Baby bath soak-homemade!

Ocoee loves bath time. She has graduated from her baby bath tub that I reviewed here to her new bath tub that is inflatable and fun. I love that it fits in the regular tub we have but allows her to be safe from slipping and hitting the hard side surfaces.

When we were in Hawaii we stopped at one of my favorite stores Lush and bought their amazing bath bombs. One was called the insomnia ibot bath bomb with chamomile and lavender essential oils to help sooth, relax and promote sleep. Ocoee loved it. As a crunchy mom, I loved that the products from Lush are free of any weird things, completely organic and never tested on animals.

I was reminded of the relaxation of a good bath with essential oils when I was visiting my brother. I got out of the shower and he mentioned I smelt like lavender. He is no fan of lavender but he remember some lavender bath products I had sent my niece when she was younger.....his memory was, BOY did she sleep well. There is nothing better than a well rested kid, which means the parents get rest also!

Ocoee is a fabulous sleeper and in order to promote this to continue I want to establish a good bedtime routine. A bath will be part of the routine.

The Lush products are a special treat but I was looking for something more affordable and didn't involve shipping and handling. While searching I found this great blog and her recipe for a homemade bath bomb.

I am going to make my own variations. I have dried lavender from a lavender infused vodka experiment that was...ok, but it is hard to mess up vodka. I also have a bunch of essential oils on hand. I buy loose leaf tea so chamomile will be on my list next time I hit the tea shop. I love the idea of oats and think I have some in the pantry.

These would make great baby shower party gifts, perfect for mom or kids!

Enjoy your soak!

Cheers

J

Fabulous moms! Scavenger hunt activity for kids!

Ocoee, 35 weeks old...in an adorable Tea Collection romper...I am thinking I need an adult romper! Also if you have a Costco membership they have been carrying great Hannah Andersson dresses and Kirkland Organic PJ's

I am so lucky to be surrounded by fabulous moms. They inspire and encourage me, laugh with me, and listen....which is what we all need some days....just someone to listen. It makes me think of this great quote.

"If I can see further than anyone else, it is only because I am standing on the shoulders of giants". -Issac Newton

Though I don't think that I have seen further as a mother, but I do think I am standing on the shoulder of giants.

Here is a great activity for a day with kids from my friend Martina...thanks for letting us stand on your shoulders. Click here for the best Bear hunt scavenger hunt ever! She even has a bear scat cookie recipe!

Cheers

J

Mrs early bird

Ocoee is still on Tennessee time- or she is truly an early bird. Genetically this seems a stretch since her father and I loathe mornings.

Yesterday though I was up and going by 6 and really made the most of it. First the weather was slap your momma gorgeous. After working in the yard for an hour while baby hung on he deck watching the chickens we had a walk in the park. Our park is truly magical. It has everything. We strolled through the birch trees and enjoyed the fresh ferns spread across the forest floor, while the dogs took a therapeutic dip in a mud puddle.

After giving the dogs a bath I consulted my phone to see it was barely 8.

Later the weather turned overcast and rainy so I was especially appreciative that I had the stunning morning weather. While I will never be a morning bird I can enjoy the benefits once I have had a few cups of tea. So now I sip on my tea and watch Ocoee bounce happily and wonder, what will today bring?

Cheers
J

Lovely pictures of lovely people

Check out our photo shoots with Ocoee to see pictures of our Tennessee trip and various models I talked into posing with Ocoee.

Also take the time to vote for us on all of our little clicky things on the blog! We need the votes...I will exchange cuteness for votes!!

Cheers

J

Honest diapers review

So as much as I love my cloth diapers there are times when I need to use disposables. When I travel I often take both cloth and disposables because no one wants to be stuck on a plane with
out enough diapers and disposables take up less space. I have been buying 7th generation since I like their products and they are ecofriendly.

We are set to switch daycares in July and the new daycare does not allow cloth. I feel lucky we were able to use cloth at our current daycare and have been preparing myself for having to use disposables during the day. I started investigating products and came upon The Honest company at honest.com. The company was started by Jessica Alba after her babies were born. The diapers are free of any bad things and a great price. I sent off or my free samples and love the adorable designs. They feel better than most disposables. I will give them a try over the next few days and let ya know what I think.

A few things about the company that I already like are they donate to families in need and the different options for buying diapers (they also offer other Ecoproducts) such as a monthly subscription. Part of the reason I love cloth is never having to run to the store. Just do a load of laundry. I have joked lately I feel like the entire college campus has dumped their laundry at my door- but that was more vacation catch up laundry than diapers.

So check the company out. I'll let ya know what I think but I am truly thrilled that people like me who try to live a little more green are starting to get some good options. Guess Kermit was wrong, it is easy being green.

Cheers
J

Update:

I was pretty impressed with the diapers. We had a few leaks but even in Ocoee's cloth diapers this can happen. I think the thing I liked most, other than the environmental factor, was the diapers felt like good to the touch. They had a silkier and stronger feel than others we have used. Price wise they are about the same as the 7th generation disposable that we normally use when not using cloth. The downside is you can often get the 7th Generation on sale at store for crazy deals, where these are sold via the internet so harder to get a deal. I do love some online shopping (so much easier than running to the store) and delivery to your door is pretty awesome. We will most likely do an order to get Ocoee started at her new daycare but if we see other eco-friendly ones on sale will stock up to save the money.

Cheers

J

While I am away....

I am starting summer school film camp. Although I love teaching film and our film festival at the Bears Tooth is a blast....I am feeling a bit overwhelmed. I was so looking forward to relaxing this summer and so far I have traveled, worked on the house, and now back to work!

Also Ocoee is still sick. She is miserable and I think it is teething...maybe? Low grade fever and she doesn't want to eat. You can feel the beginning of her first little tooth poking through. She is unconsolable and miserable. Hubby is home with her today while I work but he leaves tomorrow. If she has a temp I can't take her to daycare...oh my.

So while I juggle these crazy hurdles here are some cool things I would be checking out if I wasn't so busy.

First

My amazing friends new blog is Profoundly Ordinary....but it is anything but ordinary...check out her baby moose picts. Also she has a tab for our book club, so get your read on there. I personally just devoured the 50 Shades of Grey series....love my smut reading!

Also a few new apps you might like. A cool photo app here called pixlr....changes old photos you have to be jazzed up instagram style. Thanks Staci for sharing!

And a nice way to manage your babies health....been doing a lot of that lately. It is called BabyZoe and I have used it already to keep up with Ocoee's doctors appointments and growth. Super easy and free!

Also if you find an app that clones mommies please send to me!

Cheers
J

Temperature.

Ocoee has a temp. 103.1-my heart is doing jumping jacks. She went to daycare on Friday for a few hours while I headed to the dentist. It is crazy because she never gets sick from flying with all the germs that are on airplanes but as soon as she heads back to daycare-WAM!

I called the dr and they said to give her infant ibuprofen to get the fever down. She is eating and drinking fine. Pretty tired so I can tell she isn't feeling 100%. It was the first time she has ever had a high temp and also her first medicine. I guess I should be happy she made it to 8 months before having to take anything.

Hubby came home early to help out and we are watching her like a hawk while letting her rest and relax. I hope he rebounds soon. My film camp that I am teaching begins tomorrow and hubby heads to kodiak Wednesday.

I hate seeing her sick and feel miserable that there really isn't much I can do. Oh, bug get better soon!

Cheers
J