Halloween - 2018

Another Halloween :)

As always, I love to document my kids as they grow and I love getting them all dressed up for Halloween. 

Grant is old enough now that we don't have much say in his costumes.  Luckily we can still dress Leah (for now!)

Grant (currently 4) went as Captain America!

Leah (Currently 1) went as Wonder Woman!

Leah, of course, refused to leave the headband on, so I didn't get many pictures of her in the full costume!

Love, love, love living life with these 2 crazy kids!

And one final close up of my chubby cheek baby girl. I'm going to miss the baby fat on her when she gets older.

Halo Beauty - Review *3 Months*

Okay, so I am finally sitting down to write out my thoughts on Tati's Halo Beauty supplements.

First off, I have to admit that when she launched this product I said it was a complete money grab and there was no way I would buy it.  I 100% did not believe that a supplement would have an effect on my skin.

However, I was SO WRONG. I don't know what is in these supplements, but my skin felt so hydrated and my face skin felt "plumped" up. I don't know how else to describe it! I have very dry skin now that I'm 30 (and had 2 babies), but when I was taking Halo regularly, I would wake up and my face would be almost glow. It wasn't greasy, but it looked hydrated. It really was the craziest thing. I took the original Halo HSN supplement for almost 2 months and then Tati came out with Kiwi.

The one drawback to the OG Halo was that it clogged my pores.  It didn't make me exactly break out, but I would get a lot of clogged pores when I was using it. I thought it might be the Biotin, so Kiwi was a perfect option.

I've been taking Kiwi for a few weeks, and it gives me the flawless looking face that I love, without the clogged pores. I also like that it's cheaper and I only need 1 capsule a day. I have thick hair and strong nails anyway, so the Biotin was really wasted on me.  Now, the effect on my skin is slightly less with Kiwi than Halo.  It still looks plump and smooth, but it's not quite as hydrated feeling.  

The biggest difference to me was how my makeup sits on the skin when I am on the supplement. It looks so smooth and flawless. I honestly don't know what it is in the supplement that plumps your skin, but I can tell a difference when I stop taking it for about 3 days.  I personally leave it on my desk at work and only take it M-F.

Halo also upset my stomach sometimes, but Kiwi seems to be a little more gentle.  Sometimes I feel a little bit of nausea if I don't take it with food. I'm sure that will vary for everyone though.

I wish I had an amazing before/after picture, but honestly my skin wasn't bad before. It's more of a texture/feeling difference that doesn't really translate to photos. I feel like Halo did slightly reduce some old acne scars that I had, and since I've been on Kiwi I have had very few breakouts. I don't break out too often anyway, so I don't know how much of that I can credit to the supplements.

Would I recommend these to someone? Absolutely.  A coworker of mine ordered Halo after saying that I was glowing about a week in to my first bottle. She could tell my skin looked different.  If you don't need the Biotin for hair/nails, I'd suggest going with Kiwi.  It has worked with my skin better and I prefer the cheaper price tag.  If you wait for Tati to do a free shipping weekend, it's even cheaper :)

So, that's my review! I know everyone had a strong reaction to Tati releasing supplements, but as crazy as it sounds, they did actually work for me! Like I said, I didn't have any huge skin concerns other than being 30 and dry, but I can tell a difference when I stop taking them.

Hope that helps!

XO - Lindsay 

Leah - 16 Months

Age: 16 Months

New Stuff: Leah is such a spunky firecracker! It's been so long since I posted an update that I don't even know where to start. She is such a joy and makes us smile and laugh, but man she can be dramatic. Is this just a girl thing?? She swats at us when she doesn't get her way and is already throwing tantrums on the floor. MUCH worse than Grant ever did and it terrifies me to think of how the teenage years will go based on how she is at 1 - haha!

She loves to DANCE! She sings and gives us hugs. She blows kisses and waves to strangers.

Words:  She is a slow talker, just like her brother was. She has started talking a lot more the past week or so, but I struggle to decipher the words she's saying. She says clearly:

Momma, Dada, Bubba (brother), Night Night, Up, More, Thank You, Bubble, Bottle, Hi, Bye Bye

Other Stuff:  We had a health scare with Leah a few weeks ago.  She ran a fever for over a week and just got progressively more miserable.  Then she broke out into a rash and just cried non stop for days and kept grabbing her head.  After multiple trips to the doctor, he sent us to the ER for a CAT scan and a spinal tap to check for meningitis.  Once we talked to the ER doctor it became apparent that the pediatrician suspected that she might have a brain tumor... Thankfully all tests came back normal and after spending a night in the hospital getting fluids and antibiotics through an IV she started improving.  We believe it was a combination of vaccines, Roseola virus, sinus infection, and dehydration all at the same time.  Individually those things wouldn't make a toddler inconsolable, but all at the same time it was causing her a lot of pain.

She is ALL better now though! Fingers crossed that we can go a few months with no more big illnesses.

Halo Beauty - Review *Day 1*

When Tati hyped her "new line" I was ecstatic. I had already decided I would buy something. I love Tati! She's around my age, so I feel like I can relate to her.  We aren't 18, so we are dealing with different skin than the young YouTubers.  However, I was totally bummed when she revealed that Halo Beauty was a vitamin. Really bummed.  And it was pricey! It's more than I would spend on an eyeshadow palette.  

About 2 months later I started to see Before and After shots, and I was intrigued.  I have really dry skin.  Ever since I had my son (4 years ago), my face is super dry! After having my daughter a year ago, my hair is dry, my eyelids are dry, it's just a problem. Don't even get me started on my aging skin... I just don't even want to go there. It makes me sad. 

The Before and After photos got me thinking. I don't need long hair or nails, my genetics are good there.  I could use some help hydrating and plumping my skin though.  So I caved, and bought a bottle for way too much money.  I'm giving it a shot, and we will see what happens.  Unless it's literally magic in a bottle, I can't see myself spending this kind of money on it every month.  

I took my first dose yesterday and made sure to get a good "Before" shot of my makeup free face.  Ugh, I never thought I'd post a makeup free photo, EVER. So here is my 30 year old bare face in all of it's tired glory.

We will see what Halo can do for me and if I think it's worth the $44.90 (shipped) price tag.  I may do weekly check ins to record my progress, I guess it just depends on when I start to see any changes!

Leah's 1st Birthday - Unicorn Theme

Happy birthday Leah Brooke!

We celebrated Leah's birthday on 4/21 and had such a great time!

We went with a unicorn theme and it was so much fun.

Village Bakery (our favorite) made the beautiful cake.

We had cupcakes and unicorn "horns".

The table spread with party snacks.

I loved this photo garland that showed each of her monthly update photos.

Smash cake time! She wasn't sure what to think of her cake. The icing was too firm for her to really dig in by herself.

 

She loved all of her gifts. She mainly loved the paper and bows :) 

Happy birthday, pretty girl!

Leah - 1 YEAR!

Eye Color: Hazel

Clothes:  18M-24M 

Diapers:  4

Milestones:  She walks 100% of the time now!

Had first surgery, ear tubes.

Best Moment(s) This Month: Her birthday!

Loves:

Eating everything

Her daddy

Sitting in my lap

Giving hugs

Favorite Toys: Anything she can stick in her mouth while she walks around. I'm not sure why she loves to do this, but she does it ALL OF THE TIME.

Hates: breastmilk in a sippy cup. She's not having it. Not a fan of carrots either, she always spits them out - haha

Food:  She eats 6oz, every 3-4 hours.  She eats solids 2-4 times a day and LOVES them! She loves eating regular food now.

Looking Forward To: hearing her start talking!

I can't believe she is ONE! Time sure does fly by the older I get.

Leah - 11 Months

Eye Color: Hazel

Clothes:  18M

Diapers:  4

Milestones:  3/10/18: First STEPS!

Best Moment(s) This Month: She started walking! She can take about 10 steps before she starts crawling.  We also scheduled her tube appointment, so hopefully she will stop having back to back ear infections soon.

Loves:

Eating everything
Trying to walk

When we talk/play with her
Grant :)

Favorite Toys: She loves this Beat Belle robot that I found at Target.  She starts "dancing" as soon as I turn it on. It's the cutest thing!

Hates: being sick, changing diaper/clothes, wiping her face.  She has been constantly sick since last month. She has cold after cold, ear infection after ear infection and she just recently came down with the flu.  She has been referred to an ENT to get tubes, so I am hoping that helps her.  She's currently on antibiotics for another double ear infection.  I think this is the 8th or 9th ear infection.

Food:  She eats 6oz, every 3-4 hours.  She eats solids 2-4 times a day and LOVES them! She can eat so much solid food now.  She is obsessed with waffles, puffs, bananas, graham crackers, apples.  She seems to be preferring solids to BM at this point.  I still have a deep freeze FULL of frozen BM, so I hope she's not completely over it soon.  I threw away so much that Grant never ate, and it will break my heart to do that again.

Looking Forward To: First birthday (NEXT MONTH!!), talking, walking 100% :)

How in the world is she almost ONE?! Time has seriously just flown by.  Leah is an absolute joy and has really made our family feel complete.  I haven't even started planning her birthday yet, so I really need to get on that!

Leah - 10 Months

Eye Color: Hazel

Clothes:  12/18M

Diapers:  4

Milestones:  2/2/18: Started pulling up on furniture

Cruising, standing without holding onto anything, babbling

Best Moment(s) This Month: Leah is SO incredibly happy.  She just exudes joy from her face and smiles at everyone.  She is constantly pulling up and free standing. All day she is up/down/up/down so I just know she will be walking by her 1st birthday.

Loves:

Bottles, baby food, graham crackers, waffles, puffs

When we talk/play with her
Grant :)

Favorite Toys: She wants everything that is not a toy.  She loves flashlights, remote control, our cell phones, etc. (still true - haha!)

Hates: being sick, changing diaper/clothes, wiping her face.  She has been constantly sick since last month. She has cold after cold, ear infection after ear infection and she just recently came down with the flu.  She has been referred to an ENT to get tubes, so I am hoping that helps her.

Food:  She eats 6oz, every 3-4 hours.  She eats solids 2-4 times a day and LOVES them! She can eat so much solid food now.  She is obsessed with waffles, puffs, etc.

Looking Forward To: First birthday, talking, walking :)

Leah - 9 Months

Eye Color: Hazel

Clothes:  12/18M

Diapers:  3/4

Milestones:  1/8/18: Bottom two teeth broke through!

1/3/18: Started CRAWLING!

1/7/18: Sleeping through the night, FINALLY! (we had a few minor setbacks when her teeth started coming in, but we seem to be back to sleeping all night again. Thank goodness!)

Best Moment(s) This Month: There were so many this month! Crawling, sleeping through the night, having her reach out to us when she wants one of us to hold her - all of those have been so much fun to experience.  Sleeping all night has to be my favorite though. Mama was tired. She also experienced her first snow! Not a big fan :) She only slept all night for about 4 days and then she got hit with another double ear infection. So we are back to waking up a few times a night again :( Maybe after her ears get better it will improve?

Loves:

Bottles, baby food, graham crackers

When we talk/play with her

Favorite Toys: She wants everything that is not a toy.  She loves flashlights, remote control, our cell phones, etc. She does seem to be a fan of this super cheap dollar store toy I bought for her stocking - haha. See below :)

Hates: being sick, changing diaper/clothes, wiping her face.

Food:  She eats 6oz, every 3-4 hours.  She eats solids 2 times a day and LOVES them! We also started giving her graham crackers to get her accustomed to new textures.

Looking Forward To: First birthday, talking, walking :)

Here are a few snow day pictures of both kids. We live in Texas and only get snow about every 3 years, so we get excited - haha