Our Fourth of July didn’t involve BBQs like most people, rather, Ben and the girls (and our friend Jun) spent the morning washing and waxing the car, while I was inside on my hands and knees cleaning our floors. After all our hard work, the car looked nice and shiny, and we had most of the house finally in order. It feels so good to get things cleaned.

In the evening, Ben did make one of my favorite meals. I went to the local Mexican market to pick up some things we needed for our meal, and decided to get some pan dulce as well to celebrate the Fourth. They didn’t have any red and blue colors, so I settled for pink and white on a blue plate. Stick some candles on top (we didn’t have red) and we sang “Happy Birthday” to the United States of America. Despite our lack of festivities, Ben and I did be sure to discuss with the girls the importance of the day as we were getting dinner ready.

Before bed, we we’re all going to watch This is America, Charlie Brown but then that’s when the girls decided to start breaking rules, and after repeatedly warning them that their movie night might be threatened due to their lack of obedience, we ended up not having movie night after all. You feel so bad when you have to take it away, but we’ve got to stick to our word and they have to know there are consequences to bad choices. Ben and I felt bad about it, but we had to be firm.

They went to bed, we didn’t have fireworks because our city does its big annual fireworks show the Saturday prior, so we all kinda felt like we celebrated the Fourth of July with that. Ben and I felt bad that we didn’t do movie night, and we talked about how we probably should have made a bigger deal about the holiday, but we didn’t. I think we got so wrapped up in getting an extra day to get things done around the house that we should have put more effort in making the holiday more special for the girls. Next year, Lord willing, I’m going to make sure and get sparklers or do something equally as festive for the holiday because it is definitely a day worth celebrating!

I was going through my flickr account and realized I never shared Glow’s 1st birthday party! For her party, we had a pie party contest. Guests were invited to bring a pie (not everyone did) and that there would be a cash prize for the winner. Guests also knew that  there were secret judges who would be tasting the pies, so that made it a little bit more exciting. Everyone was bugging each other to find out who the secret judges were!

Thankfully I’ve got my mom to enlist for help (she is quite the cooking queen), and she cooked some BBQ, so BBQ and pie made for a good combination that Sunday afternoon. I was so excited about the turn out. I wasn’t sure if anyone would bring pie, but we ended up having 10 different pies, which was more than enough to feed everyone! I made a special little one to be Glow’s “birthday cake” and hers was made from whole wheat crust, apples, and no sugar. It was much healthier than the others.

After we sang “Happy Birthday” to Glow, I put together a tasting plate for the judges (there were two). No one had any clue who they were and it took a bit of cleverness to sneak them away from the party without arousing suspicion. After both judges had had a taste of all the pies, we gathered everyone together to reveal the winner and the judges. Drumroll please… the winner of the contest was the Blueberry Chiffon pie made by my friend Liz (and she was the lucky one who won 25 buckaroos!). And the secret judges were… True and Brave!

Everyone laughed once they found out who the judges were, and True and Brave did a good job keeping the surprise. When we were upstairs and I was having them taste the various pies they were saying, “Oh mom, everyone keeps bugging us and asking us if we’re the judges.”

We had so much pie left over that I was begging people to take some home because if they had left it, I’d be the one who would be eating the leftovers all morning, noon, and night. I have very little self control around dessert. It was a fun way to celebrate Glow’s birthday and I think everyone there would agree all the pies were insanely delicious. Also, having a pie party made my job a lot easier because I didn’t have to worry about baking any dessert (thank you to all our friends who made my life easier that day! You know I love you guys!). Call me a lazy party planner if you wish, but I think all the full tummies (and happy chatter) is proof enough that everyone had a good time! Now, I have a couple more months until I have to plan Glow’s 2nd birthday… I’m thinking something centered around bananas because those are her ultimate fave!

Here’s a little video my friend Ashley made of Glow’s happy day (thanks ashley!)…

While on one of our date nights last week, we totally set up our gorilla pod on the car to get pictures of the both of us together. As we were taking pictures, some random guy on a bike started taking pictures of us with his phone, so Ben was trying to smile and keep his eye on him at the same time, thus the result is a picture with Ben and a nervous smile. To be honest, the guy probably thought we were weirdos, so I’m sure he just got a kick out of some random couple in front of a random wall taking a random picture. It really is a strange thing to do.

And once again, Ben and I were getting ready for our date when we both start laughing because we noticed we’re both wearing white shirts and jeans. Matching outfits strikes again! Ben was going to change, but I told him to just leave it because it’s funny. Oh and don’t you love how I have to tippy toe up to give Ben a kiss?! Yup. I’m a shorty.

Happy July 1st!!!

on me: vintage levi’s jeans (total score!), ms. tips. top, handmade by me (see here). t-bar clogs, c/o Lotta from Stockholm. necklace, homako.

It’s funny that someone noticed the drawing on the wall in this post. My walls may appear to be clean, white walls, but I must confess, if you look closely (or came over!), you’d see that there truly are evidences of 4 kids living here. This photo above shows True’s first mural work she did at age 3. It was done in marker, has faded over time, and obviously, we have never attempted to take it off. The dark marks (on the wall and carpet!) are one of Soul’s most recent abstract drawings. Her medium of choice? My lipstick. You can imagine how pissed off I was when I discovered their artwork (and I choose to use that word instead of mad because that probably accurately describes my feelings at that time). Thankfully, I can look back and laugh at it now. I miss True at age 3, and one day I’ll miss Soul at age 3 too.

Most of my week has been lived without the girls home. The two big girls went to stay with my BFF on Tuesday until Thursday, the two babies went to my to stay with my parents. Then on Thursday, all the girls ended up at my mom and dad’s house. I had something that I needed to take care of that required focus and not having to take care of anyone else, so off they went. It was strangely silent all week long. I didn’t even play music. During lunch, I would eat while watching a show on Netflix, but then I would resume my work in silence. I was relishing the silence.

Is it weird to say I liked the silence? I missed the girls, but it was nice to have some peace and quiet. As a mom, I kind of feel guilty saying that. I’m with the girls pretty much all the time and while it’s my choice to stay home and I do love it (most times), I was glad to have the break. It was nice to not have to play referee all day long or not have to worry about all the mouths to feed, or get mad at someone for not following the rules. Ben and I went on two dates. TWO! In one week! One even included dinner and a movie! It was all completely nice.

I hope it doesn’t sound like I’m not grateful. I love my girls and I’m so thankful for them. I’m thankful for the opportunity to love them, teach them, and serve them (though I admit I get cranky about it sometimes). I’m sure just like any other job, no matter how much you love that job, a break is welcomed and sometimes needed.

The girls come back today. I’m a little nervous for the fighting, the constant cooking (and dish cleaning), the sending of time-outs to resume, but these are all also the same things I will be crying to have back in about 20 years. I know that this time will go fast and my heart will be aching to go back in time one day. The break was nice, but I’m ready to have my girls home again. I missed them a whole lot! Come home girls, mommy’s ready for you! 

I love Crystal Lewis. I’ve been a big fan for. like. ever. I even nerded out big time when I actually met her (in my house!). She’s got a kickstarter going on for her new album and there are 38 hours left (read about it on her blog here). I’m hoping they make it (they’re so close!) and if you love her too, you might want to check it out here! Go, Crystal Lewis, Go!

photo by closer to love photography

I’m a big time indoor house plant person (actually, I love outdoor ones too!). I just love them! I like to call my indoor plants my plant babies.

The collection of plant babies pictured here is not even a quarter of what I have in my house. I have a lot! And I want to add even more. I saw one I wanted at a floral shop the other day, but I had to think about it, so I left it, but I’m definitely going to go back to get it soon (if it’s still there).

My fiddle leaf fig is one of my faves, but not the fave. Actually, I didn’t even take a picture of my favorite one. Though, I do love fiddle leaf figs so much that I have 3 of them in my house. Only one is a tree though, but I’m hoping with enough love and care, the other ones will get there one day.

Plants pictured from top to bottom…

Philodrenon: So easy! If you want to start with an easy one, do this one. You really can’t kill it!

Aroid Palm: This one is another easy one!

Succulents: Everyone says these are easy, but for some reason, there the ones I have the most trouble with.

Fiddle Leaf Fig (Ficus Lyrata): If you get a big one, it can be costly (about $100 or more!), so you want to be sure you’re pretty good with houseplants before you make the investment. This one requires care and attention. Don’t overwater it because you’ll get brown edges. Don’t leave it in the sun, it can get sunburned (I brought it outside to water and allow it to drain, but I left it out a little too long). I do a good soak and then don’t water for about 2 weeks (sometimes 3).

Upright Philodrenon: I love the shape of the leaves. I like to cut off some long stems from time to time, put it in a bottle with water, and display it on my mantle.

Pink Caladium: I had it in a shady spot outside and it didn’t do too well. Once I brought her in, she did much better!

Boston Fern: This is the one I’m still learning about. I know it likes humidity, so I’m still learning how to cope with that, and make sure I’m able to give it the environment it wants. Anyone have any tips on the Boston Fern?

Oh and I use a moisture meter to help determine if my plants are thirsty or not. Ben got it for his plants outside, but I’ll take it to use for my plants inside. I think it’s a pretty handy tool to have!