38 is Great!

I am 38 today! Just a couple more years to rock my 30's, and I decided to fully embrace all the greatness of this stage. Really, I love where I'm at (well, except maybe the wrinkles and gray stripe hidden underneath my bangs). Since I write little developmental updates of the girls on their birthdays, complete with likes/dislikes and my observations, I thought it might be kind of amusing to write one about myself.

At 38.....

-I love strong coffee with a bit of milk--two cups of it first thing in the morning are necessary before I eat or drink anything else. My Starbucks order never changes--always a grande 2% latte, no flavors ever. If it's summer and the afternoon, you can bet that order will be slightly tweaked to an "iced latte with extra ice". Yes, I am that girl.

-I love to read, and I love a good goal. This is why I push myself to read one book (at least) per year of age, and write them all down. You can read my book list here. I mostly read on my Kindle because I am faster that way, and I love the ease/simplicity of carrying lots of books in one slender device. Plus, most of my reading is done late at night, and this way Matt doesn't need to hear pages turn as he tries to sleep. He often pokes fun of my excessive reading and lately said he isn't sure I ever sleep because I am reading when he goes to sleep, and then as soon as HIS alarm goes off in the morning, I'm the one who wakes up and starts reading. One of my simple pleasures of life is reading by the light of the Kindle when the house is quiet and the day is done.

-I like Beautycounter, Noonday, and other companies who are trying to do good in the world and for people's bodies while also making products I truly adore.  I love graphic tees, coffee cups with quotes, and never drive without my sunglasses.

-I love to shop and am learning to be a thoughtful consumer as opposed to a 'rabid accumulator' (thanks, Beth Moore, for that one). I my heart of hearts I want to be a Minimalist, but like most everyone else in our culture, often feel overwhelmed by all the "stuff" we have. I love to give gifts, especially when people aren't expecting them. I also love labeling the contents of such gifts with Post-It note explanations of why I bought the item.

-Cooking is my passion and I am still rambling about it on the food blog. I think the Instant Pot is the greatest modern invention, and have successfully pared down my gadgets so that I just have one ice cream scoop and one pizza cutter. Because minimalism.  I love to cook for my husband (not my kids--they eat nothing!) and for friends. One of my greatest joys is taking meals to people. The grocery store is my happy place, and my pantry is the bane of my existence (messiest spot in the house).

-I am a champion of laundry, organized packing for trips, and using hand sanitizer. It's good to know one's skills. I have great disdain for the school pick up line process, but am not ready to throw the girls on the bus, so I soldier on.

-I love a nice dinner out, complete with drinks, apps, coffee, and dessert. New Zealand Sauvignon Blanc is always my wine of choice, don't give me any from California they don't know how to do that variety.  I love a citrusy IPA with my whole heart, Sunday Brunch with a bloody mary from Chester's,  a Marvin's burger from Newt's, and ice cream at Flapdoodles (coconut macadamia and chocolate in a homemade waffle cone, please).

-I am addicted to boot camp at the RAC and never want to stop. I have muscles and I am proud of them and the sweat it took to build them. I want my girls to focus on being strong, and not skinny.

-Our piano is my favorite possession and it brings me great joy to play it and learn new music. I still love to sing, and you will find me on the worship team at Bible study and filling in with the church band when needed. I love loud music in the car, and take requests from the back seat.

-Grace is a concept I struggle to accept and to give. God and I are working on that.

-I love being home with my girls and understand the blessing in that choice. I love making Matt coffee in the morning and sending him off for the day with a lunch I packed, no matter how June Cleaver that sounds. I am right where I want to be and wouldn't change a thing.

Cheers to 38!

Summer Fun--Week 11

Summer may be running out, but we are still running strong. Adrienne decided that she wants to do her own hair. She worked very hard on this lovely style, then came to me and exclaimed that the clips make her look like she is eleven! Ha!

Matt brought home our third child on Monday. Meet his new tri bike. Daddy has some Ironman goals, and he's going for it.

On Tuesday evening I dropped the girls off at ROCA for William's birthday party. They had so much fun climbing. While they were gone, I hit the new kids line at Target (super cute stuff) and found Jillian a chambray shirt. She loves to wear anything that is similar to what I wear. Someone is growing up!

We stocked up on some new books at the library on Wednesday.

Independently running the auto-checkout machine is pretty much the best thing ever.

Ahhhh....an afternoon of peace while I made dinner. Jillian read 3 chapter books in 24 hours.

On Thursday, the girls had to come down to the clinic with me for a dermatology appointment. They enjoyed gazing out the Gonda building windows from the 16th floor waiting room.

Technology free waiting at mom's appt is hard, you know, but we did it! The bookworm did her thing, while the little artist decided to sketch her plastic crab toy.

Here's my PSA: check your toenails and fingernails for changes! I had no idea that it was possible to grow a melanoma on your toenail, and guess what? They can look like a bruise, which is what I had on my big toenail for months and never thought twice about until Matt and I had a random conversation one night about toenail fungus (his) and how melanoma can look like a toenail bruise. At that point I promptly freaked out, removed my polish, and showed him the bruise I'd been ignoring for so long. He never freaks out about anything, but he was concerned enough that he told me to get it checked immediately. So, 24 hours later I had been examined in dermatology and sent over to the procedure center for a partial toenail removal that they shipped to pathology. Once it was off, they were able to see it is most likely a hematoma and not a scary melanoma (results still pending). I have a tender toenail, but I am SO thankful! It was a scary couple of hours at the clinic and I am so glad that Matt was able to run upstairs and grab the girls so I could have the procedure done right away and not have to wait.

On Friday we spent the day dealing with some home alarm and septic drain field issues (ah, the joys of home ownership!), and then Grammy and Grandad showed up to save the day and spend the weekend with the girls. Matt and I took a 4 hour drive to Cable, WI to spend the weekend with some friends at their cabin on Diamond Lake. We arrived just as the sun was setting, and were quickly ushered out back to catch it. Just lovely.

Mark and Julie are the most amazing hosts, and true to form, this cabin experience was so wonderful. Their property is gorgeous, and in addition to the beautiful main cabin, they have two smaller bunk houses (complete with full bathrooms, fridge, microwave, coffee makers) for guests. This was our lovely place to stay for the weekend.

The back of the main cabin as viewed from the water.

The guys went out mountain biking for the morning while us ladies enjoyed such a peaceful, spa like atmosphere in the cabin as we drank coffee and chatted. After lunch, we went out on the water to enjoy the boat, and Matt jet skied and tried paddle boarding.

Matt in front of the guest houses.

Standing in the living room of the main cabin. Matt was making fun of the fact that I was wearing socks with my Birkenstocks. The birks felt the best on my toe and I got cold, OK?!

Matt relaxing by the fire.

The afternoon got a bit rainy, so we came inside and enjoyed the view and then had some wine and snacks while we played Farkle.

We had a break in the rain, so ran out to the pontoon for a pre-dinner cruise. Matt and Naveen were our snack sherpas.

Enjoying some wine on the boat with Julie and Roxanne

Captain Mark

Eagle's nest

After our boat ride, we came in to prep for a delicious dinner--grilled beef tenderloin with chimichurri, black beans and rice with mangoes, and avocado tomato salad. I walked into the dining room and then discovered a sweet birthday sign and was placed at the head of the table for a surprise early birthday dinner. So fun!

The meal was so fabulous--and then they brought out a gorgeous Daube's cake!

Such a sweet surprise.

Sunday morning the boys went out on the bikes again. Matt loved the chance to mountain bike on some beautiful terrain.

After a delicious brunch, we sat out by the water for a just a bit longer--bummed that the sun was out and it was time to leave!

We made it back home in time to load up again and hit Newt's for a burger with G and G and the girls. When we came home, Mom and the girls hit me with a big surprise: my favorite birthday treat! Not one, but TWO macadamia nut cream pies!

A week full of blessings. I'd ramble on some more, but I still have another pie to eat and I'm about to get to it.

Summer Fun--Week 10

Catching up, again. The big bummer about this week is that I am short on pictures of the really important fun stuff. First, we were able to reunite with the Spencer-Gardner girls after their year in Australia (as they were on their way to settle in their new home in Dallas). The girls got to play with Ella and Chloe at the RAC, then we swam together and ate lunch at the pool. The girls picked right up where they left off. So fun to reconnect! We also started some back to school prep this week. Matt spent most of the week working at Mayo Square in Minneapolis, so we had lots of girl time. Shoe shopping was our big project. This just gets more interesting every time. Luckily, we were finally successful. We celebrated with some Flapdoodles.

Adrienne's fashion dreams came true. She now owns a pair of "ove-rulls".

Back to school tennis shoes.

The girls asked for socks one day to make puppets.

My laundry room reached the ultimate point of out-of-control. This is the consequence of my summer fun.

Lots of time was spent at the RAC while I went to boot camp a few days. Jillian has been having fun doing some Dance Dance Revolution in the Neighborhood.

I restocked Matt's freezer lunches on a rainy afternoon...

Dealt with some interesting laundry issues. My girls and toothpaste. It's a nightmare!!

Speaking of nightmares, we had just settled in for some relaxing TV on Friday night when Jillian came running downstairs exclaiming that their toilet was overflowing. We ran upstairs to discover water pouring out of the toilet, and down through the floor into our room. AGAIN. So, the rest of Friday night was spent drying out the ceiling, unclogging the toilet (Adrienne loves lots of toilet paper, if the truth must be known), and drying out/cleaning flooring.

Jillian and I did some online school shopping and she was excited for her package to come in the mail. Her fashion focus? Getting jeans (she decided she wants to wear denim for the first time EVER) and three-quarter length sleeves. Mission accomplished.

We spent a soggy Saturday afternoon at the movie theater watching The Secret Life of Pets. Cute.

Farmer Adrienne discovered a love of corn on the cob. The mo butter, the mo better.

On Sunday evening we went over to the Sellon's with a couple other families for a delicious barbecue and fire pit. The kids had so much fun practicing all their Ninja Warrior skills in the Sellon's garage....pull up bars, rings, ropes, they've got it all. Wish I had a picture of the fun....we stayed and played until nearly 10!