Instagram

  • these first few smiles are literally the best thing ever. when you realize how happy you make a tiny person. when you see their face light up because they love you so much. then you fast forward 2.5 years and they’re demanding brownies and cheetos for lunch. 😬😬😬 #sixweeksold #happilytrista
  • (sponsored) When you become a parent, there are so many new things to learn about and I feel like each person latches on to something they’re passionate about / can’t stop reading and learning about. For me? That’s car seats! Thankfully some states are finally updating their laws to conform to recommendations from the APA. We have tried quite a few different seats and this 3-in-1 Pria seat from @maxicosiusa is the nicest! The chest clip is magnetic, making it easy to clip and unclip with one hand. The straps stay in place thanks to their out-of-the-way spring assist, so no more twisted up straps. And the cushions are both washer AND dryer safe! Yay for no more hang-drying! On top of that, it’s rear-facing up to 40lbs, forward-facing up to 65lbs and then a booster up to 100lbs. #ParentYourWay #PriaMax3in1 #happilytrista
  • 6 weeks of this angel girl ✨ She is still waking up once over night most nights. She just started smiling at us these past few days. She loves tummy time but rolls herself over all of the time so we have to roll her back. She loves to be worn and snuggled. And we have to restrain her brother from kissing her 193739 times per day. 🤪 #happilytrista #newborn #sixweeksold #fourthtrimester
  • We are currently paying the price for last week’s easy bedtimes. I’m trying to get Ben to sleep in his own room. So you can guess how happy he is about that. His yelling has Blaire awake still, she’s been out of her room about 25 times. And Sloane is passed out on the couch. At least someone is asleep. They’re lucky they’re adorable because holy moly I’m tired and just want to veg out on the couch. #gotheftosleep #blairebenandsloane #happilytrista
  • Yesterday was almost 60° and today it “feels like” 21°. We had a handful of fall days and it’s not fair because I’m not ready to skip right to winter. There’s nothing better to get us all out of the house than a walk, especially because wearing Sloane puts her right to sleep. Anywho, trying to squeeze in a nap before we get Blaire from school because once we get home it’ll be a mad dash for me to shower and get everyone ready for Blaire’s first kindergarten parent/teacher conference. AND it’s book fair at her school. Who still gets excited for the book fair? 🤭🙋🏼‍♀️ #happilytrista
  • someone changed out of their pajamas today. it wasn’t me. #happilytrista #rainbowbaby
  • daylight savings vibes... casually pouring coffee in my eyes today. what time were your kiddos awake? #dst #daylightsavingssucks #happilytrista #targetstyle
  • Sorry if this made you yawn. 🤭 I just love that Sloane feels the sleep dust when I’m wearing her, just like Benny did! 💕 Hope you’re having a weekend as great as this girl. She is one month old today! Still waking just at 1:30am most nights to eat... occasionally around 5am, too. When she’s awake she likes to look at lights and stare at mama. Whenever she does tummy time she rolls right over to her back. 🥰 #happilytrista
  • Tried some Pinterest-y nail art while the two older kids were at school this morning... and I’m ready to remove and do something a little less crazy when they’re all in bed tonight. 🤪 Real wild Friday night plans, am I right? • #nailsofinstagram #nailsoftheday #essie #manimonday #happilytrista
  • Sloane’s first Halloween... the one where it snowed 3 inches and was 20° outside. Woody and Jessie lasted about 30 mins trick-or-treating, then they wanted to head home to hand out candy. What was the weather like where you live? And how many pieces of candy do people give out where you trick-or-treat? Here, it’s a tie between “choose two pieces” and “grab a handful.” #blairebenandsloane #halloween #halloween2019 #happilytrista
  • ...when your mom takes too long in @target. Realized when we got out to the car that his binky was lost somewhere in the store. 20 mins into bedtime tonight I FINALLY found one in a diaper bag. 🙏🏻🙏🏻🙏🏻 #tristalovestarget #happilytrista #terribletwos
Explore

working mom

November 25, 2018

3 things we did to adjust our budget when I left my full-time job

Snow Storm 2018

It has been exactly one year since I left my full-time job. And while giving up that full-time income wasn’t something I took lightly, it’s definitely something I’ll never regret. I now have the cutest tiny bosses in the world. They sure are sassier than (most) of the people I’ve worked with before, although they’re actually much less dramatic. ;) Before leaving my job, we had to take…

Continue Reading
0
November 15, 2018

the value of $160 for your family

Iced Coffee and Chocolate Milk Cheers

One of the hardest parts of adulting is dealing with your finances. Sure, I can think of a few people who are good at it, but do they like it? No. If they didn’t have to do it, would they? Nope.In our family, Jason is the saver and I’m the spender. He is SO good at need vs. want, and me, well if I want it then I…

Continue Reading
0
November 13, 2018

cozy work from home / sahm style

Working from Home with Ben

Now that I don’t have to worry about dressing business casual from 8-5, I’m fully embracing the momiform. Blaire is in afternoon Pre-K, so I typically start my day with breakfast for all of us, then when they’re done and playing, I do the dishes and then respond to emails and messages. I have an alarm set to make sure I get Blaire dressed and ready about 20…

Continue Reading
1
February 21, 2017

Tips for Transitioning Your Toddler to a New Daycare

Let me just start off by saying, transitioning to a new daycare was really hard. Although, I’m not sure which was harder. The actual process of transitioning Blaire to her new school or having to tell her current daycare that we were moving her. Blaire attended the same in-home daycare from the time she was 12 weeks old, up until three months before her third birthday. She LOVED her.…

Continue Reading
3
February 15, 2017

7 Tips for Work-Life Balance as a Mom

VitaTops

Over this past year, working full-time, blogging, mom-ing, and now prepping for baby number two have had me feeling more stressed than ever before. I finally decided to do something about it, because life doesn’t just destress itself. So, over the course of the past few months, I implemented a few simple changes and I’m happy to say they’ve paid off. While I can’t say I’m stress-free, I can…

Continue Reading
3
December 13, 2016

7 Things Working Moms and SAHMs Have in Common

7 Things All Moms Have in Common

I recently read an article with a list of things SAHMs want working moms to know. And every, single item on that list was something that also applies to me (not a SAHM). I am bombarded with pieces on Facebook, almost daily, of the differences between working moms and SAHMs. But when you really think about it, us moms aren’t all that different.…

Continue Reading
10
August 1, 2016

Wardrobe Essentials

Scotch 3M in Desk Drawer

This shop has been compensated by Collective Bias, Inc. and its advertiser. All opinions are mine alone. #WardrobeSolutions #CollectiveBias As a shopaholic who also happens to be a busy, full-time working mom, my work wardrobe is very important to me. There are several, wardrobe related problems that seem to plague all working women – and I’ve finally found an (easy) solution to them.…

Continue Reading
0
April 26, 2016

Why I’m Done Pretending to Care About a Clean House

laundry day

Just this last week I realized how many times I apologize to my friends. For having a messy house. For not having makeup on or my hair done in my off-time. For being dressed like a bum in comfy clothes. For… who even knows what else. I’m done apologizing. And I think you should stop, too. I think you should stop apologized for who you are and who you’re…

Continue Reading
25
April 5, 2016

Dear Mom on Your Baby’s First Day of Daycare

Blaire and Trista

There are few things harder than sending your baby to daycare for the first time. It’s heartbreaking. It’s terrifying. You want the best for your baby and up until now, you’ve been there every step of the way. Whether you’re returning to work because you’re truly passionate about your career, or you just need the money— those first few days, maybe weeks, away from your baby are tough. Here are some things…

Continue Reading
9
May 4, 2015

Time Keeps on Slipping…

Things here have just been so crazy busy! With Blaire being sick and teething it has been over a month since we have had a good night of sleep, which means I’m basically a zombie 100% of the time. It’s no fun! Every morning I promise myself I’ll go to bed at 8:30 (it’s the only way I can peel myself out of bed) and somehow I look…

Continue Reading
2
February 10, 2015

Trying to Catch Up…

It’s been a little while since I’ve actually blogged about what’s going on with us! So let’s play some catch up… I started a new job two weeks ago. I’m back to working in an office full-time. It was a hard decision to give up my two days in the office/three days working from home for a company I absolutely loved, especially because it did give me so…

Continue Reading
4

Instagram

  • How many kids do you have? Which transition was the hardest? It may not be the traditional answer, but for me, becoming a mama to one was the hardest. I had NO CLUE what I was in for. The mom guilt. How long it would take to leave the house. The sleepless nights. Breastfeeding. Losing myself in motherhood — feeling like I had to be with Blaire 24/7. Adding Ben and now Sloane to our crew has been so much easier for me. It’s like they just fall in line with the crazy. 🤪 And I think being so much more confident in myself as a mom doesn’t hurt either. 💁🏼‍♀️ #motherhoodishard • #motherhood #momofthree #momof3 #clickinmoms #momtog #thelovelysquares #happilytrista #blaireandben #blairebenandsloane
  • ice cream outside with two of my favorite people. when it’s only 70° outside you can actually eat your ice cream without it melting all over us... and by us I mean them. 👆🏻👆🏻 #blaireandben • #2yearsold #5yearsold #momof3 #motherhoodintheraw #lifegivingsquares #petitejoy #motherhoodrising #ourcandidlife #uniteinmotherhood #mymamahood #seekthesimplicity #sharegood #joyfulmamas #documentlife #dailyparenting #momblogger #honestlymothering #therealparenthood  #thehappycapture #momsofinstagram #mytinymoments #thecreativecollective #realmotherhood #lifestyleblogger #stopdropandmom
  • Prepping for our third baby has been pretty easy so far. I guess when you have an older sister and brother, plus a mama who likes to hold on to everything from her babies, there isn’t a ton of shopping to do. The kids are having fun picking out little gifts to give baby sister in the hospital (something Blaire still talks about from when Ben was born), little toys here and there, PJs, and this @babyeinstein 4-in-1 Kickin Tunes Music & Language Discovery Gym at @target. I wasn’t joking when I said they wanted to test it out! #babyeinstein #ignitecuriosity #socialspotters #blaireandben #happilytrista
  • #ad I can’t believe this girl is heading off to kindergarten! With afternoon pre-k last year, we were lucky to not have to worry about the morning rush. So this year, our go-to is a waffle and a chocolate milk for the ride to school. Horizon® Shelf Stable Chocolate Milk is our favorite since we can easily grab it and go! Spoiler alert: she takes one in her lunch, too. Blaire is so excited, but little brother and I are sad to see her spend so much time away from us. But I am excited to be able to walk her to school and avoid the CRAZY drop-off and pick-up lines while the weather’s still nice, anyways. You can find @HorizonOrganic Chocolate Milk at @KrogerCo and you can even save $1 with this digital coupon (7/24/19 – 8/6/19). And you can stock up because Horizon Organic milk boxes are shelf-stable, meaning you can safely store them in the pantry. Shop now through the link in my bio. #blaireandben
  • Well we don’t have a Nordstrom near us, but we do have an Aldi. Most of their summer items are on clearance and we scored this sweet pool for $7. Winner, winner. 🦄☀️ #blaireandben • #summer #momentsiwanttoremember #aldifinds #motherhood
  • This summer hasn’t really felt like summer yet. 🤨 So when we have an 85° day we make the most out of it with a trip to the pool! How’d you spend your Sunday Funday? #blaireandben
  • another day, another doctors appointment for someone in our crew. today it’s Ben. he was up overnight saying his ear hurt — a double ear infection for him. luckily the kid loves taking medicine and hasn’t let his ears get him down! as long as he’s up moving around they’re fine, but the second he lays down... 😭😭😭. hoping our poor buddy is feeling better tomorrow. do you feel like you need a frequent flier card for your pediatrician? just me? okay. #blaireandben #itsfinewerefine • #uniteinmotherhood #motherhoodintheraw #momentsiwanttoremember #mybabies
  • When your brother is getting big but you still want to hold him... you gotta pinch his butt because he’s so wiggly. 😂😬😍 #blaireandben • #petitejoys  #childhoodunplugged #letthembelittle #ohheymama #tagtheqc #mybeautifulmess #thehappynow  #thepursuitofjoyproject #thatsdarling #livethelittlethings #momentsiwanttoremember #everydaymoments #nothingisordinary #motherhoodrising
  • It is definitely bittersweet to leave the house where we brought both of these babies home. But we are excited for our next chapter as a family of five! #rainbowbaby #blaireandben • #pregnancyannouncement #rainbowbabyannouncement #firsttrimester
  • Last night was our first night in the new house. 👏🏻 We still have lots of stuff to bring from the old house and then lots of cleaning over there before the final walk through and closing next Monday. Then we can focus on getting this house unpacked and organized. But first, I would like a nap. 😴 #blaireandben #happilytristahome
  • The snow that never ends. 🙄🥶 Walked out into the snow this afternoon and one kid loved it, the other not so much. “Wowwww! It’s like a wizard out here.” —Blaire 😂 “Yuck!” —Ben #blaireandben • #bestofmom #momlifestyle #momlifeisthebestlife #motherhoodunplugged #mymotherhood #honestmotherhood #slowmotherhood #mymamahood #midwestblogger #eternalmotherhood #motherhoodintheraw #unitedinmotherhood #motherhoodrising #polarvortex