For one brief moment last week, fall seemed on the horizon. In the wake of the rains in Texas we awoke to a “chilly” morning. So brisk did 70 degrees feel that I momentarily contemplated looking for long sleeved shirts. It was probably just the 3 months of Texas heat getting to my head. But it was a tantalizing reminder that fall is just around the corner. The rest of the day my head was spinning with ideas for Thanksgiving,... Read more

M (3.5 years): Mommy, when I get bigger maybe I can pump milk and feed it to Baby J. Read more

I know you have all been through this at some point this summer: We are on vacation and the baby, who normally sleeps well in his own room, is in a pack and play in our room. When we tiptoed in around 11, after having pajama-ed ourselves in the hallway, the sleeping baby rolled over and started to make those lighter breath sounds that let you know it’s all over but the crying. As soon as I had settled into... Read more

You know if I’m posting a recipe, it’s easy. I was pleased with how little time it took to whip up the dip and how much my kids enjoyed participating. Also, for a very sweet dessert, they’re relatively healthy and they really taste great with the sweet and salty thing going on. And a nice presentation. —————————- Melt together in microwave or double boiler 1 cup of semisweet chips, 1 cup of natural PB, and ¾ cup of honey (If... Read more

None of you need me to tell you about the high cost of food these days, since we as moms are probably the ones going to the grocery store every week to stock up on food for our families. I think that most families are feeling pinched in terms of their grocery budgets, since the same amount of money buys a significantly smaller amount of food right now. A recent article from the Boston Globe gives some interesting facts and figures... Read more

h/t Creative Minority Report Read more

After a particularly unpleasant trip to Trader Joe’s at our upscale outdoor shopping mall this morning (I’ll spare you all the details), I decided to make it up to the kids by stopping by the bakery in the super-upscale indoor “farmer’s market” for some sample cups of their homemade granola. Goods at this “farmer’s market” cost far more than they do at the grocery store, and everything is administered by people in costume–people dressed like Dutch/Amish farmers serve soft pretzels... Read more

Saying goodbye as a child heads off to college is still a long way away for all of the builders. For now we are all mothers to small children, who usually have small problems. Whiny behavior, time-outs, patience, and waking newborns highlight our list of parenting concerns. While we have recently had some posts regarding teenage pregnancy, and I am obviously very interested in ways I can reduce the chances of this happening to my children, the discussion is still... Read more