Woes with Hair-Bows

Yesterday, Tiff's husband, Taylor, made the comment, "I always wondered why moms put bows on baby girls until I had one." That's right Taylor, it only takes one complete moron to tell you how cute your little BOY is before you slap a bright big hair-bow on her head first thing in the morning! As cute as they are, here is plight with the hair-bows; first of all, your sweet little baby girl may not be have been blessed with beautiful long locks at birth, unlike some babies we know! Such as Layla who's picture is featured above (photo was taken still the hospital, that's right Moms be jealous). So if you are one of the lucky mommies that did not plan to have a bald baby but here she is, we have some bow tips for you. You may want to use scotch tape, honey or even applying window sealer to the bow to make it stick to that sweet undeserving bald baby head. I have never used the honey trick but Caroline has fallen victim to having a bow taped to her head on more than one occasion.

As easy as it sounds, selecting the right kind of hair-bow can be a task in itself. There are certain bows for certain kids. Some bows don't close all the way so your sweet baby has to not only have long enough hair but it must be thick too. (Caroline and Camille can't sport those quite yet!) They also make the bows that snap to close and those are great for the combination of brave mommies and hard headed babies that don't mind you pushing firmly against their heads. Camille and Tiff prefer the bows with the ribbed ribbon covering the clip part. We both like the bow with the medal clips. Also we sell a bow on The Mommy Chat that has a medal clip and a 'no slip grip." You can't beat those bows!

Once you get that bow to stick on the head don't be surprised when the next thing you know, its GONE! That's right even the cutest $12 boutique bows go missing! Where are they, you may ask? Let me tell you; they are in the hand of another toddler (especially if you have been around little boys because they love a bright bow to steal), wedged in the crevasse of her car seat or stroller, in the bottom or your purse or diaper bag, or out on the street after having gone for a walk. Some of them escape to a place where no one knows, we can only assume those sassy bows are happy hanging out with all the single socks that have also gone missing.

Happy Hair-Bow Hunting,

Mary Kathryn Aston

The Mommy Chat

Kavana Healing Arts Spa

The Mommy Chat

Tiff and I totally want to get regular massages after talking to Ady Burgida, massage therapist and owner of Kavana Healing Arts Spa! Kavana's massage therapists offer more than what you may expect to get from your massage therapist; such as "Whole-Mommy-Care," which is treating women trying to get pregnant, soon-to-be's, mommies in the delivery room, to moms of multiples!

Below is a little blurb from Ady Burgida.

Some of what we offer:

-We see a lot of pregnant women, who come in mostly with lower back/sciatic pain, tight shoulders, swollen ankles, and in later stages of pregnancy even difficulty when breathing. Massage can safely and effectively treat each one of these conditions. For example for swollen ankles we use a technique called lymphatic drainage to safely and effectively move pooled lymph from the ankles back into the lymphatic system.

-We even provide massage in the delivery room. We are not Doula's or midwives, but we do by request perform delivery room massage. It is amazing. We have clients who have effectively used delivery room massage as a replacement for the epidural in a natural birth. One of our massage therapists, Dana, prior to becoming a MT was a nurse, and a Mid-Wife and a Lactaion Consultant, so on our team we have many talented therpaists.

-As far as mom's, and some of their common muscular ailments - one of the most common things we see in our office are moms with little one's that they carry and/or breastfeed throughout the day, causing one-sided muscle tension in the neck, arms and shoulders, and even hips and lower back - for this we perform myofascial release techniques and trigger point therapy to help them release the tension and increase/regain their range of motion.

-Some of our other specialties are:

TMJ massage also known as a 'Face Lift Massage' since it works on the muscles of the face, head and neck to release the tension and return the jaws to their correct, and painless range of motion, as well as give the face a 'Lift' due to the tension that is released from having those muscles being pulled so tight.

Plantar Fasciitis - As a result of wearing improper shoes all day - flats with no support and heels, we develop tension and strain in our feet and calves causing painful condition such as Plantar Fasciitis, Heel Spurs, etc. These are all very treatable with massage.

Common Questions:

Do you need to completely undress for a massage?: - no, it is up to your level of comfort

How to get the most of your massage: - Communication is key. It is important to communicate with your therapist during the massage. Let them know where are the areas that you would like to focus on, let them know about the pressure - if it is too strong or too light.

Pre and Post massage activities- Before receiving a massage do not eat for at least 1 hr if possible. Definetly do not be under the influence of alcohol. Come well hydrated. The massage is a detox process. It is very important that you drink a larger than usual quantity of water pre and post massage in order to eliminate metabolic waste and toxins.

Discount! For all ladies listening to the pod cast - mention this show and receive $10 off any 1hr or longer massage treatment.

Thanks Ady!

Kavana Healing Arts Spa www.kavanaspa.com 2109 Lexington Street Houston, TX 77098-4011 (713) 703-8796

Itsy Bitsy Boutique is just Precious!

The Mommy Chat interviewed Susan Watt, owner of Itsy Bity Boutique, the cutest new boutique in Houston! Susan is so fun and energetic, you can tell she really loves what she does and she is very good at it! Susan was a buyer for for Baby Gap, Gap Kids and Oldnavy before the recent opening of Itsy Bitsy Boutique. Her goal is to find unique baby and children's clothing at moderate and affordable prices. Instead of going to the Dallas Market, like so many other local boutiques, Susan travels to Atlanta, Las Vegas and New York to do her buying.

As Tiffiny and I have noticed there is quite a difference in the amount of boys clothing as opposed to girls clothing in the stores. We think Susan has picked up on that too because she has many great lines of boys clothing in her store going up to size 4T.

The merchandise in Itsy Bitsy ranges in style from very sweet and traditional to vintage and modern looks. The girls clothes go up to 6X and she carries great accessories including; shoes, hair bows, diaper covers, backpacks and much much more more.

We got to see ALL of her merchandise and take lots of pictures!

Crystal and Caroline in the play area, one more reason its great to shop at Itsy Bitsy!

Camille and Tiffiny out Shopping

We had a great time at the Itsy Bitsy Boutique!

Thanks Susan!

The Mommy Chat

The Mommy Chat will try to be more appropriate with our blog, actually using it for blogging. If you are looking for podcasts check out the podcast tab at the top of The Mommy Chat homepage.

The Mommy Chat has been so fun the past few months since we got started. Tiff and I spend almost everyday at my house working and playing really hard. We have met a lot of really interesting people and even had the pleasure of interviewing some of them.

Sometimes the interviews go really smooth and other times they don't. Doing this with your bestfriend is great because you basically know what the other is thinking all the time. That actually comes in handy to read each other's expressions while being recorded in audio only. At times its hard not to start laughing at ourselves during the interview. For instance; in one of the first podcasts where we interviewed a pre-k teacher, Kristen Clyburn, Tiff was holding one of our baby girls (we won't name names) but the baby passed gas very loudly. We thought we could cover it up but NOPE! Kristen started laughing and we had to just keep going because we had no idea how to edit the sound. Well what can you say, we were very new at this?! We have learned the podcasts go much smoother when we get someone to watch the girls while we are doing the interviews. Thank Goodness for grandmas!

Even though Tiff and I are together ALL the time our friendship has remained intact and we are having so much fun! Thanks for being a part of The Mommy Chat! We love our members!

Way to go Mommies!

Happy Chatting,

Mary Kathryn Aston