Showing posts with label babe's firsts. Show all posts
Showing posts with label babe's firsts. 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

Monday, October 30, 2017

Halloween Party!

we held a first ever halloween party at our house on friday for the kids!
harper has reached the age where activities like this bring her so much excitement and fun. tanner was along for the ride and had fun too, but harper understood alllll that was going on and the anticipation working up to the party was so big for her.
I tell ya, holidays just keep getting BETTER the more kids we have and as they reach new ages and stages. 
I've never been one to celebrate christmas until thanksgiving passes, but because of these kiddos and how fun it all is, we might jump ship a little sooner this year ;)
...but first... HALLOWEEN!
this party was so fun to put together. and it really was pretty quick + simple too.
we started the party with pumpkin painting for the 'older' kids. I say older loosely because it's referring to the five 3-year-olds :) who really aren't that old at all!
then a little pin the nose on the pumpkin!
for food:: I made a couple snacks/treats, we had pizza delivered, and a few friends brought a goody along with them too!
...and then some little goody bags to send home with our friends!
♡ ♡ ♡ ♡ ♡ ♡ ♡ ♡ ♡
we're so looking forward to some good trick or treating tomorrow night and ready to throw those costumes back on! if it were up to these kids of ours, they'd be in their costumes every day + night.

happy halloween, friends!!
can't wait to see everyone's costumes and enjoy the excitement of this holiday!

Xoxo
-Brittney

follow along on instagram @brittneyhjelseth

Thursday, August 31, 2017

Harper MonaƩ | a whole lotta firsts

over this past week, it has been BIG for our harper girl.
as a baby, of course there are lots of firsts happening on a regular basis, but into toddlerhood the firsts start to happen a little less frequently.
this last week however, we loaded this girl UP with first time experiences.
and it was so fun to watch her light up each time.
>>ONE<<
first sleepover at our house with her little bff, aubrey!
cuteness o v e r l o a d!!
these girls had the best time ever making pizza, watching cinderella + snacking, making popcorn on the stove, and then climbing into bed and making shadow puppets on the ceiling with the flashlight :)
the first of many for these sweet girls!!
>>TWO<<
harper's first dance shoes!!
she'll be starting dance lessons next weekend and talks about it everyday.
we got her essentials (ballet shoes, tap shoes, leotard, and tights). over and over again once we got home, she would pack and unpack her dance bag :)
so excited for this tiny dancer!!
--who just LOVES to dance!!--
>>THREE<<
these three had theirs first cousin bath!
so cute to see all these little babes in one big tub.
>>FOUR<<
kinda feels like the grand finale here :) 
at just barely three years old miss harper participated in her very first two day cheer + dance clinic!
I was nervous going into it that she'd be clung to my leg the entire time, want nothing to do with it (unless I was standing by her side), and be extremely shy.
I was 100% WRONG.
 she did awesome!
a little social butterfly who ran around (often a little too much!) and danced to her own beat ;)
by the end of it though, she learned a little bit about 'trying' to stay in line with the other girls. and her favorite part was the dancing by far
she met some new little friends, enjoyed performing at the baseball game (once she got over the fear of being away from mama and that the mascot wouldn't do anything to her), and had a cherry on top of getting to experience this with her most favorite auntie 'E-E'!!
we were all so proud of our harper girl!!!
Xoxo
-Brittney

follow along on instagram @brittneyhjelseth

Friday, August 25, 2017

friday favorites

it's been AWHILE since my last friday favorites post!
but summer is slightly slowing down, we're feeling in the groove, and it's clear that fall is upon us. which brings for more structure and more time spent at home.
I've been checking back over our summer fun list and seeing which items we haven't yet completed. and making a point that we fit them into these last days we have!


.ONE.
harper's fist sleepover at our house with her little bff aubrey!
there's not doubt that us mama's are just as (or more) excited than these two toddlers are about it!
aubrey + her mama kaylani are heading over this evening and we have a fun night of pizza making, movie watching (cinderella!!!), and treat eating planned!
.TWO.
nuby! we love nuby and all that they offer. bath toys are no exception.
both kids play with these bath links, each just in a different way :)
for tanner it's more piece by piece, but for harper's she's got it down on how to link them up and "make a train". and what else I love... how i can so easily drain the water out of them so they don't grow mold. there are so many bath toys i swear where no matter how hard I try, I just can't seem to get allll the water out and eventually I notice dark mold in them. and to the trash they go...
.THREE.
FabFitFun.
no shock to anybody here, but I am LOVING fabfitfun and I've only gotten one box so far! I've had other subscription boxes before. (which were great). but this one is definitely the best!
soooo many great things. and things I actually like and use.
follow this link HERE, use code "BEACH", and you can still get $10 off!!
((that makes the box only $40ish and they're only seasonal-- NOT every month))
fall boxes are about to come out in september, and I can't wait to see all that's inside!
.FOUR.
stroller strides
this a simple favorite here.
an awesome workout. great mamas to work out with. and all of our kiddos in tow.
WIN. WIN. WIN.
if you're a mama in the tacoma, wa area, come join!!
.FIVE.
rodan + fields
another big love of mine. I've been using this regimen every morning and every night since the middle of june. and I.AM.IN.LOVE.
I look forward to this part of my day and have truly seen positive results in just a short couple months! and the cherry on top??! the LASH BOOST! I've seen my lashes grow grow grow from using this at night before bed. I can't say enough good about it!
my friend Kari introduced me & she's awesome. contact me, and I'll connect you!
happy friday, friends!!

Xoxo
-Brittney

follow along on instagram @brittneyhjelseth

Tuesday, August 22, 2017

life lately | our weekend

what I'm gonna call our weekend started on thursday :)
about mid morning,  brandon's work schedule for the day opened up. he came up to me, suggested we take the kids to northwest trek, and without an ounce of hesitation I said YES.
it literally made my week.
doing family things together is one of my absolute favorite things. with brandon's work life in real estate it can be sporadic as to when he has free time. and even when things are planned ahead, last minute work appointments can switch that up.
life of a realtor ;)
but there are also perks like having this whole thursday afternoon together as a family!
northwest trek is amazing!
it's what I would call a 'zoo', but in addition to that they have a tram that drives you through acres and acres of wildlife. the animals are literally right outside the window.
it's so fun and amazing to see them so close!
after our tram ride, it was time for a little ice cream treat before walking around to see the rest of the animals.
friday
one of my favorite times of day is putting this sweet boy down for his nap.
it's so stinking hard for me to actually lay him down though once he falls asleep!
that afternoon I headed out with some awesome mamas from fit4mom for some kayaking fun followed by pizza. this girl time was so refreshing and filled me up!
saturday
the only picture taken... but I was home with the babes in the morning while brandon was working.
then tanner + harper had some time with their nana while my sister-in-law angela and I went out for a coffee and some shopping before meeting up with our husbands for a fun bbq with friends.
sunday
at the start of 2017, brandon made the decision to take sundays off of work. in real estate, that is not always an easy thing to do. it can become 24/7 if you let it. but since he's done it, it has been the BEST for all of us.
so sunday is family day.
we made our way to the farmer's market with tyler, angela, & lleyton.
did some things around the house, went outside for some bike riding, and fit in some naps.
THEN!!!
it was harper's first every HAIR CUT!!
to trim those little baby hairs that have been there for three whole years was not easy!!
but made such a difference in her hair with it getting cleaned up.
I should've done this long ago!!
...and I'm the crazy mom who saves her baby's hair!

it was a good one over here, and hope your weekend was a happy one too!!

Xoxo
-Brittney

follow along on instagram @brittneyhjelseth