The BEST part of being a parent!

There are parts of parenting I REALLY dislike.... discipline, tantrum management, blow out poop, spit up on a clean shirt... you know what I'm talking about. THEN there are parts of parenting that are AWESOME! Today was one of those days! I took a morning nap with Avery thanks to Daniel who played with Parker, put up dishes, folded laundry and straightened up the kitchen... I know... A-MAZ-ING! Man, did that start the day off right! Our new dishwasher came at 11:15, only 45 minutes after our time slot which I consider a success, was installed and is now functioning! WOO HOO! After lunch and naps, we headed to Carowinds! YIPPEE! 

This is where our day got SUPER fun! We've had some not so wonderful experiences at Carowinds when Parker won't ride anything but today he was fearless! Back to the title... one of the best parts about being a parent is reliving fun childhood memories through your children's eyes. It is SO gratifying to watch them enjoy something that you also enjoyed as a child (or maybe still do!). 

We started at the water park:

I promise this is Parker swimming, not drowning. He's fearless in the water!

Our awful but best attempt at a shot of the kid's matching swim suits.

Then we headed to Parker's beloved Snoopy train:

Of course, no Carowinds experience would be complete without a spin around the carousel. Parker searched long and hard for the girliest horse he could find!

 We took MANY rides in the boat! Always the yellow one, of course!

The kids were FANTASTIC! Not even a single whine from either of them! Super dad Baby Bjorned (yes that is a verb) Avery for a while when Parker and I re-rode (also a new verb) the rides over and over. 5-8 is a great time to go. No lines! Super dad and I had a great time and so did the kids! Fingers crossed for a WONDERFUL night's sleep! Tonight is Avery's 1st night in her crib (well... at least she's starting the night in her crib.) 1 1/2 hours so far! That may be a record!

Baby/Toddler Favorites

Happy Saturday! I sure hope my Clemson Tigers can pull out a win today! It's starting to be a bit of a depressing season!

I get asked a lot about my "favorites" whether it's baby gear, clothing stores or TV shows. As you may know, I'm quite an opinionated person so I know what I like...and what I don't! Here's a list of some of my favorite baby/toddler stuff should you for any reason be interested. :)

Kid show: I have 2. Chuggington and the always trusty Curious George. Chugginton teaches life lessons like morals, time management and friendship. The stories are super cute and I always like the lesson. I like Curious George because Parker likes Curious George. He's too young to get anything educational out of it but he watches it and it gives me 15 mins or so to wake up in the morning. That's reason enough to make it #1 on my list.

Clothing: Gymboree. They've got it all. jeans, lounge clothes, dress clothes, PJs and swimwear. I don't buy PJs or swimwear from anywhere else now. Beware... they do run big! They constantly have new clothes in the store (which means they always have the "old" stuff on sale" and the quality is great. I can get just about any stain out of them as opposed to places like Target where you get a drop of spaghetti on it and it's in the trash. My other FAVORITE place to get custom clothes is Izzy Puddin'! You may recognize the model on the website ;) Nikki at Izzy Puddin' is A-MAZ-ING! She made Parker these adorable Jon Jons as well as a small wardrobe of monogram long and short sleeve shirts. Her stitching is impeccable, prices are awesome and she's so easy to work with! If you don't see an applique you like on her website, she has access to like infinity more. Whatever you can imagine!
Here are some of the items she's made for Parker:

Shoes: Nike Shox for tennis shoes. (I got Parker's at the Nike Factory Outlet). He walks amazing in them and they're so easy to put on with the "fake" laces that are really elastic. Stride Rite Leather sandals for summer dress shoes. Crocs (preferably the croc bands) for park/get dirty shoes. You can hose them off and they're clean again. Easy Breezy.


Snacks: Buddy Fruits (or GoGo Squeeze... they're the same concept). It's real fruit smashed up and in a pouch that the kids suck out of. It's completely mess free and they don't need to be refrigerated so they're perfect for the car or diaper bag. If it says "apples and strawberries" that's exactly what's in it and nothing else.

Toys: I love most things Fisher Price or Little Tikes. They're made better than most other toys and they're easy to find at consignment stores. Lets be honest. Kids outgrow toys so why not find some gently used ones at a nice consignment sale? Lysol wipe them and they're good to go! We love our cozy coupe, wagon, basketball goal, music table and ball sorting dragon. Some are new, some are used but they're are Little Tikes or Fisher Price and loved by Parker.

Strollers: Tough Question. I'll break it down by needs.
Lightweight: Maclaran Volo. It's light, nicely made, adorable at $99 and made with a mesh seat so it's cool in the summer. It folds to almost non-existent.
Jogging Stroller: No questions about it... BOB. I like the revolution because the front wheel can lock OR swivel so it can also be an everyday stroller or an excellent walking stroller.
Everyday Stroller: You could use the BOB revolution for this but I recommend the Uppa Baby Vista. It can be a snap n go when the child is an infant. It also comes with a pram (so cute) and a toddler seat that can face forwards or backwards. I love this feature. If a 2nd is on the way, you can buy a rumbler seat that attaches easily. I wouldn't use this as an everyday double because the rumbler seat is tiny but it would be perfect for short trips. The Uppa Baby also comes in cute colors... oh so important! (Honorable Mention: Baby Jogger City Mini)
Double Stroller: I've recently become an expert here! Hands down the Baby Jogger City Select. It's a single stroller that adds a 2nd seat to the frame to make it a double. The seats can be configured 1 different ways! It's insane. The infant seat snaps into it. You can also purchase a pram. Check out these options!

Sippy Cups: Parker can only do ones with straws so we like the Playtex insulated straw cups. They don't make his hands cold so that's a plus and they rarely leak. The downside for a boy is that they come in a whopping 4 stereotypical designs.... cars, dinosaurs, sports balls and construction equipment.

Infant Carrier: Baby Bjorn Spirit. It's the original baby Bjorn but in cute, bright colors (red, lime green, pink, orange, blue, etc). We had the black one with Parker but I think I may splurge on a new, pretty one for #2. Parker spit on his so many times that I feel bad putting a 2nd kid in it.

I do have other "favorites" BUT right now I've gotta get ready for my favorite time of the day.... Parker's nap time! :) YAY for getting stuff done!