Accepting Reality

January 26, 2016January 26, 2016Leave a comment

I had a business meeting yesterday morning that did not go as well as I had hoped. I don’t often write about the water company that we own and operate – it’s not really my happy place. But I realized last night as I was trying to laugh off a bad day with Peter, I’ve been managing this company for 6 year. Whoa. It hadn’t really dawn on me that it had been that long. And while Peter was was making my laugh by comparing the time to a prison sentence, I realized that it might be time to ~~embrace~~ accept it. To stop calling it “the stupid water company” as I usually refer to it. To give it the attention it demands. To recognize that I spend a lot of time running a business and that while I may not love it, I’ve gotten pretty good at it. I’ve learned a lot and together with my mom, we’ve turned a regulated business from solidly in the red to being in the black. It’s time to acknowledge our work and start to find the bright spot in the business.

As I dropped the kiddos off at their schools yesterday, Baylor knew something was up because I was wearing heels. When I told her that I had an important meeting, she responded with “I’ll say a prayer for you today”. The second word out of her mouth when I picked her up was “how was your meeting??”. When I told her that it wasn’t great, she told me that not only had she said a prayer for me, she asked her whole class to pray too and then the other class during religion to do the same.

I realized that no matter how unsatisfied I am with this business, there aren’t many things as amazing as being able to send our kiddo to a fantastic school and to have 35 six year olds saying prayers for you. And if I had to choose between an always amazing business or a six year old with a heart of gold, I’ll take that little lady every time.

Life is good.

Rockin’ and Rollin’ 2016

January 18, 20161 Comment

When you live near the Rock and Roll Marathon route, you can either try to get around the marathon, run it, or find away to enjoy it! We chose the last option and joined our friends, the B Family, for their annual water station. They are literally on the route so they are blocked in – which is a great excuse to hand out water and turn it into a party.

We rode our bikes over to their house and realized that this was a well oiled machine. Tables with cups and a system for filling and then refilling the water jugs was in place. Not to mention a great spread of breakfast and bloody marys for the volunteers. It wasn’t long until the first few runners came by, then the big waves came. It was so neat seeing the various kinds of runners – everyone was working hard. The sweetest thing was that so many runners not only slowed down, but some stopped to take the water from the kids and thank them for being there to cheer and hydrate. It was so cute to see the excitement on the kids faces.

Cutest helpers ever

The waiting

Someone has to drink the champs and bloodies

Working hard!

Towards the end, the kids handed out little candies too. It was a very sought after position

Congratulations to everyone that ran! And thank you to all the runners who took time to say thank you, you made a lot of little kids very happy!

Lazy Gurl Curl

January 11, 2016January 11, 2016Leave a comment

For years I have been trying to perfect “the wave” “the uncurled, curl” “the beach wave”. You know what I mean. That I just left the beach and my hair looks a-mazing! kind of curl.

But without all the, like, work.

Somehow last year, I finally made it work. And honestly, it was sheer laziness. It was summer, it was 115* and I was trying to do something with my wig. After I let it down, I realized that it had curled kind of…cute. With a little perfecting on my twisting and clipping, I had the perfect recipe for The Lazy Gurl Curl.

So here it is

Not too shabby, right? And not one curling iron used.

Here’s the how to:

Use a shampoo and conditioner that are moisturizing. I love Wen, but Pantene will do in a pinch.
Dry your hair as normal, round brushing the roots for volume.
Put a small amount of leave in conditioner in the ends – I like the Wen leave in or even a detangling spray will work. Anything that adds a little moisture and some conditioner back in.
Twist hair and then into a loose bun, right where your scull and spine meet (better known as your occipital ridge for all the yogis). Secure with a claw clip. This is the tricky part because it can leave a kink in your hair so be careful to clip it at the bottom of the bun.
Leave in place for about an hour. Remove the clip, shake out curls, a little hairspray – voila! Curls without the heat.

Hanging Memories

December 17, 2015December 17, 2015Leave a comment

When we were first married, we had the skinniest, fake Christmas tree. It was this sad little thing, but it was in the budget. I added big strands of garland to it to beef it up and disguise the fact that we didn’t have many ornaments.

See what I mean? (And yes, that is snow outside! Kind of miss that. For like a second.)

Every year since, I have bought an ornament with the year on it and popped our Christmas card picture into it. It’s so fun decorating the tree and pulling out those sweet memories. The little faces, furry faces and younger faces – all of them holding a little story of what life was like when they were created.

I’ve got the process down to a science now – as soon as I upload our Christmas card picture, I have one printed on ShutterFly in wallet size. Then I order the yearly ornament from Pottery Barn. I love the simplicity of the frame and how they are just a little different each year.

I think the part I love the most is when Auggie walks around the tree and exclaims “There’s me! There’s you, Baylor! There’s all of us!!”. It’s perfect.

And now that we have legit school pictures, I think we might need to start a new tradition with those…

So the Christmas tree this year is a bit better than that first tree…we had a very Griswold moment picking it out, getting it home and then getting it to stay upright. I still have sap on my hands.

The one that started it all

And finally the newest addition

Firehouse Fun

October 20, 2015October 20, 20151 Comment

Our family was treated to a personal tour of a Mesa Fire Department Firehouse this weekend – and it was amazing! Mike, a friend and college of Peter’s, invited us over when he heard that Auggie was having a firefighter themed birthday. I think Auggie was equal parts excited and nervous.

Mike rolled out the red carpet showing us all around the firehouse, introducing us to the other firefighters and giving us the inside scoop on how it all functions. We then got to go check out the truck, including a quick ride around to the back of the station (headsets and all!) where the kids took turns with the fire hose.

Mike also showed us how much gear he has to put on – and in under 2 minutes. Holy moly, it’s a lot. I can’t imagine walking around with 45 pounds of hot, heavy gear on…let alone fight a fire!

Look at those smiles

Here’s the thing, we were only one of two tours going on. If you think your kiddo would love to visit the fire house, give your local station a call. They will let you know the best days and times – they seem to really enjoy educating people – and kids- on how the fire station works and fire safety. In fact, when Mike was in his full gear, mask and all, he made a point of talking to each person in each of the tours. It was a good lesson for all the kids that that is what firefighters look like in an emergency and not to be afraid of them. It was a fun an educational way to spend a Sunday morning!

Organized Living: The Play Room

October 11, 2015Leave a comment

I was so excited when we moved to the new house and decided to keep our kiddos in the same room and use the second room as a play room. I liked that they would have a bedroom that was for sleeping, reading and resting – and a play room that could be a total disaster that I could shut the door on.

But alas, I can’t just shut the door. My hatred for all things cluttered, disorganized and messy, drives me to rally the kids into cleaning up the room daily. I can’t stand the clutter, the craziness! I think everyone in our house is all too familiar with my screeching demand for help to clean up.

I do have a rule that if I have to help clean up, I throw things away. The panic that arises when one of the kids sees me put something in my pocket as it’s destined for the trash, usually spurs them into working faster…but not better. So I added some details to the play room that will hopefully help them be able to keep their toys organized and make clean up easier.

I used these hanging storage racks from Target. They make cubes that fit in the drawers too that looked really nice, but I went with transparent bins with lids instead. I could only picture every bin being pulled out to discover what was inside…They work great because lots of different things fit in the spaces.

Next I took a picture of what was in each bin. I printed them in 3×5 size and wrote the name of the items inside for Baylor. She is amazing at memorizing words when she sees the definition in pictures.

I also used the labels inside of the fabric bins in the playroom.

I think there are two ways you can organize the playroom – or any other kid space in your house: with or without your kids. Today’s project was done without them home. It allowed me to clean out some things and save my sanity by being able to quickly sort toys and have them actually stay where I put them. I take a trash bag and a “give away” bag in with me and as I clean, I sort. If you are worried about them noticing that something is missing, hide the bag in the closet for a few days. Or if you’re like me, you blame their disappearance on moving.

If you are feeling brave and want to clean up clean out with your kids, talk about what the goal of the process is before you start. When Baylor was little, we talked a lot about how not all kids have toys like she does. We talked about how it was important to care for those less fortunate and one of the ways we can do that is by donating some of our toys. We never ask them to give away anything they really love, but we do ask them to consider whether or not they think that toy could make a child who has no toys, happy. I’m always surprised by both kid’s willingness to part with dolls, toys and games in the name of helping someone else. I always let them deliver the bag to the donation site too to complete the process.

Good luck and happy organizing!

Spooktackular Crafts

October 10, 2015October 10, 2015Leave a comment

While looking for ideas for Auggie’s birthday party on Pinterest, I randomly came across the cutest Halloween craft. I’m a sucker for hand and footprint art. But I tend to leave those to the kid’s schools because paint on feet and hands gives me anxiety.

Despite my apprehension, I was feeling ambitious so I took the picture of the craft and the kids to Michael’s to get our supplies. The kids were surprisingly good and happy to help gather up what we needed. They (generally) cooperated when it came to putting their hands and feet in the right place and they (sort of) listened when I told them not to touch the wet canvases. Overall? A win! And the end product came out pretty cute!

When we were getting ready to paint their feet, I asked Baylor how they do it at school – did they dip their hands into the paint or did the teachers brush it on? She concluded that most of the teachers would brush it on. Auggie then chimed in with “Mommy? Mommy? At mine school, when we are painting….they no let me put my hands in the paint.” I couldn’t stop laughing. He wanted so badly to contribute to the conversation.

So their high arches and “sleepy” toes made for some funny prints, but I think they’re pretty cute! Want to give it a go? Here’s what you’ll need:

1 8oz bottle of multi-surface acrylic paint in Black and Orange

1 2oz bottle of multi-surface acrylic paint in Green and White

1 Spool of festive ribbon

Paint pens in Black and Orange. (I couldn’t find orange so I just used paint. It’s doable, but it takes a lot longer)

3 8×10 canvases

Glitter paint for decorating

Sponge brushes

Small paint brushes

Paper plates and news paper

Towels and small tub of soapy water

Start by painting the background on the three canvases. This is a great place to let the kids help. Ours took two coats with about 20 minutes of drying in between. Let dry overnight.

When you’re ready to do the hand and foot prints, on clean feet / hands, use a sponge brush to coat the whole bottom of the foot. You will need to use more paint than you think – really coat it. Then standing, have your kiddo put their foot on the canvas and hold still while you push down on each toe and the edges of the foot. Be careful not to let the foot slide around. When each foot or hand is done, dunk it in the soapy water (Baylor told me this little detail of school crafting AFTER we were done…). Let all hand and foot prints dry over night.

Start decorating! Add in wording, spider webs, glitter – whatever you want! Hot glue the ribbon to the back, tie it in a bow and voila! Instant holiday memories. Have fun!

October Babies

October 6, 2015Leave a comment

Just like June in our house, October is crazy! Not only is our social calendar packed, we get to celebrate Peter and Auggie’s birthdays. And because they are back to back (literally) it’s a little nutty trying to get it all in.

We celebrated Peter being older than me (we’re the same age for about 4 months a year) again with his favorite Funfetti cake and dinner out. We sat at Steak 44, studied the menu and strategized on who would order what so that we would get the full spectrum of the steak house’s offerings. Shrimp cocktail, ribeye steak, onion strings, creamed spinach, crab legs and chocolate chip bread pudding were all absolutely delicious! A birthday celebration to remember.

We planned a Fireman themed party for Auggie the following day to celebrate this guy – the big 3!

The kiddos got to cover their fire helmets with stickers. Then they raced outside to an emergency – chalk flames that they got to put out with squirt guns. It was a huge hit! The remnants of the chalk flames are going to require a little more elbow grease to get off though. Peter pointed out AFTER I had drawn all over the wall – “maybe you should have tested it to make sure it will come off”. Yes, that would have been smart. Now we’ll just pick a paint color faster…

And what good party doesn’t have a fire truck pinata?? And when the little guys can’t get it open, you bring in the softball team.

The struggle to blow out the candles is real, my friends.

I love this picture. He was absolutely perfect for the party. Honestly, a parent couldn’t ask for more – he was happy, excited, friendly – he was having an amazing time! But hold him back from his ice cream cake? Sh*t gets real, real quick.

Happy birthday my October men. I can’t wait to celebrate 100 more with each of you!

The Old Switcheroo

September 22, 2015Leave a comment

One of the greatest lessons I’ve learned as a mom is to listen to your gut. Then evaluate what you’re feeling, think through it, re-evaluate, ask opinions, but at the end of the day, go with what your mom intuition says to do.

Despite feeling like we had found a great school for Baylor 6 months ago, when it came to actually going to school there, it wasn’t a good fit. As a family, we crave a community. We need to have those people that we run into a drop off and pick up, the parents who we see at school events, church and sports. While there was community at the first school, it wasn’t our kind of community. On top of that, the very strict on campus policies were adding to already difficult drop offs. The morning that I found myself in tears in the front office over an issue with the front desk, I knew something had to change.

So we pulled the plug.

It seems nuts on paper to switch schools just a month into the year. But my gut was screaming “hallelujah!” at just the thought of something different. I sent an email to a friend asking how her experience was as a new student at their school and gave a brief description of what we were working with. She immediately called me and said “you need to get over here, you’re going to love it”.

And she was so right. After a tour, we got an email the same day saying that B’s application was accepted and there were expecting her at the beginning of the next week. When I broke the news to B, she replied “that sounds fine – I have no problem going to a new school” – which seemed very telling to me.

Now going into our second week, I know we made the right choice. Baylor has gone from being dragged out of bed in the morning, begging to know how many days were left in the week and if she really had to go to school all before melting down at drop off, to bouncing out of bed with a smile on her face. She’s excited, happy and loving her fresh-out-of-college and full of ambition teacher. Peter and I are loving the families who have gone out of their way to seek us out, introduce themselves and then quickly include us in school and social activities. Parents have asked their kids to find “the new girl – she’s the really tall blonde girl” and make sure she had someone to eat lunch with and play with on the playground. We are so lucky-blessed-fortunate to have found the right place.

I think the smile says it all.

And yes, that is a new uniform. I am now the proud owner of several hundred dollars worth of uniforms for a school we no longer attend…oh well. The cost of getting it right!

The Month of Firsts

September 6, 2015September 6, 2015Leave a comment

I think it’s safe to say that we are on the road to loving kindergarten.

I think.

I was a little surprised by all the stress and how long it has taken to start to feel a sense of settling in our new routine. Two kids at two different schools. New faces, new names. New wake up times, new bed times. New rules. New clothes. Drop offs and pick ups approximately every 3 hours. Hot lunch or cold lunch. It’s been a lot of new and change.

And while we’ve got all year to get used to this, I hate the surprise of it all. I hate not having a routine, a schedule to schedule by and a lack of efficiency. Which is one of my many pet peeves.

Sadly, I’m not the only one feeling the change. Ms. B has had some epic melt downs at drop off. And that coupled with strict visitor policies at her school, has made for some nightmare mornings. Picture her teacher literally hanging onto her as I pry my leg out of her hands while holding Auggie and then making a break for the door. Yeah.

This week, I had a little treat ready for her each afternoon if the morning drop off went well. It seemed to do the trick along with a car drive through drop off and pick ups. Oh and pizza Wednesdays are really doing the trick, too.

Crossing my fingers that the days ahead look more like the first day and not the second day. Or the third. Or the fifth….