Halloween Costumes

Fall is fun! And with Fall comes Halloween and a big part of Halloween is, of course, the costume.

Costumes can be tricky. You need to find that perfect balance between fun and festival and functional. You also have to decide how much you want to spend or how much work you want to put into the costume. First Halloweens are pretty easy since you, as the parent, are pretty much in complete control over your kid's costume. Client One was a ladybug for her first Halloween. It was cute and adorable. She really didn't use it much, though, but it made for some cute pictures. The only other time I think she wore it was when we went trick-or-treating to each of her grandparents' houses. (Yep, she only wore it to two houses!)

The second Halloween can be a bit trickier. Client One was around 18 months old for her second Halloween, so she was starting to develop her own little opinions about things. She liked things that sparkled and one step into Dollar Tree that year and she knew what she wanted to be: a fairy. She spotted a pair of sparkly purple wings with a matching wand and crown and nothing else would do. We paired them with a hand-me-down costume from my cousin for a cute little fairy costume. (You can't beat only spending $3 on a costume!) The costume got more wear that year, too. We hit up a couple of fall festivals with some friends and started our yearly tradition of Boo in the Zoo (which remains our favorite event to date). Even though we lived in an apartment, we also did a little trick-or-treating in a near-by neighborhood. Once Halloween was over, the fairy dress got added to the slowly growing dress-up collection and still gets worn to this day!

Now, last year, Client One's third Halloween, she was full-on into dress-up so she knew a thing or two about costumes. She had gotten a pretty nice Cinderella dress over the summer, so I was planning on that being her costume, but that was before her best friend decided to be the Big Bad Wolf. And what would a cute little two year old be when her best friend is the Big Bad Wolf? Little Red Riding Hood, of course! They made the cutest little duo at all the festivals and events we hit up that year. We even did a super adorable photo shoot with the two of them! They were a hit! In addition to all the fun trunk-or-treats and other events we went trick-or-treating in our very own neighborhood since that was the first fall in our new house. We didn't go to a ton of houses, but it was enough to assemble a decent haul of candy! This costume also still gets used constantly as dress-up clothes.

This year, Client One was going to come up with her costume all her own. At first, she wanted to be Bubbles from the Powerpuff Girls. (Major facepalm moment there.) I was going to just throw her hair up in pigtails and make her a blue dress out of a large t-shirt and blue duct tape. Then, thankfully, she started thinking up other ideas which included a bunny, a princess, Batman and a cat. Then, we were looking through the dollar section at Target and we found a pair of pink cat ears with a hint of sparkle and she was sold. She was going to be a pink cat. I simply paired a pink dance leotard with pink tights for the cat look she wanted and completed the look with a little facepaint, the ears, and a tutu from the Dollar Tree I got her some pink leg warmers for her arms should it get chilly. We were set. Then her October Citrus Lane box came and it had a pink cape in it. As she loved super heroes, she decided to incorporate the cape and become a pink super kitty. She is definitely easy to pick out of a crowd! We still have a few events left to go to, but her costume is definitely getting some wear this year!

This year was, of course, Client Two's first Halloween and my first Halloween with two kids in tow. At first I debated making both clients costumes coordinate. I thought Batman (Client One) and Robin (Client Two) would be cute. Then, Client One decided to be a cat, so I thought Client Two should be a puppy. But I didn't want to spend a lot of money on a costume that wouldn't get much use, so I started looking at Hoodies that could double as a costume. That's when I found a cute little dragon outfit from Crazy 8. I got it a little big so Client Two can wear it all fall, winter and maybe even into the spring. They were also having a sale when I bought it and I had a coupon so I got it at a pretty good deal. I topped the outfit off with some cute slipper socks from Target and we had a bundle of adorable on our hands!

So, Halloween is here! Or, well, it will be in just a couple of days. My clients are ready to go! I might throw on a pair of black cat ears and some black clothes and go as a black cat (Client One's request), but no matter what I do, I know we will have fun!

Don't miss a thing! Like my page on Facebook!

Citrus Lane- October Boxes

Another month brings yet another Citrus Lane box! (Read more about Citrus Lane here.) This month, Citrus Lane decorated their boxes with a little pink to bring attention to breast cancer awareness since October is considered Breast Cancer Awareness month. They also had some fun pink moustaches on their boxes to bring attention to men's health. We had some fun with those moustaches!

The content of the boxes was just as fun. This month, we actually got an extra box at a good deal. I put the age between the ages of Client One and Client Two so they can share the box and so I could set some of the items aside for Christmas.

The extra box included a cute pair of cupcake leg warmers from Oh La Leggies, a set of mini maracas and two story sets from Janod. Client One opened up the box and instantly loved the maracas. In fact, they distracted her well enough that I was able to sneak the cute story sets out and put them away for Christmas. I figure each Client will get one with their stocking.

20 month girl box. Sign up here!

Client One's box was a big hit! In fact, I think this just might be the best box we've received yet! Her box included a larger set of maracas, a pink super hero cape, a snack by Annie's and some fun dominos from Janod.

3.5 year old girl box. Sign up now!

The pink cape was definitely Client One's favorite thing from the box. She had to put it one right away. It's pretty good quality, too. I can see this cape getting a lot of use. I love, too, that it will add to imaginative play, since that is what Client One is really into right now.

The second best thing in the box, and probably my favorite thing would be these dominos. They are nice and large cardboard pieces. One side has the traditional number dots with a colorful background. The other side has different animals. Shortly after receiving her box, Client One insisted on playing the game. After helping her through one round of the game, she was able to play the second round pretty much by herself. These were spot-on for her age and they are something that she will be able to play with without outgrowing for years.

Playing with her dominos.

What kid doesn't love maracas? I like these because they are not super loud so she can play with them without driving me crazy. They are also pretty sturdy so they're no going to be breaking any time soon. They're pretty easy to hold, too. Even Client Two had some fun with them!

And, of course, we can't forget the snack! We love Annie's snacks! They are tasty and all-natural. Client One can eat them without getting all crazy because there is no artificial food dye. The snack also included a coupon for more snacks that will most assuredly get used in the very near future.

Client Two also enjoyed his box. I'll be honest, when I saw spoilers for this box, I was a little disappointed. It didn't look like much and the value was barely there. But then the box arrived. As soon as I opened up the box, Client Two's eyes lit up and he got super excited. His excitement got me excited and now I love the box! His box included a cage bell toy, a "My First Football" from North American Bear Co., a book, and a couple of small samples of baby products.

8 Month Boy Box Sign up here!

The cage bell was Client Two's favorite item by far. He couldn't wait to grab it out of the box and then he sat there playing with it for a good ten minutes. He laughed and laughed as he shook it. It terrified the kitties (which was just fun) and amused the baby. Two thumbs up on this toy!

The book is super cute. And it's a board book, so it will survive a teething Client Two. The illustrations were nice and bright and help his attention. Plus, it's a nice "boy" book which will offset the ever growing princess book collection nicely! We are a book family. Pretty much every room on our house has books. Everywhere you look- books. So, we always appreciate a new book! All in all a pretty decent treat.

The football is actually pretty cute. We are NOT a football family so I just wasn't excited about it. I do love the company. We have many items from the North American Bear Co. so I know that it is great quality. Client Two had little interest it except to giggle when I threw it in the air. I'm keeping it around for awhile to see if it catches his interest at a later date. If not, it will probably be nice gift for someone.

And then there were the little samples, both by Weleda. It's a company I've never really used since they are more expensive, so I'm glad I get the chance to try them out. One sample is a shampoo and the other a diaper cream. They are clearly only good for one use but I'll toss them in the diaper bag to save for an emergency. Personally, I just love the little bag they came in! 

At the end of the day, I think Citrus Lane put together some great boxes this month. They were definitely a hot with my clients! Don't forget, you can get a monthly box for your kiddo, too! Just click here. You can try one month at half-price through that link and then cancel if you find that Citrus Lane just isn't your thing. Canceling can be done online or over the phone and is pretty easy to do. Sometimes they will even offer you a great deal to stick around! We love Citrus Lane, as these smiles can prove!

Citrus Lane

Sleep Training

Client One is out of town this weekend. She left with my mom and went to Atlanta to visit with a couple of her Great Aunts. This is the first time she has ever gone out of town over night without me. In many ways, it is liberating. I'm back to being able to concentrate on only one child. Client Two is getting lots of extra Mommy attention. I'm actually getting some stuff done when he's napping, too, since I don't have to entertain Client One or feed her or (even better) clean up after her. But I miss that little booger, too. As ornery and exhausting as she can be, she's fun and cute. She also helps me out with Client Two, despite the fact that's she's only three. Some days we're just one "Keep on eye on your brother" away from a Supernatural episode. Okay, it's not that bad, but she does help to entertain him when I'm fixing lunch or using the restroom. The house is definitely quieter.

I'm taking advantage of the opportunity to sleep train Client Two. While they do not share a room, there is only a thin wall between Client One's room and Client Two's room and their doors face each other. Client One is a light sleeper, so letting Client Two cry for any extended period of time is sure to wake her up. She also tends to get very concerned about her little brother when he cries so even letting him cry it out when she's not trying to sleep doesn't work. She actually paces outside his door with a worried look on her little face. It's actually pretty cute.

Last night was her first night away and our first attempt at sleep training. I let Client Two cry for five minutes, then I went in and calmed him down without picking him up. Then I let him go 10 minutes. Then 15. Then 20. And so on and so on until it had been about an hour and a half. Then, I went in and rocked him for about two minutes and he fell asleep. Normally he would wake up an hour or so after going down, but last night he actually slept for about 3 hours solid. He only woke up twice, too, which is pretty much a record here recently.

I continued the sleep training to nap time today. His first nap went pretty smoothly but he was pretty tired. His afternoon nap was a different story. He cried for about an hour with me going in twice before I finally gave up and rocked my sweet boy to sleep. 

Tonight was night number two. I resolved to let him cry for 30 minutes before going in. He definitely had less gusto than last night. Last night he stood most of the time, screaming as loud as he could. Tonight he sat, mostly leaning against the side of his crib, crying and whimpering rather than screaming.The gaps between his crying got longer and longer and right as I was about to go in, he stopped. After a couple of minutes of silence, I poked my head into his room. He was sprawled out on his stomach but he was dead asleep. (And breathing. I checked!) I did a happy dance out of his room.

I remember sleep training Client One and it was a pain. Of course, we lived in an apartment so I was a little worried about waking the neighbors. I also was working with Client One and had to be up at 5:00 am so I had less endurance. She cried and cried and cried. One night it went on for over two hours. It was stressful. It was a little easier with Client Two. I love having the video monitor. It put my mind at ease that he wasn't hurt and just sleepy.

Client One will be out of town for one more night. I'm hoping tomorrow goes even smoother and we will be done!

Missing Those Toddler Years

I may be the only person in the whole wide world that loves the toddler years. I actually miss the time when Client One was two. I miss her being 18 months old. I loved those crazy times. Yes, Client One went through the so-called "terrible twos," but now that she's going through the treacherous threes (I don't if that's a real thing, but it should be) I appreciate those toddlers years even more. I mean, look at how adorable she was!

Granted, she's still this adorable, but there's just something extra special about those first couple of years. One thing I love is how toddlers are still learning about their world. There's still that bit of curiosity and every little thing is amazing. I loved watching Client One's eyes light up with every new discovery. I also loved the fact that while toddlers are growing up and becoming more independent and assertive they still have that baby-like quality about them. Client One could speak fairly distinctly by age two but she still had cutesy little terms for many things. She stumbled over words in the most adorable little ways. Now that she's a preschooler, a lot of that babyness is gone. She seems all grown up now. That perfect mix of innocence and independence is gone in favor of independence. Now, she has to do everything herself, even if it takes ten extra minutes. Leaving the house in a timely fashion is nigh unto impossible. She has to climb up into the car all on her own and buckle herself all on her own and if she can't get it done on her own, we have a breakdown on our hands. Let me tell you, breakdowns at age three are no where near as cute as they were when she was a toddler.

Yes, the toddler years can be frustrating, but the preschooler years are proving to be more of a challenge. Client One definitely knows how to test my patience. Toddlers might disobey a little bit and push the limits but preschoolers deliberately go out of their way to be as bad as possible. Client One is an expert at finding new ways to make me go crazy. She's really good at it. And she can run a lot faster than she could a year or so ago. This brings a new challenge to wrangling her for anything. And we won't even discuss the ever changing palette of a three-year-old. I would love to know what made her decide that cheese on pizza is gross but the cheese stick in her friend's lunch is a must-have. I now am beginning to understand why some animals eat their young, Preschoolers are exhausting. Truly exhausting. But I love her.

I really sit back and marvel at how grown-up Client One seems now. She's potty trained (hallelujah!) and that makes my life a lot easier, but now she's even able to go to the bathroom with little or no help. She also used to insist on snuggles every night at bedtime and would not go to sleep without me lying next to her. Yes, at the time I found it exasperating, but now, I kind of miss those snuggles. She doesn't feel the need to hold my hand as often and while she enjoys the occasional snuggle, she's more content to play and sit on her own. She has opinions on everything and it is getting harder and harder to influence her every decision. She can even order her own frappuccino at Starbucks. Every day she needs me a little less. In many ways, I miss my little girl, though I'm equally proud of the bigger girl she's becoming.

And now, Client Two is on the brink of becoming a toddler. He has yet to utter a real word, but it's coming. And he's crawling like a pro and even standing a bit. Soon he will be walking. Soon he will be a full-blown toddler. I feel as if his babyhood is almost at an end and that makes me a little sad as well. You know, it's been said that the years are short but the days are long and it's so true. Time passes too quickly. My babies are growing up faster than I can keep track and I love and hate it all at the same time.

My Parenting Pet Peeve

Okay, it's time for a mini rant about one of those things that does not really matter. It's just one of those parenting pet peeves that drives me crazy even though it probably shouldn't. In fact, probably a good half of the people reading this are guilty. I hate it when parents refer to their kids' age by months after about the first year.

For that first year of life your child has nothing but days, weeks and months adding up his age. You start the super fun countdowns keeping track of how long you've kept the sweet bundle alive. Days turn to weeks and weeks into months. You post those happy pictures like this:

And that's all well and good. And thanks to Pinterest and other social media networks you probably get caught up in taking the sweet monthly picture like these to keep track of your baby's development:

But then your little darling turns a year old. You did it! You survived that first year! Congratulations are in order! Now stop referring to your child's age by the month. Okay, I'll maybe give you a break on a three-month breakdown at first. At that early age many things are divided up developmentally by three months. I'll grit my teeth and let you call your baby 15 months old. (I'm pretty sure I had pictures taken of Client One at 15 months, but I still thought I was being ridiculous.) I'll give you a full pass on 18 months. After all, there is a clothing size labeled 18 months and a bunch of milestones broken down at 18 months. I'll even let you squeak by labeling major milestones by the exact month (like first words or steps). But that's all you get. And once your child hits two, your month to month countdown is officially over. Your child is not 24 months old. He is two. If you really need more of a breakdown go by half years. Your child is two-and-a-half. I have referred to Client One as being "almost three" or saying "she will be four in May" to help give people a more exact idea of her age when necessary. And. let's face it, using months after age three is just obnoxious. Why say your child is 36 months old? That's just asking people to do math and everyone knows that unnecessary math is just pure evil. Your child is three or three-and-a-half or almost four. Any further monthly breakdown is ridiculous! Ridiculous I say!

Okay, I know if you do the month by month age you have your excuses. Some of them may even be valid. I guess, in medical situations an exact age might be needed, but in general, everyday circumstances I don't care. Nobody cares. Half the time when people ask your kid's age they're just making small talk and attempting to feign a basic level of interest in you and your child. You give them a month breakdown and they've just stopped listening to you. But, I know my words are wasted. You're  probably going to keep saying your three-year-old is 39 months old and it's still going to drive me crazy. But please, no matter the legitimacy behind your reasoning, just stop. No, I said stop. Well, at least stop around me. Thanks.

My Christmas Stash

Only 81 days until Christmas!!!!

I know. I know. It's barely October and here I am talking about Christmas. Hold your snowballs. Trust me, we don't start celebrating Christmas until after Thanksgiving. That's the rule in our house. (But once Thanksgiving comes, all bets are off and we go all out!) Whenever I walk into a store and see a massive Christmas section, I start off on my "It's not even Halloween yet" rant. But I do start my Christmas shopping early to get as many great deals as I can. I'm aware that the idea of Christmas shopping is something that makes most people want to hide in a deep, dark corner until Christmas has passed. I, however, look forward to everything Christmas and that includes shopping. Of course, by the time Christmas actually arrives my shopping has been done for weeks. I know, you hate me, right?

When I say my Christmas shopping starts early, I mean I am almost done. Well, I'm almost done shopping for my clients, anyhow. I'll need to pick up presents for other family members closer to Christmas since for some of them we actually draw names. I decided a couple of months ago that I wanted to replace all the old, moldy bath toys at Christmas. Most of those toys have been hanging around since Client One was a baby! I've recently discovered Boon bath toys and I love them. I've been accumulating these toys little by little and adding them to my stash. Since I now own just about every toy may by Boon (including the Frog Pod to store the toys in) I think we're good.

In addition to all the awesome bath toys, I've also managed to stash away a few other small gifts that will mostly be used as stocking stuffers. These include Ouchies, books, crayons, coloring books and fun little things like that. I also managed to snag a cute pink tool set by Green Toys for Client One as one of her main gifts. Now, I just need a main gift for Client Two and maybe a couple more stocking stuffers. The best part of my collection is that I barely paid anything. Most of these items came from deals with Citrus Lane and many were free with credits and codes. A few other things I've picked up at clearance sales at Barnes and Noble and Target. Of course, when all the big Christmas sales start up I'll be tempted to add an item or two to their Christmas lists. 

I also have a few little gifts stashed away for other people. Not big gifts, but those kinds of gifts that you give away to teachers and friends. I stocked up on many of these things at the after Christmas sales last year. I have a decent supply of candles and candle holders, all with a Christmas theme, and some little candy tins to fill with homemade goodies. I always keep my eye out for good deals on great little gift items throughout the year as well and add them to my stash. Pretty much any time I am in any store I check out the clearance sections and start buying up little things to store away for gifts. My stash closet is practically overflowing. It drives Hubby crazy! But I like the fact that I can give people decent gifts without going broke.

Christmas is coming, ready or not! I can't wait! Honestly, it needs to come quickly or I will find more and more things to buy! My poor closet can't hold much more! I've planned ahead and it's going to be great!