Stay-dry Apron & Towel Discount - Exclusive for HC&B Readers

Great news for those of you thinking of buying a Stay-dry Bath Apron & Towel...there is an exclusive 10% discount for Houses, Couches, and Babies readers.

Simply use the reference discount #SP0906 when placing your order. For more details on this great product, check out Stay-dry Bath Apron & Towel.

Goody Blog

While reading Parent Magazine this weekend, I stumbled upon a great find...GoodyBlog.com. This blog is part of Parents Magazine and gives lots of great ideas daily to help out parents. And because it is a blog, you can add comments and read comments from lots of parents out there like you.

Right now, Goody Blog is hosting a Toy-A-Day Giveaway...check it out now for your chance to win!

P.S. Goody Blog gave me the heads up about the Stay-Dry Bath Apron & Towel. Thanks for that!!

Bumbo Baby Seat Warning - Not a Recall

So you may have seen on the news today something about the Bumbo Baby Seat. If you have one of these chairs don't panic. Unlike alot of the toys your child plays with, these chairs have not been recalled. The Consumer Product Safety Commission has issued a warning that you should not put your baby in this chair on an elevated surface like the kitchen counter or a table. (Which I say, "duh!" to.)

This is due the fact that the Bumbo Baby Seat does not have a harness and there have been reported cases of babies arching their backs or turning on their sides and falling on their heads. If on an elevated surface, that is a very long fall. So what this tells me is to use the chair on the carpet...on the floor!

For complete details, check out the full story at ABCnews.com/gma.

Halloween Party Pops

With Halloween less than a week away, it's time to think about tricks and treats. Here is a treat kids of all ages are bound to love...Halloween Party Pops. Check out Pillsbury.com for this and many other ghoulish recipes!

Home Owner's Insurance

Living in Southern California can be a beautiful thing...but as I look out my window to the red light of the sun that is covered by smoke, right now it can be a scary thing, too. With 10 major fires burning in the Southern California area, I have decided it is a good time to take a look at my Home Owner's insurance policy.

I called my insurance provider, USAA, and was able to find out a great deal of information about my policy that I really didn't know before. (To be honest, my husband set up our policy four years ago and I have always just renewed it.)

What I found out today is what amount we would get to rebuild our home if it were destroyed and how much we would get for personal property loss. While the personal property loss sounded well and good, I was really unsure of the dwelling coverage...how do I know if that amount will be enough?

The agent I talked to on the phone gave me the great advice of calling builders in the area (not major builders who mass produce or contractors who just do remodeling) to find out how much they charge per square foot for rebuilding your home. That way, you can divide the amount of dwelling insurance you have by the square footage of your home and determine whether or not you have good enough coverage for a builder in your area to build your exact same home as good as new. If you don't, then you may need to add on to your policy.

Something else I found out on my call to my insurance provider...if you live in Southern California, right now you can't make increases to your policy due to the fires. You can only lower your coverage.

But even if you can't change your policy right now, it is always good to take a look at what you have...chances are, things in your life have changed since you bought your original policy, or you want to make changes in your life that your insurance provider should be aware of.

As a person who was evacuated 4 years ago due to the Speedway fire, my thoughts and prayers go out to all those people that have been evacuated, lost their homes, or just been scared by all these fires that are raging out of control.

If you aren't directly impacted, consider yourself lucky, and take this opportunity to get all of your important items (i.e. what you would take with you if you were evacuated, necessary documents, etc.) together. As the saying goes, "It wasn't raining when Noah built the ark."

7 Ways to Protect Your Child/Family From Germs

Thank you BabyCenter for having these helpful tips for keeping you and your family safe this cold and flu season (and all year-round for that matter!).

1. Teach your children to wash their hands at these key times: after going to the bathroom, petting an animal, or playing outside, and before eating.

2. Do hand washing right: With soap and water, it takes 20 seconds of scrubbing to kill the germs that need to be killed.

3. Keep a bottle of hand sanitizer with you for visits to playgrounds, mall food courts, and other places where there might not be a sink handy. Be sure to cover every part of the hand, including under the nails, if possible.

4. After preparing meat or poultry, wash cutting boards with hot, soapy water and spray counter tops with disinfectant. The bacteria commonly found on raw meats — including campylobacter, salmonella, and E. coli — are more dangerous than any other germs you're likely to have in the house.

5. Wash small cuts and scrapes with soap and water. Apply an antibacterial ointment, put on a bandage, and change the bandage every day until the wound heals.

6. Make sure your children are up to date on their vaccinations, and consider getting them a flu shot every year. A school-age child who's been vaccinated against the flu is less likely to bring home a bug that can infect the entire family.

7. If someone in your house is sick, take a moment to clean doorknobs, television remotes, toys, and other items your children touch throughout the day.

(P.S. Happy 2-1/2 birthday to my little Bubby - pictured above at only 6 months!

Ivy League Preppy Baby Names

Now, with only 32 days until Baby #2 is supposed to arrive, the husband and I are still trying to figure out what we might name this child. Since we don't know what we are having, we have to figure out girl and boy names.

Sure there are tons of baby name books out there, but here is a list of "Ivy League" preppy baby names to choose from. Is your baby's name on this list?

How Much Water Should You Drink?

Everyone seems to say the magic number is 8 glasses of water a day...but is that really the case?

The best way to make sure that you are hydrated (which contributes to beautiful skin and a well functioning excretory system - if you know what I mean) is to divide your weight by two to get how many ounces of water you should drink a day. And if you exercise, you should drink another 8 ounces for every half hour of exercise.

Oh yeah, and from what I understand, the water in Diet Coke doesn't count!

So go ahead, start drinking!

4 Easy Ways to Make Labor a Little Less Work

With only 33 days until my due date (not that I am counting or anything), I stumbled across a few good tips to keep in mind when going through labor:

1. BYO Gatorade: Sports drinks like Gatorade are easy for your body to digest and keep you better hydrated and energized than ice chips (I am pretty stoked on this one, although, I didn't know that you could intake anything with sugar...going to double-check on that one with my doctor).
2. Don't get pushy: Just because you are fully dilated doesn't mean you have to start pushing like there's no tomorrow. It is safe to let your baby descend on his/her own while (which I know from experience because when I was told to stop pushing because I was waiting for my doctor to arrive, my son still kept coming out...the uterus is a powerful thing!). This way you can save your strength for the last pushes.
3. Don't be a hero: If you want pain relief, ask for it. Even if you don't feel like you have been in labor long enough to deserve it or other women have told you how glad they were they didn't have pain meds. Everyone has a different threshold for pain - and kudos to those women for saving the meds for us! And by the way, studies show that early epidurals (the best thing ever!) don't make labor last that much longer, but what do you care...you won't feel the contractions anyway!
4. Pack your iPod: Silly as it sounds, your favorite tunes can get you through labor with a little more comfort. Research suggests music can help you deal with pain.

Pictured below: The bliss of an epidural!

Rockin' Robeez

Just when you thought you couldn't start them rockin' at a young enough age, Robeez has come out with an adorable line of slippers/shoes that adults are going to want to wear!

At $27.95 a pair, this is an easy way to let your child's inner rock star come out...so you can wait on the drum set for at least another 6 months!

Oh yeah, Free Shipping when you check out with PayPal: promo code: paypal. Robeez Baby Shoes - Pediatrician and mom recommended!

Stay-dry Bath Apron & Towel

Forget getting drenched while bathing your infant or toddler. A very smart and resourceful mom/grandma team has invented the adorable Stay-dry Bath Apron & Towel (made of 100% soft cotton terry) that will make bathing your baby easier and much drier...say goodbye to changing your clothes after bathtime!

Here are just a couple of the benefits that I think you will love:

• One size fits all. The elastic neckline is connected at the nape of the neck with velcro to accomodate any size. (i.e. Dad can wear it,too!)
• The apron ties are attached to the underside front of the bath apron, keeping the sides hanging free. Easy on, easy off!
• Includes handy accessories pocket; perfect for storing baby wash and toys
• Comes with matching wash mitt

Click here to find out more about the Stay-Dry Bath Apron & Towel ($19.99). Use reference code #SP0906 to receive a 10% discount.

Brides Against Breast Cancer

It is a simple concept...donate your wedding dress, make a dream come true for a woman or man suffering from terminal breast cancer.

Some of you may have already had your dress boxed and sealed. But for the many that still have their dresses hanging in the closet, donating your dress could be the best (and easiest) thing you do with it. Your donation will give brides-to-be the opportunity to find the dress of their dreams at a fantastic price, while helping to make wishes and memory-making events come true.

To find out more information about how you can donate your dress, check out Brides Against Breast Cancer at Making Memories.com. They are more than happy to take contemporary dresses, slips, and veils dating from 1995 to the present.

Adorable Holiday Clothing for the Kids

How cute is this Camo Cord Blazer?



Or this velvet blazer black?

The Children's Place has released some of their super cute holiday gear and I can't wait for my son to get studded out in one of these blazers. And if you have a little girl, these glittered mary janes garnet for infants ($10.50).


Save an extra 15% by using the online code HMF97.

What City Do You Belong In?

Here's a quick and fun quiz to find out what city you belong in...

http://www.blogthings.com/whatcitydoyoubelonginquiz/

Please share, where does the quiz say you should live? Would you really want to live in that city?

My quiz results found that I should live in Rome, which is very feasible considering I have lived in Florence and absolutely loved Rome!

P.S. Thanks Lizzy for passing on the fun quiz!

Seriously Super-Size Your Cupcake

Your eyes aren't deceiving you! That is one giant cupcake pan! And thanks to Sur La Table, you can build this adorable dessert with the Giant Cupcake Pan ($27.95).

Cute Art to Decorate the Kiddies' Rooms

Looking for oh so cute artwork for your child's room? Check out these and many other adorable prints created by Sarah Jane Studios. As an artist/mom specializing in artwork for children's rooms, Sarah Jane Studios loves fresh, simple yet yet timeless designs.

And the good news for all of us, Sarah Jane Studios is opening an Etsy store where we can buy these pictures for reasonable prices ($10 to $20). Oh, and the first 50 customers will receive a free Halloween card. Click here to check out Sarah Jane Studio Etsy store.

Storing Away the China

Sure, with Thanksgiving and the Holidays right around the corner, you are probably thinking about bringing out the china (you know, that wedding china you were so excited to get and use maybe only once a year). But how do you store your china?

Maybe you have a beautiful hutch or china cabinet to display and keep your china in. But if you don't, Crate and Barrel has a great solution for you. The Dinnerware Storage Set ($29.95) has cushioned quilting to protect your precious pieces. Each of the five containers holds up to 12 pieces.

If nothing else, your mom and mother-in-law will be so impressed this holiday season!