5 on Friday AKA June through October

We're here.

We're alive.

I had to pick and choose what I multi-tasked, and this blog lost out for quite a while.

Thank you to my extended family for asking for updates!  Let's play catch-up, shall we?

1.

Summer House Projects

Besides the fence, we did quite a bit of landscape work.  We removed the sod along one side of the house and put in rock.  This is where we store our trailer the majority of the year.

I also spray painted all of the oil rubbed bronze fixtures brushed nickel.  I really love our nook light, but I couldn't find anything I really liked for our dining room, so spray paint it was!  I also bought new globes for the lamp.  I think it turned out great.

Enjoy the messy house!  I was busy cleaning out the bar cabinets during this project.

We also changed the sink light to a brushed nickel one.

We also have new countertops, sink, and backsplash.  But they aren't fully complete......update soon!

2.

Summer Activities

We lived in our backyard this summer.  The new playset was a HIT!

I created a 'truck wash' for them and filled their pool with water beads :)  Anything to keep them busy during the work day!

3.

Daily Walks

My mental sanity was dependent on a daily walk.  It wore the boys out (the very tiniest bit) and let me get some alone time to work when we got back.

4.

Big Boy!

I already mentioned that #biggywiggy potty trained this spring, and he recently moved to a full sized bed.  He also had his FIRST dentist appointment (only rescheduled 4 times since April.)

His new comforter and shams arrived last night!

5.

What is time?

We were under quarantine during Halloween.  Due to Covid we had no plans to trick or treat anyways.  We spent the day painting pumpkins and watching children's Halloween songs.

Then in the afternoon we headed into the backyard to pick up the summer toys in anticipation of the coming snow storm.  While the storage shed was open, we pulled out all of the Christmas decor (to set up on November 1st).  Then the oldest ask if we could pretty please put up the tree. 

Of course, the answer was YES!!

P.S.

The FUNNEST indoor winter game : Indoor Snowball Fight.

My mom found these and sent them up with our Christmas presents and they are THE BEST.

Five on Friday - This is super late

Summer is here in all of it's glorious mood swings.  Cloudy, humid mornings lead way to sunny and hot afternoons.  Some days we are socked in with rain and others are a cool breeze that beg you stay outside in the sunshine all day.

I spent a rainy day looking through photos and realized I never showed some new updates.

1.
FENCE!!

After a LONG week (only because the boys couldn't go outside) our new fence is done!!!

2.
New Couch

I finally found new couch for our TV room.  A tiny bit of whining to Justin and he agreed, so we traded out the mammoth rust colored couch for a sleek gray one.

I sold it on our local Buy/Sell facebook page

This is our couch.  We bought in store when it was on sale.

I'm hopeful I can get the artwork we have framed and hung this summer......only 6 years later!  Haha.

3.

#biggywiggy is potty trained!!

No photos for this ;)

4.

New Office Space

*This actually took place in the late fall, but hey, this blog post is only 5 months late*

Bonus - You can see we finally framed and hung those prints!

After a few months of working at our dining room table, my back couldn't handle it anymore.  Justin and I had ordered a printer/scanner a few week prior (for personal use) and it needed a home.  I figured it was time and bought this desk from Overstock.  My chair is from my office.

My work FINALLY supplied us with laptops and various equipment in September.  Better late than never.  Justin was lucky enough to bring home an extra monitor from his office.

Of course the kids already decorated my "office" so I would think of them while I was working. 

I love my boys!

5.

Another Big Boy Bed

#biggywiggy wanted us to lay with him in his toddler bed every night.

He tried to sleep with #wiggydiggy in his bed often.

I bit the bullet and bought a full sized mattress and bed spring in October.

His crib converts to a full size frame, but I want to keep him close to the floor for now.  His quilt and shams arrive this week, so I'll take nicer photos soon :)

Their new favorite place to play!  I find them hiding under the covers all the time!

I moved the glider out to the living room and recovered it.  This is my favorite place to sit now.  You can find me here reading a book almost every eveing.

Five on Friday

Each week is better than before.
I've dealt with the petty anger from a few week ago and I've really leaned into the new normal.

Justin and I've also taken the opportunity to get a few projects done.

1.
New Nook Light

We still have to paint the ceiling and I am looking for artwork for the side wall.  I love how it brightened up the space!  Now I need to find a new chandelier for our dining room......

(Our old light)

2.

New Fence

This project is going to be finished by professionals, but we started tearing down the rotted fence!

We will have white vinyl  privacy fencing put up around the house.  I am so excited to see the finished product!

We also took the opportunity to trim and cut back the lilac bushes.

3.

New Play set

Technically this is #biggywigs 2 year birthday present, but we purchased it early due to Covid and Stay at Home orders.

100% WORTH IT.

I did quite a bit a research to find a play set that had a smaller footprint.  Our side yard is rectangle shaped and our backyard is really just a super long and very skinny.  The only place a play set would fit would be our side yard.  I wanted a minimum of two swings, a slide and a "double" fort.  (quite a few smaller footprint forts were only wide enough for one child at a time.)

I found the KidKraft Windale and it's been a winner!!

4.

Pelaton App

Free 90 day subscription!  I love that workouts are anywhere from 10 min to an hour and they aren't just for a bike.  Yoga, Stretching, Strength, and Cardio are my favorites.

I can bust out a few during the day with minimal interruption from my munchkins!

5.

Shed Cleanout

No photos of this - but we purged our shed!  We deep cleaned, sold off as much as we could, and reorganized.  We have over 2/3 of the shed usable to us now!  Justin is researching a new door so I'm hopeful that we can really cut down on the bugs in there.  #gross

Friday Five

I 100% have taken advantage of the extra sales and free shipping the past few weeks.

I took some of my bonus and did some splurge shopping for myself, especially because I now have the time to enjoy some of them :)

1.

Face Masks

I scored a Glam Glow set for 50% off and a Peter Thomas Roth set for almost 60% off.

I have done at least one face mask every morning.  So far the ThirstyMud Hydration mask is my favorite.  I'll repurchase a large jar when these all run out.

Bonus?  My skin is AMAZING.  I'll try to mask everyday from here on out.

2.

Hydroflask

After gifting Justin and myself Yeti Tumblers for Christmas, I had a hard time wanting to buy anything but Yeti products.  

Then on our trip to Kalispell, I saw Yeti tumblers and Hydroflask tumblers sitting next to each other on a display.  The weight difference was astonishing!  The Hydroflask bottle was as light as a feather.  I finally understood the cult following.

So I snagged one during a Dick's Sporting Goods sale.  Worth every penny.

3.

Anthropologie candle and bath soak

I blame Things.I.Bought.And.Liked.  She influenced me.

The bath soak is all it is hyped up to be.

So is the candle.  Lovely scent, not over powering, and burns forever.

God Bless 40% off sales and free shipping.

4.

Ann Taylor

I've been on the hunt for some new dress pants for a few years now.  I've loved (truly loved for 10+ years) my Limited pants, but they are beginning to give up the good fight.  I've tried purchasing similar pants off Poshmark, but I've been disappointed every time.  I saw the Friends and Family sale (which finally included their suiting) and purchased a few pants to try on.

I kept the Trouser in season less stretch.  Basically the big sister to my current pants :)


5.
J Crew Sweater Blazer

My home uniform has been jeans, t shirt, sweater blazer, slippers.  All day, every day.
So I caved and bought my third sweater blazer!  This time in Olive Green.
I take one to work with my almost every day too (#teamalwayscold) so I know that I'll get my money worth.

Comfortable? yes.
Cute? yes.
Cozy? yes.


Frivolous?  Totally.

Five on Friday - What Interesting TImes

1.

Working from Home

There are some hard feelings here (mismanagement and poor leadership...). 

Our schools were cancelled Sunday evening.  Luckily, our daycare was open Monday due to the last minute announcement and then I was sent home Monday at noon (1. I had a cough and 2. no childcare starting Tuesday).  Our company reluctantly sent a select few Monday to WFH and finally sent all non-essential staff home Tuesday afternoon after saying they weren't.

Even though the Risk Management Department had been asking what our policy was for weeks per the CDC recommendations.....

See.  Hard feelings.

My home office is our dining room table.  I wanted to tuck away into a bedroom or the kitchen nook, but with two young children, I need to be centrally located to referee all day.  Plus they like to sit by me and do "work" aka coloring and tracing.  Makes phone calls fun!

Justin still has to go into the office.  He's not meeting with the public and their lobby is closed, so his risk is low.  However he just doesn't have WFH capabilities at this time.

2.

About that cough

It's a cold.  #biggywigs and I are suffering from runny noses + drainage = cough.

I was proactive and went to CVS two weeks ago to pick up a stock pile of basic items.  Tylenol, Ibuprofen, cold meds, contact solutions, etc.  It's come in handy with the cold that hit right when we moved to social distancing!

Also, major props to CVS and their CarePass program.  I signed for the CarePass a few months ago.  I was sold on the $5 charge to get $10 in store credit each month PLUS 20% off all CVS products.  I already purchase CVS brand everything so it was a no brainer. 

I found out shortly after that CarePass also does free ship to home!  This is so handy for prescriptions and the random odds and ends I find us needing (but just don't have time to get to the store to pick up)

This is not an ad, just an awesome benefit I want to share :)


3.
Winner of oddest purchase

The posture corrector

Things I Bought And Liked posted about this a while ago.
Serendipitously (I saw the writing on the wall, WFH was coming down the pike, fast) I decided to order it late last week.

Now that I'm sitting in a non-ergonomic chair and at a non-ergonomic table, this has been a lifesaver.  No more back pain!  I HIGHLY recommend it!

4.
Joggers

Oh lordy.  I'm so late to this trend.
I thought that they looked so unflattering.  All baggy through the hips and thighs but tight on the ankles?  Ugh.  No thank you.

I recently decided I was tired of putting my pajama pants on when I got home from work and I wanted to find a pair of  sweats instead.  I like leggings, but for working out only.  I don't like wearing them as pants very often.

A very long winded way to say, I finally saw the appeal of joggers as lounge clothes.
THEY ARE SO COMFORTABLE.
I found a pair at TJ Maxx for under $15 and then grabbed this pair from J. Crew Factory at 40% off plus 20% off and free shipping.

5.
Winter finally arrived

Last weekend.  Of course it was the weekend my parents came up for a quick visit.  They were delivering our 1/4 of a cow and the snow delayed their departure back home a day.  YAY!!

Being home with snow and cold temps after months of 50's?  TORTURE.
There is nothing I want to do more than kick the kiddo's outside so I can work, but it's too cold the majority of the day.

I'm stalking the weather channel (because I'm only checking the CDC and WHO once a day for updates) for some hopefully warmer temps.