Sunflower Field Pictures + Other Family Date Ideas

Some of our most favorite family dates are experiencing new things together.

None of us had ever been in a field full of sunflowers before so that's what we did for our most

recent family date. The boys enjoyed running through the path to the middle of the field and hiding from us midst the tall flowers. We got there right at sunset and it felt pretty magical.

Then we let them stay up late and go for ice cream. It was a great way to say goodbye to summer.

Some other ideas for family dates:

The Zoo

(it's so fun seeing animals we don't see on the regular)

Fort Movie Night

(everyone watches in the fort and gets their own popcorn bowl)

Make Your Own Pizza Night

(I recommend this easy Naan Bread Pizza recipe)

Bike Rides

(head to a trail or somewhere new)

Scavenger Hunts

(now that fall is around the corner you can use this one)

Game Night

(with prizes for the winners)

Build Something Together

(get creative with cardboard boxes + duct tape & let kids decorate)

Bookstore Date

(parents get coffee and get an endless supply of books to look at)

Dance Party

(with dance-off's of course)

Experience something new together

(Get creative! And bring your camera!)

Working from Home + Using a Standing Desk

Working from home is no joke. Don't get me wrong, I love it. 

But it takes so much self discipline and I wouldn't say that's one of my strong suits. One of my biggest struggles is that I find it so hard to be productive on my design work and shop stuff when everything else I have to do around the house is staring me in the face. 

I'm sure you've heard of the standing desk by now and how many companies are switching over to that for their employees benefit. Everything I've read says that standing desks are proven to increase productivity. So I thought, it was worth a try for me.  

The appeal of the InMovement Standing Desk is its portability and how it works with your existing desktop. Days that I dedicate to work, I like to be in my dining room which is central to my house so that I can keep an eye on what my boys are up to and the light in here just makes it a pleasant place to work. And then days that I don't need to be in front of the computer for hours, I can just store it away.

                  

I would definitely say that even after just a short amount of time using it, I could tell a difference in my productivity. I love that I could just put it on the end of my dining room table and adjust the height to what feels comfortable for me.

Standing during my work hours motivated me to stretch and do simple exercises frequently.

It made me feel energized.

Not to mention, my whole body feels so much better after spending hours standing and working instead of hours all pretzeled up in my desk chair.

I caught my husband using it one day that he had dedicated to working on music.

He obviously was able to adjust it much higher to suit his 6'2" frame. The workspace was big enough to accommodate all this gadgets he needed for work.

And I might have to fight him for who gets to use it.

If you're in the market for a standing desk or just looking to improve your health and productivity at work, this InMovement Standing Desk might be just the ticket. And you're in luck because if you use code BLOG30 then you can get 30% off!

Currently Wearing

As this January has had some unseasonably warm weeks, I've been taking full advantage.

Sneaking in a Spring look a little early for this month's look.

Currently wearing:

Handmade

Luxury Leather Crossbody Bag by Little Brick House

I might be a tad biased since Kerry is my best friend, but her bags and clutches are my absolute favorite! The black leather in this bag is so soft and quality and paired with gold hardware, I get compliments on it wherever I go.

Gold Bar Necklace by Callie Jewelry

I love this little gold bar necklace and I wear it almost everyday. I actually won it

in a giveaway that Callie Jewelry had and got it initial with G&G on it for my two little boys.

I've had it over a year and it's held up really beautifully.

Deal of the Day

Celebrity NYC Side Slit Booties via Amazon

I could not believe it when I saw that these were $13 on Amazon! They looked so much like

real leather in the picture and I was a huge skeptic, but for $13 I decided to take a chance.

And I'm so glad I did. Perfectly neutral with a bit of flair, fit true to size and comfortable!

They're definitely not the quality of real leather, but I'll take a good knock off anyway!

Secondhand

Anthropologie Maeve Floral Top via ThredUp

I've told you guys about ThredUp before but I just really love everything they do.

Their customer service and free returns have been so awesome. Since moving to a small town, I've had to depend on online shopping a lot more and it's been nice to be able to find some well priced pieces online since I don't have the resources for clothing thrifting like I once did.

If you've never tried it, use my referral link to get money added to your account 

and buy something cute!

Double Chocolate Zucchini Bread - on the Healthier Side

I'm always looking for something to satisfy my sweet tooth but not make feel super guilty when I eat it. So this moist, chocolatey bread packed with veggies and applesauce instead of a lot of oil is one I love to make!

Double Chocolate Zucchini Bread

Ingredients:

2 cups shredded zucchini

1 1/2 cups flour

1/2 cup cocoa

1 1/2 teaspoons baking soda

1/2 teaspoon kosher salt

1/2 teaspoon cinnamon

3/4 cup brown sugar

2 eggs

1/4 cup canola or vegetable oil

1/2 cup unsweetened applesauce

1 teaspoon vanilla

3/4 cup chocolate chips

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350 F. Spray and flour a loaf pan and set aside.

2. Use a towel or paper towels to slightly press down on the shredded zucchini to eliminate some of the moisture. Set aside.

3. In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, cocoa, baking soda, salt, and cinnamon. Add the brown sugar, eggs, oil, applesauce, and vanilla. Mix to combine. Stir in the zucchini, then fold in the chocolate chips. Transfer the batter to the prepared pan and bake for 1 hour or until a toothpick comes out clean.

4. Let the bread cool in the pan for 30 minutes, then transfer to a cooling rack and let cool completely before serving. Don’t skip the cooling process – the bread will appear underdone if you slice and serve while it’s still warm.

This bread is excellent as dessert with a glass of milk or in the morning with your cup of coffee! Enjoy!

Fall Scavenger Hunt + Free Printable

A favorite fall activity to do with my boys is go on a fall scavenger hunt.

I make up a list of things we have to find and we grab a basket and set out on our 'treasure hunt' as we call it. I usually just scribble something down but this year I got a little more official so that I could share it with you guys too!

Griff dubbed himself official basket holder and took the job quite seriously.

We set out around our neighborhood to see what treasure we could find.

 

I make the list simple enough for them to do on their own with my direction and full of stuff that's pretty easy to find, like all the different colors of leaves.

And acorns/nuts

I like to put some learning stuff in there too, like find something that is straight, round, smooth, or rough, etc.

And the bonus is to find something special to them. This one was Grady's.

We went all over checking off our list.

We came back pretty excited about our finds.

We only didn't find one thing on our list and that was a pinecone.


But look at all our beautiful treasure!


Feel like doing one for yourself? Here's a link to a free printable to take on your treasure hunt!

Tag us on Instagram (@shelbygoodman) if you use it! The boys would be so excited to see!

Fall Cooking: Best of Soups

I so look forward to the change in seasons and new seasonal ingredients to cook with.

When there's a chill in the air, the first thing I want to make is soup.

An afternoon with nothing to do but sip wine and make a big pot of soup is so relaxing to me.

And the end result is always so gratifying.

Looking back in my blog, I've shared a few soup recipes that I love. But my #1 has got to be 

Butternut Squash Soup. It's so creamy and delicious and tastes SO good with 

crusty bread dipped in it.

I shared a step by step recipe for how to make this soup back in 2011 and 

I don't think I've ever missed a year making it. You should definitely try this one.

And here is the rest of my list of soups that I add to my rotation every fall/winter:

Potato Soup

Image via KeyIngredient

Chili

image via Family Fresh Meals

Vegetable Soup

Image via SavorHome

Corn Chowder

Image via DamnDelicious

I hope you'll try some of these and add them to your fall dinner line-up!