Friday night snuggles with "Violet" before bed time.  

 Watching daddy and Halas play at the dog park,

&

the aftermath of dinner, dessert and baby food making.

 We need our coffee in the morning so we can be energized for play dates at the park!

What did you do this weekend? If you posted about your weekend, comment below so I can check it out. Link up, and next "weekend in review" I'll do the same.

Have a great week, ya'll!

Last summer I purchased an adorable onesie dress for Noelle at Baby Gap. What made it special is that it is her first Diane Von Furstenberg piece. I think it is awesome that she received her first DVF dress before she was even born. Don't you? I didn't get my first DVF dress until I was well into my 20s.

A few weeks ago I received a coupon in the mail from Gap for 25% off their new DVF for baby line that debuted today. I've been sitting on pins and needles since I got it, and just about died when I opened up the site. I am by no means a designer clothing shopper, but I simply cannot help myself looking at these rompers, dresses, and summer gear.

Noelle, what do you like best? You'll let me pick? Oh, you're so sweet!

Being the good Michigander that I am, Michigan will always be my favorite place no matter how far away I am. However, it's always good to have a little mitten in the house.

Last year my sister got me the best birthday gift. A print of the great lakes using negative space to outline our  home state. Since then, it has been rolled up in it's tube waiting to be framed. It isn't a common size, so wasn't as easy as simply going to the store and purchasing a frame. Then, back in January, I came across this post over at Young House Love. I was inspired, and asked the hubs if he thought it was doable. Of course, he said yes, but like me, he's a busy guy, and couldn't make it happen immediately. Two weeks ago he presented me with his DIY picture frame.

Michigan, we know we don't get to you enough, but we can't wait to be there this summer at good old Higgins Lake!

It has been a few days since my last post. Unfortunately, it's not because we've been too busy, but because we've been dealing with a leak in our apartment from all of the rain. Boo. You could say it's not the most inspiring situation. Regardless, in the past week we've been able to video chat with Grandparents all across the country!

I will first apologize to Nene and Da for not taking a screen shot of our Skype date with them from Las Vegas. I will next time - promise! It was the first time we chatted with them online. They got to see Noelle's amazing sitting skills, and Aunt Mary got to see her "in person" for the first time.

Then, we chatted with Cammy, TBD, Aunt Erica and Auntie ML in Florida.

It's a little dark, but I'll get better next time. This was the first screen shot I've ever taken on my mac.

I guess this is what it's like when you live far away from family. I will say though, it's much better than just a phone conversation. Especially when sitting and looking pretty is just about the extent of Noelle's skills.

See you again soon, Grandparents!

Hubby just looked at this photo and said "she's seriously growing too fast." For real. Too. Fast.

I mentioned in my OTG Update a while back that I started crocheting. I started this little hobby after seeing crocheted and knitted headbands online for sale. They were so cute, but I just couldn't spend the money on something I thought I could do myself. So, I started researching found some great YouTube channels specifically for crocheting.

I found two that I really like: Crochet Hooks You and Bob Wilson 123. Both of these ladies have great online tutorials. After finding a "teacher" I headed to the yarn shop up the street from my office. I picked up a crochet hook, and two balls of yarn to get started.

My current yarn stash

First two projects

I've come a long way since my first couple of projects, and luckily, I have a great model, too.

I'm still creating new headband designs, but my next big project is a blanket. And, not just any blanket, we have plenty of those, but a hooded blanket. Who doesn't want a blanket with a hood? Awesome, right?

Have a great OTGS, ya'll. See you Monday!

I cannot believe that Noelle is already six months old. She is officially closer to one year, than one day. I know I say it every month, but time really is going by much too quickly. Our little Nono is growing so fast, and changing so much every day.

I thought this month I'd post a picture of Noelle from her first month, so you could see how much she's grown. We'll have the official stats from the doctor on Friday, but our guess is she's about 15-16 lbs, and 26 inches now. That's a long way from the 6 lb, 18 in peanut we brought home in October.

Pretty cool, eh?

This month Noelle has really blossomed. She's found her voice, learned to sit (though she still doesn't like rolling over too much), and can pick things up and throw them. Noelle also loves food. Her favorite is oatmeal and apple sauce.

Noelle is seriously awesome. We couldn't have gotten luckier with this one.

This weekend I tried out a new taco-ish recipe. You see, almost once a week Dave and I have some form of tacos. Whether it be our taco bowls or tostadas, we do enjoy our Mexican food.

Last week I was on Pillsbury's website looking for fun ways to cook with biscuits. I recently made a different recipe using biscuits as pie crust (our market doesn't sell pre-made pie crust, instead 12 kinds of phyllo dough), and felt inspired. I actually found quite a few recipes I'd like to try, but started with taco pie.

You can find the recipe here. A few alterations as usual. I don't have a pizza pan, so used a pie dish. I also couldn't find chopped green chiles, but Dave and I love chipotle in adobo, so I used a couple of those instead. I also added avocado to our toppings. I might pick up some sour cream next time too.

Anyway, it was delish! The hubs inhaled three slices, and I had one, plus a little extra myself.

Enjoy!

Introducing Baby to Pets

You never know how your pets are going to react when you bring a baby home. What made us nervous was Winnie's attitude problem, and Halas' fear of children. We were in trouble.

Winnie is mostly a non-issue at this point because she's a cat and keeps to herself. But, she does have claws and isn't afraid to use them. Recently Noelle has showed serious interest in her, and has actually tried grabbing her on several occasions, so we have to be very careful.

Halas is skeptical. He keeps his distance, and gives her hand a kiss in passing sometimes. Mostly though, they're just checkin' each other out.

How did your pets react to your new additions?

How was everyone's weekend? Ours was fantastic. A lazy day around the house on Saturday, and a few errands plus a trip to the dog park on Sunday!

Last week I saw a recipe on Pinterest for Healthy Peanut Butter Banana Oatmeal Bars. I bookmarked it and (unlike most things that I've pinned in the past) I actually made these this weekend! We had all of the ingredients too, so I didn't even need to make a trip to the grocery store.

These bars will be great for a quick snack, or could even work as a breakfast bar if you ate a couple (depending on how large you cut them). You can get the recipe here. Since we don't drink regular milk, I used almond milk, and I also used crunchy peanut butter instead of creamy. If you like a crispier bar I would cook them a bit longer, but after 23 minutes, ours were perfectly soft. Next time, I might even add chocolate chips. YUM!

This recipe has definitely landed a place in my personal cookbook! Enjoy!

  

There are two things I love about reading Mallory's posts about motherhood. First, they usually include adorable photos of Noelle. What Cammy doesn't like that! And, secondly, they remind me of my experiences raising Mallory and Erica. The latest entry about sleeping through the night brought back a lot of memories. Steve was so adamant about this issue. A stranger might have thought he was obsessed with parenting and looked forward to sharing his observations and learnings with others for the betterment of society. But actually he was really just tired.

A similar issue and one shared by most parents everywhere throughout time is the issue of the pacifier. To use or not to use. And, perhaps more importantly, how to get rid of it! With both girls, this painful ritual was kicked off with a visit to the dentist (who takes enough flack, not to mention getting bit by kids; but we did kick the dentist right under the bus on this one).

Anyway, with Mallory, we made our first dentist visit at which time the dentist offered the caution that, over time, the pacifier would possibly cause problems with alignment and that would not be good. The whole way home in the car, we talked about the visit and that, sadly, it was probably time to say farewell to the "bubby." I actually made Mallory go to her room, get the bubby and, while I lifted the lid on the trash can in the garage, she threw it in while I chanted (like a mantra) "the dentist said we have to get rid of the bubby."

That night was AWFUL. The end.

*You can view Cammy's first edition here.

I came across an article about how Ivanka Trump is expecting her second baby. She was quoted about being a working mom vs. being a stay at home mom. I had to share what she said because I totally agree with her on this topic.

"“I hate the expression ‘working mom,’ because when I’m with Arabella on the weekends, I’m much more exhausted on Monday morning than I am on Friday night!” she told Redbook recently. “I think the expression ‘working’ versus ‘non-working’ implies that a mother who stays home doesn't work. It’s far more difficult than anything I do in the office,” she admitted."

Bottom line? We're all "working" moms. And, while staying at home with baby girl all day is usually more exhausting than being in the office, if given the choice, I think I'd still rather stay at home. Being tired is a small sacrifice to get all of that extra time with Nono!

Sorry for the low quality, but this is my favorite picture of Noelle and myself.

We hope you have a great weekend!

Lately, the husband has been working on some DIY projects around the house. Checking things off of that honey-do list. Isn't he great? Anyways, all of this creativity in the atmosphere got me to thinking of other things that I'd like for our home, that he might be able to whip up for me.

We have some photos that since we moved in, in August, have just been propped on the ledge in our bedroom. While it doesn't look too bad, I'd love to either hang them or give them a shelf of their own! And then it came to me, we need a picture ledge for the wall! These are ever so popular lately, but I just can't resist some decoration in our bedroom that we haven't really done anything with since moving in.

I found these pictures for inspiration, and sent them to Dave for his opinion, since he's going to be the one crafting this project.

First I thought a floating ledge was what I wanted. Like this:

West Elm

Then, I saw this larger ledge that could hold some nick-nacks too.

Young House Love

And, then, I found these great brackets.

Restoration Hardware

As you can see, I'm a bit scattered in my vision. How will it turn out? You'll have to check back to see!

Well, spring has sprung in Chicago. And, there's no doubt in my mind that Mother Nature heard our pleas to end winter and bring on warmer temperatures. But, the joke is on us because it's showers all week long.

Monday we had a few sprinkles early, and sunshine in the afternoon. There was a bit more rain yesterday in the morning too, and it cleared up in time for the commute back home. I know now that this was just to prepare us for the thunderstorm this morning. Even with my tall rain boots, knee length rain coat, and large umbrella, I was no match for what Mother Nature had in store.

Dad, can I borrow your waders?

Thankfully, we're half way through the week, so it's all downhill from here!