That's What Friends Are For

When I mentioned that we were going to Virginia for a friend's wedding, I received a lot of "looks" when people heard how we met... online.

That would have been me a few years ago too. But when life throws you together, and you have so much in common (we're all raising at least one 2 year old born within weeks of Drew) you can't help but be close. Despite that we have different parenting techniques, beliefs, and lifestyles - we all have one common denominator -- Our kids.

I know I've spoken about these ladies a few times, and seriously as everyday passes they grow more and more important to me. So it was a no brainer that when we learned one of our own was tying the knot, we had to be there. This same group of girls got together in January (photos of that are on my old blog) much to the dismay of the other members of our group. When we met up last week, it was like we all were together yesterday. I suppose that could be due to the fact we talk daily.....

Since we got returned from Virginia, I've been asked how the husbands got along. This was the first time they had met each other. I won't lie, Dave often thought I was nuts for having "online friends" and then he met a few of the girls and started to see where I was coming from. And he knows a lot of what's happened with this group of girls over the past nearly 3 years... since I fill him in on some of the happenings with the other kids in the group.


Well I have to say the husbands got along great! Dave didn't have a single complaint about anyone. I think the fact that they all had kids the same age, also helped them make a connection and eliminate a lot of awkwardness.

Well the plans are in the works for another gathering of my national mamas.... so stay tuned for more updates in the future.

And only 2 more days to leave your comments so I can turn them into cans for local families who are looking for a meal this Holiday Season. Thank you all to those who have left comments... but I want more!

East Coast Family Time

It was so great to travel with the entire family - and really get good quality time together. It's not too often I'm able to fly with both Dave and Drew. In fact, this was only the third time we flew as a family - I get to fly solo all the time. So it was a real treat. Only downfall... this was the first time we had to buy Drew a ticket (kids fly free on your lap until 2 years old).

Drew did great on the flights - we had a layover in Atlanta, and Drew was quite the trooper. The only time he'd fuss on the plane was when he couldn't get comfortable enough to sleep.

Speaking of sleep, we took a unique route to getting Drew to sleep in his own bed during our travels. Since Drew is sleeping on his crib mattress on the floor at home, so we decided to pull the hide-a-bed mattress off the couch, and lay it on the floor. It was perfect. Not only for sleeping, but apparently for jumping as well. It worked out to be the perfect trampoline for the kids too.

OK back to the fun stuff. Here are some pictures of the three of us at the wedding (apparently that's the only time we snapped pictures of the three of us). I have to say, the Bluemont Winery made a beautiful backdrop.


And by the end of the night Drew had enough. He conked out about an hour before the wedding ended. I guess that's what a 20-minute nap gets you.


Please keep the comments coming! For every comment left on my blog this week, it means a can is donated to a local food bank. Don't be shy... comment away. Read here for all the information on this drive.

The Virginia Hams

This past weekend the three of us headed to Virginia for a friend's wedding. We were meeting up with three other families from my online group of moms, who had kids within weeks of each other. I can't stress how much these ladies have helped me with parenting tips, reassuring me that Drew's normal, and just everyday friendship.

Over the next few days I'll share various photos of our trip - goodness knows I have enough of them (I downloaded them and came to realize I'd taken more than 200). We arrived on Thursday evening and had dinner with everyone at TGI Friday's. We met up with the bride-to-be and her son, and the other families for a bite to eat. Here are a few of the shots of how we kept the kids busy over the long weekend.

Friday at the outlets... letting the kids burn off some energy.

OK so the strollers were because they were really "running" off that energy. This was a way to keep them contained and off all the rides that were wet thanks to the remnants of Hurricane Ida. The kids LOVED these strollers... and the dads happily ran them up and down the storefronts.

Later that night one of my friends had a brilliant idea... make a "tunnel" out of scarves.

The kids crawled back and forth for quite a while.

Around the time the picture above was taken, Drew sat admiring his girlfriend. Then he said the cutest thing, "Leila, you're so handsome!" Seriously, he came up with that one on his own. Of course he didn't know how to tell her she was pretty or beautiful - it's not like we're telling him that. So that was the only thing he knew how to say.

Another great idea, re-purposing the scarves for capes. Here are our three caped crusaders.

I'm sure the folks on our floor loved the screaming toddlers running up and down the hall.


And at the wedding, the kids all looked fantastic! And while the dancing did happen (my pictures of that didn't turn out), they all enjoyed running around in the big grassy area out back as well.

I have to say getting all the kids together was awesome. All of them were really well behaved. We didn't have too many tantrums, in fact not a single one is really coming to mind. Wow, amazing.

The bride's son isn't pictured here. As you can imagine he was quite busy doing the formal rounds. I do have a few pictures of him, but they came out a bit blurry. I just didn't want you to think he was being ignored.

Just a reminder... for every comment left on my blogs this week (current or past) I will donate one canned food/non-perishable food item to a local food bank. As of the writing of this post last night I only have four comments. Let's try and make this a Happy Thanksgiving for Bay Area families in need.