Our Baby Is 6 Months Old!: Happy Half Birthday Little One!

Our Baby Is 6 Months Old: Happy Half Birthday Little One!

he sure loves that paper at the Dr's office!

Tried some organic brown rice cereal for the first time at 6 months old to the day!

He didn't have an extreme reaction, he seemed to like it i think

Kisses from Grandpa in Aspen, Colorado

Laying with mama who was sick with the stomach flu.

I love his facination with shadows.

He basically just kills me when he barries his head into my chest and wants to cuddle.

Wearing his Broncos onesie watching the big game.

Hes pretty excited to show off his two new bottom teeth!

And of course playing naked for a bit in the morning (;

I am fighting back tears as I write this post. Its not because im sad that he is growing, changing, learning, expanding, exploring, becoming even more loveable and fun! I love every minute of being a part of that! I think its really about fear of the future.. the unknown.  Cash still seems so small and sweet and is my little baby. I don't look at him and see a big boy or think hes grown too quickly, as some moms feel. I love the pace that he has grown, my heart can handle this pace so far. So i suppose listening to so many mother's say over and over how quickly they grow (myself included at times), scares me. I suppose I am waiting for that one day where I wake up and he has grown SO much over night. Or theres a week where he goes through a miraculous growth spurt that just blows my mind and my baby is gone. The more I really think about that subconcious fear and bring it to my concious thoughts, I hear how irrational and silly it sounds. So I am going to try my best to let go of the worry that my baby will grow quicker than my heart can bare. I am going to enjoy every moment as I have been, encouraging his milestones, teaching him more every day, and when those days come when I have to pack away more and more clothes that no longer fit him, I will thank God for my son who is growing healthily, who is able to have a deeper relationship with his father and I the smarter he becomes, who can see God more and more the more he learns about life, and that he is alive and well.

That brings me to my brother Brock. Brock passed away before I was born. He was born on my moms birthday and he passed 6 months later on my dads birthday. He died from SIDs (Sudden Infant Death Syndrom).  Devastating. Painful. Despair. I cry when I think about the hurt my parents must have faced. I don't think I ever understood how intenstly that must have hurt growing up.. but having my own son, who is now 6 months old to the day, my heart aches so badly for my parents. I think about how they must have felt losing their first and only son at the time. . that must have been earth s h a t t e r i n g. It would break my soul. I wanted to share this in todays post because of all the moms that follow this little blog of mine.. if any of you have faced this hardship, I am so so so sorry. I want you to know you have a friend in me and if you ever want to talk or need prayer, I would love to be able to be that person for you. I also wanted to share some hope with you. My parents are believers in our Almighty God, they trusted Him with their sons life, they trusted His plan and the path that He chose for their little family. My mom says to this day that Brock was an angel baby, he was perfect in every way, a gift to them. She says at the time my father didn't know the Lord and she had been battling an eating disorder, Brocks dead led my dad to salvation in Christ, it also helped my mom find the healing she needed. She was able to overcome her disorder and find freedom from those shakles.  Brock saved them both. I wouldn't be here today if he hadn't had passed. Neither would my little brother. Our family, my parents, and my four siblings had such a great life growing up together, we are all so very close and I can see how Gods hand was all over our family. Our family is what it is today because of Brock. My moms story, my parents faith together, that has all shaped us in extraordinary ways. I am reminded of how majestic our Lord is and that even in tragic moments in life, we can trust He is soveriegn. Brock, we will see you in heaven someday soon, I cannot wait to meet you and hold you.

Cash, you are a mother's dream come true. We love every part of you. Here are some beautiful things about you this 6th month:  You laugh like crazy, we're talking belly laughing at its finest, you smile all day long, you understand some of things we say ("im going to get you.." that is your favorite! You crack up when we say that), you look when we call your name, you sit up all on your own without assistance (sometimes you topple over so we put the boppy behind you for extra safety), you have managed to live 6 months without 1 single injury, you had your first cold this month (thanks to your cousins, lol), you went on your first airplane (to Aspen, Colorado), you are still exclusively nursing (we are introducing solids today!), you can't keep your hands and toys out of your mouth, you had two teeth cut through this month on the bottom, you only cry when you are tired, hungry or dont feel good, you are starting to try to wiggle and move, you roll all over the place, you sleep on your side, you love to bounce, you are a mamas boy, you think daddy is the funniest person on the planet, you are a cuddler, an observer, and both super calm and a little wild rascal. You are the greatest gift God has given to mommy and daddy adn we thank Him every single day for you.  

Cash you are everything to mommy and daddy, we love you!

Happy Half Birthday our sweet little love!!!

Baby Products We Love: GroVia

Baby Products We Love: GroVia

For all my mamas and mamas to be I love sharing my personal review on baby products. GroVia sent us these new Hybrid Cloth diapers to try and we LOVE them! They come in so many colors and styles, which is fun in and of itself, but they are also super absorbant and can fit your baby from 8-30 lbs!!! Thats a savings i'm worth listening to! These are so easy, you simply pick out a shell (the color or style) and then choose if you'd like a disposable "BioSoaker pad" or a "Organic Cotton Soaker" that is reusable.  Im all about anything organic, so i chose the organic cotton soakers (here) that are reusable after you wash them.  The BioSoaker pads you can simply throw them away (here).

We had no leaks and both the shell (the green outer layer) and the organic cotton soaker (the inside liner) were really easy to wash! Check out some adorable pictures of little Cash wearing the GroVia Hybrid diaper (Grovia link).  I also put some of GroVia's easy to understand diagrams to show you how simple these are.  

Lastly, we they sent us their Grovia Magic Stick Diaper Balm (here). This is one of my favorites! First of all its ALL NATURAL (A++!!!).  This is easily and cleanly applied because it is a twist-up tube! The balm is colorless (you cannot see a thing! it applies thinly, i have a picture below of it on my hand but that is after me applying it several times to show you), its all organic, and petroleum-free..so basically the best balm ever for your babies booty!

Heres how they work!

Love this print for girls!

And i mean, who doesnt love little pandas!

You can only see it because I applied a thick layer! Its really not visible when you put it on your babies bottom.

Heres the diaper balm stick. It is amazing!

Here are the Organic Cotton reusable inserts. They snap in like the picture shows below.

For those of you mamas that love organic and baby friendly products here is a company you will love! No more wasting money on diapers you just toss in the trash. 

*I have to include that this is a product review. We use all sorts of diapers from Pampers, Huggies, Lovies, and Honest diapers (all sorts). i am really not picky and do no discriminate any diaper or against a mother's choice for her child. 

Enjoy!

What I've Been Eating Lately: Butternut Squash & Granny Smith Apple Soup

What I've Been Eating Lately: Butternut Squash And Tangy Granny Smith Apple Soup

This recipe is absolutely delicious!!! It also happens to be healthy and leaves your home spelling wonderful.  I don't know how I was missing out on Butternut Squash soup but I hadn't tried it until this year when my mother in law brought it over and I instantly fell in love. I made this over the holidays a bunch (sorry, im just now getting around to sharing it but we have plenty of time to enjoy more soup..at least through February right?!). You'll have plenty of leftovers for lunch the next day ..this is edible liquid gold!(:

Ingredients:

1 Butternut Squash (peeled, seeded, and chopped)

1 medium onion, diced

1 tbspn unsalted butter

2 Granny Smith green apples chopped to puree inside the soup, 1 green apple chopped for topping

2 teaspoon coarse salt

1 1/2 teaspoon ground cumin

1/2 teaspoon ground coriander

1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

2 cups low sodium chicken or vegetable stock (i used vegetable stock)

2 1/2 cups water

[[you can also add in  Pinches of nutmeg & cinnamon if you'd like]]

Recipe:

Melt butter in a large saucepan over medium heat. Add onion; cook, stirring occasionally, until it begins to soften, about 4 minutes. Add squash, and cook, stirring occasionally, until soft, about 10 minutes.

Add apples, salt, cumin, coriander, black pepper, stock, and the water (just enough to cover). Bring to a boil. Reduce to a simmer, and cook until vegetables are very soft, about 30 minutes.

Puree (you can use a food processor or blender) in vitamix until smooth, and return to saucepan. Heat over low, thinning with more water if necessary. 

Pour into bowls and top with sliced of green apple. I made a side Trader Joe's Whole Wheat Sour Dough bread topped with cheddar cheese. SO YUMMY!

Once its cooked for a while I start to smoosh the squash with the ladle a bit. 

Puree in the vitamix

Serve with apples on top and a side of cheese bread (YES PLEASE!)

What have you been making lately that you love? Share below

xo

What We Wear: Threads And Arrows Plus A Discount

 What We Wear: Threads And Arrows

I have been away in Aspen so I apologize for the lack of posts as of late.. we came home on Sunday and Monday I woke up to the stomach flu (thought maybe it was delayed altitude sickness or food poisoning but now my dad and husband have been hit with it). 

Anywho, i have been OBSESSING over these moccosins! Threads And Arrows has the best deal and makes the cutest moccs. We are mocc crazy over here! I just love this color they sell called "Toast Brown" in suede leather. They are elastic around the ankle for a secure fit and so so comfty for my little ones soft little feetsies. They have a great selection of colors, both bright colors like Magenta Purple and neautrals like these Toast Brown ones. 

Threads And Arrows is offering free shipping (for domestic shipping) with COUPON CODE: TESSARAYANNE

Check out their shop here: Threads And Arrows

Follow on instagram for the latest styles and colors: @threadsandarrows

I cant get enough of my little cutie pie! But seriously, look at these cute mocs!


Fox Onsie by Baby Gap
Moccosins c/o ThreadsandArrows

xo

Babies First Cold & Babies First Tooth!

Babies First Cold & Babies First Tooth!:

My sweet angel picked up a nasty cold virus from his cousins up in Big Bear. When you're sharing a home with 14 people and 10 of them are sick, the other 4 are bound to catch it. Those other four people, included me, Cash, my husband and my dad. So basically my whole family left vacation starting to feel ill. We arrived home Sunday and Cash had already caught it bad! By monday we were calling the Dr asking if we should bring him in or what we could do to remedy his cold.  The Dr. advised we come in, with a baby only 5 1/2 months old they're so young still and the Dr. was concerned his cough (and choking on flem) could mean that fluid was settling in his lungs. AKA Pneumonia. Yikes.  We took him in right away to see the Dr.. not our Doc but the morning doctor.  I preface it with "not our Doc" because this lady was cold, clinical, unfriendly, and short. Nothing like our sweet Dr. Mike.  Anyhow, she didn't really say or do much. She confirmed he didnt have a fever, that he didnt have an ear infection, and that he had a cold, his throat was really red and sore, and would most likely be sick for close to two weeks.  She also told us the great news that his lungs were fluid free.  What she didnt say was how we could help him, or ease his aches and pains. Or tell us anything to help him for that matter.

I asked a bunch of you on instagram as well as all of my mama family and friends. You guys gave me great suggestions. So we went out and bough a humidifier for his room to help his congestion and to help him breathe, we bought Maty's all natural chest rub to put on his chest and his feet (with socks) at night to help ease his cough, we gave him tylenol for the aches and pains and to help his sore throat (he kept waking up all night long crying and was extremely fussy but the tylenol seemed to help).  We went out and bought infant Motrin because someone told us that helped with inflamation (his throat) more than Tylenol would.  We gave him baths to help soothe his achey body and help his nose clear up. I sat in the bathroom with the shower on HOT HOT HOT water so the steam would help him breathe and get rid of his sad little cough.  We used the Nose Frieda with baby saline spray (worked like a charm but he hated it).  And of course, we cuddled him all day long to help comfort him. He would only sleep in my arms the first few days during naps.  A week into his cold i discovered a tooth coming in! My poor baby was battling teething and a nasty cold all for the first time.

His tooth broke through within three  days but now we are waiting on the  tooth next to it to cut through. We are giving him Motrin, because that seems to be the best for inflammation. We also have all natural gel to out on his gums for those moments whn the medicine hasn't kicked in yet.

cash getting his first tooth is bittersweet. It makes me excited an chapped but also sad that he's becoming a little boy instead of little baby. Any of you mamas feel that way?