A Day in the Life

Just sharing a little day in the life with 5 year old twins, a 1 year old, and a hubby that's actually HOME during a weekday for once! Matt took off this week! So, today was a bit different from what our normal days look like.... number one: because Matt is actually home, & number 2: the kids are on Christmas break from virtual. I'll have to share what a "real" day looks like over here....it's a whole lot of crazy!

7:00

Matt got out of bed around 7-7:30, which means all the kiddos slowly roll out of bed and follow him downstairs....which leaves me to have 10 minutes in bed alone!! we are normally up way before then, but it's break...we are living the dream this week! I made my way down by 7:30 & the first thing I do is make an Arbonne fizz/mindhealth & brew a cup of coffee! Arie actually brews it if I'm honest... he loves pushing the buttons & gets so excited when it starts brewing. The little things when you're a babe!! 

8:00

Got the boys some breakfast, finished my coffee on the couch & then went in to get ready for the day. It was a nice slow morning... I'm usually dressed and ready by 7:30 for the day, so the slower pace was nice for a change!!

9:00

We got ourselves & the boys dressed & ready for the day so we could head out to run a few errands, and just literally go "out". We feel like we've been stuck inside all break so far!! We needed to get out... even if it was really just to gather some groceries!

10:00

We loaded up the car and headed to the market in the next town over. We usually get fresh (live) lobsters there every year for NYE, so that's what we did! We also grabbed a few other things for our dinner!

Our Menu:

lobster

garlic + herb linguine

roasted carrots

cheddar bay biscuits

(kids are making their own pizzas!!)

triple fudge brownies (matts request)

chocolate cake with vanilla icing (boys request)

champagne (my request) lol

& sparkling rose cider for the kids

11:00

we took our groceries to the car & ran back into the strip mall to grab a slice of pizza! It was nice to actually eat out in public for once instead of ordering takeout!! The pizza was delish & the staff there is always so nice! When we finished I ran into the dollar tree & grabbed some fun things for NYE to make it fun for the boys! We plan to decorate the house tomorrow!

12:00

Arie fell asleep on the way home so I got all of our groceries put away & got out all the goodies for tomorrow night! They were super excited to see the things I picked up & can't wait until tomorrow for our "party"!! 

1:00

Arie woke up & was ready to play (after it took him a bit to wake up from being a bit grumpy). We played while the bigger boys played on their new iPods (Matt's gift to them)!

2:00

Our lobsters weren't doing so hot in the water (haha), so we decided we better cook them now & we will just reheat them in butter tomorrow night! The boys helped Matt cook them, even though Peyton BEGGED for an hour to "please lets just keep one!" My true animal lover! As they did that, I cleaned up the downstairs (again) and ran the vacuum.... very exciting I know!

3:00

I went in & decided to start baking the boys' dessert requests for tomorrow night! Don't worry, they are both boxed! Lol I am NOT a baker...cooking I LOVE, but baking is not my thing... I will leave that to my sister!! My cousin and my two nieces showed up with gifts for the boys a bit after! It was so nice to see them since we couldn't get together at Christmas!

4:00

the desserts are done & they smell soooo yummy! I don't even like chocolate much (or dessert really), but I outdid myself! HA!! Thank gosh for boxed recipes!! We just hung out a bit before I started making dinner....new recipe!! homemade supremes wraps! 

5:00

I started dinner around 5ish..got everything out to make it & got to work. I made SUPREME WRAPS! They were literally...so good. But, I also can't move! Lol The twins had leftover ham + potato soup for dinner that I made yesterday afternoon to use up some of our leftover ham! They loved it, Arie loved it, so I  would say it was a win! Arie eats EVERYTHING, so he shared some of mine & Matt's wraps... he was a FAN.

6:00

after supper we went into the living room and just chilled out! The boys got in their jammies, I got in mine/washed my face, and joined everyone on the couch to watch Wheel of Fortune at 7:00 (literally, Parker's favorite show) & Matt and I will start a new Netflix series tonight that my bestie Kate told me about once the kids go to bed!! It's going to be a very low-key night! So, with that I am signing off! Tomorrow we go to NYE mass & back home to start our own little party!!!

We hope everyone has a very safe & very happy New Year! xoxo

Baby's First (solid) Foods!

I've had a few moms message me and ask me what table foods I started Arie with, so I figured I would share! I exclusively nursed Arie since he was born. He is just about 10 months (he also has 8 teeth) so he is OVER eating pouches & puffs... he just doesn't prefer them anymore, and would rather have more "solid" foods. I do still nurse him in the morning & before bed around 7:30-8:00...& occasionally during the night if he reaches for me/is fussing. Other than that though, we are almost full force with the solid foods! And he couldn't be happier about it..... Obviously!

Since I started Arie on table foods, we mostly stick to BLW (Baby Led Weaning)...meaning I cut up the food and let him feed himself. We actually started that quite early with him, unlike we did with the twins. I do feed him with a fork/spoon with some things... mostly yogurts, apple sauce, etc.

these are just what we are comfortable with giving him. I hope it gives you some ideas & I hope your little one loves them as much as Arie does! Happy Feeding!!

*IMPORTANT* 

almost all of these foods I either cut up or break up into VERY tiny pieces. Please do not give your baby anything too big, as their airway is extremely small. If in doubt, cut it up more! Never leave them while they are eating! And make sure they get plenty of water between bites. :)

• scrambled eggs
• mac & cheese (we typically use Annie's)
• chicken nuggets
• french toast sticks
• buttermilk pancakes + waffles
• hotdogs (skin off & cut lengthwise into 6 long strips, & cut in the tiniest of pieces)
• arrowroot biscuits (Gerber)
• breakfast sausage (cut lengthwise into 4 long strips & cut into small bites)
• homemade mashed potatoes
• shredded cheese or cheese sticks
• meatballs
• pasta/rice
• little muffins (we get Entenmann's)
• riced veggies
• whole milk yogurt (Gerber)
• strawberries
• hard boiled eggs (no yolk)
• apple sauce pouches 
• sweet potato + broccoli bites (we get Aldi brand)
• veggie straws
• banana cookies (Gerber)
• peanut butter + jelly on wheat bread (I flatten the bread & cut off the edges before assembling) 
• lil crunchies (Gerber) /little munchers (Little Journey-- Aldi)
• baked oat bars-- we love Brekkie Bites by Simply Nature (Aldi)