Ah, Friday. For us, it often means Saturday morning sports activities (right now we’ve got karate and gymnastics going for the big kids), lounging outside (until the temperatures warm up) and a visit with a friend or family member (or two). Last weekend, it meant TWO birthday parties on Saturday. Next weekend, there’s a birthday party Saturday and, of course, Easter festivities with family on Sunday.
But this weekend – just a minute, let me check again – yup, the calendar is free (except for the sports) (OK, I wrote this …

Moms, if you need a break — and a massage — here’s your chance.
The next Mom’s Nite Out event is coming Wednesday. The event is hosted and organized by Choosing Love blogger (and EV Mom Bloggers Connect contributor) Wendy Wright.
Every mom who attends the event will receive a free chair massage at Mom’s Nite Out courtesy of BackFit Chiropractic & Rehab. Moms will also get a goodie bag of giveaways, learn more about local vendors and get a chance to chat with other moms. Food and drink available for purchase, …

As many moms can attest, sometimes we are the last ones to bed at night, last to eat breakfast (if we eat at all), last to go to the doctor when we are sick. Sometimes a hat substitutes for a shower and “me time” is found in the 40 minutes of dance class once a week.
I’m guilty of all of the above. But I know mentally, physically and spiritually I want (and need) to do a better job taking care of me so I can be a better mom, a …

Dear bra makers:
Since when did you put padding in nursing bras?
I am the mom to a charming, sweet month-old baby. The last few weeks of my life has been consumed with feeding this little one. And while I love the design of nursing bras for the most part, this is one serious flaw I don’t recall from the last time I nursed an infant.
Come on. I’ve gone up two bra sizes in the last month. Do you really think I need padding? And have you tried to get that front, …

One month ago a new soul entered our home, my daughter Miss L. As planned, she came midmorning via c-section. (Oh and did I mention she is beautiful, laid back and very sweet?)
Being as she came five and a half years after our last baby, we were a little unprepared when we found out she was coming last fall. Gone were the strollers, the crib, the bassinet and baby clothes from our oldest daughter. I was a bit sad about the crib because it was not only the dreaming spot …

I wanted to snap a few pictures showing the current state of our house, but this is the only one I got done this morning:
However, I think it sums it up.
The weather is nice. The kids grab their bikes the second we get out of the car and head to the park each night. The Olympics are on television.
And I’m suffering from a bit of spring fever. (My son said it’s “spring” already because the bushes in the front yard have blooms on them.)
So while the kids enjoy the outside, …

For five years, my husband and I have debated having another child.
We hesitated for a number of reasons: my age (old enough to be “at risk”), the kids getting older (now 5 and 7 and a half), my flip-floppy heart valves.
Well, the debate is over.
Baby No. 3 is well on its way.
When we got the surprise – ok, SHOCK – delivered to us, I kept holding up the test saying, “Really? Really?”
Really.
I still just about fell off the medical table at the first ultrasound when I saw legs and …

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 …

On Sunday, my girlfriend and I pulled off “The Great Mom-Me Escape.”
I didn’t even know I was part of the conspiracy to do this (I swear!).
Earlier in the week my son and her son were BEGGING to get together. Every afternoon there was a request.
So she suggested that on Sunday, her boys come over to my house and then I leave and come to scrapbook at her house. That sounded simple enough.
But honest, by “boys” I figured she just meant her 8-year-old, and that her nearly 13-year-old would like just …

I received one of those “25 things about me” e-mail that threatens to take away my dog and the tree in the front yard if I don’t answer it in 24 hours. Ok, not exactly. But I did it because, well, it sounded like a good writing exercise. Then I thought I would post this online for readers, in case they wonder who writes all this! So here were my random thoughts at 11 p.m. last night after I put the kids to bed.

25 Things about Me
1) My husband knows how …