Happy 2008!

Happy New Year! Like many other new parents, the Mommish is sitting on the couch watching Ryan GaycrestSeacrest and Dick Clark while the Hubbish and the Babish have long sinced checked out and bid adieu to 2007. And you know what, I'm loving every moment of it! Finally, I don't have to get dolled up, spend an exorbitant sum on an all-you-can-eat-and-drink fiasco (where I usually find nothing which I would normally choose to eat or drink) or deal with drunk revelers or a lack of transportation (public or otherwise) in my beloved northern (read: freeze your butt off) metropolis. And the best part - knowing that the reason that I chose to be home on this New Year's Eve is because 2007 was the greatest year of my life - it was the year in which I became Mommy!

So as we ring out 2007, I thought I'd post a link to the year's most popular baby names.

My son's first and middle names didn't make the top-10 - but I guessthink that was our goal - at least he's in the top 50. My name has NEVER been anywhere near the top 100, so I wanted him to have a somewhat common name. But, I also wanted him to be the only kid in his class with that name (isn't that what every Gen X parent wants?).

And for the preggos out there who still haven't picked a name (or anyone else bored with the TV on this fine New Year's Eve), some of my favorite baby name sites include the Baby Name Wizard (which now has a blog with name trend predictions), the Baby Name Inventor, and of course Babycenter.com, where its message boards allow people to post polls of their final name choices to get a popular vote opinion. Good Luck!

Just don't forget to also check those initials. [This is coming from a woman married to one B.S.]

It's Not Easy Being Green

Ok, Ok, I know you've all been bombarded with all the news about all of the toxic chemicals out there that are slowly killing our precious babes. And if you are like me, on the other side, you have the grandmas, the plastics industry and other well meaning friends of another generation pointing out how we all survived, so we must be over-reacting by spending our hard earned money on organic this and that.

Well, between worrying about the pesticides in our food; the PVC, phthalates and bispenol-a in our plastic... there doesn't leave much time to worry about all of the harmful chemicals in our beauty products, right?

When I first fell pregnant, I read an article in Fit Pregnancy about Parabens and Phthalates - two compounds in many U.S. beauty products (but banned in the E.U.). The article linked these two compounds to reproductive problems and in particular, pointed to a study where the results revealed that exposure to high levels could result in smaller male genitalia in a pregnant woman's offspring. Now, who knows how much exposure we really have through our shampoos and moistures, BUT, knowing that if I had a son, only 8 days into his life he already was going to have a "coming off party" (read: Bris), I decided that I needed to give him every other chance possible in that department.

Unfortunately, it's very tricky to find out whether or not products contain phthalates and parabens, as most cosmetic or beauty products simply contain the words "fragrance." But I came across a very helpful website that allows you to search cosmetic and beauty products (for adults and babes alike) for numerous potentially harmful chemicals. It's called the Cosmetic Safety Database - and if, like the Mommish, having a baby makes you want to not only reduce your post c-section tummy bulge, but also your family's chemical exposure - it's a must check!

http://www.cosmeticsdatabase.com/

Boon or Bust

Ever since I started thinking about a baby registry, I was intrigued by Boon, Inc. Back then (all of a year and a half ago), the company really only had four items in its line - all related to the bath or bathroom. I had to have the Frog Pod, a cute frog shaped container for all of those fun toys that make bath time a wee bit easier for mom and dad.

So a few months ago when Boon came out with a high chair and some other feeding accessories, my curiosity was piqued again. I already had my high chair [and truth be told, I have to agree with the Hubbish's assessment of the Boon Flare and it's twins in uber-modern fashion and uber-expensive price tags, the Bloom Fresco highchair and the Fluerville Calla high chair - he calls them all affectionately and indescriminately the Nuni/Nooni chair - because he thinks they look like they belong in that Saturday Night Live skit] but some of the Boon feeding accessories looked so cool and innovative.

On vacation in Florida, I came across a few of the items at the local BRU. I decided upon the Fluid no-spill toddler cup [my bisphenol-a free search for sippy cups aside, this looked so cool and hey, the baby's water won't be heated in this, right? And it's a cloudy opaque plastic -so probablymaybe Ok?] and the Snack Ball - a neat ball shaped travel container for small treats.

We have been having so much fun with the snack ball. While it doesn't have the no-spill top of the Snack Trap, it has become one of my son's favorite toys. It also has a small enough top so that all of the Cheerios/Puffs/etc. don't come pouring out at once (that hasn't stopped the Babish from grabbing a handful though - but he likes his food, what can I say). And, unlike the Snack Trap, it takes a little longer for your Cheerios to go from fresh to stale in this container (again - type-B mommy shows her true colors, b/c I let the kid have the stale ones, and yes, I also eat the stale ones). It's also smaller than the pre-packaged travel containers or puffs and Cheerios, so easier on the diaper bag (and I can control portions and be sure the precious one doesn't ruin his appetite on a snack).

But alas, Boon did not get straight As on its report card from the Mommish. I have to give the Fluid cup a big thumbs down. A) the spout is just not vertical enough to give a baby something to really suck on (or teeth on) like the tall spout of almost every other sippy cup (and my son's beloved Born Free sippy cup has a very un-vertically challenged spout that is also a wonderful teether) and b) the kid just isn't a fan of the handles. It's a bust! So, maybe I'll try to fill it with hard small pasta and make a rattle or something... shaky, shaky...

You Broke it, You Buy It...

I always knew that with little boys you are always one sticky finger away from danger... I just never figured this would happen before my son's first birthday. A few days ago I found myself in a snowstorm in Chicago with my son sans stroller, baby food, toys or car (and car seat for that matter - thanks to grandma for getting lost on your way to pick us up from music class). I thought it would be a good idea to seek shelter in a local coffee shop. Big mistake. I had heard about some non-baby-friendly locales in my fair city - but I never realized how un-friendly some shopkeepers can be to moms with tots in tow (and this store was M-T, you'd think they would appreciate their single customer). So there I am trying to entertain myself and my son. I figure buying us some drinks would speed up our wait time. But as soon as I lifted junior near the counter he decided he wanted to touch, feel and explore the coffee samples. I tried to shift him to the other side of the counter and, of course, right as I'm trying to take the money out of my wallet, my son decided to test the laws of gravity (we have the next Isaac Newton on our hands). Before I can even turn my head I here a big crash - Z managed to knock over a glass canister filled with biscotti. Glass shards and biscotti littered the floor. Of course, the coffee shop owner came out fuming. I tried to explain that my son was only 9 months old and didn't yet understand gravity - but the store owner was already calling the Container Store to get the price on the canister. When he tried to make the Momish pay more than she knew was full-price, don't worry, I successfully managed to find said canister on the store's website on the crackberry, and juggle a coffee and a baby in a snowsuit! I would love to be witty or funny - but the whole experience made me so mad that someone could be so mean when the whole thing was an accident and I wasn't trying to shirk responsibility or anything.

$2.00 decaf Cafe au lait. $8.99 broken canister. $5.00 fifteen chocolate biscotti. Realizing your son is now a toddler and that even if boys will be boys, he needs to be protected from those people who can - gasp - be mean to babies (...and re-learning voo-doo).

Priceless.

And if you are ever on Broadway just north of Belmont - please boycott the small Greek coffee shop on the west side of the street just north of the intersection.