Key Takeaways from Mom 2.0

Last week, I attended my second Mom 2.0 at the Langham in Pasadena, California and learned so much. For those who aren’t familiar, Mom 2.0 is a conference for content creators, many of whom are moms and parents. I don’t always talk about the conferences that I attend to network and sharpen skills, but I definitely wanted to share with friends who may be interested in some of the things that I learned.

 

While I’m still digesting the plethora of information and various content creation tactics, I wanted to share just a few of the key takeaways from the tenth anniversary of Mom 2.0.

 

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I’ve clocked several years in the blogging world, so finding a conference that’s a good fit and a worthy investment for my business and requisite social media endeavors can be quite the feat. It’s truly a monetary and time investment to attend a conference, especially one that’s across the country. Thankfully, Mom 2.0 is such a comprehensive conference for our industry, and I came away with a good deal of information and motivation that I plan to employ ASAP.

 

Instagram Growth and Authenticity

Like all the other social media outlets, Instagram is always evolving. I’ll have more to share on the topic, but one of the things that I learned in the Instagram algorithm session is that everything you do on Instagram matters in terms of growth and engagement. Like, comment and interact with content on your niche.

 

 

 

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Finding Your Growth Through Podcasting

According to this session, I learned that over 48 million people listen to podcasts at least once a week. I’m a relative newbie when it comes to religiously listening to podcasts. I’ve been listening to several podcasts over the past few months now, so it was great to sit in on the session that discussed podcasting. The most memorable quote from this session: What you can share in black and white with your writing, you can share in Technicolor with your voice. Those are some words to consider.

 

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Organize with Content Editorial Calendars

In the mini sessions, I sat in on a chat about editorial calendars. As a former magazine editor, I’m no stranger to editorial calendars. As a freelancer and blogger, I’ve found that I can be my own worst enemy when it comes to staying organized and producing timely content. In this session, I learned different ways of categorizing and cataloguing content for your editorial calendar. There are apps, to help you stay organize and to hold yourself accountable.

 

 

DIY with Intent

I do a lot of DIY at home, but I don’t always create content to share about it. It’s weird, I’m a major DIYer, but I don’t always think to write about it. I sat in on this session about creating DIY content, and learned that it’s important to create strong content with branding that represents you. Hopefully, I can follow through with this and share more DIY tutorials and projects in line with The Next Kid Thing.

 

 

Sisterhood is Important

I have to admit, I’m at a very tricky phase in life at the moment. We have had some major life changes in 2018, much of which made me realize for my own health and sanity that it was important filter our relationships that made me question my self-worth—you know the ones. Spending so much time with like-minded creatives and business owners provided the reminders that as much as I need to cultivate and curate relationships, just like I would my content. These real, authentic relationships provide the foundation for a healthy outlook on professional endeavors.

 

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Brené Brown is Awesome 

Based on some suggestions and what others have been saying, I fell hardcore for Brené Brown. She’s the writer and motivator that I needed to help inspire me through some adversities. I devoured her books on Audible, sometimes multiple times. So, when I heard that Brené was one of the keynote speakers, I knew that I made the right decision to attend Mom 2.0 for my second time. Arriving 35 minutes before her scheduled keynote, I snagged a seat right upfront so that I could take photos and absorb her talk. I loved learning that she has so a sweet connection to the conference and knows quite a few people who have been part of the community for a long time. 

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As usual, Brené’s words spoke to me and lifted me even higher to a place that I desperately craved to find. I wrote so many notes and took a billion photos during her talk, but if I was to pinpoint just one idea that she shared, this would be it: 

Vulnerability is not about winning or losing, it’s about choosing to be seen when we have no control over the outcome.

 

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Yes, yes, yes!

 

Did you make it to Mom 2.0 2018 in Pasadena? I’d love to hear your thoughts!

National Bubble Bath Day: Benefits of Bubble Baths for Kids

Happy National Bubble Bath Day! After an exhausting day, there’s nothing we love more than winding down with a warm bubble bath. 

 I love bubble baths that smell fresh, but don’t have the harmful chemicals or synthetic fragrances. We’re all about bubble baths, so here’s a round up of just a few of our favorites:

 

 

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Little Twig has a bunch of great products, but the Unscented Bubble Bath is one of my favorites. With so many unsavory additives and ingredients in baby soaps and baths, I appreciate that Little Twig products boasts nothing but the good stuff.

 

So Cozy, as we’ve mentioned before is one of our favorite lines of kid products. From the shampoos to body washes, So Cozy makes bath time fun and so easy. Our favorite for bath time that gets all the suds going is the Cinch 2-n-1 Shampoo and Body Wash. My older guy loves that it smells fresh and not so “baby!”

 

California Baby Calming

Speaking of babies, California Baby is one of my absolute favorite companies in the baby realm. I’ll always associate CB with being a new mom and bathing my brand new baby. The scents are absolutely divine and i want to believe that the Calming scent really does calm down my rambunctious little boys. CB uses only the good stuff AND they have a bubble wand in their bottle to boot!

 

 

There are so many things to love about bubble baths, namely the bubbles themselves. But truly, as some parents might agree, bubble baths have quite a few benefits.

 

 

A photo posted by Jen Rabulan-Bertram (@jenrab) onNov 11, 2013 at 6:35am PST

 

 

1. Bubble baths make bath time a fun bonding experience.

When the kids cooperate, bubble baths are a great time for imaginative play for both the kids and parents, too. We love making crazy hair and mohawks with suds, and silly facial hair too. My guys have a quirky kid shave kit they like to use during bubble baths. It’s always a hoot.

 

2. Bubble baths are great for bedtime routine.

The thing about baths: they are helpful in winding down the day and even helping to calm everyone down…again, if everyone cooperates. Taking a bubble bath gives everyone a chance to exhale after a long day and it gives the kids something to look forward to end the day.

 

3. Everyone gets squeaky clean!

The most obvious benefit of a bubble bath for kids is that everyone gets clean at the same time! When you have multiple young children, one of the best things about bath time is just throwing them all in the tub and streamlining bath time by getting the older ones to help with scrubbing the younger ones! 

 

What do your kids love about bubble baths?

 

 

Best of Sunscreen for 2011: Tips, Ingredients and Tried and True Brands

It’s finally the unofficial kick off to summer, and I hope everyone has exciting things planned for the weekend!  Just in time for more sunny days, endless amount of outdoor play and loads of BBQs, the Environmental Working Group has released their comprehensive list of Best Sunscreens for 2011.  The list was analyzed in-house, with their findings based on health hazard, protection and overall stability of the product. Find out if your sunscreen made the cut.

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NKT Faves

Many of my favorite sunscreens made the list once again, and there are also several products that I’m glad to see have new formulas, resulting in better scores.

Blue Lizard
Blue Lizard is what our family uses on a day-to-day basis around here.  With its thick consistency and trusted effectiveness, it’s no surprise the Baby Australian and Sensitive formulas made EWG’s Best of Beach and Sport Sunscreens.

TruKid
TruKid is a longtime favorite for our family.  Because of its portable, gluestick size, the Sunny Days Stick is a mainstay in my bag and perfect for sending with the kid to daycare.

Kiss My Face Sun Sticks
I love most of Kiss My Face’s products, so I’m excited to see they have a kids’ stick, too.  Remember Zinc from back in the day?  Apparently, the Kiss My Face kids’ mineral sunblock stick leaves shades of blue, pink or white on easily burned spots like, ears, lips, nose and cheeks.  How 80s!

California Baby
Another parent fave, California Baby, puts out a great range of products that are often top-rated.  California Baby No Fragrance Sunscreen Lotion made the list, alongside of several other CF Baby sunscreens.  Even though I personally haven’t used this sunscreen, several of my friends swear by it, so it’s certainly on my list once we deplete our current stash.  Even better about California Baby?  This brand can be found in the baby aisle of most Targets.

Realistically, not everyone has easy access to these safer brands.  In fact, you’ll probably be hard-pressed to find many of the brands listed in EWG’s Top Beach and Sport Sunscreens at your local drugstore.  Don’t have time to order online at Diapers.com or run to a natural food store to pick up one of the safer sunscreens?  Here are a few brands that can be found at most grocery or drugstores and received moderate scores:
Aveeno Active Naturals Natural Protection Mineral Block Sunscreen Lotion, SPF 30
Coppertone Kids Pure & Simple Sunscreen Lotion, SPF 50

What Does Practically Green recommend?

At the recent Mommybites Summit that I attended last week, I sat in on a wonderful discussion led by green expert, Susan Hunt Stevens of Practically Green.  She mentioned that California Baby and Badger are two popular, safer sunscreen picks for kids.  Both brands are well-rated on EWG’s sunscreen list as well.  Hunt Stevens also pointed out that she has yet to find a safer aerosol spray sunscreen, so in general, she advised to stick to the old school lotions. Trust me, I love the convenience of those sprays, but if there’s an option that contains less chemicals, (the same chemicals which are often linked to health issues and hormone disruptors) why not opt for the safer option versus the convenient option?

Safer ingredients

For safer sunscreens, EWG recommends to look for products that include these ingredients:
Zinc
Titanium dioxide
Avobenzone or Mexoryl SX

and avoid these ingredients:
Oxybenzone
Vitamin A (retinyl palmitate)
Added insect repellent

Check out EWG’s sunscreens to avoid.

Tips for Sunscreen

Obviously we all know “how” to use sunscreen, but do you really know how to use it effectively?  Growing up in a beach town, I literally spent my summer days—from dusk to dawn on the beach or at the pool—but, I barely ever used sunscreen.  I have to admit, when I became a parent, proper sunscreen usage was an anomaly, so I had to learn how to use sunscreen for the sake of my fair-skinned babe.  Goodness knows, my husband needed some tips himself!  So, here are just a few pointers courtesy of the American Academy of Dermatolgy and EWG.

  • Sunscreens expire.  Be sure to check your expiration dates when dusting off last year’s stash. You can use the sunscreen that you bought last Beach Umbrellasummer, but keep in mind that if you are using the appropriate amount, a bottle of sunscreen should not last very long.
  • Sunscreens should be applied to dry skin 15 to 30 minutes BEFORE going outdoors. When using sunscreen, be sure to apply it to all exposed areas and pay particular attention to the face, ears, hands, and arms.
  • One ounce, enough to fill a shot glass, is considered the amount needed to cover the exposed areas of the body properly. Don’t forget that lips get sunburned, too, so apply a lip balm that contains sunscreen with an SPF of 30 or higher.
  • Sunscreens should be reapplied approximately every two hours or after swimming or perspiring heavily. Even so-called “water-resistant” sunscreens may lose their effectiveness after 40 minutes in the water. Sunscreens rub off as well as wash off, so if you’ve towel-dried, reapply sunscreen for continued protection.
  • There are a number of combination cosmetic products, such as moisturizers that contain sunscreen, but it is important to remember that these products also need to be reapplied to achieve continued UV protection.
  • Pick the SPF appropriate for your skin type and solar exposure. But remember that UVA protection in U.S. sunscreens maxes out at about 15, so higher SPF products will not fully protect your skin from sun damage. The American Cancer Society recommends that people use a sunscreen with a SPF of at least 15, the American Academy of Dermatology opts for 30.

Have a safe weekend, everyone!

Photo credits: Fullofgrace and Paddyduke