I cherish so many moments with my children. I wish I could capture them all and save them for later recall. We have shared some hilarious conversations lately. The questions kids ask are priceless. On today’s ride, the questions ranged from what are buggers made of to are there still dinosaurs in Africa. My favorite by far is the circular conversation about what is invisible fencing. Have you ever tried to explain that to a toddler? William asked if the fence pops up when the doggy comes out into the yard. Awesome! What creativity!
One of the many benefits, to having twins is the buddy system. The boys always have a playmate. Whether it’s building chair forts with EZ chair booby traps to plotting the best way to cover up someone’s wall art. There is never a dull moment in a house with two sets of twins.
Our summer days start early and stay busy until bedtime. I involve the kids in the household duties as much as I can. Because we are a team and they really enjoy helping out…most of the time. I start my day at 4:30 for a workout. At 6:15 the boys are up and ready for a smoothie. One of my strategies to staying on track with nutrition is planning. Smoothies are assembled the day before and ready to be blended without fuss early the next morning.
The typical summer smoothie for the kids includes: Swiss chard/carrot tops from the garden, fresh basil and mint, frozen berries, sliced cucumber from the garden, and half a banana. I also add hemp, chia, or sunflower seeds, greens powder, gelatin, magnesium, vitamin C, and probiotics. All I have to do in the morning is add water, blend and put a straw in it.
The boys drink their smoothies while I nurse the girls and get them dressed. Then it’s off for our bike ride! I always have baked pork liverwurst slices in the fridge which makes for a great pre-breakfast snack for the girls on our bike ride. I pull the girls in the wagon so I can have a free hand to assist two little cyclists on really steep hills. The boys ride between 3-3.5 miles which takes us 45-60 min, depending on how many stops we make.
Typically it’s Cameron’s keen eye who finds little treasures along the way. Like a box turtle or a giant leaf or a dead worm covered in ants.
Then of course as the ride goes on and it starts to get hot there are the inevitable itches that come up. Today for example, William had 3 itches so great that his helmet had to be removed for him to access the itch. Conveniently it was right in the middle of a hill. Now as a parent with two sets of twins I have learned to use my limbs in many ways. For example to accommodate the itch which of course required a sudden stop on a steep hill I had to block the wagon with my left foot and maintain support William’s bike with my right hip while giving Cameron an extra boost with my right hand. Talk about a core workout!! Have you ever tried pulling 50 pounds in a well used wagon while alternately boosting two tired little boys up a steep hill!
The boy’s get to choose their breakfast which is typically frittata with garden veggies, fruit salad and either pancakes or sausage. Does it like a lot of work for a kid’s breakfast, why not just have a bowl of cereal or a bagel? I want to make eating fun and I feel like it encourages them to consistently make good choices. They love fritatta so I make sure to add in a few chopped eggplant, peppers and onions along with fresh herbs. That way they get use to both the texture and the flavor.
The day before I always make sure to have the fruit salad prepared so it makes assembly easy the next morning. I have a fantastic teff and buckwheat pancake recipe that I will share soon. It’s easy to make and freezes really well. Sometimes breakfasts are olives, avocado, pancakes and yogurt. It all depends on their “mood”.
After breakfast we either have errands or kitchen work.
The new favorite job is pitting cherries! It doesn’t always work, but more often than not, if the boys are involved in their food prep, they are more likely to eat it. I hope everyone out there reading is enjoying your real food prep time with your kids! They are paying closer attention than we think!!