(This was supposed to publish yesterday and so therefore some things might seem outdated already, but just go with it lol). Happy weekend, everyone! 

You guys, I feel like I lived a very long life in a short week. It’s been hell. I’m exhausted–emotionally, physically, mentally. My job has been insane but it’s kind of reaching a breaking point. I think. There are a number of changes and I’ve heard the word “transition” thrown around a lot but a few things are certain: it appears we are all safe and that this period of total and complete tomfuckery is almost in our rearview. That said, there were a lot of really great moments from the week and I’d like to shift gears to focus on something other than work. Let’s dive in, shall we??

• My trip to Lake Hopatcong with my bestie last weekend. It was very short but much needed. Mila totally freaked night 1 but that’s to be expected. Poor peanut couldn’t settle and woke up a few times in hysterics. The second night was much better but there were some tears. Ultimately, it was a good experience and also please remind me to bring my white noise machine next time 🙂 
  
• Ice cream for lunch
• Our AirBnB was adorable
  
• We visited the cutest little cafe right on the water where people could dock their boats/kayaks and come right in for caffeine/food. It was so quaint and sweet and I wanted to stay there forever
• New season of Virgin River (I haven’t watched in days, but I can’t wait to see how it ends. Don’t tell me!)
• Return to cooking. I’ve been lazy, but also takeout is so damn expensive
• Biting the bullet and getting an Uproot lint remover. I kept seeing the ads on FB and IG and dished the $20 to get rid of all the dog hair. I’ll report back and let you know if it’s worth it! 
• This picture of Mila that melts my heart but also OMG why isn’t she so tiny anymore?? She looks like an actual little person! (I mean, I know she is, but you know what I mean!!)
  
• My neighborhood; I had a chat with one of the guys around the corner and mentioned that Bryan’s been on a beer sour kick and he handed me a beer to have Bryan try. I really love the sense of community we have here and I know I’ve said it before, but it’s really such a different vibe from places I’ve lived in the past. I’m so so happy we planted our roots here and will raise our daughter on the lake <3 

And there you have it. My happy happy 🙂 You guys. I am going to a concert tonight! Pinch me. It’s been so long. Maybe I’ll cry! Or panic because there are so many people around, lol. I can’t wait even if it’ll be weird (I’m going to see Brandi Carlile for anyone curious). Anyone watching the Olympics? I’m hoping to tune in for a little bit. 

And welcome to the weekend, folks. This was supposed to go live yesterday, but I got kind of crazy news at work and the day escaped me. Again. Anyway, we are here now and so let’s dive in, shall we? Happy weekend; I hope whatever you are up to, you are enjoying it to the fullest 🙂 

• • The new romper Mila got in the mail (I blame Instagram ads!!)
    
  • An afternoon at the park — Mila loves the swing! 
    
    
    
    
  • Getting an invite to a mom’s group in town from another mom on my block; she’s very sweet and I see her while I’m out walking all the time. I think it would be so great for me to connect with other mommas who live here <3
  • Night out as a family; granted it was a horrible night of service and I’m not sure I’d want to return but it was nice to not cook
    
    
  • This absolutely ridiculous canoe guy video that someone shared on my Facebook page this week (go and watch at least in part and then head over to the epic comment section, I promise you won’t regret it)

• Getting pictures back from Mila’s photoshoot. I can’t wait to share–her face is going to be on a product box that will appear in major retail stores (also we got the gig because my friend works for a toy company; we have no intention of pursuing a modeling career for our little one, lol)

I don’t listen to music as much as I used to. No real reason, it just doesn’t fit into my life the way it once did and that does make me very sad. But recently I thought about my love of Dire Straits and I decided to listen to So Far Away. Which segued into Walk of Life (maybe one of the happiest songs ever written?), and finally Romeo and Juliet. PS: not all those songs are from Brothers in Arms, but that album is pure magic if you haven’t listened to it already. Music is therapy for the soul and always there when life feels complicated. 

The weather has been so strange lately. Not good for curly haired girls. Hot, humid, sticky. Today there’s a gentle pitter patter of rain drops which is preferable to the scorching rays of the hot summer sun. 

I inadvertently fell off the map again. A little over a week ago Bryan got a call from his sister to check on their father and long story short he was rushed to the emergency room. The outlook was incredibly grim and all at once, everything just shifted and stopped. I hated to see Bryan so despondent because of a long day at the hospital and hopeless news. I realized then that the way he grieves doesn’t match the way I’ve always grieved (he’s withdrawn; I need to discuss my feelings out loud) and it was difficult to take a backseat to let him handle in his own way. Does any of this make sense? I dunno; it all felt so unexpected and I felt useless and it all hurt. Things thankfully took a much better turn (thanks to a misdiagnosis) but today things are tentative and not-so-great again. So we just take it all day by day and hope for the best outcome. 

Mila continues to grow like a little weed, and the other day I noticed her legs are getting so long and less chunky! It made me sad, because I love those chunks, but also she’s reaching a fun age of toddlerhood where she begins to understand consequences and she’s so much more alert. We had to put our first family trip to Mystic on hold. I’m hoping we can go away later this summer or early fall when the hordes thin a bit and school picks back up. In the meantime, we find meaning in the big and little moments of our everyday, like trips to the park and visits to the lake and days of sun and nights of ice cream. 

How are you, sweet friends? 

Photo by Danielle Dolson on Unsplash

It’s hard to believe we’re at the end of June and summer is in full swing. Where does the time go?! Also I want to apologize because I feel like I’ve been a no-good-very-bad blogger again. Every time I make a promise to get better at it (reading blogs, keeping up with my blog, sharing life updates) I get sidetracked by life and upset by news and I kind of lose my mojo again. Does this happen to anyone else? Anyway, I do want to celebrate the end of another week (and a good week at that!) so let’s pick up where we left off, shall we? Here’s my happy 🙂 

• New sponsorships for my blog; don’t get discouraged if you haven’t been chosen for anything yet, but pitch! Every brand needs user-generated content and if you can sell yourself, that’s half the battle 🙂 
  
• Booking activities for our upcoming trip to Mystic; so far we have the aquarium which has a neat dinosaur exhibit and I’m looking into a sunset cruise. I’m hoping to find a smaller boat to minimize the people who have to hear a toddler meltdown should it happen lol (kidding. I actually think Mila will love it!)
• Having my friend Heather over to help this week; this morning she texted to see if I wanted coffee, and I can’t say enough good things about having her here during the week to help (also coffee and bagel sticks are a really nice way to start the day!)
• The BBQ fiasco for Father’s Day that ended with my dad getting a nice grill. To make a long story short, my parents were convinced the grill would be too big (it’s not) and they wanted to return it but they won’t and I guess that’s the end of the story lol
• Working Moms. I haven’t watched in a few days, but we’ve made it to the last season. I’m sad! It’s so good though
• Cold Stone Creamery. I don’t need a full container of strawberry ice cream in my life but I also need it in my life
• This photo Heather took of Mila. Look at her little face! 
  
• The cute new bathing suits I found on Prime Day. I very rarely splurge but both suits were under $20 and SO. Adorable. Did you get anything for Prime Day? 

Hello and good morning, my friends <3 Welcome to the weekend. Finally. I dunno about you, but what a long strange week it’s been here. Bryan is back at work, Mila just vomited in her playpen (poor thing. She’s fine now! Maybe too many bouncies), work is insane, and I just want to nap for a very long time uninterrupted. Anyway, let’s dive into this week’s happy list. There are many things! 

• Donuts from a delicious donut shop in Denville; I don’t often treat myself but they were well worth the splurge and added calories
  
• Lunch with my boss. We sat outside and the weather was perfect
• A playdate with my friend and her little one; we had lunch here, went for a walk, and then to the park. It was so good to have our girls play for a bit and get caught up on life with my friend in person
  
• Having my friend Heather stop by twice this week to help; 1)  it’s so nice to connect with her again and 2) she’s like, actually super helpful 🙂 That makes a difference!
• Hearing from a really big potential client; I kind of wrote them off because I hadn’t heard from them but they reached back out and it’s a huge possibility. If you could send positive thinks out into the universe, it would be appreciated 🙂 
• Walks with my mom, Mila, and Milo on sunshine-y days
  

And there’s my happy <3 How about you? Let me know what’s making you smile in the comments and have a great weekend ahead. Are you doing anything for Father’s Day?