Memorial Day 2017

I hope everyone had a wonderful long holiday weekend! I know we were not ready to say goodbye to Brian this morning after having him home the last four days! :)

Our tradition for Memorial Day is to go to Disneyland and take part in the Flag Retreat Ceremony. Every year more and more service members and veterans come to participate, and it is just so neat. The Disneyland marching band (and sometimes the USMC marching band!) plays patriotic music, and all the military personnel and veterans get to go up to the flagpole as their branch's hymn is played. Brian loves going up with Baylee on his shoulders and representing his beloved Marine Corps while we all sing the National Anthem. It is such a wonderful ceremony to honor the fallen and to really take time to reflect on why we are so blessed to have such brave men and women to defend our country. So many people have paid the ultimate sacrifice for our freedom, and grateful does not even begin to express how I feel.

I thought I would share some of the pictures from our wonderful Memorial Day at Disney! If you are local, make sure you come check it out next year, because it's really a neat experience, and a great way to put honor in the day. There is nothing like being surrounded by a group of military young and old to make your heart so happy. :) 

 

Until next time! XoXoXo

 

Making Memories With Freshly Picked

Let me just start this post by saying, if you've never put a pair of Freshly Picked moccasins on your little babe, you're totally missing out! We have been using moccs since Baylee was teeny tiny, and we are still so in love.

I'll never forget her first pair. There's nothing like that amazing, pure leather smell that hits you when you first open the package that they come in. I don't think we have owned a new pair of moccs longer than 5 minutes before I immediately tried them on the girl! They're just that cute! ;)

Freshly Picked moccasins were perfect for when Baylee first started to walk. She actually had a really tough time walking (she knew she could crawl faster), so even though she took her first steps at 11 months, she didn't actually start walking on the regular until about 14 months. I completely believe that the moccasins are what helped her to finally get confident with walking. We bought typical "first time walker" shoes for her, but they were heavy and awkward and she never wanted to try to take steps in them. We noticed she was walking around barefoot at home pretty well, however, so this is where the moccasins came in. Once we started putting them on her for "out and about", she really started walking. Being able to have a better sense of the ground beneath her feet through the moccasins was a game changer for her, and since we found out that it is actually pediatrician recommend for toddlers who are first walking to walk barefoot as much as possible, this was win/win! Baylee started walking everywhere we went, and her moccasins got those adorable little footprints on the bottoms that I will have as a keepsake for forever. :)

I know I don't even have to go over how adorable Freshly Picked moccasins are, because all you have to do is see a picture! We just got our newest pair of Raspberry Sorbet Moccs (in a huge size 7 wahhhh) and Baylee still loves wearing them just as much as she did when she was smaller. It's safe to say we will definitely stick with FP until she grows out of them, and for all future babies!

If you want a pair of FREE Freshly Picked moccasins of your very own, make sure you go check out my giveaway on Instagram! (Username: @mrs_tibbetts)

Hope everyone is enjoying their holiday weekend!

Until next time! XoXoXo

Easy Raspberry Muffins

Normally, Baylee is a fabulous sleeper, but last night she decided a sleep strike was on her agenda. Womp. :( Needless to say, we both woke up feeling pretty crabby, so it hasn't been the best of days. How do we combat the "no sleep blues" over here? With all the coffee, and a delicious baked treat to go with it! (And an afternoon nap, of course, which my little monkey is currently doing!)

 

Easy Raspberry Muffins

Ingredients:

1 3/4 cups of all-purpose flour

1/3 cup sugar

1 teaspoon baking powder

1/2 teaspoon baking soda

1/2 teaspoon salt

1 (6 oz) carton of raspberry yogurt

1/3 cup vegetable oil

1 egg

1 cup fresh raspberries

Instructions:

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees F, and grease a muffin tin.

2. In a medium bowl, add all dry ingredients and whisk together.

3. In a stand mixer, beat yogurt, oil, and egg on low.

4. Alternate adding small amounts of dry ingredients and raspberries to mixture while beating on low. Do not over-beat.

5. Spoon mixture into muffin tins about half full.

6. Bake until tops are golden. (About 15-20 minutes)

*NOTE* You can also add the raspberries in to the batter last and hand mix them if you want bigger chunks of fruit! :) Also, greek yogurt can be used instead of regular yogurt for added protein!

If you're having a day like mine, I hope these muffins take you from surviving to thriving! Haha! ;)

Until next time! XoXoXo

 

 

 

Today With Bay!

7:15 Wake up juice time!

 

7:20 Breakfast for Mama.

 

8:00 Good Morning Beautiful!

 

8:10 All of Baylee's animals must go potty before she will.

 

8:15 Cozy cartoons on the couch. :)

 

8:30 Dino egg oatmeal for breakfast.

 

8:35 This kid has the life.

 

9:00 Dinner prep...copycat Chipotle barbacoa!

 

9:45 Put up some patriotic decor for Memorial Day. 

 

10:00 Chalk & outside play time!

 

10:30 How Baylee rolls.

 

11:00 OOTD (Or at least until nap time.)

 

 11:00 My pineapple. :)

 

12:00 Mama's quick lunch. (Because toddlers are busy.)

 

12:15 Baylee's snack time.

 

12:30 Milk and movie time.

 

1:00 Baylee naps & Mama relaxes.

 

3:00 Awake and immediately back outside to paint!

 

3:30 Ta-da!

 

4:00 Just swingin'.

 

5:00 Target run to pick up tortillas with Daddy!

 

6:00 Finish up dinner prep.

 

6:25 Baylee's Dinner

 

6:30 Mama & Daddy's dinner. (We so win!)

 

7:00 End the night with s'mores around the firepit!

 

 

Until next time! XoXoXo

 

 

 

 

 

Mother's Day 2017!

This weekend went by entirely too fast, but it's only because we had so much fun! I can't believe I just celebrated my 3rd Mother's Day already; and I have to say this was the best one so far! :)

We woke up entirely too early so that we could do our hour and a half trek to Disneyland...I was determined to have some Mickey Mouse pancakes in my life! Brian and Baylee gave me my gift before we hit the road, and it was so sweet and thoughtful. Along with cards, they made me a gift basket filled with mugs, candles, and some shirts. Three of my favorite things! I could tell Brian was really proud of all the thought he put in to my gift, and that made it even more special. 

 

I totally forgot that Disneyland had hosted the Tinkerbell Half Marathon that morning, so when we got down there the parking structure and Downtown Disney were absolutely insane. I was worried that we wouldn't get to have the nice relaxing morning that I had been hoping for, but luckily the inside of the park was nice and quiet. They handed out carnations of every color to all the mommies at the entrance, and from there we made a bee line for breakfast. Baylee was thrilled with her Mickey Mouse pancake, and we were even paid a visit by a mama duck and her fluffy little babies!

 

 

After breakfast, we spent the rest of the late morning and early afternoon going on some rides and walking around Disney. We got to see a 3D preview of Cars 3, and now I am so excited to take Baylee to see it when it comes out in theaters next month! Around 2:00 it started getting busier, so we decided that was our cue to head home. We hadn't been on the road more than 5 minutes before Baylee fell asleep...a sign of a super fun Disney day! 

 

Since we skipped lunch, (we were too full from pancakes!) we decided to go out for an early dinner once we were back home. Mimi's Cafe was my pick, and their Garlic Brick Chicken did not disappoint one bit. We all shared a slice of strawberry shortcake for dessert, and it was perfect! I got to end my day cuddling on the couch watching The Princess and the Frog with my loves, and I wouldn't have had it any other way.

 

 

There's no doubt about it, I am one blessed Mama! So thankful for my hubby and sweet girl!

Hope you all had a wonderful Mother's Day!

Until next time! XoXoXo