We celebrated Monroe's first birthday a few weeks early. I went way overboard with all the pink. I think 3 years of boy parties got the best of me and I went all out with the girlie stuff. With my blogging I use it a lot as almost a "journal" so don't mind all the photos I did my best to keep this party "small". Which I think we actually accomplished compared to Leo's first birthday party which we had like 50-60 people. We had the most fun celebrating this little (ahem big) girl and I am so happy with how the decor and everything turned out. Only the best for my baby girl!
So at first glance this salad looks really weird. I took it to a BBQ this summer and brought a backup salad in case it was a total bust. But instead it was a total SUCCESS! Everyone went back for seconds and Jay has been begging me to make it at home. So I made it again and had to share it with you. So don't let the ingredients deter you just try it!
We just got home from a week long vacation. Let's just say it wasn't easy with a baby. Monroe developed a diaper rash that turned into basically bed sores. We were an hour away from a grocery so I made due with the little stuff I brought and we amazon primed some items to the resort. It was quite challenging keep her dry on a lake/beach vacation. But the worst part was her crying all hours of the night. I think Jay and I contemplated driving home about 40 times, but we knew how much fun Leo was having so we felt bad. I was reminded that traveling with babies isn't ideal. They just do better in their environment at home. We survived and we have tried to catch up on sleep a little since we have been home. But I'm highlighting some of my go to travel items as well as my little travel boxes I made that quite a few of you messaged me about.
I've been kinda MIA, life in the summer is so busy. I keep thinking I'll have time to blog but it just hasn't happened. This blog post is basically a big hodge podge of things I've been loving for working out. The last 3 months I've really gotten back into working out. It all started in November when I joined a Beachbody accountability group and it started getting back into the swing of things. Then in January I started a program where I was working out 6 days and week and since they I've just continued with it. I think once you stick to something long enough it just becomes a habit and now getting my body moving and working out everyday is something I have come to look forward to. The only downside has been the constant annoyance of plantar fasciitis. So today I'm highlighting all my workout must haves and maybe it'll give you some motivation to get back to working out!
So I promise this will be probably the end of my baby posts. I have one more I want to do about toys but that is it. I think we have exhausted the baby topic and I in fact am happily nearing the end of the "baby phase". But I wanted to share with you a few things that were kinda of a waste of money as far as baby products go. I'd hate for you to spend your money on them if you don't have to.
Jay LOVES pizza and I do too. I'm not a pasta person so I don't have a hard time skipping that but give Jay and I a pizza and we have a hard time not eating the entire thing. So for Father's Day this year we did thin crust pizzas on the grill.... and they were OH SO GOOD! I got a few questions on instagram so I thought I'd blog about the easy process of pizzas on the grill.
Finally a little fashion post for you guys. I haven't really felt like doing anything fashion related as I have mostly been in casual clothes 99.9% of the time. But I have gotten to dress up a few times and I finally got a reason to wear this dress so I snapped a few photos before going out. I am in love with this maxi. It is by Jack by BB Dakota I believe it comes in a few different colors including black for those of you who are a little scared of color. But I am one who LOVES color especially in the summer so check out the rest of this post and more green dresses and 2 more of my favorite summer trends, one being spiked seltzer.
Cooking everyone a healthy breakfast is so important at our house. Leo's order for breakfast most mornings is "eggs, turkey bacon, waffles, and fruit". I feel like a personal chef, between the 3 of us then Monroe started eating breakfast.... add in another meal. So I decided to test out some muffins for her that she could snack on and fed herself for breakfast along with some fruit. I didn't want them to have any sugar and tried to keep them as healthy as possible Here is what I came up with. She ate 4 of them yesterday for breakfast. They are the perfect snack size I even snuck one yesterday with my morning protein shake. They aren't sweet so if your kids are used to super sweet muffins they probably won't love these.
So one of my most read blog post is always my book recommendations. I don't think I have a great eye for picking out books I think it is more that I go through about 50 a year so I have a quite a few to sort through before I recommend them. I read or listen to a book a week sometimes more. I know it seems a little extreme but I do enjoy it. I listen to about 90% of them it is just easier for me to get through them taster, plus I listen to than an hour before bed most nights. I also listen to them sped up. Jay thinks it is crazy but once I get into a rhythm the faster speed doesn't bother me. So I am going to tell you guys my top books from the past year!
I have never been a great time management person. In college I was the queen of burning the midnight oil to get a essay or studying for a test because I had binge watched One Tree Hill the night before. I'd stay up all night then go take the test or turn in the essay and then nap. I kind of got away with that same mentality when being a Mom. I stay up late doing all the household chores that I put off during the day and then basically I try and get through the morning till nap time. That kind of worked with Leo cause I could rest when he rested, but now with 2 it isn't as easy. Leo is a night owl and stays up later and likes to sleep in and Monroe prefers to be up early. So going to bed at 11:30 and then waking up at 5:30/6 is just plain terrible. I have realized I need to get to bed at a more reasonable hour and in doing so I need to try and manage my time better during the day to "Get My Shit Done". So here is how I'm doing it.... or at least attempting to do it.
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