The Life of Riley

Happy Father's Day

Happy Father's Day to 4 of the best dads I know. My dad is one of the most selfless people I know. He has always been there for me, and I love him more than I could ever say. He is the first man I ever loved, and he is just as special as a granddaddy. Brady and Katelyn love their Waldo so much.

Secondly, of course my husband is the absolute best husband and father. I couldn't imagine a better daddy to my children. We love you so much and are so thankful everyday that you are ours! We could not survive without you. You always put your family first and love us with your whole heart. We may not show it all the time, but we appreciate everything you do for us.

Third, I am so lucky to have the best father-in-law in the world. He has always treated me like his own daughter, and is so sweet to Brady and Katelyn. We are so blessed to have him in our lives.

And finally, I am blessed with the best, funniest, most full of life granddaddy ever. He has always kept us laughing, and I hope that when I am his age I am still as active and "with it" as he is. We love you Geno!

Happy Father's Day to all the daddy's out there!

Fashion Friday

I am going to try to do a "Fashion Friday" post every week. This can include a number of things: sales going on, current trends I like, children's fashion, etc.

To kick off my first Fashion Friday post, I thought I would start with little boys fashion. Everyone always says that little boys just aren't fun to dress. But, I don't think that is true. There are plenty of cute options for boys as well. I will admit as he gets older it gets harder to find things that are cute, but age appropriate. I don't want my two year old all of a sudden looking 15!

When he was a baby, I was all about the bubbles and jon jons. Paul was never too keen on this style, but hey he is only little for a short time and then he will be wearing shorts and t-shirts/polos the rest of his life.

I only bought 1 jon jon for this year. He is pushing it on being a little too old for them, but I just had to stretch it for one more summer! My favorite place to find cute smocked jon-jons is Shrimp and Grits Kids. They have the most adorable smocked clothing and right now their whole summer line is on sale! This is the jon-jon I purchased for Brady:

It is no secret that I love to put my babies in matching outfits, so naturally Katelyn has the matching bubble. I also like shopping at Shrimp and Grits Kids because they are a local company in Charleston, and my niece and nephew model for the catalog :). I'm a proud aunt.

Another reason I had to move on from the jon jons is because I realized once we potty trained Brady, it was not quite as convenient when he had on a one piece. We are trying to teach him to go by himself to the potty, and it is much easier to just pull down elastic shorts. So, one of my favorite places to find good knits for Brady is at Kelly's Kids. They can be a little pricey, but the quality is very good, and Brady can still wear a lot of his stuff from last year as it runs pretty big. Here are some of my favorites from this year. Notice they are all easy on/off elastic waste bands.

1. crab shirt | crab shorts 2. lizard shirt | stripe shorts 3. blue/yellow striped polo | white shorts
4. blue polo | plaid shorts

The best part is, this week ONLY all summer clothes are 40% off. Grab them before they are gone! I hardly ever pay full price for my kid's clothing, and I will share my secrets on that in another post. When it comes to just everyday play clothes, my go to places are usually Gap, J Crew Factory, and Old Navy- all online. I hardly ever go into physical stores anymore. The internet just makes it too easy. I will occasionally pick things up at Target if I see something cute, because that is one store that I frequent often :). I want my kids to look cute, but also be comfortable.

In the shoe department, my favorite sandals are these salt water sandals.

Brady pretty much lives in his crocs in the summer, because they are durable, can get wet, and best of all he can put them on himself. If you have a toddler/pre-schooler and don't have a pair of crocs, do yourself a favor and go buy some now. I always thought they were ugly and never understood the trend, but now I totally get it.

As far as school shoes go, a good tennis shoe does the trick. Brady is currently rocking these. I think they are just adorable on him, and they are velcro making them easy on, easy off.

I think shopping for my kids clothes is so fun. Where is your favorite place to shop for your kids?

Pool bag essentials

We pretty much go to the pool almost everyday now. It is the perfect activity for the whole family, and the best part is it wears the kids slap out! Hello 3 hour nap time :). Here are the essentials for a good time at the pool!

1. Salt Water Canvas Whale Bag- It is essential to have a good pool/beach bag especially when you have children. They come with a lot of stuff, and I was searching for the perfect bag to tote it all. My sister-in-law suggested this Whale Bag, and it is perfect. You can fit up to 6 towels in it, and it has lots of outside pockets for sunscreen, etc. It is mesh, so if you take it to the beach you can easily spray out all of the sand.

2. Baby pool float- This obviously cannot fit in the actual pool bag, but it is key when taking your baby to the pool. I like this particular float, because it comes with a canopy to provide shade as well.

3. Good towels- Brady and Katelyn have these towels from Pottery Barn Kids. They are big which I like, because I can't stand a tiny beach towel. Also, a little secret a friend shared with me one time is that TJ Maxx actually has great beach towels. That is where Paul and I got our towels, and I love them. Paul's is actually a Lacoste towel, and I got it there for like $15.

4. Pool hat- Katelyn received this pool hat as a gift. It is perfect, because it is made out of the same material as a swim suit, so it is ok if it gets wet, and it helps protect her head/face from the sun.

5. Sunscreen- This is probably a no brainer, but obviously sunscreen is a must. I actually use the spray can and the cream. I like the spray for their bodies, but use the cream for their faces. I don't have a particular brand that I like best. I just use anything 30 spf or higher.

6. Sunglasses- Brady really likes his sunglasses, so we make sure to always have those in the bag.

7. Fruit snacks- Fruit snacks are one of Brady's favorite things. They both love to have a snack by the pool, so we make sure to pack a couple of things. Brady usually wants fruit snacks and Katelyn has goldfish.

8. Puddle jumper- This is the best invention ever. Brady is pretty self sufficient in the pool with this contraption on. However, it has to be this particular brand. Paul tried to buy a different one, and it just didn't work the same. This one is definitely the best.

9. Water bottles- It is important to stay hydrated, and these are our favorite water bottles. They are the Eddy Camelbaks.

10. Pool toys- I mostly pack a couple of things for Katelyn, because Brady is pretty much just entertained swimming around and jumping in. But a couple little squirt toys help keep her entertained.

Make sure to bring your truck to haul everything.

A few of my favorite things

I am just loving everything about summer right now and wanted to share a few of my favorite things.

1. My hydrangeas- I certainly do not have a green thumb and have never been one to do any kind of gardening, but I have loved watching my hydrangeas bloom this year. They have always been one of my favorite flowers. I just think they are so gorgeous. It is mine and Brady's little after work activity to go water the flowers. I want to cut some to bring inside, but they are just so pretty out there I can't bring myself to do it!

2. Our screened porch- I love a screened porch. It is so nice to be able to sit outside, but not have to endure the pesky bugs. I have been trying to take full advantage of it while we can. I love sitting out there with friends and having cocktails in the evenings. I also love having my morning coffee out there on the weekends while the kids play. The porch is one of Katelyn's favorite places. If we open that back door she makes a b-line to get out there.

3. Orange is the New Black- The new season of Orange is the New Black is out on Netflix, and I am so excited. I will warn you this is certainly not a show for children, and it took me by surprise at first. It is very provocative, but I find it hilarious as well.

4. Fruity cocktails- Wine is typically my adult beverage of choice, but since it has been rather hot lately, I have enjoyed having Paul make me some different fruity cocktail concoctions. I can only have about 1, because I can't drink too much sweet stuff. But, I look forward to my little specialty drinks in the evenings.

5. Bubbles- I mean bubbles as in the clothing. Adorable baby bubbles are seriously the cutest. I love being able to see all the chub on our sweet baby girl. It is no secret that I love shopping for my kids clothes, and these are some of my favorites!

Listen

Listen...I must say this word 500 times a day. "Please listen." "Brady are you listening?" "Listen to daddy." "I need you to listen to me." I swear, I try to be patient with my children and no lie during silent confession during worship on Sunday that is one thing I ALWAYS pray about. Please help me to be a more patient and loving wife and mother. But, sometimes it is hard. It is hard to reason with a 2 year old. They don't understand, and all they can think about is that moment. I know they call it the "terrible twos" for a reason. I would not call them "terrible". There are many things I love about a 2 year old- the funny things they say, their adorable giggle, their imagination. But let's be honest, it can be very challenging parenting a two year old.

I write this after QUITE the day. Brady was testing us like no other. Paul came home from work early, and I must have gotten 10 text messages about Brady's antics. I hear that 3 is only worse (Lord help us). I have to constantly remind myself that the days are long, but the years are short. I remember when I was beyond exhausted and Brady would only be content in my arms that Paul would tell me, "just think, we will think back to these moments and they will be some of the best memories of our lives." I have to say that is so true. In the moment all I wanted was for him to grow and start sleeping through the night, but now I miss those nights. I miss holding that tiny newborn in my arms and kissing his silky soft cheeks a hundred times. It is hard when you are in the moment and trying to keep your calm with a rambunctious two year old, but I will miss these days so much when they are gone. Being a mother is the absolute BEST and MOST challenging job there is. It might be bumpy, but I am enjoying the ride.

Why I blog

First and foremost, I blog as a way to have a scrapbook of my children. It is something that I look at often just to reminisce on the things we have done and how they are growing and changing so quickly. It is a place for me to jot down the adorable things they say and do. Above all else, I blog for ME. It is my little space to share whatever I would like. I hope that my kids will appreciate it one day. I think about how neat it would have been if I had an archive of my life where I could see what I was doing at each age.

I blog because I love to write. It has always been a passion of mine and the reason I majored in Journalism in college. My family used to joke about what I was writing about them, because I always carried around a notebook and pen everywhere I went. To be honest, I have no clue what I wrote in those books, but I was always writing something. Although my career has taken me down a different path, I enjoy being able to come to my little space and write about whatever I feel like. There is no pressure of deadlines or perfectly correct grammar. Although, correct grammar is one of my pet peeves, and it does drive me crazy when I read back my blog posts and notice an error. But, they are typically written quickly, at night when I am usually tired, and I just don't have the energy to proofread. So I apologize about that (I will have you know if any of my professors ever read this, I do think about how they would be probably cringe at my mistakes).

I do it for my family. I don't get to see everyone as often as I like, and this gives them a way to keep track of what we are doing.

I have been thinking a lot of expanding my blog into more aspects of my life especially since this month marks 4 YEARS since I started this blog. It will still be primarily about my kids and our family life, but I want to include some more subjects that I enjoy. I may include some topics on fashion, shopping, decorating, etc. I am going to try to update it on a more consistent basis. My blog has always been something that I would like to expand on, but I have just been so busy that I haven't had the time I would like to commit to it. We will see if I follow through on this, but I would like to update atleast 3-4 times a week. Thanks to my readers and followers. I would love any suggestions on some topics you would like me to touch on!

With Love,

Meredith

My fish

I think I have probably mentioned on my blog 500 times that summer is absolutely my favorite time of the year. I don't care about the ridiculous hot days that are to come. All I can think about is the beach, the pool, the lake, the boat, green grass, summer dresses, sunshine...the list goes on and on.

We have already taken full advantage of our neighborhood pool since it has opened. Brady has improved tremendously since last year and even his first time this year in the swimming department. He hasn't had any formal lessons yet, but he can wear his puddle jumper and kick the full length of the pool. He will also jump off the side and completely go under water and pop right up ready to go again!

Katelyn is still getting used to the pool. She loves it as long as it is not cold. Her favorite part of going to the pool is eating snacks :).

We are lucky that we are just a short walk to the pool and the park. Brady and Katelyn are home with a babysitter for the summer, and I couldn't be happier! I am glad that they get to spend their days together and enjoy being outside.

Cheers to the summer!