Shays 1st Birthday Garden Party

My sweet summer baby Shay. We celebrated her first year at our first home in Costa Mesa that we were simultaneously saying goodbye to. We had just sold our first house and were moving the following week to Arizona. Shay being the miracle baby she is, everyone wanted to celebrate her and also say our goodbyes. (Tap here to read our IVF journey). The plan was a small intimate gathering on a budget so when I started putting together a garden party for my first little girl, I may have gotten more carried away but I LOVE the way it turned out!

It was one of the hottest days of the entire year so most of the event was outside. I rented tables and chairs from Sweet Salvage and then headed to the flower mart in Orange County to pick up tons and tons of chamomile, eucalyptus and some other greenery. While I set up the refreshments and homemade thank you gifts, my girl Lauren went to work layering some simple floral arrangements.

The day was filled with so much laughter and love. I wish we could do it all again.

(resources below)

Resources below:

gifts - rosemary spray + sarah silks

chairs, tables and high chair — sweet salvage

cake, cookies — just a bite

Cake topper — https://rstyle.me/cz-n/fmjthcccpwx

florals — Oc flower mart and vintage glass by Lauren

Small baskets — hobby lobby

Plates, cups & napkins — wild child party meri meri

Signs and invite — lark paperie https://rstyle.me/cz-n/fmjtmsccpwx

Balloon arch —

Script balloons — https://rstyle.me/cz-n/fmjtimccpwx

White 1 balloon — https://rstyle.me/cz-n/fmjtj3ccpwx

pool & balls — garbo & friends

Shays dress - Amazon

Playhouse makeover

Magical Reindeer food

Homemade Reindeer Food Supplies —

Full list of supplies here

Oats | Silver Glitter | White Glitter | Container |

Advent Printables (I made mine with the app Studio, but got inspo from @oliveandeveco). I used the graphics from Christy Beasley’s monthly subscription. It’s $15 and FULLY worth it for all the fun items she makes monthly. Essential oil recipes, homeschool worksheets and graphics, and more! Here’s the link to join me!

For extra fun, I added a fun book to spruce up our holiday book collection. This touchy-feely one was perfect for Shay - That’s not my reindeer!

These would also make super cute gifts for friends or neighbors. Make them in bulk with these muslin bags or even clear cellophane bags and just attach some pretty ribbon.

I’m in love!

bottles linked here:

cork top bottles or mini mason jars

Easy + quick laminator

glitter stars

circle cutout cutter

Want more fun and magical ways to celebrate the holidays? Here’s 31 simple + meaningful ideas for you.

Multi-purpose room makeover with perfectly easy + functional DIY Built ins.

How we created a functional and pretty multi-purpose room for the whole family

March 2020, the year of the pandemic and pelotons. Also, the month we all became work from home, homeschooling families. At first, we thought it was fun; we did all the things together, ate dinner around the table, did kitchen obstacle courses, and middle of the day dance parties. After a year, we realized this temporary thing was becoming much more permanent. We looked around the house and knew we needed to make our space more functional for a life with four people under one roof all day, every day.

During this crazy stay-at-home time, we also added a baby to our world, and with that our home needs shifted. Every room in the house instantly became a multi-purpose room. The living room became a classroom, the kitchen became an office and our 4th bedroom, which was being used as a playroom/guest room became a very disastrous and messy catchall space. Because it lacked organization and a true purpose this room became a landing pad for toys and a storage room for things that didn't have a real place in our home. It was messy, unorganized, and cluttered. Reluctantly I’ll add some of the before pictures later in this post.

When I started thinking of ways to make this space work for all of us in a more functional way, I started with a blank slate and sold every larger item in the room. The couch (which was a make-shift guest bed) the storage ottoman taking up entirely too much space to hold 800 stuffed animals Finn never played with and, the play kitchen that had seen much better days. The goal of this room was simple; a clutter-free and inspiring space the entire family could enjoy. Whether we were working out, playing on the floor with the kids, creating, painting, learning, or working, it needed to function for all of those things seamlessly. I wanted a space that was so perfectly set in fundamentals that it would be difficult for it to become messy.

Even though he was working from home, I don't think my husband even came into this room, in the 3 years we lived here. It was just too unorganized and felt very much like the kids space & not an adult space. Now we find ourselves in here multiple days a week, all 4 of us at the same time! Jason on the bike while Finn paints, Shay rolls around and I work from the desk. It’s spacious and functional so it works!

white metal chairs -

The first step was designating spaces for each intended activity and then putting systems in place to make those spaces functional and organized. The floor needed to be FREE from small choking hazard toys that were accessible to tiny hands because we have a 9-month-old who puts everything in her mouth. So we got rid of the open shelf unit and make shifted some affordable builtins from IKEA (more on this process below) and had a little help installing a floating desk in between for all of Finn's art projects and home school/tutoring. I also wanted a space specifically for my peloton, and all the gear that went alongside it, but not in the garage collecting dust. After moving out the couch, TV, and toys, we ended up with 3 spaces in the room, all used by the whole family daily.  

1. workout/peloton area

2. adult work/desk area (which also doubles as a fort on days we aren't working)

3. space for the kids; arts + crafts, homework & play

How this room became the perfect space for our family:

The Peloton area:

Hello….how I lived without a peloton bike before, I’ll never know. The entire inspiration for changing this room from 90% the kids play space to a space we can all enjoy came from the purchase of this beauty. I knew if the space we put the bike in was uninspired and cold (like the garage) I would not ride it. It’s kind of like when you buy a new workout outfit to get inspo to actually work out. I needed a clean fresh space to motivate me to get a workout in. That meant the peloton was going in our home somewhere and thankfully we had a 4th bedroom with the perfect space.

Oil shelf - wall shelves - glass jars - peloton discount code - peloton mat

dumbbells

spray bottle

Rug - best workout pants ever Apple watch band

Adult work/desk area:

Ok, truth… I am not the cleanest person on the planet. Being an enneagram 7, I have multiple projects going on at the same time always. Which means there are corners of my house with piles of things.”I’m working on” (that’s what i tell my husband). I’m a content creator (instagram influencer) and I also have a side hustle sharing wellness (essential oils) with my community. I have tons of creative projects I am working on simultaneously and I host small gatherings at my home as well. I send out packages with fun non toxic homemade products to my friends and family and I also make my own products for my home too. That means I have a LOT of STUFF. Rollers and oils and bottles and packaging and ribbon and shipping necessities. This space was so needed for my overwhelmed working brain.

The amount inspiration a creative gets from a clean and organized space is unreal. Not to mention the fact that my husband is working from the kitchen counter and trying to hop on instagram and create videos while he is on conference calls was a huge challenge. I needed a room that I would be in while Shay napped and he worked that would be quiet enough to work. This was just that.

desk - chair - diffuser - choose joy wall flag - rug

wall shelf - oils

Light - desk - ikea cabinets - lamp - basket - rug - oil shelf

A space for the Kids — homework + play

Since we both work from home now, we needed to have a space the kids can play freely but someone could still keep a watchful eye on them. This space was so perfect because we only filled it with things we needed and less clutter was the goal. We left lots of open space for the kids to play together while one of us worked at the desk. There was often times I would be typing at the desk while the kids played under my feet in a make -shift fort we made with an old sheet draped over the top. The mom guilt of working from home while your littles are growing fast is real, so these memories meant so much to me.

Chair - rug - stool - basket - wooden magnetic tiles

Wooden magnetic tiles - basket

Making it functional with organization

The first step to making space more functional was to create storage with new built-ins and a floating desk. I built them myself (which was fairly easy). Ok, still Ikea furniture, but they did update the way they used to build things, and it was easier. Once all the pieces were built, we pieced them together how we wanted them on the wall. The back of each unit has a notch in it so you can clamp each unit together, so all the pieces became one attached unit on each side of the window. Once those were in place, I had a family friend help cut down the board for the middle floating desk. I found an old cabinet piece in the AS-IS section at our local IKEA so that the finishings would be close. Now all that was left was to fill them up!

Pax shelving - metal chairs

At first, I thought I could organize it all myself and make it functional but soon after we put everything back in the cabinets, I realized there was no efficiency, and keeping things orderly wasn't practical. I didn't want to spend all this time and money to build these organized built-ins only to live with them in an unorganized and cluttered state. The shelves and drawers were overflowing because we were using all the things so often and there weren't designated spaces to put things away. I'd like to think I was a Pinterest mom and I can make things Mari Kondo myself, but honestly, I just never found the time. So, I called in HELP! My friends and THE GOOD SORT came to my rescue. Emily is my neighbor and friend, and one step into her perfectly clean and organized home (with two small girls living there), and I knew she was one of those super-organized system gurus who could for sure help me make this space work functionally.

They came in and in a matter of 4hrs had taken everything out of the space, and perfectly arranged it back in by category, with room to spare. I was in awe watching this sister team work their magic. They came prepared with bins, and labels, and more to make sure every inch of space was properly utilized. Huge props to them for creating systems in our built-ins that were easy for everyone. Finn's toys and games are perfectly labeled and separated by bins and clear storage bags so he can see what he wants to grab the moment he opens the cabinet. And the better part is, he can easily (and by himself) put them back where they belong once he's done playing.  I can’t recommend THE GOOD SORT team enough!

We took one side of the builtins and made that the kids space. All Finns art supplies, Montessori toys, paper, markers, games and more all fit perfectly into the right side of the room. He had access to all the things so he could help himself when he had free time to play. We also put some of the “shay friendly” toys in baskets so she could easily get to them as well. We encourage independent play by having all the fun accessible.

Then it was my turn! They spent time making all my most used items were easy to grab. If you’re anything like me who is a type and kinda likes to be in control of things I did have a hard time thinking someone else could organize something that would work best for me. But honestly, the good sort girls really took the time to understand what my needs were when it came to all the things they were organizing and this made it super helpful when I started actually using the space. I kept it organized too because it worked! The way it was set up helped me not go straight back to my old chaotic ways!

LINKS:

BIG ITEMS:

Ikea storage system - EKET customizable

Desk - Ikea

Rug -

Peloton (discount code)

Desk Chair

built-in white metal chairs (4)

White metal chairs set of 2

small ottomans

rattan pendant light

STORAGE STUFF:

wire baskets

white wire baskets

clear bins

white bins

clear bins, small

zipper pouches

3 tier riser

clear letter trays

acrylic drawer organizers

label maker

KIDS TOYS:

Bolga basket

wooden magnetic tiles

floor mat

Well, we made it to the end. The part where I show you the embarrassing part of the room; the before images. Enjoy the comic relief! And thanks for being here!

Our favorite snack mix - A valentines version

This snack mix is one for everyone!! It’s easy and not super sugary, so everyone can enjoy no matter age!

This Valentines version is made with love (pun intended) with the cutest heart marshmallows I ever did see! Don’t skip these because they make the mix! You can always swap out hearts for lucky charms on St Patrick’s day, bunny marshmallows for Easter, Christmas trees for …you get the picture!

Let me know if you make this and tag me on social if you do! @occasionally_perfect on IG!

HERES SOME SUGGESTIONS;

Valentines m&ms

https://rstyle.me/cz-n/f8myxgccpwx

Popcorn (2)

https://rstyle.me/cz-n/f8my4cccpwx

Yogurt Raisins

https://rstyle.me/cz-n/f8my8iccpwx

Teddy grahams 8oz (2)

https://rstyle.me/cz-n/f8m5kxccpwx

Heart candies

https://rstyle.me/cz-n/f8m5x7ccpwx

Pretzels (2)

https://rstyle.me/cz-n/f8m54yccpwx

Heart marshmallow 

https://bit.ly/3GmD4TJ

Chex mix

https://rstyle.me/cz-n/f8m7hjccpwx

Add a scoop full or two to a cellophane bag and some cute ribbon and you’ve got the cutest little valentines gift there ever was! We made these for Finn’s kindergarten class party and also handed them out to our neighbors and friends! Could be cute for teacher gifts, or even just to have at your next party! Make more than you think you need because it goes fast, it’s addicting…trust me.

Easy, non candy class valentines

Here’s two quick, easy and inexpensive ways to celebrate Valentines Day with your kids friends! Class valentines are always so fun for us over here but we stay away from all the candy because it turns Finn into a crazy person. This year was his kindergarten year so the first year I witnessed what eating candy all day can do to your 6yr old!

I put together one set of valentine grams for the 15 boys and one set for the 10 girls in his class although I feel like both of these could be great for both genders!

Sports squishy ball class valentines

what you’ll need:

multi pack squish balls

printable tags (image at bottom of post)

laminator

scissors

hole punch

ribbon

cellophane bags

basket filler

When I started looking for inspiration I couldn’t find any tags I liked so I made my own! I use the app studio by go daddy. It’s super user friendly and they have free pictures and fonts you can use so the creative ideas are endless!!

Once I designed each version, I just went to Avery.com where you can plug the images into the free templates and you can save it as a .pdf to print at home. Now, printing at home is easy and quick but our printer is currently buried in the garage of moving boxes somewhere. So I tried staples printing and I’ll never go back! It was ready in less than 2hrs, and I printed on 100ply card stock for $.60! Under $5 to print everything I needed with high quality color. I’m in.

What to say:

Baseball: You are a hit with me Valentine!

Soccer: I get a kick out of you Valentine!

Basketball: Being friends with you is a slam dunk!

Football: You are a touchdown in my book!

To assemble:

putting the together was super easy and fast!

1. I cut out the printable tags using my guillotine paper trimmer.

2. Added a hole in the corner.

3. Tossed them in the cellophane bags with some fluff (basket filler) and

4. Tied the bags with fluffy ribbon I always have on hand — Because ribbon and fluff make everything better!

Here’s a 30 second video HOW TO make your own sports ball class valentines!

Dragons love tacos 5th birthday party

My guy turned the big F -I -V - E!! We had to postpone his original party but still celebrated at home on his actual birthday because he got sick! Let’s rewind 5 years, shall we? Finns first and second birthday were literally spent in empty houses because we were in the middle of moving homes both times! (No, not by choice, it just happened that way). His 3rd birthday, party animals theme is actually still sitting in my blog drafts folder and ready to share but 2yrs late is probably too late to hit publish right? It was super cute and I did all the things. I told myself “it’s ok, he didn’t have a party his first and second year of his life, so this has to be ‘special’. I did throw it all together in 2 weeks, and since it was pre-covid we had over 50ppl (adults and kids) attend. Needless to say this year was v differently, other than the fact that I threw it together in 2 weeks time again. What can I say, I’m a procrastinator.

This time around I didn’t go crazy, I stuck to my theme (which was the hubby’s ideas btw), and put most of my focus on the things Finn really wanted. Because let’s be honest, in the past most of the party must haves were for aesthetics only and finn didn’t even notice any of them. His non negotiables were, a very large bounce house, red velvet cake and ALL of his closest friends. I was nervous to send out the invites because of the stay at home order still happening here in Southern California, but most of the kids who we asked to join us were friends from our small pod school we’ve been attending a few days a week. So, we just went for it! Everyone said yes so we ended up having a pretty perfect turn out!

So here it is a very last minute, casual but exciting

DRAGONS LOVE TACOS 5th (pandemic) BIRTHDAY PARTY AT HOME.

I will be updating this with links and resources for all the fun but until then just comment if your looking for an answer to something specific!

xoxo,

H

DIY ADVENT CALENDAR: 31 simple + meaningful ideas to celebrate the holidays

DIY ADVENT CALENDAR : 31 simple ideas to celebrate the holidays.

Once the first sign of Christmas shows up, i get the daily question from finn, “is it Christmas yet?” I mean I feel him cause it is my all time favorite time of the year! I have the best childhood memories from the holidays at home and have always wanted to create my own traditions with my family. Here we are, the dream is actually happening. I get to celebrate at home with my family of four! A boy and a girl, it can be girly and modern all at the same time!

As much as I love the holiday, I realize it can get overwhelming real quick. Even on Christmas morning, after Finns opened 3 presents he just wants to play with them and not have to open more and more things. So this year, we’re doing a very small amount of gifts under the tree and more fun activities and adventures as we countdown to the big day. Here’s the full list, and then I’ll go through and add pics and resources as the month goes on!

this blog post is a work in progress and will be updated as we open each day!

The complete Advent idea list :

1. Wear Christmas Jammies

2. Peppermint bubble bath

3. Decorate the tree

4. Set up train (train book)

5. Holiday Movie Night (popcorn machine)

6. Make holiday cards (teachers, grandparents, neighbors, friends)

7. Write a letter to Santa

8. Visit Santa

9. Make gingerbread houses

10. Go through old toys and donate toys for tots

11. Homemade garland (orange + popcorn or paper)

12. Build a snowman (fake snow)

13. Paint filled ornaments

14. Holiday music dance party

15. Make magic reindeer food for friends (oliveandeveco)

16. Make hot cocoa (shopsweetlulu marshmallows + mugs)

17. Holiday Music Dance Party

18. Make a snow globe

19. Do Holiday craft (lacing cards)

20. Enjoy a candy cane

21. Photo ornaments for grandparents

22. Enjoy a sweet treat with a new waffle maker

23. Homemade peppermint Playdough

24. Have a snowball fight (faux snowballs)

25. Salt dough ornaments

26. Read a Christmas book

27. Paint wooden trains or nutcrackers

28. Santa stop here flag wand

29. Xmas lights drive around town

30. Bake cookies for Santa

31. Game night around the tree (candy land)

Wear Christmas Jammies

Favorite Holiday Jammies Here

Favorite Holiday Books HERE

DIY snow globes

Make snow globes

holiday garland: orange or popcorn strings

homemade reindeer food (printable below)

Just finished making 20 little bottles of reindeer food for Finns class, and I’m in love!

bottles linked here:

cork top bottles or mini mason jars

Easy + quick laminator

glitter stars

circle cutout cutter

Layer it all on a advent calendar and add numbers to each day

Reindeer Food Supplies — Oats | Silver Glitter | White Glitter | Container |

Advent Printables (I made mine with OVER, but got inspo from @oliveandeveco). I used the graphics from Christy Beasley’s monthly subscription. It’s $15 and FULLY worth it for all the fun items she makes monthly. Oily recipes, homeschool worksheets and graphics, and more! Here’s the link to join me!

For extra fun, I added a fun book to spruce up our holiday book collection. This touchy-feely one was perfect for Shay - That’s not my reindeer!

These would also make super cute gifts for friends or neighbors. Make them in bulk with these muslin bags and just attach some ribbon.

Go get your Christmas tree (use this book as a hint)

Hot cocoa party. Make it fun by creating a hot chocolate party tray filled with marshmallows, sprinkles, cookies, and other sweet treats!

Hot Chocolate Party! — Mugs | Hot Cocoa | snowflake Marshmallows | Smash Mellows

I love adding a tiny bit of peppermint essential oils to mine for a fun adult peppermint Hot Chocolate.

holiday scented playdough

Peppermint + Christmas Tree Smelling PlayDough —

you can make your own playdough easily with items from your pantry, and add essential oils to make them smell super yummy! RECIPE HERE.

Or you can turn ordinary playdough into Holiday playdough with a few drops of Christmas Spirit and Northern Lights Black Spruce oils. I love this non toxic playdough from @shopbitte.

And to be extra you must grab these perfect wooden clay rolling pins, they are SO FUN and amazing quality for the price! The cookie cutters you grabbed for salt dough ornaments work too!

Salt dough ornaments with mini cookie cutters

Have a snowball fight (in warmer states use these fun snowballs)

These are on sale and we’ve had them 3 years!! Snowballs

Snow is so fun and last for days! Love this little board book the snowy day to hang on the advent to go with it!

Cookies for Santa

Paint filled ornaments

Paint filled ornaments

Photo ornaments for grandparents

write a letter to Santa

We’re going to see elf on a shelf (a drive thru experience) so I kept our elf on a shelf in one of the boxes until that day.

Miracle Baby Wells

10.31.19 We had the transfer Oct 31st and we had to wait 12 days until we took the blood test. I couldn’t wait and took a couple at home pregnancy tests on the 6th day and they were positive!

11.11.19 We took a blood test to confirm at the doctors office and schedule our first ultrasound.

11.21.19 The day we met our baby. We were 5 weeks and 4 days so we weren’t supposed to see any sort of heartbeat, but when we went in the doctor said, yes. That’s a heartbeat. We couldn’t believe it because the last time we had an ultrasound with a baby in my belly, we heard the words, “I’m sorry, there is no heartbeat.” And we’re terrified to hear it again. Elated and overjoyed, we saw your heartbeat and it all felt so real. We’re actually having our rainbow baby at the end of this journey.

11.27.19 And then on Thanksgiving Eve, 7 days later we had another check-in where we were told there had been no progress and they couldn’t see a heartbeat anymore. She spoke clearly and said, “I’m sorry, I’ve looked as hard as I can. We can check back in 4 days but from what I am seeing, most likely this pregnancy will not continue.”

We left the office heartbroken and in disbelief. We spent the holiday holding onto any sliver of hope but also trying to lean into the grieving period and acceptance that we have lost another child and this process did not work for our family.

11.28.19 as we ate our Thanksgiving dinner just the three of us, “Is the baby out yet?” Finn asked. “The baby may have to go to heaven,” I said to Finn and he replied, “Well, when can we visit heaven then mommy?” They’re really are no words to describe the hurt and sadness those four days held. We sat in silence most of the hours, we tried to show up for holiday dinners with friends but the pain was hard to hide. Each time I went to the bathroom, I sobbed in fear that today was going to be my last day with my baby. But it never happened, no spotting, no cramps, I still had morning sickness and I was still eating like I had a small miracle inside me.

12.1.19 Sunday came and we knew what we were going to see at our appt; we were going to hear those words again. The ones that would most likely end our journey and solidify the fact that we will always be a family of three. My whole body was heavy but I was trying to be strong for Finn and my husband. It was so early we were the only ones in the office. Two nurses behind the desk and one doctor. We entered the room and the doctor excitedly asked (she must not have looked at my chart yet) “Good morning! How are you?” I looked at her and simply said — I’m hoping you can give me a miracle today.

As she washed her hands and prepared the ultrasound wand Jason started asking all the questions. “Why would something like this happen? Why did we not see a heartbeat? What could of caused this?” She calmly explained, well, you’ve done the genetic testing so the embryo is viable so I’m not sure, but it could be a number of things. The fetus didn’t get enough blood, the hormone/thyroid levels could have been off (which hers seemed to be normal) so ....” she continued and I closed my eyes and it all started to sound like the teacher from the peanuts (wahhhhahahhahahahahahah) as much as I wanted someone to tell me why, I just wanted it over.

I wasn’t looking at the screen, I didn’t want it to end, I was still clinging to any hope that this could still work, that I would see a heartbeat. Just as the doctor inserted the camera, she gasped, “oh my god! I’m giving you a miracle right now! I don’t normally say oh my god but, this is worthy.” I’ll never forget this moment. I sobbed so loudly and the tears were so big I couldn’t barley breath or see the ultrasound monitor. She said, “Heidi. I need you to look up and see this. You have a healthy baby. Perfect in all ways, the size, the shape, the heartbeat is all where it should be.” Finn started asking me why I was so sad, and everyone at this point was crying. I told the doctor I wanted to hug her, she’s pretty stern (in the nicest way possible) and I love stern because that’s my husbands' demeanor too. She said, “you can hug me after you get dressed and come out.” When I came out, she said, "how about that hug now," and we all cried together. Even the two nurses were crying and both said they couldn’t believe it either. She went back into doctor mode, and gave us the plan, "I want to check your hormone levels still but from what I can see everything is going great! You should make a regular OBGY first prenatal visit appt, etc". This was quite the change from the last doctor who told us our pregnancy was ending. I begged her to take some blood tests and she told me, “I’m sorry and this point those don’t really matter. I don’t even see a faint line of a heartbeat here.” She was certain and made us feel convinced we were no longer pregnant. Now I want to just say, I don't think she did anything wrong. I've seen enough ultrasounds of my uterus at this point to know what I was seeing on that day. I saw it with her, I moved my body so the wand could move and we tried for 5+ minutes to find that heartbeat, we didn't see it.

I’m 8 weeks today. I’m still in complete disbelief this happened. Our miracle rainbow baby is coming in July. I choose to believe this with all my soul. And I can’t wait to meet him/her.

We took all these photos the Saturday before we found out about the miracle. We sat with this news for 4 days and at this point, we had lost much of our hope and were being realistic about what was happening. Jason appeased me and took some photos with my "bloated bump" and pictures of the ultrasound from the week we first met our rainbow baby and saw that heartbeat. I knew this pictures would most likely be the way I told you all about our news, but tried to manifest our destiny, and told Jason, "These will be our announcement photos when we see that heartbeat tomorrow!" We both wanted to believe it. We really did, but we wouldn't know until the next morning. Thankful for Jade, who had no idea that's what was even happening. She captured us so beautifully even in this time of sorrow and hurt.

5 favorite non-toxic skincare products boosting my wellness +fertility

Non-toxic + clean skincare products I’m using to boost my wellness & support my infertility journey

Over the last 3 months, I’ve done a complete overhaul of my life to create a toxic-free space in hopes of bettering our chances at conceiving our double rainbow baby and just living a life that promotes health and vitality, instead of taking away from it. I've changed what's on my plate, and I’m eating about 90% plant based, so I knew it was time to change what I was putting on my skin, the most absorbent organ in my body.

Most recently, I cleaned out my bathroom and I was so surprised to learn how many things I was using that was not only hurting my chances of getting pregnant but that was just plain filled with bad things in general. Some of the biggest culprits were my lotions, my cleaner [isn’t that supposed to remove the bad stuff] and my candles! I’ve always been a sucker for clean packaging and I realized that’s not the best way to choose what products you put into your skin.

After going to the infertility doctor and having him basically tell me I'm too old to have children without the help of IVF, I started researching all the things. I was determined to prove him wrong, because even though I'm about to be 40, I don't feel like there is something wrong with me, I feel healthy. I know from once going Vegan, I can heal with the power of food, and I was ready to change whatever i needed to in order to get this body ready for our rainbow baby. I started making adjusts to my whole life to get what I want. Said goodbye to pizza [dairy + carbs], eliminated all the caffeine and bad-for-me drinks, and started saying 'no' more often, and embarked on an oils journey in an effort to ease my stress. While all of this was effective at calming my mind and body internally, what was I doing externally to support this infertility journey I am on?

I started reading all the books about fertility and my thyroid condition and quickly learned, many people have successfully had children after the age of 40, and after having many miscarriages. I also learned that there is very little regulation for the skincare and beauty industries and companies are allowed to use carcinogens, hormone disruptors, neurotoxins in many of the products I was putting on my body through my skin. I realized that many of these toxic products I was using every day to "look younger" may have just been negatively affecting my ability to get pregnant and to carry a baby past 12weeks. For those of you new around here, Jason and I, have two angel babies up in heaven and we have been working on getting pregnant with our double rainbow baby for almost 14 months now.

I knew after reading the book, It starts with the Egg, which had an entire chapter on facts as to how these things can harm your eggs, that my skincare routine was having a direct effect on my reproductive system. And I learned that most of the products I was using had these in them.

I have so much to share that I have learned, and I want to tell you all about what's working for me now after I basically did a full toxic overhaul in my home and with my body. I'm talking all about my skincare routine now, and what products have really made a difference.

These are 5 of my favorite non-toxic, all natural skin care brands I'm using to support my infertility journey and to live a more toxic life.

The first thing I needed to think about was how I was washing and preparing my face in the morning and at night. I was using a cleanser at night, a toner, and a nightly face lotion. In the morning, I was washing it with the same cleanser, using an exfoliator pad [with all the chemicals], and then applying a serum, then a skin cream, an eye serum, eye wrinkle cream, a toner, a lotion, and I think that's it. I think back about my old routine now and can't help but think about all the chemicals I was applying daily with the products that were supposed to be cleansing my skin all before I even applied any of the harmful makeup I was so used to using my whole life.

I knew that as I made these non-toxic changes, I wanted to find brands to really understood my aging and toxic filled skin. I wanted products that had ZERO sulfates, SLES, SLS, parabens, formaldehyde, phthalates, mineral oils, oxybenzone, coal tar, hydroquinone, triclosan, and triclocarban in it. But I also wanted a product that worked and that also HAD things in it that would help fix my skin issues. Basically, I wanted a product that gave me results for my skin issues but didn't give me all the harsh side effects of most of the products I was using.

Priori : Naturally clean Adaptive Skincare

When I found priori, the first thing I looked for was to make sure that it didn’t have any of those harmful ingredients I was trying to avoid but I also wanted to know that it wasn’t going to take 85 different products to fix my sun spots, fine lines and imperfections. Priori is an adaptive line that uses science and the right ingredients to create something that responds to your individual environment, nutrition and genetic needs. The new TTC line that I have been using, has shown me results. They feature a highly potent compound of 3 kinds of colorless turmeric root, plus green tea, grape seed and licorice to create a product that helps with brightening, anti-inflammatory and antioxidant.

I’ve been using the cleanser and nothing I have ever used has left my skin feeling so soft. It doesn’t dry out the skin, and leaves it feeling hydrated. At morning and night I apply the skin restore creme, which is going to work on my fine lines and inflammation. And then every other night I apply the Illumination treatment before bed. This is designed specifically to reduce the appearance of uneven skin tones, and adapts to my specific skin type to brighten and illuminate my discolored skin areas.

Primally Pure: Non-toxic deodorant and skin care

One of the first things I changed about my beauty routine was my deodorant. It’s one of the most used products in my bathroom because I may forget to wash my face or apply lotion on some days, but I never forget my deodorant. I read so many stories about all the scientific theories about how deodorants are related to breast cancer and it scared me. But, honestly, I couldn’t find a natural deodorant that worked! Until Primally Pure. Seriously obsessed with this company and love all their products. I now use their dry shampoo (smells heavenly and works amazingly!) and their geranium complexion face spray for my afternoon refresh. Dying to get in on their body butters and flower bath salts next!

Click here and use code HEIDI10 for 10% off your purchase and don’t tell anyone because it’s not out yet but starting black friday thru Thanksgiving weekend, you get 15% off ! [shhh, secret}.

Young Living Essential Oils

I recently had a friend reach out to me and tell me that she thinks I should use essential oils. I, like most of you reading this, thought nope, not gonna be part of that pyramid scheme. I politely declined and then she mentioned that maybe I should just try this one drink, that was known to aid in infertility. Clearly, that consumed me and I caved, I bought the starter kit one month ago and I haven't looked back.

We use the oils everyday, from wellness + immunity roller blends to get us over this cold and flu season, to a few drops of lemon on our dryer balls, to diffusers to make the house smell like the holidays instead of toxic candles burning all day.

I'm working on a blog post called, "my first month as a crazy oil lady," that will include all the ways I used my oils and grew to appreciate the way they contribute to our fertility journey and healthy non-toxic home but for now, I'll just put my favorite radiating face serum blend right here for you: It's a game changer.

M A M A G L O W F A C E S E R U M:

using oils from the starter kit ONLY, combine in 2oz amber bottle and fill with jojoba oil

• 15 drops frankincense [promotes healthy growing skin, good for breakouts]

• 15 drops copaiba [driver oil which increases other oils when combined]

• 10 drops lavender [improves mood and decreases feelings of sadness]

  [for an extra punch of goodness, add this-not in starter kit but you need it]

• 20 drops blue tansy

I just add a drop to my Priori illumination creme and it's heaven in a drop.

Herbivore Botanicals: Body essentials for self care

One of the main things everyone talks about when infertility comes up is stress. The pressure that comes along with infertility, miscarriages and trying to conceive is, immense, to say the least. It is so hard to turn the brain off. I try my best to find some alone time that I allow myself to think about the process, the good and the bad of it. I find that if I carve out specific moments to cry, dream, hope, or just be sad about the fact that we can't get pregnant it helps me to sleep better or to move on with my day. I take at least 5 minutes a day, ALONE, to think about my journey. Sometimes it's in bed, sometimes I sit in the car alone after Jason and Finn have gone inside, but one of my favorite ways to reflect and accept what's happening is a long quiet bath filled with herbivore botanicals goodness.

This coconut milk bath soak is moisturizing and softens my skin plus it smells delicious.

Dr.Bronners Toothpaste

Much like my deodorant, toothpaste is something I literally wanted to change immediately. I have tried SOOO many toothpaste brands and when I finally stumbled on the fact that Dr.Bronners had toothpaste, not just soap, I was in. It doesn't leave that gritty feel after you brush and it has natural ingredients that really do leave you with fresh breath! I love Dr. Bronners toothpaste but I love their mission even more; We’re fighting for a marketplace where consumers are not misled and where organic standards are applied to body care just as they are to food. YES!

“Do the best you can until you know better. Then when you know better, do better.” —Maya Angelou.”

I leave you with this quote by women goddess Maya Angelou and I challenge you to make some changes in your home and take out some of the toxic things that may be harmful to you, your family and your children. If you're struggling with fertility, it can be a lonely place and I understand. I love this community I have found through social media, and I will continue to share my journey with all of you in hopes that someone reads this and feels a little less alone. Please feel free to reach out if you want to discuss anything further with me, I'm here and I'm an open book!

Meet the Blogger - 20 Questions about yours truly

Meet the Blogger - 20 questions about me

Last year, I actually worked with a brand to be a guest on their blog and it happened to be right during our pumpkin patch outing at the same time! It's so fun to look back each year and read about what season I was in, in my life, so why not make this an annual thing and do the hard thing, like talk about myself once a year.

If you wanna read last years, it's called, It's All About Me.

Why keep you in suspense, here we go!

Do you have any nicknames?

My name is Heidi and my middle name is Jo, but most people who know me, call me Heidi Jo. Jo Jo has always been a name i've been called and when I was really little my aunt used to call me Josephine, just to tease me, because she knew I hated it.

Where did you grow up and what kind of activities did you do in high school?

This just made me lol because the first thought that came to mind was the time we all almost got arrested for the senior prank, but then I remembered, I was also my class president, so I swear I was a good kid.

When you were little what did you wanna be when you grew up?

I was 100% certain I was going to be a psychologist. I loved talking to people and hearing their issues always made me feel better about mine.

what is your worst habit?

DO I have to say? I bite my nails. It's the worst, I wish my mom would of put some sort of cream of something on my hands when I was little that tasted terrible because it's a horrible, gross habit IMO.

What age did you start working and what was your first job?

I can't remember if it was Blockbuster Video or if it was one of those lotion carts at the mall. I was 16 and I had no car, but somehow I got to work on time every day after school. Ps, millennials, there was no such things as uber back then. Do you guys even know what Blockbuster video is [crap, I'm old].

5 things you are currently crushing on right now.

1. Zara, for all the kids clothes, like all of them.

2. Below Deck- guilty late night pleasure

3. Essential Oils- I just got on the Young Living train and I can't even sleep because I'm so excited about how I'm going to be healthy AF real soon.

4. Southern California weather + sunsets- cause I mean come on people, it's Nov 2 and the sun is shining and it's 81 degrees outside!

5. Vegan Meals- I know, everyone isn't a fan but I'm working my tooshie off trying to make that rainbow baby, and I know my body is thanking me every time I pick up that kale salad.

What's the biggest project on your to-do list right now?

PERSONALLY:

Making that rainbow baby- acupuncture once a week, gave up caffeine and carbs, and I'm adding in essential oils to create a non-toxic, healthy space for myself and hopefully a growing baby soon.

BUSINESS:

I really really really want to try and update my blog, I want to organize it and really get it dialed in but I'm a self-taught blogger and it takes me forever to research how to do the tiniest thing. If any of you reading this know about square space and wanna help a sista out, send me smoke signal, please!

What's something you wish you could do one more time?

I don't know if I can type this without loosing it. But, I just want to hear my best friends voice again. I lost her 3 months ago yesterday, and every single day without her gets harder and harder. If you want to know more about that, visit mydailymoments.

Have you traveled out of the country and if so, to where?

Oh boy, yes. I want to say lots, but there are still so many other places I want to go visit so; after college, I went on a trip to London, Rome, Paris and Amsterdam. [little-known fact]: My boyfriend at the time was Jim, who is now the owner of Cleobella [IG acct full of travel heaven], and he was an avid surfer who traveled all the time. I had never been out of the country and he basically forced me to go and explore the world. Even though I couldn't pay my rent when I got home, it was probably the single best decision of my life. [so, thanks Jim!] . Then when I was working in the fashion biz, I worked with a brand from Barcelona and Jason and I ended up taking a little work/pleasure trip to Barcelona, Prague and Berlin.

Are you a light packer or take everything you own kinda gal?

bahaha, definitely lean towards the everything I own kinda gal, but, if I'm going somewhere like Palm Springs or Hawaii, it's easy because I just bring bathing suits and cover-ups.

Who are your favorite Instagram accounts?

Well, after 3 years I have created quite the community of beautiful women to surround myself with. These are just a few of them.

@simpleandseason

@jenhawkins

@almostmakesperfect

@mikobowen

@freshexchange

@thelovedesignedlife

@chrissyjpowers

@steph.pollock

@senaenelson

@hellojessiemartin

And I also love a few bigger "business-y" accounts like,

@em_henderson

@plantphilosophy

@wellandgoodeats

@goop

Name 3 things you eat every day + 3 you'll never be caught eating.

Celery [juice it every morning], French fries [totally Finn's fault], and onions. I think Onions are pretty much the answer to any good meal.

AND, peas, no way will you ever catch me eating a pea, I don't eat red meat and I haven't in the last 7 years, and sadly, I have to answer cheese [wah wah wah] trying to cut that our for my fertility diet.

What type of music do you listen to and what's your fav song to play on repeat?

I used to listen to everything, with the exception of country [only when my friends play it around me] and now I pretty much live on either alternative radio or Disney movie soundtracks. Animal by Miike Snow is my favorite song I never get tired of.

What's your favorite saying that people hear you repeat over and over?

Come on, bro. The other day we were driving and this car cut us off, out of the backseat, clear as day...Finn yells, "COME ON, BRO!" Dead.

Thanks for following along! It’s not easy to talk about yourself, I get it, but now it’s your turn!

If you are reading this, consider yourself tagged.  Answer one question below and the rest on your website, if you’re a blogger!  If you aren’t a blogger, answer away in the comments!  I love to learn more about you.

How I create a consistent aesthetic in my photos

If you haven’t already read my basic photography tips to create a curated style, it’s best to start here.

How I edit my photos and the apps I use to create a consistent aesthetic in my Instagram feed

Favorite Apps

I usually end up using between 1-4 apps from start to finish when editing my photos before posting on the gram. I feel like I have tried them ALL, and finally found the ones that work the best and are quick and easy! Some of my favorites are Lightroom [free], snapseed [free], retouch [free] and unfold [for my stories] and VSCO [free].

VSCO

After using VSCO forever, which totally worked to start with, I switched to Lightroom and I don’t think i’m ever looking back. VSCO has some really great one click filters you can apply and it’s a great place to start for beginners! Favorite filters are A6, M5, and I used G6 for a long time. You have the ability to copy and paste the same filter to multiple images at the same time, so this always helped plan a consistent style and easily edit blog posts that had multiple images. I still adjusted all the things even after I applied a filter so, you can use the same tips I’m sharing below from lightroom, in VSCO. Start by adjusting the strength of the filter and then focus in on the exposure, white balance [temperature], and HSL [color saturation and hue].

BEFORE

EDITED WITH VSCO A6 FILTER

EDITED WITH MANDI NELSON PRESET IN LIGHTROOM

Even though VSCO’s filters are basically free [some you pay for] and presets can sometimes get pricey [anywhere from $30-$120 for bundles] I switched to Lightroom because I liked the professional preset options better, as it adjusted more things for me ahead of time. With VSCO I would spend so much time perfecting the tweaks because their filters just didn’t work on all my photos and sometimes a I just couldn’t find the right adjustments to make it consistent with my feed. Lightroom has presets made by professional photographers and I found they made more changes built into the preset that made it really easy to get a consistent and professional look to all my images no matter where or when they were taken. One thing I do like better about VSCO is you can edit the strength of the filter as a whole, vs in Lightroom you can’t adjust the intensity of the preset.

BEFORE

EDITED WITH VSCO A6 FILTER

EDITED WITH MANDI NELSON PRESET IN LIGHTROOM

LIGHTROOM + PRESETS:

After 3 years and countless apps and filters, I found the easiest way to get a consistent style from all my images is to apply a preset in the Lightroom photo editing app. They have a mobile version or a desktop. I have both, but to be honest, I find myself using the mobile version 90% of the time, and it’s free!

I went through so many Instagram accounts to find the presets that worked best for me. I like a natural look with crisp, cooler feel with a hint of orange, less yellow and muted greens. If that makes no sense to you, don't worry, just find someone you like and try it out. You can give any preset your own stamp by adjusting things like the exposure, tint, temperature and color hues and saturation [skin tone]. It took me about two months to really start to understand what changes when I adjust what, but now I really think I’ve got it down!

BEFORE

EDITED WITH VSCO A6 FILTER

EDITED WITH MANDI NELSON PRESET IN LIGHTROOM

Current Preset:

Mandi Nelson

I love how crisp and cool her's are-but I adjust the oranges and yellows quite a bit. [I'll show you how I use hers in a later in this post]. You should also go to her story highlights on her IG there’s a crazy amount of good tips on there and she reviews tons of FAQ’s about lightroom + how to use presets. Here’s just one example of how you can really have your own style, even when using a preset. Mandi’s feed vs my feed using the same lightroom preset still look very different because of our photography style and editing.

View fullsize

Previous preset:

Jessica Janae

These are what I used for my first 3 or 4 installments of #thedailymoments and about 3 weeks on my Instagram feed.

Steph Pollock suggested her and uses her presets beautifully. You can see below the difference between my style and Stephs. It just shows you how diverse a preset can be and that by using a preset someone else uses, doesn’t always mean your images will look exactly like theirs. It’s all in how you shoot, the lighting, editing angles and how you adjust the presets.

Other Presets I love:

Jenna Kutcher

Jenna is a beautiful soul, excellent photographer and someone I adore! Her presets are perfect for the beginner because she gives you a ton of easy one click options that don’t need a lot of adjustments.

EDITED WITH JENNA KUTCHER PRESETS

Bethany M Poteet

Her presets make me feel like i’m sitting on a white sandy beach. Such a pretty and calm vibe.

BEFORE

EDITED WITH BETHANY POTEET PRESET

EmmyLowe x BurtsBriPlease

I mean, don’t you just want your whole house to look this crisp, clean and happy?

Sophia Elrae

If you want a moody or warmer fall vibes, love this mamas presets.

BEFORE EDITS

EDITED WITH SOPHIA ELRAE PRESETS - COOLSAGE

Adjustments to presets [lightroom] or filters [vsco]:

The first thing I do to my photos is apply my preset and then I adjust from there. I focus on 3 things, exposure [brightness], temperature [warm or cooler] and color saturation [skin color and landscape vibrancy]. I also adjust the sharpness or grain if the image needs it but not always, this is already done in my preset, so it’s one less step to edit.

First edit, add preset

Then adjust exposure + shadows +highlights

Go into Color tab, and top right is the MIX where you can change each color individually.

I typically change the yellow to get rid of artifical light and then orange to adjust skin tones.

Exposure

I almost always [ok, always] adjust the exposure. I try and take all my photos underexposed or not in direct sunlight so that I can adjust the brightness myself once it’s in the app. I adjust exposure right after I apply the preset and then also after I do ALL my other edits to the preset. I sometimes need to go back and lower it if it’s too bright and lost some contrast or brighten it if it is still too dark.

Temperature

This can help take a blan photo to a whole new level, adds yellows and oranges [warmer] or blues and greens for a cooler feel. I don’t adjust this much anymore, I use the Color Mix to really change each color. But, it’s a good place to start before you get crazy learning the adjustments to specific colors.

Color Hue + Saturation [skin tone]

Thanks to @hellojessiemartin [she’s the best account to follow for really good photo editing tips] I learned all about this part of Lightroom and it’s really upped my photo editing game.

3 colors I focus on adjusting in my photos are the yellows, oranges and greens. Start with the color MIX tab.

yellow: Taking the yellow saturation down, gets rid of that horrible artificial light in most homes and restaurants and makes your images more white + natural [like they should be]. Practice this one with a bathroom shot. It’s amazing what taking the yellow saturation can do to your photo! If you take the luminance up, it makes them even more white and bright.

orange: this adjusts skin tones, this one you have to play with because it everyone has such different skin, it’s really up to you to see what works best for you. Use the color mix tab and adjust the saturation first, then hue to adjust the yellow, orange and red undertones in your skin. Mandi’s preset already takes down the oranges, so I usually bring them up a bit from where she has them.

green: this is mainly for my outdoor shots or images at home that have my plant babies in them. I take the greens down a little so that it doesn’t stand out in my photos. Grassy parks or front yards can get a warm touch to them if you take the green out of the photo a bit.

How I edit in lightroom mobile [step by step]

Here’s an example of an edit from start to finish. I snapped a quick photo of Finn on my iPhone X on a cloudy day. The lights weren’t on in the house and the front door was giving off some light behind him. Let me walk you through my steps in Lightroom.

IPHONE SNAP ON CLOUDY DAY -BEFORE EDITS

EDITED WITH MANDI NELSON - MINIMAL PRESET + ADJUSTMENTS

STEP BY STEP

Import photo into Lightroom mobile

1. Scroll the bottom all the way to the right - add PRESET [I click through each of my options to preview as some pictures look better with different presets to start with, but usually end up with EVERYDAY by MANDI NELSON].

   *Depending on what preset you use these next steps may not apply to you. My preset already ups the shadows and takes down some colors, so you can use my screenshots as reference where they are.

   [use the 3rd slide as an example- I took the oranges up to +24].

2. Scroll to the LIGHT tab - up the exposure quite a bit, Don’t worry if the skin tones look white here, you will adjust the colors MIX tab later and this will help fix that washed out look on the skin. Sometimes I take down the shadows too.

3. Scroll to the COLOR tab - on the top right, you’ll see MIX, that takes you into the colors so you can adjust individually. ORANGES - fix skin tone. Start with the SATURATION and then go to the hue until you find the tone you like.

4. Still in the MIX tab - click YELLOW. Adjust the saturation until you get the walls or whites in your photo the way you like them.

5. EFFECTS tab- personal preference but I like less grain in my photos, so I take that down a bit on MANDI’s preset.

6. To finish - go back to LIGHT tab, and adjust your EXPOSURE again to make sure you don’t loose contrast when brightening too much.

THAT’s IT!

That’s how I edit my photos in lightroom using the MANDI NELSON preset, EVERYDAY.

ADD TO LIGHTROOM, CHOOSE PRESET TO APPLY

EDIT LIGHT - UP EXPOSURE +

TAKE DOWN SHADOWS [IF NEEDED]

COLOR TAB - MIX [TOP RIGHT CORNER] ADJUST ORANGES [SKINTONES]

ADJUST YELLOWS - TAKE THE SATURATION WAY DOWN TO FIX ARTIFICIAL LIGHT

ADJUST THE GRAIN. THIS IS TOTALLY A PERSONAL PREFERENCE BUT I LIKE LESS GRAIN.

GO BACK AND ADJUST EXPOSURE AGAIN IF NEEDED

OTHER PHOTO APPS I LOVE

SNAPSEED -

Oh how do I love this app so much!

Snapseed not only can adjust the colors of your photos, but it can adjust parts of your photos, it can auto correct your perspective and it can even EXPAND your image if you didn’t take those two steps back before snapping like I suggested. I’ll work on a tutorial of how I use them next because I actually use this one a lit to change the angle, and perspective of my pictures.

RETOUCH -

The best healing app out there. When I say healing, I mean get rid of that lady on the beach standing behind the perfect capture of your little one, removing the tv wires from a photo or the telephone wires from a super cute shot of the family. This app is super easy and makes it easy to get rid of all the little things you don’t want in a picture.

UNFOLD -

Unfold is the app that takes your IG stories to a whole new level. Picture collages never looked so good! You can add fonts, background frames and even upload videos and images on the same slide.

I hope this helps! I have so much more I’ve learned over the last two years, so maybe I’ll make this photography tips thing a more regular occurrence. If you have a specific question you want answered, feel free to comment below! Can’t wait to hear if this was helpful or not.

photography tips i've learned to create a curated style

the best photography tips i've learned for capturing your family perfectly, even on your iPhone.

If you're a mom trying to just get great photos of your family that you can frame, or if your an aspiring blogger who wants a curated and personal aesthetic consistently throughout your feed, these are some simple tips I've learned over the last few years that helped me do just that.

If you’re looking for step by step examples of how I edit my actual photos right now. Head over to this post. I walk you through everything step by step and show you how I use all my favorite apps.

Three things I focus on to keep my Instagram feed cohesive:

1. shooting [lighting + angles]

2. editing [presets, touch ups, and angles]

3. posting [9 grid]

90% of my photos I take on my iPhone X, and 50% of the time I use the portrait mode, it needs bright natural light to be crisp, so sometimes I can't use it to get the best shot. If I am using an actual camera, I'm usually using a Canon t3 that Jason bought for me 8 years ago. But truthfully, in my opinion, it's usually not the camera that makes the picture look good, it's the person taking it. It took me almost 3 years to finally feel like I kinda know what I'm doing at these are a few things I've learned that have helped me.

1. When shooting anything; people, food, scenery, selfies, be aware of your surroundings and don’t be afraid to take a few steps back and get more of the location in the picture. [you can always crop later]. A good rule of thumb I use when directing Jason to take a photo is to make sure you get our feet and our heads. It’s human nature to always want to take the image close to someone’s face but I like it when you get the whole picture of what’s happening in the image when you take it from farther away.

2. I almost always try and take my photos with natural light. If I’m outside, whoever is taking the picture [usually me] have them [or you] stand with your back to the sun. And try and avoid standing in the sunlight. Use a shaded area that still gets a good amount of natural light from the sun.

3. If you are shooting indoors, or with artificial lighting, you can get rid of the yellow tints by adjusting the yellow hues and the temperature of the image. [Lightroom does this best]. This is my favorite things I've learned so far. But when shooting, try and keep the lights off as much as possible and avoid using the flash. It’s easier to brighten the photo because it’s dark vs get rid of the yellow light or reflections from the glare of lights.

4. When you edit, keep your photos straight and centered. Use the crop/straighten tools and the perspective to adjust the angle vertically or horizontally. I will show you how to do this in SNAPSEED in this post, but you can use any app or just adjust them in your photo gallery in your phone. This helps with the rule of 3’s, by keeping your lines straight.

5. Use the rule of 3's in photography to align the photo. This is so simple but makes the biggest impact. The rule of thirds is applied by aligning a subject with the guidelines. The basic principle behind the rule of thirds is to imagine breaking an image down into thirds (both horizontally and vertically) so that you have 9 parts and creating a horizon so that your eye easily moves from square to square.

6. Set your scene first and make sure you’re taking the snap straight if you can. If you have time take a couple practice shots so you can see if a weird outlet or random thing stands out in the image. Try and take photos straight on so when you align your subject, don’t shoot from the side of it, shoot straight at it. Don’t be afraid to move around! Taking images from all angles you wouldn't normally think would be good, sometimes get you the best shot! If you end up with something in the image you want to edit, I use RETOUCH. Like this picture below actually had a vacuum leaning on the sliding glass door. I edited it out with two clicks.

7. Use your favorite preset or filter to keep all your photos consistent. Lightroom mobile is free and it is a professional photo editing app that usually you can editing in one click using purchased presets. Below are 6 images shot in very different settings and light but edited with the same filter. I’ll put some of my favorite presets in my post, How I create a consistent aesthetic in my photos. [other apps I use and love, snapseed, color story, and retouch].

8. This one is more for influencers or bloggers, but I use a planning app for my posts. I use planoly, it’s not a free one... but I’ve used it forever and I love it. I usually only post once a day but sometimes I get multiple images that day that I want to post so I save them in there. I store my hashtags and write and edit my captions ahead of time. This helps me see if a photo's colors or how I edited to fit into my aesthetic or if I need to adjust the exposure or temperature to fit the rest of the images before I actually post it.

9. This is a personal preference but I use the grid method [maybe it’s called something different] but I staged my photos to have one light and one darker photo each time. Which creates a grid that is easy on the eye.

10. Try, try and try again. The more you shoot, the better you will get. Same with editing. As you start to edit your photos, it will become second nature and then you'll learn another trick to making your photos the exact style and feel you are looking for.

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#thedailymoments || week 7

My life seems pretty boring lately, but sometimes that's just what I need.  Slow moments just spent at home, no plans and without a schedule. 

These days most of us are living busy over-scheduled lives.  It's easy to lose track of the moments that really matter, which can often be the most ordinary parts of our days.   In the midst of all the responsibilities of our day, we need to remember to check in with ourselves so that we don't lose sight of who we really are and what is really important to us.   This series, #TheDailyMoments was started by my good friend @steph.pollock and as soon as I saw her first post, and when she said, 

It's these small moments that make up a lifetime of beautiful ones,

I knew this was something I needed to join in on.

If I haven't told you enough yet, I am not a morning person.  If I had it my way I would lay in bed until 9, drink my coffee, listen to morning acoustic radio on Spotify and scroll the gram or pin all the things.  But as any parent knows, once you have kids, you say goodbye to all things slow in the morning. 

Finn has been waking up about 6am without fail these days, and he is READY to go.  He rolls out of bed, stands on his bed and opens his blinds (the half almost breaking them way) to see if the sun is up, which obvi it is [insert eye roll emoji].  Then he grabs all his favorite stuffed animals, turns off his sound machine, walks to his door and as he exits turns on his light, the hall light and everything else in between before barging into our room asking, "Mom, where's dad?"  

But this morning was different. [you should know we potty trained him almost 6 weeks ago, but it isn't perfect yet].  This morning, I heard the blinds, I heard his door open and then as I waited for our door to open, I heard his little run down the hallway instead.  I waited a few minutes to see if I heard him playing in the playroom, or getting a yogurt from the fridge [which generally comes after the "mom, where's dad part"] and I didn't hear any of that.  I laid there wishing that maybe, just maybe he went back to bed, but then, I get worried with the silence, and finally jumped out of bed.  Just as I walked down the hall, I heard him say, "Mom stay out!"  He was in the bathroom, undressed mind you, and had his diaper halfway off about to use the potty ALL BY HIMSELF!!  Say what?!  You heard me.  He got out of bed, went to the bathroom, took off his diaper and pooped on the toilet, without my help!!  Hallelujah! 

I promptly demanded a cookie at 6:03am and stormed off saying, "I don't need pants!" So please excuse the fact that all of the following images are mostly either in his underwear or naked.  That's life and I didn't feel like fighting him today. Xx Oo little man, you win.

Typical Day at the Wells casa includes Paw Patrol, Booba on Netflix or a Disney movie;  Bolt + Chicken Little are currently on repeat.  While Finn eats his breakfast, I either drink my tea, do the dishes or follow up on emails.  Sometimes I edit photos or plan my future Instagram posts for the week.  [Yes, not all of my posts are spontaneous, most of them are planned days in advance and I adjust the captions for my mood that day].  Today, after we built forts and then tore them down, we headed to the playroom and I shopped for Finn's new playroom makeover while he basically tore everything apart and hid all his toys in his wall storage thingy.

I cant wait for the new space because most of the stuff that's currently in there is from his first nursery almost 3 years ago!  The new room is going to have all the Bohemian Oasis feels with lots of natural colors and organic textiles.  I already ordered this awesome green velvet futon and this storage ottoman that will double as seating and toy wrangling.  I can already picture him having playdates with his friends and finding them building forts and falling asleep in there.  I'm working on an inspiration board blog post for the space and when it's done, I'll insert it here. ;-) . But for now, here's a sneak peek.

side note: If you haven't looked at H&M home, you're missing out.  But be warned, check the sizing!  I order things thinking they are life size, and almost every time they come looking like they belong in a dollhouse.  But, we've gotten tons of great things from there!  Ordering this cute cutting board for Finn's Ikea Kitchen makeover hack cause I know it will be the perfect "small" size!  

When all my chores are done and I'm done working for a bit, I usually try and get Finn outside before naptime.  We go back and forth from the front yard to the back, from paying soccer, jumping on the trampoline and playing in the "pool."  [Husband refuses to get a small pool because he is afraid of the mold].  I know, I know...

Today, Finn asked to take our 13 years old girl, Daisy for a walk.  And so we did.

These ceramic mushrooms came from a little artsy fair in Laguna Beach called, Sawdust.  Have you guys ever been??  When I met my husband, he was living in Laguna Beach and I was in Manhattan Beach so every year when I came to visit we would go to this art fair.  The lady who makes these has been making them and  selling them at the fair for years.  The first couple of years we went, we would say to each other, who buys those?  This year, the year we bought our first home in southern California together, we went back and we both said, let's get those!  We decided to get one for every year we visit the fair from now on and I can't wait to fill our new home with a bunch of these little mushrooms!

I've said it before but i'll say it again, Daddy is the fun one!  He jumps on the trampoline with him, he runs around the house with him and he even let's him use the hose.  I tried to be the fun one today and let Finn help me fill up the pool and then I turned around and found myself the target.  Drenched to my knees in water, it was finally nap time!

The first thing he does when he wakes up from nap time is ask where Daddy is, and runs outside to see if he's home.  He usually helps him take off his shoes and changes his clothes and before I know it they are back in the backyard playing the pool again!

Some days I want to keep him up all night and play and other nights I can't wait to get through bath time and get him to bed to I can have a cocktail and a real dinner that he wouldn't even think of touching.  Tonight we had caprese salad my way, and my favorite homeade margarita with fresh lemons and limes and a splash of squirt.  So good.  And that's how we do it over here at #thewellscasa. Goodnight.

Just as Steph did, I am inviting you to do the same, join us in this movement of letting life be more enjoyable just by letting it be exactly what it is.  Tag your photos with #thedailymoments so we can all share in the joy of the simple moments that make up a lifetime of happiness.

The Daily Moments || Week 1

The Daily Moments || Week 2

The Daily Moments || Week 3

The Daily Moments || Week 4

The Daily Moments || Week 6

 

#thedailymoments || Week 6

#thedailymoments || Week 6

These days most of us are living busy over-scheduled lives.  It's easy to lose track of the moments that really matter, which can often be the most ordinary parts of our days.   In the midst of all the responsibilities of our day, we need to remember to check in with ourselves so that we don't lose sight of who we really are and what is really important to us.   This series, #TheDailyMoments was started by my good friend @steph.pollock and as soon as I saw her first post, and when she said, 

It's these small moments that make up a lifetime of beautiful ones,

I knew this was something I needed to join in on.

This weeks recap might sound a little scrambled because that's exactly how my brain feels currently.  Today was a day to just go slowly, breathe and do only what I was capable of doing at the moment.

I took these pictures on Wednesday.  We had our first fertility appt the day before and my best friend, Debi's funeral is on Saturday.   Needless to say, my brain has been working overtime.  I know i've been stressed to say the least but yesterday at the doctor, my blood pressure was higher than it's ever been, even when I was in labor with Finn.  It was 165/101.  That's ridiculously not normal.

I tried to not stress by having a super slow morning, just Finn and I.  Daddy wakes up at 4:30 to head to Orange Theory, and he comes home to shower around 6am.  Right about that time Finn wakes up ready to go, and I am positive [no matter what Jason claims is "quiet"] that he is woken up by the loudness that my husband is when he gets home.   You see, I am N O T a morning person.  Maybe it's because I never drank coffee, but I do not roll out of bed ready to go, so this 6am wake-up call usually doesn't work for me.

So basically, Finn runs into the kitchen demanding I get up and get him some "lunch."  I cuddle on the couch and hope he comes to cuddle me too.  Sometimes I win, and sometimes I find myself in the playroom at 7am.

We turn on music, we dance, we play outside and I usually get to make myself some tea and breakfast around 10am.  Today, we spent most of the morning outside, played in our "pool" and looked up at the sky as my ray of sunshine Debi shined down upon us until about 11:30 am when it was time for a mommy break [screen time].  

Today I was tired.  Mentally exhausted from my visit to the fertility clinic and the anxiousness about what is to come this weekend. I wanted to spend my nap time actually taking a nap, but Finn had other ideas.  He usually goes down at 1pm and today, he took one full hour to calm down and get to sleep.   

It was beautiful outside, the first day that I felt a little breeze and not like I was going to melt.  So, I went into the backyard, plopped my feet up and closed my eyes while soaking in all that vitamin D.  Just as I felt myself nod off, my phone rang.  It was my other best friend, Cara and we ended up talking for almost 2hrs. As much as I thought I needed sleep, I needed this girl talk more.  Feeling refreshed and motivated, I started the dishes just as Finn walked out from his nap, "hi mommy!"

Daddy called and asked us on a dinner date to Nordstrom because his alterations were ready to be picked up.  I scrambled to finish cleaning the kitchen and quickly showered [of course, not alone] and we were on our way only 15 minutes late.

We came home and I think we both needed a moment as a family to smile and play so we kept Finn up past his bedtime, drank wine, listened to music and enjoyed these last few warm moments of summer nights.

It's been almost two weeks since I lost my dearest Debi.  Since then, I have dedicated this weekly series to her.  Even though she isn't here with me, I can write these journals in her honor and hope that she's up there reading them with her signature eye roll and a smile.

Dear Debi, "I don't know when I will be able to function on a normal level again, I'm sure I will spend many more days looking up at the sky and talking to you and wishing you were here. But, I can promise you this, not a moment will be wasted on loving this oh so beautiful life in honor of the joy and happiness you brought into my life and to Finn's life.  We will honor you by truly loving every breath we take; the good, the bad and everything in between."

These are small moments of our day, exactly 2 weeks since you left us. I miss you and I love you. 

Just as Steph did, I am inviting you to do the same, join us in this movement of letting life be more enjoyable just by letting it be exactly what it is.  Tag your photos with #thedailymoments so we can all share in the joy of the simple moments that make up a lifetime of happiness.

The Daily Moments || Week 1

The Daily Moments || Week 2

The Daily Moments || Week 3

The Daily Moments || Week 4

10 Pictures you should take at home right now

When I scroll through my 70,000+ photos in my iPhone I think lots of things about where I'm currently at in life, where we used to be and how fast time moves.  I think, Finn's never going to be that small again.  Jason and I probably won't grow old in this home.  Our family may not always have just one baby to love and, we all know we may not look this young for long.  This is the exact reason, I take a million photos of simple things throughout the day.  So, the next time you find yourself hanging at home with your phone in your hand you should snap these photos and memories.

1. Simple moments of daily life in the space you spend most time in.

2. Pockets of your home that every time you walk by them, you feel like you're home

3. YOU, mama!  Just you, alone. We need to get out from behind that camera.  I'm talking to you, Husbands!

4. One good "framer."  you know, the one grandma wants to hang on the wall.  Faces closes and with big smiles

5. The one you think would never be the "framer."  the one where someone is possibly throwing a full on meltdown fit but, it's ok.  Cause it's real life.

6. Gadgets.  You know you'd give anything to have a picture of your walkman circa 1995.  Or your old answering machine!  Ha.  Get a couple snaps of the technology around your house because kids these days, don't even know what a CD is!  No, seriously.

7. Candid moment, one unplanned snapshot of what you home life is like right now

8. All the small details.  something around the house that will remind you of exactly what season you are in currently.  It could be your bedroom, your closet, or even your bathroom.  But just snap a quick photo of something material that will bring you back to this moment when you see it again in 10 years.

9. You and your love without the kids.  I know it's way easier to hide the belly roll or to those dang birthing hips with a baby in front of or on you but, you know you need one tiny little glimpse of who you two were before babies.

10. The "look how much he's grown" pic. For me, it's Finn's hair.  He's always been almost bald so when I see a photo with those little ringlets, I want to remember that moment.

When I was younger, every holiday when we would go back home I would want to look through old photo albums.  I loved seeing how people used to dress and really enjoyed laughing at the obscene floral print couches and orange shag rugs my grandma had.  One look at that stone staked fireplace and I would quickly remember all the times that I would sit in that recliner chair in the living room and share an apple with salt on it with my grandpa.  

These days its all too easy to get caught up in searching for that perfectly curated image.  You know, the one with a minimalist back ground, or one that says, I'm always on vacation!  I started a new weekly blog series called #thedailymoments, and it has completely changed the way I look at taking photos these days.  Yes, I want my feed to look pretty and inspire others but that doesn't mean I need to have a couch with perfectly placed pillows or a floor without toys laying around everywhere.  

I use my instagram and blog as a journal that hopefully one day when I'm old and grey and Finn brings his first girlfriend over to visit us for the holidays, I can pull out my blog posts (aka old photo albums) and show her all the embarrassing things he did when he was younger, his first bad haircut, and even how messy his room was.  I can't wait to look back and show him and her how we used to live and even give him a tiny glimpse into what his dad an I were usually doing on a week night in after he went to bed.

These pictures I post, they are a representation of me and my life.  They are what I will leave behind when I'm gone and they will be what my great grandchildren (hopefully) will have to cherish and learn more about who I was, what I did, and what kind of life I had.  It's sometimes messy, sometimes beautiful and most of the time somewhere in between.

A Big thank you to Alison Bernier, who took these photos for us.  She came to our home for an hour on a warm summer night and captured us just being us in our home.  When these pictures were taken we had only been in our new home for about a month, and only Finn's room was actually "done."  We ahd boxes in the hallway and in our bedroom, the bed was still on the floor and I won't even begin to tell you how crazy messy the garage was but it didn't even matter.  I highly recommend doing a session like this with your family at home. I'll hold these moments for years to come no matter how messy the scene behind them was.

#thedailymoments || Week 4 [in honor of my dearest Debi]

It is with the heaviest heart and with the deepest sadness that I held my best friends hand and watched her take her last breaths August 1st at 1:37am.  

Today was the first full day without her.  It's been 18 days since your mom called me that Monday morning to tell me you were in ICU, and my life will never be the same.  I knew the moment the phone rang, it wasn't good.  

Debra, Deeb, Aunti, Debi, bestie, blondemaid, and Deb.  She was and is the most important person that has ever come into my life.  I know that's a strong statement, but it's one I will always stand by.  Without the love and constant support from her and her family, I would be a completely different person than I am today.

I spent most of my day trying to hold it together.  I spent most of my day scrolling old photos of us over and over and over.  Photos I've seen a million times but I could look at a million more.  I would look at the photos and wish that somehow we would be able to take more photos just like the ones I was holding so dear to my heart.  

I don't know when I will be able to function on a normal level again, I'm sure I will spend many more days looking up at the sky and talking to you and wishing you were here. But, I can promise you this, not a moment will be wasted on loving this oh so beautiful life in honor of the joy and happiness you brought into my life and to Finn's life.  We will honor you by truly loving every breath we take; the good, the bad and everything in between.

These are small moments of our day, the first day without you in it.  I miss you and I love you. #thedailymoments

It's like he knows.  He came up to me numerous times today, just for a tight squeeze and a kiss.

I was standing in the kitchen talking to my mom when he came in from playing outside with daddy. He ran up to me yelling, "mama, mama!"  I said, "yes baby boy, what is it?"  Before I could even finish my sentence, he looked up at me with a much quieter voice and said gently, "I promise.  Mama, big promise."  I smiled and said, "ok, that's sweet, what is it that you promise my love?"  He said, "I PROMISE, I'll make you all better." 

I glanced up with a tear in my eye at my husband who was coming in just as the whole conversation was over, and I said, "Did you tell him to say that?"  He looked at me confused and said, "Say what?"  I stopped in my tracks, picked him up, sat him on the counter and squeezed the living daylights out of my gentle and kind child.  And in that moment, I knew I would get through this.

This daddy has been more supportive than I could have imagined.  We don't usually lunch togetehr but today we carved out time for us.  It was so helpful for this broken heart of mine.

$1 carousel rides makes everything better, right?

He was such a pill today.  It's like he felt my pain.  Meet Mr. grumpapatamous

soccer practice before soccer practice

Toes in the grass.  I don't know why this reminds me of that country song, Toes in the water, ass in the sand...yada yada.  But my bestie loved country so, i guess it makes sense, right?

There's a whole other story I haven't shared with you all yet, but I'm sure I will soon.  Grandma is in town unexpectedly, and we're so happy she is here.

hiding my sadness behind all the hats and glasses today

Packing up all my feelings from the month and trying to move forward with smiles and grace

If you want to start from the beginning of this series, start here Week 1.  Then here Week 2. 

These days most of us are living busy over-scheduled lives.  It's easy to lose track of the moments that really matter, which can often be the most ordinary parts of our days.   In the midst of all the responsibilities of our day, we need to remember to check in with ourselves so that we don't lose sight of who we really are and what is really important to us.   This series, #TheDailyMoments was started by my good friend @steph.pollock and as soon as I saw her first post, and when she said, 

It's these small moments that make up a lifetime of beautiful ones,

I knew this was something I needed to join in on.

Just as Steph did, I am inviting you to do the same, join us in this movement of letting life be more enjoyable just by letting it be exactly what it is.  Tag your photos with #thedailymoments so we can all share in the joy of the simple moments that make up a lifetime of happiness.

The Daily Moments || Week 1

The Daily Moments || Week 2

The Daily Moments || Week 3

The Daily Moments || Week 4

#thedailymoments || Week 3

#thedailymoments || Week 3

If you want to start from the beginning of this series, start here Week 1.  Then here Week 2. 

These days most of us are living busy over-scheduled lives.  It's easy to lose track of the moments that really matter, which can often be the most ordinary parts of our days.   In the midst of all the responsibilities of our day, we need to remember to check in with ourselves so that we don't lose sight of who we really are and what is really important to us.   This series, #TheDailyMoments was started by my good friend @steph.pollock and as soon as I saw her first post, and when she said, 

It's these small moments that make up a lifetime of beautiful ones,

I knew this was something I needed to join in on.

Last week I added some short captions, and this week I had a little more time so I'm using this as more of a journal.  So when I look back a year, two years, or even 5 years from now, I can relive the season I was in currently, and either be thankful I'm out of it, or grateful for the new season i'm currently experiencing.

Potty Training a naked toddler in my dream kitchen

Finn crawled into our bed at 4am, he told me, "mommy my tummy."  I'm pretty sure he was telling me that he wanted to potty because when he actually crawled out of bed at 5:45, he told daddy..."I want to use the potty!"  We're on day 4 of potty training today and we haven't left the house since last Friday morning.  I'm working on a full potty training post and will link it here soon, but it seems to be going well with only 2 accidents in 4 days.  So this morning we went to Target to get a BIG SURPRISE for Finn to celebrate goodbye to diapers.

I assured Jason Target opens at 7, but he wanted to go by his normal Starbucks first.  We sat as a family and chatted about our days all before 8am and it was such a nice change compared to Jason waking up at 4:30 to go to the gym and us just saying goodbye as he left for work most mornings.  I spotted an elderly man reading the Wall Street Journal and even though he numerous other tables were open, he decided to squeeze into the table next to us unfazed by the crazy toddler trying to tear the blinds off the window.  I don't know why but I love watched elderly people.  He was writing a to-do list to himself on a small piece of paper and it made me smile because no days everyone is glued to their phones.
 

Jason left to put Finn in the car while I cleaned up the table and as I was leaving this young business sitting alone across the room stopped me... he said, "That's so awesome!  Do you guys have breakfast together every morning?"  I wanted to answer yes but it kinda made me sad that we actually don't ever do that.  I told him in an almost embarrassed way, "no, my husband is actually going out of town tomorrow so he wanted to spend some extra time with us before work today."  He applauded us for it again and we both smiled and went on our way.

Daddy does the Target run with us

I don't know, the last few days have been challenging for me.  Potty training is no joke and I just needed a break.  My patience level is at an all-time low and I can't stay calm and be present with my actions.  This toy we bought him as a celebration of joy, I almost threw it out the window, it was so hard trying to build while he was so excited and wanted to play with it.  I took a break and just breathed and then it turned out perfectly.

This part is very hard to share but, I know when I look back at these images of this day.  I will only be able to think back about how hard it was for me.  My best friend has been in the ICU for the past couple of weeks, and can't get it off my mind.  I find anytime I can to go see her and today after I put Finn down for his nap, I had a sitter come over and I rushed to her bedside for only 30 min, until it was time to head back home and put my mom hat back on.

I tried so hard to push my sadness aside today and to just be present with him.  We played outside in the sunshine until daddy came home. I then retreated to the guest bedroom for a little mental break alone while my two boys did push ups and yoga in the playroom.  I heard them on the other side of the wall and really felt so thankful in that moment.  

I cooked a comfort food dinner, the kind my bestie would love.  It was still 80 degrees outside, as we are in the middle of another heat wave so, we sat outside as a family and talked for a bit and then daddy took over.  I crawled into bed at 8:30pm.  He did bath time, bedtime and even did the dishes and laundry for me.  I need that today.

Just as Steph did, I am inviting you to do the same, join us in this movement of letting life be more enjoyable just by letting it be exactly what it is.  Tag your photos with #thedailymoments so we can all share in the joy of the simple moments that make up a lifetime of happiness.

The Daily Moments || Week 1

The Daily Moments || Week 2

The Daily Moments || Week 3

The Daily Moments || Week 4

Finn's California Coastal Cool Big Boy Room Reveal

It's here its finally here, all the details on Finn's California Coastal Bohemian Big boy room.  For those of you who are new around here, I'm a born (almost, since I was two) and raised Southern California beach girl.  We spent the last 3 years in Silicon Valley in Northern California, until I finally convinced my husband to move back home to southern California.  And the best news we were able to buy our first home together in Costa Mesa!

At the bottom of this post are all the links I can think of, if I missed something please comment and let me know.  I literally put thought into every single detail in this room and I kinda wanna live in it myself.  I find Finn taking breaks throughout the day in his own space and it gives me the warmest fuzzy feeling knowing he loves it as much as I do.  

DHP Green Linen Upholstered Twin Bed | Rattan Storage seat/nightstand | Bedside Storage table | Tye Dye washable circle rug

Before the previous owners could hand over the keys to us, they needed a little more time and we had already made arrangements to move back down.  So, we ended up renting a cute little beach cottage for 6 weeks until we could move in to our first home.  During that time all the perfect sleep we'd had since Finn was a baby, was out the window.  We use to have a child who went down in minutes, slept 13hrs every night and took naps daily, but once we got in the temporary space, and had him in the pack-n-play, we lost it. All that sleep goodness was gone; he took hours to go down to sleep, he climbed out of the pack-n-play every night and only slept in the car for naps.  So, it became glaringly obvious that once we moved into our new home, the first room I was going to tackle was his.   He needed a space fit for a growing toddler, that was all his and it was time for a big boy room with a big boy bed.  

I wanted to transition him into a space that he could grow with for years to come, and I knew I wanted it to have all the so cal beachy vibes, but without being too literal.  I started thinking about what I wanted it to look like and I started pinning all the Chip and Joanna things but nothing seemed quite right.  I wanted a space that wasn't like anything else I had seen,  I had a few small things in mind but I needed it all to come together.  

This was our 5th move in 4 years, and the first time we actually more rooms than I needed.  We decided to make one of the rooms a playroom, so that's when Finn's room became more about individual playtime and family reading time.  We didn't need a ton of storage because I planned on making the playroom the main home for all his toys.

His room is actually the biggest and the brightest room in the house with this amazing asymmetrical wall.  When I found this whimsical vintage wave mural I knew this was the perfect thing to make this space feel like a bright and fun Hawaiian hideaway.  After I decided this was the anchor of the room I just started searching the world wide web for beds.  And man was that depressing.  How can a small child's bed be so dang pricey?!  They were either expensive and amazing or cheap and not at all what I wanted. Until I stumbled on this green linen bed and it's so perfect for his space and for him!

We read almost every single morning and night to Finn.  I often find him in his room on the floor with 5-6 books he's going through.  So, it was super important that I made a reading nook in his space.  One that was comfortable for him and us when we all piled in there.  I also didn't want it to be too cluttered or have a chair that took over the space.  Seriously, this chair and these bookshelves couldn't have been more perfect for that vision.

To be honest, my style can sometimes lack color.  I'm that neutral girl, but for his space, I felt like this was where I could let loose and really bring in some bright rainbow accents, alongside indigo and pops of sunshine with some yellow accessories.  We have two Lorena Canals rugs in our house and because they are washable I knew I needed one of this space.  

Lastly, the artwork was something I literally couldn't imagine this space without.  Max Wanger is a genius minimal photographer and I knew I needed to complete Finn's first room in our first home with one of his prints.  It took my husband and I days to agree on one and finally framed this one with Simply Framed and there isn't a day that goes by that I don't want to take it off his wall and put it in my bedroom.  So jelly of this one.

Links to all the details:

SLEEP

DHP Green Linen Upholstered Twin Bed

Signature sleep Twin Mattress

Stripe Linen Duvet

Pillows: 
Pom Pom | Indigo [linked to similar cause one of kind vintage] | Sunshine [bought in when he was a babe from Paper Source]

---

WALLS

Vintage Wave wall mural 

Palms Wall art

Acrylic Floating Bookshelves

Tye dye wall hanging

Minted Vintage Bus + Surf Prints
Birth Poster

---

FURNITURE

Rattan Storage seat/nightstand

Bedside Storage table

Bohemian Teak Accent Chair

Tye Dye washable circle rug

---

TOYS

Two of my favorite places to shop for kids toys are Maisonette + Sprouts SF

Colorblock backpack

Magnetic Camper 

vintage woody car 

letter blocks 

Play Guitar
(both Little Cottonwood but they are sold out- linked to an even cuter versions)

Magnetic wood building sticks

Hand-drawn play-mat 
 

A Big thank you to Alison Bernier, who took these photos for us.  Your captured the space perfectly!

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#thedailymoments || Week 2

#thedailymoments || Week 2

These days most of us are living busy over-scheduled lives.  It's easy to lose track of the moments that really matter, which can often be the most ordinary parts of our days.   In the midst of all the responsibilities of our day, we need to remember to check in with ourselves so that we don't lose sight of who we really are and what is really important to us.   This series, #TheDailyMoments was started by my good friend @steph.pollock and as soon as I saw her first post, and when she said, 

It's these small moments that make up a lifetime of beautiful ones,

I knew this was something I needed to join in on.

Last week I let the pictures speak for themselves, but this week I had a little more time so I added a few captions so you can get to know us a little better. 

every single morning without fail, he wakes up and immediately asks for a yogurt.  He eats at least 3 of these a day.

we often have piles of clean laundry all over the house.  I wonder why?

 1 of 45 times today I told him not to pick his nose

some days we spend no time in his room, and others days we can't get enough.  Today was one of those days.  Trains, drawing (while Finn erases), reading books, and wrestling

then he told me he wanted to go to school. 

I usually get to drink my morning coffee around 10 or 11am

human jungle gym for hours today

he would tell me, mom you draw this...and then immediately after I would draw a perfect stick figure that looked just like him, he would promptly erase it

dodgie lost his tags today and he now has a huge hole in his rear end... how long with this lovie last?

beach park days are the best

except for when you have to drop everything because your toddler who isn't water ready, heads straight for the water.

i try so hard to look natural for the self timer, maybe by week 10...i'll look kinda normal

let's bury mommy

this dude could love on beans + brocilli (which is what he calls guacamole)

i got to shower today.   truth be told, i have zero idea how to use essential oils but after every shower i sprinkle a few drops of geranium and eucalyptus and it smells just like i'm at the spa

"momma sit on my lap" - i love a good cuddle sessh before naptime

my first child always needs to be really up in the mix.  Right before this she sat on his lap

when you're supposed to be napping but your playing hide and seek instead

Finn's really enjoying these new counter stools

one pot fajita pasta tonight

daddy's working late, so off to start that dinner time hustle

Just as Steph did, I am inviting you to do the same, join us in this movement of letting life be more enjoyable just by letting it be exactly what it is.  Tag your photos with #thedailymoments so we can all share in the joy of the simple moments that make up a lifetime of happiness.

The Daily Moments || Week 1

The Daily Moments || Week 2

The Daily Moments || Week 3

The Daily Moments || Week 4