Picture an Hour: April 2024
6:15 a.m. Coffee + Devotional + Work
My alarm went off at 6 a.m. in the middle of a seriously weird dream involving a shark attack that happened where I was swimming in the ocean and several people swimming near me were bitten but no one was seriously injured or even all that scared. It was like the most apathetic shark attack in the history of the world. It was a bizarre dream (my dreams are usually much more realistic and just everyday life kind of dreams) and a strange start to the day.
Things started to feel a little more normal by 6:15 a.m. after I let Pepper out, made myself a whole milk latte and spent some time reading my devotional before working on my laptop until the boys were awake. Also, I have to give another shout out to my Ember mug, aka the Christmas gift I received from Ryan that knocked it out of the park. I still wish the mug was a tad bigger (only because I use a lot of whole milk in my lattes) but it’s seriously the best little invention for those who like their coffee H-O-T. It’s also super helpful because too often I’ll make my coffee and then get sidetracked or the boys will need me or something but when I come back to my coffee, it’s still wonderfully warm. I love it so much.
7:30 a.m. Waffles for Breakfast
Ryan had an early start to his work day yesterday and was out the door just before 7 a.m. About 15 minutes after I said goodbye to Ryan, I heard noise from upstairs and headed up to get Rhett dressed for the day and say good morning to the big kids who were already starting in on another magnetic tile creation. Eventually everyone headed downstairs when I told them breakfast was ready. We had buttered waffles and sliced strawberries and I cannot tell you how nice it’s been to make a whole box of Simple Mills waffles on the weekends to freeze and then have them on hand to pop into the toaster on busy weekday mornings. I also finally bit the bullet and ordered a waffle maker that will allow me to make 4 waffles at a time as opposed to standing over our single Christmas tree waffle maker for 30+ minutes as I make the whole box of waffles. It should arrive tomorrow and I’m excited to put it to use!
8:05 a.m. School Drop Off
Soon after breakfast, we piled into my car to take Chase to school. No one was more excited for school drop off than Pepper! She dashes to the door when she knows it’s time for us to leave and always likes to be in the mix. I’ve said it before but I’ll say it again: This tiny hamster dog has been the perfect fit for our family. She’s seriously the source of so much joy, humor and love in our lives every single day and the way she is with our boys will forever be one of my very favorite things about her. Dogs are just the best.
9:25 a.m. Burn Boot Camp
After the whole school drop off routine when all three boys were settled at school/preschool, I made my way to Burn Boot Camp for a total body workout. It was a good one with a lot of solid strength exercises that challenged my whole body. I stayed after to chat with a friend for a bit before making my way back home.
10:30 a.m. Work
I spent the next couple of hours on the computer working so I don’t have any fun pictures to share unless you want to see multiple angles of my laptop.
12:30 p.m. Shower + Get Dressed
(Cardigan: Target but old / Tank: Old Navy but old / Jeans: Free People / Sneakers: Reebok / Colorful Beaded Necklace: Amazon / Tiny Heart Gold Necklace: Gorjana)
I took a speedy shower and got dressed at the last minute before I had to run out the door to pick up Rhett and Ryder from preschool pickup. I lost track of time while I was working and didn’t plan enough time for a sit down lunch so lunch looked like eating dinner leftovers out of a Tupperware container in my car.
1:30 p.m. Preschool Pickup + Target Run
During preschool pickup it was pouring outside which scrapped our plans to meet up with friends for a park playdate between school pickups. Plan B took us to Target to do a return which naturally resulted in us shopping at Target and leaving with some random groceries to help get us through the rest of the week.
2:40 p.m. School Pickup
Next up on the agenda was Chase’s school pickup. It was still raining — yesterday was honestly pretty dreary from start to finish — but thankfully the downpour lessened to a drizzle and eventually faded as the afternoon went on.
3:15 p.m. Home for Snack Time + Lunch Prep + Strawberry Planting
When we arrived home, the boys dug into a big snack plate I threw together while I prepared their lunches for the following day. (Making their lunches for the next day the minute we get home has been a game changer for me. I have not received one complaint from the boys about stale food or soggy sandwiches so I’m going to keep rockin’ with this one as long as possible.)
After snack time, the rain was dying down and we were all itching to get outside so we made our way into the backyard where Ryder got the idea to plant the tops of the strawberries from his afternoon snack. Gardening friends, any chances his technique will yield some berries? While we don’t have huge hopes for the strawberries, our whole family is getting excited for round two of our garden this spring! We’re planning to plant some new-to-us fruits and veggies and hope we’ll have half the success we did with our zucchini plants last summer. The boys and I also planted some zinnias and wildflowers in the yard yesterday and hope they’ll take off like they did last summer, too!
4:30 p.m. More Outside Playtime
The boys played outside for a solid two hours and had a great time moving from the yard to the driveway to the little beach in our backyard. Outside for our kids is the freaking best because I swear they’re all happier and brother fights are minimal. They often come up with games or “projects” to work on together and yesterday’s imagination project made me smile. They created a “fish hatchery” in the sand for baby fish to hatch and grow until they’re ready to make their way into the lake and swim with the bigger fish. I love their imaginations so much.
6:20 p.m. Boys’ Dinner + Board Game
The 5 o’clock hour passed by in a blur of wrapping up outside playtime, bath time, pajamas and making dinner. Once all of that was done, the boys ate dinner and then we played a couple rounds of a new-to-us game my mom sent to the boys for Easter. They are loving Snug as a Bug in a Rug because there are instructions that allow you to make it easier for younger kids (Rhett) or more challenging for older kids (Chase and Ryder) so all three boys think it’s fun! I swear Peaceable Kingdom makes the BEST games because they’re collaborative so all of the boys are working together to win which eliminates intense sibling fights that can go along with board games when they’re younger. Hallelujah. (Hoot Owl Hoot is another collaborative game our boys love!)
7:15 p.m. Bed Time + Dinner
Ryan arrived home right before 7 p.m., just in time to say goodnight to Rhetty Roo! I put Rhett to bed while Ryan hung out with the big kids and then we dug into our dinners while playing another round of Snug as a Bug in a Rug with Chase and Ryder. Then Ryan put the big kids to bed just before 8 p.m. while I did a cleaning sweep in the kitchen before we both let Pepper out one last time.
8:20 p.m. Reading with Chase + More Reading
Once Ryder fell asleep, Chase slipped out of their room and met us in our room to read another couple of chapters from The Lost Hero, the latest book we’re reading which a continuation of the Percy Jackson series we recently finished and loved. At this point, my phone was plugged in across our room so I didn’t snap any additional pictures but after we were done reading with Chase a little after 9 p.m., we said goodnight to him and then Ryan and I read our respective books before falling asleep. I ended up finishing Practice Makes Perfect, the sequel to When In Rome (one of the best books I’ve read so far this year), and thought it was another lovely lighthearted gem!
As for today, it should be a fairly typical Wednesday with school, piano and our usual weekday routine. I hope you all have a fantastic day!
