Spring Breakin’

Leaves are appearing on the trees. Green grass is finally replacing the brown lawns and birds are chirping.

Children are unruly and less manageable than ever.

My teacher friends will be quick to tell you that Oh, happy day, spring break is right around the corner!

Many of you have fabulous plans for a beach or ski vacation, trips to visit family or touristy destinations. However, many of us will remain at home.(Cue small children and their sad faces.) For those of us staying put due to work, budget or simply to avoid travel, there are great options for a mini-break. The following are a few ideas for making the most of your Spring Break Staycation. I’ve included ideas for everyone (with added links to specific sites for my southern Indiana friends) that will allow you to enjoy time with family without going spring broke! Rain or shine. Continue reading

Good Will Wednesday (Part 2)

It appears the last week got the best of me and my crew. Two cases of strep throat. Three infected ears. An upper respiratory infection. And a partridge in a pear tree.


I won’t lie… I’ve been a bit absorbed in my own pity party over here. Even I can only handle myself in this emotional state for so long. (Not to mention my poor husband and kids who are likely ready to ship me off to Gratitude Camp.) So, in another attempt to regain some perspective (why does it seem I need to self-correct so often?!?!) I’m focusing on Good Will Wednesdays again today! Continue reading

Saturday Morning Acceptance Speech. 

 I would like to thank the Academy. The American Academy of Pediatrics, that is. I am thankful for their recommendation on number of hours children should sleep. A recommendation my children chose to ignore last night.

I am humbled in accepting this award for Worst Night’s Sleep Ever in the category of Exhausted Mom Whose Spouse Is Out of Town. The competition was stiff. I respect all the other nominees and truly wish you the best in winning this award away from me soon.

I’d like to thank my toddler. Your behavior from 2:45-3:30 AM was befitting of its own award from a different academy. The whimper for a drink that was quickly replaced with angry screaming when you realized the drink I provided was water was art. Pure art. Apparently your real need was for milk.

I would like to thank the farmers in our country who supplied healthy food so I was able to eat a nutritious diet during pregnancy. Had I not, it’s clear you simply would not have the lung power to sufficiently awaken the dead with your screaming. Continue reading

Family vacation. Same chaos, pricier location.

“I’m going on vacation. I’ll bring you back a souvenir suitcase. It’ll be full of love, but otherwise appear to be empty.”- Jarod Kintz

6:00AM

The six o’clock hour seems much more civilized than its five o’clock predecessor. I am awake and soaking in the quiet of the morning. The calm before the storm of the eight tiny feet.

In these early moments I will have a cup of tea and enjoy my morning devotional. It’s coveted time where I am able to read scripture, connect with God and set my mood for the day.

Peaceful. Purposeful.

Then I will search for a weapon to kill the bird in the tree outside my bedroom window.

Perhaps I need another devotional…… Continue reading

Fashion Friday- Deals!

I am ignoring the fact that yesterday brought rain and sleet. Boo!

I am focusing on the fact that it should remain above freezing for several days. Hooray!

This fabulous news, coupled with the arrival of March in mere days, has me gunning for spring. Out with the triple layers of clothing and itchy turtlenecks. In with lighter fabrics and string bikinis.

Ok, maybe not the string bikinis. But…. speaking of turtlenecks and swimsuits, wouldn’t it be great if they made a spandex turtleneck/knee length skirt swimsuit?!

Yes. The answer is yes.

Until I market my ‘turtlekini’ you can check out the deals this week from Cents of Style.

Lightweight, colorful, (anti-winter) infinity scarves are two for $8.99. The first scarf will ring up at $7.99 and the second will be available for .99 cents here.  Free shipping with code SCARVES2   (Ad links.)

 **Update. They’ve already sold out of some styles of the ‘second’ scarves but several are still available. Who knew everyone would be buying scarves before 8am?!**

 

23 days until spring, friends! Which means I have limited time to figure out how to fashion my wool and spandex dream swimsuit.

Happy Friday!

E

Good Will Wednesday


Despite the title, this isn’t a post about thrift shopping. (Although, I LOVE thrift shopping….so that will undoubtedly be another post.) This is a different good will. This is the ‘kindness towards others’ type.

I awakened today with a less than stellar attitude. I was tired. Although the sun had risen, I could not see it. For the 50th day in a row. The Grouch Monster, as we call it in our home, had gotten me. Continue reading

Life lessons from Cam Newton

 Many of you are looking at the title of this post and thinking you know where I’m headed. It’s been said and regurgitated over and over in the last 24 hours. The radio and social media are abuzz with talk of Mr. Newton and what is being described as his display of poor sportsmanship last night. Seems like a pretty clear-cut message to our youth. Sore losers look like jerks.

The end, right?

Well, not so fast.

After quite a bit of windshield time today, too much talk radio and much thought, I’ve decided the answer is…….likely not.

I will be the first one to admit that this morning, while sharing a teeth-brushing session with my eight-year-old son, I filled him in on the post-game celebration.

I typically leave the sports conversations to his dad but I felt a bit more vested in this discussion. As an Indiana girl, a Peyton Manning fan, and dealing with quite a bit more sentimental emotion about his potential retirement than I ever would have imagined, I took this conversation on myself. Continue reading

Snowmageddon 2016

We greatly enjoyed our snow day. While six people cooped up in one house does create a level of noise that rivals screaming jets, we managed to plan enough activity (inside and out) to keep it just below fever pitch.

Just below.


( We are unsure which he dislikes more….his snowsuit or his hair.) Continue reading

Humble Pie and Ice Cream

*Fair warning. If you don’t like ‘body talk’ or you believe discussion about certain parts should be left only to you and your doctor, skip this post:)

I’ve been told that I need to be more confident in certain areas of my life. It is a fact I’m aware of and I’m working on it. But let’s be honest, being a modern day woman is hard work and some days it’s not easy to feel super confident. There is pressure from a variety of outside sources that leads us (I say ‘us’ because I assume I’m not the only one….please, please tell me I’m not the only one) to feel less than adequate. The good news is that we can step through the doors of our home into the loving arms of our spouse and children and feel the confidence flood over us again.

Or not. Continue reading