Discovery Street

We Are FAMILY

2013-06-16T15:38:00.000-07:00

For the last 5 years my family has traveled from coast to coast to see each other. An annual family reunion might seem like a bit much for most families, but to keep a long story short, my family is making up for about 30 years of lost time together. Plus, it's the only way we would see each other, as people drove and flew from Washington, Oregon, Minnesota, Ohio, Texas, Pennsylvania, and Virginia. Yep...we're spread out from sea to shining sea.

This reunion was significant as my grandfather lost both his siblings this year; so coming together to celebrate rather than mourn was pretty special.

Our destination was Wintergreen, VA, a mountain resort. My Aunt Nancy did an incredible job securing our lodging. Not bad eh?

There was a ton of family to see (and meet...there was quite a few people there that I had never met before)...but I was most excited to see my sister and her three beautiful kiddos. These are Parker's only cousins so far...so I couldn't wait for her to meet them. They live in New Orleans (where our last family reunion was held).

There was lots of lounging, playing games, and of course eating. The house was so beautiful I didn't really care to leave it--plus there was lots of catching up to do with family.

Pictured on the far left is my grandfather, my sister and her family, my grandmother, my fam, and my dad on the far right. (My mom unfortunately could not make it as she has difficulty flying).

Like any family, mine has all sorts of dysfunction and quirks. Growing up as an only child (my "sister" is actually my half sister and we did not grow up together), and without any extended family near by, I wasn't really close to my family. I was fiercely independent and as soon as I turned 18 I moved out.

It really has only been in the last 5 years when my sister and father organized our first family reunion that communication lines opened up, healing, forgiveness and restoration began. It's been a journey but I'm so grateful. God is doing amazing things in our family.

(I can't remember how we're all related...but we are).

I'm just thrilled that my grandparents got the chance to meet Parker. I pray they'll be around for years to come and that Parker will have memory of them.

There actually were things to do besides eat and lounge around (but that's what I choose to do on vacation); for the more active folks, a group went zip lining down the mountain--even my grandfather and his wife partook!

Something that did get me out of the house was a trip to a local winery. Yep...I'll get moving for a good glass of wine!

The last evening there was a banquet dinner...my step grandmother and my aunts did a lovely job putting everything together. It really was quite a treat and such a great ending to an awesome trip.

I can't even express how much it means to me to see my extended family together--I know it means a lot to the rest of my family as well. My grandmother, with tears in her eyes held my hand and shared with me how happy these gatherings have made her--just to see us all together and love each other--it's all she ever wanted.

And it's all I ever wanted.

Stay tuned for Parker Penny's experience at the family reunion!

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Flying With A 9 Month Old

2013-06-14T07:01:00.000-07:00

When my alarm went of at 5:30am I remember saying a quick prayer about the day ahead of us. We were getting ready to take off to Virgina for a family reunion, and my anxiety level was pretty high. We would spend a total of 7 hours in the air, and endure two take offs and landings due to our layover in Chicago. Plus a 2 1/2 hour road trip to our final destination. Our word for the day was 'grace.'

(This is my, here we go face).

Parker gets antsy, so we brought an umbrella stroller and the ergo. We didn't use the stroller once on our trip, but it was good to have at the airport when she got fussy after too long in the ergo. I can't tell you how many times I paced the airport trying to keep her distracted when our flight was delayed.

I guess flying is like caffeine. This child napped a total of 30 minutes all day. She was actually quite good on the flights there...she didn't cry at all, she just wanted to be entertained for 7 hours. I found the best entertainment to be plastic cups and inflight magazines.

She shredded the magazines. It was either that or screaming. I think everyone but the clean up crew was happy she liked Sky Mall.

When we boarded our connecting flight in Chicago was when Parker napped for 30 minutes. She woke up just as we sat down in our seats. Clearly we were overjoyed.

But in all honesty Parker did great the entire trip there. The trip back we had a few rough moments but in all honesty I think it's because our first flight left at 6:30pm (which is when we are usually getting ready for bed). Our connecting flight in Chicago was delayed a couple of hours so by the time we were finally in the air it was 9:30pm. Parker wanted to sleep but I haven't mastered how to hold my baby in my arms in a tiny airplane seat for 4 hours straight. So there was intermittent crying that didn't usually last for longer than 30 seconds. By 1:30am we were all in our own beds and ready to adjust back to West Coast time.

I think this little girl is a champ. Now let's see how we do flying without daddy next month!

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I Need A Vaction From My Vacation

2013-06-12T19:09:00.004-07:00

I had an amazing time at my family reunion in Virginia and I can't wait to share the details and pics with you as soon as I get time to go through all the pictures to edit them. And when I just find a moment in the midst of my crazy. We got back into Washington at 1am last night, and from the moment Parker woke me up this morning it's been non stop go, go, go.

There is a layer of sawdust covering everything from all the construction going on. How the heck do you clear saw dust off of your fabric couch?

There is a sink and vanity sitting in our master bedroom--I'm not sure why that didn't go in over the weekend.

We are remodeling half of the master bathroom; this is what it looked like this morning when I woke up.

We decided while on vacation to get carpet in the master and nursery instead of continuing our beautiful laminate floors. The vacation rental we stayed at had carpet and Andy really liked how it felt. As much as I'd prefer to continue the laminate, carpet just makes more sense for our life with the kiddo.

So today I went to pick out the carpet and paint for our bedroom. Picking out paint stresses me out. I know it's not permanent, so it shouldn't be, but I just want to get it right the first time. Because this will be the second time we're painting this room. The shade of white I chose just looks kinda dingy.

Instead of picking up an entire gallon, I bought a sample of Sherwin-Williams Popular Gray. It has tan undertones and I really liked how it looked with the carpet sample. The picture doesn't really show the color well.

We came home to an empty fridge and had to go stock up at the grocery store too in the midst of all of our running around.

And of course, laundry, the never ending loads of laundry.

So...ya, I need some place to go relax now.

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Parker Penny // 9 Months

2013-06-06T21:15:00.001-07:00

Oh my goodness people, 9 months is a crazy, fun, exhausting age. There was a good two and half week stretch where Parker was actually on a pretty regular schedule. It was glorious. And then it all went to poop. And we're about to screw it up even more with an early morning cross country flight to Virginia--with a layover in Chicago. OhpleaseLordhelpme.

Here are the updates:

Eating:: This month we found out Parker was allergic to egg whites. Poor thing broke out into hives and vomited a few times. Other than that, she pretty much eats any fruit, veggie and meat. I haven't given her any diary yet. She nurses about 5 times a day.

Talking:: She talks with herself and us a lot. Still the basics of nanana, dadada, mamama, and screams and squeals.

Development:: She is still super wiggly and active. She crawls FAST. She's even stood up on her own without pulling herself up. Changing her diaper in my opinion should be an Olympic sport. I'm pretty sure I burn a good amount of calories changing clothes and diapers; which is how I'm justifying my lack of exercise.

Sleep:: Sleep is all over the place. About twice a week now she sleeps through the night, but she's been waking up anywhere between 2-5am--most of the time I can rock her back to sleep, but not always. She has two bottom teeth that started to come through a couple of weeks ago...so I guess that means she's teething? All I know is my coffee consumption has definitely gone up.

Naps:: Hahahahaha.

At her 9 month appointment she weighed in at 18.8 pounds (45th percentile), and her height was 28.25 inches (75th percentile). I can't remember the size of her head, but it was in the 85th percentile. Yup...that's her huge brain, I knew she was uber smart.

On a side note, Andy and I are headed to Virginia for a family reunion...I'm looking forward to catching up with all of your blogs when I get back!

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Paint, Windows, Backsplash & More

2013-06-05T07:25:00.000-07:00

Nothing like having a date on the calender for a party to motivate your husband to do ALL THE HOUSE THINGS.

Seriously, it seems like every day he starts another new project. And then last weekend my husband told me that contractors were coming to the house on Monday to work on the master bedroom--which meant we had to clear everything out that day. (Moving all our bedroom stuff upstairs to the extra bedroom, including a king size memory foam mattress that weighs a gazillion pounds was not on my agenda).

The room we call the master is on the main level of a hallway. Our room is on the left of the hallway, Parker's nursery is on the right (this room will eventually become an office), and then there is a bathroom at the end of the hallway. Andy has always envisioned turning this entire space into a master suite. The space is a little tricky so we are doing what we can, starting with this.

Were Andy is standing used to be a wall between our room and the bathroom. We decided to cut out the wall and put the entrance there instead. To the right was were our bedroom door was. We opened that space as much as we could, but at the edge of the drywall is a stud, so that is as much as we can open up that space to make the hallway part of our master. We are going to use the space behind that white wall to build a linen closet.

On the other side of the bedroom Andy wanted to install a large window to replace what we had. Here is a before picture of that space (and another angle of the bedroom when we first bought the house.

Once the window is fully installed I plan on repainting the room. I painted it white and the trim gray originally, but I wasn't digging it. I'm taking your paint color suggestions!

There is a ton of black trim to be repainted it. You can see how faded the original black is--a fresh coat makes a huge difference.

The backsplash is 98% complete. I just need to seal the grout and then I'll post the pictures of the completed project!

I seriously don't know how Young House Love does house projects all the time. I went to Home Depot to look at paint colors and got totally overwhelmed and just went home. Can someone please just tell me the best color to paint my bedroom?

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Flying With a Baby :: A True Story (Or Nightmare)

2013-06-04T07:04:00.000-07:00

This Friday the Taylor clan is flying to Virgina for a family reunion. To say I'm terrified is an understatement. The worst part is we have a connecting flight in Chicago and once we arrive in Richmond we still have a 2 hour drive to our destination. And even worse, I'm flying alone the following month with Parker to Texas to visit my parents. #helpme.

Don't let that adorable, sweet face fool ya. Parker is a wiggly, independent, super curious 9 month old who is currently having a problem napping. If this were a quick one hour trip I wouldn't be too nervous; but its across the entire country, with a layover. I just cannot picture her napping peacefully in my arms for 5 hours.

A lot of friends have told me "It wont be that bad...the noise of the airplane puts them to sleep." But a recent email from my friend Melanie has me shaking in my boots again. Below is her story of traveling solo with her 10 month old, Pearl...it's a bit lengthy, traumatic, and hilarious. I pray I don't have a similar story in a week.

**********************

This is a detailed summary of my first time flying solo with Pearl...Bless my heart.

A week ago, a very important meeting (related to my wage-earning job) came up which required travel down to Atlanta. Now that Pearl is here, I knew my family wouldn't want me to be in the state without bringing her...So, after thinking stressful thoughts, I decided to bite the proverbial bullet and bring her down with me. The concept of traveling for "double work" has a lot of moving parts: transporting EVERYTHING, arranging care for Pearl, etc...I was as prepared as I possibly could've been:

My briefcase contained my charged-up laptop ready for the presentation, my suit pants and top, and make up...In case my checked suitcase didn't make it in time. Pearl's diaper bag had enough rations for a full day of eating in case we didn't make it to my cousin's in time. The list goes on...I'll try to summarize my top moments that will surely ensure an induction to the Mother of The Year Club (hereforeto #MOTY)

During our April oblication (a vacation from wage earning work, but not child rearing work spent with relatives), USAirways broke the adapter that enables Pearl's car seat to "click in" safely to the stroller. While I made sure they reimbursed me for the atrocity, I didn't bother to buy a new one because I figured she was close enough to a year and didn't know for sure that we would need it. So, while walking out to the cab EARLY Friday morning, I had her buckled into the car seat and placed that in the seat of the stroller. After 15 steps, the car seat (with Pearl in it), flipped over! She was obviously fine and unscathed! However, that incident meant I now had to (or got to?) check her car seat and our suitcase.

This is when I'm going to call Delta out on not being pro-family: I had to pay to check the suitcase. This infuriates me. (Other airways do not charge for checking a bag if you are traveling with an infant). I mean, how are we possibly supposed to have any available hands to lug a suitcase through security while traveling with an infant?

Flight to ATL was great. I gave her some Benadryl before we left for the airport and we had our own row on the plane. Upon landing I walked the mile to baggage claim, and proceeded to the Rental Car counter: My pedometer tells me I walked 4,000 steps by the time i got to the rental car counter with pearl in the stroller, my briefcase, her diaper bag, a suitcase, and the car seat (which by now was in a huge heavy duty trash bag that I assumed had only been invented to put dead fat people in before i had a baby, but they do make fabulous one-time-use car seat holders).

Needless to say, Pearl was an enormous hit with all my family and friends this weekend. My cousin Lori kept her while I had my meeting. We stayed at Greg and Ilana's house which is perfectly set up for a baby...I mean, they have wipes in every room! Pearl loved all the dogs and all the attention!

I used to think it was absolutely ludicrous when I heard stories on the TV about people leaving kids in the car. But, now I can kinda see why they do it. Pearl fell asleep everytime we went somewhere, even the 1.5mile drive to Starbucks. I can see why it would be significantly easier to leave a sleeping baby in the car rather than wake and bring inside. My one oops on that was that on Sunday, I forgot to buckle the car seat to the car! I'll be the first to admit I would've gone apeshit if Jason had made that mistake. As i was driving i thought something looked amiss when I peeked behind, but it wasn't until I made a turn and heard her car seat slide that I realized it! OOPS! I was only 1/2 a mile from home and she's unscathed.

Perhaps I got a little cocky from the 1st flight...And now I get to the really traumatizing part: The flight home. Again, I was super organized and had all of her food and diapering needs taken care of. I even packed an extra pair of clothes that was long sleeve for the flight. Once I got through the "herding cats" security line and pearl's bottles and food was tested for explosives and drugs, I went into the family bathroom to change her. She strongly dislikes the marble changing table. I was TRYING to change her really quickly but not quick enough- She peed while she was without a diaper which of course was next to the new pants i was going to put on her. I did the best I could with cleanup- I had to throw out of one her adorable Pearl burp cloths bc it was covered in piss. I opted to preserve the peed on pants which turned out to be a reasonably good idea. Once at the gate, we were told we were waiting for a flight attendant to show up. This issue, I strongly believe, is what caused the next 4 hours of my life to so traumatic...

This is Delta's fault. They didn't communicate properly with her (I heard her lamenting that she had JUST gotten word that she'd been rerouted). Thus, she was late getting to our gate, thus boarding was delayed, thus the bad weather in ATL rolled in, then the bad weather in DCA rolled in, then we had to go back to the gate for gas, then we had to deplane, then we were #57 for takeoff, and then there wasn't a gate available to us when we finally arrived at DCA 4+ hours later.

During the first 2 hours of delays, Pearl was a bit fussy so I gave her Bendaryl and walked her up and down the aisle. The flight attendant saw me walking with her and got over the loud speaker and said "Delta would like to remind you to please stay seated unless there is an emergency". I deemed a crying infant to be an emergency and continued to walk. I also had to take her into the bathroom to change her because I was certain she had just crapped her pants. Turned out it was just gas, and I had to change her on the lid of the toilet. I hope there's a vaccination for that. She finally fell asleep when we were told we all had to deplane. Naturally, the getting up awoke her. At first they refused to bring her stroller up. So I told them I'd would just wait on the jetbridge and proceeded to plop down on the ground with Pearl and our bags. They got us the stroller. Coincidentally, Greg and Ilana and Payton had just deplaned from Miami so they popped over to say hello. This gave me the boost I needed to continue.

After we reboarded the plane, I asked a male flight attendant with ZERO sense of humor if anyone didn't get back on the plane so I could move rows with more room. After initially rejecting my question, he informed me a man in the back row of the plane would be willing to switch. To be fair, this man wasn't doing me any big favor. He was in a 2 seat row with no window next to the lavatory. This turned out to be lucky for the young guy I had been sitting next to. While we were taxi-ing, I fed Pearl some peas with brown rice. She ate the entire container. About 10 minutes later (we were still taxi-ing) she puked it all up. Two big purges in a row. All over me and her. The man across from us asked the flight attendants for help. Their response "What do you need"...I tried to clean us up, and I changed her into her short sleeve onesie and pants that had pee on them. About 30 minutes later, we were in the air, and I asked the flight attendant to rinse out the bottle with hot water in the rich folk first class section. My (idiot) thinking was that the food or a previous bottle hadn't agreed with her, but I'd give her a new bottle and she'd go to sleep (it was 8:45 by this point, afterall). I gave her a new bottle and she sucked it down. And then that came up like a volcano. At this point, some people would start praying. This is when I became convinced that religion is a farce. And god, should she exist, has a wicked sense of humor! I also kept thinking "this is why abortion must remain a safe and legal option in our country". I swear to you this is what I was repeating in my head as I comforted Pearl and told her she was a Super Trooper! With nothing to change either of us into, I wrapped us in dirty, disease infested Delta blankets to keep us "dry" and the flight attendant condescendingly said to me "I think you should lay off from giving her anymore liquids". It was all I could do to keep from saying "F!*k you very much". We finally landed at 9:15 and had to wait until 30 minutes for a gate to become available.

I'm really not sure what I could've done differently? But, as I'm reading in Lean In, traveling solo with Pearl has opened my eyes to all the ways the airlines make it unhelpful and downright sucky to fly with children.

Props to my man because Kromirs was just outside security waiting for us and when we got home I bathed Pearl and he put her to bed and took her to Louise this morning. He is, however, out of town until late Wednesday night, so my solo parenting resumes...And I'm extremely grateful it's just a temporary state. I really was not cut out to have a child on my own. Arguably, I might not have been cut out to have a child at all!

I will (TRY) not to speak of this nightmare as I have been known to hash and rehash things...It's a new week, Pearl is with Louise, and we are alive and well! But rest assured, my white butt ain't getting on no plane with Pearl ANYTIME SOON!!!

Yes, I do still love Pearl! Yes, I will probably bring this up to once she is hold enough to understand the concept of guilt.

*****************************

Any words of wisdom while traveling with a baby?

A Beast of a Yard

2013-06-03T07:15:00.000-07:00

I have yet to give you a tour of the outside of the house and our yard. There's good reason--it's a mess. We've put all of our time and resources into the remodel of the kitchen and living area, but now that summer is around the corner, it's time to start. My birthday is at the end of the month and we're having a party; apparently, according to my husband, the yard to men is equivalent to the kitchen to women. So he is motivated to get ish done.

Our house is on a downward slope, and there is a lot of yard. I know nothing about plants and landscaping. There actually isn't a lot of grass in the front yard, it's mostly ivy, and my husband wants to pull all of it.

All the black trim is really faded (you can't really tell in the pictures). We contemplated painting it white, but that would take a ton of coats, so we decided we'll eventually go over it with a new coat of fresh black paint.

Andy has been going nuts with the power washer. You see that fence behind Andy? Check out the difference in color after going over it with the power washer in the picture below.

We eventually want to replace the fence goes around the pool. The pool has pretty much turned into a swamp because we still don't know what we're going to do with it. It needs a ton of repair work and we just don't know if we want to justify the costs when it will get so little use here in Washington. Wanna see how bad the pool is?

We've found ducks swimming in it. I'm not kidding. It's that gross. (But see how good the fence looks with the power wash)? The left side still needs to be washed.

Lets move to the backyard shall we? The back yard is a bit weird. This part looks normal, but if I turn around, the yard is broken into two different levels.

I'd love to level out the yard, but it's just not an expense we can justify right now. We need to fence the entire bottom level...another huge expense that likely wont happen this summer.

The center of the yard has this sectioned off area that would be perfect to garden. But I ain't got time for that. Maybe next year.

And this is the other side of the house. It's quite overwhelming how much there is to get get done. I'm all for pulling everything up and having a no maintenance rock garden. Imnotevenkidding.

Anyone have any landscaping tips?

What Are You?

2013-05-31T07:01:00.000-07:00

This video cracked me up. Pretty much my whole life I've gotten this question. When I lived in Hawaii everyone looked like me--it seems like most people in Hawaii are mixed with some sort of Asian background. When Andy and I traveled throughout Central America and Southeast Asia, the locals would all speak to me in their native language...so apparently I look Panamanian, Nicaraguan, Costa Rican, Thai, Cambodian, Vietnamese...and many other ethnicities.

We moved to Texas when I started high school...the city I lived in was pretty diverse, so I didn't get this question too much at the time. But then I went to college...a private, wealthy, mostly white college. More than once people told me I spoke "good English." #Imnotjoking.

So if you were wondering, I'm half Korean--but I'm "American," even though I was born in Seoul. Also, a better way to ask someone, "What are you," is instead asking, "What is your ethnicity."

So just curious...What are you? :)

Linking up with Carly & Molly

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Thrifting Thursday :: Kidz Kaboodle

2013-05-30T07:01:00.000-07:00

I used to pop into thrift stores almost weekly; since having Parker I've probably gone thrifting maybe two or three times. My days of perusing through racks of clothes are over. Now going anywhere is about convenience. I have to be able to fit going somewhere between naps and feedings, and if I don't have a list I will definitely forget something.

But there are just some things that are too good to pass up. There is a local thrift store in town selling kids and maternity items called Kidz Kaboodle. On the last Friday and Saturday of every month they have a 25 cent sale. I'd heard about it in the past and just couldn't figure out how to dig through piles of clothes with a daughter who hated (at the time) being worn or in a stroller. Now she doesn't mind it so much so I decided to go for it and see if it was worthwhile.

It was obvious when I walked in that I was a newbie. Women were armed with garbage bags to throw clothes into. I didn't bring anything to toss my findings, so I just piled them up on the stroller. The crowd wasn't too bad--but I arrived around 12:30 and the store opens at 10am--and it was Friday vs. Saturday. It was a bit overwhelming at first--but soon I got the hang of sorting through the piles of clothes and was able to walk out with 24 adorable pieces.

All for $6 and about an hour of digging. You can also find toys, shoes and books, but most were pretty picked through by the time I got there.

90% of Parker's wardrobe are hand me downs from friends or thrifted items. Where do shop for your baby?

In Pursuit of Long Lashes

2013-05-29T06:51:00.000-07:00

My lashes started to thin out a few years ago. There are a couple of areas along my lash line that are actually bald from lashes that never grew back after falling out. (Probably from over curling...but who knows). Oh the joys of aging.

I've always wanted thick, lush, long lashes, so I was excited to be chosen by Influenster to try out Fysiko Eyelash Growth Serum. After reading the all natural ingredient list, I felt I had nothing to lose! I'll be testing the product for 16 weeks, but according the website, I should notice a difference in 6 weeks.

Well it's only been 2 weeks and I already see a difference in the length and thickness of my lashes. I've also been using it on my eyebrows; I'm a victim of overtweezing in my youth.

I can't wait to see the final result! I'll have a few updates in the next 16 weeks.

Have you ever tried a lash enhancer?

Disclosure: I received this complimentary product for testing purposes from Influenster. Opinions are my own and true.

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My Hot Date

2013-05-27T14:30:00.000-07:00

Andy and I went out on an official date night. We have a wonderful friend who babysat Parker and we spent the evening out at a fabulous local restaurant. Seriously Tacoma people, if you have not eaten at Asado, you are missing out. How have we lived here for over 3 years and never eaten here?

Andy likes variety. So instead of ordering two entrees, we ordered two appetizers, a wedge salad and split an entree. We started off with clams and chorizo and ceviche with plantain chips. Ohmygosh it was so flavorful and delicious. I'm getting hungry just thinking about it. The wedge salad is not pictured, but it was amazing...I meant to ask the waitress what was in the dressing, but I forgot.

Can I talk about this steak for a moment? This was the BEST steak I've ever had. There was some sort of jam on top that was scrumptious. It's sitting on top of the creamiest, tastiest polenta ever. Andy and I took tiny bites of our steak to savor every mouthful.

We left absolutely stuffed and satisfied, but I was dying to go to a local 50's style burger joint called Shake Shake Shake that recently opened to get a milkshake. Every person in Tacoma has a picture in front of that EAT sign. We ordered a butterscotch salted caramel shake--thanks goodness we split it because I needed to be rolled home afterwards.

It was so strange to come home to a sleeping baby. Is it weird that I was kind of sad that I didn't get to put her to bed?

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What Parker Penny's Thinking

2013-05-24T15:14:00.000-07:00

Mooooooooooooooom!

I will eat your face.

My instagram feed is blowin' up yo!

Straight chillin'.

Get in my belly!

This is how I roll with pops.

No matter what I will not sit in this bath. Hahahahahaha.

Also linking up with Blair

The Meal Time Mess

2013-05-23T06:51:00.000-07:00

This is a sponsored post written by me on behalf of Huggies®.

Starting Parker on solids was a fight from the beginning. It wasn't that she wasn't interested in food, she just wanted to control the food that was going into her mouth. I'm grateful I heard of baby led weaning shortly after starting her on solids. No more fighting over the spoon; plus I could eat my own meal at the same time.

The only disadvantage (in my opinion) of eating this way is the mess. Parker is almost 9 months old so I just bumped up her solids from 2 times a day to 3. Which means 3 times a day I'm cleaning her, her chair, the table, the floor (and often her diaper).

I have to admit, she has gotten a lot better at her aim. When she started solids at around 6 months, she rarely actually got any of it in her mouth. A couple of months of practice and her hand eye coordination is very much improved--most of the mess ends up on her now.

Clean up has gotten a lot easier now that I keep Huggies Natural Care® Wipes on the kitchen counter. The new designer tubs looks so much nicer than just a typical tub of wipes. There were quite a few designs to choose from, so you can pick out a pattern that fits in with your own household.

The clean up routine is now pretty simple...with two wipes I clean up Parker's face, hands, tray, and I'm able to wipe up whatever she's thrown on the table. And of course, I'm using Huggies wipes to clean up the mess in her diaper afterwards. I thought I'd spare everyone a post on that kinda mess!

I think it will be awhile before she figures out how to clean herself up, but hey, gotta try and teach them early right?

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This is a sponsored post written by me on behalf of Huggies®.

First Time Sickies

2013-05-21T20:36:00.001-07:00

I feel like for a first time mom I'm fairly laid back when it comes to my baby. I thought I would be freaked out and worried all the time, but surprisingly, I think I'm doing a decent job at being relaxed.

Last Sunday challenged me. Parker had an allergic reaction to egg whites. When I noticed a rash start to form around her mouth I immediately took the scrambled egg off her high chair and cleaned up her hands and face. She had probably eaten about half of the egg. The rash went away in just a few minutes so I didn't get too concerned.

I gave her a quick bath and put her to bed and went in about an hour later to check on her and saw she had vomited all over her crib. It was a lot, and she was covered in it. I was concerned that she hadn't cried at all, so Andy suggested we wake her, give her another bath and see if she interacted normally with us.

She seemed to be just fine so I put her back to bed with some new sheets. I went in again an hour later and she had thrown up again. Parker has only had one minor cold, so vomit was making me anxious and worried. I called the on call nurse and she said to just monitor her through the night.

She woke up the next morning her usual, cheerful self, and I woke up relieved.

There is nothing like a sick child to drive a person into panic. How do you handle your kids being sick?

And We Marched

2013-05-20T06:45:00.000-07:00

This weekend was the March of Dimes March for Babies walk. I teamed up with a group of fabulous local bloggers and together we raised over $6500! I want to thank those of you who contributed to help me reach my personal fundraising goal of $500. This is such an awesome organization for your money to be going too.

Ergo provided these gorgeous purple carriers for all the bloggers to wear...Parker loves her ergo, she slept the entire 3.9 miles!

Ergo also provided mini carriers for these little munchkins to wear during the walk....is this not the cutest thing you've ever seen?

The blog world is so amazing...There were only a couple of ladies in the group that I had actually met in real life before the event. Many of us, total strangers, were able to come together for a worthy cause and really make a financial impact. Just one of the many, many reasons I love blogging so much.

Can't wait to do it again next year!

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How I'll Get Into Shape

2013-05-16T09:34:00.001-07:00

It's begun. The official 'chase your child everywhere' stage has begun. I cannot believe how fast she crawls, and how she manages to get into everything she's not supposed to. What is it about electrical outlets, cell phones and remotes that babies love so much? She could be surrounded by a dozen flashing, blinking, noise making toys and all she wants is my phone.

It seems like overnight this baby of mine became not a baby. Oh my heart.

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The Great Gatsby Premier

2013-05-15T06:45:00.000-07:00

Last week I got together with some ladies to attend the premier of The Great Gatsby. It was on my friend Lindsay's '30 before 30' list to go to a midnight showing of a movie. She organized the event and suggested we all get dolled up in 1920's fashion for fun.

I don't own any drop waist dresses, so I made do with what I have...I think my hair looks more 1970's than 1920's...but this is what you get when you have 15 minutes to get ready. I haven't worn color on my lips since high school...I stick with mostly chapstick or clear gloss, so it felt strange to wear such bold lips, but I kinda liked it!

We met for dinner at a local restaurant--don't these ladies look amazing?

I read the Great Gatsby in high school, and I didn't recall the slightest bit about the story line. Lindsy read the book right before the movie and she said the movie followed the book amazingly well. The movie was awesome--the ending was pretty depressing, but it stayed true to the book.

What have you seen at the movies lately?

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When You Don't Really Know Your Mother

2013-05-13T06:45:00.000-07:00

** Have you entered the giveaway for a custom birth print? **

It just kinda hit me that I will forever hold the title mom. It's a hefty title to hold. I'm curious how my relationship with my daughter will unfold and wonder how she will view me when she is a young woman.

Mother daughter relationships are complex and complicated. I don't really know my mother. I know that sounds strange. I love her and I know without a doubt she loves me, but there is a communication barrier that separates us. My mother speaks poor English, and I don't speak Korean. Our conversation has always been very basic and superficial.

I didn't realize that I didn't really have a relationship with my mom until I went off to college. My roommate at the time spoke with her mom on the phone every day. And I noticed most of the girls I went to college with spoke with their mothers often too. Since I left home at 18 I probably spoke with my mother on the phone 4-5 times a year. There just isn't really much to talk about when you don't speak each other's language.

It's a bit strange...I don't really know much about my mom's life. I know she grew up very, very poor, was only educated through fourth grade, and lost her mother at a very young age to suicide. Her circumstances created a very fierce, strong willed, opinionated woman packed into a 4 foot eleven inch, 100 pound frame. I know she did the very best she knew how to love me and raise me. I am her only child and I know the second I was born, her life became about mine. I'm positive 99% of the worry in her head is about my well being.

I'm not angry, or hurt, or bitter. I love my mom dearly; I only wish we knew each other better, especially as she ages. She has had health issues most of her life, but lately has been going through some health things that really make me wish we lived closer to each other.

Although it was my very first Mothers Day, I couldn't help but think about her. Our relationship isn't typical, but it is what it is and I'm thankful to still have her in my life.

Are you and your mom close?

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The Nursery (Again) + A Giveaway!

2013-05-08T06:45:00.000-07:00

We lived in a different house when Parker was born...so for a few short months she got used to being in the loft space above our bedroom. Then of course we bought our current home and decided which room would be Parker's. It was the first room we prepped; Andy painstakingly painted all the brown shiplap pink, and also painted pink stripes on the walls. Unfortunately the room we chose for her shares a wall with one of the foreign exchange students we host. We didn't want the poor girl to lose sleep if Parker was having a bad night, so after a few weeks we moved Parker's room downstairs across from our room--the tiny room that we were going to use as an office space.

We thought it was going to be pretty temporary because we naively believed she would continue to sleep through the night. Haha, the joke was on us.

(I bought a pink blackout panel from Target to block the massive amount of light that pours through this door in the mornings).

I still want to paint the walls a neutral color because we do eventually want to use this room as an office someday, and i want to put Parker back upstairs in her original room which has a closet. I just bought a cheapo metal frame (which you can see in the second picture) to hang some of her outfits for now.

Although the room and space is not ideal, it works for now. What helps me be content with the space are the little pieces that have helped make the room come together. I made a few of the pieces while I was "nesting." Including the bunting above her bed and he dog painting in the top photo.

This DIY paper bird painting was the very first thing I made for Parker's nursery.

I love the little pieces like the owls, alarm clock and globe I found thrifting.

One of my favorite new additions is this beautiful framed custom birth piece made by Etsy shop Baby in the Rain. Isn't it darling? I love how it has all of Parker's stats and that I was able to choose the colors to match perfectly with her nursery. And one lucky reader will win their own! Winner will be announced next Wednesday.

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You Don't Understand Unless You Live in the PNW

2013-05-06T11:10:00.001-07:00

Every single blogger who lives in the PNW is blogging about how glorious our weekend was. Because it's blogworthy people. Spring is usually pretty crappy in these parts; so when the sun shines for more than 3 days in a row (and expected to shine for the next week), Washingtonians go bananas. All the parks, pools, waterfront restaurants and anything to do with the outdoors is PACKED.

All the fans, sunglasses and sunscreen sell out, and pale white shoulders and legs are exposed for the first time in about 9 months. PLUS, it was Cinco De Mayo. So to celebrate we went on a walk to the Ruston Way waterfront in Tacoma, then dined out on a restaurant patio eating a plateful of nachos.

Parker wore a dress I've been dying to put her in that her Nana bought her last year on a trip to Italy.

Unfortunately we changed shortly after because she spit up green peas all over it. Boo.

Later that afternoon we got to hang out with a bunch of friends for a little Cinco De Mayo get together. Parker experienced two firsts. The baby pool and watermelon! (She loved both).

It truly was such a fun and relaxing weekend. I hope it's just a small taste of what summer will be like in the PNW. Days like we've been having truly make you forget about the overcast, rainy days most days of the year. Sun, food, family, friends and views like this of Mt. Rainier:

It doesn't get any better.

The only downside...I realized I no longer own a single pair of shorts.

Linking up with Sarah

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Parker Penny // 8 Months

2013-05-03T06:46:00.000-07:00

It's impossible to get a picture of this girl--she is constantly in motion...so these are the only shots I could get!

Well, these past 30 days have thrown me for a loop. Nothing has been consistent this month but I'm guessing it's because of how crazy fast this little girl is developing physically and mentally. My coffee intake has definitely increased as she is waking up 1-2 times a night again (after months of sleeping through the night), and she's been ready to start her days lately at 6am. My mornings are a bit foggy, but I just eat up every second with this girl.

Here are some updates-

Eating:: This girl can EAT. I'm actually a little shocked at how much this girl puts down in a sitting. I'm still breastfeeding and she usually eats solids twice a day. We've done the baby led weaning thing for a couple of months and really like it a lot. It's messy, but this way we can all eat at the same time. She still doesn't have any teeth but manages to gum all fruits, veggies and even meat!

Talking:: She's pretty vocal. When she wakes up at 6am, I can hear her "talking" and playing in her crib for about 20 minutes before it turns into a cry. She still repeats dadadadada, and bababababa...and just within the past couple of days has been saying mamamama! I know she hasn't attached meaning to the sounds yet, but it still makes me happy.

Play:: This girl is ACTIVE. She does have moments of contentment playing by herself, but it's rare. She is constantly crawling and pulling herself up on everything, including me. I'm a human jungle gym. I'm flying across the country in June with her and I'm terrified as sitting still is not on her list of favorite thing to do.

Sleep:: Sleep is all over the place. In the beginning of the month she was going to bed around 730 or 800, but now is back to 630 or 7...she would probably prefer I put her down earlier, but evenings are a little hectic. I still go in for a dream feed around 10pm.

Naps:: Naps have been all over the place this month. Mostly because my schedule hasn't been consistent. On the days I'm home all day, she'll usually go down for a morning and afternoon nap. Nap times still vary from 30 minutes to about 2 hours. There have been days where she only takes one nap though...I am not a fan of those days.

On a sad note, nursing has become pretty difficult. I keep getting recurring milk blisters and plugged milk ducts. They are incredibly painful and last 3-4 weeks (I've had about 5 or 6 so far). So the last 5 months or so I've been dealing with this issue. I'm not ready to be done nursing, but it just hurts terribly. And to make matters worse, Parker wont sit still while I nurse. She will actually turn herself so she's on her hands and knees, or position herself on her knees facing me and nurse. This, plus the pain of milk blisters makes nursing in public quite awkward and difficult.

Other than that, this girl is the light of my life.

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Our Only Job

2013-05-01T06:45:00.000-07:00

"Besides nurturing and feeding our kids, our only job when they are this age is to delight them."

I was out with my friend Lillian last week and she said this. I loved it. It's so true. Making Parker smile, giggle and belly laugh brings such joy to my day. I think I might love it more than she does.

Truly...is there a better sound in the world than baby giggles?

Linking up with Mandy

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April Recap + A Couple of Blog Questions

2013-04-30T06:46:00.000-07:00

Can you believe it's the last day of the month? How did this happen? Tomorrow is May people. Which means my birthday is in less than two months and I'm going to be 35. YIKES.

Anyway...There have been lots of new readers recently (THANK YOU!) So I wanted to do a quick recap on a few of my most popular posts this month.

The kitchen remodel is almost done!

How we've been getting by since I quit my job.

Where I'm at with faith and motherhood.

Also, every now and then I do a check in with my readers to re-evaluate my blog...would you mind answering a few questions?

How do you read blogs? (desk top, mobile device, ipad, etc).

How many days a week do you read blogs?

Do you have any questions/feedback/comments regarding my blog you'd like to ask?

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How To Not Be Awkward at a Blogger Meetup

2013-04-28T21:01:00.000-07:00

Truth be told, I'm an introvert by nature. No one would usually guess it because I can go to a party and "meet" people and carry on a conversation. But my preference would be to sit in a corner with someone I know, chow down on meatball appetizers, and scroll through my instagram feed.

Last winter I went to the PNW blogger meetup in Portland (my first blogger meetup) and left a little disappointed because I didn't really "meet" a lot of the bloggers. It was my own fault; I didn't muster up the courage or effort to go introduce myself.

This year the meetup was in Seattle. I read through a lot of the comments of bloggers attending who stated they were excited to come, but were coming alone and didn't know anyone. Meetups are a lot like 8th grade dances. Everyone is dressed up, standing against the wall feeling awkward and hoping someone comes up to us to ask us to dance.

I decided to be the hot boy at the dance. And let's just say I left with a lot of girls digits.

OK, but in all seriousness. This is how to get the most out of a blogger meetup. (Or any sort of networking event).

1. Be prepared--bring a business card. I did not have any business cards at the last meet up I was at. #bloggermeetupfail. It's hard to remember everyone when you get home, having a business card or calling card is a must.

2. Get cute! Ok, I'm not anything close to a fashion blogger (I live in yoga pants), but women (generally) like clothes, accessories, jewelry, shoes etc. If you're wearing something cute it's a great conversation starter. And come on, how many of us don't love to be greeted with, OMG, that _____ is sooooo cute! And we respond casually, "This old thing? I totally thrifted it and got if for like, $2.00".

3. Be bold and introduce yourself first. Unless you're the most popular blogger there with a lineup of people waiting to meet you, you're gonna have to put in some effort. Get up, walk around and introduce yourself. Start off looking for someone standing by themselves. They are usually relieved that you made the first move! Once you feel comfortable doing that, get a little crazy and introduce yourself to a group of girls.

Not one person I introduced myself to looked at me with evil eyes and was like, "why are you talking to me?" (Unlike 8th grade dances). Everyone was eager to exchange cards and engage in conversation. If you're worried about what to talk about, here are 3 easy tips:

Find something cute about their outfit, jewelry, business card and say. "OMG, that scarf/handbag/necklace/ring is soooooo cute, where'd you get it? Who designed your business card, I love it!?" Compliment people (genuinely) and ask them about themselves.

If by chance you introduced yourself to someone who didn't bring a business card, and came in yoga pants, a sweatshirt and a ponytail--ask them about their blog. You can't go wrong asking someone what their blog is about.

Keep moving. OK, there is nothing more awkward than meeting someone and feeling like you're out of stuff to talk about (I know this seems virtually impossible with women, but it happens). Don't be awkward and just stand there in silence. End the conversation and move on! Say, "It was so nice to meet you, can't wait to check out your blog; I have 15 more business cards to pass out so I'm gonna keep introducing myself to some new people." They will not be offended. If you're out of stuff to talk about, they will be relieved that you made the first move to leave.

Women are so concerned about offending other women that we will often stand in pointless conversations for hours because we don't want to hurt someone's feelings. Moveon.com people.

Needless to say, I had a much better time at this blogger meetup. I met a ton of great gals and I can't wait to go through their business cards to check out their blogs.

Have you been to a blogger meetup? What was your experience like?

OH!! And I'm a guest host for the #Yolo Mondays linkup with the fabulous Molly & Carly...If you haven't joined in yet, do it now!

Happy YOLO Monday! Each week, Molly & I will be selecting a few of our favorite posts from the Monday before to feature......it's a great way to put the spotlight on a few of y'all each week! Please be sure to link up an ACTUAL post, not just a link to your main page.Our favs from last week?

Sunday Stripes

When is too much shopping too much?

Curry, Carrot & Rutabaga Soup

How to wear bright lipstick

The Rules for #YOLOMONDAYS Link-Ups:

Follow your hosts Molly @ still being [molly] ,Carly @ Lipgloss & Crayons , and your guest host for the week Ruthy @ Discovery Street
Grab a button and / or post a link back here in your BLOG POST (NOT your blog’s main page) so your readers know what all the #YOLOMONDAY-ness is about. We love you guys linking up and we do go through and read all your posts… so if you do not give credit, we will have to remove your link. That’s no fun, right? Right. So be nice and share a link! Pretty please?
Link your blog post up using the linky tool below! It can be ANYTHING! An outfit post, a giveaway, a story, a recipe, whatever. Why? Cause it’s #YOLOMONDAYS!
Visit a blog or four that you’ve never been to before and leave a #YOLOMONDAYS comment – you never know, you might “meet” someone new that you will lurve!
Have fun! Cause #YOLO!

Want to cohost #YOLOMONDAYS? We will be accepting weekly cohosts starting next week..........please email us at carlybrydon@gmail.com for more info!

Movin' & Shakin' In Her Huggies #HuggiesTester

2013-04-25T06:45:00.000-07:00

This is a sponsored post written by me on behalf of Huggies®.

My daughter has a thing or two to teach me about flexibility. She's a natural yogi; her favorite position? Its a tie between downward dog and the plank position. I found her in these positions often when she first started to crawl. I can't even believe I'm using that word. She's only 7 1/2 months but she started crawling a month ago. (Crazy early right?). I think it's amazing how strong babies are. Every single morning she would do just a little bit more than she did the day before. It's really like magic watching them build their skills and strength day after day. Of course now she can't sit still and chasing this child around my living room has become my daily workout.
Clearly we needed a diaper that could keep up with this active child and not hold her back. So of course I was excited to become an official Huggies tester. Did you know you can sign up to be a Huggies tester too? It's free and by signing up you can get coupons and play games to win some awesome prizes. And the best part is that with every prize entry Huggies will donate a diaper to a child in need.

Diaper changes have become a struggle in my household. Parker hates them. She cries and cannot sit still. I was in need of a diaper that didn't need to be changed frequently and was able to keep her dry between prolonged periods. I also wanted a diaper that could move with her, was flexible, soft and of course could keep up with her with no leaks. Only Huggies Snug & Dry Diapers have the new SureFit Design with a flexible waistband, and these diapers did not disappoint. Few diaper changes per day makes me happy, Parker happy, and best of all, makes my pocketbook happy. Huggies for the win!

Now if only I could keep up with her like Huggies diapers do!

Huggies® is introducing parents to improved products that are designed to take on some of the messy challenges of parenting: Huggies® Snug & Dry Diapers with NEW SureFit* Design, Huggies Natural Care® Wipes with NEW Triple Clean* layers in the new Designer Tubs. In addition to the same trusted Leak Lock® protection parents have come to love and trust, only Huggies® Snug & Dry Diapers now have NEW SureFit® Design, to provide long-lasting fit for up to 12 hours of leakage protection.
Interested in trying out these new products for yourself? Huggies® is encouraging parents everywhere to become Official Huggies® Testers at Huggies.com/Tester and put their new and improved diapers and wipes to the test in their everyday routine – from playground play dates to messy mealtime.
To get coupons and other great rewards, visit the Huggies® Test Town!
Or check out the Huggies® Facebook fan page to learn more now!
This is a sponsored post written by me on behalf of Huggies®.