So, the last post hit the low points, here’s a happier post about my favorite moments this holiday. Trail of Lights. Always a fun tradition, we had a cool but not cold night to run around and see the sights in Zilker park and spin under the tree. Santa Visit. Emily tested our mettle this [...]

This was, hands down, one of the best Halloweens I have had since I was a kid. I spent much of the day preparing for NaNo, creating an outline and organizing my notecards. Then I picked up the girls and we got all costumed up and met other little Westlake kids to trick or treat [...]

I blog so often about little Elizabeth, as she is the diva and the attention grabber of my pair, but two weekends ago, seven-year-old Emily and I went on a mother-daughter camping trip. Much of the activities were a bit scary even for a second grader–jumping off a huge dock onto a giant inflated raft [...]

Yesterday, on the front porch of the house where my kids live, we discovered a white bag covered in Halloween stickers. Inside were Halloween toys, skull pens, Pez, candy, and a note that read: You have been phantomed! You must phantom 2 other families! Here are the rules: 1. Make 2 copies of The Phantom [...]

Okay. So blogs tend to be bottom-heavy. We dump things in them. Snarky observations. Bad days. Laments. Link-shock. Not today. I am going to take a few minutes to say–whoa, it’s been a good day. Very good day. Yes, it’s only noon. Things can take a dive at any moment–but all is well in Deanna-ville. [...]

This has been the summer of the movie. The girls saw the requisite new releases, Over the Hedge and Cars. We also saw lots of kid film festival reruns–Wallace and Gromit, March of the Penguins, Shrek, Nanny McPhee, Jimmy Neutron, and many more. We took in at least one movie a week, sometimes two. Slipping [...]

I grew up a die-hard patriot. Be true to the red, white and blue. Let freedom ring. Be all that you can be. God bless America! I maintained a relatively untarnished view of our country through Carter, Reagan, Bush, and Clinton. Hostages. Inflation. Gulf War. Stain on a Dress. September 11 found me riding the [...]

This Fourth of July, as we have since the girls were born, we gussied up some mode of kiddie transportation and traversed the route for the neighborhood holiday parade. In some years, the competition between moms has been fierce for high-profile prizes such as Best Decorated Stroller, Most Colorful Bicycle, and Most Patriotic Wagon. Some [...]

I haven’t done a mommy blog in a while, all caught up in the novel stuff. In the meantime, my little one had a recital! The girls all dressed in their feathery flapper duds and did a ballet number to “You’re Never Fully Dressed Without a Smile.” I have some behind the scenes footage as [...]

To kick off the Mother’s Day weekend, Elizabeth’s preschool class held a brunch for the moms. We all sat, perhaps 12 mothers and 3 grands, in the miniature chairs, cracking our knees on low tables. The children were instructed to serve us tea and we all managed to sip at it despite its strength, its [...]