Toddler Must Haves

When Keevia was like, what, two months old? I did two (well, three) posts on "Keevia's Must Haves" and "What Not To Waste Your Money On" as well as one where I freaked out because I forgot baby carriers.

So now, I'm doing a Toddler Must Haves. I don't know if I'll think of anything that falls into the Toddler What Not to Waste Money On... we'll see. For the picky people... I was not compensated in any way, shape, or form for any of these products. I bought them all myself (or had them bought for me by family members). I am receiving nothing for linking to any of these brands, I just really, really like them. That is all.


1. Robeez Shoes. I know the pricetag is high. I have yet to buy a pair of Robeez for retail price. Once Upon a Child and Spot's Corner are your friend. I've spent $12 on a pair as my absolute most expensive ones....and Keevia wears them on a daily basis, so I see them as a good investment! Now, granted, Keevia has one pair of "big" shoes, hard rubber soles, so that when it's rainy and muddy she can walk around outside. But 90% of the time, she's in her Robeez.  She had only 1 pair in the previous size (6-12 months) but she currently has 3 pairs in 12-18. I need to start looking for 18-24 months!

2. Baby Carrier. I personally LOVE and recommend the Boba, Beco and Ergo. I seriously cannot say enough good, positive things about these. They let me get housework done. They let me shop. They let me do ANYTHING other than sit on the couch cuddling a fussy baby. Love. Love. LOVE THEM.

3. Lightweight Stroller. I know I said before that I thought you could live without a stroller. I still think that. However, if you feel the need to have a stroller (and hey, I have 2...)I recommend forgoing a big burly one, and getting a smaller, lighter weight one. We have a Chicco Liteway and I LOVE it. A Maclaran is another good brand. We chose the Chicco above the Maclaran because the Chicco reclines fully, wheras the Maclaran does not. It was a big deal to me when I bought it, and I couldn't be happier. Keevia has taken many of a nap in that stroller! My only complaint is that the wheels stick quite a bit. If I'd had the money, I would have LOVED a Bumbleride Indie.  Watch the second hand stores, especially if you're a Maclaran fan! I've seen numerous ones there!

4. High Chair/Booster. We did have a big HUGE high chair. I hated it. I now have a Summer Booster seat. I'm not CRAZY about it, because it doesn't have a tray... but Keevia can eat at the table with us now, which, once I get my butt in gear and clean it off better, is actually a big plus. Oh, and PS, check your local Big Lots... I paid $20 for mine!

5. Play Kitchen - Maybe not a MUST have, but it's been a huge hit for Keevia. We got her this one (or, well, we picked it out and Mamaw got her this one) because it grows with them. It fits her perfectly right now, and it'll grow with her as she gets taller. She loves it. Plus, if you have a super sweet aunt who makes you felt food for Christmas... all the better!

Other random things I love:
I love certain brands of clothes for Keevia. I'm a thrift store gal, so I buy what I can find. I'm sorry, but I doubt there will ever be a time where I will shell out $30 for one piece of clothing for her. Brands I like are as follows:
Baby Gap /Old Navy -- Very similar because they're made by the same company. I loves them. SUPER soft fabric and it totally wears well.
Garanimals - I don't love this brand in general, but I ADORE their pants. Both the sweats and their faux jeans. Keevia probably wore the jeans 4 days out of 7 this past winter.
Jumping Beans - I can usually score these for $1.50-2.00 at OUAC. I LOVE them because they fit over Keevia's head without a fight. They always either have buttons in the back, or buttons in the front, or are a little lower cut (with a demure thing that makes it not look scandalous). Other shirts I have to put a size up on her just to get them over her big noggin, but these I can actually put her in her size! 
Carters - Still, mainly, for their sleepers. I love both the fleece ones and the cotton two piece. The fit is just better on them than any other brand!

Toddlers are just easier than babies. You need a lot less stuff! There's stuff like sippies and things that I use on a daily basis, but that's really just personal preference. We like NUK's (of course my child would take one of the more expensive ones!). But that's pretty much my only NEEDs. She's still in her carseat from my last post (Britax Boulevard).  If we get pregnant again soon, I'll probably be purchasing a Sunshine Kids Radian for Keevia and then kiddo number two will inherit her Britax! We'll just have to see!

I'm no Nester...

Since we moved into our house, one thing that has REALLY bugged me is the like of decorative things I've done. Before K's birthday, I did manage to get some framed photos and other decorations up on the walls... but it still wasn't exactly what I wanted to do.

The thing is, I have all these ideas in my head, but no idea how to execute them! Keevia's room is probably the room I'm happiest with (and the paint/wall decorations are still lacking!)


This is a picture from Mom's phone, so I apologize for the quality. However, you can kind of see! There's now a big KEEVIA over her bed (in browns and pinks). You can't see the bedskirt, but its a DwellStudio light pink with brown branches and birds on it. I LOVE it. I had a brown and white bumper on her crib until recently. It was SO cute, and had polka dots on one side, as well as stripes on the other. Adorable! See the curtain on the window? I bought those um... almost 3 years ago? For our first apartment. They WERE the color of the walls, but the brown print on them went well with her crib skirt... so I dyed them pink. I seriously could NOT be happier with how thy turned out. And the rug in front of her bed is my nod to my love of Zebra print. I bought it at a flea market for $10. Now that it's in the room, I'm pretty sure it's flawed, which is why I got it for that price... but seriously, I still love it.


This is probably the part I dislike the most about her room. I LOVE the lamp, and I LOVE the pink thing on the wall. But the thing that bugs me (and we just don't have the funds to fix it) is the black furniture mixed with her gorgeous cherry crib and dresser (not pictured). Beside the crib is a big black metal shelf as well... which I'm not a fan of. But, she needs shelving, and other than the thingie with the fabric boxes, we already HAD all the storage furniture in various other rooms... so they moved in here.

P.S. Let me just say how much I love that cube storage thing. One is shoes, one is diapers, one is clothes that she's outgrown that I just toss in until it gets full, then I store them in the tubs... One is stuff that I put on her and dislike and put in the giveaway pile...And the three on the right are all PJs... seperated into fleece pjs, long sleeved cotton, and short sleeve pjs. Yes, I'm THAT person that organizes to the nth degree. You should see her drawers.



Here is Keevs glider... which has gotten like zero use. In theory I love it though! On the back of the glider is a blanket that a family member started knitting when I was pregnant with Peanut. When I miscarried, she just bound it off and gave it to me. I love it. It's very small, and it is quite like a blanket interrupted... which is what Peanuts life was, a life interrupted. It's so soft and cuddly too, so it's just perfect.

Above the chair is a plaque with Keevia's name and birthday on it. My BFF sent this to Keevia after she was born. I LOVE it.

So this is Keevs room. There are a few other decorations on the wall, but mainly the walls are bare. And it's still the room I'm happiest with!!!

I never thought that I would like the "modern" look, but I have to admit, in her room I do. It's still not uber modern, but it's definitely more modern than the rest of my house. I've been perusing the interwebs for some ideas, and I came across this modern furniturestore. They're a subsidary of CSN stores, which is really cool. I've had several blogger friends do giveaways for CSN and they've always loved them! They have a ton of Dwell Studio stuff, which, I have to admit, I lurrrrve.

Alright, I'm off to work. And possibly to drool as much as possible over these cute dwell studio toys!!