LilSugar

Get Ready For Baby: 5 Helpful Baby Planning Guides

LilSugar — Mon, 17 Oct 2011 10:02:10 PDT

It's time to get ready for baby! During those nine months of pregnancy, mamas-to-be have a laundry list a mile long of things that need to get done before baby arrives - like prenatal checkups, labor and delivery classes, finding a pediatrician, and learning how to properly install a car seat, to name a few. It's easy to get overwhelmed, but mamas-to-be can get some guidance - and get organized! - with the help of these five baby planning guides covering everything from going green with baby to baby gear demystified!

Did You Read Up on Your Pregnancy Materials?

babysugar — Tue, 05 Aug 2008 15:00:35 PDT

In nearly every pregnancy-related blockbuster, the audience sees a quick slip of What to Expect When You're Expecting or The Expectant Father. In Knocked Up, Seth Rogen's character buys a stack of pregnancy books and swears he will read them before the birth of his child. On a pregnancy high, many women with child run to their local bookstore or library and take on as much reading material as possible. Whatever she doesn't buy, a friend is sure to send to her.

Pete Wentz told People:

I'm reading a lot of books . . . The biggest one is The Expectant Father. It's a really good one.

Did you read up on pregnancy books when you were with child?

Baby Bump: Week by Week

babysugar — Tue, 26 Feb 2008 05:00:20 PST

When I was pregnant, I tried to get my hands on every book that would tell me what was happening to my body and why. I found the best resource to be Your Pregnancy Week by Week.

Every Sunday night, I would get in bed and pull out my book to find out what changes were going on inside. Sometimes, I cheated and read the week ahead only to be bummed out the next Sunday when there was nothing new.

To learn more about the book and its exciting new additions,

read more. But alas, the newest edition of My Pregnancy Week by Week ($16) has been updated to include 80 new topics so it will all be new next time. And for you pregolicious babes who haven't checked out the text, you're in for a treat. A wealth of knowledge, co–authors Dr. Glade Curtis and Ms. Judith Schuler provide a weekly detailed description of baby’s developmental milestones, visual illustrations of how you and your babe are growing, the latest information about medical tests and procedures, tips on nutrition and lifestyle, and safe weekly exercises to help mother stay in shape. The closest thing to a pregnancy "bible," every mama–to–be should have one of these to help her prepare for her lil love.

A Whole Lotta Lil in This Week's Links

Rebecca M Gruber — Sat, 28 Jan 2012 04:24:29 PST

Make your mornings run more smoothly with 10 tips for easing the school morning rush
The American Library Association named the best kids books of the year. How many are on your bookshelf?
Keep the family organized and on schedule with these apps designed for family scheduling.
One week until the Super Bowl! Our football party picks for kids.
Hollywood's hottest maternity trend? Animal prints!
A postbaby boob job? Our readers are sounding off!
Does Natural Family Planning work? One mom shares her experience.
A little thing like pregnancy isn't stopping these famous models from walking the runways with their bumps!
Great candy alternatives for classroom Valentines!
Get ready for the hippest, coolest, most inspiring arts and crafts line we've seen in years - hint: it's designed by Todd Oldham!

Source: Anything But Perfect

Steal Hilary Duff's Youthful Maternity Style

Nicole Abbott — Fri, 27 Jan 2012 07:04:22 PST

Since actress and pop singer Hilary Duff announced she's expecting her first child with professional hockey-player husband Mike Comrie, she's been showing off a fun maternity style, covering her growing baby bump. The mama-to-be has looked youthful and fashionable every step of the way, glamming it up for promotional engagements for her book Devoted or keeping it comfy and casual for running errands around town. Take a few pregnancy style tips from this young mama-to-be and check out Hilary's pregnancy style!

Can Natural Family Planning Work For You?

BabyCenter — Wed, 25 Jan 2012 08:36:14 PST

We're excited to share this post from our partners at BabyCenter! Every week, we will be bringing you the best parenting and lifestyle stories from the experts at BabyCenter, including this post from Sabrina Garibia about using natural family planning as a form of birth control.

It’s much, much worse than the secret assemblies we had in middle school about menstruation. At least we were kids and all girls that time.

I’m a sophomore in college, and the old priest who is teaching my theology of marriage class is talking about natural family planning. He uses the words sex, cervical mucus, cervix, and orgasm all in one class.

Mortifying. I turn my head to giggle with my friend about the way we should have learning about our periods in middle school, and my eye accidentally catches the cute senior.

Even more mortifying.

That section of the class stayed with me for years, and when I got married, I knew I wanted to try natural family planning (NFP), first to prevent and later to achieve pregnancy. I read the book in full, and several months into my marriage, my husband and I decided to use NFP (or actually, the fertility awareness method) to prevent pregnancy.

It worked perfectly, but we followed the rules by the book (literally). Just like any other form of birth control, it is only effective when done properly. When we were ready for a baby, we followed those rules and got pregnant fairly easily (after a miscarriage and a bit of chart obsession).

When I’m done nursing, I think we will use natural family planning or the fertility awareness method again. It is natural and effective when done right. My husband and I both believe in it (unlike Jennifer’s husband and probably Jennifer herself).

What about you? Do you think NFP works?

More great stories from BabyCenter.com:
Seven things to consider when buying a high chair
Have you ever forgotten your baby?
Day care is really good for moms
An organized playroom. Seriously?
Should you use glass baby bottles?

Link Time - New Year, New Genres to Read

TresSugar — Tue, 17 Jan 2012 13:55:58 PST

5 genres of books to try reading this year - The Frisky
Tips for strengthening your marriage after an affair - YourTango
The scariest facts about pregnancy - CollegeCandy
Why smart women watch (and love) The Bachelor - Huffington Post
Get the dirty, firsthand details from Sexapalooza - Glamour
The gay rights movement in six minutes - GOOD
Hot men with sexy scruff - theBERRY
The top OMG moments from last night's Gossip Girl - BuzzSugar
Dating lessons to learn from Betty White - Glamour
The 10 most scandalous muses in art history - Flavorwire

Mom Humor: 5 Funny Books on Pregnancy and Parenting

LilSugar — Thu, 11 Aug 2011 05:28:01 PDT

"The more you read, the more you know." For most new moms and moms-to-be, this seems to be a motto. We pour over book after book trying to prepare ourselves for childbirth and child rearing, but sometimes it feels like we're overeducating ourselves - it's a lot of information to absorb in a short amount of time.

If you're feeling overwhelmed by all the "expert" books you've been reading, perhaps it's time for a little comedic relief. Get your LOLs on with these five funny books on pregnancy and parenting.

Lil Links: Are You Raising a Gifted Child?

Rebecca M Gruber — Fri, 13 Jan 2012 05:37:05 PST

How to raise really smart kids - Parenting
Watch this baby meet a lemon for the very first time - The Stir
Depression helped Gwyneth Paltrow put things in perspective - Celebrity Baby Scoop
See the suite where Beyoncé gave birth - People
Foods you should be eating - FitPregnancy
Are high heels safe while pregnant? - The Bump
Do you bribe your kids for affection? - Momformation
Studies show common IVF belief is wrong - Yahoo! Shine
8 soon-to-be classic children's books - Real Simple

Lil Links: Expired Baby Formula No Longer For Sale in California

Rebecca M Gruber — Thu, 05 Jan 2012 05:37:57 PST

A new baby formula law has California moms cheering - The Stir
Halle Berry does the school run - Celebrity Baby Scoop
Celeb tots love the beanie hat - Celebrity Baby Blog
The best new books and music for lil ones - FitPregnancy
Family-friendly cures for cabin fever - Parenting
Lose the baby weight without trying - The Bump
Does crying it out cause stressed babies? - Momformation
Don't be fooled by Build a Bear's adorable eyes - Yahoo! Shine
The Wizarding World of Harry Potter is coming to California - Child Mode