Shaz by the Sea

Today is my last day of maternity leave. I feel like this picture was taken last month - how in the world was this 5 months ago??? I wanted to write about my little boy and some of the best times we've had over the last 5 months. Let's start with the day he was born! Sure, I wrote about his birth story , but here's a pic when my parents came to visit MGH. Cal is spending the day at daycare today (as he has a few days a week to prepare for my first day of work tomorrow).  Meanwhile, Caden and Conor have their first day of preschool tomorrow. I hate to say I am "nervous" but I have so many mixed emotions about them going to preschool. First, I am sad I won't be spending every day with all my boys. However, I think the preschool will be good for them. They can make friends, socialize a bit more, and hopefully their vocabulary will continue to increase. Second, it's a new place with a new type of structure they haven't had before. This is an o...

It's my last week alone with Cal. So what better way to spend it than staying at home, enjoying his company, and baking some delicious sweets together?  He just LOVES camera flashes. ;) There are few things that my Dad can't get enough of -- I would say Conor/Caden/Cal, scratch tickets, and Vegas. But there is ONE more thing that my Dad is obsessed with, and that is his Aunt Frances' amazing marble squares. We went over to visit sometime last year with Conor and Caden, and she was nice enough to give me a copy of the recipe. Now it's probably something about the 1 cup of shortening that's the dead giveaway - but these are to die for. And they're relatively simple to make. Dry Ingredients: 2 Cups + 4 Tbsps Flour 1 Tsp Salt 1 Tsp Baking Soda Wet Ingredients: 1 Cup Shortening/1.2 Sticks Butter (I did not use all that is pictured below) 3/4 Cup Brown Sugar 3/4 Cup Sugar 2 Eggs 1/2 Tsp Water 1 Tsp Vanilla 12oz Package Chocolate Chips Preheat yo...

For the past few days, I have been trying to picture how life will be when I have all three boys home with me. In a couple weeks, we are pulling Conor and Caden out of daycare to stay home with me and Cal - mainly because I am going on leave without pay. Frankly, we can't afford two daycare payments if I am not getting paid. Therefore, I will have all the boys home with me for a few months until I go back to work. At that point, Conor and Caden will start preschool...and Cal will go to the daycare that C and C are at now. Timing is all still up in the air - but that's our tentative plan. Anyway, I have been trying to come up with craft projects, places to take the kids, and ideas to keep them busy and entertained this fall. I found a few crafts on pinterest, and my mom and I took them to the library the other day after we picked them up from daycare. They loved the magnets and blocks and books there. Here are some pics from the library. Another idea I...