The Vance's: January 2018

baking, board games, books and basketball.

>> January 31, 2018

Baking, board games, books and basketball. Yep, that's pretty much how we are getting through this winter. On those cold, wet days we rotate through all the indoor activities we can think of. Luckily, it's all still fun.

The kids randomly pulled out Seahawks monopoly last weekend and begged Matt to play. He hesitated (because, longest game ever) but figured they'd only last a little while so happily agreed. And 4 hours later they were still playing! They took a quick break for breakfast, Lucy quit halfway through to go on a walk with Simon and I but Carter played on through. In the end, Matt defeated him....barely.

The kids are soaking up the last few weeks of football. Watching playoff games, the pro bowl and this weekend the Super Bowl! I'm not sure what they'll do with out their weekly games, other than continue to tackle each other in the house!

I've been baking any chance I can get. It's my stress reliever and I love finding new, healthy recipes to try out. The kids (well, the big kids at least) are more than willing to try new things and have become such adventurous eaters. If only Simon could catch on to that trend....
This veggie egg bake full of peppers, onions, kale, tomatoes and feta cheese was a big hit. I delivered it to a sick friend with a side of fresh strawberries and homemade cheddar herb biscuits for dinner one night and her kids gobbled it up the next morning for breakfast too. Win win!

I've been so impressed with both kids basketball teams this year. Lucy is doing so well for her first season and scored 4 points in her last game. Carter finally learned how to use his height to his advantage and basically rebounds every single ball, with 6 points in his last game too!

Another family board game weekend! This time Carter brought home a favorite from school, so fun!

More basketball...

More baking - homemade pumpkin spice donuts!

And a super simple delicious dinner. I grabbed this recipe from an old college friend and it was delicious. Crispy tortellini with bacon and peas, yum!

A trip to the library meant bringing home 31 books between the 3 kids. They just can't get enough!

The kids had a day off from school on Monday for an in-service day and since it was pouring down rain ALL day we headed out for an adventure in Bellevue. A trip to the Children's Museum, pizza lunch, wandering stores at the mall and frozen yogurt for dessert! So fun for all of us.

I'm determined to get outside today so we have a big playdate planned with lots of friends from school. And then, back to baking and basketball!

growing up.

>> January 22, 2018

Another week down and I can't believe we are headed towards the end of January! Didn't I just put away Christmas decorations? As much as I dislike dreary, cold wet winters it's been nice to get back into routines of school and activities while spending time outside as much as possible. Even on wet days it's fun to run around and splash in puddles.

Simon is just growing up so fast. He's such a little boy, talking SO much and trying to keep up with his older siblings. Before school pick up I like to get there early (hello close parking spot!) and let him get out of his car seat to eat a snack in the front seat with me. These little moments of "us" time throughout the day are some of my favorite.

Anytime it's not raining after school we throw the backpacks in the house and stay in the front yard to play in the cul-de-sac. I'm sure the neighbors just love the yelling, 4957639 balls thrown about and the 16 bikes that get pulled into the street. Ha!

A cold January night calls for hot vegetable soup and homemade garlic rolls. Yum!

We are (slowly) entering into potty training Simon. He has days where he is interested and other times where he is determined to stay in diapers until college. Because "mama change me" is so much easier than stopping to pee on the potty. He promised me if I got him sports undies he'd try so I found these adorable pairs on a great clearance sale. He's gone once so we are off to a good start!

And then Simon got sick! Poor guy woke up one morning last week doubled over with stomach pain. It went on and off like this for 5 hours. He wouldn't eat or drink and just wanted to cuddle. I stayed home from work, watched movies and finally after 1 weird round of vomiting all over the kitchen floor (thankfully just water) he perked right up and was back to his normal self again. So strange! But, so thankful he's better considering all the other kids who are awfully sick lately.

Winter months means lots of baking for me too. And this homemade granola is some of our favorite. I've been contemplating selling it for the past few months since I get so many requests. Hmmmm....

Since Simon felt better the next day and the rain stopped we ventured outside to a local park for a nature walk. He wanted to see the ducks and splash in puddles so that's exactly what we did!

We ended the week with a night of Bingo at school, 2 basketball games, a birthday party and playoff football games. The kids are doing so well with basketball and its really fun to watch them with their teammates.

Happy Monday everyone!

what.a.week.

>> January 16, 2018

Whew. We did it. This past week was long, busy, a bit stressful and exhausting. But we got through it and ended on a high note. Thank goodness!

I had back to back eye appointments so Simon got to tag along for the ride. I don't think he minded much because they both ended with a stop at Top Pot Doughnuts! I'm pretty passionate about nutrition and spend a lot of time making healthy meals and snacks with whole foods and limit processed junk. But, sometimes you have to splurge with a special treat. And sprinkled Seahawks donuts are Simon's favorite!

The beginning of the holiday weekend began at Children's Hospital. It was a planned visit so we knew what to expect, what to pack and how to prepare but still not how we wanted to spend our day. After several fainting episodes in the past few years for Carter this final EEG study was to completely rule out seizures. We all (including his medical team) felt pretty confident he didn't have a seizure disorder but it was part of the plan to check that final box off. Carter was amazing! He never once complained about those 28 electrodes being literally glued onto his head. He was polite to the staff, requested healthier snacks and opted to read instead of play video games. I was amazed at his attitude throughout the entire 48 hours, despite little sleep and major anxiety over a blood draw. But, the results were normal and we can now move on! Woohoo! We still have to push fluids, salty snacks, exercise and rest but the hope is he'll eventually outgrow these episodes and continue a normal, healthy life.

In the middle of Carter's hospital stay we still had normal weekend activities. Matt and I switched shifts part way though so I could take Lucy to her basketball game. Her team did fantastic and Lucy had a few really great dribbles and passes. Next week - the goal is to take a shot towards the basket! She's having fun and we love to watch her play.

Because I was tired from NO sleep at the hospital and Lucy and Simon were troopers through a weird weekend we splurged and got ice cream....before dinner. Simon devoured his baby pint of chocolate and Lucy dove right into her favorite, mint chocolate cookie. Major mom points for me too!

To celebrate MLK Jr day, family time, a healthy EEG report and a beautiful sunny day we headed up to the beach house for some outdoor play time. It was 60 degrees, sun shining and plenty of beach to run and play.