Happy New Year!

Happy New Year from all of us here at Belly Rubs 2 Baby Hugs!

In celebration of the new year, all orders placed between 12:00 a.m. January 1, 2008 and 11:59 p.m. EST January 1, 2008 will receive free shipping. Just make a note at check out that you visited our blog and we will deduct your shipping charges.

Hope to see you next year!

New Parent Tip-of-the-Week: Quick sheet change at 3 a.m.

It's 3 a.m. and baby's diaper has overflowed on the sheets. Sleep deprivation makes this job harder than normal. Is the sheet inside out? Which side is longer? Meanwhile, baby is crying from hunger, lack of comfort, or is just plain sleepy. We have lived through this scenerio more times than I can remember--or care to remember. In many cases, Dad was still at work so I had to juggle baby and the sheet.

Here is an easy way to do a quick sheet change to get you and baby back to bed with little effort.

When you put sheets on baby's bed, put your fitted sheet on as normal. Second, get a waterproof mattress pad and place over the sheet where baby will lay. (You can use a changing pad size waterproof pad until baby is more mobile, and then switch to a crib size mattress pad.) Next, place another sheet over the mattress pad. This allows you to pull the top sheet and mattress pad off of the bed and still have a clean sheet for baby. Now, tuck baby in and worry about the sheets in the morning!

Sweet Dreams!
Belly Rubs 2 Baby Hugs

Happy Holidays!

Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays from our family to yours!!

The Hagan Family
Belly Rubs 2 Baby Hugs

Easy packing for baby

If you plan to travel during the holiday season, we have a tip that can make packing for baby a cinch! Since baby clothes are small, they often get lost amongst adult clothes or sets get separated in the suitcase or diaper bag. To keep sets together and make packing more compact, place each one of baby's outfits (shirt, pants, dress, diaper cover, onesie/t-shirt, socks, tights) in a sandwich size Ziploc bag and squeeze the air out before sealing. Now, all you have to do is grab a bag and you are ready to fully dress baby. No more lost socks or missing shirts! When you take baby's clothes off, drop them back in the bag so you arrive home with all the clothes you took with you.

This also works well for keeping a change of clothing in your vehicle. The bags are compact enough to throw in the glove compartment or console while still keeping clothes clean and fresh. The bag also serves as a great 'dirty duds' bag for messy clothes after changing. This can be a lifesaver if you have one of those babies that seems to overflow every diaper you put on him/her.

Have toddlers? Upgrade to quart or gallon size bags. Pack their suitcase and then your toddler can choose his/her own outfit each day. This can make your little one feel like a 'big kid'!

Please note: We do not recommend placing wet or soiled clothing back in the bag for an extended period of time as they may mold or mildew, especially in warmer temperatures.

Safety warning: As with all plastic bags, please keep bags away from babies and small children as they pose a choking hazard.

Happy Holidays and safe traveling!

Awesome Holiday Offer

Don't forget those parents-2-be and new parents on your shopping list. Babies can never have too many presents and Bink Links and Pedoodles make great stocking stuffers! :-)

We realize the holiday shopping season is in full swing so we are going to offer our blog readers a great deal. From now through December 12, 2007, enter the discount coupon 'shipship' at checkout and receive free shipping on all purchases within the United States. This does not apply to Express Mail shipments or international shipments.

If you're at a loss as to what to buy, gift certificates are always just perfect. You never have to worry about getting the wrong size or color or whether the recipient will like the gift. No keeping up with gift receipts or standing in long return lines either. Give them a gift certificate from Belly Rubs 2 Baby Hugs and let them shop. Click here to purchase a gift certificate from Belly Rubs 2 Baby Hugs.

Parent-tip-of-the-week: How to keep baby wipes from drying out on top

Ever went to change baby's diaper only to find the wipes on top were dried out? This happens quite frequently with the plastic storage containers wipes are sold in because they are not air tight. It occurs even more so if you are like us and have a container in almost every room but do not use them on a daily basis.

To solve that 'dried out wipes' problem, close the lid and flip your container of wipes upside down when you are finished. This will keep the moisture on the 'bottom' and your top wipes will be moist the next time you use them. After doing this several times, it will become a habit to always flip the container after use. (Please do not try this trick with electric wipes warmers.)

Happy diapering from Belly Rubs 2 Baby Hugs!

Parent tip-of-the-week for those messy bibs

Hi parents!

Ever had one of those messy bibs with spaghetti sauce all over it and feel like throwing it in the trash instead of sticking it in your diaper bag? We have a very simple, cheap solution for you!

Next time you get ready to toss a bib in your diaper bag, place it in a sandwich size Ziploc baggy first. This keeps your bib clean and gives you an inexpensive place to toss that messy bib after dinner. You never have to worry about ice cream being on the inside of your favorite bag again!

How to tell if your bibs are clean or dirty in the baggy? Fold the clean bibs with the front (design) showing through the baggy. After you use the bib, fold it inside out so you can glance at the baggy and know which bibs are clean and which need washing. This comes in handy when you need to carry more than one bib at a time.

Happy Dining!

Happy Thanksgiving!

Hope everyone had a wonderful Thanksgiving and you didn't eat too much! After having a horrible stomach virus earlier in the week, I think that was the first full meal I had eaten in 5 days so it was really nice to have something with flavor.

As promised, we have our first tip-of-the-week and it's for parents-2-be:

When you find out you are expecting, begin buying one pack of diapers every week until you deliver.

Okay, so this sounds like a lot of diapers. Why start buying so soon? Everyone will get diapers at baby showers and such.

1. First of all, the weekly cost will help you adapt to buying diapers on a regular basis (great if you live on a budget).
   
2. Second, you can buy the size and quantity you choose. Go ahead and buy size 3 and 4 because baby will grow quickly, and few gift givers will purchase larger sizes. So long as you keep your receipts and don't open the package, you can exchange them later if needed.
   
3. Next, you have the security of knowing you don't have to worry about running out of diapers at 3 a.m. when you are totally sleep deprived and your 3 week-old baby is fussy and irritable. Even if you run out of the size you are currently using, you can always use a larger size to get by until you are awake enough to get to the store for more. Too big is better than nothing at all!
   
4. Last, most parents do not realize how many diapers you will actually use in those first 2-3 months until that 30-35 week stash of diapers is gone!

We found with following this tip, we did not have to buy any or very few diapers until I returned to work from maternity leave at 3-4 months. This was a financial break during a time when our income was cut short and we didn't have to worry whether we had enough diapers or if we had to take a trip to Wal-mart in the pouring rain. Of course, you may still find you run out of a one size and have to buy more or baby outgrows a size before you use them all (keep those receipts) but we still found this to be a very useful tip. Hope you do too!

Until next week...travel safely and enjoy the holiday!

Gina, owner
Belly Rubs 2 Baby Hugs
--A Division of Supermommy's Superstore, LLC

Welcome

Welcome to Belly Rubs 2 Baby Hugs blog!

Each week we will post a tip for parents-2-be and/or new parents. These are tidbits we have picked up over the years while raising our 3 children and have either found useful or thought someone else may find useful. These tips range may range from very helpful to down right worthless but hey, we understand what works for one may not work for another!

We will also post information about new arrivals in our store along with upcoming sales and promotions. We are still adding new products very frequently so check out our site and pick up something for the new mommy and daddy!

Subscribe to our blog and we'll see you next week with our first tip~~it'll be for parents-2-be!