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alright, alright.

I'm settling in for an edifying evening of entertainment via the Women Tell All so I thought I'd put the commercial breaks to good use (we recently purchased an antenna so a DVR is in our 2k25 future, maybe) here.

1. Disney week has come and gone! And by week I mean three days. My mom and grandma watched the two little boys so we could take the four oldest kids and we had a great time. I want to dedicate a whole post to our trip but have to say a quick and meaningful thankful to our valiant sitters for holding down the fort in our absence.

2. Anyway, back to my trash. Things are getting down to the FebruArie wire! At this point I can't see him not choosing Lauren but I've been a Becca K fan from day one so ... we shall SEE. I really enjoyed Sharleen's podcast with Reality Steve (spoiler free!) this week. She's just the best.

3. Two throwback trends I'm warming to now that they are probably on their way out ... culottes (like these and these) and chunky loafers (like these and these) but not necessarily together. I try to do the "could I wear this to Costco?" test with most of my clothes since that's about as "dressy" as things get during the week and I think dressed down enough they'd both get a B. Good enough for me. Always.

4. Not sure if they're new but they're news to me! I ordered a box but haven't cracked it open yet but I'll keep you posted on my thoughts. We're Kirkland loyalists (Pampers Swaddlers for the newborn days which is funny because Huggies makes Kirkland diapers) SO ... when did my life become this crazy? I don't know either.

5. Okay I'm almost finished with This Love Story Will Self-Destruct and while I like it and I'm very much enjoying it ... I can easily put it down. I like to be totally engrossed in stories and excited about jumping right back in when life allows but I just haven't gotten there with this one. I have An American Marriage on my docket next ... hopefully it's a little more ... gripping?

6. I know you're all on the edge of your seats about my quest to find an identicalish pair of these discontinued shoes. These came and were a huge disappointment as they were super uncomfortable and looked more like Toms than the espadrilles I was hoping to copycat. These fit the bill PERFECTLY (I just took the ribbons off) but were more than I was hoping to spend so the wait for a discount/sale begins. Thank you for coming on this journey with me.

7. How perfect (or seemingly perfect, I haven't tried it on) is this jumpsuit? Very. Very perfect.

Alright, have a great week!!

that time of the week!!

1. Double dipping a la Instagram, yet again. I really need to get back into documenting our each and every hourly move via cellular photo.

2. Every week I get a loads + loads of emails* begging me to talk about my thoughts on the most recent episode of the Bachelor. Well, your beg is my command because Mary was kind enough to have me onto her podcast this week. I'm coming back on soon .. whether she likes it or not. I do have to say that I was shocked over Arie's declaration of love so early in the game ... especially to Lauren B. I had high hopes for Winter Games and while it's not awful ... I don't necessarily think it's living up to the hype. Will I keep watching? Absolutely.

3. Have you seen this cute series with Kristen Bell? I'd like to think we'd be friends IRL but I'm sure she gets that all the time.

4. My super sweet e-friend Amber started a blog and no one is more excited about than I am.

5. a. I'm not sure how long they'll last but a few sizes of these high quality pink rain boots are marked WAY down. Check 'em.
    b. Simon got a super sexy v-day gift by way of these t-shirts that I read have a cult following. "Cult following" seems like strong language for a simple t-shirt but ... he does love them. Or so he says.

6. I bought these shoes at Target two summers ago (took the ankle straps off like the rebel that I am) and wore them to a holey soled death and have since checked online almost weekly to see if they bring them back but no dice (other than eBay). These are pretty similar but not an exact match. I'll keep you posted on my valiant quest. Speaking of Target, doesn't this shirt look very Madewell-esque?? It does.

7. BIG sale at Loft going on right now and I still maintain that they have the best/most affordable/adorable sunglasses.

Hopefully you have a wonderful holiday weekend in the works!

*no I don't, duh

cute & cool

1. Abraham. Almost eight months. Best disposition ... as long as he gets his three perfectly timed naps in each and every day. It's fine. Usually.

2. I have to say and quick thank you !!! for all the Disney World info. I'm fairly to very certain that I will not be writing any sort of helpful Disney posts in the near or distant future but perhaps a few, "do not do as I dids" will present themselves ripe and ready for the blog post picking. We'll SEE.

3. Alright. I had to stop reading The Wedding Date because it was hmm ... too steamy? to put it politely. I've moved onto This Love Story Will Self-Destruct but I've just begun so .. I can't say anything good or bad quite yet!

4. Simon gets back from a long (and his last!) stretch of interview travels tonight and I'm wondering how he'd feel if I just disappeared for the weekend? Kidding! Mostly. But hats off to those with spouses that travel on the regular. I'm a weakling in the face of your norm.

5. So you know how I feel about my Fitbit but I saw that my sister-in-law has the cooolest smartwatch that looks nothing like a smartwatch and now I'm questioning everything. I'll probably pore over every model and read all about them before sticking with my old faithful but seriously ... SO COOL. (update! after reading a bit more and there are smartwatches and hybrid smartwatches ... where have I been?!)

6. I already posted these (and toddler sizes!!) on the Sale Rack page but they always sell out super quick and are super cute. Extra 20% off with code: SWEET. Also, how cute are these? CUTE. Cuted out yet? Yes.

7. I think I wore a striped shirt every day this week which is weird because this newbie is calling to me. Loudly. Old dogs, new tricks and all that. I've read on a few blogs (all authorities, of course) that these are the shoe of the spring/summer. These are a little more my speed -- and I'm hoping they go on sale or end up over here before summer hits in full force.

I hope you have a great weekend, Valentine's Day, and beginning of Lent. Big week ahead and it feels like Christmas was just yesterday, right? Right.

bye!

tgifebruary

1. Right? Right. February always feels like the short and sweet consolation prize for the eternity that is January but this year I can't complain because January was mostly fine. Hopefully you escaped unscathed as well.

2. If you've had the displeasure of catching my IG stories in the past few days you'll know that what started as a, "we'll just move the kids' rooms around to get Abe out of our room" has turned into a 10 day (and counting ... ) odyssey of purging, organizing, painting walls, repainting dressers ... the whole nine unnecessary yards. Multiple detailed blog posts to follow. The girls' begged to have Abe in their room so in he went. The jury is out on whether or not it was a wise decision but we can reconfigure when we move this summer. 

Simon was thrilled to hear that that dresser is getting relocated to our room and being painted a totally different shade of ......... pink. 

3. Simon is still hot on the interview trail as our December trip pushed his schedule back a bit. He's had to miss a few Monday nights of Arie which has devastated him to no end. 

4. Speaking of Arie - I know the knee jerk and popular reaction is to say how boring this season has been but I have to agree with Sharleen and say I'm not hating it. He's got some great ladies that are totally carrying the season and I think we'll be in for a great Bachelorette no matter who it is. My favorites are Becca, Bekah, Seinne, and Tia. So -- not much has changed from night one for me. I discovered the EW live podcast with Robert Mills and it's a close second to Juliet Litman's Bachelor Party on the Bachelor podcast front. And my heart is SO happy that Ashely is still recapping because they are the best. BEST. 

5. After 2.5 years of living 1.5 hours away from Orlando we are taking the four oldest kids to Disney World. I don't think it's possible for a human to know less about taking kids to Disney anything than I do so any food recommendations or parks to avoid ... I'm all clueless eyes and ears. 

6. Books! I'm reading The Wedding Date and so far so great but I'm coming off a long line of mediocre reading so my judgement might be clouded. 

7. Let's talk SALES.
+ 40% off sale inventory right on over here. I have and wear this cardigan ALL the time.
+ I haven't clicked my way over here in a bit but was pleasantly surprised by their new arrivals (this jumpsuit in particular) that are all 30% off at the moment ...
+ and not on sale but in all my purging I found an old favorite pair of jeans. I'm an unabashed AG denim lover but these are a great alternative and quite a bit softer.

Alright -- happy weekend! May the best team win!