A New Routine, and an "Under the Weather" Weekend

We've settled into the routine of a medically retiring Seth, which means meat... it's what's for dinner, and that oftentimes, instead of racing to daycare pickup at the end of a long day, I find these guys by the pond fishing. Nobody, with the possible exception of the fish, is complaining about this new rhythm. F+F love their Dad Time, and I do not miss the race to not be the last parent in the door, out of breath and apologetic, at Wonder Years.

We finally got around to making Seth's belated birthday cake, and I wish I could say F+F did all the frosting:

Another infection, hopefully this one minor, had Seth laid up for most of the weekend, though, and I'm battling my annual case of strep, so the last couple days have looked a lot like the Nyquil commercial ("Moms [and Dads] don't get days off.") That meant pizza for dinner (F+F love Mod, and come up with some crazy combinations like this pineapple-corn-ham-sausage delight Finley devoured)

gratitude for Little Gym- coordinated birthday partying,

and a low-key trip to the car wash by way of Saturday activities, which turned out to be a real hit even if my car doesn't appear to be significantly cleaner.

Sunday I finally got antibiotics, and pulled it together enough for the long-promised trip to see the "real mermaids" on tour at the Fort Fisher Aquarium. Which was an actual dream come true for both kids. Ford can't stop talking about it, and went to bed last night clutching his autographed mermaid photo, even if he was way too intimidated to take part in the official photo.

Making the most of the loonnggg drive, we also managed a warm-if-windy beach picnic,

some exploring at Fort Fisher,

and a ride on the much-anticipated Fort Fisher- Southport "car boat," site of this hilarious and terrible pose that happened when I asked Finley to say cheese.

As soon as we drove off the ferry, the backseat of the car looked like this, and stayed that way the whole way home. #nailedit

Seth and I are both still under the weather today, so I'm playing catchup and gargling saline while the kids are at school, and hoping an R&R Monday is just what the doctor ordered (since I am definitely not getting two of these.)

The photo of the week has to be this one, our typical view at about 8:45; after the kids are tucked in and post- "one more book," at least "one more Superhero story," and a couple rounds of giggling from upstairs. They always seem surprised when we catch them "sneaking" downstairs.