So this time instead of being an entire month plus behind on giving you all an update I’m here now & only almost two weeks late. Caspian is now 5 months old & we still don’t have the hang of sleeping at night. I’m still up at least three times a night & we really don’t seem to be close to getting any kind of solid sleep. He’s also literally ALL OVER THE PLACE. If you follow me on Instagram you have seen me upload bunches of pictures of him CLIMBING on things & crawling. Just today he pulled himself up on the TV stand.  Phoenix puts on some pretty amazing movies so either Caspian wants to be apart or is trying to escape the madness.

Speaking of Phoenix I decided to shake things up for this month & do a little interview with Phoenix.

Enjoy!

This post is sponsored by Old Navy. Check out Old Navy’s Back to School Sale in stores or at oldnavy.com from August 2-15 & find out how to win a $100 Old Navy gift card, $50 OfficeMax gift card & a back pack.

Is it back-to-school time already?! Usually this time of year doesn’t freak me out much because I’m not sending anyone to school…but this year is a completely different ball game!

We tried school last year for about 3 months but Phoenix got to the point that no matter how early he went to bed or how great his teachers seemed every morning we faced an epic scream battle just to get him out of the house. I debated about sending him back after the Christmas break for 2 weeks & it wasn’t until my school age siblings pointed out that if they were Phoenix & knew I was making him go to school when he didn’t have to now & still had 12 years to look forward to schooling they would be pretty pissed…I agreed & pulled the plug.

However, now he’s 4. Like a for real 4 year old & kindergarten is starting soon so the first logical step is some real academia time. Pre-K.  We toured our first school last week & have a great feeling about it. It’s right around the corner from the house so once LA comes out of this insane heatwave of 100 degrees plus I can pop baby in his stroller & make me way up the block {at least that’s my intention}.

We are only going to be doing 3 full days a week & right now that feels like an eternity. Do you have pre-k age children? How much time are they in school? I’m wondering if maybe if half days might be good. But by the time I or we get him there it’ll be time to stop pinning & pick him back up.  I know that with the baby {who is still not here by the way} my time is going to be limited & very precious so I want to make sure I am using it as wisely as possible.

Summer for my siblings officially ends tomorrow & I’ll admit I’m a bit sad about that. It’s been fun hanging out with them over the summer. But for Phoenix we don’t start until the beginning of September so we still have some time to squeeze in some last minute summer stuff. But I do need to get started on my back-to-school shopping {WOW! I’m actually back-to-school shopping. That thing called time fliiiieeeessss}

As soon as the ink is dry on our school of choice paperwork I’ll be starting in earnest, here are a few “looks” I’ve created for him to make him the most stylish & probably the loudest & silliest kid in pre-k.

Have you started any of your shopping yet? What are some of your favorite places to get good deals?

Disclaimer: I was selected for this opportunity as a member of Clever Girls Collective, and the content and opinions expressed here are all my own.

1. Make a meal from Pinterest

2. Parent via Pinterest

3. Watch Dance Moms or Toddlers & Tiaras with dropped jaws, raised eyebrows & judgmental fingers wagging 

4. Shop exlcusively at Totsy* or Zuily* or other kids flash sale sites 

5. Trade your park hopping Converses for socially conscience Toms

6. Make cake pops

7. Use a birthday bunting at your next child’s party

8. Attend a kids party {or any party!} with a DIY photo booth or throw a kids party with a DIY photo booth

9. Discuss vaccination schedules & when to delay or not to delay them at date night

10. Eat your placenta – in any form

11. Have an iPhone, iPad or Droid chock full of kid “learning apps”

12. Paint anything in your house with chalkboard paint

13. Be able to find the closest Whole Foods or Trader Joes from anywhere in the world.

14. Serve Hummus with everything

15. Parent like the French*

16. Parent like a Tiger Mother *

17.  Have a copy of  The Happiest Baby on the Block* on your night stand

18. Know that Odeehdoh is not a form of Toddler-ese

19. Make muffin tin meals

20. Be Gluten Free 

Have any to add of your own?

*Affliate links included in this post.

We live up on a mountain. Where it took 4 months to get TV, internet and phone. And also no one delivers. And for whatever reason the power goes out at least once a week.

Last week the power went out and did not come back on like it usually does. The gracious and helpful power company said they would have it back on by Monday. It went out Wednesday. So we have been at the Hilton ever since. But I’m not complaining.

The Hilton delivers you the days USA Today every morning. And the headline on Friday’s paper made me immediately think “Blog topic” and “Are you FUCKING kidding me?!”

Question: Has Social Networking Gone too Far?

By now we all have heard the sad, sad story of Tyler Clementi the 18-year-old Rutger student who took his own life after his roommate & a friend posted a video online of him having sex with another male.

Seriously tragic story and I can’t imagine what those parents must be feeling. And no matter what you believe (and boy am I being challenged with that everyday) you have to know that this hatred of gays really has to stop.

But now there’s all this buzz about social media as if Youtube or Twitter is the problem. It’s not. You are the problem. A lack of good parenting is the problem. A lack of compassion for human beings is the problem. A lack of self-control.

Blaming social media for deaths that occur because of online bullying comes from the same stupid sect of people who think its ok to sue McDonalds because they got fat.

Where is personally responsibility at?

I asked the same question that USA Today asked on my twitter and got this response from @mommythisnthat

The internets (and yes that is plural for a reason) is not dangerous. People are dangerous.  In the wrong hands ANYTHING can be dangerous. Anything can go to far. I I once saw a movie (or maybe it was Lockup Raw) where the inmate killed someone using a  spoon. Do we now hide spoons?

Clearly there is an issue of people using the internets and not being responsible. But that is on the people. The teens, the children, the MOTHERS.

Again I am so sorry to Tyler’s family for their loss but why the hell is Twitter, Youtube, and Facebook to blame for this?

They don’t lure people in by saying “A great place to network and humiliate each other”

You’re going to use social media you need to be socially responsible. And when you fuck up. YOU fucked up. No one made you do it.

Parents when you are teaching internet safety don’t just talk about the dangerous of meeting some creepy toothless man who lives in a cabin somewhere in West Virginia. Talk about how to be responsible & kind to people on the internet. That’s our job. Not Facebook’s.

1. When it comes to outfit posts on your own blog, be honest are they what you actually wore that day?

Yes! It is actually what I wore for that day….but notice that unlike other Fashion Bloggers I don’t usually post more than one outfit a week. Why? Because I have a 2 yro and we don’t do much.

2. For a fashion blogger, working in a corporate environment can be tricky. How do you mesh your day job with your personal style choices?

Well since my day job consist of remembering to pop a 2 year old on a pot every 30 minutes, making breakfast, lunch, snack, snack and begging him to eat dinner, and keeping him from kicking the dog its hard to stay “trendy”. So my “corporate attire” is lounge pants on a tank top and on a good day a romper, jumper or maxi dress.

3. When you get dressed in the morning, do you think what should I wear to work or what should I wear for the blog?

When I do need to get dressed to go outside of the house I always ask myself “Who do I want to be that day?” If I come up with a good answer and the outfit holds up a good portion of the day then I think “This is a good outfit post”. Every once in awhile I think “Hmmmm…..people might not want to see this outfit”. And I think that since delving more into “fashion” blogging it has forced me to get even more creative with my dress and to think outside of the box and I like that.

4. Do professionals you interact with ever make comments about your clothing choices?

Again I don’t interact with many professionals. But my husband usually does say something. Most of the time its ‘Wow babe! Great job!’ sometimes its ‘I don’t understand it’ or occasionally its ‘Those look like old lady pants’. But here’s the thing…I dress him so I don’t take much stock in his “fashionable” opinions.

5. Some bloggers openly admit to wearing outfits only for the blog post. What’s your opinion on that?

Eh, it depends. If they do it all the time then I don’t like it. Every once in awhile for “inspirational” purposes its ok. I like the new boom of fashion bloggers because I like seeing bloggers translate the runway to the streets (or in my case My Gym & Playdates) if they are only doing it for the blog then its nothing more then some editorial layout right?

*Linked up at Katy Rose Friend Friday