Getaway House is finally finished after around nine months of working on it from start to finish! But the color we chose for the exterior has been even longer in the making.
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Every year around this time, as the light starts to flicker differently in the evening sun and the weather starts to cool off, I like to make some sort of change.
The change is usually towards the house: maybe rearrange a room (or two) or hang a new piece of art. But this year, I decided to make a change to myself in the form of a much needed haircut. I haven’t had it cut since January and more than a few people have let me know it was time to trim it up. So that’s just what I did.
And I love how much lighter it feels, like a big weight has literally been lifted off my head. Sometimes a little change, in any form, can help ring in the new season and give you the sense of renewal you’ve been needing. If you’re curious what it looks like now, click here.
The other day PJ, Anna and I were walking to pick the boys up from school when it suddenly hit me: pretty soon, it’ll just be me and PJ picking everyone up. Anna will be joining her boys in school in just a few weeks.
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Last night, the night before Matt and Beau packed everything up and headed back to New Orleans for a few weeks, we ordered pad Thai takeout and grabbed a couple bottles of wine and we all sat down for one last dinner to wrap up the summer.
The last few months have been filled with many late night conversations and yummy food, almost always courtesy of their cooking, thankfully. We know it’s only for a few weeks, but we all agreed on how much we’ll miss each other while they’re gone. Of course we’ll still talk every day, but knowing they’re not just right down the road is somewhat of a bummer, even if it’s only temporary. Then again, distance does make the heart grow fonder. Is that how the saying goes?
It’s funny how we went from seeing them every few months over the last several years to seeing them every other day now, and it’s even funnier how quickly it began to feel normal.
I think that’s how you know who your true best friends are.
Thoughts on being sick, a few changes around the house, and a true sense of love and friendship.
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This song has been ours for the last 12 years.
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While we were at the beach a few months ago, they had a puzzle at the Airbnb we were staying at, and suddenly, we were hooked.
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This morning I walked the boys to school, and instead of dropping them off at the door like I usually do, I walked in with them hand in hand.
The school hosted a kindergarten breakfast for parents to attend and have lunch with their kids. Little events like these are the things I used to dream about when I thought about being a parent. I live for them. PJ stayed back at home since Anna wasn’t awake yet.
I got to have breakfast with both our boys on their little tables in their little cafeteria surrounded by all their little friends. I spoke with all of their teachers (new and old!) and said hi to their classmates. The principal took our photo with our mouths full of waffles and muffins. It was a very sweet half hour with my boys.
After breakfast, I walked them to their classrooms and got to see their teeny tiny desks. I know I always loved it so much when my mom got to come to my classroom for whatever reason growing up, which didn’t happen very often because she worked (multiple jobs) and we lived 45 minutes from school, so I know they were so excited to show me around.
I am doing my best to soak up these little every day moments that, when put together, add up to what makes our life our life. It was a wonderful start to an otherwise rainy and dreary weekend.
Have a great weekend!
I was with the kids at the park the other evening watching as they slid down slides and climbed the monkey bars, when I couldn’t help but overhear an exchange from a fellow father. His response to his daughter stopped me in my tracks.
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Last month, I was honored to be invited to sit in on a briefing call for USA for UNHCR, along with others who work alongside them. It was extremely informing, and I found myself taking in as much as I could. Below, here are nine things I learned during the call about the current state of the worldwide humanitarian crisis:
At the end of 2021, 89.3 million people were forced to flee their homes. Today, that number is more than 100 million.
There are currently 21.3 million refugees under UNHCR’s mandate, with 5.8 million of them being Palestinian refugees under UNRWA’s mandate.
Right now UNHCR is involved in and provides aid to 40 active emergencies.
This is not a refugee crisis. It is a political will crisis. It’s not refugees who are causing these problems. It is the lack of political will that is causing the greatest amount of human suffering. World leaders are able to solve this crisis When governments share responsibility and everyone comes together, it is manageable. When there is the political will, it can be addressed in a way that is more humane and responsible.
These are the counties that host the most refugees:
Turkey
Colombia
Uganda
Pakistan
Germany
83% of all refugees are coming from just 10 countries. The largest numbers are from Syria and Ukraine with 7 million.
Lower income countries are the ones who are mainly hosting. Poorer countries are showing the most solidarity and hospitality, even when they themselves are suffering greatly. It’s only through responsibility sharing that we can address the refugee criss around the world.
The worsening climate crisis is resulting in extreme weather events that force people into displacement in their own countries
In 2021 alone, 23 million people were displaced within their own countries by extreme weather events like floods, storms and droughts. 85% forced to flee are already living in places that are on the front lines of the global crisis.
If you would like to learn more, or are able to give any amount you can, please click here to make a life-saving donation to USA for UNHCR. Thank you so much for reading.
(Above photo via USA for UNHCR’s Instagram)
We have loved working with Ralph Lauren over the last two years, and have loved their timeless style even longer.
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Over on Instagram the other day, we posted a few stories and in them I was wearing these shorts from Vuori. They’re called the Kore Short and they’re technically athleisure but we also wear them as swimming trunks because they’re so comfortable and have a built in net for support.
Click here to see them and the rest of the colors they have. We have them in Chestnut.
Best part? You’ll get 20% off your first order!
Everything is about to change.
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Happy Friday from the beach!
We’re in Florida for a few days to wrap things up on the beach cottage before the summer ends and school starts again. We didn’t get it finished in time for us to actually stay in it this summer, but the amount of work PJ has accomplished in just two months, largely by working on it by himself, is astounding. So much progress has happened in such a short time that it already looks like such a different house. In fact, he’s over there right now installing the rest of the floors while I watch the kids with PJ’s mom, sister, and grandma. I think I will be joining him tomorrow to start painting the kitchen. The cabinets and countertops are already installed, so I can’t wait to see the walls white!!
Meanwhile, school starts next week, which means summer is officially coming to an end!! I am sharing my feeling about it in tonight’s The Weekender newsletter. You can sign up to receive emails from us in the form below.
Lastly, what’s for dinner? PJ’s mom is making a chicken Alfredo for everyone tonight. A night where I don’t have to cook? Sign me up! So grateful for his family being here with us and helping to watch the kids. I love when we can all get together in any capacity, but everyone together at the beach is even sweeter.
Have a wonderful weekend, friends. xoxo
A few months back, we had a little photoshoot out at the farm.
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A few months back, Nancy Meyers posted a photo of her den with a vase filled with beautiful tulips and it completely stopped me in my tracks. How stunning is this entire room?
source: nancy meyers’s ig
I’m sure they are real and expensive and they look so perfect just sitting there in her drool-worthy den. Color me inspired! I had been wanting something for the dresser in our bedroom, just a little something to make it look finished. We have a lamp and some books, but it needed some greenery, as every room does. The only problem is our room is so dark and never gets direct sunlight, so real plants aren’t really an option in there.
After a quick search on Amazon, I found these fake tulips for under $20 and I am in love. Don’t they look so real? I through them in a vase we already had while PJ put a little water in it and separated and bent the tulips to make them look even more real (a trick he taught me!).
So there you have it! The cheapest, best looking fake tulips out there.
The Property Lovers is a daily blog by PJ and Thomas about our adventures as husbands and dads living in our small hometown, life in our 100 year old Craftsman, and fixing up our farm. Welcome!
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