co-founder of Mama Bird Box

Fall Beauty For Moms-to-Be

This post and photo cred go to our friends at Nine Naturals. We love them for their good-for-you, natural products and for helping expecting moms feel their absolute best.

As you bid adieu to summer and welcome the arrival of fall–trading in sandals for slingbacks and bikinis for blazers–be sure to also swap out your featherweight summer skincare and cosmetics for rich products better suited for this transitional season.

The crisp autumn air will feel inviting after enduring the summer heat with your own internal furnace cranked to high, so venture outdoors and partake in some of many fall activities, including visiting a harvest festival, picking apples at a nearby orchard, and taking in a football game with your partner. Protect your delicate skin from whipping winds by carrying a moisturizing body balm, such as Nine Naturals Repairing Body Balm, which uses organic shea, cupuaçu and mango butters. To ensure that your pucker stays flake-free, toss the long-lasting Nine Naturals Simply Natural Lip Balm in your bag as well.

Nine Naturals Fall Beauty for Moms-to-be | Mama Bird Box

Look the part on your fall adventures by borrowing beauty inspiration from the fall fashion runways, where the following trends ruled:

Ruby lips: No matter the hue—from cherry to burgundy—red lips are all the rage this fall. Choose from one of four red shades from Ilia Cosmetics, who offers certified-organic moisturizing lip products filled with bioactive botanicals.

Black rimmed eyes: Line your eyes from top to bottom, and tear duct to outer corner with a matte black eyeliner.Tarte Cosmetics skinny smolderEYES Amazonian Clay Waterproof Liner in Onyx will show off your peepers without smudging. Then emphasize your lashes with Honeybee Gardens Truly Natural Mascara in Black Magic! Both are formulated without parabens, mineral oil, triclosan, sodium lauryl sulfate, or gluten.

Metallic shadows: Add a little shimmer and shine to your beauty routine by painting a wash of Vapour Organic Beauty Mesmerize Eye Shimmer in Firefly, which is formulated with a minimum of 70% organic ingredients, all over your lids.

Flushed cheeks: A flawlessly flushed complexion can easily be achieved by dotting RMS Beauty Lip2Cheek (the Demure shade is perfection)—free of harmful chemicals, synthetic preservatives, synthetic vitamins, and genetically altered ingredients—on the apples of your cheeks.

Updos: Skip the primping required to achieve the perfect beach waves and opt for a chic chignon or French twist, after cleansing with Nine Naturals Citrus + Mint Nourishing Pregnancy Shampoo and then undoing any summer hair damage with Nine Naturals Citrus + Mint Nourishing Pregnancy Conditioner. Updos are an easy and classy way to dress up your look.

There’s no wrong way to rock your fall beauty style, so have fun playing around with different colors, textures, and finishes. Show us your best fall bump beauty by tagging @NineNaturals and (@MamaBirdBox) on Instagram!

Happy Halloween – Solly Baby Style

Solly Baby Wraps get all the hearts. First, we love baby wearing. Secondly, we love comfortable baby wearing. Thirdly, we love cute baby wearing. ‘Tis the season for costume cuteness so we’ve compiled our favorite costumes à la Solly Baby and these creative moms.

With the Solly Dolly, your bigger little can dress like you and you can keep your amazing mom style. Also, this doesn’t have to just be for Halloween. There is no shame in dressing your child like you on purpose or on accident any time of the year.

Cloth Diapering Part I

When my husband and I found out we were expecting our first child, the timing wasn’t ideal, and we balanced between utterly laughable surprise and overflowing joy. There was one thing, however, that repeatedly attempted to steal our joy. Finances. So to reclaim our joy, we agreed…this child could cost us nothing. Nothing. And however unrealistic that was, we were determined to be as close to “nothing” as possible. With the help of insurance, hand-me-downs, and friends who showered us with baby gifts, we almost achieved that for all of our one-time needs.

Then we had to factor in the on-going expenses of feeding and diapering this baby. Breastfeeding had to work. I gave myself no other option because there was no other option. It had to work, and thankfully it did.

On to diapering.

We were living in a community in Wisconsin that embraced all things local, earthy, and natural, so we had the convenience of a cloth diapering store. But what kind does one in our situation choose? The cheapest. We went prefolds all the way. You know, the kind your mom or grandmother used with safety pins. We outfitted ourselves with 24 prefolds, 4 covers, 2 Snappis, 3 wet/dry bags varying in size, and a stack of cloth wipes for less than $200* and, with a few additions/replacements, all of that lasted us through two kids. My prefolds were strong and durable even if they did take a few tries to master.

These are my cloth diapering truths:

Cloth diapering is one of the most unglamorous things you can do.
Luxury is when my mom or mom-in-law would buy us a package of disposable diapers.
Rest is now having both of my children potty trained.
Joy is being able to pass down our diapers to another family who may not be able to afford disposables.

How you choose to diaper your baby is up to you. Our goal is for you to make your parenting decisions based off of what works for you, you and your baby. And your sanity should always be a deciding factor. I would have gone insane with worry over finances every time I bought a package of diapers, so cloth diapering with prefolds was my sanity. Find your sanity; be at peace.

*Prices in links do not necessarily reflect the price that we paid at the time.