Merry Christmas EVE!!!
I'm not gonna lie, I'm really excited about Christmas Day, but I'm not really ready for the Christmas Season to be over yet! As busy as it is, it's just so fun to have the lights around our house and see the gifts under the tree and know that sweet time with family is awaiting.
For various reasons, last week we only ate four meals at home, so rather than making a separate post, I figured I'd combine last week's daily pictures with last week's meals.
So here goes:
Day 351: Morning time with this buddy is the best
Day 352: Thursday night, we left Ryan for the first time with someone other than our parents so that we could go to Matt's company Christmas party. Wesley went to high school with us and now lives three houses down from us, and she was the sweetest, best first "babysitter" we could have asked for! Poor Ryan ended up having a tough time with his mouth (teething is the pits!) before bed and Wesley called me and handled the whole thing like she was already a mama herself. I hated being gone and not being the one there to comfort him, but was SO thankful that she was there to snuggle him tight!
Day 353: My friend Cara came over one morning so that we could get our babes together to play, and they were so cute together! They gave the biggest grins and drooled all over each other. They are three days shy of being exactly one month apart, so there will be plenty more dates in their future!
Day 354: Saturday, we joined the masses of crazy people who shop for Christmas gifts the weekend before Christmas. The prideful side of me has to say here that I am SO not that person! haha... but alas, I got stuck on finding this one particular gift for one of our family members and aborted the mission way too late in the game. So Saturday, we hit the mall to find an option B. And we found a great one! Even better than what I was looking for the first go around. And as crowded as the mall was, it was actually really fun walking around as a family. Ryan slept for most of the trip and then woke up so smiley and happy. Shopping is definitely more fun when he's there with us!
Day 355: Sunday, we took Ryan to the nursery at our church for the first time. He'll be 5 months old on the 28th, so it felt like it was about time. ;) We're lucky that our church has an online service every Sunday so that we could watch when we were home, but it was definitely nice to be there and experience it first hand again. And the biggest surprise is that I didn't cry when we dropped Ryan off. And I refrained from giving my cell phone number and decided to follow the same protocol that all of the other mamas follow when their babies are needing help. So that's two surprising wins if you ask me. :)
Day 356: On Monday, Karen, Jackson, and Riley came over to visit! Riley girl is doing so well and is eating and growing like a champ. I can't believe she's over a month already! And Jackson and Tally had a ball like they always do. Jackson was wanting Tally to be a sleigh dog and kept saying, "Giddy up boy! Giddy up!" And then, "What's wrong, boy? What is it?" when we wouldn't move. Poor Tal didn't get the game.
Sweet angel girl!! Such a little love.
If you're looking for some easy dinner ideas, each week I write a post where I share what we ate the previous week (you can check out previous posts here). In the posts I share links to recipes for easy weeknight dinners. I'm always looking for new dinner ideas too, so if you have a favorite recipe that you think we should try, email me at notesftn@gmail.com.
As I mentioned earlier in this post, I cooked 4 times last week. Here's a look at what I made:
I promise they taste nothing like what you ate in your elementary school cafeteria. And they're so easy! I honestly don't even use the sweet onion most of the time and I never measure, so add your ketchup and brown sugar to match your own tastes. This is an easy weeknight staple in our house.
Tuesday we did eat at home, but we ordered a Papa Johns pizza. Love a good pizza on a night when I don't have time to cook!
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Wednesday, we went on a date to Thirteen Pies in the new Buckhead Atlanta shopping strip. The parking guy was super sweet and... energetic?! He told us to strike a pose that showed love in Buckhead Atlanta- what?! haha- so this is what came of that.
Thursday we tried this recipe off of my friend Steph's blog. I left out the avocado, cumin, and chili powder (cumin and chili powder are not my favorite spices for whatever reason) and added a packet of taco seasoning instead. Instead of the avocado, we topped it off with a dollop of sour cream. Because we're healthy like that. ;)
Saturday we ate ravioli. Mmm it is so good and SO easy! Looking at this picture the portion sizes of starch vs. veggie are a little backwards, but that's what happens when the pasta is so darn good. I buy Costco's Four Cheese Ravioli and make a modified sauce that starts with a jar of Ragu's sauteed onions and garlic. Quick, easy, and delicious.
Sunday night, I made Trader Joe's Orange Chicken and served it over their Organic Jasmine Rice with a side of broccoli (of course). Love their quick and easy meals- Trader Joe's rocks.
Hope you have a very Merry Christmas!!!
And if you're looking for a new cookie recipe to make for Santa tonight, try these- they're what we made every year growing up!
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