Snapshots & My Thoughts by Ailee Petrovic
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The Best of Snapshots & My Thoughts

Snapshots & My Thoughts has been my creative outlet for almost three years now, and I’ve loved coming up with new content on an almost-daily basis. I started the blog in 2012 while working as a management consultant (which is still my job – I’m just on a leave of absence!), as I felt I wasn’t being challenged creatively. My husband, Sasha, and I got engaged, and instead of pinning a bunch of wedding photos on Pinterest, I created posts with ideas for guestbooks, escort cards, bar menus, etc. The blog morphed into a platform for me to share personal anecdotes, healthy recipes, style and design inspiration, gorgeous stationery, and city travel guides. Ever since our daughter, Isla, was born in June 2014, there has also been quite a bit of baby loving on the blog!

My goal for Snapshots & My Thoughts is to help inspire my friends (which you are, if you’re reading) with designing their home, picking outfits for events, styling parties, choosing stationery, making delicious vegan desserts, or even planning a vacation. I want to motivate people to be active and enjoy the small things in life, whether that mean going out and adventuring in your own city or trying a baby product that I rave about.th

In case you’re new around here, I wanted to share with you some of the highest viewed posts on Snapshots & My Thoughts. There’s quite a bit of food involved, as well as weddings and babies, and of course – travel (my favorite!). Five of my top 20 posts were various city guides, so I decided to bulk them all together. Click on each of the photos below if you want to read more!

______ 10thingsmay nursery healthy3 ______bestofhouston babyregistry firstchristmas ______bestbabyetsy citytravelguides napawedding ______newborn ptreyes papellerie ______glam islaloves kendraIf

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Personal

9 Months

9mo5Yesterday, Isla celebrated her nine month-iversary, which means she has now been outside of the womb as long as she was inside. I’m struck with mixed sentiments on the passing of time: Did it fly by? Yes, absolutely. Where did my baby go? But does it feel like Isla has been a part of my life forever? Without a doubt. I cannot imagine life without her.

While every day gets more and more fun, taking non-blurry photographs has gotten more and more difficult. She is constantly on the move, making these monthly pictures a bit of a challenge!

Isla now has one tooth (you can see it popping through above), and another about to break through the gums. She says, “Dadadadada” all day long, and even a few “Papapapa” but no sign of “Mamamama” (go figure!). Her tongue is always, always, always sticking out of her mouth.

Isla’s favorite foods are Plum Organics Puffs, oatmeal, Special K Protein Plus, black beans, avocado, fusili pasta, sweet potato and all Plum Organics puree pouches. She tends to eat naked, as she is a hot mess!

It is now impossible to change Isla’s diaper, as she will flip over mid-change, getting diaper-contents everywhere. Fun times, right? She is wearing 6-12 month clothes, and mostly 9 month outfits (if they exist), except for pajamas, as she’s very tall (or long?). Bows don’t last very long anymore, because she pulls them out and (you guessed it) eats them.

She is mega, mega ticklish (video here) and starts to giggle when I get anywhere near her underarms. She loves peek-a-boo, but mainly when she’s the one hiding her face and revealing it (here and here). Isla loves playing with crayons and her xylophone. She loves bike rides (pulled by Tata) and walking with her Hape Walker. Isla’s most recent tricks include waving and clapping (as of this morning!). She gets so excited when she does it.

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Week in Review

Week in Review

Happy Monday! As I mentioned here on Friday, the week flew by and then we had the busiest Saturday I can remember. We had Hollis’ first birthday party near our house, then Nora’s first birthday party in Katy, and James’ fourth birthday party back in town. Three birthday parties, coupled with some other secret stuff (that I hope to share soon!) meant that by 6:30pm on Saturday night, the entire Petrovic family was exhausted. All of the celebrations were so much fun, and the three mommas did amazing jobs with the decorations! I only got a few photos at Hollis’ and none at James’, as I was holding Isla for both of those parties. However, I got a ton at Nora’s and plan to share them later this week, as Danielle really outdid herself (check out her beautiful Etsy store).

I”m sharing lots of other highlights from the week (as well as tons of photos) below. It seems that I really like to photograph Isla eating and sleeping the most. I seriously could watch her sleep all day long (but she hates naps, so that is impossible). When she does go to sleep, Isla loves to be covered in blankets, lovies, Meg the Monkey and her favorite butterfly (one of these).

Moments to be grateful for:

  • Having cheese, wine, and truffle popcorn at our house with two sweet friends, Jessica and Brittany (host of this year’s Galentine’s Day) – I made them the raw healthy, vegan Oreos (renamed N’Oreos by my sister) which were eaten quickly!
  • Eating at one of my favorite spots in Houston – Tiny Boxwoods – with my friends, Melissa and Kiran (Good chats + Beet It Burger + White Wine Mojito – it doesn’t get any better than that!)
  • Going over to my friend’s house for a playdate with her son, Alexander – the lunch spread that Emma put together could not have been more perfect!
  • Touring First Baptist Academy’s Primary School with Marcy, the Director of Early Childhood – she is seriously the sweetest, and that school is unbelievable… we’re on the waitlist and I will be praying every night for those spots to move quickly!
  • Being surprised with a belated birthday flower delivery from a sweet friend – they’re the most beautiful pop of color in our kitchen right now!
  • Going with my older sister to visit our little sister’s apartment in the Med Center (she’s a student at The University of Texas Medical School at Houston – she requested frozen yogurt, so I brought (and ate) the best – Orange Leaf
  • Staying in on Friday evening with my sister to play Bananagrams – have you played? If you’re a logophile, you would adore this game.
  • Being talked into going to STRIKE! at Life Time Fitness – I haven’t been able to move my arms since Thursday
  • Going to church on Sunday – it’s always my the way I calm down after a busy Saturday/week, and I love Bayou City Fellowship so much
  • Visits from Sasha’s mom (Four days – lots of Baba-loving!), his step dad, and my parents!
  • Laughing as Isla learned how to master the straw sippy cup, which she did after a few upside-down attempts! Sasha at first thought it was too hard to sip through the straw, but was proved wrong!
  • More berry painting – It’s so messy, but Isla and I both love it! She kept trying to eat her masterpiece!
  • Stopping by Biscuit Home for birthday party gifts and being tempted to buy absolutely everything
  • Getting a new BabyBjorn Travel Crib Light in the mail, which is seriously incredible. We used it as a playpen temporarily on Tuesday as my sister and I prepped for a case study, and Isla loved it! I can’t wait to take it with us to Europe in May.
  • Watching Isla as she practices how to wave and point – my sister taught her to point at me when she said, “Where’s Muma?”

How was your week? What were the highlights?

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Personal

Week in Review

I seriously had the best week ever, so much appreciation to all of my lovely friends who made me feel extra special on my birthday. I was surprised by the most gorgeous flowers delivered from my sweet friend Mara (of Hook, Thread and Tinker) – the only way I would have been more excited about the delivery would have been if she had been at my doorstep instead of thousands of miles away in chilly Chicago! I also got beautiful flowers from my three close friends from high school, and have them spread around the house, bringing happiness to various corners! It’s incredible the joy that florals can bring.

In addition to birthday festivities (more details below), one of my best friends, Kirby, was in town with her husband, Brett, and daughter, Lillian (more about this tiny little angel here!). I am so incredibly grateful for the time we were able to spend together (as they live in Oklahoma City), and Sasha is too, as he loves Brett.

We had dinner at her brother and sister-in-law’s house on Friday, then went to her parent’s house during the day on Saturday and celebrated Mardi Gras together at our mutual friend’s parents house on Saturday night. I wish they lived here so badly, but I’ll take action packed visits as a second best option any day!

Some other exciting things that took place this week include:

  • Getting treated to birthday lunch by my best friend, McKenzie, and her wonderful boyfriend, Bryan – we ate at True Food Kitchen, and I’m officially obsessed
  • Eating birthday dinner with Sasha and Isla at Rosie Carrabba’s, which is one of our favorite spots in the city (and his ‘Holy Ship, it’s your birthday!’ card still has be laughing)
  • Celebrating my birthday with my family at Benjy’s on Washington on Saturday for lunch – their beet hummus and Brussels sprouts are phenomenal
  • Meeting Sasha during his lunch break at Zoe’s Kitchen on Monday – his office is only 15 minutes away, so getting to see him for a bit during the day is such a treat
  • Going to lunch with two co-worker friends on Friday at none other than Ruggles Green – so much fun to chat with them, especially since the main topic of conversation was blogging!
  • Feeding Isla restaurant food – she had a chicken skewer at Zoe’s Kitchen, a grilled chicken breast at Benjy’s and Carrabba’s, and guacamole and quinoa from A Moveable Feast – it makes our meals a smidgen more expensive, but we love watching her feed herself like a tiny human (and these stick-on mats are necessary now!)
  • Sleeping – although Sasha and I both feel exhausted from the busy week, Isla has slept from 6:30 pm – 7:30am every night this week, and I’m praying it’s not just a fluke… I want to get used to that!
  • Planning the final wedding details with Amanda, who surprised me with gorgeous tulips, delicious vegan cookies from Whole Foods and an amazing card on my birthday!
  • Getting a manicure and pedicure at Paradise Nails while Isla’s Baba (Sasha’s mom) babysat – it was such a treat, and I’m definitely going to try to keep it up (typically terrible at this…)
  • Going to Sephora and being surprised by my birthday gift, which was two NARS lipsticks – my favorite gift they’ve ever given!
  • Catching up with one of my best friends, Paola, who moved to Honduras after their wedding in Mexico City last fall and I miss her so much it’s insane! I did not want to get off the phone!
  • Spending way too much money at The Monogram Shop – that place is dangerous (if you live in Houston, you need to go)
  • Spending the night at my parent’s house after the Mardi Gras party and waking up with the entire family there – my two sisters had spent the night too!
  • Buying and setting up new furniture for our bedroom as gifts from my parents – they also got me the Audrey Lamp, which has been on my birthday and Christmas lists for years!
  • Heading to Memorial Park during a patch of sunshine on Sunday and doing the 3-mile loop together (and Isla’s straw hat does me in every time!)

You can also follow along during the week by following on Instagram! How was your week? What were the highlights?

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Baby

Celebrating Julie & Baby Kerr

On Saturday, I went to the cutest baby shower, honoring my friend Julie and her baby boy, Kerr, who is due in less than five weeks. There were a number of sweet hostesses, but the girl whose home we were at has the best interior design taste ever. I was seriously lusting at everything in their beautiful house!

All of the blue and red details of the shower were just perfect, as you’ll see in the photos below. There was a little adorable baby print with balloons on which guests wrote prayers for Kerr, which I loved! The guestbook was a baby book for people to sign, which was also a sweet touch. The invitations (by Haley Hardcastle Designs), cake and cookies all matched, and I loved the beautiful intricate design.

It was definitely a special party, and I cannot wait to meet Kerr. I’m going to be taking maternity photographs for Julie soon – I pray they turn out well! I’ve never taken any maternity pictures, but have been studying on Pinterest (naturally).

PS Y’all are seriously the best. Thank you for all of the birthday wishes yesterday! xo

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