Monday Mayhem

I wanted to pop in because I feel bad for not posting, but today has turned a little crazy!  So here is our summer thus far:

1.  Mini K has gone and returned from summer camp and LOVED every moment of her week away from us!  (We received 1 letter which stated:  this place is awesome, i have no time)

2.  Swim Team is a full time job

3.  We celebrated her half birthday party this past weekend and a great time was had by all...a complete post is coming

4.  Tonight we are packing up camp care packages for her 8th grade buddy, 2 family friends and her pen pal Miss M

5.  I have shipped out over 100 pairs of monogrammed sunglasses in the last 96 hours!  Stay tuned to our Facebook page as we think we might need to scare the rain away with a Thunder SALE on sunnies!

6.  Next week I will be in D.C., CA, TX, PA and back home...I am tired and I haven't boarded a plane yet!  I am already making lists of what to pack!

7.  I am still in LOVE with my Dry Bar hair dryer

8.  I am disappointed with the Nordstroms half-yearly sale, of course a half price Celine bag was probably too much to hope for right???

10.  Right now I will DOUBLE your order on flat or folded notes for FREE.  You can see all of the designs HERE.

11.  I am patiently (or attempting to be patient) the delivery of my newly lacquered quest room furniture this week.

12.  It is supposed to rain ALL week...I think this alone deserves a pick me up right?

13.  I am trying one of those home spa services this Wednesday...a manicure and pedicure at home with my DVR sounds like heaven right now.  Throw in a cold glass of white wine and I might not ever get up.

14.  I did 25 burpees today, followed by my Crossfit workout, followed by Ab Mat sit ups and now I am wondering if movement is necessary tomorrow.

15.  I have 2 kiddos begging to watch Ninja Warrior so off I go!

Monday Madness

I am saving last Friday's Friday FIVE post for this Friday.  March 1st was my 10 year wedding anniversary and Mr. G surprised us with a weekend away at the Homestead.  It is our happy place.  We spent 3 days skiing, skating, swimming, hiking and as Mini K and baby C call it:  smoring.

And while I loved the weekend away, I have returned to orders, putting the final touches on our new spring additions, a mountain of laundry that is staring me down and a to do list that I plan on owning by the end of tomorrow!  The weathermen are also predicting a MAJOR snowstorm of 4 inches.  I have to say that when I first arrived in D.C. the "locals" made fun of me for thinking 4" of snow was a big deal and now years later, panic sets in like it is 4" in Dallas.  Today's mail distracted me from my to do list I will admit.  I mean who does NOT like FREE money?  Today was BIG FAT CHECK delivery date.  If you know me I am in love with Ebates and if you don't well you now have picture proof of why I love Ebates.  It is FREE to join and you can join HERE.  You simply give them your email and mailing address and click through to your favorite sites from Ebates and the cash is deposited in your account.  Love Josh and Main, well shop from their parent site Wayfair and get FREE shipping, cash back and pretty much the same prices if not lower.  Have a love affair with Kate Spade or Tory Burch, they both will give you cash back on your purchases and when do Revas or flip flops go on sale?  Need to have new pillows or window treatments made?  Order your fabric from Fabric.com and get 40% off retail prices and cash back and FREE shipping.  I couldn't go on and on, but seriously just check it out, unless you don't like FREE money.

Catch Up

I did a double take when I saw the date of my last post.  In some ways it feels like that long since I have sat down to type, in other ways I do not know where the time has gone!

While the cast is off my foot and I no longer have pain, my range of motion is NOT back the way I thought it would be and the top of my foot looks like I am carrying an 8oz bottle of water in it.  I probably expected too much too soon as it has only been 8 weeks, but I will admit to you that I am little afraid it might not come back.

Grove Gal E is about to celebrate the 2nd anniversary of her 39th birthday and deciding what to get her has proven to be harder than I thought.  In the end I decided to have something made for her and am hoping it arrives in time as her birthday is fast approaching.

Mini K had her second dive meet tonight.  For those of you that have a diving team past, she did the pencil and a forward dive.  I love watching her concentrate as she goes into the water and the huge grin that emerges as soon as her head gets above water.  I don't think I could jump, dive whatever off of a diving board at 6 with 100 pairs of eyes staring at me and total silence.

We are slowly getting used to our new summer nanny.  I should say Mini K is slowly adjusting.  Baby C adores her as does half of the neighborhood, myself and Mr. G.  I am just realizing that Mini K was more attached than I thought to Miss J.

Between my existing job during the day, setting up my new company at night and trying to add new products to the Grove, I confess I have turned into a work hermit.

We are in New York for a bit of a family emergency until Sunday and I am hoping that I can catch up on some blogs, start a new beach read and watch a couple of episodes of the new Dallas.

I know this blog is usually more fun, but tonight I just needed to post a vent for my mental health.

I will also drop a little hint, the Grove will be doing something is has NEVER done tomorrow so you might want to check back!  We LOVE 4th of July in the Grove and we start celebrating early.  Let's just say this surprise will save you from crow's feet and leave you enough for a venti Starbuck's.  With that....I am off to dreamland.

Recap

I am back from NYC and finally catching up on emails, my stack of catalogs and my to do list!  Baby C's thank you notes will be done tomorrow...beyond late for me, but oh well.

His party was so much fun.  Mr. G gave me a hard time about making a beer punch instead of just buying a ton of beer, but the beer punch was a BIG hit!  In case you want to try it:

For every 6 pack of Corona Light, add a half cup of Vodka and a can of frozen pink lemonade and some sliced limes.  I do not like beer and trust me, this punch tastes dangerously good!

Everyone has something that they MUST have at a party...for me it's a theme and a cake.  I tried a new baker this year and she was AMAZING.  The cake tasted great and was perfect for our crab shack theme!

With the party and NYC behind me, it is all about getting Mini K ready for camp!  It will be her first time at sleep away camp and she is counting down the days until she is a big girl on her own for 4 nights!  I confess that when the parents handbook came and said we needed to label everything, I immediately thought I had to find a loophole.  I mean this is Washington, D.C., there is a loophole for everything and I despise those iron on clothing labels.  So I channeled my inner Southern Belle and monogrammed...EVERYTHING but her socks and underwear and I am NOT joking:

Washcloths...all 4 of them are monogrammed
Swimsuits, check!
Her flashlight, yep it's monogrammed
Sunglasses...PLEASE!
Her shorts, EVERY LAST PAIR
The duffel to put it all in...DUH

I don't think Mr. G is thrilled that I have pretty much turned our formal living room into a packing staging area, but I don't plan on any formal entertaining until we survive camp!

I have less than 2 weeks left in this surgical boot and I am counting down the days.  I have developed a HATE HATE relationship with the stationary bike...I hate it, yet I go back to it for an hour a day.  Let's face it, it's not like I have a lot of options and not exercising would make need to go into hiding.

That is pretty much the Grove in a nutshell and my guess is that I have bored you to tears!  I am off to finish our end of the year teacher gifts for Mini K and farewell gifts for the teacher's in Baby C's toddler room as he is moving up to the junior room in June!  It seems surreal that we will be touring D.C. preschools for him this fall!  We are almost to 500 fans on Facebook and I can't wait to giveaway one of our monogrammed carryalls!  If you haven't liked our page, would you, pretty please, give us a wink HERE.

Night!

View From My Office

I know I am have been MIA this week. The new Grove will open on Monday...yes I kknow a week late, but I have decided to be positive and consider it fashionably late. Since my birthday is on Tuesday, it will be an early birthday present!

The view from my office has been pretty much products photos, listings, iced tea and salted caramel popcorn. I escape at night for a run on the treadmill or a spin on the elliptical, but I am so excited to launch!

I wanted to do a quick post rather than answer all of the emails in my inbox that are pretty much the same question. PLEASE don't be mad at me, but I think this post will answer everyone's questions!

A lot of you have emailed about Julep since I blogged about it. My April box arrived today so I thought I would post photos so you can see for yourselves.

My April box contained amazing foot cream (can't wait to use this after the stiches come out from my foot surgery in 3 weeks!), 2 bottles of polish and some chocolate. One is a light purple, which Mini K already has her eyes on, and I love too! The other polish is great dark pink.

Julep Maven is $19.99 a month which includes your monthly box, FREE shipping on all purchases and 20% off.

Today is the last day you can use the code: MARCHINTRO which will get you your trial box for a penny! I decided I loved my Julep box so I continued. It is a great way to take your own polish to the salon and know you are in style!

You can join HERE & don't forget to use MARCHINTRO to save $19.98!

Spring Has Sprung!

I am in denial that it is Thursday! The weather in D.C. this week has been nothing short of beautiful! 70 degree weather during the day and 60 degree weather at night...absolutely perfect, unless you are Mini K and Baby C....and grew a TON over the past year and NONE of your spring clothes fit, unless you are waiting on the great flood!

So the Grove had to do a little shopping this week! Thankfully, I could run down the street, literally, to The Purple Goose and pick up all of our Olive Juice favorites without waiting for the UPS man to bring them to me! The Purple Goose is owned by Ms. Paula (the big boss) and her daughter, Ms. Linda according to Mini K and she adores them both. How can not love a kids clothing and toy store that has a treasure box full of treats tat you can pick from EVERy SINGLE TIME you are there and a mailbox in December where you can drop off your letters to Santa and he will actually write you back! Even if you don't live in the D.C. area, you should "LIKE" their facebook page as they have amazing sales. Mini K, no surprise, is a girly girl, so when she saw this year's Morgan & Milo sparkle flops we HAD TO HAVE THEM in both blue and pink. Let's not talk about the fact that we aren't allowed to wear them to school. DETAILS.

Since I am all about keeping it real I will tell you that the blog schedule for this week that I had actually written out is now lost in the piles I "pre-cleaned" before our cleaning ladies come today so I must find it tonight.

Until then, I am off to clients meetings, the doctor to drop off camp physicals, my doctor and an event for Mini K's school at Bloomingdales tonight.

Miss you all, but promise to blog about our St. Patrick's Day pinchings tomorrow.

By The Numbers

So it hasn't technically been a full week since I last blogged, but I feel like I have not stopped and no one wants to read working mom gibberish...especially this working mom!

1: The number of AMAZING Pink Swap I received this week.

2: The number of hours I just worked out to purge the stress from this past week

3: The number of social events or lessons Mini K had this weekend (translation: the Mom Car Service logged a lot of miles)

4: The number of hours I spent on 1 conference call last Wednesday...my ear still hurts!

5: The number of boxes I am shipping out tomorrow morning

6: The number of hours I spent on a train (I only spent 23 hours in NYC)

7: The number of times I hope to blog this week. I literally have a notebook with scheduled blog posts. I will also confess I am such an outline/bullet person they are already in bullet form!

I knew this upcoming week was going to be busy so I have broken down my to-do list into 5 things a day. I couldn't look at the long list anymore, so now it is color coded by day and oh so much more bearable.

Now, even when I am busy, I still have time for a good deal so I HAD to share one with you. I hate throwing away Mini K's drawings from school, but we simply do NOT have the space on the shelf or the wall for them all so I channeled my anti-clutter self, well let's be honest, I didn't really have to channel her and came up with a solution that I think works.

I take a photo of EVERY single page and upload it to picasa. I then add a caption that includes the date and anything Mini K said about it and upload it to Snapfish. At the end of each school year I publish it in a photo book. I can then keep all of those papers, sculptures, hats and other materpieces on a shelf, neatly organized in a book. The front page is always our annual first day of school in front of the door photo and the last page is that same photo taken on the last day of school. In the past I have used Snapfish, but I think I am going to try Mixbook this year. The best part is you can get a $50 gift certificate for $18 right HERE. For those of you wondering, I wasn't paid for this post, but I firmly believe in sharing a good deal.

So until tomorrow, I am off to dreamland so I can hit the ground running this week!

Prep Work

If you thought the title meant for cooking, well you haven't been reading my blog long enough! If you hear screams coming from D.C. it is not because of politics, it is merely working moms reacting to the impending "wintery mix" and delayed opening of the federal government tomorrow. You see wintery mix, while it sounds like a scene out of White Christmas is pure hell...it is essentially a falling Slurpee machine without flavor and mixed with dirt, it ruins your wood floors, sends your children from the high of no school or the agony of enlightenment that ice does not make a snowman, or even a ice queen and quite frankly leaves everyone so stir crazy that we flee to Starbucks only to complain about the line.

Instead of letting the predicted weather ruin my night, I decided to try prepping...but lately, I only seem to prep for:

travel

parties (though not the ones I am throwing!)

shopping

No surprise that I tackled my planning with a cup of my favorite caramel tea from Ladurdee in my favorite monogrammed mug. If I have to work, my fuel source should at least be cute right? I have to be in NYC this Thursday and Friday for my day job. I love being able to avoid the airport and hope on the train. Three blissful hours calm, or relative calm. I am one of those dorks that actually plans out what I want to accomplish on the train. This trip is planning Baby C's 2nd birthday party (which will be in MAY!), planing our my spring shopping list and watching Lipstick Jungle now that I finally downloaded it to my ipad. I have back to back meetings on Thursday but am so excited that I will be able to see a couple of friends while I am there for work.

Since I don't get back until Friday evening, I spent this weekend making sure everything is all set for my friend A's sip 'n' see for her new little princess. The wreath has been ordered, photos of the baby should be ready for pick-up on Saturday morning, petit fours will be ready on my way to the party (you didn't think they would survive in my house overnight did you?), and presents for both the sip 'n' see and the birthday party Mini K is attending at the same exact time are wrapped, tagged and ready to go!

I am sure this doesn't sound exciting, but I LOVE watching my long to-do list become a shrinking sea of solid green sharpie lines.

As a reward for actually reading this post, I promise tomorrow I will finally post photos from Mini K's Eloise party! See I do read my email, I am clearly just getting old and slow!

Home Sweet Home

This week draws to a close tonight and I am so ready for it to be behind me and next week to start. One of my favorite clients at my day job always has a 2 day meeting to kick the year off so off to Florida I went! 28 hours worth of meetings and business dinners later, I was home last night.

Also several of you have emailed, but the DOUBLE your order of notecards and photo cards at our paper store ends on January 15th!

Mini K was a champ and ran some fabulous errands with me this morning, the bank, dry cleaners, the jewelers to pick up som gifts and the craft store and Wal-Mart to pick up our Valentine's Day needs. I promise a complete post on our wreath (which is hanging on our door), our neighborhood Valentine's and our class Valentine's tomorrow, but needless to say it was a busy morning. Mini K was rewarded with a last minute baking playdate at her friend Marnie's house and Baby C and I took advantage of the 64 degree weather to go on a 2 hour walk. I had planned on the gym, but couldn't exercise inside on such a beautiful day or leave him home after being gone for 2 days!

So tonight Mini K and I are tackling the DVR which means Say Yes To The Dress and Wipeout and I am making my January-June gift and project list. I break it up each year and it no longer seems so long. My grandmother always said it's not just what you give, it's how you give it. She didn't mean the amount of money you spend, but rather a gift is something that you know the recipient will enjoy BUT would never buy him or herself. Next project to tackle is my Mommy Time Out party plans. The wine inspired me to plan a party around it...though I confess I have NO CLUE if the wine is even decent.

Speaking of wine, maybe I should go pour myself a glass of champagne and celebrate the end to this hectic week! Pink of course!

What A Week!

I told you last week that you wouldn't hear from me for a few days, but I am back which means we survived 4 trunk shows in 5 days! The shows were a great success and we are so grateful for our friends & clients who support the Grove.

I have spent today processing orders and taking Mini K to her friend Raleigh's birthday party at the Spy Museum. She was so happy to be invited to an official BIG KID party...that would be a & year old party.

We came home to work on Mini K's Thanksgiving school project. I promise to share it when it is finished, because then you will understand why it has taken SO BLESSED LONG to complete.

This week we are going to have a last minute trunk show at Casa Grove to CLEAR OUT our in stock merchandise. Let me define CLEAR OUT: $5, $10 and $15 bins full of preppy goodies, hair accessories and YES Lilly P. Make sure to LIKE us on Facebook for all of the details.

In the meantime I am back to my day job and finishing up the plans for Mini K's birthday party. I don't think I have mentioned (feel free to tell me I am insane!) that we are having Mini K's birthday party BEFORE her birthday this year...AKA before Christmas. This means I have a week to get her inivitations out and less than 2 weeks to get all of my holiday cards addressed and stamped.

Speaking of holiday cards, ALL of our photo cards are currently 15% off! We have tons of designs in both the digital cards (where your photo is printed on the card) and the traditional photo cards where you attach your own photo. Grove Gal E and I noticed that everytime we turned around this weekend another family was having their picture taken. The holidays really do seem to be sneaking up on us this year! For those of you that are hoping to take your photos over Thanksgiving, and think the deals will have past you by, think again. We busy working girls (and we mean both at the office and the ever demanding, never off duty stay at home office!) have to stick together so for the FIRST TIME EVER we will be having a dela for you over the ENTIRE BLACK FRIDAY weekend so make sure you click on over to our Facebook page.

I am now off to wrap Christmas presents so my oldest (that would be Mr. G!) doesn't start snooping!

Hope you had a great weekend!

Cocktails Anyone...

I have spent the last 3 days in Tampa for my day job. I spent my evenings rushing back to the hotel after dinners to work on orders for PGG, in my pj's, in the hotel bed on my ipad with reality tv on. It probably sounds boring to most of you, but I have come to the realization that I am just one of those people that cannot sit still unless I am by the pool or on a beach, or trapped in a plane.

Which brings me to today. Both Tampa and D.C. were having storms, but they boarded our flight anyway, pulled back from the jetway and then gave us the news....get ready for bumps....the entire flight! Well let's just say bumps were an understatement. I am used to being on planes. Before Mini K was born I probably flew close to 400,000 miles each year. I have been on bumpy flights, I have been on flights where the cabin has lost pressure, but I have never been on a flight like today. Let's start with the fact that this wasn't what I would call a jet, more like apuddle jumper without propellers. Thankfully, we made it to D.C. I have never been so happy to be on the ground, but the flight left me with more nervous energy than I know what to do with. So jittery that Mr. G poured me a cocktail as soon as he saw me and offered to cook dinner for the kids.

Image courtesy of www.boulderganic.com

They are both in bed, Mr. G is at one of his hockey games and I am catching up on today's orders, making lists and finishing up egg free cereal cupcakes for Mini K's assistant teacher's birthday tomorrow.

I promise I will post the recipe!

I also am going to multi-task and answer emails on this blog (forgive me, but I don't know how long I can sit at this computer!). Several of you ladies have emailed about our holiday card specials so here are the details:

1. You can access our fabulous paper store by clicking on the link above.

2. Our current special is 20% off all photo cards AND 50% off your choice of return address printing on the envelopes or return address stickers.

3. Our cardstock is thick...I am picky...it's not a business card if it bends so we don't sell flimsy paper!

And finally...for everyone that orders holiday cards from us by December 1st, you will be entered to win one of our fabulous new personalized ring dishes! We will announce the winner on December 2nd and you will have the dish in time to give for the holidays, and we say wrap it and give it to yourself!

So I am going to return to my champagne cocktail and block out today's flight from my mind and not think about the 4 miles that my running shoes will make me do tomorrow at 6am.

Manic Monday

Can I say Manic Weekend? The last 4 days have been a blur. All of us got flu shots and both Baby C and Mini K turned into manic sleepers. I realize that virtual dirty looks are being thrown at me right now, but when you are used to your kids being on a schedule to get things done and all they want to do is sleep that posed a problem...you see my work was what else but errands. I can carry Baby C in and out of everywhere but Baby C, Mini K and the dry cleaning, groceries, boxes to ship, well not so much!

We also fast forwarded right through fall this weekend into winter and it seems that Baby C was expecting a flood so we are pant shopping. I am just going to say this, but this weekend was yet another reason that I find shopping for a baby boy depressing. Cargo pants, for what pacifiers, motorcycle pants, complete with zippers and pockets and my favorite sighting in D.C. camo, because if you cannot own a shotgun then you really NEED hunting pants, for an infant.

We ended up with a massive mini Boden order of pants and another box of longsleeve t-shirts to send off to the monogrammer.

The silver lining was the luxury of hours spent on Pinterest and etsy and new Butter nail polish for the fall!

I did manage to get some work done and confirmed that we will be launching some new products just in time for the holidays.

Tonight I will do my weekly routine of going to the grocery store at 9:30pm at night, with my earbuds in, pandora turned on and get everything for the week.

Not a very exciting post, but sometimes being a working mom is crossing things off of your list and one of the blessings is being able to do it with your kids or when they are asleep.

Speaking of making lists...who has a wish list for Christmas and what is on it????

Fall Fever

Well it's officially fall. The past few days have been a whirlwind of client meetings, school field trips, flu shots and closets switches. Throw in some last minute cello bag and bow tying, Baby C's first haircut and prepping for this week and I missed the first official day of fall, or maybe it was our super muggy weather here in D.C.!

Well tomorrow kicks off the holiday trunk show season for the Grove with Rock, Paper, Cocktails! If you are in the D.C. area please come on by for a fun event for a great cause! I promise I will blog photos of our booth.

Tonight I had promised Mini K we would make dinner together...she wanted pasta, her father wanted soup...so we compromised. I must admit it turned out pretty good!

We made Cheese Ravioli Soup

Our ingredients, or the cast of characters as Pioneer Woman calls them were:

1 tablespoon (or so) extra-virgin olive oil

1 medium onion diced

1 green bell pepper diced

3 large carrots diced

2 cloves garlic, minced

1/4 teaspoon crushed red pepper

1 28oz can of crushed tomatoes (we used the garlic fire roasted because that is what was in the pantry!)

16oz of chicken broth (or half of one of those boxes from Trader Joe's)

1 1/2 cups HOT water

chopped basil from Mini K's herb garden

1 package of Wegman's fresh 3 cheese mini ravioli

Parmesan cheese

We heated the oil in our Dutch oven and added in the onions, garlic, carrots and green pepper. After a few minutes we added in the broth, crushed tomatoes, hot water, red pepper flakes and basil and left it alone until it was at a rolling boil. We added the ravioli and let it cook for 4 minutes then turned the burner down to low.

We added th cheese to the bowls for as Mini K called it, her presentation. Since she was the chef, the side dishes were cheese crackers and cucumbers without skin.

We had a lot of fun and now I am off to watch the Good Wife before my alarm wakes me up for a 4 mile run!

What did you do this weekend?

Whirlwind Wednesday

This has been one of those weeks: 7 trips to the doctor, 3 sets of x-rays, 4 stitches, 5 prescriptions, a broken 50" tv (this made Mr G and Mini K wince in pain!) and it is only Wednesday. I know this too shall pass, but that thought never seems to make things less stressful.

I tend to exercise when stressed, which sounds good, but I also shop and bake so really the bad still outweigh the good!

So far I have only placed things in my shopping cart after Baby C and Mini K are in bed and then one of them stirs and I walk away from the computer.

Well the tv should be fixed tonight...the short story is, the next time you hear a man tell a how many women does it take to fix a lightbulb,...you can say at least 1 less than the number of men required to change a lightbulb on a heavy rear projection television! I will be back at the doctor tomorrow morning, followed by Mini K in the afternoon and Baby C on Friday morning.

As I mentioned my silver lining has been virtual shopping and kids Chloraseptic lollipops. Moms go out NOW and stock up before flu and strep throat season start. Mini K is using them for a different reason, but seriously, this is yet another product that I wonder how I ever lived without.

Before the drama started this week I made an appointment with a woman to come clean out my closet and give me my shopping list. I am great about finding 1,000 things I like, but other than shoes and handbags can never follow through with purchasing clothes for myself. I have a hard time with the professional look during the day, dressy casual at night and outfits to play with my kids in. I am pretty sure I could live in Lululemon and handbags and jewelry, but I am pretty sure it would only fly in my head!

So here is what is on my look list this week:

I saw this Juicy sweater on an August day when it was a mere 106 degrees and fell in love! One of my favorite things about winter is pairing a cardigan like this with a button down untucked, leggings and boots or jeans and longsleeve tee with a statement necklace. It's on sale now so I may not wait for the stylist, it might be purchased tonight!

I will be ordering a couple of these kate spade lipsticks this weekend from a friend who works in the Lenox Mall store. I try and order from friends in retail so they can get a commission when I can, and it is not like I need new lipstick at a doctor's appointment.

I always look at the YSL Muse bags, but end up purchasing something else. I keep coming back to this blue color and the HUGE size. Extra-large never seems to bother me when it describes a handbag!

I also promised several of you I would give you my review of the Next clothing I ordered for Mini K. I placed my order on Sunday and it arrived yesterday. The two puffer coats I ordered are ADORABLE. The quality is as good if not better than J.Crew's crewcuts and the price was one-third. I ordered her the red wellies with the ribbon in the back, for less than $30 and they are TOO CUTE. I will let you know how it wears, but so far I am thrilled!

Surrounded By Cello

That pretty much sums up my week and weekend! Four, yes you read that number correctly, kid's birthday parties, crossfit and too many meetings to count have made up my last 5 days.

When I haven't been doing that, I have been getting ready for our PGG holiday show season. Over 300 fabulous products have been bagged and bowed and I cannot wait for show season to begin. Grove Land is quite a sight, and I had planned to share it with you, but my camera cord is in Mr. G's car and that is at the hockey rink!

So tonight I am taking a break from wrapping and prepping this week's dinners and our fall shopping list.

This is the type of week that would have driven me crazy last spring, but somehow (thank you God!), but I couldn't help but think about how much fun so many people will have unwrapping all of the happies I have spent this week wrapping. Our PGG site will be going through an overhaul in the next few weeks so I will be posting some of our non-personalized gifts on the blog. Please email us if you would like to place an order!

How was your weekend?

Summer's Walking Away...Be Back Soon

Mini K starts kindergarten in less than a week and I feel like this summer has flown by...you can probably guess I have lost track of time due to my lack of posts!

Our summer highlights have included:

The birth of our good friends' son and promotion to Big Sister for his sister

Mini K & Mr. G's first roadtrip solo

Watching Baby C take his first steps, followed by his first fall

Mini K take the scissors to her hair which resulted in a very short bob for this school year and her constant inquiries as to why a girls hairstyle is called a boys name (I have no answer)

Watching Mini K jump up and down when she opened a letter from her new kindergarten teacher (the one she prayed she would get all summer) and finding out her best friend Abby is in her class...more jumping and screaming

Starting my running back up with a new partner that is faster andholds me accountable...at 6am

Feeling like I am back in school the moment I put on my new Tory Burch loafers, BUY THEM, they are the shoe fountain of youth or remembrance

Being relieved that it was only an earthquake in D.C. and not a terrorist attack

But most of all, this summer I tried to step back and enjoy and photograph ALL of the moments and I am so happy I did.

I hope you will come back next Monday, as I promise to be back to regular posting, and I cannot wait to share some of my new finds and Grove Gal E's and mine's latest venture with all of you!

Until then, hug your loved ones a little bit tighter, write an ACTUAL letter to a friend, put a stamp on it and mail it and buy some crayons, smell them and remember your first day of school and donate them to a school supply drive so another child can start the year with a sense of wonder as it is PRICELESS!

Reality Bites

In this case I wish I was talking about the movie, but it is real life. My mother ushered in another birthday with some rather bleak news from the doctor and let's just say it has been tough to swallow. I apologize for not posting, but gifts and paper have seem a bit trivial to me lately.

That is until one of mother's friends who I didn't realize read this blog, told her I had gone "missing". Let's just say this 36 got a talking to...so here I am.

We received our prototypes in today and I am quite pleased with how they turned out. Leave it to a 5 year who thinks she needs her own iphone and ipad to help me design our first product! They will soon be for sale on both the PGG site and our soon to open etsy site! We have been selling great products designed by others for so long, and still will carry all of them, but these new products are designed and made by us!

Thankfully, I am hosting my annual Kate and Libby trunk show this week which will keep my brain busy! I love their fall line...how can you not love a reversible, monogrammed fleece vest?

SO here is my question....what are you looking forward to this fall?

Keeping It Real

Clearly it has been awhile since I have posted. I DON'T have vacation story to share or some big news...it has just been a crazy time and spending time with Baby C and Mini K ranked higher.

I had a moment this week where I realized how fast time is flying! There are only 5 months until Mini K turns 6, which also means 5 months until Christmas! July 1st didn't hit me so much as Mini K putting on a dress yesterday that used to go to the middle of her knees and now looks more like a shirt that is a little too long. Couple that with having to buy her a pair of size 1.5 shoes and the realization that a kids size 2 and women's size 5 are pretty much the same thing and I am left wondering where did my little girl go.

So for the past week I have felt like freezing everything...trying to soak it all in, well everything except the laundry! A friend once told me when life seems a little overwelming to STOP and focus solely on one little thing at a time and you know what it works.

If you follow me on twitter than you know that Baby C has had balance issues due to his ear problems. Well this week, two weeks after his surgery, he took his first steps! Honestly, we think he was more focused on grabbing the oreo chocolate chip cookie out of Mini K's hands and didn't even realize he was walking, because as soon as he grabbed it he sat right down to eat!

I know so many of you blog daily, but there are days, or weeks, that I just don't see how an endless to do list is worth reading. Grove Gal E and I are ALMOST finished on a new product, one we designed and will make and are so excited. This blog isn't so much about the products that we sell, but how the juggle of motherhood, my life and career and my little Grove come together, and sometimes, from the outside looking in, it probably looks like a tornado, but I love it and wouldn't change a thing!

So we are starting the holiday weekend off with Mini K and her tennis racquet pretending she is part of Wimbledon in front of the tv, Mr. G hosing down Baby C's highchair outside and I am off to take Baby C to the farmer's market.

Have a great Saturday and remember to take it all in, because you can only live this day once!

DEAL ALERT: For all of you in the military in the D.C. area I want to share one deal with you: The Purple Goose on Mt. Vernon Avenue in Alexandria is offering 50% all clothing and shoes and 30% off all accessories with a military id.

Our Cup Is Full

So sorry I haven't posted in almost a week. THANK YOU so much for all of your thoughts, prayers and emails. Baby C's surgery was yesterday and while there were some surprises, he was so strong and is feeling so much better.

We thought it would be a simple surgery, tubes in, ear infections gone, but it seems Baby C isn't clumsy, he has had severe vertigo his entire life. Our amazing surgeon drained his ears, nose and sinuses and Baby C's little body had 8oz of let's just say gunk in them. To make matters worse, the gunk was highly infected so it made coming out of the anesthesia a little rough.

I wish I would have had my camera, but I never think about taking them to the hospital for surgeries, only to capture photos of a sweet new baby! When he came to, he shook his head and gave us the biggest smile. He hasn't stopped moving sense. He is no longer clumsy, just on the move. Poor thing has had that stuff in his head his entire life. They now think the same gunk just kept getting reinfected.

We have some smelly (really smelly) ear drops and some extra strength pain meds for the next 2 days, but otherwise are back to a new pain free normal for our little guy.

I always go into nesting, cooking overdrive before surgery. I did it with Mini K and I did the same thing this past weekend. I also don't really sleep so I have been emailing so many of you some of my middle of the night finds. I promise to share all with you over the next few days.

But now, everyone but Mr. G is asleep, and he has promised to keep the yelling at Game 7 of the Stanley Cup to a low voice so I am going to sleep!

Back In Town!

I can see that Blogger and I need to have a talk...those 6 YES 6 posts I wrote and had scheduled to post clearly did not post. I know Blogger had a tantrum last week, but this is like burning someone else's homework, or their paycheck, or their favorite gossip magazine.

I got back last night from a girls weekend in NYC and a brief stop at the National Stationery Show. Despite the rain, it was a great weekend. Can you have a bad weekend when it involves shoes, handbags and champagne cocktails? I know, I don't think it is possible either.

But I am back to reality and off to search for my missing posts and figure out what Grove Gal E wants to do as this week's Facebook deal. If you have some suggestions, leave a comment here or on our Facebook page and if we pick your product, you might get a little happy in the mail!

I am also putting this in writing so I can hold myself accountable...I will run 105 miles a month..in addition to Crossfit. I am pretty sure it is the only way to keep up with Mini K and Baby C!