Our days lately have been a mix of relaxing moments, big appointments, and backyard projects.
Jimmy brought our big kids to see the new Super Mario movie, we got our sandbox set up in the backyard, and we’ve been soaking up as much outside time as possible. Add in some time at the library, a silly food challenge, homemade ginger shots, and a visit to the allergist, and it’s been a full week around here!
Sandbox Days and a Movie Night 🍿
A major highlight for all of the kids has been their new sandbox built by Jimmy. He used steel and welded it together. Nobody was more invested in this project than Mordecai. He never left Jimmy’s side the whole time he recessed it in our grass and filled it with sand.
Pure joy! All three kids are getting a lot of use out of it. Our vacuum is also getting a lot of use these days. 😉
It’s too sweet to see them busy outside making their sandcastles and filling up dump trucks. I hope their sandbox is a cherished childhood memory for them as they grow up!
Another memory Sadie and Mordecai made was going to the movies with Jimmy to see The Super Mario Galaxy Movie.
It was Mordecai’s first time at the movie theater! He did great and was so excited to have snacks while he watched the movie.
Ginger Shots and Childhood Foods 🍬
Have you ever taken a ginger shot? They’re a tiny, potent drink made of ginger and a few other ingredients like lemon, pineapple, and even spices like turmeric. It’s meant to be taken to give your system a spicy, refreshing kickstart. They’re not my thing, but Jimmy absolutely loves them. They aren’t cheap… so I decided to start making them myself!
I bought a set of 2 ounce glass bottles and blended fresh minced ginger, lemon, and pineapple!
The bottles were $8.99, the ginger was $0.78, the lemons cost $1.28, and the pineapple was $1.45. All in all, I spent about $12.50 and made seven ginger shots ($1.78 per shot). If I would have bought them on Amazon, a 12 pack would have cost $48.95 ($4.07 per shot). Yay for saving money! Now that we have the bottles, the shots will now cost $3.51, which would be $0.50 a shot!
I’m happy to report that Jimmy loved them! I can’t wait to experiment with more flavors.
We’ve been working on a fun challenge with the kids the past couple of weeks. I decided to introduce them to foods that I enjoyed growing up in the 90s that they had never tried.
This was so much fun! The best part was that the kids enjoyed trying out new foods in a challenge format. We also found some new favorites for them. Here’s a list of what they tried:
- Tuna salad on a bagel
- Sunny D
- Slim Jims
- Sour cream and onion chips
- Ants on a log (celery + peanut butter + raisins)
- Mozzarella sticks
- Toaster Strudels
- Cap’n Crunch cereal
- Strawberry candy
- Peach rings
- Strawberry milk
- Cool Ranch Doritos
- Orange Tic Tacs
- Mentos
I wasn’t surprised that the kids didn’t like the tuna, but I was shocked they liked Slim Jims! We found out Mordecai loves bagels and all three kids are now fans of Sunny D. They now ask for peach rings on the daily, ha. Have you tried any new foods lately?
A Trip to the Allergist 💉
Dakota made a trip to the allergist this week! We found out she doesn’t have any allergies—woo hoo! The doctor said certain foods may be flaring up her eczema but she isn’t allergic to anything. We are going to play around with her diet a bit (I kind of suspect eggs are causing issues).
The allergist was so concerned about her eczema. He said she has severe eczema covering 90% of her body. He thought she’s probably past the point of steroid creams and recommended we talk to the dermatologist about Dupixent, which is a biologic injection that blocks the specific proteins in your body that cause eczema inflammation.
The only catch is that it’s incredibly expensive if insurance doesn’t cover it. A 30-day supply costs around $3,500 to $5,400 per month. So yeahhh, we are trying to figure this out! I feel so bad her little body is just so itchy, inflamed, and rashy!
I haven’t fed her eggs for the past two weeks and her skin is looking a little better. I’m not sure if it’s just happenstance or helping, but I’ll try just about anything at this point!
Everything Else 😊
Alert, Dakota is walking, alert!
We went to the library this week so Sadie and Mordecai could attend Kids Club. They made art outside on a beautiful evening!
We have been loving getting outside on walks! Just a year ago, taking all three kids on a walk by myself was tough. Nowadays, Sadie pushes Dakota in the stroller while I walk Niva and Mordecai rides his bike. We’ve made a lot of progress at what we can manage over the past year and it’s a huge blessing!
Sadie took a picture of me and Niva with my “yellow” shoes. Also… someone call the fashion police. I have the worst “style.” I like to call it comfy-breastfeeding-friendly-athleisure. 😉
Another fun thing has been walking our neighbor’s dogs. She has trouble getting around, so I take them around the block while the kids keep her company. Everybody wins in this situation!
I had a shopping buddy!
The girls took a selfie.
Mr. Mordecai and I got in some snuggles before bed one evening.
Other Notes and Thoughts 📝
- Scripture I’m loving: Peace I leave with you; my peace I give you. I do not give to you as the world gives. Do not let your hearts be troubled and do not be afraid. John 14:27 🙏🏻
- Let’s talk books: Jimmy is currently reading Dune and I’m re-reading A Million Tiny Moments.
- It has been so nice to do homeschool outside when the weather cooperates! ✏️
- Speaking of school, we’ve been loving this Bible story felt board kit when we do Bible time. 📖
- What’s the one thing you always need at the store? For our family, it’s orange juice. We go through so much of it! 🍊
I have lots more to share (cupcakes for my nephew’s party + meeting my brother-in-law’s baby goats!) but this post is getting long! Bye until next time. 😊
Living My Full Life 
We always need milk and blueberries. We go through so much milk and fruit. Am I the only one who always forgets to buy something, even with a list? Just came from the store and realized I forgot laundry detergent 😫
Milk and fruit are probably our #2 and #3 most needed things!!
I always forget something, too!! I feel like I go to the store waaaay to much because of that, hah!
My husband went to the store again today because some friends were coming over for homemade pizza. Laundry detergent was forgotten again lol
Cracking up! I shouldn’t though because you’re probably needing that detergent! If I sent my husband to the store, he would take 3x a long and would come home with a few extras! Yesterday he went to the store on a whim to get ingredients for s’mores and said he walked around the aisles like six times to try and find each ingredient. I was laughing trying to imagine that!
Oh no lol!! Hopefully you guys got it by now 😉
That’s an awesome sandbox !
Plenty going on at the Zottola’s!
I so glad that Dakota’s skin might be turning the corner!
Love ❤️You,
Dad
🙂
Thank you! I will tell Jimmy you said so!
Love you!
Oh goodness, we go through SO much orange juice too!! Ha, ha!
I love that you made ginger shots from scratch. I’ve never had one, but I can imagine they’re intense (while also being healthy). YAY for saving money! But also, I imagine they’re even fresher this way!!
My kids also went to see the Mario movie and loved it. 🙂
And there’s something about playing in a sandbox when you’re a kid. Yours came out SO good, and I imagine your kiddos will have the best summer playing in it!!
I’m glad we’re not the only ones! I wonder what our vitamin C levels are over here, haha!
It was so much fun to learn how to make the ginger shots on my own. It always feels good to save some money!
You’re so right! A sandbox just “screams” childhood and it’s so sweet!
I hope you guys are having a great weekend!
I guess there are worse things to go through than orange juice, haha.
The ginger shots have been so fun! Every time I make them, I learn something new (a fine mesh sieve is a big help) and the glass bottles are just so pretty!
What a cool sandbox! Hopefully the weather will stay spring-like so they can all get outside and play 🙂
Poor Dakota! It must be so hard for her being itchy and sore. I hope you can find some answers. I’m on a similar biologic injection (mine is called Yuflyma) which is for autoimmune arthritis. I hope you can get funding for the biologic if that’s the route the allergist/dermatologist recommend.
Eggs are one thing we always need at the store. And oat milk. I don’t drink cow’s milk very often so I go through a lot of oat milk for overnight oats and cereal.
I just started a new book “The Most Fun We Ever Had” by Claire Lombardo. So far, it’s a light read and I’m enjoying it!
Thank you! So far it has been up and down, but when the weather cooperates they are out in that sandbox!
I had no idea you had autoimmune arthritis! Does the biologic help? Do you have any side effects?
Ohh, we need eggs all the time, too! We go through a bit of cow’s milk for our big kids (they have a morning hot cocoa ritual haha).
I will look that book up now 🙂
Yeah I had knee problems on one side for years, and after a lot of investigation they found it was a form of arthritis called spondyloarthritis. My right knee is the worst, but luckily I can walk normally and I hope it’s a long time until I’ll need a replacement. The biologic helps a bit as my knee is definitely less swollen, but it’s mainly to prevent further damage in the future. I started it in November 2024 and haven’t had any side effects, thankfully.
The morning cocoa ritual for Sadie and Mordecai sounds like me with my coffee haha. I can’t start work without a fresh cup of coffee 😄