photo ThePinkClutch-NAV-Home.png photo ThePinkClutch-NAV-About.png photo ThePinkClutch-NAV-Projects.png photo ThePinkClutch-NAV-Advertise.png photo ThePinkClutch-NAV-Contact.png

5.31.2012

The summer list ...

Sorry for the lack of posts ... I am trying to settle in to my summer routine.  Lawyer was home for a total of FOUR days so I have tried to be present for him as well.  And last, but surely not least, our friends are leaving tomorrow for New Jersey and I have dropped other things any time any one of our group says gather in the hopes of treasuring all the time that can be had with them before they start their new life outside of Georgia.  

 Summer ... wow!  It's a great time but surely takes a week or two to settle in to a new routine!!  I am hopeful that next week will be smoother and we will all settle in nicely to the new schedule.   HSM is taking Driver's Ed  next week and other than swim team practice and a home swim meet we should have a pretty easy week.  Now that I have put it in print the whole week will blow up!!!  


Have you been to Target to buy the adorable Champion running shorts for girls yet??  They are so cute and we have already worn them more than I ever thought possible. If MHM is not clad in a Speedo for swim practice she is sporting a pair of running shorts and a solid T shirt!!  She looks adorable and is super comfortable.  If I only looked as cute as she does I would be wearing the exact same thing!!

I am toying with the idea of a Summer Bucket List ... although I am not a fan of the title. I will get back to you when I decide what to call it and how to make one.  I know I want to do some things we have never done and then there are things we do each year!  So far on my list ... an overnight trip to Tennessee, a visit to the Botanical Gardens, a camping trip with Daddy (sans moi!!),  weekly trips to the library,  banana splits from Bruesters on bring your own banana Thursdays, picnics at the pool for dinner ... the list is growing and probably will be an ongoing list of things we decide to do.  Since last summer was eaten up by the "non move" I want to make this one we will truly enjoy!!!

What should I add to my list ??  

xo,
MPM

5.29.2012

The gift of help ...


I have been really tired lately.  The truth is I was beyond tired and I realized recently I did not think it would ever end.  I have been the kind of tired that comes along when you do too much.  Way too much.  Take on too much, are handed too much ... it doesn't really matter.  It is the same exhaustion and I had plain hit the wall!

Ok ... crashed into it!

So ... since Lawyer's travel schedule will not be slowing down ANYTIME soon I needed a new plan.  

I made one.  I hired a precious sitter for a few days a week and I hired a cleaning service.  And they all started today ... Hallelujah chorus.  I heard the angels singing.  

I am sure the cleaning ladies thought I was crazy.  I must have thanked them for coming five times.  Lawyer paid them extra for staying way longer than I am sure they thought they would.  I honestly would not be surprised if they showed up to work again tomorrow.  I was REALLY happy to see them!!!  My house shines!!  And I could not be happier!!!  It is official ... Tuesday is my new favorite day.  

The precious sitter arrived just about the same time.  Seriously between her cute smile and the ladies cleaning who spoke very little, if no, English I was so giddy I almost did a dance.  Ok ... I did a huge dance in my car as I was driving away with no one, and very little responsibility.  

It was the most amazing feeling.  And I found the solution to my problem ... I needed some help!  A lot of it actually.  

And I am incredibly grateful for it!!

xo,
MPM 

5.27.2012

It's summer time!!!


Yes, it is school is out here in Georgia and it is officially summer time!!!

The pool, lazy mornings, picnics, lemonade, watermelon, barbeques, flip flops every day, sprinklers, ice cream truck ...

It's here!!!


I rushed around for two solid days after returning from New York to prepare for summer.  I made 2 trips to Target, 3 trips to the grocery store, 1 trip to Old Navy and numerous lists!!

I have gathered ...
sunscreen (2 kinds this year, thanks Grove Gal!!)
2 pairs of flip flops for all
new goggles for all
2 gallon container of vanilla ice cream (WPM can't eat anything from the ice cream truck!)
Large container of 
t shirts and summer shorts for all (Target has the cutest shorts for girls!!)
new bathing suits for the boys
snacks for the first few weeks
dinner ingredients for the grill
4 pairs of Callahan shorts for me (thanks Lilly for finding the last 2 pairs)


I have hired a new sitter for the summer ... our precious sitter is moving at the end of June to Clemson and we are more than sad to lose her!!!  Here's hoping the new girl works out as well as the last two!!!  Finding a replacement for Mary Poppins two years ago has been really hard!  How do you replace family???  Sigh!!!

My favorite part of the beginning of summer is always the same ... and the kids giggle every year when we do it.  When they come home from school on the last day I make them take off their gross, nasty tennis shoes they have basically worn every day for the school year and we throw them in the trash!!  They are usually almost too small, always smelly and for sure always covered in orange Georgia clay.  They throw them away and I hand them 2 pairs of flip flops for the summer.  Other than sport camps they wear these almost every. single. day.  At the end of the summer we take those cheap flip flops and do the same thing ... trash them in exchange for new school tennis shoes!!  So fun!!!




Happy Summer to you!!!

xo,
MPM

(all photos courtesy of my Pinterest account!!)

5.24.2012

Last day of school craziness!!!

It's official ... it is the very last day of school!!  Those babies get out at 12:20 and my clock is ticking!!!  So far the day has not been as smooth as I would like, however I am sure it will be turning around any minute now!!

1.  First up ... when the kids came down for breakfast WPM looked at his adorable teacher gifts and said the following.  "Wow, a flower pencil cup full of personalized pencils.  I like the tag.  'Thank you for being just WRITE this year and helping me GROW.'  Pretty creative Mom.  Dad could have done better."  

And he will be looking for a new home come 12:30 today.  Apparently Lawyer has been buying secret teacher gifts for years and wrapping them with more than cello, multi colors of wraphia and making tags that are way more creative then mine.  Who knew?  Next year I will let him handle it so WPM won't be disappointed.

2.  Drove the freshman to school today.  Stopped at a traffic light and answered a text.  Proceeded to dump an ENTIRE cup of hot coffee in my lap before the light turned green.  HSM's response ... "They are right ... you shouldn't drive and text."

He too will be looking for a new residence!

3.  Came home to finish up the gifts for the front office girls.  Made a cup of Quaker Cherry Pistashio oatmeal. Followed the directions perfectly.  It scorched and now the house smells rank!!

Patio door is now open and candles are lit. 

It WILL get better!!  I promise you!  

xo,
MPM

Update ... the day did get a whole lot better, but I knew it would.  I trashed the oatmeal for a whole grain bagel.  It was not my first choice but I figured I needed more caffeine and a bigger breakfast for the crazy day that was unfolding!


I then headed to Good Will for a drop off and some shopping.  I LOVE THE GOOD WILL!!!  I can not stress that one enough.  And it was the perfect call.  I hit the jackpot.  I promise to post some photos next week.  I am off for wine and apps for our friends that are moving next weekend.  I am hoping for a lot of wine and very few tears this evening!!  


xxoo, mpm

5.23.2012

I heart NYC!!!

An amazing weekend ... the most perfect weather ... great shopping ... fabulous food!  What more does a girl need??  The bestie and I met up with Grove Gal for a girls weekend and a trip to the National Stationery Show.  We flew in on Friday night just in time for dinner and pomegranate margaritas at Rosa Mexicano.  A few margaritas and we ended the night with giggles and big comfy beds!!!

Saturday morning we were up and out just in time to snag some macarons at Laduree before the crowds gathered!


Laduree ... 
The most amazing macarons I have ever tasted.  I bought a box of six and a lovely tin of tea.  I can highly recommend the coconut, salted caramel and pistachio.  To die for!!!


Bel Ami ... Yummy french cafe.  Such a cute place with amazing ambiance!  Strong coffee ... just the way I love it!  



I love to walk the streets ... I could wake and snap photos for hours!!


Bardith Ltd ... the most amazing antique dish store.  So many amazing plates on each row.  


The bestie is coveting these perfect plates displaying her monogram.  A set of two will only set her back $3,000.  No biggie ... 
 



What would a trip to New York be without a stroll through the Lilly Pulitzer Madison Avenue store?
 

I love this cork board full of goodies ... reminds me of my cord board in high school.  
Old school Pinterest!





I am a big fan of these planters.  They were huge .. there are three big boxwood bushes stuffed in there!


Gorgeous door ... I would love to turn my key in that door when I got home!


Walking down Fifth Avenue reminded me of so many movies with one awning after another.  It could have easily been a scene from Sex and the City or Something Borrowed for sure!


I hear this is the best soft ice cream around.  There seems to be a Mister Softee truck around every corner and in front of every truck is a very long line!!


The Plaza ... I hope my next stay will be here!  A New York City icon!!!


 Bergdorf Goodman ... the best department store I have ever set foot in ... the shoe department and the designer galleries are worth every single second!!!


Afternoon tea at Bergdorfs ... I must say this was my favorite part of the entire trip.  I love having tea.  The atmosphere in the dining room is amazing and the food was simply delicious.


I drank every single drop of the tea in my pot.  I almost asked for more ... absolutely delicious!!


That bestie loves having tea just as much as I do!!  xo

A trip to Henri Bendel and dinner at Bar American and Saturday was nothing short of a perfect day!!

Sunday morning included a trip to the National Stationery Show and then off to hit the streets again!!!


Ah ... C Wonder.  I have been lusting after this store and site since it opened in late 2011.  I love every single thing on the site and the website is tiny compared to the fabulousness of the store itself.  

The colors, the green, the jewelry for days.  I could have moved in and stayed for days!!




We were tired after all that shopping at C Wonder and sat down for a yummy brunch of Huevos Rancheros and Bloody Marys.  We devoured an order of  "busted nuts" that were the best nuts I have ever tasted.  I so regret asking them what the spices were on the mix of walnuts, almonds and pepitas.  With the perfect balance of sweet and savory they were simply divine.  
 

Brinkley's in Soho ... great atmosphere and don't forget to order the busted nuts!!!


We walked quite a way hoping the New York Vintage shop was open on Sunday only to find it wasn't.  I don't know who was more upset ... the bestie or her tired feet!!!


We stopped in for warm Dark Chocolate Peanut Butter Chip cookies.  OMG!! I have no words for the deliciousness that exists in this cookie!!!


Walking around the streets of New York in May you will find peonies on every corner.  I could have grabbed them up by the dozens and filled my suitcase for the return trip home.  They were GORGEOUS!!!

Another day of walking and gathering goodies and we were pooped!!  We headed back to our room around 6 and ordered in.  We were snuggled in our pjs and under those big yummy duvets watching tv and eating take out.  The perfect ending to a great weekend!!!

Until next time NYC!!

We definitely need to make our meet ups more than once a year!

xo, 
MPM

5.22.2012

A lovely weekend in NYC!!!

I returned late Monday afternoon from a wonderful weekend in New York City.  Wonderful food, perfect spring weather and tons of walking on the busy streets and this girl is pooped!  I will be back tomorrow with lots of pictures and details!  For today its two ice cream parties and last minute gift gathering for all of our teachers.  I am still in shock that we are down to three days of school ...

Yikes!!!

xo,
MPM

5.17.2012

Southern send off ...

One set of our dear friends is moving to New Jersey in two weeks.  A group of us hosted a true Georgia send off with all the tacky scary details that can be found living in the South.  We decided it was more fun to scary it up than to dress up in our seersucker and sundresses and send her off with Arnold Palmers and pimento cheese sandwiches.  This would be something they would NEVER forget.  


The hostesses ... Kathy, Lee, me and Sporty Spice
What you are missing in this photo ... two pairs of cowboy boots (mine were red), one sketchy pair of heels and one pair of house shoes.  Good times!


Our dear friends ... they were such good sports.  The details in their outfits are the best part for me!!  That hair on her, the shoes, that bra ... I die!!


Clothesline ... they were some real treasures displayed up there!  We had two clotheslines, one with clothes and one garland of crushed up beer cans!


Baby pool full of drinks 


Lawyer was not excited to be wearing a muscle shirt.  He warmed up after a while.  His koozie says ... "According to my wife I am very happy!!" 





Trashy food galore ... here is the peanut shell pot that clearly we used for all kinds of trash!


Jello shots ... I mean, they were pretty good if I do say so.  I did have to research how to make them and during my research I learned how to light one on fire.  Notsomuch!!


June Cleaver, Bev Wilshire and Sporty Spice ... I do love to give all my friends nicknames!


Bev and Ward Cleaver ... his overalls were perfect!!


Really, a party exists in the details .. don't you think??


We did have a blast!!!  Great friends, good music and an amazing slide show!!  The times with these girls is always more fun than it should be ... great friends and great times!!  

 I changed before we left ... had to sneak out to go home and pack for my last minute trip to Florida. 


Notice the purple lace bra in the left hand corner.  Oh the details!!

Our dear friends at the end of the evening ... these two are very special people and the thought of them moving in two weeks is quite a lot to handle.  Our circle won't be the same!!!

We love you Beth and Brad!!!

xo,
MPM
 

design + development by kelly christine studio