Dear Santa...

Dear Santa,  I think I've been extra good this year. Here are a few things on my "wish list"...

Josie Maran Argan Oil: I received this amazing oil from a friend after my surgery and have loved it so much I am literally squeezing out my last few drops each night. 

Philosophy Hope in a Jar: I hate when I run out of this miracle face lotion. I have the driest skin on the planet and this is the only lotion that works for me. But the price tag is painful. So for Christmas I asked my mom to buy me the biggest size they make. 

32 GB Wireless SD Card: I can't believe I still don't own one of these.With the wireless card I can transfer photos from my camera straight to my phone.

Josie Maran Sunscreen:Thinking ahead for summer time and stocking up on the only sunscreen I can use on my face without breaking out into a rash. For real, who is allergic to SPF? Ugh!

Adele 25: Please, please, please be in my stocking!

35mm lens: I'm so torn on this one. As much as I'd love the expensive Canon version, I'm asking Santa for the inexpensive version. I'm hoping the lens lives up to the reviews! Right now I exclusively shoot with my 50 mm lens (my 2014 gift from Santa) and love my Canon EOS Rebel (my 2013 gift from Santa). 

Coco Chanel Mademoiselle: A wish list staple every year. I go through exactly one bottle a year.

Toms Desert Wedge: I received these in grey last year and have worn them sooooooo many times. They are my favorite shoes so I asked for them again this year in black or herringbone or any color!

LL Bean Slippers: Another annual favorite! My sister and I always get matching slippers at Christmas from Santa and these are the best! 

Frye Melissa Button Boot: I've been searching high and low for a brown boot to replace my pair that is falling apart! If anyone knows were to find them in Cognac on SALE, please tell me!

------------- PAST FAVORITES --------------
 
In case you are still looking for (some practical and some fun) things to add to your list for Santa, below are a few items I've been gifted over the years that are tried and true favorites!!! Really, I use all of these things ALL THE TIME!

Clarisonic Cleansing System // Chicago Cutlery // Canon EF 50 mm Camera Lens // KitchenAid Stand Mixer // Apple iPad // Hunter Rain Boots // Fitbit // JCrew Mila Ballet Flat // Super Soft Bed Sheets // Seche Vite Top Coat // Veggie Spiralizer // Nike Dual Fusion Running Shoes // Canon EOS Rebel   

Would love to know some of your favorite gifts you've received!

Caroline Grace {18 months}

Oh, Caroline (aka "pooky"),

You are technically 19 months old now but let's reflect on the the last few months. It has been really fun watching you grow and hear your vocabulary explode recently. I hope you aren't picking up on the fact that anytime you say "I wuv you!" that we absolutely melt and give you get whatever you want. You are such a happy little toddler and everyone loves you. I'm so glad we've been blessed with many wonderful friends to fill your life with. We pray for you always and have been so thankful for your health. We love you with our whole hearts.

Love,
Mommy

 

A few things I've been tracking in a phone note about you:

• At 13 months you became obsessed with straws. Really obsessed.
• At 14 months you became the very best big sister ever!
• At 15 months a lot of your teeth came in at once.
• At 16 months you finished your second set of swim lessons, we turned you forward facing in your car seat (doctor approved) and you may or may not watch too much Mickey Mouse Clubhouse.You also moved up to the next class at daycare and are the best little teacher's helper (their words, not mine)!
• At 17 months you began showing your belly button to anyone that would look. We also officially dedicated you to Jesus! And you gave us our first broken bone scare.
• At 18 months you began saying "NO!" way too much and surprised us in the worst way possible with an awful sleep regression which happened to coincide with your brother's 4 month sleep regression. You also love to eat with a napkin and wipe your mouth after every bite.

18 month stats:
Height: 30" (5%)
Weight: 22 lb, 3.2 oz (44%)
HC: 18.31" (57%)

Things you love: 

• Our favorite time with you is first thing in the morning. You wake up super happy and we love it. You still wake up way earlier than us so we let you play in your crib for awhile and it's hilarious to hear you babbling away.
• Singing and dancing. Favorite songs are: Wheels on the Bus, ABCs and Row Your Boat.
• Favorite party tricks: Saying "I wuv you!," telling us sounds animals make, learning words of lots of foods, counting to "TWO" and (only two). Pointing to lots of body parts when we ask where they are (mouth, ears, eyes, nose, etc.). You are such a sponge, repeating lots of things you hear us say.
• Bows, bows, bows. A quick way to wreck your day is to leave the house without a bow. You love to point to your head and say "Bo! Bo! Bo!!!!" 
• Favorite foods: Chick-fil-a nuggets, milk, ketchup, pasta, pizza, yogurt, grits, pancakes, raisins, bagels and IHOP (see here and here).
• Telling us you poo poo'd. Not before you go, but definitely after.
• On the weekends you and your daddy go to the bagel shop early in the morning in your jammies to get coffee and breakfast for the family. It's one of daddy's favorite things to do with you and you love it too.
• The relationship that you and your brother have is seriously the cutest thing of all time. So often we find you standing over him while he sleeps, gently patting his hand. And when he cries you come find us for his bottle or paci or blanket or anything else he may need.We moved your car seat to the middle and ever since you hold his hand anytime we ride in the car.
• You love daycare and have made such great friendships with the other kids in class. Your teachers say you are so brave on the playground and are constantly trying to play on things for the older kids. And you play SO hard. When you come home each night you smell stinky and have dirt rings around your socks. It's been awesome to see how much you've learned in class and every piece of artwork you bring home proudly hangs in our dining room! 
• Nap time! Hallelujah! Right now we just say "night, night?" and you run to your room saying "nigh nigh!!!!" turn on your sound machine and reach up to be placed in your crib. And you sleep for a solid few hours. It's amazing.
• Bath time with extra bubbles! Also love sharing the tub with your brother.
• Brushing your teeth after bath time. You think it's so funny. Still working on the actual brushing part and not just sucking the toothpaste off the toothbrush. 
• Favorite toys:
• KidKraft Vintage Kitchen: Our play kitchen and wagon easily tie as your top two all time favorite things. A gift for your first birthday, this kitchen is so amazing it literally sits in the middle of our living room and you play in it daily. 
• Radio Flyer Grandstand 3 in 1 Wagon: I honestly think we've put more miles on our wagon this year than my car. I cannot even begin to explain all of the ways we've used the Radio Flyer wagon. See this, this, and this. 
• Infant-to-Toddler Swing: Another favorite outdoor toy that is guaranteed to kill 15 minutes while dinner is being cooked each night.
• Children's Table & Chairs: The place where we share many meals together, color and more! 

Peak Meltdown Moments Include:

• Dinner time. You love to eat dinner as a family and you love leading grace before we eat followed by lots of clapping. However, you really only actually eat your dinner 50% of the time. The other half of the time you just scream at us that you're "ALL DONE!" before your first bite and sob until we let you out of your chair. We've tried everything from sitting at your little table as a family to seating you in your high chair, a real chair, your bumbo seat and in our lap. We've tried letting you have your own kids plate, paper plate, adult plate, no plate and letting you eat off of our plate. Some days nothing works and we power through dinner as fast as possible.
• The word "no." Apparently it's okay for you to say this all day long but when we say it you immediately throw yourself to the ground and especially love to do this in public places. So fun.
• Car rides. Your pediatrician advised us to turn your car seat around earlier than normal since you were still fighting us so hard and making car rides unbearable. Forward facing has helped a little. Putting you in the middle seat so you can hold hands with your brother has helped a lot. But any ride longer than 15 minutes is pretty much awful still and no amount of cheerios, iPad videos, etc. works.
• Anytime we take anything from you whether it's trash, the plate of food you didn't want or something you aren't allowed to have.
• As soon as I'm fully recovered we're going to attempt to break your paci which you use at bedtime. 

And a few pictures from the past few months

SANTAAAAA!

Over the weekend we visited Santa with lots of friends.

...and Caroline apparently found out she is on the naughty list. Ha! Last year she was a bit skeptical of the jolly bearded man and this year she was just pouty. But Thomas was a fan!

A huge thanks to my friend April for setting up this VIP Santa visit at BLACKLION in Pineville! You may remember last year she took Camille all over Charlotte in search of the perfect Santa and when she found him at BLACKLION she let me in on the secret and also told me to bring some mama friends along too! Everyone had so much fun! Most of the kiddos met Santa for the first time and were definitely spoiled by the best Santa experience ever. Upon arrival we were greeted by singing bears right outside of Santa's Workshop. Caroline was so fascinated.

 After the bear concert was over we could hear some jingle bells starting to ring! When we looked up all of the kids were so excited to see Santa and his crew approaching the workshop. 

Not sure if it was Santa that had Caroline on high alert or the Gingerbread Man or Frosty the Snowman. Regardless, they made one heck of an entrance singing, dancing and ringing the bells. And I cannot say enough great things about this Santa! He was jolly, sweet and had the best time meeting our littles. It was like he really came straight from the North Pole. Oh, and he has a ponytail which makes him extra cool.

After Santa introduced himself to all the little ones he welcomed us to his workshop where there were so many fun displays -- Santa's mailbox, tons of wrapped gifts, reindeer, elves, etc. It was sensory overload for all the minis and they were running around having a blast!

 A few of our friends visiting with Santa...

 Clearly I was unprepared to get in the Santa photo buuut my girlfriends and Santa insisted so what the heck. Pretend I'm wearing makeup and my hair is washed.

 One more of the kiddos that BLACKLION sent us!

What a wonderful Santa visit -- no lines, no germy and tired Santa and a room full of our friends! Thanks again, April!    Mamas in the Charlotte area, we visited the BLACKLION in Pineville! Santa will be here the next few Saturdays from 1-4 pm. Make sure to stop by with the kiddos! You don't want to miss this!