On Tuesday, Ryan and I celebrated our 8 year wedding anniversary!
(One balloon floated out of the frame but I attached little notes with 8 reasons why I love Ryan to 8 balloons as a little anniversary surprise. Thank you, Pinterest, for this idea!)
We kept things pretty low key but really enjoyed talking about the past 8 years of our marriage. Something about anniversaries always makes me want to reflect and we both said it’s hard to believe that the past 8 years have been filled with three moves (Orlando, Ocala and Charlotte), buying our first house, two kids, some amazing travel opportunities (both in the United States and abroad), job changes and plenty of wonderful memories. Also, when I shared a picture from our wedding on Instagram on our anniversary, I had quite a few of you chime in and say you remember reading about our wedding on the blog in real-time 8 years ago. That truly means more to me than you know and I want to say a big thank you to the long-time readers out there for following our family for so long! You guys are the best!
And now let’s move right along into this week’s Things I’m Loving Friday and chat about what we’re all loving most this week, shall we?
Things I’m Loving Friday
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Halloween 2018
To the parents with older children, is Halloween one of those holidays that just gets better and better as your kids get older? I thought Halloween with a two-year-old was so fun last year but Chase’s enthusiasm took it to another level this year! He was so into trick-or-treating with two of his best friends and watching his little dragon-dino tail wag as he sprinted up various neighborhood driveways was too darn cute.
We ate pizza and went trick-or-treating with our friends and their little ones and had the best time! Ryder sported the same pumpkin costume Chase wore that my mom made for him when he was a teeny little guy back in 2015 and handled my desire for a million “baby’s first Halloween” pictures really well!
Flying pumpkin!
(My hair ribbon was another recent American Eagle find!)
Also, this is kind of random but I am officially declaring Halloween my all-time favorite day on Instagram. I get the biggest kick out of seeing everyone’s creativity come to life in various costumes (the costumes with the puns are the BEST) and I just found myself smiling all day long on Wednesday! Maybe next year we’ll feel a little more motivated to tackle the whole family costume thing because those are always so cute!
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The Queen of Hearts by Kimmery Martin
I briefly mentioned this book on the blog earlier this week, but add it to your must-read list if you are a fan of medical dramas! I absolutely loved reading The Queen of Hearts and thought it was a great break from some of the more suspenseful thrillers and murdery books I’ve found myself picking up lately.
The book follows the lives of Zadie and Emma, two best friends who met in their early 20s when they were in med school. Now successful doctors with families they love and adore, a blast from the past in the form of a former chief resident, Dr. Xenokostas, reappears in their lives when he accepts a job at the hospital where Emma works and brings with him pain, secrecy, regret, guilt and the ability to potentially cause a long-lasting friendship to unravel.
If you like TV shows like Grey’s Anatomy, I think you’d also love this book (though it absolutely has more depth to it)!
A while back, I remember reading somewhere that the clothing sold at Gap Factory stores is manufactured specifically for the factory store. When I was browsing Banana Republic Factory’s website for my leopard slides, I clicked over to Gap Factory and was pretty darn excited to see the exact same baby clothes I had my eye on at Gap for sale online on the Gap Factory website for way cheaper. I’m not sure if this is always the case but I considered it a major score!
I absolutely love Gap’s zip-up footie onesies and couldn’t resist nabbing a few for Ryder and Callie. (The black and white stripe onesie on Ryder in the above pic is part of the set I bought for him that also came with the cutest penguin onesie!) Aaand I may have put a couple more in my cart when I stumbled upon their holiday pajama section as I was typing up this post. (And just FYI, they’re currently having their Friends & Family sale so everything is 40% off + free shipping with the code FFTIME.)
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StitchFix Kids Delivery
StitchFix did it again! They sent some big-time winners our way in Chase’s latest fashion fix and we ended up keeping six of the 10 items. I requested some comfy tees for layering, a nice sweater and a hoodie for playtime and they nailed it! This may sound silly but I get incredibly excited for Chase’s StitchFix deliveries because I often feel uninspired when it comes to dressing him but at the same time I can fully appreciate quality kids’ apparel. I also love the price point of the clothes they sent our way (our items ranged from $12 – $35 and the most expensive item was the jacket) and I am looking forward to his next delivery already!
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Friday Flashbacks
How to Keep a Toddler Entertained on a Long Road Trip (With the holidays on the horizon, keep this blog post on your radar if you have little ones to entertain during holiday travels!)
Crock Pot Coconut Chicken Cauliflower Rice Stew (Healthy comfort food in a bowl, this Crock Pot Coconut Chicken and Cauliflower Rice Stew is the perfect weeknight dinner to serve when the temperatures outside begin to dip.)
Question of the Day
What was one of the most creative Halloween costumes you saw this year?
What is one thing that made you smile this week?
You might like the book Brain On Fire if you’re into medical dramas.
Kate(Quote)
Our oldest is a few months younger than Chase and I agree about Halloween. We didn’t get to trick or treat last year because she was sick, so this was her first year, and wow, it was just the most amazing thing. Hands down one of my top 5 favorite family moments!
Sara(Quote)
Oh my goodness! Ryder is too precious in that striped zip-up!! Sounds like a great week and happy anniversary! I’ve been reading since your Ocala days and really enjoy following your blog 🙂
Jessie R(Quote)
Love love love Halloween! I think it’s much more fun now that we all get involved. When my youngest was a year old my oldest thought it would be great for all of us to dress up as a character from Curious George, so of course we had a George, Professor Wiseman, Chef Pisghetti, and the man with the yellow hat. Last year we did the Incredibles, and this year PJ Mask characters. I make the costumes (with the help of Pinterest) which makes Halloween just a bit more special.
Elizabeth(Quote)
How is Callie? Praying for your family!
Meesh(Quote)
Was going to comment the same thing. How is she? Hope all is well.
Lisa(Quote)
Hi Lisa! I just replied to Meesh’s comment above and didn’t want you to miss it. Thank you so, so much for thinking of them and for your well wishes. <3
Julie(Quote)
Hi Meesh! I’m sorry I’m just now checking back on comments from last Friday’s post! Ah! Thank you for thinking of Callie and, most importantly, for your prayers. We appreciate them so much! I’d love to share more but the big sister in me is just trying to respect their privacy right now and likely will not be sharing too much until they’re ready for a visitor but I will say that all updates have been extremely positive. <3 Thanks again for thinking of them!!
Julie(Quote)
That water color book is awesome!
My oldest is only 5, but I would say look forward to it getting better and better! They start to really understand the concept and ththeththey aren’t as shy or scared. Plus, if he and you have friends to go with it is a blast!
Krystan(Quote)
I can totally see how 5 would be an even more exciting age! Love the enthusiasm from kids on Halloween!!
Julie(Quote)
Did you see the costume of the 2 year old girl from the Philippines that went viral?? You have to look it up. So creative and creepy at the same time!
https://www.today.com/parents/little-girl-s-headless-costume-wins-halloween-t140953
Samantha(Quote)
Thank you for sharing this! I hadn’t seen it and it’s amazing! So creative! Creepy for sure
Sara Wilson(Quote)
Oh. My goodness. Trick or treating with a 3 year old was the epitome of joy! So much fun!!! We saw one of those huge dinosaur costumes and my girl thought it was hilarious 😂
Sarah @ Sweet Miles(Quote)
Happy Anniversary! Halloween is definitely more fun with kids!!! It is just so much fun seeing the excitement in their faces!!! Your boys are just adorable in their costumes!
Hope Callie continues to get stronger! Prayers for her parents and your parents!
Amber(Quote)
Thank you for letting us know about the Gap Factory sale! I love their bralettes. They are the best. Ryder is such a happy little guy. 🙂
Ginger(Quote)
Oh man, that penguin onesie is TOO cute! More poor future children are going to be subjected to so many penguin-themed clothes when it’s my responsibility to buy their clothes and dress them, haha.
I loved seeing everyone’s costumes on Halloween, too. I’m not really much of a dresser-upper myself for Halloween, but I love seeing what other people come up with – people can be so creative!
Bethany @ Accidental Intentions(Quote)
That little pumpkin costume is the cutest! I dressed as John Bender from Breakfast Club this year and I’m actually a little spooked at how much we look alike. It was a strange discovery!! I also handed out candy to trick-or-treaters for the first time ever on Halloween night this year! I felt like such an adult. When I was still in New Orleans, there were always parties on Halloween night and living in a high-rise in D.C. didn’t allow for much trick-or-treat action. But who knew a suburb in SoCal would be the year it happened! It was a great time, especially because we still have candy leftover. Score! – Kaitlyn
Kaitlyn McQuin(Quote)
Great post Julie! Did you see Jessica Simpson and her husband in costume?! Hysterical! And the little girl with the bun, Target bag, Starbucks drink, and cabbage patch kids attached to her? She dressed up ase! Well, as all frazzled moms! Soo funny! My two year old was a gnome 🙂
Sara Wilson(Quote)
Oh my gosh so I saw her IG post and didn’t even realize that was HER!!!! Too funny!
Julie(Quote)
Thank you for sharing this! I hadn’t seen it and it’s amazing! So creative! Creepy for sure
Sara Wilson(Quote)
Before reading even the rest of the post, after you said it was your 8th wedding anniversary I remembered that I found your blog and started reading just before you got married — blows my mind I’ve been following now for 8 years! Congratulations!
You’ve built such a beautiful family (and I love that second photo with Ryder — adorable!) over the years. I’ve appreciated how you have always had a positive attitude and continued to model how to prioritize health and fitness (in a mentally healthy way) through job changes, moves, and additions to your family. Congratulations again on your anniversary and I hope you have a wonderful weekend!
Emily(Quote)
I do think Halloween gets better as kids get older! I have a 7, 5, and almost 3 year old, they ran to pretty much every door! And there was no arguing the whole night, other than negotiating candy consumption haha! Happy Anniversary, I remember reading your wedding recap too!
Heather(Quote)
I can’t believe you didn’t mention that The Queen of Heart’s setting is Charlotte and the author is local! I read it last year and it is wonderful.
Susan(Quote)
I loved the Charlotte ties, too! I just didn’t mention it since most of my readers aren’t Charlotte-based but it definitely made it more fun to read!
Julie(Quote)
Aww, Happy Anniversary! I read often but comment infrequently 🙂 and just have to say it’s been a joy following your adventures through life. Cheers to many more years of happiness!
Dee(Quote)
Awh! I love all the photos you shared in this post. Ryder looks adorable in his orange and white zip up!
Happy Anniversary as well. I am so happy for you guys.
Mindy(Quote)