wear

I am here for backpacks, and you should be too.

I am here for backpacks.

Not emotionally, like they need a shoulder to cry on (please acknowledge that creative turn of word RIGHT NOW), but for buying them and wearing them and admiring them and advocating for them.

So maybe I am here for them emotionally. Let me think about that some more.

I’ve been anti-backpack since I left college. I’m not a kid anymore, I will use a sophisticated shoulder bag like a real adult, I thought as I amassed a large collection of mom bags and teacher bags and after-work gym bags.

But now I’m older, my back hurts more, and WHY IS THIS PURSE ALWAYS SO HEAVY?

Enter: the backpack.

We’ve been using them for hiking and camping for years, but they were left in the camper, never making their way back into the house for everyday use. Until recently.

Now I carry a backpack when I go to the office or to a coffee shop to work. I carry one to friends’ houses, to the grocery store, to the library.

Why was I allowing one tired shoulder to do all the work when my full, strong back was available?

No one knows.

According to the market- research firm NPD, sales of women’s backpacks are up by 28 percent in the past year, even though men’s backpacks are down. Women’s handbags, too, have suffered a drop over the past few years, says Beth Goldstein, NPD’s accessories analyst. (source)

If marketing companies are noticing the rise in backpacks, you know it’s official. But even if it weren’t, I’m here to tell you about the glory of a backpack and the ease it brings.

Need some guidance jumping into the world of backpacks? Lemme help.

Land Diaper Bag Backpack
WAIT. Come back. I don’t care if you don’t have babies. Neither do I! I use the Land Diaper Bag Backpack for a laptop and work backpack. The pockets are great for charger cords and water bottles and pens. It’s sturdy and simple, plus it’s not expensive. I have the navy one, but I also really like the gray. Ignore the bad reviews, I’ve had mine for over a year with no complaints. (If you do happen to have babies, ditch the over-the-shoulder diaper bag for this. No regrets.)

(Are you impressed with the size of those backpack pictures? Me too. I’m getting ready to leave on vacation and I can’t get them to size right so here we are with giant pictures you don’t need contacts or glasses to see. It’s a public service, honestly.)

Jansport Classic Backpack
You probably had a Jansport backpack at one point. Please go get it out of the closet and give it new life with no shame. This is what we use for day hiking when we camp. Obviously, not a great bag for long hikes, but if you just need a few water bottles, some snacks, and a first aid kit, this is your backpack. Ours is light pink and looks great on all of us, Chris Graham included.

Classic brown leather backpack
My friend has a backpack like this, and I covet it. There’s nothing better than a classic brown leather backpack. This one has the best reviews, and I’ve ordered it to replace my purse this summer. I’ll let you know how it goes once it’s broken in a little more, but I already love shopping or being out hands-free. I don’t think I’ll go back anytime soon.

Pottery Barn Harry Potter Backpack
Ellie will tell you no Potterhead is legit until you own a Pottery Barn Harry Potter backpack with your name embroidered on it. Because she has so many people who love her (and are really good at giving gifts), she has two of them: one for school and one for travel, sleepover, and camping. They’re a little pricey, but Pottery Barn runs good sales so you shouldn’t ever have to pay full price for it. These backpacks are really well made too. After Ellie went through two cheap backpacks one school year, I decided spending the extra money to buy a nice one that would last for years was a better deal in the long run.

Burton Kilo 2.0 Backpack
This one is for guys (or anyone, really), but it’s similar to the well-loved backpack my brother carries to work (his is no longer available. *moment of silence*). He’s on team backpack like me (is it genetic?), and this one works well for the office or a weekend hike. He has a blue one, I really like the gray (again…), and if you want to be a little more fancy, get the black with white squares. There’s a color or pattern for everyone.

What about you, are you wearing a backpack yet? Do you sing the Dora the Explorer song in your head when you put it on like I do? Do you need to join the dark side with a snazzy new backpack? Hard hitting questions for your Friday.

a city adventure with Hanes fleeces

I know the calendar says it’s not officially winter yet, but it snowed last week so it’s winter in Indianapolis, folks.

But then the snow melted and it warmed up this weekend; it was a glorious burst of fall weather before temperatures are predicted to drop again this week and we bundle up in fifty layers and wish for summer. So we took advantage of the warm up on Saturday and headed downtown to get some exercise. We spend a lot of time outside and when the cold weather hits, the thing we miss most is burning off some energy and getting fresh air in our lungs because it’s just too miserable to be outside.

Our adventures were a perfect time to break in our new Hanes fleeces for the whole family. Hanes fleeces are this amazing mix of soft and comfortable without the bulkiness that is associated with a lot of fleece active wear. The girls and I stayed cozy in our Hanes full-zip hoody sweatshirts while Chris rocked the pullover hoodie that he plans to live in all winter.

The fleeces were great for running around the city and when we got caught in the rain, they dried quickly and kept their shape while we warmed up in a coffee shop. And because nothing completes a trip out in public with kids like someone (or two someones) spilling something on themselves, the Hanes fleece zipups didn’t stain when they dumped hot chocolate all over them.

(photograhy by Kaitlyn Meeks Photography)

If you have kids, you know how rough they can be on clothes in mere minutes. So that we were able to wash out all the hot chocolate and dirt from our adventure and still have comfortable active wear that looks new and kept its shape is a major accomplishment.

Hanes fleeces come in sweatshirts, pullover hoodies, and full-zip hoodies and in a range of both classic and bright colors which is good if you and your husband like the classic colors but you have two little girls that scream for color. Added bonus: if you’ve ever fought a kid about an itchy tag on his or her shirt, you’ll be glad to know Hanes fleeces come tag-free! Praise. You can pick up Hanes fleeces for the whole family at Hanes.com or mass retailers.

And then go on an adventure with your family before it gets too cold, okay?

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

not a big pronoun crowd, are we?

Coincidentally, I was teaching pronouns when I wore this t-shirt to school. I thought I was so clever that it just happened to be worn on the right day and I could make a lesson out of my shirt. I am the world’s greatest teacher, I thought.

And then.

(t-shirt: Old Navy, jeans: Old Navy, purse: TJ Maxx [similar], shoes: Target [similar]) (Photos by Kaitlyn Meeks Photography)

My seventh graders thought it said “You, me, ow” and no matter how much I explained it, they didn’t get it and they didn’t think it was clever. There might even have been some eye rolling.

You know that joke that you think is just so funny and then you tell it and all you get is a polite chuckle and not the hearty belly laugh you were expecting?

Ya, that. But with a shirt.

Seventh graders are so lame.

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things that make my life easier

-meal planning and prepping on Sundays

-groceries delivered to my door

-automatic bill pay

-margaritas

(jeans: Old Navy, tank: Stitch Fix, sandals: Target [similar]) (Photography by Kaitlyn Meeks Photography)

-Chris Graham doing the laundry

-getting enough sleep

–Stitch Fix

-short hair

-getting everyone’s school clothes ready Sunday night

-Pizza Hut and McDonald’s

-the dishwasher

-putting my phone on silent

-losing my phone

-scheduling time to do nothing

-crock pots

-being friends with Christine

-naps

-reading good books

-hearing my husband laugh from the other room

-my calendar (paper calendar, none of that electronic crap)

-NPR

-text messaging

-Trang, my favorite nail tech at the salon

-HootSuite

-my generous neighbor, Charlie

-new pens!

-never ironing clothes

-embracing dust

-not comparing

-chocolate covered raisins

-chocolate covered pretzels

-chocolate

-vodka

What about you?

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being strong, obviously.

Being a grown up isn’t all its cracked up to be, folks. I mean, it has its benefits: I don’t have a bedtime (even though it would be helpful to have someone make me go to bed, I’d probably get more sleep that way), I get to drive anywhere I want (although a chauffeur sounds reallllly relaxing), and my mom is no longer in charge of my haircuts (I don’t have anything I miss about that because I had bad haircuts as a child, but I wanted to keep up the pattern of parenthesis). The older I get, the more I realize I shouldn’t have pushed so hard to grow up. I should have taken more time at being a kid, being irresponsible and carefree.

(skinnies: Forever 21, blouse: Kohls, heels: Target, clutch: Kohls, bangles: Forever 21) (Photography by Kaitlyn Meeks Photography)

I know I wouldn’t have listened if someone had told me to slow down but it’s nice to pretend. I was a nasty little child that knew everything so I didn’t need advice from dumb adults. But if I could tell my daughters anything, it would be that they need to slow down. Stop trying to be so big because your mama can’t handle it very well. When you get too big for my lap, I don’t know what I’ll do with myself. Maybe I’ll make you hold me instead. I’m sure we will figure something out. Or we could get a hammock where we can squish together and talk about your day. Because hammocks squish people into each other whether you try to maintain personal space or not. And your mama wants to be squished up next to you forever.

Can you tell Ellie is starting kindergarten today?

I think I’m handling it pretty well, thanks for asking.

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peanut butter & jelly is my very best

Sometimes my best is peanut butter and jelly sandwiches for dinner. It’s been a long day and, yes, you can have three servings of string cheese with that sandwich. You’ll poop eventually, I’m sure.

Other times, my best is a homemade meal that took me over an hour to cook. I’ve got time, energy, and a well-stocked kitchen.

Depending on the day, my “best” is half-assed or highly impressive and envy-inducing. Just like every other person on this planet. Some days we feel like we’ve got it all together, we’re kicking butt and taking names. And then the very next day, the world kicks us while we’re down and not one single thing is going our way.

That’s just life.

(skirt: Old Navy, shirt: Kohls, boots: Kohls) (photos by Kaitlyn Meeks Photography)

And while it’s easy to forget the bad when we’re in the midst of good, it’s also hard to remember the good when we’re knee-deep in the bad. It’s true for real life and it’s true for the internet. This place where so many people share beautiful pictures, inspiring stories, and perfect days. Where we come across sparkling living rooms, clean kids, and happy marriages every where we turn. When Pinterest is overflowing with easy steps to get washboard abs, homeschool our kids, and pay off all our debt in less than thirty days. All the things I want, but on even the best days don’t have. Maybe my best for today is just average, but tomorrow, tomorrow!, I’ll shine.

And you know what?

There’s nothing wrong with that.

I appreciate the beautiful more when there’s some mess thrown in the mix too. So whether today is a mess or beautiful or just a beautiful mess, be okay with that. Because nothing is ever as good as it looks on the internet anyway. Like those pictures above? I’m totally sucking in.

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a white tee and chuck taylors

Jean shorts are tricky.

You don’t want them too short because, you know, you’re thirty two years old. But too long and they become weird, jean capris. If you’re going to go with shorts, you have to go all in.

It’s a fine line, really.

(jean shorts: Old Navy, t-shirt: Old Navy, Converse: Kohls) (pictures by Kaitlyn Meeks Photography)

Have I mentioned before where the name Trusty Chucks comes from? I think in the five plus years I’ve been writing, I’ve probably never shared it. It’s really not deep or anything, but I’m pretty loyal to my Chuck Taylors and when I was pregnant with my first daughter, my feet got huge (like even bigger than normal…and I have big feet on a “good” day) and swollen so much so that all I could wear were my Converse sneakers. I wore them to teach in every day. I wore them to church. I wore them to walk through the neighborhood. I wore them all the time. Those trusty things got me through the last three months of my pregnancy like a champ.

In addition to the greatest pregnancy shoes ever made, I never travel without some Chuck Taylors. I’m on my third pair right now and that’s saying something because I wear those things until they’re not physically able to be worn anymore. Then they get retired, but never thrown away. That’s against my religion. My Chuck Taylor religion. It’s a thing, look it up.

So that’s it: Trusty Chucks. They’ve been with me through the good and the bad (and the really swollen) and I just can’t give up on them.

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the light at the end of the tunnel

As summer break approaches, the last few weeks of school become that never-ending Friday afternoon clock watch. The days slow down, the will to live is lost, and getting work done takes five times longer than it should.

I can see the light at the end of the tunnel but it’s just.so.far.away.

I’ve got papers to grade, class rankings to figure, textbooks to collect, and phone calls to make.

And I don’t want to do any of them. Not one bit. I understand the antsy-ness that takes over students this time of year. It has rubbed off on me and I can’t shake it.

But then again I’m not trying too hard. There are only eleven days of school left, for goodness sake.

So I’m embracing my lack of ambition. My nature is to go, go, go and do, do, do so doing nothing is welcome and ill-fitting at the same time. I don’t know what just sitting is. No multi-tasking. No to-do lists.

It’ll get done, it always does. I’ll have a burst of energy some random morning and, in a flurry of activity, get everything finished, breath a sigh of relief, and ask myself why I didn’t do that sooner.

But until then?

I’m just gonna sit here and wait for summer break.

Amen and hallelujah.

don’t forget about the wide leg jeans

I’m all for the skinny jeans, but can we just take a minute and remember how awesome some wide leg jeans are?

Mostly this is a reminder for myself.

Also, I’m not pregnant, that’s a Chick-fil-a nugget belly. #worthit

how to survive in middle school according to my students.

(cords: Target, blouse: TJ Maxx, sweater: thrifted, sandals: Old Navy, necklace: Forever 21)

This is it, the last day of school. Pretty much my favorite day of the year. It’s better than Christmas, my birthday, and opening day at Frosty Boys (my hometown ice cream place) put together.

No more seventh graders for two months.

At the end of every year, I have my students write a letter to next year’s seventh graders. They give advice on how to handle middle school, what to know about my class, their favorite things from this year, and other random things that pop into their brains. It’s one of my favorite activities: reading what they think is important, what they think about my class, and what they remember best. Last year’s class was full of good observations.

This year’s class didn’t disappoint either.

Dear (next year’s) 7th graders:

Don’t make her mad.

Ms Graham seems mean, but she’s really not.

Ms. Graham is very sarcastic and funny.

Warning: DO NOT GET MS. GRAHAM MAD. Very bad idea.

Ms. Graham is very strict. But she does it so you can learn and get good grades.

Don’t smart talk her.

She sees everything, be careful.

Ms. Graham has beautiful children.

On TV they make passing periods look long, but they’re really not so be careful.

You better behave in here or else.

Don’t goof off too much because it makes your grade go down. I learned that from experience.

You will love when Ms. Graham reads aloud.

Don’t get sent to STR because you will have to eat your pizza without hot sauce, BBQ sauce, or ranch.

You will never get bored seeing what colors Ms. Graham is wearing.

First off, DO NOT give Ms. Graham sassiness because she can give more back.

Act up just enough to get sent to the office twice a year. But no more than that.

Ms. Graham has a short fuse. BOOM there goes the dynamite.

Don’t talk while Ms. Graham is talking, she is the meanest teacher in the whole seventh grade. Ask anybody.

Your new LA teacher is super funny and likes to have a good time, but if you are not doing what you are supposed to, she will get really mean.

At the beginning of the year, I hated reading, but now because of Ms. Graham, I don’t hate it as much.

Don’t talk back to Ms. Graham because she is crazy and she will hurt you. My favorite thing is that she loves to talk about the books she’s reading. Ms. Graham loves to read all types of books.

Go ahead and do us all a favor and put your phone on silent. She’s taken, like, half our class’ phones because they went off in class.

One thing I dislike right now is that I won’t be in this class next year.

If you’re a goofy or funny person, make the class laugh at appropriate times so it doesn’t disrupt anyone’s learning. Then you will get along with Ms. Graham.

Read as much as you can. Trust me, if you’re not a reader, Ms. Graham will turn you into one. Just be willing to try with her.

Ms. Graham is a fun teacher but once you push her bottom she will go off on you. (Side note: Thankfully, I have yet to have a student push my bottom. That sounds like something that would create a lot of paperwork…)

Do not argue with Ms. Graham, you will not win.

Do not get on Ms. Graham’s bad side cause I’m warning you, she will flame you and put you on hush mouth.

Ms. Graham can dress very good.

Ms. Graham is evil.

Ms. Graham is not in a good mood sometimes.

Respect Ms. Graham’s books, she really loves them.

Out of the mouths of babes…

(photograhy by Kaitlyn Meeks Photography)

(t-shirt: Old Navy, jeans: Old Navy, purse: TJ Maxx [similar], shoes: Target [similar]) (Photos by Kaitlyn Meeks Photography)

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(jeans: Old Navy, tank: Stitch Fix, sandals: Target [similar]) (Photography by Kaitlyn Meeks Photography)

(skinnies: Forever 21, blouse: Kohls, heels: Target, clutch: Kohls, bangles: Forever 21) (Photography by Kaitlyn Meeks Photography)

(skirt: Old Navy, shirt: Kohls, boots: Kohls) (photos by Kaitlyn Meeks Photography)

DISCLOSURE: AFFILIATE LINKS USED.

(jean shorts: Old Navy, t-shirt: Old Navy, Converse: Kohls) (pictures by Kaitlyn Meeks Photography)

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