Valentine's Day

 

What a wonderful day full of love. Every day is and should be that way. 

 

 

The hubs had a little work in the morning, but I got to sleep in a bit, so we didn't miss much time away. Kicked off the morning with a good workout, because showing your health some love is important too. Brooklynn joined me by trying to mimick everything I was doing. I'll have to get it on video next time. She's pretty much the cutest thing ever. We followed it up with a nutritious and festive lunch... 

 

If you know me, I relish the opportunity to play with my food. By which I mean, make it cutesy and themed. Yes, I'm THAT mom. My tot appreciates it and it makes me smile. XO.

We read some Valentine and lovey books to get B into her nap, and afterward it was off to the park... 

 

 

 

We love the playground and the park. We love the swings and the slides. We love the sunshine and beautiful days. We love heart print things and Valentine's. Most of all, we love each other.

 

 

 

 

After a day full of fun and me playing Mamarazzi, we flew to dinner. Literally...

 

We enjoyed a delicious dinner together at one of our favorite sea food restaurants. Afterward, we went for a night time stroll around some local shops. We made our stop at B's favorite waterfall to say hello and blow kisses to all of the Nemo characters she thinks are in the pond. Coffee in hand, pretty views in our eyes, and love in our hearts. It was a beautiful day.

Brooklynn thought Valentine's Day really rocked and we hope yours was filled with love too!

Nature Trails & Cat Walks

Another beautiful fall day spent at the park, where else? In case you haven't figured it out; we LOVE taking trips to the park! We favor a nearby nature preserve the most. It has an awesome playground for our regular playtime activities, SO MUCH ROOM FOR ACTIVITIES! as well as absolutely beautiful trails to walk, hike, bike, run... or strut if you're my little sassy fashionista pants.

What started out as a typically awesome mama and mini play date turned into quite the photo shoot of this trendy tot. I couldn't help but snap away at her perfect model poses and of course then blog about two major things; her cuteness (duh!) and the awesome brands behind her fabulous fall fashion.

I've got a serious affinity for handmade shops, especially made by other mamas. If you follow me on instagram, you can see I'm following a slew of adorable shops. All of them have goods I just can't wait to get Brooklynn in. Without further adieu, allow me to introduce you to these three fantastic brands...

NOXXaz 

Okay, so there is no such thing as being a toddler girl and having too many bows, headbands, and turbans. It just can't happen. So we started our NOXXaz collection with two new turban bows; the one pictured  (don't worry, I'll review the other soon!) is the Navajo Aztec print. I totally associate fall with tribal vibes, is that just me or do the two go hand in hand? Anway, the colors were perfect for autumn. So, as soon as I opened the package I pulled this adorable bow out and it was one of the softest fabrics I've ever felt. I honestly want lots of blankets and sweaters made of it. Obviously a major win right off the bat for this mama; as I only want the softest and comfiest things for my daughter. Brooklynn took one look and squealed "geeeeeeeeeen bowwwww!" (that's toddler for green, btw.) and immediately patted it on her head for me to put it on. She LOVED it and wouldn't let me take it off. And that's saying something, all you mamas know it can be a struggle to keep accessories on our babes. I loved pairing it with her chambray dress and moccs for an all over Native look for our hike through the nature preserve.

Subsidy Shades

Alright, so can we just go ahead and give a round of applause for this awesome company? Let me tell you why you're clapping; not only do they make awesome sunnies for all ages (making for great mama and mini matchy matchy cuteness), but they also work for a cause. Their proceeds go toward funding to find forever homes for sweet babes and kiddos through adoption. How sweet is that? I love that my tot is rocking some aviators, and happily keeps them on at that, but the best feeling is knowing it's from a company that's doing good for children. So I'm throwing some shade your way, but the good kind of course, by telling you to go get yourself and obviously a mini(s) in your life a pair... or five.

Freshly Picked

 

So if you haven't heard of FP yet, wellll, frankly I'm sorry about the rock you've been chilling under. The lovely owner of this incredible company started out making moccasins for little ones in her basement and made her way to Shark Tank with her creations... You can now order her fly off the shelf popular moccs on her site and even Nordstrom. Have a favorite color? She's got it, in fact, there's probably a few shades of said color. They're delicious! I know, you're like why is this lady talking about shoes like that (well, first you don't know my shoe obsession), but the colors are just so yummy; most recently "With Cream and Sugar" and "Salt Water Taffy". I don't even like candy or sugar for that matter, but I want to eat these shoesies up! You'll know what I'm talking about when you go check them out, which you're obviously opening up another window to do now, RIGHT? They get even cuter when you put your youngin's little toesies in them. I do love them for more than looks though too; you take one look at them and recognize the amazing work put into them; they are soft soled (great for curled up baby toes too) but sturdy and durable, which is perfect for a toddler on the run. I'll warn you... once you start, you'll be on a mission to collect every pair. Brooklynn is rocking the "Platinum" in these photos.

I hope this post inspired you to check out these wonderful brands and obviously get out and enjoy your little ones and nature on these beautiful fall days!

*ALL opinions are my own and I wrote these reviews out of true love for the brands.<3

a walk in the park

If you read my last post about our morning at the pumpkin patch, I left off with our afternoon headed to the neighborhood playground... So, after both our teams won their games, hubby started prepping dinner while B and I took a walk to the park.

There's something so calming and peaceful about taking a walk with my daughter. The ambiance of a perfectly fall setting along the way and crisp weather to match didn't hurt either. It was just the two of us, on a walk together, and it was a blast. We hadn't even made it to the playground yet. We waved hello and byebye to all of the birdies who flew past and made ooohs and woaaaahs to the cool breezes that blew our way. Knowing that all of the observations she was making of our surroundings made her smile so much, made something as simple as a walk, so special to me.

Once we got to the playground her eyes lit up and I got her out of her stroller to let her explore. Her first fascination was with the tiny pebbles that made for the playground floor. She picked each one up, with a look of intrigue, and studied them, before gently placing them back on the ground. All the toys in the world, and the kid likes rocks; isn't that something to put life into perspective...

After that she went straight for the swings, squealing with excitement at each push higher. She'd look up and spot "paaaaaaaaaaaanes!" (planes) and so obviously I told her she was going just as high and to reach out and touch them, and she most preciously did. There were a few dozen trips down the slide, the baby slide, which mommy maaay have gone down too. If no one else is there, it doesn't count right? She peeked in a tunnel, but wasn't quite ready to venture through it, before deciding she was ready to "wakkkk!" (wallk). So, I tried to pick her up to put her back in her stroller, but she said "no way girlfriend!", okay so not those exact words, but she made it clear she wanted to walk like a big girl. Of course, I couldn't resist watching her pigeon toed chunky legs take off

. The entire day was fall-abulous! Yep, I made that a word.