Family

    Now that there is a new baby in the mix it seems that my toddler has been testing me more and more. It is so hard to b…

Six months ago the idea started forming to have a surprise 60th birthday celebration for my husband with the entire family. The day was planned, the picnics packed, the matching orange t-shirts put on by all. All four of our daughter and their husbands and kids were ready for the big surprise, 16 of us in all ( plus two awesome in-law grandparents to help out with the grand-babies makes a total of 18). We were coming from four different cities and one different country, gathering for a weekend of fun.…

Father’s Day is a day to celebrate your Dad, Daddy, Father, or, in my case, my Pop/Poppa! I love this day, even when I don’t get to be with him, because it is such a great reminder of how hard he works for our family, how supportive he is, how he would do anything for me, my sisters, and my mom, and how much he loves us. And in return, I want to show him or tell him these things, too!

My dad always jokes about what he would do with his time and especially with his money if he hadn’t had us four girls. We know, and he especially knows, that no amount of money could compare to how wonderful his life has been with us as his daughters ;):D However, he always likes to tell us of all the gadgets and accessories he would/could get if we didn’t “suck” all the money out. Because you can’t be a father without children, often father’s day celebrations have to be kid-friendly and may not always be a father’s first choice activity. But, it’s all about the time spent together right?! And what better place to spend a family day that kids would enjoy and to celebrate dad than at Disneyland?? But, with the crowds nowadays and the always overly-excited children that take over Disneyland, we all know how dads can get 😉 We don’t want more than one Grumpy following Snow White around!

This Father’s Day weekend (which also happens to be my dad’s birthday) we are going with the WHOLE FAMILY to Disneyland, all 16 of us!! With 6 little kids 4-and-under and a huge group of us, we are trying not to have too many expectations for the number of rides we will go on. We are just …

We were created to be in community with others. Whether it’s friends, co workers, aquaintances, family, etc., we weren’t meant to do this life alone.  I think that is why we get that ache of feeling like we are missing something when we are alone, when we are trying to fight battles on our own, or when we isolate ourselves from the people around us. We have a real and genuine need and desire to be surrounded by people. People encourage you, people challenge you, people love you, people accept you, and people even sometimes rub you the wrong way.  …

Throughout my pregnancy I was part of a Facebook group of mommies who were all due in 2013. I was invited to the group through a mutual interest in babywearing, but I did not know any of the moms personally. It turns out that the members are from all over the United States. It was really neat to get to “know” some of the moms and hear their experiences. Some of the moms were on their second baby, like me. Many of the moms were on their 5th and 6th babies…WOW!! I realized today how much the little group of friends meant to me. How great it was to share the highs and lows of pregnancy, and now the ups and downs of welcoming a new baby into the family. As moms, we need companionship.…

One minute a child, fully dependent, the next minute a fully independent young adult. One minute all training and teaching is my responsibility and privilege, the next minute my mind and heart and soul are being filled with bits of wisdom and insight from the life of my adult children. The child to adult transition happens without a precise timetable, plan or maximum effort on my part, but I observe the unintentional movement from receiver to giver. Every person has a different timetable, dependent on their natural temperament combined with life circumstances. …