HELLO AUSTIN

Thanks to the bravery of my mother-in-law and sister--in-law to watch the 4 girls, Ben and I were able to have a full day to ourselves. San Antonio is only about 1.5 hours away from Austin and we were behind in celebrating a couple milestones in our lives, so we took the day to do so. However, we did also meet with an old buddy of his for lunch at Garrido's (Oyster tacos?! Yes! Please!), but spent the rest of the day together exploring. We had been to Austin before, but it is a city you never tire of and it was good to visit familiar places like Uncommon Objects and discover new ones. 

We did find a couple uncommon objects to bring home, one of which is that 1960's carnival bear cutout that will be a quirky little piece hanging in our home (and sometimes maybe for playing too). We grabbed cupcakes thanks to the suggestion one of you gave me on instagram! Mostly we spent time going in and out of vintage shops looking for clothes for Ben. I was a good girl and didn't get anything (there was one dress that was really tempting me though), but I really could cry from joy of Ben finding stuff. Five shirts to be exact. He rarely does, so when he does, I get so giddy! 

We ended the day trip and did our celebrating at La Condesa. Gosh oh gosh. That food was yum. We debated between that place or Uchiko, but since we aren't so fond of the Mexican food options in the L.A. area, we went with Tex-Mex over sushi. We indulged in ceviche, fish, and maybe I had a little bit of fun with my margarita! And their beet cake... oh yeah, definitely trying to recreate that at home. That was the best dish to end the celebration dinner.

It's so strange to be without the girls for a full day, but it was a much needed break and good time to reconnect and just laugh and chillax with Ben. I may or may not have tried to get fresh with him all day long, but seriously, I just couldn't resist. I think that boy is pretty darn hot. Like real hot. And before I make you gag with all this lovey dovey stuff, don't worry, we really do have spats too. We get on each other's nerves just like any other couple. That's what makes the choice of staying together and working on our marriage even more meaningful. We both choose to be here despite our ugly sides... and boy do we have them!

All in all, the day was just grand. We came home to girls already sleeping in bed, a box full of cupcakes, Grandmama and Auntia with loads of funny stories about the girls, and a bit more rejuvenated from just having some time off to focus on each other. We pretty much love Austin and will make sure to take another day trip when we come back to San Antonio for Christmas!

on me: shirt, vintage via ms. tips. shorts, vintage thrifted and altered. shoes, madewell. necklace, homako. purse, anthropologie. sunglasses, c/o sunglasses shop.
on ben: shirt, vintage. jeans, diesel. shoes, nikes.

HOME STYLE: 1

Oh how my girls love dressing up. You should see their room! There are clothes strewn all over the floor. It is horrendous. They change a gazillion times a day. One minute it is for a birthday party, another for a wedding, next minute because they are princesses. At times, okay, most times, their messes are maddening, but at the same time I am glad they are having fun playing together and using their imagination. I remember having lots of fun doing these silly things as a kid too. I also remember my mom getting mad at me for not cleaning my room.  Though I have to say, their dressing up and crazy room with clothes everywhere is kind of making me nervous for when they hit teenage years... oh boy! 

This particular outfit is their princess outfit. I think it's kind of cute how True stole my shirt and layered it and it became a dress of sorts. And Brave is always wearing that dress. Always. I am sure you will see it about twenty more times in this space. I have hid it a number of times and somehow she always finds it and ends up wearing it. Oye!

These cute little babouches, gifted from Maison Marrakech, are our house slippers. They were the first things we gave the girls once the wood floors came in. When I was little I remember I always had to wear slippers around the house because my mom said if I didn't, I was going to grow a lot of veins on my feet. I really think that was one of her myths and legends kind of thing, and while I don't think that is necessarily true, I do like it better when my girls wear some slippers on the hard wood floors. Plus, I got my own, mine are the white ones, and they really are so comfy to wear around. It's an extra bonus that they are so pretty and funky!

We usually do the no shoes in the house rule, but now that we have (whitewashed) wood floors, we especially try to keep to that. The girls know they have house slippers and outside shoes. Though my question is, how do you relay to visitors that we are a "no-shoes-inside" home? Any of you do the same rule? If so, I would love to hear how you handle visitors coming over. 

OUT TO SCHOOL: 30

True's got one week left of school. She's homeschooled, but takes enrichment classes one day a week. I can't believe how fast the school year has flown by.

I like drawing. If I had the time, I could doodle all day. My dream job was to be animator and illustrate characters. Somehow that got lost in the shuffle somewhere and I became a teacher. I loved being a teacher too. I would also love to be a graphic designer and I randomly like to make little poems. When I lived in London with the BFF, I was making rhymes for everything and BFF would call me Toula Seuss. Toula because I had crazy hair (and glasses) like the girl from My Big Fat Greek Wedding and Seuss because I made rhymes all the time.  There are too many things I like to do. Ben says I have way too many hobbies.

on true: dress, vintage. socks, target. shoes, salt-waters c/o tea collection.

SILLY TOGETHER

Baby sister and I kind of like to be matchy-matchy. We have similar tastes so sometimes we end up with the same things, especially when it comes to shoes. Too bad I am a half size bigger than her. She can borrow my shoes, but I can't borrow hers. She is always eagerly anticipating when I purge through my closet because that means everything gets passed down to her.

My mom was telling me that we get older, we are becoming more and more alike. They have a hard time telling us apart on the phone. RJ, which stands for Richelle Jean, is just much sweeter than me and I am slightly more responsible than her (Her laziness comes from being the baby and getting away with things like not washing dishes). We kind of balance each other out and when you get us together, we just like being silly!

on baby sister...
dress: sugarlips
shoes: c/o lotta from stockholm

on me...
shirt: f21 (old)
denim shirt: madewell
connected necklace: c/o lisa leonard
skirt: kohls
shoes: c/o lotta from stockholm

OUT TO SCHOOL: 28

{shirt: gifted from karen; skirt: little bean; shoes: livie and luca; backpack: made by mom.}

We got about three weeks left of school. We'll continue homeschooling through the summer because does learning ever really stop? Nope. Next year when True's goes to her one day a week enrichment classes she'll be taking Brave along with her. I think that will be fun for them and for me because 2 kids at home is so much easier than 4! Can you believe Summer is almost here?

p.s. don't forget this, this, and this giveaway! ends tomorrow morning!!!

I'M THEIR MOTHER

After breakfast in bed, the rest of the day was spent taking care of flooring stuff. It wasn't how we had originally planned to spend Mother's Day, but we went with it. The day before, I did get the vintage porch swing I have been eyeing (just gotta get it up now), so there really isn't much to complain about. Plus, we were able to go out to have dinner with my mom (and dad and baby sister) at our favorite chinese restaurant. All in all, it was a day spent with my favorite people, so this mama is especially happy!

on me: top, c/o modcloth. jeans, urban outfitters. shoes, anthropologie (last summer). necklace: homako. I don't like that longer in the back shirt or dress trend going on, so I sewed my top to all be one length.
on true: shirt: vintage. jumper: misha lulu. clogs: c/o lotta for stockholmn. LOVE kid clogs!
on brave: dress: little bean. shorts: misha lulu. shoes: salt-waters.
on soul: shirt: vintage. skirt: misha lulu. shoes: salt-waters.
on glow: shirt and shorts: misha lulu.

THEY DANCED AND WE HAD DONUTS

The big girls had dance class, so the babies and I went on a donut date. Soul's got the sweetest tooth of all, so you can imagine her excitement when we walked in and all these pretty donuts were at her eye level. We got a dozen donut holes for $1.50, which I think is a darn good deal, but then again, I haven't bought donuts in about 10 years, so maybe that's normal. And I must say those were the best donut holes I have ever had. Again, maybe any donut will taste good to me at this point, which now makes me curious to go to other donut shops just to compare. 

It was a nice day out of the house since we have been pretty much cooped upstairs due to the flooring changing going on downstairs. The big girls danced, the little girls had donuts (okay, Glow got hers in a donut milkshake), and that made for a good morning. 

on me: shirt, thrifted. belt, thrifted. fit to newsprint skirt, c/o modcloth. pansy flat c/o modcloth. 

on soul: dress, misha lulu. flip flops, target.

on glow: she's been wearing that for two days. really. 

OUT TO SCHOOL: WEEK TWENTY-SEVEN

{where from again? shirt: vintage; skirt: c/o lucky brand; shoes: superga}

This picture makes her seem so big. How did we get here so fast? I like to look back on old pictures of True and I can hardly believe she was once a little teeny baby and my one and only one for, oh, about 6 months until I got pregnant again (Brave was a surprise!). She changes Soul's diaper (pee only) and she is a little writer. She loves to write stories. We like reading them. Future blogger?! Maybe. 

OUT TO SCHOOL: WEEK TWENTY-SIX

{where from again? tunic and leggings: misha lulu. shoes, salt-water sandals c/o tea collection}

What's this girl's favorite thing to do during lunch time at school? Walk around the playground collecting rocks and sticks. She always comes home with quite the collection.

p.s. make sure you check out misha lulu's new site. it always gets better and better. 

THE GIRLS

I really like having a house full of girls. I think Ben likes it too. Though, the girls are far from puberty, but maybe when we're all PMS-ing at the same time in the future, it won't be so fun for him. My guess is he will declare a need for a man-cation and take off for a bit. Maybe. But then again, he needs us, so maybe he'll just stick out the mood swings and will serve us up some chocolate. Yes, chocolate is always good during those times. At least I think so. 

Funny thing is that people often ask Ben, "How is Ruby when she's on PMS?" and he will say he doesn't know because ever since we got married, I have either been pregnant or breastfeeding so Aunt Flo has pretty much been non-existant. We are settled on only four kids and Aunt Flo did make her appearance last month for the first time in a long while, so from here on out, Ben will probably have an answer to how I am during PMS-ing. By the way, an ex-boyfriend of mine always thought that stood for pissed off mood swings, which I think sums it up nicely. And based on last month's experience, Ben now knows that I get cranky. Bah-humbug! Ben has a long while until he's got a house full of scrooges, so for now we keep enjoying them in their joyful, kid-like state, except on the occasion they all start fighting, which is more often than not. 

Anyhow, I like to call Brave and True "The Bobbsey Twins" not sure what that means, but I remember the school custodian calling me and my best friend that when we were in grade school, so it seems appropriate now. I must mention that the straw bowler hat True and Brave are wearing is my fave. You'll never guessed where I picked those up... the 99 cents store! Best 99 cent store find ever. Hands down. Unless you have something better to share!

We've been busy over here with flooring finally coming in. We still have a long way to go until it's done, but it will be so pretty. Not only are we doing home renovating, but there will be some blog renovating as well. Please don't mind the little changes going on. It is all exciting stuff for us and we hope that you get excited too. I love being able to share in this space and I hope you love coming to visit too! We appreciate you friends! 

on me: dress, vintage. shoes, c/o blowfish shoes. 

on true: bowler hat, 99 cents store. dress, misha lulu. shoes, salt-waters.

on brave: bowler hat, 99 cents store. dress, vintage. shoes, salt-waters.

on soul: dress, vintage. jeggings, target. shoes, salt-waters. 

on glow: onesie, vintage. 

FLATFORM OR FLATSTACK?

I have been coveting some flatstack shoes, definitely prefer that word over flatform (*shudder*), for awhile now and so when Gee Wawa sent these over, it sealed it... I love flatstack shoes and Gee Wawa! The shoes are high, but not too high, and since they are pretty level no pain on the feet at all. The best part is they are really cushiony. I feel fancy, casual, and comfy all at the same time. Love it!

Gee Wawa is a new to me brand, but I am already loving their daisy shoes too. I will now be keeping my eye on Gee Wawa to see what shoes they crank out each season. I am sure it will be good. Follow Geewawa's facebook and twitter for more update and news...

What I'm wearing... top from anthropologie (seen here), vintage skirt from pomp & pride (seen here), flatstacks c/o gee wawa.

Which word do you prefer... flatforms or flatstacks?

HELLO SASSY PANTS!

So I have totally been bitten by the colored denim thing. I have mentioned (here) my desire to try them, but reluctant because Ben doesn't think they are classic enough for me to spend our money on. Well, I got some at Urban Outfitters and didn't technically spend my money since I used a gift card! Totally gotta love them gift cards. Ben can't complain. Plus, though he thinks this trend won't last past this year, he says they are kinda fun. I definitely think so.

Um, anyone wanna try kelly green ones with me? I got enough left in my gift card to do so! Seriously thinking about it...

What I'm wearing... shirt, anthropologie. necklace, a merry mishap. jeans, urban outfitters. shoes, madewell (gifted from my parents). bag, anthropologie.