The title is NOT to be confused with 'mother nature's' monthly gift...

So a few weeks back, Plum District (like a Groupon site for moms) had a deal for the WittleBee site. The 'mom' side of me got a little intrigued about this WittleBee site....

For $39.99 a month, you get a box full of clothes shipped to your house. The clothes are based on a style profile you fill out for your kid - age, gender, color, clothing necessity, weather, themes, etc. Their website states that there is over $100 retail value packed in every box - and for every box shipped, they donate a onesie to a child in need.
The deal was for a 2 month subscription at a discounted price, so I perused the site some more, to see if they had any sample boxes.

They did!

preppy themed box for a boy

diva themed for a girl

princess themed for a girl

sporty themed for a boy

 So after all that, I figured I'd give it a whirl!

It arrived today via USPS...


Beau was clearly excited....


And now for the contents....

nicely packed like the sample boxes...

DR.SEUSS!!! it says Dr. Seuss on the bootie area too :)

Osh Kosh B'Gosh cuords in black & Tea romper

I know not everyone will find this the post helpful....BUT for every 10 of you that hate it, it may help 1. So with that said....here are some tips for travelling with an infant from moi'.

MattyB & I just took a trip to Las Vegas (he for business, me for shoppingbusiness), and we brought along our 2 month old. PTL that my parents also went - my mom was such a HUGE help!

In preparing for this trip, I of course discussed things with BB's pediatrician, but I also googled like crazy trying to find tips & suggestions. Most everything I found was how easy the flight would be & how airlines do not charge for children travelling under 2 (as long as they sit on your lap). No one mentioned (not even the airline website) that you need to bring a copy of your child's birth certificate!

Ummmm, we made it on the plane without it - but noted for future reference!

So airline & flying tips, if that it is your mode of travel.....

1. Bring your baby's birth certificate - they will ask for it!
2. Going through security is NEVER the same at any 2 airports....so go ahead & disassemble your car seat from your stroller. Send it through the conveyor scanner - your stroller will be taken from you & walked through the body scanner (UNLESS it's compact enough to fold up & go through the conveyor). You get to carry your bambino through the people scanner.
3. Since you can normally bring on to the plane (depending on airline) 1 carry on, & 1 personal item, I put my purse in my carry on & used BB's diaper bag as my personal item
4. In his diaper bag, I made sure to put a change of clothes for him, plenty of formula, diapers, wipes, etc.
5. Bring changing pads - that closet that they use as a bathroom on planes is hardly big enough for my butt....needless to say another person. Nevertheless, BB decided to dirty up his diaper (4 1/2 hour flight)....so I had to change him. I wanted him laying on something, rather than being tush to counter. 
6. If your smart enough to use a baby carrier (a la Moby Wrap, etc) bring it! It will free up your hands. I'm not smart enough to figure out how to use mine.
7. Bring a baby blanket or swaddle - not only can it get cold, but I also felt like it was an extra barrier against nasty germs
8. Gate check your stroller & infant car seat - unless you bring your baby carrier. Check your luggage, but by gate checking your stroller & car seat you can keep it with you until you board the plane. As soon as you land, it's then unloaded & brought to you - no having to find baggage claim with an infant in your arms.
9. We flew SouthWest - they do not assign seats, but they do have boarding groups (based on when you check in). Luckily, they let families (with children under 4) board after physically disabled, elderly, and group "A". So you still have a shot of a decent seat.

Baby gear I brought.....besides the obvious clothes, diapers, wipes, bibs, etc.

Baby Trend jogging stroller & infant car seat (with built on canopy - I did bring an extra canopy for added protection)

i included a close up of the handle area b.c that hook "the mommy hook" was GREAT for hanging shopping bags!!!

A Petunia Pickle Bottom Boxy Backpack diaper bag. This bag has an outside zippered pocket that unfolds to a changing pad. It can be worn as a backpack, but also has 1 long strap to hang on you or stroller.

Since our guy is on Enfamil formula....I brought 2 cans of formula, formula pouches, and formula ready-to-feed nursettes. The nursettes were PERFECT for travelling & being away from the hotel room all day! The pouches are great, if you remember to bring a bottle of water to prepare the bottle :)

the nursettes are 2fl oz, the pouches make 4fl oz

The Germ-X wipes are great, as are the Pacifier Wipes. I brought disposable changing pads as well - call me a germophobe, but the changing stations in restrooms gross me out. And the green thing is a dispenser for "doggy poop bags". (Literally, I think that's what they are - but I got the Arm & Hammer ones that you can find in the baby section of Target....they smell so good!) Besides being used for disposing dirty diapers, they are also great for storing dirty onesies after a massive explosion.

On a side note, I went into a few restrooms that did NOT have a changing station! Be prepared for the absolute worst.

Other fun facts....

I opted to travel with a crossbody purse - kept my hands free & it was small enough to pack in my carry on.

Rebecca Minkoff from Nordstrom

Looking for elevators can get frustrating when you're not already accustomed to doing so. Waiting for an elevator, only to have 1 person walk off of it is SUPER annoying. Especially when the escalator is close by. Why, why, why????

Always put your napkin in your lap when eating out & holding your infant. Besides being the proper thing to do....it also protects YOU from the massive explosions that sometimes creep out of the diaper.

And last, but certainly not least....if you're able to ship out necessities ahead of time DO IT! We shipped out diapers, formula, & wipes a few days before we scheduled to arrive. It was SO nice to not have the extra weight in our luggage & carry ons. Since we were in Vegas for 6 days, we used most of our supplies, so packing it in our carry ons & luggage was not an issue.

Today's blog title brought to you by: my son, Beau

So, if you can't already tell, I had the baby. He arrived April 14th...11 days before his ETA, which was so great. I wasn't "one of those" that just adored being pregnant. Please don't judge.

I'll spare you the details, but the delivery was nothing like I imagined. Then again, I'm not really sure what I was thinking it would be like?

Life with a newborn is crazy. Sleep is something unheard of.....and the discovery of how much I can get done on few hours of sleep has been a little mind blowing. As the little man approaches his 2 month mark, I'm finally feeling more like "ME".

I saw the following on Facebook this morning, and I had to share....

This is just what I needed to see today.

I implemented the "get my body back" program a little over a week ago. I want to be transparent with those interested, because a lot of what I have been told & read, I feel like wasn't the "truth". I appreciate the fact that Kelly Ripa has no problem sharing about her weight gain during pregnancy and the fact that it took her a year to get it all off.

I'll be the first to tell you to have realistic goals....so being 'real' I'd like to be back to my pre-pregnancy weight in 1 year; but I'm making it a goal to be as close to it as possible when my son turns 6 months old. That's a little over 4 months away. Realistic? I have no clue.

I will say that I think as women, we do put too much emphasis on the number that the scale shows. I'm guilty of that....clearly, I'm discussing losing weight.

Perhaps it would be better to say, "I'd like to fit in my favorite pair of jeans again".

In being transparent with you, here's where I stand:
I gained 50 pounds with this pregnancy
4 days after giving birth I had lost 20 pounds (hello water weight! my son only weighed 6lbs, 15oz)
For my 6 week check up, I had lost another 5 pounds
Last week I resumed working out and lost another 5
Grand total so far: 30 pounds lost, and I'm nearly 8 weeks post partum

Like I said, I don't know what's realistic. Every BODY is different. Maybe in being transparent with you, I can help someone achieve their health goal.

I leave you with this....a little something that has been making smile....

my little man & I, on my 1st Mother's Day