my eloise, checkin' out the winter wonderland that filled our street last week :)

last week's excitement also included lucy getting her very own library card :) she chose 3 books to bring home, which she & daddy read every night before bed-

learning to check out her books :)

my sweet snow queen-

every time it snows lucy says "thanks for making it snow, elsa!" we're working hard on the concept that, yes, it's fun to think that a disney princess makes it snow... but make sure & thank Jesus, too! :)

of course, she requested that her snow be made pink- everything PINK! pink plate, pink cup, pink pink pink... [or "peeent" as she says it... still working on that K sound:)]

meme & lucy dug out this sleeping beauty wig from my childhood closet- circa disney world 2002. she was feeling pretty confident that afternoon- 

brewer girl playdates are our favorite kind of playdates!

picnic-ing in the frozen castle!

& fingerpaints :)

lights of my life right there...

saturday morning happies!

followed by our first ikea adventure- eloise gave the experience 2 thumbs up!

 mall date with the best little shoppers i know!

& fun with friends katelyn-

& new teeny, tiny baby sister karly- [a true babydoll!]

meme's been eager to add some 1980's french braids to lucy's hair repertoire-

peek-a-boo! i love you!

after storytime this morning, lu returned last week's library books & we went on a hunt for a tornado book. because as posted about previously- she is obsessed. who would have thought that's what she'd pull from "the wizard of oz"?!?

lucky stack o' pancakes in hopes of a warm march heading our way!

& lastly in household news-

i told myself that once lucy was potty-trained, i would focus on eloise gently learning how to sleep through the night in her own crib. 

backtrack: 

i have really surprised myself as a mom. i am a super organized person, who functions best with schedules. with my kids though- it's most natural to me to follow their lead & to have a pretty flexible schedule, especially when they're babies. 

not to say that they "run the show"- just that it doesn't work well for me to adhere to a tight meal/nap/nighttime schedule pre-age one or so. [once lucy turned one & we moved to a more consistent daytime routine, it was definitely a welcome & happy change!] i love the baby stage, and i definitely haven't been in a rush to push through feeds, to rush napping in their crib, etc. i nurse them as needed, hold them while they sleep & watch them discover the world around them at their own pace. [some coin this "attachment parenting"- whatever it is, it just feels right in my heart!]

this is wonderful & SO worth it to me. i feel so fortunate every single day to get to stay home with my girls & not have to adhere to any tight routine in this season that we're in. HOWEVER, i've also learned that if you wait too long to start helping your baby learn to sleep in their crib rather than in your arms... they have an opinion about it. & it ain't a happy one! lucy was 15 months when we made the transition with her, and she was more stubborn about it than we'd anticipated she'd be. 

SO after 8+ glorious months of co-sleeping, it really felt like the right time to make the transition to eloise sleeping in her own bed. in the long run, this is what's best for us all- short term, i am definitely missing her snoozing away in my arms while we veg out to downton abbey, the bachelor, nashville & how to get away with murder :) [again- flexibility is the name of the game, but it's definitely time for her to learn this important life skill]

i'm using the book the no-cry sleep solution by elizabeth pantley [also used this with lucy]. my sister recommended it to me & i can't recommend it enough! it is a commitment & i have had several zombie-like days over the past week, BUT eloise is so worth a few sleepy days. by day 60, 92% of the test mommies used in the research study for this book reported that their babies were sleeping through the night & i'll take that statistic! we've already made major strides since beginning this journey a few days ago, and what's great is that it's allowed us to fall into a crib-nap routine, simply as a result of following the nighttime suggestions. 

wishing you [& me! & eloise!] a peaceful night's sleep-

xoxo, 

-ivy