A baby is just the beginning. Stretch marks are forever.

Celebrated as “engaging, hilarious and touching” by Variety, Motherhood the Musical is a riotous roller coaster ride through the blessings, stresses and exhilarations of being a mom.  From feeling like the size of a minivan during pregnancy to actually driving one as a mom, this hilarious and poignant four-woman show will have you laughing, crying and remembering – a must-see for anyone who is, has, or knows a mom!

For tickets visit www.trinityrep.com or call 401-351-4242

+++Bellani has a four pack of tickets to give away to one lucky winner and her three friends. To be entered just let us know your favorite moment so far in parenthood. Winner will be picked on Thursday, May 17th!

Saturday, April 28^th

10:30 AM – 12:30 PM

Mini cupcakes + Fabric demos + meet founder/designer Julie Sygiel

$5 off 1 pair, $20 off purchase of 3 pairs

No need to worry about getting the giggles or a surprise visit from Aunt Flo. Sexy Period underwear are made with 3 layers of functional fabric– 2 absorbent, wicking layers and 1 leak resistant layer. Designed to be worn with your regular sanitary routine, Sexy Period underwear are an amazing backup to keep you feeling comfortable and confident. How amazing would this all be during the postpartum period? We love the idea of supportive, attractive and protective gorgeous undergarments. These are designed right here in RI and all American made! Come down to the store, touch, feel and try on!

GroVia® Cloth Diapers has some snazzy new prints for spring.

Years ago, parents had to accept the hard and drab truth – cloth diapering was a plain endeavor in a white and beige world. Click your heels and do a happy dance because GroVia® is so over white and beige! They’ve taken cloth diapering out of the dark ages and kicked it straight into the spring season.

Just in time to accessorize for the warmer weather, you can order starting today and new prints will begin shipping the last week of April. Robots and peacocks and bikes and foxes – decisions, decisions!

If you choose your child’s skincare products, food and even cloth diapers with great attention to how they impact your child’s health and the environment, then the Eco-Kids Eco Egg Dyeing Kit is the way to go for you. Even the youngest babies can “help out” without fear of coming in contact with harmful chemicals. And big kids can go it alone or dig in with your help to unleash their imaginations.

Allergic reaction? Weird rash? Not a problem. The dyes in the Eco-Kids kit are made from natural and organic fruit, plant and vegetable extracts from annatto seed, curcumin, purple sweet potato and red cabbage – all easy-to-pronounce-right-in-your-grocery-store ingredients.

Easter egg dyeing is pretty popular around these parts. We know this because every year we sell out of the Eco-Kids Eco Egg Dyeing Kit.

This week, scoop a box or two up and save 20%.

They’re perfect for Easter and even better as a life saver on a rainy day!

In the last year, we’ve broadened our cloth diapering selection by leaps and bounds. We’ve discovered new favorites and remembered why some brands are tried and true and always on our shelves.
We like to consider ourselves experts with a dozen or so cloth diapered bums amongst our staff – that’s a enough cloth diapers to fill a small warehouse! So yes, we know what we’re talking about.

One gem we discovered in the last year is the company GroVia whose tag line, a diaper for every family, offers solutions many Bellani families are looking for. From the company website:

We understand the importance of convenience as parents, but we also know that as a company we have a responsibility to our planet. This is why we’ve created a diaper for every family, to teach the world that green diapering is easy, affordable and can be done anytime, anywhere! The brainchild of a mother of four, GroVia diaper systems help take the mystery (and fear) out of cloth diapers–offering modern parents an eco-friendly, stylish, economical, and easy-to-use diaper.

We carry each of GroVia’s options for families – traditional cloth, hybrid diaper and their BioDiaper. Here’s what you need to know about each option:

Cloth Diaper

This unique one-size cloth system grows with baby and incorporates a convenient, easy to clean, one size diaper with soft waterproof outer and organic cotton inner– so parents spend less time washing and more time enjoying happy moments with baby.

Hybrid Diaper

The hybrid diaper system matches our unique one-size cloth shell with either a cloth soaker pad, or a GroVia Bio Soaker pad – made with biodegradeable and compostable materials. The perfect solution to on-the-go parenthood, travel-friendly and great for daycare, GroVia’s Hybrid Diapering system gives parents options in convenience without harming our planet.

All GroVia products are gentle on baby and our planet because they contain no harsh chemicals or toxins. You can rest assured diapering with GroVia your baby’s bum and the planet are in good hands!

A carton/bottle can only be labeled “Juice” if it is 100% fruit juice. This means that the only ingredients in this product are whole fruits that have been processed down into what becomes the juice concentrate which is then combined with filtered water if needed  (there are a few exceptions of course like freshly squeezed juices, where water isn’t added). Occasionally, there may be additives like ascorbic acid (vitamin C) or beta-carotene (vitamin A) but nothing else to dilute the whole fruit juice. Next we have “Juice drink” which can have no less than 50% fruit juice to earn this distinction. Next in line we have “Nectar” which can have no less than 30-40% fruit juice, “Ade” (think lemonade, limeade, grapeade) which can have no less than 25% fruit juice, and lastly we have “drink” which can have no less than 10% fruit juice (reminds me of the “Orange Drink” they used to give us at elementary school cook-outs).

So as we stray from the 100% fruit juice distinction that’s where we can start to see other things in our juice besides real fruit juices such as high fructose corn syrup,  added sugar, dyes, the list goes on!

As one might be able to see from this information, 100% fruit juice is your best bet. In fact, ½ cup of 100% fruit juice counts as one serving of fruit. While serving your kiddos 100% fruit juice can be a tasty way of making sure they get adequate amounts of fruit in their diet, you want to make sure not to over do it and that juice isn’t overly replacing whole fruit. It’s recommended that 1-6 year olds have 4-6 oz of juice per day, and children 7 and up limit their juice consumption to 8-12 oz. simply because although these juices tend to be great sources of vitamin C, they are also high in natural sugars. It’s a good idea to encourage kids to drink mostly water when they are thirsty so as to prevent them from only finding satisfaction in sweet drinks.

So, as if you didn’t know where this was going…here it is:  moderation is key!

You’ll discover babies love the comfort of being swaddled. It soothes and relaxes them. You will also discover swaddling is a very tricky science which requires the right equipment. If you use the wrong blanket, your squirmy baby will pull a Houdini and make their way out. There are lots of swaddling blankets out there but there’s only one we consider to be the best – The Miracle Blanket.

Reasons Why The Miracle Blanket Is THE Best Swaddle Blanket

• Reduces fussiness allowing your baby to sleep better, deeper and longer (you, too!).
• Comfortably fits your child for several months so you won’t have to purchase them with every little growth spurt.
• The smart design makes it so your baby won’t squirm their way out of being swaddled.
• Easy for parents to use with no buttons, velcro, straps, zippers or snaps.
• Comforts baby as they transition from the cozy comfort of the womb into the outside world by mimicking many of the sensations of being in the womb.
• Pediatricians, doulas and other professionals who work with babies rave about The Miracle Blanket.
• As your baby grows, the blanket will loosen around the legs which is an intentional design feature to allow for proper development and movement of hip and knee joints.
• Because each baby has their own opinion of how they like to be swaddled, The Miracle Blanket gives parents the option to swaddle their baby with or without their feet tucked inside the blanket.

So many Bellani families have discovered for themselves why this blanket is rightly named The Miracle Blanket. If you give one gift at a baby shower, this should be it! Just take a look at this video courtesy of the folks behind The Miracle Blanket. We’re pretty sure both baby and mom are very, very thankful to whoever gave them the blanket!

Kindermusik Village (for newborn through 18 month olds) Friday, December 16th at 9:45 am

Rock-a-Baby RI (for newborns through 4 years old) Thursday, December 22nd at 11:45 am

Little Van Gogh Art Class (for children 18 months – 3 years old) Thursday, January 5th at 10:30 am

Preschool Dance Class (for children 2.9 – 5 years old) Wednesday, January 4th at 9:30 am and Saturday, January 7th at 10:30 am

Dance Class (for children 18 months -2.9 years old) Wednesdays, January 4th at 10:30 am and Saturday, January 7th at 9:30 am

Tot Gym (for children 6-12 months) Saturday, January 7th at 11:30 am

So what class will you be taking, the schedule is up and ready for registration!