This morning Maggie asked me a very serious question. “Mama, do you know how I put this outfit together?” I was in the middle of brushing my teeth, and glanced at her with a foamy mouth. “Tell me, ” I replied. First she pointed to her leggings. “Puppies…” she declared. Next she pointed to her flowered skirt. “Playing in the garden…” Lastly, she pointed … Continue reading Fashionista
It was 70 degrees outside this past Friday evening – something almost unheard of in Anchorage. Instead of enjoying the sunshine, our family happily crammed into a narrow church pew at a local Baptist church. Thirty-five little pianists (most under the age of 10) grew increasingly nervous as they sized up the impressive crowd of parents and grandparents, all armed with digital cameras and iPads. It was show … Continue reading Piano Pride
Yesterday was Maggie’s 8th birthday, and this year she decided on a stuffed animal party theme. (Legos were a close second, but in the end stuffed animals won.) She sleeps with a menagerie of furry friends each night, and spends copious amounts of time rearranging them in her room each day, so we weren’t terribly surprised. For the invitation,we gathered all the kids’ stuffed animals … Continue reading Stuffed Animal Birthday Party
If there’s one thing I’ve learned, it’s that beloved books make great birthday party themes. At the age of two, our two-year-old Maggie was seriously obsessed with one book: Mary Engelbreit’s Mother Goose. And so it was decided: a nursery-rhyme birthday party! I had fun with the invitation wording: The Humpty Dumpty cake, on the other hand, was not so fun. I tried my best … Continue reading Mother Goose Birthday Party
My junior high years bordered on miserable. Every day I launched off the school bus, bolted up the driveway, and shed my back brace onto the living room floor. At that age I was allowed to remove my scoliosis contraption for 4 hours each day, and I always spent my first hour of freedom with Laura Ingalls Wilder. She was my daily dose of sanity. … Continue reading Little House, Big Memories
We have catapulted straight out of summer and headfirst into another school year. (This journey actually happened a few weeks ago, but I’m still trying to land on my feet and catch my breath!) The transition for the kids was a simple one: same school, same friends, and even the same teachers as last year. If the kids had their way, they would have returned … Continue reading Back to School: Kids
For the first time ever, we haven’t had any house guests this summer. Well, except for Oreo: Oreo is a teddy bear hamster who belongs to our 8-year-old friend Emily. Emily is currently visiting family back in Michigan, so she asked Maggie to babysit. Maggie, who adores Oreo, jumped at the chance to have a two-week slumber party with a hamster. They are both nocturnal … Continue reading A Rogue Rodent
What is it about Dr. Seuss books that makes kids want to hear them again and again and again? I pretty much had The Cat in the Hat memorized around Maggie’s third birthday, so a Seuss-themed party was a natural choice! The invitation was a bit wordy, but it definitely set the tone: For this party I decided to go with a pull-apart cupcake cake. I … Continue reading Dr. Seuss Birthday Party
Maggie loves to help out in the kitchen, and has been our enthusiastic cooking sidekick since her wee days. When she turned 4, we decided to celebrate this passion with a cooking-themed birthday party. As usual, designing the invitation was one of my favorite pre-party tasks: (If you like this invitation, it is available for $10 in my Etsy store. I will customize it … Continue reading Cooking-Themed Birthday Party
My birthday party posts get a lot of views, so I thought I’d go back in time and write up the parties the kids had in the pre-blog days. Back when Maggie turned 5, she requested a princess party. I swore I would never allow such a thing, but when your little princess wants to be a princess it is tough to say no. As usual, it … Continue reading Princess Party
Profoundly Ordinary 