lemonade

August 15, 20161 Comment

lola had a lemonade stand on friday.

we pretty much have a “lemonade stand kit” that we use each time:

vintage linens
pump pot
bright umbrella
lemonade banner

lemonade 3

she charged her usual.

lemonade 8

she also made sure that there was ice {from sonic, no less} because it was 95 degrees.

lemonade 2

she had a good run for the first 45 minutes, and then it got a bit slow.

and, HOT.

she made sure that i placed the umbrella in just the right spot to keep her shaded.

lemonade 7

she waited patiently.

she was determined to stay open for the hours that she set.

she opened promptly at 4 and was stopping at 6, or when she sold out.

lemonade 4

by then end she said, “mommy, we forgot to offer the straws!”

lemonade 5

she worked hard and made some good money.

she even shared a few dollars with her brother for the handful of lemonades he helped serve!

home is…a young entrepreneur.

it’s the middle of may already?!

May 14, 20155 Comments

just a few photos of what we have been up to lately…

i am going to miss my days with her when she goes to school all day in the fall…

when she was an infant and the little guy was only 2 i remember thinking, “how am i going to get through everyday with them?” and that the day would never come when they would both be in school full time. now, i am wondering, “how am i going to get through everyday without them?” and how did it get here so fast?

he still loves coffee…especially when i drink it outside in my favorite spot in the backyard…

the clubhouse is still a big hit…in this photo she was the police commander and they had a crime to solve…

the mild weather has been perfect for evenings filled with baseball…

also, due to the mild weather, the garden is going crazy…the elusive artichoke…

my happy place…

rhodies in the front garden…

i lightened up the mood in the playroom with this white granny square afghan…a thrifted find from a couple years ago…i also rainbowtized all the books…

fridays are for lacrosse…

he’s so tired by the end of the week, but he really likes lacrosse…

i can totally picture him as a goalie…

our first fishing morning of the season…the pink pole caught the first and only fish…

the little guy is so helpful…it’s amazing how they can actually fish on their own now…

there was a huge bullfrog under the dock…

we also saw two bald eagles defending their nest across the river…

baby girl had her mind set on a lemonade stand, so we made it happen…

it was a successful day…friends from the neighborhood (and all the way across town) came to get some…

i call this the best seat in the backyard…and it’s mine…

trying to get out with the dogs…this was the first of two runs on monday morning…odyssey is the best running buddy…

and, here’s crazy, i mean, rainy! she has some manners to learn and will be heading to “summer camp” in idaho soon!

we’ve got some special visitors coming in a couple of days…stay tuned!!

home is…full of springtime fun!

spring baseball

April 16, 20153 Comments

The little guy is playing in his 3rd baseball season this spring and it is a whole new ballgame.

Single A Little League is the real deal.

Playing by the almost real rules means that sometimes the players pitch.

He’s learning when to swing and when not to.

And, sometimes you don’t get a hit or get on base because they are actually calling strikes and outs.

He’ll learn a lot this season, and it’s not all going to be about baseball.

Baby girl is learning how to be patient while she watches her brothers games again.

She’s already a pro at looking cute!

home is…another baseball season.

for the love of the world

February 26, 20152 Comments

ryan’s mom is great at sending the kids postcards.

most recently, she sent a postcard to lorelai with a beautiful poem.

yesterday, lorelai drew a fabulous self portrait with rainy and hobbes.

i felt like the poem and the self portrait belonged together.

home is…kids artwork.

{milestones} baby girl is five

September 9, 20141 Comment

We celebrated baby girl’s fifth birthday recently.

Five.

My BABY is FIVE.

She is full of life.

One of the most positive people I know.

For instance, at a recent family vacation to the oregon coast she said, “Good thing it was a great day for flying kites at the beach!”

She can be moody, but she always finds the good in things.

I hope she never loses that.

She loves to play games that she makes up. Recently, its been “family” with dolls, but she makes up all kinds of games to play on her own, with friends, with one of us, and especially her brother.

She adores her brother and loves to play the games that he plays. He’s not always interested in playing with her dolls, but she is always up for playing Minecraft, Mario Brothers, or any of the games that her brother loves.

She is strong and sensitive.

She’s silly and loving.

She is social when she feels comfortable, which means she talks my arm off all day long.

She has become a lot more independent this year and doesn’t cling to my leg everywhere we go, but can still be very timid with the unknown.

She’s always been my girl and tells me all day long how much she loves me.

She humors me and poses for all the photos I ask to take of her. Goodness is she is photogenic.

She loves to draw pictures and do all sorts of crafts.

Recently, on one of the games she plays on the computer, she has figured out how to use the shapes to create cards for us…she created a Minecraft card for her brother and many cards for me that, in her words, “tell you I love you”.

She swims, scooters, climbs, runs, digs in the dirt, skis, plays sports with her brother, twirls, dances, and sleeps ALWAYS in a skirt.

Everyday she wears a skirt. This year has been the year of the long dresses and skirts.

She is all girl, but in her own very special way.

She will ALWAYS be my baby.

I love you baby girl.

I asked her the same questions that I asked her brother this year on his seventh birthday to get a feel for how SHE feels at five:

favorite color: all the rainbow colors
favorite toy: puppy and peppa pig
favorite t.v. show: peppa pig and tom & jerry
favorite game: mario brothers and candy land
favorite snack: fried cheese sticks
favorite animal: puppy
favorite holiday: christmas and easter
favorite book: little house in the big woods, my bible, and goodnight moon
favorite song: let it go
what do you take to bed: puppy
favorite food: fried cheese sticks
favorite thing to do outside: swim at the pool
what do you want to be when you grow up: a kid that has real wings that can fit through the door
what are you most grateful for: mommy and puppy
favorite part of the day: when reece comes home and playing with all my toys
what makes you happy: my family
what are you scared of: the dark
what makes me special: because i’m thoughtful

To be part of her life EVERYDAY and watch her become her own person is one of the biggest joys of my life.

home is…five of the most rewarding years of my life.

another one for my “best days ever” list

March 26, 20145 Comments

I have been smiling from ear to ear since early today.

My baby girl officially went skiing today.

Remember this day?

Yeah, today also goes on the “one of my best days ever” list.

We had to make sure that her ski pants were pink.

She wore a skirt until we were actually skiing.

She put a skirt on as soon as she was done.

To be honest, I almost didn’t go.

Seasonal allergies, and an “introvert overload” almost kept me home (more on that later), but Ryan pushed me and I am glad that he did.

{Not to mention I felt super cool in my new Patagonia ski pants with my Patagonia orange belt…my first new ski pants in about 20 years! Darn you Patagonia for making ski pants that last so long…I’ve had 3 pairs in 25 years…all Patagonia…and I outgrow them…they don’t wear out!}

We had a blast!

Look at how her pink reflects in the tunnel!

She requested to ski with Poppa after only a couple of runs with Mommy!

And, our “old pro”?!

He’s now using the Go Pro!

He took a trip up the real chair lift…twice…with Poppa!

We’re thinking he’s ready to learn from a “real” ski instructor next time!

For those of you who might ask…

We ski at Mt. Hood Meadows up on (of course) Mt. Hood.

We buy the season pass for the kids which is $25 for the whole mountain…all season.

We buy a Spring Pass for us (which is $139 now, but we pre-purchased for $119). The Sprig Pass works out since we usually only ski during the spring…to break even we only need to ski 2-3 times…and the season can quite frequently go well into April and even weekends in May!

Currently, we rent skis from the shop at Mt. Hood Meadows, but we are looking into buying used demo/rental skis for the kids at the end of the season. It’s $70 a day to rent skis for the kids (WHOA!), so I am sure we could save A LOT of money buy either buying used skis or renting for the entire season.

We rent a locker for $10 a day and bring snacks and water. We are usually done by lunchtime, but as the days get nicer we plan to pack lunch, hot chocolate, and eat in the sun!

There’s a lot of snow up there and it was coming down today, so come join us for some spring fun on the mountain!!

home is…family fun on mt. hood.

wild thing…

February 17, 201418 Comments

I am the mom that does not give candy to the kids classmates on Valentine’s Day. Believe me, my kids eat plenty of treats and that is why I try not to give them on Valentine’s!

The little guy is really into animals, so I wanted to incorporate that into the valentine’s he gave to his friends.

I searched Pinterest and found some great ideas…you can see them on my valentine’s day board.

This is what we came up with…

I used perforated business card paper and printed the saying on them.

We tore them apart, punched two holes in the paper, the kids signed their names on the back (make sure to do this before you tie the animals on, but after you punch the holes) and tied each animal on with twine!

I found the animals at JoAnn Fabric, but you can also find them at Michael’s.

The kids loved them!

Also, here is our no candy valentine from last year…

My favorite part of valentines day was spending time in the kids classrooms…

and Lorelai’s homemade valentines…

When I was assembling the animal valentines, Lorelai asked me for paper and tape and ran up to her room. She made her own valentines using her own crayons and some pictures she cut out from a book.

I love that she wanted to create and give on her own.

We stamped them with a “homemade with love…” stamp and signed her name.

home is…homemade from the heart.

snow much fun

February 10, 20143 Comments

A mother nature imposed break from the real world was exactly what this family needed.

The forecast early in the week said we might get a lot of snow on Saturday.

When we had snow flying on Tuesday and they hadn’t even predicted it, I knew it was in the cards.

I started to stock up on the essentials on Wednesday.

Meal Plan:

Turkey Meatloaf
Chili
Chicken Soup
Grilled Cheese and Tomato Soup

In no particular order. Just warm food for bodies that have been playing in the snow.

Additional food items:

Milk
Coffee
Hot chocolate mix
1/2 & 1/2
Wine
Beer
Fresh fruits and veggies

And, the fun stuff (all on clearance this late in the season!):

sleds
snowboard
snowball makers
snow shovels
hand warmers
hats
mittens

I picked the kids up from school after their early release on Thursday and the flakes flew!

This Colorado girls heart was full. I know I can always drive up the mountain for snow, but snow that “sticks and stays” in our neighborhood is so rare for us. The last time we experienced it was 10 months after we moved to our current neighborhood. Reece was about 18 months old and we just pulled him around the neighborhood in the wagon.

Five years ago.

We’ve had small snow amounts since then…enough for snowballs and a snowman that might last a day, but nothing “big” as far as Portland standards are concerned.

This was Lorelai’s first big snow.

This has been fun.

The kids aren’t whining about being cold.

They don’t want to be carried.

We are all having fun…TOGETHER!

And, with one more snow day today, we will make the most of what’s left of the snow before the rains melts it all away later today!

home is…snow much fun.

{at the craft table} gobble, gobble

November 6, 20133 Comments

I always love a good craft.

Even better if it is quick and easy.

Our craft table always has something going on…either for me, the kids, or both of us.

I’m not even sure how it happened, but Lorelai and I were sitting at the craft table. I was working on cutting vests out of paper bags for her class Thanksgiving feast, and she said that she wanted to do a craft.

I looked over to our craft cart, which I regularly change out with craft supplies for the kids or myself.

I grabbed…

crayons
pad of scrapbook paper (I buy them on sale or with a Michael’s coupon)
glue stick
paper cutter and/or scissors

I had Lorelai choose a few different patterns of paper that I cut into strips.

I then cut some of the strips into little pieces.

Now, neither the strips or the little pieces need to be perfect…this is supposed to be quick and easy.

Then, I told Lorelai to hold tight while I made an example for her to follow.

Here is what I came up with…

I traced my hand, closed up the bottom, and added legs.

Then, I drew the beak and waddle.

You know the drill.

Then I just put a little glue on the strips and pieces of paper and started to glue them to the tail and body of the turkey.

I was done in less than two minutes.

Lorelai LOVED it!

This was something she could easily do BY HERSELF.

Reece even made a few, but had more fun drawing pictures of him shooting the turkey, or taking pictures of the turkey, etc.

Either way, the kids were being CREATIVE!

I put the scraps in a bowl on the table with some glue sticks nearby.

This way, if they want a craft to do they can make another turkey, or two.

home is…creating with my kids.

this space

November 4, 20132 Comments

I’ve missed this space.

This space to write and share our adventures.

Like the one I went on with the little guy a couple of weeks ago when he had a day off from school.

We dropped baby girl off at school where he got to visit with all of his former teachers. It was just awesome to see him feel like such a big kid. He was confident, well spoken, and polite.

After that, we ventured high above the fog that was blanketing the valley down below.

He loves to climb and hang from things. His arms are so strong.

He also loves to observe and collect. A bobcat lives in this nature park, so we looked for her. We were talking a lot, so we never saw her, but we saw a lot of other beautiful sites, collected sticks, feathers, and leaves.

I got some awesome, dedicated one-on-one time to talk to him about what he likes, why he likes it, and what is important to him.

That’s important to me.

It was good morning.

Baby girl and I get our time together as well. She likes to go for stroller rides while I run. One of these days, I will miss pushing the double BOB.

We also talk and stop to look at the beauty that is fall.

Ryan got to have a special date night with baby girl when he took her to the school Octoberfest for the first time. The next morning when I took her to school she said, “Mom, last night was the best night ever.”

Halloween happened around here, too. I made all of our costumes…animals of the Pacific Northwest. The little guy and Ryan went as wolves, baby girl was a bat, and I was an owl.

And, now, it is officially the most wonderful time of the year.

Thanksgiving is my favorite holiday…I love the food, the football, the family. I love slowing down to just be.

My parents will be visiting us for a week over the holiday…I can’t wait. We have much to celebrate and give thanks for.

Stay tuned…I plan to share more in this space.

home is…what is important.

stephany taddeo

home is what you make it

Category: baby girl