Why Bother? Here’s Why

Welcome writer and mama Amy, an online pal from way back when our summer 04 babies were newborns and we were in the same attachment parenting email group. Amy was one of the first bloggers I “knew” and has been a great encouragement to me since the beginning of Hank & Willie—I’m delighted to have…

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Not one pirate treasure cake, but two

Please welcome my college friend Sarah, mother of about-to-be-four twin boys. She’s here with her gorgeous photos for Best Shot Monday and for a little party-planning therapy. * * * Hi, my name is Sarah and I’m a kids’ birthday party planning addict. Honestly, I don’t plan to throw a crazy complicated and over-the-top party…

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Food Friday: A Roundup of Summer Birthday Cupcakes for Kids

Poor Henry—he’s been two for a few days and we haven’t yet given him any chocolate cake to shove in his face yet. (I did make good on my chocolate promise and gave him a few chocolate chips before bed on his birthday. “YUMMY!” he reported.) We celebrated with ice cream and presents this week,…

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Two years already!

June 2008, Henry at 23 months Dear Sweet Baby Henry, Is this the last time I get to call you that, now that you are a big two-year-old-boy? Your nurses tagged you with that title as soon as we named you, but I’m not sure if the laughing, mischievous toddler that you are today can…

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Wheeeee!

It’s really hard to get the focus just right on kids who are swinging. But the good news is that I get lots of practice. Even after bath and in pajamas, some nights. Wishing you a swinging day. For more Best Shot Monday, click here.

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May flowers, again

I started the month with flowers, and now that we are almost at the end, I’ve got more flowers. All those April and May showers were good for something! Photographer Stacy hosts a weekly roundup of photos, Theme Thursdays, and this week the theme is flowers. Check over there for her gorgeous flowers and see…

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Ginger turtles!

The sweet, endearing mispronunciations of childhood might be one of my favorite parts of parenting. The mistakes are so earnest, yet so fleeting. I can barely stand it when the proper pronunciation actually emerges, because it is such a clear reminder of how fast the time passes. As soon as the whole household has gotten…

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What May showers brought

You’ve heard me gripe about all the rainy days we’ve had of late. You won’t hear me complain about these beauties that have finally emerged. Lilacs, May 2008 I haven’t downloaded a single photo from my college reunion yet, but I can tell you that: A) It was wonderful. B) I had the best of…

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Time out!

Henry in self-mandated “time out.” And yes, we call that the naughty step, because who doesn’t get their best child-rearing tactics from reality TV. The blue stool is his own touch. A FEW THINGS ABOUT YESTERDAY A) Henry sobbed for the entire 11-minute drive home from swimming lessons, because I didn’t wait long enough (like…

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As promised

A while back I asked if you thought it would be wrong to encourage ill-mannered behavior that I am ultimately going to abolish if I can encourage it just long enough to get it on video? I did, and I did. I think I gave it a little too much buildup, but it felt like…

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