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Edwards Apple Orchard

written by Parita 2 Comments

It’s been a minute since I’ve checked in on here. Honestly, this space is taking the back seat right now, but I’m staying true to my word and checking in when I can.

I wanted to share about our day trip to Edwards Apple Orchard because it exceeded all of our expectations. And most importantly, Mr. Kaiden had an amazing time!

Vishnu and I decided that we wanted to visit an orchard, but we were a little (lot!) late to the game. A lot of the nearby orchards are closed for the season. Vishnu did a bit more research and came across Edwards Apple Orchard. The website looked great and there were three varieties of apples still available for picking.

The only con was that Edwards is 86 miles from where we live in the city. But we decided to go for it. We brought our own lunch since the restaurants are closed, and headed out fairly early.

We got there around 10:45 and headed straight to the area where the tractors meet you to go picking. The first thing I noticed was how everyone was wearing a mask. Phew! One worry off the list. The second thing I noticed was just how beautiful this orchard was, and how well organized the place seemed. The process to get our tickets, get on a tractor, and go to the orchard was super quick and easy. Everyone was social distancing, and it just seemed so seamless.

The orchards themselves still had plenty of delicious apples to pick from, and we definitely went to all three. We got a basket for $48 (up to 6 people) and filled it 3/4 of the way. Kaiden had the best time being on Vishnu’s shoulders to pick the highest apples!

After were were done picking apples, we headed back to the main area where the big store/barn is. Again, there was a line to get in with markers on the ground, and everyone was still wearing their masks. The barn itself was spacious and smelled like heaven (fresh donuts!). We got a few goodies – spicy strawberry jam, salad dressings, popcorn, etc. And of course, we couldn’t leave without getting a few donuts, which in my opinion were the highlight of the trip. So warm with a crispy sugar +cinnamon exterior and a soft pillowy interior. YUMMMMMMM!

We debated going to the huge pumpkin patch on site but decided to eat lunch and head home. We were hoping Kaiden would nap a bit on our way back, but he didn’t! Of course!

I can only imagine how magical this place is during non-Covid times, but because we had such a great experience, I wanted to share in case any of you are local readers and are looking for a new orchard to visit!

Thanks for a great experience, Edwards Apple Orchard!

Written on October 13, 2020 Related:Chicago, Family, Weekend

Weekend Recap – Super Short

written by Parita Leave a Comment

…or it felt super short, I should say!

Vishnu and I both commented on how this weekend just flew by. I think that’s a direct reflection of how much easier it is to parent a 3 year old than a younger child. Maybe it’s just us, but while we still have our ups and downs with K, this age is just so much fun and easier to manage. Woo hoo!

Anyways, here’s a high-level overview of our weekend…

FRIDAY – productive, creamy mac n’ cheese (from a box!), Parks and Rec, Vishnu home late

SATURDAY – run with my sister, park time, lunch from Moti Cafe (so so), 2 hour nap (for me and K), simple dinner, ‘Love Wedding Repeat’ on Netflix (do not recommend!)

SUNDAY – park time with a friend, short nap (for K), quick grocery trip, delicious pasta dinner (by moi), more Parks and Rec (and lots of laughing out loud!)

Other things to note:

I hope you guys are ready for more coaching posts on here and on IG. I’ve been brainstorming topics and have so much to say!

Threenagers are a very real thing. VERY REAL!

While I was super impressed with my fellow Chicagoans resolve to wear a mask in enclosed spaces, I’m no longer impressed because people are slacking! I went grocery shopping this weekend and I saw people with the mask under their nose, under their chin, and surprise surprise hanging over one year. WHY!? IT’S NOT THAT HARD!

How is it AUGUST?! Like how?

I’m still loving my daily t-charts for my to do lists. I found the idea via Kamana Bhaskharan’s instagram account and it’s an amazing system! I’m so much more productive when I have my chart ready to go.

Ok, that’s all I have for today. Have a great Monday!

Written on August 3, 2020 Related:Weekend

Weekend Recap – Just the Two of Us

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This weekend was Vishnu’s first call weekend, which means he worked Friday until 9 pm, Saturday until 8 pm, and Sunday until 5 pm. It was just me and K for the most part…just the two of us!

And to be quite honest, it was actually a great weekend. Knowing I would be along with K for more than a day used to bring me a lot of anxiety, but now, it’s fun. We talk, we eat, we go out to play, we sleep, we watch TV…the best of friends!

Anyways, even though I was flying solo this weekend, I feel like it was pretty productive. Here’s how it went down!

Friday

I worked on Friday but was able to squeeze in a quick baking sesh before picking K up from school.

I made these scones and these muffins. HIGHLY recommend both!

Saturday

Saturday morning felt like it started earlier than normal with Vishnu’s pager going off twice a little after midnight! Oh vey. Not fun!

Thankfully, the rest of the day didn’t bring any big surprises. We went to the park in the morning for 1.5 hours – we blew bubbles, played with rocks, looked for sticks, ate apples, etc.

The only hiccup was that Kaiden refused to nap. I tried everything, but it didn’t work. I let him watch Frozen instead. You win some, you lose some I guess.

My biggest accomplishment from the day was finishing Well Behaved Indian Women. You guys, this book was everything I didn’t know I needed. So good! Highly recommend putting it on your reading list!

Dinner was another accomplishment. Mainly because K seemed to enjoy it as much as I did. We made Manali Cooks’ Instant Pot Hawaiian Tofu. SO GOOD!

Sunday

Sunday started early because Vishnu’s alarm went off at 5:45. My body wasn’t quite ready to get up, so I slept in until 7:20…because K slept in until 7:30!!! What a win!

We lounged around, until it was time for our play date with our friends Saranya and Ishaan. The boys ran around an empty parking lot until it started raining. We then moved the party inside and colored for while until it was time to go.

K ended up napping for 1.5 hours (WOO HOO!), so I worked out and showered. We then played for the rest of the day (some independent play, some mama play).

Vishnu got home a little after 5, so we got some extra family time as well which was nice because K hadn’t seem him in a couple of days!

And that, my friends, was our ‘just the two of us’ weekend! Thankful to have a cutie pie, fun little boy who loves to keep me on my toes. Never a dull moment, I tell ya!

Hope y’all had a good weekend!

Written on July 20, 2020 Related:Uncategorized, Weekend

Weekend Things + Thoughts

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Weekend Things

Hope y’all had a good weekend! Ours was pretty fun. We saw friends, played games, ate good food, and had a good two days overall.

Kaiden did give us a run for our money after nap time yesterday (when he opted to quietly play instead of nap). I’m pretty sure it was because he was super tired, but still. I was ready for bedtime two hours before bedtime…if ya feel me!

Other than that, here are a few things I wanted to share from the weekend that may be of interest…

  • Monopoly Deal – The best game ever! We played for three hours on Saturday night.
  • This Peach Bellini from Aldi is DELICIOUS and the perfect summer drink! Highly recommend trying it if you have this store nearby.
  • This recipe for Eggplant Paninis from The Chutney Life is really good. I made a few adjustments but was definitely inspired by this recipe. Also, don’t skip out on the ciabatta bread. It makes the sandwich!
  • The Costco pajamas I mentioned in my Friday post came in over the weekend, and they are so soft and comfy. AND lo and behold, I didn’t get all hot and sweaty at night. Woo!
This is K’s towel cape…just like Elsa!

Thoughts

So I know there’s no point in some of these thoughts but they come and I want to share…

I keep thinking about what we would do if either Kaiden’s school had to shut down at some point or if Chicago went back to phase 1. The only reason I was able to survive the first few months of quarantine was because Vishnu was home so much. This time around, he wouldn’t be home like that. Oy vey! Probably one I should just stop thinking about because it’s super stressful. Woo sah!

I can’t believe FL reported over 15k cases yesterday all while opening Disney. Umm what?! I don’t get it. And I can’t help but think of the video from the Palm Beach meeting where all the mask naysayers went to town to defend their decision not to wear masks. God, I hope people start changing their tune soon. We can’t afford for them not too.

Ok, last Covid-19 related thought. I asked Vishnu what he thought the end game would be given the direction the country is heading in, and he said he thinks about 50%+ of us will get this thing. And hopefully that (herd immunity) + a vaccine + people using their common sense with masks/social distancing, etc. will help us get through this. Oy vey! My husband is a smart guy, but I sure do hope he’s wrong this time around.

No good transition from Covid talk, but I want to start a new comedy show soon, and I’m thinking it’ll be Parks and Rec. I’ve heard it’s super funny, and Vishnu always says Leslie Knope reminds him of me. It’ll be a good distraction I think.

Have you guys been shopping all the big sales going on right now? I’m so tempted, but then I’m like I have no where to go so why would I buy new clothes right now?! But then I’m like I should probably buy more home clothes because that’s where I am 99% of the time. But I don’t need more home clothes. I just want them! #firstworldproblems

Ok, this is enough randomness for today! Have a great Monday…make it a good one!

Written on July 13, 2020 Related:Weekend

Weekend Recap – Father’s Day 2020

written by Parita Leave a Comment

Friday

Friday, like every day, started off with a little Kaiden time. I love cuddling with him on the couch. Then I went grocery shopping. For some reason, I ended up with like 8 bags which meant four round trips to get all our stuff upstairs. I was so tired afterwards!

After putting everything away, I took a call with my boss and did some work.

The rest of the day involved a short nap (for Kaiden), some Frozen (because I just couldn’t say no to his sweet request), and pizza for dinner.

I’m sharing the ‘recipe’ on my IG page today!

Saturday

Saturday was interesting because I definitely fell asleep on the couch the night before and only made my way to our bed at 1 am. Where was Vishnu you may be wondering? He was working a moonlighting shift at the hospital. This is what happens when he isn’t home! This totally messed me up because I woke up at 6 totally exhausted and unable to fall back asleep. On top of that, I started my period. Recipe for disaster!

BUTTT…it ended up ok, other than all of us being tired. I was a little out of it most of the day. Kaiden didn’t nap, which left him cranky by the end of the day. And Vishnu was exhausted from his 14 hour shift as well.

We did end up having fun goofing around the house. Kaiden may have asked for Frozen again to which I said N.O. Ha! Luckily, he understood!

Other than that, the day was kinda…normal. Kaiden has been moving into threenager territory lately, and while it’s annoying, I still think he’s the sweetest little boy ever. I could do with a little less whining, fewer meltdowns, and no bedtime shenanigans (i.e. calling me back into his room at least 3x). But I LOVE HIM TO PIECES!

SUNDAY

Sunday, Father’s Day, started with breakfast. We then got ready to head outside to kick the soccer ball around and hunt for sticks (K’s fav thing to do right now).

We then came home and ate breakfast for lunch – hash browns, biscuits, and scrambled eggs – because our dad loves breakfast foods! A huge hit!

The rest of the day was pretty low-key. We talked to our own dads and hung out at home reading books, kicking balls, and generally wreaking havoc. HA!

I did manage to squeeze in a little nap that was much needed. Don’t know why, but even after a full night’s rest, I was EXHAUSTED!

Anyways, that was our Father’s Day 2020 weekend in a nutshell.

For those of you who may be new readers, I share a lot of our weekends in a recap style post for two reasons – 1. I’m selfish and love having a written recollection of our days with Kaiden and 2. To show that not everyone lives a glamorous life. Normal is beautiful and normal is good and normal is magical in its own way. Remember that!

Written on June 22, 2020 Related:Uncategorized, Weekend

Weekend + COVID-19 Thoughts

written by Parita 3 Comments

I’m pretty sure most of us experienced a similar kind of weekend. We stayed inside almost the entire time. It was tiring and frustrating at times, but I also felt lucky that I have a well stocked pantry and fridge I can access as well as just a safe space to be right now. Not everyone is so lucky.

Anyways, here’s our weekend in a nutshell…

Weekend

Friday – grocery shopping (circled TJ’s parking lot 4x before heading to Mariano’s which was fine but lots of aisles were near empty if not completely bare); random stuff around the house; sister and BIL came over and we ordered in dinner from Irazu.

Made some yummy treats to help cope with some of this stress!

Saturday – Vishnu worked a 24 hour shift so he left the house at 6:30 am; Kaiden woke up at 7 (hallelujah!); the rest of the day was spent trying not to go nuts; Kaiden whined and cried A LOT which pressed all kinds of buttons for me, but I gently reminded myself that if this becomes our new normal for a bit, I need to find a way to deal and help him process his emotions better.

Sunday – Vishnu came home and slept until lunchtime; we played and watched some TV; I caught up on laundry; we had tacos for dinner (always fun with a toddler…ha!).

Who says parents can’t have fun?!

COVID-19 Thoughts

You guys, I’m not a doctor or a medical professional in any sense of the word, so please don’t take my words as advice. These are just the things rattling around in my head over the past week or so, and I need to get them out. Writing and sharing on here really helps me, so here I am.

First and foremost, I’m one of those people who went from thinking this wouldn’t impact us as much as other countries to now thinking oh s***, COVID-19 is scary and we need to act now.

With that being said, I’m sick of people comparing it to the flu. IT’S NOT TO FLU! Follow credible sources, and you’ll see. Read the firsthand reports from other countries that are just a week ahead of us with this thing, and you’ll see. NOT THE FLU! So when I hear people not giving a flying f*** about staying home and social distancing, I get super angry. Like fine, if you don’t care about yourself, that’s one thing. But if you get it, you likely won’t know for about 14 days which means you’ll be walking around interacting with people for 14 days infecting them. And some of those people may be immuno compromised. That’s just a shitty thing to do. Experts from around the world are literally shouting from the rooftops that we need to stay home as much as possible in order to slow this thing down. So stay at home. For the love of God, stay at home.

You guys know I don’t get political on here, but you also know that I’m not a fan of our current administration (and that’s putting it lightly). From what I’ve read and from using common sense, I’ve gleaned that the president didn’t take appropriate actions at the right time. He refused testing kits from the WHO, he had his son-in-law who’s not a doctor ‘researching’ the Coronavirus and advising him, he kept discounting it and saying the flu is a lot worse (it isn’t!), etc. And he did all this to keep the economy afloat because it’s an election year. ARE YOU F’ING KIDDING ME?! You mean to tell me you saw what was happening around the world, and you chose to do nothing?! It’s disgusting. If you look at countries like Singapore and a couple of others, they took early action and really combated the virus by being proactive. And that’s despite being so close to China, the epicenter of COVID-19.

You can’t change the past, I suppose, so we should all focus on what’s happening now. Well, I can tell you that we don’t have enough testing kits and that our healthcare system is overwhelmed. Vishnu and I watched the president’s address on Friday declaring this a national emergency. First of all, no s***. But also, if you listen carefully, Trump basically just touts himself and talks around literally every important detail. Again, are you f’ing kidding me?! The American people need to see their leader take the reins on this thing and declare concrete actions, but instead, we have…Trump. Who doesn’t think we’ll need 5 million testing kits just so you know. UGH!

Ok, glad to get all of that off my back…

Putting all of that aside, my heart aches for so many people right now. People who don’t have access to food. Kids who may not get the two school meals they count on every day. Homeless people. People who can’t work from home. People who may lose their jobs as a result of this. People who are immuno comprised and/or older and at more risk. People who are small business owners. And the list goes on…

When I start to feel myself get stressed out about this, I remind myself that I’m very lucky. Kaiden’s daycare is closed for at least two weeks, so my day-to-day life is going to be insane, but at least I can manage it. The factors in play are somewhat in my control. Others are not so lucky.

I pray and send healthy vibes and strength to anyone who’s already been affected by this virus and anyone who will be. I pray for our healthcare workers who are essentially in the trenches every single day. I pray that people live by one word during this time – kindness. I pray this helps us see the humanity in every single being around us.

I hope you stay safe and healthy during this crazy time. Remember, stay inside, wash your hands, and be kind.

Written on March 16, 2020 Related:Uncategorized, Weekend

Weekend Report – the One Where We’re All Sick

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Guys! Every single person in our household is man down to some degree right now. Kaiden and I have colds, while Vishnu’s nursing a sore throat. Ick!

With that being said, I’m gong to keep this weekend report to a minimum, only highlighting key details.

Friday

Friday started off pretty typically – drop K off at school, Trader Joe/Target/library run, workout, lunch, A Million Little Things…

And then came the atypical. I went to the salon for highlights and a trim. LOVED the end result! I only go every five months, so it always feels like a little treat. New hair, who dis!?

The rest of the day was ok. Vishnu really didn’t feel good, so the evening was pretty low key. Essentially, we played, we ate, and we went to bed early.

Saturday

Saturday started with haircut for K and a Costco run.

Ummm…Costco was a madhouse. People are stocking up on everything under the sun, including toilet paper. Also, riddle me this – why do we need to stock up on water right now? This isn’t a natural disaster. It’s not like we go crazy every year around flu season. Look, I agree that Coronavirus is scary and unpredictable, but I think we’re all playing into the media frenzy a little too much.

Other highlights include another showing of Coco (yes, again…and yes, again I cried at the end!) and lots of horsing around on mama and dada’s bed.

Vishnu and I also met up with our friends for a fun dinner at Lula Cafe. This is a top rated Chicago restaurant with tons of veggie options. For my main entree, I enjoyed a mushroom and toasted buckwheat dish that came with this delicious sauce and lots of Parmesan. Yum! If you live in the Chicago area, I highly recommend checking this place out.

Sunday

With the time change, K was up closer to 7:45a, which was a nice change of pace, even though it didn’t make a huge difference for us (we didn’t go to bed until midnight).

Because we’re all under the weather, we decided to skip soccer altogether. Wanted to avoid any ‘why are you here?’ looks from the other parents!

It’s 1:58 pm as I type this out. So as of right now, our plans for the rest of the day involve a potential trip to the park (or even just a walk around the neighborhood), another movie, and hopefully another early bedtime.

I hope you had a healthier weekend than us!

Written on March 9, 2020 Related:Weekend

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