This post is sponsored by Cricut and contains affiliate links.

After a long year of homeschooling last year, I am beyond thrilled that my kids are going back to in-person learning at the local elementary school in a few weeks.

For my son, that means starting third grade and getting back into the routine of learning at school. He did his first two years of elementary school at school, so he knows what to expect and he’s familiar with the concept of “going to school.”

For my daughter, who did kindergarten at home last year, “back-to-school” means something entirely different. She did two years of preschool before kindergarten, but it was only half-day, a few days a week. She didn’t get a true kindergarten experience last year, and I’m excited and nervous for her to spend her days in a classroom with other students and a teacher who isn’t me.

I know she’s feeling a little nervous herself, so I wanted to do something extra special for their first day of school breakfast. My kids loved the Valentine’s charcuterie board I made for them earlier this year, and I thought it would be fun to throw together a back-to-school-themed breakfast charcuterie board for their first day!

I wanted to make some school-themed labels for the board, and I knew that using my Cricut Explore Air 2 to make chalkboard labels would be perfect! I also wanted to make them as simple as possible so I could put them together quickly, and I was thrilled to see that Cricut came out with a sticker-backed Smart Paper cardstock for their larger machines that works without a cutting mat and doesn’t need any messy glue! Can’t get much faster or easier than that!

Besides the amazing Smart Paper Sticker Cardstock, I also grabbed a set of Metallic Pens to write on the cardstock so the labels looks like mini chalkboards, and a Scoring Stylus to make folding the labels easy and more precise.

After deciding I wanted to do a mix of proteins, carbs, and fruit on my breakfast charcuterie board, I opened up Cricut Design Space and got to work designing.

I made chalkboard-style labels that could be folded in half and stuck on toothpicks (thank you, Sticker Cardstock!). You can get the free cut file here.

Once you have all your labels designed and ready to go, it’s time to write, score, and cut! Design Space will tell you which pens to use and when to insert the scoring stylus. Just make sure you have a sharp Premium Fine Point Blade in your machine before you start, so you get crisp clean edges.

When your Cricut machine is done doing the hard work, unload your Sticker Cardstock, and one at a time, peel your labels off the sheet. You’re going to put a toothpick in the middle so your labels can go stick in your food, so make sure you have those ready.

After you peel a label off, gently fold along the score line, line the toothpick up inside, and press the label in half. Repeat for each label, and voila! You have breakfast charcuterie board chalkboard labels!

All that’s left to do now is assemble your charcuterie board and add the labels. When I make my boards, I do anything in bowls first (syrup and jam, then eggs and yogurt), followed by bigger items (sausage, waffles, bacon, croissants), one at a time, and then little things (fruit) to fill in any extra spaces.

Last, add your labels. If you have bowls and can’t stick the labels into what’s in them, try taping them to the side. Anything else, just stab with a label.

I love the way our back-to-school breakfast charcuterie board turned out, and my kids loved it, too. Serving this special breakfast is the perfect way to start the first day of school off right!

Back-to-School Breakfast Charcuterie Board

Prep Time: 10 minutes

Total Time: 10 minutes

Serving a breakfast charcuterie board is such a fun way to celebrate your child's first day of school! And with these cute school-themed DIY labels that you can make in a few minutes with a Cricut machine, the first day of school will get off to a great start!

Print

Materials

• Smart Paper Sticker Cardstock
• Toothpicks

Tools

• Cricut Explore Air 2
• Metallic Pens
• Scoring Stylus
• Premium Fine Point Blade

Instructions

1. In Cricut Design Space, open the cut file.
2. Press Make It! Connect your Explore machine, load your Smart Paper, and make sure the correct tools are loaded.
3. Press Go on your machine and watch it take care of the hard part. Make sure you stick around and switch out tools when prompted on Design Space.
4. When your Explore is done, unload the Smart Paper.
5. One at a time, peel your labels off the sheet.
6. Gently fold along the score line, line a toothpick up inside, and press the label in half, making sure to seal the toothpick inside.
7. Repeat for each label.
8. Assemble your breakfast charcuterie board.
9. Add labels.
10. Enjoy!

The post Back-to-School Breakfast Charcuterie Board appeared first on Life With My Littles.

This post is sponsored by Cricut and contains affiliate links.

I remember when I was in high school and my mom got the original Cricut machine. She was big into scrapbooking, and it could cut out so many fun shapes and letters. I loved sneaking downstairs and cutting out my own shapes and letters.

When I was in college, I got my first Cricut machine, a Cricut Mini. It worked by using Cricut Craft Room on my computer, and I loved using it to create. One of my favorite things I used it to make was a key-hanger that we hung in our entryway the first few years we were married.

Unfortunately, when Cricut changed over to Cricut Design Space, they stopped updating Cricut Craft Room, and my Cricut Mini became obsolete. For a few years, I didn’t have my own Cricut machine. I had to rely on the kindness of friends when I got an urge to create. It was a rough time.

In 2018 I bought a Cricut Explore Air 2, and this year, I got a Cricut Joy. As a result, my creativity has flown free! I use my Cricut machines all the time! I’ve made shirts, bags, home decor, door mats, labels, and party decorations. I’ve even helped friends create their own projects during girls’ nights!

As Cricut has grown as a company, the machines it has come up with have improved impressively. Not only can you cut paper, but depending on your machine, you can cut leather, chipboard, fabric, felt, and vinyl, not to mention drawing with pens and markers! Cricut also now has the EasyPress to make creating beautiful projects even easier. You can even use your own fonts or upload your own designs on Cricut Design Space. I honestly don’t think there’s much you can’t create with a Cricut machine!

With Cricut, the possibilities are literally endless! And that’s why Cricut machines make great Christmas gifts! I’ve used a lot of different Cricut machines and products, and today I want to share a few holiday gift bundles for the creative person in your life!

Cricut Gift Guide

Cricut Joy Bundle

Cricut Joy

The Cricut Joy is Cricut’s newest machine, and it’s also their smallest! This bundle is great for someone who doesn’t have a lot of storage space, but still has a lot of creativity! It has a few features that are unique to it, like Infusible Ink, that bonds to projects instead of just sitting on top, and Smart Materials, that don’t need a cutting mat.

The Cricut Joy cuts 50+ materials, can draw or write any shape, works with Bluetooth, and can cut designs up to four feet long, or make repeated cuts up to 20 feet long! It’s a tiny machine that packs a big punch!

Insert Cards

Forget the days of cutting out your own cards. With these amazing pre-cut insert cards, all you have to do is design, load into your Cricut Joy, and sign your name!

Card Mat

If you plan on making custom cards with your machine, I highly recommend adding this to your bundle! This makes card making SUPER easy and fast!

Transfer Tape

If you plan on transferring vinyl to anything, I highly recommend transfer tape. I didn’t know it existed until I got my Joy, and it’s a game-changer!

10′ Permanent Smart Vinyl

This amazing 10′ roll of permanent vinyl doesn’t come in a lot of colors, but I love that it’s so long and will last forever! Plus I can make cuts up to four feet long when I use it!

Cricut Joy Tote

I got this little tote bag to store my Cricut Joy in, and it’s so handy! It also fits pens and the cord for the Joy, so when I want to use my Joy all I have to do is grab my tote and bring it upstairs!

Smart Label Writable Vinyl

I LOVE this writable vinyl! I used it to make school supply labels for my kids this year, and honestly, you could probably use it to make labels for anything! Plus, it’s one of the Smart materials, so no mat!

Extra Fine Point Pens

Use these little guys to write on your writable vinyl, address envelopes, write on cards, or draw pictures!

Infusible Ink Markers

These markers are amazing, and so much fun! Include these in your gift bundle and the recipient will fall in love with Infusible Ink!

Infusible Ink Blanks

I personally love the Tote Bag Blanks, but Cricut also makes several other blanks that are compatible with Infusible Ink (like shirts for everyone in the family, coasters, pillow covers, and even cosmetic bags).

Cricut Explore Air 2 Bundle

Cricut Explore Air 2

The Cricut Explore Air 2 is perfect for serious makers who are constantly coming up with big projects. It’s a fast-cutting machine that cuts up 100 different materials–everything from cardstock, vinyl, and iron-on to a range of specialty materials.

You can make shirts, custom stickers, labels, cards, and pretty much any paper craft you can imagine! The Cricut Explore Air 2 is a crafter’s dream!

Felt Sampler

I used this felt to create a felted word art sign in my kids’ school room, and it turned out so well! Let me tell you, using a Cricut to cut felt makes it SO MUCH EASIER! If you’ve ever wanted to make a quiet book, it’s never been easier!

Patterned Iron-On

Cricut makes so many cute sheets of patterned iron-on, from Disney characters to designer patterns, they have it all (even leopard print!). You can create some seriously fun things with this!

Premium Permanent Vinyl

Cricut’s premium permanent vinyl comes in over 40 colors, so you can either pick a favorite color, or choose a sampler with a few colors.

Foil Transfer Kit

Foil transfer sheets are the newest material from Cricut, and they can make some pretty fabulous projects! To use the foil sheets, you need this foil transfer kit, and it comes with some sheets to try out. I haven’t tried them myself yet, but I have friends who have and they look awesome!

Printable Vinyl

This is another material I haven’t tried out yet, but I REALLY WANT TO! Imagine all the stickers you could make!!

Transfer Tape

Like I said before, if you’re transferring designs, you’ll need some transfer tape!

Cricut Maker Bundle

Cricut Maker

The Cricut Maker is the machine that does the most, so if you know someone who runs an Etsy shop or business out of their home, this would make an incredible gift!

Not only does it cut all the basic materials (paper, cardstock, vinyl, iron-on), but it can cut leather, chipboard, fabric, and stamp material. Guys. It can cut over 300 different materials. That’s just madness! I think if you get a Cricut Maker you can just throw your scissors away forever!

Side note, the Maker comes with a rotary cutter and FabricGrip mat for cutting fabric,

Deep-Point Blade

To cut thicker things like magnet, chipboard, foam, stamp material, and cardboard, you’re going to want some of these bad boys!

Aluminum Sheets

If you want to make wall art or keepsake cards, aluminum is a great option! You can also make dog tags, monograms, and engraved jewelry with this.

Engraving Tip

What use is your aluminum if you can’t engrave it!?

Genuine Leather

You can make so many cool, unique things with leather! Imagine a personalized luggage tag made of leather!

Chipboard

Another cool material the Maker can cut is chipboard. Can you imagine making your own puzzle!?

Ultimate Fine-Point Pen Set

I have these (you can use them on the Explore, too) and they write beautifully!

Premium Permanent Vinyl

This one’s a must-have for all three machines 🙂 It’s just so versatile!

Patterned Iron-On

Again, versatile! Every bundle needs some!

Transfer Tape

You get it 🙂

Materials and Accessories Bundle

Maybe you’re gifting to someone who already has a Cricut machine they love. Here are a few things you can gift them to help make their creative dreams come true!

Cricut EasyPress 2

Forget about trying to transfer a design with an iron! The EasyPress makes it SO much easier! The Cricut website has a helpful heat guide chart showing what temperature it should be on for what material and for how long. You just heat, hold, and remove! Voila!

Portable Trimmer

If you’re cutting cardstock or vinyl to a certain size before your Cricut cuts it, this is super handy (and makes for a lot straighter edges!).

Machine Mats

Depending on how often you use your machine, your mats will eventually lose some of their stickiness, and that’s a recipe for disaster. So include some extra mats in your gift bundle, and you won’t have to worry about that!

Basic Tool Set

Having these tools makes weeding and applying designs so much easier.

Gifting Cricut machines and gift bundles this holiday is a great way to show friends and family that you care, and you support their creative endeavors! There are literally millions of projects you can make with Cricut, so the possibilities are endless! Choose a gift from this Cricut gift guide and you’ll have one happy maker!

Merry Christmas, mamas!

The post Cricut Gift Guide for the Holidays appeared first on Life With My Littles.

These DIY labels for school supplies are so simple to make and apply! You can easily personalize them for your child and they only take a few minutes to make. Such a great way to label supplies for school!

A few weeks ago, we made the big decision to homeschool our kids this year.

It was a very difficult, personal decision that we came to after our school district announced they were starting school with a combination of distance and in-person learning and were likely to switch to just distance learning or just in-person learning throughout the year.

There were a lot of factors that went into our decision to homeschool, but now that we’ve officially decided, I’ve started preparing for the school year. And if I’m being honest, I’m really excited for the upcoming year! My daughter is starting kindergarten and my oldest son is starting second grade, so I think it is going to be really fun!

One thing that we always love doing is buying school supplies, and it’s been even more fun buying supplies for homeschooling because I get to decide what to add to our list!

We’ve gotten new crayons, markers, colored pencils, glue sticks, pencils, paper, folders, and binders. But once I bought all of our homeschool goodies, I had to figure out how to organize them.

Thankfully, my Cricut Explore Air 2 was up to the challenge! It’s so easy to use, no matter what you’re making, and these labels were no exception!

I have two beautiful pen sets from Cricut, the Extra Fine Point Pen Set and the Ultimate Fine Point Pen Set. I love the colors in both, and they’re both compatible with my Explore Air 2.

The only issue I had is that the pens won’t write on regular vinyl.

Luckily, Cricut also makes writable vinyl that’s permanent, but unluckily, right now it’s only available for Cricut Joy. Yes, there are a few Cricut Joy pens that will work on the writable vinyl, but I wanted to use my wide array of colors I already had!

With a simple tweak, I was able to use the writable vinyl that’s made for Cricut Joy with my Cricut Explore Air 2. It was simple and even the most beginner Cricut users can easily replicate what I did.

These adorable labels are perfect for any child’s school supplies, whether they’re going to school or homeschooling. You can even customize them so they have your child’s name on them! And today, I’m sharing the whole process, and the Cricut Design Space file, with you!

First, you need to decide which of the DIY labels for school supplies you want to use, and how big you want them. My supply boxes are 8.8″ long, so I made my labels each 5″ long.

The Design Space file include labels for crayons, thin and thick markers, glue sticks, pencils, colored pencils, and dry erase markers. If you want to create or change your own labels, detach the pieces of a label in the file, change the text, and if you want, change or delete the picture. You can also change the pen colors. Easy peasy.

So let’s get started! Cut a piece of your writable vinyl so it’s 8.3″ long (one of the choices for material size is 5.8×8.3″ long, and since the writable vinyl is 5.5″ wide, it works).

Next, put it on your cutting mat. I like to use my scraper from my Cricut Joy tool set to make sure it’s stuck on there good and flat.

Make sure your Cricut Explore is set to “Vinyl” and the right pen is loaded into your machine. Load your mat and press go! The machine does all the work for you. Every time it finishes with a color, it will pause and wait for you to insert a new pen. When it’s done writing, then it uses the blade and cuts out your labels!

I loved watching my designs come to life on my writable vinyl. The machine worked perfectly and the designs came out flawless!

Once my Explore finished its job, I unloaded the vinyl, peeled the stickers off, and placed them onto my supply boxes. I got my supply boxes on Amazon, but you can really get them anywhere as long as they are flat on top.

Make sure you carefully apply the labels so they don’t bubble up or wrinkle. The scraper tool is an easy way to make sure you get the labels on without any bubbles.

Once all your labels are on, fill up your supply boxes with school supplies and you’re done! Yay!

Regardless of if you’re homeschooling, sending your child to school, or distance learning this year, labels for school supplies are a must! You can even go a step further and label your child’s lunch box, notebooks, or backpack. These DIY labels or school supplies are so easy to make, and you can personalize them pretty much however you want.

Now that our school supplies are all ready to go, I can hardly wait to get started with the school year. I hope that wherever you are, whatever your children’s school year looks like, you’re excited, too! Good luck!

The post DIY Labels for School Supplies: Personalize with Cricut for Back-to-School! appeared first on Life With My Littles.

These DIY Garden Markers are the perfect way to mark fruits and vegetables in your garden! Permanent vinyl and plastic garden tags combine to make durable, long-lasting markers! 32 different fruits and vegetables included!

When we bought our first house in Texas four years ago, one of the first things we did in the yard was build a garden box and plant a garden. Every year since then, we’ve had a garden.

I absolutely love gardening and I love growing my own food and flowers, but one thing that drives me crazy is trying to find affordable garden markers that last the whole growing season!

Popsicle sticks and even metal garden markers don’t last very long, and by the end of the season, you can barely read what’s written on them, or they’re so weathered that you can’t even find them!

This year I decided to try something new. I got a Cricut Joy machine back in April, and it has completely changed my DIY game. It’s the smallest Cricut smart cutting machine ever, about half the size of my Cricut Explore Air 2, so it’s easier to store and transport. It connects via Bluetooth so you can set it up super fast, and you can use it with Cricut Design Space on mobile or desktop.

My favorite part is that you can buy Smart Materials, which are different from other vinyl and paper because they’re designed to work without a cutting mat! I can’t even tell you what a game-changer the Smart Materials are! Creating your own projects has never been so fast and easy!

I decided to make DIY garden markers using my Cricut Joy, vinyl, and plastic garden markers. Of course, I wanted to use the Smart Materials to cut out my labels! I grabbed Permanent Smart Vinyl in Tangerine, Tomato Red, Coffee, and Lime Green.

I grabbed my Transfer Tape and some plastic garden markers I got off Amazon. I also got out my Starter Tool Set to make weeding and applying my vinyl easier.

When I was designing my labels on Cricut Design Space, I wanted to make not only the fruits and vegetables we’re currently growing, but as many as I could think of so other people could use the labels, too! You can access the file in Design Space by clicking the image below.

After you’ve opened your file, you can delete any images that you don’t want, or even change the colors. Make sure that each image will fit on your markers that you’ve chosen, and then, get ready to cut!

Press “Make It” in the top right-hand corner, and then select “Without Mat” for your Smart Materials.

Next, you’ll be brought to a screen where you can review all of your cuts on the mat. Make sure everything looks good, and then press “Continue.”

Now select your material. I used the Permanent Smart Vinyl for this, so obviously that’s what I selected!

Next you’re given the option to change the pressure. Mine worked fine with default, so you can just leave that. Make sure you have your fine point blade loaded in, and load in your Smart Materials. The Cricut Joy is very intuitive, so it knows when you’re loading the material and just rolls it in the rest of the way for you.

After you load the material, just press “Go!” Your Cricut Joy will do all the work for you!

Cricut Design Space will give you a little progress wheel and at the end of each color, you just unload it. Then you confirm you’re using Smart Materials on the next color, load it in, and press “Go” again!

When all four colors have been cut, you get a fun little “Complete” notification. Then it’s time for you to actually get to work!

First, you want to trim around each label so you don’t have a big long sheet with a ton of labels on it. This makes it a lot easier to weed!

Next, weed off the extra vinyl around the outside of each label, and then use your weeding tool to get any interior vinyl off that you don’t need (like inside letters or in the fruit and veggie pictures).

Now, using your scraper tool, transfer your labels to the transfer tape. I usually cut out a small rectangle of transfer tape so it will fit on each label. If the vinyl isn’t sticking to the transfer tape when you start pulling it off, that means you need to use the scraper tool more.

Once the vinyl is stuck to the transfer tape, peel off the backing paper and align it onto your garden marker. Press down firmly with your scraper again, and then peel off the transfer tape!

And you’re done! So fast, so easy, and the perfect durable garden markers for your garden!

I love the way my garden markers turned out. And they look even better in my garden! I obviously can’t tell you with 100% certainty that these will last all season, but I’ll update this post in the fall and let you know! But I’m not worried 🙂

My Cricut Joy made my DIY garden markers so much faster and easier. I’m not kidding when I tell you you’ll LOVE the Smart Materials! They save a lot of time!

For more home improvement inspiration, head to the Cricut blog, where you can find weekly home renovation project inspiration and tutorials!

The post DIY Garden Markers appeared first on Life With My Littles.

Customize your own water bottle in just a few minutes with the new Cricut Joy! This tutorial includes a free cut file for a “Mamas Run the World” decal that’s perfect for moms who love to run!

We have a problem in our house.

I’m not going to blame anyone in particular, but someone has a tendency to bring water bottles to work and lose them.

Now I work from home, and my three kids don’t work, so I’m guessing you can identify who the source of this problem is.

Okay, so I guess I am blaming someone.

Last week I came up with a solution, and so far, it’s working! I customized one of my favorite water bottles using my new Cricut Joy, and I’m pretty sure someone won’t be using it any time soon! Not unless he wants to walk around with a “Mamas Run the World” water bottle!

This was one of the easiest Cricut project I’ve ever made. The new Cricut Joy is so compact and sleek and fast! My favorite part of it are the “smart” materials that eliminate the need for a cutting mat!

My water bottle turned out super cute and I’m going to bring it with me when I run on the treadmill from now on! And since it turned out so well, I wanted to share it with all of you!

To get started, you’ll need a blank water bottle (mine is a clear Camelback eddy 25oz bottle), a Cricut Joy, permanent Smart Vinyl in tulip, coral, and tangerine, and transfer tape. You can get all of these things (even the Cricut products!) at Target!

Open up Cricut Design Space and pull up the Mamas Run the World Water Bottle Label project. It will open up the cut file for you.

Cut each design out on your different colors of vinyl using your Cricut Joy. This should be easier than ever since you don’t have to put the vinyl on a mat and flip the image! You can just load it, cut it, and be done!

Gently peel your cut rectangle off and stick it onto the center of your water bottle. This is the only piece you don’t really need to use the transfer tape for. Make sure you smooth out any air bubbles. I used the scraper from my Starter Tool Set to push them out on my water bottle.

Now cut around your other cut outs so you have each one cut out separately. Now peel off the vinyl around your letters (making sure you get any fillers inside your a’s, o, r, and d). Use your transfer tape to pull off the letters and transfer them to your water bottle.

After you transfer them, make sure you smooth them out and get all the tiny little corners. Press your letters down really well so they stay in place!

And voila! You’re done! My water bottle took me about ten minutes to make, so depending on how good you are at transfer tape, you might finish in a few minutes or up to twenty. But it shouldn’t take you very long!

I LOVE my new water bottle I made using my Cricut Joy, and I have so many more ideas for projects I want to create. The Cricut Joy Smart materials include iron-on, infusible ink, and labels, and you can also easily make cards with inserts. Plus, you can use any regular paper, cardstock, or vinyl on one of the cutting mats, too. So you really aren’t limited!

One feature that I’m extra excited about is using the Cricut Joy to as my own personal scribe! There are lots of different pens and markers for the Cricut Joy, both in regular ink and infusible ink! I’ve always wanted to learn how to hand letter, but now I don’t have to!

Another big difference between the Cricut Joy and other Cricut machines is that with the Cricut Joy, you can cut one image up to 4.5 inches wide and 4 feet long or do repeated cuts up to 20 feet long. That Smart material is no joke!

The Cricut Joy is my third Cricut machine I’ve owned, and it’s amazing to see how far Cricut has come in, both in terms of what their machines can create and the materials you can use with a Cricut. And thankfully, Cricut products are now at Target, so you can pick up everything you need to create on your next Target run!

I’m pretty confident that nobody will be using my new custom water bottle but me. I think my problem has been solved!

The post DIY “Mamas Run the World” Water Bottle with Cricut Joy appeared first on Life With My Littles.

This post contains affiliate links.

I am a list person. I make grocery lists, to-do lists, lists of things I want to buy, lists of things I want to make. I’m a list person. So needless to say, I had a whole big list of things to do before while I was pregnant before my first baby was born.

It was actually super helpful because not only did it keep me busy until he got here, the things I did were things that helped me out once he was born, too. I wasn’t rushing around trying to get addresses for announcements or worrying about little things like what we were going to have for dinner once we got home, because I had prepared before he was born. I was able to stay relaxed and enjoy the time with our new bundle of joy!

This list I’m sharing today has 25 things to do before your baby is born to help make having a newborn easier and more enjoyable for you! These are 25 things that I personally did that you may or may not find helpful. They aren’t in any particular order, and if you have anything else to add, feel free to leave a comment and contribute! (Or check out my post that has 15 more things to do before your baby is born!)

25 Things to Do Before Your Baby is Born

1. Pick a birth announcement

If you live far from family and friends, or if you just want to show off your perfect new baby (who doesn’t want that?), a birth announcement is a great way to introduce your newborn. You can either do something simple yourself by copying something on Pinterest or you can use a photo website with premade layouts (Shutterfly is a great one!).

If you decide what you want before your baby is born, you won’t have to stress about picking a birth announcement after they’re born.

2. Gather and print addresses

If you do decide you want to send out birth announcements, it can be even more stressful to gather all the addresses and figure out who you want to send them to after baby is born.

The solution? Gather them all before! You can compile them all into a Word document with a label template and print them out while you are pregnant so once you get your announcements, you just have to put the sticky labels on the envelopes and pop them in the mailbox.

Plus if you work on it while you are pregnant you can have time to think about who you want to send them to.

3. Get a waterproof bed pad

Not for baby, for you. My husband and I have a nice pillowtop mattress that my parents bought us when we got married, and I was not about to have my water break on it and ruin it. I was very worried that if my water did break in the middle of the night, we would have to leave fast and the amniotic fluid would do some serious damage to our mattress while we were away at the hospital. So instead of being nervous to fall asleep as your due date approaches, invest in something like this waterproof bed pad that you can just put under the sheets on your side of the bed.

And don’t try and be cheap and think you can get one of those plastic drop cloths that you use for painting. I tried that at first and it made way too much noise for me to even be able to fall asleep. Which at that point in your pregnancy you need to try and get as much as you can between the ten bathroom trips each night. And even if your water doesn’t break until you are at the hospital, it’s better to be safe than sorry!

4. Pack your bags

Since you never know when baby is going to come, the sooner the better with this one. You should pack a hospital bag for you, a hospital bag for baby, and if your husband is smart, he will let you pack a little bag for him.

I had my bags packed and sitting by the front door a month before my due date. Yes, I was excited, but I was also prepared!

Here is a list of what I packed in my hospital bag, and here is a list of what I packed in my baby’s hospital bag.

5. Get your carpets cleaned

Now this may not be appropriate for everyone, but living in an apartment that has nasty carpet and weird stains from the previous tenants made me really want to get our carpets cleaned because I knew we were going to be spending a lot of time on the floor with our new baby.

So, about a month before my due date I went and rented a Rug Doctor machine and cleaned our carpets. Not only did they smell amazing and look amazing after, I felt much better about our Little J rolling around on the floor. Plus, if you haven’t done this in a while, it might be a nice thing to do before baby is born because after, you are not going to have time (or energy) to do this.

And here’s a tip: I did a Google search for some coupons and called around at a few stores to get the best deal. So if you are going to add this to your list of things to do before your baby is born, do some research and get the best price!

6. Pick a pediatrician

If you don’t have a pediatrician yet, ask friends, look online at websites like healthgrades.com (but be cautious of how many people have reviewed them), and see if your hospital has contracts with any local offices so they can come to the hospital and visit your newborn right after delivery.

It’s much easier to have this done before you have your baby because you don’t want to be at the hospital holding your perfect little baby and have a minor panic attack when the nurse asks you who your baby’s pediatrician is and then tells you how soon you need to schedule your first appointment. Having a pediatrician picked out prior to your baby’s birth is nice because you can get home and immediately schedule their appointment without worrying about if you are calling a good one.

Some pediatricians actually will let you come meet with them while you are pregnant for a kind of “meet and greet” appointment. I actually did this the month before our first baby was born and felt very good about the pediatrician my friends recommended. One less thing to worry about!

7. Pre-wash baby’s clothes

Again, this is something you don’t have to do and which won’t be for everyone, but I did it with all three of my babies’ clothes (especially after I got all my first son’s clothes out of storage!). I used Dreft because it’s hypoallergenic and I loved the way it smelled. It was really fun to wash, fold, and put away all of their tiny clothes!

8. Invest in a nursing bra (or two)

If you decide you are going to nurse your little baby, you will want to get a few nursing bras. You aren’t supposed to use underwire until you’ve been breastfeeding for three months, and I personally like ones without because I can use them when I’m sleeping and still be comfy.

I would definitely recommend getting at least one nursing bra because trying to put nursing pads in a regular bra and readjusting them every time you feed baby is pretty tough and it’s just easier to have an actual nursing bra that clips and makes things easily and quickly accessible for when baby is screaming because he’s hungry.

9. Check to see if your insurance covers a breast pump

If you are going to nurse your baby, a breast pump is really nice to have for the times that you won’t be able to nurse baby or for when baby decides to sleep through the night and you wake up engorged and crying in pain because you have two rock-hard lumps on your chest.

This particular point was very important for me, because the hospital called and got the wrong information from someone at my insurance, and after being told it was covered, we got the fancy breast pump, only to find out four months later that it was not covered at all and we owed like $300.

I would recommend calling yourself (maybe even a few times to verify information) to see if your insurance covers a breast pump. If you aren’t sure what kind of breast pump you want to try, this post of the best breastfeeding products talks about both manual and electric pumps.

There’s also a company called Aeroflow Breastpumps that does a lot of the work for you, and while I haven’t personally used them, I’ve heard great things about them making the process of getting a breast pump through insurance easy!

10. Make freezer meals

My best friend and I were due two weeks apart with our first babies, and we got together a month before our due dates and made a ton of freezer meals. This is a fun idea because it can take one day or it can take a few days (and when you are getting close to your due date you want to keep yourself busy). Our tiny freezer had almost no room for anything else after two days of making freezer meals, but it was so worth it. 

My husband and I found out that the recipes that we liked most were actually not crockpot ones, but ones that were casserole-like and were baked in the oven. Lasagna, pasta, chicken fajitas, those types of meals were our personal favorites.

And making freezer meals is really nice for after baby is born because once your family goes back home and you are left alone, the last thing you want to do is make a hot meal for you and your husband. Here’s a great post about freezer meal tips and recipes to make before your baby is born!

11. Attend classes at your hospital

Most hospitals offer free baby classes for expectant parents. I would highly recommend checking to see what kinds of classes you can take.

My husband and I signed up for three, and even though he only went to one and I only went to two, it was really helpful. I took a notebook and filled up multiple pages with things like how to give baby a bath, how to care for a circumcision, breastfeeding tips, how to swaddle baby, and how to change a diaper (somehow I made it through life without changing a single diaper until my first baby was born).

Plus you can ask the teachers/nurses any additional questions you might have. And you may even make some pregnant friends who are due around the same time!

12. Install baby’s car seat

I seriously think I drove around for about five weeks with an empty car seat in the backseat of my car before my first baby was born. Car seats aren’t super hard to install, but you don’t want to get to the hospital and realize that you left your new baby’s ride at home.

A lot of places will offer car seat installation checks where you can bring your car in and they will check to make sure you’ve installed the car seat correctly. I was going to do this with our first until my husband made fun of me and told me he knew what he was doing. I did however go and do this with my second baby, despite him mocking me. I also took our our convertible car seat in to get checked when we got that. Very helpful.

For more information about keeping kids safe in their car seats, check out this post about 8 Car Seat Mistakes You Are Probably Making.

13. Bake cookies to thank your nurses

I know this one is kind of silly, but it’s a nice gesture! And this obviously shouldn’t be done until pretty close to your due date, but it is really nice to have a bag of cookies that you can give to the nurses once you are officially checked into the hospital.

And if more than a few days goes by and you aren’t in labor, it’s always nice to have a bag of cookies waiting for you to make you feel better. You can make more for the nurses after you eat the first batch.

14. Get 2 waterproof mattress pads for the crib

I think most people probably only have one waterproof mattress pad on their crib, but we layered a waterproof crib mattress pads and then a fitted sheet, and then another mattress pad and another fitted sheet. That way, when your newborn wets the bed or throws up in the middle of the night, you can just pull the first layer off and they still have another protective layer there in case it happens again. You don’t want to be trying to wash and put on a new mattress pad and sheet in the middle of the night! 

It’s definitely worth the extra bit of money to have a spare mattress pad on the bed. Trust me, you’ll be grateful in the middle of the night!

15. Paint your nails

This may seem silly, too, but you are going to be taking a lot of pictures at the hospital holding your new baby, and since you probably won’t feel your best after your baby is born, it’s nice to have a little bit of glam to make you feel better!

I painted my nails a nice baby blue color (since I was having a boy) and it actually turned out really nice for the pictures that we had taken at the hospital.

16. Buy some “in-between” clothes

One of my friends actually suggested this and I didn’t do it the first time around and I regretted it.

As much as you want to be your pre-pregnancy size after your baby is born, it will not happen immediately. And since you won’t be pregnant anymore, you probably won’t want to wear your maternity clothes. So before you have your baby, go buy some “in-between” clothes that you can wear until you fit back into your regular clothes.

I really wish I had done this the first time because I couldn’t fit back into any of my jeans or shorts until my baby was about 2-months-old, so I ended up wearing sweatpants or my maternity pants until then. And without a large, round belly, the band on my maternity pants sagged and wasn’t the best self-esteem booster.

So, before you have your baby, just get a pair or two of in-between pants, and maybe a few looser-fitting tops. PinkBlush Maternity has some great clothes for looking good during and after pregnancy.

17. Look through your baby’s baby book

If you haven’t gotten a baby book, I highly recommend it. There are usually sections you can fill out before your baby is born about you and Daddy, the day you found out you were pregnant, the ultrasound, and things like that.

Plus you can see if there is a spot for a newspaper clipping from the day they are born and baby hand and footprints. Otherwise you might not remember to get a newspaper or baby’s footprints in the actual baby book. And it’s cute to see the pages that talk about baby’s birth and you will cry and be excited and scared and thrilled all at the same time while looking through them (yes, that is from personal experience).

18. Charge your camera battery

I know that everyone has a smart phone and can take pictures on their phones, but I’m old-fashioned and I love taking pictures on my DSLR rather than my phone.

My camera takes really nice pictures, and it was nice to be able to have my phone as a backup instead just in case. Plus, you will be taking like a million pictures at the hospital of your perfect new baby so you want to make sure your camera can handle all that pressure.

19. Do a test run to the hospital

If this is your first baby, or you haven’t delivered at the hospital you are planning on, it is always a good idea to do a test run and see not only how long it takes you to get there, but to make sure you know exactly where to park and go once you get there.

I didn’t think the signs outside of our hospital were super clear and it was nice to go and make sure we knew where to park and then where to go in and what floor to go to and everything. Because once you’re in labor, you don’t want to waste any time.

20. Stock up on hand sanitizer

If there’s one thing I’ve learned about having a baby, it’s that people will ALWAYS ask to hold them. It’s nice to have some hand sanitizer stashed around your home (especially by the changing area!) and in your bag so that when people do ask to hold your baby, you can politely have them sanitize their hands first, since there’s not always a sink around to wash hands.

21. Make your birth plan

Some OBGYNs or hospitals will give you a sheet to fill out, but some don’t, so it’s always nice to be prepared and at least feel like you are going to be in control. Your hospital may provide you with one when you pre-register, or you can check out this helpful post with things you should include on your birth plan.

It’s important to remember that your birth plan is Plan A, and sometimes, for your health or the health of your baby, things will have to change. Your birth plan should discuss your ideal birth situation, but you also need to remember to be flexible when the time comes and not panic if you can’t do everything the way you wanted. The most important part of a birth plan is that you cover all possible situations so you can prepare ahead of time and you won’t have to make decisions when you are in the moment and your nurse is asking you what you want to do.

You can fill in things about how you want your labor to go, what you want to do during labor, who you want in the room with you when baby is born, and if you want the chance to breastfeed right after baby is born. It is a really handy tool to have, and it can help put your mind at ease about delivery, even if you don’t completely stick to it during labor (which you probably won’t!).

22. Get a special baby notebook and folder

Both before your baby is born and after, you’ll probably get a lot of handouts and a lot of information. It’s really helpful to have a special place to store papers and write down all of the things you are told, because you’re most likely not going to remember everything they tell you right before you are discharged and sent home.

I also decided to use my notebook to write down questions that I might think of at home so that I wouldn’t forget to ask them while we were at the pediatrician. And for the first few months, I also recorded when my babies ate, when we bathed them, and how many wet and dirty diapers they had.

The folder is really handy because you get a lot of paperwork at the hospital and instead of shoving it all in your bag, you can nicely store it in your folder and keep it organized so that when you get home you know exactly where to look for that handout on immunizations. If you decide to go to baby classes at the hospital you can also use the notebook and folder for information you get there.

23. Get a package of milk freezer bags

I actually didn’t even think about using these for what I’m going to tell you, but I wish I would have because it would have helped a lot. If you are going to have a pump, having a box of milk storage freezer bags is really helpful.

Sometimes baby decides he doesn’t want to eat on one side and you get engorged and it’s miserable. It’s super handy to have some milk freezer bags so you can pump and then save the milk that you pump so that later, if you are going to be away from your baby, there is some milk for him ready in the freezer.

Sometimes you’ll get engorged and need to pump just a little bit so that you can sleep at night. It’s a waste to pour milk you pumped down the drain, so go ahead and freeze it! These 1 oz milk trays are the perfect way to freeze just a little bit of milk so it won’t go to waste!

24. Look up a newborn photographer

Some hospitals have contracts with baby photographers and they will actually come around to your rooms while you are there and take pictures. We were lucky and had the chance to get our first and second babies’ pictures done while we were still in the hospital. Check to see if your hospital has something like this, and if they don’t, you might want to start looking around for a newborn photographer. Or, if you want to save money but still want pictures of your perfect baby, you can look on Pinterest at the many tutorials on how to photograph babies on your own.

If you’re doing baby announcements this is especially handy, because once your baby is born you don’t want to have to try and look around for a photographer last-minute. The last thing you want to do after giving is birth is to stress about finding the perfect photographer and getting good pictures. It’s nice to plan ahead and have that all set up before.

25. Make Daddy feel special.

A lot of times the mom gets pampered and showered and the dad can feel left out. Let him know how much you appreciate him and the support he has given (and will give you during labor) by putting together a special “new Dad” kit for him.

I put in some soap, some Pop Rocks, tissues, a few books about daddies, a sports onesie, some Sour Patch Kids, some Diet Mt. Dew, air freshener, earplugs, and a few other little personal things to make life as a new dad easier. Not only was it fun for me to put together, it was nice to be able to be able to recognize his part in all of this, too!

Most importantly, just get excited! I know it is the worst waiting around for your baby. Then once your due date passes you are just trying to do everything you can to pass the time. Just enjoy it and try to relax. Babies come when they are ready, and when they do, it is an incredible experience.

This post was originally published in August 2013.

The post 25 Things to Do Before Your Baby is Born appeared first on Life With My Littles.

Growing up, I loved playing with Barbies. I loved dressing them up, making them talk, driving them around in Barbie’s signature pink Corvette, and playing with them in Barbie’s Dreamhouse. To me, Barbie was a beautiful toy that helped me imagine what I could become and who I could one day be.

Those things still hold true today, but Barbie has come a long way since I was little. She’s no longer just a tall, skinny blonde! I was lucky enough to visit Mattel headquarters in May and learn all about the incredible things Barbie has done over the last few years. With the Fashionistas line, Barbie has given girls the opportunity to see themselves in a doll and realize their own beauty and individuality. With the expansion of the Careers line, Barbie has given girls the opportunity to explore different, unique careers that range from robotics engineer to beekeeper to veterinarian, helping them discover that they can truly be anything they want.

Recently, Barbie has also found a way to help parents give their daughters role models to look up to and learn from. These role models and “sheroes” are based on real, empowering women from around the world who have paved the way and broken boundaries to inspire the next generation of girls. The Inspiring Women and Shero dolls are beautiful, incredible dolls that help girls dream even bigger than before.

There’s a difference between telling a girl she can be anything, and then showing her through real women that she actually can be anything, even if that “anything” hasn’t been done yet. As a mom, I want my daughter to look to role models who are really making a difference and following their passion, because of course that’s what I want my daughter to do.

The Inspiring Women Dolls

The intent behind the Inspiring Women line of dolls (launched March 2018) is to inspire young girls to explore their own limitless potential while learning about the incredible women who helped pave the way for them. So far, Barbie has released three Inspiring Women dolls: Amelia Earhart, Katherine Johnson, and Frida Kahlo. We’ve had these dolls for a while, and you better believe I made sure my daughter knew exactly what these women pioneers did in their lives when I gave them to her!

It can be hard to just sit down and tell a little girl about someone who lived a long time ago who did something amazing, and being able to tell my daughter about the things these women did while showing her their dolls makes a big difference in how much she actually listens and shows interest. It’s such an awesome idea, and the Inspiring Women dolls are really a great way Barbie is helping parents give their daughters role models who are worthy of being looked up to.

The Shero Dolls

In 2015, Barbie started honoring women who are currently breaking boundaries to inspire the next generation of girls with their Shero dolls. Barbie has honored 49 real life Sheroes so far, and each one has been gifted a one-of-a-kind doll that looks like her. Unlike the Inspiring Women dolls, only a few of them are currently available for purchase.

The idea behind the line is that girls need more role models because “imagining they can be anything is just the beginning. Actually seeing that they can makes all the difference.” I just LOVE that, because it really is so true! I can tell my daughter that she can be anything she wants, including someone who works with animals, but showing her a woman who actually does, like conservationist Bindi Irwin, gets the point across a lot better! The women who are featured are inspiring and brave, they stand up for themselves and what they believe in, and they are all truly worthy of being called “role models.”

I wanted to include a list of most of the Sheroes so parents can teach their daughters about these groundbreaking women and find someone who can inspire them:

1. Maya Gabiera (2019) Surfer, Brazil – in Guinness Book of Records as surfing the biggest wave for a female

2. Naomi Osaka (2019) Tennis Player, Japan – the reigning US and Australian Open champion

3. Kristina Vogel (2019) Cycling Champion, Germany – won two gold medals and a bronze at the Olympic Games, and is a nine-time UCI World Champion

4. Tessa Virtue (2019) Ice Skater, Canada – was the 2010 Olympic champion, the 2018 Olympic champion, and the 2014 Olympic silver medalist

5. Yara Shahidi (2019) Actress, United State – a prominent role model and youth activist

6. Adwoa Aboah (2019) Activist and Model, United Kingdom – a Vogue model who is an activist for representation, diversity and inclusion, mental health, and self-confidence

7. Dipa Karmakar (2019) Artistic Gymnast, India – won a bronze medal at the 2014 Commonwealth Games in Glasgow, becoming the first Indian female gymnast to do so in the history of the Games

8. Chen Man, Photographer, China – visual artist who produces covers for fashion magazines and collaborates with major brands worldwide

9. Ita Buttrose, Journalist, Australia (2019) – the founding editor of the women’s magazine Cleo, which shines light on important (and often undiscussed) topics for women

10. Patty Jenkins (2018) Filmmaker, USA – the first woman in history to helm a film with a budget in excess of 100 million dollars for WONDER WOMAN, which broke the record for Biggest Grossing Live-Action Film Directed by a woman–domestic and worldwide

11. Chloe Kim (2018) Snowboarding Champion, USA – a first generation Asian-American snowboarding champion and the youngest woman to win a gold medal in snowboarding at the 2018 winter games at age 17

12. Bindi Irwin (2018) Conservationist, Australia – international award-winning wildlife conservationist and celebrity who inherited her father’s passion for wildlife and is dedicated to inspiring the next generation to make a difference in the world

13. Nicola Adams (2018) Boxing Champion, UK – two-time gold medalist who is Great Britain’s most successful female boxer of all time and is the only female boxer in the history of the sport to have held all four amateur titles

14. Cağla Kubat (2018) Windsurfer, Turkey – champion windsurfer and member of the Fenerbahçe sailing and windsurfing team who founded her own windsurfing school for young surfers

15. Hélène Darroze (2018) World-Renowned Chef, France – inspirational fourth-generation French chef with three restaurants and two Michelin stars

16. Hui Ruoqi (2018) Volleyball Champion, China – fifteenth Captain of the Chinese women’s national volleyball team who also won gold in the 2016 summer games

17. Leyla Piedayesh (2018) Designer and Entrepreneur, Germany – Iranian immigrant and founder of fashion label lala Berlin that incorporates urban-cool and elegant-chic elements in its high-quality knitwear

18. Lorena Ochoa (2018) Professional Golfer, Mexico – athlete, mother, entrepreneur and unbreakable promoter of golf in Mexico

19. Martyna Wojciechowska (2018) Journalist, Poland – TV presenter, magazine editor, author, director and the second Polish woman to conquer the Seven Summits

20. Sara Gama (2018) Soccer Player, Italy – Captain of Juventus and Italian national soccer team, member of the Federal Board and President of Commission for the development of women’s soccer

21. Xiatong Guan (2018) Actress and Philanthropist, China – ambassador for “World Life Day,” a joint campaign by the United Nations Environment Program, International Fund for Animal Welfare and The Nature Conservancy, and known as the “Nation’s Daughter” in China

22. Yuan Tan (2018) Prima Ballerina, China – Prima ballerina and principal dancer at the San Francisco Ballet and guest principal dancer at the Hong Kong Ballet

23. Vicky Martin Berrocal (2018) Entrepreneur and Fashion Designer, Spain – leads the creative direction of Victoria company with collections that include festive costumes, flamenco dresses, gowns, handbags and jewelry

24. Laurie Hernandez (2018) U.S. Olympic Gymnast, USA – as the youngest member of the Final Five gymnastics team, she earned medals in balance beam and team, author of the book I Got This: To Gold and Beyond

25. Savannah Guthrie (2018) News Anchor, USA – one of the two first female co-anchors in the 66-year history of NBC’s The Today Show!, along with Hoda Kotb, her relentless work breaking barriers in the entertainment industry and their spirit of collaboration in supporting each other and other women’s success, a message that Barbie feels is exceptionally important to share with our children today

26. Hoda Kotb (2018) News Anchor, USA – one of the two first female co-anchors in the 66-year history of NBC’s The Today Show!, along with Savannah Guthrie, her relentless work breaking barriers in the entertainment industry and their spirit of collaboration in supporting each other and other women’s success, a message that Barbie feels is exceptionally important to share with our children today

27. Ibtihaj Muhammad (2017) U.S. Olympic Fencer, USA – the first American Olympian to compete while wearing a hijab who was honored as one of TIME magazine’s “100 Most Influential People” of 2016, she inspires girls to pursue their dreams and embrace what makes them unique

28. Ashley Graham (2016) American Model and Body Activist, USA – speaks at girls’ groups and high schools about body images, self-acceptance and female empowerment.

29. Gabby Douglas (2016) U.S. Olympic Gymnast, USA – the first African-American woman in Olympic history to become the individual all-around champion, and the first American gymnast to win gold in both the individual all-around and team competitions at the same Olympics

30. Misty Copeland (2016) A Principal Dancer with the American Ballet Theater, USA – began dancing on a Boys & Girls Club basketball court, continues to be very active in local Clubs in various cities, works with Project Plié, ABT’s comprehensive initiative to increase racial and ethnic representation in ballet and diversify America’s ballet companies

31. Abby Wambach (2016) Soccer Player, USA – soccer player, coach, two-time Olympic gold medalist and FIFA Women’s World Cup champion

32. Zendaya (2015) Actress and Singer, USA – encouraging girls to “raise their voices, inspired people of all ages to stand up for themselves

33. Ava DuVernay (2015) Director, USA – Director of the Academy Award Best Picture nominee, SELMA, and founder of African-American Film Festival Releasing Movement, which provides opportunities and resources to underrepresented filmmakers

34. Emmy Rossum (2015) Actress and Singer, – Golden Globe nominated actress and spokesperson for Best Friends Animal Society, the only national animal welfare organization dedicated exclusively to ending the killing of dogs and cats in America’s shelters and a leader in the no-kill movement

35. Eva Chen (2015) Editor-in-Chief of Lucky, USA – breaking boundaries by bringing inspiration to print as the youngest appointed female Editor-in-Chief of a national fashion magazine, Lucky, currently the head of Instagram’s fashion partnerships

36. Kristin Chenoweth (2015) Actress and Singer, USA – An inspiration on Broadway and beyond, the Emmy and Tony Award nominee and winner also founded the Kristin Chenoweth Art Education Fund volunteering with young talent in the arts

37. Sydney “Mayhem” Keiser (2015), Fashion Designer, USA – Eight-year-old fashion designer with work appearing in Vogue and signed on with major national fashion brand, J.Crew, for the collection ‘Little Mayhem for J.Crew’

38. Trisha Yearwood (2015) Singer, USA – award-winning country artist, best-selling author, Food Network host and entrepreneur

Little A has a Laurie Hernandez Shero doll and a Ibtihaj Muhammad doll, and she thinks they are both so cool for being Olympians! We talked about Laurie’s captivating and energetic performances in the 2016 Olympics and how her passion led her to work hard and win several medals while being the youngest woman on the US gymnastics team. We also talked about how Ibtihaj embraced what made her stand out and stayed true to her beliefs, becoming the first female Muslim-American fencing champion to wear a hijab while competing in the Olympics. Both dolls give more girls the chance to be represented in a Barbie doll, and I love that girls can see that there are so many different paths they can take in life and still make a difference.

I love that the Inspiring Women and Shero dolls all have different bodies, skin tones, and hair styles, feature different careers and styles, and give parents a way to teach their daughter about real life role models. These dolls are based on exactly the kinds of role models I want my daughter to look to, and no matter what your daughter is interested in, these dolls (and their real life counterparts) give girls the opportunity to see women making a difference in the world.

The post How Barbie is Helping Parents Give their Daughters Role Models appeared first on Life With My Littles.

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If there’s one word I would use to describe moms, it’s “busy.” We are constantly on our feet doing things for our family, friends, and neighbors. We take care of our homes, we work, we buy groceries and cook dinners, we clean and do laundry, and we set up playdates, doctor’s appointments, and extracurricular activities for our kids. Moms are BUSY.

In my last New Year, New Mama post, I talked all about finding balance in motherhood, that you can’t do everything, and why it’s necessary to let some things go.

But what if you’ve accepted that, you’ve set your priorities and dropped a few things from your life, and you’re still struggling to keep up? What if you’re still having a hard time getting things done and staying on top of your schedule?

First of all, you’re not alone. So many of the responses I got to the questions I asked about what the hardest part of motherhood is and where you want to improve involved getting things done and time management. So many. This is a very common struggle among moms in all stages of motherhood. We’re all trying to manage everything we have going on in a way that works for us and our families. Luckily, the solution isn’t as complicated as you might think.

Getting things done and staying on top of your schedule really boils down to two things: writing things down and using a planner.

But Chelsea, how can it be that simple? I know, right? It sounds so easy, but these two little things have made all the difference in my life. (Mostly) gone are the days when I forget to do something my husband asks or I miss a doctor’s appointment because I didn’t know what day it was. Writing things down and using a planner have really changed how I manage my life.

Now I know that everybody is different. You might have tried one of these tips before and found it wasn’t for you. Well guess what? You’re going to try it again. Why? Because maybe the way you tried it before wasn’t for you, not the actual tip itself. Maybe you tried a digital planner and hated it. Maybe you tried using reminders on your phone and things never got done. Well lucky for you, there are as many ways to write things down and types of planners as there are kinds of people, so there’s really something for everyone (even if you aren’t the planning type!). So please keep reading, try something new, and I am positive you’ll find the best way for you personally to get things done and stay on top of your schedule!

Write Things Down

The key to getting things done is really quite simple. I’ve found that with my increasingly forgetful mommy brain, writing things down has been the only way that I can remember and feel motivated to check things off my to-do list. This is especially important for mamas with a lot to do (pretty much all of us, right?). Writing things down not only helps me calm my mind because I know I won’t forget something, but it helps me be able to focus on what’s in front of me (whether that be my family, work, or even an individual task I’m working on) and live a better life. And when I do sit down and look at my list, it helps me stay focused on what I need to do and helps me feel like I have a plan and there’s an end in sight. It’s clear what you need to do when you’ve written things down, and having those tasks or reminders written down in front of you will motivate you to get them done. Even if your list ends up being long, working through it one step at a time will help you get things done and achieve more.

Here are seven places to write things down:

1. The reminders app in your phone. I write things here all the time. It’s perfect for people who have their phone on them all the time or don’t like to physically write things down, or for people who like to physically write things down but aren’t near a pen and paper. I like to write things down in my reminders that pop into my head and then transfer them to my paper list later. Plus, it’s super easy to check them off!

2. This awesome Done is Fun notepad. One of my favorite boss babe geniuses is Alison Faulkner. If you don’t listen to her podcast, you’re missing out (and you should check it out here). Anyway, this notepad (pictured above) breaks down projects into tasks. It’s awesome for big jobs or projects or goals that you’re working on that have little steps within them. I use it to make sure I have everything ready for my blog posts!

3. A Scribble and Jot pocket notebook. Scribble and Jot is my favorite place to get notebooks (you can see a few of them here). They’re handmade, coptic stitch notebooks that are absolutely gorgeous. They lay flat and come in all different sizes. The pocket ones are 3 3/4″ x 5″ and are perfect for fitting into a diaper bag and not taking up much space. They are so high quality and if you’re a lover of notebooks, this is the way to go. You can break down your lists into daily tasks or just make general to-do lists in these little babies.

4. Sticky notes. Sticky notes are great because they’re super easy. You can stick them anywhere to remind you to do things, they come in all different sizes (depending on how big your lists are), and you can easily crumple them up and toss them in the trash when you’re done with them (which is very satisfying). I use sticky-notes for quick reminders of things I need to do the next day (like take chicken out of the freezer), and because they’re so bright and colorful, I don’t ever forget to do the things they tell me to!

5. Any kind of little notebook or notepad. I know I already mentioned the Scribble and Jot notebooks, but honestly any little boring notebook from Walmart or Target works, too. Spiral-bound notebooks, Moleskine notebooks, or lined, yellow notepads. You don’t have to get fancy or spend a lot of money. Just somewhere you can write things down that you’ll see every day. You get a lot more done when you write things down!

6. A small planner where you can write tasks for each day. If you like to break things up into daily tasks (for example Monday, groceries, Tuesday, laundry, Wednesday, clean bathrooms, etc.), a small planner with a few lines for each day is a great idea. Yes, you could use a regular, full-size planner for this, but I like to keep my schedule separate from little tasks like these. And maybe you will, too!

7. A dry-erase board or magnetic notepad on the fridge. Aren’t you almost always in the kitchen when you remember things you have to buy at the store? Instead of running around the house to write it down in your notebook every time, try keeping a dry-erase board or magnetic notepad on your refrigerator! If you spend a lot of time in the kitchen, this is also a good place to write things down.

When you write things down, it’s easy to see exactly what you need to spend your time on. You get more done because you’re focused, your tasks are clear, and you’ll do things you would’ve forgotten otherwise! Writing things down is the key to getting things done!

Use a Planner

Now let’s talk about staying on top of your schedule. Just like writing things down helps you get more done, using a planner helps you stay on top of your schedule. Managing your time can be hard without one because even though you think you know what you’ve got coming up, you can’t see it physically laid out in front of you. When you use a planner and schedule out your time (and include activities and appointments for your kids, your husband’s work schedule, and even meal planning), you can plan ahead, you’ll always know what’s going on and what’s coming up, and things won’t slip through the cracks.

Write down birthdays, highlight days your kids have off of school, schedule date nights and time at the gym, and mark upcoming deadlines or important dates you need to be aware of. If it’s something you need to know, putting it in your planner is going to help you stay on top of it!

Here are eleven planner ideas that I use or that were recommended to me by friends:

1. Erin Condren LifePlanner. This is what I use, and it’s incredible. There are like 100 covers to choose from, you get a monthly spread and weekly layouts (and you can choose between vertical, horizontal, or hourly like I have), and there are places for goals, inspirational quotes, note pages, and coordinating stickers in the back. I love it so much. There are also a bunch of cool add-ons you can get like the snap-in menu planner, bill tracker, fitness tracker, grocery list, to-do list, or even a party planning page. I am on my second LifePlanner, and it has literally helped me plan my life and stay on top of my schedule. It’s like the Cadillac of planners (people still say that, right?).

2. Erin Condren Monthly Deskpad. I know this is more of a calendar than a planner, but we have one on our fridge and it’s where I keep track of our family’s monthly schedule. It has dance class, doctor’s appointments, birthdays, my husband’s work schedule, and anything else that my husband and I both need to be aware of. It’s kind of our way of sharing our schedules with each other so we can be on the same page and nobody can use the excuse “well I didn’t know about that.” I put a magnet on the back and it works great on our fridge!

3. Passion Planner. I haven’t personally used these, but I’ve heard great things about them. There’s a spot in the beginning for you to map out your goals and how to achieve them, plus monthly and weekly layouts. Each week has an hourly layout, a space for both personal to-dos and work to-dos, the focus for the week, and a blank space for whatever you want. At the end of each month there’s a spot to reflect back and see your progress and how you can improve the next month. If you’re very goal oriented or you have something you want to work on throughout your year, this might be for you!

4. PowerSheets Intentional Goal Planner. Another goal-focused planner for those who have big dreams! I haven’t seen one of these in person but they have amazing reviews. I think they’re similar to the Passion Planners, but a lot more colorful and with more of a focus on achieving goals.

5. Day Designer for Blue Sky Planner. Several people recommended these to me (one friend said she’d been using them for three years, another for seven!), you can get them from Target or Amazon, and they look awesome! They’re more affordable than Erin Condren planners and they come in several different sizes. They also have a four-part goal setting section!

6. Google Calendar. Lots of people have recommended Google Calendar to me (including my husband), but I just have to have a hard copy of my schedule! If you want to sync your schedules with your husband or older kids, this is a great option. If you always have your phone on you and you’re tech-savvy, this might be the one for you!

7. Spaces Planner. These are great planners for list-makers. If I wasn’t so in love with my LifePlanner, I might try these out! They have 52 weekly layouts with boxed spaces for all your lists. There are seven pre-labeled spaces (personal, housework, errands, shopping list, notes, health goals, and relationships) and six empty spaces for you to fill in whatever else you want to write down (menu, priorities, appointments). If you want to combine your planner and your lists in one place, this is the planner for you.

8. Kate Spade Planner. These are beautiful and great for the diaper bag because they have a little stretchy band to keep them closed. They’re pretty simple, so if you’re a minimalist, check these out!

9. Bullet Journal. I tried bullet journaling when my third son was born and it wasn’t for me, but if you want to fully customize your planner, bullet journaling is great! When I was getting into it a lot of people recommended using a Moleskine notebook, so you can start there (and there are TONS of ideas on Instagram, too!).

10. Commit 30 Planner. The thing I like about these is that they’re small and they have one day per page. It has a few spots for to-do lists and one section per day titled “Today I commit to…” that you fill in each day. It looks like a great motivator!

11. Happy Planner. If you’re the creative type, this is the planner for you. There are several different layouts, they’re all super bright and colorful, and the stickers are just amazing! There are tons of add-ons and extension packs so you can fully customize your planner and make it exactly what you want. They’re also sold at an affordable price, too!

Using a planner will absolutely help you stay on top of your schedule. It’s so helpful to see your week or month planned out, and it’s a great way to manage your time and know what’s coming up. Using a planner is the key to staying on top of your schedule!

So now that you know the two almost-too-simple keys to getting things done and staying on top of your schedule, it’s time to take action! I challenge you to pick one of these from each list to try out this week. If you’re already writing things down and using a planner, AWESOME. Keep doing it. Try doing it even better and more often. It really will help you manage your time and feel a little more together in your busy, full life! You’ve got this, Mama, and you’re doing a great job!

New Year, New Mama Posts Up So Far:

How to Start Living Your Best Mom Life

Say Goodbye to Mom Guilt

Finding Balance in Motherhood

Getting (and Staying) Organized

Taking Time for Yourself

Becoming a Fun Mom

Time to Make Some Changes

The post New Year, New Mama: Getting Things Done and Staying On Top of Your Schedule appeared first on Life With My Littles.

Hey mamas! Happy June! Summer officially starts this month, and for us, that means the very last summer before our oldest starts elementary school. He’s super excited and wasn’t even all that sad to be done with preschool (his last day is Wednesday). Crazy kid. We had a fun May! We went camping up North with our best friends over Memorial Day weekend, I helped my best friend with her gender reveal (it’s a boy!), and Little A had her dance recital (it was the CUTEST thing!). I also tried to soak in every minute of the lilacs that bloomed in our backyard, because duh, they are the best flower and they smell SO GOOD.

Here’s what’s currently going on this month:

Growing our garden! Guys! So many things sprouted and are doing great, and then there were a few things that we replanted on Saturday because they weren’t growing super well/we maybe thought they were weeds and pulled them (oops!). It’s been a lot of work, but it’s so much fun to see our hard work paying off. The things that are doing the best are probably our corn, onions, peas, and zinnias, but we’ve also got pumpkins, cantaloupe, watermelon sprouting, along with a few other things. It’s amazing! Also, the official name for our garden is “Johnson Farms,” because yeah, it’s legit enough that we gave it a name.

Serving on the Barbie Global Advisory Council. Okay, I’ve been sitting on this one for a few months, and I am so, so, so excited to finally be able to talk about it. I grew up loving Barbies (I had the Dreamhouse, the Corvette, tons of dolls, and tons of clothes). I even had this cool computer program where you could design clothes for Barbie and it would print out your designs for her to wear. So when I was asked to become a member of the Barbie Global Advisory Council a few months ago, I immediately said yes. We had our kick-off meeting last month and I got to fly to LA (my very first business trip!) and meet with designers and advertisers at Mattel, as well as the other incredible people on the council. Seriously, I was so humbled and honored to be included with such amazing people who are making real changes in the world. So what is the Barbie Global Advisory Council? Created in 2015, the Barbie Global Advisory Council was established as a way for the brand team to have a dialogue with influencers in politics, the arts and technology (just to name a few) to better understand how the brand was perceived externally. We meet and discuss the evolution of the brand, and all that Barbie has done and is continuing to do to help girls see that they can be anything. I’ll talk about it more in the coming months, but if you want to see some of the amazing things Barbie has done in the last few years, check out their Fashionistas line, their Role Model dolls, and their Inspiring Women dolls. They are beautiful and so amazing. Anyway, to say that I am thrilled to be a member of the council and provide input on such a global, iconic brand. I’m so lucky!

Working on my new newsletter! Guys! I completely revamped my newsletter. Mommy Monthly is basically dead. I was bored with it, didn’t feel like it was really doing much, and didn’t enjoy putting it together each month. So I killed it. And from its ashes has risen a new, more majestic newsletter! But instead of a newsletter, I’m calling it a weekly email, because it’s more than just new and popular posts from Life With My Littles. It’s called (drumroll please) MAMADVICE! It’s going to be weekly instead of monthly, it’s going to be short (because ain’t no one got time for long emails), and each email is going to include one tip to help you not only survive motherhood, but enjoy it! I’ve been wanting to do this for a while and I am super excited about the change. If you want to sign up, just enter your info below. I promise it will be MAGICAL!

 

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Enjoying our yard. I’m including this as something separate from the garden, because it is. We have so many big trees and beds and bushes and we’ve been working hard on it. I’ve been pruning trees and cutting dead stuff off and clearing out our lilacs, and I’m making good progress! My husband reseeded a few patches of dirt in the yard, and it’s coming together so nice! We’ll do more next year (I plan on planting peonies and more hydrangeas!), but for now, we’re just enjoying and cleaning up what we have. We bought our house in December not knowing what kinds of trees or bushes we had, so it’s been fun watching things blossom!

Okay, that’s it for this month! We’re excited for summer and plan on enjoying it to the fullest! You should, too!

The post Currently: June 2018 appeared first on Life With My Littles.

I received free product in exchange for this post.

Okay, first of all I have to apologize. I have been promising you guys a home tour as soon as we moved into our house back in May. And I really did intend to get it up sooner, but we still have areas that are completely decorated and aren’t totally how I want them to be yet. But I decided that it’s just time that I go for it and show you what we’ve got, because if I keep putting it off it may never happen. And I can just update this post with pictures as we finish decorating each room.

This is the first house we’ve ever lived in (up until now, we’ve lived in five apartments), and it’s so exciting that we can customize our home basically any way we want now. I’ve had a lot of fun putting things in that are special to us and that really make me happy. I decided early on that if I didn’t love something, I wasn’t going to use it in our decor, and I am really happy with the things we have right now.

Also, I am not a professional home stager/photographer. Yes, I cleaned my house a little for you guys, but don’t be too critical if you see crumbs in the kitchen or toys on the floor. Real life, right there. And I want to mention that even though I’m not an interior design blogger, I love looking at home tours on my favorite blogs so I wanted to contribute mine.

ENTRYWAY

I’ll start with the entryway because I’ve never had one before and it has been fun making it ours. Our rug is from Target and the pattern was something I knew I wanted even before we were looking for a house. I love it and have the same one in the kitchen. We also have a little sign above the front door that my husband got me for Christmas a few years ago. He’s good at gifts 🙂

I wanted the perfect entry table, and I couldn’t find one anywhere that wasn’t wildly expensive. So I decided to BUILD ONE MYSELF. Yeah. Crazy, I know. So I built a table using a modified version of these plans from Rogue Engineer. I loved the one they built, but since this was the first thing I’ve ever built and I’ve never used a saw before, I didn’t trust myself making it that fancy. And I painted it the same color as our dresser I redid (see below). I used Behr Indigo Ink and mixed it with BB Frösch Chalk Paint Powder because it is amazing and makes painting furniture super easy.

The painting hanging on the wall was painted by my grandma in the 70s. It was in my grandparents’ house until my grandpa died in 2010 and then I got it. My grandma painted a lot and this was the one I wanted after my grandpa passed. The frame was super dusty and dirty so I cleaned it and it looks so much better now.

The decor on the table is again, something I love. The globe is from Target and as soon as I saw it I knew I wanted it. The little J block is from Hobby Lobby or Michael’s (I can’t remember and I’m blaming it on pregnancy). The dinosaur is like a cardboard one from Target that you are supposed to decorate, but I like it how it is. And I love dinosaurs and thought it was a cute addition.

The two books basically describe my husband and I perfectly. The first is The Return of the King (my husband LOVES Lord of the Rings, so I had to incorporate it somehow), and the second is Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince (because Harry Potter is life). The lantern and candle inside are super special too, because they are from POTTERY BARN. Yeah, I know. My husband got me a gift card using our credit card points and I got to go pick out some special decorations for our new home. So I chose this gold lantern and a candle that smells super good but probably won’t ever get burned. Worth it.

OFFICE

The office is our little front room of the house that is right off the entryway. We’ve never had an office before either, so it’s really nice having a designated area for me to work and for my husband to do anything he needs to do. My husband and I both have a desk, there’s a nice big window, and we finally have a real bookshelf (as opposed to those lame, super cheap bookcases from Walmart, which, by the way, we have had many). Our bookshelf is from IKEA and on top we have my husband’s undergrad and medical school diplomas. Of course the bookshelf houses my Harry Potter series and lots of other books and journals. We also have a little closet on the side where I keep my sewing and crafting things. And we have a little file cabinet with our printer on top.

My husband’s desk is actually my desk from when I was growing up, and it is super heavy and over 20 years old.

Above his desk we hung a picture of his dad who passed away 2 1/2 years ago from his LDS mission, and our little Father’s Day gift from this year (tutorial here). We want to frame his diplomas and hang them here eventually. That or get a map of Middle Earth and the Ron Swanson Pyramid of Greatness.

On my side of the room, I have a cheap little IKEA table as my desk.

My favorite part of the room is my wall! Besides our little Shutterfly calendar that I made for Christmas last year, I have three gorgeous prints. The first is a custom calligraphy my friend Lexie made for me (check out her floral design Insta here). The second is a gorgeous floral watercolor by Natalie Malan, and the third is a beautiful print of “The Living Christ” by Aimee Ferre. I hung them in frames I spray painted gold, and I am so happy with how they turned out. Eventually I’ll probably add more to this wall, but it’s perfect for now.

HALL

In the hallway by the garage I hung up our keys on this little key hook from Target. I had one that I made 6 years ago that we were using before, but I hated it and always wanted to replace it so I just bought a new one.

Then on the other wall in the hall I hung up our artwork display I made last year (tutorial here).

We like to draw and do little crafts and I love this little board with clips as a way to hang and display them in our home. Plus, my kids love seeing their artwork hanging up in a visible place.

KITCHEN

When you come out of the hall you get to our big master area. It has the kitchen and dining area and living area, with small halls off the side for other rooms. The kitchen is seriously everything I’ve ever dreamed of. As someone who has always lived in small apartments with very limited counter and shelf space, it’s a dream.

The cabinets are dark, we have stainless steel appliances, we have an island with a breakfast bar, a PANTRY (like a real, giant pantry!), and a refrigerator that has an ice and water dispenser and is way bigger than any dumb apartment fridge.

I haven’t done much to decorate it because it’s basically perfect as it is, but I did get a fruit basket from Target, a cute soap dispenser from Kirkland, and we laid a rug down like the one that’s in the entryway. Also, those are pumpkin cream cheese muffins. Yeah.

Our breakfast bar has four chairs from IKEA and we eat basically every meal there. They are perfect.

We also have a little nook in the wall on the side of the kitchen that was the first thing I decorated. As soon as we knew we were going to buy our house (probably even before then) I started dreaming up what I wanted to do with it. The whole inspiration was a tiny boxwood wreath from the house we were staying in in Minnesota in January. I found the exact same one at Target and stored it under my bed months before we even moved in.

I hung the wreath on a frame I got from Michael’s that I turned into a chalkboard using chalkboard spray paint on the glass. I love it so much!

I also hung up my favorite picture of the kids from last year’s family pictures, a J that my sister got me several years ago, a clock we’ve had ever since we got married, and a FAMILY sign my husband got me for Christmas one year.

On the little ledge part I added some more boxwood decor from Target, a little basket, a lantern, and a wooden sphere thing. I can’t remember exactly where I got each thing, but it was either Target, Hobby Lobby, or Michael’s.

DINING

This dining table was my birthday gift a few years ago, and I love it so much. Up until then we were just using a small little round table that had been in my family since I was little, and four mismatched stools around it. It was not ideal when we had people over for dinner. But this table from Homemakers is like a dream. I love the color, I love the farmhouse style, I love the bench, and I love that it’s big enough for our whole family and more.

On the wall between our kitchen and living space, I hung up some baskets from Hobby Lobby and our growth chart I made (tutorial here). I made one two years ago that got accidentally thrown away when we moved from Iowa to Idaho. I had to remake it last year, but it doesn’t have the marks from when Little J was really little. I was upset at first, but I’m over it now. And I love the way these look on the wall together.

LIVING SPACE

First of all, I want to talk about the rug. I had this pattern and these colors in my mind for months. I searched and searched for a big rug that would provide some soft cushion on our tile and finally, we found this one from Rugs USA. I love the way it looks and how soft it is, but it does looks threads a TON and I feel like I am always picking them up, which is annoying. But I am very happy with it despite that.

Our big sofa and recliner are from Homemakers and were actually the first furniture purchase we ever made after getting married. The green sofa by the window is a hand-me-down from my parents. We are actually hoping to get a new sectional soon and we’ll put the recliner in the baby’s room before he’s born, but until then, this is what we have. And I want to eventually hang up some curtains on this big window, but I’m not sure what I want for them yet.

On the wall above the sofa I have some of our family pictures from last year hung up. I don’t think this wall is quite finished yet, and it actually was different last month, so we’ll see what happens there.

Now, my favorite place in the house (I think I said that already, but oh well!). I was on the hunt for a big dresser to redo for our TV stand, and while we were in Iowa from my husband’s graduation from medical school my friend Marianne actually texted me a picture of this old, beat up, cream dresser that someone was selling for $10 at a garage sale. I immediately asked her to get it for me and being the amazing, kind person she is, she and her husband loaded it in their truck and put it in our garage. When I got home, I cleaned it and wiped out the inside (it smelled like your grandparents’ house) and started searching for a color to paint it. I settled on Behr Indigo Ink and mixed it with BB Frosch Chalk Paint powder (yes, same as the entry table). I did it all during my first trimester which sounds amazing but was really because my husband was not happy about it taking up his garage space. Anyway, it turned out GORGEOUS and I am very proud of it. If you could be in love with a piece of furniture, I’d be in love with this dresser. The handles are all the original ones, just cleaned with vinegar. I thought about painting them but decided I liked the kind of worn, vintage look they gave it. (And I know this first picture is mega blurry, so I’m sorry!)

We bought a new TV in June for Father’s Day, which was exciting because we’ve been using my husband’s TV that he had before we even met. We mounted it and then I hung up a few things that I love. The “hello” sign is from Hobby Lobby, the arrow print is from Home Decor Drawing on Etsy, we have a very outdated family photo from Little J’s second birthday, a photo from one of my favorite days when we were in Idaho last year when we got square ice cream at the Rainey Creek Country Store in Swan Valley, a beautiful watercolor of the Idaho Falls Temple where my husband and I were married from Temple Minded on Etsy, a little heart waterfall design I made using a heart punch and pictures my kids drew using blue markers and crayons, and then a little quote from The Office that I designed and printed at Office Max. Like I said, I only wanted to decorate my home with things I love, and this gallery wall is a good testament to that.

KIDS ROOM

Okay, so this is so much a work-in-progress. This room, along with the baby’s room, the hall closet, and the kids bathroom are all rooms I have future plans for. But since things cost money, I am doing them one at a time. Eventually we’ll move more of their toys in here and out of the baby’s room, but now it’s pretty empty. Here’s what I have so far. First, the bunk bed. We actually weren’t planning on getting one for the kids for a while, but Little A transitioned out of her crib so easily that we just figured we’d set it up. And it worked out way better than I could’ve imagined. They both wait until I come into their room to get out of bed, and Little J never climbs down the ladder by himself (and Little A has never tried to climb up it). The actual bunk bed is from IKEA and it’s perfect for them. Not super tall, but sturdy and simple. Little J of course has Lightning McQueen sheets and Little A has Sofia the First sheets.

The only other real decorations I have in their room are these Cars signs from Hobby Lobby that were above Little J’s bed before, and this polaroid poster I made with pictures of Little J and Little A from the time Little A was born until a few months ago. They are all shots from my Instagram account, and I printed them using Square Snaps. The frame is from Michaels. I love the way it looks in their room and I love that it shows a bunch of super fun memories. They love looking at it too, which I think is super cute.

Their closet I am actually pretty proud of, so I’ll share a quick shot of that. Let me give you some background and tell you that originally, this room was their playroom and then the room that is going to be the baby’s room that’s our temporary playroom was their room. So I had the closet all set up for their toys at first. But when we found out baby #3 was on the way, we had to make some changes. So I moved all their clothes in here (thank you IKEA bins), and had to do some reorganizing. It turned out good and I think even though there’s tons of stuff in here, it looks organized!

KIDS’ BATHROOM

Again, a work-in-progress. It sort of has all of the bathroom things that we used in our old bathroom so it’s not really cute and doesn’t even really have a theme. So we’ll see what I decide to do here.

PLAYROOM/NURSERY

So this room is going to eventually be the nursery for baby boy, but until then, it’s a makeshift playroom for the kids. Little A’s decorations that were in her nursery are still on the wall, and the only real thing I have that is going to stay is the felt ball garland. The felt balls are from Hello Maypole and they are the Sprinkles on Top colors. I love them so much and they are going to be the inspiration for little man’s room. I’m going to focus on the aqua, green, and yellow colors, but I also want to have the other colors in little places of his room, too. I’ll of course update this part with pictures as I get things up, but for now, I apologize this is a lame room. The kids toys will eventually be moved to the big blank wall of nothing in their room, so that will help make their room look less boring.

LAUNDRY ROOM

First of all, I have a laundry room!! Not a laundry closet, not a laundry/bathroom hybrid, an actual room devoted to laundry. It’s amazing. My of course favorite thing about this room are my washer and dryer. We got our very first washer and dryer last year from Dan’s sweet grandparents, but when we were loading them onto the truck one started falling apart and we realized that the other wasn’t going to work in our laundry room because it was electric or gas or something. So we gave them to some friends and began the search for a new washer and dryer. We originally had planned on getting cheap ones that were floor models, but then we found these amazing beauties for a very good price and my husband let me get them because he is super nice and basically the best ever. Anyway, they have been a delight since the first wash. This little towel shelf thing is from IKEA and we use it for towels and sheets because we don’t have a linen closet anywhere in our house. Which is weird, but whatever. This fits great between the washer and dryer and works for us.

The only other thing in this room was a simple shelf above the washer and dryer, and I think eventually I want to put in some cabinets or something, but for now, I am using some little racks to give me some more storage and make it look less cluttered. I also have our cleaning things like brooms and vacuum and stuff in here, as well as our iron and ironing board hanging on the back of the door to save space.

MASTER BEDROOM

This space is pretty much done, with the exception of our dresser that doesn’t match and the giant TV we never use. I’m not sure what we’re going to do with that, but for now, it’s cool just chillin’ there.

I’ll talk about our bed first. My husband got me a new comforter set last year for Christmas, and I love it. It’s a lot lighter than what we had before and the colors are peaceful and cool and kind of remind me of the beach. We’ve had our bed/headboard ever since we got married, and unless we eventually upgrade to a king bed (which who knows), we’ll probably stick with it because I like it.

On the sides of our bed are windows with some sheer white curtains and little nightstands from IKEA. We’ve never had nightstands before, so this is a big deal to me!

My big project in here has been the wall decor. On one side we have a gallery wall, and on the other we have some picture ledges. The gallery wall has some wedding photos, some prints I designed, one of our engagement pictures with “The Family: A Proclamation to the World” overlayed on it that we got as a wedding gift from my husband’s aunt, an anniversary print my husband got me for our 5-year anniversary, a big wooden & from Michael’s, and map cutouts from the four states we’ve lived in together.

On the other wall are our picture ledges from IKEA filled with prints I found on Pinterest, made myself, and got from Etsy.

On the top ledge, from left to right, we have a Texas print (I can’t remember where I found this), a LOTR quote I designed, an “I love you” print, a vintage Yellowstone travel poster from The World Travelers, and a little “hooray” print.

On the lower ledge, from left to right, we have an arrow print, a picture of my husband and I from our family pictures last fall, a “Home is wherever I’m with you” print, an Idaho print from Armada Supply Co (they have all 50 states and come in lots of beautiful colors), and an “All of me loves all of you” print.

MASTER BATH AND CLOSET

Now if you’re amazingly still with me, we come to the last part of our home tour, the master bath and closet.

I love our bathroom and closet because our bathroom is off of our bedroom, and the toilet has its own separate little door so my husband and I can both be in there and still have privacy. I want to put some floating shelves in here eventually.

Then we have a tub and shower that are separate (what!?) and I got a little Pottery Barn candle and bath salts (decoration ONLY!) to put by the tub.

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Then we have our closet. First of all, compared to most girls, I have like no clothes. My husband actually has more clothes than me. But our closet is huge and amazing, and we both have our own sides. Here’s his (complete with a sneaky little girl hiding).

And here’s mine. We used some IKEA bins in our closet for storage, and then we also have an IKEA shoe rack on the floor for my shoes (the rest of our shoes are on an identical rack in the garage). And seriously, I don’t have a lot of clothes. These are my maternity shirts, workout tops, short-sleeve tops, and long-sleeve tops, and sweaters. It’s not hard to get dressed in the morning.

So there you have it! That’s our home! We love it and are thrilled to be living in our very own house. We’ve made it our own and will continue to do so probably until we move in four or five years. It’s the perfect little house for our family, and we love being able to have a garage and a backyard. If anyone reading this is dreaming of living in a house instead of an apartment, I promise it will happen one day. It took us six years after getting married to finally be able to buy a house, but it was worth the wait 🙂

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