a good old fashioned barn raisin'

(Shout out to Balynda for the title!)

Memorial Day weekend was hot.  And you know you've got a great family when you mention buying a swing set for your kids and you want to put it together on everyone's day off.  And it's going to be ninety five degrees.  And it's going to take all day.

But everyone came anyway. 

That is what's so great about family.  And what's so great about all the people, family or not, that love my kids.

As of today, it's still not done. 

The directions said for two adults, it would take 7-9 hours.  We had four adults (plus random others that wandered in and out all day) and they spent about six hours on it.  About an hour and half of that was spent re-doing the platform because someone that I'm married to read the directions wrong.

And by 5:00 everyone was beat.

The rest of the steps are small things Chris can do by himself: walls for the platform, arms for the swings, the climbing wall, the slide, etc.  But I think he's still worn out from Monday and hasn't touched it since.

It was very anti-climactic for Ellie. 

 But when it's done, I'm sure it's going to be awesome.

favorites of May

The end of May is probably the most anticipated ending of the year for me.  I'm officially done with school today!  Glory.

Here's my favorites from May:

-remembering a friend

-my guest post over at Our Reflection about being a mom and doing it all

-camping with my little family for the first time (parts one and two)

-talking about my style and teaching at Between the Lines

-building a swing set for the girls

Is it just me or did May fly by?  Here's to a great June!

aztec indians

(tunic: Target, jeans: Old Navy, necklace: street fair in Warsaw, Poland, sandals: Target)

In middle school I used to have this killer woven backpack that I got at a festival.  It was the epitome of cool for my twelve-year-old self.  Then one day I carried it to a relative's house where a (really uncool) relative complimented me on the backpack.  It was the last day I carried it.

Too bad I don't have it anymore though.  It was pretty much this shirt on a purse-sized backpack.  I was only about eighteen years ahead of the trend. 

I also had fluffy bangs in middle school (annnd elementary) and we know how hot those are right now.  So pretty much everything I did twenty years ago accidentally is now cool and trendy.

Next prediction for a trend: perms? IOU sweatshirts? Looney Tunes t-shirts?  Because I've got those covered too.

A Little Bit of Lacquer

kids are fun.

(dress: Old Navy, necklace & belt: New York & Co., sandals: Target)

This is what an outfit post looks like when I'm too afraid to ask my husband to take pictures of me.  Because sometimes he rolls his eyes when I ask.  And at this point in time, he was outside in the ninety five degree weather doing something I asked him to do.  I think the picture-taking request might have put him over the edge. 

So I'm standing in the living room while Ellie watches a cartoon.  I got her and Harper the cutest little rompers this weekend and wanted to take their pictures in them.

But then I looked over and this is what Ellie was doing.

So I decided to skip the picture thing and just go get a kleenex.

five for friday

1.  God bless amoxicillin.  I came down with the most awful case of strep throat this week.  I thought I was going to die.  Also, I do not exaggerate ever.  But it was horrible.  I tried to tough it out, but by Wednesday I couldn't keep my head up or swollow anything (including saliva, it was awesome) so I left work early and got some amazing medicine at the doctor's office.  And then did nothing but sleep yesterday.  Today I feel like a new person.  I have never been so thankful for modern medicine (except during childbirth, I really loved modern medicine then). 

2.  We bought a playset for the girls this week and it's being delivered on Sunday.  On the paperwork, it says it will take 2 adults 7-9 hours to build.  I am so glad that I'm not an adult.  And I'm so glad I'm not my husband because this weekend is going to be really hot.

3.  Threemoredaysofschool.

4.  A friend passed along Let's Pretend This Never Happened (A Mostly True Memoir) by Jenny Lawson (the bloggess) and I can't wait to sit out by the baby pool this weekend, work on my tan, and read it.  Also, I can't wait to not build a playset.  Because that is going to be a lot of hard work.

5.  I got new sandals at Target this week and I've been wearing them non-stop.  I really wanted the red ones, but they were all sold out so I had to settle for the orange.  But I still love them.  Target, thanks for being so good to me.

Have a great Memorial Day weekend!  I love living in Indianapolis this time of year, the Indy 500 makes our city come alive.  I have so many great memories as a kid of playing outside while my dad worked in the yard with the race blaring on the radio.  That just screams summer to me. 

weekend read: Falling Together

In the big stack of books I got for Christmas was Falling Together by Marisa de los Santos.  I first encountered this author when I read her second book Belong to Me.  I didn't know it at the time, but it was the sequel to another book and, when I finally realized it, I felt cheated that I didn't read the first book, umm, first.  So when I saw she had a new book out, I put it on my list for Santa.

Falling Together is about three friends, Cat, Will, and Pen, who met in college and were inseparable for years.  Then one of them (Cat) leaves suddenly, leaves the city, leaves the friendship, just leaves.  Will and Pen are left behind to figure out how to go on.  The shift in their dynamics makes it impossible to recover and Pen and Will end up parting ways also.

Years pass with no interaction between the friends until one day Pen and Will receive emails from Cat saying she needs their help and to meet her at their ten-year college reunion. Once there, Pen and Will reunite to help save Cat, but find things aren't always as they seem. 

This story is about love, how our pasts haunt us, truly great friends, and family.  It's about overcoming heartbreak, dreaming about a better future, and chasing what you know to be right. 

I loved this book.  It was a little longer than I felt necessary, but it was still worth the time.  De los Santos, according to the back cover, has a Ph.D in literature and creative writing.  I don't know if she finished that up in between writing Belong to Me and Falling Together, but it would make sense if she did because this book seemed to be much more wordy than the last one.  There were parts where I skipped whole paragraphs because I got bored with the descriptions and long details that truly weren't important to the story.  But other than that, I loved what this book was about.  The essence was inspiring, fun, and hopeful.

One part that stuck with me long after I finished reading was when Will was talking to his mom about his father and how he struggled to forgive him after everything his father had done to him. 

"How, though?" Will persisted.

"I did for your dad what I did for me," she'd said.  "I didn't decide that his behavior wasn't that bad or erase the memory of it from my mind, but I threw away the idea that he was a monster.  I acknowledged his humanness.  There's a light inside every human being; I chose to honor his inner light."

"When?" asked Will.  "How long did it take?"

His mother had given him a crooked smile and said, "When?  Every morning when I get up and every night before I go to bed.  Same as I do for myself."

I don't know if that is beautiful in-and-of itself or it just hit home for me personally, but I found that idea, that constant remembering to forgive very powerful.  To forgive again and again because everyone deserves it really stayed with me.  And I'm thankful for that lesson.

Read Falling Together.  It was, like in real life, about the journey and not about the ending.  And I'm all about having a great journey.

roses and thorns

(dress: Kohls, button down, belt, sunglasses & necklace: thrifted, sandals: Old Navy)

Awkward: sitting in a meeting and a co-worker walks by, says "oh, I must have missed the email about this," and sits down.  Then you have to tell him he wasn't invited to the meeting.  Thanks for stopping by, now leave.

Awesome: we got new bikes! Next on the shopping list is a carrier for two kids and we'll be set for the summer.

Awkward: the allergic reaction rash that has covered Harper's body for the past week and a half.  No, my daughter does not have leprosy.  No, you can't catch it.  No, she doesn't have MRSA. 

Awesome: an unexpected check in the mail from our old mortgage company...a rather large check.  So big that I called to make sure there wasn't some sort of mistake, because that's a good chunk of change you just sent me.  The lady laughed when I told her why I was calling.  Better safe than sorry little missy.

Awkward:  sitting in on really bad interviews.  Please practice with a friend before your first interview.  It's painful and embarrassing for everyone in the room when you're that bad.  Really painful.

Awesome: next Friday is my first official day of summer break.  And I've already got the pedicure, manicure, and massage appointments scheduled.  There's really no other way to start a vacation.

teacher style

Today I'm talking about how my style and my job mix...or don't.

Check out Between the Lines for the complete post.

when camping, day two

(see day one and where we went here)

When camping for the first time with your little family, you only stay one night because there's less damage to do when you're only gone about 30 hours.

When camping and your husband gets a migraine for only the second time in his life (the first one was the week before your wedding--just a coincidence, I'm sure), it will put a slight damper on the morning, but your husband is a champ like no other and he'll still make sure the kids (and Mommy) have fun.

When camping with an air mattress, it would be nice if the air mattress didn't have a hole in it.  Because then your old lady bum hip will be super-sore in the morning and you'll remember you're thirty years old.

When camping, eggs and bacon over the open fire just taste better.

When camping and you promise yourself not to look at your phone for the whole trip, you have a lot more time for your family, for reading books and building towers on a blanket, and for pushing your preschooler on the swing.  And you learn lessons from this.

When camping and your preschooler comes into contact with daddy long leg spiders, she'll freak out and cry uncontrollably for a lot longer than she should.  And it will happen many times that day.

When camping and you go on a steep, rocky hike to the waterfall, you'll be immensely impressed with your three year old and her no-fear approach to a tough trail or a dangerous climb.  And you'll let her do it even though it's stressing you out.  Then you follow while holding a one year old and your realize where the preschooler gets her daring.  And be overcome with pride.

When camping, your toddler will try to drink up every last drop of water flowing down from the waterfall and you'll be impressed with her ambition.

When camping, you should always take a picture with your husband after you've packed everything up and loaded the kids in the truck.  So that you can remember that it was good.  And you'll want to do it again when you talk about it later.  So that you'll remember you not only survived, but you thrived on your trip.

when camping, day one

(where we went: McCormick's Creek State Park)

When camping, you load up your truck to within an inch of its life and then strap a little more to the top. 

When camping, your preschooler thinks the tent is the coolest thing around and would rather play house in it than anything else.  She will also fill your tent with bugs from so many trips in and out, but the hours of entertainment are worth it.

When camping, it's best to make sure your one year old can walk so you don't have to carry her around everywhere.  Even if she's really cute, it'd be nice if she could walk.

When camping, make sure you only choose the easiest trails to hike with your family.  Because when you don't, there are brief moments when you're sure someone is going to bite it big time and you'll be trapped in this forest with an injured child.  Or stuck at the bottom of a ravine with a jogging stroller and two small kids, one with urine-soaked pants.

When camping, bring lots of hot dogs for dinner.  Because your toddler will choose this moment to regain her appetite after a week of not eating and inhale almost four of them for dinner.  Plus pretzels.  Plus watermelon.  Plus a cookie.

When camping, you must drink hot cocoa like your preschooler's idol, Curious George.  She will not really care for it, but will rave about how Curious George does this for some time afterward.

When camping, it will be hard putting your kids to bed because it's still light out, there are loud neighbors next door, and your kids don't normally sleep with you.  The preschooler will take sleeping in a tent very serious and roll right over and pass out.  The toddler will toss, turn, kick, slap, pull your hair, and pick your nose for over an hour before suddenly stopping and sleeping instantly.  Your night will be long, uncomfortable, and not very restful, but completely worth it.

Day two coming soon.