Moments of Musing

Christmas Photos 2018 — Sneak Peek + the Phrase I Used to Get my Toddler Excited for Photos

Filed Under: Christmas photos, christmastime, family photos, life //


This year, we were fortunate to have our Christmas photos taken by my sister-in-law Ashley Bellis Photography. When she reached out about including the boys in her Christmas minis ad, I was ecstatic! The shoot went much better than I anticipated. It was pretty cold for the time of year on the day we took them but both boys cooperated so well.

R had been in and out of naps, which you can kind of tell due to his mug, but he’s flashing his gummy smile in a lot of the photos, too. S wanted to run around with his cousin but I told him “We’re taking pictures for Santa!” so that got him more excited for the photos.

It’s becoming our little tradition to take photos for our Christmas card each year and I’m enjoying it. It gives us Christmas card material but also a way of documenting that time in our lives. Here are our Fall 2017 family photos.

I’m just sharing a sneak peek and some behind-the-scenes photos for now since our Christmas cards haven’t gone out yet. Here they are:

Do you get family holiday photos taken?

2 Easy Steps to Dress Up a “Naked” Wreath

Filed Under: Christmas decor, Christmas wreath, DIY, home decor //

I was recently shopping for a wreath for one of our bathroom doors. I kept checking the aisle and looking at the different wreaths.  I couldn’t find one I particularly liked, though. At first, I was just going to leave the store empty-handed. Then, I noticed a rather bare wreath and had an idea — I’d design my own! With these two (yes, just two!) easy steps, you can too!

All you’ll need is a “naked” wreath, a bow and simple decor of your choice. If the wreath doesn’t have pine cones (mine did), you might also want to get these to add in.

1. Simply lay your wreath on a flat surface. Add a bow.

2. Add decor. This can be pine cones, mini Christmas trees, mini bows, bells, etc.

Hang it up and there you have it!

My Kids’ Christmas Wish List from Kohl’s

Filed Under: holiday shopping, holidays, toys //

This post is sponsored by Kohl’s. I was paid for this post and received the included toys as compensation.
It is no surprise this time of year is my FAVORITE. There is not a time that compares to it. This holiday season is one filled with so much love and joy—my heart feels extra happy and grateful.
While the season is not about gifts and gift giving, we do it as a way of sharing Santa’s magic with our children, family and friends. Our two-year-old understands there is a Santa and recognizes who he is. We’ve been asking him what presents he wants from Santa and his answer has essentially been “everything.” Whenever a toy commercial comes on, he yells “I want that!” Oh boy…
I have explained to him that Santa can only bring him a few toys. But I have to say making note of which toys are his favorite helps us with figuring out what to get him. Generally speaking he likes cars and super heroes right now. Of course, I also want him to have learning “toys.” Thankfully, Kohl’s has a great selection.
That’s why we’ve gotten him the Hot Wheels Race Case, as well as the Melissa & Doug Shapes Chunky Puzzle. We’ve already given him the puzzle so he can practice shapes in the meantime but we’re saving the Race Case for Christmas.


As for our little guy, at just seven months he’s happy as can be with whatever toys we give him. He especially likes colorful toys and ones that make noise. That’s why we got him his very own Fisher-Price Bright Beats Groove & Grow BeatBo Plush (his big brother has one too from when he was a baby). We’ve already given it to him so he can play with it …and not have his brother’s snatched away.

He also loves bounding in his new Fisher Price Laugh and Learn Jumperoo—it keeps him entertained and exercises his legs for 10-15 minutes at a time. We got him the Fisher Price Laugh & Learn Singin’ Soccer Ball, as well, and are saving that for Christmas —despite S trying to keep it for himself and open it! I have a feeling they’ll both play with it.

Kohl’s also has a wide selection of Disney Princess and LEGO kids’ toys. I am so excited for our kiddos to open their remaining toys because I see how happy the ones they’ve already received have made them!
So, be sure to check out Kohl’s for your holiday toy shopping! As an added bonus you can earn while you shop. If you shop during a Kohl’s Cash earn period, you get $10 Kohl’s Cash for every $50 you spend. You can earn it on anything and anywhere you shop—in store, at a kiosk or online!

My blog may contain links to other websites. I am not responsible for the privacy policies of those other websites. When you click on a link, your information may be collected by those websites so I encourage you to read their privacy policies.
Any affiliate links are not associated with Kohl’s.

5 Baby and Toddler-Friendly Christmas Tree Decor Ideas

Filed Under: christmas with baby, christmas with toddler, home decor //

Over the weekend, we celebrated one year in our home. We almost didn’t think we’d get into our new home in time for the holidays so a December 1st move-in was amazing. We decorated but it was pretty minimal because of the busyness of moving in and the time crunch we were in to do it all.

This year, I started decorating the day after Thanksgiving and have added many more decorations to the mix. I’ll have a blog up soon regarding decor but in the meantime, I wanted to share ways to decorate your Christmas tree if you’ve got young babies or toddler at home. You don’t have to give up your Christmas just because you have a mobile little one.

Christmas time is my favorite holiday season and I equate a Christmas tree with many traditions: decorating, placing presents, and opening presents. It’s also so pretty and sets a festive mood in our home. It’s no surprise it’s so attractive to the boys.

This year, R is a couple months older and thus more mobile than S was his first Christmas. We are, however, still putting up a tree (two actually!) and simply using shatterproof ornaments. S was pretty good last year and aside from taking ornaments off the tree and putting them around the house, we did not have any issues.

Here are some fun ways you can put up a tree and decorate it without the concern of harm to your little one and/or broken Christmas decor:

1. SHATTERPROOF ORNAMENTS
shatterproof ornaments, baby and christmas tree, baby
2. RIBBON TREE

ribbon christmas tree, baby and christmas tree, baby
3. BEAUTIFUL BOWS
bow christmas tree, baby and christmas tree, baby

4. LIGHTS ONLY
lights only christmas tree, baby and christmas tree, baby
5. FENCE IT IN

christmas tree fence, baby and christmas tree, baby

‘Tis the Season… to be Present

Filed Under: motherhood, tis the season, unplug, Unplugging //

“Put down your phone. Pick up the kids more,” I told myself on Friday. 

Mom and baby, mommy, baby, Christmas lights, Christmastime, tis the season, unplug, New York christmas


Because ‘tis the season…
To be present …
To give joy …
To feel love …
To keep things in perspective.

On that note, I have decided to disconnect every weekend of the holiday season in order to savor every magical moment with my loves. (If you join me tag #UnpluggedMOM on Instagram in posts every Monday discussing what difference it made/ what you learned by unplugging!)


Personally, I originally planned to unplug from Christmas until the New Year (and still want to). On Friday, however, though I had off from my full-time job, I worked on a video project all day long. I’m talking 10AM until 5PM. I went to sleep feeling guilty. 

I felt like I’d taken too much time away from the boys. I worry they have been seeing me on my phone too much. So while I was falling asleep Friday night, I decided I’d unplug from Instagram (since it’s what takes up most of my cell use) all weekend long. Then, I woke up and decided I want to do it every weekend because it’s such a special time of year. (My big hope is I will do it most weekends of the year!)

Unplugging from social media is difficult, though, especially when it’s a form of employment. But I knew I wanted to do it. Here’s how I unplugged:
1) I decided to unplug. 
2) I publicly announced I would. I did this both to let others know and as a way of holding myself accountable. 
3) I moved my Instagram app to the last page of my home screen so I wouldn’t be as enticed. (I didn’t delete it because I didn’t want to lose my saved drafts as I have in the past.) 

Briefly, here’s what I learned:
1) Social media takes away too much of my attention from my boys, and they do not deserve that. 
2) Without it, I am able to get much more (SO much more) done. 
3) If we all were not as attached to social media as we are, there wouldn’t be such pressure to be on social media (or FOMO when not on social media) and thus, there would not be such a need to unplug. 
4) There can be a balance. I don’t have to check my Instagram DMs 10 times a day or mindlessly scroll my feed even more than that and still, I can still get work done. 
5) The more intentional I am about my social media use, the less of my time it will take and the more I will get out of it. And the less guilty I will feel. 
So, will you join me in unplugging to reconnect this holiday season? Let me know if you do!