This post is sponsored by Cetaphil, a brand I’ve trusted for years.

When I look back at my teenager years, I remember a lot more angst about my skin than about boys. I had my first pimple in 6th grade, and actually got a little excited about it! It meant I was entering adolescence and dating boys would be on its way soon. But little did I know those pimples would plague me all through high school, and even after graduation. Yes, though for some reason I thought a cap and gown meant an escape from acne, I was wrong. Do people have acne in college? Yes. Yes they do. There is no magic date that marks the end of skincare angst, unfortunately.

Part of my problem was that I never really kept up with skincare regimens, because they always seemed so complicated. I had tried expensive skincare lines from department stores, but still wasn’t happy with my combination dry/oily skin. When I lived with my parents, I tried Cetaphil® wash and lotion on my face, because I had ran out of my usual stuff and my mom happened to have Cetaphil around for her extremely sensitive skin. I really didn’t think it would work for me, since I didn’t consider my skin to be sensitive, but after a short period of adjustment, I noticed a much better complexion.

For the past few years, I’ve been using Cetaphil pretty regularly, taking a break now and then to try something new, and then inevitably going back to my old standard. Even though I don’t have traditionally sensitive skin, I found that what I really needed was something gentle to cleanse and then something to deeply moisturize without clogging my pores. Along with exfoliating once a week, Cetaphil cleanser and lotion is really all I need for the best complexion I’ve ever had!

I was so excited to have a chance to work with Cetaphil as a sponsor, as you can imagine, since I’ve been a happy customer of theirs for years. They have new products (new to me, at least) that I’ve never tried before, and was excited to add them to our family skincare regimen. I personally am loving using the bar soap for showers, and the cleansing cloths for after a workout when I don’t have time to wash my face. Sometimes I’ll even use them to quickly cleanse myself after getting all sweaty before I nurse Juniper.

Pictured above are my favorite Cetaphil Products:

• Moisturizing Lotion: A little bit goes a long way. These bottles always last me so long!
• Gentle Skin Cleanser: When I first tried this years ago, it confused me because it doesn’t lather a lot. But then I realized you don’t need a lather for a good cleansing.
• Gentle Skin Cleansing Cloths: Great for removing makeup on lazy nights and especially for using before or after a workout!
• Bar: I prefer using bar soap for showers, rather than body wash. I use this instead of shaving lotion too! It’s also gentle enough to use on your face if you don’t have face soap handy in the shower.

We also tried Cetaphil baby products for the first time and are really pleased with them. I’ve recently been educated about how bad mineral oils are (it’s basically petroleum), and how prevalent they are in baby products, so I was relieved that Cetaphil baby oil has simple, ingredients that I can pronounce— with mineral oil nowhere on the list. At first I was surprised at the yellowish color of the baby lotion, but that’s what happens when you use real ingredients without colorants!

Here are the new Cetaphil Baby products we tried and enjoyed:

• Baby Moisturizing Wash: It gave us some bubbles for a fun bath for Lucy! It also includes baby lotion in the formula.
• Baby Wash & Shampoo: Tear free and nice smelling.
• Baby Lotion: Super moisturizing, without any mineral oils.
• Baby Oil: I don’t use this much on the kiddos, but I do like to use it as an ingredient for my homemade eye makeup remover.
• Diaper Cream: We rarely need to use diaper cream, but this formula has organic calendula, vitamin B5, and vitamin E with no trace of mineral oil. I haven’t tried it yet, but have it on stand by.

I can honestly say that I’ve trusted Cetaphil for years, and if you’re having trouble finding something that works for your skin type, give it a try! You might find it to be your new favorite skincare regimen too.

This post is sponsored by Cetaphil®. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

Motherhood changes you in a lot of ways. You may have heard about how it changes your boobs (Hellooooo nurse!), but maybe you haven’t thought about how it changes how you feel about your boobs. What used to be something private, becomes something you share with your little baby. And unless you want to nurse in isolation, you’ll need to whip our your boobs at any moment— regardless of where you are or how many strangers are peering onward. With my first breastfeeding experience, I hated how it made me feel anxious about my breasts, even more self conscious, and sometimes ashamed. (I’m not proud of that, but I’m just being honest.) I was incredibly nervous about nursing in public. You see, it’s a bit trickier for bigger girls to keep their… err… girls hidden when trying to nurse discreetly. Being someone who’s cared about modesty historically, and someone who has been acutely aware of how nervous nursing in public makes most people (awkward), I preferred to leave the room, nurse in my car, and even nurse in the public restroom (I can’t believe I felt ashamed enough to do this!).

Now that I have a toddler, I’ve been forced to become much less shy about nursing. I can’t just drag a toddler with me to nurse in private, and quite frankly, I don’t feel embarrassed or nervous, making me feel the need to run and hide whenever my baby is hungry. With this second breast feeding experience, my mindset is a mixture of courtesy and flippancy. I’ve becomes quite a skilled nurser for the sake of those around me— people who get antsy when a women nurses in public. They’d have to look pretty closely to see any boob. But I also figure— Hey, if they don’t want to see it, they don’t have to look. But my baby’s gotta eat, so I don’t really care too terribly much if it makes people nervous!

Because I do try to be courteous and discreet, I’ve become much more concerned with what I wear these days. The easiest thing to do is wear a loose fitting shirt overtop of a camisole. I can pull down the camisole and lift up the shirt to create a small exposed area for Juniper to nurse, without exposing my stomach or any of my chest. But if I want to dress more creatively, I’ve learned that it is possible! I can even wear a dress and nurse discreetly in public without anyone knowing it’s happening. This is a development I’m pretty excited about.

I quickly found that cute nursing clothes are anything but cheap, so I selected a few classic pieces that I can wear frequently (Think: 4 times a week usually!), so it would be worth the investment. This is my favorite dress that I can mix up with accessories, and now that Fall is on its way, jackets and sweaters. I love it! All I need to do to nurse is lift up the top and pull down the area underneath it. Bet you wouldn’t have known I was nursing in the first photo if I hadn’t told you!

What has your experience been with nursing in public? Have you ever been that person who doesn’t know where to look when a woman is nursing? Or maybe you were that mama gathering the courage to feed her child in the company of others? It’s an interesting point of conflict in our culture, which is kind of sad, but I understand how it’s gotten to be that way because of certain cultural vewpoints of women’s bodies and how they’re portrayed sexually more than most anything else. I’d love to hear your thoughts!

O U T F I T   D E T A I L S :

• Dress: discontinued in this sleeveless style- here’s the long sleeve version
• Cape: vintage
• Hat: thrifted
• Shoes: Hush Puppies
• Juniper’s pacifier clip: Valpo Studio on Etsy
• Juniper’s pacifier: Natursutten
• Lucy’s dress, scar, and shoes: thrifted
• Lucy’s socks: Jefferies

School days may be long behind me, but I still love a good after school snack! A favorite of mine from childhood (eaten while enjoying an episode of Wishbone— anyone remember that show?) is apples dipped in peanut butter. But…. then I grew up and learned about calories and the effects of eating massive amounts of peanut butter. Yes, happiness is an effect, but that’s not the one I was thinking of. Listen, folks, I’m trying to fit into something besides maternity pants!

If you’re not worried about calories, then move along and enjoy your jar of peanut butter. But if you want to dip into the rich, creamy taste of peanut butter while skipping a lot of the fat and calories, then check out this easy low fat and high protein snack.

• 1 package (or 5.3 ounces) of nonfat* Greek yogurt
• 1/4 Cup of PB2 (a powdered version of peanut butter that has much of the fat removed)
• 2 Tablespoons of honey

The trick to keeping this recipe low in fat is to use nonfat yogurt and PB2, instead of peanut butter. PB2 is a powdered version of peanut butter that has been processed to remove much of the fat. You can use regular peanut butter if you don’t have PB2, but your dip will be higher in fat and calories.

*I photographed my ingredients with whole milk yogurt, but the recipe is made with nonfat.

All you need to do is combine all of the ingredients into a bowl and whip it together with a spoon. Stir carefully at first to the keep the PB2 powder from flying all over the place. The result is a thick, creamy and subtly sweet dip perfect for snacking with apples.

The entire recipe will make three 2.3 ounce servings with the following nutrients:

• 97 Calories
• 1 g Fat
• 16.7 g Carbs
• 8.2 g Protein

I think one serving is the perfect amount to enjoy with one medium-sized apple, giving you a tasty and nutritious 150 calorie snack. Not too shabby, eh?

This is not a sponsored post, but it contains an affiliate link that supports this blog with your purchase.