Top 10 Favorite Parenting Firsts #PampersFirsts #Giveaway

*This post was made possible by Double Duty Divas and Pampers. I was provided product free of charge to facilitate my review, but all opinions are 100% mine.

With Ollie's third birthday only a week behind me, I am still waxing nostalgia like it's my job. How can he already be three? It was just yesterday I was cradling him in my arms for the first time. Thankfully, no matter how big he gets, he will always be my baby. 


In honor of working with the Double Duty Divas and Pampers to talk about some of my favorite 'firsts' as a parent, I thought what better time to do that than in a Top Ten Tuesday Post! 






Without further ado, my Top 10 Favorite Parenting Firsts...


1. Hearing Ollie's heart beat for the first time! Thinking about it makes my heart melt. Of course I cried tears of joy, and even though he may not admit it, FTD shed a tear or two too.

2. Hearing Ollie's cry for the first time. I remember thinking, OMG! My baby is here! He is really here!!! Talk about crying. I was so overwhelmed with joy, and relief.

3. FTD's first diaper change! OMG!!!! SO FUNNY!!!! I have no doubt the nurse will never forget it either. The first day of Ollie's life, FTD was trying to pay the nurses at the hospital to change Ollie's diaper for him. By the second day, he knew he had to suck it up and change his son's diaper. As he slowly peeled back the tab on the Pamper's Swaddler and saw that river of black Meconium, he gasped! 

"WHAT THE HELL??  That can't be right????" 

FTD was FLOORED by the black tar. (FYI: The hospital diapers really were Pamper's Swaddlers. They were all we used for months, because we figured if the hospital liked them, so did we. We even took a pack from the room with us.)

4. Ollie's first time sleeping through the night! Or really, for more than three hours straight.  I remember waking up at 6am and running to his room, terrified something was wrong. I still laugh about how if my kid sleeps one minute longer than his norm, I run to make sure he is OK. Yet, for all other times, I'm begging him to sleep!

5. His first, 'mamma'.  Be. Still. My. Heart. There is noting more beautiful than the sound of your child's voice singing your name. Nothing.

6. Waving 'bye bye'.  I love this sweet milestone so much.  I would beg him to wave and say, 'bye bye,' to everyone. Those sweet little hands opening and closing to the sound of his sweet little voice... Sooooooo Sweet!




7. Rolling/crawling/walking- For each of his movement milestones, I remember cheering and wanting to brag to anyone who would listen. HE ROLLED OVER!  It's amazing to look back and think how something as simple as rolling over, was the BIGGEST thing to happen to my baby!

8. Talking!  Even to this day, with Ollie's vocabulary constantly blooming, I am FLOORED by all he can say, and how well he forms sentences.

9. Going to pre-school- I was desperate to put Ollie in a 'Mother's Day Out Program' at the church a couple of day a week. I waited until he was two, then took him over.  I  had no idea how hard it would be on both of us at first.  Thankfully, after a few weeks,  it turned out to be THE BEST THING EVER! He got to socialize with kids his own age, and so did I!  (Hello, coffee with friends!)



10. Riding a bike.  Here we are at three, he's 39-inches and 39-pounds and riding a bike.  My baby has grown into a beautiful little bike riding toddler.




It's posts like these that make me slow down and reminisce on my favorite moments, and realize just how fast it goes!  Being a mother is no doubt the greatest blessing of my life.


Grab the tissues, this video is full of those beautiful first all parents share...



        



Crying yet? Me too. What a blessing being a parent is...

                                            

Dry your tears and get ready for some excitement! Pampers has FINALLY gotten with the program, and added a size 6 to their swaddlers line. Which, it's about FREAKING TIME!  What, toddler's don't deserve that incredible softness of Pampers Swaddlers that newborns do? We used Swaddlers right up until Ollie's round little rump grew out of them. And wouldn't you know, now that he is almost completely potty trained, size 6 Swaddlers are here!  Though, I will say, in a strange twist, we started Ollie's diapering in Pampers Swaddlers and now, thanks to the free pack I was sent, we are also finishing his diapering journey in Pampers Swaddlers.

In honor of this big size 6 excitement, Pampers is giving a TON of stuff away! For starters, I have a HUGE prize pack I'm giving away.


Included:    
Pampers Swaddlers Size 6 
 Pampers Wipes 
 “Love You to the Moon and Back” Necklace
“Guess How Much I Love You” Board Book
Baby’s First Year Keepsake Calendar
$50 AmEx Gift Card
(Estimated Value $100)




Want more chances to win? Join the #PampersFirst Twitter party!


Pampers Firsts Prize Pack (14 available -- 2 winners per each of the 7 questions)
$150 value 

  • Pampers Diapers (3 boxes - economy pack - winner size choice) 
  • Pampers Sensitive Wipes Tub x 4 -
  • Dreft/Ivory Snow - 2 bottles 
Pampers Firsts Grand Prize  (2 available - 2 winners for grand prize question) 
$450 value 

  • Pampers Diapers (8 boxes, winner size choice) 
  • Pampers Sensitive Wipes -12 Tubs 
  • Dreft/Ivory Snow - 4 bottles 
  • Book: Guess How Much I Love You 
  • Book: I Love You Through & Through 
  • Book: That's How Much I Love You
  • Book: Goodnight Moon


To RSVP for the #PampersFirst Twitter Party, click here.
Keep up with all that's going on in the world of Pampers by joining their Facebook Community, here.


What is your favorite first?

April is an award-winning writer and blogger. Her work has been published in over ten countries and four languages. From books to newspapers, to print/online magazines and everything in between, you can find her work. For more on April, Visit AprilMcCormick.com