Halloween 2020 Ideas

Halloween is one of our favorite holidays!  We go all out with decorations, we usually have a party and invite the girls' friends, we have our favorite Halloween movies that we watch throughout October -- from Boo to You, Winnie the Pooh to Hocus Pocus!  We make it a month-long celebration.  Fall is my favorite time of year, the house is cozy, the weather is cozy, it's the start of the holiday season.  Our little New England town sets 2 hours for trick-or-treating on Halloween -- usually 5:00 to 7:00pm.  We have the kids come early, we have pizza and munchies, then head out for trick-or-treating.  We have no sidewalks on our street, and our town basically has 2 big streets that kids trick-or-treat on.  One is around the corner from us and there are some houses that give out candy along the way.  The 2 main streets go ALL OUT.  I mean, haunted houses, fire pits out front, hot cider, donuts, hay bale mazes, ghosts that fly out from the top of someone's barn, one man even adjusts all of his shutters on his 2 story home to make it look haunted and he dresses as Dracula.  It's so much fun for the kids -- and adults!  

Things are a little up in the air, to say the least this year.  It would not be a surprise if towns did not have trick-or-treating.  Or, if parents decided it was just safer to skip it this year.  There certainly are safety measures that can be taken - wearing face masks, hand sanitizer after each house, kids opening bags for homeowners to drop candy into with no contact. 

 

Last year's brownies!

Our plan for this year is what I'm calling "Reverse Trick-or-Treating."  The girls are still going to get dressed up but instead of trick-or-treating in town, we are going to put together goody bags and drive to friends' and family and drop our treats off to them.  The girls are excited and it will be something fun and different to do.  And we are still decorating, we'll still carve pumpkins, we'll still watch our Halloween shows all month.  The girls want to reverse trick-or-treat and then come home and have the party foods we would usually have.  My youngest, an avid baker, wants to have a cookie decorating contest, and she wants to watch her first "scary" movie.  My eldest is on board with all of that but also wants to watch Rocky Horror Picture Show.  Good thing it's on a Saturday this year -- it's going to be a BUSY day!!

Whatever you do, try to make the best of these crazy times we are living in and try to make it festive for your kids but also yourself - these are stressful times - have some fun!

Making Connections in a New Town

Moving to a new place can seem overwhelming - you are essentially starting life over, needing to figure out where to shop, eat, buy gas, go for entertainment, and meet people!  We moved from a city of about 250,000 people to a town with around 6,000 people.  We have been here a little more than 6 months and we are still finding our way around in some aspects, but all in all we are feeling quite at home which is a great feeling!  We had a few things in our favor -- we moved to a place where we have some family connections.  My mom's family is from New Hampshire, and I have an aunt and uncle about 90 minutes north of us, another aunt about 60 minutes to the east, a cousin and his family about 90 minutes south, and another cousin about 40 minutes away.  Already, we have seen all of them more this year than we have in the past few years combined -- this has been a real blessing for us!

The other thing that we have in our favor, is that we have two school-aged children -- when you have children in school, you have so many opportunities to make connections and meet new people.  Over the winter when I was in hibernation mode, one of the only times I braved the cold each week was to take my daughters to Sunday school and to church (another great place to connect with people!).  Through my daughters' Sunday school I was asked to help out with this coming year's youth ministry (much to my eldest daughter's chagrin...) which will help me get more involved in our new community and meet some people.

Our eldest daughter, Olivia, has made some wonderful friends through school and I have had some very nice conversations with a couple of her friends' parents either while exchanging our kids for sleepovers or while attending school functions.  One of the moms and I have a lot in common from working in the same field and we are looking forward to planning a girls night out for dinner! 

While Olivia has made a number of great friends and absolutely loves school, it's harder to tell if our youngest, Mackenzie, is making connections.  She keeps things more closely to the vest than her older sister, who will have filled you in on her whole life each day by bedtime (not complaining -- LOVE that about her and pray that she always feels that comfortable talking to us!).  The little one tells us things more on a need to know basis, so I've been worrying about how to get her connected and making friends.  My eldest plays an instrument and was able to join the school band right away -- that was a wonderful way for her to connect right away with kids who shared a common interest.  Most of her very close friends are in band with her and that has also given the rest of us a connection to the town because we go to the school concerts and also enjoyed seeing her march with her marching band in our town's Memorial Day parade. 

Our little one does not play an instrument -- she's in 2nd grade and the school does not offer music until 5th (not to mention she is adamant about NOT wanting to play an instrument!  We'll see...).  As I've mentioned before, I was a Girl Scout leader back in NY and I was looking forward to getting my little girlie involved in Girl Scouts -- another great instant way to connect!  When we first arrived, she was finding it to be enough of a change to go to a new school -- was not interested in getting back into Girl Scouts right away.  That was ok with me at that point because we were living in a sea of boxes and just getting acclimated to a new house, town, etc.  One day at Sunday school, I overheard a mom talking about her daughter being in Girl Scouts -- another tip for making connections in a new town, keep your ears open and don't be afraid to join in (politely, of course!) on other people's conversations!  ;)  I asked about her daughter's troop but found out that it is in another town (our church encompasses 3 towns) so I decided to keep looking for something more close to home.  At some point after that, I sent an e-mail through the Girl Scout website, expressing interest.  They responded about a week later and someone was supposed to call me, but I never heard from anyone.  At that point we had missed the cookie sale and I decided to wait and get her enrolled for next year.  Enter last week's science fair at my eldest daughter's school!  While talking to one of her friend's mothers (who I had met at Medieval Night at her school a few months ago), she was asking about how my girls were transitioning and somehow I mentioned Mackenzie and wanting to get her into Girl Scouts.  This mom has an older daughter who is not in Girl Scouts and two young sons (also, obviously, not in Girl Scouts...), and yet she happens to be friends with the leader of a troop of 2nd graders who happen to meet at my youngest's school!  (I know, note to self, next time just call the school and ask directly!)  We exchanged e-mail addresses and she e-mailed me her friend's contact info. 

Coincidentally, the same day that I received the contact info for the troop leader, my husband and I took Mackenzie to the town playground (her sister was recovering from a sleepover) and she ran into a little girl that recognized her from school.  They had a wonderful time playing together - for 2 hours! - and I ended up talking to the girl's mother and it turns out her daughter is in the same Girl Scout troop!  Now Mackenzie, who had been hesitant to go back to Girl Scouts, is super excited about it!  While the other mom and I were chatting, she also filled me in on things like where to go for 4th of July fireworks, a referral for a good pediatrician, ideas for birthday party entertainment, and we exchanged contact info so that our girls can get together for a play date.  I e-mailed the troop leader and while the troop is wrapping up for the year (not a surprise, I just wanted to get her in for next year), she invited my daughter and I to join them for their last meeting which is this Weds.  I also volunteered to help out with the troop, which will give me something fun to do with my daughter and also help me to connect with some other parents. 

We've really been enjoying making connections here and establishing roots in our new town, and I'm so excited that my little Mackenzie has the opportunity to make some connections and meet new friends like her sister Olivia has!  And the fact that my husband and I are meeting people through our girls -- all the better!  It's great to be friendly with the parents of your children's friends -- not only does it give you peace of mind when your child is hanging out at their home, but it gives you something in common to talk about when you see them! 

Fun at the Sock Hop!

Last night, after Grandpa & Gramby brought my littlest girlie back from Grandparents Night at her elementary school, we were off to our eldest daughter's middle school for their annual Sock Hop!  This was our second year attending, and it's a lot of fun!  Of course, my daughter and her friends never seem to do much dancing -- but the Sock Hop Committee puts on a great event!  For $8 for a family, there's a dj, pizza, snow cones, popcorn, floats -- you name it! They had great raffle prizes last night -- my girls naturally went for the sugar-filled ones -- thankfully we didn't win!  My little one was QUITE disappointed that she didn't win the gumball machine (and a BUCKET of gum!) -- so I think we know what will be the first thing on her birthday wish list...  They have great decorations -- including records strung up across the gym -- and the kids all come in costume.

Last year my daughter was able to fit into a previous year's Halloween costume and wore a poodle skirt.  She's grown about a foot this past year, so the poodle skirt's now a mini -- that will be put away in the back of her younger sister's closet!  She wore rolled up jeans, one of her dad's button-down shirts tied at the waist, her pink sunglasses from her old Halloween costume, and a scarf of mine tied around her neck -- she looked adorable, if I do say so myself!  This is her and one of her best friends -- they've been inseparable since the first grade!

One of the girls from my Daisy troop was there with her family, so my youngest daughter was thrilled to see a friend and they had a great time running around and playing together (again, not much dancing!).  She also saw a little boy from her kindergarten class -- they both smiled and said hi -- I think she's got a little crush!  :)  The school requires kids to come to the dance with an adult (wise choice!), so my husband and I enjoyed visiting with some parents that we have become friends with through our kids -- so a good time was had by all!

Mom's "Spa Night" - L'Bri Skin Care Party!

I have been absolutely on overload for the past week or so, between a million projects at work and a million projects at home! We have family coming to visit this week, my 5-year-old's "friend" birthday party tomorrow, a trip to Niagara Falls with family next week, and my 40th birthday party also next week. I've used this as a personal deadline to get a bunch of household projects done, which is my own choice, but has naturally added to my current stress level. One of my dear friends has recently started her own business as a L'Bri Pure n' Natural consultant, and I've been promising her since she started that I would host a party. Why not throw that into the mix right now, I thought! Well, all of the racing around to get ready was WELL worth it!

It turned out to be just 3 friends from work who joined me for what I advertised as a "Pamper Yourself" party. Myself and 2 of my friends are moms, and my other friend is a mom-to-be, expecting her first child in November. We had a GREAT time! It was just what we all needed to relax toward the end of a stressful week! I tried to help set the tone for a spa-like atmosphere by having soothing music playing. We set up in the dining room and for a centerpiece, again, I thought spa, so I placed a framed mirror on the center of the table (one that used to hang on the wall), and I went around the house and gathered up all of the ivory candles (but any color would work!) I could find. I placed those on the mirror and then lit them -- what an elegant, quick display! My friend Kristin, the L'Bri consultant, came over a little early and set up a table with all of her products. She had asked me if she could use my crockpot for the presentation, and she took a bunch of white washcloths, wet them, and put them in the crockpot to warm them up (again, going with the spa theme). The girls showed up and Kristin began her presentation, giving us mirrors to use to look at our skin, and bowls of water to help with wetting our hands and faces. She let each of us try an appropriate cleanser to clean the make-up off of our faces, and handed each of us a warm, wet washcloth to pat our faces with. SO soothing! Let me tell you, I think a few of us are planning to relocate the crockpot to the bathroom!!

Kristin let us test different products -- we tried a facial peel which exfoliated our skin, and some of us tried the Facial Masque which was fun because we sat around feeling like our faces might crack -- there were some laughs... But the results were amazing! We were all thrilled with the products and even more thrilled with how wonderful our skin felt (mine still feels great today!). But most of all, it was great fun to have a night just for the moms to relax and pamper ourselves. If you are near enough to contact Kristin to host your own show, I highly recommend it! And if not, I would definitely encourage you to put together your own spa night for yourself and your girlfriends! As moms, we are always taking care of the kids and the family -- it's a well-deserved (and sometimes overdue) treat to take care of ourselves!

Princess & The Frog Birthday Party

Today we celebrated my sweet baby's 4th birthday! (UGH...) It's SO painful to me that she is already 4 years old (well, officially in one week) -- honestly, it feels like just yesterday she was a little tiny baby -- time goes by too fast when you have kids! But enough of that! We had a beautiful day for a pool party -- Disney "Princess & the Frog" pool party to be exact! Last year she chose to have a Disney princess party (and I chose for it to be a pool party, because she has a summer birthday, and we have a pool!), and this year she wanted a "Tiana" birthday party.

When we were in NYC a couple of weeks ago she picked out a princess hat and dress, which she wore to the party today. What a cutie (if I do say so myself!)! The dress and the princess hat actually reminded me of the little princess outfit that Tiana's friend wears as a little girl listening to the story of the princess and the frog, in the beginning of the movie. My elder daughter said tonight that she thought her sister looked more like a "house elf" (Harry Potter fans, anyone?) than a princess, but I told her, "She felt like a princess and that's all that matters!" (Admittedly, the hat should stand up, but it flopped over occasionally -- cute, none the less!)

I had purchased green and purple star garlands and some green and purple curling ribbon and I made little tiaras for the girls to wear at the party. (This is a picture of Great Grandma and my 9-year-old, testing them out while I was making the tiaras Saturday night -- they make great models, don't they?) I picked the purple and green because they went with the colors of the movie, which takes place in New Orleans -- these are also traditional Mardi Gras colors -- through some gold in there and you could wear this for a Mardi Gras party! These are super easy to make and I made some a couple of years ago for my girls to wear for 4th of July, and they were still wearing them this year! The star garland was $.99 each at Factory Card Outlet and the curling ribbon was $1 at the Dollar Tree -- very inexpensive, but a cute, easy favor that most little girls would love!

I also had favor bags that I filled with a few fun things for the girls -- animal crackers (this was a 4-year-old's party -- I didn't want to have too much candy!), party-sized Playdoh -- I think I bought 1 container of 10 for $3.99, which took care of 5 goodie bags and I put 2 containers in each. A package of Princess and the Frog stickers (1 sheet in each bag), some plastic faux-gem rings for the girls to play dress up with, and my favorite -- a little plastic frog toy -- one of those little things on a spring that you push down and a couple of seconds later it pops up. Very cute -- lucked out at Factory Card Outlet and got those for $.25 each.

It ended up being a somewhat small party -- at least, not a lot of kids that were her age -- so, mostly our family and friends were entertained by catching up with each other chatting and, of course, swimming! If there had been more kids, I had planned to do a "duck pond" game, but with plastic frogs -- of course! I'm big on themes, and aside from the princess outfit and the tiaras and favors, I also had the Princess and the Frog cake and some Princess and the Frog paper products. One of my tricks to having a theme party and yet stretching my budget, is to shop wisely and be judicious with the theme items. The character plates, napkins, cups, etc. can really add up quickly and they are frequently sold in smaller sets (like 8) -- so you need to buy more! I was serving munchies and cake, so I wanted to be able to put out small plates and napkins for each part. I bought character plates and napkins for the cake and I bought lavender plates and napkins for the munchies. Sometimes I'll just get character plates and a complementary solid color napkin -- and always check the dollar stores, because sometimes you can find your plates or napkins there!

At first, I was disappointed that Factory Card Outlet (the closet party store to us) ran out of Princess and the Frog mylar balloons between Thurs night and today, but in the end, it saved me some money although I would have bought 2 or 3 at the most and rounded it out with (again) complementary solid color latex balloons. Instead, I just ordered the latex balloons. I spent $9.99 on a dozen -- on occasion in the past, I have purchased my own helium tank which you can get at the party stores or warehouse stores for around $19 - $24. This is a great deal IF you want/need a lot of balloons or, if you are having multiple parties around the same time. But, don't expect to buy the tank to use once this year and once next year -- it never holds the helium that long!

All in all it was a great day and aside from being overtired at the end of the day, I think my girl had a wonderful time with her family and friends!

Sleigh Ride!

The girls and I just got back from a very fun adventure with my friend Christine, and her 5-year-old daughter. Christine called last night to ask if we were interested in driving to Canandaigua to go on a horse-drawn sleigh ride! It's about a 40 minute ride from where we live, but we packed a lunch to eat on the way and the girls chatted in the back of the van while we chatted in the front. We went to the Granger Homestead & Carriage Museum in Canandaigua and on Sundays from January through March they offer 10 minute sleigh rides from 1 - 3pm. (It is weather dependent, so they advise that you call ahead!) But this was such a fun way to spend a winter, Sunday afternoon -- it was really a treat for us! If you are in the area and looking for something different to do, this is a great idea -- and very reasonably priced! The cost is $5 for adults and $3 for school-aged children (K - 12). My preschooler got to ride for free. That was $8 for my girls and I to ride, and when we paid they gave each child a free jingle bell and they also offer complimentary cookies and hot chocolate or tea. We were able to wait in a cute little renovated building that used to be a small law office -- fortunately, it was renovated with heat! So we were able to stay warm and enjoy our refreshments while waiting for our turn on the sleigh.

We brought our cameras (of course!) and got lots of great pictures. My 9-year-old brought her little video camera and she got to sit up front with the driver and she video taped the entire ride! What a great idea that was, because now we have that nice memory to share with Daddy (who had to work!) and we can hear all of the interesting stories that the driver told us on our ride. And, coincidentally, today is Laura Ingalls Wilder's birthday (she and Daddy are 100 years -- and 1 day -- apart!) so it was extra special for us to get to do something that we have read about her doing when she was younger! My girls wanted to wear their pioneer dresses and bonnets, but Mommy thought it was a little too nippy out today... They did bring their rag dolls! The Granger Homestead offers these rides in the summer, as well, so I'm sure we'll be back this summer -- bonnets and all! ;)

Laura Ingalls Wilder's Gingerbread Recipe

Last Saturday night my husband and I went to Chris and her husband Will's house for our gourmet club. The theme they came up with was "Pioneer Dinner" which turned out to be a wonderful theme for fall -- lots of great fall flavors like squash & apple soup, pork roast with homemade apple ketchup / catsup (and we learned that that is a process of cooking, not specifically just the familiar tomato ketchup). There were lots of other great things including homemade bread and Chris made us all take turns churning our own butter to go with the bread! (I know my husband will just LOVE this picture, but I knew my girls would appreciate seeing Daddy churn butter -- they've helped churn their own butter at Chrissy's!)

Chris assigned dessert to my husband and me, because she knew my 8-year-old would LOVE to help make the recipe she had chosen for us -- Laura Ingalls Wilder's very own Gingerbread! My girl was ecstatic, and of course she donned her Laura Ingalls Wilder outfit to wear while making it! It was really a pretty easy recipe and my girl did most of it, while I supervised and helped out occasionally if she needed it. She loves to cook and is at the age where she is a big help in the kitchen. She did a great job making Laura's gingerbread, and we all loved eating it! (She loved it too -- with vanilla ice cream on the side.) And a nice keepsake for our recipe box? Laura's recipe that we found on the internet along with a note that Laura wrote in her own handwriting to a fellow author! Here's a link to Laura's Gingerbread Recipe.

Enjoy!

A Girl's Best Friend

Recently my best friend and fellow blogger, Christine, began typing tributes on her blog to several of her closest friends all under the guise of gathering readers. What started somewhat as a joke, ended up turning into a really lovely expression of her heartfelt feelings for those she wrote about. And I was one of the lucky ones to be chosen! Now, she has turned the tables on us and asked us to write in her comment section about how we feel about her! I thought I would post mine here for all of you to read.

Chris and I have been friends since the 10th grade. What started as two girls chatting in Social Studies about boys, turned into the discovery of a lifelong friendship and sisterhood. Who would have thought that the cool girl (her) with the great jewelry and the funky haircut (very '80's -- short on one side, long on the other -- REALLY tough on us when we had lifesaving in gym class and did the hair pull technique...) would have anything in common with the prim and proper girl (me) with the tailored shirts and the ribbons tied in bows at the collar (I looked like a secretary when I was in the 10th grade...)? But something clicked and after a while we were inseparable. Obnoxiously so... We always had adventures - most of which I will not write on here - don't want to give my daughters any ideas! We'll tell our stories to our girls when they are older - 35? - and as we always do when we tell anyone our stories, we will laugh until we cry, and they will nod politely and look for the nearest exit.

We are fiercely loyal to each other, each of us holding grudges on behalf of the other one far past reasonably necessary. There are a couple of people out there that I have long since forgiven their transgressions against me, but they will forever be on Chris' "list!" There was a span of time that she was very quick with a specific finger in the car when that seemed to be called for ("Chrissy, finger!"), and another span of time where she was quick with a glass of water in the direction of whoever had wronged one of us. We both know each others secrets and dreams, we also can have conversations in shorthand -- we have this perfected to an art form!

I'll never forget my mother-in-law telling me that one of the most important relationships a woman can have is the relationship with her best friend. You can always lean on each other and get each other through life's ups and downs.

We have gone through some heartbreaking times together and cried rivers of tears. But we have also been there for each other during our most wonderful times - including the births of our daughters. And this wonderful friendship now includes our husbands and our daughters -- three little girls who love each other like family. And really, that's what we are -- family.

Rewind Queen - The Sequel

For many years, I have dubbed myself the “Rewind Queen.” Back in “the day” (way back when we all listened to cassette tapes) I was known to play a song that I liked, rewind it, play it again, rewind, play – you see a pattern forming here, right? The most famous example of this, in my family, is the year that my best friend Christine came on vacation with my dad, my stepmother Bridgett and me. My dad has always had a sailboat (my entire life, anyway), and so when I was growing up our vacations were sailing on the boat around Lake Ontario. Kind of like camping, but on the water! Well, that one summer Chris and my “theme song” was Amy Grant’s “Stay for Awhile” (check it out on my playlist down on the right side of this blog). We LOVED this song! When Dad & Bridgett went to sleep one night, Chris and I stayed up for HOURS playing the song, rewinding, playing the song, rewinding, etc. Here’s the thing – we were on a 28ft boat, not in a palatial estate – that song and the sound of the tape player rewinding kept Dad & Bridgett up all night! And not only that, we were rafted to another boat – Dad & Bridgett’s friends Jeff & Chris – and those poor people could hear our song all night, too! Amazingly enough, none of them threw either our tape player or us overboard – they just tease us about it to this day!

Well, everything comes full circle I guess – I have been getting a taste of my own medicine this past week! My daughter’s 8th birthday was last week, and for her big present, we bought her an iPod Shuffle. She absolutely loves it and has been walking around the house with it clipped to her and with her “ear buds” in listening to her music. Currently she has 36 songs loaded on it. Out of the 36, for the better part of the past week she has listened to, ONE song. Over and over. Now, with this new technology, I am not subjected to the grinding sound of the tape player rewinding, but with the click of a button, she is able to “rewind” and start her song over. Again, and again. And she sings her song. My girl LOVES Taylor Swift’s song, “Love Story” (also on my playlist below – enjoy!) and by now she knows it by heart and belts it out at the top of her lungs! As I recall, at least Chris and I had the courtesy and good sense to let Amy Grant sing her song over and over again – she does it much better than we would have! But, it’s sweet to hear my girl singing her favorite song over and over (and over) and I am thrilled that it’s a nice song – nothing objectionable! I have to laugh though when she complains about her little sister singing the songs from “The Heffalump Movie” again and again – she doesn’t quite see the connection!

Anyway, as my dad would say, I guess “the apple doesn’t fall far from the tree!”

After the Playdate!

The other day, my littlest girlie and I enjoyed a playdate with two of my friends and their daughters. We invited them over for a little lunch and a lot of fun playing with all of the toys, listening to holiday music, and some grown-up girl talk! They are all getting to the age where they can actually play nicely together -- hence the time for the girl talk!! Here's how the kids looked by the end of the playdate -- it was obviously nap time, and they were ready!! (So were the moms, to be honest...)

Can You Feel the Blog Love?

I am proud to say that Christine at "Living Beautifully, Frugally" has awarded me this lovely blog award, which I feel is justly deserved! (Ok, she's my best friend, but really, this is a nice blog!) If you haven't checked out Christine's blog yet, be sure to check her out -- she is currently a stay at home mom who chose to take a break from her career in exchange for valuable time with her daughter before she begins elementary school. Christine has a thoughtful and witty way of sharing her ideas for being frugal, while still enjoying life.

The rules for this award are to list 5 of your addictions and 5 Blogs you would like to recommend for this award!

First, my "addictions" (these are in no particular order...):

1) Wegmans -- our fabulous local grocery store -- unfortunately for my checkbook and my waistline, I am always enticed by their beautiful displays and their fantastic marketing -- I walk in for 2 things, and walk out with 5 bags!

2) Holiday Decorations -- for any holiday -- no discriminating over here! I have an abundance of Christmas, Halloween, Easter, and 4th of July decorations in particular, but I don't want the other holidays to feel left out, and I am trying to show them the love as well! Truth be told, I say that I am decorating for the kids, but I enjoy it as much as they do!

3) Blogs -- before Christine started blogging, I didn't even know what a blog was! Now, I have my favorites that I check almost everyday!

4) "Home-Making" -- I love trying to make my home more inviting for my family, in particular, and our friends who visit. Whether it's trying to keep up with my little mess-makers, or working on decorating this room or that (I'm talking home decor now, not holiday...) -- I love making my house feel like a home!

5) Toile! -- And in keeping with the home-making theme that I just mentioned -- I am currently WILD about toile! Love it! I have managed to work toile into my upstairs bathroom, my dining room, and hopefully this week my guest room and downstairs bathroom! If I could find toile Christmas ornaments -- I would be in heaven! I promised my husband I would lay off his office though -- no toile is allowed to pass through that door...

And now, on to the blogs that I frequent (not including Christine's, who I read daily!):

Cherry Hill Cottage
Tina from Cherry Hill Cottage shares wonderful recipes and her beautiful cottage home decorating ideas.

A Soft Place to Land
Kimba from A Soft Place to Land shares her great home decorating and craft ideas and she loves making home a haven for her family. Also, this woman is not afraid of paint, and I love her for that!

Stretch Marks (aka Really Bad Hair Day)
I just love reading Melissa Lee's blog about her life with her husband "Attorney General" and their 2 beautiful children. She will have you laughing out loud -- just ask my officemate who reads her blog on lunch!

Nesting Place
The Nester is amazing! What that woman can do with some feathers and some rags -- unbelieveable! She has me hooked on tassles (more home decor -- don't get fresh!) and rag garlands. She is all about "Mis-treatments" as she calls them -- beautiful window and home decor treatments with the fuss and muss of sewing -- her trusty assistant? Her glue gun!

The Painted House
I love to read Angela's blog about life with her husband and their 3 children. Her husband successfully battled cancer this past year and to help him out with that the whole family went vegan -- she has lots of recipes on there, and I have to say, everything looks delicious! She is also a talented artist and I love to see her home decorating ideas!

So, while you are on your blogging travels -- check out some of these amazing women! And thanks again, Christine!

I Guess She Comes by it Honestly...

(Warning -- Bragging Mom Moment) Yesterday, my husband and I went to our daughter's school for a parent/teacher conference. We were fairly confident that she was doing well in school, but she even exceeded our expectations, which was a nice surprise! Of course she still has some things to work on, and one item the teacher mentioned had to do with her writing. She pulled out one of our daughter's stories (about the day our carpets were cleaned -- fascinating subject...) and the teacher said, "This was what we refer to as a "Short Moment" writing assignment. I have to say that your daughter's "Short Moments" are not that short..."

I called my friend Christine last night and I mentioned that to her, and she said, "Well, really, have you ever read YOUR BLOG? I can see where she gets it from!" Ok, I guess I can see her point!

So that is the end of today's post -- short and sweet! ;)

Silence is Golden

Just a quick post before I head off to bed -- early tonight -- I feel like I've been working the night shift lately, but more on that later! I just had to share about my dear friend Kim (friends about 18 years, I think! Amazing since we are SO young still!). Anyway, Kim and her husband Michael were blessed with triplets -- if I ever feel exhausted from chasing after my kids, I think about them... The triplets started Pre-K this past week and Kim sent out a cute note and pictures of them going off to school (how adorable is that picture?). I sent her a note back and asked her whatever was she going to do with her time while they were in school? Kim replied, "Girlfriend: 1) Workout, 2) Shop, 3) Straighten out my "piles" and 4) Listen to silence!"

I can completely relate to the joy of having a chance to catch my breath and listen to -- well, NOTHING! My own thoughts in my head... I love my girls with all my heart but every once in a while (several times a week?) I feel like I want to turn the volume down on everyone in my house! Tonight, after dinner and before bedtime, I was sitting on the couch feeling quite tired and ready to go to bed myself. My 7-year-old had dressed herself in last Halloween's Tinkerbell costume and was flitting about the living room singing made-up song after made-up song. Pretty melodies, bizarre lyrics... Something about visiting her cousin Gail (doesn't have one) to play a game of charades and she was rhyming Gail with all sorts of words like bail and jail... No idea where this stuff comes from. Anyway, she was competing (volume-wise) with her 2-year-old sister who was watching "My Friends Tigger & Pooh" and it was an episode about Rabbit trying to sleep and being kept awake by a woodpecker pecking on his home (a tree). So while the tv was on, and her sister was tapping around dancing and singing, my little one is loudly giving me a play-by-play of the episode. Let me recap for you, "Pecker, and pecker, and Rabbit, and Lumpy, and so Pecker, and Lumpy and Pecker" and on and on...

Sometimes it seems neverending -- today all four of us went to the dentist (littlest one just went along for the ride) and while I was sitting in the chair, with the tv on in front of me (our dentist is hi-tech -- flat screen tv's on every chair, which is great for distracting my daughter while her teeth are being cleaned) tuned to the Disney channel, as my littlest one is in her stroller behind me, and her older sister is in a little chair next to her. So, I've got the sound of the tv, the sound of whatever the hygienist is doing to my teeth, the little girlie calling, "Mommy, guess what?" and the older girlie talking a bluestreak to the hygienist who is not doing a very convincing job of making interested polite listening noises. Today really was a louder day than usual in our house... Maybe it has something to do with the phases of the moon, or the tides or something.

I love to hear my girls laughing, I love to hear my girls playing nicely together or singing a song. Tonight at bedtime they were trying to do their prayers before my husband and I got into the room and I could hear my sweet baby say in her sweet baby voice, "Our Father" which sounded like it had a "v" instead of a "th" -- those sounds are all so sweet to me. Even so, there is something so peaceful about this time of the day when everyone is tucked into bed and the whole house is quiet. But tonight, instead of staying up to enjoy the silence -- I'm off to get some sleep myself!

What is your most peaceful time of day?