We’ve teamed up with Janelle Tavormina, Hair and Makeup expert and creator of LOOK, A Beauty Blog for an exciting Mother’s Day Makeover event!
As a mom of an active 3 year old and sleepless 6 month old, as well as running WhatEveryBabyNeeds.com, I have little time for myself. I know I’m not alone! A common mom dilemma, Janelle and I thought we could inspire some moms how to be able to quickly pull that hair up in a great not-your-ordinary-mom-ponytail (my standard go to when time is tight) and makeup tips that will have you out the door looking awake and luminous.
Let me note for a moment that this is how much I love you all…for the benefit of these video tutorials and at Look A Beauty Blog, you will see me in all my un-hairbrushed, makeup free glory that I would otherwise NEVER allow to be photographed!
This tutorial is a playlist of 3 videos: The introduction, The Hair Tutorial and The Makeup. Although in the videos the hair and makeup take longer than just a few minutes, it is for the purposes of demonstration. I tried these after the fact and, although I still need to practice a bit with the bobby pins, I really have been able to do both the hair and makeup in about 7 minutes - doable!
What tips did I get the most out of? The makeup is now my new routine and I love it! I do add eyeliner on occasion, but it’s fast and I think it looks great. I also love the idea of lightly teasing my hair - it definitely adds that little extra volume, even when I do just pull my hair back into a basic pony.
We hope this was helpful and has given you some tips and inspiration on how you can still look great in just minutes! What are your tips? Please comment!
I am a subscriber to, and love, Look A Beauty Blog - I’ve gotten a ton of great tips from Janelle and enjoy seeing her Monday Makeovers. I recommend subscribing! If you are in the Saratoga Springs, NY area, visit Janelle at the Epiphany of Hair Salon in Ballston Spa. She is also a freelancer in editorial work (which you can see on her blog as well).
I know, you’re thinking that I must be in a sleep-deprived stupor to suggest such a thing, but not too worry, I promise that this Sushi and Pizza is just perfect for your little ones!
This Knit Sushi Rattle Set of 4 is a perfect way to get your little ones craving nigiri! Each piece is perfect for little hands, and the rattles have a charming sound to them.
Whether you currently live on the east coast, miss it, or simply want your little ones to get a little taste of it, this City Food knit play food set has the perfect three: A slice, a pretzel with salt and a bagel with a smear.
Best of all, Yellow Label Kids is a member of the Fair Trade Federation, which is an association of businesses that are committed to following fair trade principles, so you can feel good about letting your budding connoisseurs play with them.
From time to time I receive weird looks when I whip out Gavin’s bottle while we are our running errands. At first, I thought it might be because people don’t see Dad’s feeding their children all the time, but I quickly realized it was due to the fact that my boy is sporting his pretty pink bottle. Like any good baby situation, this one has a good story behind it:
When my wife gave birth to Gavin 11 months ago, as rookie parents you could say we were a bit in over our heads. I will never forget the first night home, when we were expecting to put Gavin in his bassinet, kiss him good night and see him 12 hours later. Boy were we wrong! It’s actually funny to look back at things now that we are 11 month ‘veterans’.
One of the first challenges to overcome was nursing. Like most babies, Gavin wasn’t so sure this was for him to begin with. So, one early morning Danielle was attempting to feed him and he wasn’t cooperating. Anyone who knows me can attest to the the fact that I am a ‘fixer’; I try to make bad situations better. In this case, I had the visions of Gavin not eating for days and crying for even longer. My solution was a late night trip to the store to get feeding supplies. Needless to say, there are not many stores open that sell baby supplies at this time of night. When I did find a store that was open and asked the nice gentleman who was waxing the floors what isle the baby food was in, it was a mad dash to buy anything I could get my hands on. Who knew there were so many different types of bottles, nipples, inserts, food, etc.!
As I should have known, by the time I got home, the situation was much better and Gavin had a full belly. The next morning Danielle and I had a good laugh when we looked at all the stuff I had purchased, including the 8 oz (it was almost as big as he was) pink bottle!
Send us a digital picture of you little one to WeLoveIt@WhatEveryBabyNeeds.com and we’ll feature it on our website and send you a 15% off coupon for your next purchase as thanks!
(fine print: we will not include any identifying information on the picture, but will add his/her age if you include it in the email.)
We’ve got a great giveaway for our Facebook fans: Once you’re a fan, comment on the post about the giveaway, or post a message on our Facebook page about what 1 item you’d love to have from our site and if you’re randomly selected as the winner, we’ll send you that item!!
For an extra chance to win, get your friends to Fan us (they won’t be sorry!) and note your name in their comment and you’ll get an extra chance to win!
Have a toy that you’ve been looking at for your little one and haven’t yet gotten? Want to try out a new brand of clothing? Here’s your chance!
Our Bamboo Coveralls from Kicky Pants were their first must have pick from us on the list, and we have to agree! A customer favorite, these super-comfy coveralls are the perfect every day outfit.
For more options, check out our spring selection of Print Coveralls! Same great material and shape in an assortment of wonderful prints:
The second item of our on the list was the Wooden Small Rabbit Push Toy. At only $8.99, this adorable bunny is a wonderful symbol of fertility for your new mama to be, and especially great for little ones with Spring and Easter coming up.
Now that I have your attention, let’s actually talk about sex. Today is Valentine’s Day, a holiday I never fully appreciated until Finn Gunn was born. Most men—me included—tend to not think about Valentine’s Day until sometime between the final moments of the Super Bowl and, well, today. But ever since I was blessed with a beautiful baby boy, I’ve loved Valentine’s Day—I look forward to it for weeks in advance. Why? Because on Valentine’s Day there’s about an 85 percent chance I’m going to have some sex.
Don’t get me wrong, I have a pretty good sex life. But I’ll admit that I get nowhere near the same “action” that I used to. I’m a dad. My lover is my wife, and she’s a mom. ‘Nuff said.
As a mother of 2 precious little mess makers, I know first hand how challenging it can be to keep a house clean when there seem to be more toys around the house then furniture! While I sat in the middle of my living room after all of the presents had been opened, I wondered where we were going to put all of the beeping and singing toys. I literally couldn’t even see my carpet! That’s when it hit me; there has to be something good that can come of all of the unused toys that are keeping my house cluttered.
I began looking into some different options for paring down to the newest and favorite toys while still keeping in mind that 2 year olds and 4 year olds change what they play with as often as John Mayer changes celebrity girlfriends. In the past I had always shoved all of the toys that weren’t being played with into a closet and would occasionally bring them back out to be appreciated again after they were long forgotten about by my boys. As much as I enjoyed seeing them “rediscover” their old toys, it didn’t help with the shortage of space and I really was running low on hiding places.
After some online and local searching, I discovered some really rewarding and surprisingly lucrative possibilities that every frazzled mother could benefit from: Read the rest of this entry »
It was exactly 52 weeks ago—shortly after dinnertime on a chilly Sunday night in late December—that Penelope began to show signs that the birth of wee Finn Gunn was imminent.
I don’t subscribe to the notion that certain foods have magical, labor-inducing properties but if you’re really ready to pop, a big bucket of extra-crispy fried chicken with all the “fixins” did the trick for us. Of course, that was incredibly coincidental and entirely accidental.
Oh, and totally delectable, but I digress…
With a week still to go until our official “due date”—for me, that phrase should only apply to library books, not little babies—Penelope called out the words that will forever be cemented in my memory: “Ah, uh, honey… I, um… I think my water broke.”
I’m not sure how I did it, but I remained calm, walking (not running) into the room.
“How do you feel?” I asked.
I’m not sure how she did it, but Penelope also remained calm. “Fine, actually.”
After talking with the nurse assigned to our baby-catcher’s after-hours line, we came to the mutual conclusion that the very top of her bag had broken, but no contractions had begun. “Stay home,” she said. “Wait it out there,” she said.
Okay, cool… that’s easy for you to say, but we’ll do it.
This time of year, the assignment foisted upon parents, grandparents, and all manner of friends is to find—and usually buy—gifts for the little ones. In the Wyllie household, it’s a little different.
For Penelope and me, occasions like Chanukah and Christmas have about the same emotional and spiritual gravitas as President’s Day. Sure, we’ll nod to the tradition of the giving season—after all, it’s become a force of nature in the American cultural consciousness—but we’re really gearing up to celebrate the day wee Finn Gunn was born.
For us, Chrismukkah will forever be prelude to the big event on December 29th.
While I have no interest in ending naked consumerism or object-based happiness, I’ve been thinking a lot lately about the name of this website: “What every baby needs.”
More accurately, I’ve been thinking about the stuff that no baby needs.
For me, the thing that tops the list is pockets—especially pockets that have velcro, buttons, snaps, and zippers. I don’t know about your baby, but my son does not yet carry a wallet, keys, or a mobile phone. He doesn’t need 5.11 tactical pants for all his “gear.” Read the rest of this entry »
One of the first challenges to overcome was nursing. Like most babies, Gavin wasn’t so sure this was for him to begin with. So, one early morning Danielle was attempting to feed him and he wasn’t cooperating. Anyone who knows me can attest to the the fact that I am a ‘fixer’; I try to make bad situations better. In this case, I had the visions of Gavin not eating for days and crying for even longer. My solution was a late night trip to the store to get feeding supplies. Needless to say, there are not many stores open that sell baby supplies at this time of night. When I did find a store that was open and asked the nice gentleman who was waxing the floors what isle the baby food was in, it was a mad dash to buy anything I could get my hands on. Who knew there were so many different types of bottles, nipples, inserts, food, etc.!
While I sat in the middle of my living room after all of the presents had been opened, I wondered where we were going to put all of the beeping and singing toys. I literally couldn’t even see my carpet! That’s when it hit me; there has to be something good that can come of all of the unused toys that are keeping my house cluttered. 
Oh, and totally delectable, but I digress…
