When you run around town like we do every family member needs a comfortable shoe!
DSW shoes for the entire family!
Comfy Shoes for the Entire Family
Category Archives: Family
1st Birthday Party for Baby Girl
She’s finally 1! To be born in 2020 sounds wild to me but baby girl won’t know the difference until she’s much older and we share with her the history that was made during the year of her birth.
We had a small covid friendly birthday with grand parents and very close friends. It was small, low stress and just how I want all future parties to be for our family.
I had some great help putting it together! Shay Moné is always a great eye and helped with inspo and Tailored Moments with set up and execution! I was supposed to just bring food, the cake and plates but in true Brandy form, I got the wrong colors. I got a hot pink cake and orange plates. I just remembered the brightest colors while I was looking for inspiration and that’s what I got. Ha ha! Shay helped bring everything together with her ability to make anything work!
Despite that little hiccup, the party was a success and I wouldn’t have had it any other way!
Enjoy Color Bees!
Share this:
A Colorful Conception
Just so we’re clear, I completely understand that if you are not using birth control and your’e having unprotected sex that you can get pregnant. Ha Ha! Although I did those things, I will still say that this pregnancy was quite a surprise for me for several reasons so let’s get into it in detail.
Timing
I had my IUD removed in the summer of 2019. We discussed trying for baby number two in 2020 and I thought I might need to give my body ample time to get back on it own natural rhythm. Well, SURPRISE!!! My body didn’t need that long.
Another timing concern was because of the state of my relationship at the time of conception. It was VERY rocky at the time of conception. Just imagine, you’re going through a lot with you spouse when BOOM, you’re pregnant! We all know babies don’t fix relationships or situations.
I’m a full time elementary school teacher so to have conceived so early in the school year was more than a challenge. I was and still am beyond tired all the time but the beginning was extremely hard. It took me a lot of time each morning to feel well enough to get out of bed and to get to school on time. On top of that my 6 year old drags his feet every single morning and I did not have the energy to help him stay motivated to get ready.
Health
In the first 7-12 weeks of pregnancy I was extremely worried about my health and the health of the baby. Like I mentioned, the time of conception was an extremely stressful time in my life.
Feeling like you need to throw up in the morning but hardly ever doing it is rough. I had nausea in the mornings that made it hard to get out of bed. If I walked into school and smelled food being prepared for lunch it made me want to throw up. I also had nausea in the evenings after getting home from work. With teaching, blog work and my relationship being tested, I had zero energy and I really just wanted to stay home and cry most days. Of course, that was not an option for me.
Unlike my first pregnancy, I started with a host of digestion issues. This came as quite a surprise for me. I had severe bloating. It felt like within the week of me finding out I was pregnant, I was showing! It wasn’t actually the baby but my stomach was noticeably distended. On top of that I had some serious constipation kick in and it was awful. I’ve never wanted to poop more in my life. Ha ha ha! After getting on a consistent pear and prune juice regimen, it helped so much.
My breasts are massive and they hurt. It feels like some one gave me implants that I didn’t want and that are way too big. They will only get bigger ya’ll, pray for me!
I get pretty personal on Instagram but I hardly ever get this personal in longer blog posts but I can’t lie, it felt good to do it and I’ll do it more often. I don’t believe in TMI if you’re sharing for the right reasons so let me know what else you’d like to see here.
Enjoy Color Bees!
Share this:
Zoo Boo – Houston Zoo
The Houston Zoo is a great place to visit for Fall fun in October. The entire zoo is covered in Fall decor and there is a ton of fun games and activities for everyone to enjoy. The zoo staff organized Zoo Boo down to the very last detail and it shows. This post will give all of the best tips to enjoy your Zoo Boo experience.
Tip 1- Get there early!
We arrived at the zoo around 10:30 am on Saturday only to drive around the parking area for at least 20 minutes. We had to wait, look, and stalk people as they walked out to find parking. (Ha ha) It was not fun and right before we found a spot I was considered leaving. The good news is that parking was the only thing that was tough during Zoo Boo.
Tip 2- Be flexible!
When we go to the zoo during other parts of the year, the focus is on seeing the animals. I was surprised how my son’s interest changed while at Zoo Boo. He was more interested in going to each of the candy corners for trick or treating, playing the games, and people watching. He loved to just sit for a few minutes and check out costumes of the other children. I did encourage him to look at the animals but he honestly wasn’t interested. Be ready to let your child roam free!
Tip 3- Move slowly and take a lot of breaks.
The kids and possibly you will be wearing costumes that are hot and have to constantly be adjusted. Grant drank a ton of water and asked to stop at times just to sit on a bench. Listen to how everyone is feeling and stay hydrated. Our longest break was for lunch and it was well deserved. You are free to pack a picnic but we went to the Cypress Circle Cafe for pizza and it was so delicious!
Knowing that there would be candy passed out made me a bit nervous. We don’t eat a lot of candy so I didn’t want my 4 year old to be over powered by mountains of candy. Luckily the candy stations were organized so that each time you visit a station the volunteers stamp your map and give out 2-3 pieces of candy. It was comforting to know that he would only receive 12-15 pieces that day. It helps to teach our kiddos about moderation even at a celebratory time.
We had so much fun and will probably go again before the event ends. Zoo Boo is an amazing family event that I recommend for everyone! Enjoy!
Stamps in cool colors!
Decorative pumpkins everywhere!
Fall decor!
Hermann Park Train ride!
Decorating his mini pumpkin!
Grant enjoying the puppet show of “talking pumpkins”.
Golf, tic-tac-toe, bean bag toss, and more games for the children to play!
DJ booth, Jump ropes, hula hoops, and bouncy ball for the kids to enjoy!
Giant coloring book.
Share this:
Water Safety with Wolfies Swim School
Grant Learning swim form.
Thank you Wolfies Swim School for partnering with me to bring this post to my followers!
It’s time! My baby boy is 4 years old and he needs to learn how to swim. Not only will it be a confidence booster for Grant but knowing how to be safe in the water could potentially save his life. Statistically children 1-4 are at the highest risk of drowning and like most parents, I don’t want to put my child at risk by not arming him with skills and knowledge.
Wolfies Swim School began in Houston’s Meyerland neighborhood in 2005 and through amazing customer service and quality instruction grew to the Bellaire & West University locations.Wolfies provides swim lessons for children and adults and is the best in the business.
When I signed Grant up for Wolfies the process was really easy! The Wolfies staff walked me through the entire process and even called to check on us as Grant’s lessons progressed. One of the best things about signing up for Wolfies was that they asked me what MY swim goal were for Grant. We signed up for a week of everyday lessons and four weeks of weekly lessons as a way to immerse him and give him several opportunities to get comfortable with being in the water. As a mom I wondered how Grant would react to swim lessons simply because he is fearful of water. Even at bath time if water would get on his face or ears I could tell that he didn’t like it immediately.
I have to say that on the first day there were some tears and fear but by the second day he was a willing little swimmer. Grant went from not wanting to put his face or ears in the water to asking if he could jump in the pool! I see Grant progressing towards the goals that I’d hoped he would accomplish already. In his first week, Grant began blowing bubbles, being more comfortable with putting his face and ears on the water, climbing out of the pool, and pushing off the platform with his feet. WHat I love most is that Wolfies is helping Grant to be safe in the water. The Wolfies teachers are so calm and relaxed with the children. They push the children within their comfort zones. The small class sizes, fun teachers, and amazing instruction is just what our family needed. We still have more lessons to go and I can already say, we are Wolfies for life!
Proud moment after blowing bubbles.
On the first day of swim school, Grant was very hesitant to put his face in the water.
The first time Grant blew bubbles.
Wolfies has fun toys for little swimmers.
Grant and Mr. Kenta working on arm motions.
Each time Grant blew bubbles he was so proud of himself.
The first time Grant was fully submerged! Success!
Fun with his swim mates!
Small class sizes.
Learning water safety skills like getting himself out of the water.
Working on kicking his legs.
