Coffee and Cocktails at the Casa

Tuesday, July 22, 2025

I thought today would be a fun chit chat where I talk about random things that aren’t enough for a post in and of themselves.

First, I generated this image with AI. Is that why it has two handles? Oh man!

Blogging:

I am having fun blogging this summer and keeping to my normal schedule. I hate that many blogs loose steam in the summer because that is when I always had more time. Sometimes I feel like a broken record and that I need to infuse some new-ness into my blog.

I am struggling to respond to comments but it’s very important to me that I do respond if someone has taken the time to leave one. I only want to be on my computer for an hour in the morning and then the comments trickle in all day and oops – when do I respond? What do you do if you are a blogger? I had the idea to get back on the computer while I am waiting on dinner to cook? I don’t know. I don’t love to respond from the app on my phone because typing there takes longer, so I really would love to respond on my laptop at some point in the day.

My mom’s house/estate:

My mom’s house has been on the market since the end of June. We haven’t had any offers yet. Do I worry? Molly and I really want to get it sold but Kate is chill about it and is in no hurry. We haven’t had to do any work to speak of this summer in regards to it so that is really nice for Kate and Molly who start school back before we know it and who wanted to enjoy their summer. We have all had nice time to process my mom’s sudden death at the end of January. We talk openly about what it looked like for us to have all the stuff to handle in the second semester of school.

Cleaning/Dog hair:

We have had three chocolate labs and this one sheds way more than the other two did. I have decided that the dry Swiffer is as good as anything for getting up the hair. I also just use a good old fashioned broom and dustpan. Then, I can run the Dyson stick over the surfaces.

One problem – this is really the only thing I can’t do with press on nails – I can’t push the Swiffer cloth into the four holes so I devised a chopstick method and use the chopstick to press it into the holes. I also use a chopstick to clean out the Dyson stick canister.

Chopsticks – they’re not just for your Chinese food.

Also, how many times did I just say the word chopstick?

Tom/Amy Shower Shelf Battle:

In the three shelf shower wars, I came up with a new plan. I have dedicated the middle shelf to shaving – for both of us.

I also got smaller shampoo and conditioner bottles for me and I really like this brand which is a bonus.

I felt that this was very giving of me.

Cleaning/Decluttering:

When I have the urge to shop, I like to declutter. This book is really good but I am just skimming it.

She says when there is a statistic she has probably made it up!

Here is an example of what happened last week. I get really excited when someone recommends something whether I needed it or not.

Kat James talked about these Pixi products – ph reactive lip and cheek. It looked so pretty on her. Now, these prices won’t break the bank, but I went and cleaned out my makeup and saw some things I forgot I had and was pretty happy.

A blogger recommended this doohickey and I added to cart. I cleaned out my closet and realized I had a lot of pants/skirt hangers and that I also had shelving to fold my shorts. I wanted a better frother but then I changed my batteries in my current frother and got the desired frothiness.

It’s all too easy to add to cart, right? And, I still might get some of these things but a 72 hour holding period is a good idea!

For Michigan, sisters and I created a thank you gift for Neal and his wife. We brought products from our three states – mostly food things. I brought bourbon mustard and Ale 8 bbq sauce. I had it on my list to go buy a bag for the gift but I found one in my cabinet that would work just fine. I also was going to go buy a new cooler just for Michigan but we used one we had. So, when we use things we have we save money and we reduce an errand for ourselves.

We have covered some topics today!

What would you say over a steaming hot cup of coffee with two handles?

Amy

Monday, July 21, 2025

How was your weekend? I am linking up with Sarah and Holly to share mine!

After letting my nails breathe for a few days (6?), I put on this fun florescent yellow.

It looks dull yellow in this photo, but it’s really bright in different lighting!

Mason and I hadn’t done a coffee shop in a long time so I suggested we start out Friday doing that. He was free and I was free so it worked out.

After that we went to Barnes and Noble book store and then we went home. I was so hot and ready to be in the AC. I gave Eddie Otis a frozen carrot because I figured he was hot, too. He wants you to participate just like he wants you to participate in bone chewing. He is a sharing boy.

Has everyone been enjoying the Coldplay concert news?

I hate that there are victims involved. It’s easy to laugh at all the memes, but there are people who didn’t ask to have their lives put on display. The one about Coldplay just came out with four new singles -uh, yeah.

Friday night we stayed home for dinner and ate leftovers. I have got to get my fridge to a more functional state. It has been packed and hard to manage.

Saturday Tom went out of town for the day so I was with Eddie Otis most of the day except for a trip to drop off donations and to browse this cute little boutique and

Mason takes a piano lesson on Saturdays after playing basketball with his college roommate at a park (such a cute Saturday routine) and then we met for a little lunch after the lesson in this strip mall where both the music store and the boutique are located. That sounded really confusing. Anyway, we ate at this little place.

Please note the sky:

I went home and napped with little EO snoring on the floor beside me until it started storming something fierce. It was the loudest thunder I had heard in a long time. EO wasn’t nervous at all. Whew!

Tom returned home and EO couldn’t get close enough to him!

We ate at home again and then went to a free jazz show at a distillery where one of the musicians was a college professor of Jack’s.

We only stayed out about an hour but it was good to get out.

Sunday morning I had to go to Trader Joe’s because I have decided I can’t live without my brown sugar oat creamer. I also made people at the cabin in Michigan fall in love with it – especially a teenager named Ellie! She is my cousin’s daughter.

It was muy, muy hot out but we had plans to go out on the boat with our friends. If we kept moving it felt fine. We stopped to eat and I sweated something fierce.

What was the highlight of your weekend?

Amy

Friday, July 18, 2025

It’s Friday and it’s time to link up with Andrea and Erika for Friday Favorites!

How was your week?

I’m still in this weird state where I would normally be getting a pit in my stomach about summer going by too quickly and not feeling like I “did enough”. I have so many teachers in my life that are feeling that way right now and now I’m not. Does that make sense? It’s still surreal that I don’t have to watch fourteen training videos on things like blood borne pathogens. Do you know how many times I touched blood in 31 years? Zero.

Instagram liked my Tom story…

Doesn’t he look sad on this sailboat for one in Michigan? My brother in law Jason made a video of this, too! Do you get the What About Bob? reference?

IG has a cool new font called Rosalia which is what I used there. You can follow me at amscott2 if you so desire.

I’m still riding a high from last weekend and how special it was to be in Michigan. I honestly want another trip to Michigan before the end of summer. The weather is just divine. Ahhhhhhh.

We came home to a happy dog and a house that was pretty darn clean. Mason even picked up this coffee at Kroger that he thought I would enjoy and I do! It’s really good!

I seriously burned my face in Michigan on a cloudy day! I should know better. It was really cloudy on Friday and it drizzled for most of the morning. My forehead and cheeks got burned.

Crazy Eyes was so happy to have us back!

My aunt Sally said she takes leftover coffee, adds milk, and puts it in the freezer in the summer. I did that, too, upon arriving home, and it was so good as an afternoon treat.

I was excited to come home to several library books that had come in for me. Here is my library haul. Hey – let’s make library hauls a thing instead of Amazon hauls!

I started the new Emily Henry book and yes, I abandoned the book I was reading before. I feel no shame or guilt!

My sister Molly brought me a retirement gift of this set of four appetizer plates. Aren’t they so cute and so me? Now I just need to host a happy hour!

And, she gave me this Joanna Gaines candle that smells amazing. I haven’t gotten a new candle in a long time.

After having a white Funny Bunny pedi for quite awhile I was ready for a color. I chose an orangey red.

Ok, I was reading one of those “favorite Trader Joe’s products” articles online and one person said this cheese. New favorite!

I started following a beauty influencer on IG named Kat James. Well, she also does lentil recipes! Lol. I couldn’t find the pack of already cooked lentils at TJ’s but I bought a can and now I have a new obsession. I had some naan bread with hummus on the side. No worries if you don’t have a TJ’s – just buy a can of lentils. It’s a can of lentils, a can of diced tomatoes, red onion cooked in some olive oil, a tablespoon each of yellow mustard, soy sauce, and brown sugar. Then, add a bit of salt and pepper. It’s super weird and I would love to know who came up with it, but it’s delish! I will cut down on the brown sugar next time because it really doesn’t need to be as sweet as it is.

My favorite family meal I made this week was both chicken and salmon with teriyaki sauce. My piece of salmon from my Kroger pickup was pitifully small so I did chicken, too. I bought one of those stir fry veg bags (fresh) and added more chopped broccoli and cooked them in a skillet. The fam had rice and I had cauli rice.

This sauce is really good!

I had a spontaneous happy hour at a local favorite with one of my Heathers. This place has a 3-6 happy hour every day. I got a raspberry lemon drop and Heath got a Hugo Spritz. Her spritz had dry ice in the bottom and we were googling if it’s safe to drink dry ice.

They have this appetizer that is a baguette (still warm) with a bowl of goat cheese and a bowl of strawberry jam. You spread the goat cheese and then the jam and it’s basically one of the best things ever.

Even though our anniversary fell on a Tuesday we had to go out. Tom met me straight from work at a new to us restaurant called Ata which means “eat” in Swedish I think but probably has some dots over the vowels.

I got a shrub mocktail and it was so tart I couldn’t drink it. My friend just made the best strawberry basil shrub. Do you know what shrubs are? Tom is on an Arnold Palmer kick. He doesn’t drink any alcohol.

We both ordered their special – fried chicken, ribs, mashed potatoes, succotash and a watermelon salad. All that was $25!

And, we split a strawberry shortcake that was the star of the meal.

We took so much food home and Mason ate it!

I had a pool day! It was touch and go with rain and storms in the forecast for each and every day. Someone said we live in Florida now. Ha!

This is Erica’s country club pool and it’s really nice.

I got a salad with grilled chicken…

and we split some tots.

Erica went out to her car and brought me the neatest retirement gift. She was waiting til I had a party and I haven’t had a party so she wanted me to enjoy it now.

Each of the letters of RETIRE had a gift associated with it. R – Relax, E – Eat, T – Travel, I – Indulge, R – Read, and E – Enjoy.

It was such a nice and creative gift!

I took this fan to Michigan and it was a lifesaver. It’s super lightweight. Our room was really stuffy and I went to sleep cuddling with this fan.

I tried a Strawberry strato matcha from Starbucks and not only is it pink and green and so pretty but it was also good!

And, this is our forecast. What in the world?

What were your faves this week?

Amy

Thursday, July 17, 2025

I hope I don’t get kicked out of Fashion Files for this not very fashionable entry! I am linking up with Kellyann and Jill, nevertheless.

I returned from my Michigan weekend Sunday late in the day and then Monday was an errand/get my life in order day.

I put on this top and old Target olive shorts and the material of the top made me sweaty.

My sister Molly gave me these Birkenstocks she ordered because she didn’t like her big toe in them – lol.

Tuesday night I put this on for a happy hour with my friend followed by my anniversary dinner. It was easy to throw on. It felt good to style my hair! I am still learning how to do my shorter hair.

In Michigan, I only had two pairs of shoes – my New Balance sneakers and my Hari Mari flip flops. I brought my pink and white checkered shorts and my red and white checkered shorts and wore them with a graphic tee from Old Navy.

Another graphic tee from Old Navy that I wore with my Target Wild Fable shorts. These shorts have been worn by me every day this summer – for walking, lounging or for sleeping. So, I brought three pairs to Michigan. I have yellow, light blue, heather gray, black, and mauve. I am really considering getting some more because I love them so much. They are the perfect length for me and they have pockets. I am seriously impressed with the quality.

The teen girls got dressed for sunset pictures in their cute tops and jeans or mini skirts. I restrained myself and only brought one sweatshirt even though I had more I wanted to bring. I brought this Aerie one in navy (I thought a darker color would be best for wearing it multiple times).

I do like to get dressed when I leave the house. I wear my lounging clothes, exercise/dog walking clothes, and then I go get a little more presentable for going out.

What have you been wearing?

I am really trying not to shop any more summer things! What helps me to not shop is to clean out my closet. I like to do it pretty frequently.

Amy

Wednesday, July 16, 2025

Today is Hodgepodge with Joyce day!

1. What’s a characteristic you admire in others? Elaborate. 

I really admire good listeners. I think I am a good listener but I also like to talk. Sometimes I am very eager to respond or state my opinion in the matter. It’s something I’m conscious of and something I work on.

2. Do you have a favorite mug? Let’s see it. Why is this one your favorite? 

I am not a big Starbucks fanatic but I do love and treasure my Starbucks places mugs. They were either brought back to me by a special person in my life, brought back by me, or acquired to remember a trip or place. My Mom just gave me England and Spain for her last Christmas with us. She passed away almost a month to the day after Christmas this year. I really know how to turn something sad, don’t I? They are also the perfect size and heft.

3. July 15th is/was National Give Something Away Day…will you (or did you, depending on what day you answer these questions) give something away? If so what? Do you regularly give away or do you tend to  ‘accumulate’? 

I regularly give things to people I think can use the things more than me or I donate. I currently have a pile ready to go. I would say I constantly have a bag and I try to be thoughtful as I use or don’t use things. Is this serving me? Do I need this? I want to be more minimalist than I am but I am pretty good at not accumulating too much – except shoes. I love shoes!

4. You’re planning a trip. Do you prefer exploring big cities or smaller, more off the grid towns? World Atlas lists these 12 ‘off the grid’ towns to see in 2025. How many on the list have you seen? Of those listed which one would you most like to visit? Tell us why? 

Boothbay Harbor Maine, Middlebury Vermont, New Hope Pennsylvania, Rehoboth Beach Delaware, Brevard North Carolina, Saugatuck Michigan, Medora North Dakota, Ouray Colorado, Lamoille Nevada, Neah Bay Washington, Hood River Oregon, or Cambria California

*You can read more about each destination by clicking the link above. 

I like the smaller places. When I have limited time and can only see the big cities I think I miss some of the flavor of the country. I didn’t get to see any smaller places in Scotland – only Edinburgh and Glasgow. In England I got to see some smaller places like York and fell in love.

I would really like to do a New England trip and see some of the first places mentioned.

5. Have you ever…ridden a motorcycle? been to a Disney park? met a celebrity? won a contest? Tell us something about whatever you answered yes to on this list. 

My Dad was a fighter pilot and I think he had to have a motorcycle, too as part of the fighter pilot package (think Top Gun). I rode on the motorcycle with him while I could sit in front of him, but I was scared when I had to be behind him. I distinctly remember him telling me I was too tall to sit in front of him but me fighting him and him letting me sit in front anyway. I was probably about the age in the above picture.

I have been to all the Disney parks. I think I enjoy Disney more as an adult because it’s just so clever and creative. My favorite is Epcot! I’m sure you’re not surprised. I did however hear someone say, “why would I pay to travel when I can visit 20 countries at once right here?”

I have met Jack Harlow. He was really nice. Your kids might know who he is if you don’t!

I have won a $500 Nordstrom gift card from Mix and Match Mama, a free trip to the Dry Tortugas on a boat that I still haven’t used (I went once and won the return trip), a speech contest, a short story contest, and probably a few other things I can’t remember.

6. Insert your own random thought here. 

Yesterday was my 25th wedding anniversary! Tom had to work – he had just been off last Thursday and Friday. We don’t have to celebrate on the actual day and I am hoping to do a little trip at the end of the summer or in the fall. So, we just had a special dinner.

These crazy kids had no idea what was in store. Actually we were 28 and 33! So, we definitely were not kids.

What would you say about any of these topics?

Amy

Tuesday, July 15, 2025

How we did meals:

Cousin Bryan made a spreadsheet and each of the three families signed up for meals. Neal said he would provide breakfast stuff but people also brought breakfast breads, breakfast casseroles, and little boxes of cereal, too.

My sisters and I signed up to order pizza the first night and serve it with my salad and strawberry cake. Lunch the next day was leftover pizza. My sisters and I signed up for Friday night dinner which was a Mexican fiesta (and unbeknownst to me would turn into a retirement celebration for me!). Saturday lunch was a sandwich bar and Saturday dinner was burgers, brats, salads, and chips. It worked out great!

What I Packed:

I packed really well! I packed one dress in case we went in to town to a winery (we didn’t), one pair of pants (didn’t end up wearing), one cover up, two swimsuits, and then just my Target Wild Fable shorts (3) and graphic tees (4) which were all I wore. I only brought one pair of tennis shoes and one flip flop. It was a super casual vibe and most people just wore swimsuits all day to be ready for any fun water activities.

Did you read my post yesterday? We left off with Friday morning…

We arrived Thursday around 5:00, toured the three cabin complex – the main house came with a small bunk house up the back hill from the lake and then Neal was able to buy the small cabin next to it a few years later. There is a massive staircase leading down to the main house. So, this is how he slept close to 30 people! The people who weren’t in the main house really only left to go to sleep. I was in the main house and Tom and I were the only bedroom downstairs next to a bathroom. It was perfect. I was the earliest riser with Neal so it made sense for me to be next to the coffee machine!

Friday morning was really nice because Neal and I were the only ones up around 6:30 and we sat on the porch and talked for about an hour. You all know I like my one on one connections. Neal is 47 and a financial advisor. He is married to another Amy and they have four kids. He is soft spoken and thoughtful but also an Energizer Bunny. He did not stop from after coffee until dark. He was showing people how to use water toys or driving the wake boat at all times.

Friday morning it was overcast but a group of maybe 10 left for a kayak/paddleboard trip that took about two hours. Kate paddle boarded but Molly and I sat and drank coffee, walked to the market to get a couple of things, and cleaned up breakfast.

They came back and it was tubing time! I rode with Neal to spot and it was a lot of fun watching the kids.

The sun started peeking out when we got back and all the ladies floated on floats with an adult beverage. We also got to watch Tom learn to sail with Neal and two of the teen girls.

And, then Neal was needed for wake surfing! We had different combos go out on the boat for tubing and wake surfing. Tom got to do this, too. I joked that this was like a summer camp for Tom – he kayaked twice, sailed two types of boats, and wake surfed. The teenage girls think Tom is a character. They said they had never seen him smile this much.

We started grilling Mexican chicken, making taco meat, and cutting up all the toppings. I forgot to take a photo of the Mexican spread.

Kate brought these little taco boats and it worked out great. Everyone loved choosing hard tacos, soft tacos, nachos, or burrito bowls. I had made brownies and sopapilla cheesecake bars for the dessert.

While people were finishing dinner, it became a retirement celebration for me and there was an Amy’s Career trivia game! It was fun for everyone because they included questions about teen slang and some general education trivia. I need to get a list of the questions!

It was a little cool but I loved it after the humidity of Kentucky. We literally had this fire going day and night and young kids – like 10 years old – would go and get it started or keep it going. We had a little 7 year old fisherman that fished a bunch off the dock. The kids were ages 6-20 and they were off their phones, talking to adults they didn’t remember, and just active and engaged in whatever was happening. It was so sweet!

Friday afternoon my aunts and uncles arrived. Judy and Roger live 45 minutes away from the lake and Jim and Sal live in Cleveland. They had traveled to stay with Judy and Roger and came both Friday and Saturday and it was so nice to visit with them.

Tom and I walked to get ice cream. Tom is a big ice cream fan and I didn’t want him to walk alone so it worked out great because…

We walked back eating our ice cream…

Mine:

And the party was not over – they had set up a piñata for me!

The kids had so much fun but I got to hit first!

Then there was more fire sitting and some s’mores making:

Saturday morning – gosh, I love being near any body of water. My favorite place to hang out was at the end of the dock. Coffee with a view:

Saturday was family float day! We looked like the craziest group with 30 floats/kayaks/paddleboards. We floated from Stony Lake to Lake Michigan. It takes about an hour to go down the creek and it lightly moves so you don’t have to paddle but some did. I was attached to Molly and Kate was attached to cousin April and we chatted the whole way down.

I don’t have any photos because I didn’t take my phone! After we floated we were hungry and the first ones back had set up this sandwich bar and the aunts and uncles arrived again.

I also had a cappuccino because we got cold on the float. I spent the rest of the day in my swimsuit and a sweatshirt. Divine!

More fire time! The kids played this four square game you see in the background quite a bit and some adults played, too.

Wine on the dock while we watched the different groups go out on the boat or use the jet skis. I jet skiied with cousin April to look at houses on the lake!

Tom went out in a one person sailboat:

He looked just like Bill Murray in his tiny lifejacket.

Uncle Jim telling stories:

Before dinner, Tom and I went out with the wake boarding kids and the light was gorgeous on the lake…

Someone stole my phone – these are my nieces Lena and Mia with my sister Molly, their mom.

Niece Nora took a video of Tom walking with his nightly ice cream cone:

And, we got up Sunday and cleaned up and packed and said our good-byes.

We hadn’t all been together in a happy time for maybe 8 years. We used to have a family gathering in April in northern Indiana.

It was great to hear stories from my aunts and uncles!

My aunt went through jewelry of my mom’s to tell us their significance.

My aunt labeled some photos Kate brought.

When I looked around at the many different seating areas – there were several – there were representatives from each family in all the seating areas. Everyone meshed really well and just blended seemlessly despite not really knowing each other in recent times.

I felt like I had conversations with each and every person there.

I had another group of people celebrate my retirement – again, I must be on Amy’s Retirement Tour!

The weather wasn’t perfectly sunny but it was fine. No one let cloudy skies and drizzle affect anything they did. And, the sun was out part of each day, so that’s fine.

Neal and Amy were the best and most chill hosts. They have stuff set up so that people can make themselves at home and make their own drinks and food. They have things labeled so people don’t have to ask about everything. They aren’t territorial and have things set up so they can enjoy themselves, too – I think. We were told not to bring anything like sheets, towels, beach towels, or even shampoo and conditioner. It was all there.

I forgot my hairbrush and ended up not brushing my hair the whole time. Lol. I didn’t wear a bit of makeup I brought. I didn’t wear any jewelry!

Tom and I had the furthest to drive – Louisville, Kentucky – and there were two groups from Cleveland, Ohio, two groups from Columbus, Ohio, three groups from Kalamazoo, Michigan, one group from Grand Haven, Michigan, and one group from near Bloomington, Indiana. My mom is from Chicago and her siblings stayed in the Chicago area for many years. My mom moved to Southern Indiana.

And, that’s a wrap!

I’m so glad we went. It was a long drive that felt longer than it is but it was worth it!

Amy

Monday, July 14, 2025

I’m linking up with Sarah and Holly to share my weekend and it was a special one! I’m so tired, it’s late, and we just lost power and internet for a few minutes during a summer storm, so I will just give you some highlights for now.

On Friday, I showed you my full dining room table and my baking that I had done – it was for a trip to Michigan for Tom and I to hang with my cousins on my mom’s side of the family!

We had been there before because we rented cabins on a little lake called Stony Lake that feeds into Lake Michigan. Well, my cousin Neal bought a place a several years ago and this year he invited the whole bunch of us at once.

His youngest created a family tree so we could keep people straight!

My mom (Carole) was the oldest of three. She has a brother (Jim) who is three years younger, and a sister who is seven years younger (Judy). There are nine cousins and I am the first oldest girl and the second oldest.

The original cousins minus one – we still had Curt that hadn’t been born. I’m trying to look like a model in a Snoopy swimsuit – not easy.

Not everyone could make it, but we had the majority. Some kids were in and out due to commitments. My kids stayed home to watch Eddie Otis and work. It was a 7 hour drive for us.

Tom and I left at 9:00 am Thursday morning and arrived at this little paradise:

Everyone arrived between 4 and 6 Thursday night except one family who didn’t come until Friday afternoon.

I loved the outdoor shower:

There is a little market you can walk to and on night one we ordered pizza from them. Tom got ice cream all three nights, too!

The walk to the beach:

Friday morning we started the water activities bright and early! One group did a kayak, paddle board trip and got rained on for two hours but still had fun.

More tomorrow! My heart is full. It was so wonderful to be with everyone!

Amy

Friday, July 11, 2025

It’s Friday and time to link up with Andrea and Erika for Friday Faves.

This might be my shortest favorites post ever. I hardly took any photos this week!

How was your week? Did you succumb to Prime Days? I did! I ordered a second pair of boxers in red (I have pink):

I ordered the leggings that Jenn recommended – they have been in my cart for a long time!

And, these Teva sandals:

The Tevas are going back. They are hard to put on – like working a puzzle and they hurt. Nope!

Anyway, it’s fun to have a package arrive daily, but that needs to stop.

My blue French mani is still going strong and I still love it!

This is still cute but I am moving slowly:

Little boy is making us laugh at least once a day! I think I was showing Mason something on the table and he can’t stand to be left out.

I made my dinner protein in the morning one day this week. This is my favorite way to do dinner. Sorry for the kind of ugly photo. We had Mexican bowls.

We got to celebrate a friend’s retirement and I only took a picture of my appetizer plate.

Another night we ordered a mediterranean wrap and I made the side salad. Do you ever combine home cooked with restaurant food?

Kate’s been going through old family photos and sending them to us along with family friends that are featured. I’m in the green sweater. Can you tell I always liked to be the center of attention or nah?

One day I baked my brains out. I made a strawberry cake (will get iced later), dark chocolate brownies, and sopapilla cheesecake bars.

I spent much of the week hunting and gathering and my dining room table was full.

I will let you know Monday what all of this is for!

And, little Eddie Otis with “elefante” in his mouth:

He likes to keep it in his mouth the whole time he goes potty.

I had a list of about 5 things specific to Trader Joe’s for a quick run. I left the list on the kitchen table while I went potty (sorry!) and came back out and EO was eating something. He ate my list! This dog!

And, of course, it’s been such a sad week, too. My heart is broken for all those affected by the Texas flooding.

Amy

Thursday, July 10, 2025

Hi! I am linking up with Kellyann and Jill today!

What have you been wearing lately? This is the time of year that the summer sales are going strong! I really don’t need anything else for summer. I will buy if I see something perfect and it’s a good price. But, now that I think about it, we wear summer clothes up until October around here. I’m also trying to be ruthless about what is currently in my closet. I just don’t need as much and I’m trying to send it on its way if I don’t see myself wearing it.

I feel more comfortable in pants for going out (or dresses) and shorts are for at home. I want to look better when I am just at home so some of my shorts outfits can be kept at home. And, when I go out, I don’t want the ol’ legs sticking to the seats in the car or in an establishment. I’m even getting rid of some tattered at home clothes because they just are too worn.

I immediately change out of my going out clothes when I get back home. I think it helps to keep them looking better. I am a mess and get stuff all over me when I am cooking so I try to wear my old t-shirts for that. But then I look like a slob…what to do?

Let’s get on to the outfits…

I really liked this outfit and could have made it a bit more put together with different sandals. I have on my old light blue Umgee gauzy pants and my new to me consignment top that is from Target originally.

I wore my turquoise gauzy shorts and my J.Crew consignment gauzy top to the farmer’s market. Now that outing really did call for shorts!

Let’s talk consignment haul with my friend Beth. I found 5 pieces on our trip and I have only shown you two of them. I am super picky when shopping consignment. I don’t want to just fall into the trap of “it’s cheap, so why not?” because one summer I did that and I had a decidedly un-cohesive wardrobe. My colors were all over the place and maybe my styles were, too. Those clothes have since moved on.

I found the above Target top and the Old Navy blue and white striped shirtdress at the beginning of my post from Clothes Mentor and I found three pairs of pants from Sassy Fox. I know I made good purchases from Clothes Mentor since I have already worn both pieces more than once! Woohoo!

Now for Sassy Fox (my other favorite consignment store); I am not calling myself a “sassy fox”…

These are Anthropologie and they were only $6.25 because they had a certain color sticker lowering their price. I am seeing these with a black or another contrast solid color top. They are a bit voluminous so I will need more fitted on top. Are they pajama pants? They were with the regular pants. Oh no! What if they are?

I know that Chico’s gets a bad rap (or gets labeled for the aging art teacher vibe) but I have found their pants to fit me well and last forever. I had a pair of black Chico’s travelers pants that I found at another consignment shop that were my go-to pants for maybe 10 years. They make good pants. Kellyann agrees with me and isn’t afraid to shop Chico’s.

I found these black pants new with tags.

And, also how else am I gonna be a size 2, amiright? Bahahahaha.

They are even in short length! They were new with tags! I think I paid $20 for them but I knew that was a good deal.

And, I found these white pants from Chico’s. They are also in short length and will look better with a heel. I almost didn’t get them because of the ankle detail…

White pants are tricky and they show everything. I will need the right length top/blouse.

I decided I liked the detail and Beth also liked it. I think just a black blouse can look very chic with white pants.

What do you think? These were $15 because they weren’t new with tags but they look new. I know white pants don’t have a super long use – I only feel comfortable wearing them from like April until September usually, but since these were Chico’s and fit so well I knew there were a good buy. I only currently have a pair of white linen pants in my closet and they are lined which makes them a bit too warm.
The new Chico’s pants:

Oh man – do they look like pajamas?

I settled on this for a quick errand but then I got so hot in the lined pants!

And, I went to a retirement party and wore this:

I had a lot to say on this Thursday!

Thoughts?

Amy

Wednesday, July 9, 2025

1. What’s an adult problem nobody prepared you for? 

All the phone calls you would have to make? I’m talking to your insurance provider, internet provider, water company, electric company, credit card company, etc.

All the apps you have to get to run your stuff? Ugh! I don’t want any more apps!

2. How tuned in are you to all the recent food related health news? Have you gotten rid of your scratched cookware? Did you pay attention to food additives before they made the news? What’s one healthy eating/cooking/food shopping habit you need to adopt? 

Kind of tuned in. I have all stainless steel cookware from Costco because our cooktop is an induction cooktop and my old stuff wouldn’t work on it. I think that is the story Tom told me.

I grew up on frozen foods, canned foods, artificial coloring, and all the processed foods. I didn’t really think about it until I had a student a couple of years ago that was super healthy and would yell, “red dye number 40” an awful lot for a Spanish class. If someone said their favorite candy was Skittles or Twizzlers in Spanish we knew this was coming.

I need to buy more vegetables and less packaged snack foods.

3. What’s getting worse and worse as you get older? How about better and better? 

My tolerance for toxic people and wasting my time is getting worse.

My mom would drag my Dad to lots of things – dinners, plays, musical events and he did enjoy many of them, but many he did not. I would ask him if he had fun and his reply was usually, “fun is a strong word”. I get this now.

I am not sure what is getting better. Sometimes I think I am more relaxed but then something happens and I am not relaxed about it.

4. Are you more of an indoor person or an outdoor person? Elaborate. 

I am more of an outdoor person when the heat and mosquitoes are not present. See, my tolerance for those two things is really low right now.

5. If you had an expert personal assistant today, what would you have them do? 

I would probably have them go through my totes and take things to donation centers. I am having a mental block about doing it.

6. Insert your own random thought here. 

I have officially been off of work for a month and I feel that I haven’t been very productive. I’ve done all the regular household maintenance and some deep cleaning but I guess I feel that I should have done more decluttering (see above). My sister said I have been grieving and healing in this time – the loss of my mom, my career, and just life as I knew it. I’m sure she is right. Is this just the teacher productivity brain talking? Maybe.

Do you have any answers to these questions?

Amy