What's Up Wednesday

Good morning friends and happy What's Up Wednesday! Another month bites the dust... and I have to say, our July was great, but I am looking forward to what August will *hopefully* bring-- a little less busy and a lot more downtime. Let's have a look at July, shall we? 

What We're Eating This Week-- We were not the best about eating healthy in the month of July, so we are back on the wagon of trying to eat as many veggies as possible. We have been grilling out a lot and have made my honey balsamic grilled veggies at least once a week-- if you're looking for something healthy and simple, give them a shot!

We have also been eating a lot of pre-made salad kits. This one from Costco is one of our favorites:

What I'm Reminiscing About-- It's getting to be the "back to school" time of year and since this is going to be my first year being a Stay at Home Mom rather than a teacher, it is giving me all the feels. I am thinking about all my years teaching and missing that exciting "back to school" feeling. 

I am on our school's sub list though and have already been called in to sub in the month of August so hopefully that'll help me "get my fix" of teaching! 

Going back is obviously going to be very different from years past, but I actually feel very safe with the measures our school has put in place. Yes, they are going back at full capacity, but they have made a lot of changes in order to keep the kids/teachers safe. I mean we're talking masks, face shields, distancing the desks, plexiglass guards between desks when necessary, and more. Is it a little intimidating? Absolutely. But I am so happy they have the option to go back. I know the parents are relieved to not be doing distance learning. Now all of this to say that they could have to shut down and go back to distance learning if it doesn't end up working out as planned.. but they're going to give it a shot. I'm praying for the best case scenario and also praying for the potential vaccines to be safely passed and ready for us!

What I'm Loving-- Dev and I celebrated our 7 year anniversary this past month! It was great to be able to get out of the house for a little bit to spend some time together sans-kids. 

What We've Been Up To-- We spent two weeks at the beach and had an absolute blast. I would go back in a heartbeat if we could!

If you're curious I wrote a post about our beach trip here and put together a quick little video recap of our trip here:

I also took the kiddos to the mountains while Devin went on a camping trip with some friends. 

What I'm Working On-- Practicing taking more pictures with my DSLR camera! That was one of my goals for the month and I actually did a decent job with it. The more I practice it, the better I am getting which makes it more fun. 

What I'm Excited About-- This technically isn't for the month of August, but LG goes back to school in the beginning of September and I am so happy for her! She is a social butterfly who thrives when she is around other kids. I am really looking forward to her getting back to school and back to playing with other kids. 

What I'm Watching/Reading--  I just finished The Librarian of Auschwitz and it was such a powerful and moving story. 

The author uses what information he has to tell the story of Dita Adler, who was an inmate at Auschwitz who was tasked with the very special job of keeping the books for the children in the family block. I love to read about strong characters (particularly women) who not only survive difficult circumstances, but then go on to thrive in life. This book was truly fantastic. I highly recommend it!

As for watching AND listening to:

Need I say more? This soundtrack is so addicting. We were watching it on Disney+ with a friend the other night and I kept finding myself saying "Oh this one's my favorite" and then a few songs later "No, wait, THIS one's my favorite!" It's impossible to pick one that is better than all the rest! Which Hamilton song is YOUR favorite??

What I'm Wearing-- Honestly, most days it's about as Plain Jane as it gets over here. Yoga pants or shorts and a t-shirt of some sort:

But every once in awhile I'll throw a real outfit on:

I am looking forward to having a reason to wear normal clothes again-- hopefully soon! In the meantime, as I mostly play with the kids around the house and the backyard.. there's no real reason to get dressed. 

What I'm Doing This Weekend-- Hopefully nothing! We have a couple things around the house that need done but I'm looking forward to just relaxing and spending some good quality family time together! If we're getting antsy we may go on a hike through one of our favorite trails but for the most part, just doing our part to #stayhome

Thanks for reading along today!! Can't wait to see what you're all up to as well!