My Once Upon a Time...

1. How old are you? 12 2. Who is your best friend? Jake  3. What is your favorite thing to do? Play with my friends  4. What is your favorite color? Blue 5. What is your favorite food? Steak 6. What do you like to do with your family? With my family I just like to do anything that is cool and we get to spend time together.   7. What is your favorite toy? Zipstring  8. What do you want to be when you grow up? I don’t know yet.  9. What makes you happy? You guys.  10. What makes you sad? School 11. What is your favorite Show to watch? I don’t know.  12. What is your favorite book? Percy Jackson  13. What do you love to learn about? Eco systems  14. What was the best part of your birthday? The dinner  15. What was your favorite birthday present? The purple pillow, it’s very comfy. It helps me sleep.  16. Who is your teacher? Ms. Polydorus 17. Where do you like to go? Washington  18. What is your favorite trea...

I started planning this trip last summer, because I knew I wanted to take Fox on a special one on one trip after he turned ten. He has loved Harry Potter for many years, and we've been to Universal Studios in California several times, but I knew he would love the bigger Harry Potter World in Florida. On the night before our flight, he requested a special dinner at his favorite restaurant.  We had an overnight flight and both slept a little bit on the plane, but were exhausted when we arrived in the morning, so we took a little nap, before starting our adventures. We stayed onsite at one of the Universal hotels, and it was absolutely perfect. There wasn't anything super special about our room, but he kept saying how fancy it was! The view from our room. After we had caught up on some sleep, we took the shuttle bus to Volcano Bay. I don't like water parks, but this one was absolutely amazing. Plus, it was so hot, that the water felt great. Fox and I still talk about it to thi...

Fox is 10! It blows my mind that I had the privilege to be his mom for the last DECADE! He is kind, sensitive, empathetic, creative, an amazing negotiator, funny, loving and sweet, and he gives the best hugs! He is a homebody through and through, loves playing Roblox, reading, and zooming around on his hover board. He likes the finer things in life like his other mom, but the rest of his personality is all me. For his 10th birthday celebration, I have something very special planned, and I cannot wait. I started to ask Fox the same questions on his birthday since he was three years old, and while his answers are not as funny as they were when he was little, I love to hear them every year and compare them with previous years. Fox’s 10th Birthday Interview: 1. How old are you? 10 2. Who is your best friend? Lukas 3. What is your favorite thing to do? Play with Lukas and talk 4. What is your favorite color? Purple 5. What is your favorite food? Filet mignon 6. What do you like to do with y...

Nine years of being a mom to this awesome kid...it's hard to believe! Halfway to adulthood...I'm not ok! Katie and I asked Fox for months what he wanted to do for his birthday. Have a party? Go somewhere special with just one friend? We threw so many ideas at him, but he couldn't decide. All he knew was that he wanted to have a sleepover with his best friend. His actual birthday fell on Mother's Day this year, and Katie offered to host a family BBQ to celebrate him. I guess this is a Jones family tradition, but Fox didn't see it coming. Fortunately he was a good sport about it. I had found a Harry Potter escape room, and suggested it for Fox to do as an activity with his friends. He invited his two best classmates, and Katie, Christina, and I took the boys...we figured that we definitely needed some adults to escape...let's just say Christina and I carried the team haha! And we did, with just a couple of minutes to spare. They all had a blast, including Finn! Af...

And just like that...he's 9! I’ve asked Fox the same questions for his birthday since he was three, and I told him he’d have to endure this until he’s 18, so here we go… 1. How old are you? I’m 9 2. Who is your best friend? My best friend? Uh…Lucas! 3. What is your favorite thing to do? Play Roblox with Lucas 4. What is your favorite color? Dark blue 5. What is your favorite food? Costco pizza 6. What do you like to do with your family? Have date nights 7. What is your favorite toy? My ipad…does that count? 8. What do you want to be when you grow up? A game inventor 9. What makes you happy? When my whole family plays with me 10. What makes you sad? When Finn is mean to me 11. What is your favorite Show to watch? Lanky box 12. What is your favorite book? Harry Potter…by far! 13. What do you love to learn about? I love to learn about Roblox secrets. 14. What was the best part of your birthday? Staying up as late as I want with Lucas. 15. What was your favorite birthday present? Proba...

EIGHT! Doesn't that seem SO OLD? I can't believe I almost have a third grader, but here we are. Fox didn't decide for a long time what he wanted to do for his birthday, but finally decided on a Minecraft pool party/sleepover at our house. He only had one sleepover with one friend at our house in the past, and never at someone else's house, and while I was very nervous about being in charge of eight kids for an entire day and night, how can I say "no" to his birthday wish? He didn't have a party for several years, last year he decided to go to the Great Wolf Lodge with his best friend for his birthday, and the year before was COVID and we had a drive by parade. I was excited to be able to craft for his party again, and he was so appreciative about everything I made, which made me so happy. Party favor books. I always try to stay away from little trinkets that go in the trash right away, and I think all of his friends loved the books. This took me way more t...