What to Wear on Valentine's Day: Casual Date

Seasonal, yet sophisticated, here's the perfect solution for an unconventional, but fun Valentine's date, like bowling and a curry buffet. Cigarette pants by Joseph, studs by J Crew, sequined bag by Red Valentino, pink flats by Bottega Veneta and heart sweater by Sonia Rykiel.

How to Celebrate Valentine's Day with a Baby I

Over the next few days, lovely readers, I'll be sharing some ideas on making Valentine's Day feel special with a baby (or a new puppy or a hectic schedule or any other life situation where making time for your relationship seems impossible).

First up, pull out the champagne glasses. Even if you don't have any bubbly on hand, or are abstaining for breastfeeding (or other) reasons, serve up some lemonade, fizzy cranberry pop or even apple juice, and chill. There's something special about the shape of a champagne glass, and anything feels sexier to drink in a shapely glass than your everyday tumbler. With glasses poured, take a moment to savour whatever you're drinking with your loved one and focus on just each other (until your glass is empty and your baby starts fussing again).

Valentines

Have I mentioned that I know a circle of very fabulous moms? I'm talking women that run half marathons, mentor young girls through the Guiding movement and submit PhD dissertations while on maternity leave. Meanwhile, I'm just getting to a place where I can consistently do the dishes in a day while caring for my son.

This week, a few of us swapped valentines from our kids as mementos for memory boxes and scrapbooks. To my horror, I was the only mom with store-bought cards. All the others had beautifully handmade cards that clearly took a lot of time to construct. It was hard not to feel deflated (being competitive is one of my negative traits).

Upon reflection, I might never be a mom who seems to be able to find the time to make homemade valentines (I don't think I've made a homemade card since elementary school), but I have found a middle ground -- free DIY printable valentines! Here is a great roundup of free DIY printable valentines for personal use. Instructions for the Valentine above can be found at Alpha Mom.

Backyard

Our yard is an adult space (think manicured bushes, pebble walkways and a slate patio, and no grass), so making our large two level patio as baby friendly as possible for Tom this summer. is a priority. Sure we have two lovely playgrounds (including one with an outdoor pool!) within 5 minutes walking distance of our home (yay for living in an urban neighbourhood)!, but we also want Tom to enjoy being closer to home occasionally.

The upper level of our deck, which is accessible by patio doors from our kitchen, will be the perfect space for the boy to play while we bbq, so we're going to buy a wooden gate system to make the space safe and outfit the deck with some weather resistant foam mats to prevent splinters and bumps.

I'd also like to hang a swing from the upper level of the patio so that it is accessible on the lower level (I love this baby swing!) and to buy a standing hammock for us to take naps in the shade together. This bench would also be the perfect cheerful addition to our space.

When Tom's older, I hope he has a tree house (but that's a plan for a larger home and a bigger yard). Do you dream about making changes to your outdoor living space now that you have a child?

Baby Goals

So, I have a list of things I'm working towards with Tom. I've always been someone whose functioned best with goals, and as we get closer to the six month mark I'm ever aware of the fact that I'm going back to work and baby T will gain some independence from me. To prepare, we're working towards:

• Sleeping through the night -- I'm ever hopeful that some combination of solids, routine, and sleep training will get us there.
  
• Greater love of and use of pumping -- Tom's always been a hungry boy, I attachment parent and feed on demand, we don't use a pacifier, we didn't introduce a bottle until about 2 months and then rarely used it, and I loathe pumping. All this amounts to a boy who isn't so keen on the bottle. I'm going to recommit to pump daily and ensure Greg gives the boy a bottle a day. This is vital to reaching my goal of breastfeeding after I return to work, and hopefully until Thomas is at least two, as I travel with my job fairly regularly and work long hours.
  

Do you have goals with your baby? I'd also like to get more of our naps happening in the crib, but I'm aiming for the two goals above first. All in time, right?

How to: Recover from a Sleepless Night

Our family loves sharing music together (we even take a music class on Sundays). To get geared up for a fun day (or to recover from a sleepless night), we simply have to play the right upbeat song. Vampire Weekend's A-Punk has long been a favourite of ours for this purpose.

Valentine's Day Contest

Dear Lovely Readers,

For fun, our sweet Thomas Walter, has entered into a Valentine's Day photo contest with a local boutique -- Bellies and Bundles. We'd love it if you'd click here, and 'like' our photo. The photo with the most 'likes' wins a gift basket!

Thank you,

Katie and Greg and Thomas xo