What I wore Wednesday

Last night I left the bedtime parenting duties to Drew for probably the 3rd time since Tindra was born and headed over to a friends house for dinner. Relaxing while Whitney cooked us dinner was pretty amazing since usually I'm the one in the kitchen trying to get dinner ready while an energetic 5 year old is bouncing off the walls and a tired/hungry 10 month old is climbing on my feet, so THIS was a treat! Before I left I had my photographer (a certain adorable 5 year old) snap a few grainy cell phone pictures. 

And Tindra is still in a sleep sack from her nap because I had to wake her up at 5:30 (after a 2 hr afternoon nap!) to nurse before I left. She still went to bed great for her dad though!

Pants: Madewell

Shirt: Target

Snakeskin shoes: Target, bought them last week and am sorta in love with them

Greasy side braid: curtesy of not washing my hair in 4 days. Don't worry I washed it today!

Don't forget to enter HERE to win an awesome German stroller!! 

Bits of our weekend

 Friday night we moved Jasper mattress to the floor (he has a lofted bed thats not as high as a regular bunk and leaves lots of room under to play) and hung and sheet and made a tent for a little movie picnic. Afterwards he asked me to sleep with him 'for the whole night' and I couldn't say no. Didn't get a whole lot of sleep but totally worth it. 

 Saturday morning giggles

 Sunday morning blizzard

 Child labor (he was very willing) 

 Drew headed out to get bread and a couple of movies, and came back with a carmel mocha. He wins. And this is after spending an hour shoveling.

 We did a lot of wii playing. This kid is seriously the best wii bowler Ever. Strike after strike after strike. 

 BOTH kids napped for an hour and a half (Jasper even a little longer) in the afternoon so it was like a day date! We watched a movie and I painted my nails. Bliss. Then T woke up and was super cuddly with pappa (my nails were still wet) 

 After round two of shoveling (for the boys) I surprised Jasper with a home made pink lemonade snow cone. It was Delicious! If I wasn't worried about dirty snow I'd go make myself one right now.

 Simple syrup mixed with a packet of pink lemonade, cooled then poured over FRESH white snow. Delicious. 

And that was our weekend. 

Cara Box

So this month I decided to join in on Kaitlyn's Cara Box. You can read more about how it works here but basically you get matched up with two bloggers (this month she did it by State!) and you put together a little package for someone and someone else puts together one for you!

I don't know what was more fun, putting together Melanie's box or receiving one from Elise! Either way, it was a lot of fun and I got to get two know two other Colorado Mammas! I actually got to get together with Melanie to give her her box in person since we discovered we lived pretty close to each other, and hopefully one of these days I'll get to meet Elise!

Elise put So much thought in the box she made me, I still can't believe this all came from a complete 'stranger'! 

She sent me nail polish (which I wasted no time in testing out!) 

This delicious smelling body spray

This amazing popcorn bowl- seriously, how fun is this? And popcorn to go along with it!

And this! She put together a date night jar filled with amazing date ideas! All of our 'dates' happen after the kiddos go to bed, and there are so many fun ideas for us to do here at the house after the kiddos are asleep! So sweet and thoughtful! 

I loved getting to know these  ladies, and definitely will join in on another Cara Box exchange! 

10 months.

I'm sure these are boring for anyone that doesn't have, well Tindra, but I like looking back and seeing where she was just a few months ago because I've already forgotten! 

Teeth. I feel like I have been saying this forever but you have GOT to be getting more teeth soon. You have been sort of miserable lately chewing on everything in sight. So far you just have the bottom two, but I'm expecting any day you wake up with at least a couple more.

Food. You wake up, nurse, have a big breakfast (today you had a whole piece of toast,  half a banana, a bunch of cheerios, a whole probiotics yogurt pouch and a few veggies straws and some scrambled eggs. You don't care too much for eggs yet though. Otherwise you eat most things. Sometimes you seem to not like certain textures of food, but I can sneak it in you if it's mixed with something. You like to feed yourself, ALL the time. Makes for  a huge mess but also a huge smile. Then you nurse AGAIN. Nap. Wake up and nurse. Eat lunch. Nurse. Have a small bottle of frozen milk before nap. Wake up. Nurse. Eat dinner. Nurse. So basically, you eat. A lot. You like food, but you still like mamma's milk the best. 

Sleep. Gotta be honest, sleep isn't going as good as it was. You still sleep great at night 7:30-6:30 usually. But naptimes are a different story. I'm going to blame it on the teeth. On a good day though you will nap from about 10-12 and then again from 4-5. On a good day. Some nap striking has been going on lately though and it's driving mamma cray cray.

Play. You are on the move ALL day. Just like Jasper was and is. You don't want to sit still. Or sit in a jumper, or excersaucer. You just want to MOVE. You are pulling up and cruising alone the couch, taking a few steps while holding my hands and dancing! You are way too quickly becoming a little person instead of my little baby. 

I think this month you Might have broken 17 pounds. But that was with a diaper, so again, maybe not.

Now that we are in the double digits, your birthday is coming up WAY too quickly. Can't you just stay this age forever? 

Kiddy City'N Move stroller review and giveaway!

I have been looking for the perfect travel stroller for a few months now and finally found the one! I wanted a light weight stroller that was more durable than your typical umbrella stroller. It needed to be comfortable, have some sort of storage (which most light weight strollers do Not have. Trust me, I have done my research) and it also needed to recline, because when we are out on the go Tindra needs to be able to comfortably nap which obviously isn't going to happen if she can't recline. Oh and it needed to be affordable as well. We already have an expensive luxury stroller and I wanted a stroller more for traveling and quick trips when I don't want to lug a huge heavy stroller around.

When my Kiddy City'N Move arrived I couldn't wait for Drew to get home to help me put it together. I honestly didn't think I would be able to put it together alone, I can't even build a simple Ikea shelf alone, but it was surprisingly easy, and within 15 minutes of it arriving it was ready to go!

After testing it out for the past wee here are my favorite features

*Lightweight- 21 pounds only! Major bonus when traveling. 

*Comfortable- padded 5 point harness, reclines into many different positions, even the leg and foot rests are adjustable!

*It has four wheel suspension- and the front wheels have two positions, locked or swivel, and it's super easy to change, just lift and lower the lever.

*HUGE sun canopy- the biggest I've seen on any stroller. And it's UV80 protection! It's the only stroller that has that! I'll feel completely comfortable allowing Tindra to sleep under there this summer when we are out and about knowing she is protected by that harsh Colorado sun, plus it makes it darker under there, which she needs to be able to nap.

*Good sized basket- super easily accessible unlike many strollers. It even has a side zipper!

*Easy to maneuver- you can easily manage this stroller with one hand, while holding another child's hand. Important for me to be able to do!

*Tons of fun colors!

Folds down almost flat- takes up barely any space in my trunk! 

*Useable from birth and up to 55 lbs!  Jasper is 5 and a half and weighs nowhere near 55 pounds so I imagine Tindra can ride off to 1st grade in this! I wish I would have had this stroller when Tindra was a newborn because it has carseat adaptors!  I could have saved myself the money of buying a snap and go that I only used for a few months, and considering I had to replace my snap and go that I'd had with Jasper- that alone almost pays for this stroller!

Another awesome thing, it has AGR Certification, which basically means its been tested by a panel of medical and science experts to ensure it's 'back friendly'. Babies (at least mine!) spend a lot of time in stroller from birth through 4 years old while we are out and about, so finding out this stroller is actually GOOD for her back is comforting! 

Cons:

(Lets face it. There is no ONE perfect stroller so every stroller has some cons. It's just not possible to get EVERYthing you want out of one stroller. Trust me. I have owned 8 or maybe 9 strollers in the past 5 years. )

*Not meant for off roading- if you are looking for a stroller to go on unpaved bumpy gravel road this probably isn't the stroller for you. But then again it's called the CITY N'Move so you probably could have figured that out just by the name.

After Drew had a chance to use the stroller last weekend he said "Soo does this mean we can get rid of the bugaboo?" Which, if you have a bugaboo or know the price point of one is pretty major. Here is a stroller for 1/5 of the price and he's ready to commit to it being our only stroller. I'm more of a multiple stroller girl (just look in our garage, actually don't because that would be creepy) but if you are wanting only one stroller and don't want a huge clunky travel system stroller (mine barely lasted a year with Jasper) I definitely recommend the Kiddy City'N Move!

 Look how easy it swivels and turns! One finger on it turning it 360 degrees.

 Someone's favorite feature is the foot rest..

 Even a tall 5 and a half year old fits in it!

And now for the super exciting part, you have the chance to win your very own Kiddy City'N Move!!

There are several ways to enter, so make sure you leave a comment for EACH entry you do!

Mandatory Entry
LIKE Kiddy USA on Facebook
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You can do both for an extra entry but make sure you do at least one of them!

Extra Entires available (Leave a comment for each one you complete to count) 

Tweet about the giveaway, linking back here. This can be done once a day

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Good luck!! Giveaway will run for two weeks and the winner will be selected via random.org

So much beauty in the world and I have seen so little of it

I've seen my fair share of the world I guess, more than many.

I've been in 1/3 of the US states.

Live in beautiful Colorado.

Have played on the exquisite beaches of Bali.

Driven through the Rockies and Appalachians. 

Seen most of beautiful Scandinavia (Sweden, Denmark, Norway, Finland) 

Witnessed the changing of the guards at Buckingham Palace.

Gone para sailing in Thailand.

Sat underneath the Northern Light.

I've danced under the midnight sun. 

Walked through the rain forest in Indonesia. 

Stepped foot on most of Hawaii's main islands. 

I've hiked on volcanoes . Gone snorkeling by incredible underwater reefs. Visited Old historic buildings.  Seen too many beautiful beaches and sunsets to count. 

But I still feel like I haven't seen Anything yet. Such a minuscule percentage of the beauty that is out there. And I have this NEED to see it all. I crave new adventures. I want to visit Italy. And Switzerland. And Greece. And that's just at the very top of my list. Then there's Turkey. Russia. Portugal. Spain. and the list goes on.

I don't need a brand new car. Or a big fancy house. I just NEED to see the world.

The beginning of the end

The day that I've been looking forward to, yet dreading at the same time is getting close. I can feel it. Our days of nursing are numbered. It's what I have been looking forward to basically since the first time she nursed. But now, after almost 10 months, I get sad, anxious and panicky at the thought of being done. That's our time. Something no one else will ever be able to give her. And knowing one of these days will be the last time I nurse? I can't even begin to describe this deep sadness that washes over me thinking about. 

We had such a rough start to nursing. I remember texting my friend at 2 AM asking WHEN would it get easier? When would I 'love' it? She said 3 months. 

By three months I still didn't love it. It was HARD still. And so incredibly time consuming. But by 4 months I had stopped hating it. Stopped dreading those tell tale signs that she was getting hungry and soon I would be forced to nurse her again. 

By 5 months, I think was our switch. I didn't dread it anymore. 

By 7, months when she become mobile and no longer would sit still with me I even started looking forward to it. Our time, where she would cuddle against, me, stroking (or more often then not ripping if we are being honest) my face. She stares up at me with her large brownish/greenish/hazelish eyes. 

It's the only time she will ever fall asleep on me. The only time (except for when she is sick) that she will cuddle. 

If I walk into the room, she immediately wants ME. I know it's probably because of the whole breast feeding thing, and soon she might not only want me. And I know I'm selfish, but I like that at this point in time, I'm her favorite person. I can make it all better for her. When shes tired. Hungry. Sad. Hurt. Dealing with one of her multiple ear infections. Stuffed up. I can't fix it all just by nursing. I can Always comfort her. Soon that might not be the case. 

I have a hard time with change in my babies. Knowing Anything will be the last time, strikes me deep and hard and fills me with such incredible melancholy. 

So if I'm going to miss it so much why is it almost over? It's mainly Not by choice. She just isn't getting enough from me anymore. In the later afternoons and evenings she just isn't getting full enough from me. I'll nurse her. She will play for 30 minutes and I'll nurse her again. And then she's Still hungry. I've had to start giving her a bottle in the afternoons of our freezer stash, which is fine because I have half a mini deep freeze full, but I still don't think it's enough. I've been chugging water like mad the last few days trying to up my supply, but it doesn't seem to be helping. 

I'll keep nursing her as long as I have anything in there. And I'll keep giving her bottles of frozen milk. And when that runs out, I'll have to supplement with formula. But I will do all this feeling proud we made it this far. Maybe with supplementing we will make it to her birthday which is coming all too quickly. 

So why do I still feel guilty? 

And why can't she be this little again? 

Jasper says

'What should we cuddle about?"

It means, what should we talk about as we cuddle. My favorite part of the day is climbing into his bed with him and cuddling for a few minutes. We usually read a book or two then turn off the lights and cuddle and talk for a few minutes. I thought it was just my favorite part of the day, but tonight I had been in getting Tindra down (long night. And afternoon for that matter) and when I came into his room after he was already in bed he asked if I would climb up and cuddle for a few minutes. When I said of course he squealed "Yes!! That's my absolute Favorite!" Mine too buddy, mine too. 

We had such a fantastic Valentines Day! Started off the day making Jasper red eggs and heart toast. Which he asked for again this morning so I guess it was a hit! Just a warning, if you have a sensitive gag reflex (like myself) adding red blood like food coloring to raw eggs might set that gag reflex off. Also, now I'm pretty sure I won't be able to eat eggs for at Least a month. But it was worth it to see Jasper's face when I handed him his breakfast!

Drew definitely spoiled me on our 9th Valentines day together! He's a good gift giver that one! 

We went on a family date last night to celebrate, really the only want to celebrate if you ask me! But what's kinda crazy is last night I realized that our last date night was...Valentines day. 2012. And I was preeetty pregnant. So yeah. That's what happens when you live 700 miles from family! You better believe we have a fantastic night out planned for when my mom comes to visit in April!

We went to Dave and Busters for our family date night out. Not for the superb food (though it definitely isn't bad food!) but for the games of course! 

I took this picture while T was looking out the window at the snow falling

 And of course I had to have Drew snap some pictures of my littlest valentines before heading out for dinner. I went from 1 Valentine. To Two and now Three! Valentines just keep getting better and better! 

 Jasper is going through a phase where he isn't wanting his picture taken all the time, but he was persuaded to jump in one one! As long as he could have his sisters foot in his mouth apparently.. 

 And since I obviously didn't add enough pictures to this post, here are a few from a mini Valentines day photoshoot we had done a few weeks ago