One noteworthy event from the week was my father-in-law’s arrival early yesterday morning. Chase was totally amped-up and couldn’t wait for Granddad’s visit! This visit is actually Greg’s first time meeting his youngest grandson which definitely makes his time with us here in Charlotte feel extra special.
We have a few fun things on the agenda for the weekend that mainly center around food and sunshine and I’m crossing my fingers that I’ll have a chance to type up a blog post and recap everything on the blog on Monday.
Until then, let’s dive into my usual Things I’m Loving Friday blog post where we all chat about what we’re loving most every week. I hope you all have a fantastic weekend!
Things I’m Loving Friday
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Chase’s First Day of Preschool
The 2018-19 school year began on Tuesday for Chase and he was clearly more than ready for the fun to begin! When I picked him up after his first day, he was wonderfully excited, disheveled and sweaty in the way only a three-year-old can be after they’ve been playing with some serious intensity. Chase sang a song he learned on the car ride home and told me about the games he played and his new friends. I have a feeling this year is going to be a great one! I absolutely love Chase’s school and his teachers for this year seem amazing.
While I’ll definitely miss having Chase home with us every morning, I know he loves preschool and I’m grateful Chase’s time at school will give me some one-on-one time with Ryder. There’s undeniably a new layer of mom guilt that surfaces when it comes to juggling two little ones and I’m looking forward to being able have some uninterrupted time to cuddle with our little baby. I’m also hoping to have the chance to get a little work done when Chase is at school and Ryder is napping!
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The Greatest Showman Medley by Anthem Lights
After watching The Greatest Showman, my love for the movie’s soundtrack skyrocketed. I’ve enjoyed the music for months thanks to Pandora but something about seeing the movie and the emotions and story behind the songs made me appreciate the amazing music even more. I’ve been rockin’ out to The Greatest Showman Pandora station during my workouts from time to time (it’s oddly motivating!) and stumbled upon an a medley of songs from the movie by Anthem Lights that I had to share here for my fellow Greatest Showman fanatics out there. It’s awesome and I had to force myself not to break out in song at the gym when I first heard it!
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The Whole Smiths‘ Lemon Pepper Chicken
The Whole Smiths Good Food Cookbook is, hands down, the best cookbook I’ve purchased in a while. It was actually a past Things I’m Loving Friday feature and I’m continuing to use and love it on an almost weekly basis. This week I made the lemon pepper chicken from the cookbook for probably the fifth time and I’m officially declaring it my new go-to roast chicken recipe. It’s so darn good and so darn easy. I’ve also officially decided that when it comes to savory smells, a chicken roasting in the oven with onions, carrots and all the fixings is my all-time favorite smell, followed very closely by my mom’s homemade stuffing.
Though I think the cookbook is absolutely worth adding to your collection and always love supporting fellow bloggers (The Whole Smiths blog quickly became a favorite of mine when I found it a few months ago), if you are just hoping to check out the lemon pepper chicken recipe, a quick Google search also found it online as a guest post in the official Whole30 recipe group here. Add this one to your meal plan ASAP! (Note: I almost always add a whole onion and some small sliced golden or red potatoes to the veggie mixture under the chicken and we love it!)
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Exchanging Figs and Tomatoes
My friend Carrie and I swapped fresh figs and tomatoes that we each grew earlier this week and it was awesome! We have a giant fig tree in our yard and Carrie has an amazing tomato plant so we swapped the goods while our kids played and it was such a treat to have deliciously sweet homegrown tomatoes to enjoy all week long.
It’s crazy to me how tasteless some of the tomatoes we get in the grocery store can seem compared to tomatoes grown in someone’s yard. This is loosely motivating me to look into planting a vegetable garden in the future. I can’t say I love gardening but I think it would be an activity Chase would be all about and I know I’d love the end result… assuming we don’t kill everything we plant.
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Ordering Matching Christmas Pajamas
I am officially insane. I already ordered Chase and Ryder matching Christmas pajamas! What!? (Chase will be sportin’ the separate version and Ryder will wear the footie ones. I can’t handle the cuteness I picture in my mind.) In my defense, three of my friends and I are planning a matching Christmas pajama party this year with our kids in lieu of our annual ugly sweater party and we’re all coordinating our little ones’ pajamas. We maaay have let our excitement get the best of us and ordered the Christmas jammies the minute we had the idea. (Wait… Does that make us even MORE insane!?) Can you tell I am so, so, so ready for the holiday season already!? I swear something about the arrival of September always makes me want fast forward to chilly weather, hot chocolate, cozy pajamas and holiday traditions. I am READY for it.
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RetailMeNot Giveaway Winner
Congratulations to Mira, the winner of the $500 VISA gift card from the RetailMeNot giveaway! Mira was emailed first thing this morning. Thanks so much to all who entered!
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Friday Flashbacks
Blueberry Banana Protein Pancakes (A staple in our house — and a big-time hit with toddlers — that’s also freezer-friendly and made without protein powder.)
Exercise Ball Ab Workout (A challenging core workout that will take you through three rounds of size stability ball ab exercises.)
Question of the Day
What is one thing you are loving this week?
The post Things I’m Loving Friday #249 appeared first on Peanut Butter Fingers.
