Spooktacular Night
Posted on by Leave a comment

EdithDragonHalloween

Halloween is only a few days away but the festivities have already started.  Since Edith is only 15 months trick-or-treating is not on our to do list this year so we decided to find a festive toddler friendly alternative. We decided to attend the Halloween Spooktacular at the Sellwood Community Center on Monday night. We dressed Edith up in her dragon costume and headed over to the community center.

Edithhenryspook

We entered and decided to pass on the game tickets until we checked things out. After a stroll around the downstairs we decided that there were a few toddler friendly games and went back to buy a few tickets for Edith. She played toss the spider and another toss game where you feed bats into the mouth of a cardboard Dracula. To our delight there were non-candy prizes which was perfect for Edith.

edithdraculahaloween

edithspidertosshalloween
The event was a little overwhelming as there were so many families and children ranging from newborn to 10-12 years old plus parents, grandparents and volunteers. Since the event had free admission we didn’t feel obligated to “get our monies worth” so we played a few games, let Edith run around and then we headed out. Edith had a blast and ended up leaving with a Halloween bag filled with a dog pen, a halloween pencil and a little rubber chicken.

Edithhalloweenlaugh

{Giveaway} Erin Condren E-Gift Card
Posted on by 1 Comment

  Disclaimer: I was compensated with a $25 e-gift card by ErinCondren.com for this post. All opinions are my own. 

I am a planner. I mean extreme planner and my husband loves to give me a hard time about it especially when I spend hours planning weekend getaways. Now that we have a little one and I am trying to be a work-at-home mom as well as a stay-at-home mom (more on that in another post) I have gone into planning over drive. The one problem I have though is that I don’t have a a good planner.

ErinCondren-LRG_laminatedWell after weeks of research (yes weeks) I finally have come to the conclusion that ErinCondren.com has the best option. It has all the features that I am looking for including a calendar with a month view, week view and it has a spot of goals/tasks and a spot where I can put our menu plan and my workout plan for the week. Seriously it seems great and I can’t wait for mine to arrive.ErinCondren-LRG_monthly

Now you might be saying well I would rather do my planning all on my smart phone or tablet and I get that so if that is more your thing don’t worry ErinCondren.com has a number of other really great products that you could use this gift card for including holiday cards, notepads, pens, a cover for your iPhone, or even some really fun wrapping paper (the holiday’s are coming fast!).ErinCondren-Pens-LRG_set

So I am now just waiting to get my Life Planner and once I do I’ll be sharing it in more detail but until then it’s giveaway time!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Disclaimer: Affiliate link included. Images are being used with permission from erincondren.com

SAHM & The Importance of Getting Dressed
Posted on by 4 Comments

IMG_3343

I have been a SAHM for over a year now and 90% of the time that means you’ll find me in running gear or yoga pants and no I am usually not doing either at the time. I mean I live in stretch pants and nursing tanks. But after reading on a friend’s facebook wall that her daughters thought that she was dressed up because she had jeans, a nice top and jewelry something clicked. I don’t want E to think that jeans and a t-shirt are dressing up (although most days that is the case for me). I want her to feel a sense of pride in how she looks because honestly we all know what when you think you look good you generally feel more confident, productive and ready to take on the world.

Now I’m not saying that you necessarily look bad because you are wearing yoga pants but honestly yoga pants and a t-shirt are just dressy pajamas unless you are going to yoga class.That being said it’s time to make a change. Do you remember the days when people actually wore dress clothes to work? When you could go out in public and not see people in their pajamas and i’m not talking about the yoga pants pajama look but the full on sponge bob pajama pants look. I honestly watch shows like mad men and wish that times hadn’t changed so much where it is now socially acceptable to wear pajamas out in public or shorts that are so short your pockets show (okay maybe I’m just getting old but seriously that’s considered fashionable?)

I’m not saying i have a desire to go back to the days when men wore suits everyday and women were always 100% put together from head to toe but rather I think that it’s important to put an outfit together. To wake up in the morning and be dressed shortly after. No more lounging around all day long in yoga pants. Get up put a cute outfit on – even if it’s just jeans and t-shirt. I find that just doing that makes me more productive, active and focused.

This post not only applies to the SAHM but also anyone who works from home. Just try it out for a week. See how you feel. Do you feel better? More productive? More motivated? Happier? Come and report back. Tell me if I’m being crazy but I bet most of you will find some improvement to your week.

That all being said I’m not a fashion blogger or claim to be super fashionable, although I do remember there was a time I felt that way, but I do think fashion and dressing well has it’s place. I am planning to do some SAHM fashion posts mostly to keep myself motivated but also to share some of my ideas with you.

Why We Love Babywearing
Posted on by 6 Comments

Like most couples when we found out we were expecting we started researching everything that we might “need” for our babies arrival. We decided right away that we were going to wear our baby not push him or her around in a stroller (with the exception of the BOB for going on runs). Well here we are with a 15 month old and 15+ carriers and we wear Edith everyday.

RhodeIsland-3

So why do we love babywearing?

Babywearing has helped us to be more confident parents. By wearing Edith we are able to meet her needs more easily and quickly which has helped us become more confident in our abilities. It also has helped us to develop a strong bond with Edith which in turn makes us more confident in our abilities.

Babywearing allows us to do (most) anything. Since Edith was a newborn we have been able to get out of the house and to do so many things such as dinners out, art hops, wine tastings, shopping, hiking and so much more. We are able to take Edith with us anywhere and she can nurse or sleep in the carrier or watch the world around her while being close and secure to us.

Babywearing makes us stronger. One thing that we didn’t even think about when we decided to babywear was how much strength and energy it takes to babywear. Babywearing makes us physically stronger; I mean what’s better than getting a workout in just going for a 2 mile walk with an 18lb baby on your chest?

Babywearing saved us in the first three months. Edith had terrible digestion issues every single night from about 2 weeks to 3 months. We spent night after night bouncing her on the exercise ball while wearing her in a wrap. The wrap saved our back from having to just hold her in our arms and it kept her nice and close and in an upright position (ideal for good digestion).

Babywearing makes us a stronger couple. Because babywearing allows us to be active we are able to continue to connect as a couple. As any new parent knows a new baby can put a lot of strain on a relationship but babywearing can help, it really can. We have been able to get out and do things together that we wouldn’t have been able to do with a stroller or having to just carry Edith in our arms or her carseat. When we go out for walks we are able to keep Edith close in the carrier while still being able to hold hands and stay connected as a couple.

EcolaPark-ErgoPerformance-5 RhodeIslandErgo

Honestly, this list could keep going on and on because the benefits of babywearing are incredible. We have fallen in love with it so much that we are hoping to start a baby carrier lending library in early 2014 and Lindsay is working to complete her babywearing educator certification. You could say we are a little babywearing crazy over here!

Q. Why do you wear you baby?

Happy International Babywearing Week!
Posted on by Leave a comment

IBW2013logo

Happy International Babywearing Week!

This year International Babywearing Week is especially dear to me as I am now a babywearing educator and I am almost done my full certification! I have one more test to finish and hopefully in the next few weeks I will be fully certified. I received my training through the Babywearing Institute.

This week I’ll be sharing a variety of carrier reviews, tips for babywearing and the benefits of babywearing. If you have any specific questions please feel free to email me lindsay@naturallyfamily.com

Check out these beautiful photos of readers wearing their babies:
photo(1)

photo

SkylarWearing

Lil Helper: Cloth Diapers
Posted on by Leave a comment

What if I told you I found a cloth diaper designed by aerospace engineers?

What if I told you they are dads?

Surprised? Me too.

Lil Helper is a Canadian cloth diaper company that was created by university friends Mohammed and Nader. I came across Lil Helper on my search for new cloth diaper options for Edith. I was looking for something that would fit her petite figure, works well for overnight and (hopefully) doesn’t leak, that’s when I found Lil Helper.

I took a chance and contacted Mohammed and Nader (of course not until after reading this <–bloggers read this) and after a short wait I finally heard back. A few days later I received a package with one organic bamboo cloth diaper, one charcoal liner and a package of bamboo stay dry liners. LilHelper

I immediately prepped the diaper and it has been in our rotation ever since. The adjustable snaps make it possible to customize the diaper to fit Edith’s little bum perfectly. It fits comfortably around her waist and sung around the leg to prevent leaking.

LilHelperInside

We use the organic bamboo insert during the day and honestly it’s so soft I wish I had pillows made out of it. At night we use the charcoal bamboo insert because it can hold upwards of 180 ml (about 6oz) of moisture and still feels dry. If your child is a super soaker, which Edith has her nights, there is also an overnight insert which I am still debating about buying.

LilHelperBamboo

We also have a set of bamboo stay dry liners but honestly I have been too lazy to really use them. Edith also seems to have taken a liking to them and I am finding them all over the house in random places, just yesterday I found one in her toy bin. Anyways when I do use them they have been super useful when the dreaded poo arrives. Instead of having poo sticking to the diaper the liner catches it and then it falls right off into the toilet. Now that I am writing this I have an urge to go find all the lost liners and use them more regularly!

Overall we are a fan. I wish that I had the means to fund the purchase of many more however I don’t BUT if we decide to have #2 then this diaper is high on my list to purchase more of. Until then however we will enjoy having this one and purchasing it as gifts for new cloth diapering friends of ours (when our friends finally decide to get on the baby making train).

Have you ever tried Lil Helper? What do you look for in a cloth diaper?

October: Family Goals
Posted on by 6 Comments

Over on my healthy living blog, Running With Tongs, I like to share my monthly health, fitness and personal goals.  I often find myself having a few other goals that don’t really fit over there because rather than being personal goals they are goals that I have for our us as a family unit.  That being said I have decided to share our family goals here and would love to have you share your own family goals for the month of October in our comments or by linking your own family goals post in the comments.

Fall 2012

Fall 2012

When making goals I like to be as specific as possible and I also like to limit the number of goals I set for myself at any given time. That being said we are going to focus on five goals each month, because five seems like an accomplish-able number.

So here are our five family goals:

  1. Eat 90% of our meals at home. I don’t know what has happened to us but over the last 9 months we have been eating out WAY TOO MUCH. I’m talking on average 3-4x per week. Not all of these are full out meals but often appetizers, lunches or dinners. I looked over finances last month and we went way over our dining out budget and this month we need to reign it in. Honestly not only this month but every month from here on out. There is no need for us to eat out as often as we do! (P.S. Over on RWT I am having a challenge related to this).
  2. Spend 30 minutes per day all together without electronics. I often find that it isn’t until the weekends that both Neil and I actually take time to sit down and do things as a family sans phones or computers.  Most mornings one of us is checking into work things while the other one cooks/makes coffee/preps lunches and plays with Edith. At night Neil gets home from work and I finish dinner, we eat and then I’m often ready to retreat to my computer to take a break from Mommyville and to get some work done. So this month I’d like for us to spend 30 minutes after dinner/before Edith goes to bed just playing, singing, dancing or whatever without our phones or computers.
  3. Do something outside the house 3 days out of the week with Edith. This is just for weekdays. Since the rain has started I am trying to keep myself motivated to get out of the house at least three days out of the week. They also have to be inexpensive so I see trips to OMSI and The Children’s Museum in our future since we have memberships and also to the library story times which are free and open play at our community center for $1.
  4. Do at least one Fall activity. I want us to get out as a family and do at least one Fall activity whether that be a hayride, apple picking, pumpkin carving, attending a harvest festival, ect. Although it is raining buckets right now I want to at least pretend we are having a New England Fall and get out and do something fun and Fall related.
  5. Create a warm and comfortable home. We are still in the process of moving and unpacking and we are still living in the land of boxes. My goal this month is to get everything unpacked, put away and pictures up on the walls. I want this place to be home right now. Every other place we have lived we haven’t really totally moved into and honestly still had tons of unpacked boxes that we moved here (I guess that made moving easier, eh?) Anyways I want Edith to feel at home and I want to enjoy being home (so far I really do).

So those are our five goals for the month or rather the five goals that I have set out and hope to convince Neil that they are worth achieving. (Next month we’ll discuss these goals more before I post).

What are your five goals this month?

Also check out these pumpkin recipes- yum!