Style Me Blogger - Summer Eats and Go to Treats

The Style Me Bloggers are back with another round, this time we're talking about our favorite foods and treats.

Hands down my favorite thing to make in the summer is my BBQ Lime Shrimp, to die for and I can eat it by the hand full. Easiest thing in the world to make too.

I also love tomatoes with some balsamic vinegar and olive oil drizzled on top, yum.

I love all of the fresh fruit that is out too, strawberries, raspberries, peaches, nectarines, watermelon. Speaking of which here's a quick video on a cool way to cut watermelon up for your kids. Baby Fox absolutely loves eating it like this, easy and less messy too.

These homemade oreo cookies are pretty much the bomb.com...okay I don't know first hand but I do know that everyone raved about them, and several people asked for the recipe and then made them for the next party I went to at their house. Tip: the recipe makes 36 sandwich cookies, so if you just wanted 12 then 1/3 the recipe.

The last thing that really reminds me of summer is homemade ice cream. I know my kids love it and it's so much fun to do too when you have friends over.

What are your favorite summer eats and treats? Go check out everyone's food picks, I'm sure I'm going to get hungry just reading all of them!

Shoes to Shiraz | Two Teens and their Mama | Nick and Nik 

R Squared  | Confessions of a Frumpy Mommy 

The Mishaps and Mayhem of Solitary Life |  Quilty Joy Joy

 Daily Style Finds |  Foxy's Domestic Side | Once Upon a Time & Happily Ever After 

An InLinkz Link-up

 Erika, Andrea, and Narci for Friday Favorites, September Farm and The Farmer's Wife for Oh Hey, Friday! April and the girls for Five on Friday, and Jennie for Friday Favorites and Faith, Heather and Daily Momvitity for Mommy Moments

Inside Out - Baby Fox Edition

Happy Thursday! And you know what Thursday is...a new video for you from me! Well this week it's from me and Baby Fox! I thought since we just saw Inside Out that I would do the Inside Out tag, where I ask him the #5emotions and he answers. Check it out below. Hope you enjoy.

Next week you'll get to see my answers!

Don't forget to enter the giveaway for a $500 Amazon gift card! Who couldn't use 500 buckaroos!

Also linking up with Amanda, for Thinking Out Loud and Vanessa and Penny for Thinking out Loud,Lulia, Stephanie and Sarah for The Ladies Collective, Annie and Natalie for Thoughts for Thursday and Joey and Kristin for Stuff and Things

All Character images found at http://disney.wikia.com/ 

My Nordstrom Anniversary Haul

Happy Hump Day! I thought since everyone else was doing it, I might as well jump on board too. Last week I told you that I wanted to try and snag from the Nordstroms Sale. I didn't get all of it, but I did get most of it. Here's the break down.

First I would like to say, imagine Mr. and I sitting on the couch side by side shopping the Nordstrom Sale at midnight...that's love I tell ya.

I'm always looking for some good jeans. I don't have any distressed jeans so I thought that I would try these two out, and the grey pair of jeans I have are more loose fitting, so I'm hoping that these work out. I do have bigger calves so I'm hoping these aren't too tight on them. It totally a random thing that I happened to pick the same brand for everything. The best part none of these jeans are over $60, maybe that's why I picked the same brand, they were a good price point.

KUT from the Kloth 'Catherine' Jeans / KUT from the Kloth Adele Jeans / KUT from the Kloth Grey Jeans

I need some PJ's, I bought a bunch of winter ones last year...actually the kids bought me them for Christmas. But it's hotter then heck down here, and it's not cooling down that much at night, I need some cool PJ's. Donuts and Purses on PJ's, my two favorite things (even though I can't eat donuts any more, I still love the way they smell, weird I know). I have a few shorts that I wear and the ONLY tank tops I have for bed are nursing tanks...Mr. said I haven't nursed in over 2 months, it's time to give them up. I hoping these work, they have the support bra in there, fingers crossed.

Purse PJ's / Donut PJ's / Grey Tank / Blue Tank /  Calvin Klein Black Chemise 

Strips and dresses, always a win in my book. I can see that blue dress styled so many different ways, I really hope it fits! Junior dresses are really hit or miss with me with the sizing. This is very similar to my other lace dress, but this one was just too cute to pass up. The shift dress just looked comfortable and perfect with a pair of leggings and some boots for the Fall, it was like calling my name.

Soprano Striped Skater Dress / Lush White Lace Dress / Socialite 3/4 Sleeve Shift Dress

Funny I only found 2 shirts that I just had to have. I love strips, can you tell? And I have this blue shirt but the 3/4 sleeve one, I thought I would give this one a try, the other one is super comfortable. I've really been into looser tops lately, I hope this don't disappoint.

Socialite 3/4 Striped Shirt / Blue Pleione Top

Here's the category that just wraps up everything else I got. I am so happy that I got the Lorac palatte. I remember last year Jen got it and by the time she posted her haul, they were sold out. I was determined this year to get it, for $15...why not right? I had it in my cart ready to go at midnight on Thursday/Friday and once it hit midnight I did a check out. So glad that I did, along with a few other things I knew it would sell out. And you know what? It did, after I checked out I continued to shop and I didn't see it listed any more in the beauty supplies, so glad that I did that. I might have checked out another 3 times after that...

The purse is like the one I got, but doesn't have the side zippers or tassels, but they were sold out online with the one I got. Sheaffer has been raving about the self title Blardigan (part blanket part cardigan) for years now...I finally just bite the bullet and got one! It's almost $30 off the original price. Seriously everyone who gets it says that they live in it in the fall/winter months. I'm really hoping it works out!

The Kate Spade earrings I got as gifts, for $25 worth it. I got the candles as hostess gifts, since it comes 3 in a pack for $15, thought it was worth it, small gift that smells good, who wouldn't want that? Yes, I would break these up, so I now have 3 hostess gifts. Does anyone else do hostess gifts when going to a party?

The only thing Mr. picked out were jammies for the kids. We got each kid a pair, they absolutely love matching pajamas, how cute are they going to be in these PJ's?

The running shorts I got because...well, they were $20 and I need some running shorts. Although it is the only thing I've gotten and I'm not sure I like the fit...going to see what else I'm going to keep from the sale, and decide from there. If I'm keeping a lot of what I bought, they'll probably go back, if some of the stuff I got doesn't end up working out and I'm returning most of it, then I'll keep them. Random decision making tactics right there.

LORAC matte eyeshadow /Kate Spade Stud Earrings / Emperia Cognac Purse / Barefoot Dreams Sweater / Voluspa Candles/ Skip Hop 'Zoojama - Bee' PJ's / NIKE Shorts

I don't have those Tom Wedges, but I do have a similar pair from Target, totally not the same, but they look pretty darn close.

Socialite 3/4 Striped Shirt / KUT from the Kloth Adele Jeans  / Emperia Cognac tote / Melinda Maria Triangle Stud / Gorjana Bar Necklace / TOMS Wedge Ankle Boots

I didn't buy all of these things, but I have those leggings, SO comfy. Another Sheaffer recommendation, that girl is always spot on. Also I have a leopard scarf and cognac boots, although those Frye ones...love/want still.

Socialite 3/4 Sleeve Shift Dress / Hue Stretch Pants / Frye knee high boots / Leopard Scarf

It seems like I bought a lot, and did, but most likely I will keep maybe half of it because of fit. But if you had to chose, what would you pick? What did you get at the Nordstrom sale? Was anyone else as excited as I was. Seriously it's my favorite sale of the year.

Linking up with Tucker Up, Because Shanna Said So,  On Trend Tuesday, Cappuccino and Fashion, Sydney Fashion Hunter, Pampers and Pearls, Happiness at Mid Life, The Pleated Poppy, SShopping My Closet, Get Your Pretty On, Let It Shine, More Pieces of Me,  Pumps and Push-Ups

This post contains affiliate links, which means that if you click on a link and purchase an item - I may receive a small commission.  THANK YOU!

Show and Tell Tuesday - Show us your House, Tour Time

Andrea is asking and I'm answering...today she's asking us to show us our house. I would have done a video tour...but my house is a mess...like tornado ripped through it mess. And I really need to get organized, every weekend I say I am, and then very weekend I don't...so...ya know. Whatever...it will still be there tomorrow and the snuggles might not be.

I have showed you guys a few rooms:

Our house before we moved in. Yep it really was that orange. Actually this picture is making it look more tame than it was.

Pictures from the beginning and front and back yards 

Looks so much better right?

Click here to see the backyard cleanup, it took 3 huge trucks to cart everything out.

And then a few years later we did a backyard renovation, we couldn't be happier with how it came out, and are so glad we did it when we did, we enjoy it almost everyday during the summer. Click here to see the renovation of the backyard.

When we moved into our house it looked like a rainbow threw up in it...seriously, you could stand in the living room and see the following colors: Orange, brown, light purple, dark purple, green and red. You can sort of see all of the different colors in these two pictures. Almost taken from the same spot. We...and when I saw we I mean, Mr. had some serious vision...I was skeptical but trusted his opinion. So glad that I did, this really is the perfect house for us.

The one thing Mr. wanted when we moved in was a big TV, click here for pictures from the renovation of his office/tv room.

Mr. wanted a big TV I wanted a new set of stairs. This was a huge undertaking and we are so happy with how it came out, click here for that renovation. It looks really great with a Christmas tree right where the stairs starts to curve. You know you want to click this link to see what Christmas looks like.

The guest room down stairs was pretty much just a paint job. It's where we lived for a good 5 months while the rest of the house was being renovated. Click here for that renovation. I actually don't have any more pictures of it being done. Another room post to come!

The only thing we did in the kids bedrooms was get rid of the horrible color and paint them a really neutral color. Click here for that renovation. Baby Fox's room for a short time was just an empty room. After we finished fixing up the house (but really when are you ever done?) we got pregnant right away, so it really only stayed empty for 9 months. Click here to see his room tour.

Until Mini Fox came along this was my craft room, I had a TV, table and all my craft/sewing supplies set up in here. Click here for Mini Fox's room tour.

Our bedroom/bathroom was a wreck! We had both light purple and dark purple and so many wiring hanging from the ceiling and walls, we ended up just shoving all the wiring into the wall and patching that up. haha! Here's the before, click here for the room renovation/tour.

Our bathroom was a wreck! Another huge project, but so worth it! Click here for the renovation.

Oh and I just remmebered I did a closet tour too. Click here for the full tour.

So there you go, all of our rooms in one post. I have yet to give you an official tour of our kitchen and family room. But most of my pictures are taken from those rooms, so I guess just go look at any post and you'll see those, haha :) I think this upcoming year is going to be the year of decorating the house, getting stuff on the windows/on the walls. More on that in the new year. Need to make a plan first.

Don't forget to enter my $500 Giftcard to Amazon Giveaway! With the holidays right around the corner, $500 goes a long way! Good luck!

Also linking up with Tuesday Talk  

House Edition - Mini Fox's Room

You know Andrea asked for a house tour and I realized I never gave you the tour of Mini Fox's room. So you're going to get two posts today. One of just Mini Fox's room and then I'll summarize it all for you in the next post...which will go live a couple of minutes after this one. I figure I gave every other room it's own post, Mini Fox deserved her own post too.

I couldn't get her whole room in one shot, so I had to take two, funny I should have stitched these two pictures together, they almost match perfectly. But you can pretty much get the idea. We used Baby Fox's old baby furniture, and bought Baby Fox the new furniture when Mini Fox came along. When we found out we were having a girl, we definitely wanted to use pink in the room, and I figured out that I wanted to do pink and grey. See her letters across her room? Mr. and I made those and you can find that tutorial here.

On the back wall is this needle point that my best friend made for our wedding. We never had a spot to put it before, and loved that we could incorporate it in her room.

 This was a hand me down from a co-worker of my Dad's. Actually we got it when we had Baby Fox and NEVER used it. Seriously it just sat downstairs collecting dust. Once Mini Fox came around I thought it would be nice to actually use it. Nursing wasn't scary any more, and I thought it would be nice to nurse her in it. We have a very handy friend and she showed me how to make slip covers. My mom and I went to JoAnn's and picked out this fuzzy material, I forgot to take the picture, but the other side is grey, so we can mix and match. Turns out it's way easier to make a slip cover then I thought. I should have taken pictures as I was doing it, but well, I wasn't sure if it was going to work, and just wanted to get it done. But I love the little ruffle detail around the back cushion.

I was going to make a quilt using the same fabric from her letters from her canvas wall hangings, but well, time got away from me. I have all of the fabric, sitting in my craft cabinet...maybe this year I'll try to do that...hmmm...

Mr. actually found this at Hobby Lobby, one day  he just came home with it. We thought it was the perfect thing to hang above her bed, because we both knew I didn't have time to make the quilt. Actually I was going to do it before she was born, you know those 4 weeks that you get before baby comes? Yeah...she came 2 weeks early and ruined those plans, haha.

This is her dresser/changing table. See the covering on the changing pad? Yep same material used for her chair, and our friend also made a grey matching one...see I told you, she was a handy lady. She knows how to sew everything. Of course our snowboards live in her room. We had them in Baby Fox's room until we switched him to a big boy bed and we didn't want him to accidentally knock them over on him. We though it appropriate to keep the tradition alive and put them in her room for safe keeping.
 

Mr. actually bought these frames to go in our bathroom, to sort of go with the pictures we have hanging in there of Baby Fox, but it turns out these were way too small and didn't look right, instead I put them in her room. I should probably put other photos in it, but I just love these ones so much.

 And I"m going to show you the ridiculous amount of clothes Mini Fox has...seriously most of these clothes are 18-2T, so they all pretty much fit her right now. I've given so many clothes away. But on a positive note, we have so many generous family and friends who have given us/donated so many things to Mini Fox.

P.S. the blow up mattress "bed" is so awesome. It's this collapsible frame that can fit a blow up mattress so it's off the ground. Think...of those EZ-Ups, it's like that in how it accordions out, but instead of a canvas it's flat and you put a blow up mattress on it. This is the one we bought, but it looks like QVC has the same exact one too. It's pretty awesome and it makes your guests feel like you're sleeping on an actual bed.

This is the space just to the right of her closet and the door. I originally put this there to see if I liked having a bookshelf here. I wanted to get a white one, and this was one I bought from Target when I moved out of my parents house, it was here for a temporary thing, but almost 2 years later, it's more like it collects stuff...I really need to go through it, but well, this is real life, I'm showing you what it really looks like, not what I want it to look like, haha.

and there you have it, Mini Fox's room.  Hope you enjoyed her room tour! Click here for our other room tours.

Linking up with Tuesday Talk   

Navy Ship Tour and Lots of Rain

I had Friday off, so I was able to walk Baby Fox to school. Last time this year, this is his last week of school, am debating whether or not to take Friday off so I can walk him one last time...but then thought, you know what? It's not his last day of preschool ever, I'll do it next year. Maybe...probably...okay who are we kidding, I'm probably going to work from home on Friday.

Finally I got him to jump in the picture...now she's not looking.

After we dropped him off, Mini Fox and I hit up the Nordstrom Sale in person to try on some of the boots I was eyeing. They didn't work out, sad face.

Friday night we decided to have Nana and Ampa over for swimming (no pictures of that, oops) and dinner - steak, potatoes and broccoli, yum.

She loves getting hauled around.

Saturday we were up early to drive to San Diego for a tour of a Navy Ship. We have a friend in the Navy stationed there, so he got us on one of the ships for a tour, super cool.

This is all of the awards this ship has recieved.

The round circular thing is the gong, that the sound off to other ships and they ring a bell so they know how far away each other are.

Ringing the gong.

Baby Fox's favorite part was going up and down all of the ladders.

 

We're at the front of the ship now.

Dark clouds coming in, there was light rain and a bunch of lightening while we were on the ship

Baby Fox is driving the ship!

Mini Fox driving...

View out the front window, they were saying that sometimes when out in sea that sometimes the weather gets so bad that this window will get crashed with waves, that the whole front of the ship will go under water and the the waves start hitting this window, crazy!

I'm driving! Or is it Steering?

 

Baby Fox sitting in the Captain's Chair...no one gets to sit in this chair...they made an exception for the kids. The guy we know said he's been in the Navy for almost 20 years and he's never sat in this chair.

The kids really are having fun...

Meeting room

More importantly we stopped in the kitchen for a cookie and juice.

There isn't a cookie this kid will turn down.

The lightening is starting. We finally let Mini Fox out of the Ergo, and the lightening and thunder hit almost at the same time, and shook the ground, Mini Fox didn't know what to do with her self, she started running around in a circle, and ran into Mr.'s legs and started saying UP, UP, UP!  It was hilarious.

We got back to the car just in time! Then we drove over to grab some lunch.

These two are just too cute, they are 4 months apart. She's playing hard to get.

Still not totally sure about him.

Yep, okay I'll give you some bunny crackers.

It took us 3 hours to get home, ugh! It should have been less than 2. We got Roku over the weekend, anyone else have one? That thing is pretty awesome. Now we can get Netflix downstairs...

We watched Rainbow Rocks (it's a My Little Pony movie), Baby Fox is obsessed currently.

Dinner was left over from the day before, he outfit is just too cute. We also made some chocolate chip cookies for dessert, yum.

Sunday was a very lazy day. Swim lessons in the early afternoon. Baby Fox learned how to dive. Check it out, sorry about the grainy quality.

After swim lessons back home for some lunch. That's Rainbow Rock playing...again.

These two are too cute sitting here eating lunch.

Some seriously coloring going on here.

The weather was so crazy this weekend, first the rain on Saturday, or should I say down pour? Mr. was saying that since they've been recording the weather, the previous record for rain in July was 0.01 inches...and this weekend we got over an inch. Which was great, but it was such tropical weather. It was 90° at 90% humidity, hot, hot, hot. So Sunday it said 50% chance of rain...but in the morning it was sunny and hot, but nice out. Then all of a sudden the clouds came in a dumped some more water on us, it was so weird.

Currently there are 3 freesbies and 4 balls in our pool... Baby Fox needs better aim, haha.

Nana and Ampa asked if we wanted to come over for dinner. Never pass up and opportunity for that. Some appetizers.

My dad found this dress and two wands for $3 at a garage sale, score. She loved the dress.

Watching the Frozen song, at the end she gets so excited to see Olaf..every.single.time.  I took a video but forgot it at home, oops. I'll post later.

Racing back to the car...yes he's in a car that says...don't put kids here...hehe.

 How was your weekend? What was your favorite part?

Don't forget to enter the $500 giveaway for an Amazon Giftcard!

Linking up with Faith, Heather and Daily Momvitity for Mommy Moments,  Erin for Weekend Snapshot4, B Loved Boston and Champagne & Suburbs  for Weekending, and Monday Madness with Ashley at A Cute Angle