Playful Rooted

Well, gang, it’s been another heavy week in the never-ending hellscape that is 2020.

We’ve been planning a trip for months (and dreaming of it for years) that we really, really want to go on, and as it gets ever closer, we’re still totally unsure whether it’s going to happen. Ben and I have both had major anxiety over whether to cancel it or just cross our fingers hard and hope everything works out. I’m fully confident that we can travel safely, but if cases rise in this particular location, the government could shut it down at any moment. So it’s an uncomfortable gamble. It reminds me of when we were trying to get our visas before moving to France; we needed every little piece to line up at the right time, and it was so stressful waiting and hoping and not knowing.

So that’s been a thing, but it’s the least heavy thing this week; someone I love very dearly was also diagnosed with cancer. Much heavier.

This is also the first time that I’ve kind of felt the loss of Instagram. We’re quarantining hard in hopes of going on the aforementioned trip, so we haven’t seen anyone in person, and I really miss my friends!

Moving on to brighter subjects.

We got family photos taken last week (in a massive rush! I had forgotten to book them because our photographer does everything on Facebook, so I frantically called her and the only time she had available was the next day!), and they turned out really great. This was the first time ever that I wore my hair in its natural curly state for photos, and I. was. nervous! You just never know what curly hair is going to do. Straight hair is much more predictable. It was brave to go natural, and I’m really happy I did it; I look like myself, and my hair actually looks pretty good. It’s been a journey [kind of an expensive one! (Ben’s rolling his eyes at “kind of.”)] figuring out what works for my hair and what doesn’t, but it’s been worthwhile.

We got so many fantastic photos and I wish I could share them all here!

I’m excited to update the gallery wall in our living room. I think yearly family photos are such a good investment, and I absolutely LOVE our photographer!

I’ve been reading Unschooled for a couple weeks, and it’s such a great book. We’ve always planned to homeschool through elementary anyway, but reading this book has totally changed my perspective on curriculum and self-directed learning. The book goes in-depth on true education vs. the schooling pattern of memorizing information, regurgitating it for a test, then forgetting it (which TOTALLY resonates with me; I was a 4.0 student who took many advanced classes, and I do not feel that my true education came from school). If you’re considering homeschool at all, or even if you’re not, I highly recommend taking a peek at this resource.

I bought the kids some Cat & Jack swim trunks on an end-of-season sale recently, and I was thrilled to see that they’ve modified their mesh inserts! In most kids’ swim trunks (and even in Cat & Jack ones prior to this year), the mesh holes are far too big and pose a huge safety hazard for little genital skin which can get caught inside. (And it doesn’t matter if your boys are intact or circumcised.) I’ve always simply cut out the mesh insert to protect my boys, and I recommend doing the same for any trunks that have unsafe mesh. But in this version, the mesh in front is MUCH smaller and actually safe for little genitals. See the difference between the front panel and the back?

This might be a weird thing to be excited about, but I AM. Preventing unnecessary injuries is a big win in my book!

I was happy to discover several weeks ago that there is a new season of the Great British Bake Off this year! I had just assumed there wouldn’t be one, so it was a really great surprise. I know a lot of people hate the format of one new episode per week, but personally, I love it. The anticipation and having something novel to look forward to each Friday just reminds me of the “old days,” when life was simpler and slower and less instant-gratification-y.

If you followed me when I was on Instagram, you probably saw me share frequently about Humble Roots Medicinals CBD oil roll-ons. I LOVE them. There are so many different blends available, and they make a significant difference when dealing with pain, anxiety, exhaustion, and much more. I’ve had some pretty intense neck pain for the past few days, and the Pain blend has really helped! This company also uses part of the proceeds from every order to provide meals to hungry kids. It’s a no-brainer. They have great sales, so if you’re interested in trying them, make sure you sign up for their email list to be notified. They often do buy-two-get-one-free sales or just massively discount their inventory. And their prices are really reasonable even without a sale! I’m gonna go douse myself with the Happy blend right now. 😉

xo!