Try Out Free Trial Classes

Most summer camps require kids to be at least three years old to attend, but here are some other organized activities that you might want to consider signing your baby or toddler up for. These indoor activities are especially good during the heat of summer and the friendships you and your child make will probably last beyond the summer sessions.

Most of these offer a FREE trial class and who doesn't like free things? Sign up for a few different free trials, so you can test them out and see what's the best fit for you and your child. You'll also have a lot of fun participating in and potentially meeting new people in the free classes in the meantime.

Here are some to consider:

1. Gymboree Play and Music - 0-5 years of age; fitness, yoga, arts and music in seven program levels.
   
   
2. My Gym Children's Fitness Center - helps children six weeks to thirteen years of age develop physically, cognitively and emotionally.
   
   
3. Kindermusik - the world's leading publisher of music and movement curricula for parents and their children, ages newborn to 7 years old.
   
   
4. Gymnastics Center - check your local gymnastics centers for mommy and me type classes. If your toddler likes gymnastics enough, they may graduate to classes on their own.
   
   
5. Fitness Centers - If you have a family fitness center in your area, they may offer various mommy and me classes which are great way for your child to burn off energy indoors and for you to meet other parents. Many offer free trial classes too.
   
   
6. Churches - Some churches offer mommy and me programs. If your own church doesn't, look at other churches in the area for this type of program. Many of them don't require you to be a member of their church.

Let us know about any other national or local classes in the comments section here. You may be able to introduce other BBA readers to a free trial class that might turn into their favorite activity too!

Parents Board Flight, Forget Toddler At Airport

Tickets, check. Passports, check. Luggage, check. Baby ... oops.

A family boarded a flight on Monday in westernmost Canada, and forgot their tot at the Vancouver international airport, media said Tuesday.

Today's Headlines

>> Gene may be key to pregnancy complication, preeclampsia...
>> Beyonce and Jay-Z expecting first child?...
>> Halle Berry's post-pregnancy work-out regime revealed...

Website Spotlight: Popsqually & Company

Check out Popsqually & Company for some adorable designs for birth announcements, birthday party invitations and even calling cards. She's also running a FREE Stationery Giveaway for some adorable notecards and coordinating address labels. The contest ends this Saturday, May 17 and the drawing will be on Sunday.

And don't miss her refer-a-friend-program too where you can earn more free adorable stuff.

If you don't see what you are looking for, custom design service is also available.

Welcome All Blog-Hoppers

If you got to us through Mommy Fest, WELCOME! Our site, BabyBlogAddict.com, focuses on parenting tips, humor and baby news. It's a fun supplement for the parents who are up at all hours trying to keep up with their friends and the antics of their children on their growing list of favorite baby and family blogs.

Check out what we said in our first Baby Blog Addict post on May 19, 2007 (almost one year ago...hey, we may need to have our own BBA Party next week!) Here's a link to some fun blog addiction stories we've heard along the way. Feel free to send yours in to us too.

It's great to "meet" all of you!

Mommy Fest 2008

Wanna meet other moms in cyberspace (more blog-hopping) and win some great prizes too? Check out the 5th Annual MommyFest: Interactive Online Event for Moms. It runs from May 12-16, so check it out soon.

Dates: May 12-16, 2008
Venue: http://www.mommyfest.com
What to expect: Contests, Giveaways, Workshops for Moms and Lots of FUN - Get ready to meet other moms and make new friends!

Emily, Jacob Top Baby Names in 2007

The boys' top 10: Jacob, Michael, Joshua, Matthew, Ethan, Daniel, Christopher, Anthony, William and Andrew.

The girls' top 10: Emily, Isabella, Emma, Ava, Madison, Sophia, Olivia, Abigail, Hannah and Elizabeth.

Read the full article here.

Happy Mother's Day! Woman Expecting 18th

You think your house is full? Do you wish you had that one extra room to hide some stuff away? Be glad you're not this couple in Little Rock, Ark. Just in time for Mother's Day, 41-year-old Michelle Duggar, found out she was pregnant with her 18th child. The latest addition will join seven sisters and 10 brothers.

Says Duggar: "We've had three in January, three in December. Those two months are a busy time for us." The Duggars' oldest child, Josh, is 20, and the youngest, Jennifer, is nine months old.

Look for the family soon in another series on Discovery Health.

Mom Bloggers on Today

Check out this TODAY show segment about the growing popularity of Mom Bloggers.

You'll see Kristen Chase from motherhooduncensored.net, Mir Kamin from wouldashoulda.com and Jill Asher from svmoms.com. The story is followed by Heather Armstrong referred to as "the goddess of mommy bloggers," of Dooce.com, which she started in 2001!

20% off at Stride Rite

It's the first ever Friends and Family event and you're invited! Stride Rite is offering 20% off regular priced merchandise and 10% off sale merchandise in-store only for four days...Thursday, May 8 - Sunday, May 11. Here's a link to the printable coupon.

I guess they are trying to give us mothers a break just in time for Mother's Day! Just don't try to use it online, at their outlet store or at other stores that sell Stride Rite. It's only valid at participating Stride Rite stores.

(Thanks to MommiesWithStyle for the heads-up.)

Website Spotlight: Chulamama

Chulamama is offering Baby Blog Addict readers 10% off purchases from the online store - Chulamama, Maternity and Baby. Just use coupon code: babyblogaddict.

Check out this adorable camera shirt by Egg & Avocado (available in 3 months and 6 months sizes). This would be perfect for the baby of paparazzi parents who always have a camera handy (I'm guilty as I'm sure many of you baby blog addicts are too!)

For a versatile maternity outfit, don't miss the Jessica Scott organic cape, skirt and dress all-in-one in watermelon, lime, licorice or chocolate.

Wanted: Creative Summer Fun Ideas

We want your ideas for a list we'll publish soon. Whether it's a Slip 'N Slide in the front yard or a fun game you invented, e-mail the ideas to babyblogaddict@yahoo.com and include pictures if you'd like.

Blogger's Latest Feature is a Scheduler's Dream

Wanna keep your blog updated daily while you are on a vacation to a deserted island with no internet access??? Now you can with Blogger's latest feature of Scheduled Post Publishing.

We sometimes write posts in advance for our personal blog and save them to post throughout the week (so the grandparents don't have withdrawals), but in the past, we still had to log in and publish those pre-written posts each day so they would post to our blog. Now, we can write posts in advance and schedule the date and time in the future for each of them to post to our blog!

Here's how Blogger explains their new feature:

Scheduling a post is easy to do: on the post editor page, click the “Post Options” toggle to show the “Post date and time” fields. Then, type a post date and time that’s in the future. When you click the “Publish” button, your post will become “scheduled.” When the date and time of the post arrive, it will be automatically published to your blog.

For more details, check out Blogger's announcement today in Blogger Buzz: "Blogger now schedules future-dated posts."

Favorite Baby Shower Gifts - Part II

Here's the second half of baby shower gift suggestions that your fellow Baby Blog Addicts submitted. Yesterday we posed the question, Should you take the advice of the Honeycutt family who said, "stick to the registry"; Danielle who said, "a maternity massage" for the mommy-to-be; or Karen who said, "the Ultimate Crib Sheet"?

I think it really depends on the recipient. If they have a large family and lots of friends who will give them practical, then go for pampering for mom. If not, you may want to stick with practical and the registry.

Here's the rest of the list:

7. I just had my baby shower last week and received the most unique gift - a custom made canopy for the bugaboo I had purchased...The company is called bonnebonnets...they have other very cool patterns and prints. Definitely the best baby gift so far! - Brooke

8. Ditto the massage .. or better yet, FOOD! I found a take out service who went to a number of restaurants in my friend's area and would deliver them to her house. Nothin' like a gift certificate for food. - Anonymous

9. A good friend gave me a gift card to our favorite take-out place nearby-- so after my mom left and the frozen food I'd stocked-up was gone, my husband could run by on the way home and pick up dinner. Since she doesn't live nearby and couldn't bring dinner over herself, this was a great idea." -Anonymous

10. Hi! I'm French and we don't have baby showers here. Usually people give you presents after the birth of the baby wich is great too, but you never get to make a list though. So usually you end up with far too many three months clothes and none in one year, but honestly, the cutest thing I had was that someone bought me (!) a present, not to the baby. That was so cute! - Matilou

11. Shameless plug for my new online boutique. Check out Jackaroos Boutique for personalized baby blankets, bibs, burp cloths and loveys...great shower gifts!

Favorite Baby Shower Gifts According to BBA Readers - Part 1

A few weeks ago we asked you to share your favorite baby shower gifts. If you are reading this so you can buy the perfect gift, you will probably get even more confused now. Should you take the advice of the Honeycutt family who said, "stick to the registry"; Danielle who said, "a maternity massage" for the mommy-to-be; or Karen who said, "the Ultimate Crib Sheet"?

Here are some favorite baby shower gifts according to our BBA readers. We'll post the rest of the list tomorrow:

1. A tie between our baby bjorn and our stroller for most used (for both babies). A favorite was a handmade star book of nursery rhymes. -Bridget

2. I loved anything monogrammed. My most pratical gift was a HUGE crock pot at one of my baby showers! -Nikki

3. My best advice is to STICK TO THEIR REGISTRY! I liked a few of the unique items I got, but I really NEEDED bottles, blankets, pacifiers, sheets, etc.! I didn't need a cute baby frame.:) -Honeycutt Family

4. My favorite gift was The Ultimate Crib Sheet. It lays on top of your mattress and secures on to the rails of the baby crib. If your baby spits up in the middle of the night, it takes ten seconds to fix the situation. -Karen (I agree with Karen. In fact, I once featured the Ultimate Crib Sheet on BBA).

5. Oh, but for a good friend, I think a maternity massage is a great gift. You know you'll get something for the baby when (s)he arrives, and mom will definitely appreciate the massage. I loved mine! -Danielle

6. I usually try and tie in a cute item with a registery item. I've done closet totes (Target for cheap in the closet organizer section) with bath necessities. I've also put together a basket with bottles for baby and bottles of wine for mom. I personally loved my diaper caddy (pottery barn) that was stocked with newborn diapers, diaper cream, wipes, etc. -Aimee

Thanks for the great ideas! The rest of the list will be posted tomorrow.

Today's Headlines

>> Amy Poehler, real-life baby mama...
>> Halle Berry shows off her post-baby bod...
>> Victoria Beckham turns to red chili to boost fertility...
>> A new measure in fertility testing...
>> FDA reevaluating position on BPA compound in plastics...

Pamela Paul on How Marketing Has Hijacked Parenthood

Pamela Paul worked in marketing for seven years before becoming an author and penning books on starter marriages and porn. But it wasn't until she had her daughter (she's now the mom of two, 3 years old and 17 months) that she realized how marketing has hijacked parenthood.

She writes about the mysterious lure of $800 Bugaboo strollers, wipe warmers, and baby sign-language classes in her new book Parenting, Inc.

Click here for Nancy Shute's interview with Pamela Paul.

Introducing Jackaroos Boutique

In addition to our family's personal blog and BabyBlogAddict.com, we've added a new web-based venture to our lives and I'm excited to share it with all of you!

JackaroosBoutique.com is my own online boutique offering custom clothing and gifts for babies and children. I personally make all of the blankets, bibs, burp cloths, loveys, dresses and john-john rompers using boutique-style fabrics. Each can also be customized with an embroidered name to make it even more unique.

Of course, I couldn't launch Jackaroos Boutique without its own blog, so I've added another blog to my life. Check out the Jackaroos Boutique Blog to see my journey and to keep up with my new items.

**Get 10% off your first purchase by helping me spread the word. Just add a link to us in your own blog's side bar - either a text link to www.JackaroosBoutique.com or a banner link (html code in box below). Then send a short note to jennifer@jackaroosboutique.com with a link to your blog (I won't publish your link anywhere) and I'll send you a 10% off coupon code.

To add the Jackaroos Boutique banner including a link to JackaroosBoutique.com, just cut and paste the following code into your blog's sidebar:

<a href="http://www.JackaroosBoutique.com" target="_blank"><img border="0" alt="Jackaroos Boutique Logo for link" src="http://i296.photobucket.com/albums/mm172/jackaroosboutique/JackaroosBoutiqueLogoforlink.jpg" /></a>

It will look like this...

Ben & Jerry's Annual Free Cone Day

Mark your calendar for Ben & Jerry's Annual Free Cone Day this Tuesday, April 29th. Check out their Scoop Shop Locator and click "shops that participate in free cone day" to find the nearest one to you.

"You're A Good Mom"

I read this great write-up in the April 2008 issue of Parenting magazine. It's from a new book by Jen Singer that is out this month called, You're a Good Mom (and your kids aren't so bad either): 14 Secrets to Finding Happiness Between Super Mom and Slacker Mom.

Here's what she says about what today's parenting lingo would have meant to our moms:

• Floor Time - Time spent waxing the kitchen floor while the kids amuse themselves in the playpen.
  


• Time-Out - A short break during a sporting event, or taking a break from the laundry to watch Days of Our Lives.
  


• Kindergarten Readiness - Your kid's fifth birthday.
  


• Use Your Words - "Knock it off, kids!"
  


• Quality Time - Reading the paper in the car outside the theater where the kids are seeing The Bad News Bears.
  


• Teachable Moments - School.

Today's Headlines

>> Alex Rodriguez, wife welcome second baby girl...
>> Can mom's diet determine a baby's sex?...
>> Safety is key when making food for baby...
>> Preparing your child for today’s world: 10 tips...
>> Green parenting - Even busiest moms, dads can make eco-friendly...

Blog Designer Spotlight: Blogs by Danielle

Here is another great blog designer. Blogs by Danielle offers whimsical and unique blog designs. Her site is very easy to use. She walks you through the ordering and payment process and then shows her beautiful portfolio of blogs that she has designed.

For $60, you can get a complete blog makeover. $30 gets you a creative blog header. Returning customers get a discounted rate of $50 for a blog makeover. Danielle loves to give back too. Check out her charity work and donations listed on her site.

Fun For Earth Day

I was looking for some fun Earth Day activities for kids and came across these simple ways to foster a love of the great outdoors.

The suggestions range from something as easy as making the most of walks (playing "I spy" on a walk) to planting a mini garden with your children. Check out the short list here.

More U.S. Retailers Give BPA The Boot

Toys 'R' Us announced today that it will phase out bottles and other "baby feeding products" containing BPA by the end of the year. Wal-Mart last week said that it will stop selling baby bottles made with BPA by early next year.

Stanford University pediatrician Alan Greene, author of Raising Baby Green, encourages parents to reduce their children's exposure to BPA. "I wouldn't use it for my children," says Greene, a father of four.

Greene says parents can avoid BPA by choosing glass bottles or shunning plastics labeled with a number 7 recycling code. Some bottles, such as BornFree, Medela and Adiri, are now marketed as BPA-free. Greene notes that BPA is found in a number of products, including the linings of formula cans. Because BPA may be less likely to leach into dry products, powdered formula could be a safer choice than liquid, he says.

BumpyName Orbit Labels

Throw away the markers for labeling your kids' sippy cups. We have better and cuter options for you. A while back we featured Baby Labels on BBA. Now, here's another way to label your kids' sippy cups.

BumpyName Orbit Labels are a great solution for labeling bottles, sippy cups, snack containers and other drink containers. I haven't used them yet, but I've heard a lot of great things about them from other moms. They are non-adhesive, so you can use them to tag different items, but if you want to keep them on the same cups and containers all the time, they are also dishwasher and microwave safe.

$12.95 will get you four custom labels and you can get a four pack of two-line custom labels for just $1 more. The two-line labels are also great to list a food allergy below the child's name as a reminder to child care providers.

The "Green" Side of Parenting

Earth Day 2008 is Tuesday. What better time to discuss the "green" side of parenting?! On The Early Show Saturday, Jeanie Pyun, editor of the new environmental website Sprig.com, offered advice to parents on bringing up kids in an eco-sensitive way, and one that would have them become eco-friendly themselves.

Is going green really better, healthier, for your baby or young child? Find out more from The Early Show's report.

Website Spotlight: The Craft Crow

Some of you may be just recovering from winter, I'm already thinking about how hot the summer will be here in the South.

Here's a fun blog of great crafts for rainy days and the upcoming hot days of summer. The Crafty Crow features lots of creative activities and links to other creative sites too. They even have a breakdown in the right column by child's age, so you can easily find age appropiate crafts with the click of a button.

"What To Expect" Gets a Makeover

It's 2008 and you are pregnant. Who do you relate to more - the girl on the left who hasn't lost her sense of style or confidence or the one on the right in the rocking chair? Obviously, the version on the left is a much better representation of pregnant women today. I actually can't believe the third edition with the woman in the rocking chair was published in 2002. I even remember thinking that it looked like it was from the 70's when I read it during my own pregnancy in 2005.

America's best-known pregnancy advice book, "What to Expect When You're Expecting", has undergone a makeover on the front cover and on the inside. Check out this article to see what has changed in the 4th Edition. Here's a hint: you might be relieved to know that the newer version is "more reassuring, more positive, more empathetic than ever". They've also moved "a lot of the scary stuff" to a back section.

Rockabye Baby! Lullaby Renditions of The Beatles

I was lucky enough to get a copy of the Rockabye Baby! Lullaby Renditions of The Beatles CD to review. Rockabye Baby! transforms timeless rock songs into beautiful instrumental lullabies.

I always love to read the "About Us" story for companies like this. The label was born in L.A. out of a "need to make children's music cool - not only for babies but for their parents too." And they have succeeded! I love this CD. I played Disney and classical lullabies for Jack when he was a baby. After a few nights, each of those CDs got a bit old. How cool would it have been to have a few of these Rockabye Baby! CDs to throw into the mix?!

I personally loved the Lullaby Renditions of The Beatles CD with the songs "Yesterday", "Hey Jude" and "Here Comes the Sun" to name a few, but there are so many other CDs that you can sample online and order. In fact, Lullaby Renditions of Green Day, the Rolling Stones and U2 earned 2007 Greatest Product Awards from iParenting Media. Check out their extensive list of albums.

Natural Toys at Toys "R" Us

Toys "R" Us has introduced a line of new natural toys. They are crafted from natural, replenishable materials and are forest-friendly, eco-friendly and safer for your children's world, according to Toys "R" Us.

These remind me of the toys we played with as kids. It looks like there is no need to worry about lead paint either, since they aren't even painted. At $9.99 - $24.99 each, they are reasonable too.

Today's Headlines

>> Full House's Jodie Sweetin has a baby girl...
>> Cate Blanchette has baby Ignatius...
>> Baby boy delight for TV star Kerry Katona...
>> Woman says she got the wrong baby 25 years ago...
>> Baby sent home from hospital with wrong family last month...