So this blog is for all you world travler mamas, and those of you that have had or will have a stinky monkey so bad Samuel L Jackson would say “eurrrybody strap in I’m about to open a window!” You know that you want to take advantage of the free or low cost travel before age two, sorry normal plane dwellers, I’m a mom now and you have to deal. So you have all these new worries and issues with infant and baby travel. You know what I’m saying ladies…. Well you have worked so hard to get this little munchie to have a good plane ride. You wear the boob top, you know the best top for breast feeding. You have the ear muffs for ear protection, the emergency bottle ready, the books, you have the back up burpie cloth, the toys – you basically look like a baby store. You’re babies-r-us express on a plane. You have fed, changed and literally burped a million times. Your layover was a quick trip to diapie changie land in a normal clean restroom and you feel prepared; you first rate travler mama.

Than you literally get onto the smallest plane possible allowed on a commercial jet and there you have it. The little stinker mun chi chi looks guilty and is oddly quiet. Next thing you know the entire plane is the stinkiest thing you have ever smelt and you know shoot theres a poo on the plane. You secretly freak out thinking ok this flight is what an hour … they can probably handle a dirty diapie an hour right? No mama they cant 😦 sadly we all know they cant. The entire plane knows whats going down. So you go into prepared mom mode! If your like us you brought bio-degradable disposable, organic changing pads(hi I’m a first mom) and you think I so have this. Then the flight attendant mentions theres no changing table on the plane… Excuse me?! no table what is this 1950! OK! Cool mama I can handle this we’re used to back seat car changing. Just not small crowded plane changing.

Mom have no fear this too is dooable for us super moms! Grab the wipes. Grab the clean diaper. Grab the disposable changing pad and the changing pad. Brace yourself and get ready for a plane changing. If your lucky theres no one in your row, if your not your doing an emergency lap change. My LO is 5months so we can lap change. Songs come in handy so do crazy silly faces ladies any face any noise you can make right about now.

Of course its a big blowout so you have to really focus. No worries however because you got this. Once the diaper blow out is handled use your nifty poop bags, yes the same ones for your dog, and place diaper and wipes in poop bag. If you had an extra special surprise then use two poop bags, if needed ask flight attendant for airline or barf bags. “Airline Sickness” bags also work if you forgot doggie bags.

Things that made my flight diapy change easier:

disposable changing pads (for use under your changing pad) or puppy pads for the thrifty mama

extra diapers (you cant have enough)

extra wipes

disposable poop bags like the ones you use for your dog

toys that make noise

silly faces and songs

Don’t worry about “germs” because they probably make your babies immune system stronger. Just take a deep breath – Good luck mamas may the force be with you 🙂

 

As you guys all know I’m the mama on the go! I don’t like to sit inside with baby all day, plus Adora LOVES going out. Adora loves to hike, camp, go to museums, science centers, the lake, park and more… I’m glad that she hasn’t discovered shopping yet!!!! 

So a few of our favorite things to do is create art work. Tiger mom says she’s a budding Picasso!

For this activity you will need:

White Onesie & White Wrap

Poster Board Kit with Clear top

Homemade Finger Paint or non-Toxic (the homemade stuff is super easy)

Full size cork board for finished project 24 x 36

24 x 36 sheet of acyclic sheet  for DIY framing

adhesive strips and nails and glue

Adora LOVED this project since she got to be held and messy and entertained all at the same time. Sensory overload.

To set up this project we recommend setting up your art blanket under the poster board. Don’t forget water and towels. I had to run back inside to grab these to clean up while we were painting. Set your colors to the side and talk about color with your LO, bonus if you call out colors in another language! You can kind of just let your little one go crazy now with the colors, pick them up slide them around, let them get their onesie extra messy so you have better color mixing on the white onesie and wrap. You can take as long or as little as your LO wants with this project. If you don’t DIY your finger paints no worries were busy mamas and it makes clean up easier. 

Next step is to use the letters to put their names and date on the project. Or whatever you can imagine. I also added a photo to capture the moment. Then put your cling sheet on your poster board to seal the finger paint art. Here comes the fun mom art part. Use adhesive strips on the back of the poster board, I used 3m because they were at the 99cent store. Nail the onesie and the wrap to the opposite side of the poster board. Now glue the acrylic sheet to the top of the wooden cork frame to seal the whole project and make it hangable ready. YAY! My final goal is to attach a video screen onto the project to make it interactive art, but thats totally just reaching!

Well for those of us out there that want to take advantage of FREE or low cost international travel you came to the right post. However before you can travel you gotta get those docs!

Here is the official link to US department of state.

First thing you have to do is make an appointment at your local post office or passport agency 8weeks out! This will save you money and stress of having to rush. If you know your travel dates book the appointment when you book your tickets. If you don’t have time there are plenty of offices that will take you 2weeks before your travel date with a confirmed ticket and 60$ charge. Expedited travel passport agencies.

After you have your appointment put aside your documents.

a. Fill out the DS-11 form online and print it BUT DO NOT SIGN IT. You can also grab one of these at the agency, however it will make your process a bit longer.

b.You will need an official birth certificate.

c. Two parents in person with IDs or passports present.

d. Also a photocopy of your ID in color, some agencies may do this but it also ads time and sometimes they will charge you for it.  If one parent can’t make the appointment you can get the DS-3053 form notarized. (online there is more information for unique parental situations.)

e. Bring a Photo!

note* Some agencies require proof of travel outside the country in the form of a ticket.

To stay organized we kept all her information in a neat little binder. 

For our little princess taking at home passport photos was the best option. When you have a baby everything takes longer so put aside an extra hour. If your LO is a squiggler like mine then its hard to get them in one spot for to long. You would think taking a snap of your LO for passport photos would be easy, however they are very specific.

Use a white background. Put your baby on a sheet or blanket that is plain white. Not fancy smacy fur or white with any touches, just a plain ol’ sheet or piece of paper. Use good lighting. You don’t need fancy lighting just the room and natural lighting is fine. A camera or camera phone works amazing. I6 brags about their amazing HD pics so why not just use something you LITERALLY have in your hand.

Here are a few of the pics we took. As you can see they weren’t all the pro-fesh ones she usually has. Some were blurry, some were to large, some were to bright, some weren’t framed correctly. We also didn’t know exactly how much of her cute lil’ face we should have in the photo. So we made two prints at home and brought them to the passport office and I’m glad we did because they didn’t approve our first take!

*NOTE – The photo has to have your baby looking at the camera directly. Your photo has to have their face framed and not take up the entire 2″x 2″ square. Your photo has to be in focus and not blurry. Your photo has to have proper lighting not dim lighting. White background, plain photo, no bows, no hats, no glasses etc…

Final Products!

We used IDPHOTO4YOU.com because it was the easiest to use. Honestly it was a pain to try to edit and capture that beautiful 2″ by 2″ on my editing programs. Even on photo shop it was taking forever to get a perfect image. On the website we used it was pick the output size upload the picture pick your country, frame the face, and your done. We had alot of 4×6 photo paper from buying ink cartridges so we printed at home. It was super easy as soon as we had the downloads. *NOTE* To down load the passport 4×4 you need to wait 90 seconds and then a DOWNLOAD blue word appears. You don’t have to click the green download button and download software, just wait the 90seconds and the WORD DOWNLOAD appears in blue under the picture, there is a blue arrow next to the word.

Once you have your completed photo put it in your binder with all other documents and walah you have a baby ready for world travel! 🙂 HOW EXCITING! 🙂

thats us on the front cover of the episode 🙂 What an honor! 🙂

FULL BIG BROTHER 18 Episode

Adora Borealis was born to two very competitive former big brother houseguests! Rachel Reilly Villegas & Brendon Villegas, for those of you that know our story we met on season 12 of Big Brother went on to win season 13 of Big Brother, went onto Amazing Race as an engaged couple and placed 3rd then went on to amazing race all stars as a married couple and we placed 3rd again! For us CBS has been our lives for the past 6years!

What an adventure it has been! Between meeting, falling in love, traveling and having a little baby its been a mini fairy tale mixed with sitcom dramady for our little family. Brendon is also working a PhD while all this is going on.

When we met and fell in love we KNEW we wanted to have little babies. A whole house full of little ones, were still working on the house full right now Adora is filling up our lives. Naturally, we had to announce the pregnancy on Big Brother and also introduce Adora to America on Big Brother! When they asked us to participate in this package we couldn’t have been more excited. As a giddy mom I just couldn’t wait to show off my little angel and as a fun new mom I wanted to wear matching outfits and share a really cool experience with Adora.

Outfits!

First things first-WHAT TO WEAR? This is the major question all you girls out think about when you have something exciting coming up. Being a new mom I wanted to match my lil’ peanut and Brendon had to coordinate with our outfits. I searched high and low for matching mom and baby outfits and I actually had a hard time finding ones to fit in with my style.

Above is what I found! I was gifted the green tule baby skirt and paired that with a one I found down town in LA, I found the two matching skirts downtown from JayVee kids and we found the Paris and polka dots online. The outfit we choose matched so well and looked great on camera so we picked the khaki and flower print skirts with black tops and complimentary necklaces (below). We had to take in the skirt and cut it shorter for her, but that was great because we used the extra fabric to make head bows. We then had dad wear a black top with us, we had him try on 4 different styles of red tops but none of them looked as good as the black so we did black. Brendon is a good sport and supports us so it isn’t that much of a struggle to get him to do these shoots with us.

The camera team arrived around 10am. Adora and I were getting ready since 7am between feedings and getting dressed with newborn in carrier I knew it would take a bit longer.

Getting Camera Ready with a Baby:

Getting Adora ready is super easy a quick bath which she loves anyway, a good feeding after bath a clean diaper and a onesie to wear until you are ready for camera. Make sure not to dress baby until you are ready or you risk getting your outfit dirty or spit up on or anything. For us moms to prepare for any type of getting ready with newborns I suggest scheduling an extra hour a good carrier and a little swing. Adora loves the fisher price take along swing. We were passed down the swing from aunt Allyson and she loves it. When doing my hair she will sit in the swing and play with the toys and lights for about 15minutes, then its hold me time so the carrier really comes in handy. I don’t want her near the loud blow dryer or the hot curling iron so I try to keep her occupied as long as possible. During makeup time she will outward face and I just speak to her about what I am doing the whole time so she feels engaged. I even ask her if mommy should wear this color on her eyes etc. Makeup brushes end up being chew toys so just make sure to wash them off before you hand to baby. hehe Also don’t think you need to add lip gloss or mascara to make your little one look cute or pop, they are babies they will do this naturally. I have seen what poor little ones with mascara look like and its not pretty. (at auditions all the crazies come out)

Camera arrived and we thought best to film Brendon first since Adora needed to be fed. However, with set up and him filming it ended up being almost 1 before they were ready for us. 1pm is Adoras nap time so she wasn’t happy. I wished I would have thought about this first.

Naps & Feeding:

Moms if you plan on filming anything or doing photo shoots, think about nap schedules and feeding schedules. Right after baby naps and eats they are usually the calmest and will look the best on camera. Trust us!

So we let her have a little nap and we were off to location two. She was so darn cute at the park I think she enjoyed her self and it came across on camera.

Toys & Enjoyable locations:

Moms if you plan on filming or photo shooting think of toys and fun spots for baby. This really does come across on camera. When she’s happy you can tell and nothing is cutter then a baby who is laughing!

Filming with a little one shouldn’t take all day and it can’t last to long anyway. So after our second location and some B-Roll footage we were done! 🙂 Thats a wrap for Adora and an experience we will never forget! And for a fun unforgettable photo shoot or video shoot just think and plan ahead.

 

Like I always say- there really is something magical about getting away, being outdoors it makes us realize how amazing the world really is. It couldn’t be more true then when you share the experience with your new baby.

Their eyes light up! The smells the light, the different feels and sensations! You can’t create it in a baby toy its real raw and theres just something about the way they experience it that makes you re-experience it and really appreciate it.

Camping is one of our favorite activities as a family since we get to share the experience with our dog and now our new lil’ angel. We were set to go camping at Big Sur for the 4th this year and we chickened out since it gets down in the 60s in the evenings and Adora was only 3months at the time. I think we would have been ok! But this isn’t about missing that trip its about actually going on one!

Things to remember when you have baby along-

SUN -Theres no house cave but a tent and that gets hot plus your out exploring all day

WEATHER -If its super hot you have to keep your LO cool, if its cold you have to keep them warm

BUGS -Theres nothing worse then an ant bite or a spider bite YIKES! And mosquitos I shutter thinking about them

FOOD-NAPS-SLEEPING-CLEAN CLOTHES/DIAPERS -you get the point

You want this to be a fun experience that you enjoy and create memories and experiences you can continue as they grow up.

SUN

Sun is one of the harder things to think about when out and about. Since sunscreen isn’t recommended by your babies Dr. I talked to ours and he said if we do it use mineral sunscreen and a little is better then a sunburn! SUN IS HARSH IN CA with that being said I got an amazing hat iPlay sunhat and I really like how it protects her face and neck. The sunglasses look cute but LETS BE REAL Adora took them off as soon as I put them on. She has her own tent I found on amazon and my friend Brian got us for the baby shower, the brand is KiloFly. We like it because it has mesh so it also protects from insects, but we wish that there was a larger top screen because its hard to maneuver with the sun shading all of her. The biggest thing I can recommend is a sun suit or sun shirt Adora has one that is up to SPF 50.

I also carry an umbrella with me for sun protection everywhere I go!

 

BACK TO WEATHER

Weather is tough to control but you always have to be prepared. Brendon checks online first but we come prepared and always bring a rainfly because you never know. The tent is amazing but it does get warm during the hot sun so best to set up under a tree. In the hot summer months in CA we need to be on the look out for Adora getting to hot or dehydrated.

Signs of heat exposure include:

fewer tears when crying: fewer wet diapers: more fussy but refusal to take bottles or breast: Dry mouth: sunken spots — Heres a great site with more information—

When you camp your outside all day and maybe hiking or exploring it’s important to remember to offer your baby the bottle or breast even more often then usual to prevent dehydration. We also try to carry wet(cold if possible) cloths for her head and feet. At the lake it was easy to cool off in the water and not worry as much about getting to hot so we try to stick to hikes in the shade, near water, with a breeze, or on a cooler day.

When its cold remember that most of your heat is lost from your head so be prepared to keep your LO warm by using layers! Even if its hot during the day it can cool off at night so be prepared for anything. Adoras lake outfits are much different then her nighttime outfits. Also shown is her sun dress and the kilo fly.

BUGS

Something that can ruin any out door experience is a bad bite. Spiders, ants, mosquitos, and numerous other pests all live outside. Not to mention snakes and scorpions. You want to stay clear of large rocks and sunny paths for the bad guys where they like to escape the heat or sun. However, for bugs its a little more difficult to be on the look out. Most bad spiders don’t hang out in the open where people are. Black widows, brown recluse and hobo spiders really don’t like to be bothered but you can still run into them so be on the look out parents. Other spider bites in the US don’t require medical attention. Other bugs are just not fun but check out this affordable natural bug spray you can make at home.

FOOD

Breast fed babies are easy and its super relaxing and fun to breast feed outdoors. You don’t have to worry about people watching or covering up, just you baby and the outdoors! You can hike and feed or just relax and feed either way just remember to stay hydrated yourself. Bottle babies just require more preparation. You can prefill a bottle or two at home where its likely cleaner. You can also use ziplock baggies and portion out formula. Whatever works for you is best for baby just bring an extra water bottle that is only used for baby.

Clean Clothes : Diapers

When out for long periods of time its best to have a change of clothing, this is true for outdoors too. Baby is going to get dirty and your going to get sweaty and that sweat is going to end up on your LO. Bringing extra clothes for nighttime and day time! You may not be around running water at a campsite or on your hike so bring clean clothes and clean diapers. I recommend big ziplock baggies for diapers trash and also for keeping things clean so grab a pack from the dollar store before you head out. Don’t worry if there a bit of dirt on something or if your baby eats some its going to be ok, we did and it made us stronger.

Sleeping

The easiest thing but some parents find it to be the hardest. Adora still sleeps in bed with us, I’m not going to lie we bed share. I have never rolled on her or been worried about it. She’s getting bigger daily so the only things I worry about are her kicks in the middle of the night they pack a punch! So when sleeping somewhere thats not our CA-king bed I just am cautious that we won’t be somewhere she could roll into danger i.e. a pillow on her head or sleeping bag covering her and that we won’t have her rolling into a rock or something sharp. When you camp you have your tent on top of a tarp and a tarp inside your tent, usually you then add a base layer of blow up whatever or sleeping bags to sleep on top of. So they won’t really be sleeping on rocks or rolling into rocks. Sleeping bags are made to keep you warm and have lots of cushion that moves, so maybe think about laying something on top of your sleeping bag if your worried or laying your sleeping bag all the way out. If its really cold at night you can use a halo wrap with layers underneath, you can also buy baby cold suits so you don’t have to put a blanket on top of your baby. I’ve read parents all do it differently but I keep reading over and over about parents using layers! This is probably the best idea because they can come off or go on easily.

GOOD LUCK HAVE FUN AND REMEMBER NOT TO STRESS! BABIES ARE MADE FOR THIS KIND OF STUFF!

 

MY BABYS GROWING UP! hehe

Adora has gone to her FIRST baby audition. I know what your thinking either Rachel is “pimping out her first born becoming a stage mom” or “going for it lady make that green for Adora.”

Well when weighing the pros and cons of putting your baby into the entertainment crazy remember your the mama or care giver of this little one and no one can judge you for making choices for them. You’re doing the best you can and you’re doing a good job!

We decided why not get Adora into what she can do now if she seems like she’s enjoying it and not crying and ok meeting other people. We can start to save for a college fund for her future while she’s young so she doesn’t have to worry as much later. In California they require all working child actors to have a coogan account. You as their guardian can put as much in as you want but you have to put at least %15 into the account which is sealed until they child is 18. This is a great way to start saving for your little. You also have to get a work permit and don’t worry there are very strict laws in place for children in the industry. So walking into this knowing it’s safe and she won’t be over worked we decided this was something we wanted to pursue.

Adoras first audition made me super nervous. We found out the day before she had been requested for the audition. We let her agent know we were interested in attending the audition and we got all the information. I didn’t know what we needed to prepare or bring with us so I asked her agent and for this baby audition they just wanted to see baby’s personality and looks in person. We were told to wear an outfit that most looks like a new born so we picked a laylette and packed the diaper bag for the next day.

I told Adora some new people wanted to meet her because they think she’s special. I let her know this whole thing would be alot of fun meeting new people and that just like ice cream sometimes people want tart and sometimes they want berry.

Morning of the audition we didn’t really need to bring anything with us, sometimes they request a recent 5×7 with information attached but not for this audition. We gave Adora a bath so she would be relaxed and fresh for meeting other people. I told Adora some new people wanted to meet her because they think she’s special. I let her know this whole thing would be alot of fun meeting new people and that just like frozen yogurt sometimes people want tart and sometimes they want berry. I’m sure she didn’t understand but I want to keep perfecting that speech if we keep going to auditions. We arrived at the location 15 minutes before our audition, I tried to get there 30minutes before but it was hard with a 2month old. We found the desk for check in and sat down to nurse before the audition. Some moms there told us to keep her belly full, keep her happy and alert, and with a clean diaper and outfit. They had been to a few auditions and had older babies so I assume they know what they are talking about. The auditions move really fast once they start, literally less then 3minutes per baby. We were called walked in and were asked a few questions about Adoras personality and nap schedule(as if she has one). So I told them she was a champ at the 30minute naps and 2 hour sleep cycles. They laughed and we were done. Just a few photos, a few short answers from mom on camera and keeping focus on camera with baby as long as possible.

We don’t know if we got a call back yet, I don’t think the audition knew what they were looking for. We were one of the only girls there. They had babies of all ages and types, Adora was probably the youngest baby there.  So we will see, it was a fun experience super quick in and out and we will go along with our lives! I think this is the best way to handle it, entertainment is fun but you have to live your life and if you get a project or two save some money and have some fun, if you become super successful enjoy the journey.  For now we’ll keep ya posted on what happens.

Hey mamas, lets start by talking about how adorable the above photos are. I found them online and had to share, it’s baby wearing around the world.

I cant speak enough about how much I LOVE TO WEAR MY BABY! Ill take any carrier or sling right now that she fits in and wear her all the time. Honestly, I have become obsessed with it. There are so many reasons why its amazing and why you moms out there who are stuck on strollers should try it.

Baby Wearing promotes bonding

This may be the #1 reason for me on why I want to wear my baby. Your baby is kept close to you, warm next to your skin or shirt and can smell you. It promotes trust and attachment. Also according to numerous pro-baby wearing sites it makes baby more secure leading to feeling more secure later in life.

Your hands are free

Your hands free, need I say more. From the tired mama who’s been dealing with cluster feeding (hello me) to the mama who has other babies to care for (I don’t know about this one yet) you have free hands you can use. You can actually do stuff while wearing your baby. Think about all the extra things you can do while your hands free! For me its been my zen and a dream!

You can nurse while baby wearing

With your hands free to do whatever you need and your baby in a sling you can actually nurse on the go! You can walk and nurse, you can multi task and nurse, you can cook, clean do whatever you need while nursing when wearing your baby. Most carriers are even discrete enough so no one would even know your nursing your baby, you can pop out a boob and no one will judge you. For me this makes my life not only easy but when your dealing with cluster feeding and you just cant handle being couch locked you can take your baby on the go while giving her whatever she needs.

Sooth your baby

My little one gets hiccups when she is kept laying down or in a swing. However, when I put her in her carrier she burps and then doesn’t have hiccups anymore. I don’t think this is a coincidence. She also LOVES the motion of the baby carrier and walking, the bounce and the fresh air put her right to sleep. Literally if she is crying I will put her in her carrier and go out and walk within 2 minutes she stops crying and is happy. This is also my go to for when I want her to take a nap. I think some babies like constant movement and I was super active when she was in the womb so I assume this reminds her of being in the womb. Also apparently research shows that carried babies cry 40-50% less!

Keep away the germs

Carrying your baby will not only help to keep them healthier but it will help to discourage people from touching baby. Carried babies are less likely to have strangers touch them and also less likely to touch strange things! Which means your more likely to be a happy mama. Seriously though, when your baby is being carried close to your body people are less likely to approach you and try to touch your lil angel. Also when you are out and about you can worry less about coughs and stranger sicknesses.

Long story short mamas theres a million reasons to wear your little one. I actually don’t know why mamas everywhere aren’t doing it all the time. Don’t worry about doing the baby wearing thing right all the time, I have had my fail moments especially with a popular wrap, names not to be mentioned, starts with a M ends with a lot of confusion! So I use it in my own way. I love my Ergo Baby so much it was a baby shower gift I literally can’t rave enough about it. One of my girl friends loves her Honest wrap more then anything and she’s a NY active new mama. I walk around my LA neighborhood a lot since Adora hates her car seat and the Ergo has a pocket for an extra diaper, wipes on the go, hand sanitizer, my money, keys and phone. The ergo is super sturdy and you feel safe with your baby and it’s comfortable for mama, and it has a sun shade which doubles as a people shade too. The wrap is good for wrapping around the house and nursing. I also have the Pumpkin pouch which is good for nursing while sitting or lounging but not for walking. The infantino swift is great for a quick trip since its so light weight and you can stuff it into your diaper bag and use it when your out and about but its not good for long days or trips since it doesn’t provide amazing support for you or the little angel. They however, offer various carriers for all your needs.  I also use the swift like a swing when nursing or a seat when she’s sitting on me.

Good Luck with your new little ones and share your baby wearing stories, secrets and favorite ways with me so I can try them also!