I know there are other apps that do this—and I think the kids have used them with a sitter—bit this was my first attempt. The technology is cool.
Category Archives: Photos
Nap time!
Our purple has arrived!
With all the back issues Tom and I both have (plus his new shoulder issues) we’ve been looking at getting a new bed. We love our Purple pillows and have been dreaming about trying the mattress so when they recently came out with upgraded mattresses we jumped on it.
I did a Facebook Live “unboxing” because I had a bunch of friends who I knew were interested in the whole process:
And then I did the infamous “egg test”:
Of course, the company’s official videos are much, much better. 🙂
Stay tuned to see if we like it…
Katie’s spring kindergarten picture day!
At least it’s not a kid, right?!
This is what happens every night as soon as I lay down.
Lazy animals.
How can this be comfortable?
The kids made a pillow pile then left it and of course Maggie co-opted it.
Ribs, ribs, and more ribs.
Tonight was supposed to be a Saturday Night Dinner except one family had to bail due to a family plague and one had clients run long…so we only had one family attend which meant a lot of leftovers. And we didn’t even cook all the ribs we’d prepped in the sous vide. They were delicious!
Have you ever heard of a box maze?
This is the most insane box maze. When I first heard about it I thought it would be something simple like boxes taped together. Not even close. This is an annual event with a week-long prep with computer drawings and major construction and tons of volunteers and it’s amazing and so well worth a visit. There are slides and tunnels and stairs and rooms and moving parts and fireworks (LEDs on the ceiling) and people throwing “rocks” in certain rooms… They provide knee pads (soccer there’s a lot of crawling) and flashlights (which I laughed off but it gets pitch black in areas). I just wish it was easier to get pics inside (there are lots of kids and people and you follow each other through so if you stop you hold everyone up). Tom and I went through twice and didn’t even see half of it. We let the kids play for over an hour (we saw lots of friends there) and they would have stayed longer.
These two pics are grabbed from the Facebook event page.
And the computer layout they had posted on the wall.
When Daddy is responsible for makeup removal.
Daddy was responsible for Katie’s butterfly makeup removal this morning so he left just her eyeshadow for a picture. 😂
It’s not Miss Anne’s face painting but she’s happy.
We took the kids to Rainforest Cafe for the first time tonight and they had a face painter there so of course Katie wanted it done. I could tell the quality wasn’t going to be what we were used to from Miss Anne (at Halley) but Katie was still thrilled. She even got a jewel stuck to her forehead.
That said, we won’t be going there again—the food took forever, was mediocre at best, and was way too expensive for what it was (we only went because the kids got free meal vouchers at Katie’s school event last month). But they got to experience it once so we’re good.
The first time is a charm?
A military pharmacy can often take up to two hours (yes, seriously) so when I sat down I wasn’t a happy camper.
So imagine my delight when I was called up within five minutes for the first call and then about 10-15 for the second. When I first went up I asked about how long it would be and he said 20 minutes and I kind of looked at him and laughed like YOU HAVE GOT TO BE KIDDING ME. And then it happened. When I went back up I said “Wow, I like this hospital. I’m used to at least an hour wait. Is it always like this?” He said “KNOCK ON WOOD, no, it’s usually crazy.” (So maybe it was first-timer’s luck.) But I figure that’s an omen that today is going to be great day. Aside from the fact that I’m getting drugs for a UTI, that is. 😂
Sticks make perfect fishing poles.
Hat Day in honor of Dr. Seuss.
I’ve given up on getting her to match leggings. 😂
My first walk in…forever.
We had a bit of a warm spell so I decided to go for a walk around the neighborhood. It’s not the awesome wooded trail walk I used to have but at least it’s something. Right?
Proof:
I guess it’s comfortable.
Owen’s first concert performance!
The entire third grade class presented a concert tonight. (This is actually only half the students—the other half went an hour earlier!) They sang a few songs together and then each class sang their own song while playing instruments. It was much of what you’d expect a third grade concert to be but they all looked like they were having fun and were proud of themselves. 🙂
After the concert we wanted to find Owen’s self-portrait (all the third-graders had done them and they were lining the gym). Owen had to point it out—I don’t think I ever wood have found it on my own. 🙂
She’s well-trained!
She saw my glass was empty and did this all on her own. 🙂
Dinner tonight…as threatened!
I’ve threatened to buy one the next time I saw an orange sticker…and today was the day! A glorious 2.28# of ribeye. Getting the sous vide ready now!
Someone is also interested…
Just sea salt, garlic powder, pepper, topped with an onion slice then cooked sous vide for five hours. Then Tom will take a torch to it to sear it!
It turned out absolutely delicious. We momentarily thought it was too rare and we going to toss it in a pan quick but we took a taste test and immediately decided it was perfect.
Why does it always seem to end in tears?
The kids were sitting together on the stairs of their own free will so of course I wanted to take a picture. This is what happened in quick succession.
Katie always manages to get bonked accidentally during their roughhousing and has a fit even though Owen apologizes immediately.
You know it’s going to be a good day…
You know it’s going to be a good day when they have your favorite pre-made Strawberry Lime margaritas back in stock! It also means summer is coming! ☀️🍹
I may have bought two cases. 🙂
Dogs are weird.
I came downstairs to see this. I have no idea what she was looking at.
Jumping again!
A friend invited us to the local jump place and the kids needed to get rid of some energy on their day off…
Reading Dick and Jane
Gramma gave Katie this book for Christmas—it was the same book she learned to read on. We finally got it out and she is blasting through it!
Owen was alao reading at the same time.
A brief snapshot
I’m done getting my hair cut for awhile.
So I decided I needed layers because I didn’t love the blunt cut. My same stylist that last did my cut/color did it again. I think I’m good now. I still kind of miss it being looooong but oh well, it will grow back. 🙂
His hair is getting crazy.
Good to the last drop!
Totally my daughter. 🙂
Last-minute date night to celebrate 21 years!
Today is our dating anniversary (21 years!) and we decided last-minute to get a sitter and go out for dinner.
I never thought I’d try fake lashes but here we are.
Since I’ve been doing my makeup more these days, I’ve come to realize I need to bring my eyes out more—and I found a decent mascara but it still didn’t give me the ooomph I was looking for. So for awhile now I’ve been thinking about trying fake lashes. I never would have even thought about it except a bunch of my friends (and online makeup friends) wear them and they just look gorgeous. (Prior to getting in the makeup biz, I honestly thought fake lashes were strictly for professionals—models, movie stars, TV personalities—I never realized real people wore them every day!)
Well, I decided to order some very inexpensive ones to try—just to see if I could even put them on halfway successfully/deal with sticking something to my eyelid without looking like a clown. So I invited my friend Heidi over to assist—she wears them regularly and was going to be my support system. 🙂
And you know what? I LOOOOVE THEM. Holy cow. I’ll start with the After pic.
Amazing, right? Yet they still look natural enough, right?
I wasn’t completely successful with my first application—I overtrimmed one (and then consequently placed it too far inward) but overall it was easier than I thought it would be and I loved the look. It did take some getting used to to have a plastic strip attached to my eyelid but after a few hours it was almost unnoticeable. And of course I’ll get better with time. That said, I definitely won’t be wearing them all the time. But I do like them.
Before / Half done / After
In different lighting:
With my lash muse, Heidi:
My family had no idea I was trying them (I did them during the day) and I bet Heidi that Katie would notice and Tom wouldn’t. Within minutes of Katie getting off the bus—before we even made it home from the bus stop—she said I did something to my face, looked at me closer, then said it was my eyes. Ding! Ding! Ding! It took Tom a bit longer and he didn’t technically say anything (I had to ask but he said he did) but I’d say Katie won. 🙂
How Tom and I do Valentine’s Day
