Happily Ever Mock

10 Loves/10 Hates

Morning! I was Tagged by Courtney at Sweet Turtle Soup!  for this fun Love/Hate post
I tag Sindi with My Infertility Journey

10 Hates:

1. Seafood, Beef and pork..yep I am that picky!
2. Hot weather…unless there is a beach or a pool involved
3. Creepy Crawlies…bugs, insects, lizards, snakes..bleh!
4. Cotton balls…okay, I know this is an odd one, but have you ever pulled a cotton ball apart…ugh I can’t even think of it…it’s the worst feeling in the world!
5. Root beer. Once when I was little, I got a root beer Popsicle stuck on my tongue and my dad tried pulling it off instead of melting it..it bled a lot….needless to say it had a major Garcia effect on me!
6. House cleaning….You know..putting away laundry, cleaning the kitchen, scrubbing the bathroom…yuck!
7. Death and sickness
8. Constantly cleaning up dog hair
9. Driving! It gives me crazy anxiety! Man if someone could just drive me around all the time it would make me so much happier!
10. Not having enough hours in the day…EVER!

10 Loves:

1. My family and friends

2. Crafting and party planning. Oh and there is nothing better than a new pack of crayons!
3. Dance. Specifically ballet!
4. My puppy girl Stella

5. Holidays! Christmas and Halloween are my faves!
6. Pajamas and a warm blanket, reading with my girl!

7. A good cup of coffee
8. CARBS! Pasta, bread, dessert! Mmm! Rigatoni, freshly baked bread and cookies…now I am drooling!
9. Taking trips, I especially love California!

10.Pictures and memories

Who, What, When, Where, Why Wednesday with Stephanie

Happy Hump Day Friends! Today I have Stephanie here from Wife Mommy Me answering all 
of my questions!

Who?- Who are you? Tell my readers a bit about yourself

I’m Stephanie, wife to J and Momma to C. We are located in Buckeye country and after spending 2 years in Texas, we have embraced the fact that we are truly Yankees. I blog over at Wife Mommy Me. When I’m not taking on life as a bona-fide boy Mom, you can find me blogging, running, watching copious amounts of The Good Wife
What?- What do you Blog about? Is there a story behind your blog name?
I blog about family, favorite products and books, our go to recipes and document our son’s life. WMM has served as Connor’s baby book over the last 2 ½ years. The name Wife Mommy Me comes from the 3 different titles I carry: I’m a wife, a mommy and I’m  me. 1 person, 3 gigs.

When?- When did you start blogging?

I started blogging in March 2012 when we announced we are expecting our son. That post can be found HERE.

Where? –Where do you live?

We are in southwest Ohio. Both my husband and I are from the area. Other than the 2 years we spent in ATX, we have always lived in Ohio. While there are pros and cons to the Buckeye State, I love being back home and can’t image raising our son anywhere else.

Why?- Why did you decide to blog

When I started blogging, were had been married 9 months and had just found out we were pregnant. With all these changes happening and with what was to come, I needed to find an outlet and blogging made sense. It allowed me to express myself as a wife and soon  to be Mommy. Looking back, I’m glad that started blogging simply because of the amount of  life I’ve been able to document and share.
I was also able to get Stephanie to dish a little more on herself!

1. What is your favorite thing about being a mom?  
Watching Connor grow, discover, change. It’s amazing to see what he can do now that he wasn’t able to 2 months ago. We’ve recently conquered potty training and to think that in June he wasn’t able to go potty but can now is pretty cool. Connor is also hilarious. I can and do spend all day listening to him talk. He says some of the funniest things.
2. If you could live anywhere,  where would you choose to live? 
Like I mentioned before, I love being back home. One change I would make if possible is that I would love to have a bigger house (I would love to have the space to entertain) with a killer kitchen along with a bigger yard for Connor.










3. What flavor ice cream is your favorite?  Mint chocolate chip. Give me any and all mint.
4.What is your “anthem” song.  One that you think best fits you or your personality. 
Anything Bruno Mars. Seriously. That boy is my JAM! Folks would be shocked to find me rockin’ out to Gorilla. I just love me some Bruno.
5. What’s something your readers would be surprised to learn about you? 
 WMM is very much a Mom/Family blog so I think folks would be surprised to know that at one point in my life, I had really considered not having children. Now that I’m a full time stay at home Momma, I laugh at my younger self. 20 something Stephanie didn’t have a clue!

Lake Weekend

Good evening folks! It is not normal for me to post in the evening, but I needed some time this morning to recoup from my crazy mommies only trip to the lake!

This weekend (most of) the ladies from my moms group drove down to our girl Taylor’s family’s lake house for some much needed R&R as well as tons of laughter, food, drinks and quality time! Taylor was precious and decorated the whole place SUPER adorable complete with personalized wine glasses and cute little gift baskets on our beds!

As soon as everyone arrived, we played a game and had some yummy martinis!

 We stayed up late (some of us later than others) talking, chatting…one of us might have meowed while asking about a popular pediatrician in the area, Dr. Katz. Finally though it was time for bed.

I woke up to a beautiful view the next morning to the most gorgeous view! I was up first so I got to enjoy some peace and quiet with the sunrise!

Some of the other ladies started waking up, and coffee on the deck was a must!

We had breakfast and mimosas!

Then we decided to head out to the water for some fun in the sun!

First time Kayaking
Clearly I am a natural

Some of us went inside for some nail painting and facial masks…
….when this little GIANT lizard decided to crash the party!


 Thank GOD for our pal Whitney, who calmly informed us of his presence in the room and caught him and set him free!

After that scare, we chatted some more…I MIGHT have opened another bottle of wine, then made some delicious mini pizzas for dinner!

After dinner, we headed out to the dock for some fun group pictures! (So sad that Frankie had already left and that Amy and Serene couldn’t make it…otherwise our WHOLE group was there!)

(From Left to Right: TOP- Whitney, Danielle
BOTTOM- Me, Larissa, Taylor, Melinda, Andrea) 

Finally it was my favorite part of the show…S’mores time! Our resident Girl Scout, Whitney made the fire!
They were delicious
Clearly!

Once we came inside, we had a dance party, played some old school games, like flip cup and catch phrase oh and Andrea might have tortured Larissa and Melinda with a Cicada that got inside…(What was it with critters crashing our party! I haven’t even mentioned the Possum that got on the deck! Sorry no pics!) 

Dancing to Backstreet Boys! Larissa was really into it! lol!
“I had the time of my life!”

“And I owe it all to you!!”

Hiding with the Cicada
Coming out of hiding once the cicada was put outside!

All in all it was such a crazy fun weekend! Can’t wait to do it again!!!
<3 Kelly

Hallie’s 1 Year Pictures are Here!

I absolutely LOVE how Hallie’s 1 year pictures turned out and I can’t wait to share them here with you! First I have to tell you about the day…er days we took these photos.  We were just coming out of that major flooding that Dallas was having! Remember me talking about those weeks of nonstop rain? Yep these photos were taken right at the end of that and the humidity was at it’s finest of course…don’t believe me, check out my hair towards the end of these photos!
Anyway, Hallie was also in a fairly grumpy mood the day we went to take the pictures (even with Whitney trading Hallie little pieces of tortilla for smiles…Bribery works folks!) so we ended up  stretching them over 2 days! (Thanks Whitney!) So that’s why you might spot some inconsistencies with the balloons and what not! But even after all the fuss, as usual Whitney did a fantastic job with the photos!

So without further ado…some of my favorites!

The purple blanket was her favorite baby blanket

This is the crown she wore in her newborn pictures

This is the sweet one we used for the party invitations! 

Those eyes!

Of course Princess Margot had to make an appearance

The pearls were a gift from Hallie’s Memi when she was born

Mini Daddy

Thank you again Whitney for the lovely photos! I am having a hard time choosing which ones to frame, so any thoughts are welcomed! Also if you want to check out the rest including Hallie’s lovely bear crawl photos (since she couldn’t yet walk and refused to crawl on the pavement) you can check them out here!

Happy Thursday!
<3 Kelly

Who, What, When, Where, Why Wednesday with Sara

Happy Wednesday friends, and welcome back to another edition of Who, What, When, Where, Why Wednesday! Today I have Sara from My Journey of Doing over to tell us a little more about herself and her blog! I LOVE that Sara, like myself is from Dallas!

Who?- Who are you? Tell my readers a bit about yourself 

 Hi!  I’m Sara – a petroleum engineer turned college counselor.  I run a non-profit organization in one of the largest urban school districts and oversee 12 high schools and a staff of advisers who help 100% of the senior class apply to college!  When I’m not pretending that I’m still 18, I can usually be found with my husband, volunteering with Junior League, or plotting my next vacation. 
What?- What do you Blog about? 
I feel like my blog has been taken over by trying to plan our renovation that actually started this week (finally!) and Travel Tuesday link-ups (because I love to distract myself from all the work that is coming up in August with the start of a new school year) lately. I enjoy trying and sharing new recipes, posting about DIY/decor projects (though admittedly there haven’t many of those in anticipation of the remodel!), and bragging on my staff and our students.  I’m constantly resolving to be a better blogger.   

When?- When did you start blogging?

Oh boy.  I’ve been blogging since the LiveJournal days of 2002. (LIVEHOURNAL! Thanks for that blast from the past Sara!) I’ve run through quite a few different blogs since then, but this one appears to be here to stay! 

Where? –Where do you live? 
 Dallas, Texas

Why?- Why did you decide to blog
When I started this blog, my then-boyfriend-now-husband had just started his own law firm and we were trying to get it off the ground.  I was still working in oil and gas consulting, and I felt like all I did was work.  I started this blog to try and make myself DO MORE – whether that was baking or cooking, making projects, or getting involved in things outside of work.  I wanted a space that would allow me to embrace more of my creativity and challenge me to quit focusing solely on work. 

Ready to get to know Sara a bit better? Here comes the fun part:


1. What show could you watch reruns of over and over and never get sick of?

 There’s not just one.  There couldn’t be.  The Newsroom and West Wing are two shows that my husband and I will watch together non-stop.  Aaron Sorkin is a genius and his writing (and high-mindedness) inspires me – where are these newsmen and politicians that he writes about??  I really think we should seek to emulate them to improve our world!  My guilty pleasures are Gilmore Girls and Gossip Girl.  Gilmore Girls because it reminds my mom and me of our relationship and Gossip Girl for Blair’s clothes and headbands… and because I wish I looked like Blake Lively. (I am with you on those last 2!)

2. What is your favorite recipe to make? 

My dad’s semi-homemade chicken alfredo!  It’s easy, tasty, and it’s been a part of my life for over 20 years… which is actually kind of ridiculous to think about now.
3. Tell us about your favorite memory from your wedding.  
 Oh my.  So hard to choose.  Let’s start with the fact that as soon as the priest said the final words on the last reading, my husband didn’t wait for the priest to proclaim us husband and wife, he didn’t wait to be told he could kiss the bride, he just went for it.  The photos of my bridesmaids reacting to it always makes me laugh.  There’s also a moment that wasn’t photographed – but, right before my Matron of Honor walked through the doors of the church during the ceremony, she turned to me and whispered, “You’re getting married!”  It was the sweetest thing ever – I doubt she remembers it – but I remember the sheer excitement that she shared with me at that big moment – and it touched my heart.  (Doesn’t Sara look gorgeous?! Fun Fact…she got married in one of my favorite Churches!)  
4. What is your favorite spot in your home town?
If you come to Dallas, you HAVE to go to Mi Cocina.  They have the best salsa, the best margaritas, and the best food.  I have a really special place in my heart for Nasher Sculpture Center, and I love the Dallas Arboretum.  If you’re coming to shop, NorthPark mall is where it’s at now – but don’t go on the weekends (unless you get up super early!).
5. What’s the best vacation you’ve ever been on? 
 Impossible, Kelly!  Obviously, the dream trip was our two-week honeymoon to Europe.  We put it off for eighteen months because my non-profit program grew significantly right before we got married.  (Canceling it was SO HARD.  So many tears.)  We finally took it this past April, and it was amazing.  Neither one of us did ANY work (unheard of!) and we spent our days wandering through Italy, France, and Ireland.  It was such a luxury to be able to take two weeks off from work and just enjoy being with each other.  Speaking more practically, we absolutely love Half Moon Bay, just south of San Francisco.  We did our mini-moon there and whenever I’m stressed or overwhelmed, I just think of what it would be like to be there, enjoying the cool weather and the ability to do absolutely nothing but enjoy the beautiful coastline. (I AM SO JEALOUS YOU GOT TO GO TO HALF MOON BAY! Each time I got to San Fran I always think I am going to get out there and never do! Next time!) 

Thanks Sara for joining me today! Y’all don’t forget to check out her blog today!
<3 Kelly

Pearl the Mermaid

Being a Summer baby, I was dying to get Hallie a little Mermaid doll! I had seen a bunch advertised and had settled on a precious one from Etsy! The day I finally went to make my purchase (if you know me at all I tend to stew on possible purchases FOREVER before I finally take the plunge and make the purchase) I found that the shop owner had practically doubled her prices! I just couldn’t justify this doll purchase. I searched Etsy for days and found several shops with some very cute dolls, but was stunned when I found these precious hand made dolls from Lunnita Studio.

            
She has so many adorable dolls both in her shop and on her Facebook page! I just couldn’t decide! I had been dead set on a mermaid from the beginning though, so eventually I went with this precious Mermaid doll, which we affectionately named Pearl, after Hallie’s birthstone! 
Pearl is gorgeously handcrafted and completely flawless! 
She is perfect for play
And is also great to cuddle up with! 

We couldn’t be more pleased with our selection!  I am completely blown away with the quality! The customer service of the sweet shop owner is amazing as well.  She is super quick and so easy to work with! Speaking of easy to work with, she also does custom orders! Please make sure to check out all of the beautiful dolls she has crafted on her Facebook page before making your selection on Etsy! There are so many gorgeous dolls to choose from!
We will definitely be back for more dolls!
Happy Shopping!
<3 Kelly

Christmas in July

Hallie and I had a wonderful weekend! We got to spend plenty of time with family! Hallie got to see ALL 4 of her grandparents and even some of her friends!

And of course being the 24th and 25th of July (Friday and Saturday) we celebrated Christmas in July! Aside from listening to nonstop Christmas music for 2 days, this is how we celebrated:

On Friday:
Cleo and Sadie still had some business to attend to before we could get to the fun stuff! They had reading to do and some math to practice and what not.  Hallie busied herself reading Christmas books and playing with her favorite Christmas buddies:

Where is Baby’s Christmas Present / Frosty the Snowman

I tried to make Math fun by giving the girls Christmas themed word problems

After math, the girls were anxious to watch their favorite Christmas movie! So we curled up with some popcorn!

 Cleo and Sadie both wore red for the occasion

After the movie we baked some cookies

While they were cooling though I had a fun game planned:
Christmas Carol Pictionary:
 I wrote names of Christmas Carols on paper and the girls took turns drawing them out for us all to guess which carol they were drawing! It was hilarious!  Among my favorite guesses was: “No talk Night” (Silent night) Sadie left us in fits of giggles! 
When the cookies cooled, the girls had fun decorating and eating their yummy treats! 

We made a lot more, but my hands were starting to get sticky and covered in frosting! It was a great day though!! 
Saturday:
After some fun playing with her friends, Hallie and I went to downtown McKinney with my parents to have some lunch, do a little shopping and of course we HAD to stop into Emporium Pies for their Christmas in July pies! 

They were super delicious! Hallie loved them of course! 
Hope everyone else had a FANTASTIC weekend! Did you celebrate Christmas in July?
<3 Kelly

Oh hey, Friday and Merry Christmas in July!

I am kind of a Christmas freak….I am a holiday freak really, but Christmas is my ABSOLUTE favorite! The carols, the movies, the weather, the cozy clothes, the decorations, mugs of steaming hot coffee, and just the peaceful feeling it gives me! Unfortunately we cannot celebrate Christmas in July with Midnight Mass and the decorations…and the weather certainly isn’t cooling off for the occasion but at least the girls and I can make believe a bit! Make sure to toon into the blog next week to see how we celebrated! 

But for now it’s Oh hey, Friday and I am sharing some of my favorite recent pictures of baby girl!

1.

Here’s baby girl helping me reign in those crazy big girls! 

2.

Rocking the piggies for the first time!

3.

So strong! 

4.

Posing for a picture! Such a model!

5.

Earlier in the week we went swimming with buddy Mira! Her Mommy used to be a teacher at my big girl’s school, so they were dying to play with Mira!

Can’t wait to share all of the fun Chistmasy shenanigans we get into today! 
Merry Christmas and a Happy Weekend!
<3 Kelly 

Pesto Ranch Chicken Pasta

This is my go to easy crock pot meal! Everyone in the house LOVES it too!  And guess what….?
It is 4 ingredients!

Ingredients:
Pasta of your choice
3-4 Chicken breasts (depending on size…if they are large I do 3)
1 jar of Pesto
1 Ranch seasoning packet
(Optional Parmesan and mozzarella Cheese to top)

To prepare:
Place chicken breast in crockpot.  Season with 1/2 of ranch.  Dump pesto over the chicken.  Season with the rest of the ranch.  Let cook on high for 4 1/2 hours.  If you choose you can add a little mozzarella to melt on top in the last 1/2 hour.

Cook pasta according to package. You can also toss a little olive oil and italian seasoning in with your pasta.  The olive oil will help keep it from sticking to the sides.

 Top the pasta with the chicken and a little of the sauce from the sides of the crockpot.  Garnish with cheese if desired!

Enjoy! <3 Kelly

Who, What, When, Where, Why, Wednesday with Leslie

Happy Wednesday again Ladies and Gents…any Gentlemen readers…aside from my Dad? 
Anyway, today I have Leslie here from This is For Keeps!  Her daughter Mila is just the cutest!  You should definitely go give her some blog love today as well as getting to know her here! 


Who?- Who are you?
I’m Leslie and I blog over at This is For Keeps.  I’m a 30-something working mom and I’ve been married for nearly 3 years to my husband, Tim.  We have a daughter Mila (who turns two this weekend) and a furbaby Leonidas (he’s our 7 year old yorkie poo who needed a tough name).  

What?- What do you Blog about?

I blog about a little bit of everything, although I’d say mostly Mila and parenthood.  I started out mostly recapping miscellaneous parts of my life, but once I discovered this little blogging community, I tried to expand my writing a bit so it’s somewhat interesting to other readers!  You can expect to read about anything from Stitch Fix reviews to potty training and everything in between!

When?- When did you start blogging? 
I started blogging back in 2011, a few days after Tim and I got engaged.







Where? –Where do you live? 

I live in eastern Pennsylvania and I’ve lived here all my life.  I often complain about our bitter cold winters here, but I don’t think I could ever move away!

Why?- Why did you decide to blog

I started my blog as sort of a journal for myself, chronicling my wedding planning and then my pregnancy.  I love to write, so a blog kind of just made sense.  This is For Keeps evolved from wedding planning to pregnancy and now to parenthood, so it’s pretty cool to have everything in writing to look back on.  

And for my favorite part of the show…5 random questions to get to know Leslie a bit better!

1. Which celebrity’s closet would you want to raid?
Lauren Conrad for sure.  I love her style!  I’ve been trying to spruce up my wardrobe and a little help from Lauren’s closet would do wonders!
2. What one destination are you dying to travel to? 
This is a toss up.  I would really love to visit Greece, but I’ve always wanted to stay in one of those little bungalows over the water in Bora Bora.  There is probably more to do in Greece that Tim and I would mutually agree upon and I’m guessing Greece is also a bit more child friendly than Bora Bora.  So I’d probably say Greece if I had to choose between the two.  If I happened to find a million dollars lying around, I’d happily visit both places though!  😉
3. Sneakers or high heels?
Sneakers, no question about it.  I despise heels.  I don’t know how so many women do it, wearing heels all day.  I wear heels for an hour and feel like my feet are going to fall off!  My sister and my mom have both made fun of me over the years for my lack of style in the shoe department.  As much as I’d love to have all the cute shoes, comfort is priority when it comes to my feet. 
4. If you had a day to yourself and money was no object,  what would you do?
If I had a day to myself?!  Well, first off, that would be glorious and my first reaction is to say that I’d sleep in and lounge on the couch all day!  However, I think I’d grab Tim and take a day trip somewhere close.  Cape May, NJ comes to mind – where we could enjoy the beach, hit up some wineries, and grab dinner and drinks in their cute little town.
5. What’s your favorite room in your home? 
Hands down, our living room.  It’s the biggest room in our home, so it makes for a great entertaining area whenever we have family and friends over.  We also get lots of sunlight in there and it just has such a comfy feel – I can (and usually do) spend all day in this room.  Another reason why I like this room so much is because of our bold color choice.  The rest of our house is very neutral, but our living room is green – my favorite color.  Growing up, I always wanted a green bedroom and my parents wouldn’t go for it (although, at the time, my favorite color was lime green, so I see their point…).  I was thrilled when Tim said he was on board with the green color swatch I picked out before we moved in.  While a bold green room isn’t most people’s style, it works well in our living room and we absolutely love it.  (Disclaimer: our living room usually doesn’t look like this with a toddler on the loose!)
Thanks Leslie so much for joining us today! 
Please shoot me an email at kelhof87@gmail.com if you are interested in being featured on Who, What, When, Where, Why Wednesday or with collaborating with me here at Happily Ever Mock.  
<3 Kelly