Adventures of Modern Mom: A Series of Unfortunate Events

August 24-28, 2010. Ever came home from a trip where you wished you stayed on vacation? This was one of those times. Everything went wrong. Maybe not everything. But just about everything.

We arrived home late Monday night, so we left all the unpacking and catching up for Tuesday. Tuesday wasn’t bad. Then it all hit on Wednesday. As I cooked dinner on Wednesday evening, we discovered fire ants in our kitchen floor. Huge red fire ants that bite. They were coming from our yard. They were all over our backyard. So the plan was Nathan was going to take the girls to Home Depot and purchase supplies needed to get rid of the fire ants inside and outside. I had to be at church Wednesday night.

As we were heading out the door, Nathan found his car had a completely depleted tire. He had two tires he needed to replace because they were pretty worn. But the depleted tire was not one of the worn tires. It was one of the newer ones, of course. That put us down to one car and I had to miss my meeting. Instead, we took a family trip to Home Depot and bought ant killers for the lawn. As soon as we returned home, Nathan spread it throughout the yard.

That wasn’t the end of it. Friday Nathan took his car in to purchase two new tires and have the hole patched in the depleted tire. It turned out that the hole couldn’t be patched. So $240 and five hours later, we have all new tires on his car. Five hours? Yes, people. The mechanic told Nathan it would take an hour. Well, he was wrong.

And Friday morning, I woke up with my body itching. I didn’t think much of it until I saw small red marks here and there. Then I freaked. Could it be bed bugs or fleas? We don’t have any pets and had no idea how either one of those pests could get in the house. So I washed everything on our bed in scalding hot water. Then dried in the dryer with the heat turned on high.

But then around 11 p.m. the red marks turned into hives. I started to break out in hives all over my body. After some backtracking and detective work, we came to the conclusion that it was the fabric softener that we used to wash our clothes in Washington. I never use fabric softener with our laundry at home. But Nathan’s mom had some at her house and it smelled fantastic. So I used it. Now I know. I’m allergic to it. I went through all our clean clothes to pick out the ones washed with fabric softener to rewash them. Twice. Fun.

Saturday Nathan took my car in for routine oil change and tires balance. The mechanic told him it would take half an hour. Three hours later, he came back with news from the mechanic that we need to have our transmission fluids flushed and there is a crack in the crankshaft and is leaking oil. We thought we would take it for a second opinion elsewhere.

» Tell me… Have you ever felt the series of unfortunate events happening to you? Share your stories.

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Friday’s 5 at 5: My In-Laws

I married into the best family in the world. And that’s the truth. From the first day I met them, they all were so welcoming and inviting. They accepted me as one of their own. They raised Nathan to be the best husband and father. Here are some things about my in-laws that will make you want to be a part of their family too.

  1. Complete support for each other. No one gets jealous of what the other person is doing or accomplishing in life. If someone is going through a tough time, everyone try to encourage and support in any way possible. This is amazing in a family where there are eight siblings.
  2. They know how to have fun. Whether it’s going out tubing on the lake or hiking a trial or watching the sunrise at a mountain top while eating breakfast or having a whip cream fight, these people know how to create fun memories.
  3. My mother-in-law and father-in-law are the perfect example of eternal love. They are so cute together, even after being married for 31 years.
  4. Everyone pitches in. Everyone helps out with whatever is going on. They often ask, “What can I do to help?” They know how to delegate and work together to make it happen. Even something as simple as dinner. Someone is setting the table, others are helping in the kitchen, another doing the dishes.
  5. They know how to work. The children in the family doesn’t get things handed to them. They all work for the things they have or want. None of them thinks they deserve anything. They all know they must earn it.

» Tell me… How do you get along with your in-laws? What do you love about them?

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Simply Said… Molly of My Favorite Things

I was so excited when Molly from My Favorite Things said she would guest post on Simply Modern Mom. I have been following her blog for a while now and I love so many of her favorite things that she features on her site. She has such great taste. I knew exactly what I wanted her to write about… Pregnancy fashion. When I was pregnant, it was hard to find great fashion. So I asked Molly to share with us some of her favorite pregnancy fashion. This is Molly who simply said…

Hi there! It’s Molly from My Favorite Things. I blog daily about all of My Favorites! Since I am currently pregnant with baby boy #3, Tiffany has asked me to share a few of my favorites regarding maternity fashion. I will tell you up front, my style is simple and comfortable but still fashionable. I hope you enjoy what I have to share and maybe even garner a few tips along the way.

My feelings when it comes to maternity fashion is make what you already have work for as long as you can. I always buy a couple of “stylish” lounge pants [ones I wouldn't mind wearing out, paired with a cute top], that can also be used after baby is born. Since I will be pregnant the majority of the summer, up until the very end, my focus is of course aimed at warmer weather fashion pieces. A few key pieces that I live in on a daily basis are :

stretchy skirts + maxi dresses

I do like to have a pair of maternity jeans [my preference is skinny] and a sassy dress! I also buy a few basic maternity tops and then scout my closet to find any loose fitting shirts that may work up until the last month or two. You know, before I have expanded to a gargantuan size!

I live in flip flops. Seriously I do. But I like to make sure I have a cute pair of flat sandals and some wedges that I can use to dress up an outfit and make me feel a little more put together. Below I have a few looks I want to share. Some of the pieces I actually own, other’s I threw in there to give you an idea of what I basically have stashed in my closet. I will also share a link to my favorite secret that I could not live with out. Could not!

Oh and here are a few tips to keep in mind…
Remember that cardigans can work no matter how BIG you are. Just don’t button them up.
Belts are great accessories to add to loose fitting shirts or paired with cardigans.
If you can sew, here is a great tutorial on how to change your current/old maternity jeans to skinny. [all for free!]
A lot of non maternity clothes work even while pregnant. All of my maxi dresses and skirts are NOT maternity.

*i own the stripped shirt, jeans & skirt in this set*

*i don’t personally have any of these pieces but it fits my style perfectly*

*i own everything pictured here, except my flip flops are black*

And I can’t leave without sharing my absolute favorite secret that I la la la LOVE. It makes layering over a growing belly super comfortable. It is my all time favorite layering basic and the awesome part is, you can use it before, during and after your pregnancy!

ps. If you would like to view my outfits, you can find them on my Polyvore profile.

Thanks Simply Modern Mom!

Molly

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Ice Cream Party Ideas and Tutorials

I just realized that I gave you all the Ice Cream Party stuff and it’s kind of everywhere on this site. So I decided to wrap it all up here so you can find what you are looking for. Click on the photos or the links to go to the tutorial or post for more info. Thanks for loving my ice cream party. It was so much fun and Kaye had a great time with her friends. It brought smiles to their faces and isn’t that what it’s all about? For a mom it is.

Party Tips and Ideas

Ice Cream Party Tutorials

Homemade ice cream recipe with a secret ingredient…

DIY ice cream party invitations and envelopes

Ice cream banner tutorial

DIY ice cream piñata

DIY lunch sack goodie bags

Wrapping astronaut ice cream party favors

Ice cream bowls tutorial

Ice cream bar, party activities and other party details

The ice cream garland. Well, that’s one of my own designs. So I hope to be able to sell kits or ones already made for you to purchase. If I can get my act together, I hope to put it in my online store soon.

Hope you enjoyed the ice cream party tutorials and information. If you put on an ice cream party using ideas from any of my posts, please post it onto the Simply Modern Mom Flickr group to share with everyone!

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Escape To Washington

Our main reason for going to Washington was to visit my in-laws. Nathan grew up in Washington and his parents still reside there. I know. That’s clearly diagonally across the country from us in Georgia. Thanks goodness for video chats, right?

I love being with Nathan’s family. We always have so much fun together. Did I mention that Nathan is the oldest of eight kids? The week we were in Washington, five of the eight children made it home. Two of his siblings were out of the country and one is seven months pregnant in Connecticut.

As of yet, Nathan and I have the only grandchildren to the Bird family. Our two girls received all the attention. And grandma and grandpa loaded them with toys.

They also revived the sandbox just for them. Grandma and grandpa’s house was so perfect for little children. They did raise eight of their own children in this house. So they had all the fun stuff – swings, pools, a goat, sandbox, treehouse, a garden and beach toys.

One of the days we rented a boat to go tubing. Both girls loved it. They didn’t want to stop. They were so brave.

The adult kids got a little crazy on the tubes. Some times they flipped and fell.

One morning we ate breakfast at the mountain top over seeing the town. Catching a few breaths of fresh air. The city was gorgeous. All so lovely.

We celebrated a birthday of the youngest Bird sibling. Michelle turned 19.

We also celebrated a wedding. Nathan’s best friend from high school was married that weekend. Stunning yet very personal wedding with a fantastic reception at a vineyard. We enjoyed being there with them on their special day. So memorable.

Of course we had to play some basketball. Look at all those tall guys and gals.

And what’s a trip without a whip cream fight? That’s how fun my in-laws are!

Nathan got his mom and his sister pretty good.

» Tell me… What are some fun and/or crazy things your family likes to do when you get together?

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