How to have a great 1st birthday

Posted on April 14, 2013 by lauren

In case you haven’t noticed, Alex turned 1 last week and we’re super excited. On Saturday we had a great little Go, Dog. Go! themed party. If you don’t know PD Eastman, you should check out his books. They were some of my favourite growing up. Alex likes them too and we all love a good party. Here’s our recipe for success.

The Décor

It was 100% chance of rain on Saturday, so I knew I had to bring spring indoors with lots of bright colours and fresh flowers. I proudly put our favourite photos of Alex on display and did a quick de-cluttering of toys, making sure that all his favourites were out. With one pack of multi-coloured tissue paper, I made a super festive ‘A’ and loads of poms to jazz up the boring light fixture. We have a cute dotty garland from Nate’s 1st birthday, so I printed out pictures from his invite (adopted from the book) and attached with blue tac.

I think cupcakes are the best for parties with little kids because it’s portion controlled and it makes it easy if someone has to leave early or arrives late. These were carrot cake with sugar free cream cheese icing. Delicious. I also make cheese crackers and meringue with sprinkles. We also served lots of fresh fruit because its delicious, pretty and kid friendly. We always end up with a lot of soda we don’t want after parties, so this time we decided to serve water infused with fresh fruit (citrus fruits & raspberry-lime). It was so delicious and a nice change. Nate drank a litre easily because it was pink water.

The Gifts

Alex has pretty much everything he could ever want and more, so we decided to get him a collection of Alex-based gifts: a name puzzle, Baby Alexander (he’s Peppa’s cousin) and Alexander and Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day (I loved this book so much as a kid). His uncle brought him a giant balloon that was quickly adopted by Nate and we gave all our little guests copies of the book we based the party on.

The Attire

Bow-ties are not optional.

The Cake

Everyone else may get cupcakes, but Alex got his own two-tiered cake to destroy. You only get one first birthday and I love a good ole cake-face photo. This is what being a parent is all about: cutting grapes in half and keeping all salt, sugar, chemicals away from them for 365 days and then going nuts on their birthday. Live it up little man.

The Aftermath

Toys everywhere and an exhausted baby boy (and parents). Time to put on the kettle and put our feet up until a certain little boy turns 3 in August!

Lovely Love Day

Posted on February 16, 2013 by lauren

Our early years: 1. Somerville, MA (2006), 2. Stephen’s Green, Dublin (2005), 3. Cork St, Dublin (2004), 4. The Village, Dublin (2005), 6. Edinburgh (2005), 6. Rome (2005), 7. Edinburgh (2005), 8. Galway (2005), 9. Cork St, Dublin (2005)

Love is in the air this week. Nope I’m not talking about Valentine’s Day, seven years ago today Chris asked me to marry him in the most incredible, surprising and romantic moment of my life. I think it’s a lovely story that may seem like nothing in today’s era of lipdub, flash mob, highly produced proposals, but it was genuine and amazing and I feel like sharing the story.

So, here’s the somewhat short history of our courtship. I met Chris at a pub in Dublin while on Spring Break (I know, right?!) The following September, I moved to Dublin to start grad school and almost immediately started dating Chris (like 2 days after arriving in town). I knew probably an hour after I met Chris that I was going to marry him, but it took Chris a while longer. Anyway, we had a fabulous year together before I had to move back to Boston (a week before my birthday, talk about timing!) So we keep up a long distance relationship through Christmas and New Year, and it was really tough. Chris came to visit in January and we talked about marriage, but nothing really concrete. Partly it seemed like the only way we could be in the same country together (unless we ran away to Korea to teach English), but mostly there was the whole wanting to spend the rest of our life together thing. The only thing holding us back our lack of real jobs and money. Just to be on the safe side, I went ahead and set up my LaurenDare Gmail account (because I hate it when you have to add numbers!)

Fast forward to February 16, 2006. I usually talked to Chris three times a day–on my way to work, on my lunch break and just after I got home from work and we’d text all the time. Around Valentine’s Day, Chris’s phone ‘broke’ and I couldn’t get in touch with him. I was taking an evening photography course at BU on Thursdays, so I typically didn’t talk to Chris much on those days and was distracted enough by class to not really think about his broken phone. On my way home I called my mom and started having a heated discussion about how ridiculous it was that the Vice President shot someone in the face (remember that?) As I crossed over the Mass Pike on Cambridge St (a totally romantic spot in Allston), I looked up and saw this massive golden full moon. I remember thinking I wished I had my camera on me to take a picture of it for Chris to see. Then all of a sudden a hooded man jumped out from the footpath.

Okay, it goes a little fuzzy here. I was half thinking, this man is trying to mug me (despite him saying “Lauren, Lauren” repeatedly and trying to hand me a jewellery box). I squealed something to my mom about Chris being here and handed the phone to him. Now this happens to be the first time Chris ever talked to her on the phone. “Yes, this is Chris. Yes, I do have a funny accent. What am I doing in Boston? Well I need to talk to your daughter about that” went the conversation as Chris pleaded with his eyes for me to take the phone away. I finally figured out what was going on and hung up on my mom. Chris got down on one knee, said something lovely (I have no idea what he said because I was crying like crazy). I said yes and Chris said, “Great now give me back the ring because we might really get mugged.”

Chris had orchestrated such an astounding lie and surprise. He flew in that morning and checked into a hotel to clean up and rest up. The phone sham was to cover his tracks in case I called and detected the strange ring you get while roaming. He did some digging online to find out when my class would get out and calculated how long it would take me to get home. (Seriously, my engagement spot was not a place to loiter). While waiting around, he got a bit hungry and had a chilli dog with extra onions from Spikes (it’s not like he was about to propose or anything). A few days later some friends from Dublin flew over to celebrate with us and 7 months later Chris got his finance visa so that he could return to Boston for our wedding. There’s more to that story, but that’s for an other day…

Alex at 10 Months

Posted on February 12, 2013 by lauren

Nate’s First Haircut

Posted on February 3, 2013 by lauren

He may be nearly 30 months old, but Nate finally got a hair cut. He was getting a bit scraggly, but honestly didn’t have too much hair. I’ve been putting it off because I didn’t think it would be worth it for a few snips. Plus he has eczema on his scalp that has only recently calmed down. This weekend I finally decided to bite the bullet and take him to Kiddies Kuts. I don’t plan on making a habit of it as it’s a bit expensive at €15 a pop, but you get a certificate for your first haircut and get to sit in a train and watch Peppa Pig. That’s pretty much Nate’s idea of heaven. We practised at home and got him pumped for his haircut. He did great, quietly watching everything going on. The lady cutting his hair was really quick and nice to him. That’s were he got the blue balloon, which absolutely made his day!

NateHaircut1

A Dirty Protest

Posted on August 3, 2012 by lauren

There are those moments with a toddler where you don’t know whether to laugh or cry. Thursday was one of them. I put Nate down for his nap as I normally do around noon. I listened on the monitor as he chirped and sang and yelled at cars outside. Nothing unusual, it sometimes takes him a while to wind down and he enjoys playing with the soft toys in his bed. It got to around 1:30 and he was still singing loudly, so I decided to try to calm him down. I got to the door and it hit me – the smell. He’d had an enormous poo.

I opened the door and there he was, beaming, holding his favourite white bunny. And there it was, everywhere, poo. So much poo. Nate had apparently been singing while expressing himself via the medium of poo. What to do when confronted with something so horrific, grab your camera for blackmail photos.

Happy Birthday Nate

Posted on August 19, 2011 by lauren

Last week Nate celebrated his first birthday with a super fun polka dot themed garden party. Luckily the rain mostly held off, so our crew of 10 babies and 25 adults could play indoors and outdoors. We had a ball pool, slide, tricycle, BBQ for the grown ups, mini pizza for the babies, grown up carrot cake cupcakes and baby cake carrot cakes (sugar free!). It was really relaxed and so much fun to have all our playgroup friends over with their partners. Chris and his family really got a kick out of seeing all the babies. You forget that civilians aren’t used to the chaos of so many little people.

We made Nate his own special two-tiered carrot cake with no sugar, but frosted it with the good stuff. He was hesitent at first, but once our back was turned he devoured it. I stopped him when he’d eaten half of one tier. He was in a little food coma after that and sat on my friend Jenn’s lap with his tongue hanging out for about 30 minutes. That’s how you celebrate a birthday!

I decorated the food table with some of Nate’s art in cute, bright coloured frames from Ikea. His creche friends painted a little picture for him and that was placed prominently on the mantel (and still is!)

First Invite

Posted on July 20, 2011 by lauren

We’re only a few weeks from my baby boy’s first birthday party! Where did the year go? I’m too excited about planning his party to get weepy over how quickly he’s going up, but post-party I’ll be a tearful mess. Anyhoo…How do you like his invite? I’m super excited about it. The theme of this party is polka-dots and Nate! I love a party with themes, I remember (almost) everyone of my birthday parties growing up.

Have you hosted a kid’s birthday party? I expect other 1-year-olds to attend so any advice on how to keep them happy and safe would be appreciated. And keep your fingers crossed for sunshine on that Saturday!

10 Months

Posted on June 22, 2011 by lauren

You are a go baby! You love music and baby sign language classes and long walks in the buggy. This month we took you to Dublin Zoo where you went crazy for the goats.

Worst Week Ever

Posted on June 13, 2011 by lauren

Okay folks, I’ll be honest. Last week was one of the worst weeks in a long time. Our transition to starting work and creche was pretty rocky and I can only hope that it gets better from here. Nate got a stomach virus at creche and gave it to me, so we spent most of the week tired and miserable. He suffered from separation anxiety pretty bad and cried most of Friday, my first day back with him. But yesterday we both perked up a bit (and managed to paint the bathroom, well I did not Nate) and today is a Mommy Day, so things are looking up. Tomorrow is a work-creche day, so wish us luck (again)!

Joy

Posted on June 7, 2011 by lauren

Here it is, the end of my glorious maternity leave. It has been an amazing experience to spend so much time with my darling Nate. While I am gutted to return to work, I am grateful for every single moment, whether filled with laughter or tears. I’m only going back part-time, so Nate will be in creche 3 days. Everyone tells me it’s the best of both worlds, but to be honest I just want to be a professional mommy.

Anyway, I’ve decided not to fill this day with sadness. Instead, anytime I feel sad or lonely at my little desk, I am going to think about moments that Nate brought me joy. Like the first time he smiled at me or his manic giggle anytime he is carried up the stairs, his face as he sat captivated at his first music class and all the times he dancey-danced to music, his sweet little smell and the times he looked up and delicately touched my face when nursing, seeing him snuggle up with his bedtime bear or falling asleep in my arms.

I’m sure he’ll have a fun day at creche with lots of new toys and new ladies to fawn over him. Just two more days to go, then we’ll have a fun long weekend together.

Teeth

Posted on May 9, 2011 by lauren

Did I mention Nate has two teeth? Well, Nate has two teeth! Yay! This boy has been teething since he was 4 months old. Everyone told us “It can take a long time” No kidding! Four months of drool and tears and finally we have some teeth. They are pretty much the cutest thing I’ve ever seen. Now that we have teeth, we’ve started to “brush”.

There are lots of options in the world of baby toothpaste, a world I was previously unfamiliar. You can start brushing baby teeth as soon as they appear. We put a little dab of toothpaste on a cloth and scrub the tiny teeth. Once he’s bigger, we’ll use a toothbrush. The important thing is setting up good habits for Nate and us.

The market for toothpaste runs from big brands like Aquafresh or Colgate for around €2 a tube to specialist homeopathic brands like Weleda or AloeDent for €4. You’re bound to find a wide variety at Boots, but smaller pharmacies my be limited. Right now we’re trying the Weleda. I like that it is all natural and not tested on animals, but it is double the price of less holistic brands.

I’ve only ever used Aquafresh for toothpaste. Seriously, I’m a brand evangelist. So a part of me wants to make Nate use Aquafresh because it would be funny. (Yeah, that’s my parenting style) We put a little dab of toothpaste on a cloth and scrub the tiny teeth. Once he’s bigger, we’ll use a toothbrush. The important thing is setting up good habits for Nate and us.

I’ll do anything to keep this kid handsome. Lady babies look out!

Cool Tricks

Posted on May 5, 2011 by lauren

Nate is starting to interact with us a lot more now. It is amazing thinking that only a few months back we were cheering his first awkward jab towards the items dangling from his play gym. Now he giggles, dances (well, rocks back and forth), waves and claps his hands. I’m starting to see a little personality peek through and see a lot of mischief in those eyes! My dad always asks if he has any new tricks. Finally I can say he does!

How adorable is his little outfit today. We got it the mail yesterday and I couldn’t wait to dress up Nate. I totally grew up with OshKosh B’Gosh and the metal fasteners brought back so many memories (particularly a purple and red striped corduroy ensemble). This is a vintage find from Edith’s Closet on Etsy who I found via the Little Vintage Style gallery on Hart + Sew. I think I’ll have to dress him in it for his trip to the US Embassy to get his citizenship!

Posted on May 2, 2011 by lauren

It is May. I can’t believe how quickly time has passed. One month left of my maternity leave, soon Nate will be in creche three days a week and I’ll be back at work. I’m trying to embrace all the Mommy Time I have with him before this amazing life as a SAHM comes to an end.

One of the toughest parts of going back to work is giving up breastfeeding. Nate and I struggled and worked very hard together to make breastfeeding work in the first couple of months. Now that it is quick, easy and enjoyable I really hate to stop. But I am grateful for the 9 months we had and for everything I learned about breastfeeding. I’m a huge advocate for it and if I could get my boobs to work, so can just about any gal. I’m giving myself one more week before I start to ween him to the bottle full time.

I can’t say enough positive things about breastfeeding. I did bottle feed for a bit, so I can compare. Once established breastfeeding is so easy, convenient and an amazing bonding experience for you and your baby. But I don’t want to be preachy. If it’s not for you, it’s not for you. However, if you really want to breastfeed and are having trouble here’s my story.

I knew I wanted to breastfeed from the beginning. Lots of my friends told me not to get my hopes up, some people can’t breastfeed. I thought that was crazy, women have had no choice but to breastfeed for thousands of years so why would I be the exception. I’m very stubborn, so the more people told me I might not be able to feed Nate and the more problems we encountered, the more I dug in my heels and pushed to make it work.

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April 14 – Then and Now

Posted on April 14, 2011 by lauren

I have a real problem keeping a journal. Who needs one when you have several blogs, right? Today I picked up my journal that I started around the time we found out about Nate. The last day I wrote in it was April 14 and today is April 14, what a coincidence. It made me think about how much my life has changed in a year.

The topic of last year’s entry was Nate’s first real kick. He made his presence known to us after Spurs (the Dare team of choice) beat Arsenal. Needless to say, his dad and uncle where pretty chuffed that the little man seemed to be practicing his kick and celebrating defeat of a bitter rival.

Today Nate rolled over and back for the first time. That’s another huge milestone, especially for a baby that hates tummy time. Not only did he roll onto his tummy, but he stayed there and giggled for a while too. I love that both these milestones happened on the same day. I’ll have to Tiger Mom him to always achieve something significant on April 14.