emilykristin's Profile

I did the same with blurb and really liked how it turned out. It was incredibly easy to use, and seemed like great quality to me. I had thought about Pinhole Press, b/c their books seem beautiful, but the layouts are really, really specific - both in amount of photos and orientation/size, so I couldn't go through the year chronologically with their service, couldn't get in as many photos as I wanted, and it was just a huge headache (and they are very pricey). Pinhole for small projects, Blurb or others for chronological photo books - that's my two cents.

It's actually 2 and under, still. I just flew with my 23 month old child in lap, and I have to say that I am so glad she is old enough for her own seat now (we didn't buy our tickets, so I couldn't justify asking for a second ticket). Almost 2 is definitely too big for laps.

It seems to me that if you have so many worries, you won't rest well having your baby in a floor bed. Our 18 month old is on a twin mattress on the floor, but we didn't move her there until she was about 14 months old, at which point I felt comfortable with the idea. We put a cushion next to the bed in case of roll-offs, but that's only happened 3 times near the beginning, and she was never upset, it just woke her up (but I wouldn't do that with a young baby). Before the floor bed she co-slept with us, but we side-carred a three sided IKEA crib to our bed to add extra space. I figured that way we'd have a crib on hand if the floor bed didn't work out, and we'd still use the twin mattress when she gets older, so no loss. Personally, I would either co-sleep or use a crib until the baby's past a year old (and around that age you can make a cozy bed, anyway, so the openness of it doesn't feel so stark - we use a soft doll, a small blanket, her sleep sack (which defeats the independence though, since she can't walk very well in it, but that's not the main reason that we did a floor bed anyway), and a sheepskin). I tend to think (all intuition, not anything concrete) that young babies will prefer a cozy, contained space - either a mother's body or at least a bassinet or crib. I know it's not pure Montessori, but I'm skeptical of the idea of a baby wanting or needing independence re: sleep and sleep space anyway. To my mind, it doesn't add up. But best of luck to you. Ultimately you should do what helps you feel most confident and comforted.

those are so beautiful, but my girl would get the crochet part gross in just a couple of days. Wonder if you could throw it in the wash?

I have a 10 week old and am quickly learning that (as others have said) it totally depends on the parents and baby. That said, the basic things I was most glad to get that were not on the registry were socks in multiple sizes, stretchy swaddling blankets, a soft natural bristle brush, California Baby soap, and a white noise machine (The Sleep Sheep - totally didn't think I'd want it, but we use it every night). I wish we'd been given a beautiful, white, organic newborn outfit as the first outfit to dress our girl in (we ended up dressing her in hand-me-downs, which was okay) and wooden toys, and we actually could have used more burp cloths (I've heard Under the Nile or Aden and Anais are the best). I think a lot of new moms would LOVE a gift certificate for a massage (and an offer to drive her there and watch the baby while she's getting it) - the birth and breastfeeding can do quite a number on your back. And finally, meals we could freeze were the best thing. Those early weeks can be hard, and good food makes such a difference.

Oh, and Rob - I get you. I always thought Goodnight Moon was a dumb book, but then I read it to a class of hyperactive 2 year olds and by the end they all gave a collective, contented sigh and went to nap, and I completely changed my opinion. I think the beauty of it is simply its peaceful rhythm and sense of closure. It's become one of my favorite early children's books.

this is lovely. It seems nice to have at least some documentation of the pregnancy. Mine is a lot more low-key, low-tech, but I think this is a wonderful book that a child would enjoy as she becomes curious about herself and her parents. And yeah... one cookie a week is where i was at before pregnancy... now it's like three desserts a day. sigh.

For those who asked about the calendar - it's by Jen Corace and you can get it at Art Star:
http://www.artstarphilly.com/shop/stationery/corace01.html

same here with the email reminders, but I like the general page for keeping track of books you've read that year.

i'm pretty sure it is tuned and play-able, which is probably why it costs so much.