NYC - Part 4

 We were in our room LATE Wednesday night when we looked at the forecast for Thursday and saw that it was going to be drizzly in the morning and after a busy few days decided to re-evaluate our plans to walk to Bryant Park, the public library and Grand Central Station.  I think that they really would have enjoyed seeing those things BUT I think it would have been A LOT so instead we booked a carriage ride through Central Park!  

What's Up Wednesday

     Today I'm linking up with  Shay and  Sheaffer to talk a little bit about what's been going on around here!

After being in a bit of a cooking slump after getting back from our trip and then being sick I've been trying to step up my game a bit ;) It's been not 100 degrees yesterday so I'm whippin up a family favorite (Swedish meatballs) and am SO GLAD because it's one of my absolute favorite meals of all time. 

Red, White and Blue Muffins

Happy Tuesday, friends!  I whipped these muffins up a couple of weeks ago and my family DEVOURED THEM!  They're FULL of fresh berries and as long as you have 3 cups ANY berries will do.  Suit them to your own tastes and voila! Easy breakfast or snack ;)  These would be perfect to kick off any festivities you have going on next weekend for your family or friends as well!

NYC - Part Three

Wednesday started off on the early-side with 9 am tickets to the Top of the Rock observation deck at Rockefeller Center.  We had "first breakfast" at the hotel (of course!) and then decided to check out Black Seed Bagels in Rockefeller Center...

Friday Favorites

   Erika and I are so excited that lots of y'all are linking up with us every week.  Make sure that you're grabbing our graphic, linking back to us and sharing your own Friday Favorites post ;)

 

First up - Father's Day! I took like 3 photos and one of them was the cake I made topped with the Father's day photos we giggle about every year ;)

NYC - Part TWO

Before I get started with the details of Tuesday in NYC I thought I'd share about where we stayed.  

NYC - Part ONE

 EEEEK!  I've been DYING to tell y'all but we surprised the kids with a somewhat impromptu trip to NYC and had the absolute BEST TIME.  So here's a little back story... we had this week in June with nothing planned and I started looking into taking the kids somewhere solo like the JW Marriott in San Antonio, Sea World, etc.  I wasn't sure if Dave would be able to make his schedule work kind of last minute but when he was able to I started to expand my search to include beach rentals.  I know that some people are LOYAL beachgoers.... particularly 30A loyal beachgoers BUT I grew up going to beaches in NC and SC and, honestly, the thought of having to rent chairs and being 3 rows back from the water and all of that sounds not all that appealing (SORRY loyal beach people... I don't have any desire to go to Disney World either so there I go offending 90% of people - hahahaha)  Not saying it will never happen but I just need more details on how to not be stressed about it ;)

I started looking into going to Edisto Island (one of my FAVES from growing up) but things were pretty picked over and we decided to table that idea for an upcoming summer where we wouldn't be scrambling to book something (see... I'm not anti-beach!).  I decided to look into NYC and after a night of googling, researching, pricing, etc. we booked flights and a hotel!  (I booked all of this on 5/29 and we left 6/13!) 

We flew Delta into LGA and booked a hotel in the midtown/Central Park South area.  We knew we wanted to take the kids to see all the "touristy" things and so we bought each of us a  CityPASS which made it SUPER simple to book activities and then allowed me to kind of plan our days around those times.  The CityPASS gave us choices of activities (i.e. Guggenheim OR Top of the Rock) and saved a TON of money vs purchasing individual tickets.  We also had access to discount Broadway Tickets through CityPASS which was great as well.  

We decided not to tell the kids about the trip because what's better than a trip to NYC?  A SURPRISE trip to NYC ;) Mason had a football game last Sunday evening and when we piled back into the car all hot and sweaty they asked why we couldn't go out to eat with friends and I said... "oh... because we have to go home and pack... because we're going to New York tomorrow!"  Their reactions were HILARIOUS - you can see Luke just processing things, Mason is over the top excitement and Griffin burst into "happy tears" which, honestly, looked super sad. hahaha

We went home, packed and then everyone was up way too late with excitement ;) We left bright and early the next morning and couldn't have asked for a better experience. 

Friday Favorites

   Erika and I are so excited that lots of y'all are linking up with us every week.  Make sure that you're grabbing our graphic, linking back to us and sharing your own Friday Favorites post ;)

 

First up - recital photos!!! We got G's photos in earlier this week and they are all my FAVORITE ;) 

Pineapple Chicken Rice Bowls

When I saw  this recipe I KNEW we had to try it.  I have several pineapple lovers in our house and this couldn't have been more tasty.  I adjusted it to make a bit more sauce (because along with pineapple my people REALLY love sauce) and everyone gobbled it up.  Don't be intimidated by the pineapple bowls - you could easily adjust and use canned pineapple chunks as well!  

Mid-Summer De-Clutter Project Update

Okay, y'all. It's not quite mid-summer BUT I've been going strong on  my summer de-clutter challenge and thought I'd give y'all a little update.

Red, White and Blue Snack Lunch

My family LOVES a snacky lunch and I found myself inspired by some red, white and blue cookies the other day and made a whole thing of it :) My USA baking dish was icing on the cake and I have plans to recreate this on July 4th...

Patriotic Decor

HAPPY Monday, friends!!! I know that Fourth of July is still a ways away BUT I love red, white and blue all summer long and this past weekend I decided to get out a few little touches to bring some festive summer fun to the house.

Friday Favorites

   Erika and I are so excited that lots of y'all are linking up with us every week.  Make sure that you're grabbing our graphic, linking back to us and sharing your own Friday Favorites post ;)

 

First up are these two cute referees...

Three Things Right Now

 

- BEST LIFE -

Luke has been living his best life this summer ;)  Between friends and sports and traveling (without us! hahaha) he's been living his VERY best life this summer and I love it for him.

Sounds Like Summer

  Hey, friends!  Today I'm sharing one of my very favorite things -  music!  We LOVE listening to music and have a few playlists that we listen to daily that I thought I'd share.

First up is our "Sounds Like Summer" playlist - this is something that we'll have on while we swim and hang out outside - it's upbeat, fun and for sure a mix ;)

Amazon Lately

 Today I'm sharing a few of the things that I've found on Amazon and LOVED!

First up on my list of purchases is  this suit that I bought for Luke's semi-formal.  It fit him really well and I was super impressed with the quality.  

Summer Structure

 I've been asked several times lately how we're "structuring" summer - schedules, screen time, reading, etc.  I feel like this post is a little bit scattered because with kid activities, camps, friends, sleepovers, etc. there's no firm schedule but here's some general info of how our days look...

- MORNING -

Mornings look a little different than I thought they would since the boys have been doing cross country, but here's a few details...

- We stay in bed as long as possible ;) 

- After the boys run is when we typically kind of get our mornings started

- Mornings are when I try to run errands

- Mornings are when the kids have pet "chores" to do like feeding the animals, changing water, bathing Meatloaf, etc.

- NO SCREENS before lunch (if they ask then they lose them for later in the day because #savage)

- Mornings are generally when the kids will work on their math workbooks, get out toys/stuff to play with, etc.

- Mornings are when I like to run the washing machine, have the kids unload the dishwasher, do my quiet time and get some of my cleaning tasks done.

Friday Favorites

 

 Erika and I are so excited that lots of y'all are linking up with us every week.  Make sure that you're grabbing our graphic, linking back to us and sharing your own Friday Favorites post ;)

 

First up is this picture that I snapped of Griffin at the pool.  

Packing for Camp

In years past I've shared about packing my kids for camp after they're off for the week but since my kids typically go so late in the summer that post isn't super timely for those of y'all sending kiddos to camp earlier in the summer.

Fathers Day Gift Ideas

Fathers Day is just around the corner and today I'm sharing a few of Dave's favorites in case you're in the market for a gift that's not alcohol-related and/or pics of your kids on socks :)  

Dave LOVES  these polo shirts and the quality is out of this world.  The collars are crisp and never get wrinkly and he attests to the fabric being "way better" than most other polos.  You can click  HERE for $20 off your order.