The weekend was everything I needed it to be and more. It was extremely low-key and I soaked up lots of quality time with Finn and Zoey! 🙂
Consider this your warning that this post is mostly toddler talk so check in with me later this week if the mom life posts aren’t your favorite. And the title is thanks to how many times Finn and I read this book over the course of the weekend.
FRIDAY
Oh my gosh, the weather was terrible on Friday. High 30s and rain all day long. The rain never stopped long enough to get Finn or Zoey outside, which always makes for an interesting time when all the creatures are cooped up in the house. 😛
Finn had preschool in the morning and while he was there I had a coffee meeting and then trained a client. He was ready for a nap when picked him up and once he was awake, we spent the rest of the afternoon/evening playing inside.
Once he was down for the night, I got cozy on the couch with Brittany Runs a Marathon. It was available to stream for free through Amazon Prime. I was surprised by how much I enjoyed it! It was easy to watch, funny and inspirational. I cried my way through the end of it. (So many people messaged me on Instagram saying they did too!)
Highly recommend watching this one.
SATURDAY
Finn slept until 8a on Saturday which is pretty much unheard of for him! (He’s usually awake around 7.) We got up, got moving and ate breakfast and then headed to the Girl Tribe Holiday Pop Up at the Charlotte Convention Center.
A friend of mine is one of the founders of Girl Tribe Co and she and her partner have grown their business in crazy ways and are doing so many incredible things as female entrepreneurs and in support of other women in business! Just a sampling…
- They have an awesome online shop where you can get everything from custom printed girl tribe gear to paper goods to jewelry to shoes and more.
- They have a permanent storefront in Southend Charlotte. It is a concept store of the girl tribe brand and includes tons of women-led businesses + jewelry, clean beauty products, dresses, gifts, etc.
- There is a Girl Tribe Facebook community bringing together over 17,000 Charlotte-area women with the goal of providing a collaborative space to share and connect.
- They offer Girl Tribe Pop Up events which are traveling pop up shops featuring women-led brands, DIY workshops, fitness classes, influencers, cocktails, jams and bites. Dates for 2020 events are live and Girl Tribe will be in Charlotte, Atlanta, Jacksonville, D.C., New York and Nashville.
If you have a chance to attend a Girl Tribe Pop Up event, I highly recommend attending with some of your girlfriends! I took Finn along with me for the VIP shop hours on Saturday morning and he had a GREAT time looking at everything and waving “hey” to all the ladies. 😉
Back at home, Finn took a super long nap (2 hours and 45 minutes!) and then Virginia came over to join us for a run. We ran about 4.5 miles and everyone loved the fresh air and warmer temps after the previous day’s cold rain.
Finn was in a great mood after his nap so we had a fun afternoon/evening playing! After he went down I caught up on the Holiday Baking Challenge on Food Network and went way down the rabbit hole of old music favorites from Dave Matthews and John Mayer on Spotify.
SUNDAY
I made waffles from scratch on Sunday morning. I went all out and separated the egg whites, whipped them and folded them in just before cooking the waffles. It makes for such fluffy and light waffles. I learned this technique from my dad. I also used lots of melted butter in the batter. 🙂
Sunday was so relaxed and it was perfect. I spent a ton of time organizing and cleaning and I had an eager helper. He adores this kid’s vacuum.
It’s worth noting that Finn took a 50 minute nap on Sunday so it was nothing like his super long Saturday nap. He was still in a great mood all day so no complaints here. I would say that an average nap right now is 1.5 hours but they can range from less than an hour to three hours.
We spent the whole afternoon outside. I finally finished putting up my outdoor decorations and lights, and also blew leaves on the front walk and back patio. We ran into a neighbor who has a son in Finn’s preschool class while we were out front and she snapped this photo of us while we were chatting. This was my attempt to keep him entertained because he wanted me to put him down so he could run down the street like a crazy man.
Our day ended with a walk around the neighborhood and to the park. We got home just as the sun was setting.
This weekend filled up my cup so much. I really felt like I got to rest and relax as well as spend a lot of quality time with Finn and Zoey. I realize that my weekend didn’t include a ton of social interaction but when I have Finn with me for the weekend, I try to really be with him. He’ll spend a good bit of time with his dad this week so I have plans to get out of the house and meet friends for dinner on several nights, as well as some coffee/lunch dates. It is a tough balance to find, but I’m actively working on it! <3
HOLIDAY TRADITIONS
I’ve been thinking so much lately about starting holiday traditions with Finn. One thing I really want to do this holiday season is take him to see the lights at the Daniel Stowe Botanical Garden. There is a one-mile path that you can walk and I think he’ll really love it. He’s still too little/young to do a lot of things but I do want to start special traditions with him.
I am on the fence about a Santa visit this year because I think he will hate it. He is not super on board with having people who aren’t mom and dad hold him right now (if we are around and he can see us). I think it would be one of those Santa meltdown photos this year and I just don’t feel like that’s fair to Finn!
I did want to share something fun with you!
I was gifted this Chipper box by the founder of the company who is local to Charlotte. It’s a holiday box with lots of fun activities to do with your kids/family. While I think Finn is a little young for it this year, I love the concept!
Chipper includes a 24-day kit to use during December either using your favorite elf or other “friend/character” or the Chipper Fox. The kit comes with 12 days of turn-key scenes and materials. For the remaining 12 days, ideas are provided with detailed instructions and pictures of what to do with your friend, using simple items around your home. Any additional supplies required are included on a shopping list you can follow at your preferred grocery store.
2019 boxes are sold out but keep this on your radar for next year! We are definitely going to have fun with our Chipper Fox next holiday season! 🙂
QUESTIONS
What holiday traditions have you started/did you start with your toddler age children?
Favorite indoor rainy day activities with toddlers?
Our son is a little older than you – just past 21 months – and we are also skipping santa. We didn’t take him last year either as he was in major stranger danger phase then and he still is. We have a hard time getting him to sit on his grandparents laps so I don’t feel like I can put him on a strange man’s lap… This is such a ‘you do you’ decision! Some parents go into it knowing their child will scream and reach for them but can handle that. I just can’t!! It’s not that important of a tradition to me so we will hold off and visit Santa when he shows interest. I’m trying really hard to be thoughtful of the traditions we start and to ask myself if it’s important to us or if we are doing it because it’s what everyone else does…
I’m envious of your warmer weather! It was so cold here this weekend in Minneapolis. We did not go outside at all! It’s going to ‘warm up’ to the low 30s next weekend and I can’t wait. Funny how your perception of cold changes throughout the year and based on where you live. 30 is ‘nice’ for us Minnesotans (although 30 and rainy is gross!).
I totally get what you are saying with the Santa thing and the “you do you” thing. I agree that if and when he shows interest I will be down for it! As I’m working to establish traditions of our own, I love what you say about is this important to us or is it what everyone else is doing. That’s great. <3
We are really spoiled with our winters in North Carolina. All things considered, they are VERY mild.
I LOVE that photo of you and Fin in your street!! Your smile is awesome and it’s so clear that you love your boy and are totally down for anything and everything that will keep him entertained and safe 🙂
Awww thank you so so much for your kindness. He’s the best and brings me so much joy and happiness that I just want to do what I can to make him happy too! 🙂
One our favorite Christmas traditions is Christmas books. I started it when our son was probably 3 and we are still doing it (he’s now 8 and our daughter is 3). I wrap up 25 (now 50! so they each have one) Christmas books for them to open each night starting December 1st. I use the same books every year but it’s the only time those books are out – they get put away with all the other decorations.
This is an awesome suggestion. Thank you so much!