Heard around here lately...

This morning on our way to preschool, I was reminding Emerson and Jax that I wanted a good report from their teachers at pickup. No disrespect, unkindness, rudeness, etc.

Emerson: "Mommy, did you say rudeness?"

Jax: "Yeth, Emer-thin, she did. It meenth 'rude' in Thpanish."

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On the way home from Emerson's soccer practice this evening, she asked what my last name was before I got married. When I told her, she was fascinated that it was the same last name as her cousins in TN.

Emerson: "Mommy, what is my last name going to be when I get married?"

Me: "I don't know yet. It's going to be the same last name as your new husband."

Emerson: "Well, even though my last name's not gonna be Van Valkenburg, I'm still gonna act like a Van Valkenburg."

Me: "Really? And what do you mean by that?"

Emerson: "I'm never gonna lie, I'm never gonna cheat, and I'm never gonna steal."

(These are the three things Daddy always reminds them that we NEVER do).

Me: "I think that's a great idea."

Emerson: "And I'm also not gonna kick, bite, or punch."

Well said, my dear. I'm sure your future spouse will be quite relieved to hear all of this.

The end of a looong week

I spent the first two days of spring break potty training Hayden. Day 1? Great. Day 2? Completely not great. I remember Jax regressing on the second day, so I didn't let it deter me. The problem I ran into was that on Day 3, we had a playdate, then each day after that we have had something to do and somewhere to go. That is always a hindrance when you're hard core about getting them on the potty every hour on the dot. Oh well... she will not be in diapers the rest of her life. I know it's just gonna click one of these days. I think I'll just keep her in panties while we're home and not stress about leaving the house for activities and lessons with her in a diaper while she's still learning.

On Thursday, my dear friend Destiny and her little girl Miss L drove in from OKC for the day. It was so much fun getting to catch up with her after me being so terrible at keeping in touch. And L is quite possibly the most beautiful and well-mannered child on the planet. I'm really thinking about arranging a marriage between her and our Jaxeyboy.

Friday my friend Becca convinced me to go to FIT class with her at the gym, a total body toning class. I hadn't been to it in months, and it kicked my tail. Today my armpits are sore. Like literally right down in the middle of my pits. That's some good stuff right there. I've been focusing on long 5-mile runs at the gym as of late, but I know I need to throw a couple of toning days in again each week. It'll be swimsuit season before I know it. Ugh.

Tonight was the crown jewel of our spring break. The kids went to the in-laws' house to spend the night, and we got to go to dinner with some of our besties, Josh and Kristin. We've known these crazy kids for years. I was a rep with Josh at Pfizer, and we were in life group with them at our old church. Even though they live in Missouri now, each time we get together it's like not a day has passed. Love them dearly!!!

The perfect nude lip

I have been on the quest for quite some time to find the perfect nude lipstick. Scratch that. The perfect nude-ish lipstick. I really don't like the look of a completely washed-out, skin tone lip... I still want a hint of color in there.

Enter Maybelline Color Whisper. I have seen quite a few beauty bloggers talking about it recently, and I thought I might as well give it a shot. I found what I consider to be the perfect shade called Mocha Muse. For those nights out when you want to do a dramatic smoky eye or even a normal day of school/errands, etc., this color is absolutely perfect. I didn't find it to be terribly long-wearing, but that's a sacrifice I'm willing to make after paying only $7 and not having to make a trip to Sephora.

What's this white stuff?

Sunday night Jason was setting the trash and recycling bins at the curb around 9:00. I was walking toward the office and noticed two drops of something white on the floor. I dabbed the drops with my finger, sniffed them, and just then Jason came back inside. I said, "What's this white stuff? It smells like plaster." Suddenly I saw the wheels start turning in his head. He said, half jokingly, "I hope it's not bird crap." Then I really saw the wheels start turning.

He said, "You know, when I opened the front door, I heard a rustling sound in the wreath but didn't think anything of it." Suddenly he stopped dead in his tracks and said, "Shhh... do you hear that?" All of a sudden a little bird flew out from behind the fax machine! Its next stop was the top of the curtain rod, then Jason grabbed the empty recycle bin that we keep in the pantry.

He shooed it over toward the fireplace as I did my best to block the entrance to the dining room and thus the rest of the house. Luckily, that little guy obeyed and flew right through the other office doorway. In his final act of defiance, he stopped and stood right at the threshold of the front door before we shooed him into the night.

Now I know what the white stuff is. Jason's comment? "Did you lick your fingers? You licked them, didn't you? You can tell me if you did."

For the record, no I did not lick my fingers.

Mascara #2

So the second mascara in my Sephora kit was Korres Volcanic Minerals Volumizing Mascara. Here is the website description: The blackest, black mascara derived from volcanic soil that increases lash volume by 600 percent. 

I don't know about all of that volcanic soil stuff, but I do know that I liked this one! It had one of those brushes that seems to catch and coat every single little bitty lash, even the ones on the lower lash line that you don't really even know are there. 

The wand was a little bit mascara-overladen (can I create that term?), so one coat was all I needed. And true to Sephora's description, it really was the blackest black. However, unlike Sephora's description from above, I didn't need the comma between blackest and black. So there.

At a price of $20, this is a few bucks cheaper than Dior and a few of my other faves of old. When I finish this glorious kit of minis, I might just have to add this to my list of must-buys.

Grade: A-

P.S. Sorry Liz, I am too lazy and tired to pick up the digital camera and take a picture of my lashes tonight. That was a really great suggestion, by the way! Perhaps I will try and do that on my next mascara review. 

Powder Bath Reveal

In January, our contractor Todd from Victory Remodel finished our powder bath downstairs. For two years, our poor guests have been forced to enter the "Zone of Brass" that is our master bathroom. So now we can proudly direct them to a new bathroom with zero brass fixtures. It's tiny, but it's cozy. I love it!

We started with a blank slate. There has literally been a hole in the floor where the old toilet used to be. Jason loved to tell everyone that this bathroom was reserved for OSU or Texas fans.

My color inspiration was the deep pumpkin orange in our living room pillows.

We ended up going with Toffee Glaze... I think it was a Valspar color.

We originally wanted to do stained concrete, but the quote we got from a concrete guy was around $1000 (something to do with the depth of the floor... I quit listening after I heard $1000). No thank you. We ended up going with a dark ceramic tile from Lowe's. I think we paid around $50.

And here's the almost-finished product! Light, mirror, vessel sink and faucet are from Lowe's. Granite is from Natural Stone Interiors in Bixby (the piece is a remnant they had, so they literally didn't charge us a dime for the granite itself). The vanity furniture piece was clearanced through Kirkland's online. The piece I had my eye on from Pottery Barn was about $1300. This one? Drum roll please... $300.

The remaining part of the project? Finding just the right corner table so I can hang these on each corner wall.

Oh, and I almost forgot. The toilet. Now that I'm looking at that empty wall behind it, I'm thinking I should hang something there, too, even after I get the blue things up with the corner table. Golly gee, I really despise decorating. Too many options.

Currently...

1) Thrilled at the thought of daylight savings in a week. I really do love a cozy winter when it gets dark at 5:30, but only for so long. I can sense my kids' restlessness, and it makes me restless for more outside time, too. This spring is gonna be so much fun.

2) Gearing up to potty train Hot Sauce on Spring Break. She has been talking about the potty non-stop for a good 2-3 months now, but I just haven't devoted the time. So fingers crossed that we'll be a diaper-free house by the end of March! (Diaper-free except for night time, that is).

3) Beyond excited for Emerson and Jax's soccer season. Their first games are tomorrow! On any given night before bedtime, they will be up in the playroom with Daddy, wearing their shin guards with no shoes, practicing their dribbling and passing and whatever else it is you do in soccer. I'm really thankful I married someone with soccer experience. I have NO CLUE when it comes to the sport... we didn't have soccer in the little town I grew up in. We didn't have a lot of things in that town, but I digress.

4) Trying to figure out whether I really need a brightly colored pair of skinny jeans for spring. I think I do. Which color, though? Too many choices.

5) Getting a kick out of Emerson and Daddy's bedtime routine. Each night when he lies down with her to do prayers and snuggles, she has started requesting to "talk about things." I wasn't quite sure what this was all about, but a few days ago in the car on the way to preschool, she began to describe to me what a cardiologist was. I asked her how she knew what that was, and she said that Daddy told her about it "when we talked about things last night." Since then, there have been talks about the difference between alligators and crocodiles, the inner workings of a musical jewelry box, and why the sky is blue. I love being married to a smarty pants. I would have to spend some serious time on Google to prepare myself for these sessions with my oldest girl.