Category: Truth in Parenting
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The arrival of midwestern Spring has been slow and temperamental. The kids have been restless and temperamental. I ask them to play outside for at least a few minutes every night after dinner. I have visions of their youth spent playing in a bucolic garden, on…
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I’ve been ruminating on being 50, dying younger then I planned, and what I want to be when I grow up. It’s been a challenging few months; the recent down slope of this Cancer roller coaster has been a long, slow descent this winter and now into spring. I’m working on…
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The season to be overwhelmed, over budget and over scheduled. I’m opting out of a lot of things, streamlining the holiday chaos. But tonight we could not escape. There are TWO parties tonight. One birthday, one holiday. For kids. The kids explain the parties: “Mine is a sleep under but you don’t have to wear…
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I think a lot about Charlie going from age 3, still potty training, to age 6, starting first grade, during The Pandemic. And The Cancer. It’s been tough on the little guy. On all of us. He can be demanding, he talks constantly (and I mean CONSTANTLY), and he’s stubborn. And he hates change. And…
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I’ve written and rewritten todays post, alternating between feeling bold and feeling uncomfortable. Here goes bold: Abortion made me a good mother. When I was 17, my birth control failed. I knew immediately that abortion was my choice. I knew I was supposed to feel bad about it, and I did some performative dramatics about…
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It’s the most embarrassing time of the year. The windows are open and Mama is hopin’ that no one can heeeear! The family is yelling, the neighbors are selling To get out of heeeeeere! It’s the most embarrassing time of the year! There’ll be voices to lower, Unless there’s a mower! Siblings are out of…
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I haven’t hit upon a charming story to tell about our First Born Spring Break Road Trip. It was fun…but it wasn’t. The weather was crummy, and I was sooooooo tired, but that wasn’t the problem. It just wasn’t…the same. Some parts of the journey felt as heavy as the cloud cover; the buoyancy of…
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I’m processing last week’s good cancer news, though it’s been a confusing jumble of emotions. Switching from crisis mode to maintenance mode is not speedy. I feel that I am experiencing many of the emotions I set aside in the past sixteen months, unleashed all at once. Also, I have medically induced PMS (another…
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I’ve been dragging my chemo-fatigued ass across town each Thursday night after work, shuttling Felix to his rock climbing class. The parking is terrible. It’s dark. I worked all day. And it’s cold. Did I mention the parking? But I love seeing him suit up on his own and scramble up that wall with…
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It’s cold and miserable outside, and I’m forced to work from home again (thanks a lot unvaccinated virus mutating hosts). To battle the predictable winter blues, I’ve done a few zoom watercolor classes and some paint sketches of our trip. It’s pleasant to doodle in my front sunroom, though I can’t decide which I prefer—the…
girl at large 