Celebrity Baby Blog Reviews

Apple photo albums: picture perfect!

I am possibly the worst mom when it comes to putting together photo albums. Out of the zillions of shots I’ve taken of my daughter I've only even printed about a dozen. As a GenXer, I’m a computer girl. Well, for any other moms out there like me, Apple makes it a lot easier to create fun, beautiful keepsakes that you and your kid will love looking at over the years.

Using iPhoto, you can put together a photo book online, with or without text;  You can also create calendars and greeting cards with ease. The books are incredibly cool. They come in hardcover, softcover, or wirebound (ranging in price from $3.99 to $29.99) and are printed on high quality paper. Created entirely on your computer, you control everything from the size of the photos, to the layout, to the color of the background. Click 'buy' and it uploads the whole thing to the people at Apple.

One week later, the book is in your hands! I just made a 'Book for Grandpa' for my father-in-law's birthday and he can't stop asking, "How did you do that?!" I can't wait to put together another for my own coffee table.

To shop, click here. 

Henry and the Hidden Veggie Garden: Try it, you'll like it!

We'll take all the help we can get in this house when it comes to battling with our son over his daily fruit and vegetable intake.  And make no mistake, it is a battle.  Fortunately, for as much as Owen dislikes his veggies he is equally passionate about his love of books.  We recently received Henry and the Hidden Veggie Garden, a new children's book co-written by celebrity mom Kimberly Williams-Paisley and her own father Gurney Williams III, and it looks as though we have finally gained some leverage in our ongoing dinner table war. 

Kimberly, mom to 15-month-old William Huckleberry, says that she was motivated to write the book ($5 at Amazon.com) because she wanted her son "to see the fun in eating healthfully."  Since becoming a mom Kimberly said she feels "even more connected to the land and what it offers a growing child," and in her foreword she thanks Huck for being the "inspiration for this book and the source of a multitude of other blessings."

CBB's Top Registry Picks: Stephanie's 'must-have' baby items!

Looking for some advice on some great baby-buys?  Check out our new series -- CBB Registry -- where our staff fills you in on their 'must-have' baby products.  Fashion, babywearing, strollers, bottles...we cover it all!

Today we're featuring one of our reviewers, Stephanie, and her baby essentials.

Click below for Stephanie's registry!

The Indiana Jones Handbook: The Complete Adventurer's Guide

Everyone's favorite archaeologist returned to theaters last week with Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull. If you or someone you know (like your husband) is a huge fan of the franchise, The Indiana Jones Handbook: The Complete Adventurer's Guide ($19) will make a perfect gift. Learn how to ride an elephant, identify boob traps, fend off a gang of swordsmen, avoid the wrath of G-d, etc.

For anyone who's dreamed of cracking a bullwhip, rescuing lost treasures, and evading giant runaway boulders, this handbook offers all the tips and tricks of the adventurer's trade. Complete with step-by-step instructions, helpful diagrams, and full-color photography from the Indiana Jones films, readers will learn:

If you enjoy 24, check out the authors' 24: The Official CT Operations Manual.

Monster Proof Pajamas: PJ's sure to scare the monsters away

Monsters under the bed, in the closet or, in my daughter's case, in the light fixture ... these are normal childhood fears that cause lots of sleepless nights for both parent and child. An easy way to calm your child's fears is by introducing them to Zam, Zimbo, Zeek, Zelly and Zack, the five members of the monster family who make up The Sleeping Zzzzz©.

Created by Kathy Carabasi, Monster Proof® pajamas and The Sleeping Zzzzz© children's book help ease children's fears of monsters. The book tells the story of the five members of the Sleeping Zzzzz family, each with their unique personality that represents one of the five senses. Each member of the Sleeping Zzzzz family can use their special monster proof power to see, lick, hug, listen for and sniff out monsters.

Click continue reading below for the entire Monster Proof Pajamas review.

Barefoot Books: A treasure, from cover-to-cover

Creativity, while arguably something each of us is born with, is inarguably something that needs to be cultivated and encouraged in order to flourish. Enter Barefoot Books! With a belief that creativity is every child's birthright, this independent publisher -- founded by two working moms -- has been doing its part to "act as springboards for children's hearts and minds" since 1993.

Actress Debra Messing and musician Sir Paul McCartney are doing what they can to spark creative growth in their own children. Debra, mom to 3 1/2-year-old Roman, and Paul, dad to 4 1/2-year-old Beatrice, have both chosen Barefoot Books for their little ones, and for good reason. The books tackle topics like adoption, cultural diversity, tolerance and the environment with kid-friendly zeal. Debra calls Barefoot Books "a much needed and welcomed resource," while Paul calls the Herb The Vegetarian Dragon series "a magical read for all new thinkers, young and old." 

We recently had the pleasure of reading more than a dozen offerings from Barefoot Books, and have chosen to highlight four titles -- Mama Panya's Pancakes, My Daddy is a Pretzel, Motherbridge of Love and Whole World.  From their extraordinary illustrations to their award-winning content, each of these books is a treasure, from cover-to-cover.

Click 'continue reading' for our complete review of Barefoot Books.

Why I Bought my ... Cool Names for Babies Revised & Updated Book

Mere seconds after reading Danielle's giveaway post about the newly released Cool Names for Babies Revised & Updated book by Pamela Redmond Satran and Linda Rosenkrantz, my fingers were tearing up the keyboard, ordering up a copy, with express shipping.

It might sound perfectly sane and prudent to make such a purchase, considering that I am in the latter part of my third trimester, still undecided on a name, and could "pop" at any time. Nevertheless it made my entire family groan, roll their eyes and make the twirly fingered cuckoo-head sign at me. Why? Because I already have what can only be referred to as a "collection" of baby name books in my home library that numbers in the thirties. And of course, I have every single baby book written by the dynamic naming duo of Satran & Rosenkrantz. Which to me, means that not ordering their latest guide (and yes, I also got The Baby Name Bible last month) would have been near criminal negligence.

Frankly, I probably would have ordered this book if even if I was no longer pregnant, I just might have skipped the rush shipping. I've always been obsessed with names and naming trends and these two writers are my heroes. Over the years their books are the ones that I refer to first and last, the ones that I recommend to friends, that I even toss at my oldest daughter when she needs inspiration for what to call her betta fish, her doll or even the main character in her story about her trip to the mall. Equal parts inspiration and cultural barometer, Satran and Rosenkrantz's books are always a treat. Which I sorely needed this week. This book could not have been timed better to lift me out of the third trimester doldrums.

Fortunately for me, my copy arrived yesterday, and the baby did not. So I still have time to peruse the pages looking for that perfect, elusive, cool name. I'd like to say it gets easier with each kid but truth is, it actually gets harder. At least for me. I wonder if Pamela and Linda consult!?

"Humpty Who?": Sumee Lama Tina? Door May Voo?

As a new Mom, it's been quite a long time since I sang nursery rhymes. I often find myself rocking my baby girl at night humming and adding in words of songs I barely know. Don't know if she notices, but I am really am sick of hearing myself sing "Twinkle Twinkle Little Star." The other night, for the gazillionth time I sang "Rock-a-Bye Baby." I never really thought about the words before, but as I am sitting there with my precious baby looking at me, I am thnking, "WHY IS MY BABY FALLING DOWN FROM A TREE TOP, CRADLE AND ALL? What kind of song is that?? Well, Apparently "Rock-A-Bye-Baby" is a nursery rhyme that has been around since the 18th Century and according to my new favorite book, Humpty Who? It could mean falling in to the comfort and safety of the parents arms. This is just one little tip (including ways to make the songs more interesting) you will learn while reading and singing the words to 80 nursery rhymes in the book Humpty Who?

I was thrilled to receive this book and as you can imagine, so is my daughter. With 80 nursery rhymes, you will be brought back in time to childhood when you sang some of these songs. Every song you can imagine is in the book and to make sure you don't forget the tunes, a CD is neatly tucked away in the front cover with 30 of the more popular nursery rhymes. I just uploaded the CD to iTunes and I am already practicing in the car so that my poor daughter doesn't have to listen to "Frère Jacque, Frère Jacque, Dormez Vous, Dormez Vous, Sumee Lama Tina, Sumee Lama Tina" (for those of you that also got a C in High School French it's "sonnez les matines"). I promise you, you will adore this book and it makes an excellent gift for a new parent!

You can purchase this on Amazon by clicking below:

For more of Doryn's Tips and reviews, go to www.dorynsdish.com

"The New Basics": Neurotic Moms, This Could Be The Baby Book That Saves You!

You know how when you were pregnant and everyone said, toss all the "alarmist" pregnancy books and go read Jenny McCarthy's Belly Laughs because she just puts it on the table! Well, my first DAY home with the baby I was taking out every baby book suggested to me. WOW was that a mistake. From day one I was already feeling like I was a bad Mom. I was suggesting one minute to my husband that we do THIS and the next minute, THAT. He must have been going crazy. It's impossible to tell a person that one book will be the right one for them, but personally, even when I was pregnant, I liked my books to be "to the point". So if you're like me, you'll love this reference book.

A friend of mine gave me The New Basics: A-to-Z Baby and Child Care For The Modern Parent by Michel Cohen. He is also her pediatrician in Tribeca and she adores him. She told me it's a great, quick reference guide that we will love. I literally didn't take it out until the other night (only because it was buried with some other books) and my daughter is almost 3 months old. I find that many baby books are antiquated or somehow make you feel guilty if you don't believe in exactly what they are telling you to do. I am not going to say I agree 100% with ALL his advice, but there's something about his suggestions that will take even the most neurotic new mom down a few notches. It's refreshing! I wouldn't say this should be your only baby book, but it's definitely worth keeping in the library. I was SO thrilled to finally find a book that didn't make me feel like a crazy person! Buy your copy from amazon.com for $17.

For more of Doryn's reviews and tips, go to www.dorynsdish.com

The Baby Book Of Today: Big Day Books

Before I had my daughter, I knew I wanted to document every moment of her life, but the idea of writing it all out in one of those old fashioned baby books would drive me nuts. I am just not "Martha Stewart" when it comes to scrapbook type projects. After lots of research I came across Big Day Books. Big Day Books is a company that has made "baby booking" easy. If you like to use the computer and you're generally pretty busy (or forgetful) this is a great concept for you.

Here's how it works: You pick a book of your choice, I have to say that the fabric choices and books are all incredibly adorable and there's something for everyone. I chose mine before my daughter was born and it is pretty unisex (pictured here). Then with your book, you'll receive 30 quality archival printer ready pages (you can order more later if you want some more information in the book), an 18 month membership to add in all the baby information, and extenders to add more paper.

Every time Tatum has a new milestone, I log in and put in the date and write some notes and it's saved to my account. They also send you cute reminders once in a while (not too much so that it's annoying) to fill in your information and we all know new moms need a little reminding. The quality of the book is beautiful, the pages are easy to load in the printer and you can get some extra blank ones to add so you can glue on your baby's hospital band or first tooth or whatever else you want to remember. I also love that they've included a special adoption section for adopted babies. This also makes a great baby gift!

Big Day Books is offering CBB readers 10% off your order with coupon code "cheer"

For more of Doryn's reviews and tips, go to www.dorynsdish.com

Book Review: Let's Explore Coral Reefs and others from Batfish Books

My daughter received a lot of books for Christmas and her favorite one quickly became Let’s Explore Coral Reefs by Michael Patrick O’Neill.  Published by Batfish Books, this book is more like a work of art.  O'Neill, who also happens to be an award-winning photographer, takes the reader on an underwater adventure introducing him to a world of creatures who live among coral reefs while simultaneously interjecting surprising facts (did you know that they are visible even from space?).

My daughter absolutely LOVES this book. Yes, she is a Nemo fan and therefore partial to the clownfish on the cover, but she also loves the narrator, Charlie the Crab, and each turn of a page is received with a big "Wow!" because all the pictures are that breathtaking. Other books in the series include Fishy Friends, Let's Explore Sea Turtles and Let's Explore Sharks. Check the Batfish Books site to check out sample pages. If you have a child who is into books, colors, fish, animals or is just very eager to learn new things I highly recommend this book.

Personalized Books: Two books I HAD to recommend for the holidays

We are big fans of personalized stuff at our house. Whether it’s music, jewelry or our wooden rocking chair we love anything that has Catie’s name on it or in it, but there is one thing Catie loves most of all, and that is a story where she is the main character. 

Fun for kids of any age group, the personalized book is a great choice for the holidays.  Here are two of my favorites that I can wholeheartedly recommend:

Custom Made For Kids
This keepsake, hardcover book tells the child’s personalized story.  Called The First Adventures of Incredible You, the book is filled with rhyming text and rich, full-color illustrations. The story follows the child from the day s/he arrived on earth through all the exciting adventures of his or her first few years of life.

Good for children from birth through age eight, this book is appropriate for both genders, biological or adopted children, any race or ethnicity and both traditional and non-traditional family structures. It opens with a dedication page and allows you to personalize everything from your favorite sport’s team to the child’s favorite food.  For example, in Catie’s book she rides her bike up our local street, sees the animals at the Bronx Zoo, enjoys a day at Central Park and jumps in puddles with her cousin Andrew – super cute!

This book has quickly become Catie’s favorite bedtime book and I consider it the perfect gift for the holidays. It’s no wonder that Custom Made For Kids won the 2007 iParenting Media Award for Outstanding Product in the Gift category and that they were invited to participate in a gift giving suite at the Golden Globe Awards in January where they will be giving away their books to celebrity parents.

Take a virtual tour of the book at www.custommadeforkids.com.

Exclusive for CBB Readers: Use code cb10 for 10% off through 11/30/07!

 
flattenme
I like to call this one the personalized book with a twist. Similar to one of Catie’s other favorite personalized items, the MeMovie, the flattenme books take your child’s picture and place it within the story.  Offering four different stories (we checked out one that turns your child into a pirate), the artists do a great job of really blending your kid into the background.

The pirate book, Here There Be Pirates, and its sister book, The Tuesday Mushroom King, are good for kids 4-7.  The two younger counterparts, perfect for kids 2-4 include The Potty Dance and My Little Monster. All the books are good for both genders and are hardcover (which I personally like better because you can easily count them as keepsakes this way.

Flattenme gift certificates were included in a $10,000 celebrity VIP gift bag at the 22nd Annual American Cinematheque Awards dinner honoring celebrity mom Julia Roberts.

Take a look at all four books on the flattenme website.

Exclusive for CBB Readers: Use code CELEBRITYBABIES for 10% off!

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If you know of another personalized book that your child loves please let us know by email or in the comments!

 

 

Book Review: Let's Get Ready for Kindergarten!

Like most parents, I want to feel like I'm involved in my child's educational process but never feel like I'm doing enough. What's more, as a first-time parent I never really know what is age appropriate. I was quite interested in checking out Let's Get Ready for Kindergarten, a book written by parents with approval from a panel of teachers and curriculum specialists as a solution to "no child left behind."

Based on the core Kindergarten curriculum, the 32-page dry-erase book prepares kids ages 2-6 for, well, Kindergarten, teaching things like numbers, shapes, colors, coins, counting and so on.  Stacey Kennenberg, owner of Cedar Valley Publishing, looked for a book like this one but found that there was no book like it on the market, so she wrote and self-published it.

Since I have a 27-month-old I decided to put the book to the test myself.  At first glance I thought "no way will a kid this young understand this!" but I decided to use trial and error, skipping over what I thought was difficult, and going back to it later.

My daughter Catie has known her alphabet, numbers, colors and basic shapes for quite some time now but it never occurred to me to teach her to identify letters and numbers out of order, or to teach her difficult shapes (like a hexagon or whatnot) this young because I thought she just wouldn't get it. Well, within just a few days of "playing" with this book she could correctly identify about half of the letters of the alphabet (she still gets certain ones, like B and D for instance, confused but my mom -- a school teacher -- says this totally normal) and numbers zero through nine out of order. She can also identify all her shapes and will now point them out to me on her other toys.  I have even started to teach her how to identify her coins but she seems to be more interested in inserting them in her piggy bank at the moment!

Green Bay (Wisconsin) area public schools have been using this book for a few years and have seen a positive marked improvement in testing.  The books have also been approved for use in schools in both California and Texas.  I can see why. This is a book that I would wholeheartedly recommend to all my mom friends and I can see homeschooling moms especially loving this one. 

The book's sister publication,  Let's Get Ready for First Grade, is already available and the goal is to have a book written for each grade. Both books were included in the Swag Bag at the Emmy's!

Get your book directly from Cedar Valley Publishing or from amazon. Use code PISHPOSH for 10% off your order!
 

Book Review: The Vaccine Book by Robert W. Sears, M.D., F.A.A.P.

As someone who believes strongly in the principles of attachment parenting I have always loved the Dr. Sears series of books so I was very happy to find out that the Sears library was finally putting out a book on vaccinations. 

Whether or not you vaccinate on schedule, selectively or don't vaccinate at all, this is one topic that is heavily debated in playgroups everywhere. It's also very difficult to find a book that is not overtly biased and that presents information in a very clear way. 

The Vaccine Book: Making the Right Decision for Your Child is written by Robert W. Sears, M.D., F.A.A.P. (son of William and Martha).  Like most Sears books, information is presented in a clear, easy-to-read way, so that even if you have zero time to read the book cover to cover (although I will point out that I read it in a few hours) you can simply check it for the information that you need.  Say you know that at your well-baby visit you are going to be asked if you want to give the Hep. B vaccine -- simply pull out the book and read that one chapter to inform yourself. It's really well-presented and informative.

Each chapter devotes itself to one vaccine and whichever disease(s) it is designed to prevent.  Sears first explains the disease, what it is, how common and/or serious it is and whether or not it is treatable.  He then goes on to explain how the vaccine is made, breaking it down by ingredients and explaining which ingredients are considered controversial (and, more importantly, why). He then breaks it down two more ways: Why someone would choose to have this vaccination and why they wouldn't. Finally he gives his take on it.

Other chapters devote themselves to vaccine safety research, side effects, ingredients (broken down into more detail than in the first few chapters) and myths/questions among others.  He also offers a delayed vaccination schedule

In order to cover up-to-date information which is virtually impossible in the print medium, he invites you to check out his website where he blogs about recent developments/changes to the information in his book. 

Parents who are well-versed on both sides of the vaccine issue will find nothing new or surprising in this book but, like most Sears books, it's a great introduction for anyone who is not familiar with non-mainstream parenting ideas.  At the very least, it's refreshing to hear a doctor say "Hey, don't just blindly trust the medical industry." That said, anyone who is expecting Sears to share conspiracy theories or to at least hint at the possibility that certain vaccinations are not necessary or even dangerous will be disappointed -- this is a pro-vax book through and through and even his alternate schedule is surprisingly heavy. 

While Sears does a great job of remaining neutral throughout the book, that is what will ultimately disappoint many parents.  Still, those parents are probably not his intended audience anyway. This book is targeted more toward the newly pregnant mom who had no idea prior to this that anyone would question whether or not one would vaccinate a newborn and that's fine in my opinion, because the Sears library in general does a great job of introducing people to new issues and this book is just that -- a very good introduction.

The Vaccine Book: Making the Right Decision for Your Child, $11.19 on amazon; www.thevaccinebook.com.

The Complete Book of Baby Names: A guidebook for expecting parents

True story: When I was 9-weeks-pregnant I sat up in bed one morning (at 4am, mind you) and woke my husband to tell him that we were having a baby girl and that we would name her Catalina after my great-aunt. I swear it. Easy as pie.

Though we chose not to find out the baby’s gender, like most first-time parents my husband and I poured over baby name books (yes, we bought multiple copies) searching for a boy’s name we could agree on just in case my motherly intuition failed me.

So I have to admit that when I first received my copy of The Complete Book of Baby Names: A guidebook for expecting parents I wasn’t too quick to move it to the top of my pile of products I need to review. Wrongly I assumed that this book, like all the others, was your standard baby-naming book, a dictionary of Ashleys (Ashlee, Ashlay, Ashly) through Zacharys (Zachery, Zakaree, Zackary) that would tell me whether a name was Latin or Germanic in its root.

Then two things happened. First, I was flipping through the book with a coworker when I came across a list entitled “Popular Names in Spain” and lo and behold, the tenth name that was listed on the girl’s side (Nerea) happened to be the name of a cousin who lives in Spain. Seeing this got me excited and I picked up the press release that accompanied my copy when the second thing happened. I read the following: Princess Meadow Royalty called. She said she wants to kill her parents. It was at this point that I decided to really check out what this book had to offer.

At first glance, yes, this book does look like all the others. Boasting that its contents hold “The 100,001+ Best Baby Names,” it seems like an easy marketing ploy that serves to reach its target audience of newly pregnant couples seeking to find The Best Name Ever for their new bundle of joy.  Upon further investigation, however, this book surprises you with some interesting content, including a baby-naming history (quite interesting as a matter of fact), and the aforementioned lists of popular names by country, occupation and funny sub-categories such as “redneck names” and “optometrists.” You could spend a good ten hours just going over the lists.

I do give this book a thumbs up, specifically because it makes parents feel okay about naming their kids traditional things and also doesn’t make you feel bad if you want to go a trendier route – in other words, it finds a good middle ground which I feel a lot of these books lack.

And even though my own interesting name isn't listed on its pages, there is a good selection of Galician names (my people!) printed in this book which I have never seen in an American baby-naming book prior to this so a big thumbs up for that!

Get it on amazon for $10.36.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Near Mama's Heart: A book for kids who love to nurse

As a nursing mom and a breastfeeding advocate I was ecstatic to receive Colleen Newman’s book, Near Mama’s Heart.

I own many a nursing book – basically if there is a children’s book on the market that depicts a positive image of a nursing child in any way I own it already – but I particularly love this book because it uses real images of kids nursing. And notice I use the word “kids” and not babies. I love that this book shows photos of children – not only infants – happily nursing. 

The book is in color and the text is cute but not cutesy.  My still nursing two-year-old and I read it as part of our pre-bedtime reading and neither one of us can get enough. 

Near Mama’s Heart is the perfect gift for any breastfeeding mother and a great gift for a shower as well.  Get your copy on amazon and find out more about Newman’s book on her blog.

Il Cocco di Mamma: A site for the apple of your eye

As a bilingual parent, I was inspired by the story behind Il Cocco di Mamma, a site featuring classic baby tees and gifts with bilingual messages.

Featuring common sayings from around the world, including Ciao!, Qué pasa?  and C'est la vie!, the site was inspired by the owner’s experience growing up in Boston with immigrant parents and spending her summers in Italy.  Plug in “New York” for “Boston” and “Spain” for “Italy” and you have my life in a nutshell, so I was immediately sold.  That initial connection coupled with the opportunity to see for myself how well-made and soft the actual shirts are made me fall in love with the line.  Definitely something you’d want to put on a newborn. I will be doing all my newborn shopping at Il Cocco di Mamma guaranteed, if only because I think the organic cotton Cielo onesie is so perfectly adorable.

The site also features many popular children’s books and music in other languages (Huevos Verdes Con Jamón anyone?), as well as shoes and foreign language wooden blocks (including the Greek, Russian, Hebrew and other alphabets).

Il Cocco di Mamma, by the way, literally translated means “mama’s boy,” but the Italian term of endearment is translated as “the apple of my eye” and is used for both girls and boys.

The company offers free gift wrap in its signature paper with every purchase. Check out the complete selection at www.ilcoccodimamma.com.

Baby Prodigy: Helping you raise a smart(er) baby

For an interesting and different baby gift, The Baby Prodigy Company offers a boxed set series called “FUN FOR BABIES.” The set features four fabulous DVD’s including “Baby Pre-School,” “Baby Prodigy” and others hand-selected to entertain toddlers ages 3 months to 3 years. You can also get a set with the book, Baby Prodigy: A Guide To Raising A Smarter, Happier Baby, Barbara Candiano-Marcus.

The basic concept is that learning, for babies, should be fun. Baby Pre-School entertains toddlers with imaginative games like “Can you find…” and “What’s missing?” Its animated music combined with its lovable stars, Dookie and Dottie Duck, and brand new characters such as the Singing Polygons and the Barber Shop Quartet are sure to keep any toddler laughing, singing along and greatly entertained.  One of the gift-sets you can buy comes with the duck toy.

Celebrities that were gifted baby prodigy products include Angelina Jolie, Dayna Devon and Jillian Barberie Reynolds.

The products are available now at www.babyprodigy.com, amazon.com, barnesandnoble.com and a variety of other retailers.  Check the Baby Prodigy website for retail locations.

Tummy Talk: A pregnancy scrapbook

I loved being pregnant so much. One of my biggest regrets was not recording everything down. I wish I had found the Tummy Talk pregnancy album.

Unlike standard pregnancy albums, the Tummy Talk pregnancy album is more like a scrap book of sorts. Tummy Talk offers expectant moms and new families a way to remember stories in one book where they can journal thoughts and feelings, display growing tummy photos and collect meaningful memorabilia. Once complete, the album serves as the baby's first story, even before his or her first step. 

With the tiniest details in mind for the new mom, Tummy Talk offers hand-drawn illustrations, storage pockets, 105 color pages and scrapbook cut-outs to capture each new moment of pregnancy. Tummy Talk is available in pink, blue and apricot suede-like cover fabrics. 

Buy them at www.tummy-talk.com.

Mommy Yoga: A book full of laughs

A great little “extra” for a new mommy is Parenting Magazine contributing editor Julie Tilsner’s Mommy Yoga: The 50 Stretches of Motherhood published by Ten Speed Press is perfect for moms who knowingly practice yoga and those who don’t realize they are doing it everyday alike.

Filled with funny “poses” like the Kangaroo (Stand with baby in front pouch or sling. At the first hint of a cry sway to and fro…Repeat as necessary through day and night.) and Downward Fish (With feet planted firmly on the floor, bend at the waist and extend your arms into the toilet bowl. Scoop out all plastic toys. Rinse as needed.) I can’t think of any new mom who won’t find humor in this book.

Get it on amazon for only $11 and give a new mom a much-needed laugh.

aimeej: Great keepsake albums

If you want to create a memory book or scrapbook but can’t figure out how to get started, you are not alone. My New Year’s resolution this year is to create a scrapbook of my daughter’s first year before she turns two! 

Aimee Jacobson, founder of aimeej keepsake albums, offers a few suggestions for getting started. They are:

1.  Decide how much time and creative energy you can to commit to the project.

Least amount of time: Keepsake boxes are a great alternative to albums. They hold hundreds of photos and are large enough for the 8x10 prints that never made it into a frame and onto the wall. 

A Little More Time & Commitment: Traditional Photo Albums 

More Time & Creativity Required: Scrapbook 

2. If digital photos haven’t made it from the camera to the computer, set aside a realistic amount time to download the photos from the camera and determine which photos you want to print.

3. Time-permitting, edit (crop, remove red eye, fix lighting, etc) the photos and print – either at home or upload to an online photo printing service.  

Tip: Edit and order prints at the same time when using an online service like Snap Fish or Shutterfly.

4.  Organize photos by year first and then time and ambition permitting, by events during the year. 

Tip: Print photos in the order you want to lay them out in scrapbooks or insert into photo sleeves

5. Make it a family project by encouraging older children and spouses to help. 

6. Don’t get overwhelmed.

Tip: Determine how much time you can commit each week or each month to the project and work in stages. Just getting the pictures organized chronologically is a great step for many. 

7. Preserve your photos and special mementos in acid free products to prevent colors from fading years later.

8. Choose beautiful keepsake products, like aimeej’s, which inspire creativity and make remembering easy.  

I am personally using the Luxe Baby Keepsake Box from aimeej which I love for its timelessness, not to mention that I just don’t seem to have the time to work on something more detail oriented.

If you created a keepsake box of your child’s first year, what did you use and how did you do it?

Reviews Roundup: Twins

With celebrities like P Diddy, Marcia Cross, Patrick Dempsey and Mia Hamm among others having twins it seems that 2-for-1 deals are the latest trend to hit Hollywood. Here Celebrity Baby Blog reviews some of the hottest items for parents who find themselves busy times two:

Peekaboo Pumpkin
Every new member to your family should be announced in style and Peekaboo Pumpkin is an online stationer specializing in unique designs for every unique arrival. If you find you are short on time now that you are seeing double, Peekaboo Pumpkin has a super fast turnaround time for their high-quality, brightly colored designs which range in style from sassy and cute to stylish and sophisticated.

Order your announcements online at peekaboopumpkin.com.

Uncommonly Cute Gift Set
You can go wrong with a onesie from Uncommonly Cute but there are special onesies (which come packaged in the cutest of ways) that are specific for twins. My favorite set is the Copy and Paste one. These shirts are sure to bring a smile to parents who are covered in double the spitup! 

Get them online at uncommonlycute.com.

Twinspiration
No new mom is going to have time to read a book – twins or not – but this book is a great buy for someone who just finds out she is expecting twins. Twinspiration: Real-Life Advice From Pregnancy Through the First Year for Parents of Twins and Multiples offers the essential advice (everything from the moment you first find out there are two in there to what to do after you bring them home). It is an essential read!

Get it through Amazon.com.

Maclaren double stroller
Diddy and Kim Porter were gifted the Twin Techno from Maclaren for their twin girls. This side-by-side stroller is suitable from birth and has five seat positions (not to mention that it comes in some snazzy colors).  This is a great stroller for moms of twins or for moms of two under two as well!

Find out more about it on the Maclaren site.  

Mom Jewelry from Magic Dog Studio
Anyone who has birthed twins deserves some jewelry to commemorate the moment. Magic Dog Studio offers beautiful handprint or footprint charms for mom to remember how little her little ones really were at one time. Make a copy of the hospital prints and surprise this twin mama with some nice jewelry. And don’t forget dad!  Magic Dog Studio offers cufflinks and keychains for dad if he’s not into wearing dog tags. 

Check out the selection at www.magicdogstudio.com.

What are some of your favorite twin products?

Koo Koo Kidz: Children’s Travel Activity Bag

I was so excited to check out the Koo Koo Kidz Children’s Travel Activity Bag.  Sure it is easy enough to pack my daughter a bag she can entertain herself with before we leave the house but it seems there is never enough time for that, nor do I ever remember to pack all the essentials. In the case of the Koo Koo Kidz bag, it’s already packed for you!

There are two styles to choose from: a tote or a backpack (I prefer the tote as it is a bit smaller but still big enough that Elmo can come along for the ride too). Each bag contains a coloring/activity book, doodle pad, twist up crayons, antibacterial hand wipes, a car bumper magnet, deck of playing cards (with simple game instructions) and Koo Koo Kidz character stickers. Refills are available for when you run out!

This bag is going to be a lifesaver on our next plane trip! Get yours at kookookidz.com.

Starrytime Keepsakes: A great personalized gift

If you are looking for that perfect and unique gift for a new baby check out the Starrytime Keepsakes giftset. As a parent I feel confident in saying that anyone you buy this gift for is going to love it.

The giftset includes a personalized children’s book called Blanket Full of Love and a coordinating blanket. You personalize the book with the child’s name and pick the character that most resembles him or her (there are 21 likenesses to choose from). You can even make a personalized dedication that appears in the front of the book and you have the option to personalize the blanket as well.

The Blanket Full of Love story is absolutely adorable and incredibly touching. Basically it follows the child’s life, explaining how she will carry the blanket with her for every milestone, until she has her own baby when she can share a piece of her blanket with her own child. I kid you not I was in tears by the end of the book.

The blanket is a soft poly-chenille material and is embroidered with the heart image that is used throughout the book. The publishers claim that it is durable enough to be used every day and that it’s machine washable and dryer safe. You can choose pink, blue or green.

This giftset is so cute it’s no wonder that Starrytime Keepsakes has so many celebrity fans, including Angelina Jolie and Gwyneth Paltrow.

The Blanket Full of Love giftset will cost you $99.95 and an extra $15 for blanket personalization. If that’s something you can afford right now, you can buy all the items separately too. For ordering information and to view a sample of the book check out www.starrytime.com.

Special Offer: Celebrity Baby Blog readers can enjoy free blanket personalization (a retail value of $15.00) with the purchase of a book-and-blanket gift set by entering the coupon code CELEBABES at www.starrytime.com.

Madallie: Travel with Fun and Fashion

The days of cramming the kids into the back of the mini-van and praying that they don’t ask “Are we there yet?” for the millionth time are long gone thanks to madallie.com, a children’s travel store.  A one-stop travel shop for families with kids ages 3-13, madallie.com offers adorable and engaging travel-sized toys, books, games, crafts, luggage and backpacks to keep kids occupied (and, more importantly, parents sane) while they travel. All the items are kid-tested, fit in a child's lap or car seat, and provide hours of fun for your kids and family.

Favorites on the site include the vintage stamped luggage ($46.95) which was purchased by Robert Downey Jr. for his son, Indio. Each one-of-a-kind piece is handmade in Brazil out of coconut shells and is individually stamped with vintage labels.  It comes with a key - perfect for little ones who want to feel big when they lock it up!

Another cute one is the Babo Ugly Doll ($25.95) a favorite purchase of celebrities like Charlotte Caffey, David Lynch and Elvira (Cassandra Pierson).

Madallie.com has been a favorite of celebrities since it launched a year and a half ago. Click on the extended post to see what celebrities like Beth Broderick and Kathy Najimy bought for their celebrity babies!

Mention CBB at checkout and madallie.com will give you a 10% discount on all items in the store!