Our Summer in Review- July

I meant to post a July in review and then all of the sudden August was over too so I have the past two months to put up. They were busy months too. I still can't believe summer is over. There was a lot i was hoping to accomplish that i didn't but there is even more that i did. Remember this post with all of the things i wanted to do this summer. Well we did quite a few of them.  We went to the zoo, ran through sprinklers, ran with the sunset, went to the cabin and spent lots of time together as a family. Leighton might not know how to swim still and the only tan i got came from a bottle but we sure did have a lot of fun soaking up every bit of summer that we could.

watching mom work and picking "powers"

  

smiles and bums at the park

sleeping babes

 

4th of July

Pioneer Day

Family trip to Salt Lake

Lots and lots of swimming

Best Sisters Ever!

MMM- Most Important Work

I have been horrible at blogging lately and want to get back on schedule so bad and then i look at the list of things i have to do and don't even know where to begin, so i usually concur a few things and spend the rest of the day chasing the girls. I desperately need to organize my time better. Right now i have a personal fight with sleeping too much or too little and then work in middle of the night on one job and in the morning on another and have the third filling me with excitement and creativity 24/7 so i just want to work on it all of the time. So the blog gets pushed aside and I am just lucky i take the time to play with the littles. While pondering how to better set up my schedule I came across this quote and could only think, how fitting. It doesn't matter where my time is spent as long as most of it is on my girls. I really do believe if i take care of my relationships with family first everything else will fall into place. 

A Little Kindness and Confetti

I took last week off from blogging to get myself organized. Life got busy and i got ahead of myself and it didn't take long for me to become overwhelmed. Now i am back, reenergized and ready to stay on track. For this weeks motivate me monday I wanted to talk about serving others. The ice bucket challenge thing has been going around lately and that is great. It is awesome to see so many people donating to one cause. There are tons of reasons to donate though and for an endless number of charities. I personally like to put our money or time towards a cause i am close to or towards an actual person. Last week my heart was touched by an insta mama @lexzurcher that i follow who offered 100% of profits from her home made prints to go towards a family that she is close to that just found out their baby girl has Muscular Dystrophy. My heart breaks when anything is with babies or children. I wish that no harm could ever come to the littles of the world. As a mother i know my own heart would be shattered if i found out my children were anything less than perfect. So far in our lives we have all been very blessed. Anyways this insta friend has the most beautiful prints and she is spreading love and kindness like crazy. I hope to be this way. I hope i can offer as much heart felt help to those around me. Check Alexa's Etsy out. She is so talented and every room in your home can benefit from her wonderful prints. 

Speaking of confetti... I'd love to introduce my newest endeavor.

What do you think? This is the logo for mine and Shae Vandenberghe's business. What is Gold Confetti? Event styling and coordinating. We are so excited to get this going and have such big dreams in mind. Guess what?! Our first wedding is in 5 days! It is going to be absolutely beautiful and we can not wait for it to get here. Check out our instagram account @goldconfettievents for now and our website will be up shortly. If you are interested in hiring or collaborating with us email me at gold confettievents@gmail.com

Let Them Eat Out

This weeks link up is a hard one for me. We eat out all of the time and my secret trick to eating out? Leave a BIG tip. Kids are messy and they are loud and you just take it for what it is. Really though we travel a lot and we eat well. Food is our favorite thing and we don't hold back from eating at nice restaurants because we have children. Don't get me wrong, its not like we let them just go crazy but i don't stress too much when Leighton wants to walk in circles around our table or take a couple of trips to see the fish in the front of the building. I do tend to go prepared with coloring books and movies on the phone. We try to keep Leighton distracted as long as possible, eat as much as she can and then we plop the iphone in front of her until our meals are gone. Its probably not the most ideal form of entertainment for her but praise the Lord for unlimited data, right!?

  What is your secret trick to eating out with your little one?  Check out the other mama's blogs for even more tips!  And be sure to link up with us below if you also have a post on this.  

Like a Morning Cup of Coffee// From Here to Eternity// The Not Quite Military Wife//

A Cowboy's Life// My Delicious Adventure// Sadie Sky Boutique// Meet the Sullivan's//

Love and Life//  Foxy's Domestic Side// Everyday Love// Life of Faith

July 10:  Keeping your marriage alive with a toddler

July 17:  Favorite summer toddler activities

July 24:  Helping Your Toddler to Communicate (Words, emotions, etc.)

July 31:  Dealing with Separation Anxiety

Aug 7:    Car Trip Necessities

Aug 14:  Deciding when the time is right for baby #2 (and/or how to handle these questions)

Aug 21:  Tricks for eating out with your toddler

Aug 28:  Feeling confident as a mom (How to feel this way, Your struggle with, etc.)

An InLinkz Link-up

When Is The Right Time?

Once upon a time there was a boy and girl all they wanted was to have a baby. Eventually they did. Then all they wanted was to spoil that one baby forever and ever. Or at least for 3 years. Then all of the sudden the girl became very ill, laying on the ground cursing her morning chai latte next to the toilet ill and 10 months into their sweet spoiled babies life she told the boy another baby was on the way. 

True story! Kaden and I were just fine having one baby. We honestly could not imagine every loving another child as much as we loved Leighton and that just wouldn't be fare to our other children. We were convinced if we were going to have more kids they would't come for a long time. We wanted to have a few years to prepare ourselves mentally and financially for another baby. Clearly someone had other plans for us and we couldn't be happier that they did. Emersyn is loved just as much as Leighton. Our hearts have only grown with the birth of both our girls and now when someone asks when the third one is coming i just reply hopefully soon. Deciding to have children is a huge step, deciding to have more is an even bigger one. It is scary, you already took on a huge financial burden how can you afford another? (Children are financial burdens, sorry) You love your first child sooo much you cant possibly have more love left in your heart. What about your bond with your first and all of the fun things you do together? You just got use to your freedom and figuring out how to handle one, why give that up?

 I totally might offend people by saying this, but because you want your child to be a nice functioning person in society. Really though Leighton would be so spoiled if we never had Emersyn. She is already a handful but she would be a brat on top of it. I know a lot of people are only children or only have one child and that is great. We just personally don't have the right set of parenting skills to raise a good person with out a sibling to help teach them. Thinking of having two babies so close together seemed like the worst/scariest idea ever but guess what? It is the best thing that has ever happened to us. I hopefully will be done having babies super soon and on to a boob job and having my body back and it will be amazing! I am dead serious when i say that too. I also love the bond that Leighton and Emersyn are forming. They really do adore each other and they are close enough in age that they can grow up doing everything together. Choosing when/if to have another baby is very personal though and everyone knows it, but everyone loves commenting or asking on when it will happen. You have to find your own way of dealing with it. I tend to joke with people and say light hearted things like oh i have no idea these two might be enough or I love this one so much i dont need another. People don't need details they just want some sort of response. So give them one and make your decision with your partner and if things dont go as planned, just know it all turns out okay.

  Hopefully you can relate to all of these Baby #2 talks this week!  Check out the other mama's blogs for even more!  And be sure to link up with us below if you also have a post on this.  

Like a Morning Cup of Coffee// From Here to Eternity// The Not Quite Military Wife//

A Cowboy's Life// My Delicious Adventure// Sadie Sky Boutique// Meet the Sullivan's//

Love and Life//  Foxy's Domestic Side// Everyday Love// Life of Faith

Aug 14:  Deciding when the time is right for baby #2 (and/or how to handle these questions)

Aug 21:  Tricks for eating out with your toddler

Aug 28:  Feeling confident as a mom (How to feel this way, Your struggle with, etc.)

An InLinkz Link-up

Realizing

So i am bailing on the summer favorites post again. I can't quite get into it since this end of summer month has gotten out of control. The next unplanned weekend i see in my future isn't until the end of September. It is exciting but a little depressing at the same time. So anyways here are some thoughts from tonight.

Earlier i was trying to work, Kaden was watching a movie and the girls were playing in the living room. Leighton got so crazy that at one point she was threatening to jump off the counter or maybe it  was jump on her sister? At any rate it was crazy and I got so angry that i had to stop working and fix the situation and put the girls to sleep (shouldn't Kaden be capable of this). I was so frustrated when i was getting Emersyn to bed i just sat there rocking and bouncing and thinking "come on go just to sleep now." Then the rocking and bouncing seemed to calm me, I pulled myself together and thought wow we are crazy blessed! I'm so lucky i have a job i can do from home and walk away from the computer to put my babies to sleep, i am so lucky to have a job at all. I am blessed that Kaden is able to be home with us every evening and afternoon. Recently so many things have changed for us that i forget to stop and realize how good they are. Kaden's work situation went from 50+ hours a week to 40. Sure we miss the pay, but our relationship and his relationship with the girls has been beautiful. Kaden has been a happier person, he is enjoying hobbies and he really is helping more around the house. I was able to take on more hours with hospice and have found the time to work them. I also co founded a new business with an amazing partner and our fist event is in 3 short weeks! (I'll post more details later) Honestly life is great. I get frustrated and then i count my blessings. We really do have so much to be thankful for.

Motivate Me Monday- In Between

Today is simple. Some days i wake up and start off exactly where i was when i went to bed...with a billion things on my mind. I am a girl who stays busy. I tend to make  myself busy. If i don't have a hundred things on my to do list I don't know what to do. Right now my list reads; mail package, write sarah, paint bathroom, write 3 blog posts, work 4 hours today, draw reception layout, sketch things for kaden, clean kitchen, unpack... Well you get the point because yes my list keeps going. I am a stay at home mom with a real part time job i do from home online and I am starting a new business adventure. I have a lot of goals both personally and for my family and sometimes i get lost in them. Somedays I forget that instead of just working towards something i should be living too. So last night while scrolling through pinterest this hit me like a ton of bricks. This is what i am working on this week.

Road Trip Survival Guide (from an expert mommy traveler)

We are on the go so often that sometimes when we load up in the car i have the tumble weed song from  Fievle Goes West playing in my head. Rollin, rollin, rollin, keep rollin, rollin, rollin, rawhide! 

Okay hopefully im not the only one that feels that way. Luckily i have been blessed with two great little travelers. These babes pretty much have been on the go, in the car since the day they were born. Both of them started their long distance car rides at just a couple weeks and the treks have just kept getting longer. Since i consider myself a travel expert i have came up with a few items that you MUST have to survive a trip via car. 

Lets call it the Rollin, Survival Kit

1.Back Pack To store everything in of course, 

2. I am pretty sure this is how miracle worker is spelled-IPad. I know this isn't in everyones budget but if you are brave and run errands and travel a lot with your kids I promise the investment is well worth it.  I can not even count how many times turning on sesame street or an app has saved both mine and Leightons lives.

3. mirror this is for the rear facing babes. It is so nice to know when Em is awake or not and to give me peace of mind that she is still alive when she has been quiet for a long time.

4. head rest this should be self explanatory.

5. coloring activities Hello best coloring inventions ever! So besides playing on the iPad, coloring can keep Leighton entertained for hours and the plus side to both of these, no mess! 

6. Mostly mess free snacks Because your littles will get hungry and you don't want to stop to feed them.

Even though stopping every 2 hours is recommended

7. Books Why not work on those ABC's while you have the time? Not only do we read but we play games. Find a letter or an animal etc. Its like having eye spy in your hands.

I'd love to hear what your road trip go too's are and don't forget to link up!

Have questions about traveling? Feel free to ask! Don't want to leave a comment?

Email me at hello@loveandlife-blog.com

  Hopefully you can find these tips helpful for your summer travels.  Make sure to check out the other mama's blogs for even more tips!  And be sure to link up with us below if you also have a post on this.

Like a Morning Cup of Coffee// From Here to Eternity// The Not Quite Military Wife//

A Cowboy's Life// My Delicious Adventure// Sadie Sky Boutique// Meet the Sullivan's//

Love and Life//  Foxy's Domestic Side// Everyday Love// Life of Faith

July 10:  Keeping your marriage alive with a toddler

July 17:  Favorite summer toddler activities

July 24:  Helping Your Toddler to Communicate (Words, emotions, etc.)

July 31:  Dealing with Separation Anxiety

Aug 7:    Car Trip Necessities

Aug 14:  Deciding when the time is right for baby #2 (and/or how to handle these questions)

Aug 21:  Tricks for eating out with your toddler

Aug 28:  Feeling confident as a mom (How to feel this way, Your struggle with, etc.)

An InLinkz Link-up

9 months!

My sweet sweet Emersyn turned 9 months old on the 1st of August. I couldn't believe it. How has this tiny little baby of mine grown so quickly. In three short months she will be 1! Okay I am going to pretend like i didn't just realize that. She is so little still. Really she is like having a real life baby doll at my disposal. She lets me dress her up, wears her bows, lets Leighton drag her around, push her, hold her and pat her on the head and she doesn't do anything but smile. I hope i don't jinx myself here but i can't say it enough, Emersyn is a dream baby. At 9 months old Emersyn is still wearing 3-6 month clothes. But don't let her size fool you, she has some chunky legs that we cant squish enough. She loves to smile, laugh at Leighton, clap her hands and stand. Yes, stand! She even took 3 steps today with out holding on to anything. (insert eye covering emoji here) I tried to pretend like it didn't happen, but it did. When Leighton was 9 months old we were encouraging early walking, i dont know why we wanted that girl to grow up so fast. I just want my babies to be babies forever now. Em is still a total baby when it comes to eating though. This silly little girl just wants to nurse and that is alright with me. If she is absolutely starving she will take a bottle even though she doesn't know how to drink it very well. She will ocasionally eat kale puffs, bread, or a veggie pouch but those moments are few and far between. Maybe with walking will come eating. We still haven't decided whether or not we should call her Emma. 9 months ago we thought thats what we would name her and here we are still calling her Emersyn. She just seems like such a unique spirit that she deserves a unique name to go with it. 

The Things My Daughter Says

Kids really say the darndest things. I about die several times a day when i hear what Leighton has come out of her mouth. Lately I have thought "I really hope i always remember this" So here they are. I am interrupting the regular Tuesday post to bring a list of crazy words from the mouth of a babe.

These are just from yesterday...

Cover your boobs! Cover your boobs!
(as i fed Emersyn Leighton tried to cover me up. Funny that Leighton knows no modesty herself though.)

It eats a boob, It eats a boob.
(This sent me back to silence of the lambs and uhh Leighton tried to feed Emersyn herself and all i could do was take a picture and of course it was blurry.)

Me- Can i have a kiss? Leighton- We May! and proceeds to kiss my face off.
(maybe just a little too much frozen around here.)

Motivate Me Monday- Be Happy, Be Kind

Leighton is rarely this sweet to Emersyn. 

But today she made her bed, gave her a baba and read her a story. 

Melt my heart!

I have mentioned before that my insecurities tend to get the best of me. I have been working on them and with that here are some new things i have discovered. The more i try to be kind to others the happier i am. Sometimes being kind is scary, not that i want to be mean but its intimidating to go out of my way to say hi to people or smile at strangers or start small talk with the person behind me at the store. We live in a world of busy individuals who don't have time for anyone around them. I have noticed the more i walk around with a smile on my face, hold doors open for people, say hello and compliment people the more i shock them, but hopefully they are all pleasant surprises. If you don't follow Whippy Cake, you probably should. Her blog is full of all sorts of beautiful and this month she is hosting the most amazing online event in honor of her birthday. She is asking to spread kindness. Check it out and this week as i make a conscious effort to be a little kinder i hope you will too.

 

Whats Separation Anxiety?

I am almost serious when i ask that question. Really separation anxiety is not something that i have had to deal with at all. Both Leighton and I came up with this understanding when she was born that we would love a lot when we were together and play hard when we were away. Okay not really but that is how it seems. My little Leighton is a social butterfly, whats the biggest butterfly there is? Maybe one from the rain forest. A queen bird wing or something like that, that is what she is. I can't believe i am going to post this on the internet, but that girl has no problem walking away with a total stranger. She loves everyone for the most part and really loves spending time with her cousins, friends and other family. Even her first week in nursery or first time being baby sat (at 3 weeks) she was like "see ya mom don't come back anytime soon." The lack of anxiety makes me a little sad at times but it is also a huge relief. I have spent several long weekends and even an entire week away and i knew she was alright. I hear a lot of moms say "well i am a stay at home mom so its really hard for my child to leave me." Maybe, maybe not. Personally I feel like a lot of it is in the parents attitude. I make it easy for both of us. Give me a quick kiss, have lots of fun, I will see you soon. I started our goodbyes like this since the beginning. I also really push building relationships with people outside of our home. Our girls love their grandparents, they have friends, we are social and out of the house regularly. All of these things will help them in the long run with whatever separation we may go through and the anxieties that can go with it. Sorry i can't be more help on the subject. I know it is a real thing, I know most children experience it as well as mothers and I hope that with all of the link ups today there is a lot of great advice on how to deal.

Dealing with separation anxiety can be tough for any mama.  Be sure to check out the other mamas in our series for their helpful posts.  If you've got a post on separation anxiety, don't forget to link it up with us below!

Like a Morning Cup of Coffee// From Here to Eternity// The Not Quite Military Wife//

A Cowboy's Life// My Delicious Adventure// Sadie Sky Boutique// Meet the Sullivan's//

Love and Life//  Foxy's Domestic Side// Everyday Love// Life of Faith

July 10:  Keeping your marriage alive with a toddler

July 17:  Favorite summer toddler activities

July 24:  Helping Your Toddler to Communicate (Words, emotions, etc.)

July 31:  Dealing with Separation Anxiety

Aug 7:    Car Trip Necessities

Aug 14:  Deciding when the time is right for baby #2 (and/or how to handle these questions)

Aug 21:  Tricks for eating out with your toddler

Aug 28:  Feeling confident as a mom (How to feel this way, Your struggle with, etc.)

An InLinkz Link-up

Summer Favorites- Did Someone Say Sale?

It is still July and already the back to school sales are in full bloom. I would be lying if i said i wasn't on constant sale watch mode and I may or may not have put a few online orders in already. You see i am in middle of redoing my office, starting up a new business and well I just love to shop. The Nordstrom Anniversary Sale has almost been the death of my credit card but since we are being smart shoppers this year... its paid off already. Here are my favorites so far and if you haven't hit up the Nordstrom sale, what are you waiting for?! It ends August 4th and believe me you don't want to miss it.

Nordstrom Anniversary Sale

Motivate Me Monday- Realize You Are Blessed

Kaden and I have been struggling to find answers to some of the thoughts consuming our minds lately. All i have wanted to feel was peace and to know we can make hard decisions and that what we choose is right. Answers to prayers are not always so simple. Sometimes they are just plain hard and frustrating and there is not just one right answer. So with a leap of faith we think we have decided on what kind of life we want and how to go about obtaining it. Only time will tell how things will turn out but for now we are happy. After a long week of frustrating conversations and what not we took a much needed trip to our cabin and it hit me... sometimes you just need a break to remember you are already so blessed. Stepping out of our routine reminded me that i have everything i need. A husband who can frustrate me to no end but loves me more and more every day, even with all of my faults. Two beautiful daughters who are my world, the seconds in my days and almost all the joy that fills my heart. Nothing else matters except for them. Our lives are right and good as long as we are together. So my friends I hope this motivates you. Step out of your routine and count your blessings. They are there, your life is beautiful and even the most humbling of circumstances is filled with a life so worth loving.