Christmas Wish List Goodies

 Christmas Wish List Goodies

Hey ladies, i wanted to make sure i shared a quick list of some of our current favorites and some of our wish list for Christmas goodies for our two babies (BIG NEWS TO SHARE WITH YOU ON THE GENDER IF YOU HAVENT ALREADY GUESSED FROM THIS POST, ill be sharing tomorrow or the following day so stay tuned).   Check out below to find some great online shops that have had some really amazing deals throughout December that you can't miss!  I may do a second list later in the week for you last minute shoppers like myself.

^^^Lucky Palm Tree does it write with this adorable Christmas onesie + striped beanie! All organic and baby friendly.  Click here to shop their website now! ^^^^

^^^I've shared this bow tie Cash wore on Thanksgiving but it deserves another mention. . . Beau Hudson has the most darling bow ties a mama could ever dream of for her boy! Check their website here. ^^^

^^^OKAY, lets talk slouchy beanies.. my favorite boy accessory! The best you will ever ever find is Beau Hudson slouchy beanies. Theyre so comfortable, they fit perfectly and they come in best selection of patterns and colors. Dont miss their exclusive Christmas styles right now CLICK HERE.  Striped grey and black beanie below is also Beau Hudson.

^^^This little Lucky Palm Tree sweater and pants suit is perfect for winter and keeping this cutie warm & of course in all organic knit. Shop here. 

^^^I melt for that sweet face. These little leggings are by Lucky Palm Tree as well! And that little bear beanie is my current fav and is from Zara.

^^^Putting the ornaments on the Christmas tree in our Cozy Beau Hudson cardigan! A must for a little boy or girl! We can use this one on repeat with our new babe! ^^^

^^^This smiley boy is extra smiley because Christmas is in just 10 days!!! Hes rocking those favorite Zara skinnies, cons, and Zara sweater with Beau Hudson's cutie pie bandini! 

Now on to little ladies:

^^^This kimono and poncho up top are from Little Baberhams collection & i have been eyeing these for quite some time! You must scoop them up if there are any left over for Christmas, or even after with all that extra money some of you may get for a gift from your distant relative (;  These are too cute not to! Go check out their instagram @littlebaberham to see these modeled on some adorable toddlers.^^^

These baby beanies kill me! Melanie the sweet shop owner of Beanie Babes Company is sending us a bundle for our new baby and a beanie for Cashy boy. She sells a pack of 3 beanies for $25!! Hand made, what a steal!!

You can email the designer directly to place an order: beaniebabescompany@gmail.com -- more pictures of styles/colors on Instagram @beaniebabescompany -- etsy store opening soon!

Find these TOO die for head wraps for babies & kids by clicking here Darling Oh Deer & follow @DarlingOhDeer on instagram for great sales, giveaways and deals!  This sweet baby girl belongs to one of my best friends who happens to be the owner/designer and our first baby gift ever for this little bun in the oven was one of these adorable wraps! 

HAPPY SHOPPING!!!! 

(i know this is crazy but i havent even STARTED!!!! ahhhh!)

What are your favorite shops for babies/toddlers (boy or girl)?!

Our Christmas Card 2014 + A Discount!!

Our Christmas Card 2014 + 10% Discount!!

(front)

(back)

I love these photos so much that Kelsey Steindler photography took this August a month after Cash's first birthday. We decided we would make these our Christmas photos because they encompass so much of what our family is and means to us, love and joy! I wouldn't want my life any other way, these two boys complete me and our sweet little one on the way will bring us even more joy.  

Fabulous Nuts & Bolts Designs custom made our Christmas cards this year (check out last years card here), and they even offer the option to print, which for me is a must! Who wants to have to go print their own cards when we have a million other things to do this season. Anywho, I wanted something classic, elegant, and simple and Nuts & Bolts Designs did just that! She listened to my every want and even changed some things around when I asked. I love that its our card just for our little family, and you can have her create one just for yours to be a reflection of you this year.  

Nuts & Bolts Designs sells custom invites, cards, stationery, and even baby books! The creator loves paper and stationery so shes spends a lot of time finding quality paper and loves to see her designs come to life when they move from the computer screen to printed form.  She says "I know there are people who still love snail mail as much as myself, and thats who i love designing for!"  Im right there with you girlfriend!

Nuts & Bolts Designs is offering 10% off all items in her shop (valid through 12.31.14 so order now!!!)  You don't have to order Christmas cards, this is good for anything in her shop!! Order thank you cards now, or even holiday party invites.

10 % OFF Coupon code: TESSASAVE

Shop here

Christmas Tree Lighting & Visiting Santa!

Christmas Tree Lighting & Visiting Santa!

We had such a blast this past weekend celebrating my mom in laws birthday by going to dinner at Red O at Fashion Island and then going to see the Christmas tree lighting, watch a water show, and get some hot cocoa and coffee while walking around as a family. This holiday season is so special, Cash is old enough to really enjoy it and is talking up a storm saying "SANTA" "LIGHTS" "JESUS" "TREE", it is so adorable and im soaking up every bit of him this last Christmas with just the three of us.

He was so excited to see that the fountains at Fashion Island were all lit up with beautiful colors night, he even tried to dive in, as per usual (;

Visting Santa was quite the experience.. I have never ever seen this little one afraid. EVER. He is a fearfless one i tell you. But the moment he saw us walking up to Santa to place him on his lap, he instantly clung to me and was terrified.  He didn't want to go anywhere close to him. Of course, we knew most kids are initially scared of Santa so we figured its tradition to get a crying "get me the heck out of here" photo of him as a baby.  So we did what all parents do and put him on Santas lap anyhow. He kept looking back at the old man with the giant white beard behind him. I will never forget the look on his face, he was curious but scared.  So my husband and I jumped in the photo with him and Santa stood behind the chair, Cash had his eye on him the whole time. It was pretty comical, as sad as it was. The rest of this week he has asked about Santa every. single. day.  Its as though he forgot how terrorized he was and now is filled with curiousity and wonder.  We have a couple Santa figures up at home and he chats with them every day. So maybe we'll pay Santa another visit this season and see how it goes now that they've been introduced (:

^^^my favorite photo!^^^

^^^much better with mama^^^

^^^Papa walking around his grandson, what could be cuter!?!^^^

^^^I cannot get enough of these two together^^^

^^^ISn't this just the best photo ever? He was so amazed and excited!^^^

^^^& about as best of a photo of the three of us we got by the tree, lol #toddlerlife^^^

^^^Watching the water show intensely.. & below, hes about to dive in. vvv

He woke up early Monday morning throwing up. Thats never ever happened so we were immediately alarmed and kept a watchful eye on him.. he ended up throwing up the rest of the morning for several hours, not even able to keep tylenol down.  So we cuddled the rest of the day and slowly but surely he was cured from the flu/or food poisoning (who knows?!) and was able to eat dinner and it didnt come back up. PRAISE the Lord! That was quite terrifying & really really sad on my mama heart. If your little one gets the flu for the first time heres what worked for us (make sure you have clean laundry because you'll be changing him and yourself quite often, pediatlite (for the electrolites..1/2 oz every 10-15 mins if theyre able to keep it down), pedialite frozen popsicles (easier for them to eat slowly verses chugging fluids and vommitting right after), water (to stay hydrated.  1/2 oz at a time every 10-15 mins if theyre able to keep it down), sprite (to calm the tummy), crackers.  Once theyre better and keeping fluids and crackers down for several hours we tried giving him the BRAT diet, bananas, rice, apples and toast. We started with a banana, more crackers and then gave him some bland oatmeal. That was about it for the day. 

....We find out if ITS A BOY OR A GIRL next weekend at our gender reveal holiday party!!!!!!! So i've been working with some great shops and some fun DIY projects for the party that i cannot wait to share with you all! (stay tuned and keep an eye out next week for that!)

 What do you think we are having?! Write it in the comments below, i would love to hear from you guys! 

(i have quite a few posts coming this week so keep checking back for those as well!)

XO

Happy Thanksgiving!

 Happy Thanksgiving!

We have had the craziest week between birthdays, the holiday and family gatherings, a proposal, and more birthdays! We started off the week with a 1st birthday party fiesta for little Georgia, then a boat cruise through Newport Harbor for my Nanas 85th birthday and an early Thanksgiving celebration with my relatives on my moms side. We had so much fun on this adorable Tiki boat with catered mexican food, a dj, and kareoke that had us all dancing & singing at some point. Its always a good time when you have 30-40 of us together and all of the cousins get to play.

On Thanksgiving morning I did the Dana Point Turkey trot (5k) with some of my girl friends and their babies and sipped coffee and chatted for a few hours, it was a great way to start the day. Then we headed over to my in laws for a couple hours and for dinner spent the evening with friends and family on my husbands side. It was a lot of fun and a lot of grubbin. We came home in some pretty serious food comas.

Friday we had Thanksgiving with my side of the family with just my immediate family, we each brough a dish or two and I made 2 Kale salads and home made macaroni and cheese (i'll share on that later because they were too yummy not too).  We always have so much fun together, getting all of us under one roof are some of my favorite moments and memories.

Today my sweet little brother proposed to his girlfriend and we added a 4th sister to the clan.  I am so grateful he found such an incredible woman, he is truly one of the best men i know. They are both so blessed and I cannot wait to see how God moves in their marriage. We were able to surprise her and celebrate with our two families joined today for an engagement party. Tommorrow we are going to get our Christmas tree, start decorating, and then we get to take our beautiful mother in law & family to an early dinner for her birthday & watch the tree lighting at Fashion Island.  

This week was jam packed with so much excitement and suprises (one or two im not allowed to share just yet) and we are just so thanful for family and living close to all of our loved ones. Its such a special time of year when everyone wants to celebrate their love for one another and get into the holiday spirit. 

Being pregnant I am really into Christmas traditions right now. I love love love Christmas but this year is different, i've been watching just about every cheesey Christmas movie thats out there and dying to decorate and sip cocoa and i have this weird thought that I wont be able to get done all of the Christmas-y things i've been dreaming of all of November.  I'm sure the next few weeks til Christmas will be fast paced but its my goal to fit in all the tradition my heart desires all the while keeping our focus on this being Christ's birthday.  I hope you guys are feeling the holiday spirit!

^^^celebrating our little Georgias 1st bday with a fiesta^^^

^^^This little angel is my best friends new baby Eve Rowan, im a bit obsessed with her & want to sneak her away in my pocket^^^

              ^^^Serious dance party on the boat. My family has no shame, and i  loveeee it. ^^^

^^^these two cuties pre engagement^^^

^^^he was so into watching the water^^^

^^^hanging with his autnie and uncle^^^

^^^horsie rides on grandmpa^^^

^^^kareoke^^^

^^^cousin love^^^

^^^Skipping to the finish line of the 5k with my little friend Michael^^^

^^^Turkey Trot 2015, roasting in the early day light^^^

^^^i coudnt get over that Beau Hudson bow tie on Thanksgiving!! You need one for your little guy if you dont already have one, & i wish i had taken more photos this week. ^^^

^^^Cousin play on 3rd Thanksgiving^^^

^^^So full, so theres a mini bump (:  a little over 12 weeks ^^^

^^^ And their sweet engagement! Congrats to you lovebirds! ^^^

^^^My sis on the far left is 5 weeks ahead of me and im hitting my second trimester now. Engagement party celebrating the two cuties in the middle^^^

**sorry for the iphone quality photos, i was terrible about pulling out my big camera this week. . . just too busy. But i suppose these are better than nothing.***

A holiday gift picks post coming soon!! Also we find out the gender of our little baby realllll soon, what do you think we are having, a boy or a girl?

XO

Pregnant With Baby Number 2!!

 Pregnant with Baby Number 2!!

If you follow along on my instagram (@tessaarmstrong8 also linked on the right side of my blog) you know that we are expecting Baby number 2 this June! Now that the cats out of the bag I wanted to fill you guys in on life lately.  Im sure you noticed I have been a little MIA lately and posting way less often, I've been battling severe all day nausea (not throwing up thankfully) just like I did with Cash in the first trimester. Its awful! I have also been exhausted beyond reason so trying to take care of my 15 month old has been about the only way I can exhaust any energy because I really dont have much these days. I couldn't keep this special secret to myself for much longer so I wanted to share early on like I did with Cash because its so much more real and beautiful when your loved ones know and can be praying for your bun in the oven.

We found out we were pregnant a couple weeks into living in our new home, so talk about craziness, I was trying to unpack and organize our new house and then started feeling exhausted and sick nearly right away. Bad timing, but we are so thrilled!! I found out while my husband was at work and couldn't hold it in and knew I had to tell him right when he got home that day. So I put Cash in a cute little onesie that read "Let the Adventure Begin" and had him waiting out front holding a pair of baby shoes to hand to daddy when he pulled up. I picked girl shoes so it would be obvious they weren't Cashs (we still dont know the gender).  Here are some cute shots I snapped of the boys right when they found out.

So I know some of you asked about me doing bump updates like I did with our first pregnancy and I've decided I'll do them because they're a great way to keep a journal of all that goes on and be able to hold on to those special moments, but also because I have found how much I enjoy other bloggers who share their experiences and find a way to relate to other women as we go through this incredibly amazing but difficult journey of creating a life. Pregnancy is no easy feat.   I'll probably do a monthly pregnancy update, not much changes week to week but month by month is a whole other story, so you guys can expect those.

How far along: 11 Weeks (Due date June 11th)

Gender: We'll find out in about 3 1/2 weeks

Maternity Clothes:  I have whipped out my maternity leggings and jeans already, just because they're more comfortable when the baby sits so low right now and my uterus is expanding, cramping, and stretching. It can get really uncomfortable when anything tight is touching where my uterus is (which is right where my pants button). The belly band and hair tie trick work too, but who are we kidding, maternity jeans/leggings are just way more comfortable. Theres no shame in that. 

Sleep: I became uncomfortable pretty quickly with this pregancy. I think its all the bloating and stretching that happens around night time. From right around 5 weeks and up until now I have so much bloating happening that its literally already uncomfortable. I dread getting in bed because my lower back has already started hurting if I lay on it, so im having to sleep on my side which feels like my stomach is heavy and already needs a pillow under it for support. Its insane how quickly my stomach has popped with this second baby! Maybe its because I had a 7.4 lb baby 16 months ago. lol

Miss Anything:  feeling good. ..Being nauseas feels like I have had the flu for 2 months.

Cravings: just like with my first pregnancy I am currently craving fruit, citrus fruit like cuties and oranges sound so yummy, and cold raspberries and watermelon.  At week 4 & 5 I was craving carbs like movie theatre popcorn and cheeze its and pizza. Its so weird what our bodies tell us we want.  At weeks 6-9 I really wanted soups, butternut squash soup, tomato soup and tortilla soup sounded so good. 

Adversions: I have had an adversion to anything i cook, lol. Cooking has been something that grosses me out and makes me gauge thinking about, so we have done wayyyy too much eating out these past 2 months, exactly like when I was pregnant with Cash in my first trimester.  

Symptoms: Less cramping and stretching now that ive passed the first two months, I have really awful constipation (isnt this pointless if im not honest?) this is due to being on Zofran (my anti nausea medication again). This same problem happened with my first pregnancy, and let me tell you, it is NO fun.  I tried 2 other medications and they didnt work at all. This time around Zofran only works off and on, with Cash it felt like it took away all of my nausea.  I am always hungry, & I have to eat every 2 hours because if I dont im nauseas again.  Really exhausted but I started feeling a tiny bit more motivated and energized around 10 weeks. Im breaking out on my face, and even my body like i did with Cash in my 1st tri.  And I was really hormonal from week 3.5 to week 8 (thats one of the ways I knew i was pregnant!).  

Belly Button in or out: in

Mood: Really ready to be done feeling sick

Best Moment this week: Having more energy!! 

Looking forward to:  Finding out the gender! Also, being able to work out again, i've taken a month or so off of the gym and I am feeling more motivated and less tired now so Im happy to be feeling better.

Exercise: I stopped exercising for the last month or so, I went to my first Dr appointment and the ultrasound found a small bleed in my uterus, I havent had any spotting or pain or anything, but it just means I had  to be careful for a few weeks so it would heal. I had the same thing happen with Cash early on and it healed perfectly by 12 weeks.  My dr. said it was nothing concerning and they see it all the time, its really common as the gestational sac grows bigger and stretches.  Im not worried about it but I wanted to be safe and do whatever I could to have it heal quicker and keep our baby safe.  It was also a nice break for me while being so tired to just give myself time to rest. 

We are excited to have our little ones 2 years apart and to be giving Cash a sibling.  We are so thankful our little angel is growing healthy and has a strong heartbeat. I can't thank God enough for this blessing.

  If you're on this journey with me and expecting a baby, Id love to hear about how you've been feeling, foods you've been craving, and how you stay healthy and take care of yourself while being pregnant. Also what do you think we are having, a boy or a girl?

Xo

Safe Home Solutions: HOMage

 Safe Home Solutions: HOMage

Hey my people, oh how i have missed you all week! I have some good news to share, I have found a way to clean my new home that is safe for our little guy! I have always had a problem with using harsh products full of hazardous toxic chemicals, but now that I have a baby things have changed where I don't just have a problem with cleaning supplies, I fear the harm they can do to my little one. Our skin aborbs 60% or so of what we touch! AH! I don't know about you but I dont want my little one bathing in a tub that was cleaned with toxic chemicals! I also don't want to put food onto a counter that was cleaned with hazardous sprays, or have him touching our windows and then sticking his little fingers in his mouth. Its crazy to think about how much we already consume from our foods alone that are probably harmful, the last thing we need to do is add to that mess by spraying chemicals in the air of our homes.  Welcome our solution,.. HOMage. 

"HOMage is a concept that has been a long time in the making. We like things natural. We want our homes to feel happy, and breathe happy. Have you ever read the label of a big brand, chemical cleaning product? I mean, whoa. Not to mention the knock-you-out fumes that fill the house after a couple sprays on a surface that you might actually set some food on". - HOMage 

So here we have three sprays: Window cleaner made of Eucalyptus and Peppermint! (SMELLS AMAZING), Disinfectant spray made of Tea Tree and Lemongrass (i use this on all the surfaces Cash touches or plays on), All Purpose Cleaner made of citrus and clove (this one is strong, you can just smell that clove working away at cleaning your countertops! I love that!).  

*all homeopathic ingredients*

This package is for just $25 for all THREE! Or you can purchase them individually for $10.

Everything is made with love in their garage! Help support small businesses and keep your home safe and clean by purchasing your goods today! Thank you HOMage we love our bottles and will use them with care.

Shop HOMage here.