The first Friday in 
The first Friday in March was a day we've had circled on our calendar since October. It's the day that Penguin's Snoballs on Little Creek, in Norfolk, opened back up again for the season. Penguin's was our summer 2016 hangout with friends, and when it closed it felt like that episode of 90210 when the Peach Pit is in danger. What would we do without it?

But luckily Penguin's is back and just as great as ever, with the same fluffy New Orleans shaved ice, the dozens of interesting flavors (red velvet cake? cherimoya?), and delicious toppings (condensed milk! Chili lime!) The staff is so friendly and will gladly let you taste test to find the perfect flavor combination. We were so surprised that they remembered us and all of our little munchkins (or maybe we just really did go there all. the. time.)

In any event, we are looking forward to another spring and summer full of deliciousness.

Watch Star Wars: We tried watching Return of the Jedi and the original but neither could usurp A.'s love of My Little Pony (or even hold her attention for very long, not even Ewoks). Maybe one day! She still loves playing with her "life savers" left over from May the Fourth, though.


Food truck feast: We wrote about our visit to The Hub here. Yum!

Play putt-putt: We hit up Jungle Golf at the Oceanfront a few weekends ago and it was miserably hot, humid, and crowded but A. had a blast so we're calling it a success.

New splash park: We were the ONLY people at the Portsmouth City splash park one hot weekend day which was hard to believe, because it's awesome and free! IMPORTANT NOTE: there is no shade and nowhere to sit while the kids play. Bring your umbrellas and lawn chairs!

Donate to the food bank: The Foodbank of Southeastern VA is experiencing a real shortage of donations right now so this was a timely one. Read more here.

To see our not-bummer-summer list in full, click here. What have you and your little ones been up to on summer vacay?

Road trip

James's family visited in June and we went on a road trip to the Eastern Shore of Virginia. Half our group went kayaking to Smith Island and half drove into Cape Charles for lunch and shopping.



Beach Day

We met up with friends and spent the day at Yorktown beach -- heaven! It might have even surpassed East Beach as my fave beach for kids: there's restrooms and restaurants nearby, and the river water is shallow and warm and gentle enough for the smallest baby (just watch out for the occasional jellyfish)



Homemade ice cream

We shared our mint-chocolate-chip coconut cream recipe last week. So yum.



Nature journal

This has been a fun way to spice up our daily walks and bike rides. While A. and I are out, we keep our eyes peeled for interesting animals and plants; when we get home she draws them and practices her writing while I look up fun facts about them on my phone. Did you know some ants can live for 30 years? Or that a dragonfly's larval stage can last up to two years?



Swimming lessons 

A. took swimming lessons at the local YMCA. Not only were they super cheap ($35 for 10 hours of lessons, for members), but she learned a lot and had a lot of fun.



Paint pottery

We headed down to Color Me Mine, in Ghent, on a rainy day last week. Can't wait to pick up our completed pieces, follow us on Instagram to see how they turned out (and for more summertime adventures).



Find our full not-bummer-summer list here and be sure to let us know what you are up to around #HRVA (and beyond) this summer! We're always up for new ideas.

When you think of summer reading, you usually imagine it happening by the side of the pool or under a beach umbrella. Sadly (but truly) most of mine this year has happened in the middle of the night as I struggle with insomnia. When I was pregnant with Anouk I feel like I did nothing but sleep, with this one, I feel like there is something new every night to keep me awake (heartburn is the latest and greatest).

So that's the bad news; the good news is that I've managed to get through a ton of books on my summer reading list even though summer is only just officially here. And if you can't get what you want (sleep glorious sleep) having a good book to keep you company is at least a comfort.


China Rich Girlfriend by Kevin Kwan: This is a sequel to two summers' ago Crazy Rich Asians, which was also a fave beach read of mine. There is something about reading about fabulous rich people and their drama and exploring a part of the world (Singapore/Hong Kong) that I usually don't read about that makes for a wonderful poolside (and I did actually read this one by the pool, over Memorial Day weekend) read. Just when you think things can't get more shocking (a character arrives by helicopter to crash a wedding) they do (poison!) Love it. NOTE: I was gifted a copy of this book by the publisher.

Disclaimer by Renee Knight: What The Girl on the Train was trying to be, a mystery with a twist I didn't see coming. Catherine receives a book with the "resemblance to real people and events" disclaimer crossed out, the story recounts a secret that she's been trying to keep hidden for 20 years. Plus this mysterious book has an ending in which the unnamed author gets a grisly revenge, so C. better find him before he finds her.

Luckiest Girl Alive by Jessica Knoll: You would think that Ani (formerly Tiffani) would be gracious and generous after pulling herself up to join Manhattan's elite but she isn't, she's still bitchy and hardscrabble and that's why I love her. She's also determined to set the record straight regarding her pask but will these old events threaten to pull her back down again? I loved this book -- it was so much smarter and funnier and ultimately tenderer than I expected.

The Bookseller: This one's a bit like that old movie Sliding Doors: Kitty, a career-driven spinster (by 1960s) standards, begins to have vivid dreams of a second life in which she's a wife and mother. As her dreams become more and more real, you begin to wonder: which is actually her real life? And which is the dream? I felt this one was bittersweet in the end as Kitty was forced to choose one path over the other -- but isn't that what basically happens in every life? You give some things up to embrace others.

In the Unlikely Event by Judy Blume: Three plane crashes in three months in one town during the 1950s sounds pretty impossible but it really happened and it's the basis for Judy Blume's supposed last novel, which connects families and friends in various ways across four decades. It wasn't a perfect or even perfectly satisfying book ultimately but reading it did feel like visiting an old friend. Plus Judy Blume's Summer Sisters is the epitome of summer reading, how could I not pick up this one too?

The Life and Death of Sophie Stark by Anna North: I think the last book I read that so perfectly summed up a character without ever going into that character's head was The Great Gatsby and Sophie Stark is a little like that, as Sophie the avant garde filmmaker is basically her own creation and lives off of others' stories rather than her own. I never really sank into this book -- as I was reading I kept telling myself I would give up after the next chapter, but then kept picking it up again. Like Sophie herself, the book is unsettling.

Anouk and I have been making a lot of progress on our not-bummer-summer list over the past couple of weeks (stay tuned for an official update). One of our favorite projects so far has been making this recipe for homemade coconut ice cream! Not only is it dairy-free (good for me and my allergy), it's no churn and requires no cooking, which makes it definitely the easiest DIY ice cream recipe we've come across. You just combine all the ingredients and pop it in the freezer, you're done!

We made our ice cream mint chocolate chip flavored, because we're mint chocolate chip ice cream
fiends.

Ingredients:

• 1 can coconut cream (like this kind from Trader Joe's) 
• 6 tbsp sugar
• 3 tablespoons soy (or almond) milk
• 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
• 1/2 tsp peppermint extract
• 1/2 cup mini chocolate chips 

Combine the coconut cream, sugar, milk, and extracts in a blender and blend until smooth. Add the chocolate chips and stir. Pour into a loaf pan or square baking pan and freeze for two hours, or until solid. Note: this recipe freezes kind of hard, so you might want to remove from the freezer and thaw for 5-10 minutes before serving.

Yum!

Do you know the concept of a not-bummer-summer list? It's from the Judy Moody movie that came out a couple of years ago, a list of things to do to make an ordinary summer super special. Since we're not doing camp this year, and in the interest of keeping Anouk occupied somehow during these long hot days, I suggested that we make a not-bummer-summer list of our own (our friends at Not-So-SAHM inspired us with their awesome summer bucket list). After some thought, here's what A. and I came up with to make our summer vaca extra awesome:



I'm wondering how far we'll get (being pregnant in the summer kinda zaps your energy) but we're going to give it our best attempt. We'll keep you updated!

What are you and your kids doing for the summer? Any plans?

This weekend is Memorial Day weekend, so we are sharing one of our favorite summertime treats today. The Ringo sundae at Doumar's has literally been voted the best in the area and here is why: vanilla ice cream, topped with hot fudge, topped with real whipped cream and cherry and Doumar's famous ice cream cones (they make them in-house) crushed up and sprinkled on top. They don't scrimp on the hot fudge either, the ice cream is really swimming in it.



^^ You haven't really seen everything in Norfolk until you've spent a summer afternoon watching them make cones on the world's first cone machine ^^

Like I said, it is one of our favorite summertime treats but we stopped in for one last week thanks to the string of summertime-temperature days we had. Oh who am I kidding, when you're a pregnant lady you don't need an excuse for ice cream.

Happy weekend!

Seashell crafts! They are the current craze in our house, mostly because we have amassed a giant collection of shells. It's also the easiest candle making process I've ever come across -- all you need is a bag of tea lights (ours were a million for $5 at IKEA) and some beach treasures, and voila.

Safety note before we begin! This is definitely a craft that needs not only adult supervision but definitely adult participation, too. The candles can sometimes be a little unstable, so make sure to keep them on a safe surface while lit and don't leave unattended while burning.

You will need:

• Seashells
• Tea lights in metal containers
• Hot plate
• Glass heat-safe container

Turn the hot plate on a low to medium low heat setting. Remove wicks from tea lights and place in a heat-safe glass container (we used a Pyrex measuring cup). Place the container on the hot plate until the candles have melted completely. While the wax is melting, prepare the shells by wiping them with water and a soft cloth and checking them for holes and cracks (you don't want the wax to run out).

When the wax is completely melted, use a potholder to pick up the glass and pour a small amount of wax into each shell. Place the shell back on the metal tea-light container to hold it steady and upright while it dries. While the wax is still clear and liquid, insert the wick. To speed up the wax hardening process, place on a cookie sheet in the freezer for 10-15 minutes.

I think these would make adorable stocking stuffers or teacher presents -- and is a fun way to preserve some of your favorite beach memories. Plus, they look really pretty scattered around the house. Ooh, ahh.

Happy weekend!

This project was inspired by May Day and the old tradition of giving flowers to friends and neighbors. But instead of just sitting and watching your flowers bloom, wouldnt it be more fun to be able to scatter seeds and watch them grow? We got the basic idea and inspiration from this post, and then went from there.

To make the seed bombs, you will first need paper, and lots of it. We used about two dozen sheets of used drawing paper (great way to recycle old art!) and two sheets of pink and blue tissue paper, to give our bombs a pretty springtime color. We tore the paper into inch-long chunks and then soaked it for 4-5 hours.

Next, we blended the paper in a blender until it was chunky but no longer identifiable as strips of paper. The pink and blue tissue paper kind of melded together to make purple, with little flecks that look like flower petals.





Strain the blended paper mixture through cheesecloth to get rid of excess water, then stir in the seeds (we used four packets -- forget me not, zinnia, poppies, and coneflowers). Then break out your mold. We used a silicon heart mold, and pressed the paper mixture into the molds (a little more water will come out, just pour it off). Gently pop the seed bomb out of the mold and lay it in a safe place to finish drying. The end result will be crumbly and imperfect, but I think that adds to its charm.

There you go! Tie up your seed bombs in a pretty piece of fabric or put in a little basket and give to your friends -- and don't forget to chuck a few into the corners of your own yard for a treat later on this summer.

We're back from our end-of-summer trip to the Outer Banks! We rented a house on the beach with six adults and four kids and had one of the best times of our lives -- so much so that we are already planning on making this an annual thing. Our house was in Rodanthe, at the northern end of Hatteras Island, and made famous(ish) by the Nicholas Sparks movie that was filmed there. In fact, our house was right next to the house featured in the movie (which none of us had actually seen), which we realized only after a few days of wondering at people posing for photos in front of it.




Rodanthe has kind of a laid back vibe -- it's like Duck or Corolla but without the super-upscale feel, like Nags Head used to be when I visited it as a kid. Lots of houses and little shops, not too built up (yet?) The built up thing is a double-edged sword at times, though -- the nearest grocery store was almost 20 miles away and so it was a pain every time we realized we'd forgotten something (um, DIAPERS?)

Rain was called for every day of the trip, but we ended up having a good amount of beach time, nonetheless. The rain also gave us the excuse to explore a little bit more than we might have otherwise. We hit the lighthouse and a museum. The girls did a little bit of thrifting and antiquing, the guys took the kayaks out and fished. And in between the showers we did find time to check off a New Year's Resolution or two.



1. Coordinating four kids' bedtimes ain't no joke. Some nights looked like this, we let them run until they dropped.



2. Be sure to catch a bonafide Hatteras sunset or two, on the days it isn't raining. (This was the view from our kitchen window -- it made doing dishes a lot more palatable).






3. Speaking of rainy days, don't put too much stock in what the weatherman says. These pics were taken on a day with a predicted 100% chance of rain.