BABY LIIRA #2...IT'S A......!

---

James and I are so happy to announce that we are having a BABY GIRL!!!!!! It feels so surreal! We both guessed correctly but still it was so nice to have it confirmed. James is over the moon and so excited to be a daddy to a little girl. I love being a boy mom but man, I am sooo excited to raise a fierce, world changing, little girl! 

Huge thanks to Rachael for taking these photos! And also to our good friend, Tyson who took more that I will post soon :)

Can't believe we're having a GIRL! Bring on all the cute clothes and accessories!!!

I'll be back soon with even more pictures!

My gorgeous maternity dress from Shop Pink Blush

XO!

laura

LUCA THE LION // 10 + 11 MONTH UPDATE

---

LUCA AT 10-11 MONTHS

So this update is a two in one...blame it on pregnancy + going away + going back to work + house renos! And you guys...this is the last update before Luca is a ONE YEAR OLD! I'm going to have a one year old...good thing another baby is on the way haha.
 

Here's the Lion's 10/11 month update.

WEIGHT: 24lbs?
I actually have no idea lols. He's been gaining weight but also seems to grow a couple inches every few days, so I'm looking forward to finding out where he's at at his one year appointment next month!

HEIGHT: Haven't measured him lately but I'm guessing he's gained at least an inch in the past two months!

WEARS: Mostly in 12-18 month clothing but I've been squeezing him into a few things that are 9-12, but they're tiiiiight ha! I love the summer look, he looks just so cute in a t-shirt with his belly hanging out ha.

SLEEPS: Like an angel. In the past few months he's only woken up (when we had to go in and soothe him) once...and that was when he was sick a couple nights ago! He's still on two naps a day. I'm finding if those exceed a total of 3 hours, it's harder to get him to sleep at 7pm. But man, we are so blessed with this little guy.

EATS: Still loving food! He now has four teeth so he's getting so good at chewing! He pretty much eats whatever we're eating for dinner, so it's pretty easy to feed him. He's now fully on formula as he weaned himself a couple months ago. I had cut back to nursing him in the morning and at night because I just felt so drained being pregnant and nursing but he ended up not really wanting to nurse anymore at all, so now it's bottle feeding. At first I was sad but now I'm totally ok to let the girls have a break for a few months before baby #2 comes lols lols.

PLAYS: Oh man, this little guy keeps me so busy! He is constantly on the move. Always wanting to climb the stairs...which results in me carrying him back down because he just can't figure out how to go down safely, lols. He still love chasing Coco around the house but she had scratched him a few tims :( It's mostly when she's sleeping and he sneaks up and grabs her tail. He hasn't cried but I still get nervous so I usually put her behind the baby gate.

HIGHS: All the cuddles. My little guy is becoming such a cuddle monster and I LOVE IT. I love when I'm not in a rush and can just cuddle him while he drinks his post sleeping bottle. It's my favourite. He's such an affectionate little guy.

LOWS: Luca got sick over the weekend with a high fever and vomiting. It was so so so sad and scary too. Thankfully tylenol and rest worked and he was back to his normal self within 48 hours. 

PARENTING: Going back to work has been good yet hard in ways too. I love working. I don't think I'm cut out to be a stay at home mom but the struggle is real! This is a whole post in itself but man, I am feeling the strain of wanting to further your career but also wanting to birth more babies and raise a family. Being a mama is so sacrificial. I'm trying to remind myself that this is a season and it the scheme of things, it will seem soooo short so I need to just embrace the season that God has given me. Work will always be there but my sweet baby won't always be a baby.

POSTPARTUM: I guess I'm technically prenatal now lols! Speaking of which... I will give you another pregnancy update soon! 

WHAT I'M LOOKING FORWARD TO: Luca's first birthday! We're doing a lumberjack theme and I'm sooo excited!!

Can't believe the next update will be about my ONE YEAR OLD SON!!! Oh sweet Luca, it's such a joy and privilege to be your mama.

XO,
Laura

MAMA BEAR BOX APRIL REVIEW

---

In April I received my first Mama Bear Box and you guys, it was so sweet. I subscribed for three months, so I'm already eagerly checking the mailbox daily in hopes that the May box will arrive lols.

You select the gender and age range so it's customized to your babe and the best thing is- there are treats for you as well! Another amazing thing about these boxes is that for every box sold, $2 goes to the Joy Smith Foundation, which is a Canadian foundation that is fighting human trafficking!

Here's what came in my April box:

1. Dinosaur Rattle by Petitloulou- I love the design of this rattle and Luca loves it too! I'm all about those cute, trendy toys that aren't bright and made of plastic, ha.

2. Tee by Everly After Creations- Ok, this is my new favourite shirt of Luca's. How stinking cute is that leather pocket! It's a bit tight on the arms for him but maybe that's cuz my boy is a chunky monkey lols. It looks so cute on him and I want to dress him in it errrrday.

3. Baby Body Butter by Duckish- I just opened this one yesterday and applied it to Luca, post bath. His skin definitely felt soft and smooth. It didn't really have a scent to it, which probably most ppl would love but you know me, I'm all about that scent, ha.

4. Dirty Girl Face Mask- I actually haven't used this one but I'm gonna tonight. I love masks so I'm definitely excited to see how it leaves my skin feeling!

I would definitely say this box is worth it and would make a beautiful gift for a mama or mama to be! And ps. use the code mbb10 to save 10%!

XO,
laura

WE'RE HAVING ANOTHER BABY!

---

This is a sponsored post written by me on behalf of e.p.t.. All opinions are 100% mine.

James, Luca and myself are thrilled to announce that baby Liira #2 will be making his/her debut this fall! 

We are beyond excited to welcome another baby and give Luca a sibling. If this baby arrives on its due date (like Luca did!) then they will be a little less than 16 months apart! It's wild and crazy  and they will be a little bit closer than I had originally planned but hey, it's all going to work out just fine :) (at least that's what I keep telling myself....ps. so thankful we have a lot of family and amazing friends in town!)

It was so crazy testing this time around. As you may remember with Luca, it took about 6 months to conceive him and I tested negative after negative. This time around my cycle was a bit out of whack and I was on day 45 so I decided to test. So early morning I tested and was clearly a bit tired because I thought it was negative and put in the trash can. I go and tell James we're not pregnant then think, "Oh my gosh, I'm supposed to wait a few minutes, I should really go check again." So I pull it out of the trash and there you go, a faint positive line!!!!!  

I actually found out SUPER early.... 3 weeks 2 days to be exact! So thankful for pregnancy tests like e.p.t. that detect pregnancy 5 days sooner and are 99% accurate!

FYI- if you live in the states you can pick up e.p.t. from Walmart, Wallgreens or RiteAid. I just ordered mine from Amazon, which is the best because who knows who you could run into while buying a pregnancy test lols!

I cannot wait to see Luca become a big brother. I know not to have crazy expectations as he's still a baby himself BUT he's just such a loving little guy. I know in his time, he is going to be such a loving and caring big brother and I can't wait to watch it unfold! I'm kinda hoping for another boy so him and Luca can be besties (and because we have all the boy stuff already lols). Obviously, I would be completely thrilled with whatever the sex is! Oh and incase you're wondering, we are definitely finding out and this time I'm hoping to do a fun gender reveal.

I'll be heading back to work a month early, which I'm actually pretty excited about. My bosses have been so encouraging and supportive. So thankful to work in a place that is in support of families!

Baby is due early October. It's going to be so different to have a fall baby (Luca was born in mid-June!) but I'm already imagining newborn snuggles while I sip a pumpkin spice latte lols. It's also going to be pretty interesting being super preggo in the summer. I'll probably try to squeeze in lots of lake swims to cool my huge preggo self down, ha.

Can't wait to meet this baby bunny! It's already going by so quickly. I'll be back soon with a more detailed bump update. (Yes, I'm planning on doing these this pregnancy!)

And mama's with two under two, give me alllll your tips please and thank you!

XOXO,
Laura

LUCA THE LION // 9 MONTH UPDATE

---

LUCA AT NINE MONTHS

Our little bubba is growing up so quickly! I can't believe how much of a little boy he is...no longer looking like a baby....it's so sad but this month has been my favourite yet! He's so interactive and plays so well independently. It's so fun discovering what makes him laugh, oh man this is such a fun age!
 

Here's the Lion's 9 month update:

WEIGHT: 21.5 lbs
My little man likes to EAT! So much that he jumped from the 50th percentile in weight to the 75th!

HEIGHT: 28.5 inches
He's getting taller!

WEARS: He's pretty much mostly in 12 month clothing. Honestly I haven't purchased anything brand new for him recently because I've been going to Thistle & Wren and finding the cutest things! I love consignment. If you're local to Victoria, I highly suggest checking them out (they're located in Fernwood square!)

SLEEPS: Thankfully last month's early wake ups are long gone (hoping this sticks for a looong time). My little Lion has been sleeping SO WELL! Daylight savings turned out to be amazing as he now goes down at 7:30pm, which allows us to actually do things in the evening, yay! And he's been sleeping straight through until 7-7:30. It's honestly been a dream. I think he maybe got up once this past month? And all James had to do was change his diaper and he went back to sleep.
Naps have been going pretty well too. Sometime he resists the morning nap, but usually he'll go about an hour and then for 1.5-2 hours in the afternoon. I'm thinking of getting him some blackout blinds soon because it's been getting brighter and brighter. Please let me know mamas if you have any recommendations!

EATS: Little man eats everything! We feed him a mix of purees and finger foods. Sometimes he's not so good at the chewing part...hoping he gets a few more teeth soon because I'm sure that will help him be more efficient and not give mama a heart attack when he swallows things whole!!!

PLAYS: It's so fun watching this little man explore! We had to hcore baby proof our house because he was getting into absolutely everything! His favourite thing to do is chase Coco, our cat around the house. He thinks she's the best thing ever and she is the annoyed older sister...thankfully she hasn't tried to scratch him but she is so not interested in him lols. He's inch-worming everywhere! We have hardwood so I think it's a bit harder to crawl on. He's also pulling himself up on everything (including his crib when he's refusing a nap lols) and even is starting to walk on his walker! AHHH please stop growing so quickly little lion!

HIGHS: Oh man, so many highs! But I think him giving me kisses is my favourite thing in the world right now. They're open mouth and pretty slobbery but I'll take them whenever I can get them!

LOWS: Getting the flu SUCKED. Oh my gosh, it knocked James and myself out for days. Thankfully Luca only got it in poop format and he wasn't mad at all. Oh ya, it was sooo much fun changing poopsplosions when you feel like poop :/

PARENTING: We simply just love being parents to this little guy. James and him have such a little bond, it's soo sweet. James will be taking care of Luca on Mondays when I go back to work in May and he's soo excited about it. #presh

POSTPARTUM: Well after being sick and pretty run down for the past month, I'm excited to get back on the exercise train! I'll be doing mostly running/walking outside and some videos in my house. We're trying to save some $$ so we cancelled our gym memberships.

WHAT I'M LOOKING FORWARD TO: In April we have two little getaways before I go back to work in May! First a quick family trip to our new family cabin on Pender Island...SOOO EXCITED! And then mama gets to go away for a spa trip to Whistler to celebrate my bestie Rachel turning 30!! So excited to get these fun things in before going back to work!!

I'll be back soon with a 10 month update because that's only a couple weeks away lols.

Love ya!

Laura