Slice of Life #7

That ice cream cone was consumed after a leisurely bike ride with my husband. I jokingly (not jokingly) suggested we stop for ice cream and he was all about it. I had been kind of pouting about missing Glace, but then I told myself that we have a kick-butt ice cream shop in town. The Pearl makes all their ice cream by hand and while the flavors are a little… Wisconsin… this cookie dough flavor gets me every time. So classic. So good. So not helping me get fit. I sat outside and guarded our bikes and requested that he bring me a baby sized waffle cone with a scoop of cookie dough ice cream. This is his idea of a baby cone. Not bad, just excessive.

I’ve been busy catching up on life since returning from Go Blog Social. It can be hard to get back into the swing of things – doing laundry, making meals, and caring for the kids. I tried my best to really change gears over the 7 hour drive home (sorry to my car buddy Amanda if I seemed weird), but nothing can really prepare you for the sheer noise and energy of entering a house with three small children.

I’m glad I took some time to peruse the hotel gift shop (I’m so dang classy) for presents for the kids. I was tempted to buy things that related to Kansas City, but I’m glad I chose a couple invisible ink coloring books and a wind up toy. The kids were super excited about them and got right to work, giving my husband and I a few minutes to exchange pictures from the weekend and generally catch up.

Things went surprisingly smooth with the kids for the first few days I was home, despite abandoned schedules and a few high fevers. My youngest would not get out of my arms the entire week which simultaneously made me feel good and bad (for leaving). Tensions rose as the weekend approached but luckily we had a fun event to look forward to – this guy turned 3. We had a party with family and friends complete with pasta and chocolate cake, per his request.

I’m totally against over the top birthday parties for kids, if only because I can’t manage everything. If you’re coming to our house you can expect us to pick up a bit, but there won’t be extensive decorations (the closest I ever came was last year), you might have to bring your own beverage, and if you don’t like something, well, you can just go home. We love our family and friends but we are not here to impress. Make yourself at home, and that includes searching the cupboards for toilet paper if the roll runs out.

My dad moved to a nursing home much farther from my house so it’s getting more difficult to visit him. He is currently too weak to walk and has been having a lot of digestive issues. It’s hard to see him stuck in bed and so uncomfortable most of the time. Since the weather is warming up I’m hoping he’ll feel well enough soon that I can take him outside for walks or find some other activities that will help him enjoy his days.

One of my favorite parts of these posts is sharing with you what we’ve been eating:

Chocolate Cake with Chocolate Buttercream
Mediterranean Eggs
Spaghetti alla Ceci
Orange Brown Butter Shrimp
Roasted Vegetable Lasagna
Avocado and Bean Grilled Burritos
Vegetarian Burrito Bowls
Falafel Pitas
Roasted Garlic and Broccoli Penne
Wild Rice Burgers
Veggie Fajitas
Mexican Casserole with Corn and Peppers
Spaghetti aglio Olio

All of my tv shows are ending, which makes it movie season. Or Netflix streaming binge season. We recently watched American Hustle, which was good but not nearly as good as I thought it was going to be. It was just a done-before story that didn’t grab me. The Wolf of Wall Street, on the other hand, wow! So, so good. All the sex and nudity was unfortunate but I was able to look past it. I thought the dialogue was really well written and couldn’t believe the story kept moving for three whole hours. I’m looking forward to renting Gravity and 12 Years a Slave next. Maybe “looking forward to” isn’t the right word for such seriousness.

What have you been up to? Eaten anything good lately? Tell me all the things.