The Challenge: Working From Home

I absolutely LOVE that I am able to be my own boss and work from home every day, but it doesn't come without challenges.  Especially when my daughter doesn't take consistent naps every day. 

I have been struggling so much lately between being decent at lots of things but not EXCEPTIONAL at a single one.  I feel like sometimes I have my hands in too many things at once and it gets a bit overwhelming.  For starters, I don't know how to get Stella on a consistent nap schedule.  Frankly, the girl has a mind of her own. If she is not tired, she will wail and wail and never go to sleep.  In fact, she gets SO worked up that she starts coughing and it takes me awhile to settle her back down.  I have tried cry it out and it just doesn't seem to really work for her- It makes her MORE angry and MORE awake.  The approach I've taken is to wait for her cues- to rub her eyes - and then I put her down and she goes right to sleep.  The tough part about this is that some days she will take little cat naps on and off all day and on other days she will sleep for 2.5 hours!!! SO as far as planning my work schedule around her, I just have to wing it and for a Type A girl like myself, it is really difficult.  I don't want to feel like I am working on and off all day long.  I would much rather have a set 2-4 hours (during her naps) that I can count on to plug in and knock stuff out. 

I am really struggling because when she is awake I want to be engaged and involved, but not knowing how many or how long her naps are going to be that day, I find myself doing work while she swings or plays by herself.  I have looked into mother's day out programs but they were either already full for the year OR she is too little.  Seem strange that daycare can start at 6 weeks old but mother's day out they have to be 1! 

Does anyone have advice on "nap training" that doesn't involve crying it out? Or maybe a way to "cry it out" without her coughing and hyperventilating because she is so angry? 

5 :)

1. Logan has had a GREAT first week at work!!! I am SO proud of him and he is feeling so much more confident and fulfilled.  We are even going CAR SHOPPING this weekend- pretty exciting!  

2. Once we find a place to live, I am going to need a home office and I LOVE this desk and rug combo I found on Pinterest! (where else?)  What a happy little spot :) 

3. This is luggage from my dreams... Its Tory Burch and WAY out of my price range, but a girl can dream right? 

4. My Rodan + Fields business has been going really well lately and part of that is because we have HUGE momentum going into this fall with the re-launch of our AmpMD tool!  The FDA wanted to classify our AMAZING anti-aging tool (the results were so great-some thought it might need to be classified as a medical device!) so a year ago we pulled it from production and it has been unavailable while we waited patiently! It had completely renovated our businesses, and we were just told IT IS COMING BACK! The momentum this product is going to bring our brand is HUGE so if you have been curious about joining my growing team, NOW is an incredible time to do it (before they open it up to the masses next month). 

5. My little Stella Bug is getting SO big and was finally able to waer her adorable Ralph Lauren outfit from her Auntie Rachel who works at Neiman Marcus and spoiled her with some designer clothes :) 

Have a great weekend!

Stella Rose: 7 MONTHS OLD!

AHHHHH.... Time slow down!!! You are slowly, but surely taking my BABY away and replacing her with a little girl.  Although, I must admit... she has become my little sidekick FULL of personality.  Stella - you are a joy to be around.  Your smile LIGHTS UP THE ROOM. Literally if you smile, I can't help but smile back :)




What are you up to these days?

Well still sitting up like a champ and playing with your toys.... still ZERO interest in crawling.  However you frequently lock your legs and refuse to sit down because you want so badly to stand up! Maybe you will skip crawling and just walk! 


Still teething without any sign of teeth popping through... This month wasn't as bad as far as waking up throughout the night though.  We feel like Motrin is doing its job and we are grateful.

You are starting to figure out how to feed yourself the bottle.  Most of the time, you use both hands AND feet to do it and it is SO cute! 

You are still a great sleeper. Typically 8:30pm - 7am with a dream feed around 10:30 or 11pm right before we go to bed. 

You are eating 6 oz every 3-4.5 hours.  We really just let you tell us when you are hungry.  We have also started to actively introduce food into your diet.  We try to do 1 fruit in the morning- your favorites have been bananas, pears, and apple sauce.  Verdict is still out on peaches.  We do 1 veggie at night - you are loving ALL the veggies (good girl!) Your absolute favorite is squash of all things... and I hate squash! We are also trying to get you to eat oatmeal 1x per day but you just don't like the taste or texture of it... and I don't blame you. You also do this adorable squishy face and blow air out your nostrils when you eat... I don't know if its because some of the food gets up your nose or what but it is so funny! (OH and Gigi fed you your first popsicle too!) 





You have started clapping your hands and its adorable.


You are laughing more frequently.  You LOVE to be on our shoulders and anything that bounces you up and down.  Your excersaucer is getting a workout because you bounce bounce BOUNCE in that thing.  

You are passing your toys from hand to hand and really showing interest in them which is cute.  Your favorite toy right now is this tower of stacking rings and lots of them have balls inside of them so they make noise.  You are also quite partial to Sophie and frequently try to bite her head off. 

Your naps are totally unpredictable.  Some days you will cat nap on and off all day and others you will take a 2.5 hour nap.  So I have just learned to be flexible.  You DO typically go down for at least an hour every morning so I can at least count on that :) 


We have frequented the water park and swimming with this HOT Texas summer and you love your baths as well... you really can stay in the water all day long and be content.  We've come a long way! 

You talk talk talk talk TALK!!! AND GROWL!!! You aren't angry, you just have learned this new sound and you do it all the time! It is hilarious but also quite distracting in restaurants because you make SO MUCH NOISE!!! You aren't mad, you are just communicating :) 

We think you may have gotten your first little cold this month because Mommy & Daddy were sick with allergies.  You never ran a fever, but you did have a congestion, runny nose, sneezing & coughing.  The cough hasn't quite gone away so we are hoping it will pretty soon. 

You have recently started reaching for me.  It really hurts Daddy's feelings because sometimes all you want is Mommy and even if I walk out of the room, you start crying like crazy.  It is nice to feel needed and loved but exhausting at times too. 


You met your Uncle Johnny this month for the first time.  He is your Daddy's best friend and was the Best Man in our wedding. He also came to see us in France when you were in Mommy's belly and your friend Emma was in Aunt Elise's belly! We will have many memories to come with them :) 



We don't have your stats so I will try to find a way to measure and weigh you... All I know is that you no longer fit in anything 6 months and under! You are very LONG! You are already wearing 9-12 month clothes so we had to do some tax free weekend shopping for you which was really fun :) You have become quite the little errand runner / shopper with me! 









We love you little Stella Bug!!!! It's hard to believe you are over 1/2 way to a year old! You get more and more fun with each passing day.  We love you! 

Coincidence?

I don't think it is a coincidence that I get a CRAZY amount of feedback and hits on my blog whenever I am open, honest, and vulnerable.  I think people are looking for that.  They want to see behind the curtain... behind the perfect, smiling instagram pictures and weekend recaps.  They want to know that you are REAL.  That you have struggles just like them.  That your life... although it may appear to be... is NOT perfect.  

I am STILL getting emails about my miscarriage post... a post I almost didn't publish because it made me feel totally vulnerable and raw in front of the internet.  I've received similar feedback from my "Perspective" post last week.  I think we all struggle with materialism to a degree.  I was born and bred in Dallas and it took me moving to France to realize how incredibly bratty I was and how little we actually need.  It has hit me in such a BIG way moving back to Dallas (a city renowned for its "Keeping up with the Joneses" and 30K millionaire mentality) and has made me question if I even fit in here at all.  Post-France Abby just has zero tolerance for certain things and that is one of them.  I truly prefer simplicity these days and hanging out with people who are down-to-earth and real. 

I want to make an effort to be open about my life on this little space and at the same time protect our privacy.  It is a tough balance and one I hope to do gracefully.  So thank you to everyone who read, commented, encouraged, and supported me last week.  It is something that has been under my skin ever since we moved back and I just needed to bring it to light... and it felt GOOD to get it out. 

Here we sit just ONE WEEK later and Logan has a job that will provide a salary and benefits and we can officially start looking for a car.  Crazy how much things can change in just 1 week. 

via Pinterest

LOGAN GOT THE JOB!!!

Yesterday goes down in my book as one of the longest days of my life. I barely ate, was nauseous all day and watching my phone like a hawk.  YESTERDAY was the day Logan was going to hear back on whether or not he landed THE job. The one he really wanted and was holding out for.   

Monday was his final interview and he walked out feeling defeated and like he had completely blown it.  And after talking with him... he had.  He got nervous, froze up, and wasn't able to really let loose and be himself.  He called the director back on his way home to own up to the fact that he'd blown it BUT that he knew he was the right fit for the job.  He sent an IMPRESSIVE sales pitch email Tuesday morning and was told he would hear something by end of day yesterday.  

The entire work day went by and we heard nothing.  He came home last night at 5:30pm and still nothing.  The reason this was so stressful is that Logan's part-time job ENDS on Friday and other than this, we had no hot leads.  Logan had walked away from a few opportunities because they weren't good fits, hoping and praying that THIS ONE would work out.  Talk about sweating it out... at 6pm he called the director but his mailbox was full and he couldn't leave a message.  He called the office and didn't get an answer.  So he followed up via email reassuring them that he was the right person for the job and at 6:30PM last night he got an email telling him that they need him in the office on Monday at 10am.  It will be his first day of work!!!!! 

When he got the email we were in shock.  We felt like the weight of the world had been lifted off our shoulders after months and months of disappointments and let downs.  We finally had our answer to prayer and we really do think it was a combination of GOD and MORGAN STALLINGS that got him this job because based off his interviews (and he will tell you this) he shouldn't have been hired.  So maybe that was God's way of saying that Logan can take zero credit for this gig, it was ALL God. Regardless, he has his work cut out for him to prove that this was not a mistake and that he WAS and IS the right guy for this gig. 

What will he be doing? He will be working for Fusion Logistics in a new division that just started in April doing operations and sales.  There are only 4 guys on the team right now (including him) so he is excited about being a part of something from the beginning and sees tremendous potential for both personal AND professional growth.  I have never seen him light up the way he does when he talks about this job and company.  For the first time, I feel like he finally feels like he was given a shot at a career and didn't just take a job to pay the bills.  His goal is to someday be a director and to open up a regional office on the Eastern or Western coast so who knows where this gig is going to take our little family, but we are excited and ready for the adventure! 

For now, we will be in Dallas. Saving up for a car and shopping around for a rental house or apartment... We don't care! :) 

Part-time job ends Friday.  FULL TIME JOB STARTS MONDAY.  

He is good.  His ways are Higher than ours.  His timing is always perfect. Thank you LORD for providing for us in our time of need. 

AND CONGRATULATIONS TO MY FRENCHMAN!!! 

I AM SO PROUD OF YOU AND YOUR PERSEVERANCE AND DETERMINATION AGAINST ALL ODDS! 

I love you :) 

An Heirloom from Mami

I just adore these pictures of Stella in her Mami's dresses.  I had to snap a few before our girl OUTGREW them! My mother-in-law Sheri passed these down to Kristin and then she passed them onto me for Stella right before we moved back from France.  I love the history behind these dresses. Sheri not only wore them, but said she used to dress up her cats in them haha! Although these suckers are very difficult to put on (with the teenie tiny buttons) and almost too pretty to wear, I am so glad we have them to hold onto.  Carter's dresses (although CUTE) have nothing on these precious pieces.  I hope I can find a few items of Stella's that are special and unique enough to pass down through the generations. How precious is my vintage and stylish bebe.... So chic :)