the weekender

yes, that is a cupcake with glitter on it.  

This was such a great weekend that I just can't even stand it.  On Thursday, I got to attend a beer and cupcake dinner.  Did you hear me?  BEER AND CUPCAKE DINNER.  It was as amazing as it sounds, and a total treat to be invited.  Goose Island treated some local bloggers to some amazing beer and pairings from Jilly's,

Friday night I attended the STL Fashion Blog Awards, and although Light Sleeper, Heavy Dreamer didn't win I was so appreciative of the nomination and one of my good friends totally swept all her categories, so that was so fun to see!  I definitely plan to include more fashion & style in the upcoming year, but I've taken a little break from it to focus on being mom lately.  I'm really excited to get inspired by the upcoming fashion week events, and have an excuse to break out of my mom uniform to get glammed up for some parties.  (Spoiler: my fashion week outfits do not fit into my capsule, they will mostly be borrowed dresses!)

She is just the BEST in the mornings.  There is just this unbridled excitement for each new day when you're a baby, and getting in on a little bit of that is one of the best parts of being a mom.  

I think the best day of the whole weekend was Saturday.  I woke up on Claire time, had coffee with my family, and went to a wonderful yoga class with my sister.  I came home to hang out with Claire while Darrell went to see a co-worker's band play (metal.......so not really my bag!) and we took a blissful little walk down to our coffee shop for chocolate chip cookies & iced coffee, which was munched down in the midst of a pretty epic Real Housewives marathon.

What wasn't so fun?  The evenings.  Claire has hit the 4 month sleep regression pretty hard, and although I knew it was coming I can't say I was wholly prepared.  She used to go down easily, drowsy but awake between 8-9 but now when we attempt that we're met with.......screaming.  Saturday night I caved and allowed her to sleep in bed with me after struggling for a few hours, but Sunday we persevered until she slept in her crib, staying there until 4 am for a total of 7 hours and 3 more hours in our bed.  I'm fairly determined to not let this developmental milestone undo all the work we put into making her a baby that sleeps well.  If you have any experience/tips with this PLEASE share in the comments!  The response I've gotten so far is that about 50% of babies get over it and pick up their good habits right where they left off, and the other half.......well, they lose it and parents have to start all over again, often resulting in a few rounds of cry it out.