The Pierogie Babies: Birthday Month! Age 3 and 1

The girls were born 2 years and a week apart in March. It was awfully convenient to be pregnant at the same time because I didn't have to change anything about my maternity wardrobe! I thought that I'd luck out and get to pass on all of Penny's clothes to Ruby, but no such luck. Miss Ruby grows more quickly than Penny did; in fact there are many outfits that they share currently. But the silver lining is that it definitely cuts down on dresser space to not have to have two entirely separate sets of clothes for them!For as different in size they are, their differences in personality are also becoming more evident.

Over the last year we've learned that Penny is very much a little version of my husband, Adam. She has the same complexion, his eyes and definitely his love for sleeping in. She has a very analytical mind and I could see an interest in STEM in her future.

When she was 2 years old she was still very much into all things Elmo. Since then she's moved on to being deeply in love with the princesses. Frozen was the thing in our house for a large part of the year, but her big cousin Ella expanded her horizons (and showed her how fun dress up is) so now she has equal love for the different Disney gals. Closer to her third birthday she started watching the show Dinosaur Train and has quickly learned over two dozen different dinosaur species and is really good at pronouncing the 4-5 syllable names (Argentinasaurus, deinosuchus, troodon, pteranadon, just to name a few). This is what sparked her inspiration for a dinosaur-fairy themed birthday party.

Much of this year was spent at home, keeping quiet and getting a handle on having two kids. We have had many adventures with cousins, friends and have worked on making sure she gets a good social outlet with kids her age too. In this next year I'm looking forward to getting more time to sitting down and doing "school work" with her, because that's definitely slid to the backburner.

She also had her very first hair cut, her bangs were just too far down into her face so I gave them a little trim. If you've seen pictures of Penny through the months, you'll know that this girl took a long time growing these precious hairs. She also potty trained at 30 months.

Some of my favorite Penny posts:

Backyard Chicken and Toddlers

Babywearing on Mount Rainier

The Enchanting Fall Ball

Miss Ruby is definitely going to give me a run for my money. She's definitely a trouble maker! She loves opening drawers, figuring out what's inside, manipulating objects and God help us if she doesn't get her way! For the last couple weeks she's been waking up in the middle of the night and wanting to bonk my head or push her head into my face really hard. I'm not sure why, perhaps it's teething, but when I gently tell her no.. she gets really upset! And she never cries at night! Then there's also the cute-but-not-so-cute times where she flops onto the floor and throws a mini tantrum. Those quickly pass and she's back to her bright-eyed-happy self.

My coping mechanism for transitioning to two kids this year has been mainly that Penny leads what activities we do for the day and Ruby is along for the ride (literally, babywearing has saved my life). Now that she is standing, walking with assistance and taking those precious first steps, Ruby is getting a say in what we do too. Now that spring is here we've been outside more often and she has gotten to be on the ground and she is really not entirely ok with this. I can't say that I blame her, for her entire life until this point she's always been up and away. Now I'm encouraging her to get dirty, play in the bark and dirt, touch the grass and feel all the textures. It's taking some getting used to.

She truly adores her older sister. When she wakes up from her nap, the first person she seems to look for is her. If she wakes up first, I take her to crawl into Penny's room and Ruby always exclaims with such glee when she discovers Penny within the sheets. They both play together (I caught them conspiring not too long ago) and even have those typical sister battles over the same doll or book.

Words are coming along, she's still sticking to "mama," "dada," "Nee-nee" (Penny), "this this" (when she points to something)"tickle tickle"and we're working on "book" and discovering body parts (she is very proud of knowing where other people's noses are). It seems that at the moment she is somewhat afraid of the water, there's some nights where she's really against going in the bath tub and during a recent visit to the pool she was really quite scared.

Some of my favorite Ruby posts:

Sisterhood in pictures

Same outfit, two babies

Ruby in her "snail hat"

Newborn photography

Her birth story

Catch the moment: Week 6

More instagram quality pictures. One day I'll pick up my camera for real ;)

 Miss Ruby had some really wrinkly feet after her bath, and it totally brought me back to that super newborn phase where they are still wrinkly and crinkly. We are on the eve of her first birthday (well, it's next month..) and I don't know about you, but with the first baby everything is so new and fresh that I couldn't wait for the next milestone. With Ruby I am finding myself holding back, because I know that she will never be this little again. With the grace of God she will not be my last baby so I will get to relive all those baby moments again :)

 When I ask Penny to smile for the camera, or to say "cheese," this is the face she makes. Gosh I love this girl. She is just too hilarious! She quite enjoyed her cupcake.

 Miss Ruby is now 11 months old and the girls' joint birthday party is in full planning mode. 

 I am a bandwagon fan. I don't know anything about football, but anyone in Seattle these days needs a bit of Seahawks gear. So the day following the Superbowl (this is going to sound really horrible..) I knew that a lot of Seahawks stuff would be on sale so I headed to my local fabric and craft store to buy remnants.  Along with a thrifted scarf and a bit of lace, I made my own Seahawks infinity scarf. Boom.

My sister in law has gone gluten free and she's pretty stinkin good at making macrons. So naturally I had to go out for a visit to watch her make some and then eat them. :)

 Squirt and Ruby have this strange bond that he never grew with Penny. From the very beginning, he knew that she is something to be protected and cared for. And in the last 6 months, also that this is a source of food. He commonly sits under her high chair and waits. Times when I put her on the floor with a snack, he stays close. Today she taunted (and later shared) him with a piece of french bread. But this dog will never snatch from her, he always waits for her to offer. And she squeals when his tongue licks her hands :)

Until we build a new coop, we still be sticking with the 5 hens that I've had since last year (but don't quote me on that). Since it's chick season, we got our chick-fix by visiting our local Co-Op and took a look at the little chickies that are currently in. Maybe later in the season when they have older chicks that never got bought, I'll pick up a pretty one or two..or three.

Catch up on previous weeks: 

Catch the moment archives

Follow along on Instagram daily!

Ruby: 10 months

It's been a loooooooooooong time since I've A) sat down to write a blog post dedicated to Ruby and B) wrote in her baby book. Upon a quick blog search, it looks like the last time I checked in on her was at 6 months.

Well, a lot has happened since then.

Namely, crawling. Standing. Pulling up. Eating solids (which started at the 6 month mark, much to my trepidation).

This past week I was reminded that I need to update something somewhere about her, to put it down someplace besides my memory because that just doesn't work. The term "preggy brain" suggests that after your pregnancy is complete that you get your normally functioning brain back, but no - it gets worse, especially after 2 kids. So call my mind a jigsaw puzzle and don't laugh that I need to take a picture of the grocery list that I write on my fridge because I know I'd lose the list somewhere along the way to the store, but the chances of me losing my phone is slim to none. Knock on wood.

Back to Ruby. See what I mean about this brain?

This boisterous little being, who I thought was going to be a fairly chill girl who goes along for the ride, is now making her presence and desires quite known. Until lately I had to spend a lot of my time making sure that she is "protected" from her sister's over exuberant love and found out one day that sometimes, when Penny decides it's appropriate to sit on her sister like a horse, rather that finding Ruby distraught with her face pushed into the carpet, she is actually kind of bouncing for Penny and laughing along with her. Huh.

And then there's the times, like tonight, where they are in the bath together and Penny snatches the washrag from Ruby that she had been happily flailing around, Ruby screams bloody murder to alert me. And then she gives warning shrieks to Penny if her hands get too close again.

This mama heart of mine is so full of love for this girl.

She claps, does this cute tongue wiggle thing (which Penny exclaims, each and every time, "such a tiny little tongue!") and has started to wave. At her 9 month well child she was 19 lbs 3 oz (66%'ile) and 28.25" tall (71 %'ile). In comparison, her sister was 18 lbs and considerably shorter at this age. She crawls with her belly off the ground and I anticipate that the walker will become more than a stationary toy for her shortly. She normally wakes up around 6am, is ready for a 20 minute snooze around 8:30 or 9 and goes down for a long nap at noon (the same time as Penny). The evenings get a little dicey because she wants to nap around 4, but instead I try to have dinner around 5 and baths at 6 with her bedtime as close to 7.

A few big changes have happened this week and it makes me realize that while I am reveling in this rolly polly, squishy, round baby, she is all too quickly growing up. Firstly she's moving up to Penny's previous convertible car seat, a Britax Pavilion. She (and her 34 month sister) are still rear-facing.

The second and definitely bigger change is that she is now taking naps and starting the evening in the pack n play. We are a bed sharing family; Penny slept with us until she was 18 months old and I never saw use in buying an actual crib. When Penny was around the same age I started transitioning her to daytime naps in the pack n play because I typically don't nap with the kids and there comes a time where they silently wake up and start crawling away from their spot in the middle of the bed and run the risk of falling. As a long term bed sharing family we've taken all of the necessary precautions by putting the mattress on the floor and exercise as much caution as possible, but at this age it makes the most sense to me to put her in a pack n play when I don't sleep with her.

This was almost a heart wrenching decision for me. For some reason I had a lot of guilt in this on the first day that I made the switch. I wasn't sure why, because I transitioned Penny to napping in the pack n play at this age too. However, as another example of how Ruby is different from her sister, Ruby loves sleeping in it. I nurse her down for her nap, stand up and rock her for a minute and lay her down. She usually rolls over onto her side or tummy, gives a little sigh and is off to lala land. Her sister required patting, shushing, singing and sneaking out. I have to admit, I feel so much better knowing that she doesn't feel abandoned!

She's already got a "dada" and "mama" down, we're working on finding something that she can call Penny.

Handmade merino infant hat from Öko Creations

This post was originally published as a part of 

Green Mom's Network Handmade & Eco-Friendly Holidays
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Bald babies. I got em! It wasn't until Penny was almost 2 years old before she grew a respectable amount of hair, and as a result hats are simply a part of our lives around here.

What catches my eye when it comes to shopping for a new hat for my littles?

-Anything that reminds me of an animal - it's got to be cute!
-Material; I look for high quality, alternative fibers, durable and organic where ever possible. Bamboo or wool are a favorite.
-Mode of manufacture: was it hand-made or at least ethically made?

I was so excited for Ruby to test-run an Öko Creations Merino wool baby hat! I have been a facebook fan for a while and am honored to get to share about their product and company with you.

Merino wool is highly desireable as a textile because the wool is so versatile in heat retention as well as breathability. Especially for those bald baby heads, you want something that keeps their skin warm but not causes them to overheat and sweat; because then you've got a wet hat and that's much worse than not wearing a hat at all. Best of all, organic merino wool is naturally antibacterial!

Oko Creations hand makes all of their products; has an intense focus on responsibility for the environment and to their customer (by providing the best quality materials as well as limiting environmental impact) and based on their awesome facebook and instagram feed it's fun to work there too! :)

It's important to me to support and share about businesses just like Öko Creations. Hand-made products are so special because you can just imagine the dreams and inspiration that went into the product that you hold in your hand; in this case, I know that someone lovingly made this hat with the idea of my little girl in mind. It was important to Marie-Noël and Melanie Beetz, the owners, and their seamstresses that Ruby and other babies are kept warm and healthy by making the commitment of higher quality materials and sustainable practices. And that, instead of the ease of picking up a $5 hat at a local chain, is why I will continue to support hand-made, small businesses like Öko Creations. And I hope you will too! 

And let's face it, this hat is adorbs. So adorbs, in fact, that Penny has dubbed it as Ruby's "snail hat," because the two peaks remind her of snail antennae. And snails are kind of her current obsession.

Isn't she a stinker?

In addition to the very cute snail antennae, I like that it covers her ears and back of her neck appropriately. She just looks so cozy and squishy. And that little tongue - well, that's kind of her signature expression right now.

These hats come in two sizes (NB-3 months, 4-12 months) and Ruby is in the larger size. The material is stretchy and forgiving, I can see her using this hat well past her first birthday. It doesn't feel like wool either, it feels like an interesting mix between bamboo and wool to me. It's well sewn and even when Ruby is done, I can see using this for another baby down the road. ;)

Öko Creations is offering a Pierogie Mama reader one too! Öko Creations is based in Canada, however if you are in the US and want to place an order, send an email to info@okocreations.ca and they will take your order and arrange for US shipping.  They are working to make US ordering easier. 

This giveaway is over - thanks to all for entering! 

Keep an eye out for more Pierogie Mama Giveaways.

Disclosure: I received product in exchange for my honest review, but as always, all opinions are my own and I only share what I love! 

Lazy Girl Gnocchi

There's definitely a legit, old school, traditional way to make gnocchi. Friends, this is NOT a tutorial on how to do so! I'm positive that there are several really good Italian girl blogs that share their nonna's passed down recipe.  This is my lazy girl / busy mama / using all the leftovers recipe for gnocchi. Take what you will, but I promise that it's a delicious way to use your leftover mashed potatoes for a new meal that your family will love!

Gnocchi is a versatile dish. You can serve it with your favorite red sauce, or make a delicious pan sauce with the meat that you are cooking that night and pour it over gnocchi as a side. On this night I experimented with making an Alfredo style sauce with lemon essences, which needs some tweaking. A couple summers ago I shared a Gnocchi Mac n Cheese recipe that I found on Pinterest, which uses Gruyere, Fontina and Parmesan. Delish. Truth be told, that was my first pin ever. You know how you remember your first CD? Well, I guess I won't be forgetting my first pin either!

This recipe will make enough for 2 adults. If you have more mashed potatoes or want to make extra to freeze, just follow the ratio of 2 cups of flour : 1 cup of mashed potatoes.

You will need:
1 cup of leftover mashed potatoes (it's ok if you seasoned them with cream, sour cream, salt / pepper, whatevs. Again, this isn't traditional gnocchi so everything goes!)
~2 cups of flour
1 egg yolk

You will do:
1. Make a little volcano of mashed potatoes on your work surface. Dump your yolk into the crater.
2. Work the yolk into the potatoes using your hands.
3. Add 1/2 c of flour at a time, working the flour into the dough. You might not use all of the flour, it just depends on the consistency of your potatoes. Continue to add flour until your dough is firm but not hard. Keep your hands and working surface well floured to avoid sticky dough.
4. Divide the dough into quarters and roll each piece into a log, about the width of your finger.
5. Cut 1/2" long pieces (perfection is not necessary).
6. Bring a pot of salted water to boil.
7. Using a fork, gently roll each piece up the fork to create the trademark indentations. Keeping your fork floured will help prevent the gnocchi from sticking to it. Fun fact: the ridges on gnocchi are there to hold sauce to the noodle better. All pasta noodles were developed with different shapes to compliment the type of sauce they are served with. You can freeze them on a floured cookie sheet at this point for later use.
8. Drop the gnocchi into the boiling water and wait for them to float, should be about 2 minutes.
9. Scoop them out and allow them to drain.
10. Most people top them with their favorite sauce at this point, but I like to give them a quick pan fry in a bit of olive oil to give them a slightly crispy side.

Joanna Monger Photography: Greater Seattle area Photographer

You know that quiet awkwardness you sometimes see in portraits? How your smile is strained, your eyes are just a little fake and your entire posture is so stiff and unnatural? That's because you're trying to show a very personal side of yourself to a complete stranger. Portraits are hard work! 

Shortly after Ruby was born, I had the pleasure of working with Joanna Monger, of Joanna Monger Photography, to take our family portraits. I was a little worried as I was preparing for this event. To call Penny "shy" in new situations is a severe understatement. She was at a very insecure stage; she would cling to me and completely shut down in new situations.  I knew that it would show in a picture that she's uncomfortable. Her comfort level was extremely important to me, but getting a family picture with our new addition was too. I knew this was going to be a very difficult task.

Joanna and I met in January when she was at the tail end of her pregnancy with her second son and I was in my 3rd trimester with Ruby. We initially started out meeting for coffee but ended up at the local burger joint - what a sight we two pregnant gals must have been! We chatted for a couple hours about our two businesses and how we anticipate the addition of second children would be. Not too long after our meeting, she had her precious little boy and a few months later Ruby followed suit.

Ruby was a fresh 13 days old when we visited Joanna at her home studio. In addition to the challenge of getting my toddler to be at ease for the photo shoot, we asked Joanna for the trifecta of a photography session - newborn, sister and a family portrait session all into one sitting. We approached our appointment with caution and hoped for just one great photo. Just one is all I ask for!

As soon as we arrived I could tell that Penny wasn't completely at ease. Her eyes roamed around Joanna's studio, eagerly searching for something to play with. Joanna quickly brought out necklaces, boas and a toddler sized rocking chair. She got down to Penny's level and simply introduced herself. Imagine my shock at how quickly Penny warmed up to her! Words couldn't describe how much it meant to me that this woman knew exactly what to do. It has to be a mom thing, because within a few minutes Penny saw the environment as comfortable and safe...and as we all know, if the toddler is happy - everyone is happy!

Getting along with Joanna was so easy, and that clearly shows in her photography. You can see the genuine smile on our faces - because even our eyes are happy. She caught so many wonderful moments in our studio session and my entire family was comfortable while she was working with us.  Joanna also made sure that I was getting the breaks that I needed to either sit down or nurse Ruby, and took advantage of the few minutes of just Adam and Penny to take very sweet Father/Daughter portraits too.

When it was time for Ruby's newborn session, we sent Adam and Penny home so that we don't have to worry about keeping the toddler content and quiet. I gave my new little lovebug a nice top off of milk and attempted to get her into that sleepy newborn state that everyone loves for their newborn photography.

...Well, Miss Ruby had other ideas. She wasn't letting me put her down so that we could take adorable swaddled poses! Eeek! After a few attempts with only being able to catch a millisecond of snooze time, Joanna suggested that we try taking some pictures of her nestled in my arms. Those pictures ended up being my favorite...

It's so hard to believe that this tiny little girl is now 4 months old and is rolling around, pulling toys to her mouth and will be sitting up before I know it. Looking back at these precious images reminds me just how fleeting these moments are. Thanks Joanna! 

If you're in the greater Seattle area, don't wait! Joanna offers several styles of photography to fit what you're looking for. She offers maternity, glamour/boudoir, family, studio or in home sessions for newborn portraits, and she's currently booking 2015 seniors (better hurry!). She also has a fun "Baby's First Year" program, which documents their first year with sessions as a newborn, 6 month and 12 month old. 

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Extraordinary Daughters

What is your most treasured moment with your children? That one memory that stands out above all others?

Many parents would say that it's the first time they saw their child's face. Though I had unmedicated, natural births, I was so high on endorphins and coming down from the extremely focused experience of labor I have a very foggy memory of seeing both of my daughter's faces. Both times I was still very much "in the zone" and the flurry of excitement from everyone else was almost a distraction. Weird, right?

For both girls it has been the first time we shared a laugh together. The happiness that I've felt when that little being that I've been caring for, seemingly without any recognition or thanks, finally makes that connection with my eyes and we giggle with each other...totally priceless. I was lucky enough to actually capture that moment with Penny.

It's such an amazing coincidence that this video was taken almost exactly two years ago.

Isn't it awesome that we live in an era where things like that very special moment can get caught on camera or video? I can only imagine how cool it will be to bring these up again when my daughters are older and relive a few of these with them, and even bring them out again when they have their children.

What makes your kid extraordinary isn’t just the epic stuff. It’s the little things. The small moments that maybe only you see — and quietly celebrate every day. Share your love, hope and pride for your extraordinary kid by creating a personalized video that captures what makes them one-of-a-kind.  The Stanford Children’s Health website has a cute little app available where you can make a sweet video note for your kids - check out our video. It definitely made me tear up a couple times, not gonna lie.

Your kid is extraordinary. Show them how much you enjoy every moment together by creating a special video of your own!

I was selected for this opportunity as a member of Clever Girls Collective and the content and opinions expressed here are all my own.

The Pierogie Babies: 40 weeks - where's my kid? & someone turns 2

Ruby

Well, here we are at full term and I am shocked - no baby. I had Penny at exactly 39 weeks and for this entire pregnancy I was positive that I'd have Ruby on the same week. Well, 39 came and went without anything to write home about. It feels so weird to wait on a baby, because as Penny's birth story went, we were caught by surprise when she was born. I was expecting to go over 40 weeks with Penny and so I never had that anticipation feeling. This time I set myself up and was expecting an early baby so I've been on watch since 38 weeks - I would have never imagined still being pregnant 2 weeks later! 

So this girl continues to bake away and although I'm just ready to hold her in my arms, I count my blessings. I'm not in any extraordinary amounts of discomfort. My hips ache but a good chiropractic adjustment this week did the trick. My stomach skin feels stretched and itchy; but no stretch marks and my regimen of organic coconut oil during the day and having hubby rub down the belly with Motherlove Pregnant Belly Salve in the evenings has kept my skin nice and soft. Penny got to keep her birthday as her own. Ruby's due date was 3/4 and Penny's birthday is 3/3 so there was a chance for them to share a birthday. It didn't happen and we got to celebrate in a small, special way. I feel pretty prepared for this baby to come. The cloth diaper laundry is kept up on, I have lots of extra food stored in the freezer, our birth bag is in the car and I have labor food at the ready in the fridge. The blessings keep pouring in but one little blessing in particular is taking her sweet time and I just have to be patient and let her come when she is ready! :)

Penny

My big girl turned 2 on Monday but we kept it pretty quiet. Her paternal grandparents came over for dinner and cake on Sunday. We are postponing her big, fun birthday party until mid April and piggybacking a "meet the baby" event along with it.

When I remind myself about where we were 2 weeks ago in my last Pierogie Babies update, I'm again impressed at just how quickly children grow and change. Penny seems to have a good grasp on the concept of "turns" (even though she doesn't always agree with them) and is transitioning to consistently saying "please" and "thank you" rather than signing them. She working on 3 and sometimes 4 word sentences and surprises me daily with things that she picks up on. We were visiting a cousin yesterday and she pulled out a Finding Nemo book and asks me to read the Nemo book...but I haven't introduced her to Nemo yet. How did she know this? She's also become much more social at library time and at the bouncy house that we visit; which was a struggle until lately because of her shyness. We haven't been going to our MOPS group regularly due to battles with the crud or avoiding the crud so I'm not sure how she would do when she's put into a situation where I leave her but overall if she knows I'm around she appears to be totally fine leaving me and playing independently. That wasn't anywhere close to being an option 2 months ago, so I'm proud of her burgeoning courage and curiosity to play with other children.  

Jonboy Caramels Review & Giveaway! #seattle #bmnlove

This post was originally part of the Feel the Love Giveaway Hop.

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Pictures speak a thousand words, don't they?

We recently had the opportunity to try Jonboy Caramels, a Seattle based company.

I pretty much got my first taste without Penny really understanding what was going on. But as soon as she saw the really pleased look on my face, my little girl looked up at me (with her hands outstretched) and said "mama - have?"

Yes baby, you may have one too.

Normally I keep sugary sweets out of my little tyke's hands, but what mama can resist such a sweet request?

It's also a major plus to me that Jonboy Caramels sources local ingredients, down to the cream and butter used as the base. They've opted for organic brown rice syrup instead of corn syrup; and their seasonal flavors, such as Balsamic Berry, uses raspberry and blackberry juice from local farms too.

We sampled a box of their Fleur de Sel Caramels and my initial hope was for them to last us through Valentine's Day - hah. Fat chance! These babies were gone in less than a couple days, between a snatch here and a grab there, and a 'well, I just have to have another one..' incident or two.

The texture was creamy and they melted in your mouth just like a good caramel should. These aren't the sticky, chewy caramels that make you worry about your dental health - my fillings remained intact after several samples of these. :)

Have I got you drooling at all? Well lucky you, Jonboy wants to share the love and give one Pierogie Mama a sweet sampler of their Fleur de Sel, Molasses Ginger, and Absinthe caramels. Oh boy!

Enter to win below!
This giveaway has ended. Thanks to all who entered!

Disclosure: Thank you Jonboy Caramels for hooking me up with this sweet treat! 

I love supporting a local Seattle company. All opinions expressed are my own. 

#WordlessWednesday: Santa Baby

Grumpy babies are sad, but I couldn't resist sharing the irony of the yogurt beard and Santa jammies.

Have you pulled out holiday clothes for your littles (or yourself??) yet?

Pierogie Babies: 19 weeks, belly bump and a girl with her galoshes

Our ultrasound was yesterday and we are keeping the gender a secret until after Sunday. We're hosting a gender reveal party for our families and it is going to be SO HARD to keep things on the DL until then. I already have several people hounding me via phone calls and texts.. I'm probably going to have to shut off my phone pretty soon ;)

The baby is perfectly healthy, all fingers and toes are accounted for. I was feeling a lot of anxiety yesterday leading up to the ultrasound and it was a huge relief to get the initial report back from the tech that everything is as it should be. We'll get the full details in a few weeks at my next midwife appointment, unless something needs our attention sooner.

Based on my bump and the purposefully obscure ultrasound photo, what is your guess?
A boy or a girl?

Baby Birthday Trend: Tips for the First Birthday Cake Smash Photo Shoot

When your baby turned (or will turn) one, did you do the celebratory cake smash?

Penny's cake smash was a two part event. The first part was at a photo shoot in a portrait studio, the second part was the real thing at her birthday party a few days later. 

Here's a recap of her first birthday party

For her first shoot there was no holding her back. She wanted that cupcake and I'm thankful that the photographer was ready because this girl was lightning quick. The second time around she looked at the cupcake for a lot longer and it actually took some encouragement from us to get her to eat it. 

Here are some tips on how to prepare for a successful cake smash, whether you do it at home or in a studio.

1. Keep contrasting colors in mind. Just like any other photoshoot, you want to make sure that the focus of your picture doesn't melt into the background. So if your (cup)cake has white frosting, go for a contrasting color of shirt. Or better yet, go diaper only (cloth diapering mamas like me get excited when we get to coordinate an outfit with diaper color!). Try to keep backgrounds not too busy either.

2. Have that camera ready! It's a good idea to have help when preparing to take pictures of your little one go after their first baked sweet. If your child is like Penny, they will lunge at that cupcake as soon as you set it down. Tag team the occasion by having whoever is more comfortable with the camera taking pictures while the other manages the birthday baby.

3. Clean up crew: If you are doing your shoot at home, buy a disposable table cloth (again, remembering contrasting colors) to place baby and cake on top of. This way once it's all done you don't even have to mop up (too much). You can also do the cake smash in a high chair. Have some baby wipes at the ready to help with sticky hands that can make their way into little eyes. 

Pin this infographic on the simple 4 step process to baking a birthday smash cake with Betty Crocker.

Disclosure: This is a sponsored post. All opinions are my own. 

You can find tons of fun ways to make a birthday smash cake on the Betty Crocker website.

Painting Motherhood: Katie m. Berggren captured my moment

It's early morning. Dawn is beginning to shine through our window and my body is becoming aware of the new day. Snuggled in our king sized bed is my family. My husband, Penny and recently, my baby in my belly. Squirty is softly snoring in a corner. We're warm and close. These are the moments I'll cherish as my babies grow and leave our room. Penny made this very transition this week, and it's been so bittersweet.

Those are the moments that Katie m. Berggren documents. Those quiet moments of parenthood where we reflect on ourselves, our kids and what we've become. Those beautiful alert eyes looking into our tired ones. Nursing your baby. The happiness we share as mother and father when we snuggle with our littles in the night. Nurturing a connection between siblings. Wearing your baby. Protecting them with all your might. Gosh, I get weepy just thinking about it, let alone look through her galleries!

Katie sent me an archival print of her painting In Kind. Ever since Penny was strong enough to hold up her hand, she has gently pulled and tugged on my bangs and any other hair that falls down around my face or neck while nursing. I realized this soon became a soothing technique for her, and it lets me know that she's winding down too. These days she's not always as gentle and my pregnancy hormones are making my scalp sensitive, my patience sometimes a little shorter and hair not as strong as it normally is. But I know that this very special painting was meant to be in my home so that I can be reminded of this special bond that Penny and I will share - perhaps only for the sweet duration of our nursing relationship.

Katie's interpretation is much sweeter than this specific moment that Penny and I were sharing,
but this is how I'd like to remember it :)

I can't wait to give you a tour of Penny's new room with In Kind featured on her wall.

Connect with Katie and her art through her website, Facebook, Twitter and her blog.

Ps - stay tuned for a chance to WIN a print from Katie later this week!
Don't miss out by following me on Facebook, Twitter, via email or BlogLovin'!

Disclosure: Thank you Katie for graciously sending me an archival print of In Kind. 

No other compensation was provided, all words expressed are my own.

4 years on the 4th!

Today, Adam and I celebrate 4 years of marriage. 

We've accomplished so much in a short amount of time, 

I can't wait to see what the next 4 years hold..

15 months

Dear little Penny-pot,

These monthly updates are starting to slow down as our life gets busier during the summer, so I'll be trying to keep up whenever I can.

In the last month or so you've started to give hugs and kisses.. which melt my and your daddy's heart every time. You squeeze our necks (or legs) so tight and give the sweetest of kisses. I especially love when I get a big hug and kiss after nursing...this really tells me just how much you love it! I love our special bonding time too.

In the last couple weeks you've come up with some spectacular shenanagins that have us rearranging the house. You've mastered climbing up onto chairs, the couches and as of yesterday you think climbing up onto the toilet is hilarious! Mama does not entirely approve. You've also started using forks and spoons and this has sparked your interest in sitting at the table. You will sit happily in your highchair for breakfast and lunch, but for dinner you will take two bites and then want to sit with your beloved dada. That's ok, he likes to share his dinner with you.

You've also gotten really good at hide and seek. In the begining you'd give yourself away very quickly with your excited squeals when you'd know I was close to finding you, but now you are able to keep quiet for upwards of 5 minutes! But your hiding skills need a little work..

You also had me rolling with laughter when I was hanging the diapers out to dry this week when you crawled under your empty kiddie pool and 'turtle crawled' across the deck. Where do these ideas come from?!

As a very independent girl, you've also made it very clear that you want to walk everywhere we go and you want to do it by yourself.  I'm so proud of your tenacity and complete willingness to try all things new.

Your favorite foods are currently:
Cream of Wheat with fresh strawberries, bananas or cheerios mixed in
Freckled Avocado Smoothies
goldfish crackers & Earth's Best organic ABC (Cookie Monster?) cookies
vanilla yogurt
quinoa with feta

Your vocabulary is progressing, sometimes you will say words that we haven't really taught you ("girl"), but for the most part these are the standards:
"meow" for kitty with the variation of "meo" for Romeo
"ffff" for woof
"shoo" for shoe
"CK" for cousin Jack
"pr-ty" for pretty / flower
"di-puuurr" for diaper
unfortunately "no" has snuck it's way in there, but we're working on turning it into "no thank you" with signing "thank you."

We love you so much, darling girl, and can't wait to see what surprises you have in store for us next :)

Love,
Mama & Dada

Toddler Friendly Smoothies Using Avocado

I recently discovered how amazing it is to add an avocado to smoothies. My household has a certain love affair with avocados, so I decided to give this a shot after a friend recommended it to me. Not going to lie, this was an amazing discovery. I think avocado needs to find its way into every corner of my cooking. Into my cereal, into my coffee.. yea, that part I was kidding about.

Avocados are considered the perfect food by many, it's been said that an avocado contains many of the nutrients we need to survive. It's a great first food for babies as well - Penny was chowing down on slices by the fistful when we introduced her to foods via baby-led weaning. Hanna from Endless Simmer hilariously recants the etymology behind the word: "...avocado is a derivative of ahuacatl, which happens to be the Aztec word for testicle.  The avocado grows in pairs, dangling from the tree so suggestively that even the Aztecs noticed, pausing long enough from their daily blood sacrifice to chuckle to themselves and bestow the avocado with its legacy."  Will you ever look at avocados the same again? ;)


But isn't the hardest part first selecting the perfect avocado? Avocado Central has a great interactive widget to help you determine the stage of your avocado's ripeness.

The Freckled Avocado
mmm, our favorite!

• 1 ripe avocado 
• 5 medium to large frozen organic strawberries 
• 1 cup of plain or vanilla flavored Greek yogurt 
• 2 Tablespoons of local honey

The Tropical Avocado

• 1 ripe avocado 
• 1 peeled and frozen banana 
• 1 cup of plain or vanilla flavored Greek yogurt 
• 1 cup of fresh orange juice 
• 2 tablespoons of local honey

The Chocolate Avocado

• 1 ripe avocado
• 1 cup of plain or vanilla flavored Greek yogurt
• 2 tablespoons of cocoa powder

The Red Avocado

• 1 ripe avocado 
• 1 cup fresh orange juice 
• 1/2 cup frozen raspberries

A few that we'd like to try:

Beet- Avocado: from We are Not Martha

• 2 small beets
• 1 C vanilla soy milk (I used Silk Light)
• 3/4 C frozen berries
• 1/2 avocado
• 1 C baby spinach
• 1 scoop (10 grams) chia seeds

Avocado Apple: from Cooking Classy

• 1 medium ripe California avocado
• 1 large granny smith apple, chilled, cored and sliced
• 1 ripe banana, peeled and frozen
• 1 Navel orange, chilled and peeled
• 2 cups packed spinach
• 1 cup almond milk, chilled
• Juice of 1 lime
• 2 tsp agave nectar or honey, or to taste (optional)
• 8 ice cubes (about 1 1/3 cups)

Avocado Mango: from Reboot with Joe

• 1 cup mango (fresh or frozen) 
• 3 handfuls spinach
• 1/4 avocado 
• 1 cup almond milk- add a little water if you like your smoothie thinner 

Do you like to add avocado to your smoothies? What is your favorite combination? 

Mother's Day Recap

This weekend I got the best of both worlds - a Mother's Day celebration in my honor and another in conjunction with my own mama.

Last year for my birthday we went to the Portland Zoo with 2 month old Penny, who slept through the entire experience. I saw that the weather was supposed to be gorgeous on Saturday of Mother's Day weekend so I made the request for a family outing to the Woodland Park Zoo in Seattle. As we were getting ready, I was checking my facebook and my real life / bloggy friend Gretchen of That Mama Gretchen posted a picture of her family getting ready to go to the zoo too.. A quick text exchange followed and we made plans to run into each other there!

Since it was A) sunny B) Saturday C) Mother's Day weekend (1/2 off for mamas!) - parking was horrendous. If there is one thing that my husband can't stand it's trying to look for parking. We both grew up in the suburbs where parking is never an issue, but somehow I am more tolerant of this problem. He always teases me that whenever we go out to "treat" me, it's always in the city. Well, that's where a lot of the fun stuff is!

Nonetheless we trekked on, had a quick pow-wow with Gretchen (who was the cool mom and dressed up her family in preparation for their zoo visit!) and meandered our way around the zoo.

Thanks for the pic, Gretchen!

Penny took notice of a few animals - mostly the small and fast ones. Her favorites by far - the otters in the grizzly bear exhibit...

...and a mama wallaby with a baby in her pouch!

I'm really looking forward to many more visits this summer because an early birthday present was an annual pass so that Penny and I could take advantage of the zoo during less busy times and enjoy all the different activities the zoo has to offer (like feeding an elephant or giraffe for $5! Isn't that amazing?!).

 Afterwards we drove down to my family's for the weekend and surprised my mom. She wasn't expecting us because I had to gently remind her that I'm a mama now too - and there will be holidays where we celebrate on our own. Well, we visited anyways and on Sunday she and I had our annual Mother's Day pedicures and rounded out the weekend with some delicious grilled salmon and asparagus on the lake house's deck.

The weekend left me feeling particularly blessed for such a wonderful family. How did you celebrate?