Rouge and Roses

What we've been up to the last few months :)

4 & 5 Months

Well, I think we’ve made it. I see the light at the end of the tunnel. I know this day would come, I didn’t believe it at first and now that its “here” I already miss the newborness… I have to say this is my favorite stage so far because she is still baby enough but you can see the infantness on the horizon.  As a new parent I have come to discover time is truly my worst enemy. Riley is still so new to the world but you can tell she’s starting to find her place in it. Motherhood is so magical. 

Lets see, things I’ve come to learn as a new mom ; 

- You can never have enough paci’s - Somehow I start with 10 and then be the end of the week I never have one near by when I need it. Note to self: Always buy paci’s when you go to Target.

- Write down all your good ideas. I am constantly telling Colby about my latest mommy invention. Right now it the “nanny pack”, basically a fanny pack for moms to wear all day where you can store binkies, hang a burp cloth, rattle, your iPhone, Chapstick, and a water bottle. Pretty much a holster of mommy ammo. Amazing right?! Don’t steal my idea…

- Sometimes your child isn’t going to nap and you know what… they will survive. No baby ever died from skipping an afternoon nap. Pour yourself another cup of coffee mama and chillax. - 

 - Perfecting the 5 minute face - Which I never thought was possible, but now that the myth has become my reality I always try to make time to throw on a little makeup everyday, it just makes me feel better :)

- You WILL cry all the time, its normal - Seriously all the time and at the smallest things. Like the other day, for the first timeRiley could fully reach the floor in her baby walker and I couldn’t even look at her without crying… Normal! Tissues would be another good thing to keep in that nanny pack…

- You know Karate - Just wait for the fist mesquito to come within a 10ft radius of your baby and that hand is going to move like a bat outta hell. The mama bear instincts are REAL, not only towards people but all things. On a daily basis I give my washing machine death threats if it dares wake up my baby during nap time…

What are some things you’ve learned as a new mom that you weren’t really expecting? Do share!

two - three months, moving craziness and looking back a year ago…

Wow…just wow…..no seriously…..wow…

I have no idea where the time has gone. Its almost scary how fast its all gone by. Here’s by best attempt at a recap.

We found a house! Yay! Finally after about a year of searching and putting in a billion offers the Lord blessed us with an amazing place. It has a great huge room for Colbys Studio, a beautiful view and the baby gets her OWN room! Woohoo! I guess… were still adjusting to that. Colby and I still can’t decide which is harder, having Riley sleep with us or not with us. We still don’t sleep much when she’s in her own room because all we do is sit there starring at the video monitor. Anyways, moving with a newborn was INSANE - I couldn’t even think straight or bother thinking about any thing else besides baby. The only decision I wanted to make was the paint color and everything else was up to Colby. We’ve been in the new house for about 4 weeks now, and we’re slowly getting settled. It feels SO GOOD to have to much storage space! I even have my own little office/makeup room, well thats until baby #2 comes along, down the road. We still have a lot to do to the house, we have carpet, counter tops and shutters being taken care of soon and then we’ll get to the fun decorating and furniture shopping part :) 

Riley’s sleep patterns (or little of) were totally thrown off when we moved. We stayed at my in-laws place for a few weeks I think the change of it all kinda got us both out of whack so were slowly working on getting back on track with some things. Besides that she’s been great! Rolling from tummy to back and back to tummy a hand full of times but I haven’t been able to catch it on video yet. Grabbing her toys like a champ and discovering all the new sounds she can make. It seems she can stand her car seat more these days which makes drives much more pleasant. This girl LOVES bath time, smiling constantly and whenever daddy sings to her. It seems like every day she’s learning something new or doing something she hasn’t done before. Right now, one of my favorite things she does is watching her face light up when she reaches for a toy. She does this adorably cute thing with her lips that kills me every time.

What she doesn’t like are naps longer than 30 mins…. and waiting to eat if she’s hungry.

I cannot believe one year ago today we found out we were becoming a family a three. I will never ever forget that day. This might sound cheesy but that day, I kinda knew my life was really about to start, or maybe the purpose of my life? I dunno, whatever it was it was amazing. I’m sure most moms out there can relate :) 

Heres a link to the video of me telling Colby he was going to become a Dad in 9 short months:  CLICK HERE 

dreamer368 asked: hello! i saw on ur post that u rented alot of netflix movies on pregnancy. could u recommend some?

Sure :)

Here’s the list of all the DVD’s I rented.

Hope that helps!

How I survived pregnancy

I’ve been wanting to do this post for awhile now. Ever since Riley was born and I started packing all my pregnancy things away (kinda sad!) it reminded me how I loved reading other mommy blogs about the things they loved using during their pregnancy so I thought I would share mine!

(In no particular order)

- Pregnancy Pillow AKA The flotation device - I am a sleep snob and this, hands down saved my life during those entire 9 months. My husband hated it but hey - its either less space in the bed for you or a grumpy, pissed out wife for a VERY long time. He happily chose option 1.

And! You can also use it for nursing later.

-The Boppy Wedge- This came after my belly started to add some weight, maybe around 5-6 months. I got the most beautiful nights sleep when I brought this baby home with me. GET ONE. Also this one is much easier to travel with unlike the Titanic one above. This one can also be put to good use later when nursing. Works great to use behind your back in the side laying position.

-The sales rack at Target for cheap maternity tops.-  Pea in the Pod… I mean really?

-Bubble Baths- This was just relaxing and helped soothe my back pain.

- My Anti-Stretch Mark Army- I used this product that me MIL gave me from Destination Maternity called Sanctuary. She got me the Bounce Back Firming Cream for Mother’s Day and I liked it so much I bought more and I also got their Stretch Mark Oil and the Collagen Boosting Body Butter. I used it every single night after my routine bubble bath and no stretch marks on this momma!

-Netflix- I was a research junkie. As soon as I saw those two pink lines it was like I couldn’t get enough information. I rented every DVD available on Netflix that had anything to do with pregnancy or babies. My favorite thing to do after I came home from work was to make a snack, warm up some tea and plop down on the couch for some baby overload.

-Water Bottles- I could not get enough water when I was pregnant. And I also seemed to need it at the most inconvenient times so I started carrying a water bottle EVERYWHERE with me. These are great because you can reuse them (Yay! Save the Planet!) and they fit perfectly in your purse/diaper bag.

-Snacks- I made sure I was also armed and ready with multiple snacks in my purse every time I left the house. I never really knew when the “hangry” (hungry + angry) monster was going to hit so to spare those around me, I always had snacks. My fav were the little snack pack of raw almonds from Trader Joes and their fruit leather bars.

-Pedicures- A preggo’s gotta pamper those poor toeies every once and awhile.

-Coffee dates- This was nice towards the end of the pregnancy to keep your mind off the ticking clock to D-Day.

-Prenatal Yoga- This is kinda self explanatory. For me I really enjoyed meeting up with a bunch of other pregnant momma’s and it helped to keep me accountable to staying active and not wanting to sit around on my butt all day.

-Bella Band & hair ties- Don’t get the cheap alternitves - get the Bella Band, its totally worth it. Oh and if you get pregnancy jeans get the kind that go under your bump or all the way over your bump. I could not stand how the mid-way rise would show a crease in my tops- so annoying. Thats way I mostly used my bella band or did the hair tie trick with my non pregg pants.

What helped get you through your pregnancy? I’d love to hear!

Belly Bump Flash Back! Check out my Sanctuary Oil in the back ground lol.

XOXO, Maggie

One month

Seriously?!?! One month already?? Pinch me….

I have learned so much about myself and my husband in the past month. I have learned that we make a great team and I think we can actually keep a baby alive!

My husband, no joke, is the most amazing person I know. I already thought he was such a hard worker but now since the baby is here, he has put so much time and energy to make sure he gets us into a new house, all while still working on more than one bands record, cleaning up around the house and helping me with the baby whenever I need it. So grateful for him.

Riley is such a good baby, to me she’s pretty predictable. Colby might differ other wise but I think its because I have the secret weapon that always calms her down… The boobies. I sometimes wish he had a pair so I could find some more time to tidy up the house but I know the bonding we get to share is totally worth leaving the dirty dishes in the sink for just ooonnee more day :)

Now I have a confession to make. I love my sleep, I NEEED my sleep and some where in the mist of all this lacking and needing we’ve ended up bed sharing….I know, I know - GASP! I really never considered it but when you’re breastfeeding and so exhausted you actually feel pysical pain, even the simple lift of putting her in the co-sleeper requires way to much energy, so she stayed. All cuddled and cozy right next to me, and you know what, the craziest thing happened… she slept like a dream! And the next day and the next day and the next. So we were hooked and honestly I love it. Waking up and seeing her little hands tucked under her cheeks while she’s sleeping just makes my heart melt. Even if I’ve only slept for 2 hours, ill just lay there and watch her sleep. Now, I realize I could be risking the creation of a bad habit but at a month old, I doubt it. However, once we move or once she’s closer to 2 months I’m going to start working on a gently implementing some sleep training… Wish me luck. Already know that’s going to be a tough one.

I’m still adjusting to this whole new way of doing life. Basically everything I did on a daily basis BEFORE the baby, ie; wash my face, take a shower, eat breakfast, getting ready for the day, cleaning the house, etc.., I mean honestly, I could easily spend a good 3-4 hours just getting ready. ( Don’t judge me, I grew up in the south where everyone moves slow and no one likes to be rushed.) Now I’m learning to do almost all these things in increments through out the day or in just under 7 minutes flat. I’m learning all kinds of short cuts and how to do most things with one hand. I’m also slowly setting small goals for myself the more human I’m beginning to feel again. Like just the accomplishment of baking cookies or painting my nails, something outside of what has to been done around the house or my constant milk maid duties, helps me see the light at the end of the tunnel. Now, don’t get me wrong, I’m not complaining by any means - I LOVE my new “job” its seriously the best thing thats ever happened to me and I wouldn’t trade it for a single thing. I have waited so long for this chapter in my life to begin and now it’s finally here and I’m learning to embrace to it, lack of sleep and all ;)

Photo recap:

New Year = reNEWed Blog

I told myself as part as my new years resolution I would bring back to life my blog or re-create it in some way. It hasn’t been much of anything except bits and pieces of things I enjoy and it will mostly likely continue being that way. But now I get to add a new piece to my blog ; Motherhood - oh boy its been a doozie so far ;)

So Rouge and Roses is all things girly, beauty, fashion, DIY wanna be, amature baker, and now stay at home mom :) I’m excited for this new journey. Woo-Hoo! 2013!!

The Sexy Secretary Blouse

                                

Check out my post on Glamonomics.com today about the oh-so chic tie neck blouse!