Dear Thursday....

Dear humidity, I'd appreciate it if you slowed your roll and stopped showing up all the time. My hair would greatly appreciate not being frizzy/wavy within 3.5 seconds of stepping outside most days Mmmkay!

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Dear Blogger, why did you stop allowing comments to arrive via email? Now I can't respond to people who comment on the blog. Apparently I'm not the only one dealing with this but there was a bit there on Friday that I literally thought no one was commenting until I logged in and saw the ones awaiting approval. Anyone know of a fix for this??

Dear parents who want services for their kids at school (speech, ot, sped, etc), please do NOT wait until 2 weeks before the end of the school year to request services. This is a SUPER busy time of year and testing can take weeks to complete, not including the number of meetings needed to get through this process from start to completion. Also, if you email me, asking me about this, don't wait SIX WEEKS to respond to me, and then expect me to get everything done in the last two weeks of school. UGH!

Dear Day Date, I heart you. On Tuesday I had a meeting in the afternoon with my supervisor that put me about 5 minutes from home. MG happened to be home that day so we met up for coffee afterwards before I went to pick up Ella from daycare (20+ minutes back in the opposite direction). It was nice to have 30 minutes to just chat, uninterrupted,  and sip on some iced coffee. Not something we really ever get to do during the work week so it was a nice treat.

Dear Bachelorette, I feel like the number of DUDS on this season of Bachelorette was record setting. So many of them seemed super awkward or just bizarre. The guy she gave the first impression rose to (Garrett I think) was my top pick. I have a feeling this season is going to be super blah unfortunately. I also feel like every season has gotten more and more blah.

Dear Goodreads, I love seeing my friends' recommendations and thoughts on books, and I particularly love your Deals for books that I've been waiting to read. $2 instead of $10 is a-okay with me! Yesterday was a Diane Chamberlain book that I've wanted to get for a while (on sale through today)! My TBR list keeps getting longer and longer!

Dear Home Inspection (on the condo), you went so so well and we are SO glad that nothing major came up to negate us selling the condo. Next up: Closing in a month and good-bye renter!

Dear Passwords, I seriously CAN NOT keep track of my passwords for different accounts, etc. I try and keep it the same to remember, and then I get locked out of one, and end up changing it, then not remembering what I changed it to because of all the requirements. I'm over it! I think they have some apps that do this stuff for you and I may look into it, because I'm tired of not being able to get into my stuff!!

Dear Ella-bear, I can't believe another month has gone by and you're 13 months old now! Time continues to fly, and you continue to grow and make life more fun. You're super snuggly lately (when you're not getting into stuff haha) and I love it!

{WHW}: MDW recap

Once again I was MIA at the start of this week coming off of the long weekend, so I'm recapping our trip to PA today instead!

Highlights:

~waking up Friday morning to no alarm and no traffic to fight because we drove up to PA the night before

~Ran out for a little over an hour with MG while Ella napped, knowing she was in good hands with my MIL

~Surprised our youngest niece at school during her recess by showing up with Ella in tow! She was a little disappointed to not be leaving with us though 

~Went over to my SIL's house in the afternoon to hang for a while. MG took Ella into the pool, and I got to spend some time with my MIL, SIL and our friend, drinking wine on the deck and watching the kids play.

~Saturday turned insanely humid, but the thunderstorms stayed at bay thankfully, allowing us to get in some nice outdoor time on the deck during the day with baby who ended up having a nakie water time outside playing with a bowl of water and measuring cups. Literally for over an hour she was so entertained and we were dying at the cuteness.

~We actually went to an open house for new construction houses up near my in-laws house. We've toyed with the idea of moving up to PA in the future...and we kind of wanted to tease ourselves into seeing what we could get up there. I will say, it was motivating, and it's sparked more moving conversations for us.

~We went out to dinner that night with my MIL and FIL and Ella was acting like a crazy person. She barely ate much other than sweet potato fries (not that I can blame her) and she was super fussy. I managed to snap a moment of happiness from her before we left though.

~Because of her crankiness and my FIL's jet lag from getting back from Greece at midnight the night before, we decided to just go back to my in-law's house instead of going to my sister's house to hang for a bit.

Ella was SO hard to put down that night. Her cough had gotten worse, and she was just super clingy, crying...not like her.

~Sunday morning we woke up to a coughing baby and took her to urgent care during an insane storm/downpour, just to make sure nothing was in her chest. Turns out she had her first ear infection. Luckily we were able to get antibiotics right there.

~The weather was crummy all day so we pretty much stayed in until after Ella's afternoon nap (which I had to hold her for), and then headed to my niece's graduation party. Luckily it wasn't raining anymore, just humid and misting, and the party went off without a hitch. The girls there loved Ella and played with her so I could get some adult time in before heading home around 8 for bedtime.

Center of Attention

Ella and her uncle--she looks SO tiny in his arms because he's a BIG guy!

~We'd planned to go back to the party once my in-laws came home but Ella was struggling to sleep again, and coughed so hard she threw up, so we decided to just call it a night and stay in.

~Monday we woke up, ate breakfast, MG helped his dad move some furniture at his office, I packed up our stuff and the car, and we hit the road home around 9:30 and got home a little after noon.

~We tried out a new InstantPot recipe (taco pasta--could also be called Chili Mac) which was delicious, and MG found a copycat version of the Chuy's jalapeno ranch dip so he made that as well, which was amazing!

We also took some time to reflect on those who have lost their lives in service to our country so that we can have the freedoms that we have today. Memorial day weekend is more than just cookouts and time off of work, and our family is so thankful for the service members currently serving, those in the past, and especially those who are no longer with us.

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Weekly Wins: MDW

Happy Friday, before a long weekend, friends! How it's already Memorial Day Weekend, I have NO idea, but I'm welcoming the long weekend with open arms!

This week was really busy at work, and likely will be until the end of the school year (3 weeks!) due to all of the last minute things that pop up, etc. I just got signed off to test a student that I'm supposed to have 30 days to test, and I have 10 so there's that...

Despite that and the busy-ness, there are some wins this week:

~Old navy sales/cute clothes, which I talked about on Wednesday

~MG and I both took off work today and headed up to PA last night since our daycare person couldn't watch Ella today. We figured we'd just get in some extra time with the family since we were coming up for our niece's graduation party (which is looking like it may get rained out--huuuuuge bummer!)

Extra long weekend for us, with some added family time, and I'm not sad about it in the slightest.

~Gorgeous temps, with no or very low humidity days/evenings, allowing for after dinner walks this week. Not a bad way to spend family time, and working off the dinner calories

~Lots of compliments on my haircut this week--always a nice feeling :)

Also, this girl also loves seeing herself on a phone screen--which likely means trouble in the future but it's cute now!

~Our home inspection of the condo came back and there were only some minor things that they requested, so hopefully we are past that potential hurdle in this whole selling process

Before I go, I wanted to send out a happy birthday wish to my friend Bree AND to her son who turns one today (yes, he was born ON her birthday last year). Hoping you both have a special day and weekend to celebrate together!! Love you!

A throwback to my favorite photo of us from our single days many many moons ago! :)

Happy MDW, everyone! Enjoy your hotdogs/hamburgers and patriotism!!

{WHW}: Old Navy Does it Again

Sorry for the late post today--I was a little behind on things and my computer was being super slow last night so I gave up on finishing my post until this morning.

This is NOT a sponsored post (but I wish that it was because then maybe that would help pay for my latest Old Navy haul). 

Is it me or is Old Navy kind of killing it lately? I remember a few years ago it was totally hit or miss when shopping there (with a lot more misses than hits) and now it's like every time I go to the store or the website, I find 5-10 things that I want!

Well, last week was no exception, so I thought I'd share my latest haul with you, which will be arriving in the next week or so. All of the stuff I got for myself are more staple pieces, and nothing too "special", but good pieces to get through the summer. Ella's stuff, on the other hand...super cuteness!

(All photos from OldNavy's website)

Can't resist a cute pineapple print!

These shorts are THE cutest!

Because I can't resist a baby in a sunhat--and we'll be at the beach so this will be practical and cute

Have you been suckered into Old Navy's sales lately? Finding anything good??

Link up below and share what's hap-"pinning" with you!

Wine'ing Through the Weekend

Which is better than whining through the weekend, right?

We finally got a break in the rain this weekend after 7ish straight days of cloudy, wet days. Right in time for us to be able to make it to wine fest without getting drenched!! 

Some other highlights from the weekend:

~Family (my MIL, SIL and two nieces) made it into town around 11pm Friday night after my one niece did our oldest niece's hair and make-up for her senior prom. Also, how gorgeous is our oldest niece?? She is stunnnnnnning!

~Saturday morning we were all up at 7ish because #baby which was actually fine because we got to catch the Royal Wedding. I'd recorded it so I could watch all of the beginning hoopla (and fast forward), but we turned it on right as Meghan was arriving for the ceremony which was perfect.

Call me crazy but none of us were very excited about her dress or her hair for the ceremony--it was all just very plain and not what I was expecting. 

~MG ran over to do some work on the condo before the home inspection this week and the rest of us just hung out at the house since the weather was so crummy. 

~I got a haircut while Ella was napping and when I got back, we packed up and headed to the mall for some lunch and some shopping which was a good indoor activity when the weather was crap.

~We got back in time for Ella's afternoon nap, and MG and I got ready to head to our friends' house for a pre-wine fest dinner/hangout. They used their smoker again to make some delicious wings, had sandwiches and sides. I chose to stick with water to hydrate before going to winefest which was a good idea.

~Ella apparently had a good time with the family, eating out, playing with bubbles, going to HomeGoods, etc. It was nice that they got that time to spend with her, and bond, since when I'm around all she wants is mommy a lot of the time.

~Luckily the weather had cleared up by the time we got to our friends' house, it was just kind of humid out--perfect for messing up your hair while being outdoors haha, but we enjoyed our time sampling more than 10 winery's wines and hanging with our friends.

~The bummer of the evening happened when we ordered our Uber at 9 when the event ended, and it said it was 20 minutes away which was a HUGE bummer, but what was worse was that the driver canceled the ride 5 minutes before he was supposed to get us, so we had to order another one...which then was another 20 something minute wait, so we didn't get home until 10:15 that night.

We hung out with the family for another hour or so before heading to bed--we were all wiped!

~Sunday morning was a little rough but we pulled through. Family left around 10:30, MG ran errands and Ella napped for 2 hours while we got stuff done around the house (I wish I had napped like she did though!)  

~In the afternoon I ran a couple of errands and then had to hold Ella for her nap because she spent 45 minutes fighting it, and would fall asleep every time I went up and held her to calm her down so I gave in and let her sleep on me. It's been SO long since she's done this that I just sat there and enjoyed the snuggly little baby, listening to her breathe...it was sweet, relaxing, and good for my mama soul.

~After that I headed to a massage that I'd had scheduled and it was amazzzzzing like always. #mushy

~We ordered in pizza because neither of us felt like cooking and we did bathtime/bedtime with Ella, and then watched more episodes of Outlander before heading to bed.

It's been SO nice to see the sunshine these last two days--my eyes almost didn't know what to do when they saw the sun on Sunday morning! haha

We were super lucky to have MG's family come down to spend some time with us, and also take care of our girl. Luckily we'll get to see everyone again next weekend for our oldest niece's graduation party!

{Weekly Wins}: Rain Rain Go Away

Anyone seen Noah around here lately, because I think someone should start building an ark with the number of days we've had rain, and the amount that's come down! I'm starting to forget what the sun looks like this week!!

Despite the rain, the week had several wins:

~Made it through a marathon day of meetings on Monday, checking things off of my end of the year to-do list! I can't believe the end of the year is already approaching (for us in VA it's still much later than for the rest of the teachers in the country--June 15th here!)

~My SIL, MIL and 2 nieces are coming down this weekend and I'm really looking forward to it! They're always so fun to spend time with, and I know they're looking forward to their solo time with Ella while MG and I attend Wine Fest at Mount Vernon (assuming it's not completely rained out)!

~Pre-wine fest dinner plans at our friends' house, followed by lots of wiiiiiiiiiine! 

~Getting an offer on our condo and accepting it after a little bit of negotiations! We were really nervous about this getting done and are super excited someone came along so quickly and fell in love with our old place. I'm not gonna lie, I had a little bittersweet feeling since this was the place that MG and I lived together in, came home to when we were married...it's got lots of special memories for us, but definitely also excited to move forward and not have the burden of being landlords anymore.

~Ella tried her first popsicle (freezer pop) this week and was SUPER into it! Watching these new experiences of, and reactions to everyday things is just so much fun!

~Haircut scheduled for Saturday morning. Definitely ready for a summer length!

~I've been really working hard at upping my water intake during the day. Since I finished breastfeeding, I haven't been as good about drinking a ton of water and I need to. The hardest time of the day for me is from the time I leave work until Ella's bedtime which is like 3 hours where I barely drink anything. Really trying to be better and have been succeeding with it this week!

~The temperature in my office at work (and throughout the building) is FINALLY regulated! No more 50 degree air pumping out of the vents all day long, and running a space heater to keep warm in May. I can finally actually dress for the weather outside and not the arctic tundra inside! Bring on the dresses!

Sorry for the picture-less post today. So, for good measure, here's a cute Ella pic from earlier this week :)

Coffee Talk

If we were having coffee, I'd be ordering an iced coffee with a splash of hazelnut because it has been suuuuuper hot and humid here lately!

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If we were having coffee, I'd ask you if you'd seen/heard the latest blue/black, gold/white dress going around the interwebs? I definitely hear Laurel, every single time and have NO idea how anyone hears Yanny. How does this stuff happen?
If you have no idea what I'm talking about, check here and see which one you hear.

If we were having coffee, I'd tell you that our annoying man-child renter strikes again! So we got an offer on our condo Tuesday night and it was a decent enough offer that we'll just barely break even on the place (but worth it to be rid of the burden of owning and renting out our place). The only problem was we can't close on a saturday which was the last day of the lease, so we called the renter to see if he would move out the 28th. School ends for us on the 15th keep in mind. He hemmed and hawed about it, saying he was planning on moving out (out of state!) and doing the cleaning and repairs all on the 30th! MG offered to do all of the repairs and cleaning if he would be out on the 28th, etc etc. The guy even had the audacity to ask if it was worth us waiting for another offer!!!!!!!

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Luckily while we were debating with him, the realtor said the buyer was willing to close on July 2 so it wasn't an issue, and the renter is now going to be responsible for cleaning and repairs. Too bad he didn't agree earlier or he would have been able to take advantage of us further.
I really can't with this guy.

If we were having coffee, I'd tell you how I've been watching new shows lately. Below Deck Med is back (one of the few Bravo shows that MG watches with me), that we've been watching Roseanne and enjoying it more than we thought we would have, and we started getting into Outlander because we have free Starz for some reason right now. Definitely need the subtitles for that one!

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If we were having coffee,  I'd tell you that I can't believe that next weekend is already Memorial Day weekend! Time is seriously going at warp speed! Our oldest niece is having her HS graduation party that weekend and apparently over 100 people are invited. It's gonna be so much fun, but I'm having trouble wrapping my head around the fact that she's going to college this summer!

If we were having coffee, I'd share with you that we were going to have my friend and her daughter over for dinner last night because her husband has been out of town all week, and I know it's tough doing it solo. Dinner with friends takes some of the burden off, and lets you get out of the house, and that's what friends are for! Unfortunately, plans changed because her grandfather is very sick, so they had to pack and catch a plane to NC today to see him. Praying for their family!

If we were having coffee, I'd share that I need a haircut, like so badly, and got one scheduled for this Saturday! I also can't stand the baby hairs that have grown in from my post partum hair loss (for soon-to-be mamas, the hair loss is NO JOKE!!!!). They pop up in just about every picture I take and just look so stupid. I'm sure by the time they grow back to normal, I'll be dealing with the loss all over again with the next baby (God willing). They're extra annoying when it's humid out and they develop more of a mind of their own! Ughhhh!

If we were having coffee, I'd share that I'm super excited for Wine Fest this Saturday at Mount Vernon (yes George Washington's house) and really hoping the rain disappears! My MIL and SIL are coming down with my two nieces to spend time with us, and then babysit Ella for us Saturday night so we can have an evening out with our friends, adults only! MG and I have done the beer fest in the past, pre-baby, but never the wine fest, so I'm looking forward to it!

From June 2016 Beer Fest

If we were having coffee, I'd show you this picture of Ella and her daddy, reading together after playing in the water table the other night (hence her shirtless-ness haha). I just love watching them together.

What would you share if we were having coffee together?

{WHW}: Catching Up

Ahhh it's been a busy week already which is why I've been MIA and I feel like I barely had time to pull a post together for today even, but I'm here!

A quick run-down of recent happenings:

~Ella had her second swim lesson this past weekend and this time I was the "parent in the pool". It was actually really cute and fun, but also really exhausting! Especially the part where we passed the babies around the circle of parents--talk about the pressure! Our girl did great though and I think we're accomplishing our goal of getting her comfortable being in the water.

~MG was on-call for work this weekend and got called in Friday night and Sunday afternoon. Sunday afternoon's happened to be during my "mom time out" which cut that short which was a huge bummer, but probably a good thing because I was already doing damage at Target with these purchases:

This shirt was $12 and is the softest thing ever!

I'm seriously obsessed with these sunnies!! And for $16, I couldn't resist!

plus these flats (so cute and comfy!)

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 and another pair of sunglasses (the exact same pair) to replace the pair I have that got totally scratched.

~Friday after MG's trip into work, he went over to the condo to get some things fixed and straightened up before our open house the next day. Our tenant had left to go back to his mom's, and had told us that he'd cleaned etc. If that was the case, MG wouldn't have had to spend an HOUR AND A HALF scrubbing the tiles of the bathroom shower before actually getting to work on what he'd planned to go there for. This guy is "supposedly" a friend to us which is annoying that he'd keep things like this. 

In addition to that, he also told MG that we could keep the retractable make up mirror he has installed (that MG had to do FOR him 3 years ago when the guy attempted to put it up with picture nails--eye roll--), and said that it was $20 on Amazon and he'd just take it out of his rent. Umm, no sir. When I heard that I was livid--who does that in general, but especially to people who you consider a friend?? And also, how freaking cheap can you be? It's taking everything in me not to go off on this guy when I see him at work.

~Minus the snafu with not being able to spend the full time out on my own on Mother's Day, it was still a nice day. MG got me some treats, his dad had sent me flowers, and Ella was extra snuggly in the afternoon which melted this mama heart!

If you follow me on instagram, you saw the video of her excitement when I run into a room. I die :)

~Saturday we were able to meet up with our friends that we met at the pumpkin patch at a new-to-us spot right near the water in Old Town, where we could see the planes taking off. Unfortunately it was super hot outside, so it got uncomfortable after a little while, but the parents enjoyed burgers and beers and the kids had their meals, and then had fun running around on the deck and watching the people and planes. So glad we were finally able to meet up with these guys again and definitely plan on doing it again soon!

I'm so over these stupid baby hairs that are growing back after losing all of the hair post partum!

~Knockout rose bushes are insane! We planted these guys two years ago and this year they are seriously taking off with blooms!! They're even bigger today than they were when I snapped that photo on Sunday! If you're in the market for something that's easy to maintain--these are it!

~We've been having super heavy rain storms here the last few nights, and Sunday night Ella woke up from the thunder, crying. I ran in there, scooped her up and she snuggled right into my neck and went back to sleep. I spent a good 10 minutes just holding her, rubbing her back, and soaking in how wonderful it is that I was all that she needed. Mom'ing is hard...but moments like that make it SO worthwhile!

Thanks for letting me do a quick catch up of the main happenings lately!
Link up below and share what's hap-"pinning" with you!

{Weekly Wins}: Pollen, Pollen Everywhere...

Ok, pollen is most definitely NOT a win this week (or any week). I've had my first serious reaction to it, besides normal sniffles etc. On Wednesday evening, MG and I took Ella out for a ride on her trike and I came in, feeling like something was in my eye so I took my contacts out, still felt it and looked in the mirror and my lower right lid was swelling up as I looked at it! Then my top left lid was semi swollen too! What the heck!

Anyway, besides my swollen eyes, the week had some wins:

~THE most adorable pics from daycare this week! Our girl is a smile-bandit apparently, and also getting into lots of mischief, but I can't stop loving this happy little face!

I'm obsessed with her!!!!! :)

~Teacher Appreciation gifts from students--always nice to be appreciated, whether it's gift cards, a little succulent plant, or just a nice thank you note (or the 4,000 donuts I feel like I consumed). We love our kids, and it's nice to know they appreciate our hard work.

~Weather temps that have been gorgeous! We're moving back into the 90s today and tomorrow, but this week has been really pleasant in the upper 70s and low 80s overall. Minus the pollen.

~A playdate scheduled for Saturday with our pumpkin patch friends. Still haven't decided what we are gonna do/where to go where two extremely mobile kids can't cause too much trouble (and/or drive us all mad), but it should be fun to get together

~Mother's Day this weekend! Crazy how quickly the last year's gone by--I remember being in the haze of new mommyhood last year during Mother's Day, holding my little squish!

Saturday I'll get to go to her swimming lesson with her since I missed last week's and I'm looking forward to seeing my little water baby in the pool.

~Ella made the transition to whole milk flawlessly! I'm still occasionally mixing in formula (because we're using every last drop of that expensive stuff!), but she drinks it straight up, no problem. Also, I used the last of my frozen breast milk this week. It's crazy to think that that chapter is completely done now. And a lot more space in our freezer....for ice cream (muahahah) :)

~I FINALLY started my next book, On the Jellicoe Road, yesterday. I feel like once I wrote it out as a confession yesterday, I needed to actively make time for reading which is something that I love and had been neglecting.

What are some wins for you this week?

Enjoy the weekend!!