One of our readers asked how we approach TV time for ourselves and Little Buddy. A couple years ago, we sold our 10-year-old, 30-inch TV and bought a larger one that we found on sale for $400. In the video below, Mr. Handsome and I discuss this topic. We invite you to add your two cents in the comments section and tell us how you handle television time, whether for yourself of your children.
Archives for July 2021
Our Favorite Foods
Mr. Handsome and I just filmed some videos answering the questions that you submitted. One of you asked what our favorite meals/dishes are, and that sparked some fun conversation. Check out our video below, and then let us know in the comments section what your favorite meal/dish/restaurant is.
Santa Rosa Beach with a Toddler
Earlier this summer, we took a long weekend vacation to the Florida Panhandle. Over our six years of marriage, we have fallen in love with Santa Rosa Beach. It’s just under seven hours from Nashville, and the drive isn’t bad. Traffic can get busy between Birmingham and Montgomery, but that depends on time of day. After passing through Montgomery, you jump off the interstate and begin a leisurely jaunt through the small towns of Southern Alabama and Northwest Florida. We stopped and bought fresh peaches from a family-owned roadside stand.
When you arrive at the coast, you are greeted by white sand beaches and blue water. Not quite as picturesque as the Caribbean or Hawaii, but I can’t imagine that anywhere in the continental United States could have a more beautiful shoreline than the Emerald Coast.
This time, we stayed for three full days, which was perfect. We spent the entire time “chilling” and enjoying a slower pace of life. Even with a toddler, we managed to leave feeling just as relaxed as we did after our trip to Hawaii three years ago.
We booked a tiny, one bedroom condo with a fully equipped (but very small) kitchen. It met our needs perfectly, and the best part was that it was within walking distance of the beach. With a toddler, that made all the difference in the world. We didn’t have to find parking, deal with a hot car and an unhappy child, or cover our seats in sand.
Each day, we enjoyed the beach for a few hour-long stretches, which worked great for all three of us. Neither Mr. Handsome nor I are “sit on the beach all day” type of folks, so we didn’t mind having to go inside for naps and snack breaks.
Aside from the beach, we indulged in fresh smoothies, short walks (it was pretty hot and humid, so we couldn’t go far), and that’s about the extent of it.
On the way home, we stopped in Destin so Mr. Handsome could rent a jet ski for an hour. I stayed on the beach with Little Buddy, and I honestly was not the least bit bummed. We went jet skiing together before having a child, and let’s just say that it wasn’t a pleasant experience for either of us. I was terrified the entire time and did not enjoy it one bit, and my poor husband almost lost his hearing from all the screaming. After that adventure, I decided that I prefer watching from the shore.
Stain Remover that Actually Works
As the mom of a toddler, I feel like I am always either doing laundry or thinking about needing to do laundry. It isn’t out of the ordinary for Little Buddy to go through multiple outfits in a single day, especially if he is playing outside.
Before I entered parenthood, I expected stains on my children’s clothes to be a normal part of life, but when Little Buddy was an infant, my sister-in-law introduced me to an incredible stain remover. As a result, I have been pleasantly surprised that very few of my son’s clothes have acquired permanent stains.
The stain remover that I use is called Zout. I thought my sister-in-law had misspoken when she first told me about it. Surely she had meant Shout. But there is actually a stain remover called Zout, and it’s amazing. It can be a bit difficult to find. Sometimes it’s at the grocery store, but other times I have to buy it online. If Zout ever becomes discontinued, I think I’ll cry.
What’s your go-to stain remover?
*This is not a sponsored post, just a recommendation.
Little Buddy’s 1st Fireworks
Until this year, Little Buddy had never seen fireworks. When some friends invited us over to grill out and said they would be lighting up a few fireworks, we were curious what Little Buddy would think. The friends also have a little boy who is the same age, so we knew it would be safe. We thought this would be a better introduction to fireworks than taking Little Buddy to the loud and crazy show in Downtown Nashville. Apparently Downtown Nashville’s celebration is the largest in the country, but we have never been.
Little Buddy has a children’s book where a family of bears watches fireworks, so he was thrilled when we told him that he would be seeing some, too. All afternoon, he asked, “Going to see firework now? Going to see fireworks now?” We told him that fireworks only come out at night, so when the sun went down, he excitedly said, “It’s nighttime, where are the fireworks? They turning them on?”
Our friends had an impressive setup, complete with radio transmitters and a remote control, and had us sitting a few hundred yards away. They started with smaller fireworks that were close to the ground, and Little Buddy loved them. We oohed and ahhed right alongside our toddler son, and we expected that to be the extent of the show. Little did we know that our friends were just getting started and that they had several hundred mortars ready to go.
I filmed a time-lapse of a small portion of the show (which you can see on my Facebook page) to give you a sense for how incredible it was. Both Mr. Handsome and I thought the fireworks were amazing, but Little Buddy was scared. He curled himself up in Daddy’s lap, put Daddy’s big hands over his little ears, and shut his eyes tightly.
Sad that he wasn’t able to enjoy the show, I decided to take Little Buddy into our van and let him watch out the window. That turned out to be the perfect place for him. From inside our vehicle, we could hardly hear the noise, but we were still able to enjoy the fireworks. Little Buddy loved it. The experience must have left a good impression on his little mind, because the next day, he kept asking, “We going to see fireworks again?”
I’m curious what my American readers are doing for 4th of July? Those of you who have children, how old were they when they saw their first fireworks, and what was their reaction?