I was getting ready to draft today's post and realized that I said pretty much everything I wanted to say about this topic last summer. Maybe you read it and maybe you didn't, but I think it bears repeating. I sometimes wonder if we have a strange relationship. We've been together longer than we were apart and that means we know each other really well. I don't mean that our relationship is the greatest ever or that we love each more than you love your spouse, but in a world where divorce seems like no big deal, you kind of have to pat yourself on the back for really liking somebody after seventeen years, right? Josh drives me batty. Like crazy, kicking, screaming, batty. He knows exactly what buttons to push, how to make me smile and how to make me scream. He knows I hate repetitive ...
Back to School
It's hard to believe that real life starts again tomorrow. Even though I don't get a summer break, I think it will be an adjustment for me, too. Josh has been traveling since last Wednesday, so we've been on our own as the days on the calendar go by. It's been one part "squeeze all the fun out of every day" and two parts "get all of the things done". We're tired, but we're in the home stretch now. We've spent many days playing phone tag and having missed FaceTime notifications. You wouldn't think it, but a two hour time difference when you have little girls is a big deal. We haven't gotten to see his face, but we've managed a few phone calls here and there over the past week. The girls and I stayed up late on Friday night, checking things from our to-do list so that the weekend could ...
Letters
Dear gluten-free refrigerated pizza dough, I bought you on a whim. Not because you were gluten-free, but because the last time I bought fresh dough it didn't work out so well and you were my only other option. I wanted to like you so much and the pizza I made looked really yummy. Unfortunately, you tasted like cardboard and the girls and I threw you in the trash can. Dear Sophie, you have been unbelievably fun the last few days. You are so witty and have the funniest things to say. I started making a list because I didn't want to forget this stage. You are so spontaneous and not afraid of anything. You told me this week that you didn't want me to call you Taz at school because your new friends might laugh at you. It was so sweet, but broke my heart all at once. You'll always be my ...
Bowties & Broccoli, an Un-Recipe
I'm not sure you can call this a "recipe" so much as a bunch of things we always have in our fridge and pantry that look really good together in a bowl?! One night we were debating what to do with grilled chicken and so we made a really good orzo recipe. The next time we wanted it, we only had farfalle in the pantry, so "Bowties and Broccoli" was born. We typically have one grain-heavy meal a week, so this has become our go-to weeknight pasta recipe that makes enough for lunch the next day. We can't convince the girls to eat it since there is "green stuff" involved, but we don't mind since we don't like to share! Somehow I managed NOT to get the broccoli in this picture, but you'll need a box of Mini Farfalle, low sodium chicken broth, 3 large boneless chicken breasts, a few small ...
Slip N Slide
A few weeks ago, we made a Sunday afternoon run to Wal-Mart for jigsaw puzzles and a sprinkler. I guess we waited too late, because there wasn't a sprinkler to be found. Instead, we grabbed this deeply discounted Slip 'n Slide. The girls begged for days to play on it, but a few cooler than usual afternoons paired with crazy busy weekends made for some delay in our plans. This past weekend, we had a lazy Sunday afternoon with nothing to do while our sweet daddy was running errands. My kids weren't entirely sure what to do with this thing, so I had the pleasure of diving head first at the ground a few times. Hello, sore abs on Tuesday! ^^^ We had to add a few suds to our slide to make us go faster! ^^^ ^^^ Obviously she didn't know what she was doing yet -- her hair didn't even get wet?! ...
Letters
Dear Slip N Slide, You are just as cool as you were when I was a kid. You left my knees bruised and my belly sore, but I don't regret a single one of those head-first dives. (pictures to come tomorrow) Dear Dr. Pepper, It's getting easier and easier to avoid you these days. I'm 28 days in and I miss you in theory more than in reality. Yesterday, I grabbed Josh's drink by accident and got a mouth full of too sweet. I can't decide if it was the shock that I didn't like or the actual taste. You know how drinks you love taste terrible when you are expecting something else to come out of the straw? Dear iPad, How did we ever live without you? I know we all fight over you after dinner -- I'm sorry about your new found popularity. The girls can never decide between tweener movies and Barbie ...
Woodland Birthday Suite
Kamin knew all along what she wanted for Hudson's first birthday party and it turned out AMAZING. I can't wait for her to share the pictures so that I can post them here for you. It was such a creative birthday party theme and every detail was beautifully done. She sent me invitation inspiration long ago and I've been working a cute paper suite for the party. I hope to have it listed in the Etsy shop soon as an invitation and as a printable party pack! I always feel like a cheater when I find great Illustrations from another designer, but sometimes they are so perfect that it's silly to recreate something yourself. I found the animals at Collective Creation on Etsy and added the other elements myself. invitation water bottle labels food labels favor tags She wanted a chalkboard to ...
Our Rock Fortress
Apparently, the Rock House is a fortress. On Sunday night, I was laying in the bed reading a book. The girls were finishing up a DVD in the living room before bed and Josh had just hopped in the shower after playing tennis. The dog was snoring next to our bed and everything was pretty quiet. All of a sudden I heard a loud sound and when I hopped out of bed and rounded the corner, the girls were freaking out. By the time I could get to the back of the house, Josh was coming out of the bathroom with shampoo in his hair. Did I mention he was blaring Motley Crue on his iPod? Sophie screamed, "Is it a fire?! Is it a TORNADO?!" followed closely by Ella's declaration that somebody was shooting a gun. Y'all, it was mass chaos and if we hadn't been so freaked out, it probably would have been ...