On Thursday we'll drop the boys off at our neighborhood school for the first time – a new chapter for our family. And with that my brain is switching out of summer mode and into school mode. It's hard to call it "fall" since temperatures will still sit comfortably above 100 degrees for a while but it won't feel quite like summer any more. Especially once the university students return in mid August and Chris's work starts to ramp up for the year. We had a great summer and packed in a lot. We traveled for three weeks to Texas... Read more →

We are more than half-way through June and my mini summer sabbatical is well underway. Not going to work feels surprisingly normal for having gone most days for the past ten years but I am being consciously appreciative of how I spend my days now. I am not ready to take this big change for granted. My goal for this summer is to clear as much of my mega to-do list as possible so that with the start of the school year I am ready to get to work writing without my list nagging me. Although I always know there... Read more →

In June and July I have part-time childcare so both boys are home a few days each week. It's my first time doing significant and consistent solo parenting! Heading into it I felt both excited and a little bit intimidated wondering how much squabbling or other challenging behavior there might be. But so far it's been really great! For days at home with the boys I need some routine and predictability. So I consulted my schedule-loving mama friend Sarah Powers who shared a blog post with me that she wrote years ago about a "just structured enough" summer schedule. I... Read more →

Loving the Arizona summers does not come easily, at least for me. While the rest of the country is basking in glorious weather we're experiencing intense heat that can feel oppressive. But last year I decided that I needed to try harder to embrace desert summers. To do that I set out to make summer cozy. And this year, after reading The Little Book of Hygge (pronounced "hoo-gah"), I've tried to think of what people in northern climates do during the winter and then give it a summer spin. I made a lot of progress toward finding hygge during the... Read more →

We still have a stretch of summer weather left to go and so I hope it's not too early to say this but I have been LOVING the summer. I'll never be one of those people who proclaims, "I just LOVE the heat," but I have changed my attitude this year and now actively look for things to enjoy instead of despise during the loooong, hot and dry summers. Or maybe acclimating to the desert heat just takes eight years! It's easy to let a negative aspect of something color your entire perception and then overlook all the good parts.... Read more →

A year ago I brought my favorite chocolate ice box pie to my friend Becky's Fourth of July party (it's her favorite holiday, which I love about her). It was a patriotic hometown affair where chocolate pie was right at home and I promised her the recipe and I do believe I've been teasing you, lovely readers, with it as well. Well, I'm here to finally make good on that promise! I have this recipe handwritten on a folded sheet of lined paper in my recipe binder and it is boldly titled Kelsey's Favorite Chocolate Ice Box Pie. I know... Read more →

Since we've lived here the summer has been something to endure. Eight years later and we've found so many things to love about living in the desert and continue to choose to stay here despite the hot, hot summers. And so I've decided to change my attitude about summer: I'm going to love it and not just endure it. Recently, Erica and I chatted about the concept of summer cozy and that perspective is helping. Once I started looking for things to love about the summer I found many: Chris has a very relaxed schedule which slows the pace of... Read more →

It's the end of June and we're nearly on to July! I keep thinking of so many things to write about and am trying to make the time. I hope a little round up will catch you up a bit. And hopefully we're friends on Instagram, I'm posting there quite often. Right now I'm... Working from the floor of our bedroom during nap time. Finding that time to write doesn't just happen, I have to make it happen. Reading How to Raise an Adult and agreeing with many of its points. Drinking mint ice tea in the afternoons at work... Read more →