How is it possible that my baby turns 9 today?! I feel like I just recapped her birth story, and here we are celebrating the last single digit year before she hits a full decade. Whoa.
In-between out of town gymnastics competitions, we celebrated her a few weeks early with her favorite school friends at Buff City Soap. The kiddos got to make their own bath bombs to take home, and enjoyed another delicious custom cake from our former neighbor. The BEST!
Then it was time to celebrate our friends' twins who were turning 8 with a pool party. It was nice to catch up with some of our favs, and we grabbed pizza after before calling it a night.
The next day we enjoyed brunch at STK Steakhouse in Disney Springs. Their all you can eat brunch menu is delish! Rumor has it, I'm still full. Also always here for a fun photo opp in front of their floral logo.
Another gymnastics meet for Lil' Miss the following weekend which had us up at 5:30 am, and on the road by 6:00 so she could start stretching at 7:30 on the other side of the state. Multiple coffees later, she earned an additional 2 medals. One for bars and another for the all around.
Today, we are celebrating our sweet girl and I'm sure the day will be filled with LOTS of excitement, treats, and video calls with family up north.
Are we already more than halfway through February? I'm still feeling major burnout, but had a few days off last week (to burn through unused PTO before losing it on my work anniversary) which definitely helped. I treated chronic pain with a much needed massage, continued work on our DIY closet re-design, baked Valentine's cookies with Lil' Miss and helped her get ready for her classroom party, rocked out like a proper millennial to the Super Bowl halftime show and met Emily for a Galentine's Day brunch on the water.
If you've been following along onInstagram, I've been documenting in Stories how we are currently tackling a DIY master closet re-design. This is something I've wanted to do for several years, but couldn't stomach the cost of professional installation. It's seriously SO expensive, like I'm talking we could gut our kitchen for the same amount. Craziness!
My husband mentioned a few months back that he could install it himself if we purchase closet systems from Home Depot or Lowes. I initially said absolutely not because I was afraid it couldn't be done, but I eventually warmed up to the idea and am SO glad I did. Because even though we're about 2/3's done I'm already LOVING the newly transformed space. We ordered everything from Home Depot, and the sections have been arriving, and he's been working on it here and there on the weekends or at night.
As you can see above the "before" photo is a cluttered mess and horrible use of the space. We had a builders grade rack going around the whole perimeter and that was it. No fun shelves or drawers, no tiered racks, etc... I even still had a plastic dresser that I used in college to move back and forth from the dorms. It was bad..
Fast forward to our current progress, and we're getting there. One side is completely done, the back wall just needs the rods hung up (they need to be cut to fit the space), the corner pieces are in, and we just need to finish the other wall. Once everything is complete, I'll come back and share the entire process including some of issues we've run into.
Here's a breakdown of the closet system pieces we purchased:
We're pleasantly surprised by the quality of the materials and easy to follow directions and installation. After measuring, make sure you're ordering closet system kits that will fit your space appropriately and utilize the existing holes in the walls after removing what's currently there to locate the studs.
We're excited for the sweetest new addition in town - Stackd Brownies recently opened up a brand new store, and we took home some deliciousness to enjoy along with a dozen mini's for Lil' Miss to treat the teachers at her school. Each batch of gourmet brownies are perfectly baked daliy, and the best part - they work with local suppliers for the finest and most authentic ingredients. Yummy and REAL ingredients? YES please!
Emily and I met up at one of our favorite brunch spots to catch up over good food and bottomless mimosas. We both skipped the traditional orange juice mimosa, and she went with pineapple while I went with grapefruit before we took our last drink outside to enjoy by the water. Perfect Galentine's Day celebration of our 11 years and counting friendship!
First and foremost - a BIG Birthday Eve shoutout to my birthday twin Nadine. I hope you have a fabulous day tomorrow sweet friend!
My friends spoiled me over a fun birthday brunch this weekend. It's always so hard to pick a restaurant because we have the really great problem of so many brunch spots to choose from in Central Florida. This time, we went to Maxine's on Shine which is super cute neighborhood restaurant tucked away close to Downtown Orlando. Oh did I mention they have giant mimosas?
In other news, Lil' Miss officially started VPK last week. She had been in Pre-K, and is now one of the "big kids" at her school since VPK is the last year before Kindergarten which she is very proud about. Where did my itty bitty baby go?! She's also a champ about wearing a uniform, and still wearing a mask to school.
Last weekend, H and I snuck in a quick date night to hit up a few local spots. We finally checked out a hidden tiki bar for pre-dinner drinks, and enjoyed dinner outside under a big covered patio due to the rain. Has it been extra rainy this summer where you are too?
And last but not least - I caved and ordered my first ever pair of boyfriend jeans which I'll report back on after they arrive, and I take them out for a spin. Despite what Gen Z'ers may say, I'm still one of Team Skinny Jeans' biggest cheerleaders. So, I chose a pair that doesn't look too baggy in the waist area, and are cuffed at the bottom for definition. Fingers crossed!
A beautiful weekend with the perfect balance of fun and relaxation was just what the doctor ordered after the first full week of the year. Please pass the coffee as we head into week 2...
We had a very belated birthday celebration for Emily over brunch, bottomless mimosas, and lake views at Canvas Restaurant and Market. The food was delish, the market had so many cute trinkets, and they even continued to keep the mimosas flowing as we moved from our table to outdoor seating on the lake. Yes please!
The fun didn't stop last week, I have another fun graphic tee perfect for brunch either out at the newest hot spot in town or a cozy boozy breakfast at home. I mean how fun would it be to also pair this top with a pair of joggers and lounge on the couch or on the patio with a mimosa?
