Bumpfashion’s Weblog

1	Emma	Aiden
2	Sophia	Jayden
3	Madison	Ethan
4	Isabella	Jacob
5	Olivia	Caden
6	Ava	Jackson
7	Madeline	Noah
8	Addison	Jack
9	Hailey	Logan
10	Lily	Matthew
11	Kaitlyn	Nicholas
12	Chloe	Ryan
13	Abigail	Brayden
14	Emily	Michael
15	Riley	Gavin
16	Mia	Dylan
17	Ella	Lucas
18	Hannah	Caleb
19	Kaylee	Andrew
20	Sarah	Connor
21	Alyssa	Alexander
22	Makayla	Joshua
23	Mackenzie	Tyler
24	Layla	Nathan
25	Grace	Daniel

There are so many great things about having a baby. One of my favorite things was creating the nursery. Now a days there are so many places to buy online http://www.simplybabyfurniture.com (my favorite online store)) but there are few local stores left in the San Jose area. Baby Super was one of the last great places for baby furniture, but now that they are gone, I recommend Lullaby Lane in San Bruno. The people working there are knowledgeable and friendly and there is a great selection of cribs. I found my white sleigh Pali crib there and discovered that it was being sold a pottery barn kids for $200 more. I bought a second crib there when I had my twins. They also have strollers, bedding, rockers (got my rocker there), highchairs and more.

Posted in Nursery | Leave a Comment »

Preschools

January 23, 2009 by bumpfashion

Finding a preschool or daycare is a really difficult process. This blog will hopefully get local people discussing preschools and daycares in the San Jose area and help moms looking for a preschool. To get the ball rolling I am going to comment on the preschool that my kids attend and mention a number of local preschools that I have heard good feedback on. Hopefully others will comment on these preschools and start discussing new preschools and daycares.

All three of my children attended Harwood Hills Country School. This was a great experience for both me and my children. I chose Harwood because my initial visit went well mainly because the two teacher I met seemed genuinely compassionate towards kids. Other factors for me were as follows; potty training available, fully gated school and large outdoor play areas. My kids started early and once academics became an issue, I discovered that though I was not concerned with academics at the time I chose Harwood (having a two year old), the academics at Harwood were very good. My son who received his academic foundation at Harwood has done extremely well in elementary school and is an above average student. As are many of the other children from Harwood who attend my sons elementary school.

A few other comment I have about why I chose Harwood were:

Location: I was familiar with the neighborhood and new it was a safe area.

Semi referral: My roommate after college worked at the preschool and she is a teacher, she recalled it had a good structure.

Flexibility: The program offers a lot of choices for days and times for children to attend. I started my son at two mornings and moved up from there.

Harwood Hills Country School

16220 Harwood Rd. Los Gatos, CA 408-266-2400

Final note on choosing a preschool: Everyone has different views on what makes a good preschool or daycare. Visit several and talk to people who are attending. Many new parents have approached me at drop off and asked me about the school.

Other preschools I have heard good things about are:

Holy Spirit Preschool in the Almaden area of San Jose on Redmond Ave. People say it has good structure and academics.

Precious preschool in the Almaden area of San Jose on Redmond Ave. Many people I know have sent their children to Precious. It is my understanding that the hours are short and it is expensive, but the program is solid.

Clement preschool in San Jose on Branham Lane, many people I know have said the program is structure and the academics are good, but the cost is on the high side for the amount of time your children are there.

Cornerstone in the Almaden Area of San Jose on Camden Ave. I have heard mixed messages about this preschool. Some people love it, and others hate it, so if anyone has personal information, please discuss here.

Stratford in Los Gatos of Los Gatos/Almaden Rd. people who are very structured and into academics love Stratford. What did not interest me was the lack of fun in the program. I wanted a good education but at four I wanted the kids to have a good time. Also, I personally though it was expensive for the amount of time the kids are at school.

Action Day in the Willow Glen area of San Jose on Lincoln has a good reputation, but I do not have specific info on the school. However, one good thing about this center is that they take infants, which is sometime difficult to find, so if you are looking for Infant care, take a look at this location. I understand there is one near Santa Teresa and one in Saratoga.

Live Oak in San Jose near the Los Gatos border, on Clarinda Way has a great reputation. I have friends who have their kids there.

I have many more, to mention but would love some feedback.

Posted in Preschools (San Jose CA) | Leave a Comment »

Maternity Basics!

December 13, 2008 by bumpfashion

http://www.bumpfashion.com has great maternity fashions on sale this winter. Below I am listing my top five maternity items…the must haves for pregnancy!

#1 First up is a no brainer! You have to have the Ingrid and Isabel Bella Band. The bella band allows you to unbutton and unzip your prepregnancy pants to make them more comfortable. Gone are the days of twisting a rubber band are around the button on your prepregnancy jeans.

Here is the link: http://www.bumpfashion.com/bellaband.html

* Important note on the Bella Band, you should buy only the Ingrid & Isabel Bella Band. The knock off bands do not work well and are either not sized properly or are one size fits all, which honestly does not work.

#2 Must have is must is a pair of good comfortable jeans:

maternal america pintuck maternity jeans

The jeans above are comfortable and cute. The pair in the middle are by Paige Premium Denim and are $190.00. They look great. The pair on the right is by Mama Black and are currently on sale for $67.00. The pair on the left is Maternal America and are on sale for $87.00.

I read posts all the time about how crazy it is to spend so much money on maternity jeans. Now I have two thoughts on this; first, you don’t have to spend the money as both Maternal America and Mama Black have good, cute, comfy maternity jeans that are under $100.

Maternal America is one of my favorite to sell as the band is very comfortable!

However, if you can afford the the designer jeans they are really worth it and so cute on. Right now I have Chip and Pepper and Paige Premium Denim. Both have great comfortable bands and look really cute on. The Paige Premium Denim new McKinley wash is beautiful, the best wash I have at this time in the store so if you are used to wearing designer jeans, and you can afford them, they are worth it, but there are other option for those who prefer an less expensive brand..

Jean links: http://www.bumpfashion.com/jeans.html

Must have #3

Simple black dress

Why the black dress. I bought a black dress during my first pregnancy. It was simple, comfortable and cute. I wore it to a wedding, a funeral, a shower and also to work. It was the best money I spent during my pregnancy. I loved the dress and got so much use out of it, I gave it away to a friend and bought a new one during my next pregnancy.

Olian is a great brand and the price is reasonable.