Getting Crafty....Kind of

I want to start by saying I am not a baking, crafty, DIY kind of girl. I am an accountant for my day job and that pretty much sums me up. I love and understand numbers.

For Carly's 1st birthday I thought it would be special if I did the decorations and baking. Plus, it would save me a ton of money. Accountants don't make a lot of money contrary to popular believe. Hahaha 

Why did I think doing it all myself was a good idea? I don't know, I guess it just sounded good at the time. 

I have a cousin, Jessica, who is the baking, crafty, DIY kind of girl. I figure I could recruit her help and things would work themselves out. Unfortunately, my cousin lives in Mexico and was not able to make the trip. 

I also had Carly's godmother, Julia, help me with decorations. When I told her my cousin was not going to make it, she called me as soon as she could to let me know that I could totally count on her and that everything was going to look beautiful. Let me tell you she was a total blessing!  She immediately put her helper hat on, and we started brainstorming. We started with decorations and trying to figure out what I wanted as the main centerpiece. I had no idea what I wanted, but with her help we came up with an idea similar to something we saw on Pinterest. She came over to my house one night and pretty much had them done that night.

My house was a mess but the decorations were looking great!
 

 

That idea eventually turned into...

 

 

Then for baking, Julia's daughter, Nichole, was a big help. She baked all the cupcakes, and her cupcake inspired me to make some cake pops.

 

 

Julia did all of the chocolate coating on the cake pops,

 

Oreos, 

Pretzels, and marshmallows! 

Nichole and I put almost everything in individual clear bags and tied them up. 

One of the things I wanted for Carly's birthday party were mason jars with pretty paper straws. The more I thought about it I figured it was a bad idea. Little kids running around with glass mason jars? Not happening. So I did the next best thing. 

 

How cute are these?!?! There was a chalk pen at the party and people could write their names on them. It was a big hit at the party and helped me save cups minus the dishes ;) 

Sleep Training Part 1

That's right ladies and gentlemen, you read it right, Part 1 of 2. Sleep Training was a long journey for us.

Sleep Training. Probably the hardest thing I have done as a mom. Even harder than the no sleep thing. Ok, I won't push it, but they are kind of one in the same.
First, I want to say that I was that person that said, "I will never co-sleep." HAHA. Yeah right, when you have to work the next morning and the only thing that will get your baby to sleep is sleeping in your bed, we'll see how good you are at "never co-sleeping."

When Carly was about 6 months old, she was only waking up one time at night and sometimes she would sleep through the night. It was great. I felt like God had actually blessed me with a great sleeper. Then one night Carly had her first fever, and was up and crying most of the night. As a first time mom I wasn't even sure what to do, or if what I was doing was the right thing to do. She slept with us for the next 2-3 nights, and then just like that she was herself again. Smiling, playing, and happy. I felt like she was good to go back to her crib. Boy, was I wrong! She was like "No mom, I like sleeping here." I wasn't getting her in her crib for the life of me.

Excuse me, that's my side of the bed.

Fast forward to Carly being 1 year and 1 month old. I was done with co-sleeping and frankly, I needed my sleep back. I have never been a good sleeper, but not sleeping at all is torture. I asked my husband to move the crib out of our room and into her room upstairs. He didn't move it for the next 3 months. I honestly think he was having a hard time letting go of our baby. Still to this day he tells me that he misses her with us, but he loves that we get to cuddle again. 

Can I have my husband back?

 

At first I was all about the no tears method. Putting her to sleep in our room and once she was asleep, taking her up to her room. Well at 3am we would get a screaming baby and no sleep. Then we tried the "let her cry it out" method. She cried for 2 HOURS, and I just ended up feeling like a crappy mom. I was in a terrible mood at work, she was tired and cranky most of the time, and there was really no progress. The anticipation of bedtime was so stressful for me. I didn't know what I was going to get that night. That lasted for about a week.

Then I got serious about this and the last week of September I made it my goal that by the end of October this baby would sleep in her room, in her crib, and all night. I did some research online and honestly, after reading a bunch of articles, I just ended up feeling like I was doing everything wrong and like a crappy, crappy mom (Yes! Double crappy!).

Sleep Training Part 2

Finally I watch a YouTube video by Shaykeeandbaby. I really don't watch her often, but her labor and delivery story was very similar to mine. She also had a hard time sleep training. In the video she said something that changed everything for me. She said that she would kiss her baby good night, tell her baby that she loved her, and just let her cry it out. She was letting her baby cry it out before she went to bed, not at 2-3 in the morning. I don't know why that never occurred to me. Apparently, it took her baby 3 nights to finally stop crying at bed time. I got home and told my husband about it and we both agreed to try Shaylee's method that night.

To prepare for that night I made sure Carly was SUPER tired. I took her to such a long walk that she was pretty much begging me to put her in the stroller on our way back. Poor baby! 

So that night at 8pm my husband and I took Carly to her room. We both kissed her good night, told her that we loved her, put her in her crib, and walked out of her room closing the door behind us. At this point I am freaking out feeling all kinds of guilty, and telling myself that maybe she's not ready to be sleep trained. In reality I wasn't ready. I promise she cried for 15 minutes before she fell asleep! She slept through the night and I didn't sleep a wink because I was so worried about her. She was fine. She didn't need me anymore. Tear! 

Now every afternoon no matter how tired I am from work I make sure to take Carly out for a walk. Once we are back she has dinner, then her bath, and finally goes to sleep.

Both my husband and I take her to her crib, and I think she loves seeing us together. What child doesn't like seeing mommy and daddy together? I also started reading her a book before we walk out of the room, and that has just made our night time routine more special. It is now October 15th and I can say that my baby is sleep trained. In fact I am writing this blog as she sleeps in her room, and I am in my bed! I have my bed back! Definitely the most rewarding thing about being a mom so far. Next potty training hahahaha It should be another fun blog.  

Our Weekend In Review 9/19/14-9/21/14

As usual our weekend started with our weekly PPFN, Pizza Party Friday Night. PPFN is a cute little idea I got from watching the SacconneJolys on Youtube. The idea is that you order pizza every friday night, hence Pizza Party Friday Night. My husband and I added a little twist and also rent a movie from red box. This week we skipped red box and watched a movie from our Cinemax on demand. We watched Escape Plan, which surprisingly was really good. 

Saturday my husband had to work so it was a girls day for us. I actually had a lot of fun with Carly. In the morning we took it easy. We woke up made breakfast, played, and soon after that Carly took her morning nap. While she napped I finished watching Scandal on Netflix, and O M G I am obsessed with that show. Why did I just now find out about it? Anyway I am already all caught up and ready for Season 4 to start. When Carly woke up from her nap I decided to take us to lunch at Jason's Deli. It was nice just to hang out with my girl. She is so cute now. She talks and seems so present. I had a croissant sandwich, and Carly had chicken nuggets and apple slices. 

After lunch I decided to go to Target, which is just down the street from Jason's Deli so we walked there. This weekend Carly really started walking walking. Like she prefers to walk instead of crawl. I figure walking there would just give her more confidence, and the practice wouldn't hurt. On our way to Target, I spotted a perfect spot for a photo shoot so we stopped and took pictures. 

 

She would stop and wave at people. I always say how Carly thinks her life is one big parade and she has to wave at everyone. 

Later my husband got home from work, we relaxed at home, and just enjoyed each others company. 

Sunday was another girls day, but it wasn't as smooth as Saturday. Carly and I went to Starbucks. There I realized that Carly needed a diaper change. Well, there is no diaper changing station a Starbucks. I almost cried! Why would there not be a diaper changing station? The way I see it moms need coffee more than anyone else. Right? Anyway we went out to the car changed her diaper, and went back inside. I bought my usual venti Iced Vanilla Latte, and I somehow managed to spill the drink. Grr, $4.50 just went bye bye!

 

But look at this cuteness walking around at Starbucks! 

 

After that we just decided to go home and wait for my husband to get home. When he got home we had lunch at Firehouse Subs, which by the way didn't have a diaper changing station either. Finally we went to the grocery store to do our weekly shop, and called it a day.

I hope to have another one of these weekend blogs for next weekend. Thank you so much for reading!

Baby Fall Clothing Haul

Hello everyone! I know I have been absent from my Blog, but I have been very busy with, you know, life stuff.  So, to make my big come back I decided to share with you guys the new fall clothing items that I have purchased for Carly recently. I don't know about you guys, but I am pretty much ready for fall and winter. Not so much because of the cooler weather, but because that is my favorite time of the year. Halloween, Thanksgiving, my wedding anniversary, birthday, Christmas, and the New Year are some of the many reasons I love this time of the year. I love the way people feel during this time. I am not talking about the texture of people. I am talking about that warm fuzzy feeling about people during this time. I know. Creepy!!  But you know what I mean. Right?

Anyway back to the haul. It seems to me that last year I really didn't have to buy Carly any fall items. Between 3 baby showers and more gifts she received when she was born I was pretty much set for her first year of life. But this year she didn't have any fall/winter items so I went shopping!

I got her 2 warmer pants, which are super comfy and soft at Gap, an Owl long sleeve shirt, and a navy hoody which matches perfectly with both pants.

When purchased these items I also kept in mind her new Nikes. God, I love those things! They match with everything and  are great for Carly's growing feet. 

A little back story to the next items I purchased. I was told by my husband that it is too early to start talking about Christmas so how do I solve that problem? I start talking and planning for Halloween! I bought her skeleton pajamas, which is turning into an annual tradition, glitter cat leggings, orange and black stripped leggings, the cutest witch themed shirt, and finally  some fun socks. All from Carter's.

And honestly when is it too early to start talking about Christmas? Never!! Here are some Christmas themed purchases. 

Notice that adorable baby hand on that picture. I love those hands! 

My baby is ONE!

So the much awaited day finally arrived and now I am a mom of a one year old! What?!?!?

For Carly's actual birthday we celebrated with the family and a few friends. We had pizza at the house and I let Carly eat a cake all for herself. It is fascinating how fascinated one can be by watching a baby eat cake for the first time. I mean, seriously, we spent about 20 minutes just watching her eat her cake. She was kicking her legs like her body was tingling, and her face lit up with excitement. It was awesome!

I wonder if she has any idea how much I love her, and how much of my day is spent thinking about her. About how to make her happy and how happy she makes me. 

Later that week, we had her proper 1st birthday party and baptism at the same time. Here are her god parents and us at the baptism. I was so caught up with the decorations and food for the party that I never even thought about hiring a photographer. :( Live and learn, right?

I was so nervous about this party because Carly's god mother, Julia, aka Jules, Julia's daughter, Nichole, and myself were doing all of the decorations and baking. (Look out for future blog post on party decorations and baking.) In the end I was pretty satisfied with the outcome. For food we ordered Rudy's BBQ and we had plenty of sweets.

Here are the proud parents singing happy birthday! 

And here she is hanging out with my coworkers. 

Carly's birthday selfie! 

But first let me take a selfie...

This week was truly awesome! It started Friday when my friend Julia came over to my house, and we started working on decorations for Carly's 1st birthday party. I must say I was really impressed by how much she got done; she is really talented and crafty. We even discussed the possibility of opening a party planning/decorating business! I don't have any pictures of the decorations, but I will post them when I do Carly's birthday blog. 

Saturday was a big, exciting, and eventful day for me. My best friend, Deynna, that moved to New York when Carly was one month old, came to visit!! I know that nowadays with Facebook and all kinds of social media we can keep in touch, but to be able to see her and hug her was so awesome. I really missed her. I didn't  realize just how much I missed her until I saw her and started crying! She is really so much more than just a friend, she is more like a sister. So on Saturday afternoon we went to Hula Hut for lunch, and I got to meet her boyfriend for the first time. I was so nervous to meet him just because I knew how important it was for Deynna that I like this boy. Let me tell you he did not disappoint!! He is so awesome I could write a full blog about him! (more about him later)

        

There is Deynna with Carly. She hadn't seen Carly since she was a month old!! Needless to say she was surprised at how much Carly has changed. 

Later that night we went out to a bar, had a few drinks, danced, and had a great time with my best friends. The thing that stood out to me the most about that night is that Deynna's boyfriend was actually carrying on conversation with everyone! We just met him, yet he seemed to be so comfortable around us that you would think he has always been part of the group. At one point I asked him if he would take a picture of us girls. He took my phone and said, "But first let me take a selfie." Hahahaha

I was so not expecting that! Hahaha He was just overall a great guy, and Deynna seems so happy with him. What else could a best friend ask for, right? 

What I hope from Blogging...

To be honest I have no idea what to expect from blogging. I just know that I want to write about my experiences as a wife, working mom, and trying to figure out how to balance it all. I am new at all of this and I am hoping to learn along the way. 
           

My Family (Me, Carly, my daughter, and Carlos, my Husband)

Let me tell you a little about myself. I am a a working mom. My daughter is about to be 1 year old, which is crazy because I feel like I just had her a few weeks ago. I have been married to Carlos for 3 years now. Again crazy cause I feel like I met him a few years ago. I consider myself a very outgoing expressive person. When I love I love with all my heart. When I am sad I am really sad. I believe that my smile is my best physical feature, and I try to wear it all the time. =D 

I am having a lot of fun figuring out this blog stuff, and I hope to continue.