{Tyke Bites} New Series! What the Quads are Eating

Welcome to my newest blog post category, Tyke Bites! Inspired by fellow blogger Megan, who shares her Mini Meals series for her own adorable tot, I plan to post these periodically and simply cover some of the latest meals (failures and successes) that the quad squad has been chowing down on. I'm always looking for new ideas when it comes to snack foods and meal time with my crew so please share your own tips and eats in the comments section and, in turn, I hope to inspire you with the same in my new series!

(And apparently I need to note that my kids eat pretty damn good most of the time, but their diets are not always 100% pure and healthy! So you'll see a little bit of everything in these posts, including the days that food prep just wasn't quite possible! Always keeping it real!)

A favorite new breakfast item lately has been buttered bread, toasted, spread with ricotta cheese, drizzled with honey and sea salt. Y'all. This is good. I've been making a piece for myself and then make two to three slices for the quads and just cut them up into bite sized pieces. This morning they had the ricotta toast with apples, strawberries and chocolate donut holes.

For those who have asked, the plates pictured are the Boon Saucer Edgeless Stayput Divider plates and you can purchase them on Amazon here. We love these plates and they help me portion out food, they're easy for the babies to eat from and they are a bit more difficult to tip over and dump out (but they aren't suction plates). They've held up great in the dishwasher and are sold in sets of three, we have 12 plates!

For morning snack, they usually get animal cookies or graham crackers in the play room. Today's lunch was Chick-Fil-A and the quads split a 12-count nugget meal with large fries as well as cheese and fruit. 

For snack, they get their Munchkin snack catchers and whatever assortment of edibles I choose to put in there. This particular afternoon, they munched on a mix of whole grain goldfish, pretzel goldfish and a few M&Ms.

Tonight's dinner was pretty yummy. I kept things simple and made roasted some carrots (with sea salt and rosemary), steamed broccoli, lemon garlic chicken (cooked on the stovetop) along with pan fried potatoes and blackberries. The babies are always eating what we eat for dinner and typically the husband and I sit at their quad table with them and enjoy our meal together as a family. 

And that's a day in meals! I'll plan to publish new posts as I'm able to snag photos of the food before it gets devoured. Let me know what you think of the new series and what some of your tyke's favorite bites are!

{Weekend Recap} Three Day Bonus!

This past weekend was a three day bonus, since the husband had off work for President's Day. Woo hoo! In fact, not only did we relish the long weekend, we actually got to enjoy a little bit of everything. The in-laws came over Saturday evening to feed the babies dinner and put them to bed so that the husband and I could grab dinner and take in a movie. We were a little wary of wait times for local restaurants since it was the day after Valentine's, but surprisingly we were able to get a table at Saltgrass in less than 20 minutes. We both ordered steaks—the husband splurged on a 16-ounce ribeye—and I drank every drop of the two beers I got with my meal. Yum! Then we just had to head down the road a few blocks to the theater and decided on a comedy, About Last Night, comedian Kevin Hart's latest production. It was pretty funny and definitely had us laughing several times. In fact, the husband laughed the most which is a feat, since it's hard to get him to laugh at most things. He always says, "I'm laughing on the inside!" when I give him a hard time for not giving up at least a chuckle. Men! ;)

One late morning later (babies slept until 9am, holla!), the husband was a hero and put together breakfast for the quads while I slept for a few extra minutes. Then we got break number two when my parents showed up to take the nap shift so we could go out for lunch and shopping! Knowing that Grandad was coming over, I dressed the babies in overalls just for him and they were pretty darn cute!

While the babies napped away, my sister and her family came over to spend time with my parents and the husband and I scooted out the door. We settled on shrimp for lunch at Red Lobster then shopping at a couple stores for some much needed new clothes, workout gear and so on. You can check out everything I got on my Shopping Haul post! I was immensely proud of my ability to resist the urge to go into Carter's and buy a million cute little baby clothes. It was hard, but I did it. Willpower!

Despite the thrill of the shopping hunt, I have to admit to feeling pretty tired by the end of the day after all that running around and my feet were pretty sore. (I actually have plantar fasciitis in both feet, which is a literal pain every day. More on my health to come soon.) Buuuuttt, it was nice to be out without a super time constraint and even though the husband admitted to having come to the end of his "shopping patience," we both enjoyed the quality time and watched a movie and relaxed together after we put the kiddos to bed that evening.

Monday was beautiful weather and we'd already planned to take the babies out to lunch at a local Mexican restaurant our nanny had suggested. In fact, she even met up with us for lunch and a little play time with the crew! But first we had to drop by our pediactrician's office to get Trystan's arm checked out. She's been favoring it quite a bit since one evening about a week ago when we put her in the quad table for dinner and she acted like something in her arm had been pulled out of place. After freaking out with her for an hour while she cried and cried and thinking that we'd dislocated her arm, she finally calmed down and started using it again. But on and off since she'll seem to remember that it was hurting and start holding it or favoring it again. She checked out fine but if she continues acting like it's bothering her, we'll get an x-ray.

Someone (Kailey) was excited to be heading out for Mexican!

When we arrived at lunch, the kids were thrilled to discover the outdoor play area. They galavanted around it in the sunshine before sitting down at a table on the patio to chow down on chips and salsa, black bean dip and some yummy quesadillas. My babies all looked like big kids to me all afternoon and I was so excited that the girls got a chance to wear their cute sandals I'd bought for them last year! Little things...

They were all pretty dirty when we got home, so we gave them quick baths then put everyone down for naps and boy, did they sleep good! It was rest time for the whole family, actually, and I always treasure how quiet my house is for those few precious hours every day.

I cooked dinner (roasted salmon and veggies) for us that evening to end the day with some good food and enjoyed some wine to relax with after bedtime for the babies. It's rare that we get a weekend that we actually get to do a little bit of "everything" and we were so grateful to our parents for helping provide an opportunity to do just that!

{Style File} Shopping Haul!

This weekend has been wonderful—especially because the husband and I got two opportunities to get out of the house together without any kids, one of which included a little shopping spree! Yesterday we grabbed some lunch then shopped Victoria's Secret, Dick's Sporting Goods, Old Navy and Target and came away with some much-needed finds that had been on the "list" for more than a few months. And since I love a good shopping haul post but never get to do one since I'm rarely buying anything besides groceries, you get a gander at my latest non-edible purchases. :)

Because I plan twice-weekly gym sessions into my week when I have someone to watch the kids at home—and because I also tend to wear active clothing about 90% of the week since I'm keeping up with four active toddlers all day!—it was high time to stock up on some fresh duds. I'd had a gift card burning a hole in my pocket and had been dying to get more Pink attire from Victoria's Secret. I decided to try a full zippered, lightweight sweatshirt in a cheery bright coral color, as well as a boot cut pair of yoga pants on sale for $24! And I couldn't wait to lounge around the house in a pair of gray campus collegiate pants with black accents—these things are suuuuuuper soft and looked nice and sporty when I tried them on. I also chose a crystal-accented brassiere plus five pairs of undies, which left me one happy girl. Though I think I was most happy because I got to size down from my usual large to size medium in all the bottoms I purchased. A big accomplishment for me post-pregnancy!

My mother-in-law surprised me with a sweet set of travel-sized makeup brushes, mirror and perfume from VS for Valentine's Day. Love those goodies! 

At long last, I've worked up the guts to get back in the pool. Some of you might remember I was a synchronized swimmer for 11 years back in the day and being in the water has long been a huge part of my life. Enduring the quad pregnancy and recovery—which is still ongoing for me, unfortunately—brought my trips to the pool to a screeching halt. But for the first time in years, I tried on a workout swim suit and was mildly delighted that it didn't look all that bad on! I snatched it up and plan to get back in the pool for my long-awaited return to swim workouts next week! (This Speedo suit and TYR cap came from Dick's Sporting Goods, where my husband also snagged black Speedo swim shorts and a mini basketball hoop to mount on the wall in the play room for the quads!)

Our next stop was Old Navy since the entire store was 30% off and I was eager to check out their active wear selection. My nanny often wears their workout capri pants, which are always super cute and a great deal. I found two workout tops for $9 each, a pair of gray super comfy workout pants on sale for $12, a black long-sleeve top and green cami in the clearance section and of course some new jammies for the quad squad!

The girls got three cute Carter's brand onesies at Target, perfect for summer time. I also picked up new makeup, including a lighter shade of my current favorite foundation (Revlon PhotoReady), a new L'Oreal thick eyeliner pencil and Cover Girl's new luminizer face powder.

All in all, it was a super successful shopping haul and a great occasion for us both to indulge in a few purchases that were well-earned! It's such a nice feeling when you actually find things you're looking for, especially clothes and swim suits that fit post-quadruplets. Next, I'll share some sweet photos from our three-day family weekend and more new recipes and favorite products later this week.

What shopping finds have you scored lately?

{My Recipes} Beef Stir Fry with Broccoli

This recipe was a delicious new addition to our dinner menu last week and was approved by the entire family, all four kids included! I used this original recipe as the foundation for mine and made some tweaks to it for our table.

Beef Stir Fry with Broccoli
1 lb. boneless, beef chuck roast, sliced into thin strips*
(*I bought the pre-sliced beef at the grocery store that's labeled for stir fry as it was convenient)
1 cup beef broth
½ cup low sodium soy sauce
⅓ cup regular or dark brown sugar
1 tbsp. olive oil
3 garlic cloves, minced
2 tbsp. cornstarch
4 tbsp. sauce (from the crockpot after dish is cooked)
1.5-2 cups fresh, steamed broccoli florets
White or brown rice, cooked

(Note: You can cut out as much as half of the amount of brown sugar called for if you prefer a less sweet flavor to the dish. I plan to do that next time, as it was a little bit too much on the sweet side for me.)

In the insert of the crockpot, whisk together beef stock, soy sauce, dark brown sugar, olive oil and garlic. Place beef in the liquid and toss to coat. Turn crockpot on low and cook for 4-6 hours. (May have to adjust time depending on your crockpot.) Test doneness at 4 hours and continue cooking if necessary. When done, in a small bowl, whisk together cornstarch and cooking liquid to create a slurry, pour into crockpot, stir to mix well. Cook on low for an additional 30 minutes to thicken up the sauce. Toss in your broccoli florets then serve hot over white rice.

Happy eating :)

{Home Decor} Spring Entry Table & My Blossoming Addiction!

Despite all the cold, rainy weather we've been having in the Dallas area lately, I've been ready for a little color and spring in my step—and my home! One thing I always have to have around are fresh flowers. It's an addiction, really. Like it bothers me if I don't have a single blooming flower in the house. But I don't go crazy, I tend to get the cheaper flowers like brightly hued carnations and large spider mums since they last longer. Roses are my favorite flower and the husband always seems to know when he needs to pick me up a dozen on his way from work.

Once, a few weeks ago, I was at our neighborhood Starbucks writing a few features for a magazine while my friend Jo Ann kept the babies at the house. The husband was on his way back to the office after a meeting and happened to know exactly where I was, so he showed up with a dozen roses in my favorite peach color right there in the coffee shop! Several of the people around us gasped and started smiling really big because I think they thought he was about to propose, haha! Instead he got a big hug and a kiss and everyone realized we were actually already married. The guy at the table next to me told the husband he was making all the other men look bad and that we were such a cute couple. Then he found out we had quadruplets at home and couldn't stop giving us kudos for still being in love!! But that single gesture of thoughtfulness from my husband kept a smile on my face the rest of that day and every time I think of it afterward. Flowers and a trip to the movie theater are sure fire ways to cheer me up anytime I'm down—in fact, the husband tells me all the time that he's so glad it's that simple!

Needless to say, anytime I'm at the grocery store I tend to grab a small arrangement of petals to keep on the island in my kitchen. I splurged on three hydrangeas for $7 the other day and dispersed them around the house, including my bedroom. (I used white faux versions on my recent DIY spring wreath, which is also pinned to my Crafts board on Pinterest.) I like to take large blooms and put a single stem in a small vase or cluster smaller flowers, like carnations, tightly together for added effect. I know a lot of my friends comment on how they love that I always have fresh flowers (and usually a candle burning!) in my home constantly. It's really not an added expense, you can always buy the cheaper options or even a bunch of greenery from your yard to use as color. And a lot of these flowers last me a week or more, so it's easy to absorb that $5 or $6 into my weekly grocery bill!

After finally taking down the last of my Christmas almost mid-way through January, my entry table set vacant for a little while since I still had some clean-up to do and wasn't sure what I wanted on it yet. I love having a blank slate with that table, it's a great place to have fun with decorating themes and different looks throughout the year so I never get bored with it. That rustic little table was a $35 Craig's List find and one of my best purchases! It fit perfectly into the entry way of both our last house and our current home and the drawers are handy for storing keys, odds and ends or things the grandparents leave behind and need to pick up at their next visit. ;)

I went with a slightly rustic arrangement of frames and random decorative bits I gleaned from other areas of the house and incorporated a little bit of blues and greens to make me happy. There's so many mementos I've created, purchased or collected over the past seven and a half years of my marriage and now with the addition of four kids, I probably can't have enough picture frames in my house or on my walls! Oh and, yes, you can see ol' Herman—our ceramic penguin—hanging around under the table. He's a pretty standard fixture in that spot, he lived there at our last place and was a housewarming gift from the husband's brother. See? Lots of mementos!

The bright green faux flowers at the end of the table are in a tall cylinder glass vase that I slipped a wine bottle bag over since I liked the burlap accent. I added Texas star candle holders (you can find Texas stars all over my house!), a clock from Hobby Lobby and a framed photo of our trip to Prague in 2010. The faux boxwood stems and vase are sitting atop books in DIY scrapbook paper covers that I made several years ago.

The opposite side of the table features an adorable black and white photo of the husband with Kailey and Logan in a frame gifted to me by my mother-in-law this past Christmas—more Texas stars! The patina-like cross was a housewarming gift from family friends, as was the slate plaque that was a Christmas gift two years ago from good friends of ours in Houston. We joke that it needs just one more "always" to be perfect for the quad squad we are grateful for!

The banister on the stairs looks naked since all the Christmas garland and ornaments are now gone, but I love the adorable kid-sized bench (with a Texas star, of course! see the trend?!) that was a Christmas gift from my mom and step-dad. They are the best grandparents to our kids and love them dearly and this was such a nice surprise! The kids will often get free roam every now and then and like to sit for a spell on their little bench while looking out the front door. :)

I'm still working on ideas for what to put on the giant shelf at the top of the stairs that runs along the entry way, but for now there's an oversized thrift store candle stick, a lantern that was a clearance find at Ross, a basket with faux greenery from Marshalls and the large sticks that I got on sale for $20 at Hobby Lobby! Love those things! I'm thinking a supersized vase to hold them would be great and some large scale wall art—think patina faux-windows—on the wall above the ledge. A work in progress...

What do you like to incorporate into your home on the daily?

P.S. New recipe up next!