Hello and happy Monday; I hope your coffee is strong this morning! It’s been a wonderful few days and I’m still trying to get my mindset right to jump into a Monday. Maybe it would be easier if I had a language arts curriculum I was loving for Kaitlyn, but I’ll keep just bouncing around between First Language Lessons and All About Reading until I get the time and courage to dig into the Fairy Tales IEW unit. We just can’t seem to ever get into TGATB. I can’t believe it’s almost April!

But my scattered brain is a post for another day. Today I want so share with you all we’ve been up to the past few days. It all kicked up after co-op on Wednesday when Mom arrived. I love when my mom comes to visit; at this stage of life we’re evolved past the mom/child relationship into a best friendship. I am so grateful for our closeness and pray to have the same with my kids when they’re grown.

Thursday was her birthday and we had planned a full girls day out! We both are notoriously poor shoppers; we tire easily, find one thing that fits and buy it in every color, and usually have more fun shopping the aisles of Whole Foods than Nordstrom. But on Thursday we were determined to spruce up our closets!

We took off after breakfast to Southpark Mall. We kicked things off at Nordstrom and the birthday angels must have been looking out for us because immediately we started having luck finding things we needed and the trend continued all day long. We only took a single break to get lunch at RH Rooftop nearby, a natural light-filled gorgeous spot to celebrate the birthday girl with coffee and a smorgasbord of small plates, since we both prefer to nibble on a lot of different things when given the opportunity.

I finally dragged Mom out of the mall at 5:00, something I’ve never had to say in my life. We were both giddy with our success and came home to a very jealous Kaitlyn, the only one who actually enjoys shopping in the family. The girls had baked Nana a cookie cake, I made salmon, and we toasted the birthday girl and all played a round of Trekking the National Parks. It was a great day.

Friday was more low key. We filled it up with Synthesis for Hailey, grocery shopping, a Madeline Moves workout that mom joined us for, watching Hailey play soccer (she got a goal!), and dinner out at Langtree where we devoured some Vietnamese food at Hello Me.

Kaitlyn’s Saturday morning soccer was cancelled, so after breakfast we headed south to spend the day in Traveler’s Rest, SC, a little over 2 hours from home. We stopped on the way to look at more fifth wheels. We are really excited about the possibility of getting one and the family adventures we could have with it. Right now the front runner is the Grand Design Reflection with the mid-bunkhouse.

We stopped for lunch at what is becoming one of our favorite spots, Chicora Alley in TR. They have a patio and are very dog friendly. Plus, the food is fantastic! We ordered the salsa platter and fried okra for the table and descended upon it like a plague of locusts. I had the brisket taco and a Cali fish taco which were excellent. We all left with full and happy bellies.

We spent the afternoon at a nearby property, visiting their chickens, walking along the river, and soaking up the most beautiful sunshiny day. Mom took off for home late afternoon and Mema and Grandpa came to meet us for dinner. We ate at The Whistle Stop in TR before giving hugs and heading back home.

David worked Sunday so I took the kids to church then came home for the usual laundry, cleaning the house, admin tasks, going through the kids’ closets with them, and other odds and ends that filled the day. When David got home we knocked out leg day then I took to the kitchen with Kaitlyn.

She had decided last week that she wanted to plan, shop, and implement a dinner all on her own. I won’t lie, it took a lot of mental energy to be engaged and be sous chef for the evening, but she lit up getting to be in charge. We videoed the step by step process so she could share dinner on IG “just like mom does.” I think it’s so sweet how much she enjoys being in the kitchen and her Gus Gus’ Mac ‘n Cheeseburger from her Princess Cookbook turned out great.

Now, back to Monday! Some things I hope to accomplish this week include making it to the garden center for soil and cucumber plants, catching up on emails, and teaching Hailey to make family albums, a task that she is excited to take on and I am excited to pass along. I hope your week begins on a happy note; thanks so much for stopping by today! <3