Lucas Corner Farmhouse

     Way back in 2010 (seriously, that feels like a couple of years ago....but it was 14 years ago!) I started tracking my progress of running/biking 365 miles in 365 days on a page on this blog that I never published. (I didn't get too far haha!) I just stumbled across that page and decided since I started running again this week, it's probably a good time to try that goal again.      I was never a big long distance runner, but I did train for a 5K roughly once a month for a few years while in college (and ran a one mile fun run with my Dad the morning of my wedding.)         If I wasn't racing in a 5K, I would just challenge myself to run the 3.1 miles around campus or around town once a month or so (in between my regular runs with a friend where we finished our run with a trip to the coffee shop!). In the mix of all the 5Ks, we signed up for one half marathon .....what a terrible idea haha! We had fun the day of the race, but lea...

When you search "kids eat free Birmingham" you'll get several articles with lists like this one. However, I noticed some were put together 5 or 6 years ago, or only shared specials from 2020. Some of the places that previously offered deals to let kids eat for free once a week have moved towards rewards apps for accumulating points for free or discounted meals, but there are still some out there with scheduled kids' specials! I've listed the ones I've found alphabetically, and updating the list as I find out more information! Websites are linked (or social media pages) with locations or more information on specials in the name of each restaurant. Call ahead to verify any specials, as they could change at any time. Baumhowers  - Tuesday , 1 free kid meal per adult meal of $10 or more Big Whiskey's  - Tuesday Brusters Ice Cream  - Free Baby Cone for kids under 40" tall Denny's  - Kids eat free with adult entree purchase of $6 or more, but days vary,...

When school is out for all our friends, we're always looking for something fun to do together at one of our houses or around town. I've been putting together a list of fun events in our area (Jefferson/Blount/Walker/Cullman counties) so we will never be bored! There's no way we can be at all of these, but I'm keeping them on my radar. If you know of something else that I've missed, leave it in the comments. I'll be updating this post as I find out more information on events and adding registration links as they are available, so make sure to check back often! At the bottom of this post, you'll find a calendar you can download and print for the months of June and July! :)

I'm working on putting together a list library events, church events, and community events this summer (Find that here!) . But for the days when you want to be at home, here is a growing list of simple, but fun activities you can do at home to keep kids entertained on rainy days or when school is out. I've included some affiliate links from Amazon to hopefully help you find some good deals. If you click on them and buy anything (not just what I've linked!), I get a super small commission at no extra cost to you. I hope this helps you prepare for a fun summer with your kids!! Contractor Paper  - I'm starting here because this is *key* to helping for easy clean up for some of the activities I'm adding at the bottom of this list haha! You can get  contractor paper/kraft paper/butcher paper on Amazon  in different widths ( we have this one for covering a smaller space ), but the best deal is to run to Home Depot or Lowe's and spend  under $20 for a BIG roll !  Harb...

   I'm attempting to post our  meal plans each week....mostly so I can refer back to them later! If you want to see all my   previous meal plans   (some are monthly, some are weekly), you can see them   here . Future ones will be tagged too if you want to bookmark that link. I typically make sure to include some meals designated for leftovers to hopefully reduce the chance of forgetting about food in the back of the fridge, but this week we'll be eating out more at the end of the week and over the weekend and I don't want food to go bad, so I only planned for one night of leftovers and picked meals that don't typically leave much left to keep. We'll be doing most of our cooking Sunday through Thursday. Breakfasts tend to switch between cereal & oatmeal or granola, with the occasional muffins or cinnamon rolls thrown in. As everyone is waking up, they can fix their breakfast with some coffee or hot cocoa, and pick out a book or quiet activity like colori...

Ask Adam how many loaves bricks of bread he has sampled over the last 15ish years that I've tried making. It's been....a lot haha! MamaRie always made bread making look so easy! She had at least one sourdough starter in the kitchen at all times and was making bread for every get together (or just because) and experimenting with different recipes. Cheese bread, Rosemary bread, and Pepperoni bread were pretty popular with me and my sisters. I have some sourdough starter trying to grow on my counter....but I have to say MamaRie was a lot better at it than me haha! I haven't given up on it, but it's not  my go-to for sandwich bread right now. Once I had two kids, Grandma gave me her bread machine because she said I was quickly going to run out of time to do all the kneading and rising necessary to keep bread cooked for two growing boys. I used that machine until it finally gave out on me! (Then I got a new one for my birthday from Bruce & Linda!) I think anyone that lo...

 I'm going to try to start posting my meal plans each week....mostly so I can refer back to them later! If you want to see all my previous meal plans (some are monthly, some are weekly), you can see them here . Future ones will be tagged too if you want to bookmark that link. I always make sure to include some meals designated for leftovers to hopefully reduce the chance of forgetting about food in the back of the fridge. Breakfasts tend to switch between cereal & oatmeal or granola, with the occasional muffins or cinnamon rolls thrown in. As everyone is waking up, they can fix their breakfast with some coffee or hot cocoa, and pick out a book or quiet activity like coloring to do while eating while we wait for the day to get started.