whole parenting goods
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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Sweet friends, I’m offering a little branch off from my blog for subscribers. This series is a little special news from me to you. If you want to be in the know early about sale prices on my smash hit leggings, or my super soft wool blankets, or you want to hear my tips & techniques on selecting quality threads and yarns and how to approach your projects with gusto, you’re in the right place. I’ll also dish when I’m offering a sponsored giveaway & you’ll be the first ones to know! And gosh, I’m so in love with fabric and yarn. Thank you for taking a look around my shoppe. You make it happen. I want to tell you all about my process, but I’ll save that for the next time. And subscribers get a really great discount. Hop on over and subscribe today to get your discount. Sneeeeaaaaak Peeeeek of what’s coming later this month: AII!!!!!
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Shannon of Organic Mama’s Shop is a lovely artisan and I so love her work I went back to her again for another gift for you all because now that I have a teether–oh, boy, I treasure and hoard her teething stone necklaces! Here’s the skinny: two winners: one for a $25 gift certificate toward her shoppe and one teething necklace that I got for you because I love you. I love her work. Her organic stone teething necklaces are saving my life right now. And clavicles because Mr. BabyLoves wants something to grab on to–while nursing, or while hopping around in the sling. Or while being worn & carried by my dad. Or AA. Or while laying around planning his next bold move of PULLING HIMSELF UP. You heard it here first. Just turned 6 months. Yikes. I LOVE her necklaces. I have this one and the one pictured. Go buy one or win the $25 toward her shoppe. You seriously need it. The cotton cording is organic (love that) and also easily adjusted for being longer ((playing on his own)) or shorter ((he’s captive in the sling)). The stone is cold and ready for gums // teeth // playing with while you’re feeding. I also purchased from her this one. I really like it for the additional wooden ring component. Kept BabyLoves happy for a two hour mass the other day. Because my church is awesome and sometimes the orchestra really goes on and on in a good way. And look…
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Because I’ve had three babies and I know what I needed afterwards . . . I present to you the NEW MAMA gift set! I give you the tour, from the bottom to the top: Witch Hazel Spray I told you about my sister Molly and her organic skincare products before, remember? A distillation of Witch Hazel leaves and bark infused with Organic Lavender buds and Rose Petals to provide superb herbal comfort. ((giving away the bigger one!)) Witch Hazel (Hamamelis virginiana) has been used for many centuries as an astringent and general body toner. This amazing formula takes it one step further, tincturing Organic Lavender buds and Rose Petals to provide even more herbal goodness. Each batch is tinctured separately and macerated for at least 6 weeks in the shade. Saturate cotton pads with witch hazel to soothe tired eyes. It has also traditionally been used to relieve hemorrhoids (Amazing!) and varicose veins. Visit her on the web or etsy or in her shoppe in Brooklyn! Lactation Consultation I told you about my friend Leah and her Guiding Star Project before, remember? She’s an International Board Certified Lactation Consultant and is donating either one hour online lactation consultation via Google Helpouts (Value $55) or a one hour Phone Consultation (value $35). Because new mamas often need a little professional help (or for me with my second a LOTTA help for cracked//bleeding//screaming pained nipples) with nursing. IBCLCs help with the management of diverse lactation issues. They can help answer simple questions related to…
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A fellow crafter asked: where do you get your great yarns and threads?? I thought, is she talking about my clothing because these are all maternity hand-me-downs from Molly. Then I realized oh, no, she means my fabric & yarn. Like she said. When it takes you that long to process this much in a live conversation . . . problems. Right here in River City. Ginny from Small Things does a read & yarn post on Wednesdays if you’re looking for inspiration. Lydia from Small Town Simplicity is an AMAZING yarn craftswoman. I mean, I swoon over her stuff for her kids. But back to me and my sourcing: Threads! Fabric! Oh, my flaming passionate love affair with fabric. I am making a concerted effort not to buy new until I’ve used my copious stash up. I *may* have picked up two little fabrics when I was in my favorite local shoppe the other day getting fabric for an actual order. I sewed as a little girl. Atrocious things by hand. But then never did again until my mom bought me a sewing machine as an engagement present. To say I was dubious is an understatement. Somehow we shuffled through the lessons that accompanied the purchase and although she dropped by the wayside (who was going to watch the children so I could sew??), we did learn the basics of the machine. The rest, as they say, is history. But really, I wanted to make beautiful things for me…
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What I really want to write about was our epic family vacation. Epic. Staycation for our immediate family, ca-y-cation for those out of towners who traveled with their wee ones to join in the party. 6 kids under 4. 11 adults in the house. We all fit, somehow. And no one died. But while I’m editing the photos and weeding out all the ones where no one is looking at the camera, or my mom cut off the heads of some, find me on other places on the internet. Do you follow I Believe in Love? Well, you should. It’s an awesome project. I wrote for them about coping with being the at-home parent, but that it’s not a competition for who suffers more between AA&me. Read it here. And I partook (partaked?) in a baby gift guide with a couple of things from my etsy shop. See the gift guide here. Scroll. Keep scrolling. I’m number 5, the chenille wipes. Love those wipes. Most importantly, know that I haven’t put away my clean clothes for a month so they’re in a big pile on the floor of my closet and I can’t find a thing to wear. I rummage and rummage but only encounter AA’s work socks and my hoodie sweatshirts. Where are my nursing tanks? Where’s something that doesn’t smell like cottage cheese / baby spit up?? In closing, I’m going to this amazing conference/cocktail party in Texas next weekend. I’ve been planning for it for . .…
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