HOLIDAY GIFT GUIDE 2019

Happy busiest shopping weekend of the year! If you’re looking for ideas for baby/kids/moms/dads, here are some things we love:

BABY/KID

Card games. This year we’ve just started getting into games with Trey and it is really fun having a family activity we can do together, especially with the rainy season just starting for us. Kids learn so much through play and games: turn taking, language and cognitive development, social skills, they really are a hidden gem for learning opportunities (and they’re fun!). Perfect stocking stuffers: this multi-pack, this, this, this (and great for teaching problem solving and empathy.)

We also have this picnic game which is a great first board game for kids, and some friends love this one (and it has amazing reviews) also this.

This scooter makes the list every year because it is such a favorite and gets so much use. $10 off here.

Bob Books Learn to Read beginning and advanced reader, both for ages 3-6. Perfect for the preschooler or kindergarten who’s interested in letters.

These piggy banks. Love the concept.

We’re just about to start feeding Blaire real food so I snagged this chair secondhand (we have another for Trey and have loved it), and will grab this baby set. Boring but needed!

Our favorite play kitchen. And along with it, the cash register.

Have heard rave reviews on this castle that you can color or paint on (and it is under $25!) and great for rainy day indoor play.

I shared this on Instagram but the coolest gift Trey got this year was a set of personalized name crayons. You can make your own so easily with a silicone alphabet mold here.

This cash register gets a lot of use with the kitchen.

Big ticket items: our trampoline (yes, very expensive) and our play set (similar), buying secondhand can save you big time on both.

Non-toys gift ideas (because we are really trying to pair down on all the stuff) - Children’s Museum pass, zoo pass, music class, basketball team, gymnastic lessons, swim lessons, an indoor trampoline pass, plane tickets for a trip.

MOM

Working out is saving my sanity this year so all I want for Christmas is new workout gear. These are my favorite leggings (and they’re on sale!) I have had one pair since they first came out (maybe 10 years ago? Is that right??) and they still haven’t stretched out and look new.

Wireless earbuds, Stockholm by Urbanista. This is one of those product that I’m just not sure how we survived life without it. Love being able to workout (or grocery shop!) while listening to music or a podcast and still be hands free.

An indestructible phone case. For the mom who juggles multiple children and her phone at the same time and needs extra protection. I’ve loved Otterbox for years, and finally upgraded from the iPhone 6 (yes, five years old) to the 10. I have this case on mine and it has saved my phone from so many drops and toddler mishaps.

For the mom who’s trying to make her wardrobe more sustainable: the best cotton v-neck white tee, ethically made and $18, here. Search “the cotton v-neck.”

Stocking stuffer idea: these hair ties are my favorite and hold my ponytail for an entire workout better than anything else I’ve tried.

DAD

Wireless earbuds. Tokyo by Urbanista. Daniel loves these for the gym.

An adult sized scooter. Daniel took this one to work and uses it to scooter around downtown when he needs to get somewhere faster than walking.

Insulated Water Bottle. These are our favorite and ethically made.

Wireless charger or phone case. For the techie dad (or busy mom!).

Slim wallet with amazing reviews and under $10. Great stocking stuffer.

MY MOTHERHOOD GAME CHANGER

I’ve shared a million baby items and motherhood recommendations, but today I’m sharing the absolute one and only life changing item in my mothering toolbox. For a twist: you can’t buy it, register for it, or gift it, but I cannot mother well without it.

(Remember that scene from Legally Blonde, where Elle Woods has the epiphany in court and says, “Exercise gives you endorphins, endorphins make you happy, happy people just don’t shoot their husbands!”? It’s kind of like that.)

When Trey was nine months old I thought I was experiencing postpartum depression, so I marched myself to my doctor for a prescription. I knew I didn’t feel like myself and wanted to change that, and it seemed like a straightforward fix. My doctor said, “I get it. But also, how much are you working out?” My response: “Working out? (Thinking, “Do I look like I have the time to work out? I have an infant.”) “Not at all.” She said, “I will write you something, but first I want you to try working out every day for thirty minutes for one month, and then tell me how you feel.”

I agreed, but I actually thought, “This is bad practice.” Telling someone who is depressed to work out felt like telling someone to swim upstream with weights on. The mountain feels insurmountable. Even just finding and putting on shoes takes so much mental energy, let alone moving your body enough into a jog, and when would I even find the time? Also: I come from a thin-framed family, and it seemed like the marketing message I got for the primary reason for working out was for weight loss, and I couldn’t see beyond that for any other immediate benefits.

I have never been so wrong in my life.

I started my “prescription,” by running two miles, every single day. Maybe because it was orders from my doctor, or because I felt so desperate, but for whatever reason, I somehow stuck with it, stringing days together, then weeks. I slowly felt better and better, and at some point, the fog completely lifted. I was back. Everything felt easier again, and more lighthearted. I was my usual self. Little things that used to bother me didn’t as much anymore. I found joy again in motherhood. My email inbox didn’t seem so overwhelming. I became an absolute believer in endorphins. I found a way to fit a workout in every single day, and I was hooked.

Maybe perhaps the most radical idea about all of this is that it was an internal fix, not external, and my doctor knew this and trusted me enough to get there. I came out of it on my own, and I now had this tool in my back pocket should I ever need it again in the future.

And yes, I would need it again.

Fast forward three years to this past summer when we welcomed our next baby. After a traumatic pregnancy, I knew I was poised for another round of postpartum depression. I knew the stats, I went in wide-eyed, I knew it was more likely to go there this time, and maybe even sooner than before.

It did. The first week after Blaire’s birth I felt amazing. She was here, she was whole, she was healthy, we made it. Then something shifted and It was more intense than the time I experienced it before. But this time, I knew what to do. At 5 weeks postpartum I laced up my shoes and started running again, mostly because I was so desperate. We also joined a gym and I discovered a love for group exercise. I made it a priority and I found a way to sweat, every single day.

Miraculously, it worked, again.

I don’t know why I was so surprised, since it worked for me before. Maybe because my PPD felt more intense to me this time, or because when you’re in it, you can’t really imagine anything getting you out of it. Regardless, I was back to my normal self within a few weeks and life didn’t feel so hard. I could handle all the normal ups and downs of life and even the more intense emotional and hormonal shifts that come with the territory of a new baby.

The moral of the story is: if you are struggling in motherhood, whether you are two weeks postpartum or two years, make time in your day for exercise. Maybe group exercise isn’t your thing, maybe it’s swimming or spin (I actually despise both), but give me some running shoes and a good playlist, or a dance class with fun choreography and I am so in. Find what works for you, something, anything, and do it every single day. Get those endorphins however you want, it doesn’t matter the medium, it just matters that you get them. If you think you don’t have time, the truth is, you don’t have time not to. Even if you already fit in your pre-pregnancy jeans. My life is infinitely better in a multitude of facets from endorphins, and it’s pulled me out of PPD twice. I am an endorphins advocate, and I want everyone to know it.

Notes: this is just my personal story to share, I am not a doctor. I realize that no two cases of PPD are alike, and for more moderate to severe cases of PPD, exercise might be helpful but likely not the whole solution. There are many other tools for treating PPD including medication and therapy. Please please please reach out to your health care provider, partner, neighbor, or anyone if you are struggling. You are not alone and you deserve to feel better.

Shared in partnership with my local favorite: Brooks Running. I wear the Launch 6 and Adrenaline GTS 19 and love them both. Grateful to partner with this local company who has made such an impact on my mothering, mental health, and overall outlook on life.

S'MORES FAMILY COSTUMES

Leaking our costumes early this year! Wanted to share this idea in case you’re looking for an easy, affordable ($11 total!), one-hour, family Halloween costume from things you probably already have on hand.

Trey had his first s’more this summer when we were camping and he was hooked, which inspired this costume idea. His dentist asked him at his checkup in July, “Have you gone camping yet this summer?” And Trey said “Yes and actually I’ve been eating lots of s’mores!” What a thing to disclose to your dentist, ha! Thankfully no cavities yet. ;) Here’s how we did it:

The Hershey’s bar is felt, I bought one yard ($4), but you could get away with so much less, especially for a pint-sized person. We measured to his knees and cut one rectangle, there is a square opening at the neck. We glued two small fabric panels at the sides with stick on velcro to make it more “fitted,” but those aren’t necessary. I bought two packs of iron-on letters ($3 each) and attached those to the front.

Trey’s pants and top are pjs that he can get use out of long past Halloween. (He’s also wearing this hoodie because our Halloween night is really chilly here in the PNW.) Love these pjs! Like most non-flammable organic ones, they are meant to be worn fitted. I like to size up one size to get the most wear.

Blaire’s marshmallow is a zippered footie stuffed with baby blankets and she is also wearing this hat.

My graham cracker is a piece of cardboard we had, cut to a square, with added dots and a dash down the center in permanent marker. I used gorilla glue to attach one long strip of extra brown felt so that it would hang around the back of my neck. Add black pants and a black top and you’re set (Pro tip: if you can fit an adult XS you can sometimes fit a youth 14! I do this often with organic pjs because they are often much cheaper than the adult sizes.)

This is my favorite family costume we’ve done yet because this year we grew by one! Still hard to believe. So excited for Thursday.

Thank you primary for partnering with us on this post. A great economical way to stretch your Halloween costumes to get use year-round.