Mindy's Non-Adventures

    Our weekends have become fairly hectic, and last weekend was no exception.  Believe it or not, we've actually stayed in Charleston for January and February. It's only 2 months, but it was the longest we'd gone without visiting my mother-in-law in the upstate. I hadn't planned on going back until the end of March, but we realized on Friday that Mr. Inc's mom needed a visit. So Saturday morning we decided to pack up the kids and drive up to Greenville for a day trip.  Of course it's not nearly as simple as it sounds. Here's how the drive up went: 10:04- Load everyone in the van 10:15- Stop for gas (HOLY OIL INFLATION BATMAN! GAS IS EXPENSIVE!) 10:39- "I have to go the bathroom!" says Miss Firecracker 11:01-Stop at the first safe restroom after trying to convince Miss F that she doesn't really need to go.   11:20- Stop in Orangeburg for lunch. Yes, we're really only in Orangeburg at this point. 12:01-Load up the van. Again. 1:15- St...

     So....remember when I wrote about how peaceful, calm, and simplified things had become?  Yeah, that was short-lived. February has been crazy busy. We hosted two time-intensive events, had a full week and a half of sickness, and multiple doctor or dentist appointments between the 5 of us. Those are the things that wreck a family's routine.  I've hit one of those patches where I have to push through and persevere. We've committed most of our time away to important, good things...things that I KNOW we are supposed to be doing, but sometimes part of me selfishly wishes I could reclaim more of our time.      For instance, on Valentine's Day I started thinking of a list of fun things we could do all day. I could make pink, heart pancakes, then the kids and I could make Valentine sugar cookies, we could read the history behind the holiday...you get the picture. Then I remembered that my 2 year old had his well check-up that morning, and we had...

    Since I actually have the opportunity to dress up a little tonight, I went digging through my closet to see what kind of outfit I could throw together. This took about 30 seconds because I'm a minimalist with clothing anyway, I've hardly bought anything at all in the last few years, and some of the things I DO have don't fit exactly right anymore. FYI, having kids changes more than your sleep patterns. You know, I've gained and lost a combined 100 pounds (or more)  over the last 9 years. Wow.     Anyway, I found a dress in the back of my closet that I've been hanging onto for a few years now. It's a cute dress, I just don't like the way it looks on me. I've pulled it out more than once and thought "this would look so much better as a skirt."  Then I realized I have nothing to lose by experimenting since I never wear the dress anyway.  Next thing I know, I'm grabbing my scissors and cutting my dress apart.  Since the dress already ha...

   I'm finally writing about something I've thought about for months: The Chick-fil-a Mom. The CFA mom is distinctive. Her hair is done, she's wearing real clothes (not sweats!), and she's usually wearing jewelry. The only exception is when the CFA mom makes her regular Chick-fil-a run after her run/workout/tennis lesson. Then, and only then, will she be in a cute tennis skirt or some other coordinating workout attire.  Even after an hour of moderate exercise though, she will still have her make up on.     Seriously, tell me I'm wrong. Of course there are exceptions, but you know I'm right. And if you disagree, just go to Chick-fil-a around 11:30am on a weekday and watch the moms that come in to have lunch dates with their friends. I promise you I'm right.  How do I know this? Because I am a recovering Chick-fil-A mom. I simply cannot go into Chick-fil-a looking slovenly! It just feels wrong.  I've had many mommy lunch dates at Chick-fil-a, and a...