Stretch marks during pregnancy: prevent or embrace?

There are many ailments of pregnancy that I have to endure, the back pain, the mood swings, the cravings, being nauscious, did I mention the back pain? Thank goodness stretch marks are not one of them!
There are things a girl can do to prevent them, or at least minimize them. Lets look at the options, but first, we should understand why stretch marks happen in the first place.
In a nutshell, stretch marks occur when the skin is stretched but is unable to return completely to its previous state. According to my extensive internet research, genetics play a major role in this. So if you already have some stretch marks or if your mom has them, chances are you are going to get them during pregnancy. Its important to mention that they dont look the same on everyone, depending on your skin tone it can be more or less visible.
If heredity is not in your favor, its best to work on prevention and early treatment. Having been in the natural cosmetics world for a while now and learing about different ingredients, your best friend in this case would be cocoa butter. Although  it cannot make stretch marks completely go away, (there is no miracle product out there!) the moisturizing action of the product on the skin does increase the skin's overall elasticity. Dry skin makes it more difficult for skin to return to its previous state. Skin is better able to stretch when it is hydrated therefor I recomend to hydrate twice a day every day. Not too much so your skin is not greasy, just enough for the skin to absorb completly.

Magic in a bottle!

We do have a great product at the store I often recomend, its called the triple butter balm; a mixture of cocoa, shea and mango seed butter that has been whipped to help application. Its quite wonderful. I did use it during my first pregnancy and I am currently using it with the pregnancy of the twins. I love the natural smell of the cacao, its so yummy!!
There is another option out there if you lose your battle with stretch marks. Accept them as your battle scars for having to go through the most wonderful experience of your life; road to motherhood!

Atelier de massage pour bébé: avantages inombrables

Tout d'abord un véritable moment de bonheur partagé, le massage réconforte, sécurise et apporte des bienfaits à la fois au parent et au bébé massé. Bébé se calme, les petits bobos s'apaisent les coliques et les constipations sont soulagées, son sommeil est favorisé. Bébé est heureux, maman et papa aussi.
Le massage bébé vous conduit à un niveau de confiance et de relaxation qui se reflète dans la santé et le caractère de votre bébé ainsi que dans la relation que vous aurez avec lui. Plus l’interaction est supérieure, plus votre enfant maximisera son développement physique, émotionnel et social.
C'est le plus beau cadeau que l'on puisse s'offrir.
Dans ta bulle vous offre des ateliers afin d'apprendre à masser bébé. Quatre sessions d'environ une heure suffirons pour apprendre les bases de cette activité.
Linda Coté la massothérapeute qui offre ces cours est vraiment une experte dans le domaine. Elle enseigne des techniques simples de massage afin d'établir une relation parent-enfant positive et sécurisante.

Début des cours: mardi le 18 sept à 9h30
                            mardi le 23 octobre à 9h30
Coût: 90$
Réservation: 514 842 3019

Cértificat cadeaux disponibles!

Workshops for babies; massage lessons

New activity at Dans ta bulle

Workshops to teach parents how to massage baby

• Come and learn how to sooth your baby with your touch
•  Technics to massage baby in a safe and secure environment
• Maximise their physical, social and emotional development

4 sessions of 60 minutes with Linda Côté

When: starting Tuesday Jan 8th 2013 at 9:30 am

Where: Dans ta bulle boutique 316 Mont Royal E.

Who: Babies 3months + accompanied by a parent

How much: 90$

RSVP: 514 842 3019

Look at this one! He's having the time of his life!

 

 

Other workshops and classes to come, for both mommies and babies. I will be posting a new schedule soon.

Afraid of SIDS?

When my little boy was born, I was always worried about all sorts of things new moms worry about.  One of them was SIDS. Is he breathing? Is he too hot? Did he roll onto his tummy? Did he cover his head with the blanket? Well, some of those fears were calmed when I bought a sleep sack. I gotta say, its quite an invention. Combination sleeping bag and blanket, baby is snug and covered all night. I find that the perfect solution to keep my little monster warm efficiantly in the winter months without overheating him to a dangerous degree are aden + anais sleeping bags. The ones that are four layers of fabric. And the beauty of it is that I don't have to worry if he has rolled around and uncovered himself or covered his head with his blanket.
Each aden + anais cozy sleeping bag is made of 100% breathable muslin cotton, which allows baby’s body temperature to adjust naturally, reducing the risk of overheating. Not too hot, not too cold, just right!
When the warm summer days where here, I had a new dilema, the sleep sack was too hot, what to do?  I quickly discovered that, aden + anais, makes light summer sleep sacks!! Only one layer of muslin fabric.

So what’s muslin anyway? Well its an ancient fabric, traditional for swaddling, has an open, loose weave that is breathable and allows air to circulate around your baby, a little bit like gauze pads. Aden+Anais have a whole line of swaddling blankets they make with this amazing fabric. They really are my favorite blankets.

Whenever I fall in love with a product like this, I end up buying industrial quantites for the boutique, knowing that a good thing should be shared. You can come and visit us and listen to me rambling on and on about muslin anytime you like!

I later found out that The CJ Foundation for SIDS recommends the use of sleepsacks instead of blankets to keep babies snug during bedtime. So thats another reason why all babies should sleep in one.

In any case, here are few tips to prevent SIDS. I got this from the CJ Foundation website

• Always lay your baby to sleep face up
• Remove all loose bedding, bumpers, stuffed animals, and pillows from the crib
• Don’t let your baby get too hot, control room temperature where baby is sleeping
• Lay your baby to sleep in an approved crib, on a firm-fitting mattress
• Don’t smoke while pregnant and never smoke near your infant
• Put your baby on his or her tummy to play when your baby is awake and supervised

There are other tips on the website, go and have a look.

The adventures of a momentrepreneur expecting twins

Owning a business has its challenges. Trying to juggle family and work being one of them. I am trying to figure out how I am going to do all this with twins and a toddler. The coming year is going to be filled with lots of fun and not so fun moments I want to share with you. My adventures juggling business, toddler and twins sure promises to be entertaining to say the least.

Varak and my belly hanging out in the bedroom 5:45 am

Pregnancy and skin care

Your skin really changes during pregnancy, well, everything in your body changes!! Some things are better like hair and nails and other things are worse, like my skin. Under normal conditions I have normal to combination skin and my regimen is pretty simple, rinse and apply sun protection in the morning. Cleanse and lightly hydrate at night. Exfoliate in the shower and apply a mask once in a while. But now its all messed up!! I have pimples, borderline acne, oily skin, blackheads and whiteheads as well!
Thankfully I have access to the best skincare products on the market and I was able to get a hold of the situation pretty quickly. I've been using the Zorah organic products with argan oil. They have this new line for oily skin that I am in love with! There is the cleanser Kaïla with elderflower and also Inua, the matifying lotion with hemlock plant. The combination of these two products has been my lifesaver. My skin actually looks normal! The cleanser is in gel form but it doesn't lather too much and doesn't completely degrease your skin, which is great because to more you remove the more your body makes to compensate. The hydrating and matfying lotion is also great because its not heavy at all. Its a light formula that helps regulate your skins sebum production.

Dans ta bulle is expecting again!!!

Haven't posted in a long time, I've been swirling in the whirlwind of being a store owner. Its been fun. Many changes here at the 316. We revamped the whole place, changed up the decor and most of the selection of products in the boutique. Searching for fun new lines to bring in is really my favorite part of the job.
Aside from all the big and small changes at the store, there has been a huuuuge change in my own life. We found out in March that I am pregnant! Yaay! Such fun news! My son will be two years old when I give birth, they will grow up together and play, fun-fun! But the real curve ball came when I went for the first ultrasound in May...turns out that there are not only one, but two little bundles of joy inside my belly! Double yay? I am not sure! I'm sure going to have my hands full come December with a toddler and two newborns!!

Mommies and babies here we come

The many changes I was announcing are slowly taking place. It is taking longer than expected but we are calculating every decision and trying to make it very wisely...I hope!
Here is an overview of some of those changes.
We are still a boutique that promote locally made and hand made products. Our selection now consists of mostly mommies and babies products instead of cosmetics and skincare.
We no longer carry hare care products, but aside from that, all our best sellers are still here. We have the whole Zorah biocosmetics line. We also have the Amarille soaps, body lotions and the famous whipped shea butter souflés. The trusty Soapworks soaps are here to stay also.
As for the new mommies and babies line, we really have some great finds. Some big names; Jack and Lily leather slippers for babies and toddlers. Ulubulu silicone monster bibs. Babymoov bath toys are also a great hit. My all time favorite swaddling blankets from Adan+Anais are also one of the great new additions to our collection.
Some not so big names; Bouton rond rond beautiful wooden pacifiersholders, hand painted was a great find. As well as Croissant de lune ouchless hair clips for little girls. Au fil de mes humeurs is another amazing hand made line of soft toys and blankets.We also carry a cute leg warmers line called Uzage jambière. And finally, my all time favorite baby carrier, Moa Pô is also among our shelves.
So in a nutshell, those are some the changes we have made in the last few months. There are a few additions I did not mention, I have to give you at least a few reasons to come in and find out for yourself!
If you know about a great line for mommies and babies let us know about it, we are still hunting for great new things to add to our shelves.

Chchchchaaanges...

So the big changes anounced are taking place progressivly. We started by revamping the window displays, nothing like a good coat of paint a few yards of fabric and some ingenuity. Tania, my trusty collegue was able to give it a nice fresh look ready for the fall with pumpkins, skulls and everything.
Many new lines of products have entered the doors of 316 Mont Royal. We have stayed true to our roots though. Although we now carry mostly mommies and babies products we try to make the best choices out there. We support local artisans and creators as much as we can.
Most of it are items I fell in love with when I discovered these products as I was shopping for my baby.
We still have our cosmetics and body products section, all the popular items have stayed so do no panic, probably your favorite body butter or face cream is still on our shelves!
We are on the lookout for great new lines of products, or toys. If you know any, please, do not hesitate to mention them as we would like to add to our selection.

And now I'm back!

Hello world!

Yes, my hibernation into motherhood is over, I no longer want to spend all my waking hours holding my bundle of joy and I am ready to get back into the hustle and bustle of running my shop! Baby boy keeps me busy, yes, but there is more to life than bottle and diapers!

I would like to announce that there will be some changes coming up at 316 Mont Royal E. We will be taking a new direction I should say. We had already started a little bit but now, I am ready to go all the way. We are already a cute cosmetics and body products store and most of you would come to get not only stuff for yourselves but mostly as gifts for loved ones. During my pregnancy, i had started to bring in some baby products, and most of you really liked the idea, and sales were great. Well I focused on that idea and took it a step further. We are going to be a mommies and babies gift store! A friend is having a baby? Someone at the office is pregnant? A baby shower for a cousin? No problem! You want to get something cute, original, preferably made in Canada or hand made, not too expensive?? Well this is going to be the place for you!

BUT do not worry, some of your favorite cosmetics brands will still be available.

So, what do you think? Give me you opinion.