Here’s our Big Family Food and Fun: May 10-16, 2026 post!
We enjoy a Sabbath rest from Saturday evening through Sunday evening – so I turn off my computer on Saturday afternoons and miss posting some of these pictures. I’ll catch up on our last Saturday activities before launching into our new week!
May 9
On Saturday, Matt, Asa, and Justus took the kids to Library Storytime and a Train Show all morning. I stayed home and hosted a Bridal Shower for our friend Olivia. Eva came early to help, and all of these lovely ladies pitched in to prepare a sweet feast of muffins, fruit, and cheese/meat/cracker trays.
We filled our living room with Olivia’s friends and family. It was a beautiful morning.
We rested and played outside all afternoon, then went to Keith’s final soccer game of the season.
Before leaving for soccer, I had made some Taco Meat. As soon as we arrived back home, we made simple Nacho Boats before bath and bedtime.
Getting everyone’s teeth brushed is a huge nightly endeavor. Elias happened upon the scene and Josie asked him to brush hers. It was very sweet. :)
Big Family Food and Fun: May 10-16, 2026
I’d been feeling under the weather on Saturday, but pushed through to enjoy the day. Then on Sunday morning, Mother’s Day, I woke up feeling much worse. I was super sad and tried to get ready to go to church with the family but finally gave in to illness and went back to bed. :(
Not only were all of our kids going to come for Sunday lunch to celebrate Mother’s Day, but the Nabb family was in town – our dear friends who had moved from Lincoln to Texas a few months ago. So we were supposed to celebrate with them also. I texted everyone to assure them that I was sick but not contagious (my lungs are very susceptible to infection due to mold exposure in college, and I’d gotten into some dust a few days prior). So everyone still came to lunch, and I was so, so grateful! I sat while everyone else pulled out and prepped the food for us to all enjoy!
This was a great, simple meal. Last week I’d purchased three Rotisserie Chickens from Sam’s and Matt had taken it all off the bone and frozen it. We had it thawed and ready on Sunday to make Chicken Wraps with tortillas, chicken, lettuce, tomatoes, cucumbers, cheese, guacamole, and a variety of dressings. The Nabbs brought fruit and angel food cake for dessert and we had a wonderful feast!
That night, Kelsey suggested we meet at Mahoney park and Eva suggested we pick up pizza on the way. It was a PERFECT plan to finish off our Mother’s Day together. Friends met us there too, which made it extra special.
On Monday, I was feeling a bit better but very low on energy. Emma came as usual, so I took advantage of her being here and I rested upstairs all morning and part of the afternoon.
Matt was watering our lawn that afternoon and we let the kids run through the sprinkler when they got home from school.
Matt used the leftover Chicken Wrap ingredients from Sunday to make super tasty Quesadillas for dinner that night.
On Tuesday morning, I felt much better. Josie helped me make a batch of Nutella Oat Bars.
I took advantage of the oven being hot and baked a pan of Stick of Butter Rice at the same time that we baked our bars.
Josie and Auggie had ABA therapy that morning, so they stayed home with Matt while Acacia and I ran some errands. I got my hair trimmed, then we went to Aldi. I almost never take kids to the store with me any more so this was a big privilege for Acacia.
She was excited to show everyone her Great Clips balloon when we got home. :)
After we got the girls off on the preschool bus that noontime, Auggie and Hopelyn played in the quiet backyard for a while before their naps. Ope, I mean before Hopelyn’s nap. Auggie decided not to nap that day. He’s getting older and we’re starting to see the beginning of nap transition for him. I have mixed feelings about this. :/
Kiya and Brayden were both able to go to our weekly Food Distribution this week. We’ve had school music concerts for three weeks in a row, so we’d had to juggle those into our schedule the past several Tuesdays. It was good to get back to our normal routine with Food Distribution this week!
Back at home, Matt made two boxes of Orange Chicken from Sam’s for dinner. We ate it with Salad and the Stick of Butter Rice I’d made earlier in the day.
Before bed, I made a batch of Flourless Chocolate Banana Muffins to enjoy the next day.
The kids discovered all of the sun hats that had been stored away and the girls have been looking so cute in them!
Matt and Acacia watered part of the lawn area by our Little Free Pantry on Wednesday morning. Our neighbor stopped for food and a chat.
Arrow spent the entire day with us which was a fun treat! He got to go to school pick up with us that day!
I grilled Hamburgers for dinner that night with sides of Fries and Pickles. It was date night for Matt and me, so dinner needed to be simple!
After we got the kids settled with their dinner, their ABA therapists, and Elias, Malorie, and Malachi – Matt and I headed out. We ran into Costco for diapers and gift cards for some high school graduates. Well, gift cards for the graduates. Diapers for our kids. Was that not clear?
Then we grabbed Panera drinks with our subscriptions and took them to a park where we took a long walk together before heading home to get kids to bed.
On Thursday morning, our 7-year-old Bonus Buddy got dropped off at our house. He plans to be here throughout the entire summer and we are all very excited about this!
Josie and Auggie were hard at work with their ABA therapists, so Bonus Buddy and Acacia spent the morning playing together.
In an effort to get ahead for Sunday Lunch, I made a big batch of Crunchy Ranch Chicken Strips.
Late morning, Auggie had a meeting with his special ed teacher from Early Development Network.
Hopelyn had gotten dropped off and was hanging with the big kids watching for the preschool bus.
After they left, Auggie found our neighbor kid’s super cool helmet and came over to show Hopelyn.
She was very impressed, of course.
So impressed, in fact, that she needed a turn with it. :)
With the pending arrival of Bonus Buddy, we’d ordered a new set of bunk beds for the boys’ room. Matt had been working on building it all morning. When it was Auggie’s naptime, he decided he’d rather help Daddy build the bed than go to sleep.
Bonus Buddy had been counting down the hours until his favorite side-kick, Keith, got out of school. Finally, finally…it was school pick-up time! There were lots of smiles at their reunion.
For dinner that night, I made Smoked Chicken Legs, Mac and Cheese, and Green Beans.
Brayden was incredibly helpful as he and Matt finished assembling the bunk beds that evening.
Friday morning, I made a big effort to get caught up and ahead in the kitchen. After spending about an hour cleaning and washing yesterday’s dishes, I did a lot of baking. Auggie was very happy to help me.
We made a double batch of Breakfast Cookie Bars, Crustless Cheesecakes, a Spinach Cake, and two boxed mixes of Blueberry Muffins. It felt incredible to get so much done that morning!
Matt took Acacia to Speech and Physical Therapy before preschool. Then he set up new sprinklers in an effort to help our grass look a little bit better. Here are two little boys trying to decide if they are brave enough to walk through the cold water.
That afternoon, Auggie helped me teach Bonus Buddy about our Little Free Pantry. It was so sweet to watch Buddy get excited later in the day when neighbors stopped by to take some food!
After school, Keith and Bonus Buddy got drenched riding their bikes through the backyard sprinkler.
Out of time and energy, I did nothing but bake three frozen pizzas for dinner that night.
Saturday was a full day with Library Storytime and a Track Meet for Keith. Eva and Kelsey met me at the library, which was super helpful because Matt had taken Keith to do his field event at track. We all met up back at home, then all of us headed to watch Keith compete in his running events.
I’ll share more about that next week!
