5 Friday Things

I've been trying really hard to blog 5 days most weeks just because it's important to stay on a schedule. I think, for the time being, I'm going to drop down to 3 days, just because I feel the need to consciously say I'm going to do that, so it doesn't just sneak up on me the way it has in the past. That's my disclaimer.  Also, if we are going to be as busy as I think we may be for the next month with trying to pack and move, I may have to stop taking naps. <<<Food for thought there. 

1. Podcast recommendation. 

This episode is really well done. It's sensitive and thoughtful while holding to Biblical truths. I like that it didn't make me feel defensive. Often, I feel very defensive when this topic is brought up in relation to Christianity. And, full disclosure, I've meant for years to write about about our experience. It's hard. I'm working on it. 

2. Wine recommendation. 

This comes from Italy according to the label but we bought it at Sheetz. It's rare that I find a red I enjoy. Pairs excellently with potty training books.  

3. Tweet of the week.

Guys, I usually try to keep politics off of this space, but this tweet was TOO funny. 

Basically: Twitter is implementing a fact-checking system.

Their spokesperson once called Trump an "actual Nazi" and a "racist tangerine".

So, unless they can prove this, they may have to delete one of their own, per their own rules. 

^

THIS is how RIDICULOUS things have become.

But Dave Rubin's take of "the game is afoot!" had me absolutely cracking up. 

Because it is a game indeed, at this point. With all of the participants acting like children. 

4. Sunscreen recommendation. 

Personally, I don't know why people buy sunscreens that aren't sprays. Who wants to rub in sunscreen?

5.  Life hack.

I've cleaned my rings in Windex + water for years, ever since the lady at Costco in Anchorage told me it was the only way to go. (I remember that like it was yesterday.)

Warming the water and the dish soap addition, plus gently brushing them with a toothbrush, is a game-changer though. 

I didn't take before and after pictures of my own rings, but this blogger has a whole highlighted Story section if you're interested in looking her up. She does a video tutorial. 

Lots of recommendations today...I feel like we're learning more new things from the internet these days than ever before. 

Dogs, tractors, ducks

A special thank you to Scott's brother's family for hanging onto our tractor for us while we're in Pittsburgh. I mentioned on Instagram that I have no idea where Wells' obsession with tractors came from but he's lucky in that we have one...

In fact, I always tell Scott that Wells likes him better than me (because he does) and Scott says that's because he has a tractor. I said But he doesn't know you have a tractor. 

Then I said Oh, he just knows you're the type of person to have a tractor and he's attracted to that. 

Jett lying under a tree which had no leaves and therefore no shade.

Scout rolled in a mud puddle and then jumped on us. 

Then...they discovered the pond. 

I'm aware that we need to get this kid ear protection if we're doing things like this often...we're not really...And I'm 99% sure this is not recommended in the owner's manual anyway. 

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The irony of the 2020 planners

In the past, I've bought fancy planners that begin in January. I've done Erin Condren pre-orders in October, received the personalized planner in November, and stared at it lovingly until January when I could finally(!) really begin to use it. The last one I bought was in 2017, for 2018, and I'm 99% sure I stopped using it far before 2018 was over. 

Amazon

My issue is that I always get an itch to get a new planner in August, because I do tend to run on an academic-year pattern of thought. It just fits how I think; new years begin in August and not January. For this reason, last year, I finally gave in and just bought a $15 Day Designer version at Target. It's actually served me pretty well, and I'm about to finish it up next month. I track workouts, errands, appointments and, most importantly, I have dozens of post-it note reminders throughout for tasks that need to be taken care of each month. i.e. "vet appointments" for June, etc. 

In a very ironic way, my current planner concludes with June. Which just so happens to be the end of our known timeline. We don't know quite what July looks like. But there are reminders and things that I need on the books for July and beyond. I ordered a new planner from Amazon because I have a few details I like in a planner and this hit them all: Spiral-bound, hardcover, thick-ish paper, and some color but not too much. 

There's a lot of meme content out there about the waste of 2020 planners, and I'm glad I didn't start a new one in January. What about you? Is your planner getting a workout these days? I don't do pretty-planning, but I like being able to put things on the calendar months in advance if it's something I want to accomplish during a certain time period. 

3 Things Thursday

3 Creature Comforts

1. My travel coffee mug...yes, I've determined the best way to drink coffee each morning is out of my travel mug. It's a thing I've done for months and months now, even if I'm only sitting at my kitchen table.

2. Kcups. I hate that I love Kcups. But it's just seamless. Seamless is nice right now. 

3. Podcasts. They are my main form of entertainment. 

3 Comfort Foods

1. Ice cream. I've been doing this thing: I mix two types of ice cream. Life can be so boring right now if we let it; it's the little excitements that keep us going.

2. Chips and queso, always. I gave this up a few weeks ago. 

3. Oreos. I gave these up a few weeks ago as well. 

4. Bonus: a margarita

3 New Recipes Attempted

1. I made this lamb stew yesterday. Scott had lamb in the freezer and had been talking about lamb stew for weeks. I finally just made it for him. I didn't eat any. I don't do lamb.

2. This homemade enchilada sauce. I have no words for how amazing it is. I made beef enchiladas last week and they were perfection. 

3. ...well, this is embarrassing. I can't think of a third. I just kind of make the same few things over and over for simplicity's sake right now. The predictability of knowing you'll like what you made for dinner is what I'm going for. 

3 Things Entertaining Me Right Now

1. Books. Thrillers, in particular. 

2. Throwing things away. I'm really into organizing and throwing away anything that comes across my path. 

3. Pilates. I am trying to do 30 minutes a day because it's not like I don't have the time. 

3 Shows Recently Watched

1. Normal People. Meh..Scott finds it fascinating. I don't. I think it's kind of the worst. I only watch because he wants to and he insists on breaking down the psychology of crazy Marianne.  

2. I'm rewatching Breaking Bad if I'm home by myself and Wells is sleeping. 

This is so lame, but I can't even think of a third. 

3 Songs Played

I don't really do music, especially these days. But I do listen to a lot of Daniel Tiger and Clifford and Little Baby Bum songs. I'll spare you. 

3 Recent Purchases

1. I just got a new diffuser because the old one finally died. 

2. A new planner. I do academic-year planners, so I have a post on that for next week (if I write it, that is).

3. Baby things! My two cousins are both due with their first babies in late summer, so I bought an assortment of items from their registries over the weekend. My tactic with baby gifts is to buy items we couldn't have lived without in the first few weeks: swaddles, changing pad, changing pad liners, and changing pad covers.  

3 Things Keeping Me Sane

1. Our decent medical care here. We are in civilian care because we're not near a military base and the conglomerate is pretty seamless...I can go from one doctor to another easily; they have all my info and...dare I say...I haven't seen a bill yet. 

2. Wells being more independent. I lovelovelove that we can just go outside into the fenced-in yard and he finds 187 ways to amuse himself while I pull weeds or cut grass or pick up sticks. It passes the time. 

3.  ..is there a third? I don't know. 

3 Things That I Miss Most

A degree of certainty

...

......

That's all.

3 Things I'm Looking Forward To

1. Planning out small birthday get-togethers for Wells this summer. I'll take any and all tips about 2nd birthdays...no big parties, something that will be about him, not me; and something that can be done somewhere other than our house.

2. Moving out of this house...dare I say, it WILL happen. We don't know WHERE WE ARE MOVING entirely, but it'll happen in July/August and if we know anything it's that time marches on and so it WILL HAPPEN. 

And honestly, aside from the fact that it's just too small (the house and the yard), they have been very gracious with us in this time of uncertainty. I do appreciate that greatly. 

3. This is so weird and you may not believe me, but I bought a book on potty training and it's made me feel like a complete failure because I haven't gone this route with a 22 month old yet...but I'm looking forward to the day when I know he's ready to dive into potty training. Not because I hate diapers or whatever, but because I feel like I may be doing him a disservice by not doing it yet. I want to do the right thing for him, if that makes sense. 

This should have been called "Two Things Thursday" because finding three things for this was unnecessarily challenging. 

Linking up with Michael!

Wells lately.

I meant to get around to this yesterday, but the truth is that if I don't have a post set for Mondays before the weekend, I will rarely have anything ready for a Monday. We weren't home this weekend and the last thing I wanted to do after driving and unpacking and driving and unpacking and cleaning up vomit...was sit down on Sunday night and write a blog post. Also, I have kind of refused to do "week #..." round-ups at this point. This is what you normally would've seen in those. 

Wells turned 22 months last week and this is a random sampling of pictures lately. 

If you're going to get a water table, I highly recommend waiting until your kid is closer to 2, though it does make a perfect first birthday gift if you have a summer baby. 

Last year's experience was a disaster. 

 

I gave him his snack outside instead of inside and he carried it as far away as possible and sat down. 

So he could share with the dogs. 

He thought me putting these in the cart at the store meant that he could eat them in the cart. He was not a happy camper, but I gave him a few when we got to the car. 

Scott was doing construction work over the weekend and the dogs would not stay in the house. They insisted on sitting in the truck for hours and hours at a time. They wouldn't budge. Because they knew Scott wouldn't leave without them if they stayed in the truck. 

Hoarding the chalk.

Soccer with a basketball.

He found these "tractors" and was so excited.

A carseat-less, Wells-less errand that I ran. You see, For the second time this month, he threw up 2+ times on a car trip. Meaning, I took the carseat apart 2 times this month and it was sitting out to dry at this point...I'm not sure where to go from here. 

Bothering Scout any way he can.

Much like we did as children, Wells has a thing for lawn mowers (oh, sorry, "tractors")...we used to sit on the ones in my grandparents' shop and pretend to drive them. 

Push mowers are his comfort zone because that's what we have here at the rental in Pittsburgh. 

(I think we have a 2nd birthday theme in mind, if you haven't figured it out.)