Hello Monday...

We already miss the weekend... (Sigh) We had such a great weekend filled with amazing weather, cute outfits, and some mama friend time (hallelujah). Daddy started his new job on Thursday so he worked the weekend away so we missed him but we better get used to it because he is now a weekender, boo. Harps and I went to visit Grandma at the Harley Davidson store because she was working an event on Saturday so of course we had to rock a smokin outfit! She of course signed a million autographs (lol, her Grandpa always says that when she gets a lot of attention when were out and about, he's silly like that). 

Biker Babe.

Then we went to our favorite restaurant, Vincenzo's. We are appetizers and signed a couple more autographs (haha) then went home and relaxed! Sunday I went to one of my besties bridal shower. I went by myself and Harps stayed home with Grandma and Grandpa but when I showed up alone, peeps were pissed! Lol. Let's just say no one cares about me anymore so I went and got the doll and went back to the shower. We had a great time with our girls and we can't wait for the wedding next month!! Eek! 

This is a big week for us we are starting our nanny job and I am nervous/excited! We had a little test run today and went pretty good. Harper and I will just need to get adjusted to not being in our usual routine but we will find a new routine and it will be great! Wish us luck!!

Swingin in my shades. Harps was born in that hospital behind her and now shes a big girl swinging. Crying!!  

Target run with Grandma. A little over dressed for Tar jay?  I don't think so!

I die of this cuteness. She looks like a little girl, not a baby!

Sleeping in her new pj's. Baby shorts eeek!

Don't you just want to kiss those cheeks? :)

The beautiful  bride to be and Miss Harper J!

Vote for the lovely Miss Harper for the Parents Magazine Cover Contest! We would really appreciate it! xoxo

CLICK TO VOTE FOR HARPER

Golden Girl

New Obsession Alert

GOLD GOLD GOLD EVERYTHING GOLD.

Lol. I love it! I think I am loving it so much because it is reminding me of a summer sunshine. We are having the worst weather right now. Rainy and cold everyday and its almost May... what? And it also is reminding me of being tan for some reason lol. Am I crazy, yes, and I just love it right now! Gold and brown sandals, bronzed makeup, rose gold nail polish gold clutch, gold & white iphone case, big chunky necklace, platinum moccs, prada sunnies, and a tan =summer golden perfection.

{One} {Two} {Three} {Four} {Five} {Six}

I hope this warms and brightens your day!

Harper Turns Ten Months!!! {tomorrow} ;)

This girl is turning TEN months old tomorrow!

I am in complete and utter denial... I'm sad but happy at the same time. Sad that she is growing and changing so quickly from my sweet beautiful newborn to my silly, talkative, walking, big girl! Yes walking! She took her first two steps last night and I melted into a puddle while she grinned with pride and joy! She is my pride and joy and I love her more everyday which I am not sure is possible but somehow I do.

Saying "Mama"

 This pretty girl weighs about 18 pounds and is 27 inches tall. She talks non stop but not really real words except for "HI" and "Yeah" and "Mama" when shes whining for Me. She acts very shy and quiet at first and then when she gets comfortable, she does not stop jabbing! (I think she got that from Me...) She does this thing where if people are talking she will talk extra loud and then when everyone stops and we say, Harper tell us your stories, she completely stops and gives you the sweetest smile like, What... Its so effing cute!!

She is so smart and inquisitive. She learns things so quickly and her favorite toy right now is the ring stacker and her new baby doll from Grandma. She stacks and unstacks those rings all day long and now she loves on her baby and gives it kisses. So sweet. We has been giving kisses for a couple months now but only to her stuffed animals and the dogs when we tell her "kiss". She opens her mouth and leans her head in, I Love IT. And now shes getting better at giving us kisses. I pretty much ask her all day long for kisses, big, sloppy, wet, teethy kisses. MY FAV :)

Her eyes are everything!

 She is still nursing which I absolutely love and she only eats Earth's Best jarred baby food or the pouches maybe only twice a day. She also loves puffs of every kind and yogurt melts. She drinks out of a sippy cup all by herself and she just recently has discovered she can drink out of straws. She can only drink out of the big ones, like the ones that come in the cups you get at the hospital. She cant figure out regular straws...

My curious busy bee.

She still does not sleep very good and still sleeps with Me in bed but last week I decided she needs to learn that she can be by herself and that we will always come back. I put her in her pack n play in our room and shut off the lights and setup the baby monitor on my iPAD and turn on her gloworm. At first she cried for about thirty minutes and was so pissed off but she eventually calmed down and just sat in there quietly and then fell asleep. After she was asleep, I would bring her back into bed with Me because i'm not ready for her to be in there all night (crazy mom alert). I do this every night and now she doesn't even cry. She just sits there for a good thirty minutes and listens to her music and eventually she falls asleep. This is amazing progress and actually she is waking up less during the night to eat so I am happy! She still only naps when someone is holding her but i'm going to start putting her in the crib upstairs for naps so I can actually get stuff done, but then again, I love our nap time cuddles so i'm torn...

 She is so amazing and every month just gets better and better. I cant believe she will be ONE in two months. I cant wait for her party but I would also love for her to stay a little princess forever!

This pretty much slays Me. Hands on knees. Cheesy smile. Be still my heart.

Weekend + a Blog Makeover. Again...

Happy Earth Day! rain rain go away, come again another day...

Another Weekend come and gone...

Where does the time go? My life has never flown by this fast and now I wish time would take a little timeout... My baby is going to be a year old in two months. OMG. Cray Cray. Bananas. (Yep, I love Rachel Zoe.) I have already planning Harper's First Birthday (on Pinterest of course) but stay tuned for a post about the pink, gold, glitter, tutu, princess extravaganza. Can.Not.Wait. Anyways, we had a pretty low key weekend.Harper has been teething like crazy so shes just not in the best of moods to be out and about which I totally understand... Poor baby. I think her front teeth are about to break the surface and I'm scared shit less. Yes, biting on the nipples hurts like a bitch. OUCH OUCH OUCH. And I can only imagine what kind of damage she will be causing with front teeth because as of now, her bottom teeth are pretty much covered up by her tongue while shes eating. Ugh. I'm totally off subject as usual, which makes me think now I need to write a breast feeding post. Yes, this is my blog and to-do list all in one! Back to the weekend, we did go to our friend Sheena and Dave's couples bridal shower which was so much fun! They have a little boy two weeks younger than Harper and her twin sisters baby is two months younger so it was fun for the babies and adults. Oh, and one of the guests brought their teenage daughters to babysit the kids downstairs while the adults partied upstairs. It was beyond awesome. This Mama got to drink sangria and mingle while H made new friends and besides one slight melt down after she had realized I wasn't with her, she loved those girls and they loved her. We stayed up till after midnight and although Harper was exhausted she would not sleep, she loves to party I guess. (Should I be worried already...) We had a great time and we are now looking forward to their wedding reception in September! Sunday we slept in till ten which has never happened, except for she was still up multiple times which is another post I need to write... but we just chilled at home all day because it was rainy and we were hungover tired...

Harper and Logan. He was loving her ;)

Of course I was so busy getting Harper and I ready that I forgot to take a pic of our cute outfits. How do you guys do it?!? :)

Naked Playtime!

She is so extra clingy to me lately. Not complaining. Totally Love it.

Teething girl.

Momma cuddles are the best!

These up coming weeks starts some new ventures for us. Nick is starting a new job at PayPal and I am starting a job as a nanny which I am so excited about. I know the baby's Mom which is awesome and Harper will come with me unless someone is home to watch her which is great because it will be so good for us to get out of the house and give us something to do and its only four days a week so its perfect for our situation. I am so excited about the next few weeks, and months. One of my besties is getting married, Harper's birthday and just spring/summer to enjoy. I hope you all had a great weekend!! xoxo

AND.....

I know I know, I changed my blog AGAIN. ( How annoyed are you guys). I'm sorry I just get bored easily and I get inspired by things I see or find on Pinterest and I get to changing shit! I think this one might be staying for awhile because I am loving gold, glitter, light pinks, and black. Ugh. Addicted. So anyways I'm sorry if its annoying but I just love to create and this is my creative outlet right now since I'm not doing hair everyday like I was. I hope you guys like the new design! 

Big Girl Toys

Happy Saturday!!

Today we are going to buy Harper some new toys. Long gone are the days of Sophie and teethers. She needs "real" toys. Brain stimulating, fun toys! She is so active and crazy that her little "baby" toys are just boring and dunzo. Recently she has been obsessed with her stacking rings. Shes had them since she was about five months old but now she actually knows how to take them off and put them back on which is so amazing to watch (proud Momma). I call them her donuts and she even knows the colors. She also recently has been loving her elefun ball popper which I got for her when she was about seven months but would just watch us put the balls in it but now she can turn it on herself and she knows where the balls go and how to take them out of the trunk. I'm actually a little annoyed of the music because she turns it on so much. ;) We are going to Babies "R" Us today to get something new for her so I compiled a little list of some cute things she might enjoy!

{Animal Shape Sorter} {Ring Stacker} {Poppin' Play Piano} {Stroller Walk-Along} {Zany Zoo Wooden Activity Cube} {Elefun Ball Popper}

Please share if you know of any other fun toys for a almost walking crazy ten month old!! Thank You!

Hope everyone has a great weekend!!

Makeup YouTubeR

Another Beauty Wednesday...

This is a little harder than I imagined. If I actually got dressed, did my hair and makeup daily, and looked semi decent it might be a little easier...but that's not reality right now so whatev's..

So I had planned to do a post on my new obsession.. SPRAY TANNING! Oh my I love it!!! I got a spray tan last week before we went on our trip and I was going to do before and after pics and then a pic everyday to see what it looked like till it was gone but of course I suck and that didn't happen so I am planning on getting another one within a week or two so I will hopefully be able to post a great spray tan review (which is obviously an amazing review because I am officially a spraytanorexic.)

But today I wanted to let you know about one of my other addictions. YouTube makeup/beauty guru Jaclyn Hill. I love watching YouTube tutorials on anything from makeup and hair to photo shop tutorials. YouTube is quite the amazing place as you probably already know ;). I found Jaclyn while browsing the Hair & Beauty tab on Pinterest, her video for Foundation Routine- How to get a Flawless Face came up and I had to know if this chick was for real so I watched it and became so amazed and addicted to her!! Her face really was beautifully flawless and she has this hilarious sense of humor and she is stunningly gorgeous. Ugh. Sorry do I sound like a stalker or what? But really I love watching her videos. She gives great tutorials and she actually knows what shes doing because she is a TRUE makeup artist. She loves M.A.C. products because I think she works for them but she also uses some drugstore finds which I like. Now she might not be for everyone because she does use a lot of different products and she always looks flawless even when she says, "this is just my every day look" and she looks like a million bucks (you don't want to see my "every day look") but I love the "I am wearing beautiful makeup look" so this girl is for Me! Ok, now I feel weird even writing this because I really do sound creepy but I just think she is a great tutorialist (I think I made that word up) and she has taught me some great tips and I have even bought my whole face routine from products she has recommended. So go watch her and thank Me later. Your Welcome! 

Do you guys have any favorite YouTuber's that you love? I want to know! :)

Hello Texas, Again...

Another Texas trip in the books.

Harper's third trip to Dallas in nine months. She is just the traveling baby.

She is actually a great traveler. We have driven every time which is a ten hour drive! LONG AS F#&%!

We actually went to Marietta, OK where my Mom's parents live. Its only about 40 minutes from Dallas so its not far from my Sister. The first two times it was just my Mom, Harper, and I, and this time Nick and my step dad came along as well. 

We left Friday at around 6 a.m. We only stopped 3-4 times. Our stops consist of stopping at a gas station to get gas and drinks and snacks and take Harper out of the car seat so she can stretch her legs and us too. I feed her in the car and change her diaper and we get back on the road! Ever since I can remember road trippin with my parents, we've never taken long stops like to eat at resteraunts or stop at hotels, its always, GO GO GO, which is totally fine by Me because I cant stand being in the car... UGH. We finally got to my Grandparents house around three and just hung out and played outside on the front porch and in the grass on a blanket which was so fun to Me! My Sister, Niece, and Todd came up from Dallas and they spent a couple hours with us and we got to love on our sweet Tenley!

Another trip?!?

Sleepy girl...

She hates the grass!

Playing with her second cousin Leah.

Grandpa & Great Grandpa talking away!

Sleepy Tenley girl!

On Saturday we went to Dallas. The girls went shopping at the Galleria and the boys went drinking at a bar... (boys will be boys). We met back up with them to get our family pictures taken. I cant wait to see the pics! Then we went out to eat and then we headed back to my Grandparents to sleep... Getting babies to smile is a hard job ;)

First cousin shopping trip!

Tenley Grace!

Harper Jane

Love  my Family!

Sunday we just hung out with family and my sister and her family and ate good home cooked meals and relaxed. The weather was perfect and it was exactly what we all needed. On Monday we headed back home which was another long drive but H slept the entire trip except for to eat. She was sooo good in the car and I am so thankful and blessed with such a good baby! I am also blessed to have such an amazing, caring, loving family. I loved spending time with my sister and my sweet niece Tenley who I love and miss so much since we cant be together as often as we would like to be but we are already planning our next trips! (Hopefully this time they can make the long trip. hehe.)

Playing with more second cousins.

Snuggling with my twin! I love her so much!!

On our way home, I cant believe she slept so much! So proud of her.

She totally deserved some ice cream after being such a good girl! She loves it!!

Also, I would just like to say that my heart is totally broken for everyone involved and effected by the Boston bombing...  Prayers for Boston.

Where the hell is Spring?!?! Nails + Nurseries

Happy Beauty Wednesday!

Well I thought spring had sprung... The weather was in the 60's and 70's and then last night we had a shit show of a hail storm! Hail the size of ping pong balls just literally pounded us! It went from lightly raining all day to our house being played like a drum! Scary. Anyways, spring obviously went away because today is in the 40's and raining.. F. But we are headed on another trip to Texas in a couple days so my sandal and dresses will be out in full glory. ;) Speaking of sandals, I love a good mani + pedi but right now I am so in love with nail polish. I feel like I change my polish at least once a week! In the winter I usually stick to blacks, browns, and reds, but in the spring and summer I turn into a cartoon character. Neon's, glitter, brighty brights and I love it! These are my personal Essie favs right now. I do buy every nail polish brand out there (Sally Hansen, Revlon, Piggy Paint lol) but I typically stick to Essie, Zoya, and OPI because I get those brands at discount for being a cosmetologist. 

{Mint Candy Apple} {Navigate Her} {In the Cab-ana} {Madison Ave Hue} {Penny Talk}

Mint Candy Apple: One of my favorite polishes of all time! Its like a Tiffany blue with a hint of mint. I could just eat it!

Navigate Her: Since green is the color of the year I love this limey hue for spring!

In the Cab-ana: This perfect Caribbean blue just makes me want to go on vacation to a tropical island. Gorge.

Madison Ave Hue: If this isn't the most perfect girly, Barbie, I'm perfect pink than I don't know what is!

Penny Talk: I am loving golds and bronzes lately. This penny color is perfect because its almost like rose gold and we all know rose gold is Bananas (in the words of the almighty fashion god Rachel Zoe.) I think she would approve ;)

What colors are you guys loving right now?? Please tell me!

Last weekend we also went to a local nursery (the flower kind) to look at flowers and pretend it was warm. This is a huge nursery in town and we wheeled Harper through the whole place and she loved it.. I think. She was good and she was looking around so she loved it ha! 

Gorgeous cactus.

Ma really?

No more pictures Please!!

Favorite {Daily} Hair Products

Happy Wednesday Friends! 

I've been thinking of expanding my blog to more than just baby related things. My main focus of my blog is still our lives and of course Harper but I love seeing other posts about fashion and beauty especially from other Moms. I love beauty and fashion so I am expanding my blogging horizon today! 

In honor of me graduating hair school my first post is about my favorite everyday hair products. I feel like I know a lot about hair (I hope after all this time and money) and I feel like I've tried a lot of products and brands. But as any woman I have my favorites. 

DISCLAIMER:

First off I just want to make a quick note about buying "professional" products (i.e. Redken, Matrix, Big Sexy Hair, Aveda) at places other (i.e. Target, Walmart, grocery stores) than professional salons or retailers. They are a fake! What I mean by that is places like Walmart and Target buy "Redken" products on pretty much the black market of professional hair products. The formula of the products they buy is not guaranteed, meaning they could have watered down the product or used something else in the bottle instead of the true product... Now I don't know all the details about this craziness but I guess what I am trying to say is do not buy professional products from anywhere other than a salon! 

Another thing, I highly recommend using professional products rather than drugstore products. I mean don't get me wrong, when I run out of my 35 dollars a bottle shampoo I sometimes have to run to Target and buy a sample of Pantene for the day but in the long run, professional products are just so much better for keeping your hair beautiful! You might think I am being snobby about hair products but they are just not made with good ingredients for your hair and they are just filled with wax and crap. They are pretty much the fast food of hair care. Professional products might cost you more money up front rather than drugstore finds but professional products last a hell of a lot longer and are actually good for your hair! But with that being said, I absolutely love Loreal Elnett Hairspray so now I just sound like a hypocrite! >:

Now on to the goodies, sorry for my rant I just want everyone to reach their beautiful hair potential!! ;)

{One} {Two} {Three} {Four} {Five}

These are my go to hair products at the moment. I go through this routine about every three days. I have super straight hair that is thin but I have a lot of it. 

I know every hair type is different but these products are very universal and will work for everyone.

Sorry this is a little out of order.

Wash with shampoo & conditioner, apply Aerate to the roots, apply Moroccanoil to ends of hair working your way up (try not to get it on your scalp area), style, sprinkle a little dust it, and spray with Superfine hairspray as desired!

Oribe Signature Shampoo & Conditioner: If you are not familiar with Oribe, get acquainted! It is THE most amazing line I have ever seen and used. It is definitely a luxury line because it is a little bit on the pricier side but so worth every dollar. I love this shampoo and conditioner because it is formulated without parabens or sodium chloride and is color. It also has a UV protection for your hair and has the most heavenly scent. Actually the whole line has the same smell which is very unique to one line. I could go on and on about Oribe but ill just let you read about it. ;)

Redken Aerate 08: This is a cream-mousse and it is awesome. It gives you amazing body and volume without leaving that sticky, producty feel. (I hate that feeling). It is a creamy texture and it also has a really pretty shimmer to it.

Moroccanoil: This really is worth the money and the hype. I haven't found another oil based product as good as  the original Moroccanoil. It can be used in either wet or dry. It is so conditioning and leaves your hair feeling silky smooth but not greasy.

Scwarzkopf Osis Dust It: I love this texturizer! I don't use this everyday though because I am not a fan of my hair feeling like it has product in it, and this totally makes your hair feel gritty and dirty but it also has amazing benefits like great for teazing your hair or even just sprinkled on your finished look to add some great texture and a slight hold. Amazing for second or third day hair! I have also been using the same bottle of this for almost two years now so it is totally worth the money. 

Oribe Superfine Hair Spray: I have never used a better hairspray!!! Once again I am just totally in love with this line! I guess the saying is true because you truly pay for what you get with Oribe. This hairspray is the perfect fine mist and both a working spray and a finishing spray. It also has the same heavenly sent as the shampoo and conditioner so your hair will smell amazing all day long! They actually call it hair perfume because it is so awesome!

I would love to know your favorite hair products as well! I love trying new things and learning about different lines. Also, let me know if you try any of these products! xoxo T

Graduation...

I FINALLY GRADUATED!!!!!

I am so excited that I am finally done with cosmetology school after 2 long years and 2100 school hours. (Nebraska  has one of the highest hour requirements for cosmetologist in the country, way more than California and New York just for an FYI.) So I am super proud of myself! 

In this time period of January 2011 to March 2013 I...

-Turned 21. Bad news for a self proclaimed "party-girl" in hair school, where you have to be there every day of the week including Saturday's and if you miss or forget to call in late you were suspended... My school didnt F*#% around ;)

-Had my first serving job where most nights we didnt get to leave until after 2 a.m.

-Met my L O V E!

-Became pregnant and went through my whole pregnancy on my feet for 35 hours a week and worked a job as a salon receptionist up until my last week of pregnancy. I finally took my maternity leave exactly one week before Harper was born because I couldnt physically and mentally take it anymore!

-Became a Mommy and took a seven month leave from school because I just couldnt imagine not being with my precious human 24/7.

And finally I went back and conquered Xenon and I couldn't be more proud of myself!!

Its tradition on your last day at my school that your station gets decorated, you dress a little nicer, and your family and friends pretty much just come hangout and get their hair done. It was a great day and of course Harper was the star of the show!

Family Picture.

Harper, Me and one of my favorite Instructors!

My decorated station, with crowns of course, and my Mom in foils. Lol.

Little Miss Popular.

Clocking out for the last time!! YAY!!