Babies, Free stuff, and a Pea Pod Sling

Let me just say this before I begin. FREE STUFF ROCKS! Ok, with that out of the way, we went to the gigantic Baby Faire (it's much more sophisticated with an "e") today and boy did we have fun. First off, we went last year when I was 3 months pregnant and had an okay time. I don't think we had as much fun last year because 1. we didn't have a baby, 2. we didn't know what to expect, and 3. we were so completely overwhelmed by all the "stuff" and everyone getting in our faces with bags of said "stuff" that we just couldn't enjoy ourselves.

This year, though, with a 7 month old in tow and a PLETHORA of experience as a mom (insert sarcasm here), I think Randy and I were better prepared and thus were able to have fun.

Ok, let's talk about all the goodies we got. Sippy cups, bibs, formula, rice cereal, bath bubbles, bath mats, placemats, pacifiers, mints, magnets, and a whole mess of coupons for everything under the sun! We love that! We got to see so many vendors and chat with so many people. Randy bought a sling carrier at Pea Pods and we also got Dante a cool black tank top with a Dragon on it from this Alternative Baby shop. We also had a blast because we met up with other members of the SoFla PunkParents group I started. Bonnie and Braydon, Veezie and Julien, Coral and Dekker (who is Dante's BFF and whose cheeks I stole earlier and found in my pocket just now), and Tony, Adrienne and Kaili.

Dante had fun as well. He played in the special Babies R Us area for infants and enjoyed a lights and sounds table. He also met a little boy named Elian who, at 7 months old as well, weighed in at 26 pounds!!!!! To put it in perspective, our friend Wendy has a 17 month old who weighs 25 pounds. Dante, at 7 months, weighs 18. This kid Elian was huge! Dante also competed in his first sporting event: The Baby Race. Yes, with a cheerleading team of Veezie, Julien, Tony, Adrienne and Kaili, Dante came in 4rth place in the Baby Races (out of 5 babies). He would have won had it not been for his intense concentration in examining his foot, the line drawn on the floor, the cute girl next to him, air, an ant walking by, his foot again, his navel, and the line on the floor again. My screaming and waving the TV remote control that we brought from home at the Finish line did not phase him at all. Funny, but at home I can't stop him from crawling and following me everywhere. When I need him to crawl, he doesn't. All in all, Dante ran (or rather crawled) a good race and did his best. Besides the kid that won was like 8 years old and on steroids so it was a fix to begin with. Hmph!

It was a fun day. Lots of goodies. We entered lots of sweepstakes (and if we win even one I'll be amazed). Now, I think we're going to crash.