I'm Baaaaack!

It's been a minute!

This two-kids-thing has really done me in ;). Anyone who knows my kids can tell you I have hiiiigh energy children! Literally there is no pause button. From the (super early) minute they wake up to the minute they go down they are GO GO GO. 

We are in this new phase I never thought I'd be in, where we never leave the house before noon because it's too hard to get all three of us fed and dressed and loaded up by then. Where we basically stay home minus the occasional preschool pickup or (dreaded) grocery store run. Where I turn my back for two seconds and kids are climbing on the counter eating the hidden cookies and pulling out knives. Where I haven't exercised consistently in weeks. Where the McDonald's drive thru girl knows I want one soda for now and one without ice for later ;). 

Honestly it's been good for me. My old days chock-full of museums and errands and home-cooked meals are currently replaced with setting up train tracks with Cannon, wiping up the sticky fingerprints everywhere, rolling play dough pancakes with Lydia, throwing in a load of laundry, and microwaving frozen lasagna for dinners. And that's okay! These kids are stretching me every second and I can only run so fast. I've had to learn to say no, which us people-pleasers really suck at! And I've had to learn to shift my expectations for myself. Having a clean house and clean hair simultaneously is too much for me right now, but I CAN sit and read books with the kids for 20 minutes. I'm teaching myself to not feel guilty that I should be doing more. And I remind myself daily that this is a season. And as insane as some days are, I know it will fly.

So here's a massive photo dump and quick update from the last few months!

HIGHLIGHTS: 

- Michael is done with the 4 months of away rotations!! PRAISE BE. So now he's traveling 3-4 days a week for interviews, ha. But this is so much better than just straight up gone! March 15th is the magical Match Day when we find out where we'll live for the next 5 years for residency, and then May 17th is graduation - Michael will officially be a doctor! I am so proud of him. I have no idea how he does it all and does it all so well. We love you boo!

- Disneyland! Lots of Disney. (Think I've finally converted my parents and sisters - YAY.)

- Trick or Treating was one of the best nights of the entire year. Lydia was old enough to run up all on her own and Cannon was brave enough to follow her! Super fun watching them ask for candy haha.

- This newly budding cake hobby! Ever since my terrible attempt at Cannon's 1-year-old smash cake in March, I was determined to get good at cakes! It's been such a fun new skill to learn, especially with Michael being gone so much. Cakes take a TON of time (and freezer space), but I've really enjoyed feeling crafty. A few favorites have been a banana nutella smores cake, a spice cake with gingersnap and candied pecan crumbles, and a German chocolate fudge cake!

- Disney on Ice date with Lydia :).

- Big instagram sale! I was lucky enough to sell a ton of stuff which always feels so refreshing! Love a good closet clean out.

- Awesome Thanksgiving break in AZ with both families.

- Turkey Trot featuring the Huish gang and my really exciting spray tan! Hahah. I was actually pretty stoked because I finished 7th for my age group?! Okay I KNOW THAT'S NOT BRAG WORTHY but I was happy when I saw it online! 

- Followed by a not-so-awesome 12 hour road trip home to Utah, just me and the two kids. HA. Lydia was an angel, Cannon was a pterodactyl. 

- We've reached minivan status!! Sort of. My mom is lending us hers for a while since she is almost an empty nester and really should not be driving a minivan anymore ;). HeLLOO sliding doors.

- Temple lights with med school friends!

- S N O W (a highlight and a lowlight let's be honest).

- And now I'm finalizing Christmas shopping and looking forward to helping in Lydia's preschool Christmas party next week! 

(photo by Lydia :) )

I'm not addicted I'm committed. 

My 10 Go-To Shoes for Fall/Winter

I'm excited to share over the next few weeks my go-to favorites in all different categories - tops, jeans, jackets, makeup, dresses, snacks, accessories, etc. I think it's so fun to see what people use on a daily basis so I thought I'd let you in on mine!

Today I'm starting with my fall and winter shoes. 

For as much as I love shoes, I really only gravitate toward my same few pairs day after day. My main qualification for shoes is being able to instantly drop everything and sprint down at least three Costco aisles in said shoes ;). (Thank you Cannon for keeping my interval training going strong amidst my gym hiatus!)

1. Killer black leather booties

I really researched hard for these bad boys last Christmas. I wanted the perfect mix of timeless style and wearability and these hit the jackpot! The pointed toe makes your legs look a mile long (especially with black skinnies) and the super low heel keeps these easy to run around in. Definitely a favorite of mine!

Mine  HERE, similar  HERE,  HERE or  HERE

2. Neutral tennies

Epitome of millennial mom shoes. Cute tennis shoes can really go with anything! In Utah I've been wearing these with jeans and a leather jacket, but in AZ last week I wore them just as easily with a fitted striped dress! I searched forever for a financially realistic version of THESE shoes, ha. (Like really who is buying these things??) And I was so shockingly surprised when I got these in the mail and LOVED them! I wore them all day at Disneyland without even remembering I had on shoes. Sizing tip - I'm usually an 8.5 (39 or 40) and had to go all the way up to a 41 in these!

Mine HERE

3. Cognac mules (or loafers!)

I clumped these two together due to similarity, but I love them both! Brown mules literally go with anything - skinny jeans and sweaters, jumpsuits, mom jeans and tees, dresses - you name it. Such a versatile staple. I wear the backless in fall and the loafers with socks in the winter.

Mine HERE and HERE, similar HERE, HERE and HERE

4. Fun rain boots

Without fail every time I wear these I get stopped! The color brightens up gray days and the lower cut makes them much easier to wear than the knee-high version. I've worn these to church, concerts, the zoo, errands, seriously everywhere. 

Similar HERE, HERE AND HERE (loooove these!!)

5. Flat booties

Are you even a Utah mom if you don't own a pair of cut-out booties? ;) These have made their way across the web for years for good reason - they elevate any outfit while elongating your leg! Again, versatile and comfortable. I'm predictable, ha!

Mine were a knock off - similar HERE or HERE, real version HERE

6. Black loafers

Similar to the cognac flats above, these make any outfit seem instantly put together. I've worn these with leggings and a jean jacket just as easily as dress pants and a sweater. Probably one of my top three most loved shoes of all time!

Mine are old from Target, similar HERE, real version HERE 

7. Leopard mules

Can you tell I have a thing for flats... haha. The pointed toe is so feminine and I totally deem leopard as a neutral. Fun fact: I wore these with a cream jumpsuit and wide-brim hat to Jolley's way back in June when I pitched my energy balls! ;) 

Mine HERE, similar HERE and HERE

8. Slip-on tennies

Such an easy shoe - literally! Just slip on and go. Perfect for busy moms or students. I wear these all the time with black leggings or skinny jeans. 

Mine were Target but they're out of stock! Similar HERE, also love THESE

9. Neutral weather boots

Although these are labeled as a rain boot, in a snow storm I actually prefer these to my actually snow boots! With a chunky sock they're totally warm enough and with all the rubber I'm not worried about ruining them. 

Also out of stock from Target, but great price point HERE and HERE for the real deal!

(Also really wanting THESE :) )

10. Guilty pleasure fur slides

Okay it's a little embarrassing how much I love these shoes. Best $10 I've spent! My little sister had these on and I fell in love and bought them the next day. These were fantastic in the fall when I wanted to add a little something special to an otherwise casual outfit. I wore these with jeans and sweaters or tees, lounge clothes, even a denim skirt! Rock on, faux fur.

Mine HERE

Honorable mention: Snow boots

A shoe that probably should be getting a lot more playing time but isn't. In theory these are the perfect Utah winter boots! But I feel like the huge ankle opening makes my legs look really short? So I end up putting them on weekly and then taking them off and grabbing rain boots instead. But if you're interested in these cuties try them on in store first - they look really good on a lot of people!

Mine HERE, updated version HERE

Acai Bowls Recipe

I've been sitting at my laptop for ten minutes trying to type something that adequately articulates my family's obsession with açaí bowls. And more specifically, açaí bowls from the tiny California chain Banzai Bowls. They are PHENOMENAL. Ohhhh the things my sisters and I have done for these açaí bowls. When we're at my parent's house in Laguna, we visit Banzai Bowls at least daily. Sometimes twice. In high school and college when we road tripped over monthly from AZ it was literally the first place we stopped. Every time. No point in getting to the house when we could be eating Banzai first? We researched their ingredients and drove to multiple grocery stores to find the exact açaí packets and granola they use. And just this last summer my younger sister even worked there! So this long explanation is to show that we know a good açaí bowl when we see one, and today I'm sharing our copy cat recipe! 

A few things: 

You really need to use a good blender in order to get the right consistency. The key is minimal liquid, which heavy duty Vitamixes and Blendtecs can handle.

On a similar note, you do have to blend these just one at a time or else your blender will be too full and not work great. So these are individually made with love!

Also if we had to guess *wink wink* we'd say that Banzai uses THESE Sambazon açaí packets from Sprouts or other specialty food stores. But I always use Trader Joe's açaí packets because they're cheap and similar!

Classic Açaí Bowl

(Makes one large bowl)

Ingredients:

- 1 packet açaí (Trader Joe's or other)

- 1/2 cup frozen strawberries 

- 1/2 cup frozen mango or pineapple 

- 2/3 frozen banana

- 4 oz apple juice (or hemp milk for less sweetness)

BLEND!!

Pour into a large bowl (or large empty yogurt container) and add toppings.

Toppings:

- hemp granola (HERE, found at Walmart)

- shredded sweetened coconut

- banana slices 

- strawberry slices 

- blueberries 

- kiwi slices 

- honey 

Enjoy!

That Time I Wanted to Punch All the Moms at the Zoo

Last week we were having one of those days, you know the type. Kids seemed instantly tired from the second they woke up, I made four different breakfasts for Lydia, I was pulled out of my gym class because Cannon wouldn't stop crying at daycare - just one of those. So we met up with friends at the zoo thinking the kids could burn off some steam. OUR BAD. They were terrible. Cannon screamed unless he was eating and Lydia sprinted away from us any chance she got. At the zoo's park Lydia kicked and yelled and refused to keep her shoes on, and suddenly I realized we'd created a nice little audience! No less than ten moms and dads were sitting silently on the benches staring at our circus. So the kids decided to carpe the freakin diem and put on a whole fancy show. YAY! Cannon was screeching and twisting and resisting anything I gave him. Lydia was shouting, "NOOO! NOOO MOM!!" and throwing in more of those lovely kicks as I tried to reason with her. All ten super parents were amused and beaming that it wasn't their kids. So then I felt silently pressured into following through with my stern time out threats and now they got an even better show as I tried to force Lydia to sit in a corner. At the zoo. HAHAHA. Meanwhile all twenty eyes saw Cannon pour the entire ziplock of goldfish onto the ground and then all twenty eyes immediately darted to me to see if I was going to pick them up. (I did not. Oops.) I was so bugged by everyone just watching smugly, I was this close to saying, "It will be yours tomorrow so stop staring!" Buuuuut instead we just hightailed it out of there as fast as possible, screaming kids flailing in the stroller and goldfish crumbs flying behind us. HA. Oh guys, we are one HECK of a class act these days ;).

TOP (similar) //  JACKET (similar) //  DENIM // Shoes  HERE or  HERE

10-ish Graphic Tees I'm Loving

I can't resist a good graphic tee. I love the versatility and effortless vibe (since I typically err on the side of trying way too hard, ha). But it's surprisingly hard to find ones that A) don't say something embarrassing and B) aren't completely sheer. I've rounded up a few of my current faves that work for moms and kids alike! (My fashionista college sis approved of all these. ;) )

1. The PLAYFUL RAINBOW TEE I'm wearing here is currently less than $5! Run!

2. Always a fan of foreign phrases like SALUT because I don't have to worry about their meaning, ha.

3. I'd take this casual cotton NEWPORT TEE or the THERMAL version.

4. My mom and I used to blast '8 Days a Week' while driving her old convertible, this BAND TEE brings back all the memories.

5. It doesn't get more ICONIC than Levi's, also in REPEAT style.

6. I have this FRENCH SLOGAN tee and wear it weekly.

7. Also a fan of THIS and THIS for some French (I'm pretty sure?).

8. Can't tell if this BRIGHT SIDE tee is depressing or inspiring but I like it.

9. Really loving this sweet and simple HONEY tee.

10. And finally, FRIDAY can never come soon enough. (Just kidding it's all the same in medical school. ;) )

TEE // PANTS // BASEBALL HAT (similar) // VANS // BAG

Spring Stripes & Summer Schedules

This week was chock-full of one of my favorite activities - scheduling! I love anything involving intense planning (events, traveling, etc) and always joke to Michael that I would make a KILLER personal assistant. Few things in life bring me as much joy as writing on our giant wall calendar. Even scheduling out my gym classes for the week makes me SO HAPPY! Haha. I think I like the possibilities. I could do Monday body pump and Tuesday spin? Ooh or I could do Wednesday spin and Tuesday barre? It's about as mathematical as I get these days, trying to plug in everything ;).

So we're heading into Michael's final year of medical school (already?! finally?! mixed feelings here...) and we've been spending lots of super romantic late nights standing around the wall calendar, trying to coordinate board exams, family trips, multiple away rotations, babysitters, birthdays, preschool breaks and so on. And GUESS WHAT I LOVE IT. Give me alllllll the blue pens and let's make some plans baby! (Not to be confused with baby plans. None of those quite yet.)

And as you can tell by my white legs we are DESPERATELY ready for dress weather!! Bring it on, Spring!

DRESS // SHOES

Where I Shop for Kids Clothes

Pretty sure it's science that anything shrunken down is 10x cuter. Baby leg rolls? ADORABLE. Mine? Questionable. Same goes for skinny jeans, tiny pretend Birkenstocks and miniature puffer jackets. I love dressing toddlers! Today I'm sharing exactly where I buy Lydia and Cannon's clothes, when I buy them, how the sizing differs for each brand, etc.

Also I'm trying to be better at kid capsule wardrobes! So now I only buy them each 6-8 outfits that I LOVE and they just repeat them every single week instead of having drawers stuffed with clothes.

Here's the breakdown:

TODDLER GIRLS

Tops - Zara for tees/blouses/sweatshirts. I always buy Zara during end-of-season sales and stock up for the next year! You have to guess a bit on sizing but it saves a TON of money. Generally I've found Zara girl TOPS run shorter so size up.

Leggings - Cat & Jack LEGGINGS from Target. So many colors, cheap, durable. True to size.

Jeans - The only DENIM I've found that fits Lydia's thin legs are H&M. Makes sense since their women's clothes are sized for barbies.

Dresses/Rompers - For church dresses Target and then once a year I splurge on a fancy ($20-30) dress from Zara. PLAY DRESSES are really cheap at H&M or Old Navy. At Old Navy always buy up a size (or two!).

Jackets - H&M and Old Navy for PARKAS, Gap or Zara for warm puffer jackets.

Shoes - Old Navy! Cutest STYLES at the best prices. And if they get hammered at the park I won't cry.

Underwear - If you need tiny sizes, H&M panties start at 1.5-years-old. Old Navy's are the thickest, Carter's UNDIES are the all around best quality. Target undies don't start till size 4. (Can you tell we've had way too many poop accidents.)

Pajamas - Walmart for $4! Because who cares what they sleep in and I actually think some of their sets are pretty cute?! And BONUS Cannon fits in a 2T and Lydia's in 4T so I make them match. :)

TODDLER BOYS

Tops - Zara's boy tees are DARLING. Buy during sales. These run more true to size than the girls but when in doubt buy up. Target for BASICS.

Leggings/Shorts - Old Navy! Cheap and BASIC.

Jeans - The only JEANS that are truly skinny on Cannon are from Zara (where else, haha). BEWARE their sizing is way off. Cannon is 13 months, average sized and currently wearing both their 6-9 month and 9-12 month jeans. Weird.

Church Clothes - Pants from H&M, DRESS SHIRTS from Gap or H&M.

Jackets - I got Cannon his bright yellow amazing PUFFER jacket on sale from Zara for $17 with free shipping! Literally he wore it every. single. day. this entire winter. Best purchase ever. True to size.

Shoes - Again, Old Navy is the BEST.

Underwear - HA just kidding we're not potty training him till he's 12.

Basically this whole post was an ode to Zara and Old Navy but for me it's helpful to break it down by item! Kids clothes add up FAST since they outgrow them every 6 months but I try and stick to a few quality pieces that I won't get sick of, only buy on sale, and then wear the heck out of them!

Lydia's Outfit - TOP (similar) // LEGGINGS // SHOES

Cannon's Outfit - TOP // PANTS // SHOES

My Current Favorite Accessory

What do I do if I need to look magically look pulled together in thirty seconds? BANDANAS friends. Instant outfit upgraders. Bulky scarves always feel too complicated for me. Do I loop it? Twist it? Wear it open? But simple kerchiefs are sly and mighty! A basic tee and jeans suddenly becomes pinterest-worthy, and my mom adds kerchiefs to polish off her sweater/chinos/ballet flats combo and always looks very Audrey. See how versatile? I'm obsessed. 

A few of my favorites: 

1. I'm a sucker for anything in this  COLOR. 

2. How sweet is this  EYELET for spring?

3. I may have to get this darling  BEE print for my mom for mother's day!

4. Love the larger size of this  FLORAL one.

5. I have this in  RED, the  BLACK is cute too. 

Dress similar  HERE,  HERE, OR  HERE //  BANDANA //  HAT //  JACKET //  SHOES

(Everything I'm wearing is thrifted or sold out so here are similar options!)

WE'VE ARRIVED.

You guys - IT'S HERE.

The day I never thought I'd ever see.

We finally have a handle on two! TWO KIDS. And we're all a l i v e .

It's literally taken me 11 months and 18 days to reach this point of peace but who's counting?

HA. Two kids 19 months apart was a TRIP. Anyone who says otherwise either has a ton of family support or is lying. (Or has angel children I guess.) My two, as much as my whole heart loves them, are not exactly cherubic. They are darling and hilarious and creative, but they're also destructive and hangry (always?) and crazy. Literally as I'm typing this my two-year-old is throwing an entire box of crayons on the ground as I nag her to stop. But my level of caring is like a 2.4 and I'd rather type than fight so the crayons keep coming. Also Cannon just started crying because the crayon bombs woke him up an hour early. Lovely.

But this is actually an enormous improvement! ;) Haha. For a few months there I told everyone we were done having kids. I was losing my mind as well as all memories of cleanliness and I was just done. But fast forward a year and we've hit some sort of happy spot and it's actually - dare I say - fun! The huge bonus of having a one-year-old and a two-year-old simultaneously is the friendship. They truly are best buddies. Lydia wakes up in the morning immediately asking if she can run into Cannon's room yet. (Since she is finally allowed out of her room at a whopping 6:00am this is always a "no", ha.) And when Lydia is at Joy School, Cannon just walks around the house looking for her. He breaks into a huge toothy smile every time he sees her. They really do love each other and watching that develop has been my most favorite thing ever. That and Trader Joe's dark chocolate peanut butter cups. They scurry downstairs to the basement and play kitchen together. I'll spy on them jumping on the bed together, laughing their hearts out. Literally my little monkeys. They chase each other through our hideous IKEA tunnels for like thirty minutes straight on the daily (BEST PURCHASE TO DATE). I never want to forget their little messy faces at lunch playing peekaboo with each other, or the other day when I walked in on Lydia quizzing Cannon on his animal noises and correcting him when he wanted everything to be an elephant.

So for as many times as my mental vocabulary has been quite colorful (kidding Mom!), or as many times as I've shouted, "JUST EVERYONE STOP CRYING!" as I cry, or as many times as I've pinky promised Michael to never have two kids this close again - I am finally at the point where I not only appreciate their closeness, but I love it. So even though there is most definitely going to be a massive break in kids for now, I wouldn't be surprised if I have a stroke of amnesia in four years and want another set of close little best friends :).

(Also I think this photo alone qualifies me for every free eyebrow microblading and lash extension giveaway ever don't you think?) 

Team Alfalfa.

So in love with these people.