No, not your American Express card. Your breast pump. Your electric breast pump. Because here’s what happened when I did…

My husband Jason and I were headed to New York for the weekend. We were leaving our 2-year-old son and 5-month-old nursing daughter in the capable hands of Susie, our life-saving baby sitter. I packed all the cute clothes I could fit into and headed for the airport. I felt so relaxed, sitting in the terminal, reading a magazine. We boarded our plane and took our seats. Then I remembered.

“Oh no! Jason, I forgot the pump.” Not just my pump. THE pump. The miraculous little machine that gathers those drops of gold to be frozen for baby. The pump that let mommy go out with her friends last Thursday night. The pump that gives a few extra hours of sleep when early-rising Dad takes a feeding. The pump that enables a nursing mom to take a weekend getaway to New York. THE pump. And we had just begun our six-hour flight.

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Monday morning.

A challenging day for most of us.

With memories still fresh of sleeping in, fun and exciting activities, or even just relaxation, getting out of bed on Monday morning is especially tough. Most people, however, have developed their own special routines. Let’s take a look…

There seem to be two different philosophies regarding Monday morning routines. There is the “Start off with a bang” tactic, and then there is the “Ease into the week” approach.

The “start off with a bang” people tend to put a lot of energy in to their Mondays. They may start off with a workout or a written to-do list, or even a hearty breakfast. The goal is to start with a bang, and let that energy drive you throughout the week. There is no time to waste, no time to sit still. You have your list, and the goal is to act upon it with gusto.

Pros:

• Get a lot done quickly

Cons:

• Difficult to get going initially
• Sometimes the energy is hard to maintain throughout the day

On the other hand, you have the ease crowd. These are the folks who recognize that Monday is a day to get re-oriented and make baby steps to full productivity. You might take some time to reflect on what you’d like to do this week, or look to other sources for inspiration. Instead of insisting on knocking out the toughest tasks immediately, the ease in to the week crowd might spend some time on social media or news sites getting information or networking.

Pros:

• Less stressful

Cons:

• Easy to be unproductive
• Time can get away from you

Whatever routine more closely resembles your life, one thing you’ll probably have in common with the other routine is the consumption of some sort of caffeinated product. Or, maybe not. Whatever your Monday morning routine is, the most important thing is that it works for you, and you’re better off because of it. If you’re finding yourself having a hard time getting in to your week, maybe it’s time to examine how you work on Monday, and come up with a new routine…you’ll love yourself for it.

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Again this year, I made the New Years resolution to be more organized. I was feeling as though I’d already failed miserably in so many ways, however today as I was sitting in the orthodontists office waiting for my daughter, I picked up the magazine Redbook. This is a magazine that I never read (which is amazing since my magazine pile is around 3 feet tall right now and it feels as though I subscribe to every magazine there is – another New Years Resolution waiting to be conquered!). Anyway, this article peaked my interest.
The best part? I do nearly all of these things already. For example: I just installed a cute basket at the bottom of the stairs which is meant to capture all the things that need to go upstairs (tip 22). Last year I whipped up this jewelry organizer (tip 18)

Jewelry Organizer in Nest

And our old TV armoire that I love, was rendered useless since the invention of the giant flat screen – I repurposed it as our ‘mid-range fancy china’ cabinet a couple of years ago (tip 24) Seriously, I could have written this article!

So, I have concluded that I might not be as disorganized as I thought and maybe I can now tackle another project as a New Years resolution…Now, should it be that magazine habit or the 9 years and GB’s of digital photos? – gulp.

How are you doing with your resolutions?

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Tiny little miracles.

Admittedly, I was skeptical. This had to be a gimmick. Like the teddy bear with the sound of a human heart-beat meant to mimic an in-utero environment for baby (my babies must have been screaming in-utero, because that was the environment created by this somewhat creepy-looking bear). Another “promise to make your baby sleep” product, that was really just a blanket. Even the name –Miracle Blanket – a joke, right?

I was several weeks from delivering my fourth baby when the package arrived. I saw the return address and knew it would be something good. My girlfriend Jen is a notoriously great gift giver. So I was surprised when I opened the envelope to find a pink “Miracle Blanket” inside. I had just given away an entire Rubbermaid tub filled with blankets. My three older children shared in my disappointment. “It’s just a blanket, mom.”

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A few weeks ago Ronnie and I met with Leslie S. Barber from Belly Bars (Nutra Bella). We’ve known each other for a while now – running into her and her business partner Meredith at various trade shows and such. It’s always nice to meet up with fellow entrepreneurs – sharing stories about how we got started – some funny, some unbelievable!
One of my good friends is very pregnant right now, so Leslie very kindly gave me some of their products so that I could pass them on to her. I’d like to say that they all made it safely to my friend, but something about the lovely packaging and the fact that they are healthy and delicious…well…in my defense, Belly Bar products are made for before, during and after pregnancy…I wonder if six years later counts??
Later this month we will be giving all of our online customers a chance to try the ‘Baby Needs Chocolate’ Belly Bar in our ‘No Tricks, Just Treats’ promotion. Stay tuned!

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Hello Bebe au Lait fans, we occasionally come across interesting content out on the web and like to share it. This is a video that features a creative way to package gifts for a baby shower. At the end of the video, there’s a quick shout out to Hooter Hiders. Enjoy!

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Bebe au Lait believes in social and environmental responsibility, and we pride ourselves in continuosly finding ways to reduce, recycle and reuse, as well as cut back on waste and energy usage.

Some of the ways in which Bebe au Lait has become more environmentally friendly in the past year include:

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Claudia enjoying the rain in her PJ's

As I walked my girls to school this morning, I was glad I had invested in some rain boots . It took me back to my childhood as we splashed carefree through the puddles and it made a great start to the day.

Once I arrived at work though, the gloomy weather made the office feel a little dark. I rummaged around in my bag to locate the candle I was gifted with last week at my book club. Once lit, it lightened my mood as well as the office. 

Let me explain…
We read the book: Hump. True Tales of Sex After Kids. http://www.humpthebook.com/. One of our book club members had a contact to the author and she agreed to join us for the evening. This was a little disconcerting, given that our ‘Book Club’ actually means we just read the same book and then meet every six weeks to drink wine and talk about everything but the book…now we were to divulge bedroom secrets? Truth be told, this book brought us all a little closer together…I can’t tell you how because “What happens at book club, stays at book club”, but there was wine and a lot of talk about sex. Highly entertaining!

I really recommend the book to anyone who has already had children or as a fun gift to a relevant someone…not for the first time pregnant though!

Kimberly the author gave us this candle and a note inside the match book that said “Keep on humping!”

My 'Hump' Candle.

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Following tradition, the new year is the preferred time to make significant changes to your life. It all sounds so good: “I am going to lose weight!”, “I am going to finally get organized!”, “I am going to spend more time with my family”, and so on and so on. Unfortunately, keeping these resolutions always turns out to be more difficult than you intended.

Bebe au Lait looks at the new year’s resolution struggle, and what you can do to make sure you keep your resolutions for life. (Read More)

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