The BEST OF Friday Style Link Up

I don't have a BEST OF trend spotlight today, but I do have a few high five "spotlights" from around the web that I enjoyed this week...
The link up is still live and kickin' so join us with your style posts of the week below!

1.  My friend Shellie of Saving With Shellie has rounded up the Black Friday deals that are already out...she makes it so easy, especially singling out the top 5!
2.  I found this article so interesting about the state of 20-30 somethings on their "movement" into adulthood. Also, have you watched the TED talk, "Why 30 is the New 20"?
3.  I'm needing to be talked down from getting a pixie cut again.  Actually, I think I'll devote a whole blog post to reasons for and against this, but this Pinterest Board is rocking my hair world right now!
4.  Coming to a city near you....Pioneer Woman.  Hopefully on her book tour, at least.  I'm dying to get her new holiday cookbook.  I have her other two and use them all the time!
5.  And lastly, a shameless plug for two of my projects I'd love help promoting!  Caring For The Cranes benefit is tomorrow...you can donate here.  Also, I'm finalizing everything for the Austin Moms Blog MNO event and getting really excited!!!!



And now for the link up....Want to Join???  Here are my requests:   

1. Link up ANY and ALL style-related posts....these can be curated fashion posts, outfit posts, etc.

2.  Please be a follower of The Mrs. & The Momma in some way.

3.  Grab a button or link back to my blog somewhere in your post so that your readers get to what you're referring and because it's nice manners.

4.  Link up your post with your blog name, not your post title.

5.  If you'd like to be a host of The BEST OF link up, please email me .

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Hey, Hey, Hey

I know I said this week that I was going to take the opportunity to work on getting out of my writing funk, but I have writers block (go figure) and I really like lists...so.
1.  I am a total goof ball embarrassment of a momma.  Why, you ask?  Because tonight instead of doing the dishes, working on blog stuff, getting school stuff ready for my girls, or anything else productive...I instead made up back to school themed lyrics to Blurred Lines....aaaaaaand downloaded the instrumental version to boot.  I have a firm commitment from my husband to do the "hey, hey, hey" (we'll see).  Now I just need some back up singers.  If I ever get brave enough to actually post the video, you'll be first to know. My daughters are gonna be mortified!  Yesssss!!!!
2.  Back to school time is one of those seasons when I have so much to do that I just do nothing.  (See no.1 above)  And part of that doing nothing involves Pinterest.  Remember my post about Pinterest killing creativity?  Well, it sure does serve it purpose for making me laugh.  I could look at those memes all. day. long. One of my favorites as of late...makes me giggle every time!

3.  I STILL haven't gotten around to writing my end of breastfeeding post.  By the way, if anyone cares, I stopped about 3.5 months ago.  Not that it's critical that I write the post, but I didn't record my feelings and memories anywhere else, so I'm afraid if I don't do it soon, I'll forget.  And I don't want to forget.  He was my last one!  Some one hold me accountable for heavens sake!
4.  Question:  I'm curious...if you could only buy one thing for your fall/winter wardrobe, what would/will it be?  Being on a tight budget, I'm having to seriously consider all of my purchases.  I haven't really bought any cool-weather clothes, but when I do, I want to make them count!
5.  All right, that's all I've got.  If you have any random questions for me or things you'd like me to talk about more, leave them in the comments...I'll answer them in a post next week or email you.  This could be fun!

High Five Oscars!

A few things about Oscar night:

1.  I'm all for a sleek looking pantsuit.  When done right, they make me happy.  BUT....If I were Hugh Jackman's wife, attending the Oscars as his date, I would most certainly try my best to dress like a knock out.  This woman is gorg, but come on lady....it's the Oscars for heavens sake!  Save the pantsuit for a movie premiere.

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2.  What the heck was going on with KStew.  Some one please get her a stylist.  Homegirl had a bruise on her arm (it's called coverup, hun) and her hair looked like she just turned her head upside down, hair sprayed like crazy, and did nothing with it once she flipped back over.  And the limp?  Was that linked to the cause of the bruise?  So odd, that one.  And I really want to like her.

3.  Dear Helen Hunt....bless your heart.  I'm all for wearing a more accessible label to an awards show, but it better be able to hang with some of the other haute couture ensembles.  Her H&M number looked like it was from H&M.  I'm sorry.  I know her intentions were good, but this just didn't work for me, dahling (said in my best Joan Rivers voice).

4.  Charlize's hair makes me want to chop mine off again.  When I voiced this thought the other night, I received a resounding "NO" from my husband and mother.  I get it, okay....I don't pull off the pixie well.  But if I would look like her with short hair (or like Halle for that matter), I'd do it in a heartbeat.  FYI...I can't be trusted with scissors.

5.  I think we all need to start rockin' the backwards necklace a la Jennifer Lawrence.  Seriously, who's with me?  Loved everything about her look.  I loved even better her response when asked how she fell on the steps.  "What do mean what happened?  Look at this dress!"

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High Five For Friday

Don't leave me hangin'.....High 5!!!

1.  I'm excited for all of the probably never going to get made Valentine's crafts swimming around in my head.  I'm loving Pinterest these days.  Actually, I'm not a very crafty person.  Because I like to eat.  So I'm a baker.  But mostly an eater.

photo by Heather Moore Photography

2.  Speaking of eating, I posted this Valentine's recipe yesterday that I'm taking to Bunco tonight.  The last time I took "special popcorn" to Bunco, we (grown women) ended up toilet papering a friend's house....in the middle of the night....who's husband is a cop....and we were all dressed in costume.  Epic.

3.  I am officially unofficially setting a weekly schedule for my blog.  It will go something like this:

Monday-Style/Outfit Post

Tuesday-Family story/topic

Wednesday-Random (giveaway, vlog, outfit, etc.)

Thursday-Recipe/DIY/Tutorial

Friday-"Best Of" Style Link Up

Saturday-Mom Connection

Saturday PM-Weekend Style

4.  So if you're with me still, you might have noticed that Friday topic above.  Starting next Friday, I'm starting a new weekly style link up!  All week I will scour the blogosphere for the "best of" style posts of the week and highlight them on Friday, as well as invite everyone to link up their own style posts from the week too!  There will be little twists here and there that will keep things interesting....like spotlighting the "best of" in various categories, such as accessorizing, best of use of color, etc.  I'm really excited as this has been on my mind for a long while now!

5.  Thank you so much to my readers who entered last week's giveaways!

Congrats to the winners...

Shabby Apple: Hwanhi Chung

Group Giveaway:  Deborah Rapose

*winners please email themrsandthemomma{at}gmail{dot}com

linking up with High 5 For Friday, Glam Hungry Mom

High 5 For the Longest Week EVER

Not.

Week, you do NOT get a high 5 for dragging yourself out to seem like a month.  This better not happen again.  Ever.

Like ever.

1.  Speaking of "like ever"....my three year is such a character, but when she loudly sings that song in the car, the cuteness factor goes off the charts.  With her little lisp and inability to pronounce her R's...I just about run the car off the road from holding in laughter.  I need to see if I can get it on video one of these days.  She's going to have her heart broken when she finds out that I'm only taking her big sisters to see Taylor Swift in May.  No one tell her.  Seriously.

2.  So my fourth born....the only boy....you know, the one everyone "accuses" me of babying?
(Guilty.  I'm still nursing him for heaven's sake.)
Yep, he decided to start walking.  He's 19 months old.
At least I can finally put it in his baby book.



3.  Over the holiday's two things happened:
One-Against my better judgement, I maybe didn't eat as well as I should have.
Two-Due to plantar fasciitis and a change in my husband's schedule, I didn't exercise hardly at all to combat the influx of calories.
Result---Carrying around some extra LBS.  We've got to do something about this folks, because Valentine's Day candy is my second-favorite holiday candy.  And it's already infiltrated our house.
Operation Self Control Has Commenced.

4.  I don't know if there is any need for clarification about my outfit posts, but just in case there is, I want you to know that everything I post on my blog is an outfit I actually wear.  If I wear PJs all day, needless to say, there's no outfit pics.  Or on a day like the pic below, I probably wouldn't post it because I don't feel it's blog worthy...but just to drive the point home...

5.  If you missed anything here over this longest week ever, here's a few highlights:
-Talked HERE about some blog changes and sponsorships
-Sort of invented my own Pepperoni Rolls recipe...Yummo!
-Seeing how many trends I can fit in one outfit...colored leather, polka dots, etc.

Here's to a slow weekend that drags out forever and ever!

And ever!

Ever.

I Got FIVE On It

1.  My 2 year old is a riot.  A pistol.  A character.  She kills me daily with her facial expressions and her attempts at speaking.  She's in speech therapy, so the following remarks from her are all the more funny....to me, at least.

a.)  Today, when her room darkened suddenly, I heard her exclaim "Me freaking out!"  I had to ask her to repeat herself because I had never heard anything of the like come out of her mouth.  So my child (who has speech issues) repeated for me, clear as a bell, "Me freaking out, Momma!"  I die.

b.)  Her recent form of expression (an umbrella phrase used for anything from being surprised to accidentally dropping a toy) has been "Oh My Gosh" said with a heavy lisp..."Oh my goth."  But today, she took it up a few notches.  While in the car, I said "look at that pumpkin patch, honey!"

Her response:  "Oh My Gosh Shucks Brother!"  I can't quite convey through writing just how funny this sounds, so I guess I'll have to leave it at that.  That girl is something else.

2. I'm a firm believer that everyone needs a good timeless striped tee like this one.  It's the problem solver to any wardrobe issues that may arise.  What to wear?  A classic striped tee.  Boom.

3.  Ricky Skaggs had some serious hits.  My husband and I like to play a game where we play the teaser of a song from iTunes and then have to name the artist or song.  While playing this little game the other night, I came across some great songs I'd forgotten about.  Who remembers Joe Diffie? Sawyer Brown?  Ricky Skaggs?  Oldies but goodies.

4.  It seems like every time I'm about to leave town (and leave my kids behind), the week leading up to that trip does a number on me.  It's only Wednesday and I'm so ready to leave.  We're in desperate need of some extended alone time.

5.  At the same time, I'm not ready at all to leave my children.  Can both of those be true at the same time?  All the "what ifs" flood into my worrisome head.  It doesn't help either that I'm still nursing and not ready to stop...but five days away just might force me to do so.  Waaaaah!!!!!!

p.s.  Feel free to link up in the comments any "high 5" lists you got going on!

High 5: Momma Tips

Hello to all my new readers!  Thanks so much for following along...I truly appreciate you and look forward to getting to know you!

Today, because it's Tuesday (which means nothing at all), I thought I'd share a little guest post I did a while back where I talk about some (5) motherhood tips I've learned over the past several years I've had the privilege of being a momma.

Or you could just call them "things I'm really opinionated about".

Either way.

Here we go....

1.  Not only take as many pictures you can of your children, but actually print them out.
I can't count how many times I wanted to give a gift to a relative or just change out pictures in frames at home, but hadn't ordered any current ones.  There are deals all the time with various photograph hosts (Snapfish, Shutterfly, etc.) where you can get hundreds of prints for under $10.  Don't let them accumulate.

2.  When you find your children growing out of their clothes, it may be really hard to part with them, but do it.
Even if you plan to have more children, only keep the clothes that are sentimental (holiday, memorable, special occasion) or ones that are in excellent condition.  Those spit up stains have a knack for reappearing once they've been in storage for a while.  Trust me on this one....you'll thank me later, especially if you end up having a large family.

3.  Nurse (or bottle-feed) your baby at bedtime if you can.
I know this is not recommended by pediatricians, but I think it's mainly discouraged if feeding is used as a sleep tool, which is not what I'm suggesting.  With all four of my children, in whom I did my best to instill healthy and strict sleep practices (meaning they could put themselves to sleep as early as 3 months old), I always kept the bedtime feeding.  This was (and is) precious time spent together.  We gaze at each other and just have an "us" moment.  I wouldn't give this up for anything and I will cherish it forever.  It's times like this you can't ever get back.

4.  Babywearing is a win for everyone!
There are so many babywearing products out there these days...obviously, it's beneficial to both momma and baby.  You can read more about the emotional, psychological, and intellectual benefits here.  My favorite is the Moby Wrap.  It's one long piece of fabric wrapped around your body, and then you can wear your baby several different ways depending on their age, size, etc.  I wish I had worn my older children more...even if it were just around the house.

5.  When contemplating having a baby (or another child), there is never "the perfect time".
Deciding to have a baby should be a thoughtful and prayerful decision.  However, if thinking the "right time" will come...I assure you it most probably won't.  There will always be a spouse needing to graduate first, a house to buy, money that needs to be saved, more "us" time that needs to be had.  Our first child was born when my husband was in law school and we lived off student loans so that I could stay home.  While living with my in-laws and my husband was studying for the bar exam (no job), we decided to try for another baby.  I've never regretted our decisions.  I don't tell this story to suggest going into debt to support a family or being cavalier about having babies....but to simply say that when a couple is emotionally and spiritually ready for children, they can always find external reasons to wait.  I argue not to wait.

I'd love some feedback on mothering tips like these you've learned along the way....or plan to put into practice if you don't yet have children.

High 5: Five Things You Should Be Eating This Summer

Even though I abhor summer weather, there are many perks to the warmer months...especially the seasonal fruits and herbs I can't get enough of!

Here's my top 5 yummies you should be eating this summer....hurry and fill your tummies before fall gets here!

1.  Watermelon Agua Fresca-We perpetually have watermelon in our house during the summer months.  I'm not that great at picking out good ones, so with the 'okay' watermelons, I end up making this sweet, refreshing drink with mint from my garden.  So yummy and easy!

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2.  Strawberry Lime Smoothie-Only 3 ingredients needed....limeade or margarita frozen concentrate, frozen (or fresh) strawberries, and a half can of sweetened condensed milk.  Blend.  Perfect for a family dessert to enjoy in the evenings out on the porch.

3.  Peach Basil Salsa-The fabulous PW came up with this delight.  I could eat it plain or on ice cream as pictured.  I think this might even work with fish tacos!

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 4.  Frozen Grapes-My kids are obsessed with these right now.  I grew up eating frozen grapes and they hold a special place in my heart....and my mouth!

5.  Fresh Tomatoes (preferably from one's garden)-I eat mine sliced with a little salt and pepper....there are few things better in life than this, my friends.  Of course, I don't complain if a little basil and mozzarella make an appearance, too.

High 5: SUMMATIME

jacket (similar): Bebe, shirt (similar): Target, skirt (similar): H&M, shoes (similar): BR, broach: vintage (grandmother's), glasses (similar): Chanel, bracelet: Charming Charlie

Summa, summa, summatime!

1.  I know I'm technically jumping the gun a bit, but I'm gonna go ahead and declare summertime here in good ol' central Texas.  We've had a pleasantly mild Spring (this time last year was already hot as Hades), so I can't ask for much more weather-wise.

2.  I'm still loving this skirt I got from Kendi at the TxSC swap.  My favorite are the pockets, however, I find myself fumbling for them in all that material!

3.  I really want this new pair of glasses...but can I wait until my birthday in July?  THAT is the question.

4.  Planning my baby's first birthday party is bittersweet.  It will be my last child to ever turn one (sniff, tear), so I feel the need to make it really memorable.  (I'll make it up to my daughters later in life.)  I've been pinning the heck out of those cute baby party ideas....people are so dang talented!

5.  Since we just went on our big trip for the year, we don't have a whole lot planned for this summer, except for a trip to Schlitterbahn and possibly the beach.  I need some good summer ideas that don't involve having a nervous breakdown from trying to keep four kids alive and accounted for at the pool.  Actually, I plan to just buoy up the four of them with any and all flotation devices I can find.
(That mental picture makes me chuckle.)

What are you plans for summer?  Pool time all the time?  Mini excursions?  Stay-cations?

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High Five: Tropical Paradise Must Haves

My mind right now is a vortex of "what to pack" scenarios.  I'm pretty sure I'll just end up taking my entire wardrobe, all of my jewelry, any and all open-toed shoes....and hopefully I'll remember my kids and husband.

As for the beach essentials, I have those down pat.  These are my High 5 Must Haves for a Beach Trip...in no particular order.  Okay, actually they're in definite priority order.  (Seriously, raise your hand if you can live without sunnies?  Not I.)

1.  Large sunnies...need I say more? Michael Kors

2.  Straw sun hat.  The logistics of how to pack this are uncertain...suggestions? Nordstroms

3.  Sandals to go from day to evening Dolce Vita

4.  Silk scarf for those windy beach days.  Forever 21  Keiko has a great tutorial here on tying a head scarf.

5.  Maxi dress that doubles as a cover up...this, too, can take you from beach to elsewhere.  ASOS

What are some of your tropical paradise must-haves?

(this is critical information I NEED to know, so don't hold out on me!)

High 5: This Time Last Year

1.  This time last year, we had cats.  I loathe cats.  You can read about our feline experiences here and here...never again will we own a kitty. 

2.  This time last year, I was large.  And had really short hair.  Never again to both of those...well now, I don't want to have to eat my words some day, so let's say "I have no intention of doing either one of those ever again."  There.  I can live with that.

3.  This time last year, I made this for my daughter's birthday party.  I was pretty proud of myself.  And I'm pretty sure Rapunzel would have been, as well.

4.  This time last year, I told my little one she couldn't get any older...she had to stay the same age.  Guess what?  She disobeyed me.  She turns five this week.

5.  This time last year, the older two girls were in soccer.  I say "were in" because they never played.  Well, the oldest kind of did, but it took her until the last two games to release the death grip she had on my husband.  The younger one just said "screw y'all" and wouldn't have any part of it.  This was the first pic before the first game of the season...all the other pictures involve tears.

And this one isn't part of the High 5, but it's a picture taken this time last year....when we were still a family of 5.  Oh, how so much changes in a year.

Feel free to link up your 'High 5' in the comments.  (I'm too lazy to do a link up party right now, as it's way past my bedtime.)  Peace out.

What were you doing this time last year?

The High 5 Series: A Link Up Party

I'm really excited to be doing something new today!  Over the past couple of months, I've written blog posts titled "High 5" made up of five thoughts that center around a certain topic....for example: thankfulness, motherhood, family time, and most recently the Texas Style Council.

So in continuation of those posts, I want to include others as well.  I've decided to officially make it a party!  My plan is to encompass any and all topics that relate to The Mrs. & The Momma, and post about them in a numeric 1-5 format (making lists is what I live for).  Because I'm starting this series on a Friday, why don't we make the first topic "High 5: My Weekend"?  Feel free to post about anything weekend oriented...your plans, your to-do list, your hopes, what you did (or didn't do) over the weekend, what you wore, etc.  I always love getting little glimpses into other people's true lives, so this will be right up my alley.

~Be sure to link up your High 5 post below
~Grab and include this button in your post
~Check out some of the other links and make some new friends!

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Here we go to start it off... High 5: My Weekend:

1.  The Hunger Games!!!!!  Not only are we going on a date (rare occurrence).....and not only are we seeing it the day it comes out....but we're viewing it at the Alamo Draft House, where they serve dinner while you watch the movie.  This place also has sing-alongs, quote-alongs, you name it....a pretty classic Austin spot.  My absolute favorite are their straws.  My husband still makes fun of my reaction the first time I sipped a shake through their humongous straws....I was so excited to get all that goodness in my mouth at one time without having to strain myself.  Pure heaven.

2.  The Star of Texas Rodeo-One of the Christmas gifts I gave my dad was for him to have his pick of concerts at the Austin Rodeo.  He picked Kevin Fowler, which so happens to be the closing night of the rodeo this weekend.  I'm really looking forward to some daddy-daughter time with him.  Someone told me the red velvet funnel cakes are to die for....I'll have to report back on that one.

3.  Plan my second daughter's "Dispicable Me" birthday party-This is a big deal for three reasons...first, I'm about two weeks behind on planning because invites needed to go out yesterday, and second, she is very particular on whom she wants to included.  (*close friends, please do not be offended...this girl is stubborn and immune to my persuations on an invite list.)  It shouldn't be that hard to plan if she only wants two friends plus family there.  And third, turning 5 is epic.  I found these on Pinterest and think they will be a hit!

4.  Closet makeover-I don't have a working closet.  I want one.  One where I can walk in and walk out two minutes later dressed in an outfit that I'm happy with.  We're on a budget, so my goal is to spend less money on clothes and spend more time on re-mixing my wardrobe.  Um, yeah, we'll see how it goes.

5.  Sleep-Over the past month, I guess I've been trying to keep up with my husband's late hours and have consistently stayed up past midnight....then waking up to my two-year old demanding her sippy cup around 6AM.  He said waking me up is akin to getting a teenage girl out of bed.  My end goes something along the lines of: "Go away!  The kids can cook their own dang breakfast!  I don't care if she oversleeps for school!  I need to oversleep!  Stop ripping off the covers!  What's my name?"  I can only go so long like this.  Even as I write this post, the words are slightly moving around on me.  Yeah, you're right...I'm gonna call it a night right about now.

High Five: Texas Style Council

jacket and jeans: CAbi, shirt: Walmart, necklace: ModCloth, shoes: Old Navy, headband: F21

5 Things I took away from the TxSC blogger conference:

1.  Fashion bloggers don't mess around when it comes to getting dressed.  I wish I would have taken some outfit pics of some of the especially unique and fashionable bloggettes.

2.  Brands are willing to partner with blogs of all sizes.  I had a definite perception of this until I spoke with several big sponsors of the event, who shed some light on their blogger relations.

3.  Blogging well (or successfully) takes a LOT of time.  I already knew this fact, however, after chatting with some larger bloggers, I was shocked at the number of hours per day they spend networking to grow their blog....or at least at first.

4.  I had a couple of epiphanies over the weekend.  One, being what my vision is for The Mrs. and The Momma.  I would really love to reach out locally and offer women in my area wardrobe consulting services, specifically with what they already own.  Sometimes, we all need a fresh pair of eyes on our closets to help us kick start our style....I know I did.

5.  I thought it was so enlightening to make personal off-line connections with all of these bloggers....some I knew beforehand, most I did not.  What you see on people's blogs is usually the "best" of their lives (or a very edited version of it), so it was super refreshing for me to get to know them in person.  It's important not to get wrapped up in comparisons...this goes for life in general, not just on Pinterest or blogs.  You try to live the best life you can and be honest about it.  Everyone has an inspiring story to tell...you just have to sometimes dig a bit under the layers which are presented (in my case, through my blog).  Kendi said it best, "Comparison is the thief of joy."

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High Five: Our Weekend

Thank goodness for a weekend with nothing going on.  We slept in until 7am, fetched some breakfast at Galaxy Cafe, and then went out to my parents' place to meet their new Great Pyrenees.

1.  Color-stay lipstick is NO JOKE.  The older two had their dance competition make-up lesson the other night and my kid was the guinea pig.  That stuff stayed on her lips for three days!  And it was completely out of the question to ask her to remove it with a make-up wipe....so we were the parents out in public with the "Toddlers and Tiaras" wannabe.

2.  I want a new dog.  That's pretty much the story of my life.  This darling is the sweetest thing, and I could love on her all day long.  My husband says no way, but  I think all of my begging is wearing him down.

3.  My youngest girl is fearless.  Every time she makes this face, I know she's about to do something to make my heart stop.

4.  I love watching my daddy with my children.  Each one of them have him wrapped around their little finger.

5.  I am so very much babying my little boy, but I am not sorry for it one bit.  You'll be happy to know, however, that he is now actually getting baby food.  I think this might have been his first time in a swing, but I'm not sure, as my MIL and mother treat him like a regular 9 month old and do things with him that I don't know about (like feeding him Cherrios).  What are they thinking?  Don't they know he's my baby!?!

I feel sorry for my future daughter-in-law.  Poor girl...she won't ever have a chance.

High Five: Motherhood Myths

As a mom of four, I feel like I can speak a little bit on the topic of motherhood, and possibly shed some light on myths that most mothers or future mothers have encountered.  Here's my 'high five' common misconceptions on mommyhood.

Myth 1:  The more babies you have, the larger they get....resulting in pushing out huge sumo babies at the end of the game.
Truth:  My third (below) was my largest and thankfully the only one I did not have to push out.  I do think that generally speaking, the first born is the smallest.  Mine was tiny.

Myth 2:  Nursing is a sure fire way to lose the baby weight.
Truth:  For many women this is true.  Nursing can not only burn up to 500 calories per day, but can also affect a woman's metabolism in a positive way after weaning.  My body, however, tends to be in fear of a future famine and holds onto a good 10 pounds until I'm finished nursing.  I know several other moms whose bodies behave in this manner as well....Conversely, I know a few moms that look like sticks with boobs when they have a nursing baby.  Not fair.

Myth 3:  Pregnancy makes your skin glow and look just lovely.
Truth:  Pregnancy can suck the life out of you appearance-wise.  Hormones are all over the board from the time you get pregnant,  to delivering the baby, breastfeeding (or not), and resuming your menstruation.  If your skin does well or has that "glowing" appearance, it does not last for long.  Hormones love to manifest themselves through acne, front and center.  I'm dealing with this currently....my skin and I are not on speaking terms.

Myth 4:  You can do it all as a mother if you just manage your time wisely.
Truth:  No you cannot.  I don't care what feminists say about being able to juggle multiple kids, a husband, a job, school, crafting, cooking from scratch, and sewing their own clothes....it just doesn't happen people.  And it's totally fine not to do it all.  At the end of the day, a mother should be able to reflect upon and be satisfied that she did her very best giving the most love, attention, time, and support to her children that she possibly could.

Myth 5:  If you work hard enough, you can get your same pre-baby body back.
Truth:  This. Is. A. Lie.  Look at examples of woman (who even have personal trainers kicking their butts to get back in shape after pregnancy) such as Kelly Ripa and Heidi Klum....their bodies are awesome, but you can still tell they've born children.  Less than perky boobs, wider hips, thinner hair, and outie belly buttons are all what I consider to be battle scars of the wonderful experience of child bearing.  It is possible, however, to have an even better body for some women afterwards, but still, it will never be the same....and that's alright in my book.

If you think of more motherhood myths, feel free add them on!

High 5: Thankfulness

1.  I am thankful for my mother taking my girls (and me) to see Sesame Street Live.  My youngest one just about lost her mind when the characters first came out on stage...she was so excited!

2.  I am thankful for my husband blow-drying my hair when I was too weak to do it myself after having the stomach bug last weekend.

3.  I am thankful for best friends who truly know who I am, without any self-explanation or excuses necessary.

4.  I am thankful for my son.  He is an absolute angel.  I want him to stop growing right now and stay this age forever.

5.  I am thankful for motherhood, and all the joys, frustration, heartache, tiredness, laughter, and meaning it brings to my life.

I am going to make an effort to be more thankful in my life for all of my wonderful blessings and recongnize them as such.  With our busy life, I need to make slowing down and enjoying the little moments a daily priority for our family.

High 5

1.  My baby is getting ear tubes.  He can't hear very well because of chronic fluid in his ears, not to mention multiple infections.  I'm both glad and apprehensive about this, but know it's for the best.  My two oldest have had tubes as well, so I know the drill.

2.  I'm really looking forward to incorporating brights into my spring wardrobe.  (I tend to be a black kind of girl.)  I especially love this, these, and that.

3.  I have learned that whenever I walk through our playroom at night, it's much like walking in the ocean.  I have to shuffle my feet to avoid stepping on something that might kill me...such as a lego.

4.  We have gone gluten-free for one of my children, and it seems to really be making a difference.  It ain't easy, though.  Gluten-free cooking is a whole different ball game, or so I hear.  (Tips are welcome.)

5.  I'm attending the Texas Style Council in a few weeks and am super pumped.






I need to find a posh outfit for one of the nights and I'm thinking of checking out Rent The Runway....has anyone tried it?