Friday Things #477

1. Everyone is officially done with school for the summer!! On Joseph’s last day, I asked him if he was so excited, and he said, “Yeah, kind of, but also a little sad. I really liked second grade.” He said at the end of the day, he and his three best friends had a big group hug and that when the final bell rang, everyone in their class said, “Noooooooo!”. I’m so grateful that he had a wonderful year of growth, learning, and good friendships.

2. Truthfully, I can’t remember ever being even the slightest bit sad for school to be out for summer 😂😂 But as a parent, I find myself so emotional at the end of the school year, just looking back at how much they’ve grown and how quickly yet another year has melted away.

3. Dominic goes in for another round of treatment next week. It’s been a very nice break for him (and all of us!); praying that the week is fairly uneventful, that his nausea is well managed, and he doesn’t spike a ton of high fevers.

He goes into clinic once a week to get his central line dressing changed and for labs, and he has so much fun, racing the child life specialist through the halls, and he especially loves when one of the therapy dogs makes its rounds 😊

4. Isabelle has her first verrrrrrrrrry wiggly tooth! Everyone is very excited to see when it’ll fall out, ha!

She also had a lot of fun making homemade pizzas last weekend :)

5. Let’s talk Aldi! What are your favorite things to buy there? I have run in for specific things over the last few years, but my in-laws and aunt love it, so I’d love to give it a spin for weekly groceries. Give me all of your recommendations and shopping tips.

6. A question for you – when you are reading a recipe post and there is a video tutorial to go along with the recipe, where do you prefer to see that video? Towards the top of the post? At the bottom right above the actual recipe? I assume no one would want it in the middle ;-)

7. I have never been a big coffee drinker; no matter how much I try, hot coffee tastes so bitter to me unless I add a TON of flavor and sugar, which I prefer not to do. BUT! I love iced coffee; I don’t need very much sweetener or cream. It’s a much smoother flavor to me.

I shared a DIY iced coffee recipe a long time ago, but recently I saw Paige sharing this cold brew iced coffee maker, and I am SO intrigued! Has anyone tried something like this? You put the ground coffee in the center and then fill it with water, and it steeps in the refrigerator overnight, then you simply pour it when you want a cup.

8. Have you ever used hot cherry peppers in your cooking? I saw this article about The Secret Ingredient Italian-American Chefs Love to Use and realized I’ve never bought them and can’t remember my grandma or my in-laws ever using them either! Do I need to pick up a jar?

9. I’m working on a list of Father’s Day gift ideas to share this weekend since it’s only two weeks away; is there anything a guy in your life absolutely loves or can’t live without?! Share in the comments!

10. TGIF! Judith’s new favorite activity is crawling underneath the kids’ beds at bedtime ❤️