Face to Face With the Enemy

It happened last night. I knew it would, I've been living in fear of this day for- well, years.

I was giving baby Wren a bath ( I can still call her a baby because if I don't, I just might do something crazy) I opened up the cabinet to get a washcloth out and felt the lightest touch of something brush across my foot. I told myself before looking down that it was one of the girls tiny little hair elastics. In my heart of hearts though, I knew it wasn't. I knew exactly what it was. I braced myself for what I was about to see and looked down towards my feet. There it was, all 2 inches of it. A baby nighttime gecko. Scurrying around looking for someplace dark to hide.

Many of you don't know me, but many of you do. Those of you that do most likely won't believe me when I tell you I didn't scream, I didn't run, I didn't hyperventilate. I stood toe to disgusting toe with that thing and calmly asked my three year old if she would come and catch it!! She did, and it was business as usual ha!

She might not look so brave here with her little tear because I won't let her drive her new car around, but this lady is a force to be reckoned with and I'm glad she's on my team <3

P.S. I use to be deathly afraid of lizards, like debilitating afraid. Once I realized they lived outside on our new patio, I never went out there again after dark. When we bought our new house, the place was covered in lizards and geckos. I knew I had to do something to change my feelings about them because I didn't want to transfer my irrational fear over to the girls and I was tired of being afraid of them. I honestly asked God to let me see his love for them and to not be afraid of them, and it worked! I don't love them, still don't like them- but I can tolerate them!

Weekend of Birthdays

We celebrated my August ladies this weekend. Before we had either one of them, I was so set on having a September or an October baby. Both girls were due in September, and both were born in August- rascals!!

I love throwing a party and this was the first one we've had since we moved. I was excited to have family and friends over to see the new place and shower the girls with love at the same time! So excited in fact, I decided to help Matt mow the morning of. A favor I'm sure he'd like to soon forget. Although the jury is still out on whether or not me getting stuck on the steps leading down to the pool area is what broke the deck off of the riding mower or not. Seriously- that happened. 

We knew the party would be outdoors and I was so excited to do a woodland, flowery theme. Until Elle kept saying she wanted a penguin party, for like 6 months y'all. How could I crush her little penguin spirit? Wren isn't at the age where she would have requested something different so off to Pinterest I went to find some penguin inspiration. Was tough, most things were basically hello kitty for fowl- are penguins considered fowl? I decided to go with mostly black and white and a penguin piñata and cake. 

I wish I would have gotten more pictures, but I haven't mastered the art of hosting while setting up Instagram worthy shots, and being a mama yet- maybe next year ;) 

The party was a blast and I learned that our yard is meant to be partied in! We moved our table off the back patio into the yard overlooking the pool, had food set up in the gazebo, and had the best August, Texas weather you could ask for!

Everyone was so generous in their gift giving, these girls will be set for way past Christmas. As each year passes by and I throw another party, I realize more and more how less is more. The girls don't care what the theme was, they care that they are loved by family and friends. 

We are blessed by each and every person that came out to celebrate! I'm thinking Halloween might be too far away for another party!

DIY Ruler Growth Chart

Back when I was still pregnant with Wren, I talked Matt into making a huge ruler we could measure the girls on as they grew. Right before she turned one, we finally finished it. We're awesome like that.

It actually was fairly simple to make once we realized we could buy vinyl stickers for the numbers and lines. You can find them here.

Supplies

• 1 board 6ft tall (width doesn't matter but ours is 1/2")
• Stain for the board. I used minwax. Don't go too dark or your markings won't show. 
• Vinyl numbers and lines. You could also draw them by hand if you're talented like that!
• Drywall screws for hanging the board. 

Making the ruler is actually pretty easy. Stain the wood before you put your numbers and marks on. You'll have to measure out where to put the numbers and marks, that takes a little time, but isn't difficult. Do make sure you measure correctly, we didn't start our ruler on 0, so we have to make sure we hang about 6" off of the floor. I recommend using drywall screws and finding the studs in the wall to screw this into. 

We were able to hang this up in our old house right before the girls turned 3 and 1. I like to measure them every 6 months. I use a fine tip sharpie to write down their name and age next to their mark. They get so excited when we measure them!

This is a very easy, though slightly time consuming DIY that anyone could do!

Selling our house in a weekend

Last fall our neighbors put their house on the market. We were shocked when we saw what they were asking, but it got the momentum going for us. We knew we wanted to move before the girls started school and had been financially preparing for a few years. In October we spoke with a realtor and decided March was a good time to list. We learned a lot along the way, but I think these steps were crucial in getting our house to sell quick and over our asking price. 

1. Hire a realtor. The first step we took when we decided to sell was to contact a realtor. We got recommendations for family and friends and went with someone we knew would be a good fit for us. I know many people hate to pay the realtor fee, but I can't imagine doing everything our realtor did for us on my own. Worth every penny!

2. Purge!! We knew we would list in March, so in January and February we started putting everything we could live without in storage. I suggest not doing this all in one day. My husband and I both work full time, so we did most of this a little at a time and over a few weekends. Side note- after having moved into our second home, I'm wishing I would have gotten rid of a lot more than I did. I'm still purging things I should have months ago!

 This is one load of things we put in storage before listing. 

3. Depersonalize. This should be a no brainer, but I've seen so many homes filled with things that appealed to the current owner only. It's so hard to visualize yourself in someone else's home. I put most of our family photos away except a few quirky ones that I felt added character to the room. 

4. Landscape. By that I mean, water the grass, mow the yard, weed the yard. You don't have to spend much, actually you'll spend more in elbow grease than in money! We were listing in the spring so we planted petunias along the front flower bed for a pop of color. Two flower pots with coordinating flowers on each side of the front door and voilà!

5. Clean clean clean. This is another extremely affordable task that has huge payoff. I waited until a few days before we had pictures taken to go Martha crazy. We cleaned everything. From top to bottom you name it, I scrubbed it. My husband even pressure washed our patio and patio furniture. We did pay professionals to shampoo the carpets, but everything else we did ourselves. 

6. Stage. This was my absolute favorite part of selling our home (aside from signing on the dotted line that is!) even though we'd been in our house for 6 years, getting it buyer ready was fun! I took a lot of the girl's toys over to my in-laws, I was surprised at how well they adjusted to having less to play with. I wanted our home to look like children lived there, but not lol! This step was also something that didn't cost anything. I used things I already had, moving them around from place to place. We have a neutral gray home so almost all of my pieces worked anywhere. 

7. Repairs. People don't want to walk into a house and see things that they would have to start working on from the get go. We had a few minor things to repair and did touch up painting before we listed. 

8. Professional pictures. Have you been looking at houses online and wonder why some pictures look like they were taken on a phone and others look amazing? That's because the amazing ones were taken by a professional. They are trained to open blinds just right, dim the lights just so, and shoot from the best angle. This was a courtesy done by our realtor (tip #1- get realtor!) The pictures made all the difference in the world. When we proofed them, I couldn't believe it was our own home. 

9. Timing. Timing, as usual, is everything. We waited to list in March since spring is such a strong buying season. What our realtor also did was put us on the market on a Thursday with the hopes of the weekend being busy. We actually had an offer on Thursday but decided to wait through the weekend with hopes of creating multiple offers. 

10. Price right. This is another reason to use a realtor. She scoured through comps and came up with a price that she thought would peak interest. We didn't want to price too low, but we didn't want to price too high. Again, we were hoping for multiple offers. 

After all of the hard work on our end and the guidance from our realtor, we had 6 offers to choose from on Saturday- all well over our asking price!!

If you are getting ready to sell I hope these tips give you a starting point! Good luck and get to cleaning ;)

Professional pictures taken by shoot2sell

DIY Cooling Spray

If you are lucky enough to live in the Pacific Norwest, then this post isn't for you ;) Although, I do remember living up there without air-conditioning and it getting into the 90s a time or two, so maybe this is for you too!

It has been warm this summer and August in Texas never has any cool tricks up her sleeve. What she has are long, hot days- followed by more long and hot days. If you've read some of my previous posts, or have been following me on instagram, you'll know that I've started using essential oils. I love that they are 100% natural, chemical free, and smell amazing (most of them!) I love DIY home, beauty, and health! This DIY is super easy and makes a great gift! The first bottle I made I actually made for my mom! She is retired, loves working outside, and doesn't know when to stop. In this heat it is so important to stay hydrated and cool. This cooling spray is by no means a substitute for proper hydration and sun protection, but is a great addition to them!

What you'll need:
2-4oz spray bottle. You can get them here.
Distilled Water
Peppermint Oil- I use Young Living Essential Oils

Directions:
Add 15-20 drops of peppermint oil to bottle and then add in distilled water. Shake well before each use.

I like to spray on the back of my neck and wrists. Avoid contact with your eyes and it is also not recommended to use on children. You'll smell good, you'll cool down, and peppermint deters some insects!

I also heard keeping this in the refrigerator so it's cool when you use it is great too!

Designing A Kitchen Around Wood Cabinets

We've been in our new house for almost 3 months now. Sometimes I think the house looks like we moved in yesterday! We bought the house for the yard. I was actually hoping for a house that needed a total renovation, but we were lucky enough to find an amazing yard and a pretty great house. Nothing in the house needs repaired and all of the changes I have planned are just cosmetic. The house has many high end finishes, just not in my style- travertine, solid cherry cabinets, tan granite...

The most expensive project will be the kitchen. It's your typical Texas kitchen- granite, tan, and big. It's a great size, has a huge pantry, and has amazing cherry cabinets. The cabinets are so nice in fact, that my husband won't let me paint them... When did he turn into an old man?? Unfortunately for me, I don't really fancy natural cabinets. I'd been dreaming of gray or blue since putting our house on the market, but he has made it pretty clear that we aren't painting them. 

What's a girl to do? I've been searching high and low for inspiration on how to utilize them without painting them. Let me tell you, finding inspiration for non-painted cabinets is hard, y'all. Of all places I found inspiration from was my watch. I love the soft texture of the leather band and color paired with the cold, hard, dark of the face.

I'm thinking we will most likely change out the cabinet doors, have to utilize some open shelving- which I love, but I'm not sure I can keep organized manage, most likely white subway tile for a backsplash, and I'm really loving the look of a soapstone countertop. I'm also leaning towards a darker floor, but still searching for inspiration. 

I've rounded up a few kitchens with wood stained cabinets to let me know all hope isn't lost for a kitchen I love!

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I can't get enough of this one. I think it's the right amount of rustic (not western) and elegant. Add in industrial barn light and I've got all heart eyes for this space! I can't get enough of the open shelves. My main concerns are how sippy cups would look up there! I think a lot of natural light will be key in making wood stained cabinets work.

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More open shelving... I'd like to be able to see the rest of the kitchen. I'm loving the backsplash with the countertops.

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This kitchen isn't all stained cabinets and typically I wouldn't be a fan of mixing the two, but I think the white cabinets on the top help to balance the dark lower ones. Although if I could talk Matt into painting the top, you better believe I'd be shooting for painting them all! The before and after of this kitchen is great!

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I don't like the openness under the kitchen sink, but I like the look of the cabinets.

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Wood cabinets, but it still looks bright and airy.

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A fixer upper favorite. I am loving the concrete countertops. The cabinetry below is from the same house.

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I had to throw this picture in there. If by some crazy chance I do get to paint them, this is exactly what I'm going for! Would love to see more ideas of kitchens without painted cabinets, do you have any??

Working Mom's Guide to Pumping

Did you know it was world breastfeeding week? Well, the tail end of it at least! I've been wanting to write this post for a few years now, and finally decided this would be a great time! My journey with breastfeeding started almost 4 years ago. How it's been that many years is beyond me! Both girls will be 4 and 2 at the end of this month. I was lucky enough to breastfeed them both until they were 14 months. Lucky is the word- I'm not sure if you know or not, but breastfeeding and especially pumping at work aren't things I feel America completely supports. I have several tips for breastfeeding, but this post focuses on pumping while at work.

Just after Wren was born

1. Take a breastfeeding class. I recommend this if you are breastfeeding only or pumping as well. When we were getting ready to have Elle, we took a birthing class, a newborn care class, and a breastfeeding class. Hands down, the most effective class was the breastfeeding one. Even as a nurse, I didn't know much about breastfeeding. Getting this information before you are faced with feeding a newborn baby made a huge difference. The class I took was offered through the hospital I delivered at.

2. Invest in a double breast pump. Insurance companies should cover one, but it doesn't mean they have to get you a good one. I used this one. It came with a 3 year warranty and their customer service was excellent. I was able to use it for both girls before the warranty ran out! Another good option is this one.

3. Know your work policies on pumping before you go back to work, and preferably speak with your manager before you return. You would be surprised at how much pushback you can receive on needing to pump. Even working in the healthcare industry, you think people would applaud you for continuing to breast feed your child, but that is now always the case. I had the world's best boss who accommodated me every step of the way, but on some occasions when I had to float to another facility within the same hospital, I wasn't met with the same kindness. I was glad I knew my rights and our policies.

4. Start pumping before you come back from maternity leave. For a few reasons. 1) to get you use to using the pump and 2) so you will have a stockpile of milk when you go back to work. It's amazing how quick those bags of frozen liquid gold go!

5. Buy milk storage bags. Yes, there is such a thing as milk storage bags for a human ;) I can't tell you how many of these I bought. I also learned the hard way to not fill them all the way up, especially in the beginning when your baby doesn't drink as much. I liked having several with just 1-2 ounces of milk in them. Also, if you freeze them laying down, they make for easier storage and faster thawing.

6. You need to be able to multitask while pumping or it will drive you crazy! I checked emails, ordered things, read books, pinterested until there was no tomorrow. I wouldn't have been able to if my hands weren't free. This is the most hideous bra you will ever buy, but it will make your life so much easier while you are pumping. I have been known to wear it while putting my face on, and also while entertaining a toddler. This also makes driving and pumping do able. And yes, I have done that!

7. Invest in a small cooler and frozen ice packs. Mine actually came from my OBGYN. It was a little frustrating how even medical professionals pushed formula, my "congratulations" bag from my Dr. was full of formula and coupons, but also came with a perfectly sized cooler for storing my milk in during the day! On a few occasions I had to turn around and head back to work after realizing I left my milk there!

Pumping will drive you crazy. Your pump will start to talk to you after a while. I've been walked in on, forgotten my pump, spilt milk, and about died of embarrassment when my pump, which had a record button (to record your babies cry,) had instead recorded me singing my heart out in the car and decided to start playing it while walking into work one day. Every awkward moment, tiresome moment, hard to get moment with pumping is worth it when you think about who you are pumping for and why!

I'm hoping to never have to pump again, but am glad I was able to for both my ladies. I also hope these tips help someone and that breastfeeding and pumping in general become more widely accepted. It's hard leaving your infant at home, it's even harder when there are so many obstacles for working, pumping mamas to overcome.

Confessions of a Tired Mom

My work is very regimented. There is a rhyme and a reason for almost everything I do. I rarely vary from my routine, and if I do, I'm double checking to make sure I've done what I needed to. That is work Sidney, and you won't see her anywhere other than work. That is not my persona at home, I am as far away from a planner or preparer as it gets. This last week was a wild one! Busy with work, life, and loving littles made for some mom moments I never thought I'd have!

1. Saturday we ate pizza for lunch and dinner, and one was a slice from Costco. 

2. I put coconut oil in my hair at bedtime and rinsed it out. Woke up on Monday and realized I should have shampooed it out. Wore it to work anyway. P.S. It looked awesome the next day!

3. I told Elle had we had to pull two teeth at work so she would stay still and let me brush her teeth- it worked!

4. Showed up to watch Bad Moms with some girlfriends Saturday night, realized it was actually on Sunday when someone told me I was in their spot. Didn't make it Sunday, had a date with my paintbrush.

5. I may or may not bring half a watermelon to work for breakfast because 1. It tastes so good and 2. It's easy. 

6. I have skipped bath time due to the girls having swam that day. 

7. My top knot is way past it's due date.

Any other mom confessions out there? Whats the trick to balancing it all? I'd love to hear from you!

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