Fifteen Fridays of Festive

Happy Friday!! 

Thank you so much to everyone who entered last week's giveaway! Congratulations to Alicia, Jessica, Meghan & Bree, who will each receive Hen&Co. Trick or Treat onesie just in time for Halloween!

 This week, we are so excited to bring you a huge giveaway from one of our favorite companies ever, Boon! We have loved our Grass, Squirt, & lots of their bath toys from the very beginning.  All of their products are so fun, modern & above all, functional! They are also my go-to brand for baby gift giving.

I have been eyeing the Boon Flair high chair forever & ONE LUCKY WINNER is going to call it theirs!! :)

All you have to do (after visiting Boon & drooling over all of their amazing products) is enter below!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

And as always, have the best weekend!!! :)

Upstairs House Tour

 Here is a look at part of our upstairs, minus Harper's room (which is being transitioned into a big girl room, slowly but surely), the playroom/office (which will also be used as a guest room of sorts) & the new nursery. More to come on that later in a separate nursery planning post! :)

At the top of the stairs, our master is to the right, Harper's room & a linen closet are at the end of the hall, the new nursery is the room with all the light coming out of it (it has a great window!), a guest bath which is to the immediate left & our laundry room around the corner.

The wall color throughout our entire house is this awful tan, it has a bit of a green tint in my opinion, similar to that of cat puke. Tan cramps my decorating style because I really lean towards bright whites & greys. Unfortunately it would cost a small fortune to repaint it because of some tall ceilings & the stairwell that we couldn't do ourselves, so we are just sorta painting as we go. Our bedroom, Harper's bedroom & the guest bath are all a very light grey (tinted just a tad darker than Glidden Toasted White).

 

Mark my words, we will move out of this house before I end up finding something to put on the wall behind the bed. I just can't find the right thing for it, so I end up leaving it blank.  We are in the process of staining some new nightstands, so these two mismatched ones will be on their way out soon. We still need curtains & a few more accessories, but this room is finally coming together.

 Our master bathroom is almost complete. We painted it a dark charcoal when we first moved in, switched out the light fixtures & picked up some clearance mirrors (that we painted white) to replace the oversized builder mirrors that were glued on the wall. I made the mistake of picking a paint color first (without anything to match it to) so I have been on the hunt since day one for the right accessories. I just stumbled across this amazing rug & these towels that will soon complete the bathroom.

 At the top of the stairs to the left, we have our partially completed growth chart (what is it with me & unfinished projects?!), just a stained board with some added gold glitter paint at the bottom, still waiting for some painted white numbers. We have been adding Harper's measurements though & love seeing the progress!

Our guest bath has also had a few changes since we moved in. We added the light fixture, faucet & knobs to match the antique bronze in the rest of the house. We also took down the glued on mirror in here & hung this one that I found at Home Goods a few years ago.

Hope you've enjoyed the upstairs so far! :)

Love List

1. Halloween Party Planning. So far we are thinking a candy buffet, a drink station including these fun shirley temple syringe drinks (for the non-boozers) & a fog machine! We are going to have trick-or-treaters come up the driveway & walk along the "haunted path" to get to our back patio for their candy. Now if only we had costumes!

2. Popcorn Snack Mix. I've posted a similar recipe for Easter, basically this is just the Halloween version. Super easy, you can really add whatever you want. I made this one using chex & pretzels spread out on a baking pan (lined with foil) & cover with some white almond bark with a spoon. Then cover with white popcorn, candy corn & Halloween sprinkles, then a little more almond bark. Let it all harden & you're good to go! :) We keep it in a glass canister on the counter because we just can't stop eating it.

3. Halloween movie marathons. Our brand new copy of Double, Double Toil and Trouble came in the mail last week, I can't decide if it's just as amazing or awful as ever. A bunch of movies paired with fireplace s'mores are officially our favorite way to spend a Saturday night.

4. Boot socks. Confession, I only own maybe five pairs of socks. I hate wearing them, I hate warm feet, I even sleep with my feet sticking out of the covers. However, I love a good pair of warm boot socks for Fall/Winter, and these marled rugby socks & these camp socks are my absolute fave! And best of all? They are on sale with an additional 40% off.

5. Wall Letters. I am getting so excited to shop for letters for the new nursery, as soon as we find out the gender, we will be ready to spell out a new baby name on the wall! I got these zinc letters for Harper's room but have had my eye on these crocheted ones this time around. It was really a splurge for the room since most of the furniture was thrifted, but it has always been my favorite part!!

6. Soup Recipes. We skipped this past weekend's Soup Sunday since nobody was really feeling well, but the week before that, we made a simple beef stew. Always a favorite since all it involves is throwing a roast & a few veggies in the crockpot. I wouldn't even say I have a recipe for it, but I am going to be pinning some of my favorite recipes (and some potential recipes for coming weeks) here!

7. Moroccan Oil. I am not one to use expensive hair products, I have always been a loyal Pantene fan, but moroccan oil really does work on my straight, dry hair. I have been looking for a less expensive option & recently found this Weightless Moroccan Argan Oil. I am really loving how well it works & how my hair feels after using it!!

Although I guess it could be considered festive for October if I just left my dry, ratty ends alone.
Scarecrow hair, don't care.

Fifteen Fridays of Festive

Things were a little crazy around here this week, as you may already know. Thank you all SO much for the well wishes & prayers (and laughs) on my last post! Things are finally starting to shape up. I am no longer short staffed (aka. Brandon is home) & Harper is feeling a little better. 

So here we are, Festive Fridaying on a Sunday.

Congratulations to last week's winner, Lauren Deavers, who won three holiday garlands from our friends at Yellow Bird, Yellow Beard! :) Thanks so much to everyone who entered!!

This week, we are so excited to be giving away a little Halloween swag for the little ones! These cutest ever Trick or Treat onesies from Hen&Co. are my absolute favorite!!! You may remember Harper's "Peach" onesie that she has been wearing for months, the softest material & always the cutest designs!

The talented Kendra from Hen&Co. has kindly offered to giveaway one of these onesies (or toddler tees!) to FOUR lucky winners, just in time for Halloween!! :) Enter below & be sure to check out all of the other amazing screenprinted designs in her shop!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Sick Day

Harper woke up Thursday at three in the morning, not feeling well with a hot mess of a diaper & and immediate diaper rash. She was upset & crying, so we let her sleep in our bed for the rest of the night. We normally say three's a crowd, but it doesn't count if you have glow-in-the-dark Halloween pajamas & aren't feeling well. She looked mighty cute sweating sleeping between us. Things went downhill as the sun came up, she was tossing, turning, poking, kicking & at one point, I think she was sleeping with both legs under my pillow.

She seemed okay in the morning, a little groggy & quiet but showing no signs of being really sick. We brought her downstairs, sat her on the kitchen counter wrapped up in her blanket while we cooked breakfast. Before I could even flip my first pancake, Harper started throwing up everywhere. Brandon was literally wearing a suit, about to walk out the door to catch a flight for work. In other words, useless. Ok I really did feel bad for him knowing he had to leave Harper like that, but I maybe felt worse for myself. And double worse for her.

After a bath, it was a long day of sweaty couch snuggles & a trip to the doctor (you know, first time mom panic style). They told us it was just a stomach bug, she wasn't running a fever or getting dehydrated. We stopped for some Pedialyte & Probiotics on the way home, then spent rest of the evening on the couch. 

Fast forward to today. Harper slept through the night & woke up with a smile on her face. WHEW. Just a 24 hour bug maybe? Winning.

She started getting fussy, crying for her milk, so I gave her a small sippy of it & we went to lay on the couch. Let me just preface this next part by saying that nobody told me that you aren't supposed to give your kid fucking dairy when they aren't feeling well.

Twenty minutes into Mickey Mouse Clubhouse, Harper sweetly snuggled on top of me, calm as can be, looks up at me & smiles.

THEN PROJECTILE VOMITS HER PARTIALLY DIGESTED MILK IN MY FACE.
 In my mouth. In my hair. In my EYES. I thought I went blind.

The smell. The taste. Oh dear God. The two of us are both crying at this point, I scoop her up, holding my sweatshirt out for her to throw up into to avoid more of a mess later as we run to the kitchen. She continues to throw up in my shirt & on the kitchen floor, crying & pointing at my face saying "oh no. no no." Good thing I was wearing my "in the case of a zombie apocalypse, I hope I am wearing this" outfit. I strip all of our clothes off, which just leads to her screaming, crying more because her pukey pajama shirt just got dragged across her face (sorry, kid!) & we make our way upstairs to the shower.

Mind you, Harper hates getting water in her face, so she was not at all impressed with the situation. I shampoo both of our hair, gagging as I watch the cottage cheese looking vomit swirling around the drain. As I'm just about to call it clean, Harper clings to my leg (still crying) & shits all over our feet.

You win, stomach bug. You win.

I will spare you the horror by not sharing the pictures of the crime scene that I sent to Brandon & my mom this morning. My mom proceeds to tell me that I did the exact same thing to her when I was around Harper's age. Karma totally had it out for me.

Harper is sleeping now, I am praying that her her toast & water stay down. I am desperate for her to feel better, a sick baby might be the most heartbreaking thing ever.

This is real life. And I think I need a sick day.

Baby #2 Update

I found out that I was pregnant after three consecutive nights of waking up at four in the morning STARVING. Like, ready to eat Thanksgiving dinner hungry. On the third night of this, I had a dream that I got a positive pregnancy test. I woke up to my stomach growling, and even though it was still a few days before I thought I could take a test, I did it anyway & two pink lines appeared right away. Brandon had already left for work, so I had the dreaded 8 hour wait to tell him the news, which I of course did with a chalkboard!

My official due date is April 30, which seems far, far away at this point. Having a pregnancy span out over the holidays is both good & bad. Missing out on holiday cocktails is a total bummer, but all the tasty treats & meals make up for it. Soup swap? Christmas cookie exchange? Sign my pregnant ass up.

We will definitely find out the sex, you know I am much too impatient (and excited) to wait until d-day. Do we have a preference? Nope. I love love love having a girl & would love for Harper to have a sister! I would also, of course, love to reuse all of the pretty little girl clothes & accessories of hers that I have been hoarding. I would also love to have a boy! I loved growing up with brothers & would love for Harper to as well! I also think it would be so much fun to experience having a son vs. having a daughter. We will be so thrilled either way!
That being said, we both have a feeling already about what this babe might be.
Can not wait to find out! :)

The bump so far, half baby, half Chipotle.


Hh Helvetica Tee | Jacket from Gap Outlet (similar here)

So far, this pregnancy has been almost exactly the same as the first. I went through the same carsick/nausea as the first time, never actually getting sick but always kinda feeling like crap. The only things that have really sound good are toast, strawberries (with nutella) & Chipotle. I have just started to get my appetite back,
And just like last pregnancy, I can't even stand the sight of coffee. Rip my heart out, why dontcha.
Sidenote, I did have a salted caramel mocha yesterday & it tasted like a snickers bar factory in my mouth. Definitely going back for more.

 I am exhausted again but it is multiplied by infinity this time because of the toddler tornado & crazy work schedules (for both me & Brandon). I have been strategically planning Harper's nap time & my client calls at specific times so I can take a 28 minute snooze every other afternoon. It's pretty glorious but I sometimes wake up feeling even more like a zombie than I did before. But I am starting to get some of my energy back, which feels like nothing short of winning the lottery at this point! ;)

Harper & baby number two will be 26 months apart. So if I can just get her potty trained (and maybe folding laundry or something) in the next six months, we will be in good shape. I have no doubt that this will be a lot of work but we are beyond excited & are ready to double the fun! 

Happy October!

October is my favorite, favorite, favorite month of the year. It's the peak of Fall amazingness, it's Halloween, it's our anniversary, it's PERFECT.

 Headband | Dress | Shoes

This month, we will wear lots of festive outfits, witch hats & Halloween costumes.

We will watch scary movies, cover our eyes & then just put in Hocus Pocus for the five thousandth time. We will eat pumpkin spice cupcakes & chocolate pumpkin muffins. We will save the pumpkin beer for next year.

We will go pumpkin picking, apple picking & baby name picking.

We we will carve pumpkins, paint pumpkins & then use pumpkins for target practice so we can make room for Christmas decorations.

  And, of course, we will eat our weight in yummy Fall inspired foods.

This little toddler style candy corn was made up of mango, oranges & bananas. Gotta make sure Harper doesn't miss out on any festive snacks! I know she isn't really old enough to remember, but it makes my heart happy as a mama to do things like this for her. 

Happy October to you all!