B.F.F.s

Within a month of getting married and moving in with one another Andrew and I decided we wanted a puppy.  And without a second thought we went to the pet store and got our little chihuahua-pug (CHUG), Sophie.  She was a scrawny little thing and even though with age she has packed on some pounds in the midsection, her legs are still itty bitty.  Someone once described her as a pork roast on toothpicks. Haha.

I hate to say it, but since having Lyla, my love for Sophie has diminished.  She's constantly shedding, leaving my house a hairy mess and she always just seems to be in the way.  But now that Lyla is crawling, she and Sophie have become buddies.  Lyla giggles with delight every time Sophie shows any interest in her and recently they have started "playing" together.  Not sure how I feel about Lyla's little baby hands (that are constantly in her mouth) touching the dog's chew toys... but it makes her so happy to have a pint sized companion!  And it makes me like a Sophie a little bit more.

While I adore spending my days with these two characters I am SO looking forward to this weekend and having Andrew home with us to relax and have some family time.  No big plans.  Just hanging out.  I couldn't be more excited!

xo
Jayme

What Aurora Wore: The Vintage Romper

There are few things cuter than a vintage romper. I've been lucky to find some to put in the shop this summer (they sold quickly!), but of course, I had to keep some for Aurora!  I had to keep this stripey little number because of its fun details:  buttons down the front, eyelet trim, and a waist tie.

romper-vintage, clip-Carter's, shoes-The Children's Place (thrifted)

Aurora is our little monkey lately...once she figured out she could climb on a chair, it was all over. Now she climbs on every chair, sofa, and bed in sight!  She gets a very proud look on her face when she sits down in a chair next to one of us.  She knows it means she's a big girl.

True to her monkey form, less than an hour after taking these photos, Aurora was having a snack:  some goldfish crackers, her milk, and a banana.  She decided it would be fun to squish the banana in her hands and rub it into her hair (even though she just had a shower this morning!):

She's so funny that I couldn't even be mad at her.  But she definitely didn't like it when I took a vigorous wet washcloth to her whole head!  I hope she learned her lesson.

The sweet little romper was all covered in banana too and went straight in the wash.  I'm saving it because I think Lyla will look great in it next summer! :)

And it's Thursday, so that means that we're linking up with Small Style on the Mama Loves Papa blog! Yay!

xo,
Amanda




P.S.  Could you spare a vote for us on Top Baby Blogs today (or any time you think of it)?  We have been stuck between 53 and 55 for a while now and would love to make it into the top 50. We gain so many great readers from those pages, and it would mean so much to us--Lyla and Aurora too!) Thank you!

A Pennsylvania 4th

Since getting married (5 years ago) Andrew and I have unintentionally made the habit of traveling for 4th of July.  But this year, with a baby on board, we ended up sticking close to home and having a low key holiday picnic with my parents.  We had corn on the cob, some cold salads and grilled up hamburgers and hot dogs.  I even made my traditional American flag cake topped with blackberries (picked from our back yard) and strawberries.

It was a gorgeous day but a bit quiet for a holiday.  Lyla was great entertainment (as usual) but I think we all missed having more family around to celebrate with.

We walked to an elementary school down the street from my parents' place and set up our chairs and blankets for a good view of the fireworks.

I was happy to be able to have an extra weekend day to just relax with my little family.  Hope you all had a lovely weekend as well!

xo
Jayme

Third of July Picnic

We are so fortunate that Q's mom, dad, and brother and his family live nearby!  Aurora loves her cousin Zoe (who is 4 months older than her), and we love throwing family get-togethers!  We had a baby-pool party at our house on Sunday. It was so steamy that the adults were wishing for our own pool, but we still enjoyed ourselves with yummy food (of course, lots of vegan deliciousness!) and some hanging out.  The toddlers provide nonstop entertainment, as you can imagine...

Here are just a few shots from the day:

delicious food + handsome husband working the grill

Pool Party, Baby!

 

 

We got our hammock up out back...and the babes loved it (and each other!)

We had both a relaxing and busy weekend. We biked over 30 miles on 3 separate trips (a Whole Foods dinner on Friday, trip to the Farmer's Market on Saturday, and to the 4th of July Fest on Sunday).  Thank goodness Aurora loves being in her cart!  When Q goes down big hills, I can hear her going, "Weeeeeeeee!"  We also got some work down around the yard, and spent a lot of time reading the paper, drinking coffee, watching TV, and simply enjoying our extra time together.  We were both in kind of a funk last night, thinking about going back to work today. I'm sure you can relate!

Hope you all enjoyed the holiday to the fullest!

xo,
Amanda

Vegan for a Day: Sweet and Salty Noodles with Baby Bok Choy

I know it's a holiday, but it's still Meatless Monday, y'all!  We had family over for a picnic and baby pool party yesterday, and while I did some cooking, I didn't do very good photography.  So I'm featuring tonight's dinner instead.  This has been one of my go-to recipes on late nights when I don't feel like working too hard to prepare a meal, but I want to eat something delicious (Wait a second...that's every night!).  The best part about this meal is that you can add/subtract whatever veggies you like, so it's great for cleaning out the fridge!

Speaking of cleaning out the fridge, I got this bok choy last week, and the outer leaves were all yucky, so in the photos, it looks like there's not a lot of cabbage (because I had to toss a lot, but your recipe should have more greens.  Q said he thinks it would have been yummy with some yellow peppers too.  I love the sauce best of all because sweet + salty is the perfect combination for the tastebuds.

*I also made this recipe gluten free by using rice noodles and tamari (instead of soy sauce).  But you can also use whatever noodles you have on hand (we had it with whole wheat angel hair, and it was great. We tried it with brown rice noodles and it was gross) and of course, soy sauce if you don't have a gluten allergy.

Sweet and Salty Noodles with Baby Bok Choy

Serves 2...double for a family of 4

INGREDIENTS
8 oz. rice noodles
4 heaping Tablespoons Earth Balance (or margarine)
5 cloves garlic (or 2 teaspoons crushed garlic from a jar)
2 scallions, finely chopped
4 Tablespoons Tamari (or soy sauce)
2 Tablespoons agave syrup + 1 Tablespoon black strap molasses (or 2-3 Tablespoons brown sugar)
4-5 heads baby bok choy leaves (trim off stems)
scallions to garnish

PREPARATION
1.  Boil water and cook noodles as directed on package. Drain well.
2. While noodles are cooking, melt margarine in pan.
3. Once margarine is melted, sautee garlic, scallions for 3-4 minutes.

4. Add bok choy (as well as any other veggies!) and cook for 2-3 more minutes, until bok choy is wilted and veggies are tender.
5.  Add sweetener and soy sauce and mix well, cooking for another minute.

6. Increase heat slightly, add noodles, and toss to coat.

7. Garnish with additional scallions if desired. (I would have, but I finished up my scallions in the sauce! Sadface.)

in my new (thrifted) pasta dish

 

 

up close and personal with this sweet and salty goodness

 

 

Aurora has a big appetite and we have yet to find a food she doesn't like.  She had a lot of yummy food this weekend, including her first real peach (which she devoured).  She loves noodles (which she calls doodles), and so she also gives this recipe the toddler seal of approval!

We wish everybody a happy 4th of July, and hope it was relaxing, delicious, and maybe even meatless!

Bon Appetit,
Amanda

Happy 4th of July Weekend

When I was younger 4th of July always meant 'summer is halfway over.'  Which definitely made it seem like a bad thing.  Now I like to think of it more as the peak of the summer (I guess I'm becoming more optimistic in my old age).  It's the kick off to vacations and visits from family.  And what better way to celebrate than with a long weekend full of yummy food and fireworks?

Here's a little flashback of this time last year.  I took some photos of my niece (miss Aurora Jaymes) in a sailor suit.  Not only is it festive, it's probably one of my favorite outfits ever.  Can't believe how much this gal has grown up since this photo was taken! 

Happy 4th of July, lovely readers!!

xo

Jayme

How to Talk To Little Girls

There has been a lot of buzz on the interwebs this week surrounding this Huff Post article about the way we interact with young girls, which makes an extremely valuable point:

"Teaching girls that their appearance is the first thing you notice tells them that looks are more important than anything. It sets them up for dieting at age 5 and foundation at age 11 and boob jobs at 17 and Botox at 23. As our cultural imperative for girls to be hot 24/7 has become the new normal, American women have become increasingly unhappy. What's missing? A life of meaning, a life of ideas and reading books and being valued for our thoughts and accomplishments."

Our blog tends to focus a decent amount on little girls looking pretty:  after all, we sell vintage baby clothes!  Jayme and I also love fashion and makeup and hair and shopping and all of those very superficial (maybe), girly things.  Growing up, I always felt I was the smart one and Jayme was the pretty one.  I doubt the grown-ups in my life meant to make me feel this way, but I've struggled with my self esteem and issues with my appearance since as far back as the fourth grade.  I loved to read and write, I got great grades, and I was always winning some contest or another. But Jayme did too! She's smart and artistic and creative.

I never resented her (though I was always jealous of how tiny she was--and still am at times). But I hated the feeling of being one thing (smart) or the other thing (good-looking). They're not mutually exclusive!

I have always felt confident in my intelligence, but rarely felt confident in my looks.  Even though I know I'm attractive.  Even though I know that what's sexy about someone comes from within. And that sexiness is really about loving who you are, inside and out.

All of this to say:  there are two sides of the story.  I value Aurora for all that she is because she is my daughter.  I know that's clear in the way both Q and I interact with her.  I want her to grow up feeling beautiful in every way. To have a healthy image of herself as a whole. I'm not going to withhold compliments on her physical appearance any more than I would withhold compliments about her accomplishments.  Head to toe, Aurora is the best, smartest, funniest, most beautiful and special girl I know.

In the end, I think this author's got it a little wrong.  Interacting with kids shouldn't be a show or a concerted effort to be politically correct. Conversation should come from the genuine love and concern and joy that you experience just by being around them.  Maybe you'll ask them about the picture they're coloring or maybe you'll ask them about the mismatched, multicolored ensemble they put on to go to school that morning. Chances are, they'll have something to tell you (even Aurora has a LOT to say these days!). The key is to engage authentically:  be yourself so that they can be themselves.  After all, isn't modeling (not the runway kind) one of the most powerful ways of teaching our kids how to behave and respond to others? If we respond and engage with love, we're doing good.

This is Aurora dressed up for a little Miskabelly photo shoot over the weekend.  Right now? She's wearing only a diaper with peanut butter on her face and bedhead, dancing around to Yo Gabba Gabba, and she has never been more beautiful.

What do you think about this Lisa Bloom article? We'd love to hear from you, especially other mama bloggers.

Have a wonderful holiday weekend--and thanks for reading,
Amanda