The Confederate Car Trip

Since our car trip to Arizona in March was such a roaring success (meaning nobody killed anyone else and I only had to scream at the kids to shut up a dozen times), I decided that we shall take another car trip. Mister will hold down the fort while I… Read More

June 20, 2013

How to Not Kill Your Bored Kids This Summer

This is one of my most popular posts and I like to repost it every year in case you’ve got a houseful of bored (hence, annoying) kids and need to know how to keep them occupied without relying on TVs/vieogames/ipads to babysit them. This is a great way to keep… Read More

June 9, 2013

Silent Movie Madness

School just ended for us on Friday and this last week was a killer. I barely had time to catch my breath. My favorite part of the end-of-the-year festivities was going to see the silent movies made by Ada’s second grade Theatre Arts class. They learned about silent films and… Read More

June 6, 2013

Should You Make Your Kids Keep Taking Piano Lessons?

This subject comes up again and again every time I’m together with a bunch of moms; do you force your child to keep taking piano lessons even when he starts to hate it and complains endlessly? Most parents were allowed to quit and always bemoan the fact that their parents… Read More

May 29, 2013

You Can Keep Your Smart Kids

Tonight we had some time to kill after dinner so I took my kids to the neighborhood pool. SInce it was close to bedtime there were only a couple of families there. A lot of times if you go to the pool in the evenings, dads are on kid-duty and… Read More

May 17, 2013

S’More Trouble in the Kitchen

Arabella loves to read my cookbooks and pick out things for me to make. My kids are all sugar addicts like their mother so her recipes are usually in the dessert category. A couple of weeks ago she picked out this beauty from my Cooks Country magazine that she wanted… Read More

May 16, 2013

Arabella, The Birthday Princess

Today child #4 (otherwise known as Arabella Claire) turns twelve. She is such a delight. She, of course, has those lovely teenage years ahead of her but today she is just a pleasure to have around. Well, 98% of the time. The other 2% she is fighting with Ada. So… Read More

May 15, 2013

Adventures in Strawberries

Picking strawberries in an annual tradition in our family. It’s one of my favorite things to do not only because it makes me feel like a farmer, but I just flat out love strawberries. There’s a u-pick farm near Austin that we go to every Spring. Well, “near” meaning an… Read More

May 12, 2013

That’s What I Get For Bottle Feeding!

I worked until my second child was a few months old but I made sure that I only worked hours that Mister was home so we didn’t need to put the kids in daycare. One day when India was a baby I forgot to restock the formula before I went… Read More

May 11, 2013

Airhead

This is where I park my minivan, Betsy, every day. Right here in the driveway. Yesterday afternoon I walked out to get in my car to pick up my kids from Middle School. Only, this is what greeted me. No car. Before you ask if it was stolen let me… Read More

May 9, 2013

The Promenade

It’s been Prom time around here. We have a no-dating-til-age-16 rule which means this was the first year that York and India were both old enough to go. India went with her boyfriend, Ethan, to both the school Prom and MoPro (Mormon Prom) where there aren’t so many skanky dresses… Read More