March Favorites!

A post on a Wednesday?! This was originally scheduled for Monday, but Monday just got away from me and I didn’t get the post finalized in time to get it posted. So, here we are.

It’s already April 5 (what?!) and while I can’t believe that it is already April, I am excited to share some of my favorites for the month of March. I am trying to do only products that I used the whole month, but there are a couple that slipped in that were only used for part of the month.

Ok, to start with, I’ve been really loving my new planning that I have started with in the month of March. I have been going round and round with planners as I am such a picky person and a huge paper planner. I had been using the Passion Planner, but it ended up becoming cramped and I wanted to have a little more space for notes and such on each date. I’ve been eyeing the Bullet Journal system for a long while now and decided to take the plunge for March. I’ve never been happier and more at peace in a planning system. I will be doing a separate post and series about this system, so stay tuned!

I finally bit the bullet y’all. I decided to go ahead and purchase the Ugg Slippers that I have been eyeing for years and years. I always went back and forth because, let’s be honest, they are expensive and I was always able to get a similar cheaper pair somewhere else. After throwing out my latest pair of slippers I decided to go ahead and purchase them as I know they are meant to last for a long time and I have heard only good things. I have not been dissapointed! I’ve only had these for about half the month, but holy cow they are fantastic! I’ve been wearing them everyday around the house and they have been so comfortable.

We are coming up on Passover and while I do not celebrate anymore, there are still a couple of food items that I love getting and eating. One of my all time favorites are the Manischewitz Chocolate Macaroons. This is the only way that I will eat Cocunut and I honestly gobble these down. I have been enjoying have a couple of these throughout the week (or maybe more than a couple) and they are just so delicious! I will be a little sad when they are retired for the year soon.

Lastly, this past month I have watched two movies that I love and am proud to call favorites in my collection. The first movie being, of course, Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them. I could not ask for more in this movie and as an installment in the wizarding world! It is simply magical and just perfection! Newt Scamander is such a fantastic character and the niffler is by far one of my favorite animals/characters! The second movie is Trolls! I only just recently watched it when I bought it on DVD and it is the cutest movie! Our little man loved watching it as well with all bright colors and fun songs! Poppy and Branch are very dear to my heart as they are very much like myself and my husband in so many ways.

What are your favorites for the month of March?

MiaLeave a comment

Looking Back: 2nd Trimester!

Happy Happy Friday!! I thought I would do a short little update on how my second trimester went in this second pregnancy. I didn’t really do a first trimester post, but I did do a first pregnancy vs second pregnancy post that touched on some of what I went through. This isn’t going to be a very long post because for the most part, my pregnancy has been pretty standard, as it was with my first. Most things have just been fairly straight forward just pregnancy in general. There have been some good things and some not so good things, so we will start with the not so good and work our way through to the good!

The biggest thing that I noticed towards the end of this second trimester is just how sore my body would get faster. So, with sweet little man, my body didn’t really have that tiring feeling and the soreness until 32+ weeks. This time around my body definitely gets sore and just feels that baby a lot faster. I don’t think it helps that I am carting around my 14 month old either and going around keeping up with him.

I’ve also noticed that I have been getting heartburn more frequently. I actually don’t know if I should truly include this one as it isn’t bad and happens very rarely, but it has happened a few times now of recent. It’s not horrendous and is typically at bedtime. Even with getting the heartburn, I don’t limit certain foods and won’t unless it becomes a major problem.

Those are the two major negatives that I’ve really noticed change in my second trimester. As for the good things…

Hello, nesting!! I am super excited about this one, I’m not going to lie. We were moving while I was hitting the “nesting” point with little man, so I had a bunch of that pent up energy that I couldn’t expend doing that. By the time we got settled into our home, I was so beyond pregnant that I couldn’t give a crap less about nesting. This time I am in full mode! I’ve always been a neat and organized person, but I have gone beyond. I have pretty much taken over every household chore (maybe that could be leading to the tiredness lol) and I’ve been in full decoration mode. I have been loving it! I am also trying to get it into a routine so it sticks around even after baby!

Another thing has been cravings. I haven’t actually had too many cravings this pregnancy and when I thought I would really start to get them, they’ve been pretty kept at bay. My biggest thing has been fruit smoothies and those can be made in a way that is still healthy (although that may not be…is not happening).  Other than that, I’ve just been loving the carbs and occasionally sugar. I’ve been trying to stay away from soda’s and when I get the urge to have one, I try to pick up a fizzy water instead of a soda.

So that pretty much wraps up my second trimester! Here’s to hoping the third goes just as smoothly!

MiaLeave a comment

I Hit a Wall…

I feel like it is an age old situation: Dispense good advice, don’t take a word of it yourself. This past week has been so hectic and at times just felt discombobulated. Side note- I’m super proud of that word choice 🙂 I’m very much a organized and have become a routine based person and this past week has just been crazy where that is concerned.

I feel like I say a lot that I am a routine based person. I can do spontaneous and I can have my days/weeks where it is off, but on the whole I love the way that I have my days and weeks planned out and I have found that it works really well for our family. This past week has pushed the “spontaneous” side of me a little too far and by the end of the week, I had firmly hit that wall of DONE.

We had a couple of appointments this week, which normally wouldn’t be so bad, except this week I had anticipated one appointment that was 30 minutes away. I had planned for just that one appointment and had figured that I could get everything else done around that. Then, it turned into two appointments on two different days both 30 minutes away. I also had a couple other errands to get done while we were out that added to the time.

My part time job picked up quite a bit in terms of being busy and having A LOT to do, so that was a factor. It’s tough when you feel like you are accomplishing quite a bit while working, but when you look at the numbers, nothing has changed. You clear out x amount of tasks to have y amount just added back to the mix. So, I know that that played a lot into my feeling of busyness and discombobulation.

Our sweet little man has been teething this week as well. I’m not sure what teeth are coming in, but it’s been a rough one for him. Normally he has a very happy sweet temperament, but with teething he goes hot and cold between smiling and crying. He typically wants to sleep more and has no interest in eating/food. He also becomes very clingy when he is teething due to the pain. He only wants to either be held or be in my lap. This is not a bad thing until things are not getting done. I still soak up the time for the most part because these moments are starting to become few and far in between.

So add together: extra appointments, extra large work load, irritable, clingy toddler, and a snowstorm at the start of the week and you get a mom who feels like she isn’t getting anything done! Normally I have a good handle on things and can pretty much handle whatever is thrown at me, but this past week just felt like so much at once. I hit a wall and actually ended up doing as little as possible on Saturday. We did a simple breakfast, leftovers for lunch, and ordered in for dinner. I did a little work, but overall just tried to relax and enjoy my time with my toddler.

It was exactly what I needed after the week felt like it was falling apart!

MiaLeave a comment

Storytime: Mom Knows Best

I’ll be completely honest right now, I don’t really know even how to start this post off. I think I’ve thought about writing it for so long now and I’ve actually written and re written it several times. I’m still not sure how this is going to go, but I really want to share this. Being a mom can be scary at times and even the most confident, will stumble at a time or two.

I know that this can lead to a sensitive topic for some, so I want to quickly say that weight gain is a serious thing and I know that. It can be a sign of a lot of potential problems and I took every bit of what we were being told (as well as some of my own instincts and research) in. I am not a doctor andI do know that there are times that I will need to listen to Doctors (and do!) and understand that they know better than I do, but on the whole I have realized that sometimes it’s best to also take your own judgement into consideration. Our issue was not that he was not gaining weight, but that his picture of health as a whole was not taken into consideration from the beginning. What I was seeing and how little man was acting as a whole did not match what we were being told.

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Sweet Little Man (around 12-13 months)

Our first son is 14 months old now and I can definitely say that I’ve learned a thing or two about being a mom and being more confident in myself and my decisions as a mom. Things that I will be keeping in mind as we welcome our second son this summer. One of the most important things that I have learned is there is nothing like Mom’s Knowledge/Intuition.

We struggled with Doctors and Colton. I should preface this with the fact that both myself and my husband are above average height with small to average frames. My husband is 6 ft tall and thin and I’m around average (ish) height and thin as well. Colton follows along the same line, which we realized very quickly. When he was born he was long enough to fit into 3 month clothing, but definitely not anywhere near in the weight department.

At Colton’s two month appointment, I had a Nurse Practitioner sit and insinuate that I was starving my child. That I was not providing enough for him. Now before you say, well what did she say, maybe your hormones blew what she was saying out of proportion. No. She said that I was not providing enough and he was starving. He had gained weight and grew quite a bit longer and I was struggling to reconcile what she was saying with what I was seeing. I could see the growth in my child. He was happy, eating healthily, meeting the milestones that he needed to be (although not many at that time) and I was in shock at what she was telling me.

*It was about a month after this appointment that we realized that my milk, while it had come in, my supply had not been able to keep up with the demand. So while he was getting enough from me up until this time, it wasn’t enough for a long term nursing situation.

If that wasn’t bad enough to be told as a first time mom, when your son is 2 months old, it got worse. The first time she said it, I was in a little bit of shock. The second time, my mommy instincts kicked in and I said “Ok. What do we do”. Instead of working with me and coming up with a plan, she just continued on with her statements. We went back and forth, with me trying to come up with a plan. If my child truly needed more, I was willing to do whatever it took to get that for him. In the end, after several times of asking, I decided that we would supplement with formula. Eventually we ended up switching entirely over to formula.

*Honestly, I could (and maybe I will at some point) write a whole separate post about this experience, but for now this little summary will do.

Colton continued to grow longer and started filling out a little bit. He started to surpass the developmental milestones that they are supposed to meet and again, I was looking at a happy and seemingly healthy baby. I had recovered from my complete breakdown after Colton’s two month appointment and everything was back on track. Then, we headed to his 4 month Well Baby appointment.

Again I was told that he wasn’t gaining enough weight, although he had put on a lot for him and grown much longer, and that I was not doing what I should be. Let me just say, I was letting Colton decide how much he wanted to eat at every bottle. I couldn’t force feed him more than he wants and he was eating close to 6 ounces every single bottle, if not more. He had surpassed most of his developmental milestones and was working on 6 month milestones. I could see with my own eyes that he was doing wonderfully, but I had a Nurse Practitioner (and then a doctor) telling me that I was failing. It was at that point that I said to hell with it, switched doctors, and started tracking things on my own.

It was clear to me that my son did not follow along the growth curves like other children did when it came to weight. He puts on weight, but he is more likely to grow longer than wider. His first doctor did not even bother to review not only his growth as a whole to include his length, but to look at how we, as his parents, were built. I was mad leaving his 4 month doctors appointment. My gut as his mother was continually telling me that he was just fine, healthy and that we were doing everything we were supposed to.

Things got better once we switched his doctor. We still have issues from time to time with the concern over his weight, but it’s not in a way of his doctor saying we are starving him. I take most of his weight gain concerns in, keep a watchful eye on how his eating is going, and overall watch how his behavior is. I am with him all day long and I am the first to realize when something is wrong. Realizing that I am his number 1 and best advocate and that at times, I will know best and will know better than the doctors has been the best thing both for him and for us as a family. By having this attitude, my son is not only happy, healthy, meeting milestones way above his age, and growing appropriately, but our family is also happier and healthier. I am happier and healthier.

MiaLeave a comment

Week In Pictures – A Family Visit and Shopping!

Hello everyone! Gosh, it is already 5-6 days into March! This past week has been a whirlwind as my husband went out of town for most of it for work and my mother came into town for a visit. We did quite a bit of shopping and just got to spend some time together. This was also my first full week in a new planner set up as well as adding some more to my journal. The week ended with some more shopping for the new baby as well as our little man.

I had a few things that I needed to pick up, some more spring/summer maternity clothes, some books and I had a few appointments throughout the week as well. This kept us plenty busy for the week and it seemed every day we had to do something!

I was able to get quite a bit of some new tops to gear up for the warmer weather (of course now that I have, it’s getting cold again) and I’m very much looking forward to spring and summer outfits that I can put together! Sweet Little Man and #2 also got some new clothes for summer as well. We’ve got everything saved from when Little Man was a baby, but with them being born at opposite ends of the year, there are some clothing items that we need to have. I also want to do a different theme for his nursery than we did for Little Man as they are different.

Little Man had a “woodland” animal/fox theme with Oranges and Browns in his nursery and I think #2 is going to have a mountain animal/bear theme with Blues for his nursery. I love what we have picked out so far and I think it is going to come together really well! We’ve still got to move quite a bit of furniture around and switch rooms around before I can decorate the new room, but I’m definitely in a nesting mode and think I will be for a long time still.

One other big thing that I did this week was to get my eyes re checked out. I’ve had glasses for a long time for when I’m reading/working at the computer/watching TV and when I was in school, but I’m one of those people that doesn’t typically wear them. I just strain through the situations and work through it. It has been steadily getting worse and I think it has some to do with the amount of migraines I deal with. I got a new prescription and some new glasses to go along with it. So far, it’s been such a difference! To be able to clearly see things has been so nice! No more straining to see for me.

How was your week?

MiaLeave a comment

February Favorites

Good afternoon everyone! I want to try something new out for the next couple months and that is doing some monthly favorites! These aren’t going to be specific to anything, but rather just some bits and bobs that I have started to or re discovered throughout the previous month. They could be just about anything, although I will try to stay away from books and tea’s as that is my business (although one or two may pop in from time to time), so that is handled on my business site and blog. If you are interested in that, The Cosy Book Shoppe can be found HERE. Shameless self promotion over now, so let’s get into some of my February Favorites…

To start with, I’ve been loving the Simple Moisturizing Facial Wash. I have fairly normal skin, but it can go from one end of the spectrum to the other in terms of being really moisturized or really dry. I used to use the Cetaphil face wash and I loved that, but I believe that they have recently changed the formula or they have removed the one that I used from shelves. The Simple wash allows my skin to continue that good balance between the two opposites and I’ve been loving it!

Along the same lines of skin care, I’ve re discovered a love of the Aveda Hand Relief Moisturizing Cream. I’m obsessive about hand washing, it’s almost an OCD factor that I have. With all of that hand washing, my hands dry out so quick. I use the Hand Relief in the evening and I find that it gives me some much needed relief at the end of the day. I use a lighter moisturizer in the morning and between the two my skin is very thankful.

A food favorite for you are the Girl Scout Thin Mints! I’ve loved these ever since I was little and selling them myself and they are the cookie that I treat myself to every single year. My husband came home this year asking whether we wanted to buy any this year and my response was “You have to ask?” Thin Mints are highly requested in our home and we typically end up getting at least 2-3 boxes a year. They never last long, no matter how hard we try, and we then spend the rest of the year trying to have all other sorts of chocolate mint options in our home.

Another food favorite WAS Cranberry Sprite Soda. Why was, you may ask? Well because it is no longer being sold in stores that we have around us (or around the country). I was first introduced to the Cranberry Sprite around Christmas and I absolutely loved it! So so good and I was eagerly awaiting the option to get home and get a whole case for myself. *Quick clarification, this is most definitely a pregnancy craving (although I would still drink it if it wasn’t) and I am definitely over reacting with my disappointment because of that.* We were waiting for the Superbowl soda sales to hit as we typically don’t drink enough soda to justify not buying it on sale and by the time that the sale hit, the Cranberry Sprite had sold out and been pulled from the shelves. I continually regret not simply purchasing the 12 pack when I could.

A couple of style favorites for you for the month. If you follow me or know me, you know that I am pregnant. This means no “normal” clothes buying and I was trying to hold out on buying some more maternity clothes until a little more into spring/summer. With the influx of warmer weather I found myself needing some tops and bottoms to accommodate them. I’ve been loving Liz Lange maternity for not only the price point, but also the fact that there is a good variety of styles to choose from. I find the clothes to run a little bit bigger, which is nice for growth, but it also means that when shopping that needs to be taken into account when picking sizes.

Another quick end of the month addition to my style favorites are the Xhiliration Sleepwear! I picked up a pair of their pajamas at Target this past weekend and I am obsessed! They are the most comfortable pajamas that I have ever worn and the designs are really nice. I picked up a floral pair and I think I am going to go back and get one more set with a different pattern to round out some summer pajama sets. They are fantastic!

Finally, for multimedia/tv/movies, I’ve been loving two things. The first being a TV Show called Six on the History Channel. My husband is in the military and is very much into a lot of military shows and movies. This particular show follows Navy Seals as they go through missions with an over arching mission in mind. It’s been a great show to watch and we’ve been enjoying watching the new episodes. The other thing that I’ve been loving is Ed Sheeran’s new releases in the music world. I’ve always loved his music and this latest album that he has coming out is no different! I’m looking forward to listening to the rest of the songs when it is formally released!

So, that’s what I’ve got for February! These won’t typically be this long, I’ll try and trim as I go moving forward for you. Has there been anything in particular that you have loved this past month?

MiaLeave a comment

Week In Pictures: Spring Weather Already?!

Good afternoon everyone! After all the craziness that I feel like February has been, this past week has been all about getting back to our routines.

I’m a planner and organized person by nature and love to have my routine. That’s not to say that I can’t be spontaneous at times, but I definitely like to have a general outline of things in order to feel sane. This past week was getting back into that bit of myself. I put my full cleaning routine back into effect (rather than the spot cleaning we were doing), decided to overhaul my planner and planning system, and started getting back into waking up early and having my “me” time in the mornings. These were all things that fell through the cracks when our month started getting busy and we were doing so much.

With that going on inside the house, some spring weather made a showing this week outside! We got a taste of 60-70 degree temperatures, which meant plenty of time spent outside for all of us. For a while little man didn’t like walking on the grass because it felt so uneven compared to cement or the flooring in the house, but after playing outside at the Cathedral, he has a whole new outlook when it comes to grass. He is now relatively unstoppable outside and both him and Copper had a good time running around! They wore each other out as well which was always nice for me as it led to a good nap and a little sleep in the next morning for little man.

We didn’t explore over the weekend as we had some errands to run and the weather wasn’t going to cooperate for long, but we still managed to get a little walk/hike in before the late afternoon storms started to hit! I absolutely love being in an area where we have nature all around us and so many different options to go walking and hiking. We like to be outdoors and get active so this area has been perfect for us so far!

It’s been relatively low key over here, which has been nice after what has felt like a constant movement/busyness of a month! February was full of so much and quite a few new, exciting adventures. I’m excited to see what March is going to bring to our humble home!

MiaLeave a comment

Let’s Talk Pregnancy #1 vs Pregnancy #2

Good afternoon everyone! I hope that your week has treated you well and if not, well it is weekend time! This week has been a rough one for me and has really been trying. With that being said, since it is Friday and I am celebrating being over halfway done with Pregnancy #2 I want to do something a little fun!

A week ago we found out that we are expecting another little boy! This is very exciting for us and we are looking forward not only to meeting the little guy, but that our sweet little man will have a little brother to be best friends and grow up with! They will be very close in age and will be able to do a lot together! Since both my pregnancies have had their differences, I wanted to do a little Pregnancy 1 vs Pregnancy 2. I will start with the major differences and then have some similarities.

To start with, in Pregnancy #1 I had very little “morning sickness”. The only time I was sick was for maybe 2 weeks in the beginning and then it all went away. With Pregnancy #2, I was sick from about 3.5 weeks on. I won’t go into all the details, but it was bad. I had a really tough time and was very very ill. Once my doctors prescribed me some medicine it helped, but it didn’t truly let up until around 15-17 weeks. Even now I still deal with loss of appetite.

Another difference is in Pregnancy #2 would be my body changes. Pregnancy #1 I carried really low. Sweet little man just loved to be right in my hips until the very end. He didn’t deviate too much from his location, although he would kick and get mad as heck if I was sitting upright and he was getting “smushed”. With #2, he is definitely all over the place- up high and down low. I’ve felt him getting closed to my ribs a couple of times already!

Another little difference is how I have approached the pregnancy. Obviously Pregnancy #2 I have a toddler running around, so I’ve been more focused on him and making sure that he is doing well and less focused on myself than Pregnancy #1. I have been much more relaxed this time around with some of the restrictions of pregnancy. With #1 I was very hyper aware of everything that was going on and everything that I was eating and drinking. This time around I haven’t been able to do that. I stick with the major things to avoid in any pregnancy and try not to consume too much caffeine. Beyond that I’ve just been a lot more relaxed about

So, those are the major differences at this time. My cravings have been mostly the same, although I’ve tried to be a little healthier this time around. I’ve been loving the carbs, fruit and spicy! I’ve been hating Peanut Butter and Green Beans. I know I said that my sickness was different as well as my body changes, but where I’ve gained my weight so far has been the same. I have gone all belly once again (look for a picture to come soon!) and everywhere else has stayed the same.

So those are just a few things that I’ve noticed that has been different and the same with both pregnancies! I feel really good now though at this point in my pregnancy and I feel like I’m really starting to be “settled” in pregnancy #2.

Mia3 Comments

Week In Review: Exploring a New Place!

Good afternoon everyone! This past week has flown by! I actually think this whole month has really flown by, but especially the week. I couldn’t really tell you much of what happened on individual days, but it was pretty standard! My husband had a 4 day weekend this weekend, which is when the real fun begins.

I had to work still on Friday, so little man and big man got to spend some time together while I worked. Then they both came downstairs to the office area as my husband had to do some computer work as well. Once we were both done, the weekend begun! We grilled out for dinner and had some lovely steaks and potato packets. It was nice to relax and even little man got in on some of the steak!

img_2880We had decided earlier in the week that we wanted to head into the Big City this weekend and see/do something new. Our original plan wasn’t able to come to fruition so we decided to head over to The National Cathedral! It is absolutely incredible! I can’t even begin to describe how amazing and beautiful it is! I’ve included several pictures below for your viewing pleasure. When George Washington originally thought of a national cathedral he had Westminster Abbey in mind as a model (my anglophile heart sung when I heard that little tidbit!) and I think in both design and architecture that dream was met!

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What an incredible view!

It is truly a calming and inspiring place and I think that no matter what your beliefs are, you can find peace and solace here. I highly recommend that everyone visit at least once if they have the chance!

For the rest of the weekend, Sunday we spent mostly at home doing some administrative work. Another nice and warm day we do spend a little bit of time outside and had to run over to the store to pick up some essentials, but otherwise we had to get caught up on some home things! It’s always nice to have a recovery day to get everything squared away before the work week starts again!

MiaLeave a comment

Week in Review: Ball Week!

Hello everyone! Before I begin, I want to just say that this week is going to be a three post week to help make up for the posts that I have missed lately. I had a couple of things that I wanted to share, but the time just got a way from me. So to start off, I am going to share a little bit of the week and formal event that we went to earlier in the month!

Leading up to the main event was a pretty typical week, although little man sure did learn some new ways to be extra adorable and extra destructive! While I found some time (and a day of cool temperatures) to pull out my fuzzy fox socks and enjoy a nice cuppa!

We had the opportunity to go to a formal ball and we took the chance to have a night out and relax. Sweet little man got the chance to have a playdate with some friends and a little sleepover. I was a little anxious about leaving him for a whole night, but overall I was relatively calm. I knew that he would be well taken care of and would have a blast playing with the other kids. I figured if he was going to have an issue it would simply be right before bed (as that is when he really puts the pieces together that one of us is missing) and while he did have a little bit of an issue, it wasn’t bad and they said he calmed down quite quickly and easily. I knew that he would be in good hands, so I knew deep down overall I wouldn’t have to worry. It made the whole process a little easier!

For me, going to a formal event means the chance to really get dolled up and even a little pampered that day. I really wanted to be able to look good and feel good all night long so that played a big part of my “prep” day. I went and got my nails done first thing in the morning, then in the afternoon I got my hair professionally done. Hair is the thing that I struggle with the most and it ended up being easier to not have to mess with it! I did my own makeup in between the two appointments as well as enjoyed some time with little man. It was nice to have some time to just relax and be pampered, something that doesn’t typically happen.

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22 Weeks Pregnant and I loved this dress!

With the actual ball, we had a good time! We got to enjoy our time with friends and listen to some exceptional speakers. I also got to meet some new people (which as an introvert says a lot!) and enjoy speaking to some that I already new. It gave us a chance to have an evening where we didn’t have to worry about getting up especially early the next morning or get home to little man. We definitely did take some advantage of that as we stayed out till midnight (what?!) and decided to go out for breakfast the next morning. It was nice to have a more leisurely start to the morning, however morning is when my anxiousness really started to kick in. After breakfast I was more than ready to see our little man!

*I am not posting any photos of myself and my husband for personal reasons, but I have included my “full look” for the evening.

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