A Nursing Mom's BFF: The Nursing Pillow

This is a Sponsored post written by me on behalf of Comfort and Harmony. All opinions are 100% mine.

High five to myself and Penny for making it to the 15 month  mark of our nursing relationship!

It wasn't always easy; early on we battled positioning issues and a difficult latch. But our triumphs outweigh our hardships! We successfully ditched the shield after 3 weeks and even maintained a sense of humor while learning how to nurse in public while traveling. Nowadays, this seasoned mama can scope out a comfortable spot *like that* and settle in with her nursling. Like in the back of our suburban on our recent camping trip.

One of my biggest aids has been our nursing pillow. It's kept Penny up to the right level, gave my arms a rest and even freed my fingers for a quick email or text here and there. A lot of moms use their nursing pillows for other uses - like positioning the baby to help encourage sitting up on their own or for tummy time. Penny didn't start to enjoy using the nursing pillow for other uses until toddlerhood - now she loves sitting in the comfortable U-shape while watching her daily allowance of Elmo (and I get a bit of house work done while I have the chance!).

The Comfort & Harmony mombo nursing pillow has 2 really cool features that my standard pillow does not:

• Its two sides differ in firmness. The nursing side is supportive to help Mom get her baby close and secure for a comfortable nursing session. The other side is softer, which helps the baby with tummy time.
• It has a "vibe inside," to offer a soft vibration to help soothe the baby. Gosh, I wish I had that for the early days!

The mombo nursing pillow is available at Toys 'R Us and Babies 'R Us, along with a variety of other Comfort and Harmony products - ranging from bouncers, swings and shopping cart covers.

Follow Comfort & Harmony on Facebook and Comfort & Harmony on Twitter so that you can be in the know for deals!

The S'Nookie

During my recent camping trip (read Part I and Part II), my friend Sarah and I made a delicious discovery. As you are aware, I love combining my favorite foods into a whole new meal (Baked Spaghetti Pizza and Red Velvet Brownies, for example).

And thus, behold:

 Are you ready to change life as you know it?

You will need:
2 chocolate chip cookies
Nutella
1 large marshmallow
A camp fire
Tin foil
*Note: it's helpful to have an extra set of hands for this one.

You will do:
1. Start your campfire. Ideally you don't want a super hot fire, it should be a little subdued with coals to help warm the marshmallows and cookies slowly and evenly.
2. Place tin foil on fire ring grate (if available) and arrange cookies evenly on the tin foil. Allow to warm up.

3. While the cookies are warming, start roasting your mashmallow.
4. As your marshmallow nears preparation, have an extra set of hands turn your two cookies over (so the bottom is facing up) and smear some delicious Nutella on.

5. Make a S'mores sandwich by laying the roasted marshmallow between the two Nutella smeared cookies.

6. Enjoy, and try not to get marshmallow or Nutella smeared across your face. Brush off those cookie crumbs too :)

Memorial Day Recap Part II

Part I of our Memorial Day weekend camping trip

Friends, I am not what you would call a "fair weather camper." I've grown up in the Pacific Northwest where rain is just something you deal with. It's an act of God if you go camping in Western Washington and you don't get any rain. So I'm fine with that. I'm totally fine that my and Penny's fingernails came home with dirt in the cuticles. I'm even fine with the fact that we didn't shower for 4 days. What I'm not fine with is being too cold to go to sleep!

We took this first camping trip with Penny with open eyes to see if we tent camping was still a possibility with our mini circus of toddler + 2 dogs. Penny really surprised us with how able she was. We taught her from the moment that she noticed the (empty) fire pit, that it was hot and that she needs to be careful. She never strayed from the site (but thought it was fun to run around the car and meet us at the other side) and didn't eat too much dirt. Camping with this very mobile and interested toddler was easy and fun, which is not entirely what we expected. We prepared ourselves for sleeping at night to be difficult for her due to the cold or natural noises, or that she would just get into too much trouble. What ended up happening is that we realized that for Adam and I that camping in a tent is no longer fun or comfortable. I, sadly, am becoming a fair weather camper.  So a trailer is in our very near future. And I think I'm coming to terms with it. Besides comfort being a factor for us, a camper would also give us a place to safely leave our dogs in case we wanted to go somewhere not dog friendly. Leaving dogs at a campsite isn't responsible and having them cooped up in a possibly hot car all day isn't an option either. Perhaps more on that in the future.

As an aside, this whole weekend was made easier by the addition of our new family rig. We bought a older suburban after spending this last year realizing that our beloved Volvo V70 station wagon just isn't cutting it anymore. I know, a car is like a purse. You get a bigger purse, you start to stuff it with more stuff. The issue is primarily with the two of us, 2 dogs and *currently* one child, we quickly fill up the Volvo on our weekends. We visit both sides of our family very regularly. The car is pretty full with just a weekend full of stuff and our 5 bodies. Eventually, we'll have more kids, which will take up more space and come with more stuff. We are also transitioning to having most of our family vacations be road trips. So naturally the idea would be to get a bigger car. Unfortunately, bigger usually means horrible gas mileage, which doesn't really jive with this mama's ecofriendly goals and this family's desire to stay single income!

So what the husband has decided to do is create what is called a DuraBurb. For those of you who don't know, Adam has a degree in vehicle engineering and knows a thing or two about cars. Can you guess how many cars we have? I can tell you that each member of our little family (2 of us, Penny and the 2 dogs) would each have a car to themself and more. Yea, we're those people. We try to justify that each car we have has it's own purpose, even though we currently have 2 "toys." Ok, I am making every attempt to keeping this post relevant and keeping boy-stuff out of it. But the hubs wants his little spotlight here every once in a while too..

Back to the DuraBurb. It's a Suburban (traditionally gas guzzler) with a Duramax diesel engine + other parts swapped in. Modern diesels are much more energy efficient (and quieter) than their older counterparts were. All said and done, this Family Rig will go from getting 13 MPG on a good day to about 27 MPG. And seat 9 passengers, and tow whatever we want. So now all my friends are joking that I need to fill it with kids and we're good to go. We started by getting a donor truck with the desired diesel engine + parts, took all that stuff out, got the Suburban, and next step is to do the swap - which will be this weekend. Hopefully it'll all go smoothly and it'll be up and running before the end of the summer!

Stay tuned for that tasty recipe that I've been tantalizing you with for 2 posts...

What is your family "rig"? Is it the ideal size for your family?

Now, honestly, readers of mine - 

is the Duraburb project something you'd be interested 

in reading about  in future posts? If not, I'll definitely spare you :)

Memorial Day Recap Part I

This weekend we took off for a 4 day weekend down Highway 20 in Northern Washington and ended up at the Colonial Creek campground in the Northern Cascades.  We were a little worried about holiday traffic and crowed campgrounds, but incidentally the bridge collapse in Burlington and the wet weather report must have scared most of the travelers away.

We drove up the scenic highway, found our camp ground and quickly set up camp.

So.. we jokingly call our tent "The Condo." Because it is really big. It's 15 x 17 ft. Adam has had it for about 8 years and we've definitely gotten our use out of it. It's large enough to fit a queen sized air mattress, ample space for our 2 dogs to sleep and all of our gear (and this time we even brought the pack n play in case). Plus.. it has a freaking foyer. Not kidding. This tent is probably bigger than my college dorm room was!

The funny part is that in the roughly two dozen times we've set it up together, this weekend was the first time that we got to set up camp in daylight AND no rain! There have been several camping trips where we show up after dark, because we left after work, or it's dumping rain. So we were really pleased that getting everything in camp set up took under an hour - even with a little kid running around!

Speaking of my little kid, gotta say.. Super proud of her. Even though she's been walking for well over 6 months, this was one of the very few times she's walked on rough terrain without having our assistance each step of the way. I got her these cute Oshkosh shoes and she was so capable of maneuvering through roots, through rocky patches, over logs and up and down steep slopes. Even when she did fall down, she quickly picked herself up and went on to whatever she was up to. Then there's times at home where she trips over a rug or gets knocked over by a dog and she waaaaaails like there's no tomorrow. LOL! I suppose the saying "everything is different at camp" applies to toddler falls too.

We explored around our camp grounds and found that the Thunder Knob hiking trail starts by the walk in sites. We were still waiting on our friends to show up so we decided to just take a quick look over the creek beds and then went back to camp to have dinner. This night's dinner was not up to the level of quality that I had intended on - we just had some turkey chili and chicken apple sausages.

The following morning, our friends met up with us and we took a hike up Thunder Knob. It was a 3.8 mile round trip, easy ~630 ft elevation gain hike. Even with our 2nd trimester pregnant friend we made it up quickly and enjoyed the beautiful view laid out before us. The first part of the hike has you cross a couple babbling creeks and takes you through lichen-y forest which gets a little sparser as you get to the top.

Our brother and sister in law with their son Jack showed up one evening for a few hours, and we also took a day trip to Winthrop to escape the rain. We only went through the main street area, but took advantage of some yummy ice cream, mini golf and a picnic lunch down by the water.

We ended the weekend with a visit to the Diablo Dam for some birthday cake in my honor :)

PS: Don't judge Penny because she's wearing such a frumpy little outfit. It's comfy for driving long distances in! ;)

So.. stay tuned for 2 more posts regarding this weekend!  One about our new family rig and another with a taste bud achingly delicious recipe.

Bed Sharing

Co-sleeping and bed sharing is a controversial topic to many, but today I want to share our experience with it.

Penny has slept in our bed from day one. It started out mostly from necessity, as we were temporarily staying at my parents' house while we were relocating for Adam's new job. The guest room was a generous size but our king sized bed and two dogs just took up a lot of real estate! So we planned on bed sharing and figuring out details later.

About a week before she was born we pulled out the The First Years Close and Secure Sleeper. When researching co-sleeping options, I found lots of side car cribs that you could push against the side of the bed, keeping the infant in their own space but close. Neither Adam or I move around while we sleep, so fear of rolling onto the baby was never an issue. I also naturally felt the instinct to keep her close - and even the sidecar option seemed too far away for me. Plus, again, we were dealing with a lack of space. When I found the Close and Secure sleeper I knew this is what I was looking for. It kept the baby off the mattress and had soft side walls (I had no idea how infants slept.. did they roll around?) and also provided a barrier for either of us in case we did happen to roll closer to her.

The first few nights I couldn't bear to lay her down in it, after all - I had slept with her inside me for the last 9 months and just because she was born didn't mean that my baby didn't deserve to be enveloped in the loving arms of her parents! So she slept on my chest and this gave me relief in knowing that I would be right there in case something needed to happen.

We slept with the sleeper in between us until she was about 4 months old, at which time she was too tall for it and we packed it away. Since then she's slept on the mattress with us.

Through different developmental stages we face some challenges, such as when she first was starting to crawl she would act it out on her sleep, or during teething episodes when she is a lighter sleeper. But for the most part, a quick easy way to soothe her back to sleep is either by nursing or bringing her up onto one of our chests and gently patting her butt. There are times where she seeks out the comfort of our bodies and wants to be right next to our faces, snuggled as close to us as possible. There are nights where she wants her own space and spreads out her limbs like a star fish to keep us away. But every morning she is snuggled up against either one of us. Adam says those are the mornings that are the hardest to leave us.. and who could blame him? Lately if she wakes up a few minutes before either of us, she greets us with hugs and kisses to bring in the new day.

Bed sharing has never posed any safety issues to us. I did my research, talked with other bed sharing families and figured out a tactic that works for us. Once Penny started to move around in bed more continually, I pushed the pack n play up against my side of the bed so that I wouldn't worry about her rolling off.

We've benefited so greatly in keeping her in bed with us.

• The greatest benefit to us was more sleep for everyone. She has slept pretty soundly from the beginning, simply because she has the comfort in knowing we're close by. I didn't have to get out of bed to nurse her or tend to her, which allowed us to fall asleep quickly once done nursing. 
• By bed sharing I've been able to continue night nursing. With her being in the bed already neither one of us really is completely awake when she does want to nurse so it's allowed her to continue to nurse on demand and keep up my supply at 15 months. 
• Finally, a somewhat latent reason why bed sharing has benefited us is because we travel a lot on the weekends and by already being accustomed to sharing bed space has made the night time a lot easier. Penny isn't scared or her sleeping schedule isn't terribly thrown off because she didn't become attached to sleeping in her specific crib. The phrase comes to mind, "home is where the heart is," and this case.. bed is where mama and dada are! 

I know that bed sharing isn't for everyone. Some parents move around a lot, are smokers, the bed is too small, or simply want that division of personal space. I get it. Bed sharing (or any co sleeping, for that matter) should be beneficial and safe for the parents and baby.  Just like with any other choice in parenting, sleeping arrangements are up to each family as each situation is completely unique!

Here are a few great resources and personal stories for those who are interested in bed sharing.

• The Alpha Parent: Reasons to Co-Sleep
  Includes a handy infographic
• A Little Bit of All of It: Sharing Sleep With My Baby
  I liked this post because I can relate to her in so many ways
• That Mama Gretchen: Why We Co sleep
  Gretchen's husband shares why co sleeping was important to him, along with a link up for more co sleeping posts
• Co sleeping and Biological Imperatives: Why Human Babies Do Not and Should Not Sleep Alone
  Learn more about co sleeping terms, recommendations and research.
• Love Parenting: Why My 2.5 year old is still sleeping in our bed and why we have no plans to change that
  Reasons why this family has chosen this "unconventional" path
• Wifessionals (featuring Newfangled Housewife and Sarah from Our Journey (one of my favorite bloggers!): Preparing for a Little One - Calming Your Baby and Sleep Methods
  Two mamas stories on why they chose to co sleep, and the other one not. Both exemplify that it's all about your own family's preference and what you are comfortable with!
• University of Notre-Dame Mother-Baby Behavioral Sleep Laboratory
  A broad resource for more information regarding col seeping and FAQs
• SIDS, bed sharing, and answering the tough sleep questions
  A pediatrician's point of view on bed sharing
• Code Name: Mama: When Sharing Sleep Is Tiring
  Dionna shares the ups and downs of bed sharing, and how she's made it work for having 2 kids in bed too! 
• Parenting Patch: Bed Sharing with a Toddler
  Heather ran through the gambit of different co-sleeping options, and in the end her family settled on bed-sharing being the best option for them.
• That Mama Gretchen: 4 In A Bed
  Oh Mama G - you constantly inspire me. Mama, Dad and 2 kiddies in a bed. What couldn't be better?

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