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?

Shopaholic in Training

My favorite thing to do on the weekends now is to get out of the house with my little mini, just the two of us. We go shopping and run errands at least once during this time. As she's passed over the 6 month threshold, she's really gotten to be fun while we're out an about. She loves looking around, oohing and ahhing at everything she sees and talking to people that pass by.

This past weekend, after a quick trip lugging her in the car seat out of the house, I decided she's just gotten too heavy for me to lug her around in the car seat anymore. I've mentioned how I feel about change and well, this is a big one for me.

The car seat is just so easy....especially in the winter. You see, you can't put infants in a snowsuit while in the car seat. Therefore, we purchased a fantastic snuggly cover that keeps her warm in her regular clothes while we're out and about. I love this cover. But now the problem of having to take her out of the car seat while we're out is quickly approaching. She's just too heavy.

In order to help me along with this change, I spent all day on Sunday preparing a shopping trip to test out taking her out of the carseat. We received a shopping cart cover at one of our baby showers that I've kept on hand in the car, should we need it. I know, I know...I'm totally that new mom. I'm sure by the next one I'll be throwing the infant in the cart without a thought about what diseases might be all over the cart. (Sorry, future second child). But for now, for my sanity, my precious little bundle must be kept safe from all the scary things out there.

I planned the trip to a baby store to get some things for her nursery she's been needing. I dressed her in a light fleece, hat, sweatpants and socks. We pulled into the parking lot and of course as luck would have it, had to park light years away. As soon as I pulled into a spot, however, I saw a mom doing the same thing I was about to do. So I sat in my car and watched her. Total creeper. When she was done, I felt a boost of confidence as I dashed to get a freezing cold cart and began putting the cart cover on. Those things are totally not made for dummies. Why is a piece of cloth with two holes for legs in it so difficult to figure out!?! After what felt like 20 minutes of finagling the thing into place, I finally took Adly out of the car seat and put her into the cart. The cover immediately pulled off of the cart. Ugh!

Luckily she was too intrigued about being out of the car seat to notice she was freezing which gave me a few moments to mess with the cover. After some maneuvering I was able to figure it out and get her strapped in.

We then raced into the store with a gust of glory. I had done it!! We had done it! From the start Adly was completely giddy. It must be quite an experience going from being carted everywhere in your little cocoon of a carseat to being thrust out into the open among all the lights, shiny things, and people.

Anyways, we happily shopped together through the store for a good hour before she started to get bored. Oh, and that mom I stalked with my eyes in the car? Well, I stalked her inside the store too. I really have no shame these days. I ran into her (on purpose) and awkwardly confessed I had watched her use the cart cover and asked for any advice on how to set it up more seamlessly. Thankfully, instead of running away from her creepy stalker, she gave me some tips about how to use it and even showed me the loops to use to attach toys for entertainment. See? We moms need to stick together!

Mom! Stop talking to me. I'm looking at the shiny things....

I love shopping!

Sensitivity

As a new parent, you are forever riding a learning curve. I feel like I can't seem to catch up when it comes to knowing what to do when it comes to baby. On top of that, so often I find myself smacking my forehead for not thinking when it comes to concerns about our daughter. It's almost as though when you're in the moment you're far too mind-clouded to think properly. It's only once you step back and listen to someone else that you have that "ah-hah" moment and suddenly it all makes sense.

For the last month or so, I've noticed little red dots on the back of Adly's chunky little thighs. I had also noticed redness around her leggy cracks. I was convinced it was dry skin, so I began putting Aquaphor on it. This is a thick, petroleum jelly type of lotion for very dry skin. It seemed to work somewhat, but after a month the dots and redness were still there.

We finally had our 4 month appointment this week and from that I discovered some information I thought would be helpful to pass along for other little ones. Turns out, it was not only really dry skin, but also extremely sensitive skin. My poor babes has been living with dry, irritated skin for months now and I've only been doing multiple things to exacerbate her symptoms even more.

Per our pedi's recommendations, we switched a number of things and within a few days, I've already noticed a huge difference. Here's what I learned:

-Use a humidifier. Seems simple right? This is how mucked up your mind can get. I have a humidifier. I registered for it and a kind friend purchased it for us. It's been plugged in and filled with water (until it evaporated) for over a month now. I used it once, but in my mind I got concerned that it would be too damp in there and therefore give her a cold. Seriously. Looking back...really Kelly? Really? So I never turned it on again. According to the doc, they need the moisture in the air. Not a ton, but at least some, especially during these cold winter months.  We will now be turning it on every night to help get some moisture in the air.

-If it smells good, don't use it. At one of our showers, we received some very yummy smelling, organic, "all natural" body wash for babies. It looks all fancy and I thought for sure it must be good for Adly. I mean, its organic and all natural! Turns out, if it smells good, it has smelly chemicals in it, which for very sensitive skinned babies, means irritation. Instead, you want non-smelly, sensitive skin wash. And when it comes to amounts, only a dab will do you. We have now switched to this Cetaphil Cleanser.

-Keep bath time short and cool. Adly looooves bath time. She kicks, splashes and is always very content during this time. We love it as a way to wind down for bedtime. Unfortunately, after 10 minutes in the bath, the natural oils in her little body are all but sucked out by the water and left to leave her with itchy, dry skin. Additionally, the water should not be too warm. Another, "duh" moment....

-If you can pump it, it's filled with water. For Adly, because of her sensitive skin, regular lotions just weren't cutting it. In addition to the daily applications of Aquaphor, I was also regularly rubbing her down with fancy scented organic lotions we also received. Once again with the smells. Another factor our doc pointed out was that lotions in pump bottles have to be more liquid-like in order to come out through the pump. Therefore their water content is quite high, which is never going to help with really dry skin. Ah-haaahhhh...... We have now switched to this Cetaphil Cream that is in a jar and far more thick than regular lotion.

-No dryer sheets. I'm not sure if this is common knowledge, but I had no idea you shouldn't be using dryer sheets when drying infant clothing. We made sure to purchase the purest, "free" detergents, but for whatever reason I never considered the dyer sheets. Turns out, of course those have lots of irritants as well and should not be used.

So there you have it. Torture by smelly body washes, smelly lotions, long baths, and irritating dryer sheets. If you have a newbie and notice their skin is getting dry and irritated, maybe try out some of these things. Hopefully your moment of clarity will come faster than mine did.

Thankfully, despite all of these things, she still seems like a normal, healthy and happy baby. Must be doing some things right!

Cute baby picture alert!

Must Have

As we've blundered our bleary-eyed way through the first two months, I wanted to give credit to a few items that we could not have made it without.

I remember being so overwhelmed when it came to products for baby when I was pregnant. What would she like? What would she hate? What would she absolutely need?

Here are a few things we could not live without. Mind you, these will likely all change in the next few months.

-Halo Sleepsack. Many parents use these at varying stages. We used this from the start. The main reason was because I am like a 2-year-old when it comes to swaddling. I cannot figure it out. And no matter what we do, our little ninja works her way out of any swaddle! Except this one....when it's nice and tight. Additionally, I'm convinced having her sleep in the same type of pajama sack every night helped us build our night routine from the start. Here's the catch...don't give in and feel bad for swaddling them! I did and I think that is what contributed to so many sleepless nights. She may think she loves having her arms out, but the startles are what keep you up at night!

-Soothie pacifier. Ahhh the paci. I was finally able to get her to take this after a month of trying and buying 8 different kinds of paci's. For whatever reason, she likes this kind. I was also excited to discover this type of paci is what is attached to the famed Wubbanubs. What the hell is a Wubbanub? Some genius who has been laughing their way all the way to the bank decided to attach a cute, soft stuffed animal to the Soothie and sell it for $17. This helps the little ones to keep the paci in their mouths. I was so excited to plop in Adly's new, cute, sweet Wubbanub with an innocent lamb attached to it. I put it in her mouth only to have her punch poor Lamby and knock it out. This has happened multiple times. Sigh. Either way, we put poor Lamby to rest and now continue to help her put her paci in over and over again. At least that works!

-Playtex Nursers. For us, these bottles have worked the best. We discovered that after spending a lot of money trying many different kinds. She has never had any problems with nipple confusion and can go from breastfeeding to bottle and back again, no problem. My advice is to at the very least, make sure the nipple is slow flow. That was a hard learned lesson for us.

-Playtex Double Electric Breast Pump. This was the pump I got through my insurance and was really the only one available. I wasn't thrilled about it at first. However, after two months, I think this is a fantastic pump. Best part is, it's under $100! It is loud, but it does the job. If you ask me, this option is just as good as the other models that run you over $300.

-Snap n' Go Stroller Frame. Wow. I don't think there's one thing we use more. My friend Laura emailed me a week before I gave birth and said if I hadn't gotten one yet- I really should. 8 months in, they were still constantly using theirs. So, I waddled myself into the nearest store and picked one up. Best. Advice. Ever. This allows you to take the carseat from the car and literally, "snap" it into the stroller frame. It's lightweight and super portable.

-Boppy. Seriously use this for everything. Breastfeeding, holding baby, helping others hold baby, propping baby, etc. Its possibilities are endless. You'll also want extra covers. I didn't get that memo and instead learned the hard way as I was washing mine daily.

Oh my gosh. She's so little here!

-Plain old white burp cloths. I received a lot of really cute burp cloths at my showers and I couldn't wait to be a super stylin' mommy. But when it comes down to it, nothing really works better than the good ole Gerber diaper cloths. They are littered all over our house, car, in my purse...everywhere. 

Lastly,

-Pampers Swaddlers. After trying many brands of diapers, having way too many blowouts, and doing way too many loads of laundry, I jumped on the expensive bandwagon. I love these diapers. Rarely do we have a blowout anymore. They seem more soft and comfy and in my experience, the fit is just overall superior to others. 

What's in Your Bag?

As you progress into the home stretch of your pregnancy, you'll start to read and hear a lot about packing your hospital bag. This has become big business for some people. I've even seen "pre-packed hospital bags" in those kitschy little specialty mommy stores. I've read posts about girls who had their bags packed weeks ago...like in the 2nd trimester. Hey, you never know, right?

I myself am a bit thick headed. Obviously judging from the fact that I saw nothing wrong with taking a 5.5 hour drive by myself at 36 weeks, I don't really think I'm that pregnant. The hospital bag to me, has been nothing but an obnoxious pain in the ass. Therefore, I've just avoided it. Of course once again, it took my doctor telling me in slow-mo: you could have this baby at anytime. Pack a bag. Before I decided I should take a stab at it.

My procrastination comes from the fact that it's very overwhelming to me. Why? Everywhere you look, you can find lists telling you to pack items that range from 10 things you must have to 50 things. If all goes well, I'll only be in the hospital for 2 days. Seriously? 50 things?! Not to mention I live 10 minutes from the hospital. Adam can get me anything I forget. Can't he? Then I go into the panic mode of: "No, he won't know where it is, I'll have to remember and then what if I forget where I put it last? I must bring it."

After yesterday's talk with my doctor, I attempted to settle this conundrum by packing a bag based off of a few different lists that I felt fit me best. So to help any of you future preggo's, I thought I'd put it on here. Hopefully the process isn't nearly as overwhelming for you as it was for me.

My Hospital Bag:

-Robe, cotton pajama/nightie thingy, slippers: my lovely mother in law got these items for me at my baby shower. I've read some women use them, others don't. I'm bringing just in case. Slippers, however, have been recommended by quite a few people. It can be chilly and you are forced to prove you can walk after that bowling ball comes shooting out of your legs.

-Baby Book: this surprised me. Honestly up until this Tuesday, we hadn't even purchased one. But apparently in the hospital they will put your wee one's footprints in the book for you. How precious and they'll never be that tiny again.

-Granny Panties: Now purchasing this item was fun. Standing at Target in front of the wall of Hanes cotton virginity panties, I found myself utterly clueless. First of all, grown up panties don't come in wrapped packs of 5. And what the hell size am I now that I've put on a bunch of weight? Once I decided on a size, I could've cared less about what they looked like. This is because apparently after birth your body has to get rid of a lot of things...for up to 6 weeks. So in addition to the large and in charge pads you get to wear, you definitely don't want to ruin any of your pretty underthings you've gathered in your adult years. I've heard some hospitals supply you with large, lovely panties, so I'm bringing a few pairs of these as a backup just in case.

-Conditioner and Baby Lotion: I've heard from multiple sources there is no conditioner in the showers and lotion can come at an extra expense. Therefore, I'm heeding their advice and packing just in case.

-Normal Toiletries: In addition, I always need contact solution/case, face wash, toothbrush/paste and I'll throw my make up bag in last minute if I remember.

-Hairband/hairties: I don't want any of that business in my face while I'm huffing and puffing.

-Nursing Bra/Nursing Bra Tank: Target offers really reasonably priced nursing wear. Therefore, I'm bringing my bra and tank I purchased. Who knows if I'll need them nor what size I'll be. Let's hope I guessed right.

-Going Home Outfit (Me): The bottoms were easy. Stretchy maternity leggings. Whether I end up succeeding with a vaginal birth or having a c-section, I'm hoping these will keep whatever is leftover of my belly in place. The top was harder. I've embraced my bump for most of my pregnancy so I don't have much of anything that's loose fitting. And, let's be honest, at this point in the game, I'm stretching out anything and everything I put on. So in the end, I went with a larger oversized, long t-shirt. Oh and shoes! Almost forgot shoes. That would help, right?!

-Going Home Outfit (Adly): This has me stumped. I don't know how big she's going to be, how hot it's going to be nor what she'll fit into comfortably. So for our darling princess, I packed 4 outfits. Thankfully her clothes are small. She has a newborn short sleeved onesie, a long sleeved newborn onesie, and a short-sleeved/long-sleeved 0-3 month onesies. One of those has GOT to fit her. If not we'll just diaper her up and throw in her in the carseat. I kid, I kid.

-Swaddle blanket: This was my own idea. Maybe we'll use it, maybe we won't. But we'll have it if we need it.

-Receiving blanket: Same as the swaddle. Will we or won't we? Who knows.

-Pacifier: Just in case.

I'm sure I've forgotten something. I'm sure I won't use all of these things. Some lists recommend you bring massage oils, candles, a picture frame of you and your hubby to focus on, videos, etc. But I myself won't need that crap. No, I'm just going to focus on getting the baby out and in my arms. Perhaps there may be some screaming, definitely some swearing, and maybe a little "I HATE THAT YOU DID THIS TO ME!!!" And if you ask me, a candle and massage oils aren't going to make that any better.

I'll be sure to update afterwards and give the low down on what was unnecessary and what I missed.

Product Love

In honor of V-Day, I thought I'd spotlight some products I've been loving so far in my pregnancy. The first thing I turned to when I found out I was carrying a bundle of joy, was books. I love to read. So it was only natural for me to turn to books; after google freaked me out enough to send me into tears and thinking of jumping off a building. I kid, I kid. But you get the point. Google can be cray cray.

The first two books, a recent preggo friend of mine, Laura, sent to me and I can't thank her enough. The Mayo Clinic's Guide to a Healthy Pregnancy saved my sanity during the treacherous weeks of the first trimester and into the second. In fact, it is still my BFF when I'm having doubts or anything weird happens. As my friend Laura suggested: turn to it before you ever turn to Google. And boy was she ever right.

The next book she sent was called Baby Bargains. It goes through and gives ratings of popular products on a grading scale. Its very easy to read and so organized. It also helps me overcome the panicky sweats that tend to start up as soon as I start thinking about the baby and the products and the safety and ohmygod how am I ever going to keep this child alive?! My copy is dog eared, underlined, starred, and highlighted all over and I've owned it for two months.

The last book I've read is The Girlfriends Guide to Pregnancy. This was given to me by a coworker who just had her own little precious. This book isn't one of those cheesy books where you sit and think, who the hell are these people?! I'd never be friends with them! Instead, I was instantly drawn to her sarcastic, hilarious honesty. It truly is like having that girlfriend who tells you everything and I mean everything normal people don't want to talk about when it comes to pregnancy and all its gory details. All of which of course, my inquiring, terrified mind wants to know.

Finally, a product a coworker recommended to me, Clarins Tonic Oil. Now this, I cannot totally attest to as I'm not that far along and I'm clearly not that big yet. BUT, my coworker Sally is about 5'3", maybe 110 pounds soaking wet and she carried triplets. TRIPLETS! Three little babes in her belly.  How on earth those little darlings ever made room in her tiny belly is beyond me, but they did. And would you believe, she has NO stretch marks. Not one. Go ahead and think it: bitch. (She's actually quite fantastic and hilarious and awesome, but go ahead and hate her- just a little). Sally swore by this product and as soon as I heard she had no stretch marks I ran (lets be honest, hopped in my husbands car) to the nearest Macy's and picked up a $50 bottle. I've been using it every day since and so far have no stretch marks. To me, its worth the money to put me in the mindset that I will not get stretch marks. It also smells awesome and leaves my skin feeling soft.

**Disclaimer: stretch marks are said to be hereditary. Who knows what to believe. I'm believing in this stuff and if it doesn't work, eh, I tried.**

So far, thats it on the recommendations. If you find yourself newly knocked up, I hope this gives you some ideas. Or if you have a friend that has just come out of the closet as a new mom, hook her up with one of these books! You'll look like a fab, knowledgeable friend.

Happy Valentines Day to all you sweeties, lover bunnies, and sugar pies out there!

xo,

The one in which I do product placement for free.

Friday...its HERE!! Holy moly was this a long week. I wasn't sure I'd make it to this day. I spent a lot of my first trimester boo-hooing and worrying myself into a daily panic that something was wrong with Baby B for countless reasons, but the main one being: I just didn't feel pregnant. Deep down inside me I wanted to feel morning sickness so bad I threw up. I wanted to be so sick I had to stay home from school. I wanted to feel that maternal feeling of pregnancy. I guess to me, it was almost like the pregnancy initiation period. Don't get me wrong, I was sick a few times...just not nearly as bad as I swear every other pregnant woman has felt.

Lets fast forward to the 2nd trimester. The time I've been reading about for weeks- where every woman begins to feel amazing again after an awful first trimester. I swear in my mind it was going to be like waking up one day, sunshine shining on my head, birds chirping and fluttering around me. I'd bounce out of bed, my face glowing and with my energy abound I'd say to myself, "This pregnancy thing is AWESOME. I want to be pregnant all the time! I'm feeling that good!" (Seriously, this is the warped world my mind lives in).

Unfortunately for me, the second trimester seems to be payback for having an easy first trimester. Karma....you evil B. I'm beyond exhausted. I just can't seem to catch a break when it comes to sleep. And then there's the back pain. That ever present strain on my upper back. Thankfully, I have a friend who recently became a mommy who's been a wealth of information. The other day, I texted her late at night (8pm for me) to find out if she had any suggestions for relief. She texted back to look up something called the Snoogle. So I did immediately, read some reviews, mentioned to A that it looked cool and then went promptly to bed.

Well, today, at work a big package arrived for me. I tore it open only to find the Snoogle I had been looking up. Inside was no card. My first thought was honestly: "Did I buy this and forget I did??" (Believe me, thats not that unrealistic these days). Then my thought went to A. Sure enough, after I went to bed that night, he picked up where I left off reading the reviews and ordered it. He's always been a thoughtful guy, its one of the best things about him. (I on the other hand, play the role of the man...forgetting most important things and having to try really hard to be thoughtful). But since getting knocked up, he's gone even more above and beyond with the thoughtfulness. Anyways, here's hoping for a restful nights sleep tonight with my new Snoogle thanks to my amazing husband!

Additionally, another item I've come to love so far has been this belly band contraption. Excuse the poor self portrait in the mirror. I've never understood how or why people take pics like that of themselves in the bathrooms when they're all done up. Anyways, this was my attempt at that to show you how it works. Its purpose is to help extend the life of your regular jeans. You see, my pants here are unbuttoned. This way I can sneakily continue parading around in my regular old pants like they still fit. Or, better yet, as though I just ate a whole pizza and unbuttoned my pants and no one is the wiser. (Which I may or may not have done at lunch today). 

Yay for maternity goodies! Have yourselves a wonderful and relaxing weekend!! I, myself, will be catching up on sleep with my Snoogle, cheering on the Packers and eating lots of food. 

xo,