mommy and me style

call me cheesy, but one thing I looked forward to once I knew we were having a girl is matching outfits! Now, not everything but the occasional bows, shoes, swimsuit, shirt, etc. and I melt. A lot of the super cute things out there are expensive already, and multiply it x2 (one for baby, one for you) and you're talking a big purchase for something your tiny one may only wear one time. Here are a few of my favorite mommy and me styles on a budget



these headbands are on amazon. I don't have this exact print, ours is pink and floral. but, you can get both for $4.00 WHAT?!

next are these swimsuits from RAD SWIM! I bought ours back in the fall (when Evynn was teeny) when I saw a coupon code for 50%, so we got both for the cost of one, score! I will say, the chest of my swimsuit doesn't cover me well enough, but we'll see how changes over time, ha! This specific style is the Kylee and Little Kylee, but they have mini styles in a lot of the options!

here we are wearing ours ;)

eventually I will totally want to invest in matching Kortni Jeane swimsuits, but I'll wait until Ev isn't growing at such a rapid pace!

"toms shoes"

my shoes are actually TOMS that I got a bridesmaids gift from my sister in law years ago. I still wear them frequently though. The other day I was at hobby lobby and going through their baby aisle and found the exact style and color in baby version! They were like $6 and I could not resist. Ev actually keeps these on very well and they match everything. 

and just for funnies, this outfit duo! I have had this shirt of mine forever but last fall when Ev was tiny, I was looking at old navy.com (because, duh..) and found THE EXACT SAME THING IN ONESIE FORM! I could not believe myself and instantly ordered it! haha!

my wishlist for future matchy-ness:

mom and daughter Saltwater sandals for sure! Preferably when her feet aren't changing so much ;)

and kortni jeans swimsuits as mentioned above ;)

one year gift thoughts

Evynn's first birthday is quickly approaching! okay... it's like 2 months away still but in between vacations, camps, and the hustle of summer I know it'll be here like tomorrow. I feel like we have party decor tucked away in every cabinet at this point, ha!

Cody and I haven't really ever bought Evynn a lot of gifts (like, for Christmas), she is plenty well taken care of by her family ;) But, in case we do decide to get her something special from us for her first birthday, these are a few things in my mind:

1. custom teddy bear I love that you can take a newborn outfit/jammies/etc. and have it made into a teddy bear to cherish forever. And there's a place in lubbock that embroiders the birth stats (birthday, weight, etc.) on the back. 

2. convertible car seat this is a must by her birthday, if not before then, for miss long legs! We know we'll be splurging on a convertible car seat either on our own or with a combination of gift cards around the time of her first birthday. We probably need 2-3 for the sake of me, cody, and our babysitter Kortney, however not all of them need to be top of the line. Any suggestions of brands of convertible car seats?!

3. learning activity cubes I hope that if/when we get one of these that Evynn will sit still to play it ;) I don't love the idea of having tons of bulky, space taking toys around, but if its one she will enjoy for longer periods of time, I'm on board!

4. bath letters and numbers we've moved Evynn to our deep bathtub for most of her baths now and she has discovered splashing around! I see longer baths in her future and more play time in the midst of them. So, I think it's time to invest in some bath toys/letters/ and even a non-slick mat for the bottom of the tub. My biggest worry of her being in her big tub is her getting excited and sliding her little booty.

5. board books I love any type of books but i really want to start making a custom book of names and faces for Evynn to learn family!

6. push and walk toys I really bet that she'll be walking really soon but I think one of these standing push walkers would be great!

ALOHA | going away party

I hosted a "LUAU" party with two girlfriends of mine last week in honor of our friends, Bess and Matt who are moving soon! I met Bess through foundation (a christian camp at tech) when we were in the same small group and then grew closer as were in the same christian sorority, had the same group of friends, and went through bridal showers, weddings, etc. alongside each other. Cody and I have loved hanging out with Bess and Matt and will miss them so much! 

So, Myself, Sabina, and Paige hosted a going away party for them at paige's house! It turned out so fun, so chill, and the perfect weather. 

We had food, blankets and baby toys laid out, and games for the guys to play

bess is the chalkboard queen and makes beautiful chalkboard art, so I was little nervous about making one for her ;) but it turned out alright! key: write in chalk after dipping the chalk in water! so much creamier and smoother!

food:

chips and dip

punch: hawaiian fruit punch, orange sherbet, ginger ale?, and pineapple juice

"sand" pudding: layers pudding, cool whip, vanilla wafers in a sand bucket

pork and hawaiian rolls

watermelon "fruit bowl" with watermelon, pineapple, and grapes 

fruit dip in a pineapple

pineapple bbq meatballs: frozen meatballs cooked in skillet with can of crushed pineapples and bbq sauce

traditional hawaiian macaroni salad: macaroni, mayonnaise, apple cider vinegar, sugar, salt/pepper, sliced carrots

we also had a place to write encouraging notes to bess and matt!

..and lei's of course at the guests arrival!

we all had so much fun!

evynn claire | ten months

How many months old? 10 months

Weight?  20 lbs

Length? Not sure, probably still 28”

Dr apt? We had our first case of ear infections, unfortunately. Ev threw up all over Cody about 6x in a 30 min time span last weekend. After that she was acting completely normal so we weren’t sure what that was about. The next day she got a fever that lasted a few days, but she still has a few teeth right at the edge, so we wondered if it was just teething. Last monday she was starting to be extra fussy, not eating, etc. and that just got worse on Tuesday. I unfortunately worked the three days that she was super fussy, I’m very thankful for Cody, my mother in law, and Kortney for loving on our very sick and fussy girl in these days! Wednesday morning Cody got Ev up and she had her highest temp of 103.5 so he took her to the dr and I met them there. At this point she was in a full blown body rash, roseola. And the diagnosis of ear infection was confirmed. So we’re on antibiotics and she’s back to her normal self. She still wasn’t crazy about eating all weekend so I feel like I’m back to newborn nursing days ;)

Any teeth?  finally can say YES! Starting the first week of may, I could see SIX teeth right at the gum line-two on the bottom and 4 on the top. On May 10^th 1 bottom tooth and 1 top tooth busted through. The others are still very close to coming through!

Sleep? She’s such a good sleeper most days! She wakes up at about 7:00am, takes a nap  9:30-11:00 then another nap at 1:30-3:00 then bedtime at 7:30. Most times we can lay her down without a peep and she goes right to sleep. Other times we have to pat her back or let her cry for a few minutes. But her sleepy signals are very obvious-rubbing eyes, rubbing her face on our chest, etc. so we know she’s ready for bed. She really refuses to sleep anywhere except her crib or moving carseat. My new goals: disassociate nursing to sleeping anddddd getting her to maybe sleep anywhere haha!

Feeding?  She’s a champ when it comes to eating! We introduced meats this month and she’s loved the occasional chicken and beef we’ve introduced. Still loves fruits and veggies. Our go-to is a pan of sliced sweet potatoes I bake, she loves picking up the slices to eat. She still nurses 3-4 times a day probably (or more?) and takes a few bottles when I'm at work. We're working on her drinking her milk in a sip cup rather than a bottle these days. 

Last week I would've said that my breastfeeding journey was coming to an end. I would pump a whooping 1oz during a session. I started my cycle and realized that was probably why. I haven't pumped since work last week but having a sick baby over the weekend I feel like she's been breastfeeding nonstop so hopefully my supply is back? She doesn't seem frustrated or hungry so I'm hoping so! I feel confident that we can make it to my 1 year goal in the comfort nursing department, at least. My worry is if I can keep up with pumpkin 6-7oz bottles for her to drink 3-4x a day! If we have to supplement at some point, it's fine but I do hope we can continue to nurse at least little longer.

Developmental milestones?
·      On may 3^rd she decided to give her sippy cup (of water) a try and LOVED it!

• ·      If shes upset about anything she climbs up to me and holds on while crying… even I am who she is mad at ;)
• ·      Loves to stand on her own, bend down to grab a toy, then stand back up
• ·      Into all cabinets and drawers all the time
• ·      Her crying/screaming volume has increased like 100 octaves so… that’s great…
• ·      She is SASSY. If we say NO about anything she sits down, spreads her legs into splits, and puts her head down between her legs onto the ground and cries… and we let her ;)
• ·      She is clingy as can be and constantly wants to be held, with someone… preferably Mom this week ;)
• ·      She does very good at grabbing her sippy cup and drinking from it! She does better at the munchkin straw cups because she straw Is weighted so she doesn’t have to tilt the cup up to get a drink
• we celebrated my first mothers day
• Evynn was dedicated at our church on May 15th
• still wears size 3 diapers, size 9-12 or 12 mo clothes, and 6-9 mo shoes (lol!)
• she knows that she gets in trouble when she intentionally throws food on the ground so now she immediately shakes her head no after doing it, hahaha
• if i'm spoon-feeding her something, she will grab the spoon from me and feed herself

Favorite toy? 

·      She loves her walker, loves to run through our kitchen and around to the washer and dryer and then back, waving the whole time. Future homecoming queen?! ;)

·      Really loves anything she sees, she can have a room full of toys but if a clothes hanger is in her sight, that will keep her entertained for awhile

Speech and language?  Still jabbering up a storm, if only we knew what she was saying! Occasional “mama”, dada, byebye, shakes her head no, I heard “uh oh” once…

Loves?  Running through the kitchen in her walker, looking/trying to grab things gown the kitchen drain while taking a sink bath, trying to get into the medicine cabinet, splashing in the bathtub, throwing all the shoes and bows onto the ground from her cart

Dislikes? Cabinets and drawers that are baby proofed, being told NO, being strapped down in her carseat, waiting on food, being alone, taking antibiotics, sitting still for monthly pictures

Firsts: sippy cup! Ear infection! Tooth!

We love: All of a sudden our baby seems like such a “kid”! She is standing up and one-handing her sippy cup and all that I feel like she’s past the baby baby stage. But we love seeing her grow up, develop a personality, and figure out the world!

photo dump:

first mothers day

Sunday was my first mothers day! Last year, being 7 months pregnant, I debated on if it counted but this year my technical first!

I worked on Saturday then went to see my bestie who became a mother a few days before that. Once I got home later that night Cody asked Evynn if they should give me my gift. He gave me a gift basket of all organic (duh, Cody...) bath salts, soap, scrubs, incense, oils, etc. all in a basket handmade in ghana. Leave it to an organic store to put that all together ;) He also got me a card and drew Ev's hand in it ;)

Needles to say, I've lots of great bubble baths since then! 

Sunday morning we went to church, where they handed out flowers to all the moms, then home where Cody made lunch and we napped and relaxed. I tried to get a picture of myself and the girly who made me a mom and here was the result (pre-nap):

We're very much in the baby stage still, so I know there's a lot of "mothering" that I haven't even been able to see yet, but I do know so far that being a mom means a lot of sacrifice and a lot of love. I wouldn't have it any other way!