Around this time last year, you may remember that Nathan decided to build the boys a sports play area in our basement.
The dumpster showed up, and we cleaned out all of the junk that had accumulated in the basement over the past eight years.
Category: Lifestyle
Friday Favorites {09.22.23}
We made it through my first week back to work! It went really well. It doesn’t feel that different when Aidan’s grandparents are watching him right now. Certainly less daunting than doing the whole daycare transition, wondering how he naps, etc. Either way, we made it to the weekend!
Nathan’s mom gave us a lovely “date night” with just baby Aidan on Friday night, while she spoiled the big boys. And I think you’d say that they had a great time!
Friday Favorites {09.15.23}
Today is hard. It’s my last day with baby Aidan on leave. My last day of maternity leave with my last baby. Today is just hard. I’ve been trying to soak all of his little babyness in this week, but I still feel the sadness at the idea that I won’t be there to see every minute of his life now.
So thankful for five and a half months with my little boy.
Friday FALL Favorites {09.08.23}
I always seem to be in the minority around this time of year. I don’t wait excitedly for fall with bated breath, eager to get the latest seasonal drink at my local coffee shop. I don’t pull out all the fall decor starting September 1st at home. I think I’ve finally come to accept that it’s just not my season. There are beautiful things about it: the cooler weather, the changing leaves. There are things that I look forward to so much: going to the pumpkin patch, picking out Halloween costumes, our wedding anniversary, and chili simmering on the stove.
The changing of the seasons also brings a fresh perspective, at the very least. And in about two to three weeks, I’ll be particularly annoyed by the number of flies that seem to make their way into my house through doors left open by little hands. At that point, I will declare myself “over the heat” and ready for cooler temps of fall and a nice freeze to kill off the bugs. It happens every year that way like clockwork.
You all are full blown fall people, though. I know. I’ve asked before, and I’m in the minority.
I dip my toe into the fall pool around this time of year. There are just a few things that I just can barely seem to resist. And in a couple of weeks, I’ll be there with you in my oversized sweatshirt and joggers, and a cup of hot coffee in my hand.
I’ve picked up some of my favorite fall things for when I’m ready to fully embrace fall in a couple of weeks. 🙂
Candles always feel like coziness and fall to me. And this is one of my favorites. I ordered a couple to have on hand a few weeks ago.
A few new fresh fall stems. I’m a bit of a stickler on fake flowers. They have to look really good and almost real for me to buy them. It’s the gardener in me. Both of these are from Hobby Lobby and met my faux floral standard. 🙂 White berry stem + Blush pink berry stem
I brought in a handful of hydrangea stems to dry for fall decor. Put a little bit of water in the bottom of your vase, and let it naturally evaporate for gorgeous dried hydrangeas this fall.
And some pumpkin spice oatmilk for my afternoon decaf cold brew.
What are the things that make you feel like fall?
Friday Favorites {08.25.23}
Happy Friday! I’m so looking forward to this weekend and the temperature going below 100* for a change. We have been MELTING all week. It’s so miserably hot here. If it’s going to be this hot, I should be by a beach!
We’re officially closing out our first full week of school here, and it’s gone so well so far!
My Mother’s Day gift arrived this week. I asked Nathan for this necklace with the boys’ silhouettes as a Mother’s Day gift this year, and I’m completely blown away and so in love with this delicate little necklace. I’ve only taken it off to shower and work out since it got here!
August 2023 Book Review
It’s technically July and August book review day. No reason to get caught up in the details, though. Some months I crank through multiple books. Other months, I only make it through one. And given that I only one read one book last week, I’m including the podcast that COMPLETELY sucked me in last month that took up all of my listening free time.
Friday Favorites {08.11.23}
I’ve thought a lot about this moment. Ever since Harrison was born, we’ve just been slogging (and mostly enjoying) these rather long days of parenting really young kids. The baby era, where they’re so helpless and need you for EVERYTHING. The toddler era, where they’re so drunk for power and control and think they know everything. And man, it feels like we’ve lived in a bunker for the past five years. Batten down the hatches. Slogging away at the day in and out of parenting littles. And I’ve {{mostly}} Loved it. I love being these boys’ everything. And it’s also so utterly physically exhausting at the same time.
I’m a bit in denial today. I’ve obviously KNOWN for weeks…months…that this day was coming. But it’s surreal that it’s here. Today is the last day that Harrison and Jonathan will be at the same school together until Jonathan goes to Kindergarten. It really does feel like this is an end of an era (yes, that is a subtle nod to Ms. Swift). I can’t count the number of people that have told me that Kindergarten to high school graduation is like a blink, and then it’s over.
And it feels like in the past week, I’ve poked my head out of my bunker, and Harrison has been called up to the big leagues. Like out of nowhere, the powers that be have decided he’s ready to really start to have his life shaped by other people: friends and teachers. And I feel like I’ve been in the bunker for so long, that I was not mentally ready for that. For it to land on my lap like that this week. When it really hit me, as I cried to myself adding lunch money to his account for school.
So many of you have asked me if I’m going to cry on his first day. And I’m pretty sure now, there’s no way I’m walking out of that school without tears streaming down my face.
Let’s do a little Friday Favorites roundup.
I took this sweet boy Back to School shopping the other week. We went shopping for his new backpack and lunchbox. He picked out some new clothes, and we had lunch at a restaurant of his choosing. (He picked Panera, by the way.). When I said this reality of him starting Kindergarten came crashing down on me, I mean it. I had this realization that my days of just being able to pull him out of school for fun one-on-one time were coming to a close. So this one was extra special for me.
June 2023 Book Review
It’s book review day! You could say that Aidan and I started to get into a groove in June just from the sheer number of books I was able to listen to this month versus over two months when he was first born. :).
This first book I really looked into only after seeing a trailer for a movie based on it and wanting to see the movie.
In this candid and riveting memoir, for the first time ever, Nike founder and CEO Phil Knight shares the inside story of the company’s early days as an intrepid start-up and its evolution into one of the world’s most iconic, game-changing, and profitable brands.
In 1962, fresh out of business school, Phil Knight borrowed fifty dollars from his father and created a company with a simple mission: import high-quality, low-cost athletic shoes from Japan. Selling the shoes from the trunk of his lime-green Plymouth Valiant, Knight grossed $8,000 his first year. Today, Nike’s annual sales top $30 billion. In an age of start-ups, Nike is the ne plus ultra of all start-ups, and the swoosh has become a revolutionary, globe-spanning icon, one of the most ubiquitous and recognizable symbols in the world today.
But Knight, the man behind the swoosh, has always remained a mystery. Now, for the first time, in a memoir that is candid, humble, gutsy, and wry, he tells his story, beginning with his crossroads moment. At 24, after backpacking around the world, he decided to take the unconventional path to start his own business – a business that would be dynamic, different.
Knight details the many risks and daunting setbacks that stood between him and his dream – along with his early triumphs. Above all, he recalls the formative relationships with his first partners and employees, a ragtag group of misfits and seekers who became a tight-knit band of brothers. Together, harnessing the transcendent power of a shared mission and a deep belief in the spirit of sport, they built a brand that changed everything.
I love a good memoir. Lifting the veil on someone’s life and engrossing myself in another person’s journey is just particularly fascinating for me. And this combined with a business book was just simply fascinating.
What really was alarming and such a nice surprise was how wonderful a writer Phil Knight is in this book. His descriptions of his runs, to business dealings was so well done and interesting.
Now I can officially see the new Nike based movie with Ben Affleck and Matt Damon (two of my favs!)
After Shoe Dog, I decided to pick a book that everyone has raved about this year…
Remarkably Bright Creatures by Shelby Van Pelt
After Tova Sullivan’s husband died, she began working the night shift at the Sowell Bay Aquarium, mopping floors and tidying up. Keeping busy has always helped her cope, which she’s been doing since her eighteen-year-old son, Erik, mysteriously vanished on a boat in Puget Sound over thirty years ago.
Tova becomes acquainted with curmudgeonly Marcellus, a giant Pacific octopus living at the aquarium. Marcellus knows more than anyone can imagine but wouldn’t dream of lifting one of his eight arms for his human captors—until he forms a remarkable friendship with Tova.
Ever the detective, Marcellus deduces what happened the night Tova’s son disappeared. And now Marcellus must use every trick his old invertebrate body can muster to unearth the truth for her before it’s too late.
Shelby Van Pelt’s debut novel is a gentle reminder that sometimes taking a hard look at the past can help uncover a future that once felt impossible.
Like so many of you before me, I loved this one. I love a story where individual characters that seemingly have nothing to do with each other somehow become woven together. And I just simply loved that dang octopus. It was a relatively easy “read”/listen. The characters were easy to keep straight and I found the story easy to follow and engaging as well. This book was my type of “beach read.” A little more meat to the story but sweet. This book was worth the hype, in my opinion.
And I ended the month finishing up…
The 5 Love Languages of Children by Gary Chapman & Ross Campbell
You know you love your child. But how can you make sure your child knows it?
The #1 New York Times bestselling The 5 Love Languages® has helped millions of couples learn the secret to building a love that lasts. Now discover how to speak your child’s love language in a way that he or she understands. Dr. Gary Chapman and Dr. Ross Campbell help you:
- Discover your child’s love language
- Assist your child in successful learning
- Use the love languages to correct and discipline more effectively
- Build a foundation of unconditional love for your child
Plus: Find dozens of tips for practical ways to speak your child’s love language.
Discover your child’s primary language—then speak it—and you will be well on your way to a stronger relationship with your flourishing child.
Pretty much everyone has heard of or read the Five Languages book for couples/adults, myself included. I thought I’d listen to this version regarding showing love for our children to see if there were any helpful tips. I’ve been trying to pin down for years what I think Harrison and Jonathan’s love language is for each of them. While I think I have a pretty good hunch for Harrison, Jonathan is still a bit of a mystery sometimes for me. I think I know….but then I’ll question myself. :). I like this concept of the five love languages, and I enjoyed the practical examples in the book. I listened to the whole book in a couple of days, so it went super quick!
What has been your latest favorite book? What do I need to add to my reading list??
My 2023 Books:
- January:
- Hunt, Gather, Parent by Michaeleen Doucleff
- Christmas in Peachtree Bluff by Kristy Woodson Harvey
- March:
- The Poisonwood Bible by Barbara Kingsolver
- Spare by Prince Harry
- Sparks Like Stars by Nadia Hashimi
- The Light We Carry by Michelle Obama
- March/April:
- The Nightingale by Kristin Hannah
- Cribsheet by Emily Oster
Book Review April + May 2023
I was reading this book when Aidan was born, and could not wait to finish it.
The Nightingale by Kristin Hannah.
With courage, grace, and powerful insight, bestselling author Kristin Hannah captures the epic panorama of World War II and illuminates an intimate part of history seldom seen: the women’s war. The Nightingale tells the stories of two sisters, separated by years and experience, by ideals, passion and circumstance, each embarking on her own dangerous path toward survival, love, and freedom in German-occupied, war-torn France—a heartbreakingly beautiful novel that celebrates the resilience of the human spirit and the durability of women. It is a novel for everyone, a novel for a lifetime.
(Book summaries from Amazon)
I have yet to read a single book by Kristin Hannah that I haven’t loved. This one was no exception. In fact, I think it was my most favorite yet. She has such a wonderful way of developing characters, weaving their stories together, and provide both great descriptions of places and feelings and action. The Nightingale was recently picked as one of Reese Witherspoon’s book club books. Generally, I tend to like her picks, so I thought it was probably time to pick this one up. This one is likely to make it into my top books of the year. It was simply AWESOME.
I lightened life up a bit by finishing off May reading…
As any new parent knows, there is an abundance of often-conflicting advice hurled at you from doctors, family, friends, and the internet. From the earliest days, parents get the message that they must make certain choices around feeding, sleep, and schedule or all will be lost. There’s a rule – or three – for everything. But the benefits of these choices can be overstated, and the trade-offs can be profound. How do you make your own best decision?
Armed with the data, Oster finds that the conventional wisdom doesn’t always hold up. She debunks myths around breastfeeding (not a panacea), sleep training (not so bad!), potty training (wait until they’re ready or possibly bribe with M&Ms), language acquisition (early talkers aren’t necessarily geniuses), and many other topics. She also shows parents how to think through freighted questions like if and how to go back to work, how to think about toddler discipline, and how to have a relationship and parent at the same time.
Economics is the science of decision-making, and Cribsheet is a thinking-parent’s guide to the chaos and frequent misinformation of the early years. Emily Oster is a trained expert – and mom of two – who can empower us to make better, less fraught decisions – and stay sane in the years before preschool.
I can’t remember why I decided to read this book. I was probably intrigued by the data driven part of it. (I’m still an accountant at heart, after all.) I like an examination of the facts. But wow, this book fell flat for me. I could see some value in it if I hadn’t already gone through the baby and toddler phase now life with two children already and working my way through a third newborn phase, but for someone who is well entrenched in raising a rising kindergartener, preschooler, and baby, it was mostly irrelevant. The choices that are discussed are things that you have to decide when at the hospital, choosing a daycare situation for your child, how to feed your baby. And…we’ve already been there. Done that. And I had already examined much of the same “studies” and reasoning that she covers. So, it wasn’t really for me.
My 2023 Books:
Friday Favorites {06.09.23}
Aidan and I got back home on Wednesday. We’re getting back into the swing of Lane life chaos with three little boys! They are wanting to play outside all of the time. Jonathan rotates between his Fisher Price cozy coupe, his ‘motorcycle’ aka balance bike, the big bike with training wheels, and his tricycle. He jumps at literally every chance he can get to drive the blue truck. And Harrison wants to play every last single sport under the sun at all times: soccer, baseball, golf, basketball. There’s not a single sport he doesn’t seem to love.
Harrison informed nearly as soon as I arrived home that he was out of clean underwear. Apparently when mom is away, laundry piles up. 😂
If you’ve been coming here for any length of time, you may notice that I did a brand refresh! I thought it was time to have my own stylized branding rather than the standard WordPress template. 🙂 I love how it turned out!
Now let me know how I could help you use this space better in the comments!
Of course, spending a week with my parents and Aidan in the Black Hills is a favorite this week. The fresh mountain air, catnaps on the covered porch were just what the doctor ordered for me and Aidan!
The real favorite of this maternity leave so far has been the Baby Bjorn bouncer. It’s been hauled all over the house and outside so that Aidan can hang with the family. Aidan loves it. In fact, it’s been a hit with all three boys.
Little Harrison graduated from Pre-K this spring! He is soooo ready for Kindergarten. He’s been excited about Kindergarten for well over a year. But wow, this went fast.
Just look at him on his first day that he started at his new school…
Peony season came and went, and I shared absolutely no photos of my beautiful peonies. These bring me the most joy. They were divided from my mom’s garden to my garden, and are truly the most prolific bloomers with an incredible scent…
I hope you all have a fantastic weekend! I’m off to continue conquering the mountain of boy laundry and prepping for a play date with four five year olds tomorrow morning. 🤪. See you back here next week!