Sixth-grade girls are rough

It is heart-breaking to watch cracks appear in your daughter's armor because of the harsh words of others.

Sixth grade girls are assholes.

The Biz is at that age where I know I need to back off and let her find herself. I have to remind myself daily that I have raised her to be a strong, independent thinker; a young woman with a sense of self; an empathetic girl who thinks of others first. She is imaginative and creative. She's a reader and a dreamer. But it absolutely kills me to see her cry when sixth-grade girls act like...well...sixth grade girls.

Bitches be crazy catty, yo.

Feeling helpless is an inherent part of being a parent. So much of The Munchkins' day is spent out from under my protection as they grow up and out. And when their small spirit is broken on someone else's watch? Somewhere I can't be? There is an impotent fury that cannot be quelled.

Some days you just can't fix it all. Hell, some days you don't even find out about an incident until days later. And some days? The only solution to a tearful girl now questioning herself due to the cruel comments of other girls is to simply  curl up in bed together crying and whispering and telling stories until tears start to dry and smiles cautiously peek out.

Your kids are going to be hurt. Tomorrow, next week, next year. It's going to happen. It's a part of the journey. And you'll have to trust that you've instilled in them all the strengths that will see them through to the next day after they've had a good cry.

That's not to say that I can't secretly think terrible thoughts about the little turd that made my daughter cry. Because I definitely am. Right now. RIGHT. NOW.
But The Biz is strong. And she's starting to figure out who she is. And she'll be stronger for this... eventually.

zippered case

Sweet little handmade pencil case for The Biz... who has been begging for one since the first day of school...

Vacation Logs: Heading Home

The worst part about road trips?
The inevitable long trek home...

A part of me is desperate for this amazing  week to never end. The rest of me just misses my bed.

Vacation Logs: First View of the Ocean

Today, The Munchkins saw the ocean for the first time.

We are salty, sand-covered, and full of hand-dipped waffle cone ice cream cones. We played old timey arcade games, strolled the Hampton Beach Boardwalk, and lounged on the beach. We dove into waves and built an epic sand castle complex.

What a day...

Vacation Logs: Tuesday Pool Day

Some days you just need a lazy day poolside.

And by lazy, I mean so full of sun, diving, jumping, floating, and playing that the kids fall asleep in their dinner plates, bellies full of kielbasa from the grill...

Vacations Logs: Mt. Mansfield

Who hikes the highest summit in all of Vermont with three kids, two babes in backpacks, and a ten-week old puppy?

We do.

With the Adirondacks to the west of us and the White Mountains to the east, we trekked up Monday for breathtaking views of Stowe. The Munchkins bounded from boulder to boulder, ecstatic just to spend a day out of the car.

Sister was in her element, hiking boots on, on of the twins rigged up on her back, pointing out landmarks and keeping up a constant patter of back & forth with the Luke on her back. I am im awe of her strength. Not even twins can slow that woman down. She has a new serenity about her that I don't remember from before the twins Nothing seems to rattle the half smile from her face.  It's hard having her live so far away, but seeing her so stunningly happy eases that a bit.

This is the best version of you, Jane. The most YOU you will ever be; despite past conversations to the contrary.

Love you.

Vacation Logs: Holiday Road

Surviving an entire day in the car together? Check.

Surviving an entire night with three kids and a puppy all in the same hotel room? Check.

Standing awestuck together on the viewing bridge of Niagara Falls? Check.

Sometimes it's good for the soul to stand in the presence of something immense. With the roar of the Falls in the background, The Munchkins running with the pup in a shady spot, herds of people passing back & forth with cameras and phones attached to their faces, it felt good to just stand for a moment and breathe.

I'm fairly certain this trip has the potential to be the making or breaking of this little group. So far so good.

Not a bad morning, kids. Not bad at all...

Vacation Logs: Two States at Once!

When i was a kid, road trips meant car bingo and counting cows for points and seeing how many truckers you could get to blow their horns from the ultra-awesome rear facing bench seat in the family station wagon.

Just now, as we crossed from never-ending Ohio into Pennsylvania, and I stretched my arms out Air Jordan Wingspan style into the backseat, and proudly proclaimed "Two states at Once!!"  I recieved a masterful eyeroll and whole body shrug from the eldest, deeply involved with her movie. Electronics rule this car. And don't get me wrong, this vehicle has been blissfully quiet for the past six hours... but couldn't they at least humor me about the crossing state lines? It's kind of my thing.

In other news, the puppy has slept almost the entire trip, and The Captain is rocking out to Danger Zone. We're survivng, folks!
Onward & upward.

...Until next time...

Vacation Logs: The Beginning

So...this is happening...

As if a blended family relationship isn't fraught with enough daily pitfalls & perils & joys & challlenges & opportunities to annoy the everloving crap out of one another, we thought we'd add a cross-country road trip to the mix.

And? We're bringing the 10-week-old puppy too...

Indy --> New York Niagara Falls --> Stowe, Vermont --> Boston, Massachusetts or BUST!!!