When you think of traditions, it’s easy to think of special rituals that take place on Christmas or birthdays. And those are so important! But what shouldn’t be overlooked is the importance of weekly rituals. Read on. The Inception of Bakery Day Looking at the title of this post, you’re going to start thinking every…
Last year, with the pandemic raging (as it still is a year later 😩) and me six months pregnant, it was clear we would not be going out for New Year’s Eve. Let’s be real — since having kids, the vast majority of our NYE festivities have taken place at home anyway. And we’ve had…
The stockings have been raided, presents opened, cinnamon rolls consumed. And it’s not quite 10 a.m. How will we spend the rest of Christmas Day? This is a question we face a lot of years. Since we celebrate with my family on Christmas Eve and Mike’s family doesn’t get together for Christmas (they’re Jewish and…
For me, the hardest part of this time of year is the darkness. With walks, for example, I can slip on boots and my long, toasty-warm coat to protect against the chill, but there’s nothing I can do to prevent the sun from slipping away well before 5:00. I’ve mentioned I’m embracing hygge and bringing…
To move beyond a brief Thanksgiving Day conversation when it comes to focusing on gratitude, I’m trying out two different things with the boys this year. The first is gratitude postcards. The second is a gratitude wall. Now let me start out by saying I’m aware there are way prettier, more-Instagram-worthy gratitude activities out there….
Every Thanksgiving Day, we ask the kids to name things they’re thankful for. While doing so is a nice practice, it’s usually limited to a one-minute conversation before the big feast. And though they always say “my family,” it’s spoken in a perfunctory, I-know-this-is-what-my-parents-want-to-hear type of way. In short, I’m doubtful that this thankfulness exercise…
In March of 2020, I checked out this drawing book from the library, and it changed my life. Dramatic opening line? Yes. True statement? Also yes! By using just simple shapes and lines, I made a sailboat, then a giraffe, then a bunch more stuff. The kids got into it, too, and we found other…
Let me start by saying I have never been good at drawing. I know everyone says that, but I mean it. I once played a Pictionary-type game at a baby shower. My friend looked at my drawing, brows furrowed, and started laughing. I wasn’t offended; I cracked up, too, because what I’d sketched was objectively…
Earlier this week I told you how our annual leaf walk was a bust. That the boys weren’t into it and that not even the jauntiest of my rhymes was able to save the day. Not a big deal, right? Just a short neighborhood stroll where we’d gathered a few leaves and then stopped. Who…
