Let’s Get Casual + July Recap + Olly Is TWO!

Let’s Get Casual + July Recap + Olly Is TWO!

Hold onto your hats, grab a cup of coffee and get comfy, because this is going to be a big post! I’m combining posts today because holy moly OLIVER IS TWO! His second birthday was Saturday and we celebrated all weekend. We had donuts, went to the super adorable toddler amusement park called Memphis Kiddie Park, ate Olly’s favorite tacos and guac, saw a minor league baseball game, and of course enjoyed lots of cake.

At two years old, Olly is hilarious, sweet, thoughtful, mischievous, loving, and emotional. Oh, so emotional. His favorite things on earth are balls and lawnmowers. But he’s just as happy to carry around a baby doll and would cuddle all day if that were an option. When he’s up to no good he gets a twinkle in his eye that reminds me so much of Andy. His vocabulary is expanding every day and I love it when he surprises us with a word out of nowhere (like lawnmower a few months ago). Olly is just a true delight and I’m so excited to continue to get to know him… But I’m in no hurry for him to grow up!

When we made the deliberate decision to have two kids in under 19 months, we knew this time in our lives with a “terrible two” AND a “threenager” would be really, really hard. And I’m not going to lie. It’s really, really hard. My days are are mostly spent negotiating their ever changing emotions, outbursts, temper tantrums and disagreements over, well, everything. As I write this, they’re both crying because one very much wants to watch a certain show on TV and the other very much does not want to watch that show, and one of them just bit me. BUT, and I’m being really honest, even despite the chaos (and the occasional bite), it’s also just so wonderful to be here to experience their pure joy while dancing to ’80s music, or their smiles while receiving their favorite toy for their birthday, or the sweetness when they give each other goodnight hugs at the end of the day. I wouldn’t change these crazy hard, crazy fun days for anything.

July was such an incredible month. We spent the first two weeks at the cabin as a family. Most of our time was spent renovating the kitchen, organizing and arranging furniture, and of course enjoying that deck, but we also were able to go on awesome adventures exploring the local area and even spent a wonderful day on Mackinac Island, one of my favorite places on earth and a must-see if you’re in Northern Michigan (perfect for a daytrip from the cabin if you happen to find yourself staying there someday!!). We also had some fun adventures back at home in Cleveland, and Joanna took a week-long gymnastics camp that she loved.

I can’t believe in a month Joey will be starting preschool and we’ll be starting a whole new chapter in our lives!

Things I’m loving lately:

• Mini Boden just launched their line of Harry Potter-themed kids clothes and I WANT IT ALL! (For the kids, of course, but hmm, could I fit into any of it???) I’m considering getting this Hogwarts sweater … or this Hedwig dress … or these Harry Potter pajamas… but I can’t even choose because it’s all so good! What’s your favorite?
• While we’re on the subject of Boden, I’m obsessed with this kelly green pea coat, which of course is sold out in my size, go figure.
• Checking out ALL of these recommended books for boys from the library! (follow Happily Ever Elephants on Instagram for great book recommendations for kids)
• Not the most exciting topic, but washable home air filters sound like a great idea that we should look into (via Yellow Brick Home).
• Another thing I never expected to say: the most adorable mini dustpan and brush set.
• We’re deep (aka totally drowning) in planning our cabin bathroom renovation that’s starting in September, and I literally sent a picture of @conklinhouse’s shower to our contractor.
• Did you catch the Instagram sneak peek of the “charming peach” tile we chose? Of course we’ll talk WAY more about the cabin bathroom as things start happening! (We’re not DIYing this job because it’s a biggie.)

And, we also still owe you more updates on the cabin kitchen, so stay tuned for that coming up later this week!!