Tuesday, February 21, 2017

Tanner Ross || 7 months

seven months. 
boy you've got to slow.DOWN.
how in heaven's name are we now closer to you being one than we are to the day you were born. he's getting heavier and heavier for brandon to be holding like this too!
age: 7 months

stats:
7 months: 22.8 lbs  --  (from the scale at home)

birth: 8lbs 2ox  --  21 inches
2 days: 7lbs 11oz
12 days: 9lbs 1oz
1 month: 12lbs 4oz  --  23 1/2 inches
2 months: 15lbs  --  24 inches
3 months: 17.4 lbs  --  (from the scale at home)
4 months: 18lbs 13oz  --  27 inches
5 months:  20.4 lbs  --  (from the scale at home)
6 months: 21lbs 2oz  --  28 inches

clothes: 12 month
diapers: 3

Tanner name sign // Quincyjeanart
banner // hooray everyday


this last month has literally been life changing. Tanner no longer hates the car!! him not hating the car every time he gets strapped in and ready to go has lifted an enormous weight for me. I feel like i've gained some freedom back and we can go places pleasantly! :) I didn't realize just how much him hating the car affected me and what we did or didn't do. literally the day he turned six months old, it's like a light switched and he decided riding in the car was actually an ok thing to do :)

this last month has also brought some struggle on my part as I try to find balance as a wife and mother of two and to still fit in time for myself and most importantly for Jesus. it's a constant work in progress, but prioritizing my life is bringing clarity in the days.
E A T
still breastfeeding and all is going well.
we're now doing solids twice a day. oatmeal with breastmilk in the morning and a veggie and rice cereal with breastmilk at dinner. he doesn't take to a new food right away. we've found it takes a few times of offering it until he's ready to accept it. his favorite to eat is either oatmeal or rice cereal. most favored veggies have been carrots and butternut squash.
so far tanner has had yellow squash, carrots, butternut squash, and sweet potatoes. here in the next few weeks we'll be adding in kale, peas, spinach, zucchini, and yams.
excited for him to experience all these new flavors and textures! the facial expressions are priceless!
even though he often doesn't love a new food right away, we just wait a couple days and then offer it again. and just keep on doing this. it can take SO many times for a new food to be accepted. it's so important to not rule any foods out because you think baby doesn't like them. just keep trying and offering! 
S L E E P
when he's tired and ready to sleep he's so clear on it by rubbing his little eyes with the back of his fist. we're not really following the wake-eat-play-sleep quite as much these days. I've been finding that he takes longer, more solid naps if I nurse him before going down. and that's what works best for us. I also do not hate those extra snuggles, because they'll be gone before I know it and won't be back. ever! I love playing lullaby music while rocking him down and he's been making the sweet little noises as we rock. I could sit there all the live long day. if I didn't have any other responsibilities outside that nursery door. truth be told- it can be so tough when I'm trying to put Tanner down and in walks harper, all ready to play!
baby boy loves to sleep on his tummy. we always lay him down on his back first, but about 50% of his sleeping is spent on his tummy. all by him putting himself there. takes after his mama ;)
P L A Y
language is developing and new sounds are being made. I love it! he's been making little spitting noises with his lips and it's so fun to see him get happy about these new sounds he's making. of course we're all working on trying to get that first "mama" or "dada" or "harper" ;) out of him, but we don't seem to be anywhere close on that. especially "harper"!
it just keeps getting cuter and cuter as these two play, interact, and laugh with each other.
up until just recent we've lined up a couple pillows behind him while sitting. not because his sitting wasn't solid, but 1. if he got tired of sitting he would just let himself go backwards to lay down and 2. harper was enjoying playing doctor with tanner as her patient and to lay him down for his check up, she'd push him right on back. hey- what are little brothers for?? ;)

P H O T O   D U M P

love you so, sweet boy! xoxo


xoxo
-Brittney

follow along on instagram @brittneyhjelseth

Wednesday, February 15, 2017

Photo (or two) Every Hour | turning 28!

.SEVEN.
.EIGHT.
.NINE.
.TEN.
.ELEVEN.
.TWELVE.
.
.ONE.
.TWO.
.THREE.
.FOUR.
.FIVE.
.SIX.
.SEVEN.
.EIGHT.
.NINE.
.TEN.
.ELEVEN.

...and goodnight...

a day with my loves doing the things that I love!

xoxo
-Brittney

follow along on instagram @brittneyhjelseth

Tuesday, February 14, 2017

BIG Girl Bed

harper has been in what we've called her 'big girl bed' being her crib converted into the toddler bed.
well with a child in the 97th percentile... and the stuffed animals.... and her baby doll... and bunny... and blanket... who all sleep with her. it's time for the real big girl bed.
her crib also converts to a full sized bed so we're starting to look at mattresses and bedding! oh the bedding. there is such cute, cute little girl bedding out there!
ruffles. bows. swiss dot.
love it all!!
just so many options. pottery barn has been my go to when it comes to bedding and they aren't disappointing for big girl beds either.
it makes me want to do a whole re-do of her room.
which... brandon's biggest question with all this is... "am I gonna have to repaint her room?" ;)
maybe. just maybe :)

here's what I'm loving as I browse :) ahhh!!
blush quilt // ruffled sham // grey duvet cover // light grey duvet cover // bow pillow //
washed dot sheets // swiss dot sheets // swiss dot sham // heart sheets

Harper really loves PINK these days so I want to make sure to do what she likes, while also keeping a bit neutral so we can change it up and reuse for years to come.


xoxo
-Brittney

follow along on instagram @brittneyhjelseth

Wednesday, February 8, 2017

five + six month favorites

a handful of our favorite things over the last couple of months. though I often think there are too many baby products out there, I have definitely found some that have helped make our days roll out better. most of the time ;) because there's still no ignoring the fact that our days involve a two and half year old and a six month old. both who have a lot of needs!!

{kinda lengthy descriptions, but it explains why we like each of these products} :)

blackout curtains // we don't have blinds in the bedrooms of our house so the sun shines through with nothin stopping it. not good when it wakes sleeping babes! we installed pull down black out shades into the bedrooms when we first moved in (I think I bought them a jcpenny..??). found that from the direction the bedroom windows face, extra darkening was necessary for good sleeping babies :) and have bought pottery barn black out curtains. they are amazing! they block the light so well and I don't have to worry about the sun shinning in and waking the babes earlier than they ought to ;)

quilt // we've been using these quilts/blankets to lay down over the rug in our living room when setting Tanner up to play in the day. it's mainly to protect our rug from spit up and/or blowouts! they're also so soft and we use them when going out of the house too for staying a little warmer during these cold days we've been having. we have this one + this fun new print that I'm thinking might turn into being his 'baby blanket'. there are so many prints between the two brands, that I just want so many of them!!

diffuser + oils // amongst working on getting better sleep for tanner, I brought our essential oils into our night time routine. we had been using them here and there, but now it's every night. I totally believe they have helped! a little coconut oil + lavendar on his jaw line, behind the ears, and back of his neck (especially when he's teething!). a relaxing chamomile blend I have from timelabs that I massage on his feet. and lavendar + frankensense in the diffuser (I have this one and have been very happy with it- we actually have two in our home).
baby boy loves getting his little massage before bed. it really calms him down and settles him in for the night. a little bonus- it's relaxing for me too!

zipadee zip // we used what in our home we call the "zippy" with harper as a baby as well. since we've had them on hand, we pulled them out for tanner (really ever since we stopped swaddling him months ago), but it's still what he sleeps in. and it's working great for us. I've thought about trying to transition him to having his arms out, but why mess up a good thing ;)
--he wakes a time or two in the night, but for me that's no big deal when I can get him right back to sleep after nursing.
--also, being a tummy sleeper 50% of the time, with the amount of space he has in this sleep sack, he is able to move around freely and sleep on his tummy comfortably.

high chair //  since we started solids at five months and he's now been sitting around six months, we've pulled the high chair out and use it every night. we were using the play chair, but it was just too big on our kitchen table during dinner and with being such a big boy.. we started getting concerned with safety! this is the high chair from when harper was a baby, and it's held up so well. we love the wood on it so it isn't an eyesore in our kitchen, and it's so easy to clean.

baby breeza // here again with solids. it's so easy to make baby food with this product. and inexpensive! one sweet potato and I can make over a dozen servings for tanner. it steams + purees so there aren't multiple cooking steps. easy peasy!!


there ya have it!
let me know if you have anything you are loving for this age (or any other age at that matter!) mama recommendations are the best recommendations! ;)

previous month's favorites:
ONE
TWO
THREE/FOUR

xoxo
-Brittney

follow along on instagram @brittneyhjelseth

Friday, February 3, 2017

friday favorites

FRI-YAY!!
both babes are napping {at.the.same.time.}!!! so it's a good friday over here and the reason this post is happening :) Tanner had some time with daddy this morning while harper and I headed off to her kindermusik class with a drive thru donut stop on our way home :) her and I just couldn't wait so we devoured a bag of donut holes in the car. therefor she didn't have it in her to finish up her festive sprinkle donut :) I however had no problem downing my maple bar once we were home.
I'm dying for summer over here! and it's only just barely february. I came home from kindermusik talking brandon's ear off about how I want to go to hawaii. with the kids. let's just do it!
at least it's february now, a month of love and fun and my birthday! (yahoo!). for some reason january seemed like a bit of a drag. we've been having a handful of sunny days and are going to continue taking advantage of them as they come. and praying summer will come early for us up here in the PNW! but apparently I heard the groundhog says differently...
a girl can dream, right? ;)

here are a few things that I have loved lately and you might too!

.ONE.
too faced better than sex mascara
I saw a review somewhere that this mascara was suppose to be great. so I thought what the heck, I'll give it ta shot. I LOVE IT!
length + volume. length + volume.
Brandon saw the package in the trash and said "...better than sex? mascara??"
well... it's darn good, my friends ;)

.TWO.
living proof PhD night cap
this came as a sample with a package I ordered. and I'm now sold! I wet my hair before bed, put this in, then rinsed it out in the morning. and omg. my hair felt so smooth and soft from it.
more overnight conditioning for me in the future for sure.


.THREE.
zella leggings
I've been wearing these leggings since my pregnancy with harper and they are still my favorite yet. the quality is amazing! I still wear that first pair that I bought years ago (which have been washed a hundred or more times). they still fit like new and have not faded. the high, thick waist band protects my still postpartum body from getting a dreaded muffin top.
how long can I still use the postpartum excuse?? I'm probably past the point since it's been six months now... but hey.

cheers to super bowl weekend!
what food are you making?? I'm thinking a chili bar for us!

Xoxo
-Brittney

follow along on instagram @brittneyhjelseth

Monday, January 30, 2017

Harper Monaé || two and a half

it has been so darn long since I've done any sort of update on Harper. and I've been wanting to for so, so long! like even way before Tanner was born.
when I went and looked back, it's actually been a year! the last time I did one of these for her, she was just 18 months old (HERE). man has SOOO much changed since then! no way I can encompass it all and explain our harper girl's last year of life. but a snapshot of where she's at now will certainly do! these littles grow and change so stinking fast!
time, you're such a thief. but also so amazing, because I just love how our bond has grown over these past two and a half years.
my littlest BFF. and I pray she always will be.
I have a section in my notes in my phone, and when I think about it, I jot down some of the hilarious things this crazy girls says/does.
it's the closest I can get to bottling up her cute little self.
--- as we're about to walk out of the house to go to the store.. (most likely target) ....  Harper: "I have lots of monies, do you?"
--- referring to hiccups as "pick ups"
--- when saying "cake pops" it comes out as "cake ..." well, replace those "p's" in pop with "c's" ;) trying so hard to fix this mixup!!
--- tanner was newborn and had a clogged tear duct. he'd have dry little crusties on his eye and harper says.. "crumb in eye!"
--- driving through construction.. "ooo big mess. gotta clean it up!" ... yes harper.. we alll would agree with you on that one.
--- music comes out "mugis" ... kinda gross cause all I can think of is mucus. but whateve.
--- at dinner one night... Me: "honey please don't touch my food" ... Harper: "I'm sorry sweetie". ok if you're gonna respond like that- touch my food all you want. heart melting.
--- Me: "should we turn the fire place on?" ... Harper: "ooo! that'd be snuggy and warm!"
--- anything that is mini/baby size/or just baby related... "aww so cuuuttee!" ... while holding it up close to your cheek. again. heart meltinggg.

Harper Monaé  --  my favorite things about you:
--- the conversations we have while you sit on the potty. so stinking talkative. just chatting my ear off. about anything and everything. so so cute! I've taken a number of videos of this :)
--- how you are in this stage of loving to help mom with everything. especially cooking.
--- oh how you love to "cheers" everything. if anything matches or is the same, we cheers. cups. shoes. lipgloss. toys. straws. nail polish. tv remote/toy remote.
--- your vocabulary is unreal. for quite some time it has just been exploding with each and every week! I love the conversations we get to have now :)
--- your love for kindermusik. one of the best decisions we made was enrolling you in this class. my mama heart bursts seeing you excel and love every minute of it.
--- you sing all the live long day! allll day long. it is literally music to my ears hearing your sweet little voice fill our house.
--- if it were up to you. your outfit choice would be a princess dress. every.day. I know I'm gonna miss the day you grow out of this!
this girl. she has more sass than I can sometimes handle. she's most certainly a two year old. her sweet heart and spirit melt me all at the same time. she has such a giving heart and is always caring about others. smart as a whip. it blows my mind all that she knows and watching her learn is something that will never get old. a personality that far exceeds anything I ever could've imagined. 
this girl is growing and changing as the weeks fly by. every day she is learning something new while also teaching me all along the way. 
precious girl, you are so near and dear to me. to think we've had you for two and a half years and all the joy that has come with it. I could just burst thinking about all the lessons and memories we'll have in the many years ahead of us.

Xoxo
-Brittney

follow along on instagram @brittneyhjelseth

Friday, January 27, 2017

friday favorites

a week's time has been flying right on by for me lately.
how is it already friday, again!?
we're suppose to have sun around our parts the next handful of days with low 50s temps. gonna do what we can to enjoy it before some rain heads our way. today it's our weekly mommy + harper time at harper's kindermusik, then we'll fit in a later afternoon walk with our favorite auntie and baby cousin. good, fresh air does wonders for us! and we're just so hungry for summer that we'll take anything we can get :)

a few things that have been making me happy lately!

--- family pictures. over the holidays my mom wanted to have kristal take some pictures for us while her and my brother were here visiting. despite how freeeezing cold it was, they turned out just how we all had hoped. no such thing as too many pictures, right :)

--- I've shared this on my insta stories a couple of times. and here I am to share it a third. this devotional is so so good. a quick easy, couple of pages a day. Jen Hatmaker, the author, writes in such an easy to read, relatable way. I look forward to reading every day. she speaks such truth to motherhood and the various challenges we mamas may face and encouragement to work through.
BUY IT & READ IT.
--- pier one room spray. with toddler potty time, we spend lots of time in the bathroom with more poop than I'd like to admit. this is the best spray I've had for covering up the stink ;)

--- netflix! we just recently jumped on the nexflix wagon and aren't quite sure what we waited for!

--- here's a personal (and not tangible one), but the Lord answered a huge prayer for us this week. we had an expensive medical bill that we've been expecting (no worries, it's nothing serious and we're all just fine and dandy health-wise) :) but it came in the mail yesterday and I was SO nervous to open it. when I did, it was literally a fraction of what we'd expected. thank you, Jesus!!

Happy Friday and cheers to the weekend!!

Xoxo
-Brittney

follow along on instagram @brittneyhjelseth