Friday was a fun one over here because we had an extra friend with us all day! I watched Chase’s BFF Claire on Friday because my friend Lauren (Claire’s mom) and her husband were prepping their house to move across town this weekend. Boxing up tons of stuff with a three-year-old in the mix sounded like a recipe for low productivity and we were happy to have Claire over so we filled our Friday with pizza-making, coloring and lots of play!
Since Chase’s nap time was overruled by playtime, he was a bit of a beast by the early evening, so we opted to stay in on Friday night and hung out at home as a family.
Saturday
Saturday morning began a little after 5 a.m. when Ryder was up for the day. Our sleep regression battles continue over here and I’m pretty sure this week may be the week we transition Ryder into his crib and out of the bassinet beside our bed. I’ve been running on fumes some days because he’s been so noisy and fidgety at night and I think transferring him to his crib will be better for everyone. Let’s hope it’s a smooth move!
Since Ryan, Ryder and I were up before the sun, we eased into the day with coffee and then when Ryan went to the gym for an early morning workout, I put Ryder down for a nap (a nap at 6:30 a.m. — comical, huh?) and spent the next hour working.
Since Friday was a wash on the work front, I went into the weekend feeling behind. Friday is almost always my “get ahead” day for work and really helps me feel less stressed going into the following week. Thankfully knocking out 90 minutes of work on Saturday morning helped me feel less overwhelmed and I typed up the blog post I’ll be sharing on Thursday before Chase was up for the day.
Chase woke up soon after Ryan arrived home and the two of them played doctor while I managed to photograph a recipe for cheese puff casserole to go along with Thursday’s post before we had to head out.
For the longtime blog readers, YES, I’m finally sharing our family’s favorite Christmas morning breakfast recipe! It’s only taken me nine years! Maybe my mom’s monkey bread will be next…
Our plans for the morning took us to a local trampoline park for Chase’s friend Mack’s birthday party! The kids had a great time jumping and running all over the place and Ryan and I enjoyed talking with our friends while I snuggled Ryder close in my baby carrier.
By the time we made it home, it was time for Chase’s nap and he played in his crib with his books and toys for about an hour before falling asleep for another hour. Ryder napped well in the afternoon, too, which was fabulous since it gave me the opportunity to get more work done and Ryan the chance to take Sadie for a walk.
Once everyone was awake, we were ready to head back out to Lowe’s to pick up some paint sample cards to bring back home. Ever since we’ve moved into our house, I’ve wanted to paint our dining room and living room and I’m finally feeling motivated to tackle some random home projects. The dark beige has got to go!
While we were at Lowe’s we naturally had to stop to drive the tractors with Chase and walk through the Christmas tree display. I can already tell Christmas is going to be so much fun with our boys this year because Chase was so into pointing out the big blow up Santas in the store. Bring on all of the holiday fun!
We popped into the grocery store on our way home to pick up stuff to grill outside and while Ryan, Chase and Sadie got dinner ready, I nursed Ryder and put him to bed before joining them for burgers, strawberries, carrots and cookie cake. An eclectic combination but it worked!
Sunday
Sunday morning was a fun one! We were up bright and early because we had plans to meet up with Katie, the talented photographer behind Tripp Photography for some family photos. Katie reached out to me offering to take our pictures because she’s working on establishing a photography presence in the Charlotte area and since we didn’t get around to scheduling newborn photos with Ryder this time, I was so excited to have the chance to get some beautiful professional pictures of our family. I can’t wait to see how they turn out! If the sneak peek pics Katie sent our way are any indication, we are in for an amazing treat!
We made it back home in the late morning and dug into blueberry banana protein pancakes for breakfast 2.0 and I prepped some food for the week, including a whole chicken in the pressure cooker (planning to use the chicken for lunches this week), a batch of Paleo blender muffins and some roasted sweet potatoes, acorn squash and Brussels sprouts.
Our friend Ben came over to watch soccer and hang out as well and we enjoyed spending the rest of our Sunday at home. It was quite chilly on Sunday which made a cozy day at home very appealing. We rounded out the evening with a little baking — Chase helped me bake a double batch of my favorite lactation cookies — and then we called it an early night.
Ryan and I made our way to bed not long after Chase and Ryder went down and I read The First Patient until my eyes could no longer stay open.
And now it’s time to get this Monday rockin’! Chase has the day off from preschool in observance of Veteran’s Day yesterday so we are joining some friends for a boot camp workout followed by a trampoline park play date. Hope you all have a good one!
