Instafriday

Today was cleaning day.
Cleaning.
Laundry.
Dusting.
Vacuuming.
Baking.
All the fun stuff.
Because we had company tonight for dinner and I'm anal about having everything clean if someone is coming over.
So much so, that it drives my husband crazy.


Thankfully, the girls kept busy with arts and crafts.
Cooper killed zombies for quite some time.  Black Ops, you know.

Lunch was easy.
English muffin pizzas.

Packing too.

Finally hung my Etsy buy.

Dinner was hamburgers, brats, corn, and fruit.
Adult beverages brought by our friends, was Sweet Tea Vodka and lemonade.
Seriously, amazing.
We finished the bottle.
Fun times!


Have a great weekend!

A girly girl and a garden

As I was cleaning up the lunch dishes the other day, I heard clack, clack, clack on the floor...a tell tale sign Rowyn is in heels.  Little did I know the extent of her getup.

Costume jewelry.
Clip-on earrings.
The boots that are becoming one with her legs, because she wears them every waking moment.

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Looking for some sweet corn recipes, I came across these at The Kitchn

Then on its sister site, Apartment Therapy, I found this...

A gutter garden.

Interesting concept...especially for a small yard.

While on the subject of gardens, have you ever seen a straw bale garden?

 link

Our garden was a bust this year.

Strawberries have taken over the bed, but have produced only a handful of actual strawberries.

We're still waiting on the squash.

Our tomato plants died, because I didn't get them in the ground soon enough.

And that's all we got planted.

Fail.

The Hood

 Have you ever had Noosa Yoghurt?
I think it's divine.

I'm eating strawberry rhubarb as I type.

Mmmmm!

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We have an awesome group of neighbors...adults and kids alike.
Every Sunday night, we have a neighborhood Sunday Fun Night at the bottom of our cul de sac.  It usually starts by 7:30pm and runs till dark.  After kickball or wiffle ball or whatever game we decide on, we have a treat...sometimes freeze pops, root beer floats, or cookies.  Sometimes adults skip the treat and opt for an adult beverage instead.  Either way, it's a blast!

Some of the boys before game time, hanging out in Clyde's truck.
The trailer was full of mulch that Clyde and I spread this weekend.  
Brilliant to wait until it's hot as piss to do landscaping.


More kids show up for the game...

Mandatory silly faces shot...

Last two photos thanks to Heide B!

Even the dogs have fun...
Booth, Maebe, and Monster

Monster has to be thinking...
My, what big fangs you have

To which Booth responds...
The better to eat you with!

Haha.
Lame.


Rowyn and Quinn stayed cool in our pool.
And yes, Rowdiggity jumped in clothes and all.

Finny checkin' out that his girl's okay after she dunks her face in the water.



Kickball begins...boys vs girls tonight.

I'm so happy we live where we do.
I can't imagine raising our children anywhere else.

Her Other Mother

Rowyn comes up with some very interesting stories.  All year she has talked about her 'Pink school', where everything is pink, even her teacher.  It's her imaginary school.  When we would ask the kids about their day during dinner, she would always tell us about her pink school and what she did that day.


Since school is out, she doesn't talk much about her pink school...but instead has moved on to her 'other mother'.


I recorded a little today.  
She's creative that one...and intense...and perhaps a little crazy.
Please excuse her inability to eat a grape like a normal human being. 
Also, the Paige she mentions is a neighbor girl.

 

This week by Instagram

My flowers, which along with the rest of my yard, are now under a Japanese Beetle invasion.  I.hate.them.

Rowyn loves Booth. ♥

Riley and Cooper asleep in Riley's room.
Proof they do actually get along from time to time.

Waiting for Rowyn at the dentist.
She had two cavities filled (she has my genes to blame for that one).
She was a stellar patient and rewarded with a chocolate shake I bribed her with earlier.
Don't harangue me.
Bribery works...and the dentist even thanked me. haha.

Booth and the neighbor's puppy, Monster.
Booth is surprisingly gentle with him, even though Monster could easily be an hors d'oeuvres.

Riley catching.
Cooper backup catching.
A Kay invasion.

Little Rowyn on the Prairie.
Wearing an old dress of mine she found in a bin in the basement.

Sunset over Asbury.

It's Friday.
I work tonight and then I'm off for the weekend.
We've got nothing planned.
Just relaxing and going to the Harry Potter movie at some point.
I love free weekends!

 

Cookies, Corn, and Crap

Ice box cookies by Martha Stewart.

Yum!

You can find the recipe here.

I wish they had this when Cooper was little.

He would have loved it!

Bwahaha.

Found this on pinterest.

And laughed.

(Mother, since I know you'll ask...it's based on a song by Kelis)

The kids have been playing school lately and from the looks of it, someone was having a bad hair day.

Whoa.

Anyway, I don't think the year round school thing is a bad idea.

I'm kinda wishing we did that.

Less time for the kids to forget what they learned last year.

Thoughts?

I finished sewing the shirts for the girls.

Finally. 

My husband waited in a very long line for the first Fincel's of the year.

Best.Corn.Ever.

Which we may end up eating on the floor, 

since someone has taken over my kitchen table.

 

 

Finny

Rowyn and her main squeeze, Finny...aka Quinn.
 

Rowyn talks about Finny...

Crystal Blue

On the last day of swimming lessons, everyone got to use the water slides.

Rowyn went down her first time ever.
Solo!

Everyone had a great time.
And everyone passed and moved on to the next level!
Happy kids!

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A Michigan native came into work today and overheard us talking about vacation destinations.  He told us about Torch Lake in Michigan.
He said it was once ranked by National Geographic as the 3rd most beautiful beach in the world.  He said the water is so blue, that it's reminiscent of the Caribbean.
So, I had to Google it.

 

 

Beautiful...no?
9 hours away, but officially added to my list of future vacation destinations.

Speaking of vacations, ours is fast approaching.
I have so much to do and I'm starting to feel overwhelmed.
Packing for six isn't a walk in the park.
Only being allowed to take travel size everything is enough to piss a girl off.
Stupid terrorists.

Backpacks and stuff

I'm starting to get the 'back to school' emails already.
I hate them.  Stop rushing summer away.
Most of them have been for backpacks...and boy are there some cute ones out there.


I love the argyle and polka dots from PB teen.
A lot of them are offering free shipping right now too.

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Garnet Hill not only offers free shipping, but you also get a free matching lunch pack with purchase of a backpack.

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Hanna Andersson has several cute prints.

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You can always count on Lands' End  for a durable backpack that lasts.  Riley and Cooper each have one that has lasted them the last two years and still looks brand new.

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LLBean is another reliable option with many solid and print options.

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But, since it's still summer...and currently muy caliente, I'm more in the mood to look at these...

 Watermelon on a stick from here.

Or these free lemonade stand printables from One Charming Party 

My kids are currently out front playing 'who can stand on the blacktop with bare feet the longest'. 
Brilliant.
Wonder whose brain child that one was.
I just heard Cooper yell, "Try the tar spot, it's super hot!"
They must get their smarts from their daddy.
haha.