What's Up? [Quarantine Edition]

March has flown by even though we have spent the last half in a very strange place of quarantine, pandemic, and just wondering what exactly is going on...

I am excited to blog today and link up over at the What's Up Wednesday hostess sites!

What we are eating...

This has been a super confusing time.  Apparently, people think that a virus that infects your lungs also infects your bowels.  You go to the store and you cannot find toilet paper and at the same time its irony that you cannot find a lot of food either.

The first week of this whole shut down meant that my list was thrown out the window because the only foods left were a pack of pork chops and a pack of chicken wings.  That was a really fun week.

Last weekend I was super lucky to be able to get chicken and ground beef.

I have been posting what all we are cooking each day on my Instagram Story (find me @iscreambrownie) 

Monday we had meatloaf and I doubt I make the way your grandma does.  Tuesday we had veggie tacos and part of that story was taken down because my Amazon Music app is playing in the background and well....Eminem is not happy when you use his music totally not on purpose when you are cooking.

Tonight is Italian Chicken, tomorrow is spaghetti and meatballs.  Friday is salmon!

Am I reminiscing?

No

Loving anything?

Yes.  I'm not complaining about the quarantine.  I'm not complaining about the time with my kids.  The time away from work is a sweet blessing.  Everything is moving at a slower pace and I am seeing it as a blessing.  I actually wrote about it here.

So what have we been up to?

Spring cleaning is COMPLETE!  I have tons of stuff I want to throw into a yard sale but I'm wondering when that can even happen.

We have been good little homeschoolers.  It really kicks into gear next week and I'm going to have to figure out how to juggle that.

Loving our outside time - we go for walks a few times a day and hopefully the sun will show its face soon so I can start turning the soil for flowers and vegetables.

Binge watching some t.v. like champions.

Dreading?

Nothing.  There is no point in dreading anything, friends.

Working on?

I extended my front flower bed about sixteen inches out and its roughly twenty feet long so ummm that's a project for sure!  I'm a Hydrangea addict so I plan to get three more and then buy a sh*t ton of Black Eyed Susans.  Oh and never ever forget the power of the Impatien.

Excited about?

Y'all its SPRING!!!!

Currently Watching/Reading?

My daughter and I are bingeing Gilmore Girls.  I started watching Little Fires Everywhere on Hulu.

I'm reading What Happens in Paradise by Elin Hilderbran

Also, I'm reading a ton of graphic novels like Narwhal with my seven year old.

Listening to?

Music, random music.

Wearing?

Joggers, compression pants, t-shirts, and my Patagonia pull over.  Don't judge we're in a very tedious time. (LOL)

What's on tap for the weekend?

Much of the same....:)

I plan to play in lots of dirt and visit the garden center at Lowes because its open air and nature and ish.

Anything else?

Nahhh - I need a refill on my coffee now.

But I keep thinking I better go east again....

BE WELL!

The Mandated Break: Week 1...or is it 2?

Good morning.  I know its morning because I woke up while ago (two hours ago) made coffee and watched Willie Geist on NBC.  

I hear some people are getting days and nights mixed up like infants because they are on lock down.  

Did you ever think you would be in the circumstances of a pandemic?

I am thirty-eight years old and I have lived through/seen some recessions, a couple or three stimulus packages, a couple wars, terrorist attacks, the birth of HIV/AIDS as a public health concern, Ebola, "new" flus from chickens and pigs, the birth of the internet, the invention of TikTok, and now I can add - shut down from pandemic.

Ahhh the novelties of this life.  The ride that keeps us on our toes.  

In the midst of all this semi-organized chaos I have continued going to work, paying my bills, making dinner but without those other things like...

Picking up and taking kids to sports practices

Going to the YMCA to work out with my friends who are the same as family...

Going to the store fifty times because "oops" I forgot this or "oops" the kid forgot to tell me she needed that...

Last week I came home from work every day and changed clothes and immediately took the kids OUTSIDE.  We went to the track we got in steps, we kicked soccer balls, we threw softballs.  I made dinner late and had nothing prepped.  

We talked, we hung out, we had a nice week.

It was just like summer break came early.  

I embraced it whole-heartedly because I embrace a slow down.

As the week progressed I noticed something really nifty.  The kids weren't glued to their computers and devices quite as much.  Spring came and so did eighty degrees and sunshine.  I didn't have to say, "We're going outside" - they beat me to it.  They were on the trampoline, the scooter, the 4-wheeler, grabbing the softball bag from the car.

"Silver Linings "by Ava & Neve

And in those moments I saw something brilliant.

I decided after last Monday that the kids would be in charge of making dinner.  Each evening around seven or seven thirty I would call the kids in the kitchen and they would make the meal.  Not I.  And they didn't fight.  They were busy chopping, stirring, mixing, cracking eggs, seasoning vegetables or meat.  

And in that kitchen I witnessed something nostalgic.

Silver Lining by wmshop

Mama still had to be at work at the crack of dawn so our night time routines didn't change last week.  The oldest is a million percent capable of her night time routine.  I still need to warden over the youngest.  After shower, dental hygiene, and night time medication administration he was ready for a book in bed.  He would allow me to read him a whole library when we snuggle up if I had the ability to.  From those pages we would start a dialogue (we were reading Minecraft books) and it would flourish out from how many glass blocks to how many wool blocks to if we built this in real life to one day a little voice that will all too soon turn into a deeper one say, "I may be an architect, mama."

And in these moments I found what I have always treasured.

School may be out.  Work may be chaotic.  There may be stressors building up that cause you to have mild panic attacks.  

Please stop.

Just stop.

Open your eyes to what you have at this moment - look at the silver linings.  

Turn off your television and your social media and open your eyes to what this actually is.

Its not about an economy or a health issue.

You're being given the greatest gift besides love.

You have at your feet - time.

People write books, songs, poetry about how they wish they had more time.

And today March 2020 - you have been given the gift of time.

The government cleared your calendar.  The teachers filled the Google classroom with tasks that can be completed in an hour.  Your appointments are pretty much canceled.  Your work may be shut down or on a simplified schedule.  

You got your groceries.  

You're good.  

You're covered.

Put your focus on the fun, the joy, the people who you realized just a little while ago are growing so fast and you know if you blink one more time they will be driving, graduating, moving out.

Focus on that person you committed your life to.  The one that doesn't give you much attention because so much is going on or you don't give too much attention to because you seem to busy with the kids or the job.

Call the friend.

Go outside and blow bubbles, throw the ball, kick the ball, look under rocks for creepy crawlies, paint the picture on the canvas.

Plant the garden.  Jump on the trampoline (but if you have had kids and are over 35 don't!)  Go for the walks in the woods.  Watch the last Frozen movie *ughhhh.

Read the extra books.  Help with the Google classroom work.  Play the board game.  Make the new recipe.  Take the dog for an extra long walk.  Leave the cats alone - they are pissed your home so much now.

Embrace the gift of time that you have been given.  Let creativity drip from your soul like the slow drip of an old school coffee pot.

You have been given what so many have prayed, begged, and died over - time.

All good and wonderful things come from the Lord.

Make the most of it.

This is mandated.

David Stiendl Rast

xoxo

Friday 5

Hey Friday!  Oh my gosh it couldn't get here fast enough this week!  Anyone else in that mindframe as well?  Here are my five.

After Thursday's Metabolic - Even got a young one to join in!  

1. Great workouts this week!  The best part?  I can still use all of my appendages without needing assistance! 

2.  I watched two Netflix trailers for upcoming shows.  And yes, one was Miss Americana the Taylor Swift documentary - that's what it is right?  And I liked it!  Maybe part of it is because my kid is so T Swift crazy?  The other was for Horsegirl.  That looks pretty interesting.  Anyone else scope out these two?

eMeals

3.  If you subscribe to eMeals you have to make the Turkey Burgers with the Greek "Slaw."  It isn't really slaw at all (feta, tomato, and cucumber.)  It's awesome.  Maybe I'm biased because Greek style food is my favorite food of all.

Etsy

4.  Spring really IS coming!  This week softball registration opened as well as soccer!  I know it will make my spring super busy but I just love it so much.  A lot of older moms have told me to totally soak in sports with the kids because when it ends you do miss it.  I already can see that when the day comes I will totally be bummed to not have a field to go to only to rush to another field immediately following that game.

Amazon

5.  Is it just me or is anyone else thinking about the beach?  Admitting I have been checking in on this swim suit more times than I need to for January!  But a girl has to be prepared for beach and pool day!

Friday 5

Oh what a week its been.

Here's five...

1.  I'm bored with Trim Healthy Mama.  If you don't know what that is its a eating lifestyle where you focus your meals on an E (carb) or S (fat) base and go from there.  I feel like everything is beginning to taste the same.  So I turned to that wonderful little app I bought last year - eMeals.  Tonight is Chicken Alfredo Pizza night.  The kids are stoked.  Its low carb (cauli crust) and it has cheese and chicken on it...win win.

I do like the eMeals app because I can pick our nutrition preference (low carb) and get a fresh listing each week of meals to choose from.  Then I pick the ones I want to make the app will automatically coordinate with my grocery ordering services (Walmart) and bam!  Grocery shopping and meal planning is done.

Diet preferences include clean eating, keto, quick and easy, budget friendly, thirty minute, kid friendly, slow cooker, heart healthy, low calorie, diabetic, gluen free, mediterrenean, vegan, vegetarian, and paleo.

Sorry but I don't have any promos for you - however - if you go to their site I'm sure they have a deal going on.  I believe the regular special is a two week trial.

If you're a Dave Ramsey follower then you already know about eMeals.  (Yes, I'm that girl.)

2.  Back to class for me!  I started back to p90x class and metabolic effect this week.

 It was so much fun.  I was dripping with sweat by the end of class and I love to be dripping with sweat (once again I am that girl.)  Unfortunately....

3.  Sick day for me.  I missed Thursday's class because my body was attacked by germs.  BOO HISS!  I got zero sleep and couldn't breathe because mucus likes to kill you.

I spent Thursday on the couch sleeping through Real Housewives episodes and bits and pieces of Mrs. Maisel.  When I get sick I'm not one to rush off to the doctor.  I think most of the crap we get we need to allow our bodies to fight without leaning to heavily on pills.  I upped my veggies on Thursday and my water and slept a lot.  Nobody wants to use PTO on sick days!

4.  My daffodils are shooting up from the ground.  The Forsythia is blooming.  Guys, it's mid January.  Of course everything is going to freeze now because our early spring is being interrupted by winter's return.  I really need to move to Florida.  But...I got an alert spring sports signups are on the horizon (as in next week) and that made me super duper excited!  Spring will come back!

5.  If you subscribe to Fab Fit Fun and you got the Kate Somerville goats milk moisturizer use that ish!  It's the best moisturizer I have ever used.  I'm a big fan of Kate Somerville products anyway but that moisturizer is a must have. here's a link to get you some, girl.  If you're interested in Fab Fit Fun here's a link to save some money and try it out (I personally do love it.)
If you aren't a FFF subscriber and you're wondering what I'm talking about

Alright, its Friday let's do this!  Have a great weekend xo.