PAXbaby.com

We took a very special family picture on Friday to commemorate our Baby Blaise’s EDD 2016 <3#nothingbutlove
paxbaby
*happy babywearing*
paxbaby

The post A due date…. appeared first on PAXbaby.

PAXbaby.com

PAXbaby.com

The force is strong with this one!
Babywearing Star Wars fans will instantly recognize PAXbaby’s ode to BB8!! This iconic color palette can only be one droid, and now YOU can enjoy your own #disneybound wrap as well! PAXmommy Jillian has been wearing her BB8 for a few months now, but she’s ready to share! Stalking can start NOW!!!
paxbaby

http://shop.paxbaby.com/ohana-wovens/

paxbaby
http://shop.paxbaby.com/paxexclusive-girasol-bb8/

paxbaby
Created for PAXmommy Jillian and her Baby 8 who was born much too early in May 2016, this beautiful wrap signifies so much more than a Star Wars character, but BB8 holds a special place in our hearts as the nickname for our wee Baby Blaise! Designed and woven originally by Ohana Wovens in the USA, you can wrap your baby in a PAXexclusive BB8 Girasol by committing to our pre order, being patient, and babywearing to your Star Wars lover’s content once our order arrives from Girasol’s looms! These are your Girasol pre-order options which include wraps in sizes 2-8, yardage, or Girasol ring slings all woven by hand by Girasol in twill weave and black weft! This is an amazing opportunity to own an Ohana design woven by Girasol!

There is a BB8 for everyone; PAXbaby, you’re my only hope! This beautiful design is exclusive to PAXbaby and Ohana Handwovens and available as a Girasol ONLY with PAXbaby,com, your #disneybound babywearing headquarters!

paxbaby

paxbaby
*happy babywearing*
paxbaby

The post BB8 at PAXbaby.com appeared first on PAXbaby.

PAXbaby.com

paxbaby
The mastermind and artist behind the sewing machine is Edit who has carefully crafted hundreds and thousands of baby carriers over her years in business. Join the very few babywearers who have been able to wear their baby in a PAXexclusive Bamberoo which feature one of our very special woven wraps, designed and created specially for PAXbaby.com and brought to life by Bamberoo. It is with greatest pleasure that we accept your ISO requests for this gorgeous array of buckle carriers, and with even more glee that PAXbaby’s ISO Angel will fly tonight, choosing lucky winners to purchase our beautiful buckle carriers and wear their baby happily ever after in an almost one of a kind hand sewn masterpiece!!!

No need to have the fastest fingers, no need to refresh all the live long day! By  filling out the form below between 11:00am and 3:00 pm PST Tuesday November 8th; this enters you into our ISO Angel stocking, which is a random draw to select a winner to purchase. You can choose exactly which carrier you’d like to buy if given the chance or you can let us choose one for you!
Have fun and don’t forget that all this is in the name of good babywearing fun!

Good luck!
paxbaby
*happy babywearing*
paxbaby

The post Bamberoo ISO NOVEMBER appeared first on PAXbaby.

PAXbaby.com

As September moved on through the month, my anxiety got worse and worse! My children hadn’t even started their first week of school, and some of our friends have been back for weeks already! How would we ever catch up? How would we be able to take any breaks? How could we fit it all in? The night before school started, I took a deep breath, and realized…. even if we had started in July, put in long days, and not taken any holidays, there is no way for any teacher to impart ALL the information that they would want to their students. It’s simply not feasible! So instead, I made a list of what I really really really want to focus on this year; maybe next year a different set of skills will seem most important!

This school year, my main goal is to maintain a loving atmosphere of peace and acceptance. A place where anyone can say anything, and the rest of the group will respect the opinions held, the words written, and the feelings expressed. This includes my own, as one of the guiding adults! It’s a whole new world this year in our classroom which was converted from our formal living area in our two story house; for the first ever, I am a contributing homeschool teacher, while PAXdaddy Aaron explores the realm of balancing a part time job with his homeschool teacher role as well. Dehesa Charter School hosts our homeschool education providing funding, support, and on Tuesdays, a slew of fun classes for the kids to attend. While we have been enrolled for 6 years now, Aaron hasn’t used his teaching credential and Masters in Education since 2004 when he last taught elementary school in Santa Barbara. When we encountered the opportunity for him to teach this year, we both agreed it would be a wonderful adventure and so, I juggled my full time work schedule to accommodate teaching a full 5 hours 5 days a week. No matter how hard we thought our juggle was previously, it was NOTHING compared to our new schedule!

I’m so proud to say that even my own mom, PAXmommy Catherine, has joined our teaching team. The last time she taught in a classroom setting was my own homeschooling education, and it’s a fun last from the past for her to work with her grandkids on the most important years of their childhoods! I recruited her when I realized how hard this year was going to be for both Aaron and I, and she will be teaching a variety of topics including a read aloud book, nature study, and helping the children expand their creative writing skills 2 hours 3 days a week! It’s going to be an epic year for all of us!!!!

Charlotte Mason has provided the basis for our teaching methodology, but we dabble in Montessori and Waldorf learning with a high interest in Classical Conversations. Now that I’ve name dropped my 4 favorite and widely varied learning styles, you can google to explore which each one can contribute to a homeschool classroom of seven children ranging from an 8th grader down to pesky preschooler! Wheeeeew… no wonder I’m exhausted!!! PAXdaddy Aaron and I are being asked what curriculum we use, but we are dabbling with a few different companies including BOB books, Catholic Heritage, Meet the Masters, Thinkwell, Saxon, Cherrydale Press, and more! Charlotte Mason has a compelling argument for learning directly from “living books,” and since we are a literary family, this suits us all quite well.

It’s a strange situation for a long time, experienced teacher like Aaron to be sharing the classroom with such a novice as myself, but I am hoping that my brand new enthusiasm will mesh well with his logical knowledge and provide our family an exciting, fun, inspired year. Here’s to hoping that your children’s school experiences are also filled with the light shed from the lightbulbs lit and connections made each and every day!

paxbaby
*happy learning*

paxbaby
PAXbaby.com

The post Homeschooling with the PAXfamily appeared first on PAXbaby.

PAXbaby.com

Our newest adventure in #readaloudrevival is Roald Dahl’s The BFG in which the Giants drink an amazing beverage called Frobscottle.  I challenged each of the kids to design their own magical elixir! The results were varied, but everyone stated that their concoction was “rare!” Some were tasty, some not, and three of them had the magical ability to fill you up for the whole day; wouldn’t that come in handy! My focus with the older kids this year is GRAMMAR, so they each wrote a paragraph about their imaginary beverage. This challenged a couple of them to think outside their usual “box,” and drew out the sillies from the others who love to get creative in their writing! I love watching their vocabulary improving daily as well as their use of interesting sentence structure!
#homeschool #homeschooling #learnathome #secondgenerationhomeschooler

paxbaby
*happy babywearing*
paxbaby

The post Read Aloud with The BFG appeared first on PAXbaby.

PAXbaby.com

“This should be my belly right now. I know five babies was not in our “plan” but now that #5 is no longer here, the pain of the loss runs deep. I never knew how much miscarriage can mess with your hormones, your mind, your heart. I should be prepping tiny diapers and finishing last minute quilts and blankies right now. Instead, I’m packing up the last of Baby #4’s diapers knowing there will never be another little baby here again. If anything, this experience has given me way more empathy to others going through the same thing. “It’s probably for the best.” And “be thankful for the kids you have” are not comforting … The grief is real, whether the baby was planned or not. The hormone fluctuation is real, and can make you feel off the wall. I know it is not my fault but the guilt of having four healthy, easy pregnancies and then a loss, is real. What went wrong with this one? I compare my loss to others, and think, “Ok, you need to suck it up – other people have been through WAY worse.” “At least it wasn’t _____” But, I need to allow myself sadness, time to grieve. My loss was real. It may be different, but it is still real.

The post PAXmommy Mel’s loss appeared first on PAXbaby.

PAXbaby

PAXbaby

I’m a huge bookworm, but I don’t have much time for pleasure reading. What I do make sure to have time for is to read aloud to my littles.  A favorite activity in my house is to all snuggle in my bed – queen size! – and listen to mama read aloud. Picture books, chapter books, bring on the books, we read them all! Because of this family habit, it is my belief that my children will grow up to love books as much as I do, and that makes me very happy.As the new school year approaches, we’ve been discussing the addition of a few new To Do’s for the older kids to keeep life spinning smoothly during our school day. One of Lucy’s new chores will be the wonderful task of setting up our mantle in a delightful library style; I chose a few topics for September and compiled a book list for each one. The books we don’t have will be fetched from the library, or ordered from amazon thanks to school funding! I’ve also asked her to augment the arrangement with props and decorations!

The post Read Aloud Revival appeared first on PAXbaby.

PAXbaby.com

Where has babywearing taken you this Summer??

paxbaby

*happy babywearing*

paxbaby

The post Where appeared first on PAXbaby.

Sense of humor

My husband and I have heard every “joke” in the book about the size of our family, and the only purpose that the negative comments serve is to reinforce why our world needs gentle refocusing on what’s truly important. Do we know what causes this? Yes, shall I explain it to you? Do we own a TV? Yes, although we rarely watch it. Do we plan on having more children? Yes, God willing! Are we millionaires to afford our family? No, we live frugally within our means. How will we send each child to college? We don’t plan to, but each child may choose to attend continuing education classes if they so desire. How do we do it? Juggling, it’s ALL about the juggling! 

The post Big family chat appeared first on PAXbaby.

PAXbaby.com

We all know how PAXdaddy loves to “up-cycle”, so the theme for his birthday was – USE allllll the leftover decorations from the year’s previous birthday celebrations!! It was a HIT!!!

How do you make birthdays special??

Do you decorate your home? Your child’s room??

We would love to see!

paxbaby

*happy babywearing*

paxbaby

The post Birthday themes appeared first on PAXbaby.

PAXbaby.com

A very happy birthday to PAXdaddy Aaron!!
Thank you for EVERYTHING you do!!
Love,

The PAXmommies

paxbaby

*happy babywearing*

paxbaby

The post Happy Birthday, PAXdaddy!! appeared first on PAXbaby.

PAXbaby.com

Your strength and love has held the PAXfamily with amazing support. We all appreciate your prayers and thoughts especially in the coming week when we expect some finalization to our journey of loss. We love our sweet angel baby, and find peace knowing that BB8 has touched so many in such a short time.
Happy Mother’s Day to ALL of the mothers/grandmothers/aunties, past, present, and future.

paxbaby

*happy babywearing*

paxbaby

The post Mother’s Day of a new sort… appeared first on PAXbaby.

PAXbaby.com

Happy BIRTHday to our PAXbaby #6, Declan John Paul aka Dexie Doodles, who is FIVE today and celebrated with a Cars 2 themed party!

paxbaby
*happy babywearing*
paxbaby

The post DEXIE turns FIVE! appeared first on PAXbaby.

PAXbaby.com

Please help the PAXfamily welcome our new mode of travel!!! This is Scoop, our R-pod trailer, and the only way we can vacation with our herd of small people!! This week has been  our maiden voyage; we will also have a large tent for sleeping, but having a full bathroom will be a game changer! Does your family camp??? What are your fave things to do while camping with KIDS?? How do you stay organized?? How do you cook? What are your BIGGEST tips for fairly new campers??
#bigfamily #ilovesmallspaces #campingfun#bestEastersurprise

paxbaby

*happy babywearing*

paxbaby

The post PAXfamily CAMPS appeared first on PAXbaby.

We are small but mighty!!!!
In a nutshell, there’s me, PAXmommy Jillian, along with PAXdaddy who takes care of the IT stuff that I have no clue how to fix, plus PAXmommy Melanie in Canada who is our blogess and Facebook maven! PAXmommy Christina answers most of our emails and phone calls, & PAXmommy Celia makes your special links and stockings run smoothly, just to name a few of her tasks! PAXtographer Allie who takes amazing photos of our products and also at PAXplaydates, PAXmommy Madison (my new sister in law) is our book keeper, and last but not least, PAXmommy Catherine (my own mama) is our shipping manager who keeps track of incoming product and ships out ALL of your orders! Talk about a family business,
So that’s 8 of us, and we are a force to be reckoned with!!!!
PAXbaby.com

PAXbaby.com

*happy babywearing*

PAXbaby.com

The post The PAX dream team appeared first on PAXbaby.

I am not sure there is any job as exhausting and equally as rewarding as being a parent! I know that from sun up to sun down and beyond, PAXdaddy and I are at beck & call to the most amazing herd of children who each have something VERY important to say, often at the same time!! Why is it that when one toddler has to go to the bathroom, the other one decides they do too? It’s like a toilet paper relay race around here especially at dinnertime! But one day, when we are old, and our memories have faded to a dull fuzz, Aaron and I will look back at this time of our lives and laugh. Laugh at how insanely hard we worked every minute of every day, and laugh because we lived through it all! The big, the bad, and the ugly, it all will seem like a pleasant dream as we are surrounded by the glow of our children’s children’s love. It will be worth the crazy schedules,  the cold coffee, and the minutes (no, hours) spent wiping small bums and singing Frosty the Snowman, over and over and over.

To you, my equally as exhausted friends, keep on smiling, keep on smiling! I know it’s hard, but your babies will remember your joy more than your sorrow so let your light shine out, even when times are rough!
And to my little loves, I adore you and don’t wish my life were any different, but do you think that maybe you could sleep in JUST a little in the morning? Thanks, your tired and ecstatically happy mama <3

PAXbaby.com

PAXbaby.com

*happy babywearing*

PAXbaby.com

The post Being “mama” or “papa” appeared first on PAXbaby.

PAXbaby

#babycate has a baby carrier stash to be envious of! Her collection of mini carriers is extensive and well used! This little girl LOVES to wear her babies – JUST like her mama! She is grateful for all her carriers that have been specially made and sent to her, and would like to especially point out her mini Ocah and tiny Madame Googoo!

paxbaby

PAXbaby.com
*happy babywearing*
PAXbaby.com

The post Mini Carrier Stash Shot appeared first on PAXbaby.

PAXbaby.com

Today is the feast day of St Lucia, and it’s Catholic tradition for the family’s oldest daughter to make and bring hot cross buns to wake up the rest of the family!! Happy Saint Day to our Lucy who brought gluten free scones, apple cider and coffee upstairs to us!!!

PAXbaby

*happy babywearing*
paxbaby

The post PAXfamily December tradition…. appeared first on PAXbaby.

PAXbaby.com

Happy first Sunday of Advent from the PAXfamily! At 65 degrees, we each have a different idea on how to dress for the *cold* weather! What are you wearing today!?!

paxbaby
*happy babywearing*
paxbaby

The post Brr Sundays appeared first on PAXbaby.

I am THANKFUL every day for my work that inspires me as a parent; watching each of you blossom and bloom with your own families only serves to motivate me to be THAT involved in my children’s lives, THAT loving with each of them, THAT sweet and kind, gentle and nurturing! With every picture you share and comment you post, you fill me with the knowledge that we are raising a generation of young people who are so beloved! It is evident with every photo and sentence that these babies will grow to be an amazing, strong, and influential society who WILL change the world as we know it! As Thanksgiving 2015 comes and goes, let us all be thankful for our mama village, our parental tribe, those who have shaped and formed us into the caregivers that we are! Also, let us give thanks out loud for each and every one of our children for they will hold that praise in their hearts and one day remember the moment that we thanked them merely for being THEMSELVES.

PAXbaby.com
Today is a day for gratitude for the past, present, and future! As hard as the past was, we would be different people had it been any less so. As difficult as each today can be, we only grow stronger through withstanding trials and tribulations. And as daunting and unpredictable as the future may seem, know that YOU are making a difference and helping to bring each of us to a better place by being the wonderful, caring, and persevering parent you are! Happy Thanksgiving!!! May your table be filled not only with bountiful food, but with the company of your loved ones and may your house resound with the sound of your children’s laughter!

PAXbaby.com

The post I am THANKFUL appeared first on PAXbaby.