Today is day two of our home tour! Last month we shared our master bathroom, and this month we’re spilling all of the beans on the master bedroom!

Remember, all details and links will be at the bottom of this post!

We wanted our room to be cozy relaxing. But I wanted to make sure to add lots of texture to the room where ever I could!

We just recently added this grid detail..and dang was it hard! We found out, as we were starting, that our ceiling is slanted. Now…this is a 100 year old home. It’s not level at all. But the two sides of the ceiling are 1.5 inches different. Which is HUGE. So we knew we couldn’t go all the way to the ceiling with the grid detail. So we went as high as we felt comfortable, and I think I’ll add some art of some sort above. Any ideas?

We actually bought these pillows in our first year of marriage from Etsy and were SUPER surprised when the package came from Africa. It was so amazing to support a women artist in flipping Africa! We love these pillows! I don’t know if they make these pillows again, but I liked their shop below!

I really love setting up little staged side tables, but Alex will have nothing to do with it UNLESS it’s functional. So this brown box actually holds charging cords.

I was listening to Young House Love Has A Podcast and they were talking about the book Joyful {which is now on my book list} but they were talking about how the decorative things you bring into your house should bring you joy. When I saw this beetle at Target I legit lit up. It was so random and hilarious but I knew I needed it. Austen and Hudson love it and I smile every time I see it.

A huge object of questions on Instagram is about our wardrobes…which are from Ikea! I looked up our before pictures of this space, that there was a tiny closet in this room! Scroll down to see those pictures. You can read in the master bathroom post about why we have these instead of an actual closet and how we use them…but here are some detail shots of how we organize them!

My hats hang on the side…I need to swap out my summer hats…and I think I want to add some hooks for hats on Alex’s side as well.

I have SUPER minimized my closet and I could probably eliminate 10 more hanging items from this closet. Actually since this shoot I’ve totally KonMari’d the drawers.

These ikea containers help contain my socks, and underwear, and swimsuits.

And Alex just stapled some window screen {found at Lowes} onto the inside door so I can hang my earrings up.

I used to have like 50 necklaces, but I just went through them and only picked my very favorite to wear! They’re just hanging on 3M hooks.

And then I just bought one of these jewelry dividers to store my rings and earring that can’t be hung up. They used to just be in a bowl, but this is much more functional.

We just added a desk to our room and I’m LOVING it. It’s so nice to have a specific spot to journal, or blog or shop online!

The desk is from Target and the chair is borrowed from our dining table haha but I’m looking for a really cool bright colored upholstered chair! I’ll find it someday!

I’d also love to add some really cool artwork to that wall to the left of my desk! I’m thinking some beautiful watercolor.

Again…we really like our decore to be functional, so this beautiful container on my desk holds by bracelets.

We have a fireplace in our master! We’re so fancy. We actually didn’t think it would be functioning…but we sold an actual kidney {not really but pretty much} and got a gas line ran and put an insert in.

This beautiful mantel is original to the house, but Alex did all of the tile work and the wood detail on the fireplace!

I really need to find something cool to put on the mantel. I’m not great at decorating mantels…I usually just add candles. Anyone have amazing inspiration for me?

This beautiful brass fireplace surround is a whole story…it’s original but we took it off to tile and because Alex isn’t professional we didn’t make sure to fit the surround in BEFORE we tiled. We figured it would fit right back on…nope.

So we need to have someone come and fix that…all of that to say…things aren’t perfectly perfect around the house. There are still things and flaws to fix but that’s okay! No one’s house is perfect and totally finished. No one.

Our bedroom really is such a calm place. It wasn’t when we first moved in. This room evolved over time. We slowly added things and tweek’d it until we got it to where it is now. And we still have little details we want to add or change. That’s what makes things fun to me. Changing out art, adding wood details, handing accessories. I love the process of making a house a home.

And before…we all love to see befores…here you go!

Can you even believe this is the same room? I totally forgot about that strange ceiling and the radiators! We removed all of them and did new HVAC.

I also forgot that we added the door into the bathroom! So many changes I totally forget about!

This original chandler is actually in our entry way now. We had it restored and rewired and it was just too stunning to be hidden upstairs so we installed it in the entry. And with all of the chandelier’s crystals and our beveled glass front door…it’s pretty magical!

And I totally forgot there was a tiny closet on this wall. So glad we got rid of that so this wall could be all bed and we could add that cool grid detail!

Here are all of our sources. Let me know if I missed something in comments! I’ll be happy to add our exact link or find something similar for you!

Wall Color: Secreto by Benjamin Moore Color Matched at Lowes

Trim Color: Chantilly Lace by Benjamin Moore Color Matched at Lowes

Bed: Amazon

Bedding Set: Target

Sheets: Target

Desk: Target

Closet System: Ikea

The PAX Ikea system is super customizable so you’ll just have to measure your space and figure out what is the right formation. We used the GRIMO door. You buy the frames and then the doors and all of the indoor accessories separate. We used them at our old house as well and love them.

Drawer containers: Ikea

Earring Tray: Amazon

Lamps: Target

Bug: Target Opalhouse Line Old

Desk Books: Homebody and Cut Flower Garden

Bug Container: Target Opalhouse Line Old

All pictures by the incredibly talented Tasha Pinelo

This was a crazy asked for post! I did instastories last summer showing you the inside of my car and dang…y’all were passionate about this topic!

You’re just my people.

So here we are…all of the details of what we keep in our car to help us stay prepared for summer fun!

We have a mini van…which I didn’t even realize people had a hang up about until recently.

But we freaking love our van! We tote lots of kids around, so it’s important for us to have the space even, though we only have two kids.

We always keep the left side of our third row down to fit our double stroller unless we need all of the seats. Then we just shift things but everything does actually fit in the trunk!

Yes…people ask me all the time…I do totally use my double stroller even though Austen is almost four. He gets tired leaving the zoo or a park and I don’t want to have to carry him. So we always bring the double with us.

In the space on the right hand side is where we keep all of our goodies.

Two main bins.

One for essentials…and one for toys, which I’ll talk about in a second.

In the essentials box we keep the following: snacks {usually granola bars and raisins because they hold up well in the heat}, sunscreen, a first aid kit {with neosporin, bandaids, and a bug bite stick}, my makeup kit { with pony tail holders, bobby pins, lip gloss, an eyebrow pencil because I’ve officially become my mother, and small brunch}, extra swim trucks/ shirts {I buy cheap ones from Walmart just in case we randomly hit a splash pad after being out or I forget mine}, swim diapers/regular diapers, wipes, and plastic bags for wet/gross clothes.

Next thing is my cooler/lunch box. I got this at Target last year, but this pineapple one…I’m obsessed! I saw the same version of mine in store, but I can’t find them online! I love this one because it’s a backpack so I can wear it or Austen can wear it and it’s just the right size to hold lunches for our little family. The last thing I want to be doing is lugging a huge cooler around with me.

In my lunch cooler I keep our lunches, the boys waters, and a protein shake for me to have if I need it.

We’re still using the Camelbak water bottles but I’m not loyal to that brand so we may try out a new one this summer! If you have a kids water bottle you love, let me know! I think we might try these next!

You guys I bought four different types of lunchboxes and this is what won for our family.

Here’s why these won: they hold more food than most of the lunchboxes and our boys eat a good amount, they are less expensive than most brands, they can be put through the dishwasher, and they weren’t too big for my cooler. I don’t really need them to stay cold for the entire day…just a few hours. And I loved the larger compartments.

Next up is this chair! If you have a young toddler…THIS IS A MUST HAVE! It’s like a tiny soccer chair that has a tray. I love it for keeping Hudson put to eat and not wondering around. But last summer he was sitting up and that way he could sit on his own and I could eat my lunch. I love it so much that we bought another one and keep it in the house for eating on the front porch!

These are two things everyone forgets: a big picnic blanket and at least one, if not two, towels in our car! The towels are amazing to wipe down dewy slides in the morning or help when I forget a towel for the pool. I always underestimate how many towels we will need at a splash pad! And I can’t even believe how often I pull out this blanket at parks!

We typically have Austen’s scooter in the car. We just grab it before we leave to go to parks. Not necessary, but I’ll usually text friends to see if they’re bringing scooters. The micro mini is our favorite, but we also love the Radio Flyer. And please y’all…make your kids use helmets!

And then ALWAYS a basket of balls/toys. I used to keep them in a bag, but this basket is going to work out so much better! Just trust me! It’s easier to throw things into an open basket than a bag and it stays more organized in the car. But I have a few balls of different sizes, trucks, a few pails and shovels, and bubbles.

Now for my few tips for the inside of the car!

Snack bag. But wait…you have snacks in that essentials box. I have this right by my side in the car so I can dish our snacks as I’m driving. The car on the way home from things is when my boys start to melt down because they’re hot, tired, and usually…hungry. Plus, sometimes we don’t plan to be out all morning and I don’t bring lunch and they’re starving. These snacks will hold us over. Granola bars, pretzels, applesauce squeezes, raisins, oranges, things that won’t melt in the car!

And for the most unnecessary but my favorite thing and what is keeping our car clean these days…these tiny little cup colder sized trash cans. Come on guys….can you handle? Again…unnecessary…a bag would do. But HOW FREAKING CUTE? Pro tip…empty them when you get gas…boom!

I also got a new diaper bag this year…and it’s from Walmart! The camo is sold out online, but check in store! I heard so many bloggers talking about it so I needed to check it out. It lives up to the hype. We have our original black diaper backpack still, but we keep it stocked in Alex’s car for when he takes the boys in his car.

Who wants to know what I keep in my diaper bag? Or is that boring?

I usually get things put back together every other day. Make sure I restock things, make sure to get new towels, etc. But having a prepared car helps so much when you’re out and about with kids!

Let me know if you have any other suggestions or questions!

Beautiful photos by Tasha Pinelo

{Because I know a lot of y’all don’t have the time to read a blog post…I’ll cut to the chase and here’s my Amazon Easter List…but we did some things from Target too so keep reading for those links}

Y’all know I love a holiday…and am I the only one that gets a unique feeling about each holiday?

Easter brings the feeling of deep breaths and fresh air.

As I type that…it sounds cheesy…but it’s true.

However, I always get so excited to breath new fresh air into our home during spring and prepare for the celebration of Easter!

We don’t really buy lots of toys throughout the year. More about my thoughts on that later, so I always use holidays as an opportunity to fill in some gaps in our toys.

Easter tends to be preparing for outside and pool play.

New swim suits, new chalk, new bubbles, swim shoes, sunglasses etc.

This year we also bought a new bubble machine because ours got kicked last year. Like literally kicked by another child. But this is our favorite bubble machine.

And then of course we add a little candy in there! We like the Bunny Dum Dums and Kinder eggs for Austen because he adores building the little toys.

We invested in good Easter baskets two years ago from Pottery Barn and we’ll use them until they’re 30. And yes…I will still fill Easter baskets when they are 30…okay? We did the large size and the navy gingham.

For Hudson we got a few more Wubanubs {because we lost a few of them while on vacation }, some palm grasp crayons, and chalk holders {because he loves chalk but eats it without the holders} all of which are linked in my Easter list!

Austen’s is Avengers themed and 90% of it came from the Dollar Store. They have an amazing selection of Disney things for kids!

We also got Austen have these Avenger swim trunks from Target coming in the mail {they have them in store but were out of his size.} We also bought these tiny Avenger figures and we’ll put those in Easter eggs for our hunt on Easter morning. We actually already have the figurines but we lost his two favorites in Florida so he will actually lose his mind when he sees Captain America and Iron Man and I can not wait!

Are these bears not the cutest things ever? Alex’s mom and aunt got these for all of the kids last year, and the boys still adore them! They’re from Personal Creations!

As far as egg stuffers go, we’ve got a wide variety of ages we do egg hunts for. We obviously have Austen {4} and Hudson {1.5} and we’ll do an inside egg hunt on Easter morning. And then we host my family Easter morning and we have six nieces and nephews that range in age from 21-8 and then Austen and Hudson so we do a mixture of candy and money for them. This year we also were doing an Easter egg hunt with our moms group, for Austen’s class, and for an Easter brunch with my mom tribe.

We’re not lacking in Easter egg hunts this year!

For the moms club egg hunt I got egg stampers, for Austen’s class class egg hunt we did Tootsie eggs and bunny crayons from Dollar Tree, and for our mom tribe egg hunt we did these tiny finger flash lights. And then for our cousin egg hunt we’ll do money, some candy and some of these eraser puzzles. You can find these erasers in the Target party aisle as well.

A lot of you have asked about our favorite Easter books as well, so I linked a lot of them in my Amazon Easter List. We also love all of the Usbourne “That’s Not My” books so we have the bunny and chick ones.

We might be doing a little Usbourne giveaway soon…so be on the lookout for that!

And that’s about it! Don’t forget to print off some of our favorite Easter printable activities from this post!

Happy shopping friends!

Pictures by the amazing Tasha Pinelo

Being a stay at home mom to two under four, I’m constantly searching for way to keep them entertained without using the TV.

Because I was a teacher before staying home with Austen, I obviously gravitate towards educational activities…and y’all 90% of them come from free printables from Pinterest!

So I figured I would make things super easy and link everything up for you!

Enjoy, and make sure to tag me if you use any of these activities!

Love seeing what you’re doing with your kiddos!

This printable has a variety of worksheets using charting and math skills, so you can use this for older children as well!

I had Austen organize his jelly beans above and then line them up so he could see the different lengths. I added the colors so Austen could easily identify, but he’s actually starting to make connections to the beginning letter and the color, so that’s exciting to watch!

Jelly Bean Math Source

Austen is finally getting into tracing. It took him to awhile to get the attention span to complete activities like this! I’m actually working on a post on how we worked on Austen’s attention span! Coming in a few weeks!

I recommend letting a young child use a marker or get some of these wide grip pencils. Children don’t develop the muscles to hold a typical pencil until they are around the age of 6, so having these wide grip pencils aids in building those muscles!

Easter Word Tracing Source

These are a few links to printables that we used a ton this year, but I just didn’t snap a picture when we used them! You know we love dotting so that had to be included! We’ve started using dot stickers as well with the dotting worksheets!

Easter Number Trace Source

Easter Dotting Source

And while these aren’t worksheets, we have LOVED making lunches and snacks in these egg cartons! Austen loves them so much, and this year he got really into making them for Hudson which has been so sweet! I also bought these this year to switch it up a bit! 

On Friday I have our Easter post! All of the details on our Easter baskets and what we are stuffing in our Easter eggs for the FOUR different Easter egg hunts we have this year! In the mean time, here’s my Amazon Easter list for you with some of our favorite things!

It’s finally time…we’re so excited to share the first room on our home tour…the master bathroom.

We bought and rehabbed our home in the summer/fall of 2017 and it was quite the journey!

You can read all about the journey to getting our house here.

The master bedroom is by far my favorite room in our house.

It’s everyone’s favorite…so let’s do this!

All sources will be linked at the end of the post…so scroll down for paint colors and links. If I missed something…let me know in the comments and I can try to link it or something similar!

Pre-rehab, this room was a bedroom. We {and by we I mean our contractors} had to do a lot of work to get all of the plumbing to work up here.

Scroll down for a few pre and during rehab photos!

We went through about a million layouts for the bathroom. Mainly trying to figure out how to have a large shower and my dream tub AND a nice big walk in closet.

It was just not working out. So we chose to make a smaller closet, and use Ikea cabinets in our bedroom that you’ll see once you scroll down.

I love the symmetry we have with the shower and closet being the same size and shape.

It’s funny because I always dreamed of having a place to sit and do my makeup, so we designed the cabinetry for that purpose….and I never sit to do my makeup.

So we’re hoping to get a cabinet to fill that space that has just drawers for more storage.

The shower is so dreamy! And the acoustics are perfect for shower singing…just saying.

We do regret not getting a double faucet and I wish we had put a larger nook for our shower things. But other than that we LOVE it!

This tub is my dream, and some days it’s like the carrot to the end of my day…just waiting until I can melt into a hot bath!

Any other crazies out there who love their bath like crazy hot?

Alex built me this amazing shelf so I can rest my iPad and shampoo and all that jazz…and even a spot for my glass of wine!

The majority of our clothes are in our Ikea cabinetry in our master room.

Scroll down to see a peek, but I’ll be sharing more of those in our master bedroom reveal.

But this closet is where I keep a lot of my shoes, all of my coats, etc.

We were blessed with 10 ft ceilings, so to use that space we have a SUPER high rod where we hang things we don’t need all the time {Alex’s suits, and dress shirts, my off season items}

Alex actually installed all of our closets using the Closet Maid system from Home Depot.

You can customize things easily, so we were able to make each closet how we like it!

We have this whole column of square bins to hold our hats, belts, purses, etc.

And then there’s my boot rod. We did this at our old house and people were always amazed by it. I probably saw it on Pinterest, but it works amazingly! I just use hooks meant for skirts and hang those beauties up!

We don’t have a coat closet downstairs, so this is where we hold the majority of our coats and jackets.

This is a peek at our Ikea system we use in our master room.

I’ll be sharing all of those details in April!

People are always amazed by how I hang my hats…just cheap hooks from Amazon friends!

There she is friends. She’s like a sparkly jewel and we love her!

Here are all of our sources. Let me know if I missed something in comments! I’ll be happy to add our exact link or find something similar for you!

Paint Color: Secreto by Benjamin Moore Color Matched at Lowes

Trim Color: Chantilly Lace by Benjamin Moore Color Matched at Lowes

Bathtub: Signature Hardware

Bathtub Faucet: Signature Hardware {Similar}

Tub Shelf: DIY by Mr. Wendel

Curtains: Ikea

Curtain Rods: Ikea

Fake Greenery in Tub Shelf: Ikea

Apothecary Jar: Home Goods

Rug: Target {Similar}

Mirrors: Ikea

Picture Frames: Target

Vanity Lights: Wayfair

Chandelier: Wayfair

Shower Door: Dickies Glass {Local}

All Tile: Tile Shop

Toilet: Lowes

All of the beautiful pictures above by Tasha Pinelo

Non professional pictures below of renovation process by a very pregnant Lelia

Children come with SO MANY THINGS.

Toys…clothes…shoes…

Lord. Have. Mercy

Then you add the arts and craft “stuff” and it’s madness.

Paper, stickers crayons, markers, paints.

It’s insanity.

You all know I love me some organization, so of course this spilled over into all of the our art supplies!

I pretty much followed those same tips: purge, group, separate, display teach.

If none of that makes sense…go read this blog post where I show you how to organize all of your toys!

This is our art closet. It’s in our kitchen right by our back door. It was kind of an awkward cabinet in our kitchen layout, so it was the perfect spot to dedicate to all of our art things.

I got the brown boxes from Michaels, the white magazine boxes from Ikea and the clear and green boxes from Target.

The top shelf is a laminator. I know….random but I was an education major and we had to laminate things all the time. You’d be surprised how much I actually use that sucker!

The next shelf down is paint and paint brushes.

The next shelf is paper and coloring books and free printable worksheets from Pinterest…AKA my secret weapon on hard days.

Then the bottom shelf are my bins with all of the our favorite art supples: dotters, crayons, stamps, chunkies {they’re amazing guys}, wikki sticks, and stickers.

I’ve linked ALL of our favorite art supplies in this Amazon list.

I also have this carousel from Michaels that holds pins, sharpies, scissors, chalk markers, etc.

I’m kind of a art supply junkie.

The bottom cabinet holds a few hands on activities and boxes for organizing thank you cards, tape/washi tape/ yarn/ string.

I also have this binder with things I’ve printed off for Austen to do. Simple free printables for Pinterest like this or this.

And that’s about it friends! We have so much fun pulling these out quickly to kill time, or if it’s a rainy day.

We’ve really had to work on Austen’s attention span when it comes to working on art activities…and I’ve got a post coming on exactly how we’ve done that!

I’d love to know what your favorite art supplies are! Maybe you’ll introduce us to a new favorite!

Happy Monday friends!

All pictures by the talented Tasha Pinelo

Since I was sick and couldn’t get this post together for Saint Patrick’s Day, I thought I would save it for next year.

Then I realized…grace not perfection Lelia…share the dang post!

So here I am providing you with all kinds of Saint Patrick’s Day inspiration…a month!

I already shared my simple tips for holiday planning…so make sure to check out that post.

Honestly…just switch the colors and this goes for any holiday!

But don’t worry…I’ll be sharing all kinds of Easter inspiration…in plenty of time for Easter.

Unless another stomach bug hits us…but not today Satan…not today.

To me, holidays are just a fun opportunity to show my family and friends some love. I adore ALL holidays, and we have so much fun making even the smallest holiday into a fun tradition!

I also just really love to be creative, so this allows me to use some of my God given talents. It brings me so much joy, and I hope that me sharing some of our favorite St. Patrick’s Day activities will spark joy in you and inspire you to make some memories!

I always love creating some kind of snack board for the boys during a holiday. Muffin tins are a great way to make a festive snack. And you don’t even need a holiday themed one! Just use a regular old muffin tin from your collection. Fill that baby with some themed snacks, and enjoy the memories!

For Saint Patrick’s Day we did some green apples, green grapes, cheddar cheese clovers, edamame crisps, pistachios, broccoli, Lucky Charms, and green M&Ms {duh}.

Printables are my favorite way to include free, simple, holiday activities into our day! Just Pinterest “free Saint Patrick’s Day printable activities” and print those babies off! We love dotting sheets, color by number sheets, and this year Austen got really into these tracing sheets.

This cute I Spy sheet was a hit! I had Austen use stickers to cover up the items. I would say “put a yellow sticker on a clover” and he would search and find! So stinking cute!

Don’t forget to get your kids involved! Children love purpose, so Austen helped me fill the muffin tin. He’s also been given the job of pulling the grapes off of the step which is a HUGE help!

ALWAYS grab the dollar spot holiday glasses…because festive things are FUN!

We always bring out the play dough for holidays! Even Hudson is learning how to roll out the dough. I wish I had some of those plastic gold coins that he could press into the play dough! I’ll have to remember that for next year!

For these two faces…I would literally do anything to make a fun memory.

Collecting some themed food and crafts…pretty dang easy friends!

And make sure you check out my post all about holiday planning!

Happy Weekend Friends!

All photos by the talented Tasha Pinelo

If you’ve followed me on social media, you know that I LOVE me a holiday. And I like to suck as much out of a holiday as humanly possible.

I know a lot of people think I’m a little over the top with my holiday craziness. But to be honest, you’ve giving me way more credit than I deserve.

Here’s what I do differently than a lot of people:

I find things on Pinterest…I pick two or three things to do…and then I DO THEM.

Wait…you get on Pinterest…and then you do them?

Yup…the secret’s out.

Here’s the key though…I pick TWO or THREE things.

I don’t aim to do every single thing off of my Pinterest board.

This was not always the case. I had this HUGE revelation in 2017 that I’m horrific with follow through. I would always have amazing and grand ideas to do fun things…and then never do them. I would always say…”it’s the thought that counts right?” But I’m here to let you in on the a little secret…

The thought isn’t enough friends!

It’s the freaking follow through that counts!

So I started setting standards for myself. If I was going to start something…I was going to follow through with it. If I was going to get a grand idea…I was going to act.

Here’s the trick though guys. I didn’t lower my standards…I modified them so I could intentionally and lovingly make memories for my family!

So here are my tips and tricks to being super festive for holidays…without stressing you the heck out:

Pinterest

Earth shaddering right? No. But how I use Pinterest is what’s unique. I search the given holiday on Pinterest, and then I SCREENSHOT two…maybe three things I’d like to do. Pinning does nothing really guys. How many things have you actually completed on your Pinterest boards. Maybe 1% I’m guessing. But when it’s in your phone’s camera roll..you’ll see it and access it quickly.

Get Your Items ASAP

This goes along with follow through…but when you have festive ideas, you need to get the items. So look at the festive things you want to do, pull out the items you have on hand and then make a list of the things you need.

It might be making green jello to make jello jigglers {one of my favorite easy festive things to include kids} and you need green jello and a shamrock cookie cutter.

So head to Michaels {or Amazon} to get your cookie cutter and add green jello to your grocery list.

It might be making a pizza in the shape of a shamrock. So buy your pizza dough and pizza ingredients and have them on hand for when it’s time. Then you have zero excuses not to follow through!

Schedule It

I can’t tell you how many times I’ve had my things on hand, and then life gets busy, and I forget to do the things I’ve planned for.

No joke…I’ve done so many Christmas things…after Christmas.

This past Christmas, I put all of festive things in my calendar {the one Alex and I share so he can see too} AND added reminders.

Seriously life changing.

So I have everything on hand because I planned, and I have it scheduled.

Boom. Action. Follow Through

Document It

That doesn’t mean you have to share it on social media {but if you do, tag me because I LOVE seeing what you’re doing with your families} but take a picture to remember it by!

We are so hard on ourselves as women, parents, people in general, and sometimes I feel like I have done nothing.

And then I look on my camera…and I can look back on all of the little memories we’re making!

So friends…take some action!

Get on Pinterest, screen shot a few things, and comment below on the thing you’re most excited to do this spring.

Hint: if you want to make the most memories…be cool and pick something messy.

Kids always remember the messy things {insert eye roll and Lelia covered in green jello}

All pictures by the talented Tasha Pinelo.

Please read this entire post…this is important.

We all have the thing…the hill that you will die on.

My hill is protecting children.

After Alex’s birthday dinner, we went to the park to play with my nieces.

It was a sunny day so there were a ton of people there!

We were playing and having fun and I noticed Alex watching something happen.

I looked to where his eyes were glaring and immediately noticed a man berating his {probably} eight year old child.

I’m not afraid of confrontation.

No joke…when I was going into 7th grade I went and confronted a HUGE man who pushed a child down to the ground when leaving the fireworks at Disney World.

So I started to walk over to him and as I was walking over, he slapped his child across the face.

I immediately started yelling ‘Sir…Sir!’

He turned to me and with pure instincts I puffed my chest up to be as big as him and said ‘you will never lay a hand on your child again…and if you continue speaking to him that way I will call the police’

He was drinking (I could smell it on his breath) but the look on his poor child’s you guys…he was humiliated.

We went back and fourth a bit.

He actually was able to have a semi-real conversation with me.

He said “I’m allowed to spank my child.”

I said “you did not spank your child…you slapped him. And studies are showing that physical punishment is not effective.”

He said ‘he’s a hard child…we do what we have to do.”

I said ‘all of our children are hard at times…but they all deserve to be spoken to and treated with respect’

Alex walked over at this point and said ‘Sir…the fact of the matter is that you are scaring the other children and you are going to need to leave.’

The guy calmed down and they left.

HERE’S THE SHOCKING PART TO ME.

There was a big group of middle schoolers watching this go down.

One boy said ‘why did he slap his child?’

I said ‘some parents just don’t take the time to talk to their children. It is never okay to lay your hands on your child’

That boy then said ‘thank you for standing up for that little boy.’

Alex and I took deep breaths, talked about it with Austen and my nieces {who saw the entire thing} and continued playing.

About 30 minutes later those boys came up and said ‘I’m sorry are you the mom who stood up for that boy?

I said yes.

One boy handed me this dollar and said ‘Thank you for not being afraid to step in and protect that child.’

I tried to not take the dollar but they were INSISTENT.

Here’s the take away folks:

EVERY SINGLE CHILD DESERVES TO BE PROTECTED.

THIS IS THE HILL I DIE ON.

I am a wife, mother, aunt, friend…but I AM A PROTECTOR.

It is in my DNA and I want every child to know that even if their parents don’t respect them…that crazy women stood up for them.

I really wish I would have first went right up to the child and said:

“I am so sorry you dad is talking to you that way. You are smart and strong and amazing. It’s not okay for an adult to speak to a child that way.”

I really pray that man didn’t feel completely judged…but convicted.

I pray that man didn’t take it out on his child more when they left.

Here’s the other sad part to me.

When I saw that man berating his child, I saw that adult man as a child.

No joke..it flashed in front of my eyes.

I saw that man, as a child, being humiliated by HIS father.

Poor parenting is generational.

But somewhere…that has to shift.

Someone has to decide that it’s not working.

Parenting will ALWAYS be something I’m passionate about.

I rave about Ralphie from Simply On Purpose…she’s incredible.

But my BIGGEST take away has been a phrase she uses all the time.

A phrase I repeat to myself multiple times daily.

“IT IS THEIR JOB TO BE A CHILD…IT IS OUR JOB TO STAY CALM.

Friends…they are learning to react to situations BY WATCHING YOU!

How do you want you children to react?

Our of anger…or out of respect?

With words…or with their fists?

Ralphie has created a FREE ecourse called Staying Safe.

The tag line is: why we yell, why it doesn’t work, and what to do instead.

Please go and download this free ecourse!

Please open your mind to a different way of parenting.

Please respect your children.

I’d love to know what hill you would die on.

Is it equality? Justice? Freedom? Safety?

I’m so thankful we all have different hills to die on…so we can work together to make the world a better place!

We are so excited to do our first giveaway on the new blog!

I’ve mentioned Belle Bucket a few times on Instastories and quite a few of you have sent us pictures of your adorable bucket lists in your home!

I NEVER share a product unless I love it, and working with Bell Bucket on these customizable bucket lists has been so much fun!

Sure, you can print off a free printable from Pinterest, but I love that you can fully customize these bucket lists!

Especially to add Austen and Mommy/ Austen and Daddy dates!

He loves seeing his name on the bucket list!

We’ve been trying hard to take time out of our months to spend quality time with just him.

Soon we’ll add Hudson dates too!

The space we put the bucket list is actually super intentional.

We pass this spot 20 plus times a day. So it’s a reminder for us to stop and do something to make incredible memories as a family.

It’s also an awkward wall too, that has our thermostat to the right. Not even in the middle!

So Alex made this amazing frame that we can pop on and off if we need to get to the thermostat.

If you don’t have a handy husband, here’s a super easy wooden magnet poster frame you could use!

Belle Bucket has seasonal bucket lists, yearly bucket lists, a seasonal subscription {which is what we did and paid our own money for}, date night lists, and deployment lists {which I LOVE}

She even gives suggestions for each season, because thinking of 30+ items is kind of hard! She’s already done the work for you!

Belle Bucket has been gracious enough to giveaway one free bucket list to a lucky winner!

All you have to go is go and follow me on Instagram and Belle Bucket on Instagram and comment on this post to be entered!

Giveaway will end on March 29th at midnight!

I will announce on Instagram the winner on March 30th!

So excited for you to experience this fun family tradition, and make some memories!

Pictures by Tasha Pinelo Photography