Sometimes even I need a break... and starting LATE Wednesday night, I took one. After a 6 hour road trip to IL with a crying 6 month old, a 4 year old, and a 5 year old with an ear ache... at 3am we were on "vacation"... I headed home to visit family for a few days while Zaq is in Europe with Motion City Soundtrack. *lucky goose* I figured, why stay home alone when we could take a few days off. The days off of course, still involved tons of emails for work, and running from one place to another... but still great none the less... Its always hard living out of a suitcase with 3 kids. Between clothes, diapers, food, and feeding... with a baby it can be a nightmare. So - I wanted to take a second to share my MUST HAVE ITEMS when I go home with the kids.

MY LIST: In no particular order...
* Bumbo: It replaces the need for so many things... I feed Rozzlyn in here... Its also a great tool just to sit her down to play for a bit if I need both hands... Its light, small, and easy to bring place to place... *reminder: always keep the bumbo on the floor for safety reasons*
*gDiapers: I am a cloth diapering mama - but man, on the road it can be tough... and when I am home visiting I have ZERO time to do diaper laundry... so gPants are a great way to still use cloth, but get the convenience of disposables at the same time. YAY Eco-Friendly!
*Plum Organics: With baby Rozz, I have chosen to make my own baby food. I have SO SO much fun doing it... but traveling, there was no way I was going to bring a bag of fruit and vegis, my blender, all my storage, ETC. So I needed another solution... Plum Organics pouches were AMAZING! Such quality, organic baby food... So easy to squeeze from the pouch into a bowl, and recap if she didn't feel like finishing! Its so great to know there is an affordable, easy, organic option on the market that comes in all the great flavors I love to make at home.
*Nuby Easy Go Suction Bowl: MY LIFESAVER! This little contraption was my lifesaver... and Im not even exaggerating. It made feeding SO SO convenient. When we were headed out the door I would pour a little cereal into the bowl, cap it with the super tight sealing lid, and snap the spoon into the top. Everything was in one spot and easy to grab. When I was ready to feed her I would fill it with the Plum baby food... mix it up and feed her. When she was done, I would just re-cap and toss the rest in the fridge. THANK YOU NUBY for such an amazing product.
*Diaper Bag: Shameless plug? Maybe... but its true. I don't know what I would have done without my awesome diaper bag. Its an exclusive line by Stellar Cheri made JUST FOR RockerByeBaby... you can't get this anywhere else, as this specific pattern was made exclusively for us. And let me tell ya, its perfect! It was plenty big to hold all randomness that makes its way in there while you're on the road. But not SO BIG that you feel like you're carrying your suitcase... I definitely recommend grabbing one from our shop! They're custom made to order... so if you need a different print, just ask!
Well! Those are my 5 absolute must have's for travel... I hope you find some (or all) of these goodies to be useful on your next road trip! If you have them (or get them), we would love to hear what you think! And of course - if you have any other traveling tips we would love to hear them!!

Boys left on Sunday... 3 days down... about 18 to go... *cries*

Everyone say hi to Rhiannon - the brains behind Rocky The Zombie... She's amazing and were so glad she stopped by the blog today!


Ok so the idea behind this is to remind everyone to take some time off from everything,  you work hard and you owe it to yourself.. let your mind and body rest, write down some thoughts/plans/ lists if it feels like things are getting too much (a cute notebook and a pen is cheaper than a shrink... my pen is pink and bubblegum scented. yep! simple pleasures)


This is to remind you to at some point to turn off the computer, and turn off the email notifications on your phone! Ok.. ready?


I know I'm not alone in my bad habit of not knowing when to take a break. I work at my day job 5/6 days a week, and the rest of the time I'm working on Rockythezombie. Some of my best etsy friends do all of this and take care of an entire family too... and I think I'm tired!? ha!.. I'm sure they could show me TIRED.


I get up in the morning and finish orders, pack orders, and post orders.. and this is all before I start work at 11am. I then get home around 8pm and go right back to it until the early hours. I wouldn't change it though, I LOVE it.. it's who I am. Of course there is ONE thing I would change.. the day job, if it were financially possible I'd get rid of that. Maybe one day I'll be able to... I've done it before, so I can do it again right? I'm gonna work hard and wait and see...


Don't forget to make time for your friends, I am soooo guilty of this.. I'll not see anyone for weeks, and because I'm so busy I'll barely even notice. In my mind I only saw them last week when actually an entire month has gone by and I've spent it working.


This year I made a resolution to STOP every sunday.. and just do nothing, but this didn't really work.. I discovered I simply can't just do nothing. So instead I bake.. I bake cakes, cookies, pies, and anything else I feel like! It's fun, and makes my house smell amazing, and who doesn't love freshly baked goodies? I've also made a promise to myself that at least once a month I'll go out for dinner with friends, and I'll go to an out of town show with Hud.. I almost forgot how much fun it is to grab some beers, take a road trip to see a band you love, and meet up with old friends you just haven't found the time to see. Uh-mazing.. and totally relaxing, even if it does take another day to recover afterwards ;)
I have to admit that by sunday evening I'm feeling quite recovered and am itching to get back to work on the shop, but that's cool... moderation.. Find your perfect balance :)