What Sounds Good To Eat Right Now

1. Biscuits and honey
2. Biscuits and fudge
3. A tropical storm from Stobys
4. Grilled tofu
5. My moms hot veggie sandwich
6. An ice cream drumstick from the Schwan's man
7. Cheese grits
8. A cherry Sprite
9. Grilled pineapple
10. Fried pickles
11. Frozen grapes


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Prescription Medication I'm On

1. An antibiotic
2. A pain med
3. Medicated eye drops
4. Eye gel
5. Some pill for my spider bites
6. A muscle relaxer



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31 Reasons I Love My Husband On HIs 31st Birthday

1. He is disciplined.
2. He stands up for what he believes in. (sometimes this drives me crazy, but for this list, it's a good thing)
3. He takes care of all the things that I hate, like checking accounts and insurance and payments and secret numbers (pin numbers) and budgets.
4. He is handsome.
5. He challenges me.
6. He likes to have a good time with our kids.
7. He is funny.
8. He always tells me that I'm pretty and that he loves me.
9. He cleaned up the doggy diarrhea this morning.
10. He indulges my passions like going to every possible David Gray concert and visiting each city's Anthropologie and art museum.
11. We always have fun on trips.
12. He always wants the kids and I to be safe.
13. He prays with the kids every night.
14. He works hard to to pursue what he loves, like his cycling.
15. He is always trying to grow and be a better man. He's a lot different than when we were married 6 years ago.
16. He always encourages me to get out and do things and visit my family and have time to myself.
17. He loves my family and genuinely likes being around them.
18. He is sacrificing his schedule to cart me around lately because of my aversion to driving.
19. He takes out the trash, makes the bed, takes Puddy out in the early morning and the late night, and cleans the shower.
20. He gave me the most beautiful engagement ring when he proposed.
21. He is super smart.
22. He can figure out almost anything.
23. He is a good singer and is musical and can talk about things like time signatures in songs.
24. He is informed about what is going on in our world and really cares about it.
25. He loves his friends and would do anything for them.
26. He's not afraid to try new things...deer hunting, pasta, strawberries.
27. He is strong in his convictions.
28. He is generous with charities and good causes.
29. He works very very hard to provide for his family.
30. He is honest.
31. He scratches my back.

Goodies Katy Brought Over Today

1. Mixed nuts- R immediately wanted them
2. GoGo Squeez- the kids immediately squeezed down some
3. Bread
4. Muffins
5. Nutella
6. Goldfish
7. Graham crackers
8. Body scrub

What I'm Thankful For

1. My family. My family. Did I say my family? They have stood in the gap for us this week and have cared for us so well.
2. Good car seats. Please don't have cheap, ill-fitting, or "just getting by" car seats holding your most precious cargo in your car.
3. Aaron. She has bought me groceries, flowers, loaned her babysitter, gotten me doctor's appointments, and made me food. I will never have a better neighbor and friend ever.
4. My friends who have sent the most loving texts and called to check on me and email me to tell me they are praying for us and for Katy who has made it her personal mission to make sure I don't circle down the drain.
5. Jesus for saving us and keeping my babies safe when they shouldn't be after crawling out of a flattened car.
6. The two women who sat with me and W on the highway in the sweltering heat and prayed for me and sang W songs to cheer her up.
7. The man who held R for an hour and spoke so sweetly to him.
8. The National Guard men who field dressed my husband's head and probably saved his life.
9. My family. Again. I have the best one.

Today's Errands

1. Buy new sheets and pillows
2. Eye doctor- my corneas are both scratched
3. Urgent Care- I also have celuitis from a spider bite
4. Walgreens to pick up 3 more prescriptions. That's five for me.
-sorry, my lists might be whiny and negative for a while; I should be thankful to be alive, but right now I'm in a bad mood.


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Today's Errands

1. New carseats
2. Return rental car
3. Kids pediatrician appointment
4. Me and Andy doctor appointment
5. Grocery store
6. Walgreens to pick up prescriptions
7. Unpack

The Only Store-Bought Cookies I Like

1. Nutter Butters
2. Uncle Eddie's (any flavor)
3. Pepperidge Farm soft baked Oatmeal Dark Chocolate Cherry Almond
4. Mi-Del Vanilla Snaps

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Movies We Have To Choose From For The Kids For Our 12 Hour Car Ride

1. Sesame Street's Follow That Bird
2. Clifford's Puppy Days
3. Tangled
4. The Best of Elmo
5. Finding Nemo
6. Cars Maters Tales
7. Home on the Range
8. Peter Pan
9. Little Mermaid
10. The Lion King 1 1/2
11. Winnie the Pooh 1 2 3's Discovering Numbers and Counting
12. VeggieTales Minnesota Cuke & The Search for Samson's Hairbrush
13. VeggieTales Duke & the Great Pie War
14. Angelina Ballerina Rose Fairy Princess
15. Elmo's World Pets
16. Lady and the Tramp II: Scamp's Adventure
17. Spirit, Stallion of the Cimarron
18. Ice Age Dawn of the Dinosaurs
19. Toy Story
20. Piglet's Big Movie
21. The Country Bears
22. Clifford the Big Red Dog Best Buddies
23. The Busy World of Richard Scarry
24. Diego Saves the World

My Burrito

1. Refried beans
2. Black beans
3. Mixed greens
4. Wholly guacamole
5. Salsa
6. Garlic salt
7. Onion
8. Sweet potato


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Our Beach Bag

1. R's towel- pirate ship
2. W's towel- mermaid
3. Sunglasses for all
4. California Baby sunscreen
5. R's new dump trucks from Pawpaw
6. Buckets and shovels
7. Mindless mags and biking mags
8. iPhone and ear buds
9. 2 sets of floaties
10. Capri Suns and graham crackers


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Outlet Mall Finds

1. Robe and matching shorts from Banana Republic- me
2. Blouse from JCrew- me
3. Blouse from Old Navy- me
4. Super Grover shirt for R
5. Dress shirt and belts for A from Banana Republic
6. Plaid shirt from JCrew for A
7. Hoodie from Old Navy for A


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What I Do At The Beach Now

1. My sole purpose at the beach is the person who brings buckets of water to the kids "sandcastle"
2. Sunblock applying to children. I do not enjoy applying sunscreen.
3. Hiding under an umbrella because of my two bigger phobias- sunscreen and sunburns
4. Looking for seashells and then have to keep up with them all day

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What I Used To Love At The Beach

1. Laying out to perfect my tan
2. Looking cute in a bikini
3. Reading magazines
4. Listening to music
5. Sitting in the edge of the water
6. Taking naps in my reclining chair


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What I Need From Penzey's

1. Tumeric

2. Thyme

3. Vanilla extract

4. Garlic salt

5. Cinnamon

6. Freeze dried shallots

7. Cumin

12 Hour Road Trip Snacks

1. Kashi TLC Original 7-grain crackers

2. Organic Just Strawberries

3. True North Almond Pecan Blueberry Clusters

4. Nature Valley Oats 'n Honey granola bars

5. Planters Heart Healthy Mix nuts

6. Nutter Butters

7. Flavor Blasted Goldfish

8. Chex Mix

9. Revolution Foods Organic Mashups (Berry and Blueberry Blitz)

10. Ella's Kitchen organic baby food squeezes (carrot/apple/parsnip, broccoli/pears/peas, sweet potatoes/pumpkin/apple/blueberry, and spinach/apples/rutabaga)

11. Revolution Foods Organic Jammy Sammies

Tonight's To-Do List For My Husband

1. Take out the trash

2. Take out the recycling

3. Clean out the fish tank

4. Clean up paper pile

5. Straighten up your closet

6. Pack

7. Load the car

My Big Sister's Top Ten Favorite Songs Of All Time

1. Romeo and Juliet- Indigo Girls
2. Sullivan Street- Counting Crows
3. The Sound of Silence - Simon & Garfunkel
4. In My Life- Judy Collins or The Beatles
5. Sweet Caroline- Neil Diamond
6. And So It Goes- Billy Joel
7. Untitled Hymn - Chris Rice
8. Your Song- Elton John
9. Fix You- Coldplay
10. Scratch- Kendall Payne

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A Sampling Of My Mom's Curiously Odd Answers In An Enlightening Game Of "Choices"

1. Kevin James over Brad Pitt
2. She picks Alfred as the hottest Ludlow brother in Legends of the Fall. Over Tristan, who is arguably the hottest movie character of all time. Clearly Brad Pitt isn't her cup of tea.
3. George Strait over Alan Jackson
4. George Strait for the win as he edges out Kevin James
5. In another shocker, Mom chooses Ted as the cutest guy on How I Met Your Mother.
6. Jason Street from Friday Night Lights. Jason Street. Not Coach Taylor. Not Tim Riggins. Sigh.


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My Favorite Pieces At The Nelson-Atkins Museum

click on these links for your daily dose of culture

1. Double Waterfall For a Simple Afternoon- Pat Steir. This photo doesn't do this stunner justice.

2. Memento No. 5- Kerry James Marshall

3. The Chariot- Alberto Giacometti

4. There was a beautiful Impressionist painting of a woman looking out of a window, but I don't recall the artist or the title of the painting! Err...Pissaro? Maybe...I have no idea. Loved it, though.

5. The Roxy Paine exhibit. He has a tree installed in their lawn, but the exhibit included many of his size-reduced models and a production video. Fascinating.

6. Boulevard des Capucines- Claude Monet

7. View of Lake Garda- Jean-Baptiste-Camille Corot. I think this was my favorite, but I don't really know why. It stirred something emotional in me, which is a powerful thing about art.

8. Standing Figures (Thirty Figures)- Magdalena Abakanowicz

9. A Pantry Ballet (for Jacques Offenbach)- Joseph Cornell. This was just too cute. W would've loved it and my mind was running away with ideas for my kids.

Honestly

1. I care a lot about what people think of me.
2. I don't like being in photos.
3. I think that a house will solve all my problems and that's why God won't let me have one.
4. I don't think I'm pretty and I wish I were.
5. If I could have one talent it would be to sing really well and raspy.
6. I'm materialistic.
7. Being told you are too skinny is just as painful as being told you're too fat. So I might start returning the favor.
8. My number one pet peeve is mothers complaining about being mothers.
9. I don't feel like I fit anywhere most of the time.
10. I make the best brownies.
11. My dream life would be living in the country and owning a farm animal rescue.
12. I currently have the complexion of a pubescent teenage boy and am surviving on ProActiv and Bare Escentuals.
13. I've been working on my top ten favorite songs of all time list for weeks. It feels like the hardest thing I've ever done in my life, which says a lot about my life.
14. I also make the best cookies.


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Kansas City

1. Checked in to our hotel

2. Walked around and shopped at the Plaza

3. Had dinner at CPK- my favorite Pear and Gorgonzola pizza and a raspberry lemonade

4. Walked back to our hotel to change our clothes and gussy up

5. David Gray concert! As always, amazing.

6. Took a cab from the concert to Cheesecake Factory for late night dessert- I had a slice of key lime cheesecake

7. Slept in until 9:30

8. Brunch at in-gre-di-ent in the Plaza. I had steel cut oatmeal with sliced bananas, cinnamon, brown sugar, and carmalized almonds

9. Toured the Nelson-Atkins Art Museum

10. Drove home and picked up our babies

What I Ate Yesterday

1. A thick slice of toasted Great Harvest Cinnamon swirl bread with cream cheese and some sliced strawberries, chocolate almond milk

2. Lime quinoa with avocado & black beans and kale chips on the side, water

3. A bowl of Kashi Go Lean Crunch with coconut milk yogurt and peaches and banana

4. Nachos! Multigrain Tostitos loaded with refried beans, black beans, sweet potato chunks, nutritional yeast sauce, and salsa. I drank an orange spritzer.

5. Cinnamon chocolate chip cookies, almond milk

My Kids Road Trip Bag

1. An endless supply of stickers

2. Notepad for each for said stickers and sketching

3. Pencil bag for each with markers and crayons

4. Color Wonder color books with the required markers

5. 8 sets of flash cards, now on rings

6. Thin, cheap paperback books

7. Highlight's High Five magazines

8. A bag of stamps and stamp ink pads

9. Binoculars

10. Sunglasses

11. An Etch-A-Sketch

12. Two Leap Frog laptops

13. Several small $2 character activity/sticker/coloring books from Hobby Lobby

Places I Wouldn't Mind Living

1. Fayetteville, AR

2. On Table Rock Lake near Branson

3. Asheville, NC

4. Paducah, KY

5. Austin, TX

6. On Baltz Lake in Pocahontas, AR (I am strangely drawn there)

7. Eureka Springs, AR

8. In Little Rock, AR off of Cantrell around Allsopp Park/LR Country Club/The Heights

9. Clayton, MO

Household Chores My 3 Year Old Helps Out With

1. W can set the table

2. She can put away the laundry. I just taught her where everything goes and am okay with it being a slower and messier process that me doing it myself.

3. She is responsible for keeping her shoes and her brothers shoes in the shoe drawer.

4. She puts on her own shoes and helps her brother put on his shoes.

5. W can easily clean up all the toys in the house- I give her little jobs at a time so that it's less overwhelming- the cars, the puzzles, the babies, etc.

6. She gets (most) items off of the shelf at the grocer and puts them in the buggy for me.

7. She brushes her teeth.

8. Her favorite jobs are helping me put on a clean tablecloth and helping me make my bed.

9. She does love little jobs such as, "Would you put this bag in the laundry room?" or "Could you turn the TV off?" I think it makes her feel like my partner, which is her ultimate dream.

What I'm Loving Lately

1. Big fireworks shows
2. My rose scented Dr. Bronner's soap
3. All Over But The Shoutin', by Rick Bragg
4. Marinated garbanzos
5. Joe Pug
6. My kids in new pajamas
7. Orange spritzers
8. The Civil Wars
9. R is really starting to talk, even if it's only who understands
10. When I hold him, he uses my shoulder blade as a little handle
11. Red grapes- we can't get enough if them at our house
12. Fresh squeezed lime juice- I've been squeezing it all over the place. It reminds me of my friend Scott Cable who used to squeeze lemons on EVERYTHING.
13. My new bras from Nordstrom. I loved it so much I bought 4 colors.
14. Our little downtown library
15. Hot weather


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This Week's Goals

1. Clean master bath and organize its cabinets
2. Pack for Kansas City- David Gray this weekend!
3. Make a pack list for Florida (beach next weekend!)
4. Do all my handwash only laundry
5. Get rid of old/outgrown/junky toys
6. Finish my Shutterfly album I've been putting off for months
7. Pick a show to start watching on Netflix
8. Finish thank you notes


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Back In Town Grocery List

1. Bananas
2. Peaches
3. Red grapes
4. Limes
5. Tomatoes
6. Avocados
7. Green onion
8. Yellow onion
9. Milk
10. Almond milk
11. Frozen corn
12. Coke
13. Cereal- Kashi Go Lean Crunch and Honey Blossoms
14. Apple juice
15. Jam
16. Tortilla chips and Baked Lays
17. Green baby food
18. Bread
19. Walnuts
20. Mixed nuts

What I Like At Sonic

1. Lemonberry slush
2. Watermelon slush
3. Cherry vanilla Dr. Pepper
4. Cheddar bites with marinara
5. Tater tots with cheese dipped in mustard
6. Banana pudding shake


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Being At My Parent's House Makes Me Wish...

1. We lived in Arkansas. Duh.
2. We had a yard.
3. We had more TV channels like Sprout and Nick Jr. and Hub.
4. My mom was on staff at my house as my cook.
5. W could play with her cousins more.
6. R could spend more time with his beloved Papaw.
7. We had ceiling fans in our loft.
8. I had a garden.


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