Category: Motherhood

Everyday Baby Essentials

Burp cloths, bibs, diapers, wipes, the list goes on and on. Today I’m sharing a break down of the everyday baby essentials I use (brands we love) for my little guy who is already 8 months old. We have used these items on repeat since he was born.

Everyday Baby Essentials | Vivian & Violet 
Burp cloths, bibs, diapers, wipes, the list goes on and on. Today I'm sharing a break down of my tried and true everyday baby essentials.

Copper Pearl burp cloths & bibs – I absolutely adore this brand. Their products are so well made, super soft, and hold up wash after wash. My babies don’t spit up a lot so I can’t speak on that, but I use these burp cloths and bibs for every feeding. I have been blessed in the milking area and tend to produce a lot. When I feed Arie I usually have to tuck a burp cloth into my bra to catch the excess and in the early months, he would wear a bib in case he decided to pull off because he would get sprayed. Both of these are super absorbent and basically lifesavers for me. The bibs are also fantastic when your little one starts teething, keeping them super dry. I have been using this brand since I had my little girl and she is now 2. I love all the prints they come in and they are constantly adding more. Can’t say enough good things about them to be honest!

Bibs pacifiers – Both my babies love a pacifier, when I started searching for one Arie would like I came across this brand. They are made from natural rubber and 100% free of BPA, PVC, and phthalates. Arie loves them and the fact that they aren’t a complete eye-sore is pretty awesome. At first, I thought they were more expensive than other brands but you can use them for 3-4 months so that honestly works out to be the same price.

Tiny Teether Pacifier Clips – Found this clip on amazon and it’s a good one. Arie loves to play/chomp on it while it also holds his pacifier. Great quality for the price.

Hello Bello Diapers – I have tried a lot of diapers and these are my favorite. They are super soft, absorbent, eco-friendly, and hypoallergic. I love that they don’t have a plastic smell to them and they are not hard on my baby’s soft skin. I first tried these with Elise before we had Arie and now after using them for a year I can say they are our favorite brand of diapers. They have the cutest prints as well!

Pampers Pure Wipes & Water Wipes – I know everyone has their own favorite wipes but both of these brands are my go tos. Like diapers, I have tried a lot of different brands and these have the best wetness along with texture to clean your little one’s bum without rubbing them raw. As a close second, the Hello Bello wipes are pretty good but they aren’t as wet as the other two brands so they seem a little rougher when using them.

California Baby – Both of my babies have sensitive skin and I have been very adamant about using super clean products. Both Arie and Elise get dry patches and these products clear them up in a matter of a day. This is the only brand of skincare that I can honestly say works for us and fast. Arie gets a nice rub down of the Calendula lotion every day along with the Calendula cream if he has any dry patches that flare-up. I also love their body wash and bubble bath. If you haven’t heard of this company, you should definitely check them out. All their products are 100% plant-derived, are independently lab tested, and a company you can really trust.

Everyday Baby Essentials | Vivian & Violet

What are your everyday baby essentials you can’t live without?? Let me know in the comments below and if you love any of the products we do!

Baby Favorites at 3 Months

Favorite Baby Products at 3 Months | Vivian & Violet 
Check out my current favorite baby products we have been using nonstop since we brought Arie home from the hospital 3 months ago.

When I had Elise 2 years ago I did a blog post on 12 New Mom Must-Haves, so I thought it would be fun to go through my favorite baby products I have been using with our new little guy Arie. Some of the products have changed but a lot has stayed the same.

Here are my current favorite baby products we have been using nonstop since we brought Arie home from the hospital.

Favorite Baby Products at 3 Months

Maxi Cosi Micro 30 Infant Car Seat – I loved this car seat when Elise was born and still love it. We took good care of it and it has held up nicely. Arie loves it and let me tell you he has gotten a lot of use out of it. He has already weathered countless road trips in it including a 9-hour car trip to Wisconsin. It is lightweight, easy to carry, and clicks right into the Uppababy stroller I have with adapters. I took it on a plane ride to Chicago when Arie was just 3.5 weeks old and it was super user-friendly even without the base in the rental car.

UPPABaby Cruz – I can’t say enough great things about this stroller. We used it in the Bay Area on public transit, in the city and now it has been in so many states with us (about 10 states to be exact). It maneuvers super easy. Our Maxi Cosi car seat snaps right in with adapters to create a travel system. If Arie isn’t using it, Elise is in it with the rumble seat. I love that it’s not super heavy, opens and closes easily and you can detach all the parts to throw in the washer. The bottom basket is also a great size for shopping. Uppababy truly makes high-quality products.

4moms rockaRoo – We had a larger swing with Elise, but when we moved states and apartments I didn’t want a massive swing taking up precious space. This swing has been great from the moment we brought Arie home from the hospital. He loves to sit in this when I need a moment and is so relaxed he dozes off. The size is what sold us on it, the swing is so compact. You can purchase the infant insert separately so you can use it from birth to 25lbs/or can sit up unassisted. The only con to this swing is it does squeak sometimes when it moves, but it hasn’t bothered us.

Favorite Baby Products at 3 Months | Vivian & Violet 
Check out my current favorite baby products we have been using nonstop since we brought Arie home from the hospital 3 months ago.
Favorite Baby Products at 3 Months | Vivian & Violet 
Check out my current favorite baby products we have been using nonstop since we brought Arie home from the hospital 3 months ago.

Ingenuity Foldaway Rocking Bassinet – When I was searching for bassinets to get for our little man I went through all the beautiful ones such as the Moses basket, wicker ones, and aesthetically pleasing options. Instead, I settled on this bassinet and I’m so glad that I did. It was a lot cheaper. We have used it since we brought him home, which has included us living in a hotel for the last two months. I can’t recommend it enough. It folds up nice and compact. Another great feature is that you can have the legs stationary or turn them so you can rock your little one to sleep. The only con to the bassinet is that it does not come with a travel bag, but if that doesn’t bother you it’s a great choice.

Nested Bean Zen Sack Classic – Arie is a baby that likes to be cuddled and touched while he sleeps, so I went ahead and purchased this sleep sack. It mimics your embrace with a lightly weighted pad. To be honest, it hasn’t made the biggest difference in his sleep, but I did include it here because the quality of this sleep sack is outstanding. It’s beyond soft and super easy to get Arie in and out of. I love this sleep sack and will definitely be purchasing the next size up when the time comes.

Skip Hop Vibrant Village Smart Lights Activity Gym – Elise loved this activity gym so I had no doubt that Arie would love it too. It has been one of the greatest purchases we made. The lights in the arches and little figures hanging keep Arie engaged and entertained. It also comes with a little tummy time pillow.

Favorite Baby Products at 3 Months | Vivian & Violet 
Check out my current favorite baby products we have been using nonstop since we brought Arie home from the hospital 3 months ago.

DockATot Deluxe – I love the DockATot for a few different reasons. Arie lounges in it while I play with Elise. I have had it on the floor in every room of our apartment, on our couch and bed. I can move it easily from room to room, we use it for tummy time and he also likes to take supervised naps in it. It was great to have when we were living in a hotel in Wisconsin. It gave me some peace of mind to know he had a safe place to lounge while he was awake if I left his side for a minute or two.

What are your favorite baby products at the 3-month mark? Tell me in the comments below I would love to hear from you!

Our Family is Growing!

Our Family is Growing! | Vivian & Violet 
We are so excited to tell you that we are expecting baby #2! I'm so glad to be out of the first trimester.

We are so excited to tell you we are expecting baby #2 due this September! I’m glad to be out of the first trimester, but man has the nausea been kicking my butt lately. Any other mamas to be out there dealing with this??? I’m so excited to be pregnant, but being sick a lot has been a little tough especially chasing around a toddler. I do see adding to our family as such a blessing though so I’m just taking it day by day.

Life has been a little crazy for us since the beginning of October when we moved from the Bay Area to Minneapolis for 2 months. Now we have been in Houston, TX since the beginning of January. I still currently don’t know exactly where I’m going to have the baby, but we are just trusting God right now to have us in the right spot. Below are some of the most frequently asked questions all of you have been asking!

Pregnancy Q & A with Carly:

How did you tell Esai?

Funny story we were in the process of moving from Minnesota to Texas when I was just super emotional, way more than usual. I have moved a bunch and usually don’t feel as crazy as I did, but I could cry on command. I chalked it off to the fact that we had just celebrated Elise’s first birthday, we didn’t have a home base and we had just celebrated the New Year. I was late and I’m never late unless I’m super stressed or well pregnant. haha. I took a test one morning when Esai was at work thinking it wouldn’t be positive. Boy was I wrong. I told him as soon as he got home from work.

What has been the most challenging about this pregnancy?

The nausea has been super intense. It was intense with Elise, but it feels a little worse this time around. It started around week 7 and it still lingers a few times a week. I’m almost 20 weeks. Add a toddler and some days are just not that easy but I rest when I can.

Any pregnancy workouts you’re loving?

When I was pregnant with Elise is was harder for me to workout especially in the beginning, but this time around I have been able to be more active. It has helped my nausea a lot. I have been loving these online workouts from Popsugar, barre workouts, and yoga.

Are you going to find out what you’re having?

Yes, we are this time around! Very very soon in fact!

How much weight have you gained?

I started out this pregnancy 4lbs heavier than I was with Elise. So far I have gained 4 lbs in the first trimester. Now that I’m 19 weeks I have gained around 8 lbs.

What pregnancy skincare products are you loving?

I have been slathering coconut and almond oil all over my belly and legs to prevent stretch marks.

Any weird pregnancy cravings/aversions?

Not really any crazy cravings, but I can’t eat a lot of sugar (like candy or ice cream) or I get the absolutely worse headache. So I have been steering clear of that.

Will you share more pregnancy posts on Vivian & Violet?

Yes of course! I’m excited to share all things fashion and anything else I can think of pregnancy related with all of you in the next coming months!

I’m so excited to share this new journey with all of you! Let me know if you have any other questions. More pregnancy geared posts to come!

Are you an expecting mama?? Let me know in the comments below. I would love to hear from you!

Our Family is Growing! | Vivian & Violet 
We are so excited to tell you that we are expecting baby #2! I'm so glad to be out of the first trimester.

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Elise’s Winter Onederland Birthday

Elise's 1st Winter Onederland Birthday | Vivian & Violet 
We celebrated our little chick-a-dees 1st birthday back at the end of December. Check out how I decorated for a Winter Onederland without spending a ton!

We celebrated our little chick-a-dees birthday back at the end of December. I wanted to share some of the highlights with you guys on the fun little party we had for her with family and close friends. Elise had such a great time. It was so fun to see the smile on her face all day. From the infamous cake smashing to just playing with all the kids, it will be a day we won’t forget.

Since Elise’s birthday was in January I didn’t want to do the usual pink theme. I thought a little winter wonderland action would be perfect and it turned out so much cuter than I could have imaged. Below are some of the shots from our girl’s special day!

Elise's 1st Winter Onederland Birthday | Vivian & Violet
We celebrated our little chick-a-dees 1st birthday back at the end of December. Check out how I decorated for a Winter Onederland without spending a ton!

My mom and I made most of the decorations and I plan on doing more posts in the future on how easy it was to whip these things up. The tassel garland on the high chair above is made out of rope, white floral wire and plastic table cloths cut into strips. The cake topper is made from a wooden dowel and this glittery letter.

Elise's 1st Winter Onederland Birthday | Vivian & Violet
We celebrated our little chick-a-dees 1st birthday back at the end of December. Check out how I decorated for a Winter Onederland without spending a ton!
Elise's 1st Winter Onederland Birthday | Vivian & Violet
We celebrated our little chick-a-dees 1st birthday back at the end of December. Check out how I decorated for a Winter Onederland without spending a ton!
Elise's 1st Winter Onederland Birthday | Vivian & Violet
We celebrated our little chick-a-dees 1st birthday back at the end of December. Check out how I decorated for a Winter Onederland without spending a ton!

The cake smash started out slow, but Esai lured her into the cake and soon she couldn’t get enough. It was pretty hilarious to watch.

Elise's 1st Winter Onederland Birthday | Vivian & Violet
We celebrated our little chick-a-dees 1st birthday back at the end of December. Check out how I decorated for a Winter Onederland without spending a ton!
Elise's 1st Winter Onederland Birthday | Vivian & Violet
We celebrated our little chick-a-dees 1st birthday back at the end of December. Check out how I decorated for a Winter Onederland without spending a ton!

The balloon garland above is made using this tutorial and adding a silver sparkly garland. It was easier than I thought. We also used Pinterest for inspiration.

Elise's 1st Winter Onederland Birthday | Vivian & Violet
We celebrated our little chick-a-dees 1st birthday back at the end of December. Check out how I decorated for a Winter Onederland without spending a ton!

For the guests, we had powdered cake balls to resemble snowballs, orange juice cookies (family recipe), and a sheet cake called the Strawberry Wedding Cake from FarmHouse Bakery in Omaha, NE that is my all time favorite. It’s not pictured but it was the talk of the party. Along with a punch, my mom made out of sprite, pineapple juice, lime sherbet, and a little teal food coloring.

Elise's 1st Winter Onederland Birthday | Vivian & Violet
We celebrated our little chick-a-dees 1st birthday back at the end of December. Check out how I decorated for a Winter Onederland without spending a ton!

My mom made all the tissue paper balls and we hung them with jute rope. We found the snowflakes you see hanging at Party City.

Thanks for reading and let me know in the comments below what you did for your little’s birthday parties. I will have DIYs on the blog soon with specific details on how to make all these easy decorations!

Party Details

Shop what Elise & I are wearing below

          
        

10 Tips for Road Trips with a Little One

10 Tips for Road Tripping with Kids Under One | Vivian & Violet

I can’t believe it has been 4 weeks since we arrived in Minnesota road tripping from San Franciso. Time sure does fly but as promised, I want to share a few tips Esai and I picked up while traveling with a 9-month-old in a car for long hours. We started in the Bay Area and made it to Eden Prairie, MN in 5 days. One of those days we spent in beautiful Missoula, MT to give Elise a break and see some family friends. By the last day, we had it down to a science.

I, by all means, am not saying these will work for everyone but they sure did make our trip easier. So without further ado here are…

10 Tips for Long Road Trips with Your Little People

  1. Leave super early in the morning so your little will sleep in the car.

    We left at 5 am every morning except our last travel day (we left at 7 am because we needed a few extra zzzzz’s). Although Elise was awake when we put her in the car she quickly went back to sleep for 4-5 hours. Basically sleeping for at least half the trip if not longer each day.

  2. If you have a co-pilot change drivers every 1-1.5 hours.

    This may sound like it takes longer but trust me after doing a long drive before without a child this was a game changer. Esai and I would pull off and make a quick change of who was driving. This kept us more alert and made the drive go by so much faster during the day. Whoever was driving also got to pick which podcast or music they wanted to listen to. Don’t worry some of the stops turned into quick bathroom/food breaks when needed.

  3. Besides the quick driver changes, if your little one stays asleep just keep driving.

    When we would stop for a few mins here and there Elise didn’t wake up most of the time in the morning so we just kept on.

  4. Keep one side in the back of the car open or make it easy to transfer things so you can sit next to your little when you need to during the trip.

    This was super helpful when one of us needed to get in the back and hang out with Elise while we were traveling. We were able to feed and play with her so time passed without any hiccups.

  5. Fade all the music/podcast noise to the front of the car.

    10 Tips for Road Tripping with Kids Under One | Vivian & Violet

  6. Have easy access to the diaper bag and food.

    Elise had just been weaned from breastfeeding right before we left for our trip, so I can’t speak much on having to stop for feedings. In the past, I have taken a 5-hour road trip by myself while breastfeeding and I only had to stop once. If your little is still being breastfed, factor in feedings when you stop/baby wakes up. I know things can take a turn fast having an upset little one, so my best advice would be to just roll with it. If you have to stop, just stop. Everyone will be so much happier in the end.

  7. Driving over 9 hours in a day gets to be too much, at least in our experience.

    Plan your trip accordingly and be super flexible. If you need to make more stops or not go as far one day don’t worry about it. Just roll with it as much as you can. If you are staying calm your little most likely will too.

  8. Talk to your little while they are awake to keep them engaged.

    If they get upset sometimes it’s as simple as playing their favorite song and distracting them with their favorite toy.

  9. Pajamas are the way to go for easy changing and a comfy, happy baby!

  10. Bring easily transportable toys that keep your little occupied.

    You would be surprised what keeps them busy like an empty container of snacks or water bottle if they just aren’t into a toy.

    Below I linked some of Elise’s favorite toys and pajamas she wore on our road trip!

10 Tips for Road Tripping with Kids Under One | Vivian & Violet

Happy traveling!! Comment below on some of your favorite tips and how far you have traveled with your littles!