Grant's Gifts

I have a passion project that I've been working on for a few months and I am (nervous) but ready and SO EXCITED to launch it into the world.

I mentioned a while ago I was working on something and that was taking away from my time in this space (well, and chasing a nearly 2 year old toddler!) and now I am ready to share! 

The 'big' launch of this project isn't until tomorrow, but because of the love and support our family has always had through the blog, I wanted to share this with you prior to the 'official' launch event.

Without further adieu...drum roll...
I present to you...

The mission of Grant's Gifts is to provide love and support to NICU graduate families, primarily in the form of donations of preemie clothes.  

Many of you remember our NICU journey and because of that unexpected (but beautiful) journey, the idea of this project formed.  

I vividly recall the day I walked into the NICU and Grant was wearing a onesie.  We had been so wrapped up in the craziness of what was going on, the option of him being able to wear clothes had not even dawned on us.  I immediately started crying seeing him wearing a onesie.  That one small, soft piece of cotton meant the world to me.  It gave me the sense of some sort of normalcy within a world that was anything but normal (or expected).  (You can refer to my post here where I talk about a lot of very similar things)

 As soon as I gathered myself, I called Mister and asked him to run out and find/buy him preemie clothes for our little man. 

Mister set off for Buy Buy Baby and sadly only found one very, very small section of preemie clothes.  He was able to find a package of plain white shirts that snapped on the side.  I was in disbelief that there were so few preemie options. 

The next chance I had, I ventured to Target to see what their selection was.  It was the same story, but they had even less options.  Now I was beginning to get upset.  I fully understood that retailers sell many more 0-3 and newborn clothes than preemie, but I still felt like it was... unfair for there to be so few options, if any.  

Now that Grant could wear actual clothes, rather than just a tiny preemie diaper, I wanted to find him some clothes ASAP.   I had ours moms and others on missions about town looking for preemie clothes.  We were slowly able to gather some, wash them quickly, and take them down to the NICU.  I would be lying if I said arriving at the NICU and being able to change Grant's clothes each day wasn't one of the highlights of my day. 

The amount of support we had during and after our NICU stay was amazing.  One day in particular will stay with me, probably forever.  Friends of ours offered to bring over dinner (I'm talking a full spread; lasagna, bread, salad, the works!)  But what was even better than the lasagna (which was amazing) was the fact that she found AND washed a preemie outfit for us.  I was blown away by their thoughtfulness, it meant the world to us that Grant had a brand new outfit to take the next day that was already washed and smelled amazing. 

The fact is, while there is a lot of sitting around and cuddling your new one, NICU families are very busy, and when they're not busy they better be sleeping.  This made the search for preemie clothes even more difficult.
Generally, when you have a preemie, you are not expecting to have a preemie.  Therefore, preemie clothes are generally not on those new mom checklists.
And for me (and I am sure many other moms) gone was the idea of the "going home outfit" I had lovingly picked out for Grant.  He wasn't able to wear that outfit until he was almost 3 months old. 

You may think there is not a huge difference between a newborn onesie and a preemie onesie, but there is a world of difference.  Even outfits that are 0-7lbs were too big on Grant.  The frustration of not being able to clothe your child was real in our world.
We always said the NICU is not really a world you think or know much about until you are thrown into it.  

About a year ago this all hit home once again.  Jen reached out to me that her little man had arrived a few weeks early just like Grant, and she was looking for suggestions on where to buy preemie clothes.  Knowing the difficultly of finding them and and wanting to help, I immediately boxed up Grant's clothes to send to her to borrow.  Along with that, I wanted to send a new outfit as well.  Off to Target I went, and they had TWO options (boy and girl).  This caused me to get aggravated all over again and have flashbacks of our journey not so long ago.  This sparked a fire in me.  I came home and told Mister this shouldn't be this big of a problem.

In short I want to put preemie clothes into the hands of NICU/preemie families so they can experience the same joy and normalcy we did seeing Grant in clothes.  
I want to relieve a tiny bit of stress that those families are going through.

I want them to have a special outfit for photo day.  

I want them to have an outfit they remember their baby wearing on the day the graduated from the NICU and were able to go home.

That is the (long) story short of how Grant's Gifts came to be.

After this idea was born, I was introduced to an amazing Cincinnati based non profit called Vivian's Victory whose passion is also to help NICU families.  I am elated and honored to be working under them as a program collecting and donating preemie clothes to families in the NICU.  

Head on over to Grant's Gifts to learn more!  

If you would like to donate you can text 'grantsgifts' to 71777 or clothes can be mailed to the address on the site. 
(fyi-there are still a few tweaks happening to the site if anything looks off, we are working on it!  The official donation page is still having some kinks worked out so at this time, texting may be the easiest option.  I'll update the post once the kinks are worked out.)
 

I always make it a habit to check the sale/clearance rack at any store I am visiting to see if they have preemie items.  Some favorites are Target, Wal-Mart, Carters, Old Navy, Gap and Meijer.

I would love if that was something you incorporated into your shopping trips as well.

Thank you as always for your love and support!!

Follow Grant's Gifts on Instagram here and Facebook here!

Snoozin in the Clouds

I really hate breaking my blog silence with this post but it has been on my heart to share with Floyd's fans, friends and family that he crossed over the rainbow bridge 4 weeks ago.

I announced this on Instagram shortly after it happened but sharing it here has taken some time to come around to.  We have met, connected and began so many friendships (who've turned into family) from this blog and solely because of Floyd.  Our family is honored to know that Floyd brought smiles, happiness and laughter all across the world because of the blog.  And the joy he brought Floyd brought to our family is immeasurable.

Mister and I brought Floyd home with us when he was 6 weeks old.  From that day he was a constant in our life.  Always there, always sassing around, always snoozin.  As you can imagine (and anyone with dogs knows) once they are in your life, you just expect them to be there, always.  I won't lie, I still look for Floyd, expect him to be sitting at the front door window and to come slinking around the corner.  We miss him constantly.

About a month before Floyd passed away we had been at the vet for his yearly check up.  Everything checked out okay except our vet told us she could detect a heart murmur in him.  We had noticed that Floyd had been slower and seemed to be getting hotter on walks, even when it wasn't too hot out.  However, we knew his dramatic personality and simply getting older,  we didn't think too much of it.  Once we knew he had the murmur we scaled back the walks, waited until it was cooler and kept an eye on him.

The day before he passed away he began to act off and a little weird.  That morning he wouldn't come in from outside, even for a piece of grilled chicken.  We knew something was off then.  That evening he seemed slower and a little out of sorts.  He would just stand in one spot for a few moments and then move on.  I sat on the floor with him and we snuggled in a blanket.  I quickly noticed his chunky paws were cold.  His paws were ALWAYS very warm so this was concerning.  I also checked his gums and they were pretty pale (while feverishly texting my favorite dog experts and Floyd's favorite aunts, Kait and Casey).  I called the doggie urgent care and they said we could bring him in or wait until morning and take him to our vet.  Thankfully (seriously!) our vet had an opening come available that morning and she was able to get him in right away.  (Side note we love our vet and even more so now with how she helped us handle this situation.)

I went over his symptoms and recent behavior and she decided to do an ultrasound to see if he had a blockage.  She quickly came back and told me that she found a tumor in his spleen as well as lots of blood on his abdomen.  She showed me a very full vile of blood she had taken from him in the short time he was getting an ultrasound.  She said the tumor had began to burst and was trying to get blood from other areas of his body (hence the slowly down).  

I quickly (while sobbing) called Mister and he came to the vet right away.  After that we talked through the situation with our vet.  She explained that there was a VERY good chance the tumor was cancerous and even if they were able to remove it, the cancer would most likely come back within 6 months.  She also advised that there was a good chance he would need a blood transfusion and he may not survive that.  And even it wasn't cancer, again he would likely need a transfusion and there could also be other tumors in his body that were cancerous. 

This news + the heart murmur + his age + his anxiety issues (which had gotten a lot worse in the past couple of years) we made the hardest decision of our lives.

I imagine no one that has ever been in that position feels like it's easy but we knew it was the best decision for him.  We did not want to suffer, to be in pain and to be released of his anxiety.  

 Floyd was the best bubba to us and so so so loved by so many but no one harder than Mister and I.  We still miss him and talk about him (and in his 'voice') every day.  We try to comfort ourselves knowing he is snoozin in the sun all he wants, eating all the peanut butter he wants and getting alllll the belly rubs; living his best life.

The grief comes in waves but we are doing our best to get through it.  It is extremely hard to get used to how quiet our house is without him (sans that almost 2 year old we have ;) ).  

Thank you to all of you for your wonderful messages, prayers and stories of remembering Floyd.  We are so grateful for all of his 'fans' and the love the blog world has always shown us.

Currently : June

I am so pleased to be co-hosting with Anne this month for 'Currently'! 

I love having these posts to look back on to see what we did during the months.  I have been slacking on blogging but I love to at least have these posts to reflect back on.

First up, traveling: I recently returned from a girls trip to Clearwater, FL.  We had an absolute blast! We all met in college and have been friends for 15+ years.  The trip was a perfect mix of beach, wine, LOTS of girl talk and just good ol relaxing.

Also can we just get an applause for getting multiple, good group shots?! Not easy with 9 people! 

Grilling: We grill out the majority of the time in the summer.  One, we love it and two, it gets me out of cooking every meal, Mister is the grill master in our house ;)  I am pretty sure we could eat burgers from the grill every single night.  If we have the time we will use the charcoal and it is SO yummy.  We love to experiment with various seasonings and versions of burgers.  I would love to try grilled pizza but it is slightly intimidating.

Exploring:  Unless LM is sleeping, there is not a moment we aren't exploring.  He is incredibly, busy and curious.  He LOVES to be 'outchide' looking and picking up all the rocks, sticks and dandelions.  If you visit our yard you will find piles of rocks all of the place.  We really love to watch him wander around the yard exploring every inch.  

We are also trying to explore more of Cincinnati and things to do as a family while enjoying our summer.  So far we've hit up the zoo and multiple parks.  

Planting: We have a local nursery that we absolutely love.  They are incredibly friendly and the prices are great, it's really hard to beat.

Last weekend we made a big trip and picked up veggies, herbs and flowers to plant.

Mister and I really enjoy being in the yard and experimenting with various plants.

A few years ago I picked up this raised bed for the patio and it always does well. 

 This year I planted: rosemary, cilantro, basil, cherry tomatoes, peppers, lavender (keeps mosquitoes away!) and melons!  I also picked out a few flowers for a big planter I love to deck out.  

Playing: We are obviously always playing with LM, he really loves rocks, his food truck and reading books.  

We also played some fun games on my girls trip.  We tried out Monikers and Last Word and they were both really fun!  They would be great for a group weekend away! 

And that's what we've been up to! What is currently going on in your world?

Join the link up here:

An InLinkz Link-up

Weekend Wrap Up: No Plans

I haven't done one of these in a while and the irony is, we didn't have anything planned this weekend worth even reporting on BUT we had a lot of quality family fun time and there are always good pictures to go along with that!

Friday: We had a little play time after LM's dinner and off to bed for him.  Fridays are rough on the poor guy, he plays so hard all week and usually crashes on Fridays.

Mister and I made this Mexi Meatloaf in the insta pot.  SO good and it makes a ton, I definitely recommend it.

Saturday: LM had gymnastics first thing and we ran around, rolled around and explored the gym.

Afterwards he and I ran some errands (Target, duh) and back home for play time. 

In an effort to get him outside but not in the soaking wet grass, we went on a run before lunch time.

While he was snoozin, my mom and I went on yet another jean short hunt.  I had ordered these from Nordstrom Rack and they were SO short it wasn't even funny.  I didn't find any other ones either.  I think I'm giving up.  The shorts I want are a unicorn that will not be found.  We then hit up Trader Joe's for some goodies (everything but the bagel seasoning for LIFE).  

That evening we headed out to dinner with NaNEE and LM, once again, almost ate more than we did.

Sunday: We headed to church but got there a little too late so LM's class was full.  Instead he and I hung out in the atrium running around and eating snacks.

Once home from church and errands we played outside and watching LM collect rocks and play with his broom-two of his favorite things.

We rounded out the day with a neighbor birthday party and grilling out with NaNEE.

(LM NEVER snuggles us in bed so I treasured these quick few minutes he sat with me on Sunday morning.)

 

See, no real plans all weekend long but we chocked it full.

l of goodies and snuggles and the kisses that LM has been giving us lately, which are THE best.

How was your weekend?

Currently : May

Hi friends!

I am happy to be linking up with Anne and Carrie today for the May edition of Currently.  

Like most folks, I am not sure how it is May already but the fact that I'm pretty sure Spring is finally here to stay I am okay with it.  

This month we are talking all things:
Celebrating:  This may seem insignificant to some but I am jumping for joy that we recently ordered new horizontal blinds for our family room.  Last year we had the entire house painted and once we did I HATED our window treatments.  The window treatments came with our house so we've lived with them for quite a while and I was more than ready for an update.  We finally settled on these from Select Blinds.   Even working in the design field, I have trouble nailing down exactly what I want or what I'm picturing in my head.

Creating:  Another simple house update under creating lately.  Awhile back my mom gave me a large wooden monogram 'T' for our front door and I finally managed to get it stained.  I used the same stain we have on our dining table but not as many coats.  It is a subtle gray with a tint of blue and I love how it looks on our navy front door.  There's something about warmer weather that makes me want to update the entire house.

Wearing: More Spring joy here! Dresses and skirts finally!  I picked up this adorable polka dot dress from Loft during one of their sales lately and I'm loving it!  I have also been on the LARGEST jean short hunt of all time.  I feel like Goldilocks.  Too big, too small, too short, just not right.  I really love these but they ran out of my size and I wanted to love these but on my longer legs they were a no go.  I have a pair a Levis in route to the house so I will see how those go. 

Sharing: These muffins with my coworkers.  I did not have super high expectations for them but they are SO good.  They're gooey and so yummy when warmed up and had with your morning coffee.

Going:  OUTSIDE OUTSIDE OUTSIDE with LM.  He LOVES to be outside and so we are go go going out the door as much as possible.  I cannot resist that little voice asking me to go 'ouchtside' so out we go and we play and collect rocks and walk around until bedtime.
And to the zoo as often as we can, because what's not fun about popping down to the zoo?

Next month I am honored to be co hosting with Anne for Currently : June.  Please join us to talk about what you're: traveling, grilling, exploring, planting, playing

Life Lately

Oh hey look, here I am.  I promise I haven't forgotten about this space but you know, life gets in the way.  Also I have another project I am working on that is taking a lot of my time.  I am not ready to spill my guts yet but I am so excited about it and cannot wait to share it with you! I will need your help once the cat is out of the bag so get ready!

Otherwise here is what has been going on in our life:

If you saw my Insta you saw that Mister and I went camping last weekend.  Yes, me, went camping.  We love love love our church and church community and they have land that they do camps on every so often.  Last weekend was 'Couples Camp' and at first I told Mister NO WAY.  However, over time I came around to the idea and I am SO glad I did.  We had a fabulous weekend, so much goodness.  Even when we woke up in the middle of the night to rain in our tent :(  

Little Mister spent the weekend with Nanny and they had a ball! They went to gymnastics and played, played, played.

A few weekends ago some of my best girlfriends came into town and LM had a weekend long play date with his aunts and birthday buddy Edie.  They weren't planned to be so close in age but LM and Edie are only a few days apart and so fun to watch together.

 

Friends of ours moved (major sad face) but they gifted LM their slide and he has been in heaven.  He is constantly chanting 'outside outside! slide slide!'.  When he's not sliding he's really into picking up rocks.  My mom tells me that from about age 2 on I always had a rock in my pocket every time she did laundry so it's only fitting he loves rocks.  

I think those are the only major things going on in our life!
We are still LOVING our insta pot and keeping up our Whole30 diet in an 80/20 aspect.  We need our wine and Diet Coke but otherwise we are doing a pretty good job sticking to it.

What's going on in your life?!

18 Months!

LM is 18 months old!

We are so proud of him!  He is becoming such a sweet little man.  So funny and silly all the time.

Everyday is more and more fun with him.  Recently he is talking up a storm.  He has 20+ words at the moment and is exceptional at repeating.  Most importantly, he's started saying 'mama' more and more often.  And it's my favorite thing in the world.  He says 'hi dog' and 'hi dad' alllll the time which are also adorable.  He is a true little boy and very obsessed with balls.  He says 'Baalllll?' as a question and statement all in one.  I love it.

His is also very obsessed with blueberries and hearing him say 'blueberry' is so cute.

He is a busy, busy man.  He does not stop moving. All day long.  Until he crashes.
Our sitter will tell us that sometimes she finds him taking a quick power nap on the floor in the middle of the other kids playing.
He goes goes goes until the moment he's in bed and then crashes.  

We recently enrolled him in a gymnastics class and he's loving it!  They have little miniature gymnastic equipment (bars, beams, rings, etc) and they work on different skills, singing and a very light curriculum.

He is a very curious soul and loves to wander around when we're outside and just take it all in.  We were at the park recently and he spent a good 30 minutes just walking back and forth on the trail investigating everything around him.

 We recently introduced him to Elmo before bed while he has his milk and he is starting to enjoy it.  He says 'ELMO' as soon as we put jammies on and head for milk and the sofa.  He has yet to be a big tv kid (which is 100000% okay with us) but I think Elmo may be becoming a favorite.

At his 18 month check up he was 22.6lbs and 31".  He is built just like his papa...tall, long and lean.  Knock on wood he is a very good eater! He will eat anything we put in front of him.  When he's getting teeth (working on #s 15 and 16 right now!) in he is a little more picky but otherwise he's a good eater. I'm pretty sure if we would let him survive on blueberries, bananas, carrots and green beans he would.  And the occasional cheese stick because who doesn't love cheese sticks?
 

Whole30: Round 2

Whole30 seems to be all the rage lately and it's for a good reason.

We did our first round of Whole30 back in October and while it has it challenging moments, it is TOTALLY doable and totally worth it.

As the founder says, cancer is hard...Whole30 is not hard. 

We recently listened to Jen Hatmaker (LOVE her, please go read her books and listen to her podcasts if you aren't already) interview Melissa Hartwig, founder of Whole30 and it was enough to make us want to do it again. 

If you are new to Whole30, in short it is a program that strips away sugar, grains, alcohol, dairy and MSG from your diet in order to get your body in check.  

We originally did Whole30 in the fall as a reset for our bodies and our systems and it worked.  While the program isn't focused on losing weight, I did not hate the fact that I lost 12lbs over the course of the 30 days.  The literature is careful not to call Whole30 a 'diet' and that's true.  Within the approved foods, there is no limit to the amount that you can eat.

I've talked before how I have some (annoying) belly issues (in short, my body is allergic to sugar and can't process it well) and that leads to a lot of bloating and digestive issues.  Unfortunately, sugar is in LITERALLY everything, so many things you wouldn't even think it is.  So while Whole30 can be on the verge of boring, the program works really well for my system.

The founder of Whole30 makes it a point to encourage trying Whole30 for 30 days and then slowly reintroduce the foods you eliminated back in and seeing how your body reacts.  Whole365 should not be a thing...for one, I think you would lose your mind.  Two, mama needs her glass of wine and some cheese every once in a while.  While not on Whole30 I like to employ the 80/20 rule.  Good food in 80% of the time and the not so good stuff 20% of the time.  For me that 20% is usually Diet Coke, red wine, fries and cheese.  Again, all of those things have sugar and my body will surely tell me about it.

Since we've completed one round of Whole30 I thought I would share my favorites with you guys.

I will say, that in general we eat pretty 'clean' so I didn't see an excessive change in our grocery bill or what we were buying.  

The #1 piece of advice I have is to plan and prep.  I usually use Sundays to prep and cook roasted veggies, spaghetti squash and chicken.  I've been doing chicken in our Instant Pot and we also make a big batch of scrambled eggs to have throughout the week. 

Whole30 Favorites:

Rx Bars (any of the fruit ones)

Kind Pressed Bars

Larabars (fruit flavors)

Dried mango, pineapple, banana (Trader Joes has the best)

Roasted potatoes (we slice them thin, season with garlic salt and roast at 425 for 25 minutes)

Apples with almond/cashew butter

Fruit

Roasted veggies

Aidels/Applegate sausages

Creamy sun dried tomatoes + chicken thighs 

EGGS (so many eggs)

Flavored seltzer water (coconut is my favorite)

Pumpkin Turkey Meatballs 

Tessamaes dressings

Nutpod creamer

Lean beef burgers with avocado 

Sweet potatoes

There are TONS of easy and yummy Whole30 recipes out there.  I will say we struggle most with snacks.  We are used to having portable snacks and carrying around half a chicken breast isn't the easiest thing.  Nor is surviving on Rx bars, mostly because we would run out of money.

So here we go again...wish us luck! If you have any questions, just ask! I am no expert but have ton a bit of research and enjoy talking about it!

5 Dinners You Can Make in Less than 30 Minutes

First off, Happy Valentines Day!!

I don't know about you, but we are always on the hunt for quick, healthy, yummy dinners.

My mom recently gave us a Crock Pot Pressure Cooker (their version of the Instant Pot) and that magical gem has answered a lot of our prayers.

We use that guy at least twice a week and the meals usually make enough for at least one night of leftovers.  That is a win for this mama.

Another very large bonus of the Pot is that you can cook fresh or frozen meat, both in a very short amount of time.

I cannot get over how quickly the Pot cooks and how easy it is.

I will say there is a learning curve to get the hang of it and the valve system but it is very doable.  Once you follow the directions and use it once or twice it all makes sense. 

Always remember (like a Crock Pot) it always needs a little water/liquid, usually at least 1/2 cup.

And! This is very important, always use a spatula to release the valve, do not burn yourself!

I have a million recipes pinned that I want to try but for today here are 5 that can get you dinner on the table in less than 30 minutes (some less than 10!)

1. Instant Pot Turkey Vegetable Lasagna Soup

I can't be for certain but I think this might be my favorite recipe that we've made.  We subbed out lasagna noodles for gluten free spaghetti noodles.  This made a TON and was a winner with the whole family. 

LM devoured it.  Thankfully this meal coincided with bath night.

Not to mention, it was ready in under 20 minutes.

2. 5 Minute Chili Mac

We've made this chili mac twice now and have loved it each time.  From the moment you grab the items from the pantry to the time your timer goes off, this whole meal is ready in under 10 minutes.  If that doesn't scream perfect for busy week nights I am not sure what does.  This chili mac is so comforting and yummy. 

I think next time we may add another can of beans or ground turkey to increase the protein.

3. Chicken Breasts

We make chicken in the oven every single week for our lunches.  This past weekend we tried making it the Pot and it was so easy!  I added about a cup of chicken broth, garlic and some seasonings.  The chicken was done in about 20 minutes and very tender! 

While that is cooking you can easily cook some rice, roast some veggies or sweet potatoes for a side and dinner is done.  And healthy! 

I also saw a recipe that calls for pineapple juice instead of chicken broth...I can't wait to try that!

4. Taco Meat

This one is great for those nights when you forgot to take the ground beef/turkey out of the freezer.  Simply place the frozen (or fresh) meat with a packet (or homemade) taco seasoning and in about 15 minutes you have taco meat ready for tacos, nachos, burrito bowls or anything that your heart desires.

5. Instant Pot Chicken Noodle Soup

Talk about winter comfort food, this guy fits the bill.

And for a bonus recipe, we were with some friends this weekend (the one who really talked me into wanting a Pot) and they made the quickest, cheesiest, creamiest mac and cheese.  It was ready in less than 20!

The recipes you can make in the Pot are endless too! Yogurt, hard boiled eggs, cake, desserts, rice...and the list goes on!  Thankfully Pinterest is currently a treasure trove of recipes, ideas and tips on how to use the Pot.  

I have seen a few people say they were afraid to use/attempt to operate theirs and to that I say 'go for it!'  I promise it will change your dinner game and free up your evenings by getting dinner on the table MUCH quicker and clean up is a breeze!  

Let me know if you have any questions or please share your favorite recipes with me!

Winter Book Review

I've managed to plow through some books lately and wanted to share a couple good ones with you.

As I mentioned yesterday, I am in the midst of listening to 'Of Mess and Moxie'.

I am currently reading 'The Rules Do Not Apply', I am not far enough in to give an update but the reviews are good! 

Seven Days of Us was a quick, easy read that I enjoyed quite well.  It follows one family as they are quarantined in their house for seven days to make sure their daughter has not brought home a dangerous disease from her time doing mission work.  The whole book reminded me of an updated version of Love Actually meets The Family Stone.  

I would give 'Before We Were Yours' a solid 3.75/5.  I did really enjoy this book and thought it was very interesting but there is an element of sadness to it and I wasn't the hugest fan of that.  

The story follows a family of children as they are stolen and placed into various homes as well as the Tennessee Children's Home.  The other side of the story is a curious female who begins to investigate the history of her family and how they were involved.  

I love all things Lauren Graham and loved listening to her memoir 'Talking As Fast As I Can' was no different.  I listen to a lot of book tapes but I especially enjoy when the author reads them.  Lauren is fabulous to listen to, hilarious and provided quite a few anecdotes and stories about Gilmore Girls.  

I loved that book so much I immediately downloaded 'Someday, Someday Maybe' - her first fiction piece.  It is loosely based on her life and how she became involved in acting.  Again, a winner.  

'Me & Emma' was a very quick read with quite the interesting twist at the end.  I will admit, a few times during the book I kept wondering where it was going.  However it is one of those reads that right at the end it all comes together and makes sense.  

I've also had a couple duds lately as well.  A few I pushed through (mainly 'One of the Boys') and a few I just did not finish because I couldn't.  I enjoyed Kevin Kwan's first 2 books but could not get through 'Rich People Problems'- it seemed too all over the place.  

What have you been reading and what should I put on my list next?

If you aren't already, feel free to follow me on Goodreads, I love to keep track of my books and 'to read' list on there.

Currently : February

I am so excited to catch Anne's 'Currently' post this month.  I really love having these posts to look back on and I really enjoy finding new to me bloggers through the link up. 

Currently in the month of love I am:

Finishing: Earlier this week I started listening to Jen Hatmaker's 'Of Mess and Moxie' and I am LOVING it.  I loved 'For the Love' and am flying through this one just as quickly.  It's one of those books I want to hear everything she has to say but I also don't want it to end.  In any case, I may be finished with it very soon.

Subscribing: I have my favorite beauty YouTubers I am subscribed to but I am always on the hunt for new ones to watch.  And I was contemplating subscribing to the FabFitFun box.  I've watched a few unboxings and they always seem to be full of awesome products.  It is pricier than most but the lure of full size products is quite nice.

Wishlisting:  All things Spring! I am so ready for warm weather and some new Spring pieces.  Loft always has such great pieces that can be dressed up or down.  This navy dress is calling my name.  

I cannot fathom wearing shorts right now in these frigid temps but these scalloped chambray ones are too adorable and I do believe I will need them.

I am also on the hunt for all the cute bathing suits.  I always seem to be late to this game so I am trying to get ahead of it this year.  I already picked up this suit that Kait discovered.  It is a winner! And $20, you really can't beat that.  

 Watching: This one is always a never ending list...We just started A Handmaids Tale and are enjoying it.  If I have the tv all to myself it's all the Real Housewives and anything Bravo wants to rot my brain with.  And I think next up on our binge list is Broadchurch.  

When we traveled to Arizona I downloaded The Great British Baking Show for the plane and quickly became full on obsessed.   It is fascinating!  I flew through the first season and am on to the second now.  I treat myself to a partial episode before bed each night (otherwise I would stay up all night watching).  

Hearting:  Well my boys of course ;), having my mom live in the same town as us now, our church and friends we've made there, planning our monthly date nights (more on this soon) and watching LM grow and learn and experience every day. 

Linking up with Anne 

Working Mama : 1 Year After Maternity Leave

Today marks 1 year of being back at work after LM was born.  

To say that was a terrible, no good, sad day would be an understatement.  I was on the verge of tears the entire morning trying to get ready and I think I cried almost all the way to work.

My sweet neighbor met me in the driveway with a card and a Starbucks gift card, both were very needed and appreciated.

 (1 year ago...my last day of maternity leave)

That being said, getting back into a groove was good.  I missed LM like crazy and really just wanted to be at home with him, but it was nice to talk with other adults and put on real clothes.  It had been quite a while since I had done that consistently.  I left work on September 16th (not knowing I would not return for a while) and did not go back until February 2nd.  (Well I went back 1/2 days for 6 days right before he came home...that barely counted since I was only there for 4 hours and had to pump twice during that time.)

The advice I heard over and over again was to take it one day at a time.  And that is all I could really do and over time, it worked.  To all you mamas that eventually have to go back to work, I promise it works.  It sucks hard core but it does get better.  It makes coming home all that much better. 

My other big advice is to not start back on a Monday if you can help it.  I started back on a Thursday and only having to go in 2 days and not dread the weekend (if I had started on a Monday) made it a lot easier.

Even before we had LM I had the upmost respect for working mothers.  Now that I am one, I have enough more respect for fellow mamas (and papas).  It is hard work.  Plain and simple.  It is 100% worth it, but that doesn't mean it isn't hard.

It has definitely taking some adjusting and schedule wrangling but we make it work.

Our days are pretty much nonstop from the moment we get up until the moment LM goes to bed.

I get up at 5:45 (on days I workout) and about 6:25 on the days I don't.  

I start the coffee and get LM's milk ready.  I then speed get ready and by this time LM is usually awake and jabbering away in his bed.  Thankfully he is pretty good about chatting with himself and playing in his bed until it is time to get dressed.

By 6:45 I get him up, dressed and teeth brushed.  After that Mister takes over for milk time and off to the sitters.

It is our goal to pick LM by 5 (or before) from the sitter and rush home for dinner and play time.  It depends on the day of the week but usually he starts crashing by 6:30-6:45.  After pjs its milk and into bed.  

 As you can see, sadly my time with him in the morning is limited.  I have a bit of a commute so I leave as early as I can so I can in turn, leave as early as possible in the evening to return home.
It is my goal to be in the office between 7:30-7:45...barf I know.

But then I can leave around 4:15 and then we are able to maximize our time in the evening with him.

By 7:15-7:30 we all crash in some form.  LM in his bed and Mister and I on the sofa with dinner (terrible habit I know).  

Mister and I both have been pretty busy with work the past few months and often have to work in the evenings.  I do not mind this too much (I mean, yes I would rather be doing nothing ;) ).  However I do think it is important to set the expectations of those you work with and for if you are in a similar situation.  I've made it clear that I am okay with working in the evenings if necessary but refuse to do so while LM is awake.  Since he is only awake a few hours after we get home, I am not going to spend that time sitting on my computer. I did recently have to jump on a call when I got home and LM insisted on sitting in my lap (and I did not mind one bit) but let's just say thank goodness for the mute button.

Having 2 full time working parents is definitely new territory for us and is constantly changing but the groove we are in right now seems to be working as best as it can be.  Whether you work in or out of the house full or part time or your job is to be an amazing stay at home parent, you get all of my props.  Parenting is like 148 jobs rolled into one that you can't train for.  Throw that on top of normal life and craziness and jobs to boot...it can be a doozy!  I am guessing this is an area that we can all give ourselves a little bit of grace.  This is something that I am certainly working on.  

Thankfully Mister and I both work for companies that value family time and a work/life balance.  If LM has a doctors appointment or I need to leave early to get him, my office is great about letting that happen.  That flexibility means the world to us.  It makes a lot of difference to the balance we strive to keep.

I remember counting down the days until I had to go back to work and absolutely dreading it.  We are very fortunate that LM and we love our sitter he goes to.  While I'd love to hang out with him all day, I enjoy my job and he enjoys his friends and our setup is working at the moment.

I have a couple other thoughts on this subject and am thinking about starting a series around working mamas and how we make it work.  Let me know if you have anything you want me to touch on.

Current Beauty Favorites

I seem to be on a beauty buying bender the last few months and it's only right I share my favorites with you.

I love reading and watching beauty product/skin care/makeup recommendations from other bloggers and youtubers.  If you have any favorites I need to be using, send them my way!

I have always been a huge fan of Moroccan Oil products.  I LOVE the way the smell. So much.

For Christmas my mom gave me this great heat protecting spray.  It smells yummy and protects my hair when I actually dry it, win.

She also gave me their split end treatment.  While I love going to get my hair cut, I never do it on a regular basis and split ends inevitably happen. This seems to be helping.

Come to think of it, Mama gave me my holy grail mousse too.  We share a love of hair products.  I am always in search of more volume and Kenra Volume Mousse is magic. I usually cannot get volume to last more than a day but with this mousse I can get at least 2 days worth. 

As far as face products, I have continued to use Philosophy's oldy but a goody Purity face wash but recently picked up one of their masks as well.  Their Pore Extractor Exfoliating Clay Mask is excellent.  I try to use it at least once a week and can immediately tell a difference.  I feel like it brings out the impurities in my face but also clears them up very quickly. 

I have never really used any of Korres products but I've been using their Pomegranate Balancing moisturizer and it is lovely! It is super lightweight and a little goes a very long way.  I literally lightly dab my finger in the the jar and that amount will cover my whole face. 

Before I lightly swipe on my moisturizer I use BareMinerals Skinlongevity Vital Power Serum.  This guy has all sorts of good stuff in it and I can tell a difference that it is working.  It is for sure making my face smoother and also decreasing the appearance of wrinkles.  Again, a little goes a very long way.

In the makeup department, I finally purchased a Naked eye shadow basics palette.  Granted it is the small travel size but I can see what the hype is all about.  The colors are very nicely pigmented, stay on all day and go on like a breeze.  

On the drugstore side of things, Wet n Wild has really been winning me over.  Not only are they cruelty free but they are so affordable! At the moment I have at least 4 favorites from them.

Their foundation is currently my go to, it is a great medium coverage and lasts all day.  

I am also a very large fan of their Megalast Liquid Catsuit lipstick.  It is the first matte I've tried out and really like it.  

And they cannot be beat for face and eye shadow primers.  I've been using both for the past few years and they are both under $5.  Enough said.

Kait and Casey turned me on to Vital Proteins Collagen.  I wasn't sure I needed it at first but after a few weeks of putting it in my coffee each morning I can tell a big difference in the thickness of my hair and how fast my nails are growing.  I've already turned 2 other friends onto its magic.  

And those are some of my favorites in my beauty regime.  Are any of these on your list?  Do you have any that I need to try out??

16 Months

I realize this is an odd month to do an update on but hey, the last one was 4 months ago so here we go.

I mentioned a little bit about LM in my last post but thought I would dive into the details a little more on this post.  Plus this Mama loves having these posts to look back on.

At his 15 month check up LM was 22lbs and 31" long.  I would say he's about the same weight now.  But he has definitely gotten taller lately...sometimes I'm pretty certain he grows while napping.

He LOVES to eat.  Knock on wood, we haven't found much of anything he won't eat.

He doesn't like lunch meat ham but that is about it.

He loves pb&j, chicken, bananas (dried and fresh), dried mango, yogurt, pudding, grilled cheese, string cheese and basically any form of CHEESE. (Just like his mama)

He loves his milk!  We are working on transitioning to all sippy cups for milk.  Judge away but this boy may get a bottle before bed until college.

He does really like this straw cup and anything with handles.  

He is a walking fool.  And with that comes with a lot of tumbles but he generally gets right back up and keeps going.  He LOVES his blankie and has mastered walking with it, even wrapped around his legs.  Pretty impressive if you ask me.  

His feet are still kind of tiny so we've had a tricky time finding hard sole shoes for him (and that aren't CRAZY expensive) but they seem to be growing so hopefully that won't be a huge issue soon.

He can climb up stairs and is starting to figure out how to climb on the sofa.  He was on the sofa the other day and just up and started walking across it....so I'd say we have a little daredevil on our hands.  He does not seem to have any fear.

LM is saying 10+ words at the moment. His little low voice is so funny.  There are a lot of 'hi's' in our house.
He is also picking up some sign language.  He can do 'all done', 'more' and 'milk'.  We are starting to work on 'eat' and 'water' next.

He is still pretty stingy with his smiles and giggles but we've noticed him laughing and giggling more often.  He does have the stink down pat though ;)
 He has definitely started finding his sillies lately.  He knows how to at least make us laugh, and he does that every day.  

Brushing Off The Dust

Tap, tap, is this thing on?

Do I remember how to do this blogging thing?

If anyone has noticed I've taken a bit of break from this space but I won't lie that it has been calling my name.  I've had quite a few people ask if I was planning on blogging again.

The short answer is yes.

The long answer is I can't promise how consistent all be and I can't promise every post won't have a pictures of LM.  But I can promise I do really enjoying blogging and I have some posts lined up in my head.  I love this space and I love connecting with all of you friends and having a record of our lives and even the every day things we're doing to look back on.

I am going to use the total mom excuse that life just got very busy.  And it goes without saying we have a very busy 15 month old on hands.  From the moment we get home from the sitter and work it is go go go until LM crashes.  We do our absolute best to maximize our time with him in the evenings.  Maximizing that time did not include blogging sadly but now that he goes to bed earlier, I am hoping I can get back in the groove with this space.

So last I left you off with was LM's birthday party.  And if I didn't say it enough, I had SO much fun planning that party and celebrating our little man.

We rounded out the month of October with Halloween where LM went as Charlie Brown.  However in true Ohio fashion it was far too cold for anyone to see his costume. 

We also took a trip to the pumpkin patch, LM wore jeans for the first time and he finally found out what it means to be a Bengals fan.

November was a crazy work month for me but we still managed to squeeze in some fun. 

We traveled to Tennessee and Indiana for Thanksgiving.  

And Mama snuck away to Indianapolis for a night with the girls.

Complete with a Taylor Swift themed dinner!  Can we talk about how great the new album is?!

Just like everyone else, our December was also bananas.

Work again crazy, holidays crazy, you know the drill.

Nonetheless we had fun and I think every month is more and more fun with LM, I feel like he really, really started to blossom in December.  His adorable, silly, funny personality is really shining through and he is just so fun.  In December he decided his favorite words are 'hi', 'cheese' and 'shoes'.  Which all fit our personality quite well.  We want him to be friendly, cheese is our favorite food group and we love shoes.  Makes sense. 

While our Christmas Day sadly involved a trip to urgent care we still had such a fun day with LM and our family.  Thankfully LM was fine, just a virus from getting vaccines.

We spent the rest of the day loving and him and playing with all sorts of new goodies for all of us.

December also marked my mom moving in with us for a little bit while she transitions to Ohio.  LM is loving having his Nanny around all the time! 

 The end of December sent us to Scottsdale to meet up with Kait and Dane and Casey and Eric.  As most of you know, we all met through blogging and have continued to be the best of friends.  We do our best to see each other as often as possible and the Scottsdale trip had been the works for quite a while, the fact that we were celebrating my birthday made it even more fun.  

For a full recap, check out Kait's post here! 

We had an absolute blast in Scottsdale, the best food, margaritas and overall fun.  I have not laughed that hard in a very long time and it was amazing.  The perfect weather didn't hurt either! 

And I think that pretty much catches us up to present day!

If there is anything you want to know, need up an update on or would like to see just let me know while I work on getting back in the blogging saddle!

Happy New Year everyone!