Weekend Recap — Anniversary Edition!

Hi, friends!! We have had a busier week than normal, and I captured most of it with the camera on my phone. Grab a cup of coffee and settle in…there’s a lot going on here!

But first let’s back up to some scenes from Monday…

We made a very quick stop at the mall in Charlottesville after picking Casey up from school. We ran into Stride Rite to have the younger two boys’ feet measured and it turns out that Casey had been wearing sneakers that were 2 sizes too small. Oops. I was embarrassed. And of course, he picked out the brightest new pair he could find!

Spence got some new boots to replace a pair that somehow went missing in our yard. Don’t even ask! ?

And an afternoon walk. It was sunny, but COLD.

That wind was brutal. I was wishing that I had brought along my hat!!

We munched on some air-popped popcorn while Gibbs worked on his homework. I snapped a photo so that I would remember to mention The Brown Bag Method to you. Have you tried it? All you need is a microwave, a brown paper bag, and popcorn kernels. Works perfectly every time, you can season it however you like, and it doesn’t have any of those scary ingredients that you find in store-bought microwaveable popcorn. Here are the instructions from an ancient post that most of you probably missed! ?

A quick Tuesday walk through the woods…

and that time I remembered a hat!

This guy refused to nap while he was in his crib, and instead insisted on watching Return of the Jedi. ?

On Wednesday morning we made a quick stop at the grocery store after we dropped Gibbs at school. It’s amazing how much I can throw in my cart in a very short amount of time…

And after Casey and Henry were delivered at the preschool, Mollie and Spencer and I took a quick walk for some exercise and fresh air.

Even though it was about 23 degrees, Mollie and I stayed warm thanks to movement + sunshine. Spence, on the other hand, wasn’t having it. He got cold towards the end and we ended up running back to the car to get him home sooner.

That evening I made a couple of Chicken, Broccoli, and Rice Casseroles. We had one for dinner that night, and the other one went in the freezer for my brother-in-law and sister-in-law who just had baby #2!

Thursday was a CRAZY busy day! I started with a 5:30 a.m. trip to the gym, and then hustled everyone out the door so that we could get Gibbs to school on time. The sun was out and the temps were warmer, so these two guys took advantage and had a great time outside all morning (doing things like “mining for gems” in the dirt and digging up old peach pits from last summer…)

After I fed them lunch, Hannah arrived to babysit so that I could head 40 minutes south to Charlottesville for a meeting. Of course, while in town, I had to stop at Costco to take advantage of a solo shopping opportunity (and fill up with cheap gas)!

Why is my cart always overflowing?!

I picked up Gibbs at school later that afternoon, took Hannah home, and then helped with homework, fed the boys a quick dinner of chicken taquitos (prepared in the morning), and then rushed everyone back out the door for Tae Kwon Do class.

Can we discuss my ridiculously dry hands, by the way? Between diaper changes, constant dish washing, and a zillion other reasons to wash my hands daily, I can’t keep up in this winter weather. Any recommendations for super-strength hand cream? Or other ideas?!

After the boys were home and in bed, I snuck out for drinks with the girls at The Light Well in Orange! Always SUCH a fun time, but it took some serious motivation to get myself out the door again on a chilly evening when my pajamas were looking really good! So glad that I made the effort, though!

Friday was a multi-cups-of-coffee kind of day! While I packed school bags and made breakfast, Spence wedged himself in between his brothers to make a Spencer Sandwich. I had to snap a pic!

I dropped both of my older boys at their respective schools, and then dragged Spence down to Charlottesville for a quick stop at my dermatologist’s office to get my stitches taken out. In between our errands, Kristin and I were able to grab a quick coffee date at C’ville Coffee for a fun catch-up.

Coffee dates aren’t necessarily his favorite, though. He REFUSED to smile for the camera!

Then it was back to Madison to scoop Gibbs up from school since he had a half-day and was done at noon. Casey went home from preschool with his friend Aidan, so I took these two out to lunch at Gibbs’s favorite spot: Subway (where else?). Between the two of them they finished off a footlong turkey & cheese!

And after lunch, we headed to Aidan’s farm to pick up Casey.

Finally home for the afternoon, I was ready to get OUT of the car and stay put for awhile!

Friday was actually our 11th wedding anniversary, so we stayed home on Friday evening and geared up for a busy weekend away!

Throwback: January 15, 2005!

Our Saturday morning started early with haircuts,

before we headed up to Northern Virginia. We made a stop in Alexandria to meet our new nephew, Leo:

and play with cousin Michael.

Then we dropped the three boys off in Reston with my parents so that Keith and I could escape for an evening in the city! It had been so long since we spent time in D.C., that it was an adventure just getting to our hotel (including a turn the wrong way down a one-way street, and skimming another car’s mirror with my mirror on a narrow street)! At least we could laugh about all of it, and we eventually made it to our hotel in Dupont Circle.

We dropped off our luggage and then hit the streets to explore. I grabbed a coffee,

and we made our way to the White House (of course).

We stopped in some shops and just generally took advantage of being kid-free for a few hours. We also grabbed some hummus, pretzels, and beer to enjoy cocktail hour in our room while getting ready for dinner.

Then we headed back out for drinks at Tabard Inn (so cozy by the fire),

and dinner at Hank’s Oyster Bar. We ordered a bunch of food to share, and it was all delicious:

The drinks were served with Goldfish!

Peel-and-Eat Shrimp + Virginia Oysters

Caesar Salad (one of the best we’ve ever had)!

and Roasted Broccoli with Thai Chili Sauce + Bouillabaisse

 We left stuffed and happy and walked back to our hotel for a hot cup of tea and some football on t.v.!

This morning we were up early (still dark out!) and wandered up the street for some breakfast sandwiches and lattes.

And even though the boys have been enjoying Legos, books, and donuts at the grandparents’ house, it’s time for us to head out of the city, pick up the kids, and get back to our routine in the country!

Have a nice week, everyone!