RELATIONSHIPS – Page 10 – Whole Heartily

Zoey’s Bedtime Stories

Reading has always been very special to me. I remember my mom reading to me as a child and I believe it had a profound impact on my love for reading and books, not to mention my performance in school. I want to continue that tradition with Zoey. I want her to hear my voice, hear the diction and the pronunciation, see the beautiful images and eventually enjoy the stories.

Zoey’s Bedtime Story (#ZoeysBedtimeStory) is nighttime ritual I started in January of this year. Every night before her bedtime, I read Zoey a book (sometimes the books last two nights if they turn out to be too long). I can honestly say there are very few books that have captured her attention yet (when we started she was 5 months old, now she’s almost 10 months old). She’s more interested in just about everything else, but that doesn’t discourage me. I’ll keep going until she feels like paying attention and that’s when the real fun will begin!

Please come follow along on my Instagram where I post which book we’re reading each night in my story, and every book I’ve read to her has been saved to the highlights on my profile.

Children and Young Adult Books for Zoey. I’ve also started a Pinterest Board of all the books I would like to read to Zoey or share with her someday. Check it out to get inspired and please let me know if there are any children books you would recommend; we love sharing stories!

DIY Ocean Wave Sensory Bottle

DIY Ocean Wave Sensory Bottle With Summer solstice right around the corner, I was thinking about the beach and got inspired to make an ocean wave sensory bottle (not to mention I had all the ingredients already on hand)! Part of the fun in raising Zoey is making things that teach and fascinate her. And, if I’m being completely honest, I find sensory bottles fascinating too, so let’s make one!

DIY Ocean Wave Sensory Bottle

SUPPLIES

16 ounce clear, plastic bottle
Funnel
8 ounces of water
Blue and green food coloring.
8 ounces of baby oil
Glue

DIY Ocean Wave Sensory Bottle

INSTRUCTIONS

Place the funnel in the mouth of your bottle and use it to fill the bottle with 8 ounces of water.
Remove the funnel and add several drops of blue and green food coloring until you reach your desired shade of ocean aqua. I used 8 drops of blue and 2 drops of green, as you can see that led to a very deep shade of blue green.
Screw the lid back onto the bottle and shake the water until the food coloring is well incorporated, then remove the lid and replace the funnel.
Add up to 8 ounces of baby oil.
If your child is older and you worry about him/her undoing the lid, you can coat the inside of the lid with glue, then screw it back onto the bottle. This will secure the lid and make it harder for little ones to unscrew the lid and create a leak or spill the bottle’s contents. If you’re still concerned they may be able to get the lid off, please use cooking oil instead of baby oil.

Happy 8 Year Wedding Anniversary!

Every year, Cameron and I always find it hard to believe we have been married for five years, six years, seven years! This year we’ve been married 8 years and it’s still hard to believe! It’s not that we’re in total shock or disbelief that we lasted this long, it’s more that we can’t believe how fast the time has flown by.

Cameron and I are just right for one another and I am grateful every day that we found each other instead of settling for less. We love one another, we have fun together, we give each other space for our friends and hobbies, and we never fight. Oh sure we get a little irritable from time to time, more-so when we’re hungry or tired, but we’ve never had a fight and for that I am thankful.

Last August, we welcomed our first baby, Zoey. I have heard horror stories of how babies can be a real strain on a couple’s relationship, but we’ve squashed that stigma too. We support one another in raising her; we trade off feeding her, changing her diapers, we comfort her together, we’re united.

The moral of my story is that being with someone doesn’t have to be hard; if it’s right, it’s right. It should come naturally being in your person’s presence and you shouldn’t settle for anything less.

Happy Independence Day!

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It’s Independence Day here in the United States of America, and while I’ve never really been a person who is interested in politics, this year has really made me think about what being an American is and what independence means to me.

No worries, I am not going to shovel my deep thoughts on you, let’s keep it light! What I will say that I am thankful I have been given the right to live my life the way I want to live it due to others before me standing for what they believe in. I am also thankful for those who are doing what they can now to ensure that we still have that freedom. I hope you have the freedom celebrate this holiday in your own way.

ReadytomaketheWorld

Father’s Day Inspiration

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It’s almost that special time of the year when we recognize the fathers in our lives for being there to love and support us through it all. Like our mothers, our fathers would be happy just to know that his child/children love him and grateful for everything he’s done, but whether you want to show your appreciation through action or give him a gift, sometimes its hard to choose.

Now I know you know your dad best, but just in case you’re stumped I’ve made a list of ideas to spark your imagination.

Go for a drive. There’s nothing like hitting the open road with your dad and sibling or siblings if you have them. It doesn’t have to be to somewhere you’ve never been, just a scenic stretch of road and maybe a bite to eat along the way.

Get crafty and make him a masterpiece: Play to your strengths and make him something that you’re good at making. It doesn’t matter what that may be, as long as you have your Dad in mind when you’re creating it.

Give him something he’s interested in. Think of his hobbies and get him something that compliments those hobbies. Get him a tool for that project he’s been really into, buy him that vintage fishing reel to round out his collection; everyone has something they love doing.

Work on a project together. Ask him if he’d like your help with something he’s been working on and pitch in when and where you can, or just keep him company while he works if he doesn’t need the help.

Make him a meal or meals with his favorite foods. Fire up a grill and make some side dishes, or you make the side dishes and let him grill if that’s what he likes. If cooking isn’t your thing you could always buy him a meal or meals instead, no judgement!

Mother’s Day Inspiration

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It’s almost that special time of the year when we honor the mothers in our lives for being there to love and support us through it all. Any mother would be happy just to know that her child/children love her and grateful for everything she’s done, but whether you want to show your appreciation through actions or give her a gift sometimes its hard to choose.

Now I know no one knows your mom like you know your mom, but I’ve made a list of ideas to spark your imagination and inspire you to do something good for you mom.

Clean something without being asked: Take note of what may be dirty or messy in or around the house and take some of the pressure off your mom by cleaning it up for her. You could also give her “coupons” for different chores that can be done over time, when she needs them most, so follow through!

Get crafty and make her a masterpiece: Play to your strengths and make her something that you’re good at making. It doesn’t matter what that may be, as long as you have your mother in mind when you’re creating it.

Give her something she’s interested in: Think of her hobbies and get her something that compliments those hobbies. Get her the next book in that series she’s been reading, buy her supplies for that craft she’s really into, everyone has something they love doing.

Make her a meal or meals so she doesn’t have to cook for herself: Breakfast in bed, lunch in the sun, and/or dinner. If cooking isn’t your thing you could always buy her a meal or meals instead, no judgement!

Make her something for her sweet tooth: Whip her up some chocolate or bake her something nice like a cake, cupcakes or brownies. Again you could always buy her some sweets if baking isn’t your thing!

We went camping!?

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Cameron and I went camping with his family at Lopez Lake this weekend! It was the first time we’ve been camping together and the first time I’ve been camping since my Girl Scout days in high school and before, and boy, was I out of practice!

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As much as I’ve always loved nature, I’ve grown close to technology and haven’t really thought about how much I’ve come to rely on it. Cameron’s parents and his brother’s family own campers, so it was an easier transition after all these years to have them nearby with electricity and running water (including toilets and showers)! Cameron and I opted to sleep in a tent and while the padding underneath us was comfortable and the sleeping bags were warm, I did not sleep as well as I hoped.

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I dragged my sleepy self out of bag on Saturday morning and after a hearty breakfast, we all went for a walk with the dogs. The scenery was just as beautiful as I remembered, but it really broke my heart, and put the drought into perspective, when I saw just how low the water has sunk. We were walking on a dried out bed of sand and brush that used to be completely under water with the banks high above us and it was incredibly humbling.

When we returned to camp there was some free time and even though I brought my iPhone, iPad and Nintendo 3DS along with me, I ultimately found myself wanting to read whenever we weren’t socializing. We talked, we laughed, we ate a lot of tasty food and celebrated our Nephew’s birthday, it was a good weekend!