Freeform Friday

Eek! The weekend is here, and I'm trying to get bags packed for me and the kids so we can hop in the car and head Up North to our family's house in Good Hart. It will be a wondrous week full of drinks on the deck, splashing in the hot tub, and toes in the sand. We're also having our annual pirate party where we dress up (of course!), feast on a Low Country boil, and search the beach for a treasure chest the pirates leave each year for the kids.

These are some links from around the web that I've been checking out (and watching after the kids finally go off to bed). Enjoy!

I love this badass feminist T-shirt.

This satirical piece from HRC's POV is spot on. It's also exactly what my inner voice sounds like when I'm at work meetings.

And in more satire, here is some advice for ambitious women in the workplace. At least I now know what I've been doing wrong all these years!

The FLOTUS's speech this week was electrifying, encouraging, and inspiring. Lock yourself in the bathroom for 14 minutes so you can watch it uninterrupted.

As someone who also loves to eat things made from butter, this I Mom So Hard video on Spanx had me in stitches. Afterwards you absolutely need to marathon their videos. You may or may not pee your pants laughing.

Fans of Papa Hemingway have to read this delightful account of what it was like to write in his Key West home.

Film fans! Put the Humphrey Bogart Film Festival on your bucket list.

(Photo of our glorious Good Hart beach. Find more photos at the Our Moveable Feast on Instagram.)

The F***-It Bucket

“When a hurricane damaged my father's house, my brother rushed over with a gas grill, three coolers full of beer, and a traditional Fuck-It Bucket -- a plastic pail filled with jawbreakers and bite-size candy bars. As he says, 'When shit brings you down, just say "fuck it," and eat yourself some motherfucking candy.'” 

David Sedaris' Me Talk Pretty One Day  

"Let me know what I can do," is a well intentioned phrase that all of us have uttered when someone we're close to is going through a tough time; it's also a statement that is rarely followed through on.

I'll take the guesswork out of it and tell you what to do. The next time your friend, sibling, or coworker is going through a divorce, dealing with a traumatic diagnosis for a loved one, or experiencing any other heart breaking, soul squeezing moment in life, you need to show up with a Fuck-It Bucket.

My version has every comfort food and bag of candy you'd ordinarily be embarrassed to put in your cart: Muchchos, Cheez-Its, fruit snacks, and plenty of candy (heavy on the chocolate).

Because sometimes it's not going to get better right away, and you just need to say "fuck-it" and eat some candy.

An added bonus: here is a link to the Sedaris essay that inspired this post, "You Can't Kill the Rooster."

Freeform Friday

It's the dog days of summer, and I mean that both literally and figuratively. The sultry temps have us headed to the pool, the only acceptable place to be when it's over 90. Furthermore, our days are consumed, in the best way imaginable, with walking, training, and hanging out with our new dog.

Here are some highlights from the Internet this week for you to click through.

It's Hemingway Days in Key West! This lovely tour of his home shows the room where he completed 70% of his work, too.

This banned books mug is the new favorite in our house these days.

I have absolutely no need for this awesome turntable, but as a huge Wilco fan, I still feel compelled to get it.

The third book in Aaron Becker's picture book series comes out August 2, and the trailer looks just as beautiful and exciting as the others.

I'm complete in awe of these gutsy Art Warriors.

This will have to go down as the greatest prank of all time. Steven Colbert, you're my hero.

In other great art as protest news, this was awesome. Kuddos to you, Plastic Jesus.

You may have stopped believing in unicorns, but they didn't stop believing in you. P.S., we saw one in person at Fool Moon, and it. Was. Awesome.

(Photo of my nine-month-old puppy Chauncey. Find more at the Our Moveable Feast Instagram account.)

Cell Phones: An Invitation, Not a Command

When a phones rings, bings, or chimes, it's an invitation. Not a command.

This is what I tell myself whenever I hear it make a sound and I'm sitting at the table, driving the car, talking with friends, or engaged in anything else where I want to be completely present and focused.

I do not need to drop everything and rush to see who needs what. It is perfectly acceptable to keep doing what I'm doing and get to my phone when I'm able and interested.

This is something I hope to model for my kids, too, so they know what to do when they're old enough for phones.

How do you manage the lure of technology? What helpful limits do you give yourself or your kids?

(Photo of Audrey Hepburn, at her Beverly Hills apartment, by Mark Shaw.)

Best Baby Holdovers

When my kids outgrow things, I try to quickly purge the house of anything they don't need anymore. However, there are a few items I picked up for babies that I'm keeping around for the long-haul. Although sold at my favorite baby store, they're great for anybody with kids and pets.

Here is a short list of my tried-and-true favorites:

Boon Grass: For years this held baby bottle supplies, and now it happily holds copper mugs, stove top espresso maker parts, my favorite wooden spoon, and anything else that needs to air dry. It's the perfect size and looks way cooler than ordinary drying racks.

Allen's Stink Out: This amazing laundry additive, that I relied on when washing cloth diaper covers, is incredible at neutralizing, not covering up, bad odors. I now toss it in the laundry when I'm tackling any other stinky problems like: sweaty pits, potty training undies, pet beds, and sports funk.

Blueberry mattress pad: These are great for placing over the pillow of a nauseous kid or under a sick dog. I also have them under the fitted sheet on my kid's bed for random accidents at 3 a.m. so that I only have to change the sheet and not the mattress pad. When one of my littles was having lots of nighttime accidents, I did a double layer (mattress pad, fitted sheet, mattress pad, fitted sheet) so I didn't have to put on a new set of bedding in the middle of the night. I have three for my two kids, and I use them all the time.

Planet Wise medium wet bag: Bring it to the pool for taking wet suits home. Keep one in your purse for emergencies. Load it up with a spare change of clothes for the car or your kid's backpack. I like to use the large wet bags to bring home dirty clothes from vacation, too. 

What are your favorite holdovers that you bought for little kids and still find use for?

Freeform Friday

This weekend holds two very exciting firsts for our family. My son has been invited to participate in his first ever swim meet Saturday morning, and we're bringing home a new dog (!!!) Saturday afternoon. We've put all other big plans on hold so we can spend lots of time getting to know our new pup.

Meanwhile, here are some highlights I've seen from around the Interweb:

I've been reading this book for the first time in 14 years in preparation for bringing home our new dog and am amazed at how different things feel this time around.

I always love it when Ann Arbor gets some national love, this time from Bon Appétit.

After chasing kids all week, this message that recognizes how tiring it is to always be on when caring for small children but also how absolutely precious it is to have tiny humans who love and need you that much really struck a chord.

These fictional Missed Connections make me laugh out loud every time I read them.

I spotted a flyer for the new Harry Potter release party at my favorite local book store and was delighted to see Rowling's magic machine up and running.

Well played, Hillary. Well played.

(Photo of summer on a plate from a dinner my sister and I threw together Thursday night. Find more at the Our Moveable Feast Instagram account.)

Badass Badminton Party

Earlier this summer my sister got a badminton set, and we've been playing it a ton ever since. Like feeling sore for the next two days playing it. It's fun because none of us are pros at a game most of us haven't played since we were kids, and even the best players whiff here and there.

We thought it would be a riot to host a little tournament, a Shuttlecock Social so to say, and these are the basics for planning our badminton party:

We decided to play at our pool club where there are marked sand volleyball courts; if we do this again we might bring our own net and set it up on the grass to make the net height easier.

Vintage athletic apparel was encouraged because everything is more fun when you dress up. I got my '80s tennis dress from a local upscale thrift store where there were tons of great options and a wonderful team of salespeople pulling a dozen options from the racks for me to try on. My sister found her fantastic tennis dress on Ebay (and is also genetically gifted with the ability to fit into anything she tries on). My husband put his outfit together an hour before the party by creating an homage to the Top Gun volleyball scene with cutoffs he made at home and a bright white T-shirt.

For the food, it's easiest to keep it simple. I ordered pizza ahead of time and had it delivered halfway through the tourney. There were lots of cold drinks in coolers along with koozies.

Everyone had a bathing suit and towel to cool off in the pool afterwards 'cause we worked up a sweat.

After all, if you want a soft serve, you can go to Dairy Queen.

Wonder Months

I remember reading a how-to raise your infant book, and it referred to a time of prolific growth in a baby's first 10 months as the "wonder months." It enticed parents of newborns with promises of glorious growth and change that would transform the child's personality. And you know what? It was completely right. It also isn't exclusive to babies. Adults experience wonder months, too.

I came to realize this recently when a friend went through a whirlwind of change and growth buying her own condo, falling in love, traveling abroad, and moving to an exciting big city. These are her wonder months. And everyone can see it. She radiates joy and vivacity.

While chatting about all of the exciting new things going on in her life, it made me think about my own wonder months. For me, it started with a car. In my early 20s, I was fresh off a bad breakup with a longterm boyfriend and feeling adrift in my studies and love life. Hell, life in general. And then everything clicked.

That spring I bought a red convertible that was, and still is, the most fun car I've owned.  I decided to do something constructive with my English major and enrolled in the School of Ed. I got recruited to coach field hockey, a job I loved and held for the next five years. While happily traveling down the road I'd put myself on, I met the love of my life while bagging bread at the bakery where we both worked. And that was that. In a matter of six months I put into motion decisions that would pull me out of my funk and lead me to marry an incredible partner and find a job I love.

What were your wonder months? What series of decisions and outcomes made everything click for you?

(Photo of my sister and me with the convertible that started it all, circa 1999.)

Cold-Packed Pickles

Summer gardens and Farmer's Markets are piled high with tempting options, and pickles need not be overlooked if you're unsure of what to do with them.

I got a version of this simple, tasty recipe from my friend Jonathan years ago, and it produces amazing pickles in no time. They're crunchy and fresh tasting, and we ate the contents of almost a whole jar with lunch earlier this week.

Prep List:

4 pounds pickles

8 c. water
2 c. white vinegar
1/2 c. pickling salt

6+ garlic cloves
Whole mustard seed
Whole black peppercorns
Crushed red pepper
6+ stems fresh dill

Directions:

Combine water, vinegar, and salt in large pot. Bring to a boil and stir to dissolve the salt. Cool to room temperature.

Meanwhile, wash and quarter or halve the pickles.

Prepare six large canning jars by adding, to each, a crushed clove of garlic (or more if you'd like), a big pinch each of mustard seed and black peppercorns, a small pinch of crushed red pepper, and several sprigs of fresh dill.

Place as many pickle spears as possible into the jar. Pour cooled brine over top. Screw on lids and place in the refrigerator until you can't wait any longer; we usually start eating them after a day.

Freeform Friday

We're gearing up for a fun weekend featuring a badminton tournament with some friends; it's sure to have lots of aggressive whiffing at the shuttlecock, guzzling of pizza and beer, and plenty of laughs. The laughs are key because I have a tendency to only play well when the score isn't being kept. Did I mention it's also part costume party with vintage athletic apparel encouraged? Oh yeah.

Here are some items that I've been checking out this week:

Now that zucchini is in season and abundant at the Farmer's Market, I've been making these pancakes for breakfast and topping them with a fried egg. It's. Amazing. As in everyone argues over the last one after we've all had seconds amazing.

If you live in SE Michigan, you have to check out Grubbable, an app that connects you with restaurants that use local ingredients. You can browse their participating restaurants or get a membership that gives you a portion off of your entrée. That's a win-win in my book.

Do you know this trick to stop you from crying? It's pretty amazing, and I may or may not have used it this past week when tearing up while making the case for why we need to get a puppy.

We just watched Richard Linklater's new film Everybody Wants Some!! last night, and it was everything you'd expect from a "spiritual sequel" to Dazed and Confused. If you haven't seen it yet, drop everything you have planned for tonight and check it (and the bonus features!) out.

Need more inspiration for what film to watch next? This beautiful 100 Years/100 Shots will have you falling in love with old favorites and checking out films you keep meaning to see.

(Photo from the Manhattan Beach Badminton Club.)

A Serious Case of Mom Purse

While lunching out with my family recently, the waitress patiently waited while I dug through my purse for my wallet. "Sorry, I've got a serious case of mom purse here."
    "I know. Aren't they great? I have so much stuff that I switched from a purse to a backpack so I can  carry even more things around."

And you know what, she's completely right. Mom purse is a wonderful treasure trove of helpful oddities. In addition to the array of kid gear, which greatly varies depending on potty training status, I tote around some serious mom gear in my sturdy leather bag.

On any given day you'll find:

Klean Kaneteens: they're about the only thing that won't leak and create a wading pool at the bottom of my purse. Why bring your own water? Because your kid will inevitably ask for a drink as soon as you're a mile away from the closest drinking fountain or getting in the car for an errand marathon.

Mini plastic dinosaurs: they're perfect for entertaining kids who are waiting at a restaurant because their faces fit into straws, they like to explore new surroundings, and they're not a computer screen that your kid rudely zones out on at the table. (Yeah, I just went there. Not sorry about it.)

Mini bubbles: redirects are the best tool of every good parent and teacher I know, and nothing distracts and redirects a kid like mini bubbles. They're so tiny that you can use them pretty much anywhere and your kid will be transformed from a whiny mess into a little wood sprite chasing dreamy bubbles.

I'm also a huge fan of these reusable shopping bags because they fold up and snap shut into a tiny, lightweight package that you'll be grateful to have when out and about.

What gems do you pull out of your mom purse?

(Photo of Grace Kelly and her sizable mom purse.)

Freeform Friday

Happy July 4th weekend, folks! Our holiday plans are keeping us in town this three-day weekend, and my kids are especially looking forward to the games our pool club hosts, most notably the baby pool filled with floating pool toys. Because really, who doesn't get giddy about scooping up mini rubber duckies as fast as you can?

Here are some items from around the internet that I've been entertained by this past week:

Have you heard about this new approach to precise locations? It puts the Michigan Theater at "puns.dads.video" and you can even pinpoint your precise section inside Michigan Stadium with "stages.zooms.tunnel" or "land.dices.strut."

Going through a rough patch? Why not embrace it with a full-blown Pity Party? I was sold at the part where every guest gets her own pint of ice cream.

Haiku's fun, especially when it's put into a movie review. See what I did there?

Are you a fan of the Pixar conspiracy theory? If so, you'll be ticked to see how Dory fits into it.

Steven Spielberg's new movie, an adaptation of Roald Dahl's BFG opens soon. This was my all time favorite book in the third grade, and I'm excited to see what this esteemed director does with it.

Have you seen this visual commentary on Brexit? Diversity is clearly the way to go.

Love language? Love drinking? This is for you!

(Susan Hayward and Virginia Dale wish you a happy July 4th in this vintage snapshot.)