Five on Friday

Posted on September 2, 2016 by Jen @nutcaseinpoint

Oh hey there, Internet. I thought I’d check in real quick and give you a little one-sided chat before starting the day. So yes, I’m sitting on Wes’s playmat in the barely-breaking morning light without yet having made coffee and typing this up. I must be insane.

So still not too much to chat about here- summer months are just full of outdoor time and soaking up the good weather that it’s hard to sit at a computer and word vomit about it. Or maybe that’s just me. I can’t even remember what I’ve shared with you last, and I’m not about to look back, so here are some things of interest:

Tyler and I have been enjoying lots of craft beer (per usual).

Lunch at National, Growlers from Banded Peak, Brewfoot Blueberry Ale, Tasting flight at Big Rock after Brewga, Tasting flight at Trolley 5

2. In an attempt to make a healthy dessert, I whipped up a batch of Flourless Chocolate Chip Chickpea Blondies. They were so tasty, but in no way come close to chocolate chip cookies. Or anything unhealthy (and DELICIOUS) for that matter. I would definitely make them again though.

3. Wes has been an exploring fiend and I love it. Well, most of the time I love it.

His Oxfords are from VI&JAX and they are the cutest, hipster-est little shoes ever. I love them.

4. I switched from my usual morning waffles to morning smoothie bowls and I just can’t get enough of them! My favorite combo as of late is: frozen cherries, cocoa, pb, spinach, greek yogurt, maple syrup, vanilla, almond milk. Topped with chia seeds and whatever other fun crunchy things I have around.

5. This view:

Randoms

Posted on August 15, 2016 by Jen @nutcaseinpoint

Whoa, time flew by since my last check in! I feel like we have been so busy, and yet I don’t have too much to report. Stupid Calgary weather has our daily events all screwed up. Too much rain and hail and thunder and lightening AND I DON’T LIKE IT ONE BIT.

But, things could be worse so I can’t complain. I thought I’d start the week off by sharing some great [and random] goodies! In no particular order…

WeeNation. I’ve share past boxes we’ve received from them here and here. We got yet another one not too long ago and it was a good one!

It included a Love Child Organics bag of Love Ducks (Wes is obsessed), Barbeque Sauce after sun lotion, Jax & Lennon bloomies, and a couple of other great items! The box was a summer theme and did not disappoint. Wes has outgrown bibs and the stroller wraps aren’t his jam so I’ll be either gifting those or saving them for future babies.

I highly urge you to check our Wee Nation if you haven’t already. They curate some of the best monthly boxes depending on your babes age (and time of the year), plus they find some great small Canadian shops to incorporate in each box! I really love that. And I love that there is often a goodie for mom in it each month as well. This box had a bath bomb that I can’t wait to use.

^^Moccs from Posh Panda ^^

I love whenever we receive one of these boxes in the mail because it is something that Wes and I can open together and he will usually take each item out and run around with it….because he can haha.

Be sure to also check Wee Nation out on Instagram (they have a code to get `10% off!)

2. Love With Food. I hadn’t heard of this snack subscription box before, but was super excited to try it when we were offered a box!

Love With Food has a really great premise behind their subscription boxes: not only are they providing a variety of samples of good snacks, but they are also looking for quality ingredients AND donate a meal to feed a hungry child for every box purchased.

I was more than pleasantly surprised when I opened our box. We have had it for just under a week and I’ve already eaten just about everything in it! There’s a great variety of sweet/savory plus there are gluten free options (and a strictly gluten free box available as well!)

Love With Food’s promise with each box:

No artificial flavoring, coloring, or MSG
No trans fats and hydrogenated oils
No high fructose corn syrup
Snacks are natural, organic or gluten-free

Wes has even shared some of these snacks with me! I gotta admit, I loved them all and look forward to my next box.

The people at Love With Food are offering all of YOU a beyond sweet deal–> use code NUTCASE40 and receive 40% off your first box. WHAT A STEAL. Moral of the story: you get good snacks, help feed the hungry AND get a heck of a discount. Plus, they ship everywhere so this doesn’t exclude anyone!

3. Bubbles & Balms. Oh man, you guys. This is my GO TO shop for soaps. They offer a variety of other skin care products as well which I’ve reviewed here and here, but my consistent order is always at least a half dozen or so soaps. There is absolutely nothing better than an all natural product that smells amazing AND is made locally by a duo that love what they do.

I bought a ton of their bath bombs to gift my girlfriend at her bridal shower and already regret not snagging a couple for myself as well. Bath bombs are THE bomb.

4. Beachbody. I’ve been rotating through my programs lately and still loving the daily challenge. This month is a KILLER month as far as promotions go: two of my FAVES are on sale plus a bunch of others: Country Heat, Cize, PiYo, 21 Day Fix, 21 Day Fix Extreme, and 22 Minute Hard Corps. If you’re looking for some great home-workout programs to add to your workout routine, I’d love to chat with you more to see what would be the best fit for you.

Please message me if you’d like more info! I live by these workouts and I think my post-baby body is a pretty good testament to how effective these programs can be.

5. Invivo Wines. I got a bottle of their Pinot Noir a couple of weeks ago and was more than eager to pair it with a delicious dinner at home with Tyler.

There’s something about Pinot Noir that gets my juices flowing, because I almost *almost* want to swear off beer completely and just stick to the vino once I take a few sips of this stuff. It has the BEST aroma and pairs well with just about any dish. And I gotta admit, we polished off the bottle faster than we expected, which called for an early evening. But boy was it worth it!

I had never heard of Invivo, but was impressed with their fact sheet:

Untitled

Turns out, 4th Spot Kitchen and Bar carries Invivo too! It sparked my fancy so we headed out there for dinner the other day.

I got a beer…whoops!

6. VIANDJAX. This is a small shop for baby/littles clothing that’s based out of Strathmore, AB. Wes was lucky enough to become a brand rep for this shop and we received a pair of moccs for Wes to test out. He absolutely loved the laces (a little too much which prevented him from just leaving them alone and actually WALKING) and I’m excited to pair them with upcoming fall outfits for him.

Unfortunately, Wes took a nasty spill on the concrete just before these photos (hence the bribery of chocolate chip cookies) and you may notice the big ol’ bruise that was forming on his forehead.

^^Romper from Archer and Antlers^^

viandjax shop is currently closed, but make sure to follow them on Instagram for upcoming updates and their fall launch! PS: Aren’t the moccs just so darn adorable?! I can’t stand it.

Ok, that’s it for now. Thanks for making it through the whole post!

Wesley Arlo- ONE YEAR

Posted on April 15, 2016 by Jen @nutcaseinpoint

I can hardly believe I no longer have a baby. Instead, I have a big and bubbly TODDLER. The past year has absolutely flown by and while there were several ups and several downs, I wouldn’t trade the past 12 months for the world. I am so glad I get to be this little boy’s mama and he makes me the happiest lady around. And pretty strong, too. <–from all the carrying and tossing…;)

wesleyarlo12months

He had his one year checkup yesterday and weighed in at 23.6 pounds and exactly 2 1/2 feet tall. I think he’s going to grow to be taller than both mom and dad!

bow tie from Will & Co; leggings from Baby H designs; moccs from Posh Panda

As of March 17th, he was a crawling machine. Since then, he has progressed to pulling himself up, standing, and even attempting to step up onto things. Most of the time, he’s practicing his going up and down the step from our living room, which is equal parts hilarious and a pain because he’s either REALLY happy doing it or REALLY unhappy doing it.

I’m pretty sure his legs got the majority of his growth spurt over the past month, and the crawling has thinned him out a bit. He’s wearing his size 5 Baby Dry diapers at night and size 4 Cruisers during the day. All of his clothes still fit- 18/24 months-2T. And he’s in big boy shoes! 5s or 6s depending on the make. He wears 2-4y socks but the ankle is still pretty tight on him.

He’s got 6 teeth- 4 up top and two on the bottom. He eats EVERYTHING. Chicken is finally an acceptable protein, so it’s nice to be able to give him some leftovers from our dinners. And he really loves pasta with sauce! And pickles. And olives. And all crackers and fruit and cheese…..I could go on forever in this category 😉

Still no real words. Most of the time it’s dadadada, but he has started to really imitate the dogs or even us when we clear our throats! He knows his name and will react to ‘no no’ whenever he’s about to do something he shouldn’t- like mess with the cable box or touch Reggie.

His naps are still a bit touchy. Most days it’s now only one nap and that can range anywhere form an hour to almost two hours. If he falls asleep early enough in the day, I’ll try to get him to rest again- even if it’s just quiet time in his crib. I’ll check the monitor and if he doesn’t fall asleep, he’ll usually just be sitting there with his blankie or standing up along the side and trying to pet his rocking horse. Bed time is around 7 and he will sleep for 12 hours.

Wes still loves riding in the car and I think it’s mostly because he gets a kick out of seeing himself in the mirror. He will randomly laugh at himself! He’s pretty good in the stroller for walks- mostly because the newer Bob we got has a lot better back support, and he will sit in the shopping carts whenever we’re out shopping.

Wes like to clap and pat his belly and play peekaboo with his blankie (or just recently using his hands!) He has fantastic coordination and loves to roll his balls and can put his toys together or turn them on, or basically do whatever function they’re designed for.

Again, I still can’t believe he is a whole year old already. And now that he’s hit this stage, it’s like everything is just flying by! Before we know it, he will be walking and having conversations with us! Eek.

Wes- If the internet still exists when you get older and you’re reading this, I hope you know how much of a joy you are to your daddy and I and we absolutely love you to death. xoxo

In case you missed it:

wescollage

Shop Small- Bubbles & Balms

Posted on March 23, 2016 by Jen @nutcaseinpoint

Happy hump day! I’ve got a great small shop to share with you today- Bubbles & Balms.

bublogo

About the shop: All Bubbles & Balms products are 100% natural, which we define as organic and inorganic materials derived from nature without the addition of synthetics. We hand make all our products at our store in Claresholm, AB. We [Justin and Judith] are partners in business, but also in life and love. We opened our doors in December of 2014 and greatly enjoy meeting new people who are passionate about living life as naturally as they can.

I first came across Bubbles & Balms at the Spruce Meadows Christmas market this past year. Wes was getting antsy so I didn’t have much time to browse, but I did manage to snag a few bars of their soaps. I’m glad I did, because they’ve been the best soaps I’ve ever purchased (no joke). Even after showering, applying lotion and sometimes even walking the dogs, I can still smell the scent of whichever bar I’ve used lingering on my skin. It’s not overwhelming, but just gentle enough to remind me I’m clean (and cinnamon-y…depending on the bar).

Recently, B&B created their own website so you can have access to their products no matter where you are! I saw the launch online and got really excited. Not only because I have enjoyed the soaps so much, but also because they’re local!

In addition to soaps, they offer an extension of bath, body, baby, aromatherapy and men’s products. There’s even workshops you can attend and other DIY stuff! So basically, lots.

I was lucky enough to get in touch with Justin & Judith (basically praising their soaps and cheersing the new site) and before I knew it, a package of the entire baby line was on my doorstep!

Wes is a lucky little boy to be able to try these out…but he’s not the only one! I’ve also used some of the bath oil and I gotta say, it’s super soothing and leaves our skin nice and soft. I *almost* don’t need to put lotion on afterwards, but do out of habit. I really liked how the scent was extremely gentle so it went unnoticed by Wes, but I still felt indulgent during my own baths (now if only it came in bubble form, I’m sure Wes would lose his mind with glee!)

I’m not one to use baby powder (something about babies inhaling it?) but I tried this stuff out- you know, being all-natural and all- and I really loved how good of a job it did on diffusing the dirtiest of diaper smells. Ew, I know. It was nice as a little moisture absorber as well when I try to get him dressed as quickly as possible after a bath when he’s all shivery!

He’s also been pretty good in the butt department lately, so I almost thought I wouldn’t need to use the butt butter. But, (see what I did there?) he did have a reddish hiney last week so I broke some out! I was pleasantly surprised how quickly the solid turned into a creamy, smooth texture once it was applied to his skin.

I think he liked it, too.

Last up, the skin spray. We’ve still not used it, but it smells amazing! It’s good for not only diaper rash, but for sunburn relief so I will keep it handy if ever we get a bit too much sun 🙂

I’ve been really enjoying using these products because I know they’re not harmful on Wes’s skin and they smell so darn good! I’ll often just soak up the second-hand effects of it by sniffing on his head after bath time I love it so much. PS: It’s not weird to always sniff your kid, right??

Big thank you to Justin & Judith! Be sure to check out their site, visit their Facebook page, and follow them on Instagram too.. I’m sure you’ll find something that tickles your fancy 🙂

Three Things on Thursday

Posted on March 10, 2016 by Jen @nutcaseinpoint

Hi, friends! Happy Thursday. SO CLOSE to the weekend I can almost taste it. I’ve got three totally random things I’d like to share with you today:

Eco Chic Movement. Last month, Dr. Alexis from Eco Chic Movement reached out and asked if I’d like to try some baby products from her all-natural line. I of course said yes because I’m always on the lookout for safe products to use on Wes. We received the baby basics travel set which includes baby lotion, massage oil, diaper cream, baby face cream, baby skin conditions cream, and shampoo & body wash.

All of the products are 100% natural and made in Ottawa by Dr. Alexis who is a chemical engineer, toxicologist, and naturopathic doctor. The shampoo & body wash came in a foam pump and I had to pump it quite a bit to get enough to lather onto Wes’s head and body, but I could tell it was nice and gentle on his skin. His hair was light and fluffy after his bath too!

The baby lotion had a very thick consistency which also made it a bit harder to dispense, but it was nice and creamy on his skin. I don’t usually use a separate cream for his face, but we tested this out as well and again was very clean and gentle on his skin. I’ve yet to use the other products, but have them on hand when needed!

I also received a couple of trial sizes for creams and lotions for myself and my favorite is the peppermint foot cream. I used this after a night time shower and put socks on afterwards and my feet stayed nice and moisturized (which is quite the feet in this dry altitude!)

Pros: 100% all-natural products; made in Canada; safe for baby!

Cons: The containers my samples were sent in got opened in the mail and they were hard to pump when I wanted to use. Not sure if shipping is to blame for that?

Thanks again, Eco Chic!

2. Checkout 51– This is one of my latest favorite apps. Every Thursday, they load new list of offers (grocery items, office supplies, BOOZE, pet supplies..etc). You simply pick the ones you’d like, purchase them from any store, upload the receipt, and when your account hits $20, they send you a check. Basically, coupons without the physical coupons.

I’ve already redeemed quite a bit through them. And my favorite part is that you can redeem the offer even if you already have a coupon and/or the product is on sale at a given store. Pampers Baby Dry diapers were on there this week, so I looked for where they were on sale in my area, used a $3 off coupon I already had, then uploaded the receipt for an additional dollar off. Boom, I’m a penny saving genius.

PS: US friends, this is available to you too!

3. Homemade Protein Bars. I decided I needed to let go of my beloved Quest Bars (I’ve had one EVERY SINGLE DAY since Wes was born) because they are just too dang $$$. I looked up recipes on SIMPLE homemade protein bars and came across Lindsay’s No-Bake Protein Bars.

Here’s what I used to make them:

1.5 c oat flour
1.5 c Vega Proteins & Greens protein powder in Vanilla
1.5 c Rice Chex cereal
3 T chia seeds
3/4 all natural peanut butter
1/2 c unsweetened almond milk
1/3 c honey
3 T water

Instructions:

In a bowl combine flour, cereal, protein powder and chia seeds.
In another bowl combine peanut butter, milk and honey.
Add wet mixture to dry mixture and stir to thoroughly combine.
Add water as necessary to make sure the ‘dough’ is moistened. (it will be crumbly)
Line an 8×8 pan with parchment paper and press dough into pan.
Freeze for roughly 20 minutes.
Cut into bars.

If you click over to Lindsay’s original recipe, you’ll see mine turned out completely different than hers. Mine were super tasty, but I think I can improve on them a bit. Next time, I might try almond butter, rice krispies and omit the chia. I mean, if I HAVE to keep making them, I GUESS I’ll just have to suffer through eating all of them, right? 😉

Do you prefer locally made/natural items for your/your baby’s skin care? What do you use?

Do you have a great homemade protein bar recipe I could try??

Share me please!

Share me please!

Share me please!

Share me please!

Share me please!