We are going to Disney!

Those who follow our Instagram already know that,... however if you are not following us, don't worry, I will make the big announcement here: We are going to Disney World in Orlando!!! Can you imagine how excited I am ?!?!?!?!

In fact we were looking for a vacation in a Resort or a Cruise ship where we would be able to rest and relax from this craziness that is our daily routine, but we ended up changing our minds.

This will not be our first trip to Walt Disney World. Hubby and I have been there in 2005 (feels like another lifetime) when we still lived in Brazil. That was a huge deal since it was our first trip abroad. We made the reservations through a travel agency, but we were not in any kind of guided tour or group. We were relying on our skills and abilities in an age with no wi-fi connection for internet and no GPS (we actually used something made of paper called Map - and we survived!!!!)

I remember how much we enjoyed that trip. We visited the four main theme parks from Disney World (Magic Kingdom, Hollywood Studios, Epcot and Animal Kingdom) and two parks from Universal (Island of Adventures and Universal Studios).

Our first park was Animal Kingdom and there I got emotional watching the Lion King show. OMG,... that was the moment I realized that dreams do come true! We enjoyed every second of that trip,... watched the parades, got to meet the characters, picture with the princesses,... magical times.

And now I am really excited planning this trip with Isabella. This time we decided to visit only Disney Parks. Despite the fact that I am a huge Harry Potter fan, we decided not to visit Universal parks because we don't think there are many options for Isabella.

I keep wondering about her reaction when Bella sees Mickey and Minnie Mouse!!! For those who don't know the theme of Bella's 2nd birthday party was Minnie Mouse, click here.

Ok, back to the planning, we already have the flight tickets and the place to stay in Orlando booked. We still need to to buy the park tickets and rent the car.

I also need to carefully plan the Fastpasses. There is less than a month!!!

Any suggestions or advice on how to plan a visit to Disney World with a 2-year-old toddler?

Follow our Instagram for more updates!

 PS. This post is ready since last week, but I was waiting to share some pictures from our trip to Disney World in 2005. Little did I know that we don't have the 'CDs' with the pictures anymore. Another reason to create beautiful memories with the family and take lots of photos!

We are back,... oh Summer!

Summer is finally here and I couldn't be happier! We had such a long, cold and snowy winter and almost no Spring weather.

I know, we live in Canada, so we should be used to the snow and the cold weather, but it is so good to have warm temperatures and sunshine :)

A lot has happened during the past months that I did not have time to write/post. I don't know what is happening,... life is so busy, but in a good sense. We are busy with family, work, weekend activities, some family visits,...

Yes, we had family staying with us for the Holidays. Our niece came from Brazil to spend 45 days studying English here. Those were magical, busy and snowy days. We traveled to Ottawa and Niagara while she was here.

Isabella is doing well at the daycare. She loves spending the day with her teachers and friends (by the way, I received some questions on how the process to pick a daycare was, and I am writing about it). Isabella also started ballet classes - it is a 'mommy & me' type of class and we love it! Ms. Jessica (the teacher and studio's owner) is an awesome teacher, but this is old news if you follow us on Instagram, right?

Our family welcomed a new baby girl!!! Yep, I am an Auntie again,... My sister had a beautiful and precious baby girl in the end of March. My mom flew there to stay with them and help with the baby.

After staying a while with my sister and her family, my mom stopped by for a quick visit,... she came to spend the Easter weekend with us. It is always a joy to have my mom around, specially during Easter. Isabella and vovó (grandma in Portuguese) had a great time together.

It was Isabella's first egg hunt,... she was so excited (once she was able to understand how it works). The egg hunt was just for the pleasure of finding 'not so' hidden eggs - because there was no chocolate or candies inside them. We didn't give her any of those things yet.

This is a quick update on a few things we have been doing these past few months! We still have a post about Isabella's 2nd birthday coming soon,.... stay tuned!

Canadian baby products that I love!

Hello friends,...

Today I decided to write about some Canadian baby products that I used and I recommend. Please note that this post was not sponsored by any of the brands/products listed below. This is just a mom sharing her findings with you!

I came to know and bought all products below at Baby Shows. These are baby products that Isabella used and we recommend.


ZippeeMax: this is a baby car seat cover made of a very soft fabric and it can be used as a shopping cart cover, nursing cover and as they mention on their website, the possibilities are endless. We got Isabella the black with white stars - black & white is a classy combination, right?

We got the one with the zipper and it was great to protect her from the wind and/or water if we were outdoors - we only zip closed for very short periods of time for proper air flow. Most of the time we left the zipper open and we could see her adorable face. Look at this pink one,....

You can find more information about this product on their website: http://zippeemax.com

Baby Nimbus: in fact this is a platform that help promote and support local doodlers to showcase their work. They have a variety of products, but what we like the most are the Canadian themed onesies - they are adorable and you can see the Canadian roots in most of them.

Isabella had the 'Fully Caffeinated Squirrel' onesie. It is hilarious! My husband and I love coffee, so we thought it would be fun our baby wearing such a whimsical top.

You can find more information and other designs on their website: https://www.babynimbus.com

Love Squared Kids: Ron is an enthusiast for hats,... in fact anything you can possibly think on wearing on your head,... caps, touques, bandanas, hats (all styles - believe me!!!!) and when he saw the slouchy beanies from Love Squared Kids he just couldn't stop asking me to get a matching set for the whole family (maybe not the whole family since they don't have dog fashion).

Anyways, the fabric is soft, light and the styles are soooooo beautiful. Isabella and I have the mauve (or rose) with white little stars and Ron got his favourite colour/theme: camo.

As you can see, it is possible to create a Mommy&Me style :)

Check their website: http://www.lovesquaredkids.ca

Lulujo: I am a fan of muslin blankets and swaddles,... they are so versatile and can be used for a lot of things: cover the baby (when is not so cold), cover for the car seat, nursing cover, I even use them as towels... We have a ton of them around the house. And the muslin blankets we have from Lulujo are great! They are eco-friendly - made of natural bamboo - lightweight and ultra soft. They come in different sizes and designs are soooooo cute. I could not believe how soft the fabric gets every time it is washed.

We got Isabella the one with the XO print.

Who doesn't like those cute pictures taken every month with baby's milestones???? I certainly do. With this in mind we got Isabella a Baby's First Year Milestones Blanket, we chose the one with pink flowers and cards set,... and here is a picture of my little baby when she was 4 months old. I was not a good photographer though,... but it was a great way to create memories and track her growth.

At this point in time she was rolling over by herself (and supper excited about it!) and it became a bit tricky to take pictures.

Fore more products, please visit the website: www.lulujo.com


Gertie the Good Goose: this is an adorable teething toy made of natural rubber and it features food-grade paint. It is BPA, phthalate and PVC free,... in other words, chemicals free!!!!!! Gertie is lightweight and the contrasting colours are perfect for catching baby's attention.

We bought Gertie at a Baby Show in 2017 and it was love at first sight (Bella & Gertie)! Gertie's shape was designed specifically for small hands, and I can tell that she was able to hold the toy by herself since the beginning. Isabella chews her beak and feet with no mercy, and it helps to alleviate the pain in her gums when she is teething.

We also had the chance to meet Gertie's creator at the same Baby show, she was lovely and took the time to talk to us and explain about what makes Gertie unique.

Gertie became part of the family instantly,... she made it in time to be part of the 4 month-old celebration!

Look at Isabella and Gertie together! She was 5 months old!

You can buy Gertie and her friends (yep,... there is a family!) at Amazon or Well.ca

Any other suggestion on Canadian products this mommy should know about? Please leave a comment here!

Getting Ready for Halloween

October is here and now that we already celebrated Thanksgiving it's time to think about Halloween.

In fact, I think I am starting a bit late this year. Anyways,...

This is Ron's favourite celebration of the whole year. He gets extremely excited about Halloween and if it were only up to him, the entire house would be the home of skeletons, bats and creepy creatures.

I have to admit that I am also excited about Halloween, specially because Isabella started understanding what is going on around her. The other day we went to the supermarket and she had fun walking in the middle of the inflatable outdoor decorations.

We already got a few necessary things for this year, but I still have things in my TO DO list:

• Isabella's costume
• Dad's costume
• Mommy's costume
• Treats
• Decoration
• Cookie cutters
• Bake cookies

Costumes:

Last year we didn't plan in advance, except from Isabella's costume. The reason for this was because we had family visiting for the month of October (here is our beautiful niece holding Isabella) and we were a bit busy. Isabella was a such a small baby, but it didn't keep us from having a bit of fun. She was a cute baby unicorn.

I was someone from Gryffindor,... yep,... Harry Potter fan here (big time)!!!!!!! And daddy was,.... was,... well, he was someone 'friendly/scary'.

We also got Isabella a day time outfit, needless to say that she really liked it!

So this year we already got her costume - stay tuned on our Instagram for the big reveal on Halloween Day! And there will be a post telling you everything about her Halloween experience. I am also considering having a family theme. We still have to find our costumes for this family approach.

Decoration:

We have some decoration around the house to set the mood for halloween,... nothing big. Each year we set a budget to spend and add a few more items to our "collection". We already have our friendly vampire in our garden and some spider webs and sparkly spiders on the porch.

I like to add small things on our days to set the mood as well,... I mean, you don't need to spend a lot. We got some straws, ziplocks,....

I am also planning on baking some sugar cookies. I got so excited with the cookie cutters with the halloween theme when I saw them, I thought ir would be fun baking with Isabella! I love baking and I wish I had more time for it. I will share the pics from the result with you!

Halloween is so much fun!!!!! Isabella already has a Jack-o'-Lantern treat bucket. Right now she uses it to carry her colourful toys around the house. The other day she was "helping" mommy to fold the clothes and she stuffed it with the socks to be taken to her room. I thought it was a pretty smart move,... but I don't know if she was just playing or she really meant to take all of them in one trip - I like to think that she is a clever baby!!!!

Ok, this is it for now,... hope you guys have a lovely Halloween,... and keep warm!

It is Cake Smash time!

I can't believe how fast the first year has gone by. It feels like it was just the other day that we were bringing our newborn baby home from the Hospital.

Isabella had a great time during her birthday party (check here),... she played with her friends and had lots of carrots. She was so excited that she didn't nap a bit!

After celebrating Isabella's 1st birthday, it was time to look into the "Cake Smash thing". I think it is adorable to see the pics of the little ones having fun with a cake. Little did I know that most of time the cake smash photo session should take place before the 1st b-day party,... oh rookie mom!!!!

For those who (like me) don't know, a cake smash photo session consists of a baby literally smashing a beautiful cake and making a controlled mess. As I mentioned, it is a sweet mess (pun intended)!

We chose the package that started with the Milestone pictures (1 year old), then the Cake Smash when Isabella got in touch with the cake and had a blast and wrapped up with a  relaxing Bubble Bath.

I wanted a cake that looked like a giant cupcake and the ladies from Mangia Cake Desserts did a great job! It was beautiful and yummy. This was the first time that Isabella tasted sugar.

As for he theme, I love the clean backdrops with all possible shades of pink. Another prop that I wanted was the large letters that spell out ONE.

The photographer - Alona Rose - was really nice and made Isabella, mom and dad feel comfortable during the photo session. Everything that she prepared - props, backdrops, balloons - was pretty & elegant, I love the flowers and the balloons! Needless to say that she is a great professional,... look at some pictures:

We took the Birthday board with us, it was made for her Birthday party and now it is in her nursery.

A few tips: 1) think about the theme/color scheme you want for the cake smash in advance, try to search on Pinterest and Instagram for ideas; 2) Be prepared for you to get some cake on your clothes and maybe your hair :) It might be a good idea to have a spare outfit for you just in case! 3) Make sure your baby is well rested,...

So,.. did you like Isabella's Cake Smash Session?

Photos by Alona Rose: https://alonarose.com
Cake by Mangia Cake Desserts:https://www.instagram.com/mangia_cake_desserts/?hl=en
Birthday board: https://www.facebook.com/inspiredbyougraphicdesign/

Isabella's 1st Birthday Party

Isabella turned one (a few months ago) and I can't believe how fast she is growing. She is no longer that baby that depended on us for everything,... it is a bitter sweet feeling because at the same time that I miss that little baby, I am proud of the (tiny) human being she is becoming.

We decided to have a small birthday party at our home just for the closest friends and family. I chose the theme Twinkle Twinkle Little Star - it is one of her favourite songs.

After picking the theme, I went online to order the party supplies: plates, napkins, cups, some centerpieces and balloons.

I was able to find this adorable invitation online, I knew it would be perfect for the colour scheme we chose.

Checking Pinterest I saw some birthday boards, and I became obsessed with them,... It is such a great idea to register this milestone. I contacted a Canadian company (great customer service!)  that designed it just the way I wanted, and the result is here:

I ordered it 20'x16'and it was the perfect size. I love it so much!!!!! See the contact for this company at the end of this post.

The menu was prepared at home and it included pulled pork sliders, carrots (Isabella's fave!!!) & tomatoes with hummus, tostitos, layered sandwich - vegan and regular (this is like a layered savory cake - I know it doesn't make sense, but our guests loved them), passion fruit mousse and "brigadeiros" - tradicional Brazilian chocolate truffles.

We ordered the cake from a traditional bakery. The shades of rose-pink matched the colour scheme of the party.

It was such a great time,... Isabella had so much fun from start to end. We would like to thank our friends for celebrating such an important day with us,... also a special thanks to Grandma Ivete, and her God-Parents Ivana and Izzet for helping us to prepare everything for this special moment. We love you guys!

Grandma came to help us and celebrate with our baby Bella! Such a great memory.

I just love this picture!!!!!

Isabella's friends (two of them in the picture), the little girl was fascinated with Isabella's headband!!!

Brigadeiros - Brazilian chocolate truffles

Passion fruit mousse.

Invitations: Little Monkey Design
Party supplies/decoration/balloons: Party City online
Isabella's personilized board: Inspired By You Graphic Design
Cake: La Casa Dolce
Isabella's dress: Gymboree
Mommy's dress: Rick's



Next step: cake smash!!!!