recommendations

Our house is coming together. The whole family is getting really ready to be done with all of this house remodel stuff. It's all good things happening to our house. Everything is getting better and nicer. But the decisions that go along with all of that are exhausting. And the inconvenience of the house being out of order here and there is getting pretty old.

But I am aware that this a problem most people cannot afford to have, so I go along each day sucking it up and telling myself to stop acting like a spoiled brat. Just being honest. I'm excited to post pics of the end result. We're going to have a nice home, free of duct-taped couches and bruised walls and scratched up floors.

Our walls will be updated with photos. Addie and Angus haven't noticed that all of our family photos that decorate our walls are about 7 years old, which excludes them completely. What I'm saying is, we went big. We went big as much as we could. I can't wait to start making some memories in our new home. We're almost there...

Anyway, I'm going in a different direction this Wednesday. This is a post filled with my recommendations... mostly podcasts.

First recommendation: Do not take your 4-year-old son to Pier 1 Imports. I'd never been to that store before yesterday. I'd also never seen so many breakable things in one store before, well besides BevMo. It was very stressful. This was the only safe spot. Also, Christmas exploded there... so if you're into expensive Christmassy decorative things, Pier 1 is your spot.

Next recommendation: Podcasts.

I love podcasts. They have made my life better. If you're into podcasts, which I've only recently begun listening to, I have some recommendations. Mari first got me started of course and told me which ones I'd like. And then those podcasters suggested other podcasts. And I stumbled on some others. Here are some of my faves if you're looking for some new ones or if you've never listened to podcasts before and don't know where to start. Music is always on at our house. As a result, I get bored of listening to the same stuff, so I like listening to podcasts in the car or while doing laundry or working out at the gym. They're also good if you're taking your kids somewhere that's boring for mom like the park or the pool.

I've tried to list these in order of how much I like them. I have other podcasts in my rotation but these are the most consistently good. If you're looking for secular podcasts, stick with 1, 2, 3, 4 & 5. If you prefer Christian podcasts, stick with 6 and 7. They are all pretty clean except #5.

1. Sorta Awesome - This is probably my favorite - It's a podcast for women that discusses mostly lighter topics like the new things they're loving this fall. The main lady that hosts it is a Catholic mom of 5. The episodes are usually about an hour.

2. The Popcast (with Knox and Jamie) - This is a super hilarious podcast basically making fun of celebrities and pop culture in a fun lighthearted way. I like it because normally I don't know about anything going on in Hollywood, by choice. But I still get to hear about what's happening and what movies are good or bad and it's all wrapped up in an hour-long episode. The two hosts are a hilarious married dad and a hilarious single lady. They are both Christians from the south with lots of sass.

3. The Lazy Genius - This one is hosted by a Christian mom of 3. It's not really a Christian podcast or a mom podcast. It's a podcast for everyone. It's super practical with tons of ways to better your life through routines, cooking, planners etc. The episodes are about 20 minutes. 

4. Office Ladies - This is a brand new podcast hosted by Pam and Angela from the office. I forget their names in real life... Jenna Fisher and Angela something maybe? The internet is one click away and yet I don't feel like looking it up. This podcast is delightful. These two ladies take the office episode by episode and give fun little backstories, anecdotes and fun facts about the cast. I've been loving it. They both seem super normal and down to earth people. I highly recommend checking it out if you watched the office at all. 

5. Armchair Expert with Dax Shepard - I've only listened to a handful of these because they are really long. Like 2 hours. So maybe listen to one on a long drive, or to and from work if you have a long commute. Dax Shepard (actor, writer, director) interviews famous people. I loved the first one with his wife, Kristen Bell, and I loved the episode with Gwenyth Paltrow. He's a vulnerable and entertaining interviewer and the guests always seem to enjoy themselves and open up to him. This one has explicit language so maybe don't listen with kids in the car.

6. Parenting On Purpose (with Dr. Bob Barnes) - These are short 15 minute episodes so I like to listen to them on my way back home after I drop the kids off at school. This podcast is hosted by Dr. Bob Barnes who talks about tons of different parenting issues from a Christian perspective. I find his advice very easy to understand and easy to apply in my own parenting. 

7. The Bible Binge - This one is hosted by the same two awesome people who host The Popcast, Knox and Jamie. I love this one because even though I grew up learning about stories from the bible, I learn so much more from these two. If you were to assign two of your funniest friends the task of researching a story in the bible and then giving you a play by play, this is what you'd get. 

I'd love to answer any questions you have about any of these.

TV recommendations:

Right now, I'm a faithful viewer of Grey's Anatomy, This is Us, Outlander, and A Handmaids Tale. I rarely start watching anything new on TV.  I often give new shows a try but soon quit them if they aren't really good. I'd honestly rather sleep than watch an okay show.

But recently, I've been liking a series on Amazon Prime Video. It's called Modern Love. It's really good. I've only seen the first 3 episodes. I can tell when I'm watching something good if I'm still awake after 9:30PM watching it. It has a romantic comedy feel to it. It is very well written and the actors change from episode to episode. Two thumbs up.

Also, I started watching Parks and Rec. I loved The Office so much and people told me I'd like Parks and Rec if I liked The Office but I thought there was no way I could like something like The Office because it would make me sad that The Office ended. But alas, I did start watching Parks and Rec and lo and behold I did like it very much. If The Office is a 10, I'd give Parks and Rec at least an 8, maybe a 9, and that says something I think.

Costco recommendations:  This Salad. It's very fall and very delicious.

Dan mentioned 3 times while eating this that he very much liked it. He's pretty picky. I'll consume any soup and love it. So I decided to include this one here. 

Trader Joe's Recommendation:

You can't walk into Trader Joe's these days without encountering 5,000 pumpkin-flavored somethings. Pumpkins have taken over TJ's. But I LOVE this salsa. I just eat it with tortilla chips but you could do so much with it. I eat salsa with eggs and potatoes too so this would bring a festive element to breakfast as well. It's not spicy. It has a tiny kick. I ate half the bottle in one sitting. That was mostly because we didn't have any food in the house but I would still recommend it. 

Happy Halloween Eve! I'm not a huge fan of Halloween, mostly because I have to find 4 costumes without spending a small fortune every year, but I do like watching the kids' parade at school. It's pretty cute. 

a different scene

Mom officially moved away. I've been in pretty close proximity to this lady for the last 38 years of my life... so it's going to be an adjustment in the years to come for sure.

This would have been a cute pic if mom's eyes were open. She's a notorious eye closer. I took 5 pics and there were none with open eyes mom, sorry. Debie and Mom are off to Arkansas. Well, they're staying in Napa with Aunt Sally until their Arkansas house is ready. We said good-bye last Sunday. There were lots of tears and last-minute ideas from Winter about where mom should live instead of Arkansas. But alas, she did leave with Debie and is now far away in Napa. Angus still thinks mom's in town. He sees cars that look like hers and asks, "Dat gwamma?"

I'm selfie challenged.

The house has been painted for the last 10 days or so... we moved out.

But our saint of a friend let us stay in his back house that is currently not being inhabited. And it is across the street from the girls' school. It has been Winter's dream to walk to school for years. So she was uber happy to live there for a while. Mya asked if I could still drive her across the street. In her defense, she plays the cello.

Living across the street from the school also meant that we could also go play at the school playground after dinner.

One of my favorite pics ever. 

Mya was so proud of herself because she said no one else in her class could climb to the top of the tetherball pole. It's always nice to be the best at something. Even something super random. 

I set the school record in 8th grade for the most jump ropes in one minute. I still remember the number. 188 jumps. The record was soon broken but it felt sooooo good to be the best that year. I bring it up all the time to Dan. Last year I tried to show him how good I am at jump roping but I couldn't even jump rope for one minute, let alone do 188 jumps. 

I'm going to frame these sunset pics someday...

We've been using a lot of paper and plastic bowls and cups. Sorry environment. It was temporary.

The kids had to share two portable DVD players... And then one broke.

I made deviled eggs for the first time ever. They were so good. They're hard to mess up though.

Red Ribbon Week was last week. I have no comment on how I feel about it. Okay I'm not a fan. It's just more work for me. But I did feel the need to take a pic on crazy hair day. I forget how that ties in with saying no to drugs. Winter didn't brush her hair and said it was "crazy" as a result. She wakes up with perfect hair so it was not at all crazy. It was just an excuse not to brush her hair that day. Mya went above and beyond with a "cupcake on a plate" hair. I'm not sure who did Addie's hair. I wasn't paying attention. She's pouting because I told her to stop playing and put her shoes and socks on. Angus is always down for a group photo. 

And Addie won the contest for the best red ribbon anti-drug poster in Kindergarten. Her teacher says she has amazing artistic ability. We may have a future artist on our hands. I haven't seen the poster yet but I'll post it when she brings it home. I'm curious to see what she drew since she doesn't know anything about drugs. Winter thinks you eat them. And I guess she's not completely wrong...

We watched my friends' kids one afternoon. What that means is Mya and Winter took turns chasing an 18-month-old and I supervised. If you ever need a baby chaser for the day, the big girls would be more than happy to be there for you. 

Halloween festivities have begun. Rainbow Dash, JoJo Siwa, a ballerina, and a swat team guy. Addie's costume is a repeat costume which I super appreciate.

Our beloved Higerds came to visit and went to Trunk or Treat with us.

We went to a costume birthday party today! Obviously not a one theme family.

Happy Halloween time!! 

gross things and complicated trashcans

Warning: This post contains talk about the stomach flu and going #2.

Every once in awhile I notice and appreciate the fact that all the kids are out of diapers and no one needs to be breastfed and none of them are toddlers and they can all pee in the toilet and buckle their own seatbelt. It's pretty awesome. I have these glimpses of how much easier it is now than it was a few years ago.

But then fall comes. Sicknesses start at school and we inevitably catch something. Addie got the stomach flu. Yesterday afternoon it started. She does we call a puke, sleep, rally. Every time Addie gets sick, and it's been plenty for some reason, she pukes, goes to sleep, then wakes up like she feels better than she ever has in her life. And after she pukes, before she goes to sleep she looks like she is literally dying. I had to keep her head up in the bath so she wouldn't go to sleep under the water while I washed her. She was that belligerent. She took a three-hour nap like she usually does following her visit with the toilet. Then she greeted me downstairs fully dressed with a thermometer in her hand and exclaimed with attitude and a sideways head wiggle, "Who's sick NOW?!" Then she bounced around singing and dancing. Still praying no one else gets it. Winter begged me to let her hang out with Addie and eat after her so that she could lay in bed on the kindle and miss school. Twisted kid.

In other news...

We have a new kitchen. We have some fancy new changes like a touch feature on our sink. You don't have to turn the faucet on. You just touch it and it turns on. Like if you're dealing with raw chicken hands or slimy egg yolk hands or whatever mess you make with your hands, you just touch the back of your hand to the base of the faucet and it turns on. Pretty handy.

Another cool thing is our new trashcan. It's in a pull-out cupboard type thing. You just bump it with your knee or hip and it opens. Well, it opens for everyone but me. Winter likes to booty bump it. Addie slams her belly into it and Dan bumps it with his knee and it opens. I have tried everything and it hates me so I use the handle. It's fine. I'm not complaining. I'm just fancy trash challenged. I tried to show Mari how cool it was when she came over and after I slammed my hip against it like 10 times in different places, things got awkward and I gave up.

You know what my kids do that's kind of weird and gross but also kind of sweet? When one of them is pooping, another kid will go into the bathroom and sit with them and talk to them to keep them company. It stinks in there but they still do it. I'm not sure who initiated this but they all do it. If that's not love, I don't know what is.

A conversation we had in the car this week:

Me: Mya, I'm almost done with your costume. I just need to find a tutu.
Addie: I need a tutu for school! (They are learning the letter T so it was "Ties and Tutus" Friday)
Angus: I need a tutu too!

And guess who didn't have a tutu Friday because her mom forgot... Sorry Addie.

I went to pick her up from school and I knew I'd hear about it from her. She was nearly in tears, but turns out she didn't care about the tutu. She was fine with the handmade tie. She was upset because she misplaced her water bottle. The one that kept her water cold all day long. She loves ice-cold water.

Mya is fine with not being the poop emoji for Halloween and went completely in another direction. A ballerina.

Such a good big sis/horse.

I had to get a pic of all of my soccer players together. Dan and I set our chairs down in the middle of all 3 fields and take turns cheering on the four kids. Angus isn’t crying anymore when his team scores goals so that’s good. But he has yet to last a whole game without coming over and sitting down and saying he’s done at halftime. "Yocca is YO tywing." He says. Last week he came home and fell asleep immediately and snored which is new for him.

Dan tried to threaten/bribe him with the soccer snack. The parents take turns bringing snacks at the end of each game. It's usually a bunch of unhealthy things the kids love. It's pretty much why they play.

Dan: You can’t have a snack at the end if you don’t play.
Angus: Well, what is in the snack today?
Dan: I don’t know but you won’t get it. Addie will because she’s playing.
Angus: Weeelllllll, what IS the snack?

Pumpkin hunt playdate at the park.

Winter wanted to make her sandwich a little more fun.

Remember this picture 2 years ago?

This is why we buy apple sauce pouches.

I'm at Costco all the time. I walked back to my van last week and saw this. It IS a good van. I don't blame these other people for buying the exact same one. Go team gray Odyssey. 

There are children who are not getting enough to eat all over the world. So I always feel a bit guilty buying things that cost a lot of money. We just bought some new couches. But I think in this case, it's kind of justified... I've been duct taping this one for over a year. It was getting embarrassing. 

So we bought some new couches. My thankful thing this week is our amazing trash service in Azusa. This is what we are throwing away tomorrow. Ugh, poor guys. 

A speaker at a mom's group I attend gave me some good simple ideas for the holidays coming up. I'm all about minimal stress and effort. So I only pick up on stuff I can actually do. One good idea is to just buy one awesome thing to decorate your house each year. Something you love. And after like 10 years, you'll have 10 somethings you love in your house. Everyone thinks they need to buy a bunch of crap every year so that they can decorate, and that's expensive and overwhelming. I have a bunch of stuff handed down from my grandma mostly and a few other things that are Christmassy that I don't love but I keep them because they're festive. I'm definitely starting this tradition of getting one thing I love for the house, maybe for each season... we'll see. I don't have anything for Fall... But I did put out twice as many decorations as I did last year...

           

This kind of reminds me of a fashion tip for those of us who don't have extra money to spend on clothes. I've been doing this each season with my wardrobe. Most of what I wear is from Wendy's hand-me-downs or the thrift store. BUT I do try to get something affordable for each season. Just one thing. A staple that I can wear all the time. For instance, I just bought a pair of high waisted skinny jeans at Target for $15. I mix my thrift store purchases with my 'on trend' jeans and viola. Amie has an updated look. In June, I bought some high waisted super flattering shorts. Last Fall I bought a sweater that I wore like every day. The year before that, some boots from Forever 21. If I have just one thing that's trendy that is affordable, it makes a huge difference. These are the ones I'm loving right now. Jeans that I like are not easy for me to find. I find a good flattering comfortable pair like every 5 years. So I may buy another pair of these. Click here to check them out at Target.com.

Another thing the speaker talked about that's super easy that my kids would love is to get festive holiday paper plates at the dollar store and use them for dinner instead of real plates. That's SO easy and cheap. I'm totally doing that. For all the holidays. Valentine's Day, St. Patrick's Day, all of them.

This is a weird one that doesn't really fit into the fall theme but I had to mention it. I'm not sure who bought this or where it came from but I noticed it by the detergent in the cupboard and I started using it on stains. And it's usually stains I've noticed after I've washed the clothes. You just spray it on, leave it for an hour or so and throw it in the washer and it's magic. It always gets the stains out. Like every time. I've debated putting it a post because it's been around forever but I didn't know it was amazing until recently. So if you've never tried it, give it a whirl. It's super easy. Don't mind the stupid blue arrows. I'm tired and they were in the screenshot. Whatever. 

From laundry to breakfast. Another fun tip you may already do is take leftover veggies and fry them up with eggs in the morning. If there are any leftover veggies, you can pretty much guarantee I'm eating them for breakfast. This one was mushrooms, onions, and sweet potato fries. Delish.

This salad is awesome. I love it the most of all the salads I've had at Costco. I'm going back for more.

Happy Sunday night!