What I Wore No. 296

No. 1

Target dress, Maurice's shirt, Trend Shoes booties

No. 2 

TJ Maxx top, Target cardigan, American Eagle jeans, Fred Meyers sandals

No. 3

Ross blouse, Target shorts, Fred Meyers sandals

No. 4

Maurice's top, American Eagle jeans, Mayari Birkenstocks, Fossil purse, Nickel & Suede earrings

Thank goodness for that purple dress because my summer wardrobe is looking a bit bland lately!

(And also not what you'd call super summery... can you believe we've only had 9 days so far in July that it's even reached 80 degrees? C'mon sunshine - we just bought a pool!)

Happy Wednesday!

Monday Confessional {more small confessions}

1. Yesterday I went shopping with my mum and sister to help them find dresses to wear to my brother's upcoming wedding. I already have my dress (two actually, purchased when I found them back in May because they were both such great deals and I loved them both), so I was solely along for the ride and playing the role of style advisor.

And that is the story of how I came home with a third dress.

Don't be like me.

2. Chick-Fil-A recently came to the state of Oregon and opened a location right in the area of town I do all of my shopping. After avoiding the long lines for the first couple of months, I finally made my way there and discovered their fresh squeezed lemonade, waffle fries and chicken sandwiches, and the all-important original sauce.

This picture was taken last Thursday night and it was my third visit in one week. 

I am in trouble. 

3. Last week we were given a large box of fresh-picked blueberries as a thank you gift.

After washing them, I reminded everyone not to eat too many at a time or they would deeply regret it... if you know what I mean. I then proceeded to ignore my own advice and ate and ate and ate, because they were just so delicious and tempting, and I don't think I have to explain why I may never be able to look at another blueberry again. 

I'm so sorry, dear digestive system. 

Monday confessional, over and ouuuuttttt. 

On Tuesday... {Diary of a mom - SUMMER edition}

Tuesday 7/19/16

7:56 am - rudely awakened by teen #1 who's in a complete panic because she slept in and missed her ride to weights/track workout. Am begged to jump up and take her ASAP. Respond, "You snooze, you lose, girlfriend".

7:57 am - remember I agreed to give teen #1's friend a ride home afterwards so it would be awkward if teen wasn't there. Grumpily get up and wonder out loud if teen's ride forgot to come get her because I think I would have been woken by a knock on the door. Teen says, "well the doorbell ringing is what woke me up..." Realize I was obviously in a cryogenic sleep and feel deep foreboding over our back-to-school morning transition, come September.

8:20 am - arrive back home from dropping teen off to find child #3 (8 years old), dressed in pajamas, riding his scooter in the driveway.
Me: "Morning, bud! I didn't think you'd wake up while I was gone, is your brother (teen #2) up too?"
Child #3: "Cooper's here? I thought you guys were all gone!"
Me: "You woke up and thought you were all alone... so you came outside to ride your scooter?!"
Child #3: "I'm practicing my jumps, mom!"
Me: *stares blankly at strange child*
Obviously have a third child on my hands. After reminding him I would never leave him home alone, and that his brother slept in his tent in the backyard last night, dutifully watch him do jumps over sticks with his scooter for ten hours. (Or two minutes. SAME DIFF.)

8:25 am - climb back in bed to browse instagram/facebook/twitter/blogs until it's time to go back to town to pick up teen #1 because technically I would have still been sleeping if not for the early interruption and wouldn't have started doing house chores yet. Feel no regret.

10:00 am - back home from daughter pick up/friend drop off/gas stop/coffee drive-thru. Kick boys off Minecraft and tell them I'm going to the bathroom and then it's chore time so, "brace yourselves". While in bathroom browse phone again (I'm sorry, it happens. And it's summer. So I'm not sorry.) and come across very interesting article and decide to flop across bed to finish it. Rabbit trail through several news stories and political commentary until I realize my phone is at 20% battery and it's 11:00 am. Plug phone in on nightstand and swear not to touch it for 6 hours.

11:00 am - announce that it's FOR REAL chore time and discover teen #2 has completely cleaned living room/kitchen/bathroom/and laundry and everything looks immaculate, and he is now listening to an audiobook while relaxing on the couch.
Me: "Cooper! Why did you do all this before I even assigned chores? Also, why are you an angel sent to me from heaven?"
Teen #2: "I just hate putting off chores. I like to get them done as quickly as possible so I can be free!"
Me (in front of the other two children I birthed): "YOU ARE MY FAVORITE OF ALL MY CHILDREN AND I LOVE YOU THE VERY, VERY MOST OF ALL!"
Teen #1: *rolls eyes*
Child #3: *giggles*
Me: *performs happy dance then kisses and hugs teen #2 profusely*
Teen #2: *squirms away and returns to audiobook*

11:05 - 12:30 pm: power-chore time with teen #1 and child #3. Get everything done that needs doing plus a few extras (sweep cobwebs off siding, move pavers that used to be our deck steps now we have real ones, skim pool, etc.) Pat self on back that we are quick and efficient workers when we want to be.

12:30 pm: do-what-we-want time. I read several chapters of a new bible study book I've started. Teen #1 plays the piano and sings. Teen #2 creates stop motion videos with very elaborate backdrops that I keep having to climb over. Child #3 disappears for a while and I discover him cruising up and down our elderly neighbor's driveway on Mr. Hiscoe's motorized mobility scooter while Mrs. Hiscoe gardens in her muumuu and Mr. Hiscoe supervises. Again, THIRD CHILD.

2:00 pm: drop teens off at dentist for cleanings and take child #3 to park. Supervise CLOSELY, for obvious reasons.

3:30 pm: arrive back home and decide I can fit in a 20 minute power nap before husband arrives home at 4 pm and it's time to start dinner.

3:35 pm: husband Facetimes from Home Depot and needs me to walk outside and measure something. Wail and gnash teeth at the unfairness of life and forlornly wave goodbye to naptime. Proceed to argue about what measuring something from "the tip" means. The top? The corner? The top of the corner? Be more specific! I could have been napping!

4:00 pm: I don't even know. But I'm sure I was grumpy for it.

5:00 pm: take teen #1 and neighbor girl to volleyball open gym. Promise to not forget to pick them up like last week and set alarm in phone this time.

5:30 pm: eat homemade dinner with husband and boys and try to put a damper on all the potty humor going down.

6:30 pm: remember to go get girls from open gym. (Because alarm goes off.) Give self an atta girl for thinking to set alarm. Girl, you brilliant.

7:00 pm: watch husband and his best friend install and hook up can lights in front porch roof and dance for joy at outdoor lighting on front porch for the first time in over ten years! Ponder the thought that it only took an hour to complete a project that's been needed for over a decade. Quickly decide to move on. (Also water flower beds.)

8:00 pm: Watch America's Got Talent with the family while child #3 drives toy cars over my legs because my quilt has "roads" (patchwork intertwining circles) all over it. Don't even mind because FREE LEG MASSAGE.

10:00 pm: kiss all family members goodnight and consider climbing in bed too, but succumb to the pull of Friends season 9 on Netflix. Tell self you can nap tomorrow. (Ignore self who reminds you that never seems to work out.)

Midnight: while shutting down house, turn on new porch lights for the 7th or 20th time and grin like a Cheshire cat. It's been a wonderful day.

What I Wore No. 295

No. 1

Costco dress & belt, Maurice's cardigan, Fred Meyer's sandals, Nickel & Suede earrings, Guess sunglasses

No. 2 

Ross top, American Eagle jeans, Mayari Birkenstocks

No. 3 

Target tank top & sandals, Maurice's shirt, Eddie Bauer skinny jeans

No. 4 

Target tee, Kohl's skirt, Mayari Birkenstocks, Maurice's necklace

No. 5 

Target tank top (again), First Kiss shorts, Fred Meyer sandals

Hash tag: stripe game strong ;)

Happy Wednesday.

Awkward & Awesome - The Monday Edition

Awkward:
- Well first of all, awkward is definitely how I feel about missing almost two weeks of blogging for no reason at all except I'm enjoying me some summer vacation.

You may be interested to know I've watched 8 seasons of Friends on Netflix, let my kids have all the backyard sleepouts and cousin/friend sleepovers they could ever wish for, said yes to pretty much everything that doesn't cost money (including after-dark swim sessions with the neighbor kids and 10 pm pancake feeds), watched a lot of Disney movies with my almost-two-year-old nephew, and caught up on all the naps I missed during baseball season. It's been fantastic.

- Sitting in a nice restaurant and glancing over at the table next to you to witness a rather buxom chested woman try to remove the sauce she just spilled on the front of her right breast by cupping it in a firm grip and aiming it upwards towards her so she can attack it with a Tide pen. Awkwardness level: train wreck... can't look away.

- After having a fit of the giggles over the above scene, noticing you've spilling sauce on your OWN shirt, and proceeding to make your sister ask to borrow Ms. Buxom's tide pen for a moment. (Sisters are the best.) And not only did the lady say I could use her pen, she had two and let me keep one!

FYI: I waited till I was back in our car to apply it.

Awesome:
- Deck progress, baby! With the help of our nephew, Sam, Russ finished building all our step supports this past week, and then on Friday decked two sides all by himself!

He's so handy! We had fun stuff to do on Saturday and Sunday so the third side will be decked this coming week, and then the whole thing will get powerwashed and stained. So fun to make progress. And to have stairs to walk down!

- Seeing the musical West Side Story for the very first time and LOVING it!

- Also, going with a group of ladies who aren't afraid to order dessert with their meals at dinner out beforehand, OR stop for pie and two hours of visiting afterwards! 

- When your kids don't play with plastic toys at the beach anymore, but instead spend hours creating "crime scenes" with their cousins and then take 52 pictures of their work.

- MIGHTY proud of their work they were too. (insert crying while laughing emoji here :)

The Happy Fourth {2016 Edition}

Our 2016 Fourth of July Agenda:

- parade it up

- brunch at the sister's

- back home to finish filling new pool and take naps

- rodeo it up

-fireworks!!!

Everything went according to plan and we gave the day 10 thumbs up (from all five of us.)

Kelly and Lincoln. The parade hadn't started yet but a police car went by warning everyone over a loudspeaker to clear the street and Lincoln was VERY excited about it ;)

We could not get a picture without one or the other cracking some joke and making the other laugh. BROTHERS. 

Sweet cousins. MUCH easier to photograph.

Drew, Cooper, & Judah (I was going to type "also cousins" but it's not really true because even though Coop and Drew are cousins and Drew and Judah are cousins, Cooper and Judah are not cousins. Just best friends. Sooooo.... yep.)

Dave & Hayden ran the 5k and Hayden loved it! We were so proud of him!

Safeway definitely won the award for kids favorite parade float this year... they RAINED candy down on the streets like a winter hail storm. It was insane. 

Our three. Pretty sure Blake's got candy stuffed in his cheek.

Brunch at my sister's with family and friends. Perfect weather for outdoor eating and also not having to prepare a meal for my family after all that taxing parade-watching.

NOT PICTURED: the new pool and the naps. Both went well.

Rodeo time! My very favorite Fourth of July activity :) Especially with family!

Dave & Kelly and their boys, my parents, Jay & Christine, Russ, and Blake's eye. (In my mother's defense, she wasn't warned about the picture and had a mouthful of elephant ear, haha.)

Uncle Jamin sharing his caramel corn.

This was Christine's (Jay's fiance) very first rodeo! She's a Starbucks manager from Portland and the Molalla Buckeroo is about as redneck as it comes so I was a little nervous about what she'd think of it, but she seemed to enjoy herself! Atta girl, Christine ;)

The show was great, we loved the fireworks afterwards, and the elephant ears were as heavenly as ever :)

Hope everyone had a wonderful holiday.