Normally, I have an abundance of words. But this year I feel introspective and private. I haven’t posted as much lately. How did this gushing writer end up in this quiet place? Let’s review. (The links will take you to other stories/posts we’ve shared this year.) Photo from our talented friends at KLT Photography The start of 2015 […]
Affiliate links included for your convenience. I was sent a book for the purpose of this review, but I will be buying additional copies on my own. This review is honest; my commendation is sincere. As I think about our schooling choices for next year, I feel underwhelmed by the homeschooling curriculum options I’ve found and overwhelmed by the […]
This post was sponsored by Lionsgate as part of an Influencer Activation for Influence Central. I can’t handle the fact that The Hunger Games movie series is coming to an end. I can’t even handle it. I hear the haunting whistle song (you know the one) and my chest tightens and I can’t think about anything else […]
A few months ago, we packed our suitcases, loaded up the kids, and bravely boarded a train with grandparents, cousins, an aunt, and an uncle for an 11 hour train trip to Minneapolis and the Mall of America. How did we end up on this train trip? Well, with four kids four and under, our group decided we didn’t want to […]
I take thousands of pictures on each and every one of our trips. When we went to the Panama Canal earlier this year, I came home with 2,130 pictures. Our family’s first trip to Disney World? A modest 1,148. But the problem is that I rarely do anything with these beautiful pictures when we get home! After […]
Thank you Shout® for sponsoring this post. Have you experienced a new type of stain? Tell Shout® about it on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook. My kids love to get messy. But when we had three kids ages four and under in our home, I felt my tolerance for big messes slipping away. So as we adjusted to our new normal […]
I’m writing this during nap time of my baby’s third birthday. I tried to get her to promise me that she would stay two forever; sadly, she refused. I know that age two is supposed to be terrible, but I’m going to miss it. And that’s saying something since, for the ten weeks our foster […]
What happens when a foster child leaves? It’s been exactly one week since our foster tot left our home. I was at a work function last Thursday morning when I received a phone call from the Department of Child Protective Services. Our child’s case worker had an update on our case; our child would be […]
Some people might say that our neighborhood is storybook quaint. We have wide sidewalks, old trees, a location that’s within biking distance from everything we need, a simple playground, and a huge group of kids who get together regularly for planned and impromptu play dates, bike rides, and snow shoveling parties. A lot of these things are happy accidents, […]
A few months ago, our little family unexpectedly ended up on a train from Spokane, Washington to Chicago, Illinois. Wait. Hit the brakes. Back up. We “unexpectedly” took this trip? How does someone (especially a planner like me) “unexpectedly” end up on a train across the country? I know it’s hard to believe, but this trip was spontaneous, last-minute, random, and completely […]
