This past weekend was the first time that I had a weekend in Charlotte with Finn in longer than I can remember. We kept it super low-key and it was perfect.
I picked Finn up from preschool around 12:45p on Friday thinking that he would take a long nap. NOPE. He was overtired and overstimulated from his first day and it took me almost an hour to get him down. Once I did get him down he only slept for about 45 minutes.
We did the water table outside for a while but that was a mess because Zoey was all about bringing her dirty ball to the table and dropping it in. Finn thought it was hysterical. 🙂
Let’s just say it was a loooonnnnngggg afternoon in momming. As soon as the 5p witching hour struck (we don’t have those very often anymore, thank god), I loaded everyone up and we went for a long walk around the neighborhood while I chatted with my grandmother/therapist for the day. (Thank god for grandmothers who have BEEN there and can truly hold space for where you are.)
There is nothing like getting some fresh air to calm all the creatures in the house (self included).
Saturday morning brought a trip to the Charlotte Regional Farmers Market where I was delighted to find the BEST market of the year so far!
I used to go to the regional market every weekend but now I only get there every few months. It is so worth the drive.
Finn and I spent over an hour taking it all in. I find the market to be so visually stimulating and it inspires me so much in creativity around food, eating and cooking.
I got so much good stuff!
- Potatoes
- Sweet red peppers
- Eggplant
- The sweetest, most delicious mountain apples
- Okra
- Three kinds of gnocchi for the freezer
- White acre peas
- Two kinds of salad greens
- Cucumbers
- A variety of slicing tomatoes
- Sun gold cherry tomatoes
- Ginger
- Essential oil insect repellent balm
After the market, Finn took a two and a half hour nap!!! Totally made up for his less than stellar Friday nap. I spent his nap getting my house in order and organized. It felt amazing. I even washed my mattress pad and comforter…it was that kind of clean/organized.
Once he was up, the cleaning/organizing extended to my car. We took a long overdue trip to the carwash. Finn kind of loved it.
Sunday was a fun day. We met a friend at the park for a playdate. She has an almost five year old and a two week old. Finn had so much fun running around with her daughter. I mean…that red face, sweaty hair and scraped knee. ALL BOY!
He gave me another crazy long nap on Sunday…three hours! I got some work done and kept working on stuff around the house.
Once Finn was up and had a snack, we made a trip to Trader Joe’s. While we were in the checkout line, Finn pulled a bag of cheese sticks out of the cart. I told him it was cheese and he got this huge grin. Cheese was actually his first real word and he loves it. He proceeded to protest loudly until I gave him a cheese stick while we waited to check out. Haha.
I had to send snack for his class today for preschool so I sent cheese sticks and fig bars from TJs. I was kind of stupid stressed about what to send. Thoughts that ran through my mind…
- I should send fruit…but Finn doesn’t eat fruit.
- Should I make something homemade? Or is that weird?
- Can I send something with sugar in it? (Like the fig bars)
- Do they need to be individually wrapped or will the teachers portion it out?
- Will people judge me for sending processed snacks?
Y’all…I know this is crazy. Stressing about toddler snacks. Hope I made someone feel more normal by writing this. I would love toddler snack/lunchbox ideas if you guys would be willing to share. <3
Finally, speaking of preschool today…despite sleeping a solid 11 hours last night, Finn was tired, grumpy, clingy and fussy this morning. He woke up around 6:30a and by 8a, he seemed ready for a nap so I went with it. He slept until I woke him up around 9:30a and took him into school an hour late. Definitely think this schedule change is going to take some getting used to, and Finn is still getting over whatever virus he had last week. I’m glad I let him take a snooze this morning.
Hope you enjoyed this dose of real life!
Do you shop at a local farmers market?
How was your weekend?
Best toddler snack/lunchbox ideas for things you can pack?
