Author Archives: Natalie King

It was Thanksgiving week! Monday and Tuesday were regularly scheduled programming- Xander was at school, Augustus was at my mom’s on Monday and school on Tuesday. I’m trying to be a pinterest mom and so I’ve been making lunches as themed as I can. Now it’s become an expectation and Xander has pretty high standards. 

I was all set for Thanksgiving and then on Tuesday night, I noticed that the 5 enormous sweet potatoes I had were down to just 2. How did I lose 3 HUGE (like bigger than a softball) sweet potatoes. I’ll give you 2 slobbery guesses. I really had no concern that Hudson and Ruthie would eat raw sweet potatoes, but judging by their potty breaks for the following 2 days, they did indeed eat the sweet potatoes. Puppies…

I sold a ton of Thanksgiving macarons and I was very excited to get a text with photos of an especially beautiful table. My neighbor is basically Martha Stewart and I loved seeing my cookies incorporated into her gorgeous spread. 

My Thanksgiving table was a little more casual than hers, but Xander took it upon himself to make place cards for everyone, which was fantastic and really perfect and brought the classy level up a notch. 

Sue came with a turkey themed veggie tray and I was so excited about it. There is literally nothing better than a theme and she understood the assignment! 

Danny smoked a turkey and also made smoked bacon mac and cheese (he recently got a brand new Traeger grill) and both were amazing. I was giving him a hard time all week because he was putting so much time and effort into the turkey (and really, isn’t turkey just turkey) but I will admit that it was juicy and the smoke flavor was subtle and it was actually a pretty fantastic turkey, so I guess he wins the day. 

We ate a lot of good food, played some games, played the Nintendo Switch and had a fabulous day. 
. 

. 
Thanksgiving Day was the 10 year anniversary of my dad’s death. Anniversaries don’t hit me like they used to, I tend to feel sad at super random times which surprise me and remind me that grief never ends. It was a good day. I can’t believe it’s been a decade though. 10 years. 

Thanksgiving is over and now it’s time for a full month of Christmas excitement. We are going to Ohio on Christmas Eve, so we’ve decided to move Christmas a week early this year. Which means it was time to get into Christmas mode today! 

I had some important items laid out on the table for the boys to see first thing in the morning. New matching Christmas jammies (including puppy pjs), hot cocoa bombs, chocolate advent calendars, and our wooden advent calendar that I have spent weeks finding tiny surprises to fill each drawer. 

 

. 

We started the day with some festive pancakes. 

Then we got changed into Christmas jammies and put up the tree. We hung stocking and danced around to music (not Christmas music as I’d wanted, but I got out voted). We decorated the tree. I wasn’t sure how the dogs would react to the tree- after we put it up, we left it for a while and drank cocoa to see if they would mess with it. Ruthie was mostly terrified. Hudson was a little curious. But after a while, they both seemed to be completely uninterested, which is great news. I still put a fence around it when we were done. Because I’m not taking any chances with those two. 
. 

Like last year, Nate would only agree to matching pjs as long as I didn’t share it. And like last year, this is the “safe for internet” version. 

The weather was pretty nice today, so after decorating and several hours where the boys played together really nicely, they headed outside. Our neighbor is building a sauna and was VERY patient with 2 curious boys. They were over there for a long time and then came home for a bit. We took the dogs for a walk and stopped at the park, but Augustus was eager to return to the construction zone and wanted to leave the park. When we got home, they were outside for 2 hours “helping”. Eventually Sam and his dad came over too, and the crew grew. I didn’t think I was going to be able to drag them away. Finally once it was dark out, they reluctantly came home for dinner. Have I mentioned yet that we have the BEST BEST neighbors in the whole world? The boys were so thrilled to “help” and had the best afternoon. Forget Christmas fun, they came home covered in dirt and so happy to have been able to hang out with Aaron (who is by far the coolest neighbor in the boys’ opinion as he has tools, can build stuff and always has time to talk with them). 

. 

This week is a normal schedule, but once the tree goes up, that means our elf will return. I LOVE elf on the shelf and I’ve been planning and preparing for months. Mornings last December were a bit of a battle because Xander was SO excited to open the advent calendar and see what the elf was doing every day that no matter how many times we reminded him about his “ok to wake” clock, it didn’t matter. So I know we’re in for some early wake ups.

Augustus spent the day at my mom’s house and was excited to play with his buddies Cane and Cora who came over with their grandma. 

On Tuesday, Augustus and Xander were both at school and I was at home all day. My position is based out of my house, so other than in person meetings here and there, most of my time is spent on Microsoft teams or working independently. I really like working from home- I like to work at my own pace, without being interrupted. I like that when I take a break between projects that I can throw in a load of laundry or take the dogs for a quick walk. Having a flexible schedule is my number one priority for a job, and this one is perfect for my current life with 2 little kids. 

On Wednesday, Augustus spent the day with Grandma Debbie again and brought home fresh baked cookies! I had an in-person meeting so I was gone most of the day. My job is to work with the alumni of the 8 overnight camps, Youth in Government and the University YMCA programs. In the next few weeks, I will be meeting with the directors of each program to learn more and to connect with the alumni they have, while working with them to plan ways to re-connect with alumni that are disconnected. My first meeting was with the Exec of the Youth in Government program. She is newish (a year) to the role so I didn’t know her, but we clicked right away and I think we might be a dangerous combination because we were off and running with big ideas and enthusiasm. I LOVE YIG and I am so incredibly excited to be able to work with this program. I left that meeting just floating. I have a million ideas, and I’m so so excited for the events that are coming up in the next few months. 
. 

Friday, Nate and Gussie spent the day together while I worked- another in person meeting in the morning and then busy in my home office the rest of the day. We had a short happy hour with the neighborhood, but it was REALLY chilly out, so we didn’t last outside very long. 

My mom took the boys on Saturday morning and they went to the theater to see Clifford the Big Red Dog. When they got home, they spent some time playing with Olive and Emmet outside. I have 25 dozen orders of cookies being picked up over the next few days, so I spent some time packing cookies. Once all the cookies were packaged and ready to go, I washed tupperware (when your hobby is baking, your second hobby is washing dishes). 
. 

. 
. 
The weather was so nice that after dinner, Nate suggested we go get ice cream.

This morning, Xander and I went to the YMCA to do some “serious swimming”. One of the great things that came from my gap in employment was that I started swimming twice a week. When I started in May, I could barely go one length (which is 25 yards) without feeling like I was going to die. But I got better and better and eventually set the goal of swimming a mile, which I now do regularly (for reference, that is 70 lengths or 35 laps in the pool). I am still a certified lifeguard trainer and ever since Xander swam a full length of the pool in swim lessons, he has been talking about being a lifeguard. He also wants to swim a mile, so we went to the Y to practice. He did SO well! He ended up swimming 6 lengths total (he can swim a full length without stopping or grabbing the edge of the pool). Then we took a break from laps and he dove for a ring a few times. He got better and went into deeper water each time. Then we practiced some rescues, where I sunk to the bottom of the pool (not all the way in the deep end) and he jumped in, dove down, grabbed me and swam me to the edge. He was super into it and did so well! It was fun to see him be so proud of himself and grow in confidence (he was definitely nervous when we got there). 

At 11:30, we headed to our neighbor’s house for “sides-giving” which is all of the best sides from Thanksgiving, no turkey necessary. Our neighbors are all really good cooks, so whenever we get together, there is always a lot of really yummy things to eat. It was a very fun kick off to Thanksgiving week and always wonderful to spend time with our amazing neighbors. 

. 
.  

I’m super pumped for my second week of work. I have several projects to work on, more “get to know you” meetings, and more to learn. We’re all excited for Thanksgiving and kickoff to Christmas- it’s going to be a great week! 

This week was all about making every moment count! 

On Monday, Gussie and I went to the bakery and to the park to start our day. We love Mommy/Gussie days and I will definitely miss hanging out with my man. He loves to run errands with me, he loves to help me cook. He is funny and affectionate and the cutest, sweetest 4 year old I know. 

 

In the afternoon we played with Abby for a while before I went to pick up Xander from school. The weather was still beautiful and made being outside very nice. 

On Monday afternoon, MPA held a vaccination clinic and it was so incredibly well run and organized! I was so impressed. Xander got his first covid shot and was very brave. He was nervous, but he held my hand and closed his eyes and it was very fast. He didn’t even cry! 

.  
 . 

On Wednesday Augustus spent the day with Grandma, and Xander was busy at school. I spent the day baking as I have about one million cookie orders for Thanksgiving. 

. 

Daylight savings makes it feel like it’s midnight every day by 5pm, but we are still heading outside after dinner to play in the dark. Kids have energy even when it’s cold and dark, so we’re holding onto our outside time. 

On Thursday, I had a marathon cooking day and made 14 dinners for the upcoming weeks. I make dinner every single night, and without knowing how busy my work schedule will be, I did some prep work to make my life a little simpler. I have meals planned for the next 6 weeks, and the highlighted ones are cooked and in the freezer. I will need to add sides and veggies to all, but it’s a good head start! 

Friday was Augustus and my last day at home together. My mom and Nate are going to split the Mondays and Fridays in November and December (there aren’t very many because of the holidays) and in January, he will go to school 4 days a week. We ran errands, played, went out to lunch and had a fabulous day together. 
. 
Nate was in Iowa this weekend, so the boys and I had a weekend of fun planned (Xander had the whole itinerary worked out). Saturday morning we got fresh bagels (HOT out of the oven). I had a goal to run 6 miles, but with 2 kids and 2 dogs, I wasn’t sure I would get an uninterrupted hour. However, the dogs were in the backyard frolicking and playing nicely and the boys were upstairs playing like angels and I was able to run in peace for 52 minutes… with 5 minutes to go, the kids started yelling and the dogs were barking, but by that point, I’d made it too far to quit, so I let the chaos go on while I sprinted the final minutes. 

After lunch, we headed to Good Times Park to play. An indoor play place on a chilly Saturday is the LAST place I wanted to be, but it wasn’t busy and the boys played for over 2 hours and were so happy, so I was glad we went. 
. 
When we got home, we decided to take the dogs and go to the pet food store. 2 kids and 2 puppies- we were a spectacle, but overall, everyone was pretty well behaved. Hudson is 60 pounds of pure muscle and energy. He was like a wrecking ball that I could barely keep contained. Ruthie is smaller and calmer, so Xander walked her around. Augustus was in charge of carrying the treats we were buying. A few customers were wide eyed and gave us a lot of room, but most smiled and commented that I had my hands full. Yes- understatement of the year. When we got home, the dogs both passed out on the couch- even a short outing is enough excitement to tire them out. 

Later, we joined our neighborhood friends outside to play in the newly fallen snow.

The boys were very excited to order pizza and have a movie night, so that’s what we did. 

Nate and his buddies were enjoying themselves in Iowa. The Hawkeyes won against Minnesota and it was a good game. 

. 
Sunday has been a good day- the boys and my mom went to the arcade, went out to lunch and went swimming. I cleaned our house top to bottom, got my nails done and even had time to sit on the couch and read a book. Tomorrow I begin my job as Director of Alumni Philanthropy. I will be in person this week, but I’m excited to be officing out of my house! I’m looking forward to meeting some new people, working with some folks I already know and to be using my brain in a different way than I have been these past few months at home. Life will be much busier, but I like a full schedule. Here we go!

. 

With Halloween over, I took down the decorations, but the pumpkins were still outside. I let the boys (with neighbor Sam) take hammers and smash them to pieces. They enjoyed kicking and smashing the pumpkins more than they did carving them. 
. 
. . 

This whole week was gorgeous unseasonably warm weather. Gussie and I had so much fun at the park and I am going to miss so much one on one time together. 

. 

 
Saturday morning was Augustus’s buddy Caleb’s birthday party. It was another warm perfect day outside and we had such a fun time! All of the friends at the party have been buddies since they were teeny tiny little babies- Xander and the other big kids used to be in class together and it was fun to have everyone together. I will miss our Kinderberry crew at the end of this year! 

. . 

When we got home, the boys ate a very fast lunch and then rushed back outside to play with all their neighborhood buddies. I’m not sure what they were up to, but they were running and chasing and everyone looked very happy. 

Grandma Debbie came over and the kids continued to play outside all afternoon. Nate and I headed to Stillwater for drinks at a brewery and then a night away at a bed and breakfast. We had the most decadent dinner (I nearly licked the plates for appetizer, main course and dessert!). We relaxed in a private hot tub. We enjoyed a spectacular breakfast in bed (delivered in the cutest baskets). My poor mother woke up at 5am with 2 kids and 2 dogs that didn’t get the memo about daylight savings time, while Nate and I got to sleep in and take advantage of the extra hour. We didn’t plan it that way, but I REALLY appreciated her giving us this time away. 

 

When we got home, the boys were playing outside and they pretty much continued that all day. In the afternoon, Nate took them to the park, and just as they were getting home, Sam and his family was walking to a different park, and the boys were eager to go with- 2 park trips in a row! 

This is my final week being home before the new job begins. I have some home projects, some fun things, and a very full calendar for the week ahead! 

Is there anything I love more than a theme? I don’t think so. Halloween week has been a blast and I’m sad it’s over. 

Monday was a regular day- Xander at school, Gussie and I at home. We like to get a slow start to the day, sitting on the couch drinking coffee for me and watching his ipad for Augustus. 

On Friday, he brought his lunch again, and Augustus also wanted a fun lunch. 

. 

I got to volunteer at Xander’s school for the first time and I was so excited. Gussie went to the office with Nate in the morning and they were very busy. Augustus was very jealous that Xander got to have a Halloween party, but Xander was jealous that Augustus got to go to work with Daddy. Xander said, “can’t you get a babysitter or something?!” So I guess the grass is always greener…

For Halloween, the PTA puts on the parties for the classes, so after dropping Xander off, I got to help set up and then I stayed for Xander’s class party time. I happen to have spent the last 20 years of my career PERFECTING stations on the field, so it felt kind of weird to not be in charge and I had to bite my tongue, because I don’t want to be running the whole show… except that I kinda do… perhaps next year I will be the organizer, but this year, I stuck to my station and bit my tongue so that I didn’t offer too many helpful suggestions on how we could be more efficient. Kids got to play bingo, halloween golf, ring toss, and several other games. There was a treat bag station. There was a pumpkin patch where they got to choose a pumpkin to bring home. It was very fun. 

. 
. 

At pick up time, Augustus and I returned to school to watch the lower school costume parade. Augustus got to spend some time on the playground too. 
. 
On Saturday, Xander got a haircut. 

And then it was time for our neighborhood Halloween party. Every time we get together with the neighbors (which is a LOT), it is SO fun! It was a perfect day. The weather was gorgeous and it was just so so fun. Everyone was in costume and looked amazing. 

. 

. 

Today was a perfect day after a fabulous week. Bring on November. 

It was a fabulous week and after a brief 5 month hiatus, I am heading back to work. On Tuesday I was offered the position of Director of Alumni Philanthropy for the YMCA. The YMCA wants to put extra attention on connecting with alumni, so I will be focusing on the 8 camps and Youth in Government, re-connecting with past participants. It’s a new position, but I’ve been doing the same thing for 13 years at CYC, so I feel really excited about it. I like raising money and I am so excited to be able to support camps and YIG. My position is a work from home job, which I am super pumped about. The YMCA has great benefits and I will be earning significantly more than I did in my last role. So basically it’s exactly what I have been looking for and I’m super excited. I don’t start until November 15, so these next few weeks will be for getting organized and enjoying my free time before I go back to a regular work schedule.  

When I left CYC in June, we dropped Augustus down to 2 days a week at school. Wednesdays he’s with Grandma Debbie and Mondays and Fridays he’s at home with me. I am not cut out for the stay at home mom life, but I have really enjoyed spending so much time with my sweet baby boy. He is funny and sweet and affectionate and we have a lot of fun together. On Monday we went to the park and played nonstop. 

Tuesday was the last day of school for the week for Xander because this week was MEA. Also on Tuesday, Ruthie went to the vet to be spayed. She didn’t seem to feel terrible, and every day since we brought her home has been harder to keep her calm. She wants to run and jump and wrestle and play and we are doing everything we can to make her rest. 

Then we pulled out ALL of the Paw Patrol toys we have (which are enough for a small army) and played all day. 

. 

We decorated our house with some cool skulls (that light up at night) and skeletons. I baked Halloween cookies, and then quickly got enough orders to sell out! 

Hudson is 10 months and Ruthie is 8.5 months old and they are maniacs. They barrel through the house, chasing each other, wrestling, biting and playing. They are trouble makers who continually steal things off the end tables (the remote controls, the ipads, books, a box of kleenex), and who stand directly under my feet while I cook dinner (if I end up with a broken neck, it will 100% be because of them). But they are our sweet babies and while we would certainly have a cleaner house and yard without them, I’m glad that they are part of our family. 

We are 6 weeks into kindergarten and on Friday we had conferences with Xander’s teacher. It was really fun to talk to her about how he’s doing. We didn’t have any concerns, and she was very complimentary of how well he gets along with other kids and his academic progress. She showed us samples of his writing- his letters and numbers are looking good. Her updates are LONG and detailed and I love them. I love seeing videos that the art, gym, french, drama and music teachers share. It is so fun to see him learning and growing. Augustus had bug week at his school and did a lot of fun projects with insects. 

. 

Saturday was another neighborhood marathon of fun. We started the day with coffee, hot chocolate and donuts, as well as a Bags tournament. The littlest of the kiddos have recently been stripping down as soon as they get together and running through the neighborhood in just undies. I will be reminding all of them about that when they are about 14 years old. Gussie and the girls literally spent the whole day in underwear, but if the weather cooperates, I am happy to let him run wild and free. We all hung out until lunch, at which point we all went home to eat and rest. 

. 

At 4, we all started heading back outside and at 5, it was time for the chili buffet- not a cook off, because no one wanted to criticize anyone else. We had 4 kinds of chili, cornbread, cookies, chips, grapes… it was a full buffet of food. I tasted all 4 of the chilis and they were all excellent. We had so many people outside and even one random neighbor who happened to be walking her dog and we lured her in. It was quite a spectacle! We stayed outside until it was completely dark and then we dragged the children inside for baths and bedtime. 
. 

Sunday was another gorgeous, unseasonably warm day. The boys spent the day with my mom, and then came home and ran right outside to play until dinner and then after dinner. We are loving this gorgeous fall weather and I hope it continues let us be outside for weeks to come! 
.  

It’s been a busy and fun 2 weeks. Xander had his first school picture day. The boys are rocking swim lessons- Xander’s class went to the big pool last week and I could see that he was surprised and nervous, but he did great! He’s learning to tread water and Gussie is doing SO well putting his face in the water and being comfortable jumping in. 

. 

Gussie is loving his Wednesdays with Grandma Debbie, and Xander continues to feel like it’s a deep injustice that he has to be in school EVERY day, while his brother gets to be at Grandma’s. 
 

. 
We spend every afternoon after school outside in our front yard. After school-dinner is playtime for everyone, and then we all go inside to eat, and then after dinner more neighbors join in until we all set a group timer to make the kids go inside for bath time. It is so wonderful and I hope the weather cooperates for as long as possible! 

Xander got some level one reading books from Grandma Renee and has been doing SO well. He can read full sentences and even read to a bunch of his friends one afternoon. His personality is so much like Nate, but every now and then, he bosses everyone around, commanding them to sit and be quiet and listen while he reads, and I think, “oh there’s some Natalie in him as well!”

. 

Last weekend we went to 2 birthday parties- on Saturday we went to a party at the apple orchard. It was totally insane, but I got to meet some of Xander’s friends and their parents, the boys got to run around, play, and take a hayride, so it was good.  Nate was at a golf tournament with Jake, but you’ll have to take my word for it, because taking a photo is easily forgotten! 
. 
Last Sunday was Phoebe’s birthday, so Gussie and I got to go hang out with all of his friends, while Xander had some one on one time with Grandma Debbie. 

This week was homecoming at Xander’s school, so Monday he got to wear PJs to school. Gussie and I were busy at home and at the park. 
.  
Tuesday was swim lessons. 
. 
. 

Another great week of kindergarten for Xander and Pre-K for Gussie. Xander is still adjusting to the fact that school is EVERY day and he is definitely still pretty exhausted by mid week, but he is really enjoying school. On Friday, he was SO excited when he got home because he learned to read! We got a really nice email from his teacher sharing the following- 

Today Nate went golfing and the boys went to Grandma Debbie’s house. I went grocery shopping and then spent the rest of the day relaxing. This is NOT typical for me- usually when I have a free day, I use it to bake, organize, clean or whatever else. But today I was TIRED. My legs felt fine (those crazy inflating things must have been magical), but my whole body was just SO tired. 13 miles is a lot. I kept thinking, “it’s only half of a marathon” so it’s not that much, but my body said otherwise today. I took a bath, watched a movie on Netflix and sat around all day. It was luxurious. 

. 

Tomorrow is back to normal! Bring on week #5 of kindergarten!