postpartum – Snapshots & My Thoughts by Ailee Petrovic

Isla Loves September 8, 2014

Isla Loves: A Little Lady Shop (Giveaway)

Everything is bigger in Texas, including their hair bows. I must admit it, I am not a huge fan of the over-the-top-floofy flower headbands that take up 70% of a newborn baby’s head. However, I do love cute bows that are appropriately sized for baby girls’ heads (I am a bow fanatic after all). When I discovered A Little Lady Shop, I fell in love. They have the best – I mean, best– bow selection for little girls of all ages. Marie, owner of A Little Lady Shop, kindly sent me three adorable bows – Felt Bow in Teal on Alligator Clip, Pink Leather Bow on Alligator Clip, and Felt Tails Bow in Navy on Alligator Clip. I love them all so much! The bows are all available in a wide range of colors and the option to be put on an elastic band for a headband or an alligator clip. With Isla’s fluffy hair, I opted for alligator clip. It stays in her hair better than any of the other bows we’ve tried. The bows are available in such a wide range of colors, you could literally have a bow that matched every single outfit (yes, I dream of this).

Not only are their bows adorable, but also they have the sweetest fabric wraps and crown headbands. I am so upset that I did not find these products before Isla was born – I wish she was wearing these in her newborn photos.

These bows are the perfect gift for anyone you know who has a girl or is expecting one. If you fit this bill, then you need them too!

I’m excited to be teaming up with A Little Lady Shop to give away a free bow or headband (of your choice) to one lucky individual! In order to enter the giveaway, you must do the following:

Reply to this post, including your name and which bow or headband you would like to win
You will get an extra entry by being or becoming a follower of my blog, Snapshots and My Thoughts (see ‘Follow’ button at the bottom righthand corner on desktop version of the blog)
You will get an extra entry by posting the giveaway’s URL to your Twitter or Facebook account (please tag @ailee_petrovic on Twitter or mention Snapshots and My Thoughts on Facebook)
You will get an extra entry by re-posting my Instagram post about the giveaway and tagging me @SnapshotsAndMyThoughts

One winner will be drawn at random. The more entries you have, the higher the chance you’ll win! The giveaway ends at midnight on Wednesday, September 10. I will announce the winner by Friday. I look forward to reading your responses.

Follow A Little Lady Shop on Facebook | Instagram | Pinterest // Follow Snapshots and My Thoughts on Facebook | Instagram | Pinterest

Felt Bow in Teal on Alligator Clip

Pink Leather Bow on Alligator Clip

Felt Tails Bow in Navy on Alligator Clip

I was given the baby bows by A Little Lady Shop for my review. I was allowed to keep the product, but the opinion I am sharing remains my own.

Baby August 18, 2014

Isla Loves: Milk Nursingwear (Giveaway)

When one of my best friends, Kirby, told me about Milk Nursingwear‘s amazing nursing tops, I was very intrigued. Most of the maternity tops I had ordered were very ‘momsy’ and far from stylish. I trust Kirby’s sense of fashion, so I went to their website and was pleasantly surprised by their selection of nursing wear. Milk Nursingwear was nice enough to send me this gray scoop neck shirt to try, and I love it! The top section pulls up to allow for discreet breastfeeding – others genuinely cannot see a thing. Given that newborns are so unpredictable with their feeding, it’s nice to know that I can feed outside of the house if needed without giving up my privacy.

I’m excited to be teaming up with Milk Nursingwear to give away a $35 gift certificate to one lucky individual! In order to enter the giveaway, you must do the following:

Reply to this post, including your name, email and which Milk Nursingwear item(s) you would buy with your gift card
Follow Milk Nursingwear’s freshmilk blog
You will get an extra entry by being or becoming a follower of Snapshots and My Thoughts (see ‘Follow’ button at the bottom righthand corner on desktop version of the blog)

One winner will be drawn at random. The more entries you have, the higher the chance you’ll win! The giveaway ends at midnight on Wednesday, August 20. I will announce the winner by Friday. I look forward to your responses. Good luck!

Follow Milk Nursingwear on Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, YouTube, and their blog.

Milk Nursingwear Sleek Gray Striped Scoop Neck Shirt // Isla’s Carters Romper // Kendra Scott Rayne Necklace // Kendra Scott Ailee Bracelet (my favorite, obviously – more here!) // J. Crew Chino Shorts // Dolce Vita Jentry Booties // Tory Burch Robinson Double Zip Handbag

I was given this nursing top by Milk Nursingwear for my review. I was allowed to keep the product, but the opinion I am sharing remains my own.

Baby August 15, 2014

Isla Loves: The Honest Co. Diapers

I will admit it – I was one of those new moms who brought diapers to the hospital because I wanted her in the cute patterned ones right away. I never, ever thought I would be a diaper snob, but The Honest Co. has proved me wrong. I am indeed very picky about the diapers Isla wears – and these are the best. Not only do I love picking out Isla’s outfits every morning, I also love deciding which pattern of diaper she’ll wear. We subscribe to the monthly delivery, and you get to pick six prints from the wide assortment offered (see a selection below). My absolute favorite pattern is the strawberry one, while Sasha loves the giraffes. I happily let her do tummy time in just her diaper because they are so cute. I highly recommend that you get premium diapers and wipes for less than $20 a week from Honest.com – you and your little loved ones won’t regret it. Just this week, we got our monthly shipment, and I mistakenly ordered another package of size 1 diapers. While they still fit her now, I doubt they will in another four weeks. We gave The Honest Co. a call on the day they arrived, and they immediately sent a return label and waived the shipping and restocking fees. I love them!

We also use and love the Honest Shampoo & Body Wash. It contains only natural and organic ingredients and doesn’t hurt when it gets in baby’s eyes (trust me, Isla would let me know if it did!). I cannot wait to try some of their other bath products!

I’m excited to announce that I am a new Honest Company Ambassador! I am really passionate about this wholesome company and proud to help promote their products. I’ll be sharing other reviews of their many items – I hope you give them a try as well.

P.S. Dearest Isla, sorry for sharing so many pictures of that tiny little butt and cute chunky thighs with the world! 🙂

I was given Honest Co. diapers for my review. I was allowed to keep the product, but the opinion I am sharing remains my own.

Baby July 22, 2014

Isla Loves: Wink Shapewear

As mentioned here, I’m starting a series in which I review baby and post-pregnancy products that both Isla and I love. Today is the first post, and I’m reviewing Wink Shapewear.

In order to get my body back to its pre-pregnancy size quickly, I knew I would need the help of a postpartum girdle/shapewear. I did research online, and ended up ordering two different brands – Wink Shapewear and Belly Bandit. While I definitely liked both, I found the Wink Shapewear much more effective. I ordered the Ultimate Postpartum Bikini in nude (see below left). I ordered a medium, which looked tiny while pregnant and definitely fitted very snuggly when I first put it on four days after delivery. Over the following weeks, it became less tight (and more comfortable!). I saw results pretty quickly – see the difference in 10 days in the photos below. I was back in my regular clothes on day 8, which felt like having an entirely new closet after wearing maternity clothes for months!

Wink Shapewear kindly sent me another product to try – the Waist and Hip Blaster Shorts in Black (see above right). I wanted something to help narrow my hips as they had expanded significantly during pregnancy – probably the reason Isla popped out after 18 minutes of pushing! I received these shorts in a medium, which seemed much larger than the bikini medium. In retrospect, I would have ordered a small in this item. I really like these shorts and wear them 2-3 days a week. The only thing I preferred about the bikini versus the shorts is that the bikini has a clamp at the bottom which makes it easy to go to the restroom, while the shorts unclamp on the side, so you have to undo them them pull them down which takes a little longer. Overall, both products are very effective and I highly recommend both.

40 weeks pregnant (before heading to the hospital at 2am!) // 8 days postpartum (first day back in regular clothes)

10 days postpartum (in my Anthro PJs which I love!) // 14 days postpartum

Follow Wink Shapewear on Twitter and Facebook and check out their website here