Happy Monday friends! I’m switching gears just for today and going totally out of my comfort zone to share a recipe with you all. That’s right. I cooked. At least a time or two last month. And we all know that when I cook it has to be documented. Try to contain your excitement for what’s to come. ;) This easy Cashew Chicken is actually a recipe I shared years ago on my blog. It’s one of our family go-to meals because everyone loves it and it’s SO easy to make. Definitely worth sharing again!
*affiliate links used
This is all you need! Chicken, broccoli, cashew halves, rice and the secret ingredient – General Tso’s Sauce and Glaze. Can you see why I like this recipe? 5 items. That’s about my max.
A close friend told me about this General Tso sauce and it’s delicious! My grocery store stopped selling it a few years ago so now I order it on Amazon. I always order this pack of six for a great price and then I can make this meal every 3-4 weeks.
Ok – quick disclaimer before I share how to make this. I take pictures of food about as good as I cook. Maybe even worse (if that’s actually possible) so let’s please remember before viewing these pictures that I am NOT a food blogger and aside from making cool pyramids with my sauce jars like I’m in the 5th grade, I know nothing about styling food. Or taking pictures of it.
Thank you and carrying on now..
Step 1 – Cut the chicken in pieces and cook it. I cook as many chicken breasts as I can fit in this pan which is usually 4-5. (This is my least favorite step that I’m always happy to have behind me.)
Step 2 – When the chicken is cooked, pour a bottle of General Tso’s sauce on it and stir. (I like this step.. suddenly without much effort on my part the chicken is starting to look and smell fancy.)
Step 3 – Set aside some of the chicken if you have a family member with nut allergies. (I love you and you’re welcome Addison.)
Step 4 – Pour in the can of cashew halves and stir. As many as you like! (This step is my favorite because the chicken now looks and smells really fancy. Your mouth will start watering and you might start thinking about sneaking off into the pantry and closing the door and eating the whole pan yourself instead of sharing at this point. Not that those thoughts ever cross my mind.)
Step 5 – Boil some rice. I prefer Boil-in-Bag brown rice. You pop a few bags of rice right in the pan and they only take 10 minutes to cook. Plus there’s no mess! Brilliant.
Step 6 – Boil some broccoli.
Step 7 – Place everything on a plate, take a lousy picture of your easy Cashew Chicken in bad lighting with blurry rice and over cooked broccoli (I over cook my broccoli every time) and then serve!
Step 8 – Have your husband snap a picture to document an evening when nothing was burned.
I look so happy in this picture don’t I? That’s because the cooking is done. And with leftovers plus a gourmet grilled cheese sandwich night or two, I’m off the hook for a while. :)
I hope you enjoy this Easy Cashew Chicken as much as we do! I’ll be back to chat with you all tomorrow. About home decor, not chicken.
Whew! Looking forward to that.
:)
p.s. Getting questions about the pans I use! You all know I’m no chef so there might be something better out there, but I have used these pans for YEARS and love them. :) I linked to sources below!
Friends! I’ve missed you all! You know that feeling you sometimes get like you forgot something? Or you know there was something you needed to do but you can’t remember what it was. And you just feel a little off.. like something is missing. Whenever I go longer than a few days in-between blog posts that’s how I feel! Kind of funny. Blogging is so ingrained in my every day routine that when I don’t have time for it I feel like I’m walking around without something important like my purse or my cell phone. Or my left arm. :) That’s a long way of basically saying that I’ve missed you all and things are finally slowing down for us (this is my girls last week of school then one more for Kole – hallelujah!) and I’m excited to be back posting again. :) Before I dive into all sorts of fun stuff on the upcoming blog agenda I thought I’d share a few random pics that I had on my phone of what we’ve been up to lately! It has been a busy and fun month to say the least. Lots of pics so I’ll keep the chit chat to a minimum. Or try anyway.
(affiliate links used)
My cute friend joined the 40’s club! We are the youngest two out of most of our friends and quite like it that way. But unfortunately we couldn’t run from 40 forever. {Sigh} At least we’re in it together. ;) Had so much fun celebrating with her!
I don’t know what it is about ugly laugh pictures but when I find them on my phone they are always my favorite!
Found this picture and had a lovely ah-ha moment about why my jeans have been feeling so snug lately..
Saturday morning walk with my babe. We love our walks! Without the kids we can actually carry on complete, uninterrupted sentences. #itsthelittlethings
Snapped this of my boys on our way out the door to church. Love the every day routine pics.
Hanging with these two cuties at Ad’s band concert.
Best music I’ve heard in years. ;)
Our playroom is a hot mess right now! I have a good reason that I’ll explain later! The good news is that Kole and his friends never seem to mind and just carry on as usual in the land of make believe. :) (But if this picture makes you twitch like it does to me, you can see our playroom in all of its organized glory here.) ;)
Dinner in La Jolla! LOTS of evening events with my husband this past month. I about wore out this shirt dress (sold out) and this favorite black dress. I was so glad I had them both to rotate! I always love time spent with my husband but it is hard to get out of the house in the evenings on school nights. (Moms can you relate!?) So much going on with the kids that it sometimes feels like more work than it’s worth trying to arrange help. I definitely decided that weekend date nights are where it’s at.
I like to keep puzzles in my closet. Gives me a few extra minutes to get hair/make-up or cleaning/laundry done when Kole is wandering around board or impatient. :) (Master Bathroom pics and sources here.)
On her way to play audition call backs! She tried out for a part in Alice in Wonderland so I sent her with our white rabbit stuffed animal. Just to keep in the car for good luck. ;) It must have worked because she got the part of Alice! The play director sent us an e-mail while she was at school and we were so excited! She had activities after school until late so when she got home El and I surprised her with the news.
El made a poster and I put on our Mad Hatter hat from a past Halloween and we had Alice music playing in the mudroom when she and Kenny walked in the door. She was so surprised and excited. Fun moment. :) I’m so proud of her!
We have had such a cool couple of months on the coast! Our “May Gray” and “June Gloom” is in full force and I’ve honestly been in cozy sweatshirts with the fireplace on while I get things done at home most mornings. It’s a nice change from the constant sun for San Diego locals, but seriously!? NOW it’s cold!? Would love to have this weather in October – January when the rest of the world gets to wear a turtle neck and have pumpkin spice everything. A little backwards around here! If you check my favorites page half of the clothes are sweatshirts. Just in time for summer. Ha! :)
We’ve still been having pool time, but the hot tub is getting the most use!
Two weekends ago I flew to Salt Lake City for a quick weekend with my mom and sister for my mom’s birthday! (We were so bummed my sister in law couldn’t make it!) We stayed at my sister’s house in SLC the first night and I got to spend a little time with my cute niece and nephew. My niece was excited to show me around her cozy backyard “house.” She swept for my arrival and served me some lovely tea and we had a nice conversation around the fire. :) Love her.
Then the next day we took off to Park City! Spent a day shopping and eating and stayed the night just enjoying some girl time. It was so beautiful!
My mom sent me these pics of me and my sister. Just starting to laugh at something coming out of a restaurant in this first one.
Then before you know it we were cracking up! Oh my word. This picture! I only laugh this hard with my sister. Like we’re about to die and need a bathroom STAT kind of laughing. Ha ha.. talk about the ugly laugh in full force! We have had more moments like this than I can count. My mom just shakes her head. I probably should have taken more pics of the beautiful scenery while we were there. Instead I just have this picture to remember our trip. Oh well.. it pretty much sums up the weekend. ;)
Then this last weekend it was show time! All day dance dress rehearsal for my kids on Saturday and then Sunday was the big show. I took this picture Saturday on our way out the door. I signed Kole up for a hip hop class this year because we pretty much live at the dance studio anyway with the girls and I thought he might like it. He was the only boy in his class and they performed a dance to The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air. (Anyone else have that song memorized? Totally dating myself.) Kole was the Fresh Prince! K – I know I’m his mom so I’m a bit biased but seriously you guys. He was into it and it was adorable. And hilarious. :)
The girls danced beautifully! So proud of these two and all of their sweet friends.
My parents came to town for the big show. Always special when grandma and grandpa are visiting!
The true highlight of this year’s show was that for the first time my girls’ dance studio had the dads do a dance in the recital. Any dad who was willing to volunteer! My husband about died after the first practice class (they had their own rehearsals!). It was a real hip hop dance and it was fast. I think all the dads thought they would just dance around acting silly but this was serious business.
They had rehearsals for weeks! And chose these lovely outfits to wear.
I can’t really put into words what went down with the dads dance except to say that I laughed so hard I cried and I don’t think I was the only one. I’ll just let these pictures do the talking!
Oh I can’t even..
Seriously you guys. I wish you all could have been there. It was epic. Ha! It’s amazing what dads will do for their kids isn’t it? :) These men were absolutely awesome. The DVD of the show always takes about a month to come out and I seriously can’t wait to watch that dance again. Proud of my husband for taking one for the team (my kids loved it!) and I’ll never forget this day of watching my whole little family perform. :)
Waiting to give his sisters flowers after the show.
Ad came out first! (And are my new earrings not the coolest!? I feel so 80’s when I wear them.. ha! Love that.)
Happy Wednesday friends! I hope you all had a nice long weekend! Back in the swing of things right!? I’ll admit I was moving a bit slow today. My brain is beyond ready to click into summer mode! It doesn’t want to think so hard anymore. ;) Almost there!
Since I finally shared progress in my little buddy’s bedroom a couple of weeks ago I thought I’d share pictures of his bathroom with you all today. There’s a little hallway in his bedroom with his closet on the left and his bathroom straight ahead. I’m calling his bathroom a Nautical Modern Boy’s Bathroom because.. well.. it’s a bit modern and a bit nautical and to be honest I have no clue what else to call it! I didn’t really have a plan when I designed his bathroom and I had a harder time pulling this space together when we were building. Despite all of that, here’s how it turned out!
(affiliate links used)
I tried really hard to get a decent picture of this bathroom and finally realized that I just couldn’t do it..
without having me smack in the middle of the mirror. So hello! Don’t mind me and my tripod and my sweats staring back at you. Ha! But at least you can now check out Kole’s bathroom. :)
You might recognize the lights and mirror! I had similar custom mirrors made in my girls’ bathroom and I used the same light fixture that I used in their bathroom too. Unfortunately they don’t sell this fixture anymore!
I went with a white Quartz countertop (similar to what we used in other rooms in the house) and simple, modern chrome hardware. I also added a fun rock tile border. The neutral paint in this bathroom is “Crisp Muslin” by Dunn Edwards.
The white hand soap and toothbrush jars were a Home Goods find (similar jars here).
I don’t know the exact gray color I used on the cabinets because it was a custom gray/brown mix that I kept tweaking until it looked just right. Sorry I’m not more help on that one!
One of my favorite things in this bathroom is the floor! It looks like wood but is actually tile. It has been such a great bathroom floor. It’s soft, but not too slippery, easy to keep clean and I love the distressed wood look! (I added links to similar wood/tile floors below.) The rugs I bought for this bathroom are my all time favorite bathroom rugs. They are PB’s Morgan Memory Foam Bath rug and you won’t find a softer rug out there! This gray border is “flagstone.” I have the same flagstone rug and also the “twilight” navy rug in the larger size that I rotate in my powder bathroom.
Ok! This bathroom isn’t large so it was a bit tricky to take pictures. I’ll try to take you on a little tour! To the right of the counter and sink is a window and I added large gray rectangle tiles below it around the bottom half of the room.
Next to the towels is his shower. I went back on forth on whether I should add a tub in this bathroom. When we moved in Kole was still little and was taking baths. But we have a bath tub in the guest bathroom he has been using the past few years and I knew once he got a bit older he would mostly just use a shower. We decided to just put a shower in this bathroom which allowed us to make it a larger, nice sized shower. I figured he’d appreciate that some day. :)
I added the flat rock tile on the shower floor. It’s so soft to stand on!
Before we moved Kole into this room and bathroom we used it as a guest space. My dad loves this shower! He gets excited to come and stay with us just so he can use it. So yeah.. he’s not too happy about Kole reclaiming this space. Ha! But my 7 year old little buddy is using it now and showering all on his own. I have to be there still to encourage him to keep moving along or he’d play in the water for an hour! But he scrubs and washes his hair all by himself and it’s pretty cute seeing how proud he is that he can do everything independently. Sorry dad. ;)
I kept the inside of the shower simple and used large gray modern tiles. I was trying to pick something that would work as Kole grew older and wouldn’t date too quickly. I added a quartz bench.
And a little nook for soap and shampoo. :)
I also tried to sort of enclose the toilet so it felt a bit more private.
That’s a wrap on Koles modern nautical bathroom! Designing this bathroom was definitely a learning process for me! But I’m happy with how it turned out and my little buddy seems to like it too.
Not that he’s too hard to please. ;)
p.s. I shared a sneak peek of the light we just added in the guest bedroom in my insta stories today and had a lot of questions about where the fixture was from! I added it to my “shop my favorites” page so you can check it out there! It’s so beautiful you guys! I can’t wait to give you another guest room update! :) I also added some cute things I ordered from the Nordstrom sale that ends this weekend so you can check that out on my favorites page too. And so sorry btw that my master bedroom post has been pushed back! I need at least two solid hours to go in and photograph everything (at the right time of day with good lighting) and it just isn’t happening this month! I knew if I didn’t get that room photographed and posted before May hit I’d be in trouble. This month has been insane! It will be a priority once school ends and we get in a good summer routine. :)
Ok friends. Bathroom sources and similar items are below! And as always, thanks for stopping by. :)
Happy Thursday friends! How is that for a post title? Random one today. :) First up for discussion.. my roses are blooming! I took some pictures of them quickly last week. They are just too pretty not to share!
When we were picking out plants and flowers for our yard I wanted TONS of hydrangeas! Then my builder and landscaper reminded me (for the 645th time) that I don’t live on the East Coast. Those plants don’t do well in Southern Cal.. so why couldn’t I just pick out a Spanish tile roof and some Palm Trees and move on already… ha! Clearly I was supposed to live in Nantucket and missed my true calling. ;)
Ok. Fine. Next best thing to hydrangeas? White roses! So we planted LOTS of white roses. Lining the driveway and around the yard.
They bloom on and off during the Spring/Summer and I get absolutely giddy when they first start popping out every year. So pretty!
These are white iceberg roses. They are always a bright white at first..
and then they start turning pink. :) (Still need to get some flowers in that window box!)
Kole and I have a little routine every week. He brings the trash up from the street to our gate while I check on the roses. Then I open the gate and put the trash cans were they go and then we play outside for awhile. Sometimes we play hide and seek. Sometimes we look for bugs. :)
Last week I brought out my camera and while I was snapping pics of the roses I realized that I’ve never shared pictures of our side gates!
They are simple, but one of my favorite things. My builder and husband wanted the gates on the sides of our house to be rock. I wanted white gates. Because I think I live in Nantucket remember. ;) I sketched a picture of some inset wood gates (similar to the cabinets in our home) but wanted a fun detail on top so I added the little open squares you see on top.
I was excited about how they turned out! Kind of craftsman coastal like the rest of the house. Plus they cost less than rock gates would have so my husband was happy. He got to stay in budget and I got to continue on with my East Coast home fantasy. Win win. :)
A view from the other side.
I also added this on the side of our yard for an enclosed trash can area. Kenny gave me a hard time about figuring out a way to make the trash cute. But why not? :)
Then we added that same style of gate to the side of the house.
It hides all of the ugly swimming pool equipment!
White roses and white gates. I’m a fan. :)
My little buddy loves to skip. Seriously the cutest thing. This picture makes me happy because it has SUMMER written all over it! Roses, green grass and skipping in the sunshine without a care in the world.
We are almost there moms! This May has been so insane. A couple of nights ago I found this post I wrote last year and re-read it! I needed the reminder. These 5 Strategies really do help me whenever I start feeling overwhelmed. I thought I’d share this post again in case any of you are also drowning in end of the school year activities!
And for those of you who are finishing school this week or next (I’m so jealous btw.. we go until mid June!) here is what our Summer To-Do list looked like last year for some fun ideas of things to do with your kids while they are home. My kids really look forward to brainstorming this list every summer. Almost as much as I do. :)
Ok! A little fashion before I sign off! I know.. this is the never ending post. My week is so busy that I have to fit in as much as I can when I have time. Major back log of blog posts going on around here! But Nordstrom is having their Half Yearly Sale and it started today! Woot woot! So many of my recent favorites are on sale!
This picture is awful because it was cloudy when I took it, but I’ve had this Ribbon Tie Sleeve top for a while and love it! Perfect comfy top for some of our recent cool May weather.
The ribbon sleeves are such a fun detail. It comes in 4 colors and is marked down to $29!
Keepin’ it real with this one! CRAZY month = no time to get ready. I look real impressed with myself don’t I? Ha! It’s all good because I have no problem running around in sweats on days that I’m working from home and then playing taxi driver all afternoon. :) These Liberty Jogger Pants have been on repeat! Cute, comfy.. a great fit. They are Make and Model – one of my favorite brands of lounge wear. And I know lounge wear. ;) Love them!
Remember my Valencia Tee? LOVE love love this top. It’s on sale too! Also comes in a pretty coral color.
I wore it this week with these cute Zella capri joggers. I have a feeling these pants are going to be my favorite thing to wear this summer! They fit darling! True to size. SO lightweight you guys. They come in black too and I already have the black pair in my on-line cart. :) Zella has always been a favorite brand (love their leggings!) so I was excited to try these and even more excited after I tried them on. Perfect summer staple!
My favorite ruffle sleeve top is also on sale! I told you all how soft this top is! Like wearing pj’s all day. After I shared it a few posts back I heard from so many of you that you bought it and love it. It always makes me so happy to hear when you love one of my recommendations! This comes in gray and black too and sizes are going fast. It’s a good one. :) My wedges are also 40% off! And I don’t have a picture in this ruffle sleeve top but I love it and it’s also marked down!
So excited about this one. My Vince Camuto cross body purse is 50% off! Shut the front door! I think this color just sold out (it was still there when I started writing this post and isn’t now) but it comes in lots of fun colors. They won’t last long. Such a good deal!
And we can’t forget fun things for the home now can we!? My cute coral fringe pillow is just $26! And this throw or this one would look so cute with it and are also on sale. This sale is a good one you guys! Kind of excited. Good sales have that effect on me. :)
Favorites (most are on sale!)
Other sale items I’m excited about (the headphones are my husband’s favorite!)
Rugs I’m loving that are marked down!
Alright. Signing off! I’m sorry my posting is so sporadic this month! Kind of in survival mode right now. I have two more crazy weeks and then everything starts to SLOW down. And I will limp across the finish line like I do every June! And then I’ll have lots to catch up on with you all.
Happy Friday friends! We made it through another week! I don’t know about all of you but around here that is definitely something to celebrate. :) We have been running non stop this month with the usually May madness, but somehow managed to make some time early May to prioritize cleaning out the kids’ closets. Getting Kole’s clothes sorted and moved into his new bedroom inspired a little clothes clean out with my girls. I had them bring all of their clothes into their hallway so they could sort everything and only keep what they really wear, love and what actually still fits! This sort of thing used to be so difficult for them! It would take forever and they would hardly part with any clothes. I was so impressed at how quickly they went through their clothes and that they got rid of more than they kept! They are definitely growing up. And my endless quest to teach them how to de-clutter and organize just might be paying off. At least when it comes to clothes. Stuffed animals are a different story. ;)
When their closets were clean we looked at their clothes and could easily tell what they needed for Spring/Summer so updating their clothes was a breeze! My girls had earned some money so after we cleaned closets I took them shopping for a few new things to wear and two days later Nordstrom reached out to me about collaborating on a post on kids’ clothes! One step ahead of you Nordstrom! Talk about feeling organized. ;) Today I’m sharing what we found for the kids and are loving right now!
(affiliate links used)
New running shoes for my little buddy who never slows down! Love them. He wears a lot of orange. Because I love him in it. :) I got him the Vans for church and times he needs to dress up. Of course another pair of Converse one size bigger for El along with the Adidas. So she can match her mom. ;) Addison needed new shoes for PE and Volleyball and has loved these Asics.
This Print Handkerchief dress we picked out for Addison is my absolute favorite! So cute. It hits above her knees in the font and then comes down longer on the sides. We bought her sandals at Nordstrom last year (love them!) and they are back in other fun prints and colors.
Love the back too!
She was on her way to audition for a play when I took these pictures. Proud of her. :)
She got called back for day two that was all about dance. This hooded tank was perfect.
I picked her up from school, braided her hair and dropped her off at dad’s office so he could take her while I took El to dance. YEA for days when dad can help with activities.
El and I Sunday after church a couple of weeks ago. Comfy shirt dresses are her favorite right now. This blue dress is from Nordstrom but I can’t find it on line! (You can find my Knit Flare dress here.)
This X back knit dress and Gladiator Sandals are another recent favorite outfit of El’s. Comfy and low key for summer. Summer! It just can’t get here soon enough. I’m so ready.
Let’s dab for a moment shall we? Because when you live with teens that what you do. ;) Love this girl. We have had quite a month. She has been studying the Reproductive System in Science so lots of heavy questions and conversations. We had “the talk” over a year ago but this has been all of it on a whole new level! 13 years old is full of a lot of changes and some nights I lay in bed at night going over and over our conversations in my head. Hoping I said the right things and explained it all in a way that makes sense. Hoping she feels like she can always come to me with any questions. Teen parenting is no joke! And we are at the very beginning. I’m tired just thinking about it. :)
Love her so much and I’m so proud of the way she has handled the adjustment to Middle School this year.
And my little man. Had to get him a few cute new things to wear! Last year I told you all about my long time love of Natives. Hands down my favorite summer shoes for Kole! Perfect for mud, water, whatever kids throw at them! These knit shorts are another fun find. I’m always looking for comfortable clothes since Kole sleeps in them too. Ha. ;) I think I shared these in a past post already, but for moms of little boys these underwear are my all time favorites! Stocked up on a few more.
I mostly order from Nordstrom on-line because it’s so fast and easy, but it’s honestly one of my favorite stores to shop in at the mall too because of their awesome customer service. Taking three kids shoe shopping is not my idea of fun! At Nordstrom they always help me get in and out so quickly! Kole always leaves with a balloon and I always leave with my sanity in check. Thank you Nordstrom. :) We bought him a pair of navy Natives and the grey/green combo which he wanted to just wear right out the door.
Loved this shirt so much I bought it for Kole in two colors. He’s showing me his hip hop dance. We tossed him in a hip hop class this year because we are at the dance studio so much with my girls. He is the only boy in the class and for the recital this year they are doing a dance to “The Fresh Prince of Bel Air” and he’s the Fresh Prince. Ha! Ask me how excited I am for that number.. my boys got moves. ;)
Found this pic on my phone.. heading to Target I think. Btw.. this Fleece Twist Front shirt is seriously the coziest top EVER. We had a cold snap last week in San Diego and I wore it three times!
Another favorite new top for Kole. And these shorts! They are the Ribbed Waist Utility Shorts and are hands down my favorites shorts for my little buddy. I bought three different colors and plan to order a couple more. Summer wardrobe right there!
These are those same utility shorts in orange. His front tooth on the right is loose. I’m trying not to be, but I’m so sad about it. Once kids lose their baby teeth there is no trace of little left. Not quite ready for this one to grow up any more than he already has!
This Smartcare wrinkle free white dress shirt is another long time favorite. A dress shirt I never need to iron? Yes please. Do you love the portrait he drew of me in church last week?
I don’t think I’ve ever looked better.
:)
Enjoy your weekend everyone! Sources are below along with a few other fun things my kids are wearing and loving right now. Huge thank you to Nordstrom for sponsoring this post! And for making shopping with my three as painless as possible. ;)
Friends! I feel like there is so much going on I want to share with you all! I could seriously start typing and never stop. Well. I might stop for a snack. My posts usually make me want popcorn. But as long as I had some popcorn I could seriously start typing and never stop! But I won’t do that to you. Yet. ;) I need to keep the chit chat to a minimum because I have SO many pictures to share of the progress I’ve made in Kole’s bedroom! I titled this post “Nautical Industrial Boy’s Bedroom” because that seems to be the direction his room is heading. Although by the time I finish decorating there might be a new spin on things.. who knows at this point. I’m all over the map this month! (This might be a good time to grab that popcorn.)
Quick re-cap where I left off. My little boy has been sleeping in our guest room since we moved into our new house because he was so little when we moved in and that room is closer to our master bedroom. My baby is 7 years old now and not a baby anymore {tear} so we are finally moving him into his real/big kid bedroom and turning our guest room into a real guest room. (Suddenly Pinocchio is coming to mind…) When I last shared his room we were having our carpenter install some shiplap for a fun focal wall to get the party started.
These two go way back..
Long time buddies. :) At least now Kole “helps” by chatting with Chuck while he works instead of climbing all over his supplies. ;)
Come in come in!
Come in faster! ;)
Friends. We have furniture! And a rug! And bedding! Not a lot of decor yet, but all of the large, main items have been chosen and delivered and assembled. For me getting to this point is the biggest hurdle.
(affiliate links used)
I knew I wanted an industrial style bed for this room and we have been so happy with the Owen Bed from PB Kids. It’s well made for a kids’ bed and I love the look!
The bedding is from Restoration Hardware Baby and Child. I wanted simple navy for the comforter and debated between this set, this set and the set I finally chose because I love the grommets.
These letter sheets (also from RH) were the first thing I found and bought for his room! Love them. They are so much fun and crazy soft. BUT. They are flannel and way too hot for summer so I am probably going to replace them soon and just use them during our few cold winter months.
Rug, dresser, nightstands and the rope mirror are all also from RH (teen and baby/child). I found multiple options for each item.. some less expensive (I’ll share them all at the end of this post), but I ended up getting a lot from RH for this room because aside from loving the look, they also carry larger sizes that worked better in this space. The fun industrial/rope basket holding stuffed animals next to the dresser is from Tai Pan. I bought it a year ago for my family room but didn’t love it in that space. I was so happy to find a home for it (and a good purpose!) in Kole’s new room. :) I still need to figure out something to hold his plastic swords/light sabers in the other corner.
This mirror looks so small in this picture alone on this wall but it’s actually quite large! And very heavy.
The built-in window seat is my favorite part of Kole’s room. Such a fun spot to chill and read a good book. And those drawers below!? I was in my happy place designing those. :) I’ll share how I’m organizing all of his things in an upcoming post. But you already knew that. ;)
I picked out the coastal wall lanterns when we built the house and the linen/zinc bulletin board was a happy mistake! I had ordered it from RH for our master bedroom, but the wide zinc frame looked too industrial for that space so I bought this one for my master and was planning on returning the zinc board. On a whim I decided to take it to Kole’s room to see if it would work anywhere.
PERFECT size for this wall space in-between the two windows! That was a happy day. :)
The bench seat was custom made by my friend Tritia (you can find her info. here). The fabric has a navy and orange stripe because I’m planning on bringing orange into this room as an accent color.
Kole’s favorite Star Wars pillows are a start (here and similar here), but I need to find more fun pillows for this bench.
Homework I can handle. ;)
I looked at SO many rugs for this room. I kept gravitating toward stripes, but wanted to try something different because I have so many striped rugs in my house already. Ha. :) I tried getting Kole’s opinion and it was pretty clear he could care less! At the end of the day I went with the stripes. I just liked this rug the best. What can I say!? Except buy what you love. ;)
The biggest decision I had to make for this room was what to do with this blank wall in-between Kole’s bedroom door and his closet/bathroom. I debated so many options! For a while I was planning on putting a desk against this wall. But after finding desk options and measuring, a desk and chair would have come out too far in the room. This open space is the main walk way in this room (and the best open space for Kole to use when he plays) so I wanted to keep it open. That meant finding something that didn’t come out too far into the room. I decided a book shelf would be best! I originally wanted this Emerson shelving from World Market (I’ve always loved it!) but it wasn’t wide enough for this space. Back to RH! This industrial pipe shelving was more than I wanted to spend but it was the perfect height, width and depth for this wall. I’m so happy with how it looks (matches his bed perfectly!) and I can’t wait to style those shelves. The steel pipes had to be mounted to the wall so this baby isn’t going anywhere for a while. :)
A few weeks after we got the shelves up my husband brought in this annoying Internet access point and said it has to stay put on this shelf so I’ll have to work around some lovely cords when I’m styling!
Using the bottom two rows for books. :)
Around the corner from the bookshelf is a walkway that goes into his closet on the left (pictures of his closet in my last post!) and his bathroom.
So that’s a wrap on the progress in Kole’s room!
There is still a lot to do, but next is the fun part. My favorite part! The smaller stuff. Styling and adding Kole’s things and personality into the room.
He has personality plus so that shouldn’t be too difficult to do. ;)
Sources are below! I also included similar items I considered and the sheets I’m deciding between for the warmer summer months. :)
Random post today friends! A little garage progress and the start of some closet organization going on around here. So the garage. {Sigh} Otherwise known as the never ending organizing project on my list that will never be checked off. Ha! Only feeling slightly deflated. ;) The last time I shared progress we had done more purging, more cleaning and had new built-ins installed! I started putting things away in the cabinets and the space was looking really good. Then I started organizing/purging other areas of our home and before long.. piles started popping up all over the garage again. Mostly black sacks and other random large items that needed to go to Goodwill.
That’s the tricky part about the garage isn’t it!? It always becomes the catch all. This stuff sat in our garage for months until we finally found a free Saturday morning to do something about it.
Did you know that you can rent a truck for just a few hours from Home Depot? I didn’t! Until we called and asked and picked one up to get rid of all the stuff accumulating in the garage. I can’t remember what we paid, but it wasn’t much. So nice to finally have a way to move a lot of items quickly!
Kenny loaded the truck. I took pictures.
Because I wanted to help. ;)
It was crazy how much we were able to haul at one time. We took two loads to Goodwill and it made a huge difference! Now we just have a couple of things left to take to Utah for family on our next trip and then I can finally finish the garage this summer. At least that’s the plan. At some point I will finish this garage! I needed to post this update as a pep talk to myself more than anything. ;) But also to let you all know about the Home Depot truck renting option! In case any of you are doing some major purging and don’t have access to a truck or time for a yard sale, etc.
Perfect for organizing random items like swim suits and clothes that are too small and need to be saved for cousins. Finally finding bins for Kole’s closet shelves inspired me to go through his clothes, do some purging and organize his new closet! I say new because he has been using the guest room the past three years and we are finally moving him into his real bedroom. (Guest room update post here.)
I’ve only moved the clothes at this point and still need to bring in his toys from the playroom. This closet is clearly quite an upgrade from his closet in our previous house that was halfway filled with my scrapbook supplies. ;)
This is how I’ve been organizing Kole’s clothes (in both closets). Dressier shirts and ties for church on the top. Next to that are all of his long sleeved shirts. Not a huge collection since he only wears them for a few months each year. The bottom row holds all of his t-shirts that he lives in. Yes I loosely color coordinate them. For two reasons. One because it makes it easier when I’m grabbing an outfit for him to wear. I always pick out his shorts first and then I can quickly find the color of top that coordinates. (Quite a bit simpler than the elaborate way we prepped my girls clothes when they were his age.. ha!). Two because I can. I still have control of this closet (which won’t last forever) so I get to do fun things like color coordinate his shirts. Which makes me happy. :)
His drawers are pretty simple. Underwear not pictured in the top drawer. Btw if you have small boys, these underwear are my all time favorites! Good quality, great fit. PJ’s are next. Which he hardly wears because he likes to sleep in his clothes. So yes.. I pick out the shorts and coordinating top the night before while he’s showering and then he sleeps in his clothes and wakes up ready to go. How’s that for making our mornings simple? Ha! His idea – not mine, but I’ll take it. ;)
Shorts in the next drawer.
Pants on the bottom. Boys are TOO easy! At least when it comes to clothes. :)
On a side note.. this closet is painted ONE color. Crazy how the lighting changed the way the paint looks on the top of the closet vs. the bottom in these pictures! The bottom is the true color of his closet and bedroom and I’ll share that paint color in his new room update. Because I can’t remember it and I’m too tired to go hunt it down right now. ;) There are still a lot of things I plan on storing in his closet, but for now it feels nice to have only the clothes that fit and he wears organized in this happy space.
So there you go! Not huge garage and closet progress, but progress none the less. And considering it’s May and I’m running non stop all day, I’ll take any progress around here I can get!
For more closet organization you can check out Addison’s organized closet here. Like I said, my girls’ systems are a bit more elaborate than Kole’s. Although I think we should all take a page out of his book and start sleeping in our clothes for the next day. Talk about streamlined mornings! ;)
Happy weekend friends! I’m so behind on things I want to share with you all! Projects and pictures are piling up with little time to post about them. May has officially arrived! Hold on tight moms. :) I have so many recent favorite things from the past couple of months and am trying to play catch up so this post has A LOT of pictures. Grab a snack and I’ll try to keep the chatting to a minimum! (I’ll have to try hard.) ;)
(affiliate links used)
Three books I can’t wait to dive into this summer! Complete Book of Clean by Toni who blogs at A Bowl Full of Lemons, Simple Decorating by Melissa Michaels who blogs at The Inspired Room, and Simply Clean by Becky who blogs at Clean Mama. Love the subjects, love the authors! I have flipped through each of these books and have no doubt they will all be favorites! I always read the most over the summer. It’s really the only time of year that I can fit in a good book. I love to sit outside and watch my kids play or swim while I read. Give me some sunshine and a good book on cleaning, organizing, decorating or time management and I’m a happy girl. :)
Not long ago in this post I shared some purses I’m loving and talked about how I’m living it up with small purses after being chained to large bags for so long filled with fishy crackers, sippy cups and books like The Wheels on the Bus. ;)
But smaller purses obviously come with less space so I decided to pick up a small wallet for nights out when I’m using one and just need a few credit cards, some cash and my drivers license. I’ve been using this small Kate Spade wallet for a few months now and I’m sold! LOVE not carrying around a bulky wallet everyday.
I especially love this wallet because it has a place for my driver’s license on the back so it’s easy to whip out when I’m traveling. Plus hello. Mint with stripes? #perfection
Plenty of room for the essentials inside. A new favorite for sure!
So in love with these marble/wood hexagon coasters! $18 for a set of four and they are beautiful! Pretty and practical.
We always have drinks in this room so I love having a place for everyone to set them without getting my wood table wet! I have to mention these hydrangeas. Always a favorite, but this particular arrangement from Costco is 3 weeks old! I’m not kidding! And I think they still have another week left. Longest I’ve ever kept flowers alive. I did put two flower food packs in the water instead of one so I’m wondering if that did the trick.. or if these flowers are just magic.. or if overnight I’ve turned into a flower whisperer without even knowing it. My bet is the latter. ;)
A little decorating tip.. faux flowers/plants always look real when you also add real flowers/plants in the room. My favorite faux fig looks even more real now that I added a real plant on the end table in front of it. Made me fall in love with it all over again. :)
New cutting boards for the win! Can’t wait to style these in my kitchen! Plus they will be perfect for summer entertaining. I ordered them on-line from McGee and Co. Have you guys checked out this on-line store yet? Oh my word. DON’T. Well do, but proceed with caution. Ha! So many beautiful things for your home! A little pricey on some items, but very nice quality. I seriously love and want everything they sell for the kitchen. This vintage dough bowl is on my wish list! So cute full of lemons. :)
A sweet reader who owns the company Olive and Linen recently sent me the most gorgeous Turkish towels! Talk about happy mail! Olive and Linen sells Turkish towels, throws and blankets and all of their products are handwoven on traditional looms in Denizli, Turkey. You can read more about the company and their products here.
They come in so many fun colors. Aren’t the coral hand towels beautiful!? Perfect for my kitchen.
She also sent these larger lightweight towels and I can’t wait to take them to the beach this summer! The company owner who reads my blog and reached out to me is such a sweetheart you guys. I instantly loved her. :) She is offering all of my readers a discount if you want to order something! When you check out type “sunnysideup30” for 30 percent off of your entire purchase (including free shipping)! Thank you Olive and Linen!
So a few weeks ago I shared my new favorite earrings but forgot to post this picture that also included my favorite perfume. I have to admit that I wasn’t a huge perfume girl until my husband gave me Flowerbomb for a gift because he loved the smell so much and now I’m hooked! Apparently everyone else is too if you read the reviews! So heavenly. A favorite for both of us. I love putting it on and then enjoying the smell that lingers in my bathroom. :)
I wear a lot of black so I’ve loved having my fun turquoise earrings to add a pop of color to my outfit.
I was bummed they didn’t come in coral (love coral with black!) so I searched on-line and found and ordered these Baublebar earrings and can’t wait to get them! SO cute. Baublebar has a little discount code that pops up when you first visit their site so I used that and got a discount. All of their earrings are so much fun.
Aren’t these lacquer box sets fun decor!? You’ll be seeing the light turquoise set pop up in my house soon. :) These are from Frog Hill Designs and they are 72% off right now! No I’m not kidding! Head to their site here and enter the code TODAY (these cute boxes were recently featured on the Today Show) to snag some while they are on sale. They come in so many fun colors! Love them.
I’ve had this fun Colorblock faux leather tote for a while now and love it! Clearly I can’t completely ban my large fishy cracker carrying bags. Old habits die hard. ;) It’s such a great catch all bag and I’ve been rotating between this and my Tory Burch bag depending on whether I’m wearing brown or gray.
It looks a lot more expensive than it is. Beautiful quality and I love the colors. It looks good with anything I wear!
It also came with this fun wallet inside.
I had a school meeting last week and wore it with this Ruffle Sleeve top that is seriously the SOFTEST shirt I own. I love this whole outfit! (And my espadrille sandals are on sale right now!)
This black Scallop Faux Leather Tote is also darling and a great price. I gave it to a friend for her birthday a few weeks ago and she loved it! SO cute and comes in lots of colors.
Scallops are so in right now! I ordered this fun J Crew Scalloped Romper for a swim suit cover up months ago and totally forgot about it because it was backordered. It sold out SO fast you guys and just came back in stock!
This is the other romper I ordered that I shared a couple of weeks ago. I got both so that I could try them on and pick one. Keeping them both! I know I’ll live in them this summer. So cute with my swimsuit and Tory flip flops!
This scallop romper runs a little big. I just ordered another one size down so I can see if it fits better because this one is a bit baggy at the top so you might want to size down or order two sizes to try. Summer can’t get here fast enough! :)
Aside from bags and scallops I’ve also had a recent obsession with ruffle sleeves! There are just so many cute ruffle sleeve tops out for Spring! I love how feminine they are. This blue ruffle sleeve top is a recent favorite!
K you guys.. I promise I wasn’t trying to stick my chest out in this picture! Ha! I just wanted to show you my favorite thing about this shirt! Sometimes ruffle sleeve tops are cut so low under the arms I feel like I need to wear a tank with them. I LOVE how this shirt comes right up under the arm. Clearly I couldn’t figure out how to show you that without looking like I’m about to bock like a chicken. This selfie business is harder than it looks. ;)
Isn’t it pretty!? Also comes in orange and white.
Also love this Eyelet Collared sweater top. The navy collar had me at hello. :) Cute and comfy for everyday running around. You might remember my sandals from last summer. I hope they bring them back this year because I’d order them in another color. Love them! Also.. you guys.. in January I found some AMAZING jeans and I keep forgetting to tell you all about them! I’m wearing them in this picture and like AG, they are now a favorite brand.
They are DL – the Margaux Instasculpt Ankle Skinny Jeans. I went into Nordstrom with Christmas gift cards and asked a girl working there to bring me her favorite jeans for minimizing thighs and booty and she was so funny! She said “GIRL! Have I got the jeans for you!” She brought me a pair of these jeans to try on and I about died. SO slimming! They do just what they say.. Instasculpt! :) Plus they are such a comfortable fit. Thought I’d share for anyone else who could use a little sculpting too. ;) You can see they are supposed to hit at the ankle. On me they are full length but I think they work either way!
I wore this Striped Knit dress last week to church. Bad lighting in this pic and I snapped it so fast but I’ve had this dress for over a year and still love it so I wanted to include it in my favorites round up! Cute for summer and SO comfy. It runs large so order one size down. I’m wearing the navy but it also comes in black.
I ordered this cute casual maxi dress to try. Perfect for summer and it comes in other colors and in stripes. It was backordered so I’ll have to be patient. :) Sizes are going fast!
And a recent favorite dress that I’m seriously so smitten with! There have been so many events I’ve had to go to with my husband for his work lately. Kenny is always telling me to stop buying pajamas and to buy more dresses.. ha! This might not be as dressy as he’d like, but it’s just ME. This is the Maya Belted Shirtdress and my pictures don’t do it justice!
SO cute you guys. It comes up higher on the sides, has a huge band around the upper waist (so slimming) and ties in the front. I bought a similar black shirt dress after Ellie was born and 13 years later I still wear it! A dress like this never goes out of style. Plus it’s so perfect for events you need to dress up for but you don’t want to be too dressy. I feel like I need a lot of clothes that fall into that category! It runs large (this is a 0) so definitely order one size down. I need to look for some other shoe options because I’ve about worn these coral shoes out!
It also has pockets. :) This cost a bit more than I usually spend on a dress, but the material is so nice and I know I’ll wear it for years and get my money out of it and then some. Plus this time I had Kenny’s permission. ;) I ordered a few more dressier dresses for times I really need to step it up so I’ll share what I love when they come in! And if I don’t love any of them I’ll just return them and go for some new pj bottoms instead. ;)
I have to show you all something funny. Remember our pink flamingo that we pretty much lived with last summer? My kids affectionally named her Pinky.
They loved this floatie and played with it all summer long. Last weekend we went swimming and the kids wanted me to blow her up (she had deflated quite a bit) so I did and we realized she has a hole. My kids were so bummed (especially Addison – she about started to cry!) so I promised them all I’d order another one.
Pottery Barn Small Space Collection (decor updates!)
Happy Monday everyone! I’m so excited about today’s post! The crew from Pottery Barn reached out to see if I would be interested in sharing with you all how I’m using items from their Small Space Collection in my home. Hmm.. let me think about that one.. ;) It’s no secret that I’m a huge fan of Pottery Barn and always have been! I have so many PB items in my home! I’ve always loved that they offer so many beautiful decor options in a wide range of sizes. A lot of items in my previous smaller home were also from Pottery Barn because aside from large furniture, they also sell a lot of smaller furniture that is still big on style. And I love their style!
(affiliate links used)
There are so many fun things in their Small Space Collection that I had a hard time narrowing down what to get! I finally decided on a few things. I ordered two of the Mateo side tables and couldn’t be more excited about them. I have been looking for a side table for this end of my couch for a while now.
This side table is the perfect size! I love that it’s open between the table top and bottom shelf so it doesn’t feel too large and bulky.
The bottom shelf is perfect to hold beloved magazines that get read over and over.
Plus there is just enough room on the table top for a drink, reading book and a pretty plant or some flowers which is what I wanted in this space.
Our new side table has made this corner of our couch perfect for afternoon reading time. :)
Kole still loves to sit on my lap when we read together and I’m in no rush to see that tradition end. Pretty soon his legs will be longer than mine. (tear) Not that that’s saying much. ;) #shortie
Owen is a long time favorite. Love that Mrs. Tweezers. ;)
A lot of times after we finish reading books together he likes to sit down and read the stories again to himself. :)
Such a cozy corner. Now we all fight over this spot! I ordered two of these side tables thinking I would put one on the other end of my couch, but I’ve been moving it around and trying it in lots of different spaces. Playing my favorite game.. musical furniture. ;)
It looks good everywhere I put it! For now it’s sitting in the corner of my mudroom. Ever since I put a Christmas tree in this corner last December I’ve felt like I need something here. I don’t have a lot of space between the door and wall and this table is the perfect size.
These fun pillows are also from the PB’s small space collection. LOVE them. The black and cream is a fun change for this room and I love the patterns. They are the Gemma Lumbar Pillow and the Jules Embroidered Pillow and both pillow covers are on sale! Don’t forget pillow inserts too. :)
I’m thinking some fun art prints or something would look good on the wall space above the end table. Or you might see that end table pop up somewhere else. Nothing stays put in my house too long. ;)
I also tried my new pillows on my outside bench and love them there too!
They go so well with my lanterns and black striped rug.
The last item I ordered from the Small Space Collection were these Galvanized Nesting Bins for Kole’s closet. I just started moving all of his clothes up into this closet a few weeks ago and have been looking for some bins or baskets to fit on these three closet shelves. I was so excited that these galvanized bins were the perfect size! His room decor is taking on an industrial vibe so they are perfect.
Right now I’m using them to hold clothes that are too small and need to be taken to his cousin in Utah, clothes that are too big that he isn’t wearing yet, and then one for all of his swim suits. These bins are deep and have a lot of storage space so they might end up holding toys or blankets at some point too. They were made to work with the Turlock Coffee Table or the Turlock Storage Table and I love both of those pieces. I keep thinking about how fun the Turlock Storage Table would be in an outdoor patio area to serve food/drinks. All of the galvanized bins could hold plates, napkins, kids’ outdoor toys, pool towels, etc. Stylish and organized! My favorite combo. :)
The small space collection also has so many fun options for wall hooks and shelves. Perfect for a bedroom, entry or really any space in your house. If I would have had the wall space in Kole’s room I would have hung this rustic shelf with hooks in a heartbeat. I love it so much.
Some of the items in this collection I already have..
This collection has so many fun and affordable options to refresh spaces in your home regardless of the size. Below are all of my favorites! I’ll take one of each please. ;)
Huge thank you to Pottery Barn for sponsoring this post! Believe it or not this is the first sponsored post I’ve written for Pottery Barn. You might not know that because I promote them so much regardless… ha! There are just certain stores that you can always count on to have one or two things you are going to love and want to take home. For me when it comes to Pottery Barn, I always want to take home fifty. ;) Their Small Space Collection is no exception!
Enjoy your day friends! I hope it includes time with those you love most.
Happy Friday friends! Have you all been doing your 20 minutes of organizing each day after reading my last post? Yes? No? Kind of attempting but not really happening? Ha! I get it. I pulled off 3 nights so far. I was on a total roll until last night when Kole decided that he wasn’t tired when I put him to bed and needed a story.. or two or ten before he could sleep. Probably time better spent anyway. ;) I’m excited the weekend is finally here! I’m still so sleep deprived from last weekend that I’m desperate for a morning to sleep in and catch up. Today I’m sharing a few fun pics from the Reward Style conference I was at in Dallas last weekend. It was held at the Cresent Hotel and everything was just beautiful!
I have to say that this conference had me a bit intimidated! It’s mostly the fashion blogger crowd and I wasn’t sure what to expect. I was invited to go last year but didn’t dare. :) I’m not exactly runway model fashion like a lot of these girls. My style is more like running around chasing/driving kids all day fashion. Ha! ;) This year some of my home blogging besties were also invited and we decided that we’d brave it together.. strength in numbers! This was a pic of us when we all arrived at the hotel. I was so excited to see my friends! Wore my favorite camo pants for comfy traveling on the plane. (They just went on sale btw!)
The first night there was a pool party hosted by Sole Society. Sarah joined us all and we had a great time catching up! Everyone at the conference was so nice. Every time I go to one of these conferences I wonder why in the world they stress me out! They always end up being a lot of fun and not at all intimidating. Even the runway models with their personal photographers were nice.. mostly. ;)
Heading to dinner after the party! After I changed into my favorite jeans. Because I will hands down pick jeans over a dress if given an option! EVERY time.
Three things I loved about this conference.. one was how gorgeous everything was. The flowers at the hotel were just stunning and they had everything decorated so beautifully. Spring is such a fun time to travel, isn’t it!? I also loved how organized it was! We got an agenda when we arrived and had been assigned certain classes based on recommendations for us. Everything ran so smoothly! I loved the way the conference was laid out. Because I’m nerdy and pay attention to details like that. When things are pretty and organized I’m a happy girl. ;) It was also really fun to see all the clothes! So many stylish girls in one place. It was like a non stop fashion show. One trend I noticed were the shoes! Lots of cute wedge sandals with straps. I’ve been eyeing this pair for summer but keep going back and forth because there are so many fun styles I love and want right now!
There were flowers and lights in all the trees. It was especially beautiful at night all lit up!
Another fun party! I didn’t buy a lot of new clothes for this conference (although I probably should have given I was at a conference full of fashion bloggers!). This black flutter sleeve top was the only new thing I wore. It looks really cute tucked into a skirt like I’m wearing it or partially tucked into jeans. I was so excited to see Megan! We have been friends for a long time and have so much fun together. She called me the day before the conference to catch up and I seriously could have talked to her for six hours straight! All of these girls mean so much to me. We met a lot of sweet girls that night including one of the Real Housewives of Dallas. Who everyone knew except me! Oops. I don’t watch the Housewive shows. A lot of my friends do and love them, but honestly all the arguing just gives me a headache! And seems so ridiculous. I can’t go there. Am I getting old!?
Every single time I wear these cargo pants people compliment them and ask me where they’re from. Every time! Some girls I kept passing in a store a couple of weeks ago said they were calling me “the girl with the cute pants”.. ha! They are definitely favorites. So comfy! And perfect for a full day of sitting in classes at this conference.
The last night we got all cleaned up for a fun party to finish off the conference. We spent a few hours chatting with everyone at the party and then decided to call it a night and go back to the room to put on sweats, order food and have girl time. We called an Uber, got in our car and were starting to drive away when we saw that the party was moving to another location for dancing. Some girls wanted to still go back to the room but a few of us hopped out to head back to the party.
Oh my word.. best decision ever! I seriously haven’t danced like that since my high school/college days! It was so much fun. And unlike most people at the party, I don’t drink so I was feeling especially proud of myself for getting down like I did without the help of alcohol.. ha! ;) I’m always begging my husband to dance with me at parties and he never will so I loved being with so many fun friends to dance with! If the DJ is playing “Salt-N-Pepa” and “House of Pain” and other music from my era.. I’m gonna dance. TOO much fun.
We danced until about 1:00 am and closed the place down. By that point we were seriously sweating and our feet were KILLING us so most of us had shoes off. Megan was the only smart one to bring flats to put on. It was such a fun way to end the trip!
Heading out to catch my plane home and I got a quick picture with Cyndi. Another friend I’ve made through blogging who I absolutely adore! Loved catching up with her last week. We were so in sync with our coordinating striped shirts. :)
My whole crew was excited I was home but this little guy was the most excited to see me. He came running at the airport and almost tipped me right over with his hug. Best feeling EVER. Love my little buddy. #pleasedontgrowup
I love to travel but it’s always so good to be home. :)
Couple of fun favorites that are on sale this weekend! My layered top is 40% off! Sizes are going fast.
These favorite sweats are also on sale! I have loved these so much I just ordered this pair. Make and Model and PJ Salvage are hands down my favorite pj’s. And I know pj’s. ;) The only thing I don’t love about this time change and the lighter evenings is that it’s a bit more embarrassing when I put on my pj’s for the night at 5:00 pm. When it’s dark I feel like I can get away with it easier. That doesn’t stop me from doing it of course.. :)
My kitchen canisters are also on sale! Love them. My kitchen decor gets switched up monthly, but the canisters stay. :) Most recent kitchen post HERE – I still need to finish my sources! Always a work in progress around here.
Alright friends! That’s it for this weekend. I hope you have a good one! We’ll chat again real soon. ;)
5 reasons you can’t stay organized (and how to fix it!)
Hello friends! I’m back from Dallas and had such a fun trip! I’ll share a few pics at some point. As soon as I’m caught up on the cleaning and the laundry and my e-mails and my sleep and the 2,000 other to-do’s that got shoved to the side while I was away. So basically those pics will pop up next year. ;) Actually when it comes to the cleaning, I’m not too worried about recovery. Even though I came home to a semi messy house (my husband did the best he could with all that was on his plate the past four days!) I have most of my rooms/spaces organized in a way that makes clean up pretty simple. This hasn’t always been the case! The first year in our new house I struggled with organization (despite my love for it!) but I think I’ve found my groove and am finally starting to feel mostly on top of things when it comes to keeping my home organized. Today I’m talking about 5 reasons you can’t stay organized (and how to fix it!). These are some of the stumbling blocks I’ve faced over the years when it comes to keeping my house organized and what I’ve learned about how to work around them. See if any of these 5 things sound familiar to you too!
1- We don’t prioritize organizing. I’m busy. You’re busy. We’re all busy. Well.. except my parents who are retired and absolutely loving life with no schedule. But they were once very busy too and finally now deserve to chill a bit. ;) Here is the point and something I know to be true – if we don’t prioritize getting organized, it won’t happen. By prioritize I mean schedule the time for it. Organizing a messy space takes time. If there is an area of your home that is an unorganized mess, you have to look at your calendar and decide when you are going to fix it. You might choose to block out a full day to knock the entire space out, or (since that isn’t possible for a lot of us), you can choose to spend 20 minutes every day for a week working on it. Either way – schedule that time! And don’t let anything else get in the way! A quote by Jim Rohn I’ve always loved is “if you really want to do something, you will find a way. If you don’t, you’ll find an excuse.” No more excuses! Look at your schedule this week and find some time to prioritize organizing. This week I’m spending 20 minutes a day organizing. I need to finish a few bathroom drawers and finish organizing some files in my office. I’m doing this between 8 and 8:30 pm (after I’ve put Kole in bed and while my husband is picking up my girls from dance and other activities). It’s on my calendar! I’ve scheduled organizing like this before and it really works for me. I pick a time that I know I won’t be distracted and put it on my calendar for Monday through Friday. Often there is a day during the week that something comes up and I can’t do it, but I can usually stick to it for 4 out of 5 days. Prioritize organizing and just START.
2- We organize clutter. Oh man. Am I ever guilty of this one! It took me years to really understand that in order to stay organized I need to constantly PURGE! And then purge more than that. :) You will never stay organized if you have too much stuff. It just won’t happen. I have purged more in the past 3 years that we’ve lived in our new house than I ever have before. Let me tell you something about purging because I know that it can be hard – it gets easier the more you do it. Try to be constantly mindful of things you aren’t using and don’t need any more and always have a black sack nearby to easily toss things into. I always have a black Goodwill sack in my garage and when I come across something we don’t use/love/need, into the sack it goes.
Here is another example of organizing clutter. Because I can be really good at it. ;) Soon after we moved into our house I started organizing my office. I gathered up all of our camera instructions and other miscellaneous manuals and put them in tidy little ziplock bags with labels. So cute. So perfectly organized. Guess the last time I pulled out one of these tidy little labeled sacks and used these manuals? Hasn’t happened. Clutter! These manuals are clutter. Now maybe you have manuals that are important and that you need to keep but MOST things like this, you will never look at again. If I have a question about my camera or one of my computer programs, I’ll look up the answer on-line! These manuals are getting trashed. Stop wasting your time organizing clutter so that you can spend that time organizing the things you truly need and use every day.
3-We gather too many tips/ideas. Something else I’m completely guilty of doing! Oh Pinterest. I love you so much. We all do. But Pinterest can be a problem if all we are doing is pinning others’ organizing ideas and not implementing those ideas into our own homes. Sound familiar? Sometimes gathering tips and ideas completely backfires because it makes us feel overwhelmed and like our homes are so far from those beautiful, organized pictures that we shouldn’t even start. Or we use the only free 20 minutes we had in an afternoon looking at ALL the pretty pictures instead of using that time to organize something in our own home. Instead of gathering tips and ideas on Pinterest or looking at pretty pictures in magazines this week, use that time to organize a drawer or cupboard in your own home. Inspiration is wonderful when it truly inspires us to act. Time to stop gathering so many tips/ideas and start acting! And when you’re done organizing that drawer and decide to head to Pinterest for a little more inspiration you can follow me here where I share lots of it. Ha. ;)
4- We don’t recognize and fix systems that aren’t working. Sometimes it happens. You spend precious time organizing a space only to find that weeks (sometimes days!) later it’s a mess again. You straighten everything again but bam.. before you turn around it’s a mess. A truly organized space is one that isn’t difficult to keep organized. You’ve all seen the craft closet I organized in my office…
My kids use this almost daily and it still looks just like this. Maybe the papers at the top aren’t quite so straight, but other than that, it really does look the same. No.. my kids aren’t unusually clean (I wish!). This space is just easy to keep looking this way. My kids grab the bin they need, make a mess with the things inside of it, then when they clean up, they simply put everything back in the bin. Below is a space in my house that isn’t working so well for us. Remember my organized medicine cabinet?
Beautiful right? I snapped a picture of it today..
Hmmm.. not quite the same. :) I know this isn’t awful, but it certainly isn’t as tidy as it once was! When I organized this cupboard the first time I didn’t allow room for anything other than what we had. We’ve all been sick here and there over the past six months and have added a few more medications to the cupboard. The system I originally set up isn’t really working anymore. Instead of trying to squeeze things in the small containers and make it work, I need to come up with something better. There have been lots of times that I’ve organized a space and realized later that it isn’t working for us. I remember in our previous house organizing my girls’ toys in some bins stacked in their closet and I thought it was the perfect solution! Right up until they were ready to play and couldn’t reach the top bins. Ha! It happens! When it does, recognize that you need to re-think your space and try again. You’ll know when you’ve struck organizing gold when your space is easy to keep looking nice.
5- We let “perfection” get in the way. This has been my BIGGEST stumbling block when it comes to organization – and really all other areas of my life. I used to think “if I don’t have time to completely organize a space and make it picture perfect from top to bottom then why bother?” So I would do nothing. The problem is, there is never time to completely organize a space from top to bottom and with three kids, picture perfect isn’t going to happen either. We can’t wait for circumstances to be perfect. Don’t tell yourself that you’ll get organized “when you have time.” And don’t focus on making everything picture perfect. That’s a blogger’s job. ;) (And trust me, once I’ve taken pictures of an organized space for my blog, life happens. Those spaces stay organized, but they don’t always look picture perfect.) Get over that idea of “perfection” and settle for good enough. Jump in and spend what little time you have today purging and organizing and trust me, you will feel better. You will also be inspired to spend a little bit of time organizing tomorrow. And before you know it, your home will start feeling much more organized. Bringing some much needed sanity back into your life.
Do any of these issues sound familiar to you? These are 5 reasons I’ve struggled at times with organization and I hope that by sharing them (along with how I’ve learned to fix things) I’ve helped you think about what you might need to work on to finally get organized. It’s a nice feeling to know that even when my house is a mess, it won’t take long to pick it up and recover. So get out your planner, schedule some time to organize, toss things you don’t need, stay off of Pinterest and stay focused on your goals. Keep moving forward! You’ve got this! And so do I.
Is it just me or does it feel like it should be Friday by now? Or at least Thursday! But it’s not. So happy Wednesday. And counting down. ;) My week is dragging but this post will be a fun mid-week pick me up. I hope it is for you too! The crew at Nordstrom asked me if I wanted to share some of my favorite Tory Burch items with you all and I don’t think you’ve seen anyone jump faster. What a chore right? ;) Most of you know I’m a huge Tory Burch fan and as you can see my friends love all things Tory too! We all do don’t we? What’s not to love about Tory Burch? Maybe the prices. ;) But seriously if I am going to splurge on something nice, quite often I turn to Tory.
I have been eyeing this Parker Leather Tote for months now. When I got asked to do this post I knew it was sign! It was meant to be mine. I bought the bag and then that night when my husband came home from work I told him he has been working so hard lately that I really wanted to take a few things off of his plate.. “Babe.. I got myself a great gift for Mother’s Day this year so that you don’t even have to sweat it. It’s perfect and I love it and you’re welcome. I’m always thinking of you.” He rolls his eyes at me, but secretly I think he does love not having to come up with a gift. And I love my new bag so win win for everyone! Mother’s Day just got good before it even started. Now all I need are homemade cards from my 3 favorite little people and I’m set. Sometimes we have to take matters into our own hands with these holidays, right girls? ;)
It really is such a gorgeous bag and it comes in lots of colors. I used it a few days ago for the first time and loved how much I was able to fit inside of it. Perfect for when I want to bring my planner and notebooks and extra stuff for the kids around with me. The great thing about splurging on a nice Tory Burch bag is that it never goes out of style. I have a Tory purse from about 10 years ago that I still use and get compliments on!
One of my friends at church last Sunday had her Tory tote with her so I snapped a picture of it. This is a similar style but several years old. She said it’s her favorite bag. Classic!
Doesn’t she look beautiful in this skirt and head to toe pink!? Wish I could pull off that color like she can! So fun for Spring. {Thanks for modeling for us Vanessa! ;)}
You can see the cute lace in this pic on my new J Crew sweater(details in this post). It’s perfect to wear with my two favorite Tory Burch bracelets. My Tory Burch double wrap logo bracelet and my little navy Tory bracelet have become staples for me. I bought the brown double wrap logo bracelet in LA with friends. A little 40th b-day gift to myself. :) There are SO many cute Tory Burch bracelets in stock right now!
I love that double wrap look so much that I’ve had this watch on my wish list for a while now too. Just waiting for another holiday so I can make life easy for my husband again. He’s so lucky to have me. ;)
Aside from Tory Burch bags and jewelry, I’ve also always LOVED Tory flip flops and sunglasses. These cute flip flops are so comfortable and come in LOTS of fun colors and patterns. A great price for Tory too.
K – let’s all ignore how white my legs are (time to bring out the spray tan!). I really didn’t want to post this picture. A little self conscious because I don’t love my legs/thighs, but I’m sacrificing myself to show you how cute the flip flops look on – ha! All in the name of fashion! Plus I’m 40 years old now so I’m trying to embrace all flaws and stop being so hard on myself… because that’s what mature 40 year olds do, right? #workinprogress
I chose the Black Gemini Link patterned flip flops because my favorite swim suit and new romper that I plan on living in this summer are black. Plus I wear a lot of black clothes in general so these will work with everything and be perfect to run around in on hot summer days.
I’ve been wearing Tory Burch sunglasses for years now and I always gravitate to them because aside from loving the look, they are such a great fit. My face is narrow so I have a hard time finding sunglasses that don’t slide right off of my face. Tory sunglasses always fit so well! Snug but not tight. These 55 mm square sunglasses are so cute! They come in lots of different colors/patterns. I have the dark tortoise and love them.
Pic of the back side. I love the Tory sunglass cases too. :)
I snapped a few pics of my sunglasses in my car a few days ago while Kole and I were waiting to pick up the girls.
My partner in crime wanted to join the selfie party.
Then he grabbed my phone and the next 20 pictures after this one were a blur of our heads and him laughing. Never a dull moment with this one. :)
There are SO many fun new Tory Burch bags in for Spring! Nordstrom always carries such a good selection of them. They carry a good selection of all of my favorite brands which is why I shop there so much. All in the name of making life easy for my husband of course. Because I’m nice like that.
Speaking of Mother’s Day, I’ve been searching for a nice gift for my mom! One of her favorite brands Nordstrom carries is Eileen Fisher. Eileen Fisher clothes have a fun coastal, relaxed feel with clean lines and they are amazing quality. I tried on this organic linen sweater and loved it! It didn’t come home with me only because I had already splurged on my Tory Bag. :) Here are a few things I’ve been debating for my mom.. mom – pick out your favorite! ;)
Thank you Nordstrom for sponsoring this post! And for your amazing selection and customer service. And for making my Tory Burch tote dreams come true. My husband also sends his love. ;)
TORY BURCH FAVORITES:
In other random news I am off to pack because I’m flying to Texas tomorrow for a conference. I’ve never been to Texas! Crazy right? I’m excited. My husband will be managing life at home with the kids for the next few days. I don’t know that he shares my excitement. ;) My kids are obsessed with making slime at the moment. I shared this picture on IG and Facebook and it sounds like a lot of your kids are doing the same. Elmer’s Glue is a hot commodity right now.. ha! So yeah.. say a prayer for Kenny.
He’ll need one. ;)
xoxo, Erin
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Happy Monday friends! I’m switching gears just for today and going totally out of my comfort zone to share a recipe with you all. That’s right. I cooked. At least a time or two last month. And we all know that when I cook it has to be documented. Try to contain your excitement for what’s to come. ;) This easy Cashew Chicken is actually a recipe I shared years ago on my blog. It’s one of our family go-to meals because everyone loves it and it’s SO easy to make. Definitely worth sharing again!
On her way to play audition call backs! She tried out for a part in Alice in Wonderland so I sent her with our white rabbit stuffed animal. Just to keep in the car for good luck. ;) It must have worked because she got the part of Alice! The play director sent us an e-mail while she was at school and we were so excited! She had activities after school until late so when she got home El and I surprised her with the news.
He has personality plus so that shouldn’t be too difficult to do. ;)
Three books I can’t wait to dive into this summer! 
Isn’t it pretty!? Also comes in orange and white.
I have to show you all something funny. Remember our 
They loved this floatie and played with it all summer long. Last weekend we went swimming and the kids wanted me to blow her up (she had deflated quite a bit) so I did and we realized she has a hole. My kids were so bummed (especially Addison – she about started to cry!) so I promised them all I’d order another one.
Plus there is just enough room on the table top for a drink, reading book and a pretty plant or some flowers which is what I wanted in this space.
Such a cozy corner. Now we all fight over this spot! I ordered two of these side tables thinking I would put one on the other end of my couch, but I’ve been moving it around and trying it in lots of different spaces. Playing my favorite game.. musical furniture. ;)
Thanks to my little buddy our 
The small space collection also has so many fun options for wall hooks and shelves. Perfect for a bedroom, entry or really any space in your house. If I would have had the wall space in Kole’s room I would have hung 
Enjoy your day friends! I hope it includes time with those you love most.
There were flowers and lights in all the trees. It was especially beautiful at night all lit up!
My kitchen decor gets switched up monthly, but the canisters stay. :) Most recent kitchen post 
