Happy Monday! I hope your week is off to a great start. I just sent Finn off for a morning of adventures with his nanny. I’m getting this post written and then heading out to teach yoga.
I have been totally spoiled to have Finn with me the last three weekends due to some schedule swapping and shifting. I know that I am a broken record in saying every age is my favorite age but three and a half (technically three and three-quarters now!) has been such a sweet spot for us.
FRIDAY
Finn’s nanny worked on Friday morning while I taught a yoga class and had a chiropractor appointment for my back. I took over around 1p. It was a beautiful day so I let Finn choose a park for an afternoon outing.
He chose Freedom Park and we spent a couple of hours bouncing back and forth between the Panthers Challenge Course and the playground.
Back at home we baked chocolate chip cookies and then I made a dinner of herb-roasted cornish hen over potatoes, brussel sprouts, onions and carrots. It was delicious! I loosely followed this recipe.
SATURDAY
We baked more cookies on Saturday morning! I had prepped dough for my favorite oatmeal raisin chocolate chip cookies on Friday evening and let it chill overnight in the fridge. These cookies are simple but so good. I have been enjoying them all weekend and just had one with my coffee while writing this post. 🙂
Finn, Virginia, Zoey and I went on a three mile stroll around the neighborhood around noon. Benji wasn’t able to join us because he was being groomed by the mobile groomer. (Zoey was already done.)
Look at my handsome boy. I love how white and fluffy he is after he’s groomed.
Okay, this is not a riveting Saturday afternoon activity but want to share. I went to water my favorite houseplant on Saturday and noticed there was white lint-like stuff all over it. I immediately googled it and learned that it had mealy bugs. I was so upset. My mom and I got this plant when I was pregnant with Finn and I’ve grown it from a small plant to almost ceiling height. It’s generally so happy and thrives. I don’t exactly have a green thumb and I’m proud of this plant and a little overly attached to it.
I spent a couple of hours wiping it down with baby wipes and rubbing alcohol to try and remove every bit of the mealy bugs. I think took it outside, removed it from its pot and gave the whole plant a thorough wash with the garden hose before repotting it in fresh soil. I’m hopeful this will be the end of it but we will see. If you have any tips, send them my way please!
Also, I’m in the market for another larger houseplant. If you have a suggestion for something that is kid and dog-friendly and relatively easy to grow, send it my way!
Dorie’s daughter came over on Saturday night to babysit Finn while I got out for an evening in Plaza Midwood with a friend. We put our name on the list at Emmy Squared and then grabbed drinks at Workman’s Friend.
Emmy Squared is a pizza chain out of New York that offers a very unique take on pizza. Here’s the description from their website:
“We combined New York style grandma pie with Detroit style, and then topped it off with an added dose of culinary creativity. Each pizza has a fluffy focaccia-like dough, topped with a caramelized, crispy cheese (known as the ‘frico crust’), with a myriad of toppings.”
We shared a caesar salad and the “Big Ang” pizza which was house made vodka sauce, ricotta, double pecorino, meatball and banana peppers. It was so cheesy and rich. Definitely a different pizza experience but I would totally go there again!
SUNDAY
Not too much to report from Sunday. The morning was spent doing things around the house and then I dropped Finn off at his dad’s house for a couple of hours that afternoon. His dad had back surgery last week and needed a little cheering up. I had lunch and took the dogs on a long walk before picking Finn back up. We stopped by a park close to our house on the way home for some playground time.
ONE LAST THING
I’m partnering with Thorlos socks over on my Instagram to give away $100 worth of product. If you’re on Instagram, be sure to head to my page to enter!
QUESTIONS
Houseplant suggestions?
What’s your favorite style of pizza?
How was your weekend? Did you get out and do anything fun or bake anything tasty?
Hi Jen,
My whole family has had banana trees for 23 years now (the first one we had multiplied quite a bit, so we gave saplings to anyone and everyone) . They thrive indoors in a sunny spot and need a good amount of water. But I just dump in the leftover water in my water bottle from the day…
Thank you, I am looking into it now!
I love my snake plants
Rubber trees are pretty, grow quickly and are pretty easy going in terms of water and sunlight. I have a beautiful green one but I’ve seen ones that are tinged with pink too!
As for the mealy bugs, I had an infestation a few years ago and my horticulturist cousin told me to mix a bit of dish soap and cooking oil in a spray bottle with water. Spray thoroughly, wait 15 mins, then rinse with water. I did this treatment 2 days back to back and they’ve never come back.
Thank you for BOTH of these suggestions! Looking into rubber trees AND trying this treatment on my plant.
Just chiming in with a second vote for a snake plant. Ours has grown to be huge and every easy care.
Thanks Lori! I have a small one in my office but I’ll have to look into adding a bigger one!