Downy Unstoppables are Magic

So after my last post about the DIY Febreeze, I started to think to myself about how much I love the smell of it. Hence loving the smell of the Downy Unstoppables...

Then I thought I wonder if I could put them in my Scentsy warmer and make my whole house smell like that, not just my couches and beds. So I tried it out and guess what it works!

Totally awesome! A whole container of Downy Unstoppables is cheaper than or the same price as a single Scentsy bar. And you only need a small amount to make your whole house smell like fresh laundry.

I love that I found another use for the container of Unstoppables I purchased! So for those of you that went out and bought some to make febreeze, go ahead and toss some in your warmer! I promise you will love it!

DIY Febreeze

So I have been wanting to do one of these for awhile now, it's just hard to find the time to put in all the pictures and take the time to put down the steps.

The first project I want to talk about is homemade febreeze! I absolutely love febreeze! It is one of my favorite things! I could and would spray it on anything and everything if I could. The only problem with that is...febreeze is not cheap. And the way I could go through it would make for a not very happy hubby. So I am put in a dilemma...

Love febreeze, hate the price. So I looked on Pinterest and found a recipe for homemade febreeze. I tried it and I wish I could say I fell instantly in love but that is not the case.

It smelled like watered down fabric softener and when I went to sniff my couch (yes that sounds weird) but it had no smell really and the couch was super wet.

Upon telling my mom of my experience she had a genius idea! Sure do love that mom of mine!

She said why don't we try the Downey Unstoppables. So we did and not only does it make everything in my house smell like fresh laundry and deliciously clean...but the smell lasts even longer than normal febreeze and is so cheap to make!

What you'll need...

Empty febreeze bottle (or any spray bottle could probably do)
Downey Unstoppables
Baking soda
Water
*Yep that's all there is to it!

Here's how it's done...

1. Take 2 tbsps. of your choice of Downey Unstoppables (you could even use the Gain fireworks if you like) and put in a small bowl.

2. Add a few tablespoons of boiling hot water to the Unstoppables until you have melted them down.

3. Pour the melted Unstoppables into your empty febreeze container. Add a tablespoon of baking soda.

4. Fill the rest of your febreeze container with warm water. And shake well.

Ta-dah! Instant, easy, and awesome homemade febreeze. I shake my febreeze every time before I use it just to make sure nothing has settled to the bottom!

I promise you once you try this you will never buy febreeze again!

Developmental Craziness

Well the last couple of weeks have been amazing. Being a mother is so incredibly rewarding. Titan's development is so astounding to me.

He is now able to hold his head up while being held. Sometimes he wavers a little but I can't believe how strong my little man is. He can lift his head up and support himself on his arms while he lies on his tummy. He smiles all of the time, which I absolutely love! And he just jabbers away.

Two nights ago while I was getting him ready for his bath he laughed for the first time. Up until now he has kinda grunted but this was a little chuckle and he kept doing it and I loved it. It made me laugh and almost brought tears to my eyes because I am so proud of him and so grateful that I get to be his mother.

He laughed again today while I was dancing with his arms and it is so fun. I loved having a newborn, but I think I love this stage even more because he recognizes who I am and he coos and smiles and laughs.

He is also getting so chunky I can't believe it! He doesn't even look like he was a preemie. I am so incredibly grateful every day for prayers being answered and helping our little guy grow strong. He isn't really fitting into any of his 0-3 month clothes anymore. I already have a box under his crib with all the newborn clothes he has outgrown and it looks like it might be time to start a 0-3 box. It's a bittersweet moment, it's great seeing he is doing everything he needs to but at the same time it is going so fast before I know it he will be walking.

Titan is also sleeping through the night which I love. It might only be 7-8 hours but we love it and know that soon enough it will be even more.

We've found that giving him a bath, reading a couple books, and feeding him at the end of the night just zonks him out. I wish I could get him to nap more during the day but he is an alert and curious little guy trying to take in the world and not wanting to miss any of it. For this I am grateful. I know I am going to have my hands full entertaining a toddler with a big imagination, but I wouldn't want him any other way.

This little boy of mine is such a special spirit. I am incredibly lucky that I get to be his mother. I can already see the happiness he brings to people through his spirit. Not just because he is a baby and people love babies but it is who he is.

His dad and I cannot wait to see him continue to grow. He is going to do many great things. I can just feel it!

Blessing Day

So this last Sunday we were able to bless our sweet little boy, Titan. It was such an amazing experience. One I will never forget.

I am so grateful that I am married to a man that is a worthy priesthood holder and that honors that priesthood. Because of that he was able to give Titan his baby blessing as well as several blessings in the hospital that I know helped or little guy come home to us sooner.

The other people that stood in the circle were my dad, Kyle, Tanner's dad, Jared, Andy, Bob, Jordan, Will, Kodey, Scott, and Henry.

My mom made Titan's blessing outfit. She worked so hard on it and it turned out so incredibly cute. We had so many comments on it. He looked like the cute little man that he is!

The blessing itself was incredible. Tanner did an amazing job and the spirit could be felt so strongly. I cannot wait to continue watching Titan grow. I know he has a strong spirit and was saved for this time. I know he is going to be an example to his siblings and also all of those that he comes into contact with.

It is so fun now that he is cooing and smiling! Its like finally he recognizes Tanner and I are his mom and dad and that we take care of him. My love grows stronger for him every day. It is amazing that you can love some one so much. It makes you realize the love that your parents have for you. And not only your earthly parents by our heavenly parents as well.

I am so grateful that I get to experience being a mother and that we have been blessed with such a special little boy.

Sleep Deprivation, Diapers, & Breastfeeding

As I mentioned before, Tanner and I are new to this parenting thing. I'm the oldest in my family so I had some experience coming into it as far as changing a diaper here and there and making up a bottle using formula. I've also baby sat several times, for not only my parents, but other families. And Tanner has a couple of nieces and nephews that he had helped take care of from time to time. But none of that prepared us for parenthood.

Because Titan was in the NICU for the first three weeks, it was almost like we hadn't had a baby. Going home without him was one of the hardest things I have ever done. I am pretty sure I cried ten times by the time we went back up to visit him and then anytime I wasn't up there with him I felt guilty that I was somewhere my baby wasn't. The other side to that was we had him but he wasn't home so we were still able to go to sleep when we wanted and to sleep through the night.

The first night we brought him home we were full of excitement and constant concern at every little noise he made. After the third night, there wasn't anymore concern about his noises. The concern was who is going to get up with him this time. In the middle of the night after six or seven days of not getting any sleep you begin to say things to your partner you don't ever mean and then you get up in the morning and say, "I'm really sorry about last night. I can't believe I said that." And the other person smiles and says, "it's ok and I know why you said it neither of us has slept." Then the next morning you'd switch roles.

We both knew we weren't going to be getting our eight blissful hours of sleep. But we were completely unprepared for how little we would get and we feel like we have a good baby. In reality if your baby is waking up every three hours to eat, that means you might get five hours of sleep. Because they get up you spend an hour feeding/changing diaper/getting them back to sleep. Then it takes you 30 minutes to get back into a restful sleep and they are up an hour and a half later ready to start the party all over again. But when you look at your sweet little boy sleeping away you realize nothing in the world could be better than this and they are totally worth the not sleeping.

Not only had we underestimated how little of sleep we were actually going to get, but we'd also underestimated the amount of diapers we go through. Everyone tells you oh plan on at least 8 diapers a day. Maybe later in life it might be 8 but I am here to tell you that is only if you change them once at every feeding. Maybe my Titan is a super pee-er/pooper but we change his diaper before he eats and what do you know he won't fall back asleep because he has made a mess in that one too. I had purchased 3 packages of newborn diapers and 2 size one diapers. I felt pretty good about that. We were them given a package and a half from the hospital and 3 miscellaneous ones given as gifts. In his almost four weeks home we have gone through all 6 newborn given to usas gifts plus two I have bought from the store. So be prepared!

Feeding is another story too. Because he was in the NICU his requirements to come home were to eat all of his bottle every three hours for eight feedings. For a baby who hadn't eaten by himself until he was one a half weeks old that is quite the task. We tried breast feeding but he spent a lot of his energy doing that and then he couldn't finish his bottle. Because of this Tanner and I decided we just wanted him home and could work on breast feeding then. He has been home for almost a month and we still aren't super successful with breast feeding. At first I felt really guilty about this and everyone kept saying oh its so important you do that and have you been able to yet. I was feeling like a bad mom because I was just pumping and then we'd give him what I'd pump because he would get so frustrated and mad that we couldn't get anything going. Now that we are almost to the seven weeks old mark I'm not worried about it and I'm not letting people make me feel bad for what I'm doing. And I even have to supplement him with formula sometimes because he wants to eat so much and I can't stay ahead of him. All of this is working for us because he its gaining weight like he needs to and I figure maybe one day he'll get it figured out and if he doesn't it's ok because as my so wise mother said to me "who cares because eventually we all drink from a cup."

So for any soon-to-be moms out there or future moms my advice to you is...even if you think you are prepared for your baby you most likely aren't and that is ok I don't think anyone ever is, stock up on diapers galore because the last thing you want is to run out of diapers, and lastly do what you feel is right and best for your baby after all you are the only one who he calls mom and don't let anyone make you feel bad our guilty about your choices :)

Here We Go

So I decided that it was time for me to jump on the blog bandwagon. I know that the bandwagon is long gone, but I think this blog is for me more than anything else...

A place to document our life as a family after Baby Harding

I was sealed to the love of my life, Tanner Dean Harding, for time and all eternity August 20th, 2011. We only dated for two months before he asked me to marry him and then we were sealed only two months after that.

I'm sure people thought we were crazy or that it wasn't going to last, but I can say that almost two years later I love him more now than I did then. After a year and a couple months of being married we decided it was time to start a family. We didn't expect it to happen so fast, but we are sure glad it did.

Titan Tanner Harding came to us April 18th, 2013. He was five weeks early and had to be delivered because of an infection I had in my uterus. He came weighing in at a whooping 5 lbs 15 oz. He had to spend the first three weeks of his life in the NICU, overcoming a partially collapsed lung and then ensuing breathing problems. But he was a warrior and fighter just like his name. Going back and forth to the hospital was exhausting to say the least, but our little guy battled it out and we were finally able to bring him home.

He has been home for almost three weeks and it has been quite the adventure. And that is where we are at right now...

Bumbling through parenthood, trying to get back to body before baby, and keeping the spark alive that brought us together.

If anyone even ends up following my blog, I hope you enjoy the journey just as much as I know we are going to.