It is a steadfast truth that everything is made better with a large supply of colorful stickers.  The Banana loves to stash a collection of treasures into her backpack and pretend she is going important places, like school, or perhaps on a vacation.  

The thrifting fairies were with me last Friday.  Not only did I snatch up some great kids clothes, but I also found some great storage cubes and this terrific geoboard.  The geoboard was only 50 cents, and in perfect condition, plus it came with colorful, artistic rubber bands.  I was…

For her half birthday, Sarah requested playtime with her friend from up the street, and cut out sugar cookies with frosting and sprinkles.  When she told me about the cookies, I said, "Really?"  I don't think I've made cut out sugar cookies for years and years.  I love making cookies,…

He was plunked down in this chair for time out, and before we knew it, he was snoring away.  Late afternoons are tough . . . too tired to be nice, but too close to bedtime to have a nap.  

A Sugary Snack involving marshmallows and chocolate and crackers Her favorite outside chair One of her "NICE" blankets (any blanket made of fleece with a silky binding is "nice") Pajammies A baby doll with a nukie (very important) All of her family surrounding her and including her

The Banana and Mr. SP have recently discovered that Ya Ya is able to read a lot of their favorite books to them, and I have been blessed by seeing scenes like these happen several times over the last few days.  I love to hear her reading out loud (something…

Once upon a time there was a mother who had three children, a big girl with lots of ideas, a medium boy with lots of emotions, and a small, but zesty girl with a great desire to be included.  The big girl with lots of ideas happened to have a…

It all started four years ago, on a sweltering humid summer Sunday afternoon in Wisconsin.  We were miserable.  It was sticky inside.  It was sticky outside.  I sent my husband to Walmart to locate and purchase a plastic swimming pool. Plastic swimming pools, up until that point, had been a…

The Banana heard Dr. Peds drive up in his car this evening and zoomed over to the window in the office to holler down "Hi Daddy!"  To her delight, he brought home pizza to commemorate Father's Day. She was a very happy girl. We celebrated Father's Day by going to…

Today was marathon day!  We loaded up the kidlets, five apples and a sack of graham crackers, two lawn chairs, a blanket, and five 3-bell jingle sticks (to make noise for the runners) and settled in on a grassy spot near the 24 mile mark.   The kidlets made signs…