Last weekend we went to Franklin County to visit my parents. It was a quick end-of-summer visit; the kids got to close out the summer swimming in Grammy and Gramps’s pool and to catch up with cousin Gabby. (Visiting from Canada!) So these photos are technically from last week. More like 39.5 instead of 40. A
A portrait of my children, once a week, every week, in 2016. David / We got something like three inches of rain this week, and since it hasn’t rained in Richmond all summer, we didn’t know what to do with ourselves. Scratch that, David knew exactly what to do. On our way home from preschool
It’s true. Since I had kids, certain things have fallen to the wayside. Things like trips to the doctor and dentist and shopping for a pair of warm boots for the fall. Of course I’m talking about appointments for me. Don’t worry, my kids are set in the appropriate-shoe department. I’m the cookie-cutter, stereotypical mom you see
We started school this week, and it’s when our schedule fills that I most appreciate the remaining, quiet time at home. A portrait of my children, once a week, every week, in 2016. David / Introvert at play. As David grows we can see his need for alone time more and more. Tom made his
This was our last week of summer — school starts for the big kids next week. Instead of a last hurrah, it ended up being one of those weeks we just had to muscle through. We had lots of doctor’s appointments and subsequently Mary Virginia got sick. Is it just me or do other moms have
A portrait of my children, once a week, every week, in 2016 David / If you follow me on Instagram, you already know we gave David an long-overdue back-to-school haircut this week. As I was cutting it, he said, “Mommy, don’t make my hair pretty. Make it cool. Make it like a triangle with flames shooting out.”
We spent last week on vacation with Tom’s family on Lake Anna. So this week we’re doing laundry, missing our cousins, and languishing in post-vacation hangover/denial. More vacation pictures to come (what kind of mommy blogger would I be if I didn’t publish at least 300 photos of my children in puddle jumpers?) but for now,
A portrait of my children, once a week, every week, in 2016. David / It’s been a huge summer for David. He learned to swim, and now he can ride a bicycle. It took about three lessons and now he’s off! (Riding a balance bike for two years really was the best teacher.) This photo doesn’t
Last year at preschool, David’s class sang a song that he called the Octopus Song, even though it’s actually called the Butterfly Song. He specifically loved the line, “If I were an octopus, I’d thank you Lord for my good looks.” And because he loved the song so much, and because he related so much to
It’s a birthday week in our house. David turns five on Tuesday, but we kicked off the celebration with a small family party this weekend. A portrait of my children, once a week, every week, in 2016. Thomas / When we have a birthday, I buy a bag of balloons in the kid’s favorite color, blow them up,
It has been unreasonably hot here for the past few weeks — we’ve spent all of our time in the air conditioning or the pool or wishing that’s where we were. But don’t misunderstand me — even when I’m sweating through my shorts at the park, chasing the shade and praying for a breeze? Just a small one? Is a breeze be too
This past week my kids added the word “Olympics” to their vocabulary. Olympics, and also its variants — Owimpics, Limpics, and the ever popular, “Can we watch something else?” We let the kids watch some of the opening ceremonies on Friday, and then watched several sports on Saturday. Tom and I love the Olympics, but
When we bought our last house, it never occurred to me to ask if there were kids in the neighborhood. I was 7 months pregnant, but it just wasn’t on my radar. I didn’t know how important it would be to have friends for my children, and friends for me, just a few doors down.
A portrait of my children, once a week, every week, in 2016. David / This Wednesday Tom called me at four o’clock and we had this conversation: Tom – Hey, I’m sorry I just remembered I have a meeting at 5:30 and I’m presenting. Me – Ok. This seems like a good time to tell you that
A portrait of my children, once a week, every week, in 2016. David / He’s spent weeks trying to catch butterflies, but he can never even get within feet of them. Lucky for him, though his mother really struggles to pick out paint colors or organize a mudroom, she’s excellent at catching insects. (His mother also really
The whole forecast is full of hot, humid days and the second Tom opened his mouth to complain about it I shouted YOUJUSTSTOPITRIGHTNOW! Because remember a few weeks ago? When we were all bummed that it was JULY but too cold to swim? REMEMBER THAT? Kids, we’re sweating for the next two months and WE’RE
Sometime before Thomas’s first birthday, he was standing by the couch and let go, took a few steps, and then plopped down. I watched him and willed the moment to crystalize in my memory. My baby, learning to walk right before my eyes! So beautiful! This moment is why we have children! And then he did the same thing
When I’m taking pictures I almost exclusively use my 35mm lens. That’s my #2 photography tip (#1 is to bring jelly beans to get kids to sit and smile). The 35mm fixed lens takes great photos, even if you’re like me and don’t know what you’re doing. This week I broke out my zoom lens and took these at 18mm.
Happy 4th of July weekend from the Kriegers! Yesterday I tried to explain why we celebrate Independence Day to the kids and was baffled by the number of concepts I had to introduce. War, taxes, sovereignty, the existence of our country and also other countries. Two minutes into it I gave up because my kids already understand hotdogs and hamburgers
Every year as my kids’ birthdays approach, I swear I’m not going to do it. Then, after the birthdays, I swear I’m never going to do it again. The parties, I mean. They’re just too much work. The cleaning, the food, all that prep. And then there’s the small matter that Mary Virginia asked me
It’s week 26 — we’re halfway through the year! I can barely recognize these kids from week one because they’ve changed so much! Ok so maybe I can. They haven’t changed THAT much. But two out of three have gotten haircuts (sorry Thomas) so I suppose some things have changed. A portrait of my youngest children, once a week, every
The other day “Happy” by Pharrell came on the radio and David and Mary Virginia both started screaming from their carseats, “IS THIS MY SONG? THIS IS MY SONG!! MOMMY!!! MY SONG!” And then they started having a fight about whose song it was, and I rolled my eyes because does this song belong to
Happy Father’s Day! My gift to Tom was letting him wake up with the kids (again) while I slept in (again). And now that I put it that way, I guess every day is Father’s Day around here. A portrait of my children, once a week, every week, in 2016. David / Sweet big boy hands
This week I did something I usually try to avoid. I quickly took pictures on Sunday, the “deadline” for the weekly photos. What it lacks in spontaneity and variety it makes up in children still in their church clothes. A photo of my children, once a week, every week, in 2016. The three of them
They way Thomas is standing, it looks like I caught him in the act of something naughty. What I caught him doing was standing. I was taking photos of his fancy three-year old sister in the front yard and I turned around and he was showing off his new trick. Thomas has been pulling up since mid-February, but he just
Friends keep asking me if we’re swimming yet. The answer? A resounding yes. Yes, we’re swimming twice a day, every day. I’ve only been in the pool once. Not because of this, but because we’re in the middle of the coldest, cloudiest, rainiest late-spring/early-summer I can remember. It’s so cold that every time I go in
We moved over the weekend and WOW. Moving is a lot of work. And I am not good at work. I am really really good at watching reality television. Thankfully the kids are doing great with all the transitions, and they’re already used to living in wall-to-wall clutter and chaos. A portrait of my children, once
On her last day of school, Mary Virginia did not want to get dressed, eat breakfast, or let me fix her hair. She definitely did not want to stand on the stairs, and look directly into the sun while I took her photo. She’s dressed and on her way to school because, even though she didn’t want
Moms pack a lot of snacks. A LOT of snacks. In fact, my grocery list usually includes “snacks I can pack.” When we’re out, keeping the kids’ well-fed is second only to making sure they’re buckled in their carseats. Cereal? Packable. Crackers? Packable. Muffins? Packable, not durable. Popsicles? Not packable, sorry Mary Virginia. I pack
A portrait of my children, once a week, every week, in 2016 David / I’ve been really hesitant to sign my kids up for activities. The schedules and commitments at such a young age make me nervous. A friend of ours coaches a soccer program in the spring, and we decided to take David. It’s perfect for
One thing I didn’t know about before having kids was the social aspect of the kid birthday parties. We go to kid birthday parties all the time, and they’re all super fun. Adult birthdays are different — unless it’s a milestone birthday you celebrate with a few friends or family with dinner or drinks. Sometimes
A portrait of my children, once a week, every week, in 2016 David / David and Brigham, hanging on the couch like bros. I used to write about David and Brigham’s relationship a lot, back when David loved to lay on Brigham and Brigham used to beg me to put him in the Witness Protection Program.
Today was Thomas’s due date, which means at this time last year I was eating an entire bag of Cheetos every day and coming to terms with the fact that I was going to be pregnant for the rest of my life. I signed up to be pregnant for 40 weeks. Forty weeks and one day means I’ll probably
When I took Mary Virginia to get her hair cut a few weeks ago, she sidled up to me and asked, “Mommy? Can you ask him to make my hair yellow and flat?” YELLOW AND FLAT?? Of course, two-year old daughter! That’s what I was going to ask for anyway! But we have to hurry because we don’t
A portrait of my children, once a week, every week in 2016. David / Our blackberries and strawberries are blooming in the backyard. For the past three summers, David has checked the blossoms daily to see if berries are ready to eat. He asked me if he could take off the petals to speed the
A portrait of my children, once a week, every week, in 2016. Three kids in a tub. Tom took the older two camping this weekend. When they got home, they were tired, excited, and so dirty. As soon as they walked in the door I started drawing a bubble bath. Thomas was so, so happy
It seems to be birthday season, we’ve attended three birthday parties in the past two weeks. I love any reason to celebrate — Last day of school! Cinco de Mayo! All three of my kids slept through the night! (We are going to THROW DOWN when that finally happens.) I’m a person who celebrates the cat’s birthday and
RichmondMom.com is having a cute kids contest and when I heard about it I was like, CUTE KIDS?!? BOY OH BOY DO I HAVE SOME CUTE KIDS FOR YOU!! I entered all three of my kids, but you can only vote once. I realize that by entering all three I actually split the Krieger vote
If Thomas could talk and you asked him about his family, he would probably tell you that he has a brother, a father, and two mothers. These two mothers are mysteriously, constantly at odds. One is best described as a doting bully. Very attentive, but also, quite frankly, dangerous. The second mother spends most of
A portrait of my children, once a week, every week in 2016. David / Recently David has shown fascination with letters, words, and sounds. Here, he walked into the kitchen, sat on the floor, and asked me to spell Amelia Bedelia. I spelled it, slowly, and then he ran back into his room to continue drawing. I
Week 14 was spring break. We’d planned on fun outings but our only outing was a trip to the doctor. That’s just how it goes, I suppose. We still had enjoyed our lazy week at home, making messes and having fun doing normal, wonderful things — reading books, coloring, playing play dough, and running around in the
Growing up we always dyed Easter eggs on the night before Easter, so I planned to do the same thing with my kids. This year, I had meant to prepare by boiling the eggs and setting aside bowls and food coloring, but the whole thing completely slipped my mind. The whole thing slipped my mind
After breakfast, the kids were asking about our plans for the day… Me: Guys, I have a great idea! Let’s have a Mommy Day! Let’s just do all the things that Mommy does ALL DAY! So we’ll be cleaning and doing chores… David: Um, Mommy? If we just do what you do then we’d just
Today is Easter, and it was so chaotic that taking a family photo didn’t even cross our minds. But I did manage to snap a few in the morning. These are after Easter baskets and breakfast; before tucking in shirts and church. David & Thomas / The boys had matching shirts for Easter. Wearing the
A portrait of my children, once a week, every week, in 2016… David / In the past few months David has been refusing baths, so we’re pulling out all the stops: showers, bubbles, bath paints, toys, bribes, threats. David loves the water, so this bit of stubbornness is frustrating much like when Mary Virginia would refuse to sleep at
The other day I was playing with Mary Virginia, and I was just struck by how lovely and sweet she is and how thankful I am to be her mommy. So I told her, “Mary Virginia, did you know that I used to pray that God would give me a daughter? I prayed that God would put a baby
Last fall I took the kids to get new shoes before school. I went to a particular store in Richmond, one that has a reputation for how well they measure and fit shoes for children. Because of this reputation, I consciously ignore their high prices and the 47 other shoe stores I pass while driving
One thing I’ve liked about this project is that it allows me to record little bits of information I wouldn’t write about otherwise. Every photo, every week, is a vignette — in photos and words — of my children. My intent wasn’t to do that. My intent was to include a photo and a brief sentence; just
A few weeks ago I was filling out a preschool application for Mary Virginia. The application asked lots of questions to help the teachers get to know her, including some of her social and academic skills. One question asked which numbers she could recognize, and I wasn’t sure how to answer. Then I thought about
Spring won’t officially be here for a couple of weeks, but is sure feels like spring. And all this sunshine does a world of good. A portrait of my children, once a week, every week, in 2016. All three of them / On the first warm day of the season, I re-introduced our children’s third parent: the water table. Thirty seconds in and