Baby Clothing Favorites

The vast majority of Beckett's wardrobe is made up of Carter's onesies. As a new mom, I didn't really know of any other brand and so I just stocked up on those. Also, I knew he'd be growing voraciously, in the dead of summer. It seemed like the perfect option. The cut was perfect for him, long and not too wide. However, as he has grown I have gotten a few hand me downs and have found some reallly great brands I wanted to share with you. I loved these because they were just as easy to wear/wash, but were a tad trendier -- and I didn't see every baby on Facebook wearing it. Some are a little pricier - but its nice to have a few outfits for outings that aren't as dressy as a bubble and won't wrinkle - and your child will look precious without sacrificing comfort. I will say, most of these brands ran small for Beckett. He is about 5 mos old (18 lbs) and wearing at least 6 mos in these but more comfortable in 9 mos.

1. Little Giraffe - Nordstrom

I got the shorts version of this onesie from my Sister in Law - so soft and cute!

2. Le Top - Amazon

Beckett in his 4 month shoot wearing his Le Top romper. (size 9 mos, I might add...)

3. Zutano - Nordstrom

4. Kissy Kissy

 (Purchase at Neiman's, Sak's Amazon, etc)

This is one of my favorite brands - it's all SO soft. It's a little pricey - but worth it.

5. Tea Collection - Nordstrom

This would be perfect for learning to crawl with those knee patches!

Friday Five

Happy Friday!

 I'm linking up today with April, Christina, and Natasha for Five on Friday
 and
September Farm and the Farmer's Wife for Oh, Hey Friday!

1. #PlaneBreakUp

I'm not sure why I found this so entertaining. Perhaps I'm just a glutton for drama. I would been all over this too. @keegs141 is kind of my hero.

While stuck on a plane on the tarmac, this girl witness two people having a mega blowup/break up. She live tweeted pics and some classic lines. It's pretty hysterical. Here are a few snippets...to read the whole story - check out Keegs141 twitter account, or look it up on the Huffington Post.

Hysterical.

2. Donald Trump's response to Bush's critique of his Mexico-America relationship. Classy. And reaaalll intelligent-like.

3. Archipelago Candles - Birch

I can't begin to dscribe to you how amazing and wonderful this smells...just trust me. Its rustic, but fresh, and doesn't smell *too* girly or *too* manly. Perfect for a married couple (and if your husband hates scents like lavender, clean linen and vanilla). If you're unsure, my second fave is their soy candle excursion line - Havana. Dreamy.

4. Home Decorating... 

So I think I found a rug for my family room! Currently its a total blank slate with nothing but 3 random chairs, baby toys, and a tv credenza we are no longer using. I hope having a rug will 1) provide a place for Beckett to play without fear of breaking his nose and 2) make the room look like someone is actually attempting to decorate it.

Here are a few snaps of what's currently going on here...

 Pretty much a blank canvas.

To incorporate the blue from the kitchen and the background of the built-ins I'm looking at this rug:

I'm a big fan of more traditional prints, but I don't want it to look too old fashioned...I think that's whats drawn me to this one. Here are some pictures from the store - which I think better shows the colors.

5. Napping

Naps are hard. At least for my baby. My child does not seem to want to nap longer than 45 min- 1 hour. WHY?! My doctor says to pick my battles since he's been sleeping 11 hours at night since has 10 wks. (He has NEVER EVER woken unless I was feeding him. One time he took an hour to go back to sleep...he was about 3 days old. When he was eating at night, he'd wake up, eat and then he'd immediately pass out.) He used to sleep 1 - 1.5 hours at all 4-5 of his naps. What gives? Any tips??? His wake time is 1 hr 30 min, and he eats every 3 hours. If I extend wake time he either will not go down, or he sleeps only 30 minutes. I've tried moving him to a 4 hr schedule and consolidating naps - but then he will wake 2 hours before his feedings and its totally screwed up. I've tried cry it out, and he just escalates and even when he does pass out, he will sleep only 30 minutes. Do I just deal with the short naps? I need help! What gives?

Have a great weekend y'all!

Thoughts for Thursday Playing at Pawleys

It's Throwback Thursday, and so my thoughts have revolved around Pawleys Island. I'm remembering the three weeks I've spent at the beach this year, and how relaxing it was to get away from moving, and all the stress of getting settled in the new house (it. has. been. awful).  The days we spend at Granny's Beach House are ones that I remember fondly each year, and I never get tired of being there. The beach is such a special place, and I love that we are able to share this with Beckett -- even though he doesn't remember it yet. I feel like each time we go he's "so much bigger" and ready to hang on the beach...but in reality, he isn't. We are heading back down to Pawleys next week, and I can hardly wait!

So here are a few snaps from our trips...

Beckett and Daddy on the porch hammock - 3 months

 Our annual "Dune" picture - Beckett is 3 months

Mommy and B in August - 4 mos

Mommy and B in August - 4 mos

The whole family at our July Family Week

Passed out on the beach - 3 mos

Weekending: Sister Celebrations

So, that was perhaps the shortest weekend EVER.

Starting on Friday night, my parents, my sister and her fiance, and a close family friend all came over to our new place to have dinner. It was a really fun night, full of stories, laughter, and baby snuggles. Luckily, Beckett was in a good mood and was the life of the party. The real success? Beckett didn't cry when my Dad held him! I think he's finally over his fear of the beard...

On Saturday, I helped host a wedding shower for my sister, who is getting married in October. We held it at a local club, and it was so pretty!

Me, the Bride to be, and our Mom

Cute napkins

the Bride and some of her maids..

And on Sunday, my sister became an ordained minister of the Presbyterian Church. We are so proud of her and thrilled that we got to see it! Unfortunately I couldn't snag a picture of that, and afterward things were too hectic for photos. But, here are a few I caught before the ceremony.

 Beckett with his Great Great Aunt Louise

Daddy and Baby

Swimsuit Save

Round two at my speed blogging...I tried a stain removal trick and I had to share.

I recently bought this adorable bikini from Lord and Taylor. It is a Trina Turk and was NOT cheap. I needed something to accommodate my new bust line while nursing that wasn't a 'mom' bathing suit. I couldn't handle the options out there, and refused to spend money on something I hated. I settled on this bralette style top :

Trina Turk "Tropicalia" Swim Suit 

It's been a great suit so far, but after its second wash (weird, right?) it bled - and of course bled on several other Trina Turk suits I owned. I was furious, especially because I own at least 7 or 8 of her suits and the reason I buy them is because of the quality, and the patterns.  I did see later that the tag said to handwash, so I suppose the fault is mine for washing it in the washing machine.  A friend of mine suggested I soak the affected suits in Clorox 2 and water for a day or two. I don't know how it happened, but somehow doing this got the dye off of the bathing suits! I'm so thrilled, and a little annoyed I didn't know this trick sooner. (I recently got rid of some stuff that had been bled on...) So, if you run into this issue - try this trick!

Speed Blogging

I have abut 20 minutes until I have to wake the baby for his 4 month checkup and vaccines (eeek!) So I'm trying my hand at some speed blogging. Here's what I'm watching/looking at in my free time this morning....

Catching up on my favorite blogs and saw this number....

Horse High Low Tee

I saw this on a blog, and I LOVE it. (I LOVE horses fyi).

Watched a little Morning Joe with my coffee...

This is probably the best commentary I have heard on the Iran Nuke Deal, take a listen.

And saw a clip of this with Chuck Todd and HAD to watch it...

I saw a clip of this interview and it was absurd. Other parts weren't as bad. I still really dislike him. There are moments of lucidity but they are brief. This is actually the best I've heard him sound, which isn't saying much.

"You're not even going to believe how many jobs I'll create, Chuck". WORST ANSWER EVER.

Oh, and let's just take Iraq's oil. That won't piss anyone off. (PS the Middle East already thinks that's the whole reason we went to Iraq...)

And, after every comment about war he says, "We got nothing"...as if we go to war to 'get things'? We aren't Nazi Germany doing a land grab or Saddam attempting to claim Kuwait as the 19th province. We don't go to war to "get" things or "get" paid. 

Five on Friday

1. ONE - Nursery Decor

I'm a few steps ahead on getting Beckett's nursery down. The paint color is still TBD but here are a few elements I saw on Pinterest/Babiekins blog that I am definitely going to use!

Rabbit Head Curtain Tie Backs

Sheep Rocker

2. TWO - Denim Overalls.

I know what you're thinking. Why. Why is she even thinking about them. I really wanted shorts ones...but now I'm thinking I might go with full length. We will see. But, I'm going to do it. I'm TOTALLY going to buy a pair. Here are a few I've seen...

Anthropologie - Paige

Gap

and, while I'm on this denim kick... I'm kind of obsessed with this dress by 7 For All Mankind too...and its on sale!

I saw Giada DeLaurentis wear one on her her Giada in Italy show, and now I think I need one.

3. THREE - Four Month schedule

This is for the mamas out there...when did you start stretching to 4 hour schedules? I've tried, but Beckett seems to really enjoy his 3 hours, and FOUGHT me tooth and nail when I tried to change. So we are back to three hours. He's only napping for an hour at a time which is so weird - and why I tried to stretch him in the first place - but still sleeps 11+ hrs per night without waking. For awhile he was on the verge of dropping the late nap at 530, but now since he cant seem to sleep more than an hour earlier in the day - that nap is back. Not sure what to do..if anything?

4. FOUR - Dark Chocolate Sea Salt Snappers...try them. 

You're welcome. (I bought mine at Costco).

5. FIVE - Boards

T-minus 4 days until my husband takes his Board Exams!!! In 4 short days he will be a LOT less stressed and we will be one step closer to finally getting settled and starting his new job!


Have a great weekend, y'all!

Product Review: SkipHop Moonlight and Melodies Mobile

My baby is now 4 months old  (Can you believe it?!) and I decided rather late to try out a crib mobile. We didn't get a crib until we moved back to South Carolina, so a mobile was never an option for us early on. So as he is becoming more aware (and bored at times), I decided to invest. I found this mobile and it had pretty good reviews and I thought it was 'cute' but also functional. I felt like a lot of mobiles didn't look that great - and the one that I thought looked the best (BlaBla Kids) was $150...and I just couldn't stomach spending that - especially since  I wasn't even sure he'd pay that much attention to it.

THE VERDICT:

So, I think if you wait until 4 months, your baby might not care about a mobile. Mine doesn't seem to. Overall it's a cute mobile, but I feel like there are more cons than pros. I'm a little annoyed I spent $65 when I probably could have gotten a cheap one for $30 but honestly, I'm too lazy, exhausted, and overwhelmed to drag myself to BuyBuyBaby to return it. So, I'm keeping it. (not much of a glowing endorsement, eh?) I think if my crib had ends that had bars, I'd probably really like this - so if you have that crib - go for it!

Pros:

It's cute, and it has a projector on top that puts a star pattern on your ceiling. It has a lot of options for sounds and songs, and great volume control. It also comes with a remote, so you can stand at the door and turn the monitor back on without the little one seeing you - which is nice. The leaves softly glow and it was very easy to put together. When your child is too old for the mobile, you can keep the base on the crib and use it as a sound machine, which is nice.

Cons:

{1.} The remote has 1 button. On/Off. So you can't change the sounds, the lights, nothing...just turn it back on/off. The remote does not go through the door...so you have to open it to use it.

{2.} The attachment to the crib requires you to have rails like the picture above. I really wanted to put it on the end of my crib, but my crib has solid ends. So I had to do the side...which makes the buttons in reach of the baby. Not sure I want that.

DISCLAIMER: I did not paint my walls that color. Yes, it's bright. And actually, its MUCH cuter in these pictures than it is in person. In person, it makes me want to gouge out my eyes. I will get a painter at some point but for now, it's electric blue.

See how close the buttons are to baby? At this point he is too small to get to them but not for long...I suppose I could drop the mattress.

 I do have the option to turn the control to the outside, and then switch the arm around. But, when you do that, the mobile is no longer centered, its more to one side of the crib. Not a huge deal but I think annoying. Also, when you turn the arm around, it messes with the balance of the unit. The strapping system is such that it is not totally flush with/tight on the rails. So, when its affixed like above, it leans in some. When its on the other side, it leans out of the crib -- which I find annoying.

when moved to the outside, the weight of the arm makes the unit do this - and there is no way to make it any tighter to stop this - unless I push it up against the wall. Of course, when its up against the wall, the buttons are blocked.

And, when it's set up like this, the mobile it's more to the right.

Notice, it leans forward a little bit.

Close up of the clasp. I don't love the extra 'tail' that it has when tightened.

{3.} The projection feature is cool, but it doesn't move at all..I think it might be cooler if it moved. At this point, Beckett totally ignores that, and I'm not sure when he is the age to notice it that it will be something that we are still using.

Projection feature..

So, do I wish I'd just spent $150 on the blabla one? Yep. But, the thing about babies is that you NEVER know what they will like. Sometimes they love the stuff you hate and vice versa. He looks at this and it 'does the job'. My next baby might be obsessed. Maybe there is not a single mobile on the market that my baby will love...but at the end of the day, who has the time to test several on their baby? And, since it is over the bed, do you want him to be enthralled with it? Probably not. Overall, I think I might just not be a mobile person. 

Hope this helps you if you're on the market for a mobile!