Husky

Toddler girl wearing romper and rain boots by garden

Much Needed + Trash

Jimmy and I went on our first date since the onset of COVID restrictions! Whew did we need that time alone. My mother-in-law graciously watched Sadie for a few hours on Friday night while we went out to eat and walked around a few stores.

Toddler with rubber band bracelets

Sader Tot had a blast with her Grandma!

Of course with mostly came home with toys for Sadie (this animal set has been a big hit, as have these puffy stickers), but Jimmy also picked up spirograph and has been having a blast unwinding with it at night and reliving childhood memories. 

On Saturday we picked up trash! Our church gathered together and headed to a local park with a bike trail and picked up litter. 

Group of people picking up litter on trail

I was thinking that we have so much fun with our church family that it doesn’t really matter what we’re doing together.

Sometimes there are hard things, hard work, and hard times, but fellowshipping with our family in Christ makes it all so much better. It’s such a blessing to have a community of believers to spend time with and share our joys, hardships, and everyday life. There’s just nothing like it. 

Other happenings around the Zottola house lately:

  • I planted more mums to spruce up our front porch and literally every time I see them I smile.
  • We filmed another vlog and my favorite part is Sadie helping me plant the mums. 
  • We are on week two of homeschooling and loving it so far. 
  • Our garden is slowing down big time, with mostly tomatoes and peppers growing at this point (sad!). 

How about a few photos?

Mom and toddler smiling

Sadie is going to be two-years-old soon. She is growing and changing so much lately. I can’t wait to share her two year update.

Also, if you could say a prayer for her eye to heal, that would be so, so appreciated! I mentioned that she has a nasolacrimal duct obstruction and that we were trying eye drops for about a month before doing anything invasive.

Her eye hasn’t had any progress so we will be talking to her doctor at her yearly checkup later this month. I know the procedure to unblock the duct isn’t too bad, but who is excited for their child to go through that, you know? I watched a video of the procedure and totally shouldn’t have, LOL.

Purple and orange mums in a black planter

Here’s a look the mums I planted. It’s just a planter filled with happiness for me, haha. 

Toddler girl wearing romper and rain boots by garden

My little garden helper ❤

When we went to clean up litter on the bike trail on Saturday we brought Sadie’s trike along and she was so happy to be pushed around and stayed in it almost the whole time (<– miracle).

I totally thought it would be a disaster to bring a toddler to clean up litter, but she surprised and impressed me! 

Toddler girl riding Radio Flyer tricycle

Last but not least, our Niva girl has been loving the cooler weather lately. She stays outside longer when it’s below 60 degrees and just lays in the yard. It’s adorable and I’m excited to see how she likes the snow this winter.

I know I’ve mentioned it before, but she truly is great with Sadie and we are so incredibly thankful for that. Case in point, Sadie put Niva “night night” by piling her with pillows and a blanket and she just laid there like “okay, sure!” haha. 

Siberian husky with pillows and blankets

Alright, I am signing off here. We’ve got a busy day ahead. Sadie is going to be learning the color yellow today, I’ve got real estate work and some cooking to do, and I’m taking Sadie to her first chiropractor appointment (outside the womb, lol) this evening! 

What are your plans for the day?

Six Thoughts on Saturday

I’ve been blessed with a couple of hours to myself this afternoon! Jimmy had a training at our church and I had to pet sit, so my mom is watching Sadie girl for a bit. I am so thankful for her willingness to help out ❤

Speaking of Sadie, my mom reported she is having a blast with her cousin and the bubble machine my parents have, lol.

Toddlers playing with bubbles from bubble machine

Since I have some time, I thought I would share some thoughts that have been swirling around in my head lately!

1. I can’t make this stuff up. Sadie and I were hanging out in her room the other day and I heard Malcolm and Niva playing in our bathtub but thought nothing of it because they play in there all the time. A few minutes later, there was a huge crashing noise in the other room and Sadie and I found this scene.

Husky pulled shower curtain down

Niva and Malcolm somehow pulled down our shower curtain, shower curtain liner, and the whole entire curtain rod and pulled it across our living room. I can’t even make this stuff up! I live in a zoo 😉

2. Hearing and face masks. I don’t talk about my hearing loss a ton, because it’s pretty mild. I’ve been recommended and fitted for hearing aids by my audiologist, but insurance doesn’t cover the full price so I say “what?” a lot and pretty much have to be looking directly at someone when they’re talking to me. If there’s no background noise, I do really well. With COVID-19 and mask wearing, hearing what people are saying has become so hard. Everything sounds muffled more than it already does for me, lol.

3. Cute messes. Jimmy and I were getting dinner ready last night and Sadie was in our basement playing for quite a while. It was finally time for dinner and she still hadn’t come upstairs. I peeked down the steps (you know, the ones Malcolm got glass all over…) and saw that she pulled all of our shoes out of our shoe racks and lined them up.

She also somehow figured out how to climb the steps while wearing my size 9 (#bigfoot) Crocs. Impressive 😉

Shoes lined up

4. Potty training. Okay fellow parents who have potty trained their children, help! What age did you begin potty training and how did you start? We’ve been reading this book and even got Sadie a potty of her own, but can use any tips and advice!

5. Pet sitting. While I don’t pet sit nearly as much as I used to, I love seeing Haley. She was one of my first petting sitting clients. She did well with Lola and saw me through the end of college, starting pet sitting full time, bringing home Malcolm, Mavis, Sadie, and Niva. Needless to say, we have a special bond that I cherish ❤

Girl with chocolate lab

6. Nails. I used nail wraps (which are basically nail polish stickers) the other day and have been really impressed with them. They look legit and have held up well. I don’t think they’re affordable enough to use regularly, so I want to know: do you paint your nails often? What is your favorite nail polish?

I go through phases of painting my nails and taking great care of them… and then sometimes I ignore them for a few months. My favorite nail polish brand is China Glaze and good ol’ Sally Hansen, but I’m always open to trying different brands!

Tell me something on your mind today!