Let's go thrifting for baby clothes!

Are you on the hunt for some great deals on baby clothes? 

Thrifting can be a great way to save money while also finding some unique and stylish pieces.

Here are a few things to keep in mind when thrifting for baby clothes. 

Five things I will never do as a first time mom

Being a first time mom was something. Something good. Something INTERESTING. For one you get to really know who your village is/what its composed of. You get to see your limits- your partner’s limits… sometimes you impress yourself. Other times man it’s a fail. Either way it’s a learning process. 

So far we have survived 4 years and I'm excited to see my growth in the upcoming years of motherhood. 

Decluttering 101: Tips for New Moms

As a first time mom, I accumulated a lot of stuff. A lot of gifts - mixed in with a few purchases. Now that Ava Rose is almost two. We decided to get rid of half of the stuff and keep the best ones for baby #2 *Whenever we are ready for that* 

When it comes to decluttering your space, there is honestly no right or wrong way to go about it. Everyone has their own routine that works for them but for someone like me who is extremely sentimental... it takes forever for me to start. Best outlook to have - It all comes down to simplicity and minimizing unnecessary things in your space!

The Best Way to Introduce Food to a Picky Child

I am not sure if your kids are like mine! They love to eat pizza, chicken nuggets and tater tots all the time! Those are mom’s quick go-to’s on those long days of working and juggling motherhood. But, seriously kids are picky they hate veggies and anything that has texture! It feels like mission impossible at times.

So what do you do?

Get creative! That’s what you do… super creative in the nutrition world for kids!

Life Update + Tips for Choosing Child Care

A while back I wrote a blog post about being a Self Employed/Entrepreneur Mom and Working from Home with a Baby. I’ve never knew how much love that would get. As fun as it was having her at home (seven days a week with me)- I know that she was getting bored and it was requiring me to take a lot of time out of my schedule to play/entertain her. Which is fine some days BUT when you have deadlines!! Not ideal. I always felt horrible having to have the TV on in the background at times.

After extensive research and moving houses- I decided to get "help". Making sure that she was with the best care. How extensive are we speaking? I mean going to four of the best day cares in my city within 48 hours. Which was insane but literally allowed me to compare them with fresh eyes. We decided on one which was completely out of my traditional ideas of a daycare but she loves it.

HOW did I do it?

Decluttering Tips that you Need to Know if You're a New Mom

A mother’s job is hard enough! We have to stay organized and know where everything is at a moment's notice! Especially if your child is having a meltdown and not able to find what they are looking for. How many times do you go to a store and your child begs you to just buy one more toy, game or craft. In the back of your mind your thinking “oh geez”… MORE clutter to add to the mess. We have to constantly organize and declutter their spaces!

One golden nugget of truth is from when children are young always include them in the clean-up stages to help them be responsible and take pride in their space … bonus they tend to remember where things are too! It’s so hard to stay ahead of the game by cleaning and decluttering areas to help ease our stress but in the long run, keeps kids entertained and they learn as time goes on. I’m happy I came up with this plan- so I would stop doing double the work!

Here are my top tips for decluttering spaces

20 tips to help you save money in 2020

This year, I have added a few costly things to my life- New living arrangements, daycare, new car... need I go on? So I've had to cut back: no more lash extensions, no excessive eating out and no "new" clothing shopping. One thing I'm good at is saving! 

Also these tips might seem random- If one out of 20 helps you (that makes me happy). 

Here are 20 tips to help you save money in 2020.

Self Employed/Entrepreneur Mom: Working from Home with a Baby

Deciding go back to work and not take a full mat leave was a hard decision. I started working "again" when Ava Rose was four months. FYI- I took two months off to prep. Let me reiterate that this is one of the hardest things that I have done BECAUSE I also decided to go to school part-time as well. Looking back on it- it was extremely WILD but I had to do it. 

Why did I go back? 
Living on one income can be tricky because you honestly have to cut back on a lot and I'm spoiled. Well I'm used to doing what I want/when I want. Having to look into my resources to do things I wanted/ having to possibly not do it. NOPE. Not the life for me.

My support system: My family/mostly my mom dedicated a good amount of time a week to come and watch Ava while I caught up on sleep/school work/emails. My brother would come and watch the baby during my classes. This is in addition to help from my husband/dad of course. 

Best Personalized Gifts- Printcious

We can all agree, even though the holidays are fun they can be pretty overwhelming. As a new mom, I'm literally running to get things done. One thing I know is that everyone loves personalized gifts. I feel like they are appropriate for any relationship. From parents to even teachers! 

I was lucky to get an email from Printcious a while back. They make personalized gifts of all types, from shirts to keychains to magnets and even things like phone cases and business supplies.

They let you design your own product right on their website by adding text and images and they even have templates to work with for those of us who might be less artistically inclined. I can't lie- it was pretty quick designing my own little personalized presents that I ordered something for almost everyone in my family!

3 Tips for Stress-Free Last-Minute Holiday Shopping

Just like 90% of the population, I am so unprepared for Christmas. On my plate- first time mom, business owner, wife. Can I add WORK again?!? I totally have not decorated at all. 

I'm low-key nervous to do so with Ava lol..

I'm still going to try to keep things festive. 

Here are three tips from a procrastinator (me) to get through the holidays. 

Three tips for your baby when using baby pouch foods

I recently wrote about my thoughts on baby led wending and it was suggested that I also write about baby food as well. We actually still give them to Ava as a "snack' after her naps. It's quick- it fills her up. Plus she just eats them on her own (very little supervision needed)!

Just like everything out there you need to pay attention and follow safety/handling procedures when giving them to your little
one. This will make sure that your baby does not get sick.

How to take your baby's temperature: Newborn | Six Months | Nine Months

Oh no! 

You suspect your little one is sick. There is nothing more stressful than a sick baby. 

It's even worst because it's not possible for them to tell us what's wrong. 

If it could only be so easy!

The first time Ava Rose was a little feverish, I was instantly paralyzed with worry. Is this serious? Or am I just imagining that she's warmer than normal? After calling Telehealth, they instructed me to take her temperature. Thankfully she was okay but it totally could have been a serious situation.

The day after I googled instructions on "How to take a baby's temperature at multiple months" because I totally wanted to be prepared for my next freak out. 

**Please contact your family doctor for accurate information**