S'mores Life

Not only am I proud of the multitude of crafts I made (AKA two crafts, but whatever) for Clara's birthday, I had some amazing vendors and purchases that helped make her birthday party extra special. Maybe this will give you some ideas for your little one's next party. Recipes/food will be coming in an upcoming post. Also, we're insane and planned to do a huge 1st birthday bash, with mostly adults in attendance...Her second birthday party is going to be a frozen pizza and maybe some diluted juice for the three of us. WHOOP WHOOP. Photography - We had Clara's 1st birthday pictures taken a couple weeks prior by Tracy Marshall Photography . If you are in Anne Arundel Country, contact her! She has taken our family pictures before and is not only incredibly talented but is also a dear friend. By looking at the pictures, you would have never known Clara was NOT in the mood to have her pictures taken, Tracy's three year old was not in the mood to have his mommy pay ...

My first review! I was so excited when Bee All Natural , an organic family skin care company, selected me to review their all natural baby powder . I became a facebook fan of Bee All Natural  when I was entering a giveaway for cloth diapers, but I stayed  a fan because I was very interested in their products. As most of you know, I've basically crossed over from somewhat of a granola to a full-blown hippie since having Clara, and have put more of an effort into trying to use all natural products on her skin. I am not incredibly strict about it, we still have Johnson & Johnson's baby lotion (gifts from baby showers) on our shelves, but if I have an affordable option to buy something else I certainly do. That's what I like about Bee All Natural's products; all of their products contain natural ingredients (that I can actually read and pronounce!) and are 100% USDA certified organic. They are handmade by a Michigan Mom, which is great because I love supporting ...

I recently wrote about the baby gear that saved my life when Clara was an itty bitty baby, and in that post I said I'd follow up with what we could have lived without. Here goes: The Bumpo : Don't get me wrong, it was nice to have, especially since it was a gift. We used it. But for how much it costs, we certainly could have lived without it if we weren't given it. I've heard of moms buying them for $10 on craigslist and then sterilizing them, it might be worth it then. But there's such a short time period that you can use this. When she's small enough, the bouncy seat could work fine. Now her chunky thighs won't go into it. Just not worth the money for us. Arm's Reach Co-Sleeper : As I mentioned in the other post, Clara slept in the Fisher Price Rock n' Play sleeper next to our bed for the first few months of her life. So in my pre-baby mind, this item was perfect because it'd serve as her bassinet right next to me in bed and it converte...

How is my baby seven months old (today!!) and I had made it this long without going to Once Upon A Child? I frequented the Anchorage one as a child with my mom and also a few times since with friends who had babies and for a long time just assumed that it was local to Anchorage. It wasn't until after moving to Maryland that I realized it was a national chain. We were lucky in that we were gifted a lot of new items and given some hand-me-downs as well. There were a few things we wanted to buy brand new (for various reasons, whether it be for safety or because we want it to be able to last through a few kids) but I am definitely not against used baby gear! I bought the boppy and bouncy chair used at our church garage sale. Some family friends who have three children gave us an exersaucer, some clothes, and some diapers. Besides all the new clothes Clara has been given, I have a friend whose daughter is five months older than Clara who sent us a lot of her old clothes and a cousin w...