JUST LET THEM BE KIDS | Baby Floral Dress + Gladiator Sandals

Last week we got this darling off the shoulder floral baby dress in the mail so when the light was just perfect, I just had to get photos for the blog. There are just some outfits that I have to show of too all of you because they're just too adorable!

I put on her gorgeous wine colored bow and some darling little baby gladiator sandals and we headed out into the backyard to snap some photos.

You see, I thought my momtographer life was going to be a whole lot easier once Ava started walking but when walking quickly turns into running, you end up with a whole lot of blurry shots. I'm no expert in the photography field so all of my hopes and dreams were crushed when I realized, "Hmmm, this was a whole lot easier when she just laid there and let me take photos of her!"

But that's life and I was still on a mission to get photos of this outfit.

And then she got into the flower pot that Baxter had just attempted to bury his ball in -- aka dig up the dirt and spread it all over the patio for Ava to then sit down in and play with. Yep, of course she went straight for the dirt pile as I was photographing the most darling little dress. And those two things didn't mix in my mind.

As she sat down in that pile of dirt and grabbed a handful with her little hand, I then realized that these are the memories I really want. I don't need photos of her sitting in a beautiful chair with a perfect smile and her hands folded properly. I want to remember these moments that are real. And while most parents would freak out a little about ruining a brand new dress, I've done my best to just let her be a kid.

The dirt on her hands will wash off (even if that means two baths in one day) and the stains on her dress will come off and if they don't, then oh well, at least she had some fun! If she wants to stomp and crawl through puddles and play in the fountain, then I'm going to let her do it...because water never hurt anyone.

I think we are all a little too scared of letting our kids just be kids and although I have no scientific backing, I think that allowing them to explore will help them become independent, will help them begin to learn right from wrong, and will help them remember a wonderful, happy childhood where they just got to be a kid. We don't get to be kids forever.

And most of all, letting our kids just be kids is a way to help us, as parents, just relax. If a little girl can spend an hour having a blast in a pile of dirt, then we should really look to kids and realize that it's those little moments that make us the happiest. And that's all we need.

Scroll on down to see the adorable shots of this outfit and if you love anything you see, just click on the links below and they will take you right to where you can find each item :) And if you want to see the world's best photobomb by Mr. Baxter Bane, scroll on down!