Sweet Mail

Shirt- Local boutique (For Elyse), Tank and shorts- Forever 21, Shoes- Lulus.com (last year), Sunnies- Old Navy, Zipper purse- Made By Hank c/o E Tells Tales
I've been meaning to show you this adorable zipper purse for awhile. A few months ago, as I was reading E's blogiversary giveaway post the boys were standing right there with me. To enter you had to leave a comment saying which zipper purse you liked more (out of the two), so I had the boys pick for me. We were all surprised and very delighted when I found out I had won. I also received a little Made by Hank change purse and some adorable kitchen note cards. Thank you so much, Elizabeth!

A few days ago we got some more fun mail. I was so happy to open up my package. Ok, it wasn't for me, it was for Finley from one of my lovely sponsors, Citalli of Color Land. Isn't her stuff the cutest? I can't wait to dress Finley in one of those sweet shirts for Small Style. Maybe with her skirt from Rosemary's Cuppa and a bow from Adornmegirl?







If you haven't already, enter today's giveaway for $20 Credit to The Vintage Nursery.

Lulu's and Blogher

The adorable Stephanie at Lulu's headquarters
In exactly five days I will be at Blogher in San Diego. I am excited to meet so many of my blogging buddies (like my roomie, Desiree), connect with some great brands, dress up and attend some super fun parties and learn a whole heck of a lot. This will be Eric's first time alone with all four kids overnight and my first blog conference. I'm filled with excitement and a few nervous jitters.

Last week I visited the Lulu's warehouse and I got to meet with Stephanie, who is head of blog relations. She gave me a tour and let me pick some things to wear to Blogher. It was definitely style overload in there! I will be wearing some fabulous items courtesy of Lulus.com. One thing is certain- I'm going to look good. I can't wait to show you pictures of what I wear!

Also, have you seen the new Lulu's Retromat lookbook? I love it!

The Vintage Nursery Giveaway CLOSED

Vintage lovers, I have a very special giveaway for you today from Cari of The Vintage Nursery. Her shop is filled with beautiful items for your favorite little one. Cari is giving away $20 credit to The Vintage Nursery to buy whatever you'd like- whether it's for your child or another little one you're sure to find something (or a lot of things, if you're like me) that you love.

Don't forget, you can use the MAMA15 code for 15% off of your purchase at The Vintage Nursery.


Here is a little about Cari:

My name is Cari and I am currently living in Vancouver, BC Canada. I started my vintage baby clothing shop on Etsy in January of this year. I am relatively new to baby vintage, but not to vintage. When my daughter was born I discovered the world of tiny vintage things! First I started dressing her in my old baby clothes, which got me thinking about what people do with their baby clothes when they don't want them any more. I started to find some adorable old things in thrift stores and felt like they were too cute to pass up. Vintage clothing was made to last, so many articles of clothing still have a lot of years left of wear. I love the idea of passing these great finds on to people who can appreciate their unique character, and give them a second life.

Thanks to Morgan for her friendliness and support--- I love being a sponsor on this fantastic blog!



GIVEAWAY IS CLOSED


To enter the giveaway for $20 credit visit The Vintage Nursery and leave a comment telling me your favorite item.

For additional entries (please leave a separate comment for each additional entry):
-"Like" The Vintage Nursery on facebook
-Follow @Vintage_Nursery on twitter
-Be a follower of Mama Loves Papa
-Follow @mamalovespapa on twitter
-Follow @mamalovespapa on twitter
-"Like" Mama Loves Papa on facebook

Small Style #22

Welcome to the weekly children's style link up here at Mama Loves Papa- Small Style. If you're new here, thank you so much for joining us! You can use the linky to add your post and then link back here using either the (new!) button or a text link. I love having new faces and, of course, having all of you that participate each week. I'm pretty sure we have the cutest (and most fashionable) kids on the internet.

Next week I'll be leaving early Thursday morning for Blogher. For all of my fellow Blogher attendees, and everyone else, I'll be posting Small Style a day early- on Wednesday, August 3rd at 12:30pm PST. So, feel free to link up early, if you'd like. (I'll leave the linky open all week, like usual, so you can link up whenever you'd like.)








Emma's Romper- Gap, Finley's Romper- Target, Both girls shoes- See Kai Run, via Zulily

This is Finley and my friend Brooke's daughter, Emma. Emma is three years od- 17 months older than Finley and just 3 months younger than Silas. Aren't they sweet together? Oh, and please excuse Finley's straps that are falling down. Her jumper is an 18 month, but still too big and this was an impromptu photoshoot (with my phone!). I definitely had to take pictures of the girls when I saw they were wearing matching outfits.

Today is also Finley's 19 month birthday, so of course, I have a little letter for her!

Dear Finley,

It has been 19 months since I found out you are a little girl and the novelty still hasn't worn off. You're my sweet girl, my little princess, and my best girlfriend.

Everyday I'm learning to trust God with you (and your brothers). Sometimes I start to worry about something bad happening to you guys, but I know that's not what I'm supposed to do. You and your brothers are a gift to me. The most precious and amazing gift in the entire world, but I know that I have to trust God to take care of you.

I hope that my life and my faith is just a stepping stone to you. That you would be even more passionate and in love with Jesus, that you would have an amazing and easy marriage, that in every area of my life where I've wrestled and struggled for breakthrough I haven't just done it for me, but for you, Judah, Samuel, and Silas. You four are more than worth it.

I love you, sweet love!
Mama

Link up here:

Jeans in the Summer

Shirt and tank top- Target, Jeans- 7 for all mankind, Necklace- Forever 21, Purse- Gift from my mom/sister, Ring- Vintage, Shoes- Chelsea Crew, c/o Lulus.com

This afternoon I took all four kids to the pool myself....and we all survived. Like I've mentioned before, swimming at the gym is one of our favorite Summertime activities (and most convenient) and I don't want to only be able to go in the evenings and weekends when Eric is home. It actually wasn't too bad.

Judah and Samuel do great on their own, Silas knows his limits and is happy playing on the stairs and having me hold him and Finley, well, Finley is her usual daring self -running into the fountains, jumping off the edge of the pool, trying to drink random cups of coffee, and trying on everyone's shoes. Toddlers are so much fun and, no, that's not said sarcastically. Being my fourth child I (sometimes) don't feel as stressed out. I just want to enjoy this precious time in my sweet girl's life.

I obviously didn't wear this outfit to the pool, though. I stayed surprisingly cool in these jeans despite our hot weather that's back in full force. Maybe I'm not so anti-jeans in the Summer anymore. As long as they're rolled.

I'm linking up at The Pleated Poppy.

Will I see you tomorrow for Small Style? I hope so! I'd love to have you link up!

Red Striped

Shirt- Forever 21, Shorts- Target, Belt- AE about 10 years ago, Flip flops- Old Navy, Bag- Petunia Picklebottom, gift from my husband
I know most style bloggers would never, ever post an outfit picture of them wearing flip flops and would never consider them fashionable. I'm definitely not saying they are super fashionable, but I'm keeping it real for you. I'm a mom and I live in California and it's what I wear. Sure, wedges are hot, but they're not exactly practical for chasing three little boys while wearing a baby on your back. Flip flops it is.

We're back from our camping trip and while we had so much fun (of course I'll be writing a post on it) it was straight back to real life. I've been doing a lot of laundry today, but all totally worth it to spend a whole weekend with friends. My kids were in absolute heaven (and, aside from the mosquitoes, so was I).

Advertise on Mama Loves Papa

I'd love to have you as a sponsor in August!

August will be a big month at Mama Loves Papa!
-I will be attending Blogher in San Diego and will be meeting and networking with lots of amazing bloggers and brands!
-I will be finishing my 30 for 30 challenge.
-You'll be seeing the big school room reveal.
-Of course, I'll have more Small Style, lots of pretty pictures, more crafts and tutorials, recipes and meals, and lots more surprises and fun!

I have a brand new extra large ad size and, as always, a small and large size to fit the needs of your blog, shop, or business. You can visit the sponsor information post or email me at mamalovespapablog@gmail.com.

A Camping We Go

Shirt- Vintage, refashioned by me, Shorts- Forever 21, Sandals- Lulus.com
Tomorrow morning we're heading out on our second annual camping trip with friends. Today has been (and will continue to be) spent cooking, shopping, and getting everything organized. I read a quote somewhere, I can't remember where, who said it, or exactly how it went (how's that for some specifics?), but it said something like, "Vacations are where mothers go to another place and work hard, so the rest of the family can rest." That made me laugh.

I'm not much of a camper (ok, at all), but the rest of my family loves it and I love spending extended periods of time with some of my favorite people. I know we're going to have a great time and, if Silas and Finley sleep well through the night, it should be pretty close to perfect.

What are your weekend plans?

PS If you're here for Small Style, it's right here.

Small Style #21

Thank you so much for joining me for this week's Small Style! Sorry for the technical difficulties on last week's linky. Hopefully, this week is difficulty free and filed with lots of beautiful kids! I can't wait to visit your blogs!








On Silas: Robot t-shirt - gift from my mom, Shorts- Old Navy, Chucks- Converse, On Finley: Dress- Old Navy, Shoes- See Kai Run

The other day Silas and Finley and I had a coffee/chocolate milk date while Judah and Samuel were at VBS (tomorrow is their last day and another coffee date is definitely in order. It's how we roll.) Silas and Finley each got their own cup with half of a kids' chocolate milk, but on the way out Silas dropped and spilled his. He was quite upset about it, but Finley was nice enough to give hers to Silas. Silas was nice enough to share a few sips with his baby sister.

The last two weeks have been fun with my little ones and amazingly easy, but we miss having Judah and Samuel with us all day. I have a few exciting adventures for the five of us (and the six of us, when Eric is home in the evenings and on weekends) until it's time for school to start in the Fall. "School" isn't a huge change of pace for us, because we're all still together- just doing a little schoolwork, too.

But, it's still Summer and we're going to squeeze every last bit out of it. I'll talk more about school when the time comes. How will you be enjoying your last month of Summer?

Link up here:

Ruffled Neck Onesie Tutorial - Guest Post from Kendra

Today I have a guest post from Kendra of Adornme Girl. She is going to teach you how to make the cutest little ruffle onesie. Thanks so much, Kendra!



Step one: Choose onesie, I used a white one made by Carters. Choose fabric for ruffles. Use any knit, polyester, or cotton fabric. Use an old t-shirt or old shirt if you don't have any extra fabric laying around.



Step two: Cut fabric into strips. Cut two to three strips about 12 inches by 2 inches and two to three strips about 15 inches by 2 inches. It is good to cut extra strips in case the ruffle doesn't go exactly right after sewing.



Step three: Set your sewing machine dial to the highest stitch, on mine it's a five. This will make the stitches wider so we can make a ruffle.



Step four: If you prefer your ruffles not to have the raw edge , hem them by folding the edges over a half inch and sewing them down. I am more of a raw edge kinda girl. I think it's shabby and chic!

To start your ruffles make sure your stitch is set to the highest and start by sewing one end in a straight line. Continue to sew the rest of your strips the same way.



Step Five: Once you have finished sewing the strips find the bottom or bobbin string on each end and carefully pull each end and make the ruffle look the way you want it to. Once you have ruffled all strips cut them and do a test placement on the onesie of where you would like them.



Step Six: Pin the top (first) strip where you want it. Change your sewing machine stitch setting back to a regular lower stitch and sew on the previous stitch and onto the onesie. Continue to do the same for the next two or how ever many ruffles you would like to add by having the previous ruffle slightly over lap the next.





Step Seven: When you are finished cut any loose strings and enjoy your newly and inexpensive cute top for your sweetie.



Please let me know if you have any questions!

Also, remember to use coupon code mamalovespapa15 for *15%* off purchase at Adornmegirl.

Visit my blog and become a follower.

Thank you to the wonderful girl behind Mama Loves Papa for letting me do a guest post on her awesome blog!

Monday Mornings

Dress- Lulus.com, Grey skirt and belt- thrifted, Shoes- Urban Outfitters, Ring- Local shop (Trucker)

Today Judah and Samuel are starting their second Vacation Bible School, which means another week of mornings spent with my two little ones. We plan to have a lot of fun. Last week we nixed our errands and spent a lot of time at the gym, park, and coffee shop. This week I think we'll be nixing the gym and spending a lot of time doing whatever pleases Silas and Finley the most. It might be our last chance to spend time, just the three of us, until next Summer.

We celebrated my grandma's birthday last night at one of our favorite local places, Sierra Nevada, so we decided to snap a few pictures in front of their warehouses. Then, we went inside to hang out with family and fill our bellies with deliciousness. It was a good night.

Color Land Giveaway WINNER

The Color Land giveaway winner, according to random.org is #14.

ABRA!

To see more of Citalli's adorable items visit her etsy shop!

Sweet Babies

My baby loves babies. Just like her mama.







That cute little baby is Toby, my good friend Jenna's youngest. Jenna's daughter and Judah and Samuel were at Vacation Bible School (a day camp at the church) this week. On Friday they had a barbeque and water day where the parents and siblings were invited to hang out. The highlight for the boys was definitely the massive, seemingly-never-ending water fight. For Finley the highlight was baby Toby (or, "baby Tody," as she calls him). I felt bad for Jenna, but she would not stay away from him. She wanted to feed him his cup of water, help with his baby food, give him his toy, and pretty much just stayed all up in his business the whole time.

Finley loves playing with her baby dolls, giving them kisses and hugs, and pushing them in her stroller or shopping cart, but real babies are her favorite. I think this little lady will be a pretty great mama some day.

Today is the last day to enter the super stinkin' cute giveaway from Color Land! I'll announce the winner tomorrow.

Market Outfit

Necklace, Made by me, Top- Local boutique (For Elyse), Shorts- Target, Sandals- Lulus.com
Last time I wore this necklace some of you asked about how to make it. It's super, super easy. You can use this fabric rosette tutorial (and make the strips a little more narrow than I suggest there. I'll have to re-write the tutorial sometime), then hot glue the rosettes on a chain. Wa-la! There you have it! (Oh, and I hot glued strips of felt on the back to make it a little more stable.)

I haven't posted a picture of all 30 of my items yet because I haven't actually picked them out. Whoops! I guess everything I've already worn is included. This week the weather has been crazy and unusually cool (and perfect!) in the 70s, so I hope I don't regret some of my choices -like jeans and this sweater type thing- when it's back up to 102. We shall see.

One more thing, I'm apparently not a night blogger at all. After the kids go to bed my mind turns to mush and I have a hard time thinking clearly, hence my short 30 for 30 posts. Thank you all you for reading them, anyway. I love looking at your outfits, too, and for those of you thinking of doing it....DO IT!