Backyard Talk

Since we bought our house four years ago, we have slowly been working on our backyard. We began by putting in a big patio, a fence to divide our side from our tenants & a nice shed.

Our backyard, although very large, isn’t very nice. It is uneven, the grass isn’t good & we have a huge mole problem. Sean recently removed all of the grass from our backyard so we could start fresh. He put in so much hard work & busted it out in one weekend!

The great thing is, we are working with a clean slate! We can take the time to decide what we want to do with this space. First things first, we have to get our mole problem taken care of. When that is under control, we can start with the fun stuff!

We’ve had many discussions about what we want out of our yard. I’ll share some of those ideas with you!

1. A play area for the kids. Whether this be an actual play structure, swing set, sand box or a mud kitchen, we would love a place for the kiddos.

2. Raised garden beds. For vegetables, flowers or a mix of both. I’ve been wanting some garden beds for quite some time!

3. A fire pit. We already have a fire pit on our patio but one of our ultimate goals is to have a fire pit & sitting area out in the yard somewhere.

4. Outdoor dining. We would love to utilize our patio as an outdoor dining room with a long table so we can enjoy meals outside with our family & friends. We recently sold our patio furniture with the intent of making this space a better area for dining.

You can peep at my outdoor spaces Pinterest board if you’d like to see some of our inspiration!

Lastly, what is a blog post without some pictures of the boys? Here they are getting a little dirty & helping dad out back! I’d like to think they are directing Sean as to where to put a play structure 😆 (I’m looking at you, Wyatt!)

Okay, how cute are those pictures & why are toddlers in rain boots so irresistible?!

xoxo

Toddler Diaper Bag

Now that the boys are getting older, I haven’t been needing to take a diaper bag with me everywhere I go. I’m so happy that I can use a normal purse again! That being said, I never want to be stuck without diapers or an extra change of clothes. So, I put together a bag that I can just keep in my car that has everything we need while we are out and about, just incase. I replenish items as I need them, but I always try to keep this in the car.

I used the Freshly Picked backpack diaper bag for the first year, which was great! It went everywhere with me, including back & forth between the house & car. But now that the twins are bigger, I decided to switch it up a bit with a different bag. When I saw this Mickey & Minnie diaper bag from Petunia Picklebottom, I knew I had to have it! :) It’s also fun for the boys because they like to point at the characters & say their names.

I love that this bag has two main compartments. The bottom part of the bag completely opens up & is insulated so it can be used as a cooler. I just cleaned out my diaper bag, so what better time to share what I keep in it?! Here is how I pack my bag for two toddlers!

Upper compartment:

Changing pads // the back mesh pocket holds the changing pad that came with the diaper bag + disposable changing pads. I like to use these disposable changing pads when I am somewhere particularly gross…like a public restroom. I like that I can just throw the pad away so that I am not putting a dirty pad back in my bag.

Dry Wet bags // I use these Jujube dry wet bags to keep items together & organized. I love these bags! They come with removable straps so I can use them as a purse if I want, I can also put any soiled or wet clothes in them to keep them away from other items in my bag & then when we get home, I can just throw the whole thing in the wash.

1. The larger bag has two outfits (one for each baby) & contains two pairs of pants + two shirts + two pairs of socks.

2. The medium sized bag is a “first aid” bag. I keep nail clippers, children’s Tylenol + syringes, hand sanitizer, travel sized aqauphor, bandaids & Neosporin. (I keep this in the back mesh pocket with the changing pads).

3. The smallest bag is my “mommy bag”. This is where I keep my lipstick, chapped stick, tide to-go pen, hand sanitizer, medicine for mom + dad, hair ties, etc. (This lives in the front zipper pocket)

Snacks // because this bag stays in the car, I only keep pouches so food doesn’t go stale. I will try to bring fresh snacks with us when we go anywhere, but love to have these as backups in the bag.

Sunglasses // I use the side bottle pouch for the boys’ sunglasses. (This bag only has one bottle pouch that fits inside the main compartment & the boys don’t take bottles anymore except at bedtime).

Bottom compartment:

Diapers + Wipes // one regular pack of wipes, one travel pack & six diapers.

Hand sanitizing wipes // I love these wipes from Babyganics. I use them to clean surfaces as well as to clean our hands when we aren’t able to wash them.

Wash it Later bags // we haven’t had to use these since the boys’ “blow out” days, but I don’t want to be without them! These bags allow you to pre-soak your stained clothes so they don’t get ruined before you can get home to wash them. Just add water.

Hand & Face wipes // perfect for messy eaters!

Dirty diaper disposal bag dispenser + extra rolls // because, 😷🤢

Toys // we have made the mistake too many times of not having toys with us. Sometimes, they just need something to keep their attention and play with. The toys we bring change from time to time, right now they each have a set of toy keys .

Water bottle spouts // these are awesome! I don’t like to keep sippy cups in my bag since it stays in the car. These adapters will fit onto (most) water bottles & turn them into a sippy. They are great for if we are ever in a pinch & need to use a normal water bottle. The boys also like to use them at home!

There you have it! Our diaper bag for two toddlers :) of course, we adjust depending on where we are going and for how long, but generally…this is it! You have to carry so many more things when you have kids! 🤪 What do you keep in your bag?

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Easter Baskets

Hoppy almost Easter! I just finished putting Wyatt & Boden’s Easter baskets together & I’m so excited for them to see what’s inside! Because of the Coronavirus, I couldn’t go out & shop for items like I wanted to. I had to get a little creative & use what we already had.

I used two baskets from the boys’ room to hold all of their Easter goodies & they are each getting two Easter books (three are from my mom & one is from Sean & me). I added their stuffed bunnies that they have had since before they were born & some wooden cars that they already had…shhh! It already looked like a great Easter basket without spending any money! I did purchase some bath toys online & some snacks.

Easter baskets & contents:

Basket: Pehr Pom Pom Pint

Books: Happy Easter, Mouse!, The Very Hungry Caterpillar’s Easter Colors, There Was an Old Lady Who Swallowed a Chick!, Hoppy Clubhouse Easter

Stuffed bunnies: These bunnies were gifts from my mom before the boys were born. They are perfect bunnies for an Easter basket! dark grey bunny, light grey bunny

Cars: My boys love the wooden, magnetic toys from Tegu. They have a set of blocks, a train set & two cars. These two cars were gifted to them for Christmas & I decided to throw them into their baskets. I know they will enjoy them because they get played with all the time 😂 The great thing is…the boys are too young to realize that the cars aren’t new! blue car, green car

Bath toys: I ordered these color changing origami boat bath toys & I had to try them out right away! I think the boys will get a kick out of them. It came with three in a pack, so I’m giving them each one & putting the third away until I give them their baskets.

Snacks: What’s an Easter basket without snacks?! Since I’m not going to be giving my one-year-olds candy…I thought Peter Rabbit fruit & veggie pouches would be perfect. They love these things!

Are you doing Easter baskets for your kids this year? If so, what are you filling them with?

xoxo

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