This is Us; 2018 Review and What to look Forward to in 2019

This is Us; 2018 Review and What to look Forward to in 2019

Tuesday, January 15, 2019

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And just like that another year has come and gone.  It is so true that time seems to go by so much quicker when you have kids and we brought TWO more home in 2018.  What an incredible and bittersweet year it was for our family.

In early January we found out we were expecting.  We were excited and scared to add another little one to the family, only to find out that we were actually adding two.  It was one of the many memories from the year that I will never forget.  We didn't announce until March and then had a fun gender reveal party to find out they were both girls!

The first half of our year was very busy.  We got to partner with ZooTampa, Disney on Ice, Marvel Universe Live and so much more.  We went honeybell picking for the first time, we went to Busch Gardens (a lot) and had a lot of play dates and fun with our friends in Florida.  Seriously, way too many to mention it all here ;)

I enjoyed another year of MOPs and continued Bible study with a wonderful group of women. I met new bloggers and grew my blog.  I also got into photography more last year, photographing some parties for friends, a close friend's newborn and even a Mommy and Me photo shoot!  I even had the chance to get away on a girl's trip with some great friends.

My husband and I enjoyed 2 years of marriage and probable one of my favorite moments of being a mom was taking our girls to Disney World for the first time.  Magical is an understatement of what that weekend was like for us....and exhausting since I was in my third trimester.

We found out that we would be moving to Indiana over the Summer for my husband's job.  It was something that we asked for since we wanted to be closer to family when the twins arrived.  It was hard to say goodbye to Florida and the people that had made it so wonderful for us.

We officially bought our new home in late July and waited patiently for our twins to arrive.  We spent most of August adjusting to our new place, getting moved in and enjoying the last few days of being a family of four.

Our twins arrived mid-September and things have been pretty crazy since then.  If you have been following us for a while then you know what I'm talking about.  Also, it's mid-January and I'm posting for the first time in over a month.  As much as I enjoy this outlet and I plan to start writing consistently again, I have enjoyed my new journey as a mom of four and twins much more right now.  

I can't thank you all enough for the love and support we have been shown and continue to see.  Thank you all for continuing to follow our lives and this little space of ours.

I plan to spend 2019 adjusting to our new normal with four kids, sharing a lot about motherhood (everything has changed for me), real life moments and all the fun adventuring in our new state of Indiana!

TOP BLOG POSTS of 2018

#10 23 + 24 Weeks | Twins Bumpdate

#9 #FunkPartyofSIX

#8 25 + 26 Weeks | Twins Bumpdate

#7 How We Found Out Our Big News | Part 2

#6 19 + 20 Weeks | Twins Bumpdate

#5 Twins Gender Reveal (YouTube Video here)

#4 The Carnival Came to Town | Charlotte's 2nd Birthday

#3 Hooked on Trophy Fish | St. Pete's First Fresh Fish House

#2 Roaring Springs at ZooTampa!

#1 The New Baby Pygmy Hippo's Name is.... (YouTube Video here)

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Keeping my Twins Healthy with Baby Probiotics

Keeping my Twins Healthy with Baby Probiotics

Friday, November 30, 2018

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This post is sponsored by Evivo but the content and opinions expressed here are my own.

Since the moment I found out we were expecting twins, they have changed everything that I know about pregnancy and motherhood.  If you've kept up with my blog, then you know I had a fairly easy pregnancy considering I was carrying two.  However, it was nothing compared to my first two pregnancies.  They were a piece of cake.

I never had any sickness, I stayed active and I didn't have any swelling until the last week.  I even worked until my due date with my first.  The twins, on the other hand, were exhausting.  I gained double the weight (as expected) and swelled like you wouldn't believe.  I had back pain, heartburn, you name it.  I was definitely making up for my prior easy pregnancies.

Giving birth to them was another experience that was completely different and resulted in me learning more about how important it is to make sure they are getting all the right nutrients from me, including probiotics.  I am still working on my birth story, but spoiler alert, I gave birth naturally to Molly and two hours later ended up having a C-section with Kathryn.

Did you know that as result of Kathryn being born via c-section that she is likely missing the good bacteria B. infantis, allowing many harmful bacteria to thrive. 

These bad bacteria are linked to higher risk of colic, eczema, allergies, diabetes, and obesity.  This basically means you or your baby did not come in direct contact with mom’s beneficial gut bacteria. This good bacteria helps develop a healthy gut microbiome in your baby and could have long-term health benefits.  This is critical for the the first 6 months of baby's life for immune and metabolic development. 

Since three of my four babies were born naturally, I had no idea about this and how important it is for me to do something about it for my twins. 

That's why I've made the decision to use Evivo.  It is the first and only clinically-proven probiotic for babies.  Evivo contains no artificial colors, dyes, flavors, or preservatives; is free of additives, and is gluten-free.  It is also clinically proven to restore B. infantis to baby’s gut and reduce bad bacteria that is linked to a higher risk of health issues, now and later in life.  How amazing is that?!

How do you know if baby’s gut is healthy? Thankfully, there’s now a simple 3 question Baby Gut Check you can take that will reveal if baby is one of 9 out of 10 infants missing B. infantis: 

Question 1: Were you OR your baby born via C-section?

Question 2: Were you OR your baby given antibiotics pre-delivery or post pregnancy?

Question 3: Does your baby have diaper rash OR 5+ watery poops per day? 

If you answered yes to one or more of these questions your baby’s gut may be in jeopardy.

Click here to learn more about the benefits and kits Evivo has to offer. And right now you can get $10 off a 4 week starter kit using BLOG10181 OR $20 off an 8 week or greater starter kit using BLOG10182 to start using the benefits that Evivo has to offer your baby's gut health!

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