July Stuff

It's HOT here, y'all.... Two days ago, it got to 106 degrees but the "feels like" was 115.  I think that MIGHT be the hottest temperature I have ever felt in my entire life!  So, unless we are at the pool, we don't go outside much.  July is miserable here.  It's worse than August and thankfully it's only the last 2 weeks that get to be THIS insanely hot so we're almost past it :)

But, we have been "surviving" just fine.  We keep remembering that even though it's hot here in the South, it's also such a great place to be so I can't complain too much :)

Our month has been pretty low-key and uneventful but I did want to just catch up a little bit before we go to Idaho so that I don't get too far behind. 

So here are a few "highlights" of our month:

I'm SURE you heard about the whole Build-A-Bear debacle.... I feel like I should include that story 'cause it made history and we were part of it! We weren't ones who were throwing MASSIVE fits over the dumbest reason, but we were part of the semi-disappointed crowd.  People were FLIPPING out! It's funny now.  But on the day of, it was such a madhouse and I was not too happy (my kids get so excited over Build-A-Bear.  We've only gone there once so it's as exciting as Christmas morning to them, which is where the disappointment comes from). However, I understand that getting a cheap bear is not a right, it's a privilege and America just flipped out!  I felt bad for Build-A-Bear. People were SO mean to them! I was annoyed at the situation at the time but never mad at Build-A-Bear.  That's just stupid.

Here was my two cents on the day of:

"One of the worst parenting decisions I’ve ever made was telling my kids we could go to Build-A-Bear today for the pay your age event.... we got to the mall 30 min before they opened thinking we’d be in and out within 30 minutes. What we never anticipated was that when we got there, we’d be 700 people deep in a line that wrapped around the entire mall. The first 2 pictures show 2 girls full of hope and happiness when we had only been in line 30 and 50 minutes. The last 3 pictures show the girls leaving, devastated that they didn’t get their promised bears after waiting for almost 2 hours. If we stayed, we had at LEAST another 2 hours to wait. We didn’t have the patience, time, or energy to deal with our hunger pangs any longer. Plus, we had Sully with us. Worst. Choice. Ever. We made a pit-stop at the Disney Store on the way out to browse through the sale items (their prices are just stupid) to try to mend their broken hearts, but even that was lame because those lines were also out the door with all the other parents and crying kids who decided to ditch Build-a-bear as well. I chalk today up as a total loss. #YouWinSomeYouLoseSome #IWillNeverAttemptThisAgain @ Woodland Hills Mall."

But GUESS WHAT?! Later that night, the kids had forgotten ALL about the fiasco and it didn't matter anymore :) 

"Turns out riding on Daddy’s back is way better than buying a discounted bear. This was the most fun they’ve had all week!"💗💙💗#LaughingSoHardTheyCouldntBreathe #OurHouseIsNeverQuiet#ButAlsoNeverBoring

Now, onto other stuff.

See those sunflowers behind the girls? We waited until they died and then picked them and roasted them! I made Ranch flavored Sunflower seeds for the first time ever. They tasted yummy!! How cool is that?  We have had so much fun this year with my garden.  I'm still super new at all of this and have SO MUCH to learn, but it really has been awesome!

The fruits of her labor... well, the veggies of her labor😉 She planted all of our corn stalks herself and we’ve been patiently waiting for months ‘til they were ready to pick! Well, today when we checked for the “milk” we were excited to see it! She said “Mommy, I know how to pick it. I remember when Nana Raine taught me last Summer!” So she grabbed it at the base and broke it off like a pro. Homegrown corn: it’s what’s for dinner!😊🌽

Another favorite July tradition of ours is when we trek over to Chick-Fil-A for their Annual Cow Appreciation Day!  We all got free meals for dressing like cows, the kids got to run around and play and Mama didn't have to cook! Win-win all around!

Next are just some snapshots of Summer :)

This night is worth mentioning. The girls' asked Daddy if he would have a slumber party with them up in their room and instead of saying no (like I feel most Dad's would say), he gladly said yes! He went to the grocery store to buy some special ice-cream, popped some popcorn, let them pick out a movie to put on the projector and slept ON THE FLOOR in a sleeping bag right next to them all night; even after they fell asleep- he stayed.  I didn't get any pictures of them lined up on the floor in their sleeping bags, but I so wish I had! I just love that he did that! To be honest, I wouldn't have done it! But he was excited to spend the night with them and it makes me so happy!

We've gone bowling, we've had nights at the pool with friends, we went back-to-school shopping (NOOOOOOOO!!!!! :( :( :( It's coming too soon!) and we've just really, totally, completely enjoyed our Summer break.  I don't want it to end, but before it does we get to do one more thing that we've been waiting for ALL Summer long- we get to go up to Coeur d'Alene.  I haven't been back there in 4 years and I'm just dying to get Sully up to Nana and Pops' house.  I can't wait to see family I haven't seen in years and swim in all the lakes. I love Idaho oh-so-much and can't wait to be "home."  Only 10 more days!

Lastly, I'll leave you with this.  Summer is awesome.  Sully's Terrible Two's are NOT awesome....

Happy July everyone!

No amount of babysitting, Nannying, Preschool teaching, or daughters could have ever prepared me to be the Mom of a 2 year old boy😫. {This is only half of his room. The other half is just as bad🤦🏻‍♀️} #HeWasBeingWayTooQuiet #TasmanianDevil #CleaningUpOneMessWhileHeMakesAnother

Land That I Love

The Fourth of July was fantastic! When you don’t have family around, your only option is to celebrate with friends and this year was one for the books! I happen to live in a place where block-parties still happen just like “the good old days!” (Picture the 4th of July scene from The Sandlot- that was us 100%!) I know this doesn’t happen anymore in most parts of the USA so it makes me extremely grateful for the community that I live in; a community where we DO get to experience nights like these. We had so many people at this block party and they ALL had a good time. People from all walks of life were there from newborns to those in their 70s and fun was had by all. The kids were all having the time of their lives, the parents were all able to sit back and relax and count our many blessings that come with living in this Great Country that we inhabit. At one point in the night I was looking around at all the different people in the cul-de-sac, and every single person had a smile on their face. It was one of the best Fourth of July’s I have ever had. We hired a food truck (and maaaaaybe street tacos aren’t super A'merican'😂, haha, but they were authentic and oh-so-delicious!) Everybody chipped in $10 per adult and there was unlimited food for all of the families! We ate until we were all bursting at the seams! I haven't had street tacos that good maybe ever! Then, the fireworks that we had were insane! Everybody brought in a LOT so we had hundreds of different kinds of fireworks and we were able to light them for three hours straight. It was so much fun! There were water balloon fights with the kids, there were slip n’ slides laid out, there were kitty pools filled up, there was music playing on loud speakers, and I think every single person would say it was the most perfect Fourth of July. We love this land that we get to call home, we love our country, we love our state, we love our city, and we love our neighbors! What more could you ask for? 

 I even did stars in the girls hair! Piper's is a big star so it's harder to see, but it was so much fun!

Sully is my first kid who, as a toddler, LOVES holding fireworks! The girls only liked them from a distance until they were about 5 (even sparklers!), but Sully couldn't get enough of them! Must be a boy thing :)

America, America, God shed His grace on thee! 

Happy 4th of July, America!

P.S. How cute does Piper look with her fishies? This girl LOVES to go fishing in our pond and catches tons of fish in minutes!