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It’s still the weekend, right?? I’m not too late to link up with the awesome Kelly and her 7 Quick Takes, am I? Kel, say it’s okay to be late, please. //1// I’m fresh off the plane from NYC where my little lady and I were on baby watch for my sister’s third who should arrive any second. And yes, I woke up every night, middle of the night, to check and see if she or her husband had texted me from upstairs. They continued to insist they wouldn’t text but would come wake me up, but still. No baby on my watch but lots of laundry & prep & late night talks. The trip was a blast and a billion and made our last #sistermoon where we were lazy louts on the beach. I got to watch my daughter relate to her two girl cousins (one 7 months older, one two years younger) and all the lessons one learns when one tries to insist things go one’s way most of the time (used to brothers who either obey or tune her out). She loved every minute, even when she was kicking people on her way to the trampoline. We also got to spend a lot of time at my sister’s shop, Brooklyn Herborium, and watch the process of handmade organic skincare up close! //2// I’ll be chatting with THE Jen Fulwiler on her radio, Tuesday around 2:30CST. I’m sure we’ll gab about a few things, but most notably the…
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Meals meals meals. How I do love to cook and eat (when unhindered by little ones). I know some moms are awesome about their kids being super involved with meal prep and while I do make an effort for that by necessity as they’re always with me while I’m prepping food, honestly, I love being alone in the kitchen. A brief run down of what we ate on our vacation-staycation from a few weeks back. Here’s last year’s peek too! Coop granola & seasoned ground pork for yummmmmmy sausage patties. Blueberry & banana & milk smoothie! Shredded pork, homemade guac via Alice Waters, chopped romaine, shredded cheddar, and black beans. King Arthur’s pancakes with loads of Hope Creamery butter! French Almond granola, plain whole milk yogurt, chopped dates, and blue berries! Monster sandwich with roast beef, turkey, ham, two kinds f cheese, onions, lettuce, avocado and lil dippers with hummus. This rhubarb crisp. Never look back. Peaches, cherry tomatoes, almonds, goat cheese, romaine, yup! Layers and layers of lasagna with mild spiced ground pork from the coop, lots of cheese, and homemade sauce. Don’t forget the basil and pepper. Another shot of the crisp. I may have doubled the topping. Snooker doodles. What a weird name for a cookie that I devoured in about 25 minutes. Nearly lots of them. Not telling how many. Okay. A lot. Family recipe! — Even though I’ve been in NYC all week, feasting like a queen with my brother-in-law the chef and on baby watch for my…
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Oh, gee, thanks for pointing out the obvious, Nell. Because no one is perfect. I guess what I mean is that you don’t have to wait until you’re totally amazingly the best version of yourself before you’re ready to commit in a relationship. I was only 26 when I got married and thought I was in pretty good shape. AHEM. I had experienced heart ache and heart crush. Breakups that changed me; relationships that I outgrew. I had attended college in at a huge state university and found my path there, and law school at a tiny Catholic one that helped form me in totally different ways. (Less clawing through lines to get registered, more running around volunteering and bringing people cookies.) Here’s what I didn’t know. And why I wasn’t in great shape. I didn’t know that it’s not about being married when you’re the best version of yourself. I thought that my experiences and sheer will power had crafted me into a pretty rocking person who was ready to commit for a lifetime with another person because being ready meant being “perfect” in a sense. Otherwise how could I say I was ready to be married if I hadn’t already gotten to this state of great self-assured knowledge myself? But for me, and maybe it’s different for you, being married now over seven years means I’ve had to adapt and change and truly become different on a molecular level (yes, that’s part of biologically being a mother) for the…
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Last year we did this for the very first time: we took a family vacation staycation at my folks’ home in Wisconsin just us. Not to travel for a baptism or a wedding or another family to-do–just for us to bond, be quiet, have temper tantrums in nature, and eat lots and lots of good food. Being pregnant makes everything harder for my poor kids because I’m limited in my energy and capabilities, but they were troopers and played lots and lots of games with each other and made lots of messes and kinda even cleaned them up! I actually let our oldest play with a sling shot. Rules and boundaries set in stone ahead of time, but yes, I let him just have wild fun with it. I must be relaxing as a mom. I’m learning to sit back and watch them. Watch their relationships unfold. It helps that they’re older and not just screaming at each other when frustrated, though that happens too. I can guide them through talking it out, addressing each other, and teach basic empathy skills. And their little minds are developed enough to get it. To get why we are kind and loving. Why we don’t hit and say hurtful things. Why mama is always right—okay, let’s not go too far 😉 And this little 2+ year old really held his own this year. Yes, you may have more oatmeal. Yes, you may cut with your sister’s scissors. Yes, you may that hammer. Yes, you may splash…
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My friend Erica from Be a Heart design is truly a gifted artist. She not only shares her talents with Blessed is She as the main designer, but so runs a beautiful art shop and teaches others who want to make the world a more beautiful place, too. The exciting news is that she’s bringing those teaching talents to the Midwest! So please–if you’re in any of the following cities, head over now and sign up for her workshops: August 25: Chicago Calligraphy August 27: Chicago Calligraphy & Brush Lettering August 28: Evanston Calligraphy August 30: Indianapolis And then September 18: Minneapolis Sign up here! And the code WHOLEPARENTING will get $10 off any of the classes! Follow Erica on instagram or purchase some of her beautiful designs in our Blessed is She shop (yes, the planner is out of stock but we’ll be offering a Jan-Jan one so keep your eyes peeled!)
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I’ve been talking about my favorite audio stories for years, but I always get asked which ones for which ages? My kids are 6, 4, 2, and 21 weeks in utero and we have been Jim Weiss fans for about 3-4 years. We use them for quiet time for the oldest during the two smaller ones’ naps. We use them for car rides (long ones, too). We listen to them at breakfast to break up the fighting. We use them to augment our faux homeschoolering. I didn’t include the history ones that we love because I’ll do that in a different faux- homeschooling post this fall. We one a few dozen so this is not all of them, but a good place to start. Your library should be able to get them for you but amazon links here (disclaimer that the blog gets $.02 for any purchases you make through me) make for click click easily. Without further ado: Audio Stories birth to 2: Good Night Animal Tales First Stories to Last a Lifetime Fairytale Favorites Audio Stories 2-4 years old: Uncle Wiggly’s Storybook Just So Stories Tales from the Old Testament American Tall Tales Audio Stories 4-6 years old: Greek Myths Egyptian Treasures Mystery! Mystery! Shakespeare for Children I Said I Could and I Did 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea and lots lots more. But these are always an arm’s length away from my little stinkers. Keeping me sane, one CD at a time!
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