Last on the List

Lately I have been focusing on my mental health as much as I can. As a mama to two young babies under the age of four I tend to neglect myself quite a bit. So I made a list of five things that have helped me lately. I thought I would share for any mamas who may be feeling the same way. 

1) Wake up before the kids, this is a hard one. I don't always do it but when I do its the BEST. I get to drink my coffee while its hot and catch up on emails without someone climbing across my computer. I feel energized and more balanced then when I go get them I'm a happier mommy greeting them with a smile and June Cleaver good morning.  

2) Eat first. So my kiddos give me a run for my money when its comes to food. C is in a picky eater phase and O has never been a stellar eaten. Steve and I LOVE to eat so you can imagine my concern when I don't see my kids clearing their plates. I kept noticing how much anxiety I had during meal times focusing on the girls eating and trying to feed them as much as possible that I wasn't eating myself. So I changed that, and decided we can tackle feeding the girls after I feed myself. Changed my tune and calmed me down immediately. 

3) Self Care. This one is HUGE! The BEST gift you can give your children is a positive, happy and well taken care of mommy. That means we have to take the time to take care of ourselves and do something for US. So weather it's getting my nails done, a massage, a blowout or just laying down for a few while the kids nap it helps so much. I have to fill my bucket before I fill everyone else's. 

4) Let them work it out. With the girls being 3.5 and 1 they are now starting to have a little sibling rivalry. C doesn't always want to share with O and O is now finding her voice with big sis and telling her NO. Instead of running over at every little argument I'm trying to take a step back and let the girls work it out for themselves. We tell C if there is a toy she doesn't want to share with O (that is hers) she needs to put it away in her room, same goes for O. When I see them (well more like C) playing tug or war with a toy I try to see if they can work it out on their own without C acting too much like a bully. It helps my nerves a ton not always feeling the need to play referee. For the most part they figure it out on their own are back to hugging a giggling two minutes later. 

5) Do the parenting activities you love. This is a new one suggested to me by my therapist and I am so happy she did. When I am low on energy or just in a funk and I'm solo with the kiddos I am focusing on the things that I enjoy doing. Don't get my wrong my kids get plenty of uninterrupted child directed play, but when I am in the drivers seat it makes those parenting moments so much more enjoyable. So hide and seek and reading has been a great go to in the moment and they LOVE it! 

These 5 things help so much and they were so little and easy to implement. 

XOXO

A Letter to my Daughter on her first day of Preschool

Dear sweet child of mine,

Today you start your first week of preschool.  Today we drop you off for the very first time with someone else in someone else's care and walk away. I have been with you side-by-side almost every day of your 2 1/2 years of life. I've watched you grow into a strong, smart, fun, intelligent,  adorable little girl and now I have to let you go into the world. You are going to learn so much sweet girl while you're away at school. There will be tears from mommy too, but know you will be ok. I am so excited for all that you are about to learn, the friends you're about to meet and the memories you're about to make. 

Even though you are so small I have a few words of wisdom for you. Well I'll go ahead and call them words of wisdom hopefully you see it that way. Lol

Never stop exploring the world through the wonder in your eyes. Pick up the bug, get messy, play in the dirt enjoy every nook and cranny that the world has to offer but stay safe 😉

Stay kind, you are such a sweet and loving little girl. Remember that when someone falls on the playground, put your hand out and help them. 

Be patient I know this is hard coming from mommy,  as you have seen firsthand how impatient I can be. Be as patient as possible let things happen around you and enjoy the moment. 

You are one of the most strong willed people I know and as difficult as it is for me to get you to eat your breakfast in the morning I hope you maintain that as you go out into the world. You  know exactly what you want and exactly when you want it.  That is a quality to be admired you have the ability to be a great leader and I can't wait to see how it develops in the future.

Today you gave me the biggest hug and told me you loved me. As  I walked away I saw your eyes look around on the playground wondering where I went. Mommy always comes back sweetheart, have so much fun today! I will miss you terribly and daddy and I will be counting down the hours until we get to pick you up. So have fun, relax and enjoy your new found freedom you're gonna love it!

Love you,
Xoxo
Mommy 

Mini Photo Shoot

So I took C out the other day to snap a few quick shots of her in this adorable dress. We did our annual photos for daddy for Fathers Day and then got a few good ones of just our girl goofing off and being cute. She LOVES having her picture taken so much in fact that she got upset when we were done. We also took some maternity photos with our photographer last week, I'll post some here when I get them back and at the shoot she got sad when we tried to take photos of just me. 

Dress we have both the pink and cream, I love them both!  | Shoes we have these in gold | Bow older similar here 

I love this kid so much! 

She kept twirling, I am so grateful I got some addable twirling shots. 

Cutest soon to be BIG SISTER ever! 

XOXO

Trips Lately

So for Mothers Day weekend we were actually in NY for my sisters graduation, she received her masters in Art therapy. We couldn't be more proud of her, C was so excited to see her graduate and celebrate with her. Of course whenever we are in NY there are always a million people to see, which is great but fills our days quickly. We ate all the NY food we could get our hands on, which basically means we stuffed our faces with Chinese and pizza. Ha! For Mothers Day we took my mom and nanny out for bunch which was delicious and super filling.

When we got back the next day was my birthday and we celebrated by heading over to the Wizarding World of Harry Potter. Watching C get so into it all made my day! She needed a wand, and we went to olivanders and got her one. She selected one of the interactive ones, so after that we spent the rest of our time casting spells around hogsmeade, when we actually got tit work it was pretty cool. After a yummy lunch at the three broomsticks we headed home. 

The next week we actually surprised my mother in law for her birthday present. We share a birthday, so we made it a few days later to throw her off a bit. I'm so upset with myself that I didn't get her reaction on video, she opened the door in shock and cried it was so special to get to do that for her. We had pizza with cousins that night then hung out with the family the rest of our visit. 

Disneyland Tips for Littles

Hi all! Happy Hump day! I recently had a friend of mine ask if I had any tips and ticks for heading into the park with a little seeing as how often we go. After I wrote her an email I thought it might make a great post! So here you go my tips and ticks for braving the parks with littles. We have ben taking C to Disney since she was 10 weeks old, and she's obsessed. We are annual pass holders so when we do go we tend to head in only for a few hours this way C doesn't get too cranky and we can enjoy the park, but we have done full days in the park with her both here and at Disney world. Having an annual pass also gives you discounts int the park too, so something to look into. Now that she's older we can spend more time there plus now she'll nap in the stroller which is a huge plus!

Having a very in depth conversation with Tinkerbell 

Before we head in the first thing we always do it check a crowd tracker site. I use this one, this way we have a better idea what we are getting ourselves into. It also doesn't hurt to belong to some annual pass holders pages on Facebook, people on there are super helpful when it comes to how busy it is. I plan to go as early as possible this way we get the most out of the morning, its always less packed in the morning and cooler and we try to head home before nap. If we are spending the whole day then we plan to have C nap in the stroller so we bring a light blanket, portable noise machine and her lovey.

Parking We like to park in the structure so the car stays nice and cool. We bring a umbrella stroller we have this one and we walk over using this foot path instead of taking the tram. We also take our larger jogging stroller for longer days or when C needs more room we have this one.

Security, I hate that I have to write this part but true. Like any theme park you are not immune to theft , we like to bring a bike lock and lock our wheels together of our stroller. It may not prevent someone from stealing it but it makes it a whole lot harder. You are not allowed to lock your stroller to any structure in the park which is why we lock the wheels together. Ugh, sorry about the downer part but it would stink to have your stroller stolen while you're enjoying yourself.

Get the app! I love the Disneyland app, because it gives you wait times and a map all on your phone. It will also tell you where the characters are, the bathrooms, photo pass spots, parade and show times as well as show you all the restaurants. If you are a pass holder it will tell you if you have a black out day as well, which is great!

Food and drink. If you know me well you know I LOVE Disneyland food so much so I plan to eventually do a post just on all my favorite eats in the park. But just so you know you can bring food and drinks into the park, just no glass containers. This is great for littles so we pack all of Cs snacks then plan on having meals in the park. I like to bring her grapes, raisins, cheddar bunnies, applesauce or a yogurt pouch. I use a insulated sleeve bag  and I always fill our water bottles. They are super sweet and will give you cups of water almost anywhere so you can refill your bottles around the park, so for especially hot days I use more ice in our bottles and refill as we go.

Forget something? Head over to the baby center, which is located next to fist aid on main street on the Disneyland side and in pacific wharf by Ghirardelli on the California adventure side. They have a nursing room, changing stations, feeding area with highchairs, kitchen with microwave plus they sell formula, pacifiers, diapers & wipes should you forget any or run out.

Rider Swap! We love love love love this option, well we did haha for now Steve just gets to go on all the fun rides. Any who rider swap is great for all the rides you want to go on that littles can't when you get on line just ask for a rider swap pass, then when your partner come off you can hop right on without having to wait in the line.

Showing Pluto her shoes 

Now for the fun part! A list of Cs favorite rides!

Disneyland
Tomorrowland

• Finding Nemo
• Buzz Lightyear Astro Blasters
• Autopia (note you need to be 32inches to ride this ride)
• Astro Orbitor

Fantasyland This is totally where we get to do the most!

• It's a Small World Cs absolute favorite at the moment
• Alice in Wonderland
• Casey Jr Circus Train
• Dumbo
• King Arthur Carrousel
• Pinocchio Daring Journey
• Snow White Scary Adventure (C is not a huge fan of this one it is a little scary)
• Peter Pans Flight
• Mr. Toads Wild Ride (we get a little scared on this one too)
• Tea Cups!
• Storybook Land Canal Boats

Toontown!

• Roger Rabbit Car Toon Spin
• Goofys Playhouse
• Donalds boat
• Minnies House (Meet Minnie Mouse)
• Mickeys House (Meet Mickey Mouse)
• Chip 'n Dales Tree house

New Orleans Square

• Pirates of the Caribbean (Its dark in there and there is a little drop, but C loves it)

Adventure Land

• Jungle Cruise
• Enchanted Tiki Room

Critter Country

• The Many Adventures of Winnie the Pooh

California Adventure

Paradise Pier

• King Triton Carosel
• Little Mermaid
• Toy Story Mania
• Mickeys Fun Wheel
• Golden Zephyr

Cars Land

• Mater Junkyard Jamboree (32 inches)
• Luigi's Rollickin Roadsters (32 inches)

Bugs Land

• Heimlich Chew Chew Train
• Tuck and Roll's Drive 'Em Buggies
• Francis' Ladybug Boogie
• Flick's Flyers
• Princess Dot Puddle Park (bring a change of clothes)
• It's Tough to be a Bug

Hollywood Land

• Red Car Trolley
• Soccers's Workshop
• Turtle Talk with Crush
• Monsters Inc. Ride
• Disney Jr. Live on Stage (A HUGE hit in our house)

And of course for both sides of the park meet the Characters and watch a parade! We love meeting Mickey and Minnie, all the princess and clubhouse characters. Then of course the parades and shows are a fun way to sit for a while and watch your little enjoy the magic of disney. Whatever you choose to do when you are at the park, have fun relax, the magic happens when you're least stressed and just taking in the moments. Any other tips and ticks you guys have let me know! 

XOXO

3 Ingredient Toddler Trail Mix

Surely I am not the only one stuck sometimes on snack, right? C always wants the same things, bunnies, applesauce, yogurt, fruit etc. But I wanted to mix up her snack time here and there. So I decided the other day why not give her a good toddler trail mix. We used to do this all the time but haven't in a while since we went though picky eating phase. Surprise Surprise. So on a trip to Target this weekend we picked up a few things she loves and gave it a mix. We wanted a mix of sweet and salty while still being toddler friendly. She was pretty excited to get a new snack and so was mommy. I gave it to her during an episode of Daniel Tiger and she loved it! So needless to say this super easy snack will be making its way into our snack rounds. 

Feel free to send me any of your trail mix recipes or comment below with it, I'd love some new ideas.

Happy Mixing! 

XOXO 

Valentines Day with Kiddos

One of my favorite holidays is right around the corner and I can't wait! Yes folks you heard that right I love Valentines day. I have loved this holiday for forever, maybe its the chocolate, candy or love in the air that does it to me but I am an fan.

Our tiny Valentine | Newborn Photos 2014

Things change after you have kiddos and its no longer about all the champagne you can drink and finding the hottest restaurant it eat at. Honestly I would be happy with a good burger and a movie date with my husband. Which is exactly what we are doing tonight! Yay me!  I wanted to do some fun things to get the peanut excited about Valentines day. So here are some fun kid friendly activities and outings to do.

Valentines 2015

1) Send Valentines, super fun even though we didn't get around to it this year. There are so many fun DIY valentines. I linked a video to my favorite ideas here. We also made this super cute Valentine day hug for Daddy.

2) Heart shaped snacks
We are all about anything food related over here, it gets her so excited and is pretty simple to do!

3) Go out on a "date" with your kiddos either together or just with mom or dad to make it special.
We are planing on taking the peanut to u-pick some oranges this weekend (on Valentines day) She loved picking the pears so much we thought it would be a great Valentines family activity. I read all about it here.

Valentines 2016

Whatever you decide to do or however you spend your Valentines Day I hope it's filled with lots of love!

XOXO

Happy New Year!

Hello, Everyone! Happy New Year! 

I know I have been incredibly absent these past two weeks but with Christmas and everything time just sort of slipped away from me and the next thing I knew it was January 6th. Well we are officially back to normal life over here in the Hollins household and to be honest we already miss Christmas. I don't know who was sadder when we took down the tree and indoor decor, me, my husband or C. We went though a tiny morning period and I put up a few Valentines day items to ease the blow. 

Now on to recap the holidays! 

Christmas this year was pretty much the most amazing thing EVER! We had such a wonderful day and for about 4 days after the peanut kept asking if Santa was coming back and if he could bring her more shoes. She lit up Christmas morning when she saw her kitchen and stroller, and she truly hasn't stopped playing with them since. I used to think being a kid was the best on Christmas morning, turns out it is having a kid. I'm sure with each coming year it will just get more and more magical and I can't wait. 

 Santa left some "snow" on the floor, he uses the front door since we have no fireplace

The loot! 

She loves her kitchen! 

New Years Eve was kind of a blur, we watched Parks and Rec and built Steve a new ikea dresser. Ha! I honestly didn't care though we were never big New Years people so it was fine with me. 

We basically got to spend a ton of uninterrupted time with daddy which is always great and then spent the past week detoxing and missing him like crazy while he's at work. Now I have officially begun major party planning for Cs 2nd birthday! I can't believe it's only in a few weeks how is that possible! 

This chick loves her daddy, can you blame her! He's pretty awesome. 

On our hike the other day, needed to get some energy out. 

Hope you all had a wonderful holiday and Happy New Year! 

XOXO

SANTA I know him!

So last year when we took C to see Santa lets just say it was less then impressive. We opted to take this picture instead of the one with us in it, because really this was the perfect photo capturing how she really felt about the whole ordeal. 

So this year when it came time to sit down with the man in red I have to say I was expecting the same reaction. To my surprise she actually had a grand ol' time. She chatted with Santa and talked about Rudolph. Took a picture (still no smile, but hey no tears) and even waived goodbye to him as we left. We took her to Santa inside Disneyland this year so you just treat him as another character (score for mommy) I didn't have to pay $40 for 2 5x7s. I think since we were in her favorite place in the whole wide world, she just went with it and it didn't bother her one bit. So thank you disney, we'll see you again next year. 

Super blurry photo of a  photo but I had to share, C got to walk down the street with minnie. Her little life was complete in that moment and she even tired to walk Pluto after this..

And last but not least the closest to home my kid will ever get snow. She loved it, so I guess we will have to plan a Big Bear trip so we can build a snowman.

XOXO

Thanksgiving 2015

I feel like I have so many things this year to be thankful for. A happy healthy rambunctious almost 2-year-old, a wonderful husband, an adorable puppy, a roof to put over my head, food on the table and of course fuzzy socks

We had such a beautiful and stuffed thanksgiving! My sister was here visiting and got to spend the holiday with us, which meant lots and lots of aunt shell time. Steve and I hosted thanksgiving and we all made some delicious food and ate until we basically passed out. It was a wonderful day filled with family and friends, and I wouldn't have it any other way.

C and her bestie being silly on their date last week, we went to color me mine and made plates and cups for cookies and milk with santa! Can't wait to see how they turned out.

XOXO

Tale of the Bad Blogger and Family Photos

So I know last week I was super absent and nowhere to be seen, I wanted to be blogging and getting stuff done but to be honest we were just so exhausted from all the traveling. We have been doing this whole travel thing since the second weekend in October so this was the first week and weekend we have been home in awhile and it was glorious. So I basically milked our time at home, had some extra cuddles with C, and hung out which I honestly think we all really needed. Now we are right back into busy time at home with lots of photo shoots for mom and fun family time headed our way. 

  

While we were in Texas the first time, my husbands side of the family had a huge family photo shoot which is always so much fun to do. It is so nice watching little ones grow up, and get a giant family picture every year we just love it! We got our photos back from the photographer, so I'm giving you a little preview on here today. 

 I can't begin to tell you enough how much I love this little family of mine they are just the best and I think I am one lucky girl that I get to call them mine. 

We had a blast taking these photos and I love capturing C at all moments in life it is so sweet to have these memories to look back on. 

I also took our Christmas Card photos a few days ago and I can't wait to show you how they came out. 

XOXO

Watching her Grow Up

With every passing month I think it gets harder and harder to watch her grow up, as much as I want her to be independent when it happens it almost hurts a little. Its a bitter sweet thing watching them get older. She needs me a little less in certain ways, and all I can do is enjoy these moments as they happen. It's just so hard. I love it when her little personality comes though in everything she does (remind me of those words when she's a teenager). This chick is a lot like her mama, she knows what she wants, when she wants it, she looks at the word no as a challenge she's always willing to conquer and she loves with all her heart. 

Playing with her bestie the other day at one of there activities, these two love each other and it so sweet watching them grow up together. 

The other day we went to run some errands, we talked the whole time we were in target she gave me her opinion on certain items and attempted to convince me of things she needed. After our errands we got come lunch and headed to the park to have a picnic and play. She loved every moment, there were some big kids there she was desperately trying to hang with, running up to them introducing herself and scurrying right behind them. My little peanut is already wanting to be big. I wish there was a way to tell her to stay little forever but alas no mom before me has figured it out. Keep me posted if any of you do. 

Outfit picked out entirely by her, and no bow hence the wild hair. My favorite. 

For now I'll relish in the fact that I am her favorite person and enjoy this moment in time. 

XOXO

Grand Canyon

If you follow me on Instagram (@bumpsbabesandbellinis) then you know we headed out to the Grand Canyon for Steve's birthday trip this year. We had so much fun hanging out just the three of us and loved all the cold weather at the canyon. It was fun to be bundled up and not break a sweat, then once the sun went down it got too cold and we all turned into big babies. HaHa

The view were truly heath taking, I am so glad we went. We disused once the kids (and I say kids because one day we hope to have more, no I'm not telling you anything) are older we want to go back and do some hikes and explore more, it was a little hard this time around with peanut. 

Of course in true peanut form she fell asleep the minute I put her in the carrier and didn't see a whole lot of the Grand Canyon. Then I made a rookie mistake and tried to transfer her to the stroller thinking she'd be more comfortable in there, she only woke up and was super cranky then proceeded to have a full on MELTDOWN in the middle of the woods. Making memories right? 

Gotta love my husband for capturing her meltdown, and me now for sharing this moment with you guys. She was obsessed with the snow and kept calling each pile "snowman", I can only imagine she got that from frozen overload but I found it adorable. It also made me realize we will need to make a real snow trip this year. 

The driving was hard but C hung in there like a trooper, we probably won't be doing many road trips again for awhile, with as much as this kid flys its best to stick with what you know. Speaking of flying we are heading out soon yet again for my best friends wedding. I love being able to travel, but this month has been ALOT, we haven't been home for a weekend since the second week in October. So I'm looking forward to a nice week home soon. 

I love capturing moments of her just being herself, man I love this kid.

XOXO 

A Week Away

Well we are back! We were in TX for a week hanging out with family, celebrating halloween and taking peanut to her first Baylor game. We taught her how to "sic em" with the best of them, and now every time she sees a BU she goes "GO BEARS", yup I'd say we are raising her right. 

It was awesome we had so much fun and I loved watching her play with her cousins. Halloween in particular was a BLAST. She totally understood it this year and would go up to peoples houses and say "or treat" completely omitting the trick part, this girl knew what she wanted. Her costume if you didn't see on Instagram was a HUGE hit and handmade by her grandma, lucky duck and she became obsessed with Monster inc. just in time for the holiday. We also got to meet our new little nephew who is adorable. 

Peanut did really well traveling considering she's been on a plane 22 times, she a trooper. I let her have the iPad this time around and she looked like such a big girl in her own seat eating her snacks and watching a movie. 

She had a hard time adjusting sleep wise this time around, but I enjoyed the extra cuddles that come from sleeping with her. Things are back in full swing before we gear up for the next two trips, yup you read that correctly the next two trips. I have kind of come to terms with the fact that Steve and I are crazy, oh well we are just raising a seasoned traveler.

 She kept running around telling us "I Boo, I Boo mama" My Mother in-law nailed this costume! 

I'll be back with way more blogging soon, until then hope you all had a fantastic halloween. I cent believe Thanksgiving is around the corner. Aunt Shell is coming and Auntie Em and I are cooking I can taste the turkey already its going to be a good one. 

XOXO

Clean Bambino Review and Special Offer

Now It's officially fall! With that being said it's back to school, making lunches, cleaning up after summer, all with a pumpkin spice latte in hand. Am I right? Just in time to get ready for the holidays that are right around the corner. 
A few weeks ago I was contacted by Clean Bambino to take a look at their service and maybe try it out. I was so excited to when I found out it was a mobile detailing service for strollers and car seats. Since we had C, basically I have been overly paranoid about our stroller and car seat being clean. You spend so much money on this things and they so easily get trashed. I've been saying do while now there should be a service that should clean them for you, because who wants to spend the better part of a Saturday deep cleaning kids stuff. 

Now with a toddler in tow who basically needs a snack if I want to run any errands, we've had cheddar bunnies, fruit snacks, tougher bites all sorts of things buried into our stroller. So when clean bambino contacted me, I immediately said to my husband "babe there's a mobile detailing service for our stroller and car seat, we HAVE to try it!" I contacted Michael right away and set up a appointment. He was so friendly and responded right away, he even accommodated my schedule when I couldn't make my original appointment.
When he came he had everything he needed to get our orbit baby stroller and car seat spotless. He even used honest company products and steam to get it all clean. I loved how thorough he was and his attention to detail was spectacular.
Here are our before and after photos. 

You see how the fabric is so dusty looking? I know wheels are going to get dirty, I mean they touch the floor but these are gross, then you put these ditty wheels back into the car! 

Same here, I wash this fabric take the car seat apart and vacuum, but there is still snack residue. 

Heres the stroller now, its so shiny. It's look brand new! He steamed cleaned all the fabric and polished the frame, I love love love how it turned out. 

Now this is spectacular, he got to every nook and cranny. This hasn't looked so clean in a while. It sparkles. 

He did all the prams and accessories too! 

Michel has offered a special for my readers. He's willing to do the basic cleaning for $30 and the detail for $60. Just mention Bumps Babes and Bellini's when booking! 

Side note, he also does car seat education and can check if you have your seat installed properly. 

This is totally something I'd love to do again in the future. I mean you clean your kids crib sheets and changing pads, why not the same for their car seats and strollers. I for one love clean stuff and making it easy, where mom doesn't have to do it, well that's just an added bonus. 

XOXO