Every week I like to take a moment to showcase the moments that brought me the most joy, but also keep it real with the chaos. The key is seeing that despite the chaos, there is still so much good! Sometimes it’s awesome activities and other times it’s a sweet moment between the kids. There are always moments that can fill us with joy if we choose to see them with a thankful heart.
What a difference a week makes! After spending a good portion of last week cleaning carpets, bedding, and bathrooms, this week was such a relief! We had great weather that allowed us to get outside multiple times, we started on an updated chore rotation, and had some great fun – take a look!
Sunday was Father’s Day and our 12th anniversary – but because we were still unsure where we stood with the nasty tummy bug, we stayed home and let everyone rest. It was our first sick free day in a week! But we also didn’t take a single picture because, well, life.
On Monday I created our new chore rotation. It’s nearly identical to our original system, with each child having a set chore for a full week, but now the little boys are in the mix and tag teaming each chore they are assigned. This week they had dishes and learned how to put in the silverware, where plastic plates and bowls go, and how to put away the silverware and stack the plastic dishes on the table for me to put away.
The difference between little kids doing chores and big kids doing chores is that the little ones are SO EXCITED to help. I tell them I need help with silverware and they run into the kitchen. No whining, no complaining that they were in the middle of something else, just genuine enthusiasm to pitch in. Get those kiddos helping early! It’s something I need to remind myself all the time.
I’m trying out some new recipes this summer to expand our go-to meals and what our kids will eat in general. First up was fish tacos. I love them and frequently order them at restaurants. I picked up a big bag of frozen tilapia fillets at Sam’s Club (they are a great deal there!) and used this recipe for the seasoning.
All five kids gave them a thumbs up so I think we will be making these again! Several did wish I didn’t put the cabbage on them but I said that’s how we make them and they can deal with it. All the boys ate a full taco and Mercedes ate two and a half! This will definitely be a meal we make again.
Also on Tuesday, I got an awesome surprise when a great box of goodies arrived from Influenster. If you’ve never heard of Influenster before, it’s a company that asks you to review items you’ve tried and occasionally will send you items to review as well! Usually I get sample sizes but this time we received full size items of all these Dove Men+Care products. You don’t need to be a blogger or influenster to sign up – just willing to give your honest reaction to different products that you use. You can sign up for free with this link.
We hit up the park on Wednesday and ran into some friends. Mercedes and their daughter will be in kindergarten this year so it was fun to see them playing so well together. Hopefully they will be in the same class in the fall!
We spent some time painting with watercolors this week, although I think I need to buy more paper made for watercolor because printer paper is far too flimsy to handle the sopping wet paint of kids.
Life with five kids is never dull… like when they start piling on top of each other and whenever one gets free, he or she piles right back on top!
And of course we busted out the sprinkler on these 80*+ days we are having!
Did I ever mention raising four boys is like living in a house of wild things? 😉 I would have said five kids but Mercedes was off with friends when the boys found these Chewbacca masks.
We’ve also got a toothless kid here! He’s lost three teeth since school ended and has one or two more that are wiggly. It’s getting harder and harder for him to eat real food without a fork or spoon. The tooth he lost last week is already starting to poke through so I doubt he’s going to get to wish for these teeth for Christmas, but maybe there will still be a gap in two months when he goes back to school for him to show off.
And finally, on Saturday Mercedes and I went on our Mommy-Daughter date. She chose Texas Roadhouse because she wanted peanuts and buns. Works for me! I had the 6oz sirloin, like normal, and I think it was the best one I’ve ever gotten there! Usually I save half to bring home for later but I couldn’t stop eating it.
We also stopped by Toys R Us because the one in our town closes in a few days! They still have a large amount of things but nothing we wanted. It’s going to be so sad when we can’t visit anymore.
And that wraps up our week!
Where did you find joy in your chaos this week? What was the best part of your week?
