Friday, May 16, 2025

Five on Friday - The Perfect Tween Girl Sandals and Dress, New Music, and More!

*This post contains affiliate links.  As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.

Happy Friday, y’all!  Our busiest weekend of the whole year is here… it’s recital weekend!  But first, some favorites!

O N E – The Perfect Tween Girl Sandals

Olivia has reached the age where she is wanting to wear more “grown up” stuff (cue my tears!), so a lot of the clothes in her size are too baby-ish for her, but she’s not quite big enough to fit into adult clothes. 

Enter Target’s line, Art Class!  They offer clothes in sizing for tweens that are more sophisticated and trendier than traditional little kids’ clothing.

Olivia has been wanting a sandal with a heel or a wedge forever, but I didn’t want her wearing anything too high, so we were both excited to see these gold wedge sandals available this year.  They have a 1.5 inch wedge, so they give Olivia that “grown up” feel, but they are still age appropriate.  The sandals are great quality, and I love that they have a grip on the bottom to prevent slips. 

They come in a variety of sizes, and they also have a white crochet version in addition to the gold ones.  They do run large, but they are soooo comfy!  For reference, I wear a women's 7-7.5 depending on the brand, and the girls size 5 fit me perfectly.

 


T W O – The Cutest Tween Dress for Summer

This dress is another item from the Art Class line.  I saw it one day at our local store and knew immediately that Olivia would LOVE it.  Sure enough, she went nuts when I pulled it out of the bag, and she has worn it multiple times already since we bought it. 

Again, it’s a dress that’s appropriate for her age, but it has a more sophisticated look to it.  The quality of this one is incredible with its full lining and smocked back.  It also has adjustable straps so you can get the perfect length, and it honestly looks like something that you would get at a boutique.  In addition to the white strawberry print, it also comes in a blue version with a white beachy print as well as a plain, coral version.  It is seriously the cutest dress ever.  I’m actually tempted to see if the girls XL or XXL fits me!  Haha.

 





T H R E E – Current Favorite Instagram Account

I’ve been following @thedadbriefs (Slade Wentworth is his real name) on Instagram for a few months now, and I couldn’t love his account more.  He prepares the most delicious dishes and provides the recipes for said dishes along with kitchen hacks while also discussing current events and politics.  He always ties the dish he’s preparing in with whatever topic he’s discussing that day, and it’s truly genius.  He does this with a heavy dose of humor and a whole lot of love and compassion for others, and he truly seems like the best guy!  I totally fangirled last week when he followed me back on Instagram!! 

 




F O U R – New Music!

I mentioned in my weekly blog post on Tuesday that we went to an Abe Parker concert last weekend.  Zach Paradis (who I’d never heard of prior to last weekend) opened for Abe, and I loved him so much that I went home and downloaded all of his music.  I’ve been shuffling his music all week and it is so. good.  His slogan is “sad bops for happy people” and I don’t think I’ve ever loved a slogan for an artist that much ever.  Not all of his music is sad, but, in my opinion, his best ones are the sad ones.  Haha.

I LOVE sharing new music (music is my love language), so my gift to you fellow music lovers this week is the gift of this new-to-me artist.  He has SO MANY SONGS, so if you don’t know where to start, I highly recommend listening to Waiting Here for You, Wait for Me Too, Pretty Little Lies, Connected, and Olivia.  Yes, he has a song called Olivia and I love it so much.


 

F I V E – Recital Weekend

As I mentioned before, recital weekend is heeeere!  It’s always chaotic and exhausting, but oh so rewarding to finally get to see our girl on stage to see what she’s worked so hard on all year long. 

I did this post about must-need items for recitals four years ago when she was our tiny dancer.  She’s not so tiny anymore.  :o(  We still use many of the items, although she’s outgrown a few and has grown into a few others, but I thought I’d put this post right here for any of you who are approaching recital time as well!

 

Friday Funnies












 


On the Blog This Week

 A Year of Gratitude - April 2025 Snapshot

Our Week - The One with Teacher Appreciation Week, a Vertigo Update, an Abe Parker Concert, and Mother's Day

What I Wore - April 2025

Happy Friday, y’all! 


*Linking up with A Little Bit of Everything for Friday Favorites.


Wednesday, May 14, 2025

What I Wore - April 2025

*This post contains affiliate links.  As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.

It’s time for another edition of what I wore, this time in the month of April!  I think it’s safe to say that the real MPV of April was this tennis skirt!  I have it in five different colors, and I wore them four times last month.  They’re comfy, they have built-in shorts, and they look cute for running errands, but easily transform into workout clothes.

Here’s what I wore.  As always, I’ll link as many items as I can under the pictures. 

April 1 (morning) - Top // Jeans

April 1 (evening) - Leather Target Dress sold out (similar here) // Silver Boots // Olivia's Skirt // White Boots

April 2 - Flare Leggings

April 3 - Tank // Skirt

April 4 - Tank // Skirt // Shoes

April 5 - Floral Top // Jeans // Wedge Shoes

April 6 - Tank // Jeans

April 7 - Flare Leggings // Shoes

April 8 - Top // Jeans

April 9 - Leggings

April 10 - Tank // Jeans // Shoes

April 11 - Sweatshirt // Jeans // Shoes

April 12 - Top // Jeans // Wedge Shoes

April 13 - Flare Leggings // Shoes

April 14 - Leggings

April 15 - Tank // Jeans // Shoes

April 16 (morning) - Jeans

April 16 (evening) - Tank // Skirt

April 17 (morning) - Shoes

April 17 (evening) - Leather Target Dress sold out (similar here) // Silver Boots

April 18 - Top // Jeans

April 19 - Joggers

April 20 - My Dress // Olivia's Dress

April 21 - Tank // Shorts

April 22 -

April 23 - Tee //  Jeans // Sandals

April 24 - Leggings // Shoes

April 25 - Tank // Jeans // Sandals

April 26 - Tank /Skirt

April 27 - Tee // Shorts

April 28 - Leggings // Shoes

April 29 - Tank // Jeans

April 30 - Tank // Shorts // Flip Flops


Happy Wednesday, y’all!


Tuesday, May 13, 2025

Our Week - The One with Teacher Appreciation Week, a Vertigo Update, an Abe Parker Concert, and Mother’s Day

Hey, y’all!  Here’s a little snapshot of our week last week!

Monday, May 5

Monday morning, I had to be at the school right at 7:30 to help with Teacher Appreciation Week, so the kids and I were out the door and on the road earlier than usual.  We did a big breakfast for the teachers on Monday, so we wanted to make sure everything was set up and ready to go before the bell rang. 

We put out Chick-Fil-A chicken biscuits, sausage biscuits, yogurt with granola and various other toppings, bananas, oranges, apples, juice, coffee, and all of the jams, creamers, sugar, and other condiments needed. 

Three of the other ladies had most of it set up by the time I arrived, so I helped them finish up, and then we all headed to the conference room to sift through the massive collection of snacks and other items that we’d asked parents to bring in for a build-your-own trail mix day and a snack day later in the week.  We got everything organized and ready for Tuesday, and then we were done for the day.

I headed to Walmart and Publix next for groceries, and then I spent the rest of the day *trying* to get my blog post done for Tuesday.  I never ended up getting it done and I had to push it to Wednesday, but what can ya do.  I didn’t feel great all afternoon on Monday, so it was hard to concentrate or get anything done.

At 12:15 I had a phone consult with the new upper cervical chiropractor that I plan to see for my vertigo, dizziness, neck, and jaw issues.  He is over an hour away from me, and there was no reason to go in person since they don’t run any tests during the consult, so they were kind enough to accommodate me with a phone call instead.

The doctor himself called me promptly at 12:15, and he spent almost 30 minutes with me, going over my entire history.  I may have only had the vertigo and dizziness for a couple of years, but I have a history of jaw clenching, TMJ issues, face and neck tension, and ocular migraines that started more than 20 years ago + tinnitus that started nearly seven years ago.  Throw in all of the issues that I’ve had for the past two years (almost), and it was a lot to go over.

He was incredibly knowledgeable, he knew some things that I was going to say before I was going to say them, he knew what every single test and procedure was that I’ve had (some doctors have never heard of a VNG), and he told me that based on everything I told him, I sound like a TEXTBOOK patient for him. 

Y’all, after being told over and over and over again for the last two years by multiple doctors that they have no clue what’s going on with me and that they can only speculate, hearing that I am textbook was a breath of fresh air.  I cannot tell you the validation and relief that I felt after speaking with him. 

He did say that the braces/rubber bands and my major jaw shift is highly likely the main culprit of the onset of the vertigo as I’ve been suspecting all along.  But he also told me that considering I’ve been experiencing jaw clenching, face and neck tension, headaches, tinnitus, and ocular migraines for so long, that he thinks that I probably would have ended up with the vertigo and dizziness eventually, even if I hadn’t gotten my braces.  He thinks the braces and rubber bands / jaw change just fast-tracked it.

He said that the cervical area of the spine is very cramped as it is, and having a major jaw shift like that can easily throw everything out of whack in that area.  The vestibular system balances on the atlas (a bone in the neck) that is likely the cause of all of this, so that explains the vertigo, and could even possibly explain the tinnitus I’ve had since 2018.  My atlas could be the culprit for all of it.

I also told him about my anxiety and how the dizziness and vertigo ramp up when I’m feeling particularly anxious or stressed and he said that is absolutely textbook as well.

The very best piece of information I received on the call, though, is that he will run tests at my first appointment that will tell him definitively whether or not the issue is my atlas.  So, there will be no guessing, no speculating, and no waffling from the doctor about whether or not he should treat me.  He said the scans will either show that, yes, my atlas is misaligned, and he can treat me, or no, my atlas is not misaligned, which would mean that he will not be able to treat me, but he would then become my advocate to try to figure out the best medical treatment for me to seek next.

I have always been wary of chiropractors as I had a bad experience with one right after Jacob was born, but upper cervical chiropractic care is different.  This doctor does not do the standard twisting, cracking, and popping.  Instead, he looks at the scans, makes gentle, precise adjustments, and then he takes a new set of scans to ensure that the proper correction was made.  He said he has some “miracle” patients who only need one adjustment, and some that only need a couple, but some do need several, so it could end up being a process that takes a few weeks, or even a few months.  

So anyway, it all sounds very promising.  I had a blog reader reach out to me months ago to tell me about a Facebook group that she helped establish for adults with vertigo (especially after dental or orthodontic work), and it was there that I found out about upper cervical chiropractic care.  An overwhelming number of people in there credit UCC care as the care that finally healed them, so I have been praying about it nonstop for the past few months.

Recently, one of my friends told me that she has a friend here in town who has been going to Atlanta for UCC care for her vertigo, and she said that it has helped her.  Then, I had another blog reader reach out to tell me she has been seeing the exact doctor who I will be seeing for her vertigo, and she told me that it has helped her as well.  So, I truly do think that all of these things are pointing me in that direction, and I pray that I can finally get permanent relief after nearly two years of living with constant dizziness and unsteadiness, and tons of neck and shoulder tension. 

After my call with him, I had a good cry because I’m just so relieved that somebody finally gets it.  Somebody finally understands what I’ve been going through.  Somebody treats people exactly like me every single day with positive results.  Finally. 

After the kids got out of school, we headed home, and we all flipped through Jacob’s yearbook that he’d gotten.  Olivia hadn’t gotten hers yet, so she was excited to get a little sneak peek. 

Our sweet Boo was nominated as “Most Intellectual” for eight grade superlatives.  And they also had a page of the “lifers” (kids who have been at the school from Pre-K4 all the way through 8th grade), and I teared up when I saw that sweet little Pre-K4 picture of his.  How is he going to be in high school next year, y’all?


I was also shocked to see myself in the yearbook – lol.  I’m so involved with all of the goings on there that I made it in a picture that was on the dedication page.  Haha.

After we were done looking through that, I worked on my blog post some more and I knew at that point it wasn’t going to get done for Tuesday, so I gave up and entered 40 alumni in the new database.  It has to be done by the end of the school year, so I’m down to the wire now.

By the time that was done, it was time to get dinner ready.  We just kept it very simple with turkey and cheese biscuit sliders and fruit, and then afterward, Brian finished the mowing that he’d started before dinner. 

Olivia had a makeup guitar lesson Monday since she’ll be at her recital rehearsal during guitar lesson time this week, and she finally decided on a new song to learn – abcdeForget You by Gayle (the clean version, of course). 

When we got home, I went for a two-mile walk, I got showered, we got the kids in the bed, and then Brian and I watched some of American Idol while enjoying some margaritas that Brian had mixed up for us since it was Cinco de Mayo.


Tuesday, May 6

Tuesday morning, I dropped the kids at school and then headed to the school office to help set up for Teacher Appreciation, Day two.  The treat for Tuesday was a “Make Your Own Trail Mix” bar, so we put out tons of trail mix options – various kinds of pretzels, walnuts, almonds, peanut M&Ms, plain M&Ms, marshmallows, raisins, dried apricots, dried apples, chocolate chips, chocolate covered peanuts, chocolate covered raisins, Goldfish, and popcorn – and we had little paper bags and boats so they could either mix it up and take it home or mix it up in a boat and eat it right then. 

Once everything was set up, we prepped a few things for later in the week like putting “thank you” stickers on paper bags, organizing snacks and door hangers for Thursday, and ensuring we had enough stuff for the rest of the week, and then we were out of there!

I headed straight home, got my blog post done for Wednesday, transferred 40 people to the new alumni database, had lunch, and then I caught up on some blog reading because I still wasn’t feeling great and I just plain didn’t feel like working anymore.

In the car line I finished my book, and then Olivia and I went to Chick-Fil-A for a treat while Jacob had Velocity.  This was our last mommy/daughter Chick-Fil-A date for the school year since it was Jacob’s last Velocity meeting, and I’m sad that they’re over.  While Tuesdays are always hectic, it’s always a nice 30 minutes of one-on-one time with her.

Jacob had a great time at his last Velocity meeting, and he told me in the car that he wants to do Teen Advisors next year in high school… that’s the next step from Velocity. 

When we got home, I started catching up on my quiet time while Olivia got ready for dance.  I had to double up on my gratitude journal and my devotional since I’d done neither on Tuesday. 

I took Olivia to dance, and then when I got home, I got back to my quiet time, and I also did a Bible study. 

After that, I took a few minutes to get organized because I had lists everywhere and notes everywhere that needed to be added to lists.  It was a little chaotic, so I felt much better getting it all organized.  I also took some time to get a couple of other things done that have been on my list forever that I’ve been putting off, and then I took some time to see if I could pare down the items in my Barrington bag to a small crossbody bag to be my permanent bag, and spoiler alert, I just can’t carry something that small, y’all. 

I did, however, clean out a ton of stuff from my Barrington bag that’s unnecessary to have with me every day, and that lightened my bag so much that I think it’s almost as light as the smaller bag packed with stuff that I would have had instead.  The cross body bag was so heavy by itself that it wasn’t worth carrying the smaller bag anyway.  Barrington bags are incredibly lightweight, so I really don’t think it’s much heavier to carry than the smaller bag since I switched my wallet to a smaller one and got rid of so much unnecessary stuff.  Aaaand now I’ll still have room in my bag for a sweater and a book if need be because I do carry those items around a lot.

After that was done, it was time to head downstairs to get dinner ready.  We had some leftover vodka sausage pasta that I’d frozen weeks ago, so I pulled that out, boiled some noodles, steamed some broccoli and warmed some bread, and voila – an easy dinner. 

I sipped on some wine and played a Taylor Swift record while I cooked, and it was a pleasant little evening despite the fact that my neck and face tension was raging again.  Sigh.  I also had time to water all the plants, tidy downstairs, get some returns ready, and get stuff in the car for Wednesday while the food did its thing.

When Brian and Olivia got home from dance, the four of us sat down to eat, and then I got in a quick strength workout while Olivia got showered and ready for bed.

Brian and I ended the night with American Idol, and that was our day.

 

Wednesday, May 7

Wednesday was the only day I wasn’t needed for Teacher Appreciation Week as we had a coffee truck there for the teachers to enjoy a late morning/early afternoon pick-me-up.  It was a rainy, yucky day, so I got the kids to school, ran to Chick-Fil-A to grab gift cards for our teachers, dropped some returns at UPS, and then I holed up in my office for the rest of the day to get stuff done.

I started my blog post for Friday, I started my blog post for Monday, and I started my blog post for Tuesday, I got caught up on blog reading while I ate lunch, I got 40 alumni transferred to the new database, I got the kids registered for free summer bowling, I organized the teacher appreciation week gifts from our family, I got my desk cleaned off, I responded to a few emails, and I paid a bill.  Whew.  All the little things that need attention, especially at this time of year, are astounding.

In the car line, I finished another book that I started months ago, and then we headed home.  I got my Bible study done, I folded the towels, I got another load of towels in the washing machine, Olivia signed and finished putting together all of her Teacher Appreciation Week gift cards, Olivia and I wrapped a gift for one of her friends, I got the dishes put away, and then I dropped Olivia at dance. 

While I was there, I had to run in and pick up recital tickets and tights, but the tights weren’t ready.  On the way home, I picked up a gift for my Momma for Mother’s Day, and then it was home to cook dinner.  And by cook, I mean, I made grilled cheese sandwiches for Brian, Jacob, and me.  Haha. 

After dinner, Jacob worked on signing all of his Teacher Appreciation gifts, and I watered the plants.  I wanted to walk after that, but there was a dog on the loose on our street and it appeared to be aggressive.  Several of our neighbors were out trying to catch it, but nobody could.  It turned out that the dog belonged to the house on the corner, but it wasn’t wearing a collar, and while it seemed like it was aggressive, we think it was scared more than anything.

When the neighbors got home, they took it inside, and I got out for a 1.5 mile walk alone, and then I grabbed Jacob to do another 1.5 miles.  Right when Jacob and I headed out, the dog came running out again.  Sigh. She started trotting towards us, barking loudly, and another neighbor came walking up to try to help in case the dog got aggressive, but thankfully, the dog never approached us.  The owner came running out, apologizing that the dog had gotten out again, and then Jacob and I were on our way. 

Jacob and I had a great conversation about psychology on our walk.  I once considered majoring in Psych, so I was telling him about everything that I learned in my class, and he was intrigued.  They’re currently learning about the human brain, so he was highly interested in hearing about how it works.


When we got home, I got showered and ready for bed, and then I painted my toenails, folded some more towels, and emailed the teachers about the kids Oh, the Places You’ll Go books while Jacob got ready for bed.

When Olivia got home, she got showered, we got the kids in the bed, and then, Brian and I ended the night with some American Idol. 

 

Thursday, May 8

Thursday morning, I dropped the kids at school, and then it was time to help out with Teacher Appreciation for the day.  The teachers had filled out door hangers we’d handed out earlier in the week, and they were able to select two snacks and one drink.  We filled all of their orders by placing their snacks and drinks in a bag and then delivering them to their classrooms.  I organized all of the bags on our rolling cart by grade level – high school, middle school, lower school – and then I delivered all of the bags to the teachers from third grade to twelfth grade while the other girls delivered the 1-year-olds through second grade + faculty and staff. 

Our resource officer walked around with me to deliver the bags since they keep all of the classrooms locked for security purposes, and we knocked all of the deliveries out in about an hour.  While I was delivering the bags, I got to see both Jacob and Olivia… I always love getting little sneak peeks of them at school.  :o)

After that was done, the other ladies and I put together gift bags for Friday, and then I was home by 10:30 AM.  I did my entire blog post for Friday, and just as I was trying to finish up, I got a text from Jacob saying that we had a new Pope!  His class had been watching live while they were working, so they got to see the white smoke as it started to emerge!  So cool!

I immediately turned on the TV so I could watch live to see who was announced, and after that, my productivity went out the window.  I did end up getting my blog post done, but just barely, and I was grateful that I was able to see the new Pope and watch his speech live before I had to leave to pick up the kids from school.

When I got in the car line, I did a deep dive on him so I could get to know him a little better, and I really do love how he cares so well for the marginalized and is very inclusive.  He seems to be a very humble, kind, and good human, and I’m praying that he leads our Catholic church well.  It’s also very exciting that he’s the first Pope ever from the United States!

When I picked up the kids, they were all a chatter about watching everything.  Their teachers had let them cease all other activities to watch live.  Olivia’s teacher sent us a video of their class cheering as the Pope emerged on the balcony for the first time.  Our school ended up posting the video, and the local news picked it up as well, so Olivia was thrilled to see herself on the 5:30 PM news later that day.

After school, the kids had music lessons, and this was Olivia’s last lesson for five whole weeks.  We rescheduled her lesson for this week since she has rehearsal for her recital, then the school is closed for two weeks, then we go to the beach the week they reopen, so she was sad to say goodbye to Mr. Steve for that long.  She was verrrryyyy excited, too, though, because she was chosen as the student of the month for May!

After lessons, we headed home, I got my Bible study done, I got 30 alumni moved to the new database, and then we had breakfast for dinner while watching the news coverage on the new Pope, including seeing Olivia’s class on our local news.

After that, I walked two miles, Jacob packed for a sleepover the next night as he was supposed to go home from school with a friend, and I talked with Olivia’s friend’s mom about a sleepover she was supposed to attend.  Unfortunately, they had to postpone because Olivia’s friend was sick… and Jacob’s sleepover ended up getting postponed, too.

The kids got showered, I got showered, I got organized for Friday, and then we got the kids in the bed.  Brian and I watched some more American Idol and then went to bed.

 

Friday, May 9

Friday, I dropped the kids at school and headed to the conference room in the school office to sit out all of the teacher gift bags as well as all of the leftover snacks.  Once that was done, the girls and I were done for the week – woo hoooo! – so I headed home and got to work.  I did my entire blog post for Monday, I responded to a bunch of emails, I placed a Young Living order for my cousin, I created a Signup Genius for Olivia’s end of the year class party and sent it to all of fifth grade, and I did my quiet time minus a Bible study because I was running out of time.


Brian and I ate lunch together, I watered all of the outdoor plants, I put all of the dishes away and cleaned up the kitchen, I got 30 alumni moved to the new database, I meditated, and then I got my clear bag ready for the concert we were going to Friday night.

We had to leave right after school, so I had to do all of my late afternoon and evening activities before I picked up the kids, and therefore, it was a bit of a different day than usual.

Our resource officer came to visit me in the car line to say goodbye because it was his last day at our school as he’s moving along to a new job.  We have loved having him so much and he’s going to be greatly missed.  Those kids at that school all love him SO much, and we’re all hoping for someone new who is even half as wonderful as he is.

While he and I were chatting, he told me he’d gotten to say goodbye to Jacob but he hadn’t seen Olivia all day (I had told both kids that it was going to be his last day so they could be on the lookout for him and give him hugs), and I knew she’d be upset, so he told me to drive over to his post (he directs traffic on the main road for the car line since it gets crazy) after we got out of the line.

Sure enough, when Olivia got in the car, she immediately told me that she didn’t get to see him, and she was soooo sad, so we drove over to him so she could say goodbye.  We’re gonna miss this guy so much! 


After we said our goodbyes, he stopped traffic on both sides so we could get out (otherwise we would have been stuck forever waiting for the car line to finish), and we headed straight home.  I had to move quickly because Brian and I needed to leave ASAP for Atlanta for yet another concert!

My MIL arrived at our house right after we got home, and once I freshened up, B and I hit the road.  We made good time and got to Atlanta without too much traffic.  We decided to eat at The Vortex since it was close to the venue.  I had a burger with pimiento cheese and pickles, and it was one of the best burgers I’ve ever had.  It was so delicious. 



After dinner, we drove to the venue, which wasn’t far, and we lucked out and got a spot on the street, so we didn’t have to park in the parking garage. 

We arrived about 45 minutes before the opener started, so we took a bathroom break and grabbed some beers, and then we ended up getting a spot right near the stage.  We only had a couple of people in front of us.  This was the first time I have stood in an open floor for a concert without a chair or something to hold onto since my vertigo started, and thankfully, I did well.  I was really worried about the fact that there were no seats in there, but I wanted to go so bad that I was willing to risk it, and I’m so glad that I did!

The opener was Zach Paradis, and I enjoyed him so much that I downloaded all of his music immediately on Saturday morning.  He was fabulous.

We were mainly there to see Abe Parker, though, and he was even better than I’d hoped.  I found him on Instagram over a year ago and I fell in love with his music instantly.  We saw him open for Judah & the Lion last October, but this time since he headlined, the show was better because he had more time, and he was able to do a little bit of storytelling in between songs.

He sang all of my favorites, and he also covered Iris by the Goo Goo Dolls during a medley, and it was incredible.  Zach also joined him on stage to sing See You Again by Wiz Khalifa and Charlie Puth and it was so good!! 

The venue only held about 300 people, so it was really intimate, and it was just the best night.  Abe even came down in the audience and sang right next to me! 

After the show was over, we went over to say hi, and when I walked up, he said, “Lindsay!”  I was totally fangirling in my head because he remembered me.  Haha.  I chatted with him for a couple of minutes and I told him about how his sister had found me on Instagram and has been such a blessing to me with all of my vertigo issues, and I thanked him for his music connecting us.










After we took a picture, Brian and I hit the road, and I immediately messaged Abe’s sister when we got in the car to send her the picture of us.  Haha.

Brian and I made it home in record time.  When we got home, it was only 11:40 which might be the earliest we’ve ever gotten home from a concert in Atlanta, and the kids were still up.  Poppie (my step-FIL) had come over to relieve Nana (my MIL), and he’d let them watch a couple of movies and wait up for us.

After Poppie left, we got the kids in bed, and then Brian and I were right behind them!

 

Saturday, May 10

Saturday morning, we slept in and woke up to the dreariest day.  Brian picked up donuts since it was Mother’s Day weekend, and after breakfast I headed to my office to drink my tea and scroll through social media.  I also uploaded all of the concert videos that Brian had taken for me… he was kind enough to video a little bit here and there so I didn’t have to.  I was able to just live my best life singing and dancing… my favorite thing.

The kids did their laundry, and after theirs was done, I got our sheets washed.  Then I spent some time transferring 30 alumni to the new database, clearing out my email inboxes, and cleaning off my computer desktop.

We all had lunch together, and then afterward, I spent a couple of hours trimming, adding new soil to, and cleaning up all 11 of my indoor plants.  They were all so overgrown, and it was long overdue.  I also propagated a couple of them so I can add them to my current pots to fill them in.

That plant on the left is a clipping from Brian’s great grandmother’s plant that is decades old, and the one that’s on the right is a clipping from my great grandmother’s plant from the 1960s… pretty wild, right?!

Before

After

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Before

After


After that was done, I knocked out a couple of other random odds and ends, and then I got a Bible study done before it was time to get ready for church.

My dad was sick, so he and my mom skipped church.  After church, my Aunt Joy and Uncle Greg and the four of us all picked up food and took it back to Mama Cass’s house and hung out for a bit.

While we were there, I snapped this picture of the OG plant from the 1960s that belonged to my great grandmother.  Just look at how massive it is!  My Mama Cass has kept that thing alive for SIX decades, y’all, and it is thriving.  Is that not just wild?!


On another note, my Mama Cass and Big Daddy (who has been deceased for ten years) have had this crucifix hanging in their house my whole life.  When the hall light is on, the crucifix makes a shadow of the face of Jesus next to the crucifix… is that not the coolest thing?! 

When we got home, we all got ready for bed.  I watered and fertilized all of the plants, and then I finally put new string lights on our bar cart and the tree in our living room.  The bar cart lights had been half-out since Christmas, and then the other half went out a couple of weeks ago, so it was long overdue.

While I did that, we started a new show with the kids called Geek Girl.  It seems to be like a Princess Diaries type of situation where a “geeky” girl turns “pretty” but without all of the princess stuff.

After we got the kids in the bed, Brian and I finally caught up on The Handmaid’s Tale and then we watched some more of American Idol.  I am dying to know how they’re going to wrap up Handmaid’s Tale… hopefully I won’t be disappointed!


Sunday, May 11

Sunday morning, we slept in, and then I was greeted by Brian, Jacob, and Olivia with gifts when I came downstairs.  Olivia had hidden my gift from herself, so I had to find it, and then Jacob gave me a Lego heart that he’d made.  Brian gave me a gift card for a massage (woohoo!) and my new favorite thing – a mug with pictures of Maui on it.  I am in love!

We had leftover donuts for breakfast, and then it was business as usual for me.  Unfortunately, Mother’s Day falls during Maycember, a time when I can’t take the day to fully relax, so I headed to my office to do yoga, watch my Sunday morning sermon, and prep my planner for the week ahead, and then I also printed Olivia’s massive recital list that her dance studio sends every year (it has soooo many details and it always takes me forever to get through it).  I also downloaded some more of Zach Paradis’s music since I hadn’t quite finished on Saturday, and then I got my quiet time done.

After that, it was time to get ready for the day and head to my mother-in-law’s and step-father-in-law’s.  My MIL always insists on cooking for Mother’s Day, and my step-FIL was kind enough to grill chicken, so she didn’t have as much work to do.  His grilled chicken is the absolute best, so I was excited.  We also had mac n cheese, cauliflower casserole, steamed carrots, steamed broccoli, a corn casserole, garlic cheddar biscuits, and sweet tea.  For dessert, they’d made a Hershey Pie and homemade cookies.  Everything was delicious, and my sister-in-law who doesn’t live here had made it here with one of my nephews, too, so we were able to enjoy their company.

When we got home, Brian flipped the towels from the washer to the dryer, and then I settled in my office to transfer pictures from my phone to my computer.  While those transferred, I did my Bible study, and then I got all of the pictures organized.  I also edited all of the pictures for the post you’re reading now.  All while I watched The Wedding Planner (surprise, surprise) as my happy background noise. 

While it would have been nice to get outside and do something, it rained all day yet again on Sunday, so we stayed indoors.

Since my dad was still sick and wasn’t feeling any better, we had to cancel our plans to cook and have people over for Mother’s Day.  I was sad not to be able to see my mom on Mother’s Day, but I called her on the phone and chatted with her for a while when we were driving to my MIL’s for lunch.

Around six, I headed downstairs to put all of the dishes away, and then it was time to figure out what to do for dinner.  We ended up reheating some leftover pizza from dinner Saturday night, and I picked and chopped some fresh basil to put on mine to freshen it up a bit.  We also paired that with a Caesar salad since I had two bags in the fridge since we were supposed to cook and have everyone over.

After dinner, we cleaned the kitchen, I sorted all of the dirty clothes, I folded the towels, and I prepped for Monday.

The four of us played a quick round of Sussed after that, and then Brian and I got the kids in the bed before watching The Last of Us.

Happy Tuesday, y’all!