Mommy Musings

One of the things I love most about summer is all the fun activities in our area.  There is never a shortage of street fairs, farmer's markets, and carnivals.  For one of the most populated areas in the country, it helps bring a small-town feeling.  So we try to go to as many of them as we can. We recently went to a carnival at my old elementary school.  It was so weird to walk around the same parking lot I had when I was 13, now with my own kids. Emmy was amazed that I had gone there, and loved all the stories I told her.  The highlight of the night was running into a friend of mine who went through school with me there.  We've been friends since kindergarten, and sometimes I just can't believe how much time has passed since then. The girls rode rides, played games, and of course topped off the evening with some ice cream! About a week later, our town had its annual street fair.  The main street closes off to traffic and is filled with all sorts of fu...

Skip was off on Saturday and we were determined to make the most of it.  That combined with some amazing 80* weather made it the perfect day for some outside activities. Skip and Emmy have hone fishing together a few times, and Charlie wanted to get in on the fun.  So all four of us packed up and headed to a small pond to try and catch some fish. Both girls did really well and despite the fact that we only caught one fish, everyone had a great time! We went home for lunch and naps and then headed back out to a little pumpkin patch I had seen earlier.  There was a petting zoo, giant blow up slide, and plenty of fall fun. It was a great day with our little family, We topped off the weekend with some church and out to lunch before Skip had to go to work.  The girls sat together on one side of the booth for the first time, so Skip and I actually got to sit next to each other!  It was so nice. The girls and I then spent the afternoon watching football and painting th...

We are all still trying to get back into the routine of school this year, the early morning wake-up, homework, and making sure we have everything together.  We are also missing Emmy the hours she's at school, Charlie especially.  But it is nice to be able to enjoy some one on one time with my youngest in this last year before she starts school full time. The other morning was cool, but beautiful and Charlie and I spent a ton of time outside.  We played hide-and-seek, tag, racing, and rode bikes and scooters.  It was wonderful to get some fresh air and really just focus on my girl. I do cherish all this time with my littlest!

Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday of this week were our last days of summer vacation and we wanted to enjoy them as much as possible.  {Plus Skip was working all holiday weekend, so we didn't really do anything then} Monday we went to the playground and spent lots of time in the sprinkler outside. On Tuesday I took Emmy to get a fresh haircut.  I've been cutting here hair the last few years, but as she's in kindergarten now, I figured it was time to take her to my stylist.  Emmy loved  the whole experience, though she was a little disappointed I wouldn't let her get her hair colored. After that we took the girls to ride the ponies and then spent the rest of the day outside again. Wednesday morning we ran to Target to pick up a few last minute things..my kids are obsessed with the big red ball and insisted I snap a picture! Then we treated them to some time at the playground and skipping stones on the lake. Of course we needed one more day outside in the sprinkler before...

I live in this tiny, adorable little town in NJ.  It's about 2 square miles and about 10,000 people.  Most towns around me are not much larger than that in square mileage, but mine is one of the only ones with a really cute downtown area.  There is one long lamp-lined street filled with restaurants, stores, and salons.  It ends right at the railroad station, and just beyond that there is the Veteran's Park.  The park is just a big grassy area with gazebo in the middle.  The whole thing has a very Gilmore Girls-esque feel to it sometimes. What adds to that effect, are the town functions we put on.  Christmas parades, sidewalk sales, concerts in the park, etc. It really is fantastic to have so many cute things to do in town.  What's even better is our house is only about a 10 minute walk from town, so it's super easy to just pop in and see what's going on. Back in May, there was a craft fair going on in the park area.  There were tons  of ...