sentimental style {small style}

i am so very proud of myself.  i took my first, second & third load of clothes to boomerang kids (an upper end ottawa children's consignment store).  i am proud because the task confronted two of my greatest challenges, rejection/social awkwardness & sentimentality.  it is a sad moment when you realize how much your identity is tied up children's clothing.  it's the memories & bonding that happened in those little onesies & booties.  it's how i concretely remember their size & smell, evidence of how i cared & loved them.  and then to lay it all out on the table for someone to scrutinize every inch of fabric & goodness forbid reject a piece or two... well, you can imagine.  i had prepared myself that just because a piece of clothing is rejected does not mean i am rejected.  i did have a few moments of anx where my defensive instincts began to creep up on me, but i resisted, survived & have fuller pockets because of it!
as a stay-at-home mom, i see it as my job to stretch a buck as far as i can.  this is one of those ways that, if i am organized & can get over my sentimental rejection complex, earn a few bucks.  this particular store offers cash or store credit which i really like because i can use it to buy whatever the kids need - toys, clothing, books or take the cash & spend it on diapers or groceries.
anyways, long story short, a way that helped me let go of a few extra special pieces of clothing was to make sure i had photos of the kids wearing them. i thought it might be neat to celebrate this process of letting go by having a few style flashback editions of {small style}.

here's a favourite.  my mom gave me this onesie before davith was born.  it says 'mon petit chute' on the front which means 'my little cabbage'.  it's what my mom used to call me as a babe.  this is what davith was wearing the day the twins were born. sniff, sniff... smile.

dav, nan & the ducks... both his favourites

he had just started walking the
week the twins arrived

little did he know his entire world just changed

little did he know he would soon
be kicked to the boot of the stroller

he loves his auntie mekr

onesie: joe fresh, slippers: joe fresh, jeans: joe fresh

long legged style {small style}

livi hasn't made an appearance in {small style} as of late so i thought it was about time.  this is mainly due to her awesome napping schedule {thank-you babywise!}.
every time i take livi in for her check ups at our elderly dr's office, he rants & raves about how tall she is going to be. "it's those long legs!" he says.  according to our white browed dr, she's going to be the tallest in the family, kinda like my own baby sister, mekr, who now towers above me.  now that summer is finally here, those scrawny little legs & arms just look so scrumptious in little sundresses & the like.
so here's a little {small style} tribute to those long legs & those delicious little baby toes!

perhaps martial arts are in her future?

oh, those dimples!

i am absolutely in love with that smile!

{sundress}: carter's {blankie}: swaddle-by-design, which i bought at chapters on clearance so not sure if they are still there or not... this blanket is my absolute favourite.  it has the swaddling instruction written right on the tag, which is easy peasy for passing onto babysitters {or daddies as the case may be}.  i also love this blankie because it's huge... you could probably swaddle an elephant in it!  

park wear {small style}

well, summer is in full swing here in ottawa & we are loving it.  i love where we live for lots of reasons but one of the many reasons is our proximity to the park by the river.  the boys love throwing rocks & sticks & watching them float by.  evie & i count & feed ducklings & turtles.  livi chats to the branches bowing in the breeze.  it's one of my favourite ends to a sunny day. here are some pics of my favourite end to this sunny day...
{kai}: onesie {gymboree}, shorts {children's place}, sandals {no imprint, thrifted}
{eva}: dress {carter's}, sandals {no imprint, thrifted}
{sadly, davith & livi did not make an appearance in this edition of small style ... it take a little pinch of magic to get everyone's outfits all documented on any given day... maybe next week!}

someone has found a new storage
compartment... for his rocks!

kai's still filling his shirt with rocks

  

the perfect end with a perfect picnic

splash wear {small style}

spring had sprung here in ottawa! and we are loving it... rain & all!  i usually try to get thrifted/super cheap coats & splash wear but when you have four little ones who are obsessed with the great outdoors, a flimsy zipper is just not going to do! so i decided to invest in exactly what we needed instead of making due with what we have.  my goal was that i could send the kids out in any kind of weather... rain, wind, snow, apocalypse, you name it.  so i found these insulated raincoats & waterproof splash pants.  these splash pants are so incredible! they can lay down in a puddle & not a drop gets in.  i am a fan. especially since the mud pit in the backyard has been pretty popular with our lot.  here are some pics of our newest investment: invisible splash wear.

 {eva}: coat {gagou tagou}, splash pants {golden valley - bought at kiddietown}, boots {value village - no tag}, mittens {carter's}, hat {joe}
{kai}: coat with removable liner {oshgosh}, mittens {dollarama}, boots {hand-me-down, no label}... i did end up buying kai a pair of the same splash pants too!
{davith}: coat {tag}, hat {kiddietown, weird label, not sure brand}, splash pants {golden valley}, mittens {dollarama}, boots {hand-me-down, no label}

*coat buying tips: in my experience, if you wait until a month into the season prices drop significantly. i tend to try to go for coats with liners, which means multiple seasons & temperatures. and for splash pants, i always buy one size too big, if they are elastic around the boot, which usually means they last for 2 years.  

grouchy ew yuck ow style {small style}

thursdays just seem to arrive just to darn soon! i haven't taken any photos of our style this week as it has been... well, interesting to say the least.  my hubby is away for a few days & in those few days we managed to fit a good amount of calamity... kai dislocated his elbow & while getting his elbow 'relocated' the doctor noticed he had a wicked ear infection, pink eye & pneumonia... & then we took everyone else into urgent care & dav has a touch of the same.  livi also got her vaccines this week... so that makes three doctor visits with four kids in two days... busy! needless to say, i don't think anyone would want to see pictures of that!  if i had taken pictures, i would have titled this week's small style "grouchy ew yuck ow style".  and so i have collected a few pic from last week, when the weather was gorgeous & the sun was shining & everyone's elbow was where it should be...  hope you enjoy!

p.s. we are well on our way to recovery now... and daddy comes home tonight! horray! it's just like that verse that says, the Lord works everything together for good... and that's our testimony this week.  He has been there at every turn & trial of this roller coaster. He is a good God & He has never left me in a lurch.

thank-you Lord for you faithfulness, and your going before & your provision.

 {davith}: t-shirt {children's place}, undies {oshgosh}, sunglasses {daddy's}

she wore these to bed she loved these so much!

 {eva}: t-shirt {thrifted - no tag}, jeans {joe}, necklace {michael's dollar section}, hairband {no idea}, sandles {value village... can't quite make out insole but i think gap}

his sister regularly likes to dress him up in her
necklaces

 {kai}: onesie {carter's}, overalls {levi's but bought at winner's}, necklace {dollarama}

 {livi}: coat, pants & skirt {babygap}, onsie {carter's}

she is just so cheeky! 

she took those vaccinations like a champ!

sunday best in the making {small style}

sundays are an exciting closet day.  wearing the best of what we own.  closets get especially exciting around easter time... we'll at least for eva! we finally got to take out her big poofy easter dress.  this year, she got so excited that she giggled uncontrollably while i "dressed" her & then the second her feet touched the ground she began singing & twirling :) i have no idea where she learned how to twirl... it must be one of those innate girly things! she loved wearing that dress so much that i think i will declare it poofy dress month & she can wear it all month long! anyways... here are some fun pics of us getting ready for sunday morning... {excuse my pjs!} it really is a miracle that on any given sunday the wilkins arrive at church fully clothed!  thank you Lord! here is our sunday best in the making!

apparently someone was wearing bunny ears
in the background

{eva}: dress & petticoat {winner's}, hairband {dollarama}
{davith}: shirt & undies {joe}, tie {children's place}

and it would appear as though mr. easter bunny
has somehow violated eva's hairband

kai handing over his ears

and stepping over his hysterical sister
to go find his pants

{kai}: shirt {children's place}, boots {can't remember- i think used}, bunny ears {dollarama} *i think this is what kai would wear everyday if i let him

* that's my chirstmas boy singing his heart out!

car casual {small style}

loving this warm weather!  summer is on the way and in celebration of such a fact, we have been chilling  outdoors... all week long! we have begun unpacking our packed-to-the-roof shed and brought out the bikes & toys & of course, the little red car.  the little red car is definitely a favourite in this household.  once while driving down the driveway, davith ran back into the house & came back out with one of his daddy's chunky watches, carefully positioned himself in little red so that his arm was hung out the window all casual like with his big watch on display... just like daddy!

anyways, here is little miss evie taking a turn in little red.

 onesie & pants: {gymboree}* those gymbucks always come in handy for cute buys like these!
little red car: little tikes {walmart}

cuban style {small style}

sorry i haven't posted one of these in a while... thursdays seem to fly by before i notice! but i have found a solution... pre-prepare posts earlier in the week & schedule them to post later in the week!  love these blogger gigit gadgets!
we recently flew down to cuba with just our fourth baby, little livi verona.  we loved it!  she loved it! lots of time bonding happening on this trip... i so wish i had done this with the twins.  i totally encourage any new mom with other youngin's to make sure they get a little bonding trip in with just their newborn.  it will work magic! i also loved this trip because we finally finished sleep training!  i don't know if it was the fresh ocean air or the sun but it also worked it's magic.  slept through the night every night {except the last one} & hit every nap on cue! whohoo!
love these pics because eva {our oldest little girl} & livi were born in opposite seasons... so this was my only chance of seeing livi in eva's summer wear... you know, those sentimental outfits that bring back so many memories.  anyways, without further adieu, here are some pics of miss livi in some of her cuban stylings.

{sun dress} roots {blankie} carter's - a gift
from dear friends in england

we've started teething!

{bathing suit} children's place {hat} joe

sound asleep!

{sweater} roots {jumpsuit} babygap

perhaps daddy could use some stylin' tips

{onsie} petit lem