Summer Bucket List!

 

Happy Summer Solstice everyone! Summer has definitely come in all it's glory over here to Southern California (hello triple digits!), so I have been trying to come up with some ideas to beat the heat with Baylee other than cowering inside our air conditioned home! ;) Yesterday, we escaped the hot desert and spent a lovely 75 degree day at the beach! While we were there, I decided to make a full on summer bucket list!

Summer Bucket List

1. Lay on a blanket outside and check out all the stars.

2. Make lots and lots of s'mores in our fire pit.

3. Take a few day trips down to the beach.

4. Make homemade popsicles.

5. Have a water balloon fight.

6. Go tent camping. 

7. Watch fireworks on the 4th of July.

8. Go to a baseball game.

9. Have a bonfire at the beach and make hot dogs.

10. Visit the farmers market.

11. Go to the aquarium.

12. Make ice cream sundaes.

13. Teach Baylee how to swim without floaties.

14. Make homemade lemonade and sun tea.

15. Get manis and pedis with a bright summery polish.

16. Go to the splash pad and/or water park.

And the most important...

17. Welcome my baby niece into the world! (She's due August 28th!!)

I have a feeling this is going to be the best summer ever! :)

 

Until next time! XoXoXo

 

IVF Update: There's A Rainbow Around the Corner

As most of you know, we had our first IVF FET (frozen embryo transfer) in early March. While it was successful and resulted in a pregnancy, we sadly lost our little babe at 7 weeks and 1 day to a missed miscarriage. (Read more about my miscarriage here.) I was so upset, but I wasn't about to let it ruin me. I knew that my healing would be found in getting back up and trying again. So, I did just that.

I spent the next month physically healing and doing my thing. I had date nights with Brian, and did all the running around with Baylee that I couldn't do while I was pregnant and on modified bed rest. I really was loving life, and it was such a good experience for me to go through. While it was hard and so sad to say goodbye to our tiny miracle, it taught me so much about appreciating what I already have. It's not that I am an ungrateful person; I just always love to have a plan, and sometimes when that plan doesn't work out I get very frustrated, so I forget to stop and smell the roses. That month was the break I needed to just "be me" again. No shots, no appointments, no pills...just me having a blast with my family.

Then I got my period, and I knew I was ready. I called up my IVF case nurse and said "Let's do this!" and being the super woman she is, she made it happen and made it happen fast! I started shots again on May 25th, and yesterday morning we transferred one beautiful hatching 6AA embryo. I am over the moon to be PUPO (pregnant until proven otherwise) again!

 

And now, we wait. I am currently on hour 30 of my 48 hours of doctor ordered bed rest, and while I'm going a little stir crazy, I know it's all worth it for our tiny rainbow baby! We should find out in a couple of weeks whether or not the transfer was successful and if I am, in fact, pregnant again! 

Last time, we kept the whole frozen embryo transfer a big secret except for telling family and close friends. I wanted to have the big pregnancy reveal after hearing the heartbeat for the first time just like a normal pregnancy, but I never got that. It left me feeling so bummed that I never got to share my excitement with all of you for the few weeks that I knew; my first time sharing about our pregnancy was sharing about how it ended. So, I decided that this time would be different. This time, I'm not hiding my excitement, because it might be short lived and not end well, or it might be the rainbow I've been waiting for, but either way I am blessed! No matter what, there is life inside of me again, and I just pray that God has a plan to let this little nugget stick around for a while. :)

Please keep me in your prayers as we await results!

Until next time! XoXoXo

Giving the Gift of JORD this Father's Day

 My husband, Brian, is the selfless and grounded type of man who never expects anything for birthdays or holidays, so it was so nice to be able to surprise him with a very special early Father's Day gift this year. When he opened his brand new wooden JORD watch his smile went from ear to ear!

 

Brian's watch is the Koa & Black men's watch from the Dover Series on the JORD website. The beautiful Koa Wood that it is made out of was very special to him, because we fell in love while living in Hawaii, which is where Koa is native to. This beautiful timepiece was hand crafted right here in the U.S.A. from raw materials, which is another attribute that is very important to both Brian and me! Pictures just do not do the exquisiteness of this watch justice. The face is a see-through skeleton with self winding movement, which is so unique, and our daughter, Baylee, loves to watch all of the parts move and tick. It is definitely one of the most special gifts that we have ever been able to give to this amazing Daddy.

 

 

If you haven't gotten a gift for your dad or husband yet, now is the time! From now until June 18th, 2017 JORD is offering 15% off of their entire men's collection (codes for each collection are on the website!) and there is a gorgeous selection of watches to choose from. JORD was also nice enough to offer one of my followers a chance to win a $100 credit to go toward any watch of their choice! All you have to do is click here to enter! As a bonus, every single person who enters will automatically receive a $25 off code in their e-mail!

I can't think of a better way to show your dad or husband just what a great dad you think they are!

 

Thank you, JORD for helping me make my hubby feel so loved this Father's Day!

Until next time! XoXoXo

 

Luxury Wooden Watch

A Toddler & Her Love of Books

One of my favorite things about Baylee is that her "go-to" toy of choice for the past year has been books. My kid has a love for reading (being read to for now) and looking through books that I hope she keeps for her entire life. I am always in the market for new books for her that keep her interest, and are very entertaining to read to her, because, lets face it, some kids' books are awful for us parents. (I'm looking at you long ass, poorly written Little Golden Book version of Cinderella.) 

Sometimes I wander around the kids section at bookstores and find some really great books, but lately Instagram has been a great tool for finding authors and book recommendations. 

One author who I recently discovered is Adam T. Newman. His books are titled "How To Catch A Cold", "How To Fight A Cold", and "The Girl Who Lost Her Voice". I was instantly intrigued, and had a feeling his books would be right up Baylee's alley! We just got our books over the weekend, and her and I are both completely obsessed! We read all three books in one sitting (yes my almost 3 year old sat silently through not one, but three books!!) and then read all three again before bed time that night! She has been asking me every morning since "Where are my new books? I want to read my new books!" because she loves them so much!

From a parent perspective, these books are absolutely wonderful! They are so well written, and so much fun. I found myself chuckling quite a few times at all of the witty lines, and I love that they kept my interest just as much as Baylee's. The illustrations are vibrant and colorful, and the stories are so unique compared to anything else I've ever read to Baylee. We have definitely found a series of books that we will love for her whole childhood!

 

If you want to get copies of these wonderful childrens' books by Adam T. Newman, click here to order! Otherwise, try your luck at winning signed copies of all three books by visiting me on Instagram and entering my giveaway! (@mrs_tibbetts) 

I definitely think you all will enjoy this series just as much as Baylee and I do. :)

"There is no such thing as a child who hates to read, 

there are only children who just haven't found the right book."

~Frank Serafini

Until next time! XoXoXo

Little Sis Becomes a Mrs!

We got to spend the weekend in Las Vegas for a very special event...my baby sister's wedding! We had such a wonderful time, and my sister and her new HUSBAND (still getting used to that! Eeep!) looked absolutely stunning and so very happy! 

We got in to town on Friday and spent the afternoon by the pool. Baylee was definitely made for the hotel life (except for the sleeping part). She loved hanging out by the pool and that Mommy and Daddy had so much time to just chill out with her. 

 

We all went to dinner that night, and then my sisters and cousins had a night on the Vegas Strip, but Brian and I were so tired (we are seriously old fogeys sometimes hahaha) so we decided to hang back at the hotel and get Baylee to bed at a decent hour. Well, that backfired, because little homie was up at 4:00am the next morning. Too much toddler, not enough coffee. Thank goodness for free breakfast at the hotel and lots of family members to help entertain her!

 

It all worked out, though, because after spending the entire morning swimming, we were able to get her to take a 3 hour nap while we also did some resting and relaxing before it was time to get ready for the wedding!

Gina and Eric got married that evening at the sweetest little chapel. She wore a simple yet elegant white dress, he wore his dress blues, and we all ugly cried from the pews of the chapel as our Dad walked her down the aisle and gave her away. Everything was absolutely perfect and reflected both of their personalities so well. I couldn't be happier for my sister and new brother! 

We weren't allowed to take pictures of the ceremony, but I was able to get some on the grounds outside. Baylee was obsessed with Gina and kept telling her how pretty she looked. :) We got the most precious pictures of her touching Gina's belly...she is so excited to meet her little cousin later this summer!  

 

 

 

 After the ceremony, we had a small reception at a fancy Italian restaurant to celebrate the newlyweds. The whole event was so intimate and romantic; I can't think of one thing that could possibly have made it a better evening! I am so proud of and excited for the two of them. I know they are going to have a long happy life together, and that the world is their oyster! :)

Congratulations Mr. & Mrs. Klemm! 

The best is yet to come! 

 

Until next time! XoXoXo