chanelmovingforward

Five Things Friday

November 22, 2013

Hard to believe another week has passed and we’re at the weekend again! I’m so excited that Thanksgiving is 6 days away. We are celebrating at my grandmother’s house with my whole family and some family friends (there will be 15 of us so it will definitely be fun). The weather here in Atlanta has been so chilly and pleasant and I am reminded about how much I love having a fireplace. We light fires almost every night in our house and sometimes even eat dinner by the fireplace. It’s so cozy and almost feels like we’re “breaking the rules” a bit in our home, but that’s what the holiday’s are about right? So glad this cold weather is sticking with us! Here are some of my favorite fireplace essentials to help you build the perfect fire.

1. Jumbo Log Tote

2. Apothecary Matchstick Bottle

3. Stainless Steel Tool Set

4. Caged Log Holder

5. Fireplace Screen

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Our Florida Trip

November 20, 2013

This past Thursday we packed up the car and the baby and headed down to central Florida to visit my husband’s parents. This was Henry’s first long car ride (it took us 7 hours) and it was definitely a challenge. I tried to plan ahead and think of as many snack and distractions to bring for him. I packed his backpack full of yummies and new toys, and loaded up the iPad with some movies and TV shows. We stopped twice to let him run around and let off some steam. Both places were in middle of nowhere Georgia filled with townies and I thought we were all going to be kidnapped. Dinner was eaten at Zaxby’s and we let him run around again in the parking lot at a Home Depot before changing him into his jammies and putting him to bed. He finally fell asleep around 7:15pm which was good and bad because my husband and I didn’t want to risk him waking so we rode the rest of the way in silence. No music, no talking, no listening to books on tape … total silence. I was so paranoid that we were both going to fall asleep but luckily we made it in one piece.

Friday and Saturday were rainy central Florida days but we still made the best of it with lunches by the water, visiting with family friends, some shopping, home cooked dinner’s and lots of play time for Henry. We were even lucky enough to nap a few times while Henry napped.

Sunday it finally cleared up and we were able to take a boat ride up the Chassahowitzka River in Homosassa Springs by Captain Walt. This was Henry’s second time on a boat and he was curious with all the new sights. The first was last year but he was only 3 months old and obviously doesn’t remember. People rarely see this side of Florida and most people assume it’s all beaches and golf courses. It’s nice that my in laws live near the nature coast because it is definitely a unique experience and I love it. This year was totally different with a toddler on our hands. He was so inquisitive and I loved watching him take everything in.

We headed out Monday morning right before his morning nap, after a nice golf cart ride around the beautiful quarry that golf course is built around. On the way home we made a few stops, even letting him run naked at a rest stop, how trashy of us, but hey, he needed some air! We also stopped at Magnolia Plantation to get daddy and baby some matching Minnetonka Moccasins 🙂 The drive back wasn’t that bad and it seemed to go by faster even though Henry only took one nap. This trip had his sleeping all out of sorts but he was right back on his normal schedule Monday night when we got home.

We are already looking towards our trip next April in the spring!

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Five Things Friday

November 15, 2013

Happy Weekend! Five things Friday is coming from rainy Florida today. {We’re in town to see my in laws/ Henry’s grandparents}. Am I the only one excited about seeing all the Christmas decor in the stores? I tell you, it wasn’t more than a week after Halloween (and some even before) that decorations were popping up. Fine with me! Last Christmas was our first year with a white tree and ever since then I was hooked. I love the look and feel of the modern white tree and white and silver Christmas accessories mixed with the classic red. I just bought the new Michael Buble Christmas album and Henry and I have been enjoying it our car rides. It’s never too early for Christmas music and it definitely extends the holiday season. Here are a few items on my Christmas want list this year.

1. Pom Pom Tree Skirt

2. Felt Mistletoe

3. Wool Garland

4. Milagro Tree

5. Silver Bells Wreath

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Weekend Wrap Up

November 11, 2013

This weekend was jam packed but oh so fun. On Saturday we hosted our friends Joleen + Ben and their families and friends for their son Benjamin’s first birthday. The theme was vintage story book and the amount of detail Joleen put into each and every piece was amazing. From the invitations (in a little Golden Book), to the handmade banners from book pages, the cupcakes in a jar, etc. The color palette was beautiful and everything worked out wonderfully (it wasn’t too cold either). Be sure to head over to her blog where she will have tons more pictures and details about this fabulous birthday. Here are just a few snapshots I captured.

Henry’s outfit: Reversible Beanie / Milk Drunk T / Harem Pants / Cardigan (Target last year) / Converse (Nordstrom Rack, similar here)

After the cleanup and when everyone left, we ordered some Chinese, made a fire, put some music on and had some family time. Henry’s new obsession is to climb onto and into everything so he spent the majority of the evening climbing in and out of his lego bucket. Sunday was an all day family day. We started the day with a fire and some yummy Paleo Chorizo Hash, then took Henry to Catch Air so he could run around and blow off some steam. After some Publix subs we all had nap time, then finished the day with an evening stroll around our neighborhood. I’m so lucky to have a husband who values family time as much as I do. It is really important to us to set aside time where we can go on adventures with Henry and really soak up this toddler time. Before we know it, he will be a tween and wan’t nothing to do with us (tear). PS: Tonight we busted out Henry’s Christmas jammies! I know it’s not even Thanksgiving yet, but Christmas is our favorite Holiday and we want it to last as long as it can.

{carseat shenanigans}

I hope everyone had an amazing weekend! xo

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Weekend Wrap Up

November 7, 2013

I had meant to post this on Monday but the flu hit our house big time. Friday my mom took Henry for an overnight so we could go out with some friends. My mom called Saturday morning to let me know Henry got sick during the night and Saturday morning, throwing up twice. Ugh! The first time since he was a baby. Poor bug. It stuck with him until Saturday night. Luckily it didn’t really affect his mood, it just made him extra sleepy. Since Jan and I didn’t feel sick, I thought we were in the clear. However on Sunday my mom called me to inform me that she got the bug too. Not long after that call, it hit Jan and me. worst.feeling.ever. It is so hard to be sick and also take care of a toddler, especially when both parents are hit at the same time. Sunday night we were up all night with the flu and thanks to daylight savings, Henry was up at 4am on Monday morning, in the midst of Jan and I feeling so awful. His preschool doesn’t do drop off until later in the morning and believe me those hours dragged out. I felt so bad that my body was so weak and sick that I couldn’t even hold him and hug & kiss him. We finally dropped him off at daycare after a car ride that seemed like forever (being in a car while nauseous is painful) and went home to get some sleep and try and recover. Jan started feeling better earlier than I did and was able to keep food down so he tended to me the rest of the day. So thankful for that! Monday night we went to bed at 8pm and slept until 6am the next day. Tuesday I woke up so refreshed and much better and was able to catch up on work and clean the shit out of our bedroom and house. I think I did 5 loads of laundry. Anyway, onto our weekend, which I think was pretty swell, aside from the flu.

Friday night we joined some friends for a baby free dinner at Table & Main in historic Roswell. It was our first time there and the food was incredible. The menu was filled with southern food and drinks and everything I tried made me crave more. For appetizers we had Meatloaf Meatballs, Hog ‘n Quilts and Hush Puppies and for my entree I indulged in the shrimp in grits with gouda and tomato-bacon sauce. amazeballs. We sat outside on the patio and enjoyed the crisp fall air and wonderful conversation with plenty of laughs.

Saturday we played it low key since Henry was on the mend. After we had breakfast toddler free we headed to pick him up. We stocked up on our groceries for the week and did our meal planning (back on Paleo)! Sunday was so special because we got to see some old friends of ours and catch up. We started the morning with a fire since Henry woke up super early (WHY!!) and lounged around before heading to meet up with our friends. Nicole and Jason are such a wonderful couple and are very dear to us and we had a blast in Decatur eating at Raging Burrito, getting snow cones at New Orleans SnoBall Cafe and doing some shopping.

Despite us being sick, our weekend was filled with good food and great company. Here’s to hump day and being on the mend! xo

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Brian Urlacher Costume

November 1, 2013

Happy November 1st! I am not sure where the month of October went but Halloween was so much fun this year. We had 10 of our friends come over (5 couples and their toddlers/babies) with a total of 12 adults and 6 kids. It was the perfect size group. This year was Henry’s second Halloween but his first one trick or treating. For his costume, we decided on Brian Urlacher from the Chicago Bears. My husband has joked that he has always resembled Urlacher because he is bald (for the most part) and rarely smiles in pictures. See the resemblence below? 🙂

Since my husband and I love dressing up for Halloween, we are all about the family costume. I went as a Chicago Bears fan (which involved me wearing a Bears t shirt. I know, how original) and the hubs went as the SNL Da Bears Superfan. We ordered him a vintage Bears sweatshirt from Ebay and he completed the look with aviators, a Bears hat, cigar and stick on mustache. Here is a refresher from the SNL skits:

And my husband with his mini Brian Urlacher!

After pictures our friends came over and we drank some margaritas, caught up and feasted on tacos! We were in charge of the taco bar and drinks and everyone else brought a side. It was so easy to do. Everything tasted amazing! My friends all did the best Halloween themed treats and they were almost too pretty to eat!

Here is a better shot of the Seven Layer Spider Dip my friend Kelly made:

My friend Joleen made these incredible chocolate and caramel apples too! {thanks for the pics!}

After dinner and lots of crying babies, we decided it would be best to get the gang outside for pictures and then trick or treating! We only hit 4 houses and I think that was our limit because a few of the kiddos (mine included) were over it! They really didn’t have any idea what was going on, they just thought they were going on a big group walk with friends.

{carrying Henry’s helmet with candy and my drink of course}

{sweet Harper giving Henry a kiss}

I hope everyone had a fun and safe Halloween!

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What I’m loving lately

October 31, 2013

1. The first time you turn your heat on in months. You know, that musky gas smell. Is that weird?

2. ABC Family’s 13 Nights of Halloween. After Christmas, Halloween is my husband and my favorite holiday. We can’t get enough of the candy, pumpkins, fall smells and movies. Some of our favs: Coraline, The Adams Family, Death Becomes Her, Beetlejuice, Hocus Pocus and anything else by Tim Burton. Sad that it will be coming to an end tomorrow!

3. It’s finally cold enough for fires! If you follow me on instagram (@chanelvanreenen) you already saw this stash of firewood my hubby picked up.