Cragmama "Not all who wander are lost…" JRR Tolkien

Yearly Archives: 2014

8 New Things About Sunset Beach (and Sunscreen Giveaway!)

8 New Things About Sunset Beach (and Sunscreen Giveaway!)

This summer marks our family’s 4th beach trip with the Crag-Daddy’s extended family.  One week out of every summer is “come one, come all” at a giant house at Sunset Beach.  Over the years we’ve developed a few traditions about how our family “does” the beach, but this year in particular brought a lot of newness.  Here’s just a few of the “new” highlights we enjoyed… 1.  3 NEW FAMILY MEMBERS:  Last year I, along with BOTH of my sisters-in-law, were pregnant…2 of us in the exhausted, nauseous early weeks, and 1 in the uncomfortable latter stage.  Energy levels were at…Read the rest of this entry →

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Tips for Breastfeeding on Outdoor Adventures

Tips for Breastfeeding on Outdoor Adventures

Anyone who has done it for any length of time knows that breastfeeding is NOT always the comfortable, natural, and peaceful activity that parenting magazines make it out to be.  It can be awkward, exhausting, uncomfortable, even downright painful at times…and this is especially true when a nursing pair takes to the Great Outdoors!  With my first son, figuring out the logistics for nursing on days where I camped/climbed/hiked/swam/etc was pretty tricky.  There was definitely a learning curve.  Thankfully I’ve been able to glean from those prior experiences these past 5 months with my daughter (and trust me, the second…Read the rest of this entry →

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5 Ways to Have Fun With a Cheap Plastic Pool

5 Ways to Have Fun With a Cheap Plastic Pool

You know the ones I mean – they sell them at Wal-mart for 10 bucks or so.  At first glance they appear to be far too small for anything bigger than a small one year old child to enjoy.  But before you toss it after just one summer, think outside the box a little bit – you might be surprised at what you can do with it!  We used ours for Big C the summer we moved to Charlotte – he had just turned 1, and we hadn’t explored the local pool options yet.  We used it for a couple of…Read the rest of this entry →

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Another Reason to Put Your Swimsuit On

Another Reason to Put Your Swimsuit On

Recently I read this article encouraging moms to put aside their body insecurities, throw on a swimsuit, and jump in the pool/ocean/lake with their kids.  The message was that a child will remember those carefree moments spent playing with you and couldn’t care less about how you look in a bathingsuit.  The writer emphasizes that “at the end of the day, it is not about me.  It is about my kids.” I agree with those sentiments wholeheartedly.  And, as someone who for a long time struggled with an unhealthy relationship with food, this line resonated with me especially: “Because when…Read the rest of this entry →

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“Type 2 Fun” with a Four Year Old…

“Type 2 Fun” with a Four Year Old…

“Is this the same way you went with Daddy?” I asked with raised eyebrows as the undergrowth got thicker and taller, leaving nothing but a narrow sliver of trail beneath it.  Big C nodded uncertainly, and we pressed on, pushing our mountain bikes further and further into the thicket, along what must have been a (seasonal) game trail. Then we hit the blackberry patch, or rather it hit us, in all of its thorny glory.  (Why had I decided to wear Chacos for this “cas ual” afternoon bike ride?!?)  Big C got snagged a few times, but I took the brunt of…Read the rest of this entry →

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“Not all who wander are lost.” —JRR TOLKIEN