Yesterday while I was ironing B was playing independently (hallelujah!) and decided at one point that she wanted all of her "hair pretties" in her hair at once. I obliged her and here were the results...

And in case you didn't get the full effect...

Have a great weekend everyone! We are hanging out with my family and have no serious plans for Labor Day. Staying in town for once...hmmm maybe we will get some things done around the house?!

Lately I have been loving NEON yellow/lime for baby. I recently bought Blair this dress and if it weren't 100+ degrees here in southern California she would be wearing it. I also spied some other really bright cute pieces from Baby Gap (I'm pretty sure I employ a handful of people there...) and once that 40% off email lands in my inbox I'm making a beeline for these things...

the puffy vest is my absolute fave!

And here's a little Blair action if you don't already follow me on Instagram...

Ever since I painted our media built-ins and mantle I've been itching to get my paws on the rest of the oak in our house. I love how it updates our house so much and now I'm on a mission. Buuuuut, I'm indecisive on what color to paint each area. That's where I need your opinion! I'm hoping my (pro-bono designer) Aunt Marla and her daughters are reading this...help!

our finished family room

you better believe I just hulked all B's toys out of the frame of this shot ;) let's be real.

the cup pulls arrived (PB) and I'm really happy with them!

On to the rest of the house...

the island... i was thinking some sort of gray...just can't decide on light or dark?

the junk counter buffet... totally stumped. my initial plan was creamy white like the family room.

random storage nook in the master bath

master bath (ha...i was prego in this pic! B came a week later...)

kitchen cabinets. I'm still gung ho for a creamy white since this butts up to the family room (clearly we just moved in here) aw, and we still had our cat who since then has disappeared. :(

Soooo, what are your brilliant ideas?! Please give me your suggestions below...it takes a village to raise a child make design decisions! Thanks in advance!

I thought I would check in with a sleep update (I know, snooze-fest). It's partly for selfish reasons so I can come back and revisit this for our next kiddo. I have to say B has been an A+ sleeper this last month or so. We're talking 7pm to 7:30/8:30 am! Hallelujah! While I should totally be setting my alarm and taking advantage of some quiet devotional time I've been super lazy and sleeping in right along side of her.

hulk baby

Her naps, however, are hit or miss. She's pretty much transitioned to one nap after lunch. I usually wait till she poops (otherwise we have the mid-nap poo which wakes her up) and then put her down between 12-12:30. The thing that kills me though is some days she will sleep for 3 hours and other days (like yesterday) only for an hour! Gah! On days like that I put her to bed an hour early because by that point we are both dunzo. She is at least really good in her bed even when she's not sleeping. The girl will play/talk to herself/crawl around for a LONG time (like an hour!) before or after a nap. So sometimes after she has only napped an hour I leave her in there to entertain herself while I catch up on laundry/bills/soap operas. Kidding about the last one. I actually don't know how to turn on our TV without directions...

Overall I'm so thankful for the sleep everyone here at the Bushman household has been getting. Here are a few of our favorite festive jammies to boot! I can't even handle the cuteness OR decide which pair to get Blair. First world problems : /

all jammies from baby Gap

This weekend I had the honor of hosting a baby shower with two other friends. It was for a sweet baby boy that is due in October. I had so much fun planning for it and DIYing the decor. Here is what we came up with...

flowers arranged by my talented friend Lynnea

my DIY cake and topper

 DIY chocolate dipped pretzels and prayer cards

DIY yarn letters and bunting

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This is just one of many showers that I have coming my way and I'm excited to get crazy on Pinterest! Happy Monday!

CONGRATULATIONS Kaleena! You won a $50 credit to j and paper! Thank you to all others who entered the giveaway!

I have a lot of friends who are pregnant and have been asking my advice on what to register for, what to spend money on, and what to save money on. I've decided to come up with a list of products/items that I love for baby up until a year old. There were some items that I definitely did not love but I won't be including those so feel free to email me with any questions you might have and I'll do my best to help you out if I have experience with that item.

Annnnnnd after going back through all my old posts I realized there are WAY too many things to post for the entire year. I'll start with the newborn stage...

1. fan or sound machine: our sound machine crapped out TWO times (don't buy that one) so we finally just used a fan. May as well as make it a cute one!

2. teether: Sophie the giraffe is the best teether for little hands. She's adorable and squeaks too!

3. swaddles: swaddle me wraps worked way better than blankets for us. She would work her way out of those but in these she stayed nice and snug!

4. monitor: although our night vision broke on this monitor I still think it's a good one. I love that you can hear AND see your baby. Plus it lets you have more than one video so when you have another baby you only need another camera.

5. swing: we actually have this swing but I just bought the mamaroo for our next kiddo because it got great reviews. I scored and found it practically brand new at a garage sale!

6. nursing pillow: i've tried several and Boppy is still my favorite!

7. breast pump: I scored again and got this breast pump at a garage sale...works AMAZING! I changed the tubing and some other parts but was really pleased with it!

8. diaper bag: there are a lot to choose from but I love the Petunia Pickle Bottom! It can be worn as a backpack which is super convenient and it has a fold out changing pad. Win.

9. onesies: seriously you think you are going to want to dress your baby up in all these cute fussy outfits and then you realize that's annoying. For the first three months I recommend onesies.

10. burp cloths: spend your money on these...they are SO soft and have NO velcro which will save all your other clothes from snagging. They are also nice and big so you might be able to avoid some spit up!
humidifier

11. infant carrier: B loved snuggling close to me in the Moby Wrap. Just watch the you tube videos on how to do it before baby arrives.

12. infant carrier: I bought the Ergo for our next kiddo after hearing such great reviews. I've used it with B and I like it because it has awesome back support...a definite must!

13. swaddle blankets: Aden and Anais make the best ones...super thin so baby doesn't get too sweaty and the cutest designs! If you get the Bamboo ones they are so smooth.

14. running stroller: since I like to run I needed the BOB. It has not disappointed me!

15. everyday stroller: I have yet to purchase the Uppababy but am planning on it for the next baby...it seats up to 3 kids!

16. bath tub: the Puj tub fit right into our sink and was super easy to store and travel with.

17. inclined sleeper: the rock n play was a great place for B to sleep since it was inclined. I think this really helped her digestion and tummy. It was also an easy place to put her while I showered/got dressed/went to the bathroom. :)

18. car mirror: this mirror worked great and I liked being able to see what she was up to back there!

19. pack n play (not pictured): we got a co-sleeper but it's not as easy to set up as the nuna-sena one that my friend has and I love!

20. humidifier (not pictured): pretty much any one will do. I like this one.

21: baby bouncer (not pictured): we liked that the bjorn  wasn't too babyish.

Phew! That's it for now! Forward this on to all your expecting mama friends!

And here is yesterday...

started the morning off right with french toast, eggs, and no exercise. winning.

diggin her french toast

then we played with our cups for a good 30 minutes. winning again.

grocery store time

And then we came home and she took a THREE hour nap! Yup. You read that right! So Mama got her craft on while hanging out with a friend and her kiddo...

the beginning of a back drop for a shower i'm hosting this weekend. no that did not take me three hours...

then she woke up and they played. well, he played...she kinda whined and hung on me. craft time was OVER.

then the best part of the day came home...Dada!

This is when I forgot about taking pictures the rest of the night. M made pizza for dinner, took B for a run, and put her to bed while I went to the gym. (i know, pretty awesome). The rest of my night was dedicated to more crafts, blogging, and chocolate ice cream. What? You don't eat ice cream after the gym? That's why I go to the gym! ;)

Hey guys! I'm over at Erinn's blog today talking about being a "girly mom." Come stop by!

Can you believe I have never been to IKEA? I finally was enlightened last weekend when two of my girl friends introduced me to the small city (seriously! it's HUGE!). Ever since I saw this toddler table and chairs Strawberry Swing and Other Things blog I had to have it. I'm still debating over whether to paint it or not. It's kinda cute and simple the way it is but mint and gold are calling my name... (I lied...I just saw some cute Ikea hacks here and will for sure be painting...)

 What is THAT?! ^^^^ I just about died at the above picture of B. She came over to me while I was taking some pictures and I said, "Blair, can you smile so Mama can take a picture?" And this is what she did! Hilarious! And I have a vision of what all her school pictures are going to look like...

While I was at Ikea I happened to stumble upon this gem...

 What child doesn't need at chalkboard?! And for $15?! Money.

One side for chalk and the other for dry erase

a tray for supplies

AND a roll of paper...genius!

PS what a fun birthday gift this would be, right? And I for sure plan on painting the fun out of this bad boy. Let's see here...I mean M is going to paint the fun outta this. Kidding! I'm going to take charge of the easel... he's got the table and chairs to worry about... ;)

PS Don't forget to enter the giveaway!