Our Black Friday

I hope y'all had a wonderful Thanksgiving! Now that Thanksgiving is over, it means that it is officially time for CHRISTMAS! I even made Keith listen to Michael Buble's Christmas album on our way home from my mother-in-law's house :)

I'm not one for big "black friday" shopping madness. It's cold, it's dark, and I really just want to be sleeping than fighting lines. 

So Friday morning, I decided to just stay in my pjs, drink coffee, hang with the nugget and do our shopping online.

I scored crazy good deals at Amazon, Kohl's, Gap, Old Navy, Easy Canvas Prints, SnapBibs, PotteryBarn, Alex & Ani and River Babe Threads.

As always, I didn't do any shopping without first going through ebates.com and I just got an email that I have almost $50 in cashback after today's shopping!!

Here is a little sneak peek of some of the items I purchased: 

Water Bottle / T-shirt / Bibs / Parka - Pjs - Puzzle / Stocking

Later in the afternoon, Gracie and I decided to venture to the new Target that is five minutes from our house. I got front row parking, and there was almost no one in the store! We perused the clothing and toy section, then picked up some new wrapping paper, before deciding to check out electronics. I figured all the good deals were gone, but since we are re-doing our living room, we need a new TV. After texting with Keith frantically over a deal I found, I walked out with a brand new Samsung flat screen TV --- saving over $400 on the regular price! My husband was so excited to put his new toy to use that evening :)

Today is Shop Small Business Saturday! I follow some amazingly talented Instagram shops and many of them are offering great sales all weekend long. Don't forget to support small businesses this weekend! You can find a few of my favorites here, here and here :)

I am happy to say that I have very little left to buy for Christmas gifts. A few things for my father-in-law, Gracie's teachers and we are all set.  Next up is ordering our Christmas cards and putting up the tree!!

Be sure to check back in early next week for a holiday series I'm participating in that also includes a cash giveaway!

Gracie: Six Months

I know I say this every month, but seriously how do I have a SIX month old?! And yes I do realize that I am about ten days late with this post, as always! I wanted to wait until her six month checkup today so that I could add her stats!

She is still as fashionable as ever

She is still obsessed with a) being naked and b) her activity play mat

Still loving her Gunnie!

This month was her first Halloween and first visit to Santa's Village!

Her first school artwork on our fridge

The cutest little candycorn

Yep, still loves her Gunnie

Our first family trick or treating

A visit from her Grampy

Watching her first snowfall!!

photo by KGD Photography

Gracie is on a regular eating and nap schedule and this girl loves to eat.  She now eats prunes, apples, pears, mangoes, squash, sweet potatoes and carrots! We cannot get food into her mouth fast enough ... she bangs her hands impatiently on the highchair tray between bites. She gets her impatience from her mama for sure! She is still the happiest baby anyone has ever seen. Everywhere we take her, people can't help but smile when they see her beaming at them. She truly loves life. I can't even say all the ways that she has changed our life, but I know that I have never been so happy and full. I thank God every day for giving us such a beautiful gift!!

Stats: weighs 15 lbs 9 ounces
height 27"

She is still a little nugget, but is slowly getting some rolls, and man oh man am I obsessed with them!

Her doctor says in the next month she should be crawling and getting her first tooth! Looks like it's time to start baby proofing our house!

Happy (late) six months Nugget!!! We love you to the moon and back. 

weekend wrap-up

I wanted to try a new little twist on our weekend recaps and see how this goes!

What we did:

Friday night we had a quick, mini playdate with Gracie's little friend from school Anthony. He is (aside from Gunner) the only thing that can make her laugh. Check them out!

Saturday I was way overdue for a hair cut, so I did that - we went to lunch with some friends - bought a snowblower - and took Gracie to the golf store, where she kept herself entertained in the mirror :)
 

we look so thrilled :)

Sunday was super lowkey -- lots of cleaning, organizing and packing! We are having a wall taken down this week between our dining and living room to make our space more "open concept" and I seriously cannot wait. After not having a proper living room space since we moved in, we are finally going to have one!!

What we ate:

Sunday night is my favorite night of the week to cook, because I usually have more time to spend on a detailed recipe. Our recipe this Sunday though was super easy, and one of our favorites! And bonus, it's a one pot meal :) 

What we wore: 

I have been loving my new ankle booties I purchased from Loft a few weeks ago ... right now they are even on sale for their Friends & Family promo!

I bought these sweater leggings at Gap and I'm seriously obsessed. No, I haven't worn them out of the house ... but I've thought about it!

Gracie looked adorable on Saturday in her Old Navy camo skinny pants & leopard down coat and her "daddy's sweatheart" onesie from Carter's.

how about those eyes? :)

What we bought:

Other than a snowblower?? haha ... seriously though, if you know New England, you know a snowblower is a must to survive our winters. We didn't have one last year, and ended up paying more to have someone plow than it cost us to buy a very nice, refurbished one. #gofigure

On our weekly trip to Target, I also picked up a space heater for Grace's room (again, another must for surviving winter) and I oohed over all the Christmas things. Must wait until after Thanksgiving!!

I'm just about ready to click "purchase" on these items from Loft!

Can you tell I love leopard? :)

And that's a wrap! I hope that y'all had a fabulous weekend and Happy Monday!!


Weekend linkups with Meghan and Biana

Traveling with a Baby

It's hard to believe but the holidays are fast approaching, and that means that lots of people and families will be traveling! We are heading to Hilton Head Island, SC for a little family vacay in a few weeks. Keith will be flying down a few days ahead of us, so our flight down will be just me and Gracie.

 

I am both excited and terrified to be traveling alone with a 6 month old :)

I've been doing lots of research and talking to other moms to come up with the best things to pack, and the best tips for traveling with a little one. This is a round up of the things I think will be the most helpful!

 

1. Wear your baby -- since we are flying alone, I will need both hands! Wearing her is the perfect solution. I have several carriers, but my favorite was a gift from her godmother, the Beco Gemini. It is super easy to put on and very comfortable for us both!

 

2. Pack lightly -- we opted to rent a condo that has a washer and dryer in the unit, so my plan is to pack as little clothes as possible and just do laundry there. Same goes for her blankets, towels, bibs, ect. My goal is one checked bag for all of our things, and then one carry-on that will mostly have her things, my wallet, phone, ect.

 

3. Check your stroller and seat at the gate -- I've read many, many things that said a) never rent a carseat from a car rental company and b) never check the stroller and carseat with the rest of your luggage. Some moms might disagree with this, but I decided I didn't want to take any chances. So we purchased a lightweight stroller that her infant seat clicks into, and I will check both at the gate. I know it might seem silly since I just said to wear her as much as possible, but it will be nice to have a place to put her down when I need to use the bathroom :) And then when I get off the plane, I'll have her own seat to install right into our rental car.

 

4. Find the nearest Target -- my first stop after we land will be to find a Target and buy any baby items that I didn't want to pack. This includes diapers, wipes and formula to last us the week. Again, less items to pack! I will also pick up a case of water, granola bars, cereal, a frozen pizza - just little stuff to snack on, since we have a full kitchen.

 

5. Keep a routine -- Gracie does not do well when her daily routine is thrown off, so my goal is to stick as close to her schedule as possible. Feeding her on the go won't be an issue, but she goes to sleep by 6:30pm every night, so unless we have an extremely early dinner out - I forsee lots of take-out and drinking wine on our back patio :)

6. Don't stress -- I am sure that traveling with a baby is going to be a TON of work. But it's super important to both ith and I, that Gracie travels the world! So because it's so important to us, I know we will have to expect things to go awry, her to have some meltdowns, but all in all - to create amazing memories with our little family.

Print Via Etsy

Any other mama's out there have any good traveling tips I might have missed??
 

Family Photos

I am super excited that this weekend we are having our fall/Christmas card/Gracie's six-month photos done! I have been planning outfits and ideas in my head for weeks now and randomly texting them to my photographer .... (I'm sure she's thrilled!)

I tend to gravitate toward traditional (leaves, outdoors, slightly bundled up photos) with a little bit of a twist ... mixing patterns and textures and maybe even wearing white ..or (faux) fur! Here are a couple of photo ideas I'm loving:

Link via Pinterest

Link via Pinterest

Link via Pinterest

And a couple things that would look cute all put together without being "matchy-matchy". I want our outfits to coordinate while still being different. 

Plaid Dress

Reindeer Dress

Men's Sweater

Wool Sweater

Plaid Jeweled Shirt

Gracie is most likely wearing the plaid dress with striped tights. I'll be wearing the plaid jewel shirt with white jeans, tall tan boots and a furry vest. Or maybe herringbone. Still deciding :) And Keith is the easiest to dress - jeans, a simple sweater and nice sneakers or tan shoes. 

Easy peasy! I can't wait to share our photos with you next week!