4 Reasons You Should Add Crown & Ivy to Your Wardrobe

I admit I'm a shopaholic, there's no denying that fact... so today I need to share I'm absolutely head-over-heels with some new pieces I added to my wardrobe. I mean, when you find jeans you just LOVE and tops that are the perfect mixture of cute and cozy, that's when everyone you know needs to hear about it, am I right? If you agree... get ready to fall in love with Crown & Ivy as well! Here's 4 reasons you should add this amazing brand and their cute clothes to your wardrobe today!

4 Reasons You Should Add Crown & Ivy to Your Wardrobe

1. Sisterhood of The Traveling Pants style jeans - That's right, their jeans are unbelievably comfortable and have just enough stretch that my new mama bod looks great in them still. They offer just enough structure that I don't feel like I'm rocking jeggings but they are comfortable enough that I don't even notice I'm wearing pants, the perfect combination for a cozy winter day - in my opinion!

2. Patterns and Design - From open flare backs with fun dancing elephants, like my new top, to playful reindeer on a sweater, Crown & Ivy has a little bit of everything and it's all so cute. I walked around the Crown & Ivy section of Belk and went on a bit of a shopping spree this past week. After having a baby I need some new winter items and fell in love with everything C&I had out on the shelves! Whether you want to add a cute new vest or a funky new scarf, Crown & Ivy likely has the perfect new quirky addition you are looking for and that's why I love this brand so much!

3. Sold at Belk - When I go shopping, I like to go where I'm treated well and the service is attentive and that's exactly what happens every time I step into a Belk. I love that I was able to find the items I needed and the lady that helped check me out was super helpful and friendly and even made sure to apply hand sanitizer before handing me my receipt, she said she was doing it "just in case" but wanted to make sure"to keep my baby healthy" by not exposing her to any extra germs. It may not seem like a major detail, but customer service like that matters BIG TIME to me. I like that at Belk I feel like the employees actually care about the customers, it says a lot about the company!

4. Dressy or Casual -  Crown & Ivy has you covered! This brand offers a little bit of everything, as I mentioned. I loved being able to grab something a bit more sophisticated and sassy like the open back sweater and then I was able to grab a fun and funky, cozy long sleeve tee with a giant pineapple on the back! It's this playful nature to the Crown & Ivy line that keeps drawing me in, yet I'm still able to dress like an adult. 

With all of that said, I think it's easy to see why I'm so in love with the Crown & Ivy line at Belk. Interested in seeing all the other adorableness in the winter 2016 collection? Click here and tell me your favorite item from the line, I'd love to hear all about it... or take a second and stop in to your local Belk sometime soon!

Keeping My Peanut Healthy & Safe with Aralyte

Thanks to Aralyte for sponsoring today's post, regardless all opinions expressed below are my own.

Interesting fact: Food allergies run rampant in my family. My husband has a wheat allergy and others in his family share the same allergy, some of our family are allergic to soy, some to bananas, and my mother-in-law is scary allergic to peanuts. With all of these allergies and the possibility of an allergic reaction, I'm nervous to start giving Delainey real food here in a few months when she starts to signal she's ready. From bananas, to wheat, to peanut butter, we hope she's able to eat it all without a care in the world... one way I've recently discovered to help her at least enjoy one of these foods is Aralyte.

What exactly is Aralyte? Aralyte is a new product, recently developed to help parents tackle the growing peanut allergy problem in the US. Recent research, including the Learning Early About Peanut Allergy trial, has shown that early exposure to peanuts can reduce an infant's risk of peanut allergy development by as much as 98%! Aralyte is a safe, pediatrician recommended way to introduce peanut protein into your baby's diet.

Obviously, I was a little skeptical about using this on my little peanut, but with leading pediatric physicians and allergists from over 200 clinics recommending Aralyte and only all organic ingredients, this seems like a safe way to hopefully help D not develop a peanut allergy. I'm doing everything I can to make sure she is healthy and happy and I think preventing allergies from developing is definitely going to benefit her in the long run!

Are you worried about your baby having a peanut allergy? This convenient and safe way to introduce peanut protein may be the answer for you as well. Click here and start the process today! Plus, you can use the coupon code below and save 15% off the cost of the first 3 months, or two weeks, of the Aralyte regimen. Don't dilly-dally though, the coupon is only good until February 4th!

7 Tips to Help You Raise a THANKFUL Child

It's interesting how having a child instantly makes holidays feel a little bit more exciting, I knew the moment we found out we were expecting that Christmas would be different this year and now that we're celebrating Thanksgiving with her today, I'll admit Turkey day is a little better and brighter with her in it! Although next year will be even more fun when she can try the food with us... for now I'll snuggle her up while I'm nursing her and whisper how thankful I am that she's my daughter in her tiny little ears.

With that said, I've been doing a lot of thinking about how to raise her. Whenever you find out you're pregnant, the duties of parenthood run through your head... that's inevitable. I know I thought about all kinds of situations, some that I put my parents through, some that would only be relevant to her generation, and I'm certain there are some that I haven't even contemplated yet. One thing I do know about parenthood and how I plan on raising her is that I want her to be thankful. I want her to know that while she is loved, she isn't entitled. I want her to thank her elders and smile when asked to extend a helping hand and while I'm no parenting expert, I have been reading up on the matter and today I want to share 7 tips to help you raise a more thankful child.

1. Initiate a thankful habit and count your blessings - While D is really little, I help her do this. We look around at all the amazing clothing and toys she has and while these are great, I want to teach her to be thankful for her blessings in life. Ranging from her amazing Nonnie, her loving aunties, her Gigi that considers her a real life princess - these people are truly blessings in her life and I remind her of that daily. When she gets a little older I hope to keep up this practice but have her tell me who or what she considers a blessing in her life, outside of just the materials she's lucky enough to have.

2. Work Hard and Spend Wisely - I want Delainey to know money doesn't grow on trees and that we work for what we want in our house. I don't plan on practicing slave labor, or anything of the sort, but she will start doing chores when she's old enough and desires certain possessions. When she's 5 and wants a new barbie, learning how to do a task around the house will be her way of earning that reward. This lesson won't be one that we learn for a while but it's definitely one I hope she grasps quickly.

3. Please, Excuse Me, and Thank You - Learning her manners is an important part of teaching her to be thankful and polite. When she's super young she may not really understand what these words mean but teaching them to her when her vocabulary first starts growing is one of my main goals. I want her to know that these words mean a lot, in my opinion, and make you seem like a more gracious guest in someone's home, a kind girl in social situations, and ultimately, just a better person in general.

4. Listen Up - Teaching her how to listen is important too. While she's pretty small to teach about eye contact and choosing her tone of voice, this is on our agenda to teach older D. I think the best way to teach her this will be to listen to her when she speaks, teaching her how to properly make eye contact by demonstrating the behavior and listening intently to whatever she's trying to tell me. While this won't always be possible, doing this as much as I can will encourage her to mimic my behavior... or at least that's what the experts say.

5. Show and Tell...the Truth about life - While exposing D to homeless people currently isn't on our agenda this turkey day, we do plan on eventually spending this holiday volunteering at a shelter with her when she grows up. I want to expose her to the less fortunate, preferably around this time of the year to remind her how lucky we have it. It's eye-opening to do things like this and while I don't want to scare her, I want her to know life isn't rainbows and butterflies all the time for everyone and that we need to help others whenever possible, two lessons in one turkey day... I'm looking forward to this.

6. Spring Clean with the Kids - This may sound like an extra chore, along with doing the chores... but it'll be worth it! Have the kids choose clothing and toys they no longer want during the spring months (or any time really) and donate these items to those in need! Teaching your kids to live minimally while also ridding your house of the extra "stuff" will be good for everyone involved. This is something I know Delainey and I will be doing, I have a bad shopping habit and this will be the perfect way to keep that in check and we'll both learn from it.

7. Get the family in on the thankful fun - This one should be easy, all you have to do is get the family on board with the thankful lifestyle. Encourage grandparents to overuse the word thanks when your kiddo is around or tell older cousins to tell babe their definition of being thankful. It's fun to get everyone involved in being thankful and it spreads the goodness all around!

It's True, We Co-Sleep (with Dockatot)!

Thanks to Dockatot for sending over this awesome little gadget for us to include in the baby shower gift guide,
regardless all opinions expressed are completely my own.

Parenthood is full of a whole bunch of new experiences. From learning all about our little Delainey and her personality to spending hours trying to figure out what she needs in her life, we've been learning a lot along the way so far... and I have a feeling that won't be changing any time soon. While we've appreciated all of the help we've gotten along the way, we've been given a lot of advice that was unwarranted.

Some people say co-sleeping is the ONLY way to get some rest when you have a baby, while some may say it's a big no-no. I'm honestly kind of on the fence with this discussion and where I stand, especially because Miss Delainey is pro co-sleeping. With that said, there's no reason to panic or worry about her well-being if you don't agree with co-sleeping because we've added a DockaTot to our stash of baby gear and it's definitely going to be put to good use!

Have you heard of DockATot? It's something every parent should have - a multi-functional lounging, playing, chilling, resting, and snuggling little dock you can take anywhere! The best part is your little baby will feel snug and secure without being unsafe and you can rest easy knowing your little one is safe & sound in the little pod! They are the closest thing to the womb, other than mama's arms, so any baby tucked into one of these beauties will sleep like a, uh..., baby!

Plus, I love that the DockATot can be moved from room to room easily without having to worry about waking your precious child from their slumber. That means you can always have your eyes on your little darling without having to disturb their sleep, a great little bonus for both mama and baby!

Not only does DockATot provide your little bundle of joy with a cozy place to rest and play, while also offering you portability, this little dock reduces risk of flat-head syndrome. I had no idea this was a thing, but apparently positional plagiocephaly (aka Flathead Syndrome) is a result of a baby lying on one side of the head more than the other. But how does the DockATot help this little issue? The mattress on each DockATot is a soft thermobonded fiber wadding plate with a great bearing capacity to relieve pressure on the head, which is just what your babe needs to avoid a flat head. In addition, the fibers of the surrounding bumpers on each dock offer great support and can function as a positioning prop, enabling you to alternate the baby's resting position, from back to either side without a worry in the world!

Are you interested in trying a DockATot for your tot or maybe you want to grab one to gift to a friend at her upcoming baby shower? Click here to find out more and score a discount on one of my favorite baby gear items on the market!

Interested in finding more awesome items for babies and new mamas?
Click here to check out my Baby Shower Gift Guide!