Ashleigh Marie: Teacher to Mommy

Day Trip to Descanso Gardens

October 14, 2020

1418 Descanso Drive, La Cañada Flintridge, CA 91011

For my mom’s birthday, I chose to bring her to Descanso Gardens. It is about 20 minutes away from Downtown Los Angeles. I chose to bring her here because she loves walks and hikes. Also, she loves being in nature. We went in October, so it was themed with pumpkins. The cost to enter the gardens is $15 per person. It was a little pricey, but it was worth it to get into the Fall and October mood.

This pumpkin house was a highlight of the day. It was so cute and fun to take pictures in front of it. Children and parents will both love this cute pumpkin house. My daughter got her outfit as a gift from one of my mon’s best friends. It says “Cutest Pumpkin in the Patch” on her bottom, so I had to show it off in a picture. Her bow came in a pack ( https://amzn.to/3kE3NSz) from Amazon.

In the spring time, this garden has tulips and cherry blossoms, but I loved coming in the fall, seeing the pumpkins, and walking through the woods. The principal collections in the Descanso Gardens includes: an Oak Forest, a Camellia Collection, an Ancient Forrest, a California Natives section, an Oak Woodland, a rose garden, a Japanese Garden, and a beautiful lake. While walking around all the Gardens, my mom and I walked 3+ miles, so it is a great way to get your daily steps in.

There were many places that were closed due to Covid including: Boddy House, Sturt Haga Gallery, and a railroad. However, the Gift Shop is open to visitors. Also, a Food Kiosk, The Kitchen, and the Camellia Lounge are open for food and beverages.

This is an image of the Lake. I took this photo from a fort that you can walk up into and view the lake from. I loved the peaceful tranquility of this lake, and my mom and I took a break to sit in some lounge chairs, eat a snack, and observe nature’s beauty.

This photo of my mom and Quincy warms my heart. Quincy was 3 months when this photo was taken. It was one of Quincy’s first big outings out of the house. Both Quincy and her grandma thoroughly enjoyed this outing to the Descanso Gardens.

This is a picture of my favorite tree, a Willow tree. I believe they are my favorite because of Old Mother Willow from Disney’s Pocahontas. I love the drooping branches and find them beautiful.

One Mommy tip that I learned after this trip. Invest in a jogger cycle. This stroller worked, but it would have been much easier to navigate the gardens with a jogger stroller. I recommend the Graco Jogger Stroller that your car seat can also hook into: (https://amzn.to/3exPsGh, https://amzn.to/3vhRMXZ) You could also put your baby in a carrier to walk around the gardens. My favorite baby carrier I have tried is the Infantino carrier (https://amzn.to/3c5URl0) that I bought off Amazon.

Overall, I loved the Fall, pumpkin theming throughout the Gardens. I also loved that my mom and I were able to exercise in nature’s beauty. I would definitely like to go back in the spring for the cherry blossoms and tulips. My mom, Quincy, and I definitely loved our day in nature celebrating my mom’s birthday!

November and Fall Baby Photoshoot Ideas

November 2020

Quincy is 4 months old! She currently enjoys eating her hands and fingers (and other peoples hands), talking and cooing as much as she can, and grabbing on to things and holding them tight (hair, fingers, toys, etc.). Loving every minute with this crazy butt! I can’t believe she is a third of a year old!

In this photo, Quincy is wearing a onesie from the Jessica Simpson collection which bought at Marshall’s. The fall leaves were purchased at the Dollar Tree, and the gourds were purchased in the Target dollar section. The grey blanket is a decorative blanket that I use on my bed at home, and it was purchased at Home Goods. As you can see from this photo, my daughter was starting to get a big personality at 4 months. She loved smiling and sticking out her tongue. It was pretty easy to lay her down, stand over her, and get these photos.

In this photo, Quincy is wearing the same outfit. However, the props have changed. The metal container was purchased years ago (probably at a home goods), the pumpkin spice sign was purchased at Dollar Tree, and the plaid blanket was purchased at Target. It was in the Target dollar section. To get Quincy laying in the metal container, I put a towel in the bottom and behind her to keep her comfortable. At the 4 month mark, she could sit up assisted, but not unassisted. Therefore, it was perfect to have her reclined in the metal container. In this photo I had her feet and the sign toward me. I sat on the floor to get this angle. Her smile was huge and contagious the whole time.

For this photo, we have the same props and outfit. However, we have Quincy and the sign in different positions. I chose to face Quincy’s feet away from me and put the sign in the middle of the metal container. It was cute to see her from a different angle, and you can see her size better. i took this photo from an above angle looking down. She was extremely comfy in this little container.

For this final photo, I took a picture of Quincy on her milestone blanket I bought off Etsy. I made the milestone marker with a wooden embroidery hoop, artificial eucalyptus leaves, and floral wire bought at Michaels. Her outfit was purchased by a friend and given to my at my baby shower. Her bow and socks were purchased at Carter’s. I took this photo while standing over Quincy. As you can see, she was all smiles. I loved this month’s Photoshoot with my happy, smiley, bubbly baby!

Day Trip to Laguna Beach

November 2020

On this wonderful day in November, my best friend from Sacramento came to visit. We chose to go for a walk in Laguna Beach. It was a beautiful day with beautiful weather. It was also the first time my baby touched the ocean. After our walk along the coastline, we went to Urth Caffe. I always get a Spanish Latte, but this time I also got a garden salad. The latte continued to be a favorite of mine, but the salad made me feel like a rabbit (not tasty). My friend got one of their delicious pastries. These will not disappoint!

After our snack at Urth Caffe, we went to the pirate tower. The pirate tower is a popular location to visit in Laguna Beach. It is unique and picturesque. It did not disappoint, and you will get some great pictures. We went at sunset and it was beautiful. To get to this location put pirate tower Laguna beach on your google maps search. It will give you directions on how to get there. My advice is to park on PCH and then walk down to the beach.

I had such a great day with my best friend. Laguna Beach has a lot to offer. It has beautiful, beaches, great hikes, cute shops, and fantastic restaurants. I definitely recommend going to Laguna Beach for a relaxing day in Southern California!

First Time Eating Solids

December 11, 2020

This photo was the aftermath of our first baby food adventure. I chose to give her sweet potato as her first baby food because I wanted to do a veggie I thought she might like. She liked it, but you can see the aftermath on her face. We hadn’t quite mastered food eating after the first try.

Many people advise to give vegetables first, and to start with something green because they aren’t as tasty. I will say my daughter does not love the green stuff. She will not eat green beans unless it is mixed with something else, and is reluctant to eat peas. However, she will eat these green veggies if mixed with fruit or a sweeter veggie, like butternut squash or carrots.

I got this bandana bib from a website suggested by a friend. It is very cute, but I definitely advise the wipeable bibs. They are much easier to wash and clean on the go.

Lastly, my doctor advised to only add one new food per 4 days so that you can see if your baby is allergic. Please consult your doctor before starting foods and for all baby food eating advise.

Quincy was a very colicky baby from 0-4 months. She spit up/threw up a lot. She still spits up after every feeding, but it is much better since starting solids. Also, she does better with the thicker foods than with breast milk or formula. For these reasons, with the advice of our doctor, we started solid foods at 5 months. Quincy was sitting up while assisted, but not unassisted at the time.

Overall, starting solid foods at 5 months was perfect for Quincy and our family. Good luck adding solid foods to your babies diets! It truly is a fun time and experience!

Baby Christmas and December Photoshoot Ideas

December 2020

For these photos, Quincy was about 5 months. She was just starting to be able to sit unassisted for very short spurts and she could lay on her stomach with her head lifted. My mom acted as my assistant and was close by for any toppling over.

For this photo, I used a white fur rug underneath her from Amazon. I had her wear a red onesie from Amazon and a “My 1st Christmas” hat. The personalized ornament was purchased from Etsy. I placed her on her back and handed her the ornament to hold.

For this picture, I used the same props and kept her in her back, except I dangled the ornament in front of her and took the picture.

For this photo, I used the milestone blanket I purchased on Etsy. I also used the milestone marker I made with a wooden embroidery hoop and artificial eucalyptus leaves from Michaels. Quincy is wearing a onesie outfit gifted from a friend which was purchased at Target. She is also wearing a beanie from PatPat.

These photos took the most time to set up. I used my backdrop frame, a white blanket for the backdrop, a white blanket for the floor, Quincy’s boppy pillow to prop her up, and the fur rug from the first photos. I also attached lights to the backdrop frame and placed some on the floor in front of her. I positioned Quincy for this photo sitting up with the boppy pillow placed behind her for support.

The Santa Baby Velvet Onesie and Headband were purchased from Etsy. For this photo, I laid her on her stomach on the boppy pillow. I put her arms over the edge so she could play with the lights.

For these next few photos, I used my parents Christmas tree and gifts as a backdrop. Quincy is wearing a Christmas onesie from Carter’s and a Beanie from PatPat. She is sitting on a fur rug from Amazon. I had Quincy sit up for this first photo. As you can see she has one arm down because she has not fully mastered sitting up on her own yet.

For this next photo, I just added the wrapped box that I placed Quincy in and substitute red her beanie for a wrapping bow to make her look like a present. Since the box supported her back, it was much easier to get these photos because she was not falling over.

For this photo, I placed Quincy’s legs under the tree: I then took a high angle and shot downwards to get both Quincy and the tree in the photo.

In this photo, I placed Quincy on her stomach with the book “The Grinch who Stoke Christmas” propped up on the gifts. I laid on the ground behind her and took the photos.

For this photo, I placed a boppy pillow on my bed and covered it with the fur rug. For props, I used cookies from Albertsons, a milk jar from Michaels, and a Christmas napkin from Marshall’s. Quincy’s Mrs. Claus outfit was also purchased at Marshall’s. In this photo, I had her lay on her back on the boppy.

For this photo, I had her sit up on the boppy. These were a little more difficult because she kept diving for the cookies and wanting to eat them. I can’t say I blame her because they smelt and tasted delicious.

In this final photo, we kept her on my bed and handed her a note saying “Dear Santa, I can explain…”. We propped her up with the pillows from my bed behind her. This note, as seen by the destroyed edges, also was constantly being attempted to be eaten just like the cookies.

I took these photos over the course of December in 2020. I choose a few dates in advance: December 1st, December 11th (5 months), a random date in December, and December 23rd. The December 1st photos were the ornament photos to start the month off. The December 11th photos were her 5 month photos with the lights and her milestone blanket. The random date in December included the tree photos. Lastly, the December 23rd photos included the cookies and Dear Santa photos to be posted on Christmas Eve. Taking the photos over multiple days allowed Quincy to not be fussy and for my mom and I not to be too overwhelmed.

I loved each and every photo I took of Quincy over the course of December. They are photos that will be cherished forever. You can still get quality photos and not have a professional photographer. You just need a vision and some advanced planning for your backdrops and props.