling amazing since 9 weeks. And THAT I can't complain about. But of course, I'm me, so I will find something. You want to know what is the most not awesome thing so far this pregnancy? My OBGYN went over my charts from Adly at my appointment on Thursday (she wasn't the one who delivered me) and as she did, she balked at the size of Adly at 8lb, 13oz, who was born one week early. Adly had been hiding in there. She hadn't measured big, so we weren't prepared for a giant baby to exit me. I specifically remember the doctor going "woah that's a big baby!" as soon as she came out. Therefore, my doctor is now concerned I may have developed late onset gestational diabetes. I don't know, it may have had something to do with the bags and bags of Sour Patch Kids and cookies and ice cream Adly made me eat, but I'm trying not to point fingers here. Anyways, this time I get to take that God awful diabetes test twice! Let the fun begin. It's ok, I'll just keep stockpiling these moments of amazing things I did for them to bring back up when my children are in high school and want to hate me. 

So there you have it. We have officially entered the rollercoaster of pregnancy and new parenthood one more time. We will be becoming a family of four sometime November 2016! 

Navigating the World of Playground Etiquette

Adly is at the age now where her favorite place to be is the neighborhood park. She asks to go daily, sometimes more than once a day. We live in a city, with no backyard, so I get it. It's her place of freedom where she can run free and be a kid.

As a parent, it's a whole different world. Suddenly I'm finding myself thrown into a whole new social gathering that can be nice, awkward, and sometimes just plain hurtful or rude.

Adly isn't old enough yet for me to just sit on the bench and let her play. She still likes to make random daredevil moves towards high up openings. Or she just enjoys mama watching her as she runs like the wind to go down the big slide for the fiftieth time in a row. Therefore, I'm up walking around with her the whole time, along with five other parents hovering over their own little daredevils. 

Adly is very social with other toddlers now. She looooves making friends at the park. She calls them by their names, they hug, they hold hands, and they run and yell together. It is so cute and always tugs at my parent heart strings. Adly is one-on-one with an adult every day still, and I always second guess whether she's missing out on something socially.

Anyways, that's besides the point. So far, Adly has met some really nice toddlers to run and play with, who also have relatively nice moms with them. We follow the girls around and have quick conversations about their ages, how silly they are, when we're having a second child, etc. You see, all of the other parents following their kids around are always other first time helicopter parents. When the second child comes, they'll be running free as soon as they can walk so mama can get some quiet time on the bench. 

Most of these moms are cordial. It's awkward and I get it. For the most part we chat quickly, smile, and then focus on our own kids. One time, I met a mom that was very friendly. She asked so many questions in such a great conversational way. I liked her immediately. Within minutes of chatting and moving into a real conversation, I learned that she used to be a teacher too. Of course she has great conversational skills. We talk for a living! That day, Adly was in a non-friend mood and more interested in doing her own thing. I was bummed because she was genuinely someone I would've wanted to become friends with. We left shortly after Adly jumped down from her swing, so I didn't get a chance to reach out and ask for her number or to set up a play date.

Meeting new mommy friends is totally like sober dating. You start chatting, ask a few questions, see if you're on the same page as moms. They have a daughter around the same age. You like talking with the mom and the girls seem to like each other. You awkwardly ask for their number or ask to meet again. Or you consider all of these options, but don't actually have the balls to do it--which is usually my case. You leave feeling elated at the score of a new number- and possibly a new friend. Or you leave bummed that you missed an opportunity. 

See that there? Yeah that's what we used to do with the help of a lot of Miller Lites and help from the darkness of a stinky bar and loud music. Now it's just us, our coffees, the sun, and shrieking kids. 

Then there's the other type of kids and parents. Ugh. Thankfully I've only run into them once. And it was yesterday. It drove me to write again so I'm clearly fired up about it still. These are the bitches of the playground. (Excuse my French, but as I told Adam this story and my daughter chimed in with "nitches!!" I felt the retelling deserved credit with the word, since clearly Adly and I felt the same way). 

It started with the kid. Adly was happily sliding down the toddler slide with a handful of other kids, going down, running up the stairs, and going down again. Round and round. They each took turns as they went, being very nice to each other. Then this adorable little girl with long blonde locks entered the scene. Adly turned to her at the top of the slide to say hi. With her back to me, all I saw was the little girls head shaking in the shoulder-popping, finger-shaking "oh no you di-nt!!!" style. Full of attitude. Adly balked at her, as if saying "Umm you're weird." Then she slid down the slide and went on her merry way. 

Minutes later, Adly wandered over to a pink push car just like ours- but it's pink. Adly loves these little push cars (she just got a red one) and she loves the color pink. Perfect storm. She was looking intently at it as I was trying to guide her away from it explaining that it wasn't ours. The mom guarding it never looked up from her phone while Adly and I had the exchange about the car in front of her. I redirected her back to the slides and she went down a few more times. 

Minutes later, Adly headed back towards the car. This time, I see the same little long haired B of a girl taking to her mom. "Ohhhh..." I think. "Now I see where the kid gets it." I know. I'm a total Judgey McJudgerson. As soon as the girl sees Adly walking near, she jumps in the car and goes "You can't come over here! This is MY car!" 

I jumped into teaching mommy mode by saying to Adly "Yep, that's her car and we have our own. Let's go back to the slides or swings or we can go and see our car." As I'm doing this, and guiding Adly away, the mom stands up in a huff and says to her little girl, "I think we have to go now, since it's clear this little girl doesn't want to leave your car alone."

I'm sorry, what?!? I was so taken aback I didn't have the thought to stop to let my typical inner Kage Rage out. But seriously?! I'm sorry my child wanted to "look" at your child's car that is just like hers- but in pink. Yes. You are the better mom for buying your child every gender specific item she ever dreamed of. And NOW I see exactly where your child gets her demeanor from.

Humph. And that's when playground etiquette is hard. When you have to deal with bitches. And unlike in the good ole bar days, there are no bottles to send flying when someone cuts you and your daughter down.

For now I'll be working on my sassy, undercutting comebacks in the event we run into any other awful mother/daughter duos. You know, the kind of remarks that the person won't realize were a total cutdown until you've starting walking away with a smug smile on your face.

I know, I am definitely not a bigger person.