Happy Easter!

Happy Easter everyone! We had a wonderful Easter Eve painting and decorating easter eggs, hanging with Luca's Auntie Em, meeting her puppy Charlie whom Luca felt both curious and totally terrified of, and eating a delicious homemade lunch and then indulging in snacks upon snacks upon snacks while we died the eggs (I'm still stuffed). We wandered around Emily's gorgeous yard, a botanical garden which feels as though it was ripped right out of a storybook. We stared in awe at a massive beehive that was nestled in a large palm tree and wondered how big the queen must be. I was more focused on how often the fellow bees fly down to linger as I am just about as terrified of bees as Luca was of Charlie. We both survived thankfully unscathed and unstung.

I regress. Luca is officially on the move. He hasn't quite mastered the full hands and knees crawl quite yet but he definitely has down what I like to call "the trench crawl" where he looks like he's crawling through swamp bushes or under barbed wire. And when I say mastered, I mean he's swift, he's got the turbo switch on, no hybrid here.

On a final note: Thank you mother earth for the beautiful weather we've been having! It makes being apart from Encinitas a little more bearable...Not to mention my patience level has rapidly been recovering [Heat=me aggro] and I know with my patience levels evened out the world is simply a better place, just ask my husband. Happy wife, Happy Life.

Luca didn't get to meet the Easter bunny, but Charlie could probably pass as one with all that luscious white fur--and I'm pretty sure had we taken Luca's photo with the easter bunny Luca's facial expression would have been exactly the same as in the photo below...

A joyous and Happy Easter from my family to yours.
 I wish you tons of happiness, candy, and cage-free hardboiled eggs to indulge in.
Who else is ready for day after easter egg salad sandwiches?!
raised hand waving in the air over here!
xx

Spring is in the air!

As much as I love the cooler weather autumn and winter bring, I can't help but exhale so softly the first day of spring and breath in so deeply the smells of dewey grass and orange blossoms (I'm fortunate I don't have seasonal allergies or this might not feel so good...Condolences go out to all my hypersensitive readers). Although...according to an environmental allergy panel I had done back in October, I am highly allergic to olive trees and cockroaches, yet I'm asymptomatic--unless of course an allergy to cockroaches entails a reaction of screaming and running for your life to jump onto anything that will get your feet off the ground asap, well in that scenario I am highly allergic to cockroaches. 

Wow, I am way off topic now, circling the airport here but coming in for landing. In more relevant news I'd like to share with you that this spring I will be bringing modern quilts for little ones and adults to my shop. I am both excited and terrified seeing as this is entirely new territory for me. My hands have been so busy at the cutting board and I'm hoping it will pay off. With that being said, I will be hosting a give-a-way when my spring line launches in the near future...so stay tuned as to how you can enter! Well, thank you for listening to my ramblings! I'm now off to puree some baby food and get lunch ready for my sweet Lu. Poor thing, I think he is teething for real this time, but we've had so many false alarms, I wouldn't hold your breath...

Ciao! xx

7 months & Growing.

Welp, we made it to seven months! Of all the times I've questioned myself wondering if I'm doing the right thing, Luca is living proof that I must be doing something right! 

Here is a rundown of our seven month must-haves! 

1. B. One Two Squeeze Blocks- Squishy, squeaky, and chewable, these blocks are perfect for Luca to play with on the floor or in his highchair while we eat dinner. He loves all the vibrant colors too!

2. Sophie the Giraffe Teether- this seems to be a popular favorite amongst moms and babies everywhere and rightfully so! Luca loves Sophie and I love that she's completely organic and non-toxic giving me a peace of mind that my baby isn't consuming harmful chemicals--so we both win :)

3. Motorola Baby Monitor- this is great since Luca began sleeping in his own room a few months back. We love this monitor and it has worked out great for us--we can go about our business while he naps and still keep an eye on him, and at night we can sleep sound knowing we don't have to get up out of bed every time he makes a sound.

 4. Boon Bath Appliques- These stick to the wall in the bathtub but also float, giving Luca something to grab and interact with while he's in the tub. 

 5. Tovolo Perfect Cube Ice Tray- these work perfect for freezing homemade baby food. Each cube is 1 oz, so you know exactly how much your baby is eating.

 6. Chewbeads- You know how you feel like you can't wear any jewelry due to all the tugging and pulling as your baby's eye meets anything shiny? Well this brand Chewbeads has made fashionable jewelry for mom that is completely baby safe and I love it! Luca is beginning to teeth so it's nice for him to be able to grab my necklace and put it directly in his mouth, and I think he's shocked that I'm allowing him to! lol.

Here is a check in with Luca's progress as a 7 month old babe!

Stats: 20 pounds and 29 inches long. Yes, this boy is a beast!

Favorite food: Luca pretty much likes everything, we've yet to encounter a food he turns away from, but I'd say his favorites thus far are bananas and sweet peas. 

Favorite toy: Dandelion Organic Crinkle Book, Sophie the Giraffe & B. One Two Squeeze Blocks

Any teeth yet: Nope.

Crawling yet: Not quite, but he's trying. He'll lay on his belly and frustratingly kick his feet until he realizes he's not going anywhere, and then he cries... His favorite mode of locomotion right now is rolling. everywhere. One minute he's here and the next minute he's on the hardwood floor trying to eat it. He's part baby part ninja. 

Favorite Activities: Bath time, jumping in the exersaucer, looking in the mirror, waving, clapping, babbling, and putting everything and anything he lays his hands on in his mouth.

Least Favorite Activities: Getting dressed & waiting for his food. 

Nicknames: Lu, LuLu, Luberry, Luberry Muffin, BamBam, Choochers, the list goes on...

Mom's Proudest Moment: Seeing Luca wave to me for the first time or teaching Luca how to properly play a game of peek-a-boo. He can pull the blanket off my head and his head, and laughs every time. 

Dad's Proudest Moment: Putting Luca on his skateboard for the very first time. I know there's a youtube video circulating around right now of a 2 year old skateboarding, but we may have one upped him with 7 months, just sayin...

My greatest teacher.

Things have been busy around here. I feel like I have a lot to accomplish in a short amount of time, but don't we all? Our house is slowly but surely starting to come together, we have tons of diy projects we want to accomplish, Miles' work schedule is more cram packed than ever, and we have a 7 month old on our hands! One thing I take pride in is my ability to follow through with things...buuuut I am a master procrastinator--in fact if Cal State would have offered a bachelors degree in procrastination I'd have been valedictorian. I am simply that good at it. I don't know when, how, or by what means things will get done, but what I do know is that they will. 

Luca was diagnosed a while back with plagiocephaly, which in layman's terms means flat spot. From the time he was born, my baby boy favored his left side. No matter how much we would adjust him or face him in different directions, he always ended up on his left. At four months we noticed the toll it had taken on his scalp. The entire left side of his head was as flat as a pancake. When I brought it up to our pediatrician he said it should self correct as he begins to spend more time on his stomach. Well, Lulu spent tons of time on his tummy, and we wedge pillowed him and the whole nine, but by six months there was only minor change. We were referred to a plastic surgeon who strongly suggested we put him in a cranial helmet to correct the problem. We agreed. Luca had a helmet created just for him that puts very light pressure on the spots that are well rounded and leaves gaps in the areas that are flat. When his head grows it will only be able to grow into the free space, rounding out his head and correcting the problem. Apparently plagiocephaly has become extremely common since they have switched babies over from sleeping on their tummies to their backs although I had never even heard of this issue until our little Lu was referred to a specialist. The helmet is pretty intense. Right now we are weaning him into wearing it, but eventually he will wear it for 23 hours a day for 4-5 months. He has been such a good sport about it so far, and I'm thankful that they have the ability to help him. I'm hoping the rest of the transition goes well for him, and I'm praying that the summer heat doesn't prove so intense this year. Sometimes we parents have to do what's best for our babies, even when it's difficult. As you can see, Luca always finds a way to smile through everything, this is one of my favorite things about him...His sweet innocence finds the good in everything. I could definitely take a lesson from him--slow down a bit, and stop taking everything SO seriously. This little boy...he's teaching me things I'd never have learned without him. When he's old enough to understand, he's due for an enormous thank you.

Happy Thursday Everyone! One day closer to Friday, and that's something we can all be thankful for!

1 year down, a lifetime to go

It's taken me forever to finally write a post about Miles and I's anniversary getaway. Our first anniversary was perfect, just how I'd imagined it to be. We drove out to Del Mar and stayed at the bed and breakfast we stayed at the night of our wedding.  It's a quaint little b&b that feels like home which is why I love it. Each room is decorated beautifully and every room has their own theme. We stayed in the Lotus Room the night of our wedding, but we decided to mix things up stay in another suite. We ended up in the Georgia O'Keeffe room which was beautiful and lively with character. The photos speak for themselves. 

After checking in and getting settled we still had time to spare before our dinner reservations, so we strolled down the street to overlook the ocean and took some time to breathe in all that wonderful ocean air. It makes me sad to think this is no longer my home, I still feel like it's my home...but I know one day we'll find our way back here because there is just simply no place like it.

A perfect heart shaped rock we stumbled upon. Love was in the air.

For dinner we ate at the restaurant that catered our wedding. I had mushroom raviolis and Miles had a pasta in rosa sauce. We swapped back and forth and ended up sharing because both were so delicious. We couldn't stop laughing at the photo I took of Miles because of the heater in the background that looks like a hat. It looks like he just graduated and technically he did--he graduated from being newlywed--although we still have yet to take our honeymoon, so I'm gonna hold onto that newlywed title for as long as I can. People just love newlyweds, don't they? 

They do things like "treat you to the chef's special" that was out of this world delicious by the way.

They also treated us to a delicious dessert and a nice bottle of olive oil that I dropped and shattered on our way to the car...oops.

Our first anniversary wouldn't be complete without delving into our top layer of cake, although we cheated a little, we didn't actually freeze our original, the bakery we used offered to recreate a fresh one for us, and that sounded much more appetizing. And it was.

We also exchanged gifts. Year one calls for paper so I made Miles a frame filled with paper maps of all the places we've lived together and a paper booklet titled "52 Reasons I love You" one reason for each of the weeks we've been married. Miles so beautifully hand-wrote his wedding vows and framed them for me. I loved it.

Before we left the next morning, we stopped and had breakfast at the exact spot we had gotten married. Literally, the table we sat at was the exact spot where we stood and said "I do" one year before. I couldn't think of a better way to end our anniversary. I'm so in love with this man, time seems to only make my love grow stronger and I had no clue that was even possible.

Here's to many more trips around the sun with a love that could have been straight out of a movie, only better.

xoxo

Happy Valentine's Day to all you lovebirds out there <333

Making Valentines

 With Valentine's Day just around the corner I had to get a head start on my cards. Luca and I had a mini photo shoot and I picked four pictures out of hundreds (and I literally mean hundreds) to be the highlight of the cards. My side of the family is ginormous and then you add Miles' list of relatives and I'd be making cards until St. Patrick's Day, so we just sent them out to our immediate family members to keep it simple. With a baby, simple holds so much more meaning!

Holidays with little ones are just more magical. Since having Luca, I feel like my holiday spirit has been revived after being buried by life stresses over the years. It's like reliving my youth all over again and for me that is a wonderful thing! Well here you have it, my heart in human form <3

 Mr Right Onesie | Heart Garland made by me similar here

 I found these pretty heart stickers on sale at JoAnns and sealed each envelope with pink heart washi tape I found in the dollar section at target. 

 Knowing me, you know I had to have a bachelor theme of some sort going on, so included in the card is the gram saying "Will you accept this rose?" I would have  propped Luca with an actual rose, but at this age he puts everything in his mouth and thorns + a baby equals...well I'd rather not find out! There's always next year! 

XoXo

Happy February to you all!

Let the month of love begin!

Anniversary

One year later and we're still crazy about each other. 

I remember so vividly walking down the aisle and feeling like it was just Miles and I there. It was completely surreal. And then we were announced as Mr. and Mrs. Miles Wood. Here we are now, married a whole year already. My how the time has just whisps on by. I'm still impressed with myself for winning over this man's heart. We all know he won mine.