Welcome to “Angry Julie Monday’s Wordless Wednesday Linky”!

If this your first time here, HELLO! I do a link-up every Wednesday! Post a picture(s) and link back to it here. Wordless Wednesday is a great day to post an awesome picture that “speaks” for itself, no words needed.

Be sure to check out Wordless Wednesday Link-Ups at these other sites also:

Project Alicia, Better in Bulk, By Word of Mouth Musings, Crazy About My Baybah, Dear Crissy, Five Minutes For Mom, Live and Love…Out Loud, Naptime Momtog, Parenting By Dummies, Seven Clown Circus, The Divine Miss Mommy

Also, Lindsey from The Pleated Poppy does “What I Wore Wednesday” every week with a great big link-up.

And, I can’t forget Krystina from Lollipops whom does “What I Love Wednesday” every week with a great big link-up.

Hello loud birds chirping at 5:15am.

I think the birds knew that it was time to wake-up and run. My alarm was set for 5:20am. Ye gads, what was I thinking.

So this running thing, it is not fun running as it gets warmer. So my choices are 1. get up early and run before it gets sunny and/or 2. run after 8pm.  I chose to get up at the crack of dawn today. Six miles done.

Hello to Mother’s Day yesterday.

I hope everyone had a good one.  Angry Kid and I went out to lunch with my mom and family friends.  Angry Husband took a picture of Angry Kid and I later in the afternoon.

Dress: Old Navy; Shoes: TJ Maxx; Necklace: Anthropologie; in case you are wondering.

Hello to a new iPad case as a Mother’s Day gift.

My Avia recommended this one from Brookstone. I love it. Angry Kid picked out red because it means “LOVE”.

I got my iPad in March. I seriously needed a case, and the keyboard, a total bonus!

Hello to Angry Kid seeing his mentor, Jacob.

Jacob is 13 and will be a freshman in high school in September. How time flies.  He is my friend’s son, and I remember when he was a tiny baby. Seriously, this almost 7 year old and 13 year old are very similar. It is scary.  They both love USC also.

Hello to forgotten photos.

Oops, I forgot to post edit the photos from our last soccer game in February. I went through about 100 photos this weekend and edited them.

Yes, my son climbed up on the playground equipment.

Hello Star of the Week.

Angry Kid is “Star of the Week” this week.

His birthday is Saturday.  I told him that he needed to work on his poster. He asked if I could, “take care of that”, ha.

Of course, my best work is done at the last minute, you know, midnight.

I will be working on my presentation for the Orange County Social Media Summit the next few days.

I am a keynote speaker. I am crazy. 600 SIX HUNDRED people. What the heck was I thinking?

Are you coming?

Well…

Hello Monday!

Linking up with Lisa Leonard and her Hello Monday Series!

Angry Kid and I are going to lunch with my mom and some family friends today. He gave me a great gift of a new iPad case, which I desperately needed.  We got my mom a photo on canvas as a gift. Today is my rest day from running. I’ve been quite the crazy runner lately.  And I got to sleep in till 10am today, while Angry Kid was busy killing things on the XBOX.

Photo by DrewB Photography

I love this photo of Angry Kid and me.  One of these days, I’m going to order it on a canvas from Drew. I just need to figure out where to put it.

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A Mother’s Love

A mother’s love,—how sweet the name!
   What is a mother’s love?
—A noble, pure, and tender flame,
   Enkindled from above,
To bless a heart of earthly mould;
The warmest love that can grow cold;
   This is a mother’s love.

—James Montgomery

Once again,

Happy Mother’s Day!!!

Hope you have a great one!

After we took our tour we went to a adjacent restaurant and there were different stations to assemble a Bento.  I’m not creative at all so I pretty much slammed my food into the little compartments in the box.  Some of the other attendees got more creative with theirs.  I guess that I will never win that mom award, you know, “prettiest lunch”.

Welcome to “Angry Julie Monday’s Wordless Wednesday Linky”!

If this your first time here, HELLO! I do a link-up every Wednesday! Post a picture(s) and link back to it here. Wordless Wednesday is a great day to post an awesome picture that “speaks” for itself, no words needed.

Be sure to check out Wordless Wednesday Link-Ups at these other sites also:

Project Alicia, Better in Bulk, By Word of Mouth Musings, Crazy About My Baybah, Dear Crissy, Five Minutes For Mom, Live and Love…Out Loud, Naptime Momtog, Parenting By Dummies, Seven Clown Circus, The Divine Miss Mommy

Also, Lindsey from The Pleated Poppy does “What I Wore Wednesday” every week with a great big link-up.

And, I can’t forget Krystina from Lollipops whom does “What I Love Wednesday” every week with a great big link-up.

Disclosure: I was invited to a preview event at Whole Foods Market Laguna Niguel.  I was provided with a tour, samples, and a Bento box meal. All photographs, thoughts, and opinions are mine.

Hello new week! 

Hello to a few days off from work!

Angry Husband and Kid saw The Avengers twice this week. Zero viewings for Angry Julie! Totally not fair.  Angry Husband, “I didn’t even know that you wanted to see the movie?”  Obviously, he does not see the eye candy aspect of the movie like I do!

Hello to Angry Kid’s Birthday Invite. 

Angry Kid is having a co-birthday party with a friend from school. I had to be totally OCD and Type-A as usual, and make my own invites. Total P-I-T-A! I do not recommend. BFF Stacey had to solve some dpi issues for me.

Hello to running.

I’ve been running quite a lot lately. I’m trying to catch-up to all of my super fast friends.  It is a complete work in progress.

Follow me on Daily Mile to see my hot mess and daily whining.

Hello Cinco de Mayo!

Happy Birthday to Angry Kid’s friend, Charlie! Best Birthday EVER! 05-05-05

Hello to Mexican Food at Mi Casa with a co-worker.

No Cinco de Drinko for us!

Hello to Bic Bands.

More things to add to my running addiction. Running accessories.

Love these headbands. They keep my growing-out-pixie-cut-mess intact and out of my face.

That is all that matters.

I got some more at The OC Marathon Expo with my friend, Casey (running superstar).

Hello to an early work day yesterday, which had me exhausted all day.

I’m not a morning person!

Hello to new running shoes (again)!

I’m having feet issues while running. I think my problem is solved now, hopefully….

Finding the right shoes for running is really a trial and error lesson.

New Balance 1080v2.  

When you over-pronate, have one foot bigger than the other, roll your foot inwards, and have high arches, this is what you get.

(At least they have turquoise on them)

Hello Monday!

Hello Week!

Hello to no-running related shopping this week.

Somebody please keep me out of Lululemon. It is pretty bad when one of the employees asked me about the wedding that I went to last week.

Addiction much!

Linking up with Lisa Leonard and her Hello Monday Series!

My biggest worry about summer is childcare. When Angry Kid was younger, it was so much easier.  He went to a year-round preschool/daycare. We always knew that he would have a fun summer with his friends, and that there would be childcare available from 7am-6pm.

Angry Kid visited a friend’s camp last summer. He had a blast. If only it wasn’t so far away.

Last summer was our first summer sans childcare plans. I wanted some more flexibility for the summer, and somehow it all worked out. I watched him on my days off, my husband also got a few days, and then my mom filled in. But at the end of the summer, I realized that Angry Kid needs some kind of structure. My whole “spontaneous plans” summer vacation was a bad experiment.

I started freaking out about the summer about a month ago, when I realized that my work schedule was going to be changing in May. My husband also announced that his schedule would be changing soon also. You can only imagine the chaos and noise going on inside my head. I pretty much had a panic attack. I am going to be working at 7:00 am, five days a week, and I will be off in the early afternoon around 4pm. Angry Husband also works five days a week with a 7:00-8:00am to about 6:00pm schedule.

I did research online and mapped out our options. Unfortunately, most of the camps start around 9:00am, and many finish between the hours of 12:00-3:00pm.  So you can imagine my stress!

I was able to sign my son up for a soccer camp that goes for 5 days from 9am-12pm during my dad’s vacation in July.  We are going to Yosemite for a week. But what will I do about childcare for the rest of the summer?  I have some ideas, but I need to see if my mom can drop Angry Kid off at camp because Angry Husband and I will be at work.

People always tell you that work will be different after you have a child. I’ve had my ups and downs, but nothing like how it has been since Angry Kid started elementary school.  With all of the holidays, in-service days, programs, and sports….I am constantly struggling to balance it all.  My husband obviously has issues with balance also.  Luckily, my parents only live ten minutes away, or we would have some major problems.  I have no clue how parents that both work balance life and career with multiple children, because I would be a wreck.

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I’ve noticed how women so often feel caught between their interests in family life and their creative or career aspirations. I wonder if it has to be this way. What would have to change—in your life, in people’s attitudes, or in our society—for women to have an easier time managing work-life balance? Share your answer below and like Smarter Life Better Planet on Facebook to be entered to win a Haier microwave for your family along with an additional microwave to be donated to the Food Bank for New York City!

Disclosure:  This is a sponsored conversation written by me on behalf of Haier. The opinions and text are all mine. Official Contest Rules.

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Welcome to “Angry Julie Monday’s Wordless Wednesday Linky”!

If this your first time here, HELLO! I do a link-up every Wednesday! Post a picture(s) and link back to it here. Wordless Wednesday is a great day to post an awesome picture that “speaks” for itself, no words needed.

Be sure to check out Wordless Wednesday Link-Ups at these other sites also:

Project Alicia, Better in Bulk, By Word of Mouth Musings, Crazy About My Baybah, Dear Crissy, Five Minutes For Mom, Live and Love…Out Loud, Naptime Momtog, Parenting By Dummies, Seven Clown Circus, The Divine Miss Mommy

Also, Lindsey from The Pleated Poppy does “What I Wore Wednesday” every week with a great big link-up.

And, I can’t forget Krystina from Lollipops whom does “What I Love Wednesday” every week with a great big link-up.

I chose the Sunshine Dress to review.  I am constantly going back and forth between our community pools, the house, and errands during the summer.  I started searching for summer dresses early in the year, and all I ever find our strappy sundresses.  I wanted something with a sleeve that I could dress up if I wanted to, but also casual enough for the pool with my son.

I love how soft this dress is.  Is comfortable but also tailored with the a-line style waist.  I am not a skinny girl, but I got a size large and it fits perfectly.  They have a great sizing chart on Fresh Produce’s website.

I wore this dress to a pool party that my son was attending. I thought that it was the perfect occasion.  I had my bathing suit underneath the dress, but I did not end up in the pool.  Obviously, I got some sun at the party, because I look bright red in this photo.  I had my husband take a photo of me later in the evening.

Seriously, my favorite part of this dress? It doesn’t make me look chunkier than I already am.  It fits so nice!

I highly recommend Fresh Produce.  You can buy their clothing online, or at their stores.  Fresh Produce ships to over 200 countries!

Also if you are looking for some great spring/summer clothing ideas, here are a few:

• party dress for women: http://freshproduceclothes.com/fp/party-dress
• summer fashions: http://freshproduceclothes.com/fp/summer-fashion 
• sun dress: http://freshproduceclothes.com/fp/sun-dresses

Disclosure: This review was made possible by Mom Spark Media. Thoughts are my own. Please excuse my bare feet, and hot mess of a hairstyle.  I had been at the pool all day with my son. But look, several hours later, my dress is not wrinkled, and looks cute!

I realized that I had overbooked my weekend of The Color Run, and that I would be doing the race with only a little bit of sleep.  I was busy the Friday and Saturday before the race with The Ragnar Relay SoCal.  I was helping my friends, Team Sparkle, by doing photography and social media for them.  So on my way home from Ragnar, I had to stop by Target to get myself a white tank top for The Color Run.  Luckily, we have a Target near us that is open till 11pm.

Megan got to my house at 7am, and we got organized and left for the race.  I grabbed some towels, baby wipes, and a trash bag.  I’ve done two mud runs and I remember how dirty I was after the runs.  I brought the towels to sit on in my car, the baby wipes to clean off with, and the trash bag to throw some of our paint covered clothes in.

After parking our car, and wandering a bit, we headed to the starting line. It was very “white”, as we were advised to wear white shirts.

Megan and I took a self-portrait pre-race.

And I had to take a portrait of our Team Sparkle Skirts with our knee highs from Target.

After taking these pictures, I placed my iPhone inside a plastic bag.  I did not want it to get damaged with the “color” during the race.  Right before taking off, we ran into Danica and Shea.  We all pushed up to the front of the group, so we were able to be in the first wave of people. That was a huge deal, because we didn’t have to wait forever to start the race.  We had some laughs before the race as we deemed it “The Hipster Race”.  I said, all we need is fedoras and fake mustaches.  Danica then pointed to a group of people wearing fedoras.

Photo via Danica

Danica was really good at taking pictures as we ran through each other station.  I took some pictures but they were super blurry.  We had another runner take this group picture of Megan, me, Danica, and Shea after we had gone through three color stations (yellow, green, and purple).  After the first station, yellow, we learned how to get proper coverage of color.  Each station we alternated, left-right-left-right.  Then we going through the station, we would do a 360-turn to get color everywhere.  Otherwise you would only get color on one side. And everyone else in our group was smart to wear sunglasses.  I was a total fail and forgot mine at home.

Since, we were in the first wave of runners, there wasn’t a ton of people done yet.  I took a photo of the finish line and everyone post-race.  This was born the “Color Drop” when you got pretty much submerged in color.

And I took this photo after the “Color Drop”. When you pick-up your race packet, you get a packet of color to bring to the race with you. Megan and I both got green packets. I placed it inside my SPIbelt during the race.  They were doing announcements every fifteen minutes or so with count down.  When they said it was time, everyone opened their packets and let the color go in the air.  You are probably wondering what the color actually is?  The color is food grade cornstarch per The Color Run’s website.

I also took a video of a Color Drop with my iPhone (it is a bit pixelated):

And some after photos of Megan and I.

Me Post-Race

Megan Post-Race

Megan and I together.
Photo via Danica.

After the race and color drop, I may have spotted a very large Slurpee truck. I heart Slurpees so I made Megan wait in line. The Slurpees were tiny, but also tasty.

A portrait of Megan and I while waiting for Slurpees.

I took this hilarious of photo of Shea and Danica with their iPhones.

Danica sent me this super cute picture of me and her.
Photo via Danica.

My Team Sparkle Skirt, Knee High Socks, and Shoes post-run, along with Megan’s.

And you are probably wondering if we got clean? Megan and I both got “blown off” by this guy. It really got rid of a ton of powder that was just sitting on us. After we got back to the car, we bathed in baby wipes. The wipes took a ton of the color off from our faces, legs, and arms. When I got home, I stripped down in my garage. I had color everywhere, even on my feet, which had been covered with socks and shoes. I used soap and baby oil to get most of the color off. I had stains for a few days in the crooks of my arms, and my armpits.

Overall it was a very fun race.  I went in expected nothing, as it was not a timed race.  It was fun seeing everyone dressed up in costumes, tutus, and of course our Team Sparkle Skirts.  I also loved doing it with Megan, Danica, and Shea.  It was FABULOUS for picture taking also!!!  If you get the chance and there is a color run in your area, sign-up! You don’t have to be a runner to do it. I saw several people walking it. Plus, the races are selling out fast, so don’t hesistate!

Welcome to “Angry Julie Monday’s Wordless Wednesday Linky”!

If this your first time here, HELLO! I do a link-up every Wednesday! Post a picture(s) and link back to it here. Wordless Wednesday is a great day to post an awesome picture that “speaks” for itself, no words needed.

Be sure to check out Wordless Wednesday Link-Ups at these other sites also:

Project Alicia, Better in Bulk, By Word of Mouth Musings, Crazy About My Baybah, Dear Crissy, Five Minutes For Mom, Live and Love…Out Loud, Naptime Momtog, Parenting By Dummies, Seven Clown Circus, The Divine Miss Mommy

Also, Lindsey from The Pleated Poppy does “What I Wore Wednesday” every week with a great big link-up.

And, I can’t forget Krystina from Lollipops whom does “What I Love Wednesday” every week with a great big link-up.