I wondered if I would have enough to share in a round up post today, given that we just had a coffee date on Monday, but we managed to pack a lot into this week!
001 | July by the Numbers
I guess before we move on to August, we need to talk about July, right? Although I didn’t read many books last month, everything else crept into the double digits. Josh was gone almost the entire month, we watched WAY too much television and several fun adventures at some sophisticated places (insert a big fat winky face here). We had a great time serving at our church, the kids loved camp and Ella got her first major haircut in six years. SIX YEARS. She looks so grown up with short hair and we’re just now starting to figure out how to fix it. July might have been exhausting, but it was full of really fun things. It’s going to give August a run for it’s money.
002 | Parenthood
Guys, WHY did it take me so long to jump on the Parenthood bandwagon?! Well, I know the answer to that. I thought it was more sitcom than drama, so I avoided it for a really long time. One night, several months ago, I was home alone and bored, so I watched the first three episodes. I knew immediately that Josh would love it, so I forced him to rewatch those with me and the rest is history. He’ll admit that he didn’t think he’d love it, but it took less than a season for him to be hooked. There are so many reasons to love it. The casting is unbelievable and the writing is so clever and believable. The family reminds me so much of my own. Not necessarily because we’ve struggled with all of those same issues, but because it’s about a couple, their four children and all the grandchildren. My mom is one of five, but otherwise, that reminds me so much of my own childhood. I loved that it tackled hard subjects and didn’t always pick sides or get too political, it just followed along as this family tried to figure it all out. If you’re looking for a show to binge watch with your significant other, I highly recommend this one. Definitely grab some Kleenex, though. I cried through every single episode, happy or sad.
003 | Concrete Sinks & Countertops
I know what you’re thinking — how many times can she tell us her husband is awesome and that he’s been traveling for a month, yada yada yada. Well, he’s finally home and we’re settling back into a regular routine. I need to preface all of this by saying, I can totally and completely take care of my girls and myself without help. The fact of the matter is, I don’t want to. Josh makes everything about our lives better and we are so glad to have him a part of our regular moments again. I fully appreciate him and recognize how lucky we are not to be going it alone. I thought I’d jump back in here today and show you what he’s been up to. He and his brother poured these amazing concrete countertops and trough sinks for a gym in Destin and then installed them all last week. They use fiberglass reinforced concrete, so it’s super strong, but not nearly as heavy or as difficult to support as regular materials. He poured me a beautiful coffee table over the summer (I’ll be sharing that on the blog next week!) and we’re already designing some pretty new things for our forever home, assuming we ever get to live there.
004 | Snapchat vs. Instagram Stories
I posed the question on both Snapchat and Instagram Stories last weekend and the answers were pretty evenly split. I really need you to help me pick a social media here. Let me tell you why I’m torn. I never expected to like Snapchat when I signed up few months ago, but I do love how casual, unrehearsed, and informal it is. I also really love the filters, especially the ones that make me look pretty (wink, wink). I love being able to control whose snaps I see and my husband is over there. Also, many of my favorite accounts have already chosen Snapchat in this epic battle, so to walk away completely means to say goodbye to their hilarity. As far as Stories go, I love that it doesn’t mean adding a separate social channel. I already have a decent following there, so I’m not worrying about growing an audience and my content is being seen by many more people. I like that I can pause “snaps” to read lengthy text and I think the photo quality is better. But WHERE are the filters? Also, I really loathe Instagram direct messages, so having the comments go there is pretty much the worst thing ever. I guess the question is, where do you prefer to hang out? Do you want to see content in both places? The exact same content, something different, or a combination of the two? The only thing I know for sure is that we’ll be using Instagram Stories with our @LiveWhole365 account since we don’t have a Snapchat account. I’ve already been sharing behind the scenes cooking stories and I think that’s going well. Now, help me out!!
005 | Camp Ella
We’re only a month away from Ella’s tenth birthday and I am FREAKING OUT. Number one, how are we already talking double digits?! Number two, my party planning consists (so far) of pinning a bunch of really pretty things on Pinterest. I have got to get myself together. She’s decided on a summer camp theme for this year and we’ve convinced Poppy to keep the pool open an extra few weeks. We usually have August parties when she decides on a swim party, but there wasn’t a weekend this month that we could make it happen. She’s planning to invite her entire dance team for a sleepover in the barn. That’s right — sixteen tweener girls in sleeping bags. Send coffee and reinforcements, please. In all honestly, I think this will be an easy party to pull together, but I need to get invitations in the mail right now, if I’m going to make it happen. In the meantime, hop back over here next week for an adorable BOY PARTY that my sister threw for her son last month. I figured since I never share anything other than pink parties with all the glitter, you might like to see some boy party themes from time to time, too. We collaborated on paper products and party decor and it turned out so cute!
Be sure to visit April, Natasha & Christina to link up your own Five on Friday post!
