what’s in my diaper bag

December 18, 2017

In my almost two years of being a mom, I have learned a thing or two about what to carry in my diaper bag when we are out all day. With William, my diaper bag was stuffed full with more than you can imagine! As he got older, I started to eliminate a lot of items e.g. all the toys, books, etc. I found that William was much more interested in what was going on around us, or in playing with my keys or credit card case. Now with Henry, I only carry the bare minimum in my diaper bag. Carrying around two kids is more than enough!

On the days William goes to school, I usually head to a coffee shop to get some work done. It’s nice to work somewhere other than at home and I love strolling around with Henry afterward. He is the perfect work buddy! Here is what’s typically in my diaper bag for an afternoon with Henry:

What’s in my Diaper Bag

Diapers

This is clearly a no brainer – what’s a diaper bag without diapers?! When Kroger reached out to us try their new and improved Comforts™ diapers, we jumped on it. With two babies in diapers, I am all for trying new and improved products. I usually carry 1-2 for William and 4 for Henry. Since he is a newborn, we go through that many more diapers a day! We have loved the Comforts™ diapers – my favorite part is the wet line indicator – so nice for all those newborn diaper changes. I can be sure that he’s actually wet and not waste the effort on a dry diaper. William’s favorite part about the new Comforts™ diapers is the cute prints. His favorite are the A,B,C blocks- he is really into learning letters right now!

Wipes

What are diapers without wipes? Ha. Wipes are just as much of a necessity as bringing diapers along. I would never want to leave home without either one! Since we decided to try Kroger’s Comfort™ diapers, we thought we would go ahead try their new wipes also. William has sensitive skin (and most newborns do too) so we love that the Comforts™ wipes are available in fragrance free and sensitive versions. And, all the wipes are alcohol free, paraben free and hypoallergenic – perfect for newborn babies and sensitive toddlers. Comforts™ diapers and wipes are available exclusively at Kroger® family of stores.

Snacks

I always have snacks for William and snacks for myself. He seems to love snacking when we are on the go and nursing makes me so hungry! Our go-to snacks: cheddar bunnies, string cheese and trail mix.

Clutch

Since I use a tote bag as my diaper bag, I like to keep a small clutch inside. I use it to keep all my things together; wallet, keys and lipstick/gloss.

Water Bottle

Another thing I can’t leave home without is my refillable water bottle. I always try to drink a lot of water, but even more so with a nursing baby!

Clothes

Accidents happen! I always have an extra onesie for Henry in my diaper bag, in case we need it and we often do.

Receiving Blanket

Even on a warm day it can be chilly running in and out of stores and restaurants. I always carry at least one receiving blanket with me. They also make a great cover up for nursing if I need to feed Henry in a less than private space.

Pacifiers

Henry often needs a pacifier to settle down for nap time. His “Ella” goes everywhere with us and I carry a back up in case we ever lose her while we’re out and about.

Cheers,

Stia, Jean and Katherine

This post was sponsored by Comforts™ Brand.

three months with henry

December 7, 2017

Henry. Where do I even begin? He is the sweetest, most easy going baby ever. He smiles all day long (when he’s actually awake), babbles nonstop and is so patient when I am busy with his big brother. God gave us just what our little family needed with this precious boy and we adore him! That’s not to say the newborn phase isn’t hard – it is – but Henry is just so laid back! William and I will be playing and I look over and Henry is sound asleep. He does get fussy when he’s hungry, but other than that he is sleeping or smiling!

The past three months have been so much fun and such a blur, too. It’s hard having two babies under two, but at the same time I am so excited that they will be close in age. I think we started to get into a routine with two babies around the time Henry was 8-weeks old, but there are some days when both boys wake up at the same time and both need my attention and want to be held! I’m learning I will say that we are soaking up those newborn snuggles even more so this time around – they grow up so fast!

Henry Allen Coffman, we love you to the moon and back!

Weight/Length

We go back to our pediatrician at four months, but from our at home checks, Henry weighs 13 lbs and is 25 inches long. He is so long and is in 9 month clothes (for length!).

Sleeping

Sleeping (at night) has been up and down over the last three months. I wish it was better, but at least I know that the sleepless nights don’t last forever! Henry goes down easy – some nights he will sleep from 8 pm (or so) until 4 or 5 am, but on other nights he’s up every two hours eating! I figure the frequent feedings during the night are due to a growth spurt, so I try to remember that as I am falling asleep during the day. He’s still swaddled, although I plan to move him into the Merlin’s sleep suit soon. We used Merlin’s with William and it was a pretty smooth transition from the swaddle, so we are praying for the same!

Personality

Henry is the most laid back, sweetest baby ever. From the beginning, he never really cried and you could just see how easygoing he was going to be. Thank God – because I have my hands full with his big brother! He loves smiling and babbling and he is such a snuggler. He doesn’t fuss during tummy time and even started rolling over at 2.5 months old! He just lays there while William is driving trucks on his legs and gives a pout face when he hugs him too hard – I’m praying that they are going to be the best of friends.

Schedule

Much like when William was a baby, we don’t follow a strict schedule. I’ll nurse Henry when he wakes up, we will play and then he’ll go down for a nap about 1-1.5 hrs after waking up. This is usually a shorter nap and then we just follow the schedule – eat, play, sleep. His longest nap is typically his afternoon nap (around the same time William naps, thankfully!) and he takes the rest of his naps on the go. I try to get him to bed after William goes down – usually around 8/8:30 or so!

Nursing

Nursing has gone very well this time around, thankfully! He didn’t have a tongue tie, so that was a huge blessing and difference from nursing William. We nurse on demand, so some days he nurses 8 times a day, some days he nurses 12! He took his first bottle last Friday while Caleb and I were at a Christmas party. He took it so easily and went right to sleep which is a success in my book. I haven’t pumped hardly at all, but will pump when I know I will have to be away from Henry for longer than usual.

Travel

Like his brother, we started traveling as soon as we could! His first trip was to a family wedding in Nashville and a few weeks later we took our first trip as a family of four to Boston. He was an angel on all the flights and just fits right in with our family.

Milestones

Newborn photos
Baby dedication at Church
First smiles
Sip & See
First flights
Rolled over tummy to back

Must-Have Baby Items

The DockATot is a lifesaver.
I wore this wrap a lot in the beginning.
Our stroller that converted into a double stroller.
This paci
The sweetest onesies from here, here, here and here

Cheers,

Stia, Jean and Katherine

our favorite outerwear for kids

November 21, 2017

William loves to spend as much time as possible outside. We go for walks, we go to the park and we even went swimming this week (with the heater on, of course!). One of his favorite things to do is go out to eat (seriously, he loves it) and walk around one of our outdoor shopping areas. They have tons of stores, a huge fountain, a Tesla store (he is obsessed) and his favorite restaurants. After school last week, we stopped by there to go to Sprinkles. The plan was to go inside and pick up a few cupcakes for his Daddy and GB who had been out of town for work all week, but we hardly made it to the sidewalk before he was taking bites out of all them!

Now that the weather is cooling down, a coat for William is a must. We don’t get too many freezing cold days, but enough that he needs a coat for how much time we spend outside. Nordstrom has such a great selection of outerwear for toddlers, so that’s where we went to look for a coat for William this year. Although it’s a splurge, we decided on this Burberry coat and we feel that it’s worth it. We went up an extra size this year – with plans to roll the sleeves – and then next year, unroll them for more wear. Most importantly, it passed the test of being warm and comfortable while we were in Boston two weeks ago!

We love all the options of styles and colors for outerwear for kids at Nordstrom. How cute is this version for a little girl?! A few other outerwear pieces that we love from Nordstrom: this faux fur hooded parka that comes in four colors, how adorable is this mini Patagonia, this shearling jacket is too cute and William is obsessed with the cars on this coat.