Since many of us are finding ourselves with some extra time these days, I decided to start posting a weekly roundup of websites I discover.* I’m going to try to avoid posting things about the virus because if you’re like me, you already read enough about it and need a bit of a break!
I’m so guilty of being on my phone way too often. Here are some tips that I want to integrate to help curb my phone usage.
If you need a creative outlet, try Morning Pages. This post talks about what they are and how to get started. I want to start on April 1st!
A hockey announcer from New York has started doing play-by-plays of different things, such as traffic on his street and a scene in The Lion King. Check out his Instagram feed for some entertainment!
Good list of tips to bring the outdoors in when you’re stuck inside, even if you don’t have a yard to play in.
According to this article, Animal Crossing : New Horizons is the game we deserve right now…
Jimmy Fallon and The Roots made a video of what should be the unofficial quarantine anthem.
That’s it for today! Have a great Saturday!
*I used to have posts called Seven Sunday Sites. These are completely different because it isn’t Sunday, and I’m not committing to a number. Important distinctions, right?
Since Char will turn 4 in April, it seemed like a good time for the next volume of Charlotte’s Chatter!
Charlotte : I’m so mad you’re making macaroni. Me : You told me to make you some! Charlotte : Oh yeah…
Charlotte : Who made this pillow? Me : Aunt Tricia. That’s Mimi’s sister. She’s married to Uncle Nick, just like Mimi and Papa are married, Gran Gran and Pop Pop are married, and Daddy and I are married. Charlotte : I’m married too! Me : Oh you are? To who? Charlotte : Chick a lay!!
Charlotte : You smell like…cheese! Me : Is that a good thing or a bad thing? Charlotte : It’s a good thing!
Sometimes a piece of ice gets stuck in our ice maker, and it makes a popping noise. One morning it happened when we were sitting on the couch. Charlotte : Is the fridge burping?
Will brought an ice cream truck Lego set for us to work on. While Char and I were laying down, she had some things to say about it. Charlotte : I’ve been needing this set my whole life! Me : Have you? Charlotte : It makes my heart so happy! It makes me want to love you! Me : I hope you loved me anyway… Charlotte : I did!
My mom told me about this one. Char was at their house on a Wednesday. My parents had planned for her to have a sleepover on the following Friday. She said that this conversation happened in their kitchen between my dad and Char : Charlotte : Today is our adventure day! Dad : No, it’s on Friday. Today is Wednesday. Charlotte : No, it’s today Dad : No, it’s Friday. Charlotte : Stop arguing with me, Pop Pop!
Me (during a thunderstorm) : Is that your tummy? Charlotte : I guess so!
She has a couple of stuffed Pokemon characters, so one night I asked her what her Pokemon name would be… Charlotte : I guess…Captain America!
Me : Who made this big mess? Charlotte : I did. That’s what Charlis do!
One day, she and I went to a McDonald’s playground, and she slipped, fell, and bumped her head. I was holding her in my lap, trying to calm her down, and she had a solution of what would help her feel better. Me : Are you okay, baby? Charlotte : I think a cake pop would make my head feel better!
Random quotes :
What does “driving me nuts” start with?
I’m thinking about life, Dad.
I’m the Charli of the world!
I’m putting the A back in the A hole! (while cleaning up her magnetic letters set)
I need to eat pizza every day!
I really don’t like time outs!!
Whoa, who left this big mess in my playroom?
Last time, I mentioned that Charlotte was asking “what happened” questions a lot. We have now moved into the “why” phase, as well as just general questions. Here are a few of my favorites :
Does Uncle Mike have hair?
Does Uncle Mike get haircuts?
Am I pee peeing on the floor?
Why is Daddy home?
Why is Daddy bald?
Why was I scared to wash my hair?
Why did you bring me a snack? (After she had asked me to bring her a snack!)
She is so sassy sometimes, and she makes us laugh on a daily basis!
Coming back from an unplanned blogging hiatus to join the Currently linkup!
Fixing : Dinner a lot more lately! I’ve even (kind of) started meal planning. I want to try making more sheet pan dinners, so if anyone has recipes they enjoy, I’d love to hear them!
Hearing : Charlotte playing! She is playing independently a quite a bit, and it’s so fun to hear her playing with her toys. I just brought a box of my old Barbies from my parents’ house, and I’m getting them cleaned up. I can’t wait to hear her play with them!
Borrowing : More physical books from the local library. I used to only borrow electronic books, but I’m getting back into physical books lately!
Feeling : Grateful!!! We live in a town one county east of Nashville, and our county suffered a lot of damage from Tuesday morning’s tornadoes. Thankfully, our neighborhood didn’t have any damage; we have a lot of insulation in our yard from who knows where, and we lost power for about 16 hours, but we are healthy and safe, and that’s all that matters!!
Recommending : Local businesses, such as my chiropractor, dentist, and a shirt printing shop in the area. We frequent a lot of chain places (Target every Saturday…), but I’m trying to throw more business to the local folks!
In honor of Charlotte turning 3.5 last month (time is flying by!), I thought that another volume of Charlotte’s Chatter was overdue! Enjoy her toddlerisms!
Charlotte : Daddy mowed the yard! It’s clean!!
My mom : What’s in your wallet, Charli?
Charlotte : I don’t have a wallet!
One night while we were laying down, I told Charlotte I had a headache and a neck ache. She reached over, patted my head and neck, then said it’s okay head and neck. Sweet girl!
We’ve been going through a phase where she’ll ask “what happened?” It doesn’t happen as often it did during the summer, but here are some of the things she asked what happened about :
Mama’s socks
The animals (a projector on her ceiling)
The icemaker
Mrs. Brandi (who owns the consignment shop and was closed one day)
Her family
The people in the van
The snail
The piano
Mama’s muscles
Gran Gran’s car
If she eats her blanket
If Daddy eats her blanket
If she eats the floor
She also asks what happened every time she has an accident, like a few weeks ago when she tripped over the bottom of her pajama pants and fell. I try not to laugh when she’s hurt, but there’s something about the way she says it that makes me want to giggle!
(After waking herself up from snoring so loud)
Charlotte : What’s that noise?
Me : What noise, baby?
Charlotte : That noise that Charli was making!
(After taking her into the bathroom stall at Target to change a poopy Pull-Up)
Charlotte : Don’t gag, Mama!
Me : I have to go back to work tomorrow [after Fall Break]
Charlotte : Me too!
Charlotte : Does anyone want to take a bath? I do!
Charlotte : This jello is juicy!
Charlotte : Why are you happy now, Mama?
Me : Because I have the greatest family in the world, and I love you guys so much!
Charlotte : Were you sad earlier because you didn’t have your family?
I have no idea what prompted that since she asked me one Sunday after we had been together all day, but it was so sweet! I love this little girl so much!!
Even though we’re already a week into October, it seems like the perfect time to talk about my September goals and set new ones for this month, right?
Here were my September goals :
1. Clean off our dining room table : Nope. It’s worse than it was before. Sigh…
2. Clean off our entryway dresser : Finished!! Look at the difference :
3. Get on track with daily routines : Not even close. I’m on fall break this week, so I’m taking some time to list out things that need to be done daily, times that I need to get up, be ready to leave, etc. I’m not a very organized person, so I need all of the help I can get with keeping myself on track!
4. Make consignment appointments : I’m taking Charlotte’s stuff tomorrow or Thursday. I haven’t made my own appointment, but I did make an appointment for a donation pickup, so I may just forget about consigning my stuff and donate everything!
5. Trade in old car seat : Done! I read that they were going to end the program early, so we traded in two old ones the day before they ended it. Phew!
Charlotte tells her old car seat goodbye!
6. Make an eye doctor appointment : Nope. Onto the October list you go…
7. Make a dentist appointment : See above…
8. Take Koopa to the vet : See item 6…sheesh…
9. Decorate for Fall : I’ve started doing this, so partial credit?
10. Start meal planning and prepping : No to this one too
11. Start walking again : Nope, but the joke was on me. Last month I said it was “starting to cool down,” then we had 90+ degree weather here all the way into the first week of October! Now it’s FINALLY fall around here, so let’s revisit this one for October!
12. Start posting at least once a week again : No for this one also.
So, I completely accomplished 2 and partially completed things out of my 12 for September. That’s not a ton, but I’m proud of myself for any progress!
October Goals :
1. Clean off our dining room table : Month 2 of trying to get this done!
2. Create/implement daily routines : Giving this one another go.
3. Make an eye doctor appointment : I NEED new glasses. Come on, Amber!
4. Make a dentist appointment : I think I’ve been procrastinating on this because I don’t know if I’m going to go back to my old one or pick a new one. Such tough decisions…
5. Take Koopa to the vet : We may not be able to get all of his shots and teeth cleaning this month, but we can at least take him to the new vet we’re going to try and let them do his pre teeth cleaning blood work.
6. Start meal planning and prepping : One of our PE teachers told me a little bit about what she does every Sunday, so I have some ideas to try!
7. Start walking again : Unless the weather goes back up to the 90s. Then I’m just going to hibernate. Haha!
8. Start posting at least once a week again : I’ve still got to post my dang fall bucket list and summer wrap up…if I can even find my summer list post!
9. Decorate for Halloween and/or Fall : I mean, it’s already October 8, so I don’t have much more time for Halloween, so I may just skip those decorations this year in favor of fall stuff until the day after Thanksgiving.
10. Work ahead on lesson planning and homework : This is kind of part of the routines thing, but I need to get into the habit of working ahead on these things instead of scrambling to do them at the last minute. Story of my life, right?
I’m going to stop my October goals at 10, especially since I had so many that I carried over from September. Do you have any goals for October? Let me know in the comments!
