While expressing your feelings for your loved ones may not always be a challenge, finding the perfect gift to give them for Valentine’s Day often is. If you’re stuck in a romantic gift-giving rut (teddy bears, flowers and chocolate, anyone?), these ideas may be exactly what the (love) doctor ordered as the perfect way to say “Be Mine” this February 14.

	Indigo Wild’s Coco Zum Gift Box. Anyone can come up with a box of chocolates — why not give your sweet-toothed sweetie a box of chocolate-scented bath and body products? This decadent gift set includes Coco Zum goat’s milk chocolate soap, shea butter chocolate lip balm and chocolate body butter. Yum! ($22).
	Hug by Jez Alborough and Counting Kisses by Karen Katz. These delightful board books–both about Mommies showering their kids with affection — will become instant bedtime classics ($6.99-7.99).
	“HUG” Salt and Pepper Set. If your loved one loves to cook, he or she will adore this whimsically-sweet salt and pepper shaker. Each time it’s used to season food, a little love will be added along with the salt and pepper ($25).
	Tempur-Pedic Supreme Pillow. As we’re sure you know, there’s nothing anyone loves like a good night’s sleep. Offer your honey a guarantee of sweet dreams with this revolutionary pillow made of a unique memory foam material. It conforms to the shape of the head and neck, providing maximum comfort, while its dual-sensitivity cover — it features a cool, firm satin side as a well as a warmer, softer cotton side — offers temperature control. Zzzzzzzzzz ($160).
	Jo Malone Red Roses Cologne While a bouquet of red roses is always gorgeous, it will never have the staying power of this velvety, feminine scent by celebrated perfumer Jo Malone. With a bottle of this clean, light fragrance — this is not your Grandmother’s rose perfume — she’ll enjoy her Valentine’s Day roses year-round ($50-90).
	Frog Prince. If you’ve kissed a lot of toads in your day, you appreciate your Prince that much more. Let him know you appreciate His Royal Highness with this sterling silver frog, who will arrive in a red velvet bag with a box that says “You’re my prince” ($50).
	Valentine’s Day Bib. Even if he or she can’t yet speak, your little one can express him or herself with this cotton jersey bib from Baby Gap. Who knows? It might even butter up Dad enough to take over a feeding! ($7.50).
	Personalized Photo Mug. Perfect for Dad or a grandparent, this mug allows your child to be present during every coffee break, minus the disruptions, of course. Simply upload your favorite photos, and then select which one you’d like on your mug — the website does the rest! Available in 11oz and 15 oz sizes ($12.99-14.99).
	Lucky in Love lotion from MiraLucky. This delicately-scented baby lotion is made with organic ingredients to pamper your Valentine’s skin. Enriched with Shea Butter and Sweet Almond Oil, this baby lotion isn’t just for babies — perfect for any of the lucky loved ones on your list ($10.50).
	Red Flower Japanese Peony Petal-Topped Candle. What’s Valentine’s Day without a little candlelight? For instant romance, light this delicately-fragrant candle to fill the air with the scent of peonies, then sprinkle the scented petals in a bath. Add you, your Valentine and some soft music, and as Dean Martin sang, that’s amore ($34).
	Josie by Josie Natori Sunrise Pajama Set. These pajamas are the perfect gift for both you and him — he’ll love them because they’re sexy, and you’ll love them because they’re actually comfortable and won’t become wrapped around you in the night. Though you’d be purchasing them especially for the holiday, you’ll love them so much, you might even find yourself wearing them on a regular old Tuesday night ($72).

– Chelsea Kaplan

I joined the International Sisterhood of Mothers on April 10, 2005. I thought I was prepared. I stopped working 2 months before my son, Kyle, was born to get his nursery ready, to stock up on supplies, and to finish gestating, basically. Those last few weeks of pregnancy went by very slowly because I was READY, not to mention very uncomfortable.

And then, all of the sudden, he was here. Gone were my lazy days of napping and watching “A Baby Story” and “Oprah.” Gone were my long lunches with former coworkers, complete with decadent desserts. My life was no longer my own -– it belonged to Kyle, whose incessant needs for changing, nursing, or being rocked to sleep consumed all of my time. At first I was fine with it, with all of it. It made me feel like a champ to nurse Kyle 12 hours out of every 24. I wore spit-up stains like badges of honor. But as time went by and I didn’t leave the house or change out of my pajamas before 2:00 in the afternoon (if at all), I started to feel very alone. read more

After the first few times that precious baby cries for hours on end the routine becomes overwhelming and seemingly impossible to stop. The need to communicate with your baby is there but the ability is not.

Danielle Kolachick, a mother of two from Poughkeepsie, NY, was sleeping when her six month old began to cry. She went into his room, picked him up out of his crib, checked his basic needs to find nothing wrong and then laid him back down hoping he would sleep. “You’re okay little guy you just have to go back to sleep,” Danielle consoled him.

“Then he just looked up at me and signed the word milk,” Danielle said. “It was such a fulfilling feeling … I thought all right, now we’re communicating.”

Learning to use non-verbal communication, in the form of sign language, can be a window to ending long crying spells by helping you to understand your little one’s needs. read more

We just celebrated my daughter’s first birthday. We had a small family gathering where we presented little Attalie (as she sat in her highchair with a big chocolate cake — her very first birthday cake! My sister and I both had our digital cameras out, my husband was videotaping, and we were all ready to capture the action.

And then we waited… and waited some more, but rather then burying herself in the chocolate frosting, our Attalie daintily picked at the cake with a finger. After several long moments, it became clear that Attalie has never been to a first birthday party before and was not aware that she was “supposed” to be covered in chocolate cake by now.

It is these unexpected, yet wonderful moments that make being a mom so much fun — and it seems that this little 12 month old is just full of surprises. I’m thoroughly enjoying the first words and first steps; the silly facial expressions and odd noises; and I’m beginning to think that one is the very best age.

Happy New Year!

Bettijo B. Hirschi

As mom always said, sending a thank you note is the right thing to do. Now that you’re the mom, set the example for your family by expressing thanks for your holiday gifts — and encouraging your kids to do the same — with one of these unique sets of thank you correspondence. These gorgeous cards are sure to delight both you and the recipient, while we’re sure your words will impress even the strictest Emily Post devotee.

	From You: Kate Spade Burst Thank You Notes. These feminine thank yous are made modern with a graphic pink and black floral design ($28).
	Sassy Mama Note Cards by SWAK Notes. If you’re pregnant and thankful — be it for a gift or for the fact that you’ve only got a few weeks to go — express yourself using one of these adorable cards, available in blonde, brunette or redhead ($7.99).
	Tori Higa Bandana or Purse Note Cards. Handmade with vintage fabrics, these gorgeous, one-of-a-kind notes are extremely chic ($18).
	Princess Boxed Note Cards by Boatman Geller. These elegant pink and white boxed correspondence cards are fit for a princess. For an additional charge, Her Highness can add her name or monogram ($34).
	Paint Your Own Greeting Card Note Cards. Just like those old paint-by-numbers kits, these fun, funky note cards will bring out the kid -– or budding artist — in you ($18).
	Crane’s Engraved Aqua Flowers Notes. Sending one of these retro-inspired note cards in of-the-moment color combination brown and aqua says thank you in style ($29).
	Personalized flat note cards from Vistaprint.com. We love these cards for the endless options — choose from hundreds of templates and personalize them to create a card that is your very own ($7.99).
	From the Kids: When your child receives a gift, an “adult” thank you note just won’t do. Encourage him or her to show his or her appreciation on these adorable juvenile notes.
	Monkey Flat Panel Cards or Turtle Flat Panel Cards by Egg Press. These whimsical cards, which are available personalized for an extra charge, are perfect for the little animal lover ($14 each).
	You’re a Peach cards from PoshBetty. Delightfully offbeat, these adorable notecards say thank you without really saying it.($23).
	Blue Layette Boxed Set by Boatman Geller. An ideal choice for your little prince, these elegant cards feature three different baby blue borders and can be monogrammed for an additional charge ($45).
	Daisy Stripes Stationery by Little Monograms. If your daughter loves pink, she’ll adore these cheerful, striped fold-over cards ($24.95).

A Personal Touch. If your kids enjoy or are old enough for an at-home art project, purchase some heavy card stock at your local office supply store, then let them create their own cards using crayons, watercolors, glitter, sequins or any other craft supplies — the sky’s the limit! Then you can help them to write the thank you note inside.

– Chelsea Kaplan

Perhaps it’s the spinning roll of TP or the swirling water — we’re not sure why exactly, but what we do know is that all kids seem to be strangely attracted to the bathroom. Need proof? Check out these MomMoments stories.

Royal Flush. I was working in the kitchen on dinner when I heard my 3 year old giggling. I couldn’t see her, but I could definitely hear her just shrieking with laughter. I began looking through the house to find out what my daughter thought was so amusing. I finally found her in the bathroom. She had taken her clothes off and was standing naked inside the toilet! And what was causing the giggling? She kept flushing the toilet and thought the water whirling around her feet was hilarious. – West Jordan, UT

Taste Test. Ever since my daughter started crawling she loves to head straight for the bathroom whenever I’m not looking. I shut the bathroom door, but we’re in an older house and she quickly learned that if she stood up and leaned hard on the door it would come open. Well one day when my daughter was about 11 months old, I was working on some laundry and noticed that she wasn’t playing in the living room anymore. I headed straight for the bathroom. When I got there I was horrified to see my daughter standing over the toilet sticking her finger into the water and then licking it! I wanted to puke… I was sure she was going to get some horrible disease, but so far she’s been fine. – Onancock, VA

Doggy Bowl. My daughter was going through this stage where she would mimic everything she saw the dog doing. We were having a lot of fun with it as we’d throw the ball for her to “fetch” and such, but one day it really got out of hand. I found her in the bathroom lapping water out of the toilet bowl with her tongue — earlier that day she’d seen the dog drinking from the toilet. – Salt Lake City, UT

Paper Trail. Ever since he’d first seen me use it, my son was fascinated with that spinning roll of paper in the bathroom. We had to keep a close eye on him or he’d dash to the bathroom and start spinning. One day I got to him too late and he’d unrolled the entire roll of toilet paper all over the bathroom. – Lethbridge, Alberta

There is a certain kind of embarrassment that only a Mom can truly understand. Our MomMoments column is filled with these war stories of motherhood. We’d love to hear your stories so please share with us!