Inspired by one of my favorite blogs I thought it would be a great idea to look back each week at those things that brought me the most joy. This is far too fitting for my blog to ignore the idea so I look forward to posting these each week!
It was a rough week around these parts last week. That cold I had two weeks ago decided to ping ping around the rest of the family. Some of the kids even got hit twice. It was relatively quick with the worst part only lasting a few hours. It comes on suddenly making you feel extremely tired with a scratchy throat then your fever spikes and the next day you feel back to mostly normal. Weird and also miserable while it happens but I’m so thankful it’s a quick bug.
Despite the bummer of illness there were still bright spots – there always are if we choose to see them!
1. Homemade pastries
Since I was feeling better I got my baking groove on and whipped up some peanut butter chocolate chip oatmeal muffins as well as a batch of cream cheese kolaches (pictured). If you haven’t made these yet you are missing out!
. This goofy face
Meal time seems to be both a place of joy and frustration these days. I love the conversations we can have around the table and being together is priceless but the little guys are really testing their limits right now. They see it as play time and try to get down from their chairs and run anytime we turn our heads. But then their are times when they get so excited about their food that there is no stopping them. Cade was devouring his tortilla chips with refried beans and sour cream for lunch one day when I realized he was eating so enthusiastically that he was covered in his food. I had to snap a pic!
3. Jello slurp
I did my first Facebook Live video on Thursday afternoon! I made Jello for the kids and as a fun game we did a Jello slurp. I used to play this at camp every summer and it was so hard to eat our plates of Jello with all the funny sounds making us giggle like crazy. The kids thought it was silly and a fun treat as well.
4. Stories with daddy
These little boys love to read and even better is when it’s with daddy. They tend to fight over the closest seat but once they settle in they are captivated by stories and cuddles. My heart gets so filled every time I see the man I love soaking up time with the kids he loves so dearly.
5. Perfect dinner out
I wish I had a picture of this. We enjoy going out to eat and try to go out as a family once a month or so. Sometimes it goes fairly well and other times we look at each other and wonder what we were thinking bringing five fairly small children out in public! Usually a meal out includes about thirty trips to the bathroom (especially now that we are potty training the twins) and multiple requests to stop touching siblings, crawling under the table, or peering over into other people’s booths. Oy.
But on Saturday we had the perfect dining out experience. It was the outing parents of young kids dream of for years when their kids are little. You know, “Someday when our kids are older we will be able to go out to eat and actually eat our food when it’s hot and without someone on our lap. Someday our kids will be happy with the food they ordered and not beg for something else as soon as it arrives.” I know that was us just this summer and I know it can still be us since the kids are still fairly young. Take heart, parents of little kids! It can happen!
We took the kids out for an EARLY dinner. As in we got to the restaurant about 445. We wanted to get in before the dinner rush and out before bedtime. We were seated within five minutes and the kids set about coloring their menus and discussing what they wanted. The waiter came and was incredibly friendly. We got our drinks promptly and after putting in our orders he came back and said he was super impressed that even with ordering seven meals our bill was still only $40. The food came quickly and the kids actually ate what they ordered with enthusiasm! And the waiter brought additional grapes for the kids to share. He got a great tip 😉
We only had to make two bathroom trips and that was only because we don’t like taking all five at once so we split them up. We had zero leftovers to bring home because all five kids ate every single bite of their food! It was magical and we were so impressed with the kids. We told them so. We lavished praise but also told them that they should be that well behaved every single time we go out. That they showed us how well they can act and we expect that from now on. Praise Jesus that they are learning and maturing!
Where did you find joy this week? How do you manage going out to eat with young kids?
