When I received an email in my inbox announcing the launch of the Peter Rabbit collection at Baby Gap, my heart skipped a beat even before I even checked out what they had to offer. I love love love Peter Rabbit. It’s a very nostalgic book for me and I wanted to pass it on to my kids. I try to read it to Mavrick (though he still isn’t super interested yet) but I can’t wait until he becomes a fan as well.

I browsed both the boy and girl collections and thought it might be nice to make a mini fashion board for the bebes. I love practically everything in both the boy and girl collection, and if it’s like every other “limited edition” collection, it will sell out extremely fast!

My favorite boy outfit would have to be the first one. The Rabbit sweater, mustard pants and navy twill boat shoes. I cute would your little one look in an outfit like this. (Kinda makes me wish Mavrick still fit in 0-24 months)

For the baby girls, the first thing that caught my attention was the mustard rabbit dress and I knew that would be my favorite. Paired with some mustard polka dot skinnies … how could you resist the cuteness. I also love when babies where one pieces and that pink one with ruffles sleeves is just perfect!

Have you checked out the Peter Rabbit collection ? Will you get something for your little one?

When Sienna was born, I knew I wanted to get a newborn shoot done earlier than I did with Mavrick, but unfortunately baby girl got sick 7 days after being home so mama had to wait until her nose was no longer stuffy. Since Sienna was smaller than her brother at birth and she loved being in a little ball, I was certain it wouldn’t be an issue this time around.

I put on my thinking cap and starting thinking of themed shoots. I hadn’t done a themed shoot with Mavrick which was fine, but I wanted to opt for something a little more original this time around. Sienna, since birth has been a big drinker. She LOVES milk (well all newborns do – right?). So I decided to have a vintage milk shoot as one of the themes.

I had all these props at home alread: wire basket, milk bottles of various sizes and a wooden wine rack, that I decided to use for the milk instead. So when my photographer friend saw me arrive with all my props and milk (oh yes, I brought my own milk), she couldn’t help but chuckle. She said she expected nothing less of me. I even designed a milk sign.

The other theme I decided to do was a vintage bath theme. I’m a little intense with the vintage – what can I say, I’m a fan! So I grabbed what I had in my house and staged the studio. I used blue mason jars to put cotton balls and Q-tips, rolled up face cloths, books for reading during bath time and some tin containers I purchased from Target years ago. The bath shoot was a little less successful then the milk one, but I was able to get a few good shots.

Usually once the themed shoots are done, I like to take a few shots with baby, but unlike her brother she did the ugliest faces haha. Maybe it was the flash, but she was making the biggest eyes ever! We were only able to capture 2 pictures that were worth saving. At least I was able to get one with my baby girl!

I find she looks so different now, which is why it’s so important to take newborn pictures. It’s great to capture those first weeks. Sienna was about 20 days here (so not really newborn) but still, it’s a great memory to have and you’ll enjoy looking at them when your little one is even bigger.

Have you ever considered an original themed shoot?

Hello baby girl; can you believe that you recently turned 6 months? That’s the halfway mark and it seems you are growing at lightning speed. It’s hard to believe, but my newborn is no longer. You are becoming one adorable little person. Even the littlest things you do make me smile and bring such joy to my life. Having a girl makes me happy is an understatement.

At 1 month you basically loved eating, and sleeping (you get that from me!) but I couldn’t help to dress you up every chance I got. At your 1 month appointment, the doctor couldn’t help but notice you almost doubled in size. Clearly you were a milk lover and you had enough rolls to prove it.

At 2 months you started to smile and made my heart melt even more! I never thought anyone could be more smiley and happy than your brother, but there you went and prove me wrong. One thing you dislike with a passion is when we wet your hair. Oh bath time is definitely not your favorite moment (it still isn’t at 4 months!).

By month 3 we could officially call you little miss chatterbox. You even decided 3am was the perfect moment to strike up a conversation (with yourself). You are such a happy baby, I still can’t get over it. You LOVE looking at yourself in the mirror and standing up (even if it’s for 2 seconds), but what you love the most are your hands. If you could, you would put both hands in your mouth at the same time.

Your brother Mavrick, what can I say… the love you have for him even at 4 months is indescribable. Every time he’s in the same room as you, you look at him with such awe which automatically makes you smile. You love it when he holds you or kisses your face. It’s the sweetest thing ever and I can’t wait until you are a little older so that you can play together.

Prior to your 4 month birthday, bathtime was your least favorite thing. Well now you love it! You splash around, chatter and don’t even cry. You even took a bath with your big brother for the first time and it was so fun to watch. You are mastering holding objects, and though you don’t realize it yet, you have an amazing pitch!

A big milestone was getting your ears pierced. I always knew you’d get them pierced early on and grandma offered to bring you. She got you your first pair of emerald earrings (your birthstone) and I couldn’t be happier. You barely cried and look even more adorable now!

At your 5 month birthday I decided to start giving you solids, but after having tummy aches and gas I decided to wait 2 weeks to start up again. I don’t know what changed in those two weeks, but now you eat like a champ. Your favorite is anything fruit, more specifically bananas and pears. As for vegetables, green beans are your favorite and peas not so much (but that’s okay your brother wasn’t a fan either).

You love sitting in the highchair and your favorite game is trying to grab on to the water bottle… oh boy do you love drinking water. You still are exclusively breastfed even though grandma attempted to give you formula while I was at a wedding, but you didn’t want any.

This picture represents how you are every second of every day — a happy, smiley, baby. It’s contagious. You are becoming a little madame – wanting to sit up by yourself  but you get too excited about what’s happening around you that you fall over. Then you roll on your stomach and you get frustrated. You still haven’t mastered the tummy to back roll… soon I hope.

You still have your fingers in your mouth the majority of the time and though you haven’t started teething yet, it’s coming… I can see it. Your favorite body part is your feet. Who needs toys when you have feet for entertainment. At your 6 month check up, you weighed in at 18 lbs and 27.5″ which puts you in the 85 percentile for weight and 90 percentile for length. You are definitely bigger than your brother at the same age.

As for sleep… it’s still on and off but you’ve been in your crib since you hit the 5 month mark. Some days you will sleep through the night, other times you will wake up 2-4 times a night, but I realized it wasn’t because you were hungry but because you needed to burp or had cramps or simply wanted your pacifier. Hopefully soon you will sleep through the night, but I can’t say I’m complaining since you are an amazing baby.

Both you and your brother melt my heart everyday. I’m so lucky to have both of you. You are my life and the reason I make it through even the toughest times. Mama loves you!

Last weekend we celebrated Mavrick’s 2nd birthday at the hospital. He was showing signs of coughing Friday night, but come Saturday things only turned for the worse. At first I thought he would be okay so I didn’t cancel the party, but halfway through the party Marc left with our baby to consult the doctors.

 My mom told us she suspected he had croup because both my sister and I had it when we were young. It’s a respiratory problem that makes it extremely hard to breathe under certain conditions like night time, when laying flat, and in humid conditions. When she explained to me that I was rushed to the hospital because I had stopped breathing, I have to admit I started to freak a little.

I was getting impatient waiting at home without any news, but I finally got a call  from my husband that they were going to keep him for the night. That meant I had to figure out what to do with Sienna because I wanted to spend the night with Mavrick. I tried to get a hold of my mom (who was at a wedding), but no luck. I left her 2-3 voicemails in hopes that she would listen to them really soon. At the same time, my next door neighbours arrived and I asked if they would take care of Sienna until my mom arrived (I figured my mom would come, even if I hadn’t spoken to her).

I knew Sienna would be in good hands so I left without a worry. I was extremely grateful, at that moment, that I had a freezer stash of breastmilk seeing as I’ve been solely breastfeeding her since she was born. I don’t think you realize how important it is until something unexpected like this happens.

I arrived at the hospital and Mavrick was still in the emergency ward. He had just fallen asleep. I tried to keep my cool but my mommy heart was breaking seeing his little arm with an IV. A few minutes after I arrived, they were ready to move him to the pediatric ward. Before transferring him from a stretcher to his bed, they had to examine him again. That’s when he woke up and started crying and screaming, making his breathing even harder. I tried comforting him, but tears kept streamed down my face. Clearly I’m not 1/10th as strong as my mom was. I gave him his lovey and pacifier and luckily he fell back asleep.

Once he got examined by the pediatrician, he confirmed that Mavrick had a severe croup, severe bronchitis and a massive ear infection. My poor baby. When he was awake he wanted to rip off his IV, put on his shoes to leave and cried at the sight of the nurses. I tried my best to calm him down with no success, so I had to restrain my baby and force him to breathe through a mask so they could administer his meds. Cue tears.

They kept him at the hospital for 3 days (2 nights), and I don’t think there could have been a bigger smile on his face when he was able to put his shoes on and walk away. We got home on Monday and even though his breathing improved considerably, it was still not back 100% so we kept him home with us until we felt he was okay to go back to daycare. We even kept him indoors because of the humid weather, which would only make his breathing worse.

I’m happy this whole thing is behind us, but I know it will take time for everything to get back to normal because it was a very traumatic experience. I’m so thankful my mom was there to see the first signs of croup so we caught it in time. Let’s just say he celebrated his 2nd birthday a whole new way. I hope no parent ever has to go through any type of hospitalization for their kids… it’s the worst thing in the world.

When I was pregnant with Mavrick I didn’t opt to take any maternity shots. I considered it to be honest, but when it was time to actually go for it I started having stretch marks on my bump so belly shots were out of the questions. One thing lead to the other and it just didn’t happen. Then I got pregnant with Sienna and I knew I wanted some bump shots (but covered) I figured it would be great for Sienna to have something her brother didn’t. I don’t know why that is but a second pregnancy isn’t like a first. We don’t have time to remember all the little milestones so capturing my bump seems so much more important this time around.

My friend and oh-so talented photographer Christina Esteban offered to take pictures of Sienna in womb and here are just a few of my favorite shots. I was about 38 weeks here, so yes I was ready to pop. I can’t believe it’s been over two months already.

My original plans was to wear a dress but the weather didn’t permit it… even if it was May. It was cold, wet and there was fog. Even my hair ended up having a life of it’s own. Regardless, I love how the pictures came out. Christina is always a pleasure to work with. (Remember she’s the one that took the pictures of Mavrick’s first birthday) Thank you Chris… you are a rock star in the land of photographers. xxx

Images : Christina Esteban

You might of heard someone talk about breastmilk as liquid gold. The reason for that is because it just is. It’s precious and we don’t want to waste it. I remember when I was pumping my milk for Mavrick I actually dropped a whole 4 oz on the floor. I wanted to cry. Its hard enough to breastfeed, so having to add pumping on top of that… you want to make sure you keep every drop.

I received a Milkies Milk-Saver Breast Milk Collector as a gift from a friend and even though Sienna is on the verge of turning 2 months old, I have to admit that I haven’t used it until this morning.

Basically it collects your leaking breast milk when you nurse/pump, allowing you to store extra breast milk effortlessly. To be honest, I never knew how much milk would leak while I nursed or pumped. I always wear a nursing pad so clearly all the milk would be collected in there. But when I forgot to put a pad once, and noticed my jeans were drenched, I thought… okay I do have a lot leaking.

This morning, I decided to pump and put the collector on my other breast (inside my bra) It is actually very comfortable but I didn’t have high hopes. I was told you could save a good amount of breastmilk if you used the collector, but I was skeptical. I didn’t pump very long, maybe 2 mins, and while I collected about 1.5 oz from the breast I was pumping, I could see I had a fair amount in the collector. I added it to the bottle of the freshly pumped milk and could you believe I gathered about 1.5 oz as well. THAT IS INSANE?! All this time my liquid gold has been going to waste!

If you aren’t a fan of pumping, I strongly suggest you get this to help save as much milk as possible. Same goes for breastfeeding (especially if baby has a strong latch… who knows how much milk you’ll collect)

I have not been paid by the company whatsoever to blog about their product. This is just me sharing the oh-so-awesomeness of this liquid gold saver. Do you have a collector?

It’s finally here… the new children line from ShopRuche.com called Itsy Bitsy. When they first posted on the FB page about the upcoming line… I can’t tell you how excited I was. I love their vintage style and couldn’t wait for it to be translated in a kids line.

I personally have a soft spot for rompers, so it’s no wonder that I love the Miss Cherie Organic Romper (as seen in the 4th picture) I also love the Full of posies floral dress, how cute would it be to have a mother daughter matching dress (I can definitely see it translate well for a woman’s A-line dress)

[ Images : ShopRuche.com ]