S'mores Life

About a year ago, I published Our REAL Christmas Letter for 2015 . I shared a lot of things; I was brutally honest about the fact that we were struggling in our marriage, I was mentally struggling a lot, and we had a lot of difficult parenting moments in 2015. I shared joyous moments too of course, but 2015 was a hard year. For most of us, 2016 has not been any easier, but I look back on that letter from one year ago and see it as the starting point for me being honest about my real life on social media, blogging, and in person. Some of you know me well and know that I've never shied away from being honest, sometimes blunt, and sometimes to a fault. There is something different, however, about being real. True. Authentic. Raw. The response both online and in person, to that letter, was staggering. I still have people tell me how much they appreciate how brave I was. To be frank, I feel like my reasons for honesty were far more selfish than brave. Sure, it was nice that other peop...

It's come up in discussions around me a lot lately, whether it's in church classes or just with friends. Christmas letters. And our tendency to brag, show pride, or gloss over the reality of our lives. Now, don't get me wrong. I LOVE Christmas letters and cards. I wish more people sent them, I love reading them, and I love writing them. I also try to be "real" when I write them...this year, instead of a typical letter, I decided to put our top quotes of 2015. Hence, why the words "vagina," "wine," and "poop" (twice!) are on our Christmas card this year. I don't try to sugar coat our lives or our reality in real life, and I try to be pretty honest online too. However, reading this brutally honest Christmas card  made me realize that I really was not being as honest about the brutal parts of our year as I could be. And yes, we want to be uplifting and positive and not complain or drag people down...also, as someone who suffers fr...

So I didn't hop on the daily thankfulness posts on facebook for a couple of reasons. Mostly, laziness and forgetfulness. Too much pressure for me to remember to most something specific every day. Also, because I post enough pictures of my daughter and crazy status updates to annoy my facebook friends as it is, I didn't want to make it onto more "hide users" lists. But this way I can still list 30 things I'm thankful for on my own time and people can choose whether or not to read them! :) 1. My family - just gotta get this one outta the way, right? My husband, my daughter, my parents and my siblings. They are all pretty much the best ever and exactly what I need in my life, whether I know it at the time or not. ;) The majority of the time I even want all of them in my life too! WIN WIN! 2. Tums. (I'm 38.5 weeks pregnant. Enough said.) 3. Facebook. Stupid, I know, and silly - but when you have friends and family spread out all over the country as muc...

I have been seeing a lot of and discussion on my message boards and things on pinterest recently about starting family traditions for the holidays (whichever ones your family celebrates) and with Christmas being my FAVORITE time of year, I have decided to blog about what our family traditions are. Some have carried on from our families of origin and some Ian and I have started together, or plan to start this year. I know this is early but 1) I start listening to Christmas music in October and 2) we always try to complete most of our Christmas "errands" before Thanksgiving/December so we can really enjoy the Advent season . That is the main reason, but it's also financial - if we buy a gift or two a month starting in April, our bank account takes less of a hit. Current/Ongoing Family Traditions: Black Friday - On the day after Thanksgiving, my little sister comes over. We decorate the tree, the house, watch Christmas movies, do Christmas crafts and eat leftovers from...

Not only am I proud of the multitude of crafts I made (AKA two crafts, but whatever) for Clara's birthday, I had some amazing vendors and purchases that helped make her birthday party extra special. Maybe this will give you some ideas for your little one's next party. Recipes/food will be coming in an upcoming post. Also, we're insane and planned to do a huge 1st birthday bash, with mostly adults in attendance...Her second birthday party is going to be a frozen pizza and maybe some diluted juice for the three of us. WHOOP WHOOP. Photography - We had Clara's 1st birthday pictures taken a couple weeks prior by Tracy Marshall Photography . If you are in Anne Arundel Country, contact her! She has taken our family pictures before and is not only incredibly talented but is also a dear friend. By looking at the pictures, you would have never known Clara was NOT in the mood to have her pictures taken, Tracy's three year old was not in the mood to have his mommy pay ...

It's another pinterest infant crafty post! If you didn't get enough of my crafty skills from our Valentine's Day project, we're back for more! I don't have inspiration links this time because I just searched for "Easter hand projects" and got these ideas from scrolling through the search results. Please refrain from telling me that our chick does not need a pink mouth as chicks have beaks...I just thought she needed a little extra something. ;) We sent these out to grandparents and godparents on Monday. So are these activities really for baby, or for mom? ;) Here's a tip: When doing infant art that is more involved for the adult than the baby, use Gerber puffs to bribe the baby. ;) Clara's palm, ring and pointer finger make an Easter Bunny! :) Yes, that chick has a beak and another mouth. Happy Easter from my Easter Bunny!

Since most of the recipients of this project (Clara's grandparents and Godparents) have probably received this by now, it's probably safe to post this. Seeing as I am addicted to pinterest, her Valentine's day project came from the site. The inspiration is pictured here . Ours did not turn out *quite* as nice looking. Or nice looking at all. But I'm sticking with "it's the thought that counts", especially when it comes to infant craft projects.  Here is Clara with her red feet, waiting patiently to make her cards: And our attempts at a heart shape made from her footprints. I made more than we actually needed so we had some to choose from. Sadly, even our best choices were nowhere near close to our inspiration...but anyone who knows me wouldn't expect much different. ;) I especially love that blob on the purple piece of paper on the left. The final product:  "From the tips of my toes to the depths of my heart, I love you!...