Easter's on its way! And with that comes another holiday first for miss MM- and lots of fun for mom. Its been years since the Easter Bunny has visited our house; so I'm super excited to see what he'll bring.

I'm envisioning a basket filled with musical instruments, wooden toys, and some super cute accessories for the little one. 

Here are a few goodies I'm hoping to see in MM's basket this year: 

The past few days have been delightfully warm; birds have been chirping, sun has been shining, and days have been filled with walks in the park. If I didn't know any better I'd say spring has sprung.

Add a pair of baby bunny ears gifted to mm by a good friend over an afternoon glass of iced tea, and you have a festive-feeling girl on your hands.

My sisters are cooler than me- I admit it.

Now don't get ahead of yourselves girls; there was a time when I was the cooler of the three. Days when I donned glowing extensions, pucci arms bands and Manolos on the reg; while you were knee deep in Justice and Claire's.

But as I've mentioned before {here} mommyhood has given me temporary fashion-amnesia. So on a recent trip home to California, I took advantage of ten whole days of shopping with my younger sisters-turned-stylists- no, literally, they are both stylists.

My relationship with infertility is a tumultuous one.

Difficult as my road to motherhood was, in the scheme of things it was relatively short. Six months of trying on our own, seven months of IUIs and success after one round of IVF.

Throughout this struggle to conceive, I, sadly, encountered people that dismissed my struggles because of this brevity- comparing my "short" journey to their own, unfortunately, longer ones.

But I don't believe in ranking people's challenges- particularly when it comes to creating a family. Whether you struggle with infertility for seven months or seven years is irrelevant in my mind- it is an impossible pain to want to create a life and, for whatever reason, struggle to do so.

But boy, the fight is so worth it. 

We started our teething journey when little miss MM was a mere two months old. I was relieved; thinking that the sooner we started the sooner we would get past this phase of our life- goes to show you how much I knew about infants + newborns as a first-time-mom. Now, nine months into this gig and we are still deep in the teething phase, with two more pearly whites peeping through.

Oh, the joy!

The past week has been filled with some much needed family time in my old stomping grounds- we've enjoyed ourselves so much, in fact, that's we've extended our trip just a few more days.

I've been soaking up the Cali sun, trips to my favorite west-coast beauty experts, enjoying the very best margaritas, and taking full advantage of having a few extra set of hands with my mom, sisters, and nana around.

Oh, Santa Barbara- let me count the ways.

It’s been nearly three years since I’ve visited the paradise I once called home- a place I lived and played for five years before returning to the east coast, to build a life in Connecticut.

While I love our life in the New England haven where my husband and I both grew up, I will always have a soft spot for sunny California; and, in my opinion, Santa Barbara is its shining star.

Here's a list of what we've seen this week- a few of my very favorite stops to eat, see, and shop:

Two days into March and we are that much closer to spring. March one is always a special day, as its my mama's birthday; and this year was especially memorable as we got to spend it together- with all four siblings, Nana and Maddie Mae. 

When I started Lilies + Lambs, I did so to document my journey into motherhood. The road was rocky at times; but in the face of adversity, I made a promise to myself to find beauty in it- from bump to baby and beyond.  

So when @pampers and @walmart asked me to share my mother's promise, I couldn't wait to share the motivation behind L + L, and how I remember to keep this vow to my little one:

We made it! Twelve hours of travel later and we are comfy at Mema's house in sunny California. Maddie was a rockstar, as was my mama who accompanied us on our maiden voyage out west. With a little prep and teamwork it was relatively painless- minus a few tears near the twelfth hour, literally. 

Here are few tips that got us through the day: 

Recently my mama and sister returned from an amazing trip around the world- 58 days, 13 cities, 8 countries, and 4 continents. We have all been pretty jealous, to say the least. Along with beautiful pictures and enviable stories, they brought back drool-worthy "souveniers" from their travels- bracelets, shoes and candles for mom; and a closet full of Parisian pieces for Madeline Mae.

I've been craving a marriage of mini eggs + baked goods recently- because as soon as February 14th comes and goes, our favorite chocolate eggs hit the shelves, and therefore grace the candy bowls at our humble abode. The smell of a freshly opened bag of Cadbury eggs combined with the spring-like sunshine and birds chirping got my creative juices flowing yesterday afternoon.

This weekend brought the sunshine + warmth, getting us seriously in the mood for our upcoming trip out west. I tend to pack for vacation way in advance, so considering the fact it's my first real trip with the little, I got a jump on packing extra early the past few days.

I had way too much fun planning outfits for miss Maddie- this romper + sweater + floral crown combo being one of my favorites.

In our younger, childless, drinking days, my husband and I once enjoyed a long layover in Las Vegas. Had we been much younger and wilder, we would have perhaps ventured outside the airport and enjoyed a casino or two. Instead, we bellied up to the bar at the American Express Lounge and took full advantage of the free top-shelf cocktails. My husband will still tell anyone headed that way to stop by that lounge, which he fondly refers to as the "best bar in Las Vegas."

Wow. Yesterday was a doozy.

It was the kind of day that made me want to crawl back in bed, and just wait for tomorrow come. But I'm a mom, and like that cold medicine commercial points out- we don't get days off.