Posts by Maureen

About Maureen


Banana-Zucchini-Carrot Bread

My sister welcomed a beautiful and healthy baby girl earlier this week. We are all so excited about the precious new addition to the family! I have a feeling she will be good friends with my little Vivian once their 19-month age difference doesn’t seem quite so stark! I know hospital food can be bland […]


Jane Iredale: My *Favorite* Natural Make-Up

My mom is full of good advice, but perhaps the best advice she ever shared is something I rely on everyday: never leave the house without mascara on! I strive to live a simple and natural life, but I think I look about a million times better with at least a quick swipe of mascara, […]


Why Can’t Every Day Be Like Halloween?

Halloween was just the other day, and despite the steady rain the kids and I ventured out for trick-or-treating.  Had we let the weather deter us, I’m pretty sure Evie and Mack would have been heartbroken for the next 364 days.  A combination of rain, sleet and snow couldn’t have kept them inside! We wandered […]


Healthy Homemade Muffins

It has been a quiet little family day for us.  We took this kids to Boo in the Zoo at the Lincoln Park Zoo, and despite the suddenly chilly temperatures we managed to have a nice morning in the fresh air. Of course they ran right to the vintage carousel and begged for a spin.  […]


Unexpected Touching on an Expecting Tummy

I just stumbled upon a news story about a new Pennsylvania law that makes it a crime for someone to touch a pregnant woman’s belly without her consent.  I would think (hope?) common decency would stop people from touching a woman’s body without her permission, but now a man in Pennsylvania is facing harassment charges […]


Homemade Chai Tea

I originally shared the following post earlier this year on Mothering Spirit, a lovely blog written by a lovely mother who eloquently shares her thoughts on life, theology and parenthood. Check it out! As a mother to three young children, I am rarely afforded an opportunity to do something just for me. It seems like […]


Fun with Mad-Libs

I recently rediscovered Mad Libs, those goofy fill-in-the-blanks story books that teach kids about nouns, verbs and adjectives.  I remember them fondly from my youth – my friends and I would write in potty words and laugh for hours. When we took the kids on a road trip this summer, I purchased a few Mad […]


Banana-Avocado-Orange Smoothie

Poor little Vivian. She’s got two sharp and nasty teeth pushing through her top gum, and for the past week she just hasn’t been her normal cheerful self.  She’s been grumpy and inconsolable at times, a far departure from the cheerful disposition we’re all used to.  She wants to wear snuggly pajamas all day, and […]


Shut Down

  This picture popped up on my Facebook newsfeed today. Oh, it is just too sad!  A hopeful little person, dressed in his zoo finest, only to be turned away by red tape and inept politicians.  His sweet little brain could never possibly understand the ridiculous situation that put him in this predicament, and, to […]


Homemade Tomatillo Soup

A couple years ago I wrote about a tour I took through a lovely rural Illinois garden. The organic garden belongs to my mom’s dear friend Pam, and every year her garden grows in size and selection.  I saw Pam last weekend, and she very generously offered to gift me with some of this season’s […]