March Favorites

It feels so weird to be sharing a monthly favorites list with you guys right now. Like, it seems silly. But I figure, since we’re all cooped up at home right now, maybe little lists like this are just what you need.

The month of March. Where to even begin. I’ll start out on a positive note.

Before the craziness of the virus and quarantine began, Finn Thomas turned one! It feels like AGES ago. We threw a little party for our sweet little chub (the last time we saw any of our friends and family) – it was a “Where the Wild Things Are” theme and was oh so cute. The birthday boy, as expected, took the day in stride. He’s quiet and definitely on the shy side, so I wasn’t sure how he was going to react to being the star of the show. But! He did great. Sweet, shy smiles all around. And boy oh boy, did he looooove his smash cake. Surprise, surprise.

He started taking a few steps at a time a week or so ago, which is right on the same timeline as Kieran. Kieran didn’t full-blown walk until he about 13 1/2 months old…but when he did, he basically went from toddling to sprinting overnight. Haha. I expect something similar with Finn. He’s able to do it right now, but crawling is still his preferred way of motoring around. He is into EVERYTHING right now, which is cute but also frustrating at times. I love watching his little brain grow and the curiosity is so endearing, but I can’t cook dinner without having to stop at least 3 times to make sure he’s not into trouble.

And all things considered with everything that’s going on right now, Kieran has been doing exceptionally well. He has been so patient with me in navigating the homeschool life – we work through the challenges of it every single day. I feel very pressured to keep him on track – he’s the youngest in his kindergarten class and we’ve always been concerned about that. They’re learning to full-on read and write right now, and I have no idea how to properly teach these things. But we’re doing our best.

We’ve had a few tantrums here and there (too much unused energy) and a lot of questions about what’s going on and why there’s no school and why we can’t see any friends and family for awhile. It’s hard to explain adult things to a little kid. I want to shield him from as much of it as I can, protecting his innocence and feeling of safety, but I also think it’s important for him to have some knowledge of our world right now. I’ve just explained that there are a lot of dangerous germs out there right now, and the safest thing for us is to stay home until they’re gone. He gets it.

Kieran has asthma and a couple other autoimmune things going on, and Dan and I are totally freaked about what the virus could do to him. You always hear “people with underlying health conditions” are most at risk…well, that’s my kid. While this virus seems to be less severe in kids in general, there is very little information on what this would do to a KID with asthma. We know it’s catastrophic for adults with asthma, but we don’t know enough about kids with asthma. So…in some ways, I’m hoping that social distancing stays in place for awhile longer. Of course it’s hard and I’m so sad to miss so many things…and who knows what the new normal will be…but my kid is safe. At home. With me.

And for that, I’m forever grateful.

Those are exactly the things I’m trying to focus on right now. We’re home. We’re safe and healthy. We have food. We have shelter. Dan and I are both able to work at home. There is much to be thankful for.

WITH ALL THAT SAID, here are some things that we’ve been loving this past month. Some are definitely related to the quarantine, and others are just everyday life things that I’ve been into.

Stay safe, friends!

1. Popcorners chips. So, Dan discovered these recently and we’ve been on a tear with them. The sea salt, butter, white cheddar, and kettle corn flavors are all DELICIOUS. We’re always on the hunt for salty snacks that aren’t as terrible for you as a bag of potato chips, and these have been doing the trick. I have been getting most of our groceries delivered, and I add several bags of these to the cart every single week. So good!
2. I have been trying to work out in the early mornings before both kids are up for the day (literally – I am with them all day from that point on, hah), and this has always been a struggle for me. Ideally, I’d work out every day around 9 or 10 AM, but given life in general, this is not feasible. Whenever I drink coffee in the morning and then immediately go work out, I feel gross afterward. So, I bought a bottle of this Vital Proteins pre-workout supplement and am loving it so far. It does NOT taste good (just being honest), but it gives me a boost of energy and focus first thing in the morning, which is super helpful for my exercise.
3. Before all hell broke loose, I picked up a couple bottles of this insanely delicious smelling hand soap at Target. Oh my gosh. It smells like a lemon sugar bar. I love it. obviously, with everything going on right now, it’s sold out everywhere, but when life goes back to normal, I’m hoping to restock!
4. I shared the recipe for these stout-cheddar biscuits for St. Patrick’s Day, and they were a dark horse recipe in our house. My husband flipped over these and has since requested them numerous times. I love how flippin’ easy they are.
5. In the midst of homeschooling, most of which happens on an iPad, I bought this stand. It’s amazing. We use it for school/reading all the time, and I also find myself propping my phone or iPad on it when I need to reference a recipe in the kitchen. So cheap but wonderfully functional – no frills, but it does what we need!
6. Speaking of homeschooling, when we got news that schools were closed almost a month ago (!!!), I immediately wanted to get some supplemental materials for home. Kieran has always responded really well to flashcards. They keep his attention and he enjoys the game aspect of them. So, I bought a few packs on Amazon: these and these, to start. So far, he’s still loving them and they’re keeping him engaged. I also bought a couple of these books, which I already have on hand normally, but all of his learning is happening on an iPad at the moment, and I wanted him to be able to keep practicing his writing on actual paper.
7. So, I know we’ve all seen the memes about how we’ll all emerge from quarantine without having access to salons/basic grooming, haha, and while I find them hilarious, I do have concerns over my eyebrows. I usually get them waxed/shaped once a month, and well, they’re needing some love. So, I fell sucker to this product, and I have to say, I’m loving it! It’s super easy to use and effective. Who knew I’d ever buy such a thing!?

And that’s really it! Quarantine life keeps things very simple, doesn’t it? 

Xoxo!

 

[This post is not sponsored but contains affiliate links. If you click on an affiliate link and purchase the product, I receive a small kickback from the seller – at no extra cost to you! It is a small way I can earn a living doing what I love. Thank you for supporting this blog! I will always disclose this to you.]