HAPPY 1ST BIRTHDAY JONATHAN!!

Our son, Jonathan, just turned ONE this past week. It has been such a pleasure watching him grow and we look forward to many years to come. For Jonathan's birthday party, my husband and I decided to give it a Dr. Seuss theme. 

The decor:

Thing 1 and Thing 2 Welcome wreath

This wreath is very easy to make. You will need a styrofoam circle, yarn, a wooden letter, and some ribbon. Simply wrap the styrofoam circle with yarn neatly and embellish with the wooden letter and ribbon. 

Guestbook

The Lorax pumpkin

 The menu:

 To go along with the theme, we served Who-Food. 

Lorax Punch - Orange Punch
One Fish, Two Fish, Red Fish, Blue Fish - Goldfish crackers
Green Eggs & Ham - Deviled eggs and ham
Poodles with Noodles - Pasta Salad
Cat in the Hats - Strawberry & Banana skewers
Three Cheese Trees - Cheddar, Pepper Jack, and Swiss Cheese
Quilligan Quail - BBQ and Buffalo wings
Biggle Balls - Swedish meatballs
Schlotts Knots - Rolls

The food:

Green Eggs & Ham

One Fish, Two Fish, Red Fish, Blue Fish

Lorax Punch

Three Cheese Trees

Cat in the Hat Skewers

Cake: 

Thing 1 and Thing 2 cupcakes and Smash Cake

I made all the cupcakes and the smash cake with Funfetti cake mix. We added food coloring the the icing to get the perfect colors for Thing 1 and Thing 2 hair.  The cupcake display is made up of 3 boxes we had around the house just wrapped in wrapping paper and stacked. The other cupcakes with Dr. Seuss pictures were also made by us. To make the cupcake toppers you will need construction paper, Dr. Seuss character printouts, cake pop sticks, a glue stick, and a 1 inch circle paper punch. 

Cake pops

Here is Jonathan exploring his smash cake. He hates getting dirty LOL!

After the cake and opening his gifts, we had some activities.

The photo booth: 

What's in the Cat's Hat and Play Dough competition:

By the end of it all, the little boy was worn out. I hope he had a Happy Birthday! We love you Jonathan!!!

Cradle Cap

Hello Everyone,
Yes, I am back!! My little booger bear, Jonathan, has been keeping me very busy. I am finally getting back in to the swing of things. Back to work, gym, volunteering, social outings, and last but not least, my blog.  

3 months

I learn something new everyday when taking care of Jonathan and I wanted to share with any new moms out there what I learned. With a bit of trial and error I have cured Jonathan's cradle cap! For those of you that don't know, cradle cap is very common in infants and it is an inflammatory skin condition that causes flaky, white to yellowish scales to form on oily areas such as the scalf or inside the ear. I first noticed he had cradle cap when I saw him constantly scratching his head sometimes to the point of it bleeding and then you would just see a bunch of white flakes in his hair. He would get really irritated and fussy so I had to find something to get rid of this quick.

First, I started giving him a bath and washing his hair more frequently. I used Johnson's Baby Head to Toe Wash and then I would rub some olive oil in his head. The flakes would lift out of his head and I would comb them out but hours later he was scratching again. Next, I tried washing his hair with the same wash but instead of using olive oil I put my shea butter-olive oil mix in his hair. This cut down on the scratching but the flakes got bigger and brown looking and his hair just seemed really dirty. Then, I went back to just olive oil after washing his hair but instead of just putting it in there I would massage his head for about 10 minutes to really work the oil into his scalp. That didn't work either, the flakes returned! Then, the other day I had an epiphany...why not wash his hair with natural products like I do for myself.  So, I got a 3 oz bottle and mixed apple cider vinegar and water.

 

Vinegar

Added water

I washed his hair with that and he was screaming!!! I guess it hurt a little because he had cuts in his head from all his scratching. I dealt with his screaming because I saw all the gunk and flakes just lifting out of his head. After I got his hair completely clean, I massaged olive oil in his head for 10 minutes. With this method, he has been scratching a little still BUT there are no more flakes. When I see him scratching during the day, I wet his hair and apply a little vaseline and he is good to go. By the way, he doesn't cry anymore when I wash his hair because all his open wounds from scratching have healed.

HAPPY, HAPPY, HAPPY!

Please share any home remedies you have used on your baby for anything (eczema, dry skin, cradle cap, colic, constipation, colds, teething, etc).

Infinity Scarves

Hello Ladies,

I got into a sewing mood!!! How?? Well, I went to visit my friend, Senadzi, a while ago and I was telling her about decorating the baby's room and possibly getting some throw pillows and covering them with some fabric to go with the decor.  She just so happen to be going through some stuff around her house and gave me some fabric she figured she wouldn't get around to using.  As soon as I came back from visiting her, I showed my mother the fabric and told her all I needed to do was get some throw pillows. I was in no rush, but my mother just so happen to stumble across some throw pillows at a garage sale that following weekend. She bought them over to me so there was nothing else to do but get to work.  I checked out some YouTube videos on how to reupholster pillows and then I headed to the store. I could have just reupholstered the pillows with what they gave me, but I wanted to be fancy after watching YouTube.  I purchased some inexpensive back fabric (being extra), ribbing cord (trying to be fancy), and zippers so I could remove the pillow casing and wash them if need be. This was a pretty cheap project for me since the most expensive stuff was given to me. 

See my newly upholstered pillows....

I wish I had a before picture of the pillows, but that is besides the point. While I was at the store getting the items for the pillows, I purchased some remnants to make some infinity scarves for myself to have this fall.  I got the idea to make some while skimming my Pinterest one day. The Pinterest post had the instructions, but I had to watch someone do it so off to YouTube I went. Here is the video I used to make my infinity scarves. 




Check out the final products!!!

1st Blogiversary

Happy 1st year Blogiversary to me!!! I cannot believe it has been 1 year since I started my blog. I hope all my readers have enjoyed the blog thus far. I can't wait to post more this year. Upcoming posts will include sewing projects, post pregnancy weight loss, fashion, and natural hair of course!! Thank you all for being so supportive.

Baby Shower

Hello Everyone!!!

Yes, it has been a while since my last post, as my sister reminded me yesterday on Twitter! So, I'm stopping in to share some details about our baby shower. It was great! My mother, sister, Aunt Keyanna, and friend Stephanie planned the shower for us. 

Top left to right: Jeanie (mom) and me, Joliza (sister) and me
Bottom left to right: Aunt Keyanna and me, Stephanie and me

We had a coed shower; the men seemed to enjoy themselves so that was good. Most of the people attending the shower were from out of town. We were so grateful that they would travel so far to come celebrate the new addition to our family with us. I think my friend Brittany traveled the farthest distance from Miami, Florida. The second farthest distance was traveled by those coming from all over North Carolina and they made up the majority of attendees. Again, we really appreciated everyone's presence.

Brittany coming in from Miami, Florida

Shower activities.....

We played games, ate, and opened gifts - short and sweet! We played some games to include - How Big is Mommy to Be, The Price is Right, Listen for the Nursery Rhyme within the jazz music, and Word Puzzles. We had some great food too - mini chicken salad sandwiches, wraps, wings, cheese and cracker platter, and fruit platter. 

The desserts were yummy! My mother made all the sweets - Teddy Bear cake (yellow), cupcakes (carrot) - my fave, teddy bear shaped shortbread cookies, and her Blue "Drank". 

We received a lot of wonderful gifts....

AND my husband even surprised me with gifts, which included some outfits and toys for Jonathan and a spa day and jewelry for me!!! 

AND!!!! Check out the gifts my crafty friends and family made. 

Baby shower pin by Stephanie

Diaper Cake w/ First Aid Kit by Stephanie

Baby blanket by Cynthia Terry

Aren't they so nice?!

Overall, we had an awesome shower and with the love and support from all of our family and friends we are definitely prepared for the arrival of little Jonathan! 

6 weeks left.... CAN'T WAIT!!! Check ya later. 

Bermuda 2012

I finally took a vacation and it was great!! I was well overdue for some time away from my job. My husband (David) and I decided to take a trip to Bermuda for his birthday and Cup Match. We also had my brother and our friend Di along for the trip. It was a great time and I look forward to doing it again soon.

Day 1: The first day we arrived in Bermuda we visited family early in the day and then we headed to Hamilton for Harbour Night. It was a night of good music, food, concerts, and vendors selling all sorts of things. When the Harbour Night festivities were dying down, the people made their way up the street to see Collie Buddz in concert on the beach.

                  

Harbour Night

Day 2: We had a nice boat ride around the island, courtesy of my Uncle Jack and Aunt Sherma. We let down the anchors and had a nice lunch while on the water. Di jumped in to cool off for a few. After lunch, they dropped us off in St. George's town square. We walked around and explored the square for a few, then hopped in a taxi and headed to Cooper's Island Beach to meet up with my Aunt Harlean and cousin Khamani. It was a great day at the beach. I got sunburned and stung by jellyfish - no big deal lol. We were some beach bums that day; all we did was swim, eat, and sleep all day at the beach. After the beach, Khamani gave us a ride back to the house and we showered and headed to Hamilton to hang out for my husband's birthday. We usually try to celebrate the eve of his birthday and wish him happy birthday at midnight. So, we left the house around 11pm, met up with Khamani in Hamilton and celebrated David's Birthday. First, we hung out at Bermuda Bistro @ the beach and then I took my pregnant behind home. The rest kept the party going and went to Cafe Cairo. I think David had a good birthday.

                       

      

                          

       

                           

Day 3: We got up and headed to Somerset for the second day of Cup Match with my Uncle Fella and Aunt Cheryl. My Uncle Fella's friend, Casey, had a his own tent out there for us to just chill, drink, eat, and watch the game. The crowd was going wild because the cricket match was in Somerset and Somerset hadn't won the cup since 2002. It was alot of dancing, singing, blowing blow horns, cheering, trash talking, but all in good fun. Everyone was in a wonderful mood and it was just a a really good time. Somerset ended up winning the cup this year and everyone just raced to the field and it went from a cricket game to a huge party on the field. We stayed out there all day and most of the night and just enjoyed ourselves. After cup match, we all went and chilled out at the lounge at Elbow Beach to indulge in a little more celebrating for David's birthday. We ended our night a little early and just turned it in around midnight. The long day in the sun and trips to the beach was wearing on us.

Rushing the field after Somerset won

Cup Match 2012 @ Somerset

Elbow Beach

Day 4: We all slept in this day. When we finally got up, we decided to show Di a few things a tourist would probably see when visiting Bermuda. Up until the fourth day we were just enjoying the island as if we were natives lol. We had my cousin Sheryln come by and take us to Hamilton where the Gombey's were performing in Par-la-Ville Park. We got to town a little early so we showed Di around the mall and went shopping for a few souvenirs. My cousin Sheryln came back to pick us up after a few hours and took us to the Crystal & Fantasy Caves. My brother and I had already been down in both caves several times before so we just sat off and chilled at the little restaurant next door while Di and David went down for the tour. Di and David enjoyed the tour, but afterwards we were back to acting like Bermuda natives. After the caves, we got dropped off at the famous Swizzle Inn. We sat around there for a while just enjoying each other's company, the A/C, and the Olympics. After we left Swizzle Inn, my Aunt Harlean came to pick us up and took us to Horseshoe Bay Beach. My brother, Di, and I went to the beach and David got dropped off at my cousin Khamani's house up the street; he was just too worn out at that point in the trip to go to the beach again and be in the hot sun. While at the beach, my brother and Di climbed to the top of the rocks to enjoy the view and even swam out to some rocks to jump off and just have a good time in the water. When we were done hanging out at the beach, we called Khamani and she came and picked us up. She was having a BBQ at her house that night so we stayed there and ended our night at her BBQ. It was great food and company; I hope to see all of them again.

Town Crier

Gombeys

Crystal Caves

                           

       

                           

                          


Day 5: Our last day in Bermuda we were tired and wanted to relax so we decided not to go to the Non-Mariner's Race in Dockyard. The way it happens is there is the race and people hang out and have picnic's on the shore or you hang out and do the same all day on someone's boat. We didn't feel like being on a boat or being in the sun all day so we just did our own thing. We did ride by the event just to show Di and David what it was all about. We ended up riding up to Dockyard and touring the Commissioner's house, watching a little dolphin show, and grabbing a bite to eat at Frog and Onion. After leaving Dockyard, my Aunt Harlean dropped us off in Hamilton. Pretty much everything was closed because of the holiday and everyone was at non-mariners. We finally found a place that was open, The Pickled Onion, we just hung out there for a few hours and headed back to the house around 9:30pm because Di had an early flight the next morning and we needed some rest.

Non-Mariners

Non-Mariners 

Commissioner's House

View from the Commissioner's House

Day 6: Home sweet home. Bermuda was awesome, but I was ready to get home to see the rest of the family and my boy Blue!!