Categories
Allergies Our Family Parenting

Living With Allergies – Our Journey to the Diagnosis

When Liam was just a couple of months old, we knew something was wrong. It didn’t seem life-threatening, but it was stressful and sad that our baby had to go through the vomiting, breakouts, and upset tummy every single day. At first we never even considered that we might be dealing with allergies.

His pediatrician was no help at all. She kept brushing off our concerns by saying things like, “Oh it’s JUST eczema” or “His digestive system isn’t completely developed yet, just sit him up after feedings”. So… we continued trying to control his eczema (which itched so bad it would make him bleed) and kept sitting him up after feedings while he puked up EVERYTHING that he just ate.

I was in tears most days. My son, my BABY, had scabs and sores on his face around his mouth from scratching at the eczema on his face so much. I felt like I couldn’t even take him in public without people judging me as a mother. That’s selfish, I know. But if you could have seen some of the looks I’d get after people saw his face. It was terrible. I did everything his pediatrician recommended to keep it under control and when those methods didn’t work, I went to the internet for tips. Those didn’t work, either.

 

Would Formula Help?

Continuing my internet search, I was trying to figure out what was causing all of these problems. When I typed in the symptoms, I kept getting results that said Liam had allergies. I was breastfeeding and began thinking something in my milk was causing the reactions, but I couldn’t pinpoint exactly what the trigger was. We decided to put Liam on formula and stop giving breast milk altogether.

The formula didn’t help, either, though. So then I had the added guilt of no longer breastfeeding added to all my other mom-guilts.

 

6 Months

When the vomiting wouldn’t stop even after he was 6 months old (that is the magic age his pediatrician kept telling us), I couldn’t take it anymore. We switched pediatricians. The new pediatrician gave us some new ideas to try but, since he didn’t know much about Liam’s history except what we told him, he would have to monitor it before he could determine what the underlying cause was. Fair enough.

We started trying the new ideas for controlling everything and then just a couple weeks after switching to the new pediatrician, we felt like we were getting some answers. We actually saw a nutritionist at our local WIC office and she suggested that Liam may have a dairy allergy. All of his issues were signs of allergies and, more specifically, a dairy allergy or sensitivity. She wanted us to try changing his formula to one without dairy.

I immediately called his pediatrician who said that it was a great thing to try and that it was going to be his next suggestion anyway. We started the new formula that same day.

Liam stopped vomiting as often, and he did get some relief from his eczema. The problems never fully went away, though, but we were thankful for even a little relief.

 

Fast forward to April when Liam was 14 months old.

I made scrambled eggs and toast for breakfast and Liam was loving it. He had been eating eggs regularly for about two months and loved them. Well, as he was eating his scrambled eggs, I noticed he was itching around his mouth. We still struggled with eczema around his mouth so I immediately started stressing and saying, “stop itching buddy, you’re going to make yourself bleed”. I moved his hands away from his mouth a couple of times and then started cleaning up the kitchen. I looked over at Liam and his entire face was covered in hives. COVERED.

I grabbed the eggs from in front of him, picked him up, and started washing his hands and face. As soon as that was done, I called his pediatrician’s office and they said to give Benedryl and watchfor signs of an anaphylactic reaction. I was TERRIFIED. Nothing like this had ever happened before, and I had NO IDEA that he may be allergic to eggs.

With all of my research on allergies, eggs had never even seemed like a problem.

I wouldn’t let him sleep in his crib that day because I wanted to keep an eye on him nonstop. The next day we took him to the doctor and were told to try the “baked egg” challenge. This is where you feed the child something that has egg baked in it. So cake, brownies, something like that. We did, and he reacted again. The doctor said to stop eggs immediately and completely and referred us to an allergist.

The Diagnosis

We met with the allergist and Liam was tested for the big 6 allergies. Peanuts, tree nuts, eggs, shellfish, dairy, gluten. He only reacted to eggs during the test, and it was determined that he had a SEVERE EGG ALLERGY. We would need to carry an epi-pen at all times, as the allergist thought the allergy might become even worse.


The Struggle

Do you have any idea how hard it is to keep your child away from eggs? He eats anything and everything, so if someone leaves a snack cake around, Liam will eat it. He doesn’t understand allergies, so he doesn’t know any better. If he sees ranch on someone’s plate and he can reach it, guess who is eating the ranch? It is SO HARD. There are even some brands of granola bars that have eggs in them! Pesto? Nope. Donut Sundays were canceled in our house, and my older toddlers learned to ask, “does it have egg?” whenever someone tried to give Liam a snack. My big kids learned to read an ingredient label, and we all learned to not feed Liam anything that doesn’t have a label.

When we go to restaurants we have to ask the server to put in an allergy alert and make sure his food is cooked separately. We have to wipe down high chairs and tables with disinfectant cleaner, even if they already appear clean. Sylas (he’s 4 Y/O) always says to our servers when we order Liam’s food “Make sure it doesn’t have egg, please. He’s allergic”. And even when he says this when I am ordering a hotdog for Liam, or a plate of fruit, I don’t correct him and tell him that it’s not necessary to ask, because you never know when it WILL be necessary for this additional reminder.

Re-creating our favorite recipes to be egg-free has been tricky, as well. Fried chicken? We have to dredge it in buttermilk now. Fettucini Alfredo? That’s just a nope because I don’t like the cauliflower version. Chicken fried rice? We haven’t had it since we found out about the allergy.

 

The Scare

It is terrifying that my son may mistakenly be exposed to something that can cause him to stop breathing. With allergies, our lives instantly became a little more meticulous and careful. Our awareness of ingredients and “safe foods” became an obsession.

Liam still wants to eat eggs. If he sees someone eating one he’ll yell “want egg!” over and over again until the egg is out of his sight. He hasn’t yet learned what it could do to him. He just knows that he isn’t getting what someone else is having. I’m afraid to leave him with a babysitter due to this. I also have to ask, “Do you know how to administer an epi-pen?” to every single person I leave him with. And then I’m still not comfortable.

This is what life with an allergy kid looks like. It is scary, and please don’t mind when I am overly obsessive about anything my child touches. Don’t take offense if you see me wiping down chairs and tables are your house. I just never know when that surface had been touched by something with egg.

 

Need Some Tips for Cooking with Allergies?

If you are familiar with food allergies, you understand what we are going through. I am going to start posting allergy-friendly versions of favorite foods, so keep an eye out for that!

Do you know an allergy kid or does your child have allergies? Is there a recipe you would like that is allergy-friendly? Let me know in the comments!

Categories
How To Our Family Parenting Toddler and Preschool Age Fun Toddler and Preschool Age Learning Toys

8 of the Best Play Kitchens For Kids

Play kitchens are more than just fun for our kids because they are also a great learning experience. It is important for toddler and preschool-age children to learn through play, and dramatic play allows them to fill the role of a chef, waiter, mom, dad, or any other role. Your kids can express themselves while they learn about everyday concepts and organization.

Using a kitchen playset has other perks, as well. It helps children become familiar with different foods in a positive way, so maybe your children will be more likely to try (and enjoy!) vegetables a little more at dinner time. Your children will also begin to learn cooking skills.

These play kitchens are easy to set up and are very durable. Most of them come with many accessories including dishes and food, so your kids will never run out of ideas. A play kitchen also offers the opportunity for multi-child play.

It can be difficult to choose a kitchen playset because there are so many options on the market, but I have narrowed it down for you. I have researched some of the best kitchen playsets available, and I am going to give you the details about each one.

Kitchen Playsets, play kitchens

Best Play Kitchens

Teamson Kids Play Kitchen

play kitchen, kitchen playset

The Teamson Kids Play Kitchen has two refrigerator doors, one that includes a pretend smart screen. It includes storage space, an oven, a stove, a sink, and everything else that will make this seem like a real kitchen to your kids. This kitchen is big enough for more than one kid to play at a time so socialization is encouraged.  

Specifications

  • Product Dimensions: 27.5” L x 11.8” W x 37.2” H
  • Product Weight: 20 pounds
  • Assembly Time: Two hours
  • Rating: 3.5 out of 5 stars

Step2 Best Chef’s Toy Kitchen Play set

play kitchen, kitchen play set

The Step2 Best Chefs Kitchen Play Set has an oven, refrigerator, counter, and an open kitchen window to pass things through. This kitchen playset has lights and makes noise. It comes with a recycling bin and has hooks attached to hang cups or other items. There are 25 total pieces included with this playset. It is easy and quick to put together.

Specifications

  • Product Dimensions: 11.5” L x 34.4” W x 38.5” H
  • Product Weight: 21.4 pounds
  • Assembly Time: 20 minutes
  • Rating: 4.3 out of 5 stars

KidKraft Uptown Natural Play Kitchens

play kitchen, kitchen play set, dramatic play

Featuring a refrigerator, freezer, microwave, oven, and dishwasher, the KidKraft Uptown Natural Kitchen can make your child feel like they are in a real kitchen. Kids love to pretend to be grown-up and do all the things their parents do. Using the appliances that their parents use could be so exciting. This kitchen playset also comes with a phone, paper towel holder, and chalkboard.

Specifications

  • Product Dimensions: 43” L x 17.8” W x 41” H
  • Product Weight: 72 pounds
  • Assembly Time: three hours
  • Rating: 4.6 out of 5 stars

Little Tikes Cook ‘n Learn Smart Kitchen

kitchen play set, play kitchen, bluetooth kids kitchen

Unlike many other kitchen playsets, the Little Tikes Cook ‘n Learn Smart Kitchen uses Bluetooth to connect to an app that you can have on your cell phone or tablet. This kitchen playset also has sound effects for cutting food, cooking, and running the water. It comes with 40 accessories so your child can be entertained for hours.

Specifications

  • Product Dimensions: 17” L x 22” W x 30” H
  • Product Weight: 10 pounds
  • Assembly Time: 30 minutes
  • Rating: 3.6 out of 5 stars

My Little Chef Teamson Kids Wooden Play Kitchen Set

kitchen play set, play kitchen

My Little Chef Teamson Kitchen Play Set is made from wood and has a stove, cabinet, oven, and microwave. It is durable and can give children the feeling that they are in a real kitchen. There are different color options available, as well. The assembly time for this kitchen playset is very short, about 30 minutes, so your kids could be playing in no time.

Specifications

  • Product Dimensions: 38.25 L x 11.50 W x 36.75 H
  • Product Weight: 54.67 pounds
  • Assembly Time: 30 minutes
  • Rating: 3.8 out of 5 stars

Step2 Elegant Edge Play Kitchen Play Set

kitchen play set, play kitchen with food

This Step2 Elegant Edge Play Kitchen Play Set has everything that a real kitchen has. It has a microwave, oven, dishwasher, stove, phone, refrigerator, and a sink with a faucet and sprayer. This kitchen playset also has a silverware drawer, baskets for food, plate, and cup racks, and cupboards. Plus it comes with accessories including pots, pans, and food. It has a light and makes noise, too, so your kids might just love it!

Specifications

  • Product Dimensions: 102.5” L x 36” W x 39” H
  • Product Weight: 70 pounds
  • Assembly Time: One hour
  • Rating: 4.2 out of 5 stars

Best Choice Products Kids Wood Kitchen Toy Toddler Pretend Play Set Solid Wood Construction

kitchen play set, play kitchen, wooden kitchen playset

This Best Choice Products wooden kitchen playset has two separate stove tops so it can be easily used by multiple children. With five drawers, it can hold many accessories and make clean up easy. It also has six smaller areas for storage.

Specifications

  • Product Dimensions: 39.5” L x 11.8” W x 42” H
  • Product Weight: 48 pounds
  • Assembly Time: About two hours
  • Rating: 4.5 out of 5 stars

Smoby Bon Appetit Electronic Roleplay Kitchen with 23 Accessories & Cooking Sounds

play kitchen, kitchen play set

The Smoby Bon Appetit Electronic Roleplay Kitchen has unique features compared to other play kitchens. It has a pretend espresso machine and three coffee pods, along with many other accessories.

If you are a coffee drinker, you know that your children like to pretend to drink coffee sometimes. It could be so much fun for them to be able to role play making coffee.

This kitchen playset also comes with plates, cups, forks, knives, spoons, pans, boxes, and utensils. The best part is that the price of the kitchen is much lower than other kitchen playsets.

Specifications

  • Product Dimensions: 20.5” L x 13.2” W x 38” H
  • Product Weight: 7.6 pounds
  • Assembly Time: 30 minutes
  • Rating: 3.6 out of 5 stars

Final Decision About Play Kitchens

Kitchen playsets are such a good toy to buy for your toddlers and preschoolers. They are great for your child’s development, so much fun, and a way to keep your child busy for long periods of time. If you need the perfect Christmas or birthday gift, you might want to consider a kitchen playset.

Just make sure you do your research (or use the research I have already done) and read comments/reviews about each play kitchen that you are considering. You’ll want to find the perfect one for your child and your home.

Now that you have an idea of which kitchen playset you want to buy, read my post about 7 Ways to Play with a Pretend Kitchen for Dramatic Play! It is full of ideas and activities for the kitchen playset to make it even more exciting for your littles.

Let me know which play kitchen you think is the best one! Is it one on this list or do you have a different play kitchen that your kids love? Tell me in the comments!

Kitchen Playsets
kitchen play set, play kitchen for kids
Categories
Big Kid How To Our Family Parenting Teenager

Keeping Kids Safe Online – 8 Simple Tips

Whether we like it or not, technology is a HUGE part of our children’s lives. They use it daily, and older kids use the internet at school quite often, too. Keeping kids safe online is SO important these days, and it can be kind of tricky to do so. Cell phones make it impossible for parents to always be there to monitor what is happening on the internet, so we must set some rules and guidelines that our children should be trusted to follow. Now, we can set these rules and guidelines and hope for the best, but we all know that kids sometimes make mistakes or need reminders.

I have a 14-year-old and a 10-year-old… two kids who use the internet on a daily basis. The 10-year-old plays games online with his Playstation and Xbox, and he uses YouTube. The 14-year-old uses so many social media apps and has accounts on them all. She is obviously harder to keep up with online, but we make sure to put in the effort in order to protect her. Like I said before, with all of the scary things happening in our world today, stemming from situations online, it is more important than ever to think about keeping kids safe online.

Your teenagers may think you are being mean when you check up on them to see what they are doing, but when they are older they’ll understand you were only looking out for them. It is SO important to protect our kids from the dangers of the internet. We have all heard the horror stories, and we always think it won’t happen to our children, but we never know.

 

Keeping Kids Safe Online

 

8 Tips For Keeping Kids Safe Online

    1. Create a contract for your kids to sign about internet use. Set ground rules and include punishments so that your kids know ahead of time what will happen if they break the rules. In this contract include a section about creating new accounts. You should be helping your child, no matter what age, create accounts. You should have the passwords and email addresses associated with each one. This shows them that you expect them to ask permission before doing anything online, or they will have their internet privileges revoked.
    2. Keep electronics out of bedrooms an hour before bedtime. This should go for you too, parents! Set the example. This allows you to better monitor your child’s online activities. During the day you are more likely to pop in and check on what they’re doing… later at night, us parents are relaxing after a long day or maybe even sleeping. Our kids know this is our routine, so they’re more likely to break the rules at those times. Not only can it potentially help with keeping kids safe online, it will help them sleep better if their phone isn’t right at their fingertips.**Side note- If your kids are younger it might even be better to keep electronics out of bedrooms completely.**
    3. Understand their internet use. If you are serious about keeping kids safe online you have to become familiar with what your kids using on the internet. Are they using SnapChat? You need to use SnapChat, too, or at least know how it works and how to navigate it. Same with Instagram, Music.ly, and any other social media app that they use. If you understand how it works you will have a better chance of noticing red flags. It’ll be easier for you to monitor their usage, as well, if you know what all the apps do. For your younger kids, you obviously don’t have to understand all the latest social media apps. Instead, you will have to understand the websites they choose to use. We know things like ABC Mouse are safe, but there are gaming websites that do have chat rooms. Not only that, but there are (of course) ads on websites that your child may click on, even accidentally, that could lead to inappropriate or unsafe content. Determine which websites are okay for your child to navigate while you’re not in the room, and make it clear that other websites require your presence.
    4. Teach them to never share information. We assume that our kids know to not give out personal information, but they should be reminded about the dangers of it. They shouldn’t give their full name, phone number, e-mail address, or school name. Any other personal information should be avoided, as well. Every little detail that our kids give out on the internet makes them that much easier to track down. A huge one… they should be told to NEVER SHARE THEIR LOCATION. On SnapChat there is an option to share your exact location at all times… it might be smart to put in their contract that they should not be sharing their location. Even if your child has an online friend (I know some parents allow this), encourage them to avoid giving this personal information. They may feel like they can trust their friend, but you never know who is really on the other side of that screen. Make sure they know that they are never to meet up with someone they met online. Show your older kids horror stories if you have to… just get the point across. Even a couple episodes of Catfish might make them understand that not everyone is who they say they are. When our 10-year-old plays video games online he is able to talk to complete strangers that he is playing the game with. I’m not always comfortable with this, so I listen in quite often. He has to have his bedroom door open when he is playing online in his room, or he has to sit in the living room. I have told him over and over again to never tell anyone his full name, what city he lives in, or what school he goes to. Keeping kids safe online even extends to video games these days, so you may need to think about the location of the video game system in your own home.
    5. Encourage them to tell you everything and promise not to over-react. Our kids may avoid telling us about things that happen online because they are scared we will be angry or over-react. They need to know that they can trust us to help them handle the situation without freaking out. If they are being harassed online or if they get themselves into a scary situation they need to feel comfortable coming to us with that information. We can only protect our children if they trust us, so make sure to hold up your promise here.
    6. Set parental controls. You can set parental controls on many websites now. YouTube and Google both have parental controls, and setting these controls can prevent inappropriate content from showing up in a search. You can check individual websites or you can go into the browser settings and put parental controls on there.A program called Qustodio allows you to set controls and monitor what your child is doing online. This program can be used on three different devices, including iPhones and Androids. It is kind of perfect because there aren’t many programs parents can run on our kids’ cell phones. Plus, the program is easy to use.
    7. Check history. I cannot stress the importance of this enough! Even if you trust your child, you should be checking in on them. Our children are just that… CHILDREN. Kids make mistakes and they rely on our guidance to correct those mistakes. If we are blind to their mistakes, we can’t fix them, which just allows that negative behavior to continue. For younger kids, they may not know that a website was inappropriate or dangerous. Finding the mistakes ahead of time allows us to fix the problem before it comes something bigger. For my family, checking the history on their devices is the best method for keeping kids safe online. A few times when my 10-year-old has used my laptop to play a math game that his school recommends I have checked the history. Each time, I found out he was on YouTube instead. I know this isn’t exactly dangerous, but he was doing something he shouldn’t have been doing. I was able to find that out through the history. This also allowed me to see that he needs more supervision when he is online.
    8. Review friends lists and followers. This one is so important to me. Our kids should not have “friends” or “followers” on social media that they don’t know in real life. We have a 14-year-old, and she was adding anyone who sent her a friend request or follow request. She wasn’t doing it to be defiant or to meet strangers… she just didn’t think much of it. It’s “normal” to have many followers, and it’s almost like a competition for teenagers. Teenagers don’t think it’s a big deal, but it’s important that we explain to them WHY it can be dangerous. Our 14 year old would get random private messages from boys. In the messages, they would ask her name, age, where she lives, and if she would send them pictures. Luckily, after the talk we had, she always shows us these messages and then blocks the sender. She would never have mentioned it to us before, but we helped her understand how serious those situations can become. Even though she has earned our trust, we still check in on friends lists. This isn’t a secret we keep from her, either. She’s fully aware that we check her social media, and she understands the importance of keeping kids safe online.

 

Keeping Kids Safe Online Keeping Kids Safe Online

 

I know there’s more that can be done in regards to keeping kids safe online. I am only suggesting some of the basic, easy ways. It’s a good place to start, and then you can adjust, if necessary, for your kids. Every child is different, so the level of monitoring will be different, too.

What do you do to protect your children online? Has your child ever had a scary online experience? Comment below!

 

Keeping Kids Safe Online Keeping Kids Safe Online Keeping Kids Safe Online Keeping Kids Safe Online

Categories
Family Activities Marriage Our Family

South Haven, Michigan – Things to Do

If you follow me on Twitter you already know that my husband and I took a trip to South Haven, Michigan this past weekend. It is my favorite place on earth and as soon as my blog makes me rich (hey, I can dream, right?) I’ll be buying a beautiful home there.

I really do love everything about South Haven. The views of Lake Michigan, the clean beaches, the cute little shops in town, the food (oh, the food!!!!), the activities, and the people. The best part is the Lake Michigan sunsets, though. NOTHING in this world beats a Lake Michigan sunset.

South Haven Sunset
Even cloudy, it is still beautiful

People from all over the country visit South Haven. While we were there we met someone from Alaska and another person from Texas. We are lucky that it is less than a 2-hour drive from us, but if you are farther away than us, I promise you it is worth the trip.

We have begun to compile a list of places in South Haven we love and will return to as often as possible, and also a list of places that we weren’t so fond of. I’m happy to say that the “love” list is much, much longer than the other list.

So, if you are visiting South Haven in the future or even if you are just curious about Michigan’s little gem, this post is for you.

***This post contains affiliate links. It costs you nothing extra, but I may receive a small commission.***

Things to do

Things to do in South Haven, Michigan

  • Watch a sunset over Lake Michigan. I mentioned before that there is NOTHING like a Lake Michigan sunset so, of course, this is at the top of my list. We sit above the beach on a waterproof beach blanket and watch the sunset over the lighthouse. It is so beautiful and so peaceful.South Haven, Michigan
    IMG_7879
  • Swim and hang out at the beach. This should go without saying when you visit a lake town. Get your floaties and boogie boards and head in. Don’t forget to bring a beach chair with you!

  • Try a new restaurant. Every time we go to South Haven we try at least one restaurant that we haven’t tried before. Our favorites are Clementines (for dinner), 3 Blondes Brewing (lunch and drinks), Black River Tavern (dinner and drinks), Golden Brown Bakery (breakfast and coffee), and Chomps Gourmet Hotdogs (lunch).

    We also tried Captain Lou’s, the Idler Riverboat, and Captain Nemo’s (yummy breakfast). Captain Lou’s is is right on the Black River and we got to watch a drawbridge lift up for boats to go through while sitting on their deck. We also tried Venezia Pizza but will probably try Brix Oven next time we go instead. We also want to try Maria’s next time, which is an Italian restaurant that we’ve heard a lot about.

    Clementines South Haven
    Clementines

    Black River Tavern. South Haven, MIBlack River Tavern

  • Go on a boat tour. There are a couple of different options for this. Right on Water St. there is a marina on the black river where they offer boat tours. You can do a daytime one or for $10 more per person, you can do a sunset tour. There is also the Michigan Maritime Museum which offers tours on a “pirate ship”.
  • Wine tasting. There were a couple of wineries I wanted to try but we chose 12 Corners this time. We loved it! My husband usually doesn’t like wine, and he says everything tastes like MD20-20 or something BUT he actually found a couple he liked at 12 Corners!

    It’s right on Pheonix St. and they have a large wine list. The price was $10 for 5 tastes and we got to take the cute stemless wine glasses with us. We also left with a bottle of Beach Cottage Red. Yummmm.

    I’ve been reading about their monthly Wine Club and I’m really thinking about joining… they ship!! I would probably make the trip every 3 months and pick the wine up but they have a bi-monthly shipping option.

  • Beer tasting. So there are quite a few breweries in the South Haven area but we chose 3 Blonds Brewing. I read about them online and had to try it out.

    I normally am not a beer person but I couldn’t pass up on a beer tasting date with my husband. I tasted 3 beers that I LOVED, 1 that I really liked, and the others were IPA’s and apparently, I’m just not a fan (hubby is so disappointed in me). For you IPA lovers, my husband said the IPAs at 3BB are amazing!
    Three Blondes BrewingThree Blondes BrewingHubby @ Three Blondes Brewing

  • Paddleboard or canoe! You can rent these right on South Beach so it’s super easy and convenient.
  • Go shopping. There are SO many cute little shops on Pheonix St. and Quaker St. We always get souvenirs here and quite a few of our favorite restaurants are on the same street.
    South Haven, MI
  • Kal-Haven Hiking Trail. This is a trail that runs from South Haven all the way to Kalamazoo. You can bike or hike. There are so many beautiful stops along the way. I have never completed the trail because I am way too out of shape to hike 32 miles in one direction, but the South Haven part is beautiful.
  • Icecream. Buy your ice cream at South Beach (I recommend the Mackinac Island flavor) and then…
    Ice cream, South Haven
  • Walk to the South Beach Lighthouse. This is our tradition… on our first day, before we even check-in at the place we’re staying, we buy ice cream on South Beach and then walk to the lighthouse while we eat it. It’s so fun and the perfect way to get into relaxation/vacation mode.
    South Haven LighhouseIMG_7747
  • Go see a comedy show or a live band at the Black River Tavern. They have them on Saturday nights and they also have amazing drinks and appetizers. It was the best date night. We had the BEST time ever, laughed so much, and sang along with the band’s songs. Take me back!!

    IMG_7956
    I call this look “beach and booze”

    Things To Do In

You guys, seriously. Please take me back. Our 3 night, 4-day mini-vacation was AMAZING and MUCH needed. We only get away together once a year and while we thought about other places for this past trip (New York City), we couldn’t imagine spending our anniversary trip in any place but South Haven.

Have you ever been to South Haven, Michigan? If so, tell me about your favorite part! If you haven’t been, tell me what you would want to experience the most if you were able to visit. I’d love to hear about it!

**Click here to read about our wedding in South Haven

Categories
Big kid fun Family Activities Our Family Printables Teenager Toddler and Preschool Age Fun

Family Camping Trip – What to Pack

Before this summer I had never taken my kid’s on a family camping trip. Call me a bad mom or whatever, but I was terrified of taking 3 littles camping!

Well, we finally did it and I definitely don’t regret it. I would do some things differently and pack differently, but we will definitely be doing it again SOON.

It was so much fun and the kids loved it, so I took note during the process of things I needed that I didn’t think to pack, things I packed but didn’t need, and things that would have been nice to have.

Now I’m giving you the opportunity to learn from my mistakes!! I’ve put together a list of what you should pack for a family camping trip. I even included a section dedicated to packing for a toddler, a teenager, and a big kid. You’re welcome. 😉

family camping trip, what to pack when camping with kids, camping with toddlers, camping with teenagers

What to Pack for a Camping Trip

Bedding/Misc.

Tent (if needed)
Sleeping Bag/Blanket
Pillow
Sheets if staying in a cabin
Flashlights (flashlight tag anyone?!)
Glowsticks
Backpack
First aid kit
Cell phone & Chargers
Garbage bags
Clorox Wipes
Citronella Candle
A book
Lawn chairs
Beer bottle opener/corkscrew
Cash
Any necessary medication
Bug spray
Sunscreen
Bikes
Games (board/card)
Chairs
Bluetooth Speaker
Kayak/Canoe
Fishing poles

Clothing

Raincoat/jacket
Swimsuit
Tennis shoes
Clothes (2 outfits/day for everyone, more for younger children)

  • Shorts/t-shirts
  • Pants/Long sleeve shirts

Hats
Extra socks
Sweatshirt/sweatpants (in case it gets chilly at night and you want to be comfy)
Underwear (duh)
PJ’s
Flipflops
Extra shoes for everyone

Personal

Shampoo/Conditioner
Soap
Deodorant
Toilet Paper (You never know!)
Toothbrush/paste
Shower Bag
Hand Sanitizer
Lotion
Lip balm
Towels and washcloths
Bag for dirty laundry
Hair ties
Brush/Comb

Cooking

Camping dinners
Pre-prepped breakfast meals
Wine
Beer
Water
Gatorade (if you’re feeling nice)
Coffee/Creamer
Favorite snacks
S’mores ingredients
Condiments
Coolers/Ice
Firewood (Sometimes you have to buy this right at the campground)
Lighter
Plastic utensils
Paper plates
Napkins
Plastic cups
Tablecloths
Paper Towels
Grilling/Fire utensils
Foil
Skewers
Resealable Plastic Bags

Toddler Specifics

Toddler-sized chairs
Blocks
Lots of extra clothes (3 per day if your child is extra messy or the weather isn’t cooperating)
Sand/Beach toys
Life Jackets
Teddy bear/baby doll, favorite blankets
Baby wipes

Big Kid/Teenager Specifics

Football, baseball, volleyball, other sports equipment
Water toys

***This post contains affiliate links. It costs you nothing extra, but I may receive a small commission.***

What would you add to this list? Have you ever forgotten something essential on a camping trip? Tell me about it in the comments! 🙂

Categories
Our Family Teenager

Advice for a Teenage Girl

Do you remember being 14 years old? What was your life like at that time?

I was 14 in 2005. When I think back, I think of hanging out with my friends, going to concerts, having boyfriends!!!, watching Laguna Beach, and essentially becoming my own person outside of my family unit. I feel like once I reached high school, I became so much more independent. I had friends who had cars so I didn’t need my parents to drive me everywhere anymore. It felt like freedom.

I spent quite a bit of time in my bedroom, wishing my parents would leave me alone and reading magazines or talking on the phone. You know, normal teenage stuff.

We were wearing layered polos and popped collars and some people were even wearing awful trucker hats (I may or may not be guilty of that myself..).

Gone were the days when I spent most of my time with my parents and siblings. Gone were the days of playing with toys and watching cartoons. I was 14, and that was a huge deal.

Well, Nevaeh turned 14 today. OMG. We are IN TROUBLE.

Just kidding… kind of. I know we are entering a whole new chapter with her, but I also know she’s learned how to make better choices and respect herself, and all we can do is hope that we have taught her right.

When Chris and I started dating, Nevaeh was only 8 years old. She was a kid, a 3rd grader.

Now she’s 14. She’s going into high school, will be learning to drive a car, beginning an entirely new chapter in her life.

I constantly think she’s just a little kid. Reminiscing on my own memories of being 14 has made me realize that she’s not. We’ve got a high schooler on our hands now!!

It’s such a HUGE milestone. Life happens fast, guys.

This silly little girl…

 

has become this beautiful young woman.

One thing that hasn’t changed since I was 14? Girls still wear hair ties on their wrists even when they’re dressing up. LOL!!

One thing I’d love to give Nevaeh for her birthday is some advice, but I know she won’t listen. My only hope is that she reads it here and maybe takes some of it to heart. 😉

Advice For a Teenage Girl

  • Surround yourself with positive people – When you’re choosing your friends, think about how they treat you and how they speak. Are they always being negative? Do they say things that hurt your feelings or make your start thinking negatively? Maybe it’s time to rethink the friendship. Be friends with people who build you up and always want to see the best happen. Surround yourself with people who truly love you and will never intentionally hurt you.
  • Boys should come last – I know teenage girls are going to be talking to and dating boys, but don’t make them the priority. Spend time with your friends, make memories that will last forever, build lifelong relationships with your best friends so that you will still have them in your life 20 years from now. Don’t ditch your friends for a boy, don’t pass on experiences and opportunities for a boy, and don’t lose yourself for a boy. You’ll have plenty of time for boys when you are older, don’t let them fill every thought and moment of your life.
  • Put down your phone – Honestly, this piece of advice could work for any age group. Live in the moment, enjoy what is going on around you, and talk to people in person.
  • Be nice – Say kind things to others, help others out even if you have to go out of your way, stick up for people. Talk to the person sitting all alone at lunch or in class. Being kind is something you’ll never regret. You never know how someone is feeling or what they are dealing with, never be the person to add to their pain or the person who ruins their day.
  • Save adult stuff for when you are an adult – I know adult stuff seems exciting but it’s really not. You’ll have plenty of time for that later. You aren’t expected to make adult decisions or do adult things, leave that to the trusted adults in your life. They are in your life to guide you and help you, let them. Learn from them. Then, when it’s your turn, you’ll see why it’s best to hold off as long as possible.
  • Step out of your comfort zone – Try something new or go somewhere you’ve never been before. Take a chance at something you might suck at because you just never know. You won’t regret making new memories of things you’ve never done before, so just do it. Don’t worry about what others will think of you or about messing up, everyone has to start somewhere!
  • Do what makes you happy – If you love doing something, keep doing it!! Even if your friends aren’t interested, keep doing the things you love. Don’t lose your passions or miss out on things that make your heart happy. Stay true to yourself.

What is one piece of advice you would give to a teenage girl? Leave it in the comments below, I know a couple teenagers who will definitely be reading them! 🙂

Categories
Our Family Printables Weekend Wrap-Up

Weekend Wrap-Up

Happy Monday!!

I hope everyone had a good weekend. We tried to just relax as much as possible because last week was such a long, busy week for us.

Relaxing when you have five kids is a little different than relaxing with no kids, however, so we still stayed a little busy.

Friday we had doctors appointments for the kids, but after that, it was pretty chill.

Saturday morning we hung out at home and spent time together. Later we dropped Peyton off to spend time with his mama and then went to the train station in our town to take pictures before Nevaeh’s 8th grade formal. The train station is beautiful so it was a good spot for pictures.

When we got done there we took Nevaeh and her date (her boyfriend, but Chris doesn’t like me to say that) to the dance.

When Nevaeh got home Chris, Nevaeh, and I watched YouTube videos of Conan O’Brien and Kevin Hart driving around with different people in the car… it was pretty hilarious.

Sunday we went to the Rose Parade. Chris wasn’t thrilled but he’s a team player so came along anyhow. He actually ended up enjoying himself, so that was a bonus. LOL. Liam LOVED all the cars and trucks. He wouldn’t stop saying “ca” and when there were no cars that he could see he would say, “all gone!” and get squirmy again until the next wave of vehicles came. It was adorable. Sylas liked the firetrucks and police cars, and Josie liked the horses. I think she liked the horses, it was really the only thing she paid attention to other than the candy being thrown her way. She didn’t want to talk about anything but the candy after we left. I think candy being thrown at parades should be banned… lol. I’m totally kidding but my kids brought home SO MUCH candy.

Watching a parade is on our Summer Bucket List so the kids were excited to put a check mark next to it afterward. If you want a copy of our Summer Bucket List or if you want a template to write your own list, click on the link and download my free printables. There are 5 of them so you have a few to choose from, plus a few blank ones if you would rather create your own.

After that we came home and while the kids napped and I worked on my blog a big, Chris went to pick up some mulch for me. I didn’t get it put down yet… I’m sure that won’t happen until next weekend at least. I tend to get nothing done in the yard during the week LOL

We went to pizza night, I had good wine, and then we went home to relax before the week started again.

My kids didn’t nap all weekend it seemed like. Even Liam’s naps were shorter than normal. I seriously ended my weekend wishing for a babysitter so I could have a couple minutes to myself without anyone interrupting. LOL. I live for nap time.

Tell me about your weekend in the comments! I’d love to hear about it. 🙂

 

Categories
Our Family

Happy Birthday To My First Born

How can it be that my first born is four years old? My sweet Sylas… the baby who taught me how to be a mom, how to successfully breastfeed, how to change a diaper on my lap, how to love with my whole entire heart. We learned all the hard parts together and formed a bond greater than anything I ever thought possible. Through all the sleepless nights, exhausting days, frustrated tears, painful nursing, we grew closer to one another. He became my best friend and my sidekick. He became my rock, even though I know I’m supposed to be his.

He taught me to smile on the hard days and fight through what seemed like unbearable post-partum depression. Looking back, I realize I could have been such a better mom if only I hadn’t been so depressed but Sylas loved me unconditionally anyway. Holding him and talking to him when he was an infant was the only thing that made me feel better some days.

Even now, all these years later, I go to Sylas when I’m feeling sad. This boy can always cheer me up and knows just what to say to make me smile. His sweet kisses and big hugs can cheer me up any day. We have come so far together in these 4 short years.

This boy is perfect in every single way. He is so smart, funny, caring, and a little bit crazy. He’s my little love bug and will always be a baby in my eyes… my sweet, sweet, baby. How crazy that my boy has grown from a tiny little baby who nursed non-stop, constantly held onto mama’s finger, and rested in mama’s arms most of the day into a 4-year-old, independent, crazy, wild almost preschooler. I can’t believe it and I wish time would SLOW down. I need my baby just a little longer before he realizes he doesn’t need me anymore.

Today is your day, my little superhero. This is the day mama’s life changed… the day mama became a better person… and the day mama found a love that would forever overfill her heart. This is the day you were born, and a day that is so special to me. I love you, Sylas Pierce,  more than you’ll ever know.

Categories
Family Activities Our Family Toddler and Preschool Age Fun Toddler and Preschool Age Learning

Name Recognition with Sidewalk Chalk

While we were outside playing today I wanted to do a learning activity with the toddlers. We hadn’t done much all day because Liam had a reaction to eggs and it threw our day off a little while we dealt with that.

The kids were using sidewalk chalk so I grabbed a couple pieces myself and wrote out the names of everyone in our immediate family. We’ve been working so hard on name and letter recognition so I wanted to reinforce what we have been learning.

I asked Sylas to find his name and he did immediately, then he noticed that my name has the same letter as his name. We talked about how he will see the letter ‘S’ in a few different names in our family so I asked him to show me every name that had a letter ‘S’ in it. He was able to identify them all!

Then he went and stood on Peyton’s name and actually told me that it was Peyton’s name! I hadn’t read any of them to him so I was a little surprised. I asked how he knew and he said, “It has his first letter!” He couldn’t remember that it was called ‘P’ so we worked on that a little, too.

We worked our way through all the names and the letters they have in common.

It was super effective and since we had never done it with sidewalk chalk before, he paid attention a little longer and seemed to pick up on more of the learning aspect.

Bonus, there is absolutely no clean-up required. 😉

Categories
Holiday Our Family Weekend Wrap-Up

Weekend Round-Up

This weekend was pretty great. With it being Mother’s Day weekend, it was pretty relaxing for me and my hubby might have gotten me some cute gifts. 😉

So Friday was a lazy day, for sure. It was rainy and SO COLD and the babies and I just stayed in all day. We got out their instruments and we sang songs while playing. We also cuddled in our warm, comfy clothes and watched movies, read books, and colored. It was a wonderfully unproductive day.

Friday night I braved the cold and went with my sister and her best friend to dinner, shopping, and out for a couple drinks. While I was out I got a couple cute Snapchat’s from Chris and Sylas.

Saturday I definitely slept in, as did all of my kids… they’re pretty great, am I right? When we woke up, Sylas and Josie helped me make pancakes. Later, Chris took Sylas and Liam shopping for a couple grocery items and I took Josie and Peyton to buy birthday gifts for Sylas. Then we went to Tractor Supply Co. to pick out a Mother’s Day gift for my mama. There was an animal called a Brahman at Tractor Supply and Sylas was brave enough to pet him! This Brahman has a medical issue that requires expensive treatment so his owners were there collecting money for him. Sylas fell in love with the store and decided to add five more things to his already extra long birthday list.

We had fried chicken, green beans, and potato salad for dinner on Saturday, which is always an event in our house. Chris and I listen to music and sing (if that’s what you want to call it) while we cook, and it turns out to be so much fun every time. Plus, fried chicken night is EVERYONES favorite here so that’s always exciting. Chris makes the best fried chicken, I make the best green beans, and we are working together to master my mother-in-law’s AMAZING potato salad. She never measures so it’s a guessing game for us… we’ve gotten close but never gotten it perfectly.

Sunday was Mother’s Day and it was also my due date for Sylas 4 years ago, so it’s extra special to me! I don’t know why I always get emotional on his due date day, but I do. Probably because he was my first baby and I remember so vividly the way I felt when the due date came around and still no baby… he didn’t come until 13 days later. Stubborn boy lol

Chris surprised me with the best gifts… I was so surprised he nailed every gift perfectly. We had donuts for breakfast and I drank coffee out of my new mug.

We got all the kids around and went to visit my mama. Sylas and Josie made her a cute little craft. They wanted to cut out flowers and tape them to paper so I let them go to town on Saturday. LOL. I drew the flowers out for them so my mom would have some idea of what they were and then the rest was up to them. When they were finished I did write a little message on them.

We also got my mom a gift for her garden.

We came home for a nap (the babies, not parents, unfortunately) and then went to my in-laws’ house for pizza night. We got Chris’ mom flowers because she is too tricky to shop for. I had delicious wine (of course) and will be posting about it on Wednesday so make sure you come and check it out.

Mommy drank wine on the deck while everyone played. 😉

Josie played on the rocks.

Liam walked up and down the ramp with Nana.

Peyton and Chris played catch.

 

It was such a good weekend! How was your weekend?!