There was a bit of a difficulty, however — WordPress.com doesn’t allow the use of templates other than the handful they offer. Template~Mama‘s templates are all specifically designed for Blogger, so short of transferring my entire blog over there, which would cause a number of difficulties, I decided to play around with it anyway.

WordPress.com has an option where you can mess around with your blog’s CSS and preview it to see how it looks. I pasted in the code from “Summery Scraps” and though it wouldn’t stand up on its own in this program, it combined fairly well with my original theme, MistyLook. So after messing around with it a bit, I coughed up the $14.97/year it costs to be able to change your own CSS and here I am, and quite happy with the result.

If you’re thinking about starting a blog, I’d recommend Blogger if you want flexibility (or just adorable, free themes). WordPress.com is quite limited in many ways, though it’s very intuitive and easy to use. In a way, I’m glad I started with it because it got me used to the whole concept of blogging, but now that I want to take my blog to the next level, WP.com is just too restrictive.

So, the next step is to transfer my blog over to WordPress.org, which is a whole ‘nother ball of wax (and a bit scary). If you’re curious about the differences, read this article, “WordPress.com vs. WordPress.org.”

If you get my posts via email, come on over to my blog site and check it out.

What do you think? Do you like the new look?

Every year, the same thing happens after a long winter of being mostly inside.

I looked out the window when they’d been out for awhile to see what they were doing. I watched Cody and Rachel make their way across the backyard, stopping once to look behind them at someone I couldn’t see. I figured it was probably Logan, my youngest, whose legs often suddenly cease to work when he doesn’t feel like doing something. I couldn’t see him though, so I kept watching Cody and Rachel. As they came closer, Cody turned a little bit and I had a nasty shock.

It wasn’t Cody, it was Logan!

Plodding along, looking so grown-up — looking just like Cody did last year.

Every year this happens, and every time I mistake Logan for his big brother. I’m sure the fact that Logan wears Cody’s hand-me-downs, usually from the previous year, doesn’t help the effect any.

There’s something about seeing my kids from a distance that just illustrates to me very effectively how fast they grow.

What are some of the ways in which you’ve noticed how much your child has grown?

Congratulations to the lucky winner, Debbie Abrams Kaplan!

Hope you enjoy your Tag, Debbie!

I’m a freelance writer and the mom of 9-year-old twin girls, a 5-year-old boy, and a nearly-4-year-old boy. We live in a big old farm house in the middle of nowhere with two dogs, two horses and two cats, homework, extra-curricular activities, preschool, a large yard and garden and the juggling of three (at-home) part-time jobs. To say life is crazy would be spot on.

I recently decided that instead of just watching other people become known as parenting experts, I’d do better to start getting my name out there too. After all, no one ever accomplished anything by simply watching and wishing. We’ve been through epilepsy, febrile seizures, depression, allergies, asthma, food intolerance, hernias, chronic sinus infections, accidental poisoning and a host of other ailments that tend to run through every household. Though we’ve never had a major health crisis, we’ve had a few scares over the years.

As with all kids, mine can come up with the most hilarious comments and observations, particularly my 5-year-old, who possesses a vocabulary that surprises me almost daily. Tips, news, advice and parenting updates will all be available here, plus I’m happy to answer any questions you want to throw at me. If I don’t know the answer, I’ll find it. I’ll tell you stories that will make you smile, some that you’ll think you could have written yourself, you can relate to them so much, and maybe even a few that will make your eyes blurry (from tears, that is).

This parenting journey is filled with twists into the unknown, turns that slam you up against a concrete door, happiness beyond what you ever could have imagined existed, pain over situations you can’t control and above all, continual learning by trial and error. It’s heartwrenching, consuming, scary, lonely, amazing, frustrating and uplifting all at the same time. And no expert or book can tell you exactly what you should do. You know your kids better than anyone else, so it’s up to you to pick and choose the elements of good advice that help you be the best parent you can be. I’d like to help you create your own brand of parenting and remind you that you’re not alone on your own journey. 

I hope you enjoy reading this blog as much as I know I will enjoy writing it.

Stop by again soon!

Sarah