Hi friends! Happy Friday. I’m popping in today with some things I’m loving lately.
Things I’m Loving Lately
1) My first baby is 6 years old!
Wow, how did that happen?!
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Riese’s birthday was the day after Thanksgiving this year, on Friday, and we spent it with Matt’s family at the rental house where we were staying for the long weekend in Massanutten, Virginia. (Here’s my Thanksgiving day recap in case you missed it!)
We had big plans for the afternoon that would go into the evening (an indoor water park adventure!), so we decided to celebrate her birthday first thing in the morning with her cousins and the rest of Matt’s family.
Once the kids went to bed the night before we set out a ton of balloons, party hats, and some unicorn plates to have a birthday pancake party. Riese was so excited!
Matt whipped up a feast for everyone – pancakes with fruit, whipped cream, and even rainbow sprinkles. Plus some bacon!
Riese had candles in her pancakes so we could all sing to her. It was a fun way to kick off her birthday!
And as for the afternoon water park fun, I didn’t get any pictures because I was too busy hitting all the slides, but we had a blast! Riese LOVED it and for the first time she went on all the huge big slides, which was super fun for me and Matt to get to do with her. Wes loved the little kid area, too!
2) Fall hiking
We got in a couple fun hikes while on our Thanksgiving trip and it was so nice to get out and enjoy the cool weather and blue skies that we so often have here in Virginia in the fall!
I wrote about our first hike already in my Thanksgiving recap, but we got in another nice one on Saturday, this time at a spot called the Lake Shenandoah Pollinator trail.
The first part of the hike was in an area where in the spring or summer it must be stunning with lots of wildflowers. It was not as gorgeous going into winter, but it was only the first little bit of the trail so it was fine!
After a little while the trail started hugging Shenandoah Lake which was gorgeous.
We made it down by the water to throw rocks in, of course. There was a lot of slippery clay down there that stuck to shoes which wasn’t ideal but we were able to wipe it off with sticks as we continued the hike.
I think the whole loop ended up being about 1.5 or 2 miles total. It was a really nice one!
3) Life Extension’s Super Sale! (sponsored)
I love the Life Extension website – it’s a great one-stop-shop for high-quality supplements and vitamins as well as pantry staples, and right now they are having their big Super Sale!
This sale only happens once per year, and EVERY item on their site is on sale. It’s the perfect time to stock up on any supplements you like and to grab some stocking stuffer pantry staples (like the olive oil I’m holding below), too!
Here are some of the supplements and products that Matt and I buy from Life Extension:
- Ashwagandha Plus Calm & Focus – helps promote a healthy response to stress and supports concentration.*
- Vitamin D3 – my doctor suggested I take Vitamin D at my last checkup so I’ve been taking this ever since.
- Melatonin IR/XR – this immediate release/extended-release combo can help with occasional sleeplessness.* I like bringing it along when I travel and am trying to sleep in a new-to-me bed!
- Super Omega-3 Plus EPA/DHA – promotes heart and brain health.*
- Glucosamine/Chondroitin – helps promote healthy joints.*
- California Estate Extra Virgin Olive Oil – pictured with me above! High quality with a delicious rich flavor and would make an awesome stocking stuffer.
- Rainforest Blend Organic Whole Bean Coffee – another stocking stuffer fave!
Happy shopping!
*These statements have not been evaluated by the Food and Drug Administration. These products are not intended to diagnose, treat, cure, or prevent any disease. Consult your doctor before making any changes to your supplement routine.
4) Veggie omelettes with salsa
When Matt and I were in Belize a couple weeks ago (my recaps from that trip are coming soon!), I had a veggie-packed omelette with salsa every single morning and it was so delicious. I hadn’t thought to put salsa in an omelette before and it was so good; I’m a convert!
(Also, take me back to that view…!)
I recreated a variation of it back at home and have been enjoying occasionally taking a few extra minutes to make myself a nice breakfast before starting the workday once the kids are at school. So yummy!
5) Fall leaves!
I know this is similar to number 2, but I’m so obsessed with the fall colors right now! Especially the contrast of the beautiful leaves against a bright blue sky. So beautiful.
I took this picture on a run around our neighborhood last week – couldn’t resist stopping to document it!
6) Cozy sheet pan meals
We are loving sheet pan meals in our house lately.
This was a Blue Apron (affiliate link) meal we enjoyed one night this week – the combination of the panko crusted chicken (<- super similar recipe) and the roasted sweet potato and brussels sprouts was so good. And I always love how with sheet pan meals the work is all upfront and then the majority of the time is hands off! Helpful with kids underfoot.
You can find some inspiration over on my sheet pan meals recipe page if you’re looking for new recipe ideas!
7) A new planner!
Does anyone else totally geek out about getting a new planner? Must be my Virgo nature coming out because I love it. 🙂
I use my calendar on my phone for any appointments, travel, kid stuff, etc., but for my blog editorial calendar and related work deadlines I really like using a paper planner – it helps me to see it all laid out in one place!
Here’s the one I bought this year (affiliate link) – it’s the same one I had last year just with a different design cover. I figure it’s working so I’ll stick with it! It’s a monthly only calendar, not weekly/daily.
8) A festive house
I’ve been fighting off a bad cold this week and ended up asking Matt to pick the kids up from school for me one afternoon so I could rest, and when I came downstairs just before dinner I discovered that they had decided to do some Christmas decorating!
Riese was SO excited about it, and I helped her finish up the last few decorations. Apparently Wes had been banished by this point (and was watching some Daniel Tiger) because he had thought it was fun to try to smash some of the glass ornaments… oh, toddlers.
I always love having a decorated tree in the house – it makes everything feel so festive. We used our fake tree this year instead of a real one as we’ll be in and out of town around the holidays and didn’t want to worry about a fresh tree getting too dry. We miss the smell of a fresh tree, but the fake one we have is quite nice and has been a good investment!
This post has gotten super long so I’ll wrap up here. Have a nice weekend, friends, and see you back here next week!
