Things I Learned in June & Insta Photos

I love this idea (and I need some easy blogging ideas right now), so I'm joining the party over at Chatting at the Sky today to share ten things I learned in June...

1. Swim shorts are all the rage. Remember I told you I bought a pair? Well, apparently so did every other mom visiting Great Wolf Lodge last week.  Whatdoyouknow?!?  Seriously, probably 85% of the moms at the water park were wearing swim shorts - which, by the way, are shorts designed to be worn over a bathing suit (like as a cover-up) and/or actually in the water (like as a bathing suit).  It's not surprising that they are popular; they are just too practical.  Being near water with a toddler is NO JOKE.  There is NO time for being modest or insecure, momma's gotta run and splash and frolick.  Swim shorts for the win.  (Mine are from Target & LL Bean, in case you were wondering.)

2. Being a stay-at-home mom is HARD.  I am absolutely loving the extra time I'm getting to spend with Sam these days; but y'all, I am exhausted.  Sam has two speeds: fast & asleep.  This really doesn't jive well with my "slow & asleep" lifestyle lately.  Anyway, I'm pretty sure I had learned this lesson before (and probably will learn it over and over again) but anyone who thinks taking care of kids all day is an easy job is a cryin' fool.

3. Spray tans are a (pale) girl's best friend.  Look, I don't mess with skin cancer.  Also, to my knowledge, beauty trends have not shifted towards sunburned, peeling, and freckly any time recently.  But, man, everybody looks better with a tan! (Except maybe Nicole Kidman.  She totally rocks pale.) Since June 13th, I have had THREE (to be fair, I bought a package that was basically buy one at a reduced rate and get two free as long as you use them within two weeks) and, well, I'm seriously considering picking up another job just to continue this habit.  It is amazing what a spray tan will do for my wardrobe, my thighs, and my self confidence.  I'm sold.  (I get the VersaSpa spray tan in medium-clear, in case you care.)

4. I am an all or nothing kind-of person; but, I need to be comfy in the middle. Recently I've been noticing this character trait about myself in SO many areas... If my house can't be 100% sparkly clean (which it NEVER is anymore), then it may as well be a dump.  If I already ruined my day of healthy eating with a donut at breakfast, I may as well have french fries at lunch too.  This, obviously, plays out in bigger heart issues too, and, I imagine, has had a big effect on the process of trying to find balance in my life as a mom, wife, teacher, friend, etc.  I'm learning about being content in the middle - about baby steps, and being comfortable in between.  Learn-ing.

5. My old t-shirts make excellent "night gowns" for toddlers when everything else is dirty.

6. Old friends are priceless.  In June, we got to spend a great weekend with old high school friends celebrating our friends Aric & Caitlyn's wedding, and (again) I was reminded how blessed Jeff & I are to have friends that we have shared so much of our lives with.  The groom's dad said at the rehearsal dinner that he had known many of us for 20 years.  We have seen each other through the awkwardness of middle school, the pressures of high school, the changes of college, the challenges of "the real world," and, now, the journey of marriage and parenthood.  That is special and unique, and I don't want to take it for granted.

7. New friends are really wonderful too. Also, as the weather has gotten warmer and we've been around the house more, we have gotten a lot closer with our neighbors.  (There are four families within eight houses of each other, all with toddler boys.)  I absolutely treasure the friendships Sam is developing with those little boys and get giddy thinking about his days of bike riding and flash-light tag playing with his buddies.  But, sometimes even more than that, I am thankful for the relationships I am developing with their mommies.  Most of my college girlfriends have kids, and I have the online community of moms (of course), but there is something so great about having moms to just "do life" with day in and day out.  I love that I don't have to apologize when they come in my house, because theirs looks just like it, that I can run Sam down the street when I need just thirty minutes to post an assignment, and that my neighbor can show up with an empty coffee cup when she's been up since four a.m. and they ran out.  These new friendships are good for my soul, really good.  That's community at its finest folks. :)

8. The American Academy of Pediatric Dentistry now recommends that children go to the dentist before their FIRST birthday.  That would have been nice to know, oh, I don't know... a YEAR ago. I mean, are they really allowed to just change their mind like that? I'm behind on a lot of things; but, this?  I did my due diligence for this.  I checked with the pediatrician, I read the pamphlet my dentist gave me when Sam was an infant, I was ready to go "some time between two and three."  And now, here's my two year old who has never been to the dentist and I'm all kinds of panicked over what a negligent mother I am and how Sam probably has 13590 cavities already.  Moms can't win, you know?  (#letsnoteventalkaboutthepaci)

What about you, what have you learned this month?

I'm off on a weekend camping trip with Jeff's family this afternoon, so I'll see you Monday with my brand new blog design! Yay!!  In the meantime, don't forget that Google Reader (but NOT Google Friend Connect, yet) is going away on July 1st.  Make sure you are staying connected by following me on BlogLovin', Facebook, Twitter, and/or Instagram.  

Happy Weekend!