I Spy 2022: Week 5

Well, I said I was going to do a better job of participating in Lysha's link-up, and it's already week 5! But better late than never!

{plant - quarterly}

I am not a plant person, but Drew is loving this succulent.

And doing a great job keeping it alive!

We got a really cute wall hanger for it, I'll have to take a picture for next quarter!

{chaos}

This is 100% my child. Trent's room is constant chaos.

{love}

I love my new Valentine's Day porch pillows!

And I love my sassy little model too. {grin}

{covered}

I love to see Drew's walls covered in her own artwork!

{your choice}

Brent and I don't often celebrate Valentine's Day.

But this year he surprised me early with some flowers.

I Spy Week 48

Linking up with Lysha at A Camera and A Cookbook for I Spy! This ended up being very Christmas-focused, but honestly, this time of year that shouldn't surprise anyone!

{starts with U}

The view under my tree! I still have a lot to wrap, but it's looking good!

{red}

I LOVE red pomegranates, yum.

{small building}

The girls have been playing with this manger, which is a small building, set a lot.

Yesterday, Brent sat down with them and all I could hear was hysterical giggling.

Not sure how Mary, Joseph, and Jesus ended up on top but they were having fun! 

{sweet}

I ordered stocking stuffers from Wal-Mart.

I thought I ordered 3 York peppermint patties as something sweet for the kids.

Apparently, I actually ordered 3 BAGS, oops.

{your choice}

Last night, Drew and I finally finished Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix!

We started this one in the summer, it has taken us FOREVER to finish.

I left my physical, hardback, copy at the lake this summer,

so we have checked out an e-copy countless times to get it done.

BUT WE DID IT! YAY!

Now onto probably my fave book of the series, whoop!

I Spy Week 47

Trying to get better at linking up with Lysha because I really like this link-up! Maybe a goal for 2022 to do this weekly?

{festivities}

She looks ready for holiday festivities does she not?

{food}

I took this picture at Chipotle {we love their food}

to show the height difference in Miles and Trent - crazy!

{free}

Drew's bed: sometimes free isn't always good, ha.

However, we got it fixed!

{fortune}

I spend a fortune on Christmas decorations but love it so much!

{your choice}

Hogwarts Tournament of Houses with my Harry Potter fans

is definitely my choice for how to spend an evening!

I Spy Week 44

Back with another I Spy link-up with Lysha! Her linkup is a lot of fun because they are always a little unique but not hard either ha.

{vintage}

I love our barn wall - 

the wood came from a real OLD barn that was torn down a few years ago.

{collect}

She seems to be collecting a lot of camouflage these days. And navy.

{seasonal}

LOVE all my pumpkins that I keep up through the fall.

This could have also gone under 'collect' as this is just a section of my pumpkins!

{zigzag}

I always have to take a picture of her braids after I finish for her approval.

{your choice}

Library adventures with these 3, they thought this art display was really cool,

and I did too! Our library always has neat displays.

I Spy: Week 41

I haven't done an iSpy link-up in a long time. And Lysha's prompts are always really fun, so I'm not sure why I let these slide. But I'm back!

{mess}

Keeping Tiger for a week made a mess out of our house!

There was hay everywhere, and I don't think I've ever sneezed so much.

But I will say that I loved having this little guy with us.

{patch}

Got all the patches sewn on for Drew's Brownie vest.

We've got a Girl Scout here!!!

{mystery}

Can someone solve the mystery for me of how these children are so big?!

{funny}

The antics of this girl keep us in stitches - she is so funny!

{your choice}

A date night with this guy is always my choice!

[Even if he looks like he hates me]

10 Q&As About Dressing Up

I love doing these Q&A posts that are normally for 10 on the 10th. But how about 10 on the 14th?

1. When do you most often dress up? 

Weekly I get dressed up for church. I almost always wear a dress or a skirt to church. They aren't fancy {mostly coming from Target or Old Navy}, but I always try to look nice. Brent and I do have occasional date nights/nights out with friends, and I always aim to look 'cute' - dresses, jeans with cute tops, rompers, etc.

2. What does a dress up outfit look like? What makes you feel fancy and dressed up? 

We used to go to more weddings and that would always entail a dressier outfit. Now the time I get the most dressed up are for Brent's work events. He had a work event in June that will be annual that spouses are invited to that is on the dressier side and then they have an annual Holiday party which is a cocktail party.

3. Share a time when you felt especially dressed up and pretty. 

The last time Brent's company had a Holiday party, I wore a velvet jumpsuit and LOVED it. My hair and makeup were on-point, and I felt pretty.

I can't wait for this year's party!! I got the most amazing shoes and will be building my whole outfit around it.

4. What does getting dressed for the day mean to you? 

Workout clothes! I have a work-from-home full-time job and I exercise almost every day, so my daily uniform is leggings and tank tops.

Studio selfie!

5. Do you wear make up every day? If so, which cosmetics do you wear?  Do you do anything different for special or dress up occasions? 

I do NOT wear makeup everyday. I only wear it for the places I mentioned above: church, date nights, weddings, work events. I don't use fancy products or spend much money on them either. I DO spend money on skincare. For both makeup and skincare I am constantly looking for the cleanest products I can find. I struggle with foundation because I like Bare Minerals but it isn't super clean, so that's been my struggle with makeup.

Regular makeup day...and honestly a regular face for me {grin}

6. What is your skin care regimen? What issues do you address with your routine and choice of products? 

I am 41 and trying to slow down the aging process. I am all about wrinkle creams, eye puffiness reduction, diminishing fine lines...all that stuff! BUT I also have oily skin and still get pimples, ugh. So most of my skin care is super clean but the only thing I've found that helps with my occasional acne is a Neutrogena face wash that is TERRIBLE.

7. Do you wear heels? A slip?  Foundation garments like Spanx or, heaven forbid, a girdle?

I wear heels when the occasion calls for it. A slip or Spanx only when needed!

8. For dress up occasions, do you prefer costume jewelry or better jewelry? What is your go-to piece of jewelry?  Describe any vintage or heirloom pieces you have.

I have a mix of jewelry, but I don't wear much jewelry unless we're going out. I do have my grandmother's wedding ring that I wear sometimes and love it!

9. Do you have pierced ears? If so, what age were your ears pierced?

Yes, I have pierced ears. I got them pierced when I was 3 or 4. At one point, I had 3 holes in each ear and my cartilage pierced but now just have 1 hole in each ear. I do think I might get my 2nd holes repierced. I almost always wear a pair of diamond earrings I have but do like to switch them out with some fun dangly earrings I have too.

10. Did you dress up for Halloween as a child? As an adult?  Describe a favorite costume you or your children wore for Halloween.  Will you be giving out candy this year?

I did dress up for Halloween as a kid but now just wear themed t-shirts. I actually had 2 made this year that I can't wait to bust out!

Matching pumpkin tanks with Karin last year

10 Questions About Lifelong Learning

I haven't done one of these '10 Questions' posts in a while and with us starting week 3 of this school year, this seemed like a good one to answer! Thanks, as always, to Natasha for posting first, so I could copy. {grin} Original link-up here.

1. How old were you when you started school? Did you attend pre-kinder and/or kinder or just go straight into 1st grade?

I was in daycare from 1 onward so had a lot of preparation for formal school. My elementary school started with Kindergarten, so my official start was with Kindergarten when I was 5.

I didn't have my kinder picture on my computer, 

here is my pic from when I was 4.

2. Were you a good student? What was your favorite subject?

I was a very good student. Both of my parents were teachers and not doing well in school or being disrespectful in class were NOT options. I graduated in the top 5% of my high school class, was class President, in National Honor Society, etc. 

Speaking at high school graduation as the class President #nerd

I would say History was probably my favorite subject. I did not like Chemistry or Physics and thought Math was fine. I enjoyed English but didn't enjoy the books that were picked a lot of them time, ha. For a short stint I thought I would be a History teacher/professor.

3. As a child did you take music lessons? Or play a sport? Do you still plan an instrument now?

I took piano lessons from Kindergarten through middle school, and then I played the flute in middle and high school. I can still play the piano but am pretty rusty. I love that we got a piano this year and that Drew is taking lessons - it's helping me too!

7th grade band photo #bandnerd

I also did gymnastics from preschool through elementary school. And then in middle school I played volleyball {mediocre at best}, basketball {poorly}, and ran track {was actually good}. Then in high school, I continued to run track where I ran the 400m and 1,600m relay. We almost made it to state my senior year in the 1,600m relay!

4. Did you attend any kind of training or classes beyond high school? If so, what did you study?  Did you wind up working in a profession or job for which those classes or training prepared you?

I went to Texas A&M University and majored in Accounting for my undergraduate degree and also received a Master degree in Management Information Systems. I got my CPA license and was an Auditor for 11 years. I moved over to HR working for the same Accounting firm almost 7 years ago. 100% used my degree for those first 11 years and think that experience set me up well for where I am now.

Graduating magna cum laude from A&M

5. Have you taken any personal growth or adult education classes for fun? During the year that was Covid, did you home school, learn a new app to work from home, teach yourself to do something you might have paid someone else to do for you?

I've dabbled in photography a little but think our iPhones are too good nowadays for me to use my 'fancy' camera very much anymore. I would also put my Body Pump certification in this category - I took the training 7 months ago and have been teaching for 4 months! And I've been taking tennis lessons since the end of January and love it!

We did a minimal amount of home schooling over Covid - trying to do that while working a full-time job was insanely stressful. I think I *might* have enjoyed virtual school and getting to participate more in the kids' education had I actually had the time to do it. We were very lucky to have my parents come over most days and be in charge of school. I did a post about what our homeschool routine looked like, very glad it only lasted 5 weeks.

6. What would you like to learn how to do that you don’t know how to do already?

I've always wanted to learn to play the guitar and maybe the violin. I've also been scared to do it - not sure why? I still plan to...someday!

7. Name something that you learned easily. Then name something that was a struggle for you to learn to do.

I think school was relatively easy for me. I learned to read early which definitely helped. I am very worldly in a book-learning way, but the flip-side of that is I'm not often worldly in a real world way. Brent teases me about this a lot - if it's in a book, I'm great...if not, look out! He is so much more real world smart compared to my book smart. I used to think book smarts were more important, now I think you 100% need both.

8. What’s the last thing you remember learning? What kind of learner are you: visual, auditory, hands-on/kinesthetic, verbal, logical/mathematical?

Tennis! I am having a blast with my lessons. I am mostly a hands-on learner - I really don't like a lot of theory and lecture about something, I want to get in there and do it with some oversight. I don't like to just play around by myself - I do need some structure with learning but definitely learn by doing.

9.  Hard to teach an old dog new tricks, school of hard knocks, pass with flying colors, learn by heart, burn the midnight oil, pull an all-nighter, play hooky – which of these expression best fits your life lately? Why?

I would say 'burn the midnight oil' not because work is THAT time-consuming {although the last year has been rough} but a lot just due to being a working mother and having all the things to do. I find that I crave that alone time at night and don't prioritize sleep like I should. I've been doing better with it but could still do better!

10.  What is something you’ve learned from past mistakes?

The importance of owning up to your mistakes. I want my children to see me make mistakes, take ownership of them, apologize for them, and try to do better. 

11.  Bonus: Share your favorite learning/education quote.

“Live as if you were to die tomorrow. Learn as if you were to live forever.” – Mahatma Gandhi

I Spy Week 22

I'm late to this week's link-up with Lysha, but better late than never! These were fun prompts to do, I hope you enjoy!

{Floral Print}

What's more floral print than actual flowers?

These are from my parents' yard and are so pretty!

{Orange}

I don't know if I've shared on the old blog that I hurt my shoulder/rotator cuff.

It's been about 6+ months, and ignoring it and continuing to work out almost every day has NOT, in fact, made it get better. {grin}

I started PT this week, and I get to do exercises every day with this lovely lacrosse ball.

It's funny because I don't really like the color orange, so when I saw these prompts, I was like....um....hmmm...and then on Tuesday I bought this beauty!

{Fork}

Drew, my little artist, drew this for me!

{Starts with F}

My tennis Friends are coming to my Body Pump class!

{Your Choice}

The girls painted rainbow paintings with my mom yesterday.

Love these girls!

I Spy Week 18

Another week of fun prompts from Lysha at A Camera and a Cookbook. I like how I have to think a little to decide what I want to post. Doesn't necessarily mean they are great pictures but still a fun exercise! {grin}

{Mail}

Nothing like a property tax increase protest!

{How You Feel Today}

It's been a week!

{And no, I don't know why there was a tape outline on our library floor!}

{Reduce-Reuse-Recycle}

Goodwill, here I come!!

{Shoot from the hip}

Two kids enjoying Chipotle rice and graphic novels

{Your Choice}

All 3 of them in the same space and no one is whining? It's a miracle!

Sentence a Day: April 2021

Thursday, April 1 - Drew was so excited today was April Fools - her enthusiasm for the day was contagious.

Friday, April 2 - So many people took today off at work it made for a really quiet day which I desperately needed.

Saturday, April 3 - We had an amazing day with family we hadn't seen since before quarantine, I might have teared up!

Sunday, April 4 - Happy Easter!

Monday, April 5 - The kids didn't have school today and Trent and Paige spent the night with my in-laws; Drew enjoyed being the only child.

Tuesday, April 6 - I taught my new 5:30 am Body Pump class solo for the first time, and it went GREAT!

Wednesday, April 7 - No clue what happened this day apparently, oops.

Thursday, April 8 - I went on a run today and got a the best bluebonnet picture of the season.

Friday, April 9 - Book Club was at my house and we got together live for the first time in over a year, yay!

Saturday, April 10 - Today was the start of Trent's spring flag football league and he got a pick 6!

Sunday, April 11 - We went live to church today for the first time since quarantine, it was a big weekend for firsts apparently.

Monday, April 12 - We found out Sunday Trent was in quarantine due to another student in his class testing positive for Covid and got notified today that Drew is too {from the same family as Trent's positive case, ha}.

Tuesday, April 13 - The kids played outside {because I forced them to} and found an insane amount of caterpillars - we get them this time of year but they are out of control this year!

Look at these things!

Wednesday, April 14 - I took the big kids to get a Covid test today because their time since had reached 6 days, but they had no symptoms.

Thursday, April 15 - Negative!!

Friday, April 16 - I decided to keep Paige home from school for fun, and that was a mistake for my work day.

Saturday, April 17 - We went to see Kristen today and finally exchange Christmas presents with our kids {as a reminder I am Kristen's kids' godmother and she is my kids'}.

Besties

Sunday, April 18 - We missed church - we've just been back ONE WEEK and already missing - but the kids were all still sleeping when we needed to be getting ready, and I didn't want to mess with a good thing!

Monday, April 19 - We took the big kids to get tested AGAIN because they were both complaining of headaches and stomachaches.

Tuesday, April 20 - NEGATIVE AGAIN!!

Wednesday, April 21 - My in-laws had us over for a dinner of chicken fried steaks, it was delicious!

Thursday, April 22 - I had a really good laugh over a work meme with my team.

Friday, April 23 - Harry Potter trivia event through work, and I got 3rd place!

Saturday, April 24 - We visited with Susie's friends who came in from out of town with a pizza dinner and lots of playing.

Sunday, April 25 - Church again, yay to be getting back in the routine, and a full day of cleaning house, yuck.

Monday, April 26 - Brent and I started a new 'diet' to help give us a big push before summer.

Tuesday, April 27 - Body pump in the morning and tennis in the evening makes for one tired Allena.

Wednesday, April 28 - My favorite day of the month is when our cleaning lady comes and that day is today!

Thursday, April 29 - Drew had her piano lesson today, and it is just the cutest thing in the world to watch.

Friday, April 30 - We had all our custom cabinetry delivered/installed today, and I love everything and can't wait to show it to y'all.