Friday, June 19, 2015

Friday Favorites - Lots of Random Edition

Let's be honest - most of my posts could be called this :) 

First up on the list today is the Anthropologie Summer tag Sale,  This is a twice-a-year sale where TONS of things are marked way down. I've picked up a few things lately that are included in the sale and I thought I'd share them with you.

First up is this watercolor print dress.  If you're all about body-con styles this one is not for you.  It's flowy to the MAX, but the colors and fabric are AMAZING and I love that I can throw a denim jacket over it and be ready to go for school.  It is INSANELY hot here when school starts and I always look for styles that are easy and breezy.





Next is this kimono blouse that looks great with black pants as well as cuffed jeans.



 This madras tank speaks my flowy love language :)  And I think with a cardigan and TOMS booties it will go right through Fall.

I am a sucker for a good floral, and I love that this dress is work-appropriate even without the jacket.  It's super lightweight and will be cute with leggings and flats as it cools down as well.



I'm obsessed with this polka dot shift, but unless it goes another 80% off I'll have to stare at it through my computer screen and not in my closet :)

 

These flats are PRECIOUS and would be so cute for work.


Next up, our FAVORITE summer shoe... Natives!!!  I get asked often about these on Instagram, so here's the rundown.

- They're awesome
- I wash them with warm soapy water in my sink
- None of my kids have ever got a blister wearing them
- They NEVER smell bad! EVER!  (and if you know Mason, you know that's a miracle)
- I've found them to be true to size
- I size up in Griffin's one size just because she has chubby feet :)
- We get compliments all the time!
- I usually buy from Nordstrom or Amazon


And before I knew about Natives, my boys wore the "less cute" counterpart, Crocs.  BUT, I have a sneaking suspicion that Crocs may be making a comeback #iftheyregoodenoughforprincegeorge


Another FAVORITE from the week was pulling out tons and tons of clothes to send to Kenya with one of my students and her family as they leave to do work with orphans.  Empty hangers and full bags is my FAVORITE!


On Monday I talked about "the tree" on the golf course behind my parents old house (the one they lived in while I was in middle school, high school and college) and how we swung by on the golf cart last weekend.  Well, the side-by-side photo below is my new FAVORITE ;)  It's last weekend on the left and Dave's Senior Prom on the right.  14 years ago! 


On Tuesday morning, a SWEET friend from MCA asked if she could drop off "a few" Legos for my boys since her boys had outgrown them.  Ummmmmm..... yes!  Here few and my few are different things...


That is TWO BINS FULL!!!  It's safe to say that she's my boys new FAVORITE person :)  And the mess.  Oh, sweet Lord, the mess.  I've sucked it up because A - it's keeping them occupied and B - I know that the day will come where they don't want to play with Legos and so I'm treasuring it (and the mess) now.



 Griffin's FAVORITE thing to do is color with markers.  It was going swimmingly until Tuesday morning.  She was coloring nicely at the little table and I was putting laundry away.  I walked out and saw this...


I'm not even joking.  She was standing there, so proud of her artwork.  Sigh.



I've mentioned my FAVORITE part of Facebook right now - the part where it shows you what you've posted on this day in  years past, well this popped up in my feed yesterday and I just about died!!!


And here we are two years later!


 This week has been super rainy and then last night we were at the pool, lots and lots and lots of wet hair.  Which is probably why the picture below is one of my FAVORITES :)  I laughed WAY too hard.



One of the boys FAVORITE activities from this week?  Dress-up!!!  They crack me up :)


Another FAVORITE activity was making and playing with foam.  I put 1 cup of blue dawn and 1 cup of water along with 3 TBSP of cornstarch into my mixer, whipped it all together and got foam!


We poured it into a big container and I let the kiddos go to town.



I've learned that if I need to do one of my FAVORITE things (shopping) that the promise of one of their FAVORITE things (ice cream!) makes the errand bearable. :)


Yesterday we ran into Anthropologie and they were soooooo good while I tried on a couple of things.



and then we stopped and got gelato!!!  They shared really well and I was proud (because sharing ain't easy - especially when it's gelato).


 After gelato we made our way to the cutest treehouse playground that's part of the shopping center.  It's built into the trees and then goes down and runs next to a creek with ducks.




Love all three of them on the move.


Luke has worked so hard to overcome his fear of heights and he was ALL over this playground today without any hesitation.  It put a huge smile on my face :)



 And watching him with GG was awesome as well.  He is so sweet and patient with her.


So pretty, right?




 Let me tell you... Sister Bear may wear frills and tutus and kitty cat shoes, but she doesn't let any of that slow her down.  She was muddy and hot and gross today and happy as a clam :)  I had her in shorts earlier in the morning and she insisted on "dress, mommy!"    I love that she's a girly girl tom boy.



They were fascinated by watching the ducks hop up the rocks going upstream.
They giggled hysterically every time one hopped.


EEEK!  Hearing from y'all when you try an idea I've posted about is for sure one of my FAVORITE parts of blogging.  Look at how awesome Linda's flag looks!!!

And her rocket banner is awesome!!!  


(I know I mentioned a tutorial, but I forgot... so here it goes.  Wrap toilet paper rolls or paper towel rolls cut to various lengths with scrapbook paper.  Punch two holes near the top of them and pull a string through both of them.  Cut a circle of paper, cut a slit along the radius and form it into a cone.  Take the ends of the string that you pulled through the holes, put them together and pull them through the top of the cone.  Attach ribbons to the inside using tape and tie your rocket to a string or ribbon). 

And I got this email last night which MADE MY DAY!!!  If you want more information about making cards for hospitalized kids, you can check out my post HERE.  It would be an easy project for a rainy summer day!



And very last, I saw this posted on Facebook this week and I got so excited I screenshotted and posted it on Instagram.  I cold practically smell the cranberry orange bundt cake in the oven and hear the Christmas music playing!!!   And then people started commenting that it was actually 27 Fridays not 20.  #noooooooooooooooooooooooooo

I pretty much wanted to cry, except it's 20 Fridays until Halloween... which I love too. :)


Enjoy your Friday, friends!  I hope you have a fabulous weekend and get a chance to celebrate and spoil the dads in your life.

My dad will be traveling, but you better believe I'll bombard him with annoying texts and nostalgic pictures (like this one) all day.


And of course, the kids and I are so excited to celebrate Dave - who is, without a doubt, the most caring, loyal, doting dad around.  He's patient, strong and loving.  We are blessed to have him lead our household.




    http://new.inlinkz.com/view.php?id=534478" title="click to view in an external page.">An InLinkz Link-up
  
PS - This post contains affiliate links, which means if you click on a link and purchase an item, I may receive a small commission.  THANK YOU!!!  


24 comments :

  1. I was wondering about the veracity of that elf meme! I'm a little bit glad to know that it's really more than 20. I still haven't done all the Christmas crafts and preparations that I wanted to do last year but never got around to and vowed to do in the summer so they would be done by Christmas! I better get on those. Thanks for hosting the link-up!

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    1. I'm super impressed that you're working on Christmas in the summer! Get it, girl!!!

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  2. You should do a family photo session under that tree!

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  3. Great photos as always! I love your new watercolour print dress! Gorgeous and very cool! Perfect!

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  4. Lay a sheet on the ground for the legos. That's what we do and the mess is pretty much kept to the sheet and its easy to clean up because you just pick up the sheet and dump the contents into the bin! Easy breezy and it helps my sanity. :)

    I enjoy your blog! I have two boys (7 and 9) and a girl (2) so your life is so relatable! And we have a love for MJC. :) Have a great weekend!
    - Lindsey

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  5. Whoa!!! All those Legos!!! I bet your boys were in heaven!

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  6. I still can't believe you took all 3 kids to Anthro. I'm pretty sure I have ptsd for you.

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  7. Love the anthro sale. And natives are Olivia's go to shoe every day. Best ever. Have a great weekend

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  8. Oooooh thanks for this reminder about the Anthro summer tag sale! It's one of my faves and I almost forgot. That dress is gorgeous and so summery and fun! Thanks for hosting!

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  9. Your 'randoms' always make for the best posts! I had my girls make the flags with their hand prints instead of the stars the other day and they turned out great! Been thinking about making my own large flag too! And I'm finishing up my rocket banner today! I couldn't wait for your tutorial (#AntsInMyPants) so I figured it out on my own...used the hot glue gun to attach the tops instead of the string...it worked! :)

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  10. Love love love the watercolor dress!! What size are you wearing? I'm thinking a medium will be waaay to big for me...which is the only size that is available.
    Also I wanted to let you know I'm loving your family book studies....I teach Pre-k and I will be using them for sure

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  11. Thanks so much for the linky party! Have a great weekend!

    And that park is absolutely amazing! So beautiful!!!!

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  12. That park is spectacular! I'm not super interested in fashion, but I love seeing your outfits they always look so practical for everyday life as well as being super cute. Have a great Father's Day weekend with your fam! :)

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  13. I love your jean jacket! And legos, I haven't played with those since, well last week, haha ;)

    Looks like such a great week!

    liz @ sundays with sophie

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  14. You have mastered the flowy but polished look! I love it! I always struggle with flowy turning into messy and looking large...

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  15. So much to love in her his post! I peeked in Anthro today and didn't buy anything but I kept thinking, How did she get three kids to behave in here?? Thanks to you and Shay, my son is on his second summer of loving Natives. I am going through clothes to donate/sell and it's such a good feeling. My older son would DIE to get all those new Legos. The park looked amazing! Have a great weekend!

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  16. First - what an amazing friend to drop off so many Legos!! Second - I love that you re-created your prom picture. 😍

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  17. Ok seriously I would love just hanging out with you for a day. You seem like so much fun :) That is an awesome park!

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  18. I really enjoy reading your blog every day.
    I have been working on my diploma thesis for a few months and your blog has been a nice break from that during every lunch break. :)

    Julia from Slovakia

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  19. Thank you SO much for recommending Natives! We bought some this summer and just adore them. I get so many compliments and they are just the perfect summer shoe :) They make them for adults too- I may just need a pair! ;)

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  20. Should I tell you this? My son is 28 years old and he has never outgrown his love for LEGOS. He still plays with them and adds to his colleciton often. :D I think it's cool. LEGOS are such a great creative toy!

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  21. Super cute, I love the blouse! I might buy it. Super, super cute!

    Www.lauraemurdock.blogspot.com

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  22. You and your family are so precious! I am kind of curious...how long does your nail polish last before chipping? I just saw it in the pics of you in your anthro clothes and it looks so perfect! Mine only lasts two days before chipping pretty badly. (and thats with OPI polish and a good quality top coat). Anyways, hope you're having a great weekend! :)

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