12.31.2018

WELCOME 2019!

Happy New Year Friends! I'm so excited looking ahead at all this new might bring for our family. This past year brought us such happiness, with the arrival of our brand new baby boy Bodhi, and our sweetest Bella girl turning FIVE! Looking back at last year's new year post, I mentioned how we hoped to add a new little one to our family, and I am so thankful that God brought us our heart's desire! 2018 was not without it's hardships of course, months of morning sickness, to be followed by gestational diabetes, our car getting hit in a wreck at the end of October, and more, but God worked it all out for the best, and I wouldn't change a thing. Morning sickness typically means the baby is strong and growing healthy, the diagnosis of gestational diabetes helped me clean up my eating habits (even though now that Bodhi is here, I can enjoy the occasional sweet treat) and become a healthier version of myself, my husband was not injured when our car was in the accident and thankfully Bella and I weren't in the car, not only that but we were able to get Bella a brand new car seat upgrade because of it! God also brought us closer to him and closer to each other through it all.



Hopes and plans for this year include spending more time than ever as a family and just enjoying the simple things in life, simplifying and minimizing our home and possessions even more so we can enjoy life without the stress of mess, hopefully finding and buying a house that we love and can call our forever home to raise our babies in (wherever that may be, here in Pennsylvania or some other state), watching this little baby grow and explore the world around him, Bella too (never lose your sense of wonder and your joy for life my sweet girl), getting Bodhi dedicated at our church, a trip to visit my family in Missouri, a South Carolina beach vacation, and more date nights with my hubby (even if they're just simple staying in date nights after we put the kids to bed), and keeping our hearts lifted in worship to the one who created us all.



In the spirit of making life less stressful and minimizing our life as I mentioned above, I'm also planning on taking a little bit of a step back from the blogging world, though I'll still be blogging, posting life updates, finishing up the posts I already have in the works and of course sharing our favorites here and there, I  just want to take every moment in, soak in every single second of every single day. These little ones of ours are only little for such a small amount of time and it would break my heart to miss even a single second because of something that doesn't truly matter in the long run. These two babies of mine, and my husband, all mean the most and come first and foremost.

What are your hopes and plans and dreams for the new year?


12.28.2018

OUR NEW YEAR'S CARDS

I received product in exchange for this post. All opinions are my own and I only partner with brands we know and love. #MyShutterfly #Sponsored


I've always been a holiday traditionalist in the fact that I always do Christmas cards, I also usually have them done early enough that I can send them out a day or two after Thanksgiving. But this year, life was just a little too hectic for that, plus with our baby being born on December 1st, it didn't make sense to send cards out and have them be already outdated by the time they arrived at their destination. So this year I went with a modern approach to our holiday cards and chose to do New Year cards instead of Christmas cards, and I truly love how they turned out. So much in fact tat I may just keep on doing New Year's cards from here on out!


We chose Shutterfly and Tiny Prints again this year like we usually do for our cards and I chose this simple minimalist design for our cards. I just love the simple design and fresh feel to it, plus I love that I could add an extra photo on back as well as write a little something to make it more personable. I chose two of my favorite photos from our recent family/newborn photo session and them chose the card shape I wanted, the paper I wanted (I love the pearl shimmer paper), chose the font along with sizes and colors and added our names, wrote a little on the back and they were done!

One of the biggest reasons we love Shutterfly and Tiny Prints for all of our cards, is because not only do they have so many hundreds of beautiful card designs to choose from and even more ways to personalize them with fonts, colors, metallic foils and glitters, card shapes and more, but it is SO easy to create your cards! It literally takes only minutes to from start to finish to create your cards! Just upload your photo (or photos) of choice, choose your names and personalize them, review the draft and add to cart. It truly is that easy to create beautiful and unique photo cards with Shutterfly and Tiny Prints. The ease and speed of card creation on their website came in so handy this year since I don't seem to have much time for much but feedings and diaper changes these days as a busy mom of two.


I also grabbed these sweet thank you cards since a few people had gifted us items for baby Bodhi, and I thought these were perfect for that! I personalized them a little bit and voila, they're stunning, not to mention that I love the simplicity and color theme. They're just perfect and I can't wait to send them out along with our holiday cards that I talked about above.


Another reason we love Shutterfly is because they also offer personalized postage stamps! How fun is that? I thought this design that says "love and thanks" was adorable and of course I couldn't help but add one of my favorite photos of Bella and Bodhi snuggling together as the background!


If you didn't get a chance to make Christmas cards this year, it's totally not too late to send New Year cards! Create them over at Shutterfly!

12.18.2018

ALL SMILES DURING PREGNANCY WITH ARM & HAMMER

This is a sponsored post by ARM & HAMMER via Church & Dwight Co., Inc. I received compensation and a free product sample in exchange for this review but the opinions stated below are 100% my own.

Let's face it, pregnancy is hard. The first trimester is rough, and if you're like me, the second trimester is pretty rough too. Brushing my teeth without throwing up a lung was somewhat of a challenge during those months, but since I know how important oral health is, I kept on brushing, and one thing that made it a little easier during those months was the Arm & Hammer Bright & Strong Baking Soda Toothpaste.

Since morning sickness can lead to some serious acidic pH levels in the mouth (yep, that awful metallic taste in your mouth that won't hardly go away, if you've experienced it, you know what I'm talking about) I made sure to brush my teeth as often as I could stand. Not only did it help keep my breath fresher, but it helped keep my pearly whites healthy, as well as helping cut down on my never ending nausea. As many of you all know, I'm super careful about what products we bring into our home, and since pregnancy is an especially sensitive time for a woman's body and for the baby growing inside, I wanted to make sure I was only using the best. Arm & Hammer Bright & Strong toothpaste is made with 35% natural baking soda and is free from many of the not-so-good-for-you ingredients that we like to avoid (ingredients like triclosan, parabens, artificial preservatives, and microbeads to name a few). So it was the perfect choice for me and our baby.


Arm & Hammer Bright & Strong toothpaste works to strengthen enamel with fluoride, plus it neutralizes enamel-eroding acids with baking soda AND repairs the enamel surface with Liquid Calcium Technology. Not to mention that it penetrates along the gum line for an even deeper clean that your gums will appreciate AND is clinically proven to whiten teeth in just 5 days! How awesome is that? This toothpaste has become such an important part of my routine because I had such bad nausea for so long during my pregnancy. Since stomach acids (think all of the throwing up you may have been doing) can erode enamel, this toothpaste works hard to keep your teeth strong and healthy during all 40 weeks of growing a little human. Just remember, after an episode of morning sickness, to normalize the acid in your mouth, rinse with 1 teaspoon baking soda mixed into 1 cup water, then brush with Arm & Hammer Bright & Strong.


Whether you're a first time mom, a second time mama (like me), or a seasoned pro kinda mama who has been there and done this whole pregnancy thing more than a few times, this Bright & Strong toothpaste from Arm & Hammer (with its amazingly freshening and  crisp mint flavor) will definitely be a welcome sight for you every single time you go to brush your teeth. Sitting in your bathroom cabinet like a shining knight in armor, always there waiting to help you combat all of the things, like acidic stomach acids, tooth and enamel decay and stinky breath (because we all know those hormones can wreak havoc on our morning breath haha) and even help you repair the damage that stomach acid can do to tooth enamel. It is THE ONE toothpaste you'll want within arms reach your entire pregnancy, and I dare say you will probably, okay more like most definitely, want to keep on using it postpartum too. Have you tried Arm & Hammer Bright & Strong Toothpaste yet?

12.06.2018

BELLA'S BIRTHDAY WISH LIST

Goodness, I really just cannot even... my baby girl is going to be turning FIVE this weekend. Where has the time gone? I feel like it was just yesterday that I was carrying her in my belly, and giving birth to her, holding her for the first time and snuggling her squishy little cheeks up close to me, breathing in her fresh newborn scent. Okay, now I'm crying.

She's grown into the sweetest, smartest, funniest, most beautiful (inside and outside) and most helpful little lady, always helping me out around the house, picking toys up, getting me water if I need a drink, and of course these days she's busy being the best big sister and loving on her baby brother. A role she is flourishing in. So with the upcoming arrival of her 5th birthday, birthday presents of course are a must. She's been asking for some specific items this year and I can't wait to give her a few of them for her birthday (the rest might have to wait until Christmas lol)! She loves books, and dolls (she's been begging for a bitty baby), anything art related, little toys (especially Maileg mice that fit perfectly into her dollhouse), and of course clothes and Wunderkin Co. hairbows (she's quite the little fashionista).

one | two | three | four | five | six | seven | eight | nine | ten | eleven | twelve

I try to be conscious of what we bring into our home since we love to keep things somewhat minimal to avoid clutter and stress, and I know all of these items are things that will be loved and played with (or worn) again and again. She's been asking for a Dairy Queen ice cream cake for her birthday (which also makes life easier for me since I'm pretty busy taking care of a newborn and recovering from childbirth) and I'm sure some balloons and a few streamers and decorations will make their way into our home on her birthday to make things extra festive. After all, it's not every day you get to celebrate your most favorite little girl turning 5! I can't wait to see her face of her birthday when she opens her gifts!

12.03.2018

WELCOMING GUESTS FOR THE HOLIDAYS

This shop has been compensated by Collective Bias, Inc. and its advertiser. All opinions are mine alone. #UnbeatableComfort #KeepLifeRolling #CollectiveBias



With a new baby here and as well as the holiday season here, there are lots of guests around, so of course I want to stay stocked up on all of the essentials to make them feel welcome and keep everything running smoothly. Keeping our most favorite toilet paper on hand for not only ourselves but our guests as well is a must and plays such a huge roll (pun intended haha) in keeping not only ourselves comfortable, but our guests as well. We've been using Scott brand toilet paper exclusively for several years now and the Scott® ComfortPlus™ Toilet Paper – 12 CT Big Roll, that we recently picked up at Family Dollar is our most favorite. It's so soft with it's thick and plush sheets designed to care for you all day every day for that trusted and comforting clean feel. Scott ComfortPlus toilet paper is better than all of the other toilet paper brands we've tried over the years and is preferred over Angel Soft because it's 5 in 1 soft, absorbent, thick, and best of all (especially with guests and children in our home) clog free, oh, and it's tested 3 times stronger for unbeatable comfort.



We used to purchase the Scott Extra Soft, but as soon as the new Scott Extra Soft was released I knew we had to try it, and we've been so impressed with the new and improved version we haven't purchased anything else since!

One thing I've done this year since we're having so many guests visiting for the holidays and also to meet our new baby, is create a guest welcoming gift basket! It's been such a lifesaver for me to be able to put all of the essentials and some fun extras into one basket that I can just refill for each new guest to make everyone feel welcome when they visit!

If you're entertaining lots of guests this holiday season or having lots of family and friends visit, a guest welcoming gift basket is the most perfect way to make them feel at home! Here are some fun ideas below of things that I've included in ours and that make perfect gift basket items!



Scott® ComfortPlus™ Toilet Paper – 12 CT Big Roll (perfect for stocking up and adding a few rolls into the basket with)

Towels

Washcloths

Holiday scented soap

Sparkling juice (perfect for everyone to enjoy)

Summer sausage

Cheese

Cookies

Chocolate (who wouldn't feel more at home with the gift of chocolate?)

Candy canes

Cot cocoa mix (I like to buy it in the pre-made packets and then pour them into a cute jar)

A holiday scented candle (as a gift for them to take home)

A Christmas ornament

Toothbrushes

Toothpaste

Popcorn

Lip balm

Water bottles

Crayons and a coloring book (if they have children)

Chocolate covered pretzels


While the options for your guest welcoming gift basket are practically endless and can change for each guest depending on their individual needs and interests, this is my main go-to list for grabbing items from to make all our guests feel welcome for their entire stay. I also love to take the food items out of their packages such as cookies and chocolate covered pretzels and put them in a cute mason jar to make them feel more personable and thought out, even though they don't take much thought or time (which is great since I'm busy taking care of a newborn these days).


Make sure to head to your local Family Dollar store (you can find your nearest store by clicking here) to grab all of the essentials you'll need before guests start to arrive for the holidays and don't forget to grab alllllll the Scott ComfortPlus toilet paper to not only keep your bathroom stocked but to add to your welcome gift basket for all of your visitors, guests, family, and friends! Don't forget to use the Circular offer for Scott® ComfortPlus™ Toilet Paper 12 CT Big Roll at $4.00 at Family Dollar (Regular retail price is $5) from 12/4 - 12/10!

Are you having guests for the holidays? Will you be creating a gift basket filled with essentials (like Scott Comfort Plus toilet paper) and other goodies for them?


12.02.2018

INTRODUCING BODHI WILLIAM

We welcomed Bodhi William into our family on December 1st at 3:51 pm, weighing 7 lbs 15.2 ounces, and 21 inches long.  We could not be more in love with him, our sweet baby boy. Our hearts are so full and he is beyond perfect.

11.30.2018

39 WEEK BUMPDATE

You guys... My last bumpdate, ever. All the feels. 7 am tomorrow morning is my scheduled induction time and we are so excited. I've nested so hard this week, cleaning all the things, shower and tub, vacuuming, dusting, laundry, organizing and cleaning the fridge and freezer to perfection, packing mine and baby's hospital bags and charging my camera and laptop, washing the light fixture globes... I mean, all of this stuff is super important things that babies care a lot about... right? Hahaha. It makes me feel better anyway, knowing it's done. We completed the nursery this past weekend as well, hanging the most perfect mobile over his crib, getting a new piece of artwork hung, arranging and organizing all of the last minute details like what items are essentials for the diaper bag, the diaper drawer (since I'm sure I'll be in that drawer a lot), deciding what items deserve a place of the wire shelf, trying to get the hang of all of the baby carriers we have (braiding one to hang up, threading two slings), I also made a little basket filled with a blanket, swaddles, cloth diapers (to be used as burp clothes, nipple butter, breast pads, a manual breast-pump (that I;ll use to catch the excess breast milk from whichever side I'm not nursing on at the time), and of course lactation granola bars. The perfect little breastfeeding essentials basket, right beside the glider in the living room. We are so ready for you sweet little boy, and we can't wait to met you tomorrow!

Due Date: December 7, but scheduled to be induced TOMORROW morning bright and early!!!

How far along: 39 weeks

Size of baby: The size of a pumpkin according to THE BUMP.

Total weight gain: Around 25 lbs. I think?

Maternity clothes: Just give me all the comfy clothes. I'm pretty much wearing whatever will fit at this point. :)

Stretch marks: Yep.

Sleep: Yes and no all at the same time.

Best moment of the week: All of the kicks and rolls and tumbles in my belly. So much movement and activity. Just trying to soak up every single one of them since this is our last baby. Also, buying him his first Christmas gifts and wrapping them!

Miss anything: Cake. Oh, and being able to bend down to pick something up without feeling like my belly is going to explode haha. Things I'll definitely NOT miss: are all of the finger pricks after every meal and first thing when I wake up, having to get an insulin shot every single night before bed and having to keep so many notes of my glucose numbers. Oh and all of the twice weekly non stress tests. I will miss all of the ice chips the hospital gives me (give me all of the ice to eat), and the 9 months of no monthly visits from Aunt Flo.

Movement: Yes! Yes! Yes!

Food cravings: Still craving that homemade dark chocolate fudge cake I haven't gotten yet. Also craving my husband's peppers/onions/sausage over pasta meal. Pizza with pickled pepper rings. Jambalaya with fresh lime juice. Chicken Marsala. And Chickfila. Basically I'm hungry while I'm writing this, can you tell? Haha.

Anything making you queasy or sick: I sometimes get slightly nauseated in the evenings, but not really sure what it's from. My only guess is indigestion and my midwife thought so too.

Have you started to show yet: Yeppppp.

Gender: BOY!

Labor signs: Lots of pelvic pressure, a good amount of contractions but nothing regularly, and earlier this week my midwife said I was 3 centimeters dilated and 60% effaced already, and that he was laying VERY low.

Belly button in or out: Neither, it's flat against my belly at this point haha.

Wedding rings on or off: On, but wearing a beautiful temporary ring from Everly Rings since my real ring doesn't currently fit.

Happy or moody most of the time: Both. Slightly sad because this is my last pregnancy and these are the last baby kicks I'll ever feel inside my belly, the last time I'll ever carry a child inside me. So definitely some feelings there. BUT... SO HAPPY! I am just so excited to hold this sweet little baby boy, to snuggle him up close and see all of his tiny little features after waiting so long to meet him. To see if he has a lot of hair like his sister Bella had when she was born or if he'll be bald lol, to see if he looks as much like his Daddy as our 36 week sonogram showed he did, to kiss those cheeks of this tiny little love we've longed to meet for so long.

Looking forward to: Every thing. Every single second of every single moment. Welcoming this little boy into our family is such a dream come true. We are so excited.

11.23.2018

38 WEEK BUMPDATE

It's bumpdate time again! Officially 38 weeks now and only 8 more days to go until baby day! Ahhhh, did I just really say that? It's crazy how time flies isn't it? We had a growth sonogram 2 weeks ago at 36 weeks and baby is growing healthy, weighed around 6 lbs 10 oz (hoping he'll stay around 8 lbs or under for his birth weight), has the squishiest cheeks (cannot wait to kiss them) and looks just like his Daddy! We could not be more excited and the days are counting down now at lightning speed. I'll be packing my hospital bag this week and choosing an outfit for him to wear home, writing down a list of all of the essentials I don't want to forget (like my camera, phone charger, slippers, letterboard and my favorite lactation granola bars) and doing all of the last minute nesting around our home. We installed his car seat earlier this week and I washed the rest of all the teeny tiny clothes and bedding so I think we're pretty much ready to meet this tiny boy when he makes his arrival! SO. EXCITED.



Due Date: December 7, but scheduled for an induction on the 1st!!!

How far along: 38 weeks

Size of baby: The size of a winter melon (whatever that is) according to THE BUMP.

Total weight gain: Around 20 to 25 lbs., I can't remember to be completely honest).

Maternity clothes: Yes, and no. Give me alllllllll the maternity stretchy leggings, non maternity cardigans, sweaters and sweatshirts, and comfy slipper moccasins. No shame in my comfy game.

Stretch marks: Yep.

Sleep: Sometimes yes, sometimes no. Usually depends on how active baby is and how many things I feel I need to get done before baby arrives (hashtag nesting mode).

Best moment of the week: All the baby kicks, scheduling our induction and talking over labor options and birth plan with my midwife! Oh! Also washing the rest of all of his tiny clothes and his bedding!

Miss anything: Sweets! Seriously, I've been eating so much healthier since being diagnosed with gestational diabetes, and I mean, healthy eating is great, especially a lot better for this sweet baby boy, but I would love nothing more than a huge slice of homemade dark chocolate fudge cake right now. Probably going to be one of my first baked treats after he is born lol.

Movement: Yes! And the pelvic pressure is insane y'all.

Food cravings: Hmmm, mostly stuff I can't eat right now (thanks pinterest and Instagram for constantly showing me photos of amazing looking foods I'm not allowed to have), so I just grab a greek yogurt (I typically throw in some chia seeds too) or some summer sausage and cheese instead. Salads and chickpea pasta are a couple of my go-to's as well.

Anything making you queasy or sick: Not really, chocolate peanut butter smoothies do on occasion if I eat them on an empty stomach but that's about it.

Have you started to show yet: Oh yeah...

Gender: BOY!

Labor signs: Pelvic pressure, lots of braxton hicks + braxton hicks getting stronger in preparation for labor.

Belly button in or out: In, but just barely haha.

Wedding rings on or off: On, but wearing a lovely temporary ring since my real ring doesn't currently fit.

Happy or moody most of the time: Happy! So excited to meet this baby boy soon. Mostly used to the diet changes, finger pricks and insulin injections that come with gestational diabetes. Baby is healthy and my glucose numbers have been good (daytime is all diet controlled and I only do insulin at nighttime for my fasting numbers) AAAAANNNNDDD Christmas is on the way, so there's a lot to be happy about!

Looking forward to: Meeting this baby boy soon, finally cuddling him close, and especially seeing big sister Bella meet him for the first time!

11.20.2018

TWINNING WITH LITTLE COTTONWOOD

Little Cottonwood has been a family favorite brand for the past several years in our home, we just love their sweet and simple designs, the natural feel to them and of course their great price point! So when their new "canyon" collection dropped, of course my jaw did too. Their new mama dresses are beyond gorgeous, and I LOVE that Bella and I can match! We both wore our matching dresses (along with gray cardigans and brown clogs; though I changed into comfy moccasins as soon as church was over haha) to church this past week and got so many compliments on our outfits!


While Little Cottonwood didn't offer matching men's shirts in this collection, I chose our dresses specifically for the black and white buffalo check print, because, yep, you guessed it, Frank already has a pretty close match in his closet, he wore his flannel shirt with the same print, along with his grey cardigan I got him a couple of years ago, and we all matched! It was so much fun. Oh yeah, it gets even better... Little Cottonwood has matching rompers for little ones! Sooooo... baby boy has his own tiny little matching romper ready for him to wear when he's born, which he can wear with a gray cardigan and we can all match again! I seriously cannot wait.


While the mama dress isn't maternity, I just sized up one size and it fit my (almost 38 week) baby bump perfectly! I love that the sleeves are shorter on both mine and Bella's dresses so we'll be able to wear them year around, by themselves in the warm months, and with a cardigan (like we did in these photos) in the cooler months! The buttons on the front of the mama dress are also a huge bonus, since I'll be breastfeeding baby boy once he arrives. Give me all the nursing friendly dresses!


So who wants to match as a family and twin with their little ones? Grab all of these pretties (and more) over at Little Cottonwood while they're still available!

11.19.2018

HOLIDAY FAVORITES

Since I'm almost 100% sure that I'm part Christmas elf, I pretty much LOVE all things Christmas related. Let's just make the whole world festive this time of year, okay? All the twinkling lights, the Christmas music, the smells of fresh evergreen and holiday candles, baking cookies, and decorating the tree, Holiday movies playing on the Hallmark channel, Christmas family pajamas... it's all just my most favorite. So of course there's some holiday related things I'm loving this year that I have to share with you, I just can't keep all the goodness to myself!


I recently came across this ornament from Goldie Letter Co. and loved how simple and unique it was. I just love the honeycomb/hexagon shape which is absolutely perfect for our simple minimalist-ish tree. How pretty is it that you can leave it empty to just enjoy the simplicity, or you can add a family photo, or you can even add a small piece of greenery in if you'd like. You can also have it completely personalized! You can add your family name, choose a lovely word that has meaning to you (I chose the word "Joy") or anything you'd like! So many adorable holiday items over at Goldie Letter Co. that I'm pretty sure you're gonna need, like this "4 main food groups" mug that I'm obsessed with, Elf is probably my all time favorite Christmas movie so this mug is pretty much perfect!


I don't typically burn candles a lot during the rest of the year, but candles are a forever favorite around the holidays, the scent of Christmas. You know that smell that instantly brings back childhood memories? That's what it was like for me when Jill & James Candle Co. recently sent some hand poured natural soy candles our way and I smelled "Holiday Hearth". Instantly I was transported back to the holiday seasons from my childhood and the home I grew up in. Surrounded by my Dad and Mom, my older brother and 3 little sisters. Helping haul in firewood for the old wood cook-stove, a simmering pot of homemade holiday potpourri on the wood stove filling the home with the best aroma, a cold nose and hands from standing in my Dad's work shed for 2 hours hand crafting an evergreen wreath for the front door, hanging Christmas lights with my siblings, running to the mailbox to see if the rural mail carrier had brought us any new Christmas cards, and spending time around the table eating and laughing with my family. It's amazing how one sniff of a candle can bring back so much. Grab all the best holiday scents (including these apple and cedar, and chestnut and clove candles) over at Jill and James Candle Co.!


We've been huge fans of Petit Collage for the past several years and are still loving all of their sweet items for children! All of their toys are eco-friendly and certified ethically made. Founded by a woman immigrant, Lorena Siminovich, each toy is as pretty displayed on a shelf as it is on the floor when your child is playing with it.Their wooden puzzles are our absolute favorite (we have this one and Bella is still obsessed after 2 years) so I of course wanted to add a few more items to our collection and especially to have a few fun things for the holidays! Those cardboard pop out and play figures are so much fun, Bella gets hours of play at a time out of them and they're such high quality I'll be able to store them away after the holiday season and bring them out again year after year! I chose this gingerbread house set, this winter wonderland set, and just fell in love with this winter wonderland advent calendar as well! I've always wanted to get Bella a fun and interactive advent calendar so this one will be perfect! Also, we had a trace and erase board for Bella a few years ago, and while she loved it, it was also made of plastic so of course didn't last very long before it broke and quite working. We've been wanting to get her another one, but finding the right one that would last longer than the other one, was a bit more difficult than I imagined, so of course you can probably imagine my excitement when I found out that Petit Collage just released a wooden one! She is going to be so thrilled when she finds this under the tree on Christmas morning and I cant wait. it's simply perfect for traveling, and moments when you need a minute of quiet but don't feel like cleaning up the mess of real art supplies afterwards and definitely don't want to set the kiddo down in front of the TV again, this is the perfect solution! Also, how ADORABLE is this soft book and wooden teether for baby boy AND that wooden ferris wheel toy?! I simply cannot handle the cuteness. Use code JOYFULTRIBE15 for 15% off your order too!


Frank is always jotting down notes to remember things and keep himself organized, making grocery lists and writing our the bills, so when I came across this notebook/journal from the shop And So They Wrote one day on etsy, I knew it would make the perfect gift for him. He can keep all his notes in one place, organized and tidy now! My favorite part of this little book, it that I was able to completely personalize it for him! The color of the outside (isn't that sage green color just the prettiest?), lined paper or no lines on the paper (I chose lined for him), the design on front and even the wording! And so they wrote has so many options to choose from so grab yourself a journal or two, and maybe grab a few to gift too!


Who says you can't wear white after labor day? This beautiful "Arabella" dress in white (I mean, it's seriously exquisite you guys, even better in person) from Ivy City Co. would be beautiful for photos against a background of evergreen and snow, don't you think? We're doing an indoor family/newborn photo session with our amazing photographer (Livi Photos) right after baby boy is born and I can't wait to wear this for our photos. It's going to be absolutely perfect! Use code JOY15 for 15% off your purchase when grabbing all the prettiest dresses from Ivy City Co.!


One of my most favorite and go-to items to gift to Bella are art supplies. I love them because not only to they get her creativity and imagination flowing when she sits down with crayons or paints and paper, but the other reason why I think they're some of the best gifts, is because we like to keep things minimal rather than overcrowding our home with things that won't get played with or that we'll get frustrated with because we have too much stuff always underfoot, and the good thing about art supplies is that they're so much fun, but they also get used up rather quickly and then you don't have "stuff" and toys just strewn about everywhere. Ooly of course is one of our most favorite and loved brands for our art supplies and I can't wait to fill Bella's sticking up with some of these goodies! These star shaped crayons are ones we've loved for a couple years and there's not much left to ours, so a new set came at just the perfect time! And I can't wait for her to try out these sparkle watercolor gel crayons, paint sets (this one and this one), and the most adorable carry along sketchbook! Oh, and can you even handle how adorable those little cactus erasers and panda sticky notes are? Because I can't.


In this day and age of digital and online everything, it's difficult to remember to print photos sometimes, but I've learned over the past couple of years... it's literally so important to not only back up your photos, but especially to print off physical copies of them as well. That's why I love Parabo Press so much, they make it so easy to print off my photos, and with each order, you can get 25 free square prints too! As most of you know, we had a family photo session this past summer right after we found out we were expecting a baby boy! Our photographer even got to capture our reactions to finding out we were expecting a boy and it was just priceless. So of course I wanted to get them printed so we'd have them forever, even if something ever happened to our computers we'd still have them. I printed off every single photo from that photo session (almost 200) and I couldn't be happier that I did. They all printed so beautifully and I love being able to pull these sweet square prints out and look at them. I also recently took a look at all of the fun photo accessories that Parabo has and of course ended up adding a few more items to my order! These wooden photo holders are perfect for our nightstands or on a shelf and this go-getter box is so fun and makes the most perfect gift! Oh, make sure to use my code APRIL for 30% off any of your Parabo Press orders from now until December 13th!


Christmas ornaments are one of my favorite things, just so festive and I love that they can have such sentimental meaning too! Like these from Susabella! I was searching for the perfect baby's first Christmas ornament on etsy when I found this one, because I wasn't loving all of the pink or blue options I was finding in the stores, I wanted something simple, something minimal, and something classic that would never go out of style. I immediately knew this was "the one" when I spied it, and kept dreaming of getting it for our new baby boy, and of course Bella needed a matching one too since we've never really had a formal baby's first Christmas ornament for her. When they arrived I might have teared up just a little, I mean, I'm about to have TWO babies! And it's just the absolute best feeling on earth, to be a mama to my little girl and this sweet boy still growing in my belly who will be arriving soon. I love that these ornaments are handmade, which makes them even that much more special, knowing someone hand crafted these with time and love. Susabella also offers beautiful ornaments to celebrate any occasion or to honor the memory of a loved one, I can't wait to add more of her ornaments to our ornament collection with each special occasion in our future!


I'm all about everything cozy during the winter months, and since Bella is old enough that she's starting to protest wearing bonnets, I started looking for the cutest knit hats I could find to keep her little head and ears warm. I remembered seeing a cute shop called Blueberry Hill a few years back on Instagram, so I looked them up and was so excited to find out they were still making the absolute cutest hats around! Bella fell in love with this heart design knit pom beanie hat and I think it might be one of the cutest things I've ever seen (and totally makes up for the fact that she doesn't want to wear bonnets anymore haha). New baby of course needed a softer than butter bonnet (at least he won't be able to protest wearing a bonnet haha) and can you even handle how cute this pom knit bonnet is? It is going to look so cute on his tiny little head and most likely he'll be wearing it home from the hospital since it'll be cold out. I have a feeling that a few more Blueberry Hill knit hats are going to make their way into our home before too long, we need them allllll they're all so adorable!