I’m not sure about Mary, but I’ve always liked the time between Spring Break and the end of the school year. It goes by so fast, the weather warms up, and the crush of the all the spring sports and activities start winding down. It’s busy for sure, but busy with end-of-the-year parties, award ceremonies, and bridging to the next school year. It’s also festival season in Atlanta, so we’re getting outdoors and switching up our weekends.
So for this last stretch of blog posts before our annual June blog break, we’re switching gears toward the summer and sharing Things We Loved.
Mary’s Loves
I’d love to say there’s been a quiet stretch since our last Things We Love post, but nope. It’s been full speed ahead! But honestly, is there any household these days that can’t relate?
The past couple of months have been packed with birthdays, celebrations, spring break, family visits, and holidays. My son’s baseball team is deep in playoff season, which means most of our evenings have been spent at the ball field. And just recently, I celebrated my 11-year anniversary with my husband (aww).
For this past spring break, we let our now 8-year-old son call the shots. He had a choice: a birthday celebration or picking our getaway destination. His answer? A cabin in the mountains, with a hot tub. Wish granted, buddy!
We were pleased to discover the Freedom Finder cabin up in Helen, GA. Secluded and peaceful, it was the perfect retreat. Bonus: it’s dog-friendly, which meant our foster pup could tag along. Even better, it was conveniently close to all the hikes and activities we had planned, making it an ideal home base for our mountain adventure. 10 out of 10, highly recommend.
With family coming into town, I also went into full cleaning mode, racing to get everything organized before their arrival. Strangely enough, music hasn’t been doing the trick for motivation lately—but podcasts have. Weird, right? Lately, I’ve been hooked on The Diary of a CEO with Steven Bartlett. His guests include some of the world’s most influential people, experts, and leaders, sharing insights that can make life more fulfilling, enjoyable, and successful. Recent episodes feature Shaolin monk Master Shi Heng Yi, Former First Lady Michelle Obama, and Emma Grede (the founding partner behind SKIMS, Good American, and Safely).
May is already shaping up to be a busy one with end-of-the-year parties and spring events filling the calendar. But after that, we’re looking forward to a little breathing room before summer camps and travel kick in. We’ll be spending a lot of our downtime by the pool again this summer, which obviously calls for some new swimsuits! This summer’s annual CUPSHE haul included this floral crossback suit and this tropical floral cut out suit.
My twin girls have officially declared this the summer of frozen treats. They recently discovered Paletas: Authentic Recipes for Mexican Ice Pops, Shaved Ice & Aguas Frescas by Fany Gerson, and now they’re on a mission to make as many as possible. Our first experiment was the berry shaved ice (raspado de moras). While delicious, I personally was not prepared for the volume (12 cups!). Luckily, the syrup is so good that we’ve been finding ways to drizzle it over other desserts and mix it into drinks.
Patti’s Loves
I just got back from a week-long work trip, which explains why my last Child(ish) Reads was posted later than usual. Now that I can catch my breath, I’m excited to start prepping for the summer ahead.
Our big summer vacation this year is a 10-day California road trip. Since the girls handled last year’s East Coast road trip so well, we wanted to start our National Parks checklist; starting in San Francisco and looping to Napa, Yosemite, Sequoia, and Monterey. We purchased an America the Beautiful Annual Pass that will cover our admission and parking fees for a full calendar year. We snagged ours at REI, but you can also buy it online or at a federal park ranger station.
I also picked up our first Camelbak to make hiking a bit easier and cut down on the “This water bottle is too heavy” complaints. I really hope these kids are ready to start walking mountain trails…
For Mother’s Day, I asked for a new fitness tracker since my fitbit was on its last leg. I got the Garmin Vivioactive 5. It’s an older model but I really like the look of it. I laughed at the number of times it reminded me that I was in the High Stress Zone over the weekend. The Vivoactive 6 is new and now available.
On my TBR stack, I have to read The Measure by Nikki Erlick for book club. I also picked up the new cookbook from Wishbone Kitchen. On Audible, I’m in the middle of Witchcraft for Wayward Girls, the new Grady Hendrix title, and next up is I See You’ve Called in Dead by John Kenney.
Earlier in April, my best friend Merritt turned 40, so we did a long weekend escape to Paris. My new tip for beating jet lag is to take a long shower once you get to your hotel, and to do a sheet mask before you go to bed. From my favorite place CityPharma and the awesome Korean pharmacy by our hotel, here are a few new products I’ve rotated into my routine:
Medicube Zero Pore Cooling Mask
Nuxe Body Oil, which I could get in a giant bottle
CicaBiafine cream (mostly for the girls’ skin)
VT Reedle Shot mask. I got this as a face mask, but there is also a serum. I’d also like to try Medicube’s version.
Most of the linked items can be found on our Child(ish) Advice Amazon Storefront.
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