May: Things I Am Loving

May: Things I Am Loving

1.) The Pop Cast Podcast with Knox and Jamie

This podcast got me through May and Farm Chicks prep. It is hilarious!! It's about all things pop culture. The Mother's Day episode is awesome. Tyler was home from work sick for three days this month and he ended up listening to several episodes while I was working around the house and he found it hilarious too.

2.) Brunch

You are either a bruncher or you are not. I am definitely a bruncher. It's my favorite meal to eat out. I am not a morning person and I never feel hungry until about 11 am. So while I enjoy going out for breakfast I never feel that I get my money's worth because I am never hungry. Brunch, on the other hand, is all the breakfast foods that I enjoy + lunch foods that I enjoy + dessert. Money well spent! Because there is nothing I love more than eating delicious creme brulee french toast, a couple of crab legs, some shrimp, a small slice of prime rib with horseradish sauce, with a slice of coconut cake on the side. Brunch...it's the best.

3.) Conference calls with my siblings

Or as we call it in my family: Calling 3-way and 4-way because we are children of the 80s. I remember the joy that I felt in the 80s when I figured out how to call 3-way and have simultaneous conversations with two of my friends!! It was nirvana!! I am even more delighted now as an adult and have the capability of actually calling up to 5-way, which is perfect, because there are five of us McClellan siblings and we often have things to discuss. You know what I mean? :) Sometimes there are conversations that are too long for texting threads. My mom gets annoyed because she is positive that the 5 of us have our own texting thread that doesn't include her...correct. She is also positive that we talk about her on it... also correct. (I am SURE that three of my kids already have a texting thread wherein they talk about me..so all is fair.) This came in VERY handy this month!! Because sometimes you have to talk about your mother...or your brother...or whoever. ;)

4.) Staycations

5.) Lily of the Valley and Homemade "Perfume"

This year I had a great crop of lily of the valley in my garden. One day to keep Ailey, Bryn, and Elle busy after school; I taught them the joys of making homemade "perfume." This was one of me, Stacey, and Kelley's favorite things to do as kids. We would pluck the petals off of all kinds of fragrant flowers...roses usually...but with the girls we used lily of the valley and violets that were growing in our yard. Growing up Stacey, Kelley, and I each had a vast perfume bottle collection. Our mother and our Grandma McKinnon were our chief suppliers. Oh the joy when they handed you a bottle that still had a few squirts of perfume left in it!! Our next door neighbor, Mrs. Cragun, taught us how to make the "perfume". Fill an empty perfume bottle with petals, add water, let it steep for two weeks, add a drop off food coloring. Boom. Perfume. Not really...but kind of. We loved making "potions" and "perfume" when we were kids and Ailey, Bryn, and Elle are no different.

May

May

So much of May has been spent in an absolute frenzy preparing for this show. Farm Chicks is one of the biggest vintage shows in the nation and luckily it is held in my town so I don't have to travel to participate in it. It is an absolutely amazing show. Dreamy, in fact. I love being a vendor. But months and months of work are required to prepare for it and May is the final crunch time. It's chaos here.

In other exciting news...

The first grade had their big spring concert and it was western themed. Yehaw!! It was so cute!! Brynnie was just singing her little heart out and dancing around. Darling.

Track has also taken over our lives for the past two months:

Kameron is always so happy that I am taking his picture! :)

Great little cheerleaders!! Bryn really took an interest in all the events this year and talked to me several times about what events she wants to do when she is old enough. I love it!!

Yes, I know his shirt says cross-country but we were at a track meet. Kameron runs distance so his event is the 1600.

Kam ended his season on high note...a PR. He had a couple of those this season. He enjoyed it and has improved so much. It was fun to watch!

Ailey has been baking up a storm. Cookies, cupcakes and muffins. It has been GREAT!!

Kameron has also been very busy with marching band. His school marched in the Lilac Parade which is the big parade that we have here. They did a fantastic job! Kam was NOT A FAN of their marching band outfits and I am not allowed to post a picture BUT I can add some video.

Bryn and Ailey waiting for the parade to begin.

From another location and angle:



In other news...Bryn FINALLY lost her her other front tooth that made her look like Nanny McPhee:

Her front tooth flat out refused to fall out. Before she lost her other front tooth she slipped on the floor in the kitchen where she had been running around in socks and smacked her mouth. It jammed one of her front teeth at a weird angle. The dentist checked it out and said that since her other front tooth was loose to just let them both fall out on their own. Well it never happened. It got loose but it was jammed in there at such an angle that it wouldn't fall out. Then it started turning grey and then the permanent tooth started coming in over the top of it and she had a crazy double front tooth. It was time. I tried pulling it. Then I tried using tweezers...anything to get that darn tooth out. No go. Finally Tyler grabbed some little pliers and out it came. We were all thrilled!!

This past month two houses on our street burned about two weeks apart. The first house started on fire early on a Saturday morning. It was across the street from us and over three houses to the right. It started in their garage. Then at about 11 pm the Sunday night over Memorial Day weekend another house burst into flames. This time it was also across the street but three houses the other way to the left. Tyler and I had gone walking at the park late that night when we heard a lot of sirens. Then Kameron called us to say that the house across the street was burning and that you could see flames shooting out of the roof. It ended up being a full response. There were 5 fire trucks, an ambulance, police cars, and even the TV news were all there. The whole back side of the house burned. The firemen were up on the roof using a chainsaw to cut holes in the roof. It was crazy to watch. Luckily everyone got out okay. When Tyler and I left that night to go walking there were a ton of cars over there and some kind of party going on. When we returned the whole back of the house was on fire. They think that the fire started on the deck and moved to the house.

So sad. The house looks okay from the front but it is inhabitable. The people who lived there were renters and we really didn't know them. It was horrible to watch and the clean up is still going on. This brought back memories for Tyler. The house that he, his mom, and brother were living in after he got home from his mission burned down and with it most of the memorabilia from his childhood and mission. :(

On a happier note...Friday was the last day of early morning seminary for the year. Woohoo! An event celebrated by Tyler, Kameron, and myself. Tyler takes Kameron to seminary on his way to work and then I pick him up and drop him off at school. 5 years down and 11 more to go. All in a row. Kameron had a great seminary year. He loved his teacher and even though Kameron is NOT a morning person, he got up early every day without complaint and was on time. This is the complete opposite of the previous 4 years with his sister. It was appreciated.

Kameron auditioned for Jazz Orchestra which is the top Jazz band at his high school and made it. He was super excited. He is killing it as a freshman in the music department.

Kameron has had multiple band and jazz band concerts and performances this month. It's been fun to see how far the kids have come over the course of the year and how fantastic they sound.

Our Memorial Day weekend was spent loading the trailer, designing my part of the Farm Chicks booth with 3D imaging, tagging, and packing about a million items. This is one small corner of my house and trust me...no room or flat surface was spared...including deck, basement, garage, and storage unit. It was crazy.

Just like the entire month has been!!

Onto June...

Mother's Day 2016

Mother's Day 2016

I love that paper plate Reilly!! Drawn by her father. Ha ha!!

I had a wonderful Mother's Day especially coming off of a wonderful weekend of relaxation. I am truly blessed with an amazing family. I have the best kids and husband and count my blessings every single day. They did a fantastic job of making me feel special and loved.

After Tyler and I left our hotel we met up with my extended family and we all took our mother to brunch. Our mom loves brunch; as do we. This year she actually let us celebrate her...sometimes she requests to spend Mother's Day alone and requests that we don't do anything. Hmm...what does that say? How are we related? Anyway we lured her out with promises of brunch this year and she willingly obliged. :)

It was also fun to celebrate with Stacey and Kelley too. They are great moms and deserve recognition. I guess I didn't get the memo on the chunky necklace. Ha ha!!

Stacey and John with their kids. I didn't get a picture of Kelley and Elle. :(

After that we went to our favorite greenhouse/nursery and got hanging baskets and flowers. We all went over to Kelley's house briefly and then we went back to our house to do our own celebrating. It was a great day!! The kids had decorated the house so darling and had a special dinner planned for me. Ailey and Bryn don't love that my favorite colors are white, black and gray...but they went with it anyway. :)

They made a cute banner and thoughtfully attached it with painters tape. They definitely are future Sisters Creed employees.

I had sweet messages on the chalkboard, Instagram, and Facebook. A lovely card and phone call from Reilly. Loving (and funny) cards from the kids and Tyler along with lilac bushes to plant in our yard and my favorite perfume. Bryn made me a cute ceramic owl and Ailey wrote me a book of poetry that I adore. Kameron bought me some of my favorite snacks with his hard earned lawn mowing money. Such sweet kids.

Kameron gave me yet another Mother's Day gift that day:

He had Tyler give him his first driving lesson. Hallelujah!! Oh the joy of three drivers in the house. It truly is a gift. It is so funny how much I've changed since Reilly started driving. I absolutely DREADED her being behind the wheel. My friends with older kids would ask me with a gleam in their eyes if I was excited for Reilly to start driving. Uh-No. I thought they were insane. But then she got her license and the light dawned. Now I am the one with a gleam in my eyes. Get practicing boy!!

Tyler grilled us a delicious dinner and we capped off the night watching the Mother's Day episode of my favorite show... The Goldbergs. I was crying with laughter. It's hard to say which episode is my favorite but that Mother's Day one is right up there. I, too, have a drawer of coupons from the kids and I am cashing them all in!!

For dessert we enjoyed these delicious cupcakes baked by Ailey. It is my grandma's hot milk cake recipe (my favorite white cake recipe) with homemade vanilla buttercream frosting. That girl is pure gold!! Actually they all are!!

I hope that you all had a wonderful Mother's Day!!

Our 21st Anniversary!!

Our 21st Anniversary!!

During the first week in May we celebrated our 21st anniversary!! That is exciting stuff. Married for 21 years and together as a couple for 23 years. I still love him, like him, and am not bored. Sweet!! Hopefully he feels the same. ;)

Our anniversary fell during the week. Since it is May, everything is extra crazy right now...music programs, track meets, all kinds of things going on at the schools ...as the year winds down. Regardless we managed to sneak away for dinner. A delicious sushi dinner that is! Yep, our anniversary started me on my sushi streak. I was also treated to gorgeous flowers and a pedicure. It was wonderful!!

Once the weekend arrived our celebration really began and it was fantastic!! Because we have so much going on we really couldn't head out of town somewhere. So we decided to book a room at a fun hotel downtown and spend the weekend there. It was a blast!! We had the best time and it was nice knowing that we were only 10 minutes from home. I highly recommend a staycation once in awhile or as Tyler called it our "sexcation". ;) Ha ha!!

Just as excited as if we were headed out of town!

Our room was awesome!! We had a balcony and a gorgeous view of the Spokane River. We were also right next to Riverfront Park which was fun. The walking trail for the park was right outside of our hotel.

 That night we cut through the park and headed to Nudo one of our favorite restaurants for dinner.

We walked all over downtown. We shopped and bummed around. It was prom for some the high schools in our town so it was fun to see all the kids dressed up. We hung out at the park and enjoyed the view. The weather was absolute perfection!!

The next morning we slept in and had a lazy morning. So needed!! Then we got ready and headed out once again. The weather was sunny and hot. It was in the 80s. Pretty unusual for this time of year.

Here we are out on our balcony. It was so nice with chairs and beautiful view. We watched all the Trump supporters lining up across the river. He was in town for a rally. Interesting people watching for sure!!

Tyler and I went to lunch at the Davenport Tower. It was also the Kentucky Derby that weekend and we were in the mood for a Kentucky Hot Brown Sandwich. Have you ever had one of those? If not, find one and eat it immediately. You're welcome. They are decedent and divine!! The Safari Room makes an excellent one. It made us feel like we were in the South again. Kentucky Hot Browns are also super rich. Tyler got one and I got one of my all time favorite salads. It was such a great meal and such a fun lunch date!!

So delicious!!

Then since it was so hot and sunny all I wanted to do was go back to our hotel and lounge by the pool. First pool lounging of the year. Our hotel had a great pool and it was sheer bliss.

People, I cannot tell you how relaxing it is to lay poolside and not have to make sure four children don't drown. I don't know the last time this has happened. Probably not in 19 years. Even though our kids are older and three out of the four are excellent swimmers there never is full relaxation. Ever.

I had this book to read (Loved it!!) and a cold beverage to drink, in between dips in the pool with Tyler to cool off. Sheer heaven. Happy Mother's Day to me!! (Mother's Day was the next day...Perfect timing.) I enjoyed every moment!!

That night we headed back downtown for fabulous dinner. We walked all over this weekend. I was killing it in my FitBit challenges. Miles and miles and miles. I feel that we definitely worked off all the food that we ate. It was an absolutely lovely weekend all around. The kids were great and heeded Tyler's threats of not calling us unless it was an emergency or he would facetime them in a way that would haunt them for life. Ha ha!! The kids did fantastic, we felt relaxed, and it was like we had a mini-vacation and yet we didn't even leave our town. It was a great 21st Anniversary!!

The next morning was Mother's Day and we were meeting my family for brunch at noon so I didn't want room service. Tyler took care of business anyway. The kids were happy that I did get breakfast in bed. :)

The man gets me!! A Redbull Italian soda from the barista at our hotel and a cherry pop tart. Happiness!!

Here's to many more!!

April: Things I am Loving

April: Things I am Loving

1.) Sushi

Let's just put a hundred exclamation points after that. I cannot get enough. This meal in particular. It is me and Tyler's go-to order these days.  I don't know if it is the warmer weather or what but it could be my meal of choice every single day. I have had this exact sushi at least once a week all through April (and it is still going strong in May.) I always want the exact same order. I rarely deviate. So good!!

2.) Rain Jackets

This is perplexing. I have lived in the PNW for almost 15 years and have never felt compelled to purchase one. What have I been thinking? It is an absolute necessity. I chalk it up to the mystifying hood aversion I never really knew I had and yet did. I haven't had a coat with a hood since circa 1979. It must have started with my 80s bangs and not wanting to deflate my 'do. This year, however, in the midst of a blizzard right before Christmas I broke down and bought a long coat WITH a hood just so I didn't always have snow down my back. I put that coat on and it was like nirvana. What have I been thinking all these years... hoods = amazing. So back to the rain jacket. Reilly has a wardrobe full of them...North Face...many colors. I always thought they were a stupid waste of money. Why would anyone want to wear a "windbreaker" like my grandma? They aren't warm. I'm not a runner. They don't look comfy. What's the big deal? My last windbreaker was also worn in 1979. But then Tyler and I started spending more time in Portland and everyone was wearing them...with hoods...and they weren't drowned rats like we were. Portlandians were outside enjoying nature in their hooded rain jackets...Unlike me stuck inside and crying with annoyance when my outside plans were thwarted due to rain. Hmmm...interesting. Then Tyler suprisingly requested one for Christmas.  I bought him a nice black North Face. He wears it everywhere. Then the temps started going up and the rain started coming down. It was too hot to wear my coat with the hood to keep out the rain. What's a girl to do? Finally the light dawned...rain jacket with hood also = amazing. I went to buy myself a cute North Face but liked the cut and color of the Columbia one better so went with that. Mine also has a hood that rolls up...and I particularly like the joy of wearing the collar all popped up 80's style...nay... I love it. So I may be late to the party but I am now fully on board.


3.) Chimichurri Sauce

Again, where has this been all my life? This tasty tangy saucy condiment is outstanding. I could eat it on everything and am currently trying to.

4.) Lilacs

This really should be number one. 

5.) The Girls Book Series by Rachel Hollis



This is a book series that I heard about on a podcast (yep, still loving podcasts). The author was being interviewed and I loved her. She was hilarious. Rachel Hollis has a whole lifestyle blog called the Chic Site and a great YouTube channel as well. I didn't think I would like the books but surprisingly I did!! They were a lot of fun (book reviews coming later). They are super quick reads. I think I read the three novels and the novella in a week. They are light-hearted chic lit. Cute, funny, awkward, charming and romantic. Perfect summer or poolside reading. They are delightfully entertaining and the Kindle editions which I read...are super cheap.