Review from last week: None! We mostly heated stuff up from the freezer before we left and grabbed take out a time or two:
...and our NYC trip will happen in another post :) Plan for next (this) week: I arranged for a Blue Apron delivery to arrive on Saturday so I don't have to do a big shopping trip until next weekend. Monday: Blue Apron Meal: Spicy Shrimp Spaghetti with Cabbage and Toasted Breadcrumbs
We absolutely love our membership at the YMCA. So many fun opportunities for Ben to try new sports and activities. This month, we started up with "Intro to Martial Arts", which my mom takes him to on Wednesday afternoons. It's a fun way for him to get some energy out and play games like "Samurai, Samurai, Ninja" (a take on Duck, Duck, Goose).
Here is a picture from his first class. It looks like it could easily be confused for a Cheer-Leading practice.
Shauna and Brandon threw a "fancy" party for Alivia's first birthday. We had fun dressing up and visiting with some friends - some of whom I hadn't seen in years or since high school!
Me and Kim:
Kim, Shauna and Me
The birthday girl enjoying her cake!
Me and Greg - rare opportunity to be dressed up.
Party boys waiting to sing Happy Birthday (and sneaking frosting).
Ben loving his color baths.
Fun with emojis
Mira and Callie came over for a play date (Maylee was sick).
Ben came up to me one evening and told me he wanted to "be by himself with me". So we read books. With this particular book, Ben is able to read about 80% of it on his own!
Lisa's birthday was last weekend, and she has had several years of having extremely fun and unique parties! (Last year, for example, we were trapped in a room with a zombie).
This year, she and Evan rented out a roller-skating rink and we all had a BLAST! Since it was kid friendly, we decided this would be the perfect time for Ben to try skating for the first time!
It was 80's themed, so I tried to make my hair as big as possible...which was more challenging than I expected.
I brought a cake :)
The boys :)
Me and Benny.
Skating for the first time is HARD. This is how most of the night went:
And by the end, he only required one hand to hold and was doing a great job! He had the BEST time and told us afterwards that he felt so proud of himself. (I was so impressed that he never gave up, even if it was super hard).
Me, Lisa and Crystal
The cake lady at the bakery convinced me to get trick candles ;)
The party was from 8:30 - 10:30 pm, so Ben predictably crashed on the ride home.
We made some AMAZING burgers on Valentine's Day w/ Gruyere cheese, arugula, pickles and aioli.
Carnita bowls.
We also went out to eat twice: Once because I had to take my car in for repairs at the dealership on Monday night and the other because we had a Groupon that needed to be used on a weeknight.
Tonight is breakfast for dinner :) Plan for next week:
Saturday: Butter Chicken with naan Sunday: Lagered Chili Monday: Leftover butter chicken Tuesday: Tomato Soup and Grilled Cheese (with bacon) Wednesday: Leftover soup and salad. And then we are off to NYC!!!!!!!
Chicken and mashed potatoes with carrots and a maple syrup glaze.
Lamb quesadillas?
Salmon over black rice with avocado and oranges. Yum.
Plan for next week: Saturday: After writing up last week's meal plan, I learned that Ben's school was doing a "Parent's Night Out" on Friday night. So Greg and I are taking advantage and going out to dinner! We shifted things around, froze the pork and we are having Mexican Pork Carnitas on Saturday night instead.
Sunday: Burgers Monday: Leftover Carnitas. Tuesday: I've discovered these southwest chopped salad kits at the store recently and we have found them to be SO delicious and the perfect thing to add to a meal when we are feeling too lazy to cook. So tonight: Grilled chicken with Southwest Salad. Wednesday: Lemon-Avocado Toast with Poached Eggs and a side of bacon. (A take on this, but I really just do my own thing). Thursday: Pasta, arugula, Parmesean, slow-roastsd cherry tomatoes and crispy prosciutto. Friday: Friday night is Lisa's birthday party. We are planning to grab dinner out on our way down to Seattle.
A picture Shauna snapped of Ben wearing Alivia's headband :)
Pretty rainbow I saw on my way to pick up Ben at school. It seemingly ended RIGHT at Ben's school!
Having the best time with his buddies at school. What a wonderful change of pace having him request school every day (vs crying when he had to go). What a difference a few months can make!
Apparently this is their "spot".
I think they were learning about maps.
A picture Ben painted: "A Stormy Day"
Making Valentines! This has been a passion project for him.
Ben, Greg, Laryd and myself played SO much football outside during the Superbowl (mostly them, a little bit me). It was so fun! We are thinking about signing Ben up for flag football that starts at the end of this month - in addition to Intro to Martial Arts that he starts on Wednesday!
We went out for dinner for Maureen's birthday last weekend! It was so much fun!
