five things I'm loving this week

week of 10/11:

  1. our wedding anniversary tradition, in lieu of a trip or gift exchange

  2. these burrito bowls

  3. weekly menu planning

  4. ritz cracker chicken ranch wraps

  5. our sunday routines that make our week go SO much smoother

week of 10/4:

  1. getting back into smoothies + walks + swimming

    • for a week and a half, I didn’t walk, swim, or make a smoothie. and I FELT it. read the “week of 9/6” section of this post about what I do when I miss a routine, and why missing a routine can actually be really beneficial for me. I’m so happy to be back!

  2. reading about my pregnancy

    • today KK is 4 months old. and I’ve loved reading back over this post about what I did before we got pregnant, how we got pregnant (lolololol at that story), and what all I did/felt the following months. it’s basically the best diary of my pregnancy and how I prepped for baby - I’m so happy to read it now.

  3. my blue and white soup bowls

    • happy soup season, yall. (jk, i eat soup year round.) can’t wait for all the upcoming soups I planned in my weekly menu plan.

  4. my tote organizer

  5. my car changing pad + travel bassinet

week of 9/27:

  1. my new anthropologie headbands

    • no link. i’m just hear to say WOW they have some good headbands and both me and my postpartum baby hairs are 1000% obsessed.

  2. our puzzle storage board

  3. the roll of paper towels I keep in our car

    • just needed to give this guy a shout out. because MY WORD. Naptime Kitchen taught me this, and I basically do everything she says.

  4. our weekly grill and chill  tradition

    • ps brett loves his grill and smoker

    • we’re starting to reserve Sundays as “our” day. it’s nice. we get groceries delivered, we go on a long walk, we go to the farmers market, i do some meal prep for the week, brett grills some protein for dinner + for the week, we eat a big sunday supper-ish situation so to have plenty of leftovers for the week (for lunches or to be repurposed other nights), we chill at home together.

      • also, yes. doing some work to meal prep ahead of time makes the week go by so much smoother so for us it works SO well.

  5. speaking of, my weekly meal prep

    • visit my Pinterest boards to see where I save all food inspiration and ideas, like yogurt parfaits and snack boxes

    • shop my favorite meal prep goodies here

    • my version of Meal Prepping is asking myself, “What can I do now that will be helpful in the future?” AKA “What can I do now to make Thursday’s dinner easier?”

      • make a batch of this oatmeal 

        • store in small, individual glass containers like this for the week

      • make snack boxes in divided glass containers like this: 

          • oven omelette (or this recipe) + grapes + apples 

          • for the oven omelette, I do shredded cheese and tater tots/hashbrowns as my add-ins. here's my instagram post on this. (or here's my post on similar egg cups.)

        • see my "snack box" highlight on my instagram for this better explained + past boxes

        • see my Pinterest boards to see where I save all food inspiration for snack boxes/adult lunchables/bistro boxes/whatever you call them

      • make smoothie cups and/or yogurt parfaits, if needed

        • see more about my smoothies here, here, and here

        • see more about my yogurt parfaits here and here

        • shop my favorite smoothie cups, straws, and blender here

        • shop my favorite meal prep goodies here

      • see my other routines here

week of 9/20

  1. my favorite slippers

  2. this taco meat recipe

    • if you do nothing else in 2020, please try this taco meat recipe. it is one of our absolute favorites. taking the time to make homemade taco seasoning and all of her other magic ingredients makes these so incredibly flavorful. I also add in a bunch of riced cauliflower when I’m sauteeing the onion, and you can’t tell. (when I’m feeling extra crazy, I puree spinach into the tomato sauce.)

    • usually I double the recipe and freeze leftovers in these containers. because 1) taco meat freezes BEAUTIFULLY and 2) few things are better than realizing you have taco meat ready to go in the freezer. I have it in our freezer 99% of the time.

      • see our weekly menu plan here. it dates back to 2015. if you search “freeze” or “freezer” in the search bar on the top left (you won’t see this if you’re on the mobile site, fyi), it’ll pull up anything I like to freeze, as I like to make note of that within the menu plan.

      • see our other freezer favorites here.

  3. our weighted baby wipe container things

  4. speaking of, the changing station in the back of my car. OH MY WORD.

    • we’ve LOVED having a changing station in the back of my car. I was gifted this jewel as a baby gift and I LOVE IT. we keep it set up in the back of my car and we sing its praises ALL THE TIME. I keep the pockets loaded up with everything we need, and I have a smaller tub for a few extra things.

    • I keep things along the lines of these ideas in my car changing station - I searched things like “blow out kit” and “baby emergency car kit” on Pinterest for ideas of what other moms did/loved

      • I linked all my baby favorites here, if you’re wanting to know some products I’m trying

      • things like this baggie dispenser, extra just-in-case things (baby outfits, outfit for me, diapers, wipes, baby blankets, etc etc etc), gallon sized baggies, spray bottle of water, hand sanitizer (wipes and gel - simply because I like options), disinfecting wipes, roll of paper towels, a bigggg blanket (like, to lay on in grass), stain spray (could spray dirty things with stain spray or water and throw in gallon baggie, is my thinking — stinky diapers could go in the aforementioned baggies, or double bagged in a baggie + gallon baggie?), an umbrella, first aid kit, towels, etc

  5. my stroller

    • I will never get over how much I love it (and I won’t bore you with all my reasons). my daily walks and our weekly farmers market trips alone have already put some serious mileage on this thing. I also loved that it grows with your family and I can’t wait to fill it up with more babies.

week of 9/13:

  1. my elvie pump

    • I know there are mixed reviews, but so far I am so incredibly obsessed with this pump. I love that I can wear it while doing other things. Right now I don’t pump all that often since I’m always home with her (#2020 #covid), but I do always pump before going to Saturday morning swim team. In fifteenish minutes, I’ll unload the dishwasher, reload the dishwasher, make coffee, answer emails, and pump ten ounces. Because of that, I’m THRILLED with this gadget.

    • FAQs: I find it works best when I do tasks that don’t require bending over. I like to wear a non-nursing, sports bra bralette tank top type thing from Aerie and that seems to work best for me since it keeps everything nice and supported. I chose the Elvie over other cordless pumps because my insurance covered part of the Elvie. You can choose different suction levels. The parts fit in our blessed sterilizer.

  2. my new swim towels

    • I keep them and my swim bag hung on the hooks in our hallway. I learned long ago keeping things convenient helps me stay consistent with a routine. And I believe your home, your schedule, and your budget should reflect your priorities.

  3. reusable rags + linen napkins

    • I’m a Bounty snob, and Brett goes through an absurd amount of paper towels, so mainly because I couldn’t afford our paper towel habit, we moved the paper towels under the sink (out of sight, out of mind) and we bought two sets of reusable rags and two sets of linen napkins. I can’t tell you the last time we used a paper towel.

    • FAQs: I wash them every week on Towel Tuesday. If I can remember, I try to soak the dirty rags/napkins in whitener (I’ve used this or this) before throwing them in the wash — or I’ll just add whitener in the washing machine. I keep a basket in our pantry where we throw dirty napkins/rags - for whatever reason, it does not smell. I have no reason for getting white napkins - it’s just a personal preference. I got our linen napkins on sale (during a Black Friday sale, maybe?) and we consider them one of our best investments.

  4. my chatbooks routine

    • realized once KK joined us that I wanted to start some sort of tradition to capture and preserve our memories. I already had a whole bunch of Chatbooks made from our wedding and our 12 Trips and 12 Months, so I decided to do something with that.

    • four times a year, I want to take our favorite photos off our phones from that past season and create a Chatbook. for example, I just made our Summer 2020 book. it was SO much fun to look through and I’m looking forward to continuing this tradition as our family grows.

      • FAQs: I do not have Chatbooks linked to my Instagram, as all my fun, personal photos are not posted in my feed. I instead store all our photos in Google Photos (because we are a Google Home with plenty of Google devices, so we chose this as our photo storage), and Chatbooks has a feature to make a book using Google Photos. so it’s so easy.

    • see the “traditions” highlight in my Instagram feed for this better explained + for a peek inside our Chatbooks.

  5. this book on wellness and happiness and habits

    • I don’t say this lightly: this book changed my life. I was in a really low place making the big change from teaching to my own business (read more about that here), and this book taught me the power of small, consistent habits.

    • I love that this book is like, “Here’s a whole list of ideas to improve your wellness and happiness. Pick and choose what works for you. Try them one at a time, or try them all. Leave whatever doesn’t work for you.” I love that flexibility, as some things in the book I was like, “Whoa. Skip. Not for me.”

  6. okay okay SIX THINGS because WE’RE GOING TO SANTA FE FOR THANKSGIVING AND I COULD JUST PERISH FROM HAPPINESS.

week of 9/6:

  1. kk’s fall books

  2. fresh sheets friday

    • every Friday we wash sheets. nothing says HAPPY WEEKEND like clean, fresh sheets.

    • see our full list of routines here.

  3. f it friday

    • fridays are such good days. I menu plan, order groceries, and wash sheets. if it’s a wedding week, it’s a big day for designing flowers. aaaand come dinner time, I’m just DONE. so we do “f it friday” - aka leftover night aka clean out the fridge aka every man for himself. this allows for me to get a break and for us to cut down on food waste.

    • orrrr. if our fridge situation is pretty sparse - or! or! the household morale is just low - we do fajita friday. aka the takeout fajita kit from chuy’s. BLESS.

    • see our weekly menu plan (where I’ve been posting weekly since 2015 with recipe links + notes!) here

  4. this drain cover

    • postpartum hair loss hasn’t been too horrible for me (***so far***), but our poor shower was struggling. like, clogging-twice-a-week struggling. this drain cover solved that issue.

    • see full blogpost of postpartum favorites here. or my amazon board of postpartum favorites here.

  5. our weekly farmers market date

    • this was our first week back since KK joined us!!!! it was absolute heaven. hoping to continue this tradition as our family grows.

    • see our full list of traditions here.

week of 8/30:

  1. our otteroo

    • THE BEST money I’ve ever spent. It’s essentially a floatie that goes around KK’s neck so that keeps her head above water, and allows her to swim freely. I put this (and a swim diaper, if needed) on her, and we swim in the bathtub everyday. She loves it SO, SO much. she smiles so big, makes the happiest sounds, and splashes about.

    • she used to get really cranky in the evenings, and I had read that sometimes babies cry in the evening when they need to dispel some pent-up energy? and I had read somewhere else that some exercise and/or a bath can help? (don’t quote me on either of these.) so out of desperation, I tried the Otteroo. and OH MY WORD, it’s magical. she’s so happy while she wears it, and she takes THE BEST nap afterward.

    • aaaand if she’s still cranky after an otteroo session, I bust out the baby carrier and wear her.

  2. meal planning

    • if you’ve been around longer than two seconds, you know how menu planning makes our household run exponentially smoother. (and cooking at home is huge priority to us since it helps us afford weekly housecleaning.)

    • the linked blogpost explains how I menu plan, why it works so well for us, and what hilariously happened EVERY SINGLE WEEK before we made it a priority.

  3. our budget funds

    • we use this budgeting app (the paid version), and this article explains how to create funds + ideas for funds

    • funds are essentially things we save for - things that we don’t spend the same amount of money every month, things that only happen every so often, things that we save for once a year, things that we put away money in case of emergency, etc.

    • we either set aside the same amount of money every month towards a fund, or, some funds we only add to when we can. just depends. whenever brett gets a raise (or whenever we come across some unexpected money), we see which fund we can add to.

    • some examples of our funds:

      • emergency fund

      • property taxes

      • home expenses (like, our air + water filters. or today Brett has to buy water softener salt + a piece for our struggling potty)

      • dog fund (vaccinations, emergency vet bill, etc)

      • celebrations + traditions (christmas, birthday dinners, christmas PJs, our Christmas Eve Box, annual Halloween tamales, other traditions, etc),

      • reading (books, reading subscriptions, magazine subscriptions, seasonal books, trips to Half Price Books, etc)

      • eyes + lasik (for our out of pocket expenses on Brett’s contacts…and because I’d love for him to get Lasik at some point. I’ve had Lasik ten-ish years ago, and would love to get it again. so we have this fund.)

      • travel + adventures

      • car maintenance

      • yearly car detailing

      • family photos

      • Black Friday

      • clothes

      • costco membership

      • etc etc etc

  4. our Christmas Eve Box tradition

    • started thinking about this year’s on our walk this week

  5. snack dinner saturday

week of 8/23:

  1. this book and this book.

  2. my workout set-up

    • y’all know I love to swim. and I swim when I can. but I need something that I can do at home and while KK naps. this is where our workout room comes in. between my daily walk, some sort of workout room movement for however long feels good, and swimming when I organically can, my anxious mind stays so balanced.

    • I stream the Peloton app to our TV and do strength classes or cycling classes with a non-Peloton spin bike from Amazon (this Sunny Bike!)

      • I use this bike, this seat cushion, this phone holder, this stroller organizer on the handlebars (to hold my water bottle, etc)

      • the only big downside is that unless you buy a separate gadget (which I have not), you can’t track “cadence” and “resistance,” both terms the Peloton instructors will reference in the classes. this isn’t a big enough downside for me to get the Peloton bike instead - I just try to keep my heartrate up and/or watch how fast the instructors’ legs are going

      • I’m sure the Peloton bike is way better. People rave about that thing. But this set-up works for me (and our budget) at the moment!

    • we use Chromecast to stream classes to our TV

    • I use these weights for the Peloton strength videos

    • I love Down Dog App because I missed restorative/yin yoga classes. But right now I’m working with KK’s naptimes (and, you know, a pandemic), and driving to a studio doesn’t really work for us or our budget right now.

      • I loveeee yoga when it’s essentially a 20 minute long stretch. I love that I can choose the type of yoga, the length of class I want, etc, and it creates a sequence for me.

      • I also love Yoga with Adriene, especially if I have something that’s bothering me. Like, I love her Neck class. And Lower Back/Hip class.

      • I have two (or three?) of these nightlights in the room. I turn these on, and diffuse lavender + lemon (a combo I learned at a yoga studio and LOVED.) this board has all of my favorite yoga (and home gym) goodies.

    • we have one of those Ikea cube storage things at the front of the room for yoga stuff, little random pieces of workout equipment/balls, our various back massagers, etc.

    • see my home gym board in my Amazon store for all my favorite home gym goodies

  3. pizza night

  4. my weighted vest + our daily walks

    • I walk with a weighted vest - this book and this post explain the benefits of doing a slowwwww daily walk with a weighted vest

      • tldr: it allows your overused trap muscle - the one used to carry your head - to rest and release, among other benefits. I often used to get horrible neck/back pain from all the time I spent looking downward - from all the baby stuff and cooking stuff and reading stuff and computer stuff and housework stuff and floral stuff and overall sitting with horrible posture stuff - until I started this routine.

      • ** it’s supposed to be less than 10% of your body weight, so I’m pretty sure mine is a 12 pound vest.

    • we also went a few weeks where brett didn’t join our walks — but that quickly taught us we need our walks together. (this is a PC way of saying we weren’t getting along like we usually do.) otherwise we don’t feel as connected.

    • linked our favorite baby things for our walks here

  5. smoothie packs

    • i prepped a ton of them while pregnant so that it’s easy for brett to grab one and make me my daily smoothie - and I recently ran out of those and made enough smoothie packs to last for a hot, hot minute. feeling veryyyy grateful for Past Haley, as having my daily smoothie is giving me the most delightful dose of normalcy (and fiber). and that garage freezer - grateful for that sucker beyond measure.

      • see more about my smoothies here, here, and here

      • see my “smoothie” highlight on my Instagram to see these smoothie packs

      • shop my favorite smoothie cups, straws, and blender here

      • I don’t follow recipes - I just follow general flavor combos

      • when ready for a smoothie, I dump the smoothie pack contents into a blender, pour in unsweetened vanilla almond milk, and whatever add-ins.

        • (these days I usually do flaxseed and/or chia seed. a quick google search will tell you if these are good fits for you!)

        • if needed, I also add honey. I know some people are like, “no added sugars to smoothies!!” and that’s great! and I know there are other sweetener options, too. I just prefer honey. and if a little bit of added honey gets me to drink a full glass of produce - whereas otherwise I’m inclined to grab a bag of goldfish or cheetos - I say WORTH IT.

      • follow weelicious - her stories the best smoothie resource

      • see my other routines here (like my daily smoothie!)

week of 8/16:

  1. these longline amazon bras.

    • omg. im absolutely giddy about this find. they’re not technically made for nursing, but it’s totally doable. and the longer length makes me feel all delightfully sucked in. they’re the COMFIEST.

    • i’ll be living in these and my favorite bike shorts with whatever tank. it’s august in texas - send help.

  2. weekly cheese plates

    • decided that hi, I have a newborn and there’s a pandemic - what’s something I’ve always wanted to do at home? learn how to make cheese plates, and make them weekly. because it’s 2020 and we need some freaking cheese.

    • so Snack Dinner Saturday became a thing, I followed this Instagram account on how to build cheese plates step by step, and I bought her book.

  3. food network app

    • file this under “other things we need in 2020.” I wanted to watch all episodes of Barefoot Contessa. and Pioneer Woman. maybe learn a thing or two. (olddddd pioneer woman blogposts are how I learned to cook back in 2009 as a baby college girl.) or, at the very least, be soothed by watching these ladies cheerfully cook. therapeutic, i tell ya.

    • but we don’t have cable. enter the blessed food network app. gives access to every episode whenever you want. right now I pay $4.99 a month (but the first 30 days were free!) and I say worth every penny.

  4. this book of 4000 questions (but here’s the newer version).

    • brett and I bought a copy when we were dating and we would choose ones to answer. and usually it’s kept in our car for road trips, but we bust it back out for our new dinner routine - more on this in a second. it’s been so, so fun. and the loveliest nostalgic activity, all these years later.

  5. our new dinner routine

    • because I may have cried to brett that I missed him. and between him working, me resting whenever I could, him preparing his fall garden to decompress from work, and this baby girl shaking up our family dynamic, I felt like our relationship was nearing transactional roommate status.

    • so we were like, what if we change up our dinner routine to sit at the table? (pre-kids us sat on the couch. in front of the TV. usually watching office reruns.)

    • I wear KK in this carrier or I set her in our bouncer while I prep dinner (or, or! I do what I can during her naptimes), we set KK in the tripp trap high chair with the newborn insert while we eat, and we answer questions from this book (like we used to do when we were dating).

    • Special shout out to grocery delivery. Weekly grocery delivery. And Trader Joe’s cheap wine.