Personal – Page 58 – Snapshots & My Thoughts by Ailee Petrovic

Personal June 23, 2015

Sweet Baby Boys

Sasha and I took the optional early gender test when I was pregnant at 14 weeks and found out a week later, on our first day in Bali, that we were having a girl. I am not going to lie – I was so relieved. I kept telling everyone I thought I was having a boy, almost to reverse jinx myself. I have two sisters and a plethora of girl cousins, and to be honest, I just didn’t know what I would do with a baby boy.

Fast forward over a year, and I’m dying to have a little boy! I mean, having Isla is the most special thing ever (a mini me to dress like yourself? Yes, please). However, little boys are also so, so cute. I feel like 2015 has been the year of boys (and lots in 2014 too – namely, Simon!). I’ve recently photographed five newborn boys (see photos on my photography site – Snapshots by Ailee Petrovic), and most of Isla’s little friends are boys too.

I had the privilege of photographing a sweet baby boy named David yesterday. He is absolutely precious, and he slept during the photos (hooray!). It was the first time that has happened in ages, and so we got some cute snoozing photos. I also took 3 month photos of Baby Brooks (his newborn photos here). Y’all, he is so precious I cannot handle it!

As I mentioned yesterday, we went to two 1st birthday parties on Saturday for Isla’s boy friends. Instead of inundating your inbox with lots of separate posts, I thought I’d share photographs of Brooks, David, Kevin and Alexander all in one. Consider this baby boy cuteness overload. You’re welcome in advance!

Brooks

Personal June 22, 2015

Week in Review

Happy Monday! I cannot believe how quickly the last week (okay, month) has flown by. I keep on promising to get caught up, but I’m struggling to actually accomplish this. We’re heading to Colorado on Friday for a friend’s wedding, then I’m meeting my parents and Isla in Durango on Sunday and will spend a few weeks there. We haven’t gone back since spending the entire summer there last year, and we’re both itching for the mountain air. Hiking with Isla will be so much more challenging though! Ha.

This past Monday, I flew to Oklahoma City to visit one of my best friends, Kirby, and her daughter, Lillian, and husband, Brett (whom Sasha loves). Lillian is almost one, and it was so much fun to see the girls interact with each other. By interact, I obviously mean pull books of the bookshelves! Isla was a little aggressive with her hugs at first, but she calmed down after the first day! Ha. We were supposed to take photos with a photographer named Jessa Kae, but she canceled due to the rain, so we hurried outside and snapped a few photos of Lillian (and some with Isla). She is so gorgeous! I can’t wait to share more photos after her birthday!

We flew back on Wednesday, then spent Thursday running errands, going to swim class and meeting with Ally at Equinox (opening this year in Houston!). I was asked by Ashley of Sugar & Cloth to help out with a BHLDN photo shoot, so I went to try my dress on, and unfortunately, it did not work in the chest area, so I had to go and get a topper to conceal my milk-bearing chest! Embarrassing, yes. The shoot on Friday was so much fun, and I’m dying to see how the photos turned out. I absolutely love Ashley’s style and Jared’s photos, and every detail of the set was perfect.

Other highlights from the week included:

Spending Saturday morning with a former co-worker turned friend at the Trellis spa at the Houstonian. I got an oxygen facial, and I love it! I was totally convinced that I needed to buy all Natura Bisse products! Have you ever tried them? I would love some first-hand opinions!
Seeing that Isla’s party was voted as one of the finalists on Project Nursery! I would love your vote!
Celebrating two of our favorite boys’ 1st birthdays on Saturday – Isla was exhausted after back-to-back parties, but we all had such a great time. I’m going to be sharing photos from the parties this week!
Finally finishing off thank you cards (only two and a half weeks late!) – what a relief! I also managed to put away the honeycomb backdrop, as it’s going to be used in Cake & Confetti’s birthday celebration tomorrow evening (cannot wait!).
Spending Father’s Day celebrating Sasha and my dad at my parent’s house. We had lots and lots of fun in the pool (and quite a few Crave cupcakes!). I love all of the dads in my life.
Eating family dinner on Friday at our house and then playing Bananagrams afterwards (I adore this game). My older sister also babysat Isla while I was at the spa on Saturday. She took her to the Farmer’s Market! What a fun little outing.
Splashing around in swim class with new moms, as the summer session just started. It’s so nice to meet other moms with similar aged babies in the area. Isla still doesn’t get the point of kicking, but she loves going under the water so much.
Finishing some wedding work for my good friend, Brittany, who is getting married in Vail on Saturday. It’s going to be so gorgeous! I am beyond excited (and can’t wait to see our hotel room at the Sonnenalp!).
So. Many. Bubbles. Isla is obsessed. We started every single morning off with bubbles in the driveway, because she chants “buhh-ble, buhh-ble” during breakfast. It cracks me up, and I totally cave and let her play. She’s a demanding little lady! Watch this video for proof!

How was your past week? Did you have a good Father’s Day? Tell me about it in the comments below! xo

Willow Crowns (1 of 1)-10
Willow Crowns (1 of 1)-8 Willow Crowns (1 of 1)-43

#GIRLBOSS June 19, 2015

#GIRLBOSS: Jenny of A Fine Flourish

I followed Jenny of A Fine Flourish on Instagram for awhile before finally meeting her at Christina Leigh‘s Tinsel and Tables workshop last winter. She was teaching the attendees calligraphy, and I was seriously mesmerized with her perfect script. Her handwriting is truly flawless, but what really stuck out to me was how genuine and sweet she is.

Flash forward a few months, and I was running on our regular path with Isla when I saw Jenny outside her parent’s house. We stopped to chat, and I realized she was the real deal – she’s one of those people whom you meet and just cannot help but like. Soon after, we met again with three other talented ladies to discuss how to foster community in the creative community of Houston. And the rest of our friendship is history!

So, the second #GIRLBOSS interview (first here) is with this gorgeous mama (I die over this photoshoot with her gorgeous daughter, Bailey). Happy reading! After seeing her photos and scouring her Instagram, you’ll know whom to contact if you need any hand lettering done! I’m not going to lie, I cried while reading her post. It’s very motivational!

Baby June 16, 2015

New Favorite Baby Products (6+ Months)

In December, I shared my baby registry guide, which included all of the essential items for babies ages 0-6 months. Now that Isla is a year old, I’ve looked back on the list to see what new items would be needed for 6-12 months, and there aren’t many. Besides eating apparatuses, like clever bowls, spoons, cups, and snack containers, the list of items to buy isn’t enormous (hooray!). I’ve rounded up a few of our new favorite products that are appropriate for this age range, and I’m sharing details below.

After reading through, I would love to hear from other mamas about which products you’ve tried recently and love? Mom word-of-mouth is always the best!

Boon Suds Bottle Washer: As I begin the process of weaning Isla off breastmilk (begin is key here), I’m starting to introduce her to almond milk. So after not using bottles for months and months, we’ve pulled them out from the cabinets and are filling them up. Anyone who has cleaned bottles before knows how frustrating it is not to be able to easily clean down to the bottom, but with the Boon Suds washer, you put the bottle inside the scrubber and push down and it cleans the entire container really well (and scooshes water up, like a car wash). Watch this video for a demonstration. I highly recommend this – it doesn’t take up much space and the dishwasher will not get the milk stains off the same way!

Personal June 15, 2015

Week in Review

Remember how last week, I alluded to perhaps resting this week post-party? Well, that did not happen, and isn’t going to happen this week, as I head to Oklahoma City today to visit one of my bestest best friends and her daughter, Lillian, then come back to a few meetings and an exciting photoshoot with Sugar & Cloth that I’ll share details about later. I am bursting at the seams with excitement over our short ‘second generation of bestie’ trip, as I don’t get to see them enough and love them to pieces (Brett too, of course). Lillian is getting her first birthday photos taken on Tuesday, and we’re sneaking in for some bestie shots too! I cannot wait for this!

The past week was wonderful, as we got to celebrate Sasha’s birthday and spend lots of quality family and friend time. A few highlights from the week include:

Isla got new sunglasses in the mail from Blue Bison Designs – a friend from high school’s new Etsy monogramming business. I adore them! And she was cracking me up trying to put them on upside down. That girl!
Swimming every single day of the week, either at my parent’s house, in swim class, in our wading pool or in our next door neighbor’s pool. Isla is a total fish!
Meeting some of my favorite Houston mamas (all Instagram friends-turned-real-friends) at the Ervan Chew splash pad. Isla loved it (see fish comment above). See this photo’s tag for everyone included!
Getting fun packages from Cuteheads Kids and Willow Crowns – incredible businesses owned by two of the mamas I met at the splash pad! I first met both Esther and Megan when we were on Great Day Houston the same day, and we’ve kept in touch ever since. Love them both!
Attending a floral crown workshop hosted by Meredith of Cake & Confetti at Baanou (Houston’s coolest boutique!). More details and photos to come from the Get Crafty Workshop later this week (some pictures below).
Since we skipped Isla’s normal The Little Gym class in order to go to the splash pad, we went on Saturday morning as a family and loved it. Having Sasha there to flip Isla and walk her along the beam was so nice! She had a great time with Tata too.
Going to The Monogram Shop to pick out a cute little dress and bloomers for Isla to wear in an upcoming picnic shoot (details to come soon!). She was all over the place (walking is insane!), but I adore that store and it will always be a highlight to go and visit.
Celebrating Sasha’s birthday with TCBY and vegan cupcakes from both Crave and Sprinkles. Needless to say, my BBG workout/diet started on Thursday! Lots of time spent at Lifetime Fitness this week!
My dad’s retirement started a few weeks ago, and although he seems to be keeping busy with Board of Directors work, we have loved seeing him throughout the week. He dropped by quickly on Monday just to say ‘Hi’ (and to help pick Sasha’s gifts – whoops!) – it’s so nice to see him more often already!
Taking Isla to the doctor for her one year check-up, which she passed with flying colors. We ran into baby Pierce and his sweet parents as we were leaving (the day after I took his newborn photos!).
Finally going to get my eyes checked by my friend, Ashley (ahem, Dr. Bagwell) of West Houston Eye. She looked like a million bucks with the cutest Kate Spade/Anthropologie-esque outfit on – I wanted to snatch it right off her! I am in trouble for wearing my contacts too much and not letting my eyes rest, so I’m working on getting my 20/20 vision back. What a bad patient I am!
Spending time during the weekend with my sister-in-law, Ivana, who lives in San Francisco, but is in Texas right now for work (coolest job ever at Google – so jealous!).
Sipping tasty drinks at Julep for Cocktails with Creatives (an AIGA event) – I met my friends, Meredith and Brittany, and finally got to meet Ryann, the creative whiz behind Nine Zero Nine Creative.
Getting two of the most gorgeous paintings from my mother-in-law and her husband, Nenad, who is an incredible artist. I am dying to show photos of the two paintings soon! They’re perfect.
Meeting an old co-worker, Catherine, and her mom at Rienzi to take head shots for their new non-profit organization which will be empowering young women in Houston by matching them with female mentors. I’m so excited to share details and be a part of this!
Celebrating my friend, Judy, and her fiancé, Josh, at a stock-the-bar shower on Saturday night! They’re getting married in August, and I can’t wait for the wedding.
Getting trained before church to be a Sunday School volunteer in our children’s ministry (ideally the little babies!). Bayou City Fellowship has been so wonderful to us, and we’ve enjoyed having Isla watched while we worship, so it’s about time we gave back!

How was your week? What were your highlights? Please excuse the insane amount of photos below, but I couldn’t help but to overshare!