Friday, August 31, 2018

Five on Friday - the last of August

August just seriously flew right by.  We spent our month soaking up all the new baby goodness, celebrated our 10 Year Anniversary, a broken collarbone, a trip to Disneyland, and Ellie's Open House for KINDERGARTEN!!  Tomorrow will begin September and then we can all truly start enjoying All Things Fall while we're weeping in sorrow that Summer is Over 😩



::ONE::





How is he already 1 month old?  I can't get over how cute he is.  I mean we made him (technically the embryologist did that) and we couldn't be more in love.  Our hearts have multiplied tremendously and I am so thankful that he is finally here, our sweet Rainbow 🌈  He is 21.5" tall, weighs 8lbs 6oz, makes the most adorable grunting sounds, loves to nurse all day long, sleeps long stretches at night, and wears size 1 diapers.

::TWO::



Ellie had her open house at her school this week and seeing her run around the playground, making new friends, and meeting her teachers!  It was so fun to see her walk the halls of the school (well, one of the schools) I used to teach at and one of my former cheerleaders is a teacher there so she's going to keep tabs on Ellie for me 😉

::THREE::


I've mentioned oils on here over the years and I honestly cannot tell you how much they have changed our lifestyle!! Ellie loves to help apply our Wellness roller not only to herself but to Thomas and myself.  Our diffuser's are going every night and our sleep has been so great, I even brought one to Disneyland with us and I've never slept so well in a hotel room.  We also have our diffuser's going throughout the day to support our immune systems as well as our emotional state and we've seriously had the best summer ever (Séamus has helped too).







I wanted to let you know that today is the last day to take advantage of my End of Summer promo, when you sign up (here) for a Premium Starter Kit I will send you a welcome package, just like I always do, but I will also send you a set of roller bottles and a bottle of Fractionated Coconut Oil so that you can start making roller's with your oils!!  In your welcome package you'll receive a recipe card for roller blends and diffuser blends!! 



Here is the breakdown of what comes in a PSK!!



::FOUR::





Finnley has been cracking me up lately. She is adjusting well to having a broken collarbone, we go in next week for another xray to check on the progress, and is still trying to do all the dangerous things.  But she has also really been into sunglasses.  She finds all the pairs we have around the house and puts them on (usually upside down) and then will push them up on her head like a headband.  She walks all around the house making a duck face and all we can do is laugh, which makes her day so she just keeps doing it.

::FIVE::


Like I said above, we love Diffusing our oils in our home.  I love that by using our diffuser's we are still getting some great scents in our home from the essential oils but eliminating the toxins that come with candles and we are supporting our health and emotions!!  Often times candles are scented with "fragrance" which is a chemical substance that has toxins which are released into the air when the candle is lit.  



Diffusing Essential Oils takes that out of the picture and you get so many great benefits!!  Often times I am diffusing for seasonal support or to keep the calm...because 3 kids.  But now we are approaching Fall which is when we all want to burn all the candles, so we have oils for that!!  When you Oil with me you'll get to have all sorts of resources at your fingertips, like these great diffuser blends!  So what are you waiting for? Come Oil with Me!!

♥ Ashley

In case you missed it:
a post all about Ellie
Séamus week 5
 

Wednesday, August 29, 2018

The Séamus Weekly - week 5

These weeks with sweet Séamus just keep flying by!!  We've been doing our best to stay healthy and enjoy these last days of Summer as best we can.  This week Séamus celebrated his One Monthday! went to the doctor, checked out the Science Center, took his first Ferry ride, and has been the best baby!



Séamus's 1 Month Stats:
weight 8lbs 10oz
height 21.5"



Sleeps: we started swaddling little man again and it's made quite the difference in his sleeping along with our diffuser going.  We also moved him out of our bed and into the Halo Bassinet right next to me.  He has been going to bed around 9pm and wakes up around 1am and again around 4:30am for feedings.  He naps in our arms, in the swing, and his best naps happen in his room when he is swaddled, blinds closed, sound machine on and lavender in the diffuser.




Eats: boob boob boob! I've noticed his seal hasn't been great and some milk has been leaking out during his feeds so we have an appointment with a lactation consultant this week to get that checked out (and to see what we can do about my nipple pain).  When he's up and being more active he is eating about every 90 minutes.



Wears: Séamus is growing! He is officially in size 1 diapers and his newborn clothes are starting to get a bit snug on him.  Which makes me happy and sad all at the same time (I love some of his NB outfits but am so glad we can start putting him in the plethora of 0-3 month clothes we have).  He wears the cutest footed sleepers that are so incredibly soft but also has quite the collection of onesies and pants.



Goes: his first Ferry Ride, out to Dim Sum, to the Pacific Science Center, and the doctor.  He has been quite the good little traveler and seems to like his car seat quite a bit.  The girls are great in the car with him, when we drive Thomas' car both Ellie and Finnley love to help give him his paci (or this one)





Mama: I'm still really enjoying nursing (even though it's painful at times...another reason we are going to the lactation consultant) and love that we haven't had to wash bottles or mix formula, I love that I can still continue to provide for Séamus and his nutritional needs.  I am getting anxious for my 6 week appt - that had to get rescheduled due to Finnley needing another xray - and to get the go ahead to start doing some exercising and working on getting back down into my pre-pregnancy clothes.  My maternity pants are still super comfortable but they are getting pretty loose on me but my pre-pregnancy are just a little too tight, like I can't even get them buttoned, but I don't want to buy new pants that I will only wear for a short amount of time.. I've been applying lavender and frankincense daily to my incision to support its healing and diffusing our nighttime blend has really supports my sleep.  I have also been rolling on my Joyful Mama blend on my wrists and over my heart for some emotional support.




Sisters: Ellie is still all about giving Séamus all the kisses and loves.  She is constantly wanting to hold him and be near him.  She is so excited for Kindergarten to start and has matured like crazy since bringing him home. Finnley loves to point out the "oh baby" and still needs some major work on being gentle.  She flat out refuses to leave him alone when she is snuggling with him and gets quite upset when we have to physically remove her from him.  Despite her broken collarbone she is still straight Cray Cray and wants to do all the things, running around like a mad woman is her favorite, swinging is a close second, followed by trying to jump on all the things is third.  I think its safe to say that everyone is completely smitten with him.










Previous Posts

Séamus week 1, week 2, week 3, week 4 

Ellie week 5
Finnley week 5

 ♥ Ashley


Tuesday, August 28, 2018

Ellie Lately

It's been a while since I've dedicated a post to just one of the kids and I love looking back and seeing what they were up to at different ages.




So here is Ellie at 5 years and 3 months


She is about to start Kindergarten and is so incredibly excited for this new adventure.  She does have some reservations about making new friends, but in all honesty that shouldn't be a problem for her because she is so outgoing, friendly, goofy, and kind.  However, it's totally normal for that to be a concern and the fact that she cares about it really makes me love her so much more.  We went out and got her school supplies and it was so fun to see the items she was interested in and picked out, she got a Minnie Mouse backpack at Disneyland, she wants to use her Belle lunchbox from last year and we just got a Yumbox to go inside from Amazon.  She is so excited to play with friends and to learn.  She keeps asking me to teach her how to read so I think that she's ready for school!




I am so happy that she is eating a bigger variety of food, which is going to make making her school lunches easier (fingers crossed).  Some of her favorites: goldfish, broccoli, buttered noodles, carrots, peas, plain white rice, cornflakes, turkey, ham, shrimp, fish, pears, scrambled eggs, toast, cherries, blueberries, strawberries, grapes, green beans, raw mushrooms, pretzels, applesauce, and corn.  I'm also hoping that she'll try some other foods because her peers like to eat it at school.


Ellie is constantly drawing and making letters on paper.  Little notepads are the big winner's for her this summer.  I've noticed that she has made a lot more "projects" for me since Séamus was born.  She is working on her art and is drawing lots of people (mainly me with a baby in my tummy).  She loves to paint and has created quite the collection that she wants to set up a stand on our driveway to sell her paintings.



She has finally learned how to swim and her confidence in the pool is the best.  I love that she wants to jump into the pool by herself, doesn't have to plug her nose to go under water, and can kick and move her arms all while floating on her own.  She does much better with her goggles on but the fact that she still swims without them speaks volumes to how far she has come.  In addition to swimming she loves to dance and do gymnastics.  She can't wait for summer to be over so I can sign her up for Cheerleading!!!  I love all the things she is into and her matter of fact tone when she tells people what she can do makes me smile.


Ellie has quite the "fashion sense" and comes up with some pretty creative outfits.  She loves to wear dresses (because they're easy for her to put on all by herself) and has a few in particular that have made multiple appearances lately...like her long sleeved sweater dresses almost every day this summer... Luckily for all of us she doesn't complain when she gets too hot!  She loves her long hair and can brush it by herself - and prefers to! She wants to be like Rapunzel and have long hair...a girl after my own heart.


She loves her sister something fierce, though try as we might she prefers to call her Sister instead of Finnley.  She is great at sharing, helping Finnley out, managing Finnley's outbursts, and sharing a room with her.  If her love for Finnley was any indication for what her love might be like for her brother...we had no idea! She loves him so much, wants to hold him all the time, can't wait to feed him a bottle (still several months off from that), is interested in everything he does, and talks about him constantly.




Another thing that I love about Ellie is that she loves to help keep things clean (except when she is playing).  She is great at helping me clean up the house to vacuum, she loves to help mop the floors, and is constantly telling Finnley not to make a mess in their room because she "likes it neat and tidy".


 
She is my oiling buddy and helps me to remember to apply their wellness roller, fill up their diffuser at night, and ensures that our living room diffuser has a good blend going.  She knows the power of oils and how beneficial they are to us! Come Oil with Us here!!


Oh sweet Ellie Faith, I love you so much and love who you are becoming.

♥ Ashley