Five on Friday - Tennis Skirt, Summer Basics and Fancies for Girls, Great Helmets, and the Best Boys Golf Shorts

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Happy Friday, y’all!  We’re officially an entire week into summer break, and it has been very productive.  I had hoped to squeeze in a little more relaxation time, but it was beach prep week, so there wasn’t much time for that.  Thankfully, I’ll be doing a LOT of relaxing for the next seven days and I can’t wait!

Let’s get to some Friday favorites, shall we?

O N E – Tennis Skirt

I bought this tennis skirt in hot pink last year and I loved it so much that I decided to buy it in another color… this Kelly green!  There are shorts built right in, and there’s a pocket on the back that’s big enough to hold a phone.  The quality is excellent, and it’s SO DANG CUTE and breathable.  It’s perfect for throwing on for errands, picnics, hikes, a workout, or actual tennis, I suppose.  ;o)  It comes in so many colors and patterns and it’s just perfect for summer because it keeps you nice and cool.  It does seem to run on the smaller side, so I suggest sizing up one size.  I’m hoping one day to snag it in white, but it’s sold out in my size every time I check. 

T W O – Target Basics for Girls

We took Olivia shopping at Target for some summer basics as well as a couple of cute outfits for the beach this weekend, and I wanted to share a few of the items we got since we love them so much.

We have purchased these shorts year after year because they’re perfect for running around, riding bikes, skating, and playing outside.  They pull on super easy, they have a drawstring with an adjustable waistband, and they have pockets.  They come in a ton of colors, and did I mention that they’re only $6?!

These skirts are the skirt version of the shorts above, and they have shorts built right into them.  They’re soft, comfy, stretchy, and they hit at just the right spot on the leg… not too long and not too short.  They are such a great basic for summer.  And again, they come in several colors and patterns.

 

These tennis skirts are DARLING and, again, they’re perfect for working out and doing any outdoor activities that make you sweat as they’re made of a sturdy athletic fabric.  Olivia got this multi-colored skirt, and she loves it so much, but it also comes in other colors including white!

 

T H R E E – Target Dressy Clothes for Girls

We also purchased a few dressier items that Olivia can wear out to dinner at the beach, and even to church this summer. 

First up, is this two-piece set… oh my word, y’all.  It is just darling.  The picture doesn’t do it justice.  We are both in love with this pattern, but it also comes in three other colors and patterns.  It’s made from linen, too, so it’s lightweight and cool.  The top is here and the shorts are here.

 

This two-piece set was Olivia’s favorite purchase of the entire weekend, and it’s darling, too.  It looks just like a romper when it’s on, but it’s actually two pieces, so you don’t have the frustration that goes along with wearing a romper.  The price is great for the quality, too, just like all other Cat & Jack items.

 

Finally, this sweater tank is soooo cute, and it’ll pair perfectly with Olivia’s white tiered skirt, a denim skirt, or denim shorts.  It also comes in green and white stripes, and a couple of solid colors as well.  She is obsessed and so am I.

 

F O U R – New Helmets

The kids have gotten really into biking lately, and they desperately needed new helmets as they were both still wearing the OG helmets we bought for them when they were little.

We found these at Target and they’re awesome.  Olivia chose this pink/purple version, and Jacob chose this red and black version – naturally.  ;o) 

They’re recommended for ages 8-14, but they fit most heads measuring up to 22.8 inches, which is pretty sizeable.  The inside of the helmet has a dial fit system to get the perfect fit on every type of head, which is so important for safety.  You literally just spin the dial, and the helmet adjusts perfectly to your child’s head.  It also has side-squeeze buckles for easy adjustment. 

It complies with the U.S. CPSC Safety Standard for Bicycle Helmets as well, so we know they’re a safe choice.  

Now to get them some new bicycles! 

 

F I V E – Boys Golf Shorts

And finally, we bought Jacob some of these golf shorts.  Y’all, they. are. awesome.  They’re made from athletic fabric so they’re comfortable for Jacob – he feels like he’s wearing athletic shorts – but they look SO SHARP that he can wear them to church and for pictures on the beach.  It’s a win-win!  They also don’t wrinkle.  We bought him a pair in light khaki and a pair in grey, and I washed and dried both, and… not a single wrinkle! 

Lightweight, cool, and comfy – check!

Feels like athletic apparel – check!

Looks sharp and dressy – check!

UPF 50+ rating – check!

4-way stretch for premium comfort – check!

Belt loops, fly zipper, side and back pockets – check!

Adjustable waistband – check!

Y’all, I’m telling you, these can’t be beat!  And they come in six different colors including black, royal blue, light khaki, grey, dark khaki, and navy blue.  They’re a winner for Jacob because he thinks he’s wearing athletic shorts, but they’re a winner for me because it doesn’t look like he’s wearing athletic shorts.  ;o)

 

Friday Funnies

What in the Lindsay is this?!

 

On the Blog This Week

 Memorial Day

Maycember – a Reverse To-Do List (A "What I Did" List)

Our Week – The One with a Class Party, Awards Ceremonies, the Last Day of School, and Poker Night

Happy Friday, y’all!

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

Our Week - The One with a Class Party, Awards Ceremonies, the Last Day of School, and Poker Night

The last week of school was nothing compared to the second to last week of school, thank goodness, but it was still busy.  And we’re now officially out for summer break… for that I’m very grateful.  :o)

Also, before I go any further, a blog housekeeping note - for some reason, this weekend, Blogger (the platform I use to publish these posts) made some updates, and I cannot for the life of me get my pictures to align with the copy on the left side of the page.  It's driving me INSANE (this is one of my OCD things), so if anyone else started having the same problem, and you know how to fix it, please let me know.  I have tried everything I can think of.

Monday, May 20

Monday morning, I was on the struggle bus after our crazy recital/dance weekend, and I had a to-do list a mile long.  I was behind on life stuff, blog stuff, house stuff, and we had zero food in the house. 

After I dropped the kids at school, I returned all of the stuff from the dance at the school, and then I gassed up the car before heading home to work.  I threw in a load of laundry, got dinner in the slow cooker, and then got to work. 

Transferring the photos from my phone to my computer was a HUGE issue, and it ended up taking me FOUR HOURS to get them all transferred over… probably because there were so many videos from the rehearsals and recital.  Since that took so long, all of my other plans went out the window, and I ended up picking up the kids from school and working my butt off for the rest of the afternoon until dinnertime.

Thankfully, I’d done a slow cooker meal, so I didn’t have to prepare much, and we had chicken tacos for dinner.

Afterwards, Brian went outside to mow and I walked around with the kids on our street while they rode their bikes for a good long while.  When they went in to shower, I headed back out to run.  I had woken up with a super swollen middle toe on my left foot (the one next to my big toe), and it was really painful.  I had smacked my foot on my suitcase really hard the evening before, but hadn’t really thought much about it since then, so I’m assuming the injury was from that?  Who knows.  It was super painful and swollen to the touch, but thankfully it didn’t hinder me (too much) while running, so I just powered through.

When I got home, I got showered, got the kids in the bed, iced my toe, watched the rest of the American Idol finale, and then headed to bed.

 

Tuesday, May 21

Tuesday morning, I dropped the kids at school and then headed to the vet to drop Maui for an appointment.  We found out six months ago that she is in the early stages of kidney disease, and they wanted to test her blood and urine again in six months to make sure it’s not aggressive. 

After I dropped her, I headed straight to Walmart and Publix to (finally) get some groceries for our empty refrigerator, and then I got everything put away when I got home.

The rest of the day was spent working, and then I grabbed the kids at 3.  Since Olivia is done with dance, we had no extracurricular activities, so I was able to tidy the house (it was a complete disaster), water the plants, wrap the teacher gifts, and prep for Olivia’s class party the next day.

Brian played tennis Tuesday evening, so the kids and I were on our own.  I pulled leftover Pizza Joe’s out of the freezer for dinner, and we had those with some fruit.  After that, I continued to work and finish up a bunch of stuff that needed to be done while the kids played.  Then I got in a strength training workout.

They got showered and ready for bed later in the evening, and then when Brian got home from tennis, we got them in the bed.

B and I watched some Shark Tank while I did some work from my phone, and then we went to bed.

Wednesday, May 22

Wednesday morning, I dropped the kids at school, and then I headed home for an hour to work before I had to be at my appointment with my therapist.  I had a great session with her (they’re always good, but this one was particularly good), and then I headed back home to work for the rest of the morning.  I ate a quick, early lunch, and then I headed to the school for Olivia’s class party. 

I arrived at the school with an ice cream sundae bar in tow, and the kids enjoyed cookies and cream ice cream, chocolate syrup, caramel syrup, whipped cream, mini M&M’s, and sprinkles.  We also gave the teachers their gifts from the class.

After the party, fourth grade had their end-of-the-year awards ceremony, and Olivia received the following awards:

Principal’s List (straight A’s, and she maintained a straight A average the entire year)

Religion Award

Accelerated Reader Award

Choir Leadership Award (for her participation during all of the school Masses this year)

Aaaand, all of her classmates awarded her with the “Super Stylish Award” for the second year in a row.  She was thrilled.  Hahahaha.

I’m so proud of this girl and all of her accomplishments this year! 

 

After the awards ceremony, it was time for me to jump in the car line, and then the kids and I headed home afterward.

I got in a couple of Bible studies since I hadn’t had the chance to do one on Wednesday, and I let the kids have some screen time since they didn’t have any homework.

I made chicken stir fry with veggies for dinner, and then after that, the four of us headed outside so the kids could ride their bikes and take Maui for a walk.

Speaking of Maui, I got the call back from the doctor Thursday morning with Maui’s blood test results, and there was good news and potential bad news.  The good news is that her kidney disease hasn’t progressed much… all of her levels are holding steady since the last time they saw her six months ago, with the exception of one number that moved from medium-high to high.  But it’s barely in the high zone now, so the doctor said it’s nothing to worry about.

The bad news is that her white blood cell count was super low, and the doctor said that is typically indicative of some kind of infection or cancer.  She said since there is no infection anywhere then that only leaves one option, cancer.  She did say that, while rare, sometimes when they send blood samples away to the lab the cells can “clump” causing an inaccurate reading, so they want to do another blood draw in-house this  Friday.  If the white blood cell count is still low, then that will be bad news.  So, we are praying extra hard that it was all a fluke and that her levels will be normal on Friday.  Please keep our tiny girl in your prayers.  I’ve been a wreck for a week since we found out.

After the kids’ bike rides, I headed out to walk/jog on my own, and then I stretched, watered the outdoor plants, and showered when I got home.  We got the kids to bed around 9 since everyone was still feeling sleep deprivation from the previous weekend, and then B and I went to bed early, too, after watching a little bit of our backlog of Shark Tank.

 

Thursday, May 23

Thursday was the kids’ last day of school and it was a half day.  I dropped them off, and then headed home for an hour to work before heading right back to the school to attend their last school Mass of the year + Jacob’s end-of-the-year awards ceremony.  I had received an email from one of his teachers earlier in the week saying that he was going to be receiving one of the special awards, so I wasn’t going to miss that!

Olivia sang in the choir during Mass again, so it was extra special to be able to be there and watch her do that while also celebrating my Boo.

He received the award for Principal’s List for having all A’s for the quarter and he also maintained an A average in every single class for the whole year!  For his special award, he was awarded the character award for 7th Grade Reading/English/Literature.  They give one award per subject per grade at the end of each school year, and he got that special award for Reading/English/Literature for the seventh-grade class.  They award those to the kids who consistently display the school’s four core values of faith, honesty, loyalty, and respect, and his teacher also told me that he tied for first place in the whole grade for having the highest growth on the standardized testing that they do twice a year.  We are so proud of him!

After Mass and awards, we were allowed to take the kids home to start summer break, but neither of my kids wanted to leave – LOL – so I had to find something to do for an hour and a half until they officially got out at noon.

I ended up chatting with a few friends for a bit, and then I went ahead and pulled around to the car line super early to park in the first spot.  It just so happened that Olivia’s class was outside building and launching rockets, so I was able to hang out with her for a bit.  Her rocket ended up winning the contest because it went the highest.  She was so excited.

One of her best friends moved away the day after school got out, so I was able to snap one last picture of them together.  Olivia was pretty sad to say goodbye, and she was a little teary when she got in the car.  That poor girl has had to say goodbye to so many close friends over the years… so many of her friends’ parents have transferred out of town for their jobs.

 

To start summer break out on a fun note, I asked the kids if they wanted to go downtown for lunch and then to get ice cream, but they both wanted Chick-Fil-A for lunch + milkshakes there, so we did just that.

After that, we headed home and were lazy for the rest of the day.  They played video games while I got some work done, and then we had breakfast for dinner followed by an evening outside.  The kids rode bikes while B and I walked Maui, and then I got in a stair stepper workout while the kids showered.

 

We started the new season of Is It Cake? Thursday night since it was the first night of summer break and then B and I went to bed early because I was just exhausted.

 

Friday, May 24

Friday morning, I slept in until about 7:30 and I lay in bed for about 15 minutes after I woke up which was SO NICE because I don’t ever do that.  I literally wake up and get straight out of bed every single morning, even on weekends.

The kids requested homemade waffles, so I made those for us, and then they watched some TV while I headed to my office to catch up on some blog reading.  Mid-morning, we got the kids’ backpacks, binders, books, and everything else from school cleaned out.  While we were at it, we also cleaned out their art bins in the kitchen, and we got rid of SO MUCH STUFF. 

We ended up recycling a 16-inch tall stack of stuff and threw away a pile almost as big as the recycling.  I got their backpacks washed and dried, and then I got all of their papers that we saved from the year filed in their keepsake boxes.  It was a VERY productive morning, and it was nice to have all of the school stuff cleaned up and put away. 

 

Brian had a couple of appointments, so he was gone most of the morning, but he was back in time for lunch.  We made mini pizzas out of canned biscuit dough along with some fruit, and then after lunch, it was more productive time.

The kids hung out and played and I got some laundry done, I tackled a little bit of blog work, I tied up so many loose ends for things that had been hanging over my head for weeks, and it was a super productive afternoon.  While productive, though, it hardly put a dent in my to-do list as I had gotten so far behind on life stuff the last few weeks with crazy Maycember.

I ended up working and getting stuff done all afternoon and didn’t stop until 4:30 to get showered and ready for the day – finally, haha – because we had poker night at my friend, Khristina’s, house Friday night.

On the way there, we swung by Publix to grab some fun red, white, and blue popsicles and some Hershey’s chocolate with red, white, and blue pop rocks inside (an impulse purchase by the register – haha), and then we headed to their house.

They’d made spaghetti, salad, garlic bread, and homemade chocolate chip cookies, and I ate waaaay too much because it was all so yummy.

We ended up playing poker and talking about all the things for hours, and before we knew it, it was after 9:30 and time to wrap things up.  When we got home, we got the kids in the bed, and then B and I watched another episode of Unbelievable that we’d abandoned for a couple of weeks because we’d been too busy to watch.

Saturday, May 25

Saturday morning, we had cinnamon rolls for breakfast, and then I did some more catching up on blog reading.  The rest of the morning was spent getting some laundry done, tidying up the house, and getting in a mixed cardio workout. 

 

We had a light lunch at home, and then we spent the afternoon working on various things around the house.  I did a couple of Bible studies to get caught up since I’d gotten behind, and then we all got ready for church.

My extended family was in route home from the beach, so our usual group wasn’t there other than my aunt and uncle, but they got back in time to meet us for dinner at Mexican. 

After dinner, there was still some daylight left since it stays light until nearly nine this time of year, so I got out and took Maui out for a walk.  I’ve had so much guilt about leaving her so much lately, and I knew she would love a walk.  And it was good for me, too, as I hadn’t been feeling great Saturday.  After a super busy season, it always takes me a few days to come down off of the rush, and coming down from the last few weeks was a doozy this time… and most of it hit on Saturday. 

When I got home, we watched an episode of Is It Cake? with the kids, and then after they went to bed, B and I watched some more of the show Unbelievable.

 

Sunday, May 26

Sunday morning, we all had breakfast, and then I did a couple of my usual Sunday things – yoga and Bible studies to get caught up – plus I did some more catching up on blog reading.  I didn’t watch my usual sermon because they had a different person speaking that day, and I also didn’t plan the week ahead because at that point I was just done with to-do lists and I wanted to focus on the relaxing things. 

We all got showered and ready late in the morning, and then we headed out for lunch.  My MIL and step-FIL didn’t cook since my SIL and BIL were out of town, so we ended up eating lunch at Jersey Mike’s which was totally random since we rarely eat there.  We were going to Target afterward, and the kids wanted to eat somewhere close (I think because they knew that would get them to Target faster – LOL) so we ended up there.

After that we spent foreverrrr in Target shopping for stuff we needed for the beach, everyday items we were out of, and a few new clothing items for the kids.  Olivia had outgrown most of her shorts and tanks, so we ended up grabbing several items for her, and of course, we had to try them all on, so we spent a while in the dressing room making sure everything fit.

Olivia still had some Target gift cards leftover from her birthday that she hadn’t spent, so she wanted to do some shopping with her own money.  She ended up getting a set of squishmallow PJs, some squishmallow slippers, a swimsuit, and a stuffy.  Jacob also picked out some Pokemon cards with his own money. 

By the time we got home, it was after 3:30, so I did some work in my office and the kids played video games until it was time to leave for my parents’ house for Sunday dinner.  Momma made a new recipe that had meatballs, and it was a winner for everyone including the kids. 

When we got home from their house, we watched another episode of Is It Cake? and then Brian and I finished Unbelievable. 

And now for a few current things…

 

Currently Reading

This month, I finished The Good Sister by Sally Hepworth and I loved it.  I also read The Good Part by Sophie Cousens and it was good, too.  I also started Josh and Hazel’s Guide to Not Dating by Christina Lauren, but I had to pause for the last couple of weeks because we were so. dang. busy.

I’m also still paused on Divine Direction: 7 Decisions That Will Change Your Life by Craig Groechel.  I love everything I read by him, but I got tired of non-fiction and wanted some light-hearted fiction for a bit. 

And, of course, I’m still reading New Morning Mercies: A Daily Gospel Devotional by Paul David Tripp as my daily devotional. 

I’m also still working my way through The Bible and The Bible Recap… I just finished up with my seventeenth book of the Bible, and I’m currently making my way through 2 Kings and 2 Chronicles.  I’m on day 186 as I’m typing this (Monday) and I’m still trying to stay 38 days ahead.  I’ve had to double up some days to keep up since I missed a couple of days here and there during Maycember, but I’m hoping to get back in my daily groove again soon.

 

Currently Watching

With B:  This month, we finished watching American Idol on network TV.  And we’re still throwing in SNL and Shark Tank every now and then when we have time.  For streaming, we finished Unbelievable (which was a bit disturbing), and we’re still making our way through The Chosen, but we haven’t watched it in several weeks.

With the Kids:  We really didn’t watch a whole lot this month again because we were too busy wrapping up end-of-the-schoolyear stuff.  We did start Is It Cake? season 3, this week, though, since they’re out of school, and we’re loving it, as always! 

Alone:  I’m still watching The Wedding Planner while I work on the weekends, but during the week, I just listen to music.

 

Currently Listening To

If you guessed Taylor Swift’s TTPD album, then you’d be correct.  Yep, that’s right… it’s still on repeat when I’m alone.  I thought Folklore was her Magnum Opus, but TTPD is giving it a run for its money.  And I never ever thought I’d say that.  It is the most beautiful, tragic album she’s written yet.  With the kids, we’ve been changing it up a bit, though, because Jacob is so sick of TS.  I’ve been on a Phil Wickham kick and I’m also L-O-V-I-N-G Abe Parker.  Oh, and let’s not forget A Bar Song by Shaboozey.  Our kids loveeee that song.  #MomFail hahahaha.

Happy Wednesday, y’all!