I received a free sample of [Gerber® Good Start® Soothe infant formula or Gerber Soothe® probiotic colic drops] from Gerber. My thoughts and opinions are by my own.

My oldest son had colic when he was 2 months old. It only lasted for 2 months, but it was the longest two months of my life. When I see or hear of a new mother struggling because she has a colicky baby, I feel so deeply for her. It is tough. It was one of the most trying times in my life. I’m not the type of person who can go no with life when I don’t get enough rest. I am the momster type if I don’t get any sleep and let’s just say that patience is not my strongest trait, either. Being in a position of not knowing why your baby is screaming for 9 hours straight is hard. Especially when you are exhausted, it’s 2a.m. and you have tried everything.

(Photo by Allison Hilyer Photography)

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When I was 5 years old, I was in kindergarten. I loved The Little Mermaid and playing with friends. My biggest worry was whether I’d have a peanut butter or turkey and cheese sandwich for lunch that day. Zeieya is 5 years old. She doesn’t go to school. She has no toys. She collects firewood for money and pretends to cook dirt for fun. She hardly has clean water to drink and lost her home during the war in 2014.

Hearing these heart wrenching stories makes me ache. My kids pitch a fit over not getting to watch a second episode of Mickey Mouse Clubhouse, and here this little girl has nothing. My first thought is, what can I do? CARE is an organization that fights poverty by empowering women and children. A little bit of money can provide weeks worth of clean water to children who are all too used to drinking dirty water. It can provide food and nutritional needs to these malnourished children. South Sudan is the youngest country. It is turning 5 years old this month. Help celebrate by helping these precious children. You can learn more about South Sudan and the Sudanese by visiting CARE’s website.

The holiday weekend is FINALLY here! I am so happy to have Ryan home and family coming later this weekend! We have lots of fun things happening. The parade, BBQs, lots of pool time and family time and I am so excited to get my hands of my favorite twins! My kids have not been a huge fan of the pool this summer, but I am hoping to change that this weekend. Hopefully with a little encouragement and motivation (and peer-pressure) they will enjoy it. When I went to Public to grab a few things for the weekend, I picked up a delicious Suddenly Salad Pasta that I know will make everyone happy.

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We have a big holiday weekend coming up and all of our family is coming to town. We have plans to eat a big breakfast at my grandmother’s house, go to the 4th of July parade and then head back to my parent’s house to swim and cookout later that afternoon before everyone has to head back home. It is going to be a busy but fun weekend! If you’re like me, you are already thinking of how your toddler seems to know when it is a special day and decides not to nap, pitch fits, etc. Mine do it every Thanksgiving, Christmas, etc. I swear, they just know. I like to prepare ahead as much as I can for these big days to try and avoid as many toddler disasters as possible.

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Okay, so Hampton is two now, but these tips held true before his birthday. I plan on incorporating them again once our baby boy is born in November(ish). Running errands with two young children – regardless of their age can be trying. We’ve all experienced toddler tantrums out in public probably more than we have smooth and successful errand runs, am I right? Is that just me? Okay…

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Earlier this week, before I went on “partial bed rest” we went swimming and grilled out and enjoyed the perfect summer afternoon! One of my favorite things about summertime is spending it outdoors in the pool or enjoying time with friends and family and good food. We love to grill year round, but there is something about a BBQ or grilled chicken in the summer that makes me excited. This week, we made some Texas Caviar as the perfect appetizer for our pool day and we have been enjoying it all throughout the week. I love Texas Caviar because it is delicious and healthy! Win-win!

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My son was so easy to transition from formula and a bottle. One day I put milk in his bottle and he acted like he didn’t even notice. The next week I put it in a sippy cup and again, he acted like he didn’t notice. I was shocked because so many people had warned me of the ordeal that was transitioning from bottle to sippy cup and from formula or breast milk to milk. Going through it again now with Sophie is completely different. She yells and crys until she gets her bottle every night. She will not go to sleep unless she gets it and she refuses to drink it if it’s regular milk. She has been a lot tougher to break of these habits. She does great with a sippy, but when it comes for bedtime, she wants that bottle.

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Our household is a big fan of snack mixes and trail mixes because we spend half of our life in the car (and I know I don’t know alf of it yet) and these make-ahead snacks are so easy to pack and go! I love experimenting and making different mixes using different things and I try to be healthy when I can. I love using dried fruits and often times chocolate, but I since General Mills cereals have gone Gluten Free, I was inspired to make a gluten free sweet snack mix!

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I have two toddlers (a two year old and one year old) and they are both still in diapers/pull-ups. I have tried to not carry a diaper bag around with me, but with two young-ins, it’s just not realistic yet. I have a hard time fitting my things – along with diapers, wipes, creams, medicines, toys, sippy cups, etc. into an oversized purse. My toddler’s diaper bag is also a backpack, so it is a lot easier to carry it around with me.

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My baby girl celebrated her first birthday 2 weeks ago. I still can’t believe she is a year old. It went by all too fast. What has been really weird, though is how much she has changed over the last couple of weeks. It’s like she knew she was no longer a “baby” and should start acting older.

Things That Happen Once Your Baby Turns One:

She started talking! She has been repeating things back to me like “thank you” and “okay.” It literally happened one day and she hasn’t stopped talking!

She is walking all over the place. She still stumbles a little but while she was taking steps before her birthday, she seemed to really take off a couple of days after.

She is totally content playing by herself.

She carries her baby doll with her every where.

She is eating so much more food. Maybe it’s all the walking, but she seems to be a bottomless pit lately.

Two things that haven’t changed?

Huggies Little Snugglers and Natural Care Wipes. I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again, these wipes are the best. Hands down. I’ve tried several, and I will not buy another brand. We also love using Huggies Little Snugglers Diapers for our daughter. They fit her so well and the softer ouster cover and wetness indicator keeps her comfortable and me warned in plenty of time when she needs to be changed.

Special Offers at Sam’s Club:

Buy any two Huggies Little Snugglers diapers and/or Natural Care wipes and get a $10 Sam’s Club e-gift card by following the below instructions:

Buy any two packages of Huggies Little Snugglers diapers and/or Natural Care wipes between now through June 30th, snap a photo of your receipt and email/text it to Huggies by July 15th! You will receive a code and instructions within minutes to get your $10 Sam’s Club e-gift card.

You will also get $3 in instant savings off of Huggies Diapers at Sam’s Club now through June 4th! Read more HERE!

What changed after your baby turned one?