Restaurant Kit

This week I reached out to a friend in a two year old panic. Josh, the girls and I went to a quick, informal supper with Josh's mom who we call Grandma. Kensington was a total nightmare. Both of the girls are usually well behaved when we go out to dinner but this was the second time in a week that we had attitudes, pushing of plates and refusal to eat. I was beyond mortified. I've taught my children better. Sure they are two (and sick) but they know better.

The friend I reached out to is our Multiple Moms professional sleep trainer and she always has great suggestions when I am at the end of my rope- which was likely due to being in the ER until 4 am. 

I digress. 

Back to my friend.

 Her name is Jen and she has similar expectations of her children so I knew she was the one to reach out to. She went over some really valuable things such as giving the girls choice at dinnertime which I don't do as much when we go out to eat. Then she said, "You bring things for them to do right?"

  Umm... Yeah. No. 

Mommy fail. 

I usually rely on the restaurant to have a coloring sheet and crayons which is usually wadded up somewhere on the ground before we ever place our drink orders, if they even have them.

This particular night we ate at a delicious urban bake and chop house called Crushed Red.

I was unprepared and I expected my kids to sit like little ladies and quietly eat their food.

What was I thinking? Was I delirious? Clearly. 

Since we occasionally find ourselves out to supper at a moments notice because our evening plans ran over schedule and we have chanting two year old requesting to, "EAT! EAT! EAT," with an occasional, "peas! (please!)"  in there, I decided to create a restaurant kit.  Guys, you know I have all the heart eyes for being organized and prepared. 

So here it is, my plan to not have another two year old meltdown while out to supper.  

Our Restaurant Kit!!

I started with a cosmetic bag from my favorite place, Target. 

I chose this one because it has the perfect number and shape of pouches that I need. 

Then I filled it. 

Coloring books, Lisa Frank stickers, Color Wonder coloring pad with markers, cut blank paper and crayon pouches.

I also enclose some of the necessities. 

Baby wipes, bibs, spoons & forks, hand sanitizer, and bendy straws. 

I like to have bendy straws on hand for the girls. A straight straw means water in their lap 100% of the time. Adult forks are too big for their little fingers to grip and usually results in them using their fingers. The rest is self explanatory. 

Necessities packed in! 

Fun packed in!

Super thin design that doesn't take up too much room in a booth, under the table or in the car. 

There you have it! I'm thinking I might throw a pack of crackers in there for the long wait times and maybe a couple thin books like the ones you get from Chick-fil-a to give them another option for entertainment. I'm trying my best to refrain from just handing them my phone. I can honestly say that the Zabies do not know how to operate my cell phone other than to press the home button to cancel out a FaceTime chat. Although, I can totally see how it would be way easier to just let them watch a video to have a peaceful dinner.

What do you do to keep your kids occupied when you go out to eat? I'd love to hear your suggestion!

Solo trip to Georgia

At the beginning of the month I took the Zabies & Harley, our fur baby, on a solo road trip to Georgia. An eight hour road trip turned into 10+ hours with torrential down pouring rain from a hurricane. The trip was relatively easy. The girls are amazing travelers and didn't complain unless they were hungry or needed to stretch their legs (and get their diaper changed). 

The trip started off rocky with a dead battery in my car resulting in me having to push my Yukon XL out of our garage since my guy works 45 minutes from home. Thankfully the girls just rolled with the punches of the day and made new friends at every stop!

Notice all of the stuff behind Kensington? I chose to load our stuff on the bench seat so Harley could have all of the back to stretch out and get comfy!

We celebrated my best friend's little boy's birthday while we were in town. I was so thankful that we were able to be there to celebrate him!

We had play dates with the girls' cousins, Emerson and Dylan.

We played at the park.

We got to love on the brand new baby goats in the front pasture at my parent's house. 

And climb the same fence that Mommy climbed as a little girl. 

The Zabies also helped their Pawpaw master the plumbing in the kitchen remodel.

Quinn has an obsession with Pawpaw's Harley. Dear Lord, help us!!

We had lots of family in and out all week but had a big cookout that was a huge hit with the girls.

One of my other Georgia bestie that I call LJ also came to our family cookout. 

It made my heart so happy to see these four together and to just enjoy the day with my sweet friend. 

These two! It's like a flash into our future. 

Josh joined us on Saturday and we celebrated my cousin's marriage... 

Had two year old melt downs...

Found humor in said meltdowns...

and thankfully didn't drop her on her head. 

It was a rough evening for these two. Thankfully they were super cute in the process. 

WWW|| Wednesday Weekend Wrap-up

This weekend was full of fun!

We enjoyed several local fall activities including a old town pumpkin glow with old friends that recently relocated to St. Louis also. Too bad it was too dark for any photo ops! We also enjoyed a family day at our local pumpkin patch  and trick or treating at Grandma's office! We had a wonderful weekend followed by a not so wonderful Sunday night. Kensington had some difficulty breathing from Croup which landed us in the ER and didn't get home until 4:30 AM. 

Here is a photo dump of sorts of our pumpkin picking and trick or treating weekend. 

Happy Hump Day!

Top 10 Baby items

When I say that everyone around me is pregnant, I mean that literally every function we got to whether it be family or friends someone is pregnant. I am frequently asked what my favorite baby items are since I am a baby gear "guru".  Well I never considered myself a guru of any sort but I do love good, reliable, long-lasting baby gear. With the growing request of my favorite items I decided to put together a quick must have/can't live without list for all of my first or second time Mommy-to-be ladies in my life. 

1. Mountian Buggy Clip-on High Chair

This has to be our most used baby item and our "go to" baby shower gift. There is nothing harder than finding a clean high chair that is in working order when going out to eat whether it be for a weekend family supper or on a road trip. It's even harder to find two! We almost always use these bad boys and likely will until the Zabies outgrow them. 

2. Rock and Play sleeper

These were necessary to have somewhere safe to put our sweet girls when we were preparing supper, tending to a sibling or for an afternoon nap in those very sleepy early days. 

3. Boppy Lounger

We used the Boppy Lounger until the girls were a year old. Since I was an exclusively-pumping mama, It was easiest to lay my babies in these to keep them slightly elevated while giving them a bottle and simultaneously pumping. 

4. 4Moms Mamaroo

We used this in place of the swing. We didn't use it a terribly long time but it was well worth the money. The girls loved the car ride option. 

5. Dr. Brown's Bottles

Dr. Brown's Bottles are known for having TONS of parts but we loved them anyway. It was important to me to use a bottle that prevented as much gassiness as possible since the girls already had reflux we didn't want to exacerbate it by using bottles that let in tons of air. 

6.  Medela Pump In Style Advanced

I had a love/ hate relationship with my pump. I hated it because it took up so much of my time and was extremely painful at times when dealing with mastitis or thrush but I loved it because it made it possible for me to give my girls breastmilk until they were 1 year old. I swore I would use it for target practice when I was finished using it. I didn't and it has a nice home with all the rest of our gear until it's ready to be used again. 

7. Baby Jogger's City Select

Love, love, love this stroller. It comes as a single variety and you can purchase the second seat to make it a double. It's genius! Most people have to buy a single stroller and then a double when baby number two comes along. They spend way more that way. It's versatility and easy maneuverability are the key factors in which we chose this stroller. I cannot say enough good things about it. Check out their website to see all of the seating combinations. 

8. Chicco Key Fit 30

We chose this infant carrier because of its high weight and length limits since the babies in our family have all be BIG babies. The Zabies hit the height requirement WAY before the weight. They are still only 29 lbs. 

9. We also used a boppy pillow for nursing or holding one baby at a time. A twin nursing pillow is recommended if you are tandem nursing infant twins.

10. This is the Double Petunia Pickle Bottom Backpack we used for a diaper bag!



Planning and buying for baby is so much fun! I could totally be a professional registry maker for expectant families! Let me know if you have any questions! Happy Tuesday!

30th Birthday Surprise

For my 30th birthday my sweet guy flew my bestie from CNY out to St. Louis for some girl time. He arranged child care for most of the days so that we could go out the breakfast, lunch and dinner doing whatever we'd like in between. Can I say that he takes husband of the year for this wonderful gesture. 

The first day we spent the day at some of my favorite restaurants and shopping at one of my favorite malls. Stacy was also sweet enough to work in a family photo shoot (notice my new photo)  and then she and I went out for sushi and drinks. The weather was perfect for patio sitting and chatting for hours!

 

The next day we went out to breakfast, I introduced Stacy to my Lululemon obsession and then went out to one of St. Louis' landmark restaurants, Fitz's- home of Fitz's root beer!

We ate like every responsible mom does at lunch, root beer floats and fried pickles.

After lunch we made our way through town to the Four Seasons for an afternoon at the spa. 

Can I just say that this was exactly what I needed. It was relaxing and refreshing to have girl time at the spa.

You can't get a much better view than this in St. Louis. 

Following our relaxation at the spa we has an amazing dinner at the home of one of the top rate chefs in the city. The food was nothing short of amazing. My mouth is watering just thinking about it. 

On Stacy's last day in the Lou we spent the day with my duo. We visited the Biergarten, Grant's Farm and Stacy got to experience Chick Fil A for the very first time. She was blown away by the courteous and helpful staff. 

We took these two out for ice-cream after naps. 

We ended her stay with another amazing dinner at another favorite spot of mine. We chatted, laughed and caught up like friends do.

 I miss her being 15 minutes down the road where we can meet up on a whim or sit up until all hours of the night talking over sweets and drinks while one of our spouses is traveling. I am so thankful that I ran into her at Wegmans that Mother's Day afternoon and our friendship blossomed like it has. She has become like a sister to me. I call her when I need a sounding board or if I just want to chat. When we spent the day with Kensington & Quinn it felt like sisters hanging out with daughters/nieces. Nothing felt forced. It was fun. I can't wait to go visit her and see her sweet boys! 

Thank you, Josh. You know your wife well.