Thursday, September 1, 2016

End of Summer with Rad Swim (Giveaway)

You guys! I can't believe summer is coming to a close. Where did it go?! I feel like I say that every year but with kids I feel like the time especially flies by. We had an amazing summer of seeing family, lake days with friends, late night swing set playing and a few amazing vacations sprinkled in there too. My hubby and I were out of this world blessed to be able to take a trip to Cabo San Lucas (alone!!) for a week. It was incredible! Pictures don't do it justice and it was just such a much needed relaxing time after a few pretty stressful months...it was an amazing way to kick off the summer! Obviously bathing suits were high on the list of what I needed to pack, and I could NOT wait to whip out my newest Rad Swim piece, the Krystal! This bathing suit is not your average one piece people! This suit screams romantic-getaway-with-your-hubby-in-Mexico :) 




One of my favorite things about this suit is how well made it is! I tend to shy away from white suits for the sheer fact that they're (no pun intended) sheer! This is lined so well and even when you're in and out of the water it's never see through. 


Another thing I love about this suit is the detail. The front fringe, the gold, that strappy back, the lines and gold halter! I love the complexity of it without it being too busy on the eye. 


 I also lived in head wraps while we were in Mexico-this one was my favorite! I had a few for sale a few months back but tucked one away for today's giveaway! So if you missed out, today's your chance to get your hands on one. 



Most beautiful views, weather, flowers, everything. I cannot wait to go back!



As if this suit couldn't get better, did you know it comes in a MINI version?!?! Are. You. Kidding. Me. As soon as Michelle, the sweet and talented woman behind Rad Swim sent the package, I couldn't wait to tear it open and try the Little Krystal on my girls!! HOW CUTE!? She didn't skimp on detailing on the little suits either-they're 100% identical to the adult version which makes it even more adorable. 







Sweetest sisters (and note the chocolate ice cream on the bum;) 


YAY for summer!!! I love these suits so much and even more so love Michelle and her amazing company. She is legit one of the kindest, most generous people I have ever worked with! Her company and values are something I love supporting, and know you will too! She has so kindly agreed to give away one of her FAB Krystal suits to one of you, and I'm throwing in this neon headwrap AND a coral felt bow! To enter, make sure you comment on instagram and tag a friend who you think would love Rad Swim & Two Sparrows! xo


Tuesday, April 5, 2016

Let's Get Personal.



So, I typically use this space to share about giveaways or upcoming collections for Two Sparrows, or pretty much anything related to my business. Today, I'm getting personal. For a few reasons, but mostly because I am a woman who is also a mom and a wife and I know I cannot be the only one who has gone through some of the struggles that I've gone through the last few months. I'm sharing a little bit more than the surface top of my life to you because if by some chance you are going through what I've been through, I want you to know you're not alone, and you're not crazy. And that I can relate!

(Judgement free zone, people)

The fall/winter holidays are always a stressful time, am I right? Sure they're great and if anyone loves all the hustle and bustle of it all it's me. I love decorating, planning, surprising people with gifts, thinking about what will make my kids face light up on Christmas morning, cutting down a Christmas tree, and helping my kids learn about giving and Jesus' birth. But for some reason this past holiday season our family was slammed (like, sledgehammer slammed) with sickness. One thing after another, with no end in sight. My girls had coughs for like 80 years, which turned into a trip to the hospital and RSV & croup and long term nebluzer treatments. As if that wasn't enough, Christmas eve I started breaking out in random hives all over my body and feeling funny. Woke up in the middle of the night with my eyes swollen shut and a trip to urgent care on Christmas day with a diagnosis of pink eye. What fun! The weeks to follow would bring strep throat, ear infections, random viruses and, sorry if this is TMI, (but hey, I told you it would be personal) but the absolute WORST (and only) UTI I have ever had in my life. I think between January-March I may have spent $1,000 in medical bills for my girls and myself, and approximately 20 trips to the pediatrician or my doctor or the hospital or urgent care. In between this time, I didn't realize it but my body was so run down from stress (stress? why would I be stressed?) that without knowing it I was making my body worse and continuing my downward spiral of sickness.

Long story short, all of this not only had my body run down but it opened the doorway to anxiety. I have always been an anxious person somewhat, with some things making it worse than others. But I've also always been the kind of person who wants to handle it herself, and asking for help is something that has not always come easily for me. Over the past few months, my struggle with anxiety affected every aspect of my life in a severely negative way...from my relationship with my husband, the way I parented my girls, and just functioning as a normal human being. Because I was so anxious, my body was manifesting all of these new and weird symptoms (major chest pain at random times, migraines, feeling lightheaded, tingling feet and face) that I had never had before, and ofcourse not knowing what it was made my anxiety all that much worse. I had days where I just cried because I felt totally insane. Am I really having these symptoms or is it in my head? Am I dying? Am I having a heart attack? All while feeling like no one fully understood what I was going through. Which if you have struggled with anxiety in the past, you know that it can feel incredibly isolating and scary.

Being totally run down & struggling with such bad anxiety, I did a ton (a ton) of research on what would help me gain control over this crazy thing. I forced myself to reach out to friends and family and let them know what was going on. Turns out a lot more people were in the same shoes as I was, and while it may not have been identical situations, allowing myself to share my struggles ended up opening up conversations with friends struggling with the same thing...and I never would have known it otherwise. Amazing what happens when we choose to be vulnerable with each other :)

I made some radical changes in my health the past few months, and while I can't say things are perfect by any means, I can see how these changes have affected my life positively and set me on a road to gain more control over my body-physically and emotionally. Everyone is different, but things that have helped me tremendously especially with anxiety have been:

-Exercise...yoga is AMAZING. It was eye opening to sit in a class and realize I didn't know the last time I had just focused on my own breathing and relaxed in complete silence for 10 whole minutes.
-Diet...before all of the craziness went down, my diet was terrible. Carbs, ice cream, coffee, wine, repeat. I wouldn't take the time to meal prep or think that maybe instead of that 6th cup of coffee I should go to bed an hour or two earlier. It's not easy, but being strict with my diet has helped me feel more steady as a person and less caffeine has helped me not be so anxious.
-Sleep....I always felt like I could be most productive at night when my girls were in bed. And while that may be true, all nighters are not for this 29 year old body anymore because I end up paying for it later (and insert the tired, coffee, anxiety cycle here).
-Essential Oils. I have to admit you guys, I'm always a skeptic when it comes to certain things and when my mom had first mentioned oils to me I wasn't completely on board. She started giving me a few here and there to try and I honestly was amazed at how much they were helping me. No, they are not a "cure all" or a magic pill that will heal you of all disease and problem forever and ever amen, but I can personally testify that they have helped me. With physical things (lavender & frankincense for pink eye you guys, I'm telling you), and even more with emotional things (Joy & Stress Away all day every day). They have been so beneficial to me and my family in our every day life and I love not only using them on my body but swapping out all of my toxic cleaners and replacing them with essential oil cleaners that I know are safe around my kiddos and won't add to any issues I have going on inside my body already.



I'm sharing all of this with you because I've been there, and I'm grateful for those that have shared so transparently with me and made me feel like I wasn't crazy. I'm hosting a free online class on the basics of essential oils TOMORROW at 8pm and would love for you to join me! There is absolutely no pressure or ulterior motive other than I hope you find encouragement through this post and also through using essential oils as I have so greatly! If you're interested in the class, email me at twosparrowsheadbands@gmail.com and I'll send you the invite! I promise you'll learn something new and I won't be boring or lame :)


Lastly, I'm giving out just a few of my favorite basic black hair scarves! If you attend the class tomorrow night, you'll be automatically entered to win one and on top of that anyone who joins my team THIS MONTH will get one shipped right to their house on the spot. I really love these hair scarves, they're so basic and versatile and great for everyday wear.


Thank you guys so much for taking the time to stop by and listen to me ramble on about my issues :) I appreciate realness & authenticity in others and hope others see that in me also. I really appreciate the dedication and support that so many of you have given me and I know for a while things were pretty quiet around here! Hopefully not only will this shed some light on that but will spark a fire into healthy living for you too if you're on a similar path! xo


Monday, March 14, 2016

Faces of Two Sparrows: LEAH


So excited to start this blog series off with my childhood bestie, Leah! This girl and I have been through it all...from being annoying little squealy girls to finding our way through the crazy times of junior high and high school, college, dating, getting married, and now watching our own kids grow up together! Since my family and I moved, we don't live super close to each other anymore, but the time we do have is precious and we make it count. Leah and her two adorable little boys were able to come spend a night with us last week and we had so much fun catching up, and ofcourse chatting about some Two Sparrows :) Leah's style is awesome, she makes being a mom look good while not giving up on comfort or having to spend hours getting ready, which is every mom's goal am I right? I loved the way she styled our striped turban with her Converse sneakers and jean jacket-so cute and comfy! 

Hope you enjoy getting to know Leah a little bit better and reading why she likes to incorporate Two Sparrows into her wardrobe! 


Wednesday, December 2, 2015

Snack time with Resqueeze



My girls LOVE snacks. Like, they ask for a "snack" as soon as they wake up in the morning, and then they rush through breakfast and triumphantly announce that they're done and proceed to ask for a snack. I'm not sure what it is-the novelty of something other than what they should be eating (a meal) or that it usually consists of something carb related in which case, can you blame them? ;)

Recently I've been trying to encourage more fruits/vegetables/protein into their diet when they ask for something in between meals, and they always get so excited when I let them have anything that involves a pouch or a squeeze packet or something unique and fun. So when I first saw these Resqueeze reusable pouches on the market I knew my girls would flip over them! And they so did. They loved the process of filling up the pouches and taking the tops off themselves (and putting them on, and taking them off, and putting them on...), and I was happy to see them devour something nutritious and healthy.





Here we used just regular applesauce to fill them, but on the Resqueeze website theres tons of recipes for creative ideas of what to fill the pouches with. Later this week I plan on filling my girls pouches with plain greek yogurt & honey to take to preschool as their morning snack. I also plan on trying the Peanut Butter Shake and Greensicle Smoothie from the website. Such a better alternative to a store bought milkshake or popsicle, and tons of fun for your kiddo. 


Ofcourse one of the main things I love about this genius product is that it's reusable, so not only is it saving me tons of money on those overpriced pouches from the store, but that the ingredients are fresh and that you know each and every ingredient that goes into them. These are BPA Free, dishwasher friendly, and can be frozen! If you have a little one who is just starting solids, the 9 ounce pouch would be great for freezing pureed veggies and fruits and just popping them out of the freezer when needed. Or if you have kiddos like mine who want to snack 24/7, why not freeze a bunch of the 6 ounce packets filled with smoothies as a quick go to when they're getting that 4pm hangry tone in their voice (moms of toddlers, you know the one.)


Make sure to head over to my instagram today to win a pack of these pouches! These make awesome baby shower gifts and even stocking stuffers for your little ones this Christmas.



Happy Snacking :) 


**Thanks to Resqueeze for partnering with us in this post!
**All photos by nancy noble photography



Friday, July 31, 2015

Rad Swim (Giveaway)




SUCH A FUN GIVEAWAY for you guys today!! I have teamed up with Rad Swim, an awesome swimwear company owned by a genius and wildly successful mama and business owner. You can read more about her and the company here. And a huge thank you to my bestie of 20+ years for using her skills to capture the fun we had in photos! She followed me & my busy girls around all morning and captured my vision for this shoot so well! 










Let's just talk about my girls swimsuits for a second-I mean really? And if you weren't already blown away by the cuteness of the Little Kylee, look here to find the matching (yes matching) Kylee for adults. Can't even take it.

These suits are even more adorable in person- seriously they are AMAZING. I constantly have trouble finding suits that fit me right and are flattering as I have a long torso, short legs, and lets face it- a few extra things that are less than desirable since becoming a mom ;) When I got the Nicole Suit the mail I ripped it open and tried it on the second I got it and literally fell in love. The coverage is amazing, the front tassel detail gives uniqueness to a simple black one piece, and it's detachable halter strap makes it so versatile. It's pretty much the best little black dress of swimsuits!










There are a lot of things that I've always valued as important when raising kids, but one of the specific things that has been a goal of mine and my husband's is to raise them to be modest. I truly believe it's important that even at the young age of 3, my girls see the value of respecting their bodies and showing modesty especially when wearing bathing suits. One thing I absolutely LOVE about Rad Swim is that all of their suits are super modest, but they're all SO AMAZINGLY CUTE. I had the option of picking which suit I wanted to review for this blog post, and truly I agonized over which one to pick haha! This one and this one were both ones I was considering along with the Nicole (and all of the others pretty much;)



The way I see it, if I can go to a beach, splash pad, and playground with my toddlers and not have to tug or pull on it in any way, and still manage to look put together by the end, it passes ALL the tests.



I'm beyond thrilled to be teaming up with Michelle of Rad Swim to give away ONE of the killer Nicole suits today as well as one of my coral hair scarves and a set of beaded bracelets! Here's what you have to do:

1. Follow @radswim and @twosparrowsheadbands on instagram if you aren't already!
2. Tag a friend, tell them they need this suit/headband/bracelet combo!
3. Do a cartwheel/roundoff/handstand combo (extra credit, obviously).

That's it! Winner will be notified through instagram ONE WEEK from today.






All photos courtesy of Leah Spina Photography
This post was graciously sponsored by Rad Swim but all opinions on their products are completely my own.