If you've been here a while, you know our son Finn who is 4, has a pretty severe speech delay and has been receiving both speech and OT for about 2 years now. In December of last year, we discovered  he had a tongue tie so we had it lasered and continued to see improvements. Although it has been a slow journey, we are in such a different place than when we first started this journey when he was 2.

In May of this year we had him evaluated to see if he qualified for services through our school system and if he would be eligible to attend their preschool this fall. We are so happy that he did qualify, we got his IEP set up and he starts his first day next week which we think will be such a great fit for him!

After 5 months of waiting, we had our appointment with one of the top developmental pediatricians here in AL. They watched how he played, asked us what felt like a million questions to learn more about him, we had his hearing checked, and we also did lab work for genetics testing.

Today Finn was diagnosed with Autism (Level 2). I usually keep a brave face and feel like I can tackle everything but today I’m sad. Today I’m mentally and physically exhausted of putting on that brave face because our journey is not always easy and I want to be transparent. I’ve cried so hard my eyes have been stinging since lunch time. A part of me feels as though I have failed as mom because it’s in my nature to “fix” things and this I can’t fix. Finn doesn’t need to be fixed, he’s not broken, I get that but I wish I could make his challenges easier for him.

Along with feeling sad, I honestly feel every other emotion too. Excited for new doors to open for him to progress, hopeful for more opportunities that will help him, scared because I don’t want anyone to treat him differently and treat him now as a diagnosis and not as a person. Overwhelmed by this therapy and that therapy, does he qualify for this, calling insurance about that, evaluations after evaluations, folders of information full of “why’s & what now’s”.

But above all else, I am so thankful. Thankful he is ours and he is more himself than anyone I’ve ever met. Thankful God blessed us to be parents to such a beautiful human. Thankful that he teaches us about patience, unconditional love, humility, that small victories should be celebrated, & that there are other ways to communicate other than words. Thankful always for our team of support who work so hard. Thankful for doctors and specialists who have been nothing but positive and understanding. Thankful for prayers. Thankful for an amazing supportive husband (Chase) who’s as strong willed and involved in every single part of everything. Thankful that tomorrow is a new day. We will pick up that ball and keep it rolling and continue to be badass but today I’m just sad. We are all allowed hard days, today is just a hard day.

Hey guys! Happy Monday! I can't believe it's already July and the summer is almost over but we still have lots of fun things in store these next few weeks! I turn 29 in 3 days, Vivian's birthday is next week and then we are headed to the beach for a week! I can't wait! Before we head to the beach, I've been doing lots of shopping and finding you guys the best deals so for today's post I'm rounding up my favorite finds at Target because if you've been here a while you already know how much I love Target! Who doesn't love Target!?

I shared all of these in my instagram stories (@leasims) and you can find them saved in the "Try On" tab to see them on but I seriously love all of these pieces and I think you will too! I'm so happy y'all are loving the try on sessions though, they are so fun to share and I love doing it! Should we do Amazon next?! Let me know! Have a wonderful week!!

Leopard Kimono // Wedges // Leopard Hair Clips // Snakeskin Skirt // Good Vibes Tee // Baja Cali Tee // Purple Dress // Knotted Hair Clips // Oversized Camo Sweatshirt // Hat // Denim Shorts


 ^^ camo sweatshirt pictured here, wearing a size small

^^ tee & shorts pictured here

It's Zoe's first Easter so it's only natural I round up my favorite picks for the baby girls in your life! Chase and I love playing the Easter Bunny & always look forward to the special Sunday services followed by egg hunting and lots of family time! This year we are spending Easter with his side of the family which we've never done so we are all super excited about that!

We've always gone overboard with Easter as we do Christmas, who else is guilty of that?, but I really do think less is more. I am really trying this year to avoid filling the kids baskets with excessive junk that will get thrown out when we do our next clean out! This year we're pretty much choosing things they need like swimsuits, accessories and shoes, a book, and just one or two toys. We almost always throw in chalk, pens/pencils/markers, and bubbles.

What are your favorite things or things you always make sure to put in your babes baskets? I always enjoy seeing what everyone else is planning and saving products for future ideas for birthdays, etc. I hope you all have a fantastic rest of your week and thank you for following along. We are back in the swing of things over here so get excited for new posts!! Love you guys!