I Spy An

No go. We'll try again next year.

Best Invention

If you live in the cold + snow as we do, this 15-inch sno-baller is a must have! I can tell you that it makes perfectly round snow balls in seconds and keeps my hands warm + dry the whole time. Love it! Only $8.98.

Oh What Fun

Another Year

I turned 32 on December 21. This year my bday happened to fall on the eve of our road trip, and so it also was the day we celebrated Christmas at home ~ just the 4 of us. The morning began with mugs of hot cocoa and homemade marshmallows {thanks to friends Allison & Grace!}, gooey + delicious orange rolls {a birthday treat to myself}, and bright sunlight glistening over 18 inches of fresh snow from back-to-back storms in the Northeast. It was a winter wonderland outside and a cozy jammie fest inside. After breakfast we turned on the fire, found our spots on the floor, and watched as the kids opened their gifts from Santa.

It was Bleu's first Christmas. That was pretty major. But have you EVER seen a 3 year old on Christmas morning? Ahh. We hadn't until now, and it totally stole the show. Watching Buby unwrap each item was priceless. A gift to us. It was early in the week yet, so he wasn't tossing things aside and asking "what's next?" That wouldn't happen for a few more days. He was loving every minute, just as we were. He was appreciating and showing and smiling from ear to ear.



Santa brought Buby a few things he knew the babes would enjoy daily. Like... electronic drumsticks from Restoration Hardware, a Play-doh craft caddy, a wooden giraffe puzzle from Orvis, Connectagons for building his imagination, wooden stencils, and a sno baller from Hearthsong, "Adventures of Incredible You" book, both "Cookies: Bite-Size Lessons" books by Amy Krouse Rosenthal, Nick + Nora monkey pjs, "Swing" scanimation book, Terence the Tractor {the one thing he had asked Santa for}, and the '08 Hess truck {Grandpa J.'s request to Santa}.



After we ate again My Sweets offered to watch Bleu while Buby + I went sledding at the town park. It was the perrrfect day to sled and we jumped at the chance. I put Bleu down for her nap and ran. I really miss all the one-on-one with Buby before he became a big brother. Now he shares me 24/7, which I know takes its toll. So for a couple of hours we climbed a big snowy hill together. Buby told me exactly when to stop and where to drop the sled. We laughed. We held on tight. We took turns pushing each other. We made snow angels. It was the best day.



Later the boys sang to me as I blew out candles on my double-crunch ice cream cake and wished for another year just like this one.

7 Days of Christmas

Home at last. We returned last night from a wonderful week in Family Land. We celebrated BIG with grandparents, aunts, uncles, cousins, and friends. It was a fitting finale to a month of decorating and to-dos, gift lists, big trees + small, cards, countdown bags, books, baking, stories, and craft projects. I loved every minute of December, but I'm so done with it. I can't wait to clean up and start anew.

Buby + Bleu were troopers all week as we pranced around from party to party and unwrapped gifts in not one ~ not two ~ but SIX places. We played a lot. We ate a lot. We watched as the older cousins and the younger ones amazed us with their new tricks. Little ones grow up too fast, and I wish we never had to miss a moment of it. They serve as constant reminders of how blessed we are.

If I had to describe our Christmas in one word I'd go with abundance. Of family. Of love. Of food. Of generosity. Of packing and unpacking. Of memories. We tried so hard to simplify things on our end. You know, in tiny ways like using more tissue paper than wrapping paper, which I generally find less tolerable. Or like sleeping in one place the whole time. Or exchanging with fewer adults. Or bringing my own organic food + snacks for the kids so I didn't have to worry about what'd they eat on the run all week. Yet somehow this annual end-of-year jaunt is never really simplifyable. Maybe it's not meant to be.

By Monday the 4 of us were spent. Bleu hadn't slept much all week {by "much" I mean not at all} despite my best efforts to provide some sort of routine, and Buby kept saying he missed his playroom. Over and over. We travel to Family Land several times a year {more often in summer}, and it's the first time Buby has ever asked us to go home. So I think we're all happy to be back and ready to ring in the New Year in our jammies. No work and no school until Monday. Yip!

I want to say THANK YOU again to our families for being so awesome and going to all the trouble every year to host us, feed us, and shower us with fun + games. We appreciate you all. Photos coming!

Happy Holidays!

Photo Gallery: First Storm

He Said

We're in the car right now travelling to Family Land. Hour 5. Since dinner we've been blasting one of nine Christmas CDs on board while Buby kicks my seat, tries to read road signs, cracks jokes by sticking silly words where they don't belong, and without warning belts out "Stop!... In the name of love!" Oh, and he just informed us that cell towers look a lot like the Eiffel Tower and that faraway lights are like "pretty buttons in the sky." Bleu's been snoozing through it all... which means she'll be ready to party the second we ready for bed. I'm thinking how cool it is that Buby idolizes his father. I love it. If ever a little boy should look up to a man, this is the man he should look to. Something Buby JUST said.



Buby: Are we almost there?

Me: Almost.

Buby: When we get there, can you carry me inside Daddy?

Daddy: You got it.

Me: How about me? Can I carry you in?

Buby: No, Daddy is stronger.

Me: Yeah, he is.

Buby: My Daddy does everything strong. Everything.




roadtrip photo from here.

Home Baked

Measure, dump, crack, mix, stir, plop, bake, cool, and taste. Baking with the babes truly is one of life's little treats. Friday we had a million and one things to get done, but Buby's school was closed due to snow. So we stayed inside and snagged the chance to make some peanut butter banana yummies and carrot cake confections-- from scratch! I'm so proud of us. I told Buby he could pick any recipe he wanted out of his cookbook. He couldn't decide between his top two, so we made both. Buby taste tested one of each and then we packaged them up to share the bounty. The roads weren't good, so our neighbors got what would have found their way to our friends' doorsteps.

Let me know if you want the recipe for either cookie. Both are pretty healthy for kids.

We've Been

• Opening little white bags with great big surprises
• Reading 24 Christmas books... one each day
• Baking for charity, teachers, and friends
• Making lists and checking them twice
• Painting ornaments, piggy banks, and birdhouses
• Shopping, wrapping, bagging, and tagging
• Oohing on our nightly twinkle light tours
• Dancing in the dark with a flower flashlight
• Eating clementines + pumpernickel bread
• Dreaming of snow angels on Christmas Day
• Nursing coughs + colds
• Paying bills, holding mail, and making plans
• Printing photos + addressing cards
• Washing, drying, and folding
• Packing food, clothes, and comforts for vacation
• Watering a ridiculously thirsty tree
• Singing "Jingle Bells" + "Frosty the Snowman"
• Growing a nutcracker 600xs his size
• Jumping into a huge heap of blankies
• Shouting love yous into a 30" paper roll
• Catching Bleu, who falls every second or so
• Making messes + cleaning them up
• Admiring our halls all gussied up for December
• Anticipating the weekend with My Sweets
• And {fingers crossed} ice cream cake on Sunday

Less is More

Happy Wednesday

Bleu's obsession with windows + doors

Take 2

Good Fortune

My Sweets + I are known to sneak in some kung pao chicken once in a while after Buby's in bed. Inevitably the next morning at breakfast our nosy tot spies 3 wrapped fortune cookies sitting on the counter. He asks me if he can crack one. I always say yes and throw away the other 2. His last fortune... spot on.

Getting Around

She sits. She crawls. She stands. She cruises.





And once in a Bleu moon, she kicks back.

Finger Food

Charity Bake Sale

I've been baking. The menu: Big + chewy chocolate chip cookies, vanilla cupcakes with crushed candy cane topping, deluxe chocolate-frosted brownies with holiday sprinkles, AND fudgey brownie bites covered in powdered sugar. I pulled recipes from this favorite cookbook, and our home was intoxicated with that just-from-the-oven scent for two straight days. I love that. I must admit the results are pretty delish for someone who doesn't do from-scratch very often.



I wrapped each item with care, printed signs + info about the charity, framed a menu, decorated a donation jar, and packed up the largest canvas tote you've ever seen for My Sweets to take to work and sell. I called it my Bake Sale in a Bag since I won't be there to see it on display. Later I'll post ways you can help Cookies for Kids' Cancer yourself this holiday. It's an awesome charity started by a former colleague of mine to raise awareness of and funds for pediatric cancer research after her two-year-old son was diagnosed with Neuroblastoma.

Holiday Pillowcases

I asked Grandma DJ if she'd sew Buby a pillowcase for all the major holidays. A friend's mother does this for her granddaughter who lives far away, and I thought the gesture was brilliant. Pillowcases are easy to make and fold up nice + small in a dresser drawer. So far we have Halloween, Thanksgiving and Snowmen. At bedtime Buby gets a sweet reminder of an upcoming celebration, and of his Grandma far away. In 2009 we're hoping for hearts, shamrocks, eggs, flags and cupcakes for one fabulous four-year-old to be.

Stand By Me

Exciting but exhausting milestone. Whenever she stirs now, instead of falling back to sleep Bleu pulls herself to standing and dances with the crib rails. Middle of the night is her favorite time to practice new skills. Quickly she remembers she's scared to get down and screams for me to rescue her. Until I rescue her.


I remember well this stage with Buby. I think it lasted two full weeks. So... that should bring us right through the holidays + our travels. Lovely.

Gift Guide: Darlybird Earrings

Vintage Sukie, $10

Darlybird is one of my fave mom-run shops. They specialize in all things fabulous and hard-to-find. So for those of you still searching for a pretty lil' something for your mom, friend, sister or niece, check out Darlybird's Vintage Flowers earring collection. Each piece is undeniably feminine, old-fashioned and affordable. I love Vintage Jennie and Vintage Sukie.

Vintage Jennie, $14

Vintage June, $12

Vintage Sarah, $12

Vintage Flora, $14

Vintage Peaches, $12

Vintage NieNie, $10
{$5 of which goes directly to the Stephanie Nielson Recovery Fund}