iPhone 6 vs. iPhone 7 review + unboxing!

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     Oh hey, I finally got a new phone! I've been using my iPhone 6 with a completely shattered screen for a long time now so it was about time to upgrade. ( Shattered phone not pictured: sorry that you don't get to see that hot mess! ) I thought I'd do a little unboxing and comparison post for those of you who are maybe considering upgrading soon as well!

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     Of course, I picked the rose gold. I have to say now I have my hands on it though that this color is a little more "rose" than rose gold to me. I would probably just call this color metallic pink instead but it's very pretty regardless. Shown above is all of what came in the box: phone, new charger and a new set of headphones; always appreciated because I lose these things like mad.

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     One new feature of the iPhone 7 is that it no longer has the headphone jack. I guess Apple is assuming that wireless headphones are the way of the future. I've also read that they did away with the headphone jack in order to make the phone water resistant.  I wasn't sure how I felt about this feature but the iPhone did come with a pair of headphones that fit into the charging jack which is genius. It also comes with an adapter that you can use to make a regular pair of headphones work in the charging jack. The only problem is that you can't charge the phone while using these headphones. This is sometimes a pain for me on the treadmill at the gym but wireless headphones would definitely solve that problem. 

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The iPhone 7's rear camera is a lot bigger (and better) than the camera on the iPhone 6 which was a huge pull for me in getting this phone. The biggest pull was that this phone made my plan cheaper since Sprint was having a special offer, ha! The main reason that I even care about having a smartphone is for the camera. I love using my iPhone camera and I'm obsessed with Instagram so it was definitely time for me to upgrade. If you want the highest quality iPhone camera out there, go for the iPhone 7 Plus which has the portrait mode feature. I honestly didn't realize that the iPhone 7 didn't have portrait mode but I'm still happy with this upgrade for now.

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     So now it's time for a little comparison between the iPhone 6 (shown here in gold) and the iPhone 7! I never did get the iPhone 6s and I know that the jump from the iPhone 6s to the 7 isn't as drastic but there are quite a few differences between the 6 and 7 and even significant changes from the 6s to the 7. As you can see, the phones are practically the same exact size and look almost identical. From the back of the phone you can see that the biggest differences are the camera size as well as the fact that the iPhone 7 did away with the visible antenna lines.

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     The front of these phones look exactly the same but there is a huge difference in the home button. With the iPhone 7 they did away entirely with the moveable, clickable home button and the home button is now completely touch activated. It's kind of freaky because the button still feels "clickable" using vibrations. This blows my mind a little bit. Taking away the moveable parts makes the iPhone 7 a little sturdier; I know this firsthand because on my previous iPhone 6, I lost the home button entirely and was using assistive touch for a couple months. 

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I also have to mention again that the iPhone 7 is water resistant! From someone who has ruined several phones due to water damage, this is an awesome feature! Don't worry I'm still sticking a waterproof case on this bad boy so that I'm doubly protected! (I'm really rough on phones if you haven't noticed!)

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Here's a little closeup of the camera comparison and a few specs:

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iPhone 6 - rear camera: 8 megapixel sensor / f2.4 aperature

front facing camera: 1.2 megapixel sensor / f2.4 aperature

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iPhone 7: rear camera: 12 megapixel sensor / f1.8 aperture

 front facing camera: 7 megapixel sensor / f2.2 aperture

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Above, you can see the changes that the iPhone 7 made to the bottom of the phone by removing the headphone jack and replacing it with dual speakers. The dual speakers are supposed to add to the audio of the iPhone 7, which is a nice thought but I haven't noticed a huge difference.  The iPhone 7 uses the same size charger as the iPhone 6 which is awesome because now for once I actually have two working chargers laying around my house!

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There's my run down on the new iPhone 7. Overall I don't have any complaints!

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Have you guys upgraded to the iPhone 7 or 7 Plus yet? I'd love to hear your thoughts below!

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portrait of my boys: Belly Sketcher.

*Be sure to scroll down to the bottom of this post to see how you can enter to win your own custom  watercolor painting!*

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I was so honored when Ines from Belly Sketcher contacted me and offered to paint a portrait of my boys! I am so in love with her colorful and whimsical style.  Ines is a former architect who has turned her focus to her true passion: painting. She paints expecting mothers, families and children and is located in Portugal but is working on expanding her business abroad!

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To have a painting of my little boys at this stage of our lives is a gift that I will absolutely treasure forever. I'm amazed at how well she captured my babies; Asher's crazy cowlick in the front and Roman's little round cheeks. This painting feels like a window into my heart, two little boys surrounded by lovely, swirly colors, sharing love with each other and with me everyday.

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I am currently hosting a giveaway on my Instagram featuring some of my favorite companies that I've had the chance to work with through blogging and Ines has generously offered to giveaway a custom watercolor portrait to the winner! Be sure to check out the giveaway: here for a chance to win a treasure like this for yourself!

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Happy Monday, friends!

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( Check out the Belly Sketcher Instgram feed @bellysketcher to see other wonderful artwork! )

little style // with Nope!

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I'm so excited to share the Nope clothing brand with you today! Asher was chosen to be a brand rep for Nope this summer and we are so in love with their cute, original tee shirts! Nope is run by a husband and wife team, Karen and Gee, and all of the illustrations on their shirts are hand drawn by Gee. Their shirts are absolutely adorable and I was happy to see upon receiving them that they are soft and sturdy as well. I let Asher pick out the shirts that he liked and his first choice was this "nope nope nope" shirt which I'll just say, is very fitting to his personality!

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Make sure to check out the Nope clothing shop: here! You can find them on Instagram as well @wearenope. All of their shirts are made in Los Angeles and are sweat-shop free! Use my code: friendsofteam1125, for 10% off your purchase!

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Asher channeling his attitude to match his shirt. ;)

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Nope shirt: c/o Nope

Shorts: Old Navy

Shoes: Old Navy

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This post is in collaboration with Nope!

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little style / FabKids.

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We've been working with FabKids on my blog for over a year now and I can't believe how much my little boys are growing! I'm pretty pleased with our FabKids picks this month and they have already received a LOT of wear around our house. Well ok, besides the too-hot-for-summer long sleeved shirt that Asher insisted on, because: sharks, duh. These adorable little color blocked shorts that Asher is wearing actually made an appearance on Roman in my very first FabKids post and they are still one of my faves from their site. The green cargo shorts fit my super-hard-to-fit Roman and they are perfect for a little boy who loves to collect rocks and treasures on summer hikes.

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Be sure to check out FabKids, a fun and unique subscription clothing company for kids! Right now they are offering buy one get one free plus free shipping on your first purchase! I'm pretty in love with these pictures of my boys, I hope you enjoy them as well!

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Roman: pirate shirt + green cargo shorts: c/o FabKids, shoes: Old Navy clearance

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Asher: shark shirt + color block shorts: c/o FabKids, shoes: Old Navy

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*FabKids provides clothing for my children in exchange for my work as a Brand Ambassador. Thanks so much for supporting my blog and providing my family with these opportunities; I truly appreciate it!*

FabKids // march pick.

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Happy Monday friends!

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     I'm finally getting around to sharing Asher's FabKids outfit from March! For those of you who aren't familiar with FabKids, they are a subscription clothing company for kids that comes out with new outfits each month to choose from! Here are my 3 favorite things about FabKids right now:

1. All of their clothing is super unique and they actually have boys clothes that are cute, colorful and fun! A huge pet peeve of mine is trying to find clothes for my boys that I like. For some reason our culture likes to offer a million adorable things for girls but the little boys section hardly looks much different than the men's section. Boys need cute stuff too!

2. I love that FabKids offers the same outfits in sizes 2-12 so I can find matching things for my boys! Am I the only mom who loves this? For example this "Mr. Cool" shirt is one of Roman's favorites that we got for him back in September and now Asher has it as well! In other stores, Roman is in the boys section and Asher is still in toddler boys so I can't find matching things for them.

3. I love that FabKids comes out with new items each month but that they still recycle some of their old styles. Now that we've been working with FabKids for almost a year (Eek!) my boys are getting bigger and I'm excited to reorder a few of my favorites in the next size up!

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Right now FabKids is offering 20% your first purchase plus free shipping so be sure to check them out!

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Mr Cool Graphic Tee: c/o FabKids
Plaid Bermuda Shorts: c/o FabKids
Shoes: Old Navy
( Oh, and the socks were Asher's idea... )
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*FabKids provides clothing for my children in exchange for my work as a Brand Ambassador. Thanks so much for supporting my blog and providing my family with these opportunities; I truly appreciate it!*

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jogger pants; yes please.

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     Hello friends, it's been a while! I wanted to pop in this Monday morning and share these pictures of my sweet 7 year old modeling the outfit that FabKids sent us recently! I am a huge fan of the jogger pants trend and can't get over how adorable they look on Roman! I'm also so pleased with how perfectly these pants fit because, as I've mentioned, finding pants to fit Roman's body type has been a real struggle this year! They will get us through the rest of the chilly days that may happen this spring. It's been super warm here in Colorado but we also had a snowstorm last week so you never know! Also, this color blue on him - sigh! It brings out his sparkly blue eyes. :)

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     Cheers to a happy Monday! I'm itching to update my blog so hopefully I'll be able to put together a few posts this week. In the meantime, I'm loving being back on Instagram - you can find me here: @bygillianclaire! Leave a comment if you follow me so that I can follow you as well! <3

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Be sure to check out FabKids for yourself! 

Use my link to get 20% off your first outfit with free shipping!

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( Roman's faces here - hah! )

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outfit: c/o FabKids, shoes $3 Old Navy clearance (score!)

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boy style // FabKids

Roman with no arms... ;)

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     I really do love doing photoshoots with my boys and it's one of my favorite things in the world, but man is it hard to find that balance between fun and infuriating! 

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     I love the outfits that FabKids sent us for January, a perfect mix of neon / colorblock + stripes: my faves. I had a cute idea planned to use these fuzzy mustache stickers that I picked up at Old Navy for a photoshoot this month. The boys really had a lot of fun with them but I didn't get a lot of the side by side, sitting on the steps picture-perfect photos that I'd planned. It was more like a lot of dancing and tumbling around and the outtakes, I must say are absolutely hilarious. 

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     So there was a lot of frustration but also a lot of fun; the golden sun setting over the mountains was peaking over the railing just so and I ended up with these gems. All in all, we have a lot of fun doing "photoshoots" and my boys put up with me thankfully and give me so many pictures and moments tied with them to treasure for always.

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Recognize this shirt?

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Be sure to check out FabKids subscription clothing company
for kids: here and get 20% off your first purchase!

boys in vests.

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We've been a little busy lately with my semester finishing up and a little bit of traveling and such. I just wanted to stop in and share these photos of my boys in the ridiculously adorable vests that FabKids sent us last month! Oh my gosh, I have no words. But, I do have pictures - so enjoy. :) :)

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boys' outfits c/o FabKids

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photos of flowers / the bouqs company.

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Truth be told, I was really excited when The Bouqs Company contacted me and wanted to send me flowers because ...  well, because I love photographing flowers! No shame. The Bouqs Co. was great and allowed me to be super picky and choose the bouquet I wanted and I was dying to try out the "Cake n Cream" bouquet. This bouquet consists of mixed Ranunculus flowers and they are absolutely beautiful! To be honest I let the box sit on my counter untouched for two days before I opened it because I knew I wanted to photograph the process and I couldn't find a chance! When I opened the box, the flowers still looked great; thank goodness! After placing these beauties in water, my flowers continued to bloom and grow in their gorgeousness! I've been seeing Bouqs pop up on some blogs here and there lately and I'm happy to support this company on my blog as well just in time for the holidays! I was very impressed with their lovely packaging and the quality of their service. Ok, enough rambling, I'll let my photos do the rest of the talking:

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Check out The Bouqs Company for yourself: here! What's your favorite bouquet?

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Do you ever send flowers to loved ones?

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Thanks for reading, friends and for supporting my blog and giving me this opportunity to indulge in  my flower-picture-taking guilty pleasure. ;)

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