Hello friends, it’s me…from the other side of the screen but feeling more connected to all of you than ever. Doesn’t make these times easy but it sure does bring me a whole lot of love and strength.
To kick things off, I wanted to share something with you that my friend Brittany wrote this week on her blog.
This is an idea that I share often in my yoga teachings and I truly couldn’t have said it better than Brittany did. Her written words honestly brought me to tears. To be honest, a lot of things brought me to tears this week but I am extra grateful for this level of honesty and vulnerability and I hope it’s something that we can all have the courage to practice right now.
WHAT’S IN MY FRIDGE
Here’s where stay at home orders led me today…
I didn’t plan on doing a complete fridge overhaul today, it just happened. I was in the kitchen to work on developing a recipe for a partnership with the National Pork Board and instead of cooking, I found myself pulling every single thing out of my fridge so that I could clean and reorganize. I have this problem where I have a hard time focusing when my work area is disorganized. Today’s work area was the kitchen and my fridge was stressing me out. After spending an hour getting it clean, neat and tidy…I knocked out my recipe, no problem! Anyone else like this!?
Here’s what you see in my fridge!
TOP SHELF
Eggs, sourdough starter, three half gallons of whole milk (Finn MUST have), half a gallon of Oatley oat milk, raw apple cider vinegar, maple syrup.
SECOND SHELF
Jams, peanut butter, homemade dressing and marinade, mayo, pickles, jarred pasta sauce.
THIRD SHELF
Grapes, cottage cheese, baked sweet potatoes, baked russet potatoes, whole milk greek yogurt.
FOURTH SHELF
Hummus, tzatziki, ravioli, roasted spaghetti squash, chicken stock, steamed artichoke, sauerkraut.
MEAT/CHEESE DRAWER
Turkey lunch meat, pepperoni, chicken sausage, bacon, sliced cheese, feta cheese, cheddar cheese, asiago cheese…and more!
FRUIT DRAWER
Bag of pink lady apples, sumo citrus, fresh ginger, lemons, limes, medjool dates, avocados, grapes.
VEGGIE DRAWER
Celery, roasted beets, head of cauliflower, baby portobello mushrooms, baby bok choy.
DOOR
Butter, probiotics, condiments, kombucha, coconut water, Perfect Bars.
LIFE LATELY
I just can’t get over this photo. Finn loves to collect things from around the house and line them up in the front window. He had no fewer than 20 items lined up today! And Benji’s sweet longing eyes. They are truly saying “hello from the other side.” Haha.
Finn loves playing with socks more than window organizing. He has a whole lululemon bags of socks that he’s outgrown and it’s one of his favorite things to play with. 🙂
Outside is also life (for mom and Finn). Took this shot yesterday.
And this one today. 1.5 hours into running around the backyard and even though he was at the point of lying down, he did NOT want to go inside to eat dinner.
Finn’s favorite speed is running. Boy after my own heart! <3
Loves to “cheese.”
Benji hanging out in Finn’s room.
And again, I am so grateful for beautiful weather and long walks with my crew. They never fail to lift my mood.
Thanks for letting me share all of these real, day in the life style posts with you lately. They feel the most authentic for where we are right now. I desperately want to stay connected but this is mostly what I have the bandwidth to share. <3
QUESTIONS
How are you? How are you feeling? What are you facing? Are you getting the support that you need?
Have you tackled any big house cleaning or organizing projects since this has all started?
What is helping you to feel the most connected during this time?
I’m so glad my words spoke to you; makes me feel connected to you! Love seeing your and Finn’s smiling face online and look forward to the day I can see you again and give you a real hug! <3
I updated the link to your blog so that it works! I shortened the link to your Instagram handle, haha. I miss you so much and I cannot wait until we can meet in person for tea or coffee. Sending you big virtual hugs.
Our son is just a little bit older than you and he also loves to line things up! His favorite toy by far are his little people. He got a bunch of hand me down ones from my girlfriends with older kids and he just adores them. He is starting to use more of his imagination, too, which is cute to see. He’ll say ‘come in friends’ or ‘how doing?’ or ‘ok, line up!’ It’s pretty darn adorable.
I cleaned out our pantry this week but it was prompted by us having a bunch of ants in our kitchen! Eww! I didn’t find any in our pantry but it was nice to get things organized. We recently moved in so did a lot of purging/organizing when we moved in but I am sure there are more projects we could tackle. I just find myself having very little energy to do anything outside of work + caring for our son. This is his 3rd week home with us and it’s been very hard to work full time while caring for him. :/ We are debating sending him back to daycare when our stay at home order ends on Easter (although I will not be surprised if it gets extended)…
Benji cracks me up. There’s something about his paws and his face that makes me think of a Muppet when I see a pic of him. I think I have a little dog jealousy. Haha! I also love Finn’s sock obsession. What a funny-bunny. Good thing it’s not your underwear! When my daughter was that age, she liked to go in my room and come out wearing many pairs of my underwear around her neck like a necklace. Lovely. Crazy little people.
hi Jen. You and ‘your crew’ always brighten my day! Please keep posting your photos and I am so happy that adding Benji to your family is such a success! I am doing ok! I am very fortunate that I can work from home. Last weekend, I reorganized, purged and cleaned all the cabinets in my kitchen. Feels so good! This weekend I will start closets. I am making it a point to clean/reorganize/purge somethng every day. I make it a point to reach out to a few family members/friends everyday. Working on staying positive for everyone in my house!
I love the photos of your pups and Finn. Thank you for sharing them!
If you haven’t listened to this Brene Brown podcast that talks about the very thing Brittany blogged about, it’s worth a listen: https://brenebrown.com/podcast/brene-on-comparative-suffering-the-50-50-myth-and-settling-the-ball/
I was just about to share Brene’s podcast about this topic too! I second Sharon’s recommendation!
I third Brene’s podcast. I listened to that episode twice!
So cute with the socks! My son was obsessed with Tupperware. I can’t wait to clean this weekend. I’ve been super anxious … and really want to get better about self care.
Love this! What brand and kind of probiotics do you take?
I love seeing Benji’s sweet face. Not only does he look happy, he looks like he feels safe and trusting and comfortable in his new home. Cutie!
Also, I just rented your online strength workouts. Can’t wait to try my first one tomorrow! I’m enjoying mixing up my movement during this quarantine time so I look forward to trying them all out!
Hi Amanda – thanks so much for saying that about Benji! I hope he is feeling happy, safe and comfortable. I think he is! 🙂
THANK YOU for renting my strength series. I am seriously so grateful. Please let me know if you have any suggestions or feedback!