imagination

i love encouraging olive’s creativity. it means so much to me that she explores art, colors, pictures, draws, and builds her imagination. i believe this is something that we should nurture and encourage as early on as we can. she loves to read, she loves to paint, she loves to build, and she loves to draw. i find she can spend hours on any of those things.

a few new items i have discovered recently, that will encourage her creativity and imagination, are the jaq jaq bird chalk book, hape toys sand art, and the kid o magna tab. three great toys that olive will love. what i love most is that they are available on a site i have just found! the cubby baby…literally the best of everything baby! this shop has everything you need for mommy and babes! from strollers, wraps, baby needs, toys, and trend alerts, this site offers something for us mommy’s on the go!

via tandeminlove.com

via tandeminlove.com

i love the chalk book because it’s reusable, portable, and promotes her creativity! the chalk is dust free and it’s so easy to clean. it’s a perfect item to bring along with us to restaurants or when we are out and about and olive can keep herself preoccupied. olive is so well behaved {regardless} when we go out and she’s very good when we are sitting down at a restaurant but bringing along toys as a back up is a smart thing to do for any parent!

via tandeminlove.com

the hape toys sand art is soooooo cool! i love that it’s colorful and olive can create works of art using the pretty sand and patterns that they offer. she is so good at recognizing animal shapes and telling me what colors are what! it’s so cute when she asks me, “can i count the colors?”…i always have to correct her! what she really means is, can she identify the colors but that will come in time! haha!

via tandeminlove.com

the kid o magna tab is pretty awesome. it’s magnetic and it pops the little white ball into the hole and supports olive’s learning with letters, shapes, and pictures. to ‘erase’ the pic, all you have to do is swipe your finger or the back of the stylus over the dots and presto! the pictures is erased! how easy and fun is that?!

i’m excited to discover more fun items for both ellie and olive on the cubby baby! their growth, development, and learning path is so important to me and finding new interactive items to engage them with is always something i’m seeking. make sure you check out their website and see all the wonderful things they offer for you and your babe!

xoxo

twin baby boy shower

a friend i met recently, christina, became pregnant with twin baby boys! her and her husband, michael are beyond ecstatic and we couldn’t be happier for them!

i was invited to her baby shower and, of course, i rsvp’d yes! i love parties, baby showers, wedding, bridal showers, brunch…you name it! i will always do my best to go if my schedule allows!

it was held in the evening, due to her guest’s schedules, and not too far from where we live. i was sad to leave my babies behind {i almost wanted to bring ellie} but excited to get out for a few hours by myself.

the decor for the party was so stinkin’ cute! her friend roberta did such a great job assembling everything together! she made a diaper cake, decorated balloons, made food, and helped out with so many details to make her shower super special!

i mingled, ate food, drank lemonade, and got to know her other guests a little bit better. the apps were delicious and the food served was savory and perfect. i really enjoyed sitting down with a few guests and talking over a few fun subjects, like vegas, babies, weddings, and palm springs…such fun topics!!

after dinner, we guessed the inches around her baby bump and then she opened up her gifts! baby stuff is soooooooo cute, boy or girl styles! we ooohhhh’d and ahhhhh’d over the cute items and then dessert was served. i didn’t stick around much longer {being a nursing mom…i was on a schedule} and headed out and home to feed miss ellie. the party spot was only 20 minutes away at most so it was easy for me to jet out and get back to my babes.

christina’s shower was beautiful, fun, and soooooo darn cute! i am so happy for her and can’t wait to meet her two baby boys! congrats christina and michael! y’all are so blessed!

via tandeminlove.com

via tandeminlove.com

[the delicious salad made by roberta]

via tandeminlove.com

[the cute diaper cake made by roberta…this decor never gets old]

via tandeminlove.com

[me and the mommy to be]

via tandeminlove.com

[the gorgeous balloons by roberta]

via tandeminlove.com

[christina calls her babes, baby A and baby B]

via tandeminlove.com

[roberta and kathy]

via tandeminlove.com

[balloon decor]

via tandeminlove.com

via tandeminlove.com

via tandeminlove.com

[strawberry lemonade]

via tandeminlove.com

[guess the how big the mama’s bump is…i WON!!!!]

via tandeminlove.com

via tandeminlove.com

via tandeminlove.com

via tandeminlove.com

[presents galore!]

via tandeminlove.com

[christina opening up her cute gifts]

via tandeminlove.com

via tandeminlove.com

[gorgeous, happy mama]

via tandeminlove.com

via tandeminlove.com
via tandeminlove.com

via tandeminlove.com

via tandeminlove.com

via tandeminlove.com

[how pretty is this cake?!]

via tandeminlove.com

via tandeminlove.com

xoxo

happy eight months ellie!

happy eight months ellie!

via tandeminlove.com

[photos taken on 3.15]

i was sitting with ellie the other day and thought…no way! no way she’s eight months old! nooooooooo. oh my gosh, i love her so much and it kills me that she is growing up. i desperately hold onto her baby stage that i do forget how many months she is or i am in complete denial? don’t get me wrong…i look forward to beautiful, great things she will do, accomplish, and be but this babe stage is too short and fleeting.

she’s on the verge of crawling. she wants to. i can see it. she bounces on her behind, leans forward, and has become quite strong with her arms. i think this month is her month! i can’t even fathom her crawling…being mobile. i love seeing her sit still and look so darn cute with those saggy cheeks and big brown eyes, usually watching her sister in amazement.

she’s an eater! she doesn’t loooooove her food but she will definitely eat it all. she loves fruits best but what kid doesn’t?! she loves bananas, pears, purees blended with oatmeal, and will usually gobble those meals up. she eats breakfast, lunch, and dinner with breast milk in-between. i still feed her but every three hours now since she’s been eating solids. she’s a pretty good eater but according to growth charts, she’s a peanut. no matter, she’s as tiny, healthy, and cute as can be!

she broke ground on her first tooth!!! woooo hooooo! her central incisor has made it’s debut. it was around march 1st when i noticed a white line coming out of her gum! i rubbed the area and felt her tooth breaking through! i was soooooo excited but that leads into her interrupted sleep patterns…

december and january were rough months filled with sickness and sleepless nights. ellie hasn’t gotten on a solid nap time schedule but we try for 10am and 2-3pm naps. it’s hard too, when others watch her and don’t keep to a consitent schedule to build a routine. she was waking up relentlessly over the past several months causing this mama to sleepwalk! she got better in the beginning of february and relapsed for a few days due to catching another cold. wahhhhhh. well, i must say, though, february 6th or 7th was the beginning of her sleeping through the night!! hallelujah! she would hit the sack around 9 or 10pm {yesssssss my babes stay up late like their mama} and wake up at 5. y’all have no idea how amazing it was, or is, to sleep for more than 4 hours straight!!! well now she’s fussy at night due her teething…whatevs. i’m dealing!

she’s a screamer! she loves to hear her own voice and boy, is she loud! she shrieks, screams, cries, yells, and giggles and ohmergawd is it sooooooo stinkin’ cute!! she mimics us, she smacks her lips, clicks her tongue, and makes the cutest sounds alllllll the time!

she’s gotten better with sitting but she is still a little rocky. there are times when she throws us for a loop. she looks so strong and sturdy and we are all just sitting around playing on the rug and then all of a sudden, bam! she throws herself back and i have a freakin’ panic attack, so afraid she might crack her head! gahhhhhhh, it scares me when she does that and of course, it startles her and she then busts out crying. oh poor baby!

oh baby ellie. she’s so happy, content, and ohhhhhhhh so sweet. i couldn’t ask for a better babe. she’s so pleasant and beyond chill. it blows my mind at how calm she is. we love watching you grow, giggle, smile, scream, and learn. it’s amazing how much love we have for you. thank you for being such an awesome babe and we are so blessed to be your parents.

xoxo

children’s museum

a sunday crept up on us and can you believe that we didn’t have anything really planned?! it was a sunny, nice day out and we definitely wanted to get out and do something fun! our initial plan was to go to the zoo but it was just a little bit too chilly to stand outside for hours so we found a local children’s museum.

it was close by and we have never visited it before! we did our usual morning routine – wake, nurse, feed olive, coffee, chill, and repeat. we squeezed in a nap for ellie…well, we tried. she was a bit fussy and didn’t get a good shut eye in, so we decided to leave for the museum.

we arrived in no time and it wasn’t that crowded. we started to explore and honestly, it was a very odd feeling being there. let me explain…i just felt that parents weren’t friendly. i immediately felt a strange vibe from everyone. i would make eye contact and smile and other moms would not smile and look away. hmmmmm. unfriendly!

another annoying factor were the parents that didn’t watch their kids or care that they acted inappropriately…such as not wait their turn, not share, hog an activity, or the one that irks me the most – big kids who overtake the little ones. that gets under my skin. i become super irritated! also, the whole area was sooooo dirty. as expected but i could feel the germs and viruses bouncing off my skin. blech!

i must say, hc and i didn’t have the best experience there. of course olive loved it but we were so turned off. we were blown away at how rude some of the older kids were with the little kiddos around, how removed the parents were. don’t get me wrong, olive did her best to fend for herself and i believe to let her do her own thing and not be a helicopter mom but the big kids were bugging me although not as much as their unaware parents!

ok…venting done. we did stay for a few hours and then called it quits. olive had a ton of fun and really enjoyed herself, honestly – that is all that matters. we were happy we took her there but i don’t know if we will go there any time soon again! eep!

via tandeminlove.com

via tandeminlove.com

[checking out the fishes]

via tandeminlove.com

via tandeminlove.com

via tandeminlove.com

via tandeminlove.com

[having fun with light and colors]

via tandeminlove.com

[daddy helping her hour]

via tandeminlove.com

[if there’s a hole, she’ll crawl through it]

via tandeminlove.com

[she was having a blast with bar and mirror]

via tandeminlove.com

via tandeminlove.com

via tandeminlove.com

via tandeminlove.com

[the wind machine]

via tandeminlove.com

via tandeminlove.com

[stuffing the wind machine with kerchiefs]

via tandeminlove.com

via tandeminlove.com

[watching the scarves fly into the air]

via tandeminlove.com

via tandeminlove.com

via tandeminlove.com

via tandeminlove.com

via tandeminlove.com

xoxo

dinner party

our dear friend andrea invited us to a dinner party in celebration of her husband, jaime’s birthday. we love getting together with them; they are fun, funny, smart, and sweet as can be.

we come to find out that andrea had hired a chef for the evening to serve us dinner! how cool is that?! oh, it was going to be a fun, decadent evening! plus, it was a kid friendly party! woo hoo! double bonus!

we arrived on time and were greeted by jamie. olive was a bit overwhelmed and became super clingy and upset so i knew what would calm her down…toys! andrea and jamie have a ‘play area’ downstairs and i knew olive would get lost down there with all the fun items all around her! so, downstairs she went and we never saw her again! hahahaha!

we were immediately served champagne and hor d’oeuvres were plentiful ~ yum! don’t mind if i do! we mingled and visited with everyone while hc and i switched between holding ellie. we love their friends and have such a great time catching up with everyone. the chef was hard at work and i guzzled champagne and ate a lot of cheese ~ my weakness! we periodically checked on olive and continued to enjoy ourselves. did i mention that jamie and andrea have the most gorgeous home in chicago?! let me just say it’s so fabulous!

we were called to sit down for dinner and i was so excited to eat! the chef gave us details of each dish that was served. i loved that we were informed on ingredients of each delicious plate that we were about to consume. each portion served was a combination of wonderful flavors and eat bite made my mouth and mind happy! we had the best time at our table and the conversation was delightful, funny, and entertaining. gosh, i love moments like these!! great food, drinks, and friends, you just can’t go wrong!

oh my! we were having a great time! we made it through the end of the meal with two happy kids but it was almost nine thirty and we were ready to go. the kids were holding up great and were so good but we know our limits. it was almost ten o’clock by the time we left and it was perfect. we had a fabulous night, the kids were in great spirits, and we left just in time!

we had such a wonderful evening! thank you to jamie and andrea for inviting us over for jamie’s birthday dinner! it was fun, fabulous, delicious, and perfect!

cheers to amazing friendships!

via tandeminlove.com

[the pretty table setting]

via tandeminlove.com

[the menu for the evening]

via tandeminlove.com

via tandeminlove.com

[daddy and daughter]

via tandeminlove.com

via tandeminlove.com

[aren’t these ladies by my side so pretty?!]

via tandeminlove.com

[appetizers and plenty of booze…mmmmmm]

via tandeminlove.com

[party time]

via tandeminlove.com

[the chef for the evening]

via tandeminlove.com

[bottomless glass…keep it coming!]

via tandeminlove.com

[feeding ellie before we feast]

via tandeminlove.com

[kathryn and ginger]

via tandeminlove.com

[these babes were being so cute together]

via tandeminlove.comvia tandeminlove.com

via tandeminlove.com

[hmmmm, i am so cute!]

via tandeminlove.com

via tandeminlove.com

[the chef explaining each entree]

via tandeminlove.com

[the delicious pomegranate salad]

via tandeminlove.com

via tandeminlove.com

via tandeminlove.com

[ellie entertaining herself during dinner]

via tandeminlove.com

[hostess with the mostess]

via tandeminlove.com

[baby, baby, baby!]

via tandeminlove.com

[main course]

via tandeminlove.com

via tandeminlove.com

[andrea with baby colin]

via tandeminlove.com

[creme brûlée]

via tandeminlove.com

[the man of the hour!]

via tandeminlove.com

xoxo