Want fresh, modern portraits of your beautifully pregnant belly or brand new baby? Perfecting Expecting knows just the photographer for you….Mariah Gale! Besides being one very cool lady, Mariah takes some unbelievably amazing photos. Mariah specializes in photography for children, newborns, maternity, families, and modeling shoots. A local gal, just like us, Mariah will travel to any spot you choose for your perfect pic. Check out her portfolio on her website and be sure to sneak a peek at her blog; you’ll get a sense of her fun-loving personality and latest and greatest projects. We know you’ll be just as impressed as we were!

We baby planners have SO much fun talking about what we do, why we do it, and how. Therefore, nothing pleases us more than seeing that other people are talking about it, too. Granted, there is some opposition to the industry, but we aren’t out to convince anyone. We want to help those who could use our help - those who don’t - more power to you!

Anyway, this morning the Boston Globe featured Perfecting Expecting after interviewing us, coming along to a client meeting at Magic Beans, and speaking with a few of our clients about their choice to hire a baby planning service. That’s the beginning of our article down there at the bottom of the front page!

To read the article, click here.

A HUGE thank you goes out to mom-to-be Stacey who was with us at Magic Beans and who is featured in the article’s photos. Stacey is a gorgeous, tall, and fabulously fun redhead who is such a pleasure to work with and was easy-breezy in front of the camera. Thanks, Stacey!

And it better be on a mattress from The Organic Mattress!!

We recently met with Diane and John, the amazing and dynamic duo behind this FABULOUS organic mattress shop in Sudbury, MA. From the second we drove up to the historic home that is their store, we were impressed - they made us feel right at home and at ease while simultaneously doling out scientific research and easy-to-understand rationale behind the choice to purchase an organic mattress for your baby. Diane knows her stuff - she is coming from a science background. And all of this was occuring in the most beautiful shop we could imagine.

They gave us samples galore, so when we travel to your home, you will be able to run your fingers over the most adorable baby products: blankets, sheets, and accessories. And they are all certified organic. Best of all, they can take custom orders! Have an antique crib? No problem, they can fit it. Have a Stokke mini? They’ve got mattresses to match! When Diane and John order something, they ask the company to print them out a copy of the materials to ensure their customers are only getting the best. Here is one set, the Starz Set.

Most of all, it felt wonderful to know that we could support two honest and hard working individuals in their one goal: to give babies the best bedding possible at the most reasonable prices possible (they even use local products when possible, saving the consumer shipping costs).

Making them a PE Pick was one decision we DIDN’T have to sleep on…

If you live in Massachusetts (which many of our readers do), and you are pregnant, chances are you are considering these names for your new baby boy:

Matthew
Michael
Ryan
William
Jacob

If a little lady is going to grace you with her presence, it is likely that you have thought of one of these names:

Ava
Isabella
Sophia
Olivia
Emma

These were Massachusetts’ most popular names for 2007. Matthew has been #1 in six of the past seven years (losing to Michael in 2004) and this is Ava’s first time in the #1 slot, taking over Emily and Emma, which have been in the lead for the past seven years.

Whether you decide on a traditional or a unique name for your baby, now you know what names you might hear in playgroup