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Today was the first Mother’s Day that I got to celebrate being a mother in addition to celebrating the amazing moms in my life. Becoming a mother is literally the best thing that has ever happened to me. It’s also the most intense thing that has ever happened to me and the most difficult thing I’ve ever faced. It has made me feel anxious, worried, sad, antsy, and guilty, but also excited, appreciative, and so so so incredibly happy. It teaches me to be patient, grateful, and to live in the moment. Motherhood has made me dismiss ideal body images and embrace my body and the incredible things it can do. I know it’s just going to get a hell of a lot harder, but I can’t wait for everything to come. #firstmothersday #chicagomama #mothersday #firsttimemom
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Yesterday was the last day of Jon’s paternity leave and today is the longest our little family of three hasn’t been all together. After we put Ella to bed last night, Jon and I sat together, drinking our second anniversary wine (8 months late) in the dark so that we could keep the bedroom door open and listen to her sleep. We talked about how our lives will never be the same again and about how sad that made us. We will never again have this time together - at home as a family, navigating the ins and outs of becoming first time parents and watching our little girl grow and change so much over the course of her first 8 weeks. I know this is life. We can’t just stay home as a family everyday for the rest of our lives and spend our days talking about how great Ella is and making silly noises until she smiles. And we both know we need mental stimulation and adult conversation, and have responsibilities outside our family. As we sat there in the dark, we talked about how special this time was and how grateful we are to have experienced Ella’s first couple months together. And now we’re shifting to a new normal- a new schedule with Jon at work and me home figuring out how to take care of Ella and our home until Jon comes home at night. Weekdays won’t blend into weekends anymore and late nights will no longer be remedied by late mornings. When I go back to work, it’ll be another shift and I’ll get home at night with just enough time to put her down to bed. And another shift will happen when Ella starts daycare. But I guess that’s what parenthood is. As soon as you get used to one thing, everything changes. I’m feeling bittersweet today. I’m sad that I’ll never have these last 8 weeks again, but I’m so grateful for every moment of it and excited for what’s to come and so appreciative of this moment right now. I’ve said it before, but parenthood has taught me to be present more than I had imagined it would. These days are so special and I know that Ella will never again be exactly the same as she is right now. 📷: @bellababyphotos #parenthood #firsttimemom
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Last week, I hosted a Galentines Day dinner to celebrate some of my favorite ladies! Of course I was too busy enjoying dinner that I forgot to take any photos of us, but I did snap a few ahead of time. See today’s blog post for the details! Link in profile. #galentinesparty #partydecor
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We have not yet mastered the art of getting out the door with a newborn in winter. We literally plan to leave the house an extra half hour early and then always end up getting places half an hour late. Needless to say, I don’t always have much time to make food. To help with this, I’ve been making oat bars for the week and storing them in the fridge and freezer to grab for a quick one-handed breakfast or snack. They’re full of oats, almonds, flax, and brewer’s yeast to help my body keep up with Ella’s demanding milk needs. They’re also delicious and healthy for everyone, not just nursing mothers! The recipe is live on the blog today. Link in profile. #nursingmother #oatbars
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I hosted a little Galentine’s Day party on Wednesday. It was so much fun to celebrate with some of my favorite ladies and I’m happy to be able to throw parties again! Ella got to attend her first ladies night, which for her consisted of cuddling and drinking milk til she passed out at 9:30. Replace the milk with wine and that sounds like the perfect evening for me! #galentinesparty #ladiesnight
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Celebrating Valentines Day the best way I know how- with 🧀 and champagne 🥂! I’m thinking of taking a break from dairy because this postpartum acne is no joke, so obviously I need to eat all the cheese in the fridge first. Jon and I are continuing the celebrations tonight by hanging out with our itty bitty valentine 👶🏼 and making pasta with cream sauce and morels (this dairy break can wait til tomorrow). How are you celebrating the holiday? #cheeseboard #pinkchampagne
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Raise your hand if you celebrate Galentines Day! 🙋🏼♀️I love how a made-up holiday on one of my favorite tv shows has become something that people celebrate. I also love how the day is yet ANOTHER excuse to drink champagne! Ella can’t get enough cuddles today and gets to attend her first ladies night tonight so it’s a pretty great Galentines Day over here. To prepare for our celebrations, I painted these paper maché heart boxes to store some little chocolate treats and stocked up on some pink bubbly. I’m looking forward to an evening of endless 🍾 (🍼 for some of us) and 👩🏽👩🏼👩🏻!! #galentinesday #hearts
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Ella’s been smiling a lot lately so I spend approximately 90% of my free time trying to get one out of her. Of course, she refused to smile when I took her picture today, but she did seem pretty excited to rock her Valentine’s Day bow! If you missed the instructions on how to make an easy, inexpensive baby bow, head to the blog. Link in profile! #babybows #diybaby #ellalouisehense
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I used to hate the idea of Valentine’s Day, but then realized it’s another excuse to indulge in chocolate and champagne and to surround yourself with roses. Not a bad way to spend a day (though this basically describes at least one day per week for me). I wanted some special 🍫 that didn’t cost a fortune so I bought some supermarket milk chocolate bars and white chocolate chips. I melted each in a double boiler (metal bowl placed over a small pot of boiling water), then poured each into a rectangular Pyrex and used a toothpick to create a marble effect. I topped with ❤️ shaped sprinkles and refrigerated to cool then used a knife to break it into large pieces. If you want to create chocolate bars, you can use a mold instead. #homemadechocolates #valentinetreats #nobakedessert
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I haven’t been able to do much entertaining over the last few months due to being super pregnant and then having a newborn, so I’m excited to start hosting people again. I’m having to plan ahead more and serve food that can be prepped ahead of time and cooked the day of the party. I’m currently putting together some Valentine’s Day festivities and am prepping the decor super early. It’s also given me an excuse to have a little pink bubbly. Gotta take advantage of Ella’s nap time! #valentinesdayparty #partydecor
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I made shortbread jam cookies today for the third time in two weeks! I wanted a slightly healthier alternative to the buttery biscuits so I did some experiments and ended up with cookies that are a combination of soft and crumbly (as in they’re crunchy, but won’t break apart when you eat them) and aren’t filled with refined sugar. They have a slight coconut flavor and can be topped with any fruit jam. Recipe is up on the blog today. Link in profile! #shortbreadcookies #recipe
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It took 2 people, 7 diapers, and 3 outfit changes to change Ella this morning. I attempted to eat while nursing and spilled oatmeal on her (twice). My coffee got cold as it sat on a milk-soaked breast pad turned temporary coaster and I used a velcro swaddle wrap as a burp cloth. I managed to brush my teeth for a whopping 20 seconds before we ran out the door for for my doctor’s appointment. BUT then Ella smiled at me. All the clothes I’ve sacrificed to spit-up, the piles of laundry, the sleepless nights, and even the pain of childbirth are worth those smiles. Motherhood has surprised me in many ways. As soon as I saw Ella for the first time, I got it. I understood what “a mother’s love for her child” means. It’s a love like no other- an unconditional, heart bursting kind of love. What’s amazing to me is how my love for her continues to grow with each day, every snuggle, and every smile. I’m so excited for her first giggle, when she starts babbling and then talking, and every other milestone along the way. I’m excited for spring walks, summer vacations, and Christmas breaks. I’m just so excited to experience everything with her. BUT I’m also so happy in the present. A couple days ago, Jon and I found ourselves playing what we now call the “tongue game” with her for 15 minutes where we alternated sticking out our tongues with her doing the same. We lied in bed as a family, soaking in the moment. Motherhood has helped me to be present and to enjoy these moments because as much of a cliche that it is, I know they won’t last. Last night, after I put Ella down to sleep in her bassinet, I looked through pictures of her after she was first born and teared up about how she’s growing up so quickly (another cliché I know) and how happy she makes me. We recently packed away the newborn clothes that she’s outgrown and started putting her in the next size up diapers. I felt a little sad that she’ll no longer be that little or that young. BUT also so happy for our moments together today and our adventures of tomorrow. I can’t believe our little girl is already six weeks old! #babygirl #sixweeksold
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I started to write down things that I learned in my first month of motherhood, but it made me think about what I learned from my pregnancy so I wrote that down instead. Growing up, I didn’t think I wanted to have children. I thought it would prevent me from being able to do things I wanted to do like have a successful career, travel, and be able to spend time on my hobbies. It wasn’t until a couple years ago that I realized that, for me, having a child could add to those things, rather than take away from them. My career is still important to me, we’ve already booked Ella’s first flights, and I’m sneaking in time for my hobbies while she naps. I am learning how to adapt to include her in the things that I love doing, rather than stopping myself from doing them. During my pregnancy, these things were important to me, but I had to learn to adapt to a new normal as my body changed. This taught me a few things that I wish I had learned sooner. Find out the 3 things I learned from being pregnant on the blog today! 📷: @bellababyphotos #mamablog #pregnancythoughts #ellalouisehense
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It’s been a lazy Sunday over here. Last night, Jon and I had our first night out since Ella was born and Ella slept for 9 hours straight through the night! Now, Ella’s napping again and I’m enjoying the quiet with coffee and NPR. I know there are so many things I could be getting done around the house, but I’m taking advantage of this time to relax. I also just want to watch her sleep so peacefully- I feel like I’m going to blink and she’s going to be all grown up. Having a baby has taught me how to slow down and enjoy simple moments like these (and big wins like getting to sleep through the night)! #lazysunday #mamablog #mywestelm
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I finished these blocks the morning before I went into labor. They’re not perfect- the squares are all slightly different sizes, but I kind of like them that way. We’ve ordered so many things for Ella online and everything arrives in excessive amounts of plastic packaging. I can’t even count the number of boxes we’ve put into the recycling bin in the last couple months. I’m trying to be more conscious of this and reusing things whenever possible. To make these blocks, I used fabric scraps and stuffing from an old pillow that we were planning to throw out. I hope to teach Ella how to take care of the world around her by being resourceful and reusing things when possible. Anyone have any other DIY baby toy ideas? #riflepapercofabric #babyblocks @writetome #livemorecreatively
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It is literally -12 degrees outside with a wind chill of -37. Needless to say, we are not leaving the house today. Jon opened the door earlier to grab a package that was delivered and I’m still warming up from that! I spent the morning snuggling up with Ella and now that she’s down for her nap, we’re enjoying some wine soon to be followed by hot cocoa. I’m trying to finish up some projects today, but I just want to be cozy under a pile of blankets. I just got caught up with the new podcast from @madeleine_shaw_. The latest episode is all about plastic free parenting- something I’m slowly trying to get better at! It’s so good, but I wish there were more episodes out. Does anyone have any good podcast recommendations? I need more to listen to while I’m nursing Ella! #naptime #modernmama
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Back in November, I made this lion out of paper scraps to make size dividers for Ella’s closet. For the last two months, my to-do list has included the task of making a zebra, giraffe, and elephant for other sizes, but I finally removed that from my list. I think it’ll be just fine to have the same image for each size. It feels pretty good to cross something off my to-do list that’s been on there for so long even if it’s just because I decided to move on, but with a one-month old, that’s still a win in my book! Now I’m just waiting for Ella to go down for a nap so I can tackle some other projects on this snowy day! How are you spending your snow day? #papercrafts #babynursery
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It seems like everyone I know is doing Dry January, but I went nine months without a cocktail so no thank you! Ella went down for a long nap 🤞🏼 so I’m taking advantage of a couple hours before I have to feed her again with a coconut ginger twist on an Old Fashioned. To make the cocktail, first make a ginger coconut simple syrup. Stir 1/4 c. water with 1/4 c. sugar in a small saucepan over low heat. Add 1 t. ground ginger (or 1 T. chopped fresh ginger) and 3 T. unsweetened shredded coconut. Continue stirring over the heat until the mixture starts to thicken into a syrup. Take off the heat. Strain. For each drink, mix 1 t. of the syrup with 2 oz. bourbon, 1 t. maple syrup, a dash of cinnamon, a dash of cherry bitters, and a dash of angostura bitters. Pour into an ice filled glass. Cheers! #cocktail #whiskeydrinks #happyhour
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Have any other moms out there spent a small fortune on baby accessories? I was looking to buy some more headbands for Ella, but couldn’t justify another $8 bow so I decided to make my own. Now, Ella has bows to match every outfit! Head to the blog to find out how to make your own baby bows in less than 5 minutes! The best part is they cost less than 50 cents a piece to make! Now I can save money for other necessities like diapers for Ella and wine for Mom! #babybows #babygirl #ellalouisehense
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These mornings, I’ve been sneaking in a few minutes here and there between baby snuggles to update my website and finally add the links to most of my blog posts. Interested in vegetarian food, entertaining inspiration, DIY projects, and creative living? Head over to the site for recipes, inspiration, and more! I’m currently brainstorming ideas and thinking about what direction the blog will take in 2019. What kinds of things do you want to see this year? #lifestyleblog #modernmama
