Halloween! / October 30, 2013 by Kate Brightbill

Is Sophie a fan of her Halloween costume?

Yes, yes she is. ;)

She requested today... firmly... that for Halloween she would like a Golden Gate Bridge costume. Brian and I suggested grapes. We have a purple hat and everything... all we'd need is to clothe her in purple or green, blow up balloons to tape all over, and voila! Grapes! We'll be doing the strawberry version for Maggie, so they could be fruit themed.

Nope. Golden Gate Bridge. Or a cracker {she's realized how endless the possibilities for Halloween are, so crackers were the closest inanimate object}.

Shortly after the conversation, the doorbell rang. Honest diapers at our service...

{side note to those wondering: we did start potty training, but two successes in three days made us realize we should hold off a few months and try again!}.

More important than the diapers themselves? The BOX. Okay, Sophie. Golden Gate Bridge it is. The box settled it.

Happy Halloween Eve! Here's to hoping I can finish Maggie's strawberry costume the morning of!! Nothing like waiting 'til the last minute, right?

Vacations are Beautiful / October 29, 2013 by Kate Brightbill

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 / October 27, 2013 by Kate Brightbill

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 / October 25, 2013 by Kate Brightbill

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: