Mirepoix

I actually had plans this past weekend to go out with friends, something that, honestly, doesn’t happen all that often anymore since so many of my friends have moved away. Unfortunately, the plans cancelled and nobody else was around so my weekend quickly shifted from an exciting one to one with literally zero on the calendar. I was initially bummed but ended up making the most of it. I read a ton, went to the cute wine shop for fun bottles instead of the convenient but limited store downstairs, got really invested in The Real Housewives of Miami, and planned a game night for Saturday so it wouldn’t feel like same old same old. This week has been stressful because Finn has decided to take up vomiting at daycare as his new hobby. Hoping we can get that sorted out ASAP so we can all get back to normal.

I didn’t want just another Saturday night that felt zero percent special. It’s not like I did anything groundbreaking and the majority of the evening was business as usual, but we did a few things that made the night stand out. I made a meat and cheese board, we had some special drinks (paired wine and manhattans), set the ambiance with fresh flowers and a candle, and played a game (Bananagrams) for an hour instead of just watching tv silently next to each other the whole night. Just knowing that would put that little extra effort into the evening was enough to improve my whole mood.

Finn is now 15 months and I still haven’t given in to a house overrun with toys. We have a ton of books a single basket of toys hidden in the corner, and then I’ll make simple activities with random doodads around the house. I found this hack on TikTok to make a sensory bag with pieces of tin foil in a ziplock with water and it kept him occupied for longer than most toys we’ve purchased. This cost us no money and is easily thrown away when he’s over it.

I love a flea market. I really love a flea market that has good food. The Grand Bazaar has plenty of yummy options and on Sunday I tried Mao’s Bao for the first time. $13 (including tax) gets you six dumplings of your choice (I got two each of the lamb, beef, and pork). The bao are quite large so this was a filling lunch and while I was initially concerned that the thick dough dwarfed the meatball inside, I found the dough itself to be infused with a ton of flavor. It was the perfect fuel for perusing vintage items.