Would you like to hear something about our daughter, the “Frugal Novice?”  Christi’s dad sang this song to her (while playing the guitar )years ago when she was a baby.  Now, here she is with babes of her own…who are intently watching a show, probably WordWorld.

Where are you going my little one, little one?
Where are you going my baby, my own?
Turn around and you’re two,
Turn around and you’re four.
Turn around and you’re a young girl
Going out of the door.
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Where are you going my little one, little one?
Where are you going my baby, my own?
Turn around and you’re two,
Turn around and you’re grown.

Turn around and you’re a young wife
With babes of your own.

Turn around, Turn around,

Turn around and you’re a young wife

With babes of your own.

Being a “grandma” with two young grandsons, ages three and twenty-two months, I love to look at baby clothes.  Whenever I’m in the store walking by the baby department, I have to at least glance at baby clothes when I’m walking by them, even if I’m in a hurry.  When they were both little babies, it was so much fun to buy clothes for their birthday!  Baby clothes are just so cute!

Two of my coworkers are expecting babies.  That brings back memories of when I was expecting each of our children and also when our daughter was expecting each of our grandsons.  I remember starting the prenatal vitamins with each pregnancy.  Nearly all women who are pregnant these days take some type of prenatal vitamin, whether it’s prenate dha or some other type, and taking vitamins during pregnancy has resulted in healthier pregnancies overall.

During the past three years, I have received several baby shower invitations when our daughter was expecting their two babies.   I attended two of her showers for our first grandson and one shower for the second one.  It was almost as much fun at those showers as it was when I was expecting our babies years ago.  My favorite shower was the one over two and a half years ago here in our hometown where our daughter and son-in-law grew up.  We had so much fun looking at all the many cute baby things and trying to imagine what it would be like to have a little baby in the family.  Time sure does fly!  Baby J is no longer a baby but a two and a half year old, and Baby C has taken his place as “baby.”

When I think of cleaning a baby’s or toddler’s hands, I think of cleaning off dirt and germs that could make them sick with a cold or the flu.  But washing their hands cleans off more than that according to the Environmental Working Group.  It also prevents the transfer of toxic chemicals from their little hands to their mouths.  These toxins can be found many places such as some electronic equipment, older wooden swing sets, or some items with fire retardants.

IMPORTANT:  Hand sanitizers are convenient, but they do not remove dust and dirt which are how the chemicals are transferred.  Old-fashioned hand washing removes not only bacteria but also the grime.

Our daughter has this baby sling and used it with our second grandson, who is now nearly five months old.  She really liked using it when he was younger. Back in June, we were at a graduation ceremony and our grandbaby was comfortably and securely riding in this baby sling.  Unless you got up real close, you couldn’t tell there was a baby in there.  So this lady we had never met before said something to our daughter.  She thought our daughter was carrying some kind of “funky” purse until she realized that there was a baby in it.  We all thought that was funny!

CardsShoppe.com has creative invitations to personalize baby showers.  They have cute invitations for showers given before the baby arrives as well as ones for after the baby is here.

The style of the invitations set the tone for a baby shower.  If I get a cute invitation, then the shower is usually just as creative as the invitation.

If you are planning a baby shower, then check out their site and see which invitation you like best.  Be sure to order extra invitations in case there are people added to the invitation list at the last minute.

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This is the diaper cake from one of our daughter’s baby showers.  I asked for directions on how to make it, and so here they are:

Start by rolling each diaper tightly and place a rubber band around it to secure it.  Place diapers next to each other to make a circular shape.  Place a PCV pipe (from a craft store) in the middle of the cake for stability of the layers.  Surround each layer of cake with a large rubber band (also from craft store) and then place ribbon over the rubber band using the favorite colors of the mother-to-be or the nursery colors.  Decorate with baby shapes bought at any craft store (or Dollar Tree).  You can make two layers or more.  This particular cake had three layers.

It’s such an exciting time when a new baby is born in the family.  I know first hand because our second grandson was born a little over a month ago.  His older brother was born 21 months earlier.  The whole family was elated and friends and relatives wanted to know the news and how much the baby weighed, what was the weight, etc.  And what better way to share about the birth than with some stylish birth announcements.