Friday Recap - 2/1/19 - The Mountains Are Calling & I Must Go - several days late!

I am a couple days late in posting this - our travel plans went slightly off the rails due to the polar vortex which descended on Chicago last week. Snow and extreme cold did not make for easy air travel! Our time in Colorado felt like a tropical vacation in comparison! One day Marg & I snowshoed up mountain only wearing long sleeved t shirts and leggings- so hats/gloves/coats! So yeah, pretty much the beach.

So this week's post is dedicated to fun with Chris, Marg, the Bug & her cousins!

Friday Round Up - 1/25/18 - Change in Plans, Snow!, Cousins Skate, "The Disease of Being Busy"

Happy Friday! 

The Polar Vortex is ripping its way across the Midwest.....

the temperature is expected to be approximately

 -1 with a wind chill of -19 when this post is published! 

Yikes. 

At least we like Old Man Winter around here!!

1. Change in Plans
We have some travel coming up & due to the freezing rain/sleet mixture our area had this week combined with Lulu rocking a fever.....we changed our travel plans! We virtually never do this, but our plans were flexible for once & there were very few downsides! Thankfully we are visiting my flexible sister & her girls - so our lodging didn't need to be tweaked at all!

The notable one is that my parents are taking us to the airport in the 5am hour......and I will miss my Mom's Group Dinner Club. The theme is "Dinner in the Hamptons" and everyone is making one of Ina Garten's recipes. I love the Barefoot Contessa - I love her recipes & her vibe! Sad to miss out on this theme, but it made the best sense for us.

Why punish oneself with the possibility of flight delays or worse, cancellations when your airline offers to change your flight for free??? I'm not a crazy lady - so I went with the change in plans :)

2. Snow!
We have had some good snowfalls this week! We've had enough snow to cross country ski, sled, and romp around happily!!

A few highlights of the snow this week:

I cross country skied up to one of our favorite coffee shops, Backlot to read my book and drink an oat milk latte that is, in my humble opinion, one of the best on the planet.

We met friends to sled with babies & dogs. It was cold, snowy, windy - so we didn't last too long....but we were invited back to their home for a cozy winter dinner. I love that Lulu is getting old enough to be interested in her friends. It makes my heart feel full to watch her play with some of the little people in her life!

Lulu & her friend Lilly rocking the teeter totter in the cold & dark :)

We took Owenn skiing with Lulu in her stroller with the ski attachments! What a great purchase that was - Lulu can be cozy under the cover of the stroller, in a nest of snowsuit & blankets while we get a great workout in hauling her along!

3. Cousins Skate

Despite Lulu's cousins, Aunt Tara & Uncle GR having a bonkers weekend, they invited us to skate on their backyard rink this past Monday! 

Again, cold, windy, sort of polar vortex-y, but Lulu loved it. She had so much fun being pushed around on the ice by her big cousins! She certainly doesn't have the hang of skating yet - but loves to talk about it anyway! BoBo & Bump came out to watch the antics, as did Lulu's cousins' Nana. A very fun afternoon topped off by hot chocolate made by Kane & a fire in their fireplace. Winter perfection!!

4. "The Disease of Being Busy"
I often listen to the program "On Being" on weekend mornings on WBEZ. I appreciate its commentary on faith, spirituality, religion, and all things in between. This post made me realize I should look at the program's website more often than the never that I currently do! A woman who I went to sleep away gymnastics camp with shared this article on Facebook (I'm almost sure I've read it already....can't be sure if I've shared it here.....sorry if this is a repeat!) this week & it struck a chord with me.

It seems to me I've read a hundred articles/posts about the benefits of allowing ourselves (& our kids) to be bored. To allow space for deep/big thoughts, creativity, wondering, imagining. Lots of good things can come from being bored it seems. And yet, it is so hard for us, (in the age of screens everywhere) to give ourselves this time/space.

Do you make space for boredom in your house? For yourself? For your kids? I'd love to hear your thoughts on this and the ways that you do it (if you do)! I don't know if I leave enough space for boredom - but it is on my mind, which is probably the first way I'm going to be able to accomplish the goal, right??

Friday Recap 1/18/19- Dad's Birthday, Choo choo to Booked, Snow fun, Oatmeal S'mores Cookie Recipe, "You Should Actually Send That Thank You Note",

Happy Friday! Winter storm warning here this afternoon through 12noon tomorrow! Hooray! Hooray! Hooray for snow!

1. Dad's Birthday

My Dad turned 84 (or 48 if you ask him) last week & we celebrated on Sunday evening. It was a fun, chaotic, loud and delightful party for Dad/Bump! It seems impossible that my Dad is 84, there are so many moments when he seems so much younger to me. I love getting together to celebrate these life events - its fun for me - but also teaches Lulu the importance of celebrating other people's big days!

2. Choo Choo to Booked

Lulu & I rode the CTA to go to one of our favorite book stores, Booked, yesterday to enjoy their kiddo music. The store is just delightful, with a wonderful selection of kiddo books (plus some grown up ones too) and a cozy atmosphere. The owner is warm and welcoming every time we visit & is more than happy to order books we want that she doesn't have in stock.

Lulu enjoyed the music for approximately 5 minutes before she demanded "out" :(

This week I was placing an order for some books for Lulu specifically about birds - she's been really into look for ducks & birds when we walk on a bridge near our house. I would love to know more about birds and thankfully my wonderful friend & college roommate, Amber, is into birding already! She also happens to be a mom to 2 beautiful littles, so I figured she'd have some insight into little kid bird books. Of course she did not disappoint! In case you want to know what I ordered, the books are: "Birds" by Kevin Henkes & Laura Dronzek, "Charley Harper's Count The Birds" by Zoe Burke & Charley Harper and "Mama Built a Little Next" by Jennifer Ward & Steve Jenkins

As I so often do, I got sidetracked by books when I thought I was going to be writing about Lulu's love of trains :) But it is worth noting that for the bargin price of $2.50 you can bring your train loving little on the CTA to geek out!! Double bonus if you only stay at your destination for less than 2 hours.....you can go home for the price of a transfer.......a whopping $0.25! Lulu still talks about seeing Santa on the choo choo (when we rode the CTA Holiday Train back in December) I'm guessing she's a touch disappointed each time I tell her that, no, Santa is unlikely to be on this choo choo :)

3. Snow Fun

Man. I love the snow. It didn't matter that we didn't get a ton last weekend, it mattered that we got some!!

We went sledding with friends (& had pizza delivered here afterward) and went cross country skiing the next day.

We also went sledding with some of Lulu's cousins - so much fun all the way around :)

Pure & simple - wintry bliss!! Have you & yours had any snow lately? What's your favorite snowy day activity? I should mention that after we play in the snow, we typically retreat inside, light a fire, drink hot drinks & read. Lest you think we are outside & active all winter :)

4. Chocolate Oatmeal S'mores Cookies

I will be more careful with the marshmallows next time....these do not look very pretty :)

I don't remember where I came across this recipe.....Pinterest? Instagram? Did one of you lovelies send it to me? I have not a clue - such is life with mom brain ;) Either way - I had some downtime during Lulu's naps this weekend, so I made this cookie dough. I baked some of the cookies & brought them to my parents' house for my Dad's birthday party. They were really good. Sort of scary good. I made them open faced - it seemed honestly like too much to have 2 full sized cookies, nutella & a marshmallow be 1 serving......I am not judging if you would like to have 2 of these - but 1 cookie per serving felt much more reasonable!

What are you baking during this winter season? I love to try out long, lazy recipes on these cold, sometimes dark days. Would love to know what's making your house smell like heaven!!

5. "You Should Actually Send That Thank You Note"

Gratitude is sort of a buzz word at the moment, would you agree? I don't mind - in my most humble opinion we could all benefit from expressing (& receiving) more gratitude. Science seems to bear out the benefits of gratitude - I know I've shared articles to this end in the past - but these things bear repeating! 

This article is not talking about the thank you notes we write for gifts given - the random gift card thank you note that is obligatory is not what was studied here. The researchers studied the "big" thank you notes where the writer expresses big feelings & deep appreciation for the recipient's actions/help. Thank you for supporting me when I was going through a tough time. Thank you for being with me during a time of grief/loss. Thank you for your guidance as I navigated a career or job change. The big things. Sometimes we all feel these big feelings for small things, it is worth writing the big thank you notes anytime you feel the big feels. The researchers found they were not met with the awkward feelings the writers anticipated. Quite the opposite - receiving these big thank you notes made the recipients feel so good they rated the feeling at a 4 out of 5 on the happiness scale they were given in the study. 

If you could, by investing a few minutes & a postage stamp, make a friend or family member feel the 4 out of 5 feels.......wouldn't you do it???? I know I would :) I guess I do already - but I can always write more of these notes. I like to tell my people how important they are to me. Most days I couldn't get through the day without my tribe of family and friends. We are social animals - there is no denying it. We require the closeness of others. Its high time we start acknowledging the great import these people play in our lives. 

Friday Round Up 1/11/19 - 1st Ever Book Review, Back at the Zoo, Back at Inspiration Corporation, Pack Your Patience

Happy Friday! This has been an odd weather week - spring in January - then right back to single digit wind chills. Another week of weather whiplash! Fingers crossed for some snow this weekend!! Hope you have a wonderful weekend planned and happy reading.

1. Traveling Mercies by Anne Lamott Review

I figure to keep myself honest about my New Year's resolution to read at least 12 books this year, I should track the books I read this year! Thank goodness my wonderful friend Camilla came over this week to catch up. She is well versed in the world of Goodreads and gave me a helpful tutorial! Turns out I had signed up in 2009.......but never really kept up with it, so I am back! Let me know if you want to be connected. Since I'll be tracking my books read on that site/app, I figure its a good exercise to write reviews when I'm done. I was saddened to realize that I forget books in their entirety...when going through the website with Camilla I found myself saying "that one sounds familiar.....but I'm just not sure if I've read it or not" so this resolution will help me remember what I've read (& ideally what I think about what I've read) over the years.

So without further ado, here is the review I posted to Goodreads for Traveling Mercies! And thanks to my friend Jay for recommending it!

This is my first time reading Anne Lamott and I plan to explore her other writing! She is achingly honest in her discussion of life, motherhood, faith and family. The book made me laugh & cry in almost equal measure. There is almost a short story/vignette quality to the chapters, they don't all follow a single story line (outside of the fact that it is her life/faith we're reading about). I didn't mind this style, I quite liked it actually, worth mentioning in case you aren't in for it. Great for anyone interested in a frank discussion of Christian faith without a single, solitary speck of preachy-ness - I struggle to handle preaching.....but love to read about spirituality and faith. This book hit the mark.

Are you reading anything wonderful lately? Let me know in the comments - I would love to add it to my "to read list"!!

2. Back at the Lincoln Park Zoo

Due to childcare issues (& then our "new" car breaking down in December) I've hardly been volunteering at the Zoo this winter. This week was the start of a new normal where I volunteer on the weekend rather than during the week. It makes so much sense since Chris is home on the weekends and I don't have to hunt for a daytime babysitter! I already miss my Wednesday volunteer friends though. The great news is, this week at least, Lulu & I were guests at the Zoo on Wednesday and ran into several of our favorite volunteer friends! 

I've written about the importance of volunteering here before; but I do think it helps me to be a better person. I really love having some things outside of our home that are just for me. I imagine it is the same type of feeling working moms might have about work. A place to go that is your own, full of adults, and no diapers! Add to that the fact that volunteerism seems to be woven into my DNA. My parents are both regular volunteers and offer all kinds of support to their family and friends to boot (myself happily included!!) I guess it makes sense that I would see the value in giving back.

My volunteer shift fell on an unseasonably warm &  sunny day - so the Zoo was, well, a zoo! Despite not knowing any of the other volunteers, I had a good day & met some interesting guests. I loved talking to 2 young sisters about the family troop of gorillas in particular. The girls seemed to have endless (& interesting) questions and stayed to talk through the answers for upwards of 15 minutes. What fun it is to see the world through the eyes of kiddos.

3. Back at Inspiration Corporation

Hooray to be back in the cafe at Inspiration Corporation serving breakfast after a months long hiatus! Again, due to childcare issues I had taken a break from my regular volunteer shift. Its funny isn't it, how the simplest solution is sometimes the hardest to see?? Without going into boring details - I am able to (quickly & easily) take the train to volunteer and Chris brings Lulu in the car to meet me at the end of my shift. He hops on the train & heads downtown. Why was I so worried about finding an early morning babysitter when the answer was just so simple?!? Feel a little sheepish about not figuring this out more quickly - but such is life, right? 

Either way, all of the same comments about volunteering I made above apply here- except in this case I get to stay with my regular crew of volunteer friends!! What a lovely treat to see such wonderful people at 6:30am! An added bonus is many of the cafe guests are habitual and come on the same days each week, so I had many friendly faces to serve as well. 

I was relieved the cafe wasn't too terribly busy for my first shift back in awhile - didn't want to fall down on the "job"! I embarrassingly screwed up one guests' name - a guest I've been serving for years- and screwed it up badly. I hate that I'm not great with names and taking a months long break from a group of people doesn't do my brain any favors :( That aside - it was great to be back. I'm happy to be there to be sure. 

4. Pack Your Patience

I read a lot of New York Times articles it seems......maybe because they do a lot of advertising on Facebook and I click on their posts which perpetuates itself by showing me more of those ads?? Who knows/who cares, but this article, How to Be a More Patient Person caught my eye and was really interesting. I certainly feel like I could use some support in the patience department - I hate when I lose my cool in airports, traffic, or with Lulu. How reassuring that patience, like so much else is life, can be learned and practiced and improved upon?? I do not love rushing - so what makes me feel that impatient, rushed feeling so often?? I don't know, but this article gave several ideas of how to exercise one's patience muscle- so that it can become your default setting!

Friday Round Up 12/21/18 - CTA Hoilday Train, Neighbor Help, Neighborhood Caroling Party, 1st Ever Mom's Group Dinner Club, Christmas Family Time

Happy Holidays........Happy Holidays....... they are officially here!! I've been doing a great job of taking my time with this holiday season - and then this week the stomach bug came & made me feel like I needed to amp up my pace to Nth degree to keep up with all the germ killing!! Oh well, that's life, right? Sometimes family members get sick at what feel like the worst times. Knocking on wood here- but so far only 3 people have gotten it, so I'm desperately hoping the rest of us are in the clear!

1. CTA Holiday Train

This time of year is so fun - every institution seems to have something special going on to celebrate Christmas or the holidays generally. The CTA is no exception! They've been rocking the Holiday Train (or Santa Train) for years! We had friends come over to ride the train together & have dinner. As a grown up, I love the fun of the train - lights - music- decorations outside & inside, special seats, CTA workers in costume passing out candy canes, impromptu singing on board, all the things. The train was 40 minutes late so we played at the park as long as we could - then went to a coffee shop for hot chocolates :) 'Tis the season, right?? Despite being packed in super tight, we had a great time on the "choo choo" as Lulu calls trains of any sort.

We had our friends over for pizza after the train, which is always so fun! Its also a little bonkers when there are 6 kiddos running around our modestly sized house :) I do my level best to relax & embrace the chaos! What helps is Lulu's excitement about all the playmates in the house! She's the littlest one in the group, but loves to have everyone over. She must've ridden down our slide 40 times throughout the night - it was hilarious to see her doing her laps amongst all the other littles. She so clearly is a mix of Chris & me personality wise - and these moments where I watch her jump right into the mix of a group of big kids- remind me of me. I love a good party. I love to be surrounded by friends and family. I'm still learning the art that more is not more when it comes to parties - but still :) It is nice to see her little sense of self developing and watching her figure out how to navigate a room full of people.

2. Neighbor Help

Sometimes your dog gets away from you unexpectedly & "runs away" - quotes because he doesn't actually want to leave your family, but because he's running after a squirrel. Sometimes you spend an hour & a half looking for him, the panic rising with the passing minutes. Sometimes you realize you can't find the dog alone, so you send the SOS out to your neighbors & community. Sometimes your neighbors & friends turn out in wonderfully helpful numbers to search for the dog. Sometimes it is your sweet neighbor girl who finds the dog, 20 yards from where you lost him, stuck behind a fence designed to keep people (& animals?!?!) off of the CTA tracks. Sometimes your husband, who had headed home to put your human baby down for a nap, passes off said human to a wonderful neighbor to sprint back to you. Sometimes you have to climb a fence, avoid the barbed wire & lift your shaking and crying dog over a 6 foot high concrete wall (no barbed wire there - thank goodness) and hand him to your husband.  Whoosh. Owenn puppy. Keeping us all on our toes. Majorly keeping us on our toes. Not the most holly jolly Saturday morning I've ever had!

3. Neighborhood Caroling Party

Last year I was recovering from the flu when our neighborhood caroling party happened :( I went outside to see the kiddos singing - but didn't go to the cookie exchange/craft creation party at our local American Legion Hall :)

This year we were able to go to the cookie + warm up the vocal cords part of the fun - but not the outdoor part. I love that we live in a neighborhood filled with families that want to hang out together. It is a great place to live and I adore the fact that Lulu has so many "big kid" neighbors who seem to look out for her.

4. 1st Ever Mom's Group Dinner Club

I cooked up the idea for a dinner club based on what my parents have been doing for 20+ years with a group of their good friends. They call it Gourmet Club, but everyone shares in the hosting and cooking duties- and you cook a themed menu once a month or every other month, whatever. I love to share dinner with friends- but at this stage of my life - its not joyful to prepare the entire menu myself. It feels much more like work than fun, So this type of elevated potluck speaks to me! I went to my mom's group to see if there was any interest - and indeed there was! We squeezed a meeting in just before the wild & crazy Christmas season got into full swing - and it was a relaxing, fun evening in!

Our theme was Smitten Kitchen......which isn't really a theme - but everyone had to select a recipe from the Smitten Kitchen blog or cookbooks. Everything came together quite well from a flavor standpoint - it felt and tasted like a cohesive meal, even though 8 people prepared it!

Lots of good conversation around the dinner table, delicious food, good wine, what's not to love? Already looking forward to the next one!

5. Pre-Christmas Family Time

Just remember girls - it doesn't have to be fun to be fun!

Despite the fact that a stomach bug is taking out family members, we are still finding ways to enjoy each others' company. In between bouts of Clorox wiping, hand sanitizing, hand washing & Lysol-ing that is.

That's the bitch about the holidays, isn't it? By the time they come around - you've been running ragged for weeks, parties, cooking, shopping, errands, decorating, wrapping, gifting. So your body gives you the middle finger & forces you to slow the F down. Enter the stomach bug. This is not our first Christmas that involved a stomach bug, but of course its felled my Dad & my Bug. My brother was out for a day but bounced back well. Fingers crossed that all the cleaning helps the rest of us avoid it!! Ho Ho Ho!