July Favorite Things

1. the lights in downtown at buckham alley fest

2. riding shotgun to fun

3. a good reason to open my hood more than once a year

4. my brother and my husband

5. date night at a bnl concert

6. the best way to travel

7. coming home to a yard that someone else mowed- lawn services ftw

8. gun shows

9. beautiful summer skies

10. a festive fourth of july mani

11. hoping for claudia

12. summertime vodka lemonaid

 13. doing more of what makes us happy

14. making wishes

15. family date nights

16. best seat in the house

and some slip n' slide action, just because

That Wonderful Amazing Weekend My Best Friend Was Here. Oh, and Beyonce.

My sister from another mister, my spirit animal, my ride or die confidant, the Alex to my Piper, the only woman on this planet who truly gets me 100%, my Mary Anne came to stay with me for the weekend.

And it was amazing.

We overindulged, we made complete asses of ourselves, we couldn't finish games or drinks, or hell, even sentences, because we were laughing so hard, and the best part? Not a single fuck was given. We were too happy to be together. It's been entirely too long since an ABC+MA reunion happened.

There were massages.

And a glam dress up sesh with our own personal fauxtog.

Oh, and floor tickets to Beyonce. No big deal.

In all honesty, as amazing as all that was, the absolute best part was having my girl in my house, spending time with her. Catching up on our lives, talking boys and boobs and babies. Whether we were making terrible decisions at 1am while laying in the luxurious grass, or covered in blankets with the air on blast while eating thin crackers and fancy cheese and watching Orange is the New Black, or dancing our asses off at one of the best concerts we've ever been to, we were laughing and happy, and it was perfect. 

Dating My Kids: Fun Run Date

This is the fourth installment of the Dating My Kids series.

Last year Clay and I signed our kids up for their first 5k. Hell, it was our first 5k! We decided on The Color Run, because, well, it's the happiest 5k on the planet. Can't beat that, right? And honestly, we had such a blast participating that we've made it into our annual thing. Last weekend was our second Color Run and it was every bit as much fun as our first. 

We got blasted with pink, then orange, then blue, then yellow (by yellow Em was over getting her picture taken). 

We still brought our wagon for the kids although they walked/ran much more this year. You can tell they're getting stronger. And although this 5k isn't timed, I swear we finished it faster than last year.

If you've never done a 5k before, you may be hesitant to sign your self up, let alone your children, but trust me, the Color Run is very family friendly. There are a ton of kids participating! It's not timed so you can walk the entire length if you'd like and you can bring strollers and wagons.  The volunteers throwing the color are very considerate of children- they'll throw as much color as the kids (and parents) are comfortable with, and you can always cover your and your children's faces with a bandana.

I promise you will feel amazing when you finish. Your entire family will. Narls kept saying over and over how this was the best day of his life, Em danced pretty much the entire time, and Clay & I could not stop smiling.

So go sign up! There are a bunch of variations popping up all over like Color Me Radd, the Color Vibe, etc. I cannot say if they're as family-friend as the Color Run, but it's worth a look. Your kids will thank you.

Root Root Root for the Home Team

Another season of the kiddos' baseball is over.

I gotta admit, I enjoyed spending the evenings at the ball field, watching Narls and Em hit and catch baseballs with their teams. They improved a ton, although they were pretty damn good last year too.

 

Clay coached Em's t-ball team again this year. My husband is in his element with these kids on this field. I love watching him interact with them; he truly is amazing with children and such a great coach.

This was Narls' second year of coach-pitched hitting and he did AMAZING. So proud of that boy.

I'm seriously going to miss watching them play.

Losing A Tooth is A Big Deal

I mentioned that we had an amazeballs Fourth of July holiday, right? We've made it our tradition to see the fireworks on the 3rd, so we spend the 4th at home- grilling out, lighting sparklers, playing some Wii bowling before bed. And it was right during Narls' ninth frame that he realizes, hey my loose tooth just fell out. Panic and excitement ensues!

We've all been waiting for this first wiggly tooth to come out. Narls speculated that it was loose probably about six months ago (it wasn't loose at all), when a few of his kindergarten friends started to lose their teeth.  He's been anxiously awaiting the Tooth Fairy ever since.

He had one condition with this tooth though, he wanted to keep it. He has a jewelry Special Things box filled with first place ribbons and cool rocks and those plastic rings you get off birthday party cupcakes, and he wants his first lost tooth to reside in there as well.   Who are Clay and I to change his mind? We did mention that the Tooth Fairy isn't likely to leave a prize if she can't take a tooth, so Narls wrote her a letter.

His note: Dear Tooth Fairy, please do not take this tooth.  But still give me my dollars please.  

From: Narls  

PS I will give you a valuable gem.

A fair replacement, I'd say.

In exchange for his tooth the valuable gem, the Tooth Fairy left him a note, a glitter-covered dollar to spend, and a shiny brand new 2013 penny to save. There was fairy dust all over his pillow, too. He woke up a very happy boy.

Fourth of July Festivities

Happy kiddos,

a spectacular fireworks  show,

catching fireflies, laughing with my love, lighting sparklers with friends,

a comedy show, face (and hand!) painting, balloon animals, and a boat ride during a family trip to crossroads village,

yummy food and delicious wine,

all followed by sparklers and fountains in the backyard.

It was a perfect Fourth of July weekend. It couldn't have been better.

Run Like A Girl

Last weekend, four of my oldest & dearest friends and I ran our first 5K obstacle mud run. 

And seriously, it was amazing. We had an absolute blast.

We've been wanting to do something like this for a while, and decided on the Dirty Girl because it donates a portion of its profits to breast cancer, something that is near & dear to all of our hearts.

None of these six pictures are mine; they're from the Dirty Girl website.

Some of the obstacles were tough, and you have the option to forgo any that seem out of your realm of comfort. I'm proud to say that my group completed each one and we had varying levels of "training"; for example, Kandi just had a baby not even a year ago and Chrissy runs 2-3 miles every morning. Sarah and I were somewhere in the middle. Each one of us loved it and can't wait for next year's run.

If you have a chance to do something like this, I totally recommend it. The energy, comradery, and overall feeling of accomplishment you get when you cross the finish line - or in this case, slide down into some mud, are incredible.