Etc. Archives | Page 41 of 254

5-hours Long Girls Night Out

July 14, 2015~ Etc.

The girls and I had a girls night out where I let the girls plan the whole date. So of course it ended up being a little over 5 hours long and we watched Inside Out(not The Peanuts Movie), then went to McDonald’s for dinner and then Gloria’s Little Italy for gelato.

A cute old man serenaded us with Disney songs.

My favorite part of the date was when the movie ended and my oldest said excitedly to her sister, “We are not done with our mommy-daughter date! We still have two more things, isn’t that awesome?”

I did tell the girls that I get to plan the next date and we need to watch how much money we spend. A movie + dinner + gelato for 3 people adds up! I told them I’ll show them on our next date that you don’t need to spend a lot of money or even none at all in order to have fun.

Half Birthday Girl

July 13, 2015~ Etc.

Thank you Krispy Kreme for sponsoring this post. Celebrate Krispy Kreme‘s 78th birthday by trying the new Birthday Cake Batter Doughnut and Chiller today.

It was this month when I realized we never celebrated my oldest’s half birthday in May. My excuse is that it fell on Children’s Day(see the post here) and I was so excited and focused on that holiday(it was my favorite holiday growing up and I still get excited about it!) that I totally forgot about her half birthday. Our little family tradition for their half birthdays is to go get a little treat like cupcakes or doughnuts and go to the dollar store where each child gets to pick out 1 item from the store. The reason why I started this tradition is because whenever people ask me how old my kids are and I say they are 4 or 5 years old, they are quick to correct me and say, “No, mom! I am four and a HALF!!!” When you haven’t lived for that long, 1/2 a year mark is a big deal. 🙂 So we celebrate this day as the official day when they can start saying they’re _____ and a half years old!

So we went to Krispy Kreme and tried their new Birthday Cake Batter doughnut and Birthday Cake Batter Chiller(which I thought was perfectly fitting for our half birthday celebration), their new items that were added to the menu last week to celebrate their 78th birthday. I was a little worried the Birthday Cake Batter Chiller was going to be way too sweet but it wasn’t too sweet and I actually really liked it! It’s a creamy and not-too-sweet cupcake flavored ice beverage that’s topped with whipped cream and sprinkles. I loved the sprinkles that added a fun crunch to the drink. The doughnut literally tastes just like cake batter, like even the same level of sweetness and my half birthday girl loved it. These confetti and cake batter treats are available from July 6-August 30th, 2013.

Then we went to the dollar store and it’s always fun seeing what the kids pick out .

Do any of you celebrate half birthdays? What do you guys do to celebrate?

I was selected for this opportunity as a member of Clever Girls and the content and opinions expressed here are all my own.

My Sleeping Angel

July 10, 2015~ Etc.

These pictures make me cry. It makes me sad that I don’t have many sleeping pictures of him and he’s already turning two at the end of this month. I see these adorable pictures on Instagram of babies napping and the pictures are taken in a bright natural light, but I always make my kids nap with the blackout curtains and it’s really dark which keeps me from taking pictures of my kids. I think this is my very first time taking a picture of him napping since he was a newborn and it breaks my heart knowing that. He’s not a baby anymore. I wish I had taken more pictures of him while he napped, there’s just something about little babies and kids sleeping that gets me. I wish I had pictures of him sleeping when he was 6 months old, a year old, 18 months old.

This little guy is hitting the terrible two’s with his screams and meltdowns and surprisingly, I am way more patient with him than I was with my other two. Maybe it’s because I know the terrible two’s won’t last for a long time and even though everyone thinks he’s 3 since he’s so tall, he still looks so little to me, compared to his two big sisters. So when he screams and cries, I can’t help but smile at his cuteness and think how adorable is it that he’s freaking out over something so small but then when you think about it, it’s the worst thing that’s happened to him in his whole life so it’s pretty traumatizing to him. How cute is that? To think he’s only lived for so short that the saddest moments of his life is when his mommy makes you leave the playground that you so love playing and want to stay longer. I smile in secret so he can’t see because I don’t want him to know I think it’s kind of cute and it might encourage him to do it more. And no matter how terrible the terrible two’s might be, and I am sure there will come a time when I won’t be patient with his meltdowns and lose my patience, but even then, I am sure my heart will melt as I look at his sleeping face and he looks like a true angel, so quiet and so innocent.

Sometimes I am so tempted to post plethora of pictures of my kids because, like other mothers, I think my kids are the cutest. And I want to show off how cute they are to the world and I know the world will fall in love with them because like my boy here, he is truly the happiest, sweetest, funniest and goofiest little 23 month old. But then I think it’s not worth their lack of privacy and I don’t need the whole world to fall in love with my kids and adore them, they just need me and Jay to do that. So these once in awhile snippets will have to do.

Dinner at Rodizio Grill + random ramblings

July 9, 2015~ Etc.

My friend Michelle from The Mumsy Blog and I went on our 6th date and we are official. But seriously, we were invited to dinner for the American Summer BBQ Fest at Rodizio Grill in Trolley Square and had a wonderful time. My husband and I had Rodizio Grill for the first time at this event and my husband who is very hard to please(since he’s a wonderful cook as well) when it comes to food, especially with meat, even he was impressed! Their dinner was excellent and this key lime pie? Let’s just say I am not a huge fan of key lime pie but this one I was. I highly recommend it if you get a dessert there. We also got to eat and dine and meet some local influencers from Utah.

with the stars of Rodizio Grill! Can we talk about how awkward I look in this picture? My awkward smile, my awkward thumbs up, it cracks me up how awkward I look!

Then we shopped around Trolley Square and I wish I bought this hat! I’d totally make an excuse or throw a party to wear this to. I might just have to go back to get it.

I had a very emotional day today and I am emotionally exhausted. Life can get a little bit annoying sometimes, doesn’t it? In the end though I believe life is about not having contention towards anyone and being loving and forgiving despite our weaknesses and theirs as well. I believe true happiness comes from knowing you are a good person, a person without guile and not having any resentment or a grudge towards someone, Then, no matter what kind of chaos might happen in your life, you’ll have peace in your heart no matter what because that peace comes from that quiet confidence you have of knowing you are truly a good person. And no one can take that away from you, it resides within you no matter what obstacles might get thrown in your way. Anyway, I had no intention of writing this mushy part but you should be used to my random ramblings now. 😉

5-min. Alterations: tailor a bigger size dress in less than 5 mins.

July 6, 2015~ Etc.

5 minute alterations: tailor a bigger size dress in less than 5 mins.

I am starting a series called “5-minute alterations” that are super quick and simple! I alter about 60% of my clothes to make it more flattering to my body shape and it’s usually done 30 minutes before I am about to wear that certain piece of clothing, so these are probably not what a seamstress would do if you were to take it to a tailoring shop but it’s more of a shortcut, and it works and looks great. A simple tailoring can make a huge difference and make the clothing look way more flattering but also way more expensive!

Before:

If you want the sleeves to look more finished, I would recommend cutting off the sleeves and hemming it. But if you only have 5 minutes to make the dress more flattering, just fold it! Plus, you can unfold and wear it as the original.

After: