Weekly Recap #22

Last week was a crazy week - and it wasn't all good, either. Super busy (after next week I get a nice break in my schedule) and just so much going on. Plus, I'm starting on a fitness journey! I know some of you might be thinking...AGAIN?!?! But yes, again. One of my friends from my twin mom group has had some amazing results with the Team Beachbody 21 Day Fix Program. She has lost a whopping 60 POUNDS since January and looks amazing! Of course, her story piqued my interest so I reached out for some information. Long story short - I signed up! I officially start the program on Monday, May 2nd, but I did follow it halfway this week. Loving it so far! Here's how the rest of my week went.

Monday

Brayden needs to start getting ready for Kindergarten so we have quite a few appointments coming up. First up was an eye doctor appointment. Let me just say that he was so impressed with all the equipment and asked a TON of questions throughout the visit. I laughed throughout. Doc says he's ok for now, but is a little nearsighted (like the rest of my side of the family) and might need glasses later on. We go back in a year.

Monday was also the FINAL Cubbies night at church. I could write a whole post on this (but I'm a busy lady so I won't). I do, however, want to share how much I really love our church, the Village Church of Bartlett. A lot of you know that Brayden is a special needs kid. He has only been diagnosed so far with Sensory Processing Disorder (SPD) and, because of this, is highly sensitive to noise. He was, however, REALLY looking forward to receiving his award on stage and was determined to stand and sing on stage with his friends. Last year the event was pretty low-key, so he (and we all) thought he could handle it.

Well, about halfway through the first song it was evident that he could not. This year, there was music, microphones - and just a whole lot of noise. Brayden quickly covered his ears and had to be escorted out. I felt so bad for him! He was crying and so upset. He wanted to sing the Cubbies song and get his award like he was supposed to, but he was seated right next to a giant speaker (his Cubbies leaders didn't know the speaker would be right there either).

So, because of his sensitivity, he couldn't sing the song, or stand with his friends. We listened to the program, and he sang the Cubbies song - by himself - in the hallway.

I was heartbroken.

Then, his Cubbies leader, Miss Chris, did something so awesome.

She waited until the very end and put down the microphone. She explained Brayden's sensitivity to the audience and, quietly, called his name to get his award.

He was elated - and my heart was full. Wish I could bottle that kind of excitement.

It was a very emotional day. Afterwards, there were snacks - and pics with his favorite cousin!

Got some baby pics too.

Tuesday

Tuesday was the worst day of the week. In fact, it was probably the worst day I've had in a long time. It didn't start out that way though. In the morning I got both babies to sit in a Bumbo seat for awhile. Lauryn was much sturdier in it, while I don't think Peytie is quite ready. He wobbled a lot.

Then Peytie got some alone time with mommy for his croup follow-up appointment at the doctor. I snapped a pic of my view of him in the car at a light. He was just too cute!

The doctor didn't think he needed any additional treatment for his croup, even though he has still been coughing. The twins have their 4-month doctor appointment next week so we'll see if his cough and his breathing improves.

Then, right after the doctor appointment, an accident.

I was rear-ended at a light, just around the corner from the doctor's office.

I almost don't even want to talk about it because I was so shaken up. I ONLY thought of Peyton, who was screaming in the back seat. I didn't even look at the back of my car until we had pulled over into a nearby parking lot. I just wanted him to calm down. After it was all said and done, and the woman that hit me was on her way, I was sitting in the passenger seat of my car, feeding Peyton, on the phone with a clinical nurse, with tears streaming down my face - the man that parked next to me must've thought I was a loony toon. The damage to the car wasn't horrible, but the emotional damage for me- and definitely for Peyton -certainly was.

Wednesday

All I wanted to do on Wednesday was chill with the kids - so I did just that for most of the day.

Good morning, handsome boy!

Hey yo, it's ma Bumbo!

Wednesday night was an appreciation night for my twins' club, Double Love. I brought my friend Kristin with me because I really enjoy hanging out with her. I was also named to the group's executive board as a Membership Chair. Woot! Check out our club's leadership- we are gonna rock this year!

Thursday 

"Girl, bye!"

Friday

On Friday I took my big boy out to breakfast after his therapy session. I really enjoyed spending the morning with him. We don't get too much one-on-one time together anymore so I cherish the time we do get. He's still my baby boy! And Buttermilk in Geneva is the best! Loved both the atmosphere AND the food! Some of the tables were a little too close together, but when there's a ton of people that want to eat, they have to sit somewhere!

"Hmm...what should I order?"

 "YAY! It's chow time!"

Saturday

I started my Saturday SUPER EARLY to head out to one of my *NEW* favorite things to do - shop at a resale!!! I got there about 40 minutes before the doors opened and this was the line when I got there. GRRR! I bought some stuff, but not too much.

Also on Saturday, the twins turned 4 MONTHS OLD!!! I'll write a separate post on that very soon.

Then Saturday night was an Engagement Party for my brother-in-law's sister. I'm so happy for her (and that I got to spend some time with Miss Lynnie Lou).

Full disclosure: This was a full body shot, but when I looked at it, I realized I look a little too much like Beetlejuice. So I cropped it. Don't nobody want to see all that!

Sunday

I made this week's recipe on Sunday, a beef pot roast. YUM!

And here are some pics just for fun.

This pic of Peytie cracks me up. It reminds me of my husband's "get swole" workout days. And he looks so much like Jimmy too.

Whatchu talkin' 'bout, Willis? *Side Eye*

Oh and I met all three goals this week! Starting a 21 Day Fix program challenge on Monday. WOOT!

Weekly Goals:

• Goal #1: Log calories everyday this week. 
• Goal #2: Work out 3 times this week. 
• Goal #3: Drink at least 6 cups of water every day. 

Weekly Recap #18

I am so, so tired at the end of this week. It was emotional with my return to work on Monday, then exhausting with my twin club's resale that I volunteered for TWO days in a row! I just want to go to sleep, so I'm going to try to write as little as possible and just provide pics this week.

I welcomed Monday morning with a train ride to the city for my first day back to the office. It was an emotional day, and I couldn't wait to get back home. I was grateful that the day passed quickly and I was busy enough that the time flew. I'm not gonna lie though - it was really hard to get back into the headspace of day-to-day office activities when something far more important was waiting for me back at home. But, I have to pay for those super-important things though, so off to the office I go.

I was SO happy when I got home and the babies were awake.

Tuesday was such a nice day that I "forced" Brayden to get out of the house and we took a looooong walk to the park. He complained the whole way, but was glad once we got there. We had a good time, just him and I.

Oh, and of course there were these cuties chillin' at home too.

On Wednesday the babies turned three months old! I already wrote a post on it (you can read it here), but here's some extra pics I didn't include.

Thursday I got to work from home (which I am so grateful for) so I got to see the little ones throughout the morning.

Then at night I went to volunteer at my twin club's resale event. Thursday night was set-up so it was cool to see the space transform from a plain ol' gym to a super-sale venue. This here was just the beginning. I should have taken a pic when the gym was totally empty.

Friday was the busiest day of the week for me. I worked from home in the AM, then it was off to volunteer for the rest of the day. I didn't finish volunteering (& SHOPPING) until 10pm so it was a really long and exhausting day. I purchased a lot of great items though so it was totally worth it!

It was tough to leave the babies for so many hours for something other than work. I mean, seriously, it's too hard to leave this face!

Saturday was a fun day. As tired as I was from working the resale for two days straight, my crazy self committed to hosting a Spring Party. Yes, it was after Easter and we had the Easter Bunny show up, but the kids couldn't have cared less. It was a really fun time!

Sunday was a gorgeous day. We went to church and then hung out outside for a long while. Brayden rode his bike and I took the twins (both of them this time) for a walk, we played soccer, we ran races, and just had a great time. For as much as Brayden fought me on going out, he sure as heck didn't want to come back IN!

I made this week's recipe too - Hot Italian Sandwiches. It was such an easy recipe - and I was glad because I needed to chill after such a busy week.

Sunday was also the LAST day that Peytie wore a Size 1 diaper. **SNIFF SNIFF** They are both growing way too fast for me!

Next week I only have ONE thing on my calendar and it's something I'm looking forward to - dinner with one of my really good friends. Can't wait!

Weekly Workouts:

Monday: Treadmill, 30 minutes

Tuesday: Treadmill, 35 minutes

Wednesday: Treadmill, 40 minutes

Weekly Goals:

• Goal #1: Log calories everyday this week. YES!
• Goal #2: Work out 3 times this week. YES!
• Goal #3: Drink at least 6 cups of water every day. YES!

I think returning to work was like hitting the reset button for me. I was so focused on hitting these goals. Now if only the weight would start coming off.

Keeping the same goals. I don't want to change them until I can hit them consecutively for 4 weeks.

Goal #1: Log calories everyday this week. Not only do I need to login, but I need to stay under my calorie goals.

Goal #2: Work out 3 times this week. My ultimate goal is to work out five days a week, but I'm starting off slow with just three times for a few weeks.

Goal #3: Drink at least 6 cups of water every day. I basically drink coffee all day long (I have to keep up with these twins!) Water is so important so I need to make sure I meet my daily goals.

I'll let you know if I completed then for two weeks in a row next week!

Weekly Recap #17

This week was a sad, sad week for me. It was my last week of maternity leave and I'll be headed back to the office first thing tomorrow. Every single thing I did this week was tainted with melancholy as I couldn't get it out of my head that my time at home with my kids was coming to a close - and with no more babies on the horizon ever, it would be the last time I would voluntarily take a full 12 weeks off of work. Sad times, indeed. Dangit - just thinking about it now brings fresh tears to my eyes. Maybe I'll cheer myself up by recapping all the fun we did have this week.

Monday was Awards Night at Cubbies for Brayden! In order for the kids to earn their patch for their vests they had to go over Bible stories and memorize verses each week. Brayden was out for many, many weeks, but we made sure that we kept up with the program so that he could still earn his patches. He did a GREAT job! And he is ALWAYS so excited to get his award.

I also took some pics of my smiley babies (because they are NOT always smiling). And Lauryn totally fooled us in the beginning. She seemed to be the happy one that was usually pretty content. Boy were we WRONG! Peyton is WAY more even-keeled and is generally a happy boy (guess he finally got used to being outside the womb...hehe).

Just call her "Crazy Eyes"! LOL

Anyone who knows me knows that we do NOT always have it easy with Brayden. No, scratch that. We NEVER have it easy with Brayden. Introducing these babies as part of our family is STILL hard on him and he's having a really hard time with them. If they cry, he's upset. If one of us is holding one, he's upset. If we have to feed one, he's upset. And I'm not talking a "sulking" kind of upset either. He is all out, stomping, screaming, slamming doors, you-ruined-my-life upset. Looks like he was ready to join the dog's pack after this meltdown.

Tuesday was also Book Club night! We read Pretty Girls by Karin Slaughter (I thought her last name was appropriate in this case). The book was SO GOOD, but Ms. Karin certainly has one sick, sick mind to write this stuff. Some of it was very hard to read. As for the group, we came for the book, but stayed for the FOOD!

Of course I had to get in some pics of the twins that day too. Neither one of them is really into toys just yet. They'll stare at whatever's hanging from their jungle gym, but they're not reaching for anything...yet!

He gives great "side-eye", right?

On Wednesday my dad stopped by for a visit. The scene here is pretty much what you'll see at my house on any given day. Twins just chillin', Brayden watching TV, and the teenager on her phone.

Thursday was finally a day where I didn't have much to do...except snap some pics, of course! Lauryn is forever flashing her "power to the people" pose. For whatever reason, her fists are always clenched.

Told ya - Peytie is proving to be my smiley boy!

I can't get enough of this boy. He is just the cutest!

This beauty gives him a run for his money though. Those eyelashes!!!

I also made this week's recipe on Thursday. I've been a longtime fan of Ree Drummond, The Pioneer Woman, so I made her Puff Pastry Pizzas. The pizzas were...just ok. Which pains me to say because this is the first time that I haven't been wowed by one of her recipes. This one didn't taste BAD, per se, but I just couldn't take the extreme flakiness of the puffed pastry. They sure look purdy tho'.

Friday was a fun day. I took more pics of the babies...duh!

We colored Easter eggs.

My daughter started a new job at the Starbucks inside of our local Target.

And I got to make a total of NINE Easter baskets for my kids, nephews, niece, and seester!

Saturday was a super fun day! Brayden has been looking forward to this day all week. Not only did we have an egg hunt to go to, but we also had a playful birthday party to attend. But first I had to take a pic of the BEST little brother.

Bright and early was the egg hunt put on by our church, Village Church of Bartlett in Bartlett. It's an even we look forward to every year and it's always a great time for the kids. I was happy to see lots of my friends from around my neighborhood too!

Look at all the eggs he found! At church on Sunday, our pastor announced that the event has outgrown the park that it's usually held at, so I'm looking forward to hearing where the new location will be.

Then we had a fun birthday party to attend at the Exploratorium in Skokie. It's such a great place to have a birthday party because the kids get to climb, splash, create, and play in a large space that is closed to the public (when birthday parties have been booked). We were one of two parties in the space at the time so the kids had lots of room to roam around.

I left the babies at home with my mom, so you know I was missing them and had to get in some time with the other babies there.

On Easter Sunday, my family went to church and had lunch at my sister's house. I love spending time with my family. I laugh and laugh and really enjoy the fellowship with them. We are a pretty awesome bunch! Here are my favorite pics of the day.

Brayden woke up SO EXCITED! He was jumping up and down on the mattress saying "He came! He Came!" when he saw the eggs on the floor. I make a trail to his basket that is waiting for him in the hallway. He loves it!

There's the basket!

This girl looked SO PRETTY in her Easter outfit. I think I must've taken a MILLION pictures of the twins on their first Easter!

My niece loved her basket from us!

This was a HUGE moment for Brayden and my niece. He is learning to tolerate - and dare I say LIKE - his baby cousin. The fact that she was standing probably had a whole lot to do with it.

It was a GREAT week!

Weekly Workouts:

Another week, another 7 days that I neglected to workout. I'm back to work next week so I'm hoping to get on track with my eating and exercise next week.

Weekly Goals:

• Goal #1: Log calories everyday this week. No.
• Goal #2: Work out 3 times this week. No.
• Goal #3: Drink at least 6 cups of water every day. And no.

Keeping the same goals for next week again.

Goal #1: Log calories everyday this week. Not only do I need to login, but I need to stay under my calorie goals.

Goal #2: Work out 3 times this week. My ultimate goal is to work out five days a week, but I'm starting off slow with just three times for a few weeks.

Goal #3: Drink at least 6 cups of water every day. I basically drink coffee all day long (I have to keep up with these twins!) Water is so important so I need to make sure I meet my daily goals.

I'll let you know if I completed any next week!