Weekly Wrap-Up {May 11th-17th}
Hello there! Welcome back NEO Homeschoolers! It's time for another weekly wrap-up, and I'm excited to share this week's activities with you. With nice weather moving in, Maureen and I spent as much time as possible outside and playing with friends. We're also continuing to work on potty training, and of course, I spent some time working on my blog and getting household chores done. I also had a lot of fun exploring Budget Bytes again for this week's meal plan. If you missed the link to Budget Bytes, check out last week's weekly wrap-up, linked here. Without further ado, let's dive into this week! 😀
Menu for the Week
Monday: Domino's Pizza
Tuesday: French Toast w/ scrambled eggs & bananas
Wednesday: Leftovers Night
Thursday: Grilled Cheeseburgers topped with onion rings & pickles + Tater Tots
Friday: Slow Cooker Meatball Subs w/ mixed veggies
Saturday: Restaurant Dinner
Sunday: T.B.D. ...shrugs...
Our Week
Sunday brought Mother's Day and time with our church fam, whom I adore. It was also week 1 of 3 of teaching Sunday School for me. Sunday School has become a passion of mine, and I find that I feel slightly lost on Sunday mornings when I'm not teaching. I love being able to tell Maureen, "Mommy has to go teach other kids about Jesus," and the feeling of setting a positive example that comes with that statement. I also thoroughly enjoy the extra time with my sisters by heart, Quinn and Emma on these early Sunday mornings when the three of us chat and laugh together as we set up for our lessons that week. It is quite possibly some of the best time of my week!
Another thing I love about Sundays is the ability to watch Maureen reunite with her besties, Sloane and Max after service. The three are so close, and absolutely adore each other! My heart is always full as I watch them run around the cafe in our church while the parents, all of whom have become friends, catch up and laugh at the kids' antics. As someone who has struggled to feel like she truly belongs anywhere in life, I am so grateful for the feeling of belonging in this group of moms I've created within our church. It is truly the best feeling, and not one I'll ever take for granted. <3
Monday came with blue skies, temperatures in the high 70s, and plenty of sunshine, so Maureen and I enjoyed plenty of time outside. I started my Monday with a personal appointment at 10 AM, so Maureen got to enjoy some TV while hanging out with Daddy. After my appointment and Maureen's morning in pj's, it was time to prepare for an afternoon playdate. Maureen was ecstatic to see Max and Sloane again, and the three had a blast playing at Clague Park. While Maureen and her besties played, I got to enjoy some mom time with two of my closest mom friends, Hilary and Allison. As a mama, it's always so refreshing to chat with other moms who are in a similar phase of life and share anecdotes, tips, and of course funny stories. I've come to love playdates and treasure the time it gives me to talk with other mamas raising littles in this crazy world. <333 Anyway, Monday finished with a pizza dinner provided by Domino's and an early bedtime for me... I crashed hard!
Tuesday was wet and rainy, so I was grateful for gymnastics as an outlet for Maureen's boundless energy. She and Sloane stuck together like glue, following each other around as they did the various skills taught in class. The two even decided to express their adoration of each other with a kiss -facepalm- while awaiting their next set of instructions. Allison and I were cracking up -partially out of embarrassment and partially out of affection for our daughters' tight-knit friendship - in the waiting area as we watched this play out. After class, the girls won over the staff by standing behind the front desk making cute faces and hugging each other. Both Allison and I were told to follow The Little Gym on Instagram because our daughters would be taking over their page, lol. It was a fun start to what ended up being a low-key day.
After a bout of begging for some playtime by Sloane and Maureen, Allison and I parted ways with our respective daughters. Upon arriving at home, Maureen had around an hour of quiet time during which she watched her favorite show, Blippi while I attempted to get some housework done. Groceries got ordered for the week, and I started working on dishes before transitioning to playing with Maureen. The highlight of Tuesday afternoon was Maureen's success in pooping and peeing on the potty. I was ecstatic, and Maureen and I celebrated her success by having a dance party with her stuffed animal companions, Pooh Bear, Tigger, Cub, and Panda Bear. Then, we headed outside for a scavenger hunt and some playtime with Daddy before dinner. Tuesday's dinner was delicious, if I do say so myself. If you haven't tried the French Toast on Budget Bytes, I highly recommend you do! Combined with some scrambled eggs and bananas all around, it was definitely a dinner we'll be having again. 😋
Wednesday felt more like summertime than any other day recently. Maureen and I spent about an hour outside in the late morning before coming inside, and spending the rest of the day in the A/C. I was proud of the little imaginative game I put together for Maureen Wednesday morning. Using some of her old Lovevery toys, I put together a pretend donut shop where her stuffed animal companions were selling different flavors of donuts, star-shaped cookies, and smoothies... all pretend of course. Oh, I even added a teapot in which there was "kid-friendly" coffee. 😉 I thought this was a fun touch since Maureen watches myself and her dad drink coffee every morning. Anyway, this game was the highlight of Maureen's day, and we spent quite a bit of the afternoon and evening playing donut shop. Wednesday wrapped up with leftovers for dinner and some family time around our kitchen table.
Thursday started out very wet and stormy, so Maureen and I got out of the house with a trip to Meijer for some mid-week groceries... and a few "needed" items for Maureen including Minnie Mouse socks, a Blippi & Meekah book, and a large bag of pretzels as a "snack." 😏 I was grateful that the sun came out, and temperatures soared into the low 80's by 2 PM so that Maureen's "needed" pretzels could be shared with her friends at our second beach playdate of the season. Maureen and her besties spent the better part of 3 hours playing in the sand and waves. They had a blast!! 😄 With a feast of a snacks provided by "the mommies" (i.e., the 3 kids' affectionate nickname for myself, Hilary, & Allison) and plenty of beach toys to go around, Maureen, Sloane, and Max found numerous ways to entertain themselves including a splash fest courtesy of yours truly. 😜 It started with me trying to show Maureen how to splash Max back after she got upset about Max getting her wet, and ended with everyone -moms included- getting soaked from all the splashing. Needless to say, by the time we all parted ways, all 3 kiddos were exhausted and ready for a small dinner -snack feasts have a way of filling you up- and bed.
Friday was a home day filled with too much TV and plenty of snack-filled meals. After 2 fun playdates with her besties and plenty of sunshine and fresh air earlier in the week, Maureen and I both needed some downtime on Friday. I was also beyond ready for the weekend! Friday felt extra long to me... I couldn't wait for my hubby to be done with work and able to start the weekend. We ended up going out to eat Friday night because I'd forgotten to thaw ground beef for the slow cooker meatball subs that I've been dying to make. eye roll Chili's to the rescue! After dinner and some outdoor playtime, Maureen was ready for bed. With Maureen in bed early, I got to enjoy some much-needed one-on-one time with my hubby. <3
Saturday dawned chilly and cloudy with plenty of muddy puddles to splash in during soccer. Maureen and Sloane both participated this week, making myself and Allison incredibly proud after a couple weeks of sitting on the sidelines watching the other kids. After a muddy mess of a soccer class, Maureen came home and crashed out for a good, 2+ hour nap. My hubby also ended up crashing out, so I spent some time working on my blog and getting a few things picked up around the house before waking them both up for some afternoon family time. Saturday finished with a family dinner around the kitchen table and plans for Memorial Day weekend being made.
And.. That's our week this week! From low-key days at home to fun outdoors and at the beach, this week felt like a nice mix of both activity and chill. I enjoyed getting to see my mom friends and spending some one-on-one time with my hubby. I'm struggling to strike a good balance between working on homeschooling prep and allowing Maureen to have fun outdoors. I know summer is generally viewed as a break from school, but as a homeschool mom, I want to get in the habit early of including some education during the summer months. Thankfully, I've got time to figure out what that will look like before Maureen starts true homeschooling in Kindergarten. Well, I hope you & yours had a good week, and got to enjoy some of the gorgeous weather we had here in northeast Ohio this week! I'm off to spend some time with my family and prep for the coming week. Happy weekend, and see you Monday!! 😄
P.S.A.: I will be taking a break from posting on Monday, May 26th in favor of spending the holiday with my family. I'll post an update about our Memorial Day weekend and Maureen's 3rd birthday in the coming weeks.
ALSO: Do you have feedback for me? Is there content you'd like to see more of? I now have an email account where my readers can engage with me personally, expressing their wishes for the blog and providing me with much needed feedback. Interested? You can reach me at homeschoolmama195@gmail.com. I look forward to hearing from you! As always, I simply request that you keep it kind and constructive if you do reach out.
Thanks for reading!!! 😃