Family Musings

We've been busy at the FamilyMusings household getting ready for Christmas. This is the first year that Charlotte starts to get what Christmas is all about so I haven't had much time for blogging. Before I sign off until next year, I'd thought I'd just share a few tidbits with you... First, some excellent posts that help explain the way our family deals with the Santa vs. Jesus issue. Are you Down with Santa ? How are Santa and Jesus similar? Separating Fact from Fiction about Santa If Not Santa, Then What? Second, remember when I blogged about taking a stay-cation . Well, fate smiled on me and in a completely unrelated event, I won 2-free nights at a local Holiday Inn by entering a Facebook contest . My parents will use 1 night tomorrow. Here is my winning comment: My daughters, Charlotte (2) and Mary (3 months), are the light of their grandparent's eyes. When Charlotte sees her G-ma and Grumpy, no matter where we are, she runs right over to them wit...

Each year, our church hosts an Angel breakfast a few weeks before Christmas. We attended our first one this year. The purpose of the breakfast is to encourage parents to keep Christ in Christmas. Charlotte had the chance to make some angel crafts, including this stamped bag. I am so glad she didn't get that red paint on her dress! Another angel craft we made with a dishtowel, pot holder, and wash rag. It was simple to make and will be a lovely gift for some special teachers and nursery workers in our lives. Though the assembling of the angel was over Charlotte's head, she still found something else to put over her head. Mary was with us too of course, but didn't seem so thrilled about wearing her angel costume. During some down time between the yummy pancakes and the art projects, Bruce entertained Charlotte with their new game - "I've got your nose!" I am sure I don't need to explain the rules to you...

Tonight in the car, Bruce and I were having a conversation about the church service we had just left when from the back seat, I heard Charlotte say, "excuse me Mommy." After I finished my sentence with Bruce, I looked back and acknowledged Charlotte and told her I would be with her in a moment, once Daddy and I finished our train of thought. She seemed okay with that, but not for very long (about 10 seconds, after all she is still 2 years old!,). She soon said "excuse me Mommy" again. Once I was done with my sentence, I looked back again and asked her what she needed. "I need you to stop talking to Daddy," she replied. "Why do you need me to stop talking to Daddy?" "So you can talk to Charlotte Moon!"

Responding to pastor and blogger Mark Driscoll's 16 tips for Dads , here are my top 15 tips for Moms in how to make the Christmas season special for your family. Instead of stressing out about the money your family will or will not spend on Christmas gifts, make plans NOW to ensure your family uncovers and celebrates the true meaning of this holiday. Don't fall into the same patterns of the years past (except for those treasured family traditions) and make sure you don't miss out on how your children will enjoy Christmas differently now that they are a year older. As Mark Driscoll says, "Our children grow quickly and if we miss the sacred moments God opens up for us to connect with and bless our families, everyone suffers and we set in motion generations of missed opportunity." Mom, you need a holiday plan to make sure each child knows they are loved despite the busy-ness. What is your plan ? Mom, childhood memories of Christmas seem to come back more easil...

This giveaway is now closed. Congrats to Rachel, comment #1 for winning. Have you ever read a book that just filled your mind and soul with delight? A book so artfully written that it just flows off the tongue? Now, have you ever read a children's book that did that? I have. Several weeks ago I was visiting with a friend and picked up a copy of Ginky’s Glorious Green Growing Garden . The author was my friend's mother, Tammy O'Donnell, a former educator and current education consultant. From reading this book, it is clear that O'Donnell has a pure love for language and the way it can wrap around our heads to create a vision of another place. "Ginky’s Glorious Green Growing Garden is the third book in the series, following Grandmommy’s Dress-Up Box (2006) and Grandmommy and the Great Shoe Tadoo (2007).  The first two books are dedicated to the mothers of Tammy and her husband Larry, whose memories the family cherishes and wants to pass along to their grandc...

I posted once before that on rainy days when we are stuck in the house, I like to have a photo shoot. During the rain this past week, Charlotte wanted to try out her new silly face for the camera. What do you think? Is it silly?

So much has happened in the last three months, yet it feels like just last week I was bringing home Mary from the birthing center. The biggest thing that has happened though is that I finally am in love with Mary. I know that sounds weird to say, but it just took me longer this time to get that feeling of not wanting to put her down or be away from her. That feeling of just wanting to soak her all in until I can't stand it anymore. I wish I had more pictures of her to share, but I haven't been finding much time to get the camera out these days. So Mary, if you are reading this someday, please don't be mad at your sister for having hundreds of pictures in her first three months, first the less than 100 I have of you. Okay? I promise I love you just as much, but my time is a bit more divided these days. Now, a brief update on how therapy has been going... Mary has been taking her bottles for the last couple of weeks without any cheek or jaw support. So, Nikki (her ST) a...

It really feels like Christmas is upon us now. I have my Thanksgiving decorations put away and my Nativity scenes up (pictures to come) and we've attended our first Lakeland Christmas parade. Charlotte was allowed to stay up extra late (3 hours after her normal bedtime!) just for this special event and having her there made it so much more fun. Because the parade is such a popular event in Lakeland, I scoped out a spot for us to sit about 4 hours before the parade's 7 pm kick-off. Boy am I glad I did. It was crowded when we finally arrived at 6:15 and our seats were pretty good (just near the judges stand). I think Charlotte's favorite part of the parade were the floats playing loud music that she could dance too. Many a float rider got a kick out of watching her shake and bounce to their music. We were also right on the lake and had a front seat for the fireworks show that begins the night's festivities. Mary was dressed in her Christmas warmest and di...

Have you ever received a Hickory Farms gift basket? I have. Do you remember that experience? I do, and very well. It was just last Christmas and for some reason, receiving a gift basket from Hickory Farms made me feel like a grown up. Because, let's be frank, who would give a kid a basket full of smoked meat and cheeses? These sorts of things are just very grown up gift ideas. Well, a week or so ago, I received my second ever Hickory Farms gift basket and it reminded me of my first basket of meat and cheese. This time though, it wasn't from a family friend. It was from Mom Central. One thing I remember about my first gift basket, and was reminded of with this one, is that the idea of eating cheese that has not been refrigerated is weird. But I can get over it because the product is shelf stable until opened.  And though surprised by the taste of it, I especially liked the Apple Pie Cheddar Cheese. Neither of the flavors were too strong to enjoy with the flatbread crackers....

This giveaway is now closed. Congrats to comment #19 for winning.   A few weeks ago, I received 2 coupons for Nancy's Appetizers . You might have seen these before in your grocer's freezer section.  Nancy (or whomever does the actual baking!) makes cute little quiches and deli spirals (which I am totally addicted too!) I could eat a box of spirals in less time that it took me to write this post.  As a woman who loves a bargain, I tried to wait until Nancy's Appetizers went on sale before I used my coupon. But that didn't happen (don't worry it was a coupon to try the product for free and you can win one too). So,  I used my free coupon and bought a box of quiches (my store was out of spirals and didn't carry the dessert!).  A normal woman would probably have served these as an actual appetizer at a party for to make dinner at home seem a little fancier. Not me.  I baked my box up and ate them for lunch with a Diet 7-Up on day. Yummy. But what lit...

But, I want to share these easy waffle cookies Charlotte and I made this morning. These are a super simple cookie that can be modified in many ways. Add Craisins or other dried fruit to the batter to combat the 2 sticks of butter in the recipe! Use them as a base for an ice cream sundae, instead of a cone or waffle bowl.  Make them look like snowflakes by sprinkling powdered sugar over them. Add orange extract instead of vanilla and serve with hot mandarin tea. Almond extract would also be a yummy addition. How else would you modify these yummy waffle cookies ?

Another creation from Hello, Cupcake!: Irresistibly Playful Creations Anyone Can Make I didn't have access to green pull apart licorice for the vines, so I made swirly, vine-like things from green melting chocolate. The smaller cupcakes were dipped in hot icing before getting the orange sugar. I've also made owls , corn on the cob , and rabbit hole cupcakes.

This morning Charlotte and I sat at the table having some fun with a few simple Thanksgiving activities. None of these are original to me and were pretty simple and uncomplicated for her to do. The first one I really want to share with you though is a fill-in-the blank drawing of a pilgrim girl. I am so impressed with how Charlotte filled in the blanks of her face. And, while I think this looks like a piggy little pilgrim, it is just adorable to me! Another activity we made was a "Sharing Book." This idea came 100% from Sprout Online. Charlotte wasn't as ready to share her things as I would have hoped, but then again, she is two and I was asking her to abstractly tell me what she wanted to share. In the end, she decided to share her paper (twice), sandbox (which we don't own), and her books (maybe she'll be a Reading teacher someday). To vary her access to art materials today, I busted out a glue stick and fuzzy pom poms. (I know, such variety is amazin...

I love making photo books. They are a quick and easy way to document a major event or even the small events throughout the year. Especially when you don't have any room or time for serious scrapbooking. While I like making photo books, I often need a little nudge to get them going and done. In case you are like me, you might need some help too. So here are some ideas for making a themed photo book: based on the months of the year and various activities you did in each month; an ABC book with something about your child that relates to each letter of the alphabet; or you could also use a photo book to chronicle a major event in your life, such as a vacation, wedding, or the birth of a child . And here is some more of a nudge from an email I received today... " Snapfish has launched an effort with Rachael Ray in which Snapfish is giving viewers the opportunity to receive 50% off their own customizable photo book [no limit either!] using promo code from November 25-December 2, a...

When we went to Disney for Charlotte's haircut recently, she wanted to stay for the parade. This is what happened 2 minutes before the parade started. When we went to Disney for Charlotte's haircut recently, she wanted to stay for the parade. This is what happened 2 minutes before the parade started.

The other night at the dinner table, Charlotte looked at me and asked, "What are you eating Mommy?" I replied, "a salad." She asked me again, "What are you eating Mommy?" And again, I replied, "a salad." Two more times we repeated this exchange. Finally, after she asked me for a fifth time, "What are you eating Mommy?" I started giving her silly replies. "What are you eating Mommy?" "My fork. "What are you eating Mommy?" "Mary's hands." "What are you eating Mommy?" "Paper." "What are you eating Mommy?" "Your nose." Here, Bruce interjected with his own question. "Charlotte, what are you doing?" To which Charlotte replied, "playing a game with Mommy!" That made me laugh out loud that she even knew we were playing a game. What a fun child she is!

"Grateful not only for the blessings I can count, but for the ones that can not be measured." For a few years now, I've slowly collected some Thanksgiving decorations in a frugal way by only buying them after the holiday. All with the good intentions of using them the next year. Well, you know what they say about good intentions. Good. (Because I don't, what do THEY say about good intentions?) Anyway, after a major reduction of goods was attempted when we moved to Lakeland in 2008, I fought to keep my holiday decorations on the promise that I would use them and not forget about them. Guess what happened. Yep. In 2008 I didn't decorate for Thanksgiving at all. I didn't even put up the 3' pre-lite tree I bought for Christmas. So this year, lest I be forced to give all of my Thanksgiving decorations away, I am using them. And I might even add to them when the post-Thanksgiving sales make everything 75-90% off. For those of you who are interested, here ...

While yesterday Charlotte had her first hair cut at Disney's Magic Kingdom, I don't want to overlook the fact that the day was also Mary's first trip to Disney. Mary is only 10 weeks old and wasn't very involved in the trip, but I thought I'd show a picture or two of her first visit. Hanging out in the Baby Bjorn Sleeping while Charlotte got aforementioned haircut And her first picture in front of Cinderella's Castle

It took me a long time to finally be ready for Charlotte to get her first haircut. And at the end of the day, I'm not even sure she realizes she had it cut. Here is the story, mostly in photos, of Charlotte's first haircut. First, the barber, Michael, plied her with Mickey stickers. Lots of Mickey stickers. Then, he gave her even more Mickey stickers to keep her distracted, once she finished the banana in her hand though. After a little squirt of water, the first cut happened. I wasn't looking too closely because I was trying to help Charlotte focus on the stickers. Then, because the banana was all gone, it was time to see if the Mickey sticker tasted any good. Since Momma did make Charlotte leave the house without any breakfast. (We ate it in the car.)  Still completely oblivious that Michael is cutting ~2 inches off of my hair... Sharing my stickers with Michael's cheek. Notice the short hair?  Not liking the bangs getting cut. Rocking her ne...