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Five on Friday

Happy Friday!

1. Swim Team

We had our first swim team meet last night!

Swim Team wasn’t a thing in Florida but it was a HUGE part of Matt’s life growing up so it’s been really fun to experience this swim team season with the kids and Matt. Last night, while I was herding the 7/8 swimmers to their blocks, Matt casually mentioned he still holds a swim team record in Richmond, VA for the 12 and Under Boys 25-yard butterfly event which gave me a good belly laugh…then immediately texted his mom to confirm. It’s unclear if he still holds the record but she did say he was known for the most beautiful butterfly stroke…so I will absolutely be asking him to show me his butterfly during our first family pool day.

Anyway, Caroline did GREAT last night (she really shines with her backstroke) and Thomas is having a LOT of fun figuring it all out. I love how much the kids have enjoyed swim team so far. Our team is HUGE and the kids are meeting even more friends which is just so wonderful.

I had several readers message me in response to my time trials stories last week on Instagram asking if I could write a post with swim team tips. I can assure you all that I am the least qualified person to write this post as I didn’t even know what a heat sheet was when I showed up. However, one of my longtime friends and veteran swim team mom has been teaching me all the things and shared an amazing tip with me that I definitely wanted to pass on: A Norwex cloth easily removes permanent marker off your swimmer’s skin!!! Ours arrived minutes before the meet and I can confirm that it does in fact work just as promised! Rub a little sunscreen over the skin and rub, rub, rub with the norwex cloth — works like a charm!

2. Mama/Daughter Bonded Bracelets

Last weekend Caroline and I got to do something really special together — we got matching permanent bracelets!

This was seriously such a cute and fun experience! And it was a pretty quick process too. The hardest part was picking out which chain we wanted (I let Caroline pick). Once we had our style selection, we had our chains bonded, so there’s no clasp or risk of losing it.

The bracelet can stay on as long as we want it to and is totally safe for swimming, showering, airport security, etc. When we’re ready to take it off, we can cut the bracelet where it’s bonded (and have it re-bonded anytime)!

This week Caroline had her EOG (end of grade test), which she’s been pretty nervous about. On test day, she came home and told me that she looked at her bracelet a few times throughout the test to think of me and it helped calm her nerves. I about melted on the floor right then and there.

Anyway, we had our bracelets done by Bonded Charlotte and would highly recommend them if you’re local. It would be such a fun girls night activity, a special mother-daughter date, or the perfect gift for yourself!

3. Overnight Chia Pudding Recipe

I finally perfected our overnight chia pudding!!! I like to make a large batch at the beginning of the week for Matt to take to the office for breakfast and have been tweaking my recipe over and over trying to find the right consistency. And then one of my lovely readers sent me the very best recipe (by two healthy kitchens) to use and yep…it’s perfect. In fact, it’s the copycat recipe (but healthier) for the First Watch A.M. Superfoods Bowl which Matt and I both love to order!

So I quadruple the recipe on Sunday and store the pudding in separate containers for the week for Matt. Oh, and speaking of containers, I just bought these overnight oats jars on Amazon and I can’t wait for them to arrive!

Then each morning while I’m making the kids breakfast, I’ll dice up different fruits to throw on top of Matt’s chia pudding — usually strawberries, bananas, apples, blueberries, coconut flakes, granola, etc. And then I generously drizzle maple syrup on top! Matt has been loving them!

4. Kids’ Bathroom Renovation

Next week we are starting our next house project — we’re giving the kids’ jack & jill bathroom a little glow up. The previous owners clearly hadn’t used this area of the home for many years and it lit up our inspection report with all sorts of leaks and issues when we purchased our home, so I’m glad we’re tackling this space!

5. Reusable Water Balloons

Our kids are currently obsessed with these reusable water bombs! These environmentally-friendly water splash balls are seriously so cool and are the perfect outdoor activity for summer. The listing we’ve been purchasing from is now only offering the flap balls (which we haven’t tried yet), but I found a similar listing for the ones we love that are sealed by magnets (which helps them break apart easily when they hit the target)!

Anyway, these splash bombs are fun for the pool, the tub, outside water fights and are going to be my go-to birthday party gift all summer long! Highly recommend!

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Caley

Wednesday 7th of June 2023

I am always so interested in the differences between our countries - swimming is a huge sport here in South Africa and all three of our girls swim through the Summer. Can't wait to see the new bathroom too x

Liz

Sunday 4th of June 2023

I grew up in Florida and swim team was definitely a thing in our area! Still is…I’m torturing my children with it this summer 😂

Monica

Friday 2nd of June 2023

Swim team was not a thing at all for me, either, growing up in Pennsylvania, but it's huge here in northern Virginia, and it's been really fun--although I am still a total rookie Mom, lol. Definitely going to try the Norwex cloth! Also excited to change up breakfast for my husband (and maybe start eating breakfast myself) with the chia pudding. Happy Friday!

Christina

Friday 2nd of June 2023

YES! It's been SO fun so far!!! I love it! And I can't wait for you to try the chia pudding!