chanelmovingforward

Baby Moccasins

March 1, 2015

Having a girl has opened my eyes to a whole new world of baby fashion. I thought I was obsessed with boy clothes and boy style but I had no idea the cuteness that was out there for baby girls. I have always had an obsession with shoes and lately I have passed that onto my husband. One of my favorite baby and toddler shoes are moccasins. They are always so durable, washable and easy to put on, especially when your child takes them off 100 times in a row. Plus you can dress them up or wear with a t shirt and jeans from the retro club collection.

Now I know the queen of baby moccasins is Freshly Picked. She started the whole thing and her quality really is the best of the best. However most mothers I know (myself included) cannot spend $60 per pair! Especially if you’re buying for a non-walker … that’s like paying sixty bucks for leather socks. I own one pair which I splurged on for Henry last year and Evelyn will also be able to wear them eventually. Unfortunately I spend half my life browsing etsy and I have found so many adorable and affordable baby moccs (most $40 and under). I love how so many different designers have put their own twist on moccasins. The ballet flat style is by far my favorite and I am definitely putting all of them on Evelyn’s wish list! (I have been secretly trolling etsy to find some in my size).

1. Yellow Mary Janes

2. Personalized Moccs

3. Charcoal Ballet Flats

4. Vanilla Creme Flats with Strap

5. Sunshine Yellow Moccs

6. Pink Bow

7. Navy Ballet Flats with Bow

8. Nude Flats with Ankle Strap

Our Valentine’s Day Weekend

February 23, 2015

{hello shirt}

Valentine’s Day is one of my favorite holidays. It’s way more fun now that I have kids and can channel my inner craftiness and have a real reason to buy red and pink heart decorations starting after Christmas 🙂 Henry had his Valentine’s Day party with our playgroup friends on the 13th. Thanks to Pinterest, I found a super easy Valentine favor to make. I used this free printable and bubbles from the Dollar Store (a 3 pack for a buck, so cheap). The bubble label was printed on regular printer paper and thick enough to cover the existing bubble labels, so I didn’t have to remove each one. Then I tied each bubble with a tag and voila! done. Such an easy and cute favor. And believe me when I say this … all kids love bubbles. You can’t go wrong.

For his favor box, I used a box from Target that had some fun tattoos in it. There was already a cut out in the front and since my first try at making a box turned out like crap, this was my only option. It was a tad on the smaller side though which I need to remember for next year since a lot of his Valentine’s were too large to fit in the opening.

Saturday morning I got up with both kids so Jan could sleep in (which didn’t last that long, he was up within an hour). Henry helped me make coffee and red velvet heart shaped pancakes with cream cheese frosting (but mostly he just stood cautiously in the kitchen corner while the hand blender was going). I also added some pink food coloring to his milk and set out a few goodies for him since it was a holiday. He was so sweet, waiting patiently with all this yumminess in front of him so I could snap a quick picture. This lasted maybe 5 seconds before he got down to business: eating, making a mess and opening his new crayons, cars and paint.

This was the outfit he wore to the party. How funny is this shirt? Also, I love his little smile lately. The gap between his teeth and his scrunched up eyes are just the cutest.

{kanye shirt}

On Saturday night after both kids were in bed, we had our annual fondue dinner, which we have done every year since we’ve been married and we only make this on Valentine’s Day. It really is something fun and special to look forward to.

And because no holiday is complete without holiday pictures:

Until next year! <3

one month

February 15, 2015

The first month always is the fastest when you have a baby. From the whirlwind of delivery and being in the hospital to those first weeks stuck at home because you’re a walking zombie. It all just ends up being a blur. Evelyn turned one month on Tuesday (she is 5 weeks today) and it feels like just yesterday we were rushing to the hospital to meet our sweet girl. You can read about her birth story here.

She still loves to sleep and recently has been loving the swaddle for night time. It has made such a difference. (you can read about her previous sleeping troubles here). When we first came home, she hated the swaddle so we didn’t push it and I just accepted that I would never sleep at night again. However we tried it again once she got a little bigger and she loves it. It’s been 9 days now and she is going for 6 hour stretches at night (which to a new mom might as well be 20 solid hours). She is still wearing newborn clothes and newborn diapers (at 5 weeks). She is eating every 3-4 hours and sleeping the majority of the day still (I’m not complaining because I am able to get so much done).

Her weight is still an issue which we are still trying to get back up to her birth weight. When she was born she was 8lbs and 8 ounces but dropped 8 ounces when we left the hospital and still hasn’t gained it back (she was drinking breast milk only) so the doctors have put her on a “feeding” plan which consists of 40 ML breastmilk, 50 ML powered formula and one tablespoon of rice cereal at every feeding. They are hoping that this will help her constant spit up issues. However I will say that she is a happy spitter and it doesn’t seem to bother her. She is still gassy as hell and that gives her some pain in her tummy. We go back on Tuesday for a weight check to see if this has made a difference. I’m hoping it has because I don’t want to have to put her on medication at this young.

She loves to stare at her big brother and he just loves his baby sister. He is so sweet and gentle with her, always asking where she is and wanting to make sure she is okay. He probably asks me 100 times a day “where’s that baby?” even though he knows her name is Evelyn and likes to correct people when they say baby 🙂 She also likes laying on her stomach/side and immediately falls asleep in this position. I think it feels good on her tummy and helps with her gassiness.

A few other activities she enjoys lately: spitting out her paci and screaming until I put it back in. Then repeat 100 times, scratching her face with her baby talons, having a blowout at the same time we start the car to leave and throwing up breastmilk that I have spent hours pumping (this is my favorite too).

In one hour (at 11:38 pm she will be 5 weeks old. SO CRAZY!)

two and a half update

January 29, 2015

This past Monday we took Henry for his two and a half year check up. (I still can’t believe I have a 2.5 year old and a 2.5 week old!) He has grown 1/2 an inch since his last appointment and gained two pounds. Ha, sounds like he’s taking after his mommy 🙂 Hopefully he will be tall like his daddy and not a shorty like me! Here are a few things that have his attention lately.

Likes:

Dance Parties: This kid loves to dance and listen to music. If we let him, that is all he would do. All. Day. Long. With the volume up as high as it could go. There is an old radio in our guest bedroom which he is literally obsessed with. He is always asking to do dance party and when we tell him he can’t, he acts like one of the deprived high-schoolers in Footloose. We had to hide the old radio since it has a power cord and half the fun to him is taking it around the house and plugging it in all the outlets, then dancing in every room. To avoid the forseeable tripping over the cord and tumbling down the stairs accident that would have no doubt happened, we bought him his own portable blue radio from Target which he can carry anywhere and is battery operated. I think that was a good idea? I will probably be kicking myself in the ass when he blasts it in the babies eardrum. But until then, it keeps him happy and he can get out some energy. As if this latest obsession isn’t amusing enough, he always tunes the radio to 97.1 The River, which is classic rock. He has been getting down to Bob Seger, the Faces, Aerosmith and yesterday I caught him galloping around in circles to ‘D’Yer Mak’Er’.

Click here for a cute video of him dancing (and having so much energy right before bed time)

{admiring his new radio}

Outlets: Like mentioned above, this kid is still obsessed with outlets. He loves plugging in and unplugging different electronics and turning them on and off. He doesn’t stick foreign objects into the outlets, just cords, and then turning the device off an on. Maybe he will be a master electrician someday.

Playgrounds: We finally took the plunge and purchased an outdoor playground/swing set for Henry. He has so many little toys already that we are running out of space in our house so we might as well invest in something he and his sister can use for a long time and can be kept outdoors. We went and checked out the sets this past weekend and ended up finding one that we all liked. The install date is mid March so that’ll give Jan enough time to work on clearing a spot in the back yard and time for the weather to get a little warmer.

{having a field day testing out playgrounds}

Power Wheels: My dad bought Henry a ford truck power wheels for Christmas and whenever he goes outside that is the first thing he wants to do. He really just goes around in circles right now with this blank look on his face which is so funny because he is obviously enjoying himself.

{out for a drive}

Dislikes:

The word NO. Sitting still. Going to bed. Listening.

pumping diaries

January 27, 2015

pumping sucks. especially when your newborn finally falls asleep at 2am but you have to wake up at 2:30 because your chest is in more pain than your c section incision. luckily the hospital sent me home with some pretty good pain killers, because they have definitely come in handy some nights. baby evelyn has been having a tough time adjusting to bed time since being home. she has been a perfect baby during the day, literally sleeping all day long. however nighttime is a different story. the doctor said she has her days and nights mixed up (obviously) and that we would just have to wait out the change. there have been a handful of good nights but most of them consist of her being up and fussy until 2am and then settling down to go to bed. she also has a love/hate relationship with her paci. she loves the thing and needs it to fall asleep, but half the time she won’t take it and when she does she spits it out. oh yeah, and she is a little ball of gas. so her poor tummy rumbles all night (and man can this kid let them rip). it must be hard being a little baby, so many new feelings and emotions to deal with and you can’t tell anyone what is wrong. I feel bad for her so I have been trying to be as patient as can be and try to enjoy this stage since this will probably be my last baby. i need to get all my newborn cuddles in!

this past sunday i took baby ev to her first girls lunch to celebrate my friend josie who is expecting her second baby in less than 4 weeks! it has been so fun being pregnant with all my girlfriends at the same time and josie is the last one to pop. we celebrated at a fun restaurant in downtown alpharetta and i even indulged in my first post baby alcoholic beverage. i still haven’t gotten my appetite back to 100% since the c section so nothing is really appealing to me, including alcohol. but the mimosa i had sure tasted good. evelyn even got a new dress for the occasion (since all her newborn clothes are jammies and onesies). it sure was a great shower and so fun to see all the girls <3

i hope everyone has a great week!

welcoming baby evelyn

January 21, 2015

It’s been a long time since I posted on here. I actually don’t think I posted at all about my pregnancy with baby #2 and truthfully, I can’t believe how fast that pregnancy came and went. And how she is 10 days old already?! I’ve been singing her abc kids songs already, even though she’s only 10 days old. But as we know, kids grow up so fast. Before we know it, she’ll be able to sing the songs back to me. It really has been a whirlwind, from the whole 39 weeks, going into labor early and now having her here with us.

{10 days old. 1.20.15}

Her birthday was originally set for January 13th with a repeat C section, however she decided to surprise us a few days early: Saturday, January 10th. That day we spent some family time (our last weekend as a family of just 3!) and tried to finish crossing off things to do around the house before baby joined us. We ran some errands and had a big yummy meal at Sweet Tomatoes. I had been having cramps for most of the day, but everything I read suggested they were not contractions. Plus my doctor didn’t think she would come early since Henry didn’t and I never labored with him. Later Saturday evening, my husband and I put Henry to bed around 7 and had dinner around 7:30 pm (not ideal for an unplanned C section since you are not supposed to have anything to eat 6 hours prior). At around 8:00pm, I am sitting on the couch when my water breaks. It literally felt like a hose attached to me and didn’t stop for the next hour and a half. Henry was asleep upstairs thankfully so we didn’t have to worry about running around like crazy people in front of him. I called my doctor and my mom and after throwing random crap into our suitcase and grabbing our sleeping toddler, we piled into the car and headed to the hospital. Every time I had a contraction, more water would “break”. Poor Henry was in the backseat half asleep and kept asking what was wrong. Jan kept telling him that we had to take mommy to the doctor to have the baby and Henry then asked me about 100 times if I needed to go get a shot.

When we arrived to the hospital my mom was already there to meet us (and luckily I had packed Henry’s bag earlier that day so he was all set). As I sat in a wheel chair getting checked in, my nerves started to set in. I was worried they wouldn’t be able to perform the C Section in time since I had just eaten and the last thing I wanted was a VBAC. Thankfully that was not the outcome. It seemed like we were the only people having a baby that night because the labor and delivery floor seemed empty and the nurses and doctors were moving fast. We got in a room about 9pm and she was born at 11:38pm. The only person we were waiting on was the anesthesiologist to administer and test out the epidural to make sure it was working. At one point the doctor even came in and asked the nurses what the hold up was. He probably wanted to get back to his Saturday night 🙂

The underlying nerves that I had throughout this whole pregnancy was the C Section. I was worried something would happen during surgery or that it wouldn’t go right but the doctor and his team were great and it felt like I was in the operating room for a shorter time than I was with Henry. Before I knew it I was being rolled into the recovery room to meet my new baby and see my husband.

The recovery in the hospital for this C Section was a lot harder this time around for me. I will spare all the details, but the first 3 days I could hardly sleep or move without being in so much pain. I am allergic to a lot of medicine so it was hard for the doctors to find what could work for me. They finally put me on dilaudid through my IV and then by pill.

{Snuggling in mama’s hospital bed on our last night there}

{She was all pretty in pink leaving the hospital. Carseat Cover/ Kitten Doll}

We were able to have an early release on Wednesday morning and my mom met us at the hospital with Henry so we could come home as a family of four. I don’t think the dogs were too happy about being with out us since they welcomed us home with a big pile of shit in the kitchen (even though they have the best care taker ever). Unfortunately she has her days and nights mixed up and likes to stay up and party until 2am. So I have been getting about 4 hours of sleep or less at night which totally sucks but I know it’s only temporary and will soon pass. I am spending my days soaking up all her sweet baby-ness and trying my hardest to muster up some energy for Henry too. I still can’t lift him, which is so sad to me because he is constantly asking me to hold him. Hopefully he forgets that I haven’t been able to do as much with him these past few weeks and I can return to my old self soon!

Weekend Wrap Up

December 11, 2014

Saturday morning we ventured out in the rain to Inman Park to meet some friends for brunch. We ate at Folk Art which was delicious and kid friendly (Thank God). This pregnancy one of my biggest craving has been chicken and waffles and I order it nearly every time I see it offered somewhere. So of course I had to try the fried chicken and waffle with whiskey peach compote and it was incredible. It was so nice to catch up with friends and Henry spent half of the breakfast eating from Arman’s plate. Thankfully he was a good sport about it 🙂

outfit details: shoes, pants, vest, shirt – GAP – sold out, hat

On Sunday a few girls from my moms group went to a holiday cookie swap which was so much fun. There were about 17 ladies there which meant a ton of cookies for me to take home (the hubby and I are still devouring them). We basically got to take home as many cookies as we brought. Most everyone made about 3 dozen, so that meant I left with around 40 cookies. This was my first cookie exchange and I was already telling the girls we should do it at every holiday. I made Oatmeal Cranberry White Chocolate Chip cookies and Henry even helped me. He got so excited helping me mix the ingredients and kept saying “okay! yep!” after everything I would say. I definitely want to try and involve him more since he’s a little older now. I just love his little arm in this picture below 🙂

The other parts of the weekend we just relaxed and enjoyed the fact that we didn’t have anything to do … besides getting ready for the new baby to come in less than 5 weeks but that seems so overwhelming now so I can’t even think about it. We’re just trying to enjoy our last weekends with Henry before we shake things up on him!

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