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Monday, January 30, 2017

Gideon's Fluffy Bum

I don't think there is anything cuter than a naked baby in a fluffy cloth diaper. We were given so many disposable diapers when we brought Gideon home and have finally run out meaning it is time to start cloth! This will be my first time having two in cloth thanks to Ford potty training really young (same age as Lucy is now... and there is no way she is ready!) so I am anxious to start a routine. I split up the diapers we have into different color piles for Lucy and Gideon... I am not looking forward to telling Lucy that Gideon gets all the blue diapers! Poor 3rd child gets so many hand me downs, diapers included, so I am super excited that he got two of his very own diapers from Buttons Cloth Diapers. Their prints are CRAZY cute, I have a thing for buffalo check. We also got this adorable Santa Fe Aztec print one... pictures to come! I seriously can't get enough of Gideon's little body... well I shouldn't say little, he is going to be my tallest kiddo for sure! 

Pop on over to my Instagram for a giveaway of a Buttons Cloth Diaper for your little ones booty!


Buttons Cloth Diapers







Buttons Cloth Diapers

Sunday, January 29, 2017

Treat Yo Self

I'm all for self care and treat yo self, especially for you mamas so I am here today to tell you to click on over to Comfy and Chic Boutique to buy yourself a little something for Valentine's Day. I snagged this Love Life graphic tee and it basically goes in the wash and goes right back onto my body every other day. It is comfy, cute, and can be worn with leggings and a ball cap or jeans and heels (pictured below wearing these jeans). I also scored this Maggie top and Riley Dress in navy... I think I may have an obsession with elbow patches y'all. Happy Galentine's ladies... now go buy something for yourself!

Use the code RUTHIE15 for 15% off your entire purchase friends. 





Find Comfy and Chic Boutique

Tuesday, January 17, 2017

Family Yearbook

I started blogging a few weeks after Jon and I returned home from our honeymoon 6 years ago as a way to keep a journal of our lives as a newly married couple and then our growing family in the future. I love having my own little corner of the internet to share my thoughts, what is going on with our family, recipes I make and love, encouragement for other mamas and wives, and a bunch of other random things I used to blog about. As much as I love my blog, I take approximately 1 trillion pictures that don't ever make it on there that sit in organized folders on my computer. My big sister gave me the idea a few years ago to make a "family yearbook" each year. Genius! I started in 2013 chronicling most of my pregnancy with Ford and the first 4 months of his life. Fast forward 3 years later, I just completed and printed our 2016 family year book, our 4th book. Ford has always been so intrigued and enjoyed looking at our family yearbooks and yesterday he took our 2016 one in the car with him. It is incredibly to look back and see where 2016 started and how it finished. A house flood, a new job for Jon, a failed adoption, Gideon, what a whirlwind.


I wanted to share a little bit more about our family yearbook because I know how many people were in my same boat a few years ago.... you have a billion pictures and nothing to do with them. No one prints out photos anymore unless they're to frame and thanks to Smartphones, I pretty much have a picture of my kids from every single day of the year. It's no secret that I love Shutterfly (we used them for our adoption profile books and Christmas cards) and their photo book interface is pretty much my favorite! I haven't always used them and remember in years past being so stinking frustrated with how slow other companies tools were and how long it would take me to create my books. Shutterfly's interface has so many layouts, colors, text options and best of all.. it is FAST! I don't have to wait 10 minutes for photos to upload and I can even edit photos as I upload them (crop, lighten, etc).  If you know me in real life, you'd know that I am slightly OCD when it comes to organization and have my pictures filed in folders based on activity, month, and year. So when I upload photos from a visit to the zoo, I would label it 1- Zoo Visit (meaning we went to the zoo in January) and stick it into the 2017 folder. I also upload my iPhone photos once or twice a month and make separate folders for those. I create my yearbook in chronological order so taking the extra few seconds to organize my photos makes it SO easy to make my book. I also try to work on my yearbook once a month or every other month to lighten the load. The first year I made a yearbook I did it ALL in December and it took me hours and hours and I was mentally exhausted. My sister and I will text each other every so often as a reminder to work on our books, yep we are a little OCD! Shutterfly has amazing deals ALL.THE.TIME so I be sure to order when I can maximize my coupons (50% off, free shipping). I love following Shutterfly on Instagram to make sure I know about their latest deal (and little tidbit, every so often they will post about FREE products... free deck of cards, free coffee mug... no purchase necessary!). And because my book is almost always 100 pages, the maximum number of pages, I pay extra for the lay flat pages making the book sleek and easy to look at. So if you're looking for a way to capture and keep family memories without printing a million pictures, start a family yearbook in 2017!

The past 4 years family year books


Some of my favorite pages from our 2016 family yearbook




Find Shutterfly

Friday, January 13, 2017

Catch Air

Not gonna lie, this past week (or couple of weeks really) have been tough. I've felt at my wits end with a certain child of mine (not to name names but my only daughter) and at the end of the day feeling defeated, exhausted, and questioning what the heck I am doing wrong (or right for that matter). She has been doing so well with her baby brother but I am thinking it is probably a mix of taking the adjustment of a new baby out on me and just being an almost 2 year old, hard to separate the two really. I know she is exactly who God chose to be my daughter, me her mother, and I am so thankful for grace, a hands on husband who recognizes my need to be alone, and early bedtimes (and chocolate... and chips). I have been trying to be intentional with how I spend my time with Lucy (and Ford too) and making sure I have one on one time with them where I can focus and pour into them alone. Today is a rainy, gloomy day in Austin and instead of sitting at home I decided to take the kiddos (all 3, thank you Gideon for being such a good baby and sleeping the whole time!) to Catch Air, our favorite indoor play place in Austin. Ford kept asking if certain friends were coming and I told him "Nope, just a day with mommy" and I am really glad it ended up that way. Play dates are usually a way I can chat and catch up with friends while my kids are being entertained but today was about me, and my kids, and playing together. 



If you live in Austin and haven't been to Catch Air, you have to check it out! It is almost too hard to explain because there is just so much to do! Slides, jumpy houses, spinning things, it's kind of psychedelic. It is really a neat place that doesn't cater to one certain age group. Lucy, age 1, has the time of her life, and I even saw older kids probably age 10 having so much fun. I was able to wheel Gideon around in the stroller as we moved from area to area and adults can play too! Catch Air just opened their 2nd Austin location in Round Rock. Most kid play places are total germ factories and I love how clean they keep it here. We've been to a birthday party at Catch Air and it was a blast! We got a punch card so we can go more often, I can't wait to take my hubby!

Catch Air

Here are some pictures of their brand new Round Rock location!








Tuesday, January 10, 2017

Gideon 2 months old

As I blink through tired eyes, I can't help but to be in awe (and denial) that 2 months has already gone by! Christmas, New Years, lots of sickies, lots of late nights and up all nights has made the month seem to drag on but we are so in love with this little man and still can't believe he is ours. These pictures aren't the greatest but I got everything prepared for photos and he woke up from his nap cranky but we had to stick to the plan! Now here are some updates on Gideon's 2nd month:

  • 11lbs 8oz (26th %), 24" (87th %), head 39.2cm (48th %)
  • Gideon had his 2 month well check today and did great! Lots of smiles and coos for the doctor and nurses, he is such a charmer. He is a tall and skinny boy that's for sure! My tallest baby yet! He checked out great, nothing to be concerned out! He cried pretty hard during his vaccinations but quickly calmed down with some cuddles from mom. We are hoping not to go back until his 4 month well check in March
  • We moved him to his crib in his room around 6 weeks. Sleep was a tender subject for us this past month but the past few nights have been really good, praise God. Gideon is a great napper during the day but nights have been a little unpredictable. We have been putting him down at 9pm and trying to hold him off for a feed until 4am. Two nights ago he didn't wake up until 5:50am to eat (!!!) and last night he cried out at 2:30a so I gave him his paci and then fed him at 4a when he cried out. I am working on getting him on routine nap schedule, but it is also hard with two active toddlers!
  • He is pretty fussy between 7-9pm, also known as the Witching Hour. He is also in a Wonder Weeks leap so lots of bouncing and walking during that time. 
  • He is an absolute houdini in his swaddles! We have tried everything (including the Miracle Swaddle which he proudly broke out of within an hour of sleep) and are now using a Summer Infant Swaddle with another brand of velcro swaddle over it, can't remember the name but it has two extra straps on top.
  • Gideon takes the Wubbanub paci sometimes... mostly when he's trying to burn off energy or we are trying to push him longer to a feeding. He isn't great at it and doesn't take it at bedtime... it wouldn't surprise me if he ends up not taking it within the next few months.
  • This month he is talking, smiling, cooing... it is the BEST! I can't wait for the next few weeks because I know this is when it gets even cuter. He has the best gummy smile
  • He is also incredibly active! He no longer wants to snuggle on your chest calmly, he is lifting his head, moving around, looking around, kicking his legs, grabbing things with his hands, so many new things.
  • He loves kicking under his playmat and often has Ford and Lucy under there keeping him company.
  • He is pretty much over the Boppy Lounger and Rock and Play, too baby-ish for this big guy.
  • We have a swing upstairs but have only put him in it a handful of times, I should do it more now that I think of it.
  • We just started putting him in the Fisher Price Sit Me Up Chair and he likes it! I think he prefers to be sitting up and looking around and in on the action.
  • Lots of time in the Lillebaby carrier, I can't wait until I can forward face him.
  • He lost a little bit of hair up front but it is growing back in... he has such beautiful, soft hair!
  • Poor guy still has baby acne on his cheeks, I hope that goes away soon!
  • We don't bathe him often because A. babies don't really get dirty and B. he is half black and I don't want to dry out his already dry skin. The jury is still out on whether he likes bath or not... sometimes he gives me the biggest lip and cries but sometimes seems to enjoy it. 
  • He has the most beautiful big brown eyes, I love them!







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