6:36 a.m. We hear Emmett awake. We lay there a good 10 minutes mustering the energy to grab him, mostly because he's kind of playing in his crib and not just fussing. Luke goes to grab him and brings him to bed. He snuggles for all of 1 minute and then demands to get down. He runs around grabbing shoes and bringing them to me in bed, and then finds Gaston and brings it to me to read. Luke gets ready for work.
7:00 a.m. The guys head downstairs and I check the weather, then get dressed for the day. I head down and discover Luke changed E's dirty diaper (he's the best) and made coffee. Emmett runs around playing while we make breakfast. I'm still loving my PB&J overnight oats, so I make myself a bowl and top it with strawberries and blackberries. Emmett has Chex "soldiers" (I dunk them in Greek yogurt and stand them up on his tray - the top is clean for his hands to grab). I also make him a sausage and cut up strawberries. He's mostly into the cereal this morning and eats like 3 times what we originally poured, but Luke and I get to eat most of his sausage and strawberries (each day is different though).
7:35 a.m. Breakfast over! Emmett plays in his play area. He wasn't digging the play yard so we disconnected it from being an octagon and just used it to rope off half the room for a fun spot and be able to close the gate so Benji doesn't get tempted. Luke and I clean up and take turns running up to finish getting ready. E takes a few turns down his slide (yes, it's in the living room, and yes, that's a new rug! You can ignore the mess :) )
8:10 a.m. We wave goodbye to Dada. I get E dressed and we head out on a toddler led walk in the neighborhood. He grabs my hand to go across the street and runs to point out the bird on our neighbor's address marker. We walk a ways to the Guinea house one street over - he notices they just touched up the sign and has fun playing peek-a-boo with me around it. Then he jumps on the stones lining their landscaping and practices his balance (we know them so it's slightly less awkward that we camp out in front of their house for like 15 minutes most days). He heads a little way longer then surprisingly asks me to pick him up and carry him home.
9:00 a.m. We're back home and I pack up the hiking carrier. I throw in some cuffins (mostly healthy cookies that are soft and fluffy like the top of a muffin - recipe to come!) and diced mango and a change of clothes. I give him a small bottle of milk since he didn't get one when he woke up and then we head towards the hike. He falls asleep RIGHT before we get there so I let him sleep in a car a few minutes.
10:00 a.m. Time for the hike we're leading at St. Edward's Trail. I love this trail! We do the summit side because I wanted some challenging elevation, and luckily the other moms were on board. We have a fun, small group for this Hike It Baby hike, and for the first time, Emmett is the oldest kid there - by one month ;) We have a blast hiking, see a waterfall and work up a serious sweat hiking. The kids are super content so we don't have to stop. We get back to a gentle picnic table and snack - E loves using the spork to feed himself mango. He drops like half of the pieces, but I happily eat them myself. Then most of the gals head home and another mom and her son let Emmett lead us to some water. It's a little muddy and I attempt to have him just hang out near it, but we both end up wading in and he loves it. Hey, raise a wild child right?? We eventually head back to the car on foot, but E gets into tantrum mode and gets super dirty sitting in the dirt while he's wet. I eventually get him back and towel him off/use baby wipes on him and put him in some fresh clothes. All set!
12:25 p.m. We give Dada a call and then drive home. I warm up lunch and Luke arrives home, right as I discover Emmett had a dirty diaper and was playing in Benji's water bowl - *face palm*
1:00 p.m. Lunch time! On the menu is whole wheat spaghetti with garlic herb chicken, roasted tomatoes, broccoli, arugula and parm. Emmett enjoys spaghetti, peas, broccoli and some local loquats. I high five myself for planning ahead and making this Sunday, since I knew Sunday and Monday night dinners wouldn't provide leftovers for lunch, which is what we usually do. E pounds his spaghetti and eats some peas and a little broccoli. He's not feeling the loquats, but Luke and I are happy to eat them :)
1:20 p.m. We say bye to Luke and head upstairs to have milk, then I read him 3 books and put him down for a nap. I take a much needed shower.
1:50 p.m. E falls asleep after playing in his crib for a good 15 minutes. I head downstairs and grab a handful of chocolate covered almonds and hop on the computer. I log miles for the Hike It Baby 30 Challenge (we hit 100 miles earlier this week - woohoo! I was a bit surprised by that since I was out of commission a few days with a stomach bug and a little lame after that, plus it rained a fair bit. But, Luke got in a good 3 miles both days I was sick and even went on a HIB hike - I was so proud of him!). I'm feeling a little distracted so I jump between working on this post and working on a blog post for Whole Foods about wine (yum!). Then I eat a chocolate chip pecan cookie, because I can :)
3:05 p.m. I work on my registration and training to become a branch lead for Hike It Baby. I was so honored with the three gals who lead the Austin chapter asked me to join their team (it's a volunteer position), and after thinking it over for a day, I agreed! I love this organization and have really enjoyed getting to know people, testing my limits, leading a recurring hike every week and pop up hikes when I'm in the mood! I can't wait to get even more involved in this leadership position, and I'm only a little bit nervous.
3:20 p.m. I finally get around to cleaning up the kitchen from lunch. Then, I start dinner prep. I chop up some sweet potatoes and steam then mash them with some fresh herbs and a little pat of butter. And, I cut up some cauliflower florets and toss with avocado oil and herbs de provence and roast them. And, I make a quick kale salad with a dressing of Dijon mustard, honey, olive oil and red wine vinegar. I already pulled the meat off of a rotisserie chicken yesterday and refrigerated it, so another high five to myself. I go out to the garden and throw some winter squash and watermelon seeds in the ground and give it a good watering. Back on the couch for more blog work! I don't take any pictures during all of nap time - oops!
4:53 p.m. I hear chirping, Emmett is awake! His naps have been all over the board in length lately, so I'm totally thrilled to get a full 3 hours to be productive and rest my legs on the couch. I go to his room and he's in a great mood and ready to party. After playing peek-a-boo with his blankie for a minute and tossing stuffed animals around, we read a few books then head downstairs. He starts racing around the house in circles - this boy has ENERGY! I manage to change his diaper and put on his socks and shoes. He grabs Benji's leash - time for a walk!
5:10 p.m. We head out for a toddler led walk. Luke texts me to let me know he's heading home - score! He's early! I let him know we're heading out at toddler pace and which direction so he can meet us up, which he does in about 15 minutes. We enjoy strolling along the greenbelt in our neighborhood and Emmett enjoys seeing lots of dogs, pointing at the flowing water in the creek, off-roading in the grass and walking along a fallen tree with Dad's help. He shows us he now knows how to walk backwards (?!??!) and runs in tight circles. We realize it's already 6 (dinner time - oops!) so we encourage him to turn around and eventually pick him up to make it back in a timely manner.
6:20 p.m. High fiving myself for having everything cooked. I quickly warm things up while the boys wash hands, then we sit down to eat. Emmett LOVES the cauliflower (who knew?!) so he eats like 4x what I gave him initially. He also loves his rice (duh) and playing with the spoon (but NOT the sweet potatoes). I enjoy a nice glass of rose with dinner ;)
6:50 p.m. Play time! There's a lot of crumbs/junk that found themselves into the play area, so Luke grabs the broom. Emmett immediately fixates on it and spends the last 10 minutes "sweeping" the room.
7:15 p.m. We head upstairs for bedtime. First up is the tubby. E enjoys playing with this bath letters and pouring water with cups, then he points to his soap - it's time to scrub! It ends up being a short back because we're done less than 10 minutes later. Time for jammies and a bottle. I sneak downstairs to respond to a few emails while the guys read books. He's super into Dr. Seuss this month. They brush teeth and then I pop up to join in the goodnight book fun.
7:50 p.m. Lights out for E! Luke does a few things on his computer and then joins me downstairs. We visit a bit more and then turn on the latest episode of Castle and each enjoy a little dish of the latest seasonal flavor from Lick - lavender crisp ice cream!
9:10 p.m. It's early, but we head upstairs to get ready for bed and read. I'm so tired, I pass out by 9:30. Good thing since E is up by 6:30 the next day.
Never a dull moment! :)
