Rhode Island is home to a number of great shops geared towards moms-to-be, new moms, and moms with young children. Most of them have opened within the last few years by moms who had grown tired of the bland Babies-R-Us choices and the non-customer-service typical of the Big Box stores. These independently owned and operated stores have spaces that reflect a unique style and community while addressing the needs of new parents across the board – everything from stylish maternity clothes, nursery decor, lead-free toys made in America, children’s clothes void of Disney motifs, personalized customer service, classes, and a place to meet other new moms.

ModMama
16 South Angell Street, Providence, RI 02906
(401) 741-9646
Nearby Bonus: Conveniently located in Providence’s Wayland Square near Books on the Square and The Edge coffee shop and two blocks from the Baby Park (corner of Humboldt & Elton).

ModMama is a modern, urban shop for kids and their parents. Rachel, the owner, is a mom of Enzo and Milo, ages 4 and 2, who are lucky to test many of the items for sale at the shop for fun and durability! ModMama was awarded Best Kid’s Clothing Store in 2007 form the editors of Rhode Island Monthly because of their hip clothes collection from newborn through 6 years old. Signature lines include Zutano, Appaman, and Daily Tea. Although the store is small, Rachel packs in a lot. Find strollers, baby carriers, slings, and diaper bags from brands such as Stokke Xplory, Quinny Buzz, and Phil and Ted’s. Shoes and accessories from See Kai Run, Pediped, MP tights, and a selection of wooden and soft toys from eco-friendly companies. Items for the nursery include cribs, rockers, high chairs, changing tables, mobiles, pillows, and lamps — everything to satisfy your modern design sensibility (right up my alley). Rachel recently designed an exclusive line of cool graphic tees, layette sets, and dresses under the Rocket 10 label. And if you can’t find it in the store –many items may be special-ordered or found online at modmama.com.

The ModMama store is more than just a place to shop; it is also a place to connect with other moms. There are floor model toys for kids to play with, space for moms to nurse or change a diaper, and the store hosts a New Mom’s group, an 8-week Pregnancy support class, regular Mom’s night out, tea parties for little ones, and other special events.

Rachel was born in NYC and she definitely brings a bit of her Manhattan vibe to the shop. She believes in great service for her customers - sling fittings, baby registry, nursery design and consultation, at-home delivery, free assembly, easy returns, and gift-wrapping—just a few of the many reasons that make ModMama special.

Madre Bella
1 Waseca Avenue (corner of Rt. 114), Barrington, RI
(401) 247-0122
Nearby Bonus: Madre Bella has plenty of parking out front and is conveniently located diagonally across from Bagels Express and a short walk form the Barrington Public Library and the new fabulous Kids’ Kove Playground (behind the library and Town Hall).

This stylish store, opened in the fall of 2005, was designed and created by Barrington mom Becky Freitas, the mother of Hunter (almost 2). Awarded the 2007 Best of Rhode Island Award for Maternity Clothes because of lines like Citizens for Humanity, Michael Stars T’s, and Habitual, which will make any mom look good and feel hip while baby is on board. Becky stocks the popular must-have for all pregnant moms—a belly band for $26—that turns all your regular pants into temporary maternity pants (I wish I had this when I was pregnant!). In addition, you can find baby clothes and accessories including Robeez and Pediped shoes, Trumpette socks, nursing bras, and diaper bags by Skip Hop and Petunia.

Becky supports many local businesses including handmade diaper bags and jewelry by Linda Demers of A la Mode; stationery, invitations, birth announcements, and thank-you cards by Barrington mom Roxanne Bryant of J is for Jane; a lovely line of kid’s clothes called Tiny Bubbles, designed by Barrington mom Barbara Guglielmo; Ella Bella clips by Barrington mom Maya Birely; and barretts, clips, and headbands by Amie Cunha of Clippies for Ava. I love starting a child’s art collection at an early age, and The Alphabet Series, limited edition prints by Kira Cortese make a great gift for a new baby. Madre Bella also creates a community for local moms by providing a small play space in the store to entertain young kids while mom shops.

nonchalant mom
(Irregular hours - best to call first)
365D Main Street (A block away and upstairs from their old location), Wakefield, RI 02879
(401) 284-4333
Nearby Bonus: Myopic Books is a fab used bookstore (other location is in Wayland Square, Providence) and the Alternative Food Cooperative has a kids day every other week (call for schedule; 789-2240).

Nonchalant Mom was started in 2004 by Corina Schott (also originally from New York), the mother of Sander, age 6, and Franny, age 2. Nonchalant Mom is another 2007 Best of Rhode Island award winner. Until February, Nonchalant Mom was located down the street, sharing space with Orange Lola. Corina moved into the upstairs location to allow her to better balance her work and family life. She recently launched her own line of children’s clothes, nonchalant kids, with simple lines and bold graphic patterns. Corina’s clean, fresh style is evident in everything she does; from her line of kid’s clothing to the Nonchalant shop in Wakefield, and online at nonchalantmom.com.

Corina created the Nonchalant Mom store online and off for parents who live and thinks differently, as she does. Nonchalant Mom carries things for kids up to age 6 to 8, including modern colorful and unisex clothing for kids that is simple and never fussy. Brands are a smattering of collections from NYC, California, Denmark, Sweden, France, and Japan. She also carries special items for moms from Virginia Johnson, Kragh Rosenberg, Lucky Fish, and jewelry by Margaret Solow. Corina believes in simple well-made toys and carries a small selection of brio and Plan wood toys. She shares her philosophy and suggestions for parenting in a more healthy way through her blog — find healing remedies with food, simple ideas for playing creatively at home, and fun things to make your life at home more enjoyable and colorful.

Peak into Corina’s house and see how she beautifully blends home, family and work in the June/July, 2008 issue of Domino magazine.

Bellani Maternity
1276 Bald Hill Road, Warwick, RI 02886
(401) 234-1279
Nearby Bonus: Located conveniently among all the big-box stores (e.g. Target and HomeGoods) on Rte. 2 in Warwick in case you have other shopping to do. Plenty of parking out front.

This all-inclusive education and support center was founded in 2006 by two Rhode Island moms, Shannon Giorgio (mother of a five- and three-year old) and Kelly LaChance-Guertin (mother of a six- and four-year-old and a newborn). They developed Bellani as a resource for families navigating the unexpected challenges of pregnancy and parenting and craving a place to relax and connect with other moms. Bellani offers a comprehensive curriculum of parenting workshops and classes, along with fun activities for families such as playgroups. Breastfeeding support includes lactation consults on-site, pump rentals (with free delivery), nursing bras, and accessories. The online retail boutique and on-site store features Hotslings, Beco, and Ergo Baby carriers, Petunia Pickle Bottom Diaper Bags, strollers, maternity fashion, furniture like the Svan high chair, quality toys from trusted manufacturers like Haba, Manhattan Toy, and Plan, books, gifts, and more.

The seed for Bellani was planted in a preschool parking lot while Shannon and Kelly waited for their children to finish school. The conversations continued at playgrounds, and in living rooms and coffee shops throughout Rhode Island. A doula and certified childbirth educator, Kelly saw the need for a central location for the state’s great offerings available to expecting and new parents. She and Shannon drew on their backgrounds in education, business, and motherhood to create Bellani as a one-stop pregnancy and parenting resource.

Bambini
251 South Main Street, Providence, RI 02903
(401) 490-6952
Nearby Bonus: Located up the street from the Cable Car Cinema and Café and a few blocks from the RISD Museum.

Bambini prides itself in helping customers design a nursery from soup to nuts. Marie Di Simone, a mom with grown children who bought the business in 2006, will gladly help you design a nursery that will complement your décor and personal taste. She will make house calls (how nice is that?) or you can visit her at the shop to plan the room, pick out the crib, the rocker, bedding, etc. Bambini’s style is a bit more traditional than ModMama and Madre Bella. Marie carries lovely bedding from Bellanotte Linens, Lulla Smith, and Serena & Lilly. Clothing for newborn to toddler includes Room Seven, Petit Bateau, and Kissy Kissy, and one of my favorite local companies, Tiny Bubbles. Toddler shoes from Petit Bet and See Kai Run and toys from Haba and Eboo. This is another shop that excels at delivering personalized customer service and hosts a mom’s night out three times a year.

Support your local mom shops and tell them you’re a Kidoinfo reader…

By Maura Keating

“ME!” Kids like to do things themselves, and when it comes time to getting dressed, your kid’s help can really hurt. As parents, we like to encourage independence even if we don’t always agree with the resulting fashion choices. A simple costume change that can take you a minute can take your child an eternity. Around potty time, a tricky outfit change can end in disaster. During this delicate phase, onesies give way to shirts than can be pulled over the head in a flash. Overalls and pants that snap at the bottom are replaced with pants that can be pulled up and down in a hurry. But . . . what can be pulled up and down easily can often fall down. Don’t let droopy drawers trip up your toddler—Myself Belts let kids regain control.

Invented by two sisters born and raised in Rhode Island, Myself Belts enable kids to use a belt without help. Talia Bahr Goldfarb and Danielle Bahr Eason were inspired to create the Myself Belt when Talia’s son learned how to use the potty but couldn’t keep his pants up. Talia and Danielle were propelled to find a solution. The Myself Belt snaps around one belt loop in the front of a pair of pants, and is threaded through the rest of the loops like a regular belt. To reinforce independence, these steps can be done before your child puts his or her pants on. Your child can fasten the Myself Belt using the long piece of Velcro on the end of the belt.
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I have a house full of boys and unless they are putting on a costume they are not into accessories. However, I know some of their gal pals would love these colorful hairbands. Ribbit hairbands were created by Pam Freeman, a Barrington mom, out of her own need for stylish, functional accessories for her and her daughter. They come in an adorable assortment of fabrics and patterns - piques, corduroys, plaids, and fun, contemporary prints that comfortably stretch to fit most girls, age four to ten years old.

Pam sells a line of accessories for women under the business name, ainlsey and chase (named after her kids) and she has recently added a cool line of belts. I have the Eiffel belt with round pearl buckle on my wish list.

Enter to win an assortment of ten ribbit hairbands for your daughter’s ever-changing moods or use them as party favors at her next birthday party!

Daylight Saving Time is March 9, 2008.

I find it helpful to set our clocks forward 1 hour before we go to bed tonight so when we wake up we know what time it is supposed to be. Read from our archives, Time to Spring Forward for helpful tips and activities about time.

My boys are currently into anything about space—from Star Wars to our Solar System. Since I had time on my mind while I was surfing the web for cool clocks I was drawn to this Out Of This World Clock from Olive Kids.

By Maura Keating

Many girls play with dolls when they are young. From Cabbage Patch Kids to Barbie, I loved to drag my dolls about and play Mom. Very little from that time of my life has actually prepared me for the realities of motherhood, except for one strange correlation between dolls and babies: It’s just as hard to keep shoes on Baby as it is to keep high heels on Barbie.

They are ubiquitous when you are talking about baby feet among Moms who know, but they deserve a mention here—Robeez makes the baby shoes that you’ve seen on little feet everywhere. Gentle elastic on the heel of the shoes keeps the soft leather shoe on baby’s foot so these won’t be falling off. My son can yank almost anything off his feet, but the Robeez stay put. Pediatricians recommend soft, flexible soles for baby’s first shoe, and the soles of Robeez shoes are made of a non-slip textured suede that can take a lot of abuse and my son puts his shoes through a rigorous test. And while the shoes are lightweight and perfect for beginning walkers, expert walkers like them too. Robeez are available in sizes up to four years. When my son started walking, we made the mistake of getting my son a pair of “real shoes.” They were heavier than the Robeez and clunky, causing him to trip. Instead of the usual pitter-patter, he stomped about the house like Frankenstein’s monster. The shoes looked cute on, but he insistently tugged at them to take them off. These “real shoes” were also hard to get on, while the Robeez slip on easily. I rarely dig the “real shoes” out of the closet. Robeez have become our mainstay.

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Beautiful custom-made dresses and accessories by Smyth and Company will make any girl feel like a princess for the day. Have a dress designed by Mary Pat of Smyth and Company, and it will be made-to-order in Connecticut from an assortment of delicious fabrics and colors. These original handmade dresses and accessories are perfect for any special occasion – holidays, first communion, birthdays, weddings, or to outfit the flower girl. No wallflowers here.

Contact Smyth and Company:
phone: 860-379-2534
email: customerservice@smythandcompany.com
web: www.smythandcompany.com

We love anything apple in our house, from red delicious to iPhones. Although friends and family may have thought us a bit fanatical over the years, many of them now own or want to own their own iPod or iPhone. Apple has now created iLovers everywhere. And thanks to ipop, you can outfit your baby in his or her own stylish iPod or iPhone-inspired onesies and T-shirts. Although we cannot volume control our kids or use a touch screen to make our kids nap, it’s fun to imagine we can.

Your baby will love these shirts because they are constructed of 100% baby rib cotton, combed for softness. You will love these shirts because of the cool design, because they are made by American Apparel in the USA (sweatshop free), and because ipop is based in Rhode Island and prints their shirts locally at Mirror Image.

Want to win an ipop baby onesie? Enter here to be one of two winners. Please specify size and choose ipod or iphone style.

By Michelle Riggen-Ransom

Since the holiday season is breathing its pepperminty breath down our be-scarved necks, I thought I’d write a bit about one of my obsessions: buying things with birds on them. Lucky for me, birds are very trendy right now. If you’re frantically looking for a gift for a bird-lover, or perhaps just want to feather your own nest, maybe this list can help you.

Anna’s Aviary, owned by a Massachusetts artist, has gorgeous bird-themed art, clothing, cards and prints. The art can be personalized, too, for that special woodpecker or sandpiper lover in your life. My daughter’s middle name is Robin, so I predict I’ll soon be ordering one of these myself.

Barrington-based á la mode designs has several bird-themed switchplates (like these two snuggling black birds) that really cute up a hallway, kid’s room or kitchen.

Beehive kitchenware has lovely hand-crafted metal kitchenware, lots of it with birdies on it. My favorites are the pewter bird candles (pictured). They’ve also got the same birds on fridge magnets, key chains and measuring spoons. Any of those would fit so nicely in a stocking.

Don’t want to chance it with on-line ordering at this late in the game? Head to local kids’ shop Mod Mama (16 South Angell St., Providence) for this cute little toddler top featuring a fat sparrow or other birdly-decorated items for posh tots.

The Audobon Society of Rhode Island has a great Nature Gift shop, and members get a 10% discount on all items. In addition to their Smithfield and Bristol locations, they’ve also got an online store where you can buy a sweet plushie kingfisher, chickadee or other bird, which each play their actual recorded birdsongs.

I love the glassworks at Happy Owl, such as this Night Owl Nightlight. This artist, as well as 150 others, is at craftland through December 22nd. I predict there will be birds aplenty at this excellent show, which features local crafters and artists.

Lastly, no round-up of cute bird-related items would be complete without mention of uber craft site etsy.com. At last count, almost 20,000 items came up when I did a general search for “bird”. I would recommend narrowing down your search to “jewelry” or “children” before trying to look at bird things or your going to feel like you’re in a Hitchcock movie.

Always double-check availability and shipping times before placing any orders online if you want something to arrive before Christmas. Although giving gifts with birds on them is also great for Valentine’s Day, at least in my house.

By Maura Keating

Whether you are a new parent or you are looking for a great baby gift – listen up. Trumpette socks. These are the best socks ever because they actually stay on a baby’s feet. My son’s feet were like adorable malformed trapezoids, hardly better than stumps (adorable stumps). We got plenty of cute tiny socks as presents in the baby shower circus that preceded my son’s birth, but none worked. They fell off in my house and they disappeared when we went out. After the first week, I could never find a matching pair. That is, until my chic cousin came to the rescue with one of the best baby gifts we got.

The Trumpette socks are sold individually or packaged in a box set of 6 pairs of rainbow colors – enough to take you through ’til Laundry Day. The price may seem a little steep for socks but for the stress they will save you and the length of time that they will last, the investment is entirely worth it. The colors and patterns are fun and cute – from dots and stripes to colorful camouflage to bright animal prints and more. The socks are so cute that they often make an outfit cuter than it might be otherwise. After a year full of washing, our collection of socks still looked great and fit my son well until his feet simply outgrew them. Not so for the other socks that got lost or disintegrated long ago. The fabric is a blend of cotton (80%) and nylon (17%) with some added stretch (3% spandex) so that the socks fit, with no red marks, whether your kid is zero or 12 months. The sock bottoms are skid resistant for beginning crawlers, scooters, and walkers. The company also makes toddler socks that fit bigger feet – from one to two years. I only wish that Trumpette made longer socks that came up to the knee for the winter months. Since they are based in California, I will forgive them this oversight and hope that they come out with size 24 - 36 months knee socks in time for next winter.

The Details:
Trumpette Socks. Sizes 0 -12 months and 12 - 24 months.

Available online at Trumpette.com and locally at:
• Mod Mama
16 South Angell Street, Providence. 401-273-7800

• Bellani Maternity
1276 Bald Hill Road, Warwick, RI. 401-234-1279

• Madre Bella Maternity
1 Waseca Ave Barrington RI. 401-247-0122

I love avoiding the malls at holiday time and discovering new places to shop. Here is a wonderful recommendation from one of our readers:

My daughter and I went out onto Westminster this morning to do a little holiday shopping for the daddy and brother without them, and we had a great time. You can hit OOP!, Bread and Board, DCI275, and Craftland in a two-block stretch, all of which offer great little items (and some really nice pricier ones). Symposium Books, Clover, and another new housewares store are also right there, too. And we got to hear the bells chime at the big Grace Church from right below, which was also a nice little treat.

Nearby Food:
• Taqueria Pacifica (right off Westminster Street)
Offering West Coast-stylin’ Mexican food – fresh, flavorful, fun, and affordable.
Location: AS220 - 115 Empire Street, Providence, RI.
Phone: 401-831-9327
• Tazza (corner of Westminster St. and Union Street)
Funky neighborhood caffe & bar located in Providence’s historic Alice Building
Location: 250 Westminster Street, Providence, Rhode Island
Phone: 401-421-3300

Parking Bonus: The city has resumed its annual tradition of giving free street parking downtown and in other key shopping neighborhoods (see below). The program started November 27 and goes through New Year’s Day. Park for free from 11 am to 6 pm at metered parking spaces. The city also won’t give tickets for parking longer than the posted time in those neighborhoods.

Holiday Parking Zones:

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