http://www.shwanda.com A Diary of a Blended Family -- How one couple took a second chance on love and blended five children, four cats, three dogs, two fish and a bird. Tue, 06 Jan 2009 00:44:19 +0000 http://backend.userland.com/rss092 en I took my daughters to buy bras at Victoria Secret yesterday. They begged me. Believe me, I didn't want to go. I don't approve of the whole pushup bra/thong scene, particularly for young girls. They insisted they have the best "I'll die if I don't have them bras" so I ... http://www.shwanda.com/2009/01/the-underwear-story/ We had a wonderful holiday. It was a little dicey there leading up to it because there is always a lot of anxiety in a blended family over split loyalties between various households, fears that traditional customs will not be met and other general angst. Sophia seemed to have the most issues. For ... http://www.shwanda.com/2009/01/happy-new-year/ No Surfing Santa this year, at least not yet. Paul and the boys had to redo the lights because the ones left on "the wave" were sun bleached white and since they were no longer blue, Paul wanted to replace them. He purchased $150 of new blue strands of lights and ... http://www.shwanda.com/2008/12/no-surfing-santa-this-year/ The inflatable man arrived in the mail today. Now we can put the finishing touches on our Surfing Santa. Last year Paul and the kids made a "wave" out of chicken wire, strung it with blue lights, and placed a blown up doll dressed in a wetsuit wearing a Santa ... http://www.shwanda.com/2008/12/surfing-santa/ We got our tree on Saturday.  The kids looked forward to it all week. This is our third Christmas all together and it is a comfort and a joy to see that we are already forming our combined family traditions. Paul's kids have thoroughly embraced the advent calendar daily gift ... http://www.shwanda.com/2008/12/getting-the-tree-and-other-christmas-traditions/ It is getting late and I am sick with a miserable sore throat, but tomorrow is December 1st so I have spent the evening  busily  making advent calendars for Sam, Mark and Cheryl. I have always had a tradition with my girls starting on December 1st that they  would each open a ... http://www.shwanda.com/2008/11/christmas-advent-calendars/ Sophia and I were driving in the car yesterday when we passed an empty lot where a naked guy was walking around aimlessly holding a cardboard box. At first we weren't sure. We saw him from behind. He was wearing a long-sleeved shirt that barely covered his bum and that was all. Sophia asked, "Is ... http://www.shwanda.com/2008/11/the-naked-guy/ Yesterday was the last day for soccer. Yeah! What a relief. I am happy the girls play and support their decison to do so, but it is really hard on the dinner hour to get both girls, Cheryl and Eva, to their practices since they have to be at two ... http://www.shwanda.com/2008/11/end-of-soccer-season/ Sunday is Cheryl's 11th birthday and it is her weekend to be with her mom and my kids will be with their dad. She told me yesterday that she wanted to spend the day bowling with her siblings. I told her I thought that could be arranged and that my ... http://www.shwanda.com/2008/11/cheryls-birthday/ Today was a big deal in our blended household. We are finally unpacked!!! For the last two years we have been looking for things that I was almost ready to give up on. For the umpteenth time,  Paul and the boys (my heros) went out into the storage room with ... http://www.shwanda.com/2008/11/banner-day-today/