Easter Weekend Wrap Up

Easter weekend was a blast!

I was completely wiped out by Monday morning from all the fun, but it was totally worth it.

The week leading up to Easter was one of my busiest weeks in a while, but if you know me... you know I absolutely love being busy haha.

I'm the type of person that begins thinking about holidays like... months and months in advance.

So far in advance that I may already have our Halloween costumes picked out this year, ha!

I got so excited thinking that Oaklyn would care a little more about Easter this year. 

I started to dream up her Sunday outfit and planned a little egg hunt for some local moms. 

We also hosted Easter dinner with some friends and that was so fun!

Soo... here's a little wrap up in pictures :)

Friday afternoon we had a little Easter egg hunt at a local park.

I was so excited for Oaklyn because she helped me stuff the eggs with jelly beans and she was trying so hard to wait patiently all afternoon.

When we got to the park she saw the duck pond and couldn't get her mind off feeding them...

I think you can probably guess how the egg hunt went... ha!

Right as it was go time she sprinted the other way towards the ducks looking back at me terrified that I would make her stop.

When I told her to come back she yelled, "Ducky hungry!"

Needless to say I picked up the eggs for her and she indulged in jelly beans after making sure the ducks were fed haha!

as you can see... she already had her plan set... bread in hand before the egg hunt haha

On Sunday I got up earlier than usual and Hunter was shocked, haha!

Seriously, I love my sleep!

I made some cinnamon rolls and scrambled eggs and we all got ready for church.

The cutest thing ever was after I got Oaklyn all ready in her Easter dress, she looked at me and said, "show dada new dress!"

She ran out and got so excited for him to see her all dressed up.

I actually had to wipe a tear away because it was the cutest.

She has such a crush on her daddy haha.

After church I ran inside to set up Oaklyn's Easter basket.

Hunter and Oaks came in after and the second she saw it, she sprinted full speed ahead!

She loved going through her goodies with dada and eating her favorite candy ever, jelly beans!

I started on dinner right after that while Oaks and Hunt played "egg hunt" over and over.

We had two of our couple friends over and my sister in law and her boyfriend for dinner, dessert, and games!

The menu was a pretty traditional Easter dinner with ham, funeral potatoes, bacon and garlic green beans, a yummy pear and spinach salad made by kiely, rolls from audrey, and then carrot cake and carmelitas for dessert!

The weather was so perfect we ate outside and all in all, it was just an awesome day!

Oaklyn's Dress | My dress (similar) | Oak's Pink Moccs | Oaks Yellow Shirt (similar) | Oaks Jeans (similar) | Oaks grey moccs | Hunter's Tie (similar)

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A Letter To My Little Valentine

I don't have to worry about kissing my babe with my lipsense!

My sweet Oaks, this Valentines Day is the first that I really feel like I have a second little Valentine.

I loved you tons last year, but our relationship together has grown so much in the past year.

You're my best little friend, my favorite shopping buddy, my perfect little girl.

One day, you'll probably find this blog of mine and read a little about what your life was like growing up.

I hope you find that I love you to pieces and that I've never felt like I had more purpose on this earth until I became your mother.

When I woke up that Tuesday morning with a sore chest and slight nausea, I absolutely knew you were there.

I still snuck a test into the second bathroom to make sure it was true.

When those two pink lines appeared, I think I felt every emotion in the book.

I covered my eyes and started bawling.

I was excited and scared all at the same time.

It didn't feel real, but I absolutely knew you were there.

As time went on and I felt your little kicks I began to love you in a way I'd never felt before.

When you entered the world I took one look at you and knew I wanted to give you the world.

I felt inadequate to say the least, but all I wanted was to be the mother you deserved.

We had a rather difficult first year of your life filled with little sleep and lots of crying on both ends.

You were figuring out life and I was figuring out my new life as a mother.

With each runny nose, milestone, and meal thrown on the floor... I realized why this love was a different kind of love.

A mother's love is selfless, and it is never ending.

Even when I fall to the floor after sticking you in time out because I feel like I'm failing you, I couldn't love you any more.

You came up to me the other day, put your hand on my shoulder and said "Mama nice, mama fun, mama yov me."

You didn't see it as you walked away, but I brushed my tears away from my eyes because just those 7 words you said in your tiny toddler voice, made me feel like super woman. 

I want you to know I cherish all the moments I get to spend with you, just me and you.

You've become the best friend I didn't know I was missing.

Sure you yell and scream when you don't get your way... Sure you demand a lot of me and test my patience... but when it comes down to it, you're the only one that doesn't judge me for my imperfections. 

You stand by me with pride because you love me despite my flaws, you forgive when I make mistakes, and you trust me when I have no clue what I'm doing.

You reach for my hand as we walk across the street, look to me when a stranger says hello, and giggle when I do something silly.

Oaklyn Joy, this year and all other years, I want you to know that you are my Valentine too.

Because on a day for Lovers, I can say that I love you with the most selfless and unconditional love out there. 

I love you sweet baby.

All my love,

Mama

Photos taken by Tiel Photography

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DIY Children's Memory Book with Snuggle

This shop has been compensated by Collective Bias, Inc. and its advertiser. All opinions are mine alone. #ShareABear #CollectiveBias

When I was pregnant, there were a few gifts I just couldn't get enough of. One obviously being the cutest tiniest clothes, another being the sweet little girl bows, but the snuggly stuffed animals just melted my heart! I could just picture her snuggling all the little teddy bears and loved adding more and more of those sweet and soft animals to her crib. I distinctly remember in the hospital hearing the nurses tell me not to put anything in her crib while she was sleeping such as blankets or stuffed animals. I was so sad because I was so excited for her to play with them right from the start! However, I waited and waited until it was safe for her to sleep with them. 

I remember giving her a blankie to sleep with around 12 months as somewhat of a test run. She didn't really know what to do with it at first, but it didn't take long for her to absolutely love it. We went through about three different blankies until she found her favorite, and now that one never leaves her side when she's asleep. Seeing that adding the blanket went so well, I decided to try out a teddy bear. One morning after a long night of being uncomfortable and not sleeping while pregnant, I was lazily laying in bed. I heard the doorbell ring and grabbed my robe to go answer the door. Either I took too long to get my pregnant self out of bed, or it was meant to be a surprise, but I opened the door to a present! When I opened the box I found an adorable teddy bear for my little Oaks. It quickly became my favorite of her stuffed animals so it got its own spot on the rocking chair. I gave that bear to Oaklyn first in hopes that she would love it just like I did, and boy did she ever! He didn't have a name at first, but he now goes by the name of Gida. I know... of all the names she chose that one. You're probably wondering where she even got such a weird name, so here's a little background. Oaklyn is obsessed with animals of all sorts, but she first showed interest in dogs. She first learned how to say puppy, and then doggy. Suddenly every animal became a doggy. One day I noticed she decided to shorten it to just "Gee." Then one morning when I picked her up form her crib she was pointing to her teddy bear saying "Gida! Gida! Gida!" It took me a little while to figure it out, but she decided to make up her own name for animals... Gida! It has been so fun to watch her teddy bear become her best friend. She actually looks forward to going to bed now because she knows she can snuggle him! I love feeling comforted that if she wakes up in the middle of the night scared or uncomfortable, she can reach for Gida to calm her down. It truly is so sweet to see how much a little kid can love a stuffed animal. It melts my heart to see her love Gida so much. 

Oaklyn would take Gida absolutely everywhere if I let her. More often than not, I find her sitting by her crib talking to him. It is so cute that she loves him and wants to be with him so much, but she drags him around and gets him SO dirty! Between the food that she tries to feed him, to the drool from her sleep, Gida can get pretty gross and his fur can get pretty rough. I love adding an extra little touch to my laundry with Snuggle®. It helps get Gida back to his snuggly self after a long hard week of being mangled by a little toddler ;) Snuggle® is a brand of premium-quality fabric conditioner that enables Moms (and Dads) to create even more snuggle-up moments. I quickly noticed that Snuggle® delivers Snuggly Softness™ and inviting, long-lasting fresh scents at a noticeable value in comparison to leading brands. We love using Snuggle® in our family laundry for Gida, and all of our clothes, blankets, and linens. I easily found all my favorite Snuggle® products at my local Target. 

Friday September 9th was National Teddy Bear Day! This is a very special month for Snuggle® given that their mascot is a very snuggly and adorable bear! This is the second year that Snuggle® is launching a special #ShareABear campaign to help make the world a softer place, one teddy bear at a time. Just as I mentioned above when I found Gida on my doorstep while pregnant, something as small as a teddy bear can brighten someone’s day! Because of that, Snuggle® is donating 5,000 bears to children in need! How adorable is that? If a teddy bear can create that much happiness in my little girls life, just imagine how happy it will make a child in need! I'd love to see you contribute to the #ShareABear campaign all September long by sharing stories, memories, and pictures of your loved ones with a teddy bear on Social Media channels! Join the fun on Snuggle®’s Facebook page and in the Snuggle® Bear Den where you will find all the best offers, prizes, and content for #ShareABear. 

Stories like Gida coming about need to be remembered. I'm sure I'm going to forget several moments throughout Oaklyn's life by the time she gets older. While I understand that I won't be able to remember everything, I can try to remember most things! In an effort to remember all I can about my sweet little girl, I decided to make an affordable DIY children's memory book! This was so easy to do and will be so fun to look back on over the years! I want Oaklyn to be able to see what she was like as a baby and to be able to read about all the fun experiences we went through together. 

Making this book was super simple and fun!

1. Click here to download the boy cover page and click here to download the girl cover page. After downloading, print it out and write in your child's name and birth date.
2. Insert the cover page into a binder cover
3. Download this page to place all of your children's fun pictures in and download this page to be able to write about experiences you had with them.
4. Insert those pages into page protectors and stick them into the binder
5. Have fun adding photos and writing about all the memories with your child!

I'm so excited to keep this fun memory book forever. I also hardly had to spend anything on it! It's a win for everyone! Make sure to participate in the #ShareABear campaign and freshen up your kids stuffed animals with Snuggle® products!

All my love,

Aleigh Joy

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