This post is the 12th in the series “Homemade Mother of the Week.” If you know a woman who is thoughtfully sharing her passion for the planet, families or the well-being of others, please nominate her for this special recognition.  Send an email with all the details to maureen@homemademothering.com This week I am so happy to […]

Here in Chicago, the most urgent news story lately surrounds the tragic death of 15-year-old Hadiya Pendleton.  She was a sweet and beautiful high schooler murdered while she took cover from the rain in a southside Chicago park.   Just days before her death she had performed at President Obama’s inauguration.  And now she is a […]

Nearly 5 years after bringing our first baby home, we recently got around to one of the more important things on our baby-proofing check-list: secure furniture to the wall.  We had many excuses for the delay: we weren’t sure when/if we were moving, we didn’t have the time, we didn’t have the right equipment. But, […]

We recently returned from a very last minute trip to Jamaica.  The airfare was reasonable and my mom was there to help with the kids and the temperature in Chicago was 7 degrees…so it just seemed like the perfect time to go. One day Chris, Mack, my dad and I took a long walk to […]

As I’ve written about before, my Mack is a force to be reckoned with.  He needs to keep busy or else he’s causing trouble.  When I saw a recipe on Pinterest for beads made out of pasta I knew it would be a fun activity for us to do together.  He and I had the […]

Whenever Mack and I have some time alone, the first thing he asks to do is make cookies.  We have a steady supply of homemade chocolate chip cookies thanks to his enthusiasm, so when he asked to bake on Friday I thought it would be fun to try something different.  A sneaky jar of homemade […]

Chris and I have enjoyed several date nights lately.  With the flurry of the holidays and my birthday came several opportunities for us to sneak out together.  Evie and Mack were feeling a little left out, so we planned a family date night last night.  I put on some makeup, Evie wore a dress and […]

For our family, the differences between boys and girls are quite clear.  Evie is dependable, Vivian is patient and Mack is…Mack.  He wakes up at 7 am and does not stop running until bedtime 12 hours later.  His days are filled with flipping and jumping and climbing and wrestling.  I cannot contain his energy.  And, […]

A few months ago I mentioned in a post that our blender had broken.  A friend of a friend read it and sent me a message: she no longer needed her blender – would I like it?  I was so delighted with her offer.  Not only would her kind generosity save me a few bucks, […]

My brother recently sent me an article about research from Notre Dame professor Darcia Narvaez that suggests “modern” parenting practices are bad for babies.  The professor believes feeding babies infant formula, living apart from extended family, sleep training, choosing medicated childbirth, etc hinder the moral development of children. In short, she says that our modern […]