Morning
The craziest thing happened in the middle of the night last night and I’m curious to hear if this is even a “thing” or if any of you have experienced this before with your little ones. I swear Ryder was babbling in his sleep. Do babies sleep talk?! I woke up to Ryder’s happy baby babble around 3 a.m. and when I zoomed in on his face with the baby monitor, his eyes were shut tight and he wasn’t moving but he just kept talking away. It was strange and adorable all at once and he did this for about 15 minutes before the babbling stopped.
I managed to fall back asleep after the baby babble shenanigans, but was up for the day at 5 a.m. I said goodbye to Ryan as he headed off to meet up with a friend to work out and then sat down with a cup of coffee and my devotional. I then made my way into my office to work on the computer until the boys were up for the day!
Chase was awake first so we got dressed together and read a couple of books until Ryder started making noise and wanted to nurse. By the time we all made it downstairs, we were more than ready for breakfast! Since the boys both woke up a little earlier than usual, we had enough time to make a fresh batch of pancakes which I’m pretty sure earned me 100 Cool Mom points to start the day.
Chase wanted to help as always, so he climbed up in his cooking stand and helped me mix everything together.
Our family is seriously loving Pamela’s Baking & Pancake Mix (we use it most often for drop biscuits, strawberry shortcake and pancakes), and I almost always make a double or even triple batch of the pancakes when we make them because they are so darn good, and I like freezing the leftovers. Pancake freezer tip: let the pancakes cool completely and then place a small piece of wax paper in between each pancake to help them separate easily!
Pamela’s mix is gluten-free and you would never know it. The pancake mix base is brown rice flour, white rice flour and almond meal, and the mix is non-GMO and made without any added sugar or artificial additives, which I love. (It’s also easy to order off Amazon so you know I’m a fan.) The pancakes are deliciously fluffy and hold up well whenever we add fresh blueberries or chocolate chips to the batter, too!
Once again we made a double batch yesterday morning and simply added two eggs, MCT oil and water to the Pamela’s mix and stirred everything up before pouring the batter onto the griddle. I gave the boys their pancakes with a little maple syrup on the side for Chase and they dug in!
After breakfast, Chase and Ryder played for a bit while I packed Chase’s lunch for school and then he helped me assemble dinner in the crock-pot before it was time to head out for preschool drop-off.
Once Chase was settled in school, Ryder and I made our way to Burn Boot Camp where he hung out with his baby friends in childcare and I met up with some of my friends for a workout.
It was a sweaty one as usual and I left camp feeling that awesome post-workout high I just adore! By the time we made it home, Ryder was ready for his morning nap, so I nursed him and put him down, then I quickly grabbed a shower before making myself a mint chocolate chip protein smoothie to fuel my morning work time.
Ryder slept all the way up until it was time for preschool pickup which was awesome though I always hate to wake him when we have to get moving again!
Afternoon
I’ve noticed that whenever we arrive home from an activity or preschool, Chase does some of his best solo play, which is great for him and me! I try to take full advantage of this time and let him unwind from preschool and play with his toys while I check something off my household to-do list, whether it be dinner prep, throwing in a load of laundry, unloading the dishwasher, etc. Yesterday I managed to get a load of laundry going while Chase played and Ryder jumped in his jumper and then we headed upstairs for “picnic and stories” before the boys’ naps.
I’ve been lucking out with overlapping afternoon naps a few days a week around here lately and whenever that happens it feels like a major victory! I took full advantage of nap time and dug into leftovers for lunch as I cranked out some blog work on the computer.
Leftovers looked like a bowl of red curry noodles that I made for dinner the previous night by following Pinch of Yum’s recipe. I just subbed chicken for the tofu and used edamame noodles. It was a winner!
Once everyone was awake again, I switched back into mom mode and we ate a snack and read a couple of books together before we were all ready to get out of the house again. I was dying to take Sadie on a walk and knew the boys would be excited about a trip to the playground, so we headed out around the neighborhood and ended at our favorite local park.
Everyone was feelin’ the park more than I anticipated so we hung out there for quite a while… long enough for Ryan to meet us there when he got off work.
It was a gorgeous night and I’m seriously lovin’ the extra sunlight we have in the evenings these days!
(FYI, my floral sweatshirt was a recent impulse buy! Loving it and it’s only $20! And now I’m also eyeing this $15 floral sweatshirt as well…)
Once we made it back home, dinner was easy to assemble thanks to the crock-pot prep work we did earlier in the day and we had curried chicken and carrots paired with mashed sweet potatoes.
The rest of the evening passed by in a blur of bath time and bed time routines and I was more than ready to unwind with my latest book when Ryan and I crawled into bed. I am almost done reading The Forgotten Room and it’s great! I didn’t make it through too many pages last night before my eyes got too heavy to stay open.
And that was our day in a nutshell! Thanks so much for following along!
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Looks like a nice day! I love the extra sunlight for sure but can’t wait for the warmth. It’ll be so nice to just go outside and not have to worry about jackets etc. And I just love getting photos with rays of sunshine like those ones at the playground.
Also- love, love your floral top! So pretty and looks super comfy!
Love your floral top!! Where is it from?
thank you!! only $20! it was an impulse order from walmart.com! –> http://bit.ly/2Ur1K9V
Love your blog! Which double stroller do you have? Is it a BOB? Do you recommend it? I’m expecting baby #2 in September and trying to figure out the best option. Thanks!
Marie
YES!!!! It’s amazing!! our go-to stroller for walks around the neighborhood. super easy to push and maneuver. we also have the chicco bravo for 2 which i love for travel/running around town since it’s easier to collapse and all that jazz!
Just started working on a baby registry and wondered what kind of high chair Ryder is in? Looks like a space saver!
It’s the BEST thing ever! It’s the Chicco 360 hook on high chair and we actually ended up returning the big high chair we got after Chase was born b/c we only ever used this one. Love it so much!
that crock pot with mashed sweet potatoes looks delicious! Are you going to post the recipe for that? looks like a fun day!
Hey Julie! Is there a pregnancy friendly protein powder you can recommend?
Scooped up the floral top and $14 backpack you’ve been using lately for the boys. It’ll be perfect for my 12-month-old fella’s stuff. Would love to see what you’re putting in the boys’ Easter baskets!
My almost 9 month old is also a sleep babble-r! It’s the craziest thing! And just another thing that makes him exactly like his dad…. lol
I get a lot of my book ideas from YOU, but where you do YOU hear about yours from?
I actually get a bunch from blog readers!! I also get some from my mom, friends & random Amazon suggestions based on my past reads. I also like @ashleyspivey’s recommendations & Reese Witherspoon’s book club recs!
I can’t believe your oldest still takes a nap! I dragged that out for as loooooong as we possibly could with my oldest, but I finally had to admit defeat about 6 months ago and start doing quiet time in her room, which she resists daily. Take advantage of it while you can, ha ha!
Your meals always look like such a great blend of delicious and healthy—now I’m craving sweet potatoes 🙂
My daughter has always talked in her sleep, ever since she was an infant! She’s 4 now, so don’t expect it to stop anytime soon 🙂 It doesn’t always wake me up now, but it definitely used to!
So funny!! Chase never did this so it’s definitely new to me!
Yes take advantage of that nap as long as you can! My oldest was three when his little brother was born and continued taking his nap until his brother was a couple months old and then gave up. Little guy kept interrupting his nap time. 🙂
Where are Chase’s cute sunglasses from?!
Oh you better believe I’m going to milk his nap for as long as possible! He definitely still needs it b/c on the days when he doesn’t nap it’s glaaaaringly obvious. Ha! And his sunglasses were in a birthday party goodie bag so I’m not sure! I’m guessing a party store of some sort!?
Thanks!
Love your blog and look forward to your posts especially about your boys. I have two boys – 4yo and 16 month old and we live in Columbia, SC. I also enjoy the Charlotte posts for ideas of possible day or weekend trips for us. 🙂
Pancakes for dinner are my favorite busy night trick- my son thinks I’m the coolest and it’s easy! 🙂
LOVED the Forgotten Room! Can’t wait to hear what you think!
Where’s Chase’s plate from?? Love it too- trying to get rid of ALL THE PLASTIC- oy. Thanks Julie!
I had to laugh at your sleep talking comment, Sully is a HUGE sleep talker and because he also doesn’t sleep that great it’s always a ‘is he awake, is he talking in his sleep?” And often it’s like a legit convo him talking to friends or acting something out. I’m a sleep talker too so it doesn’t surprise me!
That sounds like Ryan!! He has full conversations in his sleep and it always throws me for a loop!
Our 9 year old son has talked in his sleep on and off for years. As he’s aged, I’ve noticed it’s more pronounced during a growth spurt or when he is sleep deprived. It still throws me for a loop even after all these years. 🙂 Your boys are SO precious.