Lake Life

This past weekend my friend invited me to her lake house at Tenkiller Lake near Talequah.

I had been to her previous lake house years ago (like 10) and really enjoyed it, so I thought it would be great to take the kids. She also has an almost 3 year old so it helped that they would all be playing together the whole weekend.

We left Saturday morning and had a day full of activities. First, we stopped by her mom's store on the way to her dad's new project, an old castle-looking building which he is turning into a wedding venue, then headed to the lake house where we quickly got into our swim suits and headed to the lake for some swimming. The kids really enjoyed swimming and exploring the dock area. Once her dad arrived, we went on a boat ride around the lake. Not only was it perfect weather, but there were not many people out on the water, so we had the lake all to ourselves!

We stopped by the lake marina where we got ice cream and soda pop, then headed back to the dock for some more swimming. After a while we came back in and went on a mule ride around the neighborhood and got to see some really cool propeller planes. The lake house is right next to the lake airport so we even got offered a ride on the planes by the neighbors, we kindly refused.

We had pizza for dinner and hung out around before bedtime. 

Sunday we woke up and had breakfast off the grill. It was delicious and with the weather being cooler, the air was crisp and fresh. We went on another boat ride, and went swimming one last time before heading home and taking a long nap in the car (the kids). It was a great weekend!

Boatin'

Feeding the goats on Goat Island! There is a herd of goats that lives on this small island on the lake :)

Ford was loving the boat ride, but his eyes are sensitive like mine!

Sloane named this fish, Nemo

Thanks for stopping by, hope y'all have a great Labor Day weekend!

~Mrs. S

Update on Twins Version 2.5

Hello!

Since the twins are 2.5 now, I thought I would share some fun updates on their development so far and milestones that I don't want to forget to document!

Both are talking up a storm but are not completely verbal, per say. Ford knows the names of most of the trains on Thomas and Friends, and Sloane is well versed in colors, shapes, doll terms and is obsessed with Beauty and the Beast so she knows all of the characters in that movie! They learn new words everyday and as much as I love to watch them growing in their vocabulary, sometimes I do catch myself wishing they would just be quiet! #momfession

We have started the potty training process but are not anywhere close to being done. Sloane has gone many times with my encouragement but Ford wants no part. I think it's safe to say that it will be a long process but I'm confident it won't be as big of a deal if I just prepare for the worst and hope for the best.

Sloane had to make a visit to the Pediatrician and while we were there they measured her and she is in the 100% in weight and height... that was quite the shocker for me, but my husband is 6 3' so if she's tall it will be because of him. Ford didn't get measured that day but they are pretty much the same height and seem to weigh similar so I don't think he's that much different. 

They eat everything and anything I place in front of them. Mostly healthy food, but they are known to enjoy a cookie or two. Not much interest in cupcakes or super sweet stuff, but Sloane does like ice cream. She eats it rarely, as long as she has eaten her full meal. We were at Cheddars the other day and she ate a full jr. burger! Ford only ate the fries but I didn't care as the way I see it as long as one of the twins eats good per meal, it's a success to me!

We decided to do a dance class this semester (for Sloane) in which I will have to be a part of, I look forward to having a girls activity with just her, but I do not look forward to having to "dance" with her. I never did dance growing up, but I am excited to see how she does.

I am also excited to see how they do in soccer as they will be playing in the local YMCA league. We already got their cleats and have been practicing in the back yard. They are both pretty good at it, and I'm interested to see who will like it more!

Since I am going back to work teaching full time, I had to figure out a daycare situation for the kids and God answered my prayers in the most amazing way by providing me with an in-home daycare down the street, as in, on the same block that I live in! As much as I will miss being at home with the kids, I know they will be in good hands.

There are so many other things I would love to mention, but time is of the essence these days and I must get back to cleaning/organizing/laundry/meal-planning/emailing/...breathing before my last day off tomorrow! Yep, I go back to work on Thursday, waa!

Hope you are all having a great week!

~Mrs. S

Checkin' in!

Hello Blogging World!

It's been a hot minute, but

I am hoping to be back, for good!

I've taken a little bit of a break from blogging since we moved and are now in a new city living a totally different life.

We are adjusting well, and have a pretty busy fall lined up. I just wanted to go ahead and make sure that this small space of the internet was still current and up to date on life and it's happenings. 

Since Easter (which was my last post) we have...

1. Moved from Ada, Oklahoma to Tulsa, Oklahoma (A 2 hour drive)

2. Celebrated my 33rd birthday

3. Taken a few fun trips here and there

4. Accepted a job in Broken Arrow Schools as an orchestra director

5. Gone to see a few live music concerts

6. Explored Tulsa's culinary world, Toast in Broken Arrow being my favorite

7. Taken the kids to do fun activities around town

8. Swam at our neighborhood pool, a lot

9. Hung out with family

10. Found a new church home

All this to say, it was no small feat. The past 4 months went by very fast and summer break is quickly approaching its end. 

I look forward to documenting our new life in Tulsa and the fun times ahead.

Hope you all have had a great summer so far and that you decide to follow along!

~Mrs. S

Easter 2017

Hello Lovely readers!

Last Friday we headed to Tulsa for a fun-filled Easter weekend.

We got there Friday night and decided to take the kids to Incredible Pizza. It was the perfect way to start the weekend as the kids played the arcade games, rode the rides, and ate yummy pizza.

We got on a roller-coaster and let me just say, they are NOT MY THING! The kids loved every minute and wanted to go again after it was over, I had a slight headache for hours to come!

Saturday morning we went to the local neighborhood egg hunt. The kids had never been to one, so they had a blast. Some of the eggs had candy which was great, but the kids just found it funny they could go to someone else's yard and get eggs!

Sloane wore her little Easter dress from last year which now fits like a top. She looked so cute in her white jeans, lol!

Ford was amazed at all his findings.

Later that day we headed to another egg hunt at the in-laws and it was also a great time. My MIL got Sloane this dress from the Target Victoria Beckham line and it looked so adorable on her!

Sunday morning we headed to Abiding Harvest church in Broken Arrow for an Easter Festival complete with a petting zoo and more egg hunts!

The kids enjoyed seeing the animals and meeting new friends.

Every year we try to go eat Easter brunch somewhere and this year we went with the Marriott Hotel brunch. It was so delicious and had the cutest ice sculptures. 

I tried to get good pictures of the kids outfits, but these days it is nearly impossible to get them to sit still. I am hoping that gets easier because I really enjoy capturing these memories of them.

Sloane wore a smocked bunny dress and Ford wore his seersucker suit. I don't normally dress Sloane in smocked clothing but I really like that she can most likely wear this dress again next year, even if it is as a top.

I hope you all had a wonderful Easter Sunday.

Thanks for stopping by!

~Mrs. S

Tulsa Weekending

Hello Everybody!

A few weeks ago, my nephew Benjamin turned 6 and we celebrated by going to Dallas and joining my family for a birthday party at the Texas Rangers current baseball stadium, the Ballpark at Arlington. The park has a "party" area with a play-gym for kids to play and picnic tables where the event was held. The twins had the best time. When it was time to take a tour of the stadium, the kids didn't want to leave!

The tour included the dug-out which was super cool. 

The following weekend we headed to Tulsa for a few pre-Easter activities that were going on. The local LittleGym was having a celebration so we decided to attend and have a little fun.

The kids had never been so it was really funny watching them hanging on the beams and jumping around. They also had treats for the kids so Ford tried some cotton candy.

My F-I-L had planned to take the kids fishing at a nearby pond so we headed out to see if we could catch any fishies. My brother in law caught quite a few, I didn't get so lucky :(

Fun times in Tulsa!

~Mrs. S

A Colorado road trip!

Hello Everyone!

I Have been a little busy lately so I haven't had the chance to blog, at all! I still want to share a few things going on lately!

March 3rd  was the Mr.'s 35th birthday.

We didn't do much, but I did bake him a cake of which he actually had a slice! We went to Tulsa for the weekend and had some fun meals.

The following week we headed for Colorado for a fun road trip to Breckenridge. We drove out at 4:00am and made it to the Royal Gorge by about 2. It was amazing, and there is even a train ride you can take along the river at the bottom. We plan on taking it some time in the future.

We arrived around 4 and headed to our hotel. Breckenridge is unlike any other ski town in that everything is actually walking distance. The town center is where everything is located and we didn't have to drive anywhere. That was super convenient considering we had to drive quite a bit when we stayed in Vail and Aspen.

There was a huge sledding park that the kids really enjoyed. We sled for a bit then hiked up some short trails that were accessible to the kids.

I decided to ski one of the days, and although it would have been more fun with Zac, I actually really enjoyed going by myself. Something about being able to just go for it without having to worry about keeping up or catching up to anyone else. The trails were mostly easy and the few more advanced ones were not over-populated so I had enough room to go slower. I ended up skiing down several trails that I didn't plan to because I would just get on gondolas I would come across. It was scary to not know how high I was going, but once I got to the top I was fine and it wasn't as steep as you would think! Of all the skiing I've done, I think I like Breckenridge the best.

Sloanie and I :)

As much as I wanted the kids to wear their winter gear, it wasn't as cold as I expected which meant lots of vests for us!

The drive there and back was much easier than I anticipated. We had driven once last summer, but we took a scenic route to and from this trip which made it entertaining and fast. It takes us a total of 12 hours to make it there which is not bad at all!

I hope you all enjoyed my recap, thanks for stopping by!

~Mrs. S

Knock offs vs. Overpriced

Hello Everyone!

Today I am writing about the ever so popular Marc Fisher espadrille sandal that is all the rage this spring. I saw them last spring season and loved them in the brown color I saw many bloggers wearing, but with two new colors (black and ash) I decided to order me a pair for myself when the less expensive Steve Madden version came out this season.

This is the MF version

Here is the Steve Madden

After ordering the Steve Madden version, I tried them on and noticed that my feet must be too narrow or something because they were kind of wide on me. I have never had this issue, in fact, I always considered myself to have wide feet! I was dissatisfied and decided to go ahead and order the Marc Fisher pair since I could always return it if I didn't feel/see that big of a difference. 

When I received the more expensive pair, which I believe is only available on Zappos.com (because they are out of stock everywhere else) I was so excited to try them on!

So the biggest differences are...

1. The inside pads of the MF are espadrille and a bit more leveled on the arch than the SM's. The SM inside are the same color as the shoe (black/brown/ash)

2. The SM's are wider, the MF fit more narrow.

3. The soles of the MF are espadrille/plastic which is not my favorite as my previous Tory Burch espadrilles have torn after wearing them a few months, but hopefully they are made better.

4. The PRICE!

At $159.00 vs. $59.00

the difference is a no brainer, but I suspect it can be made up by the fact that if you order the MF's you are already a season behind, so the SM's would be a good way to catch up with this trend.

As far as the quality, only time could tell which are made better, but I still don't know which ones I will keep!

What do y'all think?!

~Mrs. S

Life Lately

Hello Everyone!

I have not been blogging as much lately, but there have been some exciting things happening!

The month of January started with an awesome snow storm that caught us off guard!
The Mr. got 2 days off from school, and we had a blast playing in the snow.

We decided to try out a movie and took the kids to see SING! It was so good and the kids survived most of the movie, they had breaks and I let Sloane play with her iPad for a bit but we did stay through the whole thing. 

My sister who had a baby recently was treated to a small sprinkle at my other sisters house, we played games, ate yummy food, and we all gave her diapers!

We made a trip to Tulsa for the weekend of the twins birthday so we could take them to Main Event. The kids loved it, and we had a blast. 

We watched the final Cowboys game of the season on the Sunday of their Birthday, we were really hoping they would win, but they fell a field goal short :( Either way, it was fun to celebrate the twins birthday with cake :)

Our good friends Alex and Nathaniel who teach at the college with me invited us to their daughters 3rd birthday party. We love this little girl so much.

We decided to have a low key Super Bowl weekend with wings/pizza from Mazzios and small finger foods. Ford loves pizza!

As a Valentine's gift, we chose to give the kids tiny fish. They loved going to Wal-Mart and choosing the fish. We named all 5 and the kids love feeding them!

1/3 of my Valentine

We went to Tulsa for a date night and settled on The Chalkboard in downtown. It was so good and definitely nice to have a good meal without the kids!

Yesterday, I hosted a few friends over for a play date and to meet a new friend who happened to graduate from SMU also. I met her through a coach's wife who met her through her bible study. Can't wait to do it again soon! I made chicken salad sammies, veggies with hummus dip, suddenly salad, and yogurt parfaits (not pictured). I made cupcakes but none got eaten, so I took them to my class today. They happily obliged! 

We don't have anything planned this weekend, so it will be low key. 

Thanks for stopping by, hope y'all have a great weekend!

~Mrs. S

Blogging and Life

Hello All!

I have been busy taking care of my sick little bugs who got stomach viruses this past week. 

After taking a little break from my weekly posts I decided to come back fresh with a full on confession post!

First off, I have had a lot on my mind about all different types of things and I feel like writing them down really helps me reflect and organize my thoughts.

I guess that is why I like to blog to begin with, and really the original mindset behind starting my blog, 7 years ago!

My good friend was casually blogging about her house and her dog, and since I had just gotten married, I figured it would be fun to document and share my life as a newlywed. My first blog name was called "Music and Life" until we moved to the suburbs and I decided to change it to "The Simmonds in the Suburbs". I became more involved with blogging once I realized how many other young newlywed gals I kept finding who were in a similar time in their life. I started to really enjoy reading about their lives and learning about the newest trends in home decor, fashion, and diets which was actually the beginning of "Lifestyle blogging" as well as "Commercial Blogging". These bloggers were not only sharing so much of their lives, but they were starting to profit from their posts by linking the products/clothing they were posting about.

As much as I was enjoying being a part of this community, I must have been so naive because I had a genuine interest and fascination with these bloggers and their lives. I never once felt jealous or compared myself to them (mainly because I was very focused on my career which was a full time job plus part time job on the side) this was like an escape for me. Kind of like Facebook was for a very long time for me, I never saw it in a negative light and enjoyed it for purely transparent reasons. Rarely did my feelings get hurt to where I wanted to completely shut it out. 

However, I can't tell if it is because the blogging has become so commercial or most of the original bloggers who peaked a few years back don't blog anymore, I am just straight disappointed in the blogging world, to the point of I might want to just write my own posts, but not follow others blogs. My reading list has become shorter and shorter and the creativity and originality of the appeal to blogging has worn off. I admit, at one point I was feeling the pressure to post more, and to make sure to post about the things that were popular in the blogging world, but I think after I noticed how much you have to "sell your soul" to the blogging devil, I decided to back off and do it to make myself happy.  

This all comes after going into a GOMI binge this past weekend where I learned quite a bit about several bloggers who I used to think lived these fabulous lives and enjoyed getting to know them through the internet. From several divorces and deaths, to LikeToKnow.it slaves, it seems like the higher you are in the blogosphere the more miserable your life really is.

Whether there is a correlation between the New Year and a new mind set or the fact that we have a new president so it feels like its time for change, I am not sure, but I am yearning for a change. I like to think that I am an optimistic person who gives people the benefit of the doubt, but I am excited for what is ahead and part of this mind set is that I want to share what is absolutely necessary, not just the happiest or most fabulous, and I want to believe that blogging is still fun for me and that the bloggers I follow are actually good (and genuine) people. 

Maybe I need to stay away from GOMI, maybe people need to check themselves, but for sure I think there is a major issue in the blogging world with people being fake and people feeling like they need to keep up with the Jones's either way I look forward to hearing from you when I do post, and in many ways, I am perfectly happy with the way my blogging journey has been.

Hope you are all having a great Monday and good luck this week!

~Mrs. S

Christmas 2017

Hello lovely readers!

The twins second Christmas has come and gone and we had a great month celebrating the Holiday Season. From visits with Santa to Christmas movies, it was a December to remember!

The local park does a big light celebration every year so we decided to go meet Santa that night. 

The kids were intrigued by him (since he gave them candy canes) but he wasn't letting kids sit on his lap for pictures, lame... I guess it was best because the kids were ready to ride the train and enjoy the carousel instead.

My mother in law got the kids a cool train that goes around the christmas tree, they were quite enamored with it the first few nights.

I saw this chalkboard sign and decided I needed to copy it.

The kiddos had their fair share of Christmas ourfits, Ford's shirt said "Santa, Im a big fan... So cute!

A week before Christmas we headed to Tulsa since we heard there would be snow! The kids enjoyed running around enjoying their first snow of the season.

We made a few trips to Norman to do some shopping, and stumbled upon Santa at a Chick-Fil-A. Sloane was amazed that he was sitting at a table next to us, eating his chicken sandwich, so we had to say hello!

Sloane always looks great in smocked dresses, and this one happened to make a second round this Christmas as it was the same one she wore last year. It was a bit short, but it looked so cute on her!

Christmas morning at my in laws!

They say Christmas is totally different when you have children, and I agree but I think it is even deeper than the whole "you see it through their eyes" thing. I think it is a time where you stand back and appreciate the things in life that matter, especially spending time as a family, and making memories with your loved ones.

Hope you all had a special time with your families during the holidays, 

here's to a new year!

~Mrs. S