(Sadie says hi from her little cocoon of blankets!)
Breakfast
My day began dark and early, as usual, when I woke up to my alarm and headed downstairs to get a jump start on work for the day at 5 a.m.
I snagged one of the banana muffins I made for Chase earlier in the week to take the edge off my hunger and worked until Chase was up for the day. (I followed Angela’s recipe for vegan banana bread but used whole wheat flour instead of the spelt flour and turned them into muffins. So tasty!) With my little sidekick ready for action at 6:30 a.m., I headed upstairs to scoop him up from his nursery.
I don’t know why, but lately I’ve been thinking of random new ways to enter into Chase’s nursery when he wakes up and he absolutely cracks up when I do something unusual to greet him for the day… Like crawling or doing little frog jumps over to his crib. The unexpected is hilarious to him for some reason and I’m such a sucker for his big belly toddler laughs. Once Chase was dressed and ready, we headed downstairs for his and hers breakfast!
After I set Chase up with his morning meal, I made myself a quick bowl of chocolate protein oatmeal and dug in.
I wanted a warm breakfast to enjoy on a chilly January morning and this one hit the spot! To make the oatmeal, I loosely followed my high protein egg white oatmeal recipe but added cocoa powder and chocolate almond butter to the mix before topping it with cacao nibs for a chocolaty crunch. Loved it!
The next 40 minutes passed by in a blur of teeth brushing, playtime and changing for the gym and before I knew it we were walking through the doors of Burn Boot Camp and I was sweatin’ up a storm!
Workout
Our workout began with a plank challenge and thankfully I had my friends Lauren, Laura and Abby to distract me through a five minute plank hold. (We took short breaks as needed but MAN it was tough!)
The core of yesterday’s workout was a cardio beast and we completed as many rounds as possible of the following workout for 25 minutes:
I felt 10,000 times more energetic after my workout and once I picked Chase up from BBC childcare and said goodbye to my friends, I headed off to Target and downed a small bag of cashews on the way.
(Pomegranate vanilla cashews = Unreal.)
I needed to pick up a couple small things to add to a gift I am assembling for a baby sprinkle I’m attending tomorrow morning for my friend Meghan who is expecting her second baby boy next month. (In case you were in the dark about baby sprinkles like I was, a baby sprinkle is basically a small-scale baby shower for baby #2.)
Once we arrived back home, it was time for a snack before Chase’s nap so I quickly made a peanut butter sandwich for him to serve with grape tomatoes (he shocking loves them) and a banana. While he ate, I threw a load of laundry into the washing machine so my father-in-law will have clean sheets and towels waiting for him when he arrives tomorrow morning. (He’s spending his birthday weekend with us!)
I also roasted some okra in the oven since it was on its last leg in the fridge and needed to be used ASAP.
We followed up snack time with Sadie playtime before Chase blew her kisses and headed off for his nap just before 11:30 a.m. Once he was down, I took a much-needed shower and washed my hair for the first time in five days. (Truth. Bless you, dry shampoo.)
Lunch + Work
After my shower, I assembled my lunch!
Yesterday’s lunch included a tuna salad sandwich (made with tomatoes, avocado oil mayo from Thrive Market, sweet relish and dijon mustard), roasted okra and two Halo mandarins.
I worked at the computer while I ate and was incredibly productive which felt amazing! About halfway through Chase’s nap, I popped some microwave popcorn to snack on because I was craving a salty crunch.
My afternoon work session concluded when toddler cries came through on the baby monitor and I headed upstairs for Chase Playtime Round 2 of the day! After a quick lunch, we played in the living room for a bit while I tried to straighten up Chase’s toy area.
We have the majority of his toys tucked behind a corner of our couch, but I’ve been on the lookout for some kind of a storage system to use in this space that isn’t a giant eye sore for a while now.
Anyone with a knack for interior design have any ideas!?
Our afternoon activity of the day took us to Discovery Place Kids for a play date with friends and, as always, Chase had a blast running around like crazy.
I think the above image will tell you why I don’t have the guts to let my little running ball of mayhem use the kiddie carts at the grocery store just yet.
Dinner
Once we made it back home and Ryan arrived home from work, dinner came together quickly thanks to fresh ravioli we had waiting in the fridge. Once the pasta was done boiling on the stovetop I strained it over fresh spinach to wilt the spinach and topped it with marinara and mozzarella pearls.
Dinner = Done! So tasty!
The rest of our evening included more playtime, a bath for Chase and some bedtime stories before we kissed Chase goodnight and headed downstairs for Sadie cuddles on the couch.
I cannot believe it but our favorite furry lady will be NINE years old next Friday! I’m happy to report that Sadie is just as energetic and crazy as ever, despite what the above sleepy picture of our sugar-faced dog might make you think. (And yes, we’re definitely planning to follow through with Sadie’s annual birthday challenge again this year.)
Eventually we made it upstairs for reading + bed time and I crashed hard a little after 9 p.m. I was tiiiiired!
I hope you guys have a great Thursday and I’ll see ya tomorrow for your weekly Things I’m Loving Friday feature!
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Hey Julie! I’m not sure how flexible you are with the corner table or how much space is actually over there, so I don’t know 100% if this will fit. BUT we are so loving this line at IKEA for my daughters toys. (She’s the same age as Chase). http://m.ikea.com/us/en/catalog/products/art/20275814/ I got one of the 4 cube ones and picked this line because of the flexibility they offer. If you search “Kallax Hack” on Pinterest, you’ll find about a million. My thought would be to get one with the little doors. They’re lightweight and you could toss everything behind them at the end of playtime. Baskets could work great as well. (Again, so many options)! I hope you find something that works well for you!!! I can relate, especially after Christmas!!!
Love seeing Sadie! She’s such a sweet girl. These are my favorite posts, hands down. And thanks to Ashley for the suggestion on storage (I’m in the same boat!).
William loves pushing the little carts at the grocery store, but halfway through the trip he’s over it and then I have to awkwardly push it haha
If you find a solution to the toy eyesore, let me know! Currently we have our office turned into a playroom, but it’s going ot be Annabelle’s new room when the new baby gets here so I’m not sure where all the toys will go! Let’s be honest- she could get through her day without any of her toys and instead boxes, tissue paper, and containers! haha
Your days always seem like a nice balance of work, play, and delicious food! That lunch combo sounds amazing! And I always like those square storage cases with the baskets people use to store toys.
Awesome day!! I love how you’re up early to work and then really maximize your time during naptime!! My girls recently quit napping and it’s been so hard to focus when they’re awake. So, now I just don’t bother working when they’re up which really limits my time haha!!
We keep their downstairs toys in the TV console haha! They know to put them away when they’re done, which is nice.
Hope you have a great day today! You’ve inspired me to do a quick workout this morning for a boost of energy!
-Sarah http://www.thefrugalmillionaireblog.com
I love reading these and its so great that you have a good balance of excercise, work and mama time! My Lo is 2 weeks younger than chase so i love reading about someone in the same stage. A few things to add this morning: for toy storage we used pretty baskets from target for her small/medium toys, it looks good but i just had to make peace that her bigger toys would be out and about (like a shopping cart my parents got her for christmas! Ha!). Second, girl! You inspire me constantly waking up at 5am!!!! Im constantly encouraged by that when i read about it but never comment! If im training for a race, ill do the early runa here and there but the fact that you do it everyday is just amazing and good Job!!!!
I LOVE the idea of baskets. Thank you!! I struggle with shelves that look too kid-ish if you know what I mean and baskets sound perfect!
My two are 5 and 7 and I still don’t like giving them the kids carts at the grocery store. I fear for the ankles of unsuspecting shoppers.
Looks like a super productive and fun day! Sounds like you’ve really gotten in to a good rhythm with work and Chase! My sister bought a shelf with baskets and puts all of my nieces toys in the baskets at the end of the day. I think she got it at Target.
This is so random but do you know the paint color of your walls?!
I’m not sure! The previous owners painted them and we love them so never changed it! I’ll see if I can do some digging in the garage to find out!
Our little guy is 13 months old and toys we’re taking over our lives. We just recently purchased a storage ottoman and got rid of our wood coffee table. It’s worked great to keep almost everything hidden and our son loves opening and closing it and taking things out and putting them back in
These type of posts are my favorite! I feel like my day is mostly cleaning. How do you find balance with working out, blogging, and still manage to go out for a fun outing and playtime all in one day?
Ikea has some great toy/storage solutions but a lot of the colors would jive more with a playroom type room.
We have this in our living room -http://www.target.com/p/11-6-cube-organizer-shelf-espresso-room-essentials/-/A-15187076?sid=1541S&ref=tgt_adv_XS000000&AFID=google_pla_df&CPNG=PLA_Storage+Organization+Shopping_Brand&adgroup=SC_Storage+Organization&LID=700000001170770pgs&network=g&device=c&location=9007870&gclid=CMfI15LhvNECFVWBswodYvsH6w&gclsrc=aw.ds
We leave some of the cubes empty to rest toys like cars, busses, little people sets, etc (items that don’t translate well to a bin) and use fabric bins for some of the cubes to throw toys in that can be stored in a bin. It comes in a few colors and you can go very neutral with the bins (we have tan). I think it helps. We also had a wooden toy box that sort of fit the décor of the room in there for awhile to throw things in. Baskets are another idea!
I love posts like these cause I find it interesting to see what other people’s days look like.
Toy storage is tought. My son is almost 3 and my daughter is 9 months, but all their toys are in our TV room as well. It’s just a mess. He’s old enough where I don’t mind him going up and down the stairs to his bedroom, but I’d prefer him playing where I can see him.
I was thinking of the birthday challenge the other day and wanted to try it with my boyfriend’s pup! We’d need to make up a birthday, since he was a rescue, but it would be loads of fun! Also, now I’m craving ravioli. I think I know what dinner will be tonight!
http://www.poweredbysass.com
I can’t wait to see what the offerings are for Sadie’s birthday challenge! It’s awesome that you get Chase out and about so much. I have to go to a tile store today (and maybe Home Depot and Lowe’s…yay, renovations) with my one year old and I’m already stressing! Oh, and I think baby sprinkles are away more fun than baby showers (but I love showers, too!). I’m going to one on Saturday. 🙂
That sandwich looks so good! I’m also a popcorn fan. Have you tried just using a paper bag? You just put kernels in a paper bag, fold the top down, and microwave. No oil or anything. The microwave popcorn bags are lined with ugly chemicals that may cause cancer, so that’s why I use a paper bag instead. It works just as well and is healthier anyway.
Hey Julie. MY son is the same age as yours. I bought three wicker baskets (a more modern washed grey colour) of varying shapes and sizes and all of his toys are stored in there. He likes taking them in and out of the baskets and the baskets look pretty in the corner. When he’s older they’ll become good story rage for hats, mits and scarves. The bigger toys are either in a corner a behind the couch or in the basement in a more elaborate play area. I’m not willing to have toys completeky overtake ny beautiful house!
That sounds beautiful, practical and great for longevity! LOVE this idea!!
Your ravioli dinner looks delicious! Where do you get the fresh ravioli?
Looking forward to seeing Sadie’s birthday challenge! 🙂
Publix! The brand is Buitoni and it’s located by the refrigerated fresh pasta/cheese section. So good!
My mom bought us a huge fabric bin to hold Emma’s toys. It’s seriously huge-I could fit inside of it-and it holds all of her toys in our front living room! It’s neutral colors so it blends well into the room.
Can you please explain the BBC workout a little more- briefly describe the exercises? Thanks- want to try.
5am?! daaang! 😀
Baskets with lids are what I’ve found the best in my babysitting years, because kids love lifting lids (it’s the little things…) which makes teaching them to clean up really easy :)And covering the toys makes them less of an eyesore 🙂
I really love Viszlas! If I worked from home or did not work (maybe after baby #2), I think we would totally get one. We are just worried he/she would not get enough stimulation the hours that we are gone from work. We both really want a dog but are wanting to wait until after the baby comes in June. Sadie does not help my puppy fever!!!
A few ideas.
http://www.target.com/p/9-cube-organizer-shelf-11-room-essentials/-/A-50253244
http://www.target.com/p/porter-mid-century-modern-storage-cabinet-brown/-/A-15325613
http://www.homedepot.com/p/RiverRidge-Home-Transitional-Wood-Storage-Bench-with-3-Cubbies-in-White-02-023/204670820
A corner one:
http://www.homedepot.com/p/Home-Decorators-Collection-32-in-W-x-13-in-H-Sequoia-Corner-6-Cubbie-Organizer-0795300960/204273090?MERCH=REC-_-NavPLPHorizontal1_rr-_-NA-_-204273090-_-N
thank you so much for sharing!!! i appreciate the links very much!
Adeline’s toys are currently just all lined up in front of the tv and fireplace. My husband is building us a new tv stand/entertainment center where we can put baskets on it better organize (HIDE!) her toys!
Wow another year! Reminds me of Sadie’s 8-year birthday post and all the sweet Sadie pictures in them. Those pics made my husband want to have a dog (we have 2 cats, they think they own us.)
Looking forward to seeing which food wins out this year 🙂
why is there an affiliate link to your nursery all of the sudden… seen this several times
Oh my gosh! That’s a total mistake! I’ll delete it right now. If I link to something often on the blog, I’ll often set up an auto-link through Windows Live Writer (the program I use to write my blog posts) so certain words are automatically hyperlinked but that one was supposed to link to my previous blog post about Chase’s nursery, not an Etsy page! Thanks so much for letting me know!!
Of course. Haha it just didn’t seem like you to affiliate link chase like that lol
I’m just so glad you said something!!! It probably would’ve linked to that random page for all of eternity otherwise!!! Haha!!
This is more of a suggestion than a decorating idea. As Chase gets a bit older, he’ll tire of seeing his same toys every day (& you’ll want to buy him something new)! Stash a bunch away (& reduce your toy load in the family room) and switch them out every few weeks or so. His old toys will seem new again. I received this tip when my second daughter was 2 and it was a good one. Helped with clutter and boredom.
If you decide on a good toy bin/storage system that would make good post topic! I’m on the hunt for this myself!
Ditto. I want to hear about what you get if you decide to get something. I’m looking for something as well but don’t want it to clash with our living room and make it look cluttered still. I also want it to have some shelves so I can try and keep pieces of toys together. Currently all of his toys get thrown into a basket so obviously toys parts are missing haha
Toddler life! Sounds just like my days. After my guy’s November bday and Christmas I am starting to feel like the toys are closing in on me. I’ve moved some toys to other areas of the house to not make it seem so overwhelming in one room and that seems to help a bit. I need a storage solution too though!
We have the same living room toy clutter issue. I went to Home Goods and found a set of 3 matching wicker baskets with lids that really helped us out. They are 3 different sizes so they stack nicely (only when company is over, otherwise we keep them all accessible to our toddler) and my type-A self loves that I can sort the toys by size into them.
I wish I could bottle up your positivity and buy it! I’d be addicted! I guess that’s what coffee is for 🙂
I thought a “baby sprinkle” sounded like something that happened when you didn’t put on the diaper quite right! 🙂
I love these posts! Like pbfingers of yore! Yayyy!!!
Toy storage idea: multiple friends have this and it looks great!! Either a regular tall bookcase (in the furniture finish that matches the wood tones in your living room), or a deeper open-type bookcase, (the kind that looks like a grid), filled with matching baskets. I personally think a standard bookcase looks nicer than the open-grid type of bookcase (in terms of design/cohesiveness to an adult space). You throw the toys in the baskets on the shelves, and it all looks cohesive and nice. And another tip – the top shelves can showcase more adult/design friendly pieces (like an ampersand and a photo frame with a black and white photo inside etc.) Hope this helps! Height is your friend – when you need space, go up!! (Tall bookcases, shelves that go high, etc.)
I have this bin- it’s cushy and easy and HUGE. It’s big enough to fit all your trucks which is always a struggle. Plus they are 20% off right now!
http://www.landofnod.com/i-think-i-canvas-mega-sorter/f6583
Per the toy storage idea I mentioned above, here are a few visuals – if you’re keeping the toys in an adult space/all-family space, and you want to keep the design of your living area, you can blend the storage into your current design. I.e. my friends have colorful storage and bright bins in their kids play area and bedroom, but in the living room and family rooms, the toy storage is neutral colors and wood tones that match the adult furniture and decor in the room, if that makes sense.
Example #1:
http://www.toysrus.com/product/index.jsp?productId=83312076&gclid=CjwKEAiA79zDBRCgyf2FgeiY-CESJABzr0BMhgsFDYYBf2qOUbUIqLOwsHc5wGrxgIS5PllouQS4IRoCwgPw_wcB&camp=PLAPPCG-_-PID23189143:BRUS&cagpspn=plab_23189143&eESource=CAPLA_DF:83312076:TRUS
Example #2:
http://kpilates.com/tips-for-living-room-toy-storage/
Example #3:
https://www.pinterest.com/pin/32088216069337876/
Example #4:
https://www.pinterest.com/pin/51087776992549620/
You get the idea! Hope this helps!
We have a 3 shelf cube that holds 9 fabric bins, that’s where her toys live in the living room.
thank you for reminding me of your egg white oatmeal recipe….i’m in such a breakfast rut and will definitely try this tomorrow 🙂
My little man has the same sweater as Chase! I am in LOVE with Cat & Jack!!
Love this post! All of your food looks delicious! I’m excited to try that oatmeal recipe. Where did you get your ravioli?
I feel you on the toy storage! Our girls are only 6 months old and their stuff is out. of. control! My OCD self can’t handle it! I have some amazing storage bins that I think are beautiful from Pehr Designs. Also some nice ones from Home Goods that I believe are Nicole Miller. They’re not meant for babies, and I think that’s why I like them. They’re just a straw color. They had them in four different sizes, too, so they match! I got the largest one and second largest and they hold a LOT of toys that you can just dump things into!
I put all of our babies toys under my coffee table in little decorative bins.
But my parents have all of the kids toys in an ottoman (put toys in it instead of blankets).
I know this isn’t necessarily ‘stashing’ away but I use these and I love them. My son also likes looking at the characters! It is the 3 Sprouts brand…they hold up really well!
https://www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_sb_ss_i_1_19?url=search-alias%3Dbaby-products&field-keywords=3+sprouts&sprefix=3+sprouts+lunch+bag%2Cbaby-products%2C166&crid=305RAN27DAKEG
I also wanted something that wasn’t an eyesore for toy storage and would still allow me to decorate for the season/holidays in our living room. We bought a credenza from Wayfair (https://www.wayfair.com/Andover-Mills-Orville-36-Cube-Unit-Bookcase-ANDO1898-ANDO1898.html) when it was on super sale. The shelves are adjustable – which is wonderful! We got rid of our TV stand, hung our TV, and placed this credenza under the TV. I use soft sided baskets to contain toys and rotate toys between the living room and basement every so often so we don’t have an abundance of toys in the living room. Good luck with your toy storage!
We use a large canvas basket like some people use as a laundry basket/hamper for our toddler’s ever-growing toy stash. It’s nice because we can quickly toss things inside to clean up, some toys drift to the bottom and are “like new” again when rediscovered, and you can find them in lots of colors that complement any decor. As a bonus, when our little one outgrows his toy stash, I’m planning to repurpose the canvas basket as an actual hamper or the like in his room. I think we found his at Michael’s Crafts, but I’ve also seen them at Kohl’s and Sam’s Club. Best of luck corralling the toys!