Friday, September 21, 2018

My baby must-haves

Finley is 6 months! I cannot believe it. It has been an absolute whirlwind!

So this isn’t necessary a baby checklist…yes you need a car seat, stroller, first-aid kit, diapers, wipes, etc., but these are some products in addition to the necessities that made my life easier. I have used all the products linked and highly recommend them. Happy Friday!

Homes toys/stations:

Breastfeeding/Pumping:

I made it to my breastfeeding goal of 6 months and still going. I do have to supplement about 4-8 oz. a day with formula but I’m still super happy with my supply compared to Hartley. As a working mother, pumping has become my way of life. I pump all the time it feels like, but getting a schedule and having some essentials make this task so much easier.

  • Nursing Pillow
  • I used a Spectra pump this time and really liked it – changing out the white valves every 2 months also helped tremendously with keeping a good suction
  • Hands Free Pumping Bra
  • Glass Storage Jars
    • Like my bottles, I hated the plastic storage options (the bottles get junky and the bags tip, I had a bag break so with a long commute they just weren’t working) – these glass mason jars are just amazing and they fit perfectly into my carrier to and from work
  • Mama supplements (see my lactation brownie recipe)

Feeding:

  • Glass Bottles
    • I swear by glass bottles. Yes, there are many different manufacturers but these are my absolute favorite. They come with vented nipples so there aren’t a lot of parts. They never have a smell or get that old used plastic look. If you are worried with transporting them, I have this protective sleeve that gives some assurance of breaking.
  • Natural (clean ingredient) bottle soap and bottle brush
  • Breast Milk Ice Pack
    • This fits the glass bottles great for trips or outdoor workouts

Teething/First Aid:

  • Amber Teething Necklace
  • Teething biscuits are a life saver!
  • Frozen green beans…Finley has been loving this on her teeth and teaching her fine motor skills. Once thawed just watch carefully so they don’t gum off too much

Workout Essentials:

Getting a workout outside with my girls was/is a sanity lifesaver. So enjoyable to get something done with them that helps me feel good about myself. A lot of times I’ll do my walk/jog then do a weighted circuit while I let Hartley play at the playground, which is a double win!

Bath/Sleep:

So we are still working on getting Miss. Finley into sleeping longer through the night. She gets hangry through the night. After our 6 month visit we are a little more confident in starting to wean her off constant night attention. Our new bedtime routine is warm bath, baby massage with coconut oil and lavender essential oil, read a book, and then feed her. She normally falls asleep after all this but if not we are still putting her to bed and letting her self-soothe (which I hate…who wants to self-soothe LOL).

I hope that some of these products help you prepare or help with life with an infant. It is a process mama (and dada) but with the right tools it can make life easier!

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Monday, August 20, 2018

How To Side Hustle

How many of you have a full-time job and a side hustle business? For many of you like myself, we not only have a full-time job but a side business too. Whether it’s for fun, necessity, or for something you hope to become full-time, it’s extra cash in the door. It’s a way to pay off debt, vacation money, grocery money, etc. I read a lot of blogs about growing a business in your spare time. It’s about using your time efficiently and effectively. You can build something if you put the time and effort in. Everyone has a little time that can be redirected from TV watching, social media, etc. and into your business. My blog started out as a creative outlet and I’ve slowly grown into making some money. No, I’m not one of the bloggers that makes a six-figure income and raking in all the free goodies, but I do make a little extra lunch cash from it. I also finally took my real estate passion into practice a few months ago and absolutely love it. I have a fabulous team that understands my full-time job commitment and enables my work over the weekends or after-hours.

So how do you side hustle?

  • Find something you passionate about
    • Photography
    • Makeup Artist
    • Selling homemade art
    • Dog sitting
    • Tutor/teaching/coaching/lessons
    • Lawn service
    • Blogging
    • Baking – cupcakes, cakes (I know a friend who has successfully grown her cake business that she was brave enough to take the leap of faith to quit her 9-5, you go girl!)
  • Make sure you can earn money with it and if start-up costs are needed, will/when you earn this back?
  • Make sure you have the time to commit
  • Restrictions with your full-time job (research and advise your prime job first and don’t let it interfere with your prime money maker)
  • Market! Work it!

Now your ready to market your new found business! That’s where high quality business cards come in! Creating your business cards online is easy with Basic Invite.

Almost Unlimited Colors – Basic Invite is one of the few websites that allows customers almost unlimited color options with instant previews online. Once you select a design you can change the color of each element on the card to over 180 different color options so you can make sure the card is exactly how you want it down to the littlest detail. This is what we feel sets us apart from almost any other online stationery company and is what we feel is our biggest draw.

Custom Samples – Basic Invite is one of the few websites that allows customers the ability to order a printed sample of their actual invitation so they can see exactly how it will print as well as the paper quality before they ever have to place their final order.

Over 40 Different Colors of Envelopes – Basic Invite is just as colorful with our envelopes as we are with our invitations. Customers can choose from over 40 different colors when it comes to their envelopes so that they can make their invitation stand out even before it is opened. All of our envelopes are peel and seal so the envelopes can be quickly and securely closed.

Address Capturing Service – Basic Invite offers an address capturing service that allows customers to simply share a link on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, or any other form of social media to request their friends and family’s addresses which will be stored in the customer’s account and can then be selected during the design process. Basic Invite offers recipient address printing at no cost on all Christmas card orders.

Foil – Foil cards are available in gold, silver, and rose gold. Customers can choose flat or raised foil on all of Basic Invite’s foil designs.

 

Right now Basic Invite is offering 15% off with coupon code: 15FF51

You can also start looking for personalized Christmas cards!!

Follow @basicinvite

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This is a sponsored conversation written by me on behalf of Basic Invite. The opinions and text are all mine.

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Tuesday, July 3, 2018

Semi-Homemade Lactation Brownies

Hope you had a fabulous Father’s Day! Weren’t Willie and the babes so cute in their “Father’s Day team shirts”?!?!

It has been SO hot here in Virginia it’s hard to enjoy doing anything outdoors. I’ve been carry a fan EVERYWHERE for the baby. We are getting into our new normal as a family of four and me as a full-time working mommy. It was a hard transition for the baby (and me) and breastfeeding. The first week was ok, but second week of me gone was a 30 minute screaming match after work trying to get her to latch. It was completely devastating. I had tried so hard to have a better breastfeeding experience than I did with Hartley that I felt defeated when Finley started to refuse to eat. After the weekends it was better, but I’m still struggling in consistency with her. It’s hard because I can’t predict if she is going to latch or not, so having a bottle and pumping equipment goes with me everywhere…which is less than ideal and a complete pain. However, I’m happy my supply is strong and I’m been super regimented about it. I’ve also tried supplements, dark beer, and lactation sweets to keep it up. I invested in these lactation brownies a few weeks ago and I wasn’t too happy when I discovered the extremely low percent of milk boosting nutritional contents in them and ohhhh a 12 pack cost me $30…that’s $2.50 a brownie.

So what do I do…make my OWN! Super simple and the best thing is the ingredients are not only for lactation but great all-around fabulous things to have on hand for cookies, smoothies, on-top yogurt, etc. The power bomb ingredients are: Ground Flaxseed Meal, Brewer’s Yeast, Wheat Germ. Total cost for the batch is about $3-4, which is more like $0.33 a brownie.

All you need is:

  • Favorite Brownie Mix
    • Make and bake per instructions but add 1 tablespoon extra of vegetable oil and water to account for extra dry ingredients
  • 2 heaping tablespoons of each boob food ingredient (ground flaxseed, brewer’s yeast powder, and wheat germ)

*Again, I can only vouch for myself, but this helped my milk supply and it was a delicious treat that was easy to make.

Hope you enjoy these super ooey gooey brownies!! Let me know how it goes mama!

Pin this image to share with others! You don’t need to be breastfeeding to enjoy the nutritional benefits of these brownies, which help support skin, hair, energy, etc. to give you the boost you need. Everyone deserves a brownie break haha 😉

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Wednesday, May 30, 2018

Baby’s Perfect Nursery on a Budget

Ahhhh I go back to work fulltime next week and it’s completely scary. I have NO idea where the time has gone. My sweet little Finley will be 3 months old. Her nursery is finally done and I’m hoping to transition her over to her crib in a few weeks. I’ve kept her in our room since I’m such a nervous mommy I like to lean over every few hours to make sure she is ok. She is sleeping much better now, thank goodness. I’m hoping we will be down to only one feeding during the night so I’m not a complete zombie at work. There is so much I want to share, but finding the time to take pictures, write a post and share has been non-existent. So please bare with me in my mommy transition. (Please excuse the post photos too, they aren’t the best. Between my camera being dirty and pics from the phone, it was what it was haha).

Finley’s nursery is a fabulous mix of big sister furniture, repurposed pieces, thrift/yard sale finds, and new purchases.

Here are the before pictures. The crib, mobile, and glider were from Hartley’s room. The wall paint color was leftover from our main level . It is Sherwin Williams Versatile Grey.

The diaper changing table was a yard sale find for $10. I chalk painted and added cute little rose knobs. I also added a mix of thrift store baskets and ones I found from Homegoods. The mirror above the changing table was a $5 thrift store find. The changing pad cover and bedding set are from Target. I also have the matching muslin swaddle blankets which are my absolute favorite for everyday use. The large floral art piece above the crib is from Target as well. The other wall art is all from Hobby Lobby with the unique canvas wreaths and baby announcement door wreath I created mixed in. Ohhh and the fabulous hanging light pendent is from Joss & Main.

The blue dresser was a free hand-me-down from my mother. If you follow my Instagram stories you saw sweet Hartley painting this with free leftover paint samples mixed with baking soda for a DIY chalk paint mix.

Hope you all love my nursery. Do you have a favorite piece or idea? Will you repurpose or shop secondhand for your little one?

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