Always something new?!

The juggle of baby, work, life and now a move continues!

Lo makes me smile a 1,000 times on a daily basis.

Whether she's laughing or performing a new trick, I seriously just can't get enough of her.

As I've already blogged, we started our food journey with solids.

A combinations of laziness, exhaustion and the dauntingness of opening the box to my Baby Brezza, had Lo eating rice cereal and mashed bananas for a few weeks.

BUT one day, I finally opened it and it's seriously the easiest, most genius machine I've ever used in the kitchen.

Wash, peal, chop, add it to the machine, select food type, press a button and it steams and purees the food into a perfect mush!

First Adventure- Sweet Potatoes...

Baby Brezza is from William Sonoma.

Buy yours here.

 

25 minutes later my masterpiece was ready.

 Bought these little gems at the Pump Station.

Perfect little portions for freezing.

 Lo approved!

Obsessed with her new little tongue out funny face!

In other news:

She's getting so big, we had to move her from the infant tub.

This inflatable tub is awesome!

She loves it!

Buy here.

Sitting up, a little skeptical about it, but getting better and better at it each day.

Pink basket in the front of this pic is her favorite toy at the moment.

Grandma Bon Bon does research and buys her the BEST toys.

Buy here.

I was worried she wasn't getting enough liquid with just breast milk and wanted to be sure she wasn't dehydrated now that she's having solids.

She refuses anything out of a bottle besides BM, so someone recommended one of these sippy cups with the soft spout.

She can hold it herself and LOVES it.

Bought it at the Pump Station as well.

We frequent there, as you can see.

That's what's new here.

Looking forward to a move next month and ALL the holidays this Fall. 

Lo makes life complete!

XO,

S



3 MONTHS OLD and a Swimsuit for Mommy!

I sound like I'm on repeat, but holy warp speed batman, time is a flyin. Little London is growing and changing so fast, I can't even handle.  I'd say let's stop the clock, but every day brings something new and wonderful.  I miss that teeny tiny newborn stage, but love the cute little baby girl she's becoming. 

We recently had our friend Geena from Colors + Things Photography take some current photos. 

 I was told to have photos taken often because babies change the most in their first year of life.  Geena was a pleasure to work with and Franklin Canyon was a beyond beautiful location.

Geena has a great eye behind the lens and can really capture gorgeous light. 

Here's some of my favorites from our shoot!

Head is getting stronger and stronger, making tummy time less and less torturous!

STREEEETCH!  (this is one of my favorite things that she does)

 

That face, I just can't get enough!

 

Cute, even when she cries!

 My favorite headband from Snugars.

My material girl!

The love of our life!

One cool family!

In other news....
I recently bought my first one piece (aka. mommy suit), since my teenage years.
I know you don't have to be a mom to wear a one piece. 
In fact, they are quite popular these days, but it took me having a baby to hop on the bandwagon.
Here it is!

Hoping it looks cute and I feel a little more comfortable tending to baby in it. 
It's one thing to lose the baby weight, it's another to get back your tone...

In due time. 

You can buy here.

 

Still hoping to blog more.  So much to write about and NO time to do so.

 

TTFN!

XO,
S

Nursery Time!

So much to post, not enough nap time!

Jillian took some amazing pics of London's little nursery that I've been dying to share.

I (we, my mom, Shane and I) had the best time hunting and piecing it together London's nursery.
I'd have ideas, share them with Shane, he'd approve and my mom and I would search to find the perfect items at great prices. Teamwork people!
Home Goods, West Elm, Pottery Barn, Overstock.com, Walmart, Target are just a few of the places we bought items from.

Pic on the left: 

• The stripes were painted by my neighbor and friend Dan and myself. Click here for more on striped fun!
• The canvases above the crib were an inspiration from a baby decor blog (ontobaby, laybabylay...), can't remember which one.  My husbands graphic artist took the prints and made them into jpegs and I had them printed on canvas at Costco. The canvases are light weight and I velcroed them to the wall, so the peanut will be safe in her crib once she's sleeping in there.
• The crib is from Walmart and looks like many of the modern cribs I liked, but for less than half the price.

Pic on the right:

•  A cute curio shelf thingy I bought at an antique store in Hermosa Beach when I lived down there.  It was originally green has been used in many rooms of various apartments I've lived in.  We painted it white to soften it's look for the baby's room and it's a perfect nik nak holder.

Must say something about the beautiful blankie hanging on the crib.  That's a Bon Bon original.  My mom put a lot of work into it and it paid off.  We love it and it keeps lil Lo warm each and every night. 

Pic on the left:

• The glider is a must have in every nursery.  I can't tell you how much I've enjoyed rocking and nursing my sweet baby girl.  Won't get into the fact that it's still a loaner because the dumb company we bought it from has not delivered ours.  NIGHTMARE, but I'll keep this post positive.
• The awesome Baby Love Pillow was a gift for my shower from our friend Megan.  Click here to see the Etsy boutique it was bought from.

Pic on the right:

• The dresser was my first furniture purchase in college from an antique store in SLO.  We had it refinished to match the espresso and white mixed furniture we went with in the nursery.
• Shelves are from Pottery Barn and while they look great, I don't recommend them. They are more than a pain to hang. 
• Shelf items: Cute silver owl- West Elm, Rocking Chair on shelf- Pottery Barn, Frames-TJ Maxx, Piggy Bank was a gift from Nordies, Glass canister being used for baby's headbands-West Elm

These darling crowns were a little find at Bed Bath and Beyond.  Handmade knit hearts, a chalkboard from Michaels and the most darling Cynthia Vincent dress (my daughter has cuter clothes than me) hang from these hooks!

The day bed has been a huge hit.  Ever end up in a friend's nursery while she's nursing, changing the baby, or the babes are playing and wonder where you can sit and sip on a much needed glass of wine?  Well I have.  Thus the inspiration to have seating in our nursery.  Luckily, it's a spacious room and this fit perfectly.  It's also a great nap spot.  You can buy here.  The pillows are a sale combo.  The white ones were a steal from Pottery Barn, someone must have returned them and I snagged them way on sale, love when that happens!  The beige pillows are from Restoration Hardware and were also on sale, woohoo.  The Pottery Barn baskets underneath the bed will be filled with shoes, toys and other London stuff as she gets older! 

Lastly, this is our changing station/dresser.  Love the functionality of having a dresser under the changing station that we won't need forever.  The dresser is another buy from West Elm, click here.

Lamp is from Home Goods.  The London banner was decor for my shower and made by a college friend Rachel Golden, check out her facebook page for all kinds of hand sewn children items.  I love, LOVE, LoVe the chevron pattern right now and got the changing pad cover and bed skirt to match from this website. 



 

Happy Friday! 

XO,

S

This and that...

This:

vs.

As most of you know, I'm pretty much an OCD clean freak, so cleaning supplies and things that smell good are almost as exciting as flowers and new shoes to me.  With a baby on the way, I've been trying to be more conscious about the environment and chemicals in these things...  Pre-pregnancy it was- what can make my floors gleam and who cares what's in it.  Recently, I was on a hunt for dryer sheets that would be okay for baby.  I found these Method Baby Dryer Sheets, but the smell was a little intense for me, however some might like and they definitely fluff and make your clothes soft (at least I think so).  While at a new baby store in Newport, Bel Bambini I picked up a box of these BabyGanics Dryer Sheets and I think I'm hooked.    Side note: Bel Bambini is a super cute store with lots of furniture and a great variety of baby/young kiddie stuff.  I believe there is one on  Robertson too. 

That:

On another note, I was in a cheapy mood while buying stuff at CVS over the weekend and picked up the TP on sale.  BAD/BIG mistake!!  Scott toilet paper is "worse than what they probably have in prisons," says my husband Shane.  Oops.  Note to self.  Spring for the plush stuff when buying TP.

This:

So Shane decided that while I'm 35 weeks pregnant, it would be a good time to do a pretty crazy cleanse and drop a few lbs.  Seriously?!  Shake and fruit for breaky, shake and protein bar for lunch, some almonds as a snack, shake and veggies for dinner.  All while wifey is not supposed to diet and has been pretty limited on exercise due to a pelvic bone that feels like it's breaking in two!  I'm proud of him for sticking to it and making it through 5 days of cleansing though.  Here's to hoping it wasn't that bad and he'll do this kind of thing with me when I'm not carrying our child anymore.  At the end of his cleanse he got sicky.  Poor guy was man down with a cold, similar to the ones I've mentioned in some earlier blog posts.  He had to miss our first birth class on Saturday.  Didn't want daggers thrown our way for bringing a sniffling fool to class.  Luckily, mom doesn't live that far and was able to pinch hit for him right at the last minute.  Click here for info on Birth and Beyond where we took our class.  It was rather informative and made me realize a few things I'd like to shoot for in the arrival of our little one.  For one, staying home as long as I can or until I'm in active labor before going to the hospital seems pretty ideal to me now. Part 2 is next weekend and I'm excited  to have Shane by my side.  One things is for sure in all this having a baby stuff... it's a wild unpredictable ride and I'm trying to prepare myself for the unexpected, while hoping for the best case scenario. 

That:

This weekend was GORGEOUS, like now I know why I endure traffic and other annoying LA crap to live here, gorgeous!  Yesterday we took maternity photos with my dear friend Jillian Rose.  It could not have been a more perfect day weather wise.  She found this amazing succulent nursery in Malibu, Cosentino's.  I wish I took a pic to share now, but you'll just have to patiently wait like me to see our photos, as the ones I've found online don't do this place justice. 

This:

Our nursery is 90% complete.  We are waiting on our glider, some canvases for over the Boo's crib and for hubby or neighbor Dan to hang a shelf (had to throw that in there since they both hate me for bugging them to get it up) and it will be finished.  I love spending time in there already and know that it will be truly complete when she arrives and we can share moments with her in there.  Can't wait to share when it's finally finished.  It's been fun and interesting collecting things from all over to achieve our vision while not breaking the bank!

Happy Monday!
XO,

S

Obsessed with Diapers.com and Soap.com

Who's not a fan of convenience?

I normally do my errands, aka. Target, Traders, Dollar Store, Cleaners, Home Goods... when I go into my office in Simi Valley.

As anyone on the West side knows, our Targets are few and far between. (insert SAD face here)

Trader Joes are EXTREMELY crowded and parking sucks.

Dollar Store is just more convenient in Simi.

Cleaners is less than half the price and does a better job.

And Home Goods in Simi is WAY nicer... 

Anyhow, I was turned on to Diapers.com as a place to register for my baby shower.

They have an amazing array of products, tons of helpful reviews, the site is easy to navigate and things are competitively priced. 

Did I mention the ship and arrive in like 2 days, HELLO- LOVE!

While on the site, I started to navigate the sites attached and discovered Soap.com which is THE BOMB! 

Both sites send coupons all the time, so in addition to the already well priced merch, you get additional discounts and it's easy to get free shipping too. 

I heart coupons and discounts (it's kinda a game to me, don't even get me started on GAP and Banana Republic). 

Yesterday, I ordered some of my favorite products right now.

Baby or not, this stuff is amazing.

As I've gotten older, I've become more and more cautious of chemicals in things I use often.

I've replaced most of my cleaning supplies with J.R. Watkins
I use this stuff on everything-walls, counters... and it smells good-BONUS!

You can buy on Soap.com or they do carry the line at Target.

Even our everyday lotions are filled with Cancer causing chemicals.

Not this one! 
Smells yummy too.

I've been man down again, SICK, SICK, SICK with what will be my LAST cold while pregnant. 

I'm on the mends, but have had my butt kicked once again. 

This is day 6 and I'm still struggling.

3rd Trimester is hard enough as it is.

Cold, PLEASE GO AWAY!  Thanks.

We've got a big weekend ahead of us that I'm looking oh so forward to! 

Shane has deemed Friday night, DATE NIGHT until the baby comes. 

It's always been "our" night, but we normally just stay home, cook, get take out and watch movies.

Since we'll be doing a lot of staying home, Shane has decided to be CUTER than Cute and make resos at local restaurants we've been dying to try.

This Friday is Capo.

I've heard great things, can't wait to report.

We had to cancel our first baby class last weekend, but we have another one this weekend. 

Infant CPR, here we come.

P.S. Another positively amazing feature of Diapers.com

When you register with them, they give you a $50 credit for every $500 spent on your registry.  We basically got our crib mattress for free!  Woohoo.

Happy Shopping and Cleaning!

Xo,
S



30 weeks and now understanding why bloggers and mommies go MIA!

The beginning of this year has been BUSY, BUSY, BUSY!

Is it really almost February?

We've had two baby showers, toured the hospital, started our every 2 week doctor appts. and more!

Last weekend was my baby shower hosted by my friends.

Dear friends from all different times in my life gathered to shower me and the babe with gifts.

I can't wait to share pics from the beyond perfect day!

Feeling very loved and grateful for the amazing women in my life!

The nursery is well underway, the walls are painted, most of the furniture is in.

The stripes were a bit of a challenge, but nothing our neighbor and dear friend Dan wasn't up for.

We bought him a cheap tool called a laser leveler and he was off to the races. 

Get yours here

He used this tool to create straight lines with tape.

This handy dandy tool has multiple purposes and can also be used to hang pictures at the same height on multiple walls. 

 Stripes with tape

Finished product!

Don't mind the blankets in the crib- I don't have the mattress yet, so I just put stuff in there to make it look good and get an idea.

Looking forward to my family shower this weekend and a work shower closer to my due date. 
Baby Ball is so loved and lucky already.

On another note, sleeping has been a challenge since the beginning of my pregnancy, but it continues to get more and more difficult.
At night, I pretty much turn into a jelly fish flip floppin around all night, putting pillows in weird places and just trying to get comfy and take a deep breath. POOR SHANE!

Between getting up to pee and switching positions, it's a wonder he gets any sleep at all.  
In a desperate attempt to help my sleep in any way we can, we recently bought these pillows and I just had to share because they are a slice of heaven.

Sorry about the sideways pic, I can't figure out how to rotate.

Can you say pregnancy brain?
You can purchase these at Bed, Bath and Beyond here!

Don't forget your 20% off coupon. 

Looking forward to blogging about the shower, the nursery and my growing belly in the coming weeks.  

XO,

S

Kinda obsessed...

...with these frames

I'll take one of each.  

You can get them here, Delta Girl Distressed Frames.

I can't pick a favorite. 
Found these thanks to this fab blog.

XO,
S

Decisions... decisions...

These.

or

these?

Having an impossible time making decisions these days, but want to order a pair before it gets chilly (or at least what we Cali peeps like to call chilly). 

Buy here, if you fancy.

Happy Hump Day Shopping!

XO,

S

The PERFECT Gift...

...for a newborn.

It's always nice to take a little something the first time you meet a dear friend's baby

or to send a welcome something in the mail.

I'm big on thoughtful gifts that don't break the bank!

This is one of my absolute favorites.

A wooden block with all the baby's info on each side:

baby's full name

baby's initial

date/time

where they were born

height, length, weight

proud parents of...

a special gift from...

Here's baby Jade (just 13 days old) modeling with her block.

Click Here to buy your personalized block!

Something sweet that she can keep forever. 

XO,

S

TTTT-arget hit a bulls-eye again!

Miss Trish for Target

Yes, please.

Only $24.99, one for you and one for mom!

Go here to get yours.

My favorite kind of shopping...

...is for the home.

Check out our new dining room rug

from the one and only West Elm.

With new carpet, we thought we better protect the places most likely to get dirty.
Loving the pattern that adds to our very solid and neutral colored home.

Looking forward to having the fam over for dinner tonight! 

  

Happy Decorating!

XO, 

S & S