Houston we have a problem.

I had one of those mornings last week. You know the one where you're like... did this really happen to me just now?

Why yes, Becky, it did.

Let's do a little recap, shall we.

Last week, one of my best friends texts me the night before to tell me that she was leaving the next day to move to Switzerland {yes, I just said Switzerland...Don't ask}. Mind you, I know that this is happening {just didn't realize it was this soon}, and I am at work when I receive this text.

So what does a desperate friend do when they absolutely need to see their friend before she leaves this country {I still have not come to terms with this}... why, she makes a breakfast date. What else.

Okay. Lets fast forward to 730 am. I get off work. I had texted the husband the night before "things to bring," and I put my trust in him that he would come through.

"wallet with my license and credit card {because I don't carry this on me at work}

Elliana's breakfast {because I don't allow her to eat junk..99% of the time}

Elliana's coat, hat, and gloves {because husband would just have a blanket on her otherwise}

Makeup {need I explain? 12 hours is a long time}

Dress her cute! {remember this one}"

Okay. It's 745 now. I get a phone call from the husband... and it goes something like this:

"F#$% da#$ sh@#... this outfit is going crazy."

and then he hangs up.

Um. Reminder. Husband leaves the house at 730 to come meet me, otherwise he would be late for work. Reminder number two. It is now 745. Reminder number 3... he is still dealing with "outfit."

And did he really just say.... the outfit is going crazy?

My poor child. That was my first thought. My second thought was... seriously Andrew, seriously?

So eventually he arrives. All the stuff is there. The baby looks happy. She's dressed warm. Her pants look cute, and so do her shoes. Although they wouldn't be the two I would put together, but he gets an A for effort {why do people even say that}. 

I quickly spruce myself up {to the best of my ability for being awake for 24 hours}, and head on my way.

Now. When I arrive to the restaurant and go in the backseat to take Elliana out... I notice something peculiar.

Her shirt. Identical to her pants. 

Now listen closely. I don't want you to get confused. I may have to draw a picture, but just hold up and take note.

Elliana has these two outfits by nicole miller {love her baby girl clothes}. One outfit is a blue top with white pants with gold polka-dots all over them. Another one {again, made by the same person} with a white shirt with gold polka-dots all over them and blue pants to match.

Perfect combo. Perfect outfits. Absolutely my favorite.

Well what does my husband do? He puts the white pants with the white shirts WITH GOLD POLKA-DOTS ALL OVER together on her.  And a gold bow.

So here I am walking in with a child that looks like she got hit with the gold paintball gun 100 too many times. A walking gold-polka dot baby doll. A huge eye sore is what it was.

And to think.... that these people in this public restaurant actually thought that I dressed her. I wanted to put a big sign around her neck. So people would know. {It wasn't ME}

And let's not even talk about what happened toward the end of breakfast. You don't even want to know. I won't even go there.

Fine. I'll go there. My child went crazy. I mean, crazy crazy. Flinging head back, arching her back, screaming. That kind of crazy. I was utterly mortified. Never have I seen her act like this. Ever. And here she is doing this in public?

For the love of khfksjfjienk@#@%@$.

I grabbed her jacket so quickly... sorry friend... I have to run. And ran out the door. My friend following behind me.

I get that it was her nap time, but seriously, was it necessary to act that way? I am scarred. Very much so.

Let's just say... my head was spinning by 10am and I vow to never do that again....

That is until my next best friend decides to move to Africa.

Mama's Favorites

Just some of my favorite things that have helped me survive motherhood. I swear by these products... and I would recommend them in a heartbeat. If you have any additional questions, leave a comment!

1. Waterproof bibs  {Awesome. More than awesome. You can wash these in the sink after every meal. No need to do laundry. They are large, so cover lots of surface area. And best of all? They catch the "drifters" before landing on the pants. The pockets are truly a lifesaver!  2. Munchkin shampoo rinser {Do I want to hit my daughter in the head every time I wash her head? Of course not. Therefore, this thing is key. I honestly didn't even discover it until I threw a friend of mine a baby shower and she was gifted this. Where on earth had I been? I quickly purchased it days later}  3. Straw sippy cups {Elliana loves these. But I am convinced that I love them even more, simply due to the fact that she looks like such a big girl drinking out of them. That, and the fact that they are completely spill-proof! Double bonus}

4. Avent double electric breast pump {I used this pump for a year with not a single problem. Ever. It was so easy to use. Easy to clean the parts. Easy to assemble. And came with a cute little {not so litter} tote! And? I could pump about 8 ounces in less than 10 minutes! Glorious} 5. Avent bottles {Perhaps this is due to the fact that I had an advent breast pump, but regardless, I have loved these bottles. I have never had issues, and would therefore put my name to them. I would recommend however to buy an assortment of bottles, mainly 4 ounce bottles, a couple of 6 ounce, and maybe 1 or 2 9 ounces} 6. Lansinoh milk storage bags {aside from a few bags that would leak, 99% of the time, I had no issues. And believe me, I stored a whole lot of milk. I always purchased mine through amazon, cheaper, free shipping, and no taxes!}

7. Halo Sleep sacks {No blankets in crib? No problem. These are the solution. These pictures are some velcro ones, which we had a couple of those, however, I recommend the zipper kind that let their arms free. Elliana never liked having her arms enclosed. Plus, most babies outgrow those. The zipper ones are awesome. Guaranteed my baby wouldn't freeze nor suffocate.  8. Snuza {If you are late to the Snuza party, rest assured it is the greatest product out there. Hands down. I put my name all across it. It is a device that monitors your baby's breathing/movement and alarms when either is not detected. Even though you do go through some false alarms, they are totally worth it knowing that there is something out there watching your baby as you sleep. Costs about 100 dollars, but again, worth every penny.  9. Angel Care Monitor  {Me. Being the paranoid, crazy, over-protective mama that I am.... I also purchased this as well as the Snuza. I needed double protection. This product however goes underneath the mattress and also detects movement. It also serves as a monitor and detects the temperature in the room so that your baby does not get overly heated. Again, highly recommend}.

10. Receiving Blankets {I'm pretty sure everyone has this on their list. But my thing is, invest in at least 4 packs. 16 blankets. At the beginning of motherhood? Believe me, you will use every one of those. Over and over again.} 11.  Walker {I LOVE this toy, But why do I even matter? The more important person here is Elliana who is obsessed with this toy. It lights up. It sings. It teaches her. It does all sorts of great things.} 12. Learning Toy {Again. Another toy that I think is awesome for kiddos. Elliana spends lots of time on this thing, and it teaches her colors, numbers, spanish, sings songs, etc}.

13. Moby Wrap {I would have never survived the first couple of months of motherhood without this thing. Okay, maybe a bit exaggerated, but honestly, this thing is awesome if you have a baby that is attached to you like mine was. I did dishes with her in it, I did laundry, walks, naps. You name it. We did it. I used it up until she was about 5-6 months old. And yes, husband gamed with her in it. He also would highly recommend it} 14. Swing {Our first few weeks of life revolved around this thing and our chest. Why? Because our baby never slept in her sleeper right away. She took lots of naps in this thing as well. I do have to say though, after about month 5? They are totally over it. It's been in storage since}  15.  Organic Cereal {I'm not a big organic person, but I have definitely been trying a lot with my daughter. And I have to say that this stuff is awesome. She loves it. She has had it for breakfast every day for 7 months now. It runs about 3.50 per bag at wal-mart. I usually pick up 7 bags at a time}

16. Cabinet Lock {I've always been against too much baby-proofing, for us, that is. Mainly because I didn't want my house to look like a kid-war-zone. However, after much debate, this thing was much needed when my daughter  constantly kept getting into the cabinets that had the chemicals in it. And ever since we put this bad boy on? She's totally over it. It's so easy to install, no drilling or tools involved, and easy to use. Even I, the idiot brain, totally figured it out}17. Baby Gate {this thing is life proof. Seriously. You need a gate? Get this. Why am I so confident? Because we have gone through 2 gates prior, both sucking, 50 dollars later {Each}, and we finally found on that was 1. super easy to install and 2. totally baby proof. She shakes that thing like shes in a jail cell. Love it. Can't get in, or out.} 18.Carbon Monoxide Detector {Well. Mama fail. It only took me 1 year to purchase one of these bad boys, but seriously, I totally forgot this was on the "need" list of mothers. I purchased it. Off amazon {per link}, and of course it was 50% off. The reviews were amazing, and I totally see why. It's wireless so you can put it anywhere, and it's user friendly. So far? No false alarms.}

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Any product out there that you swear by?! Please share!

What I hope for...

I won't call them goals.
Or resolutions.
Or dreams.

They will be called...

Hope.

Things I hope for. What I hope for myself.
My family. My marriage. My daughter.
And my future.

Because in reality... you don't always get what you dream for.
Everything doesn't get checked off the to-do list.
And no one ever truly reaches perfection.

So hope it is.
I hope this will happen in 2012.
I hope that I will have the strength to work hard for my dreams.
And I hope to continue to grow in this role that I have created.
As a wife. And as a mother.

So what exactly do I hope for?

1. Health. Number one. As soon as a became a mother, I realized that I want to stick around this earth for as long as possible. I want to watch her grow. Watch her learn. Discover with her. Teach her. And create memories full of laughter, love, and joy. I hope that God will continue to provide good health to not only myself, but my daughter and husband. Those two are my world. They are a part of my heart and every piece of my soul. I would not, and could not, be who I am today without them.

Number one. I hope for health.

2. Guidance. I hope to start back into the church. I really struggle with this as I have made so many promises to myself that this is the year. And yet, I failed again. I hope that this won't be a repeat of the last. That I will get myself and my family back into a place that I feel like we belong. Somewhere that brings us even more closer together and closer to the One person that brought us together.

3. Patience. This seems like something I always hope for year after year, but never really put enough effort into. But I NEED to work on this. It's no longer a "if I have time" type deal. It is a must. I need to learn to be more patient with my husband and others that are a part of my life. I need to hope to find that inner strength to just let things go that are not so important in life.

I need this to be the year for patience. I hope this is the year.

4. Peace. I hope to find peace with the things that happen in life. To not get angry. Frustrated. Or ask the questions why? I hope to just appreciate what I do have and forget about what I don't have. I need peace this year. I need to be reminded that all things happen for a reason. 


Be at peace with that. I hope that I can do this.

5. Appreciate. I want to show my husband how much I love him. Really love him. How much I appreciate all that he does for me and for our daughter. How much I adore him. Admire him. And look up to him. Marriage is not a cake in the park. Not at all. But marriage is wonderful. Amazing. One of the most beautiful things in life {next to having children}... and I want to show my husband that. I hope to be the wife that I have always dreamt of being. I hope that this year I can do things with my husband. Learn to laugh with him like we are teenage kids. Find a hobby to do together. And really enjoy each other's company.

Above all else. Appreciate him as a husband.

6. Grow. This is huge for me. Every year I want to be better. Grow, not only as a wife, but now as a mother. I want to be the best mother out there. But I know that that isn't possible. So at the very least, I want to grow in my role as a mother. I want to do more with my daughter. I want to create activities that only her and I can do together. I want to teach her more. Show her the world more. Give her every taste, vision, and scent of the beautiful life around us. And I want to be a part of it. Every step of the way. I hope to sign up for swim classes with her. I want to take her to the zoo. I want to go outside with her every day. Make it a priority to teach her more Russian.

I hope I can continue to grow in this role that I have been blessed with.

7. Prioritize. This I have struggled with all year long. I hope to learn how to prioritize my time better. Be more effective with all the hours of the day that are given with me. Learn the balance between motherhood, marriage, career, and personal life. I need things to balance out. Less time spent on the social media aspect, and more time spent creating memories with my family. I know I already do this... but I need to work harder at this. Make it a priority. Make it number one always. So that erin condren life planner? The calendar on my fridge? All better go to good use.

I hope to learn how to balance all the important aspects of my life.

8. Acknowledge. Things that can no longer be ignored. Such as my teeth. This goes with number one. But I need to make it a priority as well. I hate the dentist. Cringe going to the dentist. Won't step foot into a dentists office. Until I absolutely need to. And this time around? I absolutely need to. I have a chipped molar from when I was pregnant with Elliana {thanks pregnanacy}, and I need to get that fixed soon. No ifs or buts.

No hope. This is a must.

9. Eat Right. This is very important to me. I feel like 2011 has been a huge year for my family and myself in this aspect. We have done really well with eating healthier, eating more organic and natural foods, and really watching what we put into our bodies. However, we are not perfect nor do we strive to be. I don't want to be perfect. I don't want to be organic 24/7. I don't want to be a "I can't eat that because it has this or that in it." I don't want nor do I need that.

However I do need to continue to learn more, read more, research as much as possible, and continue learning how to cook the healthiest meals possible for my family.

I was never a chef. Never stepped foot in the kitchen. And now? I cook 4-5 dinners a day, all lunches, and make breakfast for my daughter.

2011 was huge for me in the kitchen department. But I hope 2012 will be even bigger.

10. Expand. I hope that we will be blessed with another child in 2012. I have always wanted a bigger family and I believe that the Lord as a lot more planned for our future. I cannot wait to bring another bundle of joy into our family. I cannot wait for Elliana to have a brother or sister. Andrew to have another daughter or son. Me to be a mother to another child.

I hope for another gift of life.

So there you have it.
My condensed down version of my hopes for myself this year.

Overall, I just hope to continue to learn how to always strive to be a better wife for my husband and mother to my child/children. A petter person to strangers. A more loving daughter/sister to my family. A better friend, and a better Christian.

A healthy, happy, full of laughter and joy 2012.

Yes. That is what I hope for.

Happy New Year Friends

I hope you all had a fun {and safe} evening last night
and are recovering well.

I hope that this year will bring a lot of great blessings, love, and happiness in all your lives.

Here's a toast to YOU ALL on this new year.
Thank you for following my journey.
Laughing with me.
Crying with me.
And supporting me.

Blogging has had such a positive impact in my life and I have made some true friendships.
I don't think I would have continued this journey if it wasn't for you all.
So again, thank you.

With that, happy new year!

At work with our "champagne"