Summer: Now & Then

The weather this week in Portland is going to be nothing short of amazing. Lots of park time is the plan :) It's crazy to look back at what life was like last year around this time. Our summer this year is shaping up to be quite different. Silas is walking/running all over the place and it's just so fun to watch him explore. Load on some sunscreen, pack a bag with the essentials and off we go on an adventure outside. Last year it was a frantic "Do we have everything?" moment before we left the house. And believe me, we not only had everything, we brought everything. I am throughly enjoying this moment of motherhood and the stage where Silas is at. He's no longer this fragile little being, but turning into an independent little boy. I like the fact that I can sprawl out on our blanket at the park and let him wander (not too far!) and discover some things on his own. It's freeing for me and I'm sure it is for him as well. I'm so proud of this little person. I can't wait for him to experience all that Oregon has to offer this summer!

Summer style for the bebe

We are gearing up for some hot weather here in Portland this week. I remember last year when Silas was born and we had something similar happen. It was so rough being stuck inside in a non-air conditioned apartment with a newborn while it was sweltering outside! This time around I have a toddler who is walking and needs to have outside time...guess the situation is the same. Anyways, has anyone ever mentioned how amazingly fun it is to dress your child? It's ridiculous how much joy I get out of it. I know, they will grow out of everything...but I do it anyways. I buy a lot of Silas's clothes slightly bigger and I swear they seem to span a pretty significant amount of time as far as baby clothes go. He has shirts from around 5 months that we are still getting use out of. Here are a few items that are definitely going to be in heavy rotation this summer:

I absolutely love shopping at H&M for Silas. It's super affordable and their jeans/shorts have an adjustable band which means we will be able to keep them around for a lot longer. And of course, we can't forget about the beloved Freshly Picked moccs. These are my favorite shoe for a bebe that has just learned to walk. Not bulky, soft soled, and they just look so damn cute.

Target and American Apparel. The t's on the left are $5 from Target and I absolutely love them. Super soft and inexpensive. The tanks on the right are from my favorite store American Apparel. Not only are they inexpensive ($10, and I got buy 2 get one free!), but they are made in LA and that just makes me feel good. I really like supporting brands that produce here in the US.

Yay for summertime weather :) XO

52 week project / 02

"A portrait of my child, once a week, for a year."

Silas: My sweet little baby. This week has been rainy out so we have spent our time indoors. Lots of playing "horsey rides" and trying to introduce some art in your life. You have started giving kisses...more like an open mouth lick to the face. You have also started giving hugs. I love it all so much. One of my favorites is when I am doing the dishes and you walk up behind me and hug my legs. You are just too cute for words. I love you little man!

I'm happy.

I feel like I've found my rythm as a mama. Finally. It only took a year. I do very well with routine...so it just felt so awkward for me to not have a plan for my day to day. With a newborn it's just so unpredictable and new that I feel like you're scared 80% of the time to even move. So you just kind of sit and wait it out for a bit. It took me awhile to get comfortable leaving the house, loading Silas in the car, and just going about my day like a normal human. Here I am though. Living like a normal human. haha. To most, my day probably seems mundane or maybe even ridiculously boring. But I have found that I really enjoy being a stay at home mama. Like, really enjoy it. And part of me feels guilty admitting that. Our society doesn't really see that as the norm anymore so when I say it out loud I feel a little judged. People automatically assume that I'm lacking fufillment or something for myself. But all of this; my baby, the household day to day stuff...it is fufilling to me. Just like some people get enjoyment out of crunching numbers at a desk all day, I get enjoyment out of cleaning my floors with murphy's oil soap (seriously, love that stuff.) and cooking dinner for my family. To each their own I say! Anyways, I'm feeling good right now about how I've somewhat got my shit together. Of course, I'm sure next month or maybe even next week could be a different story. And of course there are things that I would like to accomplish for my own personal self at some point, but I really don't feel a rush at the moment. I like enjoying my baby all day everyday and I like the spot I'm in. And I'm more than sure that I'll get to the point where I spread my wings a bit, but not now. This place just feels too good to leave.

He helps me clean. I swear.

This is my arm workout.

I love my little buddy.

Here's to loving your life and enjoying right where you are. XO

What's for dinner?

I get a kick out of creating healthy and delicious meals for my family. Those who know me know that one of my favorite things to do is to cook. It really is such a calming place for me; the kitchen. I am a slight control freak in that department so I prefer to go it alone. The last month or so has been pretty hectic at our house and so I've made it my mission to really establish a dinner routine to make things feel a little more at ease around here. It's nice to wind down, sip a glass of wine, and prepare a meal for me and my husband. Here is a look at what I've been cooking lately...

Coconut rice, roasted veggies, yogurt/tumeric marinated chicken, cilantro + green onion

Brown rice, curried avocado, roasted veggies, yogurt/siracha marinated chicken, cilantro + green onion

Spaghetti squash "lasagna" with bolognese and bechemel.

Vegetarian chili with quinoa, avocado, cheddar cheese, greek yogurt, cilantro + green onion.


Some people may look at this and say, "that's not healthy eating." But, to me it is. Balance is key if you want to stay on track. The majority of my ingredients are organic (local if possible) and everything I make is homemade. No processed food in my house. I find that keeping my -pantry- as small as possible makes this easy. I have to make everything from scratch if I want it, which is fine by me. This past weeks meals were a little heavier on the dairy than I like, but I'll mentally note that and possibly avoid dairy completely the following week. This is how I like to eat; fresh, balanced, organic. Looking forward to doing a posts (and more posts in general) about how I prep, shop, and some mainstays that are always on hand.

Hopefully this gives you a few meal ideas!
xo

52 week project / 01

My baby turned one yesterday. I thought to myself, what better way to start that off than with the 52 week project.

"A portrait of my child, once a week, for a year."

Silas: My sweet baby boy. You are one. It's hard to believe we are here. You are walking, "talking" and you really have the funniest personality. Very stubborn and so sure of yourself. I love you more than the moon and the stars and wish that you could stay my baby boy forever.

Juice junkie pt. 2

Continuing to take breaks form this -space- for the moment due to some crazy changes happening in our household. Not much time to sit in front of my computer! Anyways, the reason why we are here today is to discuss my obsession over smoothies/juicing which I have discussed before. Silas freaks out if I go into the kitchen (it's blocked off by a baby gate) so my time to eat during the day is minimal. Now, let's not get crazy here and replace food with juice/smoothies, but it makes it easier to get through the day if I have a couple of these vitamin packed drinks rather than snack on chips or what have you. I love, love our vitamix and it really is my favorite household appliance. I can pound one of these out in about 15 seconds with that gorgeous piece of machinery. Worth every penny.

Now, lets talk about the ingredients. I really put little thought into what I'm about to make. And I mean, little. I tend to just toss in whatever we have going on in the freezer and fridge. One thing I love to experiment with thought is color. I absolutely love creating a juice that looks beautiful. It really makes it more fun to drink. Vibrant pink (beets, raspberries), bright green (kale, cilantro), orange (mango mixed with tangerines). I usually start with a base of coconut water because it contains a good amount of potassium and electrolytes, but if I don't do that than it is always filtered water. Next I go with something on the sour/tart side. Citrus (grapefruit is my fav!) is a good go to for that. Next up is a little something sweet- mango, banana, pineapple. Those are my go to choices and sometimes I end up adding all three. If I feel like going green it's always kale. Raw kale, stem on. Ginger is also my must have. So you can see how easy and fun it is to create your own mix. I have a couple of "go to" combinations, but I also love to experiment. This week I bought a small watermelon and added it to everything. It tasted amazing. Definitely got my wheels turning for some new summer inspired juices that are thirst quenching, but still so good for you.

Most recently I've been adding some super foods to my drinks. I've always been a big hemp seed person  - delicious, nutty, and lots of protein, and Chia seeds have been big in my house too. After doing some research though I knew I wanted to a little more. Maca and camu powder were my choices and a bit more affordable than the others that I wanted (Goji berries! Why do you cost so much?! Also, Bee Pollen!!). Obviously it's best to do your own research on what is right for you, but there are so many ways to get nutrition packed into your daily juices.

Here are a few of my recent favorites:

Carrot. Grapefruit. Ginger

2 cups of carrot juice
1 ruby red grapefruit peeled
1 1/2 piece of ginger

*Blend until smooth and chill.

Watermelon. Pineapple. Mango. Banana

2 cups of watermelon
1/2 cup of pineapple
1/2 cup of mango
1/2 banana

*I use mostly frozen fruit. Blend until smooth.

Kale. Maca. Pineapple. Mango. Banana. Coconut H2O

4 stalks of kale, stem on
1 tsp of maca powder
1/2 of pineapple
1/4 mango
1/2 banana
Coconut H2O

*Blend until smooth adding coconut H2O until you get a consistency you want.