I think we’re over the hump of sickness with our little Dakota! She’s acting so much more like herself, and everyone in our family is thrilled to see her feeling good again.

Jimmy has been hard at work on his retaining wall project, and I’ve been soaking up the slower moments—a family game night, hot tub time, and hanging out with the kids. Nothing too crazy over here lately, and it’s just what my heart needed: healing, home, and happy hearts 🫶

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Building Memories (and a Wall!) 🪏

Jimmy is working on rebuilding a retaining wall in our front yard and Mordecai has been helping.

It has been a dream come true for Mordecai to be out “working” with Dad each day after Jimmy comes home from work. Dirt, a dump truck, and shovels make our little guy so happy!

The retaining wall was previously made of stone, but Jimmy is making the new one out of steel. I’ll have to post some before and after photos when the project is all finished up.

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Homeschool Happenings ✏️

To work some extra fun into our school day, the kids did a gemstone and dinosaur dig kit and had a blast learning about gemstones and different types of dinosaurs!

I love including hands-on learning whenever we can (even if it’s a total mess 😉)! The kids really seem to love it.

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Board Games and Belly Laughs ♟️

On Friday night, we had a little family game night! We lit a candle and gathered around the table to play Candy Land. Mordecai is old enough that he “gets” it now… and he actually won!

We all cheered for him and he had the biggest smile on his face! After playing Candy Land, Jimmy and Sadie taught me how to play Crazy 8s and we played a few rounds.

Sadie and I both want to learn how to play chess! I also want to introduce her to two of my favorite board games from when I was a kid: Clue and Battleship. I’m curious, what are your favorite board games? We’re always looking to add to our collection!

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Life at Home 🏡

I’ve been loving all the simple and slow moments at home lately. From the kids joy over seeing the garbage truck each week to cleaning and sweet notes from Sadie.

Miss Niva caught and ate a rabbit in our yard this week and it must not have agreed with her stomach because she had an accident in the house. Since we have a baby who is always on the floor, this called for a deep clean. I used my favorite seasonal-scented mop solution and tore the house apart as I scrubbed away!

The girls spent time snuggling on the floor together in the morning! Sadie still loves getting Dakota from her crib in the morning. I love the extra help and seeing their bond grow deeper every day 🩷

Garbage collection day is a big source of entertainment for Sadie and Mordecai! I’ll be so sad when they outgrow this phase. It’s just adorable seeing their excitement over something so simple.

We finished up school on Friday, and I was putting away the kids’ pencil box when it fell out of my hands and straight onto my big toe. It hurt so, so bad! Sadie immediately ran and made me a card. She is the sweetest!

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Out and About 🚘

We took the kids to Rural King on Saturday! It’s a farm supply store that sells chickens, rabbits, and of course, farm supplies! The kids always enjoy seeing the live animals and even had the chance to pet a rabbit when a kind worker saw their interest and pulled one out of its cage.

I think the last time we were at Rural King was on Black Friday last year?! Just like I did with Mordecai last year, I took a picture of Dakota’s face when she saw the chicks. I love her reaction!

Mordecai tried on a Batman mask and he was the least intimidating Batman I’ve ever seen!

I was out at a store on Saturday and when I got home I realized my hoodie was zipped up really strangely.

That’s my postpartum vibe summed up in a picture, ha. Then, on Sunday, I got all ready for church and when we got there I realized I used mascara primer (which is white!!!) but not mascara. So I had white eyelashes at church 🤣

Even though my zipper was wonky, I was able to grab the cutest pair of boots for Dakota. I kind of want them in my size 😉

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Other Notes and Thoughts 📝

• We went in the hot tub a couple of nights this week and it was so lovely! I always sleep like a rock after we soak before bedtime 😴
• Sadie has been very interested in learning about Paris lately. We’ve been flipping through A Kid’s Guide to Paris and dreaming up a girls’ trip someday 🥐
• I opened my clothing drawer to get ready for the day recently and found a Hot Wheels car inside 🏎️
• I made a big batch of stuffed peppers this week and froze some. Next up: twice baked potatoes 🥔

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That’s all I’ve got for today! I can’t believe October is coming to an end. I’m looking forward to November, though! On deck for us this week: Jimmy has a haircut, Dakota visits the eye specialist for her hemangioma, and the kids are attending a Halloween alternative activity at our church.

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What are you up to this coming week?

What are your favorite board games?