I was perusing Etsy the other night (which I guess can account for where some of my time went…) and came across this print:

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Not only is that a really cool print, but it’s so true. It definitely takes me back to my second grade math days (Venn diagrams, anyone?!). Sometimes I let time and/or money keep me from doing things that I want to do…like letting a huge to-do list keep me from sitting down with my husband at night, or going for a run. But really, does a two-page to-do list need to be done all at once? And money. Oh, money. I remember telling Jim that if we waited until we had enough time and money to have children, we’d never have them. And I was right. However, we have plenty of money for the necessities, and we are certainly not walking around without any clothes or hungry (although Molly will claim that we are starving her. Starving! Poor girl.).

I am not sure where this post is going exactly. I had just bookmarked that print and wanted to share it, especially because I keep having this time/money conversation with everyone, or at least it seems that way. While it’s definitely not a new idea in real life or in the blogging world…there’s a lot to be said for prioritizing tasks, saying no, doing more of what you *want* to do (i.e., by saying no to the things that take your time), and spending less than you make.

What are you up to this weekend? We don’t have much on the agenda, so I’m looking forward to some free time with my sweet kiddos.

Molly is going to be one of the flower girls in Renee’s wedding, and she is SO excited. This is the dress Renee picked out for the flower girls, and they’re going to wear yellow flower headbands from Crewcuts.

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Beverly created the save the dates, rehearsal dinner invitations and the wedding invitations, as well as a few other items for the big day. I hope to share pictures from the wedding with you next week.

I hope you have a fun weekend ahead of you! Has your child ever been in a wedding? I’m worried Molly will freak out tomorrow and not want to walk down the aisle!

Jennifer had been posting party prep pictures on Instagram the week before the party, so I knew it was going to be an adorable party, and I was so excited to see the party post on her blog after the party.

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You have to visit Jennifer’s blog to see the rest of the pictures! Thank you, Jennifer, for your continued support. We always enjoy working with you!

My husband so sweetly painted over the pink vertical stripes that were in the room when it was Molly’s and then painstakingly painted the horizontal stripes for James’ room. Pictures are so funny – in person, I think the rug and the paint color are a way better match than how it appears here.

I love that so many items in the room were purchased from Etsy or sourced locally, with the exception of the PBK bedding, Land of Nod rug, and Ikea dresser. The lamp was a Target find by my mom, which I then spray painted orange. The chevron curtains were a tough call. I wanted a pattern, but because of the stripes on the wall, I didn’t want horizontal stripes and Jim isn’t a fan of polka dots. The ikats I was looking at were too grown-up. So I settled on the chevron, and although it’s super trendy, I’m still loving them and think they work well here. The dog painting in the collage over the dresser was painted by my friend Meredith and then dog print over the bookshelf was made by Beverly.

I want to add a few more items/frames to the gallery over the dresser, and I want to spell James’ name (or put his initials) under the floating shelf to the left of the dresser. I like the galvanized letters from Anthropologie or Land of Nod, so we’ll see what I end up with! And I obviously have empty picture frames still, but I panic about filling the frames, as if I can’t just swap out the picture later. So weird!

Overall, I think this little guy likes the room too.

The chalkboard theme was carried throughout the shower, magnetic letters served as colorful vase fillers, and the favors were packed in brown paper bags. Children’s board books, alphabet blocks and The Very  Hungry Caterpillar letter flashcards were placed throughout. I especially love how the flashcards were used to spell the baby’s name – Luke – on the mantle!

Kari! So adorable. Thank you for sharing your pictures. We hope Kandace and baby Luke are doing well.

I texted with my mom, both of us wondering what this world is coming to. I prayed for my children, and Beverly’s children, and our friend’s children. I prayed for the runners, and not just the runners in Boston, but runners everywhere. And the spectators. And the policeman and fireman and National Guardsmen and the doctors and nurses who worked so diligently yesterday. I keep watching the video footage from the finish line and as a runner who has run two marathons, I know the elation and exhaustion those runners were feeling as they approached the finish line, but I cannot imagine the shock and pain and disbelief and confusion they felt yesterday, at the Boston Marathon finish line. Also, I keep thinking about how difficult it can be to locate a loved one after a race. The first time I ran a marathon, it took me about an hour to find Jim afterwards. I am sure that the runners and spectators yesterday were in dire need of reconnecting with each other after the two explosions, and even minutes felt like hours.

I’ve had a love/hate relationship with social media lately, but yesterday was a good day. I could see how social media was helping people connect with loved ones they were worried about. Many runners from the Charlotte area were in Boston for the marathon, and the running clubs quickly rallied on Facebook, letting others know who was ok and updating the community on those who were injured.

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As awful as yesterday’s events were, I take great hope in the words of Fred Rogers:

“When I was a boy and I would see scary things on the news,

my mother would say to me ‘Look for the helpers. You will always find people helping.’”

What a great truth. We don’t have to focus on the bad. We can acknowledge the tragedy, but teach {and learn} about bravery and compassion through the helping. I sometimes wonder how to raise my children in a world as scary and hurtful as ours, but then I remember that when people work together and offer hands – praying hands and helping hands – the world isn’t so scary after all.

I’m obsessed with the Starbucks Hazelnut Macchiatos – iced and hot! I just finished an iced, non-fat hazelnut macchiato, and if they weren’t $4, I’d totally get another one. We recently made a concerted effort to cut back on our coffee budget and are making more coffee at home, so now it’s a real treat to make a Starbucks run. My mom keeps James on Wednesday mornings while I’m teaching and I also stop at Starbucks before I pick up Molly at school to grade papers and catch up on paperwork. I’ll be honest that the iced macchiato is what keeps me circling this parking lot to find a parking spot some weeks!

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I’m also loving this snack. I probably shouldn’t eat a whole can in 24 hours, but it’s that good! I have to hide it from myself. I picked this up at Target for the first time a few weeks ago when I realized I was starving at the end of every day. Jim kindly pointed out that I probably wasn’t getting enough protein each day, so I thought I’d add in some nuts – easy to snack on one-handed and on the go.

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Do you mix black and brown? I didn’t use to, but I’ve been doing it a bit more intentionally over the last year or so (thanks to the continuation of the leggings and boots trend) and now I totally want to rock it all year! I grabbed these sandals at Target a few weeks ago and while I certainly won’t be wearing them around the house, I think I’ll get some good use out of them for only $29.99!

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The weekend is in sight, lovelies! Enjoy the rest of  your week!

If the kiddos are young enough and of the same gender, deciding on a theme might not be difficult. Or if the kids’ birthdays are near a holiday, the theme might be built in for you. A costume party in October? An Easter egg hunt in the spring? A pool party in the summer. Yes, please. We recently did invitations for a four-year-old girl and one-year-old boy with a western theme; my family also attended the party and it was wonderfully done! Hot dogs and finger foods, red and aqua decorations, cowboy hats for everyone and pony rides for the kids! In the fall, we did the invitations for a mermaid and pirate party, which was darling and a great theme for a brother and a sister! Of course you could always go with a simple but fun great color combination and do different patterns in order to avoid a “theme” at all.

Our most recent combined party goods include an adorable construction + flowers and ladybugs theme. The mom had a great vision and Beverly did an awesome job of combining the two ideas for an adorable joint brother/sister party. I had already started to package up the items for shipping (and it was late at night, so the lighting is awful!) when I thought to take a few photos, but you still get the idea.

What do you think? Would you have a joint party for your children if the timing was right birthday-wise? Any other great theme ideas to put out there for inspiration?

And I’m super excited to go to one of Benjamin’s lacrosse games tomorrow. I saw a few games in college, but I can’t wait to see these seven-year-olds play!

My neighbor pinned this quote last night. I love the simplicity and truth of this notion – hard work and kindness really are the building blocks to an amazing life.

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Have a wonderful weekend! What are you up to? The weather is supposed to be awesome in NC. I’m looking forward to spending some great time outside with my sweet family!

Except for the second helping of pasta and the Chic-fil-a cookie from dinner that a friend brought over last night (how lucky are we that friends still pop by with dinner? SO blessed!), I’ve been doing pretty well. Oh, and I do enjoy a nice craft beer at the end of each day. I’ve been using the Jillian Michael’s 30-Day Shred DVD and taking lots of walks with the double stroller, too. How silly/sad is it that I was motivated for a second walk yesterday just so I could have that chocolate chip cookie? Well, that and the fact that we needed to kill some time before bedtime.

Tuesday night, I made this salad from the April issue of Southern Living. It’s totally my new favorite. I just made it again, without the salmon, for lunch today. I was seriously excited to eat lunch, and now I’m inspired to find some other great salad recipes. I read on Natalie’s blog the other day that she will make a big salad at the beginning of the week and eat it for lunch throughout the week. I think that’s definitely doable. I love to eat well, but I don’t always have time to stop and prepare something to eat. Or I’ll fix a meal for myself and get distracted, only to realize hours later I am cranky because I forgot to eat!

Do you have a favorite (easy!) salad recipe to share? Or are you on My Fitness Pal? I have a feeling I’ll be even more motivated if I know someone is watching my log!