Apple Picking Fun

Fall is here! This season is truly my favorite and I wish it could last forever. It's so crazy to think that this time last year I was extremely pregnant and anxiously awaiting the arrival of my sweet boy. This year Aiden is with us and I am loving being able to introduce him to all of our favorite fall things.

First on the list of things to do with Aiden...visit an apple orchard! We went to one of my favorite places, Iron's Fruit Farm where we took a hayride out to the apple orchard to pick our own apples. Aiden wasn't too sure about the hayride, but loved being fed bits of apple fresh from the tree. He kept signing "more!"

My sister in law and brother in law came with us and were able to capture a few pictures of our little family's first trip to the apple orchard and I love how they turned all turned out.

This last picture had to be included because I like to be real and let's be honest, it's hilarious. This was our cue that it was time to stop the photo session and go home for a nap. Haha.

What things are on your fall bucket list??

A day in the life (with a 10 month old)

I did one of these posts back when Aiden was just 6 months old and thought it'd be fun to compare my days with Aiden and how they change as he gets older. So here it is another day in my life, but this time with an almost 10 month old!

4:30 AM Aiden is up and hungry. I bring him in bed with me, feed him then we snuggle/sleep for a little bit longer before we drag ourselves out of bed

6:45 AM I turn on PBS Kids and let Aiden watch his favorite shows (Thomas and Daniel Tiger) while I fix breakfast, eat breakfast and then clean up the kitchen. All while trying to keep Aiden from pulling the cats tails, eating the cats food, pulling any and every cord out of the wall and pulling over baskets. Haha. Then we play and read a few books.

9:00-ish AM Aiden takes his morning nap. Since Aiden isn't sleeping great these days I try to nap with him during his first nap of the day. If I don't take a nap with him then I'll read or check my emails on my phone while he sleeps in my arms. I just finished reading Where'd You Go Bernadette and loved it!

10:00 AM Time to get out of bed. I feed him then it's time to actually get ready for the day.

10:15 AM Bath time. Since Aiden no longer likes to be laying down in his baby bath tub I've been letting him sit in his Boppy seat in the tub. I bathe him then I shower. We usually jam to a Baby Pandora station I created and we have a good ole time splishing and splashing.

10:30 AM Time to get Aiden dressed/aka let him roll around and pull everything out of the diaper caddy as many times as possible in the time it takes to change and dress a baby.

10:45 AM Mid-morning snack. His current favorite breakfast is Oatmeal with a mix of pureed blueberries and cherries. Yum. He also likes scrambled eggs. It's so fun that he is eating real food and that we can share bites.

11:00 AM Aiden "helps" me pick out our meals for the week and make a grocery list.

11:30-1 PM Lunch and errands. We hit up the grocery store and visit Yaya at work on our way home.

1:30-4:30 PM Afternoon nap and then I feed Aiden again. Then I attempt to meal prep and pick up around the house if Aiden allows it.

5:00 PM Aiden's favorite time of the day! Daddy is home!

5:30 PM Family dinner (can you guess which drink belongs to which family member?)

6:15 PM We clean up the kitchen and then Drew entertains Aiden while I meal prep some baby food for the following day. I made a Lentil and Brown rice soup for Aiden. You can find the recipe here.

6:45 PM If we have time before Aiden's goes to bed we take a family stroll around the neighborhood or head up the street to our favorite park then it's time to change Aiden into his PJs, read him a few books, feed him and put him to bed.

8:00 PM Aiden's Bedtime

After Aiden goes to bed I check emails/blog, fold laundry, hang out with Drew and then read or watch a show in bed. Everyday is different, but this is a snapshot of a day at home with my little man. I cherish these days with him.

Ode to summer

Summer came and went. It literally flew by and there are so many things I haven't documented yet! So this my friends, is an ode to all things summer...

Lunch dates with Aiden at the Park were a weekly occurrence. 

I got to attend a lovely bridal shower for my dear college roommate, Amanda.

There were lots of family hikes and picnics.

We enjoyed a few fun nights out with friends and went to Lumenocity for the first time.

Aiden discovered popsicles and demanded I make them once a week.

We celebrated my little brother's birthday at one of our favorite local pubs.

We had a few playdates with friends.

And then there was swinging. Lots and lots of swinging.

We will miss you summer, but we are oh so excited for all things FALL!

{Baby Approved Meals:} Lentil and Brown Rice Soup

One night I was making Lentil Chili for dinner and I started thinking about ways that I could make Lentils for my little guy who was 9 months old at the time. I'm terrible at putting flavors together, but I'm great at following a recipe so I started flipping through a baby cookbook I had bought and found a recipe for Lentil and Brown Rice soup. It was perfect since I already had all the ingredients on hand and Aiden seemed to enjoy it. I secretly loved that we were all eating Lentils together too and thought aw look at our little family of 3 all eating their lentils together around the dinner table. Haha. So here's the recipe and a list of ingredients for you to make this for you or your baby or both!

Ingredients: (Makes about 1 1/2 cups of soup-perfect amount for baby)
2 3/4 cups (22 fluid oz) Low Sodium Vegetable broth (or water)
1/3 cup brown rice
1/2 cup lentils (rinsed)

Instructions:
1.) Bring the vegetable broth to a simmer in a saucepan over medium-high heat
2.) Add the rice and lentils and reduce heat to low
3.) Cover the saucepan and allow to simmer gently until most of the water is absorbed (the rice is tender and lentils are soft) This should take about 30-35 minutes.
4.) Remove from heat and allow to cool slightly
5.) Transfer the lentil-rice mixture to a food processor and puree until desired consistency

Original recipe can be found in this cookbook!