I almost swallowed it, Mom!

And the winner is… Today we went to the races, the Cub Scout Pinewood Derby Races that is. Ryan and Patrick, with a bit of help from Grandpop McQuillan, spent several weeks constructing the perfect pinewood car! And they ended up with a winner. Ryan won first place for the Tiger Cubs and third place…
Today Ryan is nine years old! My serious, shy, bright, silly little one is growing up! Nine seems to me an odd mix of grown-up and little boy. Over the past year, I’ve watched with pride as Ryan demonstrated greater ease in group situations, as he gained the confidence to set out on adventures on…
Don’t talk anybody, don’t come near!Can’t you see the fish might hear?He thinks I’m playing with a piece of string;He thinks I’m another sort of funny thing,But he doesn’t know I’m fishing-He doesn’t know I’m fishing.That’s what I’m doing –Fishing. A.A. MilneNow We Are Six The kids weren’t quiet, they couldn’t keep from jumping into…
This year, Connor asked Santa to bring 200 Webkinz, please! Santa told Connor he’d have to see if he could find a big enough box. Ryan requested Legos, cars, and Webkinz – he said he’d let Santa decide how many. And now two very wound-up, excited little boys are tucked in their beds, visions of…
This morning I made an off-handed comment to Patrick that the skirt and top I had chosen to wear to church looked better on me last year. Ryan was standing nearby and chimed in with his usual, “Why?” Not wanting to get into a discussion of body image with my 7-year-old son, I replied, “They…
Watching the Macy’s Thanksgiving Parade is a Thanksgiving morning tradition in our home. This year’s parade provided more than colorful floats, melodic bands, and giant balloons, it provided comic relief: During a commercial break, Patrick and the kids were telling me about the Smurf float in the parade. Now as a child of the 80s,…