Trendy Tot Tuesday - Swim Wear

I can not believe it is almost May!

Holy smokes, this year is flying by!

Reagan's first day of swim lessons for this season is today, so I thought it would be a perfect day to focus on swim wear for the little guys.

Don't forget to link up your little ones for Trendy Tot! 

Being that we live in Arizona, we wear swim suits quite a lot! Between swim lessons, days at the pool, the splash pads, and back yard fun- you need a bunch to keep in rotation!

Here are some of my favorite suits Reagan has worn in the past.

Baby Reagan in Janie and Jack.

A little bit bigger Reagan in a cute surfer outfit. 

Not sure where this was from!

I loved this skull swimsuit we got from Target.

And this patriotic suit from Walmart was perfect for the 4th of July!

I did some online window shopping to see what was out there for this year's swim season. 

Here are some of the cute ones I found.  

For The Boys:

I love these Hawaiian print trunks! The boys would look so cute matching in their turquoise.

Children's Place

We love all things patriotic at our house- so these are a must!
Also perfect for our family's annual 4th of July trip.

 Children's Place

More cute Hawaiian print for the boys.

Old Navy

I love the sporty look of these too!

Old Navy

For Harper

How stinking cute is this zebra print?

Children's Place

With the boys in their patriotic suit, she can't be left out!

Children's Place

If you know me, you know I LOVE navy and white polka dots.
Obsessed.

Old Navy

Nothing says summer like yellow!

Old Navy

Our Adventures in Baby Food Part 1

If you follow me on Instagram, you already know that we have begun the world of baby food in our house.  We waited until 6 months to start the babies on it for a couple of reasons. 1. We waited until close to 6 months with Reagan. 2. The research says it is what is best for babies. (Not judging those of you who started early. I just tend to be a big rule follower). Currently the APA recommends waiting until 6 months before starting solid foods.  3 Feeding twins scared the bajeebas out of me.  

I spoke with both our pediatrician as well as one of my childhood best friends (who is a pediatrician) and grilled them about introducing food.  Isn't it funny how quickly you forget all of this stuff even though you've done it before?  I mean- 3 1/2 years ago wasn't that long ago! The following is what I gathered from them and what we have been doing. Clearly, I am not a pediatrician and I am not telling you what we have done is right/wrong. It's just what we did! 

To Buy or Make?

I decided that since I was home and not working I would make the twins' baby food.  I thought that while it would take some time, it would save us some money. For example: Gerber 1st foods cost $3.92 for a 2 pack. Which, we would go through 4 packs a day.  That's over $50 a week. Not including cereal and formula.  A bag of mini carrots at Frys is 99 cents.  One bag can feed the babies 5 dinners.  Get the gist? Much smarter for us right now.

The Recipes

I purchased a book from Barnes and Noble called Top 100 Baby Purees and have been using it as my guide.  I am still very much in the simple phase of the purees but some of them look quite fancy! Haha.

Food Prep

I looked into all of the baby food makers but decided to use what we had at home.  For making food I use (not necessarily all each time) 

a microwavable steamer

(I use it to steam the veggies in the microwave before putting them in the food processor/blender.)

a food chopper

(This makes all that chopping quicker.)

a food processor
(I use this to make the food smaller before putting it in the blender... I have a tendency to try everything in the blender and nothing  blends because my pieces are too big. So this extra step helps me to make sure the food gets pureed.) 

a blender

(Obviously used to make the purees.)

ice cube trays

(After the food is pureed, I pour it into ice cube trays. I usually need 5 or 6 each session. FYI I bought some from the dollar store and they totally broke when trying to get the food out.  So I would recommend getting the nicer ones. It will be worth it in the end!)

small ziplock bags
(I put a serving for both kids in one small bag so that I can grab one bag out of the freezer each day.)

large ziplock bags

(I put all the small bags inside a bigger bag. For example, all of the green been bags go into one large bag, etc.)

Feeding Prep

Seating

We started with the babies sitting in their Bumbo chairs. We only had 1 high chair at that point and two Bumbos. Once we got the second high chair we started feeding them in those. It definitely made me feel a lot safer having them in the high chairs! 

We use the Fisher Price Space Saver high chairs for the twins. I didn't want to have to deal with 2 large high chairs this time around! I love them!

Bowls and Spoons

We had a bunch of bowls and spoons from Reagan, but I picked up a few more.  We have been using these bowls and spoons.  Make sure you get the tiny spoons first (for their little mouths).

Bibs

We started the twins' out with their regular bibs. Disaster! We never had a problem with Reagan messing up his baby bibs with food. In fact, most of the babies' bibs are his hand-me-downs.  So the twins must just be horribly messy eaters!  After a handful of stained bibs, I purchased the wipe able bibs for solid foods and it's been so much easier. 

The Order

I remember with Reagan we followed a specific order and set of rules as to how to feed him.  I asked the pediatricians and they both said that it really didn't matter.  The baby gets most of its nutritional intake from my milk and the formula.  This baby food is more to expose them to the practice of eating and seeing any allergies.  When I asked about doing all of the veggies first, I was told that again it really didn't matter. She said that many of the veggies taste sweeter than the fruits. So I shouldn't be afraid to make them only want the sweet stuff.  

So we dove right in.

I will be back with part 2 soon! 

Revisiting my 2013 Goals

In January I wrote a post about my goals for the new year.

I thought it was time to revisit those goals and give myself a little self-check.

(1)

Get more organized with my housekeeping and do a better job of keeping up with my chores.

I found a good little checklist that breaks the household chores up by days, etc. from Pinterest (where else!?) and I've been doing it this week. It's been working! 

This one is hit or miss. Some weeks I'm really good at cleaning the house and following the schedule. Others, not so much. This week for example is a "not so much" week. I def try to vacuum every other day, stay on top of laundry, mop once a week, etc.  But things like scrubbing the bath tubs, cleaning the mirrors, cleaning out the fridge aren't done as often as I had planned.

(2)

Find a way to add some income to our household while I'm at home with the babies. I've gotten a lot of suggestions from many of you from InstaGram and I really appreciate it.  I'm not sure selling is the way I want to go but it's still an option. I'm thinking of maybe tutoring , selling lessons on TPT (but I need to figure out how to create them!), and maybe teaching online classes. If you have any suggestions, please let me know!

Well, this never happened. Zilch. Not making any money right now. Boo.

(3)

Get my professional stuff prepared (ie. resume, letters of rec, etc.)

In case I do return to the classroom next year, I need to make sure that my stuff is all ready!

Yes! I have done this. I've sent out a ton of applications these past few weeks, so please keep me in your prayers. I know the right job for me will open up and present itself.

(4)

Make time for Nick and I.  We have only gone out once without kids since we've had the babies- for Nick's birthday in October.  I know it's hard to find someone who has time and energy to watch all 3 kids so they may end up being "in home dates".  Once the kids go to bed we tend to do our own thing  (ie. Nick irons and does reading for his tests and I read or blog). We need to set time up to do things together - ie games, movies, desserts, etc.

We've gone out 3 x without the kids since this original goals post. That's almost once a month. Not too bad.  We haven't really been successful with our in home dates.  I had high hopes for board games, desserts, etc. But that just hasn't happened yet.  There is still time! :) 

(5)

Have more patience with Reagan and give him time to be a kid.  Since the babies have been born I feel like I have a majorly short fuse and just don't have time to do the fun things with him that I used to do.

Lord knows I have been trying.

(6)

Start attending church more regularly.

We've actually been really good about this once.  Since January we have only missed 2 Sundays. Reagan just LOVES his Sunday School class and Nick and I are really enjoying going to service each week.

(7)

Read!

I love to read and need to find the time to continue this love!

I've been so-so with this goal. Honestly depends on the book and depends on my time! Right now I'm struggling with the book I'm reading.  It's due back to the library in 2 days so I had better get my bottom into gear if I want to finish it before it's due. I've already renewed it once! 

(8)

Get out of the house more!

Since the babies have been born I am really overwhelmed with the task of leaving the house.

Baby-steps... but I need to get more comfortable running errands and such with the twins and with all 3 kids.

I've gotten so much better with this one! I'm super proud of myself! It's not quite as daunting as it used to be! 

(9)

Be responsible with our money.

I want to start couponing and being a bargain shopper. Any tips?

No hard core couponing, but if I shop I do try to look for a coupon or a coupon code first.  

(10)

Live in the present.

I'm a big planner and seem to always be thinking/worrying about tomorrow.

I really want to start focusing and enjoying today!

This one is so hard for me. I am definitely trying! But being on the job hunt makes it difficult!

What My Husband Says About Me

Last week Becky created a link up for our husbands. I have had so much fun reading what your husbands had to say about you! I really felt like we got a glimpse into each other's lives! Thank you all so much for sharing!  Life has been pretty crazy around our house, so it has taken Nick awhile to write his.  I so appreciate him taking time out to do it. And I had such a good giggle reading what he wrote. 

Here is what he wrote:

1. Mandy loves taking pictures of our family. I think that she believes if we do not have a picture of an event, then it did not really happen.

Haha. Yep. Pretty much. Maybe one day I will get a fancy schmancy camera and really take it to the next level. Hint hint.

2. When Mandy gets tired she starts to play with her hair.  If she ends up bald in 20 years, this is probably why.

Hmm. I think I may end up bald much sooner. This post-baby hair loss is no joke! Do you think with twins I loose twice as much?

3. Mandy loves dinner party type games.  Like when everyone goes around the table and says their favorite .......

Yes. And now Reagan is taking over the throne. This is his favorite thing to do at dinner time now. He starts, "Let's talk about ....". A child after my own heart.

4. If you wake up Mandy from a nap, be ready for the most deer-in-the-headlights-look.  It's pretty cute.

So the moral of the story here is - just don't wake me up!

5.  Mandy changes into her comfy clothes the minute she gets home.  (Usually consists of sweatpants/shorts and one of my tee shirts).  Reagan will even notice and point out if Mommy isn't in her "comfies".

This is embarrassing because it is true.  Reagan has even announced to random people at the store "Something is wrong here. Mama isn't in her comfies.". Awesome. 

6. If Mandy tries to lay down and watch a movie, she will be asleep in 5 minutes.

Always have, always will!

7. If Mandy is really paying attention to something or watching TV, her head will slightly tilt her head to the right. Not really sure why.

Yes. This is weird. I've been known to creep people out.

8. One time before Mandy and I were dating, she saw that I was holding a football and said that she wanted to play catch.  She told me that she was the female version of Brett Favre.  She knew the way to my heart.

I may or may not have had a few drinks and was feeling pretty cocky.

9. Mandy loves her sleep.  If we did not have kids making noise on Saturday mornings I think she could sleep all day.

Definitely. Let's try it this weekend!

10.  Mandy hardly drinks caffeine so it's pretty hilarious when she drinks a Mountain Dew because she is bouncing off the walls.

Dance parties usually commence after a Mountain Dew. Just saying.

11. She loves to dance and sing.  It's just too bad she's not good at either.

Rude.

12. Mandy has to sleep with her 'blanky'.  It's her childhood blanket that is now just a tattered piece of fabric. 

I love my blankie.

13. Mandy is the most loving, thoughtful, caring, and considerate person that I have ever known.

Aww. Love you.

A Day in Our Life

It's been awhile since I have done a "day in the life" post and recently had a request to do it again.

So here goes!

A typical day looks like this:

6:30 am Hudson wakes up. I go get him and try to soothe them while waking up Reagan and getting him dressed for the day.  We make his bed, get him breakfast, and put him in front of the TV for a cartoon before school.

7:00 am Nick takes Reagan to school and heads to work. I wake up Harper and take the twins into my bedroom.  I set them up on the bed to eat their bottles while I pump and eat a breakfast bar.

7:45 am Change the babies diapers, wash the bottles, make the next set of bottles, etc.

8:00 am The twins play for a bit in their exersaucers while I do laundry and unload dishwasher.

8:30 am The twins nap. Most mornings I take them into my bed with me and the three of us cuddle and nap together.  It's may favorite part of the day with them. Lazy bones over here- but I love my sleep and I love my babies. Win. Win.

11:00 am We wake up from our nap.  I set the babies up in their high chairs and feed them oatmeal and some baby food. (This week they will be trying apples at the beginning of the week and pears towards the end).

11:30 am We move into the bedroom where they have their bottles and I pump.

12:00 pm I set the babies up in the living room on the floor with toys. I wash bottles, make bottles, etc. I then try and eat my lunch while they are happy and playing.

12:30 am I lay the babies in their cribs for a nap. While they nap I blog, clean, shower, and do things around the house.

2:00 pm The babies wake up and it's time to eat again.  I pump/bottle feed.

2:30 pm I wash bottles, make bottles, etc. This is usually when we run our errand/s for the day. The twins sometimes nap in the car (for like 15 minutes) but never sleep well.

4:30 pm My Mom picks up Reagan from school and drops him off at the house.  We go over his day and visit.

5:00 pm I put the babies in their high chairs and they eat rice cereal and baby food.  (This week their dinner with rotate carrots and green beans). 

5:30 pm Nick gets home from work and he helps me bottle feed the babies while we talk about his day.

6:00 pm Nick makes dinner and I clean / tidy the house. The babies and Reagan play.

6:30 pm Dinner time for us and Reagan.  The babies usually hang out in the swings, chat with us in their high chairs, or play. Occasionally they take a cat nap.

7:00 pm  Bath time for the kiddos. Nick is usually cleaning up the kitchen and I bath the kids.

7:30 pm I typically do "Reagan duty" and Nick is in charge of the twins.  Reagan's bedtime routine is bath, teeth, pick out books for the night, etc.  We climb into his bed and I read him 3 stories then tell him 3 stories (how we got ourselves into this 6 story mess is beyond me. It is insane but he throws a fit if I try to shorten it.) We turn on his stars (that stuffed animal that shines stars on the ceiling) and cuddle for 10 minutes.  

8:00 pm Nick feeds the twins their night bottles while I finish up with Reagan.

8:30 pm I leave Reagan and go into the bedroom to pump and read blogs. Nick changes the babies' diapers and then lays them down in their cribs for the night.  Afterwards he is usually in the living room watching TV or studying .

9:00 pm I clean bottles and make bottles for the morning feeding.

Nick and I usually reconnect at 9:30 pm to watch a show or a movie together in bed.

He falls asleep around 10:30 pm and I lay in bed reading usually until 11:00 pm.

On my heart...

This week has been an interesting week for me.

My emotions have been all over the place.

My anxiety has been through the roof, I have been crying at the drop of a hat, and I've been totally depressed. I've been going through the motions of life this week but not really talking, smiling, or being my normal self. I've woken up multiple nights from sleep this week having small panic attacks - having trouble breathing, freezing/shivering, and crying. 

I have tried and tried to think about what is affecting me so much and I've come to the following conclusion:

1) the horrible events in Boston/Texas this week

I literally was getting sick to my stomach every time I would hear something about it or see photos or videos. Nick would come home from work and want to talk about it and I would crumble. I didn't want to hear about it. We actually got into a big fight one night this week because he wanted to watch the news. I screamed at him (no, not proud) that I wouldn't allow the news to be on in my house if Reagan was present. He stood firmly that Reagan wasn't paying attention to the TV and that we needed to stay current on what was going on in the world. I just didn't want Reagan (or us for that matter) to be exposed to these horrible things. It's just all too scary. All too real. I felt fearful and I didn't like feeling this way. Yesterday I did watch the news a bit and listen to it on the radio when driving, to hear about them finding the last terrorist. But the whole time I felt like I was in constant prayer. The whole thing is just so.so. sad. I  just can't fathom what would possess someone to hurt innocent people. Innocent children. 

2) work

You may remember that I've put out some teaching applications this past few weeks. I've applied to a local school district, dropped of resumes at neighborhood schools, applied to online colleges, etc. And I haven't heard back from one.  I know I am an instant gratification kind of girl.  And I know after submitting an application it's unlikely I will hear back the following day.  But I hate not knowing. 

Plus I've been hearing horror stories from friends who are currently teaching about how bad things have gotten this year.  The pressure has gotten unreal when it comes to testing, etc.  I have anxiety for them. I have anxiety for myself. Do I want to get back into that rat race? Have I become too out of the loop with the new common core standards? Will I be able to keep up? I really do miss being in the classroom though. Being creative.  Helping students.  But boy will I miss my babies. All of this. Just too much! 

3) other

My house is a pig sty. There are toys and baby equipment everywhere. And making homemade baby food- more difficult than I thought. I'm committed to doing it, but geesh- I've got fruit and veggies coming out of my ears. I am participating in my mothers of multiple sale and I have a couch full of items that need to be washed/ironed/hung/tagged etc. before the sale. Reagan continues to be a handful.  Nightly tantrums, refusing to eat dinner, etc. He plays so hard that by night time he is just exhausted.  Oh and the latest - he got in trouble at school yesterday for pushing a girl down the slide. Really? Lord. I have no patience with him and I tend to just snap. I yell at him instead of talking to him.

I am currently reading "Unglued Devotional" by Lysa Terkeurst. And boy. It really is hitting home. I've read her "Unglued" book and it really has applied to my life. So much of it rings true.

I love her introduction. So true.

"What happens in between the smiling snapshots of life isn't all pretty. I'm willing to admit that.  And I love my friends who are brave enough to admit the messy stuff as well."

She says, " I know what it is like to praise God one minute and in the next minute yell and scream at my child. How can God be so patient? But he is."

This next part is so me.

"I feel so safe with my husband that I'll act out in ways with him that I wouldn't dare act out with others.  I stuff everything away to keep the peace.  True peacekeeping isn't about stopping the emotion.  It's about properly processing the emotions before they get stuffed and rot into something horribly toxic."

And arguing with other -

"Am I trying to prove or improve? In other words, is my desire in this conflict to prove that I am right or is my desire to improve the  relationship?"

"Don't compare yourself with others.  Each of you must take responsibility for doing the creative best you can with your own life.  God has a beautiful plan for me."

"Do not be anxious about anything.  God of peace will be with you." ( Philippians 4:6-9)

"Cast all your anxiety on Him because He cares for you." (1 Peter 5:7)

"Choose prayer over worry."

"Coming unglued isn't all bad if it brings us to God."

"I want to quiet my inner dialogue and replace my anxiety with Your comfort and truth."

"I don't know who puts grace to the test in your life (REAGAN!) but how might things be different if just for today, you decided to resist the funk and give grace a try with that person one more time? Remember- grace doesn't have to be perfect to be good. "

"Dear Lord, thank you for Your amazing grace.  I hope I show it in every conversation I have today.  But when I blow it, thanks for giving me an extra measure of grace." 

"I don't want this to be how my kids remember me.  I don't want this to be how I remember me in this season of my life."

And I will leave you with this last one that I've been reading multiple times a day.

"Dear Lord, in desperate situations, it's easy for me to come unglued, get aggressive, and try to solve my problems on my own.  Instead I need to freely hand my heart and issues over to You.  Help me focus on my blessings, trust You and be thankful for what I have. In Jesus' name, Amen."

What I'm Loving Wednesday - Wishlist Edition

Today I'm linking up with Jamie for her weekly What I'm Loving Wednesday.

So, I've been daydreaming a bit.

Thinking about all the things I want.

Materialist, sure.

But every once and awhile it's good for a girl to make a wish list.

Here are some things on my current wishlist.

(1)

This new iphone case.

Okay. Maybe it's Barbi.

But I think it kind of looks like me with my daily pony tail.

And I think I would get it in hot pink.

Crystal Faye

(2)

I'm loving these for spring/summer.

cute shorts

Old Navy

Old Navy

I need new basic tees

Gap

Nordstrom

(3)

I need some new make-up items.

Ulta

Ulta

What are you wishing for lately?

Anything I need to add to my list? 

Our 6 Month Must Haves and TTT

It's been awhile since I've done one of these "must have" posts.
Now that the twins are more active, their favorite things and "must haves" have changed as well.
Here are the things that come to mind when I think of what they are really into now:

(1)
Exersaucer

We have two. One was from when Reagan was a little guy and one was borrowed from my in-laws. They are both so much fun for the twins and we use them daily. They love the lights, sounds, and all of the toys.  If you have a little one I would definatly recomend getting one. And honestly, if you have twins, I would get two!

 EvenFlo ExerSaucer

Baby Einstein ExerSaucer

(2)

We have a huge basket of toys in the living room for the twins to play with.  But their very favorite ones seem to be their Lamaze brand toys.  They make the most awesome crinkly noises that the twins just love to make.

Below is an example of one of their favorites.

Lamaze Toys

(3)

We got this next toy as a gift from one of my aunts when Reagan was a baby. And I remember it always being one of his favorites.  It continues to be the babies' favorite now too.  When they are playing on the ground, they love to hit it and make all of the noises, play songs, and see the sun light up.  I know it will continue to be a hit once they are sitting up as well. I looked online and it doesn't look like they make this particular one anymore. But I'm sure you can find something similar!

VTech Discover Nursery Farm

(4)

We got this next toy when Reagan was a little guy but it has become one of the twins' favorite things as well.  It works well when we are practicing sitting up.  I can put this toy in between their legs and they play with it while practicing to sit.  The noise and bouncing balls are fascinating for little guys! Again, not sure if they make this same model anymore- but I'm sure you can find something similar!

Playskool Busy Tumble Top

(5)

We have finally transitioned both babies into sleep sacks from swaddles.  They are a nice alternative to blankets and still give the babies some security.

Halo Sleep Sacks

(6)

The babies are really getting attached to their lovies. They each cuddle with their lovie in the crib, in the swing, and even play peek a boo with them. Harper's is pink and Hudson's is blue. Duh. :)

(8)

Our new stroller has become a definite 6 month must-have. We have used it so much already just because of how awesome it is! 

Baby Jogger City Mini

What are some 7 or 8 month must haves that you recommendt I get for next month?

Now for Trendy Tot Tuesday....

This weekend we attended our Mothers of Multiples Spring Picnic.
Not sure why, but I dressed the kids in some patriotic garb.
Not very spring-ish. But I was feeling the red, white, and blue!

Reagan:

Hat from Carters

Polo from H&M

Shorts from Gymboree

Harper:

Top and skirt from Carters

Bow from Basically Bows

Hudson:

Shirt from H&M

Shorts from Carters