5 on Friday: February 26, 2016

1.  Spring

I know I touched on this last week but we are huge into celebrating holidays at our house.  Easter decorating was in full swing over the weekend and I love the bright colors and the feeling of warmer days ahead.  While out and about last Saturday I stumbled across a DIY banner.  Little Miss Tess is always up for a craft so when I showed it to her, I was completely stuck with making the purchase.  It was easy enough for her to participate and she was thrilled to help.  It was a wild Saturday night making and hanging our little banner.

2.  C-L-O-T-H-E-S

With the tease of warm weather we’ve been having off and on here; I can’t help but be anxious for summer clothes!  I’ve been seeing so many wonderful items on Pinterest as of late that I want to add to my closet.  This is my favorite combo thus far.  What do you think; do I need them both?

3.  Namaste       

I came across a stretching/yoga sequence that you can do before bed to unwind from your day. 

I was determined to give it a try this week but one thing led to another and I find myself scrolling Instagram and crashing right away.  However, I love this idea and I am hoping to give it a try soon.

4.  All Things Sneaks

I don’t know about you ladies, but I am living in athleisure wear whenever I’m not in my work scrubs.  I love feeling comfortable and with so many cute options for gear out there; it’s easy to look pulled together.  All with the clothes, I am living in my New Balance and Nike tennis shoes.  As I get older (because I guess that’s officially happening) I am so much more conscious of taking care of my feet; bye bye heels.

I saw these online and am lusting over them.  An early birthday present perhaps?

5.  The Zza

I love pizza.  In fact, I may be willing to say that it’s my true favorite meal.  However, it’s not a family favorite or Brady friendly meal, so I don’t enjoy it as much as I would like.   I found a recipe for “triscuit pizza” and thought this was a cool idea.  

It may be an easier way for me to enjoy my passion for pizza without all the extras.  It would be really easy for me to make this Brady friendly as well.  I can’t wait to try it!

ZZZ...zzz

My mom was visiting this weekend and with the nice Spring-like weather here in Iowa; we made every attempt to be out and about with the kiddos. We went out for lunch, played outside in the yard, and did some shopping. Needless to say by the end of both nights the kids were tired! They aren't use to being able to expel their energy outside yet, ha!

Tess doesn't nap anymore and Brady isn't always the best about wanting to take his. Some days we let it slide and other days he goes to sleep well for us. I have always been the mother who believes in "the kids can adapt to my lifestyle" as opposed to "I change my lifestyle for the kids." That being said, both my kids nap, eat, play, sleep, etc. really well no matter what it is we are doing. Here are a few pics from our weekend adventures.

Best Friends...Most Days

Mini Cart For Mini Boy

Yes, Tess Is Only Wearing 1 Bow....Picking My Battles

One Of My New Favorites Photos Of Mr. B

 Case in point; Brady napping in the shopping cart and us taking over Pottery Barn for a quick snooze! One of the sales ladies asked me three times if I wanted to change spots with her so she could rock him. I'm still wondering why I didn't take her up in that! ;)

5 on Friday: February 19, 2016

Yay, for Friday!  Let’s jump right into my Friday favorites for the week.

 

1.  Me

I have always struggled with putting my needs ahead of others; much like I’m sure many of you other women do.  Especially as a mommy, my kiddos come first.  One big lesson that I have learned over the last four years is that I am an even better momma to my children when I allow myself some time.  I try to incorporate a little bit of time each week (although I wish it could be each day) where I do a little something for me.  It may be as simple as extending the length of my shower, painting my nails, or making a trip to the grocery alone (which is surprisingly a mini vacation, ha!)  It has been a true game-changer for me to have that time to relax, reflect, and de-stress from the chaos that is life. 

2.  Lighten Up

This past week I went and chopped off a sizable amount of my hair.  It was time for some fresh ends and a little change.  While I was there, I had my stylist add some highlights.  Because my hair is soooo dark naturally, the highlights definitely aren’t drastic.  I know if I want to go even lighter in the future it will have to be in increments; this lady doesn’t want to damage what little hair I have. 

3.  Kissable

After I posted the picture above of my haircut, I received quite a few messages from ladies asking about my lip gloss.  I had to think back to what I was wearing that day so I could properly answer!  Regardless, there are three different lip glosses that I wear over and over again and have become consistent staples into my routine.  Two of them are from Buxom.  I love this brand!  You can get them with or without the “plumper” in them.  The other one I always gravitate to is by Estee Lauder.  It’s a nice subtle shade of pink.  Each one looks different when applied than they do in the photo.

4.  Mr.

My little man has me laughing each and every day.  His vocabulary is non-stop and some of the comments he makes have me rolling.  I know this little dude is going to keep us entertained for years to come!  Here is a photo of him this morning before I left for work.  

I’m still not quite sure when he crawled into bed with me.  And I’m still wondering if he ever made it all the way up the bed or just decided to give up and make himself cozy.

5.  Hello Spring

We celebrate holidays in our house for weeks on end.  Valentine’s was good to us but it’s time to put the red, pink, and white decorations away and prepare our home for Easter.  This is my second most favorite holiday; behind the Fourth of July!  I anxiously anticipate the warmer temperatures, the flowers in bloom, the fresh feeling of having your house windows open, and the little children dressed to the nines on Easter Sunday….and of course the Easter baskets full of goodies!!  This weekend we will be placing our bunnies around the house and making the décor “fresh.”

24 Hour Road-Trip

This past weekend we decided to make a very quick trip home to see my parents.  They have been vacationing for nearly the last month (oh, the joys of retirement) and my kiddos have been chomping at the bit to see them; especially Brady.  He has a fondness for my dad that is indescribable.  Needless to say, when we were leaving he quickly replies to me “bye mommy, I stay here at grandma and grandpas house.  See you in a few days.”  Yep, this child would be completely and utterly okay without seeing me for days as long as he has his grandpa and a fishing pole.

In the quick 24 hours that we were away, we jammed in lots of concentrated fun.  We did tons of coloring, cooking, puzzles, pool playing (the kids are obsessed with my parent’s pool table as of late), valentine’s day celebrating, pretending fishing, and relaxing inside (because it was -3 when we got there).

How Does 1 Bite Of Donut Turn Into This?

 

She Loves All Things Holiday

Okoboji Popcorn

Grandma & Sweet Tess

He "Colors Better" With Glasses, Ha!

How was your Valentine’s weekend?

5 on Friday: February 12, 2016

Valentine's is such a fun holiday around the house. I love the bursts of red, pink, and white of the festive decorations, the sweetness of the activities, and obviously the candy.

 

For our Valentine's Day celebration, we typically start with a fun brunch and small little gifts for the kids. I enjoy getting them a festive shirt, fun socks, or new pajamas. I also always throw in an art project activity, some bubbles, crayons, or another little fun item that I discovered at the Target dollar section.  Gotta love Target!

 

The hubs and I don't exchange gifts (similar to Christmas, ha) but sometimes he breaks the rules and surprises me. Here's a few items i am loving and if they happened to show up, I wouldn't be upset. ;)

 

 

I am so glad that it's Friday so I can relax and enjoy the wonderful activities we have planned! 

Happy Valentine's Day!

5 on Friday: February 5, 2016

Believe it or not, I am still breathing.  I made a commitment to myself that I was going to take a break from it all and really enjoy the holidays and New Year to the fullest.  Life is back into full swing over here and I guess it’s time to get back to the blog as well.  Thanks for your patience and for sticking around! 

1.  A Little Football

Believe it or not it is Super Bowl weekend; the end of another season.  We were invited to a super bowl party this past week.  I quickly responded yes, got excited about the food and fun treats to cook up, and then it hit me…I have absolutely no idea who is even playing in the super bowl.  To make matters worse, as I type this blog post, I still have no idea.  So, maybe help a gal out and send some info my way!  One thing I know for sure is that the Cowboys are not participating; so really I’ll be attending for the food, commercials, half-time performance, and socialization, ha!

 

2.  Sweets

Our home is full of sweetness these days and I’m not referring to the emotions as much as I am the food.  Goodness gracious, I feel like my five major food groups from the holidays are still lingering in the home.  Those are sugar, sugar, sugar, sprinkles (sugar), candy, and more sugar.  The trend continued this week with Tess and my tradition of baking heart-shaped sugar cookie cutouts.  

We did hot pink vanilla flavored frosting this year and I think they turned out really well.  We’re starting to get this down!

 

3.  Is it Spring

I despise winter.  Every single little detail about winter is annoying to me.  I don’t like the cold, I don’t like snow, I don’t like how dark it gets so quickly in the evening; quite frankly I have zero idea why I choose to live in the Midwest.  I have spring fever over here like none other and Miss Tess is just as bad as me.  Each morning I have to battle her not wearing shorts, tank tops, and flip flops to school.  We do a lot of compromising; I mean a lot!  Needless to say there are quite a few dresses being worn with thick leggings, long sleeve shirts, and boots.  Color and pattern combinations seem to not bug her in the least so if you see us out and about….I’m certain you other mothers can appreciate that clearly it was a battle I only somewhat won because I didn’t want to completely lose my S%#*.

 

4.  Bronze

Since it’s clear that I am wishing my days away until summer; I am doing my best at “making the best of it” and pretending like warmer days are nearby.  I picked up some of this tanning lotion at Ulta a couple weeks ago.  I’ve read good reviews on it and one my favorite beauty bloggers swears by it.  My schedule has been a little hectic, so it’s still sitting under the sink, but this weekend I’ll be giving it a whirl.  I definitely didn’t want to try it out on a week day in case my coverage wasn’t quite right.  I don’t need to scare off our patients!

 

5.  Wild Turkey

I’m not referring to the alcohol here (although maybe that would help the situation).  My little man is one crazy dude these days.  He is non-stop; sick or not!  He’s running, he’s jumping, he’s climbing, and he is just a stinker and a half. 

Here’s him the other night.

Me:  “Brady, did you sneak a chocolate pretzel?”

Brady: “Uh, nope.”

Me:  “Are you sure baby?”

Brady:  “Uh, yeah Brady did.  It was good mommy.”

And then there was this.  If you follow me on Instagram you already saw the artwork from my little Picasso.

Brady: “Look Mommy, I drew a hippo on the table.”

Tessa: “Brady, would you please make good choices.  Mommy is not going to like your drawing.”

Me:  I poured a glass of wine.  When you can’t beat 'em; join the fun?

Oh, the days are long but the years go so quickly, don’t they?  Have great weekends!