My days seem to fly by, and they keep me on my toes. There’s always a bit of everything going on at once—ordinary moments, sweet treats, savory meals, learning, laughter, and the occasional unexpected twist. Between baking a mini cake, chowing down on peach cookies, making a fancy breakfast, and tackling grocery store runs, we also had an unexpected moment: Sadie’s beloved bike disappeared. Our days lately have been full of good food, family time, and a touch of sadness over the missing bike!

Here’s a peek at our life lately 👀

A Fun Breakfast Idea for Kids: DIY Menu and Fancy Tray Service 🍳

Sadie woke up before her siblings the other morning and asked if I would do my “special menu” for breakfast. I realized I never blogged about this simple trick I use now and then to make breakfast feel extra special. I write and draw a simple menu with a couple of foods we have on hand, let Sadie choose a few options, and then serve it up on a tray to make it feel fancy.

Sader Tot chose bacon, yogurt with chocolate chips, and hot cocoa so I prepped everything and laid it out on a tray with a candle for an extra touch of sparkle.

Everything was served on the floor with a cozy blanket and a side of Malcolm attempting to lick the whipped cream off of Sadie’s hot chocolate! This cat is a whipped cream addict.

Making a DIY menu is such an easy way to turn an ordinary morning into something special, and Sadie loves it! When Mordecai woke up, we offered him to the same service and he said he just wanted hot cocoa. He savored that cocoa, though!

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A Mini Cake and Missing Bike 🚲

I took the kids out for our daily bike ride/walk. When we got home, Sadie parked her bike in the front yard—sorta near our neighbor’s garbage can (it was garbage collection day). Not too long after we got home, our neighbor texted me.

The garbage men must have thought Sadie’s bike was trash… so they took it. Ugh!! It was a perfectly good bike and honestly Sadie’s most prized possession lately. She loved that bike and rode it for hours every day. She cried and cried and I felt so bad! We called Jimmy and he was like “Well, she needs to be more responsible and aware of where she puts things.” 

I can see both sides of it: how could the garbage men take it (!!!) but also—she probably shouldn’t have parked it near the trash can on garbage day. Thankfully, her birthday is coming up, and Jimmy’s sister said she’ll be getting Sadie a new bike. Whew, what a blessing. Lesson learned: watch out for the garbage men… and maybe be a little more responsible, haha.

We decided to turn the day around by doing some baking. Sadie has been into mini cakes lately! We decided to make another one and this time used golden Oreos + milk + orange food coloring + sprinkles to make it fall-ish!

We combined powdered sugar with water for her to ice between the (four!) layers and on top. She was so proud of her work and even cut a slice of cake. She plated it on her doll plate 😂

A little sugar and sprinkles can always turn a rough day around 🥰

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Daily Life in Photos 📸

Between the mini cake and missing bike, I managed to snap a few pictures of what we’ve been up to lately!

Are these not the most beautiful cookies?! Our neighbor Bernadette gave us a care package with a couple of peach cookies, a slice of cake, and pumpkin bread and those cookies caused World War III in our home. Sadie and Jimmy were in a battle over who got the last one 😂 I told Bernadette about the cookie wars and she made us even more. Thanks, Bernadette!! 🍑

My grocery shopping buddies! Sadie stayed home with Jimmy and I brought the littles along. I never hesitate to take the kids to the store because it’s good practice for learning how to act in public. Mordecai was well behaved so I let him pick a treat at the checkout and he chose sour gummy worms 🪱

I love this photo of Sadie that I snapped before bed the other night—cozy in her nightgown, creating with play-doh, and enjoying her nightly bowl of Lucky Charms. Too cute!

New book alert! Your Worth Never Wavers by Laura Wifler is a beautiful picture book about worth and identity for young girls. Sadie and I loved reading it! If you’re looking for similar books, I’d also recommend The Gift That I Can Give by Kathie Lee Gifford and The World Needs Who You Were Made to Be by Joanna Gaines.

Mordecai and I made our own acorn artwork together! We colored all the pieces and he carefully glued them in place. It was precious to see how proud he was to show Jimmy when he got home from work that evening 🥹

I cook the same dinners on repeat (meatloaf, stuffed peppers, lasagna, and rosemary chicken I’m lookin’ at you 😂) so when Jimmy mentions a craving I get excited. He requested chicken wings so of course I dove straight down a research rabbit hole to learn how to make the best chicken wings. Want to know a secret? Baking powder makes them extra crispy—who would have thought! Anyways, I made classic buffalo wings, then I made the ones pictured above: garlic parmesan. Up next: mango habanero. Can’t stop, won’t stop ✋

Hello from Ko Ko!

That’s a look at life lately around these parts. Our ordinary days, little treats, and stories we’ll be laughing about for years to come (once we get over it 😆 🚲). There’s never a dull moment at the Zottola Zoo!

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Other Notes and Thoughts 📝

• The kids have been obsessed with catching lantern flies (I don’t know if these are only in our area?!) and making “habitats” for them with food and toys. We literally have like four Tupperware containers filled with grass, lantern flies, Hot Wheels cars, and candy corn in various rooms of our house 😆
• I buy the kids Dr. Teal’s body wash and have been using it myself lately because it smells soo nice 🫧
• I sold something on Facebook Marketplace on Saturday morning and before the person came to pick up the item I did a speed clean/tidy up around the house. I love how fast and motivated I am to pick up before someone is coming over 🧹
• Did I find and buy sign language pasta? Yes. I did. 🤟🏼
• Something I always remind myself: obedience to God is success. Not the outcome. Obedience to what He has called me to 🤍

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How do you make meals feel fancy?