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!

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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!