A {One}derful Birthday Weekend

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Long post alert!

My baby is ONE!  How did this happen?  His birthday was Friday the 13th this year (kinda rad, I think) and I took the day off of work so we could spend the day as a family celebrating our sweet boy.  We drove up to Avila Valley Barn, about an hour away, and had the best time!  Ayden got to meet and feed lots of animals.  He got a kick out of the goats and one patient goat even let him yank on his ear.

Avila Valley Barn is an adorable spot and has a beautiful market full of local honey and produce, fresh pies and bakery items and lots of fun trinkets like vintage-style kitchen stuff and kids' books.  Also on-site is a deli/bakery/candy and ice cream shoppe.  After feeding the animals we ordered lunch from the deli and sat outside watching the farmer drive the tractor along the fields, which Ayden totally loved.  Lunch was so yummy and Ayden enjoyed sharing my caprese sandwich with me.

We're the parents that let their kid stick his hands in the goat pen.

After lunch we decided to hit the road and work our way back south.  We stopped in Los Olivos at Enjoy Cupcakes and got Ayden his very first cupcake for his birthday.  :)  Outside the shoppe was the cutest little picnic bench that was just his size.  He looked so darn cute sitting there like a big boy chowing down on his cupcake!  He threw the frosting on the ground but definitely liked the cake part.

On Saturday we had a little party for him at Steven's Park.  It was a gorgeous day out and even though he was a no-nap-ninja he had fun playing on the playground with his friends.  He was pretty pooped out by presents time, so Momma got to do most of the un-wrapping ;)

Party details

We didn't really have a "theme," per se, but kept everything green and blue.  I'm a sucker for the little details, so I had fun with the little things.  I put together some simple favor bags for the kiddos: glow stick necklaces and mini bubbles for all, superhero bandaids for the boys, princess mini purses for the girls, and for the older girl I found some mini nail polishes and damage-free hair ties.  The bags were finished off with green and white kitchen twine and personalized thank you tags.

Dessert was provided by Enjoy Cupcakes and we had three cuppie flavors: chocolate with cream cheese frosting, raspberry cheesecake and mini salted caramel.  They were a hit all around!  Lunch was chicken, tri-tip, rice and beans from Chicken Ranch and I grabbed a big fruit salad from Whole Foods.  (Ya like how I listed dessert first??  ha!)

I made a little smash cake for A, (recipe here) and made a basic buttercream frosting which I tinted blue with a couple drops of food tint gel.  Although he loved his cupcake the day before, he gagged on the frosting on his smash cake and then was over it.  Womp.  Apparently Momma's bakery isn't as good as the pros. My favorite cake detail was the adorable cake topper I got from Alexis Mattox Design.  It's too beautiful to toss, so I'm going to keep it in his baby book.

We had such a great weekend celebrating our sweet boy.  I can't believe he is already a whole year old.  I cried my eyes out tucking him into bed on the eve of his birthday but surprisingly was okay on his actual birthday.  We are so proud of our sweet, inquisitive boy and are excited to see what the next year brings.

Happy birthday, Ayden Lucas.  You are the light of our lives.  We love you more than all the stars in the sky.





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{MOM}ents: Top Ten New Mom Faves & Must-Haves

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Since I can't pass up an opportunity to talk about baby stuff these days, and since we have several friends who are expecting (YAY!) or have new babes, I thought I'd share some of our favorite baby products here.  There's no shortage of stuff out there that promises to be "the best" of something in its category, and I found it quite overwhelming when we were putting together our registry.  Hopefully this list of some of our favorite items will be helpful for other newbies out there who are standing in Babies R Us wishing they could disappear in to the floor like we were.  These are in no particular order and all opinions are my own.


1. Swaddle Pods by Summer Infant:  These were an absolute life saver for the first three months.  We were anything but pro swaddlers in the beginning and even after we got somewhat good at it, HoudiniAyden would bust his arms out and wake himself up with his flying fists of fury (aka: the Moro reflex).  For us, the simple zip up feature was much easier than the velcro counterparts available and made for a quick swaddle alternative.  Ayden felt nice and secure and slept so soundly!

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2. Space Saver Cradle Swing by Fisher Price:  Another life saver!  A swing is a must with a newborn, but so many of the swings we saw were designed to take up half of our living room.  The Space Saver is much smaller and very lightweight, which was a plus for carting it up and down the stairs.  It features optional music or nature sounds, has several speeds to choose from and the seat is adjustable to swing either side-to-side or facing forward.  My sweet bug still naps in his swing, and he's 11 months old!  This is by far one of the best gifts we received.

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3.  Wubbanub pacifier:  The cutest solution for babies who like to spit out their binky and then cry about it.  These pacifiers have a plush animal attached to them, keeping them in place on your baby's chest in the event they spit it out.  There are several animals to choose from (how stinkin' cute is the elephant?!) and Ayden loooooves his monkey.  The added animal also makes them easy to find in overstuffed diaper bags.

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4.  Kelly Moore Diaper/Camera Bag:  Oh how I love my Kelly Moore bag.  These beautiful bags were designed by a photographer mom who was tired of carrying a diaper bag, camera bag and purse just to get out of the house each day.  Her bags can be used with or without the internal "basket", which features removable/customizable velcro inserts.  There are numerous styles and colors to choose from, and even collections for the men in your life.  I have the Songbird in their gorgeous cobalt blue:

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5.  Aden + Anais Swaddle Blankets:  Yes, these are worth the hype!  These lightweight muslin blankets (also available in organic cotton or bamboo) are not only warm but generously sized and make swaddling SO much easier, especially for sleep-deprived newbie parents.  Even though we are past the swaddling days, we still get tons of use out of these blankets.  They are great to use as carseat/stroller covers, burp cloths, picnic/play blankets, tummy time blankets, etc.  I've even known of people who wear them as scarves!

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6.  Honest Company wipes:  We love all things Honest Co., and their wipes are amazing.  They're thick and strong, and free of all the nasty things like soaps, fragrances and dyes that are found in many other wipes on the market.  We tried several other wipes and all of them gave my little angel a horrible rash, even the ones labeled for sensitive skin!  These wipes are great for wiping dirty little hands and faces, too.

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7.  Honest Company Stain Remover: WORTH ITS WEIGHT IN GOLD.  No joke.  And it smells like fresh lavender!  Let's be real.  Newborns are notorious for blowouts.  And those blowouts wreak havoc on cute little outfits.  This stain remover is amazzzzzing and got out even the worst stains my mini man could produce (HOW does something so tiny produce such an explosion?!)  Buy it.  Buy it by the gallon.

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8.  Ergo "360" Baby Carrier:  This handy contraption is a welcome break for tired arms!  "360" refers to the fact that this carrier can be worn as a front or back carry as well as hip carry.  I found that the wraps and slings that are so popular these days were far too cumbersome and complicated to use (WHY on Earth is the Moby so long?!)  The Ergo 360 makes shopping, walking, even cooking so much easier when you have a babe who just wants to be held.  There's an available infant insert for use when baby is 12 pounds and under.

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9. BOB Revolution SE Stroller:  The BOB rocks!  It rides so smooth it practically glides but is rugged enough for hiking trails .  The SE features a lockable swivel front wheel, which makes navigation much easier.  Carseat adapters are available for the major carseat brands, which is super convenient for when baby falls asleep in the car!

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10.  My Brest Friend Nursing Pillow:  Worth every penny, truly.  I was all excited to buy the Boppy, but as it turns out, the Boppy is less than ideal for breastfeeding (it was originally designed to aide babies in sitting up).  The rounded shape of the Boppy caused Ayden to face plant when he was trying to nurse and the darn thing kept scooting away from me.  I learned of the Brest Friend at a breastfeeding class at our local hospital.  The Brest Friend is designed specifically for breastfeeding.  The pillow is made of firm foam and features an anchoring belt that keeps it in place while nursing.  It is flat, so keeps baby in proper posture for breastfeeding.  I was even able to nurse Ayden while walking around the house when wearing this.  A great find!  (There is also a Brest Friend designed for tandem nursing twins.)

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So there you have it!  There are many more great products that we have found along the way, but these were definitely the most helpful.  Feel free to shoot me an email for more in-depth info!

XO!