Weekly Blog Post Roundup

Classy Mommy: Giveaway Signed Copy of The Business of Being Born DVD
Win Classy Mommy Swag! We're giving away a signed copy of The Business of Being Born dvd. This dvd is signed by both Ricki Lake and Abby Epstein.

GO-3 Omega Vitamin Giveaway
Giveaway for David Beckham endorsed GO-3 vitamins. Three readers will each win a prize pack.

Kim at Hormone-colored Days
My epidural: A shot in the spine can be mighty fine

Kim at MOMformation
Life insurance for moms: How much are you worth?

Kristina from MOMformation
After a rocky start, my new baby boy and I are home from the hospital

Playful, Fun Ponchos for Little Girls
Mom's Favorite Stuff reviews adorable, easy to use ponchos for little girls.

The Full Mommy Contest
Find out about the new product I've dubbed "Heaven on a Stick."

This Full House Reviews: Were You Raised By Wolves?
If yes, then this is a book review, for you, by a mom with kids who think they live in a barn!

Wax Nostalgic
Leeanthro reminisces about her son's first year.

Simply Heaven

To see what I've nicknamed "Heaven on a stick," head on over to The Full Mommy. And enter to win while you're there.

Wax Nostalgic

It is amazing to think about the rapidity of change in children. One second they are a helpless infant being held in your arms for the first time and the next moment they are leaving for college.

My little guy is not headed for the Ivy Leagues yet, but he is no longer a baby. He turned one this past week. How did that happen? It seems like yesterday that I reported the news of his arrival.

The past year has been such a blur. It's funny how when one is in the thick of things that an end does not seem in sight. When your toddler decides that she has to poop on the big potty and requires your assistance each and every time you sit down to nurse the newborn. When your toes curl in pain because you have a severely cracked nipple (a "deep pit" the lactation consultant called it). When you barely have a moment to relax before one of the two children awakes from their nap.

But somehow things run increasingly smoothly. The toddler is fully potty trained and no longer needs help. The pain of nursing is a distant memory and now nursing only brings closeness and pleasure. And regular nap schedules mean catching up on a DVR'ed show or checking e-mail.

I think momnesia, the forgetfulness that new moms seem to have, is twofold. Yes, it is easy to forget where you left your keys (in the door!) or that it was your turn to bring snack to preschool. But momnesia may also refer to how quickly we forget the hard work involved in nurturing a newborn and only remember with nostalgia how wonderful it was to hold the terrific little life that you created.

Over the past few weeks there have been several instances where I realized that babyhood is a thing of the past. The first was when he sat in his new booster seat at the table with his sister feeding himself Cheerios. The next when he took his bottle of milk into the living room and drank it all by himself. These are milestones that aren't marked in What to Expect the First Year, but are signs of growing independence that are at once to be celebrated and mourned. For it is at this time that his mother is no longer the center of his world. He can do for himself. He can entertain himself for an hour exploring the house, looking out the picture window at cars and people passing by, "reading" books, rolling the ball and chasing after it while squealing in delight, and zooming anything that has wheels across the hardwood floors.

I am no longer his sole source of nourishment, security, or entertainment. I mourn the loss of babyhood and dependence at the same time celebrating his budding personality and emergence into toddlerhood.

My boy is a one-year-old now and I am mother to a preschooler and a toddler.

Inquiring Minds...

Mommy, how do I know that the sun went down and the moon came up if I wasn't outside to see it?

It's dark outside and it's dark in your room so that's how we know it's nighttime.

I know, but how do I know it really happened if I didn't see it happen?

(That must have been how Galileo got his start.)

**

Underneath my skin, do I have a skeleton?

Yes.

Are my teeth part of my skeleton?

Yes.

But why are my teeth on the outside and my bones are on the inside?

**

But how do babies get food through their bellybuttons in their mommies' tummies?

Mommies eat the food and it goes to their tummies. Then the food goes through the cord and into the babies' tummies.

But how? Food can't go through their bellybuttons after they are born.

No, it's open when they are in their mommies' tummies and when they are born it closes up.

Oh, I see. It was open and then it closed.

Camp Baby Weekly Blog Roundup

Check out these posts from some of the Camp Baby bloggers:

Book review: Just Tell Me What to Say
Kim at MOMformation

Classy Mommy Reviews Bellybar Shakes
Bellybar Shakes are my latest food and beverage obsession. Totally scrumptious. Perfect during pregnancy or breastfeeding. Read more here

I'm having a baby today
Kristina at MOMformation

Review: Alex Casey Baby
Mom's Favorite Stuff reviews the new offerings from Alex Casey Baby, including the crayon caddy.

Review: The Potty Watch from One Step Ahead
Pinks & Blues finds a product to help make potty training your toddler easier

The most exciting combo since Mentos and Diet Coke?
Hormone-colored Days sort of reviews KY's new Yours + Mine

Tiny Prints -- A Giveaway!
Enter to win a set of announcements from Tiny Prints!

Leno-worthy

Seen on North Prospect this week (you can tell by looking at the background):

Spared from Humiliation

Every year I get the Land's End catalog with swimwear and I swear that this is the year that I am going to order a tankini. I was given the opportunity to try one out and I can't believe I waited so long. I am a convert and I'll tell you why...

(Head on over to The Full Mommy to hear why. And while you are there, scroll down and enter to win a Hanes sweatshirt and KangarooBoo gift certificate.)