Last night, Tess made herself a nametag. Today, she wore it proudly all day, pinned to her shirt. Why? I haven't a clue, except maybe she's proud of how she writes her name, or how nicely she can draw a heart. It doesn't really matter why, I just know I love that sweet girl.

Grace has started a hangman craze at our house. Only it's not hangman, it's hangsurfboard (above) or hangflower (below). Because hanging a man just isn't peaceful and Quakerly. And that's okay, because the game is fun no matter what you decide to hang — especially when you're guessing words like "adogable."  Even Tess can play —…

Our other big activity up in Rangeley was sledding. The snow in the yard was way too deep to trek through, so we just sledded right down the driveway into the huge snow pile created by the plow. On the second day, the kids built a jump about 2/3 of the way down. Sledding will…

Adam and I went away for a night — all the way to Portsmouth, New Hampshire — for the first time in almost five years!! We were able to complete several adult conversations, and we got to sleep in! Hooray! The girls did great, and (according to Nana) hardly seemed to notice that we were…

On Saturday, we took another hike up Bradbury Mountain to check out the fall foliage (apparently, we just can't get enough of the amazing fall colors). We followed the hike with a trip — our first this fall (how can that be?!) — to Thompson's Orchard. All of the apples had been picked, but that's…

This afternoon Grace and I had a special date and hiked up Bradbury Mountain together. Just the two of us. Holding hands and laughing, taking photos of each other, eating trail mix, and just enjoying each other's company. When we did this hike on Monday as a family, Grace lamented the fact that she didn't…

Yesterday, as Gracie and I made our now daily visit to the garden, baby Tess spotted us picking a small red tomato. She pointed at it and said “mo’?” (translation: more please, or, can I pleeease have some?) I handed it to her and she immediately took a bite. And then she held onto it,…