back in action

1. The girls and I are back from our epic Paris trip and when we get the better photos back (our fearless leader Lauren had the bright idea to hire a photographer and her photos will surely trump all of my phone pics!) I'll have to throw a little recap/takeaway at you. It felt wildly imprudent (it actually was totally fine!) to leave 5 kids (and a husband!) behind for 5 days but Simon wouldn't take no for an answer and the girls and I had the most wonderful time and I'm so glad I didn't listen to myself. However, my mom asked Phoebe what she thought of France and Phoebe replied that there were a lot of smokers and statues of naked people (true and true) .. so hopefully she gleaned some slightly shinier memories too!

2. The day after we came back we got our third snow dump of the season which, as always: was pretty but I still didn't like it. At all. I'm back to staring at the 10 day forecast and holding tight to those ~50 degree days even if they never come into fruition. I've started to make sure the kids all have swimsuits that fit for the summer which might be a smart move but also might be a stupidly hopeful one to worry about in February - laughlaugh.

3. I flew through Jessica Simpson's book on the flight and while it won't be everyone's cup of tea I found it completely fascinating and as the young kids say these days, "I'm a stan" of hers now. I'm having trouble getting through Unfollow maybe because the shock factor was kind of taken away after reading Educated? I don't know - it's a really well written book but feels just familiar enough that the intrigue is missing (for me!) a bit at the moment. I picked up Before We Were Yours and it looks really good but I'll admit the jet lag is still taking it's toll and I've been falling asleep really early this week.

4. I watched lots of the Love Is Blind episodes on our flight home and didn't love it but also couldn't look away? Wow. If I can convince Simon to finish up the season with me - I might have to do just that. Otherwise, I might be okay leaving well enough alone. Maybe not though! It was compelling at some points .... I guess :) And I'm officially split between team Madison and team Hannah Ann as we head into the final month of the Bachelor. Hannah Ann has really grown on me but I really love Madison too. It seems like there is a bit of a push to make Kelsey the next bachelorette which is crazy to think how far she's come since champagne gate.

5. How amazing is this artistic flower series? I could scroll through again and again and again!!

6. I got a few emails that the link to the amazing Old Navy pants was broken - I'm so sorry! I'll admit I ordered them and despite being 25 weeks pregnant I can tell that they run big (or they will on my non-pregnant self) and to definitely size down! They are a really substantial material though and can definitely be dressed way up or down. I really love them.

7. I wore my new boots all over Paris with virtually no break-in time and thankfully have nothing but glowing reports to give. The girls boots worked out perfectly - kept their feet both dry and comfy which was greatly appreciated. I'm still living in my Amazon shirts and as much as I can't wait for the weather to warm up - I'll miss them when it's too hot to wear them. I'm having fun browsing floral dresses for Easter (this one! So pretty!) but will realistically wear something I already own - although it's always fun to look!

Hope you have a wonderful last week of February and smooth start to Lent!