Evernotes Every Friday

My thanks go out to Jessica from J. Rose Photography for writing this post for me as I travel back from New York City today!

Hi there! My name is Jess and I am a lifestyle photographer/blog writer/full time mommy to a beautiful son named Grayson. I am sure if you’ve followed Sam for any amount of time you’ve seen my kid here a few times (to say the least) While Sam and her family are vacationing and having a wonderful time on their trip to Maine she asked me to share a little with you. I love Jesus and He is the center of my everything, and while here on this earth He has given me the most precious gift there is; a baby. Who happens to be my heart in little human form. So what better to share about than five things that I would not, could not live without after having Grayson.

1. Diaper bag

I have posted about What’s in my bag? and briefly mentioned my diaper bag. I love my diaper bag. Since that post I have actually had to get a new one (Always order Nordstrom people, they are the BEST at returns and exchanges! Totally worth the extra money) which I love even more. Now for some of you this bag might look huge, it is. But I’m one of those girls who even before I had a baby carried luggage for a purse. What can I say, I like to be prepared! So I looked and looked, and finally decided to go with a Petunia Pickle Bottom bag, the Weekender. It really is perfect for me, when he was a newborn I had the necessary binky’s, blankets, bottles and burp cloths (all b’s.. so weird) anyway a ton of “stuff”. Now that he’s older I don’t have all of that but we have all the snacks and toys. Plus during the summer it’s the perfect beach bag! Definitely would not want to live without this.

2. Diaper clutch

Along with having a large diaper bag I wanted to have something to be able to run into the grocery store or church with and not lug the big bag. A diaper clutch is the perfect choice. So perfect in fact that recently I’ve added this to part of my business. These clutches perfectly fit a disposable changing pad cover, two to three diapers, a few wipes and a scented plastic bag to dispose of your diaper. When I carry mine I also slipped my phone and debit card in there on many occasions to run into the store. This really is the ideal thing to have when your baby is young, you can even just keep it stocked and in your car if you don’t carry a huge bag like mine that it fits into. OR this makes the perfect baby shower gift. I’ve given it a few times now and about a month after I hear how much it has come in handy in their daily routines. If you’re interested in getting one for yourself or a friend, you can hop over to my Etsy shop Sew in Love. Whether you have this one or another, a little diaper clutch is a would not want to live without item.

3. Baby monitor

I call it the OCD-mom baby monitor. It’s made by Angelcare and it is a video monitor plus it has a sensor pad that detects the baby’s breathing. So if they stop breathing this loud alarm goes off. I definitely recommend this if you plan to have your baby in their crib. Or if you’re just a paranoid mom like I am. I ended up getting mine on Amazon on cyber Monday for almost a hundred dollars cheaper! It was still a little pricey and my husband thought I was crazy when I got it but he even admitted that he was really glad I got it. It just gave us a piece of mind. Oh until it kinda stopped working when G was around 4 weeks old, but I called Angelcare and while on the phone with them I tested it. It still wasn’t working properly so they sent me out a new sensor pad and camera right away no charge. So all around, I definitely recommend this monitor. Totally could not live without this!

4. Selsun Blue and Bag Balm.

I know these are two totally separate products but I’ve lumped them together because they can both be used to help in similar situations. Grayson had cradle cap when he was teeny tiny and my pediatrician recommended Selsun and once I used it, the cradle cap went completely away. He also has excema and our pedi told me to put that on there, totally helped! The bag balm I’ve used for diaper rash. Balmex and Desitin just never worked for him, but bag balm did. I’ve also used that for his excema and it seems to help with that too. Would not want live without those two.

5. The ERGObaby carrier.

My friend Elisabeth let me borrow hers! Which is awesome because they are a bit pricey, although I’ll say after using it, totally worth the money. To even register for the another harness carrier, pointless. I haven’t used this a ton yet, just a few times but those times were a little heavenly. The padding on your shoulders is so comfortable, I kept thinking it would start hurting like the Baby Bjorn did but nope. Besides the amazingly padded shoulders, it basically puts the weight on your hips. Which works for this mama because mine are child bearing that’s for sure.. What mommy doesn’t? Recently we’ve been using it for Disneyland and love it! Would not want to be without that for sure.

Having a baby is such a FUN adventure! I find more joy now in just the day-to-day life stuff.. If you’re getting ready to have a little one of your own, you are in for the ride of your life! I hope reading about what has helped me.. will help you! xoxo j.