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Winner: Redbud Designs Blog Makeover

Congrats to Analee (comment #19). She is the winner of the Blog Design giveaway we hosted here on BBA from Redbud Designs. Analee said...

"I am posting for my amazing sister. She teaches at head start and has 1 year old twin boys! Her blog is in serious need of a makeover. She might actually blog more if it was cute.

I know Sharon through club, SiggieSisters, so I blogstalk. :)

I love Sharon's designs and think The Idea Farm would be great for my sister's blog!"

Thanks to Sharon of Redbud Designs for the giveaway!

BBA Headlines

:: Lawyer: Octuplets in Danger
Celebrity attorney Gloria Allred says Nadya Suleman's only cares about her eight babies when the cameras are rolling.

:: Safety first!
Baby-proofing suggestions for your home.

:: Is Mariah Carey expecting a Baby Girl?
According to the New York Daily News, Carey recently dropped $200,000 on baby furniture. The pricey pickups included a pink crib and highchair.

:: Best Gift for Newborn's Siblings?
One-on-one time with mom is what they may want most.

:: Toddlers Really Do Hear What We Say
Apparently they just pretend they don't and store away the information for later.

My Relish! Menu Planning Review

A few weeks ago we gave away a one year subscription to Relish!, the online menu planning website.

I was introduced to it by a friend who kept talking about these amazing meals she was cooking every night. She has used Relish! for a few months and loves the service for her family. She follows it faithfully and loves going to the grocery only once a week with her organized grocery list.

I, on the other hand, was not as succesful with my venture into menu planning with Relish! The concept is really good and it helped me to realize how important it is to meal plan, something that I've always wanted to do, but never got around to doing. The Relish! website is also very organized and actually encourages you to choose new recipes for your family which is great. I just think I need to stick with more recipes I know. I've realized that I'm not that adventurous when it comes to new recipes and foods and my husband isn't either. We won't even get started on our VERY picky three-year-old.

My first mistake was taking my three year old to the grocery with me for my first shopping trip. For the first trip, it took more thought than my usual grocery trip, because I was buying things I don't normally buy. Throwing an impatient three-year-old into the mix didn't help.

On the way home, I realized how great it was to know that I had all the ingredients I needed for five meals! Sometimes I come home from the grocery and still think, what did I buy that I can throw together for a meal? I LOVED having all the ingredients for the meals I selected, but I also wondered each day if that night's meal would be a success or a failure and we'd have to order pizza.

I am still considering using Relish! for a meal or two a week in conjunction with some of my other standard recipes. I hope to get better at meal planning. In the next few days, I'll be posting a meal planning spreadsheet here on BBA that I found recently while blog hopping.

I'd still suggest checking Relish! out for yourself, because I think it can be great for some families. Let us know if there are any menu planning methods or services that work for you.

Fertility Clinics Prove Recession-Proof For Egg Donors

An unlikely business appears to be thriving during this difficult economy. Fertility clinics across the country are experiencing a baby boom of sorts.

An increasing number of women are donating their eggs. Some do it to help families conceive a child, but the financial reward for selling their eggs is also appealing.

News 5 found ads on Craigslist.org placed by agencies and couples looking for what they consider to be a "good egg donor." The ads offer anywhere from $8,000 to $50,000 to women who are willing to donate their eggs.

Read more...

BBA Weekend Wrap

:: Using facebook as a parenting tool...
:: Octomom brings home two more babies...
:: Sex change woman pregnant with twins...
:: Helping pregnant women stay fit...
:: Bad economy has parents saying no a lot...
:: Financial planning for the single parent...
:: Picking the right summer camp for your child...
:: Good mothers lead by example...
:: Nine ways to outsmart sibling rivalry...
:: Parenting tips...
:: iPhone could soon help parents track kids' health...
:: Former 'Bachelor' Firestone, wife, welcome baby...
:: Parrot alerts owner to choking baby, gets reward...
:: Golfer Annika Sorenstam is pregnant...

Winner: iPhone App

Congrats to Kerri (comment #7) who said... "What a great idea. Hope I win;)" She is the winner of the iPhone App Giveaway for the Baby Activity Logger. We'll contact you to let you know how to redeem your prize.

Click here for our current giveaways.

Win a Blog Design from Redbud Designs! **GIVEAWAY CLOSED**

:: THIS GIVEAWAY IS CLOSED. CLICK HERE TO SEE IF WE HAVE A NEW GIVEAWAY ON BBA.

Next up in our weekly Blog Designer Spotlight here on BBA is the talented Sharon Albright of Redbud Designs.


GIVEAWAY: Redbud Designs is giving away a SIMPLE BLOG DESIGN (custom header design and background) with an added signature to one lucky BBA reader!!!

How to enter:

1) Go to Redbud Designs and search through Sharon's creative designs for your favorite.

2) Earn one entry by leaving a comment on this post telling us your favorite design.

3) Earn one extra entry by becoming a BBA Follower in our left column and letting us know in a separate comment. If you are already a follower, you can still earn an extra entry by just letting us know in a separate comment.

4) Make sure we have your contact info (email or blog address) in your blogger profile or comment itself, so we can contact you if you win.

5) This giveaway ends: Wednesday, 3/25 at 7:00 PM ET. We'll select a random winner then post their name here on BBA and contact them after the contest ends. Good luck!

A sampling of Sharon's creative blog designs...

We asked Sharon to tell us about herself and her design background. Here's what she said...

I am a proud Texas girl, but now live in Nashville, Tennessee with my talented husband, Kevan, and our precious baby girl, Merit.

I was an elementary teacher for three years, but have always had an appreciation for design of all kinds. During my time at school, I was the go-to-girl for projects such as faculty shower invitations and classroom newsletter layouts, and changing the design of my classroom calendar was a highlight each month. :) During after-school hours, I began to enjoy digital scrapbooking and card-making. Being creative in such a way quickly became a passion of mine.

In the Spring of 2008, we welcomed baby Merit into our family. Kevan and I had always planned for me to stay at home when we started having babies, so even though it seemed financially impossible, we decided to try to make it work. To do what I could to help out, I decided in October to start my own little design business. It was something that made perfect sense...staying home with Merit AND being creative for a living. It has been an adventure, and I thank God everyday that I am able to live out two of my dreams at once. You can read more about our family on my personal blog, sharonthefun.blogspot.com.

Here's what Sharon told us about her design services...

I really enjoy blog design. I have packages that include headers only all the way to a full blog redesign. I tend to favor vintage designs, and if a client gives me free reign, a vintage-whimsical feel is most likely what I'm going to create. However, I can create any type of style that you can dream up! I will always do my very best to be sure that my client loves the final design and truly feels that it represents their unique character. I currently do full redesigns for Blogger, and offer header designs for Wordpress and Etsy shops.

Sharon designs more than blogs...

In addition to blog design, I offer services for printed products, such as invitations, announcements, business cards and brochures, logo design, and t-shirt design. Currently, I send my client a jpeg file, and they are able to print where and however they wish!

Winner: Sweet Cheeky Designs Blog Redesign

Congratulations to luckeelady (comment #66). I guess she really is a "lucky lady"! She is the winner of the Blog Redesign Giveaway from Sweet Cheeky Designs.

She said, "I like the Gift Closet... I love polka dots and it looks great."

Congrats luckeelady. We'll send you an email to let you know how to redeem your prize.

::Check out our current giveaway for a blog design from Redbud Designs.

Irish Baby Names

On this St. Patrick's Day, the staff at Parenting.com has compiled a list of its favorite Irish baby names. Bedelia, Fallon and Maeve are some of the girls' names. For boys, a few of the faves are Callum, Killian and Seamus.

Click here for the full list.

BBA Headlines

:: Girl Calls 911, Saves Brother's Life
A 9-year-old Fort Worth, Texas girl said she knew just what to do when her baby brother fell into the family's backyard pool.

:: Better Oversight of Baby Products Demanded
Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand demanded that the Food and Drug Administration exercise greater oversight of baby care products in reaction to an advocacy group's report that said the products contain potentially harmful materials.

:: Tiniest Babies Carry Biggest Costs
Medical costs for healthy, full-term babies during their first year average $4,551, of which about $3,800 is covered by employer heath insurance. But for preterm babies, the cost is almost $50,000, with about $46,000 paid by employer insurance.

:: Patrick Wilson, Wife Expecting Second Baby
Wilson, 35, star of the hit Watchmen, and his wife, actress Dagmara Dominczyk, 32, are expecting a second child due this summer.

Baby-Proofing Octomom's New Home

Two of Nadia Suleman's octuplets haven't been cleared to go home yet. Suleman's new home must first be baby-proofed. Social workers say the gas company still must inspect the La Habra house. They also want carbon monoxide detectors installed before the first two octuplets are released. Suleman hired a baby-proofing service to handle some of the household issues.

BBA Headlines

:: Children's bath products tainted...
:: Woman charged $195K for someone else's baby...
:: Telling people you're pregnant...
:: Get healthy while pregnant...
:: What advice did you ignore as a new parent ?...
:: Report: Tom Cruise makes Katie diet before pregnancy...
:: Baby for Carson Daly, longtime girlfriend...
:: Ellen Degeneres, Portia DeRossi having a baby?...

The Case Against Breastfeeding

By Hanna Rosin
The Atlantic

One afternoon at the playground last summer, shortly after the birth of my third child, I made the mistake of idly musing about breast-feeding to a group of new mothers I’d just met. This time around, I said, I was considering cutting it off after a month or so. At this remark, the air of insta-friendship we had established cooled into an icy politeness, and the mothers shortly wandered away to chase little Emma or Liam onto the slide. Just to be perverse, over the next few weeks I tried this experiment again several more times. The reaction was always the same: circles were redrawn such that I ended up in the class of mom who, in a pinch, might feed her baby mashed-up Chicken McNuggets.

In my playground set, the urban moms in their tight jeans and oversize sunglasses size each other up using a whole range of signifiers: organic content of snacks, sleekness of stroller, ratio of tasteful wooden toys to plastic. But breast-feeding is the real ticket into the club. My mother friends love to exchange stories about subversive ways they used to sneak frozen breast milk through airline security (it’s now legal), or about the random brutes on the street who don’t approve of breast-feeding in public. When Angelina Jolie wanted to secure her status as America’s ur-mother, she posed on the cover of W magazine nursing one of her twins. Alt-rocker Pete Wentz recently admitted that he tasted his wife, Ashlee Simpson’s, breast milk (“soury” and “weird”), after bragging that they have a lot of sex — both of which must have seemed to him markers of a cool domestic existence.

Read more...

iPhone App Giveaway: Baby Activity Logger **GIVEAWAY CLOSED**

:: THIS GIVEAWAY IS CLOSED. CLICK HERE TO SEE IF WE HAVE A NEW GIVEAWAY ON BBA.

The creator of Baby Activity Logger, a new iPhone application, contacted us to get the word out to the BBA Nation. It looks like a pretty useful app. In a nutshell, it allows parents to track the activities of their baby -- eating, peeing, pooping, burping, sleeping and spitting up.

It costs $2.99 in Apple's App Store, but one lucky BBA reader will get it for free.

Enter a name in the comments below and leave a blog link or e-mail address so we can contact the winner. This giveaway will end at 8 p.m. EST on Wednesday, March 18th.

BBA Weekend Wrap

:: Safe sleeping environments for baby...
:: Octomom mom says two babies home Monday...
:: Gets baby care gifts...
:: Date nights in three easy steps...
:: Parenting techniques to try on spouse...
:: My toddler is making me fat...
:: Twin boys for Charlie Sheen, wife Brooke...

Winner: Doodlebug Designs Blog Makeover

Congrats to Cathy Davis (comment # 6)!! She is the winner of our giveaway of Custom Blog Design from Doodlebug Designs. Don't forget, Doodlebug Designs is celebrating one year in business with an offer of $10 off each custom blog design. But hurry up. The discount ends tomorrow, March 15th.

Everyone else still has a chance to win a blog makeover here on BBA. Check out and enter this week's giveaway from Sweet Cheeky Designs.

BBA Headlines

:: Baby toys recalled because of choking hazard...
:: Cop pulls over, delivers own baby...
:: Anne Heche names baby boy Atlas...
:: Police: Woman has baby, steals purse...
:: 'Bones' star Boreanaz expecting second baby...
:: 'Iron Chef' Cat Cora, partner, both pregnant...
:: Gisele is ready to have Tom Brady's baby...

Win a Blog Redesign from Sweet Cheeky Designs! **GIVEAWAY CLOSED**

:: THIS GIVEAWAY IS CLOSED. CLICK HERE TO SEE IF WE HAVE A NEW GIVEAWAY ON BBA.

We have featured some very creative designers in our weekly Blog Designer Spotlights here on BBA. Next up is Traci Rutledge of Sweet Cheeky Designs. She is very talented and creates beautiful blog designs. Traci is also celebrating her birthday this month, so Happy Birthday, Traci, from all of us at BBA!

GIVEAWAY: Sweet Cheeky Designs is giving away a BLOG REDESIGN to one lucky BBA reader!!! The redesign is for a 2 or 3 column blog with personalized header, custom signature, post break, custom side buttons and a matching blog button and nav bar, if needed. The 2-column designs start at $30 and the 3-column blog is $85. Each design comes with installation and maintenance too.

How to enter:

1) Go to Sweet Cheeky Designs or the Sweet Cheeky Design Portfolio and search through her creative designs for your favorite.

2) Earn one entry by leaving a comment on this post telling us your favorite design from Sweet Cheeky Designs.

3) Earn one extra entry by becoming a BBA Follower in our left column and letting us know in a separate comment. If you are already a follower, you can still earn an extra entry by just letting us know in a separate comment.

4) Make sure we have your contact info (email or blog address) in your blogger profile or comment itself, so we can contact you if you win.

5) This giveaway ends: Wednesday, 3/18 at 7:00 PM ET. We'll select a random winner then post their name here on BBA and contact them after the contest ends. Good luck!

Some of Traci's creative blog designs...

We asked Traci to tell us about herself and her design background. Here's what she said...

I am a former teacher and stay at home mother of two who finally found her dream job. While taking my son to special schools and therapy for autism, I learned web design by reading some books in my car waiting for him. Crazy, right? I started playing with the graphics by asking my friends to let me experiment on their blogs.

I started Sweet Cheeky Designs in August of 2008 and I have already been so blessed with customers who want a unique and creative blog redesign.

Since moving from Texas to Northwest Arkansas in the fall of 2008, both of my kids are in school full-time and I get to spend my day redesigning blogs and learning the website end of it all. I enjoy each new customer and will never make the same design twice. I want your blog to portray you and I will work until you love, love, love it!

Here's what Traci told us about her design services...

Sweet Cheeky Designs will help you achieve your dream blog. I currently only work with Blogger and can do anything from a redesign to any side items of your choice. Including personalized headers, custom signature and side buttons, to navigation bars on your website-blog.

Turn around time is usually less than a week. I will keep you updated on the process by giving you access to the testing site that I use. By working together, I guarantee that you will love, love, love your new blog!

Traci ended the interview by telling BBA...

I LOVE comments so stop by today to browse my website and learn about what I can do for you next!

Bristol Palin Dumps Baby Daddy?

The teen romance that prompted a pregnant pause in Sarah Palin's bid to become U.S. Vice President is reportedly over.

Bristol Palin and fiancé Levi Johnston have broken up after she referred to his family as "white trash," the hockey-playing hunk's sister dished to Star magazine.

Last Chance to Enter

Tomorrow is the last day to enter to win a free blog makeover from Doodlebug Designs here on BBA. Click here for a direct link to the giveaway post. Ends Wednesday, 3/11 at 7:00 PM ET.

Becoming a Digital Mom...and Dad

This morning the Today Show kicked off a series spotlighting "Digital Moms." Laura Fortner from CafeMom.com and mommy blogger Heather Armstrong, of Dooce.com, discuss how technology can help ease moms' busy lives.



Here are the 10 ways to become a digital mom: use the right phone, keep your hands free, spend less time organizing photos, devise a system for making and sharing cute videos, back up your memories before your hard drive crashes, organize your home and your life, control TV viewing, use the web to stay safe, get a video baby monitor and do research and get advice from moms online. Click here for the full story.

And Today isn't forgetting about dads. Here are 10 ways to become a digital dad.

Special Discounts for BBA Readers

We love when you visit our BBA sponsors and support their businesses. They love it too, so a few are offering these great discounts for all of you.

shooshoos baby shoes is currently offering a special with their Spring launch. Buy any item marked as NEW on the site, and each additional item in your order (excluding NEW items) will be marked down to $10 each. This is a saving of up to $10 per item.

Jackaroos Children's Boutique is offering $10 off purchases of $50 or more. Use the code 10_OFF_50. Offer expires 3/31/09.

BBA Weekend Wrap

:: Giving baby the best gift possible...
:: Kelly Clarkson doesn't want to babysit your kids...
:: No baby plans for Fergie yet...
:: Toddler tumbles into open sewer...
:: Toddler schedule is too much...
:: Parenting tips for new twins...

Follow BBA on Twitter

We're back at it in the twitter world; you can check it out at the top of the left sidebar. You'll need flash to see it. Just like the e-mail or reader subscription to Baby Blog Addict, you can easily follow our twitter feed as well. We can't guarantee it'll be anything exciting, but we'll give it a shot again and see what happens.

Our Twitter page is www.twitter.com/babyblogaddict. The Baby Blog Addict RSS feed will also run through twitter, so the content that appears on the main site will also show up in the twitter feed.

Enjoy...and let us know what you think.

Purse Snatching at the Park

How many of you tuck your purse under your seat when you go to the park with your children?

Our playgroup recently met at a park that had two parking lots (one was out in the open, the other tucked away). While there, we were told by police that all of the cars in the hidden parking lot were broken into and the purses were snatched. They assumed the robber(s) came by foot and were already gone.

I've recently heard that the Spring is sort of an open season for purse snatching at parks. It is pretty obvious that most women don't bring their purse with them to the playground, so they must leave them in their cars, right? Even if you put your purse in the trunk (something that I am guilty of), someone watching might see you. All they have to do is break your window and pop your trunk to retrieve your purse.

The best thing to do is to have a small clutch (with your purse items) that you can throw into your diaper bag and hold it at the park or lock your valuables in your glove compartment.

Another thing to watch out for is setting your bag down at the park and not keeping an eye on it while you are playing with your kids. Just be aware and be overly cautious!

Winner: Krizzy Designs Blog Design or Greeting Card Design

Congrats to Beth Ewing (comment #12). She is the winner of her choice of a Blog Design or Greeting Card Design Giveaway from Krizzy Designs.

Beth won with her comment "i'm already a follower too," which was comment #12. In her other comment, #11, she said, "i really love the 'between a whisper and a roar' design."

Congrats Beth! I know you are a very frequent commenter here on BBA, and it has definitely paid off this time. Enjoy your new design from Krizzy Designs.

:: For everyone else who wants a blog makeover, you can enter our current giveaway for a Custom Blog Design from Doodlebug Designs (ends 3/11).

Blog Designer Spotlight: Doodlebug Designs + GIVEAWAY

:: THIS GIVEAWAY IS CLOSED. CLICK HERE TO SEE IF WE HAVE A NEW GIVEAWAY ON BBA.

New to BBA? Check out our welcome message and sign up for our feed or become a follower in the left sidebar, so you don't miss a thing.

We are excited to introduce you to another amazing blog designer in our weekly Blog Designer Spotlight here on BBA. Next up is Judi Ledford of Doodlebug Designs. She's giving away a CUSTOM BLOG DESIGN to one lucky BBA reader!!! She's also celebrating one year in business with an offer of $10 off each custom blog design. But hurry up. The discount ends March 15th.

Here's how to enter our giveaway for a CUSTOM BLOG DESIGN by Doodlebug Designs:

1) Go to Doodlebug Designs or the Doodlebug Designs' Gallery and search through her creative designs for your favorite.

2) Earn one entry by leaving a comment on this post telling us your favorite design from Doodlebug Designs.

3) Earn one extra entry by becoming a BBA Follower in our left column and letting us know in a separate comment. If you are already a follower, you can still earn an extra entry by just letting us know in a separate comment.

4) Make sure we have your contact info (email or blog address) in your blogger profile or comment itself, so we can contact you if you win.

5) This giveaway ends: Wednesday, 3/11 at 7:00 PM ET. We'll select a random winner then post their name here on BBA and email them after the contest ends. Good luck!

:: We asked Judi to tell us about herself and her design background. Here's what she said...

I am a stay at home mom of the most wonderful children in the world (of course). Shortly after leaving my 8-5 job I became pregnant with my son. He was born 3-1/2 months early. He was in NICU for 2-1/2 months. That experience really taught me more about what is important in life. Thank God he is a healthy and happy 3 year old now!

I started blogging in 2006 and quickly became addicted to it. I love connecting with people through blogging. I also quickly realized I was always interested in having a new look for my personal blog (For True Life). So, I taught myself blog template design. Once I got into it, I opened Doodlebug Designs in hopes of bringing in a little extra money and doing what I had come to love at the same time.

I work hard to provide each client with what they are looking for in a design. I want each and every client to be 100% satisfied with the work I do for them.

:: Here's what Judi told us about her design services...

I provide all types of design services from buttons and banners to fully customized blog designs for Blogger and Word Press users. I also design Twitter backgrounds.

I like to think my “style” is very diverse. I focus on creating the design that the client has envisioned for their site. I go out of my way to make sure I don’t get stuck in the rut of creating “cookie cutter” designs, you know, the ones that all start looking the same. So, whether you want scrapbook style, whimsical, professional, simple, feminine, or whatever, I can do it for you!

I try to keep my waiting list moving along so that my clients don’t have to wait an extremely long time to get their design. Being a blogger myself I know when you want a new design you don’t really want to wait forever for it! I work on several blogs at one time in order to facilitate that.

:: Here are a few of Judi's creative blog designs...

:: Judi also said...

I love working with people. I have made many friends through this venture. Some of them have become very close friends. That has been one of the perks of the business. I have truly been blessed.

Children's Flip Flops Recalled

About 210,000 children's flip flops, made in Brazil by Alpargatas USA Inc., of New York, have been recalled by the CPSC. The reason: decorative paint on the sole of the flip flops can contain high levels of lead, which is toxic if ingested by young children. No incidents or injuries have been reported.

The flip flops were sold between November of 2006 through February of 2009 at different stores, for $15 to $24 a pair.

Babies and TV

There has been a lot in the news lately about whether all those educational videos are worth it for babies. Here are a few links to articles that explore the topic.

:: Babies and the Boob Tube (New York Times)
:: TV for Babies: Does It Help Or Hurt (Time)
:: TV Before Age Two Won't Boost Baby's Brain (WebMD)
:: TV Won't Improve Baby's IQ (San Francisco Chronicle)

> Related: the original study we posted on Monday.

Designer Babies: Ethical?

For years, reproductive specialists have been helping people become parents, even enabling them to choose the sex of their baby. One fertility doctor is taking things a step further, offering what some are calling "designer babies."

If you could design your baby's features, would you? According to L.A.'s Fertility Institute, prospective parents can select eye color, hair color and more.

Go Mobile with BBA!

If you're a Baby Blog Addict using an internet-enabled mobile device, click here to transform this site into BBA Mobile.

To do this on your mobile device, simply open the internet browser and type www.google.com/gwt/n in the address bar. Enter our URL, choose the mobile site with or without images, then save the new URL as one of your bookmarks. On the iPhone, you can easily add BBA Mobile to your home screen.

Click here to see BBA Mobile without images. Try it out and let us know what you think. Stay informed with BBA updates 24/7!

Advertise on BBA

Put your business in front of more than 20,000 Baby Blog Addicts a month!

BBA SPECIAL: advertise between now and March 6th and get 10% off any ad term longer than one month!

Click here to check out our advertising options and please take a moment to visit our current advertisers in the right sidebar, all of whom have been with us for several months.

Television Doesn't Fast-Track Baby's Skills

A new study suggests that watching television won't improve a baby's language or cognitive skills, even if they watch several hours a day.

BWI: Breastfeeding While Driving

An Ohio mother is charged with child endangerment after another driver reported she was breastfeeding and talking on the phone while driving.

"She did admit to breastfeeding her child while driving," said Officer Michael Burke. "She kind of indicated that it's more or less a routine thing that she does."

The caller told police in suburban Dayton that he spotted the minivan-driving mother dropping off children at a school Thursday morning. Authorities used a license plate number to track down 39-year-old Genine Compton, who told them she was breast-feeding and wouldn’t let her child go hungry.

Burke says the legal concern is that Compton had a child in her lap, not that she was breast-feeding in public.

Winner: Relish! Giveaway

Congrats to prebabyjeans (comment #60) who is the winner of the One Year Subscription to Relish! plus a gift from Crate and Barrel.

She said, "I love the combination of convenience and personal choice. Some of these meal planners only give you 1 or 2 choices. But Relish gives you so many combos it is great!"

:: Click here to find out more about Relish! Online Menu Planning Service.

:: Click here to enter our new giveaway for a BLOG MAKEOVER from Krizzy Designs (ends 3/4).

3 Reasons Moms Are Addicted to the Internet

A friend and fellow baby blog addict, Bridget, came across this story "3 Reasons Moms Are Addicted to the Internet" and posted it on her facebook page. I knew it was one to share with the Baby Blog Addict community. Check it out...

Seeking information, community, and escape, new moms are spending more and more time on the web. How much is too much?

I was scrolling through family photos on my computer, admiring my two beautiful babies, when I spotted a disturbing trend: My laptop was open in almost all of the pictures. There's my daughter, at 8 months, playing at my feet while I typed away on the couch. There's me and my son, a year later, with the laptop at my side as I held him in my arms.

I'd heard about Internet addiction before, but always assumed it was something limited to socially challenged guys who played too much World of Warcraft. Now it seemed my Internet "habit" was slowly but surely crossing the line. Sometimes I found myself up into the wee hours of the morning, surfing the web while my family slept. I read the news, kept up with friends, and looked up answers to endless questions. I wrote my personal blog and read dozens of others, just for something to do.

It turns out I'm not the only mama who plugs in and zones out.

Read more...

BBA Inbox - Designing Moms Blog & Baby Punk (20% Off)

We get lots of emails every day and can't feature everyone, but we would like to highlight some. Here are a couple that we'd like to share with the BBA community.

:: Designing Moms Blog - Cat designs a line of stationery products and invitations in San Francisco.

She is also expecting a little one soon and started a collective of designing moms from all areas...stationery, pastry, fashion, editorial, etc. They are all young moms or moms-to-be who have self-owned creative businesses. She wanted to start an informal "creative" support group for moms, so DesigningMoms.blogspot.com was formed. The moms in this blog are creative dynamos and they have such fun, creative ideas that they hope to share with everyone!

:: Baby Punk is a small online website dedicated to selling baby clothes. Although they sell a lot of punk-themed items, there are also many other styles of baby clothes including cute baby clothes, political baby clothes, funny baby clothes and many more. They are offering 20% off if you enter the code babyblogaddict. It will expire in February 2010.

Blog Designer Spotlight: Krizzy Designs + GIVEAWAY!

:: THIS GIVEAWAY IS CLOSED. CLICK HERE TO SEE IF WE HAVE A NEW GIVEAWAY ON BBA.

New to BBA? Check out our welcome message and sign up for our feed or become a follower in the left sidebar, so you don't miss a thing.

We are excited to introduce you to another amazing blog designer here on BBA. Next up is Krystyn of Krizzy Designs. She is offering a GIVEAWAY too! Krystyn is giving away your choice of either a blog design (with custom header, background and signature) OR the design of a greeting card (you would receive the digital file to print, email or share).

Here's how to enter our giveaway for your choice of either:

• BLOG DESIGN (with custom header, background and signature)
• OR GREETING CARD DESIGN (you would receive the digital file to print, email or share)

1) Go to Krizzy Designs's Blog Designs or her Announcements/Invites Portfolio and search through her creative designs for your favorite.

2) Earn one entry by leaving a comment on this post telling us your favorite design from Krizzy Designs.

3) Earn one extra entry by becoming a BBA Follower in our left column and letting us know in a separate comment. If you are already a follower, you can still earn an extra entry by just letting us know in a separate comment.

4) Make sure we have your contact info (email or blog address) in your blogger profile or comment itself, so we can contact you if you win.

5) This giveaway ends: Wednesday, 3/4 at 7:00 PM ET. We'll select a random winner then post their name here on BBA and email them after the contest ends. Good luck!

Here's a little about the designer. We asked Krystyn to tell us about herself and her design background. Here's what she said...

I am a mom of 2 girls (27 months and 3 months old). I am a high school science teacher with a BS and MS in Chemistry...so graphic design is totally not my background. I've learned a little bit through some online classes, but mostly, trial and error and poking around.

I started by redesigning my own blog (reallyareyouserious.blogspot.com) and kept changing it up. Then, I helped some friends out and people started contacting me. I decided to start up a design site and see what happened, and Krizzy Designs was born.

I also am a certified (although not currently teaching) aerobics instructor. I guess you could say that I like to learn and figure out new things. Krizzy Designs keeps me busy on nights and weekends and brings in a little extra fun for me.

Here's what Krystyn told us about her design services.

I design the entire blog (header, background, signature, column headers, buttons, etc) or just pieces. From scrap book style, to smooth and sleek, to using royalty-free images; I'm willing to try whatever the customer wants.

I also love to do greeting cards (birth announcements, holiday cards, party invites, etc) as well. I like to create a design that totally suites the customer's needs.

Here are a few more of Krizzy Design's creative blog designs:

Leave your comment on this post to enter our Krizzy Designs giveaway.