WEEKEND WRAP-UP.

Happy Monday, friends!! 

I'm rarely excited to see Monday morning but my schedule felt so out of what last week and this weekend, that I'm happy to be starting fresh and trying to get things back on track.  But it's still going to be another odd week with more doctor's appointments, Valentine's Day, school parties, and 2 girls nights!  So basically...good luck with trying to get back to normal! 😂 #notgonnahappen

My weekend got off to an early start last week which was most definitely not a bad thing.  On Thursday night, Craig and I went to dinner with 2 of our favorite couples, the Ruses and the Richardsons.  We tried out a new restaurant across from our neighborhood called Uncork'd and it was delish!!  We had so much fun and laughed until our cheeks ached.  I'm so bummed we forgot to take a group picture before we left!  We talked about it.  We were going to do it.  And then we didn't.  Sign of a good night, I guess!  Local peeps--be sure to check this place out!  Amazing food, drinks and atmosphere!

While we were there, the waitress asked if we were Bachelor fans and gave us these cards for a viewing party on Monday (tonight!)!  And Bachelor/Bachelorette/Bachelor in Paradise alums Adam and Raven (who fell in love last summer on Bachelor in Paradise) are the special guests!  I posted this pic on IG and my girlfriend, Brittany, texted me as soon as she saw it to see if I was going.  She'd heard about it through another one of her friends too so we decided to make it a fun girls night!  We are constantly texting each other about Bachelor and Real Housewives stuff. She gets me. ;)

Friday morning there was a girls breakfast in downtown Mckinney that I was supposed to go to.  And I really wanted to.  BUT.  It was the coldest morning ALL YEAR (like 24 degrees), I had been out the night before, it was all the way in downtown Mckinney and it was at 8:30am.  And I am no morning person. I think we've established that.  I also had no motivation because Craig was handling the kids that morning which meant I didn't have to be up super early.  Soooo...yeah.  I didn't make it.  Now a girls LUNCH would be awesome.  Or even brunch.  I'm totally there.

So I had a lazy morning, drank my "magic coffee" and when it kicked in, I got super motivated to do a pantry cleanout (thank you, Erika, for the inspiration!).  I did a full pantry makeover a couple of years ago (you can find that HERE) but since then I've added a new roller cart for all the snacks (aka--junk food) and also decided to tackle the under the stairs storage section.  Which was a mess.  I'll share that all in a separate post but here's a little peek.  I still need to add a few labels to some of the bins I repurposed but it just makes me breathe easier knowing it's organized and neat.  Dream pantry it is NOT but it works.

Glass Containers | White Bins | Lazy Susan

Since it was super cold on Friday, I picked the boys up in the carpool line instead of having them walk/ride their bikes home and when we got home, Matthew went straight into the office and curled up in the big leather office chair to finish his latest book.  He's been reading Where the Red Fern Grows over the past couple of weeks but it's actually his second try on this one.  He started it last year but lost interest and I can't say I was upset about it.  That book is SAD!  I know that it's a classic but really...the two beloved dogs both DIE in the end plus a kid falls on his AXE and dies as well.  And yet a "must-read" classic children's book. haha  #gofigure

Anyway, he was coming up on the ending and I had warned him it gets really sad.  I went in to check on him after awhile and asked him if he'd gotten to the upsetting part yet and he said "Well, when a dog is breathing really hard does that mean he's dying?"  He was right at the part when Old Dan dies.  I told him "maybe..." and then he read the next sentence and his eyes got super wide and he said "He just died!".  Ugh.  I told him I'd leave him alone to cry in peace (only half kidding because he most likely did shed some tears).  He ended up finishing the book that afternoon and immediately asked to watch the movie.  I found the 1974 version on Amazon Prime so he settled in with Craig, who had just gotten home from work, to relive it all over again.  #gluttonforpunishment

Saturday morning looked a lot like this.

Still freezing outside and dreary.  Craig took Matthew to batting practice at the batting cages so Mason and I hung out under blankets watching TV for awhile and then broke out a game of Guess Who?.  This is one of their favorite Christmas presents and I love it because there aren't a million pieces to lose or complicated rules.  If you don't have this, you should!  It's a great one to have in your game collection!

Y'all, Mason is my hustler.  This kid loves to make a buck.  He recently finished spending all of his birthday/Christmas money and is not loving being broke.  He doesn't really have set chores and an allowance.  We've tried that before and it just keeps falling apart after a few weeks of good intentions. But both boys are pretty good at doing what needs to be done when asked so...eh.  Maybe we'll get something more official done now that he's starting to really understand it though.

Anyway.   Mason looked at the pile of dishes in the sink that I was about to tackle and said "Mom, I'll do the dishes if you pay me."  Sigh.  This kid.  BUT, I hate loading and unloading the dishwasher and it is an everyday (sometimes twice a day) task.  And kids have to learn how to do this at some point, right?!  I probably should have done this a long time ago but some things I just prefer to do myself.  Until now.  I'm ready!

So I told him I'd teach him how to do it and pay him $3.  I also told him this $3 was a one time deal because it's always the hardest the first time.  After that, it will get easier and quicker so the pay won't be quite as much.  

He gladly accepted my offer and got to work.  I talked him through unloading it and showed him where to put some of the stuff he wasn't sure about.  But we all know loading is the hard part and everyone has a different system.  I had to rearrange a few things for him when he was done but he did a pretty good job!  He was happy to get his 3 bucks tucked into his wallet and I was happy I didn't have to do the dishes.  And that he couldn't use the "I don't know how" excuse in the future.  ;)

And speaking of hustling...  Craig and I were in the kitchen talking when he got home from work one night last week and Mason came in and slipped one of Craig's old football cards and a Sharpie in front of him to sign.  Craig signed it and then asked who it was for this time.  Apparently, Mason's friend asked for one of Craig's football cards because he didn't believe Mason when he said his dad used to play in the NFL.  So Mason brought him one.  And then everyone wanted one.  Haha.  I think he's given out 7 signed cards now.  

But after Craig signed it, Mason said something like "Everyone wants one!  They said they'd pay me for them!".  He was all excited about this new money-making venture!  Turns out, he thought he was going to start selling them for $5 per signed card! 

#ohemgee  #nosir

We very quickly told him absolutely not but that we did appreciate his hustle.  ;)  #entrepreneurinthemaking

But back to Saturday.  Craig had to catch a flight to L.A. that afternoon for his first Elite 11 camp of the season, so the boys and I made popcorn and watched a movie that night.  They decided on Dolphin Kick which was new On Demand and it was cute.  Not great acting and definitely a "B" movie but it was a good choice.  It'll probably show up on Netflix at some point.  It also made me crave a trip to the Bahamas.

Sunday morning, I woke up early to get ready for church and my back was killing me again.  I usually have one really good day--the day after I go to the chiropractor.  I went on Friday so I knew my good day would be Saturday.  But Sunday morning, it was all super stiff and achy again so I stood under the hot water for awhile getting it to loosen up and did my stretches.  And then just the thought of having to dry my hair, put on makeup, find something to wear and wrangle the boys into their clothes (and probably iron shirts)...it was just too much.  I gave up.

My back always loosens up as the day goes on so if they had night church I'd be all over it.  But first thing in the morning, coupled with the cold and drizzle plus Craig not being there to help out...it whooped me. #sigh

So instead, I spent all morning with a heating pad and posted some fun deals to my Facebook Group and then we had to get moving for a birthday party at 3.  I was feeling so much better at this point, thankfully...BUT...it was the absolute LAST THING I wanted to do.  Unfortunately, it was all the boys could talk about and I couldn't exactly break their hearts by saying "But mom really wants to just sit here today and do nothing!".  So I sucked it up, slapped a smile on my face and we went.

 

Since it was 20 minutes away and the party was only 2 hours, it didn't really make sense to just drop off and come back either.  Did I mention it was at a trampoline park??  Kids LOVE these places and I totally get it.  I would have loved it as a kid too.  But now all I see is a cesspool of flu and strep germs, all I hear is shrieking and loud music and all I smell are stinky feet!  hahaha  I love a trampoline park about as much as I love an arcade. 😉 But I'll do anything for my kids so there I sat for 2 hours.  Just look at those smiles.

Totally worth it. 💙💙