Cute Local Small Shops

One thing I really love about small shops is that you can find some really great, unique stuff. There are so many small shops out there on Instagram and Etsy but some of my favorites are local, which is even better. With the Canadian dollar being what it is, no better time to shop locally than right now!

URBAN COWGIRL & CO
WEBSITE | FACEBOOK | INSTAGRAM

We have talked about this one many times before and that's because we LOVE it. Urban Cowgirl is a local shop with the cutest pieces ever! Linnden makes infinity scarves for kids and adults (with a new prints just released Monday!), top knot headbands (which Palmer wore a lot of), and cute bows that can be put onto either a soft nylon headband or a clip. I absolutely adore the headbands for little Charlie. They stretch to fit any size kid head and they don't leave that horrible imprint like many headbands do. And the bows...too sweet. She has the cutest prints that choosing just a few is really hard!

4FOLD SLOUCHY BEANIES
FACEBOOK | INSTAGRAM

Another small shop that we have recently started to love is 4Fold Slouchy Beanies, a brand new work-from-home company. Liat has the cutest prints, you will find something for everyone in your family, and with the very reasonable prices, there's no reason not to! I am a sucker for a kid in a slouchy beanie. Too cute!

MACEY & CO
WEBSITE | FACEBOOK | INSTAGRAM

I was attracted to this small shop because it was the first time I had seen this style of leather mini bows before and I couldn't help myself. This company is based out of BC (so almost local) and has stylish handmade headwraps and headbands for babes of all ages! The headbands area also made with the soft, comfy nylon so I have no worries about it on little Charlie's head. She can also put the bows on clips, which I love for Palmer.

What are some of your favorite small shops?? I love finding new ones!

Our Weekend

We live for the weekends around here. That is when Mitch comes home and things are normal for a couple of days. This past weekend, we decided to meet in Calgary and do some fun things around there.

The girls and I left around noon and stopped at this really great Christmas market on the south end of Calgary. It was huge and had so many vendors! Palmer's favorite part was seeing Santa's reindeer! We had to go back and see them twice before we left. The weather was okay, but a little cool, so we only stayed about an hour before taking off. Lucky for us, some lady handed us a free gate admission as we were walking in!

We stopped at the mall for a bit before we took off to my sister-in-laws salon to meet Mitch. The mall had a Disney store and Palmer was going nuts!! "Mom, look at this one." "wow, mommy, look!" And she loved the magic mirror. 

Friday night, we kept it pretty low key and hung around the condo.

Saturday we were up early to pick up Mitchell's dad and nanny at the airport then headed up to Cross Iron Mills mall to do some looking around. Then, was the part I was looking forward to most. The Zoo!

We had never taken Palmer to the zoo before, so I was excited to see her reaction to all the animals. Some of the animals weren't out and some of the exhibits were closed for the winter, but there was still plenty to see and I think she really loved it. 

We planned the Science Centre for Sunday, and Palmer really loved that too. I had always thought the Science Centre was geared more for older kids and adults, but there are a lot of really great activities for young kids too. It was a great end to our mini weekend getaway!

Our weekend ended with Charlie sleeping from 11pm to 5:40am this morning! WHOOP WHOOP! 

Christmas Cards With Tiny Prints

One of my favorite parts about getting ready for the holidays is choosing and sending out Christmas cards. Every year, we choose the outfits, choose the setting and have our family photos done. I love it. My husband would tell you otherwise, but the photos always turn out great. Then is the actual fun part; choosing the cards to match with the photos. 

The last several years we have used Tiny Prints to make our Christmas cards, and this year is no different (See our 2014 cards here). There are always so many beautiful cards to choose from that I have a really hard time deciding and Tiny Prints products have always turned out really amazing for us. This year, Tiny Prints offers some really great options including Foil-Stamp, Laser-Cut, Letterpress, and their new Glitter options (which we chose and love!)

After browsing, personalizing and comparing many cards, we went with the Simply Glittering card with silver glitter and I couldn't be happier! The neutral background of the card paired perfectly with the colors of our family photo. The card is gorgeous. 

This year, we decided to try out the envelope liners as well. It is an extra for the cards but I love that it gives the envelope a pop fun of color.

Last year, we got our personalized address stamp from Tiny Prints, making addressing and labeling the envelopes a breeze and so fun!

I have always loved making holiday cards because you can really add that personal touch and make it different than the typical holiday card. Tiny Prints makes the process so easy and stress free. The only stress you will have is choosing from all their really great designs. Tiny Prints for the win!

**Disclaimer: Tiny Prints provided me with product in exchange for my post. Opinions are 100% mine.

My Friday Five

Is it just me, or are these weeks flying by? Can you believe it's the middle of November already?  Another Friday is here, so I figured I'd share another 5 Friday things.

One: we had the first snowfall of the year this week and Palmer loved it! We had to get out and play in the snow a few times during the week.

Two: Charlie turned 6 weeks on Wednesday! What? She had her 6 week check yesterday and she has nearly doubled her birth weight, weighing in at 10lbs exactly (47th percentile) and measuring 20.5 inches (up from18 3/4 at birth; she's in the 4.7th percentile now)

Three: I started back at the gym this week and even snuck in a run before the snow flew! It feels great to be back at it, and it's nice to have the hour for myself!

Four: we had a few family photos taken on Sunday while my brother was here. Mitch doesn't love having his pictures done so I'm glad he was willing, because there are a couple really great ones of humans the girls! 

Five: Snapchat is quickly become one of my favorite forms of social media! I love that it's real, and usually hilarious! You can find me at crazilynormal. Leave me your snapchat name so I can follow along!!! 

Happy weekend, everyone!!

Charlie Dawn Newborn Photos: By Tawnya Nicole Photography

I am so excited to share these newborn photos of Charlie. 

My friend Tawnya has done it again. She has captured some truly beautiful moments for us and they are absolutely perfect. She did maternity photos for us back in August and they were amazing too! I can't even say enough about her incredible talent! I couldn't decide if I loved the color or black and white ones better, so here are some of each. I seriously love them all so much.

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