When we last left off, it was April 1 and I said I didn’t have any April Fools’ Day pranks planned. This was totally true at the time but then I stumbled upon a free app that let me add a fake ear piercing to a picture of Chase…
Of course I had to try to fool my family with it and added a diamond stud cartilage piercing to Chase before texting the picture to Ryan, my sister and my parents, giggling away and feeling awfully proud of myself. Despite the not-so-great quality of the picture, I thought I might get at least one of them to believe me for a hot second, but no dice. Worst April Fools’ Day prank everrr. But at least I cracked myself up, right?
Saturday
My Saturday began on a sweaty note with a full body burst workout at Burn Boot Camp. I attended the 8 a.m. camp so I would have enough time to nurse Chase, shower and get ready before I had to leave to pick up my friend Melanie to head to a baby shower that was about an hour away.
The mama-to-be we were off to celebrate was our friend Amii!
I met Amii a couple of months after we moved to the Charlotte area and used to see her almost every day when we were both regular attendees at the 6 a.m. Pure Barre class. It was so great to spend the day with some of my favorite Pure Barre buddies (including one of my favorite instructors) as we celebrated Amii’s baby girl!
The shower took place at one of Amii’s best friend’s house and her home was perfect for hosting such a gorgeous party. Though the day started out rainy, the sun came out in time for the shower and we spent most of the time on the beautiful porch enjoying the breeze and lovely 70-degree weather.
I am such a sucker for adorable decorations and loved the onesie banner Amii’s friend made using iron-on numbers she purchased through Etsy.
I’m already bookmarking this idea for any baby showers I may help plan in the future! (Her friend ordered numbers made with Lilly Pulitzer fabric because Amii is a big Lilly fan. So cute!)
This is the first baby shower I’ve attended since I actually became a mother myself and I must admit watching a mom-to-be open presents was a lot more interesting now that I actually understand the purpose behind a lot of the gifts! I tried to stick to Amii’s registry for one of my gifts (Sophie the giraffe teether and book), but couldn’t resist throwing in a cute pair of pink moccasins for her little girl and an Aden + Anais burpy bib set we use regularly when feeding Chase as well.
The food at Amii’s shower was delicious and included homemade tarts, a ginger mango and blueberry salad and a fresh tomato salad, along with a refreshing cucumber spritzer drink that everyone loved.
The cake was the highlight for me and I had no problem polishing off every last bite of my piece.
(FYI for the locals, the cake came from Savory Plum in Denver and was fantastic!)
We had such a nice time celebrating Amii and Walt and their baby girl at her shower and I’m so grateful for the extra time with some of my favorite Pure Barre friends. Congratulations again, Amii! You will be a wonderful mom!
After I dropped Melanie off at her house, I drove back home and spent the rest of my Saturday with Ryan, Chase and Sadie. We went for a walk around the neighborhood (and ran into the friendliest blog readers – thanks so much for saying hi!) before calling it a night and hanging out at home. We got sushi take-out for dinner and ice cream for dessert and it was glorious.
Sunday
Sunday began with a frittata breakfast and meal planning! All Burn Boot Camp locations are starting a 30-day “Commit 2 Fit” challenge today and while I’m not planning to follow the nutrition guidelines to a tee, I am going to make an effort to clean up my diet a bit in line with the challenge.
My main goals are to try to be mindful of my sugar intake (and reach for healthier options like dates and fruit when my sweet tooth kicks in) and up my vegetable intake. I’ve noticed that vegetables are the first thing to go in my diet when I don’t take the time to plan or prep meals earlier in the week so I’m trying to focus on including them in as many meals and snacks as possible.
On the menu for this week:
- Monday: Rotisserie Chicken with Cauliflower Fried Rice
- Tuesday: One Pot Chicken Cabbage Bowl with Sesame Ginger Broth (I can’t stop making this one!)
- Wednesday: Easy Marinated Pork Chops with Mashed Sweet Potatoes and Braised Red Cabbage
- Thursday: Pizza Egg Bake (Hoping my idea for this dinner turns out well enough to share with you guys!)
- Friday: Burgers with Caramelized Onions and Mushrooms served with Roasted Carrots and Brussels Sprouts
By the time I had my grocery list for the week complete, Chase was up and ready for a playmate. After Chase nursed and ate bananas for breakfast, we spent most of the morning playing, reading and goofing around with our favorite little guy before he was ready for his morning nap. I used the two free hours to begin working on this blog post, tackle a load of laundry and straighten up the family room. And then Chase was up and we were off to Barnes and Nobel to pick up some new books for the family.
We stopped by the story time area to read some books with Chase but it was pretty crowded, so we changed our plans and set up camp by the trains for a little while which entertained him quite a bit.
Ryan and I each picked out some books for ourselves before leaving. Those of you who follow me on Snapchat (—> juliepbfingers) already know this (and saw my embarrassing video!), but I nabbed The Last Anniversary by Liane Moriarty since I loved a bunch of her previous novels. I’m hoping this will be a good one as well! (If you are looking for a great beach read this summer, I highly recommend Liane Moriarty’s The Husband’s Secret. I read that one last summer and thought it was great.)
I also picked up Defending Jacob by William Landay (please excuse my child eating the book…) which has been on my radar for years thanks to so many of your glowing recommendations. I’m excited to dive into that one soon!
Before heading back home, we swung by Clean Juice for a little pick-me-up and the combination of beets, apples, celery and ginger in my juice was so refreshing!
We spent the rest of our Sunday outside walking around our neighborhood for almost two hours, grocery shopping and relaxing at home. After Chase went to bed, I got to work in the kitchen prepping a bunch of food for the week including egg muffins, chia seed pudding, a ham and sweet potato casserole (I’m crossing my fingers that one tastes okay…) and lots of veggie chopping. I’m looking forward to starting the week on a healthy note!
I hope you guys had a great weekend!
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