a father's day gift guide

I love gift guides.  And I also love shopping for other people! I think gift giving is my love language?  Can you be a combination of all of them? Because I think I'm that. I can't figure it out.  Anyway...here's what I rounded up for Brad for Father's Day! 

something practical, but I know that he will appreciate.  We want to keep those nice work shoes nice.

because he for sure could use one of these.  I think luggage is one of the most forgotten gifts but it is something that a.) lasts forever and b.) will always always always get used. 

a good book to remind him about what being a Father is all about (and another to read just for fun!)

for his new favorite hobby...

I asked Brad one day what is one fail proof gift for guys and he said SOCKS.  Seriously?! But I guess it's one of those things that you never think to get yourself, but always nice to have.  A few fun sock options here, here, and here.

a stack of photos of him & his favorite buddy from my favorite company, Artifact Uprising

a fun game for his desk at work

a hammock! it's the perfect spot to be tackled by kids and/or to be snuggled by babies and/or to take a much needed summertime nap

to keep his favorite drink cold & NOT watered down (because that is very important)

of course, you can't go wrong with a classic tie

He is the best daddy ever and deserves to be recognized for all the hard work and self-sacrificing he does for our family.   Hope this gives you some inspiration for your guy in honor of the upcoming holiday!

whole 30 must haves (and where to find them!)

Now that I've finished my first Whole 30, I wanted to write one last post that details specifics on where I found my favorite compliant foods.  I also just wanted to have some type of list on hand for personal use//to be used for future challenges. 

I'm a visual person, so I tried to pair links with unfamiliar brands so that you could have a photo of what each item looks like.  Here's it goes!

A quick list of a few things I purchased
(or wished to purchase but didn't for some reason or other):

whole foods

• Paleo bacon, Wellshire Farms brand
• Califia Farms Unsweetened Almond Milk
• Organic coconut milk (this is just a preference, but I like the taste of the whole foods brand the best)
• Coffee (I think it's fair to say you need fancy coffee if you're going without cream and sugar. And Whole Foods is the best place to meet your fancy coffee needs)
• Tesemae’s dressings//sauces
• Tea - I found that drinking tea after dinner is a good way to curb the sweet tooth
• Organic bone broth
• Housemade Pico de Gallo
• Oh Baby baby food pouches
• Sauerkraut

target

• Wholly guacamole
•  Dang Unsweetened Toasted Coconut Chips (also online)
• Oloves Olive packets
• Ella’s Organic baby food
• Aidell’s Chicken & Apple sausage
• The sweet nectar that is La Croix Sparkling Water
• LARA Bars
• SUJA Organic juice
• Applegate products (salami, deli meat, prosciutto)  

Trader Joes:

•  Kalamata Olives
•  organic applesauce
• frozen organic cauliflower rice (STOCK UP! Love this stuff!)
• Frozen mixed bell peppers & onions – I like putting these in my eggs in the morning
• Salsa
• Avocado Salsa
• Spicy Chunky Guacamole
•  Nuts
• Coconut Oil
• Frozen burgers -- turkey, buffalo, and chicken
• Tahini Sauce - good sub for hummus
• Applegate Organic Hotdogs
• Prosciutto
• Dried fruit

Thrive market
 

First off, if you haven't heard of Thrive Market you are missing out.  I'm addicted!  You can find all sorts of healthy, fair trade, certified organic products for great prices (plus free shipping over $50!). Visit here to learn more.

•  Justin’s Almond butter
•  Primal Kitchen Greek dressing
• Primal Kitchen Mayo
• Wild Planet Tuna/Salmon
• Dates – these are hands down the best dates I’ve tried
• Avocado oil
• Ghee
• Nud Banana Chips
• Pecan butter
• Cashew butter
• Graze sticks

amazon//online

Quick note: these bars are on the expensive side, so only buy if your budget allows.  I just wanted to let you know that these options existed, because I know I’m always on the look out for something new to snack on!

• Coconut Chips
• Nutpods French Vanilla Coffee Creamer
• Acai powder
• Rx Bars
• Vegan Perfect Bar Almond Coconut
• Yawp Bars
• Nick’s Sticks
• Bare fruit apple chips

** Rx Bars were a big hit on my whole 30, but they are more expensive on amazon for some reason.  You can buy them through their website and use the code WHOLE30 for 10% off

If you have any questions or specifics for me, feel free to leave a comment or message me via social media and I'll do my best to answer you.  Good luck! You can do it!

down in new orleans

NEW ORLEANS! Man, you were fun.  I've missed your music, heat, food, and yes, even pot-holed streets.  The purpose of our trip was to celebrate the wedding of our dear friends Bill & Jessica, and I'm just gonna preface this post by saying that the Fossier Family partied hard.  Aka lots of early morning wake up calls (oh hi overtired baby that never let us sleep past 5 a.m.) and late nights (oh it's midnight already? it's ok, we're on vacation). 

The wedding fun lasted over a period of 3 days (we nicknamed it the Triduum ha!) & here's how it all went down:

We stayed at a local air b&b that gave us the space we needed to take care of Pier.  It was at a great location and allowed my parents to babysit while Brad & I had to do wedding things (we were both in the wedding party).  During our stay, we had the opportunity to visit my sister-in-law and my two sweet nieces Mary-Kate (my godchild!) and Elizabeth.  Seeing babies interact is probably one of life's greatest things.  How sweet are these photos?!

We also played tourist and took our little guy around the French Quarter...of course, I got all sentimental and remembered the time last year that I walked on those same streets when I was 36 weeks pregnant with Pier.   I cherish making memories with my people!  Especially in a city that's so magical.

The morning before the wedding, Brad and I had a baby free breakfast date at St. Roch Market. If you're in the Nola area you gottaaaa check it out.  So good. 

Then before we knew it, it was wedding time!  While Brad was eating and playing basketball with the groomsmen, I took Pier to the bridesmaids luncheon at Ralph's on the Park.  This goes without saying, but he was a big hit with all the ladies.  The bride is Pier's godmama, so we got to spend some quality time with her before the craziness of the wedding day hit. 

That night we went to the rehearsal dinner which was at this darling bed and breakfast on the Westbank.  One of the groomsmen works at Boucherie and cooked the entire dinner....IT was incredible.  Like, I hate to keep saying how good the food is here, but even the best food in Indiana doesn't come close to New Orleans cuisine.  I will just have to keep having dreams of bread pudding, and cochon de lait, and gumbo to hold me over until our next trip back.

Next up: the big day! The wedding was at my favorite New Orleans church, St. Francis of Assisi (actually, I don't really have a favorite because the majority of Catholic churches in the city leave me speechless, but it's definitely up there).    Of course, Jessica looked like a supermodel angel walking down that aisle.  Once we put the veil on, I couldn't look at her without crying!  She was beautiful. 

There was so much joy, prayer, and love present from the moment you entered the church... I could feel heaven meet earth as Jessica & Bill committed their lives to one another.  I'm still riding on a spiritual high from their ceremony and can't stop smiling whenever I look back on the day. 

The reception was held at the stunning Audubon Tea Room and it was the epitome of southern elegance. They even had a snowball machine there!  The dancing and celebrating was absolutely an extension of the joy felt at the mass, and we danced HARD to some epic Louisiana music.  The band behind the awesome party is the ever talented Roddie Romero & the Hub City All Stars.  They're the same band that played at Brad & I's wedding and we are their biggest fans.

Also, I got to wear a flower crown for the first time and now I wanna wear one every day. 

We finished our trip with one last party & celebrated the feast of Corpus Christi as Catholics do best -- mass, food, dancing, and cocktails.  Our friend Fr. Brad held a beautiful private mass for us at the Notre Dame seminary (one of my favorite places in New Orleans).  Then we walked right across the street to eat & drink at the Ye Old College Inn (again...the food...so good). We caught up with some good friends that Brad & I don't get to see too often, and some of the wedding band members ended up sitting right next to us! Then, more dancing.  Roddie & his band played a show at the Rock-n-Bowl -- a bowling/bar combo that is a non-tourist-y Nola venue. 

Whew, that's it!  I'm exhausted just typing all that.  As you can imagine, we were a bit tired on our cough cough 13 hour drive home (which btw Pier screamed the whole time...).  So the past few days have been filled with much needed rest and coffee.  We sure do miss you New Orleans and we can't wait to venture down your streets again soon!

month 11

11 months already?! That is just crazy to me. We've been traveling up a storm the last few weeks and enjoying some sweet time with friends & family in Louisiana.  It was a mixed assessment of how Pier did on our flights (screamed the whole way on flight #1 and giggled the whole way on flight #2) but we made it!  And after some really cold weather in Indiana, the humidity was very welcome.

This month, I've noticed Pier's personality is getting bigger and bigger.  He's got a few baby curls when his hair is wet//sweaty, he babbles the most when it's quiet (which makes him quite popular at daily mass), and he's got one more tooth on the top. He lights up whenever we sing songs and read books.  The funniest thing he's doing right now is when he doesn't want something....he makes the most AMAZING stank face ever.  I've tried so hard to document it in a photo, but it didn't happen.  He's also really into throwing himself backwards when we hold him so he can see the world upside down.  He enjoys being upside down for some reason...weird kid.  Also when he starts to laugh, he throws his head backwards and giggles at the ceiling.

To my dismay, his first word was "Da-da" instead of mama.  I tried my hardest to get him to say mama first but, in the end, Daddy won that game.  I'm still really happy he's babbling and starting to say words... so dang cute!  Pier loves to stand up, but he still can't stand without some help from furniture or mama and daddy.  OH! And he started pointing! I am so proud!!! It's pretty hilarious how AMAZING you think your kids are when they start doing things like that....I'm all "My child is sooooo smart look at him point to a ball. Look!!! Did you see it? Don't you think he's smart? He's going to get a perfect score on his SAT one day, trust me."

It's been such a gift to be at home and show Pier all our favorite places.  We've been soaking up every second with dear friends, grandparents, and great-grandparents.  Pretty certain that he is the most popular baby in Louisiana ;).  Now we're off to New Orleans for a few days to celebrate the wedding of our bffs Jessica (Pier's godmama!) and Bill.  I don't want our time in Louisiana to come to an end!

family photos!

Happy Mother's Day week!  In celebration of the day, I wanted to share a few images from our first family-of-3 photo session.  A few weeks ago, my Indy bestie Valerie took some family photos of us around town (I've now realized that I've mentioned her for three blog posts in a row...sorry Val ha!).  She captured our family perfectly, and I am forever grateful to her for these.

I can't tell you how much these images mean to me!  I get a little teary eyed when I look at them.  For those who know me, you know how deeply I treasure photographs.  Add having a baby (MY baby) and then those photos get all the more special. 

So my child is pretty stingy with the smiling.  Y'all have no clue what I had to do to get those grins ;).  He obviously thinks his mama is crazy.

Pier, thank you for making me a mama.  The mystery of motherhood has been life's biggest curve ball, but it is truly a gift beyond my understanding.  I am grateful that the Lord entrusted this vocation to me, and I look forward to growing and learning more about it as the years pass by. To all the mamas, soon to be mamas, not yet mamas, mamas of all kinds -- I hope you feel loved this week.  God bless you.  St. Zelie Martin, pray for us.