Crew's First Snow Day:

 Yesterday's weather was beautiful, sunny, and no wind and though it was still freezing and we didn't stay out very long we still went ahead and bundled Crew up to take him out into the snow for the first time! Big sis of course thought it was the best thing ever and wanted to show Crew all the snow and all the fun things you can do! 

I'll get to all the fun we had during the Blizzard later but for now wanted to share pictures of this scrumptious little dude on his very first snow day! 

Enjoy!

Our Newport Home: Winter Edition:

Being one who absolutely loves interior design and decorating our home I have always found that in January I get stumped on what to do. I have always lived where there hasn't ever been a "true winter" and it is usually starting to warm up around this time so I have never bothered with "winter" decor. Especially since I have always waited until New Years Day to take down our Christmas stuff. So what do you do once Christmas is taken down? January is too early to put out Valentine's decor and I'm not ready to put out my "every day" decor because mine is very Spring/Summer/Nautical and well it is still Winter. So I have always found January to be very plain when it comes to decorating and honestly it has never really been a big deal 

Until now... 

And let me rephrase... It is still not a big deal but since we live somewhere right now where there is snow on the ground as we speak and we will be getting our very first Blizzard tonight/tomorrow... Yes BLIZZARD, I have found that I have wanted to keep a Winter look to our home. 

You will see that I kept a few pieces from our Christmas Decor out because the items didn't scream "Christmas" to me, and felt they tied in perfectly with what I had in mind...Winter Pinecones! 

 I made my winter pinecones by first covering them with Mod Podge, then sprinkling Epsom Salt over them. I let them dry fully before shaking the excess Epsom Salt off that didn't stick. It gives them the perfect snow covered look. For the garland part, I put hot glue on the bottom of the pinecones, glued a strip of ribbon to them, then tied each one to the long piece of ribbon. This gives you the option to move the pinecones to the spot you want when they are hanging, as well as being able to take them off to store individually when Winter is over!  

So if you are like me and can't seem to figure out how to decorate in January here is what I came up with... I am in love with this Winter look in our home and I hope it gives you a little Winter decorating inspiration! 

Living Room:

*As you can see, I kept the Winter Ski pillow out but put the Santa pillows away!

Entrance/Hallway:

 *I also free handed the chalkboard design!

Dining Room:

Master Bedroom:

*I keep our Winter bedding on until March 

And now we will be hunkering down and prepare for what will be a Historic Blizzard...

Wine, Cheese, Chocolate, Champagne, Fire Wood... I think we are all set! ;)

Happy Monday, Happy Decorating, & Stay Warm! 

Vermont:

We headed up to Vermont over the weekend to spend some time with some of our really good friends Bob and Chelsea who we haven't seen since our wedding. We had decided not to rush to get on the road Friday after Steven got home from work and instead would wake up first thing Saturday morning and make a fun road trip out of it. Well good thing we didn't leave Friday as my system had other plans... Something did not agree with me (typical) and I was extremely sick all afternoon and evening. I was praying that we wouldn't have to cancel our plans. Thankfully I woke up Saturday morning feeling like myself again, so I finished packing our bag, getting everyone ready, and we headed out the door! 

The drive from Newport to Vermont is maybe 4 hours and it was beautiful! 

Our first stop was to Fresh Tracks Farm Vineyard and Winery in Montpelier, VT. 

Steven and I love a good wine and are always up for a little wine tasting, so when he found this little place, we knew we had to make a stop. A wood burning stove, a snow covered vineyard, wine being poured, and a fabulous Vermont Cheddar Cheese... 

Sounds like the perfect combination to me!

As if the wine and cheese wasn't enough, we had a syrup tasting as well... Yes, syrup!

They make their very own right there on the property as well and it was delish. 

And yes we bought some of that too!

It was the perfect start to our little getaway!  

After the winery we grabbed lunch at Prohibition Pig in Waterbury, VT. Some friends of ours had given us the recommendation (thank you again Todd and Julia) and it was confirmed by the locals at the winery that it in fact was the perfect lunch spot! 

The food and drinks were amazing (I mean do you see that Bloody Mary), but any place is perfect when you have these two little faces starring at you! 

The last stop we made before getting to Bob and Chelsea's was to the Ben & Jerry's Factory. Ben & Jerry's was founded in Vermont so it was kind of a must-do. Though I am glad we made the stop so we could say we have been there, it was a little disappointing. We had no plans of taking the tour but were told they do ice cream tastings... Yeah, no. All we saw was a huge line wrapping around the factory. Needless to say, after walking in we wanted to walk out. We at least meandered through the huge crowd and headed to the Gift Shop where a freezer of ice cream was located, grabbed a tiny pint, the cutest little hand warmer ice cream coozie and wooden spoon, and an ice cream serving set for Charli's red kitchen, made our purchase and got out of there as fast as we could! 

Oh well, at least the ice cream was still good! ;)

We arrived to Bob and Chelsea's, introduced the kids (because we haven't seen them in so long this was their first time meeting the both of them), did some catching up, and headed to dinner! After the kids were down, we spent the rest of the night drinking, playing card games, and laughing way too hard! 

We woke up the next morning and just enjoyed relaxing by the wood burning stove and enjoyed a perfect Sunday Brunch at home that included Bloody Mary's and gluten free pancakes, before doing a little sightseeing! 

 Our afternoon consisted of spending as much time with our friends and checking out what Burlington had to offer! 

 We walked around the waterfront and then headed to Church street in Downtown Burlington!

Though it was a three day weekend, we wanted to get back home so we could enjoy a relaxing day having daddy home with us. So we said our goodbyes and got on the road. Steven and Bob had been tracking a winter storm that was headed our way so we wanted to get on the road early enough to hopefully miss it. As we were driving and entering into New Hampshire, we knew we didn't miss the storm, but in fact would be driving right through it. There were "Freezing Rain Advisories" posted everywhere on the interstate and I can't tell you how many salt trucks we saw (seriously all new for this Florida girl). I am so thankful that Steven has lived in the New England area before so has dealt with these types of Winter conditions while driving. What was supposed to be a 4 hour drive home turned into a 6 hour drive due to having to go 25mph the entire state of New Hampshire. 

We not only saw about a dozen rolled vehicles and accidents (into ditches, into snow banks, into trees, and even over a railing), and a truck that was right in front of us who hit black ice and swerved all over the two lanes of the interstate and I 100% foresaw it going over the railing of an overpass, but we too also had a little scare of our own... Charli and Crew slept almost the whole drive (seriously we have two amazing little travelers) but at one point Crew was getting fussy and nothing was working so Steven pulled off on the first exit he saw. We were going maybe 5mph as we pulled into a parking lot and hit nothing but thick ice. I'm pretty sure my knuckles were white and I was holding my breath. When our car finally came to a stop (after sliding for what seemed like 100ft) Steven and I looked at each other and took a deep breath.  Steven put the car in reverse to see what he could do and slowly started to work his way out of the parking lot, but the ice was so bad that as soon as he was in drive the car would start sliding and would not steer at all. Insert my white knuckles, me holding my breath again, and thinking we were all going to die! I am so thankful that nothing happened to us and that after a while of sliding around (and thankfully not hitting anything) we finally go out of the parking lot, and back on the road.

It was a very scary moment for me as I have never experienced anything like that but again I am thankful for the calmest most relaxed husband in situations like that. 

He kept us safe and got us home! 

We really had such a great time with our friends and are looking forward to them coming and visiting us in Newport! I'm also hoping we can make another trip to Vermont before we move to do some snowboarding! 

Thank you again Bob and Chelsea for a wonderful visit! 

Love you guys! 

Charli Adele: 2.5 Year Update:

Happy Half Birthday to the sweetest, silliest, spunkiest, smartest, most creative, independent, little girl I know! 

How are we this close to having a 3 year old on our hands? Charli has grown up so much since she turned TWO. I mean seriously, Steven and I say all the time that we don't even feel like we have a toddler anymore but rather a full blown kid. She can hold a conversation with us, which you can find some things she says Here. She is the best big sister to Crew, she loves to help cook and clean, she loves singing and dancing, and she has been on a Mickey Mouse Clubhouse kick for about 4 months and loves Minnie Mouse. Though Charli can frustrate me like no other (she is way too much like her mommy) I couldn't imagine our life without her and I love her something fierce! She has the biggest heart and is the biggest love (when she wants to be ;)). My favorite part of our day is after Daddy reads to her and tucks her in to bed while I am putting Crew down, I go in and climb into bed with her to give her a goodnight kiss and we just talk... "Mama, you can just stay here and sleep next to me" she exclaims! Oh baby girl my heart explodes for you! 

Not only is Charli super intelligent but she is the size of most 3 or 4 year olds and Steven and I find ourselves reminding each other all the time that "she is only two" when she is acting up or not listening. I feel that ever since Crew was born we expect a lot more from Charli. I honestly think it is a good thing and a bad thing. Charli definitely has her moments but she really is such a good little girl and has become a really good listener lately. We have started counting to three as a "warning" sign to her that if she doesn't listen and we get to three she will get a timeout or discipline. We have found this to work extremely well with her. If she does get a timeout she has to say her ABC's and count to 10 before leaving the corner. This has helped with a lot of her tantrums and she understands consequences for her actions. 

We love you baby girl and still can't believe you are 2 1/2!! 

Charli's Stats:

*Height: 40inches

*Weight: 38lbs

*Clothes: Between 2T and 4T

*Potty: Charli was fully Potty Trained 3 months after turning two. The only accidents she has had since were actually right after moving here (which I 100% expected). She woke up one morning with a wet pull up but nothing since! She sleeps in her panties during nap and literally asks me if she can wear her panties to bed. I think I will finally let her soon. She is also SO independent that she now takes herself to the bathroom when she has to go (sometimes without me even knowing, if I am nursing or busy with Crew) because she wants to do it all by herself. I have literally walked by her bathroom and have seen her sitting on the potty and she in fact peed and pooped! Seriously we lucked out in that department! 

*Sleep: Bedtime is still 7pm but she usually doesn't actually fall asleep until 7:30pm and wakes up around 7am. Charli also sleep talks like crazy... Like will have a full blown tantrum in her sleep... Then low and behold Steven said she got it from me. I didn't realize it but I guess I talk in my sleep almost every night (my mom also confirmed this while she was here over Christmas, that I did the same thing when I was little). Charli still takes one nap, around 1pm. Some days she takes really great 2 hour naps, other days she doesn't nap at all, but she has to stay in her room until I come and get her. So no matter what she has her own quiet/alone time! 

*Food: Charli isn't that big of a pickier eater. She loves cereal (Chex) or granola and yogurt for breakfast; oranges, goldfish, or applesauce for a snack; turkey, cheese, grapes, apples, pickle, and pretzels for lunch; and then she eats what we eat for dinner. We don't cater to her, she gets what I make! She loves Taco Tuesday! And girlfriend loves her sweets/desserts (just like her Mama!). Some random things she loves is lobster, crab, edamame, and she loved seaweed salad at dinner the other night. 

*Social: Charli started Preschool exactly one month after turning two but her first "year" of school Ended a short 3 months later due to our move. Unfortunately RI state law is that they have to be 3 years old to start Preschool here so she won't be attending school here. She loved her Little School so much and we still talk about her teachers and friends to this day! Since we don't have School here, we rely on spending time with friends, having playdates, and going to the library's story time as much as we can! When we go over to a friends house for a "playdate" she will exclaim "Mama, we on a playdate" haha! She is great with her friends and their baby brothers and sisters. We have never had an issue with her pushing others or biting others, but Charli is very head strong and can seem a little aggressive at times (she definitely has an alpha/leader personality). She will still act a little shy in new and unfamiliar settings but warms up quite quickly.

*Other: She still loves bath time and knows her daily routine very well, her other favorite part of the day is "nack time" (snack time)... Girlfriend would snack all day if I let her (although I have ALWAYS been a snacker) so I can't blame her! She is very curious of sports... She loves watching football and actually asks us quite often if she can play soccer and basketball (music to my ears, as I started playing soccer at the age of 3 and played competitively until I was 19 and played basketball competitively from the age of like 7 to 14). Steven and I both can't wait to introduce her to sports! I can't even keep track of things she knows these days because she is seriously so smart. She knows all of her ABC's, can count to 20, is learning her days of the week (and knows them pretty well too), knows her birthday, my birthday (probably because it is also in July) ;), knows all of our full names, and has an incredible memory. She can remember things, including small details from months ago! 

Happy Half Birthday Charli Adele! 

Mommy, Daddy & Crew love you!