WE DID IT // at the end of grad school

The end of grad school is finally here! The family is in town, Claire is excited out of her mind about all the grandparent time, and Sam and I will inevitably spend a frustrating twenty minutes watching YouTube tutorials when trying to get his darn robe and hood on correctly this afternoon.

Sam is such a behind-the-scenes guy, but when commencement, convocation, his birthday, and family in town all fall into the same few days, it just kind of becomes his party week. And that deserves a shout-out.

This guy earned two masters degrees (TWO MASTERS DEGREES) in less than two years. The last two years could easily be measured by how many hours (and hours and hours and hourrrrrrs) he put in on campus, studying, doing group projects and going to class. He was gone from 8 a.m. to 10:30 p.m. a good portion of this year, plus many Saturday classes throughout the last two years as well.

But also, the last two years could be measured by how many times he came straight home and switched to dad mode before he even had a chance to take his shoes off. It could be measured by one million games of hide and seek with Claire, one million hours spent holding twins, one million diapers changed and dishes scrubbed and backs rubbed. Sam is such a gentle, loving, and involved dad, and he took our surprise twins and having three kids in two years with such grace and quiet hard work.

But that's not the only way I remember the past two years. For me, it's also his part-time job that he somehow found time to do on top of everything else.

It's the hours we spent fixing our terribly old and broken green van together.

It's the tissues and glasses of cold water he brought me when I was on bedrest with the twins and crying from the frustration and pain of it all.

It's when he spent his precious down time taking pictures or helping me with content creation for work deadlines I had coming up.

It's all the times he set everything else aside to gather us for family scriptures and prayer.

It's the hours and hours of church service he quietly did over the past two years.

You guys, Sam is an absolute rockstar. Of course if you try to tell him that, he'll shrug it off with some kind of joke, as if being infinitely capable and hard-working is just one of the many remarkable things he does every day. I am so proud of him, and I love him to death.

We did it! And today, we are celebrating.

Photos by Kylie Pond.

poolside season is here (+ water safety tips for kids)

It's supposed to hit triple digits here in sunny Arizona today, and that can mean only one thing: it's officially swimming season. If you've been reading along for a while, you know how much I love swimming (ahem, see more Arizona swimming pictures here, here, here, and here, for starters). I'm excited to go multiple times a week this summer.

One of the best things about living in Arizona? There are pools everywhere, and I do mean everywhere. We're talking multiple pools on every street, and the housing complexes usually have at least two pools. 

But with so much water exposure comes a heightened responsibility for myself as a mom to make sure my children are safe around the water. I take water safety very seriously, and it's very very important for me that my children are in safe water environments and are prepared for this potentially dangerous season.

That being said, there are some fairly easy and highly effective ways to make sure your children are safe at the pool. May is National Water Safety month, so it's a great time to get ready before you take your kids to the pool. (The ZAC Foundation's cute and informative website was a good place for me to start brushing up on water safety for kids.) Here are 6 ways I make sure my children are safe at the pool.

WEAR LIFE JACKETS

My daughter knows she has to be wearing her life jacket the entire time we're poolside. We put hers on with her swimsuit so she's already wearing it the second we walk in the pool area. I love our life jacket (found here), and I also love that it's US Coast Guard approved.

LOOK FOR FENCED-IN POOLS WITH AUTO-LOCKING GATES

To be honest, the first time I used our pool, I thought the auto-closing and auto-locking gate was annoying because I had to unlock and open it twice just to get all my people and all our stuff into the pool area. But really it was only a ten-second inconvenience, and it's so much safer, especially when you have a backyard pool where a child could wander out by themselves.

LEARN CPR

I get it, parents always have a million things to do, and if you're like me, things like taking a safety class can easily be moved to the bottom of the To Do list. But it's worth the time to take a refresher class or at least brush up online on your CPR skills for kids of all ages.

CHECK FOR A SAFE POOL DRAIN

Dangerous pool drains are flat on top, which increases the risk of hair or a body part being suctioned in the pool with hundreds of pounds of pressure. It's worth the few seconds it takes to check and make sure your backyard pool has a safe drain (safe drains are generally raised and have multiple sides so the entire drain can't be covered at once). This short video taught me all I needed to know about safe pool drains.

ENROLL YOUR CHILD IN SWIMMING LESSONS

My toddler's first swimming lessons will probably be this summer, and I'm excited for her to learn more about water safety and gain more confidence in the pool. Especially important for every child is learning how to float and tread water.

BE POSITIVE ABOUT WATER SAFETY

When we talk about water safety at our house, I try to be really positive. "You get to wear a life jacket to keep you safe" goes a lot farther than, "The pool is a scary place and you could drown if you take off your life jacket." We want our kids to know that the pool is a fun place, and as long as we follow a few safety guidelines, we'll have fun splashing and kicking all summer long.

I loved learning more about the incredible mission of the ZAC Foundation to keep children safe around water in conjunction with this post today. Click over to their cute site for printable graphics, short videos, and lots of information about water safety for children of all ages and in all seasons/ climates. A quick link to their parents page can be found here, and you can sign up for their newsletter here.

The ZAC Foundation is also sponsoring a giveaway (think a fun pool bag filled with books, towels, t-shirts, wristbands, and more). Enter here!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Pin for later:

What are your tips and tricks for keeping your kids safe at the pool?

Favorite life jackets or poolside safety hacks?

And who wants to come over and swim with us? :) 

I was selected for this opportunity as a member of CLEVER and the content and opinions expressed here are all my own.

the arts district (+ how to find colored walls near you)

This shop has been compensated by Collective Bias, Inc. and LIFEWTR. All opinions are mine alone. #ThirstInspiration #CollectiveBias

One of my favorite places in Phoenix (and any city, really) is the arts/cultural district. The artsy, individualistic, laid-back feel of the small shops and people you meet always remind me of my trips to downtown Portland growing up. And if you've been reading this blog for any length of time, you know I love bright + fun colors. Let me tell you, there is NO shortage of bright and fun colors on Roosevelt Row.

The other day we loaded up all the kids, stopped at 7-Eleven for gas and a few bottles of LIFEWTR (it was in the refrigerated section so it was nice and cold for us), and went down to Roosevelt Row.

It was one of those fantastic warm-but-not-hot afternoons, and we had fun just soaking in the charismatic atmosphere. Claire ran around with a little friend she met, I chatted with a photographer who was there location scouting, and Sam pushed the babies around and narrated all the colors they were seeing.

^^ How fun is this Aztec/Southwestern themed mural?

^^ The twins flying with the birds and generally being silly

^^ This beautiful LIFEWTR bottle was designed by artist Jason Woodside. The entire day, we were finding walls that matched our water. We love the bright, charismatic, inspirational designs on the outside of these fun LIFEWTR bottles, and on a warm afternoon in Phoenix, we especially loved the refreshing water on the inside. I love that LIFEWTR is purified and pH-balanced, with electrolytes.

^^ I seriously can't get enough of the twins these days. Just look at those faces! They are so cute.

^^ Basically, I want to do a million different photo shoots in this statue. So. Much. Color. And. Light.

Want to find a fun bright-colored wall in your city? Some cities have a reputation for mural walls (Houston, Los Angeles, and parts of New York City come to mind), but you can find fun walls no matter where you live. Here are a few tips for finding colored walls wherever you are.

GO TO THE ARTS/CULTURAL DISTRICT

This is the part of your downtown where you'll most likely have the best luck. Find the hipster restaurants, the funky downtown areas, and the unique feel of the arts and cultural part of the town. If you're brand new to the area, a simple Google search is a great place to start feeling out where that part of town is.

FOLLOW BLOGGERS IN THE AREA

It's no secret that bloggers love a good colorful wall! My favorite bloggers are always posing by them and always willing to share their sources. Find a few bright and fun bloggers in your city and see which walls make it into their Instagram shots.

FOR BLUE WALLS: FIND THE INDUSTRIAL PART OF TOWN

Whenever I drive through the industrial block near our house, I see blue, blue, and more blue! There are lots of huge, blue, solid-colored walls in almost every industrial part of town.

FOR SOLID-COLORED WALLS: FIND STORES BUILT IN THE '90s

Retail stores built in the '90s are notorious for huge walls of color. Stores built after that have adopted a more traditional neutral or stone exterior, but if you find an older shopping complex, chances are you'll also find a colored wall.

LOOK FOR POPS OF COLOR IN SMALLER SPACES

Many times, you don't need an entire 15-foot-tall wall for a picture. Even in the middle of a suburban neighborhood, you can often find a brightly colored door or other small pop of color. I've even noticed outhouses that are nice and bright-colored and could provide a fun background for a headshot (provided you hold your breath while the picture is being taken).

^^ Thanks so much LIFEWTR at 7-Eleven for sponsoring our fun trip to the city. Connect with LIFEWTR on Instagram, Facebook, or Twitter, and click here for more fun inspiration from these LIFEWTR bottles.

And now I'll leave you with this gem: what family photos look like these days. One child has their fist in their mouth, another one is thoroughly bored, and a third one thinks we're playing the "1-2-3-swing!" game. #momlife We sure love these crazy kids (and this fun location) anyway.

Click here for more LIFEWTR inspiration.

Anyone have another tip I can add about finding colored walls?

a night on the ASU campus

Over the weekend our two-year-old officially became a Sun Devil. Well, she officially got a picture with the mascot, so that counts right?

We've been trying to do more on-campus activities and take advantage of everything ASU has to offer before Sam graduates. So we went to ASU's Night of the Open Door over the weekend, and it was such a blast. The event was designed to showcase different departments on campus and the innovative and hands-on learning that takes place every day. We strolled through all the main walkways doing the fun activities, trying the food, and stopping traffic to show everyone the letter "E" that a certain two-year-old found on the sewage grate. You know, the usual.

We got to leave the twins at home (thank you Lorell for babysitting at the last minute) and go with just Claire. She was in heaven to have the undivided attention of both parents, and honestly, we were in heaven to have a night out that involved zero bottles, zero diapers, and zero pacifiers. 

 ^^She dragged her balloon puppy all over the house the remainder of the weekend, so I think we can safely say it was a hit.

 ^^You guys, I could barely bring myself to upload this picture. EEEEESH. I do NOT like snakes. (Here's something horrifying: they put these two rattlesnakes in the same cage in hopes that they would mate and preserve the rare albino color of the larger male snake. Alllllso this is a dad and a daughter. Apparently this is a regular thing if you're a snake. Just one more reason to be creeped out by them.)

 ^^Inaugural picture with Sparky the Sun Devil. Claire was surprisingly cool with a large person dressed as a devil giving her a high five. I'm not sure if that's a good thing or a bad thing.

Have you downloaded the Sun Devil Rewards app yet? It's totally free and the best way to stay connected to ASU. As you go to events, you can enter secret code words and check in on your social accounts to earn pitchfork points, which can then be redeemed for fan gear, tickets, and more. 

As a special thank-you for reading along, I have a secret code word you can enter into the app for 400 free pitchfork points. You need 500 points to earn free stuff, and you get 100 points for downloading and connecting your account on the app, so enter my code and you're automatically there! The code is LOVEMAROON and expires on March 2, 2017. 

Thank you to the Sun Devil Rewards app for sponsoring us in this great night out. I received compensation in return for this post, but all opinions expressed are my own. Check out the app here, and go Devils! #SunDevilRewards

Arizona desert in the spring

Last week my mother-in-law was in town for a few days, and you better believe we took advantage of the free babysitting. Her main goal was to sit at our house and hold the babies she rarely gets to see, and our main goal was to get out without holding any babies like we so rarely get to do, so it worked out quite nicely. Claire loved the visit and was especially excited about her "special bed!" which is a blow-up mattress on the floor of our walk-in closet where she sleeps when we have company. Ah to be two years old and excited about sleeping on the floor of a closet.

On Saturday morning we all went for a little walk in the desert. (Remember when we discovered this desert just a few blocks from our house? Posts here and here.) I think I need to plan a hike in the desert for our next date night, because I've been getting frustrated that we don't get very far with three young kids in tow. Even so, the tiny amount of desert we encountered was gorgeous.

The walk to and from was the best part for Claire - empty roads waiting to be run on, flowers waiting to be picked, and plenty of adults available to swing her around.

We're just reaching the time of year where the Sonoran desert blooms, and I honestly think it's so magical. Almost every small bush we encountered had flowers and new growth peeking out at the ends, and there is a tiny layer of something that looks like bright green grass covering the ground. 

Lincoln was a very very sad baby and spent the entire (short) hike cuddled up grabbing a handful of dad's shirt.

This was when Claire decided it was time to stop and play with the rocks on the trail, and we all indulged her for a few minutes as other groups walked around us.

Now we're thinking about date night this week without a free babysitter. And we can't find a good excuse to make treats if we're just going to be sitting around by ourselves eating them. It's no fun. Somebody else better come visit quickly.