Bottom Bumpers Monogram Cloth Diapers
$26.95
Available at Tender Love and Cloth
Thursday, May 16, 2013
Monogram Cloth Diapers
I just got these new cloth diapers in and I am so excited! I LOVE a good monogram and love a good cloth diaper. Aren't these too cute?
Radiation Hungry Caterpillars Mother's Day
Starting Tender Love and Cloth has definitely taken a lot of my time recently. Owning a business is a lot of work. I've been missing blogging and am glad to have a chance to sit down and record some memories. This will be such a random blog posts covering everything we've been up to!
My mom finished up her 6 weeks of radiation and my sister and I (and the babies) surprised her at the clinic with flowers and cake. Emma Cate was babbling non-stop the entire 20 minutes that we waited for my mom to come out. We thought she was going to blow our cover.
I have all sorts of mess regarding my teeth. I have bonding on the top four teeth and unfortunately after a few years stains develop where the bonding meets the tooth and the bonding has to be replaced. My stains are out of control! I haven't ever bleached my teeth because the bonding parts won't take the bleach and I'd end up having two different colors but since they are so messy right now anyway I decided to bleach them before I got new bonding in hope that all my teeth would match and be sparkly white. This bleaching stuff is terrible! My teeth are in so much pain. Anyone else have this problem?
I mailed my first package for Tender Love and Cloth. I am learning so much about how this all works. Did you know Fedex is like 1000% (really) more expensive than USPS? I've learned my way around the post office recently!
We just finished up extending our patio. We are trying to make at least one home upgrade each year and we selected the patio and a retaining wall this year because the twins birthday party will be held outside. It took them less than a week to complete and we're happy with the results. Jay is building us a fire pit and there is a little more work do to to finish it up but here's a few in the process pictures.
We've been hanging out outside a lot more now that the patio is done. I can't wait until the kids are able to ride their toys on i.
guess who is crawling?
date night with the partially completed firepit
Saturday night, my college friend Jess was in town and we met up with some friends at Selwyn for a drink
Despite my whiny mother's day post, we definitely had some great times sprinkled throughout the day.
brunch at 131 Main
gift giving :) Jay is pretty awesome at this!
please just feed me mom!
My "Mother's Day" photo
On Monday afternoon I picked up my mom and sister's dog from the boarding facility and her pup deacon insisted on riding behind me sandwiched between me and the seat.
I've been working HARD creating the twin's first birthday party. Amazon is my bff and packages have been arriving daily. I know they won't remember this party but I hope they'll look back at the pictures from the day and know how much they were loved and celebrated! Jay and I are not big birthday people but I want to be sure my kids are celebrated on their special day!
(wow I need to fill my planters!)
Our theme is the very hungry caterpillar and I'm headed out to get invitations printed after school today! So excited!!!
Our photographer hasn't taken pictures of the kids since they were 7 months so I had to break out the camera and with a little help from my mom, jay's mom, my sister, and jay we were able to have little mini backyard photo shoot one afternoon. ***Added- So picasa (my photo organizer of choice) started uploading these little gif files to my web albums. I thought they were funny and gave you a really good idea of what trying to take a picture of two squirming babies looks like!
this is the picture I used in on their card
Monday, May 13, 2013
My First Mother's Day
Maybe because I wanted to become a mom for sooooo long, I eagerly anticipated this mother's day more than I should have. I usually downplay holidays. Birthdays are not a big deal to Jay and I. We have a nice dinner and that's about it. I was ready to celebrate being a mom though. In my mind I envisioned breakfast in bed, a touching church service followed by a relaxing mimosa filled brunch, lounging on a blanket in the park, lots of snuggles from my super cooperative happy children, a husband who wrote me a sweet card about what a wonderful mother and wife I am...
7:15am- Thanks for sleeping in an extra 15 minutes Holden! I kick Jay to get out of bed and tell him to go get Holden before he wakes Emma Cate. I tell Jay its mother's day and he should let me sleep. He brings Holden back to our bed, I nurse and we play while Jay gets Emma Cate gets up and ready. I nurse her then we are up for the day.
8:00am- I make the kids breakfast and steal a few bites of cheese-y eggs.
8:45am- Kids go down for a nap. Jay showers. I iron and lay out outfits for church and do some work for Tender Love and Cloth.
9:00am- I start to get ready and Jay packs the diaper bag. I ask him to please have kids ready to go by 9:15 (diaper bag packed, bottles made, etc.)
9:15am- I'm ready to go. Holden is up, dressed and in car seat, Emma Cate is still asleep. Bottles are not ready to be packed.
9:30am- We are walking out the door for a 9:45 church service. I lecture Jay about being responsible and getting the kids ready on time and how I am NOT having the picture perfect mother's day.
9:45am- We arrive at church and race to get the kids checked in at the nursery and find seats. Somewhere during the service I feel guilty for getting upset with Jay and vow to forgive him and move on with the day.
11:00am- We have a nice brunch out at 131 Main. We did have a great time eating outside and watching all the traffic on East. It kept the kids occupied and we enjoyed the meal. We went upstairs in the building to visit my sister and change the babies diapers.
1:00pm- Kids fall asleep on the way home and we unsuccessfully transfer them to their cribs. I spend the next hour watching them on the monitor and making trips into the nursery to soothe them while trying to watch Grey's Anatomy and relax.
3:00pm- Holden is up from his nap and I asked Jay to feed him his bottle and late lunch while I menu plan for the week ahead. Ends up Jay piddling around in kitchen and Holden trying to attack my laptop while I scour pinterest for recipes.
3:30pm- Emma Cate is still asleep so I load Holden up and we run errands to best buy and the grocery store. While there I am a bit jealous of all the dads I see toting kids around and shopping for the mother's day meals they plan on making their moms.
5:40pm- Holden and I arrive home to a clean house and a happy and bathed baby girl. I am in a better mood and thankful for my husband. We open gifts as a family and I got a bit spoiled but missed receiving a sweet card or hand prints from the kids. We played with the kids for a little and then made them dinner.
7:00pm- Bedtime for babies.
7:30pm- Chinese takeout for us .
8:30pm- I am asleep on the couch.
I began to think about Mother's Day when I sat down to recap our weekend. I even called Jay and said, I'm writing a post about our mother's day and his response was "um. oh. really?" I started to think about why I envisioned mother's day the way I did. I have an amazing Dad. A Dad that always makes my mom feel special, appreciated, loved and cared for. He knows that her job is the hardest in the world. He truly is outstanding. Where do we learn to do the things we normally do on Mother's Day? From our Dad. They help us cook breakfast in bed and buy us flowers and cards to give our moms. What happens when you are raised by a single mom? Who teaches you these things?
Jay and I grew up in two very different households. Most of the issues we mashed out during our first and second year of marriage (how to load a dishwasher, how to fold towels, etc. :) ) but it still catches me off guard when we cross a new bridge or milestone in our marriage and don't have the same approach to handling it. After almost 10 years of being together, we are still working things out. We are still learning and growing and that is so important to a relationship.
So was my mother's day picture perfect? No. Was it something out of a movie? No. Am I going to rock the hell out of Father's Day and show him how much we appreciate him? You bet. Even though Mother's day didn't play out the way I thought it would, this Mother's Day was perfect to me; I got to be a mom this year and spend the day with my family. The thing that matters the most.
7:15am- Thanks for sleeping in an extra 15 minutes Holden! I kick Jay to get out of bed and tell him to go get Holden before he wakes Emma Cate. I tell Jay its mother's day and he should let me sleep. He brings Holden back to our bed, I nurse and we play while Jay gets Emma Cate gets up and ready. I nurse her then we are up for the day.
8:00am- I make the kids breakfast and steal a few bites of cheese-y eggs.
8:45am- Kids go down for a nap. Jay showers. I iron and lay out outfits for church and do some work for Tender Love and Cloth.
9:00am- I start to get ready and Jay packs the diaper bag. I ask him to please have kids ready to go by 9:15 (diaper bag packed, bottles made, etc.)
9:15am- I'm ready to go. Holden is up, dressed and in car seat, Emma Cate is still asleep. Bottles are not ready to be packed.
9:30am- We are walking out the door for a 9:45 church service. I lecture Jay about being responsible and getting the kids ready on time and how I am NOT having the picture perfect mother's day.
9:45am- We arrive at church and race to get the kids checked in at the nursery and find seats. Somewhere during the service I feel guilty for getting upset with Jay and vow to forgive him and move on with the day.
11:00am- We have a nice brunch out at 131 Main. We did have a great time eating outside and watching all the traffic on East. It kept the kids occupied and we enjoyed the meal. We went upstairs in the building to visit my sister and change the babies diapers.
1:00pm- Kids fall asleep on the way home and we unsuccessfully transfer them to their cribs. I spend the next hour watching them on the monitor and making trips into the nursery to soothe them while trying to watch Grey's Anatomy and relax.
3:00pm- Holden is up from his nap and I asked Jay to feed him his bottle and late lunch while I menu plan for the week ahead. Ends up Jay piddling around in kitchen and Holden trying to attack my laptop while I scour pinterest for recipes.
3:30pm- Emma Cate is still asleep so I load Holden up and we run errands to best buy and the grocery store. While there I am a bit jealous of all the dads I see toting kids around and shopping for the mother's day meals they plan on making their moms.
5:40pm- Holden and I arrive home to a clean house and a happy and bathed baby girl. I am in a better mood and thankful for my husband. We open gifts as a family and I got a bit spoiled but missed receiving a sweet card or hand prints from the kids. We played with the kids for a little and then made them dinner.
7:00pm- Bedtime for babies.
7:30pm- Chinese takeout for us .
8:30pm- I am asleep on the couch.
I began to think about Mother's Day when I sat down to recap our weekend. I even called Jay and said, I'm writing a post about our mother's day and his response was "um. oh. really?" I started to think about why I envisioned mother's day the way I did. I have an amazing Dad. A Dad that always makes my mom feel special, appreciated, loved and cared for. He knows that her job is the hardest in the world. He truly is outstanding. Where do we learn to do the things we normally do on Mother's Day? From our Dad. They help us cook breakfast in bed and buy us flowers and cards to give our moms. What happens when you are raised by a single mom? Who teaches you these things?
Jay and I grew up in two very different households. Most of the issues we mashed out during our first and second year of marriage (how to load a dishwasher, how to fold towels, etc. :) ) but it still catches me off guard when we cross a new bridge or milestone in our marriage and don't have the same approach to handling it. After almost 10 years of being together, we are still working things out. We are still learning and growing and that is so important to a relationship.
So was my mother's day picture perfect? No. Was it something out of a movie? No. Am I going to rock the hell out of Father's Day and show him how much we appreciate him? You bet. Even though Mother's day didn't play out the way I thought it would, this Mother's Day was perfect to me; I got to be a mom this year and spend the day with my family. The thing that matters the most.
Tuesday, May 7, 2013
Babies, Golf, and Brides
Tender Love and Cloth has been keeping me busy busy busy! I started this little business as a side project with a goal of educating people about cloth diapers and was hoping to make a little money on the side. I've been overwhelmed by the response and am working hard to fill orders and marketing my little company! Even thought I LOVE my job teaching business and marketing, I'm finding it so fulfilling to use my degree in the "real world" in putting into practice all these things I was taught in college. Please help me out and continue to spread the word and like us on facebook! I'm also looking for bloggers to host giveaways so please let me know if you would be interested! In addition, I'm looking into having a webpage created as an outlet to sell my products. If anyone reading designs e-commerce sites please let me know!
Now onto the most important things:
The babies are growing and changing every day. There are are few little things I want to remember about each one at this stage in the game.
Holden- You are busy, busy, busy! You crawl everywhere and are NEVER seated. You crawl from toy to to toy and pull up on everything. You love to shriek and that is how we communicate. You still have your shy boy smile. You are a HUNGRY boy and eat everything in sight! You don't always finish your bottles and just when I feel like you are beginning to ween yourself from breastmilk, you stand up screaming in your crib and won't go to sleep unless I nurse you. It will be hard to give up that last night time nursing session. You are always into something and hate to be held still. You are an explorer! You hate when the dogs lick your face and will push them away but you love to rub their fur. You love your lovie and like to have things by your face when you sleep. You like to be tickled and have the sweetest laugh.
Emma Cate- You are on the move! You haven't started to crawl yet but you can scoot around on your belly pretty well! You still babble all the time and you love to blow raspberries. You are a snuggler. When you nurse at night, you look sooo sleepy while you are nursing but as soon as you are done you pop right up with a huge smile on your face like "I'm not sleepy Mom!!!". You like to crawl up me when I am sitting down and always like to be close to me. You shake your head no, no, no at the funniest times. You are not a good eater and like to spit things out that you don't like and shake your head no. We're working on it! You are a while one in your crib. I was rocking Holden last night and watching you play. You roll all over the place and throw yourself around. You get up on all fours and rock like crazy! You always look up to see if I'm watching you. You give big open mouth kisses and love to look at yourself in the mirror. Your walking is getting better and you are able to push toys around the room even though you can't pull up yet. I think my world is ending... you started pulling bows off of your head on Sunday. I'm going to have to bust out some tape (or superglue... just kidding!) :)
What have we been up to lately:
Now onto the most important things:
The babies are growing and changing every day. There are are few little things I want to remember about each one at this stage in the game.
Holden- You are busy, busy, busy! You crawl everywhere and are NEVER seated. You crawl from toy to to toy and pull up on everything. You love to shriek and that is how we communicate. You still have your shy boy smile. You are a HUNGRY boy and eat everything in sight! You don't always finish your bottles and just when I feel like you are beginning to ween yourself from breastmilk, you stand up screaming in your crib and won't go to sleep unless I nurse you. It will be hard to give up that last night time nursing session. You are always into something and hate to be held still. You are an explorer! You hate when the dogs lick your face and will push them away but you love to rub their fur. You love your lovie and like to have things by your face when you sleep. You like to be tickled and have the sweetest laugh.
Emma Cate- You are on the move! You haven't started to crawl yet but you can scoot around on your belly pretty well! You still babble all the time and you love to blow raspberries. You are a snuggler. When you nurse at night, you look sooo sleepy while you are nursing but as soon as you are done you pop right up with a huge smile on your face like "I'm not sleepy Mom!!!". You like to crawl up me when I am sitting down and always like to be close to me. You shake your head no, no, no at the funniest times. You are not a good eater and like to spit things out that you don't like and shake your head no. We're working on it! You are a while one in your crib. I was rocking Holden last night and watching you play. You roll all over the place and throw yourself around. You get up on all fours and rock like crazy! You always look up to see if I'm watching you. You give big open mouth kisses and love to look at yourself in the mirror. Your walking is getting better and you are able to push toys around the room even though you can't pull up yet. I think my world is ending... you started pulling bows off of your head on Sunday. I'm going to have to bust out some tape (or superglue... just kidding!) :)
What have we been up to lately:
Selling our first "Beachy Crab" set from Tender Love and Cloth
$22 for the set
Holden sported his first Vineyard Vines jacket at Daddy's chilly baseball game. He looked like such a big boy I had to take pictures!
This little thing tasted her mommy's favorite Cacao Smoothie and was not a fan. Our high chairs are getting soooo dirty! Might be time to invest in those boon ones that are all wipe-able plastic.
I posted this on instagram but am amazed at how huge my baby boy is getting. We still use our puj tubs and LOVE them. Both babies enjoy kicking and lounging in the tub!
Gigi (the seamstress behind Tender Love and Cloth) has been getting interrupted during her sewing by this little one!
just because they are cute...
sleeping on an afternoon walk
y'all are probably going to be sooo grossed out BUT it's my blog and I think this is hilarious. Jay was changing diapers and set the dirty one aside. On his way to dump it in the toilet, this little stinker rolled out and landed on his foot! He was paralyzed and I just died laughing (and of course took a picture!)
On Saturday we headed to the golf tournament. It's one of our favorite things to do in the spring in Charlotte! We spent the morning with out children (thanks to my wonderful students/babysitters!) and then came home to pick them up for the afternoon rounds. I was so glad we didn't bring the kids in the morning. We were able to watch lots of golf and walk around as we pleased. In the afternoon we ran into tons of friends and enjoyed hanging out in one place. Also notice that I am wearing a button down, sweater, denim jacket and pants and am still freezing! Normally we get sunburned at this tournament! Spring, where are you!?
On Sunday we woke up bright and early to head to Asheboro. I helped host a bridal shower for Jay's cousin. We had a great time catching up with all of Jay's family and meeting some new cousins and future cousins. I didn't take a ton of pictures but here is one of the hostesses with the bride.
We had to bundle up for the ride to asheboro because the weather was freezing! I am so ready for spring weather!
Gran doesn't have pack n plays at her house and we didn't want to pack them up just for a day trip so daddy made a makeshit sleeping area in the dormer of his old bedroom window. Emma Cate loved banging her foot against the cabinets under the window and Holden was obsessed with Daddy's old textbooks in the the plastic bins used to guard off the other side. These two did not sleep a wink but loved exploring their new area!
Hope you're having a terrific week and the weather is better for you than it is for us!
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