Motherhood | Surviving V. Thriving

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The days are long and hard but are also flying by so quickly. I often feel that I am just trying to make it through the day. Living so many days in survival mode and simply going through the motions.

Days like these often start and end cranky. The only goal of the day is to make sure everyone is safe, fed and in bed by 7:15pm.

When survival mode hits I stop speaking kindly to myself, my husband, and my kids. I spend my days stressed out and my nights beating myself up for feeling like I’m failing at parenthood. I forget to breathe, forget to smile, forget to slow down and enjoy life.

it’s exhausting.

it’s frustrating.

it’s heartbreaking.

it’s time for a change.

it’s time to stop surviving and start thriving. 

it’s time for creative play.

it’s time for kind words and lots of laughter.

it’s time to be present.

it’s time to ask for help.

it’s time to savor the moments and make memories.

it’s time to feel lighter and less burdened.

it’s  time to thrive. 

 

 

#FollowFriday | Instagram Accounts That Will Ignite Your Love For Children’s Books

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The children’s book obsession is so real at our house and I am constantly finding myself looking for new books to add to our ever growing list of books. We easily take out 20-30 books from the library each week reading them over and over again until they are due back – or lets be honest until we owe fines on them because I am the worst at renewing/returning books. These days I find most of my book recommendations from Instagram and while I have a number of accounts I follow here are a few that I am loving right now.

@readingisourthing | Reviews and book lists featuring picture books and middle grade books.

Summer and her two children have created a beautiful Instagram and website filled with book reviews that really dive into what the book is about and why you should add it to your reading list. She has also created an inventory of book lists based around topics and themes that will satisfy your little and big readers.

@the_reading_doctor | The Reading Doctor. Regular prescriptions of the best in children’s books.

The Reading Doctor is a newer account and a recent find of mine and it is quickly becoming an obsession of mine. The Doctor is handing out prescriptions for books to cure everything from learning to let go, to feeling empowered and even for mums! What could you or your little one use a prescription for?

@littlebooksbigworld | Little Books Big World – ECEd•Mom•KidLit•LiteracyAdvocate•Writer

Have you ever been curious what is behind those beautiful book covers? Little Books Big World is serving up not only amazing book reviews/features but also a glimpse into the book which is so helpful when it comes to buying/borrowing books. I love “flipping” through the pages while I add yet another book to our ever growing book list.

@ourbookbag | By Carie Helm Sharing children’s books we love and explorations at our local library. Vancouver, BC.

Carie has carefully curated an Instagram account that will have you excited to take your little ones to the library and stock up on all the books. Her reviews provide a little sneak peek into the books with a dash of her own experiences, a glimpse at where they life and links to other resources to keep your feed filled with books.

#IngalweathersDoTravel | Astoria & The Long Beach Peninsula

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Before kids, Neil and I spent most of our free time traveling. We visited spots from Toronto to Halifax, from Maine to Florida and took ourselves on a tropical cruise. When we decided to have kids wanted to make travel a priority for our family. Whether it’s traveling abroad or a trip an hour away we want to explore the world with our kids. While traveling with kids can be a bit challenging, frustrating at times and far from relaxing it is pretty special.

We recently traveled to the Washington Coast for Neil’s birthday and it got me thinking about what pearls of wisdom I could share with other parents looking to travel more with their childrene We’ve decided to start a new series: Ingalweathers Do Travel. The series will feature our travels near and far and tips and tricks for traveling with young kids. We aren’t experts and are constantly learning so we hope you’ll share your tips and stories in the comments below.

Our first trip of 2018 was our annual night away to celebrate Neil’s birthday. To celebrate, we decided to travel to what has become one of our favorite getaway spots, Astoria and the Long Beach Peninsula. We took our first trip to the area in March 2013, shortly after moving to Portland. It’s continued to be one we’ve taken two to three times a year. We have the ocean, great restaurants, family-friendly activities and a great little port city to wander around.

For our night away we stayed at the Adrift Hotel on the Long Beach Peninsula. This hotel is just steps from the ocean with access to a great beach (be aware that the beach is open to vehicles during the off-season). At the beach, you can get access the Discovery Trail, 8 miles of bike path that runs along the beach from Cape Disappointment to the Lewis and Clark Carved tree in long beach. It’s a great spot to borrow one of the Adrift’s bikes or bring your own (especially if you have little ones) and spend the afternoon riding the trail.

That Adrift is a fun spot for the whole family as well. Besides the beach, families will love the suite and bunk rooms, game area (our kids had a blast playing foosball and pingpong), family friendly restaurant and a stock of family friendly games and movies for you to bring back to your room.  It was also stocked with the best snacks and drinks I have ever found at a hotel. They had a wide selection of local spa products, snacks, beer and wine from places like Fort George and Buoy beer in Astoria. After picking up some snacks, the kids picked out Candyland for our evening entertainment back in the room.

Of course being winter in Oregon, our trip was filled with rain but we didn’t let that didn’t get us down. We skipped playtime at the beach, promising that we would stop at another beach before we headed home. So we avoided the rain and the wind and opted for breakfast at the hotel. After our bellies were filled we packed up and headed to Astoria for the day. We got a break from the rain so we quickly stopped at Street 14 to pick up coffees and our favorite pumpkin bites and headed up the steep Astoria hills to the Astoria Column.

This wasn’t our first visit to the column, but I think it was the first time Edith really remembered it. Ingrid had fallen asleep so I used that as an excuse to skip the trek up the winding staircase to the top of the column, staying in the car at the bottom and watch Edith’s little wooden airplane fly down (insider tip: head to the gift shop and pick up a little airplane to fly off the top. Your kids will love it!). 

After our trip to the column we headed back down the steep hill and made our way to our favorite Astoria restaurant, Buoy Brewing. Our first trip was as a family of three the first week they opened  and it has only gotten better and better over the years. This is also a spot that our kids will request going to at least once per month because in the floor of the restaurant, which is located on the wharf, there is a big glass window where a sea lion (or 2) can be found resting. Am I lame to say that my favorite thing to eat at Buoy is the salad? I am going to anyways because their vinaigrette and salad is just so good (the veggie burger comes in a close second).

After our trip to Buoy the rain started up again as we started to head toward home. BUT WHAT ABOUT THE BEACH? Well Neil and I decided to give the kids an option – we could stop at the merry-go-round in Seaside or we could stop for a quick, wet and windy beach stop. To our surprise (and luck) they chose the merry-go-round and to their luck the gentleman running the merry-go-round gave them an extra ride.

While the big kids rode the merry-go-round we sat in the car and found new fascinating treasures.

While the big kids rode the merry-go-round we sat in the car and found new fascinating treasures.With that we finished our quick night away and headed back to Portland with a quick stop of birthday pizza and ice cream.

Find more of our travels on Instagram via #IngalweathersDoTravel and #IngalweathersDoTheCoast

Hotel stay c/o Adrift Hotel+Spa

Guide to Astoria & Long Beach

Accommodations:

  • Adrift Hotel, Long Beach, WA
  • SouWester – Vintage Trailers, Long Beach, WA
  • Hampton Inn & Suites, Astoria, OR

Food & Drink:

Attractions:

Shops:

 

Blog On Vacation

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Happy Holidays! I will be taking a short break from blogging for the holidays. I’ll be back in the new year with a ton of new content that I have been working on behind the scenes. I plan to be back January 2nd but until then you can find me on Instagram.

Small Biz Saturday | Portland, OR | Baby & Kids

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Northeast Portland:

  • Milagros | baby gear, baby & toddler toys, baby clothes, items for nursing mamas
  • Grasshopper | books and toys from 0-8 years of age

North Portland:

Central Eastside:

  • Made You Look | Filled with well-designed toys for kids of all ages and at every price point

Southeast Portland:

  • The Bull & The Bee | Baby and toddler gear, toys and clothes
  • Collage | Art store with a great selection of art supplies for kids of all ages

Northwest:

Online:

Gnome Werks Toys | The most beautiful wooden toys for your little one. Toys are inspired by children’s literature, and fairy tales. you’ll find gnomes, fairies, scientists, pirates, mermaids, and more along with a beautiful holiday collection.

Happy Hadley Handmade | Beautiful, handmade linen items for babies and children.

Usborne Books | I will shamelessly share my own business because I love Usborne Books. I joined Usborne 15 months ago because I fell in love with the books after hosting a party for a friend. These books are interesting, interactive, and some of my kids absolute favorites – see some suggestions here or message me for ideas.

What are your favorite small shops in Portland and/or online?

This post is NOT sponsored however it does contain an affiliate link. Purchases you make through these links will help fund the work I do here on Naturally Family at no extra cost to you. Thank you sincerely for your constant support.

Black Friday | Gift Guide For Toddlers

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When it comes to toy gifts I am incredibly picky. I don’t want a ton of plastic toys around the house (although we some how have a lot) so I lean towards wooden toys for the most part. I also like things that have cases because I love to organize toys and because our kids always want to bring toys with them I love toys that are easily transportable. Most of all I want something that I feel adds value, can withstand years of three children playing with it and not too many small parts.

Honestly our kids don’t need new toys but the thing is they are going to want something and/or someone is going to want to buy them some so why not create a list with toys that fit your families wants. Here are few that are either on our wish-list or that we already own and love.

  1. Tegu 8- Piece Pocket Pouch – I have had my eye on this set for years now. I see this as something that would be great for traveling, keeping busy at a restaurant or simply something to play at home.
  2. Kid o A to Z Upper Case Magna Tab – This is on my wish-list for my kids because it is again a great travel item but also such a great way for them to learn their letters and how to write. I picked up the number version at a second hand shop a few years ago and it is still loved by both Edith and Alder.
  3. Jurassic Adventure Wooden Playset – This is something that I think Alder would go wild over. While Edith would prefer to create art, Alder is all about the imaginative play. We bought him this firehouse last Christmas and he has spent countless hours playing with it along with our Fisher Price town from my childhood. So long story short I think that this is another playset that would be perfect for little ones who love dinosaurs and/or love imaginative play.
  4. Maileg Mouse Plush Toy – This is one of those completely frivolous toys that no child actually needs but I as a parent have fallen in love. I tried to convince Neil to get one for Edith for the past three years. This year I am trying to convince him to get the big sister, little brother and little sister mice but honestly I think that this is one battle I won’t win (this year at least). Nonetheless these toys are beautiful and are something your little one will likely keep into adulthood and possibly parenthood should they choose.
  5. Hazel Village Doll – In recent years both of my kids have really gotten into dolls. Again I am not huge on plastic dolls and such so when I found these beautiful plush dolls I fell straight in love. They have so many different styles and looks so there is bound to be one you fall in love with as well.
  6. The Story Orchestra: Nutcracker – This beautiful book includes the music from The Nutcracker.
  7. Magnetic Camper Toy – This basically has everything that I love in a toy. Magnetic so the smaller pieces stay with it. Everything can pile into the camper for storage. It’s wooden and it travels easily.
  8. Grimm’s Rainbow Stacker – Stacking toys have been a favorite of all my children (I assume Ingrid will love them as well) and this one is high on my wish-list for her. It’s beautifully made and heirloom quality so it is something that we will be able to use for years and pass on later if we so wish.

Black Friday/Cyber Monday Sales 

  • The Baby Cubby – 15% off with code SLICEOFPIE
  • One Kings Lane – 20% off with code OKLFREESHIP +4% back with ebates
  • Anthropologie – 30% off +1% back with ebates
  • Land of Nod – 20% off plus free shipping

This post is NOT sponsored however it does contains affiliate links. Purchases you make through these links will help fund the work I do here on Naturally Family at no extra cost to you. Thank you sincerely for your constant support.

Gift Guide | Something to Read

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Welcome to the start of our 2017 Minimalist Gift Guide! We are starting things off with my favorite category: Books. Our family loves books and we read at least 8 different ones each day. My children’s book wishlist is at least a mile long (you can see for yourself here) and if I could I would buy a new book everyday.

We are currently loving Mrs. Peanuckle’s Alphabet books,  high contrast books for Ingrid, The Night Gardener and Alder would read Hap-pea All Year all day everyday if we didn’t have to return it to the library. These of course are just a few of the books we are loving; follow us on Instagram to see what we are reading.

Everything Is Mama; Mrs Peanuckle’s Fruit Alphabet; The Little Trailblazer; Baby’s First Black and White Library; Baby’s First Stroller Book; Look Look!
Garden Sounds; Hap-pea All Year; Muddle And Match; Vegetables In Underwear; Peek Inside Nighttime; Touch The Earth
Bigfoot Does Not Like Birthday Parties; Secrets Of Winter; What Would You Do With A Problem?; The Night Gardener; A Tale of Two Beasts; Lily The Elf

This post is NOT sponsored however it does contains affiliate links. Purchases you make through these links will help fund the work I do here on Naturally Family at no extra cost to you. Thank you sincerely for your constant support.

Minimalist Christmas With Kids

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Our first Christmas with Edith we didn’t do a ton with gifts because she wasn’t even six months old. We chose a book for her, we put together a stocking and then we each picked a gift for her. When our second Christmas as a little family came along we knew we wanted to keep things minimal and focus on the experience instead of the gifts.

While we have made small adjustments over the past four years the method has always been the same. Some years we have a strict budget, others we commit to keeping our purchases local or small biz centric and this year we have one more change because we have added another person into the mix.

Gift Categories:

  • Something To Wear
  • Something They Want
  • Something To Read
  • Something To Create
  • Kids To Each Other
  • Plus Stocking

Since Alder joined our family we have always had the kids do something for each other however this year it will be a little different because we now have Ingrid as well. Instead of Alder getting something for Edith and vice versa it the gift will be from Alder and Ingrid to Edith and so on. While Ingrid isn’t a very active participant she will be eventually so we are starting the tradition now.

One big change that we have this year is that Neil and I will only be doing stockings for each other and likely a communal gift from the kids because I have a feeling Edith will insist on it. We both feel like we have enough.

One question that may pop-up: what about Santa? Simply put we don’t do Santa. Santa does not deliver gifts to our home. Santa is simply a character in Christmas stories and movies and while we share these fun stories with our kids we do not partake in telling them that this character comes into our home while we are sleeping and delivers gifts.

Over the next few weeks I’ll share gift guides for each category above for babies, toddlers and preschoolers. Also I love to support small shops so share your favorites in the comments below

Christmas List Planning 2014

The Baby Cubby | Early Bird Gift Guide + Promo Code

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Toys
This post is NOT sponsored I am simply sharing some of our favorite toys with you. You will find affiliate links in this post and I thank you for your support if you choose to use them.

Who else has already started making their holiday wish lists? I know I have and I’ve already started crossing things of our five gift lists for our littles. Since we only do five gifts and a stocking for our littles I am very strategic about what we buy and I choose quality over quantity. I also prefer to support small businesses when possible during the holiday season or really any time of the year.

Today I received an email from The Cubby Baby, who I loved for our baby registry, with a promo code for 20% off all toys! Of course I popped on over to see what they had and I thought I would share a few of my favorites with you!

1. Circular Playmat 2. Beetroot Clapper 3. Calmies Baby Calming and Teething Toy 4. Vibrant Village Peek and Play Activity Book 5.  Tree Top Friends 6.  Pipsquigz 7. Vintage Dalmatian 8. Classic Rattle
1. Petit Puzzles 2. Kid-O A to Z 3. Star Magnifier 4. SpinAgain 5. Tegu 8 6. Jaq Jaq Bird Chalk Book 7. Hazel Village Doll 8. Maileg Mouse

psst….The Baby Cubby Price matches everyday, even amazon

Family Date Night to KURIOS – Cabinet of Curiosities

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Full disclosure we were provided tickets to KURIOS in exchange for a review of the show – spoiler- we LOVED it!  

After a few long weeks of busy days and sleepless nights we decided that a family date was in order. So Friday afternoon we gathered ourselves up and headed to the big top to see Cirque du Soleil’s KURIOS.

KURIOS – Step into the curio cabinet of an ambitious inventor who defies the laws of time, space and dimension in order to reinvent everything around him. Suddenly, the visible becomes invisible, perspectives are transformed, and the world is literally turned upside down.

We arrived and the first thing you see are these big blue and yellow circus tents and the kids were instantly excited to go in them but not before getting the popcorn we had promised. After we purchased our popcorn and waters we headed inside to our seats where we found the fun had already started. They had all kinds of characters out on the center stage and in the audience just playing around while everyone settled into their seats. Then it was finally time for the show to start.

The show starts with a “train” traveling around the crowd and eventually into the center ring. From there you have acrobats, contortionist, dare devils who climb mountains of chairs and balance on top of a stack of cylinders and planks. There is also my favorite act that involves all the well known circus acts from lions jumping through rings of fire, someone diving into small barrels of water and a man riding a unicycle on a tight rope ….the twist? They are all invisible. This show is one of laughs, white knuckles and amazement. We all left with huge smiles on our faces.

We ended up only making it about 2 acts into the second half but for us that was a success (and a slight disappointment because I would have loved to stay for the entire show). Prior to the show I made it a goal for us to make it through to intermission. The show is 2 hours and 10 minutes including a 25 minute intermission so if a 5-year-old, 3-year-old and almost 3 month old could make it through the first part I would call it a success.

One little disclaimer this show is dark at time and very loud. Alder declared it was too loud. I have to agree with him it was on the loud side for little ears, especially those who are more sensitive than others ie. our sweet Alder. So he took the baby ear protection until Ingrid woke up (she slept through most of the show) which was perfect timing because that was when Alder declared he didn’t need them anymore.

Since we saw the show on Friday Alder has asked to return at least twice per day and we have been listening to the soundtrack daily. I would say we enjoyed ourselves! Neil and I are hoping that one day it will come back through Portland again so we can see it without any littles in tow.

While Neil and I wish we were heading back to KURIOS before their last show on October 8th we aren’t but that doesn’t mean you can’t! Lucky for you I am giving away family 4-pack – enter below – winner must be able to attend KURIOS in Portland between now and the last show on October 8th.

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