Is it just me or did this weekend feel like one of the last official weekends of summer? Though temperatures are in the 90s in Charlotte right now, it feels like summer is winding down, probably because all of the signs in front of our local schools are welcoming kids back and Labor Day weekend – which always feels like the real conclusion of summer – is only two short weeks away.
Though anytime spent outside this weekend resulted in lots of sweat, feeling the sun on my (overly sunscreened) skin was worth it.
Friday
Friday night felt like the celebration of nothing in particular… The end of a long week? Ryan’s return from the Keys? We felt like enjoying our fair share of treats as a family on Friday evening so we celebrated absolutely nothing with an assortment of cupcakes from a local bakery and it was lovely.
(I’ll give you one guess who chose the Sprinkle Explosion cupcake.)
I was in my pajamas by 8 p.m., curled up on the couch watching Big Brother with Ryan and a stomach full of sugar so I think it’s safe to say my Friday night was a good one.
Saturday
Saturday morning kicked off early, as usual, and we were up by 6:30 a.m. Ryan headed off to the gym first while I did a little work and got Chase up and ready for the day before we flip-flopped workouts and I headed off to boot camp.
My workout was a good one and since you guys know by now that decreasing rep formats are my favorite (they always give me the best sense of accomplishment), I was all about the whiteboard workout we went through on Saturday morning.
Once I was done at the gym, I popped into the grocery store to pick up some food for a mid-day barbeque before driving home and meeting up with Ryan, Chase and Sadie for a walk around the neighborhood.
In case you were wondering, yes that is a big dog pull-along toy in Chase’s lap. It’s coming with us everywhere these days and he seems to think it’s quite cuddly, despite the fact that it is made out of wood. It’s actually beyond adorable, because Chase talks to the dog exactly the way we talk to Sadie (“Good girl!”) and pets it, feeds it, cuddles with it, etc. My heart explodes every time.
By the time we made it home, we had to hustle to get ready for the mini-cookout we had planned with our friends Ryan and Janessa who were stopping by en route to a wedding they were attending in the city Saturday evening.
We quickly whipped up an easy spread of easy baked chicken (I used chicken thighs because I’m a total chicken thigh convert), sausage, edamame black bean salad, roasted sweet potatoes, fresh fruit salad and more.
Ryan and Janessa arrived around noon and spent a little over three hours hanging out with us at home which was wonderful! It was great to catch up with them (Ryan is one of Ryan’s best friends from childhood) and hear all about their future plans since it looks like a big move is on the horizon for them soon.
Chase woke up a little bit before Ryan and Janessa left, so after we all said our goodbyes, we could tell Chase was ready for some action and decide to head off to Discovery Place Kids.
We were only there for 45 minutes or so before they closed but the timing worked well for us since we wanted to go to our church’s Saturday evening service at 5:30 p.m.
The service was a good one and emphasized the importance of cutting out a specific time each day to focus on quiet time with God. I recently purchased a new devotional to read every morning so the service made me even more excited to dive in. I did some research and the devotional seems like a good fit for me (aka someone who is still quite intimidated by simply picking up the Bible and knowing where to begin), since it provides structure and guidance for reading. I started it on Sunday morning and so far so good.
The rest of our night was uneventful but peaceful and we were in bed before 10:30 p.m. Not too shabby.
Sunday
Our Sunday kicked off with a family walk around the neighborhood before the heat of the day set in. We had plans to take the boat out with our friend Ben a little before 10 a.m. and after a tasty breakfast of high protein hemp oatmeal, we were off!
Unfortunately our boat had other plans in mind and wouldn’t start. We haven’t taken it out in a while (I wasn’t supposed to swim for a few weeks following my D&C) and apparently it needed to charge longer than a few hours so we swapped our boating plans for beach plans instead! We made our way out to a nearby beach and spent the rest of the morning enjoying the sun and splashing around in the lake.
We arrived home in time for a lunch of cookout leftovers around noon and when I put Chase down for a nap, Ryan and Ben headed off to the gym together. While Chase slept, I worked on a freelance recipe project and tested two recipes, one of which was a total success so I photographed it and then sat down at the computer to spend the rest of Chase’s naptime working. Apparently Chase had other plans because he slept for less than an hour before deciding that was enough of a nap for him on Sunday.
He woke up tired and cranky (doesn’t it kill you when you know your kid just needs more sleep to feel better but they absolutely refuse?), so we cuddled up at home, read some books and laid low for a few hours until Chase’s energy level picked up and his mood improved.
Once Chase was back to his normal self, we headed out and ran a couple of errands before changing into our pajamas nice and early, throwing burgers on the grill for dinner and digging into hot apple crisp with vanilla ice cream for dessert.
And that was our weekend in a nutshell!
The week ahead should be a decent one. I’m watching my friend Lauren’s daughter today and tomorrow and I have a follow-up doctor’s appointment on Thursday before Ryan’s dad arrives in town at the end of the week! I have a feeling this week is going to fly by!
Thanks so much for checking in this morning. I hope you guys all have a great Monday and don’t forget to check out the eclipse today!
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Celebrating for no reason is completely acceptable! Hope you all enjoyed the cupcakes. At least you were able to get in the water to cool off, even if the boat didn’t start. Hope you have a great week!
Hope you do as well, Sarah! Thanks so much for reading!
It sounds like it was a great weekend for your family! Those cupcakes look delicious and now I want one even if it’s not even 7:45 am 😉
Have a great day Julie!
I’m still dreaming about the Chubby Hubby cupcake — vanilla cake, stuffed with chocolate ganache and topped with a peanut butter and pretzel buttercream icing. So, so good! Hope you had a great weekend as well, Maureen! <3
Sounds like a great weekend. Those cupcakes look delicious!
Yes, I definitely do agree with you about this past weekend feeling like one of the last weekends of summer, I’m seeing a lot of people posting about their children heading back to school, moving back into college, etc, but I’m glad this weekend was one filled with sunshine!
You and Chase are so cute in that photo! That chicken looks fantastic as do those cupcakes. What a nice weekend!
looks like such a fun weekend and those cupcakes…mmm yum!!! you looks so great and strong girl! 🙂
I couldn’t agree more about cranky kiddos needing more sleep, but refuse!
My mouth is watering looking at those cupcakes!
I’m so sad summer is ending…I’m a teacher and we are starting our third week of school today 🙁
We spent our weekend on the lake too, so much fun!
Have a great day!
Our weekend was similar with treats for no reason, a bbq with friends and a strange Sunday afternoon nap that lead to a snuggly afternoon. We missed our pool time, but hope to squeeze in a few more trips before the end of the season!
I’d most likely choose that sprinkle cupcake as well!
Totally looks like my kind of weekend !!!!! Lots of activity lots of eating! We just moved so I can’t wait to get back into fun weekends once we are settled! You
I totally agree, even though the temperatures are still high over here too…it feels like summer is coming to an end and I hate it!!! 🙁 It sort of makes me miss teaching and the excitement of school starting. It looks like you had a great weekend! Love that picture of you and Chase in the lake! I hope you have a wonderful week ahead and enjoy your Monday! Xoxo
I love celebrating the weekend with a sweet treat, I would be all about that sprinkles cupcake! I’m a teacher and this is my last week before we head back, so Summer really feels like it’s winding down 🙁 Makes me sad, but I’m also excited for Fall!
What a fun weekend! Roasted sweet potatoes?! Yum!
I am also a chicken thighs convert- they’re the best!!
Sounds like a nice relaxing weekend- also the best!
Those cupcakes look delicious! There’s a little bakery a few blocks from my boyfriend’s place downtown that has the best cupcakes and cookies.
I’m looking forward to the eclipse too! We’ll only get about 80% here in Calgary, but I’m hoping to see 100% online.
I love getting cupcakes or dessert randomly. I LOVE Nothing Bundt Cakes, so that’s usually my treat that I’ll bring home. They’re the best. I didn’t even notice the dog in the picture of Chase until you mentioned it, but that’s SO cute! I love how kids are so into certain things. My son is 1 1/2 and he LOVES the blender and the coffee pot. The other day, I was sitting in the living room casually talking to my husband and I said I was thinking about making decaf coffee instead of regular coffee later on and my son ran over to the coffee pot and started crying, haha. So weird! Looks like a good weekend! Too bad the boat didn’t start though!
Aw!!!! So cute! Chase always points at my coffee mug and says, “Coffee! Mama! Gross!” Haha!
I have a free publication I would love to send you that answered all my bible questions! Entitled ‘What does the Bible really teach?’ Helps you get into the bible in subject form.
Love to see the smiles in your face and as always, on Chase’s face! You guys sure fit a lot in during the weekends. I would agree it feels like summer is officially over. Enjoy your busy week, Julie! 🙂
i cannot believe summer has gone by so quickly. school has started here for most kids already and even though i work no matter what, i’m a little sad it’s going to be over so soon!! and as a nanny, nothing makes my heart melt faster than watching the babies with their dog. it’s the sweetest! have a great week 🙂
I don’t even want to think about summer ending!! I’m excited for some fall things, but I just love summer too much! I’m sorry about your boat! That totally stinks! Hope you have a great week, Julie!!
Definitely looks like you guys had a good time! My weekend was filled with a new crush and a massage. No complaints here.
Cupcakes are a PERFECT way to end a night. I also really love descending rep workouts! They force you to work hard earlier in the session, and it only gets easier! I actually heard that you are the strongest around the beginning of your workout, so you should get the hard stuff over first! It’s a good thing that despite the boat incident, you all got to have some fun elsewhere!
Thanks for sharing that devotional! I’m still quite intimidated and never know exactly where to pick up and what to do. My husband is totally into researching the bible and looking things up, but despite growing up Catholic, I haven’t really done so well with that. We’re apart of a small group, but I need to do my own outside of it. Thanks!
As much as I love Summer there is something about Fall I love. Looking forward to apples, pumpkins and roasting tons of veggies.
Those cupcakes look AMAZING. I totally would have grabbed the sprinkle one, too. 😉 I also had a sugary weekend in NYC with cookies from Levain Bakery. It was my first time visit, and I am hooked. Chocolate chip walnut for the win!
Summer weekends are the BEST! Looks like you guys had a good one.
I’m with you! It feels like summer is starting to wind down, but I’m strangely excited and READY for fall! It blows my mind how fast this summer has absolutely flown by!
Too cute about Chase and his dog toy. And I’m excited to check out the devotional. I’ve been on the hunt for some structure in quiet times! And the cupcakes look incredible!
OH man must have been the weekend of crappy naps, Sully only slept an hour Saturday and made for a VERRRRYYY long day not to mention my husband was away soo thankfully my parents saved me from some major meltdowns!!!! Sounds like you had a great weekend!
I can’t wait to read Chase’e 2 year update! I’m still in aw at how you get him to nap so well at home and keep him from falling asleep in the car!!! xoxox
Ah! I need to get on that one!!
You couldn’t have said it better- this post is the epitome of summertime…sweets, boat/ beach time, family time, sunsets, nature, BBQ. I’m not living in the US right now and when I read posts like this, it totally makes me long for summer at home. You never realize summer is a cultural thing until you leave. Same thing with fall- other countries don’t treat fall like we do…. apples, pumpkins, flannels, booties. It’s just not a thing. *crying emoji*
I’m always looking for good devo recs, so I’ll have to check that one out. My fiance and I are doing The Five Love Languages devotional as a couple and really enjoying that and finding it fosters some great conversations about communication and prioritizing our marriage, so I’d recommend that one if you and Ryan ever need one together.
I really want to try that workout, I’ve been loving work outs like that lately but I get intimidated when I don’t know some of the moves and I have to google or YouTube how to do it!
Also that grilled chicken looks delicious! Something about grilling in the summer is soo nice!
That workout looks awesome – I definitely want to try it! And those cupcakes… YUM. Looks like you had the perfect summer weekend.
I watched the eclipse yesterday and it was so much cooler than I had expected 🙂 hope you have a great Tuesday!
What kind of sunscreen do you use?!?!
It varies! We usually flip flop back and forth between Beautycounter, The Honest Company and Babyganics!
When you feel ready to pick up the Bible, I recommend reading Mark. It’s such a great book about who Jesus was, what He did, what He taught, etc. It’s not very long either!
Just wanted to pop in and say hello! And I love that you had a great weekend. Those cupcakes are screamin’ at me, they look so delicious!
As always, such an enjoyable post (that I read already but never got around to commenting on – it’s been hectic!) Hope your days are getting better and better. And I hope you guys can get out on the water again soon! Someday you can tell us if you use a meat thermometer? I am terrible at knowing when chicken is done, but I looooove grilled chicken. But when I make chicken (other than chicken tenders, from Trader Joe’s), I always cook them too long! I am not chicken-gifted, apparently. Thanks for the post!