Baby Boy Style
Since Oliver’s arrival, I’ve gotten numerous Instagram messages about where we buy his clothes at. So sweet of you all! So glad to know there’s other mommas, aunties, etc. that love baby boy clothes as much as I do! ;)
I thought FOR SURE he was a girl the first half of my pregnancy and in fact had a cart full of girly rompers and bows ready to order the day before our anatomy scan ultrasound because I thought I just knew it was a girl…Bahaha! I was so wrong. ;)
But picking out little boy outfits has been JUST as much fun!! Since I get this question often, I thought I’d put together a little blogposts with all of our favorites in one place & a few little bonus tips. I am the farthest thing from a fashion expert, which is why it always makes me laugh, but it has been so fun to put together his little outfits. :)
Favorite shops + links
Here’s a few of our favorite shops + a few fun pieces I picked out from each + links below for easy shopping! Some of these are items we have for him (or similar), some of these are items we’ve been gifted, and some of the items I just think are adorable and have on my wishlist as he grows. :) Hope this is helpful & gives you a few ideas sweet friends!
amazon
Striped Jogger Set // Copper Pearl Bib Set // Brown Moccasins // Mama sweatshirt + olive sweatpants // Green One Piece // Aztec Print Romper // Star Pajama set // bib overalls // Robeez Baby Shoes
target
If you know me, you know I love Target for all the things, and shopping for baby clothes has only made the Target trips even more fun. :) We love both the “Cat & Jack” and “Carter’s Just One You” brands from here.
Olive Utility Jacket // Suede Sneakers // Baseball Cap // Blue Jeans // Baseball Tee // Just Be Happy Onesie Set // Bodysuit 2 pack // Footie Jammie 2 pack // Navy Baseball Tee
H & M
We’ve never ordered any baby boy clothes from H & M yet, but I’ve heard incredible things about the quality of their clothes, being budget friendly, and SO adorable! They have tons of sets of 3 or 5 packs of pants, shirts, etc. for around $20. A friend shared that their “Conscious” line is such high quality and super soft, like something you’d find from baby boutiques, but a fraction of the price. :) I love that they have tons of neutrals and you can dress the outfits up or down! It was so fun to look through these and make a little wishlist for Ollie! If any of you have baby clothes from here - I’d love to know what you think!
Star Jumpsuit //Knit Fleece Jacket // Set of 3 Twill Pants // Blue Vest // White Onesie + Suspender Set // Dino Sweatpants // Khaki bodysuit // Black Puffy Jacket
budget friendly baby wardrobe tips
We have been SO fortunate to have so many of his clothes gifted to us by family and friends. We haven’t had to buy too many things yet, but when we do, we try not to spend too much, because well, he is growing like crazy and only wears them for a few months at most. ;) I’ve bought him a few little special things because I’ve waited my whole life to dress up our babe and have way too much picking out his little outfits. ;) But most of the clothes we buy him are $5-10.
Shop budget friendly stores & grab things during sales. // All of the shops listed above have tons of budget friendly options! Target and Old Navy have sales frequently, making it even less.
Watch local swap pages or garage sales // I’ve scored Ollie some fun little outfits in great condition from local mommas for around $2 a piece.
Keep things simple & easy to mix and match // I love having neutral pants/neutral tops so they can mix and match easily and make tons of different outfit combinations. & it just makes it that much simpler to get them dressed in the morning. :)
Pair a simple outfit with a fun accessory // I love putting a plain onesie on him with a fun copper pearl bib. It catches all the drool & looks adorable. ;) Win win! We recently ordered this fun little whale set. You could also add a fun little pair of shoes or cute paci clip too! I love getting creative with his little outfits. :)
I hope that was helpful friends! Have fun dressing those babes.
Oliver's Birth Story: Part Two
If you haven’t read part one of Oliver’s Birth Story, head to this post to catch up and then pop back over here. :)
1:30pm - We checked into the hospital & found our room. They confirmed that my water had broke and we were admitted to have this baby! My nurse checked and I was at 2 cm. They put the monitors on to see how our sweet boy was doing and how frequently I was having contractions. At this point I couldn’t feel any contractions but was having a ton of back pain. I switched into a comfy robe & the nurse came to put in my IV/saline lock. They had so much trouble with my IV a few days prior when I was there, that they had an ER nurse come over to put it in this time. I was so thankful to not have to be poked for an hour all over again!
3:00pm - I wanted to be up and moving so they took the monitors off & we started walking laps around the hospital. Everyone was so friendly and encouraging and they even gave Ry a fresh baked cookie as we walked around. After an hour or so we went back to the room to rest for a bit and turned on HGTV.
4:00pm - I got up again to bounce on the ball for a while. We both were still in awe that this was really happening and were still all smiles.
5:00pm - The nurse asked if we wanted to order some supper. I was surprised & so thankful that they let me eat before the night ahead! We ordered dinner and relaxed for just a bit. Riley watched the contractions on the monitor in awe as each one came and went. They were still not super consistent at this point.
The doctor who would be taking care of Oliver as soon as he entered the world, came in to introduce himself, get to know us and asked about our preferences. I loved that he took the time to do this, and shared how things typically happen after he’s born with a healthy delivery, Lord willing! This put our minds at ease and gave us a little bit of an idea of what to expect.
6:00pm - The nurse came back to check in and see where I was at… I was still at 2 cm. I was SO defeated…six hours into labor... water breaking, bouncing, walking, moving, and still no progress. The nurse called my doctor and warned me that he would probably say it was time to start pitocin since my water had already broke and things weren’t progressing very quickly.
I was starting to feel all of the emotions…exhausted from the past two days of little sleep and my body laboring, defeated that my body wasn’t making progress on it’s own, and so nervous about what was to come in the next few hours.
“The nurse came back to check in and see where I was at… I was still at 2 cm. I was SO defeated…six hours into labor... water breaking, bouncing, walking, moving, and still no progress.”
6:30pm - They started the pitocin and the contractions got intense, FAST. Once they started the pitocin, they said I would need to keep the monitors on for a while to see how my body reacted. Another momma in labor had on the set of mobile monitors, so this meant I had to lay in bed for a while. Not being able to be up and move around through the contractions was so hard. Every contraction I had tears in my eyes and was getting so worked up I could hardly breathe. I was a mess. I looked at Riley through tears and said, “I think I want an epidural.”
Going into labor, my only birth plan was to have a healthy baby & a healthy momma. That was our biggest hope & prayer. I wanted to labor naturally as long as I felt I could, but ultimately just wanted our baby to be healthy and for me to be healthy as well!
For the next half hour I went back and forth on what to do. I wanted to labor naturally, but with the pitocin kicking in, physically and emotionally I was beat. The thought of 18 more hours of this was just too much. Riley was so supportive and said I knew what my body needed, and it was totally my call. I was SO emotional about this. I told him I felt like a failure for not being able to birth him naturally, or at the very least make it farther along before asking for an epidural. He reassured me that, that was the silliest thing, as I was delivering our baby boy into the world and there was nothing weak about that. Our sweet nurse came in and I couldn’t stop crying as I told her I wanted the epidural but felt like it was “too soon”. She was so sweet and reassured me there was no such thing as too soon and that I had been in labor for over 7 hours at this point and that was no small feat!
7:30pm - The anesthesiologist came in and was so wonderful and talked me through the whole thing. Riley and the nurse came over and held my shoulders as she administered the epidural. While she was putting the epidural in, I had three strong contractions. Trying to sit completely still through three strong contractions has got to be one of the toughest things I’ve physically done. ;)
8:00pm - The epidural was starting to kick in and I finally felt like my body was able to breathe for a little bit. The nurse brought me a Sprite and a jello cup and let us relax for a while. She said she’d be back to check on us in an hour, but if we needed anything at all in the meantime to call.
I just have to pause for a moment and shout out labor and delivery nurses and how absolutely amazing they are. I felt like they truly just SERVED us the whole time we were there. It was the biggest blessing. They were all absolutely amazing.
8:30pm - The doctor who would be delivering Oliver came in to introduce himself. My doctor I had been seeing at the clinic wasn’t on call sadly, but we met the doctor who was on call. He shared with us that based on how I was progressing so far, he said not to expect a baby until around noon tomorrow, just to mentally prepare ourselves.
Once again I was discouraged, but was clinging to Jesus & the fact that in the next 16 hours we would meet our sweet miracle one way or another! I knew noon would be cutting it really close to 24 hours since my water had broken, and that if this baby wasn’t out by then, I would most likely need a c-section. I prayed fervently that labor would progress so I could deliver him naturally, but ultimately that Jesus would protect us and bring us peace no matter how he was born!
“Once again I was discouraged, but was clinging to Jesus & the fact that in the next 16 hours we would meet our sweet miracle one way or another!”
9:00pm - My nurse stopped in again to see if we needed anything and set up a bed for Riley to sleep on. She checked me again and I wasn’t quite to 3 cm. She said she would let us sleep for a while, and that she would be back to check throughout the night. The plan was to rest for a few hours and then try the peanut exercise ball around 4am. We both tried to get some sleep knowing we would need it with a long night and day ahead tomorrow.
10:30-11:30pm - I couldn’t sleep. I was so hot and felt like I couldn’t stop shaking. I had Riley turn on the fan and felt like I might throw up. I started getting nervous thinking maybe I was having a reaction to the epidural.
11:45pm - My nurse came in and I told her how I was feeling and she said she was going to check me again just to see if anything was happening. The next words I heard were…“OH MY! You are at NINE centimeters and this baby isn’t waiting until noon tomorrow!” My jaw dropped as I repeated it back to her. I said, “Did you say NINE?!” At this point Riley popped up out of his bed faster than I’ve ever seen, rubbing his eyes and asking the nurse the same thing. :) She said I sure was, and she was going to call the doctor and wasn’t going to let him live it down that he was a little off on his time prediction. ;) We all laughed.
“OH MY! You are at NINE centimeters and this baby isn’t waiting until noon tomorrow!”
Midnight - Everything started to become a blur as they folded up Riley’s bed, called the doctor, wheeled in supplies, and flipped on the lights. I was delivering him in the same room we would be staying in the whole time, so they rearranged the furniture to prepare for delivery.
12:30am - Our doctor came in smiling and sleepy, admitting his prediction was a little off. He said he’d be right across the hall, ready to deliver this baby at anytime!
1:00am - My contractions were about a minute apart and my nurses said it was time to start pushing! I was equally SO excited and also SO terrified. I pushed through two contractions and our sweet baby boy’s heart rate jumped high yet again and wasn’t coming back down. They put an oxygen mask on me and stopped the pitocin. This was all a blur, but my nurses were SO calm and collected and God gave me so much peace through it all.
1:00-2:30am - His heart rate slowly started to come back down, but now contractions had slowed down to 3-4 minutes apart. I pushed for the next hour and a half.. Riley came up and held one of my legs through it all. At one point it was just him and one other nurse in the room and I remember him getting a little nervous, asking her if they needed to get the doctor or at least another nurse. ;)
2:45am - Pretty soon the doctors came in and they wheeled the baby warmer in and I knew it was getting close, but no idea how close. On the first push with the doctor in the room, he said, “Look down, mom!” And at 2:57am, by God’s grace and through uncontrollable tears, I saw our Oliver Leo enter the world. He is an absolute miracle. It was the most surreal thing I’ve ever experienced. Riley and I looked at each other through tears and just kept saying “He’s here! He’s really here!”
“On the first push with the doctor in the room, he said, “Look down, mom!” And at 2:57am, by God’s grace and through uncontrollable tears, I saw our Oliver Leo enter the world.”
Our sweet boy wasn’t breathing right away, so they whisked him off to the warmer to get him breathing and make sure he was doing okay. I remember Riley saying he didn’t want to leave my side and also wanted to be with our little guy. I told him I was just fine, and to go check on our sweet babe!
3:02 am - Just five minutes later they laid him on my chest for the first time and I was sobbing all over again, thanking Jesus over and over again that he was here, that we were healthy, and that I got to be his momma.
3:30am - within a half hour they had everything cleaned up and out of the room and you would have never known a baby was just born in that room!
3:30-5:00am We spent the next two hours just in awe and soaking up every minute of this day we had dreamed of for so long. I nursed and snuggled our precious babe and it was the sweetest time just the three of us. At 5am, Riley took over snuggling Ollie and I slept for an hour or two.
6:00am - We texted our family and close friends and they woke up to the announcement that HE WAS HERE! Getting to share that news with all of our loved ones, after praying and waiting for this little one for so long, will forever be one of my favorite moments!
We ordered breakfast and just hung out together smiling and sleepy eyed, thanking Jesus for the most incredible 24 hours.
My family came to visit later that morning and couldn’t hold back the tears as they laid eyes on their sweet grandbaby & nephew. Watching your parents and siblings fall in love with your baby is the best thing ever. We spent the next few hours talking, taking turns holding him, and just smiling that this day was finally here.
My sweet sister, our favorite photographer ever, did a little “Fresh 48” photoshoot for us in the hospital that afternoon. I will cherish these pictures forever and ever. The Lauren Rose Collective you are incredible.
This day will go down as one of the greatest days of our lives. Oliver Leo, we can’t believe you’re ours. God is writing the most beautiful story of redemption and miracles through you and we are so honored to get to be a part of it. We love you to the moon & back sweet boy!
Oliver's Birth Story: Part One
I’m finally sitting down to write our sweet Oliver’s birth story and I don’t think it’s a coincidence to God that exactly one year ago today, I started writing a blogpost to share our story of infertility with the world. God’s timing friends, it continues to just blow me away. He is in EVERY part of our sweet boy’s story! It is such a gift to get to share his story with the you all in hopes that even just one person would believe in Jesus or restore their faith in him after hearing his story.
If you’re new around here, here’s a few links to catch you up. :)
Read our walk through infertility & journey to baby J here
Read the story of our miracle baby here
Alright here we go, starting with a quick pregnancy recap & the days leading up to his birth!
Overall I loved pregnancy & I’ve never needed Jesus more all at the same time. There were a few extra hurdles throughout our pregnancy with trouble finding his heartbeat at 11 weeks, placenta previa until 28 weeks, and our sweet boy’s heart rate being monitored with additional tests at 34 weeks. But we know without a doubt, God had us in his hands through it all. Our sweet miracle is here & healthy!
At 36 weeks we went in for his growth ultrasound and he was already weighing more than I did at birth. ;) He was on track to be a 10 lb baby if I made it to 40 weeks. We were SO glad he was healthy and thriving, but I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t a little bit terrified of delivering a 10 lb baby. Since he was measuring big and my amniotic fluid levels were high, they wanted to continue with ultrasounds every week leading up to his birth to monitor him, so we continued with weekly ultrasounds for the next two weeks.
The days leading up to his birth
Friday April 12th & Saturday April 13th
At 37.5 weeks pregnant, we hosted a bunch of our friends over for one last get together before baby. We had a blast playing board games, eating snacks, rocking babies, and grabbing coffee together. I was exhausted, but at this point we welcomed any distractions and wanted to make the most of the time we had in these last few weeks leading up to baby.
Sunday April 14th
Tears were shed as I was beyond exhausted and things were getting miserable. At this point I wasn’t sleeping & pretty much everything hurt. We spent Sunday going for a long walk, and making a Target run for spicy foods & pineapple - I was willing to try just about anything at this point! ;) We had a doctor’s appointment the following day and would see how things were going.
Monday April 15th
I woke up to get ready for school and for the first time throughout my pregnancy thought, “I don’t know if I can physically do this for two more weeks.” I was SO swollen and keeping up with my sweet preschoolers was a workout. ;) That afternoon we went in for our doctor’s appointment. She checked and I was 1cm dilated and 60% effaced. It was encouraging to hear there was some progress, but I also knew that I could stay 1-2cm for weeks and didn’t want to get my hopes up. As they used the little doppler to check his heart rate, it was pretty high again. Throughout the ultrasound and the rest of the appt. it didn’t come down much, so they sent us to the hospital to hook up the monitors for an hour or two to see how he was doing.
They told us to bring our hospital bags just in case. It all got so real, so fast. We headed to the hospital, they hooked up the monitors and after sitting with my feet up for a while his heart rate came back down into the normal range. During this time, the monitor started picking up that I was having contractions every 5 minutes or so. At this point I was 37 weeks, 5 days so they gave me a bag of fluids to slow contractions down and they sent us home around 8pm that night.
Tuesday April 16th
I was physically and emotionally exhausted after the previous night’s hospital visit. I made it through the day on Tuesday and something told me to snap a picture of how the kiddos loved to say goodbye to baby Oliver each day at dismissal time. Little did I know this would be my last bump picture & my last day with these sweet preschoolers!
Wednesday April 17th
6:00am || I opened bible to read the next chapter as I was reading through 2 Corinthians. This was the Bible verse I underlined while reading that morning.
“I rejoice, because I have complete confidence in you. “- 2 Cor. 8:7
I had no idea just how much joy was coming and how much I would need my confidence to be in Jesus in just a few hours!
8:00am || Thankfully Wednesday was a prep day at school. It was still going to be a full day of meetings and prepping lessons and finalizing maternity leave plans, but it was nice to be able to go at a little bit slower pace.
10:00am || As I was sitting in meeting with a co-worker, dazing out, she turned and asked “Do you feel okay today? You just don’t look like you feel well.” I told her for the first time throughout my entire pregnancy, I felt like I was “over it” and just so ready for him to be here. I hesitated to complain because after walking through infertility, I knew I would gladly take every second of the exhaustion and aches and pains, but I was too tired to sugar coat how I was feeling at this point.
10:45am || I was chatting with the para in my classroom before she left and went over “just in case” plans for the next two weeks, and showed her where everything was for the sub if I were to go early. (laughing again at God’s timing!)
Noon || I was sitting at my desk eating a snack and all of the sudden felt like I was going to pee my pants and didn’t have control of my bladder. I instantly panicked and went to bathroom…but nothing happened. So I walked (waddled) back to my classroom and thought I better start getting things together just in case this is what it’s like when your water breaks. & then thought “oh my gosh…what if my water breaks right here…what would I do?!” I started closing my laptop and planner. I grabbed the school directory sheet out of my desk drawer to make sure I could call or text a co-worker if needed, and just SECONDS after that I felt a huge gush run down my leg. I froze…and my heart started racing as I realized what was happening.
I called my co-worker whose classroom is down the hall and told her I thought my water had just broke as I tried not to panic. She’s has had three kids of her own and is more like a second mom, and came running down immediately. I started to panic and tear up, but she somehow made me laugh in the moment and kept me calm. She asked if I had called Riley or the hospital yet and said I probably should because we were having a baby! ;) I was sitting in my rocking chair…on a tarp…in my classroom…calling my husband to let him know “IT’S HAPPENING!”
He has a half hour commute to/from work, so my sweet coworkers came in and kept me company while we waited for him to arrive. When he got there we all laughed and smiled and they cheered as we drove off for the hospital. :) Thankfully we had most of our bags in the vehicle already from our Monday night hospital visit, and just had to swing by the house to grab a few things. We had about a 45 minute drive to the hospital we were delivering at, so on the way friends of ours and our pastor called to pray over us and this sweet baby boy. This boy has been covered in prayer since before he was ever conceived and we are just in awe of God’s miracles.
We checked in at the hospital around 1:30pm and texted family and close friends to let them know the day was finally here! :)
Stay tuned for part 2 of Oliver’s Birth Story coming soon!
Amazon Baby Favorites
Hi sweet friends!
We’re in the final stretch of counting down the weeks until sweet baby J’s arrival! The amount of hours I’ve spent researching baby gear and products throughout this pregnancy is…too many to admit. ;) These are all items we’ve either purchased, been gifted, or tested out in store so we’ve actually gotten to see/feel all of these items. I know it’s so silly but I love to test it all out in person to see what the fabric is like, how easily something assembles, etc. to make sure it’s a good fit for us!
I’m planning to do another post after our sweet boy arrives and we get to actually use some of these things with him to share our favorites then as well. Every baby is different, but I hope this is helpful for a few momma’s out there and saves you some time researching all. the. things. :) Amazon has been our go to for so many things throughout this pregnancy because…prime and free two day shipping are the best. ;) So I thought I’d start with our Amazon favorites! Some of these items are on sale right now too so I’ll share those as well!
Disclaimer: This post includes affiliate links, which simply means that Amazon supports this little blog by giving back a small portion of items purchased through these links in exchange for our honest opinions and the time it takes to pull together images, links, and share our favorites. Purchasing items through these links is no extra cost to you, but is such a HUGE help in keeping this little blog going. :)
Alright let’s dive in! :)
Miss Fong Diaper Bag
I’ve LOVED the look of these leather backpack diaper bags for a few years now. I debated between the cognac brown and the black - both are SO gorgeous. I decided on the black and have been using it as a backpack/purse until little man arrives and am LOVING it. The quality is amazing, it came with a little changing pad, has insulated pockets and even built in Paci clips. It also came with stroller clips too. So impressed with this one so far!
Daddy Diaper Bag
Real talk…my husband thought the black leather diaper bag was a bit “girly” to carry around. ;) I know he’d wear it in a heartbeat if I asked him too, but we also registered for a more neutral, “manly” diaper bag if that’s a thing. ;) I’ve been using the Miss Fong diaper bag as my purse/backpack for now and am loving it, so we may just use this one for his diaper bag now…who knows. :) The one we registered for was Eddie Bauer brand but looked super similar to this one - and I actually love that this one has a fun striped print on the inside that ours didn’t have. :)
Baby Jogger City Select LUX
Strollers. Friends I went back and forth on this one for SO long. I watched youtube videos, read blogposts, and we even spent a day at a baby store testing them all out. This one was the clear winner & even hubs loved it! This could be it’s own separate blogpost but i’ll share a few of the things we loved about it below.
What we loved about the Baby Jogger City Select Lux
The seat flips around to face forward or backward and reclines to several different positions.
Converts to a double stroller by simply adding adapters and clicking in second seat. LOVE versatile baby products. While looking at strollers we realized double strollers aren’t cheap, so we are opting to invest in a good stroller up front that can convert to a double later on to get the most bang for our buck.
The handle bar raises up and down making it easy and comfortable for my 5’ 5’’ self to push, but also perfect for my 6’ husband.
It pushed around like a. dream
.There’s an adapter we can add so his infant seat snaps right in as well.
SO many trusted mommas recommended this one and shared that they wish they would have invested in this from the get go.
This one is 20% off right now (which is a BIG deal on a pricey stroller!) For us it is so worth the investment to use it for years to come. We live in a sweet little lakeshore town, so we plan on going on LOTS of walks this summer & fall. :)
Blooming Bath
A friend recommended this to us for sink baths when sweet boy is still pretty little. I love that it’s soft and cushiony and flexible to fold into the shape of the sink. I’m excited to try this with him during bath time!
Tommee Tippee Bottles
These are the bottles we picked out to start with. Every little one is different and has different preferences, so we also picked up a couple other options as well to have on hand. I loved that these mimicked breastfeeding for when our little man takes bottles this fall while momma is back at work. I also loved that they had the anti-colic valve too to help prevent air bubbles in their little tummies.
Not knowing what he’ll take or prefer, we picked out a couple other options to keep as backup if need be. The other two bottles we have on hand are the Munchkin Latch bottles (also designed to mimic breastfeeding and also have an anti colic valve) and a Dr. Brown bottle to try out as well that’s a little bit different shape/style than the others. We’ll see what he prefers and go from there. :)
Cutie Pat Paci
A few mommas local to me shared their love for these fun cutie pat pacis. I love that they are a Paci on one side and can be a teether on the other! I ordered this gray one before we found out if we were having a boy or a girl, but love the natural color and it goes perfect with all of our paci clips!
Similarly to the bottles, we also picked out a couple paci options to try as well. We picked out these MAM newborn pacis that curve with his little mouth and these NUK newborn pacis with a different shaped nipple that promote oral development.
Braided Paci Clips
I love this set of cute neutral paci clips! They would be so fun to change out with outfits or even just to have a couple as back up!. I think the whole set is under $10 and I’m all about cute, budget friendly baby items. :)
Muslim Swaddle Blankets
I've heard from so many momma friends you can never have enough of these type of blankets. ;) From swaddling, to using as a burp rag when on the go, to covering carseats, or just laying down for baby to lay on, these are so handy to have! There are SO many cute prints and designs. I love this cute animal set for our little guy. I’ll share a fun option for little girls below too. :)
Baby Girl Muslim Swaddle Blankets
A fun option for baby girls!
Boppy Pillow
I’ve heard from so many mommas that this is awesome for breast feeding, but also has so many other uses too! It can be used to support baby when they are still learning to sit up, or during tummy time as they get a little stronger. I registered for this neutral gray one, but there are SO many fun prints and covers to slip on and off too. :)
Boppy Newborn Lounger
I never even knew this little pillow existed until about 6 months ago, but now I’m convinced it’s a must have! A couple friends of ours use it all the time with their little ones. It’s perfect for when they are still tiny newborns. I love that it’s not super bulky either so I can bring it from room to room if need be. :)
Ingenuity Bassinet
We have this bassinet set up in our little man’s baby nook in our bedroom. I love the simple design, the breathable fabric all the way around it, and that it can folded up with one pull of a tab under the mattress pad. So easy to set up! It was also super budget friendly compared to many of the bassinets we priced. Win win!
The Best Burp Clothes
We ordered a set of these for a friend’s baby shower and when we got them in the mail, I was SO imporessed with the quality. They were so thick and very similar to a few I had gotten from a small business baby shop. This set of 5 was less than the two I bought from the little baby shop. Love that they are cute, affordable, and the size/quality was amazing! I’ll link a fun baby girl set below too. :)
Baby Girl Burp Clothes
Here’s a fun set of baby girl burp clothes similar to the ones above.
Britax Ultra Infant Seat
This is the carseat we have ready to go for our little guy! I have no idea how many hours I spent researchingg carseats but it was A LOT. ;) My dream carseat criteria list was long… great safety ratings, durable, soft material, non toxic, and affordable. This carseat somehow met almost all of the above. The only downside to this carseat is that it is a bit heavy, but I’ll gladly work on getting stronger if it means baby is safe and comfy. :) There’s also quite a few different Britax strollers it’s compatible with to make it a travel system too!
Here’s links to a few of the Britax strollers for anyone looking for a travel system. :)
Britax B Lively Lightweight Stroller (20% off right now)
Britax Pathway Lightweight Stroller (20% off right now)
Snuggle Me Organic Lounger
I’ve been eyeing this baby product since long before we were pregnant. I love supporting small business shops and mommas creating incredible baby products! I love that this lounger is unique from a lot of other baby loungers out there in that the shape of the lounger is meant to snuggle baby and help them feel safe and secure. I’m so excited to try this out with our little guy during the day!
HATCH night light
This little machine is so neat! I told y’all, I’m all about versatile baby products and this one doubles as a night light, sound machine, and time to rise alert that you can control all from your phone. I love that I can change the color, settings and sound all from my phone so I don’t have to tiptoe into his nursery to change it. ;)
Graco Pack N Play
Having a pack n play was a must for us! This summer we have quite a few weddings for family and friends that we’ll be traveling to with our little guy. There are some super fancy pack n play’s with lots of extras, but I just wanted something simple that would be easy to bring on the go. I love that this one has a little changing table/lounger on top, but both easily detach to just take the crib along. :) I couldn’t find the exact print of this one that we picked out, but the one linked below is very similar.
I hope this was so helpful sweet friends! These posts take so much time to pull together, but I absolutely love sharing our favorites with you. If it helps even just one momma or momma to be out there, then it is so worth it. :) Have a wonderful weekend!
Happy Valentine's Day Sale!
Happy Valentine’s Day sweet friends!
To celebrate, we’re launching a fun Valentine’s sale that will run through Friday February 15th at midnight. If you’ve been curious about getting started with oils or had your eye on a starter kit, now is your chance!
I shared all the details here on instagram, but here’s a quick run down!
Every single friend who grabs the Premium Starter Kit of their choice during the sale will get $20 cash back - YAY! The first three friends to grab their Premium Starter Kit will also get an exclusive valentine gift bundle full of goodies (fun oily pouches, lip balm, roller, etc.) :)
The best part?! It can be ANY of the Premium Starter Kits! This includes the Oily kit, the Ningxia Kit, the Savvy Kit OR the Thieves Kit! You get to choose which starter kit fits you best in this season of life and we’ll spoil you with cash back and all the fun goodies + helpful resources.
Want to know more about Young Living or essential oils? I have a whole page on my blog dedicated to answering your questions and giving you an overview of this fun oily journey.
Have Questions?
Click the button below to visit the blog page that’s filled with helpful info!
Ready to get started?
Click the link below + choose your starter kit + patiently wait for your happy mail!
So excited to spoil you friends with all the fun goodies & the gift of wellness! I’m always always happy to chat if you have any questions. :) Shoot me a message on instagram, and I’d love to chat more!
If you already have your oils and are looking for some new ideas, I have tons of fun stories saved to highlights on instagram. If you’re looking for fun oily accessories, I linked ALL of our favorite oily things on this page to make it easy peasy for you. :)
Lessons God taught me through Infertility
The season of infertility we just walked through is still so fresh on my heart, and it’s given me the opportunity to connect with so many of you on such a personal level. That’s something I will never take for granted. If you’ve shared a piece of your story with us, we are so grateful, and please know you are prayed for dear friends. I know there are still so many friends walking through seasons of infertility, and I wanted to share a few of the lessons God taught me through though this season.
Knowing our Identity solely in Him
My identity has to be solely in Him…not in being a momma, not in being a wife, not in being a teacher, blogger, sister, friend, etc. All of those things are beautiful and purposeful, but if I’m not rooted in Him, then my priorities are all wrong.
Surrendering + Remembering that He is FOR US and wants the best for us
When things weren’t working out according to my plan or my desires, it was so easy to say “God where are you?!” but He was really there all along laying out the most beautiful plan, a plan far better than we could ever imagine. So many friends reminded us of this during this season, but in the midst of it all, it was so hard to really truly believe this. If you’ve read the story of our miracle baby, a month after my heart shifted and I truly believed this, we conceived our sweet boy. I know everyone’s story looks different and God’s plans for each of us is unique, but I DO think that when we TRULY surrender our hearts and our plans to the Lord, that He is able to work in ways only He can. That may look totally different that what we expect, but He is still for us and wants the best for us.
Soaking up the blessings of this current season
The next season will always have worries of it’s own. I think we often over glorify the season ahead and underestimate the season we’re in. It’s so easy to think that “if we just had (whatever you’re heart is longing for) then everything would be easier and my heart would be content.” But friend, when we have that mindset, we miss out on SO. MUCH. BEAUTY. that is tucked into the season we’re currently in.
My heart gets all fired up about this, because this is how this whole blog began four years ago as I found myself as an overwhelmed college student working 2 part time jobs, leading a student organization, attending small group, planning a wedding, and preparing for student teaching. I knew those days were so sweet and that one day I would miss the times of being surrounded by friends, late nights spent studying and laughing, and the fun perks of that season. So I set out then and there to soak up all the beauty in that current season, and Beautiful Season Co. began.
Even when we go through seasons that aren’t quite what we expected, there is still so much beauty to find and lessons to be learned through our current seasons.
Walking with others through their valleys
This is probably one of the most surprising things God taught me through our season of infertility. After walking through our own hard season for so many months, God started to open my eyes to those walking through their own valleys around us. I finally stopped fearing walking with others through hard things and God opened my heart to simply being with them, praying for them, encouraging them, and listening to them.
Getting Vulnerable
Along with not being afraid of walking with others through valleys, I needed to stop being afraid of sharing our hard things too. We weren’t meant to walk through this life alone. Life is SO much sweeter when we have friends to share it with, to cry with, and to pray with. Sharing our story of infertility with the world was one of the most vulnerable thing I’ve ever done and it was worth it times a million. I remember sitting at a table in Starbucks with knots in my stomach as I prayed for the courage to hit “publish”. It humbled me in every way. There was no more faking “fine” or laughing off the questions of when we were having little ones. But the support of family and friends poured out, the prayers prayed for our sweet boy, and the connections made with others walking through similar seasons were worth it over and over again.
Sweet friend, if you are walking through a season of Infertility, I pray these lessons the Lord has been teaching us, encourage you. Keep holding on friend. You are prayed for, and so so loved! I’m always here to chat if you ever want someone to talk to! Seriously, I’m just a message away. Shoot me a message on Instagram or send me an email at rachel@beautifulseasonco.com - it would be an honor to chat with you!
More Resources for Mommas walking through infertility
January Recap
Hi sweet friends! Somehow January has FLOWN by in the blink of an eye and I didn’t even share with y’all my January goals! So todays post is double the fun. :) I’m sharing my January goals as well as the progress made on those goals throughout this month.
First up, goals for the month! You can check out my yearly goals for 2019 in this blogpost and read more about my favorite goal setting tool as well. :)
M O N T H L Y G O A L S
Celebrate Birthdays + Baby Showers + New Babies
Begin maternity leave prep
Finish two books - The Slight Edge & The Magic of Motherhood (Read part 1 of Life Giving Home)
Re - Rank in Oily Biz
Create January Budget + Track
Complete Contentment Challenge Month 1
Finish Baby Registry
Begin Creating a Life Giving Home
W E E K L Y G O A L S
Nesting progress - work on one room
Date night with Ry
Track Expenses
Walk 3-4 times
Maternity Leave Prep 1-2 hours
Publish 1 blogpost
Work on business mentorship resources for oily tribe
1 hour of personal development (videos, podcasts, guides, etc.)
D A I L Y G O A L S
5am wakeup
Quiet Time with the Lord
Read 10 pages of current book
Pour 30 minutes into oily tribe
Pray with Ry
P R O G R E S S N O T P E R F E C T I O N
Now onto the progress made on those goals throughout the month of January. I use my PowerSheets tending list to track progress throughout the month. This has been so helpful in holding myself accountable, seeing my goals each day, and making progress towards those goals. I’m going to share progress on my monthly goals. The weekly & daily goals set are areas I’m working on creating habits to make progress towards the monthly goals. :)
M O N T H L Y G O A L S
Celebrate Birthdays + Baby Showers + New Babies - Yes! This past month we celebrated the birth of our best friend’s twins. We are so honored to be these sweet babies God parents and it’s been so fun to soak up all the baby snuggles! We also celebrated birthdays this past month! My sweet from college had a birthday as well as my grandma, aunt, uncle, and littlest sister! My sweet sister came and stayed with us this past weekend and it was so fun to take her on a trip to target for her favorite Starbucks drink and wander through the baby aisles together. :) We also celebrated my sweet friend Liz’s baby shower with the arrival of her little one this next month. It was a month full of so much joy!
Begin maternity leave prep - Yes so much progress made here! I started working on getting quite a few things lined up at school this month in preparation for maternity leave this spring. I started my Sub Binder, have a long term sub lined up, and started working ahead on an online class due at the end of the school year.
Finish two books - The Slight Edge & The Magic of Motherhood (Read part 1 of Life Giving Home) - Reading 10 pages each night before bed has been such a game changer! I finished both of these books as well as almost an entire audio book while driving back and forth in the car. I am still working through the first part of Life Giving home, but will be reading this book all year long little by little with the way it is set up. :)
Re - Rank in Oily Biz - In terms of numbers, I didn’t meet the goal I had set for myself this month, but there is still so much to celebrate in this area. This month has been a huge success in so many other ways. Connections made. Stories shared. Lives changed. Consistently showing up for my team and my community. Creating so much new content. Getting to do this business with my sister. Working on fun projects behind the scenes. There’s so many things to celebrate this month with our little oily community!
Create January Budget + Track - My husband takes care of nearly everything with our finances, but I’m trying to be much more intentional about staying on the same page, having conversations, setting our budget together, and as a team being responsible for keeping track of receipts etc. I think we did a MUCH better job at this than we have this past year. Keeping track of receipts is eye opening and having conversations about goals together helps keep us both fired up about why we’re working so hard to stay on track with our budget!
Complete Contentment Challenge Month 1 - Phew. This goal challenged me in SO many ways this month, but it has been SO worth it! God is teaching me so much about contentment through Nancy Ray’s contentment challenge. Month 1 was rough and there was multiple times I just wanted to wander the aisles of Target and pick up the cute new home decor or new fun shirt, but ultimately none of that will satisfy me like Jesus will! This one was not easy, but it was a huge victory over here!
Finish Baby Registry - I’m still working on adding and sifting through the last few things of our baby registry, but it’s about 95% done! I never knew there were SO many options for diapers, wipes, bathtubs, everything! ;)
Begin Creating a Life Giving Home - This is still VERY much a work in progress, but Christmas decor is packed and put away, we started organizing little man’s nursery, deep cleaned the main floor of our home, and we are starting to purge through the storage room and turn it into a guest room this weekend.
Do you set monthly goals? What’s your favorite way to track progress on those goals? I’d love to cheer you on!
Introducing Friday Favorites
Happy Friday sweet friends!
I thought it would be fun to start sharing with you all a few things I’m currently loving or simple things that are bringing me joy! A few of the podcasts I listen to have the speaker share their favorite things at the end of each episode and I always love listening to them! So I hope these posts bring you joy too. :)
T H I S W E E K ’ S F R I D A Y F A V O R I T E S
Listening to audio books. I just recently started listening to audiobooks again and it makes simple daily tasks like driving to and from work, running errands, or even picking up around the house so much more enjoyable! I’m currently listening to Imperfect Courage by Jessica Honneger and loving it. It’s crazy how quickly time adds up while driving in the vehicle and in this season, this is a perfect pocket of time to use to make progress on my 2019 reading list.
The Magic of Motherhood. I shared about this book on instagram last week, and could not put it down! It was such a quick read full of practical tips and real life stories. It had me smiling and tearing up all at the same time. This was the perfect first read of 2019!
Cozy Slippers. My sweet sister gifted my mom & I these comfy slippers for Christmas and I’ve been wearing them non-stop! They look just like the Ugg brand but she found them at Costco for a fraction of the price. :) I couldn’t find the exact pair on Costco’s website, but here are two similar options: Option 1 (these are almost identical!) or Option 2 (another similar, super cozy looking pair).
Iced Coconut Milk Mocha Macchiato. I’ve been doing decaf coffee while carrying our little man, but this drink totally hits the spot every time! This is my favorite little splurge treat. I saved up a few gift cards from Christmas for a few coffee shop work sessions with this special treat. :)
Anthro Inspired Diffuser Blend. This blend has been on repeat in our diffusers. It smells SO so good & I love that we can recreate favorite candles with diffuser blends without all the toxins. Win Win!
Shiloh Collect Inspiration - Mik & Tay are such an encouragement to follow. Their posts are always refreshing my soul! If you love beautiful art + Jesus, go check out these sweet girls on instagram!
I’m so excited to continue sharing these quick fun posts with you all with a few things I’m currently loving. :) Have a WONDERFUL weekend friends!
2019 Goals
I love the start of a new year. The fresh start. The endless possibilites. The opportunity to dream big. It all sets my heart on fire. I’ve used Lara Casey’s PowerSheets for five years now and love this intentional goal setting tool. The tending list each month is where I’ve seen so much growth happen in my goals!
I love that Lara encourages progress not perfection too. Before I began setting goals, I would find myself overwhelmed with where to start or set lofty goals but wasn’t sure how to take action on them and ended up giving up altogether. After working through the PowerSheets prep work and reading some of the posts on the Cultivate What Matters blog, I’ve been able to break my goals down into tangible action steps to make them happen little by little.
I’m keeping my goals for 2019 simple, but purposeful. When our precious little guy arrives in May, I want to soak up every second of this sweet season we’ve waited and prayed for. So I’m giving myself so much grace this year. :)
My favorite tools for morning quiet time in scripture.
My favorite journaling bible that I’ve used for three years now. I love the leather cover, how durable it is, and the blank pages in between to jot down notes & what God is teaching me. Click here to view the exact bible I use (pictured to the left).
Val Marie’s Prayer journals are one of my absolute favorite tools. I love that each month is broken down into different categories to pray over. It is always so neat to look back at the end of each month and each year at the “answered prayers” section to see how God has been at work throughout the past year. Click here to view the yearly prayer journals. I chose the Navy version this year & LOVE it.
My 9 Goals for 2019
Start with Jesus // Right now this looks like waking up early, pouring a cup of coffee and spending time in God’s word & journaling in my prayer journal. (Favorite morning quiet time resources linked above) With a newborn, this will likely look a lot different, but starting with Jesus each day always refreshes me and sets my heart in the right place.
Prayerfully prepare for motherhood + deliver our sweet boy in May! // No book or blogpost will ever prepare me for motherhood, but I’m continually praying God will be our strength and give us wisdom as we enter this season of parenthood. As we prepare our home & our hearts for this little man, I pray Jesus is at the center of it all and is glorified through our sweet boy’s story!
Pursue our marriage // Savoring these last few months just the two of us + continually making date nights happen + praying together + dreaming together + being a team together. This last year taught us so much & also drew us so much closer. Here’s to continually loving each other well.
Make time for Self Care // This has been a work in progress, but I know I’m so much better for others when I take time to take care of myself. I’m making a list of the things that fill my heart up & help me to take better care of myself and will be working on incorporating these little by little each day.
Pour into passions for His glory // We’ve got big goals for our little family & God has been growing my heart for the passions He’s given me. I’m making it a priority to take just a little bit of time each day and each week to pour into these and pray that He gets the fruit and the glory!
Create a life giving home // Can I get really real with you all? I’m not a great homemaker. I’ve never had a desire to learn how to cook and bake. I’m not super organized. & I’m pretty much the worst at keeping up with daily tasks around our house. ;) My husband is literally the best and takes care of all of that so I have time to pour into the passions God’s laid on my heart right now, but I do want to get better about creating a life giving home and using our home to serve and love others well. I’m reading The Life Giving Home with the Nancy Ray Book Club throughout this year and am working on implementing little tips each month throughout the year.
Read 15 books // I shared my reading list for 2019 in this blogpost. Reading fills my heart to the brim & often teaches me so much. I love personal development books so this also ties into goal number 9 too. For a free reading list to follow along with what I’m reading throughout the year head to this blogpost! I also shared direct links to all the books in that post as well. :)
Steward the resources he’s blessed us with & make big progress on paying off debt // Contentment has been an area I’m learning to grow and stretch in. I’m taking Nancy Ray’s contentment challenge from January to March to kick off the year and I’m already learning a lot in these first few weeks. We have big goals to make some serious progress on paying off debt this year so the Contentment Challenge not only is changing my heart towards the way I look at “stuff” but also allows us to put that money that we’re not spending on extra stuff towards saving + paying off loans. Win win!
Pursue personal development // This is something I didn’t think much about for the first 21 years of my life. My senior year of college I started to pick up a few personal development books as I was trying to make the most of my time and balance all that was going on in that season of life. Now it has become part of my daily and weekly routine. Sometimes it’s listening to an inspiring audiobook, or listening to a podcast, reading a personal development book or watching creative business videos. I absolutely love continuing to learn new things that encourage me to live this life abundantly.
So there you have it! Those are my 9 goals for 2019. I’ll be sharing my smaller goals each month as well throughout the year to hold myself accountable and hopefully encourage you all to make what matters most to you happen. :)
Cheers to 2019!
2019 Reading List
Happy (almost) new year sweet friends! I hope you all have had a wonderful holiday season! We’ve been soaking up every minute of laughing and relaxing with family & friends. :) I’ve also been catching up on reading a few books that have been on my night stand for way too long. ;) Reading is one thing I absolutely love, but it often falls off the list of priorities when life gets busy. It’s something that’s so simple and fills my cup, so this year I’m making it a priority by starting small.
One of my 2019 goals is to read simply 10 pages a day of whatever book I’m currently reading. I’m also planning to download a few audio books to listen to in the car or while walking. Life will look so different in just a few months when our sweet baby boy arrives, so I’m keeping goals simple this year and holding any plans loosely as we soak up sweet time with our little guy!
I tried to narrow it down to just 12 books (1 per month) but there was just too many favorites to choose from. ;) I linked all books on Amazon below to make it easy peasy if there’s any you want to read too! I’m planning to download Imperfect Courage & Girl Stop Apologizing on Audible to listen to. :)
The Year of Living Happy by Alli Worthington
The Magic of Motherhood by Ashlee Gadd
The Life Giving Home by Sally Clarkson
Switch on Your Brain by Dr. Caroline Leaf
Grumpy Mom Takes a Holiday by Val Woerner
Cozy Minimalist Home by Myquillyn Smith
Preach to Yourself by Hayley Morgan
Anonymous by Alicia Britt Chole
Imperfect Courage by Jessica Honegger (Audio Book Option: Click Here)
Slight Edge by Jeff Olson & John David Mann
Downline Whispering by Beth Whicker
My Five a Day by Monique McLean
Girl Stop Apologizing by Rachel Hollis (Audio Book Option: Click Here)
The Mama Natural by Genevieve Howland
I’m also planning on following along with Nancy Ray’s book club for a few of these books. :) I’d love to know what you’re reading in 2019! Download the Beautiful Season Co. reading list for free below. :)
So excited to read and learn and grow together this next year! If you’re reading any of these books, tag @beatufiulseasonco on instagram and I’d love to chat and cheer each other on! :)
