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It’s your baby’s first Christmas and the temptation is certainly there to do something very special. You want this to be a big event and to be celebrated as it should be – with fanfare! Of course, as we all know, fanfare doesn’t come cheap and if you’re planning to celebrate your baby’s first Christmas in style, you’re likely going to be spending quite a bit for the pleasure. But maybe you shouldn’t. Here’s why:

Your Baby Won’t Remember
Unless you’ve adopted an older child, your baby isn’t going to remember anything at all about her first Christmas. You can buy the most amazing toys ever, but she will have outgrown them long before she’s capable of remembering anything about them. So go small on the gifts for your little one. Buy a few small items that you know she’ll enjoy in the coming year and then move on and save the big presents for the future when she can celebrate them with you.

Christmas Outfits Will Get Filthy
Unless you have one of those unnaturally clean kids who don’t really exist, anything you put your baby in for Christmas is going to get messy. That being said, you’ll naturally want to dress up your little one, but do so with wisdom. A designer outfit isn’t suitable for a baby who drools on herself and spits up often. Opt for the big sale item or buy a Christmas outfit at a discount retailer. The clothes are just as cute and quality isn’t an issue since she’s only wearing it for a few hours.

There Are Too Many Good Sales
Before you rush out to the closest toy store in pursuit of something bright and shiny for your little one, take stock of what sales are going on. This seems like a no-brainer, but there are sales in unexpected places that allow you to get amazing deals on baby toys. Try your local drug store or your grocery store – sometimes these locations offer buy one get one free specials on small toys. Department stores both in the mall and out will often feature toys and have special sales as well to investigate.

Let Others Enjoy Buying Gifts
It’s hard to resist, but you can easily sit back and let others buy gifts for you. A baby’s first Christmas is very exciting, and others are likely to line up to buy small gifts and trinkets for your little one, especially if you have a large family or your child is the first in the family.

Gifts Don’t Make the Memories
When you think back to your baby’s first Christmas, it’s not going to be the gifts that you likely remember. It’s the events of the day and the way your baby reacts to the memories. Pull out your camera or phone and snap away. The more pictures you take of this special day, the more memories you’ll be able to enjoy – and pictures typically don’t cost more than a few cents to print and enjoy forever.

While some babies seem to be naturally good sleepers, others are much too excited about the new world around them to even consider drifting off to sleep peacefully or sleeping longer than a few hours at a time. But there are a few simple things you can try to help your baby sleep just a bit better at night and not a single one involves any sort of sleep training.

Go Outside
Sunshine has an amazing effect on us. It makes us feel better and sometimes going from bright to dark makes us feel even more like closing our eyes. Go outside for a walk or some play time after dinner. Enjoy the sunshine and keep your baby interested in the bright outside world. Don’t let her fall asleep in a stroller, however. When your baby is ready for bed, go straight to a soothing, calm bath and onto a dark bedtime routine.

Take a Bath
While it may not be convenient for every family, if you’re able to make a warm bath part of the bedtime routine, you may see your baby falling asleep more easily at the end of the day. The warm bath helps to relax your little one, especially if the room isn’t overly bright and stimulating.

Swaddle
If your baby is under four months of age, you may try swaddling to help him feel more secure and safe. Swaddling should be done correctly and firmly to prevent any blankets from slipping although there are special swaddling blankets available as well. Babies often startle themselves awake and swaddling helps babies stay still while they sleep.

Use White Noise
Music is okay, but it’s even better to use a more general white noise without words or melodies that can be distracting. A loud fan in the corner of the room or a white noise machine can help to block any background noises of the house, including sounds first thing in the morning that may be waking your baby up very early.

Stay on a Pattern
Routine is too strong a word for most young babies who are not ready for a strict routine just yet, but you can use the power of a pattern to help your baby learn to fall asleep more easily. Start with a bath, for example, and then read a story, rock with some milk in a darkened room and then off to bed! If you use the same pattern around the same time every night, you’ll see that it makes bedtime a bit easier now and well into the future if you continue to use the same pattern.

Watch Your Baby for Clues
Babies who are overtired have a harder time falling asleep. They are jittery in the same way we are when we stay up too late. Watch your baby closely for signs that he’s getting sleepy. Yawning is a good sign as are glassy eyes. By the time your baby is fussy and rubbing his eyes, you’ve missed the ideal moment to get him on to bed. Watch him carefully for the magic sleep moment and use it to your advantage.

If you’re expecting a baby in 2012, you’re certainly in good company. Not only is this the year of the Dragon according to the Chinese Lunar Calendar, but it’s apparently also a popular year for celebrities looking to expand their families. Which celebrities are you sharing a pregnancy calendar with this year?

Beyonce
While she’s certainly not pregnant anymore, Beyonce’s new baby will likely be the talk of 2012. Blue Ivy arrived on the scene in early January and there’s been nonstop talk of Beyonce’s hospital behavior as well as speculation about what this tiny tot looks like. After all, Blue has two very famous parents and there is a great deal of curiosity about this baby that may become more popular than Suri Cruise – if such a thing is even possible!

Jessica Simpson
Blonde, cheerful and having a great pregnancy, this beautiful mama-to-be is expecting a spring baby and couldn’t look happier about it. Several months along, Jessica and her fiancé, Eric Johnson, are thrilled with the pregnancy and the papers and blogs are filled with pictures of Jessica in such a healthy, blissful pregnancy. Finally, this young actress got just what she wanted all along – a happy family.

Hilary Duff
Another spring baby is in the making. Hilary Duff is expecting a baby in March with her husband Mike Comrie. Hilary has always been a talented singer and actress and now she’s also making a name for herself as a very attractive pregnant woman, glowing with health and pride in her new baby as well.

Kristin Cavallari
A former star of The Hills, Kristin and her fiancé are expecting their first child. This pretty blonde starlet seems to be rather down to earth, so there is hope that she’ll have a healthy pregnancy, happy baby and then go on to enjoy her children without the drama and celebrity hype that surrounds some of her caliber. Of course, if the paparazzi get out of hand, her fiancé, Jay Cutler can take care of it. He’s the quarterback for the Chicago Bears after all.

Keri Russell
Another new mother, Keri just missed being a 2012 mom after she delivered a few days before the New Year. The pretty actress had her second baby with her husband Shane Deary, and we have no doubt that the little girl will be just as pretty as her mama. After all, with a name like Willa Lou, how can she not be absolutely adorable!

Lily Aldridge
You may not know her name, but you certainly recognize her face and figure. Lily is about four months along and she’s still modeling. In fact, she recently took part in the Victoria Secret fashion show despite being more than a few weeks pregnant last November. Caleb Followill, the singer of Kings of Leon, is the proud father of Lily’s baby. A talented future model is certainly in the making!

Kourtney Kardashian
A young mother who has her life’s story aired on television every week or so, Kourtney Kardashian and her significant other are expecting their second child together. Their first has been featured in a few episodes of Kourtney’s show and we can expect this to be just as true with her second. It should definitely be interested to watch!

Jennifer Garner
You don’t see it very often in Hollywood, but when you’re happy as a mother, why not go for a third? Jennifer Garner is having her third child with husband Ben Affleck. The two are looking to become parents again in late February or early March, and as we all know, Jennifer is an absolutely stunning pregnant figure.

Our latest design is now available. Decorate the walls with this stylish flowery wallpaper theme. Remember to give your TotSite some variety by switching up themes once in a while. It’s one of the features that makes TotSites fun!

And in case you missed it, we also published a Crayons theme a short while ago.

We’ve got two more designs for you this month. It’s been a while since we’ve created some new holiday themes. We’re happy to unveil “Happy Holidays” as well as our third Christmas design with a fun new Santa scene.

These new themes are now available to premium TotSites members. If you don’t have a premium membership yet, upgrade today and unlock dozens of new designs, greater storage space and more features!

We recently asked our fans on Facebook to offer some suggestions for new designs they’d like to see. Basic patterns seemed to be a popular theme, so we’ve created three new designs you can choose from: Dots, Stripes and Diamonds.

These are similar to the recent Toys design, in that you can choose from 7 different color schemes for each theme! Stripes and Diamonds are free to all users. The Dots design is for Premium members only.

As a parent I find it a challenge to have the camera “ready” for those candid moments that I want to remember the most. Sure I can ask “Izzy, wait here while Dad goes to grab the camera and then would you please put your hat on again, stand on one foot, and grin at me sideways?”.  Not to mention those absolutely adorable moments when they say things like “Dad, why do boys have hair on their face…. Tell me the truth Dad…” as only a three year old can. I like to think that my memory is the same as it was 10 years ago, but as I get busy I tend to forget to post these to my TotSite until I frantically try to remember a week later.

The only thing that has saved me is the fact that I typically have my phone with which, thank you to technology, now doubles as a camera, camcorder and a Browser.

You can log in to your TotSite now and add Journals and Photos from your mobile device, but to be honest it’s not as easy as it should be. That is why we would like to announce TotSites Mobile!

The mobile version of TotSites is streamlined to let you get right to the point to add photos or that quick journal entry recording that funny phrase or moment you just experienced with your family. If you go to the log in page on TotSites it will automatically detect if you’re using one of the popular mobile devices and redirect you to here: Totsites Mobile Login . Simply use your normal username and password and you are set.

iPhone Users: There is one small problem for iPhone users (I am one of them so  I know exactly how annoying this can be). Apple does not allow you to upload files from your device through a Browser. This is not a limitation of TotSites but instead a limitation of the phone itself. We are looking into creating a full blown iPhone application to be released in the App Store. If you happen to know any iPhone App developers please have them contact us! We are looking to have something ready in the near future. You can still upload Journals, Fun Facts, and Growth Charts with the existing TotSites Mobile site!

Everyone Else: Your Android, Windows 7, Blackberry, Palm etc.. will work exactly as you would expect with TotSites mobile.

This is a new feature that we plan on tweaking often. If you have particular features or comments please let us know!

We’ve fulfilled another design request from our members. The new Tooth Fairy theme is now available to all TotSites users!

We just added a few new features you might want to know about!

1) Facebook comments and TotSites photos – When you post your photos to Facebook from TotSites you can now optionally have all Facebook comments copied back to your TotSite automatically! This way when friends and family leave a cute comment on your Facebook photo it will be stored in your TotSites Keepsake.

2) Linked Accounts – For those parents that prefer to have an independent site for each child, you can now link your TotSites accounts. Once they are linked you can easily switch between both sites while you making updates. You can also add photos from any linked account into your Journals and site homepage.

3) Allow Friends and Family to order Photo Prints and Memory Books – Does Grandma ask you for new pictures to hang on the wall on a regular basis? You now have the option to let her order photo prints and memory books directly from your site! To set your preferences just log in to your site and click on the Sharing tab.

4) New Theme: Dinosaur – Looking for a fun theme? Check out the new Dinosaur design,  just released.

Wander back in time to when dinosaurs ruled the earth! A variety of different colors and creatures make up this fun prehistoric theme.

If you are not already, now is the time to become a Fan of TotSites on Facebook. We will be giving away a  year TotSites Premium Plus account to a lucky Facebook fan on the 8th! We occasionally post special coupons and sneak peaks to upcoming features on our Fan page so what are you waiting for?