Rand's 3rd Birthday and Monte Mare

Our little Rand is turning THREE today and I can hardly believe it!! Time has gone by so much faster with each year that passes.

Randolph Charles, our little strong willed German boy. He is stubborn at times and wants to do things his own way and own timing but is just as much as a lover than a fighter. He loves giving hugs and kisses and loves people. He is very outgoing and enthusiastic when meeting new friends. He loves train rides and going hiking while on Daddy's back.  He tries our patience & pushes our buttons, but then turns on the charm & makes us forget all about it. 

This year we had a very low key birthday for Rand since we are moving some time soon. We gave Rand the choice on what to do for his birthday and he wanted to go to the pool.

After spending half the day at the pool, we headed home for a nap and an evening of presents and cake.

 We love you sweet boy and excited to see what is in store for our little 3 year old!

I admit we went a little overboard on gifts this year but it was our last chance to stock up on some "German" toys before we moved. I got some toys at a local toy store called Rofu (but can also be found online at places like Amazon.de) but others I got on Amazon.de.

Eichhorn Wooden Toy Farm Set (Holz-Bauernhof)

Wooden Knight dolls (Ritter und König mit Lanze)

Knight Castle (Ritterburg) 
Dolls Royal family (Biegepuppen "Königsfamilie")
Finger Puppet Theatre (Fingerpuppentheater)
Finger Puppets (Fingerpuppen)
Wooden Dagger (Echtholz und Dolchscheide aus Echtleder)

Frohe Ostern!

Frohe Ostern! Happy Easter! We just got back from our trip to Alsace in time for Easter. Sunday morning we all got dressed and headed out to church. 

After we got back Rand got his Easter basket and we hid some eggs around the house for him to find. At first he went back to the first place he found an egg but quickly learned we had them scattered around the house. After he found all the eggs, he cracked them on the rim of his Easter basket to see what was inside. He was cracking us up. Every egg he tapped on the edge of the basket like it was a real egg.

Rand's East basket had some great little goodies inside. 

For dinner I made this amazing (and easy) leg of lamb recipe and potatoes with green bean casserole. Unfortunately, I didn't take any pictures but it was amazing and we barely had any leftovers.

Snow day in Germany

I am sad to say this winter has been kind of a bummer for me. I knew this was the last opportunity for Rand to enjoy some snow for a VERY long time. We will be moving to America soon to Alabama/ Georgia and it never snows there.

I was so excited to wake up to a blanket of fresh white snow on top of our German town this morning. 

I bundled Rand up in his winter gear and we headed out for a walk to visit the goats and give them some food. Rand was hysterical! He hated the snow and refused to touch it... he wouldn't even step on it. Here you can see him walking in the tire trail to avoid touching the snow. He was interested in the small snowman I made but again, wouldn't touch it, lol.

Rand turns TWO!!!

Our sweet little bald, blue eyed, handsome baby boy, We can't believe that you are turning two years old today! You have taken us all by storm since the day you were born, always doing things your own way & surprising us with the unexpected every step of the way. Your smiles and laughter lights up the room. No matter how much fun you are having or even how upset you might be, you leap into our arms any chance you get and give us hugs and kisses. We are very blessed to be your parents and to celebrate you turning two this weekend! 

 Here are some pics of Rand's train theme birthday party.

the 411 on Cloth Diapers

I love cloth diapering and am excited to share my CDing knowledge.
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First I encourage you to search on Facebook for a cloth diaper co-op in your area. CD moms are very helpful and are willing to share tips and tricks along with lending out CDs to try out. You can also buy a starter or variety pack that can help you decide what kind you like. There are so many types of CDs it is very overwhelming. It is nice to test them out before you buy 30 kinds of 1 type and hate them. 

I personally use one size pocket diapers, which is an outer shell that you put an insert in and is good from 7-35 lbs. The insert is what does the absorbing. I would use 1 insert when Rand was younger and double the insert (or fold over just in front bc he is a boy) when they started getting heavier. I use Bum Genius 4.0. They take up about 75% of my stash. They are around $18 BUT you can resell them and get your money back. I bought some of mine used from other cloth diaper moms in the area. I like used bc they are a bit cheaper and already prepped. You have to prep new diapers and depending on the material you need to wash them so many times in a certain temp. I also HIGHLY recommend getting CDs with snaps not velcro (or hook and loop). You do not want to have to replace velcro on diapers.


Dirtydiaperlaundry.com is a great source. Along with cottonbabies.com. I got tons of info on Pinterest too. I have a board on Pinterest called CD & BF that has a ton of other helpful sites.

I'm not quite sure what sites sell starter packs of varieties of diapers but just google and you'll find tons.

I love bum genius and swear by them. At first I loved the idea of their elemental (which is their all in one) but besides being very pricey they also take a full day to dry. I really love their 4.0s but recently saw a friend's free time and wish I had a few of those. I think I have about 35 4.0s in my stash. I have about 8 elementals and use them for naps and nighttime because they soak up a lot!

Washing them is so easy, especially if you are breastfeeding. Just throw it in the wash and it all comes out. Bf poo is water soluble so no need to rinse. To dry, I air dry my CD covers and machine dry the inserts. The sun bleaches out any yellow. They also sell flushable liners which I didn't start using till I introduced food and stopped breastfeeding. It makes for a much easier clean up.

You will also need some wet bags. After the diapers are used, you just strip (take the insert out) and put both the diaper shell and insert into the bag. You just need to unzip and empty it all into the washer.

A Robe for Rand

I have been wanting to buy a robe for Rand but refuse to pay $30 for it, especially when I can just make my own. I found some beautiful handsome fabric at Fabric.com. I came up with my own pattern (I did a lot of fittings) and was super excited to give it to Rand for Christmas!

LÄTT ~ Ikea hack

I have been putting this off long enough... over a year ago I bought this table and chair set from Ikea for under 20euro. I had all these great ideas for it and finally put it all together this weekend.

I started off by painting the top of the table with some black chalkboard paint I bought online. After many, many, many coats and a full day to dry I used Provence Annie Sloan chalk paint and painted the rest of the table. For the chairs, I removed the seat part and spray painted the chairs in gray. After a couple days of airing out, I covered the seat in this cute fox and the houndstooth fabric that was left over from another project.

Packing for a 1 year old

Traveling with a youngster is not for the faint of heart. It takes lots of planning and preparation but is definitely worth all the headache. We are stationed in Germany for only a few years and when we had Rand, there was no question about it... we needed to keep traveling, even with a baby. I have to admit this first year was super easy. Rand was breastfed and it was nice not having to worry about bottles or formula. We do cloth diaper but not on the road... I gave in and use sposies but I do use CD shells to prevent blowouts and leaks. We get looks and comments ALL the time on vacation but I don't mind. There are some places I don't feel comfortable bringing my baby and I do think of others and won't take my child on certain excursions because who wants to hear a baby crying when you paid a ton of money for a show or dinner?

The London/ Dublin trip is just around the corner and I am a bit nervous about packing for Rand. I have a good idea of what to pack and bring with us but we are flying Ryanair and then taking a train and boat ride so we are limited on our luggage space and weight.

Here are my favorite items for my 1 year old world traveler:

1. Baby food pouches (Hipp)- At home, I make Rand's food but that is not an option when we are traveling so I get a ton of these food pouches and they are a hit with Rand! He loves these things!

2. a Light weight stroller (Maclaren Volo)- I bought an old Maclaren Volo on bookoo for only $15 and it is great for traveling. It is lightweight but well made and has a nifty carrying strap for when you collapse it. I know my husband missed his cup holder and storage space from out other stroller but this one will do great for our next trip. 

3. Ergo- I can not say enough amazing things about this awesome carrier! I love this thing!

4. a Scarf- I know this sounds like a weird essential for traveling with a 1 year old but trust me, its great! I not only use this for a cover for when I nurse Rand in public but I also use it as a strap to tie Rand into a highchair at restuarants. It is also a great sun shield for the stroller, a light weight blanket and looks great around Momma's neck :)

5. Peekaru Original Fleece Baby Carrier Cover- Like I said before, I love my Ergo and this cover is perfect for covering up baby (and Mommy) when it is cold out. I bought this one on Amazon. On the road, I also use this as a footmuff for Rand in his stroller.

6. a toy/ sippy cup strap- I actually made mine but you can find them on Amazon or Etsy. These are great for on the road and at home. No more bending over and picking up you lo's toys and cups while they are in a highchair or stroller. I made mine with an elastic loop and also a velcro strap so it can connect to different objects in different ways.

12 months old!

I can not believe my little man is 1 year old!!! These past 12 months have gone by so fast :( I have enjoyed every minute of this past year and look forward to a lifetime of more magical moments. Not only are we celebrating 12 months of Rand's life but also 12 months of breastfeeding (and counting) and 12 months of cloth diapering. 

Rand is a super fast crawler and loves climbing up the stairs. He is cruising on furniture but still has no desire to walk on his own. He loves to wave bye and we are working on blowing kisses but it looks more like a salute. Rand doesn't watch much TV except on long road trips and this month his favorite is Michey Mouse Club House and the Curious George movie. We started mixing goat milk into his morning oatmeal and really seems to like it so we are now introducing goat milk in a sippy cup. I cut bananas from his diet because he has had horrible eczema for the past few months and after cutting it out of his and my diet for 2 weeks, it cleared up about 90%. I accidentally gave him a fruit bar that had banana in it the other day and it flared back up... so no more bananas! 

Some of my favorite pictures from this month

 Hiking at the Celtic Ringwall

laughing with Daddy                             @ the Ritter Factory

taking a nap during our hike in Garmisch           about to eat some schnitzel

Rand's 1 - 12 month shots

11 months!

I know I keep saying this but I can not believe how fast my little guy is growing up! He has such a great little personality and I love to watch him explore and experience 

new things! This month Rand has mastered waving "bye-bye" and clapping! 

He also signs "milk" and has started to repeat whatever  Daddy says, like "roar!" 

Here are some of my favorite pics from this month!

 Bitche, France

 craft time at Lapsit