diapers and skinny jeans

Hey guys, I realized I haven't posted lately and I'd like to let you all know what's going on in my life.  First, I go back to working full time in about a week, so I have been going crazy around our apartment trying to get it spotless so I have one less thing to worry about- I'm close.  Really close.  Second, I have a small baby and spend most of my days alone with no help, so cleaning + baby = no free time to blog.  It's okay though, because I am mainly focused on spending as much possible time with her before I leave for the mapple store. I've also been sketching up a storm, trying to get some kind of stationery sets put together so I have SOMETHING to call a 'portfolio' of sorts.  I've been talking about opening an Etsy shop for a while now, but I really want to just do it.  But, my curse?  I don't want to start ANYTHING without it looking/being absolutely perfect.  Plus, I want to be super ambitious and open a collaborative shop too, with t...

This day, which was a Monday, starts out fairly normal with the drip of the coffee maker, and a late awakening out of bed.  I work constantly around the house, and the muted, mumbling voice of Judge Greg Mathis serves as the background loop to mine and Sofia's day.  The AC whirs loudly, but doesn't seem to be making any progress in cooling the apartment, so me and my baby just wait patiently for Erick to get home from his job.  This is also the point in which I begin to dislike air conditioners. The work-day finally ends, and Erick comes home.  We both exchange a simple hug and hello and continue about our business through the ebb and flow of our two separate, busy lives-- each of us tending to the baby or homework, dishes or making dinner.  Quietly, we move about to complete our nightly tasks until, at the very end of our exhausting day, we are interrupted by the infamous 'diaper explosion' with subsequent 'poopy neck'. Of  course. Bubbles are filled...

After a long time of thinking about it, (and a few failed attempts)  Erick and I were finally able to sneak in a date night yesterday.  It felt so good to get out of the house for a few hours, but I'm not even kidding, the WHOLE time all we could talk about was our baby!  I'm sure that's a given now at this point, though. The place we drove up to was Paddy Long's, a hidden little joint up in the Northside.  Three words- bacon and beer.  Paddy Long's has a special that is unique to their pub where you come and taste five different beers paired with five delicious strips of bacon from around the globe.  I never imagined how awesome of an idea it was to eat bacon as you drank a beer, but I AM AWARE now.  Erick and I shared a few rounds and ate way too much food... seriously.  Check out Paddy Long's menu and read the description of the bacon bomb .  Yeah, I told you.  That is some Epic Meal Time if I've ever seen it.  To top the night...

For any of you that have babies or kids out there, is it just me or can they wake up from a nap and seem to have grown in that 45 minutes?  What. is. going. ON?!  Seriously!  I'm pretty sure Sofia grew a whole pound overnight.  Bringing her over to get her diaper changed this morning felt like I was carrying a boulder, and on top of that, those cute Calvin Kline onesies from my mom that she would've SWAM in a few weeks ago?  Oh, they fit great now.   Sofie, mama loves you, but stop it.  You're growing too fast. ^^ So how much does she look like Erick? Right?!

You left comments, questions, and feedback.  I listened.  D&SJ readers want to hear more from the wonderful man that I married, the father of this beautiful baby, and best friend- Erick.  This is incredibly exciting for me because, although he does have an enormous presence within my written word, I feel like my blog and all the hopes and aspirations I had for starting it would be nothing if it wasn't for him, so he needs a voice here.  It's decided.  And let me tell you, it feels awesome to finally have a reason (and he doesn't have an excuse) to give him a little room to discuss his side of things!  I can't wait to show you all more!  Erick will probably start with some sort of introduction for those that don't know him that well... and hopefully move on to some more in-depth looks at his videography, logo and web design, how he creates music and what Starfoxxx is all about, or tricks to catching perfect moments with a camera... etc.  Who k...

I was always wondering what would happen the first time Erick and I would make decisions about things in our married life.  How would that go? Especially because we've only been married for three months.  And also because we were a married 'couple' for five days before we became a married 'threesome'.  But mainly because I am terrible, and I mean terrible at decision-making. If you ever were to ask Erick what I wanted for dinner or where I wanted to go this weekend he would tell you, most certainly, that I, "don't know, what do you think?".  Be honest.  Is that not an annoying habit or what?  I really wish I was that type of person that stands firm in their desires and says 'yes! this is what i want to do.'  But I'm really not, and it embarrasses me sometimes.  I'm still learning to stop caring what everyone else in the world wants to do, I should at least have the nerve to voice my opinion... Anyway- after an (absolutely lovely and...

Getting ready to spend the day in Evanston for some cultural festival goodness.  We'll check back later!  Go get some sun today, people!

What does your food say about you?  This is what Stephanie de Rouge, documentarian, fine art, and architectural photographer was trying to find out in her exploration of In Your Fridge. She focused primarily on the busy city life of Paris and NYC, posing the idea that the 'non-stop hustle and bustle' of the city could potentially introduce new eating habits, or even stranger food behavior!  I wonder if the business of being parents has affected our eating habits?  More like never having time to even eat... she should've come over to our apartment and taken pics of the fridge when I was pregnant. Watching us each eat a frozen pizza to ourselves.  Yep.  Strange what those hormones do to you. What would Stephanie find in your fridge? P.S. extra credit and gold stars go to the first person to spot the barbie dolls in the freezer.  Haha.  It's moments like that where I can't wait to see what Sofia plans on getting into.  She's gonna be a curiou...

I'm not sure if it's the soft micro fleece on her bum, me waving a camera in front of her face, or just another case of gas but... someone sure was happy today!  Were these the first glimpses of that gummy, toothless grin I've been waiting for?  Who knows.  One thing is for sure- we'll be using her Fuzzibunz Onesize from now on!  Sofia is wearing Fuzzibunz Onesize in Mint

One blog I've been diggin' on for a while now is Jenna Park's SweetFineDay .  She is a designer and art director living in NYC and has the cutest two daughters in the whole world.  Something me and Erick noticed a while ago was how amazingly she color corrected her photos. Jenna's original photo here  All the photos she posts look so natural, the color and tones are true to life, (which, I think many photographers this day and age just bump the contrast and saturation for no reason) and they look like they are honest, snippets and memories from her life.  So, go ahead and take a look.  Make sure you pop on over to Jenna's blog and say hi for me.  Promise you won't be disappointed.  All Photos by Jenna Park   via Sweet Fine Day

Homemade breakfast tacos with fruit:   Scrambled eggs, chorizo, queso fresco and corn tortillas.

I was a little worried about our initial trip out to Essex this weekend- there was bumper to bumper traffic and Sof was screaming in the car... (thankfully she was able to calm herself down).  I haven't had to deal with the screaming yet, usually she just passes right out the second I hit the road.  The good news?  We survived- and we were rewarded! The playmat seen in the above photos was one of Grandma's gifts for us to take back up to the city with us!  Isn't it great?  Sofia absolutely loves it, and now she has so many awesome, new, high-contrast toys to look at.  It's perfect.  It's kinda funny that I call these hanging bug toys her 'friends', but she honestly seems to really like them.  Did I mention already how much I love her?  She's such a happy baby. Oh, and that last picture?  Yes, can't forget THAT one.  That is my pile of dishes I have to get back to.  Womp-womp.  Hope you're all enjoying your Monday! Sofi...

bailey doesn't bark via: the aviary

Cleaning.  It's something we all have to do, but it sure does change after having a baby.  All that time you would normally have to tear your house apart is interrupted by around-the-clock 'all the boob you can eat' marathons, 'i'd rather be held, mom', and 'i think i crapped my pants, mom'.  So what I've had to adjust to is working in chunks- babysteps, if you will.   Right now if I can get up out of bed, brush my teeth, make some coffee and at least clean one part of the apartment, eventually it will all get done.  I'm normally the type of person that wants to tackle everything at once, but with a baby you have to learn patience.   I'm working on that.

This is absolutely gorgeous.  Actually, everything this guy does is absolutely gorgeous.   Caleb Owen Everitt ?  Yeah, he's my new design hero.

I was totally bummed that Erick had to work, (why would anyone really want to shop retail on a holiday? weirdos!) but was able to spend some quality time with some of my favorite family members.  Doesn't my mom really have a knack for making lemonade look even more refreshing than it already?

Found this mood board DIY over at Decor8 .  If your mood and inspiration changes daily like mine does, (ha ha) this is for you!  Sidenote- is everyone enjoying their Sunday?  I've been busy cleaning up poop off of Sof's back and neck and realizing Erick's pants fit me better than my own pairs do at the moment.     How lovely.

I can't believe I don't have any cute pictures of her when she's awake!  Hopefully I can catch her up and in a good mood tomorrow at our family's fourth of July / little sister's birthday celebration.  Time is going by so incredibly quick as my days on maternity leave are passing me by.  I can't think about returning to work right now, so that's another story entirely.  Now if only she'd sleep this good during the night...