Day 1100 | 1100!

/
FullSizeRender.jpg

If you can believe it, another 100 days has come and gone. I looked back and 1000 happened in February. That's right, February. It honestly feels like I just typed up one of these updates. As much as I know this summer is probably going to be our busiest yet (and we sold/bought a house + moved last summer!), I'm going to do my very best to enjoy the fleeting days. I'll aim for some quiet mornings, peaceful playtime, and relaxed moments in our neighborhood to really get a sense of what summer looks like for us in our new house. I hope the same for all of you where ever you are!

Sara

FAVORITES: my new vegetable garden boxes (I’ll post a finished photo when things start growing a bit), having the whole summer of quality time with my two favorite guys (too bad my third favorite has to work), the cool morning temperatures, playing Rummikub, re-watching The Office (it’s just so good), dark chocolate pretzels + raisins, a glass of crisp white wine on a hot summer day
BIGGEST HURDLE TO OVERCOME: yard maintenance. Maybe I’m just whining, but I really cannot figure out how to keep on top of the lawn mowing (plus cleanup post-mowing) and watering and weeding. My back is still not loving the idea of mowing (as much as it kills me), Chris doesn’t get home until dinner time and wants to hang out with the boys, and our weekends tend to be jam-packed. I mean, seriously, how do you squeeze in 2+ hours of yard maintenance into your weekly schedule? I'll take any tips you'll share.
DREAMS FOR THE FUTURE: Our trip to DC!! I’ve been dreaming of this trip for so long and it’s finally happening this week. Of course we have way too many things squeezed into our short stay, but that’s how it goes. I just miss it so much!
 

Chris

FAVORITES: getting home when it’s still sunny outside, admiring his handiwork with the garden boxes, Midwest thunderstorms, playing outside with the boys, trying to keep up with our favorite scooters ( #1 and #2) during walks
BIGGEST HURDLE TO OVERCOME: Breaking in his new flip flops. He’s known about summer’s impending arrival for some time, so you’d think he would have done some better planning to have his new Rainbow’s ready to go.
DREAMS FOR THE FUTURE: A family camping trip. He’s purchased a new [giant] tent so we’re ready to go when the opportunity + motivation strike.
 

Chase

AGE: 5 years, 2 months
FAVORITES: scooting, legos, superheroes, going to the library, planning our DC trip, sleeping with Chase puppy, coming up with new games, skipping naps, negotiating ownership of whatever awesome toy Robbe finds, pretend play
BIGGEST HURDLE TO OVERCOME: dealing with the heat. It has been over 80 degrees a handful of times so far and Chase cannot handle being outside in it. He keeps asking to play inside. We’ve got some work to do. 
DREAMS FOR THE FUTURE: Riding a two wheel bike but, again, mostly for the kickstand.
 

Robbe

AGE: 3 years, 3 months
FAVORITES: scooting, legos, reading, mini blueberry waffles, hanging out with Mama Kitty (the stuffed animal), snuggles with mom, toy catalogs, the idea of watching movies (but losing interest pretty quickly)
BIGGEST HURDLE TO OVERCOME: his nightly + nap-ly breakdowns. He’s totally fine with the whole nap and bedtime routines until the last page of the last book. Then he loses control of his little body. It’s getting real old. Like, real real old. 
DREAMS FOR THE FUTURE: Continuing to expand his vocabulary and articulation. I cannot say how proud I am of this little nugget.

And here's the rundown of how far we've come:

 

Day 1098 | Dancing Superstars

/
IMG_5947.JPG

We could not be more proud of these ladies for the amount of time + dedication they put into their dances this year. It was a pure joy to watch them do what they do best today at their recitals. Chase and I went to two recitals. He managed to sit practically without squirming at all for the entire 5 hours of dances. And Robbe happily sat through one of the performances, too. I have to admit I was a bit surprised. 

Congratulations, dear neices! 

Day 1096 | Retirement at its Best

/
IMG_5941.JPG

Big day for Grandma Mary! Today was her first official day of retirement. How did she choose to spend the first hours of this new life chapter, you might ask? Babysitting the boys, weeding our backyard, mowing our lawn, and taking us out for a coffee date. And that was all before noon. For those of you who know me, I had a hard time "letting" her do any of these things ("Are you sure really want to be doing this?!?") and I know there were probably *a few* other things should would have preferred to have been spending her first free morning doing, but we were beyond happy to have celebrated this first bit of freedom with her. Oh, and no need to worry, she was actually planning something fun (and not chore-related) with a friend tonight. I know you were concerned.

As much as she's been looking forward to this big (HUGE!) change, I know she's been grappling with some very bittersweet feelings about putting the past 40+ years of hard work and super-impressive accomplishments behind her. Luckily, I have a pretty good feeling that she's going to love every second of the freedom (I think we might like it just a little bit, too).  

Day 1095 | No Sugar Lemonade

/
IMG_5892.JPG

Check out the latest no-sugar recipe I've been working on for MaryCatherineStarr.com: lemonade! I had to make the recipe three times to get it just right, so I hope you motivate yourself to give it a try to make all the hard work worth it.

SUGAR-FREE LEMONADE SLUSH

Prep time: 10 minutes | Yield: About 1 liter (or about 4.25 cups)

Ingredients: 
3/4 cup freshly squeezed lemon juice (two large lemons)
2 cups no-sugar-added white grape juice
2 cups ice
1 tsp lemon zest (from one of the two lemons)

Directions:

  • Add all ingredients into a blender. Pulse or blend until combined (but not entirely smooth).

  • Serve immediately.

Extra notes:

  • Zest one of the lemons before it is juiced. Zesting a juiced lemon is much more difficult.

  • This recipe makes just the right amount of lemonade for our family of four (two adults and two young kids). If you’re making this for more than three adults, double or triple the recipe.

  • If you don’t have a blender or would rather make regular lemonade (instead of the slush), you can just stir up the ingredients (instead of blend). Leaving it in the refrigerator overnight brings out the lemon flavor even more.

{Created by modifying this recipe.}

Day 1093 | Pretzel Hummus Sandwich

/
IMG_5884.JPG

Chase was really proud of his new recipe today. Hummus + cheese sandwiches are a pretty common lunch option for them, but today things got crazy. Chase added pretzels (you know, the flat ones?) to it.

I was skeptical, to say the least, but I have to admit that I tried it and then added pretzels to the rest of my sandwich, too. They really add a crunch + texture that's missing from an otherwise mushy sandwich. 

He's a culinary genius! 

Day 1089 | Speech Therapy Update

/
IMG_5813.JPG

Our little Robbe is a champion. He's rocking this whole speech therapy thing. The amount of determination, focus, and discipline during every session is nothing short of crazy-inspiring. So far he's been working on his "sh" and "g" sounds and I think it's an honest assessment to say that he never made either sound before Ms. Anna (who is beyond incredible, by the way) taught him how. And now? He can say "go" along with the best of them! It's only been four weeks and he's already making a good bit of progress (both with the sounds he's focused on and other sounds that seem easier to pick up now). 

We're really proud of this little sweet pea. And even better...it's apparent that he's really [really] proud of himself.  

Day 1088 | Target

/
IMG_5801.JPG

This post might border on TMI. You've been warned. 

Every time we're in the Target toy section my boys need to go to the bathroom. I'm not kidding. Every time. They're fine throughout the aisles and aisles of health + beauty aids and cleaning supplies but about two minutes into our time in the Lego aisle, it's all over. That's weird, right? It's been a running joke with the boys and me for months now. Now you can laugh along with us.

Day 1085 | Busting Out of Our Comfort Zone

/
FullSizeRender.jpg

Today marks our first (but hopefully not last) Family Challenge Day. What was the challenge, you might ask? Today each one of us was challenged to do something that pushed us outside of our comfort zone. Here's the breakdown:

ROBBE: He's been a little bit shy about practicing his new letter sounds (from his speech therapy sessions) around other people. Today, he put himself out there by say "Go" to the teacher at the Tot Spot!

CHASE: The underlying reason for the challenge...he's been feeling blue lately because he hasn't had the chance to turn off the lights in his classroom on the way to snack time. We've been encouraging him to talk to his teacher about it. Today, because of the challenge, he actually did it! And, drumroll please, he got to turn off the lights today (she just hadn't noticed he hadn't been selected)!

SARA: I put myself out there and interviewed for a blogger position today. It's super part time (obviously) and would be a good way to get out in the community and make a name for myself. I haven't decided yet, but you'll be the first to know.

CHRIS: Details are a little foggy on this one (and he's a little selfie-adverse as you can tell by the photo above), but his challenge was to push himself outside of his comfort zone at work. He told us he did, so we'll just believe him. 

Day 1081 | Here a Chick, There a Chick

/
FullSizeRender.jpg

Remember when you thought the baby robin was the cutest thing on the blog?

Today might be another contender. These are the baby chicks at Chase's school. The kids have been keeping an eye on the eggs for 21 days and three have hatched so far. It's been such an entertaining and educational process for the kids...and a little bit for me, too.

To commemorate the occasion, Robbe let me paint a chick on his cheek. We're all pretty excited about our new fluffy friends.