Christmas Szn Polar Bears

Mazen on Christmas:

And Birch in the same jammies! 

Only difference is Mazen was 2 and Birch is 3!!! And these jams are still a little big on B. I didn’t realize how much bigger Mazen was until we started pulling out his 3 year old clothes and they are swimming on Birch. Mazen has always been in the 100th percentile for height and weight. Birch is more like 40th. 

But not for lack of food…

This child LOVES oatmeal!! “Eatmeal” as he calls it. 

And this is his favorite way to enjoy cinnamon toast crunch!

And speaking of Birch…drinks…

These are so good!! They are seltzers with a touch of birch sap (they come in maple flavor too). They’re 25 calories a can, and are only slightly sweet. Obviously I had to try them out, and they have become a weeknight mocktail staple. 

On the weekends, however, this is the staple drink:

Sarah and I went on a girls’ date to Marigold, the new restaurant at Keswick Hall. It was fabulous!! We had roasted brussels, really good bread, and we each got fish with sautéed greens. Can’t wait to go back with Thomas.

Actually Thomas and I considered joining Keswick 50% for his golf hobby and 50% for THIS POOL. 

Here it is in the daytime. Talk about an escape! I will have to find a way to go this summer. 

Bath Beans

In the meantime, this is the only place I’ll be swimming!

We bought these bath bean creatures for Birch and they have provided HOURS of entertainment! Buy them here. 

Also providing hours of entertainment is our Young Wild + Friedman sensory kit. 

Check out the vehicles I made! Someone might be getting the construction box for Christmas….!

Discovery Museum

Poor Birch has been so sheltered the whole pandemic. We took our first trip to the Discovery Museum recently and he LOVED IT. 

Mazen proclaimed it “for babies” and then ended up having a lot of fun too. 

He has also taken over the Elf on the Shelf duties on behalf of the family. I’m glad someone is doing it because staging an elf every single night is not in my wheelhouse. 

Date Night With The Hoos!

Thomas and I got to have a date night to Vivace for dinner and then to the UVA basketball game. I had crab stuffed flounder that was superb. 

Kath Eats Real Food

Bagels back on the menu!

We usually do a once-a-month dozen from Bodos and when they’re gone they’re gone. 

#ILoveCreamCheese

+ hard boiled egg and orange. The other 75% of non-photogenic breakfasts were green smoothies!

Egg salad sammie

Broccoli and Cheese Hand Pie from the Pie Chest!

Smoked Salmon Kale Salad

Leftover fish, rice, greens

and again! With roasted squash and brussels. 

Quiche + Salad

quiche made by Matt!

Panko Fish Dinner

We did a mix of salmon and cod from the freezer and did a mix of dijon mustard, panko, olive oil, and Italian seasoning for the top. 

Blue Apron Shrimp Bake

with breadcrumbs on top. This was one of my all-time favorite dinners!!

Blue Apron chicken + mashed potatoes

with roasted carrots and cabbage

Leftover Night of the Same

Blue Apron Mozzarella Craft Burger

with pesto potatoes

For Leftover Night I switched to a No Bull Burger

Sweet x2

Daily Harvest now has oat-based scoops. Two flavors: Banana Molten Chocolate Fudge and Cinnamon Chili-Spiced Churro! I love these creative flavors! Tip: allow your scoops to fully soften before trying to scoop out. 

And this last one is for you Pittsburgh peeps! 

Brittney on Team KERF sent me a burnt almond torte from Prantl’s Bakery as a holiday gift. WOWOWOW was this good!! Soft cake and frosting on the inside and crunchy toasted almonds on the outside. Apparently it’s a legend!

Signing off to say MERRY CHRISTMAS to you all!

I’ll be taking some time off of regular posting and will be back next week for a holiday recap. See you soon!