What I Wore~ Maternity Edition: Shorts

It has been a record setting hot spring and it is only getting hotter, and though I'm not typically a big fan of shorts, these were a necessity!  This has become my go-to outfit...wear it with heels and you can go out...wear it with sandals for running errands!

Strawberry Pie

Nothing says summer like fruit...and better yet...STRAWBERRIES!!!

A few weeks back Emrie and I went strawberry picking with our friends Angie and Gracie for the first time.  Needless to say the berries were gone so fast that Emrie and I had to go back the next week to pick more!

Here is the EASIEST and YUMMIEST thing you can make with strawberries...

Strawberry Pie

Ingredients:
Lots of strawberries {about 2 pounds}
Strawberry filling
Sugar
Pillsbury Pie Crust {honestly, this tastes just as good if not better than when I made homemade crust and is SOOO much easier}
Whipped Cream

Directions:
Cut the tops off the strawberries.  Mix the berries in a bowl with the strawberry filling and a little sugar.  Cook the pie crust according to the directions on the box.  Cool the crust. Fill the pie crust with the strawberry mix.  Top with whipped cream. ENJOY!!!

Motherhood is Messy

Motherhood is messy from the very beginning.

Think about it. Delivery day isn't the tidiest {whoever said birthing a baby is the most beautiful thing must have meant to say it was the most incredible or amazing or unbelievable, but beautiful is NOT the word that comes to mind for me with puffy hands and swollen face, leaky fluids...you get the picture}.

Then there is the meconium {the first tar-like poop}.  Phil can tell you just how messy this stuff is when you are trying to change their diaper without turning on too many lights in the middle of the night and they start squirming and it gets all over the blanket, their onsie and your hands!

If you're nursing, that presents all sorts of different messes. And there are the spit up issues and leaky diapers.  Once they start eating solid foods, those spit up messes change colors and you have to match your wardrobe to accommodate those colors.

With the start of crawling begins the mess on the kitchen floor as all your cupboards are emptied and your living room begins to look like a daycare. 

Walking introduces injuries that are not only messy {split lips and scraped noses bleed FAR more than I anticipated}, but heart breaking as well.

AND THOSE ARE JUST SOME OF THE PHYSICAL MESSES!

The REAL messes of motherhood are much deeper and harder to see.  They are the emotional messes that begin LONG before delivery day, or even before baby is conceived.

The anxiety over deciding to start a family and tears that occur from months of fruitlessly trying.

Seeing that positive pregnancy test and crying from both relief AND grief at the same time {talk about messy, how is it possible that once you FINALLY get what you have wanted you would feel slightly sad by it...try working that one out}.

Of course there are the messy pregnancy hormones which make you cry, laugh, angry all at inappropriate times and for silly reasons, sometimes creating way more drama than necessary.

Oh, and THEN the baby gets here!

Holding your baby for the first time brings the strangest emotions that messed with my mind in the weirdest way.  Who's kid is this? When is someone going to come get her and take care of her? If she is mine, why do I feel so ambivalent toward her? Do I even like her? What was I thinking?  Why don't I love her? When will I love her?

Those were NOT the sentiments I anticipated to feel when I first held my daughter, which then created a sense of guilt, which messed with me further.

That first night, week, month at home.  Will this get better? Why is she STILL crying? What was I thinking? Why don't I love her? When will I love her?

One day you wake up and realize you DO love her! She makes you laugh and you can't wait to see her in the morning.  Suddenly you can't imagine your life without her and you wonder when your messy emotions shifted.

Just when you start to think you have your own emotions in check, you realize that your emotions can change at the drop of a hat.  You are feeling warm and fuzzy inside because she looks so sweet in the dress you just put on her, you can't wait to take her to lunch with your friends and then she smiles up at you and throws up all over that little dress as you are strapping her into the car seat and you LOSE IT!

And then she gets a little older and starts demonstrating her own messy emotions.  She wants to do things for herself, but is frustrated that she can't.  She is so dependant and you, but wants to assert her independence. She gets mad when you discipline her and you are a mess trying to figure out when and how to best discipline her.  It is a very complicated dance.

Motherhood is a roller coaster of emotions for both you AND your children.  There are no clear cut, easy rules for dealing with the messes {both emotional and physical}, but that is what makes motherhood worth the ride!  What fun would the ride be if it was all at the same flat level the whole time; the dips, curves, climbs and drops keep it interesting.

And let's be honest, aren't messy kids just the cutest!

Early Father's Day Surprise

I have been very blessed with not only a WONDERFUL husband, but a wonderful father for my girls.

Since staying home, I have struggled sometimes with not making my "own" money, so days like Father's Day and Christmas and birthdays are a little hard for gift giving because in the back of my mind I feel like Phil is buying his own gift.  And I know he has already seen the credit card statement so he probably knows what is coming and exactly how much I spent.

That made this Father's Day present that much more fun!  I had a little money socked away from a side job I had done a few months back that Phil didn't know about {I don't usually keep secrets from him, but this was for a good reason}. 

Our grill had 'burnt out' a couple of weeks ago and although it still sort of worked, it would take about 45 min. to cook a couple of burgers. That gave me the perfect gift idea for him {so stereotypical for Father's Day, I know}.

So Emrie and I went to Lowe's, paid cash for the grill, had them assemble it, used our neighbors truck to get it home and hid it in the back yard. 

We planned to give it to him on Father's Day, but then he asked me that night if we could have his boss' family over for a bar-b-que on Thursday night.  I didn't want to remind him of the fact that our grill barely worked, so I said yes and decided to move Father's Day up a little.

Quickly, we made a banner and a card, rolled the grill out to the middle of the patio and surprised Phil with the grill!
 

Her little card said, "Daddy, with these little hands, I give you my heart although you have always had it since the day I was born.  You are my prince charming and will always be my first true love! Love, Emrie.

Here is the website where I printed off the banner. Plus they have all kinds of cool other printables.

He was really surprised and super appreciative, but most importantly, I think he was impressed that I kept a secret from him haha!

Sew Your Own Bunting

Of all the ideas I have stolen from Positively Splendid, this is actually not one. She did do her own version, here, but I got this idea from my sister-in-law, Danielle who made these cute little cards. Then I did my own version.

Since Emrie's big girl room had an 'E for Elephant' vintage-eclectic theme going on, I felt like bunting fit in just right!

Cut out triangles to whatever size you would like {mine are 8" across the top by 12" down the middle} in the fabrics you want AND an equal number of same sized triangles in sturdy felt board.
Sew the triangles onto the felt board {I used a straight stitch, but you could do zig-zag or some other decorative stitch if you like}.

Trim off the excess.
Sew the triangles together across the top.

Hang the bunting and enjoy!

What I Wore~Maternity Edition: Flowy Top

I am really thankful that loose, flowy tops are in style right now because they make for great maternity shirts that you can still wear later {plus you can down play the bump if you want to and are good for hiding the after baby belly}.

None of these pieces are maternity, but they work for summer errand/play dates...etc.

Tasty Tuesday: Dad's Out of Town

In light of Father's Day this weekend, I thought I would pay tribute to the daddy at our house by showing what we eat when he ISN'T around:)

When Phil goes out of town I keep the cooking VERY simple {if I even make anything at all.  McDonald's does a pretty nice job usually}.

My staple meal: Mac-n-cheese, tomato soup, baked beans, cheesy hotdogs in cresent rolls and apples just for a little something not processed.

Simple, easy and we can eat it for leftovers the next day for lunch!

What is your go to "I'm too lazy to make real food" meal?