I have to giggle at ads that say "Don't slave over an oven all Thanksgiving". They want you to order one of their turkeys to be delivered. With modern technology, you can hardly go wrong with a turkey these days. Buy a good turkey (I recommend Butterball) with a pop-up timer, set your oven for the recommended temp (they give directions on the packaging) and roast for the recommended amount of time per pound. They self baste. All you have to do is wait for the popper to pop. Oh, the most ...

How many couples truly put their marriage first? In a world where 50% of marriages end in divorce (and the other 50% in death Quoted from Justice League), it is easier to just make excuses as to why marriage doesn't work rather than face the fact that most people just don't try. I used to think that I was just being selfish or even a bad mother when considering going out with my husband more often. Now I know that it is the best thing we can do for our family. Life zings by at an alarmin...

We got a gas log set for our two way fireplace yesterday. I just can't believe how real it looks! I grew up with wood burning stoves and fireplaces. I remember seeing gas logs and thinking how incredibly fake they looked. This new one has a regular grate, "magic embers" that burn just like wood embers, about 7 very real looking logs. The boys are mesmerized by the fire. The 3yr old has to point it out to everyone that comes over. I really enjoyed sitting near it and watching it during t...

I am getting a little discouraged with some family members (I won't name any names because they may read this) who make gift exchanging almost not worth it. Personally, I enjoy getting stuff that people thought of for me. I really don't like it when I have to give them a list to go buy. I truly believe it is the thought that counts. So many people now seem to think of holiday shopping as such a chore. They have all of these people they "have" to buy for. Personally, if I don't have some...

My now 7yr old was so easy to potty train. At about 2yrs old we bought a couple of potties and he started playing with them. We then got the "Once Upon a Potty" video. He loved the song and just took to it over night. Our 3yr old is a whole other story. He is hit and miss in a very literal sense. Just the other day he pooped on the floor about 3ft from the potty and said "I missed." I laughed and said "Wow! I guess you did." I was reading one of my parenting magazines and there wa...

I was flicking through our local news channels and heard one of them say they were going to have a story about soccer moms that don't like soccer. Imagine that! My oldest is turning 7 and I have been told I am already behind on getting him into soccer. Does he want to play soccer? No. Do I want to spend the money, force him to go and live in my car? No. I spoke to a mom in the neighborhood that said she spends about $5k a year on soccer for 2 kids...yikes! She was complaining that they...

Bed time, I so look forward to it some days. Those days when the 3yr old has whined and destroyed all day long. Those days when the 7yr old is constanly doing the "look at this" "I want to show you something" routine. I hold on until the blissful quiet of bed time. The last couple of nights have been a total disappointment. The 7yr old has another loose tooth and it seems to only bother him once he goes to bed. It isn't loose enough to yank yet so I put baby Ora-jel on it and tell him...

We as a society, meaning the majority of us, seem to view homemaking as something that anyone could do therefore it isn't a real job. If you are a homemaker and your spouse/partner isn't doing "their part" you must be subservient. And there seems to be no consideration of how well you do your job or how many tasks are included in your job. Sure, anyone could do almost any given part, but few could do all that a homemaker does. Then there are those that seem conflicted in their view. The...

The murder of 11yr old Carlie has given me a stomach ache since it happened. I have two young children and now my heart jumps every time they are out of sight for any amount of time. To have seen her actual abduction on tape and then have her end up murdered is just something I am having a hard time dealing with. Recently I came across a group called Kidz Idz. They go around to places like Chuck E Cheese and finger print your children for free so you can keep it on file. They were outside...

When I was growing up (born in 1970) I knew only a couple of families that had 3 or more kids. My parents were both from bigger families but I have only one sister. Lately I have been meeting a lot of big families. My husband's cousin, for instance, has 5 kids. I met a family this evening with 5. Most of the families I see when picking my son up from school have at least 3. We have 2 and have been debating a 3rd. My baby is growing up (just turned 3) and I am heartbroken at the thought ...

I am a person that hates clutter in the kitchen. I love to cook but require lots of counter space and organization. I get frustrated with cookbooks because they take up so much space but usually only contain a couple of recipes I really use more than once a year. I have an organizer full of irreplacable recipes like old family recipes. I also have the Better Homes and Gardens cookbook that I will never get rid of. For anything else, I just hop on the internet. I love that my husband can ...

I just had to write about this because it is in my face every day. Too many parents let their kids walk all over them these days! A prime example is played out in a commercial that irks me every time I see it. It is the one about which is more frustrating, sharing a phone with a teen or dealing with dial up. Whenever the snotty teen says, "I'm on the phone!" I think, that parent should say, "Are you paying the phone bill? Until you do, you will use the phone when I say you can." How is ...

Now that my oldest is 7, I know how quickly you can forget the little things. I have been writing things down and taking pictures and video as often as I can to help my memory. On that note, I wanted to share a couple of cute things my 3yr old has said recently: Look at my musmels = look at my muscles I want a bread, bread, turkey = I want a turkey sandwich He is in a regular bed and has been for over a year now but still bellows to me in the morning "Mommy! I want to get up!" A...

My top most wish for this holiday season is for the family to stay healthy so we can visit everyone that we have missed the passed few years. We have cousins that we didn't get to see for the last three years so far due to either our ailments or theirs. The usual culprit being the flu. This year we only had one pre-Christmas get together which involved being exposed to only one other child. We figured that would be a safe bet for a germ free holiday start....wrong! This one child ended up...

Both of my children are starting to go on field trips with school already.  I wasn't able to chaperone my 7yr olds trip to the park and science center because they didn't allow siblings.  I do, however, get to chaperone my 4yr olds trip to the cider mill next week.  I am quite excited for both of us. We car pool so our kids don't ride the bus.  One of the most exciting things for the boys regarding field trips is getting to ride the bus.  Ah, the simple pleasures.&nbs...