Well, so much for my New Year’s resolution of sharing more of my personal life (and exercising but let’s not talk about that). It’s been quite a while but today I thought it was a good day to share what’s new with my daughters and I and sum up this summer before it’s over!
Below is us on vacation in Dallas last month. We went with friends to the American Girl store plus a little eating and a little shopping! We also got some swimming in and maybe a bottle of wine or two for us moms!
At the beginning of the summer I had a covered patio added onto my bedroom! I can’t tell you how this has enhanced the way we live. I literally sit outside for my morning coffee, to watch the girls swim and even at night after they’re in bed. I’ve mentioned before how incredibly deep my roots are to this house and I just feel so blessed to be able to enhance it here and there. In fact, this August we’ve called this home for 7 years! Even in 100 degree weather, we’re sitting outside!
Speaking of home, this summer we’ve experienced some new wildlife that have thrilled us. We were playing in the back yard as a coyote casually ran through the yard? Uhhhh, what’s up? Happy trails? Also, there are at least 3 owls very close by. They talk back and forth most days. My guess is they’re talking about how juicy Winston, my Yorkie looks. Anyway, I was in the woods re-arranging the gnomes (yes our property has magical gnomes that mysteriously move around ;)) and looked up to see a huge owl only 5 feet away from my face. We stared at each other for a good 30 seconds before he flew away. We also have a very invasive yet friendly vole, not to be confused with his cousin, the mole. He’s literally tearing my yard up but the girls love to sit at his MANY holes as he pops his head out! Next up, we have turkeys. I have the impression that turkeys are DUMB. Is that true? We have Blanche and Ethel bobbing through the yard daily, not really caring if I’m out or not. Then we’ve got the male who I haven’t named but he’s exhausting. Literally. He bangs on my bedroom door and even plucks around on the roof. God forbid Blanche and Ethel be in the yard. Welcome to the Gun Show ladies, but with feathers.
Another big event that happened in the spring was our adoption of Archie and Alfie. Knowing we wanted a kitten we headed to the local shelter and left with 2. I couldn’t separate 2 brothers. So yeah, I have 4 cats. Is it too much? YES. But Alf and Arch are the best. They were about 6 weeks old when we got them and they surprisingly connected with August Banks (meet him HERE and HERE) like long lost brothers. He bathes them, plays with them and cuddles them. #cutenessoverload We had originally been looking for an orange cat that we could name Jerry Lee Lewis (because we love Jerry Lee!) but the name didn’t fit and brother couldn’t be left behind.
I’ve mentioned before I have always been a music person. I majored in music in college and always had music as a staple. Once I had the girls, the music went silent. Being a mom to a baby and toddler pretty much rocked my world and I guess I just lost some things about myself. This summer music has returned, probably thanks to the new patio. Go HERE for my new summer playlist on Spotify! It’s quite the eclectic mix and perfect for get togethers!
Another change worth sharing is that I literally can not stop making up new skin care recipes. I go through phases on the blog where all I post are health articles, or product reviews or essential oil info. but right now-I have a long list of products I’m experimenting with as well as a counter full I’m testing! Jenni Raincloud is known mainly for DIY skin care so it feels good to get back to how the blog started.
A recipe of mine was published in the fall issue of Willow and Sage that’s on shelves now! It’s always an honor to be part of something so beautiful. If you haven’t discovered this DIY gifts/skin care magazine, do yourself a favor and buy a copy. They come out 4x a year and are full of natural body and skin care recipes and homemade gift ideas. Go HERE to grab a copy. If you’d rather browse before buying you can sometimes find them at Target and Hobby Lobby. Oh and I made the cover-they wanted my DIY cheek and brow highlighter for this issue! You can find another recipe of mine in THIS issue.
As far as entertainment-I’m obsessed with Twin Peaks the Return. In fact, I was so lost and confused at the beginning, I ended up rewatching the original and the movie. Let’s just say, Twin Peaks is a bit much to binge in a short amount of time. I might have gone a bit overboard and need to watch the Sound of Music about 5x in a row to let go of who killed Laura Palmer. I also watched 13 Reasons Why. I really liked it and it opened my eyes to the epidemic of suicide being the number 1 killer of youth. I don’t think I’m missing anything else worth mentioning. Of course, I don’t need to mention that we’re all mourning the end of Pretty Little Liars (at least I am with about a 3 million 14 year olds). It seems like everyone I know is watching Game of Thrones. Yay or Nay?
So yeah, that sums this summer up. Life is good. We’re content and that makes for a good summer.
Hope your summer has been equally good! I’d love to hear what’s up! Comment below!
Hugs, Jenni
