Author Archives: Natalie King

On Mondays, I have endless energy and I feel like Mary Poppins. Tuesdays… not so much. On Tuesdays, I have an 8am zoom call with other camp directors. I really enjoy this call- both personally- it’s great to connect, and professionally, I get a lot of great ideas and important perspective. The boys entertain themselves very well for the first hour or so, and then it becomes a balancing act.

Even though the call is great and the boys cooperate, when it ends, I feel behind and never quite catch up all day. I can’t figure out how to shake this- we have a completely flexible schedule and don’t have to be anywhere at a specific time. But it just throws me off.

We went outside this morning. I made phone calls while the boys ran around the secret lair. But it was FREEZING, so we came in really quickly.

We had a rainbow themed snack and then we did a few projects. Xander was initially excited for “small group time” but he wasn’t into any of the projects today, and kept asking, “what’s the next one?”

The boys played together really well today and entertained themselves for most of the day. We decorated a window for our rainbow theme. I would keep it like this forever if I could. My interior design style is “inside of a candy store chic”.

Nate got home pretty early today and I have never been more grateful. He and Xander played with legos for a long time while I prepped dinner and made a batch of macarons for an order later this week.

Christine said she’d talked to a few other moms who were struggling today, so I guess I was in good company.

Tomorrow is a new day!

Mondays are always so busy! This week, we are doing a Trolls/Rainbow week of fun activities. On Saturday, we are going to watch the new Trolls movie.

I re-set the books in the cozy corner. I highly recommend if you have a way to display kid books, to change them regularly. Xander gets very excited and we end up reading different books instead of the same few favorites. And even though these are all old books, they were excited like they were brand new.

At school, they take the kids outside twice a day. Bless those teachers hearts- to bundle a bunch of toddlers, then go out in the cold, and then put mittens on over and over again… they are angels. I was trying to channel my inner early childhood development professional and psych myself up to go outside, because I did not want to do that this morning. We were only out for about a half hour, but I was really glad we went out. It was cold, but it was sunny and it felt good to be outside.

Yesterday the boys and my mom collected fresh snow for snow cones. They remembered that the cups of snow were in the freezer and were obsessed with the idea of snow cones. So when we came inside, I found some maraschino cherries and used the syrup to make snow cones.

The boys were in such good moods today. They played nicely all day. Before lunch, they played for almost an hour and let me work and do laundry while they entertained themselves.

After all that, it was only 3pm and so we decided to head back outside. When we were at the secret lair in the morning, I thought that we should probably try sledding since it’s hilly over there and snowy. So that was the plan. It had warmed up a lot by the afternoon and the snow was almost gone! I ended up pulling them down the hill on sleds- the most difficult way anyone could sled, but actually, it was perfect for them, because they didn’t go too fast and they loved it. We went down (and ran back up) the hill about 25 times (not an exaggeration). I was SO tired.


When we finished sledding, Nate was home from work and he made the boys some hot cocoa while I went to Trader Joes. The boys had quiet time while I cooked dinner.

After dinner and bathtime, they played in the basement with Nate for a little while and then it was wrestle with daddy time, read books with mommy time, and then bed!

Somewhere in between all of that, I did 4 loads of laundry, changed the sheets on all of our beds, washed a million dishes (our dishwasher is broken), did some work, cooked 3 meals and made a batch of macarons.

I am EXHAUSTED, but today was wonderful. The boys were so happy all day. Xander loved the activities (at one point, while they were playing, he said, “let’s do more Trolls activities”). And it is nice to start the day slowly- not rushing to get anywhere- just sitting on the couch drinking coffee while the boys play, eventually eating breakfast and getting dressed. It’s nice to do whatever we want. We have a schedule and I have a long to-do list every day, but nothing is mandatory, and I can adjust based on how we are all feeling. I love that.

More Trolls and rainbows ahead tomorrow…

It’s been a great Easter!

We started the day early- Xander was awake by 6:30 and very excited to hunt for some eggs! The boys found all 40 eggs and really enjoyed opening them and finding candy, toys and coins. They went through their baskets and were very happy to find lots of candy, monster trucks, puzzles, books and Power Ranger shirts.

We talked to the Whiteds on zoom and played all morning. My mom arrived after lunch and she was, as always, the best. She played about 25 rounds of hide and seek, played outside in the snow and kept up with 2 crazy boys all afternoon.

We had ham for dinner, and fancy duchess potatoes (inspired by the Nelson family Carona kitchen- she was making them and so I made a last minute switch from mashed to these). For dessert we had a rainbow cake, which I have always wanted to make, and finally did.

We ended the day with a family movie night- we watched “Hop” which is an Easter movie that Xander enjoyed but isn’t the best kid movie I’ve ever seen.

This quarantine is so strange, but today was really wonderful. We were warm and cozy while the snow fell outside. We ate lots of good food, drank wine that our neighbors gave us, had lots of treats, and the boys were so happy all day. Life is not as it usually is, but this isn’t forever and it’s going to be ok.

My macaron business is booming! I delivered 11 dozen cookies this morning! I posted an advertisement in the neighborhood facebook group and I couldn’t believe the response. I don’t think delivery will typically be my thing, but I thought it would be easier than having people show up at my door. I wore a mask and smiled and waved as I dropped cookies at people’s doors. It was a good way to start my day! While I was out and about, the boys and Nate were in the yard, trying out their new bike helmets.

When I got home, we had lunch and then did some Easter themed projects. We had some tracing and matching sheets.

We made handprint bunnies.

We decorated eggs (I decided to try out the plastic kind this year instead of wasting the real ones. I didn’t love them- we will go back to dying real ones next year).

Then we played “bunny hop” (I called out colors and they had to hop to the right one) and then bunny hopscotch, which Xander really enjoyed and played for about 20 minutes straight.

Nate and the boys played downstairs and then outside again. And then they all went for a drive to see the outside of Nate’s old house. I rested, worked, planned activities for next week and made a sweet and sour pork stir fry for dinner that was a hit. The boys were in the tub for 45 minutes and then played a while before getting ready for bed. It was a great day!

Xander, Augustus, my mom and I went to camp yesterday for a short trip so I could scavenger some supplies. After I wrote out my emergency action plan last week, I realized that most of the supplies I wanted but couldn’t get were at camp. So I decided we would make the trip to gather some necessities. I plan to return or replace anything I brought home, once life is back to normal and you can actually buy all the things you want in the stores. 

We went to the camp store, the welcome center, and the camper. It was chilly and VERY windy outside, so once we were done going building to building, we went back to the house and the boys and my mom cleaned out the fireplace, so we could build a fire.

We ate dinner and then roasted marshmallows and made multiple s’mores. We had lots of snacks (it’s not a surprise that the boys love camp).

The staff house is the only building on camp that is heated all winter, so we store a lot of random supplies (archery equipment, lifeguard tubes, first aid supplies, art supplies, etc). There are piles of random stuff everywhere, which was perfect for 2 little boys to climb over and under.

more snacks

We found bleach, gloves, masks, lysol, clorox wipes, toilet paper, paper towels, and bandanas.

Today we woke up to snow on the ground and it was even colder than yesterday! We packed the van full, rode bikes once more, and then headed home. I’m eager to return to camp when it is warmer.

It was a whirlwind trip, but I feel better now that we have all the supplies that we will need in the event that either (or both) of us get sick. And it was good to check up on camp and see that it was in good shape after a long winter.

After the call though, I was just thrown off. I felt totally off schedule (even though we didn’t have anywhere to be)- that feeling you get when you’re running late. We went outside (both in head to toe red running suits). But it was wet and gray and misty. They got on their bikes for 30 seconds. We threw rocks for 10 seconds. They weren’t excited about being outside. So we went back inside. I was feeling frazzled. So I said, “ok, you can have your ipads” which is NOT usually what we do, but I needed 20 minutes to re-group. 

While I was gathering my wits, and the boys were on their ipads, Augustus said, “can we have pancakes?” and even though it was 11am and not on any sort of schedule, I said, “yes!” and made dinosaur footprint pancakes (we are still n dinosaur theme after all).

From there, we painted the wooden dinosaurs from yesterday, painted a canvas, and did a footprint dino craft.

I was still out of sorts. After all that, we went back to ipads, this time with small bags of chips on the couch- I looked over and thought, ok, I’m letting it go, every day can’t be perfectly on theme, on schedule and smooth. Some days you sit at the table staring at your list like it’s a foreign language while your children eat junk food and watch cartoons. This is balance.
Nate was home for a little while after lunch and so I put myself in a 20 minute time out to re-group (again). During that time, the boys packed their suitcases for our trip to camp. I am not sure all of the things that got tossed into the piles of stuff, but we will definitely have some random items with us.

 After that, they played independently for 2 straight hours. They played with toys and entertained themselves and I was really grateful because I was still completely out of sorts. I never found the rhythm of the day and I jumped from trying to work on my computer, to trying to clean the kitchen, to trying to get us back on our schedule. I never got there. Everything just felt hard. I washed and put away winter gear. I cleaned the kitchen. I answered some emails. And the boys were happy and busy all day. But it was just a weird day.

Eventually we got outside and the sun was shining and it was warm and wonderful. I was dragging, but luckily Nate came home and he and the boys went to the secret lair while I took a nap (a very rare occurrence). I woke up feeling much better. I went outside with the boys for a while, baked some Easter macarons, and made dinner.

Dinner, bathtime, and now it’s wrestle with Daddy time, which is their favorite time of day. They jump onto the couch (and onto Nate), tickle, roll around, play fight and go crazy.

Despite the fact that I plan one week sessions of youth programming professionally, I was feeling overwhelmed by that tasks, so I decided on 2 day themes instead. Today and tomorrow are Dinosaurs. My boys aren’t really into dinosaurs but today was super fun. They both rocked dino shirts (Xander’s was under his favorite sweatshirt of course).

We started the day with a hunt for dinosaur eggs. I made them on Sunday with baking soda and water (make it into a paste and then form eggs around the little plastic dinos). After they found all of them, we brought them inside and squirted them with vinegar to release the dinos. Then we went back outside and they played with them in the sand.

Of course we had to make a trip to the secret lair for a while. That included rolling down the hill and battling bad guys. I never quite understand what’s happening, but I find that if I just run around a lot, kick into the air, yell “rawr” sometimes, and then “bad guys! RUN!” every now and then, I seem to be right on.

We came home after being outside for a very long time. I had some matching and tracing sheets for them. Xander said, “this is just like small group time!” and that made me sad. He misses school. I miss them going to school. And I miss his wonderful teachers coming up with small group activities!

We continued small group time with a dinosaur puzzle.

Then it was time for lunch and I happened to have some dinosaur noodles and dino fruit snacks (which not a normal part of a meal, but when it fits with the theme, it’s their lucky day). The joke was on me because my boys are just so-so about mac and cheese, so I ended up making sandwiches anyway, theme be darned.

Nate was home for most of the day. That was fabulous for all of us because he got to participate in many of the dinosaur activities. He definitely won the magnatile challenge to try to build a dinosaur.

Then the three of them went back outside and headed to the secret lair.

They came inside and we made chocolate dipped strawberries with dinosaur sprinkles (a bit of a stretch on the theme- I just happened to have them and I wanted to make chocolate strawberries, so it became the project).

Our final theme activity of the day was wooden puzzle/models of dinosaur bones. They were in the dollar section of Target and even though the package said 6+, they worked out for our 2&4 year old after Nate and I built them.

In tonight’s edition of Carona Kitchen, I made juicy lucy cheese burgers, curly fries and zucchini. Now it’s time for bath, play time and bed! Tomorrow are a few more dino activities, but the weather is supposed to be gorgeous, so maybe just a full day outside.

Another low key day as the boys headed to Grandma’s house for the day. They played with toys, ran around outside, ordered McDonald’s for lunch and playing some more.

I made 4 batches of Easter-themed macarons and then ran into my office for a little while. The building was empty (which is typical of Sundays) and it was a little creepy. I locked myself in as soon as I got there (but the building was still silent and empty when I left).

The boys got home and we had dinner and warm chocolate chip cookies for dessert. We’re ready for another busy week of working keeping 2 boys busy. I have 2 themes for the week (a theme for a whole week just seems like too much). Monday-Tuesday we are going to do dinosaur themed activities. Wednesday-Thursday we are actually going to go up to camp. Friday-Sunday will be Easter themed activities (and Easter!).

check out his cookie eating technique

A great day! Nate started the day by making GIANT pancakes!

We zoom chatted with our friends- each of the kiddos showing off something cool that they’ve made. I think the moms enjoyed talking even more than the kids.

Next up, Nate took the boys to the basement to play while I scrubbed the house, top to bottom. I moved furniture, scrubbed every corner, vacuumed, swept, cleaned until our house was shining.

Most days, I follow the same pattern- wake up feeling great, do 200 things without pausing for a break until I am so tired I can’t move, look at the calendar and calculate how far out from surgery I am (“4 weeks out- yep, still within the 6 week recovery period”), vow to take it easy the next day, immediately forget the vow, make a new to-do list, repeat. I literally do not know how to take it easy.

After lunch, Nate took the boys outside so I could rest. And then it was time for family movie afternoon! We loaded up on snacks and watched the brand new movie “Onward”. It was a great movie but is 2 brothers on a bonding journey to bring back their dead father for a short time. By the end of the movie, I was sobbing hysterically and only got ahold of myself because I was afraid I would scare the children. But it was a great movie.

After the movie we went outside again. I told the boys to stay in the yard. As I was chatting with Christine on marco polo, imagine my surprise when I saw two small people behind me.

We went inside at dinner time and had “snack” dinner, which Xander claims is his favorite. That’s only mildly insulting since I cook every meal he eats and most dinners are made from scratch… but fine, snack dinner is the best.

After dinner and bath time, we zoomed with the Whited family. It was a nice day, balanced with activity and relaxing. And our house is SUPER clean, so that’s always a huge win for the day!

Our plans for the week- complete

I think our busy week tired all of us out and so today was a very slow day. We completed our first week home. When life is normal, we always have lots of fun things to do on the weekend, but right now, the weekend will be mostly the same except that Nate is still going into the office during the week, so it will be nice to have him home.

At school, the kids go outside in basically all weather. I thought we would do the same but it turns out I am not nearly as hearty as the teachers and I didn’t want to. It was cold and wet outside, so we decided to stay inside where it was warm and cozy.

I had 2 video calls today. During the 10am call, the boys played nicely and I just had to listen, so I was available if they needed me. During the second one, it was a much smaller group and I had to be attentive the whole time. So I made sure they had lots of snacks and they got to have their ipads. I was able to get through the whole meeting without any interruption and I was grateful for that.

my poor sad baby

Grandma Debbie came over around 1 and we had a late lunch. Right before we sat down to eat, I realized there was blood all over the floor. I had broken a glass while emptying the dishwasher this morning. I thought I’d gotten it all swept up, but apparently Augustus’s bare foot had found a shard. It wasn’t a bad cut (he hadn’t even noticed it was cut until I saw the blood), but when he saw it, he was HYSTERICAL. At one point, I asked, are you hurt or scared and he yelled, “scared!” Poor guy! He was inconsolable for several minutes, and eventually I rocked him to sleep. Naps are rare, so he was definitely upset.

He was still very sad when he woke up, so we ended up having a lot of screen time, a lot of snuggles and a quiet day. I think some days we just need to take it easy and it’s ok to have a balance between full days and lazy days.

In other quarantine news- I recently downloaded the app Marco Polo. Once it hits the middle aged moms, you know it’s past its’ prime, but it’s new to me. Basically it’s video text messaging. My bestie Christine and I text nonstop, but now we also send each other video snippets as well. Today she did an entire cooking show tutorial (in short clips) while she cooked dinner. It was fabulous. Between the two of us, there are always kids jumping in, screaming in the background, and I have yet to figure out an angle that isn’t just a full frame of my chin(s). But it sort of feels like a reality show confessional or like we’re cool instagram vloggers. But it definitely makes it feel like we’re in this insane quarantine together and it’s been one of the highlights of this whole crazy situation. I thought it was kind of a goofy app at first, but now it’s a daily highlight I recommend it if you are feeling sad or lonely.