Five on Friday!

Happy Friday friends!!! 

It’s been a whirlwind week since my best girl turned 4 last Saturday, but here’s a quick look at what we’ve been up to!

1. Last Friday, we got a jump start on Ella’s birthday celebrations by meeting Belle and Marshall at the cupcake shop! 

It was definitely worth waiting in the freezing cold, although Lucas didn’t think so (he was terrified of Marshall!).

2. We had Ella’s 4 year old check up yesterday, and if you saw my instastory, you already know how traumatic it was! Homegirl does NOT like shots...and she had to get 2 yesterday! So she was freaking out just a bit. 

Thankfully we all survived!

3. We have been slowly but surely breaking in Ella’s birthday presents and a surprise favorite of mine is the Sneaky Snacky Squirrel Game! 

It is so cute, and is great for practicing fine motor skills (you have to use these cute little squirrel tweezers to pick up the acorns)! Highly recommend for the 3-5 age group!

4. We celebrated National Fro Yo Day (yes, it’s really a thing!) this past Tuesday with Kathryn and baby Norah! Because nothing is more appropriate than getting some fro yo in winter coats when it’s 40° out, right?! 

But it was free!! Which is good because Lucas decided he didn’t like fro yo and ate zero of his. I think it was too cold for him? Good thing my “picky eater” Ella had no problem finishing off hers and his.

5. This is a total first world problem, but y’all! So many things to watch on tv right now! 

First, the Olympics! I’m not going to lie, I def like the Summer Olympics better, but hey, I’ll still watch the winter ones. Then, the Bachelor is starting a Winter Games version next week. Big Brother also decided to do a celebrity version this winter for the first time ever, and that started this past week. (yes Trav and I are the only people in America who still watch Big Brother. And it is on like 3 times a week...such a  commitment!) And then there’s all of my regular Bravo shows! I just don’t even know how I am going to fit in all of these things to watch! See, told ya first world problems! 

Have a great weekend everyone!!!

Ella's Rainbow Birthday Party!

Ella specifically requested a "rainbow art party" for her 4th birthday...well, ask and you shall receive! 

I definitely did not want to have a bunch of preschoolers over to our house to do art projects, so we had the party at Noah's Art, which was a perfect location! 

I did basically nothing for this party, which was every bit as amazing as I knew it would be. I made the cupcakes myself and didn't even bother to take them out of the pans for a pretty display!

{all printable are from Lilacs & Charcoal on Etsy}

The kids also had "creative juice" aka apple juice!

For their favor bags, I made a rainbow on plain white bags using dot markers.

Inside the bags, I put crayons, a little watercolor set, stickers and a little sketchbook (I found the stickers and books in the $1 spot at Target!). 

As soon as we got there, the art projects started! 

First, Ella got a rainbow painted on her hand!

{Ella's dress is from OmiJo}

They also had a station set up where the kids could color a big birthday banner for Ella...

...and at the third station, they made bead bracelets!

They also set out play dough for Lucas and Penelope!

{Lucas's shirt is from Hanna Andersson}

After all of Ella's friends arrived, the kids put on aprons and got to paint!

The next project was doing watercolors. There were hidden objects on their picture that were revealed when they painted!

While this was going on, the boys wanted to do a little painting ;) 

I'll also add that Lucas became obsessed with washing his hands and washed them no fewer than 15 times during the party. Thanks for keeping him occupied, Trav, Mom and Dad!

The last project was making rainbows with pipe cleaners!

(Not sure why Ella decided to "smile" like this in every picture.)

Then it was time for her birthday march! They put on music and Ella paraded through the art studio to their big birthday wall! She got to pick out the color she wanted and put her handprint on the wall, all while her little friends cheered her on! 

Next up: singing "Happy Birthday" and cupcakes!

Then it was time to say goodbye to all of the friends! Baby Norah was the youngest guest by a long shot :)

After nap, we had our families over to continue the birthday celebration, so I put up some decorations...because this is me and you know I love some decorations! 

That giant 4 is still up in our dining room...and will prob be up until Lucas's birthday in May.

Time to open presents!

Ella is obsessed with the sleep Skye she got, as well as her new Minnie watch!

My parents gifted her my old dollhouse that my grandpa built for me when I was a little girl. They also got her new furniture (since mine was outdated and kind of fragile), and she has been having fun "decorating" the house! 

What a day celebrating this 4 year old!!!! She was super tired out! 

Ella Grace {4 Years}

Dear Ella,

How the heck are you FOUR years old already?!?! I feel like Daddy and I were just rushing to the hospital to meet you last week! I can’t believe we are only a short year away from you being 5 (a whole hand!) and old enough for kindergarten!!! Someone hold me.

We are headed to the doctor next week for your big 4 year old check up. I’ve already prepped you, because getting shots are not your thing, and I’m pretty sure you’ll be getting at least 2 at this doctors visit. When you got your flu shot in the fall, you were completely traumatized and could barely walk on your “flu leg.” So I’m sure next week might just do you in. Fingers crossed we all survive! 

But anyway, you did go to the doctors last week because you were sick, and we discovered that you are almost 40 pounds and almost 40 inches tall! How perfect! You are wearing 4T clothes, and size 9 shoes. I’m starting to buy 5T clothes and size 10 shoes for the summer though because you are growing like a weed!

Sleeping at night is great with you! Some nights you will have a little party with all of your “guys” (stuffed animals!) in your bed, but 9 nights of out 10, you go right to sleep. You don’t come out of your room in the morning till your clock turns green at 7:30, but I know most mornings you are awake a little bit before then. But thank you for staying in your bed until 7:30!!! By some sort of miracle, you are still napping!!! You nap 2 hours a day...most of the time it’s really less than that, but I have that clock set for 2 hour naps, and you do not come out of your room until it turns green! Maybe 1 or 2 days a week you flat out do not sleep at all during naptime and just play in your room instead. But I’m fine with it as long as you're having “quiet rest time” and aren’t overly tired.

You are continuing to flourish at preschool and love it so much! I just had your parent teacher conference (which was hilarious to me that 1. They do this with 3 year olds, and 2. I am now on the other side of the table at these conferences now!) and your teacher had nothing but glowing remarks to say about you. You are kind and you share and play with everyone. It makes me so happy to know you are not a brat or a mean girl at school! You also know all 4 seasons and all the months of the year. Calendar is your favorite and we even have my old one from my classroom set up in your playroom. You can count up to 31 (maybe even higher but you just stop at 31 because I guess that’s how many days are in most months?). We are still working on writing your letters and cutting with scissors. Some letters are tricky for you (R, K, B) and you always want me to “make the dots” for you to trace over!

We are still riding full steam ahead on the Paw Patrol train, and you’ve even gotten Lucas hooked. You keep telling me when you turn 5, you want a Skye (that’s the pink one for all of you who aren’t Paw Patrol obsessed like we are over here) birthday party. Haha. We have 33 Paw Patrol episodes on our dvr and I’m terrified to delete any of them because you love watching every. single. episode. And every time we go to Target, we HAVE to go look at the Paw Patrol toys. You also still love Frozen and would move mountains to do anything that has to do with Anna and Elsa. 

Other favorite shows/characters/books include Peppa Pig, Shimmer and Shine, Moana, Curious George and your Princess book (our nightly devotional...you cannot go to sleep till we read the princess book)!

I’m not sure when this fairy tale will end, but you are still SO sweet to Lucas!!! You can get him to laugh like nobody else! You love to run behind his high chair and say “Found ya!” as many times as possible while he’s eating. And he thinks it’s hilarious. You guys play together pretty well, although sometimes you’ll tease him with a toy and then snatch it away from him...and he flips out. But I’d say for the other 90% of the time, you guys do a great job sharing with each other and not tackling/teasing/bothering each other!

You are so funny these days and you love to make people laugh! If you say something that you think is funny but I don’t laugh, you quickly tell me to “laugh, Mommy!” or sometimes a more subtle, “isn’t that so funny?!” You also always say “I am a hoot!” because, well, you are. The things you say, and the things you REMEMBER just blow my mind. I can tell you one thing about something one time and you will remember it months later. One thing you can’t seem to remember: don’t tell Daddy about the new clothes you get in the mail.... you LOOOOVE telling Daddy when you get new clothes in the mail. (We need to work on this, Ella!!! Some secrets are good!) 

Elle Belle, you just have the sweetest personality and we love watching it develop more everyday! You make friends wherever you go...you are going to be like that old lady who knows no strangers!! We couldn’t be more thankful for a healthy, happy, full of life little girl and we love you more than you know!!! 

10 Go-To Meals

I've been following along with Emily Ley's Simplicity Challenge on Instagram this month. Every day she posts a quick 15 minute FREE activity to do to simplify your life! Last week, one of the challenges was to make a list of 10 go-to meals for simple meal planning. 

I don't know if my list is worth sharing, but if nothing else, this is post for me to refer back to when I can't think of what to make for dinner!!

1. Thai Chicken Enchiladas

This is pretty much the only recipe that Trav requests by name. I make them every year for Selection Sunday in March, but I feel like we should be eating them more regularly than that. They are SO good.

2. Spicy California Shrimp Stack

I discovered these when I was pregnant with Lucas and craving sushi. These are just as good as the real deal, pregnant or not!!

3. Buffalo Chicken Soup

Every Sunday in the fall, I make a soup, and this one is by far my favorite!!!

4. Garlic Shrimp in Coconut Milk, Tomatoes and Cilantro

This is crazy easy, quick and it is SOOOO delicious.

5. Avocado and Lump Crab Salad

This is perfect for the summer, especially when it's too hot to actually turn the oven on. 

6. Spaghetti Bolognese

This is my go-to pre-race meal. I swear it helps me run fast! 

7. Tri-Color Stuffed Peppers

We randomly found this recipe on the back of a bag of Kraft cheese, and it's honestly my favorite stuffed pepper recipe. It's pretty basic, but I do swap out the veggie crumbles and use ground turkey instead.

8. Sweet and Fiery Pork Tenderloin with Mango Salsa

My favorite way to prepare pork tenderloin! This has so much flavor. Trav is not a fan of the mango salsa (he doesn't really like fruit with his meals), but I love it!

9. Crock Pot Picadillo

This makes a TON. You can eat it with rice, use for tacos, put on a salad...it has a distinct flavor that I like much better than regular taco meat. 

10. Oven Baked Chicken Fajitas

My friend Rachel brought us this for dinner when Lucas was born, and it is the BEST meal to take a family! It's super easy to prep and make ahead, and who doesn't like fajitas?! 

There you have it....10 things that even I can make (I'm such a bad cook)! If you have any good go-to recipes, please share!!!

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