Today as I was driving home from preschool pickup, I sat at a red light waiting to turn left while a lady driving an SUV passed me going in the opposite direction. She had just gone through a 4-way red light intersection and guess what? As she passed by me, she was looking down at the cell phone she held in her left hand as she drove with her right. I don't know this lady at all, but she was middle-aged, overweight, and certainly didn't look like she had cat-like reflexes. My guess is if I threw a ball at her WHILE she was looking, she probably couldn't catch it. So who the heck does she Keep Reading
Why I’m Getting Rid of Almost ALL My Kids’ Toys Before Christmas
The toy situation in our home is getting out of control. Four months ago, I started slowly getting rid of my kids' toys. By Christmas, they will all be gone. And my kids are cool with it. Let me explain A few years ago, they played in the playroom all the time. Back then I only had a toddler and a baby. I had to keep them contained in a small play area because I needed to keep an eye on the baby (to make sure she didn't put any small items in her mouth), and I needed my toddler to stay nearby so she didn't do anything dangerous out of my eyesight. We spent a lot of time Keep Reading
Dear Mom of a Preschooler, a Toddler, and a Baby
Lately I've been reading a lot of blog posts that have been written in a Dear John kind of style. They're usually part of a blogging challenge where the blogger is challenging herself to write a note to another mom or her former self, giving advice or encouragement. One, in particular, written by The Humbled Homemaker entitled "Dear Mom of a Toddler and a Baby" struck a chord with me. I felt like I could have written that post, and I feel compelled to add my spin to the same story, although from a little different perspective. I have three kids all born within the span of 4.5 years. My Keep Reading
How My Kids Have Helped Me Care for Others
One of the things I love most about being a mom is how it's opened up my heart to caring for others in ways I hadn't thought of before. Before I had children, I was sort of stuck in my own little self-obsessed world because I only had myself to worry about (and my husband, of course, but we both worked a lot and didn't really see each other all that much back then). Sad, I know. Selfless Caring As a mom, I had to learn to selflessly care for another person. The kind of love that kids require. I'm glad I am called to do this, and I've found my children's Keep Reading
Do 2-Year-Olds Need Birthday Parties?
Should parents throw birthday parties for two year olds? Recently, on a local mom blog, a reader asked the question, "What is a good place for a two-year-old's birthday party?" I have been thinking about this, myself, recently because I have a 22-month-old who needs a celebration of some kind in two month's time. Throwing Birthday Parties for Two-Year-Olds For my oldest, who is now four years old, we had a "real" birthday party for her in our home. We mainly invited family and friends. The majority of attendees were adults because most of our friends didn't have children Keep Reading
Can You Really Afford to Live on One Income?
Several years ago, I transitioned from a stressful desk job to being to a stay at home mom. How our family manages live on one income is probably the thing I got asked most about when friends and family learned I wasn't going back to work after my maternity leave ended. Living Beyond Our Means: Could We Ever Live on One Income? Making the initial jump from a comfortable two-earner household without kids to a single income household with a little one was not easy. We were used to spending our money willy nilly without any pressing responsibilities to Keep Reading
