Author: Big Mama

Well, four things:

1. Caroline went with me yesterday and we relocated the tadpoles/baby frogs to the creek by our house. I agreed to let her keep one and she has big plans to set up a whole terrarium type thing. But I’ll take one frog in a terrarium over five hundred roaming free in our backyard.

2. I’m going to be in College Station this weekend and will be signing books at the LifeWay store on Harvey Road at 11 a.m. on Saturday morning, May 9th. I would love to see you there. Best of all, the book will be on sale for just $10.39.

3. Speaking of Nobody’s Cuter Than You, it’s still in stock right now on Amazon but I can’t guarantee that will last for long. So if you’re thinking about getting a copy for yourself or one of your friends or maybe as a gift for your favorite graduate, you may want to go ahead and do it sooner rather than later. You can find it here.

4. At some point I will compile yesterday’s comments into a handy list of book recommendations for summer. Stay tuned.

Okay, now for some cute things I found this week:

1. long form v-neck

I tried this on in Anthropologie about two months ago and it is so soft and fits so great. But I decided to wait for it to go on sale and today is that day. It’s been marked down to $29.95 and is the perfect length to wear with leggings.

And I know that maybe it’s too hot to think about long sleeves, but we’ll be glad to have it next fall.

Updated to add that Anthropologie is offering 20% off everything today with the code XOXO at purchase.

2. y-necklace

This is a great, simple accessory to wear with all manner of outfits all summer long.

3. la marina embroidered mexican blouse

Last week I featured a sleeveless Mexican style embroidered top. I ordered that one and they also sent me one in this style and I may like it even better. It’s super soft and so pretty. A great thing to throw on with shorts.

4. bobeau ruched waist maxi skirt

This maxi skirt comes in a ton of colors and is on sale for $26.40 plus free shipping and free returns at Nordstrom.

5. ikat print dress

I’ve been on the lookout for a pretty dress and this one definitely qualifies. I love all the colors and the style. Perfect to dress up or down.

6. georgia eyelet dress

When I spoke in Ozona a week or so ago, one of the girls had on this dress and I can’t even tell you how darling it is on. I kept looking at it all night and was delighted to see it at Anthropologie.

7. who, what, waikiki dress

I think this would be the perfect swimsuit coverup.

8. tencel jogger shorts

I ran in Gap yesterday on a whim because I had a few minutes to kill before I picked Caroline up from school and I saw these shorts. I’m not sure what made me try them on because they have an elastic waistband and, also, pockets. Two things I try to avoid in shorts.

But I grabbed them as I walked in the dressing room and I think I love them. They are super soft, a great length and can be dressed up or down. Plus, all full price items at Gap are 30% off with code WARM at checkout.

However, you will never see me tuck something into them. EVER.

9. gap v-neck linen tee

This is another thing that caught my eye. These linen tees are the perfect fit and actually look great with the shorts featured above. They come in a ton of great colors and are $29.99 but 30% off with code WARM or 40% off with code SUMMERFUN if you have a Gap card.

10. fit and flare printed dress

Yet, one more thing from Gap. I don’t need a dress like this, but if you’re looking for a great casual dress that is easy to throw on with a pair of sandals, this one is perfect. It comes in a few different patterns and colors and I tried it on and will tell you to size down in it which is always a bonus. There are limited sizes left online but my store had plenty actually in stock. It’s $69.95 but 30% off with code WARM or 40% off with code SUMMERFUN if you have a Gap card.

That’s it for today.

Have a great Friday.

So I have a bad habit of pretty much not reading books during the school year. I get busy with other things and end up watching T.V. at night or looking at things I’m never going to cook on Pinterest or looking at photos of my high school friends’ kids going to prom on Facebook.

Please stay tuned for my informative, helpful tips on proper time management skills.

When I flew to Birmingham last Saturday morning, I grabbed one of the books that’s been sitting unread on my nightstand for the last six months or so because I do enjoy reading books when I’m on a plane or sitting in an airport. I chose The Rosie Project, which was a romantic comedy. I don’t know that I loved it as much as other people who had raved about it, but it was cute and definitely kept my attention during my trip.

But the book that absolutely captivated me like none other recently is The Royal We. It’s a fictional story about an American girl who goes to Oxford and falls in love with the future King of England. And it had me hook, line and sinker. It has also made me believe that I understand the inner workings of the British monarchy which is a lot to ask of a complete work of fiction.

And next up is All the Light We Cannot See, but I’m doubtful I’ll get to it before summer vacation begins in a few weeks. Plus, I ordered Life After Life by Kate Atkinson today because I saw a few people talking about her new book coming out and I’ve never read any of her books so I figured I’d give it a whirl.

Anyway, the point is last summer you all helped me come up with a great reading list. You can find it here. And I would love to know your suggestions for this summer.

I’m looking for books that weren’t on last year’s list and lean heavily in the great beach read category. In other words, probably best to save your War and Peace recommendations for another blog.

I got home late last night at almost midnight. Gulley made the late night run to the airport to pick me up because nobody’s cuter than her and she shares my tendency to be a night owl.

When I walked through my front door I could have cried with joy over being home and felt like I barely had the energy to wash the airport off me, but then I climbed into bed and spent the rest of the night tossing and turning and generally not sleeping. I don’t know if it’s just me but I have this thing where I can’t really turn my brain off when I’m exhausted which typically leads to more exhaustion. It always works out so well for me.

And when P woke me up Tuesday morning, I basically managed to get out of bed by promising myself that I’d go right back to sleep as soon as I got Caroline off to school. Alas, that didn’t happen because my mind was still on overdrive with the laundry that needed to be done and the floors that needed to be swept and the mail that needed to be sorted. Even though I’d only been gone for two days it felt much longer and I guess that’s because I traveled last week too and there were just a lot of things that went undone that were driving me crazy.

I spent the day doing laundry and making lists and answering emails and making a monumental trip to the mail store to ship assorted packages. Then I dropped off some boxes at Goodwill, picked up a Route 44 drink from Sonic (water with lime because I’m trying to drink more water and the Sonic ice helps immensely) and then ran by Target because Caroline needs a new swimsuit. All of these errands were super productive with the exception being the swimsuit search because I am apparently Captain Ahab and the swimsuit is Moby Dick in that it’s elusive and mysterious and may be the death of me.

But the biggest news is something that developed while I was away.

I knew P and Caroline had plans to go the ranch on Saturday after I left town, but nothing prepared me for what she told me when I called home to check on them late Saturday night.

Me: “Did you have a great day? How was the ranch?”

Caroline: “Yes! We had a great time! Dad let me bring home 500 tadpoles!”

500 tadpoles is significantly more than the number of tadpoles I am equipped to handle, which is zero.

Because if my understanding of biology and nature is correct, then 500 tadpoles mean our backyard is about to look like ancient day Egypt in the days of Moses and Pharaoh.

Which means I’ll have to move.

But Caroline wanted to show me her new “pets” first thing Tuesday morning and there they were swimming around in what used to be a container I used for food storage but may now cause me to reject all plastic storage apparatuses for all time.

(I put this picture on Instagram earlier and someone commented that they thought it was meat I had marinating for dinner and that’s enough to make me never want to cook again.)

Those are all our new tadpole friends. You will notice that some of them, much like Bruce Jenner, have begun to transition into something else. I may have even seen what I believe to be tiny hops but I can’t talk about that any further or FOR SALE SIGN IN MY FRONT YARD.

In what is either a disgusting or fortuitous turn of events, some of them appear to be cannibalizing their fellow tadpole/frog friends so it seems that our numbers are diminishing. However, let’s not pretend like the answer to how many frogs is too many in your backyard isn’t ONE.

Caroline said she’s trying to sell some of them to her classmates and I can only assume that business proposition is making me extremely popular among my fellow mothers. But she hasn’t had many takers. I think she said about three people are interested. Which leaves us at about 400 tadpoles that are going to need to be relocated to a neighborhood that isn’t my backyard.

So the rest of my week will be spent monitoring the real live biology lab happening on our back porch and convincing her that if you love something, you need to set it free.

And if it doesn’t come back, it wasn’t really yours to begin with.

Or because your mother found a creek located far, far away.

Just a reminder that Amazon finally has Nobody’s Cuter Than You back in stock and you can still get a copy in time for Mother’s Day if you order today. Just click here.

Where were you yesterday? Why didn’t you post?

Oh wait. I’m the one who didn’t write anything.

And I’m currently sitting in the Houston airport at 9:04 p.m. Monday night trying not think about how I could almost just drive home in the time I’ll spend waiting for this flight.

The truth is I had a great time in Birmingham, but I have spent three of the last seven nights not in my own bed and that is not really my optimal situation because I love my bed and I love my people. I’m a big fan of being home. Like Dorothy. If only I could click my heels three times right now. For that matter, how much would I love a pair of red, glittery shoes?

Anyway, I spent a pretty quiet night at home on Friday with P and Caroline before I woke up on Saturday morning to fly to Alabama. Bops picked me up because he is the best at the early morning airport runs since he gets up at an hour that most people still consider the middle of the night.

I got to the airport and had a moment of panic because there wasn’t a 10:00 a.m. flight to Houston on the departure board and I just knew I had a 10:00 a.m. flight to Houston where I would catch my connection to Birmingham. This is because I lack something people refer to as ATTENTION TO DETAIL. I was actually flying through Dallas and so it turned out to be okay.

The best part was that Duchess Kate had the foresight to deliver her baby girl earlier that morning in London so I had PLENTY of important news coverage to keep up on while I waited in the airport. And it was while I sat in Houston eating a truly awful salad that I watched a live feed on my phone of them walking out of the hospital with the new princess.

Can we just take a minute to reflect on what Kate looked like only ten hours after giving birth?

It was significantly different than how I looked ten hours after giving birth. By which I mean she didn’t look like a swollen alien. Of course she probably also didn’t eat a McGriddle breakfast sandwich from McDonald’s as her first post-childbirth meal.

All I know is if someone had handed me a pair of pantyhose ten hours after pushing a baby out of my hoo-ha, I would have maybe suggested they shove them somewhere inappropriate. But that is why I am a mere peasant and Kate is a duchess.

But I couldn’t be happier that there is a new princess if for no other reason than it ensures years after getting to see what she wears. No offense to Prince George because he is adorable, but there are only so many ways you can wear a blue cardigan and knee socks, while there are infinite possibilities for dresses and bows.

Once I arrived in Birmingham, Sophie picked me up at the airport and we stopped at her house for just a bit before we headed to our book signing at Books-A-Million. (I initially typed that as “book singing” to which I can only say YOU WISH.) However, there was no singing, but lots of signing and it was so fun to meet everyone who came out. Thank you for spending part of your Saturday night with us.

Afterward we went to a seafood restaurant where, oddly enough, we agreed that we had the wedge salad of our life. I am not normally one to give much thought to a salad of any kind, but this one was truly exceptional with the perfect ratio of lettuce, homemade dressing, ripe tomatoes, bacon and parmesan cheese. I’ve thought about it several times since which is remarkable since I tend to only remember things like mac and cheese with any lingering affection.

On Sunday I spoke at a Mother’s Day Brunch and then Sophie and I stopped at the grocery store and bought this most delightful array of cheese and crackers and dips to eat later that night in lieu of a real dinner. This is one of our favorite things to do and I have to admit we were so overzealous in our various cracker purchases that we didn’t even open three of the boxes we bought. And I regret that one box we did open proved to be a bad option because they were gluten-free crackers that were desperately in need of some gluten.

Later on that night we piled into Sophie’s guest bedroom with her dog, Hazel, and watched Mad Men. It was one of those episodes that makes me so sad this show is about to come to an end, especially this particular scene which the internet has been kind enough to turn into a gif.

and this one of her walking into the office on her first day at McCann.

God bless the internet.

Earlier today – by which I mean Monday if memory serves – I got to visit the school were Sophie works and was so delighted by the sheer number of students who manage to spend as much time in her office discussing all manner of issues and thoughts. It was so fun to be around that many high school students and I have to say the girls really inspired me in the way of shoes. There was a fabulous array.

And now I’m on a plane that’s about to take off. I bought wi-fi because HELLO 2015 but just realized my computer battery is about to die and so while technology has come a long way, my ability to plan ahead has not. So I will sign off now by wishing you all a happy tomorrow.

Or today.

Or whatever.

I’ve lost track.

And now I’m going to hit publish without proof-reading or editing. Apologies in advance for whatever I’m sure is wrong on this post.

Really quick on a book related note, Nobody’s Cuter Than You is FINALLY back in stock on Amazon, but you better order quick because it hasn’t been lasting long there. You can find it here. And it’s also back in stock on Lifeway and ON SALE for just $10.39. You can find it here. Thanks for all your support and everything. It means so much to me.

This week has been so busy that I didn’t even remember that it was time for Fashion Friday until late Thursday afternoon when Caroline said something about the weekend and I realized the weekend was almost here.

I got home from Ozona on Thursday and I have to say I loved every minute of it. I rode up there with a couple of friends and west Texas couldn’t be prettier right now because everything is so green. We stopped for lunch at a great little place in Sonora called Gigi’s Cafe and then made our way to Ozona where I met so many sweet women and had the best time. I even met Kelly who won a pair of Frye boots from my blog back when The Antelope In The Living Room came out and she had me sign them.

(I also had to ask about her green dress because I adore it, but sadly it’s Old Navy from a few years ago and WHY DIDN’T I SEE IT THEN?)

And at one point I walked out of the Ozona Civic Center and realized the Ozona High football field was right across the street. They’re the Ozona Lions and tell me this doesn’t look like something right out of Friday Night Lights.

I felt right at home. And now I’m just sad I didn’t think to get myself an Ozona Lions football t-shirt while I was there.

On Saturday I fly to Birmingham for a book signing at the Brookwood Books-A-Million at 6:00 p.m., a brunch event on Sunday and some time with Sophie. I’m looking forward to all those things and would love to see you if you happen to be in the vicinity.

Anyway, here are some cute things I found when I realized it was almost Friday:

1. anything pho you tank

I think this is so pretty and would look great with white jeans or shorts or underneath a jacket for the office.

2. cut out slug tee

I saw this in Anthropologie a week or so ago and thought it was so cute. I love that it’s basically just a t-shirt but with a little extra cut out detail on the sleeves. Personally, I like it best in the green color because I’m a big fan of green these days, but it comes in several great colors if you’re like Kermit and believe it’s not easy being green.

3. road trip memory lane top

Perfect to throw on with shorts or jeans for summer.

4. smocked peasant top

This is another Anthropologie top and I’d seen it online a couple of times, but it’s much cuter in person.

5. la marbrisa embroidered mexican style blouse

I’ve been looking at Mexican style embroidered tops because my old one has seen better days. This site has a bunch of cute options and styles, but I believe I’ve mentioned that I’m into green right now.

6. old navy striped linen blend tunic

I bought this tunic about a month ago on a whim because I thought it was cute. But I’ve already worn it so many times since then and may need to look into getting it in another color.

7. 1969 slim denim shorts

I love this gray version of basic denim shorts.

8. steve madden agathist ankle strap sandal

I’ve been looking for a pair of gold sandals and I think these might be the ones. It’s like accepting that the big toe can stand alone has totally changed my sandal options.

9. free falling shirttail v-neck tee

I love Free People t-shirts because they are so soft and look great with just about anything. This one is currently 25% off and comes in several great colors.

10. j.crew cuffed denim shorts

Just in case you need a basic pair of denim shorts, these from J.Crew seem promising.

That’s it for today.

Have a good Friday.

Today is my little sister’s fortieth birthday. And I have to tell you nothing makes you realize time is marching on more than your baby sister turning forty.

I was not quite four when she was born and I loved her from the start.

We’ve played dolls, shared secrets, climbed in bed together when one of us was scared, fought like cats and dogs, cried over hurt feelings, laughed until our sides hurt, and rocked each other’s babies.

And we’ve survived some bad hairstyles.

Sometimes you’re fortunate enough to have one of your best friends born right into your family. And I’m glad that happened to me forty years ago today.

Happy Birthday, Amy! Love you so much.