Friday 5

It has been one busy week around here, guys!  With the end of school officially happening next Thursday I've been diligently volunteering and getting in a few work days too.  I hope your week has been fantastic and your weekend is looking great as well.

My five for this week are.....Summer Staples!





1.  Ocean Minded Women's Del Mar Flip Flops by Crocs

An all leather flip flop from Crocs....I got these a couple months back and honestly, they are awesome.  They are also very inexpensive as compared to the other leather flip flops.  I paid about $25.00 for mine!  Supplies are now limited but click here to see if your size remains in stock!




2.  Costa Del Mar Sunglasses

I guess it is part of getting old....or years of sun worship....or a combo of the two!  This year I have noticed that my eyes cannot handle the sun like they have in previous years.  Literally, after our first pool day I was in tears of pain from the way the sun was burning my eyes.  Yes, I had on sunglasses and yes they may have been from the dollar bin....hey I lose them like crazy!
I did some research as to what I needed for my eyes.  It came down to two sunglasses companies - Maui Jim and Costa Del Mar.  I think they are both awesome companies who make a great product.  However, after an awesome sales associate helped me maneuver through all the different lenses AND take them outside to actually try the products out it was clear I needed to get the Costa's.

I went with the Cat Cay's with a grey lens that basically removes all yellow light and refracts it in a different way so that I can see and not cry when I'm on the water, in the yard, or paddling along.  I did settle for a basic pair...so I may be missing out on my fun sunglasses but my eyes are healthier because of these things, so take that!




3.  A lot of SPF

We live at the pool during the summer (the beach is 3.5 hours away, sad face).  I keep my kids covered in SPF and I also keep myself covered as well.  This year I picked up this stuff in the cream form (I don't use spray for the initial sunscreen application).  My kids love it because it has a minion on it (way to go marketing) and I love it because that little minion makes putting it on them so much easier.



I have learned that nothing really gets you an SPF level of 50 and most sunscreens stop around 24.  I cover my kids in 50 (knowing this) I guess it makes me feel better?  I generally pick up a little Hawaiian Tropic for myself.  That smell, ya'll....ahhhhh!



4.  Rum

I tend to put the wine to the side.  I'm not a big beer drinker.  However, when the temps go up and bare feet are the norm I like my rum.  Only clear rum!  I don't do brown rum.  Clear rum I mix with lemonade, orange juice, a Bacardi mixer from the frozen section....mmmm I think Jimmy Buffet is my real dad.

This is a lame stock photo because I cannot get my photos right now.

5.  Good Friends!

Summer time and friends go hand in hand!  We love to have friends over for cookouts and bonfires in the summer.  Its just such a wonderfully, laid back time of year.  I hope this year will be the same even though this summer is bringing some slight changes to the typical schedule.  I'm hoping to get something going for every Saturday or Sunday of the summer.  I love to plan fun stuff so we can have people who make us laugh right beside us!

Weekending...2/28-3/1

I had a wonderful weekend and I hope you did too.  It isn't often that I post about my weekends but this is one I wish to remember.  It involved a lot of fun time with my two best friends....Ashley & Jennifer.

First off, I have to tell you my husband is amazeballs.  Most days I'm out and about making a dollah bill ya'll but a lot of the time I am at home doing all the lovely housewife duties like cooking, cleaning, rearing children, going insane, drinking too much coffee, you get my drift.  My hubby has no problem (if I can give him a head's up) to watch the junior mints on his day off for me to run away for a while.  He even expects me to go over the amount of time I expect to be out.  I told you he is amazeballs.  So thanks, lover.

My Saturday morning started off at 6:30 AM....yes my two and a half year old slept in.  It was nice....you know sleeping past 5:30.  By 9 I was on my way to the lovely Wilkes County to see my college bestie.  Not only was she throwing a painting party (I'm throwing one too in the coming months) but she also just moved into her new home!  So I get a threefer....see her (awesome as usual), paint (fabulous, I love to paint), and see her new home (grand!).

NO offense but my table rocked out....there are two artists at that table and none of them have the name Amanda.

Ashley shooting stealth photography of me.  I'm looking all professional.

Yep, that's MY Ashley!  She was a little skeered.  However, she did an amazing job.

So here are the finished products.  The only person I knew was Ashley but I met some super friendly and sweet ladies and that's a true plus!  Didn't we do well?  

I had a BLAST!  I also ate a butt load of carbs and one of those fabulous carbs I plan to make as soon as I whip my tail into shape.....oh yeah it is coming at you next Tuesday.

Around 3 I got home and guess what.....the hubby had cleaned the house.  Like really cleaned it!  The kids were content and it was like ----

Our friends Jennifer and Brian came over that evening with pizza and wings.  I failed to take any photos but we had a really fun time together.  Jennifer brought a bottle of Aftershave (some of you will get that).  I never knew you could drink it.  It was like drinking your grandpa's cheeks.  

I love to be around happy people and those are two happy kids.  Makes my heart all warm and thumpy.  Wait...isn't that how it normally is?

In the course of four hours we planned a lot of porch memories and a potential fall beach getaway. 

 

I.love.my.friends.

Sunday was gross (weatherwise).  I woke up to all this banter about ice.  Church wasn't cancelled so we headed over and participated in a phenomenal service.  We are so happy and blessed to have been led to such an amazing atmosphere to worship.  My husband and I have both said over and over how much we love our church.  It may be large but it is so comfortable and really does make you want to be a much better servant.

After church we hit up Big Lots for these goodies.....

I have this weird obsession with birds.

We had an extra 20% off our order....#happydance.  We also got some awesome pillows.  Valentine's weekend, when we were on our retreat, we had some awesomely wonderful pillows in the condo and I vowed to get us some.  Mission, accomplished.

The little kid got all out of sorts after that trip so we were home for the afternoon.  Until I had to go volunteer for a consignment sale.  I think that was my last volunteer shift ever.  Afterwards I met the hubby and little man at our favorite mexican restaurant and picked up the Diva from her Nana's.

By the way....the Diva basically resides at her Nana's.  Home is no longer cool....yes we are entering tweendom.  

Can I also just say I think the child has grown, literally, over night.  She keeps getting taller!  I weeded out her closet and chest of drawers Monday and replaced with a size bigger.  

So yeah that was my awesome weekend and I just felt the HUGE need to share it out here.