Cornelia Babbitt wants you to stop whatever you’re doing, take a deep breath and forget your mile-long list of things to do.
If you’re as busy as most moms, you’re probably scoffing at the thought of taking a break, and that is exactly Babbitt’s point.
“Moms are so super busy, it’s like they’re juggling all the time,” says Babbitt, a mother of three from Northbrook. “They are doing the most important job in the world … and a lot of how they deal with their children depends on how they take care of themselves.”
In 2002 Babbitt founded Moms First, a gift basket company designed to support mothers and to increase awareness of the benefits of taking care of the woman in the mother.
Babbitt started out compiling a variety of products she used while raising her three sons. Bach Rescue Remedy spray, an herbal cure for stress Babbitt uses when she’s feeling overwhelmed, is included in every gift basket along with an aromatherapy candle, a music CD and essential oils. The rest of the products, however, are tailored to the needs of the mom.
The “Belly Basket” has an herbal cure for morning sickness, nipple cream and anti-stretch mark salve. The “Wisdom Basket” for moms around menopause has a variety of teas, nourishing eye pads and a homeopathic remedy for hot flashes. Other baskets include the"Napping Basket” for the sleep-deprived mom of an infant. She has ideas for at least 10 more baskets in the works.
“The products are soothing and very calming,” says Julie Allen, a mom of two from Northbrook who received the Wisdom Basket as a gift. “They make you slow down and appreciate a good smell. It just makes you feel better.”
Baskets cost between $30 and $200 and can be purchased online at www.momsfirst.net (the site launches in March) or by calling (847) 789-7079.
“You can’t always say,” Mom’s got to go first,'” Babbitt admits. “But throughout the day you’ve got to step back, and there are always minutes throughout the day when you can step back. That’s what Moms First is all about.”
