Favorite Parenting Links Lately

1. The important thing about yelling - this was a good read for me. Since I've had the baby the lack of sleep has taken a toll on my patience for sure.

2. There is only now. Sometimes we forget to be in the moment with all of our responsibilities hanging over our heads, but kids never forget. (P.S. A funny read about responsibilities)

3. Laugh out loud funny.

4. I knew I became a mom when...

5. This one hits close to home for me - On being a parent with pets.

Hope you enjoy them as much as I did! xo, Lauren

Around Here

1. More mustard + mint
2. She loves to collect acorns (NUT!) and leave them for the squirrels to EEEAAT!

3. Pretty vintage pillowcase

4. Testing out the big girl bed for Violet

5. Warm sticky buns

6. Matchbox cars and ballerina bears - our girl can do it all.

7. Flop!

8. Pretty colors

You can follow along on Instagram @withtwocats


xo, Lauren

Around Here

1. Mustard + Mint

2. Sleepy

3. Dew

4. Roll or Ankle?

5. Spring Backyard

6. Blue Eyes + Pig Tails

7. Neon + Neutral

8. Visit to the Doctor

9. Lunch

10. Pink + Orange

11. Hats + Blue Sky

12. Running Free

Feel free to follow me on Instagram to see more snapshots of our little life - @withtwocats

Snapshots

I can't believe how quickly time flies by. Christmas is almost here, my sister and her husband are arriving from Australia today for the holidays, and Violet is 19 months old! She can peel her own clementines and climb up into her booster seat - where has my little baby gone?! We've been hard at work on her big girl room so that it's ready whenever she is, along with improvements here and there on other parts of the H-Haus. Here are a few snapshots from our life lately:

1. Violet is in an amazing bedtime routine (knock on wood) and loves to sleep with her frog and blankies. She rarely cries or fusses anymore, but just babbles to herself in her sweet way until she drifts off to sleep. Without a paci I might add!

2. We've been hard at work creating our own personal gift wrap for the holidays. We got to try out a little sample on one of Violet's friends' birthday gifts - she was so proud of her creations!

3. It's nearly Christmas and that means cookie exchanges! I made simple sugar cookies, but you should've seen some of the crazy cookies I received in return.

4. Reusable gift tags from Etsy - they're almost too pretty to give away!

5. Working on a little corner of the back room - I've been itching for a place to display more of the art that I've collected over the years so another (miniature) frame wall it is.

6. Yeah, I buy cookbooks for the pretty pictures :)

7. Violet's dotty bedding has arrived! It compliments the pillows perfectly. Now we just need a bed...

8. A clean desk + a new home computer = a happy blogger.

9. One of my favorite things in Violet's big girl room - a flower garland from Lori Marie.

10. Sweet lion sweater for my little one from the littlest.

11. Just me being random at work.

12. We have a new furry friend - he visits us almost every evening and Violet just loves her outside "Diddy!"

If you're interested in more snapshots, I'd love to see you over on Instagram! Follow me and I'll be sure to follow you.

xo,

Recently...

We played in the leaves

I dyed my hair on a whim

We visited our favorite burrito joint

I painted a picture

I took a sneaky pic of my handsome Hubster

Charlie and Moe have been snuggling up to keep warm

We got a new computer

Violet fell in love with Shel Silverstein 

xo,

Happy Halloween!

Getting ready to bake some pumpkin cookies, drink hot apple cider, and go trick-or-treating for the first time with the babe! Happy Halloween from our house to yours.

Pumpkin image via Pinterest by Kelli Trontel Photography

Randoms from Our Weekend

Here are a few random photos from our weekend:

I decided to try wearing Violet on my back for the first time in the Beco carrier. I hadn't done it before because first she just seemed to small, and then she got into a hair-pulling phase. Now seemed like the right time, and guess what - she loved it!

In other news, our family had a crab feast this weekend. I'm not a fan, but the Hubster dug right in. I don't think the taste justifies the horror of ripping apart something this disgusting-looking piece by piece, but that's just me:

 

I did, however, very much enjoy the rest of the food. When it was time for dessert the Hubster asked if I preferred strawberry cake or cheesecake. I had one of each, of course! It was great to hang out with family on such a perfect summer day - baby pools, bubbles, badminton, horseshoes, and general lounging about were just a few of the activities that too place.

In cat news, Charlie thinks he is a hunter and has claimed this (faux) sheepskin as his own. He looked so cute laying there in all of his fluffy glory.

And last but not least, a few randoms of the babe. She has recently started imitating us a LOT. When I say 'thank you' or 'I love you' she sometimes imitates the inflection of my voice. Kind of like, 'Ah uh oooo'. It's sooo cute.

She also has a bit of an obsession with the Hubster's belly button. We eventually showed her that she, too, had a belly button, and she was thrilled. She erupted into delighted squeals and almost fell over trying to get a good look at the thing. Now when we ask, "Where's your belly button?" she pulls up her shirt and points at it. I die every time. You have to beware if you ask though - she will usually want to see your belly button as well! After she learned that my parents also taught her where her nose was. When she points to it her finger usually ends up in a nostril. I mean, it's just the perfect resting spot for those chubby little fingers, right?

Oh this little girl gets cuter every day. It doesn't seem possible as every day I think she must be the cutest person on Earth, but every day she manages to raise the cuteness bar. It's set pretty high, so sorry to any of you out there who were hoping to steal the title - I don't think it's gonna happen.

Hope you all had a great weekend as well! If you entered the Tea Collection giveaway, stay tuned - a winner will be announced shortly...good luck!

iPhone Randomness

A few random photos from our iPhone (using the Instagram app)

1. Violet 'riding' her bike
2. Trying on hats is fun!
3. Violet + Daddy
4. At the (very windy) park with mommy
5. Mmmm...the Hubster is a good cook. Salmon, sweet snap peas, and wild rice.
6. Baby in bed = watching the NBA finals with Charlie and the Hubs.
7. Backyard flowers.
8. Chatting on the 'phone'
9. Hubba hubba :)

It's going to be an interesting week - last week of work, Violet's babysitter is due on the 10th, so Grammy will be watching her this week, she's getting some new teeth, and we're working on apples! Plus a jam packed schedule of graduations, graduation parties, going away parties, meeting new babies, and who knows what else. Oy. Wish us luck - hope you have a fabulous start to your week!

P.S. Check back for a great giveaway later this week!

Easter 2011

Did you all have a wonderful weekend? I hope yours was as good as ours! Beautiful weather, family, and food - what more can you ask for!? Here are a ridiculous number of few photos from our day:

Violet woke up, took a bath, got dressed up, and played with the cats for a bit:

We spent the morning with my parents at church and then went back to their house:

Violet took a mid-day siesta to recharge for part two of our Easter extravaganza:

The second half of the day we traveled to see Kevin's family and spent the rest of the day egg hunting, playing, and eating with Violet's gazillion cousins, aunts, uncles, and grandparents.

Violet had a seriously amazing day - every person, every leaf, every toy was thrilling to her and she lived it up until it was time to go home. There's really nothing more amazing than seeing the world through the eyes of your child. Hope yours was just as wonderful as ours!