Feel Good Friday 42

High fives all around this Friday!!! We finished our first week of virtual learning, and it wasn’t too bad!  Around here it’s not the actual schoolwork that’s stressful; it’s keeping a toddler quiet and away while the older kids are on live with their classes.  I am pretty sure Wilder and I have made appearances in the background of some of Sawyer’s classes. We try to head outside for walks each morning and sit in his room reading a million books, and so far that is working for us.  Because this week was the start of school and a little hectic, some of my shares today will be a little different, or maybe just not as healthy, as usual. Sometimes it’s just about doing the best you can with what you have. (I am an Amazon associate and earn a small commission on qualifying purchases.)

Breakfast for Dinner

I am always a fan of breakfast for dinner; to me, it’s the ultimate in comfort food, and it’s always quick and easy to make.  We plan out our meals for the week ahead over the weekend, and I knew I was going to be rather tired and a little stressed with the start of school, so I scheduled in breakfast twice!  One night we did a healthy frittata (pictured above) for me and Chris, and french toast for the kids.  I knew we’d have plenty of frittata left over, so I added a second breakfast for dinner night for the kids and made them pancakes when Chris was out of town.  While pancakes and french toast aren’t necessarily the healthiest meals, it’s a quick and easy dinner that leaves every one at the table happy.  After getting back into the groove with learning, I figured the kids could use a warm and comforting meal.  Breakfast for dinner, it’s the great unifier!  Might even be the solution to other problems in the world… Perhaps a debate around a breakfast buffet? 😉

Lemonade for a Cause, Created by a Child Entrepreneur

This past week while I was out on a run, I listened to an extremely inspiring story on Marie Forleo’s podcast.  She featured child entrepreneur, Mikaila Ulmer, who began a lemonade brand called Me & the Bees.  When she was a child she was stung by a bee, and rather than let her stay scared, her parents encouraged her to be curious.  She researched and discovered everything that bees do for us, and how they are disappearing from the planet.  She decided to create a product that would benefit bees through profit donation, and created a beverage using her Granny’s lemonade recipe but sweetened it with honey.  Since then, her little lemonade stand has grown into a full fledged business she now runs at age 15.  Her lemonade as well as other products can be purchased on her website as well as in stores.  I can’t wait to head to my local Fresh Market and purchase a bottle.  Emmy loves lemonade, and I am hoping Mikaila’s story will inspire her to see that kids, especially girls, can do anything they set their minds to if their hearts are in the right place. You can check out her interview with Marie here or here.

Thrifting Again!

This week I had the opportunity to finally meet up with a local blogger I connected with when I met here, Ashley. She writes a fabulous lifestyle blog and is really into body positivity and thrifted fashion.  I actually was able to interview her live on instagram this week (you can catch the interview here) and we dived into those topics as well as racial issues.  Before the interview, we decided to meet up to do a little in person thrifting together, while safely distancing.  We both wore masks, and I brought gloves for us as well, because I just feel better about using gloves in a store filled with other people’s donations.  It felt great to hit a thrift shop again, and while I didn’t find much, I had a lot of fun getting to know Ashley better, and we are already planning our next outing.  She scored that super fun bag you can see her holding above, and I found graphic tee…. I am a sucker for punchy graphic tees! By the way, this shirt features a singer I had never actually heard of, Israel Nash, so I went home and listened to his music and really enjoyed it. It’s great backyard patio craft-beer-drinking kind of music. (Sorry for the photo quality, I had to take screen shots of my instagram stories!)

Sweet Treats

It had been a while since I baked cookies for the kids, and I figured they deserved a sweet treat to celebrate back to school.  We opted for peanut butter chocolate chip, and I used this recipe from Crazy for Crust.  All 3 of the kids approve!  I will say, I made mine much smaller than the recipe called for because I like to give Wilder small cookies so I can limit his consumption a bit easier.  I also want to add that I didn’t refrigerate my dough, but rolled them into balls before baking and that really  helped.

An Inspiring Memoir

Let me start by saying I wish I’d had the foresight to listen to this book rather than read it because it is read and sung by the author herself, Alicia Keys. However, I had asked for the hardcover for my birthday, so that’s what I read.  More Myself, my book club’s August pick, was a rather quick read that I finished earlier this week.  With a pencil by my side, I made my way through her memoir and was blown away by her talent, work ethics, artistry, and her activism.  This book echoed so many of the sentiments of both Untamed and The Universe Has Your Back as Alicia shares her journey of becoming more herself, letting go of the expectations that society places on us (whether we are in the public eye or not), and also shares her spirituality.  I was absolutely blown away when she shared the story of how she and her husband, Swizz, knew that they were meant for one another. After reading this book, I also have a much bigger respect for the music she creates.  Keys is an artist who is true to who she is and holds tight to the message of light she wants to spread. I found her book to be just another way that she is spreading her light and truth in this world, and worth reading.

Well, my friend, I hope that wherever you are and whatever your situation, your back to school season is running smoothly and happily.  Have a wonderful weekend!