Sesame street live.

It's amazing what you'll get excited about when you're a mom. All month long, I have been anxiously awaiting for the day I get to take our 17-month-old to Sesame Street Live at the Target Center... and today was that day!

 

Linna is completely obsessed with Elmo and Sesame Street. It's one of two shows she will watch on television (Barney is the other - I prefer Sesame Street). She sleeps with a stuffed Elmo in her crib, can spot an Elmo photo from a mile away, and it's a word/name she says constantly. Needless to say, she was very excited to see Sesame Street Live.

Elmo's #1 fan.

My sister Paige is home from college, so she came along as well. We showed up an hour before the show to check out the Play Zone. There was live musical acts where the kids could see the characters up close and personal, interactive character "cut-outs", places to take photos, etc. Linna stuck pretty close by our sides when the big Sesame Street characters came out to do a little performance, but she was completely glued to what they were doing on the stage. She danced to the music, and pointed at the characters from a far, but I have to admit that the big, colorful, furry costumes are a bit intimidating for the little ones.

Mama Saigh, Linna, and Elmo.

Oscar, Linna, and Auntie Paige.

Coloring in the Play Zone.

It was so cute seeing little kids dressed up in their favorite character's costumes. Linna followed around a kid who was wearing an Elmo tee-shirt like a little magnet. Another kid literally wore a full Elmo costume. His mom bought it for him on Amazon (that's right, I asked her). The show itself was very well done. It was interactive, and full of music, bright lights, singing and dancing. The show is about an hour-and-a-half long, and for as little as $10 a ticket, this show packs so much bang for your buck. Listening to all the kids in the audience having so much fun during the show, makes it clear that Sesame Street is very popular in the Twin Cities. We'll be back next year!

Watching the show.

So many Elmo heads.

DECEMBER GIVEAWAY WINNER: Congratulations to Ana Biesterfeld!!! You're the winner of a family 4-pack of tickets to Sesame Street Live in January at the Target Center. Please email me with your address (info@minnesotababy.org) so we can send you the tickets. Stay tuned for another giveaway everyone!!!

"Hmmmm, I wonder how I could convince this girl to give me her shirt." - Linna

Linna and Auntie Paige in the audience.

Monthly gift-box subscriptions.

GIVEAWAY WINNERS: Congratulations to Laura Wales for winning a one-month subscription to Birchbox, and Ann Haag for winning a a one-month subscription to Craft Coffee! Thanks for supporting Minnesota Baby everyone.

*** Click here for the TWIN CITIES LIVE segment ***

Over the past month, our family has been testing out some monthly subscription boxes. I remember trying out a few "baby boxes"when Linna was born (my favorite being Citrus Lane), but little did I know that there are so many monthly subscription boxes available for literally everyone in the family. Here's a few of our favorites...

Birchbox: These boxes arrive at your door monthly, and include beauty and lifestyle product samples for the guys and gals. The best part is that they aren't expensive ($10/month for women and $20/month for men), and they include some really great products! My favorite sample we received in a box was the Miracle Skin Transformer Hydroactive Microderm. The little samples of perfume, etc. are fine, but this little exfoliate product was a great size for being a sample. My husband loved the tie in his box from The Knottery, and lip balm from Lucky Tiger. This is such a fun gift box to get in the mail monthly, especially when you don't have time to keep up with all the new beauty products out there!

Gourmet Spotting: Who has time to discover gourmet food from all over the world? Not this mom. But now that my family has discovered Gourmet Spotting, we can! We have tried all types of pasta, spices, oils, teas, and truffle infused foods, imported from all over the world. We get to experience different types of dishes using the food products in our monthly Gourmet Spotting boxes. I can't get enough of the Bel Frantoio Organic White Truffle Oil. So amazing, and I've been putting it on everything! Monthly boxes run $29.99 each, and a great gift idea for the foodie in your life.

Cellars Wine Club: First of all, who wouldn't want new and exciting wines delivered to their house every month?! Starting at $25 a month, Cellars Wine Club will send you full bottles of wine. Yes please! I think the best deal is the Premium Wine Club, where for $39 per shipment, you get two different wines, and the price includes shipping. I'm the kind of gal who doesn't typically spend more than $10 on a bottle of wine, but the wines we get from Cellars Wine Club are wines that I have never even heard of or tried. I get excited to broaden my horizons with every shipment, Included are tasting notes with background information on the wineries, and often food pairings. I'm learning so much from the comfort of my own home. Bring on the wine!

Craft Coffee: Both my husband and I, as well as our family members (who visit often) are big coffee lovers. I enjoying trying new coffee blends, but hate making the drive to the coffee shop/store to pick something up. When I heard that Craft Coffee delivered three different coffees from three different roasters each month, I had to check it out. The monthly subscription ($19-$25/month) is a little more than I typically spend on coffee from the grocery store, but when I add in the money I spend on coffee from the coffee shop, it's not as expensive as I thought. Depending on what type of coffee maker you have, you can order whole beans, or ground. I love the smell of the coffee when I open the box it arrives in. If you have a coffee lover in your family, this is the gift that keeps on giving (you can always ask the gift recipient to make you coffee when you visit their home).

Man Packs: If I had a nickle for every pair of my husband's socks and white tee-shirts I threw away because of holes or armpit stains, let's just say that I'd be a pretty wealthy woman. Plus, when I pick him up new socks or tee-shirts to replace the old ones, I always seem to get the wrong kind, size, etc. To remedy the situation and save me a little time (and sanity), I've given my husband the power to pick out the things he needs online, and we have Man Packs deliver him new socks, boxers, and white tee-shirts every three months. Easy peasy! They have so many different brands of socks, underwear, razors, and toiletries that you can have delivered every three months, or whenever you need it. The cost depends on what you buy, but you get free shipping on orders over $30. I've found that the boxers, socks, and white tee-shirts are almost the same price as I'd pay for them at Target. Not only is this a great gift idea for your husband, but it gives you the gift of a little more free (and sanity) time too.

Tasterie: I'm always looking for new and healthy snacks for my family, but until I try it, I don't want to buy it. I've wasted so much money on healthy, but awful tasting healthy food. Tasterie sends you different types of snacks and other foods depending on the type of food you "screen" for. The company was actually created by a mom who is also a pediatrician. If you have wheat allergies, or want to eat vegan-friendly food, they have tons of options for you. For about $15 per month, they really pack in a lot of product for your money. In one box, I received a dip mix, quinoa, fruit bars, sweet potato chips, healthy kettle corn, a gravy mix, and a few other things. Everything was really good, and this is definitely a subscription we'll be sticking with!

Blissmo: This monthly box subscription offers organic, non-toxic & eco-products that promise to be safer, healthier and better than conventional alternatives. We've received cleaning products, snacks, laundry detergent, that I would have no idea where to start to look to find them, if it wasn't for Blissmo. They have specialized boxes for hair and skin, a pantry box, and a box that specializes in fair-trade products. Boxes start at about $25 each, but you can also get a HUGE box for around $100, that could feed your entire office or family for a good amount of time. I love that they include free shipping too!

Love with Food: This is a great option for people that love food, but don't want to spend a lot of money on a monthly subscription. For just $10 a month, you get a box packed with food products and samples. In our box we received salt water taffy, organic baby good, granola, tea, hot chocolate mixes, and a lot more. If you're not looking for an investment in a monthly box subscription, and just want to sample some new food products, give Love with Food a try. It's one of our favs!

Cravebox: This company literally has a box for everyone, since they don't just specialize in one thing. We selected the Coffee Lovers Cravebox, as well as another box with a TON of food samples and coupons in it. The coupons were literally for FREE food products at the store. I love that their coffee box doesn't just include coffee, but coffee syrup, biscotti, and cereal. It's more like a breakfast box! They also have beauty boxes, boxes for new moms and kids... literally everything! Each box is about $10-$15 per box, and totally worth is because they send you a lot more for your money.


JANUARY 17TH GIVEAWAY QUESTION: What is your must-have beauty product???

Hopkins public library children's area.

I hesitated a bit before writing this post, for fear that the Hopkins Public Library Children's Area might become so popular that there's a line to get in. But seriously, KUDOS to The Hopkins Public Library for giving not only the entire library a much-needed remodel, but the Children's Area too!

Planting pretend vegetables in the garden.

Linna learning her letters with alphabet blocks.

I grew up in Hopkins, and remember riding my bike to the Hopkins Public Library, checking out books, and reading with my little brother in the big carpeted bathtub (anyone else remember this?!). It was everything I could have wanted in a library as a kid. However, the NEW Children's Area is AMAZING! I seriously could bring my daughter there every day. They have a firetruck play-area, pretend bus, places for children to pretend to mail letters, a big tree with a little hide-out, little "city employee" costumes for the kids to dress up in, a pretend fresh-produce stand, a garden where kids can plant pretend vegetables, a picnic area, alphabet blocks, and of course TONS of books. There is literally something to do for every age group, and the best part is that the kids are learning while they're playing. It's set up like a mini downtown, so the kids can explore all that Hopkins has to offer.

So much to do.

Dressing up like a Hopkins police officer and fire chief.

There were five or six other little kids there when we went Tuesday morning around 10:30 a.m., and there was plenty of room for the adults to grab a seat while the kids played together. Linna loved putting the fake fruits and vegetables in the appropriate basket at the "Farmers Market", and playing with the alphabet blocks in the "Raspberry Treats" area. She learned so much today using educational toys that we don't have at home. This is a great place for parents/caretakers to go if they need to send out a few emails, finish thank-you cards, etc., while the kids play with each other and learn. I watched as two little boys pretended to be a postal worker and police officer. I loved the way they communicated with each other about their "jobs". Oh to be little again!

City park picnic-area with lots of fake food and dishes.

The tree. I never really looked inside that little
hide-out to see what Linna was doing.

The best part is that it's FREE! Hopkins is so lucky to have such a wonderful play area for children, and we'll be visiting often. This seriously might be our new favorite free place to go in the Twin Cities! Well done Hopkins.

Securing furniture to the wall.

There are many things that I read or see that make me so emotional, I feel the need to "make a change". But, I'll be honest, many of these changes I plan on making are short-lived, because they're backed by emotion, and no "drive" to actually do something about it. It's a sad truth. If I actually acted on all the changes I planned on making, I could probably make a big impact on this world.

However, the other day, I stumbled upon a blog post by Love, Light, Laughter and Chocolate, where a mother tells her unbelievably heartbreaking story of having to deal with the loss of her three-year-old daughter. Her daughter died after a piece of bedroom furniture fell on top of her, while the entire family slept. No one heard it happen, and no one saw it coming. I'll let you read her painful story for yourself.

Photo from the Love, Light, Laughter and Chocolate blog,
of the actual dresser that fell over on top of three-year-old
Meg and killed her.

I read this story on New Year's Day morning, and cried my eyes out in our living room. I explained to my husband what had happened to this mother, and told him we had to immediately secure Linna's bedroom furniture to the walls. My husband, thinking this was just another one of my emotional "rants", said that Linna would be fine, and that we didn't need to drill holes in the walls when we are going to be moving in two months. Normally, I'd say he's probably right, but this mother's story about losing her daughter stuck with me, and I needed to make this simple change in our house.

I emailed my husband a link to the mother's story, and another link to a blog explaining a simple and cheap way to secure furniture to walls using L hooks/brackets. Immediately after reading the mother's story, he sent me a text saying "go pick up the L brackets and I will install them tonight". BOTH of us were so emotionally moved by this tragic story, that we actually implemented a change!

The book shelf in Linna's closet that I worry about.

Linna's book shelf is now secured to the wall with L brackets.

We spent all of $4, and 10 minutes of my husband's time, in hopes of preventing a tragedy in our home. Linna has a bookshelf in the closet of her room that she is constantly pulling books off of. It's only a matter of time before she's crawling up it. Installing L brackets/hooks is a cheap and easy way all of us can keep our little ones safe. To be honest, besides putting a rubber-band around some handles on cabinets we don't want Linna getting into, and putting up a baby gate at the top of the stairs, we didn't go "crazy" when it came to baby-proofing in our house. However, securing her bedroom furniture to her walls is just one of those things we had to do, so we can sleep better at night. I really hope you'll read Kimberly's story (Meg's mom) and make this simple change for your little ones in your home!

Pocket your dollars book giveaway.

CONGRATULATIONS to Katie Grunloh! You have won a copy of Carrie Rocha's new book! Please email me with your address and phone number so we can verify and ship. Thanks for participating everyone, and stay tuned for another giveaway soon!

You may know the name Carrie Rocha, because you follow her amazing money-saving blog Pocket Your Dollars. She and her husband paid down $60,000 in debt over two-and-a-half years. After getting out of debt, she and her husband figured out how they had gotten into debt in the first place, and why they didn't change their path sooner. Carrie is a friend of mine from my days at Twin Cities Live, and I am so excited to tell you all that we're giving away a copy of her first book:

Pocket Your Dollars: 5 Attitude Changes That Will Help You Pay Down Debt, Avoid Financial Stress, & Keep More of What You Make

I used to produce Carrie's segments on Twin Cities Live, and I can tell you first-hand that she has "simple" achievable ways that YOU can save money. In her book, Carrie teaches you to make the same attitude adjustments that transformed her family’s financial situation.

On Friday, January 4th, we'll be giving away a copy of Carrie's new book to one of YOU! For your chance to win, leave a comment on this blog post telling me one of your resolutions or goals for 2013. One person will be randomly selected to win a copy of Carrie's book at 8 p.m. on Friday, January 4th. Good luck!

What is one of your resolutions or goals for 2013???

Wee wednesday at midtown global market.

JJ and Linna glued to the music on stage at Midtown Global Market's Wee Wednesday.

Today, my friend Bri and her boys JJ and Nolan, invited Linna and I to come check out Wee Wednesday at Midtown Global Market in Minneapolis. This is a free event every Wednesday from 10:30 - 11:15 a.m. in the Central Plaza. We had a class at The Little Gym of Edina this morning at 9 a.m., so we headed to Wee Wednesday right after since we were already half-way there. It was definitely worth the trip!

They had a great little band on stage that sang kid-friendly songs, and one of the band members even did some tap dancing. Since it's the day after New Year's they did a cute little apple cider toast with the kids, and of course a countdown. After the kids sang and danced, we walked around to look at all the grocery items and other merchandise for sale. I got some of our fresh produce shopping done while I was there, which was great because it's mostly organic, and I didn't have to take an extra trip to the grocery store. JJ and Linna loved looking at and picking out different fruits and veggies to buy, and after a little shopping, they played with a few other children in the kid's play area for a little bit before we had lunch.

Picking out fresh produce.

The great thing about Wee Wednesday is that kids eat free with the purchase of an adult lunch. Nothing beats free! I purchased a rice, egg roll, and chicken combo meal at an Asian place for a little over $5, and Linna got a rice, veggie, and chicken meal (plus a drink - I chose a Diet Coke, which she unknowingly gave to me) for free! When you make any purchase at Midtown Global Market, your parking is free too (don't forget to bring your parking ticket, and just ask the merchant to validate it for you). Such a good deal!

New Year's Apple Cider Toast.

Mama Bauer (Bri) dancing with Linna and JJ.

Linna was completely wiped by the time we left, and was passed out about five minutes into our car ride home. We'll definitely be back for another Wee Wednesday, and hope to see you there too!

"Letting go" in 2013.

Linna on New Year's Eve 2012.

New Year's Day/Eve is a time for resolutions. We all make them, and let's face it... most of the time we fail. In the past, I've made promises to lose weight, stop swearing, drink less, eat better in the new year, and look at me... I'm still an "overweight", wine and food-loving mom, who pretty much has the mouth of a sailor. Am I proud of that?! Eh. But a person can only give up so much and still be happy, right?! ;)

In the past, the New Year's resolutions I've made have all been "selfish" ones. Although I do plan to get my butt to the gym more, take it easy on over-indulging in good food and wine, and tone it down on the "potty mouth" (I'm not talking about toilet-training talk), this year I'm making a resolution to do something a little less "selfish".

I'm going to "let go".

For those of you who know me personally, you know I can be a bit of a control freak (and by a "bit", I mean I need to control everything). This wonderful attribute did not go away when we welcomed Linna into the world over a year ago. For the last 16 months, I have felt this overwhelming need to "control" everything around her. From the food she eats, to her daily routine, if it's not me in command... it's wrong. Since Linna was really little, I've found myself getting upset when Linna's grandparents or other family members give her junk food, don't put her to bed "on time", or when other people don't do things for her the way I would. I constantly feel the need to tell my husband what Linna should be wearing, what she should eat, etc., when he spends time with her. When it comes to my daughter, I need to control everything... and that is selfish.

The truth is, I am very lucky to be able to spend every day with Linna, and I'm happy to have a daily routine with her. It's also really tough for me to understand that MY WAY of doing things with Linna, isn't the ONLY WAY. Although I enjoy my "me time" away from my daughter, I have major issues leaving Linna with other people, fearing that they won't do it "right"... and by "right", I mean MY WAY.

Yes, I will always believe that "mom knows best" when it comes to my daughter, but Linna has SO many other people in her life with different experiences and perspectives. Linna's grandparents have obviously been parents before (they raised some great kids, if I do say so myself), and although we may not agree on every aspect of parenting, I know Linna is 110% safe, cared for, and loved just as much as she would be with me. The same things goes for Linna's Papa. Just because my husband might not feed Linna what I would feed her for lunch, or put her down for a nap the same way I would, that doesn't mean he's doing it "wrong"... he's just not doing it MY WAY. And that's ok.

This may seem so petty to some people, but "letting go" is a big deal for me as a first-time mom. This year, when it comes to Linna, I am starting to "let go" of always having to do things MY WAY. If Linna eats chips and cookies for breakfast one day with her grandparents, it's not going to kill her. Heck, she'll probably be happier eating that than the boring oatmeal, fruit and yogurt she gets with me every morning. If Linna doesn't have her daily nap(s) or go to bed by 8 p.m., the world will not end. She's probably having more fun staying up, spending quality time with those grandparents (who shall remain nameless - haha)! All I want to do is make what I feel are "healthy decisions" for our daughter on a regular basis, and start letting others step in and help in THEIR WAY. I'm not the only parent raising Linna, and I need to let my husband do things HIS WAY when he spends his quality time with Linna. We'll work together when it comes to the "major parenting decisions", and do it OUR WAY.

I'm making this New Year's resolution, not for myself, but for my daughter. She deserves to spend quality time with her family members that love her so much, without having Mama Saigh breathing down their necks about doing things MY WAY. It takes a village to raise a child, and without Linna's little village, she would not be the healthy, happy, 16-month-old little girl that she is today. I am so thankful to have family members that I can call on at a moment's notice, to help us with Linna.

So, here's to "letting go" in 2013. Happy New Year everyone!