We had Easter dinner at our house again this year. Justin, Kate, baby Brielle, Becky, Jared and Grandma and Grandpa joined us. It was such a nice, relaxing afternoon together.
When you wake up from nap and there are a bunch of people in your house…
Opening round two of Easter baskets with grandma and grandpa.
The bubbles were a big hit!
Even Jack the cat got in on the action.
Uncle Jared and Aunt Becky! Baby girl is due any day now!
Uncle Justin and Aunt Kate!
It was Brielle’s first Easter, she slept through most of the afternoon :)
If I don’t look directly at him, the guy with the beard doesn’t exist.
Grandpa’s pretty funny when he pretends to sleep.
Becky made us this super cute dessert. Andy’s mom also made a cheesecake and Kate made a peanut butter banana pie that got smushed by their stroller ;-) Oh well, it was all delicious! We ended up going a little nontraditional on the main meal though. Andy wanted to make something in the smoker so we smoked a turkey (Justin gave us much flack for it).
I hosted a baby shower for Becky a few weeks ago. Becky’s mom, sister, nieces, a few friends and ladies from church all came to help celebrate Becky and baby girl.
Baby Shower Favors: Pooh’s Honey Brown Sugar Scrub.
Use in the shower for super smooth skin. Honey, sugar, brown sugar and sunflower oil.
My brother and his wife had their first baby girl a few weeks ago! She is the CUTEST! It was really neat to get to see Justin step into the role of daddy too, they are awesome parents already! Ben was so excited that he got to hold her (sorry no pics, I was making sure he didn’t get bored with her and dump his cousin on the floor). Cassidy inquisitively walked up and waved “hi” but then was on to other business (reading books). I fell in love <3 No newborn baby pangs here though, happy to snuggle and return :)
I planted garden seeds with the kids today. We want to involve them in the process from planting to harvesting later in the summer, but if I’m being honest it was rather painful ;-) It was messy, took an insanely long time and I’m sure a handful of seeds didn’t end up where they were supposed to. Ben was fascinated with how small the lettuce seeds were. Cassidy just liked dumping dirt in the holes. The kids had fun though and it’ll be neat to have them a part of it all.
We had a playdate with friends a few weeks ago. We wanted to do something a little different with the kids so we made spaghetti boxes they could dig and poke around in. Sounds kind of weird, but they had fun…for like 5 minutes. Then they were off doing something else ;-)
I’ve been thinking about this for a while but wanted to write all of it down and get some thoughts and ideas. I feel like I’ve got the exercise thing down (said with humility, haha). Aerobics, weights, conditioning classes paired with the running…check. I’m always learning new things and am by NO means an expert, but I feel like I’ve got the exercise part of the equation down. Love a good sweat and workout!
The other half of the monster is what’s going into my body. I feel like I’ve been so exhausted, sluggish and achey lately. Now granted there’s the whole mother to young kids exhaustion that comes into play, but when I thought about what I’ve been eating everything started making more sense. It’s been junk, if I’m honest. I’ll have the random piece of fruit here or lean protein there but mostly it’s been frozen chicken nuggets, mac n cheese, canned soups, PB&J and processed, processed, processed the list goes on. These things aren’t terrible, but I have a feeling they’re not meant to be long term sustenance for my body.
Here’s where I need help! I don’t know if it’s new dinner ideas that I need or just a push in the direction towards “real” food. As much as I’d like to think so, chicken nuggets are not real food. Well, not really good for you food. I know white bread is virtually pointless, so I’ve started buying a multigrain bread. I know juice isn’t exactly healthy so I’ve cut back, but I’m still chugging 1% milk like nobody’s business. Is almond milk better? What about cooking oils, don’t some give you cancer or something? And then what about vitamins? I’m SURE the gummy multivitamin I’m giving the kids isn’t the best option.
Seriously, I need a book or a website or some input to help move me in the right direction. I’m not looking for some miracle food shake or overnight changes. Just a slow introduction into what I should be putting into my body and giving my family. I’m not even looking to go vegan or eat 100% organic. I’m just looking to make better choices!
