Okay, I'm going to annoy some people here... I know some of you LOVE Stitch Fix. But after three tries? I'm more frustrated than ever with the service!

My first try I kept one item and sent the others back.

My second try I didn't keep anything, and made a special request NOT to have any dry clean or hand wash items sent to me.

So I was hopeful for my third try this month. And I was pretty disappointed.

First:

I made sure to try pinning specific Stitch Fix items I liked on my Pinterest Style Board, at the suggestion of others.

I didn't receive any of them.

This post contains affiliate links

Second: 

Here's my original style note on my style profile, which I spent a rather long time filling out the first time I got a Stitch Fix to make sure I got items I liked:

"I don't wear pants or jeans at all - only dresses and skirts! I'm also nursing my 5-month-old, so tops and dresses MUST have nursing access or there's no way I'll ever wear them - this means tops with enough stretch or drape to be lifted up easily, or tops & dresses that button down the front. Faux-wrap, shirt-dresses, crossover necklines all work as well. Machine washable only, please!"

Third:

I made this note to my stylist for this try:

And I gave detailed and explicit feedback on the surveys following my first and second fixes, so I was hopeful.

Clearly I shouldn't have been.

Here's what I got:

Three long-sleeved shirts. One pair of jeans. One maxi skirt in a kind of weird print.

And the style cards that came with it made me think my stylist wasn't really paying attention to what I actually like to wear:

7 out of 10 of those outfits include pants. Which I don't wear. Not exactly helpful.

So I tried everything on and took pictures, because that's what I do. Peter helped by encouraging me to smile!

Pixley Tracy Dot Print Cross Back Knit Top - $58

This one would be really good for a post partum mom in the first few months, or as a maternity top. Stretchy neckline that can be pulled down for nursing, blousy enough to be pulled up easily for nursing.

But it made me look MUCH larger than I am, and the sleeves were making me sweat in my air conditioned house. That's why I requested sleeveless tops!

I do really like polka dots though - these two tops are more like something I'd actually wear:

Verdict: Returned.

Kut From The Kloth Kate Distressed Boyfriend Jean - $78 (similar)

Oh these were bad. They were my requested size but they were HUGE on me - you see how I'm pulling out the waist band? There were probably 4 extra inches there, and they were falling down and also far too long. Plus my toe got caught in the stupid distressing when I was pulling them on.

Verdict: Returned

Loveappella Tavares Knit Top - $48

This one reminded me of another shirt I had like it:

Oh wait, no. That was Peter, back in December.

Too hot for Virginia in July, unflattering on me, too reminiscent of baby clothing. Any one of these would have been a better option, and they're all cheaper:

Verdict: Returned.

Pixley Edmond Chevron Print Henley Shirt - $54

Nursing-friendly, similar to a style I had pinned but again with the sleeves!!! I specifically requested sleeveless tops and I got NONE. How much more specific can I be? I really disliked this print, and thought the fabric felt really cheap.

Verdict: Returned.

Loveappella Cheyanne Printed Maxi Skirt - $58

I was worried this would end up fitting like the maxi skirt I really loved in my first fix, but it was actually short enough! Unfortunately, I really didn't like the print, and the fabric was so thin and cheap-feeling that it was see-through and stretching awkwardly at my hips. I'm considering getting this maxi skirt from Ann Taylor instead, since it's on sale right now.

Verdict: Returned.

I just don't know what else to do - I saw on another blog that it's helpful to request the same stylist but none of mine have really "gotten" my style. I also read that it's helpful to tell your stylist what styles you particularly like - I tend to be a J.Crew/Gap/Ann Taylor sort of person, so maybe if I tell my stylist that, it'll help? I'm just so frustrated. I'm going to email customer service AGAIN and see if they can do anything to help me - I have enough credit to try one more time, so maybe the 4th time will be the charm? 

Or maybe I should just start offering to shop online for other people... Think anyone would pay me $20 to send them a bunch of links to stuff they should wear?

If you found this post helpful and want to try Stitch Fix, I'd love it if you signed up through my referral link - that way I can continue writing these depressing posts about how everything was awful! (But seriously, I know SO many people who love it - it must just be me!)

Singing With Kids {Music Education In the Home}

This may seem like a silly post to write - I bet many of you are already singing a ton with your kids and encouraging healthy vocal development!

But when I was teaching choir, there were always so many parents I met who talked about how they couldn't sing, and they didn't understand how their kids could!

My response? You probably can sing, you just don't. 

You don't have to have a professionally trained voice to sing with your kids, at church, at a karaoke bar, anywhere! Singing is a profoundly personal thing these days, perhaps because of the glorification of solo singing that we've developed as a culture. "If I'm not the next American Idol, nobody could possibly want to hear me sing!" I say who cares? Sing! The best way to become a better singer is to sing, sing, and sing some more!

After all, why do you think babies spend so much time finding their voices?

My theory is that once middle school emotions hit and the voice change arrives, a lot of kids don't know how to navigate the change and lose so much confidence in their singing that they just stop. And then become these same adults who say they "can't" sing!

So what's a parent (or grandparent, or aunt/uncle/cousin/whatever) to do to encourage kids to sing?

1. Sing in an appropriate range.

Kids naturally have a higher singing range than most adults - what may seem a comfortable key to you is very likely far too low for a child to mimic in a healthy tone (we all naturally do this - it's just plain easier!). It takes more effort to support a healthy tone in a higher range for the average untrained singer, but it's easier for a child to echo back in their own range. Generally a range of about D to A is what research has shown to be the "average" range for a 5-year-old child.

Not your average 5-year-old. He's got a range to rival Mariah Carey.

2. Sing "call-and-response" songs.

Songs where you're the leader and your kids echo you back are great for building confidence and independence, and also training their listening skills. Then once they've learned them, they can practice being the leaders themselves!

Here are some of our favorites (you'll have to click through to see the videos if you're on feedly. They're not perfect, since the older kids refused to make a video and Mary Claire and Elizabeth are HILARIOUS when they sing together. And as ridiculous as they sound, they're actually pretty darned tuneful for 2.5-year-olds, so if your kids aren't singing like this, that's totally normal!)

"Oh My No More Pie"

"Down By the Bay"

"I Had a Dog"

3. Repetition is key!

If your kids like a song (and they probably like most of them, if they're like my kids), they'll ask you to sing it again. And again. And again.

Do it! They don't know how to read music yet, so they can't learn these things any way but by rote! Sing it, sing it again, sing it some more... Ask them to fill in words for you as you go along (that's the way we learn prayers, too!), and soon enough they'll have it memorized and they'll be ready to sing with you!

4. Make up songs!

We do a lot of silly singing around the house - conversational singing where you just sing instead of talking is a really great way to develop creative thinking and confidence in singing. This often occurs in an echo-singing sort of way, but can eventually develop into a more free-form model. I've found it's a really effective way to get my kids to have conversations with me, since they love singing and will just keep "talking" in order to continue the game! It's also a great tool for helping them clean up, because we sing about what toys in particular need to get picked up - whatever works!

As an added bonus, they'll get really good at making up their own songs too, which is hilarious!

5. Sing all the time!

I know I told you in #1 to sing in their range, but let's be honest: there are a LOT of songs that just won't fit their range!

Sing them anyway. Hymns, pop songs, hip hop, folk songs, opera, whatever! Your kids don't have to be singing along to be learning, and if you're singing what *you* like, they'll probably be exposed to a wider variety of music that way. The more your kids hear you singing, the more they'll naturally sing on their own. Even if you're "not a singer" - they love the sound of your voice!

What would you add? How to you encourage a culture of singing in your house?

Want to read more? Here's the introduction to this series!

Next time I'm hoping to give you some links to songbooks and cds that will give you some ideas for songs you can sing with your kids! Our country has a rich history of folk music that has been lost, for the most part, because it's not being passed down from generation to generation anymore, and we can change that!

What We're Reading: Princesses, Ballerinas, and Fairy Tales {Five Favorites}

Cecilia's been on a princess kick lately, and has been begging me to get more "beautiful" books from the library, so I put several on hold for her and think I'm going to end up buying them, she and the twins love them so much!

Affiliate links included below:

The Starlight Princess (And Other Princess Stories) - I love books that use nontraditional means for illustration, and this one is so beautiful to look at - all the pictures are embroidery, and the stories are written in a manner that makes them pleasing to read. They're on the long side, so you won't be able to read the whole thing in one sitting, but we've been doing a story or two every day. It's out of print but there are many used copies available, and I think we'll be adding it to our library!

7 Tales by Hans Christian Andersen (Illustrated by Maurice Sendak) - This is one from my childhood that I loved back then, and the illustrations by Maurice Sendak make me love it even more! Again, some pretty long stories, but there are plenty of pictures to keep everyone's attention. The language is engaging enough that I enjoy reading it aloud, which is always a plus! Also out of print, but easy to find used.

Ella Bella Ballerina (Sleeping Beauty, Swan Lake, Cinderella, and The Nutcracker - a new one is coming out in October, also!) - we spotted these at a friend's house and Cecilia immediately asked if we could get them, too. They're fairly new (the first was written in 2008), and go through abbreviated versions of the accompanying fairy tales. They also have a page at the back explaining who the composer of the actual ballet was, and I think we'll be watching some YouTube videos and listening to the music to go along with the books - you can't go wrong with Prokofiev, Tchaikovsky, and others!

Beauty and the Beast - Really any Jan Brett is going to be wonderful, no matter what. The illustrations beautiful and detailed as always, and everyone loved pointing out specific details in the pictures. This is one that the girls are happy to look at quietly for long periods of time, and they also love having it read to them. My mom read it to them several times on her recent visit, and it's NOT short! But it's another that's written well enough that it's enjoyable to read aloud. And did you know that you can get free coloring pages on her website?

The Princess and the Goblin - I'm really not sure what the best edition of this book would be to buy... Ours isn't illustrated, and I wish it were! This is the one I'm currently reading aloud with John Paul and Cecilia and they LOVE it. Not all of the books we read have strong male and female characters, but this one is so perfect for them - Curdie is a very strong but skeptical boy and Irene is sweet and compliant but fiery at the same time (remind you of anyone?). George MacDonald was one of C.S. Lewis's favorite authors, and didn't write this specifically for children but for ALL to enjoy, which is apparent from the rather lofty vocabulary. I'm finding myself having to explain a lot of tricky words to the kids, and sometimes the sentence structure is complex enough that I have to go back to make sure I've put the proper emphasis on things... But it's so beautifully written and engaging that I don't mind!

Linking up with Jenna for Five Favorites and Jessica for What We're Reading!

Chaos Sunday {WIWS}

That second reading today, man... Hit anybody else?

"But he said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you,

for power is made perfect in weakness.” 

I will rather boast most gladly of my weaknesses,

in order that the power of Christ may dwell with me."

So with that reading in mind, shall I boast of my weaknesses? Mass behavior. It's never gone well. Some day, maybe? But I like to turn our crazy into a little bit of humor, so I made this up and posted it on facebook last week:

There were so many that I forgot about or that didn't make the cut... Most notably, kids crawling under the pews, kids flashing the congregation, kids making MOM flash the congregation... Worst Mass moment for you? I'd love to hear it!

Another weakness? Housekeeping.

This is tame. Believe me.

These pictures are from last weekend, actually... My sister was in town and we took the four older kids to Mass together, so of course the twins had to play off of each other and be fairly obnoxious the whole time.

(Pet peeve: If you're going to sit behind a bunch of kids with your ONE baby, and your baby HAS to have food during Mass, can you at least make it food that doesn't come from a large crinkly bag? And can you maybe not drop some under the pew so that I have to kick it out of the way so my kids don't try to eat it? Sigh.)

I couldn't pick just one picture, obviously! And don't ask me why Mary Claire ripped her barrette out of her hair and shoved it in her mouth for the pictures...

While I'm blogging, I might as well answer Kendra's questions!

1. How did you celebrate the 4th of July?

Low-key, grilling at home (when the rain let up!) and then fireworks and sparklers in the back yard!

Elizabeth ran inside screaming, Cecilia ran to me, giggling, and sweet John Paul unconsciously grabbed Mary Claire's arm when she started to dash towards the fireworks. He may not always be nice to his sisters, but when it comes time to protect them? He's got this big brother thing down!

I shared this picture on instagram but had to share it again - we set some off while the twins were still awake because late bedtimes were NOT happening...

Needless to say, we did the remainder of the fireworks after the little kids were in bed... But still didn't even wait for it to get dark because John Paul and Cecilia were so tired and we wanted them to go to bed!

The fireflies were already out though, which was fun!

2. Do you sunburn easily?

YES. I've got freckles all over to prove it, but these days I just stay out of the sun during peak hours and don't have any issues. 

3. Hot dogs. Yay or nay?

Yay! But only beef hot dogs -  anything less is gross, but I dig Hebrew National!

4. Have you ever personally set off fireworks?

No, and I have no desire to!

5. Have you ever jumped off the high dive?

Nope. I've never been a very good swimmer, and still have unfortunate memories of a low diving board and a skimpy bikini and a rather long time underwater before I felt comfortable emerging after a wardrobe malfunction... 

6. Do you do anything weird in your sleep?

Apparently sometimes I talk in my sleep. In college I creeped out my roommate because I was whispering one of our Latin choir pieces in my sleep and she thought I was possessed. These days mostly I just nurse in my sleep, but I don't know that that's very weird!

Linking up with Kendra at Catholic All Year and Fine Linen & Purple - hope you had a great weekend!

The Favorite Sister?

Sometimes I wonder if the novelty of Peter has worn off... Nobody's jockeying for his attention anymore now that he's mobile, mostly they're trying to keep him from eating their various books and chokeable treasures. 

But Mary Claire still acts like every time she sees him again is the FIRST time!

"PEEEEEE-der!!! Can I give him a hug and a kiss? And say 'Ip, Pih-bip?' (Her nickname for him) Can I mush him? And say 'Peter WHAT are you doin'?' And I kiss him and he give me a WET kiss?"

She makes him laugh SO hard. Usually whatever it is is incredibly annoying to me until I see how much Peter absolutely adores it. 

Of course, she also thinks it's hilarious to try to ride him when he's crawling. And she runs up to him "mushes" his cheeks until he MUST be in pain.

Lately I can't leave them alone to play together anymore because I'll hear him inevitably cry and run to find that she's pinched him.

"DO NOT pinch the baby!"

"Um, I di'nt pinch him, I 'nidded' him!"

Not a thing.

Or I find his head covered with saliva, because she practiced her spitting skills right over his hair.

It really is nice to see how much these two have bonded, though - the twins have their special twin thing going on and I really wondered where Peter would fit in with all the other kids. I think they still like him!