What We Did - Week 28

I'm trying to get back on schedule with these posts.  I'm skipping the few weeks that I've been away.  So here we go!

Day 205 - Thu.

We've finally picked a contractor to remodel our bathrooms!  I'm super excited.  It's going to be a major mess and a big hassle but I' hoping it will be worth it.  We went pick out some tiles today. We brought Mark with us and he was super excited to "help" us chose tiles.  He kept telling me to "come look at this one."  I heart him so much!

Then we went to the Home Depot to look at some light fixture and toilets.  Mark wanted to ride on the lawnmower.

Day 206 - Fri.

I went out and got supplies for my test run with flower arrangements. I had so much fun picking out the flowers!

Day 207 - Sat.
I found out I got wrong foam so I had to run out and exchange them.  I worked on the arrangement for a couple of hours and got them done. How cute are my boys? Love them so much!

Day 208 - Sun.
No picture today :-) M had to leave for a business trip so Gpa took Michael to practice.  It was so hot! But I hear relief from the heat is coming soon! The boys were in and out of the house playing with their friend Tucker.  That's pretty much what they've been doing most of the summer.

Day 209 - Mon.
We went to lunch and then drove over to pick up some Dragon wear for the Spirit Shop. Mark fell asleep on the way home.  Yay! Then the boys got in trouble for fighting. Booo.  I don't usually bust them for bickering, but today was exceptionally bad so they were not allowed to play with friends the rest of the day and Tuesday.

Day 210 - Tue.
The boys were not allowed to play with friends and level of bickering was at a minimum. M took Michael to dinner and a soccer game for the evening.  M bought tix 2 months ago and was so excited to go with Michael.

Why does my baby look like he's 14?

I took Matthew and Mark for Mooyah burgers for dinner and I had so much fun talking to Matthew.  He loves to tell me little trivia.  "Did you know....." And loves to ask questions.  "Mom, if lizards are cold-blooded does that mean they can't freeze?" Love it even more.  When I tell him I don't know about something, he Googles it.  I had fun watching Mark guzzle his strawberry milkshake down!

Then we went for a walk around the lake when we got home from dinner because the weather was so nice (in the 80s at the end of July in TX-seriously unusual).  Of course, we slathered ourselves in bug spray because the mosquitos were out in droves.

Day 211 - Wed.
We woke up to a nice little surprise - rain in July! The boys got comfortable on the couch with their iPads, playing Minecraft.

 ...and goofing off. Love these little guys!

What I Wore

I haven't posted about anything related to outfits in a long time mostly because there's not really much to post about.  These days, shorts and a tank top is the norm around here.  When I was working, I got to be a little more fashionable, even in the hot Texas summer.

I'm linking up with Get Your Pretty On and Pleated Poppy to highlight what I wore this week. My selfies are not of the highest quality, but I'm trying to get better! I think I need a real full length mirror but I don't want to spend the money just yet.

I saw this tank when I was shopping with my mom in California and it was love at fist sight. Totally different from anything else I own, but isn't it fun? FOUR dollars, people.

Shorts - Gap (similar), Blue tank - Old Navy, Giraffe tank - Banana Republic Outlet, Shoes - Guess

This is another version of shorts and tank. I changed it up with some white denim shorts and a bright aqua tank.

Shorts - Gap (similar), White tank - Ann Taylor, Blue tank - Gap Outlet, Shoes - Guess, Necklace - Stella & Dot

Here I am in shorts and tank yet again.  There's not  much option when it's over 100 degrees out.  This is one of my favorite tanks. Although you can't see it in this picture, the back has a lace inset that is so pretty.

Shorts- Old Navy (similar), Cream tank - Ann Taylor, Coral tank - Nordstrom Rack, Shoes - Target, Necklace - Kendra Scott

Maxi dresses are the easiest outfit for the hot summer.  This is my new favorite.  I love the color.  Its look red here, but it's a really a nice heathered coral in real life. And it's super soft.

Dress - Max Studio from TJMaxx (similar), Necklace - Nordstrom Rack, Charm bracelet - Tiffany & Co. (similar)

Thanks, Alison and Lindsey for providing us a forum to share!

Favorite Things Party Link-Up

My favorite thing this month is going to sound weird, but once you do some looking into, you will actually find that many woman are using it.

A while ago, Alison at Get Your Pretty On blogged about using this cream as a replacement for her Smashbox primer. I was like, really? And moved on with my life.

Then it was time to replace my primer (I use Lancome's La Base) and remembered about the recommended gel and thought why not?

So off I went to Target to get some.  Sold Out.  I had to go to a second Target and it was on sale. Great timing, right?

Don't let the words Chafing Relief Powder-Gel scare you! If you try this (and you should), make sure you get the Chafing Relief and not the other kind of cream that Monistat is better known for (wink, wink).  I got mine at Target for $5, but you can find this at most drug stores.

Anyway, I've been using this "primer" for several weeks and I love it.  It's powdery and silky to the touch, and dries quickly.  It helps my makeup up go on smooth and lasts most of the day, even in the hot Texas weather.  I also like that it has no smell to it.  I don't love it as much as La Base (I think La Base holds the makeup on longer), but for the price, I'm willing to switch.

So there you have it - my favorite thing this month. Thanks to Erika and Andrea for doing this link up so I can share my Favorite Things! 

Flower Power

I love fresh flowers an dI love making fresh flower arrangements.  When I discovered that is would cost between $400-$600 for my sister to get a bouquet, 2 wedding alter arrangements and a signing table arrangements, I volunteered to make these for her.

This weekend I set out and went shopping for flowers and supplies for a dry run just to make sure that I can deliver on my offer. I had a couple of little missteps-like buying the wrong type of floral foam-but I think I did pretty well on my first try.  I learned a few things that I will use when I create the real deal in August.  I'd never gone anything to this scale so I was a little nervous!

Here's the bucket of flowers ready to be arranged.

And ta-da!  This is the result.  It's a pretty big arrangement and costs about $40 to make-a much better price tag than the $200 we were quoted.

I made Michael hold the bouquet up so I can take a picture to send to my sister.  He was not amused and grudgingly agreed. Love that little monkey is drinking my Sonic drink like it was his.

Then Mark wanted a turn. Yes, he's not wearing any pants.

And I even had leftover flowers for this arrangement! The roses are the ones M got me when I got back from my trip to California. I just added them to the new arrangement. Not bad for a beginner!

I'm Too Old

I knew that one day the words, "I'm too old...." will be a standard reason for my kids  to give me when they think they've outgrown something.

On Friday, it happened. M was looking at costumes for the boys and found a Spiderman costume for Mark.  Then I got the idea of having all 3 boys dress up as superheroes for Halloween.  When I suggested this to Michael, he said, "Mom, I'm too old for a full costume."  I pressed and he said no way.  I appealed and said that this will be the only year that we have to have them to be a threesome, but he vehemently refused.

He's too old.  Sad face. In the end, he and Matthew got the costume they wanted (I'm not too happy about their choices, but M said that they were of age for the Scream Mask and Mike Meyers (sp?)).

I guess I should be thankful that M is on the ball and is already thinking about Halloween.  He was so excited to go trick-or-treating with with Mark last year.  He's just as excited this year.

This is what Michael wants to dress up as for Halloween.

Matthew wants to dress up as this guy.

Only Mark is willing to be cute this year.

Sandi's Bridal Shower

Technically, my little sister is already married but my parents are hosting a traditional Chinese ceremony in August so we decided to throw her a bridal shower before the event.  I made a special trip to California to host and be part of the fun.

We had it at the Quail and Thistle Tea Room.  It was super cute and very charming.  The tearoom is located in an old carriage house so it was small and very quaint in a good way.  I'm bummed I didn't get  picture of it.

We had our own private room so it was really nice because we could put up our own decorations.  Dia, one of my sister's childhood friends did an awesome job with the games.  It was such a fun afternoon!

 The bride-to-be.

This was the party favor Sandi and I made.  I love the little chalkboard sticker.  

Dia, Donna and Kristina.  Donna was mine and Sandi's Economics teacher in high school.  Not during the same year, of course. Dia and Kristina grew up with Sandi and lived on the same street.

 
Devon also grew up on the same street and they've been friends since they were like 3 years old. She won the "Who's Got the Groom" game.

California Dreamin' - Part 2

Day 6
On Wednesday, we went to the Flea Market to get some fabric for a picture backdrop for my sister's wedding in August.  She got some poppers for Mark to play with and he loved it!

Day 7
We went to the outlets.  I saw this giraffe tank at Banana Republic Outlet and totally loved it.  Best thing? It was 4 bucks.

My mom and sister got this pineapple tank.

Day 8
We just hung out.  My brother came over for dinner and the boys played outside because you can't beat the weather we get in California.  And what's great is you can be outside in the evenings and not be bug bait.

Day 9
My sister's bridal shower was Saturday.  We went to the Farmer's Market to get some fresh flowers for the centerpieces and spent the morning arranging them and finishing up the favors. Then we were off to Capitola for some bridal fun.

On the way back from the shower, we stopped Costco and my mom got Mark this sweatshirt.  He spent the evening pretending to shoot web everywhere and crawled around on all fours.  He's so awesome.

Day 10
We spent the morning at the donut shop.

Then we went to play at the park for a couple of hours.  He met a couple of bigger boys there and played zombie battle with them.  Hilarious!

We met up with Benjamin and my brother at the donut shop for lunch of burgers and fries.

Two cousins "talking" about which donuts they liked best.

That evening, we met up with my brother's in-laws for dinner at his house.  I don't know why I didn't get pictures, but we had a good time.  Then we put the two boys in the bath.  This was the best picture I got.

My parents attended a wedding that evening and came home with a bouquet.  Mark wanted to try it out.

Day 11

Another Monday morning at Starbucks.  This time he tried the hot chocolate with some water. Sandi asked for some and he told her no because it was too hot for her.

Day 12
We got up super early for the airport.  Again, he flew in his PJs and was super good on the airplane.  There was another toddler on the plane who was super cranky and was crying for most of the flight.  Mark started singing really loudly.  When I told him to take it down a notch, he told me that he was "trying to make the baby have fun" so she would stop crying.  I almost ate him up right then.

Good-bye, California.  We will be back in a month!