Favorite New Blog

I found a new blog I like so much that I'm posting about it. You just gotta check out Dinner a Love Story. It's a blog about "helping parents figure out how to get family dinner on the table" without relying on packaged foods or being too focused on homemade perfection.

The author, Jenny, has the same feeling about food and family dinner that I have. And her post about the 6 rules of a family dinner gave me permission to let myself off the hook until the kids are a little older.

I really want to put her bumper sticker on the swagger wagon.



Do you think it's too little "professional business person" and too much "hippy Mom?"

Grandparents' Fix

I'm so behind on blogging and photo sharing that the grandparents are complaining. Here's a Charlee fix!

I wasn't planning on writing anything tonight because I'm soooo tired. But uploading the videos takes a while. It's the perfect time-box for a few thoughts about Baby Charlee.

• She's cooing, gurgling, and drooling a bunch right now. Her smile is big, bright and easy.
• Her hair is still red, eyes still blue.
• We think she looks more like Claire than Kate.
• She loves watching her sisters do anything. Charlee's eyes are always on them.
• I'm sooo tired because she's still up 3 times a night. In bed by 7 or 8, up around 11, 2, and 5. I can't wait for a few more months to pass.
• The poor kid has wicked bad eczema. She's mostly happy, but when she gets to scratchin', she does it relentlessly. I've given up dairy and soy in hopes that it may give her some relief.
• We can't imagine life without her!
  

Camp Opa & Nana - Week 2

We continue to have fun at Opa & Nana's. We've had lots of adult help--Opa, Nana, Dad, Aunt Tracy, and Uncle Tom have all shared in the parenting. Here are highlights of the last week or so.

Tune in next week for "What I Learned About My Kids on My Summer Vacation."


Good friends, Maisie and Audrey, visited. With four girls, the screaming was ear splitting at times. They enjoyed a pillow fight with Spencer.


Lisa and Nana attempted to wrangle the girls for a photo, but this is as close as we got. From the left: Audrey, Squeaks, Maisie, and Kate.


We celebrated Father's Day with Opa and Uncle Tom. Opa enjoyed 3 of his grandkids romping on his lap that morning.


Kate, Claire, and Owen enjoy breakfast on the screen porch. Owen spent the whole weekend with us. It was really fun to see him interact with the girls. He especially liked watching and playing with Kate.


Opa & Nana have a huge covered area and garage on the first floor that we used for bike riding among other things. Here's Kate making a "road block" for the riders, Claire and Owen.


Claire can't reach the pedals, so she pushes with her feet. Very Fred Flinstone-esque. Owen can't reach the pedals either, so Opa pushes him.


Charlee and I are usually sideline observers.


We haven't had a lot of River time because it takes a man-to-man defense with the kids. On one of the River outings, Nana supervised the building of a dam. After Owen and Claire figured out that the object WASN'T to knock over the rocks, they were successful.


Our favorite cousins spent the day at the camp house (just a short walk or truck ride from Opa & Nana's house). We joined them for lunch, dinner, and some River time. Here's a photo of all the kids except for Charlee. It was quite a process to gather the bunch together. From the left: Cole, Claire, Camden, Owen, Grayson, Kate, and Blake (held by his Mom, Erin).


I have very fond childhood memories of stopping at Dairy Queen on the way home from the River. I took Kate and Claire there one afternoon for dip cones (served in a cup). It was MESSY but fun.


Charlee and I met my friend, Bita, for lunch at Tacodeli. Yummmmyyy.


Opa and Kate gave Charlee a bottle.


Nana has cooked lots of yummy food. Squeaks and Kate inhaled her angel hair pasta with tomatoes and basil.