A Girl Named PJ

Outtakes from Levi’s Monthly Photo Shoot

October 29, 2012

I have a hard time accepting a compliment. When somebody tells me they like Levi’s monthly photo, I feel compelled to reply with something like, “Thanks, but you should see how many I had to take before I got that one good shot!” It’s always “thanks, but…” with me. I’ve really got to break that habit.

The truth is, Levi’s 15-month-old photo shoot was particularly challenging for me. Not only did he not want to sit in the white rocking chair, he also refused to give up his pacifier. Whenever we pulled it out of his mouth, he screamed. And screamed. And screamed. He just did not want to cooperate this time around, and it literally took three sessions over two days to get one in-focus shot of him looking happy without his pacifier.

Now that he’s an active toddler, Levi clearly has better things to do than let his camera-toting mother take his picture. That’s not to say I don’t have any photos of Levi! My Instagram feed is overflowing with pics of my baby guy. (Probably too many, I’m sure.) But for both of our sakes, I hope that Levi will be willing and able to sit still for longer than three seconds for his 18-month-old photo shoot, which is the next time I plan to take his monthly photo.

PS: See Levi’s progression from newborn to one year old here.

How a Toddler Plays with Sidewalk Chalk

October 26, 2012

On a warm October day, Levi got his tiny little hands on sidewalk chalk for the first time. I’m pretty sure he thought it was the coolest thing ever. I showed him how to draw and color with it outside a friend’s house, but he was more interested in transporting the chalk from one side of the driveway to the other. He crawled back and forth through other people’s colorful masterpieces to fill and dump that blue plastic chalk container.

Note to self: Buy Levi a bucket of sidewalk chalk next spring.

But I wonder…When do toddlers start understanding the concept of drawing and coloring with crayons, markers or chalk? At IHOP last weekend, Levi made marks on his paper place mat with tiny green and orange crayons but only because he was tapping the crayons on the table. It wasn’t like he was intentionally trying to doodle. (I still brought it home to hang on the fridge.)

Do you remember when your kids first became interested in coloring?

This week has felt suuuuuuper long, and I’m really looking forward to having some down time this weekend. But it looks like it’s gonna be another busy one: We’re attending an event at Vala’s Pumpkin Patch on Saturday and have brunch with friends on the calendar for Sunday. Can you believe that Halloween is already next Wednesday?! Have you picked your pumpkins yet?

PS: I’ll be posting Friday links tomorrow, so be sure to come back and check them out!

#GracoSafety // Introducing the Graco SnugRide Click Connect 40

October 25, 2012

I spent this past Saturday afternoon at Babies R Us helping Graco launch their new SnugRide® Click Connect™ 40. Another Omaha blogger, the awesome Erin from Home with the Boys, hosted two VIP events for local bloggers and moms, while I live-tweeted and took photos at both parties. (You probably noticed the #GracoSafety hashtag popping up in your Twitter feed for a couple of hours!)

After snacking on cookies and playing some celebrity baby trivia (did you know Simon Le Bon has a daughter named Saffron?), Erin demonstrated the just-released infant car seat and stroller, which are only available online and in store at Babies R Us. Here’s what I learned about the SnugRide® Click Connect™ 40:

It’s the only infant car seat that provides rear-facing protection for babies from birth to 2 years old
The base has 8 adjustable recline positions for the most leg room of any rear-facing car seat
You can adjust the harness and headrest with just one hand to fit your growing baby’s height without having to re-thread the harness (which is normally such a pain)
The Click Connect™ attachment allows you to easily transition baby from the car seat to the stroller

We transitioned Levi to a convertible car seat when he was 14 months old, but I have friends whose babies outgrew their infant car seat long before they turned one. The moral of the story: All of our toddlers would still be comfortable in a SnugRide® Click Connect™ 40, and we’d have a couple more months to save for the next size car seat.

And I almost forgot the coolest part of the day! We gave away two SnugRide® Click Connect™ 40 car seats–one at each party–and one of the winners was a mom from my Baby Signs class!

The Graco SnugRide® Click Connect™ 40 – the first and only newborn to two-year infant car seat that actually grows with your baby from four pounds all the way up to 40 pounds. The car seat is designed for a parent on the go. The infant car seat can be easily removed from the base and used as a carrier when the infant is small, providing portability and convenience so you can easily move your infant in and out of the car without disturbing them.

The American Academy of Pediatrics recently made the recommendation to keep all children in rear-facing car seats until the age of 2. Graco set out to make this product so parents can keep infants rear facing longer while still keeping them comfortable.

This is a sponsored post written by me on behalf of Graco. The opinions, text and photos are all mine.

{see more of my Instagram photos from the event!}

Shop the Catalog // The Land of Nod

October 24, 2012

I only subscribe to a couple of magazines, including Lucky, Whole Living and Real Simple. Still, I run to the mailbox every afternoon eager to see if next month’s issue has arrived. Most days, however, I only find bills, junk mail and catalogs.

Have you noticed that many catalogs nowadays read like magazines?

Lately, I’m just as content to curl up with a catalog. (Perhaps a sign that I need more excitement in my life?) From their creative styling and photography to their unexpected editorial content, some catalogs are are actually fun to flip through–especially if their products are equally as awesome.

Take the newest The Land of Nod catalog. I had barely gotten through their first section featuring holiday products when I tweeted that I wanted it all–and I don’t even celebrate Christmas!

I finally made it through to the very last page and wanted to share with you some of my favorite new products. How does that Barenaked Ladies song go? “If I had $1,000,000…”

Big Game Beanbag Toss // “You Say Coffee, I Say Play” Table // Build Your Own City Blocks Set // The Elmwood Table

Haul and Totes Ride On // Off-Broadway Puppet Theater // A Teepee To Call Your Own

What did you see and love in the latest catalog from The Land of Nod? Share YOUR picks below!