Going into the weekend, we thought we’d be heading off to a local corn maze and doing some fun fall family things but with Ryan out of town at the last minute, I ended up staying relatively close to home on Saturday and Sunday. To be honest, sleep around here has been pretty horrible (we’re talking worse than the newborn days — the four month sleep regression is no joke) so I wasn’t overly motivated to get out and do too much.
Friday marked our first real glimpse into fall weather and we took full advantage of a cool night and met up with friends at a local park. I think everyone in the Charlotte area was excited about the change in temperatures because people seemed to be out and about all weekend!
Saturday
Saturday morning kicked off with pancakes and smoothies for me and the boys before Ryder was ready for his morning cat nap. Chase was all about playing with his easel and trains, so I took advantage of a distracted three-year-old and sleeping baby to do a little bit of food prep. It felt a little strange to be cooking up cauliflower rice and Brussels sprouts at 8 a.m., but whatever works, right!?
We spent the rest of the morning at the YMCA for a birthday party for one of Chase’s friends. Even though we’re Y members, I had no idea you could have a birthday party at the gym but it was such a great spot and Chase loved playing basketball and soccer and tumbling all over the gymnastics floor.
Fortunately we’re still at the age when a lot of Chase’s friends’ parents are our friends, too, so I had a lot of fun chatting with my friends at the party as well.
After the party, we quickly popped into Great Clips because Chase was in desperate need of a haircut. He spotted the big bowl of lollipops the minute we walked in the door so you better believe he was quite the well-behaved little man as he had his hair trimmed since he knew a lollipop was on the line!
Once we made it home, I did my best to get a snack in Chase (lunch was served at the party) and settle him down for a nap which ended up being a good deal later in the afternoon than usual thanks to our busy morning. This meant we didn’t have a huge window of time open in the afternoon so once Chase was up, I scrapped all intentions I had of heading out to a local park in favor of spending the evening at home in our pajamas.
Sometimes cozy nights in are where it’s at for both parents and kiddos!
Sunday
Sunday morning began with one very sleepy mama. Ryder was up a bunch in the night — not just to nurse but to party — and I felt like a bit of a zombie going into the day.
I was determined to make it out to the early morning church service with the boys and that actually ended up being our only outing of the day. We are normally quite go, go, go which I admittedly love but I also really felt like I needed a laid back weekend. Thankfully Chase and Ryder seemed into my plans and we filled our Sunday with cozy at-home activities.
We made pumpkin granola for our family and Chase’s teachers…
Played lots of rounds of peek-a-boo…
And I took full advantage of nap time on both Saturday and Sunday to get some work done. I’m always amazed at just how fast our days fly by right now (with the exception of afternoons when both kids are fussy — those last years) and I feel like this weekend came and went in a flash.
(Hats off to Chase for snapping the above picture! Even though Sadie didn’t say “cheese” like he instructed and the pic is a bit blurry, I’m kind of impressed!)
The week ahead should be a good one around here. There’s the usual weekday routine — preschool, bloggin’, gym, etc. — but also a few random fun plans sprinkled in the mix. Ryan’s best friend from college, Dru, is staying with us one night and I have dinner plans with my small group friends to celebrate my friend Laura’s baby boy another night as well. Now I’m off to get this Monday morning hoppin’.
I hope you all have a great week!!
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Wow, it looks like it was a beautiful weekend! I think that was so wonderful that Ryan went to help out in Florida! I heard how awful it was there and I’m sure they are so appreciative of helpers like Ryan. He’s truly a role model to others and your sons!
Julie I love your blog and your boys are just dolls. 4 month sleep regression was the worst one in our house! Merlin’s Magic Sleep Suit saved my life ha! Might be a bit of a stretch but I was at the end of my rope. I’m not sure if it was in my head but it worked so spending $30 bucks or so via Amazon was worth every penny for some sleep at night! Plus they look like little marshmallow men in them 🙂
the sleep suit SAVED us with chase, too!!!!! i swear by that thing! i actually tried it with ryder on tuesday night last week and he still slept pretty awful but i think the one i had him in was a little too big for him still. i hope it works this time, too!
Hi Julie! God bless Ryan for lending a helping hand in Florida – that’s so amazing!
I don’t know if you already have one, but my twins are 2.5 and we still use a noise machine in their room and started when they were around 5 months or so. It helped tremendously! We got ours at Walmart for around $20 and it was the best $20 we ever spent on a baby product! I hope you get some quality sleep soon!!
we do!!! noise machines are AMAZING and sooo crucial for baby sleep! chase still has one in his room and now i must admit i’m a little addicted to white noise for MY sleep, too!!
Right now i am loving a 100 nature rain sounds album on iTunes for me! So relaxing for sleep.
When I travel for business I pre-make dinners for my family the weekend prior, and let me tell ya – there isn’t much that’s weirder than making lasagna at 8 am, so I feel you – feels completely out of place! 🙂
exactly! our whole house smelled like onions and garlic at 8 a.m. ha!!
props to you for taking care of your boys solo with that little sleep! i’m sure it wasn’t easy.
I am so sorry you are going through a sleep regression, but would you please write a post about it? My son is 2 months behind you and need to know what to expect, especially given that Ryder was already such a great sleeper. I would find it so helpful if you could share what wake-ups look like during the regression and what you are doing to survive, and how long it’s expected to last. Plus any advice you have received!
Ahh cozy nights in with pajamas are always fun. My husband has been traveling a lot for work lately so that’s what we do most nights! Pick out a movie and cuddle on the couch before bed! 🙂
Does the granola make about 6 cups?
I love chill weekends like that. I’m sure it didn’t feel totally chill for you though with two little ones to take care of and a sleep regression thrown into the mix. I never used white noise until having Squish and now I am addicted to it myself!!!
I am super impressed you are making granola for the teachers with baby at home! Good job mama!!!
Hey! Sorry to butt in, but you should check out the takingcarababies instagram (she has a website too). I took her newborn sleep class, which is not CIO and instead gives your baby an excellent sleep foundation. Anyway, my now 14 month old never went through the regression thanks to the class and also sleeps 12 hours no matter what. She slept 12 hours despite teething, norovirus, RSV (she’s in daycare ha). Anyway, this isn’t sponsored or anything… just a heads up because it’s a life changing class. Takingcarababies also has a four month sleep regression booklet and a class for 5-24 month olds if your baby is older than 12 weeks.
Love the pic of Sadie and Ryder on the sheets!
Wow, that is truly amazing Ryan helped out with the aftermath of the hurricane in Florida! 🙂 It looks like a beautiful weekend, I love cozy nights!! I just adore all of your pictures, you boys (and of course Sadie) are too cute! I hope you have a wonderful week, Julie! Xoxo
Ahhh, I just had to comment about the sleep regression. My son is a few months older than Ryder (6 months’ old). He was an AMAZING sleeper as a newborn – waking up 0-1 times in a 12-hour period at night. Then, the 4-month sleep regression hit. I was up with him SIX times the other night. But, last night he only woke up twice. Anyhow, I just wanted to sympathize. It’s always nice to know we are not alone during these sleep-deprived nights. And, I always remind myself, everything’s a phase!!! I will sleep again one day!
Thank YOU for helping out with the hurricane relief efforts by being with your boys all weekend. That is a sacrifice on your part and on Ryan’s part and as a former Floridian (and a mom of two who knows how hard it can be to take care of children alone on little sleep), thank you both. You BOTH played a role in helping hurricane victims. <3
What GREAT photos! You can sure see Ryder’s personality shining through now in all of them! Love the boys on the couch and the one with Sadie, but my favorite is the one that Chase took! It turned out great. My kids always chop my head off or get some weird photo up too close (“What is that? An alien? A foot? Oh, the cat’s nose-just what I always wanted a picture of!- ha ha!). I think you having a future photographer or blogger on your hands!
I’m sure you are so proud of Ryan but I’ll bet you’ll be glad to have him back home to snuggle on the couch with you guys ! Enjoy your week!
My eating has been rather lousy lately, so seeing you meal prep is the motivation I needed. Thank you for some inspiration! Also I always love reading about you and your family!! Looking forward to your next post!