I am pleased to present you… my new biz!

I am super excited to announce that as of this week, I am officially a consultant for Rodan + Fields! I have been on the hunt for months for an opportunity to work from home at a job that I really cared about, and this was the perfect opportunity to for me and our family.

A very dear friend of mine has been selling it for many months and I've loved everything she's had to say about the products and her experience. After a lot of thought and chatter with my husband, I decided to jump in, and I'm so glad I did. I've already had a great amount of interest and can't wait to see where this little business takes me. I have had skin issues for as long as I can remember, and honestly have tried every product under the sun. There is nothing worse than waisting money on skin care products that don't work, not to mention the expensive makeup we all buy to cover up our skin issues. I love make up as much as the next girl, but I want to wear it as a compliment to my skin, not to cover up my skin.

This blog will by no means be totally about R+F, but I will mention it from time to time, and maybe even do a giveaway! A quick rundown for anyone who is interested. Rodan + Fields is a product created by the same awesome woman that created Proactiv (billion dollar brand). The products are all clinically proven to work, and are the strongest products you can get to manage your skin without a prescription, while still being safe. There are a variety of skin care regimens for everything from sensitive skin or acne issues to aging and fine lines or sun damage and discoloration. There are also exfoliants, microdermabrasion, and sunless tanner. The list goes on!

What really sold me on working for this brand is the guarantee. All of the products come with 60 day empty bottle money back guarantee. Don't like your results? Send the bottles back, even if they're empty, and get a 100% refund. No brainer if you ask me!

Anyway, I am super excited to spread the word on these awesome products while contributing to our family and staying home with my baby girl at the same time. Life is good!

Two of my favorite bloggers Jenni and Natasha have reviewed these products before. Click their names to see what they thought of the R+F products.

Shoot me an email if you have any questions AT ALL about the products or selling them, to see before and after photos, or to find out how you can get a discount on all your orders, free shipping, and a free gift from moi.

brittanygsquared@gmail.com

some news and a guest post

I wanted to pop in with a quick post while I have a free few minutes that my brain isn't totally fried. It's so funny to me how much having a baby changes everything. I used to absolutely hate sitting in silence. Unless the TV or music was on, I felt like it was too quiet. Now I just sit and enjoy the calm.

Anyhow, our weekend was good. Nothing fancy, but aren't those sometimes the best kind?

One exciting thing did happen that I cannot wait to share with you guys! A little something I've been mulling over for a while now, and I look forward to writing more about it later this week or early next.

Also, I did a guest post for Kaity last week that I forgot to mention. You can read all of my advice for the end of pregnancy and beginning of the postpartum stage here.

That's all for now. More to come!

this and that

You guys. I feel like I've been living under a rock for the last week, but I didn't hate it. I took a little break from blogging, tried to stay off social media, and give my bran a break. I am well aware that what we consume on tv and the internet has a way of creeping into our "real" lives, and I just needed to purge myself of all that for a few days. It felt good, but I'm glad to be back. I'm just one of those people who loves media, and I probably always will be. #sorrynotsorry. Anyway, here's what's been up in my hood.

I read a book!

It has been so long since a read an actual book (paper, not on my phone), and it was as glorious as I remember it being. I used to read literally dozens of books a year when I was a kid, and even in college, but lately the only thing I've had time for is baby books and magazines. I chose "All We Ever Wanted Was Everything", and I'd definitely recommend it. I didn't love the ending, but I usually don't love the endings of books, mostly because I don't want them to end at all. This strikes me as something that would make a good movie, and as often as books are becoming films these days, I wouldn't be surprised if it happens. That reminds me of this list, and another one here, that I pinned a while back. Must refer back to it. I will say, I tend to get so into books that I neglect other things I should be doing, so I won't start another one until maybe next week. I did join Good Reads to help me keep up with this little habit. I think this site is awesome and I'm excited to start using it (my profile here).

Hibernation Issues

I love being at home, but I started losing my mind a little on Wednesday, and it made me realize I hadn't left the house since Saturday! Not normal, especially for me. Not normal at all. I absolutely need to make sure to schedule a few errands a week for myself because I was really starting to go stir crazy. To remedy that little issue Norah and I went to the library and grocery store yesterday. The grocery is pretty much the grocery, but the library was pretty fun. I actually got a library card, and look forward to many trips there with N in the future. There were a surprising amount of good series on DVD you can rent, so that's added to my list of things to do when those times of year roll around when all the good shows are on hiatus.

Sleep? What's sleep?

The real reason I was probably going crazy this week is the "4 month sleep regression". At this point I don't know if it's that, or just all around crappy sleeping on our little person's part. But whatever it is, it sucks. Big time. I read something once about a parent wanted to tape a pacifier to their kids mouth (not actually wanting to, but figuratively), and I didn't get it. Lets just say, now I get it. I haven't had a full nights sleep since July (JULY!), and it's only getting worse. I have just resigned that I will never ever be well rested again, so if it ever does happen, it will be a pleasant surprise. Every parent whose kid sleeps through the night by now, I am so, so jealous of you. One can dream. She's lucky she's cute.

Bargains and Buyouts

My trip to Bargains and Buyouts was a success! I only had about an hour to spend there, but I plan to go back when I can look through every single item in more detail. I did snag two console tables. One is in our dining space and one in the laundry/craft room. I would compare them to our entry way table as far as size and quality goes, and I got them both combined for LESS that I paid for the one entry table. I forget the retail price, but they were marked down to $69 a piece, and he gave me both for $100. They match our dining furniture perfectly, but I will probably paint the craft room one a fun color when the weather warms up.

BFF Time

Last Saturday I got together for dinner and hang out time with my best friends. As usual, it was a blast. I was bummed to have to leave the party early, but as mentioned, I need all the sleep I can get. We hadn't all been together since July, so it was great to catch up with them and see what everyone's been up to. We played Cards Against Humanity, had a yummy dinner, and chatted about everything under the sun. Love my friends!

And that's all she wrote. Time to meal plan. How is it possible I grocery shopped yesterday yet have no idea what I could make for dinner tonight? The never-ending struggle. TGIF!

linking up today with Christina.

thursday thoughts

Today there is no way I'm busting out anything but a totally random post. I feel like I have nothing to say these days, yet a ton of things I could write about. I'll tell you one thing that did not change in 2015, and that's my brain being totally scrambled. Here we go.

Today the in laws are coming over to watch the baby for a few hours. I have a dentist appointment, and am going to drive all the way across town to check out Bargains and Buyouts. We are in desperate need of some type of cabinet or hutch for our dining area, and I need some storage for all the junk that used to be in my office, now that that office is now a guest room. I can get just about anywhere in Cincinnati in 30 minutes, except across town, which is more like a 45 min drive. I live about as far east in the 513 as you can get, and this place is about far west as you can get, so I hope it's worth the drive. Honestly, even if I don't find anything, it will be good to get out and about. Being trapped inside with no one to talk to except a 4 month old can be rough.

I meal planned this week and it's been fabulous. Monday we had teriyaki chicken with rice and vegetables. Tuesday was slow cooker sausage tortellini. Yesterday was slow cooker chicken tortilla soup. The rest of the week will include copy cat KFC mashed potato bowls, one pot baked ziti, and kielbasa and potatoes. These meals were all plenty to have leftovers for lunch or even a second dinner, and we have dinner plans with friends Friday, so I expect these meals to last us even into next week. It has made my life so much easier knowing what we're having for dinner ahead of time, especially when the recipes involve the crock pot. I am absolutely going to keep this up in the coming weeks. All recipes found here.

As mentioned above it is much harder than expected being home with a baby all day. Not hard in the sense that I don't want to do it, or it takes too much effort, but hard in the sense that it is kind of lonely. I am an extremely social person and not having coworkers to talk to really makes the day seem a lot longer. I find myself texting or on social media a lot, which I don't love. I don't want Norah to get used to seeing me with my nose it my phone, so I really look forward to it getting warmer out. Bring on the play dates, park visits, and neighborhood walks. One can only play so many games of peek-a-boo.

That being said… I'm loving that we're no longer in the "survival mode" of having a baby. Norah can (sort of) play, interact, and show that she likes certain things and doesn't like others. I know as she gets older this will only get better and better. I'm sure there will be days when it seems like time is racing by, but for now, I am loving each new things she learns to do.

Annnd that's all for now. This week has flown by, happy almost Friday!

linking up with home of malones

Back to Business

Our new year was pretty low key. We celebrated by visiting our next door neighbors, then coming home to watch the ball drop on the couch. Our final holiday gift to ourselves was a dinner date out to Cooper's Hawk this Saturday. It was our first time being out with just the two of us since Norah was born, and we had a great time. I could have done without the headache yesterday buuuut it was worth it.

I'm not really a resolution person, but I know that I want to use this first Monday of the new year as a starting point. It has been over a year since I was able to focus on my whole self and whole family. For the past 13 or so months the only thing I've been able to focus on was pregnancy and having a newborn. While I know taking care of an infant will still take up a lot of space in my brain, I want to try and focus on other things that need attention to make everyone in this house happy and healthy. Eating less junky foods. Being more organized. Watching where we spend our money. Being intentional with our time. All that kind of thing. And today is the day to start!

We will be meal planning, cleaning, prepping, making lists, and of course playing with lots of toys. I also have three doctor appointments this week. I wanted to knock out all of my annual and semi annual well visits at once to start the year off right (and just to get them out of the way).

Here's to 2015!

Norah's 4 Month Update

Oh Norah. This month was a doozy! You really came into yourself more and I can tell you are going to have one heck of a personality. You get cuter by the day and I really cannot imagine how you will look as a toddler or "big kid", but I can't wait to find out. We had plenty of fun getting ready for Christmas and overall this was a great month for you. I think I can count on one hand the number of times you cried this month! You are truly a happy baby and we love you more every day.

Weight: 13 pounds 4 ounces (29th percentile)

Height: 25.5 inches (89th percentile!!)

Nicknames: Pea, Peanut, Bug

Eating: You're eating 6 times a day, about 5 ounces per feeding.

Sleeping: At the beginning of the month we'd been following a Mom's on Call schedule for your age and it worked wonderfully, with a few tweaks to accommodate some of your needs a little better. That all went to hell on Christmas and since then we've just been trying to establish a new normal. I think this is due to the hectic nature of the holidays, you dropping a nap, eating more per feeding, things like that. I am looking forward to you hopefully taking fewer naps that last a little longer, but no major complaints. You've been waking up more and more throughout the night just wanting your pacifier, so this coming month we will probably try to ditch that thing all together

Diapers: We've moved on to size 2 and still like Target and Pampers brands.

Clothing: Most 3 months things still fit, but you can also pull off the 6 month clothing. It seems like every day I have to pack up another item because it's too small. Some days I swear you grow an inch overnight.

Social: You love when anyone talks to you or tries to make you laugh. We still get comments on how alert you are for such a tiny baby. You are definitely a Momma's Girl and really do not appreciate it sometimes when other people try to hold you. Occasionally you scream bloody murder then get silent instantly when I take you from whoever has you. I'm sure thats normal for your age and I don't mind one bit :) You also seem to be startled/upset by people who are very loud or in your face too closely.  

Likes: Having songs sung to you, the TV, celling fans, overhead lights, Sophie the Giraffe, putting anything you can get your hands on in your mouth.

Dislikes: Still not much in this category. Being overestimated, hungry, or overtired is basically all that gets you really upset.

Firsts: Christmas! Your first fever/cold :( Your father swears you're getting a tooth, but I can't see or feel it.

Mama: Can tell you are changing and you can really do more each day.

Daddy: Your dad was home a lot this month because of the holidays and you two got to spend a lot of quality time together.

What we're looking forward to: All the awesome things we'll get to do this Spring when it's not so cold out. As you become more alert, stay awake for longer periods, and seem more interested in what's going on around you, I know we will get to do more and more things together. I think even before it warms up we will try a story time at the library.

Favorites from this month: