Vacations are Beautiful

Brian and I went on a trip! Without kids!  I missed them with all my heart, but we really needed this time away...

If you follow on Instagram or Twitter, this is old news. If you don't, hey... follow! 

I'm currently sitting on my own couch in our own home and I am refreshed and excited about life as can be. We flew in, gave our kiddos a million kisses and a couple little toys from our travels, and now we are blissfully enjoying our last moments of peaceful quiet before we hit the ground running tomorrow.  

Tomorrow is the day before Halloween, during which the girls and I will be scrambling to create a Halloween costume from who-knows-what. If you see them as cowgirls again on Thursday, you'll know that I had an epic Halloween fail and decided to re-use the rodeo ensembles for the holiday, but I'm hoping I have some creative tricks up my sleeve. I may need to scour Pinterest during their nap/rest time tomorrow.  

We didn't go far for our long weekend... a quick one-hour flight down to SoCal. We started our time at a pumpkin patch to hang with some friends and I'm hoping we can make it to the pumpkin patch with OUR kids before they notice the pictures of us enjoying a hayride with other friends' kids, ha!  

When our children aren't around, Brian and I turn our cameras on each other... and yes, we did do the wagon ride, corn maze and pumpkin patch on our weekend away... ;)

Brian and I needed this time away. Goodness, does anyone chase toddlers for a living and relate? The loveliness of motherhood can somehow get lost and forgotten in the depths of exhaustion, so this opportunity to refresh has just brightened everything. We had full, thorough, un-rushed conversations about any and everything that came to mind. Some may say we totally planned our weekend poorly because- well- we planned almost nothing, BUT, the lack of planning was intentional. Having absolutely nothing on our agenda meant we could improvise and do whatever we wanted!! At this stage in our life, this is a total novelty. 

I have so much to say, but so little time. Bedtime now, because two little cuties will be waking us bright and early tomorrow! More soon! 

xoxo.  

Loving & Linking

Photo via ABarCartinBrooklyn

I'm wanting some pink cocktail napkins and pretty paper coasters for the holidays after seeing this picture. Girly-holiday-chic, I'll call it.

 {ps. Notice I skipped almost all posts pertaining to Halloween and went straight for the holidays? I'm at a creative loss and haven't yet decided on any costumes for my children. T minus five days!}

About kids + explaining loss.. with an ever so authentic tone and humor. 

Fall is for hats! Currently wish-listing this one and this one.  

I always have trouble figuring out what to eat when Brian is out in the evenings, and next time I'm definitely trying this. I may try it before then too.  

Great thoughts on marriage- it's not easy for anyone, but there are ways to strive for healthy relationships {so many sweet date ideas on their blog as well!}.

The perfect winter jacket for a little girl {currently 30% off!}. 

The best post of the week- Danielle on "things that I don't like that everyone else seems to like." {I'm SO not with her on the cookie butter, as we all know. For me? Wine. I know, what's wrong with me? the best wineries an hour drive and I don't prefer any of them}. 

Seriously? A year of Honest Bundles and $1500 to Land of Nod. I entered. So should you. ;) 

Someone else did all the research to try different DIY play dough, and here is the winning recipe. I will try this.

I won't be trying it this weekend though. This weekend is for sunshine and a mini vacation. YES. Signing off. Happy Weekend to all and to all a good night.

xoxo

Donuts

Donuts are my failing. 

It's Friday! I think we should have donuts to celebrate!... It's Monday! I should have a donut as a pick-me-up!.. It's the weekend: donuts! 

Also, donuts or doughnuts?  

They're good. And I love the picture of the one above- it's Dynamo Donuts {they DO have great ones, but this particular flavor wasn't my favorite- I've heard great things about their maple bacon}. 

If you're in SF, try Bob's Donuts on Polk. Doesn't look like much, but they cost $1 flat, they take Square (good for the unprepared who never keep cash on hand!), and I'm hoping they never renovate and become a welcoming, pretty place to visit with a fancy website, because they may double in price.  

I used to talk about donuts a lot on twitter, but then I started getting a bunch of spam weight-loss followers so I reigned it in. 

To be perfectly honest, I suggested I do a donut tasting around the city "for blog research" but Brian called my bluff. Maybe he didn't want to spend his Saturdays in the car driving me around the city with our children while we {I} went and ate 10x my weight in warm, glazed donut calories. I don't know why... ;)

I eat a ton of veggies {remember the leeks I was just referencing the other day? Who eats and LOVES leeks, really?}. They cancel each other out. I like vegetables, and I like being healthy, and I can't quite explain why I'm sitting here, confessing my love for donuts today...

...then again- hey- it's Friday!! So why not? ;)

Ps. Pinterest is totally with me on the donut thing:

So maybe we're all in this together.

{Image one // Image two}

Color

Coloring is good. Four-year-olds like doing it all by themselves. Two-year-olds still like help.

Sometimes unrolling a loooong sheet of paper to create art is the best. 

In Black & White

Wean Green and Ramblings

Have I mentioned I'm not that into plastic? I'm not intense about it (we definitely have plenty of well-loved toys that are plastic!), but when I was writing regular blog posts for The Honest Company, I learned a lot about toxins and how to prevent using them regularly in our home. I was also able to learn about new brands that are affordable and make pretty products... and even if plastic is cheaper, I'd rather invest in a few sturdy products that are safer. My motto is that the less we have in our home, the more we use the things we have. It kind of works across the board for us- in our wardrobes, our groceries, and in dishes.  

The favorite products for us right now are by Wean Green. They create tempered glass dishes that are 5x stronger than a basic glass, and they are PERFECT for taking on our city adventures. We always have snacks handy. The lids snap and don't fall off, thankfully (anyone else had situations in their diaper bags with lids falling off containers? Ack!).

Is it weird that I think these would be kind of perfect to add to Christmas stockings? I'm the type of mom that gives their kids practical things in their stockings... don't judge. My girls have thus far loved finding new silverware and socks in their stockings, so if practicality works, by all means! Or you can just get them next time you're due for new kids' dishes. I'm getting the square lunch version next. Maybe for Sophie's 5th birthday? HA, I'm kidding. We do get our kids toys too, sometimes. ;) 

In other news, today we stayed home for the first time in about two weeks straight. I thought it would be this amazing, welcome change in pace... it was good, but gosh, I was getting stir crazy. Am I suddenly one of those people that needs to be out and about every single day? This will not bode well for rainy season that's coming right up. Speaking of rainy season: Sophie said she likes it best. "Really?" we said, "Yes!! Umbrellas and puddles!" Of course. Rain. 

Really though, I thought I was up for an endless Indian summer around here, but it got a bit chilly today... and I liked it.  I bought apple cider from Trader Joe's tonight and it was perfectly crisp and so right. I also bought leeks and pancetta from Trader Joe's. Who knew they go amazingly together (sautee them with garlic, salt, pepper for the perfect side dish)? Sophie and I were raving. Those samples get us every time, seriously. Also of note: the line at TJ's tonight was insanity. Longest everrrr. Sophie said we might never get through it, and I agreed... but we did get through it and we did get our leeks and pancetta and cider and other crucial things, and we're home and cozy now. As it should be. 

Happy Monday, friends. We made it!! 

xo.  

ps. Wean Green products were provided generously for review. All opinions are our own, 100%.