On Monday, we met my parents at a small children’s zoo half-way between our houses. We were thrilled that Nate’s brother, his wife and their three children could come, too. My mom’s sister came and brought my cousins three boys, also. All in all, there were six adults and 12 children. Half of them were [...]

It’s over.
Another T-ball season, come and gone. We’re sad. Seriously, I hate to see it end. Tuesday night was the last game of the season, and it makes us all sad.
Next year, Andy will play rookies, Brady will be in his second season of T-ball, and Connor will play Junior T-ball. Grayson will watch from [...]

Today, I was cleaning up in the kitchen and I heard a knock at the front door. Nate was downstairs getting ready for work, so I answered it. There stood Mr. Willard, our elderly neighbor man.
Mr. Willard has lived two doors down from us the entire time we’ve lived in our house. He’s a widower, [...]

Having a mom who’s perpetually pregnant has made my boys a bit more aware of the goings-on of pregnancy / newborns than most kids their ages.
Sometimes.
Right after Grayson came home, the kids were all watching me change his diaper. They were very interested in why his “belly button looked yucky.”
I explained it as best I [...]

Here’s our half-dozen, taken June 28.
Grayson 10 days, Ferris, 15.5 months, Evan almost 2-and-a-half,
Connor 3-and-a-half, Brady 5, Andy 6.

So, we’ve been moved into our new bedroom for two whole nights now. Night one, one of our children ended up sleeping between us in bed. We rarely, rarely allow that, but after trekking up and down the stairs three times because he was having foot cramps in the middle of the night, he joined [...]

We’re “experiencing blizzard-like conditions” here in Chicagoland.
The good news is that the weather’s too bad for Nate and his students to fly, so he’s home for more than 20 minutes a day. (The bad news is that he doesn’t get paid when he doesn’t fly.) We like him around.
The kids have been dying [...]

The last month around here has been insane, but I’m sure that’s true for many of you. We’ve been finishing up school for the first semester (ever!), Christmas shopping, decorating, making lots of food, and getting sick. Good times!
In the midst of all that, Andy turned six. His one birthday request was to go bowling. [...]

Here’s a tip for moms that will save a few pennies. (Can’t we all use a few extra pennies about now?)
I hate spending money on coloring books. The kids rush though each page, tear it out to show someone, then it ends up on the floor and eventually in the trash. Seems like such a [...]

I love a nice, tart, crisp Granny Smith apple. There’s nothing like it.
My boys know that’s my preference when it comes to that fruit.
Last week, we were riding in the van. The boys were talking about colors and fruit. Andy said something about apples being red.
“Except Granny Smiths,” he said. “Those are green, right, Mom?”
“Yup.”
So, [...]