A Riot is the Language of the Unheard

CNN Reporter Arrested on Live TV

What is going on in Minneapolis?!

A Cozy & Timeless 1929 Farmhouse

We’ve seen the photo of this farmhouse’s warm and inviting living room on Pinterest a million times over the years, and chances are you have, too. But even after all these years, we’ve never been able to get this room and house out of our heads for a couple of reasons.

• We love how they embrace warmer colors to create cozy, lived-in rooms, proving not every wall has to be white in order to look good.

• With all the bookshelves and antique rugs, it looks like a familiar place where everyone is welcomed and encouraged to sit down and relax with a warm cup of coffee and a good book by the fire.

• It appears the owners have updated the house for modern living while still maintaining the original charm that old houses are known for. A win-win!

You can see the full tour and all the photos on ThisOldHouse.com.

(photos by John Gruen)

Hair Inspiration

Little sis taking some tight top bun inspiration from J. Lo on the Today Show the other morning made us laugh so hard. A true style icon (talking about sis, of course 💅🏼).

In the Kitchen with Little Sis

Sister friend scooted her high chair all the way from the dining room right up to the island to get a first row seat as we plated her dinner before climbing up by herself and settling in. She turned 2 in January and is strong, independent, and (in her mind) doesn’t need anyone to help her with pretty much anything. She makes us laugh daily and brings so much joy to this house full of boys.

Sis, what are we going to do with you? xx

Happy Birthday PJ!!!

On this day, 34 years ago, the most beautiful man (inside and out) was born and started making everyone’s life he came in contact with a little bit better. He’s the hardest working man I know, and I’m not sure where I (or the kiddos) would be without him.

Happy Birthday, PJ McKay. I love you so much ❤️.

Heading Into the Weekend with a Cozy, Rainy Friday at Home

What are you up to this weekend?

We don’t have many plans besides working on the cottage and maybe driving out to the land on Sunday, weather permitting. Speaking of weather, it’s been raining on and off all day, with dark, cloudy skies, and at 11a this morning it looked like it was 8p at night. It’s actually been raining every day this week, but something about it being Friday and the start of the weekend made the cozy, rainy weather today feel just right. It’s days like these where there’s no place we’d rather be than safe and sound at home.

PJ got an early start on dinner (nachos!) while the kiddos practiced using little scissors for the first time that one of you sent them! We actually received a bunch of packages this week at the PO Box (they were all for the kiddos!) and we can’t thank you enough for being so kind to them. The care and love you show them, without knowing what their names are or even what they look like, shows us how kind the world can be and how grateful we are to have you here with us.

This week’s YouTube video is a little departure from the vlogs we’ve been filming over the last few months. We decided to switch things up and record a sit-down video where we discuss a myriad of topics, like the next house we want to buy (it’s not in TN!), selling one of our cars (and getting a family friendlier one), and update on the land and cottage, and what how we’ve been feeling about life the last two months in quarantine. We had fun making it, and we might start doing it once a month!!

Besides that, here are a few things on our radar heading into the weekend:

• Have you seen Pixar’s new short (part of their SparkShorts series of short films) called “Out” that premiered on Disney+ this weekend? It’s SO cute, and features their first openly gay lead in a Disney film. The kiddos watched it and loved it (though they didn’t grasp the gravity of it) and we did, too.

• Lady Gaga’s new single Rain on Me, with Ariana Grande, came out today, and OMG it is everything we could have ever hoped for and more from two of our actual favorite singers ever. Perfect way to start the weekend.

• Really want to make this 15 minute one pan gnocchi for dinner one night. Can’t remember the last time we even had gnocchi, but it always sounds like a good idea, doesn’t it?

• Remember when we talked about loving “Moonstruck” and saying Cher deserved her Oscar win? Well apparently it’s one of the worst Oscar wins ever. Though we think she was wonderful in it, we do see a couple of others that we agree with on the list.

That’s all for now. We’re going to finish up dinner, and maybe go for a drive. We hope you have a cozy weekend, friends! Stay safe!! xx

P&T

Moonstruck

The other night in bed, we had our popcorn and wine and we were browsing through movies and decided to watch something neither of us had ever seen. We remember reading this post on Buzzfeed a month ago where they mentioned the movie Moonstruck (a film we’ve always wanted to see) so we settled on that, and it was actually so cute!!

Have you ever seen it? Cher won an Oscar for her role as Loretta Castorini and we can totally see why. She’s so charming. For the life of us she reminds us so much of Thomas’ mom in the late 80’s/early 90’s with the big black hair and over-sized clothes.

Can you see it?

If you’re looking to distract yourself and switch off for a while, this movie is basically the equivalent of eating your favorite comfort food while wearing the coziest sweatshirt and eating the biggest bowl of soup. You can stream it on Amazon Prime. Hope you enjoy it as much as we did!

P&T

(image via here.)

Lovers or Friends?

We came across this photograph from the summer of 1995 that Thomas’ mom took during a trip to NYC. She didn’t know the guys in the photo, and it was just one of many she took that day, but it leaves us with so many questions.

Wonder if the two guys are lovers or just friends who are comfortable enough with themselves to be affectionate in public? Given the time period, we’re guessing they’re just good friends, but did they know their photo was being taken? Wonder who they are and what they’re up to today and if they’re still in each other’s lives? Soooooo many questions.

Letting The Kiddos Dress Themselves

Lately, we’ve been letting the boys pick out their own clothes and they’ve been so into it, especially older brother. The sense of pride and independence they feel when choosing what to wear, and seeing the smiles on their faces when they pick something they love, far outweighs any kind of fashion faux pas they may be committing (like pairing the green dinosaur shirt and the teal flower shorts).

Older brother likes to switch out his clothes multiple times a day (we’re reminding him he can’t keep doing that!), and this was his black on black ensemble he picked out for our walk that evening. He kept telling us how handsome and cute he looked in it and our hearts melted a little every time he said it. We love how much he loves himself and hope he never loses that.

At an age when most decisions and choices are made for them, it feels right to let them have this one for themselves. Happy Monday, friends xx.

Fancy Frozen Pizza

When it’s been one of those days and we don’t feel like cooking, we pop a frozen pizza in the oven and call it a night. But lately, to spice things up (any excuse for a little extra happiness these days, right?), we mince some garlic and put it in a bowl with melted butter. We spread the garlic butter over the crusts and then bake the pizza at the recommended temperature and time. When they come out, they taste so much better and the garlicy buttery crust completely elevates the pizza.

We may never eat frozen pizza the same way again.

P&T

A Cozy Fall Evening in the Beginning of May

Last night we all walked over to Thomas’ sister and her girlfriend’s house to meet them and his mom for a fire and some s’mores (while keeping a distance of 6 feet or more). We wore sweatshirts and covered up with blankets. On May 11th. Normal? No. Welcomed? Absolutely.

It felt like fall. It was cold and crisp and the smell of the marshmallows roasting over the fire made us want to light some kind of Bath & Body Works candle. There were apparently record low temperatures all over the Northeast U.S. this weekend, and Saturday morning, May 9th, was Nashville’s coldest morning in May since they started keeping records in 1871, according to Accuweather.com. How crazy is that? 2020 just (sadly) keeps us guessing every week.

Hope you had a cozy night friends xx.

P&T