Lazy, or Just Busy?

Friends, I confess that I have cooked only one time this week. Two times if you count the rotisserie chicken I got from Harris Teeter on Monday night. We've had kids' activities the last two nights, and Davis has a T-ball game this evening. No way am I getting home after 6:30 and starting to cook.

I gotta know - what do y'all do for meals on your busy week? My wallet and my waistline need a break from eating out. And my kids need better meals, too.

The one meal I did cook was a hit - fish tacos. So easy. And a hit with all. I used panko breaded tilapia from Trader Joe's. It was good, but the same thing from Costco is a little better. Anyway, I cooked the fish, then whipped up a little guacamole, warmed up some black beans, and, voila, dinner. In 25 minutes. Sorry I don't have a picture - it just all got devoured.

As for these busy evenings, I just don't know what to make. I try so hard with the crock pot, but I am just not a fan of slow-cooker meals. I think they all taste the same. I could also go without meat most nights, and I haven't found any great vegetarian options for the slow cooker. I think when you combine a bunch of canned ingredients and let them simmer all day, it just starts to taste like mush.

I did come across this one on Pinterest, which looks a little more promising:

I'll try it out next week and let you know.

Also, did you see that my all-time fave was chosen as People Magazine's Most Beautiful Woman?

Evidently, lots of people can't stand her. I personally kind of appreciate her overt snobbishness, and the fact that she doesn't pretend to be just like the rest of us.

Happy weekend!

Monday Musings

Lord have mercy, am I glad to see Monday. I know, I know. Crazy. But Morgan has been traveling on and off for 2 weeks, and I was so happy for his return yesterday. I don't really mind doing the single parenting thing during the week, but I hate it when I have to do it over a weekend. The kids and I had planned to spend the weekend in Northern Virginia with my sister, but then the weather wasn't going to be great, and I wasn't looking forward to spending 9-10 hours in the car with the kids. So, trip postponed.

Morgan returned yesterday and handed over some cold hard cash - my cut of his golf trip winnings. What's a girl to do with cash in hand? Shop, of course. I was looking forward to some me time, but I knew Ava would love to have some special girl time, so I took her along. It was the best time I've had with her in a long time. We've been at odds a lot lately, and I think the shopping trip was just the therapy we needed. We even tried on semi-matching stripes at J.Crew:

That dress might have come home with me. J.Crew was kind enough to offer 25% off your whole purchase yesterday. Happy surprise.

Gap was also generous, giving us 30% off. They have some pretty cute stuff right now, including these items:

Striped shorts

maxi dress

Ava got a few things - mostly just some basic tees. She doesn't need much, but definitely needed some basics. She's between sizes in a lot of stuff, so it's hard. Do you buy big and hope maybe she can wear it next year, or wear what fits now, but with no room to grow? 

We finished off our shopping excursion with a trip to Barnes and Noble. We both just read a few books in store. I think I'm going to re-read Gatsby before the movie comes out. I think Leonardo DiCaprio is the perfect choice to play Jay Gatsby.

I also read the first couple of chapters of the book The Dinner. I'm pretty intrigued by it, but it's gotten fairly mixed reviews on Amazon. If you've read it, let me know how it was. 

Happy Monday!

Breaks, Birthday Party, and a Meal Not Finished

Happy Spring, my friends. Now that spring break has come and gone, the weather has finally decided to warm up and act like it's April. The kids and I survived our long spring break, and it was actually pretty fun. We stayed just busy enough. We had a few days at the beach, a few days at home, a birthday, and a little help from the grandparents here and there. I loved not having a morning routine. Relaxing mornings are the best. Of course, when yesterday came, and it was time for everyone to get back to school, I wasn't complaining.

Davis had his birthday party over the weekend. We kept it small. He insisted that Ava be the only invited girl, so we just had the boys from his class and a couple of other friends. That made it easy. We had a local guy named Coach Scott come over and run the party.

I keep telling him now that he's 4, I really expect the 3-year-old behavior to be gone. So far, he's about 50/50 on that. "Stupid" and "idiot" are still among his favorite words. We've entered the questions phase, too. Today, in the car, these are the ones I got:

"Mommy, how do we talk?"
"Mommy, how do we go poop?"
"Mommy, how do we go pee?"
"Mommy, where did we get our house?"

And, at the same time, he seems to be bringing Ava down to his level of antics and humor. I guess it's a lowest common denominator, thing, but she is often behaving like a 4 year old herself. Mealtime, for instance, is terrible lately. My kids have apparently forgotten every manners lesson I have ever taught them. Davis will start doing something silly, and Ava breaks into hysterical and uncontrollable giggles, which just encourages Davis. Then I call them down and they laugh even harder. By then I'm just mad. Tonight, I ended up exiling Ava into the playroom (nee dining room) where she had to finish her meal alone at the kids' play table. They were unscathed by my punishment, and just proceeded to yell 'hi' to one another. After a threat or 2, I deemed that dinner was over and removed their plates from their tables. They won't starve.

Maybe I just need to send them to boot camp for the summer?

FOUR!

Today, my youngest child turns 4. It's a cliche to say he's growing up too fast, but he's growing up too fast. He's stubborn, bright, headstrong, but, at the end of the day, sweet as can be. Here's my little birthday letter to him:

Dear Davis,

Today, you turn four. It seems like only a few weeks ago that I brought you home from the hospital, just a little 8 pound baby boy. You were pretty chilled out as a baby - we had no idea of the wildness brewing inside of you!

These days, you are all boy. You adore Star Wars, Spider-Man, and turning anything into a gun. One minute you're a cuddly little boy, the next, you're squirming away from me, ready for the next adventure. You're at once adorable and frustrating, pushing my mommy limits like nobody's business.

You love sports, and that was evident from the get-go. In fact, you love anything that keeps you on the go. You would live outside if you could.

You're a good little brother. You and Ava fight like any siblings, but I see the way you look at her. You think she's the coolest. And when she actually comes down from her 7 year old world to play with you, you are thrilled. I can't wait to see how close the two of you are when you grow up, and I'm so happy that you have each other.

You insist on wearing what you want to wear, and I've just about given up the battle. We've gone from smocked longalls to Superheroes and athletic shorts in a really short time. I guess I have to let you be you, though. I may protest, but I secretly like that you know what you want. It will serve you well when you grow up.

You are so energetic, and I can't always keep up. You are the reason I am so exhausted at night. You talk NONSTOP. You are smart, curious and spirited. You wear me out, but I love you anyway. It's amazing that I can spend a day fussing at you for breaking every rule we have, but at the end of the day, I look at your sweet face, and feel nothing but love for you.

You made us a family of four, and we can't imagine things any other way. 

Oh, and be warned - whoever you marry is going to have to be pretty darn perfect, because I can't give you up to just anyone. 

Love,

Mommy

Ten Things for Thursday

Just a list of what's up around here lately:

1. As I mentioned on Facebook the other day, my kids aren't really overscheduled, but I think I am. Meaning, I am in the car all the time picking up or dropping off one child or another. This will all be easier in 18 months when they are in the same school, on the same schedule. Until then, I live in my car.

2. I blame the aforementioned on said car being a trash can on wheels little messy.

3. I also blame the aforementioned on the house being a little messy. And maybe that's why the laundry keeps piling up. Or, it could be because instead of putting clothes away, Ava has figured out that it's easier for her to put them in the laundry basket, regardless of how dirty they actually are.

4. I am obsessed with Instagram, and am guilting of posting way too often. Apologies if you follow me. But not really.

5. If Spring doesn't hurry up and get here, I am booking a tropical vacation, stat. I nearly froze on the tennis court this morning.

6. Davis is not waiting for spring. He is wearing shorts every day. And on the rare day I can convince him to wear pants to school, he changes as soon as he gets home. Also, everyday I tell my self I'm not going to fight him on clothing, and everyday, I get all bent out of shape and try to talk some sense into him. If he'd want to wear his cute crewcuts shorts all the time, I could get on board with it. But it's "sports shorts" (his term) that he wants. Ugh. Next thing you know, he's going to want some black Nike Elite socks to go with them.

7. Ava's new bunk bed has made me seriously lazy about washing/changing her sheets. That bed is so damn hard to make up. I will not shame myself by telling you how long it's really been since they were changed. It's bad, though. Really bad.

8. Even though I'm ready for spring, I'm not ready for bathing suit weather. Ick.

9. Ava and I got in an argument last night about swim team. I say she's doing it again, she says she's not. What's the appropriate amount to push your kids in such things? I think I'm going to win out on this one. It's $50, which, as a friend of mine said, is the best bargain you can get for 2 months of swim lessons.

10. I have officially gone back into selling real estate. I didn't think I'd ever do it, but here I am, eating my words, and feeling pretty excited about it. So, Raleigh friends, please send a little business my way!
(Shameless self-promotion).

Can I Really DIY?

It's been well over a year since we remodeled our kitchen. While I love it, the windows are still bare, and as my mom likes to remind me, we do need a little pop of color in the room. I love the Revere Pewter on the walls, and the white cabinets, but my windows are bare. save for blinds, and need some sprucing in a major way.

As much as I love custom window treatments, I'm not prepared to pay for them. Additionally, I don't find many mass-produced window treatments I'm gaga over, either. What's a girl with a frugal husband to do?

Well, thanks to the world of Pinterest, that may no longer be an issue. I'm found this No-Sew Roman Shade tutorial that I think might even be within my very limited scope of DIY. Seriously, guys. I am the opposite of crafty, so this is a really big deal.

On Saturday, I got the bug to get my project started. First stop was Printer's Alley, to scope out fabrics. I already had it in my mind that I wanted something in an ikat, trellis, chevron, or quatrefoil design. I just wasn't sure about color. As I said, the kitchen is gray and white, my table is black - I can pretty much go with any color scheme I want to. I have one smaller window over my sink, which is getting the Roman treatment, and a large window in front of my table. I'm thinking valance on that one.

Of course, as always happens with me, I picked a few fabrics, and that's where the project came to a halt. I couldn't make a decision. Here are the fabrics I have narrowed it down to. At least until I hit up another fabric store.

 Bold and fun.

Not exactly a geometric, but the design is really beautiful.

Probably my favorite. They had these panels already made up in this fabric. I would have liked to have taken them for Ava's bedroom, to be honest.

Any thoughts? Especially from my designer aunt? (Hi Nancy!)

And whatever I get, I think I'm going to have the talented Holly of Storywood Designs make a family bulletin board using a black frame and whatever fabric I choose, or at least a coordinating print. 

Let's just see how quickly I can get this accomplished. So far, it's only taken 14 months. 

Channeling the Olden Days via Laundry

What a week. Nothing too insane - just busy, busy. I've been out every night this week except for Monday, and have plans tonight and tomorrow night. That's intense for a homebody like me.

The low point of the week is that our dryer broke. Not only did it break, it's fried. It broke on Monday. I was suspicious when a strange, burning odor was coming from the laundry room. Never one to want to burn my house down, I cut the dryer off. Then, after a nice Google search, I got to work as Household Engineer, and started pulling things apart to clean them out. Things seemed to be fine, but then the burning smell returned. In fact, I could smell it from the other end of our house. Hmmm. Morgan said he thought we should just unplug it, which I started to do. However, the giant pop and subsequent flame spark led me to back away.

I'll cut to the chase. Repair guy came 2 days later. He said he thought it needed a new something or other, and was going to cost a total of about $300. Good times. He planned to come back with the part later that evening. I went out for wine with some girlfriends, and while I was out, I got the following text from Morgan:

*When I typed "crap", it autocorrected to "crisp".  Love the iphone.

I ordered a new dryer yesterday, but it's not coming til Tuesday. So, I'm living like my ancestors, and LINE DRYING everything. It's kind of crazy. I finally figured out the best thing to do is put the drying rack in my bathroom close to the heat vent and close the door. Much faster drying that way. But really, y'all, it's a huge pain. A First World Problem, yes, but still a pain.

Plus, I kind of wanted some new clothes, and not a new dryer.

Like these two tops from J.Crew Factory: (currently 25% off with code 'moreplease'. You're welcome.)

via

Maybe these jeans, too. Are we still doing colored denim?

via

And these TB Caroline flats:

via

Not to mention the 5 or 6 Baublebar necklaces I'm lusting after.....sigh. 

Anyway, I'm off to wash another load of clothes. One a day is about all I can manage with this line dry situation. 

Happy Friday to you all!