new fav lip color!!!

i have recently become really interested in finding the perfect lip color. one that goes with almost every outfit, isn't fussy (as in i can apply it without a mirror), has somewhat of a lasting color, etc. while i wandered through sephora last week, i browsed the nars section, bare minerals section, stila section, urban decay section... and, well, you get the idea! ;)

i tried several different lipsticks & glosses in a variety of colors and just wasn't finding one that i loved (which was annoying since i was in a store that literally only sells makeup!)! finally, i caved and asked one of the girls working to help me find "my shade" and point me in the right direction. she was so excited that i asked and went on a mission to find me the perfect lip product! she found me a couple min later and had literally like 6 swipes on her hand of different products and asked if i liked any of them. and there was one that was my dream shade, so she brought me over to the tarte section and had me try it on. it seriously was like putting butter on my lips and the color was exxxxxactly what i wanted! she wins!

i have heard of tarte before, but in case you aren't familiar with them... they are an all-natural cosmetic company and every product is infused with natural oils and vitamins. kind of cool, huh? i personally wouldn't switch to all tarte-only makeup for that reason, but if all of their products are as amaze as this lip stain, i might be in trouble!!! the shade that i went with is 'elite' and it is the perfect pink & coral goodness!

check out tarte if you haven't, but if you have... i'm dying to know what other products of theirs are as wonderful as their lipsurgence lip tint!!

ps- i didn't filter the pics of me so that you can see the real lip color! also, that amazing arrow necklace is stella & dot, of course! ;)

things i'm lovin!

i love love love reading about different products, tv shows, etc that people really like because i feel like it's a real deal recommendation for me to try it! especially if there's been something i've wanted to try or a new website i've never heard about! anyways, it's been awhile since i've posted a 'things i'm lovin' post, so i figured it was time to clue y'all in on what's keepin me a happy camper these days!

if you're an online shopper like i am, you're probably familiar with zulily or joss & main, etc. well, although i love browsing these websites and seeing if there's a good deal, i don't find as many goodies on those sites as i would hope. especially since i'm not always on top of my game and will miss the really good deals (because they're good deals and everyone else apparently thinks so, too!)! with that said, my girl jen recently told me about jane.com and it's seriously my new jam! jane is a bunch of individual shops (mostly etsy) that will list their products (lots of jewelry, hand made kiddo stuff, home stuff, etc) and it's typically priced really well. it's seriously worth checking out! they have new items each day and there's a limited number, so ya gotta act quick! i just bought these darling valentine's buntings from jane because my non-crafty self just knew i wouldn't get around to making one before our vacay!

speaking of valentine's... tis the season for valentine's candy taking over my life! in the name of all things sugary, sweet tarts are my go-to these days! it must be the baby because i'm not typically a sugary candy type of girl (now, chocolate is a diff story...)! target just got their v-day candy out, so it's possible these will be a staple in our house for the next couple weeks!

i stumbled upon a couple blogs lately that have 100% made their way into my regular blogroll! i love finding new blogs that are informative or just plain fun to read!

angela lanter at hello gorgeous is my new go-to beauty blogger! she's married to matt lanter (an actor), so she's randomly going to red carpet events & such, but she's entertaining to read & watch (lots of videos on there lately) and she consistently introduces me to new products that i've never even heard of. love that!

my other new fav is katie bower at bower power. if you are a fan of young house love, you will 100% be a fan of katie, but for some reason, it took me years to give her a try. definitely regretting that now! katie posts about mom life & baby stuff, but mostly home stuff (she & her cute hub reno their house). i feel like we would totally be friends in real life, so that makes it fun to read and she has some seriously good ideas, too!

and, last but certainly not least... you may remember me posting about my dramatic mascara problem a few months ago! if not, you can read about it here & here. well, i am here to report that after about 5 months of using the maybelline colossal mascara, i can hardly remember how much i loved my lancome goodness! crazy, huh? and at about 1/5 of the cost, my wallet is in full agreement that it was a good move! since it's been several months, i feel like i can legitimately recommend this mascara to others now! the wand is thick like lancome or diorshow and it goes on great! it's definitely love at this point!

are you guys gonna check out any of things?? i strongly suggest you do... not that i'm biased or anything! ;)

my sweet, funny, sometimes rotten little boy!

having a two year old is, in my opinion, one of the best things ever! he is 100% turning into a little man which kind of breaks this mama's heart, but it's so fun to see him learn & grow, that i don't stay too depressed for long! lately, holden has been doing some seriously hilarious things and i just so badly want to put these months and years in a box that i can pull out and relive any time i want! yes, i'm aware that sounds really odd... but they really do "grow up so fast".

my sweet boy is still a cuddler like no other. every morning, i get him up (he's still in a crib & will stay in a crib until when the baby comes, as far as i can tell), change his dipe and we have almost the same conversation every. single. day. while i'm changing him.

"mama sit."
"oh, you wanna sit with mama?"
"yeah. on da couch."
"ok, you can sit with mama on the couch."
"i watch show. i wanna watch do-wa (dora)."
"ok, we can watch some dora."
"and we cuddle."
"yes, baby, we will cuddle."

it's heart-melting and tender in every possible way! he's also become slightly bossy these days telling me where to sit, what to eat, what to play with (if we are playing together), etc. it must be a pretty common toddler-ism because my niece did the same thing a year ago. it's pretty funny!

one thing that is blowing my mind lately is how much stinkin stuff this kid remembers! he wakes up from his nap talking about something we saw 3 days ago or will tell me who and what he played with at church, whether or not they went to the play place and one time he told me he cried during class at church (which never happens and then the teacher confirmed that it happened that day). he has also been telling me how to get places while we're driving. if i tell him we are going to grandma's house, he tells me where to turn & such. and he constantly points out places we go regularly (grandpa's car lot, target, chick fil a, etc).

"yesh" is holden's fav response to things these days. "do you want a snack?" "yesh". grant & i are getting a big kick out of that!

at this point, i doubt that holden has any clue what the baby in mama's belly is going to mean for him or what i am even talking about when i say that. i will ask him where the baby is and he will lift up my shirt and find my belly and has even kissed my belly (with prompting), but his world is gonna be flipped upside down and he has no idea! we are on the hunt for names for baby 2.0 and the other day, i asked holden to say one of the names and my heart melted into a puddle when he said it. it was seriously the cutest thing ever!

the other night, while driving, grant asked holden "are you a baby?" and holden sharply responded with "no, i'm a boy!"! what? how does he even know that??? and why would he break my heart like that?

another thing that h says regularly is 'hey!' with major umph. as in, every time he says it, I can't help but start singing 'I don't think you're right for him... hey... look at what might have been' (the lumineers song)! i totally crack myself up. whatever! but recently, holden will say 'hey' if we're tickling him, if he's pouting and we look at him, pretty much anytime it'd be funny to say it, he says it. and it's always in the right context! something that he's been saying that isn't quite right is when he says 'because' or 'because why?'. "holden, why aren't you going night night?" "because why?"... it's amusing, to say the least!

it's possible that my urge to jot these things down is stemmed from the reality that my baby isn't going to be the only baby in a few short months. we are beyond overjoyed to be adding to our family, but part of me feels like i will never have enough one on one time with my sweet holden crew! mamas of two, three, four... please tell me this is normal!

baby #2 wish list!

as we slowly prepare & get our ducks in a row for the arrival of our new babe in july, i can't help but think about several things that i didn't have or need with holden that i would really, really like and appreciate having as we move to a fam of 4! we moved from florida to indiana when holden was 6 wks old, so i didn't get the enjoyment of putting together a nursery for him prior to his arrival. well, as the cards have played out, we will most likely be moving either when i am a super pregnant this time or with a newborn yet again. imagine my excitement... regardless of the chaos that i'm sure the next 6 months will hold, i am choosing to focus on a) the amazing gift of life that trumps the chaos, and b) all the new things i totally would love to splurge on for this baby! hey, if i'm gonna be homeless (not really... slight exaggeration), i might as well look cute, right? :)

with holden, we had this chicco travel system and i loved it 100%! we plan to use the same carseat this go-round, but will probably get rid of the stroller. a double stroller is something that just makes sense for us since it isn't super uncommon that holden would rather ride in the stroller than walk (thank god! makes things so much easier usually!). the main stroller i have my eye on (based on a handful of good friends' recommendations) is the city mini double.

isn't she purrty?? the functions of this stroller far outweigh the brand name aspect, at least i think so. the stroller can collapse so easily & folds virtually flat (not taking up a lot of room in the trunk), is lightweight, has a huge sunshade, is a side-by-side but can still fit through all doorways & the list goes on!

another option is the contours option lt double. i haven't read as much about this stroller, but the seats can switch around to all different varieties making it a stroller that would undoubtedly grow with us as a family. i chose the pic that shows it with a chicco carseat since that's what we have, but where the infant seat is, there's typically an identical seat as the front one that can go forwards, backwards, etc. i love how big that basket is (which is my main hesitation w the city mini).

ok, moving on! something that i didn't really realize existed until long after i had holden is the ever-so-wonderful rock & play! i think the main purpose is to kind of act like a basinet in mom & dad's room until it's time to move the babe to their own room. not by choice, but holden slept in my arms for the first 8 weeks (he hated his pack n play that we intended to use as his crib in florida... then we moved in with my in-laws and there was a bunch of family home visiting for christmas, so there wasn't an extra room for holden... then we went to minnesota for christmas and there wasn't an extra room there either). long story short, i didn't know of a good option, was running on little sleep anyways and he only slept while held, so i didn't put much thought into it. well... when we got home from minnesota, h was 8 weeks old and we set up a spare room at my in-laws and he was moved to his own bed. and it was glorious!!!! with this next baby, i don't have a set plan of where i want he/she to sleep and for how long, but a rock & play is a no brainer at least for the first few weeks while they're in our room!

as many families do, when the second baby comes along, they make the move from a small suv or car to a mini van. although i fought this process for awhile (really pushing for a tahoe or explorer), a mini van really has become something i'm pretty excited about! the sliding doors, extra room, lift tailgate... ah, it makes me just so happy thinking about it! and that's not even to mention the convenience if it's pouring rain and just throwing the kids in the van and climbing in with them! we haven't gone and test driven any vans yet, but based on exterior esthetics, i'm leaning towards a honda odyssey or a toyota sienna in maybe black, navy or gray. we will 100% do something used (my FIL has a used car dealership afterall!), so it'll just depend on what is available when we want to buy (probably this spring-no later than may, hopefully)!

the last thing on my "must have" list for baby 2.0 is a new diaper bag. with holden, i had this timi & leslie bag (above) that i liked for the most part, but it was literally falling apart by the time i stopped using it (h was around 9 mos-a year). it certainly wasn't the most expensive bag i've ever bought (it was right around $150), but it definitely didn't hold up like i hoped a $150 diaper bag would. so, this time, i feel i'm a little less 'my diaper bag has to be chic and not look like a diaper bag whatsoever' and more 'i'd like a bag that doesn't scream diaper bag, but is sturdy, functional and not gonna break the bank'. so, here's a few options that i've found without searching too hard.

this sausalito bag is from pottery barn! who knew they made fabulous diaper bags?? it's definitely bigger than it appears (almost 22 inches in length) and the bottom leather portion zips open to store the changing pad, diapers, etc. at $130 on sale, it's not a farfetched option, but my hesitation is that i haven't seen it in person and would have to drive to indianapolis to return it if i hated it.

this skip hop chelsea bag reminds me of the type of bag i was looking for when i was pregnant with holden, but is less expensive and looks waaaay more functional. it's right at $100 on amazon, which i think is a great price point! with all those exterior pockets, it kind of reminds me of the super popular 31 bag, but is way more fashionable AND has a top zipper so things won't constantly fall out.

so, i think that about sums up my must-haves for baby t 2.0! please, please, please leave suggestions or advice of things i need/ don't need, if you've tried/ have any of these things and any other things i should check out!!!