Snow Day!

Things to do with your kids on a snowy day in Denver...

Children's Museum of Denver
A hands-on educational and entertaining experience for children and their caregivers. Programs and playscapes are designed for newborns to eight-year-olds. Children can participate in theatre, dance and movement, cultural activities, science activities, games and team activities. Other programs enhance cognitive functioning for babies, and real-life roleplaying activities for older kids.
Web site: www.cmdenver.org

Denver Art Museum
The Denver Art Museum is world famous for its American Indian art collection. Visitors can view outstanding architecture, graphics and design galleries, or explore stunning Asian, Modern & Contemporary art, pre-Columbian, and Spanish Colonial galleries.
Web site: www.denverartmuseum.org

Denver Firefighters Museum
The museum houses an extensive archive of old photographs, documents, journals and news stories about early Denver and the development of firefighting technology. Many artifacts date from 1866, including hand-drawn schematics and two early motorized vehicles. A unique gift shop offers books, toys, collectibles and antiques.
Web site: www.colorado2.com/museum

Denver Mint
Enjoy a tour of Denver's U.S. Mint, one of only two full-service mints in the nation. Producing between 14 and 20 billion coins each year, the Denver Mint is the largest producer of coins in the world. The gift shop offers exciting numismatic coin and money-related collectibles. Call 303-405-4766 for information about tour scheduling procedures, or visit the Mint's Web site.
Web site: www.usmint.gov/mint_tours/index.cfm?action=StartReservation

Forney Museum of Transportation
A "must see" for train buffs! Visit the museum in its new location on Brighton Boulevard. Enjoy over 500 exhibits featuring early-model carriages, automotives and locomotives, including the Big Boy Engine and the Forney Locomotive 040-T Engine built in 1897.
Web site: www.forneymuseum.com

Molly Brown House Museum
Costumed guides lead visitors through the 1889 home of the "Unsinkable Molly Brown" - Denver's famous socialite, philanthropist and Titanic survivor.
Web site: www.mollybrown.com

Museo de las Americas
The museum preserves and interprets the art, history and culture of Latinos in the Americas.
Web site: www.museo.org

Museum of Contemporary Art
Denver's first and only contemporary art museum. MCA is a non-collecting space that functions like the European model of a kunsthalle, offering ongoing presentations of innovative and challenging art of our time. Multi-disciplinary programs. Tours upon request.
Web site: www.mcartdenver.org

Ocean Journey
Denver’s interactive aquarium and the only marine sciences center in an eight-state region. Explore waters and wildlife from the Continental Divide to the Sea of Cortez, and from an Indonesian rain forest to the depths of the Pacific Ocean.
Web site: www.oceanjourney.org

Denver Public Library
The Denver Public Library (DPL) is the information resource for the people of Denver and the greater metro area. It also acts as the official Resource Center for the state of Colorado and is a regional depository for publications of the U.S. government. The Library is world-renowned for its collection of western Americana and its model Children's Library.
Web site: denver.lib.co.us

Baby's First Thanksgiving!

A simple guide for your little one at the Thanksgiving Table

Preparing Thanksgiving dinner for your family is no simple chore, so you'd rather not add "make dinner for baby" to your already long to-do list. Give thanks: If your child's closing in on his first birthday and transitioning to table foods, you can serve him at least some of the typical Thanksgiving menu, says registered dietitian Cathie Squatrito, director of medical affairs for Gerber. Just be sure all the foods you do offer your baby are diced very small (about 1/4 inch in size) and cooked to the point of being well-done (soft enough to gum).

Good for gobbling: turkey, ham, mashed potatoes, sweet potatoes, string beans, peas, carrots, cranberry sauce, bread or rolls, pumpkin pie, apple pie

Pass on these: corn and succotash, rich-tasting casseroles (such as string-bean or broccoli-cheese), creamed onions, stuffing (which can contain onions, rich seasoning, choking hazards, or seafood), raw veggies from a crudités or relish tray, desserts with nuts or peanut butter

Gender Reveal Party Rocks!

I am going to change the name of my band. I am going to call it Gender Reveal Party.  Not because I love the name, but because these parties are all the rage.  The most hits I have received on my blog was the day I decided to right about this trend, so I figure that I can get more people to come to my shows if I change my bands name and then tag/#/metatag/link/blog/FB/Pinterest the hell out it.  However, if you landed here looking for cute cake, cookie and colorful balloon gender reveal party ideas...well here you go...  Hope to see you at one of my shows. Sincerely, Gender Reveal Party.

Free UppaBaby Mesa Car Seat!

Free Mesa car seat with purchase of an UppaBaby stroller! For a limited time only, purchase an Uppababy Cruz or Vista stroller, and receive a Mesa infant car seat for free!  Now you can get the travel system you've wanted for a little less cash!  Stop in the store or shop on line today!  This offer is good on in stock Mesa car seats only (no special orders please). The new Mesa is one of the safest and most stylish infant car seats out there.  The MESA is the only infant car seat that uses SMARTSECURE™ System. This unique technology utilizes a tightness indicator and self-retracting mini LATCH connectors to facilitate quick, accurate, and easy installation.       The MESA works directly with the Uppababy VISTA smart luxury stroller and the CRUZ stroller systems without the purchase of adapters. Come into Real Baby today to see our favorite stroller in action!

It's better to be lucky than good

There is something I say often and I mean it.  "I am lucky".  Dealt cards, play them...Blackjack.  Thrown ball, always caught.  Last pair on the shelf, just my size.  Parent of to two beautifully cool children, check.  You get the picture.  Some say luck is created, or that it is a state of mind.  "Better to be lucky than good," my friend David always says. There is truth in that small proverb.  You can practice, study, create, rehearse, present, and accept, only to have it go all horribly wrong.  Like the beautiful sinewy teen couple pulling up to the woodsy cabin.  Skip the foreplay, and get right to the shadowy large figure in the corner with some form of flesh shredding device, and an ill fitting body fluid stained mask.  Planning, excitement, logistics,and anticipation can all go quickly down the bloody drain.  As the cop throws his cigarette butt to the ground after one last long drag, " They weren't so lucky were they?"  I have been to that woodsy cabin many times, and I plan on returning.  

I believe there is a ridiculous amount of luck involved in parenting.  Forget parenting for a moment,  how we even get to the point of conceiving a child is mind numbing.  How do we know everything works?  We spend the majority of our young adult lives taking every precaution not to have to pee on a stick,  alone in a bathroom, praying that we only see one vertical line in the applicator window.  When you do find someone you want to create a family with, there are so many variables that could go wrong.  Timing, physical make up, genetics, and yes, luck, all help play the role of creator.

I  heard, " they don't give you a handbook on parenting", way to many times to count, when I had my first child.  I would always nod accordingly, or placate  them by saying something like, "that's for sure!"  Well, it's not even close to sure.   That phrase must have been coined around 1475, after Gutenberg figured out how to press metal to paper.   The truth is today, there are thousands of handbooks, blogs, videos, webinars, handouts, pamphlets, websites, films, pod casts, seminars, classes, and cable channels all dedicated to providing us  with information on raising a child.  A library of parenting congress is at our fingertips, and yet we all, at one time or another during our tenure, recognize quietly to ourselves that we have no idea what we are doing.

This is were luck comes in.  I believe that with our intentions, our passion, and our good will,  we furnish the corner office of our own luck.    Someone once told me that luck rubs off.  I hope that they are right, because I make a point to hold my children everyday, even if just for a second, in hopes that mine will.

Swaddle Your Baby!

shop   explore   read  Swaddle Your Baby Swaddling's ability to soothe and calm babies has been known to mothers around the world for countless generations. But while the evidence of its benefits has been clear to women for thousands of years and across every continent, today we can turn to science for proof that swaddling is one of the most gentle, effective, and beneficial practices for mothers and their children.  STEP 1 Lay the swaddle in a diamond shape and fold the top corner down to form a triangle. Place your baby in the center of the folded area with their head just above the fold of the swaddle. Ensure that your baby's shoulders are still below the fold. STEP 2 Place your baby's right arm slightly bent at the elbow flat against their body. Take the left side of the swaddle and bring it across your baby's chest. Ensure their arm is securely under the fabric. Tuck the edge of the swaddle under their body to ensure a secure swaddle. STEP 3 Fold the bottom of the swaddle up & over your baby's feet. Make sure that the blanket is not too tight so that the baby's hips and legs can move. STEP 4 Finally, place your baby's left arm slightly bent at the elbow against their body, take the right side of the swaddle & bring it across your baby's chest. Tuck the excess fabric underneath your baby to secure the swaddle. aden + anais how to swaddle tutorial on Parent TV

I came across this beautifully written piece today from one of my favorite blogs:  Black Hockey Jesus. 

The Fact Of Kids F#&*s With My Head

There’s only so much you can say after awhile about being a parent because what I want to say, what most wants to be said is sealed off by a brick wall of unsayable presence. See. I’m not so much interested in humorous little anecdotes about kid wackiness or the powerful life lessons they teach via their wise childishness. I’m obsessed with something prior to what a good parent is or the things kids do. It’s really hard to talk about. I guess I’m just perpetually shocked by the incomprehensible fact that there was a time when my kids—they were no one—and the way that contrasts with the original fact of their suddenly being these things we call people. Over and over. They just exist exist exist and I’m like what? Who are? How did? And these dumbstruck unformulated questions ultimately dissolve into what I can only assume is love.
Do this. Go in the bathroom and turn off the light. Count to 10 and flick it on. That. That’s what I’m talking about. The way nothing erupts into something. How in the?

Sometimes I see my daughter dancing or skipping rope or drawing a big dinosaur with chalk on the driveway and I become intensely aware that she’s made of bones. I mean, there’s lots of other parts too but beneath it all there’s a bunch of bones that will outlast all our activities and reveries. It occurs to me then that I will die, that she will die too, and everything we ever shared will exist forever as a story scribbled somewhere on the soul of the world. And then I think something like How can such a pretty girl dance upon the tooth of death? and I don’t know what that means, but I write it down and leave it on my desk until it one day finds a partner to dance with in some poem or story.

Presence is differential, spit from and swallowed by absence. No future and past without contrast. The night sky is never the night sky until it’s salty with stars.

I’m coming at this two ways here and both ways are crooked because that’s how paths meander through the woods. I mean, first, there’s the day before my daughter was born and she wasn’t—you know—she just wasn’t. And let’s not get bogged down by the issue of when life begins; of course she was alive the day before she was born but I’m reasonably sure that she hadn’t encountered enough distinctions to erect a very sophisticated consciousness. Now transitioning from inside the womb out into the world? There’s a contrast upon which to begin building some pretty sound notions of this and that. However, if you insist that life begins at conception, that doesn’t negate the straight up weirdness I’m trying to convey. There was a day when my daughter was no one and then she was someone. I remember holding her in my arms in the hospital and viewing her from an oddly different perspective from all my relatives and their (spot on) assessments that she was beautiful. Stunned, I couldn’t even make it to the sophistication of assessing beauty. Someone, I kept thinking. How are you so suddenly someone? Where were you just yesterday? I bet you know secrets. I bet you understand everything more clearly than all the mystics. For you, so newly someone, have just made the longest voyage.

But the second path is harder to grasp because it moves from understanding being and not being in terms of a lifespan to the more subtle seamless and constant birth and death that flows like a river now now now. From this perspective, death is not something that comes at the end of your life. It’s the very stuff from which our lives constantly shine forth. Beneath her, above her, behind her, snaking in between all of my daughter’s little ribs, death is the just then and in a second, between which, against which, from which, my daughter appears, eating an ice cream cone. And that’s what I struggle to comprehend: the mere fact that my daughter is. Surrounded by, engulfed by, and nearly always snuffed out by darkness, she tenaciously illumines the moment with the light of appearance and being. So happy and blissfully unaware that she’s dancing on the tooth of death, she plays with a kitten, brushes her hair, laughs and eats candy. And I, dumbstruck by the way she comes and goes, dissolve into what I can only assume is love

Real Parenting Seminars at Real Baby!

Real Parenting Series at Real Baby!

 

Starting this September, Real Baby,  will be hosting a series of fun, insightful, and educational classes

to help assist you in your journey as a real parent.  Every third Saturday of the month, beginning in September, Real Baby will be will be dropping knowledge on you regarding everything baby!  

Buckling Up Baby!

Join us for the first in our Real Parenting Series on Saturday, September 21st, from 9:00 to 10:00 am, as our friend Selena Silva talks to you about car seat safety and buckling up your baby!  The event is free. and  will be held at our store location at 3616 W. 32nd in Denver. Sign up soon as space is limited!

If you have had questions about car seats, and car seat safety, here is a great opportunity for you to learn from an expert!  Sign up for this free class and receive 10% off the purchase price of any of the car seats Real Baby carries!

Selena Silva is a Certified Child Passenger Safety Technician Instructor and is the only current Safe Travel for All Children Instructor in Colorado.  Her passion is automotive safety.  Selena has 11 years of experience in educating parents and caregivers.  She loves sharing her knowledge about the correct use of child restraints and all aspects of motor vehicle safety.  She works closely with local and state agencies to provide educational outreach throughout the Rocky Mountain region.

 

Selena works to develop protocol and institutional policy as a consultant and technical adviser. She has authored educational training materials for clinical staff  physicians, and emergency responders and everyday families.

There are many ways to sign up for this free and informative class .  Stop in the store or call 303-477-2229.  You can also respond to this email, or connect with us through Facebook.  The size of this free class is limited, so contact us soon! 

The New Maxi Cosi AP is at Real Baby!

We love the new AP infant car seat from Maxi Cosi!  It is so light, really safe, and stylish!

• Lightest premium infant car seat available*
• For children rear-facing from 5-22 pounds and up to 29” in height
• Superior Side Impact Performance with Air Protect® technology
• Includes a convenient stay-in-car adjustable base
• Premium fabrics and padding for a comfy ride
• Includes Cozi-Dozi™ infant support for smaller babies
• Integrated canopy, always on hand and easy to store
• Flip-out visor on canopy for extra protection when needed
• 5-point harness with up-front harness adjustment
• Adapters to use Mico as travel system included with compatible Maxi-Cosi and Quinny strollers
• Adapters for many other premium strollers available from the stroller manufacturer
• Available accessories (sold separately):
• Foot Muff to keep baby warm
• WeatherShield
• Breathable Bug Net
• Additional stay-in-car bases

The Nuna Leaf rocks! And the Sena jams!

Real Baby has the coolest new items from Nuna! It is by far the easiest fold up cot that I have ever used.  Check out the video and see for yourself!  I remember when  my pack and play was a monster, and something I dreaded opening up.  It took me 15 minutes to get it set up and it often pinched my fingers trying to lock the corners!  I wish the Sena series from Nuna was around when my kids were a bit smaller.     The Leaf Inspired by the carefree float of a leaf on a breeze, the LEAF baby seat treats baby to a similarly mesmerizing ride. Our distinctive design-the only of its kind-was invented from baby's point of view and works at playtime, lunchtime and mama's chore time.  We love it!   Watch the Leaf video Here!

Remember that Real Baby carries all your favorite brands of gear for you and your baby!  Phil and Ted's, Britax, Nuna, UppaBaby, MaxiCosi, Chicco, Liilebaby, Beco, Baby K'Tan, Boba, and more!

The Royal Couple Swaddles with Aden and Anais!

The Royal couple are beaming as brand new parents!   Looks like the Royal Junior is resting in a Britax infant car seat (British Co.) and an Aden and Anais Swaddle. My friends who are car seat safety experts will be  cringing  at this photo, but I'm sure this baby is in the safest carpool on the planet!

New Safety Requirements for Car Seats!

Child seat requirements change with 2014 rule

If you think mandates for child-safety seats are constantly revised, you're right - and now they're changing again.  Don't panic!   The child seats are as safe as ever.  It's the way that  we install them, that is the focus of new findings.  A new rule that goes into effect in 2014 will require car-seat makers to warn parents not to use the Latch anchor system to install a car seat if the combined weight of the child and the seat is 65 pounds or higher.

Vehicles have been required to have Latch anchors since 2001, but child-safety seat advocates say the strength of the anchors can't be guaranteed, raising a safety issue if Latch were to fail in a crash. The Alliance of Automobile Manufacturers also want the rule changed because the Latch anchor's strength limits don't take into account the weight of the child seat, which typically weighs 15 to 33 pounds. Child safety advocates, however, want the minimum strength requirements of the anchors to be increased.  "While Latch makes it easier to properly install car seats in vehicles, it's important for parents and caregivers to know that securing a child seat with a seat belt is equally as safe - and that they have the flexibility to use either system," Transportation Department spokeswoman Lynda Tran told USA Today.

  

Child seats typically weigh 15 to 33 pounds. So the new rule means some children as light as 32 pounds might not be able to use a system designed to make child seats easier to install and, therefore, safer. This child-seat system is known as LATCH (Lower Anchors and Tethers for Children).  

The American Academy of Pediatrics recommends children use car seats with harnesses through age 8. AAP's recommendation and supporting research led child-seat makers to design more seats for children 65 pounds and over.

So much information that is always changing when it comes to our child's safety!  We thought you should be informed to help keep your child happy and safe!  If you have more questions, please consult a child car seat expert.  

Here our two of our favorites:   Wee Plan Baby Planners : Annie Mullens.  Colorado Children"s Automobile Safety Foundation:  Bill the car seat guy.

Changes to LATCH

I am not sure of the practicality and safety of this form of transportation for our children:  All I know is that I love it!  Quinny is thinking outside of the box again, and I think that is a good thing.  Notice in the video that it is mostly Dads test driving the stroller!  What do you think?



Longboardstroller Test Day from Studio Peter Van Riet on Vimeo.

Tweet Pee!

Wet Diaper?  There's an App for that!  I am always coming across new products or ideas that are meant to make parenting and raising your baby a little easier.  This one takes it to a whole different level!

Petunia is beautiful this time of year

By combining bold, sophisticated designs with everyday functionality, Petunia Pickle Bottom has reinvented the diaper bag to suit the modern mom. We have a great selection of PB bags at Real Baby.  If we don't have the bag you crave in stock, we can order it for you, and have it in on your shoulder in no time!

Safe bumper free bedding from Skip Hop!

One of the most commonly asked questions that we encounter from parents is whether or not to use bumpers in their baby's crib.  I mean, they're so darned cute and they keep babies from getting trapped between the slats of the crib or bumping their cute little noggins, right? Well, it's not quite as simple as that. We talked with our resident expert Annie Mullens, fromWee Plan Baby Planners, to get the straight scoop! Annie told us that a study in The Journal of Pediatrics found that 27 children from 1 month to 2-years-old died from suffocating or strangling related to bumpers between 1985 and 2005. The American Academy of Pediatrics has recommended that parents not use crib bumpers, including so-called breathable models.   In fact, last April Chicago became the first municipality (or any governmental unit for that matter) to ban the sale of crib bumper pads.  In addition, the Maryland Department of Health and Mental Hygiene has enacted regulations set to go into effect June 21st of this year that will ban the sale of crib bumpers within the entire state. So what's a parent to do who wants to create the adorable nursery they've always dreamed about, yet still meet the latest safety recommendations?  The answer to that is Skip Hop's Complete Sheet bumper-free crib bedding.  The available patterns make the sheet look like a bumper so it can feel more like a traditional crib set, but without the possible hazards.  They also have optional sleep sacks, decorative blankets (not for in the crib!), and wall decals.   Problem solved.  Safety and Style combined.  Thanks Skip Hop!

Mothers Day Jewelry with Hot Mama!

This Friday, April 26th, from 3-7pm, Real Baby will be hosting a Mothers Day event along with our friends Hot Mama Jewelry Design. They will have all their beautiful Jewelry on display for you to purchase or place an order.  With all orders placed at the event you will receive a free special heart pendant to add to your design(a $20 value!) and all orders placed at the event will be ready for you for Mothers day!  You will have a chance to win one of two $50 Hot Mama gift certificates as well as some other great giveaways. Stop into Real Baby this Friday for some Mothers day fun!  

 

Hot Mama Designs and Sugar Soul Studio Studio located in Boulder, Colorado. Owners Shannon Sunderland and Sahra Cahoon adorn women and their families with inspiring designs that are created to tell stories and celebrate life. They rejoice in the art of metalsmithing! As artists they are intrigued by the Japanese concept of wabi-sabi, which is (loosely translated) the beauty of things that are unpretentious and unconventional. In our mass-produced world their jewelry celebrates the one-of-a-kind feeling of the handmade object.  

 

A fun mix of gold rim + sterling that will match all your jewelry

Real Baby has the Chicco Next Fit convertible car seat!

Some of the innovative NextFit 65 features include nine recline angle options; 2 bubble level angle indicators (one for rear-facing; one for forward-facing); SuperCinch LATCH tightening system and a 2-position chest clip (more narrow setting for babies, wider setting for older kids).

                                                                                                                                                                

We love Chewbeads!

The idea for Chewbeads began in 2009 shortly after the birth of the creators son. Like most babies, he loved to put everything in his mouth and her necklaces were a favorite. Like most moms, she didn't feel comfortable letting him chew on them, with concern that they might break or have unwanted chemicals. As a veteran of the fashion industry, she had an amazing collection of necklaces and bracelets, so with those as her inspiration, she set out to create soft, non-toxic jewelry, which was colorful, chic and, above all else safe. Hence, Chewbeads!

• Beads are made with 100% silicone (similar to pacifiers & nipples)
• Soft on babies gums and emerging teeth
• Easily cleaned with dish soap & water, also dishwasher safe!
• No BPA, PVC, Phthalates, Cadmium, or Lead
• Necklaces have a breakaway clasp for added safety
• Necklaces are a great sensory tool to help your baby focus while nursing
• Bracelets are a colorful reminder of which side you've just nursed

Shop for Chewbeads HERE!

Shoe Sale!

Real Baby has all the shoes you love to buy for your baby on sale now!

Converse, Vans, Rileyroos,  and Pediped are all on sale now!