A Midsummer with Big Kids
We are in the thick of summer, and it’s going much better than last year. Last June, we had moved to a new town and knew no one and nothing. I thought we’d spend the summer finding kids, meeting neighbors, establishing roots, settling in. I thought summer would be a great time to move, to give that extra few months to make it feel like home. But when pull a picture from my memory file from last…
We Represent the Lullaby League from the Bathroom Floor
When you learn about Shakespeare, one of the first things they teach you is how to easily distinguish between a comedy and a tragedy. In order to entertain, both may have jokes or moments that pull at your tears, but the easiest way to distinguish is to stick around to the end. In comedies, the main characters live. In tragedies, they don’t. In high school, I loved theater. I had done children’s…
Organize Your Garbage: In which I Am Done with Social Media Nonsense
Can we say, “enough already”? Is it time? I thought this when I opened my email this morning to find an article called “10 Garage Organization Ideas That Will Change Your Life.” If having a Pinterest worthy garage “changes my life,” my life must suck. Either that, or I’ve entirely lost a grip on reality. Either the garage that holds all my outside stuff and tools just fine, thank you very much,…
The Puppy Monster: In Which a Yeti is Invited to Live with Us
Last year at Disney, one of our favorite rides was Everest. On the ride, you wind around a mountain chased by a Yeti. We affectionately called the ride Yeti, and decided it would make a great dog name. We just needed a dog to go with it. Vivvi and husband Wally had been pining for a dog ever since our golden retriever passed a few years ago. Wally Ben had enjoyed the break—even though he was…
The Soccer Mom: Notes from the Sidelines
We are driving to my son’s soccer game, and my husband eyes him in the rearview mirror. “How many goals are you going to score today?” he asks. He is doing what has become a bit of a pre-game motivating ritual. Usually the answer is bursting from Wally Ben’s lips before the question is done being asked. “2!” he might say. Or on an especially exciting day, maybe when breakfast has included some…
Let’s Talk about Sex, Babies. About Giving My 6 and 9 Year Olds the Talk
The phone call came in at around 7:45AM. I had just seen my babies off on the bus from my usual spot—a couch in our living room placed in the perfect position to see the corner across the street where they are picked up every day. I usually grab my coffee, sit there, and wave when required (because for some reason, me sitting in a room in my 1st grader’s sight-range makes me a celebrity who needs…
Permission to Play: On my personal best lip sync performance of all time.
I was working at my desk and humming along to the music that was playing from my computer speakers. The music was background, calming, and atmosphere-setting, carrying me along through my work like I was riding a raft along a river on a sunny day. I realized, though, that the song I was listening to and now singing along to full blast was more like rapids—each long note like it’s own waterfall of…
Priceless
Wally asked me the other day what "priceless" meant. He thought it meant something that is worth nothing so it costs nothing. So I tried to explain it by saying that no one could buy him from me—he's so valuable that there is no price high enough. I wasn't sure if he got it. The kids are doing well in their new school. I ask them what they did at recess, and their responses are so different.…
The Class List: On the End of Summer, and New Beginnings
We pulled up to the all brick neighborhood school where our kids will attend in just a week. They had posted the class lists on the door, and we’d decided to go and check it out. Since we just moved, we haven’t attended this school before—in fact, we’ve only been inside the building once so far, and that was just a few steps into the office to register. At the time, the kids were under the threat…
The Writing’s on the Wall
We moved in June. When we told someone we were moving and how much we loved our home and the memories that it held, they suggested leaving our mark. I knew the perfect place. When we had lived in our 50s ranch home for 3 months, I was folding clothes in the laundry room. Many homeowners remodel their laundry space to achieve what we had going on here—tons of cabinet space and storage,…