Showing posts with label travel. Show all posts
Showing posts with label travel. Show all posts

Monday, November 6, 2017

FUN BIN || a week away for mom + dad

early in the wee hours tomorrow morning, brandon and I, (along with his brother and his wife- - tyler & angela!), are escaping this true fall/winter weather of RAIN (and SNOW!!) that has recently arrived in washington. we're making our way over to MAUI and CANNOT WAIT!!
oh we are so ready for this getaway. to relax + refresh.
as excited as I am. my mama heart does break over leaving my babies behind. brandon and I need this for just the two of us, but good gracious am i gonna miss harper and tanner! the last time we were away this long was when I was towards the end of pregnancy with tanner and we went to kauai for a babymoon :)  (with tyler & angela again haha!)
...that was about a year and a half ago. I remember it being SO hard to leave harper behind, yet once we got to hawaii I almost felt guilty for not missing her more each day.
this will be our first time ever being away from tanner. and I don't know that I should even put an ounce of makeup on the morning we're leaving cause I'm likely to cry it all off.
my babies. my heart.

I came up with the idea to create a 'FUN BIN' for when we're gone this week!
a small little surprise for each tanner and harper that they get to open from mommy + daddy when then wake each morning. maybe with this they (mainly harper with her age) ;) will still feel that we're close and can feel a touch of our love.

I did a fairly quick run through the store to grab some small, inexpensive items to fill their bags.
..and let me tell ya it wasn't hard to do... haha!
HELLO TARGET DOLLAR SECTION.

on the outside of each paper bag I wrote a little note that nana & grandma she-she can read to them before opening their surprises.
♡  ♡  ♡  ♡  ♡  ♡  ♡  ♡  ♡  ♡  ♡  ♡
...along with this timing of 'being away'... I don't know that there's ever an actual good time, but harper has been going through some tough separation anxiety over the last few weeks. she is very attached to brandon and I as of late and sometimes, but not all the time, her emotions and sadness get so big when one of us leaves. she won't go anywhere without either brandon or I with her. even suddenly no longer wants to go into her dance class.. which up until now she has loved sooo much and has so much fun with her best friend and sweetest teacher!

so hard for me to see her when she gets so worked up because I know her feelings are so real. I do feel like this last week has been really good in that regard, with a turn for the better. it's always a rollercoaster ride though. ...but it's the ride we're on and motherhood brings one heck of a ride. we love this girl with all our might and are showering her with love, consistent discipline, and prayer.
my prayers lately have been so filled with her and for her to feel peace and comfort. and especially so as we're away for the week. these kids are going to be in the best of hands between my mom and brandon's mom. we are all praying it will be a smooth, uneventful week for all.

any mamas out there who have dealt with separation anxiety at this age (3), I would LOVE to hear from you and hear some things that maybe helped you and your family through. cause i know i can't be alone here!

it's a bittersweet thing to leave your babies behind.
I'm already thinking about the moment we return home to them. so excited for those sweet hugs and kisses.

I'm also SOOO much so looking forward to that beautiful hawaiian beach and the fresh salty air. a whole week's worth of time with my husband. though no doubt him and tyler will be hitting up the golf course too.. and angela and I will be at the spa!

Xoxo
-Brittney

follow along on instagram @brittneyhjelseth

Friday, August 18, 2017

IDAHO weekend | summer of 2017

we had such a fun weekend going back to visit my home state of idaho.
makes me so sad to say but it had been nearly two years since i'd been back. and I was reminded why I still love it there so much and how there will always be a place in my heart for idaho.
my ten year high school reunion was what initiated us going when we did. then to visit my mom, grandparents, and best friend filled up the rest of the time we were there.
five days. jam packed. with two of them including 12 hour drives.
it was non stop- yet relaxing at the same time. but just perfect. and filled my heart and soul.
we drove all day friday. and thank heavens the kids did well with it!
my mom has semi recently found a love for horses and riding, so saturday morning she took us all out to see + ride her horse shony.
I was a little nervous for myself, and also for the kids that they would be hesitant and nervous of just how big a real life horse is :)
boy was I wrong!!!
not an ounce of hesitation by either harper or tanner. these two were in heaven and seemed to be right in their element!
the only time tanner protested, was when it was time for him to get OFF and let someone else have a ride :)
after a couple hours of fun with the horses, we stopped at our favorite local lunch spot (5th street bagelry-- if you're ever in pocatello, ID, this is a MUST!!).
then headed for the house to get cleaned up and ready for the reunion.
I had been looking forward to it and knew it would be fun, but I didn't know it would be just as fun as it actually was! seeing these girls, and more friends I went to high school with TEN years ago was so special!
a night I will remember for so long! wish we were able to see each other more often, but catching up and laughing our hearts out for a night will have to do.
#centuryhighschoolclassof2007
the next morning, we packed up to leave Pocatello and headed about 30 minutes down the road to make a stop at my best friend's house.
a couple hours here was so great, but just not enough time!!
our babies:
harper + sutton are just one month apart
tanner + wilder are just six months apart
brittney (yep, same name, same spelling) :) and I became friends in college when we were both on the bengal dancer college dance team.
we have a friendship that I know will last forever no matter how far apart we are.
once we left there, we made the hour and half drive to small town mackay, ID  (population of about 500ish) to see my grandpa and grandma where they spend much of their summer.
we often spent time here camping in the summer when I was growing up. to then bring my babies and husband was so much fun. I loved seeing them love it and enjoy the simple outdoors.
both of these next two pictures... only in a small town like mackay... haha!
rides in grandpa's truck.
don't call the cops on us ;) but harper LOVED the treat of not always having to ride in her car seat.
harper, tanner, and I loved tagging along while mom and brandon played a round of golf.
brandon was in HEAVEN having tanner along and I just KNOW he was imagining the day he can actually take him out to golf with him :)
love watching this father/son relationship.
SO many rides on the four wheeler!!
Xoxo
-Brittney

follow along on instagram @brittneyhjelseth

Tuesday, May 30, 2017

6 tips for traveling with young kids

when we got back from hawaii I was asked so much about how traveling with the babes went.
...and quite honestly it went GREAT!! 
sooo.... with that, (I'm no pro by any means!), BUT here are some tips and things that we found helpful while traveling with two kids under the age of three.
 harper (2.5 years) & tanner (9 months).
**now first let me start with this disclaimer: all could have gone the complete opposite as well. but some how the stars aligned for us and we sailed right on through those 6+ hours of flying. EACH.WAY. ;)

1. if you can take grandma. then TAKE GRANDMA. (or any extra set of hands to help for that matter). my mom went with us and it was HUGE.
2. for baby bring a wrap to wear for them to nap in. I brought my solly wrap (rather than my ergo because it's small and takes up a lot less space. and when traveling with kids there is already SO much you're lugging around. so go for a small one you can stuff in your carry on.)
I put it on prior to boarding our flight so I didn't have to mess with putting it on in the tight airplane space. I didn't actually put tanner in though until we were able to be standing and moving about. then in he went and it was naptime!
3. sit in the aisle seat. this was so helpful for me to be able to get up and down if I needed to keep tanner moving to keep him sleeping. and let me tell ya. IT WORKED. cause boy slept for 2.5 hours!!
4. for harper (busy little toddler) it was all about newness. things she hadn't yet seen before. new snacks. new (little, easy to pack) toys (think dollar store!), new movies (we brought a portable dvd player), and of course... the iPad! 
**make sure to not use everything up cause you'll still need some new things for the flight home!**
5. use the other passengers around you! ha! we were sitting by such kind people, and if they were showing interest in my baby and wanting to talk to him, by all means I was gonna let them!
6. when you book your flights, if possible try flying in the morning. the kiddos are still fresh in the day and not yet over it and getting tired for bed. our flights home were a little later in the day and the kids were just a little busier cause of it.

if you have any questions for me, please don't hesitate to ask! cause there is certainly so much more to it than six simple steps haha! ;) if I can help just one mama out with this, that makes it all worth it. I know the travel can bring on lots of stress and anxiety of what to expect. 
if there's a point where things aren't going great-- just get though it. cause once that plane lands and you're off, that part is over and you're now ready to enjoy the vacation!

Xoxo
-Brittney

follow along on instagram @brittneyhjelseth