Family day at the Orange County Fair.

Going to the Orange County Fair is a summer tradition for me. I've been going every year since I was a little girl and I love it more and more each time. The food is fried, the rides are dangerous, and the carnies are missing teeth... what could be a better Summer tradition? We first took Cayden when he was only 3 weeks old and with a possible out-of-state move in our future, I knew I had to take him again this year. We had so much fun walking around and eating! I have an obsession with fair food, and photographing fair food. I can't get enough of those colorful booths! We took the boys to the petting zoo where Cayden almost got trampled by a llama (true story...) and we walked around the arts and crafts expo. The only disappointment was that every ride in the kiddie land had a 36" height requirement (which we realized after buying the tickets) so the boys couldn't go on any. Lame! But thankfully we brushed it off and had a great time!

Another thing checked off our Summer to-do list! Can you believe Fall is almost here? I can't wait!! XOXO

Bad blogger.

I know, I know. It's been two weeks. To everyone who stuck around: Thank you! The laptop that I've had for 5 years finally died on me the day before Cayden's party and I just got a temporary replacement this week. Lots has been going on around here including some big news... We're moving! After a stressful month of big decisions, we decided the best thing for us to do is to move back in with my mama temporarily. This will allow us to actually save money, for both the wedding and our big move out of state afterwards. I have mixed emotions about the whole thing... I will be sad to leave our first home, the place we brought Cayden to after he was born. I'll miss our neighborhood and our privacy. On the other hand, we are all really close with my mom and have lived with her before. I love her to pieces and I know it'll work and this is the best possible plan for us to reach our long term goals. So, after we get back from our road trip to Oregon, I'll have 2 weeks to pack everything up, and we'll be out of here by the first week of September.  

Speaking of Oregon, we're leaving in less than a week! I am SO excited! Saturday I'm going to the spa with my sister to get a massage and a facial so I'll have some peace and quiet before spending a week in a car with my one year old, and Sunday morning we are leaving! I'll post more about our trip on Friday. On Wednesday I'll be back to finally post about Cayden's birthday and share some pictures! In the meantime, here are some pictures of our trip to the beach yesterday! Happy Monday! XOXO

Friday Favorites: Oregon Trails

You may remember this post where I mentioned that it's my dream to move away from California and live somewhere that's quiet, and beautiful, and wholesome. My first choice is, and has always been, Oregon. Neither of us have been there before, but I've read and seen pictures enough to know that this picturesque place is perfect for us. The scenery they have is BREATHTAKING and with both beaches and forests you get the best of both worlds. It's a safe place to live and raise your kids, and we could actually afford to buy a home with lots of land. Honestly, about 75% of my days are spent daydreaming about living there. We've been talking about the idea for months now and decided to take action. In mid-August Mando, Cayden, my mama, and I will be taking an epic road trip up the California coast and through Oregon to the Portland/Mount Hood area where we hope to live. We'll be checking out the neighborhoods, job market, and all the beautiful scenery the place has to offer. The trip is mainly for Mando to see if he likes it (I've already made up my mind) but it's also going to be a vacation for us. We don't often have the opportunity to travel so I really want to make the most of this trip and see everything there is to see. If I can get Mando on board we hope to move after the wedding. And if everything goes well my mom will be joining us. I made a promise to her when I was a little girl that I would always take care of her, and Mando and I would be absolutely thrilled to have her live with us.

Anyway, the purpose of this post aside from sharing the road trip news is to ask for your help! We plan to take the scenic route up Pacific Coast Highway and since we've never been before, we need advice of the must-see places to stop! So far on our CA list is San Francisco, Santa Cruz, Big Sur, Gilroy, and the Redwoods. In OR I want to stop in Klamath Falls, Mount Hood, Portland, and St Helens. Obviously we've never been to these places and have no idea what to see so if anyone has take a trip up the coast, or been in any of those areas I would LOVE to hear your suggestions on places to stop. If you have any other suggestions of places to see I'd love to hear that too! I really want to find some cute, small towns with antique shops, beautiful scenic places, and anything else worth seeing! So please, if you have any advice to share I'm all ears!

I hope you all have a GREAT weekend! For once, we don't have a full schedule so we plan to just hang out as a family and veg! XOXO

It finally happened...

Yes, you read that right! I'm happy to announce that Mando and I are engaged! FINALLY! He proposed to me on Saturday night and it was perfect.  

How it happened: Saturday afternoon Mando, Cayden, and I were over at my mom's having a garage sale and cleaning out the back yard over there in preparation of Cayden's birthday party. When we were done my mom suggested we take the night off and have a date night and volunteered to watch Cayden for us. After an early start to a long day I almost said no... going home and going to bed early sounded way better. However, Mando convinced me that it would be good to get out of the house and get a break so I reluctantly agreed. We went out to dinner with my mom and Cayden and had some yummy Chinese and then after they went back home we stopped and got some ice cream and took a trip to the lake. The sun was setting after a gorgeous day and all of the families were packing up to go home. We found a quiet bench overlooking the water and were just hanging out and talking. The next thing I knew I turned around and Mando was on his knee with a ring in his hand! I don't even remember what he said I was so nervous! He popped the question and of course I said yes. It was quiet, romantic, and intimate which is exactly what I wanted. I found out afterwards that everyone knew and he and my mom had set up the whole thing. Sneaky, sneaky! We got tons of text and phone calls right after it happened. We are so thrilled and I am beyond excited to start planning... After 3 years, and a baby this wedding is long overdue! Expect to see a lot of wedding planning posts around here, I already know it's going to consume me for the next year or so! Thank you to everyone who has already said congratulations, it means the world to me! XOXO

Daily goals

When I first started considering the idea of me as a stay at home mom I'll admit, I was scared. Having worked full time since I was 17 years old, I am not used to being home day after day. One of the toughest challenges for me at the beginning was balance. I'd spend all day cleaning the house and cooking the meals and end up neglecting Cayden. Or I'll spend all day playing with Cayden and the dishes would pile up and dinner would be late. Then, I launched Mama Matryoshka and I had no idea it would take off like it did. I was so busy with my orders my blog was abandoned and I didn't have time to do my personal crafting anymore. Finally I came up with a plan that's ridiculously simple but incredibly helpful. Every morning when I wake up I write my goals for the day. I divide them in 3 categories: home, creative, and Cayden. By choosing a few tasks to do each day from each category I'm able to keep up with my cleaning, satisfy my creative appetite, and be a good mama to Cayden. It honestly makes everything really manageable and I rarely feel overwhelmed anymore. I also feel more accomplished every time I check something off my list which is a GREAT feeling! Because most of my readers and friends are also stay at home moms I thought I'd share this method and how it works for me! I'm sure each of you seasoned mamas have your own methods already, but here's a peak of how I manage!

Now I can check blogging off my list and begin the rest of my day! And if you have a tried and true system to staying organized and balanced I'd love to hear it!

A day in the life

I thought it would be fun to show everyone what a typical day in my life is like. I've seen other bloggers do this in the past, and I always think it's interesting to see what the average day looks like so I decided to join in the fun! It also gave me a chance to play with my camera and really use it all day long which is something I've been slacking on. So here is my day (yesterday, May 4th) and believe me when I say it's a typical day around here! I didn't even leave the house which is sadly normal!

I wake up to this picture like I do every morning. Cayden loves to stand in his crib and bounce up and down until I finally get out of bed. He wakes up so happy it always makes me smile.

After we got up we started getting ready for the day. We brushed our teeth and made the beds like we do every morning!

After we were up we got ready for breakfast. On the menu this morning: apple sauce, multi-grain cheerios, and sliced bananas. Mama ate a banana too!

Once Cayden was cleaned up it was time to get dressed. It's been in the 90's all week so it was definitely a shorts day.

On Wednesdays I baby-sit a 16 month old boy named Carter for a few hours. Him and Cayden are pals and love to play together. They ran around destroying the house while I cleaned up the kitchen.

After play time it was time for the boys to take a nap. I gave Cayden his bottle and put them both to sleep. Luckily they're both pretty good nappers so it went smoothly. Once they were asleep it was time for this mama to relax! I finally got a chance to catch up on some blogs and of course Pinning!

When the boys woke up for their nap it was lunch time! I've been trying to let Cayden learn to feed himself even though the mess gives me major OCD and anxiety. At least I have this cute face to look at though!

After lunch Carter got picked up and Cayden got changed into something cool and clean. We decided to read some books in bed which is Cayden's favorite thing to do. He's obsessed with touch-and-feel books!

Once we were done it was time to prep for dinner. On the menu: Spaghetti with meatballs and garlic bread. YUM! Since Mando was working late that night I didn't have him to help me watch Cayden while I cook so I gave him some spoons, bowls, and spatulas and let him go to town!

Finally Mando came home and took Cayden out to the balcony. He loves to look at the cars coming in and out and him and daddy do this every evening together as their 'special time'.

Mando decided to take Cayden for a walk after dinner so I could get some alone time to design some new items for Mama Matryoshka. I appreciate him so much times at times like that because he understands I need a break after being surrounded by babies all day! I finally got the chance to make this card which was inspired by a Martha Stewart card I saw on Pinterest. I absolutely love how it turned out.

When the boys came back home it was time for my little man to take a bath! He is obsessed with bath time and would play in there for hours and hours if we let him.

After bath time we dried him, dressed him, and got him ready for bed! This is my favorite part of the day because we all snuggle in bed while daddy gives Cayden a bottle. Then we gave him kisses and put him in his crib for the night. Thankfully he was tired and went to sleep right away!

Finally, around 8:30 we got some time to ourselves. I was so ready to curl up on my couch and watch some trashy reality TV. We stayed up for a few hours watching Real World and Top Model and talking for awhile and then hit the hay to do it all over tomorrow!

And that's how my day went! This was a fun little project and maybe I'll do it again in the future (hopefully on a more exciting day)! If anyone else decides to so this make sure to let me know... I'd love to see what your average day looks like too!