Laura W. Godfrey

First off, can I just say that y’all are so amazing?! The fact that I can just jump on instagram and ask for opinions and y’all literally just flood me with the BEST ideas, just blows my mind sometimes! I never take for granted how kind y’all are and I hope you know it.

As some of you know, a few weeks ago, I asked the mothers of instagram to tell me what their must have baby items were. The nice part of compiling the information was that so many of you had the same ideas. Goes to show that when something works, it really works!

I am so excited to try some of these items because y’all it has been a hot minute since we’ve had any baby stuff around here.

The two most highly recommended items were the Rock N Play and the Dock a Tot. We used the rock n play with both Reese and Rowen and it was such a life saver! Although can we talk about why it’s called Rock n play? That sucker was intended to put the baby to SLEEP. There was zero playing going on! Thankfully now the updated version also includes vibrating and auto rocking. Yes, please. So excited for the new version!!

The dock a tot was the other most highly recommended item and so many of you said it was the perfect chill spot for the baby to feel safe and snug and that it was also good for travel in the early months of baby’s life. I can’t WAIT to try this! The reviews are amazing and I’m honestly going to take your word for it.

There were so many other items y’all raved about so I’ve included all of them below. Be sure to read the caption under the perfect for more info on why the momma’s said they loved these products!

Thanks again for all the amazing input!!!

Hey, hey!

I feel like I’ve been subtly filling your instagram feed with some of my favorite shoes purchases so far this Spring and now it’s time to pull them all together in one place. I’m going to organize this post into price points rather than shoe types. If you’re like me, a comfy shoe is important but budget is even MORE important.

Most of the shoes I’m sharing are ones that I’ve actually had on my feet so I feel like I can confidently share how good they are! Any of the ones I share that I haven’t tried, I always make sure the reviews are good for y’all.

Under $200

Under $100

Under $50

Under $25

Hi, friends!

Finally getting around to sharing about our sweet baby girl’s name. I sort of feel like I’m living in a whirlwind of preparation for the future and trying to really soak up the present. The balance can be hard to achieve but I think the time I get most excited about the future is when I’m sitting in her nursery and dreaming about how the whole space will come together. Here are a few things we’ve started to gather.

We still have a long way to go in their but at least the worst part (painting!) is done.

I have loved the name Lerner for years now. I first heard it in a movie, even though it was actually someones last name. I just felt like it was unique and feminine without being too terribly crazy. The meaning of the name Lerner is “student” and we chose Olivia as the middle name because the biblical meaning is fruitfulness, beauty, and dignity. But it’s also representative of the olive branch that the dove returned to Noah after the flood. It was a sign of one of God’s great promises. Therefore the name can also be translated into promise. The combined  meaning is Student of God’s Promises.

While we did choose this name for her, we also chose it because what it has meant for us in these last few years. Never before in our lives have we had to be more dependent on God’s promises and how they translate into our daily lives.

When it seemed like He didn’t see us or hear us crying out for His help, we kept on going back to His word to find His promises and just rest in the truth found there. We pray that no matter what our sweet girl walks through, she will always look for the same thing!

Thank you for reading, dear friend! We so appreciate all the excitement and encouragement from all of you during this pregnancy. You guys have made this even MORE fun for us! So thank you from the bottom of our hearts!

Do we think I could have possibly thought of a less creative name for this blog post? Truth is, there’s just SO much to share regarding all the events coming up that trying to fit it all into one post would be impossible! So here we are in part two.

This post is going to be more geared toward graduation gifts, baby shower must haves, and a few more idea sprinkled in that would work for just about any occasion!

I’ve recently fallen completely in love with this plush blanket and the price point is so affordable! It really would be perfect for a newly married couple, a mommy with a new baby, or a graduating senior heading off to college. It comes in six different colors so there’s something for everyone.

This mug is also a sweet and personal gift that easily complement another larger gift.

I’ve obviously got baby on the brain right now so here are a few of my top picks for what to give at a baby shower!

The Jellycat plush stuffed animals are a must in our book, as are the Little Giraffe blankets. Reese and Rowen each have their own bunny and my mom got them a lovie and baby blanket from Little Giraffe. They are THE softest and the quality is long-lasting.

My favorite shower gift we received when we got married was a little gift basket for a “Date Night In”. It had a few DVD’s, a candle, candy, pop corn, and a cozy blanket. It was so fun to come back from our honeymoon and have a little something already planned out for us. I think little thoughtful gift combos like this are so practical but also fun!

The candles I’m including are without a doubt THE most beautifully packaged and the best smelling. They are the perfect addition to any gift. I especially love using them in a hostess gift. They came in a variety of different scents and sizes. My favorites is the Panjore Lychee. SO dreamy! Throw in fresh flowers and a pretty new apron and you’ve got a thoughtful and pretty gift any host would love!

Now it’s been a hot minute since I was heading off to college myself but I still remember some of the gifts I got that I really enjoyed. I know I needed to bring some creature comforts from home and anything that made me feel like I wasn’t living in a place with hundreds of other people was also nice!

Here are a few ideas for girls:

And for the guys:

Bonus Material!

So many of you were interested in hearing the feedback regarding teacher’s gifts. For those of you that don’t know, I polled my audience of current and former teachers on Instagram and got an incredible amount of information to share with y’all. To break it down to it’s simplest form, I found that teachers really appreciate any thoughtful gift from their students and their families… but when specifically asked, they reported that they love the balance of a heart felt note and some kind of gift card. Target, Starbucks, Spa, Home Goods, TJ Maxx, and Hobby Lobby are the main suggestions.

For Teacher Appreciation, the teachers really appreciated gestures made by parents to shake up a normal school day. Some teachers said that parents would bring in lunch for the teachers and let them go eat it alone while they sat with the kids. Some parents brought in breakfast and the teacher’s favorite coffee. All such fun ideas to show our teachers how much we love and appreciate them!

This was my first time as a room mom and I also got some tips on how to make this job easier and more effective. At the beginning of the year, have each teacher fill out a form answering questions about all their favorite foods, candies, places to shop, eating out spots, etc. This will give you a much better idea throughout the year of how to make them feel truly special. Then I would suggest creating a facebook group including every parent in the class so it’s easier to stay in contact. Let the parents know about parties and gifts coming up as far in advance as you can because everyone is busy and needs the notice! I’ve also enjoyed collecting money from parents and doing joint class gifts for our teachers. I feel like this cuts down on the number of people that just forget or end up having to throw something together last minute.

A few of the things teachers prefer NOT to get are homemade gifts (they love them but end up with too many over the years), mugs, candles, home baked goods, specific clothing items.

The better you get to know your child’s teacher, the more you’ll be able to understand what they really love, and the better prepared you’ll be to make them feel appreciated and valued throughout the school year. So the main moral of this story is GET TO KNOW YOUR CHILD’S TEACHER!

We entrust our babies to learn from these sweet educators but let’s also remember that the care of the teacher’s is not in the hands of the school. It’s up to us to love on them throughout the year and let them know just how MUCH we appreciate all they do to mold the minds of our littles!

Thanks again for stopping by and reading some of my gift ideas, y’all! I hope you find some really good ideas! Thank you to Nordstrom for sponsoring this post.