one. lady bugsI’ve talked about the bug obsession a time or two on the blog, and right now its lady bugs.  Parker is the lady bug whisperer.. that child can tell me “I’m going to find a lady bug!” and return with three 5 minutes later. I mentioned a couple weeks ago about the bug keepers their BB surprised them with and since then the three girls have been digging for anything that has legs to stick in there – sort of unnerving for me because I’m not a huge fan of bugs.. last night while we cleared the table from dinner Parker asked me what lady bugs eat and what we should feed the one that was in the bug keeper. I had no idea so we took to googling. wikihow dot com had a step by step on what to feed and how to take care of lady bug.. who knew! a damp cotton ball or paper towel square for them to drink + bark from a tree and a bottle cap with sugar or honey for them to eat.  sure enough, after we set his little house up as suggested, we had a very happy ladybug on our hands! 

two. puppy loveBrady has the cutest obsession with dogs. he follows Oscar around all day long and even lays in his kennel with him while Oscar sleeps. during the girls’ riding lessons every week we sit on a blanket and watch in the shade while having a snack. there are lots of animals, including a couple dogs, that Brady just loses his mind over every single time! their golden lab is a big fan of snacks so the moment we arrive the dog is laying on the blanket with us, and Brady doesn’t mind one single bit.

“hiiiiiiiiii!!!!” is his go-to phrase!  and leans in for a kiss. its THE cutest thing ever. 

three. date nights + reliable babysitters

Jordan and I have been really trying to make it a priority to get in a date night more often than we normally do. as you can imagine it is good for us to spend some one on one time outside the house as a couple (without kids) whereas at home we are more like teammates making it through the day wrangling the babes. thankfully, Jordan’s parents are very gracious with their time and offer frequently to watch the kids when we wish for dinner and a movie out.  but they are pretty social, so asking them last minute for a few hours on a weekend night probably isn’t going to work out. because of Jordan’s schedule, date night can really be a random Tuesday night baseball game or grabbing lunch on a Wednesday afternoon.  our FAVORITE babysitter left us a couple years ago to go off to college. she’s been watching the twins since they were infants and the other two since birth. when she comes in town she always texts us to come and see the kids and offers her time to babysit. she’s even made the drive from Oklahoma on a weekend for birthday parties or just to come babysit. she really loves my kids and is a one of a kind.

since she’s left we have had a hard time finding someone we love and trust the way we love her.. 4 kids is a lot to manage. I need someone experienced and confident to watch my kids so that I’m confident in leaving them for a few hours.

enter in sunshine sitters, llc.my very old friend, Kara, bought this company last year and has been working her tail off to build her team of babysitters (mostly high school and college-age girls) to offer this service to busy mom and dads. I randomly needed a sitter for a few hours this week so I filled out my new client profile online (no membership fee) and submitted a sitter request . within an hour I was set up with a babysitter profile! it was SO easy. they have solid and reasonable rates and you don’t pay the sitter directly.. you pay via invoice from sunshine sitters after services! which is awesome because nothing is more awkward to me than the money exchange after I get home.

this is not a sponsored blip.. just a friend sharing about another friend’s amazing endeavor. check her out! AND they are hiring, so shoot Kara an email (yoursitter@outlook.com) if you are interested in joining her team 🙂

four. bare minerals hydrating gel

Ulta gets me every time with the “free samples” that come in your box when you order products online. I got a sample of the bareminerals tinted hydrating gel cream and tore it open to try after washing my face the other morning.

OMG.

I kept reading the package and wishing the tiny sample wasn’t nearly gone because it was such an awesome minimal coverage moisturizer. the perfect option for putting on before heading out for errands or making a quick grocery trip when a full face of makeup isn’t necessary. the sample came with a few other shades but I decided that the natural 05 was the best fit for my skin tone and ordered it! its going to be great this summer for going to the pool (SPF 30!) and spending time outside without feeling like my makeup is melting off 🙂

five. rey to ZI’m always pumped to find new small shops to follow along with and share with all of you! I think I’m going to start saving a space for a small shop feature every week on my friday post 🙂 this week I’m sharing Rey to Z :: personalized base ball hats for you and your mini! I’ve mentioned them before when I shared our Easter baskets- I put a red ball cap for Brady in his basket and loved it so much I had to get the other three their own! the girls opted for the pink and they came in the mail this week. there is something about little girls in ball caps.. I LOVE it! I’m a big fan of hats, so seeing them on my kids is a bonus.

these will come in handy for all the fun outdoor summer activities coming up- something to cover their faces from the sun will be great.  we just booked our trip to the beach at the end of this summer (our first official family of six vacation and the kids’ first trip to the beach!) and these will be AWESOME for wearing while we are in the sand all day.