Erin, Author at The Sunny Side Up Blog

Kole

08.09.11

Mini va-cay (splash pad)

Back from a mini va-cay today! The kiddos and I spent last week at our little retreat —

(aka mom’s house) in southern Utah. We had a great trip. It was HOT. So we spent a lot of our time in the house or in the water.

I hung out a lot with my sister-in-law Dayna – we always have so much fun together. Here we are at the splash pad with our boys. They were both SO excited to have their picture taken.

My mom joined us on her lunch break. Her lunch break ended up being a little longer than usual since it also involved running home to change her clothes. (Click the above pics to see them better. The look on my mom’s face is classic.)

Dayna with Addie and my sweet nephew Drew. Every picture I took of Ellie was a total blur because she was running through the water so fast. My girls LOVE the splash pad.

Kole loves the splash pad too. He even found a buddy this time. A twin with matching hat and all. Which one is my boy? The one who STILL isn’t walking. Yup. That would be my Kole. The one sitting on his little bottom. Totally content to watch his twin do a happy we’re the same age and I’m walking dance right in front of him.

Operation “get Kole walking” has been taking place for months now.

As you can see, we’re making major progress.

Major. Lucky for him, his inability to walk doesn’t seem to slow him down much.

He climbs like no one’s business…

and has no problem keeping up with his sisters.

So even though his younger cousin (and every other baby his age) is running circles around him, we’re not too worried. Guess he’ll walk when he’s good and ready. He’s just too cool for walking right now.

In the meantime, he keeps grandma and the rest of us on our toes.

Isn’t the tabernacle beautiful!? I love my home town. I have to repeat that last sentence to myself over and over when I visit in the summer and trade my usual 75 degree weather in for a nice and toasty 110 degrees.

BUT.

This beautiful carousel is a new fixture next to the splash pad and the girls and I couldn’t wait to try it out.

It was as delightful as we had anticipated. Heat and all.

Good times.

So – tomorrow will be a nice reality check. Unpacking, laundry, groceries, cleaning… the day after a vacation is always a busy one. But it still feels good to be home.

And back to 75 degrees. :)

xoxo, Erin

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Kole

08.05.11

Not Fashion Friday

I. am. exhausted. This week has been crazy. And fun. Crazy fun. I have so much to blog about and it is killing me that I don’t have time to do it! If only I didn’t need to sleep. But I do need to sleep. (Clearly I need to sleep or I wouldn’t be rambling on this way…)

I know some of you asked questions about my last post and I will answer them. Some of you requested more Fashion Fridays and I will get around to doing that and answering questions that were asked last week. Some of you requested that I start modeling the clothes for Fashion Friday and that won’t happen. Well. Maybe it will. I just feel like such a dork taking self portraits! And Kenny isn’t around enough to take pictures of me. Although he makes me feel like an even bigger dork so it’s not like that’s a great solution anyway. So then it’s left up to Ellie and you may remember what happens when she gets a hold of my camera? Fashion Friday content – to be determined. But I do have lots to share! Including some cute stuff I got this week. I just want you to know if you’ve asked a question in the comments I will get around to answering it at some point. I have a lot to post. I’m just too tired to do much tonight.

Did I already mention that?

And did I mention that I was tired?

Summer camps ended last week. My girls had SO much fun. We don’t start school until the end of August so still a month left of summer for us! Can I handle one more month of summer? That’s also to be determined. I am starting to think about back to school though. I need to find my girls some cute backpacks. Thinking about ordering these soon –

Pottery Barn Kids Fairfax Collection. I can’t find anything I like better and I’ve been hunting in stores and on-line for a couple of weeks now. Any other suggestions?

Well – that’s it for me. I’m off to bed. Before I know it, a certain someone will be up and going and full of more energy than I can handle!

Have a good weekend everyone!

xoxo, Erin

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organization2

08.03.11

Organizing pics on the computer

Hi everyone! I thought today I’d share how I organize my pictures on my computer. You may remember that I ended my relationship with iphoto a while back. As much as I have loved my new Mac, I just couldn’t ever figure out a system on iphoto that worked as good for me as the system I have been using for years. And that’s the thing about organization. It’s really just about finding what works best for YOU. So I went back to my old system. And I have fallen in love with my old system all over again because I had a chance to see what else was out there. And it’s so true that you never really realize what you have until it’s gone. {tear}

(I can just hear Kenny singing Aladdin’s “A Whole New World” right now. He sings that song to me whenever I say anything even remotely sappy.)

Moving on.

I know this system won’t work for most (maybe even all!) of you, but it may give you a few ideas of how to organize your pictures – especially if you share a lot of your pictures on your blog. Which I do. :) So here’s what works for me:

When I open the folder on my computer marked “PICTURES” multiple folders pop up:

(**If my pictures of these folders are hard to read, just click on them to make them bigger)

I use a simple folder system for organizing all of my pictures. I love folders. My brain likes to see things laid out this way. On the first row, I have a folder for each year. Then under those folders, I have random folders for pictures that are grouped together for a certain purpose (Project Life pictures for the girls, Kole’s scrapbook, Digital Scrapbooking supplies, etc.)

Now let’s click on the folder “2011” —

Inside the folder for each year, I have a folder for each month. At the top I also have a folder called “pictures to organize.” When I download my pictures (I usually do this each night because I take pictures every day) all of the pictures go straight into this folder. I don’t have time each night to organize all of my pictures, so this folder is a resting spot for my pictures, but not their final destination.

Now let’s click on the folder “July” —

Inside each month I have one folder for blog posts and one folder marked “randomness” which is basically just every picture for that month that I want to keep but don’t end up posting. It works the best for me to organize my pictures by blog posts because that is how my brain remembers where my pictures are located. If I want to develop a picture of Kole brushing his teeth for his scrapbook, I remember that I did a post called “copy cat” with pictures of my little man brushing in July of 2011. If I can’t remember the exact month, I just pull up my blog and the date I posted will tell me where that picture is stored.

Now let’s click on the folder “July Blog Posts” —

Here I have a folder for each post I did this month (in order). I try to be specific about what pictures are in each folder to help me find pictures in the future.

Now let’s click on the folder of my previous post titled “Lots of Stuff” —

All of the pictures from my last post! And that is where my folders finally stop! I know. It’s folders, inside of folders, inside of folders… but this system has worked for me for so long. I just love having my pictures so nice and tidy in their happy little spot where they belong. :)

This system also makes things easy for me when I’m about to develop pictures for my kids’ scrapbooks. If I’m working on Addison’s book for the months May through August, I just go through each blog post folder for those months and each month’s “random” folder and pull any pictures that I want for her book. I move them to the folder on my main page called “PROJECT LIFE”, make any collages I need to and then send them off to be developed.

BTW – some of you have asked me how my albums are coming along since I haven’t been posting pics of them. Well, they’re not. I had great ambitions of getting so much done this summer and now I’m laughing at myself for even thinking that would happen! This summer has been so busy. But it’s ok. I’d rather spend this time making memories with my kids. I’ll record those memories later when they’re back in school. I’ll also shower, prepare meals, and do laundry when they’re back in school. A few other things that have also taken a back seat this summer!

So I’d love to hear your thoughts! What works for you with picture organization? Anyone do anything similar to what I do? No? Am I the only crazy folder lady out there?

I can live with that. :)

xoxo, Erin

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home decor 2

08.01.11

Lots of stuff

Just a glimpse of what we’ve been up to lately…

Lots of coloring

Lots of lemon picking

Lots of hot dog grilling

Lots of climbing

Lots of decorating –

by the girls…

and by their mom

Lots of painting (now that I’ve done the wall I’m kind of obsessed)

Lots of organizing (always obsessed) – afters coming soon

Lots of curls cut off (don’t be fooled by the picture above – what’s left is still awfully curly!)

Lots of fun in the sun

and of course…

Lots of capturing it all on camera

xoxo, Erin

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fashion2

07.29.11

Fashion Friday

I received several e-mails asking where I got the cute beach/snack bag in my previous post. The bags are from a company called Thirty One Gifts and I received them when I did this giveaway. You can check that post for their website along with information about who to contact if you want to order one for yourself. Also, a sweet blog reader and director with Thirty One Gifts (hi Allison!) left a comment in my last post along with her information because she too sells their bags. Thirty One Gifts sells a lot of really fun stuff!

Speaking of fun stuff, I thought I’d share a few things I’ve bought lately. Fall fashion is my absolute favorite and since I haven’t bought much the past two years (due to pregnancy and post pregnancy baby weight that lingered forever!) I decided that it was time to get a jump start on this year’s Fall wardrobe!

These necklaces I actually bought about a month ago and have loved wearing them this summer. The one on the left with the matching bracelet is from The Limited and the one on the right was from a specialty shop here in San Diego.

I love the orange/teal color combo in this one.

This shirt from Banana Republic looks great with both necklaces. I’ve worn this shirt a ton this summer! It fits cute and I love the pleated sleeves. Works with most of my jewelry, levi, or white skirts/shorts. A casual ‘go to’ top for sure.

This necklace also looks good with this white dress shirt I just bought (also from The Limited).

I guess this top is actually an end of summer splurge vs. fall fashion. But I loved the way it fit so much that it had to come home with me. :)

Some fun flats I bought at the Nordstroms sale (for only $50 bucks!). Should be perfect for running the kids around all day. I don’t buy many shoes like this because my heels are SO narrow. If my shoes don’t have straps they slip right off my heels and drive me crazy. I’m a big fan of flats like this that gather in the back!

Another fun top from The Limited. I have too many shirts this color, but I loved the sleeves and the way this fit.

I wore it to church last week with this black belt, a fun skirt, and my favorite black heels (that are so high I have to really watch it holding Kole so we both don’t go toppling to the floor).

But the two of us were stylin’! :)

This grey cardigan was a bit of a splurge (also from The Limited) but it is my favorite thing I’ve bought lately! You can’t tell from the picture, but it fits so cute – fitted in the back and then it hangs long in the front. I tried it on with a white tank underneath, my dark Joes skinny jeans,

and these boots. LOVE it! I’ll have to take a picture with it on sometime because it’s way cuter on a person than on the hanger.

I found this purple sweater on sale at Anthropologie. Can you tell that I’m into solid colors by this point? Kind of boring, I know. But I just love stuff like this.

This sweater has a fun, funky orange zipper in the back that you can’t see at all when I’m wearing it. But I know it’s there. And it will make me FEEL fun and funky. :)

So far, this belt (also from Anthropologie) is the only purchase I’m having buyers remorse about. It was 55 bucks – a bit much for a belt – but I just love it so much!!! But then I got home and thought “will I really wear it enough…. I already have so many belts…. I could take it back and buy 8 belts from Forever 21 for the same price…..”

and then I tried it on with this shirt I bought in the Spring and MAGIC!

Ok – keeping the belt. :)

So that’s it for my first rendition of “Fashion Friday.” I found a fun dress and some other things too, but I took these pictures during Kole’s nap and right after I snapped the picture above, Kole woke up.

No more pictures were taken from that point forward!

Have a great weekend everyone!

xoxo, Erin

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organization2

07.27.11

Get out the door list

Oh that was too much fun hearing from so many of you! I’ve loved checking in with my blog throughout the day and reading all of your sweet comments. Thank you so much for your opinions/advice about the plays. It’s clear we need to just see them both! Now I need some advice on how to convince my parents that it is imperative for them to watch my children for a day or two longer than planned. :) I’ll keep you posted on how that goes…

For today I wanted to share something that I meant to post at the beginning of summer, but then all of the sudden it was summer and most of my planned posts flew right out the window along with my sanity.

I’ve found that one of the hardest daily tasks with little ones is simply GETTING OUT THE DOOR. It requires so much time, energy, and just stuff! Every summer I write a simple “get out the door list” and tape it to my back door. It’s a run down of every possible thing I might need for our summer outings.

Some of the items listed are for when we are heading to the beach (quarters for parking) or the pool (goggles and water wings), but a lot of these items I need to remember every day in the summer for any outing we are going on (sunglasses, snacks for the kids, diapers, etc.) It’s so nice to have a list to glance at quickly when we’re in a hurry to get somewhere – just to double check that I have everything. Then I don’t have to think about all of the stuff we need to take and I can deal with Addison’s meltdown over which pair of sandals to wear, Kole’s last minute diaper change, or Ellie’s attempt to sneak 15 toys into the car along with her.

MENTAL ENERGY PEOPLE.

I only have so much of it.

I also keep this bag hanging by my keys so I can quickly grab it for snacks and water…

and this bag sits in our garage by the door. As soon as I wash swim suits, cover-ups, and towels I put them in here so they are ready to go.

Anything I can do ahead of time makes life that much easier when we are trying to go somewhere.

I’m always amazed at what a feat getting out the door can be!

xoxo, Erin

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home decor 2

07.25.11

paint and advice

Hope everyone had a good weekend! Ours was a productive one. I decided to paint a wall. My house is driving me crazy because I want to re-do everything BUT as I’ve mentioned before, we are house hunting. We may find a house we love in two days, or we may find a house we love in two years. I kept putting off decor changes thinking that as soon as I started making a mess of things we would find our dream home. Then it hit me. As soon as I start making a mess of things we’ll find our dream home! So I’m tearing into this house with high hopes that it will all be for nothing! :)

I didn’t know where to start, so I just slapped some paint samples on our dining room wall and picked the one I liked best!

The color is called Jamaica Bay by Behr and I got it at Home Depot – I hate Home Depot by the way. But I love this color! When you hold something blue against it, it looks green and when you hold something green against it, it looks blue. It’s a great sort of aqua color. I have to say that Kenny and I are NOT DIY people. If we want new furniture, we buy it. If we want something painted, we hire a painter. But this wall was such a small space that I figured we could figure it out on our own. At least I hoped we could.

I taped everything while Kenny had the girls at swimming lessons and then when they came back I put Kole down for a nap and we all got to work! Kenny painted a little…..

I painted a little…..

Even Ellie painted a little. Addison opted out because the thought of getting paint on her well thought out outfit was too much to bear.

Two hours later Kenny showered and came downstairs in this shirt. I decided it was a sign. A sign of what, I don’t know. That we’ll find a new house soon? That this color is the bomb? That I should paint more walls and buy Kenny more shirts in aqua? All to be determined. For now, we are getting used to this change. I walked downstairs this morning, walked around the corner, and WHOA – there’s a bright bluish greenish wall! Now I just need to make a few other changes so that it doesn’t look so out of place. But I have to say that I’m very proud we painted ourselves. Maybe I’ll become a DIYer after all! Can you be a DIYer and hate Home Depot???

And here is another question for anyone kind enough to answer it….

Kenny and I are planning an adults only trip to New York in the fall and are trying to choose which Broadway musical we want to see. We’ve seen Les Miserables on Broadway and Wicked and Phantom in L.A. (Wicked was the best!) so now we’re thinking either Lion King or Mary Poppins.

Has anyone seen either or both of these? Any opinions on which one is better?

Thanks so much! Hope your week is off to a good start!

xoxo, Erin

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organization2

07.21.11

An organized hutch (part 2)

How is everyone’s week going? Is anyone else tired yet? We’re having a fun summer, but my kids are seriously wearing me out! It’s like they are in hyper over drive or something. Things are a little crazy around here so naturally I turned to my guaranteed solution for feeling a bit of “inner calm.” You may remember a while ago when I organized my hutch and put keepsakes in these fun red boxes….

Well – I didn’t share the left side of my hutch because it wasn’t completely finished. I had a lot of loose odds and ends that needed a home so when I found some fun containers last week on sale at the Crate and Barrel Outlet I decided it was time to finally complete the hutch.

This hutch had become a storage place for lots of random odds and ends – mostly miscellaneous fall holiday items because my Christmas stuff is organized in various trunks. I pulled everything out, made a great big mess, and started categorizing! Ahhh… feeling the inner calm already.

You may notice that one box is holding a million remotes. We have one remote that is programmed to do everything but Kenny insists on still keeping the pile of individual ones. What am I supposed to do with those!? File them next to computer cords, a Valentine garland, and some Halloween spiders web of course. See what I mean when I say random odds and ends. Doesn’t get much more random than that.

Before long, the left side of my hutch looked like this! With bigger holiday items on top, and smaller items in their oh so tidy containers on the bottom. The containers ended up being the perfect size and I was able to fit all twelve. I decided not to do labels. As much as I love a good label, I usually don’t use them with clear containers. It’s so easy to see what’s inside and I like having the option to switch things around often. You know. Like on another day in the foreseeable future when I’m needing some more inner calm.

Like maybe tomorrow.

I was excited because I even had one empty box leftover! An excuse to buy more! Bonus.

So now the left side of my hutch looks like this.

The right side of my hutch looks like this.

The drawers still look like this (only because a certain one year old can’t reach them).

And the whole hutch is nice and organized. A place for everything and everything in its place.

The only problem???

The front of my hutch still looks like this.

A project for another day! Most likely when my girls have gone back to school.

How many more days???

Not that I’m counting or anything….

xoxo, Erin

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Ellie

07.20.11

Ellie’s “hafe” birthday

Yesterday Ellie informed Kenny and I that today was a special day…

She also handed us an agenda for her “hafe” birthday celebration…

Someone has been watching her mommy and has become quite the little list maker. :) What choice did we have but to put on some party hats!?

Addison was in charge of the “dress up fancy”…

Kenny came home from work early to “ice the cupcakes.” He even mixed in a little food coloring to really spice things up.

The cupcakes turned out fabulous and the girls and their toys put on a great ballet show. Ellie started age seven and a half with a bang.

And where was Kole during the celebration?

Mom put this little guy to bed early. He had his own little party all. day. long.

xoxo, Erin

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Ellie and Addison

07.18.11

Random Monday

My mom went home today. I’m officially depressed. Walking around in a dazed state. What? You mean I have to fold those clothes alone? Huh? It’s all on me to feed Kole dinner and then clean his leftovers up off the floor? You mean I can’t just head out the door to get a pedicure right now? Let’s hope the pedicure I got last week lasts a really long time. Like until mom comes to visit again.

I’m not the only depressed one around here. Today the whole family has been in a bit of a funk. My mom took such good care of my kiddos.

And wore Addison’s homemade macaroni necklace proudly. :) We miss you already grandma!

I have another reason to be depressed. One of my best friends moved. Remember Shari? No longer just down the street. :( I know we’ll still talk often (and text daily), but still, it isn’t the same and I’m so bummed she’s gone. She texted me when she got to her new home (small town in a different state) and told me that she made it safe and sound and that she is afraid she will be wearing a denim jump suit by next week. HA! I told her “don’t you dare! You strut your southern California stuff!” Shari – I’m totally crossing my fingers that you will miss all the botox around here and come running back! ;)

Sooooo….since I have two VERY valid reasons to be depressed I decided that some retail therapy was in order. I went a little crazy in Anthropologie last week. If (more like when) Kenny sees the bill and is ready to blow, I’m totally blaming Shari. If that doesn’t work, I’ll blame my mom. And if (more like when) that doesn’t work, I’m blaming the smell of that store. It is intoxicating and beckons me to enter and spend.

Aside from the beginnings of my new Fall wardrobe, I also bought the cutest dishes and I couldn’t wait to share them with all of you!

Aren’t they adorable? These are the colors I’m re-doing my kitchen decor in and these little beauties are going to be so perfect for my next decorating project!

I especially love these colorful milk bottle measuring cups!

Aren’t they darling!? Makes me want to measure something. I can’t wait to get started on my kitchen this week. Hoping it will cheer me up. And if it doesn’t, I can always find my way back to Anthropologie.

(kidding kenny – only kidding…. take a breath…deep breaths….)

I’m signing off. Time to go over tomorrows to-do’s. It’s going to be a busy week. And it’s going to start with getting this house in order. No easy feat since it looks like a bomb went off tonight. In every. single. room. Even though it was spotless this morning. How does that happen?

I think I have an idea…. :)

xoxo, Erin

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Kole

07.15.11

copy cat

Someone at our house is getting too smart for his own good. Kole has started copying whatever the rest of us are up to. He loves sneaking the remote and turning on the TV, grabbing my cell phone and holding it up to his head to “talk”, and his latest trick? Climbing up the girls’ bathroom stool and finding their toothbrushes so he can “brush” his teeth.

Here I go! Tippy toes to reach the toothbrush. My sisters never put them away where they belong.

Oh just look at me. I am HOT STUFF up here on this stool.

Stop the party. It’s grandma and mom. Wait a minute… grandma’s smiling and mom’s taking pictures.

Looks like my adorableness has saved me again. Who’s the man? I’m the man. Party on!

Have a great weekend everyone! May it be fun and full of good hygiene.

xoxo, Erin

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Feeling Creative

07.14.11

Rainbow Love

Hi everyone! Hope you’re having a good week so far! I’m loving having my mom in town. It’s like having two me’s around here. My kids are getting ample attention, the house/laundry is in order, Kole is taking naps when he actually wants to sleep. Plus we just have a lot of fun together. I love having a bit of adult company during the day. We’ve also been able to do a little shopping together during the girls’ summer camps and I’m so excited about all of our finds! Love shopping. Love having help with my day to day. Love my mom. :)

Ok. Switching gears now. A couple of weeks ago for Addison’s graduation I arrived super early (Kenny came later with the kiddos). I’m always the first one to arrive at events like that because Kenny and I like to shoot for the best seats in the house. We’re annoying that way. Anyway, I was so early that I was able to help the teachers set things up and get the post graduation treats ready.

They made the cutest little cupcakes topped with fruit in rainbow colors and the kids all loved them.

My girls and I especially loved them because we are big rainbow fans around here!

This was one of my favorite bulletin boards when I was teaching 1st grade. (Excuse the terrible photo – it’s a picture of a picture because I’m too lazy to scan tonight.) Remember the tissue hearts we made for our Valentine mantel? I did the same thing with my 1st graders for the rainbow. The whole thing was made out of little tissues. I set a center up in the back of my classroom and my little 6 year olds worked on it on and off for about a month. I added a little quilt batting for the clouds and wa-la! A beautiful rainbow for our “Rainbow of Wishes” display for the month of March. I’m planning on making one with the girls when I can muster up some time to cut all of the tissue into little squares.

Here are a few other fun rainbow ideas I’m planning to do with my girls. (Ideas from Pinterest of course!) First a few fun rainbow snacks —