Happy 2nd Birthday, Everett!

Tonight when I was putting you into bed, at the very last moment, you wrapped your arms around my neck and placed your head to sweetly on my shoulder. You sighed softly and said, "My mommy." I was so taken aback - this wasn't something you had ever done. So of course I answered, "My Everett", and you replied, "My mommy", and we did this over and over again. About ten times in total. Then you leaned your body down, motioning that you were ready for bed.

I laid you down, my memory flooding with the moments of being in labor with you, exactly two years before. My Everett.

I am overwhelmed by how tender you are, how unbelievably sensitive and outspokenly sweet you are. You are all boy, with the yelling and the stomping and the throwing balls at all the furniture in the house. But then you are also my Everett, telling me my dress is beautiful (true story - every single time I wear a dress, he says, "Mommy dress beautiful") and noticing when I actually fix my hair ("Mommy take shower? Mommy, what with this hair?"). You are a mountain of a person - so full of life and love and goodness, that I am convinced that the world is a precious place, just because you are in it.

I can't believe you're two today. This second year of your life has been teeming with adventure - you took your first steps the week of your 1st birthday, just a few days after moving into this new house. You started "school" and hated it so much it made both of us cry. Thank goodness you realized how much fun it can be when you let your teachers and friends love on you. You learned to throw a ball and a frisbee and swing at the playground and run fast. You broke your leg. That really sucked. But we watched you heal and it made both my muscles and my heart stronger, carrying you and caring for you. You are a person of great boldness and courage and strength. I couldn't be prouder of you, little son.

Your favorite things these days? You love bagels. Fire trucks. Dinosaurs. ELMO. The color green. Playing outside. Riding on the golf cart. When Dad gets home from work. Wearing your hat backwards. Wearing Nikes. Eating waffles. Balloons. "Flying" with Dad. Reading books before bed. Fruit snacks. Bird watching! And a million other things, because you love a lot. You're the best thing in my world. It's such a privilege being your mom.

I love you so much, Everett. Happy 2nd Birthday, my boy.

P.S. - My mushy thoughts on Everett's 1st birthday.

The Must-Haves in My Summer Makeup Bag.

I love keeping a minimal beauty routine in the summer, especially since I'm usually slicked in sweat and carting a toddler around from pool to picnic to park. Most week days I don't wear makeup, but if I'm going somewhere or have a meeting, I will take a few extra minutes to pull myself together. Today I'm sharing a few of the supplies in my makeup bag that I love and use all the time on those makeup days, especially in these summer months.

Skin:
Concealer
Hello, I'm a mom, and I am chronically under slept. I am actually trying to do a better job with my sleep schedule, but I still have those dark undereye circles that just won't quit. I love the Bare Minerals Stroke of Light Eye Brightener in the shade Luminous 2. It takes away those eye bags and dark circles with a sweep of the wand. Literal magic.

Powder
To save time, (and also because I like to minimize the amount of face makeup I wear in the summer) and I just use this Bare Minerals Tinted Mineral Veil over my concealer.

Bronzer + Blush
Bronzer can be really intimidating (always so orange, ah!), but I like to use Bare Minerals Warmth to add a little cheekbone definition and color. I almost use this as a contour, just focusing in a diagonal from my ear to my lips. Sometimes, if I want to add some pink to the apples of my cheeks, I'll brush on a tiny bit of Bare Minerals READY Blush in the color The Aphrodisiac.

Eyes:
Brows
I have dark brows, but they tend to be a bit patchy. I have started using Maybelline Brow Drama Palette in Deep Brown and I love the effect. You first apply a dark wax to define, then fill in the gaps with a powder. It's perfect for anyone wanting to define their brows but not actually needing to pencil them in.

Mascara
I have been using Clinique High Impact Mascara in the color Black for 10+ years. I have tried other mascaras but I always come back, because this mascara is the bomb. It lengthens and thickens without making my lashes clumpy. A tried-and-true winner in my book.

Shadow
I don't routinely wear eye shadow in the summer, because I like my skin to breathe as much as possible. But if I'm going on a date and want to amp things up a bit, I've been reaching for this Bare Minerals Shadow in the shade Queen Tiffany because it strikes the right balance of sophisticated and youthful without getting too vampy. P.S. - I apply it with this contour shadow brush. P.P.S. - I am wearing this shade here, so you can get a feel for what it looks like. I think it works well on my olive skin tone.

Lips:
Lip Liner
I have been getting into lip liner lately, because I like defining my lips and then filling them in with the color, treating it almost like a stain. It stays put longer than a gloss and it just makes me feel put together, especially because I usually have pool hair and I'm wearing gym shorts. Lip liner somehow makes me feel like a lady in those moments. I have been wearing this Sonia Kashuk Lip Definer in Nude, and I just ordered a few more shades/brands from Sephora and I'm excited to try some with a bit more color :)

Balm
I am a big fan of the Eos Lip Balms (you can usually get a big pack of them at Costco, score!), and I especially love the passionfruit and summerfruit flavors.

And there you have it! All the tricks in my summertime makeup bag. I tend to wear more makeup in the fall and winter months, because I like to play with colors and, honestly, my skin usually needs a little oomph once I lose that sun-kissed glow. But I especially love how minimal my summertime makeup + beauty routine is, because that leaves more time for fun at the pool!

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For those of you who have been reading this blog for a while, I'd love to hear from you about this kind of content. I've started to incorporate more fashion & beauty posts, and I would love to get some feedback about what you like to read and would like to see more of here in this space! Leave a comment below and tell me what you think! Thanks friends!
 

The 3 Plants That Are Killing it in My Summer Garden.

And by killing it, I mean rocking. And by rocking, I mean growing like crazy and producing all over the place. All this Georgia heat has caused a lot of my herbs to bolt and go to flower too quickly (sad day, I know), but there are a few things that are absolutely on fire, in terms of production and growth.

1. Cherry Tomatoes.
These bad boys are so stinkin' cute. Their process of turning from green to red is really striking, and for some reason they have just gone to town, producing so so much. Next year I know to add a few more of these plants (and buy taller stakes for them, because holy cow.)

2. Zinnias.
I added these to the back border of my garden, in hopes of adding a pop of color to the vegetable garden. I wasn't sure how well they would do, since I was planting them from seeds, and I've had very mixed success rates with growing flowers from seeds. But these are popping up in reds, golds, oranges, pinks and yellows! They are so gorgeous and big that I feel like a regular grocery store flower department. I've been cutting these and putting them in tall vases around the house and I feel so farm girl. Sigh. If you come over, I'll send you home with one :)

3. Celebrity Tomatoes.
These are the fattest, juiciest tomatoes ever. I can't believe how satisfying it is to look out my window and see these gigantic tomatoes growing in my own little garden box. It's a strangely wonderful feeling, knowing my soil and water grew such healthy, vigorous tomatoes. And you guys - they taste so good. Stevie has been making these sliced skillet-fried tomatoes coated in a bread crumb/flour situation and they are seriously savory.

In case you're wondering what my child does while I tend to the garden. I'll be honest, it's turned into a weedy jungle out there, because I've been pregnant and it's been hot. etc., but I am finally feeling energetic and able to get back at it! Everett throws the frisbee at my head every time. It's scary how accurate this kid has gotten with a disk.

My basil should get an honorable mention, because this particular batch is actually doing quite well. I had one purple batch that grew like crazy and then went bitter really early in the season.

And the you have it! Any suggestions for what I should try in my fall garden? Because I am already making lists of new vegetables and flowers I want to plant...

Toddler Date at the Zoo!

Last weekend we paid Zoo Atlanta a little visit with Everett's "friend" (we say girlfriend, but don't want to be too obviously pushy... who am I kidding??) The last time I took Everett to the zoo, he wasn't that into it, so I'm glad that this time around he was super excited and engaged. He absolutely loved the giraffes and elephants, and kept yelling "MORE ANIMALS!" after each animal exhibit. We did a lot of the "extra" zoo stuff, like feeding the giraffes and riding the train and spinning on the Merry Go Round. It's so much fun going places like the Zoo with kids, because it makes you feel alive again. It makes you remember how freaking cool it is that these animals live on the Earth, so enormous and beautiful and exotic.

A few (alright, more than a few) pictures below of our time at the zoo with friends and Everett's "friend" :)

Preparing to feed the giraffes. Finley wasn't so sure.

Amazing!!! So so cool!

This is my favorite thing ever. Look at my happy blonde boys :)

Kind of a lame/blurry photo, I know, but he was really into the gorillas.

He was also really into baby Hollen, sweet Finley's new little sis.

The Merry Go Round! I stayed on for approximately 3 minutes before leaping off due to nausea. I think I freaked out the Merry Go Round attendant.

Just so you know, about half the photos I ever take have Everett doing something like this. It's not always rainbow and sunshine and laughter. Sometimes it's attitude, discipline and coping mechanisms.

And then we rode the choo choo train!

I'm dying here. WE DID NOT MAKE THEM DO THIS. It just came natural.

We had such a great day at the zoo (even though it was like 150 degrees and I was having mild heat stroke), and it made me reeeeeelly excited about taking Everett to Disney World in the fall. He did so great with all the exhibits and I just know he will be absolutely dumbfounded at all the whimsical fantastic-ness of The Magic Kingdom.

We absolutely love Zoo Atlanta and we will have to make a return trip in the fall. Because of the heat on this particular day, we didn't get to see the lions or the elephants because they were hiding out in their dens. I don't blame them. If I had a lair, I would milk that. Especially in this insane Georgia heat/humidity.

How are you enjoying your summer with your family? Any fun family ideas you can offer? We want to keep trying fun activities as a family of three before we have another little person arrive this winter! xox

P.S. I am wearing this Tart Maternity dress and this Clement cuff (c/o Le Tote), and these Anthropologie earrings and sandals. Everett is wearing this top from and these shorts from Old Navy, and Stevie is wearing who knows what. I should probably shop for him a little more.

My 12 Favorite Summer Recipes.

Lavender Lemonade Icee

Soda & Sugar Pulled Pork

Boiled Artichoke & Lemon Butter

Pulled BBQ Chicken Tacos

Turkey & Poblano Pepper Stew

Artichoke & Olive Quinoa

Acai Berry Breakfast Bowl

Good Morning Green Juice

Proscuitto, Melon & Mozzarella Skewers

Good Morning Green Juice

Lentil Tabbouleh

Black Bean & Quinoa Burgers

Summer is the time for light fare and alfresco dining. Picnic meals, juicy bites here and there; snacks consisting of drippy popsicles and garden-fresh tomatoes and icy watermelon. I savor summer cooking and eating, incorporating those tantalizing fusions of citrus and pepper, barbecue and cilantro, acai and avocado. These ingredients are tailored for the messy canvas that is the summer kitchen - smeared cutting boards and smoky skillets and hissing barbecue creations with taste that lingers playfully on the tongue. I eat it up. Literally.

I'm grateful to finally, finally, be able to cook again. It's been a long three months of eating grilled cheese and English muffins and little else. With my renewed sense of appreciation for taste, I am gleefully flipping through my favorite old summer recipes, eager to savor everything sun-ripened and juicy-frozen.

Sharing a few of my favorite with you today. Happy tasting to you, friends. :)