Ah, summer. In our house, I now associate summer with sleep.

The past few weekends have been a bit chaotic at the Reese household. But nothing, I suppose, tops Sunday.
After picking up my son from his grandparents and spending a few hours at Ikea, the four of us headed home to do some cleaning and Olympic-watching. About 3 p.m., my daughter and I prepared to  leave for the grocery store.
At that same time, my son came downstairs from playing with his toys. “Mom, I’m hungry.” I quickly made him a snack (we had lunch earlier in the day). Then I grabbed …

Last week I discovered something I should have been doing for years: turning on the radio when preparing dinner.
After a long day of shuffling kids to schools, work and getting them again, this mommy can sometimes be grouchy.
At least once a week I have a night meeting to cover. At least once a week the kids have an activity.
So that leaves only three nights a week to come home and relax – and I don’t want to start it in a bad mood. But sometimes, the idea of getting dinner …

A friend sent me a post from one mom who wrote about six ways working parents can get more time with their kids. I’ve done a few of these – actually, more than a few. When I had to be in the office one Saturday when a project launched, I brought the kids along. Computer savvy, they had access to Disney and Lego Web sites while I looked over stories and talked to co-workers.
It didn’t last too long, but it was fun.
And as an education reporter, I’m often in schools. …

I have my own personal Christmas angel this year. A good friend – knowing how bogged down I’ve been with work, holiday travelling and preparations for Christmas, offered to help organize my home.
She came over for an hour yesterday. The verdict: “Michelle, did you know you have 12 boxes of Cheerios and eight cans of ravioli?”
Nope. I didn’t know that.
That’s what happens I guess when a busy mom runs to the store to get the “necessities” and doesn’t realize many of them already reside in the home.
The other problem is I …

As a working mom, I’ve come full circle.
When my son was born, I returned to work six weeks later, full time. Eight months later, I left to freelance.
I became a part-time, working-at-home mom. I about pulled my hair out. I’ve never felt so stressed in my life.
Before that year was over, I returned to work – one day in the office and one day at home. My son was in preschool. My daughter was in my belly.
And so the cycle went after my daughter’s birth: I worked in the office …

I had to pass these along. I found a few craft ideas on other mom blogs that may be tried in the Reese household during fall break. One idea I saw is creating butterfly or fairy wings. The other idea shows how to make cute-cute-cute toadstools. When we get ours done, I’ll  post photos.
Another blog I just found shows ideas with pumpkins – fake ones that is. I LOVE fall. That’s why my husband and I chose November for our wedding. That’s why each fall I try to run away with …

Sometimes my trials as a mom come from my dog, not my kids.
Last night was a brilliant example.
My husband and I crashed into bed late and I stuck my hand under my pillow, only to find a bone.
I gave it back to my nearly 9-year-old pug. She jumped off the bed and onto our laminate/wood floors.
Clickity, clickity, clickity…
We heard her nails hit the floor as she went to the loft to find a place to hide it again.
Clickity, clickity, clickity…
She left the loft and went to my son’s room.
Clickity, clickity, …

 ”I want to be a kid forever.”
“I want to be a grownup forever.”
Coming home from church on Sunday, something spurred these comments from my kids (I don’t remeber what!).
The first is from my 7-year-old son. He loves to play Legos, watch movies and challenge any friend to a Wii game.
The second came from my 4-year-old daughter. She loves to play dress up, says she’s going to be a “princess” when she grows up, and asks – no demands – lipstick and nail polish.
I laughed when I heard their comments, but …

Ok, I admit it. I hate, hate, HATE doing laundry. It’s not the putting it into the washer and dryer that I dislike. It’s the folding, putting away and organizing of piles for the various family members. In complete frustration I started putting socks – those I could not match up right away – into their own laundry basket and I put it in the corner of my bathroom.
Needless to say, after a couple of weeks, the basket was full. And family members were wearing mismatched socks to school/work/family functions/Easter …