We had an unwanted visitor over the holiday season, a couple of my kiddos got the dreaded Covid. No matter how hard we worked on following protocol and how safe we felt we were being, at the end of the day, it was only a matter of time. This uninvited visitor over-stayed it’s welcome and put a damper of the Holiday season. But like every bummer of a situation, we learned something from it. Here are a few things I learned from covid: No point in pointing fingers: When the first kid in our family tested positive, the siblings turned into detectives in hopes of discovering who the original source was. Their witch-hunt came up empty, and no one could be burned at the stake for being “Patient Zero”. Our family followed all the protocols and did nothing wrong. I understand wanting to know the source to mitigate spread, but…
Tips & Tricks on Managing the Germs and Family Expectations We’re all familiar with the simple ways to keep our baby safe from germs, especially during flu season. Living through a pandemic has certainly taught us about washing our hands and wiping surfaces. It’s unlikely these days that any parent would use a public change table without wiping it down first. But surface germs aren’t a parents only, or biggest concern. For infants, it’s more complicated. While it is essential for our babies to grow a strong immune system, these days, it’s more important to ensure we’re keeping our babies safe from germs that can cause them harm. Of course, they’re naturally exposed to germs every day. Still, it’s your job as parents to ensure they’re not deliberately exposed to more germs than needed, especially those coming from other people. Germs from other people can be quite harmful to an infant…
Baby names rise and fall in popularity; it’s a curious thing. We imagine that popular culture plays a significant role. Songs, movies, books, and television are the biggest influences, and will continue to influence the baby name trends for 2022 We’re excited to see where these predictions land. (Take a peek back at our previous speculations) It’s clear that as cultural evolution happens, so do name evolutions. It’s probably unlikely that we’ll be seeing many babies with the name “Karen” in the next few years. Here at Mabel’s Labels, we can confirm it isn’t a name we see passing through our printers very often (Although, full disclosure: we have a lovely Karen working here at Mabel’s Labels customer service, and you’d be lucky to know her!) We also don’t see unique names that were previously trending, like Delta on the rise much further. Instead, it’s far more likely we’ll see a rise in names…
My yearly round-up of Mom Fails is a bit of a tradition. They were a mix of funny ones and real regrets/lessons learned in the early days. As my children get older, I find some of my “Mom Fails” are more like “Mom Trolls.” Those of you who have teenagers can surely appreciate and relate to how easy and enjoyable it is to see them cringe. This year it is a mix of “whoopsies” and cringe-worthy moments. Accidentally letting the 12-year-old watch Sex Education. If you have not seen this series yet, it’s pretty racy at times. I thought I’d go to sleep watching the last few episodes of the first season. I promptly fell asleep, to which my friends commented, “only Julie could fall asleep during Sex Education!” Regardless, once I dozed off, 12-year-old Fin crawled into bed with me and proceeded to watch the last three episodes. When…
As a mom of a whole bunch of teenagers, my home has been filled with people having periods over the last few years. I have now joined the ranks of the peri-menopausal. It’s not awesome – I live never knowing when my period may or may not turn up. I deal with a constant state of hot flashes triggered by kid hugs and face masks. Most annoying? I seem to be carrying an unexplained 10lbs extra on my body. I have done nothing differently, and yet my jeans don’t fit. Hormones are a bit rude that way. Hormones; why ya gotta be like that The critical thing to remember about hormones is that they can indeed cause us grief at any age. Girls are getting their periods a year younger than in the ’70s and remember that adrenarche begins years before that! The average age is 12 years old. However, precocious puberty is…
I’m not mad, I’m just disappointed. After devouring the first three episodes of And Just Like That, the Sex and the City reboot that premiered last week, the nicest thing I can say is that I’m glad HBO isn’t releasing all the episodes at once because I’m not sure I could stomach more than forty-five minutes in one sitting. I like my bad television the same way I like my children: in small doses. Yes, it’s that bad. One Dimensional To be fair, I was never a die-hard SATC fan; therefore, I’m not inclined to cut the reboot some slack simply because of nostalgia. Nor can I give the awkward dialogue and overall cringy vibe a pass because hey, at least they’re trying. Shows about women in their fifties may not dominate our streaming platforms, but that’s no reason to give AJLT an ‘A’ for effort. The show has missed a golden opportunity to reconnect…
Every year, I tell myself that I’m not going to let the holidays stress me out. And every year, despite my best efforts, I end up frazzled and fatigued. Maybe the problem is that I’m setting a random goal but not doing specific things to create a different outcome. This year, that’s going to change. I have compiled a list of 25 small but impactful steps that you (and I) can take to keep things on track and enjoy the season more. That said, I’m guessing you don’t even have time to read this whole list. The tips are organized into 4 categories – prioritizing, shopping, coping and connecting – so feel free to jump to the section that interests you. There, you’ll find some suggested mini tactics to help ease your holiday burden. PRIORITIZING Pause and reflect. Time for some big-picture thinking. Can you clearly identify which holiday traditions…
‘Tis the season for mom to get a bath robe. Last year we all had a good laugh at the Saturday Night Live skit about moms being neglected during the holidays. It was funny because it was so relatable. This year, I thought I’d share a few goodies that us mamas might appreciate. 1. Something beautiful AND sentimental Our kids create so much beautiful art. I know most of it ends up in the recycling bin, but sometimes they create something special that deserves to be remembered. Made With Your Art takes your child’s piece of creativity and turns it into a stunning piece of jewelry. I have several pieces and have gifted them as well. The process is simple, the prices reasonable and the outcome incredible! 2. Something celebrating our Mama status I have the sweetest “Hockey Mama” shirt from Ash and Co. Their products are simple and elegant.…
It’s the time of year where we start to think about what to buy for Christmas. Yet, we look around, and the house is FULL of unused toys, and the thought of buying more seems wasteful and ridiculous. If you feel overwhelmed by the sheer amount of kid’s toys, then you aren’t alone. If you’re frustrated that your children rarely play with expensive toys, then you’re still not alone. But, there is a way to plan for Christmas toys AND make the toys a little simpler. But having toys is essential; they’re tools kids use to develop. They used to learn and develop motor skills, critical thinking, and social skills to imitate what they know and see. The best way for kids to develop these skills is with open-ended toys. Open-ended toys mean that they don’t have to have one apparent single use. They’re not based on a TV character…
Women are known for flooding others with love, taking care of the family, and managing all aspects of the household. Unfortunately, these past 2 years have been some of the toughest on parents; mothers especially reached a breaking point. This season, Moms will be thinking of gift-giving, stressing over the perfect gift to make everyone happy. Unfortunately, women rarely reciprocate that love back onto themselves. Well, we are worthy of spoiling ourselves, and we deserve it after the $#^% show we’ve all been through. So let’s indulge ourselves- guilt-free! There is no one-size-fits-all for moms. But one thing is sure, at least in the Mabel’s Labels office. We all love to relax (that, and wine). So here is a roundup of the stuff we’re loving here in the Mabelhood. Our favorite products, services, and experiences that we’re planning on treating ourselves to Cassandra Gifts (even to ourselves) don’t need to be…