The fourth of July is less than a week away! We're going to the beach (are you surprised?) with family and this year I think B might actually get to watch the fireworks! That is if Mama decides to let her stay up past her 7pm bedtime. Hmmm maybe next year? ;) I'm pretty sure our day will consist of beach, ice cream, burgers, and fireworks. Well I hope it will anyway. Here are some other July 4th festivities that would be fun!

i like how nautical this feels with the rope

easy and fun!

for the mantel

bluberry pie on a stick?! yes please!

at our family beach house they have a july 4th parade. i'm thinking about doing it with B and decorating her little red wagon. right?!

pretty and delicious i'm sure!

 And a blast from the past...

2011 B wasn't even in my belly quite yet!

July 4th 2012, Holy Chunky! More rolls than the Michelin Man!

Blair Buddah Bushman

our little fam in front of our old home before we moved. aw our sweet little bungalow!

I don't even recognize that baby anymore! I remember having to nurse during fireworks last year...not the case this year! I better enjoy the 4th of July this year because if all goes as planned I'll be pretty huge and prego next 4th of July... God willing! Have a great weekend friends!

Last weekend we added a couch to our upstairs play room and we're pretty pleased with it! Not only is the color perfect for grimy baby hands our decor, it is soft as butter since it's made from chenille. Slowly but surely our house is coming together. If only we had endless money and time, right?!

new cozy gray couch

finally hung the tv and covered the cords. still have to paint the cord cover and get a new media cabinet

moved the old play room couch into our master

also hung the book shelves free from my cousins!

working on filling the shelves with things i love :)

had to move the mirror to the other side of the room

I love watching things come together! Our room is SO big that it felt empty for the longest time despite our king sized bed! It's funny because our old master could barely even fit a queen sized bed. I still feel like the room needs a rug or something but M is a strong believer of no rugs on carpet. Sigh, doesn't he know he's cramping my style?! ;)

As promised I came up with a list of tips survival guide for anyone attempting Disneyland or any theme park for that matter with a one year old. Enjoy. :)

1. stroller: a reclining stroller is best (she napped while I ate corn dogs). We brought our BOB and loved it! Yes, it is a bigger stroller but that just meant more space to store baby crap necessities.We found that it was much easier to walk from the parking structure to the park instead of riding the tram. First of all the line takes forever, second of all we didn't want to have to fold up our stroller (and take out all the crap in the basket), and third it was good exercise to burn off that corn dog I planned on eating.

2. ice chest: we brought an insulated lunch box to store Blair's milk in for the day. We found out any place that serves food will give you ice for free. So we just kept hitting up the restaurants to keep her stash cool.

3. short lines: we downloaded one of the many Disneyland ride apps that give wait times. This was crucial to keeping the baby happy! For us, 25 minutes or less was all B could handle. And really 15 or less was what we aimed for.

5. baby station: apparently there is a great baby station at Disneyland by the corn dog stand (I never saw it because I was so fixated on the prize dog). It has diapers, wipes, bottles etc for purchase on the chance that you run out or forget. It also has a plush changing station that your little one's bum is sure to appreciate.

6. rider swap: we didn't take advantage of this option but there is such a thing where one parent can stand in line and ride the attraction and then the other parent can swap with the kiddo and and get right on after. But who wants to wait in line for an hour alone? Not us... (unless you give me endless corn dogs...)

7. front pack: a crucial item to bring for waiting in line. Otherwise your child just crawls around on the gum stained concrete looking like a total ragamuffin (we may have been those parents till we remembered the front pack). I suggest bringing one with a hip harness so the weight of your Hulk baby isn't straining your back. BONUS: they let you ride the rides with baby in the front pack...amazing!

8. blankie/lovie: honestly if we ever lost B's blankie I think she would have to be hospitalized for depression...the girl LOVES that dirty thing! Whenever I needed her to take a nap I whipped it out and she was a goner (that is until the Mickey Mouse parade went by...).

the dirty blankie in action

9. sunscreen/hat: we forgot the hat but the sunscreen kept her safe. Disneyland actually has a lot of shade so the hat wasn't crucial.

10. friends (with a baby): it was awesome to have another couple who understood that we couldn't wait in line for 90 minutes for the new cars ride. They also "got" that baby needed a nap time and had no problem walking the park for a bit while baby napped. It was also awesome to have someone to take family photos of us! Plus we were able to return the favor. :)

Rides Blair loved:
Small World, the Carousel, Teacups, the train, Winnie the Pooh, Ariel, the zephyr, Flick's Flyers, the catepillar etc. Basically anything she was allowed to ride she enjoyed. I will say Small World was like a baby acid trip and apparently she really likes that.

small world crazy baby

There you have it! Is there anything you would add?

A few nights ago I was giving B a bath after I got home from the gym so I decided to join her. She thought this was quite fun so hubby came up to see what the ruckus was all about. He snapped a few pictures of us playing and I can't wait to frame them and put them in her/our bathroom!

my sweet bean

practicing her curtsey

where did my baby go? this is a HUGE toddler!

you wanted fish for dinner, right mom?

wiggle worm

Let's see, B ran into the door jamb yesterday and had a pretty nasty looking line down her face for the remainder of the day. I'm sure I will get more and more used to her injuries as time goes on. But for now I just snuggle her and want to kiss it all better. She also popped up two more teeth so she has four on top and two on bottom. We're still nursing in the morning, which is really a joke at this point. I'm sure that will come to an end as those teeth get bigger and bigger... She has yet to bite me (knock on wood) but I feel like I'm pushing my luck.

It was so great just to stay home this weekend and not have any traveling to do. We had a BBQ with some friends and enjoyed some games too. Even though I didn't win I still had a great time. ;) The babes entertained themselves with the sand and water table from Costco and B was finally able to keep up with her friends!

three sweet girls (B's dress: gap)

Someone caught up on her Zzzz's (no sleep sack during nap time now!)

holy bed head

a little Sunday Funday In-n-out

while the boys played a board game the wives did their nails :)

Nordstrom cafe with B and my bff, rikki

Carter and B in their Mamas' favorite spot!

lastly, i enjoyed getting the rest of my CAbi loot in the mail. my aunt threw in a surprise scarf! i love it for summer.

We were able to go to Home Depot, and some furniture stores this weekend and check a few more things off of our never ending list of home improvements. Really exciting things like shower heads, new switch plates, cord covers, etc. We did end up getting a couch for our play room upstairs and I'm excited to show you what we've done with that space and our bedroom recently.

We also took a nap (hey, this is noteworthy stuff I'm telling you!) and watched PLL. Overall I'm feeling pretty relaxed and looking forward to July 4th!

Hubby finished up my little project this week and I'm so happy about the results! Nothing a little spray paint and cute fabric to whip a tired chair into shape!

remember these guys?

ta-da!

Hubby seriously worked his butt off on these. The seats were pretty saggy so M had to strip them down to the base. He re-stretched the saggy burlap across the bottom to give the seat a "lift." Then he took out the old padding and put in the new padding I bought at Joanns. And voila! Cushion for your tushy!

before: the dark chairs just blended in

snooze fest

much better! i spy a walker :)

i love how the gray contrasts with the black.

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I had no idea that spray paint came in so many different colors! I could seriously see myself becoming a spray paint addict. Hmmm what can I get my little paws on next?

Oh  and get a load of this... girlfriend's got moves!

With 4th of July just around the corner (B turns 16 months that day!) I had to make sure we would be clothed properly. Here are some 'fits I'm loving lately!

MAMA: plaid top, baseball tee, printed shorts, hat, bracelet, dress MINI: sweatshirt, flower shorts, hat, suit, top, chevron shorts

DADA: tee, red shorts, trunks, flops, button down, striped shorts MINI: sweater, shorts, tee, cutoffs, shades, flops

 

 

 

 Prepare to die from cuteness overload... M took these a couple nights ago while we were playing with bubbles in the backyard. Yay for getting out the "real" non iphone camera!

GAH! How grown up is she looking?! The older she gets the more I fall in love with her. Every new stage we enter is always my favorite...I'm sure that will change once puberty hits. ;) But for now...SWOON! She's my little bean.