Category: Personal

Wanting to attend a Renaissance festival probably takes a certain type of person. And while I don’t actually have a “bucket list,” I’ll admit that if I had one, a Renaissance festival would be on it.

After a busy holiday weekend with lots of photo booth rentals, a wedding that we photographed, and a track meet for three of the kids, I was happy to have Monday free.

I knew there was a Renaissance festival going on near us over the weekend and I thought this was the perfect opportunity to finally go to one.

The conversation between Chris and I went something like this:
Me to Chris: “Do you have any interest in going to a Renaissance festival?”
Chris: “No.”
Me: “I want to go. I know the kids would love it.”
Chris: “You asked if I had any interest.”
Me: “Let’s try this again. I think we should go to the Renaissance festival.”
Chris: [he may have rolled his eyes here, I don’t remember] “Fine.”

We walked into the temporary village of tents and were instantly greeted with a ragtag group of fighters who battled it out in a field in the hot sun, all for the cheers of the spectators. Since it was hot and sticky for us watching from the shade, I’m sure they were uncomfortable in their full Renaissance costumes.

We continued on and people “in character” would happily chat with us, like the villainous man who offered to removed teeth from my six-year-old’s mouth to help the tooth fairy. We watched as a man drank alcohol and breathed out fire, pirates that tried to outwit each other and duals by horseback and on foot. There were people weaving on looms, cooking in kettles and carving wood. The whole area had a jovial, friendly vibe and they seemed genuinely excited to share what they were doing.

There were many ways that they engaged the whole family. Kids were invited to participate in the shows, like when my eight-year-old was invited to throw a log pole. All the kids had a chance to practice archery, but I stopped short at allowing my son to throw axes at a tree stump. That seemed a little too much for me- I could just see him dropping the sharp blade on his foot. *Shudder*

Walking around with a huge turkey drumstick seemed like a necessity, judging by how many people we saw doing it, so of course, we joined in. And, for better or worse, I agreed to buying the boys wooden weapons. I really thought the swords were cooler, but they both opted for axes. (Surprisingly, they haven’t hit each other–yet.)

The kids are ready to go back to the festival next year. It was “steam punk” enough that my 16-year-old loved the shops and wants to buy the clothes, and the boys loved all the fighting and “horseplay.” My eight-year-old wants to make going a new tradition.

As we drove away, I asked Chris what he thought. “It was exactly like I thought it was going to be,” he said, maybe with a little condescension. [He didn’t roll his eyes here, but it sounded like it. I’m choosing to ignore it.]

I smiled. “I know, me too. It was exactly like I thought it was going to be. We should come back next year.”

We recently returned from an amazing trip to Italy. With just under two weeks, we took in as much as we could. It was a whirlwind of cities, history, architecture, food, wine and many more stairs than I would have thought possible. (Up, we always seemed to go up.) We loved it and already talk about what we’ll do “next time we go.”

Being photographers, of course we took a lot of photographs while we were there. And we really want to show them off to our family and friends. When you just have digital photographs, it’s hard to share them. No one wants to be stuck watching a slideshow. I can’t have everyone come to my house and sit around my computer. And the little images on an iPhone won’t do justice to Italy, especially with these stately and intricate buildings we captured.

An album was the perfect solution. I picked the best images, the ones we wanted to tell the story of our trip, and designed them into a layout to highlight details and favorite moments.

I love this album: 80 beautiful pages, 40 charming spreads, wrapped in Italian leather and embossed on the cover. I have this magnificently gorgeous book that I can flip through again and again to remember my time in Italy.

So, go ahead and tell me you want to see photos from the trip—I’m ready. 😉

Some people dream of being rich or famous. Not me. I dream of being organized.

When you have four kids, organization is hard. Especially on school days. Something is always getting lost or left behind. A “launching” area is essential to getting them out the door anywhere close to on-time.

When we were looking for a new house last summer, two things were on our “the house must have” list: a three car garage (Chris) and a mudroom (me).

The house we bought had neither.

What I do have is a typical, traditional foyer with a closet, but I quickly realized that was not going to work for getting kids ready in the morning. Since the foyer is at the front of the house and out of sightline from the kitchen, the kids were left to manage themselves.

But like the proverbial watched pot that never boils, an unwatched child never gets ready for school.

Maybe you are lucky and your kids just get their shoes on when you tell them to. Not mine. They will poke their toes into their shoes like they are making an effort. But if you look away, they just stop. Ten minutes can pass and they are still in the same pose I last saw them in.

I knew I needed the kids to finish getting ready in the kitchen where they would have adult supervision. I made a temporary spot for coats and shoes, but what I wanted were open lockers, or “cubbies” just like they have at school. I wanted each child to have their own separate spot for coats and backpacks. I wanted there to be a place for shoes and mittens to always go.

I started gathering ideas. I made a new board on Pinterest: Family Lockers. I pinned lots of images on how I needed these lockers to work for our family. Then I showed Chris so I could get him on board with my idea. Our “temporary” solution lasted a year longer than we’d wanted, so when Chris agreed to start working on the lockers and said he’d have them finished in a week, we were both excited to have them done.

Building The Lockers

Since we don’t have a mudroom between the attached garage and the kitchen, we agreed the open wall in the kitchen would work perfectly for the organizing the kids.

Chris was building the lockers from scratch with plans he was creating, so he wanted the plans to be easy. But I had spent a year dreaming of these and I had requirements. The plans for the family lockers became a democracy, a compromise between us. I needed hooks, but not too many. I needed dividers, and not too shallow. I needed shoe cubbies that were just the right size.

To start, he used vintage solid core closet doors, purchased from the local ReStore, to provide a sturdy base for the outside walls. These worked well because they mimicked design elements in other parts of the room and dining room. It was important that the lockers not look out of place and original to the house.

Next, 3/4 inch oak plywood was used for the bench and shelves. Using a kitchen chair as a guide for the bench height, Chris made it 18 inches high and 15 inches deep. Each section is about 17 inches wide, which is roomy enough for a backpack, coat, snow pants and more. A 10 inch divider between each section is deep enough to keep kids’ stuff separate and contained. The shoe shelf is wide enough for 2 pairs of shoes, and it was important to me that the lower section was high enough to accommodate boots.

We knew from past experience that using a really good primer is key to standing up to the rugged use of four kids. Chris used Bondz Maximum Adhesion Primer by Zinsser. Any small gaps between pieces of wood were filled with painter’s caulk after the primer coat and before painting.

We used gloss white paint because it’s more durable and is easier to clean than semi-gloss or matte paint. Chris used a smooth roller, which worked fine, but if he was to do it over, Chris says he would rent a commercial paint sprayer to get a smoother finish. It would have also been less work to paint all the nooks and crannies.

The finished lockers are about 6 feet wide, 15 inches deep and 6.5 feet tall. They look original to the house and create the perfect spot to keep the kids organized. Now they will just have to find other ways to stall going to school, I suppose.

The next projects are painting the built-in custom kitchen cabinets and walls and the foyer.

Wishing you all a happy time with friends and family throughout the whole holiday  season and into the new year!

Labor Day, the start of school, flipping the calendar to September, the first maple tree leaves turning red, the fall equinox… We often debate when summer really ends, but we are splitting hairs when we argue which date exactly announces the arrival of fall. They all mean the same thing: the end of summer.

I think it’s more important to realize why it’s such a big deal.

Summer feels like freedom, irresponsibility and relaxation all rolled into one. Kids don’t have homework and are told to go play outside. Adults plan weekends of leisure and flock to patios to sip drinks with friends.

To say goodbye to summer feels like you are taking back all the work and drudgery you were able to leave behind last spring when the snow finally melted. To say goodbye to summer feels like you closing a chapter.

And sometimes, that is a good thing.

Fall gives you a fresh start. The promise of new school supplies and fresh schedules makes you optimistic. Clearing out the dying garden gives you less yard work. The crisp, cool air clears your head.

For us, we are looking forward to fall. As much as I love the flexibility of not watching the clock, I need some structure for my kids’ days. And our summer was more eventful than we wanted it to be, with broken bones and trips to emergency rooms.

We were lucky enough to celebrate the end of summer with friends. They have a charming, relaxing cabin on a quiet lake. The weather was perfect. There was plenty to eat and drink. The children all got along with one another. No one had any major accidents.

It was the perfect way to end the summer.

We are ready for a new chapter. Welcome to fall.

Today marks a very big day at our house. Our youngest has started kindergarten.  For the first time in forever, I no longer have a Little at home. I’m now the mother to only Big Kids. And I would be lying if I said I didn’t cry.

Just when you get one problem figured out- or even before that problem is fully taken care of- the next one comes at you, stealing your attention and robbing your sleep.

Being a parent means life is always filled with chaos and messes, both big and small.

You try to be a good parent. You want to sacrifice a part of yourself to protect your kids. You dream of putting your kids in a magic bubble to keep them safe.You try to not make the same mistakes twice. You try to teach your kids the lessons you had to learn the hard way. You want to make life easier for them.

As parents, we freeze. We stop living. We think that if we can do this or control that, we’ll keep the bad stuff away, our family will be safe and happy. But the only thing it really does is keep us from truly being happy ourselves.

And, like all parents, I am reminded that I can’t stop life from happening. My youngest will go off to kindergarten this fall, whether I want him to or not. My oldest will be taking driver’s ed as she gets ready to get her license, even if I’m not ready for her to drive.

Things happen. Things change. Wounds heal, pain goes away, life goes on.

You realize there is never a good time. There is never a time when you can count on everything being calm.

I have now completed my 6th half-marathon! And I had fans!!!

This was the first year that the kids were able to come to a race and cheer me on, mostly because Chris has had some injuries and did not run this time. It was such a fun experience to have cheering fans on the sidelines. Chris was great about getting to several places on the course. I looked forward to seeing their smiling faces.

And those signs! People loved those signs.

They made the signs the night before the race, keeping them a secret until we saw them at mile 2.

When the miles drag on, its nice to have a little humor to keep you going.

Chris and kids did a great job cheering, not just for us, but for a lot of the runners that probably needed it most. And it was sweet to hear those runners express their appreciation. People started calling them “the sign family.”

Some even stopped to get a photograph with them.

It was definitely fun to have fans.