On Tuesday night we got home from a 10 day trip to Virginia and North Carolina--it was so much fun seeing our East Coast friends and family and introducing Sophie to so many people who hadn't met her yet. I left with my heart feeling so full, but now that we're home we're all a little under the weather (Sophie started cutting her first two teeth the day before the flight, which made for an interesting trip).

I haven't been sick in a long time (other than getting mastitis last winter), and it's such a challenge when you're also trying to take care of a fussy baby. Luckily Rob took more paternity leave at the beginning of May and is still home for one more week. I can't even begin to explain how lucky we are to have so much time with him at home, away from work.

While we were in Richmond, we met up with our wedding photographer (who also shot our maternity photos in September) for some family photos with Sophie. We never did a newborn shoot or anything so I'm super happy to have these sweet photos of her at six months. 

I'm sharing some of my favorites in this blog post--I can't wait to print some and frame them or maybe get a big canvas for the nursery. And one day I hope to get some photos of all four of us, including Ender. 

For now I'll just be snuggling my sweet family and trying to sneak in a few naps until I'm feeling better. Happy Friday, friends.

PS This is my jumpsuit (affiliate link) and I absolutely love it..

This post is sponsored by La Crema.

I'm a pretty huge fan of garlic, so it's no surprise that chimichurri is one of my all-time favorite sauces. I had never made it myself until a few years ago after a trip to Miami with Rob where we had the absolute best steak on a muggy vacation date night.

Today is National Wine Day, so obviously I had to share a recipe that pairs super well with one of my favorite wines--La Crema's Montery Pinot Noir. Grilled steak is one my favorite meals, but I almost always forget to whip up a delicious fresh sauce to serve it with, which is why chimichurri is the best--it's only a few ingredients and comes together super quick. You can even make it ahead of time and let it come to room temp before serving.

Chimichurri

Ingredients:

• 1 tablespoon dried oregano

• 1/4 cup hot water

• 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt

• 1/2 cup minced fresh cilantro

• 1/4 cup minced fresh flat-leaf parsley

• 2 garlic cloves, peeled

• 1/4 cup red wine vinegar

• 1/2 cup extra-virgin olive oil

Instructions: 

1. In a small bowl, combine hot water and oregano. Stir and allow the oregano to soften slightly.

2. In a food processor, pulse together cilantro and parsley until well combined. Add garlic, red wine vinegar, and oregano/water mixture. Add salt and continue to pulse as you add the olive oil. Leave out at room temperature until ready to serve or refrigerate and remove with enough time to allow to come back to room temperature.

See how I put it all together today on the La Crema blog! 

The other day I mentioned on Instagram Stories that I was trying to swap out some of my conventional cleaning products for ones that were a little greener--I was cleaning our master bathroom and about to put Sophie down for a nap (she sleeps in our bedroom still) and I was suddenly very aware of how chemical-y and harsh the spray I was using smelled.

As usual, I asked you guys for your favorite products and I got a ton of great recommendations! A lot of you asked me to share them, and since I haven't been able to try them all out yet I thought I might as well go ahead and share the ones that came up most often so you could also get started on finding some better brands, if you're interested.

You can click through the widget above, but here are the links as well:

• Method Lime Sea Salt 28 oz. All-Purpose Surface Cleaner
• Method Orange Tangerine 28 oz. Daily Granite Cleaner and Polisher
• Method Citron 28 oz. Antibacterial All-Purpose Cleaner
• Better Life I Can See Clearly, WOW Glass Cleaner
• Better Life Einshine Stainless Steel Cleaner & Polish
• Better Life 32 fl. oz. Naturally Bathroom-Brightening Tub & Tile Cleaner
• Mrs. Meyer's Clean Day Therapeutic Lemon Verbena 32-Ounce All-Purpose Cleaner
• Mrs. Meyer's Clean Day Aromatherapeutic Lavender 64-Ounce Laundry Detergent
• Mrs. Meyer's Clean Day 16 oz. Aromatherapeutic Multi-Surface Spray in Lavender

What are some of your favorite, more natural cleaning products for your home? I'm not trying to make my own or go 100% natural (whatever that means!), but I am really interested in cutting down on some of the more toxic ingredients in my cleaning products (and hair and makeup products as well, but that's another post) now that Sophie is starting to crawl around and put everything in her mouth! I'd love to hear what you use, so let me know!

This post contains affiliate links.