High Five for Friday (8.9.24)

 

So much to catch up on!

One

We have another (permitted) driver in the house! Hallie got her learner's permit - on the first try (it took Tom and Will three tries to get the paperwork right) - and we've already started practicing. 

Two

We said goodbye to our friends and neighbors, the Young family. I met Rebecca through PTO when Will was in kindergarten and her oldest was in pre-k, and our families became friends when they moved in across the street. I have such fond memories of working with Rebecca on the elementary school variety show, our kids going swimming together in their backyard pool, our husbands playing disc golf together, watching baby Calvin grow up, taking care of their animals, chatting in lawn chairs while waiting for our kids to walk home from school, chatting in lawn chairs while the kids played outside on Friday nights when the kids were all in elementary school, chatting in lawn chairs and running the candy cannon on Halloween, and hosting Easter egg hunts together.

They've moved FAR away - to New Jersey - so we won't see them often. But we're happy for them, excited for them as they embark on this adventure, and grateful for the friendships we've had these last 13 years.

Three

Hallie and I have volunteered with our service organization multiple times in the last week or so - we're trying to put in as many hours as we can now, before school starts (and our weekdays disappear), dance starts (and our weekday evenings disappear), and Nutcracker starts (and our Saturdays disappear). We've volunteered for two nonprofit organizations' banquets and attended a leadership and development tour and question/answer session with women in medicine at our local hospital!

One of the live auction items at
the second banquet was a PUPPY.

Her name was Rosie, and she
was both adorable and oh so sweet.

Four

We have new kittens! The Rugrats babies - Lillian, Dil, and Chuckie - are incredibly friendly and very well adjusted (they came to us from another foster). Lillian in particular LOVES people, and all three have done well with Popeye so far. Dil is pre-adopted, but Lillian and Chuckie are still available for adoption - let me know if you'd like to come over and meet them!

Lillian

Dil

Chuckie

Five

Speaking of kittens, Will saved this little sweetie from the parking lot behind Whataburger! His friend found her on his way into work and called Will, who then picked her up at Whataburger, brought her home, fed her, contacted our rescue (which is currently completely full), and then reached out to the humane society to make a plan to get her help. As all this was happening, I was at an appointment with Hallie and couldn't really talk to Will on the phone, so he had to handle the situation pretty much on his own - and he did GREAT.

Happy weekend, friends!

Monthly Medley: July 2024

Reading

I wasted three weeks reading 100 pages of a book I'd heard great things about but just could NOT get into. Once I finally gave it up and switched to a new book - All the Dangerous Things by Stacy Willingham - I was once again engaged. The story follows a desperate mother as she searches for her missing (presumed abducted) son while battling severe sleep deprivation, digging into a past traumatic experience, and attempting to understand her complex and failing marriage. I thought I had this one figured out twice and I was wrong both times...

Watching

First the Euro 2024 (soccer tournament), then the Copa 2024 (also a soccer tournament), and then...the OLYMPICS. When I say I love the Olympics, I mean I LOVE the Olympics. I get up early for events. I stay up late for events. If I'm home, the television is tuned to an Olympics event. Sometimes, I leave the Olympics turned on when I leave the house so that when I return home. I choose my exercise machine at the gym based on where I can best see the television. I plan other activities around events I want to watch live. And when the Olympics are over, I watch all of my favorite Olympic movies (see you soon, Miracle) to help fill the void.  

Pre-Olympics, we watched a really cute animated movie called Leo. When I say "we," I mean my parents, the four of us, and my sister's family, so I can confirm that it's a great choice for almost any category of viewers.

Listening To

Dateline, Crime Junkies, and Swindled were feeling a little tired to me, so I popped back over to Betrayal and binged season three (which was excellent, by the way). I also listened to a few episodes of an old favorite - #IMOMSOHARD the podcast - which has been fun since I haven't followed them as closely in recent years.

Following

I've actually followed comedian Laura Ramoso for a while now, yet I realized yesterday that I had never shared her here. She's hilarious, especially her videos of her playing the role of her German mother and her Italian father. She's touring in the United States this fall, and I'm trying to figure out how to see one of her shows!

Trying/Using

I swapped out Will's hat holder for these, which work better and allow for baseball caps to be stacked beneath Will's collection of bucket hats.

We've been traveling a lot this year; as a result, I've been on the hunt for more compact and travel-friendly versions of my regular products and tools so my toiletry bag won't be quite as full. I'd had my eye on this set of brushes for a while, mostly because they're pretty, but it turns out they're fairly small too...making them the perfect travel set!

I had a different kind of olive oil sprayer (the kind you pump and that aerosolizes the oil) previously, but even though everyone else seemed to love it, I wasn't a fan. I recently ordered this one, which allows you to spray or pour oil, and so far it's fantastic!

Last but not least...the cats finally destroyed the basket in which we stored a few handheld weights, stretchy bands, our muscle gun, and a yoga mat. On my hunt for a replacement I was looking for something big enough to fit all of these items but also at least semi-attractive, as it sits tucked away but still semi-visible in our living room. I stumbled upon this option and so far it's been great! 

Wearing

My mom bought me...and Hallie...and herself this romper - from Loft's Lou & Grey line - and we all love it. Consider it the perfect casual-but-cute ensemble for everyone from teenagers to grandmas.

Hallie has a pair of cute, flouncy, double-layer flutter shorts from our local dance boutique. She loves them, but she doesn't love the colors in which they come - hers are lavender, and the light purple was really the only color she liked. We walked into Target last weekend and found an almost identical pair of shorts in a color she adored (she has dark red and it's gorgeous), and then a couple of days later I discovered they come in even more cute colors. I can't wear these shorts, but they look adorable on my teen and are a great price! 

Eating/Drinking

When I saw this One Pot Orzo with Spinach, Sausage, and Corn recipe I knew it would be a hit, so much so that I doubled it off the bat and watched it disappear over the course of dinner and lunch leftovers the following day. It was fast, easy, and used just one pot, which made clean up fast and easy as well!

This Beefy Tomato Soup tasted more like spaghetti/marinara soup (just with different noodles) than basic tomato soup, but it was delicious nonetheless! One note: our first servings could be called soup, but as is often the case with pasta soups, over time the pasta continued absorbing the liquid and made our second servings more like a casserole. 

Smiling About

• On this episode of Goats with Jobs: Caddy Goats.
• Max just earned his Doctorate in Litter-ature.

I'm saving all most of my Olympics-related "Smiling About" links for a future post, but here's the tiniest of teasers... 😉

High Five for Tulsa

Because our trip to Tulsa fell at generally the same time of year as our annual trip north to visit our families - and because my dad, brother-in-law, and nephew all play disc golf - my extended family decided to join us in Tulsa. (In case you missed Tuesday's post, we were in Tulsa so Will could compete in the PDGA Junior Disc Golf World Championships.) The four Ferri stayed in a hotel for the first two nights - we arrived early for the distance throwing competition and for Will to play all of the tournament courses before the first round - and then we moved across town to an Airbnb, where we all stayed together for the next week.

My parents, sister, BIL, niece, and nephew joined us on the course for the first half of Will's first round and then for his entire fourth round, which was particularly fun because that the was the day Will crushed his final three holes to qualify for the semifinals. My parents also spectated for the semifinals, which was a great way to wrap up the tournament. 

When not at the disc golf course, combinations of the 10 of us visited the Tulsa Zoo, the Oklahoma Aquarium, and an escape room, which we did successfully complete. We also sampled quite a few different sweet and savory treats and the kids played a short round of miniature golf at Mother Road Market, a quirky and cool food hall on historic Route 66. 

VR at the aquarium

All we never knew we always wanted was to see
this otter go down his slide. He preferred to go up.

We spent a lot of time - basically every late afternoon/early evening - playing in our Airbnb's pool. The weather was HOT for all but one of the days, so the pool was a huge plus.

Adult Swim Float

This one could be titled Adult Swim.

Losing consciousness.

Will's swimsuit model competition submission.

Mascara problems -

- but maybe my new profile picture? I kind of like it...

Midway through the week, we celebrated these two turning 40-something and 74!

Lastly, a shout out to these two. There were a couple of years when they didn't connect as well, but they seem to have left that awkward phase behind them and are back to being cousin besties. I love it.

Happy weekend, friends!