And, don’t forget to bring in your outgrown Exersaucers and Jumperoos! Now that your little one is walking and ready to enjoy the snow, those with babies are looking for ways to occupy non-mobile babies during the winter! 

Stay Warm! Keep Safe! 

Just in time for Mother’s Day!

Growing Up is pleased to welcome back   3rd Generation Silhouette artist Erik Johnson November 11th! Erik will be hand cutting silhouettes of children, creating timeless family keepsakes.

The Threshold Program is a 2 year program for young adults with special needs. Lesley University gives the opportunity for college experience while meeting the special needs of students. To find out more about the Threshold Program visit Lesley University Online.

Victoria will be at Growing Up on Mondays and Thursdays. We are positive she will love meeting our wonderful customers, finding them as friendly and nice as we do. Please join us in giving her a warm welcome as we introduce her to a wonderful work place.

It goes without saying that all new parents should be stocking up on diapers. Whether you choose cloth diapers,disposables or a hybrid, starting to buy them early can cut costs a lot. In addition to food and diapers, there are some things that seasoned parents all seem to agree are must haves.  I took to our Facebook page to poll our customers and find out what they could not have done without.

Swaddling Blanket

Most parents seemed to agree that a swaddling blanket was a must have for a new baby. The Miracle Blanket got a lot of kudos, as did the Aden & Anais muslin swaddling blankets.

Baby Carrier

Every parent has their favorite must have baby carrier, From Ergo, Baby Bjorn and Moby Wrap…whichever you decide is your favorite, a baby carrier can make life as a new parent much easier. From calming an unhappy baby to just having hands free for a little while, baby carriers are tried and true must haves. Growing Up is a huge supporter of  Boston Babywearers, a local nonprofit group dedicate to babywearing education.

White Noise

From white noise cd’s to the Cloud B Sleep parents agree that white noise can make or break a good sleep Dr. Sears recommends white noise for babies (Read the 31 Ways to Get Your Baby to Sleep). White noise is great not just for night-time sleep though, they can also help calm a fussy baby during the day, by replicating the ambient noises your baby heard while in mama’s tummy

Nursing Pillow

If you choose to breastfeed your newborn, a nursing pillow can really help you get into a comfortable nursing position. The Boppy seems to be the favorite pick. Once you and your baby have a comfortable nursing relationship without the pillow, it can be used for baby tummy time and aid in the ever challenging sitting up milestone.

Bouncy Chair/Swing

There seems to be a 50/50 split on swing vs bouncy chair. I attribute that to baby preference.  It’s hard to say ahead of time what your baby your child will like better, but it’s definitely helpful to have something on hand for those times when you need to put your newborn down. We all want to hold our infants as much as possible, however it’s also important for new parents to take showers and eat things, a comfy bouncy chair or swing can be your savior in those first months as a new parent.

There are so many more things that you can buy as a new parent, but most experienced parents will tell you that once baby comes, you can always go buy anything you need. Along with the must have list from our customers, they all agree on one thing…buy second-hand! It’s a little passed on tip that all of these things can be bought from a quality resale store, like Growing Up, for a fraction of the cost. A lot of the things you need for a newborn will be quickly outgrown, so why not save money to start with and buy second hand? We have a great selection of all of the above products in the store all the time. The best part is that once you and your child have outgrown the newborn things, you can bring them back into the store and resell them. Reselling gives you cash back for the baby goods or better yet, trade them in for the things you need for your child’s next stage.

Is there something you couldn’t live without when your child was a newborn?

If you missed the chance to bring your child/children into the first set of sessions that we offered, you will not want to make that mistake again! What Erik is able to do in just 5 minutes was amazing. He works so well with even the squirmiest of children, speaking to them gently as he entices them to face the correct direction. Within 5 minutes parents are handed a dead on replication of their child in silhouette.

This set of sessions is perfectly timed for early Christmas shopping. Grandparents and family  will adore a framed silhouette of the kids. A timeless gift that will be cherished for many years to come. It’s one of those unexpected and unique gifts that is so worth the small cost.

Sign up for your time slot today! It’s free to reserve a space.

Silhouettes by Erik Johson

Spring cleaning sounds like fun, doesn’t it? Only here in Boston our spring means lots of grey skies and rain.  I think Bostonians enter into huge Summer cleaning sprees, finally we can crack open the windows, turn up the music and find out what is hidden in the recesses of our closets. Now that you have a pile of clothing, toys and gear that your children have clearly outgrown, what do you do? Well, head into Growing Up of course.  Here are some tips to make sure you get the most from your visit.

1. Sell Monday- Saturday

We buy Monday – Saturday from open to close. You don’t have to call for an appointment, we will always be there to look at what you have.

2. If you aren’t certain, give us a call.

If you have a big item for example, a double stroller, a sandbox or play kitchen, it is going to take a little effort on your part to get it into the car and over to our store. If you want to make double certain we will take it, feel free to give us a call to check before you lug it down. If you love technology, you could even snap a picture with your camera phone and send us an email!

3. In season is best but we take everything.

When reselling any clothing, whether it is for you or the kids, think about what you are currently shopping for. You will get the most from your visit by bringing in seasonally appropriate clothing. We buy for winter all year long but whatever the season, we buy more for the current climates then for stock.

4. Check your clothing before you bring it in.

One of the biggest reasons we turn clothing down is because it has a stain. Let’s face it, kids get stains on their clothes, no matter how much you try to keep them clean. Most of us just keep putting the same clothing on our children until they outgrow it, then we pack it away someplace, right.  6 months later we bring that big box down to Growing Up and don’t even remember what is in it. You probably totally forgot that some of it was stained or got a hole or lost a button.

To make it easier on yourself, double check what you are going to bring in. I generally sit down and make two piles, one to resell and one to donate. I quickly look for things that are stained, missing buttons or have holes and remove those from the resell pile. If something is really great or a brand you know that we love, like Hanna Andersen or Oilily, you can try treating the stain and rewashing it. We definitely don’t mind going through everything, but if you eliminate the items you know we won’t take, your visit will not take as long.

5. Check the dates.

With limited exceptions, we only buy things that were made in 2006 or newer. For things like car seats, cribs, and toys; this rule is for safety. For clothing, while there is no safety concern, the styles have changed.  If you have a 10 year old child and find yourself with a box of clothing in 0-3 months size, we probably aren’t going to take it, but it would make a great donation for charity.

6. Allow Time or Plan to drop off and come back.

It’s difficult to say when we will definitely be busy and when we have loads of free time. Some days you can walk in and get one on one attention immediately, walk in and out with ease. Other days, you may have to  hang around for a bit before we are able to check all of your things. It’s always a good idea to allow yourself and us time to sort through what you have brought in.  If you never have time to hang out in the store, you can always drop your things off with us, leave your name and check back later in the day to pick up the items we didn’t take. Always check store hours and be familiar with when we are not taking things, so you don’t waste a trip.

All in all, we want your reselling experience to be easy and fun. With a few simple steps, listed above, you can take any of the stress out of the day.

Each silhouette took approximately 5 minutes, from newborns to school aged children, everyone left thrilled with their silhouette. To keep the children occupied while they sat for the session, Erik used modern technology; a portable dvd player with “Finding Nemo” on play. Like magic, children sat upon the stool to watch Nemo, thereby facing them in the proper direction. OK, let’s be honest, not every child wanted to sit there. Erik worked like a true professional through melt downs and tantrums, always sunny and bright, engaging children for the few extra minutes it would take to complete their keepsake.

We had such a successful day that Erik stayed with us an extra 2 hours in addition to the planned 4pm cut off. People through the door who saw what was happening and wanted to take part were not turned away. We can’t thank him enough for being so gracious to us and our customers.  When it was all said and done,  100 silhouettes were completed. Each a dead on rendition of the child. It was amazing to watch and fun to take part in. We plan to ask Erik back to the store soon, just in time for Christmas.

We would like to extend a huge thank you to Erik for spending the day with us. Thanks also to all of you that came out to join us for the memorable day.

Can you guess this local playground?

If you’d like more information on these parks, or if you’re looking for something else, try out the new Website Plaground Hunt, the most comprehensive guide to playgrounds in Massachusetts. Using Google Maps, this interative Website uses location to point you toward playground reviews. Thanks to our Facebook fans for this and all the other great tips about playgrounds in the greater Belmont area! See you at the swingset.