Monday Morning
Monday began dark and early with a workout in our kitchen. I recently moved the weights I use for upper body workouts from our garage into a closet in our mudroom for easier access and it’s worked well for me. (I’m just less on edge wondering if the boys have wandered downstairs in the mornings while I’m working out and it also allows me to more easily do workouts in our house when they’re awake.) Anything that makes it easier to squeeze in a quick workout is my jam these days!
I got a little more than halfway through a 30-minute shoulder workout before I saw two fawns and a doe run through our backyard. I knew the big kids were awake and playing in their room so I called them downstairs and we loved watching the deer as the sun came up together. I’m 99 percent sure the deer we see in our yard are to blame for annihilating the tomatoes I planted this summer but they do bring our family a lot of joy so it’s a trade off, I suppose.
After a 10 minute break, I returned to my workout and cranked out the final 15 minutes before packing up Chase’s backpack and saying goodbye to Chase and Ryan as they headed off to Chase’s school drop off. By then Rhett was awake and yelling, “MOM! You hear me? I awake! Come get me!” I love our demanding little man.
Once I had Rhett dressed and breakfast in his belly, he and Ryder were all about completing some floor puzzles together so I grabbed a quick shower, sprayed my hair with dry shampoo and got dressed for the day ahead.
(Skirt: Target / Sweater: Target / Boots: Amazon)
I had about 10 minutes of alone time before two little helpers barged into our bathroom with Duck Duck Dance in their hands. Rhett and Ryder played the game together while I did my makeup which shocked me because the minute Rhett sees me at my vanity counter, he almost always insists on joining me and pulling all of my makeup out of my makeup bag. Duck Duck Dance saved the day! (For anyone with toddlers at home, Duck Duck Dance was a birthday gift for Rhett from my parents and it’s been a huge hit! Rhett truly plays it all the time and it’s adorable.)
Once I was done in the bathroom and Duck Duck Dance was put away, Ryder asked me to play Trouble with him while Rhett played his three-year-old version of Jenga, aka lining up Jenga blocks to make a DIY train track.
Eventually it was time to get everyone loaded into the car which ended up being a little more stressful than anticipated because my car wouldn’t start. After more than 5 minutes of trying, I called Ryan and, of course, it started when I was on the phone with him. I thankfully got Rhett and Ryder to preschool safely but didn’t want to take any chances with my car not starting again so I drove to Chase’s school parking lot before turning my car off. It thankfully turned right back on when I tried again but I knew I had my car where I needed to be since I had plans to join Chase’s class on a school field trip yesterday morning.
I had about 45 minutes to spare before I was needed in Chase’s classroom so I walked to a nearby coffee shop to work until it was time to go.
I spent the rest of the morning with Chase’s class, visiting an assisted living facility and playing balloon volleyball with some of the residents, before walking back to his school and saying goodbye around lunchtime.
Afternoon + Evening
I used the 40 minutes I had left until preschool pickup to pop into ALDI for some groceries and then scooped up Ryder and Rhett and headed home.
We used the time between preschool pickup and Chase’s pickup to prep our favorite crockpot chicken corn chili for dinner and then I reheated leftover soup for lunch. (Rhett and Ryder eat lunch at preschool.)
Hi Pepper!
On Mondays we have a little longer between the boys’ school pickups because Chase has martial arts after school which meant Rhett and Ryder had a little extra time to play yesterday. It also meant they were very much into their games when I said it was time to head back out to pickup their big brother. We had a nice little meltdown from Rhett who really wanted to continue working on his “creation” (aka building with Picasso Tiles) and the first five minutes of our drive were a delightful cacophony of cries and screams. Eventually Rhett settled once I got him laughing about who knows what and we arrived at martial arts with two happy kids again. It’s a rollercoaster sometimes, I’m telling ya.
Chase began martial arts this past spring and though we took a few months off in the summer, he’s back at it again and absolutely loves it. I am continually impressed with the program he’s in and the way it’s about so much more than self defense. There’s a mental component that focuses on respect, self discipline, teamwork, honesty and more and you know that as a parent I’m all about that! I mean just take my money.
Last week Chase was especially excited because he earned his yellow belt!
We are so proud of our big kid!
Almost every day after we make it home from our various school pickups, the boys unload their backpacks and then dash back outside, ready for some fresh air. This often looks like a bike ride and that’s exactly what they wanted to do yesterday.
Pepper and I followed Chase, Ryder and Rhett up and down our street as they pedaled their hearts out and asked me to watch them do various imagination things, almost all of them involving some kind of racing, off roading, motorcycle chases or dirt biking.
By the time we made it inside, baths and pajamas were on the agenda before dinnertime.
I’m such a sucker for any holiday-themed pajamas.
Dinner last night looked like the crockpot chicken corn chili we prepped earlier in the day (if you hurry over to Instagram, you can see Stories of me and the boys whipping it up before they disappear) followed by some playtime with Ryan and the boys before bed.
Once we had everyone tucked into bed, Ryan and I let Pepper out one last time and then, once Ryder was asleep, Chase came back down to read a little bit more from his latest chapter book with us. Chase and Ryder share a room which makes bedtime a little tricky since Ryder, at 5-years-old, needs more sleep than his 8-year-old brother. A few nights a week, we’ve started to let Chase sneak out of his room once Ryder is asleep (Ryder typically falls asleep FAST) to have some big kid time with us. Ryan and I read a few chapters of Dragon Defenders with Chase, his latest chapter book series obsession, and then read a bit ourselves before falling asleep.
And now I’m heading movement from the boys upstairs so it’s time for me to log off and get this Tuesday started. I hope you all have a good week and thank you so much for making my blog a part of your day.
