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motherhood

Motherhood

Mommy Must Haves From An Experienced Mom

We’ve reached the 8 month mark with our second child, Ayan, and now that we’re in a groove with sleeping, nursing and hormones have even balanced out, I wanted to share a few of my favorite newborn necessities. The 4th trimester is no joke and while it’s easy to accumulate so much unnecessary baby gear, I 100% recommend all of the items here.

Snuggle Nest

The first few weeks are such a struggle and blur. The endless nursing, the long nights, and over fatigue from birth recovery. The snuggle nest goes directly on your bed and it’s so easy to just reach over to grab baby in the middle of the night to feed. No need to get out of bed!

Baby Jogger City Select

We bought this stroller with my daughter, Nara, in hopes to expand it when we had our next child. It has been the perfect double stroller for my two littles! My toddler sits in the front and the baby goes directly on top with the car seat adapter. LOVE this stroller and how it has grown with my family.

Earth Mama – Natural Nipple Butter

The battlewounds of breastfeeding are real. SO REAL. The first two weeks of breastfeeding are never fun for me. In fact, they’re down right painful. Even with my second, I just know I have to make it through those two weeks. This nipple butter is god-sent: easy to apply and don’t need to wipe it off before feeding. It healed me overnight!

Windi

Why I didn’t think to buy these with my first child beats me. IT HAS SAVED MY BABY’S TUMMY AND MY PEACE! A gassy baby is a cranky baby. Occasionally we have used the windi to help immediately relieve Ayan’s gas pains. It literally whistles as they pass gas. It’s the craziest thing only parents find amazing.

Dohm

The amount my newborn sleeps vs. the amount of noise my toddler makes. A constant battle. Having the dohm sound machine in my newborns room during the day has helped drown out my toddlers loud, high pitched, voice. Results: A well-rested baby. WIN.

Boppy Nursing Pillow

Used this pillow with both kids. It really helps with support in holding baby while nursing and not putting as much pressure on your arms. It is also great to use for tummy time and casual laying post feeds since it keeps the baby elevated

Baby Ktan

Baby wearing is something I love to do. Especially when we go out in the early days with a newborn (no one can get in their face with germs), but also around the house when they are napping and you can’t afford to hold them for endless hours. It provides a great opportunity for skin-to-skin in the early days.

Water bottle

I’ve never been more thirsty in my life. Having a water bottle by my side is 100% a must-have. I need one that I can hold a lot of water and can operate with one hand—because let’s face it, that’s all I have these days.

Gentle Baby Essential Oil – Young Living

I use this daily on Ayan. I mix one drop with almond oil and massage his whole body before bed. It really calms him down and he smells glorious. I give credit to this oil for making bedtime so easy with my little.

Lansinoh Nursing Pads

Lactating stains are not hot. I’ve been there with my first – sitting in a restaurant with a huge milk spot on my shirt. I quickly invested in these disposable nursing pads and still using them with my second.

Haakaa Manual Pump

I cannot say enough about this. I came across it with my second child and did not have to pump for a very long time. While I was nursing on one side I would attach the Haaka on the other breast to catch all the leaking milk. I just don’t have enough good things to say about it.  TRY IT!

4moms Breeze

The most compact and easy to travel with pack and play. I can even move it around my house with easy or place it in the back yard while I play with my toddler. It really is the most efficient pack and play.

There are a ton of great baby items out on the market! I surely have not been able to try all of them. Pick the ones that suit you and your parenting style.  Check out some of our other posts on parenting here.

The Boutique

Hope that you found this helpful!

Your Chick,

Neema

Check out my post on the importance of Dry Bushing here.

 

 

Lifestyle

I Dare You: Empowering Women (Especially Moms) to Be More Than a Housewife

A good friend called one morning and expressed her desire to produce a play, mind you she has been a part of a theater playgroup for a few years and wanted to bring light to her community theater.

I encouraged her to do so, yet she was still uncertain.  As fellow mom, where would she find the time and was it even worth it? She expressed interest in wanting to do something outside of her comfort zone. I continued to encourage her and say, “do it, you have a passion, pursue it.” Little did I know she would soon take me out of my own comfort zone.

Josie, my friend, asked if I would be in her play if she produced it.  My response… No, No & NO!

Okay, let’s back up for a minute, first off I have zero acting experience, second I have stage fright and third, I have the worst memory!  Even if I agreed, my kids and husband dominated my life, where would I find the time to rehearse?

Another friend, Serene, was also asked to be in this play and promised that this experience would not only empower me, but also be something that I would be glad to cross off my bucket list.   True, the thought of being on stage once crossed my mind growing up, but the fear of stage fright made me think twice.   Despite my anxiety, I decided to go for it, for myself and also to show my children that I had other interests and roles outside of Mom and wife.


Two weeks and a million rehearsals later, I finally learned my lines and understood my character.  I realized that I experienced more than just memorizing lines and relating to my character; I experienced the bond with other characters that I would be sharing a stage with.  I discovered that I had found a new and different type of confidence after a long time.  To act like someone else was a release that I needed from my day-to-day life. I felt alive and felt lighter like I hadn’t before.

Showtime

Three months later it was show time!  For the first time I felt a rush and adrenaline that was like no other.  The connection I felt with both the cast and audience was priceless!  The show was called Smalls Talk and we performed it at the Parker Playhouse.

The truth is we are all scared to try something outside of our comfort zone.  Had I not been pushed I wouldn’t have experienced something so fun and break that stage fright out of me.

Shout out to the supportive hubby!

Shop My Favorite Tank Dresses:

Its not too late to take on a challenge and make it a goal, do something different and encourage your friends to do the same.   Experience something outside of your daily routine.  Go ahead I DARE YOU!

Read more about what is means to be a #MomOffDuty here!

Your Chick,

Avani

 

Lifestyle

#SCCon18 : Secrets To Running a Successful Blog and Building A Blog Community

Growing up with many female influences in my personal life has generally made me gravitate towards smart, creative, and interesting women as a whole.  Joining the Style Collective was one of those no brainer decisions I made after watching founder, Annie Spano, week after week hustle as hard to achieve her dream as I was to achieve mine.  I knew that being around her energy would rub off on me.  She not only recruited me, but many  like me.  These women were like minded motivated females all trying to change their story.

When the Style Collective announced that it would be having its first conference I dare say I was the first to register.  I was thrilled at the prospect of being around other women, mothers, and bloggers that were all trying to navigate a new industry that allows women to authentically share themselves with the world.

Last month we all met up in the beautiful Cannon Room in the heart of Raleigh. NC!  A beautiful space that inspired and enthused us. The agenda was filled with women that I wanted to hear and learn from and best of all, they were willing to share!  Among many highlights from the conference, here are my top three.

The Venue

The Cannon Room was named after the first female Mayor of Raleigh, Isabell Cannon.  With that as a backdrop it was just the perfect vibe and space, intimate yet spacious and generously lit with its large windows.  It made for an inviting space that made us want to network in.   Lucky for us, this room has already been booked for next years conference!

The Influencer Panel

With our blog, we try to be open and honest about our journey as women and as mothers.  At the conference, we were lucky enough to hear from mother to be Holly of @MakeTodayAHollyDay, Courtney of @CourtEInk, and Keke of @StyleYourSelfie and they were wonderful! Each shared their story, journey, and ideas generously with all of us.  I recall chatting with Holly and discussing giveaway ideas!  I really appreciated that!

The Agenda

Generally we had a lot of information that we needed to cover during sessions, so by Sunday afternoon we were tired.   The agenda, however, anticipated that we would need creative breaks.  We had the chance to play in a live photo booth and network in a beautiful corner space.  The agenda also included a cocktail hour on Saturday night and a trolley ride surprise on Sunday!  Everything had been thought out and considered.  The team at Style Collective did an amazing job putting it all together (Thank You!).

I, along with my fellow chicks, am truly grateful for the camaraderie and the learning and I am looking forward to next year. Here is a peek at all the fun!

Your Chick,

Rina Puri

Shop all the cutest looks from the weekend!

Fashion

Look Good and Feel Great Poolside This Spring Break

I recall last summer when my daughter asked, “Mom, are you getting in the pool?” and I had to respond “Ugh, sorry babe, not today! I will just sit over here, you guys have fun. I will get in next time!” Come on, I think to myself, I JUST washed my hair, and I haven’t’ lost those last few pounds yet… I can’t get in right now. Does this sound familiar?

Don’t get me wrong, I love swimming and I love watching my kids have fun, but I regularly prefer sitting on the sidelines because it means I get some me time and they kids get to have a little space too.  Just getting to the pool can be a roller coaster half the time, I can’t get out of the door without at least twenty minutes of prepping all of our gear: goggles, sunscreen, pool toys, sunglasses, a hat, towels, flip flops, snacks, water, etc.  You know  the drill! So by the time we get there, all I want to do is just relax!

This Pom Pom Dress/Cover Up

Statement Earrings

Kate Spade Sunnies

Then there is always the pressure of being comfortable at the pool, do you leave the cover up on or just embrace your body and lay by the pool without an ounce of insecurity?  Although I am a pretty confident woman, I always feel like there is room for improvement when it comes to my body and I am in constant pursuit of my pre-baby body–an inconceivable dream at this point.

What is conceivable is finding a swimsuit that makes me feel comfortable in my own skin. Last summer I tucked my belly into high waisted suits and one pieces that were nice for lounging but not for swimming.  And then I had the classic fits that were great for swimming but kind of boring for lounging.  So THIS year, I have found a balance between comfort and style.  I found swimsuits that work well in AND out of the pool along with some cover ups and accessories to make the whole trip to the pool easier to manage.  Check out our top swim essentials here!

Swimsuit

Floral Off The Shoulder

Flirty Poolside Florals

The Cover Ups

Best Cover Up SkirtTiare Hawaii Wrap Skirt

Accessories
The Bags
Our Favorite Pool Toys:

For more cuteness, see what we are packing for our upcoming Spring Break Chick Trip to Charleston, SC in a few weeks!

Cheers,

Rina