The Delaney and Waylon Diaries

The Adventures of Eve: Positive Spin Press

Looking for fabulous holiday books this season? Look no further than Positive Spin Press. Their beautiful books about Halloween, Christmas and various other winter holidays will delight as well as educate kids both young and old. The Parent Bloggers Network is giving away copies of these gorgeous books. Check out my review and then head over to PBN to leave a comment and win your copy!

Looking for that special snack?

Then check out my review of Yoplait Kids yogurt and enter to win a kids' cooler and a My First Brain Quest game courtesy of The Parent Bloggers Network and Yoplait!

Maiden America, Made by Moms

It's the simple things in life, right? We mothers of girls wish for pretty barrettes that won't slip out of our daughters' flowing locks. Really, it shouldn't be too much to ask for. I mean, if they can transplant a human heart from one person to another why on earth can't they come up with non-slip barrettes? You've tried every barrette on the market and still, they slip! You've given up. Such a thing just doesn't exist, you think to yourself. Or does it? Look no further. Maiden America barrettes do not slip. That's right, you heard me-- no slippage! Read my review of Maiden America non-slip barrettes to regain your faith in humanity. The impossible has been made possible. Rejoice!

Kick boring dinners to the curb

My review of Relish!, an excellent meal-planning Web site, is now live:

"In our house we hit the same wall every Sunday night: what on earth are we going to cook for dinner this week? Roger's quite a wiz in the kitchen but that doesn't mean we don't get burned out eating the same meals week after week. We needed a way to break out of our rut and find creative, easy ideas for dinner. Enter Relish!

Brought to our table by The Parent Bloggers Network, the opportunity to try Relish! excited us. You mean someone will give us tasty suggestions of what to eat each week and they'll tell us how to make it and what to buy for each recipe? And it only costs $7 a month? SIGN ME UP!" Read my full review here.

The Time I Need to Read Isn't Visible From Here

Updated to add: The author, Felicia Sullivan, left a comment on my review! How cool is that? Now you have to read it. Click here for my full review of The Sky Isn't Visible From Here.

When Delaney was a baby I read tons of books while nursing her. When the chance to read The Sky Isn't Visible From Here came up through The Parent Bloggers Network, I agreed to do it because a.) it was something in which I was very interested and b.) because I thought I'd be tied to the couch for hours on end nursing Waylon and reading tons more books. What I didn't count on was the obvious: this time around it isn't just me and a baby sitting around enjoying literature and the occasional trashy novel (or, as my husband calls it, "chick lit."). This time it's me, a baby and a boisterous, time-sucking preschooler who must be reckoned with at all hours of the day ("Mommy, watch this show with me! Mommy, play PlayDoh with me! Mommy, paint with MEEEEEEEE!"). So, I didn't finish the book on time. But finish it (eventually) I will because if it weren't for the bottoms I have to wipe, the mountains of laundry I have to do and the sleep I need to catch, I wouldn't be able to put this book down...

Read my full review here.

Singing and dancing only a kid could love

My review of "The Wheels on the Bus: Mango's Big Dog Parade" is now available on my reviews blog. Here's an excerpt:

"I promised myself that the reviews I write would be as honest as possible. With that in mind I have to say that I'm not crazy about "The Wheels on the Bus: Mango's Big Dog Parade" DVD. But, in keeping with the honesty policy, I must also admit that I'm not crazy about most of the programming aimed at my daughter's preschool demographic. I'm no fan of the Doodlebops, the Wiggles, Dora or even Diego (charming as he may be what with all that animal saving he does). This, of course, bothers my daughter not one little bit. She loves all of those shows and she really, really loves "The Wheels on the Bus: Mango's Big Dog Parade." Once it arrived from the Parent Bloggers it became regular and frequent viewing fare at our house and I couldn't get her to watch much else. And really, why should I mind? The songs are catchy, the lessons taught in the DVD are good and appropriate ones for her age (taking turns and getting along) and she loves singing and dancing along with the kids in the video."

Click here to read my full review and to win a copy of this DVD for your child visit The Parent Bloggers site and leave a comment on their post.

Safe and clean peace of mind for the germaphobes among us

Looking for a safe, natural way to protect your family from germs? CleanWell's new line of plant-derived antibacterial hand soaps are just what the active germaphobe mother needs! Check out my review for The Parent Bloggers.

Deceptively Delicious

I reviewed a cookbook. Me. Yes, the me who doesn't cook! I read Deceptively Delicious (courtesy of The Parent Bloggers Network) and even tried out three recipes from the book. So how did this poor, cookless soul fare when she had to actually COOK? What did my family think of my Martha-Stewart-like transformation? Will the culinary world ever be the same again since I've entered it? You'll have to visit my reviews blog, Mama Maven, to find out.

Body, Soul, and Baby by Tracy W. Gaudet, M.D.

As you know (or have gathered from my blatant header), I'm pregnant with our second child. While I'd wanted and hoped for this pregnancy for a long time, the reality of adding another child to our family, along with the horrible morning sickness and exhaustion I'd been living with for weeks, was making me question our decision to have another baby (although it's kinda too late for that!). I was sick, depressed and hadn't spent any time at all tuning in to myself, my baby or my body.

Enter Body, Soul, and Baby (BSB). This book arrived on my doorstep from The Parent Bloggers Network in the nick of time. It's written by Tracy Gaudet, the director of the Duke Center for Integrative Medicine. My predilection for complementary alternative therapies (I'd practiced hypnosis to prepare for Delaney's birth and had used hypnosis successfully in the past to lose weight) made me curious to see what BSB had to offer and frankly I was desperate for a new way to view my daunting and, up until that point, unhappy pregnancy.

When I was pregnant for the first time with Delaney I read practically every pregnancy book available and still wanted to read more. This time around, I decided not to read or even reread pregnancy books. But this book seemed different. One evening while Roger was putting Delaney to bed and I was lying on the couch trying not to die, I picked up, Body, Soul, and Baby and started to change the way I'd been thinking about my pregnancy.

Early into the introduction, a question caught my attention: "Will you tune in...or miss out?" The answer was obvious. I was missing out. And it's easy to see why. When you feel as physically miserable as I'd been feeling (unable to eat, throwing up, losing weight and having zero energy), it's all you focus on. What Gaudet explained is that I needed to see beyond how I was feeling and try to get in touch with why I was feeling that way.

Yes, my hormones were obviously in charge and they mercilessly drilled me into the ground. There wasn't much I could do about that, but I could work on changing my attitude about this pregnancy and look at it as a blessing taking place in my body rather than an enemy that's turned me into a bitchy shrew. It seemed like a small thing to do, but just changing my mindset helped me feel a bit better. And, of course, as the weeks have gone by the nausea finally started to loosen its grip (at about week 15), the painful acne began to retreat and now I'm getting excited about being pregnant for the first time since the stick turned pink.

Gaudet offers very specific tools such as mental body scans; dialoguing with yourself about how you're feeling; dreamagery (using your imagination to connect with your subconscious); and journaling to guide you through a connected and mindful pregnancy. I enjoyed reading about the tools and Gaudet's approach is certainly one I would have followed to the letter during my first pregnancy. I'd even recommend it to other soon-to-be-moms.

But if I'm being honest, between raising a toddler, working from home and the various other obligations  I have, I just don't make time to sit, be silent and listen to my body. I have, however, started checking in regularly with my baby after reading this book. I talk to my unborn child to tell him/her that even though he/she is making my life hellish right now, I love him/her and I understand that this difficult period will be worth it. After reading BSB, I've made this a nightly practice and it's making a difference in how connected I already feel to my child.

I wish I'd had this book leading me through my first pregnancy back in 2004-5. I admit I'm a little jaded now. Knowing that I'll have a scheduled C-section this time around and knowing what to expect from that situation makes me less doubtful of the birth experience I'll have. I don't feel that I have to work as hard this time to understand everything that's happening because I already  know.

Still, Gaudet's book is extremely informational and educational and she opened my eyes to things I'd never considered like (duh!) I can use hypnosis again even though I know I'm having a C-section this time. She reminded me that, "presurgical hypnosis has also been shown to speed healing," a fact I believe to be true from my own experience using it for several weeks as I prepared for my labor, delivery and eventual C-section with Delaney. And, although I'm pretty set on a repeat C-section, I'm exploring the section titled, "How to make a conscious choice about trying a VBAC," which includes tools I can use to help me figure out which course of delivery is best for me, my body and my baby. Who knows? Maybe the VBAC I never considered is actually the way I should go. This is an option that frankly hadn't occurred to me prior to reading BSB and I'm glad Gaudet's got me exploring the option.

Body, Soul, and Baby is exactly the kind of pregnancy book I would have devoured in mere days during my first pregnancy, especially since it's so different from all of the others out there. Gaudet's background in integrative medicine provides a refreshing viewpoint of the journey of preconception, pregnancy and the postpartum period and I'm glad I got the chance to read it during my second (and as Roger insists, LAST) go-round at this pregnancy thing.

Got those "Won't Get on the Potty" blues?

You might want to read about Go Potty Go! You can thank me later.