welcome to indie's market

what a weekend.

what a week.

what a month.

i don't know if i've ever been so happy to see june in all my life. well, maybe that spring of sixth grade. 

but amidst the craziness that is the end of school/mom of five/wife of a high school principal/sister to a grad, a year had officially past since we welcomed little henry indiana into our family. so, in the same weekend we celebrated my youngest sister completing school, we also celebrated the first year of life with our indie boy. our blue eyed, squinty smile, still redheaded, daddy junior, boy.

my papaw, who we lost a few years ago to dementia, was a farmer & indie's party was a sort of homage to him. his tee having the words, "support your local farmers" printed on it. 

"sweet indie, your great papaw's name was jack. he would have given you rides in his john deere tractor. he would have let you steer his truck down their long gravel drive. he would have let you try on his polka dotted hat. he would have taught you to snort like a pig. and he would have definitely made you laugh. oh how he would have loved you indie boy."

half of the invitations may have gotten lost in the mail, but we partied at our home the sunday of memorial day weekend. it was a million degrees but i didn't even care because it wasn't raining. the babies, however, did care. so shortly after opening presents (quickly) & "smash caking" (barely) we all migrated indoors to the air conditioning where we actually got to enjoy some of the magical cake made by taproot farms. 

welcome, friends, to indie's market...organic & home grown, established may 25, 2017. ;)

oh indie boy

you are so loved.

we didn't know 

how much we needed you

and all your squinty eye smiles.

xoxo mom




my last first birthday party. EMOTIONS.

year two with an olive

i almost forgot her birthday.

i mean, i knew it was coming, but my mind has been on new baby coming plus dates & numbers have never been my thing anyway...am i making excuses? maybe. does it even matter? probably to her. one day.

we were really hoping to celebrate outside with all our new, pretty plant babies, but, of course, it called for rain. all. day. i also had little to no ability to get anything prepped or decorated this time around. 38 going on 39 weeks pregnant & i can barely walk. seriously, you should see me. no. you really should not. it's just sad. and slightly embarrassing. penguins are cute, right? waddle. waddle. 

so my party plan...keep it as simple as possible. 

late afternoon.

ice cream sundaes.

(and ice cream floats per the kids' requests.)

popcorn.

lemonade.

cookies.

use whatever decorations i have here at the house. 

use plasticware so there are minimal dishes.

that's about it.

i almost forgot about her gift. 

luckily i had purchased a few things along the way already & just had to put them into a gift bag for her. no card. i mean, what's she gonna do? read it? (excuses. i forgot.)

so the funny thing is...we've sort of done all this before. 

before our second, kennedy, was born, we were waiting on our first, emma, to have her fourth birthday. we made it through the party & she was born two days later. i joke that this little guy will be coming in two days since we got through his sister's birthday today. we're nothing if not consistent. i also have to point out that having two sets of birthdays close together with a brood of five is a ridiculous blessing for this family. that means only three actual parties each year.  YASSSS. imma pretend like we planned it that way all along. 

you guys, look at those faces.

my favorite.


happy birthday my olive deering.




xo

happy mail with mom'n tot box!

oh man, what a crazy month august has been. i'm gonna blink & it will be september. olive & i are settling into a new routine as everyone headed back to school & i won't lie...it's been glorious. the quiet. it's just so good. and only having to think about the needs of one versus four has been a welcome relief for this mama. 

back to school shopping seemed to be such a breeze this year. thank the heavens for online shopping.  can i get an amen?! and coupon codes. and old navy cash. and clearance sales. and not having to deal with stores & fitting rooms & checkout lines & feeding the kids & loading and unloading a van...like i said, thank the heavens for online shopping. i get to sit at the house & let those sweet, little packages arrive like it's christmas in july...OR AUGUST. and who doesn't love a good mail day?! i am loving mail subscription boxes lately! have you guys ever tried them??

one year for mother's day, hubs signed me up for a 3-month subscription for a beauty box & it was seriously so fun. every month i got a box full of new health & beauty products to try. it was like getting a present every month! we recently found mom'n tot box through instagram & it's for KIDS & MOMS. heck to the yeayah. each box is specially curated according to your children's age, size & gender (up to age 4) & can even be done as a sibling box for 2! mom'n tot box is full of items from small, made in the USA, businesses which is one of my favorite favorite favorite things. 

#shopsmall y'all.

so we got our first mom'n tot box delivery & i let olive rip into her box. she LOVED...the bright, yellow tissue paper. lol. kids & tissue paper, what is with that??? then she found the tin full of beautiful crayons by childhoodlist. these crayons are handmade using natural, non-toxic & eco-friendly materials. and truth be told, olive's big sister was even more excited for the new, shiny box of crayons. i don't blame her--i'm a sucker for packaging, too. i couldn't help but think, these would be such great stocking stuffers (shhhh)! 

then i saw the grey arrow tee--gah. i immediately put this SUPER SOFT wild child tee on olive. it's from harris and fin & is made by sweet emily in indiana! as fast as this tee gets washed, it is back on. they have the most precious clothes in their etsy shop!

since receiving our box, i've been using the shampoo & body wash, baby cream & cuddle rub on olive & this mama cannot get enough of smelling that sweet baby. all these products are by grace mabel baby & smell so fresh & clean. they are a 100% safe & natural skincare line for kids, and again, made in the USA! their creator's name is amanda (what a beautiful name!) & you guys, she has such a heart for children & toxic-free living--you've got to check her out!

as for this mama, i got a bergamot & black pepper roll-on perfume/deodorant from cj & vox. it has the most comforting scent, a warm, clean citrusy roll on that i have been wearing...every...day. another perk: it's made with therapeutic grade essential oils which means, not only does it smell good but it has health benefits for ME. the bergamot is light & airy & is great for mental & physical stress, when i'm feeling down & especially great for THAT TIME OF THE MONTH. :) this roll on is also combined with black pepper essential oil which promotes an overall comforting feeling--that, let's be honest, i could always use. i carry it in our diaper tote so i can reapply quickly & easily wherever we are throughout the day.

i can honestly say, i CANNOT wait for next month's box! you MUST go for the 3-month subscription & tell me what you get in yours!

yay for moms helping moms & small business! go america.

be sure you click over to momandtotbox's instagram page & check out all the sweet photos of babes loving their new finds! tag @momandtotbox in any picture of your child in their clothing/accessories from your box for a chance to be featured & entered in a drawing for $10 off your box next month! suh-sweet!

sign up for your subscription NOW here & put back some of these amazing products for christmas!!!

happy mail day, friends!

(olive says yeah!)