It's More Phil!

Moco Museum Amsterdam

Did I tell you I went to the Moco Museum in Amsterdam? No? It's one of the rare museums where you can actually take photos of the art so I took several of my favorite Banksy pieces.

There was a room where there was a video of him putting his artwork on the walls in famous museums along with the time spent until someone noticed that his art didn't belong. That was actually my favorite - I think Banksy and I could be friends with his sense of humor. 

It was amazing seeing these pieces in person and some day I hope I can find a Banksy on my garage doors. 

Enjoy!

The Terrible Threes

We went through the Terrible Threes with The Monkey so long ago, I barely remember it. I'm pretty sure I drank a lot of alcohol. And yelled. And was so frustrated. But we got through it. And now that same boundary-pushing, demanding, insolent behavior is back with Baby Chewie. UGH.

So I'm here to say that parenting the age of three is awful. It's frustrating. It makes me want to drink copious amounts of alcohol to never remember this age so that I can think he's a little angel forever. Or maybe just black out the parts where he tries to climb over fences, irritate the dog, and demand he get all the sugary treats in the world. FOR EVERY SINGLE MEAL. Nice try, honey. 

So to all the other parents out there dealing with three year olds, I'm right there with you. We shall overcome this terrible age and we shall get through it with blinders on to never look back. WE WILL GET THROUGH THIS TRYING AND TERRIBLE TIME.

Fall Shoes and Boots

Oh man, I love my black Chelsea boots so much from Tom's that I've been scouring their website for more fun finds. I don't wear heels very often because if I do, I'm wearing them to school pick up/drop off and honestly, I need running shoes for that because Baby Chewie isn't exactly the best at listening, although he now stops at corners, stop signs, and street corners so we've turned a corner. 

But I still love fashion and absolutely dream of the day where I can walk at a temperate pace and possibly wear heels to school pick up/drop off. Or maybe I can just dream of that. I dunno. In any case, I've got my eye on the following shoes from Tom's and now I'm going to wait until Black Friday to possibly purchase because I want to see what kinds of deals they'll have! The most I've seen is 25% off, which is what I used to purchase my Chelsea boots. Last year they had 30% off, so I can definitely wait until Black Friday for a good deal!

Tom's Black Suede Women's Kelsey Booties $89.95

Hazel Leather Women's Jutti Mule Flats $89.95

Women's Nolita Boots - $129.95

That's all for now, friends! Have a great weekend!

Preschool Lunches

Baby Chewie gets to go to preschool. YAY!!! Baby Chewie also gets to eat lunch at school two times per week. He's 3 and lunch boxes don't last longer than two years in this house because they get used almost daily. I had Baby Chewie pick out his own lunchbox at Target and this one drives me nuts. I honestly don't think it's super great at keeping cold things cold, even with a cold pack. It's also smaller and not as squishy as The Monkey's so I have to pack it in weird ways or find weird containers to pack food in. Even a Thermos fits in it a bit odd. I dunno...all I know is that before Kindergarten this kid will be getting a soft sided lunch box from Land's End.

So far I've sent him with some strange things and he's eaten them all. But the favorite so far is macaroni & cheese - I make it in the morning and put it fresh into hot Thermos' so it's warm for lunch! And then I also pack fresh fruit and a very small treat. He needs to be sugar detoxed, that kid. 

Meatloaf was another favorite - I cut it into bite size pieces and drizzled BBQ sauce all over it. When I opened the Thermos, it was EMPTY. WOOT!!

Strangely enough the kids will eat Mini corndogs in the Thermos but The Monkey will not eat the school's corndog. I have no idea why. I don't ask these questions anymore. Not quite sure.

Tomorrow I'm making macaroni and cheese again but sending it with a scoop of chili. We shall see if the kids like Chili-Mac!

Baby Phil!!

Weekly Plans

I feel like I've fallen behind in so many ways, and in others I'm completely on my game.

CLEANING:

I started following The Fly Lady again to keep the house clean - because with the dog I have to vacuum daily but I need a list of things to do otherwise I just Swiffer and wait until everything is kinda gross to clean. If I have a checklist, then I can keep on top of things and our house is pretty neat and clean. And after growing up in a clean house with a cleaning day, I really hate spending a whole day cleaning. I would rather spend daily time cleaning so that I don't have to work after the kids are in bed and I'd rather spend the weekend doing what I want to do, not what I have to do (though that rarely happens!).

This week is the kitchen to clean so today I went through the cabinets and gave away food that's not expired that we're not going to eat and semi-organized it. I have a short people problem though and I can't see all the way into the back of the cabinets without a step ladder so I moved everything that we eat on a normal basis to the front, put the tall items in the back (maybe I'll find a step thingy for the actual items???). Hopefully this will help the next week for finding meal items.

THE HUMAN CHILDREN:

There's no swimming on Monday because someone had diarrhea in the pool and people got Cryptospirosis which is a diarrhea bug. GROSS. Tonight I had mini corndogs on the menu, but I guess I can change it to something a little healthier? Eh, maybe I'll just make wild rice to go with it, or quinoa. Eh, just steam some veggies.

THE DOG:

Phil is now signed up for Puppy class. He gets his 3 month vaccines on Wednesday. He can get a dog license next month. He can go to doggy daycare next month. So cheers to that! I also saw the training place also offers classes on greeting guests, walking, and other things too. I'm really excited about that so we'll have to sign up for a few classes over the next year or so. And he's a pretty good puppy - although Baby Chewie has been bit several times (all his fault I might add for teasing the dog after I have repeatedly said STOP, so this week I'm buckling down and basically making Baby Chewie play in his room every.single.time he tries to do anything with the dog). Phil has his own Instagram (@philthedogg) and lots of followers. I try my best to take photos every day, he's pretty darn cute so it makes it easy!!

PLANS FOR THE WEEK:

Sign Phil up for class (DONE)
Walk the dog daily
Clean the whole kitchen
Vacuum
Get large containers for my summer clothes so I can swap to fall/winter clothes