Ivy Van Dusen

Peplum Plaid + Business-Owning

I snagged one of these tops from my shop and I am in love with it! Sometimes when I am photographing the items I just fall in love with one and have to keep it for myself :)

So far Ivy Avenue has been running for 6 months!!! It's crazy....I feel like I JUST started it. I have seriously learned so much in the last 6 months and I have had SO MUCH FUN doing it!

Owning a business is a crazy thing! It is full of constant risk and is so scary but so fun at the same time...it is impossible to explain! I took a few business-related classes in college and they have definitely helped but nothing can really prepare you for running a business besides just doing it.

Ivy Avenue is just a small, little baby of a business but as of a few weeks ago we officially broke even and are starting to make a profit which I am so excited about! My original goal was to do that within the first year so I am super happy that it didn't even take that long! My next goal is to get 10k followers on Instagram...not sure if that's going to happen but we'll try :) I'm not going to pretend that I totally know what I'm doing, because I don't! I have made plenty of mistakes and am learning every single day!

A lot of times I get asked, "how did you start your business?" or "I am wanting to start a clothing boutique...what advice do you have for me?" Honestly my #1 piece of advice in that arena is to JUST GO FOR IT!!!!! Don't be afraid, just start it! As long as you are being smart financially, you don't really have anything to lose. Jump in and don't worry about what people say. Owning a business is just as risky for millionaires with MBA's as it is for stay-at-home-moms...it is HARD but you can totally do it no matter who you are.

Anyways, thanks to everyone who has supported my little business! I have been amazed by all the support I've gotten and it has been so humbling! If you would like to collaborate, or just have ANY questions about business-owning or anything related to that, give me a holler! I'm an open book :)

No sweet note{s}

, by Ivy Van Dusen

Organization

No sweet note{s}

, by Ivy Van Dusen

My C-Section Experience

No sweet note{s}

, by Ivy Van Dusen

3 Months Old

Our sweet Jack Alexander turned hit 3 months last week!

I feel like he is growing more and learning something new every single day! It is crazy how quickly he has grown already. Weighing in at a little over 18lbs, he is still a BIG boy and is wearing 6-9 month clothes (a few things he fits into are even 12 month!)!

He is slowly discovering his little hands and all of the cool things he can do with them. He is getting pretty good at playing with his little ball-toy and at pulling moms hair. These days he chews on EVERYTHING he can get his hands on. His blankets, his toys and even his hands themselves! I know it is probably early to be teething but we think that just maaaaybe he is starting to a little bit because he wants to chew on something all day long and drools SO MUCH. We'll see!

He hasn't rolled over yet, but he has definitely come close to rolling from stomach to back.

He LOVES when we make high, "baby" sounds at him and gets a really sad/scared face whenever daddy makes deep, low noises, haha. It is the saddest/cutest thing.

We have been trying to stick with a very flexible Baby Wise-type schedule (eat, wake, sleep) for the past few weeks and it has worked so well...even without trying to stick with a schedule, he does his own little thing and it works out. I seriously could NOT be happier when it comes to the whole sleep-thing lately. Around 11ish weeks, he started sleeping through the night (from about 9PM-7:30AM) and it is AMAZING. During that first month I honestly didn't think I would ever get a good night's sleep again, but I did! I am so proud of him!

As far as I go, I finally feel like I am getting the hang of being a mom. A few days ago I got past the "100 Days of Darkness" and I am finally starting to feel like my old-self again. I am down 40 lbs since giving birth but still have about 20 more to go until I'm back to my pre-baby weight. I have always felt that being a mom is what I was MEANT to do but I am finally starting to actually feel like I am GOOD at it! Don't get me wrong, it is still SO SO SO hard to feel confident as a mom (do I hold him too much? not enough? is he too hot? too cold? he shouldn't have a stuffy nose. is his formula good enough for him? did I mess him up by not breastfeeding longer? should I not let him look at the TV? Is he too chunky? does he feel loved? is he happy? do I do enough for him? and so on....) but there is NOTHING in the whole wide world I'd rather be doing right now than changing poopy diapers, getting spit-up on, going on walks, watching daytime TV and cuddling with my baby.