Toddler in Charge

Now that we’re over a week in to our lives with a toddler, my husband and I are constantly amazed at how much she’s changing. Each day, she’s learning new “tricks” and perfecting her old skills. This week alone she has learned to give high fives, play peek a boo with her hands (but her hands are so tiny that it looks like she’s blowing you kisses—it’s adorable!), learned new dance moves, and even a new word: kisses (kid-ses)—which she says after giving her stuffed animals a nice, big, slobbery smooch. She has, once again, somehow managed to out cute herself.

The problem with all of these new skills is that her attention span lasts for all of five minutes. One minute we’re playing, giggling, and having a blast—then the next minute she’s bored out of her mind and sobbing. As a stay-at-home mom who shares a car with her husband (meaning, when he’s at work—we’re carless), I’m constantly trying to come up with new ways to keep her occupied—but some days, I feel like I’m coming up short on new ideas to keep her stimulated, challenged, and well… busy!

This week has been particularly different from the norm because we’re working on dropping down from two daily naps to just one. God, I will miss getting those two breaks a day but over the past couples weeks, getting Lacey down for her morning nap has been such a struggle. I was literally spending an hour rocking, nursing, and patting—trying to get her to settle in for a nap. After an hour of sobbing, she would finally fall asleep for about 45 minutes. This lasted for about a week before I decided it was time to sayonara to the AM nap. Making this change has been amazing for her sleep schedule—there’s no more fighting her to go down for a nap or bedtime (she nurses for about 2 minutes and is out), but it has made our mornings seem to last foreverrrrr. Where before we’d wake up around 8 and be back down for a nap by 10:30, we’re now up at 8 and trying to stay occupied until 1. Our afternoons are surprisingly easier—especially now that it stays light later. We usually wake up from nap around 3, eat and watch a show, play for an hour or so, and when it starts to cool down around 4:30, we head outside for a couple hours of fun. Lately, we just walk out of our apartment and I let Lacey walk next to me and lead me to where she wants to go. We find ourselves playing in the grass, pointing at puppies, and enjoying the breeze. After an hour or so of exploring, I grab the stroller and we head for a walk to our neighborhood playground—where we spend an hour sliding (she LOVES the slide), swinging, and exploring in the mulch. We head home around 6:30 for dinner, books, bath, and before I know it- it’s time for bed!

Still, even though our evenings fly by, we’re stuck with these mornings dragging on. I’d love to head outside but by the time we’re up, eat breakfast, and dressed- it’s already too hot and sunny (darn you, Florida). Some days, we run errands—but this week, with the loss of a nap, Lacey’s often too grumpy by the time we make it to our destination (or she falls asleep in the car on the way there—kind of ruining the point of the one nap per day ordeal). So over the last couple of months, I’ve taken to the Internet to come up with some creative ideas to keep the little one busy—and therefore, happy. I figured I’d share some ideas I found (and some I’ve used forever) to help out any other stay at home mommies stuck in the same dilemma as myself:

·         Tupperware Time: As simple as it sounds—head to your pantries and look for plastic items that baby can play with, chew on, bang together, whatever it is that keeps them busy. Lots of moms designate a “baby cupboard” and just keep all the baby-safe items in here for baby to explore. I love this idea! But since we’re moving in a month and therefore decided not to baby proof the kitchen, I have no way of keeping Lacey out of the unsafe cupboards. Instead, I bring all of the Tupperware in to the living room and put it in her pack & play that I set up in front of the TV. Lacey loves standing in there, semi-watching TV, banging her “pots and pans” together and throwing them over the edge of her crib. This usually keeps her busy for long enough that I’m even able to switch out a load of laundry—and if I’m really lucky, maybe even fold them! (Oh, who am I kidding? All of our clothes basically live in laundry baskets. Folding is the worst!)

·         Find the Clothespin: This is probably the simplest game you could play—but trust me, it works. All you do is grab a clothespin and place it somewhere on yourself, the baby, or something nearby. Your little one will love looking for the clothespin—and will love the celebrations that erupt when they find it. We’ve actually been doing a spinoff of this game for awhile now—using one of Lacey’s bows instead of a clothespin. Whenever we’re out and Lacey gets grumpy, either my husband or I will take her bow and place it our hair. She loves to take the bow out of our hair and cracks up every time (bonus: working on getting the bow out of our hair is great for finger dexterity!). Be sure to clap and cheer when baby finds the bow/clothespin… and be prepared to play over and over and over again!

·         Dance with Baby: Staying home with kid(s) can be exhausting— and let’s face it, it becomes all too easy to skip your daily (or uh, bi-weekly) workout. Rather than trying to find an hour to hit the gym, allow your baby to do your workout with you! Turn on your favorite Pandora station, strap baby in to your Ergo carrier, and get to dancing. Lacey squeals with delight as we dance around the room—and her added 25 pound weight ensures that I’m getting a great workout in! We’re both sure to be panting within minutes.

·         Build Forts: Turn ordinary story time in to an adventure! Grab the blankets, pick a comfy and quiet spot in your house, and get to reading. Lacey’s eyes light up with joy whenever she sees the blankets surrounding her. It adds a real sense of mystery to our normal reading routine. I plan on saving some of the boxes when we move as well so that we can really step up our fort-building game. (P.S. Want a great way to expand your home library? Ask for family and friends to give books instead of cards for birthdays and holidays. Let’s be honest here—the price of greeting cards has become borderline offensive. $5.99 for a sparkly card that will be quickly skimmed, checked to see if it contains cash, and then tossed in to the trash pile? No, thanks. Put that cash to use and head to Target’s book aisle—there are tons of books available for the same price as a standard greeting card. To let friends and family know about our no-card preference, we simply added a quick message on Lacey’s first birthday invites asking guests to bring signed copies of their favorite children’s book in lieu of a greeting card. We ended up with over 20 new books—and they’re all signed with adorable messages that Lacey (and I!) will treasure forever.)

·         Paint: If there’s one thing kid’s love, it’s getting messy. With a barely-one-year old, I don’t quite feel comfortable with letting Lacey loose with the paint yet (let’s be serious, all the paint would end up in her mouth… not on the paper)—but that doesn’t mean she can’t get her creative juices flowing. Rather than normal paint, use “food paint” to allow your child to make their masterpieces. Using vanilla pudding and food coloring, you can allow your toddler to go at it on a piece of paper—and bonus! They can eat their work without mommy making an emergency call to Poison Control (hey, we’ve all been there- right?! But that’s another story, for another time). When they’re finished painting, help them pour some sprinkles on top and let it dry! Voila: baby’s first artwork! Side note: I tried this craft for the first time last night (what kind of blogger would I be if I was to lead you astray!?) and we had so much fun! As you’d expect, be prepared to get messy. I set out an old blanket (that I didn’t mind ruining) on our kitchen floor (next time we’ll probably take craft time to the outdoors but it was too windy yesterday—the paper would have been flying everywhere!) and put the paper and “paint” on top. Be sure to take off baby’s clothes—and switch it to something old yourself! I made the mistake of wearing a not-so-old pair of jeans and they may or may not have a big purple handprint of the thigh! Luckily, they’re getting a bit big for me anyways—so I guess I just found my “getting dirty” jeans to wear from now on. Lacey has so much fun though! We both jumped In the bath right after—and were food-coloring free within minutes! The best part? Lacey was able to enjoy eating her “artwork”—she continuously would stick her hands in her mouth and squeal with delight over the yummy taste (…and of course I was able to sneak in a couple of licks too!).

·         Purse Play: I don’t know about your kids, but Lacey loves nothing more than rummaging through my very cluttered (and very not-child-friendly) purse. There’s something about the mystery of mommy’s purse (and her shoes!) that causes such delight in little girls. Well, rather than worry about your child choking on your lipstick cap when she rummages through your purse- why not let her have her own? Grab one of your old purses and fill it with things like play keys, an old wallet filled with even older cards (old student IDs and old AAA cards make great options!), a water bottle, an old pill bottle (to be extra safe, I keep her old Hyland’s Teething Tablets bottles and throw them in there-- make sure you take the lid off!),a fake phone (I threw in a play phone and my old cell phone case that she loves to chew on), a baby spoon or two,  and a favorite toy. Set it in front of your child and watch her eyes light up with delight when you actually let her pull everything out and chew on it all! This works great for long car rides or trips to friends’ houses, as a way to always make sure you have something for your little one to do. (Bonus: You can do a spinoff of this game while you’re out and about. I always keep extra old cards in my wallet to give to Lacey when we’re grocery shopping. It keeps her occupied for a good 15 minutes—plenty of time to make a good dent in your grocery list!)

·         Jewelry Party: My little one-year-old isn’t quite ready for full on dress up yet—actually, she still cries in pure agony every time I attempt to change her outfit. Like changing your shirt is the worst imaginable thing in this world? As if. (Yes, I just referenced Cher in Clueless—don’t lie, you loved it.) Still, this doesn’t stop her from loving shiny, sparkly things—hey, she is a girl after all! So keep you little one busy by collecting lots of shiny jewelry—it doesn’t matter if it’s your favorite 14 karat white gold tennis bracelet or your 99-cent plastic costume jewelry that you purchased from Claire’s in 1997. Either way, your baby will love it! I can tell that Lacey instantly feels prettier as soon as I slip her favorite blue beaded bracelet on her wrist. This is a great trick for those tricky toddler diaper changes too—a bracelet on the arm (or foot!) will keep your squirmy kiddo preoccupied just long enough for you to take care of her business and come out unscathed!

Have you tried any of these fun ways to keep baby busy? Do you find yourself struggling with ways to keep your toddler stimulated? Please, PLEASE! share your ideas with me by leaving a comment below.

See you real soon,

Lacey’s Mama

 

Your Daily Dose of Lace:

 

 

 

Working on her Pudding Artwork!

 

The pudding damage-- poor jeans. 

 

Purse play time-- Lacey's favorite!

 

 

;.;;;’oolooo, mvl

i il oo.9k+kYh <<Lacey’s Blog Post

Mommy, Daddy, & TODDLER Makes 3!

Well, the much anticipated first birthday has come and gone. In the blink of an eye the first year of my daughter’s life (and my own personal inauguration in to the highly coveted “Club Motherhood”!) has come to an end. When you reach certain big milestones in your life—high school graduation, college graduation, your engagement, your wedding day—it’s impossible not to reflect back on the years and marvel over the sheer speed in which life flies by. How is possible that a mere 365 days ago (well, 365 days ago from April 7^th), I had yet to meet the love of my life? The one person on this Earth who I undoubtedly and unconditionally love? Now, don’t worry—my husband (and mom! And sisters!) are still the loves of my life as well—but the saying “there’s no love like a mother’s love” does not exist for no reason. The love a mother has for a child really is like no other version of love to exist. Let’s be honest here—nothing but unconditional love could be the catalyst for waking up hour after hour, night after night, surviving on mere moments of sleep to tend to every need of another human. I mean, I am still madly in love with my husband—but when we both suffered from a nasty case of food poisoning years ago, there were limits to the amount I was willing to do for him. One thing I’ve learned as a mother though is that there are no limits to what a parent will do for their child. Baby needs ten diapers changes in one night because she just can’t stop pooping? Mommy will be there for you—and she’ll be apologizing to you for having to feel so crappy (pun intended). How messed up is that? I’m the one wiping your booty… and somehow, in what can only be labeled as “love,” I find myself feeling sorry for you. Oh, motherhood- you’re really something else.

To the opposite degree, how is it possible that it has already been one whole year since Lacey first waltzed her way in to our lives? They same time flies when you’re having fun. Well, time also flies when you’re changing diapers constantly, nursing around the clock, trying to decipher the meaning of squeals of varying multitudes, and well—yes, having fun, lots and lots of fun, in ways you never could have imagined. Looking back on the changes Lacey has made in her first year is enough to leave me in awe for the rest of my life. Our little baby came in to this world and grabbed our hearts—but let’s face it, that’s about all she was capable of grabbing. I’ll never forget the first time she grabbed my finger—I literally never wanted to let go. Soon those grabs turned in to smiles, and those smiles turned in to giggles, and those giggles in to crawling, and those crawls in to steps… and suddenly, in one million blinks of an eye, I find myself here—my cuddly baby girl all-too-quickly replaced with this intelligent little human being—capable of mimicking our gestures and asking for (well, pointing to) what she wants. Where before our only ways of communicating were with cuddles and cries (hers and yes, sometimes even mine), we now have a surprisingly foul-proof way of talking with each other. Pretty amazing accomplishment when you think of where we started (AKA: her crying and me frantically checking her diaper, her hunger level, her comfort!). In one year, we’ve become a team.

And like I stated in my first post here on Mommy Blog, the team we’ve built isn’t just the three of us. It’s our village—the village who is raising Miss Lacey. And what better time to get your team together than to celebrate the very first anniversary of the day in which all your lives changed for the better? So celebrate we did.

Over the last couple of months, I have been feverishly planning Lacey’s first birthday. I took it upon myself to give her the best birthday party I could plan—I mean, she deserves it (and so do her dad and I-- we survived the first year!). Thanks to the Internet, there is no shortage of adorable party ideas out there. In fact, the problem wasn’t finding enough to do—the problem was trying to wean out the great ideas from the good ideas. I’m so glad I started early on this process because there were so many decisions to be made (and re-made and re-made!) until the final draft, if you will, was complete.

Since we live in a small apartment (for one more short month!), and my mom and sister were flying in from Phoenix (yay!!!), we decided to reserve a hotel room for the occasion. Knowing that Lacey’s birthday fell on a Monday, that we wanted to have the party the weekend before, and that we wanted to spend her actual birthday at Disney World- we decided to look for hotels in downtown Orlando- about 30 minutes away- so that we’d have less of a commute to Disney on the morning of her birthday. We finally decided upon the Hilton Grande Vacation Suites at Sea World. The suites there are HUGE and very affordably priced. The pool area is basically a family’s dream (two pools, large playground, outdoor eating, and billiards area)—you name it, they have it. Coincidentally, we’d stayed at this hotel before—once when I was in high school and once when Ross and I first starting dating and my parents came for a visit. All in all, it was the perfect fiesta location. I booked the hotel for the weekend and moved on to planning decorations.

For decorations, we originally planned on sticking with the Disney theme and throwing a pink and black Minnie Mouse celebration. However, in the months leading up to her birthday, Lacey fell head over heels in love with a little Disney Princess named “Sofia.” So, pink turned to purple and all-things Sofia became our mission. I scoured Etsy each night—picking out cute cups, and banners, and birthday outfits. I love Etsy for helping those of us who aren’t so crafty (or let’s be serious, don’t have the patience to dedicate to crafting) still be able to have awesome (personalized) decorations.

Below, I’ll share with you some of my favorite party finds:

 

Sofia Cupcakes- My very favorite Etsy find was these adorable cupcake toppers. The Sofia printout was attached to a toothpick—turning a normal purple cupcake into the Princess’ ball gown. So cute, so easy, and such a great way to spice up everyone’s favorite part of the party: the cake!

 

 

Month Banner- Like many of today’s parents, I took to the Pinterest-popular idea of documenting each month of your child’s first year through adorable monthly stickers placed on your favorite onesies. I loved taking a few moments each month to capture how Lacey looked, as well as her current likes and dislikes. From the beginning, I knew I’d want to display these pictures somehow at her first birthday—I just didn’t know how. Well, Etsy to the rescue once again! Vendors sell adorable banners that allow you to attach the monthly pictures and display them with pride. I found a purple, sparkly one (of course!) and turned those monthly pictures in to a beautiful decoration. This will be so cute to hang in Lacey's nursery when we move as well!

 

 

Outfits- Like any Princess, Princess Lacey needed some adorable outfits to sport on her special day. Like any mother of a Princess, I obviously fell in love with several outfits. Luckily for me, Lacey had both a party and a Disney day to attend.  My mom also happened to see these outfits too (without me even mentioning it!) and decided that she would order the one I wanted for the party—and I would get the one for Disney World (thanks, mom!). Since we had a Sofia-themed party, we picked an adorable Princess Sofia onesie and tu-tu combo for the fiesta… and a Minnie Mouse one for her birthday at Disney World. They turned out sooo cute—I’m so sad she can’t wear them again… but they make the perfect addition to her baby box for me to take out and cry over how quickly she’s growing each year. ;)

 

Cups, Water Bottles, and Candy Bars- At our wedding, one of my favorite personal touches was the personalized water bottle labels and M&Ms we displayed- so it only made sense to do something similar for Lacey’s special day. I found some really adorable labels to print out and place on otherwise boring objects- such as the cups, water bottles, and Hershey Bars! I love how easy it is to turn bland drinks into festive keepsakes!

Lacey's Crown- Since all of the guests were wearing crowns or tiaras, it was only fair for The Princess Lacey to have her own personalized crown as well. She wouldn't wear it (diva!)-- but we did get some cute pictures!

 

 

High Chair TuTu- What princess doesn't deserve a tutu for her high chair?! Above the high chair, you can see the photo collage I made shaped in, no other than, a "1"!



On top of my favorite Etsy finds, we added in a couple other personal touches to help transform our hotel room into Princess Lacey’s party local:

 

I came up with the idea of creating a “Welcome” to-do list (blame the teacher in me for wanting organization and order everywhere—even at a one year old’s birthday party!) with fun ways that we were planning on capturing Lacey’s birthday.

 

We bought a copy of Dr’s Seuss’ Birthday Book for everyone to sign- so that every time Lacey reads it she could remember everyone who was there for her special day. We also created a time capsule out of this fun luggage shaped box I found at Target and a video greeting (which we will make a CD of and place in the time capsule) that we will give to Lacey on her 18^th birthday. We urged party-goers (and long distance family) to write down a special note to Lacey about life in 2014, we added in a newspaper from the day of her birthday, some pictures, and mementos and can’t wait to give it to her in 17 years (here’s hoping we don’t lose it!).

 

We also had crowns and tiaras for guests to wear to help bring to life the party-feel—as well as photo albums spread throughout the hotel for guests to enjoy the 50,000 pictures we’ve taken this year (Yes, I take even more pictures than the 500 I post online each week.) And finally, my mom came up with the great idea of creating photo albums of all of our favorite pictures (these can be seen in the picture above with Hershey candy bars) to give out as thank-yous for the guests. It was a great way for our family and friends to take home their own special piece of Lacey’s first year with them!

 

We made sure to serve lots of good food and even set up a mimosa bar outside for the adults-- but it was too hot so we quickly moved that back in to the air conditioning!

 

And of course, what is a first birthday without a smash cake!? I love this cake and the glittery gold candle on top of it! Lacey, however, was skeptical of the whole thing!

Overall, I am absolutely thrilled with how Lacey’s first birthday came out—I really feel like I made my mark in the party-throwing world! I’m so thankful for my mom, sister, and husband for helping transform our hotel in to party central… and so thankful to all our best friends and family for attending her special day! It truly was a day (and year!) that I will never forget.

Got a special party coming up? What decorations can’t you live without? Are you an over-party planner like me? Or do you prefer to just wing it? Feel free to leave a comment and let me know—we’re just getting started in this party planning business!

See you real soon,

Lacey’s mama

Your Daily Dose of Lace-

Lacey in her party outfit!

 

After the party, pool party!

 

 

 

 

Enjoying her birthday at Magic Kingdom!

12 perfect months... ending with a crib full of balloons!

 

 \4854411 <<Lacey's Daily Blog Post (typed with her foot as she watches none other than Sofia the First)