XOve Baby Q & A // PROMO CODE!

So remember that adorable company that sells baby blankets and onesies I introduced y'all to a few weeks back?  And told y'all how about not only do they sell the softest things imaginable but they also give back for every purchase?!?!  Well the owners, Donnie and Bethany, are here to share a little bit more about themselves.  So read below and check out their shop here.  Also you can use the promo code LABORDAY14 for 14% off of your entire purchase through the weekend!  

Happy Shopping!

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Names: Donnie & Bethany  (Owners)

Hometown:

D: Wilmington, NC

B: Durham, NC

Current Town:

B: We love calling Wilmington home!

How did you two love birds meet?

B: We had both recently graduated from UNCW but our paths had (somehow) never crossed.  Donnie randomly moved into an apartment on Wrightsville Beach with some of my closest guy friends from Durham. We met at one of their beach cookouts and became friends over the summer.  I wasn’t looking for the love of my life at the time, but when I met Donnie that ALL changed!  I was quickly smitten and the rest is history.

3 words that your family would use to describe you:

D: Kind-hearted, focused, and passionate (answered by Bethany J)

B: HUGE heart, beautiful inside & out, nurturing (answered by Donnie J)

Boy or girl, what are your guesses? 

D: Sweet little girl so I can go and buy that tutu I saw on our first baby shopping trip.

B: I go back and forth every day!  Definitely thinking boy more than girl.  I can’t wait until I hear those words on delivery day!

What is one thing you are most excited about becoming a parent?

D: All the baby laughs! This baby is sure to fill our home with lots of laughter.

B: The feeling of being a mommy. The thing I’m most excited about doing is rocking my babe to sleep and just savoring that moment.

What is one prayer/hope you have for Baby B?

D: There is nothing I could want more than a healthy happy baby.

B: That they’re like their daddy!

How did XOve Baby come to life?

D: It has always been a desire of mine and Bethany’s to do more and help others. We are passionate about knowing that everything happens for a reason and knew the perfect opportunity was right in front of us when we dreamed up XOve Baby.

With her experience working as a Nanny and true love for babies, combined with my passion for business, we knew we wanted to make our job helping children.

Unfortunately, not every child is brought into this world under perfect conditions, and this is all out of their control. It is for these reasons that we feel strongly about helping children feel a sense of comfort through our products.

Where is the name from?

B: I moved away for work for 6 months right when Donnie and I got engaged.  Between planning a wedding and the distance, we covered a lot of texts and emails.  Our exchanges either always ended with a ‘love you’ or a ‘XO’.  Eventually that evolved into XOve.  It embodies what we had always envisioned our company being about. 

Why give back?

B: Giving back wasn’t an afterthought for us; it was one of our first thoughts.  It’s what we wanted to build a company around.  At the end of the day, if we’re not doing something to really help others- why do it?

What inspires you and fires you up?

D: Knowing that with every new day comes an opportunity to meet new people, influence the lives of others, and learn something we didn’t know the day before.

When you aren’t filling orders and giving to those in need what are you doing?

D: Bethany and I are both currently working full-time jobs outside of XOve Baby so that does take up most of our “free time”. However, I do enjoy to play golf, surf, swim in the pool, or hang out in Starbucks with my iPad and a nice tall coffee in hand!

B: Getting ready for Baby B and living up our 2-person family status while we can!  We’ve been trying to fit in impromptu dates- whether it’s jumping in the car for a day getaway, a dinner out, or just going to the beach without having to pack the whole house! We’re trying to do things now that we may not be able to do for a while.

What is one goal for XOve Baby?

D: One goal for our company is to build a community around what we do for others through the business. The quality of the products that we make for each and every baby is very important to us, but the support and influence of each new member of our community is priceless.

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I mean their hearts... love them.  And love their mission and purpose!  Yall support this sweet company and go shop!  Remember to use the promo code LABORDAY14 through the weekend!

XOve Baby

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xove baby review

disclaimer: 

getting 3 babies to sit still on the couch for more than half a second is serious yall.... but we tried :)

When I find a brand that I love, you can pretty much count me as a fan for life.  Anytime that brand is local? Fist pump please!  Anytime that brand also gives back?!  Double fist pump.  And today, I get to share a brand that does all of the above - XOve Baby.  It has become my go-to for baby shower gifts with their adorable onesies and baby blankets.  The onesies are soft enough (made with 100% organic cotton) for the newest baby skin but sturdy enough for serious play dates (as proved above!).  Their blankets are perfect for swaddling or cuddling.  We are transitioning G out of the sleep sack during her naps and at night and this blanket is the only one I trust with the job.  It's soft and still breathable and G loves curling up in her crib or on the couch with it.  There are three designs currently and I'm planning on stocking G with all of them.  Check them out below and get your shop on!

XOve Baby SHOP

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*** side note - while the largest size currently offered is 9-12 months it fits G perfectly!  They have some stretch which is nice so you can get a lot of wear out of them.  Tripp is modeling the Signature Print above in a 3-6 month size and he is 8 months!  Like I said, the onesies have stretch and are a great staple for a baby wardrobe because they really can continue to wear them for months and months.  Miss Anna Davis is modeling the Pearl Print in a 6-9 months.

thank you to my adorable models Tripp (8 months), Anna Davis (7 months) and Georgia (1 year)

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georgia grace is ONE!

i still can't believe my baby girl is one year old (well... one year and one week exactly!).  We had the best time celebrating that little ray of sunshine last week and I can't wait to share pictures with y'all.  But until then here is a little about my baby lady at one year old!

Weight: G goes to the doctor tomorrow afternoon so stay tuned... (also prayers are welcomed!  we get LOTS of shots :( !!!!)

Health: She’s still a healthy lady praise the Lord.

Sleep: Yay yay!  Sleep is still a good thing at our house.  G goes down anywhere between 8 and 8:30 and sleeps until 6, takes a bottle, and goes back to sleep until 7:30 or 8.  I know I should probably drop that bottle at 6 ASAP so maybe I will tackle that next week, along with taking her bottle away (sheeeeesh turning 1 is hard stuff!).

Social: This month she had her last month of Kindermusik with her friends, finished swim lessons and had lots and lots of play dates.  She loves being around other babies and toddlers and I’m so excited for her to start "Preschool" in September.  I think she’ll love all of the playtime with friends. 

Diet: She’s eating anything and everything she can get her hands on!  She is picky at times, but really I think she’s just too busy to slow down and eat.  We are doing great with solids and have introduced whole milk in her bottle.  Still haven’t tried Peanut Butter yet but I’m dying too.  So maybe next week?!

Clothes: She can wear 12 months and 18 months (those are little big).  So we are in between I suppose? 

Baby Gear Love: I mean I died over the cupcake Honest Diapers this month!  I still love my Beaba BabyFood Maker – even though I’m not pureeing anything for G anymore, I use it to steam her fruits and veggies to make them soft enough for her to eat.  We also get good use out of these reusable pouches and I fill it with blueberry applesauce for when we are on the go.

Crying: She’s a pretty happy baby unless she’s tired, bored or hungry!

Likes:  Sevilla.  Duh.  She loves her new piano and anything music related.  She loves the pool, reading books, going on walks and bubbles – bubbles are kindaaaaa amazing these days!

not happy about crib pictures....

Dislikes: Now that she’s crawling a thousand miles a minute and starting to stand up and take steps (1-2 at most until she plops down!), she is not a happy lady if I pick her up when she is headed somewhere.  I mean she’s got places to be ya know?!  On the other side of that if she wants to be held she will let. You. Know. Period.  And she still hates the vacuum.   

Postpartum:  Still feeling good, still need to start exercising! EEEEEEEK

Milestones: She’s close to walking for sure but not there yet.  She takes a few steps here and there but then plops down and crawls way faster than most people can run.  She’s babbling away.  Her newest “word” is “nana” and she is constantly saying “mama” now which melts my heart :)

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Keri from Living in this Season: Making Baby Food!

Y'all I am so excited to introduce one of my newest and most favorite blog friends - Keri from Living in This Season!  She's here to talk about making some baby food - so enjoy!

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Hello! I am so excited to be sharing today and hope to encourage you all. My life is currently filled with lots of lists and preparation as I am expecting baby number 3 at the end of the month! With a 5 year old and 2 year old boys I am now trying to remember all my baby knowledge and prepare for... a little girl! I am still in shock over this as I was convinced we would have all boys but I am extremely excited as well. Blogging is my little corner of my world where I can share my heart, things I am passionate about, struggling with, or just having fun with. At Living In This Season, I hope to encourage others, no matter what the season of life we are in, to live currently in that season.... embracing the moments.   

Thinking of babies and all things baby has made me think about things I want to do differently and things that worked and I want to do again. One thing that worked was making my own baby food. I know, I know I have lost some of you know.... making baby food, who has time for that?! Trust me I thought the same thing. With my oldest son, I did not tackle making my own baby food. The thought of it seemed overwhelming (although honestly looking back what a perfect time to tackle this when I have only one child!)... Then I was given this book when I was pregnant with my 2nd: Cooking Light First Foods.

 

 I have loved this book! It really was helpful and took all the fear out of making your own baby food. There is information on the different stages of baby food, food safety, storing, etc. And bonus: I realized I could use what I already had: blender, ice cube trays, and freezer bags. My tips for making your own baby food: - Don't let it overwhelm you! You do not have to go crazy and make batches and batches of baby food to freeze. In the beginning I would make up maybe a batch of peas and sweet potatoes on a Sunday for the week. But a lot of the time, I would just blend the veggie/fruit we were eating for dinner. - Keep it simple. You do not need to go out and buy a fancy machine... blender works fine. Ice cube trays work perfectly for freezing. Freezer bags work great for storage. If you are going out, I found small glass or plastic containers with kids work to tote the food around in. - Go local. In the summer I would get a lot of our produce from the farmer's market. It was pretty easy using some of this to blend up for baby food. I am really hoping this year to have success with our garden to be able to use some of that for this baby (this is very optimistic thinking because I do NOT have a greenthumb). - Give yourself Grace. Yes, I loved making my own baby food and it ended up working for me... but remember it is not the end of the world if your child eats store bought baby food. My oldest ate it and is fine! So please do not read this and feel bad if you do use store baby food. Or if you try this out and think, this just is not for me, that is okay. Accept the stage you are in and what you want to take on and what you want to set aside. Yes, I love tackling baby food... cloth diapers though, are another story. :) - Make it fun! It can be insanely messy feeding a little one... but relax and enjoy it! Can't you just tell in my son's face his pure excitement (joking he looks a little amused maybe)...

So I encourage my fellow mamas of babies.. maybe you have always wondered about making your own baby food... try it out! Even better, grab a friend who has a child near your child's age, and tackle this new adventure together. With this book and Pinterest at your fingertips there is plenty of help for you to tackle this baby food making. I promise it is way easier than I ever imagined!

You can Follow Keri Here:

Blog  //  Facebook  //  Instagram  //  Pinterest

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