DIY Holiday Cards Scrapbook

If you’re anything like me, you have a stack of holiday cards from friends and family that you don’t know what to do with. Keep them? Throw them away? So, they usually end up in a pile on the coffee table until April when I stuff them somewhere that I’ll probably never see them again. But, what if there was a better way to keep those cards so you’d actually get to enjoy them, year after year? And what if it was fun and easy to do?! Pop on a Christmas movie and grab your glue gun- we have a book to make!

*This post was sponsored by Pinhole Press, but all ideas and opinions are my own.

This is perfect to make in the days between Christmas and New Year’s. I find that I’m a little sad that the holiday fun is over, and my life feels a little bit empty. This is a perfect excuse to prolong the holiday fun a bit longer, and watch all those Christmas movies you didn’t seem to have time for! Head on over to the Pinhole Press blog for the full DIY.

Seriously the cutest! I’m planning to make mine this week, now that we are taking down our Christmas decor.

Head on over to the Pinhole Press blog to see the full DIY!

DIY Easy Painted Gift Tags

Are you a “sharpie on the wrapping paper” type of gal? I used to be, but I’ve discovered that gift tags are way prettier, easier to read, and more fun! Why run out and purchase gift tags when you can make your own? It’s easy-peasy with just some paint and cardstock. It’s even easier if you have some paper punches, but honestly some scissors will do the trick too!

*This post contains affiliate links.

You will need:

Cardstock (here)
Paint (similar here)
Circle punch (here)
Embroidery floss (here)
Paintbrush
Tape or glue gun
Scissors

Directions:

1. Punch your circles out of cardstock.

2. Paint designs onto your gift tags.

3. Tape or glue a piece of embroidery floss in the back to hang it. Add the name of your recipient.

That’s all folks! Seriously, it’s the easiest DIY ever. If you want to save time OR have your kids help out with less mess, have them paint the full sheet of paper, then cut the circles out. You can also use a regular tag shape if you prefer, but I thought the circle was more fun. You can even use these as little tree ornaments too!

I LOVE making gift tags, so be sure to follow me on Pinterest to get the newest DIY projects, including gift wrap!

Hailey's 2 Month Update

I can’t believe another month has gone by! My little girl is getting so big and while I’m loving all the new parts of her personality, I’m missing my teeny baby. However, I wouldn’t change these new smiles I’m getting for anything!

At two months old, Hailey is 10 lbs 6 oz and 22 3/4 inches tall. She’s wearing size 0-3 months clothes. She hates onesies going over her head, so we’re mostly wearing sleepers and dressing up occasionally when she goes out. She’s officially my new best friend, and I ain’t even mad that she poops her pants. 

Wonder Week Nightmare

The first week I spent home alone was ROUGH. Hailey was up all night, eating every hour and not letting me sleep at all. Every night was like a slumber party I didn’t agree to attend. I’d catch up on sleep in the morning, when she usually slept from about 6am to 10am or so. Luckily, by the end of the month Hailey was sleeping through the night. This momma is super happy about that! 

Smiles

I’m so happy to say that we’re getting more and more smiles from Hailey! Lately she’s been smiling because we are smiling. She loves being held, talked to, or even having her diaper changed if you smile at her while doing so! She also does this almost-laugh where she smiles big and makes a cooing sound. I’m pretty much in love with it and will do almost anything to make her laugh! 

Look Who’s Talking

Ok, so they’re not actual words but Hailey just started making sounds and “responding” to us when we talk to her. Whether it’s with some noises or a smile, conversations don’t seem so one-sided anymore! She also discovered her tongue this month. She would stick it out and play with it, lick things (like a blanket touching her lips) and even would copy me when I’d stick my tongue out!

Songs

Hailey’s getting into the holiday spirit! She loves when I play Christmas songs for her, and loves it even more when I sing them to her! She even seems to anticipate it and immediately calms down when she hears the music start up. Then she starts to smile and breaks into a big grin when I start full on singing to her! She melts my heart, I swear. I’m like Olaf near the fireplace. Some people are worth melting for, and she’s definitely one of them!

My Favorite Things

Still a big fan of the boobie. Hailey also loves attention/smiling, Christmas songs, and playing Mommy Watch Me Poop. She loves sleeping and lounging on the boppy, and hearing me sing “head and shoulders, knees and toes” plus the Winnie the Pooh song. 

Nicknames

I’m still calling Hailey Little Bird and Little Chirp Chirp (from her cooking sounds she makes when she stretches). I call her an animal when she’s trying to find the boobie and cheese foot, because her owlet makes her foot kinda sweaty and stinky haha! 

Fitness Star

Hailey is a master at pulling things. She loves my hair, John’s chest hair, and my mom’s cross. She’s also starting to do sit-ups! She’ll grab my thumbs with her entire tiny fist and use them to pull herself up into a sitting position. 

I’m amazed by how much Hailey is growing and changing everyday. She’s my little BFF and I love every day and every minute I spend with her! Even diaper changes make me happy, mostly because she’s smiling the ENTIRE time!

DIY Holiday Gift Pouch

Can you believe we have less than 2 weeks until Christmas? *Runs around to do all the things.* I’ve been spending my days on the couch with a baby in one arm and a remote in the other most of the month, but I did manage to do a few Christmas-themed projects! So, let’s talk about these gift pouches and why I love them. First off, they’re super affordable. Second, they’re adorable. And third, they’re so easy to make that the whole family can get involved. The full DIY is on the Pinhole Press blog.

So, what can you use these pouches for? The possibilities are endless! I’ve used them for gift cards, mini wine bottles, stocking stuffers… you could put a cute pair of socks, makeup, sprinkles, or even cookie mix!

They’re the perfect size to hold your smaller goodies and you can paint them in any color! I used my fave modern Christmas palette of pink, red, aqua blue and emerald green.

So head on over to the Pinhole Press blog for the full how-to so you can make these bad boys for yourself!

Hailey’s 1 Month Update

I can’t believe it- Hailey is already a month old!! I’m starting to understand why my parents would always say it seems like just yesterday they brought me home from the hospital. This month really flew by, and while I’m loving that she’s awake more, I miss how teeny tiny she was. I really wanted to do a fun, themed photo shoot each month with a number made out of items or something, but there just wasn't time. I took her first set of photos on Halloween in her costume with the sign, then did another photoshoot when she was looking cute a couple days later. It turns out, I accidentally did a theme because they’re both unicorns! So, I guess I can do something like this for the other months.

At one month old, Hailey is 8 lbs 6 oz and 21 inches tall. She’s still wearing newborn size clothes. She loves to wear sleeper pajamas, although her fashion item of choice is a diaper and nothing else!

Sleeping Beauty

The first few weeks were pretty interesting. Hailey was a really sleepy baby, and didn’t really want to eat. She would often cluster feed then sleep for long periods of time. She’s a night owl, so we took care of her in shifts. John got the overnight shift and I took the early morning one. We basically slept on the couch, because Hailey didn’t like her bassinet and preferred to be in our arms. We’d watch tv or movies and every couple of hours I’d feed her. 

Trying to get her to wake up was pretty comical. We’d strip her down to a diaper, change her, poke her, sing to her, “yell” at her to wake up, put our cold hands on her... basically anything we could to wake her up. It usually didn’t work. She’s open one eye, or look like she might wake up, but she’d just fall right back asleep again as if nothing happened. She reminds everyone of me when they try to wake me up! I’m a very heavy sleeper haha. 

Jaundice 

Because Hailey had a different blood type than I did, and because she didn’t really eat very often, she ended up becoming jaundice. We had to take her to the doctor every few days to track it, including a lab where they had to take blood work. It was so sad seeing her get pricked when she was so so tiny. We also had to make sure we woke her up every few hours to feed her, because that’s the best way to flush it out.  Luckily, within a couple of weeks it went away and she’s perfectly healthy now. 

Snack Time

She loves mommy’s boobies, but isn’t a fan of the formula we’re supplementing. She’s an aggressive little eater, but it’s the cutest thing watching her. I have scratch marks from her nails and a big bruise on my nipple but hey, as long as she’s fed! Breastfeeding was a struggle at first (blog post coming soon!) but we’ve gotten the hang of it and we have a rhythm now. Hailey eats more than I can provide, so we supplement formula. At first she didn’t care either way, but she’s definitely preferring the “boobie” over the formula now. She even prefers it fresh from the boobie over getting it from a bottle of pumped milk. 

Smiles

Hailey’s only given us a few short smiles, and we get so excited to see them! She smiles in her sleep mostly (a reflex) so if you watch her you can catch one! (There’s also a video of it on my Instagram stories). 

Songs

I like to sing “Row Your Boat” and “the wheels on the bus” to Hailey. I also looove Disney songs, so I sing them to her as lullabied, or I play a Disney playlist while doing bicycle legs with her. 

My Favorite Things

Like most babies, Hailey likes ceiling fans- she spends a lot of time laying down, and they’re the only thing up there. She likes car rides and mommy and daddy. She loves to snuggle and obviously, sleeping! Her very favorite thing is probably mommy’s boobies- they do feed her, after all! 

All in all, we love our little Hailey and we are so excited to see her grow even more!