Oh The Things We Like: Southwestern Baby

Over here, we're big southwest fans. The desert, cowboys, longhorns, cowboy boots and rocky trails are a few of our favorite things. If a great opportunity came along, we would move out west without a second thought. (Texas or Colorado would be ideal!) Compiled are a list of my top choices for fall to dress our little one. We're getting into cooler weather and how cute are those baby Frye cowboy booties!?

Ralph Lauren Southwestern sweater • Frye Rodeo Bootie • Bobo Choses fur hat • Baby Gap jean jacket • Bobo Choses top 

Glimpses From This Week:

Hiding behind trees 

Birthday flowers

This week so far has been a good one. My birthday was on Monday and I so enjoyed spending it with my husband and little one. Erik surprised me with a picnic at our favorite park, in fact the exact place where he told me he loved me for the first time and where he proposed. It's a pretty special place to both of us and we were happy to share it with Rowan. We went on a long walk and reminisced about the adventures we had had there and how far our life together has come along. 
I made a pair of booties for Rowan since my little guy has not so little legs that socks fit too tightly on! I'm thinking of adding them on to my HighOver U mini collection, screen printed of course. Thoughts? 
Otherwise we've been busy rearranging our house, fall cleaning and enjoying every last minute of the warm weather before it turns cold for good. Basically taking as many walks as we can and enjoying the lakes before they're frozen over!

From The Weekend:

This past weekend, Erik and I recreated our first date, this time with our little one in tow. The weather was absolutely beautiful and that wonderful feeling of fall in the air and the change of seasons was upon us. 

Rowan sure loves his walks and usually falls asleep instantly from the fresh air or stares at the clouds, blue sky or passing trees. I love that he loves being outdoors and am excited for the fun we can have as he gets older and can interact more. But for now I am enjoying this precious time of him as a sweet newborn.

I so enjoy when we can have long weekends as a family, stay at home in jammies most of the day and take it slow with no prior commitments. We started off our day just like that and then went to a coffee shop that is in an old victorian era home. Then we had delicious burgers and went off to a state park where we enjoyed the outdoors and took a long walk as the sun was near setting. It was perfect. I hope everyone else had a great weekend!

Oh The Things We Like: Knitwear

With the leaves slowly beginning to change and scatter across the ground, we can't help but think about cozy warm sweaters and the change in our wardrobes. There are so many great sweaters out there that it's hard to narrow them down! There's something about elbow patches on mens sweaters that I absolutely love! (probably because my husband was wearing a shirt like that when I met him) I plan on knitting our little one soft wool sweaters for winter, I made him this Debbie Bliss pattern a few months back, but he never got to wear it because I made it a bit too small... (maybe the next baby can wear it!) I'm thinking instead of a fox on the Nordstrom sweater- a corgi would be fun! Any great baby knits I need to be aware of? :)

Nordstrom baby Intarsia Knit Sweater • Anthropologie Couer pullover • J. Crew rustic merino elbow patch sweater • Anthropologie Posey Patch cardigan • Baby Gap Nautical Intarsia sweater 

Thoughts From This Week:

Rowan loves to look up at us when we go on walks!

My little one is sound asleep next to me and is sweet as can be. He actually skipped a feeding last night!   So thankful right now for that extra amount of sleep! We're almost at six weeks of having Rowan in our lives and slowly but surely this new role as mama is stepping into place. I started out with little goals for everyday such as making sure the dishes are done and most of the house is clean by the time my husband comes home from work. Our bed isn't always made- but I'm getting there! Rowan and I go on a walk daily and I've been able to get dinner on the table. (crockpots are amazing right now!) Now that these little daily tasks are getting done, I'm moving on to the business aspect of life. I've been designing new dresses for HighOver U and have new screen print ideas for HighOver U mini. I'm still working out the timing of accomplishing these tasks, but I have an amazing supportive husband and a wonderfully calm baby, so I'm not worried. It will all work out! I read a great blogpost today over at Love Taza. All you mama's out there might like to read it as well, we're all going through the same things just at different places. Striving to be the best mom, wife, daughter, friend and business owner are my goals right now. I'm excited for the future, to be a mama to more babies and to see where life takes my little family of three.

Oh the things we like- Baby edition:

Now that we are settling into life with a baby in tow, there are so many new products for little ones that we are excited about. The new Bugaboo Buffalo stroller is definitely at the top of our list- the off road capabilities fit our lifestyle and would give us no excuses not to take the trails versus the paved road on our outings!

Bugaboo Buffalo stroller • Jellycat anteater • Baby Dior cashmere booties • Land of Nod canvas teepee • Alphabet Wood Block set from Anthropologie

Weekend in northern Minnesota:

This past weekend, Erik, Rowan and I headed up north to visit Erik's parents and for Rowan to meet his great-grandma. It's always so relaxing to stay with Erik's family, there's something about staying in the woods that is so calming and causes you to slow down, enjoy the here and now and not worry about everything that needs to get done at home and with work. Rowan did so well on the long drive and we're very proud of him! He so enjoyed meeting his great-grandma and stared in wonder with his eyes wide open and little smiles peaking out. We are so blessed to have such a sweet boy and already can't imagine what life was like without him!

Erik and I were able to have some time alone together over the weekend, while Grandma and Grandpa watched Rowan. It was so nice for us to be able to just stop what we are doing and enjoy each others company and presence. We went four-wheeling along the dirt roads and had a date night at a little rustic Italian restaurant in basically the middle of nowhere! :) Holding hands at the table and reminiscing about where we were a year ago and how much our lives have changed in the best of ways was truly needed. Goodness I love that man and am excited to see where another year will take us.

Welcome to the world Rowan!

I haven’t posted on here in a few weeks because on the 13th of August our son Rowan was born. It’s been a crazy past three weeks- recovering from delivery, staring at our beautiful boy in disbelief that he is really ours, sleepless nights, lots of feedings and cuddlings and utter joy. Our little family of three is absolutely wonderful and I wouldn’t want it any other way. Already Rowan is quite the character and makes great facial expressions with his eyebrows. 

Now that Rowan is finally here we’re trying to find a routine that works for our family and get back into the swing of things and a somewhat normal life again. Working around feedings and naps seems to be the biggest challenge, but I’m sure at some point we’ll get everything worked out! The weather here has been crazy hot for Minnesota and we literally have not dared to venture outside as much as we would like, although we finally have been able to take family walks and Rowan quite likes his stroller not to mention the light breeze and sounds of waves crashing on shore when we walk by the water.

In other life news, a few weeks ago three of my HighOver U skirts were featured on Brickyard Buffalo’s pop-up shop. It was pretty exciting to partner with a great group of ladies who have come up with such a great idea for a site that works with independent artists and designers. If you haven't seen it yet, check it out at www.brickyardbuffalo.com.

I hope everyone has had a wonderful end of summer and past Labor day weekend. I can't believe it's almost mid-September already! We're pretty excited though about fall, apple picking with our little one, leaves changing not to mention falling and my favorite- wearing boots and tights again!

Saturday Morning in Excelsior:

We woke up early Saturday morning and decided a walk along the water in downtown Excelsior sounded ideal. What a beautiful morning it was, the air was crisp yet the rising sun was warm on our faces. I love when the water is very calm in the morning and the waves are few and far between. Some sailboats were out and a few early morning risers walking about. Early mornings in Excelsior during the summer are my favorite. It is the only time of day where it does not feel like you are in a tourist town and it’s peacefully quiet. I am very excited to take our little one on these morning walks with him snuggled up on Erik or I’s chest. He’s now officially a day late, so over here we’re trying very patiently to wait for his arrival! 

The rest of the day was spent finishing up projects, sewing for a few orders, cutting out patterns, eating coffee cake and root beer floats. :)

Oh the things we like- black & white:

I grew up listening to Paul McCartney for as long as I can remember. When I was really young, my mom would have Wings tapes playing in the car. My favorite song then and one of my top favorite now is "C Moon". Nespresso makes such delicious espresso, and those Pixie cups- how fun! The exact replica of the pods! I've had my eye on those All Black shoes for literally years. Unfortunately they just do not fit right on me. Still, they are pretty to look at! :)

Paul McCartney & Wings tour tee • camera pencil sharpener from Mod Cloth • All Black fish bow mary jane's • Twig Creative wooden camera • Nespresso pixie cups

Glimpses From This Week:

Well, it has definitely been a busy week! Lots of last minute preparations, planning and trying to rest as much as possible before our little one arrives. He's due Saturday, so any day now! In a sense it's also nerve wracking, every day we wake up and question if today is the day and are we ready/ prepared? When it's all said and done, I think we'll just be incredibly happy to have him in our arms and take each day as new parents as it comes.

1. screen-printing fabric for new baby legging prints for HighOver U mini.

2. we are all about film photography, love this little la sardina from Lomography, a gift last summer from my dad.

3. making last minute touches to baby's room

4. Leo the lion

5. Erik taught me to play cribbage and it's become a nightly game

6. drinking lots of raspberry leaf tea to coax this little one out of me. (I've tried everything- any ideas?)

7. saltwater sandals are literally the only shoes I can wear right now, good thing I love them!

8. our mr. stripey heirloom tomatoes are growing! 

Best Coffee Cake Ever:

I love cooking and baking from the original 1950's version of Betty Crocker's Picture Cookbook. The little origin stories that come along with the recipes are so great to read and we're always pleasantly surprised how such simple ingredients can create delicious dishes. Erik and I were craving coffee cake and I decided to give the Streusel Filled Coffee Cake recipe a whirl and my goodness this has got to be the most wonderful and incredibly easy coffee cake ever! Try it out and let me know what you think!

Streusel Filled Coffee Cake:

Preheat oven to 375 degrees

Grease and flour 9" baking pan

Mix together:

3/4 cup sugar

1/4 cup shortening (I use softened butter)

1 egg

Stir in:

1/2 cup milk

Sift together and stir in:

1 1/2 cups flour

2 teaspoons baking powder

1/2 teaspoon salt

Mix together streusel mixture in a separate bowl:

1/2 cup brown sugar

2 tablespoons flour

2 teaspoons cinnamon

2 tablespoons melted butter

Spread half of batter in greased and floured pan, then sprinkle with half of streusel mixture

Add remaining batter and sprinkle on top remaining streusel

Bake 25-35 minutes until wooden toothpick comes out clean

Enjoy!

Any other awesome coffee cake recipes out there that I need to know about? :)

Photographing in Fall:

Fall is my absolute favorite time to photograph. I love the changing landscape, freshly fallen leaves strewn about and the weather is warm enough to comfortably pose outside yet brisk enough to evoke the seasons change in the photographs. Photographing with this little guy in my belly has been difficult to say the least, lets just say I can't move around as much as I used to! Heading into this seasons change ( I know, I know, I'd rather it stay warm much longer!) I'm getting the photography business back up and running with a special of mini-sessions for $100 including hi-resolution photos on a cd for those in the Minneapolis area. www.brinshorphotography.com

What's your favorite part of fall? 

Oh the things we like- British edition:

We love England; all things British. I often day dream about having a little cottage in the english countryside, a library with a big fireplace and two cozy leather chairs for Erik and I, have lots of corgis and sheep, wear wellies everywhere with a flouncy frock and drive an old Land Rover. It seems like it would be such a simple, enjoyable life. Stay at home as much as we can and enjoy each others company as a family.

Beg Bicycles Bella bike • Barbour Liberty of London special edition Beadnell jacket • Hunter Thurloe boots for baby • Jack Wills Stockbury jacket for papa • Orla Kiely multi flower check birdcage umbrella • Cambridge Satchel Company classic satchel for papa

HighOver U mini:

After making leggings for our little one, I decided to add on to HighOver U and create HighOver U mini! It's such a fun process to create these little leggings, from screen-printing the fabric, to cutting out tiny patterns and piecing it all together. Every legging is truly one of a kind and are so luxuriously soft! I personally love the multiple 'Greetings from Excelsior, Minn.' prints, but the coffee and teacups are so cute that I need to send a pair to my niece Piper!

You can purchase your own pair and even design your own with six prints to choose from here.

Legal: all patterns, prints, graphics and designs ©HighOver U 2013