Our Favorite Bedtime Books

My kiddo loves books! And he always has. Even as a baby, he'd reach for books before toys. These days, he's found a love for toys, but he still craves stories.
Today I thought I'd share our favorite bedtime books. Not only does my toddler love these books, but I do too. These stories have a common bedtime theme and help calm my toddler, easing him into our night routine. So, in no particular order:

Tips for the Sick Stay-At-Home Mama

It was the last week of December... I was looking forward to the New Year. I love how the New Year feels like a fresh start and can often be all you need to create a new, healthy habit. I had some super plans... yoga, zoo visits, hanging out with new friends, even a weekend trip.

And then it hit me. I was sick. With a cold.

So I canceled my weekend plans. And put off the yoga. I thought I felt better, but it hit me again. And again and again. Ugh! It was the cold that would never end (in fact, the doc said I had bronchitis).

Suddenly, my whole life felt like it was on hold so I could get better. But wait... not my whole life. I'm a mom. Everyone knows... moms do not get a day off. Especially, a stay-at-home mom with a kiddo too young for school. Damn.

Fresh Peaches: Recipe Roundup

Ah! Summertime! One of the great things about Summer is the delicious fruits and veggies. One of the not-so-great things about Summer is watching my toddler refuse to eat those delicious fruits and veggies.
I love peaches. And peach flavored stuff! In fact, I could go for a frozen Peach Daquiri right about now. But that requires rum, which I do not have and I don't want to put pants on to go buy some. I recently bought some peaches for us to eat and **surprise, surprise** the toddler doesn't like them. He's nuts! Well, I had to come up with a way to finish these peaches off before they go bad. And I thought I'd share a few of the recipes I found on Pinterest to use fresh peaches.

Trolls Themed Birthday Party

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A few days back, my little boy turned two and we threw him a Trolls themed birthday party. The party itself was small... we only invited two other little boys to join. But it was perfect for my kiddo.
To say he loves Trolls is an understatement. I'm embarrassed at the number of times he has watched it (and at the number of times I've used the movie to get some peace or to finish the dishes). That, however, is not the point. The point is that he is obsessed with the movie, the songs, the characters... everything! So picking the Trolls theme was easy.

I really focused on decorations because the party itself was just his two friends coming over, them eating pizza, watching the movie and playing with toys (and later cake). I didn't worry about activities or games because they are so young.
And I tried to DIY it to save money. Some things I had so overall I spent less than $50 on everything for the party minus the pizza we ordered.

What We Do All Day Long (Just the Toddler and I)

When I first became a stay-at-home mama a few months back, I was desperate for a routine. It was very chaotic around here because we had just moved to New York from Florida. I was still unpacking and I was still trying to figure out what a stay-at-home mama did. My 22-month-old son and I were just a hot mess every day (waking up whenever, eating whenever, forgetting to change clothes, forgetting what damn day it was, and more). So my solution was a schedule including a morning and evening routine. And once we had a plan, everything was so much easier!