Nikki Stevens

One of my FAVORITE videos of the twins! 🥰 They’re ‘sharing’ their big brother’s marbles (which they’re not supposed to have) while “hiding” in the gap between the coffee table & the wall. I hear a ‘Thank you’ and the girls think they’re saying ‘no Logan’ because Logan would say no for taking the marbles but idk 🤷‍♀️

That coastline 😍 We spent a lovely few days in Santa Barbara last week and I miss these views. #californiasummer #beachlife #santabarbara

Hot day hack to keep juice pops cold! #summerhack #hotdayhack #staycool

First day of school ➡️ last day of school 2021/2022 I’m so proud of how far these kids have come. School’s out, let’s play! #summertime #makingmemories #twinsisters #siblings #momplusjoy #SanDiegoFamily #socalmom

Oh summer please hurry. ☀️ Luckily here in SoCal we have access to warm temps and blue skies most of the year. It’s been weeks since our last beach trip and we’re ready to go back! This morning, on day eleventy billion of quarantine, I booked *another* camping trip. I’m staying sane by looking forward to a summer of stops in the Grand Canyon, Zion, Santa Barbara and Big Sur. What are your summer plans? #thebeachiscalling #bringbacksummer #SanDiegoFamily #readyforsummer #twinsisters #beachdays #findthegood #outdoorfamily #motherhood #coastalvibes

Yesterday in my gratitude journal there was a prompt asking for what I was looking forward to. I wrote “I am looking forward to my jog.” Which was a flat-out lie. Really, I was hoping to trick myself into liking something I didn’t want to do. I 1,000% hate jogging. I’m not one of those people who get enjoyment from the self-torture of pushing your body to its limits. Nope, nu-uh. Hard pass. If you’ve seen my stories I refer to my workouts as my “stupid jog”, or “fine I’ll get moving but I’m not gonna like it.” But I do it anyway because gyms are expensive, fresh air is therapeutic, and plus I want to be healthy so I can have many more years with my family. Truth be told I am pretty grateful that I can run. My heart is strong, my joints don’t ache. Not everyone has a body that can withstand a jog, much less the free time to do it in. So because I understand the myriad ways that I am fortunate enough to even be able to go for a jog, I *guess* it’s something I can look forward to. As it turned out, the trail I had planned to run on that day was closed so I ended up at the harbor. Here, nature’s beauty did not disappoint. I still hate jogging. But it’s cheaper than a gym membership, and the views are amazing so I will keep at it. #howsthatformotivation #notarunner #workoutwhiner #thatviewtho #takemeoutside #fitnessover40 #runlikeamother #dailygratitude #oceanviews

They’re 9 & 7 so balloons are cheap & safe! #keepingkidsbusy #todayforplay #screenfreekids #cheapfun #easilyentertained #siblings #savemoney #funathome #cheapactivities #rainydayactivities #easypeasy #realmomlife #atleasttheyrenotfighting

Say ‘WREATH!’ I’m always trying to come up with creative ways to get the kids to smile. For a while all I had to do was say ‘fart’ and they’d crack up (unintentional butt pun), but I think I’ve overused that one. Hopefully we’ll see some REAL snow this winter. Maybe a trip to the mountains? It’s about 2 hours to Big Bear, and the last time I went in the winter there was a nasty snow storm as we were leaving. Turns out I’m not what you’d call ‘chill’ about headed down winding narrow icy roads along the cliffside of a mountain with no visibility. #neveragain It’s a miracle John still married me after that experience, haha. I definitely panicked the whole time. #holidaywishes #letitsnow #holidayseason #socalwinter #calilife #forahappymoment #snowday #my3littles #outdoorfun #reallifemom #merryandbright #wildandfreekids #ourmemories #magicofchildhood