Easter Weekend

I woke up at 3 am (such an ungodly hour) to feed Winnie this morning and couldn't help but think about what an amazing weekend we had. Mondays don't bother me (some people are SO against them), but I seriously didn't want this weekend to end. Holidays with kids are nothing short of magical and I just can't get enough! Our next big holiday isn't until JULY, so I'm thinking we're going to have to make up a few parties to get us through the next few (rainy) months! 

We spent the majority of the weekend with family, hunting for eggs, eating our fair share of treats (keeping PEEPS in business for another year), and playing with new toys from that handsome Easter bunny (SOB gets all the credit... ahem, I spent a lot of time on Amazon ordering all that shit)

It was Winnie's first Easter and she celebrated by napping in her bunny ears. If I didn't have 10 kids, I would have taken a photo, but you know, priorities (making sure everyone had clothes on & no peeps in their hair). I can assure you it was the cutest thing ever.

Hope your Easter was perfect in every way! May you always remember the incredible debt Jesus paid for us - so that we can live! 

Easter Baskets

Every year, we pick up different "easter baskets" (see here & here) for the kids, because I just can't resist the chance to buy another basket. It's just one of my favorite things. Well this year, I discovered these amazing canvas bins by Pehr and I knew immediately that we had to have them for our Easter baskets. Our friends at Pehr so generously sent a few our way and I'm totally obsessed with them.  

I printed these tags with the kids names and think they'll be perfect little easter keepsakes for their baby books :) The stickers are from Peek last year.

I typically find one or two bigger items to put in baskets and the rest is little tokens & of course candy. Baylor is getting a baseball glove & a book, but has a legit gum obsession so his eggs have gum balls in them - which will easily be his favorite part! I found this adorable BlaBla bunny for Bellamy, and for Winnie, it's books & diapers. Because what more could a baby need? (#boobs) Also, notice the tooth brushes... that's an ode to my ultra-clean husband who moonlights as a dentist. ;) 

POM POM BIN

GRAY SPECK BIN

CITRON STRIPE BIN // MIRABELLE THE BUNNY

What's in your Easter baskets? I still have time to add a few things, so if you have any great suggestions, share them in the comments. XO

EASTER OUTFITS

There's something about Easter that feels so special. We go to church to celebrate the resurrection of Jesus, we spend time with family and take a million photos of our kids. Growing up, we always got new Easter dresses and it's a tradition I will keep with my own. It feels like a right of passage. 

In a different life, I'd have already bought all of these outfits for the kids. Instead, I'm scrambling because I'm an organizational disaster half  most of the the time. So let's just call this post: 

"What my Kids would Wear for Easter if I had my Sh*t Together"

Everything is from Zara (ALL the heart eyes, ALL the time) with the exception of the big juicy red bow and those sweet little baby shoes. 

Weekend Update

Happy Monday! The first day of spring yesterday, but Seattle didn't get the memo (true to form) and we're hunkered in with the rain. Our kitchen is almost done (I can't WAIT to share it with you!!), but meanwhile, we're living in a disaster zone. This takes a toll on my OCDish ways, but stepping out of your comfort zone is never a bad thing (so they say... I personally am coping by eating twix eggs and vacuuming incessantly.) 

We spent our weekend getting ready for Easter, organizing things around the house (new chairs in the kitchen!) and even dating! Collin and I went on TWO dates this weekend (BELEEE DAT!) and it was glorious. 

Winnie turned 4 months on Friday and Bellamy had to get her face in the photo. She's her favorite person these days :) (monthly onesies in my shop!) 

We headed to Land of Nod on Saturday morning for a little Easter craft & pop-up shop with my girl, Rae! Check her blog out - you will be SO inspired! 

DRESS 

Kitchen progress!!!! Still waiting on backsplash, hardware, & open shelving.

Sunday morning, we celebrated a birthday with some friends at Salty's on the water in Seattle. If you live in the area, or even come visit, this is a MUST do. We stopped at the market afterwards for a fresh bouquet and some cold brew. My happy place. 

We ended the weekend on this sweet note - and I really felt like every day is the best day ever with this crew. I'm truly blessed. 

Happy Monday! Go treat yo self! 

Magic Jellybeans + A Lollipop Forest

You guys! Easter is two weeks away. We try to focus most of our Easter traditions on the resurrection of Jesus and the celebration that He is risen, but I sometimes can't resist the light-hearted, festive traditions that make holidays extra fun with kids. The easter bunny is a little creepy for me and I refuse to make my kids sit on his lap (thanks for those traumatic memories, mom!), but I love a good easter basket and especially love the magic jelly beans. For those of you that haven't heard of this, the kids get to plant special "magic jellybeans" in the garden just before Easter. They can plant directly into the dirt or a planter, whatever you have! When they wake up on easter morning, the jellybeans will have grown (hint: that's your job - just place any kind of tall lollipop where the jelly beans were "planted") into a lollipop forest! I would have shit my pants as a kid if my mom did this (in an excited, mind-blown fashion. In fact, Winnie will probably do the same thing - that's her latest trick these days). 

There's really nothing like watching your kids experience "magic" and I honestly can't wait to see how the kids react this year. Baylor loves festive traditions, and Bellamy likes whatever Baylor does, so this will definitely be a crowd pleaser ;)

I've made this packaging available to download (click here) - you just need to print, cut, fold in half, and staple to a clear cello bag full of jelly beans! (you can buy cellophane bags on amazon or at target! The file is 5" wide, so aim for a 4.5" cello bag)

Happy Planting! 

California + Disneyland!

Happy Monday! We just got back from a quick trip to California for a wedding & a little stop in at my favorite place on earth ... DISNEYLAND. Magic doesn't even begin to explain Disneyland with kids. BUT, let's get real ... traveling with three kids under 4 is totally crazy. We had lots of help (thanks nana + mimi!), but goodness, it's a lot of work. To top things off, we got home only to be locked out of our house by our construction guys. If there was ever a time to drink... 

The kids did really great on the airplane - we brought lots of snacks, an iPad for shows, and some coloring books! The flight is only a couple hours, so it went quickly! The flight home was a little more wiley, as we sat on the tarmac for almost an hour before taking off (the pilot blamed "LA TRAFFIC" ... no time for jokes here people.) I nursed Winnie pretty much the entire flight because any time I tried to "disconnect" she lost her shit. That was super comfortable. 

We spent the morning at Laguna Beach, and even though it wasn't hot outside, the kids loved playing in the sand and watching the waves. Total "I'm on vacation... I can breath!" moment. 

We didn't last super long at the wedding, because my kids could care less about wedding cakes and best man speeches. We headed back to the hotel early and opted for room service and a movie in bed. Not our worst Saturday night. (My love language is eating in bed... chicken strips to be specific #nowyouknow)

Not even sure what's going on here, but the amount of captions we came up with for this photo... well, there wasn't enough hours in the day. 

We headed to Disney the next morning and it was practically as if Minnie was waiting inside the front gates for us. The kids were blown away at almost everything they saw and it was incredibly magical from the moment we arrived until the moment we left. I love Disney. 

Baylor decided that he wanted to go on the roller coaster in Tune Town (Bellamy was passed out in the stroller like a drunk princess) and we caught the whole thing on my mom's Go-Pro. Priceless memories my friends. Let's just say, he had no idea what he'd signed up for. 

If you have a little one who love princesses, you must visit the Bippity Boppity Boutique in Disneyland. Bellamy wasn't old enough for the entire princess treatment, but she got glitter sprinkled all over her hair and hands (she was thrilled, the stroller, however, still hasn't recovered). The have all the princess dresses and it's such a sweet little shop! 

Baylor was completely smitten with Daisy and didn't want to let her go when our turn was up. I pretty much die every time I look at this photo. 

Winnie's first time in the pool! She loved the warm water and spent her afternoon avoiding the tidal waves set on by her older siblings.

The trip was so much fun (notice I didn't say vacation) but we're happy to be home, causing a ruckus in our own space! 

the POTTY BASKET!

The time has come to potty train Bellamy. We've dipped our toes here & there with much success (after the initial fear of falling in the toilet subsided!) and It's really just on me to bite the bullet. You see, potty training requires that I stay home for at least 3 full days and at this point, home is a lot more work than going places. The house looks like a war zone after 3 hours of playing and my patience levels, well, they could use some work at that point. 

In any case, we potty trained Baylor a bit differently (read more about that, here) and as for sis, she's less motivated by progress and more of the instant gratification type. They're personalities are very different, so like everything in parenting, you adapt depending on the kid. 

I put together a little basket full of "potty prizes" for Bellamy, and each time she uses the potty (actually goes, not just sits on it), she gets to pick out a prize from the basket! Once she gets the hang of this, we'll move to the sticker chart like we did for Baylor, but for now, she needs a greater reward to get things moving. (why does everything I say in this post feel like a pun?) 

I'll include the download below, so all you have to do is print, cut it out, hole punch the corners and tie to your basket! Fill with treats, toys, or whatever drives your little one.

Not pictured is a potty prize basket for parents: wine, chocolate, a mild form of cocaine (because coffee is not cutting it), rubber gloves, and bleach (because this shit is MESSY #nopunintended). 

DOWNLOAD POTTY PRIZES SIGN