Saturday
Our Saturday morning kicked off with family workouts! Ryan had quite the workout on the agenda — a swim in the lake, biking in our garage, and a run around our neighborhood. He is considering signing up for a triathlon at the end of October and I’ve been super impressed with his training so far. Ryan doesn’t own a road bike so that’s a bit of a hurdle at the moment (they’re also crazy-expensive so not something you’d just buy for one race) but he’s been talking with some friends and bike shops in the area about rentals. It’s been fun to see him so amped up about training and aaalmost makes me miss training for a longer road race. I honestly do miss my half marathon days sometimes but I also really like my current workout schedule and wouldn’t want to swap any of my strength sessions for longer runs, so here we are.
Ryan was up crazy early to begin his at-home triathlon but eventually the boys and I were up, too, and cheered for him as he ran up our driveway at the end of his workout. I then put Rhett down for his morning nap and went through a workout of my own!
Chase and Ryder requested workout mats next to mine and worked out with me for all of 2.5 seconds before deciding that riding their bikes and scooters around sounded way more fun than mom’s workout. Ryan ended up taking the big kids on a short bike ride while I completed a metabolic conditioning workout I streamed from the Burn Boot Camp archives.
Do you ever have those days when you feel like you’re waaay sweatier during a workout than you should be? I never felt like I was pushing myself too much during Saturday’s workout but man oh man the amount of sweat dripping off my face (and my knees!) would tell you otherwise. I blame the humidity!
After my workout and a much-needed shower, I got dressed and ready before Rhett was up and we all made our way to Lake Davidson for a birthday party.
(Tank Top / Headband / Shorts / Rhett’s Tank / Rhett’s Shorts / Rhett’s Moccasins)
The boys’ friend JJ turned four last week and opted for a fishing birthday party like he did last year which was right up our boys’ alley. (<– Oh my gosh those photos from his birthday party last year took me back. Check out teeny newborn Rhett!) I’m pretty sure every kid at the party caught at least one fish which made the morning awfully exciting.
After we said goodbye to JJ and our friends, I checked Great Clips’ online check-in on my phone and saw that the location near our house didn’t have a wait so I booked all three boys for some much-needed haircuts.
I felt like our crew took over half of the place! Ha! They did a great job and you better believe I saved some of the hair clippings because it was actually Rhett’s FIRST haircut! I went into crazy mom mode and ended up saving clippings from Chase and Ryder’s haircuts, too, because I thought the side-by-side comparison might be fun to look back on one day.
By the time we made it home, Rhett was ready for his second nap of the day and slept hard while I worked and Ryan entertained the big kids. I also needed some help shooting some pics for a brand to use on their social media pages so Ryan helped me with that as well before Rhett was up and we were all ready for dinner.
We ended up grilling out and calling it an early night for the boys before Ryan and I hung out on the couch together for a bit before bed.
Sunday
Sunday morning began with some fussy kids who clearly needed some fresh air. We rounded everyone up and took our gang on a walk/bike ride around the neighborhood. It did everyone a lot of good and we arrived home in a much better frame of mind.
Once we were back at the house, the kids played in the yard and around the house while Ryan did yard work and I did some laundry and inside clean up. My father-in-law arrived around 11 a.m. to accompany Ryan and the big kids to Ryan’s intramural soccer game. I hung back with Rhett since it was his naptime and got some work done while he slept. I also placed an Instacart order and did a little meal planning for the week ahead.
Here’s a glimpse at our dinner menu this week:
- Monday: Turkey Vegetable Meatloaf with Baked Sweet Potatoes
- Tuesday: Chicken Sausage with Summer Squash Casserole
- Wednesday: Vegetarian Chickpea Curry
- Thursday: Orange Juice Marinated Chicken Thighs with Roasted Zucchini and Hawaiian Rolls
- Friday: Pizza Night!
After my Instacart order arrived and Rhett was awake, Rhett and I went for his very first bike ride around the neighborhood!
I recently ordered Rhett a baby bike helmet and he loooved riding in the front-mount bike seat we got for Ryder a while back. It was such a fun ride and Rhett was obsessed with looking over the sides at the ground flying by below him.
By the time we made it back, I thought Rhett was ready for another nap, so I put him down and got to work in the kitchen making a beef stew for our crew for dinner. Ryan and the gang arrived home soon after I got the beef stew in the Instant Pot and Rhett never settled, so we ended up hanging out in the yard and around the house until dinner, bath time, stories and the whole nighttime routine.
I need to make the beef stew we had last night again and measure everything out because it was so, so good! I used frozen butternut squash in the recipe which dissolved into the broth making it a thick and hearty beef stew with lots of nutrient-dense ingredients. We loved it!
As for our plans for the week, it looks like a pretty typical week over here and it will actually be first week I have both Chase and Ryder in school Monday through Thursday. (Chase also goes to school on Fridays but Ryder’s preschool is Monday through Thursday until 1 p.m.) I’m hoping this will help with my productivity during the week if Rhett’s naps allow for some solid work time. As always, I appreciate you guys stopping by the blog today and hope you have a great Monday!
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I have done quite a few triathlons and love them! How long is the race Ryan wants to do? How long is the bike portion? If it’s a sprint tri with a shorter bike segment, he could get away with using a mountain or hybrid bike.
It’s actually a Half Ironman so he definitely thinks he needs the right bike. The looong biking segment is definitely what concerns him most at the moment!
Have you thought about looking into buying a used road bike? I’ve seen some decent ones before on FB marketplace and Nextdoor in our area in the $400-600 range, which I know is below the like $2k+++++ that a new road bike can be!
Thanks for this tip!! I’ll pass this along to Ryan because I know he was surprised at how expensive it is to just RENT a bike for his race! Used sounds like a great way to go if he can find one that works for him!
I’ve done two half Ironmans and he will definitely need a road bike! Clip on aero bars are a cheap option to add to a road bike to make it more comfortable and aero for that long of a distance. I would have him invest in a bike now so he can train on it. Riding a fitness bike vs a road bike outside is very different. He could check out the local bike shops to see if they have any used bikes for sale. My husband got a nice Specialized (great brand!) road bike for around $300 or so a few years ago. And then he can practice drinking and eating fuel on the bike to see how many water bottles he needs, etc. Out of curiosity, what race is he considering?
My husband did an Olympic distance triathlon a few years ago (not competitive, just for fun), and he also didn’t have a bike to train with but instead trained on a Peloton. He rented a bike for the event, but his biggest regret was not biking on the road at least a few times before the event. I know he would highly recommend getting out on the road before the race. Good luck!
Have you looked at the Recyclery shop in Charlotte? They refurbish some pretty nice bikes for decent deals and some of the money raised goes towards charity. Good to look at for kids bikes too!
I am sorry for the late comment – and I am sure you know this – but *please* make sure Rhett’s helmet is down over his forehead, at his eyebrows. Having it back the way it is in the picture just exposes his forehead if he were to fall. Like I said – I’m sure you know this, and it might have just been for the picture, but oh, I would hate for anything to happen to one of your precious boys. Thanks for understanding.
yes yes!! thank you for looking out for our little guy!