mélange

Here are some of my favourite reads from the week, to kick off your weekend right! My mom's arriving late tonight and staying through Sunday. I can't wait to have the extra help around the house and her company. What are your weekend plans? Hope it involves enjoying the weather! xo

• after the annoying guilt-ridden post pleading with Moms to never use their iPhone's in front of their children that recently circulated the Interwebs, this post defending and validating moms using technology and having an online presence was a JOY to read, and so realistic for our day.
• This week it seems mental illness and the Church has been a hot topic. Famously, megachurch pastor Rick Warren lost his son to depression, and locally our denomination lost the wife of a fellow church planter. After our tears are dried (which will take a very long time), it's important the church evaluates how we approach mental illness and depression. Ed Stetzer has some brilliant insights I support in the wake of these losses.
• Gender reveal parties, have you heard of 'em? It's 2013, of course you have. I've been to one and it was super fun, though the couple already knew the sex (only the guests didn't) so it wasn't as much a surprise as this party and these pictures, which have me enraptured. I can't get over their faces! Sidenote: I could never do it! I need time to process the gender, so I'd be most comfortable doing that quietly with Brad before telling the world. But it does look fun :)

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• Oli is in a bit of a whiny stage. Teething, probably, or his nagging cold. But either way, this blog almost made me pee my pants in laughter. And also that awesome feeling that someone else ACTUALLY GETS IT (everything you're experiencing).
• Make your own chips? I'm in! I already make my own tortilla chips (the best with guacamole!) but for every day chips, I love this idea of using root vegetables.
• Shrimp and grits cocktail!? Oh my. I need to make this, minus the cheese.

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• Why is Maggie Smith so fabulous? Let us count the ways. But I love this article's take on how she wasn't/isn't afraid to let herself age. I love that spicy Dowager Countess.
• This post got a ton of hits but not as many comments as I was hoping for. See, I don't just want you to know what my kids call our adults friends, I want to know what YOUR kids call other adults. Don't just read, let me know!
• I'm totally copying this entire project, from the chicken wire to the clothes pins to ordering my Instagram prints from Origrami. AshleyAnn, you never steer me wrong.

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