Travelling with a Baby

We go on our fair share of road trips. In the summer we spend most weekends racing so we travel anywhere from 2-4 hours. This last year we went on some lengthy trips to Iowa, Minnesota, Vegas, and Arizona. That is a lot of time in the car and can lead to some hair pulling by the end but here is some tips and tricks I have learned from our 24+ hr trips

I pack in totes. Other than our clothes I pack in a suitcase for easy transporting in and out of the hotel room.

I buy these smaller size totes from Walmart and they are perfect. 
I usually take 2 totes. One medium size and one small

Toys

Food & Snacks

I pack a tote of toys, so that at the end of the day they can be stored back in there and not scattered everywhere, and then when you are home they are all in one place to give a quick sanitize. I bring a few favourites ones I know Eli loves as well as some new ones that sometimes turn out to be the real life savers! I also stash a small carrying bag in there so if we go into a restaurant or are visiting someone we can take in a few toys. We also bring the ipad and keep that till the very end knowing it will keep Eli busy for the last stretch of the trip. Those Fisher Price apps are great. Eli's favourite is the Puppy Play Movies.

The next one is dedicated to food and snacks. I bring fruit cut up in small tupperware containers and sometimes if we are going to be without a fridge for a while just fruit cups that don't need to be in the fridge. I make little individual snack size bags with different treats in each bag. (Ritz crackers, Goldfish, Fruit Puffs) Then if things get a little crazy you can say OKKK!!! how bout some Goldfish! and switch things up a bit. Also in this tote I keep extra suckies, Benedryl, Advil and Syringes, Spoons, Bibs, Sippy Cups, Extra Bottles, and baby food for meals. 

I keep these totes in the backseat with us so they are easy to reach for when your on the road. I find they are alot of easier to work with then a bag or suitcase. Especially when your reaching around from the front seat to find something. 

If were going to be doing a longer day of travelling we either leave early in the morning, or take off late at night just after supper and get a few good hours in. We usually plan our stops around when Eli will be napping or looking like he will be asleep. If he is getting pretty sleeping we will stop and fuel up and then carry on. Instead of stopping half way through a nap and waking him up and missing out on what could have been a 3 hr nap. 

Eli is at a hard age as he can't play Ispy or the license plate game but it works ok because after a half hour or so the game you played an hour ago that he got bored of will now be super exciting again and snacks or super fun. Both Aaron and I are a little sore in the neck from all the peek a boo we played this last weekend. 

I do this with everything we do now. Pack and then step back and look at what we really need and what we don't. I usually try and take out atleast 5 things that we don't need. 

We are headed to Florida in 2 weeks for a family trip. Check back as I will be showing you how I pack all of that baby jazz! 

GIVEAWAY

I have 5 Focus on the Little Things notepads the I made custom for you and Im going to do a random GIVEAWAY

All you need to do is send an email to turnbulltaunia@gmail.com with your name and address and I will randomly pick and announce the winners on the blog on February 5

You have till February 3 to enter. Thanks for reading!

Weekend + Bachelor Wedding Party

We had a road trip to Iowa this past weekend for race car related stuff. Eli is a fantastic traveller. I am the one who is antsy 4 hours in. This trip was 12 hours each way so we spent most of the weekend driving and ended up being storm stayed one night because the hwy's were closed but soaked in some more family time. I got to drink in my favourite stores and eat at my favourite restaurants the Texas Roadhouse, Smashburger and Jimmy Johns. 

I spent a $200.64 at Kohls and saved myself $191.12. Yes start the car! I came out with 6 dress shirts, 4 sweaters, 2 summer tanks, 3 short outfits for Eli, 3 onsies, two t-shirts for Birthday gifts, and two dazzling necklaces.

We didn't arrive home till Monday so I had to postpone my Bachelor Wedding party till Tuesday. I hosted a few girls over to watch the wedding of Sean and Catherine. Yum I am one of those Reality Tv suckers! 

We had yummy snacks and cupcakes made with love. 

It was fun and there were no dramatic tears as each one of us went home with a rose! 

Are you Juan Pabloing your way through Monday Nights? Who are your fav's right now I am rotting for Renee, and am still trying to wrap my head around Sharleen. If your on Twitter most of the previous Bachelors or Bachelorette's live tweet through out the show and it is hilarious check it out, and while your on Twitter be sure to follow me @tauniat 

Have a great week!

Supper + Recipe

Spaghetti Shrimp
Prep Time:  5 minutes
Cook Time: 15 minutes

What you need:
Shrimp ( I buy from Sobeys in a frozen pack)
Spagetti
Mushrooms
Prego or any Original Pasta Sauce

Fry up your mushrooms
Boil your water
I cook the shrimp in a buttered fry pan for 10 minutes on medium heat. Cook until white and the tails are pink.
Leave the mushrooms and shrimp on low heat until your spaghetti is finished.

I use this Pampered Chef Herb and Garlic rub on everything it is so great and adds that little bit of spice you need. 

And there you have it Spaghetti Shrimp.

Chelsea Handler Books

I can't even remember how I stumbled upon these books but they are hilarious. I have all of her books and have read them over and over again and still laugh. They are a little out there alot out there but super funny! 

Chelsea has written 4 books listed below, She is a stand up cpmedian and actress, and has a Late Night Show on E. Pack these to go on your next flight or beach vacation.

Chelsea Chelsea Bang Bang

Vodka are you there it's Me, Chelsea

My Horizontal Life- A Collection of One Night Stands 

Lies that Chelsea Handler told Me

She just released a new book Uganda be Killing Me. Coming out in the spring

Whats in My Purse

A womens purse can be a real disaster. I try to keep it under control but lets be honest it always ends up in a mess. 

I like a big purse. Especially now with having a baby its easy to slip a diaper clutch in a bigger purse. Husbands hate big purses unless they want to put something in it then its all good but im sure this has all happend to you they ask for something and 6 days later you pull it out. Im not sure why but everything seems to go missing in there.

Right now I have a pink leather bag I got from Pharmasave. It's big and has one small zippered compartment, and here is what is in it: (LtoR)

Baby Aquaphor
Asthma Inhaler
Victoria Secret Hand Sanitizer
Nasal Spray
Pink VS Lotion
Memory Card
Animal Crackers and Baby Crackers
Pink Target Gift Card Holder
Lug Grey Wallet
Gift Certificate for Eddies
Pen
Softlips Pearl Lip Balm
2 Christmas Cards I need to deliver
Makeup bag
Receipts Receipts Receipts 
Can Coozie from a wedding I went to in September been in there a while
Camera 

and a special treat for you whats inside my jacket pocket:

Grocery List from two weeks ago
Softlips Pearl Lip Balm 

Whats in your purse share with me on instagram with the hashtag:

#fotlpurse

Jewellery Orgnization + How To

Below is an earing holder I made out of an old picture frame

It's quite simple this is what you need:

Picture frame, single of folded frame whatever size you want

Paint

Lace

Colored Cardstock

Hot Glue

I first took out the glass from the frame and painted it white. This happend on accident but I loved how it turned out. I was trying to paint quickly and put the frame on newspaper before it was dry and it ended up sticking to the frame shocker but it left little words here and there and added to the vintage look I was going for.

I cut two peices of cardstock to fit in the frame and then cut two peices of lace about an 1/2'' all around bigger than the cardstock. 

Hot glue the inside edges of the frame and lay your fabric in be sure to pull to the edge tightly hot glue over the fabric along the edges and lay your paper ontop you can then use the backing of the picture frame and close up the frame.

This is a bracelet holder I made out of an old hairspray can

To many necklaces ya I know...

Meal Planning + Recipe

I started meal planning after weeks and weeks of tossing out food in the fridge that we never even opened or used. Such a waste. I also dreaded looking at the clock at 3:00 and thinking oh great what am I going to make for supper. I now know and can even prepare earlier in the day.

First off I made a list of all the meals that we enjoy. Broke down into categories

Beef

Chicken

Pork

Sides

I came up with about 60 meals. Then used a calendar to write in each day what we would have choosing from different categories so we weren't having beef dishes for three weeks straight. Every two weeks I leave 2 days with no meal, incase we decide to go out for supper or have plans during the week and we won't be home. 

I find it so easy to make a grocery list head to store and actually get what we are going to eat that week instead of making decisions of what we may or may not eat while browsing the shelves at the store. We are saving money and not wasting nearly as much food. Plus we don't have a ton of variety in our fridge so it makes for less food thrown out. It is working really well. 

Here are a few of the meals on our meal list and below a recipe for one of our favourite lunches! 

Honey Garlic Chicken and Rice

Breaded Chicken Sandwich w/ Roasted Cauliflower

Crunchy Onion Chicken Breasts w/ Asparagus

Spagetti and Jumbo Shrimp

Ham and Cheese Crescents

Taco Salad

Chicken Cibatta's

Salmon with Tortiliini 

Clubhouse Sandwich

I had never had a Clubhouse sandwich till ordering one in Florida last year. I fell in love and probably make them for lunch once sometimes twice a week!

What you need:

Turkey Deli Meat 
Bacon
Mayo
Romaine Lettuce
3 Toasted pieces of bread

Super simple to make, and I can't seem to find the picture of the sandwich finished! So you will just have to use your imagination, but it was delish. 

One Little Word

I seen this One Little Word project on Ali Edwards blog. I thought it would be a neat thing to try.

The main focus of this is to pick one word at the beginning of the year and make that YOUR word. A word you want to live by a word that you want to focus on as you go about your day to day life. 

I started doing this in 2012 with the word 

Stronger

This word helped me through the year and pushed myself to be stronger and greater in my life. It was a great year. I moved on from miscarrying a baby, getting healthier, dealing with un-expected deaths and news, in the later part of the year giving birth to our first son, and experiencing the new things that motherhood brings you. The word frequently made it into my days and made me a better person. 

In 2013, after being a mom for 3 short months, struggling with not  accomplishing everything I used to pre- baby, and not being able to stop and breathe when something didn't go right I decided the word

Patience

It was the perfect word for me and it really did make a difference. I posted this word in differant parts of my home so that I was reminded of it through out the day, so if and when something wasn't going how it was supposed to I could remember that. I really think this project helped me through the year. I still need to stop and breathe but I am getting better and that is why I am choosing  this word for 2014.  I think another year will keep me focused on this and push me to be a better mom and wife by being more patient.

You can go over to AliEdwards website and follow her journey and workshop for the One Little Word project.

Organizing those Baby Clothes

I was overwhelmed with baby clothes after coming home from my baby shower. There were so many and in all different sizes. I decided to sort them by size and item and then put them in totes until I needed them.

I sorted by:

Newborn
3 Months
6 Months
9 Months
12 Months
18 + Months

If some sizes didn't have much I would bundle them with another size example 6-9 Months I also had lots of the same item so I made bins for just one thing:

9-12 Month Pants
N-3 Month Sleepers 

And made a Holiday Bin for all those occasion shirts for Valentines, Christmas, First St. Patricks day etc. 

Was a whole morning of folding and sorting 
Answer me this why is folding baby clothes so much funner than folding and putting away your own clothes? Just me? 

Umm look how small these are? These were my favourite onsies Eli wore them all the time 

I then labelled all the totes with easy to read labels and color coded for boy clothes with a blue dot in the corner of the label. I love how this has worked and it is like going shopping when you open a new tote of clothes.

I am getting to have a lot of bins but alot of Eli's Newborn-9 Month clothes are practically brand new he wasn't crawling yet and just sitting around so the clothes arn't wore out, and will be perfect to use again or hand me down to a family member. 

Your probably thinking now where do you keep all those bins there is a lot. Well in behind the door in my craftroom they are stacked to the ceiling. I love looking at them it makes me feel happy or its the OCD coming out.

Happy organizing! 

Home Printer

Do you ever want to pull your hair out? If you answered yes head on over to the Walmart Photo Lab. I shouldn't be so rude but I can't win with that place. So I gave up and have been ordering my photo's from Snapfish.ca if you sign up they send you great coupons you can order prints and have them shipped right to your door for a low price. 

Sometimes though you just want to print something right now. So I looked online for a home photo printer after doing some research I decided on this Canon Selphy Printer. It's small and super easy to use and comes in black or white. 

The printer sells for about $99. Ink and paper sets come in several different qty packs but run about $20.00 you can print 36 prints on an ink cartridge. 

It only prints 4x6 and smaller but the quality is great and if you just want to print some quick prints this is your machine.

The weekend was great finally warming up! The Christmas tree came down and the house is back to normal. 

Sleigh rides, football playoffs, tacos and late model racing it was a jammed packed weekend. Have a great week everyone!