I'm A Bit Old Fashioned

I have a confession to make in my haze of fatigue this morning. I am a bit old fashioned when it comes to how I raise my kids and nurture my marriage. I do things for them that most moms have dumped to the wayside. Until my kids graduated from High School I would get up with them, make their breakfast and lunch for them, and see them off. And, yes, I still get up every morning and make Aaron's lunch for him before he goes to work.

Work Up A Brain Sweat On A Date

How long has it been since you have seen the inside of a classroom from the students perspective? You are never to old to stop learning, so why not take a class together? Pick something that you both have an interest in and want to learn more about and seek out your local community college or community center for classes. 

7 Habits of Highly Effective Teens

If you have teenagers, I highly recommend reading this book as a family! We did this several years ago with our kids. Even though, at the time they acted like they hated it, it has really sunk in with them; we hear them all of the time, even now, quoting things from it. We took one small section a week on our family night, and read it together and discussed it. It really prompted some great discussions with our teens on peer pressure, motivation and what their principals are.

Want to know what the 7 steps are? Here they are in a quick list.

Thinking About A Cruise? Here's My Experience.

Hola Amigos! We are finally home from our vacation. It is always a bitter sweet feeling coming home. You are happy to be sleeping in your own bed again, and eating your own food, but sad to be back to reality. I liked hanging out in the sun all day; living in Seattle we just don't get a lot of that.

If you are thinking about doing a cruise in the future, here is my new found experience.

Senior Trip Time

Our last little chick-a-dee is preparing to fly the nest soon. Jessica is a Senior in High School and will be heading off to Central Washington University in the fall. As per our tradition, we are taking her on a big senior trip before she leaves us. We have been saving for this for four years now (ever since Jeff's senior trip); take a look at our vacation saving tips on the post "3 Strategies We Use To Help Pay For Vacations".

We will be gone the entire week, and returning on Monday, March 28th. Look for my first post back on that date, and I will tell you all about our trip and be back on regularly scheduled postings. We will be in Florida and then on a cruise in the warm and sunny Caribbean all week. Have a great week, and I'll see you again on March 28th!

The Man Cave: Dump Tripper

It stinks. It's unsanitary. It is an unseemly collection of all things half-eaten, worn out, used up, rotten, maggot-infested, and broken-down. It is flotsam and jetsam -  a sea of debris deemed no longer fit for human society. So what is it about going to the dump that makes it such a cool male bonding experience?

Or did I just answer my own question?

Parents Aren't Stupid Forever

I rounded the corner the other day to this little homework scene and had to snap a shot. It really made my heart full to see these two so intently involved with the task at hand together. It also has had me contemplating the thought that it really doesn't matter how old you get, or how old your children get, there are always times when you just need mom and dads help.

Does Child Induced Sleep Deprivation Ever Stop!?

I am writing this post in a daze of sleep deprivation. I will be running my day on about 5 hours of sleep, no thanks to that lovely daughter of mine. It starts the day those little bundles of joy come home with you and ends...... wait, does it ever end? That is the whole question of this post.

4-Layer Dessert

This has always been one of my favorite desserts and I make it every St. Patrick's Day for my friends party: there is never any left it's so popular. Usually I top it with clover sprinkles to be more festive, but I was out this year so I just used chopped pecans. Either way it's still delicious!

Volunteer Together

Volunteering together is a very humbling and bonding experience. We have done this off and on over the years in different combinations - as a family, as a couple or just one on one with the kids - and each time has been just as fulfilling. There are a lot of opportunities out there and it really helps you realize how incredibly blessed you are in your life.