Five Favorites on Friday

TGIF!  This week has been a rough one and I'm so glad the weekend is finally here!  It's hard to believe that it's already a new month tomorrow and Easter will be here very soon!

This week I have yet another mixture of fashion, baby, and food.  I hope you enjoy these favorites!

1. As I've mentioned before, we look forward to weekend breakfasts in our house and I can't wait to try out this chocolate Dutch baby recipe!  My mouth literally waters looking at the photo!
2. I can't wait to put Chase in his Easter outfit in a few weeks... I love all of these colors together! 
3. This ruffle trim top from J. Crew is so pretty and it's definitely on my wishlist - maybe for my own Easter outfit ;) 
4. Tomorrow I'm going out to by this mat for Chase.  He's becoming very independent lately when it comes to eating and feeding himself and I think this will save me some spills to clean up!
5. Finally,  Jay and I may have to make this popcorn recipe and have a movie night this weekend!

I hope you all have a wonderful weekend!  Happy April eve... watch out for those Fool's Day pranksters!

The Registry Series: On the Go

I'm excited to share the first post of the Registry Series with you all!  This one is all about on the go essentials.  It's amazing how many different options there are for strollers and car seats! The options I will discuss below are ones that I highly recommend.  Each item mentioned and photographed are things that I currently own, use, and love for Chase - I highly recommend them all!

1.  Stroller:  Baby Jogger City Select - There aren't enough good things I can say about this stroller! First and foremost is that it is extremely easy to use!  It has over 16 different configurations so you can literally create whatever it is that works best for your family - from forward to rear facing and from one to two seats.  It easily folds and converts into a double stroller.  It also has adapters for just about every infant carrier seat out there (including my beloved Nuna Pipa - #2).  It rides like a dream and is relatively lightweight.  Well worth the price!

2.  Infant Carrier:  Nuna Pipa - This is one of the very first items I purchased after finding out I was pregnant.  I did tons of research on infant carriers and this one was highly rated, reviewed, and recommended.  My favorite feature is the dream drape which comes down to cover the baby almost completely to shield them from the sun and elements.  It's very easy to use and install - the base is easily movable from one car to another.   You will definitely feel secure when your baby is in this seat!

3.  Convertible Car Seat:  Graco 4ever All-in-1 - The Graco 4ever seat can be used from infancy throughout childhood.  It ranges from 4-120 pounds and can be broken down from a full seat (as pictured), to a highback booster, to a backless booster.  This seat grows along with your baby which makes it a wonderful investment piece!

4. Britax Back Seat Mirror - This is simply for a piece of mind.  As your driving and prior to your baby facing forward, this mirror will allow you to see them fully.  I couldn't imagine driving without one!

5.  Summer Infant Cart Cover - You will be really glad that you have this once your baby is able to situp in a shopping cart or a restaurant high chair!  It protects your baby from directly touching the carts and high chairs which helps to prevent germs and other bacteria.  This one has a vinyl pocket for your smartphone and a positioner to help prop up younger babies.  We've only recently started to use this with Chase and it's a life saver!

I hope you've enjoyed this first installment of the series!  And I also hope those of you registering found this helpful!  I'll discuss feeding essentials next week!

MAIN POST

Stand Up!

When I first had Chase, I found myself saying, "I can't wait for him to...." all the time.  Whether it was sit up, play with his toys.. you name it.  As a parent, you are always looking forward to milestones and as much as you look forward to them, you also don't want to rush away their baby years because they go by just way to quickly.

With that being said, my husband is always saying how he can't wait for the baby to walk.. well I think we are getting close to that point now!  All the little man wants to do is stand up or be on the move in his walker or pushing his Little Tikes toy around.  He's ten months old now and this has officially been then on-the-move month for sure!

When he's not buzzing around, he wants to stand up all over the place... his favorites are being in the front window, against his toy basket, and hanging onto the coffee table,.  This weekend he was standing with such ease and it amazed me.  Every time I'd pick him up or sit him down to play with his toys, he'd squirm all around until he was at a spot he could pull himself up or until I'd prop him up.

My baby is officially gone and has been replaced by this little man!  It's definitely time to baby proof the house!

Five Favorites on Friday

Yet another week has flown past!  Hopefully the weather is nice this weekend and we can get outside for a bit!

Time for favorites!  This week I have a mixture of mama and mini fashions and some home decor and storage solutions!  Hope you like them all!

1. Summer is on it's way and lots of mini outfits have been popping up both online and in store for the little ladies and gents.  This set is so cute and I have it in my shopping cart for Chase - it'll go great with those baby blues of his ;)  We LOVE Carters over here!
2. Easter will be here in a few weeks and how cute is this "Good Egg" graphic T!
3. Speaking of Easter, these German glitter bunnies from Pottery Barn sell out so quickly every single year - maybe I'll finally be able to get my hands on one this time around!
4. Major heart eyes for this flirty one piece suit!  And it's not a bad price either! 
5. And finally, I'm in desperate need for a few large baskets to contain some of Chase's toys that take over just about every spot of the house now.... these wire ones from Target are great!

Hope you all have a wonderful, relaxing weekend! 

The Makings of a Baby Registry

The thought of creating a registry for a new baby is an exciting yet overwhelming task.  There are so many different categories and items that fit into them --- then to top it off, there are numerous brands, types, styles, and variations of just about every baby item out there!  It can definitely be a scary time because as new parents, you want to make sure you are getting the best for your new bundle of joy!  There's lots of research to do, reviews to read, and decisions to make!

If you are anything like me, you want multi purpose (or even multi baby) use items that you can use for a while and pack away for a possible future brother or sister.  I also wanted items that weren't going to clutter my house because space is not necessarily abundant - especially when most baby gear is unnecessarily large! 

Starting next week, I will be posting the Registry Series, which will be broken down into the following categories:

On the Go

Feeding

Play Time

Bath

Medicine Cabinet 

Nursery & Bedding

Gear
Extras

I will be posting one category each week on Wednesday.  I will refer to this post as the MAIN post and at the bottom of the the category posts, I will link back here where you can find them all.  For each category, I'll put essential items I feel should be included on a registry, links to easily find/purchase the items mentioned, some of my personal opinions on them, etc. 

I'm looking forward to posting this series because I did so much homework when putting together our registry!  I hope you enjoy it and find the information helpful for either your own registry, future registry, or maybe for a friend/relative!

A Recap of Chase Ryan: Months 1-6

It's incredibly difficult for me to comprehend that my son will be one in just a few short weeks!  I look at pictures of him from these early months and I swear it feels like they were taken just yesterday!  When they say time waits for no one, they aren't joking!  Even though the first months felt long as the weeks passed (thanks to adjusting to life with a newborn and a complete loss of sleep), they really did go by quickly! 

Here are a just few milestones from Chase's first six months... 

Newborn (Weeks 0-4):  

• Wears newborn size diapers and clothes
• Loves to be cuddled and held
• Spends the day sleeping and eating (such a life!)
• Loves his Rock N Play 

One Month (Weeks 5-8):

• Wears size one diapers and size NB and 0-3 months in clothes
• Loves to be rocked
• Loves to cat nap in his MamaRoo 
• Holds his head up a bit

Two Months (Weeks 9-12):

• Wears size 1 & 2 diapers and size 3 months in clothes 
• Loves to be in his Bounceroo 
• Is up more frequently throughout the day
• Smiles and coos
• Loves to play on his play mat
• Loves when dad sings to him - Elvis is his favorite!

Three Months (Weeks 13-16):

• Wears size 2 diapers and 3 and 3-6 months in clothes
• Mimics sounds, smiles, follows with his eyes, and blows bubbles
• Recognizes familiar faces
• Loves the morning and usually sleeps through the night or wakes once
• Doesn't like to sleep on his back 
• Rolls from his back to his side
• Responds to noises
• Loves his play mat, peacock, and whale toys

Four Months (Weeks 17-20)

• Wears size 3 diapers and size 6 and 6-9 months in clothes
• Laughed for the first time
• Flips from his stomach to his back
• Slept in his Breeze in the beginning but was in his crib by the middle of the month
• Eats cereal with fruits 
• Doctor visit - weight was 17.2 and height was 26.5"
• Sleep regression and teething hit at the same time - no fun!

Five Months (Weeks 21-24):

• Still wears size 3 diapers and he fluctuates between sizes 6, 6-9, and 9 months in clothing
• Bottom two teeth broke the skin finally!
• Spends more time on his belly now and is able to fully roll!
• Loves to be in his Nemo jumper
• Doctor visit - weight was 18.8 and height was 27"
• Had his first Halloween!
• Reaches his arms for you when you ask if he wants to come
• Little man loves to eat!

Six Months (Weeks 25-28):

• Still in size 3 diapers but now he can wear size 9, 9-12, and 12 months in clothing
• Caught his first cold - and upper respiratory and ear infection at the same time :( 
• Now has his top two teeth
• He now has a daily menu that consists of fruit, veggies, and meats
• Loves to splash and play in the tub
• Can sit up for a bit unassisted 
• Celebrated his first Thanksgiving!

So there you have it... six months worth of milestones for Chase man!  He's growing so fast and it's amazing how much he's changed in each of the photos above!

Happy Spring!

I don't know about you all, but we are seriously craving warmer weather and are looking forward to getting outside and enjoying some fresh air!  We are getting a mean case of cabin fever over here so we are beyond ready for the snow to melt and the sun to come out!

There is a lot in the works for spring this year... one of the main events being Chase's FIRST birthday!  We are in disbelief about how quickly this year has gone by and can't believe he will be ONE in a few short weeks!  We are also looking forward to Easter, Chase's baptism, and celebrating Mother's and Father's Day.

Here are just a few things on our spring bucket list this year!  Happy spring everybody!