Another summer week, another seven days I can hardly believe were only seven days.

Sunday:

Yeah, basically this, for the whole weekend.

They ate all the peas & berries before we even got back in the car.

Oh no! Stormy seas! The boat is rocking! (It was not stormy.)

Monday:

Friendship IS magic!

Dr. Evan to x-ray, STAT!

It’s adorable, but they still stole my umbrella.

Tuesday:

Burning off some energy. SO MUCH ENERGY.

Every morning Caroline wakes up and cries until she can say hello to her kitty.

Reading selections

Wednesday:

She’s skeptical about putting a bird on it.

High fives, Blue Iguana!

Pineapple cream cheese cupcake = heaven

Thursday:

Dancing at the Plymouth 4th of July Parade

Cousins in the ocean

Chug chug chug chug

Friday:

Explaining why we should go home and watch some shows (he was very convincing)

Town fireworks

He liked them for the first 2 minutes…and then fell asleep.

Saturday:

Monkey see, monkey do

NO WE DO NOT DRINK OUT OF THE FOUNTAIN.

Performing a tail-ectory on Ariel

It is still hot hot hot in New England, so our choices are 1) sit really, really still in the house with all the fans blowing on us or 2) go find a body of water. There are lots of those around, but since Evan and I both got sunburns on the 4th we’ve been hiding inside mostly. They start the preschool summer program this week (I…think? I need to call…) so we’ll eventually have to go back to the real world, but for now I am enjoying doing nothing. Mostly nothing. I don’t think potty training counts as REALLY doing nothing.

As I type thing, I am drinking a boozy milk shake that contains a ground up chocolate chip cookie and coconut fudge ice cream. Just to give you some context on how TOTALLY worth it the 16 hour drive to South Carolina is.

Sunday:

The rarest animal in the aquarium: my husband

Cupcake face

I took this picture with a telephone.

She’s a cat burglar making her getaway.

Monday:

PEEK A BOO

Extremely loud trip to BJ’s

Happy Birthday Mr. Sendak. We’ll keep the wild rumpus going for you.

Tuesday:

Hanging up his coat for his last day of school

She really, really loves lemonade

Taking the animals to the vet

Wednesday:

Stuck in traffic and we haven’t even left Connecticut. Evan’s face explains it all.

Too cool for Delaware

Old timey fun with Mormor

Friday:

Spoiled, spoiled children

Spoiled, spoiled me

Never leaving.

Saturday:

Pre-pool relaxation

A very Low Country lunch

Who needs forks when you can pick up your cake like a sandwich?

I can’t even believe we have MORE DAYS of vacation before we leave…and when we do we have MORE FUN STUFF to do before we go back to Connecticut. My children are going to sleep for a week when we get home. It will be glorious.

If you tracked down a copy of my high school senior year yearbook, there’s a mini-interview with me where I declare I’m going to be a marine biologist when I grow up. I didn’t want to study dolphins or train whales or anything – I just really really liked the ocean. After just ONE college-level biology class I realized the actual sciencey biology stuff wasn’t something I wanted to make a career out of, but that didn’t changed how much I love the ocean one bit. It’s why we go to the aquarium at least once a week and why my kids have seen the episode of Diego with Baby Humpback Whale more times than any other episode and why Star Trek IV is indisputably the best (original) Star Trek movie. It might also have something to do with why I married someone in the Navy, but don’t tell him.

Sterling Publishing sent me – well, the kids – a copy of Shimmer & Splash: The Sparkling World of Sea Life a couple weeks ago and it’s been in heavy read and fake-read rotation ever since. Caroline likes to lie on the floor and open up all the cool fold-out pages while she points out all the animals she knows. “Look! Orca! Look! Barracuda! Look! Fishy!” (she’s only two, I can’t expect her to know the proper name for EVERYTHING yet.)

It’s more of a reference book than a story book, with interesting facts and information on various types of sea life from jelly fish to whales and everything in between. The pictures are very detailed and include cool stuff like life-size shark teeth and big fold-out pages. The drawings are gorgeous and life-like – besides the amazing color drawings there are pencil sketches of extras, like the anatomy of a sting ray. It’s like a visit to the aquarium without leaving our house.

I can already tell it’s going to be a much-loved book for many many years. I recommend it to anyone who has marine biologist dreams (past or future), loves the ocean or even just really loves beautiful drawings.

Sterling has kindly offered a copy to one of my readers. To enter just leave a comment on this post and I’ll draw a winner randomly on Monday. You can find the book on Amazon here, and check out the author’s website here.

Reading about whales in her narwhal shirt. LOVE.

I received a review copy of Shimmer & Splash for the kids but no other compensation was provided for this post. Links are not affiliate links.

This week was extremely eventful, but only because I got to see a movie in a theater. Happy Last New Year’s Eve I Will Probably Ever Spend Away From My Children Until They Are In High School!

Sunday:

She says she loves hot chocolate, so at least a little must end up in her mouth

Most Empty Five Guys Ever

Pretty but expensive (stupid weird roof line that’s impossible to insulate)

Monday:

Aunt Carolyn read a lot of books while she was visiting

That’s called the “Godzilla Roll”. Deep-fried sushi.

Champagne in our jammies

Tuesday:

Aunt Carolyn also introduced us to Sherlock. OBSESSED.

MOAR BOOKS

2013 is exhausting already

Wednesday:

Breakfast tastes like New Year’s Resolutions

Fake wood vegetables to fake cut with a fake knife = Caroline’s favorite thing

In my opinion, Christmas jammies are appropriate until Halloween

Thursday:

I shouldn’t reward a 5:30 am wake-up with TV, but if I do I get to sleep on the couch for an extra hour, so….

When she pouts and walks away like this you have to imagine the Charlie Brown music in the background

Parenting workout

Friday:

Reading at Stroller Strides

ABSOLUTELY NOT NO NEVER

Doll face

Saturday:

This also buys me an extra hour of sleep

Booty Mommy! My Booty!

Grocery shopping with a list, a budget AND coupons. I’m pretty proud of myself.

I’m not going to lie, dropping Evan off at school on Thursday was the highlight of my week. But it was the highlight of his week too – he’s already asked to go to school three times today (it’s Sunday) and Caroline is begging to go back to the play place. Now that the holidays are over we start the loooooong cold trudge towards spring in New England. It’s the only part of the year I actually hate living in Connecticut, although I do still love the aquarium, seaport and two children’s museums that all have nice, warm, inside activities.

Did you take iPhone photos of your week? Link up with one or several below! Please consider joining, even if you haven’t done it before – it’s really fun!

We have a new Christmas tradition in our house. Aside from decorating our home with christmas light display and Christmas ornaments, it involves reading an adorable book about a plucky little mouse. It also involves Mommy barely making it through the last page without sobbing quietly into her children’s heads. Because, magic. And Christmas. And amazement. And magic.

Twas The Mouse That Saved Christmas is a personalized storybook from Marblespark. When you order a copy, you tell Marblespark your child’s name and they put it in the story in several places (on the cover, on Santa’s list, in the story itself). I thought Evan might be a little young to understand that the story is for him but he is AMAZED that HIS NAME is in a book. (Bonus side effect: he now recognizes his name in writing and can spell it out loud.)

I wasn’t 100% sure I would love a personalized book (I remember ones from my own childhood that were very poorly done) but this one totally exceeded my expectations. The illustrations are cute and colorful and the whole story is written in rhyme – just like the original Twas The Night Before Christmas. Both Evan and Caroline request it every night at story time.

We – E and I – are both happy to oblige. Reading about the joy and magic of Christmas to my two not-so-tiny babies in the glow of our Christmas tree is almost more than my mama heart can handle. The last page gets me almost every time, as soon as I read Santa’s letter to Evan reminding him being with those we love is the best part of the holidays. Excuse me, I have something in my eye again.

 Marblespark would like to send one of my readers a personalized copy of Twas The Mouse That Saved Christmas for their child. I’m told the last day to order to get the book for this Christmas is December 12th so I’ll pick a winner on Friday (contest will close Thursday night) just to be sure we make the cut off. That gives anyone who doesn’t win but still wants a copy plenty of time to get their own book ordered too.

Rafflecopter makes entering really easy. The comment question is: Who would you give the book to if you won? Your child? A niece or nephew? A grandchild?

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Marblespark sent me a copy of this book personalized with Evan’s name so we could read and enjoy it. I was not compensated in any way or obligated to write about it if I didn’t genuinely love the book. All opinions and photos are my own.