Slices of Life

  *Originally posted October 17, 2012 when the boys were 5, 6, & 9.    I had a ton of things on my "to do" list today that I just didn't want to put off for another day.  Many of them were errands and shopping so I knew we'd be spending a lot of time in the car.   I didn't want to let that time go to waste though so I was trying to look for some activity ideas (not worksheets though since we've been using them a lot lately).  I came across one that I thought would be perfect for Evan but knew the older two boys would want to partake of too.   It's an alphabet hunt.   I found the idea on Pinterest and modified it for the car and the older boys.  Basically you take a paper plate (or anything sturdy) and put all of the alphabet letters on it.  I then cut a slit out of each letter so they can be folded down out of sight once they are found.  So as they see the letter when we're out and about they fold it down and they...

 Fall weather finally arrived here in New England, we even had a frost warning Thursday night. It was quite a temperature jump from temps in the upper 70's and low 80's to temps in the mid 50's but at least I get to start wearing some of my sweaters and fall clothes. We got Evan's college applications all finished and this week he starts the rounds of college interviews. Wish him luck! I had no idea how much was involved on my end for getting all the paperwork done but we far surpassed all the admission deadlines since once I started I just wanted to get all those boxes checked off and cleared from my mental to- do list.  We had another successful party last week with well over 100 links. I hope you found some time to visit several. I found so many delicious looking recipes, adorable crafts, and even some book/reading ideas. I just love that I never really know what I'll find!        The link with the most views from last week's party:   Day Datin' by...

This month for Share Our lives we're talking about our go to snacks.  I honestly don't snack much anymore. I eat 3 main meals a day and rarely have an afternoon snack or any food after dinner. That said there are certain times of year or certain activities that bring on the snacking.  In summer I love ice cream. I try to hard to not indulge too much and won't keep it in the house. Around us ice cream places are only open from late spring until Labor day... or maybe mid-Sept. depending on the owner's whims.      Weekly hiking with our hiking group or my daily hikes with Evan rarely require any snacking/food but when Ben and I are on a trip or go on an all day summit hike I feel like I've more than earned some treats. We often pack trail mix but I do like one with lots of chocolate included!     On our Glacier National Park trip my husband and I splurged on a box of Nutty Bars and by the end of the week we had polished off the whole box.  I don...

Last Tuesday, September 30th, Evan and I had tickets to see 21 Pilots in concert in Hartford Ct. The show was at an indoor/outdoor venue called the Xfinity Center (not to be confused with the other indoor/outdoor Xfinitiy Center in Massachusetts). We had never been to the Xfinity Center and had no idea what to expect. Reviews online were not favorable but we really enjoyed it. I'll liberally sprinkle photos in around all the details, feel free to skip them and just look- most of the details are for me to remember anyway!  I wore comfy clothes with large pockets so I didn't need to bring a bag with me. I carried just my phone (with my credit card tucked inside), keys, and ear plugs. We were surprised to find ourselves so close to the stage! We got an email a few days prior outlining what time the parking lots and various things opened including the doors and decided to switch up our plans a lot. Originally we were going to arrive around 6 for the 8 o'clock show but the parki...