How I Spent My Weekend as a Long-Term Investor...

Guess what I did this weekend?

I spent the whole weekend having fun as a family and while we were having a blast at our favorite amusement park, we also invested in our future. I guess you could say I spent the weekend where investors belong.

And... Can I just say, we honestly enjoyed our time together more than normal!

You may be asking yourself, the question " why was this weekend better than any other"?

Well, several reasons. It was partially because our 9 year wedding anniversary is coming up and we had the chance to celebrate with our tiny little princess. It likely had to do with the fun rides, the cute animals, and all the other exciting stuff we saw at Busch Gardens,because we weren't worrying about our future.

I was overjoyed to realize we can celebrate the way we want to, we can enjoy moments together as a family, and we can do this all without stressing about planning for our future.

What's different about Vanguard? This is a community of investors all focused on long-term planning, instead of short term fads.

I found it interesting when I learned Vanguard clients spend 6 more hours per week, on average, with their kids compared with clients of other investment firms. That means you'll essentially be investing in time with your child now and forever... and to me, and many of you, that's invaluable.

  Want to learn how you can invest in "time" and your future? Whether you want more snuggletime with your spouse, a couple extra hours of fun with your kiddos, or maybe you're just looking for somewhere to invest your money. Check out how Vanguard can help you invest wisely.

The Where Investors Belong survey was conducted by market research firm Kelton Global in 2016. It polled 1,000 Vanguard clients and compared them with 1,000 clients of other investment firms. All differences between Vanguard clients and clients of other investment firms are statistically significant at the 95% confidence level. The parental stat refers to clients with children of any age who provided the number of hours per week they typically spend with their children or who, compared to other people they may know, believe to be more involved in their child’s life. . The experiences of these Vanguard clients may not be representative of the experience of other Vanguard clients and aren’t a guarantee of future investment performance or success.

3 Unique & Adorable Gerber Baby Apparel Looks for Your Toddler

Did you know Delainey is now a paid Brand Ambassador for Gerber Childrenswear?! What does that mean exactly? It is just is a fancy way of saying this post is sponsored... but as always, all opinions expressed below are mine alone!

Alright y'all... let's be real, before I even had Delainey I always thought baby clothes were adorable... what girl doesn't? I knew I would love being a mama, but I really had NO IDEA how obsessed I would become!

While Delainey and I always have a ton of fun doing all types of activities together, I'll be the first to admit - we love playing dress up... and I do mean "we". This girl loves bows, clothes, and shoes, just like her mama. So she's always willing to get her sassy pants on and run around the yard while I take some pictures.

 With that said, today we want to show how versatile the coordinating Gerber sets from Walmart are, more specifically we are going to show you how we style our onesies for fall, from bow to toe - in 3 completely different ways.

Some may say babies don't have "style", if that's the case - they haven't met this baby! She's full of style and sass and these three Gerber looks show it:

We'll start with the simple pretty in pink look. This one is possibly my favorite, it's classic with a twist of fun. For this look, I paired White Pearls & Lace distressed jeans with her pink striped Gerber onesie and a Bloomology bow. We finished the look with a pink rose bib and some grey converse and she was set for a day on the go with daddy.

This look is pretty much an everyday outfit for Miss Delainey and it should be for your babe too. Since the Gerber coordinated baby apparel collection is available at Wal-mart at a super affordable price, every girl should own a handful of these classic onesies.

Whether you're currently expecting or dealing with a fun little feisty toddler, like me, the Gerber apparel collection offers just what you are looking for...

On that note, the next look we have is this "Sweet Baby Blues" preciousness. Delainey is showing off in her "Sweet" blue onesie. Paired with some polka dot leg warmers and a glitter bow, this look is perfect for hanging around the house and chasing her pup from room to room!

Plus, with her baby blue eyes, I can't get enough of this gorgeous blue color... we MUST have more and luckily, there's other items in the coordinating collection that match it!

And the last look we're going to share today is her punk rock princess persona. I'm not even joking when I say she loved the way she looked in this outfit. From giving herself a smooch in the mirror to giggling the whole time we played in the backyard, I think this look was D's absolute favorite.

We paired a purple Gerber hat, with a fun floral print Gerber Onesie, and a coordinating tu-tu that we just happened to have... but isn't it beyond perfection with this print? We completed the look with a fun bubble necklace, some Gerber socks, and another pair of Converse!

So, now that we've shared three completely different, fashionable, and adorable looks with you, be sure to leave your favorite stylish combination to dress your toddler up in below!

4 Ways You Can Help Eliminate & Reduce Holiday Anxiety

It's officially the holiday season. We call it "the happiest time of the year" and it is, for some... and for others, this time of year brings on anxiety and causes stress. As for me, I love spending time with family and friends, but I'll admit I'm one of many that still gets anxious when it comes time to get festive.

While I used to let anxiety overcome me, over the years I've pretty much mastered how to deal with holiday related anxiety and today I want to share a few tips with you so that all is calm in your world.

4 Ways You Can Help Eliminate & Reduce Holiday Anxiety

1. No Expectations - Instead of anticipating the perfect event, go ahead and take a deep breath and remind yourself it's okay for things to not go as planned - it's okay for things to just happen. Allow yourself the time to be present and stop stressing about the small stuff. It doesn't matter how you responded to your cousin's snarky remark or how your brother-in-law will react to the gift you've chosen for him... instead of thinking of what could happen, think about what you're doing now.

If you start feeling that stressful feeling again, take a second to absorb the beauty of the lights around you, listen for the live music playing from down the street, feel how soft these new Kleenex are, and stop stressing about the small stuff.

2. Plan for Peace - Okay, while things may not always go as planned, that doesn't mean you can't make an itinerary and hope to follow it. A big part of my anxiety is triggered by the "unknown" so planning ahead provides some peace of mind. If you're like me, you can plan days ahead for fun events, from looking at lights at the park to browsing the aisles for toys for your niece, plan when you'll be going and doing these events and you'll find them a lot less anxiety-inducing.

Also plan your family time ahead, so you aren't spread too thin on time or torn between groups... and well, it's important you do this so you don't run out of paper items either.

That's right, planning ahead to have enough paper towels and toilet paper is a MUST around the holiday season when you're expecting company.

And you can't forget Kleenex hand towels either, especially if you have a big family.

With extra company coming in to town, the last thing you want to run out of is the necessities and lucky for you can use Ibotta to snag a rebate on the Scott, Viva, Kleenex, and Cottonelle goodies you bought at Walmart.

I personally despise grocery shopping and I ordered all my goodies online at Walmart.com --with home delivery, free 2 day shipping and same day shipping options, who needs the hassle of going in-stores to shop? Not this girl! But, if you're the type that likes to shop in-stores, you're also in luck because all of these goodies are stocked on the shelves too!

3. Respect Differences -  Have a family member that picks on you and just drives you bonkers? Accept that you can't change others, but you can change your own mindset and focus on those that make you happy. Do your best to respect that your differences are what makes your family beautiful and again, try to be present in the moment and enjoy the other good things about the holiday!

4. Budget & Be Giving - Instead of spending too much on gifts people don't want or need, think about a unique gift idea instead.

Make a handmade baby book for your nephew or send your niece something you drew for her. You can surely come up with a creative way to spoil your family without the added price tag.

This year some of my family will receive blooms from my new small shop, Bloomology. I'll be making each creation specially for the individual receiving it so I hope they know how heart-felt these gifts are... no pun intended.


With that said, how do you reduce anxiety around the holidays? I'd love to hear all about it in the comments below! But don't forget to snag your rebates on your next Walmart run with Ibotta!

5 Ways to Tame Toddler Tantrums

Some days are easier than others parenting Delainey. The days when she's an angel and so easy to please are the best. But we also have the days when she is a terrible teething mess, when all she does is throw tantrums and toddle around whining. Don't get me wrong, I'm thankful for everyday with her but the latter is definitely more challenging.

While we can't find a cure all for her temper tantrums, yet... we're working on it and today I want to share FIVE ways to tame toddler tantrums!

1. Communicate - This first idea is maybe the most obvious but also likely the most complicated since most toddlers throwing tantrums are still learning to communicate.

When we hear our sweet girl winding up for a fit, we've started encouraging Lainey to "use [her] big girl words" and also teaching her sign language. Instead of letting her throw a fit when she wants a snack, I show her the sign for "eat", say the word "eat", and then provide her with something to eat.

While she can't tell me she wants to go to the park just yet, soon enough I have a feeling she'll be chatting away and asking to do all kinds of fun activities... but for now, I'm going to try and tame her tantrums by helping her learn to talk.

2. Identify & Treat - It's also pretty important to try and identify why your toddler is throwing a fit.

If he's sleepy, it's time for a nap. If he's aching, maybe try some essential oils. If she's hungry, feed her a snack. And if she has diaper rash, the only way to prevent and treat it is Desitin Maxium Strength. I'm not going to lie, I would say like 50% of the time when we just can't figure out what's going on with D, she seems to have a bit of diaper rash randomly pop up. I blame it on teething, but who really knows? All I do know is that we put red to bed and help make things better with Desitin.

3. Learning - Another way we try to solve tantrums in our house is letting her roam free... Whether that means walking down the street (and letting her choose which direction we wander) or just wandering around looking at ant hills in our backyard.

With that said, sometimes (when she has diaper rash), she gets to explore SUPER freely and by that I mean, in her birthday suit. Not only are we allowing her to feel, touch, explore, and learn in a different way, she's also getting fresh air on her bum - which is great for diaper rash too!

4. Explain - While we've been working on her communication during a fit, I've been trying to get better at using my communication skills as well. Instead of just telling her "NO!" when she's doing something she's not supposed to, I'm doing my best to try and tell her why she can't do it.

For example, instead of just exclaiming when she goes for an outlet, I immediately respond "no", but then I pick her up and point at the outlet and explain "OW! That's electricity, baby girl. That can hurt you very badly, so no-no touch! Okay, Delainey?"... and while she may not understand it ALL right now, I think she seems to somewhat and she also tends to listen better after I explain why something is a "no-no".

5. Understand - Speaking of understanding, try not to get too carried away trying to prevent and tame  tantrums... remember that your little one is just a kid. Learning something new each day, exploring and taking it all in and while that's amazing, it's also overwhelming for them and I know we all can understand what that feels like. So don't freak out if nothing helps to calm a fit sometime this week, it happens to the best of us and it'll likely happen again.

So tell me, how do you tame tantrums in your home? I'd love to hear in the comments below!