Kidding
My girlfriend Britt was kind enough to let us see a little glimpse into life on the cattle ranch in New Mexico, one of my favorite states I’ve only read about. Cannot wait to visit her there someday! She runs a beautiful blog at The Fisk Files and her photography business is, frankly, earth shatteringly stunning. I want to live with her beautiful family!!! So check her on instagram, the blog, and fbook. And hear what she has to share! —- Nell and I met last August, and my life’s been forever blessed! She made me feel comfortable right from the start, and if I’m being honest, I was worried we might not click. Why? Well, I hadn’t read her blog for long, and by her title, I assumed she might not think too highly of this formula-feeding, screen-time loving (well, liking), non-organic mom. Boy was I ever wrong. I’m not sure I know many that are as encouraging and as deeply thoughtful as sweet Nell. And, I couldn’t be happier to be here today! When asked to guest post for Whole Parenting, I didn’t really know exactly what to say, but since I feel that my way of life makes me a bit different than some, I thought it might be something fun to touch on. See, I was raised on a ranch. Until college, I never lived within the city limits. Since then, I’ve lived in mid-sized cities, the District, and now I’m back to a life with…
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Sitting on the back stair landing, sporting their Whole Parenting Goods leggings, and BabyLoves desperate to escape the clutching hands of these two. Welcome to volume 2 where I tell you how I pared down SweetPea’s wardrobe to a healthy handful of pieces that I actually like. Volume 1 that told about SuperBoy’s is here. When I purged, I put a few thingies for sale on my insta account. When I shop used, these are places I do: Just Between Friends: in person consignment sales. Search for your state. ThredUp: lots of kid & baby outfits, gently used. Zulily: but only when it’s a brand I trust. I’ve had a few failings here. Polarn O. Pyret. {{Sales right now on wool layers and outer clothing!!}} I shop my favorite wool brand & outdoor clothing brand for their frequent sales. Joules: fav british brand has an outlet shoppe where I’ve scored great ones for the kids. SweetPea isn’t a particularly girly-girl. The “pink gene” hasn’t been turned on. She’s impatient when I brush her hair. She doesn’t want me to fuss over it. She wears whatever project she was doing that day on her clothes. Markers, paint, food, glue, whatever. It’s always evident. When I stepped back to look at what clothing we had inherited from my very sweet friends & cousins whose families were done growing, and what I had acquired for her, I realized how little she actually had. A handful of pants, a few dresses, a few tops, and sweaters. Not enough pajamas and…
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Sitting on the back stair landing, sporting their Whole Parenting Goods leggings, and SuperBoy trying to extract his fingers from his brother’s death grip. We have been blessed with too many hand-me-downs. My sweet cousins and close friends whose families aren’t growing anymore have given us an abundance of hand-me-down outfits for the kids. Such a blessing! My shopping has been limited for the kiddos due to almost no need! But as I went through their closets this week to purge, clear out ill-fitted outfits, and the like, I realized, we’ve got way too much going on in the clothing department. And what outfits do I reach for? And which ones do I pass over? And how can I make myself do laundry more frequently? By eliminating. And donating. And re-hand-me-downing. And selling a few on my insta account. And where do I score good deals on baby & kiddo clothing? Just Between Friends: in person consignment sales. Search for your state. There are 7-8 locations for sales (twice a year usually) in Minnesota! I have found SO many things here, including great toys and outfits. ThredUp: lots of kid & baby outfits, gently used. Zulily: but only when it’s a brand I trust. I’ve had a few failings here. Kickee Pants for girls is on sale right now! Polarn O. Pyret. {{Sales right now on wool layers and outer clothing!!}} I shop my favorite wool brand & outdoor clothing brand for their frequent sales. Joules: fav british brand has an outlet shoppe…
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The other night, we’re doing dishes and watching the baby on the monitor, listening to our favorite band’s new album, and I turn to AA: Is this how you thought you’d live your life? He snorted and kept scrubbing the few plastic dishes we use that I refuse to put in the high heat of the dishwasher for fear it will ignite their secret BPA ingredients and kill my kids. Then he asked me what I thought my life looked like in theory versus practice, which is a way better way of stating my same question. No surprise. He’s definitely the brainier of us. And I’m more rigid. I explained my present life in my mind looks like this: Homemade food eaten by children wearing all clothing that I’ve made or sourced organically, while they gently play with their wooden toys and share kindly as I look on, showered, clothed, and knitting from a very comfortable yoga position I’ve mastered. Maybe I’m reading aloud from A Child’s Garden of Verse and maybe we’re all doing crafts. He laughed so hard starting with the part where the kids are only wearing clothing I’ve made and going all the way through. I joined in and we moved on to the greener pastures of intellectual discussion like how many shirts I needed to iron for his week at work. This got me to thinking, how closely am I living to how I’d like to live? How far off am I and what’s holding me back from actually living…
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I am a notorious last minute shopper. But this year I did it. They’re all done. I mailed the boxes to family out of town, wrapped the gifts for family in town, and shipped off all my etsy orders in time for their holiday celebrations. BUT if you’re like me and are usually running around right before Christmas trying to find something for your every loved one, look no further. Gift guide! Couples My go-to this year: my girlfriend Kelly’s work at Of Thistle & Thyme. Perfect for a couple. No one would not love her beautiful wood wall art. She is kind enough to offer a discount to my readers: THANKSNELL for 15% off. HOP over there now. I bought a number from her this year and was allowed to review a set!. Love them!! This? Or that? Adult Women Hair products? Jewelry? A good book? A knit scarf? My friend Mandi sells Lila Rose and I use my hair sticks all the time. And when I can coax her into it, my daughter uses her bobby pins. Buy from her here. And see my review of her products here. Jewelry? Try our sponsor Christian Bling. LOVE their unique work and love that it can be religious without being overtly gaudy. Sorry, but some religious jewelry isn’t beautiful. Weird, but true. Scarves? My friend Anna knits beautiful ones! Remember her? Interview here & shoppe here! Adult Men Facial hair maintenance. Panasonic Nose, Ear and Facial Hair Trimmer Wet/Dry. Thank me later.…
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A friend confided in me: I sleep in bed with the baby and my husband sleeps with our toddler. I know–I know–it’s so weird. He’s a bad sleeper. I responded: that sounds like so many parents I know. Not weird at all. Almost all of us are dealing with baby and children sleep. Meaning: crappy interrupted adult sleep. We’ve embraced “bad” sleeping. So now it just feels like “sleeping.” I wrote a lot about sleep with my first two kids. I read a lot about sleep. I think I thought I could out-think the sleeping problems of babies. I viewed them as problems. I viewed myself as a sleep deprived zombie. I was convinced there was a sleep answer. Toddler Sleep Issues: reasons why they might wake up. Sleep Sampler: 0-12 months: my overview from my kiddos Ousting a co-sleeper: we’re not here with BabyLoves, but why did I kick SweetPea out of bed at 6 months? IT DID NOT WORK. I kept getting up to nurse and soothe her for another 6 months til we night weaned. Nightweaning: when & how we did it with our second born. Now on baby number three, I’ve embraced that babies sleep differently than children and adults. Well, at least I’ve given up that I can teach my baby to sleep differently than he is inclined to. Babies do not go week after week with uninterrupted REM cycles. They just don’t. If your baby magically has never awakened between the hours of 7pm and 7am, ever,…
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