Happy Easter Sunday friends! Or happy day or two after if you’re reading this then. :) This post was supposed to be up on my blog Thursday. Then Friday. Then Saturday. Then at one point it was going to be two or three different posts. At this moment in time I’m not even sure what it is. A whole lot of randomness I guess! Mostly pics from my i phone of what we’ve been up to with some organizing, fashion and favorites thrown in. Kinda like a turkey sandwich.
That includes chicken and roast beef. With popcorn on the side.
I must be hungry.
Moving on!
My little buddy has been home with me all week for his Spring Break. I told him we could do anything he wanted thinking he’d pick Disneyland, the zoo, the beach, the park. He said “really!? Can we clean the front porch!?” Ha ha. Definitely my boy. :) He loves to spray off my lanterns with the hose.
Give the plants a drink with a spray bottle.
And sweep the porch with the big broom.
I’d have to agree.. this beats Disneyland any day. ;)
(Front porch sources in this post. Affiliate links used.)
Date night with my babe.
Pancakes (and grilled cheese) with these two while their sister was on a class camping trip.
She was missed. :)
My girls went with their dad to New York for four days over their Spring Break. They had the best dad/daughter trip! First time on a subway. :)
Rowing in Central Park.
They climbed to the top of the Statue of Liberty and toured the 9-11 Memorial Museum.
And saw two Broadway plays. Ad was so excited to dress up fancy. El begged Kenny to let her wear leggings. Clearly they get their way when dad’s in charge. ;)
What were Kole and I up to while they were gone? Spring cleaning and the park. Even better than Broadway right? ;)
Our laundry room after a typical busy week. Those hampers work so well when the clothes make their way inside of them.
Dance competition season is in full swing and has kept us hopping! We had three weekends of competitions in a row. I can apply El’s stage make-up in my sleep at this point!
It really has been so much fun spending time with my sweet girl who is growing up so quickly right in front of my eyes. About a month ago she asked me if she could get some shoes like mine. Huh? What was that El? Are you actually admitting that your mom is cool? Apparently only when it comes to footwear. Shoe source is in my header under “shop my favorites” in case you too want to be the envy of your teenagers. ;)
I have to show you all these cool garment bags we got to hold El’s costumes and accessories for any dance moms out there. They are an organizer’s dream! The suit case is from Rac n Roll and it has this cool rack that you put up to hold the costumes.
Then each of the bags have all these zippered compartments to hold all of the costume accessories. I so love zippered compartments! How can you not just smile when you see zippered compartments? :)
There is even a place to make a label for your costume. And you thought it couldn’t get any better. Me too!! :)
Then I bought this fun organizer from The Container Store to hold all of her make-up and hair accessories. She has had some fast costume changes when we are flying to get her ready so having everything organized is a must!
Aside from the make-up I’m also so proud of myself for perfecting these dutch braids. I had to practice them so much you guys! I watched a You Tube video about 20 times and then Ad let me practice over and over on her hair until I was fast enough to whip them out. It’s the little accomplishments right? :)
The best part is watching her dance. The first time she got on stage to do her solo I was so nervous I seriously thought I might throw up. My hands were sweaty and I felt light headed and Ad was sitting next to me telling me to get a grip! Ha ha.. It’s easier now that she’s done it a few times. ;) She has grown so much this year and is becoming such a beautiful dancer! #proudmom
After with her dance coach and friends. I’m not the only one who is proud. My mom sent a text to me and Kenny asking how she did after her first competition and Kenny wrote back “it’s an odd sensation to have tears of pride come to your eyes while your little girl is doing a booty shake to a hip hop song. That was me this weekend.” Ha! That about sums it up. :)
Playing downtown after a local competition. Gaslamp Quarter is always a good time!
So is the Spaghetti Factory. :) Love this crew!
Quick pic in a new shirt that to be honest cost way more than I like to spend on a shirt! But my husband gets sick of me saying “I don’t have anything to wear!” when it’s time to dress up a bit for something because my closet is full of pajamas and tops like this. He’s always encouraging me to buy more dressy tops and he picked this out for me. So I’m trying to wear it for him. And it is cute and flattering (you can find it here). But in my opinion it’s not as cute and flattering as these. ;) On sale for $30!
I had a couple of helpers with this photoshoot…
I don’t know about all of you but I think she’s got the knee pop down. ;)
Off to see Peter Pan! This family loves the theatre. Kole wouldn’t let me touch his hair and when it comes to parenting I choose my battles wisely. So does Mr. Penguin. The two of us have things figured out and put up with a lot. ;) (My purse and other outfit sources are in “shop my favorites.”)
Someone didn’t make it through the whole play.
Speaking of my favorite kind of clothes and much to my husband’s dismay, I found another casual top I’m in LOVE with! So cute. So comfy! So like everything else in my closet! Gotta be me. ;) Comes in navy and cream.
This next top is another favorite although Ad isn’t sold. When I came across this pic on my phone I laughed out loud at her expression! Not planned. She cracks me up.
But this time I’m going to have to agree to disagree with her. Isn’t this Rebecca Minkoff top darling!? LOVE the cut out sleeves. It’s the cold shoulder look without the cold shoulders. ;)
I’m also so in love with these BaubleBar earrings! They come in fun, bright colors for Spring and I love that they aren’t heavy like some longer earrings are. A birthday present that has become a favorite!
Wore them to lunch with my two favorite guys.
This striped V-neck is another recent go to! I am actually getting better at passing up stripes. Just not stripes for $24. :)
And in other fashion news, my beloved Hudson Camo skinny jeans are back! Nordstrom hasn’t had these forever! They have been a favorite go to for years now. But most of you know that. :) These are the exact same pair only without the holes in them. Supposed to be “ankle grazing” but on short people like me they are more like heel grazing. ;) They work and fit cute either way!
And my last recent favorite find is this darling off the shoulder romper that I’m so exited to wear as a swim suit cover-up this summer! I have my favorite swim suit on under it in this pic – I actually got to try it out around the pool last week because it has been so warm here! This is perfect for the beach or to slip on over my suit on those summer days that I never get out of my suit. :)
I also like it with the shoulders up. Either way it’s so cute and very flattering!
Can you tell I’m excited for this? :)
I’m also excited for tomorrow. I love Easter Sunday! So grateful for a day to celebrate our Savior and spend time with loved ones.
Well! That might have been the longest random post I’ve ever written! My turkey sandwich clearly included ALL the toppings.
With a pickle and chips on the side.
With the popcorn. ;)
I’m going to sign off now.
:)
(You can find all clothes sources from this post and new favorites here!)
Happy Easter, Erin! Blessings to you and your family!
Thank you so much sweet Nancie! I hope you enjoyed your day! XO
Question about your jute rug. Does it shed? How does it withstand the movement of your kitchen chairs. With 3 kids, I assume they have some spills on the rug. How do you clean it???
On another note, the pic of your daughter’s jump was picture perfect!
Happy Easter!
Thank you! That jute rug does shed for the first couple of months after you buy it and then it stops! Spills clean up SO easily. I have this rug in my family room too and we are always spilling things on it! You do have to lift the chairs up a bit to move them in the dining room.. they don’t slide on this rug. I hope that helps! I wrote more about it in this post:
https://www.thesunnysideupblog.com/2015/09/lets-talk-rugs/
Thank-you for taking the time to respond! It’s going on my wish list for the family room :)
You bet cutie! :) xo
Delightful post, Erin! I loved the randomness of it, actually. Kinda made me feel like I was getting a glimpse of your daily life. Very fun. Adorable and mega talented kids, fun locales, beautiful fashions and some organizing thrown in. What’s not to love! Thanks for sharing. I also think your food choices are lit. Love me a good turkey sandwich and a big bowl of salted and buttered popcorn (no fancy flavors added, please)! Happy Easter! Happy Spring! Happy Everything! (felt a little like Dr. Seuss there). :)
Ha ha.. Jeanne! We so need to hang out! And eat turkey and popcorn together. And recite Dr. Seuss. Wouldn’t THAT be lit!? ;) Love you cutie! XO
Happy Easter to you and your family. I loved today’s blog, Erin! Your son is awesome and your daughter’s picture in the dressing room is a classic! Thanks for making me laugh today! 😁
Thank you so much Connie! I’m thrilled you liked this post! That made my night. :) I hope you enjoyed your Easter! XO
Happy Easter!!! I haven’t commented in a while but wanted to wish you and your family a Happy Easter : ) a couple of things…Ellie looks like she’s a great dancer!! My daughter just got into cheer and the makeup is on another level!! lol and my oh my is she getting tall!! wow!! I think it’s awesome the girls got to go to NYC!!! I was born in upstate NY but never have been to the city!! Exciting!! And the braids look great! I can cornrow in my sleep now but when my daughter was younger I turned to youtube to learn how to cornrow!! Youtube is the best! Enjoy your week!!!
So fun hearing from you Aria! Oh my word.. I bet cheer is so much fun too! Crazy how busy these kids get. And yes – yea for YouTube! For some reason those braids took me forever to master! They are the opposite of french braids and felt so counter intuitive to me. Ha! :) I hope you had a nice Easter cutie! Thanks for your fun comment! XO
Hi Erin. I think this is my favourite out of years of your posts! I love the changing room outtakes, I love the lake selfies, I love the dance pics, I love the laundry-on-a-random day pic. :)
Our 14yo is doing her 4th year of dance troupe comps and first year of solos this year! We’ve spent the evening looking at costumes. We haven’t even thought about hair yet! Will have to talk with her teacher about it. :) We are driving to the city the next three days for her to take classes with the Royal Academy of Dance ahead of her 7th Grade ballet exams in a few months time. She was very happy with her marks last year and wants to work hard to maintain them.
Oh you are such a sweetheart Jamie! Thank you! It makes me so happy you enjoyed this post. :) Sounds like you are in a similar boat with your daughter.. so much fun. It’s amazing to see these girls grow so much! Best of luck to her! And thanks again for your sweet comment! xo
Erin, I love having a peek into your family life!! And I LOVE the competition pics!! I want to see more of them! We go to Starpower in NYC this week! Maybe one day we’ll be at the same one! Your daughter is obviously an AMAZING dancer!! Love it! Congratulations on her incredible achievements, I know what goes in to all those numbers!! And I need those organizers!! xoxo
Thanks so much Tam! I would absolutely love it if we ever ended up in the same place with our dancing girls! That would be too much fun. Enjoy Starpower! So fun that it’s in NYC! I bet it’s beautiful there right now. Hearing from you this morning made my day sweet friend! xo
Had to comment Erin that my 12 year old daughter is also a competitive dancer and we have 2 competitions down so far and 3 more to go. In fact, she is also going to Starpower (however in Mpls!). AND she has the same shoes as you and El (everyone on her team has them and they are the “it” shoes…so you are right in with the girls!). And we have a Dream Duffle and the zippered bags too of course, would be lost without them! Maybe I ‘ll have to look at your blog for dancer organization now too! She has four dancers and gets to keep a bun for all of them, thank goodness! I could never do dutch braids!
Just could totally relate to your post and had to share. Happy Dancing!
Love it Lynnsey! We are living parallel lives. :) Oh man.. I wish El could keep her bun for all of her dances! We are switching up the hair for most routines, but in the recital at the end of the year she gets to keep the bun so I can watch. Thank goodness because she will do 13 dances for that program! Crazy how much these girls can juggle, isn’t it!? Give your daughter a big hug from us! :) Thanks for your fun comment! xo
Happy Easter!! I love these posts with all kinds of random and fun info. El looked beautiful…congrats to her. How on earth does she jump that high and do the splits? I’d break a hip and leg and everything! So talented.
What a neat trip for the girls to go with their dad. That is wonderful. Such sweet memories! And always great for you and Kole to get some one on one time too. :)
And finally….great finds on the fashion front. Always cute and classy! xxoo
Sweetest comment Pam! Thank you! Oh my word I know! I’d break a hip for sure.. ha! Fun to see our kids do so many neat things isn’t it!? :) xo
Absolutely loved this post! It is all of the small moments in life that make our day to day lives so amazing and special. Love all of the tops you go recently, you are one stylish lady!
You are too kind Charlotte! Thank you! And I couldn’t agree more. :) xo
Hope you had a blessed Easter Erin! Your outfit finds are adorable, love the earrings :)
Karen
http://www.karenathomeblog.com
Thank you so much Karen! XO
HI Erin! This post brought happy tears to my eyes! I started bawling when I reached the part about how proud you and your husband are of your “dance” daughter. The tears just kept flowing as I scrolled down. I feel the same way about my daughter, who just had her first track meet on Tuesday. She placed first in the 100m, third in the hurdles and third in the relay race. It’s such a feeling of pride to witness your child (ren) do amazing things! I always look forward to reading your blog. Thank you for sharing this one! Many blessings to you and your sweet family!
You are such a sweetheart Shari! It really is so amazing to watch your kids work hard and achieve great things. Congrats to your daughter! HUGE accomplishment! That is absolutely amazing and you should be a very proud mom. :) Loved hearing that. Thank you for your sweet comment! It made my day. :) xo
I just found your blog and spent the past hour browsing your amazing organization tips!! Organizing is my thing too, but I don’t do it as well as you! I can’t wait to see more!! My daughter is a competitive dancer as well. Such fun!
Hi Susan! Yea! I’m so happy you found me! And so fun your daughter dances too! It’s so neat to see them grow and improve isn’t it!? Thank you! So nice to “meet” you. :) xo
Really like your outdoor wall lights. I’ve been looking for a style like those. Could you tell me where you got them? Thanks.
Thank you! If you check out the bottom of this post you’ll see pictures of them. Click on the pictures and it will take you to the source! :)
https://www.thesunnysideupblog.com/2016/10/happy-halloween-porch-2/
Hi, I love love love your home. It’s just beautiful!
Can you tell me what colors you used on the exterior of the house? Base, Trim 1 and trim 2 please?
It’s exactly what I’m looking for.
Thanks for your time and I look forward to your reply. :)
Lorri
Hi Lorri! Thank you! I wrote a post with all of my house colors. Hope that helps! :) xo
https://www.thesunnysideupblog.com/2016/04/favorite-gray-paint-paint-colors-throughout-house/