I love the ocean any time of year. But, the beaches near us are often cold and windy in the summer. Even cloudy beach days are beautiful….especially with dear friends. We got to visit with our sweet friends from Minnesota who were out for a beach vacation with their family in Half Moon Bay. It was a Sunday Sabbath…beautiful, restful, heart warming. We hope...
Today I rocked it. Whitney’s birthday is coming up and I actually did something to prep for the party more than a week in advance! We’re having an ABC themed party (Alphabet, people. My Pinterest research taught me that apparently there is another type of ABC party out there…you college and otherwise eccentric folk can rest assured knowing the dress code is indeed family...
FIRST trip to the Dollar Store for the kids (and first in a long time for me) – wow, what an easy place to spend money! Our finds brought on a few other firsts….. FIRST tea party, attended by our new spiders. FIRST home recorder jam session….yes, Whitney plays it however she wants. I liken this to something in between Kenny G, and...
The last couple of days have really stunk. So today I’m working on thinking happy thoughts…with memories from the last few weeks. Happy is….baking zucchini chocolate muffins and bringing the special treat to daddy while he works. Mickey Mouse pancake breakfast with cousins (a.k.a. the Gramby Special) Polka-dot swimsuits and princess float rings. Watermelon and water tables Sidewalk art with nieces and first swings with...
Friends. Do THIS with your zucchini …especially if you have one that hid under a leaf and grew to the size of a baseball bat. You won’t regret it. Zucchini Chocolate Muffins 3 eggs 1 3/4 c. white sugar 1/2 c. canola oil* 1/2 c. apple sauce* 1/3 c. unsweetened Dark cocoa powder 1 1/2 tsp. vanilla 2 1/2 c. grated zucchini 1...
My apologies to any non-parents out there, this is a potty post. We have been fully engrossed in a Diaper Detox experiment. We cut diapers cold turkey (while awake) on Wednesday afternoon….and spent 72 hours hunkered down with paper towels, Chlorox wipes and potty songs. I’ll spare you too many details but will say it’s been quite the adventure in patience and endurance, and...
Early Start……starts early. Try as I may, I can’t seem to ever get us all there on time with shoes on and diapers clean. I’m starting to think the pigs might fly if I did. Nevertheless, we have a packed three hours of development fun twice a week. Here’s a little window into Whitney’s Early Start days. WORK TIME. When we arrive, we grab...
Happy belated 4th everyone! We’ve got another type of independence going on here. Freedom = Highchair free for 2 weeks now, I still can’t believe it when the kids spoon out their own Cheerios and milk. Dylan says “OWN” all the time, as in I want to climb in my carseat, go upstairs, brush my teeth on my own! It’s actually helped with the...
This smoothie formula (not really a recipe but a collection of principles) is decades tested and brother-in-law approved (he still talks about when we first met and I made him a real smoothie).ESSENTIAL INGREDIENTS (2 modest servings) 1 Banana (sweetness and texture, can be fresh or frozen) 1 (6-8oz) Yogurt (vanilla & fruity taste the best, but plain can work with enough flavor support...
For the past two years Tyler and I have taken the challenge to make New Years Goals. While I am an excellent list maker, and a big idealist and dreamer….deciding on a few things to commit to prioritizing is not easy. My 2012 goal was basically to survive – I was drowning in the daily drum of a 2.5 month old and a 16...
From Family Feasts for $75 a Week (my translation). makes one 9×13 pan, takes 40 min. (plus time to cool) Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line a 9×13 with parchment paper. In a large bowl, cream together: – 1 cup (2 sticks) butter, softened at room temperature – 1 cup firmly packed brown sugar Add and mix: – 1 egg – 1 1/2 tsp vanilla...
The week in reverse…. Today we enjoyed the longest day with lots of outside. Splashing in the backyard before dinner. Morning at the beach with Auntie Jess and Lady Dog. Lovely lovely day. Mom! Put the camera down! We’ve been here all of three minutes and haven’t eaten anything yet [signing and saying Eat]. I concede with the 11am lunch….Whitney puts new meaning...
It’s about time to pause and appreciate how time (and water and sun) makes my garden grow. It’s getting crowded in there and we’re on the verge of harvesting season! Here are two pictures showing the left box and the right box from first planting (end of April), mid May, and now Mid June. Yay! Lots of seeds grew. There is a big empty...
Tyler, I love how you do Daddy. …with snuggles, and tosses up in the air, sleeping giants, and kiss-chases. With walks, stories, strength and comfort in times of pain, guitar and piano lessons, talking about the wonders of nature, pulling bike trailers, singing songs to help with calming. With building block towers and typing ABC’s, signing questions, and practicing prayers. We are lucky to...
In my second trimester with Whitney, about a week before I had any idea anything might be “off,” a friend just happened to send me a link to Kelle’s blog (Enjoying the Small Things). It was the delivery room story of finding out her daughter, Nella, had Down syndrome, and it was REAL, very touching. I bawled my eyes out. After finding out about...
We’re still in the afterglow of a great trip to see family in Colorado this past weekend. The piles of laundry are disappearing and the kids are back to taking good naps, and finally I’ve gotten to go through my photos and reminisce some of the good times. We haven’t been on a plane with them since Christmas…and travel days can be tough…here are...
We participated in an exhibit called Testify at our church that showed this morning. Our story and the image they used are below. Delighted laughter and the thumping of dancing bare feet sound from of our backyard deck. Our eyes meet and the familiar twinkle says what we don’t have to: we love our kids. Praise God, for life is good. If feels good...
I’ve taken it upon myself to do some family screenwriting lately. It goes like this:Act 1 Scene 1: garage door lifts, child runs shrieking with glee toward the street as mother frantically chases yelling all combinations of ‘stop!’ ‘Freeze’ ‘wait!’ ‘[name!!]’. Child turns a corner into neighbors yard and dares mother to hurdle waist-high shrub. And on and on.Act 1 Scene 2: [sound of...
Let it be known that I’d like to be done with hospitals and funerals for a while. While I’m at it, I’ll add breakups and unemployment to the list. Done. Thank you. The mess of things gone south for those close to us is enough to make one wonder if it’s contagious. Nevertheless, the importance of the shadows in life is not lost on...
There really is nothing like a dance party to de-stress. Especially when it’s toddlers. Especially during the after-dinner mania. The past week has been a rough one. Very needy kids, tired mama, and hearts carrying heavy stuff going on with close family and friends. Thank God for the levity amidst the mess. Next time I think I’ll DJ. And then join in and show...
Having Down syndrome automatically qualifies Whitney for government funded early education services. Since birth she has met with a teacher and/or specialists each week through the county’s Early Start program. Over the last month or two we have been preparing to enter the public school system. (!!!) When Whitney turns 3 she “graduates” out of the county program and into a pre-K special classroom. ...
I love gatherings with loved ones! We have been lucky to have a few special visits lately… First, the amazing and wonderful Aunt Patty and Uncle Bruce (were there ever two people more kid-fun?) it was a tutu and boots day. their visit included a BBQ with other fun [local] family…cousins copying and chasing each other through the grass while adults relaxed...