I wouldn’t necessarily categorize myself as a creature of habit but looking back on my pre-Kade days I definitely had a rhythm and order to my day-to-day activities. A typical day would start with a four mile run, shower, get ready for the workday, make a chocolate protein smoothie, take a picture or two….or twenty of my ootd {outfit of the day}, work, come home {run if I didn’t in the morning}, have dinner, blog and hang out with my husband. And if I’m being honest I would usually bring work home too. {On average I would spend 10-20 hours a week working in the evenings. Weekends were much more sporadic but if I was in town {I used to travel a lot} they usually included working out, getting my nails done, shopping {online mostly} and something fun with family or friends.

Now-a-days things look a bit different. In the beginning months there was an order to the day but it most certainly was not ideal. My main goal each day was/is to keep our little human healthy, happy, fed, dry and clean. Then I would try to sleep when possible, wash bottles, sanitize bottles, pump if necessary, laundry {there was SO much laundry} and take a shower every other day. I was thankful to have so much help for the first six weeks but when that ended WOW it was shocling;y so much harder with just Kade and I.

Don’t get me wrong I wouldn’t have changed it. I love being Kade’s mom… it was just a very sudden life adjustment.  Mid May I returned to work and honestly I was ready! I needed a break… Mom life 24/7 is HARD!!!  I have so much respect for all the wonderful Momma’s who stay home with their littles… especially if you have more than one!

Being back to work was yet another adjustment but I liked getting back into the swing of things. I started to feel a little more like myself. But only for a week or two because then my outlook changed yet again. Kade was growing a bit, his personality was starting to develop, he was playing and we were watching first hand as he experienced life. Kade attends a Goddard School where they focus on learning and encouraging developmental growth everyday.  {We love his school and highly recommend Goddard Schools!!!} Each day we receive a report on Kade’s daily activities, eating/sleeping/diaper schedule and a fun photo from the day. The reports have been extremely beneficial because his school experiences have been cues for us as first time parents to know what he can do and what toys and activities we should introduce at home.

Over the past months we have settled in a bit more and are starting to get used to the new norm. My outlook went from looking forward to the workday to quickly wanting to rush home! Each day I can’t wait to pick up Kade and spend the evening with him! But, each day is also a conscious decision what am I NOT going to to do. The balance between amazing mom, wife, sister, friend, daughter, blogger is really tough and some days are better than most.

One of my favorite traditions is our monthly family photos! This month we teamed up with up Megan from Maewood Photography to capture Kade’s seven months! We went to see the sunflowers at the Maryland Agriculture Resource Council for our backdrop. I was hoping for Fall weather but as we all know summer lingered a little longer than anticipated. So September Summer Style it was for our seven month family photography.