Lets train

It's Insta Friday!
Time to post all your pictures from Instagram.
Here is a snapshot of my birthday week via Instagram.
Sunday night, we celebrated my birthday at my parents house.
My dad made the best ribs ever. Seriously amazing.

On Monday (my actual birthday) I had to go to a Memorial Service for a former student who took her own life. It has been a rough 2 weeks and the whole situation has really affected me & I am still processing. When I got home from the service, my mom & older sister had decorated our kitchen for my birthday to cheer me up.

And, they took the girls to get me birthday balloons.

For my birthday dinner, I just wanted to spend it with Kevin & the girls so we got a Zachary's pizza to go. And, ate it on paper plates. Best B-day dinner ever.

Birthday Cake.....Recipe coming soon. Amazingness.

Tulips. I love tulips. I used to say roses were my favorite flower, but I think tulip are.

Kevin put in a stone pathway for me over the weekend.:
My mother in law got Kate this necklace for her birthday in January.
Kate loves it & wants to wear it everyday.
Check out the font....Comic Sans....font fail.
(I am a font snob. This font is not okay)

The weather in Nor Cal has been crazy. And cold. And rainy.
Um, it is June. It should not be 55 degrees out.
The sun has been out one day this week.

Claire pretending to be a dog all afternoon.

Patriotic Goldfish for Memorial Day.

2 little girls posing for the "camera"

Flowers in my Kitchen Window:

Check how our garden is growing:

Kate cheering on Claire at swim lessons.

Getting her chair to help me make dinner.

Brinner! Breakfast for Dinner.
Scrambled eggs, Monkey Bread & Blueberries.

My view last night. On the couch. In cozy slippers & jammies.
Playing Angry Birds and Words with Friends. Addicted to the ipad.

Cutest picture of Kevin & Claire taken last night.
Too bad it was at 10pm & Claire was still awake.
So, there was our week in Instagram pictures.
So fun to ditch my fancy camera every once in a while.
I am a fan of Instagram, so fun to play around with all the different filters!

Linking up:


And, if you haven't entered
Mel's Favorite Things Birthday Giveaway, make sure you enter!
Giveaway ends midnight on Sunday!

This weekend marks the 5th anniversary of Hurricane Katrina.

It was one of worst natural disasters to hit the United States.
5 years later, people in New Orleans & the Mississippi Gulf region are still not back in their homes.

After Katrina hit, I knew I wanted to help in some way, even though I lived across the country in California. During my Spring Break of 2006, my younger sister Rebecca & I went with our church on a mission trip to New Orleans & the gulf shores of Mississippi to help build houses for people who lost their home when Katrina hit.

This was the 2nd mission trip I have done within the United States, the first one was 9/11 relief which you can read about here.
(Becks & I)

Churches from all over the country were involved in the project.
Sponsor churches built the framing of the houses in church parking lots & all the framing was sent on trucks to Mississippi/New Orleans for a neighborhood project called Victory Park.
Another group of churches had been there the week before pouring the foundation, so when we got there, our jobs were to get the framing up, put up the siding and windows, plumbing and electricity & then paint the houses.
This is the house framing that our church did & then they were shipped to Mississippi on a truck:
A total of 16 new homes were built.
Becks and I volunteered for the painting team. It was a lot of fun!

Scafolding was fun to be on!

A view of some of the new houses:
Becks & I painted the majority of this house along with 2 other people.
In front of one of the houses we painted:
The second to last day we were there, they had a ribbon cutting ceremony and dedication of the houses. People in the community who were hoping to put a bid on one of the homes were there.
It was amazing & inspiring meeting them & hearing their Katrina stories. It really put things in perspective.

We had the opportunity to go to a Sunday service at one of the local Baptist churches.
We were the only white people there. In fact, we were the first white people to ever attend a service there. It was shocking to see how segregated it still was in this little town in Mississippi. The people at the church were WONDERFUL. The pastor, Greg was amazing. We were there on Palm Sunday. It was one of the best services I have ever been to in my entire life. I will never, ever forget it. Ever. Pastor Greg is an amazing man & we got along great. His family is awesome.I send him a Christmas card every year!

Here is Pastor Greg helping us on the work site:

One of evenings after our work day, we took a drive to the gulf coast and saw the devastation in Biloxi, Mississippi. I couldn't believe my eyes when I saw what damage Katrina had done to this city. It pretty much wiped it out.

Gorgeous sea front homes were unrecognizable.
We were there 6 months after Katrina hit & nothing had been cleaned up. It was incredibly sad.
It was an amazing week...a week I will never ever forget.
My heart has a special place for the people of New Orleans & the Mississippi Gulf.
I am still praying for them, 5 years later.

Happy Friday!

Are you ready for a 5 on Friday post?
 

{ONE}
Last Thursday was the last day of school.
Every year on the first day of school & last day of school, I take a photo of the girls.
It is so fun to see how they change during the school year.
Claire first day & last day of Transitional Kindergarten:

Goodbye TK, Hello Kindergarten!
Side Note: I am so, so, so, thankful we have a Transitional Kindergarten in our school district. TK is for kids who are born September through December. Claire has a September birthday & we had the choice to send her to TK or Kindergarten this past year. I am SO glad we chose TK and waited for Kinder until this Fall. (I blogged about our decision last year on THIS post)
It was 100% the right choice for her & I have no regrets about our decision.

1st grade was a huge year for Kate. She grew up SO much! She is such a big kid now! I can't believe just 9 months have passed between these photos!
She started 1st grade still having her 2 front baby teeth and ended it with those teeth missing & adult teeth growing in. She thrived this year and I am so proud of all her hard work!

I just love 1st Day & Last Day photos!

Are you following the World Cup?

I just love the World Cup. In 1994 the USA hosted the World Cup and my parents got tickets for us to see 2 of the quarterfinal games at Stanford Stadium. It was so fun!
I have been hooked on World Cup ever since then. Can't believe that was 20 years ago.
The World Cup is especially fun this year because one of my friends Chris Wondo is on the US team!

{THREE}
Speaking of soccer, as you might have known, I got a soccer scholarship and played college soccer at the University of Colorado. After I graduated from college I moved back here to California and coached high school soccer and played on some co-ed indoor leagues. But then, 8 years ago I got pregnant with Kate....and I haven't worked out or played soccer since then. Not once.
Well, some friends needed another girl to play on their indoor soccer team this summer and somehow they convinced me to be on their team.
Monday was our first game, so I dug out my bin of college soccer stuff and suited up for the game.
Kevin took this pic of me right before I left for the game.
Everything I am wearing is from college...15 years ago! Ha!
I am not going to lie, I was nervous about playing again because I am SO out of shape.
And, wow, I really am out of shape. The game was super fun, and I am still a little sore.
I am glad I am playing on this team because I needed to do SOMETHING.
8 years (and 3 kids later) is way too long to not work out.
This gave me the kick in the pants that I needed.
I might even go on a run this weekend so that I can breathe easier for next week's game.

It is an over 30 co-ed league, so it isn't that hard core.
I did get "carded" before the game when I went to register.
The sweet man who owns the indoor soccer place told me he needed to see my ID because I am playing on over 30 team and he didn't think I was over 30.
He said to me: "Do you go to college at Colorado? You can't play on this indoor team. You have to be over 30 years old"
He is my new best friend.
BLESS HIS HEART.
I think that is so funny that I got carded to register for a soccer team.
I was flattered he thought I was under 30.
Thank you, Rodan + Fields for my younger looking skin :)

Speaking of Rodan + Fields and looking younger, it's time for Freebie Friday!
Who wants a FREE ESSENITALS Product from Rodan + Fields....like our Sunless Tanner?!?
 This includes a choice of our amazing Sunless Tanner, Body Moisturizer, SPF 30 Sunblock or a 2 pack of our SPF lip shield.
 
  Choose ANY one of these items for FREE when you place an order as a preferred customer!
You will also get 10% off your order and FREE shipping!
  Email me to place an order or if you have any questions.

melissa_larson17{at}yahoo.com
This deal is good starting today Friday 6/20 and ends next Friday 6/27
Now is a great time to try out some Rodan + Fields products.
As a reminder, ALL products come with a a 60 day empty bottle 100% money back guarentee.
You have nothing to lose!
Our AMP Roller is one of my favorite items.
 Your skin will thank you!
Rodan + Fields AMP MD Roller is not just clinically proven to reduce lines and wrinkles on YOUR FACE ... IT CAN ALSO WORK ON YOUR stomach!
 Do you want to tighten the sagging skin on your belly after childbirth?
Have you lost weight and want to tighten the excess skin in your arms and midsection?
Rodan+ Fields AMP MD Roller can help diminish the wrinkles and will boost the collagen & firmness in your skin!

I would love to help you love the skin you are in!

Be sure and check out Shay's blog today!
 I am honored to be over there for her Pajama Party this month! Love Shay & her blog.
Shay interviewed me, it was fun. This month, the theme is all about Summer!
 You can check it out {here}

Happy Friday!
We have another swim meet this weekend...seriously, what did I get ourselves into by signing the girls up for swim team this summer? Ha! It's a big commitment, but it has been so good for them. They are working so hard at practice and it wears them out.
Hope you have a great weekend! 

Happy Friday!!!

Today I'm linking up with Friday Favorites!

Hosted by: Andrea, Erika & Narci

 My #1 favorite thing is that today is Kate's 8th Birthday!!!!!

Birthdays are my favorite and Kate is my favorite 8 year old! 

Our neighbors are my favorite!
I know I talk about it often, but we live on a very special court.
Last weekend our neighbors had friends from Australia visiting & some of the guys (including Kevin) went to the SJ Sharks hockey game with the Aussies and at 10:30 at night, they wanted to bring out the lights & the corn hole boards and play some corn hole!
I was folding laundry & watching HGTV, but of course I came outside to play because cornhole is my favorite and hanging out with my neighbors is my favorite!
This is my typical cornhole outfit because it keeps me warm!
Vest // Leggings // Uggs

Stitch Fix is my Favorite! 

 I just got an email from them letting me know my Fix has shipped and is on it's way!
It's like Christmas morning every month. This is my 9th month getting a Stitch Fix (you don't have to do them every month, but I love getting them, so I chose the monthly option. :)
You don't have to do it every month, you can customize it to how you want it...every other month, every 2 months, every 3 months, etc.

When you sign up for Stitch Fix, you link your Pinterest Boards to them so that know what styles you like. If you don't have Pinterest, that's okay because they also have a style questionaire for you to fill out & they have collages of outfits and you rate them on how you like them.
Each Fix comes with 5 different items & it comes with a prepaid mailing envelope, so you can easily return the items you don't want.
You aren't obligated to keep any of it! I have kept at least 1 item each time, sometimes I keep 2 or 3.
It's fun!
Click {HERE} to get started!

Target Dollar Spot/Valentines Spot is my favorite!
They have some good stuff right now!

Bouncy Balls:

 Stickers:

 Slinkies:

 Notepads:

Next week I plan on making more Valentine's printables for you guys that will pair up with some of these items!

Our school allows candy, but they PREFER you bring non-food items (especially in Kinder) When the girls were in Preschool they couldn't bring candy, I brought in Valentines from the Target Valentine Spot.
These go quickly, so stock up now :)

Making Printables & sharing them with you guys is my FAVORITE!
I can't wait to get started on this year's Valentine printables....have to get through Kate's party first....1 project at a time :)

Here are some past Valentine's Printables that I have made over the years, some with candy, some without:

{HERE}

Goldfish Valentines:
They have these Valentine Goldfish packs at Target again this year.
I have 3 different versions of Printables that would work for Goldfish:

{HERE}

Valentine Peeps S'mores:

{HERE}

Valentines using pencils:
(2 versions of this printable. One says "Valentine you are just Write!" the other says "You've got the Write stuff, Valentine"

{HERE}

Here are this year's pencils from the Target Valentine's Spot! Boy & Girl pencils!


  
 Valentine Cookies in a Jar:
I give these to my girls teachers & the School office staff, custodian, crossing guard, etc.

{HERE}

Even though Target is MY favorite....going to Target with 3 kids during their "witching hour" 4:00-5:00pm is NOT my favorite...especially when a certain 2 year old didn't get his nap!
 #sendwine

Speaking of wine....Wine is my favorite (especially after Target trips like pictured above)
In the past 2 weeks, I have  had 2 different friends send these to me because it reminded them of me!

Yes, please!
So, yes....wine is my favorite :)

{SEVEN}
As if you didn't know, Rodan + Fields is my favorite skin care :)
I have loved being a consultant the past 14 months.
I use the Reverse line in the mornings (for sun damage/age spots/melasma) and I use Redefine at night (anti age & fine lines/wrinkles)
Here is Amy, a fellow consultant...look at her amazing results!

It is my FAVORITE for the winter weather that causes chapped lips.

Our Lip Micro-Dermabrasion is an effective and convenient exfoliation stick created specifically for one of the areas of your face most prone to showing early signs of aging: your lips. It removes dead skin cells and exfoliates flaky lip tissues in just a few swipes. This easy to use, conditioning treatment makes lips look and feel more defined and youthful by renewing the surface and reducing lipstick bleeding! I use it each morning and every night before bed. The stick lasts over 4 months!

I would LOVE to help you with your skin care needs!

You can also take this quick 6 question survey to find out what products are best for your skin {HERE}

Email me to place an order or if you have questions.

melissa_larson17{at}yahoo.com

My Crock Pot is my Favorite. 

Especially in the winter months, I use it at least once a week.

Earlier this week, I made my Rosemary Beef Stew, I need to blog it!

To see all my other Slow Cooker Recipes, click the Recipe Box!
 I have Slow Cooker Soups {HERE} and Slow Cooker Entrees {HERE}
Next week I am  making THIS soup:

And my Slow Cooker Ribs:

So, there you have it EIGHT of my favorites in honor of Kate's 8th Birthday!
Have a wonderful weekend & check back here on Monday for Kate's Pizzeria Party Post!