Here’s a recap of our holiday break!
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Happy New Year!
We had a fruitful holiday break, which usually means I am MORE than ready to get back into all of my routines! I have barely been on the iMac in the basement since the kids got out of school almost 3 weeks ago and I have to say this keyboard is so smooth! I’m so behind writing blog posts, and I can’t wait to up my productivity in the weeks ahead (until we leave on our tropical getaway, that is ; ) )
We had a week before and a week after our holiday getaways to doing fun things at home. Here’s a recap of some of the things we did!
Home Time Shenanigans
They are in a wrestling phase!
Cousin Nash came to visit a few times too!
Also a Lego stage!
We got an Xbox for Christmas
And Thomas bought himself the driving wheel thing-a-ma-jig. They’ve all been having fun, even those who can’t reach the pedals.
My Other Half
This one has been attached to my hip. And shoulder. Our love languages are both physical touch and words, and it shows!
We took the kids to see Wonka before Christmas and it was great!
Swim Sessions
We’ve been talking Birch to the pool 1-2 times a week and he has made SO MUCH progress swimming! He can swim underwater, do canon balls, dive to the bottom of the pool. The last big skill to master is treading water (“shredding water” as B says!) Mazen learned to swim over the winter in this pool, and our goal is for Birch to do the same.
Puzzling
I finished this puzzle over the break! I highly recommend puzzles when you have to supervise children but don’t necessarily need to be playing. It was a great way to keep myself busy while listening to everything going on around me.
Haircuts
The pre-Christmas trim!
ACAC Holiday Gathering
Always fun to put on mascara and hang with this crew who I’m usually sweating with!
The Discovery Museum
We met up with Birch’s buddy Rory not once but twice over break, hitting up two different children’s museums. The first was in Cville for an afternoon.
The Harrisonburg Children’s Museum
The second required quite a bit of driving but was worth it! We met Jamie and Rory in Waynesboro and then carpooled to Harrisonburg, meeting up with Hillary and Parker and their friends Shannon and Elliot!
The museum was awesome – two floors with TONS of hands-on activities for all ages.
Lunch at The Little Grill
Lunch with four boys was quite entertaining! They all had pancakes and bacon.
I had this pesto egg and cheese sandwich and a biscuit on the side (double carbs because I couldn’t decide between them so I had both!) It. was. so. good!
Visit with Layton
Layton came to visit us and we tackled Birch’s room. It was overflowing with holiday toys, and she brought tons of acrylic bins from Target (these Brightroom ones along with these for smaller trinkets!) Then we used these divided boxes for art supplies and activity books. Layton is a professional organizer covering central VA if any of you have playrooms that are out of control!
Costco with Nona
Yep, this outing made the list of “fun activities of holiday break” haha! I did see they make Biscoff sandwich cookies now – tried a sample!!
New Year’s Day Dinner
Our friends Erin and Ben invited us to a New Year’s Day dinner at their farmhouse. We enjoyed black eyed peas, collards, pork, and cornbread.
Look at this boodle!
Kath Eats
Here are a few real food eats!
Egg and cheese english muffin sandwich
Eggs + pears
Homemade tomato soup + fig and brie grilled cheeses
Date with the boys at Brazos
Vita Nova Veggie Pizza
Smashed Sardines + Crackers
NA Drinks
I know a lot of people doing Dry January! I don’t like to put labels on things (or I’ll rebel against them) but I like to join the pack of people drinking minimally after the holidays. Check out this post for some of my favorite nonalcoholic recs.
Allay is having a 25% off Dry January sale and sent me their NA cabernet sauvignon. It is made with real grapes and has added reishi and ashwaganda for stress relieving properties. So how does it taste? I like it! It’s not too sweet, and a great sub for a glass of red.
PEMF GO Mat
Speaking of health, I got the PEMF mat from HigherDOSE and so far I love it! I couldn’t believe it fit in our desk chair. Turning on the infrared heat feels so good in the winter. I can’t speak to the PEMF waves yet because I haven’t spent enough time in this chair, but I look forward to boosting creativity and relaxing, depending on my mood.
I’ve used my sauna blanket nearly daily since getting it at the end of November. Obsessed! We love getting in it to simply warm up mid-day too. If you missed it, here’s my YouTube video! Blog post coming soon.
Decluttering The House
It’s also the time of year for major minimalism and decluttering. Yesterday I decluttered every surface of the main floor. New Birch art on the Frame TV!
