Hellobee

We’re trying a new thing on the blog! Every Friday one blogger will share five things she’s loving right now. These can be anything from an interesting podcast to a favorite beauty or baby product to an engrossing book to a sweet kid moment – the only requirement is that it is a favorite. We’d love to hear your Friday favorites in the comments or on the boards (which are awesome, by the way, if you haven’t read or used them before)!

Photo taken by Jen Roark Photography (Tempe, AZ)

1/ Our 3rd Baby – Having a 3rd baby has completely upended our lives. Everything feels a little more chaotic/ less sustainable than before, but oh my goodness I’ve so enjoyed the baby stage the 3rd time around. Likely because I’ve done it before, not once but twice (and once with a sibling), so I’m less anxious about everything and more focused on enjoying the little moments.  Baby P is 9 months old today, and he’s just everything you dream about in a baby – chubby (so, so chubby), cheerful, smiley, loving, affectionate, easy going, a good sleeper (once we figured out he was allergic to milk – just like his big bro), etc. I could go on and on. He’s just perfection.

2/  The Read-Aloud Family: Making Meaningful and Lasting Connections with Your Kids by Sarah Mackenzie – I adore the Read-Aloud Revival podcast, which is all about connecting to your kids through stories and especially by reading stories aloud with them. Sarah Mackenzie hosts that podcast and just released a wonderful book about the same topic. I am not even halfway through it yet and already so inspired to make reading aloud an even bigger priority in our family. If you’re like me, the expansive and excellent book lists will cause you to max out your hold requests at the library.

3/ Hypoallergenic formula – I’ve suspected for awhile that our 9-month-old son may have a milk protein allergy. Our middle son had one until about 13 months and Baby P had many of the same symptoms (I talk more about our experience with Little P in this post if you’re interested). While I’m still nursing Baby P at night, he often drinks formula during the day, and hypoallergenic formula is such a godsend, albeit very hard to find (we mainly use this kind, but we recently tried and liked this one and, bonus, it’s a tiny bit less expensive!) Since switching Baby P over to an amino acid-based formula, he’s been sleeping like a champ and most importantly SO happy and un-fussy during the day!

4/ The Nuanced Life podcast – One of my lifelines during this tumultuous political season is the excellent, bipartisan Pantsuit Politics podcast cohosted by 2 women – 1 liberal and 1 conservative – who are also lawyers, moms, and friends. Their new, spin-off podcast on everything-other-than-politics is equally compelling. I especially enjoyed their recent episode on Mommy Wine Culture, a subject which I’ve been thinking about a LOT lately and now am itching to write a blog post/ have more discussions about.

5/ My new Kindle & its fancy (but affordable) cover – On our plane ride home from spring break last week, I left my beloved Kindle in the seat back pocket. Although (shockingly) American Airlines recovered the item, it would have cost me $30 and several days to have it sent back to me via FedEx. I figured this was a sign from the universe that I should treat myself to a new Kindle. I love the Kindle. I love paperback and hardcover books too, but I read so many more books so much faster on my Kindle. And it allows me to read in bed or while nursing Baby P in the middle of the night without turning on the light. I really love this new white version and this beautiful $12 cover. Now I can get back to my regularly scheduled late night reading (I’m currently reading the Kindle version of this interesting, non-fiction book about raising kids who love nature).

What are you loving right now? Please share your Friday favorites in the comments or on the boards.