Quick trip to Eau Claire

 We had so much fun driving up to see Harry on Sunday. The drive was lovely because the leaves are starting to change, and the weather was crisp but still friendly-- fun all around.

Fall Food: 2 cozy things I have made + 3 on my wish list

 I have already made PUMPKIN MUFFINS so we could bring some to Jack, and they were as delightful as I imagined they would be-- hot take: THEY MUST HAVE CHOCOLATE CHIPS.

I also ADORE this salad, and it was perfect with arugula and chicken mixed in the next day and as a stand-alone side dish the first day. I think beets would be an excellent addition.

I have big plans to make these pumpkin oatmeal cookies from NYT cooking

I also really want to slot in these enchiladas

And! For some reason, it does't really seem like fall to me until I make spicy chicken and sweet potato stew with apple bread.

Dorothy and I have big plans to go to Trader Joe's and buy a bunch of pumpkin and fall things for a big snack board dinner on Saturday, so we can watch Toy Story 5 with Ben and Minnie while Cooper and crew goes to HOCO. SO COZY, you guys!! Will report back on fall treats.

What food screams fall to you?

(Minnie's class can finally bring books home from the library-- kindy has to leave their books at school-- and Minnie snagged a cookbook with big plans to make the cake below).

Bradley Fam Weekend

 

Clearly, the girls and I have a shoe type. That type is Addidas. Kids shoes for all.

That was our shoe circle sitting near the door of our Peoria hotel room because we spent the second! weekend! in! a! ROW!! in P-town this time for Parents' Weekend at Bradley.

We enjoyed a pickleball tourney, cookies the size of our faces, dinner and dessert with my mom and Steve, some Peoria shoe shopping for Jack, and the Peoria Riverfront Museum's America 250 exhibit. 

We were so blown away to see that painting of GW up close and in person that we got TOO up close and in person, and in the live version of that pic, you can hear the alarm going off. OOPS.

Stay tuned because we have Eau Claire Parents' Weekend in just a couple weeks!

Notes from a WILD start to the semester

 I took a hot yoga class! And I did not even get sweaty! To be fair, it was only 45 mins and was a lovely flow. There was only one time when I confidently popped up in warrior 2 and found myself facing the rest of the class instead of the wall. Lefts and rights are hard **shrug.** I do think I went deeper than I normal would on some things (skandasana, I am looking at you) because the heat tricked me into thinking I was bendier than usual. I will definitely be back-- I think especially in the winter, it will feel amazing. 

I am still loving decide-once athleisure Thursday (but this week, I have class observations and will probably level up a teeny bit)

Speaking of decide once, I have basically worn the same thing to teach so far

And! The snack box decide-once is rolling into week 2

This week Dorothy is in the snack biz, and we have added nutella sandwiches.  (her box also has strawberries)

Ben and I have also instituted a Thursday night cocktail hour where we go out for ONE SINGLE DRINK and come home to watch Big Brother with the big kids (who definitely used to be the little kids). It's perfect and low stress-- no reservations, asking each other what we're hungry for. etc etc etc.

I am a little underwater in-- checks notes-- all areas of my life. I have barely been reading (thank goodness for audio books!), and class admin stuff is all encompassing. I have 400 undergrads of my very own this semester and supervise the teachers of 1000 more. I think things will slow down. But! That[s why I am writing this n a Tuesday and not a Monday. Blergh.

It is getting dark and cold here, you guys, and I lost my very favorite fuzzy fall coat! I wore it to the last department meeting of the year in May (eff you Madison for still having coat weather in MAY), and it disappeared. I have checked the lost and found, etc. (I think maybe it just fell out of my bag between my building and the car) SO, YOU GUYS. I bought a replacement (NEW WITH TAGS) on Poshmark for $18!!

My IG algo is almost entirely messy bun hacks, and I am rethinking my hair cut at the end of next month...

(Not really. I am growing out my gray hair, and I think the best way to do it is to get an aggressive trim every 4 months until the weird orange ends are gone. IN A FEW YEARS).

More later because we had the best tme at parents' weekend!

But let me just say by way of closing (spoiler: not really a closer coming up more like just onemore random thing in a series of random things-- you're welcome). THIS MOISTURIZER is so good I use every single bit. Highly recommend and very gentle on redness-prone skin.

5 on a Friday: FALL THINGS

 1. We are eating lots of things on huge trays. Definitely a time saver.

2. SPEAKING OF SAVING TIME! Cooper has been eating the same car snack every day lately, so I made an entire week's worth and put them in the fridge downstairs. Next week, he can decide once on something else-- love this idea and will definitely do it for Dorothy next week, too, when dance starts. Because she dropped tap she only goes 3 days a week this year, so I am looking forward to Tuesdays and Fridays when we all have a little breather. (Cooper's new club DOES practice on Fridays, though, so it's only a little breather). I might even do this for Minnie's swim team nights because she needs to eat quickly before practice, so maybe I could make one thing for both Tuesday AND Thursday.

This little snack box is 690 calories with 8 grams of fiber (mostly from 2 applesauce pouches) and 62 grams of protein. Are Goldfish and summer sausage the best nutritionally? Erm. BUT HE EATS THEM.

3. An excellent decide once: ONE morning a week, I do all the dumb errands I have been putting off all week and go to campus slightly later. And! I wear athleisure while doing it because I leave the house straight from the kids going to school. That's like 3 decide-once in one: the clothes, the batched errands, and the leave time.

4. Dorothy has ONE MORE baby tooth to lose and then it is ROUND TWO of braces for her. Who doesn't want to go to high school with headgear? (J/K-- she won't have to wear headgear to school. But she is looking at like 2 full years of braces). Also, she lost the note excusing her from class between the ortho office and her school (a 6-minute drive).

5. Even Annabel is leaning in to fall cozy season, you guys. Closed-toed shoes, sweatshirts, pumpkin spice-- IT'S ALL HAPPENING

Perfect weekend

We had the best weekend you guys! It included an MLB game, dinner and jog with Jack, and THE MARIGOLD FESTIVAL! 

First up, Minnie attended her first CUBS GAME.

Most importantly, we ate EVERYTHING that stadium had to offer (not me. I packed a yogurt with fruit and granola and a chicken wrap to eat in the car, but I did drink a beer). Cooper even ate a hot dog (his second) IN LINE to get a tiny helmet full of ice cream (also his second).

We also got to jog with Jack at Bradley (IT WAS SO HOT MY GOD)

And it is PUMPKIN COLD FOAM SEASON (with an iced Americano-- best fall order ever)

We ended the weekend at the MARIGOLD FEST-- my very favorite favorite

A snack AND a cocktail

We saw my mom and my childhood bestie, bought a giant snowman for our front door, wandered the Mineral Springs Park. And! Minnie got to run into the street for gutter candy during the parade. ALL OF MY FAVORITE FESTIVAL THINGS