May Books Love

Everyone knows this girl loves a day planner. I'm head over heels for my new personalized planner from Maybooks. With the new school year starting soon, I thought a new planner would be nice.

 

You pick the style, colors, font, initials, and type of planner. Even more fun- you can also get personalized journals, baby bump books, meal planners {love}, wedding diaries, and so much more.

I'm thinking these will make great gifts!

Use the promo code monolove for $5 off! 

Just in case that doesn't work {it did for me}, use peoplestyle for $4 off.

Happy Shopping :)

Window Wonder

I wanted to do something with our bathroom window, but couldn't quite make up my mind. Finally, I decided to add decorative window film- like I did to our front door. Gila film is ah-mazing- it's simple to use, can be cut to fit any shape/style window, doesn't damage windows, and is easily removed. It adds privacy, but still allows light to come through.

....Gila should pay me as a spokesperson :)

 

You can find Gila Window Film at most home improvement stores {purchased ours at Lowes}. For our bathroom window, I used a decorative style.

Tip: Buy the Gila application kit. You may think you can just make do with things at home, but trust me on this one, it's worth paying a few extra bucks.

Before {picture from this post on our master bath redo}

After

Here are some before/after shots of our front door from 2010. I may have already blogged these pictures, but oh well... hey they are anyway!

 

 

 Big change, right! And oh-so much cheaper than buying new doors/window panels.

That's it for today!

Happy Monday!

Week 16

Expanding the Funhouse

 

The time has come to invest in some sort of activity center / jumperoo / etc... While browsing online we quickly realized that there are dozens upon dozens of activity stations.

So, I thought I'd ask this question: Which is the best one to buy? 

Our criteria:

• Adjustable to 'grow' with MG
• Must have lights, music, and movable toys/parts
• Preferably something like a jumperoo rather than a stationary center

We really like the Fisher Price Jumperoo - Animal Krackers

So fellow Mommies, have any of you tried this jumperoo? Or, is there something else you would recommend?

Thanks for your help!

A Penny For Your Thoughts

So many readers have have messaged me about my post Looking Ahead. I did not realize there were so many others out there going through similar 'valleys'. I was extremely nervous about posting something a little more private  for everyone to see, but knowing that it served its purpose and encouraged others makes me happy!

 I love hearing feedback. It's nice knowing people are not only reading my posts, but that they are finding humor or encouragement in them.

Most of my responses come via Facebook {of course} or email, but I would like to encourage you to leave your thoughts on here, too! I have changed my comment settings, so you can now post even if you do not have a blogger account. Just click on "Thoughts- Leave Yours" at the bottom of the posts, and then you can select  Anonymous to leave your comment. Just please remember to leave your name with your comment! 

I look forward to hearing your thoughts on things.

Weekend Wrap-Up

Friday
Miss MG and I spent the day at home and enjoyed having family and friends over for visits. My dad stopped by for a surprise visit and MG had a ball playing with her Pop. After Pop left we had a quick nap before Miss Addy came over for another play date! I cannot believe how much she is growing up. It makes me sad that our babies are growing and changing so quickly.

 Saturday
My sweet husband took baby duty so this lady was able to sleep past 8 am. For those of you with small children, you will appreciate how big of a deal this is! After lunch, MG spent the afternoon with Nanny J while the hubby and I headed out for a little shopping and dinner to celebrate our anniversary.

Sunday
We were oh-so busy! Sunday School, morning worship, and then a fellowship meal afterwards meant one busy morning. MG was a sweetheart and decided to take a long afternoon nap, which meant we were able to snooze a little, too!

 

Amidst it all, we celebrated seven years of wedded bliss! I am blessed to call this man my husband and feel so honored that he chose me to be his wife.

 

Then we were back for evening worship. It was a big day for our church-- we called a new pastor. We are excited for this new chapter in our church and look forward to getting to know this sweet family!

 

We have been on the go this summer! Our calendar is booked to the gills the next few weeks with weddings, family get-togethers, and the new school year approaching. Luckily, there is nothing on the agenda for today and I plan to fill it up with MG time.

Happy Monday!

Looking Ahead

First and foremost, writing has always been my outlet and this is more than just a blog: it's my journal. In order for a journal to be a true reflection of your life, it must be honest and real. This is an entry I've been working on for nearly two months and I'm finally ready to put pen to paper {or in this case, fingers to keys} and write it out.

Life is not always rainbows and sunshine, especially my life- especially lately. It's no secret that 2012 has been a very hard year for us. New Year's night ended with me heading to Labor and Delivery due to pregnancy complications. Things quickly went from bad to worse as you well remember. We went through months of bedrest, weekly doctor visits, and immense worry over the health of myself and our unborn child. It was a daily battle. I tried to be grateful for the 'rain' in my life by reminding myself that there was a reason for the storm.

 

Finally, after a very rocky few months, our beautiful daughter was born and the storm seemed to be calming. Little did we know, the calm was actually the eye of the storm. I am thankful for those few days of peace because we were able to 'rest' before the storm returned. 

On May 24th we were dealt another blow: I lost my job.

Devastated. I was utterly devastated. I truly love my job and loved where I was. For reasons unknown at the time, God had other plans for me. I could see his brushstrokes, I did not like the colors, but I could not yet see the whole picture. 

I began to feel angry and bitter towards God. I poured out my heart to Him and demanded answers: Why us? Why so many trials? When will it end? I began to feel like a modern day Job. I knew we were in a valley. Valleys are hard, very hard. And while a valley is a low point in life, it's definition can be encouraging. A valley is simply a low point between two mountains, or peaks. It takes two mountains to make one valley. The highs outnumber the lows. I knew that a mountain, a peak, was on the horizon. I just had to get there. More importantly, I had to trust in Him while in the valley, however long that may be.

Ever faithful, He remained by our side and through it all we learned to lean on Him more than ever. Bob was in constant prayer as to what we should do next. My sweet husband. I do not know what I ever did to deserve such a wonderful man. He was much more at peace than I was. He suggested I stay home with Mary Grace for a year or two, that perhaps this was my time to finally get my doctorate degree. 

I am by no means a SAHM. If I had any other job, the thought of staying home might be appealing. I do not have 'any other job'. I am a teacher. I genuinely love what I do. I knew I wanted to continue teaching, so I put it in God's hands. I decided that, come what may, I would be happy.

 

As of yesterday evening, I officially have a new teaching job. Honestly, I haven't been this excited about the new school year in a while. I now see the whole picture. While it would have been easier if things had happened differently, I'm thankful they happened because it brought me where I am today.

And there's no where else I'd rather be.

The lesson in it all? You cannot plan everything in life. Good things will happen. Not so good things will happen. You will be on top of a mountain, and by definition, you will face a few valleys. All you can do is prayerfully and obediently follow the road He calls you to take. It's not easy- especially for the {planners} out there, like me.

But in the end, come what may, you have to resolve to be happy. 

I am sharing this with the sincere hope that it will help encourage others who may be walking through their own valleys.

Porch Confession

I'm a bit embarrased to post about this, but thought doing so would further motivate me to fix the issue.

My front porch is a hot mess leaves something to be desired. My sweet neighbor came by for a visit the other day and came in through our front door. I was mortified that someone had seen my front porch up close. It hasn't been swept since.... gosh... March? And even then it wasn't me that did it.

My big pots contain mums from last October! They are dried up and hideous looking. When I apologized for the unsightly dead flowers, my dear neighbor said she just thought I'd had them dried or something. Love her!

Enter Pinterest. Where would we be without it, right?

After ooohhing and aaahhing over gorgeous front porches, I've decided to make this my next project. My husband has found two rocking chairs {they're white, but will probably be painted black}. I promised myself that I would purchase new topiaries {as was once there} to replace my dead mums, pronto! I've also decided to re-stain the front door a darker color and my husband has promised to get out the pressure washer.

In my defense, I never had a chance to plant Winter or Spring flowers. Bedrest, remember? Then when Summer rolled around I was busy with a new baby. I know what you're thinking... excuses, excuses.

I did sweep it yesterday! :) Hey, it's a start!

My back porch is equally embarrassing. Currently, I'm in the middle of cleaning chair cushions {one word: Louie}. That's a whole other post in itself.

Until I can post before/after pictures of my soon-to-be-pretty front porch, here are some fabulous front porches sure to make you drool!

{Hydrangeas. My fave!}

 {Perhaps a swing would be nice for the back porch}

 {Love the pops color}

Pinterest Project # 1 {Laundry Room Decor}

{ Inspiration picture from Pinterest }

 {Voila! The finished product. }

Notice the clothes in the washer/dryer. 

Laundry: Story of my life these days.

I purchased the wire safety pins here and the decal was purchased from this Etsy shop.

One Pinterest project down, and two more to go! Check out other Pinterest ideas I love here.

Ready For My Close-Up { 3 months }

Here's a sweet treat on a Monday morning- pictures from Mary Grace's 3 month session. As always, Portraits by Chelsea did a wonderful job! I added her button to the side of my blog, so head on over and check out her site! 

 

My Favorite Things: Baby Edition

 This post is pretty lengthy and is catered more to New or Expecting Mommies.

Consider yourself warned :)

It's been ages since I posted a favorite things list and I thought it would be fun to post a baby edition. Here are all of our favorite baby items at the moment. As a new Mommy, I highly recommend all of these products- some of them are survival items, while others just make life with a sweet little bundle a little easier sweeter! I also included a few items we thought we would love, but ended up not working for us.

Sleep Sheep: We do not leave home without this little guy. He is our lifesaver!

 Little Tummies Gas Drops: You will never catch us without these one hand. Our sweet bundle is a gassy little thing! They are especially handy now that MG is on a Similac rather than Nutramigen.

 

Multi-Use Disposable Pads: We put these down in MG's bassinet, crib, and on her changing table. If she spits up or makes a mess, just toss it and place a clean one down. We can never have enough of these. {Much easier than changing sheets all the time}

 

Summer Infant Day/Night Video Monitor: This has really come in handy for this new Mommy now that we are placing MG in her big girl crib for daytime naps. It makes me nervous having her in another room alone, so this really helps ease my fears.

Medela Pump In Style  On-The Go Advanced Breast Pump: Medela is the best. Period. If you plan to breast feed, this is worth the investment.

Baby Trend Expedition Jogging Stroller: I wanted a jogger, so after much research I settled on this one. It is perfect for what we need {the roads around the lake are not known for their smoothness} and you cannot beat the price {compared to a BOB}. It's so easy to steer which makes it perfect for everyday use, too.

Gowns: I thought I would like these, but when MG was tiny they just didn't work out for us. However, we started using them again a few weeks ago and they make life so much easier {especially in the diaper changing department}. Now that MG is a bit bigger,these are my go-to outfits for lounging around the house.

 Boppy Pillow: This was really helpful when I was breastfeeding, but it's just as handy now that MG is getting older. We use it to prop her up during playtime and it still comes in handing during feedings since she's getting oh-so heavy!

 

Aden + Anais Blankets: Best baby blanket, hands down. We have dozens upon dozens of baby blankets- every size, shape, color, texture.... you get the picture. Well, they are all nicely laundered and tucked away somewhere because the only blankets we use are Aden + Anais. These are the best baby blankets- the perfect combination of lightweight, soft material, yet they can be folded for times when a heavier blanket is needed.

 

Cloth Diapers: When it comes to serious spit-up, you can toss all the fancy schmancy {yes, I said schmancy} burp cloths because plain jane cloth diapers are hands down the best. MG has dozens of cute, monogrammed burp cloths and what do we use day in and day out- cloth diapers. You thought for a minute I was going to say I use those instead of Huggies, didn't you!  ;)

Cradle Swing: MG loves, loves, loves her swing. It's out lifeline when things start to get hairy.

 

Aveeno Baby Care Products: We started out using the traditional Johnson & Johnson baby products, but ended up switching to the Aveeno brand. Not only do I love their scents better {their nigh time bath wash smells soooo good} but they keep MG cuddly and baby soft without irritating her sensitive skin.






And now for the items we dislike.

Safety 1st Turtle Complete Bath Center: If I had it to do over again, I would choose a tub without mesh. Our tub has a turtle cushion that is removable. However, there is a mesh fabric that is necessary for the baby to lean back on while bathing. I have to wrangle it off the wire frame and wash it at least twice a week because it gets slimy and mildewy. Yucko! I'm considering tossing it and purchasing one like this:

 

 

Tommee Tippee Closer To Nature Bottles: These sound great, in theory, and were the bottles I had registered for. When I first switched MG from breast to bottle, these were the only ones she could latch onto. The gas issue quickly arose and we realized the bottles were making it worse. They did a horrible job at diffusing air bubbles. We scrapped them after only one week of use and now we have a cabinet full of bottles we cannot use. We went to the Playtext Nursers, which work great except that you cannot buy the liners in our small town. It became frustrating having to drive 45 minutes just to buy refills. We ended up giving our set of Nursers to Nanny J for times when MG is at her home. We finally ended up using the Dr. Brown bottles {which I hate despise}. But hey, if they work for Little Miss, then they are worth the headache brought on by the tedious task of cleaning them.



There you have it. The best and worst baby products {in my opinion, of course}. I'm gearing up for another jam-packed weekend. Today we are off for a special retirement celebration and tomorrow is Chickadee's bachelorette party.

See you Monday!