Friday, March 29, 2013

Welp, I've already screwed-up Easter

I hope everyone had a Great Good Friday.

This will be my sons first Easter and I've already screwed it up.

Since 6 month olds can't have candy, I tried to find some fun, little, baby-friendly gifts for his Easter Basket. I found everything I wanted on Amazon and ordered it 2 weeks ago with the Free Super-Saver shipping. I must not have been paying attention because I didn't realize the delivery dates until the next day when i got confirmation email saying they'd arrive the week of April 9th. Oops. So it looks like the Easter Bunny will be late to our house. I really should invest in Amazon Prime. *sigh*

Mother of the Year right here. Good thing he's too young to remember.

I'll leave you with pics of Calvin and the pooch.

Calvin LOVES Alfie
Watch out Easter Bunny. Calvin will try and chew on your ears too.


Thursday, March 28, 2013

6 months old

How did this happen?


My kiddo is 6 months old today. Nothing changes your entire life as quickly as bringing a child into the world does. Our lives revolve around this tiny person and his eating, sleeping and pooping.  We discuss diapers, rashes and boogers more often than I previously thought possible. But somehow, when he smiles at you, it makes all the gross and exhausting stuff worth it.


Happy Half Birthday Calvin!

Wednesday, March 27, 2013

Our Eczema Battle

Eczema sucks. Big time.

It first reared it ugly head on Calvin's face when he was 3 months old. I didn't think much of it at first, just a couple small red spots here and there, no biggie...
I was wrong.
It got worse as the weeks went by, spreading over his forehead, behind his ears and down his cheeks. Spots started cropping up on his sides and back. Not to mention the crusty, flaky cradle-cap that came with it. It was getting inflamed and was obviously uncomfortable. He was having trouble napping. He would fight sleeping and rub his face, which hurt, so he'd cry and scratch, which made it hurt more. 
It was a vicious cycle.

I researched and researched and spent who knows how much money on every cream, lotion, baby wash and oil I could get my hands on. I tried Aquaphor, Aveeno baby eczema, Califonia Baby, Eucerin, Johnsons, Mustella, Coconut Oil, Baby Oil, Oatmeal baths and Vaseline. 
No luck.

I don't have a before picture because I couldn't bare to document what I felt was a huge failure on my part. My baby looked like Two-Face and I couldn't figure out how to help him.

This is our current regimen and it seems to be working. I am not a doctor and this is not a medical recommendation  This is merely what we do in our home.

Calvin gets a bath every other night. I put about 2 Tbls of Baking Soda in the water (aluminum free baking soda can be used if that's a concern). Some nights I make a paste with it and rub it on his head as soon as he's in the water and let it sit while I wash the rest of him with Exederm Baby wash and shampoo.


It's extremely gentle and the best product line I've found so far. It can be purchased Here
After drying thoroughly, I coat his body in Curel Itch Defense Lotion and the Exederm Baby Cream on his face. I add a drop or 2 of Grapefruit Seed Extract or GSE to the lotions before I put them on him. Do Not apply it straight to the skin.  If you've never heard of GSE, I HIGHLY suggest you check it out. (You can find it at health food stores or here: Grapefruit Seed Extract ) Our babysitter and her husband told me about it and I am very grateful.

For the first 3 nights of this, we put cortisone cream on his face before bed. You cannot use it for an extended period of time, and it doesn't address the cause, but it works well to calm down the rash so you can get it back under control.
Then to top it off we started putting mittens on him so he can't scratch his face at night.

The eczema is almost completely gone, he doesn't scream when you touch his face and the cradle cap is much improved. Still there, but we're working on it. The most important thing is that my kiddo is happy again.

Check out my update HERE! (2/10/14)

My Story

I am a Twenty-Something Hairstylist and Makeup Artist in Spokane, WA.
Photo courtesy of Megan Zentner Photography
My Husband and I have known each other since Middle School, started dating in High School, and have been married since 2009. Awwww... I know.
Photo courtesy of Britton Photography
 Just a few months after the wedding, we bought a house and got ourselves a dog. His name is Alfredo but we all call him "Alfie"... and sometimes "Poop-breath" .


3 years later on September 28th our son Calvin was born.


We learned quickly that nothing changes EVERYTHING in your life like having a baby. The first kiddo is an interesting journey so I decided to start blogging to document our trials and tribulations, successes and failures, and the "I can't believe I just did that/said that/saw that" moments that make parenthood such a unique experience.

I do request that you respect my family by not pinning or sharing pictures of Calvin.
Thank you!