Kindergarten Toolkit

Baylee’s summer vacation is in it’s final couple of weeks, and I’m not going to lie, “It’s the Most Wonderful Time of the Year” plays in my head every time I think about dropping her off at school for the first day. 😂 That sounds horrible right? But seriously, Baylee is a mile a minute and the kid needs school to keep her busy and having fun in a way that I’m just not able to. She starts Pre-K this year, and I know she’s going to have an absolute blast!

 

I definitely didn’t want the learning to stop just because school was out, though, so at the beginning of the summer I started the search to find something that would help us practice her letters, numbers, and such at home. I came across Kindergarten Toolkit and I knew their flash card packs were exactly what we would need! Once we got them in, we immediately started to use them, and it’s been so much fun! Baylee amazes me with how quickly she can answer the letters (and their sounds) numbers, and shapes! She is even starting to be able to recognize some of the sight words! 

 

 

 The cards are perfect not only for summer learning, but to practice throughout the school year in preparation for her starting Kindergarten next year! (What??? How is that possible?!) If you have a little that’s between the ages 2-6 I highly recommend checking out Kindergarten Toolkit! I am a firm believer that all kinds of learning starts in the home, and that includes learning to read! :)

 

Right now, you guys can get 15% off of your Kindergarten Toolkit order using the code: brandnew

 

I promise you won't regret it!

 

 

Until next time! XoXoXo

 

Baylee's Princess Tea Party

 

Over the weekend, we had Baylee's birthday party, and it was probably my favorite of all her parties yet! I asked her a few months ago what kind of party she wanted, and she told me a princess tea party. I was totally shocked because I thought for sure she would want something with My Little Pony or dinosaurs, but being the Disney lover that I am, I took the princess idea and ran with it!

We let Baylee invite her best friends and family, and did a little lunch party. The "tea party" part didn't go as planned, but everyone enjoyed the food and hanging out with each other. (Even though it was crazy hot and humid!) For the adults we had deli sandwiches, and the kids went to town on some chicken nuggets.

As a surprise for Baylee, and to give the kids something fun to entertain them, we hired Princess Belle to pay them a visit for an hour! We used Crowns & Castles Princess Parties, and I was so happy with our experience! Belle was absolutely adorable! She had story time with the kids, then she did their makeup and they had princess lessons complete with a dance. We took all kinds of pictures, and then Belle helped us sing "Happy Birthday" to Baylee before she had to return to her castle. It was so amazing, and Baylee was in absolute Heaven! She could not believe that the actual Belle was visiting her at her birthday party. ;)

  

It was the best day, and such a fun way to celebrate our big girl turning 4! She hasn't stopped talking about how much fun she had, so I really hope it's a memory she hangs on to for a long time! :)

Until next time! XoXoXo

Happy 4th Birthday, Baylee!

 My baby girl is 4 years old and I seriously can't believe it! She is the silliest, sassiest, most fun kiddo ever, and I can't wait to see how much she changes over the next year as she prepares for Kindergarten! Three was definitely a rough age for us at first with her tantrums and new-found opinions, but we made it through, and every day I see her maturing a little more!

Right now, Baylee is 38 pounds and 39 inches tall. She's in 4T/5T clothes and is a size 8 shoe. Her favorite things in the whole world are her baby sister, Disney Princesses, dinosaurs, and My Little Pony. She gets smarter every day. She can spell her name, recognize the entire alphabet and what sound each letter makes (as well as name a word that the letter starts with), she has been tracing letters and can recognize numbers 1-20. I am so excited to watch her learn even more in Pre-K this year! She loves to play play-doh and color, and can play with her toys in her room for hours.

Baylee's 4th Birthday Interview

Favorite color?: pink
Favorite toy?: my shopkins
Favorite food?: pancakes
Favorite TV show?: My Little Pony
Favorite game?: Pretty Pretty Princess
Favorite snack?: cheese-its
Favorite animal?: horse
Favorite song?: “H.O.L.Y” -Florida Georgia Line
Favorite book?: “I Spy”
Best Friend?: Maci, Sophie, & Kassidy
Favorite Cereal?: Rice Krispies
Favorite thing to do outside?: ride my trike
Favorite drink?: apple juice
Favorite holiday?: Halloween
What toy do you take to bed with you at night?: Kitty Cat
Favorite movie: Toy Story
Favorite place to go?: The park

I love my little bestie more than I could ever explain! 

Happy Birthday, Sweet Baylee!

 

  

Until next time! XoXoXo

Little Sleepy Head

I recently stumbled across a company called Little Sleepy Head for baby products, and I love it so much! The company was founded by a tired mama who made some special pillows for her boys to help them get better sleep in their own beds, and the rest is history! Now, along with pillows and pillowcases, they have a complete line of products for babies and kids. As you all know, I am always on the search for natural and organic products that I can use on my girls for their sensitive skin. So far, we have yet to be disappointed by anything we have tried from LSH!

Their hair & body wash is gentle and smells amazing. I also love that it comes in a convenient pump bottle because, let’s face it, I am often only one handed during bath time! :) We put the lotion on after bath, and the girls love it so much! They get super relaxed and it’s not greasy feeling at all.

 
We also have been using the lavender oil linen spray on the regular. (I kid you not, the bottle is half gone.) Baylee begs for it every single night! She has started calling it her “monster spray” because she said it keeps her bad dreams away which I thought was adorable and very inventive of her! I spray it all over both her and a Natalie’s mattresses about 20 minutes before bedtime for a soothing environment once they get cozy in their beds! We also have the giraffe and elephant loveys, and I can’t wait until Natalie is old enough to sleep with them! I know they’re going to be her favorite things!

 
Our absolute favorite product that we have tried from Little Sleepy Head is their sunscreen! I have the hardest time finding sunscreen that doesn’t make Baylee have an eczema flare, and theirs is absolute gold. It doesn’t smell weird, goes on easy, completely protects the kids from burning, and we have no flare ups after! Can’t get much better than that!

 

Along with the products we have tried, Little Sleepy Head's  line of toddler/youth pillows and pillowcases are the cutest! I definitely plan on making some more purchases in the future. I am so glad, and so excited that we made Little Sleepy Head a part of our daily routines. It is so nice to be able to trust in a company, especially when you have little ones at home!

Make sure you check them out, and hurry! Right now most of their products are on sale! (And free shipping for orders over $50!) :)

Until next time! XoXoXo

Five Months With Natalie!

 

My little peanut is not a peanut anymore, and I can't even believe it! She's getting bigger, smarter, and stronger by the day, and I just feel so blessed to be her Mama! Natalie weighs 15 pounds right now, and I'm not sure of her length, but we will find out in a few weeks at her next appointment! She is in size 2 diapers (but probably our last pack!) and 6 month clothes.

Nat is the happiest baby ever. We had a little rough patch with her 4 month sleep regression, but she seems to be doing much better now. She's napping in 1-2 hour stretches and sleeping 12 hours at night with only 1 or 2 wake ups. (I'm still dead tired though lol) She's full of squeals, smiles, and giggles and loves playing with her toys. She's gotten pro at picking toys up to chew on them, and she loves to bounce around in her jumper. She can now roll in both directions, and loves to lay on her belly for long lengths of time. 

We have had a pretty quiet month over here with not too much going on, but Miss Natalie got to experience a few firsts. She went on her first picnic at the park with Baylee and me, and loved being outside under the trees! 

 

She celebrated her first Father's Day with Daddy! I still can't believe he has two little beauties to cuddle now. :)

 

She tried baby oatmeal for the first time, and absolutely loves it! I try my best to give her 1 serving of it every day now, and she bomb dives the spoon. I have a feeling she's going to be a good little eater! 

 

She celebrated her first Independence Day! We had so much fun getting her all dressed up for the day, and she loved all the attention. :)

 

And finally, as of yesterday, she sad up completely by herself. It was such a bittersweet moment! My little baby is already getting so big, and I know I'm going to blink and she will be crawling! 

 

We also hit the one year anniversary of little embryo Natalie being transferred into my uterus, and it was such a special day for me! It's amazing what a year can change, and now I have a fun and bouncy 5-month-old that I get to love on every day! 

 

Until next time! XoXoXo!

 

Patriotic Funfetti Cookies

I can't believe tomorrow is already the 4th of July! We are so excited, so today Baylee and I decided to get a head start on dessert! This year, we made Patriotic Funfetti Cookies! They turned out super cute and super yummy!

 

Here is the recipe:

Ingredients

1 box funfetti cake mix

2 large eggs

1/3 cup vegetable oil

1 tsp vanilla extract

1 tub vanilla frosting

sprinkles of choice

Instructions 

1. Preheat oven to 350.

2. Cover cookie sheet with parchment paper.

3. Add all ingredients to a stand mixer bowl and beat on low until combined. (A hand mixer will work too!)

4. Scoop out dough and roll into about 2 inch or so balls, then place them on the prepared cookie sheet. 

5. Bake at 350 for about 11 minutes. Edges will be just starting to turn golden and center will still be soft.

6. Let cookies cool for a few minutes on the sheet and then transfer them to a cooling rack.

7. Once cookies are completely cooled, frost and sprinkle!

 

You can use any box of funfetti cake mix for this recipe, so it's good for any occasion! I found the seasonal red, white, & blue funfetti mix at Target!

I hope everyone has a happy and safe Independence Day! I can't wait to see how you all are spending it! :)

 

Until next time! XoXoXo