Tomorrow's To Dos

An apple a day

Posted on August 25, 2015 by tomorrowstodos

Who needs a trip to an apple orchard when you have one in your front yard?

After moving into our house during the dead of winter last December we were happy to find out that we had apple trees this spring. And after months of waiting (me somewhat impatiently) we got to have a few friends over this weekend to do a little picking.

Don’t have apple trees in your yard? Here are a few local places where you can go pick your own peck.

Will’s Family Orchard | Center Grove Orchard | Berry Patch Farm

While Evie was napping on Sunday, I had time to whip up an apple pie (and an extra bag of filling to put in the freezer) and it turned out delicious! I used store bought crust since nap time is only so long, but found a great tutorial on how to make a lattice crust from the inspiring food blog, The Kitchn. I enjoyed my slice topped with vanilla ice cream in bed Sunday night while watching this flick and dreaming about our upcoming trip to France.

Posted in Family, Lifestyle, Recipes | Tagged apple pie, apples, baking, Berry Patch Farm, Center Grove Orchard, The Kitchn, Will's Family Orchard | 1 Comment

My favorite drugstore beauty finds

Posted on August 19, 2015 by tomorrowstodos

My daily beauty routine is pretty simple. I mean, sign me up for anything to make this mom’s life easier. So I tend to lean heavily on tried-and-true products. These are my faves:

The Wet Brush: Post-Everett my hair seems to tangle a lot easier and this brush is the only thing that’ll get through it without me going bald.

Maybelline Instant Age Rewind Eraser: Under eye puffiness/darkness is something that comes with the ‘having a kid’ territory. After reading this review I had to give it a try myself. Definitely a winner in my book.

John Frieda Go Blonder Controlled Lightening Spray: After noticing some outgrowth in my hair color and realizing I had zero time to make it to the salon, I grabbed this (along with the shampoo and conditioner) in a rush. I’m pleasantly surprised how well it worked and plan to keep it on hand for touch ups in the future when I’m in a bind.

Loreal Magic Skin Beautifier BB Cream: New addition to my makeup bag. I first read about this miracle product here and am a convert after trying it once. I love the coverage and how light it feels on my face.

CoverGirl Mink Eyeshadow: I’ve been using this color on the reg since I first started to wear makeup and I still haven’t found anything I like better for my daily look.

Maybelline Lash Sensational: I’m constantly changing mascaras, but my recent find withstands a day full of running around, workouts and bath time splashing. It is a little hard to get off at night, but I think it has staying power.

Posted in Beauty | Tagged beauty, CoverGirl, John Frieda, Loreal, make up, Maybelline, The Wet Brush | 3 Comments

Don’t miss it, don’t even be late

Posted on August 17, 2015 by tomorrowstodos

The title of my blog is a reference to the opening song of Rodgers and Hammerstein’s Broadway musical ‘State Fair’ that is based on our very own Iowa State Fair.

Every year over one million people from around the globe crowd into the grand concourse to be delighted by the state’s best in agriculture, industry, entertainment and achievement. And let’s not forget all the food on a stick!

It’s truly not to be missed, but even more so this year since we are heading into a presidential election. Candidates storm Iowa in the months leading up to the caucuses and one of their big (and heavily publicized) stops is our great state fair. Fairgoers are sure to have astonishing access and front row seats for any and all photo ops and soapbox moments.

This past weekend we made our annual pilgrimage to the fair and it did not disappoint. Having a toddler (and stroller) in tow makes for an interesting trek around the fairgrounds, but seeing it all anew through his eyes was the BEST!

[Ev meet elk] [zzzzz…what a boar] [how Evie does lemonade] [a cold, creamy scoop from the Dairy Barn] [the day was complete after this as far as I’m concerned] [two feet of golden fried goodness] [a little warm, but all smiles at the Governor’s Charity Steer Show]

New to the fair? Be sure to check out my tried and true Iowa State Fair to-do list.

Posted in Local Spots | Tagged Governor's Charity Steer Show, Iowa, Iowa State Fair | Leave a comment

Back to school

Posted on August 13, 2015 by tomorrowstodos

While Ev still has a while before he officially starts school, I can’t help but get excited when I see all the colorful notebooks and rows of fresh supplies at our local Target. Going back to school was always such an exciting time for me growing up. Those first day jitters, the new outfits and the endless chatter with friends. Such happy memories.

In honor of the back to school shopping that I’m sure some of you are doing right now, I thought I’d put together some cute outfits that I would put together for Ev if he was heading out the doors for the schoolyard.

top // Wal-Mart
bottom // H&M
notebook // Mead
shoes // Gap Kids
backpack // Crewcuts
socks // Old Navy

top // Wal-Mart
bottom // H&M
cap // Stan’s Sports World
socks // Gap Kids
shoes // Target

top // Carter’s
jeans // H&M
vest // H&M
bag // Duluth Pack
crayons // Crayola
shoes // Target

book // Home by Carson Ellis
coat // H&M
shoes // Converse
top // Raygun
bottom // Zara

Posted in Fashion, Kids | Tagged back to school, boys, Carson Ellis, Converse, Crayola, Duluth Pack, Gap kids, J. Crew, Old Navy, Raygun, Target, toddler, Wal-Mart, Zara | Leave a comment

Sweet corn for all

Posted on August 11, 2015 by tomorrowstodos

This past weekend we celebrated all things sweet corn related in our new hometown, Adel. They hold the annual Sweet Corn Festival every August and the whole town comes together to feed the masses free golden kernel goodness.

In an effort to follow through on my resolutions, I signed up for the 5K on Saturday morning. It was a misty, humid morning which made running on brick paved roads a bit of a task, but I’m happy to report I made it! There were definitely some rough moments, but I’m pleased with my time considering my lack of training.

After the race, I met up with Marcus, Everett and Aunt Mo to check out the parade. In between traipsing through huge puddles and taking sips of my post-race chocolate milk, Everett was most mesmerized by the line of shiny firetrucks. Beep, beep!

We ditched the parade early to make it around the town square and got in line early for the free sweet corn. We mowed through six buttered up ears in record time and hightailed it out of there in time to make it home for nap time. SUCCESS!

Posted in Local Spots | Tagged Adel, Iowa, sweet corn, Sweet Corn Festival | 1 Comment

Air trip: Park City

Posted on August 5, 2015 by tomorrowstodos

We are back from ANOTHER trip, but this one was different. It was our first time traveling together without our sweet little Everett in tow. Just a little test run for the big trip this fall!

We took off early Friday morning, headed for Park City, to join a bunch of our high school friends in celebrating Iain and Laura’s nuptials.

[Kimball Arts Festival happened to be going on too] [looks weird with no snow] [married in a field on a hilltop at High Star Ranch][scenic doesn’t even come close to describing this location] [just the two of us, in a field, waiting for a rattlesnake] [DHS Class of 2002] [looks like it came from a wedding blog] [the newlyweds] [lots of wild memories with these ladies] [two handsome dudes] [the dance floor] [last ‘man’ standing] [always smiling with this one] [community yoga on Sunday morning] [Artist Josee Nadeau painted during our yoga practice][missing home? Log Haven was the perfect setting for dinner][I’m sure he wasn’t spoiled too much…]

Posted in Friends, Travel, Wedding | Tagged Josee Nadeau, Kimball Arts Festival, Log Haven, Park City, vacation, wedding | Leave a comment

Air trip: The Greenbrier

Posted on July 29, 2015 by tomorrowstodos

DISCLAIMER: My photos do not do this place justice. Put it on your bucket list, like, yesterday.

Where to start…

After a smooth trip down to Charleston, West Virginia, we hopped in the car for a drive to White Sulphur Springs where The Greenbrier is located. We were welcomed with this view. Hello, gorgeous!

The next few days were filled with family, fun and memory making. With a side of serious Dorothy Draper of course!

[hallway cocktails] [just hanging out] [always a blur] [kids being kids: rolling down the big hill] [delicious lunch at Carnegie Hall] [always the official party with this guy around] [shark romper] [the old white] [all the little ones] [beautiful scenery][meeting NBA legend Jerry West] [a little skeet shooting on the side] [breathtaking chandeliers everywhere you turn] [patterns on patterns on patterns] [like I said, more chandeliers – this one is from the movie Gone With The Wind] [so handsome] [doing my best to fit in wearing my Lilly Pulitzer for Target jumpsuit] [ugh, those curtains][already planning my return visit]

Posted in Family, Travel | Tagged family vacation, National Governors Conference, Southern hospitality, The Greenbrier | 1 Comment

Mommy mind: I’m a hugger

Posted on July 22, 2015 by tomorrowstodos

I can’t quite remember what prompted me to create a blog draft with this as the title a couple of months ago. But I decided it was time to come back to it after a recent interaction with Everett.

[just another cute photo of this little guy cheesein’ for the camera]

We were strolling through the aisles of Hy-Vee when I decided he just looked too cute and I needed to bear hug him, so I opened my arms wide and wrapped him up. After a few seconds I stepped back and with a huge grin on his face, he held his arms out wanting more. I melted. Right there in the frozen foods section of my local grocery store. So these are the mom moments people gush about. I totally get it now.

The reciprocating of love and affection is something that I’ve been dying to be on the receiving end of from my son for a while now. Part of that has to do with the fact that physical touch is my love language. Just ask my husband, close friends or sisters. I am a kisser, hugger and snuggler. If it was more socially acceptable, I’d probably hug people in the workplace.

I grew up in a family that showed love without inhibition. We hug, kiss and embrace often and it is completely natural. It all seems very European, but that was just the way we were raised.

I’m pretty adamant that Everett grow up using this same sort of expression of love. That is why there are a lot of hugs and kisses given out in our household. So if my kid tries to hug or kiss you, feel free to give him some love back. I promise, it’ll make you feel better.

In other news, we are off to another NGA conference tomorrow. Milwaukee and Nashville were the past two host cities, and guess what? Des Moines is hosting it next year! But this year we are headed to White Sulphur Springs, West Virginia. We can’t wait to see all this beautiful state has to offer, but I will admit, I’m a little bit afraid of staying here. It is so beautiful and Everett is so a wild toddler. Wish us luck!

Interested in following along while we are on the go? Check out my @mrsbranstad Instagram account!

Posted in Family, Travel | Tagged love language, National Governors Conference | Leave a comment

Kidizen

Posted on July 15, 2015 by tomorrowstodos

I first heard about Kidizen from one of my fave blogs to follow, Camp Patton. Upon finishing her hilarious post, I immediately whipped out my well-loved iPhone 4S (why upgrade when you have a toddler?) and downloaded their app.

I created a profile for Evie and have been a browsing fool, but never made an actual purchase. That is until recently.

After seeing a pair of navy Saltwater Sandals in Everett’s size and for half the price as a new pair, I knew this was the perfect item to snag. And what is even better is that shipping is included in the price you see/pay. I love love love that!

Do you have favorite places to find great deals on your kiddos clothes? Do share!

Posted in Baby, Blogs, Fashion, Kids | Tagged Camp Patton, Kidizen, Saltwater Sandals, second hand | Leave a comment

Obsessed: summer dress code

Posted on July 10, 2015 by tomorrowstodos

We are well into summer, but the temps here in Iowa haven’t quite maxed out yet. No complaining here, but I know they will soon be on their way.

I find dressing to be less complicated during the warm months, and tend to stick to a dress code of sorts. I can wear this outfit to work, out for a dinner with the hubs or throw on a pair of flip-flops for running after Everett. Easy, peasy.

one // Target Merona denim vest
two // Madewell braided leather belt
three // Target Merona jersey dress
four // Stella & Dot Jardin chandeliers
five // Old Navy wedges

Posted in Fashion | Tagged Madewell, Merona, obsessed, Old Navy, Target | 1 Comment